Video: Sync calendars with iPod

Hello! Very brief video here, it's just a small tip, and, I thought, as I hadn't done one for some time yet, I'd do one now. So, here it is, a small tip, it may be small, but it's still something not many people no how to do. In iTunes, if you want to sync calendars, you must have a certain software installed, it's different in the Mac and Windows versions. Most people just think, right, I haven't got this software, I can't put my calendars on. In fact, you can! Just follow the steps in the video below:


So, to be able to do this, you'll need a few things:

• An iPod (I don't think the iTouch or iPhone work... Though I'm sure the Nano does...)
• iTunes (if you don't have it, get it here
• A calendar in .ical format (post on how to do this coming soon)

Assuming you have all the aforementioned items, we can continue. Hook up your iPod to the computer either via a docking station or the USB cable. iTunes should recognise it's plugged in, so go on and sync your music stuffs to it if you want. Ok, that done, go into the iPod Summary page, and make sure the box next to "Enable disk use" is checked. Apply the changes, and head over to Computer. Find the disk that is your iPod and go into it. There should be a folder called "Calendars". Then, open a new File Browser window or Tab (tabbed file browsing in Linux is the best ever!) and browse to where your calendars are located. Copy whichever calendars you want (like me, you may have more than one) to the Calendars folder. Remember, in most iPods you can choose what calendars to view when you go into Calendars, or view all of them, so you could categorise them.

Done that? Go back into iTunes, disable disk use (you don't have to, but you can if you want to), sync up, and eject your iPod. Your calendars should be synced.

I'm getting an iPod Touch in the coming weeks, so there'll be both a review on that, and an update to say if I can do this on there.

In other news: Not much happening at the moment, few posts about some software, maybe a couple of videos? Not quite sure as yet. However, I do have a Tumblr now. Go to it here.

For now,
Yours,
Ratscallion

Oops and Ahh!

Hello!

Just to tell you now, I got my dates mixed up for August’s holiday, I’m actually leaving a week later than I first thought, meaning the Tip of the Month will be up August 1st at some point. I’m not sure when as yet, as my wi-fi card has been playing up today and I’m not sure if it will stay this way!

Also, I have some VERY bad news: The Google Wave highlights video editing seem to have been misplaced… Actually, deleted. Yeah, I had a few problems with Ubuntu in Wubi (root and boot.disk disappeared to be precise) so I did a quick and easy reinstall like I explained in my previous post and video (it’s just below, so you don’t need a link :P). Anyhoo, after the install, I decided to set up my bookmarks and saw this blog… All that time… For nothing. I was almost half way through as well!

Then, I remembered, I luckily copied the *.kdenlive file into the same folder as the actual mp4 (Google IO.mp4) on my Windows partition (/host in Wubi). Phew!

So, now, all I have to do is reinstall the video editing software I used (Kdenlive in this instance) and can carry on with the editing. Excellent!

I think that’s a lesson for all of us here: back up your data. You never know what’s going to happen to it and when. In this particular instance, if I hadn’t backed up, there was no way (I don’t think, I mean, I could have gone down to a root prompt in the recovery Kernel and copied it, but, really, I don’t think that will be the option in many cases) I could have restored or gotten to the file. Think about it, your hard drive (or at least, a partition of it) is inaccessible and contains important file(s). Tough luck there trying to get it back. With Wubi especially, even with a Linux Live CD, you can’t access the Wubi stuff. It can only be accessed within Wubi.

So, that’s it for now,

Yours,

Ratscallion

Video: Install Ubuntu Within Windows With Wubi

Hi! Here comes the unveiling of the surprise video that I have not yet told you the name of. (Cue dramatic music to build tension)... Install Ubuntu With Wubi!

Since I started this blog, I've been hoping to do some videos in Ubuntu, and this is the first. Apologies in advance for the awful sound quality, I had to record it post-filming. Not only that, but the video quality for the filming of the Ubuntu parts is not the best either. Despite that, you can get the information that you do need from the video and I'm always getting emails when you post comments (on the video and the blog), so I will be there to answer them!

