Radbox Blog

Hope the new year’s treating you well. We’re happy to announce an official plugin for all you XBMC users out there. :-)

So far there was an unofficial plugin built by the awesome Popeye with help from Radbox super-user Guy Sie, but now we’ve stepped up to provide and maintain an official version.

Installing the plugin

1. Download the plugin for Dharma or Eden.
2. Install via System -> Add-ons -> Install from zip file OR move the plugin.video.radbox directory into your addons directory.
3. Launch the plugin, and type in your remote-friendly super-compact QuickUrl username.

Note: This will upgrade your existing installation of the Radbox (unofficial) plugin.

Features

• Works with YouTube, Vimeo and CollegeHumor for now. Will add support for more sources soon (for example, TED plugin has bugs which will have to be fixed before we can support it).
• Plays videos directly from your main queue in a linear fashion. No support for lists yet.

More features to come in subsequent versions.

So sit back and enjoy your Radbox stream on TV via XBMC!

(Big thanks to Salim and Marc for reporting).

Those of you with iPhones, iPod touches and iPads on iOS 5 or later have been unable to Select and Copy the bookmarklet as per our bookmarklet installation guide. The reason is a bug in iOS 5 that prevents read-only text areas to be selectable. As a temporary solution the text-area with the bookmarklet code is now editable, which means you’ll see an unnecessary keyboard when trying to copy the bookmarklet. There’s also a chance that you select and accidentally edit the contents, in which case it is best to reload the page and try again.

Apologies for not catching this sooner. We’ve filed a bug with Apple so hopefully they’ll fix it soon.

Hi all,

We’ve got reports that the bookmarklet is not working reliably on YouTube for many Chrome users. We’ve got someone looking into the issue, and will update soon.

Fixed

In Chrome build 16 or later, many bookmarklets including Radbox, Evernote and Instapaper may not work on YouTube. The reason is that Chrome automatically installs a YouTube app which results in a bug preventing the browser to reach the bookmarklet source.

The solution is to remove the YouTube app. Open a new tab in Chrome, hit “Apps” at bottom, and remove the YouTube app as shown below:

This should allow all bookmarklets to start working perfectly with Chrome. Google Chrome stealthily installing apps in your browser might remind you of bloatware from the past (remember the time when Yahoo! Messenger installed a bunch of toolbars and addons you didn’t care about?), but that’s a debate for another day.

We tried a little experiment yesterday. Users who had not logged into Radbox for over a month got this mailer from us.

Here’s the final paragraph:

Are there any bugs or use-cases that don’t work for you? Simply reply this email and the founders will respond as soon as they can. If you still don’t find Radbox useful, you can easily delete your account permanently. :-(

Most web services that we’re familiar with (hundreds of them) either don’t offer a way to delete an account or make the link less apparent so that few people end up clicking it. We’re not so smart.

We thought if you don’t intend to use a service, it should be easy for you to say goodbye and move on. This is what some of our ex-users (is that even a term?) did, and a few were even kind enough to leave feedback.

I have a tendency to save things, including videos, aside for later and then not go back to them. For instance, I have two weeks worth of reading in ReadItLater. You’re offering a good service for someone that has self-control :)

New year’s eve is a perfect time to say no to things that we can do without, and yes to things that we ought to do more. It is also a perfect time for a new experiment. :)

It has been a busy week since the introduction of Radbox 3 and Radbox on iPad, and we’ve been fielding a lot of queries and feedback from users. Here’s a quick summary of what you’ve been sharing with and asking us.

Radbox for iPad

When is the iPhone app coming?

Some time in January. We plan to upgrade the iPad app to a universal app that would work on both the devices, and we’re already working on it.

Fixing the app crashes

The most frustrating thing for a developer is a bug that shows up everywhere but the devices he owns! But we’re on top of the situation, we’ve isolated it and will roll out a fix soon. Apologies!

Video buffering for too long

This has been brought to our notice very recently, and although technically there’s no reason why the buffering should be related to something in our code, we’re investigating this.

Radbox 3

How to go to the original video (from where it was added)?

Click the video title in lazy mode, and it opens the original source.

That’s not all!

Thanks for all the complements and suggestions (real ones this time!). Feel free to reach out for anything. Meanwhile we hack away under our quilts in this Delhi chill. :)

This is a rehash of the newsletter that went out to our users yesterday.

Like they say, the third time’s a charm.

We’re proud to unveil Radbox 3 - all the awesomeness of the previous version, plus some more. While the interface has been almost completely redesigned, at its core it still aims to be the best way to watch videos online. The most notable changes are:

• Improved lazy mode for a full-browser-screen, autoplay experience.
• Ability to log in and import videos from Twitter.
• Quick-url - a short, handy link that turns any browser into your personal channel, streaming videos from your Radbox account. Although still a work-in-progress, we hope to make this work on every screen you own, from smartphone to television and everything in between.

Check it out now and let us know what you think.

Radbox is now available on the App Store

After months of development (and rework), Radbox is finally available for all you iPad owners out there.

You will be surprised to learn that it is not entirely based on the application you’re familiar with so far. At the heart of the iPad app is the concept that you can select how long you want your viewing session to last and hit play. This means you can snack on without smudging your screen, or your kid can watch cartoons while you get on with your chores.

Here’s what some people are saying (or not)

“Researching classified videos was never easier!” — Julian Assange, Wikileaks

“Now I can fight crime without distraction! I can just batmark videos at night and watch them during the day.” — Batman/Bruce Wayne

“This changes everything. Again.” — Apple

Check it out on the App Store to learn about all the things you can (and cannot) do with this app, and to download it (yes, it is free).

To get in touch for any feedback, ideas, bugs or hugs, simply send us an email or give us a shout on Twitter or Facebook.

Here’s a rundown on things that have changed in Radbox 3:

• Completely redesigned interface, including the lazy mode.
• Integration with Twitter and Facebook for login as well as automagical import of videos.
• Easier sharing of lists.
• Introducing the quick-url: a short, easy link that converts any browser into an autoplaying stream of your Radbox videos.
• All new Radbox app for iPad.