Easy, Fast, and Cheap Solution That Converted ALL My VHS Tapes.

I had box after box of unused VHS tapes that are now converted to an acceptable mpeg 2 format for use on my media player. Its basic, you aren't going to light the world on fire with this $55 software but you can easily, quickly, and cheaply convert all of your old VHS to DVDs in a snap. And isn't that what life is all about?

Pros: Easy to Install/connect, Cheap: under $60, Fast - as much as real time can be I suppose

Cons: Cheap construction flimsy plastic, Little/No customization of preferences, bad conversion to Quicktime


Roxio Easy VHS to DVD for Mac
Overview:

I had boxes and boxes of VHS tapes, ones that I bought, ones that I shot on camera and many of the purchased VHS I had not intention of replacing with DVD. So I had to find an easy, fast, and cheap solution to convert ALL the VHS tapes I owned. I found Easy VHS to DVD for Mac on Buy.com for about $55 and decided I would give it a try.
Box Opening Extravaganza:

Not much to it actually. You receive a usb dongle with RCA (composite) and S-Video squid cable inputs, a CD for the software,
and a slip of paper that is supposed to pass as a manual of some sort.
The dongle was cheap, light plastic but for $55 I wasn't exactly expecting pig iron with gold-tipped connectors. It is what it is.
Installation:

As with all Mac peripherals and software, its one or two steps and or clicks and away you go. I plopped the CD into my Mac and double clicked the install, pretended to read the licensing blah blah blah, and then selected the destination drive. It took about 30 seconds to install.

I then simply plugged the USB into my mac, plugged the audio composite cables (red and white RCA) from the output of my VCR into the connectors hanging from the dongle, did the same thing for the video/picture output of my VCR to the dongle and then, for kicks, tried to run the VHS conversion software right away to see if it is "smart" enough to find the dongle without a restart. It is not. I needed a restart. Once I did that. It was ready to go. Very easy to install.
The Software:

Yes, Roxio, vanilla called and it wants its flavor back from your software. The provided software is BORING and featureless with a very spartan interface, but for $55 I wasn't exactly expecting Adobe Creative Suite 5 or anything. Its very basic as I mentioned, You get an introduction screen to name your video and to set the approximate length of the video and the quality to set it to.

Easy VHS to DVD for Mac software sets up its own folder deep in your "movies" folder without telling that it has done that. You have to go into the sparse preferences menu to set a different folder for it to capture to.

The estimated lengths of video are on a pull down menu of 15, 30, 60, 90, 120, and 180 minutes which is ok unless you have a 45, 75, 105 (most Hollywood movies), or 145 minute movie, in which case, you will either have to babysit your VHS conversion to manually press "STOP" or be content with a HUGE waste of time and space at the end of your movie. More selections of time allotments please Roxio. The quality selection is High, Medium, or Low which is strange because, you wouldn't want any less quality than the "high" setting: medium is horrible, low quality resembles something shot on a late 90's treo phone.

After you've selected this criteria, you move to the hardware connection screen where it detects where your picture is connected, and it is here that a preview screen is up. I would recommend running the VCR just to make sure you are getting a picture. If you are, click continue.

This brings up the next screen which is the audio hardware connection screen. This can be tricky on a Mac because you have to go into your system preference pane with audio and select the proper input for the entire computer system so that it knows to gather and process the signal from the right place. Macs are not too good in this area even with all the other Mac advantages, audio is NOT one of them, sadly.
If you see the green audio bars resonating across the blue/grey bars at the bottom of this screen, audio is working, click continue and away you go.

This brings up the final screen which is the big fat red recording button and the little button at the bottom which says "Automatically stop recording after ___ minutes" I would use this button religiously unless I came across a video at a length in between the presets and I didn't want a bunch of blank video and dead file space at the end of my movie file. So I toggle that button "on" with a check when I don't want to babysit the conversion process. click the big fat record button and the software and dongle hardware are now converting the VHS tape to an mpeg2 computer file.

When completed, another window pops up allowing you have the option of:

• Sending to Quicktime (converting to an Mp4 - which I DONT recommend)
• Sending to Imovie, which is OK if you want to try to edit your movie • Sending to to Toast (convert straight to DVD through the provided toast basic software.)

I have no interest in DVDs anymore so I just simply took the mpeg2 file that is automatically created by the software and used it on my Seagate Freeagent Home Theater + player (see my review here on Epinions) and that is the highest that the quality gets with this software, otherwise for the MP4 it takes the mpeg2 and FURTHER compresses it to garbage ville and I was dealing with artifacts, digital hits, dropouts, and HATED the final product when exporting to Quicktime on MP4.

If I wanted mp4 I would just bring the mpeg2 into a piece of freeware software called Mpeg Streamclip and convert it there. The Mp4 conversion using Easy VHS to DVD is garbagio.

