Failures

I fail at being as good as I should be that is a fact I am quite aware of. My fathers fails to manage his business because he only started managing it 3 years after he started. My brother did badly for the 2nd year of uni hence failing, I love how I am no better than him at studying according to him, anyway joking aside I hope he figures out what to do and actually pulls himself together, I hope he tells my father when I am not home. Now they are both busy feeling sorry for themselves. What am I to do? How mundane. Well I will be doing my weekly updates again starting on the beginning next week.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 25

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 07/05/09 Rest day.

Mon 08/06/09 260 after 30 min on tread

Tue 09/06/09 390 after 30 min on rowing machine.

Wed 10/06/09 360 after 30 min on incline bike. Right leg hurts.

Thu 11/06/09 270 after 30 min on treadmill

Fri 12/06/09 395 after 30 min on rowing machine

Sat 13/06/09 365 after 30 min on incline bike.

Weekly summary : 2040 calories, 340 a workout. no calorie gain. Which means I am on target . Crunches 50×1 Crunches v2 30×1 Lying leg raise 1×15. Bench press 12×2@20kg (barbell+12), reverse curl 8×2@20kg (barbell+12), curl 10×2@20kg (barbell+12).

Week ending Stats : End of the month or before I go on holiday.

Pic of the week : Not in the mood. Want to put up something about e3 and natal and WWDC09 maybe then I will post some pics.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 24

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 31/05/09 265 after 30 min on tread

Mon 01/06/09 390 after 30 min on rowing machine.

Tue 02/06/09 360 after 30 min on incline bike. Right leg hurts.

Wed 03/06/09 Rest day. Legs don’t work.

Thu 04/06/09 260 after 30 min on treadmill

Fri 05/06/09 400 after 30 min on rowing machine

Sat 06/06/09 365 after 30 min on incline bike.

Weekly summary : 2040 calories, 340 a workout. 60 calorie gain. Need to stop exceeding my calorie target, no target for next month, aim to stay the same. Crunches 50×1 Crunches v2 30×1 Lying leg raise 1×10. Bench press 12×2@18kg (barbell+10), reverse curl 10×2@18kg (barbell+10), curl 11×2@18kg (barbell+10). Only two sets each because they are compound exercises complimenting each other, start at 8 reps and increase weight when I can do 15 reps for 2 sets, two to 3 times a week. Too much testosterone, need to calm down. Was apparently not eating enough (legs felt fine after a day of extra eating, could be coincidence though).

Week ending Stats : End of the month or before I go on holiday. My scale/body went crazy, need to make sure what’s up (lost weight too fast).

Pic of the week : Not in the mood. Want to put up something about e3 and natal, maybe then I will post some pics.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 22 & 23

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

DOF 22 so I only did 4 workouts (17th sunday to 23rd saturday), was fasting and sick for a bit, was on track to burn 1950 calories but whatever c’est la vie.

DOF 23

Sun 24/05/09 Rest day, not ok.

Mon 25/05/09 255 after 30 min on treadmill.

Tue 26/05/09 385 after 30 min on rowing machine.

Wed 27/05/09 350 after 30 min on incline bicycle.

Thu 28/05/09 260 after 30 min on treadmill.

Fri 29/05/09 380 after 30 min on rowing machine.

Sat 30/05/09 355 after 30 min on incline bicycle.

Weekly summary : 1980 calories, 330 a workout. On target in spite of the week gone wrong, just so tired. Doing my crunches and weights.

Week ending Stats : 102.5 kg, 41 inches.

Pic of the week :Metroid Prime trilogy, it is gonna rock. 50$ 3 games. MP3 by itself retails for 40$ so this is a steal for only 10$ more.

Diary of a fatman: DoF post 21

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 10/05/09 250 after 30 min on tread

Mon 11/05/09 Rest day, sore all over.

Tue 12/05/09 330 after 30 min on incline bike

Wed 13/05/09 370 after 30 min on rowing machine

Thu 14/05/09 255 after 30 min on treadmill

Fri 15/05/09 340 after 30 min on incline bike

Sat 16/05/09 375 after 30 min on rowing machine

Weekly summary : 1920 calories, 320 a workout. 65 calorie gain. OK week. Crunches to be done more often. Lost track of weight training. Need to stop exceeding my calorie target and keep better track of exercises.

Week ending Stats : End of the month.

