Installation  Expand All | Collapse All

What are the system requirements?

System requirements for Windows and Mac users include:

Windows:

• OS requirements:Windows XP SP2 +, Vista™ or Windows 7™
• Other Microsoft requirements: .Net 3.5™ SP1, Sync services (included in installer)
• Browser requirements: Internet Explorer™ (7 or 8)
• An available USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 port (USB 1.1 is compatible with USB 2.0)
• Internet connection (for LifeStudio feature updates)

Mac:

• OS requirements: Mac 10.5™ or newer
• Browser requirements: Safari 3, 4 or 5
• An available USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 port (USB 1.1 is compatible with USB 2.0)
• Internet connection (for LifeStudio™ feature updates and several key features of LifeStudio)
• Any model with an Intel chip will work. PPC Macs are not supported.

I do not want to install the LifeStudio software. How can I remove or hide the software launcher? It shows up every time I plug in the drive?

The Hitachi LifeStudio software is not removable. When a user plugs in the drive, the LifeStudio launcher will automatically appear and prompt you to install the software. To stop the launcher from appearing, you must install the LifeStudio software and then turn it off the virtual CD through the LifeStudio application.

If I can’t remove the software, how much storage space is it taking up?

The LifeStudio software only takes up 400MB of storage space on the drive.

Is the LifeStudio drive compatible with Mac’s Time Capsule and Time Machine?

Yes the LifeStudio drive is compatible with Mac’s Time Capsule and Time Machine.

How do I install the LifeStudio drive in Windows or Mac?

You can install LifeStudio by connecting your Hitachi LifeStudio External Hard Drive to your PC or Mac with a USB cable (provided with the hard drive). Once the “Getting Started” flash program has finished running, click on the Install LifeStudio button.

If you choose not to install LifeStudio at this time, you can install it later by performing the following steps:

On a PC

1. Launch the LifeStudio Software virtual CD (the file name is LS-SOFTWARE) on your Hitachi removable hard drive or disconnect the hard drive and reconnect it to launch the virtual CD.
2. Select Start LifeStudio Now and click OK.
3. Click Install LifeStudio.
4. Click Run.
5. Click Accept to accept the License Agreement.
6. Click Install to initiate the installation.
7. Click Next to continue.
8. Click Finish when installation is complete.

On a Mac

1. Launch the LifeStudio Software virtual CD on your Hitachi removable hard drive or disconnect the hard drive and reconnect it to launch the virtual CD.
2. Click Continue at the welcome window.
3. Select your computer hard drive and click Continue.
4. Click Install.
5. Enter your system password and click OK.

How do I install the LifeStudio drive on my Mac OS 10 or higher?

Connect the power supply and USB cable to the drive and then to your Mac’s USB port. This will mount three icons on your desktop one for your LifeStudio Hard Drive, one for your Virtual CD (LifeStudio software), and if applicable your key (Plus drives only). Click on the LifeStudio Software icon and then the Getting Started with LifeStudio flash icon.

If I format my drive will I lose my LifeStudio software?

NO. The LifeStudio software is part of the firmware on the drive, so it can always be accessed as an icon on your Windows or Mac system. Warning: However, formatting will erase all data on the drive.

If I format my LifeStudio drive for my Mac only will it still work in Windows?

If you format your drive for a Mac, the drive will not be able to be accessed in Windows.

If I format my drive for Windows in NTFS only will my Mac see the drive?

Yes, however you will only be able to read from the drive not write to the drive.

If my drive is formatted in MS-DOS / FAT32, will my Windows / Mac system see the drive?

Yes, formatted in MS-DOS/FAT32, the drive will be accessible by both platforms.

Why can’t I copy a file over 4GB to my LifeStudio drive?

The LifeStudio drive is formatted FAT 32 for cross platform use (Mac and PC). FAT32 has a file size limitation of no greater than 4GB per file.

Where can I get access to my LifeStudio drive and the LifeStudio key without using the LifeStudio software?

