ctrl.altered.mind

When my wireless router started faltering with alarming regularity in the past month, I realized the little device had probably reached the end of its life cycle. The Netgear router has been pretty much running 24/7 over the past two years, and while routers typically last much longer than that, everyones mileage varies.

Therefore, instead of shopping around for an alternative el-cheapo router that would get the job of letting all of my wireless-capable devices talk over the internet done, I decided to take this opportunity to upgrade all the way up - to an Apple Time Capsule.

If you’re familiar with Apple hardware, you will realize that the Time Capsule breaks no new ground - it is simply an 802.11n Airport Extreme base station with a built-in hard drive, which is also its biggest plus point. Having switched from a desktop to using just a notebook computer, a new Macbook Pro, I quickly found the need to have a wireless network hard drive solution quite imperative. It is tedious having a backup drive that constantly needs to be plugged in, to be of any benefit. The Time Capsule steps in with network-attached storage (with choices of 500GB and 1TB), and also integrates seamlessly with the one-click Time Machine backup feature built into Mac OS X Leopard. Additionally, the Time Capsule can also connect (and extend wireless capabilities) to a USB printer or external hard drive. I picked up a 500GB Time Capsule, because the storage capacity should meet my needs for now. There are also web tutorials that prove it is quite simple to upgrade the internal hard drive yourself.

I was a little concerned about rushing out and buying a Time Capsule, simply because initial reviews of the hardware have not been excellent on the Apple website. People have voiced concerns about Time Machine backups taking exceptionally long durations to complete, impact on wireless browsing performance while backups are running (forcing them to turn this off while actively using their computers), and other issues such as unusually high heat generation and wireless device incompatibilities. Having read through all these reviews, I was prepared to purchase the Time Capsule in test-drive mode, ready to return it within the 14-day period if any such issues would raise their ugly heads. Thankfully, I am extremely happy with my Time Capsule.

I have not run into any speed or wireless bandwidth issues while running Time Machine backups or generally accessing the wireless drive (I did use an ethernet connection to perform the first backup, as most would recommend). The router functions excellently, plays well with all my devices, and efficiently utilizes my high-speed connection. I have not experienced overheating issues either, although a higher heat profile is not very unusual for a NAS/router appliance.

The Time Capsule also interfaces very well with my Playstation 3. This was a very important requirement for me, as the PS3 is used heavily as my media center and not just a gaming console. Speaking of games, the console has not seen any connection issues (that I had started experiencing on my earlier router) while playing online first-person shooter games. Additionally, media streaming from my computer to the TV via the PS3 has been excellent (I use MediaLink ($20/free demo) and Mediatomb (free, open-source) for wireless streaming from Mac OS X to the PS3). One thing to note, is that the PS3 does not recognize a NAS - it only supports the DLNA protocol, and would require a computer that is running a media server application in order to access media files. The Time Capsule does not support direct Universal Plug-and-Play (UPnP), so if any of your devices require this protocol the Time Capsule is not an option for you.

The Time Capsule only requires a couple of screens of configuring the first time it is used - this is done via the Mac OS X Airport Utility. Once this is done, the router is ready to serve Mac, Linux and Windows machines. The Time Capsule hard drive is also directly accessible by Windows machines, which see it appear as an encrypted, password-protected drive on the network. There is an Airport Admin Utility available for Windows that should allow configuring the Time Capsule using a Windows machine, although I have not attempted this (yet).

As it supports the 802.11n standard, the Time Capsule also allows me to fully utilize the wireless-N capabilities of my notebook. While this does not mean much for casual browsing, it does allow better local networking and is future-proof as far as wireless standards are concerned (at least for a good while).

Especially motivated by the recent firmware update rolled out by Sony, I spent most of my available time this past week trying to get a robust media server running on my home network, and it was not quite the simple task as I had hoped it would be. Hence, I felt the need to document some of my learnings and findings here (so someone else trying this setup can hopefully save a few minutes).

