The first thing you need to get is the APPLE SDK from their website. Select FirewireSDK23. This is free, but you have to give some information and register. Download the latest version of the SDK and install it. Once you install it you can find the software in the Developer/ directory. I am currently on the Comcast system and it works with the standard box that includes Firewire 400 ports. Connect the cable to your Mac and VOILA!

The software is slick in that you can schedule recordings and you can select the channel that you want to record. There may be some encryption on some of the channels, but the network stations are unencrypted. I could not record TNTHD, but not a big deal. I can record all of the network channels and ESPNHD. Sweet. You typically want to set aside 100 MB/minute. This is hardly any space for HD content especially if it costs nothing to record the feed!

Once you have recorded the file, it becomes a file that is formatted as a .m2t file. Luckily, MPlayer and VLC support these files fully and can play them back. There you have it, this is a free way to record your HDTV programs! I hope you enjoy this and it looks great streamed to the television!

I just recently bought a new television and during the checkout the service guy kept pushing me to buy the service plan. He said, ” We will replace your bulb if it breaks in the first 4 years or if ANYTHING goes wrong we replace the TV.” I countered with, “I already have a television that had an issue and all they did was call some electrician to come out and fix the issue. They never replaced it.” Then he goes on with a long list of buts. This is the first time I have ever been pushed to buy a service plan. To me, it wasnt worth it, the buld costs $125 on eBay and it is really simple to replace. I was happy that I made the purchase, but dealing with the store clerk was a pain in the ass.

Secondly, the extended warranty wasn’t really all it was cracked up to be. Yes you pay for 4 years extended warranty or even 2, but the fact of the matter is that the manufacturer gives you a one year ALREADY! You are technically only paying for 3 years or just one year! They want you to bring the product back in the first year so that they can cut costs by just sending back to the manufacturer! This is something you could have done! But, who’s to argue peace of mind. I say if you are really that paranoid about something breaking, you better get used to paying high premiums! If you feel comfortable doing it, then do it. To me, nothing is more valuable than peace of mind, but it’s much cheaper to go without .

The one feature I really enjoy is the suggestion of a destination based upon the length of stay and budget. The site will then create a little map of the destinations you can fly to. This is Tom Smakowski’s “Jump to Conclusions Mat” come true. That is an Office Space reference if you don’t know who Tom Smakowski is.

The site also has an interesting feature called Fare Guard. It will let you “guard” your fare for one week once you decide to guard it. You have one week to redeem the Fare Guard. The service will refund the difference between the Fare Guard price and the lowest price that you find. It’s a win-win if you ask me. The best thing about this service is that it is FREE! Sweet. If any of you are going to try it for the holidays let me know how it goes. Or if I decide to do it, I will post an update.

Wii Video

My biggest pet peeve when it comes to fantasy football is how many points each player gets in real-time. I know Yahoo provides this service for a fee and many other sites do to. But, how nice would it be for you to see your fantasy points pop up on your TV? Let’s just say Randy Moss scores a TD on a 75 yard pass, it would instantly pop up a little bubble -a la VH1’s Pop-Up Video and give you a quick update on your score in Yahoo!, ESPN, or CBS Sportsline. Another sticking point would definitely be the data service available on your cable provider. Now if everyone has the Verizon FiOS Cable, then we might be in business.

This would get rid of any axious moments towards the end of the season when you have to wait until the next morning to see what you team scored. This kind of service will also change the way that we pick up free agents and even make the games on TV that much more interesting for girls to participate in. I call that a win-win situation. Now onto writing this business plan to make this happen for the masses.

1. The most important thing about what to look for in a driver is feel. How do YOU feel about the driver when it contacts the ball. Do you like the sound the ball makes off of the face? Does the ball jump off the club face and has the correct trajectory for your swing? Here in Maryland we have Mammoth Golf outlets that have swing mats that let you see the launch angle of your ball. Whether you are a high ball hitter or a low driving trajectory, this machine will tell you everything. I don’t know how accurate it is for distance, but it sure does allow you to try several clubs before choosing one. Best of all, it’s free!

2. Some people fail to look at the shaft that the club comes with. I know many guys that try swing a stif shaft and their club speed is barely 85 mph. Which puts you down to a Regular flex shaft. The point of the flex in the shaft is so that the shaft flexes and ‘kicks’ at a certain point to maximize your distance. If you swing hard and you use a regular flex shaft, the club head never actually catches up with your hands because it is still in its ‘kick’ mode. So when you actually contact the ball, it feels like you are hitting a baseball with the club. Not a good feeling. So go get your swing speed and select the right shaft.

