Back when it first debuted, Apple TV was basically just an overpriced home media server.  Sure, it connected straight to your iTunes account and could store iTunes-purchased movies and television via a DVR-type hard disk drive, but aside from connecting directly to your computer for streaming and acting as an AirPort node, it wasn’t anything spectacular.  There are other devices that do similar features, and for the price, you could just buy a traditional media server that’s much more powerful and flexible, even if it’s not as easy-to-use.  However, that’s the old Apple TV; we’re talking about the new Apple TV.

The new product launched as Apple TV earlier this week is basically a Roku-style streaming video box for a brand-new iTunes television and movie RENTAL service.  That’s right, no more actually buying movies or TV episodes; now you’re renting them from Apple (at least via Apple TV).  That seems like a huge step back to me; why would you rent a TV episode for $1 when you can buy the episode for $2, or just watch it for free online via the network’s website, Hulu, Netflix On Demand, Amazon VOD, or any one of a million other streaming video options that Apple’s trying to take on.

Granted, it’s not like Apple TV’s been a big success.  Since it rolled out in 2007, it has only sold about 3 million copies (versus the iPad, which sold 3 million in as many months).  Why not experiment a little and see if you can succeed in an entirely new venture?

If you’re a user of Xbox Live, then I suggest you stock up on these discounted Xbox Live monthly passes, because you’re going to need them.  Starting November 1, you’ll be paying more to access your favorite massive online gaming network, as Microsoft has announced a rate hike for its Xbox Live Gold service.  Granted, the price increases are only by a few bucks per package (from $7.99 to $9.99 for a month, $19.99 to $24.99 for three months, and $49.99 to $59.99 for a year) but why pay extra money if you don’t have to?

“Since launching Xbox Live in 2002 we have continually added more content and entertainment experiences for our members, while keeping the price the same,” said Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb, director of programming for Xbox Live.  ”We’re confident that when the new pricing takes effect, an Xbox Live Gold membership will continue to offer the best value in the industry.”

And it just so happens to occur right before the launch of Halo Reach!  Heh heh, what are the odds?  Xbox Live Gold rates are also going to increase in Canada, Mexico, and the UK, so nobody gets left out of the price-gouging!

Anyone who has picked up Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy can tell you that the author really loved his technology.  In fact, the gadgets and gizmos and home furnishing in the three books are almost characters in and of themselves, thanks to Larsson’s long, loving paragraphs of description about the makes, specs, and vintages of various things that fill the home of characters like Lisbeth Salander.

For those interested, or those that can’t instantly place a gadget to its name, the fine folks at Engadget have put together The Girl With The Insanely Long Gear List, a complete collection of the gadgets in Larsson’s world AND a gallery of appropriate images.  It’s like looking into Apple’s past, given Larsson’s Mac-centric nature.  There are also page citations for those playing the home game.

Not to be outdone, the fine folks at Apartment Therapy have put together their own version of Lisbeth Salander’s shopping cart with Lisbeth Salander’s IKEA Shopping List.  Once again, it’s a complete list of the stuff she was spending her kroner on, completely with pictures of the stuff no longer available and links to the stuff that you can buy (just in case you want to make your own Millennium Trilogy room in your house).  Even better than Engadget’s page citations are Apartment Therapy’s book citation, giving the appropriate passages with links inserted into the text!

For the record, I’ve not read any of the books.  Are they good?  Anyone with an opinion, feel free to speak up.

Aim for the Apple logo

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to shoot a piece of expensive technology with a shotgun?  ”Only every time I use my computer,” you’re saying to yourself in the monologue I’m writing for you.  Well, I feel the same way, so that’s why when I saw this video of an iPad getting shot with a shotgun in super slow-motion, I just had to share it.

Really, the folks at Free Tax USA really do make a good point.  Paying someone to do your taxes is like throwing money away, but paying someone to do your taxes RIGHT is a whole lot better than legal bills, prison time, and the hassle of dealing with the IRS when you do something via a website (or doing it on your own) and it turns out to be completely wrong.

I have an adage I try to stick to when it comes to things I don’t enjoy doing, like math.  You’re not just paying to have it done, you’re paying to have someone to yell at if it’s not done right.  And really, isn’t it the American dream to make angry phone calls to H&R Block, only to have them absolve themselves of all responsibility when the IRS comes looking for heads to collect?

Get a Chewbacca Pink Worthington shirt at JCPenney.com, via Fashionably Geek.

I knew this would happen sooner or later.  When a market closes down, a new market will generally always open up.  When AT&T announced that they were closing down their unlimited data plan for wireless and broadband devices, someone else would open up an unlimited data plan.  Well, we’ve found the willing source to feed your broadband addiction.  Sprint subsidiary Virgin Mobile USA has announced a $40 unlimited broadband data plan for mobile devices.

