The UCanView Blog

VHS External Hard Drive

ucanview — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:18:36 +0000

I found this over at Instructables. It seems like a great idea making an old favorite VHS tape into an external hard drive. Credit card info and personal data could easily be hidden from burglars. The LED light looks cool too. VHS External Hard Drive

I Can’t Wait to do This to My Old VCR

ucanview — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:16:52 +0000

This may be more elaborate than the average person can construct, but it’s still worth pointing out. Intstructables contributer, lemonie, has come up with a nifty solution for what to do with his old VCR… turn it into a toaster. On this site, you can get a full description of how he did it.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How_to_make_a_VHS_video_toaster/

When High Definition meant a Word’s First Dictionary Entry

ucanview — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:00:20 +0000

Want a giant new high definition flat-screen television? I know I’d be more likely to make the switch if they looked more like the sets for sale at New Era Antiques. On their site, you can browse, buy, sell, and repair antique electronic appliances such as televisions, telephones, and radios. They specialize in Art Deco and modern designs.

Check out more at www.neweraantiques.com

Another Reason to use UCanView

ucanview — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 08:00:15 +0000

I know this will sound like a scare tactic, but it proves our point. According to an article on Switched.com by Christine Whitney, a strain of fungus can develop on an old video tape and turn it to dust. Now, I know you’re thinking that we or other video transfer facilities have something to do with this article, or maybe even the fungus itself, but, trust me, we’re not that well-connected. So, this is yet another cautionary tale about not waiting too long before transferring those old family memories.

Another Great Idea for Old VHS Tape

ucanview — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:35:39 +0000

CraftStylish Contributer, Diane Gilleland, has come-up with some great ideas for uses of old VHS tapes. Guess what the bow on this present is made from. I’ll post about some of her other ideas in the future, but if you can’t wait, you can see all her ideas here: http://www.craftstylish.com/item/43650/crafting-with-vhs-tapes

More VHS Art – Drawings by Hollis Brown Thornton

ucanview — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 17:02:48 +0000

Artist Hollis Brown Thornton creates drawings, paintings, and prints of popular 80s objects and imagery. Check out his work on Flickr.com.

It’s So Cute! What is it?

ucanview — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:24:07 +0000

From 1970-72 an Italian toy maker manufactured these little guys. They look like you’re supposed to plug your iPod into them, but they’re far too old for that.

They are, in fact, the Tondo 8mm / Super 8 film projector.

Check out the following links for more info and pictures

http://www.dchillier.com/tondo/

http://tech.nologi.us/retro/tondo-super-8-projector-proves-the-1970s-were-curvier

VHS Shelters you from the Storm

ucanview — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:33:10 +0000

Ognev Vlaminck reuses large quantities of discarded materials to create new and useful objects. In this case, a sheltered bench with a VHS tape roof. More details of the project can be viewed here.
http://www.maximalisme.be/the_chelter_of_the_dump.htm

The site is written in Swedish (I think), but the photos speak pretty well for themselves.

The LaserDisc Turtle

ucanview — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:37:44 +0000

An obscure reference for sure, but those who had or still have a LaserDisc collection may remember the funny little “LaserDisc Turtle”. For those unaware, LaserDiscs would often have part of a program on one side of the disc and additional material on the other side, but if a disc had material on one side only and you put the disc in to read the blank side, Pioneer LaserDiscs would display this little guy to let you know to flip the disc around. I always called him the “Wrong-Side LaserDisc Turtle”, and I even made a couple of t-shirts with him on the front. No one’s recognized him yet.

The Hottest TV-Sets…from 50 Years Ago

ucanview — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:27:57 +0000

Here’s an old British advertisement for an Etronic Projection TV from 1951. It was probably one of the biggest screens available at the time, but it’s probably smaller that the monitor that you’re reading this on. It still looks like a nice sleak piece of mod furniture though.

Vintage-Technology.info has a whole set of these advertisments here:
http://www.vintage-technology.info/pages/domestic/domcontv.htm

A Basket Made from a LaserDisc

ucanview — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:18:02 +0000

INOUDID’s Attic is an Etsy shop that specializes in creating drink coasters out of old record album covers. They’ll often create a basket for the coasters by melting the record that the cover contained. In this case, they’ve made a laserdisc version of the move, “The Deer Hunter”. I love my own LaserDisc and Vinyl collection too much to repurpose it yet, but this is going on the list for when it’s time. I especially like the switch of making the Record/LaserDisc hold the cover that formerly held it.

Check out their Etsy shop for all their work: http://www.etsy.com/shop/inoudidsattic

The Best use of Audio Cassettes since the Mix Tape

ucanview — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:30:35 +0000

An artist named Iri5, creates images made out of entertainment media formats such as audio tape, video tape, and film. Ususally, the images that she creates often reference what this actually recorded on the media itself.

