Baby Countdown!
MLB.TV in Linux
by Christopher Meredith on 05/13/2008
I realize this post is more "Google bait" than anything, but if you're not a tech geek or a baseball fan, consider the following as an object lesson in the can-do spirit of the open source software community.
MLB.TV is a subscription-based service offered by Major League Baseball which allows subscribers to listen to live radio broadcasts or watch live TV broadcasts of every MLB baseball game. It is generally a great service but every season, MLB.com introduces more "features" which usually carry with them a fair amount of problems.
One recurring problem is the annual "lockout" of Linux users. I don't think this is intentional, but every year, Linux users have to band together to work out a solution for using MLB.TV on our beloved operating system because some new feature has broken the means we used to watch games last season.
This year, MLB.com buried the player page on the website behind not only a layer of flash content, but also a layer of Microsoft's new "Silverlight" plugin. While flash is mostly supported in Linux, Silverlight is not. At all.
So a week or so ago, Google searches for solutions brought me to this forum post. From there on, you can follow the discussion and watch the literal evolution of an open source project. (I post under the name "Theophile").
For those who came to this page in search of a way to use MLB.TV in Linux, here is the solution. Jesse Rosenthal and Matthew Levine have written a program called mlbviewer which can be obtained here. To install, you will first need to install subversion (to get the mlbviewer source code) and the python module simplejson. To do this in Ubuntu, type in a terminal:
sudo apt-get install subversion python-simplejson
If you are using Gentoo, do:
sudo emerge -va subversion simplejson
Next, you will need to make sure you have mplayer installed. Most distros include this. If you do not have it, use your distro's package management system to install mplayer. You can also use Xine and VLC for video playback as well as XMMS or other audio player for Gameday Audio feeds.
Finally, since MLB.tv uses Windows Media codecs, you will need to install them. Ubuntu users should follow this HOWTO.
Now it's time to get mlbviewer. To do so, type in a terminal:
svn co https://mlbviewer.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/mlbviewer/trunk mlbviewer
This will check out a copy of the latest source code. To install it, do the following:
cd mlbviewer
python setup.py install
There! Now it should work. In a terminal, type mlbviewer.py and after configuration, you should see a list of the day's games. The up/down arrows select the game from the menu and the left/right arrows select the day. The 'h' key also will show you other options, such as Top Plays and Gameday Audio. To watch a game, simply scroll to the game you want, and hit enter. This should spawn an mplayer window and you should be watching your game! You can toggle mplayer's full-screen mode with the 'f' key.
Here are some screenshots of an older (7 April 2008) version of the script in action. To see full resolution screenshots, click through:
The script once launched. It even shows you which games are over and archived. The rest are either "live" or haven't started yet.
Watching the Orioles/Mariners game. This is the 400k stream using Xine (rather than mplayer) as the media player. You can edit the configuration file to use the media player if your choice.
This is the same game, but the 800k stream. The script uses the 400k stream by default, but it can be changed by opening the configuration file in a text editor and changing "400" to "800", or by pressing the 'p' key while in mlbviewer.
The Trombone Lesson
by Christopher Meredith on 05/07/2008
So it's been a while since I last posted so here's something I almost forgot I had. This is an ad libbed trombone lesson where the student tries to perfect that famous excerpt from Ride of the Valkyries.
I got this from my trombone instructor in my previous life as a music student. This is the sort of thing that gets funnier every time I hear it.
Baby's First Picture
by Christopher Meredith on 03/14/2008
We went to the doctor today for a checkup and an ultrasound. We got to see the baby and hear its little heartbeat. For those of you who have ever had this experience, you know what it's like and I don't have to explain it. For those who haven't gone through it yet, no amount of explaining would even come close. Just look at this:
I Voted
by Christopher Meredith on 03/11/2008
Well today I participated in the civic religion and voted in the Mississippi Republican primary. It marked the first time I've ever voted, mainly because I've never been impressed with the priests and clerics I've had to choose from. That said, I don't think the GOP would be very pleased with me. I voted for Ron Paul which means I might as well have pissed in the holy water.
New Law Blog
by Christopher Meredith on 03/05/2008
I said a few weeks ago that I intended to post more often about my legal studies. As it turns out, there are some of my classmates who were having the same idea. We've teamed up to start Law School Chronicles, a new "blawg" which is designed to stimulate conversation about legal topics from a wide range of perspectives. So come check it out! The conversation is just beginning.
If you're an MCSOL student and you're interested in becoming a contributor, just let me know!
We're Having a Baby!
by Christopher Meredith on 02/26/2008
How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
Who walks in His ways.
When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands
You will be happy and it will be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
Within your house,
Your children like olive plants
Around your table.
Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
Indeed, may you see your children's children
Peace be upon Israel!
Who walks in His ways.
When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands
You will be happy and it will be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
Within your house,
Your children like olive plants
Around your table.
Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
Indeed, may you see your children's children
Peace be upon Israel!
To Anyone Who Uses the Internet
by Christopher Meredith on 02/19/2008
For anyone who uses the internet, I would like to commend to you OpenDNS. It's a free service which is compatible with every internet service provider and can even be set up on routers to provide its service to an entire network.
OpenDNS is a free account-based alternative DNS server. By using OpenDNS instead of your default ISP DNS, you get faster resolutions, which means a faster internet. It can also collect statistics of web traffic on a single computer or across the whole network. It can also be configured to block certain content including pornography and phishing websites.
It's my new favorite service. It has a ton of other features, it's easy to set up, it's free, and it really does make the internet faster and safer. I highly recommend it to you.
