Wired

Everyone is hopping on the ‘Green’ train. Business, Schools, People, all want to be ‘Green’. Well, actually that’s wrong. They want to Say they are Green, but do they have the will and desire to actually pay for it? I think not…. (more…)

The MasonIP Video Player is the best thing since sliced bread. Really. But it’s pretty difficult to describe all it’s features and functions because it fits into really distinct categories. So to better explain the MasonIP, I will break out the features and applications by popular markets. First up, DVD Authoring. If you author or create DVD’s, read on below:

MasonIP for DVD Creators……. (more…)

Next up, HD content. If you create HD content or need to verify HD files, see below for how MasonIP applies to you:

MasonIP for HD Playback……… (more…)

OK, next up is how MasonIP can be used in a Broadcast environment. Read on below if you are a broadcast person and want to know how useful the MasonIP is in a broadcasting environment.

MasonIP for Broadcast……… (more…)

So what do I mean by that statement? What I mean to say is that downloading of HD movies for viewing is a great concept, BUT it will not be realized anytime soon. Now that the HD disc war is finally over, with BluRay the declared winner, the next step people are looking towards is getting rid of the physical media all together. That would be a wonderful thing; to be able to pick and choose a movie and have it downloaded to your TV set for viewing at anytime. But there are several problems…. (more…)

Don’t feel too sad for Toshiba, the backer of HD-DVD. Sure they committed huge sums of cash to several studios in exchange for exclusive backing. But they also get a huge write-off on their taxes for the money spent. Notice that they killed off HD-DVD really fast. And their last day for supporting HD-DVD just so happens to be the last day of Quarter 1, 2008. The accountants must have jumped at the chance to utilize this huge write-off in this first quarter. (more…)

Or “How NOT to do HD encoding.”

I am sure you have noticed the push to make consumer camcorders HD. It seems like every month the big manufacturers are releasing new HD camcorders at lower and lower prices. So what is up with these HD cameras and are they any good?

According to the reviews I have read, the HD push in the consumer space is only to sell more product, and thus make more money. Of course. But the quality of these HD cameras is really pathetic. (more…)

Warner has decided that this coming May, 2008, will be the last month they will ship any movies in the HD-DVD format. After May, Warner will support Blu-Ray exclusively for their HD content. This news has caught everyone by surprise and I believe puts the nails further into the coffin of HD-DVD. Now only two major studios support HD-DVD, with the remaining studios all behind the Blu-Ray format.

Blu-Ray just may win this HD disk format battle, but I believe the war is much more widespread than ever imagined. (more…)

If you have been following the progress of the MasonIP decoder, you’re probably aware that we just started shipping it with a HD-SDI digital video output. That means we have been internally testing our MasonIP decoders with full broadcast HD-SDI monitors. And all I can say is ‘WOW.’ (more…)

Ah the joys of progress, and the joys of legacy video formats. With all the hype and hoopla surrounding HD video, the LCD vs. PLASMA wars, Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD, etc., you would think that the old video standards NTSC & PAL would vanish from the TV and Video scene. But as everyone in Broadcasting knows, NTSC & PAL are alive and well around the globe. (more…)

As some of you know, I spent the last several weeks traveling around demonstrating our new MasonIP decoder. I picked up many important tid-bits on how a MasonIP fits into workflows, and I learned a lot about the current problems you all are facing. (more…)

Finally, I have written up a brief technical description about our new DVD/MPEG player MasonIP. HERE is the link to the document. It describes in much more detail how the MasonIP connects up to your DVD authoring system or to your edit suite. It shows how MasonIP can be used in a test and evaluation environment for DVD’s or MPEG files. Email me any comments or questions - mark (at) wiredinc (dot) com
-Mark