Better Solutions, Part 3

I'd hoped to try out some of the existing watch-movies-over-the-internet services before finishing this post, but life has been crazy lately. Perhaps I'll do a comparison in the future.

There are a couple of issues with the way in which movies are currently distributed digitally. Most of the rental services stream movies. This allows them to easily answer the question copy protection since you don't really have a file to illegally copy. The problem is that this approach doesn't scale. Streaming a movie requires not only that you transfer hundreds of megabytes of data, but that the download always stays ahead of playback. The physical structure of the internet simply can't support millions of homes simultaneously streaming movies every night between 6 and 11 pm.

Another approach is to have viewers download the files. This improves the scalability since the download can take place overnight and doesn't have the throughput constraints that streaming does. The ugly specter of copy protection raises its head again, but the services that currently provide downloads (iTunes, Amazon Unbox) get around this by requiring that you either "buy" the file, use their proprietary player, or both. The only drawback to those services are that the pricing is completely unreasonable for what they're providing; NetFlix totally blows them away from a value standpoint. Downloading files will probably scale okay for a while, but eventually services will need to encorporate some distributed downloading capabilities like those used in BitTorrent.

So in the war of Blue-Ray vs. HD-DVD, the winner will be neither. Instead, the war will be won by hardware for getting movies from the 'net to the TV -- such as Apple, SlingMedia and TiVo -- coupled with download services that can provide:

• Scalable video downloading
• Monthly subscription plans – so the technology can improve without viewers having to flush their investment in "purchased" content
• Reasonably-priced purchase options for customers who want to transfer the pre-formatted movies to a disconnected device (iPod, PSP, in-car system, etc.)
  
• Flexible download options such as additional audio tracks and extra content
• Streamable previews so you can check out the first 5-10 minutes of a movie before committing to downloading the whole thing
  

Better Solutions, Part 2

Okay, so if we (eventually) have a decent way to get digital media from our home PCs to our TVs and stereos, how do we (legally) get it to our home PCs in the first place?

There are two major obstacles that currently inhibit the distribution of traditional media (music, TV & movies) over the internet: piracy and bandwidth.

Until now, the industry's response to piracy has been Digital Rights Management (DRM). Unfortunately, this approach has been a complete disaster. First of all, every DRM-scheme that has been cooked up so far as been cracked – including that used to protect Blue-Ray and HD-DVD. This means that pirates have been only mildly inconvenienced, while legitimate consumers have been denied the fair use of the media that they have purchased.

In addition to this, the attitudes of the big production companies toward the people who actually pay their salaries is disgusting. From Sony secretly installing rootkits on consumer's PCs to the accusatory and insulting anti-piracy ad the MPAA seems to have on every DVD these days, these corporations clearly see little difference between pirates and legitimate consumers.

Instead of ensuring fair compensation, the result of DRM has instead led to an environment where consumers feel little sympathy for the industry and are likely to have little difficulty overcoming any ethical objections to casual piracy.

So, how should the industry proceed in order to ensure that their artists and employees can be fairly compensated for their efforts?

The first thing that needs to happen is that the industry needs to come to terms with how it markets its products. It is hypocritical to urge people to fork over $20 or more for the latest blandbuster – "own it today" the ads exclaim – and then try to claim that this ownership does not include fair use or even any guarantee that the consumer will still be able to play it a year from now. Note that most people don't care that there's DRM on the DVDs that they rent, it is when they purchase the music or movie that they expect to be able to play it on whatever media-capable devices they own.

The ironic thing is that the industry already has models in place that work extremely well. They just need to smarten up and extend these into the digital realm. Sony's misguided efforts aside, music CDs continue to be sold without any form of DRM. Millions of consumers have ripped their CD collections to MP3 so they can play their favorite music on their iPods, PDAs and cell phones. The physical nature of CDs has meant that it is not cost effective to deliver individual songs this way, but even Steve Jobs is now suggesting that there is no good business reason for record companies to insist that music files be DRM protected. And just recently a rumor has surfaced that EMI is considering making the switch to DRM-free music; here's hoping they do and that the other three big record companies quickly follow suit.

