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Modern technology

Today’s experience of trying to watch the formula 1 race at Silverstone was a frustration of modern technology and drm issues:

  • the Virgin media box only recorded the first hour of the BBC Broadcast. Disappointed.
  • I then navigated to the Virgin media version of BBC iPlayer. However it does not list Formula 1 races, due to licensing restrictions. sigh annoying.
  • I loaded up the iPhone version of the BBC iPlayer. It has the race but it visually it looks like an amateur YouTube video. Connecting it to the HDTV with the Av cable might tell the app to switch to an Hd stream, but alas the picture is twice as muddy. Frustrating.
  • Booted up the laptop to view the web version, which is as blurry as the iPhone version. Let’s download it perhaps it’s higher quality? Hopeful.
  • iPlayer desktop is installed then crashes. Typical.
  • Adobe Air wants to be updated which happens as the programming preventing the update just crashed. Really?
  • iPlayer desktop loads but does not let you browse any shows. Losing interest fast.
  • Downloading Formula one British Gran… 2.3Gb this is looking good. No streaming? I’ll start watching on the iPhone in the meantime. Tolerating.
  • 11 minutes later the abbreviated title expands to ’d prix qualifying’. Getting pissed.
  • downloading the actual grand prix. Watching more on the iPhone. Maybe this is as good as it gets?
  • connecting the laptop over HDMI. Download is finished! Turns out visuals are better but framerate is choppy. Can’t be arsed anymore. I’ll watch it on the laptop.

Does it have to be this hard, Virgin, BBC, Acer, Toshiba, Apple?