Welcome to the digital age.We all knew it was coming, a day when our video was all digital. We could escape the bounds of PAL and NTSC because all video could be transcoded on the fly, rescaled, downconverted, or upconverted.

The day has arrived however we still buy DVDs that are PAL or NTSC specific. Aside from Regions for Blue Ray and DVD which for the sake of this article we will avoid, as well as country specific transmission formats. I want to discuss ONLY the video encoded onto DVDs and pose the questions as to why it has not changed?

PAL DVDs are typoically 720×576
NTSC DVDs are typically 720×480

In the NTSC world, content can be progressive or interlaced. Frame rates can be 23.97FPS (24P) or 29.97FPS (30 FPS)
In the PAL world, Content can be progressive or interlace2d. Frame rates can be 23.97FPS (24P) but are typically 25FPS

In the PAL world they almost do not bother with the “HD 720P format” because it offered so little improvement over PAL

Over 3 years ago I bought a new DVD player. Within a mattewr of hours I had it working “region free” and even played PAL DVDs. The DVD player itself had no issues with the PAL DVD and transcoded to NTSC. On that same DVD player I could select “PAL” output, or “Auto”, aside from the “NTSC” that it was set to. AT that time I had a stand alone TV tuner that connected to a VGA monitor. The VGA monitor and tuner were also “PAL compatible”. I was lucky. Recently while shopping for an LCD TV I came to realize that they were not making sets that were designed for 50/60 hz (25/30 FPS). Leaving my multi region DVD in “auto” mode would not work on a newer flat panel display! What? Why? Multisync monitors haver been around for a very long time and do not represent a substantial cost difference for such a small range of frequencies.

IN fact, My old DVD olayer would even output upscaled 24P via component or HDMI. I was then able to see a 24FPS DVD at 24FPS without pulldown. I now play all DVDs on XBMC anyway, however I still have the issue of the available frequencies on the monitor. With XBMC you can change the frame rate to match the source content , effectively replicating the “auto” mode on my old DVD and since all content is upscaled the frame size becomes a moot point.

So to make my point, why then are the DVD players not ALL capable of converting 24FPS to a 25FPS output? It would seem this is easy enough to attain as in NTSC the pulldown is often done in the DVD,. Even if a 24FPS DVD was played back at 25 FPS that  coule be attained on the player itself. Why do our new digital TVs not work with 25FPS when many work with 24 FPS and 30FPS they just skip past the 25FPS. Why you might ask, foirst because it is not that complicated. Second the same master coyuld be deployed in all regions offering the benefit of the higher PAL resolutions in NTSC regions. O)f course from a manufacturer standpoint this might be counterproductive from the sales pitch of HD.

Again we are permitting manufacturers to limit our abilities. It used to be that the consumer demand drove the manufacturers. Now we have allowed the manufacturers to beat us into our respective corners of the world with no compatibility between them.

I thought HD and digital was going to give us more universal video formats so the world was more unified. Instead manufacturers and movie studios are using it against us in the name of “content protection”

and denying uis the ability to have higher resolution SD while pitching HD that is sometimes only slightly better than SD PAL.

Manufacturers listen up….
I do not hesitate to buy PAL DVDs and play them on XBMC. I currently am playing a PAL DVD of “Stargate Universe” as I write this,  which never looked so good on NTSC If only I could buy retail what I have worked so hard to build!

As a former Video Systems Engineer, I submit that the entire HDMI concept is a SCAM.

Why carry a digital signal 2 feet to a flat panel display when good quality coaxial cables can carry analogue component or RGB several meters without degradation?

When HDMI came along we already had VGA, DVI, RGB and Broadcast component resolutions that exceeded Current broadcast HD standards. Many of those same resolutions could easily apply to consumer Component video. Why was VGA or DVI not defined as the standard? Why did consumer electronics manufacturers never define a 1080P over component standard when it was feasible and already had been shown in the broadcast world years before?