On a Windows computer the LifeStudio drive, key and virtual CD can be found in My Computer. On a Mac, the drives will be mounted and the LifeStudio icons will appear on the right hand side of your desktop.

What Social Media is supported by LifeStudio?

LifeStudio supports the following social media for publishing your photos and videos.

• Facebook
• Flickr (Photos only)
• Picasa (Photos only)

How Tos  Expand All | Collapse All

How will I know if I have a software update?

When there is a new software update, customers will be automatically notified within the LifeStudio application. Users are encouraged to install all updates as soon as possible, as it will contain new enhancements and features for the application. When a new software version is available a pop-up window will appear for you to either install now or remind me later.

How to properly attach the USB key

The flash memory key supplied with your LifeStudio Plus product attaches quickly and easily when oriented properly as shown here. The magnetic latch design will properly seat the flash key on the LifeStudio Plus unit with no application of force. If you have to apply force to the key to attach it to the LifeStudio Plus unit, then you have the flash key upside down. This can damage the flash key if it is not removed immediately. If left upside down on the unit it will permanently damage the flash key and cause the flash key to get hot and possibly deform. If you have questions or concerns, please contact Hitachi GST customer support at http://www.hitachigst.com/support/contact-support/ or refer to information on our support website at http://www.lifestudio.com/support/.

Do you offer any other key capacities besides 4GB?

Both the LifeStudio Desk Plus and LifeStudio Mobile Plus drives ship with a 4GB USB key. If you would like a higher capacity, the USB key is based on micro SD technology and is consumer upgradeable. Just like a camera flash card, you simply remove the micro SD card and replace it with a new one. Micro SD cards are available in most consumer electronics stores and come in capacities up to 32GB.

How to format your LifeStudio drive to HFS (Mac)?

All data on the external hard drive will be destroyed if you follow these instructions. If you wish to keep the information that is currently on the external hard drive, you will need to copy the contents of the external hard drive to another location before proceeding.

Follow these steps to format your drive:

1. Connect and power the drive
2. Open MacHD on your desktop
3. Open Applications
4. Open Utilities
5. Open Disk Utility
6. On the left you should see the hard drive listed. It should show the drive size with a second indented line beneath it that shows the volume of the drive.
7. Click "Erase" at the top of the screen.
8. Select Mac OS Extended (Journaled) for the volume format option.
9. Change the name of the drive if desired.
10. Click "Erase" at the bottom of the screen. You will receive a warning and will need to click "Erase" again.

The process should complete in less than 2 minutes and then the drive will be ready for use.

How to format your LifeStudio drive for a PC?

If you expect to have files greater than 4GB you will need to change your drive format to NTFS. Microsoft provides a utility called Convert which allows you to change the format to NTFS with your files in place. You can find instructions for Convert at this link: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb456984.aspx

If you would rather re-format your external drive, proceed as described below.

All data on the external hard drive will be destroyed if you follow these instructions. If you wish to keep the information that is currently on the external hard drive, you will need to copy the contents of the external hard drive to another location before proceeding.

Follow these steps to format your drive:

1. To remove the existing disk partition, right click on My Computer (Computer for Vista) and select Manage.
2. On the next screen select Disk Management.
3. Find the listing for the external hard drive in the lower middle portion of the window.
4. Right-click on the box to the right of the drive listing (Disk X) and select Delete Partition.
5. A message will ask you to confirm that "All data will be lost." Be sure you wish to do this. If so, then click on Yes.
6. Once complete, the box will show "Unallocated".
7. To create a new partition, right-click on My Computer (Computer for Vista) and select Manage.
8. On the next screen select Disk Management.
9. Find the listing for the external hard drive in the lower middle portion of the window.
10. Right-click on the box to the right of the drive listing (Disk X) and select New Partition.
11. Accept all of the default parameters.
12. The formatting will start and will be busy until complete. You can monitor the progress in Disk Management.

Once the formatting is complete, the external hard drive is ready for use.

