Why Analog Matters
In reply to a thread on CNet about Record Store Day, I laid out a long reply to the idea that buying vinyl these days is pointless, especially if the artist records digitally. The poster implied that the CD format was the gold standard and that prompted my reply. It was too long for their system so here's the whole thing:
The issue with the cd format is not that it's digital, it's that it's 16bit/44k digital. This is not even close to the full analog sound as produced in nature. This number was chosen because it was all the data they could cram through the DAC's built in the late 1970's. The "CD format" as you know it is the best digital audio format that computers (actually IC's) could handle 32 years ago. Anything else a 32 year old computer is "good enough" for these days?
So why do most people think CD is actually the top standard, and that mp3 is "good enough"? Brilliant engineering, understanding commerce, and counting on people's horrible (and often damaged) ears. Let me explain:
The Day I Cut The Cord
I hate TV. I watch too much TV. How much? Anything more than an hour a day equals too much. I can get a weeks worth of sitting around done in one lazy night in front of the the TV. I always said If I just wrote/played music or worked on my other projects instead of watching the boob tube then Hello Productivity!
Plus nowadays, I just turn off the TV to end up on Netflix, Hulu, or watching a DVD for another couple hours. So I've finally done something I've wanted to do for years -- yes, today the man is coming to shut OFF my cable. It's called "capping the line" according to my friendly cable company rep, who's voice dropped to a silent defeat when I told him I want to keep my broadband and get rid of the cable package. He must have known from my cheap package and the tone of my voice that I wasn't going to be talked out of it.
I think I've lived with cable about 29 of the past 30 years so it will be an adjustment for sure. I'll have to report back after a few months. But for now, today is the big day, February 2011, goodbye Pawn Stars. Goodbye Top Chef. Goodbye Operacion Repo. Goodbye Sportscenter. Goodbye Daily Show and Colbert. Goodbye Chelsea Lately. Goodbye Tosh.O. Goodbye anything else that I can't find (or won't bother to watch) on the internet.
If I can survive this cold-turkey I'll probably end up with Apple TV and an iPad sharing more media than ever before to every room in my house. But at least it will be things selected by me, and my preferred* 'promotional messages' will be selected by me also.
*yeah right
Web Radio Done Right
There's more than a few streaming music services out there: (Pandora, Napster, Rhapsody, Last.fm, Spotify... just to name a few). I myself spent 4 years programming a collection of Shoutcast/Live365 stations in the late 90's so I've been a fan and critic of internet radio since it started.
I recommend you check out the free Jango Radio - it's twist on the idea is that Jango inserts independent artists into the playlist (about 10% indie). The unsigned artists usually fit in the mix and you are able to vote on and friend/follow the artist if you enjoy them, or skip to the next track if not. Overall their playlists and selection is strong and I usually enjoy listening more than the other services.
Some services like Pandora won't let you skip too often, or load up the stream with commercials on every click. Jango does insert A/V commercials in the player but the intrusion is minimal. The player window provides the artist bio, pictures, links to lyrics, store links, make a ringtone, etc.. All good stuff, not tacky (at least from my mac). Your profile allows you to add all the social networking stuff, create your own 'stations', and otherwise try to make musical connections. Cons include no mobile client (yet) and the player - being flash - occasionally hangs, but nothing a quick reload can't fix.
Interested in checking it out? My username is Ezrazmus and I have 4 stations:
- WFNK RADIO - AGAIN SPINNING! the finest funk, soul, rock, hip-hop, reggae and more. Do it fluid.
- 2MERICAN DREAMS - Artist favorites from the 2MERICA crew. Hear our influences and inspirations.
- The Flux-adel Sound - Presenting progressive, sonically interesting, quirky, emotional music, mostly rock but wanders around.
- SONGWRITING MASTERS - The greatest songs, melodies, and artists, any genre, any year. It's the song!
Old School!
If you get hooked up over at Jango friend me, cuz then you can do "shout-outs" to my player and leave messages and all that stuff.
WFNK RADIO Lives!!
You web old schoolers might remember a set of streaming radio stations I used to program about 10 years ago. There was the infamous P.Addict Radio playing all rarities from the P-Funk mob, Newzilla Radio that played unsigned funky stuff, and the flagship station WFNK RADIO that did a little bit of everything. It was a good listen and lots of fun managing those streams but they died out eventually.
I'm happy to announce that I just brought WFNK RADIO back in a new form, this time on Jango. It's free, sounds good, works in most browsers, doesn't leak memory, and if you sign up for an account you get all sorts of social-media features to add to your listening experience. Same things as before just 10 years of web advancement makes it that much better.
Tune in right here: play WFNK Radio. Old-school funk and soul, newer sounds, and the occasional rock track thrown in to keep the mix going... check out the new WFNK Radio! If you haven't tried streaming radio like Jango and Pandora lately give it a shot, it's come a long way. I find Pandora's library and playlists to be lacking, but Jango let's you really build a killer station.
-Ez
A Nightmare From The Recent Past
New 2MERICA video to scare and confound you. This track was one of our first and it's cool to see a video finally released for it:
Enjoy, but remember what that Green Screen is doing to you.
Touching on the Pad
The ipad is gonna be everywhere in 1-2 years. All those people saying "how could I replace my laptop with that" are lying about how much work they do. Most people I know spend at least 75% of their time in front of a computer doing exactly what the ipad is made for - consuming/sorting their media, browsing the web, and reading or composing short text blurbs like IM, email, and internet postings. I personally produce music and develop software - 2 things iPad v1 can't do. But that doesn't mean everything else I do with my mac can't be more conveniently done wherever I want with the pad. And look at iPod/iPhone as a model -- you know iPad v3 will add the missing features of earlier models (like a camera, the phone app, hulu, an outlook client, and theater sound to list a few).
Think work. Think any job that doesn't keep you in a cubicle all day. Think about a private app store for an enterprise, stocking only their approved apps. Think about your work database, your POS system, your customer list, etc. being on a pad being carried around the office or around the neighborhood/route. Ever walk with a laptop or a netbook? It's the UPS brown-tablet for the rest of us, doing things way more exciting than collecting our signature.
Think about presentations without a $1k projector. Ever pass a laptop around a large room or conference table so everyone can see up close? Yeah right. The pad will be there making laptops look like corded phones. Oh it's so sensitive looking with that thin screen, better not get too close or lean near it! I love my macbook pro, but clamshells have never been cool unless you are baking them.
Oh yeah phones... yeah, think of all those people grabbing their iphone to do everything. Can't get that damn thing out of their hands! Yes the pad is like a larger iPhone. Think about that, it's not an insult. The only real thing hindering the iphone now is screen space. So the iPhone goes back to pocket-mobile only, and the iPad becomes local-mobile. You are not gonna write or browse on an iPhone if an iPad is nearby, but to me crouching in front of a laptop on a table is starting to remind me of getting up to change the channels.
I think security and deployment software will be needed on the iPad, and I'd consider investing in carrying cases, handles, sterile stylus' and cleaning products. There's a ways to go, but just like the iPhone, entrepreneurs should lead the way with software and hardware to bring the 21st century to us (finally).
But it will be everywhere, and like the iPhone it will take other companies 2 years to even come close to it. I predict it being a complete lifestyle changer, like the web itself. Remember when people would try to live using the internet only? Same thing for the iPad -- it will do so much so easily we won't ever go back to before it.
FLUX RELEASE 2012
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