Its not quite as bad for the DVD conversion, it converts the mpeg 2 to an M2V by transcoding and that is much easier for this software to handle, actually, it is a scaled down version of Toast that burns the DVD, it is very easy to convert and burn a disc, its only a matter of a few clicks and you've now converted 80's technology into 90's technology! Congratulations!
Hardware:

The device itself is cheap plastic that when the weight of VCR cables running into the stubby composite inputs on the dongle cause the plastic device to 'droop' the device doesn't hold up well. Handle it delicately. That being said it set up in a cinch and does EXACTLY what it says it does, it provides an analog ito digital input into your system. I can't argue with that.
Overall Picture/Video Quality:

It has its imperfections. I get acceptable picture with sync'd audio and it seems a fair replication of the poor VHS quality that I started with, so I don't have an issue with it. I am 99% certain that the hardware device is nothing more than a very cheap analog to digital 'capture' card with no compression capabilities whatsoever, but I could be wrong. It appears to me that all conversion to mpeg2 takes place in the few minutes of processing that follows a successful import.
Wrapping It Up:

With everything being said, I don't advocate copyright infringement but in my little post-napster world, I feel that if I purchased videos and/or 'cassettes' and the technology is no longer viable, I can convert it to a current viable technology without violation of conscience so long as I get rid of the old format, which in the case of VHS and Cassette tapes, I do. I just throw them out basically because who would want them? 

So disclaimer aside, I had box after box of unused VHS tapes that are now converted to an acceptable mpeg 2 format for use on my media player. The only tapes I had an issue with were VHS-C home videos that I shot in EP...I just had to give up on those. But even store bought EP VHS (cheapie documentary) tapes gave the device some problems.

If I were still caught up in the DVD world, I would have been fine with the DVDs it made, the software allows for colorful menu themes and neat little tricks that only 2001 could offer. Its basic, you aren't going to light the world on fire with this $55 software but you can easily, quickly, and cheaply convert all of your old VHS to DVDs in a snap. And isn't that what life is all about?
3-1/2 stars out of 5. Its a cheap, fast, and decent conversion app and hardware. Its got its flaws in makemanship, conversion quality, and features. But it does the job.

The Bottom Line: 3-1/2 stars out of 5. Its a cheap, fast, and decent conversion app and hardware. Its got its flaws in makesmanship, conversion quality, and features. But it does the job.

Recommended:
Yes

Best Place to Buy and Smoke a Cigar in Las Vegas a la 2011.

I originally wrote this article a couple years ago but found that much of the information I shared, desperately needed updating as many of my favorite cigar haunts have closed and shops have changed. Usually PT's or Timbers are fairly cool about smoking stogies while you have a nice frosty brew but I usually retreat to a secluded corner (if one is available) to enjoy mine. That being said, here is a bit more about cigar culture and Las Vegas:

In case you're feeling nostalgic for the "old days" of 2009, here is the original post with the old information.
 
As a Las Vegas local, I saw the days where smoking a cigar was really just a matter of "Where do you want to go?" Today, it is a little more touchy with regards to lighting up a big phatty in a public place. I have decided to blog some of my favorite locales for smoking (or buying) a cigar in Las Vegas and have listed a few places to avoid that are NOT cigar friendly.

If you enjoy watching a game, having a microbrew, and smoking a nice cigar all at the same time, you have two choices: Grab the rabbit-eared TV from the closet, buy some cheap Oregon beer at Albertsons, and light up a cigar in your gas fumed garage. OR, you can just make a quick trip to The Chicago Brewing Company on Fort Apache and West Sahara in Summerlin. The upstairs room opens at 5pm so you'll have to make it a night game, but you will have access to a little tobacco hideaway with leather chairs, big ashtrays, and a plethora of micro-brews to choose from. My personal micro brew favorite here is the sampler. It is about 10 small sized beers on a round rack that gives you a nice overview of everything they have to offer. A nice Maduro wrapped Punch Belicoso with a Chicago stout microbrew and you'll feel like you were watching the game from a luxury box!

Another enjoyable haunt for locals is FAR FAR away from the strip (just like I like it!) in the northwest of the Las Vegas valley, and about 4 miles north of The Chicago Brewing Company. It is yet another micro brew house called Tenaya Creek Brewery on Cheyenne and Tenaya. Whereas this is a nice place to grab a number of delectable micro brews from the lightest to the darkest, it is not a place to get your grub on. They don't serve food here and haven't for some time. However, they are quite friendly toward cigar smokers and have a nice set of leather couches toward the back which allow for a little quieter cigar atmosphere (if that is your thing).

OK, I've covered some places far from the strip for those Vegas natives among us who avoid the strip like a pile of fresh vomit in a meat packing facility. But perhaps you are a visitor to our grand city and are staying on or near our "Fabulous Strip" and would like to find a great place to enjoy a cigar that is not far from your hotel (or motel if you're in my income bracket). Read on my welcomed visitor. Read on:

My favorite place on the strip to enjoy a nice cigar would have to be Napoleon's Lounge at the Paris Hotel. The Paris is a centrally located resort next to Bally's and across from Caesars Palace and the Treasure Island or "T.I." as we smug pretentious locals call it. When the Paris first opened Napoleon's, it had a sultry piano and a big, dark, and seedy interior. They have now added an additional piano and brightened up the place just a bit but it is still a nice locale to acquire an enticing glass of cognac or brandy whilst puffing away thoughtfully at the cigar of your choice. There used to be a small humidor here which sold your standard famous names at a wonderful "Strip markup" price - i.e Punch, Macanudo, Monte Cristo, Davidoff etc. but humidors come and go depending on the profitability so no promises there. I will say that the entertainment has been bumped up a bit with the second piano as you may now find "dueling" pianos on a Saturday night, which to be honest, does NOTHING for my cigar experience. Mostly because I not only like to hear myself think, but I like to hear myself talk...endlessly...about nothing...and everything...philosophical...political...religiosical, etc.
whether I am with someone or not! (weird as I may look) So for this reason, I tend to stick to quieter environs para mi fumo.

