News Stories

Wireless Media Stick: “Connect, Stream, Enjoy”

1.9.2011

Home Server Technologies Inc. (HSTi) showcased an innovative new technology called Wireless Media Stick, a simple and affordable product that allows media connectivity between mobile devices, TVs, DVD players and more.

The product addresses this year’s underlying theme of connectivity, but unlike Google TV or Samsung’s Smart Hub products, all of which can run a hefty cost after subscriptions and hardware, the Wireless Media Stick is available for a modest $119.

The unit looks like any USB flash drive. After connecting to a main computer that contains media files, the computer is enabled (all the software is embedded into the product), and the Media Stick can be inserted into any device with a USB playback port — and through a wireless connection users have the ability to access and share photos, videos and music.

What’s especially interesting about the technology is that you can also stream on-the-go; the Wireless Media Stick app is downloadable for smartphones and by taking the Stick to any location you can directly stream data from a mobile device to any TV, computer or stereo that is USB playback compatible.

The reasonably-priced Wireless Media Stick is currently available and should be particularly appealing to high school and college students who are constantly on-the-go and accustomed to easily sharing their media content.

Vidtonic Homebrew is a DIY Android TV Kit

1.9.2011

One of the most interesting (and nerdy) things you can find at this year’s show is from a small vendor called Vidtonic. Vidtonic is hopping on the Android bandwagon, but they are approaching it from a very different angle than everyone else.  While Motorola and others go to great pains to protect their hardware from hackers who want to modify the default OS or overclock their processors, Vidtonic aims to sell open source hardware units to this community, allowing them complete freedom to tinker in whatever way they wish.

Although specific kits and pricing aren’t yet nailed down, the general idea is that you’ll be able to buy a motherboard with CPU, memory and onboard audio/video. Inputs and outputs can be customized via add-on cards. Then you’ll be able to download the already freely distributed Google Android OS platform with the Linux drivers necessary for the Vidtonic board directly from them. From that point on, what you do with it is only limited by your time and creativity.

Vidtonic will even provide a higher end SKU which comes with a display and and the electronics mentioned above.

It’s Lego Mindstorm for AV hackers. The ultimate promise here is obvious. Ground zero of the media center STB scene started with a community of Xbox hackers in the early 2000’s who built Xbox Media Center (XBMC) to provide a platform for an all-in-one media box for the living room. While Sony and Logitech are putting tons of investment into Google TV, it’s this ‘crowdsourcing’ approach to feature development that has historically provided the best solutions and the most innovation.

When the SageTV, MythTV and current Android hacking communities get their hands on these units we’ll see a wave of incredibly innovative applications for media hubs.

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Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

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