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January 31, 2005
New PowerBooks
Well, they're no G5s, but there has been a revision giving them up to 1.67 GHz G4 processors. Also, they come standard with 512 MB of memory, AirPort Extreme, and bluetooth. They can also be configured with either a 64 MB or 128 MB graphics card. It's definitely an improvement, but I'll be waiting for the PowerBook G5s before making any purchases.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 07:22 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 30, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/30/05
I discuss my OPMLtoiPod software, the EDP CafePress shop, mic cubes, Apple's long-lost Sherlock search application, and MapPoint's extremely inconvenient bug. I also flip through the NYT Circuits section and share my insights on the national press vs. the blogosphere.
SHOW NOTES: HTML | OPML | TEXT
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 34:56 | 16.1 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
OPMLtoiPod Beta 02
Announcing OPMLtoiPodb02, the first revision to my application that allows automatic downloading, formatting, and transferring of notes to an iPod. See this post for full details on the project. This update includes support for titles, making the text files more organized once on the iPod. It also features a major bug fix for users with certain configurations.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 04:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I Have a Mic Cube
Well, I think my microphone may actually look better without it, but I have recently cut out and painted a mic cube/flag to hopefully make my setup look more professional. Here is a picture of the newly flagged microphone. You be the judge of whether it looks better with or without it.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 01:56 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
EverythingDigital Podcast Merchandise!
That's right! You are now able to buy quality EDP merchandise from my new CafePress shop, located at: http://cafepress.com/edpodcast. So feel free to browse the shop, and if you find something you like, buying it helps support the EverythingDigital Podcast and subsidize the costs of bandwidth and other expenses. I think I'm going to head over there later today and treat myself to an EDP golf shirt.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 08:18 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
January 29, 2005
Going for the Professional Look
I have unearthed an old mic from the depths of one of my electronics storage drawers and I'm trying to dress it up a bit and get it looking somewhat professional (notice the "EverythingDigital Podcast" labeling). I plan to take it into public and see what kind of reaction I get.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:32 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 28, 2005
Security Update 2005-001
Before installing the new Security Update for OS X, you may want to check out this article from MacFixIt. I am currently trying to repair my privileges so I can correct at least some of the problems that are occurring.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Failed Attempt at a Soundseeing Tour
Well, I tried to do a soundseeing podcast earlier today, but when I got home and played it back, I realized that the audio kept skipping. It turns out it was due to the fact that iPodLinux (Podzilla) does not use skip protection while recording or playing back. Next time I will try to secure my iPod a little better so that it does not move around so much. I will hopefully do a re-take tomorrow.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 06:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
MapPoint's VERY Scenic Route
An error in Microsoft's MapPoint system offers travelers between two Norwegian cities a winding 1,685-mile trip around most areas of Western Europe as the quickest route to their destination. The trip has an estimated time of 47 hours and 31 minutes. This means you can either trust Microsoft, sit back, and enjoy a couple days of driving, or use MapQuest and get to your destination more than 40 hours faster.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 03:37 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
OPMLtoiPod
UPDATE: OPMLtoiPod Beta 02 has been released. See here for details.
I have just finished a new application that allows you to enter the URL of a .txt or .opml file, and have it automatically downloaded, converted to text files of a size that the iPod can understand, and transferred directly to your iPod's Notes folder. Just double-click the application, enter the URL, and the application will do the rest, allowing you to later simultaneously listen to a podcast while browsing through the show notes. Keep in mind, it's a beta so there will be plenty of bugs and clumsiness. Feel free to make improvements to the script if you can and send them in to me.