Another decent place on the Strip to smoke a stick would be Andre's Cigar and Cognac Lounge at the Monte Carlo. The Monte Carlo is probably one of the best kept secrets on the Strip, in my never so humble opinion. If I didn't look to avoid the Strip, wasn't married, didn't have kids, didn't have a morning job, and didn't have a limited bank account, I would probably hang out here on a semi-regular basis. The Keg Room has a wall of lighted kegs of some of the best beers in the world, and a 'meat and potatoes' food menu which is a great place to start. The Keg Room is not, however, a place to consider for smoking stogies as it is like most "restaurant/pub" establishments and has become "smoke free". But, cigar fans do not fear, Andre's Cigar and Cognac Lounge is but a few scant strides away here at the Monte Carlo and, like Napoleon's in Paris, is a great place to grab a nice Port, Brandy, or as the name suggests, a Cognac to sip in very upscale cigar lounge surroundings.

Now, speaking of buying cigars in Las Vegas, I have two rules:

1. Don't do it unless you absolutely HAVE to.

2. Don't buy down on the strip EVEN IF you have to! You will get reamed my friend, reamed.

So here is what you do, if you're down on the strip, hop in a cab and say, "Driver, take me to Pheasant Tobacco!" "Where is that?" he might ask, you answer, "West Sahara directly across from the Palace Station Casino" and then lean back with a smug I've-been-in-town-45-minutes-and-I-know-it-ALL look. Be sure to tip him though. Pheasant is not far from the strip at all but its WAY on the North side where the old school hotels are: Circus Circus, Riviera, Sahara, etc. It is a very reasonably priced tobacco shop with a fantastic selection. There is a cigar there for everyone no matter what your income bracket. They have a nice smoking room and , in my humble opinion, the most knowledgeable staff in Vegas. The only catch is, operating hours. For some reason, these guys seem to think that they have set up shop in Minnesota or something. They close early and don't give a rat's behind that this is a 24 hour town (is my personal frustration showing through?).

If you are happy to travel up to the west or northwest side of town, there are a couple good places to purchase a cigar.

Tobacco Leaf on West Lake Mead and Rock Springs. Again, a decent selection, but the prices are bit more jacked up. They are still probably 40-50% cheaper than what you would buy on the strip or in a cigar lounge that I've suggested.  The store has been around a couple years and contains a decent walk in humidor with a somewhat helpful staff. I would consider it a bit small and cramped but they offer a frequent flyer punch card where if you purchase 8 or 9 cigars, you get one at the same level for free, so its about a 10% discount for volume or repeat business

Another Cigar store that is a little more roomy, has a wall-lined humidor (no walk in), a decent selection with cigars in nearly every range is Hemingway's on Cheyenne Rd and The I-95 way up in the northwest of Vegas...right where I like it! This guy is very knowledgeable of all that he sells, he's very friendly every time I've been in. My typical weekend wear is flipflops and a UNLV cap...this look tends to draw a worried dithering of humidor attendants who seem worried that I might try to slip a pack of Phillies Blunts in my camo cargo shorts pocket, but this guy is hassle-free and will let you browse to your hearts delight, and will come over only if you appear to need some help (or have slipped a pack of Phillies Blunts in your camo cargo shorts pocket). I will say that he does appear to be a bit "proud" of his high end cigars and overprices accordingly there, but I usually buy in the $4-5 range and this cigar shop has more to offer along that budget line than does the aforementioned Tobacco Leaf.

The last and most recent find for a place to buy cigars in Las Vegas is WAY WAY out in the Northwest, just outside of town at the Snow Mountain Smoke Shop on the Paiute Indian Reservation. I found this sort of 7-11 looking "smoke shop" out there that I thought I might pop into as its on my way...to...well...nothing. Its not on the way to anything except wilderness. But I somehow found an excuse to stop in to this little building only to find rows and rows of cigarettes everywhere. I was afraid that I would be left with Swisher Sweets or a nice choice of Backwood Smokes (which I like by the way) but there in the corner, a beam of Sunlight from heaven and angelic voices began to sing...angelically...as I discovered a glorious corner walk-in humidor with one of the best-priced (and tax free!) selections of cigars from everywhere! (Except Cuba - but that is a different blog post) Romeo y Julieta, Te Amos (which I hate and which hardly anyone in Vegas sells anymore), El Rey Del Mundo, La Gloria Cubanas, Punch, and a slew of great mid-range cigars that fit my budget.

