My lust for B&W products dates back to a while. Back when I was a kid, this friend’s father, all-around enjoyer of fine things, built a home cinema setup decked out with a full set of Bowers and Wilkins speakers. The gear nerd in my was fascinated by the equipment in this room, and my friend and I spent countless hours locked up in the sound-tight room indulging in the pristine audio that this remarkable setup delivered to our ears. As a matter of fact, that setup is probably what got me into loving fine audio products in the first place… once you’ve had sound this good, you generally don’t every want to go back to something inferior. The Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin is the perfect continuation of what the brand means to me in regard to sound quality, while being modern in both design and function.

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Let’s face it, storage is probably the computer component with the least sex-appeal. When building a computer, consumers usually put the latest multi-core processors, monster video cards and screaming fast memory at the top of the list, while the hard-drive is considered last. As long as it holds my data, right?

In my previous review for the D-Link DNS-323, I’ve put the blame on the computer industry for not making consumers aware of just how much storage devices are important parts of any computer. This is true with regards to data security, but also with regards to performance. In fact, a faster storage device is probably the best upgrade available for consumers today. To me, the Intel X25-M is one of the best examples of how if it is marketed properly, the SSD with revamp the computer storage market and enhance many people’s computing experience.

Read the entire review on Epinions. More SSD-related content hopefully coming soon, including side by side comparison of Intel’s older and newer generation SSDs.

The purchase of my Klipsch S3 was pretty much a spur of the moment thing. Two years of accumulated rage against the old Sony earbuds that I owned took its toll, I guess. I use full-sized headphones normally when I’m not in the gym, and rediscovering how crappy my old earphones were when switch between pairs was growing old. On my way to the gym one day, I decided enough was enough, and went to my local Futureshop to purchase some new workout earphones.

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As an in-store technician for a big box retail, I am shocked by how little people are aware of the evanescence of computer storage. Countless times I have seen customers come back with defective hard drives in their 6 month old laptop and be dumbfounded when they are told that their data can not be recovered. Of all the ways that the computer industry has found to make customers spend, it seems that too little effort has been put into making the public aware that hard drives, like all other things, will eventually die, and that when they do, you better be prepared. That’s why I am happy to see D-Link come out with a product like the DNS-323 that facilitates practice of safe data storage.

See the full review at Epinions.

As my Last.fm account shows, the last year of music for me has pretty much been centered on drum & bass and dubstep; lots of it. I find it wonderful that both scenes, as well as other niche music scenes, are exploiting the new technologies and services to spread their art, such as independent online music stores or even by their own means. This more “grassroots” means of distribution does have it’s drawbacks though, and one of these that seriously ticks me off is the artist’s apparent inability at correctly tagging his or her works. Countless times, on anything from a two song EP to a full album, I’ve seen ID3 tagging with no capitalization , the artist’s name in the title field, or tracks that just weren’t tagged at all. Such outrageous slacking usually results in me taking of my time to modify the tagging, track by track if necessary. It isn’t bad for EPs, but for 40 track mixtapes, it’s a whole other thing. There must be a better way, right?

Robotdeathsquad on Twitter recommended Tuneup, a product which I had previously seen in contextual ads but never really checked out. Knowing that Mr. Clark and I both share a taste for drum & bass and old-school jungle, and assuming (wrongfully?) that he owned the software in question, I went ahead and bought the Gold version for the asking price of 30$USD. I didn’t want to mess with a limited number of lookups on my enormous library, and besides, it got good reviews everywhere, so it should be ok, right? Boy was I wrong.

I installed it, got it running. Integration with iTunes, while not perfect, looked intuitive enough, with illustrated menus that you can drag music to when it needs a little bit of tag cleanup. I fire up a first batch… disappointment. Out of the ~400 songs that I had it analyse, only a handful were actual detected right, leaving me hundreds of items to be verified by hand, and most of those were dead wrong. In some cases, songs were detected as parts of compilations that I do not own instead of the actual EP or LP. I tried to see the bright side of things: if it can detect at least the album art correctly on my library, then I can at least feel like I payed 30$ for album art. But no cigar, very little of my album art was recognized, and most of it was of quite poor quality.

