Zune Tips Weblog

The Zune Software will store files in a temporary folder when you sync video files and video podcasts (which requires transcoding). If you don’t routinely clean out this temp folder, it can really fill up with files. I checked mine recently, and it was over 6 GB in size! Here’s how you can check on your system:

First, in File Explorer right-click on the C: drive icon and select “Properties” from the popup context menu. You should see a dialog window similar to the image below:

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So what’s the first thing I try when I have a video file that won’t convert using Windows Media Encoder 9? I examine what video and audio codec was used to create that troublesome file. To do this, I use a program called GSpot which will give me the attributes of a video file. If you’re interested in knowing how to use GSpot, you can review my page called Determining Video Attributes which shows a few examples of different file formats and explains what you can do to get the necessary codecs for video conversion.

From reading the various Zune forum postings, it seems the hottest topic is DVD and video file conversions. Fortunately, there’s lots of freeware and commercial software available to do this, and it seems everyone has their favorite. What gets me, is those Zuners who are so adamant that their favorite software tool is the best and everything else is junk. I see statements from MediaCoder Zealots that say, “NO!!! Don’t use that junk, use MediaCoder. It can convert everything and produces the best videos!”. Or, “Don’t convert to the WMV format, it’s just crap! Use MP4 because it’s better and faster than WMV”. And these zealots seem to exist for all the various video converters and tools.

There’s also a number of Tagging zealots that preach, “dSHARPIE is the best tool for editing meta data, and everybody uses it!”. “Don’t use that junk, it’s too hard to use”.

Understandably, people have their favorite software for their own personal reasons. But to be so evangelical about it and tell everyone that all other tools are “crap” or inferior is so narrow minded and misleading, in my opinion.

From my postings here on my web blog, you can see that I favor Windows Media Encoder for my video conversion process. It’s not the most simplest tool to use, but it works for me the way I want to use it, and I haven’t had any issues with converting my DVDs and video files. So, do I think MediaCoder is crap? No. In fact, I think MediaCoder is a great video conversion tool (especially since it’s free). I also think Handbrake is a nice piece of software. The reason why I don’t use those tools is that I want to create WMV files for my Zune and those tools can’t give me the resultant file that I want. Read the rest of this entry »

The small quick-start guide that came with my Zune 80 explained that holding down the “Play” button will turn my Zune off. Well, that’s not entirely true. Holding the play button down will merely put your Zune in “sleep” mode, where you can wake it up by pressing any button (so long as the lock button isn’t activated). So, power is still being used to keep your Zune snoozing until you wake it up. What if you want to save your battery power (say, on a long flight)? Is there a way to really turn it off?

Why, yes there is a way by using a combination of buttons on your Zune. If you hold down the Back Button and Down button simultaneously, the Zune will really turn off. If you then hold down the Play button, the Zune will turn back on (note, it will take about 20 seconds for the Zune to completely power up). Below are a few useful combination buttons you can use:

• Back Button + Down Button = Turn Off
• Back Button + Up Button = Reset (or Reboot)

So if your device locks up for some reason, you can always try the reboot button sequence. Now, you need to be careful as the following button combinations can be a bit dangerous:

• Back Button + Center Button + Right Button = Delete all Content
• Back Button + Center Button + Left Button = Delete all Content and Delete Firmware

So, you really don’t want to accidentally hit those last two button combinations when you’re out of town and away from your Desktop PC!

As I described on my Video Conversions page, I prefer to use Microsoft Windows Media Encoder to convert my movies to WMV format for my Zune. There’s lots of other conversion software available on the Internet (free and commercial), so if you don’t want to use WME I’m sure you’ll find something that will meet your needs.

One free application you might want to take a look at is MediaCoder, which is a full featured video converter capable of converting to many different video formats. The current version as of today is 0.6.0 Build 3905, so it still seems to be a beta version. The interface for this program seemed a bit too complicated, although there was a way to set the display in “Simple” mode to hide all the advanced controls.
I tested it today by converting a VOB file from a DVD to WMV format, and it seemed to do the conversion rather quickly. The created WMV file also synced to my Zune without transcoding, so it passed that test. However, the WMV file was not indexed properly so I couldn’t rewind or fast forward through it on my Zune (or with Windows Media Player on my Desktop PC). So, that wasn’t a good thing.

Another free application called Handbrake is highly recommended by a lot of users for it’s robustness. It was originally developed for the Apple Mac, but a version for the Microsoft Windows platform now exists. It has similar features as MediaCoder, but it can only create MP4 files (which is what the iPod uses). So, of you have a 2nd generation Zune this program could work for you. What’s really nice about Handbrake is the clean user interface, and the ability to easily read DVDs directly for converting movies to MP4 format. I recently tested Handbrake in converting a DVD movie and it did seem to require transcoding during syncing of the generated MP4 file (Note, that I used the default conversion settings, so there may be a way to avoid the transcoding).

In any case, there’s lots of converters out their and everybody has their favorite. Mine is still the Windows Media Encoder!

So far, I’ve been busy with family activities since I got my Zune for Christmas and I really haven’t had time to fully test it. I’ve been busy with creating this Blog, learning how to convert videos, etc. However, I do have a business trip coming up soon (involving a long, connecting plane ride) which will allow me to test the extent of my Zune. I’ll know better how my Zune performs after using it on the plane and in the airport, at the hotel, etc. I’m hoping the Zune Premium ear buds will block out the airplane noise and be loud enough for me to ear the audio (my old Dell Axim Pocket PC always had trouble playing my audio podcasts loud enough for me to hear).

