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Category: Tech in the News

June 21, 2015

No More Hulu Plus

Pop Quiz: Do you know the difference between Hulu and Hulu Plus? Well, it really doesn’t matter any more…

Pop Quiz: Do you know the difference between Hulu and Hulu Plus? Well, it really doesn’t matter any more…

I got an email last week from the folks at Hulu stating that they’ve killed off Hulu Plus. What?  There’s no more paid Hulu service??

No, it’s still there. It’s just called Hulu.
Huh?

So what’s the difference between ‘Hulu’ and “Hulu” (formerly Hulu Plus)?

The email assured me my $7.99 monthly subscription hasn’t changed.
(Of course, Hulu still wants my money.)

Okay…
So what’s going on?

According to TechCrunch, Hulu will still maintain its free and paid tier, but it’s trimming the name ‘Plus’ to eliminate consumer confusion.

The service formally known as ‘Plus’ will continue to stream on mobile devices and provide access to more episodes from individual series.

Hello, Hulu?
A couple years back, I signed up for Hulu Plus with some trepidation. And I was immediately non-plussed when I couldn’t access the entire final season of Fringe.
(Which was the reason I joined up in the first place)

The advantages of the paid plan became even murkier for me as time went on….

So the ‘Plus’ brand change became a reminder to me that maybe I didn’t really need to be paying for Hulu month after month anymore.

Time for a little review of how often I was really using it…
But I already knew the truth… not very much.

Sipping Hulu is Not Encouraged
In theory, Hulu is great.
If you ever miss last week’s episode of your favorite show, Hulu is always there as your safety net.

Once upon a time, maybe that’s all I needed.

Today, let’s just say my busy life as a parent has mostly kept me out of the TV watching game when it comes to committing to any ongoing series.

That said, what Hulu Plus could have done for me is let me start at the beginning of any series and go through it at my own pace.

But the big-time shows apparently don’t often have the patience for media ‘sippers’ like me.

If you’re not generally keeping up with the hungry crowd of weekly watchers, you’re going to get left behind…

The Facade of All-Access
Just to be sure, I did a quick review of what shows I would begin watching on Hulu if I discovered two to three available hours a day…
And here my episode-access report:

  • Gotham
    5 shows from the middle of season 1
  • The Blacklist
    Last 5 episodes from last season
    (FYI- Netflix does better!)
  • Castle
    All of season 7
    (That’s fine if I hadn’t stopped watching after season 2.)
  • Shark Tank
    Last 5 episodes of season 6
  • Marvel’s Agents of Shield
    Last 5 shows of season 2
  • Marvel’s Agent Carter
    Episodes 4-8

As you can see, it’s kind of difficult just to jump into any of these…
Clearly, there are plenty of series that you don’t get full access to… even with a ‘Plus’ subscription!

Less Hulu
If the goal is to simplify Hulu’s main identity as a paid service through and through… I get it. That’s fine.

I know there are probably still more hours of TV programming available on Hulu (Plus) today than days left in anyone’s lifetime who’s reading this.

But I’m simply not taking advantage of Hulu right now…
(That’s partly my fault… and definitely Hulu’s.)

This name change simply made me face the fact that there’s really no plus for me either.

Time to downgrade.
(for now)

Click.

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April 19, 2015

The New Star Wars Teaser Will Blow Your Mind

If you’ve been preoccupied, you may have missed a significant disturbance in the Force last week. The good news is your opportunity to catch up is only a click away…

If you’ve been preoccupied, you may have missed a significant disturbance in the Force last week. The good news is your opportunity to catch up is only a click away…

I’ve always enjoyed watching movie trailers. They used to be the favorite part of my film-going experience. But no more… That’s because every blockbuster trailer I’ve seen at the multiplex I’ve already caught at home when I’m online.

Download Vs. Streaming
Typically, I go to the iTunes Movie Trailers page to find the newest previews.

I usually prefer downloading the ones I really like to my iPhone and then watching them whenever the moment moves me.
(Usually when my commuter train isn’t moving too fast)

You may recall, I’ve had some ups and downs with this….

A couple years ago, Apple inexplicably began taking away its trailer downloading functionality, leaving streaming as the only viewing option. This is hardly ideal when your smartphone doesn’t have a strong connection.

…and Barrett was frustrated.

Then, a year later, Apple seemingly gave it all back.

…and Barrett was happy again.

Prepare Yourself
So this past week, I was looking for the newest summer movie teasers, as the blockbuster season is nearly upon us.

Imagine my glee when I spotted the second teaser trailer for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

When the first teaser came out in November, millions of geeks in galaxies near and far could barely contain themselves. The fact that J.J. Abrams had successfully recreated the look and feel of the original “Star Wars” was almost too much to handle.

Come on… This is J.J. Abrams we’re talking about.
“Lost,” “Star Trek,” “Fringe.”
You didn’t think he was going to get the basics right?

I thought the first teaser trailer was just fine.
It was nice to have a quick peek.
That’s what any first teaser usually does…

Traveling Back in Time
But then I clicked on this second teaser trailer.
My finger was running on autonomic instinct; my brain, barely keeping up.

