There was some question upon the launch of Amazon’s Unbox movie download service if it would be possible to stream flicks to a TV via the Xbox 360. The answer is yes, and Amazon has provided these simple steps to automagically stream purchased content to a 360 from a Windows Media Center PC:

1. Download an Unbox video to your Media Center PC.
2. From the Xbox 360 Dashboard, go to the Media blade and select Media Center. Your Xbox will connect to your Media Center PC.
3. Select “My Videos” and then “Amazon” to see all of your Unbox videos.
4. Choose your Unbox video and enjoy!

So the next question is: Can we stream video from any version of XP using Media Connect or Windows Media Player 11?

Never enough time…

• Copy and collate Internet video with Tioti. (TechCrunch)
• Tag DRM-ed Amazon products as such. (Defective by Design)
• Buy an HD DVD player, get three HD DVDs free. (EngadgetHD)
• Another Apple iPod touch screen patent application. (Apple Insider)

Need a little help with your gadgets? You don’t have to call tech support anymore. I’ve run across two applications recently taking different approaches to solving your gadget woes.

The first is Retrevo. Launched at DEMOfall last month, Retrevo is a vertical search engine that lets you look up your devices to find product documentation, reviews and articles, manufacturer info and coverage from “forums and blogs.” Michael Calore at Wired asks, “Why not just use Google?” Aside from the user interface, which gives you category filters on one side and a preview pane on the other, Retrevo gives you instant access to useful little items like product manuals. I searched for my Sony Cybershot DSC-P10, and a PDF version of the user guide came up first on the list. On the other hand, I searched Google for “Sony Cybershot DSC-P10 manual” and the guide didn’t even make the first page. I love the idea of not having to save a zillion product manuals anymore. I can never remember which drawer I put them in…

The second application is su.pport.us which I discovered through David Berlind’s blog on ZDNet. The idea is great. su.pport.us is a wiki that anyone can contribute to. Know something useful about your cell phone’s features? Got tips on how to get a certain networked printer up and running? su.pport.us is the place to post it. Like I said, the idea is great. Unfortunately, there’s very little content so far. Consider this a rallying cry. Go put your knowledge to work! There are people out there who need it.

One of the pranks I used to play in college was to dial the phone number of one of my friends, who typically was having relationship problems, and as soon as their phone would start ringing, I would immediately put them on conference call and dial their recent ex and then sit back and watch as both people thought that the other person was calling them. In retrospect it probably wasn’t a very nice thing to do, but the results were always unpredictable and hilarious.

Sometimes they’d just start fighting, other times they would actually make up, but most times there would be a certain awkwardness as both parties thought the other had called, but couldn’t figure out why. While it may not have been the nicest practical joke, today Forbes magazine played a similar version of this gag when they invited some of the top technology firms to interact with Hollywood fat cats at their MEET (Media Electronic Entertainment Technology) 2006 conference.

The list of technology experts was a literal who’s who of the geek world. TiVo, Sling, Netflix, Apple, Google, YouTube, you name it, the list went on and on. While many of these technology companies came to court Hollywood into embracing them as business partners, they faced a tough crowd and a hard sell for an industry that hasn’t been forced to make significant changes in the last 30 years. In a nice overview of the conference, Paul Bonds with The Hollywood Reporter, gives a great run down on some of the more memorable recaps.

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First thing’s first… Way back in March, I spontaneously ran a contest to guess the release date and price of the Series3. Aaron, an internal medicine hospitalist from Richmond, VA was the big winner with a 9/15 @ $849 prediction. I offered him a choice of a TiVo-branded wireless adapter or gift certificate from Amazon — he opted for the credit. Nicely done, Aaron!

Next up… Apparently those hosting a TiVo House Party will receive an orange TiVo-ed Teflon apron for their efforts. So this ZNF contest winner gets mine, along with four spiffy TiVo coasters as shown above. But randomly picking a winner bores me, so we’re going to try something different this time.

The rules: To enter you must email me (davezatz@yahoo.com) and your subject heading must say CHEF TIVO just like that — I have a nice filter set up to collate the entries. Second, tell me either why you deserve or why you want the prize OR offer up a trade (One Red Paperclip-style) of something cool (value of cool object doesn’t matter, unless it really is a house — then you automatically win). Third, you and I will both be comfortable publishing the results of this contest (nude photos of your wife are probably out). Fourth, you have until the end of October 2006 to get your entry in, so you have a few days to think about how you’ll respond.

Never enough time…

• Summary of 3Q Netflix subscribers and finances. (Hacking Netflix)
• TiVo, the thrill is gone. (Denver Post)
• Q&A with Sling Media’s European VP. (e-consultancy)
• AT&T U-Verse getting HD model and web console in November. (EngadgetHD)