Truth is that companies like Sony/Paramount only wanted a method to protect content at the expense of consumers. This kind of corporate slavery where consumers are the cash cows for “new technology” which not only is unnecessary, but provides benefit only to large corporations at the consumers’ expense should be dealt with severely by consumers. Not to mention then consumers fall victim to things like the HDMI cable scams, where a $100 Dollar is sold and claimed to be “better” than the $10 dollar cable.

So now we transcode all video to HDMI and that makes it “better”? It was all about protecting content and was forced on consumers by big corporations.

The Cyberdata Door intercom sells for about $400 US Dollars

After having installed a Cyberdata SIP intercom system posted here, I recently had a need to replace my own door Intercom system, and began to look for alternatives. I did not want to use the Cyberdata because of its prohibitive price, around $400 USD, which is far too much to spend on a single intercom station, or even SIP for that matter.  This idea struck me because I had recently installed some Grandstream phones in a clients office as temporary replacements while we awaited the rest of their Polycom order. Before the Polycom’s arrived client complained that on more than one of these Grandstream units, the handset failed. What to do with Grandstream phones with non working handsets?

Below are the details of how I hacked a Grandstream  BT102 into a fully functional SIP door Intercom.

First I want to clarify that this is a hack. I accept no responsibility of you fry something. Use this information at your own risk!  This hack does not compare to the Cyberdata unit as it has no remote contact closures nor alarms. For basic SIP communication from your door to wherever, you can see the value it offers. This should work for any BT 101/102. The Grandstream BT 101/102 phone are identical except for the number of LAN ports. I imagine this same hack will apply to all versions of both models but I have not confirmed this. Please note that Ethernet requires only four wires (two pairs) theoretically one could use an additional pair for power, and the remaining pair to trigger a relay as a remote door opener.

The Grandstream BT 101/102 makes a great alternative to overpriced door intercoms

Before continuing, consider how you will deliver power to the device located at the door. Something like “The Poor Man’s POE” should work fine if cable lengths are not too long. I personally would skip the adapters and wire the Ethernet cable directly to the power to save space.

In my case, I reused the old intercom housing, as I did not want to deal with the complexities of changing the box. If you are doing a new installation , you will need to spend some money on a custom housing, otherwise you may be able to work from an old intercom housing as I did. The nice thing about a hack is that you may even extend it on to something like a full speakerphone with numeric keypad. The ribbon cable seems well marked on the keypad board, thereby facilitating even more hacks to make something like the one pictured below.

With some additional work, it may be possible to hack a door intercom with dialer. Leave a comment if you have success with this.

I never liked the Grandstream Budgetone series of phones much. They always seemed to reek of cheap Chinese Plastic. There was never anything special about the voice quality and the speaker phone is quite basic. This basic spekerphone functionality however  is quite useful in our hack.

Grandstream BT101 or BT102 that has working speakerphone functionality. Handset case or other buttons may be broken, as long as the Speakerphone function works and you have access for programming the phone.

What you will need:

Weatherproof box- either new or from Intercom to be replaced as in my case.

Soldering Iron

Grandstream Budgetone BT-101 or BT-102, even if some number buttons do not work or the handset is broke. If the speakerphone can answer a call, it will probably work.

Electrical tape

Tools

Miscellaneous low voltage wire

Single Pole Single Throw, Normally Open momentary contact switch (Call button)

Stand-offs, or mounting hardware

A toothpick

If locating the unit outside- Weatherproof 8 ohm speaker, such as polypropylene rated to 1/2 watt, appropriately sizes to fit the box you will use.

Before continuing

You need to program and test the Budgetone for your particular use. I did this with the unit fully assembled, and established IP Address auto dial calling from the Budgetone to a Zulty’s ZIP (to be used as the Indoor station) . I then established the same from the Zulty’s to the Door phone. Because this hack involves using  only the speakerphone button from the Grandstream, you will have no opportunity later to adjust ring volume etc, so do it before the unit is dismantled. I set the Budgetone to be modded to “auto answer” as well.Also in my test with the Zulty’s in my initial test set up, the Zulty’s would not stop ringing. Because this firmware looks much like Leadtek and 8×8 firmware that I had seen this issue with before, I switched the indoor station test unit to a Grandstream Budgetone BT202, which proved to stop ringing after about a minute. ( this is also an option in these Grandstream phones that you may have to enable) . Also worth noting is that Grandstream’s docuementation here , seems to be inaccurate when configuring IP dialing. and when considering autodialing an IP address. I found that I had to put the other phone’s (destination phone)  IP address in the SIP server field of both phones, then I entered  “1″ in the auto dial field. Of course if you use Asterisk/Trixbox/Elastix/FreePBX this does not apply. With Asterisk you have the added benefit of sending to multiple destinations such as your cell phone which means you could answer the door when travelling and the person at the door has no clue you are not there, unless of course you tell them.