I realize that Snow Mountain Smoke Shop is way out in the sticks to go and buy...well...a stick, however, it turns out that I discovered only the tip of the iceberg as the MAIN Paiute Reservation Smoke Shop is called "Main Street Smoke Shop" or "Cigar Shoppe" in downtown Las Vegas! It has been rated by our local newspaper as the "Best in Las Vegas" for cigar and smoke shops and boasts the largest selection of cigars under one roof in the city of Las Vegas.

Ultimately, its all about finding what works best for you, your budget, your tastes, and your temperament that will determine your cigar experience here. Hopefully the above list will give a couple good places to start, that are off the tourist's beaten path.

A Tribute To My Dad For Father's Day

Happy Father's Day Dad. Late as usual I suppose. Thank you for giving your life and dreams to provide for us kids when we needed it most.

TomTom One - Worth its 1lb weight in gold!

Technology designed to do a number of things: phone, internet, gps, music player - will usually do all of them only reasonably well. But a device that is designed to specialize in one of the above will generally do that task MUCH better. This is definitely the case with the TomTom One 140-S GPS device.Overview

With the advent of faux-GPS available on Smart Phones today, many people, including myself, believed the stand-alone GPS device to be obsolete. Nothing could be further from the truth.
I discovered that when I travel overseas and don't wish to incur mammoth data charges, clumsy map books from a "petrol garage", or ask directions in a language I don't speak, I have relied on my TomTom One GPS to bail me out and help me navigate unknown towns and cities.

The following review will give a basic look at the hardware and software of the TomTom One and will apply to the following TomTom One models: ONE 3rd Edition, ONE 130, ONE 130-S, ONE 140, and ONE 140-s - all of which utilize essentially the same hardware technology minus cosmetic, aesthetic changes from the 3rd edition (fatter and more square 3.5" screen casing) to the ONE 140-s (slimmer and more rectangular 3.5" screen casing) and software technology 140-S (features text-to-speech - announcing streets and Points of Interest) vs ONE 3rd edition (No voiced street names and POIs receive a "chime").

Whats In The Box

I wish I could start this review on the right foot, but I can't. Here is one of the few negatives of the TomTom One Line. You will receive the GPS unit itself, a USB Car Charger and USB cable, an Easyport Mount (Windscreen Holder for the ONE 3rd Edition), and last but not least, Documentation - Quick Start Guide and Accessory leaflet.

Conspicuous by its absence is the wall charger that EVERY Electronic Device should come with, even stingy old Apple provides a very basic wall charger for its products! Not so with TomTom ONE. You can use the USB cable to charge the device on your laptop or home computer and the device will charge while running from the cigarette lighter, but if you are at a motel and don't have your laptop, and the car is parked and turned off safely 3 floors below, you're out of luck for charging this thing. It also does not come with any thin flimsy faux-leather case that even cheap $8 Sunglass purchases come with! Not to fear, I've found aftermarket GPS cases for about $7 and the discount stores.

I picked up a $5 USB wall charger and found it to charge this unit just fine. *WARNING* Do NOT buy this accessory from TomTom or from Radio Shack, they will hammer your wallet for $40 or $50 to buy the actual "charger" and its completely unnecessary. The USB wall adapter and TomTom supplied USB cable work just fine for my unit.
Specifications (for all models mentioned above)

Screen Size is 3.5"
Screen Type is 4:3 LCD
Screen Resolution is 320 x 240 Pixels
It weighs about 140 grams (about a pound)
It has an internal non-removable battery that is rated for 3 hrs
Memory - Internal Flash Memory only 2GB no SD slot!
Hardware

I'm a big guy and this GPS device fits in my hand well, but it would not fit into a smaller person's hand. (My wife hates carrying this thing around.)

It has a power button on the top and a mini USB port on the bottom (ONE 3rd edtion has a traffic antenna port on the bottom that works with FM radio - traffic antenna is an additional $125 accessory)

The back contains the speaker for voice instruction.

I've saved the LCD on the front for the last observation. Before the iPhone came out, the touch LCD was amazing technology that seemed to work so well. Now that I've had an iPhone for a couple years, the LCD response and lag can be a bit frustrating but ultimately does the job. Without going into the software here, it basically requires a quick 'pop' of the finger to register an entry and is sluggish to register when attempting to "zoom" or scroll like you would Google Maps on an iphone.

It has an internal GPS sensitive chipset that often times requires a precise position on your dashboard or hand to properly pick up triangulation accuracy. Think of it like the old days where sometimes you had to hold the rabbit ears of your TV set and stand on one foot when trying to get M*A*S*H to come in 'just right'. Once the satellites lock on your TomTom, you're in. I've rarely ever seen this GPS drop the satellite link unless I've done something obvious like driven into a tunnel or parking garage.

A negative here is there isn't an SD slot for expansion. You are stuck with the scant 2GB internal flash Memory forEVER! The problem here is that one map set: US/Canada or Western Europe etc, will use up all 2 GB of that space which means you have this horribly complicated process of wiping the GPS and trading out for the alternative map EVERY time you leave your main map area. Believe me, this process is a pain because the technology is USB 1 and the transfer time is an over night endeavor.
Software

The software is where the TomTom really shines. It comes preloaded (in the U.S.) with U.S. and Canada maps with most additional countries running about $79 for each map.