All of my photo, audio and video media files live on an external hard drive connected to a Macintosh, which is not in the same room as the TV and PS3 - hence the primary need for a wireless media server. The Mac has yet to be graced with a single full-function UPnP server utility that is easy to setup and configure - this is just a matter of time, however, as I hear that Nullriver is working on developing a PS3 version of their very popular Connect360 program (which plays excellently with the XBox 360).

I have tried pretty much every available Mac/PS3 interconnect solution out there, at least the ones I could try first before buying (which ruled out EyeConnect). I did find reasonable success with Twonky Media Server (30-day demo, $40 license), although this (rather detailed) post is all about MediaTomb - a free, open-source UPnP server application that meets most (if not all) of my needs as far as a wireless media server are concerned.

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Sony rolled out a firmware update for the Playstation 3 this week, which added enhanced media playback capabilities (specifically, DivX and VC-1/WMV support), and Profile 1.1 support for Blu-ray discs. An interesting feature that was thrown into the mix, is one that enables players to change the tone of their voice during online multiplayer gameplay. It seems like there will be a few more Darth Vaders joining the network now.

I have been trying to get a home media server set up and running to take advantage of these new features (and the media capabilities of the PS3 in general), but that task has been not so straightforward as I first believed (since I am looking to stream from the Mac platform). I will try and document my findings on that soon.

This is the one game my PS3 is eagerly waiting for.

A new Final Fantasy XIII trailer surfaced on the internet this week, supposedly sourced from a new gaming dvd released in Japan. To say the least, the styling continues the Final Fantasy dream on the Playstation 3 platform, and the visuals are breathtaking.

The video is mostly pre-rendered, but has some tiny bits of preliminary in-game footage (if I’m not mistaken). Square Enix moved their White Engine development completely over to the PS3, which makes the Final Fantasy XIII set (there are three distinct games in this project) a PS3 exclusive. Expecting in-game footage of any kind would be a bit much to ask at this point, since no release date has been announced yet (although people are expecting it to be available end-2008 or early 2009).

The seventh generation of gaming is upon us, although it is still too early to judge who would grow to become the dominating platform. The presence of expensive consoles such as Sony’s Playstation 3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 makes Nintendo’s Wii look like an affordable choice for gamers - especially casual gamers who would be strongly attracted to a new interaction experience through the Wii remote. The Wii, however, does not support next generation high-definition media such as HD-DVD or Blu-Ray — a feature that is pretty much being considered a standard for the other gaming consoles, which are expected to double up as media centers in peoples’ living rooms.

While the Xbox 360 has had a full year’s head start  compared to the PS3, it also has a good ecosystem of games to feed the experience further. I got dangerously close to buying a PS3 myself, but backed out when I realized that it would be a good six months before any games that spark my interest, would be available for it. The PS3 is available for purchase today simply because Sony wanted consumers to have the option to purchase a Blu-Ray console (since standalone Blu-Ray players are, in fact, much more expensive than the PS3 itself). The move should ensure a good slice of the market before HD media for movies hits markets. From a gaming standpoint, the PS3 is not quite a lucrative buy yet as there are no games out that exploit the amazing hardware capabilities of the console. That will change in a few months, of course, as major game developers are actually moving schedules to be able to churn out games specifically for the PS3.

Despite this and the fact that the PS3 has not been released worldwide yet, going by sales figures alone, the PS3 seems to be holding itself well in US and Japanese markets, with 687,300+ and 552,993+ units sold respectively. It would be prudent to wait until there is a good selection of games that can help sell the PS3, to judge the grasp of its dominance in the gaming sector.

Paul Stamatiou mentions that the folks at Global Gaming League (GGL) have compiled a very impressive list of the top 10 colleges that excel at gaming - not for teaching gaming, but for supporting a conducive environment with a strong gaming community and frequent LAN tournaments, not to mention a fast campus-wide network. While it comes as no real surprise that my alma mater, the University of Colorado (at Boulder) is not in the top ten list (although its gaming community is respectably large), it feels stimulating to see that the Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota has made it to the top ten (and stands at position eight).

The complete details and survey results are available on the GGL site. Its probably time to sign up for a course at the U of M so I can get connected to the gaming swarm.