From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V10 #254 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Sunday, September 12 2004 Volume 10 : Number 254 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Today's your birthday, friends... [Mike Matthews ] mp3 players [Adam K ] Re: mp3 players [Nadyne Mielke ] Re: mp3 players [dmw ] A couple of new releases [jjhanson@att.net] Re: mp3 players [andrew fries ] Re: mp3 players [Ethan Straffin ] Redbird [neal copperman ] The Creekdippers - Concert Review [neal copperman ] juana molina ["JoAnn Whetsell" ] David Byrne [neal copperman ] Re: mp3 players [Nadyne Mielke ] Rachael Sage [neal copperman ] Re: mp3 players [neal copperman ] Re: mp3 players [Sander ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 03:00:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Mike Matthews Subject: Today's your birthday, friends... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ********************* Sharon Nichols (runly@hvi.net) ********************** **************** Heather Russell (hrussell@bellsouth.net) ***************** *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Sharon Nichols Wed September 11 1963 As Above So Below Heather Russell September 11 Total Virgosity Karron Lynn Lane Tue September 14 1751 Ophelia Virgo Troy Wollenslegel Mon September 18 1972 Virgo Mark Frabotta Sun September 19 1965 Don't even THINK about parking here Joe Zitt Sat September 20 1958 Will Hack for CDs Ani DiFranco Wed September 23 1970 Virgo Lord Tyr Mon September 24 1979 Libran Paul Kim Sat October 01 1977 fetal position JoAnn Whetsell Fri October 01 1976 Pendulum William Gill Wed October 05 1960 A wide-eyed wanderer Dan Riley Sun October 08 1961 Libra Neile Graham Wed October 08 1958 pen Quenby M. Chunco Tue October 08 1968 Crunchy Frog Mike Garland Wed October 08 1952 Creature_of_the_Night Irvin Lin Tue October 09 1973 Libra Michael C. Berch Wed October 10 1956 No parking Chris Gagnon Sat October 10 1970 Libra - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 10:49:59 +0100 From: Adam K Subject: mp3 players Okay, I understand this might open a whooooole can of worms, but as my minidiscman is nearing the end of its inglorious days, and as I have a significant birthday coming up, and as I managed to save some money by NOT being able to book Tom Waits tickets yesterday morning, I thought I might look at mp3 players. Problem is, as I've stated before, I have all the IT ability of a brick, and don't even know how they work. Do you have to use a PC as an intermediary? Can you record straight onto them? I've been doing some research, and like the look of the iRiver, but am I wrong in thinking that once the battery goes, that's it for the machine, and I'm being asked to shell out #200 for something that might only last four years? Is there an idiot's guide to mp3 players out there? I can't seem to find one and, being in the UK, the options seem to be limited while the costs are higher. I'm willing to take answers off-list to save time and space, but any feedback would be much appreciated. adam k. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 09:09:35 -0700 From: Nadyne Mielke Subject: Re: mp3 players At 02:49 AM 9/11/2004, Adam K wrote: >Okay, I understand this might open a whooooole can of worms, but as my >minidiscman is nearing the end of its inglorious days, and as I have a >significant birthday coming up, and as I managed to save some money by NOT >being able to book Tom Waits tickets yesterday morning, I thought I might >look at mp3 players. Problem is, as I've stated before, I have all the IT >ability of a brick, and don't even know how they work. Do you have to use >a PC as an intermediary? Can you record straight onto them? I've been >doing some research, and like the look of the iRiver, but am I wrong in >thinking that once the battery goes, that's it for the machine, and I'm >being asked to shell out #200 for something that might only last four >years? Is there an idiot's guide to mp3 players out there? I can't seem >to find one and, being in the UK, the options seem to be limited while the >costs are higher. I'm willing to take answers off-list to save time and >space, but any feedback would be much appreciated. So here's how an MP3 player works (for laziness, I'm just going to say iPod, because it's the one that I have and it's got the shortest name, but the process is the same for all of the others). You hook your iPod up to your computer. Then you copy your MP3s from your computer onto your iPod using the iPod's software. If you don't have all of your MP3s already on your computer, you have to make them yourself, and your iPod has software to help you make that happen too. You can replace the battery