Have some DVDs laying about that you’d like to convert to MPEG-4 (or other) format so you can watch them on your iPhone or iPod? Or maybe you just want to store them on your laptop to watch at your leisure while you’re traveling, instead of having to pack a stack of DVDs?

Enter HandBrake - a free (open source) conversion tool that works like a charm. I absolutely LOVE this application - and yes there is a Windows version as well - it simply couldn’t be any easier to use to rip your DVDs for personal use. And yes there ARE other similar applications, but it’s hard to beat “free” (and I do mean really and truly free - the developers don’t even accept donations for this terrific app). In my humble opinion, HandBrake tops my list because it’s so easy to use.

Just pop in the DVD you want to rip, open HandBrake, and browse to the DVD in your Finder list or on your Desktop (if your computer is set to auto-play the DVD using other software, just quit the other software). Alternatively you can browse to a VIDEO_TS folder if you’ve already copied a DVD to your computer and just need to convert it to play on your iPhone or iPod. Then choose one of the handy presets from the slide-out drawer, click on “Add to Queue”, then start the Queue or add more movies if you have several and want to set it up to run while you’re sleeping. You can also tweak your own settings if you don’t care for any of the included presets (which cover most needs).

How long it takes to rip and convert depends on your computer’s resources (RAM and processor speed), but to give you an idea, on my PowerMac G5 (which is a PowerPC quad-core with 4.5GB of RAM) it took just under 40 minutes to rip and convert a movie that is 1 hour and 32 minutes long.

There is a wealth of documentation available, including an extensive FAQ section, at the HandBrake website, however, I found it to be very user-friendly, and didn’t need much further instruction beyond what I’ve described above.

One caveat - if the DVD you want to rip and convert uses a newer copy-protection scheme known as ARCos (which uses zero-sum cells sprinkled throughout the video files to thwart ripping software), then you’ll need to use another tool first to copy the video files while removing the zero-sum cells, then use HandBrake to convert the resulting VIDEO_TS file. A good such tool is MacTheRipper but note that the free version of MTR does not remove zero-sum cells. A newer version that requires a “donation” first does, and believe me it is well worth the suggested donation of $50 if you plan to rip many newer videos. To get the new version, visit the MTR Forum and follow the donation instructions, after which you’ll be given a link to download MTR version 3.x.

One further disclaimer - while I fully believe that it is within the fair-use rights of the DRM regulations to use such tools to make a backup copy of any DVD which you have legally purchased, as well as to be able to view it on the device of your choosing, using DVD rippers to copy any other DVDs (rentals or those you’ve borrowed) is not. Don’t engage in piracy.

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***NOTE*** - This issue has been happily resolved - please read my followup post here.

Think you’re ready to upgrade to Apple’s newest version of OS X, Leopard? You’ve read all the early adopters’ reviews, tips, and notes, removed any uncompatible applications or utilities (like APE), backed up your system, and chosen your preferred upgrade method (straight upgrade, archive & install, or erase & install) - so you’re good to go right? Maybe…..and maybe not.

Don’t assume that nothing can go wrong - in fact, you’re better off if you DO assume that something CAN go wrong and perhaps WILL, and prepare like hell for it. Like you could, for example, get a bad Install DVD from Apple, which is what happened to me. It even passed the “integrity check” to make sure the source media (the install DVD) was good, then halfway through the upgrade - poof! - sudden failure with a message saying my “source media is damaged”, and leaving my beloved PowerBook unbootable because, guess what? Yep - it worked just long enough to remove the old OS. Because I have a large number of applications, but a few OS glitches I wanted “cleaned up”, I had chosen to do an “Archive & Install”, confident that the Migration Assistant would copy over my backed up user data and network settings, leaving my applications intact, as it had through the prior two upgrades (Panther and Tiger). Aaaargh. What’s almost funny is that the warning message even suggests using a “different copy of the source media” - what? Does it think that when I was at the Apple Store I decided to buy two or three copies “just in case”?? Are you KIDDING me?

I’m sharing my unfortunate experience so that hopefully someone else can avoid the same fate - and really, it doesn’t take much to learn from my mistake. I did all of the above preparatory steps with one exception - the backup process - not having a firewire drive available, I backed up my entire computer to a network drive (so at least, thank goodness, all my data was safe)….BUT it is not “bootable”, so I can’t use it to boot from. And no luck reinstalling Tiger either - OS X (like Windows) will only install on a computer that already has a copy of the OS on it (it’s a security measure), but since my previous OS was removed by the Leopard Install my only choice was to go all the way back to the original install/restore disk that came with the computer - 10.2 (Jaguar), then upgrade from there back up thru Panther to Tiger, then reinstall my applications and copy over my backed up data.

