I had tried using Waze earlier this year, and while free turn by turn directions were really nice, my issue was with the voice guides navigation. Gladly, with the latest update the voice navigation in Waze has become much more robust! Previously the only voice input from the app was highly generic like, “turn left”, “bear right”. Now however the app tells you specifically the name of the road you are to turn onto, which greatly improves usability and obviate the need to look at the screen.
The other thing I like about Waze is the social aspect of the app. You can easily and quickly add an alert if you happen upon an accident or construction or some other delay. If enough people use this it could be very useful. Since the app is completely free, why not download it and give it a try?

#!/bin/bash

#/usr/local/bin/handleMedia.sh
#
# Jay Holler 09-24-2011
# Find files in the Downloads directory and move them to
# the appropriate folder on the NFS share or put them in the Dropbox directory for syncing to iTunes.

# Set up some reusable variables
notify=$(/usr/local/bin/prowl.pl -apikey=”/dev/null” -application=”`basename $0`” -event=”Done” -notification=”`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`”)
umask 0022

#Function for matching TV shows, assumes SxxExx format and “.” separators
function MOVE_TV_SHOWS() {

storageDir=/home/jholler/TV
cd /home/jholler/Downloads

for myFile in *.$ext; do

shopt -s nocasematch
if [[ "$myFile" =~ ([A-Za-z0-9\.]*)\.(S..E..).*.$ext ]] ; then
File=${BASH_REMATCH[2]}.$ext
PreShowName=${BASH_REMATCH[1]}
ShowName=$(echo $PreShowName | sed ‘s/\./ /g’)
echo “[*] A new episode of $ShowName is ready for your enjoyment: $File” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt && sleep 2
[ -d "$storageDir/$ShowName" ] || mkdir -v “$storageDir/$ShowName”
mv -v $myFile “$storageDir/$ShowName/$ShowName.$File”
$notify
else
echo “[+] $myFile does not appear to be a TV show, pushing it to /home/jholler/Movies on lunchbox” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
mv -v “$myFile” “/home/jholler/Movies/$myFile”
$notify
fi
done

}

#Function for matching mp3s, typically stored in a folder for the album.
function MOVE_MP3() {

storageDir=/home/jholler/Music/new
cd /home/jholler/Downloads

myFile=$(ls */*.mp3 | head -1)

shopt -s nocasematch
if [[ "$myFile" =~ ([A-Za-z0-9].*)\/([A-Za-z0-9].*).mp3 ]] ; then
AlbumName=${BASH_REMATCH[1]}
[ -d "$storageDir/$AlbumName" ] || mkdir -v “$storageDir/$AlbumName”
mv -v “$AlbumName” “$storageDir/”
echo “[*] The album $AlbumName is now ready for your enjoyment” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt && sleep 2
$notify
else
echo “[+] $myFile does not appear to consist of mp3 files, please investigate” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
$notify
fi

shopt -u nocasematch

}

###############################################
## Start the avi matching portion of the script
## If for some reason the file is located in a folder or several folders deep, find it and put it in the Downloads directory for further manipulation.
###############################################
cd /home/jholler/Downloads
ls *.avi 2> /dev/null | wc -l && ext=avi; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls */*.avi 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv */*.avi /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=avi; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls Movies/*/*.avi 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv Movies/*/*.avi /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=avi; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls TV/*.avi 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv TV/*.avi /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=avi; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls TV/*/*.avi 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv TV/*/*.avi /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=avi; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
#########################################
## End avi matching portion of the script
#########################################
###############################################
## Start the mkv matching portion of the script
## If for some reason the file is located in a folder or several folders deep, find it and put it in the Downloads directory for further manipulation.
###############################################
ls *.mkv i 2> /dev/null | wc -l && ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls */*.mkv 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv */*.mkv /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls */*/*.mkv 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv */*/*.mkv /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls Movies/*/*.mkv 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv Movies/*/*.mkv /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls TV/*.mkv 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv TV/*.mkv /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
ls TV/*/*.mkv 2> /dev/null | wc -l && mv TV/*/*.mkv /home/jholler/Downloads; ext=mkv; MOVE_TV_SHOWS
#########################################
## End mkv matching portion of the script
#########################################
###########################################
## Begin mp3 matching portion of the script
###########################################
MOVE_MP3
#########################################
## End mp3 matching portion of the script
#########################################
exit 0

I had to share the local Linux directory that stores all of our media, and set that up through VirtualBox, but that was relatively painless, requiring only that I get the VirtualBoxGuestAdditions.iso and use that on the Windows XP Guest OS so that it would recognize the shared folders and I could mount them permanently.

Once it was all good to go, I just added the /storage directory (which I mounted under Windows as Z:/ using the command “net use z: \\vboxsvr\storage”) to the shared directories in the Air Video Server app.