Like the earlier units you get:
• turn by turn voice directions
     The volume can be set to auto-adjust to your vehicle speed.
     I have been through downtown LA about 20 times and the ONLY
     times I have successfully navigated the tangled mess of off and
     on ramps without a reroute has been when I've used this TomTom.
    
• automatic rerouting when you miss a turnoff (intentionally or unintentionally
• Fast Navigation
     Several months ago I had this TomTom working directly next to
     my iPhone 3G GPS and the TomTom gave directions well before
     a turnoff whereas the iPhone GPS lagged behind to the point
     where it gave instructions (non-voice) well after I had already
     passed the turnoff - definite advantage TomTom
• Fairly reliable and updated maps
     This can be user generated (most up-to-date but only somewhat
     reliable) or TomTom generated (behind the times but very
     accurate)
• Find POIs near you, or near destination, etc
     I have used this here in the States or overseas to find ATMs, gas
     stations, and post offices, etc which can come in VERY handy in a
     city you don't know very well. On this 140-S unit, it will voice the
     POIs you've selected as you near them. On the ONE 3rd Edition,
     you can set it to chime as it nears a selected POI.
• Saved destinations for future use.
• Set Routes for Driving, Walking, Bicycling - Fastest, no freeways, etc
     I walked around Paris with this GPS in my hand and set it to find
     the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, and Notre Dame. It kept guiding me
     along strangely LONG routes until I discovered that I needed to
     set it to "walk" routes and not "drive" routes. The TomTom was
     paying attention to one-way streets that are all bypassed in "walk"
     mode. VERY handy once again.

The 140-S adds the following features:
• Advanced Lane Guidance
     Now detailed information about complex freeways (like downtown
     LA) and the ideal lanes to maintain your particular route of travel.
• Text-To-Speech
     This is just a minor "add" as it now allows you to have street
     names and POIs 'spoken' which the older models cannot do. I
     don't find that this feature is necessary, so you could save a few    
     bucks and get the older models which do not run this version of
     software.
• IQ Routes
     This utilizes compiled user data of average speeds on a given road
     at a given time and then passes that information on to your device
      if you select "fastest route"
Conclusion

Technology designed to do a number of things: phone, internet, gps, music player - will usually do all of them only reasonably well. But a device that is designed to specialize in one of the above will generally do that task MUCH better. This is definitely the case with the TomTom One 140-S GPS device. If I need to do some serious navigation and don't want to continue looking at my iPhone for instructions, this is the device that has saved my bacon time and time again.

I paid about $100 for this device and considering I no longer stop for directions or to buy maps or waste hundreds of dollars in time and/or gas driving or walking in circles. I would count the benefits of this GPS in the thousands of dollars - 1 pound GPS device equal in value to 1 pound of gold, even with the stingy box offering and sometimes glitchy screen!
Pros: Price, Map Accuracy, Software, Fast Navigation, POI locators.
Cons: Poor LCD map touch response, No wall charger or case! Expensive accessories, No SD EXPANSION!
The Bottom Line: If you need a device to help you navigate an unknown concrete jungle or spaghetti bowl of freeways, this is your GPS!
Recommended:
Yes

Remembering My Mom on Mothers Day

Today is the first Mother's Day without my Mom. I wasn't sure how to feel about it. The obvious feelings are "loss", a bit of "emptiness", and somewhat"lost", but mostly it was really just awkward I suppose. I didn't quite know how to go about the day. In the end, I figured I would write a quick blog to honor her memory and reflect on a few of the more obscure moments with my Mom.

I remember that as a small boy, my Mom would pray with me every night: the typical Catholic "Our Father" + "Hail Mary" + personal petitions and intercessions. I remember that after each night of prayer she would give me a kiss and say, "Goodnight Andy, sweet dreams, God bless you!" and every night this was repeated. It became a very comforting ritual, the most satisfying of which was my Mom's goodnight blessing.

One night she left my room by saying, "Good night Andy, sweet dreams." and began to close the door. I remember crying out in a panic, "YOU FORGOT TO SAY 'GOD BLESS YOU!?!'". I remember her gentle smile and a sort of laugh at my correction. She assured me that everything would still be OK even if she forgot to say one of those magic phrases. However, she saw how important it had become to me and she would never forget to include all three elements of the "Goodnight" ritual thereafter.

Today, when I pray with my six year old, I give him a kiss and repeat those three elements in that exact order, "Goodnight Joshy, sweet dreams, God bless you!" He seems to derive a similar comfort from this blessing and even repeats it back to me the same way that I would with my Mom.

Each night I say this, I privately think of my Mom and it brings a bit of her into my daily life, her kindness and love paying dividends even to the next generation.

Happy Mother's Day Mom. I'll never forget you and I sure do miss you.