Now to the hardware

Opening the Grandstream

First we open the Budgetone by removing the four screws. Once opened we can see that there are three boards on the inside. One for Display, one for buttons and another for the core system. This core system board is the one that interests us, as well as microphone, ribbon cable and the speaker (if our intercom will be located indoors).

Ribbon Connector on Board

If you have tested and are ready to get into it, remove the main board and cut the ribbon cable at roughly the half way point, or more towards the keypad board. We will separate out only four conductors, one pair to activate the speakerphone and another pair to connect the speaker.

Ribbon Connections Close Up

The toothpick is used to keep the hookswitch in the on-hook state.

Toothpick on hookswitch. Push the blue part down and you will see a space in the side. Insert the toothpick there.

You now need to prepare your board mounting hardware to your box, and test for fit.

Next we need only four wires separated from the ribbon cable. (See Images), to connect speaker and momentary contact switch.

Once the board is mounted and your Call Button and speaker are connected you can test the unit before putting it into actual service.

It is a good idea to test the unit at various stages in the hack. That way if something goes wrong you could hopefully undo you last move.

I am interested in hearing comments about this hack particularly if someone uses it with a numeric keypad.

Note the following is generic information, and does not mean this is all our systems an do. You can get more information about our HTPC systems here. Check the videos here to see the online content that our HTPC systems offer. Click here to see the systems
that we offer.
Teknogeekz.com is proud to offer Home Theater PCs (HTPC), otherwise referred to as Media Center PCs, based on XBMC, Boxee, or Windows Media Center

Our HTPC systems offer a substantial amount of on – line content from recent releases of movies to TV series and sports. For more information on the content, please click here.

These HTPC systems connect to your TV via VGA or HDMI and offer resolutions up to 1080P  for a true HD experience.

HTPC systems can play media from your computer network, so all downloaded files and files stored on a Network Attached Storage (NAS) can be made available to your HTPC. We feature stand alone XBMC systems as well as Windows based solutions with full remote control, and many options are available from BlueRay to hardware HD decoding, WiFi and much more.

the XBMC HTPC is fully controllable via remote control

The remote control is a key feature of the XBMC HTPC that negates the use of a keyboard or mouse.

HTPC, with DVD in Standalone or with Full OS Windows or Linux

For a more robust system, we offer systems that may be based on Windows or Linux Mint , that allow full use of a PC connected to your LCD big screen display. Whether you choose Windows or Linux, XBMC offers the same features, and integrates to the OS,  meanwhile you can access the integrated DVD/CD drive to play music or DVDs.

XBMC Confluence Skin

Meanwhile XBMC servers as the core of your media center reproducing full quality video up to 1080P resolutions. XBMC offers a wide variety of plug ins that do everything from retrieve movie data to warching live video streams.

Let us offer you the opportunity of enjoying your digital media collection in a way you never thought imaginable.

Recently while shopping with a friend in the local office supply store we discovered a great closeout buy on a color Laser printer from Hewlett Packard model CP1215. Within a day the friend told me she wanted to buy it, and being cautious as I always am in making a recommendation for her to buy it as cool as it seemed, and as cheap as it was, I insisted we look elsewhere. In the end however we returned to the same store to purchase the HP CP 1215.

HP CP1215 overall is a great cross platform color laser printer!