But all in all, I can’t really blame TuneUp. After all, like all the other services of this kind, it relies on the Gracenote database, and god knows that such a database is nowhere even remotely close to being complete, with the outrageous quantity of music coming out of everywhere. Expecting TuneUp to recognize the latest EP from this obscure Future Garage producer or that guy’s fresh-out-the-oven dubstep album is unreasonable, but honestly, I still expected it more than just a handful of matches. Stuff like old-school drum & bass, while it hasn’t and will most likely never gain mainstream popularity, should be in Gracenote’s databases by now.

After a bit of reflection, I came to question TuneUp’s very existence. Who is this software for? People who buy their music online from more mainstream sources like the iTunes store already get proper ID3 tagging. People who buy CDs in physical format usually don’t bother ripping them because they have other means to listen to them, and those who do most often do it with software that already does analyses and lookup of tagging info on the Gracenote databases, like iTunes or Songbird. People who still buy 12 inchers… well they generally spit on digital music as much they can, or rip it and tag it themselves if they finally understood that this is the 21st freaking century. So who is TuneUp for? Music pirates, they’re the only group left. Music pirates who get their music from shit sources, or music pirates who are too lazy to tag, that’s who.

So hey, if you steal pop music off the internet, TuneUp will work wonders for you. But otherwise, you might want to try out the free version before buying like I did. Remember what your momma told you: if it looks too good to be true, then it probably is. There is no such thing as automagic.

It’s by accident that I discovered the Cooler Master Centurion RC-590. When my server was running out of space for hard drives, back in the days where it was built in an Ultra Grid chassis, I set out to find a case that was roomy, yet that could fit in my student budget. Constraints were numerous: I didn’t have the space nor the budget to shop around for a full tower case, and most mid towers didn’t come with enough 3.25″ drive bays to host 8 hard drives.

I got a link to the RC-590′s page on an online merchant from fellow users on an PC enthusiast board when asking for a relatively small case with many drive bays. I couldn’t have asked for more: it had more or less the standard dimensions of a mid-tower case, however it’s entire front panel was lined with 5.25″ drive bays, which really opened up things for fitting my monster collection of hard drives. The price was right too; at 70 and some odd dollars, it wasn’t going to break the bank. And so I ordered.

See the full review at Epinions.

Canada for the past years has been considered as a copyright safe haven for file sharing sites and communities because of a combination of unwillingness of the authorities to go after the inoffensive consumers that the industry calls pirates, and the more lax copyright laws. While trackers in the US are constantly getting harassed with cease and desist notices that quickly degenerate into expensive trails and fines, we Canucks are the home to many communities like isoHunt that thrive in an environment where the long hands of the industry lobbies can’t reach. Because of our more permissive laws, consumers may enjoy their digital content as they wish without the fear of being nailed by big-shot lobbies. This is obviously not what the entertainment industry wants, and lobby pressure is rising on the Canadian legislative assembly to pass new laws that would tighten up the control of media in general. After Bill C-60 in 2005 and C-61 in 2008, the industry strikes again with a proposed Copyright Act update under the form of bill C-32.

I am in no way a partisan of the anti-copyright movement, and I believe in a certain control of intellectual property is necessary in any developed country, so don’t think this post is going to be all about bashing on C-32 and it’s proposed reforms and updates. C-32, for the most part, boils down to legitimate rewriting of the Copyright act to reflect the new reality that the internet has brought along; some of its major modifications though have more resemblance to whims of the entertainment industry than to amendments that would serve the average Canadian and protect the artist’s rights. In this blog post, I will expose the aspects of C-32 which I believe should be altered or removed: most of them have already be covered and interpreted by various groups and individuals, but if my post can bring just a handful of people to get involved in blocking this bill, then I’ll be the happy.

