Continue reading »]]> On Thursday (29/9/11), we7 converted it’s free service to a “radio” service – being the latest online music service to do so. It follows Spotify, who moved to limited music streaming in April.

The new service for free users allows up to 50 “on-demand” tracks per month, and then a limited radio service. Premium and Premium+ users still have full access to the old site at http://subscription.we7.com and can choose between the two sites.

It does prove that there really is no money in free choice-based music streaming. We7 previously blamed the music industries high streaming fee – which was difficult to match with advertising.

We7 has argued that it believes people want their music to be chosen for them on a genre basis. According to The Telegraph, it denies the move is due to increased competition.

It’s a real shame, but it seems impossible to make money from advertised streaming services.

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I’d heard about QR codes in the past – otherwise known as quick reference codes – but only recently have I realised how useful they are. Basically, they’re the next step forward from bar codes.

A square image holds many pixels, which a programmed reader can recognise and decode. A simple idea – but very handy.

You may have started noticing them in advertisements and on posters. The idea is that you scan it with your smartphone or other reader, and your device will instantly decode it and provide you with whatever information you requested.

Any one QR code can hold a whole host of information such as URLs, contact cards, texts, wi-fi network details, geo-locations – the list goes on!

I’ve now trimmed up the twitter feed with a QR code for this site – seems like a no-brainer to me. There are loads of online QR code generators – such as this one - so why not stick one on your site?

Continue reading »]]> Google today released their latest version of the growing web browser, Chrome. The new version includes a large range of new features.

I’m very pleased to know that Chrome now synchronises browser settings, as well as bookmarks, to the syncing server. This means that when you use Chrome on multiple computers, you take your whole browser with you. Nice touch.

There’s also a really nice selection of HTML functions - including drag and drop (ie you can drag your Gmail attachments to your Documents folder).

In addition, great news for Mac and Linux users – Chrome 5.0 is a stable version! It’s about time!

Oh and finally, Google have set that from the next release of Adobe Flash (10.1), they are planning to automatically include a full compatible version of Flash with Chrome every time it is installed. That way, if you don’t already have it, Google will automatically install it for you when you install Chrome.

Head to google.com/chrome for the new version, or upgrade automatically from your browser!

Continue reading »]]> I recently came across Steam after a friend recommended the program to me. I thought it was worth a go as I have pretty good graphics on my new homebuilt PC.

The main purpose of Steam is to give users the ability to download games rather than having to go and buy them on a physical disk. It also means you get access to a wide range of PC only games which may be limited in disk format. It can also be considerably cheaper to use Steam as the regularly run discounts and multipack buys.

So I went ahead and downloaded the free software and gave it a go. Bought my first game (Burnout Paradise) which was on discount at the time, and it immediately started downloading.

As soon as it downloaded (which took a while, but that’s only because my internet connection isn’t rocket speed) I launched the game. I was amazed at how well it actually worked. You get access to the in-game Steam community as well so you can chat to your friends while you are playing games.

I’m actually very happy with Steam and I doubt I will buy another game on DVD. If you’ve got a good internet connection with plenty of bandwidth, it’s a very good idea.

Oh and just in case anyone is concerned – the software is totally legal and Valve (the company who run Steam) have partnerships with many of the big game developers.

Continue reading »]]> Great news iPhone and iPod Touch owners! TVCatchup – the UK’s brilliant online TV streamer – has just launched a huge bundle of new channels for their site.

Many more of the Freeview channels are now available to stream free, anytime.

Just some of the new channels include Channel 4+1, BBC Four, ITV3, ITV4 and Fiver.

The service is still totally free and works over 3G or Wi-Fi so don’t miss out!

Head straight over to iphone.tvcatchup.com to get started.

Continue reading »]]> This website has been around for quite a while (I think, anyway) but I only recently came across it from another tech blog I was browsing through. I find it really useful for determining the most popular software as well as search engines, ISPs, and more!

It can be found here (http://marketshare.hitslink.com/) and it is really worth looking at if you are interested in market shares in the technological world!

It can also show you trends – so you can see where browsers (for example) are going in terms of how popular they are. There are some handy graphs and charts.

It doesn’t cost anything and be extremely handy. I shall definitely be referring to it in future posts as I think it can be very useful.

Continue reading »]]> I just randomly found a fantastic free service. It’s called TVCatchup – bit of an odd name for a service that isn’t a catchup service. EDIT: One of the moderators has let me know that they are planning to add in recording capabilites in the future – looking forward to that.

It allows you to stream all of the freeview channels available in the UK for free. You can watch every free-to-air channel online, using the helpful online service. It even has a simple but useful EPG that runs in your web browser.

The service, predictably, is only for use in the UK. However, it works anywhere in the UK that can get a broadband connection, so if you’re in an area where Freeview/digital signal is poor, this service is a godsend! If you don’t have a TV license, it’s probably a bad idea to use the site, too. TVCatchup has said it will not actually police this.

You simply sign up for a free account and you’re off. Watch whatever channel you want whenever you want. The only thing you have to be careful of is your bandwidth limit – this will quickly chew up your bandwidth – so if you’re on a tight limit, I wouldn’t recommend prolonged viewing.

There is a short advertisement when you start a channel, but as far as I know that is all (with exception to adverts shown on TV channels).

I think it only works on some ISPs. Me, being on Tiscali (don’t ask why), miraculously it works. The service will tell you on signup if your ISP is not supported. TVC has told me that it is peered with all ISPs – I’m not totally sure what this means, but presumably there are few (if any) ISPs that actively block usage of TVCatchup.

This really is a fantastic service. I can now get all the channels I don’t get on Freeview, online. If you want to see for yourself, get a free account at www.tvcatchup.com.

Continue reading »]]> Yep, if you are online in the UK at the moment (and you have a TV license), you can now watch BBC One and BBC Two live for free. This adds to the already showing BBC Three, Four, And News channels. 

They say the service is currently in BETA but it is generally good and stable.

Head over to BBC One or BBC Two to take a look!

Continue reading »]]> Well, after the BBC announced a couple of weeks back that they are to stream BBC1 and BBC2 starting in the next few days, it made me think – could I live with internet TV over conventional TV?

Of course, you still need a TV license to watch live TV; no matter whether its over a transmitter or an internet connection. So its no way of a couple of hundred pounds (don’t get excited). You can watch iPlayer and other on demand services without a license since they are not live, and as long as you don’t have a TV in your house, you are OK. 

But I mean internet does seem to be becoming a little more practical now. We can get a huge proportion of the channels on Freeview over the internet now, and if you are one person in a house and you can cope with watching TV on a monitor, then it might save the cost of a TV and the channels to go with it.

As far as I know, you can get BBC1 and BBC 2 (in the next few days), BBC3, BBC4, ITV 1, 2, and 3, and a few other channels online. And I suspect a huge range of other broadcasters will start online soon. 

As long as you have enough bandwidth in your broadband, you might find it very useful to have TV online, and I think it should be something to look forward to.

What do you think about it?