Go Archos!!! New Archos Internet Tablet Lineup!!!

I am an ultimate Archos fan, it all started  years back when I convinced my sister to purchase the old 7" AV700 40GB media player / recorder, I sooned followed and bought the 5" AV500 100GB media player / recorder... at that time nothing came close to the functionality of the Archos, aside from the large HDD to store all movies / tv series / music, this also served as a backup HDD for my DSLR without the need for a PC to transfer files and aside from that this unit served as my DVR for recording TV shows that I wouldn't want to miss! Another thing I loved about the Archos is that you can simply drag and drop files wherever you like, without the need to sync or update your file libraries!

the Archos AV500

Then back in 2008, I decided to move on to my second Archos, the Archos 5(nope not yet the Android version), these now came with resistive touch screens instead of the Nav buttons of the AV series, I got the 120GB version. This was a huge upgrade from my first Archos, aside from the touch screen I mentioned, the device also came with wifi and uPnP, I bought the optional docking station and this came with a small IR keyboard. With uPnP & wifi I need not load files on to the Archos anymore, I simply accessed them through network via router to my NAS drive / PC and I was also able to surf the net through my TV!

I would say I'm a very happy Archos customer, loyal? maybe...except I didn't like the fact that I spent so much on my second Archos-- on the PMP itself and on the accessories which were bundled with the old AV series, worse, a couple of months after comes a cheaper and leaner Archos 5 Internet Tablet Android! But its all good since this little gadget saved me from boredom and long plane flights a lot of times.

The Archos 5

A couple of months ago after the release of the Archos 7 home tablet for less than $200, I was so tempted to order one from Amazon... but it still came with the old 1.6 Android OS-- so I told my self to wait for something at least 2.1. Low and behold, after checking in Archos' website today, they have already announced the new line up of Android internet tablets with verions 2.2 "froyo" from display sizes 2.8" all the way to 10.1"... and the best part is (according the web) the 10.1" is priced below $300 USD! Even with all the tablets coming out left and right, for a price that's lower than the Ipad, a Froyo Android OS and a brand name like Archos plus a strong Archos fan site support, this seems like a winner for me!

M a definitely gonna get myself one of these... real soon... cause I crave!!! hehehe check out the link for more info: http://www.archos.com/home.html?country=us&lang=en

VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

My NAS gave up no me!

After more than a year of use, my Buffalo NAS (Network Access Storage) Link Station Pro 1.0TB has crashed on me!!!

Buffalo Live Station Pro LS-XHL

I would say this device served me well...

1. Download torrents remotely through its built-in Bittorrent client-- this way I call on my NAS to download whatever I want and by the time I get home it's all ready
2. Stream movies wirelessly across through my uPNP device (Archos 5) to my TV ... no more transferring of files-- it becomes an extension of my media player!
3. Remotely access files through webaccess
4. Share large files to friends-- I just tell them to access my NAS through the NET

Basically its a computer that I can remote control and access... best of all it stays on without consuming much electricity.

Ahh... yes I do love this device-- sad to say support sucks and I'm on my own since I bought this from the US, so I doubt local Buffalo distro would support me. I've gone through the forums of reflashing firmware etc etc but none of it worked for my NAS!

I learned that the file system of the Buffalo NAS is XFS so no good mounting it on Windows, thank God again for UBUNTU, I managed to take off the hard drive and run it straught from UBUNTU, phew all files are still intact, so it could be the board or corrupted firmware that's bugging my NAS-- I assume it was power failure last week that caused this.

Today, started backing up and transferring 100GB of data... 700GB to go...

I also came across this forum: http://buffalo.nas-central.org its a wiki site on how to hack your NAS station... oh joy! Finally an excuse to hack my station, let's see what the open stock firmware has to offer-- they say more!

Remove the two stickers at the bottom and split the casing into 2!

 

 Well well a WD 1.0TB HDD securely attached to the main PCB of the NAS

 Simply remove the screws securing the HDD and it's off! Time to retrieve those files!

VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

TRENDnet 3-Port Print Server TE100-P21

No not 1, not even 2, but 3, yes 3 printers, running different OS's at the same time from a single print server, the TRENDnet 3-Port Print Server TE100-P21

In my sales department, I currently have 3 printers and around 2 desktops and 4 notebooks running... I initially bought a single printer server, it worked--for one printer... but what about the other two?