How to format your LifeStudio drive so that it is supported on Mac and PC?

Only FAT32 format is supported by both Mac and PC. The drive comes pre-formated as FAT32, but if you have changed its format you can reformat it back to FAT32 as described below.

FAT32 has only a few limitations. Those limitations include the following: All individual files must be smaller than 4GB in size to be able to be copied to this drive, and all file names must follow the Windows naming convention. That is, you can only use the letters and characters that are acceptable when creating Windows files. Apple/Mac allow for some extra characters when creating file names but these extra characters in the file names will not work with FAT32.

All data on the external hard drive will be destroyed if you follow these instructions. If you wish to keep the information that is currently on the external hard drive, you will need to copy the contents of the external hard drive to another location before proceeding.

Follow these steps to format your drive:

1. On your Mac, connect and power the drive
2. Open MacHD on your desktop
3. Open Applications
4. Open Utilities
5. Open Disk Utility
6. On the left you should see the hard drive listed. It should show the drive size with a second indented line beneath it that shows the volume of the drive.
7. Click "Erase" at the top of the screen.
8. Select MSDOS(FAT) File System for the volume format option.
9. Change the name of the drive if desired.
10. Click "Erase" at the bottom of the screen. You will get a warning and will need to click "Erase" again.

The process should complete in less than 2 minutes and then the drive will be ready for use.

The drive will be formatted as FAT32 when completed.

How do I use the USB Flash Key to sync files?

From within the sync preferences menu add the folders you’d like to sync the LifeStudio USB key that comes with your LifeStudio Plus external hard drive. Turn the slider to “ON” to sync files from your computer or other drive(s) attached to your computer to the LifeStudio USB key.

“Import new files and folders to MyComputer” is pre-selected to enable you to import new files and folders from the LifeStudio USB key to your computer or other drive(s) attached to your computer. When you add new files to the LifeStudio USB key be sure to place them in the folders located within the “LifeStudio Sync” folder, that way the new files and folders will sync back to your computer or other drive(s) attached to your computer.

Check “Import changes from MyKey to MyComputer” to import changes to your files on the LifeStudio USB key back to your computer or other drive(s) attached to your computer. When you make changes to files be sure to save the modified files to the folders located within the “LifeStudio Sync” folder on the LifeStudio USB key, that way the changes will sync back to your computer or other drive(s) attached to your computer.

Are local files on my computer private and secure?

Hitachi and Cooliris take the privacy of our users very seriously. Files displayed using the MyLife channel are completely private, viewable, and stored only on your computer, and are not public in any way. Any files you choose to share using your favorite sites such as Facebook, Flickr, and Picasa are available to your friends and family with the permissions you have selected on each of those websites.

How to Authorize LifeStudio Software to access your websites?

If you select a website from MySocial, LifeStudio will prompt you for authorization to the selected website if you have not already provided it.

Authorizing LifeStudio Software to access Facebook

1. Select Facebook from the MySocial menu.
2. Enter your Facebook password and click the Connect button.

Authorizing LifeStudio Software to access Flickr

1. Select Flickr from the MySocial menu.
2. Click Authorize on the dialog box. LifeStudio opens a browser window for you to log into Flickr.
3. Log into Flickr, click the OK, I'll authorize it button, and close your browser window.
4. Return to LifeStudio. Click the Complete Authorization button.

Authorizing LifeStudio Software to access Picasa

1. Select Picasa from the MySocial menu. You will be asked to enter your Picasa login information.
2. Enter your Picasa user name and password and click Authenticate.

How do I customize my LifeStudio Software viewing experience?

Click the Preferences button in the lower right of the LifeStudio window. Select the Cooliris tab. These preferences enable you to:

• Change your wall settings to allow zooming (default), invert mouse scrolling, set LifeStudio to launch to full screen viewing upon startup, and to link into a new tab (default).
• Change your wall angle, wall scroll speed, and the number of rows in your wall.
• Set the background image by pointing to a URL or file.
• Change the duration of each slide for the slideshow feature.