My wife bought me a Zune travel kit which has all the accessory goodies, so I’ll definitely bring that along (although the case it came with is rather large and may not fit in my carry-on travel bag very well). My biggest fears are that I’ll either lose or have my new Zune stolen which would be a big bummer. I’ll just have to make sure my Zune never leaves my sight! I’ll definitely be looking out for other Zuners, but I think we’re drastically out numbered by iPods. It will be interesting to see what pops up when I turn on my WiFi…

Before I got my Zune 80, I never noticed Zune or Zune accessories at the local stores that I visited. It wasn’t until after I got my Zune as a Christmas present, that I started noticing Zune merchandising (maybe Microsoft stepped up their marketing campaign and distribution to retail stores for the holidays?). Of course, you will most likely pay retail prices at local walk-in stores while online stores will give you a discount on price (and often no sales tax). Here’s my list of stores that you can check out for Zune accessories:

Local Retail Stores

• BestBuy and Circuit City - These stores are well discussed in various Zune forums for having Zunes and accessories.
• Target - A local department store that sells both Zunes (4/8/80 GB) and a few accessories such as basic covers, ear buds, and amplified docks.
• Fry’s Electronics - Big electronics and computer store that has the same merchandise as Target on display. I noticed they had the AV Kit v2 available, but not much more in accessories.

Note, that all of these stores have lots and lots of iPod accessories (e.g., chargers, docking stations, covers and cases) so it will just be a matter of time before the amount of Zune accessories catch up. Read the rest of this entry »

YouTube has thousands if not millions of videos on their site for viewing. Unfortunately, you can’t simply “right-click” and do a “Save As” to save a selected video to your Desktop PC. There are several different freeware/shareware “downloader” programs available, but one in particular that I stumbled across works quite well for use on the Zune.

The nifty (free) utility called 1-Click YouTube Batch Downloader allows you to save a displayed YouTube video to your Desktop PC in WMV format (which can be viewed on a Zune). The only bad thing, is that the WMV file will under go the “transcoding” process when you sync it to your Zune device. Since most YouTube videos are small in size, I personally don’t mind the time it takes to transcode. So, this is a handy way of saving YouTube videos on your Zune for viewing away from your Desktop PC.

One of the main reasons I purchased a Zune is for watching video files. I’m currently using it for watching video podcasts (which I subscribe to from the Zune Software), but I also want to watch movies and TV Shows that I have in video file format. All of my existing video files are in AVI format (because I use to watch them on my Pocket PC device), but that format isn’t viewable on the Zune. So, I did Google searches, visited different forums, and read tons of blog sites. In my search, I discovered that many, many other Zune users also are trying to convert their videos for Zune playback and are having issues with conversion speed, syncing speed, “transcoding”, quality, etc. If you visit forums at ZuneScene.com or ZuneBoards.com there are dedicated forum threads that specifically talk about video conversions.

If you do your own search, you’ll find dozens and dozens of different video converter programs. Most of them will convert various formats to mp4 format (which is what the iPod uses), but in most cases these converted video files will undergo the “transcoding” process when you try to sync them to your Zune. (Note, that transcoding is basically re-converting the video file to meet the required format specifications of the Zune player, and can take several hours to process one video file). If you convert your video file properly, there shouldn’t be any transcoding and they should sync in 1 to 2 minutes. Read the rest of this entry »

Ok, I’ve owned my new Zune for about 36 hours now, so it’s time for first impressions. Before getting my Zune 80 I researched lots of web sites and forums so I would be familiar with the Zune’s capabilities and features, how the button worked, etc. I also knew from specs the size and weight of the device. Although I visited several electronic stores in my area, none had any Zunes on display for me to test out. So, the first time I handled one was when I opened mine up as a Christmas present yesterday.

Size and Weight

First, I’d have to say it is heavier that I expected. I guess I’m use to devices with plastic cases that are lighter, with FlashROM storage. Since the Zune 80 has an aluminum casing, glass cover and 80 GB hard drive, I can understand that it is heavier than other similar FlashROM-based media players. It not so heavy that I’m unhappy with it, but rather I’m afraid that if I drop it it will impact the ground with substantial force (F=ma physics stuff).

Manufacturing Defects?

I was also worried that my Zune would have the manufacturing defects that have been mentioned in numerous forum postings (i.e., finger print and hair under the glass screen cover, noisy hard drive clicking, crooked/rotated center control pad, pushed in back/play buttons, etc.), so the first thing I did was a complete visual inspection. The only thing I found as a “defect” so far was the crooked (or rotated) center control pad. It was rotated about a half of a degree to the right, and was barely noticeable (I probably would not have noticed it if I didn’t read those postings). It’s not a big deal for me, as my Zune still functions well and it still looks fine. Of course, I could probably find similar nit-pick “defects” on any of the electronic devices that I currently own. But, I would have to say that Microsoft should correct this manufacturing issue for future devices. Also, the back button does sit a bit low (being almost flush with the top face of my Zune), but maybe it was designed that way? I’ll have to keep an eye on it over the next few months to make sure it doesn’t get permanently depressed from normal use. Read the rest of this entry »