SD (Standard Definition) Video just doesn’t cut it anymore! I am so used to seeing HD or HQ(Youtube) quality that I had to make a purchase yesterday. My original FlipVideo still works like a charm, but I think that I will be giving it to my son. It’s rugged enough to just give to him without any supervision, and he knows how to work it. I planned on getting the soon to be released Sanyo Xacti VPC-PD28K, but found a pretty cool Kodak PlaySport at Yodobashi Camera. I saw it a couple days ago and did some research on YouTube to see what others thought, and decided to buy it. So far I am very, very happy with it! It feels really good the hand, and the build quality is excellent. The menu system on the camera is intuitive enough that I didn’t even open the documentation.
Pros:
Removable Media (SD)
Up to 1080p Video
Decent Pictures
Waterproof up to 10 feet (3 meters)
Nice build quality
Cons:
Non standard rechargeable battery
No microphone port
The usual Jello Video when panning these types of cameras
Since I normally use a Mac I haven’t had a chance to give the Kodak software a go. I have used it with iMovie 09 on my MacBook Pro with no problem. Basically, all you do is open up iMovie and import the video (File->Import->Movies) and it’s ready for editing. If you are a Mac User there is no reason to even worry about the Windows only video software that comes with the camera.
So lets get to some sample pictures and video! I will go in the same order as the menu on the camera itself.
5 Megapixel Picture (size reduced)
Kodak Playsport WVGA VideoSample
Kodak Playsport 720p 30fps (Frames per second)Video Sample
Now that my bike is just about back into fully functioning condition I started to do some longer rides. On this day I drove to Ohori Koen (Ohori Park) and parked my car, then prepped my bike for the ride. I rode from Ohori to Hakata (Yodobashi Camera) and back again. I didn’t really go the direct route it was more of an explore the city ride. The temperature was about 30c (90 something degrees F), which is freaking hot!! I was sure to keep hydrated with lots of water and my favorite Japanese sports drink, Pocari Sweat.
Also that day was the first time I had street tires on my bike for a while. Before I had a mix of dirt tire in the back and slick in the front, it’s a long story…..lol
Going to pick up a new FlipVideo like camera since my Flip only records 30 minutes of none HD video, so I can document more of my ride and in better quality. Also, gotta work on the bumpy video
I love taking the train in Japan. It just makes life so much easier! The only issue I have is that they stop running too early.
Of course it’s probably better that they do stop running just before midnight, due to a lot of potential problems like crime and drunk passengers. Plus it would put the taxi companies out of business, and we don’t want that…..now do we.
I remember when I was younger in Colorado and they had some colleges visit our Elementary school. I was asked what do you want to study. I said computers. One of the people from the University of Colorado or one of those schools said, are you good at math. I said, No. They said well you have to be good at math to work with computers…
Talk about bursting my bubble!!
Well that was a long time ago and the computers of that time were probably way more boring than the stuff we do with them today, so no hard feelings….PUNK!! LOL
Two lessons from this encounter:
1. Take everything you hear with a grain of salt. You can do whatever you put your mind to!
2. You are supposed to be encouraging people so think before you speak if you are selling a product (That means you, Mr. guy from the University in Colorado trying to promote his school).
Well the iPad version of Kana Sounds is basically done! All I really need to do now is find an iPad that I can test it on. Right now I don’t have an iPad of my own, and I am not sure I am going to get one either. I have been testing it in the iPad simulator and it appears to be functioning as “designed”, so I am tempted to just upload it.
If you look at the screen capture above you will notice that I basically created little flash cards with the Kana and the Romaji for each character. Of course, each card is backed up by the pronunciation when touched. The UI (user interface) is pretty much the same as the iPhone version except for it’s BIGGER, LOL.
As usual I will keep you posted on the progress I am having with the “Apple App Submitting Process”. I don’t anticipate any issues since the app coding is basically the same as Kana Sounds for the iPhone.
I hate jogging so I decided to pick up a pair of inline skates. I figured this is a way to get some exercise and have fun at the same time. For myself, if exercise isn’t fun it’s not going to happen! So, for me if i cant ride by Mtn. Bike, go bodyboarding, walk around the city, or (now) inline skate, I am not going to do anything.
It’s been a LONG time since I have rollerbladed so it should be interesting to see what muscles will hurt the most! LOL
Now that I am “officially” an iPhone Developer I can “officially” give advice, right? Anyway, I thought I would talk about how I actually was able to ship a product.
I guess I will make a list of things I noticed and things I recommend .
1. Give yourself an “Elevator Pitch”. What I mean is explain to yourself exactly what your app does. For example, in the case of Kana Sounds, it “Teaches people how to recognize and pronounce Hiragana and Katakana”. Here is a sample dialog that you might ask yourself:
Person A: So what does your app do?
You: My app teaches people how to recognize and pronounce the Japanese Hiragana and Katakana Characters.
or
Person A: You made an iPhone App? That’s cool! What does your app do?
You: It teaches people how to pronounce Japanese Characters.
2. Give yourself a due date. Due dates have a funny way of motivating you to actually work. When you are working alone it is easy to get distracted so drawing that line in the sand really helps you stay focused. In my case I told myself , after the initial learning period, that you have a month to finish your app. I knew I could do it faster but I also knew if I didn’t set a date in stone that I would be messing around with it forever. It also helps to have someone to push you to make that date. Whether it be a friend or family member.
I love garlic, but I had never seen a garlic plant until the other day when I was on a small island off the cost of Fukuoka, Japan. The island’s name is Himeshima, a very small island with a small fishing village.
I currently live in Fukuoka, Japan where I teaching English and do lots of other fun stuff. I am a podcaster, iPhone App developer, trainer, teacher, web geek, and internet business specialist.