in the iPod, but it's a bit expensive. In many cases, people find that it's simply cheaper to get a new one rather than replace the battery. That might change, though, since the iPod is still relatively new. As to how long an iPod will last, no-one really knows. They haven't been out for four years yet, after all. I know several people who bought the original iPod and they're still going strong, but that's merely anecdotal evidence. Personally, I love the thing. It's great for travelling -- I get about 10 hours of battery life, which gets me though all but the longest of flights (such as my upcoming SFO to SYD trip). I love having several thousand songs at my fingertips, in a package that's about the same size as a deck of cards. My household is up to its fourth iPod between the two inhabitants, but that's because we keep on upgrading and selling our old ones. I bought the iPod when it first came out, and then upgraded when the first 20-GB iPods came out. My bf just traded in his old 10-GB iPod for a new 40-GB one. I'm sometimes surprised that the cat hasn't bought one of his own yet. You can probably save yourself some cash by buying a used iPod on eBay. I just did a quick search over at ebay.co.uk and found several 15-GB iPods going for around a hundred quid. HTH. :) /nm ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 13:17:33 -0400 (EDT) From: dmw Subject: Re: mp3 players On Sat, 11 Sep 2004, Nadyne Mielke wrote: > At 02:49 AM 9/11/2004, Adam K wrote: > > >significant birthday coming up, and as I managed to save some money by NOT > >being able to book Tom Waits tickets yesterday morning, I thought I might > >look at mp3 players. Problem is, as I've stated before, I have all the IT i bought my girlfriend an iPod back when i was fully employed, and she loves it. but i more recently got myself a little panasonic portable mp3/cd player for about $50USD. It plays regular CDs, but it also plays MP3s burned on onto a CDrom. For not-so-very-much more I could have gotten one with a larger LCD display that shows the name of the playing file -- I kinda wish I'd done that, since a single CD holds 9-12 albums at my preferred bit rate; it's a little tricky to navigate. But: it was cheap. it came with an AC adaptor. it can use regular +AA batteries (or recharagables); there's no battery pack with a questionable lifetime. the interface is pretty reasonable, considering. i'm very very happy with it, overall. the pathetic caverns: a zine - opinionated and eclectic reviews a studio - specializing in indie/rock/mobile/live/demo recording http://www.pathetic-caverns.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 19:05:01 +0000 From: jjhanson@att.net Subject: A couple of new releases Two new releases... Alison Moyet - Voice Finally! The album I've been waiting for Alison to put out since she recorded That Ole Devil Called Love--an album of standards and covers--material worthy of her voice. While I love her own material, this is definitely her most solid album to date. Her voice sounds incredible as always. Produced by Anne Dudley, the arrangements are all tastefully and beautifully done. The album has a very torchy, languid, dark feel overall--just the kind of music I love--and a great accompaniment to ALison's smoldering vocals. The French songs are beautiful, and the surprise on the album is The Raggle Taggle Gypsies O!-- a traditional English folk song. Alison's cover of Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach's God Give Me Strength, originally sung by Kristin Vigard (and lip-synched by Ileana Douglas in Grace of My Heart), is very true to the original--and Alison is a bit more restrained than Kristin. I wish she'd have let herself go a bit more on it and the song really begs for a bit of the over-the-top emotional excess. Despite that its a great version of the song--Alison also covers Elvis Costello's Almost Blue. Definitely one of my picks for album of the year! Gary Stadler and Wendy Rule - Within the Realm of a Fairie Forest Ah, the cover photo and inside photos can't help but bring back memories of the Ecto Fest West house concert with Wendy in the Redwood Forests. The music is bit less dark than on Wendy's solo albums, and her voice a bit more restrained. Its a bit reminescent of instrumentation on Loreena McKennitt's albums or Kate Price's--a bit more new agey than Wendy's solo materal--less dark, less haunting, but equally enchanting. Only on one song does Wendy really let her voice go--teh second to last track Pavanne--which is stunningly gorgeous and evocative of Lisa Gerrard. n.p. Anne Dudley - A Different Light ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 12 Sep 2004 07:23:31 +1000 From: andrew fries Subject: Re: mp3 players I'm not