Considering that the 4 GB iPod nano costs $150, you basically get to double your money.

Just buy this Netgear switch from Amazon.com, and fill out a rebate form. You’ll get your 4 GB iPod nano in 8 to 10 weeks.

The limit is two per customer… guess how many I bought?

Update: Sold out. Hope you got in before it was out!

Windows Home Server Power Pack 1 is out. And, now that my non-disclosure agreement is over, I can talk about the specifics.

So, here are the specifics: Go get it, now. Do not wait, do not let your computers backup another night without this update. I don’t know if it’s on Windows Update yet, but you can download it and install via Remote Desktop Connection.

Not only does it fix the data corruption issue (although Outlook PST and Quicken files aren’t supported)… but it does plenty more. Windows Vista x64 systems are now supported, and you now have an easy wizard for backing up files stored on the Home Server (to an external hard drive).

If you have an HP Windows Home Server, run the HP Update application after applying Power Pack 1. There are updates to the HP integration and anti-virus software that are meant to match the changes in PP1.

There’s just one step you need to do after installing, and that’s updating your connector software on each PC. The original version of Windows Home Server didn’t take into account that the connector software may need to be updated down the road, so you have to update it manually. Just go into the Software folder of your Home Server after updating, and copy the Connector Software Installer folder to your PC’s desktop.

After updating the Connector software, you won’t have to do that again. With Power Pack 1, the Connector software on each PC checks with the Home Server, and can update itself once you reinstall.

Looks like my war with CableCARD might be over. CableLabs has gone official in saying that CableCARD no longer has to DRM all recordings made on a PC… even those that have not been copy-protected by the provider.

As I’ve covered in-depth on my blog, again and again, it made absolutely zero sense that TiVo HD is allowed to placeshift content all around the world via TiVoToGo, whereas the same CableCARD couldn’t do that when inserted directly into a PC. Worse, the gum-and-paperclip fix of physically pulling out the CableCARD to record local channels and analog cable just made CableCARD look pathetic.

Now the timer starts on when Microsoft will actually fix this. Rumor has it, they may have slipped it into the elusive TV Pack 2008 update for Windows Media Center. Microsoft is still checking on if it will be offered to end-users, I have been personally promised an update on that.

However, others report that the OCUR Tuners themselves will need a firmware update as well to unlock the DRM restriction.

All of this would be great… except I’m now locked in a contract with TiVo until April of next year. Who knows though? Maybe they’ll be doing away the the you-must-buy-a-new-PC requirement as well by then. Either way, I can definitely see myself replacing my Core 2 Duo HTPC with a Nehalem-based PC come April.

With DirecTV coming to Media Center as well… and QAM in the TV Pack 2008 update… Microsoft may finally be fixing the main objections to Windows Media Center.

At launch, Live Mesh wouldn’t talk to Windows Server. This especially rubbed salt in the wounds of Windows Home Server users, who even with Power Pack 1, won’t be able to remotely access Windows XP Home and Vista Home systems.

But, now, times appear to be changing. As of the latest update to Live Mesh, you can now install on Windows Server 2003, and it appears 2008 as well. I verified this with my own Windows Home Server. However, support is unofficial; Microsoft has not acknowledged Live Mesh works with Windows Server.

What does this mean for you? Well, if you have a Windows Home Server, I would suggest signing up for Live Mesh on all systems. Doing so will essentially replace the Home Server remote access backbone, but will enable you to now connect to all your systems. Ideally, the next version of Home Server will integrate Live Mesh into the platform… something I’ve suggested in the past.

It also means that if you have a Windows Server, such as 2003 SBS or 2008 Standard, you now have a much easier way to access all your servers… practically zero-configuration.

And, that brings me to one of the things I’d like to see in Live Mesh; Zones. I would like to group computers based on what I want to do with them. For example, I might want to have a zone with my home computers, a zone with my office computers, and a zone with family member systems.

Then, I could toggle features on and off. For example, on my family member systems… I just want remote access to help them out and install updates and such without having to bother them. On my office circle, I might want both remote access and synchronization. And, on my home systems, I might want the same settings as my office zone, but I may want them on a different tab just for organization.

Granted, you might be asking how many systems I have… but let me give you a typical scenario.

I have around four computers in my household. I have a Windows Home Server. I have a laptop that travels to the office, and a desktop there. At my office, I also have a Windows Server 2008 system. And, I have three family members that I maintain away from home remotely.

That’s about 10 systems right there. You can see why being able to group systems, and assign permissions to a group, is important for Live Mesh.

I like free software. I don’t like when people make it a death wish.

I didn’t see this post on the Free Software Foundation blog until this morning. Quite simply, they have started giving false statements and half-truths about Apple and the App Store, in order to promote free and open source software. Quoting their five reasons to not get an iPhone:

• iPhone completely blocks free software. Developers must pay a tax to Apple, who becomes the sole authority over what can and can’t be on everyone’s phones.
• iPhone endorses and supports Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) technology.
• iPhone exposes your whereabouts and provides ways for others to track you without your knowledge.
• iPhone won’t play patent- and DRM-free formats like Ogg Vorbis and Theora.
• iPhone is not the only option. There are better alternatives on the horizon that respect your freedom, don’t spy on you, play free media formats, and let you use free software — like the FreeRunner.

