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Frequently Asked Questions
Below is a list of questions we are frequently asked. If what you are looking for is not on this page, please try posting the question in our discussion forums, under the Site Problems/Suggestions forum. Do not email us using any of the email address(es) listed on any of these pages for support questions; we do NOT provide email support and it will most likely be ignored.
| Downloading |
| How to download from your site? |
Find the file you wish to download, the link should be listed above the pictures on the media page. DO NOT RIGHT CLICK and choose 'Save Target As', it will NOT WORK! Just click it normally and you will get a download window, unless you have Download Accelerator or GetRight or Gozilla or something else installed that might interfere, so disable those first. Also do not use IE's media bar feature to view the media file. Wait till it's done and then enjoy the audio/video! | |
Videos
| What is SVCD (.m2v)? |
SVCD are high quality, full-motion MPEG-2 video files along with up to 2 stereo audio tracks. MPEG-2 is the format also used in DVDs. Although it does take a while to download, the quality is certainly worth it. |
| How do you play the videos? |
Since all video files are encoded in SVCD MPEG-2 format, you must have a software DVD media player (DVD drive not required) to be able to play it. You can download the software DVD media player at any of the following sites: |
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| Audio |
| What is MP3? |
MP3s are digital audio files that have been shrunken down while still maintaining their original sound quality. Before there were MP3s, digital audio files took hours to download. But on a 56K modem, most MP3s can download in just a few minutes. MP3s are widely recognized as the most popular format for storing and listening to music on the web. |
| How to play MP3s? |
To play MP3 go download player at http://www.winamp.com. |
| Media Files |
| Can you get video/audio media of <insert contestant here> from <insert week here> and post them up on the site? |
If you don't already see it on our sites or on our forums, chances are that we won't be able to get it. We capture media directly when it airs on TV and we only have 2 chances to capture any media; once during the FOX east coast show and once for the west coast show. Once those two are over, chances of getting media for that week's show again will be very slim, unless FOX reairs the show. If you see something from the east coast show (like the Mustang commercial or the car wash clip) that you want us to get, you must submit your request almost as soon as you see it on TV so we can prepare to get it when it airs on the west coast. We normally only capture performances and judge's comments. |
| Where do you get your media files from? |
All media files featured on our site are created and captured exclusively by us, unless clearly noted otherwise. Unlike some other American Idol fansites, we do not simply take other people's media files and posting them on our website without giving proper credit. If we will be using media files from another website, we will first obtain permission then we will give proper credit. |
| I am a webmaster of another American Idol fansite, can I use/link your media files? |
Although we do not allow direct linking to our media files themselves, you're absolutely welcome to copy our media files on to your webservers and use them on your website. However, we do ask that the file contents (including ID3 tags) are left unmodified and to give us credit through a clickable link to the Neurox Media Network. Make sure the credit link is placed close or adjacent to links of our files on your site. Please also email us your website address at aidol@neurox.net so we can visit your site! |
| How come I see media files on other American Idol fansites that look/sound just like yours? |
There can be many reasons: |
- They captured it themselves off a similar TV source
- They downloaded it from a P2P program such as WinMX or Kazaa
- They downloaded it off our website and re-encoded it to avoid giving us credit
- They downloaded it off our website and made no modifications
If they made no modifications to the media files, then it's easiest verify as one of ours. All of our MP3s generally come with a link to one of our websites in the 'Comment' or 'URL' section. You may view this in Winamp by right-clicking the main window and selecting 'View file info'. Most of our more recent videos are all watermarked with our NX logo. A watermark similar to below is shown at the top right hand corner of the screen.
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| System Specs |
| What type of hardware are used for capping & encoding? |
- CPU Processor: Pentium 4 2.53b
- Motherboard: ABIT IT7
- RAM: 512MB DDR PC3200 Corsair XMS RAM
- System Harddrive: 2x120GB Western Digital SE 7200RPM
- Capture Harddrive: 80GB Maxtor 7200RPM
- Video Card (Capture Card): Asus V8200 T2 Deluxe
- Source: DirecTV
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| What type of software are used for capping & encoding? |
- Source Feed: VirtualDub
- Audio Software: SoundForge
- Encoding Software: TMPGENC
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| Hosting Server |
| How are you guys hosting all these high quality videos/audios? |
We have two servers in use for our website and our media content. Each one of these servers are located in a state-of-the-art datacenter. Below is a list of the server's specs. |
- Server #1 (ET.NEUROX.NET) - Web Server
- CPU Processor: Pentium 4 2.26GHz
- RAM: 512MB DDRAM
- Harddrive: 30GB HD 7200rpm and 20GB HD 7200rpm
- Network: UUNET, AT&T, Genuity, Internap, Qwest, and Cogent Communications
- Bandwidth: Up to 100mbps
- Location: Dallas, Texas
- Server #2 (ODO.NEUROX.NET) - Content Server
- CPU Processor: Pentium 4 2.4GHz
- RAM: 512MB SDRAM
- Harddrive: 80GB 7200rpm HD
- Network: Yipes
- Bandwidth: Up to 100mbps
- Location: Chicago, Illinois
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