the best source of advice since I don't actually have one of these gizmos, but if I were buying one, I'd look for the following: - - use of standard batteries (AA or some such) rather than proprietary pack. However it would be nice to be also able to run it from external power sources, such as car battery for example. - - what encoding formats does it support? For me support for Ogg Vorbis is essential, since my collection is encoded in this format. - - what anti-consumer devices (aka copy protection) does it include? I insist on NONE. - - how does it connect to your computer - USB? Firewire? For example I believe iPods are (or were until recently) Firewire only. Firewire ports are standard on all current Macs, but not so much on PCs.. - - what about the software? Will it work with your computer? If you're using Windows, it is a given the software will run, but if you use anything else, this is a major issue. Personally I'm not a big fan of specialised software - I'd be perfectly happy if the player just appeared as another device in my file system so I can copy the files to and from - that's really the only feature I want. - - I would want a minimum of extras: recording, radio, blah blah blah... not for me thanks. But one potentially useful feature is being able to broadcast the music from your player over a very short range on one of the radio frequencies - which means you can just tune your car radio to your player and there you are. I think that's pretty neat. ... hmmm, I'm starting to understand why I never bought mp3 player! ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 14:57:32 -0700 From: Ethan Straffin Subject: Re: mp3 players On Saturday, September 11, 2004, at 02:23 PM, andrew fries wrote: > I'm not the best source of advice since I don't actually have one of > these gizmos, but if I were buying one, I'd look for the following: As a reasonably satisfied iPod owner, I can add a few comments. > - use of standard batteries (AA or some such) rather than proprietary > pack. However it would be nice to be also able to run it from external > power sources, such as car battery for example. The iPod can run off a car cigarette lighter, though this requires an adapter that's sold separately. > - what encoding formats does it support? For me support for Ogg Vorbis > is essential, since my collection is encoded in this format. Sadly, Ogg is not supported on the iPod: you're currently restricted to AAC, MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible, AIFF, Apple Lossless, or WAV. I'd argue that some of these are at least as attractive as Ogg, but if you already have your collection in that format, this admittedly won't help you much. > - what anti-consumer devices (aka copy protection) does it include? I > insist on NONE. Well, then you're screwed, since copy protection is often implemented by CD distributors with software developers having nothing to say about it. That being said, I haven't had any trouble importing most CDs into iTunes -- including discs such as Charlotte Martin's _On Your Shore_ which are supposedly copy-protected -- and the iPod doesn't add any restrictions on top of that. > - how does it connect to your computer - USB? Firewire? For example I > believe iPods are (or were until recently) Firewire only. Firewire > ports are standard on all current Macs, but not so much on PCs.. The latest iPods support USB 2.0. > - what about the software? Will it work with your computer? If you're > using Windows, it is a given the software will run, but if you use > anything else, this is a major issue. Personally I'm not a big fan of > specialised software - I'd be perfectly happy if the player just > appeared as another device in my file system so I can copy the files > to and from - that's really the only feature I want. The iPod supports this. > - I would want a minimum of extras: recording, radio, blah blah > blah... not for me thanks. But one potentially useful feature is being > able to broadcast the music from your player over a very short range > on one of the radio frequencies - which means you can just tune your > car radio to your player and there you are. I think that's pretty > neat. Well, it's neat unless you live in an area (such as the San Francisco Bay Area) where the airwaves are so crammed with stations that short-range FM transmitters simply can't work without succumbing to interference. If your car stereo has a tape player, I would recommend going with a $20 cassette adapter over a similarly-priced FM transmitter, no question. Ethan ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 15:58:22 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: Redbird I've been so swamped lately with travel, work and concerts that I