Putting a Choker on File Sharing

Paragraph 18 is the first sign of industry pressure on the legislators, and probably the part that is most hated by the IT / internet savvy folk of Canada and operators of websites or services like BitTorrent trackers hosted here. Paragraph (18) proposes the addition of paragraph (2) to the Copyright Act, which contains very controversial text at section (2.3):

(2.3) It is an infringement of copyright for a person to provide, by means of the Internet or another digital network, a service that the person knows or should have known is designed primarily to enable acts of copyright infringement if an actual infringement of copyright occurs by means of the Internet or another digital network as a result of the use of that service.

I am no legal expert, but according to my understanding section 2.3 would pretty much make facilitation of electronic piracy illegal. Because the proposed law is so unclear, the definition of what is a system “primarily designed to enable acts of copyright” would have to be decided on by a judge, but the sure thing is that this addition would open the door to a legal crusade against piracy a la RIAA/MPAA who are known to invent numbers about what actually goes on file sharing sites and BitTorrent trackers. From then on, the whole thing can just snowball into a legal free-for-all: once the industry has injected enough money in lawyers to have one case won, case-law is created, making it easier them to win in future trials. I will not go over the advantages of the many new cloud-hosting and file-sharing technologies as these are very well-known, I have to remind you that making illegal not only the act of sharing but also the systems the systems people use to infringe we are putting at risk a large part of the new web technologies that makes the web more democratic and user-powered.

Draconian Enforcement of DRM

Paragraph 22 of C-32 also proposes a rewrite that most would consider unreasonable, through the addition of section (29.22) concerning reproduction for private purposes. The amendment is mentioned as an addition, leading to believe that there is absolutely nothing about reproduction for private purposes in the current Canadian Copyright Act; most would think that defining personal copies as a right in the eyes of the law would be a good thing, but paragraph (1)a) within section (29.22) quickly reveals that this addition wasn’t written to benefit the average consumer. It reads as such:

29.22 (1) It is not an infringement of copyright for an individual to reproduce a work or other subject-matter or any substantial part of a work or other subject-matter if
[...]
(c) the individual, in order to make the reproduction, did not circumvent, as defined in section 41, a technological protection measure, as defined in that section, or cause one to be circumvented;
[...]

Put shortly, Circumventing DRM to make copies of anything would be made illegal and subject to substantial fines; yet another binding in today’s world where digital devices multiply. What if I want my old iTunes store purchases to be read on my 6th computer? That would be illegal. Copying or ripping DVDs for viewing on a device without an optical disc? Yup, illegal. And don’t even start thinking about archiving your growing collection of Blu-ray disks.

Everybody knows that the only thing DRM does is kill sales and annoy end users… guess why O’Reilly and Apple have dropped DRM on their respective distribution platforms? Right’s management technology isn’t going to get anybody anywhere. I’d like to think that this part is just a mis-judgement by our MPs… but sadly it’s most likely the result of the lobbying of an industry that just doesn’t want to take the leash off it’s products and content.

Making your ISP a Snitch for the Industry

For me, the most shocking of all amendments in C-32 has to be one of the last ones: Section (41.25), named “Provisions Respecting Providers of Network Services or Information Location Tools“. Unlike most of the other modifications proposed which will only affect consumers who consume digital media and want to manipulate it as they wish, 41.25 will most likely affect every Canadian with an internet connection. This hasn’t gotten much media coverage due to everybody focusing on the DRM control portion of the bill, but it should be taken seriously as it represents a very serious menace to Canadian net neutrality. The totality of proposed paragraph 41 is and addition to the current Copyright Act… none of it is currently in place, and that’s a pretty good thing if you ask me.

The section provides copyright holders ways to send to copyright thefts a notice of infringement and build up a case that could eventually presented in court. Where it all goes wrong is at subsection 41.26, where the ISP, upon receiving and forwarding the infringement notice to their user, must “retain records that will allow the identity of the person to whom the electronic location belongs to to be determined, and do so for six months beginning on the day on which the notice of claimed infringement is received”, or for one year if the clamant takes judicial proceedings in the six months following the delivery of the infringement notice (41.26(b)).

