Wednesday, April 30, 2003

We launched our new TiVo Upgrade website today - check it out!

Thursday, April 24, 2003

I've been using the new HMO option for series 2 standalone TiVos - and it's pretty compelling. There are four main features:
-ability to share photos from your PC or Mac to your TiVo(s)
-same for music (this one is great - all of my iTunes library is accessible on my TiVo, and, hence my stereo)
-watching shows recorded on one TiVo through another TiVo (that also has HMO)
-scheduling shows to record on the TiVo Central Online (TCO) website from any computer

One important note for Mac users: if you are using an Apple AirPort Base Station with password encryption, then you have to enter the password as "hexadecimal" - you can't enter it as text. To get the hex-encoded password, you have to go to your AirPort Admin Utility, then choose (this is Mac OS 9) Base Station -> Equivalent Network Password. Use that code on your TiVo and you should be all set.

Tuesday, April 22, 2003

Lot's more to tell about Puerto Vallarta that I'm sure I'll never get to, but one thing I have to mention in case someone does some crazy internet search and finds it: there was a market area that sold fish in PV. This was right at the Gutierrez Rizo - the main supermarket in the old part of town. The fish market looked fine - just a bunch of open stalls with lots of good stuff like shrimp and octopus and huachilongo (sp?). But the thing I didn't do and that someone really should do is go to the bustling little ceviche cart there. Looked great.

Yesterday, we released our PowerTrip TiVo Power Saver - it's been a whole saga of sourcing, engineering, and shipping. But we have them, and people are happy.

Saturday, April 12, 2003

We spent a week in Puerto Vallarta. We rented a house in Colonia Emiliano Zapata - just up the hill from the old part of Puerto Vallarta. This was either a 10 block, partly steep walk, or a $3 cab ride from most of the action in Puerto Vallarta, including the good beach (Los Muertos), the Malecon, and the good restaurants.

We spent two days at Los Muertos - the best beach nearby. Grandpa parasailed, and we ate and played and swam and built sandcastles.

One day we dove with Chico's Dive Shop - they seem to be the only dive shop in town, and the prices were reasonable and the service pretty good. We went to Los Arcos - just off the coast of Playa Mismaloya. The boat ride took about an hour. Then we anchored and were surrounded by jellyfish. Finally, we just bit the bullet, jumped in, and went down as fast as possible. Didn't see much, visibility wasn't great, and when we surfaced, we got stung pretty badly and got out of there as fast as possible.

For the second dive, we went to the other side of Los Arcos. This was a shallower dive, but with much better visibility and more to see (although still, not a lot). Our divemaster Nacho held a pufferfish while it put out its spikes - pretty cool.

Another day we rented a van and went to Bucerias on the recommendation of friends. Very cute town, ate at Marks. The meal was great - pretty much like being in LA. We got some brownies and things from Pie-in-the-sky also. Not quite LA, but good.

But the best part was our trip afterward to Sayulitas. The same friends recommended it, and the place is a gem. Still relatively undiscovered, its a small town beach town, full of Americans (if a town that small can be full). The beach itself was really, truly great - shallow water that is good for the kids, nice waves, good atmosphere. We actually saw a guy ride his horse into the ocean and play for about 10 minutes. And the water at the south end of the beach had a gold particle in it that was just gorgeous against the brown sand. If you only have a few days to go to PV, go to Sayulitas and relax.

Back here in town, we saw something you've probably never seen - a man singing karaoke in a tile store. This was Benny Sr. of Talavera Mundo - he's the owner, and can do what he wants. Its a great store, but this was pretty strange. And it only happened the one time (I think we were in the store on five separate occassions).

Finally, the one thing we tried that you can safely skip is Playa de Mismaloya. Full of vendors, parking issues, and a hotel that doesn't want you there if you aren't a guess, take a pass. The beach isn't really worth the trouble - lot's of boats and general nonsense. Not nearly as nice as Los Muertos even, and not close to Sayulitas.