Click Save Settings after you have made changes. Click Restore Defaults to return to the original settings.

How to Mark favorites?

Click Mark as favorite to mark a channel as a favorite and display it on your Favorites wall. If you have not yet configured LifeStudio for favorites, you must create an account. A dialog box opens that requests account information, including your name, e-mail address, and password. After you provide this information, you can log into your account and your wall will appear in the channels list.

You can view all favorites, except pages from MyLife and MySocial, from any PC or Mac installed with LifeStudio or Cooliris by logging into your account.

To unmark a favorite click the Unmark as favorite icon (formerly Mark as favorite).

How do I Save images?

LifeStudio does not provide a built-in save function. You can, however, jump to the corresponding folder of an image and use your browser's native save feature. Click the Open file in browser icon that appears after you have selected a photo or video and then save it from your browser. Alternatively, you can mark a photo or video as a favorite or bookmark a wall and then return later to save the photo or video.

How to Use LifeStudio Software?

Launching LifeStudio Software:

On a PC: Double click the LifeStudio icon on your desktop or click Start > All Programs > Hitachi > LifeStudio > LifeStudio.

On a Mac: Open your Applications folder and double click LifeStudio.

Browsing your media with LifeStudio Software:

LifeStudio enables you to find, view, and share your media using an infinite 3D wall. The 3D wall displays thumbnails of your media.

There are two ways you can browse content with LifeStudio:

1. Scroll by "drag clicking" the space between the thumbnail images. Click any space between the thumbnail images and with your mouse button held down, move your mouse right to left or left to right to scroll through the images on your wall.
2. Use the blue Scroll the wall bar at the bottom of the LifeStudio Software screen to browse through your thumbnail images.

Viewing a larger image:

Click a thumbnail to view a larger version of the image. To return to the 3D wall view, click on any of the space between the thumbnails.

Using the slideshow view:

Double click any image to open the slideshow view. Alternatively, click the Slideshow button in the lower right corner of the screen. The slideshow controls appear in the lower left corner of the LifeStudio window. Use the controls to start, stop, and pause a slideshow or view the previous and next images in the slideshow.

To exit a slideshow, double click the current image or anywhere outside the image, or click a different selection in the LifeStudio Channels menu.

Viewing LifeStudio Software in full screen mode:

To view LifeStudio in full screen mode, click the Maximize button in the lower right corner of the LifeStudio window. To exit full-screen mode, click the Restore button (formerly the Maximize button) or the Escape key. You can make full screen your default view by selecting Launch to Full Screen in the Preferences window.

Using the Channels menu:

The LifeStudio Channels menu includes the following:

1. Home
2. MyLife
3. MySocial
4. Featured
5. Favorites
6. Television
7. Movies
8. Music
9. Fun and Games
10. Shopping

Home returns you to the starting screen. MyLife displays media on your computer and any attached USB storage devices. MySocial links you to several popular websites where you can share your media with your friends and family. Featured provides region-specific content including photos and videos. The Television, Movies, Music, and Fun and Games links provide access to entertainment websites such as CBS, Hulu, and many more. Shopping provides links to featured commercial websites such as Amazon.com. Additional content will be made available to the Channels menu over time.

How to Use MyLife?

Viewing photos

1. Select MyLife from the Channels menu and select Photos. Photos are arranged by year and month.
2. Select the photo you want to view to open a larger thumbnail image.
3. Click the Go to folder icon in the lower right corner of the thumbnail to open the folder where the photo is stored on your computer.

Viewing videos

1. Select MyLife from the Channels menu and select Videos. Videos are arranged by year and month.
2. Select the video you want to view to open a larger thumbnail image.
3. Double click a video to play it in its native application (for example, a .wmv file will open in Windows Media Player and a .mov file will open in Quicktime).
4. Click the Go to folder icon in the lower right corner of the thumbnail to open the folder where the movie is stored on your computer.