haven't had a chance to write about any of them. Since it's the day before a trip to Maryland, the height of my being swamped, it's exactly the time that I like to start in on something other then what needs to get done! One CD I've been listening to a lot is Redbird. Peter Mulvey gave it to me when he was here for a house concert. It's essentially him, Jeffrey Foucault and Kris Delmhorst sitting around a house singing songs that they love. It's an informal session and the CD is infused with the feeling of good friends sitting around playing good music. The obvious precursor of this CD is Cry, Cry, Cry. This one has an entirely different vibe though. A little more stately, a little more melancholy. And there was never any doubt in my mind who was the main voice (or even what combo of voices) was happening on Cry, Cry, Cry, while I have a bit of trouble distinguishing Jeffrey and Peter. But the songs are solid from one end to the other, and the arrangements are all understated yet rich. Probably the standout track for me is Kris Delmhorst taking the lead on the Morphine song Patience. Here's the track listing: Ships (Greg Brown) Moonglow (Irving Mills) Patience (Mark Sandman - Morphine) Buckets of Rain (Bob Dylan) The Whole World Round (Jayne/Stewart) Ithaca (Peter Mulvey) Lovely as the Day is Long (Paul Cebar) Moonshiner (traditional) Redbird Waltz (David Goodrich) Lullabye 101 (Kris Delmhorst) I Gotta Get Drunk (Willie Nelson) Lighthouse Light (Ry Cavanaugh) You Are The Everything (REM) Down by the Sally Garden (yeats, Traditional) Redbird (L. Baltimore) Drunk Lullaby (Jeffrey Foucault) Hold On (Tom Waits) Oh, I forgot... "Lovely as the Day is Long" was a real highlight when Peter performed it at the house concert. It seems like a lost classic from the 50's, even though it is a fairly modern song. Makes me very curious about Paul Cebar. neal np: Redbird - Redbird nr: Post Office - Charles Bukowski and Middlesex - Eugenides ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 17:43:54 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: The Creekdippers - Concert Review Our most recent concert was something of a coup. We managed to lure to the house The Creekdippers, aka The Original Harmony Ridge Creekdippers, aka Victoria Williams, Mark Olson and whoever they are hnging out with. We had an overwhelming public response, since both Vic and Mark have a strong reputation. Because I like people to have fair warning about what they are going to experience, I sent the following out to our mailing list. It's actually pretty funny.... "I think everyone understands that Jeff and I have the luxury of only hosting people we are excited about. Which is why it is usually so easy to write glowing praises of all our upcoming concerts :) But every once in a while, I feel like it's also necessary to let people know that the evening might be a little different then they expect. We are both wildly enthusiastic about the Creekdippers show. In fact, we've been trying to make it happen since they were last in Albuquerque in 2000. But there are a few things I feel I need to pass on... 1. A Creekdippers show tends to be one of the least polished mishmashes of a concert you will see. I've seen them 4 times in the last decade and cherish each of the experiences. Victoria has one of the most amazing spirits I have ever seen. She is one of the few performers I've seen who radiates sweetness. She's a freewheeling spirit, and the band is usually chasing after her, trying to figure out where she is going and to stay somewhere in her general vicinity. The shows always strike me as being on the edge of chaos. 2. I haven't said much about Victoria's voice. It's the kind of voice that inspires people to say things like quirky, idiosyncratic, distinctive and off- kilter. But it's a very strange voice and there are some people who find it plain unbearable. I always feel like people should be won over once they get used to it, but it isn't always the case. You have been warned! :) (Check out http://ectoguide.org/guide.cgi? search=&source=quick&pw=yes&for=victoria+williams for lots of reviews of Vic live to get a sense of what people think.) 