Pic of the week : Koyaanisqatsi album cover, eerie and dark. Koyaanisqatsi translates into something like life in turmoil. Music by Philip Glass.

Diary of a fatman: DoF post 20

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 03/05/09 330 after 30 min on incline bike

Mon 04/05/09 235 after 30 min on tread

Tue 05/05/09 355 after 30 min on rowing machine

Wed 06/05/09 335 after 30 min on incline bike

Thu 07/05/09 235 after 30 min on treadmill

Fri 08/05/09 355 after 30 min on rowing machine

Sat 09/05/09 Rest day, sore all over.

Weekly summary : 1855 calories, more or less 309 a workout. I am okay with that. 30 cals up a week is enough so 50 is good. Only did weights 2 or 3 times. No extra exercises yet. I’m on holiday, have to find something to keep myself busy (so I can avoid my father ). I need to choose better times to exercise I leave it a bit too late sometimes (and I am already quite tired by then) hence I feel awful the next day and delay that workout and so on and so forth, and when I try to break the cycle I just tire myself because I left it too late. I think the rowing machine is whats doing it for my back, just will stretch better for that I guess.

Week ending Stats : Reporting at the end of the month . Filled in insurance policy, I have lost just about 4kgs and 2″ in a years time, that sucks, my bad I guess since I keep stopping exercise, I have now been exercising continuously since February (inclusive), 3 months (may being the 4th), which is the longest I have kept at it in recent memory.

Pic of the week Offspring Greatest Hits, bought this 2 or so years ago just bothered to import the songs, I have too much soft 80s 70s 60s music so this balances things out better, songs I like in particular “(Can’t Get My) Head Around You”, “Hit That”, “Want You Bad”, “The Kids Aren’t Alright” and my old time fave “All I Want” (”Why Don’t You Get A Job?” is good too), still need to decide on some others.

Diary of a fatman: DoF post 19

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 26/04/09 320 after 30 min on incline bike

Mon 27/04/09 230 after 30 min on tread

Tue 28/04/09 Break, back is killing me, no idea why.

Wed 29/04/09 355 after 30 min on rowing machine

Thu 30/04/09 320 after 30 min on incline bike

Fri 01/04/09 235 after 30 min on treadmill

Sat 02/04/09 345 after 30 min on rowing machine

Weekly summary : 1805 calories, more or less 300 a workout. YAY. I started enjoying the exercise again, my back and legs hurt though, maybe its the pushups I tried to do or not warming up too well. Bit better now anyway. Did weights 3 or 4 times this week and increasing the weight so I am happy with that. Target for this week or the next is to do alternating weights exercises (unlike now where I am just training my arms). But for this week I just want to keep a steady pace and not injure my self. Problem is a need to find a way to do the exercise, strength training, 30 min cardio and stretching within an hour, any longer and finding time becomes alot more awkward. Also not likely to ever do the strength training more than 3 or 4 times a week. Need to figure out a program (I designed a “perfect” program 3 years ago which I never used , but I need cardio 6 times a week, that one only planned for 3).

Week ending Stats : 41″ and 103/103.5 kg. I’m happy there is finally an improvement. And umi is back, YAY.

Diary of a fatman: DoF post 18

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 19/04/09 Late back from work, father kept me occupied, fell asleep (planned to nap then exercise). Sucks. Also walking around Berlin the day before sort of took its toll.

Mon 20/04/09 315 after 30 min on incline bike & 225 after 30 min on treadmill.

Tue 21/04/09 345 after 30 min on rowing machine

Wed 22/04/09 320 after 30 min on incline bike.

Thu 23/04/09 Rest. Tired. Don’t remember anything in particular.

Fri 24/04/09 225 after 30 min on treadmill.

Sat 25/04/09 350 after 30 min on rowing machine

Weekly summary : 1780 calories, 296 a workout. Tired this week and people kept interrupting my workouts (means usually no weights and some injuries from not stretching). Well mostly my fault for exercising at awkward times (sometimes). I also overdid some of the workouts this week, don’t know If I can keep the pace for next week, sort of exceeded my goal, it is just that darn treadmill, my workouts are more intense but it just doesn’t seem to care . So next week my target is 1800 calories, and to burn 230 calories or more on the treadmill, and if I manage to maintain my latest efforts on the bike and rowing machine I will be exactly on target, but more important than the calorie target are the stretches and strength exercises, calorie target secondary for next month.