Anyhoo, after this breif explanation, here's the video you've all been waiting for. Enjoy! :



To get Ubuntu installed via Wubi, you'll need to download a few things. First of all, you'll need the Wubi executable. It works with all versions of Windows from Windows 98 and upwards (excluding Windows ME). Go and grab it by going here.

While that's downloading, you can go and grab the Ubuntu ISO, or disk image, from The Ubuntu Website. Just click download and then choose the Ubuntu version and desktop environment that you want. The default version, Ubuntu, uses the GNOME desktop environment, whereas Kubuntu uses the KDE desktop environment. Xubuntu is ideal for old computers with less RAM and a smaller Hard Drive. Go to the official Xubuntu website for the complete system requirements. Xubuntu uses a toned down version of the GNOME desktop environment. Most of these ISOs - apart from Xubuntu- are around 700MB, with the Xubuntu one being a bit less.

Once both files have downloaded, put them in the same folder and launch the executable (Wubi). Choose your desktop environment (see previous paragraph), language, installation size (needs about 10GB to be comfortable, the minimum allowed is the minimum in the list) and a user name and password that you'll use to log in. Once all this is done, hit install. You'll be about 15 minutes as long as you have the ISO previously downloaded, otherwise, Wubi will download it for you, but not save it anywhere (I think, correct me if I'm wrong).

Once the install is complete, you'll be asked to reboot - you don't have to, but it is recommended that you do. Once you have decided to finally reboot, you get the choice of OS: Ubuntu and Windows. Windows will be selected as it is the default OS. Use the arrow keys to select Ubuntu and hit enter to boot to it. There'll be a video coming up showing how to edit the default OS and other options.

Ubuntu will act as if it's booting from the CD, so speed will be cut at this point. However, this does not reflect the speed for the actual OS once installation has completed. Anyway, the installation will continue as normal and you shouldn't be prompted to do anything. This part will last around half an hour - give or take a few minuets - so you can go and do other things while you wait. Once the whole thing is done (you don't need to watch every bit of the installation) it will reboot. Again, you'll need to select with the arrow keys to boot into Ubuntu. This time, it will be full speed as if you'd partitioned. Now, you'll be prompted for the User Name and password that you specified in Wubi.

After entering the User credentials, you are presented (in seconds, literally) with the Ubuntu desktop. It's really quite incredible seeing it for the first time, all clean and ready to be used. In the not too distant future I should be making more videos about Ubuntu and how to customize it.

In other news: As I mentioned in my previous post, the Tip of the month for August will be up in a few days prior to August as I'm going to Devon and may not have an Internet connection to be able to put the Tip up while I'm there.

In further news: Got plans for some smaller videos set up, though they are on Windows. However, one does work in any OS. Not saying anything as yet, though one was hinted about in the above article.

For now,
Yours,
Ratscallion

An Update of All Sorts, and news.

Hello! First of all, there are going to be a few posts in the next few days, just because I can.

To start off with, I went into an Apple Store for the first time ever today! Here's a picture of what I saw upon entry:
[IMG]http://images.apple.com/uk/retail/images/store_photos/photo_miltonkeynes.jpg[/IMG]
Anyhoo, I went in there to firstly have a look to see if I could buy a plug for my iPod to charge it from mains, then see what I could get in the way of iTouch cases. Turns out, the iPlug (love the name? I made it myself!) was £25 a HUGE amount for a plug. Secondly, I moved on to the iCase and found they were even more! Going to end up ordering the case from Amazon, same case, half the price! Instead of getting a plug, I'll just plug my iPod into my Wii's USB Port. Works very well as a charger, can just put the Wii on standby. That's a tip for all of you! On both entering the store and going upstairs, I bumped into a few Geniuses (??). On the American programmes and films, you see the Geniuses as cheesy helpful typical Americans. In the UK, it's exactly the same. In fact, a few of those Geniuses were American as well!

