Glad I Didn’t Buy a Zune…



Apparently overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, many, if not all, first generation Zune 30 gb players froze and refuse to operate. The shutdowns seem to have occurred simultaneously around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, December 31. Zunes that have frozen may or may not start up again, and when they do start up, they freeze again before completely booting.

Microsoft has issued a vague “we’re working on the problem” statement on the Zune website.

I have a nearly four year old iPod 60 gb player (gen IV, I think). I’ve never had one second of a problem with it (I can’t say the same for iTunes, however). When I bought MP3 players for everyone in my household for Christmas, I opted for Sony and Sansa players, something without much operating system to go wrong, and with no firmware updates to screw anything up. I’d have bought iPods but they were out of my budget for a family of five.

Since my entire household is now on a New Year’s Eve trip to Chicago, and everyone has their headphones in rocking to their own music (I’m catching up on all my podcasts), I’m glad that we don’t have a crashed Zune to deal with. I’d have a van full of angry teenagers on my hands if we did!

I hope Microsoft is able to track down the exact problem and get a fix out ASAP. Considering it’s the holidays and perhaps half of Microsoft (along with the rest of the U.S.) is away on vacation, I don’t anticipate a fix yet today, which is bad for those wishing they could use their Zunes right about now.


GNC-2008-12-30 #435 Last Show of Year!



Last show of the year special info at beginning of podcast about CES coverage must listen. Also some closing thoughts on 2008 and I talk some about the Big Hawaiian Power Black out!

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Listener Links:
www.whoppervirgins.com
Roads that generate Electricity
iPhone Ridesharing Application
Pres Elect Likes Spam Musubi
Cell Phone Cancer Study Grim
Lack of Sleep and Hardened Arteries
CBS Jumping into Podcasting
Twitter ID Rights

Show Notes:
Podango on the Ropes
Spitzer W5 Star Formation
Online News Catching Print and TV
Avoid downloading Fake Torrents
Code Cracking Challenge
Some Great Windows Tutorials
Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
AT&T Taken down by Storms
Top Twitter Tools
Cisco Innovative?
DigiFrames Infected
HP Media SmartServer
HDMI Locks
Digital TV Coupons
Best of Gizmodo 2008
Twitter Authority Search
Guest on Podcast Answerman
Geekazine Joining CES Coverage Team
ISS Spacewalk
Cali Texting Ban
Surprise Window 7 License Terms
Warner Music has lost there Minds!

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Fighting on Twitter – Round 1



We’ve seen it in the past. One thing is said and a verbal fight breaks out. I remember having to deal with these “Fires” when I was doing a few different Forums. Good thing was it was always contained within a specific site and usually gotten control of (meaning every now and then someone got banned) before things got out of hand.

Enter Twitter.

I’ve seen a few fights before on Twitter. One thing is said and people react. Someone says the person doesn’t know what their talking about. Threads ensue.

What’s the difference in this and a forum? Public record. Twitter is one big public record that gets regurgitated through other sites and (at least for now) is searchable to everyone – at least the last 1500 posts on search.twitter.com.

Sometimes these fights are to put someone in their place. However I wouldn’t be surprised if some fights are “Wrestling Hooks” – Pre-planned to drive up interest. I’ve seen it many times before. I have also seen one person make up 2 profiles, then go back and forth causing a fight with literally themselves.

So what was this argument about? Well, it’s not really important. If you follow those people, you’ll see it. But it is raising a lot of discussion and awareness on Twitter.


Huge Loss to Podcasting Community



2008podangoThis morning while I sat with my power out after an island wide power blackout, I was informed that Podango a company which competes with RawVoice had informed its podcasters that they were on shaky ground financially.

This comes as very sad news to me as I know the team over their has worked very hard to build out their community and content offerings. More info on what is going to happen to their site and the shows hosted on it will probably break tomorrow.

Business is tough right now, and everyone has had to be careful on strategies that they pick. One of the things that has always amazed me is that companies such as Podango and Mevio (formally Podshow) have given away free hosting which has to be a huge drain financially.

Hosting is not cheap, even at the price we charge for hosting media at Blubrry.com its a steal. As with anything we do at RawVoice and our podcasting communities we take into consideration what is happening in the overall podcasting space and look at ways we can provide solutions to podcasters.

There are sure to be a lot of stressed out podcasters on Podango trying to figure out where to get their podcast hosted before their sites are potentially taken off-line and their media is no longer available.

My team at RawVoice / Blubrry is offering up 30 days free hosting to Podango podcasters and will provide them some tools to help move their media onto our CDN and get there sites relocated prior to the expected shutdown on Dec 31st.

We will have more details at Blubrry.com and RawVoice.com later today!


No $99 4 Gig iPhone, but WalMart Sales Start Sunday



I think it’s a shame. I might’ve bought a 4 gig model.

Walmart confirmed it will be selling the iPhone at select stores – most likely the ones that already have an Apple section to it. They will be selling the 8 and 16 gig iPhones. If you want to save a couple bucks (literally), you can get them there for $197 and $297 respectively. Purchasing in other stores will cost you $199 and $299.

There was a lot of buzz on a $99 – 4 gig model. In all reality, a 4 gig model is pretty good for those who want to use it mostly as a phone. My current smartphone (an HTC) only has 128 Meg on the phone and a Mini SD card that adds another 2 gig to it. Then again, I don’t have the iBeer application or anything like that.

It doesn’t mean that Walmart wont offer a 4 gig model down the road. Maybe they will announce at MacWorld new iPhones. I don’t think Apple would go backwards – unless it’s a 4 gig iPhone mini. I would guess, though, they would announce new iPhones at 32 and maybe 64 gig. That could push an 8 gig iPhone to $99 – or maybe $97 at Walmart. Of course we won’t know until MacWorld – that’s only a couple weeks away.

For now, if you want to save the $2, then it’s off to Walmart you go. That is, unless the Walmart is a farther drive than the Apple store. Then $2 is not going to help.


Mele Kalikimaka – Merry Christmas from Geek News Central



2008chritmastAloha and Merry Christmas

I want to extend a warm Mele Kalikimaka to all of our readers and listeners from all over the world. The team of writers and I hope that your stockings are full and that you have a wonderful Christmas.

Many in the world and in our own back yard are hurting right now and as we move towards 2009, I am going to look for stories that will help you not only save money but give you the availability to invest in technology that makes sense not technology you will waste you precious dollars on.

Enjoy the holidays as the real work begins in the New Year.

Mele Kalikimaka to all..


ProMed Network Soft Launch



I want to draw your attention to a new media network called the ProMed Network. My team at RawVoice have partnered up with the team at ProMed providing the RawVoice Generator technology to power their new site.

I am really excited to see the site up live, with new content being added each day it will fast become a premium destination for medical news and content.