I. Did. Not. Know. That. Little known Cliff Claven facts about the world.

Alaska More than half of the coastline of the entire United States is in Alaska . Amazon The Amazon rainforest produces more than 20% of the world's oxygen supply. The Amazon River pushes so much water into the Atlantic Ocean that, more than one hundred miles at sea off the mouth of the river, one can dip fresh water out of the ocean.  The volume of water in the Amazon river is greater than the next eight largest rivers in the world combined and three times the flow of all rivers in the United States . Antarctica Antarctica is the only land on our planet that is not owned by any country. Ninety percent of the world's ice covers Antarctica . This ice also represents seventy percent of all the fresh water in the world. As strange as it sounds, however, Antarctica is essentially a desert; the average yearly total precipitation is about two inches. Although covered with ice (all but 0.4% of it, ice.), Antarctica is the driest place on the planet, with an absolute humidity lower than the Gobi desert. Brazil Brazil got its name from the nut, not the other way around. Canada Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined. Canada is an Indian word meaning ' Big Village '. Chicago Next to Warsaw , Chicago has the largest Polish population in the world. Detroit Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, carries the designation M-1, so named because it was the first paved road anywhere. Damascus, Syria Damascus, Syria, was flourishing a couple of thousand years before Rome was founded in 753 BC, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in existence. Istanbul, Turkey Istanbul, Turkey, is the only city in the world located on two continents. Los Angeles Los Angeles' full name is: El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula -- and can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A. New York City The term 'The Big Apple' was coined by touring jazz musicians of the 1930s who used the slang expression 'apple' for any town or city. Therefore, to play New York City is to play the big time - The Big Apple. There are more Irish in New York City than in Dublin, Ireland; more Italians in New York City than in Rome, Italy; and more Jews in New York City than in Tel Aviv, Israel. Ohio There are no natural lakes in the state of Ohio , every one is manmade. Pitcairn Island The smallest island with country status is Pitcairn in Polynesia , at just 1.75 sq. miles/4,53 sq. km. Rome The first city to reach a population of 1 million people was Rome , Italy in 133 B.C. There is a city called Rome on every continent. Siberia Siberia contains more than 25% of the world's forests. S.M.O.M. The actual smallest sovereign entity in the world is the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (S.M.O.M). It is located in the city of Rome, Italy, has an area of two tennis courts and, as of 2001, has a population of 80 -- 20 less people than the Vatican. It is a sovereign entity under international law, just as the Vatican is. Sahara  Desert In the Sahara Desert, there is a town named Tidikelt, Algeria , which did not receive a drop of rain for ten years. Technically though, the driest place on Earth is in the valleys of the Antarctic near Ross Island .. There has been no rainfall there for two million years. Spain Spain literally means 'the land of rabbits'. St. Paul, Minnesota St. Paul, Minnesota, was originally called Pig's Eye after a man named Pierre 'Pig's Eye' Parrant who set up the first business there. Roads Chances that a road is unpaved: in the U.S.A. = 1%; in Canada = 75% Russia The deepest hole ever drilled by man is the Kola Superdeep Borehole, in Russia . It reached a depth of 12,261 meters (about 40,226 feet or 7.62 miles). It was drilled for scientific research and gave up some unexpected discoveries, one of which was a huge deposit of hydrogen - so massive that the mud coming from the hole was boiling with it. United States The Eisenhower interstate system requires that one mile in every five must be straight. These straight sections are usable as airstrips in times of war or other emergencies. Waterfalls The water of Angel Falls (the world's highest) in Venezuela drops 3,212 feet (979 meters). They are 15 times higher than Niagara Falls.

Ted and Pat Hamilton: Celebrate Life Memorial Fund

http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/tedandpathamilton

Ted and Pat Hamilton met in 1953 in Topeka, KS. Pat was the ROTC Queen of her class at Washburn University where she attended and volunteered to register returning veterans to the University. It is here that she met a man who would become her "Knight in shining armor" and lifelong best friend: Ted Hamilton.

They would marry in 1955 and welcome their first child in 1956 and their second child in 1958. Tragically, they lost their third child, "Kenneth" in the first few months of his life due to brain damage at birth.

This young couple persevered through this tragedy and because of their undying faith and love for children they would bless 6 more children with life: A total of 3 boys and 5 girls.

They would spend their lives wiping tears, changing diapers, and packing lunches for these eight children. Endless stories read to eager young minds, countless sessions of nighttime prayers, and an eternity of hymns and campfire songs would cheer our spirits set our childhood world aright. They would support, mentor, and pass on their values of family and hard work to all of us.

Patricia Hamilton became a 4th grade teacher while still a young mother in Topeka, KS. She would eventually transition to full time "home and family builder" until her early 40s where she would move on to become a Social Worker for Clark County, Nevada. This was a God-ordained role that was a natural fit for her natural compassion.

Pat also spent some time as a case worker for St. Vincents "Haven of Hope" in Las Vegas and would talk make continual mention of the kindness of those people around her there. She would eventually retire from the County with her husband Ted to a little town in Southern Utah called Cedar City. She would achieve her dream of living in a green forested area.

Theodore Hamilton was a renowned photographer of his Hayden High School class, earning him the nickname "Snappy" by all of his classmates. "Snappy" would follow in his father's footsteps and join the Navy almost directly after high school. Ted went on to become a Naval Veteran of the Korean War and immediately entered the University of Washburn in Topeka, KS after his tour of duty in Korea was completed.