Here’s a screenshot of what this all looked like on the Windows XP Guest OS:

Air Video running in a Windows XP Guest OS

Now it was time to fire up the iPhone application and test all this juicy new streaming goodness!

I had been messing with this most of the night so the app had already detected the Windows instance of Air Video Server using Bonjour, which is why I had to install it on the Windows XP Guest OS:

AirVideo app Servers

Once you tap on the servername, the next screen shows you available shares:

AirVideo app available shares

Tapping on the Z:/ drive I made available shows me the directories and files located there, including a count of folders and files next to the folder names:

AirVideo app directories list

Drilling down into the TV directory shows me the same thing, folders and the number of files/folders in each directory:

AirVideo showing the TV directory

Here I have selected the Bored to Death directory, and you can see that the app grabs screenshots as well as displaying some pertinent file information for each file found, very nice:

AirVideo app Bored to Death

After selecting a particular file, I am presented with a few different options. Since this file is an xvid encoded avi, the app won’t be able to play the file natively. Air Video Server will take care of transcoding the file on the fly so that the iPhone app can play it:

AirVideo app avi file options

Now comes the good stuff, after selecting “Play with Live Conversion”, I am presented with the option to play from the previously played position, the beginning, or seek to a new position, very slick indeed:

AirVideo app Live Conversion options

After making my choice: “The Beginning”, the app begins the process of buffering the video to the iPhone app:

AirVideo app Preparing Video

Now, I suspect that because I’m running Air Video Server inside Windows XP running as a guest OS inside VirtualBox on a Linux host on a older desktop machine, the app complains that it doesn’t have the power to actually play the file, but all is not lost:

AirVideo app lies to me

I just tell the app to continue anyway, and I was able to play the entire show without interruption:

AirVideo app buffering video

And boom, about 5-10 seconds later, my TV show begins playing in perfect stutter-free fashion:

AirVideo app playing Bored to Death S01E01.avi

Tapping on the screen while the video is streaming brings up controls, in this case a little different than playing an x264 encoded file because the Air Video Server app is transcoding on the fly:

AirVideo app streaming converted file controls

If I wanted to seek to a different position, the app handles that too, which is pretty nice to have, although honestly I usually just watch a show straight through:

AirVideo app live conversion seek menu

All in all this app kicks total ass! I can now stream to any and all of the three iPhones in our house running from a single instance on a Windows XP Guest OS on my Linux box! The app works so well and I couldn’t be more pleased to be able to have this ability, which means I can now watch stuff while lying in bed without using a laptop, which is very nice indeed.

#!/bin/bash

#/usr/local/bin/handleMedia.sh
#
# Jay Holler 09-10-2009
# Find files in the Downloads directory and move them to
# the appropriate folder on the NFS share or put them in the Dropbox directory for syncing to iTunes.

## Move to the Downloads directory that SABnzbd uses

cd /home/jayholler/Downloads

###############################################
## Start the avi matching portion of the script
###############################################

if [ -e *.avi ] || [ */*.avi ] || [ -e Movies/*.avi ] || [ -e Movies/*/*.avi ]; then

storageDir=/storage/TV

mv */*.avi /home/jayholler/Downloads
mv Movies/*.avi /home/jayholler/Downloads
mv Movies/*/*.avi /home/jayholler/Downloads
mv TV/*/*.avi /home/jayholler/Downloads
mv TV/*.avi /home/jayholler/Downloads

for i in *.avi
do
myFile=”$i”

shopt -s nocasematch
if [[ "$myFile" =~ ([A-Za-z0-9\.]*)\.(S..E..).*.avi ]] ; then
File=${BASH_REMATCH[2]}.avi
PreShowName=${BASH_REMATCH[1]}
ShowName=$(echo $PreShowName | sed ‘s/\./ /g’)
echo “[*] A new episode of $ShowName is ready for your enjoyment: $File” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt && sleep 2
[ -d "$storageDir/$ShowName" ] || mkdir -v “$storageDir/$ShowName”
mv -v $myFile “$storageDir/$ShowName/$File”
ln -s “$storageDir/$ShowName/$File” “/storage/Unwatched/$myFile”
wget http://localhost:XXXXX/web/ushare.cgi?action=refresh -o /dev/null -P /dev/null
mumbles-send -g qu0x “`basename $0`” “`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`”
/usr/local/bin/prowl.pl -application=”`basename $0`” -event=”New Show!” -notification=”`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`” -priority=1 -apikey=NOTTODAY
/usr/local/bin/email.sh
else
echo “[+] $myFile does not match our TV shows, pushing it to /storage/Movies on lunchbox” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
mv -v “$myFile” “/storage/Movies/$myFile”
/usr/local/bin/prowl.pl -application=”`basename $0`” -event=”New Movie!” -notification=”`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`” -priority=1 -apikey=NOTTODAY
/usr/local/bin/email.sh
fi
shopt -u nocasematch
done

fi

#########################################
## End avi matching portion of the script
#########################################

