First Generation Nerd

This is an incredible article about how some farmers in Vermont and Western Massachusetts (Amherst, to be exact) are experimenting with growing wheat and other crops not traditionally viewed as New England crops. Vermont’s cash crop is dairy, but it hasn’t always been strange to see grain there. With some innovation, both ecologically and financially, these farmers are trying new techniques to beat today’s high grain prices by growing their own. They are also toying with the idea that canola and soybeans can be used to create biofuels to run their equipment. An interesting read!

read more | digg story

So YouTube sent out a memo to its “content partners” (read: professional film/video guys/companies), telling them that they will now “be able to upload and monetize videos in [their] account that are longer than 10 minutes” (via Silicon Alley Insider).  Though seemingly unlimited in length, the limit to the file size is 1 GB.  This move has a couple of interesting implications:

1.     Longer video times means more networks could use YouTube as the distribution outlet for their online television shows.  Most major networks are up in arms about individuals posting television shows on the site (a la the Daily Show debacle), but if they embrace the popularity of YouTube, they could benefit from increased exposure.  Honestly, what is the difference between going to comedycentral.com to view the videos or watching them on YouTube?  Answer:

2.     Advertising.  These content partners are now able to monetize their content, via advertising.  YouTube will make a couple of bucks, as will the content providers, and we won’t have to watch hour broadcasts on five different pages. 

Indie film producers also can benefit from longer videos and larger files.  They can now post their films, in their entirety, onto one of the most popular web sites in the world. 

What I don’t understand is why Google/YouTube (GooTube) isn’t working on higher quality videos rather than longer ones.  Increasing the file size limit will allow people to eek out a bit more quality, but highly compressed 320×240 doesn’t really do some films and shows justice.  I realize most people aren’t that concerned about video quality, but even a step up to SD would be warmly welcomed.  There are a few people who are doing higher quality on YouTube now (the HD trick apparently no longer works, but higher quality is said to be available).  Interesting developments!

I’m not sure why I’ve never seen this reporter blooper before, but I saw it today and had to share it! 

 

Yesterday, at the World Wide Developer’s Conference in San Francisco, Apple announced the next generation of the iPhone: iPhone 3G.  CEO Steve Jobs began by talking about the phone’s new Enterprise support, then continued to talk about the development platform, and concluded with some new features of the 2.0 software release - and the new hardware, of course.  You can watch the keynote speech from the link above, but if you’re like me and don’t care about 45 minutes of product demos, skip right to the last 25% to hear the big news.

The big news (for me) is the new iPhone hardware.  I’ve wanted the iPhone for more than a year, but held off until this release to take advantage of the new features.  Now, I’ve been reading the rumor blogs and have posted some things here, and to be honest, I was a bit disappointed with the announcement.  The new iPhone is a big improvement over the current model, but it’s not a huge leap.  Here’s what I thought versus what actually is going to be available:

• The new iPhone will launch and be available on June 9 - False.  The iPhone was announced on June 9, but won’t be available until July 11.
• It will have a forward facing camera that will allow face-to-face video chat - False.  No dice on the camera.  The 2.0 software release will include video capture, but not F2F chat.
• Integrated GPS will be available - FACT.  The GPS chip combined with the OS’ new Core Location API will allow killer GPS software, turn-by-turn directions, and tools like a Friend Finder.
• Software version 2.0 will have support for Exchange email, among other advancements - FACT.  The advancements in the 2.0 release are plentiful.  From VPN support to secure networks, it’s killer for businesses. 
• The new iPhone will probably be a part of a new line of iPhones at differing price points - False.  Kinda.  More on this in the next bullet.
•   This new line may be opened to other networks, as AT&T will have its own model that it can subsidize; new 2-year contract holders will get the phone at a significant discount - False.  There may not have been a new AT&T only line, but the iPhone will have new price points: 8GB for $199 and 16GB for $299.