Ted was a hard working man of many talents. With a degree in Systems Analysis from Washburn University, he would marry his college sweetheart and they would embark, on a journey that would take the family from Topeka, KS to Louisville, KY, to Greenville, TX, to Phoenix, AZ and finally to Las Vegas, NV, adding 8 children along the way! He was a firm believer in providing for his children in many ways. He was always willing to share his engineering skills and woodworking craft with family, friends, and neighbors even after he began to struggle with his health.

Both Ted and Pat were quite active in the Catholic Church while in Las Vegas. Ted was in The Knights of Columbus and a lead usher while Pat sang in the choir and sat on the Church council for a time at St. Francis De Sales.

Tragically, on December 14th, 2010 while toting Christmas gifts from Cedar City to Las Vegas for their children, grand children, and great children, they were involved in an auto accident outside Cedar City that would immediately claim the life of Pat and complicate the health of Ted where he would pass away and join his best friend only 12 days later.

It is because of their lifelong love of 8 children, 7 children-in-laws, 14 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren that we have set up this page to celebrate the lives of our parents who tirelessly celebrated the lives of their own children. This memorial fund offers an opportunity to honor their memory by donating to the work of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in lieu of sending memorial flowers. We felt that supporting the medical well-being of children who cannot support themselves would be most consistent with the way our Parents lived on this Earth.

http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/tedandpathamilton

Services to celebrate our dear Mom and Dad's lives will be held at 9:30am on January 26th, 2011 at Christ The King Catholic Church in Las Vegas.

Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ :Your HD Movies,DVDs, Netflix, Internet Streaming

Great variety of formats, ample inputs, 1080p, and easy set up will cause you to overlook the awful operating system of this sub $100 glitchy media player. It will play ripped DVDs and Blu Ray files and will...

What I Was Looking For:

I saw media boxes out there that streamed Netflix (Roku) and boxes
out there that could play my HD media files and ripped DVD files
(popcorn hour) but I was looking for a media box that could do both.
I saw a couple variations from Western Digital etc but decided on the
Seagate FreeAgent Theater+.
Whats in The Box:

The unboxing was unspectacular and I found myself asking "Is that it?"
Its basically a very slimline plastic box about an inch or two high and
roughly as big around as fat DVD package. It came with the following:

• a feather light (not always a good thing) remote control
• a composite cable (yellow, red, white old-school garbage)
• a component cable (red green blue - for up to 1080i play)
• an ethernet cable. (for streaming Netflix, Youtube, Mediafly, etc)
• a 1 year warranty.

Strangely, a big selling point of this box is the fact that it can play
1080p which is HUGE. However, Seagate went cheapie cheap and did
not include an HDMI cable. I guess when they considered all that
expensive plastic they poured into the box and remote, we had
already received enough value for our $99.

Hardware:
OK, so I've harped on the somewhat "flimsy"-feeling construction,
but lets look at what we can plug into the Seagate Theater+.

• Connection of this box is very simple and very straightforward and
requires very little technical expertise. However, operation of the
remote, as you will soon see, requires the patience of a thousand monks.

• No physical buttons on this thing save a small deeply recessed reset
button on the back panel. Get familiar with this button you will need
it. No buttons means TOTAL reliance on the remote. DON'T LOSE
THAT REMOTE. Just a subtle warning.

• This compact media box has a removable plastic cover on the front
right panel. When removed it reveals a niche with a dock that
fits/connects a USB Seagate FreeAgent drive "almost" nicely. I say
"almost" because the drive extends beyond the front of the player and
the removable plastic cover does not fit back over the niche with an
attached hard drive so you're left with a media player that constantly
looks like its in the middle of giving birth to an overpriced mini hard
drive at all times.

I don't know what Executive at Seagate signed off on this glorious
design but really, 2 more inches of plastic and it all looks wonderful.
Seagate wanted an almost invisible media player, so in a brilliant
effort to preserve aesthetics, some designer decided to sacrifice...
well...aesthetics. Weird, really weird.

• On the backside of this unit there are a number of ports to
accommodate a variety of audio and video input.
Going left to right:
     - a 1/4" mini "AV" input which is compatible with the standard
       definition composite to mini cable included in the box. This also
       acts as an audio input to compliment the component input.

     - Red, Green, Blue component input for those who still have only

       1080i capable TVs and/or devices. These inputs are picture only
       so if you are finnicky like me, and require audio with your video
       you will need to utilize the composite to mini cable and just plug
       in the red and white (audio) cables to your TV or device. This is a
       clunky weird set up for this box I know. Seagate could have just
       added an additional 2 RCA audio inputs and Bob would be our
       uncle, but they went ultra cheap on this media player to compete
       with Roku and get one up on Popcorn Hour,
       so this is what we get.

     - Optical Audio Input - this is pretty cool, if you have a TV or
       device that has an Optical Audio output. If you do, by all means,
       utilize this input for your component audio, its far better and
       clearer kluging RCA composite cables with Radio Shack
       extenders to get the AV cable working.

     - HDMI Input - For those of us who decided to party like its 2007.
       Basically all HDTVs now come with multiple HDMI outputs that
       enable you to view 1080p HD. This is an added feature to the
       Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ and the picture quality is not bad
       in my opinion. In fact, very good considering the sub $100 price.