Altogether what should have taken an hour or less (for the straight Leopard upgrade, longer if you choose Archive & Install or Erase & Install) wound up taking almost two days to get back to operational (on Tiger), and will take several more days to receive a replacement Leopard Install DVD from Apple.

SO the lessons to be learned here are:

• Be SURE you use a FIREWIRE drive to make a Bootable clone of your system before you attempt any upgrade;
• Check your Install DVD very carefully! Look for any scratches, no matter how slight - in fact you should ask if you can do this WHILE you are at the Apple Store, so that if you do get a defective DVD you can exchange it right there - if you buy from an online source, be sure you know their exchange policy. While you CAN get a replacement from Apple, it will take time;
• If you have enough drive space (a full install with all the languages and printer drivers will need around 11GB of space), consider partitioning your hard disk (a tool like iPartition will do this without erasing any existing data on your drive), then installing Leopard on a new, small partition JUST to be sure it will install fine - you can always install on your primary partition once you know the DVD will get through a normal install.

I know that this is a RARE occurance (most of the Mac users I know had a much easier time of it - some with no problems at all), and to their credit, Apple is sending me a replacement DVD, however knowing all this doesn’t make me feel any better - this has been a nightmare that I hope others will not have to suffer.

By the way, I did most of this post using the WPhone Plugin which allows a WordPress user to manage all aspects of their blog from an iPhone or other browser-enabled cell phone. Thanks guys!

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If you read my previous post about the Myvu Personal Media Viewer, you’ll know how excited I was to order them since they announced an iPhone-compatible version (the Myvu Solo Plus Edition for iPod).

Well they finally arrived yesterday, and I’ve been testing them thoroughly since then. And yes, they do work with my iPhone. There are definite pros and cons, so read on for my full review…..

First the Pros:

• Disregard the message that pops up on the iPhone claiming that you’ve plugged in an accessory not made for the iPhone - Myvu works just fine, and very, very simply. Just plug and play, literally;
• They are very lightweight and comfortable. Out of the box they fit my face and ears fine - both the nose piece and earpieces - but they do come with a few extra ear- and nose-pieces in differing sizes so that you can customize the fit to your liking;
• Not having to look down to my lap (causing neck strain) or hold my iPhone up (causing arm fatigue) is a HUGE benefit - I can literally sit back and relax and watch my video/movie at whatever angle is comfortable for me;
• The size of the virtual screen, and the distance it appears to be, is very comfortable also - very much like watching my 32″ television from my couch
• I didn’t have any trouble with the apparent brightness (a common complaint of competing products), but the Myvu Personal Media Viewer has a brightness control as well as a contrast control;
• The Viewer itself does not block all vision - you can see above, below, and around the screen on which you are watching your video content - a good safety feature, especially if you are in a public place - like an airport for example, where you’d want to be able to keep an eye on your bags as well, or a train where you’d need to keep track of the stops;

Now for the Cons:

• The video resolution is good, but not great. Not bad enough to be distracting, but given that the iPhone is capable of putting out better resolution, it would be nice to have that translated to the viewer screen. However, to be fair, the Myvu Personal Media Viewer is a fraction of the cost (yes, even at $199) of much more expensive competitors that promise higher resolution;
• The aspect ratio is the same as the iPod, with no adjustment for the iPhone’s wider aspect ratio. Since movies and TV shows loaded on the iPhone are automatically shown in landscape mode, there is not an option to use a “letterbox effect” (black band at top and bottom that preserves the wide aspect) but instead the video is cut off on the sides to “square up” what is displayed to the aspect ratio of the Media Viewer. I know, it’s nit-picking, but it would be nice if the Myvu screen could accommodate wide aspect ratio video content. All that being said, it did not distract, nor detract, from my enjoyment of watching a movie;
• The Viewer itself does not block all vision - okay I know I listed that above as a “Pro”, and it is, but if there is a lot of activity going on around you, you’ll be aware of it, which can be distracting, particularly if you suffer from Shiny Object Syndrome**

**Also known as Attention Deficit Disorder

Summary:
In my opinion, what’s good about the Myvu Personal Media Viewer outweighs the bad, so I give it three and a half paws.
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Author’s Edit: A lot of people are interested in how to create free ringtones for their iPhones, because this post gets more views than anything else on my site, so I’ve updated it to reflect both the current version of iTunes (as of this writing 7.6.1) and iPhone firmware (1.1.4).

SO to make a free custom ringtone for your iPhone, follow steps 1 and 2 below, choosing AAC as the format. You can skip step 3 if you don’t want any fade in/fade out effects, or try using GarageBand if you don’t want to spring for Fission or WireTap Studio. You’ll need WireTap Studio if you want to record the playback of “protected” music in order to get it into AAC format, but if you’re working with unprotected songs, you can get by without it. After step 2 you’ll have a new song that you can navigate to (should be in your iTunes Music Folder) and change the extension from .m4a to .m4r. Then open it in iTunes and it should open in your iTunes Ringtones Folder. That’s it! If you have trouble or questions leave a comment below and I’ll respond fairly quickly.