This one really has me ticked. Microsoft has released a Media Center “TV Pack” (similar to a Power Pack or Service Pack). The update/upgrade enables Clear QAM support for Windows Media Center inside of Vista SP1.

This is important because? Well, it means that you can now watch HD programming over cable, without the need for a CableCARD. Of course, your cable operator probably doesn’t offer all HD channels via Clear QAM, they’re only required to offer network programming. However, having perfect-clarity of all the network channels in (unencrypted) HD is something that killer apps like TiVo and Eye TV have done well… and Media Center has failed on.

But, here’s the catch: You can’t have it! Microsoft is only making the “TV Pack” available to OEM providers (computer manufacturers). This means that you have to buy a brand new PC, with tuner cards pre-installed, in order to get Clear QAM.

The real insult is that Clear QAM is asked for the most by people who don’t want to buy a new PC… people in the market for a new PC, can just get a CableCARD-enabled PC. This update would benefit most customers who already own a Media Center PC, and could just plug in a TV Tuner with QAM support (and nowadays, most tuner cards support Clear QAM).

Microsoft, this is backwards logic, and it’s downright immoral. The company has done the hard work of enabling Clear QAM inside of Media Center. Now, it’s time to offer that support to customers that have endured the upgrade path to Windows Vista.

This is one of those I’m not going to let Microsoft go on. It was downright unacceptable that Media Center could only support Clear QAM over CableCARD. Now it’s downright unacceptable that they won’t commit to giving the update to consumers.

TiVo is gearing up to push out software version 9.4, and TiVo gave me a sneak peak at the update.

This update does the usual bug-fix-and-such, but there are three main new features. One, you can now use any folder as a play folder (where recordings play back-to-back without stopping). Two, closed captioning gets a few improvements (easier to access). And three… ready? You can now access the channel guide from inside of any video playback. That’s right, no need to exit watching a recorded video to load Live TV… to wait for the channel guide to show up.

That last feature is a big one, because the lack of an always-accessible channel guide was something that Windows Media Center does with the greatest of ease. It was a real letdown when I found my TiVo HD couldn’t do something so basic.

I’ll hold off on stability, as I saw a few issues… but TiVo has said that they’re fixed in the final push. Want the TiVo software first? The priority push list isn’t online yet, but I strongly suspect that it will be loaded on this page once they’re ready.

I just couldn’t end the day without saying goodbye to Tony Snow. I never met Tony myself, but I’ve watched his work since long before he became a household name.

Writing a biography of the man’s work is something I shouldn’t even attempt. But, there is one key thing he did that changed my life; he ended the brick wall between the media and the rest of the world.

From speechwriter for the first Bush administration, to talk show substitute, to editorializing, he became the first host of Fox News Sunday. But, Tony never let being a straight-shooting journalist keep him from telling folks what he really thought. And, he was the first to do it all with gusto. Juggling political commentator and journalist sounds like saying one thing and writing another. From my admittedly limited experience in both both a journalist and a commentator… I assure you, it’s admirable how well he did it each week.

Few on either side of the political aisle attacked him for it, well, few with anything other than jealousy. Why? Because he did both jobs as if the other didn’t exist. He showed the world that you can have opinions, try to convince others of them, and still be true to being a journalist.

I always looked up to Tony Snow, he was, and still is a role model. I don’t think I would be able to do what I do every day without walking in his footsteps every day.

But, probably the thing I learned last from him… and still am learning after he is gone, is to smile. No matter what happens in this random sense of life, you have to feel blessed that you’re in it, that you can change it, and that you can help make it better. And, enjoying that alone is what I think people should learn the most from him.

Along with MobileMe’s launch came the lack of a feature that was in .Mac: Web Bookmark access.

Now, most would say that Apple’s primary excuse for gutting the feature would be that most people didn’t use it. And, I’m sure parsing sync data to display bookmarks in a web format might have taken some adaptation (not much, but some).

However, I think the main reason that Web Bookmarks was removed was in order to promote sales of Apple mobile devices (iPhone and iPod touch). Think about it, web bookmarks are to be used for when you don’t have access to your Mac. If you have one of Apple’s mobile devices on you, you don’t need the feature.

I think that this was a bad move on Apple’s part. Now, I only signed up for MobileMe for the push sync functionality… even Back to My Mac would work fine with perpetual 60 day trials. However, that was one feature I might actually have used.

Remember, in an emergency, you might want to access your bookmark library on someone else’s computer… there are many times when I have press room computer access as part of publishing duties, and having all my Safari bookmarks magically be accessible on any computer would be more than helpful. It should be considered an emergency feature, not a popular one.

Having trouble installing the MobileMe update that was just released? You’re not alone. The workaround at present is to sign out of .Mac (from inside System Preferences), and the sign in again. After a minute you should get a dialogue to open Apple Software Update.

If you don’t, download from the link below… I’m hosting the update until it surfaces on Apple’s Download Support page.

MobileMe Update for Mac OS X (8.3 MB)