Playing music

1. Select MyLife from the Channels menu and select Music.
2. Click Albums or Artists from the Music menu to arrange your music by album or artist.
3. Click an album cover to display a larger thumbnail image. Double click an album cover to open the slideshow view. (If some of your album artwork is not displayed properly, launch iTunes and select Advanced > Get Album Artwork.)
4. Click the large thumbnail image of the album cover to open the LifeStudio music player. Use the controls to play, rewind, fast forward, and pause a song. You can also set the volume and loop the song using the controls.
5. Click the Go to folder icon in the lower right corner of an image to open the folder on your computer that contains the song.

Viewing documents

1. Select MyLife from the Channels menu and select Documents. Your documents are arranged by year and month. On Windows systems, a document is represented in LifeStudio by the document type logo. On Macintosh systems, a document is represented by a thumbnail of the first page of the document.
2. Click a document thumbnail to view a larger image.
3. Double click a document thumbnail to open the document in its native application (for example, a .doc file will open in Microsoft Word, a PDF will open in Adobe Reader).
4. You can also Go to folder icon at the bottom right of the thumbnail to open the folder or directory in which the document is stored on your computer.

Sharing photos with your friends

Click MyLife in the Channels menu and select the photos you want to share.

Browse to a photo or video you want to share and click its thumbnail image. Click the desired website where you want to share your photo or video. For example, select the Photos menu, click an image and then click the Facebook icon displayed on the lower right corner of the image. Click Publish to publish the photo to your Facebook page.

See Supported websites for a list of websites supported by LifeStudio.

Adding additional categories to MyLife

You can create your own folders under the MyLife menu. Any folders you create will appear under a tab called Folders.

1. Click the Preferences icon in the bottom right of the LifeStudio Software window.
2. Select the My Preferences tab and find the MyLife section.
3. Click Add Folder.
4. Select any folder on your computer and click Open (Mac) or OK (PC). LifeStudio adds your folder to the Folders tab.

How to Use MySocial?

Viewing and commenting on a friend's photos

You can view and comment on your friends' photos and videos on any of the supported websites (see Supported websites).

1. Select MySocial from the Channels menu.
2. Select the desired website (for example, Facebook).
3. Select My Friends and click the desired friend's name from the wall. Your friend's photo albums and videos will be displayed in LifeStudio.
4. Click on a thumbnail to open the desired album.
5. Click the View Photos icon. This opens the album so you can view all its photos.
6. Click the Comment icon to view comments that people have made (any MySocial website) or to add a comment to your friend's photo or video (Facebook only).

How do I remove websites from MySocial?

1. Click the Preferences icon at the bottom right of the LifeStudio window.
2. Click the My Preferences tab and find the MySocial section.
3. Select or deselect the websites that you want to appear in the MySocial menu list. The websites are selected when they have a blue outline around them. The websites are deselected when they have no outline around them. Make any changes and click Save Settings.
4. Close the Preferences window.

How do I log out of my social websites using MySocial?

1. Click the Preferences icon at the bottom right of the LifeStudio window.
2. Click the My Preferences tab and find the MySocial section.
3. Click the Log Out link below the desired website(s).

Any websites you log out of will still appear in the MySocial menu unless you deselect them in the My Preferences window. To deselect a website, click its corresponding icon so that its blue outline disappears.

To log back into a website, you must click the website's link in the MySocial menu. You will be prompted for your authorization information.

Using the search engine

Use the LifeStudio search engine to search for media in the channel you have selected. For example, if you are in the Television channel, the search engine will find television shows in that channel.

Click the search engine box. Select which site you want to search from the drop down list that appears. Enter a search term and press Enter. The search engine displays search results as thumbnail images in the LifeStudio 3D wall.

Does LifeStudio filter search results?

Results come directly from the search engine you use. When you use the LifeStudio search engine box, LifeStudio filters out small images to ensure you get the best viewing experience. When you launch LifeStudio directly from a supported site, such as Google Images, LifeStudio does not filter the results.