System Requirements
- Computer Running Mac OS X
- iPod (Enabled for Disk Use)
Submit any bug reports to alan@everythingdigital.org.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 27, 2005
Hidden PowerBook G5 Teaser
If you go to http://apple.com/powerbook and view source, at some point in the html you will come to this section:
<!—BEGIN AVENUE A—>
<img height=”1” width=”1” alt=”” src=”http://switch.atdmt.com/action/apple_g5_powerbook”>
<!—END AVENUE A—>
I'm not sure what to make of it, maybe its just a typo, but most likely its somebody at Apple trying to leak a story to ThinkSecret without getting sued, or at least that's what I'd like to think.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 08:00 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 26, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/26/05
My PodcastToPhone application, iTunes/Pepsi going for another try at giving away some free songs, Google Video Search Beta, and my first impressions after seeing a PSP in person. All accompanied by the usual non-RIAA music.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 25:44 | 11.8 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 10:02 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
First In Person PSP Sighting
I got to check out a PSP in person for the first time after noticing some one pulling one out of their pack and asking if I could take some pictures. Seeing it in person really blew me away. The screen looks incredible, and really dominates the device. It looked like it could be hard to read in bright lighting, but otherwise it's wonderful. I'll have more thoughts on it in the podcast, which will hopefully take place tonight. For now, enjoy the pictures I took of it.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 01:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 24, 2005
Quotes of the Day 1.24.05
"640k should be enough for anybody." - Bill Gates
"Computers make it easier to do a lot of things, but most of the things they make it easier to do don't need to be done." - Andy Rooney
"If you give someone a program, you will frustrate them for a day; if you teach them how to program, you will frustrate them for a lifetime." - Anonymous
"Artificial Intelligence: the art of making computers that behave like the ones in movies." - Bill Bulko
From: Wikiquote
Posted by Alan Joyce at 01:40 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 23, 2005
2nd Round of Pepsi + iTunes Promotion
Looks like the notably unsuccessful Pepsi + iTunes promotion is taking another shot at giving away some free songs. The promotion originally tried to give away 100 million songs, but ended up with about 5 million winners due to recalls as a result of customers being able to see whether or not a bottle was a winner by looking through it at a certain angle. The 2nd round of the promotion plans to be giving away 200 million songs between January 31 and April 30.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 06:34 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
How-To: Automatically Transfer A Podcast to Your Bluetooth Phone
If you have a bluetooth enabled cell phone that can play mp3 files and has a fairly substantial internal memory, you can have the latest episode of your favorite podcast automatically sent to your phone just by opening an application.
Materials Needed
- Computer Running Mac OS 10.3 or Later With Built-In Bluetooth or a USB Bluetooth Adapter
- Bluetooth-Enabled Cell Phone Capable of Playing Mp3 Files
- iTunes
What to Do
1. Create a new smart playlist in iTunes. Assign a rule to it that makes sure only songs with artist "Adam Curry" or "Michael Butler" or any other podcaster who's show you want regularly downloaded to your phone are included in the playlist. Name this smart playlist "Phone" and sort it by date added with the newest tracks at the top.
2. Open the Bluetooth File Exchange application (under /Applications/Utilities/). Go to preferences and select "none" for the start-up window.
3. While still in Bluetooth File Exchange, cancel/close all open windows and go to File Menu>Browse Device. In the device selection box that pops up, make sure your phone shows up and is at the top of the list. If your phone is not the top list item, make sure it is added to favorites and all other devices are removed from favorites (devices in favorites are listed first).
4. Download my PodcastToPhone application here.
5. Just open (double click) the PodcastToPhone application whenever you want to have your computer transfer the latest show to your phone. It will find the mp3 file's location on your hard drive, open up Bluetooth File Exchange and start the transfer to your phone. Enjoy!
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:45 AM | Comments (11) | TrackBack
January 22, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/22/05
A full review of iLife '05 and iWork '05, including some attempted on-the-fly GarageBand effects that didn't work, some other general Apple talk, and the usual flip through Thursday's New York Times Circuits section.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 39:31 | 18.1 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:27 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 21, 2005
My First Work With iWork
I have created my first document in Pages. It is a newsletter for the EverythingDigital site, and uses one of Pages' built-in templates as a base. I've exported it to a PDF for your viewing or reading pleasure. It give a good example of the power of Pages, especially since this maybe took me 15 minutes to whip up. Download here.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:02 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 20, 2005
Quotes of the Day
"A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." - Antoinè De Saint-Exupéry
"Those who want information to be free as a matter of principle should create some information and make it free." - Nicholas Petreley, technology columnist
“Technology can do little for people who have nothing to say.” - Eric Auchard, “Blog Publishers Stealing Web Limelight” (3/1/03), from the Reuters Internet Report
"Computers are useless. They can only give you answers." - Pablo Picasso
From: Wikiquote
Posted by Alan Joyce at 08:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 19, 2005
Soundseeing Mobile Recording Setup
I got some questions about the mobile recoding setup that I used in my soundseeing tour of OfficeDepot (which Adam Curry was kind enough to mention on the Daily Source Code).