3. One of several new albums the Creekdippers are touring is called Political Manifest. It's a reaction to and protest of the current administration. Expect a bit of politics in the show." Some people thought that might have been a bit unreasonable, but it turns out to be a perfect description of the evening. Load in was at 5:30 with the house concert at 7:30. The Creekdippers showed up at 7:15. We were expecting an acoustic show featuring Vic, Mark, a drummer and a trumpet player. The trumpet player had been replaced by a slide guitarist, and everything was electric. After they took the 3rd amp out of the van, I said "uh, perhaps you should come inside and look at the space". The looked at the space, which at that point was now completely filled with people, and undeterred brought virtually everything inside. They managed to cram a remarkable amount of gear and electronics into a very small space fairly quickly. At about 8, it looked like things were about to start. As Mark said "check check", I headed up to introduce the band. Vic then took the mic and started singing and the show was off and running. So I went back to the kitchen to watch what would happen. Vic rambled through some great songs, including a stellar "Water To Drink" and "Moon River". She told funny stories and the show jolted and bumbled along. Sometimes the music was inspired. Sometimes everything fell apart and it sounded like a mess. Mark and Vic bickered a bit about what to play. After 90 minutes, with no break, Mark said something like "People are leaving, we should stop now. Unless there is something you really want to hear, we're done." Someone requested a song and Vic thought it was a great ending song. They played a nice version of it and then Mark quickly left the stage and flipped on the lights in the kitchen. And then I introduced the band :) It was hands down the most chaotic house concert we've ever hosted (and there were 64 before that!). It was great to have Vic here, and even though it was a lot like I expected, it was still a bit more stressful then I was prepared for. It was the first house concert they'd done. I'm not really sure what they thought of it. I think they had a reasonably good time, though the space considerations seemed to be really hard on Mark. So there you have it :) neal np: Reunion - Storyhill ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 23:21:48 -0400 From: "JoAnn Whetsell" Subject: juana molina Do people here know about Juana Molina? I've been enjoying her 2 latest cds, Segundo and Tres cosas for months now but haven't posted about them because I'm not sure how to describe them. My best effort is a sort of low-fi ectronica. She uses lots of loops and electronic sounds (I'm not at all well versed in the technology) but the music is otherwise quite spare, particularly on the latest album, Tres cosas. A sort of cross between late night cool and Sunday afternoon calm. She's usually categorized as world music because she's from Argentina and sings in Spanish, but it's really not. All music guide uses the words "quirky" "atmospheric" "simple and direct" and "intimate" in their review, and I think all these adjectives fit. She's been on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic three times and has shows archived at their website http://www.kcrw.org/cgi-bin/db/kcrw.pl?show_code=mb&tmplt_type=program She's currently touring in Europe, with a few dates in Canada (Montreal, Toronto) and the US (Chicago, LA, San Francisco, Seattle) in October. More info and some mp3s at www.juanamolina.com I hope some people will check her out. I think a lot of ectophiles would like her. If anyone has anything positive to add, I'd love to hear it as I'm not sure I've described her very well. I do highly recommend her though. JoAnn - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Get ready for school! Find articles, homework help and more in the Back to School Guide! ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 22:11:58 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: David Byrne Earlier this week I saw a fantastic concert - David Byrne and Sam Philips. I have a couple Sam Philips albums (older ones) and find them interesting, but they've never really bowled me over. Live was another story though. She has a very strange persona. I'm glad I was in the fourth row, as she makes a lot of impish faces. Sly sidelong looks, little grins. Very fun. Her songs were a cool torchy pop, and she had a great band with her. (Jay Bellarose on drums was the only name I recognized. He was an amazing drummer.) I didn't recognize a single song, but came home with "a boot and a shoe". The highlight was a song she played with just micro-tape accompaniment. She had a recorder like you'd use to record lectures and she played a suitable staticy, Tom Waits-style backing track from it that she sang over. Then, at appropriate moments, she'd shake the recorder to add distortion to the mix. It was a hoot! David Byrne started the set by saying that, since we were in an opera house, he was going to do an aria. It was fun, but I'm glad it was the only one of the night! He had the Tosca strings with him, two full percussion set-ups (one double drum kit, one huge tangle of percussion gear), a vibe player who doubled on bass, and lots of guitars