d00dism

Because I’m a cheap bastard, I decided to buy my cable modem instead of rent or buy from Comcast.

Review

It’s hard to review a cable modem really. Sites like CNet can do group comparisons, but I have neither the cash nor the time to do a full comparison like that. I can use it for a bit to see if I need to reset it and what kinds of speeds I can get.

In those two regards, this modem is excellent. I haven’t needed to reset the modem once. I’ve also been getting 800 KB/s downloads. That translates to 6.25 Mbps, which is actually a quarter of a Megabit greater than the service I’m supposedly getting. I’m happy with that.

I can recommend the D-Link DCM-202 without reservation. Go get yours at Amazon.com.

Updating the Firmware with a Mac

Most routers let anyone with a slightly modern web browser update the firmware using a web page form. It’s child’s play. The D-Link DCM-202 isn’t quite as easy. Fortunately, cable modems don’t need regular updates.

There is a single update aimed at Comcast users. Keep in mind that my modem was working just fine, but I’m an update junkie. I simply can’t leave well enough alone. Well, you can imagine my disappointment when I found out that D-Link only provided files to perform the update on a Windows machine. The update was three parts, the firmware file, the instructions, and a Windows update utility.

The thing is though, the Windows update utility is really just a TFTP server. What happens when you update is that you activate the TFTP client in the modem and tell it to download from a TFTP server (generally the one being run via the Windows utility they supply).

What few people know is that Mac OS X includes a built-in TFTP server. That’s right, with a stock OS X installation, you too can update this firmware. A few caveats before the instructions. If you are looking for someone to blame should something go wrong, don’t use these instructions. I can’t make any guarantees. You’ll also need to use the Terminal.

1. Download the latest relevant firmware update from D-Link. You should see have three files when you’re done downloading and decompressing: the instructions, the firmware, and the Windows utility. Verify you have these three files. The name of the firmware at time of publication was Hitr252.bin.

2. Copy the firmware into the TFTP server directory. To do this, use the following command in the Terminal and authorize when prompted for password.

   sudo cp /path/to/Hitr252.bin /private/tftpboot/
   

3. Activate the TFTP server. You’ll also probably want to disable any firewalls. Use the following command in the Terminal to start the TFTP server.

   sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/tftp.plist
   

4. Configure your network settings. You’ll need to visit Network in System Preferences. Go to the Ethernet configuration and set it to use 192.168.100.2 as the IP address and 255.255.255.0 as the subnet mask. Make sure you apply those settings.

5. Connect your Mac directly to the modem via an Ethernet cable. You’ll probably also want to disconnect the coaxial cable from the cable modem.

6. Telnet into the cable modem. You’ll need to use another Terminal command for this one.

   telnet 192.168.100.1 23
   

7. Log into the modem. Use username dlink and password dlink.

8. Tell the modem to download the firmware from the TFTP server you’re running. You’re going to type a command to the modem which you’ve connected through telnet to.

   dload 192.168.100.2 Hitr252.bin
   

9. Wait until the modem resets and the cable light turns blinking amber. The Ethernet light will also be dark.

10. Reset the modem using the pinhole in the back. Hold down for 7 seconds.

11. Verify the firmware correctly updated. Point your web browser at 192.168.100.1. Log in with username admin and password hitron. I think my username or password may have differed from these (I’m basing these instructions of the D-Link provided ones). Once you’re logged in, look for the firmware version. It should match what you uploaded.

You’re done! You just did the impossible by doing something that normally would require a PC. Enjoy the new firmware and the satisfaction of doing it yourself.

Update: David notes that he had to use different IP addresses than what I wrote. My bad. I’m correcting them.

As a side note, I had to use “100″ in the following steps rather than “0″ (zero):
STEP 4: 192.168.0.2–>192.168.100.2
STEP 6: 192.168.0.1–>192.168.100.1
STEP 11: 192.168.0.1–>192.168.100.1

He also confirmed the username and password. Thanks David!

Earlier this week, my El Gato EyeHome arrived. It doesn’t come with any AV cables. So I had to march down to Wallyworld to pick up some cables. Then the fun began.

I had a few choices when it came to cables. There’s composite, S-video, and component video outputs. For audio, there’s component and optical. Now, if I had the right equipment, the right connections would be the component video and the optical audio. Optical audio: isn’t that an oxymoron? I don’t and I need the most flexibility, so I went with the component video and audio. Note that there is no RF coaxial output, so if that’s all your TV has, you may have to route it through a special adapter box or through your VCR.