The second model is the one in use by NetFlix. For a set monthly fee, you get access to the company's complete library of (copy-protected) DVDs. Granted this is again a model based on physical distribution, but it's also one that makes sense for digital distribution of video – both movies and serials. Merely by implementing the technology to track and accurately charge for how much of the library a customer can access during the month, distribution companies will be able to make sure that the production companies are also compensated fairly.

Note that neither of these models prevent piracy, but then again DRM doesn't either. Unlike DRM, however, they do not insult the legitimate consumer. Stay tuned for Part 3 of this series where I look at the bandwidth challenge and possible solutions.

Better Solutions, Part 1

Ironically, if Sony and Toshiba had been able to get together and come out with a single standard for HD on DVD, consumers probably would have adopted it with glee. The fact that there are these two competing formats, however, has caused many folks to slow down and contemplate the situation. It's starts when we realize that we're not rushing out to buy Blue-Ray or HD-DVD for fear of betting on the wrong horse. Why is that scary? Because we don't want to spend a sizable amount of money building a movie library only to have to do it all over again in 5 -10 years. Wait a minute... it's that what we just did with DVD? The discs still play and look fine, its the technology that has moved on. That inevitably leads to the question: even if there were a single standard, would I really want to be purchasing & storing more physical media?
Enter three more recent announcements from CES: IPTV for the Xbox 360, Apple TV, and the SlingMedia SlingCatcher. Microsoft is clearly trying to make the Xbox into an entertainment hub. IPTV is interesting technology, but it's really just a way to let telcos provide the same closed-network services that cable and satellite TV providers do today. Next!
Apple TV is the company's take on the set-top box, allowing you to play anything from your iTunes library on your TV. A nice concept, but not that thrilling. First off, if it works anything like sharing your iTunes library with other PCs on your home network, it means that you have to be logged on and running iTunes on the host computer – really inconvenient if that PC is used by more than one person. More critically, iTunes doesn't support very many digital media formats and you can only purchase content, not rent or subscribe to it. I love my iPod, but I think Apple missed the boat on this one.
The SlingMedia's current product, the SlingBox, allows you to "placeshift" – streaming content from your home AV equipment to any computer, handheld or smartphone with an internet connection. While I personally haven't seen the need for this capability, the product has received high praise from the press. The SlingCatcher essentially reverses the relationship; it lets you display content from your PC on your TV. The statement from the manufacturer is "anything that can be viewed or played on [your] PC can now be slung to [your] TV". Price for this capability? US$200. If the reviews prove the manufacturer's claims, I'll definitely be buying one when they come out mid-year.
While the SlingBox is a great product, it's only part of the solution. It brings the content from your PC to your TV, but how do you (legally) get copyrighted media to your PC in the first place? Tune in for Part 2!

Blue-Ray or HD-DVD? Please.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

- George Santayana

So, in case you've missed it, there's a war going on over the format for delivering High-Definition movies on DVD. In one corner, we have Sony and its pals with Blue-Ray; in the other is the Toshiba gang with HD-DVD. Both formats use blue lasers and are incompatable with existing DVD players. There are pros and cons to each format, but what matters most to consumers is that neither one is the clear winner.
You'd think that the industry would have learned from VHS vs. Betamax that there are no winners in these situations. I blame the more recent DVD-R(W|DL) vs DVD+R(W|DL) for fogging the memories of these companies. That format war was "won" by producing drives that can record to either media. In reality of course, consumers were the losers since they're left with having to figure out whether they should choose the "+" or "-" variant of the three different recording flavors -- or more likely, they just pick one at random and pay a higher price since the media manufacturers have to cater to two smaller markets rather than one large one.
Several industry pundits have suggested that this latest format war should be "solved" by the exact same approach, producing a drive that was capable of handling either format. How they can honestly think this is a good thing is beyond me. Yet, lo and behold, LG just announced a dual format player at this year's CES -- provided, of course, that they can get the two camps to agree to license. I'm sure they won't have any problem finding plenty of fools willing to fork over the $1200 for the darn thing.
The whole situation gets me to thinking, however: who's really pushing for HD movies on DVD? It's the industry, of course. Most people I know don't even have a surround sound setup; nor do they have 50" TVs taking up half their living rooms. And as for those folks who are really into the movie experience, I don't suspect any of them are overly psyched about the prospect of replacing their entire DVD collection with new, HD versions.
No, John C. Dvorak, this opinion does not mean I'm being a luddite. I just think that the whole idea of HD on DVD misses the boat. Want to know where I think the industry should be headed? Stay tuned.

