19
Dec
I just noticed that some embedded YouTube videos have a “Watch Later” button at the top right of the video.
If you click this button and your YouTube account is still logged in, the video will populate a “Watch Later” playlist on your YouTube homepage.
This way if you are making your rounds on the Internet and want to earmark some videos to watch at a later time, you have that option. Seems pretty nice, except…
I could not find a way to remove the video from my “Watch Later” section. Clicking on the “Watch Later” header link simply takes me to my playlist page where there are no controls to be found for this feature.
December 19, 2010 in: Commentary, Technology - No Comments
9
Dec
I was finally able to get the new Time Warner Remote DVR Manager to work today (after a couple of tries over the past few weeks) and I must say, “I guess its okay.”
Being able to remotely control a DVR was something I was able to do with my first-generation hacked Tivo ten years ago, so the concept is not at all novel to me.
As a side note, my old Tivo had better transport controls (fast forward, rewind, etc.) and never went unresponsive for 5-10 seconds. I still have it in my closet – I loved it so much I can’t let it go.
The most annoying oversight in this beta release is there is no way to see what is recorded on my DVR and manage and delete those recordings. I can see what is scheduled, but not what is on my DVR.
The mobile website for the Remote DVR Manager worked pretty well, and the interface actually felt snappier than the web version.
Basically, the Remote DVR Manager serves the purpose of scheduling a program to record while you are out and about. This does not happen to often to me, but it will be nice to have the opportunity to do so when the need arrives.
December 9, 2010 in: Commentary, Technology - No Comments
25
Nov
I have been impressed with the use of our City of Round Rock widgets by neighborhood associations like The Woods, so I have been working on building some widgets for the recycling program that starts in January 2011.
One idea is to make a widget for home owners associations to put on their websites that states the next recycling pickup day.
Another idea is to make an iCal subscribable feed of a neighborhood’s upcoming recycling days.
Ultimately, the goal of these widgets is to make life a little easier on those of us adjusting to the program, which will be good for the program.
You can checkout a basic proof-of-concept of the idea now at http://www.roundrocktexas.gov/recycle.
November 25, 2010 in: Commentary, Technology - No Comments
28
Dec
If you have been playing around with Augmented Reality applications, then you have certainly come across Layar.
I enjoy playing around with different APIs, and the Layar API gives you basic control over the colors and icons in your layer. I checked out the Custom circular info widgets documentation to figure out the best way to handle the CIWs. Layar has some nice best practices listed, but sadly, there was no Photoshop template to speed things along.
I decided to make a Layar custom info widget Photoshop template (zipped .PSD) for myself, and am posting it in case anyone else might find it helpful.
Within the file, guidelines are at the 55×55, 38×38 and 28×28 sizes. The squares are the recommended sizes from the documentation for the inner, middle and outer ring sizes. Note: you will have to zoom pretty far in to see the boxes properly, but you were probably going to do that anyway…
I hope this helps someone out. I always like having a comprehensive template to stay somewhat organized.
December 28, 2009 in: Commentary, Technology - No Comments
