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The Geekcast #118
The Geekcast #118 
Show Notes:
Contact info: | Feed: feeds.feedburner.com/geekcast | TheGeekcast.com | geekcast@gmail.com | Skype & Gizmo: Geekcast | Show notes: send blank e-mail to geekcastpodcast-subscribe@yahoogroups.co
**************
Items of Note: Enjoy I Love My iPod by Daphne Kalfon. You can learn more about Daphne at http://www.ilovemyipodthesong.com or get your own copy on the iTunes Music Stores.
Enjoy a fun retro ad I created in GarageBand.
**************
Tech news: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************
Test a geek: Enjoy another edition of Test A Geek on this episode.
**************
How To: Find royalty-free pictures for your projects
When building a website or writing an article for a publication, it is very important to have pictures to use for your projects. Normally when newspapers or professional builders need an image, they use a subscription to one of the many wire services out there such as Getty Images. These services work great but if you don't have a large budget to work with, your options may be limited. A couple of websites have cropped up within the past few years to offer royalty-free images that fall under the Creative Commons license.
The first website is www.everystockphoto.com. This website is an aggregator used to search the web for all creative commons photos. The site targets designers, developers, photographers and other media publishers who want better, easier access to license-specific media on the web. Everystockphoto.com takes your search and returns results that allow you to use the images as you see fit while working within fantastic rights management guidelines. The site features an integrated search, allowing users to bookmark their photos with private and public tags. The site is also working on other social networking aspects such as rating systems and recommendations. The site is easy to use and returns very relevant results. You can try it for yourself at http://www.everystockphoto.com/
A secondary site that you will definily want to check out is the Stock Xchng. This site is one of the many searched by Everystockphoto.com and comes up near the top of most searches. This site has tons of content that should please even the obscure searches. In addition to search you can browse through the categories of their huge gallery containing over 250.000 stock photos by more than 25,000 photographers. The pictures are high quality and clearly show the rights you are allowed to use them with. In addition to supplying pictures there is a forum as well to get answers to whatever questions you may have.
Both of these sites are free and allow you to get great pictures. You can check out Stock Xchng at http://www.sxc.hu/
**************
Ask A Geek: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************
Hack: Replace the hard drive in your iPod
With Apple announcing today that over 100 million iPods being sold, there are plenty of people out there who have older versions that need some upgrading. As time goes on your drive will wear down and could need to be replaced. Other people may just want more space on their player. The following is an excerpt from a fantastic tutorial I found online.
Read the entire hack at http://www.command-tab.com/2007/03/11/u
What to Buy
Which hard drive to buy depends on your specific iPod model, so like any half-decent attempt at an upgrade, a little research will be necessary before purchasing. The main factor that will affect your decision is the height, or thickness, of both the iPod and hard drive. Since day one of the iPod launch, Toshiba has produced all the hard drives employed in the full size iPod lineup. As technology advances, however, the capacity of each platter increases while the dimensions remain fixed. This is good news for iPod upgraders — the longer you wait, the more you can store.
Apple’s iPods are fairly easy to find a matching replacement/upgrade hard drive for, as you can generally tell which thickness drive you need just by holding the device in your hand. If your iPod was the thicker of the series when you purchased it, it takes the thicker, two-platter hard drive (examples include the higher capacity models such as 40 GB iPod and 60 GB iPod photo). The thinner models (like the 15 GB iPod and 30 GB iPod photo) take the thinner hard drives.
The new iPods with video capability are a different beast, as the drive technology and space requirements have demanded smaller hardware. With that in mind, Toshiba engineered a new connector on recent drives that is vastly smaller than the previous models. These new drives sport a Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) connector, which, unlike the older iPods, requires no pressure to connect the cable. Simply holding the hair-thin ribbon cable in place and folding down a clamp-like lock will secure all 40 pins in a staggeringly small — and fragile! — connector. The connector on the new iPods’ logic boards is now no wider than your thumbnail, and it, too is quite delicate. Such is the way of ever-shrinking consumer electronics.
Tools of the Trade
Before you decide on a hard drive, you’ll also want to purchase a few tools to ensure the job gets done right. While you’re able to pry most iPods apart using a tool as simple as a butter knife, the professionals use the following to make entry, upgrading, and close-up as seamless as possible.