Week ending Stats : Planned for next week, there seems to be some improvement (considering my blisters and soreness I have to admit I am glad).

Diary of a fatman: DoF post 17

DOF = Diary of a fatman. All calorie readouts as per machine display unless otherwise stated.

Sun 12/04/09 295 after 30 min on incline bike.

Mon 13/04/09 225 after 30 min on treadmill

Tue 14/04/09 330 after 30 min on rowing machine

Wed 15/04/09 300 after 30 min on incline bike.

Thu 16/04/09 225 after 30 min on treadmill

Fri 17/04/09 335 after 30 min on rowing machine

Sat 18/04/09 Rest day.

Weekly summary : 1710 calories, 285 per workout. Intensity has gone up across the board this week but I think I can do better (especially on the treadmill). Just need to rest properly and choose better times to workout. I guess 1740 or so will next weeks target.

Week ending Stats : Maybe some other time. Same as last week I think. Waiting for the end of the month ( two weeks from now actually so it will be the beginning of next month).

Elgato turbo 264 to PSP & PS3 guide

This guide is specifically meant to address the shortcomings of the original turbo 264 encoding for psp, if you have the Turbo 264 HD you likely don’t need this guide. If you want to skip all this intro and get to doing move down to the numbered sections. (UPDATE added info on 1.4 update post-processing not neccesary)

Aim:

High quality video quality compatible with PSP, iPods & PS3 (probably 360 also but I have not checked). Go to the conclusion for info on some limitations and technical info.

What you need:

-Elgato turbo 264 (hardware)

-Turbo 264 (software, I’m using v1.3 UPDATE v1.4 lets you skip the postprocessing)

-Quicktime PRO or MPEG Streamclip for post-processing (you will use these programs to re-save files to make them properly compatible with the PSP)

-Video to encode (offcoarse)

-A compatible Mac (for the turbo 264 obviously since it is a mac only product, so G4,G5 or intel CPU, 512mb ram, usb 2.0 port, OS X 10.5/.4, iTunes and Quicktime)

-PSP with software v3.3 or later (for video resolution support)

Also recommended but not part of the guide

-Perian (set of plugins for quicktime which will help the turbo 264 with some video formats)

-WMVplayer PRO @ 30ish $ (plugins for quicktime which will help the turbo 264 with unprotected wmv video formats)

-VLC (plays most video files, a good workaround for some video files that might not work otherwise, re-encode with VLC then encode in turbo 264, video is a pain to work with I tell ya)
Profiles:

This is a list of profiles we will be making. The turbo 264 works with profiles, we are going to create our own 3 (or 5) custom profiles to get what we want out of our device, I will list them with notes before we go through how to make them, also a note on audio I only use 80kbps in all profiles but you can go up to 128kbps if you want:

PSP LQ: Low Quality Elgatos psp default slightly modified, 400 kbps video, no post-processing required, don’t bother increasing the bit rate, 400 mostly works best for this size. aprox 200mb/hour. A lot of image softening and blockiness (actually more like muddiness).

PSP MQ: Mid Quality iPod profile modified to work with PSP, 500/600 kbps video, needs post-processing on v1.3 or older, if you want higher quality don’t bother increasing the bit rate past 600, move to the HQ profile. aprox 250 to 300mb/hour. Some softening with a little blockiness.

PSP MQ 4:3 you will need a separate profile for non widescreen content/output (unless you don’t mind stretching your video).

PSP HQ: Hi Quality AppleTV profile modified to work with psp, average 800kbps video, needs post-processing on v1.3 or older, very good quality file, will vary bit rate to to maintain quality. aprox 420mb/hour. A little softening and will not cause any blockiness (really it won’t, bit rate varies accordingly).

PSP HQ 4:3 you will need a separate profile for non widescreen content/output (unless you don’t mind stretching your video)
Note: these are MY optimum settings which I have tested and work for me, if you don’t like them feel free to try your own.



01 Lets get cracking:

Okay first step is obviously for you to know that the turbo 264 is already properly set up and working on your computer (quite easy and beyond the scope of this write up).

Okay so start the turbo 264 app and drop a video in, you should then click on the format menu, and go to the bottom option “edit”. When the new window pops up you can use the plus symbol to create a new profile. You can just follow the diagram below (if the diagram is not clear please download and zoom in).




I will list the settings in case for some reason you can’t read the diagram.