Upon reviewing the box in the store however we noted What!? NO MAC DRIVERS! This seemed unusual for HP who most always had Mac, Linux and Windows support. My friend was quick to whip out her iPhone and do a quick Google search that yielded some results for installing foomatic printer drivers on her (Original Link gone) OS X to be able to print from her Apple Macintosh (New Link ) here Being somewhat of an Ubuntu geek and having dealt with CentOS , Redhat, and others I was comfortable with what I read and confidently offered to make it work.

Imagine my surprise however after registering on the apple developer site and performing the download suggested on the post that the OSX 10.5 package I need was no longer available! I attempted what was there and after downloading a few gigabytes of an installer, I found that  it would not run on OSX 10.5 . On a whim I did some googling and discovered that the Apple software I needed was on the original OSX disk, thus negating the need for a huge download. After following the instructions the install went off without a hitch!

Not often however do I really get to install linux software on OSX and I soon realized that OSX used CUPS printing , just like linux.  With my Ubuntu machine nearby I connected to the network fired it up enabled discovery of network printers in Ubuntu, and was printing from Ubuntu to the HP Color Laser connected to the Mac.

UPDATE  May 17, 2011

Since originally writing this,  we have connected this printer to Mac OS 10.5, Mac OS 10.4, Ubuntu 10.04 PPC, Ubuntu 10.10 PPC,  Ububtu 10.04 x86,  Ubuntu 10.10 x86 (Mint 10) , Windows, 7 Starter, Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows XP, all via two different print servers. With Android, PrintBot stopped working after a PrintBot software upgrade BOO! The HP android print utility will not recognize the current configuration nor any previous, I think because it requires Bonjour.

UPDATE November 5, 2011

We have now also installed this to Mac OS X 10.6 , however it required updated Ghostsript which worked fine.

Still no printing from iThingies (iThis, iThat), despite testing several apps including HPs own. I guess that HP does not like that we are using a generic HP protocol print server (Same problem on Android with HP app). The one app that I thought might work did not have the driver.

After some time in Mexico I have experienced the Gamut of Internet problems. Recently however I had the need to connect a SIP phone to what I was instructed was a Telmex Infinitum connection, later to find out it is CosmoRed. This CosmoRed connection proved to be quite challenging, and I detail the reasons here. I write here what I know about Mexican Internet Providers , especially those in Puerto Vallarta.

Infintum DSL

This is the most popular national Internet provider because it is owned by Telmex, or Carlos Slim(e) and Co.  who have spent a lot of money keeping the competition at bay as well as taking un-earned money from contractees, requiring them to pay for services that they never used. Because of their failure on a contract Telmex goes after them for the amount that they would have received even though no services were rendered. Now you see why I put the (e) after Carlos Slim. Signing a Telmex contract is like making a deal with the devil. At this point in the game it is better to look for another option if you do not need a telmex line. They also have a long reputaion of things like misleading advertising (where things like UNLIMITED calling is used when they really mean LIMITED. If it is not written in the contract (and it wont be) you wont get it!. As for the bandwidth a 1 Meg connection often yields only 128k of upload speed. This is barely Broadband as it is and when  you factor in that real world tests often yield half the bandwidth, this takes upload speed to 64K . Limiting upload speed is a way to hinder consumption of download speed. Telmex DNS servers often block VoIP services to this day. Recently I configured and IP phone to us.voxalot.com on a Telmex connection and in the end determined that TelMex DNS servers were not resolving the hostname . A quick switch to OpenDNS or Google DNS solves this problem. It does not however negate the probability that this DNS resolution issue is probably intentional.

Telecable

offers Internet service and in a decent neighborhood it works very well. Recently one client was informed that he had problems because the equipmebnt opn the lione outside his home wa older 550 Mhz equipment that was in need of upgradingf. It may take them a while to get your issues straightened ouit but you will certainly get more upload speed than a comparable Infinitum connection.

Telecable However does not by defaiult give you a Public IP . This is typical of Many Cable providers in mexico and the only opne I have seen that was not this way was Megared Tijuana , that actually got their IP addresses from a US provider across the border.

At least with Telecable you have the option of paying 50 Pesos more to contract the IP Plus service which gives you a public IP, which is unlike the next provider in this list.