for himself. It was a full career spanning show. They did some amazing Talking Heads covers. Stuff I wouldn't have expected, like I Zimbra, Life During Wartime, Once in a Lifetime, Psycho Killer, Blind, Heaven, Road To Nowhere (which he dedicated to the Republican party) and more. Sometimes the arrangements were really faithful, sometimes they were re-done in interesting ways to take advantage of the strings. The most dramatically re-worked was Psycho Killer. One thing that was fun that I forget is that David Byrne is a fun guitar player. He also played songs he'd written for other people that were interesting, like for Cesaria Evora or for Eastern European singers (from the movie Underground). And he did a great live version of a re-mix of one of his songs. One of the strangest things is that there is a bit of a moat running in front of the stage at the Opera House. It's a small mote, only about 2 inches deep. But they put a mic in it and for one encore, David came out to do a solo acoustic version of Heaven. He stepped into the moat and sang it standing in the water! It was very strange. I've kind of lost track of what David Byrne has been up to over the years, but this show made me want to go and get all his recent CD's. (I settled for just Growing Backwards.) If you get a chance to see him and/or Sam Philips, I highly recommend it! neal np: Sadaayen (Evocation) - Maestro Amjad Ali Khan ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 20:44:20 -0700 From: Nadyne Mielke Subject: Re: mp3 players On 11 Sep 2004, at 14:23, andrew fries wrote: > I'm not the best source of advice since I don't actually have one of > these gizmos, but if I were buying one, I'd look for the following: Your list is ... non-standard, I think. ;) > - use of standard batteries (AA or some such) rather than proprietary > pack. I strongly disagree. AA batteries simply don't hold enough power to last very long. Anything larger than a pair of AAs adds too much weight and bulk to the device. My portable CD player gets about three hours out of a pair of AA batteries, much less for a pair of rechargeable batteries. So I either have to toss a pair of batteries into the trash (and have a zillion spare batteries available), or I have to keep a zillion rechargeable batteries on hand to use it for any length of time. I have better things to do than constantly swap out batteries, and fill a landfill with all of the dead ones. > However it would be nice to be also able to run it from external > power sources, such as car battery for example. Car adapters are available as an accessory for most MP3 players. > - what encoding formats does it support? For me support for Ogg Vorbis > is essential, since my collection is encoded in this format. I could be mistaken, but I think that only the iRiver supports this. The majority of users don't want Ogg Vorbis support. > - what anti-consumer devices (aka copy protection) does it include? I > insist on NONE. Copy protection is generally an issue between the CD and the computer, not the MP3 player and the computer. Even with so-called copy protected CDs, I've never had a problem ripping them into my format of choice. For songs that I have purchased from the iTunes Music Store (they're AAC format, which has some copy protection), I simply run them through FairTunes so that I can play them through my server at home. (FairTunes is Mac only, IIRC, so the rest of y'all will have to find your own solution. :) > - how does it connect to your computer - USB? Firewire? For example I > believe iPods are (or were until recently) Firewire only. Firewire > ports are standard on all current Macs, but not so much on PCs.. Current iPods now support USB2.0 and Firewire. I'd hate to try to transfer 20GB of files to an iPod using USBv1. > - what about the software? Will it work with your computer? If you're > using Windows, it is a given the software will run, but if you use > anything else, this is a major issue. Personally I'm not a big fan of > specialised software - I'd be perfectly happy if the player just > appeared as another device in my file system so I can copy the files > to and from - that's really the only feature I want. I'd guess that the original poster, who said that he's not an expert computer user, would prefer some software to make the process a bit easier. The fine folks at Apple have done a lot of usability work on iTunes and the iPod to make it as easy to use as possible. I give them a lot of credit for putting together a nice simple interface (and one that blows the interfaces for the competing products out of the water). The iPod can be used simply as an external hard drive. It's possible to simply copy files over [1], regardless of whether they're audio or