My printers are 1 Epson LX-300II dot matrix, 1 classic yet robust HP Laserjet 6L printer and an economy HP Laserjet 1020... now how do you run them across OS's at the same time without problems? a 3 printer print server! The OS's I'm currently running within the are Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux... and a couple other Windows 7  notebooks across the network.

The Trendnet print server has 3 ports, 2 USB ports and 1 LPT printer port.

I must admit it was easier and faster setting up the printers from Ubuntu compared to Windows.

With Ubuntu simply add network printers and the 3 printers from the server attached through the network would just pop out, where as with Windows your better of going through the print server's installation software, than manually installing the printers.

This is still cheaper compared to buying single port print servers that is if you have 3 or more printers in the network.

 
VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

A video on starting an e-commerce site

I've had my share of creating websites, infact a website I created way back 1998 is still up for god knows what reason... www.angelfire.com/vt/VAT
It's also been a long while since I last updated our company's website since I didn't have the time to update anymore...last time I updated this was wayback in 2006! And don't ask me how I made the flash video cause I don't remember anymore how I did it: www.toolec.com.ph

Now what is this blog about? It's about this link, watch the YouTube link below first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWW5TAVQtLw

The link is about some things to keep in mind before putting up an e-commerce website. And what perfect timing, lately I've been thinking of renovating our company's site, and of course this time I will definitely need 3rd party support since websites are getting more and more complex (while time is also an issue).

The YouTube link gave some helpful pointers c/o Red Oxx Manufacturing (www.redoxx.com), an e-commerce success story:
1. Website should communicate your brand
2. Put yourself in the shoes of your customer, and surf your website as if you were your own customer
3. Total website involvement
4. Hire a webmaster/developer who is willing to continuously involve himself with the site.
5. Make every click "count"

Ok time to start looking for a web designer to take our company's site to the next level-- e-commerce style.

VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

Have you tried Ubuntu lately?

Are you experiencing the ff:
- Sick and bored of your old Windows GUI?
- Have an old functional computer / laptop lying around which you think can still be used for web surfing or basic office apps?
- Thinking of buying a netbook / basic laptop for web surfing or basic office apps but don't want to spend extra cash on the OS, office app or anti-virus?
- Old Windows installation taking too long too load?

Why not try Linux Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Linux? (check out www.ubuntu.com)

 (Above: Desktop version of Ubuntu, Netbook version has a different look but gives you the same functions)



The new Linux OS's are now very simple and straight forward-- user friendly, all the way from installation to use (as long as you download installation files for "desktop" or "netbook" and not the alternative types of installation)

Below are 10 things I love about the Ubuntu:

1. It's free!
2. Runs right of out the box, the Ubuntu installation package comes with everything you need from Open Office, Mozilla Firefox, photo / video editing software, BIT torrent client, social networking programs for FB and Twitter, Consolidated online messenger for YM, Gmail, AOL, MSN to name a few. (it comes with games, and you can even download more games!!!)
3. No problems with drivers... I've tried installing Ubuntu on a 5 year old PC with a RAM size of 256MB (though it work faster on a 512) DDR2, lan cards, CD's, graphics etc. all work just fine-- even my old linksys wireless B USB!
4. No Viruses(so far), infact I've been able to mount a hard drive from a Windows based PC and rid it of viruses-- they all come out in the open since you're now using a different OS
5. Software Center! No need to search for Linux/Ubuntu compatible software, simply click on this program and search from all the different categories (similar to Software Market Places you will in Android / Itunes-- except here its all free)
6. Did I say I love the GUI!
7. Fast booting and very minimal system requirements
8. Customizable
9. Personal cloud computing!
10. Possible to run Windows programs with a software called Wine (though haven't tried it yet--- but it could make your computer vulnerable to Windows viruses)

My dad has an Asus 1001 which was running inefficiently because of all the viruses it has accummulated-- so I simply installed the Ubuntu side by side with the Windows OS-- he now uses the Ubuntu more than he uses the Windows-- in fact he doesn't log-in through his Windows anymore.