Unless you have the IP Plus service (and have confirmed you are getting the public IP you pay for) do not use a router on this service. better to connect a switch and allow Telecable to give the IP addresses from those in the Private LAN IPs that they issue. This is especially necessary if you use VoIP , as most VoIP services require that you have no more than one NAT between you and your public IP address.

Cosmored

Is the epitomy of horribe broadband service.  On first observation they offer no public IP and to get one they say it costs 1000 pesos per month. That is ridiculous given that I used to get a public IP even on a dial up connection.

Secondly nothing on the public internet is pingable. Any ping sent to any destination on the internet will not be completed. I believe this is in violation of recent Mexico laws that require ISPs to allow access to ALL services and ALL destinations on the internet.  I think this is mostly because they do not watheir customers to see the reality of the awful ping times and lost packets. Even the diagnostics at DSL reports.com are rendered useless to measure packet loss and ping times on these connections.

Third issue was their DNS resolution. I kept getting that web pages were unavailable. After changing my DNS to Google DNS , I quickly learned that this problem lie in their DNS resolution.  If you must use this service it should be consided essential to set your DNS to Google DNS or OpenDNS.

Again in this case the Private LAN IPs they offer apparently allow the connection of multiple computers via a switch , thereby avoiding a dual NAT situation. Also again stay away from using a router on this service for the aforementioned reason , especially if you need to use VoIP.

Later we will take a look at mobile solutions from Telcel and Iusacel

Summary

There is no reason these Internet Providers over cable should be holding out on public IP addresses. This makes advanced configurations complex if not impossible under some circumstances. The winner in my book however is Telecable , but that also depends on the neighborhood. If you are in a neighborhood that is problematic for telecable you may have to make a deal with the devil (Telmex) , or Chafa Cable (Cosmored) . Of course for many web surfers once the alternate DNS is selected with Telmex or Cosmored  that may be  all one really needs. Us geekz however may require something more.

Although I have tried many Click to call features over the years, until recenly none have come close to my expectation. I had nearly given up until I received what appeared at first to be a SPAM email from Zingaya.com . Since it was VoIP I checked it out. then wow, what did I see, a free account with “Click to Call” button.  Although I use it to connect to my voxalot account they say it works with Skype and to any PSTN number. I am sure they charge for the PSTN calls , and not sure about charges for Skype calls.

I had heard recently of Flash to SIP features, but had not yet seen anything worthy of mention.

I prepared for the normal round of disappointment as I signed up for the free account. Later I got it all configured to my Voxalot account, and WHAMMO ! It Worked first time out! Very impressive I thought.

I asked a few friends to test after posting it , and not even the most novice of users had problems using it. Later however I tried several times again from my Linux Mint 8 Installation where I made the first call, and since have been unable to connect. Ok on my site I get a LOT of Linux users reading the blogs, etc, however the users that should call me are the paying customers and most of them use windows or Mac. Later I asked a friend with Linux Mint 9 to test the button , and he was never able to connect either.

Overall however I send praises to the developers at Zingaya. Despite its incompatibility from Mint , it is the most useful Click to Call button I have found to date.

Now I can be reached from a web page too!

The Teknogeekz Forumz is a place where users and geeks alike can connect to better understand how to deploy technologies to enhance their workflow and everyday lives.

Forumz

UPDATE

Due to excessive spam posts the forums have now been taken off line

It has been a while and part 2 of this article is long overdue. Some changes have been in the works at Google Voice and it is now open , and  a new account can be activated in minutes. Additionally Google Voice no long is giviong away free SMS messages rto Mexico as before. Apparently one can pay for these messages, however I have been unable to find a per message rate anywhere and the 10 cents on my account is apparently not enough.

You should have read Part I by now and if you have not , please read it before proceeding.

Please also refer to this interim post that was made: Google Voice…

So now we put it all together, but first we want to give you an overview.

Google vopice effectively connects any two North American numbers. We have acquired a free number that will get us a destination on our end, and via Voxalot, we will connect that to an ATA such as Sipura, or Linksys  that we can connect a regular telephone to, or a Softphone like Xlite that we can use on a Smartphopne or a computer . The other end of the call will connect via google voice to whomever we stipulate.