Apple’s “black stick”
This nylon-based pry tool is key to almost any iPod upgrade, as it provides a strong lever to get into the edges of the case, while its plastic properties leave next to no marks or chewed-up spots along the edges. Best bought from Stanley Supply & Services.
IC puller or hemostats (both available at your local RadioShack)
A straight razor blade (for 5G iPods)
Picking a Hard Drive
Depending on your iPod thickness and model, you can choose from the hard drives in the article. You can find many of the drives on eBay and online retailers, but the most prevalent ones will be models used in iPods that shipped in the past.
Opening the iPod
1G through 4G iPods aren’t as tough to open as the newer 5G and later iPods, and can be popped open by pushing the metal backing one way while pulling the plastic front the opposite way. In doing so, you create a small gap where you can slide in the nylon pry tool and undo the five plastic clips along one of the two longer sides. The inside top and bottom of all iPods are not secured. Other World Computing has some detailed take-apart videos which should help give you a good idea of exactly how to get inside.
To open a 5G or later iPod, try the first technique above, and use a razor as a last resort. Once the tool is in and has a little room to work, carefully remove the razor and set it aside. Use the pry tool to work the rest of the side open.
The Switch
After cracking the side of the iPod open, carefully disconnect any audio jack or battery ribbon cables attached to the back panel. Undoing these connectors often requires the use of the nylon pry tool again, or careful pulling with hemostats. The hard drive is then exposed. Install the new hard drive in the same direction as the old one, making sure all pins and plastic guides line up perfectly. Move the metal back panel close to the iPod and reconnect all the cables you unhooked to get into the device, and snap the panel back onto the plastic clips.
Restoring in Disk Mode
Pressing any button will power on your iPod, and you should be able to hear the new drive spin up. Unless the drive is preloaded with the correct software you will get a “sad iPod” face. This is OK. Reset your iPod and immediately hold the Disk Mode keys as soon as the screen blanks for the reboot. After it’s detected, iTunes will load the proper software onto your iPod, and it will be as good as new and with more capacity!
**************
The geek's view: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************
Show Notes:
Contact info: | Feed: feeds.feedburner.com/geekcast | TheGeekcast.com | geekcast@gmail.com | Skype & Gizmo: Geekcast | Show notes: send blank e-mail to geekcastpodcast-subscribe@yahoogroups.co
**************
Items of Note: Enjoy I Love My iPod by Daphne Kalfon. You can learn more about Daphne at http://www.ilovemyipodthesong.com or get your own copy on the iTunes Music Stores.
Enjoy a fun retro ad I created in GarageBand.
**************
Tech news: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************
Test a geek: Enjoy another edition of Test A Geek on this episode.
**************
How To: Find royalty-free pictures for your projects
When building a website or writing an article for a publication, it is very important to have pictures to use for your projects. Normally when newspapers or professional builders need an image, they use a subscription to one of the many wire services out there such as Getty Images. These services work great but if you don't have a large budget to work with, your options may be limited. A couple of websites have cropped up within the past few years to offer royalty-free images that fall under the Creative Commons license.
The first website is www.everystockphoto.com. This website is an aggregator used to search the web for all creative commons photos. The site targets designers, developers, photographers and other media publishers who want better, easier access to license-specific media on the web. Everystockphoto.com takes your search and returns results that allow you to use the images as you see fit while working within fantastic rights management guidelines. The site features an integrated search, allowing users to bookmark their photos with private and public tags. The site is also working on other social networking aspects such as rating systems and recommendations. The site is easy to use and returns very relevant results. You can try it for yourself at http://www.everystockphoto.com/
A secondary site that you will definily want to check out is the Stock Xchng. This site is one of the many searched by Everystockphoto.com and comes up near the top of most searches. This site has tons of content that should please even the obscure searches. In addition to search you can browse through the categories of their huge gallery containing over 250.000 stock photos by more than 25,000 photographers. The pictures are high quality and clearly show the rights you are allowed to use them with. In addition to supplying pictures there is a forum as well to get answers to whatever questions you may have.