3. Loft is a another biggie. I know you have had a buddy, that has said that he can’t get the ball up in the air, and now you just take a look at his loft on his club and see if he is hitting something below a 10.5 degree. For amateurs, the higher the loft, the easier it is to get in the air. As you get better you can drop down into the single digits, but it has been noted that the higher you hit the ball, the more distance you can get (at the proper launch angle of course and good course conditions with a little bit of luck). So find the right loft and go hit it at the range, you’d be surprised at the results.

4. You get what you pay for. There is a major difference in clubs even at the expensive level. The technology ahs changed and clubs are hitting longer everyday. A Taylor Made 360 made about 3 years ago, will not be the same as hitting the R7. And the same goes for each other manufacturer. Some people go out and buy the $100 MacGregor at Wal-Mart and they are not doing themselves any favors. The new drivers are much more forgiving and give you more distance. And as with everything consumer-wise. You get what you pay for.

First of all, people like to choose the lanes that are moving the quickest, so of course common sense would tell you to pick the shortest line. And what’s the shortest line at the toll both? The one with the red light and the one with the EZ-PASS only sign. When there was a jam, the far outside left lane was moving right along, while I was stuck idling to the toll booth. Not only will having an EZ-PASS save time, it will save you gas!

If more people adopt the use of the EZ-PASS, the state would have to install more of those EZ-PASS Express lanes, where people can go through at full speed. Europe has had these things for years and we are just catching up??!! Sad. So start talking people into one of these things and get with the 21st century.

There were a few instances where there were lanes that were stuck, because the exact change only lanes were plugged up due to stupid people dropping their change on the ground and opening their doors to pick up their change. PEOPLE find another dime and move on!

EZ-PASS is free and if you pay by credit card, it only costs a mere $25 to start an account. Then once the amount dips down below $10 it replenishes using the credit card, back up to $25. There is no fee for the EZ-PASS, except in NY and possibly NJ, and it can be used across the country. So to those of you that don’t want one because of whatever reason, I say kudos to you for waiting at those toll booths and keeping the high school and old women employed.

It has been widely known that kids that play video games are also more skilled with hand-eye coordination activities. Well, not if your name is Chad. Sorry, inside joke from college. However, playing video games for an extended period of time can cause epilepsy and extreme laziness. I guess, allowing surgeons to practice their skills on the game of operation is obsolete now.

I, personally sell my stuff on Anandtech Forums. If you become part of an online community and users begin to know your nickname, you can build a reputation of being a “good” guy. Obviously your reputation won’t build like that over night, but it will get there. Mostly, there are computer enthusiasts that buy old computer junk and even newer stuff. You can find stereo equipment and games for cheap. I call it a virtual garage sale. You can always find something for cheap.

You ask how do you know if this person is reputable? Well, you may never know, but sites such as Heatware.com bring the testimonials to you of the users that sell items within the forums. Yes, people can put up fake rating and yes they can be lying, but like with anything done online, if it’s too good to be true, it probably is. So use caution and common sense.

There are sites like Craigslist as well. This site has just about everything under the sun. They have personal ads as well as classifieds. But they are not governed by anyone and most people do not use any type or feedback based system. Most postings are for local metros and require a pick up option. If you find a great deal on something, you most likely have to go pick it up. But at least you will get what you paid for instead of cross shipping. Once again, use caution when replying to one of those classifieds.

These are just a couple of options for people to choose from. There are thousands of sites where people are trying to get rid of their stuff. Just use caution when going through a transaction of this nature. And if you do, you will come out with something you want or need for a great price. Happy trading.

Once I ordered the prints, they came in 3-4 days in a nice package that said do not bend. I opened it up and saw a nice thumbnail sheet of the photos I ordered and a summary of what was ordered. The prints came out really glossy on nice photo paper. On the back of the photos, they printed out the name of the JPEG you uploaded and the date. Pretty frickin sweet. They definitely had better quality than my local Ritz Camera.

I am going to try a few different places with other pics and I will compare the services. So far, Shutterfly has had the sweetest deal. Now throw me some free prints for the free plug!