Video Not Playing? Check Your Overlay Options!

Intel Graphics Media Accelerator Utility

The problem: This recent discovery–rather, rediscovery– was the final straw, causing me to reformat and reinstall a fresh copy of Windows on my laptop. I had been meaning to do it for a long time (something like 2 years), but I never found myself in the mood. However, something came up, and I needed to play a video on my laptop, which hadn’t worked for a few months (sound worked, no picture). On previous occasions I reinstalled the graphics driver, I reinstalled all the required codecs, and I tried playing the videos on Windows Media Player, VLC, Windows Media Classic, and Quicktime. Flash based videos from Hulu and YouTube worked wonderfully, just nothing else. So, on this particular occasion, I decided that it was far more difficult to troubleshoot the video problem than to just wipe the sucker.

But, the problem returned. $%&#!!

The solution: In a rare moment of serendipity, I recalled the Intel driver for my laptop’s integrated Intel 915GM Express Chipset installs a utility. This utility, the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator, includes a interface for adjusting the color, contrast, and brightness of a hardware accelerated video overlay. Years ago, I had the same problem where I eventually discovered (likely serendipitous as well) that, for reasons unknown to me, the options for the video overlay had been set to zero, so the overlay would appear pure black. So, the picture had been there the whole time, it had just been blacked-out. Returning the values to default will set everything right.

Now, knowing what to search for, I’ve found that it’s a known issue with the latest version of the driver, and can be corrected by downgrading (meaning Intel no longer support the driver, and you’re stuck with it.).

For more information, see the official Intel support page.

The Credit Crisis, Explained Visually

Having a difficult time understanding why the economy is upside-down? Check out this video from Jonathan Jarvis which gives a wonderful visual overview of the credit crisis and explains how everything is connected. (Video is best viewed in HD and full-screen, of course.)

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

The Short and Simple Story of the Credit Crisis.

Crisisofcredit.com

The goal of giving form to a complex situation like the credit crisis is to quickly supply the essence of the situation to those unfamiliar and uninitiated. This project was completed as part of my thesis work in the Media Design Program, a graduate studio at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

For more on my broader thesis work exploring the use of new media to make sense of a increasingly complex world, visit jonathanjarvis.com.

Support the project and buy a T-Shirt! cafepress.com/crisisofcredit

© Copyright 2009 Jonathan Jarvis

Flash/Shockwave Crashes when Viewing Ustream.tv [IPCamera_MJPEG.ax]

So, after about a month of wrestling with Ustream.tv and any other web site that imbeds interactive Adobe Flash or Shockwave videos, I decided I should actually take a good look at the error reports that Firefox and Chrome create on crash. I discovered that a module called IPCamera_MJPEG.ax was causing an issue. Normally, IPCamera_MJPEG.ax is found in C:\Windows\system32, but mine wasn’t there. I read on Ustream’s official forums, though, that other encoders and camera capture utilities from other cam streaming sites will cause an issue. One user reported the encoder for Justin.tv was the issue. Mine? The Camstreams encoder was the culprit. Once I uninstalled it (I wasn’t using it anyway), Ustream.tv behaved like an angel!

Just in case your issue isn’t with Camstreams or any other encoder, here’s some other ideas:

• Windows Media Encoder (the Camstreams encoder is based off of WME, so WME might cause an issue too)
• Outdated or corrupted video drivers. Update or reinstall the drivers any chipset or add-on graphics card you have.
• Outdated Flash or Shockwave. Completely uninstall Flash and Shockwave. Adobe provides uninstall programs to clean all traces. Reinstall.
• Other browser plugins. Though, less likely, it is possible that other plugins in your browser of choice are causing conflicts. Disable all of them, and renable them one-by-one while reloading Ustream (or any other site giving you trouble) to catch the culprit.
• format c:
  (disclaimer: It’s a joke ^…. I don’t want to be responsible for a wiped drive!)

Nick Burns: Computer Guy

I hope I’m not like this…

SNL: “Nick Burns: Your Company’s Computer Guy” w/ Jamie Fox video

P.S. That post last week about Google’s new fav icon became this blog’s most popular post in matter of a few hours.

Viral Marketing Using Viral Videos (Did I Mention Viral?)

Definition of “Viral Video” from Wikipedia:

Viral marketing and viral advertising refer to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses.

Definition of “Viral Marketing” from Wikipedia:

Viral marketing and viral advertising refer to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses.

Definition of a popular alternative rock/geek rock/power pop band using viral internet videos and Internet memes in their latest radio single:

Weezer and their song “Pork and Beans”

Definition of a Internet-based company making cash, hand-over-fist from other’s content (from Wikipedia):

Google, Inc. is an American public corporation, earning revenue from online and mobile advertising related to its Internet search, web-based e-mail, online mapping, office productivity, social networking, and video sharing as well as selling advertising-free versions of the same technologies.

F*ck it, We’ll Do it LIVE! Remix

So, if you haven’t heard about the “Bill O’Reilly flip out” you should JFGI. If you don’t know what JFGI means, you should Google it.

(Shared discovery from Neil)

If the original clip of O’Reilly just isn’t doing it for you anymore, you should check out the remix:

Original music by http://www.myspace.com/revolucian
Clipped together by http://www.myspace.com/torreymeeks

Super Mario Reloaded

You might have to suspend your knowledge that Mario and Luigi are bothers while you watch this (or maybe you don’t, could Neo and Agent Smith been brothers? I’m not sayin’… I’m just sayin’).