Discovery Digital Networks
Revision3 Studios is a company that produces and distributes technology-related videozines over the Internet. The company has released two videozines; thebroken and Systm. They also host a video version of the podcast Diggnation, which is co-hosted by Revision3 Studios' executive producer Kevin Rose.
The company was formed in San Francisco, California by Kevin Rose and Dan Huard, who at the time were employees of the television network TechTV. They first released thebroken, a videozine related to computer hacking. After TechTV merged with G4 and lost most of its technology-related programming, Rose and Huard were inspired to create a new series, Systm, which is geared toward “the common geek”.
The company is made up of:
- Jay Adelson (CEO, chairman)
- Kevin Rose (executive producer, host)
- Dan Huard (producer, host)
- Keith Harrison (director, cameraman, editor)
- Ron Gorodetzky (director of technology)
Rose left his job as a host of the G4 series Attack of the Show (formerly The Screen Savers) on May 27, 2005 to work full time for Revision3 Studios.
thebroken
- Main article: thebroken
thebroken is an online videozine, focusing on software cracking, computer intrusion, and other "questionable activities". It is hosted by Kevin Rose and Dan Huard, with Ramzi as a regular comical feature, and geared toward anyone interested in computer security. Each twenty to thirty-minute episode focuses on several subjects, and is available solely online in DivX format. The hosts request that you share the show over peer-to-peer networks, such as Kazaa or BitTorrent, as a means of distribution.
According to its introduction, thebroken is "a little shady, a little underground." It features advice on breaking wireless encryption, cracking windows passwords, and modding gaming consoles such as the Xbox, PlayStation 2, and GameCube. The show also demonstrates social engineering and various methods of piracy. The third episode featured an interview with Kevin Mitnick about his time spent in prison for computer crimes.
The show has been met with many criticisms by technology gurus on the Internet who believe it to be a training portal for "script kiddies".
Systm
Systm is a videozine geared toward “the common geek”, also hosted by Rose and Huard. Each 10-15 minute episode focuses on a single topic. In the first episode, the hosts designed and built a portable “war-spying box” to intercept and view signals from unencrypted wireless X10 cameras. They have also shown how to build a TiVo-like device using the open source program MythTV.
Systm is distributed over BitTorrent in a variety of formats, including XviD, Windows Media Video, H.264, and Ogg Theora.
Diggnation
- Main article: Diggnation
Diggnation is a weekly podcast hosted by Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht. Its main purpose is to discuss the top stories from Digg, the social bookmarking website developed by Rose. Revision3 Studios also hosts video versions of the podcasts, also known as videocasts.