TIME: N.T. Wright on Heaven
by Christopher Meredith on 02/08/2008
I just read a great interview that Bishop N.T. Wright gave to TIME magazine. Compared to all the damnable drivel TIME usually publishes about Jesus and virtually anything Christian (you've seen those "Jesus Seminar" interviews around Christmas and Easter), this was a real shot in the arm:
Never at any point do the Gospels or Paul say Jesus has been raised, therefore we are we are all going to heaven. They all say, Jesus is raised, therefore the new creation has begun, and we have a job to do.
HT: Mark Horne
Never at any point do the Gospels or Paul say Jesus has been raised, therefore we are we are all going to heaven. They all say, Jesus is raised, therefore the new creation has begun, and we have a job to do.
New Favorite Website
by Christopher Meredith on 02/06/2008
I finally got a chance to actually read some of this site and I absolutely love it. Some of my favorites:
The Reformed faith has always insisted that gratitude is our only motivation for obedience. It’s guilt, grace, gratitude. Anything else and you are not Reformed.
"God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6).
Federal Visionists love this verse because it sounds as if God gives grace to the humble. However, this interpretation reverses the classic ordo salutis.
Once a technical definition has been established by the Reformed faith, we must insist that such a definition be the only way that a particular word is ever used, regardless of what the Bible or anyone else says. If we insist that the Biblical usage of words is primary, then we run the risk of contradicting the Reformed faith. This is the road to Rome, Constantinople, Canterbury, and Moscow (not the one in Russia).
The Reformed faith has always insisted upon distinguishing between words and terms. The Bible uses words. Reformed theology uses terms. The difference is enormous. When a word is given a technical definition, it ceases to be merely a word and becomes a term. Once a word attains the status of a “term,” it can never be used as simply a “word.” This is how God works in history.
“O how I love Your law!” (Psalm 119:97).
Federal Visionists love verses like this because they think that David is actually expressing love for the law. However, this is simply neo-legalism.
...and my #1 favorite, in it's entirety:
“But Jesus said, ‘Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these’” (Matthew 19:14).
Federal Visionists love this verse because they think that Jesus wants children coming to him during the Lord’s Supper, i.e., paedocommunion. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
Unfortunately, Federal Visionists repeatedly wrench verses out of their context to fabricate their wretched doctrines, such as paedocommunion. The Reformed faith has unanimously rejected paedocommunion as heterodox.
The first three rules of exegesis are context, context, context. A brief perusal of this passage indicates that the Lord’s Supper is nowhere in view, either in the near context or far context.
However, baptism is clearly what Jesus was referring to. We can tell this because when Jesus says, “Do not hinder them from coming to Me,” the word “coming” is an aorist infinitive, which implies a one-time action.
Thus, Jesus is saying, do not hinder them from coming to Jesus in baptism (a one-time action), but do hinder them from coming to Jesus in the Lord’s Supper (ongoing action, albeit infrequent).
The Reformed faith has always insisted that gratitude is our only motivation for obedience. It’s guilt, grace, gratitude. Anything else and you are not Reformed.
"God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6).
Federal Visionists love this verse because it sounds as if God gives grace to the humble. However, this interpretation reverses the classic ordo salutis.
Federal Visionists love this verse because it sounds as if God gives grace to the humble. However, this interpretation reverses the classic ordo salutis.
Once a technical definition has been established by the Reformed faith, we must insist that such a definition be the only way that a particular word is ever used, regardless of what the Bible or anyone else says. If we insist that the Biblical usage of words is primary, then we run the risk of contradicting the Reformed faith. This is the road to Rome, Constantinople, Canterbury, and Moscow (not the one in Russia).
The Reformed faith has always insisted upon distinguishing between words and terms. The Bible uses words. Reformed theology uses terms. The difference is enormous. When a word is given a technical definition, it ceases to be merely a word and becomes a term. Once a word attains the status of a “term,” it can never be used as simply a “word.” This is how God works in history.
“O how I love Your law!” (Psalm 119:97).
Federal Visionists love verses like this because they think that David is actually expressing love for the law. However, this is simply neo-legalism.
Federal Visionists love verses like this because they think that David is actually expressing love for the law. However, this is simply neo-legalism.
“But Jesus said, ‘Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these’” (Matthew 19:14).
Federal Visionists love this verse because they think that Jesus wants children coming to him during the Lord’s Supper, i.e., paedocommunion. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
Unfortunately, Federal Visionists repeatedly wrench verses out of their context to fabricate their wretched doctrines, such as paedocommunion. The Reformed faith has unanimously rejected paedocommunion as heterodox.
The first three rules of exegesis are context, context, context. A brief perusal of this passage indicates that the Lord’s Supper is nowhere in view, either in the near context or far context.
However, baptism is clearly what Jesus was referring to. We can tell this because when Jesus says, “Do not hinder them from coming to Me,” the word “coming” is an aorist infinitive, which implies a one-time action.
Thus, Jesus is saying, do not hinder them from coming to Jesus in baptism (a one-time action), but do hinder them from coming to Jesus in the Lord’s Supper (ongoing action, albeit infrequent).
Federal Visionists love this verse because they think that Jesus wants children coming to him during the Lord’s Supper, i.e., paedocommunion. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
Unfortunately, Federal Visionists repeatedly wrench verses out of their context to fabricate their wretched doctrines, such as paedocommunion. The Reformed faith has unanimously rejected paedocommunion as heterodox.
The first three rules of exegesis are context, context, context. A brief perusal of this passage indicates that the Lord’s Supper is nowhere in view, either in the near context or far context.
However, baptism is clearly what Jesus was referring to. We can tell this because when Jesus says, “Do not hinder them from coming to Me,” the word “coming” is an aorist infinitive, which implies a one-time action.
Thus, Jesus is saying, do not hinder them from coming to Jesus in baptism (a one-time action), but do hinder them from coming to Jesus in the Lord’s Supper (ongoing action, albeit infrequent).