How hub-like is your digital hub

[robh]

Apple's (well Steve Job's) goal is to make OSX your digital hub.

Which iThings do you use ?. Select all that apply.

[Chas]

I use my PowerBook as my "hub." I use my main desktop machine as my main stereo system, I 've been digitizing and restoring some of my old vinyl records so I set up my main desktop machine with some really nice speakers (Boston Acoustics MediaTheater). I keep my main mp3 library on my Powerbook G3/500, I upgraded with a 32Gb hard disk. When I want to listen to my music through good speakers, I can access my Powerbook's music library by filesharing over my LAN. But when I want to go portable, even if it's just relaxing in another room, I can carry my Powerbook with me and all my tunes are there.

I think there are a lot of good things coming for the Mac digital hub. But the one missing element is TV. I heard TiVo released a new machine with an ethernet port, you can hook it up to broadband like a cable modem and download TV-on-demand (if they ever develop enough cable infrastructure for it). They say you can administer it from another computer, I hope they support the Mac. It would be great if you could store and record programming on the Tivo, then store it on DVDs you burn in your Superdrive. Even if you couldn't play them as DVDs, it would be great to store and retrieve the locked Tivo video files on optical media. Ah, that's the "Golden Convergence" that everybody wants, but nobody wants to touch because of the MPAA. As soon as you mention Digital Rights Management, all the lawyers and big money want to stomp you out.

[Electric Sheep]

At first I just thought it was "Marketing Hype", but now I honestly believe in the concept. Seriously.

I use iTunes (with an iPod :D ) EVERYDAY.
I use iMovie occationally (amazing how EASY it is!).
I use iPhoto every couple of days (and it's CRAZY-EASY to use).
I use Disc Burner more often than Toast 'cause it's so easy.

And I'm NOT a "digi-kid" either! I'm just a graphic designer who got sucked into this whole Digital-hub thing.

[Andrew LaGow]

I'm getting hubbier all the time. I had a very good Christmas.

My new SmartDisk VST Firewire CD R/W burns discs about as painlessly as I think is possible; iMovie with my Canon ZR 25 MC is such a joy it threatens to take away all my free time; my "old" Olympus disgital doesn't work with iPhoto directly, but I use iPhoto to organize everything that camera shoots; iTunes? You betcha. My only complaint is I don't have the bandwidth to download more MP3s.

Once again I find myself a virtual marketing arm of Apple Computer, Inc.

Andy

[cybergoober]

Use iTunes (with and without iPod) every day.
Used iPhoto to organize existing jpgs and such (no digital camera yet).
Burn CDs in the Finder regularly (less so now that I have my iPod, used to have to wait til I collected enough stuff to warrant burning a whole CD, now I just throw stuff on my Pod & go!)

[edlake]

I use iTunes to listen to music, both CD's and files I've recorded from vinyl records. After a while, I delete the aif files because they take up so much space.

I have 2 scanners hooked up, a Nikon LS-30, and an old Umax Astra 600s. I've used iPhoto to experiment with, but my scanned files are generally large and project related.

I used iMovie to make a Video CD just after I got a DVD player for the living room. I don't have a video camera, just still (film) cameras.

I've got a Sony receiver (50 wpc) and a pair of Infinity speakers hooked up. BTW, my Que CD-RW burner plays CD thru the stereo just fine.

[sao]

Use iTunes. iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, regularly.

Cheers...

[Russ R.]

iTunes - use it to organize my downloaded mp3s and burn custom CDs.

iPhoto - use it to organize my digital photos (Canon s30) and send them to my homepage.

Palm Desktop - to keep all contacts, appts. and notes current on my Handspring.

iMovie - I made the mistake of booting up in OS 9 and doing the tutorial just so I could then erase it and reclaim the disk space. I have to get a digital video camera now.;)

[bahamutX]

In my room which i share with my brother, we have 4 computers.

The imac is used for running vicomsoft internet gateway to share the broadband connection. The imac is also used to play the tunes from my ipod of sometimes we use the radio stations to play music

My computer, which i cannot state what is it due to some reasons, uses an LCD 15'inch Studio display. Bascially i use it for imovie as it has a 60GB HD

My brother's computer, a 733mhz G4 Desktop is the computer used for iphoto, gaming, movie watching and all sorts of stuff you can think of. BTW, RtCW runs beatifully on this computer.

And last but not least, the only beige G3 with lot's of modifications so now it's a 415mhz G4 us used for storage

[mholloway]

I have a G4/533 and I use it for the following:

1) Microsoft Office X
2) Handspring
3) Digital Camera
4) Rio mp3 Player (soon the be replaced with an iPod)
5) Hp 1220C printer

I also have a Titanium Powerbook with the same applications. Both machines are on an Airport network going through a cable modem for Internet access.

[sbur]

I guess I need to get a digital life before I can have a digital hub that it revolves around. :(

I have just started using iTunes to play CD's, and I have just started discovering the joys of MP3 (i.e. they don't take up much space!) I also just started using my Desktop to play DVDs. The screen is only a little smaller than our TV, so it's pretty convenient.

I have a digital camera, but don't take enough photo's to warrent any kind of organization yet. It's mostly for special uses, I'm not much of a shutter bug.

I have a scanner that mostly gets used as a photocopier.

In general, though, I think the only thing the computer does for me (in terms of digital lifestyle) is let me watch DVD's.