ViewHD 2 Port 1x2 Powered HDMI Mini Splitter

ViewHD 2 Port 1×2 Powered HDMI Mini Splitter

Recently I encountered a problem with trying to do a video capture of a game I was playing on an Android device.  The device in question happens to  be a RCA tablet, and I was using an Elgato Game Capture HD device.

On the Elgato game capture program I noticed that although the signal was being detected, it wasn’t showing the screen.  It stated something about disabling HDCP in order for it to work.  Upon doing some Internet research, I discovered that HDCP–which stands for high-bandwidth digital content protection–was a content protection scheme implemented on connection like the one I was working on.

I thought that I just wasted about $7 buying this HDMI A type (standard size) to C type (mini size) cable (a BlueRigger high speed mini HDMI to HDMI cable, 6 ft — http://amzn.to/1dDQ4Y8) because the connection is blocked by this HDCP protection scheme.

Upon doing a bit of checking around on the web, I found that purchasing a certain HDMI splitter can get around the issue.  I found the ViewHD 2 Port 1×2 Powered HDMI Mini Splitter (http://amzn.to/1KDlloV) for about $24.  I received and tried it, and low and behold, I can do video screen capture!  Problem solved.

The video below provides a very detailed demonstration of how to tie the martial arts belt.  It shows you in various angles:  front, back, and side.

sparring

Distance is an important aspect of sparring.

Introduction

In sparring, the winner knows to take advantage of their best skills, their opponent’s weaknesses, and distance.  Everyone generally talks about improving skills to become better at sparring; and on most occasions, they also talk about how to take advantage of an opponent’s weaknesses.  But it is rare that anyone discusses distance and how important it is in sparring, or for that matter, real life self defense (we’ll save that for another topic of discussion).

This article will discuss distance and why it is a very important aspect of sparring.  Through the proper use of distance, one can achieve the following:

  • Gain enough reaction time
  • Prevent an opponent from scoring
  • Help you score

Gain Enough Reaction Time

This may be as plain as the nose on your face, but you can gain reaction time simply by increasing the distance between you and your sparring opponent.  Now, you can go all out and stay back 15 feet from your opponent, but that would be too extreme, as it would make it impossible for either person to score.  The only thing you can cause by doing this is make the referee warn you to “fight”.

The right distance is such that the opponent cannot reach you without taking at least some motion to close the distance then executing their attack.  The motion to close the distance is your cue that he’s on the move.  This should give you enough time to adjust your distance for a counter attack.  Give this a try during any of your sparring sessions and see h0w it works out.  You’ll see that you’ll have that extra warning time to make adjustments to your position before your opponent delivers their attack.

Prevent an Opponent from Scoring

Through distance, you can prevent your opponent from scoring.  It is obvious that going further back from your opponent can guarantee that your opponent cannot score when you aren’t ready to counter.

It is also true when you close the gap to the point of jamming your opponent.  By closing the gap, you keep your opponent from making contact with their foot on your scoring area.  The closer your are to within the length of your opponent’s leg, the less likely they can score.  After all, olympic sparring is a sport, and all sports have rules on how one scores; you might as well take advantage of rules to prevent your opponents from scoring against you.

Help You Score

The right distance can help you score.  For attacks, if you maintain just the proper distance, you can apply proper footwork to close the gap and score with your kicks.  The distance should still be far enough so that you can see them coming when they attack, but short enough to close the distance using fast footwork and executing the appropriate attacking technique.

For counter attacks, you must maintain just the right distance so that you can move away without getting hit, yet reach your opponent when you deliver your scoring kick. This means that your opponent’s kick should just barely reach you!  This distance is just perfect for your counter.

Summary

Distance is a major factor in sparring.  It can help you gain reaction time, prevent your opponent from scoring, and most importantly, help you score.

Who would have thought such a simple factor could have such a major effect in sparring?

My grandson loves to play with our Apple iPod Touch.  He plays all kinds of games which keeps him entertained.  Most recently, we received an email that said there were purchases of some coins in a game called Monster Mayhem.  The charges ranged from $19.98 to $99.99 made through iTunes.

We thought, how can this be?

Come to find out, our iTunes account had in it a specified credit card–probably from long ago when the account was first created.  My grandson, in the course of playing Monster Mayhem, touched some buttons which activated the purchase of thousands of coins needed to enable various options in the game.  Note that we didn’t even know this until we got the email notification about the purchase.

Undoing the In-app Purchase

The first thing we did was to see what we can do on iTunes to undo the purchase.  We followed the instructions but the online links just goes around in some circular link reference.  We could not find the place where we can undo the purchase!

Next we called up our credit card company to dispute the charges.  Since the charges weren’t really fraudulent, the credit card company didn’t refuse the charges, but they did get me in touch with Apple customer service.

I received instructions from the Apple support representative on how to undo the purchase.

Apple Contact Us page

Apple Contact Us

  • Go to the Apple.com support page
  • From there click the Contact Us link
  • Next click the Express Lane for iTunes Player and iTunes Store
  • From the product categories tab, click iTunes, then iTunes Store, and select Purchases, billing, and redemption; click Continue
  • You will then be taken to the issue description page, select “my topic is not listed” and provide a short description of your topic.  I used “unintentional in-app purchase, need to undo”, then click the ENTER button.
  • You’ll need your order number to complete the rest; make sure you have them
  • Upon completion of the process, you will get a case number; you will also get an email

For our case, the response to the problem was quick and sent via email.  They credited my credit card and added credit to my iTunes account.  Whew!  I’m glad it’s over.

That takes care of undoing the in-app purchase.  Now on to preventing future unintentional in-app purchases since I know my grandson will continue to play games on the iTouch.

Preventing Future Unintentional In-app Purchases

Part of the response Apple sent us were instructions on how to prevent unintentional in-app purchases.

Before doing this, the smartest thing to do is to remove any trace of your credit card on your iTunes account.  This is the sure-fire way of avoiding unexpected iTunes purchases.

However, if you do occasional purchases, you’ll want to follow the instructions we got from Apple.

To prevent In-App Purchases from being made in the future, you can block them on your iOS device by following these steps:

  1. Tap Settings on your device’s home screen.
  2. Tap General.
  3. Tap Restrictions.
  4. If necessary, tap Enable Restrictions and enter a pass code. This pass code will prevent restrictions from being disabled without your permission.
  5. Scroll down to the Allowed Content section. Switch the In-App Purchases option to OFF. Enter your Restrictions pass code if prompted.

That’s it!

If you found this tip useful, please share and comment below and let me know.