hetzel.net
  1. European Commission VAT/MOSS Examples

    The new year rolled around and brought new rules for VAT on digital goods. The rules are batshit crazy somewhat complicated and I won’t even try to summarize them and add more confusion. But I will mirror this version…
  2. Podcasting Live to Tape

    tl;dr: Don’t use Skype, don’t do double-enders, do it like a live radio show. In 2004, Adam Curry laments on his second Daily Source Code that Mac software for doing podcasts sucks (and the first show was recorded in…
  3. Is This Your Card?! Contactless Payments in Germany

    Apple Pay seems to be off to a successful start in the US. NFC is gradually being added to new POS terminals in Germany, and banks here have started issuing cards with integrated NFC chips. I hadn't really believed it…
  4. Transforming Media

    Today at the Transforming Media conference in Nuremberg, I’m presenting the business model behind Bits und so . Plus makes you happy and all that. I’m skipping Keynote and relying entirely on Yosemite features for the…
  5. HTTP Live Streaming with Knive, Docker, and DigitalOcean

    We’re using a custom version of the Knive Streaming Server (“It cuts, live”) to stream video off a Blackmagic ATEM TV Studio video switcher (using atemclient ) to iOS and Mac clients with HTTP Live Streaming. Other…
  6. Today at 6 PM: Bits und so #400 Live in Munich

    #bus300: Rail strike #bus350: Main rail line closed #bus400: Rail strike If the trains or something else keep you from getting to Munich, you can watch all the event videos with an online ticket . We’ll try to stream…
  7. App Store App Previews

    App Previews aka “PurpleVideo” aka App Trailers finally arrived on the iOS 8 App Store. While Google Play simply leverages YouTube’s infrastructure for uploading and delivering video, Apple uses their own HTTP Live…
  8. Bits und so #400 Live in Munich: Tickets on Sale

    We’re putting on another live show at the Gasteig in Munich on October 18! Tickets have been on sale through München Ticket since the weekend. I’d love to meet all of you in person! You’ll find the latest information…
  9. Neuer Podcast: Die Sprechkabine

    The working title was “und.so”. I announced the show at #bus300 two years ago, and we recorded the first pilot episodes back in 2011. The icon is even more retro now than it was then. And now it’s finally happening: the…
  10. Nobody Is Being Switched

    A little over a year ago, Telekom launched its throttling experiment on fixed-line connections—the same one that works so wonderfully on mobile. Back then, I spoke on DRadio Wissen with Philipp Blank, Telekom’s…
  11. iOS Backups & Device Migration

    Or: I got a new iPhone. Where are my passwords? tl;dr: When moving to a new device, use an encrypted iTunes backup to transfer as much of your keychain as possible to the new device. Some third party apps may exclude…
  12. iOS 8 Folder Structure

    The iOS 8 Release Notes state The file system layout of app containers has changed on disk. Rather than relying on hard-coded directory structure, use the NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains function or the…
  13. Broadband in London

    I was in London for the last few days to claim my Kickstarter reward from Zach Braff’s “Wish I Was Here”. The film turned out well, and I can put “film producer” on my business card. Well done, Mr. Braff. I also came…
  14. DRadio Wissen from IFA

    I dropped by DRadio Wissen on Saturday to join Daniel Fiene and Herr Pähler. We talked about IFA and the state of things ahead of Apple’s September 9 event.…
  15. Why Netflix Will Win

    Maybe the initial selection is poor. Maybe Sky Snap undercuts Netflix on price at launch. Maybe the commercial TV channels will wake up, or Amazon Germany will do something with Prime. None of that matters. Netflix has…
  16. SIMSme

    The German Post Office’s new messenger supposedly talks only to German servers and is TÜV-certified, therefore “secure”. Let’s see who the app actually talks to. On first launch, it connects to server 194.42.93.243.…
  17. Fidor Bank Corporate Mastercard

    Starting a limited liability company in Germany brings an unsuspecting founder a mountain of paperwork. On top of the notary’s penalty fees, the accounting requirements force aspiring entrepreneurs into the hands of…
  18. Auphonic Freemium at Last

    Auphonic , the jack-of-all-trades Pezibär of audio levelling software from Georg Holzmann and co., announced its pricing model today. Until now, the web service was free and the desktop client cost a one-time licence…
  19. DHL Parcel Box Lock

    I’m just saving this here. Just in case… you know. . @DHLPaket , is the RFID lock on the parcel box secure too? — Timo Hetzel (@timohetzel), May 12, 2014 @timohetzel Yes, it is. — DHL Paket (@DHLPaket), May 12, 2014…
  20. Germany’s Digital Highway

    This week I was invited to t3n magazine ’s #next14 in Berlin. I said this about our future: The digital economy can be blackmailed by network operators. The digital content we sell is throttled both on the server side…