Two assignments down, two more to go (including a 5-10 page research-situation paper) before 2:00 am tonight. I wish Zoë and Chloë could cook for me. In addition, I’m missing out on a Barenaked Ladies concert tonight. I wasn’t too impressed with their new CD anyway.
Month: October 2003
Child’s Play
A gaming magazine rounded up nine children, ages 9 to 12, and sat them down in front of classic arcade and console video games. Some of their comments were pretty intelligent. Here’s what they had to say. Link from Kottke.
three rules
The Ferrett’s 3 Rules of Sex. Can’t say how accurate it is, but it makes you think.
niagara
Guy survives dive into Niagara Falls. Observer: “It was really freaky, actually. He was smiling.”
Google now provides inline definitions. In fact, WordNet is used as one source.
A Secret Revealed
Friends, I must reveal a secret. I check Sharingthegroove.org every day. I’ve discovered the SHN audio format, which is spectrally identical to 44kHz, 16bit WAV files. That is, there is no audio compression or hinting, and yet the files are smaller. I’ve discovered people who post entire live concerts for other people to download using a peer-to-peer program called Bit Torrent.
My collection of Pink Floyd “RoIOs” (Recordings of Illegitimate Origin, ie. bootlegs) has increased two-fold (I already had a lot), and now I have added to my collection concerts of other performers, such as Norah Jones. If you like R.E.M., Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Grateful Dead, Genesis, and so many others, this is the best way to get your concert audio. Many of them are soundboard recordings, so the quality is very good.
You’ll need Bit Torrent to download the concerts. To listen, you can get a plug-in for WinAmp or a plug-in for your CD-writer software if you just want to burn them directly onto compact discs. Here are the tools: mkw will convert audio between WAV, MP3 and SHN; ShnAmp is a plug-in for WinAmp 2 or 3; Plug-in for Nero. There might be plug-ins for other CD writers to write SHNs directly, but if not, you can convert them to WAV files first using mkw.
Also, you may notice I redesigned. Of course this will stir up controversy as usual, mostly complaints, but some people might be happy to see the orange no longer present. Leave your comments here if you so desire. Or don’t.
college costs
College costs take another leap. Good thing my MBA degree is being reimbursed.
iTunes
iTunes renames MP3s and changes directory structure even when you tell it not to. I’m considering WinAmp 5 Beta instead.