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but yet the same person who would complain about this would beef about people not following instructions and/or government entities not modernizing their processes.
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it would be nice if the people who wrote these articles knew what they were writing about. When I was journalist, this was called ‘bead-stringing.’
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yay for me, I have been through that first one about a million times . . . .
Month: June 2007
automating mass copies of CDs
I had a need to reproduce a stack of CDs for someone, and while it was easy enough to do, I found I was getting behind. I didn’t always know when a CD was done so I could replace the burned disk with blank media.
Making the image can be done with Disk Utility, dd, hdiutil, etc.
Now to make some copies. I figured out that if I sent a text message to my phone, I would be reminded to go flip the media.
while [ 1 != 0 ]
# this is always true, so it will always run
do time hdiutil burn ~/image.iso
# man hdiutil for more details, if needed
echo "toast is ready" | mail myphonenumber@vtext.com
# I use Verizon: your carrier may do it differently.
done
It worked: I finished up the job today, getting as much done in one day as I did in the previous three.
If I knew how many I needed to make, other than “until the box is empty” I could have used while [ $i =< some number ] and added a counter ( $i++ ) to the loop.
links for 2007-06-19
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It’s either this or make the dunk/layup/any shot within the wingspan of a player worth only one point.
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So some iPhones are in use (likely by testers at Apple)? I may have to look myself once they’re rolled out.
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what I have never understood is how some can claim a love for their god and his creations while they trash their environment and ignore every creature in it. Disconnect? Or what?
still not getting the benefit of 7Digital
Taking another look at this, as I wait for my dinner guests to let me know when they’re coming, I don’t see the price benefit (since the tracks show cost more that the $1.29 on iTunes: right now £.79 converts US$1.55) and don’t come in a universally recognized format (like mp3) or even a ubiquitous and cross-platform one (like AAC/mp4). It’s not like some (the majority of) players don’t understand both or that transcoding is a huge issue.
And what’s with the tracks costing £1.33/US$2.62 if you buy the album vs just buying the tracks? I realize the Floyd offers longer tracks and fewer of them than some artists but I think I would keep that information out of sight.
7digital – Pink Floyd – Meddle:
And if you look closely (or not so closely) those tracks are encoded in WMA, not ubiquitous mp3. I don’t know if I get more options once I commit to buying a track or album but it would useful to spell that out. I know WMA, mp3, and AAC are offered: why not all up front, I have no idea.
I’m sure it’s a great service but less hype would be less annoying and a cursory fact-check would be helpful. I’m going to keep an eye on it and see how it compares.
competition (and the Fine Print)
Buy EMI’s catalog as MP3s for 30% cheaper than iTunes:
7 Digital is selling EMI’s catalog as 320kpbs MP3s for UKP0.50 — about $1. Apple is selling the same music as lower-bitrate AAC files, with s33kr1t information hidden in them that Apple won’t discuss, for 30 percent more.
Looks like it’s actually what he claims it is.
But I wonder if this would have happened without the iTunes/iPod strategy proving there was a market for digital music?
Ahem. Not all of the tracks are available as 320 kbits. I just picked one up that came in 192 kbits — less than the iTunes Plus tracks these are supposed to be better than. And from the details below, 320 is far from the default. But when I looked at the file’s info, it shows as being encoded at 225 kbits.
Q) What quality are the downloads?
A) The downloads are Windows Media Audio 9 Series encoded at 192kbps and AAC and MP3 formats encoded at 192kbps. These are virtually indistinguishable from CD-quality audio.
Q) What does “License Acquisition” mean?
A) When you purchase a track, our system will issue you a personal license enabling you to play the track on up to 3 computers as well as burn the track to CD and transfer to a compatible portable music player.
Q) What is DRM?
A) DRM stands for Digital Rights Management and is a technology that can help protect the copyright of artists and record labels by helping prevent illegaland unauthorised copying. Customers who buy tracks from this service can make personal CD copies of all tracks purchased and also transfer to their portable music players (as long as the portable music player is compatible with format of the download).
Why mention DRM at all? Do these tracks have it? If not, say so (it’s a bit selling point, after all). If yes, um, better to say that as well.
links for 2007-06-18
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I don’t get the appeal of fixies but I guess all the kewl kids in NYC have ’em.
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There oughta be a place in the dock at the Hague for him.
quote of the day
Don’t nominate racist idiots like George Allen. It isn’t the magical internet that took down Allen. It was his own dumb mouth that did the duty, the camera just preserved the moment.
Tbird
I love how he does these.
quote of the day
Going to the doctor’s for sissies anyhow:
No cushy socialized VA system for you, pal! You get to fight it out in with a reluctant insurance company, scrambling with the crackheads and the immigrants for the title of America’s Least Desirable HMO Customer, and meanwhile we, the American taxpayer, are saved the pain of footing the bill for trying to alleviate the depression, fear, and endless nightmares brought on by your time doing our dirty work.
links for 2007-06-16
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I want to see one of these on every rooftop in Seattle: see those meters spin backwards all summer long.
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“once wifi-enabled phones are everywhere, is there any reason to have a SIM and be tied to expensive rates, dreadful service and poor features?”