After all the reviews I read, I expected the most pain-free install ever. It was close, but not quite there. However, I’m not sure I can fault the EyeHome. I’m connecting it through a wireless to ethernet adapter and switch. Upon turning on the EyeHome, it didn’t recognize that my Powermac upstairs had the software installed. Manually putting in its IP didn’t work either. Then I noticed that it had a self-assigned IP address (one starting with 169). Shutting down all the network equipment and starting it again fixed the issue and it’s worked ever since, so I don’t know what the issue really was, but it appears to have been transient.

Once I had that worked out, the Powermac appeared and I started playing. My EyeTV recordings showed up and played perfectly. However, the times listed didn’t seem right. The unit wasn’t setting its own time and date correctly and there is no way to set it manually (that can be counted as a flaw because I can imagine that sometimes the network the EyeHome is on won’t have an NTP server, but I digress).

I tried the rest of the features, save the movie one because I had no movies saved to my hard drive. They all performed as I would hope (except being unable to play iTunes Music Store files, but that’s not their fault). The movie playing function is much more important to me anyway. As a test, I used Handbrake to encode a movie. The first time I used an MPEG4 container with H.264 video and AAC video. It looked and sounded great. However, they didn’t sync up. I’m not sure what the problem was. I re-encoded into an AVI container with MPEG 4 video and MP3 sound. That synced up great. Perhaps the added complexity of AAC caused the sound delay. I’m not sure.

I did run into a problem with certain scenes though. In particular, White Noise has a lot of scenes that are almost all static. Those… scenes… would… skip… a… lot. Fortunately, those scenes were few and far between. All other video was fine as far as I could tell.

Despite some little issues, I feel like the $129 I spent on my EyeHome (refurbished price, brand new currently on sale for $150) was well worth it. At the $200 normal price, I’m a little more hesitant, but that’s just more reason to get one now.

Pros: Handles all kinds of media. Easy setup. Regular firmware updates. Works with EyeTV. Only $150.
Cons: Some initial setup problems. Doesn’t work with iTunes Music Store files. Issues with some intense movie sections. No manual time setting capability.

I made a startling realization when I got my 12″ Powerbook. It’s a lot smaller than the classic Pismo that I’d been lugging around for 4 years. My L.L. Bean saddle bag’s laptop slot was actually too big for my shiny new Powerbook. The sides of the compartment are padded, so they naturally hold the shape. There’s so much room that the new ‘book flops around in it. It’s unsettling.

After a brief quest of asking for opinions on sleeves to insulate my Powerbook as well as some searching forums, a name that kept coming up was Waterfield. Much like Apple, the agreement was that the bags were pricey, but worth it. I liked the styling, so I bit the bullet and got one of their sleeves for my recent birthday.

I wasn’t let down.

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Perhaps the greatest thing about first person shooters is that they inevitably have expansion packs which cost dramatically less than the game originally. You essentially get more of the game you liked originally.

Then sometimes, they don’t give you more of what you liked. They give you something loosely based upon something you liked. It’s sort of like the new Star Wars movies. Breakthrough features the same great gameplay, graphics, and weapons of the first two. It even seems to have better performance than Spearhead. However, it’s not quite as good.

One of the problems is the design of several of the levels. In particular, any level requiring you to protect something sucks. It’s far too hard without knowing what the specific strategy the designers were expecting you to figure out. It’s not obvious or even logical. Without reading a guide, I wouldn’t have thought to stand on some crates far away from the person I was trying to protect. Seems counter intuitive, no? And everyone loves trying to attack incoming tanks with mortars.

What makes the game unbearable at times is the complete lack of ammo. You’d expect to be able to pick up ammo from enemy soldiers, but that’s a bad assumption. You’ve got to scrounge around like an irishman for a drink. Eventually, you’ll get to a point where you get ambushed and you’ll realize you’ve got about 20 pistol bullets, 4 rifle, and 10 submachine gun with no ammo in sight. After dying the fourth time trying to beat enemies to death, you have to become a marksmen with your pistol. It’s not fun.

This is a decent, but extremely challenging expansion pack for Medal of Honor. At $30, it’s probably worth getting.

Pros: It’s a Medal of Honor expansion pack. Only $30
Cons: Poor level design. Not enough ammo availability.

Following a lengthy search for a good Bluetooth mouse (see entries one and two), someone mentioned the Macally BTMouseJr and the fact that it recently was released. I decided to check it out.

I hadn’t heard much about it, which seems like a marketing blunder considering the demand being generated by new Powerbooks with Bluetooth built-in. Wireless has become an attractive option for laptop users because the surfaces users may work on may not allow for cords. Cords also tangle and are a pain to put away repeatedly. This prompted some companies to come up with solutions for travelers. For example, Kensington made the PocketMouse Pro which features a mechanism to wind the cord within the mouse. The also made a wireless mouse with a compartment to put the USB dongle. Why not use the wireless already built into many laptops, including Windows-based ones? In addition to others, Macally has.