Initial reading immediately shows an obvious violation of the Canadian people’s online privacy and total disregard for net neutrality: allowing the industry to force your ISP to keep your personal information in a file for their own use is in itself outrageous. But the real damage comes when considering the logistical challenge that such a system of a registry represents for ISPs. Any provider with a dynamic IP system will be forced to manually maintain a registry that cross-references IP address, timeframe of IP occupation and customer information. If the situation is anything like it was in the US with the RIAA and MPAA sending infringement notices left right and center through hired law firms, those registries will undergo explosive growth, which will in turn create additional costs for the ISPs. As always, the customer will end up paying the bill, and Canadians who are already over-charged for their internet usage will most likely face higher rates; this is the modern equivalent of authorities exerting control over printing presses in the Renaissance. Have we forgotten that access to the internet is now well on its way to being considered a fundamental human right? I don’t want to pull out the traditional speech of left-wing activists who believe that rights to pretty much anything for the advance of society should be protected by the state, but access to information, as shows the Cablegate affair, is one of the last standing bastions of true freedom.

I wish to reiterate that I am not preaching for the status quo here, but rather a more intelligent reform that isn’t oriented towards please the media magnates. I must tip my hat to several valid additions to the Copyright Act that C-32 introduces, notably the additional exceptions to fair-use which are currently in a gray zone (proposed para. 29), the legal definition of non-commercial user-generated content (proposed para 29.21), and the legislation of broadcast recording systems (such as DVRs) for on-demand consumption of media. But sadly, all the good brought by those beneficial amendments are useless if the rest of the bill goes unchanged and the lobbies of the industry get their way.

On another note, I do not think that the main opposition to C-32, the artists, have a viable solution with their absurd iPod tax (french reading), which is just consumer oppression and control of new media expressed differently for the benefit of another group… but that’s subject to a whole other post.

Finally, I’d like to invite you to take action and let your opinion be known; the bill is in its second reading so now’s the time to do so. Tony Clement is the sponsor for the bill, so you might want to get your message through to him first; he has a Twitter account and seems pretty open to replying to messages from the population. Contacting your MP, regardless of the party, is also a great idea. Encourage your friends, family and coworkers who care about fair copyright and free access to information to get informed on the subject and to voice their opinions. The Pirate Party of Canada seems to be holding discussions and awareness campaigns in different localities, so you might want to shoot an email their way or post on their forums if you want to get involved in a more hands-on manner.

Remember, popular implication is what it takes to make democracy work… let your voice be heard! Canada needs to maintain its leadership in promoting free access to media and information.

• This week I grew tired of my hair, went back to the much-loved milspec cut. Much less hassle in the morning.
• Nightclubbin’. Still don’t get why clubs still buy and use disco balls, these were the pinnacle in the 20s. LED lighting and lasers is where it’s at.
• My brand new Flip SlideHD ordered off Intel’s Retail Edge program. It rests on my wallet so you get an idea of the size. So far I’m pretty happy with the new camera, it performs great in normal indoor lighting as well as in low light. One thing I’m not so stoked about is the narrow FOV, and the jiggle and shake of unstabilized 30 fps progressive. The solution to this is 50$ away: a fisheye mod will widen FOV and at the same time reduce apparent shake. I call it my “camera de brosse”, it’s usually with me in any kind of party situation. Much less expensive than lugging the 35mm Pentax around! More updates on the fisheye mod when I get things done.
• I don’t really think this one needs a description.

If you know gaming peripherals, chances are that you have owned a G5 by Logitech. This mouse, one of the best selling “gaming” mice out there, has become a true classic on internet forums and gaming groups because of it’s relatively low price, excellent handling and comfort, and awesome set of features and kick-butt software. After two generations (3?) and many special editions of this venerable peripheral, Logitech has decided to retire the veteran G5 and introduce it’s updated offspring the G500. I say offspring because it looks and feels like a cross between the more “business” MX series and the G series. Check it out.

See the full review on Epinions!

Back in the days it seemed like D-Link made inferior products; in the time where the WRT54 was the king of the castle, D-Link was cheaper made, had a less extensive list of options available from the web interface, and generally was less appealing. Times have changed, thanks to products like the DIR-655.

See the full review on Epinions!