First of all, the microphone I was using is an Aiwa stereo lavaliere mic which plugs into the 1/8" jack on my iPod. I actually got this mic with the Aiwa JS147 Stereo Radio Cassette Recorder which, as far as I can find, is no longer sold. I don't know the model number of the mic itself and was not able to find it through Google. If anybody knows what it is, please post a comment or send me an email.
As I said, I had the mic plugged directly into what would normally be the headphone jack of my iPod and I was running Podzilla to record at 96kHz. I had the mic clipped to my collar so the cord ran down into my pocket and hopefully looked like a handsfree headset for a cellphone that was currently disconnected because I was instead holding the phone in my hand.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 04:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 17, 2005
Show Notes on an iPod
I have managed to successfully get Adam Curry's Daily Source Code show notes onto my iPod so they can be easily read while listening. I just imported his OPML file into MyMind (my outliner program) and exported it as a .txt file. I then broke that file up into two smaller ones, because the iPod won't display all of a text file with too many characters. Then I just dragged the two .txt files into the iPod's notes folder (I have my iPod enabled for disk use) and presto! I've got the notes right there on my iPod.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 07:14 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/17/05
A soundseeing tour through Office Depot using Podzilla to record at 96kHz on my iPod. I held my cell phone to my ear and pretended I was making a phone call, but nevertheless got some pretty strange stares.
SHOW NOTES: NONE
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 16:28 | 7.6 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 06:31 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 16, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/16/05
Verizon users' suit against the company for its crippling of the Motorola v710, Samsung's motion-sensitive cell phone, spray-on solar panels that soak up infrared rays, and a flip through the Circuits section.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 31:28 | 14.5 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 12, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/12/05
I spend the majority of the show talking about Steve Jobs keynote and giving an explanation about the newly announced products as well as my opinions about them. My voice got a little over-modulated in GarageBand, so I apologize for any strain this show might put on your ears due to distorted "a"s and "i"s.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 28:01 | 12.9 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 10:01 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 11, 2005
(Delayed) Live Report of Steve Jobs' Keynote
I couldn't get to an Apple store to see it live, but now I'm watching the webcast and I'll be keeping a post updated with my thoughts about the keynote while it's playing. All times are # of minutes after the keynote started.
2:00-Jobs is talking about the Apple retail stores. 101 stores throughout the world, and wow does that Regent Street, London one look good!
3:00-Some news clippings about the iMac G5. Jobs says it is the highest-selling Mac ever.
4:45-Mac OS X Panther information. Talking about Tiger 10.4 next, silence in the crowd as Jobs says it isn't coming possibly until the summer (1st half of this year).
7:00-A tour of 10.4's features (Spotlight, Safari RSS, etc.)
10:00-Tons more Spotlight stuff. Amazingly fast searching, gotta love that Apple user-interface.
12:00-Jobs hits a bug during his demo of Spotlight and switches to another Mac remarking "That's why we have backup systems HERE."
13:20-A demonstration of Smart Folders, and other new Finder features.
15:30-Updated Mail program. Spotlight integration as well as instant slideshow from attached photos and instant add to iPhoto form the slideshow mode.
18:25-QuickTime 7's new features. Surround sound, full HD playback, complete MPEG-4 compliance, and H.246 support.
21:40-Dashboard demo. The widgets look impressive. I just wish it wasn't such a rip off of Konfabulator. The dictionary option looks great as well as the stock and flight trackers.
23:40-Jobs demos flight tracker, but realizes he doesn't have a flight number to track (Jobs: "trust me, it works"). He then checks Apple stock tracker and jokes "Oh, its down today, well we've still got a lot of the keynote to go." before moaning at the low dollar value in the currency converter.
26:00-A demo of the weather tracker with dismal reports of rain, rain, rain, hail, snow, and wind ahead for San Fransisco.
27:40-iChat audio conferencing extended for up to 10 people and video extended for up to 4 people.
29:00-Video conferencing demo resulting in some funny (but possibly scripted) interchanges between the chat participants. Wow those boardroom table reflections look great!
31:00-Talking about HD video, including Final Cut Pro HD, and the new Final Cut Express HD.
33:00-iLife 05 is here! iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, GarageBand, and iTunes, all with "major updates."
34:00-iPhoto. New simpler interface, project folders, movie playback/organization, RAW support, plenty of new editing features, advanced slideshows, and better books.