I felt like I was fourteen years old again watching “Star Wars” for the very first time with my mother at the east 86th street multiplex in New York City. I was transported back to those two mesmerizing hours…

And then I heard-
“You have that power too.”

And then I saw-
“Chewie, we’re home.”

OMG.

Now, this is more like it!

An A+ Trailer
I’m not entirely surprised J.J. Abrams blew my mind with this new teaser trailer. He did something similar with the early trailers for his first “Star Trek” movie. But those suggested something different from the “Star Trek” we grew up with.
(And in fact, it was an alternate reality.)

This “Star Wars” trailer by comparison feels exceptionally familiar. Of course, because the Star Wars universe is being continued, not re-imagined.
(It would seem.)

We’re given the perfect balance between what we already know about and teased with what we don’t.

And then that last shot: We get to see Han Solo!
Glorious…

I Have a Good Feeling about This
We’re still eight months away from seeing how strong the Force really is with Episode VII.
That said, this trailer completely reenergized all my geeky energies.

After I watched it, I just stared at the screen.
“Whoaaaaah….”

And then I downloaded the two minutes of movie (and marketing) magic.

I felt like a kid again.
It was the perfect moment…

Thank you, Disney for spending $4 billion in 2012 to keep it all going.
Only now, at the end (of the wait) do I understand…

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April 12, 2015

What to Do With Your Dormant Domain

This is one of the many dead ends on our glorious world wide web. I’m pointing out this particular one, because it’s what’s left of my never-launched website from years back. It’s time to take this back to the future!

This is one of the many dead ends on our glorious world wide web.
I’m pointing out this particular one, because it’s what’s left of my never-launched website from years back. It’s time to take this back to the future!

In what now seems like some distant era, I purchased my own .com domain. Yes, once upon a time, I registered barrettlester.com. I was so excited. The power to control your personal brand… worldwide. The possibilities were almost endless. I plunked down some serious coin and paid up for a whole decade.
(The longest option available)

But as Peter Parker has taught us…
“With great power comes great responsibility.”

I quickly constructed a few quaint pages using Apple’s iWeb and
now-defunct MobileMe.
But it was undeniably a homegrown effort.

I stared at my creation, late at night. It would always be imperfect. And like RoboCop before he found his groove, I was unable to pull the trigger.

I never launched barrettlester.com.

Years past. Other projects took precedence
And eventually, I forgot about it…

Do You Need Your Own Domain?
The other day, I received a check-in email from Network Solutions, the domain registrar where my dormant domain is parked. And it reminded me of my little cliffhanger…

I think the problem was I never had a specific goal for my website. I wasn’t promoting a business. And the idea of publicly sharing a more personal reflection now seems entirely sophomoric in today’s more advanced and potentially dangerous online landscape.

Nor have I had a strong reason to pay for a more professionally constructed site.
Ultimately, my LinkedIn profile has largely satisfied my need for a public online identity.

The Power of Blogging
I grabbed my keyboard and nervously typed in my URL for the first time since my son was born. I wasn’t quite sure what I was supposed to see.
(pause)
My computer struggled for a few seconds… Finally, I stared at a cold line of text:

“http/1.1 Service Unavailable.”

Ugh. You’re telling me… I think this was a remnant from my failed launch attempt in the previous decade.

Seeing nothing at all would be better than this sad residual message.

And then it hit me…
I had abandoned my URL, but I had not backed away from asserting my public presence online.

I’ve been blogging every week for the past three years!
I just chose a different name for this endeavor.

Suddenly, the next step seemed quite obvious…

Domain Forwarding Can Fix Your Problem
Not that there’s likely a whole lot of folks out there typing in barrettlester.com. But I realized those who do should be properly redirected to athomewithtech.com.

For better or for worse, that’s where I’m at these days.
Who knows… barrettlester.com could eventually see the light of day… but for now, all it needs to do is simply give a nod to my blog.
(I’ve already done something similar by extending my blog’s identity to include .net, .org, and .info suffixes.)

So I logged onto Network Solutions and clicked on their ‘web-forwarding’ service.
Their cost: $12.99/year.
(another fee!)

But I figured I’ve come this far…

A few clicks later, the domain-forwarding transaction was complete.
And then I promptly stood up and went to bed.
(Domain forwarding takes a little time to take effect.)

The next morning I woke up, got my cup of Joe, and typed in my URL.
And Voila…!

There was my blog.

We’ve All Got Something to Say
Does this feel like a Seinfeld episode?
Let’s review…

I spent some money on my very own URL. Then did nothing with it.
Years later, I paid more money just to hide it in a different way.

It’s all about nothing.
I continue to spend money on seemingly nothing.

But if you’re reading this, that means you’re the Horton to my Who.

“I am here! I am here! I am here! I am here!!!”

Somehow, you heard me.
Possibly now… because you simply remembered my name.

So I’d say a little web forwarding is money well spent.
And a hidden URL can still carry your good name forward…

Yes, I am here.

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