Inventor Open Sources "TV-B-Gone," and Why 340
ptorrone writes "Inventor Mitch Altman explains why he open-sourced his TV-B-Gone kit, the original stealth keychain fob for defeating TVs in public places. The title of the article is 'Patent-B-Gone' and perhaps the most interesting fact is that Mitch's brother is a patent attorney, but he still decided to release an open source hardware version of the TV-B-Gone, with pretty impressive results."
Brilliant! (Score:5, Interesting)
Now here's the brilliant part. On one hand, this guy can market his TV-b-Gone, and on the other hand, he can market to big box stores a special security device. A discrete little box that you stick on the IR sensor and block malicious signals. The box contains a couple of IR LEDs, and a descrambler chip. The chip decodes signals from the special remote control (which he also will sell) so that the stores still have control over their TVs.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:3, Interesting)
I once went to a very small bar in America that had ten TVs! Not only that, but one entire side of the bar (it was one of those long thin ones) was a mirror! Twenty TVs in a room that could fit maybe 40 people...
Pretty insane; I can see why people would want this.
Re:Brilliant! (Score:5, Interesting)
sorry but that little black box will not work.
my 1W IR led version will turn off a set with black tape over the IR receiver sensor. the plastic around the sensor area carries the ir signal in to the sensor for me. SO unless you encase the entire set in a black box it will not work.
and yes, it's good to be annoying when it comes to frivolities like TV. I wish more people were annoying in regards to frivolities.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't even know how many places this will work? Are there alot of places that do not have Professional grade TV's installed in their places??
I just recently left a commercial installer and all the professional TV's we were installing had no IR/RF it was all RS232 control. If they did the IR was on the back, and we would cover up the sensor with a backup IR control eye with a patch so nothing else could controll it.
Most places I've gone to have done it right and installed TV's that you can't mess with.
There are a few bars that have normal TV's. But if you're in a bar why would you be shutting of someone else's TV's in the first place?? what gives you the right?
I just don't get why you don't just move/leave/go to another establishment...
Re:purpose? (Score:5, Interesting)
"go to any bar and I will almost guarantee that the sound is way too loud and NO ONE is watching/listening."
I'm not a big bar patron but I do go to watch the occasional sporting event. I can guarantee you that the vast majority of the bar is watching and listening during that time.
"I like TV, but not all the time. Don't *I* have a right to some f*cking peace and quiet?"
In someone else's bar or airport? No, you don't.
Re:Not the TV's so much as the music being too lou (Score:4, Interesting)
"But goddamn it, when I'm in a bar chatting with friends, everywhere around is also buzzing with laughs and good times, why does the barman decide to pump his crappy music up to 110 decibels?"
Because you're in the wrong bar. Bars do exist that provide a good atmosphere for conversation. I always make it a point to seek those bars out. In the US, most places that claim to be an English pub have reasonable volume levels but that's far from universal. I also look for bars that focus on drinks like wine or cocktails. I'm a beer drinker myself but the atmosphere is usually better in those places and they do usually have some sort of decent beer handy.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:5, Interesting)
Personally I find it to be the other way around- I don't like the slack-jawed, dazed fool I become when there's a TV in the room anywhere I can see it, which is why I try to avoid patronizing businesses that have them. Only hearing it is (usually) no worse than listening to any other inane conversation.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:3, Interesting)
This is something I have NEVER been able to understand. I have always been able to filter out or ignore just about anything I feel like. I can pick out an individual conversation from several feet away in a crowded bar, TVs or radios don't bother me, I just tune them out.
I just don't quite get how seemingly everyone else CAN'T do this.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:4, Interesting)
> It's called freedom of choice and expression. Two of the things the American settlers left the old world for.
I was under the impression those settlers left the Netherlands because the Dutchies were too liberal?