Next, a small piece of news: There will be no action from me from July 31st through to August 8th, I'm going on holiday to Devon, a well deserved one I think. Nice week away. May do a reminder post on the 31st of July, the day I'm packing. Photos will probably end up on my Flickr.

As for video news: I'll be doing narration for the surprise video on Thursday, so a little more editing after that and it should be up a few days after. Probably at the weekend, so July 25th ish. As for the Google Wave Keynote highlights, I've been doing a lot on that recently. Still got a lot to do, so it may not be up until mid-August, maybe later. Also, I'll hopefully be doing a small tip video, around the length of Sound and Audio Device Enabling/Disabling (click to watch). However, I'm still not 100% sure on what it should be as yet... Will hopefully pop into my mind soon!

In other news: There's a lot of software I hope to be reviewing, some in the way of articles, others in the way of videos. Lots coming up and I'm really excited about it all!

For now,
Yours,
Ratscallion

Small video update

Hello! I'd just like to say a big thank you to everyone who read the last post. It was very lengthy and probably a struggle for a lot of people to read in one big gulp.

Anyhoo, this post is just a small update to tell you all how my videos at the moment are getting on. Firstly, the Google I/O Day 2, Google wave highlights. This video will almost definitely be a multi-parter as the main thing is over 90 minutes long, and I am going to struggle to get it into one 10 minute sitting. So yeah, probably a few parts. Also, I have finally found a video editor with MP4 support. It's in Linux and uses FFMPEG, YAY!

Finally, the surprise video. As far as I'm aware, I haven't actually said what it's going to be, and, until it's released, I probably won't. It's a really big risk for me, as I had to use my camera on a super reflective screen (yup...). Still, all of the filming and screen recording has been completed and edited with zooms and crops. All that's left now is to add the narration. I did it this way so that it all fitted in together, and will probably do it this way in the future too.

In Other news: There will be NO blog posts for the second week in August... I'm on a well deserved holiday down in Devon. Well, that's if (very likely) there's no Wi-Fi. I'll still probably take the laptop, going to watch some movies and can't be bothered to get a porto DVD player.

For now,
Yours,
Ratscallion

Google Update

Hello! Not updated you for some time now, and I'd just like to say, I've been very (well...) busy with... stuff. So, yeah... (bad excuse, I know). As for videos, I've recorded the video part of the next video. However, there was a little problem, I imported the video into Linux, and then copied the avis to the Windows partition, and now the folder I put the avis in is "Corrupt". Going to try and sort it out later along with narrating and editing it.

As for the Google I/O , Google Wave Highlights video, I still need either a converter for mp4 to something else, video clipping software with mp4 support (ideas?).

Google Wave, eh? Google's got another thing coming soon too: Chrome OS. Chrome OS is an Operating System that is being constructed as I type this, by Google. There have been many rumors going around the net that Google will construct and OS soon enough. Sometimes, though, they aren't even rumors, mainly just wishes. Still, it IS officially going to happen. Still doubtful? Google posted in their official blog (http://googleblog.blogspot.com) about the introduction of Chrome OS.

The idea behind it is that many people use the web for almost everything nowadays (just think, how often to you spend offline completely, compared with that of online and using online applications). Therefore, Google are simply going to base their new OS on the Internet. Not only that, but Google now have their own web browser (Google Chrome), so that will be the default browser for the OS. Also, as known and actively used by many, Google offers many different services that are slowly making us creep closer and closer to cloud computing. For example, there's no longer a need for any downloadable office software, we have Google Docs, need a program for RSS feeds? Google Reader's there. The list goes on and on, and on, and on (it really does).