47:25-iMovie. Faster editing, better performance, easier trimming in the timeline, MPEG-4 support, and "Magic iMovie" allowing the user to press a button and let iMovie edit their movie for them. Also, a big new feature: the ability to edit HD video.
51:50-Steve plugs the Sony HD video camera saying, "you've just gotta go get one of these."
52:40-Kunitake Ando, the president of Sony comes on stage to talk about Sony and Apple working together on HD capturing and editing. Meanwhile, Steve has got the Sony video camera filming from left stage.
55:00-Ando talks about the HD DVD format, slipping up as he loses his place in his notes. Steve walks on stage to help him, they shake hands, Ando prepares to walk offstage, but pauses halfway to say what was possibly supposed to be his conclusion before he lost his place.
58:00-iDVD. One step DVD creation, complete support of all DVD formats, some great new themes, and improved editing techniques.
1:02:15-GarageBand. Up to 8 tracks can be recorded simultaneously, real-time music notation, pitch & timing fixing, the ability to create your own loops, and a vocal transformer.
1:04:00-John Mayer walks on stage to demonstrate the new GarageBand.
1:10:00-iLife 05 will be available January 22 for $79, as well as being free on all new Macs.
1:10:40-Jobs introduces iWork, the successor to AppleWorks. iWork includes Keynote 2, and Pages, a new word processor as Apple's attempt to take a bite out of Microsoft Word. Looks like a great solution for newsletters, brochures, etc. (which Word was never very good for).
1:21:25-Here it comes, the Mac mini, a stripped down Mac available for $499 with no keyboard, mouse, or monitor, and a 1.25 or 1.42 GHz G4 processor. Wow does that look nice! Very simple and small design, amazing when Steve holds it in his hand. This will be a wonderful product to appeal to the Windows switchers. Available on January 22 as well.
1:26:30-iTunes update. 230,000,000 songs sold so far. 1,250,000 songs per day (half a billion songs per year). 70% market share in the online music store market. Over 1 million prepaid cards sold (I bought several, very convenient).
1:28:35-4,500,000 iPods sold in late 2004.
1:31:00-BMW and Apple are working on a new car adapter. Also, Mercedes, Nissan, Volvo, and Scion are all signing on to develop their own adapters.
1:33:27-Motorola cell phones are now planning to support an iTunes client (that looks very similar to the iPod interface) this Spring.
1:34:40-One more thing! The iPod shuffle, the long-awaited flash iPod is here! No LCD screen, but it's smaller than a stick of gum. At $99 for 512 MB or $149 for 1 GB, it's targeted after the low end of the flash market and could be great for those who don't want to pay $249 for a mini. It also supports AutoFill, which easily builds a playlist that fits exactly on the iPod shuffle. Oh, and it's available today.
1:45:50-The new iPod shuffle ad.
1:47:16-Steve thanks everybody involved and recaps everything that he's covered throughout the keynote.
1:49:00-John Mayer comes back on stage to perform a song to finish off the presentation.
1:53:50-Steve thanks everybody for attending.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:08 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 10, 2005
Macworld Keynote Tomorrow!
Steve Jobs is set to give the keynote at the Macworld Expo San Francisco 2005 tomorrow morning (9:00 AM PST). Unfortunately, you can't watch the webcast live even if you could skip work unless you can get yourself to a nearby Apple store or somehow find yourself in San Francisco because Apple has decided not to provide a live webcast, but rather post the recorded keynote at an unspecified time after it is actually given. Nevertheless, it should be an exciting speech. I'm hoping they'll introduce a flash-based iPod, headless iMac, bigger iPod mini (5GB), some sort of media center thing (portable or sedentary), and some revisions to the Powerbooks that should include G5 chips, but won't. The Apple community is already bombarding the Macworld Expo official site with visits and it seems to be offline currently. As a result most of the links in this post are to items on the general Macworld site instead of the more specific Macworld Expo site.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 06:32 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 09, 2005
The iHome Media Centre
Looks like somebody snuck into a storeroom at Macworld Expo and uncovered a new Apple product. It's the iHome Media Centre, and it looks like it has a DVD burner and possibly an HD DVR built-in as well. Could this be the headless iMac, or just a highly convincing attempt at a faked product? Fozbaca.org is mirroring the images in case the original site (linked to on fozbaca) is shut down by Apple.
UPDATE: It looks like, unfortunately, the pictures are fakes. Fairly well-done ones, but still fakes.
