Fixing a broken hard disk

A few days ago my external UDB 60MB Lacie hard drive died, it does nothing just tirns on the light when connect. Since its way over the warranty period, I opened and found a Samsung disk inside, tried to connect it directly to one of my laptops but nothing, its dead.
I can't even run utilities such a Spinrite because it remains undetected by the BIOS.
What next?
I found the same exact disk on e-bay a bought it, when it arrives I'll try swapping the boards between the two and if the problems are in the electronics it should work. Electronics have no soldering now and can simply be unscrewed and replace. I hope in some good luck...

Trying HD content on my new HDTV ready Samsung

Recently I decided to buy a new LCD TV, the task was a bit complicated. After a first screening based on specs (Sony, did not have their Bravia specs online and I finally obtained them by phone), I chose to see them work side by side. The Samsung, HDTV ready, with its 3000:1 contrast ratio and 500 cd/m luminosity was my choice.

The next step after finding the best possible connection to the DVD player and digital TV, was trying HD content. Currently the only way I know of getting HD content is by PCs and the XBOX 360, which I don't own.

The pc connections available on the Samsung TV are the HDMI connector with a DVI-HDMI cable (which is still a bit too pricey and my laptop, a Thinkpad T30, has no DVI) or with a standard HD15 SVGA monitor cable. I found a ten year old cable and it worked, but only with standard video resolutions. The TV has a 1366x768 16:9 capability, after some Googling, I downloaded a video card tweaking utility: Powestrip and finally managed to set the correct output.

The last challenge was obtaining HD content, this I found from Microsoft and Apple. Unfortunately you need to buy Quicktime Pro to see video full screen, so I finally stuck to trying with Windows Media Player and the result was awesome!

The next step? Doing the same thing with my Linux box, but I'm worried I won't find any HD content in linux handled formats.

Moving from php-Nuke to Joomla

After the defacement of one of my websites powered by php-nuke (CoppAmerica.com), I decided to change software. Trying the various possible alternatives among which Post-nuke and Xoops, I decided to go with Joomla.
Believe it or not in a couple of days I was able to migrate all stories, users, and content elements and managed to put up a test site. I quickly adapted the first theme I came across and after another few days of testing put the site in production.
I still have to dominate all aspects of Joomla, but the management side is really straightforward, the code seems very well written and the developers are very careful on tracking and patching security issues. Adding to this solid foundation is a very active developer site powered by Sourceforge.

Googlebar Lite much lighter and just as good for me

Since I started using firefox, Googlebar has always been a "must have" extension, now I have switched to Googlebar Lite and for me its just as good, but far lighter (only 68k).

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How Permanent Is Your CD-R?

An interesting article on archival life of CD-R's, a must-read for everyone relying con CDs.
"low priced CD-R’s may not be readable, at all, and error in as little as two years".."but 70 years would be low for a quality CD-R with the norm being 100 years"
So we better keep this in mind..

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"We Put iTunes on Windows and Kind of Helped Them Out There"

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has hit out at fellow tech heavyweights Dell and Microsoft, claiming they have been copying Apple, and put the company's tight-lipped strategy down to a refusal to give its rivals a roadmap ahead of time.
I think this is true, but Apple strategy is based on continous innovation, a clear example is the Nano which replaces the Mini at its sales peek.

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“Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish” says Steve Jobs at Stanford University

“Find what you love” says the man who’s “thinking different” has delivered us with the first personal computer, the Mac and recently the iPod. Creative innovation has always been the focus of Jobs and his companies, and probably few other men have contributed so much to global progress.

I really admire Jobs, as he once said “We hire people who want to make the best things in the world”. The difference is in the concept of what is best, not the product which captures the market but the one that creates new markets.

In my opinion that is the great difference between Jobs and Gates, and between Apple and Microsoft; creating verses dominating.

You can read the text of Jobs’ speech here, an article with the italian transaltion is available here.

About Podcasting and my subscriptions

I really enjoy podcasting, even more now that its integrated in iTunes version 4.9, whether traveling by car or waiting for an appointment, its always a chance of generating extra value from potentially wasted time. What makes it even better is my iPod mini which is a very well designed and usable piece of electronics.
I do not have to tweak around to have the podcasts I already listened to deleted, and to get new podcasts uploaded, its all automatic, really great.
What amazes me is how every day available technologies can be well orchestrated to deliver innovative and really useful services.

These are my favorite and current Podcast subscriptions:

• The Gillmor Gang: Steve Gillmor and the Gang from IT Conversations give you technology news, interviews and reports.
  Steve Gillmor, contributing editor, ZDNet
  Doc Searls, senior editor, Linux Journal
  Jon Udell, lead analyst, InfoWorld Test Center
  Dana Gardner, senior analyst, Yankee Group
  http://gillmorgang.podshow.com/
  
• TWIT (this Week in Tech): Your first podcast of the week is the last word in tech. Join Leo Laporte, Patrick Norton, Kevin Rose, John C. Dvorak, and other tech luminaries in a roundtable discussion of the latest trends in high tech. Released every Sunday at midnight Pacific.
  www.twit.tv
  
• KFI's Tech Guy: From computers and the Internet to cell phones, MP3 players, and home theater, no one explains technology better than Leo Laporte. This is the commercial free version of his weekend radio show, heard live every Saturday and Sunday from 11a-2p on KFI 640 AM in Los Angeles.
• The World: Technology from BBC/WGBH/PRI: The World's Technology Podcast with Clark Boyd. Our podcast keeps you up to date on all the latest news in global technology. The World is US-based international news and analysis program co-produced by the BBC World Service, WGBH public radio in Boston, and Public Radio International.
  http://www.theworld.org/technology/index.shtml