anything else. > - I would want a minimum of extras: recording, radio, blah blah > blah... not for me thanks. But one potentially useful feature is being > able to broadcast the music from your player over a very short range > on one of the radio frequencies - which means you can just tune your > car radio to your player and there you are. I think that's pretty > neat. There are a few accessories for the iPod that can do that. However, they tend to have quality issues. Further, if you're in a market with pretty saturated radio frequencies, you can't use it at all. I tried on my iPod and never could. But then, I'm in San Francisco, which is definitely one of the most saturated radio markets in the US. If your stereo has a mini input plug (which many do these days, although mine doesn't (grr!)), then that's by far the easiest and best-sounding option. A standard cassette adapter also works, and sounds better than one of those radio adapters. BMW owners who have a 2002 or newer vehicle can also hook up their iPod to their car stereo with an upgrade that's now available. Rumour has it that Apple is working with other manufacturers, such as Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, to extend this feature to other vehicles. The second that this is available for my car, I'll be camped outside my dealership. :) > ... hmmm, I'm starting to understand why I never bought mp3 player! I think it's safe to say that you're not the target audience for such a device. ;) /nm [1] I think that's still true, anyway. It's true on my second-generation iPod on OS X, Windows, a couple of flavours of Linux, and Solaris. I haven't tried it on my bf's new fourth-generation iPod. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 22:49:03 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: Rachael Sage Of course, while I'm writing reviews and earning the wraith of my girlfriend for not being more productive and finishing my trip preparations, I had better not skip the Rachael Sage house concert! Rachael got a little overshadowed by the chaos of the Creekdippers, but her show was a lot more fun! The drum, trumpet, keyboard mix was hard for me to imagine, but it turned out to be fantastic. I know what Rachael sounds like, and I know what her songs sound like, and the fact that they sounded good was expected. But the cool arrangements were an extra treat. If you don't know what Rachael sounds like, it's a tasty piano-based pop blend. I don't seem to be in my best descriptive mode at the moment. I think I'm fading fast! But I did want to mention that it was a great show. It was fun to have Rachael out here and fun to have Meredith here too. I am ready to institute the annual first ectophile to come to our house concerts party :) My memory certainly can't go back a year, so if any ectophile wants to come next year, they can be the first one all over again. neal ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 23:07:14 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: Re: mp3 players At 8:44 PM -0700 9/11/04, Nadyne Mielke wrote: >My portable CD player gets about three hours out of a pair of AA >batteries, much less for a pair of rechargeable batteries. So I >either have to toss a pair of batteries into the trash (and have a >zillion spare batteries available), or I have to keep a zillion >rechargeable batteries on hand to use it for any length of time. I >have better things to do than constantly swap out batteries, and >fill a landfill with all of the dead ones. You might want to check out the latest generation of rechargables. I've had some that I was happy with (I could get almost 3 hours on a DAT, which is a much bigger drain then a CD player), but I ended up tossing them for new ones. I'm not fully sure what the numbes mean, but my old batteries charged to 1300mAh and my new ones to 2000mAh. The new ones recharge in 15 minutes too. This equates to a good 6 to 8 hours in a CD player and 4 to 5 in the DAT. And the 15 minute recharge is to die for. You can recharge at a rest stop. It's worth dropping $40 or $50 at Radio Shack for the recharger and a few pairs of batteries if you use double A's at all. >There are a few accessories for the iPod that can do that. However, >they tend to have quality issues. Further, if you're in a market >with pretty saturated radio frequencies, you can't use it at all. I >tried on my iPod and never could. But then, I'm in San Francisco, >which is definitely one of the most saturated radio markets in the >US. I have a Beam-it which does that and works great in some places and sucks in others. But it's also only about $20 from Radio Shack and works on anything that has a mini-headphone jack output. neal ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 