     - LAN or "Ethernet" input - Run this to your broadband router or
       home network and you are well on your way to enjoying Netflix,
       Youtube, Mediafly, vtuner, picasa, Flickr, AND access to any
       movies you've made available on your home network.

     - USB port - You can load your movies, music, pics on an external
       USB2 hard drive, run a USB cable discreetly to this USB 2.0 port
       on the back of the box and you've just expanded instant access
       to your media library. You can also connect digital cameras,
       camcorders, or flash drives to access movies, music, & pictures.

     - 12v DC power input - not sexy - just does what it does.

     - RESET button - DEFINITELY not sexy - wished it weren't necessary

• And now, we address another "con" of the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+:
The Remote.

Actually, I'm not really even sure if its the remote or the infared
receiver on the box, but nearly every command to this player from
the compulsory remote, requires 2 or 3 presses of the same button to
get the box to respond.

Sometimes, its just horrible lag and then suddenly it catches up and
bombards the interface with multiple "left" or "enter" or "back"
commands and you find yourself at the root folder of the player and
far far away from that glorious Meatballs III movie you had intended
to watch 5 minutes ago.

This remote, I believe, is responsible for more hair and eyes being
pulled out of humans than all mass murderers in history COMBINED.
Very frustrating interaction between the remote and the box.
Software Interface (OS):

Some of the problems I've listed above are actually not problems with
the remote but rather are issues with the OS of the media player.

The Interface is very basic and really feels like a 3rd rate Chinese rip
off of Popcorn Hour or Roku, which, I believe, are both 3rd rate
Chinese rip offs of something else.

Very basic selections to choose from: Movies, Pictures, Music, Internet, Devices - all as square thumbnails floating in a blue room.

• "Movies" opens up an archaic "DOS-like" screen which lists all movie
files you have on any connected hard drive.
• "Pictures" opens up a thumbnail list of available pics found on a
connected hard drive.
• "Music" same as pics and movies
• "Internet" connects you to Netflix, Youtube, Mediafly, some VIDEO
RSS feeds and hundreds (if not thousands) of internet radio stations
through vTuner. You can also access Picasa and Flickr photo sites.
Sadly, no Hulu connection here yet, a DEFINITE disadvantage over
other competitive media boxes for sure.

• "Devices" gives you access to media on whatever hard drive, or 3rd
party devices you have connected.

Software: Media Formats

This is definitely a strong point for the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+
Media Player, and definitely the reason for my decision to buy:
Video: MPEG–1, MPEG–2 (VOB/ISO) this was important for me
because I wanted to rip my collection of DVDs and make them
available on my home network for instant viewing (in my home only
of course, only legal usage) When you use the VOB/ISO file format, it
will play with menus like you have a DVD running.
More Video: MPEG–4 (Xvid), DivX Plus™ HD, Xvid HD, AVI,
MOV, MOV is a format that I've noticed gives the FreeAgent Theater+
some problems for some reason. The Mpeg1,2, and 4 formats work
fine but the larger .MOV files are not readily recognized when the
Theater+ scans my drive for movie files.
MKV - This is HUGE I tell you, HUGE! If you own Blu Ray and have
figured out how to legally rip your blu rays to MKVs for personal
in-home "backup" or some other legal reason, then you will delight in
the fact that the Seagate box plays those blu ray files. yahoo.
Even MORE Video:  RMVB Real Media, AVC HD, H.264, WMV9, VC–1,
M2TS, TS/TP/M2T

Video Resolutions: NTSC 480i/480p, PAL 576i/576p, 720p, 1080i,
1080p
Subtitles: SAMI (smi), SRT, SUB

Audio: AAC - it is important to note here that this box will definitely
play Apple's AAC format, but will not play the "protected/locked" AAC
files you've purchased from iTunes. That isn't really a knock on the
Theater+ though, even most APPLE devices won't play the locked
AACs unless you authorize them with big brother.
More Audio: MP3, Dolby® Digital, DTS, ASF, FLAC, WMA, LPCM,
ADPCM, WAV, OGG Playlist: M3U, PLS
Photo: JPEG files (up to 20 megapixels), BMP, GIF, PNG, TIFF

I have had a couple firmware upgrades which have made some of the
above file formats play a bit more smoothly but there are still a few
kinks to work out with this media player. I paid about $85 for my box
and then about $150 for a 1TB FreeAgent "Go" drive and overall I'm
not really disappointed, but not overly overjoyed with this media
player.

It has been a workhorse in my home and my 5 year old quickly
figured out how operate it, AND, dare I say, trouble shoot it when it
freezes up: that's right, he clicks the recessed "reset" button on the
back which starts the box all over, or he just unplugs the DC cable
and fires it back up.

I would recommend this box to a friend or family member at the
current price point of about $50-$75. Its definitely worth that much.
Versatility of file format playback
Versatility of inputs
Price
Picture
CONS: Navigation interface and software is circa 1994
Remote Control operation is horrendous
Plastic Construction
The Bottom Line: Great variety of formats, ample inputs, 1080p, and easy set up will
cause you to overlook the awful operating system of this sub $100
glitchy media player.

PROS:

Recommended:
Yes