Both of these sites are free and allow you to get great pictures. You can check out Stock Xchng at http://www.sxc.hu/
**************
Ask A Geek: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************
Hack: Replace the hard drive in your iPod
With Apple announcing today that over 100 million iPods being sold, there are plenty of people out there who have older versions that need some upgrading. As time goes on your drive will wear down and could need to be replaced. Other people may just want more space on their player. The following is an excerpt from a fantastic tutorial I found online.
Read the entire hack at http://www.command-tab.com/2007/03/11/u
What to Buy
Which hard drive to buy depends on your specific iPod model, so like any half-decent attempt at an upgrade, a little research will be necessary before purchasing. The main factor that will affect your decision is the height, or thickness, of both the iPod and hard drive. Since day one of the iPod launch, Toshiba has produced all the hard drives employed in the full size iPod lineup. As technology advances, however, the capacity of each platter increases while the dimensions remain fixed. This is good news for iPod upgraders — the longer you wait, the more you can store.
Apple’s iPods are fairly easy to find a matching replacement/upgrade hard drive for, as you can generally tell which thickness drive you need just by holding the device in your hand. If your iPod was the thicker of the series when you purchased it, it takes the thicker, two-platter hard drive (examples include the higher capacity models such as 40 GB iPod and 60 GB iPod photo). The thinner models (like the 15 GB iPod and 30 GB iPod photo) take the thinner hard drives.
The new iPods with video capability are a different beast, as the drive technology and space requirements have demanded smaller hardware. With that in mind, Toshiba engineered a new connector on recent drives that is vastly smaller than the previous models. These new drives sport a Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) connector, which, unlike the older iPods, requires no pressure to connect the cable. Simply holding the hair-thin ribbon cable in place and folding down a clamp-like lock will secure all 40 pins in a staggeringly small — and fragile! — connector. The connector on the new iPods’ logic boards is now no wider than your thumbnail, and it, too is quite delicate. Such is the way of ever-shrinking consumer electronics.
Tools of the Trade
Before you decide on a hard drive, you’ll also want to purchase a few tools to ensure the job gets done right. While you’re able to pry most iPods apart using a tool as simple as a butter knife, the professionals use the following to make entry, upgrading, and close-up as seamless as possible.
Apple’s “black stick”
This nylon-based pry tool is key to almost any iPod upgrade, as it provides a strong lever to get into the edges of the case, while its plastic properties leave next to no marks or chewed-up spots along the edges. Best bought from Stanley Supply & Services.
IC puller or hemostats (both available at your local RadioShack)
A straight razor blade (for 5G iPods)
Picking a Hard Drive
Depending on your iPod thickness and model, you can choose from the hard drives in the article. You can find many of the drives on eBay and online retailers, but the most prevalent ones will be models used in iPods that shipped in the past.
Opening the iPod
1G through 4G iPods aren’t as tough to open as the newer 5G and later iPods, and can be popped open by pushing the metal backing one way while pulling the plastic front the opposite way. In doing so, you create a small gap where you can slide in the nylon pry tool and undo the five plastic clips along one of the two longer sides. The inside top and bottom of all iPods are not secured. Other World Computing has some detailed take-apart videos which should help give you a good idea of exactly how to get inside.
To open a 5G or later iPod, try the first technique above, and use a razor as a last resort. Once the tool is in and has a little room to work, carefully remove the razor and set it aside. Use the pry tool to work the rest of the side open.
The Switch
After cracking the side of the iPod open, carefully disconnect any audio jack or battery ribbon cables attached to the back panel. Undoing these connectors often requires the use of the nylon pry tool again, or careful pulling with hemostats. The hard drive is then exposed. Install the new hard drive in the same direction as the old one, making sure all pins and plastic guides line up perfectly. Move the metal back panel close to the iPod and reconnect all the cables you unhooked to get into the device, and snap the panel back onto the plastic clips.
Restoring in Disk Mode
Pressing any button will power on your iPod, and you should be able to hear the new drive spin up. Unless the drive is preloaded with the correct software you will get a “sad iPod” face. This is OK. Reset your iPod and immediately hold the Disk Mode keys as soon as the screen blanks for the reboot. After it’s detected, iTunes will load the proper software onto your iPod, and it will be as good as new and with more capacity!
**************
The geek's view: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
**************