12 Sep 2004 06:46:27 +0100 From: Sander Subject: Re: mp3 players I actually just wrote a long email with recommendations on this subject to a friend - but of course that was in dutch, so let's do this again... My two main recommendations would be a Rio Karma (which is the player I own myself) - http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/shop/_templates/item_main_Rio.asp?model=261&cat=72 or http://tinyurl.com/4qz6u - or an iRiver Hxx0 - http://www.iriveramerica.com/products/hd.aspx This is assuming you'd want a harddisk based player rather than a player without any moving parts whatsoever, but I think that's a safe assumption. (I've been doing days of bushwalking with my Karma playing without any problems, so I think that harddisk based players should even live through people jogging, which is usually cited as the reason to get a solidstate player instead. Other than that, having an order of significance more space for music for roughly twice the price means there's no question in my mind.) The main reason I'd recommend these over the iPod are: 1) battery life (nearly twice as long) 2) support of more useful non-encumbered formats which will actually have a chance of lasting a lifetime Also, at least the Rio people seem more concerned with actual audio quality. I don't know the current situation, but at the time I bought my Rio Karma, it was the only player in its class to support things like gapless playback. Quoting andrew fries : > if I were buying one, I'd look for the following: > > - use of standard batteries (AA or some such) rather than proprietary > pack. However it would be nice to be also able to run it from external > power sources, such as car battery for example. As has been said, regular batteries wouldn't have nearly enough power. The main reason I don't expect you'd see a player supporting such, is that being able to use such batteries would seriously impact on the small size and huggable shape of these players, which seems to be the main thing they compete on. o.O To address Adam's original concern: after consumer outcry, all players now offer replacement batteries for an (to me) acceptable (if still expensive) price. > - what encoding formats does it support? For me support for Ogg Vorbis > is essential, since my collection is encoded in this format. Complete agreement here. Both the Karma and the iRivers support this format. The Rio Karma also supports FLAC, which in the future will be even more important. (I think by this time next year regular hard disks will have grown large enough that for me at least it'll be worth reripping my entire collection one final time into this lossless format, after which I can finally live happily ever after with perfect quality backups that I can easily convert into the format du jour.) > - what anti-consumer devices (aka copy protection) does it include? I > insist on NONE. Nearly all players out there (notable exception: sony's new and already doomed "walkman") do not have any restrictions on moving your own music to the player and doing whatever you want with it, wherever you want it. However, all players do _support_ the Digital Restrictions Management for whatever online music store they're affiliated with. They really couldn't not and hope to survive. For me, I just don't buy DRM-restricted anything - it's simply not acceptable that I'm not in complete control over things I buy. > - what about the software? Will it work with your computer? If you're > using Windows, it is a given the software will run, but if you use > anything else, this is a major issue. Personally I'm not a big fan of > specialised software - I'd be perfectly happy if the player just > appeared as another device in my file system so I can copy the files to > and from - that's really the only feature I want. The iRivers should just appear as an external harddisk (though no doubt also come with their own software for easier management). The Karma unfortunately doesn't (that's my one real gripe with it, and the reason I recommend the iRivers equally), though the rio engineers have been letting hints slip that they're working on firmware to change that. However, the Karma does have the really nifty feature of being its own webserver and having an ethernet port in its dock. Any java-enabled browser on any operating system can connect to this and use the applet then showing to quickly transfer files and music. Not an ideal solution, but it Just Works, which is always a good thing. As for the iPod, it doesn't come with official support under Linux, but I think I read something a few weeks ago about iTunes having been ported. Sander ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V10 #254 ***************************