Click Here for the full-sized photo

Old Film Projector Archive

ucanview — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:35:47 +0000

Michael Rogge has a website that lists a lot of information about collecting, preserving and restoring old film projectors. The site is filled with interesting pictures from his own collection, as well as few articles on the history and significance of film. Visit his site at:http://www.xs4all.nl/~wichm/cinemat.html#INTRO

Video Tape Meets Fashion, but it Doesn’t go in Your VCR

ucanview — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 19:40:35 +0000

Knitter, Alison Friday, has created a dress that will turn your nerd boyfriend’s head. Her flicker album details the entire process of knitting the “VHS Dress” together.

The Surprises pf UCanView – Seeing my Old Dog Again

ucanview — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:44:55 +0000

I hadn’t seen many pictures of my old dog, Bear, in years. So, I was pretty glad when I found some footage of him as a puppy in the footage that I had UCanView transfer.

Here are Some Interesting Suggestions for Things to do with Old VHS Tapes

ucanview — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:50:31 +0000

“Life Hackery” has suggested 4 things to do with your old VHS tapes. You could make a Serving Dish, Insulation, a Fly Swatter, or a Storage Device. Just make sure there’s nothing on the tapes already… … and if there is, send them to us.

“Not only does recycling mean less waste, but you can also get more uses out of old stuff. VHS may be a thing of the past, but they can still be very useful items. You can even think of your own ways to recycle old cassettes.” - Life Hackery
Go here for the specifics: http://lifehackery.com/2008/08/07/gadgetry-6/

An Unplayable VHS Tape Still Manages to Recreate “2001: A Space Odyssey”

ucanview — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:54:51 +0000

This is exactly what this blog is about, finding things that exhalt departed video gadgetry. From 2005-2006, David Herbert, an artist from Seattle, made an art piece that cleverly uses an unmistakable video format to imitate a significant cinematic scene. The work is simply named, “VHS”.

“His sculptural works reference iconic moments, images and objects from American pop culture and history.[1] His materials are typically abject and his sculptures purposefully ‘rough’.[2]“

A Handy Use for Your Old VHS Tapes

ucanview — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 19:59:27 +0000

This will be a recurring theme on this blog, uses for obsolete video technology. Today’s materials are VHS tapes used as a sturdy mounting for a poster. Instructables user, cuteychao, has taped 10 VHS tapes to each other to form a rectangle, and then used some double-sided tape to attach a poster. The notches on the back of the tapes can even rest safely on nails.

A New Analog Camcorder is Officially as Hard to Find as the Dodo.

ucanview — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:03:13 +0000

I found the following article while searching for images of old camcorders. At first, I thought it was at least a couple years old because it sounded like it was just recommending to buy a digital camcorder instead of analog. Once I read it though, it revealed that analog camcorders are officially no longer available for sale at most retailers.

What this all means is that you can no longer get camcorders for the following formats:

VHS, VHS-C, Hi8, 8mm, Betamax, SVHS, and many more.

MSNBC.com - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31209359

VHS honored at 2009 Venice Biennale

ucanview — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:07:12 +0000

We’re definitely up to the challenge of converting all these tapes to DVD and Online Video.

Unfortunately, they’re all copyrighted material and a work of art; so, we’ll just have to wait for our customers tapes to pile-in like this.

What looks like the world’s biggest videotape collection, is actually an artistic display presented at this year’s Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art.”

“Entitled Life Span and displayed in a small church on Garibaldi Street, this giant block full of VHS videotapes is the work of Australian artists Claire Healey and Sean Cordeiro. In numbers 195,774 tapes and features a total recording time of 66 years.”

“Life Span is a physical representation of what a human being can see from its birth, to the day it dies.”

10 Reasons to Preserve your Video Tapes with UCanView

ucanview — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:13:43 +0000

1 It’s easy.

From the beginning, we’ve designed UCanView to be understandable and intuitive, but also robust.

2 Your tapes won’t last forever.

All materials deteriorate over time, especially the delicate magnetic tape in your old videos. Whether getting regular use or just sitting in a closet, now your old tapes probably don’t even look as good as when you first took them, thanks to natural wear.

3 The machines that play your videos will not last forever.

I’ve personally had three VCRs break within the past year. A couple of my old camcorders recently fell apart as well. Lucky for me, I’d backed-up the old videos. Otherwise I couldn’t play them back.

4 We provide not 1, but 2 main services.

With every tape processed, you’ll receive a DVD as well as access to an electronic version which is securely viewed from your UCanView account.

5 See your videos again.

When’s the last time you’ve watched them anyway? Most people don’t regularly watch home movies because it takes hooking up a camera, digging through a pile of tapes, fast-forwarding to the good parts, and many more hassles. With our site, you can quickly and easily watch any part of any video with just a few clicks.

6 Brighten somebody’s day.

You can share your videos instantly and privately with only the people that you want. I can testify that my Mother regularly watches many of my videos.

7 Preserve your memories.

When I used UCanView, I was surprised by how many things that I’d forgotten about, including trips that I hadn’t realized were even videotaped, and how everyone looked when they were younger.

8 We save you time.

Why spend days and weeks transferring videos at home when we can do it all for you.

9 We save you the headache.

In order for you to get tapes online and on DVD, you’d have to buy equipment, edit and compress your videos, burn DVDs, upload, privatize, and more. UCanView does it all for you and with better quality results.