Direct your Free IPKall number to your Voxalot account.

Log into your IPKall Account with the account info from part 1, and we see the following options:

Account Type: SIP

SIP Phone Number: <Voxalot Account Number>

SIP Proxy: us.voxalot.com (or whichever you select at Voxalot)

Email Address: <Your Email Address>

Password: <Your Password for IPKall>

Seconds to Ring Before Hang Up: 120

Then Click “Submit”

Now we move on to the Voxalot configuration. After logging in to Voxalot with username and password from Part 1, we need only set :

Preferred Cluster: us.voxalot.com

(this depends on your actual Location au, eu, or us.)

Symmetric NAT Handling: YES

All other options are as you set earlier.

then click “update”

We will not go into detail here with Voxalot, however it is a very capable system that allows you to do so much more.

Now we need only register our softphone, smartphone or ATA to Voxalot. This process varies depending on the device, and you can get help on the voxalort forums for many devices. The basic information you will need is

SIP Proxy : us.voxalot.com (or whatever server that you selected in Voxalor as primary cluster)

Username: <your voxalot account number>

Password: <your voxalot password>

After configuring the above we need now only log into Google Voice.

Number to C all: <whomever you wish to call>

Phone to Call with: <your IPKall Number>

By now you should have a ringing phone. Answer it, and in a few seconds, you will hear that the destination number is ringing.

You can also send free SMS (text messages) to the USA and Canada.

You also have your IP Kall number that you can direct callers to and your Google Voice number. By adjusting the ring times between Google Voice and Voxalot you can determine which Voice Mail takes priority for your new Google Voice Number. The IPKall number will always be answered by Voxalot voicemail if selected.

This is part three of a series about Internet in Mexico. Part I can be found here , and Part II here. In this article we deviate more from technical issues and explore the possibilities of what Mexico could become in the Internet world, if they played their cards right.

Mexico,  because of its proximity to the USA depends greatly on the USA for many things. Unfortunately that proximity has fed a dependency and a certain lethargy towards developing their own infrastructure and they simply rely on even routing domestic Internet traffic to the USA and back to Mexico again.

With recent political developments in the USA, Mexico should wake up and recognize an opportunity. Although the US Government seeks to have a method to “shut down” the Internet , Mexico could profit by grooming itself as “near enough”  country to offer co-location and data services as Canada does presently. Unfortunately, while Mexico still relies on sending its’ traffic to USA backbone providers and does not establish its’ own independent routes to key places such as Canada, Latin America, Asia, and Europe, Mexico will always remain 20 years behind the times and never make an attractive alternative. Telmex is a major Monopoly and has clearly been a major driving force in creating the richest man in the world, Carlos Slim. It is not as if they should at least not recognize the opportunity, especially in light of increased telephone competition in Mexico, which will ultimate result in their decreased market share in Telephony.  I am sure that Telmex is aware by now that they can not continue to stifle competition as they have done for so many years, and that the end of the monopoly is near. Not to mention those contracts with customers although legal continue to gouge a customer if their contract is not met. The competition in many cases provides month to month local services with no contracts, and no penalties.

Also to aggregate the problem is price gouging, where providers often charge more than the going rate than in other countries.  For instance, in Mexico the retail mark-up is higher than in the USA and overhead such as rent and salaries are lower! Mexico has to get away from this thinking that raising prices is a way to offset running a shoddy business. Of all the companies I thought I would never praise, I do thank WalMart for helping teach this lesson in Mexico. Unfortunately it is too little too late and WalMart will certainly put an end to small retailers in Mexico as they have done in the USA, and elsewhere.

I challenge those in power to make Mexico a more attractive place, for Mexico to locate its own servers , and to attract business from abroad that wants to be close to the USA Internet Backbone, but not necessarily in the USA. This can only be accomplished by spending the investment. Clearly by the USA’s continued intention to have the ability to “close down the Internet” with a Presidential order, the USSA looses a lot of attractiveness for data an co-location. Under the present circumstances if that happened, it appears to me , that there would be no roiute to anywhere else even domestically in many cases, in Mexico.

THE TIME IS NOW!

HOY!