The plan is Virgin Mobile’s Broadband2Go, which features uncapped data use for $40 dollars per month.  The most important selling feature of Virgin Mobile’s service?  No annoying contract to sign; it’s just month-to-month provided you pay your bill!  Of course, you have to buy the MiFi 2200 mobile hotspot for $150 or the Ovation MC760 USB device for $80, but that’s a small price to pay for contract-free, unlimited mobile broadband, isn’t it?

Enjoy it while it lasts, gang.  I wouldn’t say it would go away anytime soon, but I do think the capped data plans are more in line with what our corporate broadband overlords want us to have, so rebels like Sir Richard’s former company are likely to face increased pressure to end buffet-style service.

Do you want to be safe in your dealings online, and you already know not to make your password “password,” use the same password on every site, and all the other password security tips?  Well, researchers at Georgia Tech have decided that when it comes to passwords, 12 characters are far superior to 8.  They say that the era of the 12-character password will soon be upon us, if it’s not already.

When using an array of computers running powerful graphic cards, it took the team an average of two hours to crack an 8-character password.  Using the same powerful (yet not Cray-level powerful) arrays, a 12-character password would take 17,134 years to hack into.  Unless, of course, you do something foolish like pick a 12-letter word from the dictionary for your password.

There’s always the problem of remembering your 12-character password, but if you want to be secure, you’d best be as secure as possible.

There’s no real magical solution to the problem of online security.  You can change your password monthly, use completely random combinations of characters, and every other security tip you can think of, and your information is only as secure as the servers on which it is stored.  Your safety really depends on the safety precautions taken by everyone else in the information chain, so if you feel comfortable with your 8-character password, stick with it.

Fossil fuels are just that:  fossils.  The wave of the future is electric cars, people!  Get with it or get silently rolled over by a nearly-silent fuel efficiency machine powered by the plug in your wall (that, err, is powered by fossil fuels like coal or natural gas, if you’re lucky and it’s not nuclear power).

To promote the green car movement, and because they love catchy songs, geek musicians They Might Be Giants have put out a single in honor of the electric car called “Electric Car.”  Crazy, right?!  Featuring guest vocals by Robin Goldwasser, it’s probably the catchiest pro-environment song I’ve ever listened to, and the video itself (directed by Tiny Inventions) is absolutely adorable.

You can find “Electric Car” and lots of other on TMBG’s new album Here Comes Science from Walt Disney Records.

One of the most dangerous things you can do online is also the thing everyone does pretty much all the time.  Your searching habits can put you in danger, especially if you search for things involving celebrities and screen-savers, celebrities and pictures, or celebrities and downloads.  Because so many of us search for things online without thinking about the ramifications of clicking on those links, virus makers, hijackers, hackers, and scammers love to sneak their malware behind celebrity names, and Cameron Diaz is the most dangerous celebrity to search for online.

That’s right, despite not having a hit movie since Charlie’s Angels 2, Ms. Diaz tops McAfee’s most dangerous celebrity search list, beating out A-listers like Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt, sex symbols like Jessica Biel, and TV mega-star Anna Paquin.  A search for Cameron Diaz has a ten percent chance of directing your computer towards some sort of malware-plagued website!  Eesh!

It’s just a sign of the growing sophistication of those that want to steal your information, says McAfee security researcher Dave Marcus.  While ”consumers are getting smarter about searching online … cybercriminals are getting sneakier in their techniques,” he said, adding:  ”Now they’re hiding malicious content in ‘tiny’ places like shortened URLs that can spread virally in social networking sites and Twitter, instead of on websites and downloads.”

As always, be careful what you click on, because you never really know what’s on the other end.  Unless, of course, you use AVG, which will parse through your search results and warn you of potential malware-infected websites.  Oh yeah, it’s also free, unlike McAfee’s crapware.

A few years ago, when it was mentioned that people could use their iPhone, download an app, and then use that app to order a pizza from Pizza Hut or Papa John’s or wherever, I scoffed.  Why would you need to download an app when you could just call them and place an order?  Or, if you loathe waiting on the phone, just order online via mobile web?  Well, that stuff on my face is egg, because Pizza Hut says half of their orders come from mobile services.

Of course, this includes the mobile web, but between text messages, the iPhone app, and upcoming iPad and Android-based apps, the future of pizza is getting it into your phone long before it gets into your mouth.  The folks ordering on the go are younger (mostly under 34), wealthier (making over $75,000 per year), and obviously very, very hungry for your pepperoni and sausage special with extra cheese.