PSP LQ: Profile=Sony PSP, Size=auto, Aspect=auto, Overscan=auto, Framerate=auto, Data rate=custom –> 400.

PSP MQ wide : Profile=iPod High, Size=custom –> 480×272, Aspect=auto, Overscan=auto, Framerate=auto, Data rate=custom –> 500.

PSP MQ 4by3 : Profile=iPod High, Size=custom –> 362×272, Aspect=auto, Overscan=auto, Framerate=auto, Data rate=custom –> 500.

PSP HQ wide : Profile=Apple TV, Size=custom –> 480×272, Aspect=auto, Overscan=auto, Framerate=auto, Data rate= set slider to Low.

PSP HQ 4by3 : Profile=Apple TV, Size=custom –> 362×272, Aspect=auto, Overscan=auto, Framerate=auto, Data rate= set slider to Low.



02 Post processing: UPDATE only required on Turbo 264 software v1.3 or older, v1.4 output no longer needs it.

The file you have created with MQ and HQ settings are still not ready to be viewed by your psp or ps3. You will need either QuickTime pro or MPEG streamclip. I will list both methods I know of, you can batch process a group of file with MPEG streamclip but that won’t be covered (for now). I won’t provide any pictures since it is quite straight forward.

QT pro: Open the file in quicktime From the menu bar (the top bar thingy) Go to “File”, select “Export”. A dialogue will pop up, next to “Export” choose “Movie to MPEG-4″, click on “Options”. Another pop up window, at the top next to “File Format” select “MP4″, go to the “Video” tab and next to “Video Format” choose “Pass through”, then go to the “Audio” tab and next to “Audio Format” choose “Pass through”. Click Ok. Now decide where you want to save your file and rename it if you want, click save. TADA. Next time you can just use most recent settings under export if you haven’t changed anything.
MPEG Streamclip: Open the file in MPEG Streamclip From the menu bar Go to “File” then select “Save as”, A dialogue will pop up, choose a name and a place for your file, choose “MP4″ from the optional formats (bottom middle of the dialogue box, above and between “New folder” & “Cancel” ) , click save. TADA, yes that was a bit less painless.



Congratulations, your files are now ready for consumption by PSP, iPod and Ps3. There are no chapters, alternate audio tracks, selectable closed captions or any of that jazz, but you can’t have those things working across all platforms.



03 Other settings and some notes:

You can set overscan as you please, the video files won’t always come out at the exact specified dimensions but they still work. All widescreen content can be encoded at 480×272, the encoded file will play fine and will have its original aspect ratio. Audio quality can be turned up if you like, I have not tried the AC3 surround sound passthrough, if anyone does and it works let me know. The test clip I used recently was the opening and first episode from Fullmetal Alchemist the Brotherhood (lightning flames and lots of quick transitions), please watch your video on your tv to asses the quality, the PS3 does some good processing, or its the higher contrast and color gamut of the tv making things look better. I would have to recommend the HQ setting unless space is a concern. In some cases the softness of an LQ video might be better than the blockiness of an MQ video, you have to judge for yourself. Please calibrate your tv, it makes video look much better. The better your source the better your output.



Closing

So the turbo 264 is a wonderful piece of hardware that speeds up making videos for various devices, it has presets for iPod, Psp, iPhone & Apple Tv. I really like the 264, it has been really handy, I always use the PSP preset because it is the most versatile, I can use the video files on iPods the Ps3 and naturally on the Psp (offcoarse). But using the Psp preset you are limited to 320×240 or 320×180 in video size and 512kbps, which is okay, but only on the psps screen, and still you can do better. So I have finally figured it out, so, now I have shown you how to create three presets that should give you the optimum size vs quality depending on your needs. Video resolution will be brought up from 320×240 & 320×180 to 480×272 and 362×272, the PSP does support higher resolutions but this is a fairly optimum setting, and it might not seem like much but 480×272=130560 vs 320×180=57600 , so thats more than twice as many pixels for widescreen content for 4:3 content it is a bit less of an improvement @ 320×240=76800 to 362×272=98464, but I couldn’t find a good alternative (if you know one that works feel free to let me know, the psp is quite picky about video resolution though). If you want video only for your PS3 it should accept anything the turbo 264 can spit out (800×600 5mbps under appletv with AAC audio), just do the post-processing if running software v1.3 or older, I have only tested it up to 640 by 480 on the PS3 (the file did not work on the PSP FYI).