Facts against authenticity:
1. iHome is already copyrighted by another company.
2. The box packaging is messy and does not protect the product well.
3. On some pictures paper flaps can be seen hanging off the top of the box.
4. When the box is carried by the handle, the "iHome" would be upside-down.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 05:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/9/05
I am, once again, almost live from a racquetball court. This time, however, I am recording at 96 kHz and instead of a lot of popping, distortion, and inaudible voice, you get crystal clear racquetball noises as well as completely audible voice thanks to linux on my iPod, which I spend most of the podcast talking about.
SHOW NOTES: NONE
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 10:42 | 5.0 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 05:28 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 07, 2005
Linux on my iPod
I've managed to successfully install linux on my iPod using Podzilla. After evaluating the system, all it seems I would really use it for is voice recording (up to 96 kHz). It has major trouble playing AAC files, and struggles with mp3 tracks as well. Luckily, it is easy to switch between Apple's standard iPod OS and the Podzilla linux one. I did a test record at 44.1 kHz and the quality was average, but it was distorting my voice. I tried once again, but this time at 96 kHz and the recording was perfectly clear and came pretty close to that of my USB mic and Garageband setup. I will definitely be doing some podcasts on-the-go in the future now that my mobile setup can work so well.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 11:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/7/05
Thanks to iPodMods.com my iPod has been successfully repaired and returned to me! I also talk about the new Xserve models, Vonage's wi-fi handset, the Microsoft CES keynote, and I flip through the New York Times circuits section once again.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 26:48 | 12.3 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 08:05 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 06, 2005
Not Tonight
Well, I won't be getting a podcast out tonight, even though I've got one all planned out. I've got some good stuff for tomorrow, but tonight I'm working on another podcasting project. It involves a lot of AppleScript and time, but will hopefully be very useful. I've got some testing to do before I can release it though.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 08:56 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 04, 2005
Get Some Money From Microsoft
If you are a California resident who bought Windows, Microsoft Office, or other specific Microsoft products between 1995 and 2001, you are entitled to rebates on future technology purchases. Go to microsoftcalsettlement.com and fill out a claim form for a voucher. You can then buy a non-Microsoft technology product and send the voucher in along with the sales receipt for the product to get a rebate of $5 to $29. You can also call 1-800-960-5660 for more information. The deadline is Saturday for all claims.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 03, 2005
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/3/05
The Google Olympics at EverythingDigital, the top ten viruses of 2004, how the Swiss set an SMS/MMS record for New Years' Eve, details on SpaceShipTwo, and TiVoToGo.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 |16:47 | 7.7 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 12:27 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 02, 2005
The Google Olympics: Round 1
I've decided to have a contest on EverythingDigital to test the Googling skills of my listeners and visitors. I will introduce a question and the first person to use Google to find the correct answer, post it here as a comment on the entry that the question was posted on, and include a screenshot of the Google result which they clicked for the answer as well as a link to the page where they found the answer, wins a Gmail invite.
Alright, the question for round 1 is:
What was the size (in pixels) of the first Apple Macintosh computer's screen?
Google away and leave a comment when you find the answer. Remember, if there already is a comment before you, their answer may be wrong, so don't be afraid to leave yours anyway.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 09:27 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 01, 2005
Exeem From suprnova.org
The legendary BitTorrent site has rolled out a new, revolutionary way to share files. It uses decentralized BitTorrents and anonymous protocols to allow users to download various types of BitTorrent content. There is an interview posted with Sloncek about the Exeem project. The only problem: no support for Mac or Linux in the immediate future and no firm plans to develop it ever.
Listen to the Interview [suprnova.org]
Posted by Alan Joyce at 10:42 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
EverythingDigital Podcast 1/1/05
I've shifted my podcast production process over to the new, old Powermac G4 and I'm using Garageband to record much easier than before. I talk about Canon's new flat screens, AOL's lessened spam load, the continuing story of the Santy worm, and I flip through the New York Times Circuits section.
DOWNLOAD THE MP3 | 22:40 | 10.4 MB |
Posted by Alan Joyce at 12:08 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Happy New Year!
It's 2005, and my first action of the new year is listening to the Daily Source Code. I actually missed the midnight point of transition between 2004 and 2005 because I was watching a movie that ended at 12:02 unfortunatly. I'll be doing a podcast tomorrow morning since I've got it all planned out already.
Posted by Alan Joyce at 12:54 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack