This problem has plagued us for a few months. Each time we start watching Netflix on our Apple TV 2, it stops and throws up this message after about 20 seconds.
We have two Apple TV 2 units on two different televisions, and it happens on both of them. Netflix on Google Chromecast, netflix.com, my phone, and my Nook, all work perfectly.
It’s definitely a problem with the Apple TV units.
I have searched around for solutions, and certain fixes seem to work for some people, but there are many folks who still have the problem.
Restarting the device doesn’t help. All updates have been applied. I have even reset the devices completely, to no avail.
Anyone else having this problem? Anyone know a solution?
For those of you keeping score at home, these are the things that have been happening around here.
First, Rachael is pregnant with a boy. He is due on Halloween and, needless to say, we are super excited. Gray and Dax are excited too, though each in their very different ways: Dax outwardly, Gray more inwardly. We do have a name picked out for the little fella, but it being a quest that doesn’t necessarily end until the day he pops out, we thought we’d hold off on the big reveal for a little bit đ
Second, we are moving! We decided to find a place that is a little more conducive to having a baby. We love our current house, but with features such as a 30 foot high deck, a front yard next to a frequently traveled road, and a balcony overlooking the living room, we decided something a little safer would be better.
Our house was only on the market 10 days before it went under contract, and we soon put a bid in on a new one. That should all be going down in July, so we are preparing for a move.
Third, my parents are having a low-key 50th wedding anniversary today, so a big WHOOP WHOOP to them. They may have a juggalo-style celebration with their neighbors tonight, from what we heard.
Fourth, Gray graduated from 5th grade last week. He will be venturing to middle school this fall, and I am still completely blown away about that fact. Dax will be in 3rd grade…also hard to believe!
I am completely fine with paying for software that I really like and that serves a purpose for me. However, if you are a software company that is going to use the ‘paid upgrade’ model of charging customers to upgrade to the next major version of your product, make sure the next major version contains new features worth paying for.
In the case of TechSmith’s Snagit, they have failed to provide anything of real value in their latest release (version 3.0 for Mac, or 12.0 for Windows), yet they are asking for $24.95 to upgrade to the latest version.
I paid for version 2 of Snagit for my Mac (that’s version 11 for you Windows users), and I really enjoyed using it. It became a tool in my arsenal that I relied heavily upon for doing quick screen shots and adding text, notes, arrows, and more.
Then one day a couple of weeks ago the updater ran and I was suddenly looking at a trial version of Snagit 3.0. And it said it was going to expire unless I paid the discounted upgrade fee of $24.95.
Aggravated, I hoped to have my mood changed and be wowed by version 3.0. So I tested it out for a few days. I quickly found that it had a nicer look and feel about it, but other than that, there were no noticeable enhancements or actual upgrades to the product. It was the same product with about one new feature related to the video clipping tool — something I could care less about. And that new feature was only a new arrow selector of some sort. Not impressed.
Jason Eagleston, the “Snagit Product Owner” at TechSmith even admits in their self-congratulatory release video that “with this release we had a focus on updating the way Snagit looks and feels, partially to bring that consistency across all the Techsmith things that you are going to interact with, but ultimately it’s only focused on getting your content to be the most prominent thing on the screen.”
Hmm…I only interact with one Techsmith product, so why should this be a feature worth paying for? And how is it not the most prominent thing on my screen if I’m currently using it in the first place?
A couple of more employees in the video go on to talk about how much nicer the product will be to use, and that they really wanted people to feel like they were using something current and not outdated. So it really isn’t about an upgrade, it’s about a change of clothes.
The whole video is about them admitting that their product didn’t look that great, so they spent a lot of effort making it look better (or “flatter,” as they say in the video, which is supposed to be something we should like), and now they want their customers to pay for that. No real tool enhancements or additions, just a subjective improvement to the design. For $24.95? No thanks.
For those of you looking for a free alternative to Snagit, check out Skitch. With or without Evernote, it’s a nice tool that does just about everything Snagit does for screen capturing.
Last week we saw the beginning of the end of what we in the business refer to as “the Internet.” In another example of the oligarchic tendencies our country has been displaying as of late, the FCC has succomed to corporate lobbyists, whose interests of protecting profit take precedence over open, equal global communication amongst Earthlings.
1. LinkedIn. I deleted my profile and completely quit this most useless of social networks. In all the years I kept up my profile and made connections, I got absolutely nothing in return. Even when searching for a job, it was useless. In retrospect, it’s like the Classmates.com of the aughts.
2. Dropbox. First they looked at user files, then they hired Condoleezza (why does her name have two z’s) Rice as their “privacy advisor.” Besides, I wasn’t really using it anyway.
3. Facebook. Again. But then I had to rejoin. It’s a very necessary evil, unfortunately, being in a band and trying to connect to fans, venues, and clients.
This is a bad bug, and Jetpack is one of the most widely used plugins in the WordPress world. We have been working closely with the WordPress security team, which has pushed updates to every version of the plugin since 1.9 through coreâs auto-update system. We have also coordinated with a number of hosts and network providers to install network-wide blocks to mitigate the impact of this vulnerability, but the only sure fix is updating the plugin.
So not only is that an issue, but if you haven’t done your part in protecting yourself from this week’s HeartBleed bug, which has scared the bejeezus out of the entire Internet, get yourself fixed up ASAP!
If you are lucky enough to have been using LastPass to manage your passwords, log in there and do a Security Check to find out which websites you frequent may be vulnerable to that bug. LastPass will also help you quickly change passwords as needed.
It’s been a while since I posted some of the random coolness I’ve found around the Internet, so I thought I’d give you dear reader(s) some things to look at. Maybe your life will be changed, and maybe it won’t. Either way, I thought these were interesting for various reasons, and maybe you will too.
I’m not sure how scientifically reliable this is, but if you are a bacon lover and you are looking for some justification to keep eating it without feeling guilty, you might find this article about the alleged myth that nitrates and nitrites are bad for you. I guess this means hotdogs are safe now too, which is great, because I happen to love eating animal lips.
There is nothing like arguing on the Internet, as it is the neverending pleasure that just keeps on giving. This Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments helps you learn some logical concepts and fallacies in a very approachable ways. Maybe it will help you kick your arguing up a notch.
This Digital Attack Map lets you see all the active Distributed Denial of Service (DDos) attacks going on around the world at any given time. In a very snappy way it shows you who is getting hit, who is attacking, and how big the attacks/hits are. Pretty interesting (hint: hover your mouse over the moving balls. Heh.)
This listing of Google Voice Actions is extremely useful. Did you know that you can instruct your phone or computer to “Listen to TV” and have it tell you what you are currently watching? OK, that may not be that useful but there are other commands that certainly are.
And lastly, I can’t help but bash Facebook a little. It has become so useless for companies, bands, small businesses, or anyone else trying to communicate to people with a Facebook Page. And it is only going to get worse. It’s time for you people to look at Google+ already.
That’s about 1000 times faster than your average Charter or Comcast cable Internet service. You can download an entire HD movie in roughly 30 seconds. Believe it or not, this will bring us more in line with the rest of the planet, where speeds have far surpassed those in the US in recent years.
When Does it Happen?
“Asheville will receive service about the same time as Raleigh, according to RST Fiber co-founder and CEO Dan Limerick.”
According to the article, that will be within 60 days or so.
The part about a-la-carte TV service sounded appealing to me as well. Imagine only paying for the channels you want. I’ve been a proponent of this concept for years. It remains to be seen how this will actually work, but there is hope.
For those of you keeping score at home, these are the things that have been happening around here.
1. LinkedIn. I deleted my profile and completely quit this most useless of social networks. In all the years I kept up my profile and made connections, I got absolutely nothing in return. Even when searching for a job, it was useless. In retrospect, it’s like the Classmates.com of the aughts.