This past week I’ve received three emails from friends asking me to tell them exactly how to create a custom ringtone for their iPhones…… so for the sake of anyone else who could use a simple list of directions, here is how I make my iPhone ringtones:

My tools:

• iTunes - any version will do, I use 7.4.2
• WireTap Pro - only needed to record protected songs
• Fission - to add a nice fade in/fade out effect
• iToner - to sync my new ringtone (hack free) to my iPhone

Note: WireTap Pro has been replaced with WireTap Studio, which now includes the ability to modify music to add fade in/fade out and other effects, so if you’ve upgraded from WireTap Pro, you don’t need Fission. Also, I’m told that newer versions of GarageBand also allow adding fade in/fade out effects, but I’m not familiar with how to use GarageBand, so I’ll stick with how I do things.

1. Find the perfect snippet by listening to the song you want to use as a ringtone in iTunes, and make note of the start and end times in the display bar at the top. Try to keep the snippet to under 20 seconds (really, how long does it take you to answer your phone?), especially if you plan to put a lot of custom ringtones on your iPhone, to avoid taking up more space on your iPhone than is really needed - why record a 1 minute ringtone when you normally answer your phone in 10 seconds or less?

2. The next step depends on whether or not you’re making your ringtone from a Protected (purchased) song or not:

• If it’s an unprotected song, simply right click and choose “Get Info”, then click on the “Options” tab, check the “Start Time” checkbox and enter the start time of the snippet you want to use, check the “Stop Time” checkbox and enter the end time of the snippet, then click on OK to save your changes. Then from the main Menu choose “Advanced” and “Convert song to ..”. It doesn’t matter if you convert it to AAC or MP3, as the file size difference for 10 or 20 seconds is neglible, and iToner can sync most music file formats to your iPhone. This will create a second instance of the song in your iTunes Music Library that is a much smaller file size, since it consists of only the snippet you chose. It doesn’t matter if you want to keep this short song in your Library or not, but if you choose not to, be sure to navigate in your Finder to the song, and copy it somewhere safe (maybe a new folder called Ringtones?) so that if you ever forget and delete it you won’t lose what you’ve created.
• If the song you want to use for a custom ringtone is a protected song, open WireTap Pro (or the newer WireTap Studio), start playing your song snippet a couple of seconds before you want to record, then click on the Record button in WireTap Pro/Studio to start the recording. Click on the Stop button when you’ve reached the end of the snippet you want, and give your snippet a name to save it to your computer. Although WireTap allows you to choose a file type in the Preferences pane, which file type you save as (AAC or MP3) isn’t important since iToner can work with most music file types).

3. Open the song snippet you’ve created using either of the two methods just described, using either Fission or WireTap Studio, select the first 2 or 3 seconds and click “Fade In”, select the last 2 or 3 seconds and click “Fade Out”, then save your modified ringtone.
4. Connect your iPhone to your computer, then open iToner, and using the Finder to locate your modified ringtones, drag them to iToner’s main window, and when you’re done dragging your new ringtones to iToner, click on the Sync button at the bottom.
5. That’s it! You’re done! Your new custom ringtones will appear on your iPhone in its list of ringtones, and can be applied as you like - for your default ring, and/or for contacts in your contact list.

Very easy, no hacks, no problems!

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Myvu recently announced a new version of their iPod Solo Plus Edition Video Glasses that are compatible with the iPhone, so yes, I ordered a pair.

In case you’re not familiar with video glasses (or theater glasses), these are an odd looking, Geordi LaForge-style personal media viewer glasses that project the video from an iPod (and now iPhone) onto the inside of the glasses in such a way as to appear as a large screen television from a distance of about 8 - 10 feet.

The advantages are an increased viewing area, and you don’t have to hold your iPod or iPhone up in front of your face (earning you a tired arm) or get a pain in your neck from looking down at your iPod/iPhone in your lap - now you can relax, kick back, and watch your video in comfort.

The disadvantage is, well you’ll look a little dorky wearing them. Do I care? No. I was always a big ST:TNG fan, and Geordi was one of my favorite characters, so I won’t mind the resemblance.

I’m planning a trip at the end of the month, and already have my iPhone set up with a couple of movies and a few TV shows, so I’m looking forward to a thorough testing, but I’ll post my review much sooner, as soon as I’ve had a chance to try them out and see if they live up to the hype. They should be here by mid- next week, so stay tuned!

UPDATE: - Read My Review Here

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