Four's a Fun Age

I'm finding four to be a fun age. Sure, there are a lot of times that Ki will stomp on my very last nerve, but that's the definition of "child" isn't it? Recently, however, he's really started to be interesting to talk with.
For one thing, he's trying out all sorts of new phrases. I guess it's the next logical step after vocabulary building. Some of these phrases are things he's picked up from his more-than-it-should-be-but-hopefully-still-not-too-bad movie watching. Several nights ago as I was drawing him a bath, I suggested that he pick out some toys; "I'm on it!" he replied. And yesterday he said to his Mom "Has anyone ever told you you have beautiful eyes?" Sure, it's really not a line you'd use on your mother, but still endearing that he's experimenting.
Other phrases he's been trying on are things he hears his mother or me saying. Aside from the things that you really wish he hadn't heard from you the first time, it's a real kicker to hear him utter not only the words, but use the exact intonation that you'd use too. It's particularly amusing when he mutters them to himself while he's playing. The hard thing is that all this is so charming that you want to laugh, and often do; but that only serves to annoy/confuse him and make him self-conscious. How do you express your joy at their attempts without making them think you're laughing at them?

One corollary to this new verbal stage --– and to those that preceded it --– is that his aural comprehension drops off a bit. I suspect that before now he'd just ignore the words or constructs that he didn't understand and assemble the meaning from what was left; now, however, he's trying to make sense of all of the words and how they fit together. The net result of this is that the most frequently word in his vocabulary is currently "what?", said so quickly it's almost "wht?"

The other fun thing about age four is his growing curiosity about the world around him. What things are, and why, and how does it work? As a science/engineering type, I love the challenge of trying to answer his questions truthfully but at a level that he might begin to understand. More intriguing than answering his questions is listening to him state his hypotheses. I'm sure there are many that would say I should use that opportunity to "correct" his assumptions, but my own curiosity into how his mind works (not to mention the fact that I thinking learning reasoning skills is more important than learning rote facts) causes me to ask him probing questions instead. Sometimes, probably most of the time, he finds me annoying and will simply ignore my questions. But other times, he'll answer. And I'll get a brief, treasured glimpse into the wonder that is the developing human mind.

Giggle fest

Anyone who's met our dear daughter will know what a fantastic grin she has: wide and toothless, raising dimples in her cheeks, which in turn refashion her wide sparkling eyes into little quarter moons of joy. Often her smiles are accompanied by a coy little sidewards glance, as if she has some inborn knowledge of just how cute she really is. She willing bestows this gift upon almost anyone who meets her eyes.

This morning – as she sat nestled in my crossed legs, watching her big brother cavorting with our 5-pound Yorkshire terrier – she shared with us a new expression of joy: a full-on giggle fest. While not quite as infectious as that of her older brother, her laugh was so unrestrained and unforced, that her brother was compelled to continue his antics until he practically collapsed with exhaustion (something I was not even sure was possible!).

I feel so blessed to have shared that moment with the two of them.

No doubt about it, parenting is HARD

Two children is definitely more than twice the work of one and DW, gods bless her, has to deal with the lion's share of that work. Who am I kidding, I'm like the relief pitcher who takes over in the 9th with a 10 run lead. She does all the heavy lifting; I just bring in the cash.

Child-rearing, however, is more than just work; it's also a lot of worry. Ironically, the main source of worry these days is not our 3-month-old little amazon, but our just-about-4-year-old son. K1 is having trouble at school and most recently at swimming lessons. And I worry. Are his issues just part of normal development for him or something that warrants more concern? Would I even recognize the difference, or do a father's love & pride remove any chance of making an objective assessment? Have I pushed him too hard to grow up, or made it too easy for him not to? He's had sleep troubles for a couple of years now; do those play a role in his difficulties and if so, have I been neglectful by not pushing for finding a solution?

I'm supposed to have the answers or at least know where to find them – it's my role, it's where I fit – and yet when it comes to knowing what's right for my son, I am completely, utterly lost. I long to find a pediatrician who cares about finding the answers as much as I do. Someone I could have confidence in. Where are the Dr. Sheehans for our generation?