Basically, Chrome OS is going to be aimed at netbooks and netbook users, whose main aim is to be constantly connected to the net and use it whenever possible. That's why Google have covered this point in their blog post:

"People want to get to their email instantly, without wasting time waiting for their computers to boot and browsers to start up. They want their computers to always run as fast as when they first bought them. They want their data to be accessible to them wherever they are and not have to worry about losing their computer or forgetting to back up files."

The article then goes on to say:

"Even more importantly, they don't want to spend hours configuring their computers to work with every new piece of hardware, or have to worry about constant software updates."

Google also has some of the main suppliers of netbooks behind them as, already, Acer, HP, Lenovo and Asus, to name a few.

To put it in a nutshell: Google is going to make an OS that will be speedy and based on the Linux kernel (meaning it will probably be free). It will be based on the net using all of Google's applications (Reader, Docs etc) to function. It will be mostly aimed at netbooks, but that will only be to start with, it will no doubt end up on the Desktop. Google is also creating an entire new window management system from scratch.

I do suggest reading the aforementioned blog in full to be able to grasp everything that Google will be offering. However, I do have a few more things to say before you casually navigate off of this blog.

Firstly, it's quite easy to figure out what Google is going to be using for it's Instant Messaging: Google Wave. Of course, it's still in development, but Google say that Chrome OS will not be available until mid/late 2010, and Wave is supposed to be released " later this year," so there's plenty of time to wait for Wave.

Secondly, Google are going to have to put their heads together and work really hard on trying to sort this out. Think about it, you're using Chrome for pretty much everything, so if you click a launcher that's on the desktop for, say, office software, and you already have an instance of Chrome open, is it going to open a new instance (window), a new tab, or do nothing? At the moment, in the desktop environment of GNOME, it would say it's already open, because it's using the same program... Though Google, as I mentioned earlier, is making a new Desktop Environment, so that should hopefully sort out this problem.

Next, I'd just like to flatten the whole thing by saying one thing: Google is a company. A company's only purpose is to earn money, and, as previously discussed on the net, Google makes money by using 2 things: adverts and data. Data? Yes, data. It collects the usage data of the customers and then sells them to third-parties. For example, the Google Wave whitepapers state that the data will be kept on the servers, but not for how long. You'd assume that it would be until the data has been received by the recipient, but, no. It would conveniently get sold to the highest bidder. As are all our search queries. So, let me ask you, Google, how are you going to get our data this time, and, once you have it, what are you going to do with it. Both questions are relatively simple to answer. Firstly, there will probably be some sort of 'data collection service' that you can opt in and out of at your free will, we hope. Seeing as Chrome OS is going to be based on a Linux Kernel, we'd hope this, as Google will not - hopefully - be able to edit the kernel source code, and it would be included in the Terms of Service if there had been. This data collection would probably just be things like what you do on a day to day basis. Basically Wakoopa, but it sells the data and collects more than what software you use, but what you actually do and every character you type in the software.

Finally, I'd just like to say, thank you very much for taking your time and reading through this post. I do admit that it is a big chunk of writing to be able to read through and was hesitant myself in actually submitting it, but, nevertheless, thank you.

In other news: As previously mentioned, I am still having a few problems with the video because of "folder corruption" which should be fixed shortly.

For now,
Yours,

Ratscallion

Surprises coming soon!

Hellooo! Just been filming the next of my videos, and I have to tell you, it is going to be big. Unfortunately, I'm keeping it quiet for some time, possibly until it's posted. It will take some time to edit because I had to use my actual camera to film it (there's a hint for you!). This means I'll have to remove the sound from the camera video and then narrate it and get the timing right. Also, when recording the screen, I decided to not record the audio on that as well, narration too! I may also have to edit the video, rather than the timeline because of some reflection issues... The room I recorded in wants to stay secret for some time thank you!

In other news: I'll be doing an article on Wakoopa, then possibly Google Wave (though probably not until it is released) and some more software. These will definitely include screenshots!


For now,
Yours,

Ratscallion