Blog Ranger

The Gonzales Grill

Link: Crooks and Liars » “What Do You Know?.
Interesting video, clearly being called to testify before Congress doesn't meant that you actually have to say anything.  Good for Waters breaking it down to the basics "What Do You Know".

Too bad none of this coverage will make it to a major news nightly.

Loving the Airport Express Music Streaming Capability

One of the classic drawbacks to listening to music in iTunes in the past has been that you HAD to listen to the music on a computer or iPod. While both of these have great mobility features they lack the true audiophile experience of having your "good speakers" and receiver deal with the music. On top of that, why not buy CDs and rip them to mp3 so you can play them at home, as opposed to buying mp3 that are difficult to play on home stereo equipment?

Apple decided to step up to this challenge and built one of there new Airport devices, the Airport Express to address this challenge. The Airport Express is basically a basestation that not only provides 802.11 capability and will act as a wireless bridge for up to 10 users but also supports music streaming from a user collection stored in iTunes. Greater technical detail on the software can be found at the iPod lounge review of the Airport Express.

All that King iPod Touches is Not Gold

Apple has had tremendous success with the iPod, with the technology itself becoming a virtual synonym for being "cool" in the digital age. Steve Jobs is to be envied for having the foresight to invest the effort to create the device at a time when the future of digital music on-line was unclear...or at least heavily litigated.

However, in this age when having it all doesn't leave you feeling satisfied there is always the pressure to try to squeeze even more blood out of the rock. iPodders take note...I fear this is what is happening with the iPod brand.

My gut tells me that we are only inches away from iPod cross-branding, perhaps an iPod shirt to go with your iPod would make you the king of the uber geeks?

The worse idea that I've heard of so far in regards to efforts to squeeze blood from the stone is the make-believe hype over the fact that the NFL had signed a deal with audbile.com to "podcast" the playoffs and then the full season next year. For only $4.95 a game you could download the call by a local announcer and listen to the game. Pause...scratch head...breathe...HUH?

Why in the world would anyone in their right mind want to listen to an NFL game after is has been played? While the iPod is the cat pjs when it comes to on-line music the achilles heal of the device is that it is basically a digital tape recorder. That is, there isn't any way for the iPod to pull access anything in "real time".

Do you hide your head in the sand during game day so you can pay $5.00 to listen to the game on your iPod the next day. Can friends ruin your purchasing pleasure by leaving the sports page (highlighted box scores) on your desk in the morning?

Really...what are they thinking...after all it isn't like you can go back and change the game. Actually, if Apple could make one of these I'm sure Bill Cowers would love to have it. Then again, would he get tired of rewinding after every interception?

Am I Too Lazy To Have an iPod?

Just before x-mas I purchased an Apple U2 iPod and promptly spent the next forty-five minutes downloading all the complete U2 box set. Over the next week I spent a number of hours slowly and methodically "ripping" all of my existing CDs to mp3 via iTunes and uploading them onto the pod.  As things stand right now my library seems pathetic, the iPod has a 20gb drive and I currently have only 4.16gb of music. 

The thing that keeps bothering me, and it has been my never-ending problem with the entire on-line music environment, is I am not sure that I have either the time, or the talent, to create any decent play lists.  I know two things about myself:  1) I'm lazy when it comes to music, this may be why radio has always been my friend; 2) I don't trust myself to have any decent sense when it comes to composing a decent music mosaic from my disparate library.