I... have... HANDS!

Yes, that's right, K2 has discovered that those pink wiggly things that flit about and occasionally smack her in the face are, in fact, something over which she has a modicum of control. She is currently most fond of moving these "hands" up to her mouth where she can happily gum on the "fingers". It is a task that requires a brow-furrowing degree of concentration, and the "fingers" don't quite seem to enjoy the end results as much as she does, but it is a new skill and she is very proud of it.

Call of the Child

The cries of an infant are impossible to ignore. This is not a sentimental statement – I fully believe that we are hardwired to react to the sound of infants crying. That particular waveform triggers a cascade of neurological signals culminating in the area of the brain known as "do something about it now you bleedin' tosser". All in all, this trait is an advantage to mammals everywhere... except maybe with humans.

Sure, most of the time a crying baby lets you know that you've missed or forgotten something and, after remedying said problem, the crying stops. But then there are the days when you really can't do anything for the baby – like, say, when she has a cold. Then you get to listen to the crying during her every waking hour and the wiring in your head screams... "do something about it, do something about it, why the #%@*& aren't you doing something about it!" Meanwhile, the rational... well, conscious... part of your brain is trying to calmly explain "I did everything I can for her, it's okay, stop going into overload." Which is, of course, right up there with trying to explain to the rain that now really isn't a good time and could it please come back tomorrow.

Makes you realize that three isn't such a bad age after all.

What do you believe is true even though you cannot prove it?

Given some of the heavyweights who responded to this question, I am (for once) not going to add my own 2 ¢. There are, however, a lot of interesting contributions to mull over. Some of those that stood out for me were:

• Oliver Morton's statement "as far as knowledge goes I'm a consumer, and sometimes a distributor, not a producer" rings very true for me.
  
• Paul Steinhardt comments about some physicists embracing artifacts of the mathematical models they use to descibe the universe as "fact".
  
• Fellow atheist Tor Nørretrander's statements about the importance of having faith (and his use of the word ineradicable!)
• Charles Simonyi's discussion on the "complexity inflation" prevelant in software development (a topic close to my heart).
  
• Margaret Wertheim's statement "that there will always be things we do not know".
• Esther Dyson on modern life: "It used to be that machines automated work, giving us more time to do other things. But now machines automate the production of attention-consuming information, which takes our time."
• Lee Smolin's comments on quantum theory (another topic close to my heart).
• Kai Krause's assertion that "It is about the anticipation of the moment and the memory of the moment, but not the moment."
  
• The number of conjectures about the nature of consciousness including Daniel Dennet's belief that acquiring language is a "necessary precondition for consciousness".

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Forgive me, reader, for it has been many days since my last blog.
We've had a few changes in our family and, while I've thought about posting, by the time I had a breather to do so, I was usually too wiped out.
It's an interesting challenge to deal with a newborn the second time around. It's accompanied by the usual sleep deprevation and complete lack of a predictable schedule, but as an added bonus, you have to try to keep life as normal as possible for the elder child. All I have to say is that you really need to have good communication with your spouse. No matter how composed you think you are, you will inevitably reach the point where your very last nerve is no more. It is critical that you have a spouse who recognizes this in his/herself and can understand when you gaze at them twitchy and bleary-eyed and grunt something like an extra from the "Beer Bad" Buffy episode: "need... break... now."
We're were lulled into a bit of complacency the first week. DD was going four hours between feedings during the night and DS seemed to be taking his new role as big brother in stride. Foolish humans. DD is on the more expected "whenever I feel like it" schedule that can run anywhere from 1.5 to 3 hours between feedings. DS still adores "his baby" but he's not too thrilled with his parents right now. Normally a reasonable lad when it comes to parental guidance (bedtime, picking up toys, etc.) he's become rather obstinate. It didn't help that the poor guy came down with an intestinal bug last Wednesday.
So at this point, we're in "survival mode", trying to maintain the barest semblance of sanity. The worst part is that I have to head back to work on Monday. Another week at home would be so much more helpful.

New addition to the blogging family

DW has started a blog of her own. She totally rocks! See what I mean at Going Feral.