To tell you honestly I'm new to Linux and Ubuntu--- but because of all the reasons mentioned above I decided to try something new, it won't hurt to try cause it doesn't cost a buck! I would definetely recommend it as an alternative OS, either you can completely remove Windows and replace it with Ubuntu or you can dual boot this with your current Windows OS-- but if you're not sure about Ubuntu then you can simply install it as a demo just to see if you would like it or not. Though I must admit I still need / use Windows when it comes to other apps-- but for my basic needs like surfing, blogging & office apps, this OS will definitely serve those needs. So if you plan to buy a new PC / Laptop / Nettop-- determine first if its for basic use, if it is, then Ubuntu is the way to go-- there, I would have saved you some extra cash from purchasing an OS, an Office app and an anti-virus-- I would say that's more than P10,000 straight to your piggy bank!

Thank Canonical & Mr. Shuttleworth! www.canonical.com

VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

My Portable Wifi and 4G internet

Weeks ago I decided to get myself a backup internet... for the past few months I'm what you could call an "NPA" (No Permanent Address)... my wife has given birth to a baby boy 2 mos ago, so we decided to stay with our parents for the first few months so there would at least be more than one person to look over the baby and of course so that we could also be able to share our baby with them--- so here I am always on the move... sometimes our condo, weekdays at my in-laws and weekends with my parents. I wasn't fully utilizing my internet at the condo so I decided to let it go and get something I can also use wherever I am-- thus I applied for Wi-tribe's 4G... and it worked! I was able to access the net from Eastwood, White Plains, Libis (office) and New Manila at speeds around 800-900 Mbps with consistent connections... not bad. I would say better speeds and connections than the "USB" modems. Only downside  is that it adds the extra bulk in your laptop bag (yes it fits in my bag, kind of carrying another 7" laptop in the bag) as well as the need for a power supply-- but other than that its all good and it serves the purpose.

Now my dilemma, I would want a wireless connection so I wouldn't have to always attach an Ethernet cable to the laptop and so I could also just place the modem anywhere in the room without needing an extension cord from the outlet to the where I am. And lastly of course I would also like to share my connection. A wireless router you say? Yeah, too big... I say a "Pocket" wireless router! :)

The solution, my latest acquisition from Amazon.com: TRENDnet's TEW-645TR wireless N travel router!

Unboxing the router, I was surprised by the size of the router as well as the accessories: a carrying case (to organize all the wires, adapter and router), DC to USB power supply and RJ45 with flat cables (I always love these because they're more compact and stores easily)... the only thing I didn't like was the 100-120V AC adapter-- they should have supplied the router with a dual voltage adapter-- isn't this suppose to be used for "traveling"?! Oh well I'll just get myself a generic USB 5V adapter and use the USB DC power cable with it.

You can see how small the router is... and I was able to connect at 270Mbps using WPA auto :D

And yes they all still fit in laptop bag.. and what timing, I was able to use this setup this AM where all my DSL connection were down, because of the weather... my 4G and travel router was a success!

VAT Tiu 林明胜 vatman.multiply.com vat.tiu@gmail.com

Thank you WEB 2.0!

This is actually my first blog entry ever... though I was able to put up a multiply site two years ago (vatman.multiply.com), I don't know if that would be considered as blogging (in some of my entries in the photo section)-- if so, then I would say this is my first official blog entry.

As for my first entry I would like to express my appreciation for the very "thing" that made this entry possible (and past uploads) as well as my (and your) total web experience = fun & exciting, thank you WEB 2.0

Have you ever paused and thought for awhile why you are able to interact with web pages? Interact in the sense we are able to send inputs from simple texts all the way to videos-- as well as receive them all in real time! And because of this we are now able to share information and ideas like never before-- heck we could even upload our whole life and show it to the whole world, we are also able to communicate in ways we never had a couple of years ago...

My web experience started at Web 1.0, it allowed me to search and retrieve information on the web... pretty much a one way thing. But as the web evolved to Web 2.0 (without most of us knowing it), we are now able to do more-- we are now able to run software straight from our browsers-- I don't need to explain further-- from Friendster to Facebook, web-based messengers, YouTube-- the list goes on and on.

And now you know (assuming you didn't), so let us all pause for awhile and thank Web 2.0 and all the people behind, if not for them then we would never have heard about blogging, YouTube or Facebook (to name a few), your old friends and classmate would've been forever forgotten, you would never have met that special someone or share your great finds or ideas to world! Know it makes you think what Web 3.0 has to offer all Netizens of the world, exciting huh?