What is LifeStudio Software?

LifeStudio Software is a standalone application and browser plug-in that enables you to view your photos, videos, music, and other documents on an infinite "3D wall." You can also share your photos and videos with friends at the click of your mouse.

Benefits of LifeStudio Software

As you collect photos, videos, music, and other documents over time, it can become difficult to manage your media collection. LifeStudio enables you to view, play, and share your media from one application.

The LifeStudio 3D wall eliminates the difficulty and frustration of sorting through your computer file system to find what you are looking for. In addition, LifeStudio enables you to connect with your friends over the most popular social and photo-sharing websites including Facebook, Flickr, and Picasa.

Which browsers and file types work with LifeStudio Software?

Supported browsers LifeStudio supports Firefox (PC, Mac, Linux), Internet Explorer, Safari (Mac), and Google Chrome (Windows). Supported file types

• Photos: jpg/jpeg, gif, tiff
• Videos: wmv, mov, m4v, mp4, swf, flv, avi
• Music: mp3, m4v, cdi, wma, wav
• Documents: doc, pdf, xls, ppt, txt

Troubleshooting  Expand All | Collapse All

I cannot access Facebook?

Hitachi LifeStudio works with Facebook through the Facebook Developer program. Facebook has recently upgraded their data model to provide users with greater transparency and control of their data. This Facebook change affects LifeStudio and other developers industry-wide who work with this API. We are currently working on a software update that will fix the issue as quickly as possible. We expect that this web-based software update will be sent to LifeStudio customers by mid August.

Why are my Intro video’s not present in the Home Channel bar?

This has to do with the Adobe flash player. To fix this issue is to load Adobe Flash Ver. 9. We are currently working on a software update that will allow Adobe Flash 10.0 to be run. We expect that this web-based software update will be sent to LifeStudio customers as quickly as possible.

Life studio fails to load completely and gives a blank screen.

This issue is most likely a .NETframework issue. This happens on pre-vista OS PC’s. You will have to manually update the .NETframework to the latest version 4. To do this, please visit the following Microsoft website link: http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=17851

Why am I receiving a "Backup Drive is Read-Only" message?

This message may occur on a Mac when the backup software has encountered a file that it's trying to backup but lacks “read privileges,” or there are specific administrative controls on the computer for that file or folder. PC users are not affected. The backup software confuses this with not being able to write to the destination drive and therefore displays the "Backup drive is read-only." This is not a correct backup message. The drive is not read-only and is functioning properly. This message may also appear if the drive is unplugged during a backup as the Mac OS reports back a false "write permissions" error when the destination volume goes away during a long write operation.

As mentioned above, we will be pushing out a software update that will treat these “no read privilege”” or “admin control” controlled files or folders as a simple backup “exception” to the backup rather than a hard error. In other words, the backup will indicate that the backup was successful, but encountered some “exceptions” for specific read privileged or administrative controlled files and folders. To see those exceptions, a user can click on the “exception” link and inspect the list of exceptions.

Why am I receiving a "No Internet Connection" message when using MyLife?

This is a known issue and should not appear when accessing the desktop app and exploring local content through MyLife. A fix is already in place, and will be pushed out to users via the LifeStudio software updater by the end of July. In the meantime, to resolve this issue, simply close this message.

Why do my Icons for my LifeStudio hard drive and flash drive show up as "No Name" on my Mac?

The drive comes cross platform formatted for Mac and PC. This causes the no name. Simply click on no name and give the drive whatever name you choose.

What if my computer crashes? How can I recover my data?

Computers only have a lifespan of approximately five years. If you have Hitachi Ultimate Backup, recovering your data is simple. Just access your files from our website and you can drag them to the desktop, waiting until the transfer is complete. You can retrieve all your files, any time you want, in a simple manner.

Why isn’t my Key showing in My Computer or an icon on my Mac?

There may be a connection problem between the KEY and your LifeStudio HD. Simply detach and re-attach your key.