No patent? Could he be out sold? (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm curious how avoiding patents, and open sourcing his product would protect this guy from a big company, that say... has a good partnership with Best Buy, making a copy of this product and due to it's bigger marketing power and retailer deal, taking all the potential profits away from the guy? Would his open source license protect against this? I'm not being rhetorical- I really don't know.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:3, Interesting)
As a cigar smoker (the worst type, I know) I have two words to say to you:
Ha ha!
Oh - and I do hope you're happy with having pushed the smokers outside so that you can no longer enjoy it. Okay okay... Really... I'm one of the *good* smokers who doesn't typically smoke around anyone other than other smokers, leaves the room to smoke, has a single smoking area in the house, and long before there were laws chose to not smoke cigarettes or cigars in front of children. However...
1) Outlaw smoking in bars.
2) Smokers stay home and drink.
3) Bar patrons more often had a sober driver or took a taxi (at least in my area).
4) Smokers now need to go get more alcohol.
5) Drunk smokers are now not under the social stigma of driving drunk and people knowing it.
6) Smoker drives to store instead of staying put to order more alcohol.
7) *** Not seeing any profit here ***
8) Smoking drunk drives.
Brilliant fucking move nanny state lovers. You might argue that they'd have driven anyhow but I can tell you, first hand, that MANY people had reached the point where they were comfortable leaving their vehicles at the bar or getting a sober driver ahead of time. I can tell you, first hand, that I know people that now don't bother going to the bar and instead go to the store themselves and are now much more prone to driving drunk.
Me? I'm fortunate. I have a wife that doesn't drink. I can sit here working from home and chug beer all day long and, if I run out, I have a ride to the store. (In Maine, where I am, there is almost no such thing as walking to the store. You'd either freeze, bake, get lost, or get really friggen tired.)
TL;DR: Entirely silly drivel of no importance, you can move on now.
Re:A Necessary Addition (Score:3, Interesting)
LOL My PCs I can replace easily and I'm VERY anal about my backups so I won't lose a shard of data even if they were to all explode right now. Hell, actually, I'd lose my browser's history (and that's it) if the entire place burned to the ground. Not to mention - I still would have my cell which *will do* until they are replaced.
Coffee or beer I'd have to actually DO something to replace it and those need immediate replacement. The dog? Oh don't touch the dog or it is on. (Actually he'd love it if you would just pet him and maybe give him a treat or two.) But, man, he was a bitch to live with as a puppy so he's too much work too.
Err... I should elaborate on the last bit. I don't TRAIN my dogs. (I only have one at a time though so it is just one at the moment.) Instead I invite them to be my companion and I ask that they behave. It is sort of like I don't TRAIN my children, I raise them and try to teach them while giving them the freedom to be individuals. My kids are grand and my dog always comes, sits, listens, fetches, stays, hunts, etc though he does those things because he wants to. He's a Golden Retriever who's nickname is Stupid and I'll toss a ball for him until he stops bringing it back. He got so used to me pointing to my right leg saying, "Want to go for a walk?" Now he won't walk behind the left one no matter who tries to convince him.
Hmm... Wait... No? I guess that would be some form of training now that I think about it but hopefully you get the point of my digression. I guess the point is that he was a pain in the ass as a puppy and too much work to replace. I guess I should have included my children on the list. Anyhow, I just basically have let him roam free and make up his own damned mind as to what type of dog he was going to be, it works well.
You can have the wife (or the ex) as those CAN be replaced. Kids, dog, coffee, and beer -- NOT touchable. Those are grounds for war.
Re:TV addiction is biological (Score:4, Interesting)
TV is actually an adition like alcohol. Try taking away the bottle from an alcoholic watch his reaction. irst he becomes combative "who the hell, give my that back". Hell do anything to get more. Same happens with TV. Try turning it off and the TV watchers first reaxtive is to be combative, then they try to turn the TV back on. TV adicts will pay anything, even $100+ a month just to watch
What the fuck is wrong with you? Is this a troll? Or is your sarcasm implementation device just broken?
If you take *anything* away from me I'll get pissed at you for TAKING MY SHIT. I pay for TV because I value the programming I get at slightly more than the amount I spend on it. Same for anything else.