The Mozilla Firefox web browser has a really annoying safety feature where the version control system for Add-Ons (aka Extensions) won’t allow them to be installed on a higher version of Firefox than they’ve been tested on and approved for.

In theory this is a very good idea. The thought is that when new versions of Firefox come out, older versions of Add-Ons may not be compatible with the changes in the browser, and may then cause errors or system instability.

In reality most of the changes to the browser itself in dot releases (eg. from 3.0 to 3.1) are relatively benign and they rarely change anything related to most Add-Ons. This is not an issue if you only use add-ons created by proactive developers because they are generally quick to release compatible versions shortly after the browser update is released. But not all the time!

I have discovered two ways that you can get around this problem, and in my experience doing this over the past two years, I have never yet had an add-on that is marked as incompatible that didn’t work with the latest official and beta Firefox releases.

Here’s how you can do it yourself:

1. Install the Add-on Compatibility Reporter: “After installing this Add-On your incompatible extensions will become enabled for you to test whether they still work with the version of Firefox or Thunderbird that you’re using”. You can also report back to Mozilla whether there are any problems or not. This is a quick and easy way to make officially incompatible extensions work with your version of Firefox. I have only just started using this tool, so I don’t yet have any good data on how well it works.
2. Hack your Add-Ons: The Add-Ons available from the Mozilla Add-On Repository are simply container files (similar to .zip or .msi files) that contain a bunch of other files. You can use 7zip to open those containers, and then use a text editor to edit the “install.rdf” file contained within to change the version control information. Here’s a step by step tutorial:
   • Find your desired add-on from https://addons.mozilla.org/
   • Right click on the “Add to Firefox” link and save the file to your desktop
   • Install 7zip
   • Right click on the .xpi file you downloaded to your desktop, choose “7zip”, then choose “Open Archive”
   • Right click on the file “install.rdf” in the 7zip window, choose “Edit”
   • In your text editor search for some code that looks like “3.0.*“.
   • The number indicates the maximum version of Firefox that the add-on is officially compatible with. Edit this number to be something larger than the version you are trying to use it with. For example, if you are using Firefox 3.5, change this code to “3.5.*“
   • Save the file and close the 7zip window. Choose yes when you are asked if you want to update the archive.
   • Drag and Drop the .xpi file onto a Firefox window, and follow the prompts as required.

That’s it, you’re done. After restarting Firefox you should now have your favorite extension up and running again!

Note that while I have never had a problem in over two years of doing this, there is a risk that you could corrupt your installation of Firefox. You do so at your own risk and please don’t hate me if you have problems!

Good luck and be sure to let me know how it works out for you!

I love my Popcorn Hour PCH-A110 media player and I use it all the time to watch TV Shows and Movies. This is just one of a class of devices known as a Networked Media Tank, or NMT. I can save my shows on a hard drive or USB device that I’ve installed in or connected to the player, or watch content from any of my other computers that are connected via my home network.

If you want to learn more about this kind of device, I’ve reviewed my PCH-A110 previously on this site.

This is an incredibly useful device, and recently I found a couple of tricks to make the user experience even better!

• MediatankController 1.0 for Adobe AIR – browse and control your NMT from your PC. This is a remote control application for your that runs on any PC desktop. This is actually a cross platform App (built using Adobe Air) that can be installed on almost any computer. It provides a fully functional remote control that sits on your computer. You can also browse the media files available to your Popcorn Hour from a slick window on the desktop. Better yet, the popcorn hour responds faster to the controls on your desktop than it does using the remote, and the app provides keyboard support as well, which is far better than trying to type using the numeric keypad on the remote. This is a must have tool for any NMT owner. Although the app was built and tested on the PCH-A110, it should work on any NMT device.
• MediatankController 1.0 for iPhone – browse and control your NMT from your phone (or your iPod Touch). I actually haven’t been able to get this one to work yet, but many other people have, so I’m sure I just didn’t configure it properly. It promises essentially the same functionality as the the similarly named PC desktop app, but built as web based app formatted for the iPhone. This app has also been tested on the iPod Touch and the Android phone, so any web enabled gadget or computer with a web browser should also work just as well.
• Pure Web Remote Control. This one is a little bit less functional than the others, and a whole lot less pretty. It is a web based app that provides some of the same functionality as the two apps above. The main difference is that its design goal was to provide access to content on the NMT, via a browser based remote control, so that the user could listen to audio with TV switched off. This app also works on any web enabled phone, computer, or other gadget, and I had no problem accessing it with my iPod Touch. I have to say that it’s really ugly, but it works very well. When you consider it within the context that it was designed, it’s actually a pretty cool little app.

This is just one more way to make my life faster and easier. If you know of any other great improvements to make your Popcorn Hour media player (or any other NMT for that matter) even better, please drop me a comment and let me know about it!

