Windows 7 Media Center

I'll be honest here: the biggest incentive for me to install and play with Windows 7 was Media Center. This is Microsoft's software for viewing and recording live TV, as well as playback for movies, pictures, music, etc. It's been around since 2005, but I've never had a chance to use it. Media Center comes with two versions of Vista, and an improved version comes with Windows 7.

We already have a computer in the living room hooked up to our TV. We use it for streaming Netflix movies, as well as watching movies and TV shows from Hulu and the major networks. So the ability to record live TV would simply make the computer all the more useful.

Setting up Windows 7

As most people in the tech world know, Microsoft recently launched a public beta of their new operating system, Windows 7. Anyone can download and install the beta, which will expire in August. After that, you'll have to buy a copy.

I set up a home theater computer not too long ago and decided to install Windows 7 to take advantage of Media Center , which comes in some versions of Vista, and the Windows 7 beta.

And I have to say, I'm impressed. Most of the design elements are very similar to Vista, but there are noticeable speed improvements as well as a pretty stable interface, especially for a beta. Unfortunately, my video card is very old and can't handle the more advanced features of Aero. A new video card has been ordered and should arrive this week.

So, not much to report now since I can't try a whole lot of the new features without a nice, working video card. But keep an eye out for my follow-up report. In the next week, I'll be actually using the new features, as well as using Media Center to record live TV, so we'll see how it goes. Should be fun!

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Slacker for BlackBerry!

This is honestly the first BlackBerry app recently that's made me almost wish I hadn't traded my Pearl for a G1. Sure, I already have a Slacker Portable player, but it would be super awesome to have the same stations playable from my phone whenever I'm somewhere and don't have my Slacker portable with me.

The BlackBerry app (available for free), allows you to stream your favorite Slacker stations from anywhere. But the killer feature is the ability to cache stations. This essentially turns your BlackBerry into a Slacker portable by allowing you to listen to your stations even when you don't have an active network connection.

Laptop magazine even gave the BlackBerry app their Best of Mobile Entertainment award. Check out their review and video tour.

Unfortunately, I can't try it out since I don't have a BlackBerry anymore. Here's hoping they launch an Android version soon! :-)

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