###########################################
## Begin mp3 matching portion of the script
###########################################

if [ -e *.mp3 ] || [ -e Music/*.mp3 ] || [ -e Music/*/*.mp3 ] ; then
mv */*.mp3 /home/jayholler/Dropbox
mv Music/*.mp3 /home/jayholler/Dropbox
mv Music/*/*.mp3 /home/jayholler/Dropbox
echo “Moved a new album of mp3s to your Dropbox folder!” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
mumbles-send -g qu0x “`basename $0`” “`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`”
/usr/local/bin/prowl.pl -application=”`basename $0`” -event=”New mp3s!” -notification=”`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`” -priority=1 -apikey=NOTTODAY
f7f099
fi

#########################################
## End mp3 matching portion of the script
#########################################

###########################################
## Start mkv matching portion of the script
###########################################
if [ -e *.mkv ] ; then
### Transcode 720p H264 mkv files for the Apple TV

if [ -z "$1" ]; then
echo “Usage: `basename $0` filename”
exit 0
fi

# Wait while any other ffmpeg processes are running
while [ -n "$(ps -ef | egrep "ffmpeg|HandBrakeCLI" | grep -v grep)" ];
do
echo -e “\n[$(date +%b\ %d\ %Y:\ %H:%M:%S)]\nFound another instance of HandBrake or ffmpeg running, pausing 5 minutes…”
sleep 300
done

# Get the beginning time from the date cmd.
START=$(date +%D\ %T)

# Email us that the next process has begun
echo -e “About to start transcoding $1 at $START” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
/usr/local/bin/email.sh

#HandBrakeCLI cmd
HandBrakeCLI -Z “QuickTime” -i “$1″ -o “$1.m4v”

# Get the ending time of the transcode process from the date cmd.
END=$(date +%D\ %T)

# Inform us with an email that transcoding is completed
echo “Transcoding of $1 was started on $START and completed on $END.” > /tmp/emailmessage.txt
/usr/local/bin/prowl.pl -application=”`basename $0`” -event=”Transcoding Complete” -notification=”`cat /tmp/emailmessage.txt`” -priority=1 -apikey=NOTTODAY

# Move the original mkv file to the backup at /mkvs
mv -v “$1″ /mkvs

# Chop off the .mkv from the file name
transcodedFile=`echo “$1.m4v” | sed -e ‘s/\.mkv//’`
mv “$1.m4v” “$transcodedFile”

# Determine the appropriate place to move the file and do so
/usr/local/bin/moveMp4s.sh “$transcodedFile”
fi

#########################################
## End mkv matching portion of the script
#########################################

exit 0

List of currently configured graphs for my cacti instance

LocalHost Load Average in landscape

You can also change the length of time that the graph displays, or refresh the graph you are currently viewing. The thing I like the most about this is that it uses existing technologies rather than making you have to run another open port in order to feed the app. It even supports SSL connections to your webserver of choice.

The app runs smoothly and provides the data I need in a beautiful little app. Well worth the $1.99!

Check it out: iCacti iTunes Link

I am giving up on jailbreaking my iPhone. It takes too much effort, the phone becomes too buggy, and I ultimately don’t need to do anything that jailbreaking provides for me. Yes, it is really awesome to have an app on my phone that automatically scrobbles all music or podcasts that I listen to in the iPod app up to my last.fm account, but totally not necessary. Yes, it is totally badass to be able to discriminately choose which apps will run in the background, but also not entirely necessary. The last straw was when I decided to remove WinterBoard, which is an application that lets you change interface elements such as icons, background images on the home screen and much more. I had decided to remove it because I wanted to speed my phone back up, it does take some resources to run, and I wanted those resources back. Well, after uninstalling WinterBoard I had to reboot my device because the application puts some really deep hooks into the system. It never turned back on. It would try, the Apple logo would appear and the phone stayed in that state for a minute or two, but then it just went dark. Subsequent attempts to start the phone just ended in frustration. I ultimately had to do a full restore to factory settings in order to recover my device. I will be sad to lose the additional functionality, most especially StatusNotifier, which places small icons that look like they were designed by Apple themselves in your taskbar for missed calls, emails, text messages, and IMs. I can’t have my phone running unstable software though, as it’s a pretty important communication device to me, especially since my wife and I don’t use a landline at all in our apartment. This also isn’t the first time that I have run into issues with a jailbroken iPhone. A few months ago I had filmed a short video clip, attempted to upload that video to youtube, and then my phone went into total brick mode. In this instance I was left having to do a full restore, just as was the case today.
Android is starting to look better and better, although I know that platform isn’t without it’s flaws as well, but at least they have a kickass notification system built in without having to hack anything.