Playing the MCM Readiness Videos (on the iPod and Droid)
Ahhh..Thanksgiving. So many things to be thankful for. There's the traffic-filled 4-hour trip to the in-laws. There's the Thanksgiving *day* (nopes, it's just not dinner) of just hanging out with the in-laws. There's also the Thanksgiving chit-chat with the in-laws of the in-laws. And of course--how can I not look forward to and be thankful for the Thanksgiving "how's-the-baby-project-going" interview where, without a baby in my arms, proving that we're really working hard on having one is more challenging than restoring a corrupt db (yes, mom, we're already trying so many things--we're even trying out scrum. So what's wrong then? Don't look at me! Ask your son. He's not, uhm, agile enough. ).
So to make Thanksgiving this year better than the last (and the ones before that), I downloaded all the SQL Server 2008 Microsoft Certified Master (MCM) Readiness Videos that have been posted so far. My (not-so-evil) plan is to grab my iPod or my Droid when things become too err...enjoyable. So while they're talking about babymaking and all the "challenges" involved in it (and how it can actually be really just sooo easy--"as long as Janice, you don't stress too much.")--I'll just DROID them out and listen to Paul Randal tell me that I'm "spatial"! Ha!
1) Which format do I download?
If you've visited the site, you'll notice that there are different formats available. I wanted to watch the videos using my phone (a Droid 2) or my iPod nano (4th gen, I think) so the links that I was interested in were the following:
Only two of the files I downloaded via the iPod link worked. So I tried downloading the MP4. Most of the MP4 files however would only play on my PC and not on my iPod or Droid. You may experience the same thing so here are some tips...
Tip 1: Use HandBrake to convert the MP4 (or the other video formats) to an MP4 format that your iPod can actually play. You can download the tool here for free: http://handbrake.fr/downloads.php. With the iTunes application (I'm using version 10), you can do the same thing but it takes sooo long and you can only do one at a time! Thanksgiving would be over before you finish. If you use HandBrake, the process is not only faster, you can also put all the files that you want to convert on a queue and you can just leave it until it's done.
Tip 2: Now--this really depends on what your in-law tolerance is. The longer you can stand them, the less videos you have to download. 
I for one have a very high in-law tolerance. So--to download all--use the free Download Manager from SourceForge. Here's the link. Just copy the target link of each video and add it to the queue. Leave it running overnight and you're all done the next day.
Tip 3: When you're done downloading and converting the videos, just add them to your iTunes library and voila---THANKSGIVING.
To play the files on your Droid, just copy the converted MP4 files to your SD card and VOILA--yep-yep--it's Thanksgiving again! Ahh..what do they call these things again? Oh yeah...the gifts that just keep giving. 
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
P.S. To my in-laws--come on, I'm just kidding. Stop being so cranky. That stresses me out--and we don't want that, remember?