The music player for the iPhone and iPod touch has been dramatically improved since the iPhone OS 3.0 Software Update with a couple of simple but dramatic changes.  The simplest change was the addition of three new icons on the “Now Playing” screen, including an option to send a link by email to anyone that might be interested in the file you are playing, a playback speed control that gives the option to play the current file at 1/2x, 1x, or 2x the normal playback speed.  I’m not sure about the usefulness of the email link, but the option to change the playback speed is pretty cool and could be very useful to help find your place in a song  or podcast that was forced to restart, or even to play a boring podcast a little faster in order to get it finished! They also added an icon to skip back wards by 30 seconds.  This is also very cool in case you missed something and want to hear it again.  I used this today while listening to a podcast.  I was very surprised to hear what one of the announcers said, and I had to jump back to make sure I had heard it correctly. (I had)

But wait, there’s more!

The absolute best new feature in the new iPhone software is variable precision scrubbing!  This now feature allows the user to quickly and easily navigate through a media file by changing the scrubbing rate depending on where you finger is on the screen.  If you swipe your finger across the media bar it will be the same old high speed scrubbing we were used to hating.  There are now three additional  scrub rates (Half, Quarter, and Fine speeds). The more precise the scrubbing gets, the easier it is to navigate to a specific spot in the track.

I used to complain about how fast and imprecise the scrubbing was before.  It seemed that every time I lost my place in my playlist I simply couldn’t get back to the exact spot I had been at in the media file that I was listening to.  This will help with that problem in a big way!

I’ve wanted this for a long time, but all the hype around the new iPhone 3GS with its bigger, better, and badder camera (that also now does video) has really got me thinking about it.  One of the greatest things about the camera in the iPhone is that it is fully accessible by the applications in the gadget.  Programmers have created a slew of apps that allow the user to control the camera however she wants.  From interval timers, panoramic stitchers, exposure bracketing, or special effects “filters” that allow you to change the entire look and feel of the resulting image right in the camera (errr, phone).  If you have an iPhone then you should check out “Camera Bag“, “Pro Camera“, and “Pano“ for some very cool add-ons to the native camera functionality in the iPhone.  (While you’re at it you can also read “5 Tips for Making Great iPhone Photos” from professional photographer Chase Jarvis for some great tips on making better images with your iPhone.) 

Sure you can do many of these effects in post-processing afterwards using software like Adobe Photoshop, Corel Painter, the Gimp, but the ability to do them in camera is very appealing to many people (not to mention that you can quickly and easily add your final image to an email or upload it to Flickr without ever having to take it over to your computer first).  And besides, there are many effects that you simply can’t do in post, such as change the shutter speed, so to be able to do them in the camera is very important.

Since I don’t have an iPhone (I have an iPod Touch but inexplicably it doesn’t include a camera), I really want to have some of this programmable functionality in my Canon 40D.  The 40D is a fantastic camera, and Canon has gone a long way in providing user control over the camera.  But as the iPhone proves, there is so much more that can be done, and I really want to be able to control my camera how I want to control it.  The camera already has a very powerful computer built in, so this should be a no-brainer. 

Here are a few of the things that I want control over:

1. Multiple Exposure Bracketing – natively I can only create a 3 image bracket.  When shooting HDR images I typically use 5 to 7 images over a 5 to 9 stop exposure range and I want to be able to set that up easily in my camera. As it is now I have to shoot multiple 3-stop brackets to creat a set with the entire range of exposures that I might want to use.
2. Interval Timer – currently I would have to buy a very expensive Remote Shutter release in order to fire my camera at regular intervals (eg. to create time lapse sequences).  Many inexpensive point and shoot cameras have this built in, so it should be included in every high end SLR as well.
3. Auto ISO – Canon provides a crude Auto ISO feature where it will automatically ramp the ISO up or down based on the exposure, but it doesnt’ work very well. Really it simply sets the camera at the default ISO (400 on my 40D) and only raises or lowers it if it absolutely must (eg. if the camera is maxed out on Shutter speed then it will drop the ISO from 400 down to 200).  But it could be so much better.  I want to be able to set a minimum shutter speed (eg. 1000) which would then force the ISO up as high as the camera requires in order to get the desired exposure.  I also want to be able to set a minimum and maximum ISO based on my shooting conditions and the intended use of the image.  If I’m using my tripod to shoot landscapes then I want the cleanest image possible and I generally don’t care how long the shutter speed is, so let me choose ISO 50. or 25.  But if I’m handholding the camera while shooting sports, then I don’t want the shutter to go below about 1/1500th and I want the largest aperture possible, so I want ISO 1600.  There are all kinds of personalized situations like these that have their own scenarios.  Let me have the control!
4. AF Microadjustment – all the newest cameras have functions built in to allow them to adjust the focus system to correct for front and back focus, without having to send your camera / lens combination in to the manufacturer for mechanical adjustment.  I want that!

There is so much more that I want to be able to control in my camera that I could write on and on.  I guess what I really want is something similar to the CHDK to be made available for DSLR’s, and I want it to be officially supported via an API from Canon.  I want it to be open sourced, or at least open to outside developers to write Apps or Scripts for the camera.  And I want it now!  I don’t think this is too much to ask. 

Apple got it right with the iPhone camera, and now it’s time for Canon, Nikon, Sony, and all the other camera manufacturers to follow suit!