CD Ripping in LaLa Land?
07/12/09 08:05
So, Apple have bought a music streaming service called LaLa. Is this the end for CD ripping services such as podServe?
First, for those of you unfamiliar with streaming music let me explain what Apple may have in mind. You pay a fee (probably monthly) for which you get access to music. You’d be able to listen to that music over the internet and probably download it to your iPod but you don’t actually “own” the music. When your subscription lapses you lose the right to hear that music again. If this become iTunes Music Streaming why bother with having your CDs ripped?
Sure, for some people it will work. But judging by the pathway littered with failed music streaming services it doesn’t suit many people. Even massive companies such as Nokia have struggled to get traction with music streaming. Here are some reasons why ripping your CDs (yourself, or through a service) will continue to make sense.
After the initial euphoria of being given access to so many millions of tracks previous streaming services rapidly induce fatigue.
There will be scandal. Some teenage nerd hacker in a garage in Scandinavia will figure out a way of bypassing the copy control system. Apple will shriek, the lables will wail, Lily Allen will have a fit. More software heading your way. If you want a streaming music service just buy a radio.
First, for those of you unfamiliar with streaming music let me explain what Apple may have in mind. You pay a fee (probably monthly) for which you get access to music. You’d be able to listen to that music over the internet and probably download it to your iPod but you don’t actually “own” the music. When your subscription lapses you lose the right to hear that music again. If this become iTunes Music Streaming why bother with having your CDs ripped?
Sure, for some people it will work. But judging by the pathway littered with failed music streaming services it doesn’t suit many people. Even massive companies such as Nokia have struggled to get traction with music streaming. Here are some reasons why ripping your CDs (yourself, or through a service) will continue to make sense.
- You like the music, why else would you have bought those CDs?
- You’ve made the investment, a bit more time / money and your library comes to life.
- Money - no monthly fee.
- No hassle - no big brother snooping on what you can or can’t listen to. No intrusive software.
After the initial euphoria of being given access to so many millions of tracks previous streaming services rapidly induce fatigue.
- Most new music is somewhere between poor and awful.
- There will be gaping holes. Some labels won’t play, classical music will be neglected.
- Negative press. Some users will pay but experience problems, so they’ll complain long and loud.
- Artists hate it as too much revenue goes to the label and not them.
- Licensing bodies hate it as they find it hard to track individual plays.
There will be scandal. Some teenage nerd hacker in a garage in Scandinavia will figure out a way of bypassing the copy control system. Apple will shriek, the lables will wail, Lily Allen will have a fit. More software heading your way. If you want a streaming music service just buy a radio.
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Can't Install or Uninstall iTunes
25/11/09 20:12
Earlier today we had a call about a problem with iTunes running on Vista. The young lady could neither install or uninstall iTunes. I was baffled, in my experience installing an application (even “over” a program) gets you safely back to a safe starting point.
In this instance the program (iTunes) could neither be installed nor uninstalled, in both cases the error message was:-
The feature you are trying to use is on a network resource that is unavailable.
I was even more puzzled as the computer in question is a standalone laptop. Anyway, I did some digging and found this problem reported by several users, some troubled with iTunes, others with Photoshop. The suggested solution is to run Microsoft’s Windows Installer Clean-up Utility, which you can find via Google or from this link.
In this instance the program (iTunes) could neither be installed nor uninstalled, in both cases the error message was:-
The feature you are trying to use is on a network resource that is unavailable.
I was even more puzzled as the computer in question is a standalone laptop. Anyway, I did some digging and found this problem reported by several users, some troubled with iTunes, others with Photoshop. The suggested solution is to run Microsoft’s Windows Installer Clean-up Utility, which you can find via Google or from this link.
Hiss Here?
21/11/09 15:07
One of our CD ripping clients emailed me. He's upgraded to some high quality head phones and now notices a short hiss on certain tracks just before the music starts. Is this usual?
Our client is much younger than me and its a fact your hearing gets less precise as you get older so I'm not surprised that try as I might I can'r hear it on my music, either through headphones or decent speakers. So the best I could do is suggest a way round this if the hiss is becoming intrusive.
If you highlight the offending track, then right click (Get Info) then you to the tab Options, part way down you'll see a box for Start Time. The blank box shows minutes and seconds. If you put an entry here iTunes will miss out that part of the music file. The setting can be changed or removed safely - but you can use it to edit out anything at the beginning of the track that you don't want to hear.
Our client is much younger than me and its a fact your hearing gets less precise as you get older so I'm not surprised that try as I might I can'r hear it on my music, either through headphones or decent speakers. So the best I could do is suggest a way round this if the hiss is becoming intrusive.
If you highlight the offending track, then right click (Get Info) then you to the tab Options, part way down you'll see a box for Start Time. The blank box shows minutes and seconds. If you put an entry here iTunes will miss out that part of the music file. The setting can be changed or removed safely - but you can use it to edit out anything at the beginning of the track that you don't want to hear.
podServe Christmas Vouchers
18/11/09 17:39
I wish we'd thought of this but the idea originally came from a client. She wanted something for her husband who after many years of success in business pretty much had everything.
Except all his CDs loaded onto his iPod.
So we made up a certificate entitling him to having all his CDs loaded onto his iPod by us. Husband was duly pleased with his present, a few days later we collected his CDs and early in the New Year happy Xmas husband had all his CDs on his iPod.
It's an idea we've run with every year since, and we're doing it again this year. More details on our Christmas gift page.
Except all his CDs loaded onto his iPod.
So we made up a certificate entitling him to having all his CDs loaded onto his iPod by us. Husband was duly pleased with his present, a few days later we collected his CDs and early in the New Year happy Xmas husband had all his CDs on his iPod.
It's an idea we've run with every year since, and we're doing it again this year. More details on our Christmas gift page.
Solid State iPods
09/10/09 22:38
Ever since the first iPod nano I've been banging on about the delights of devices with no rotating disc. The latest nano is just a delight, go along to an Apple Store and pick one up - then contrast it with the iPod Classic.
See what I mean? Isn't it big, and , er ... clunky? Sure it holds tons of music, videos, photos and other vital stuff, but its big. Why not do the obvious and put the nano on steroids?
Well maybe I now understand why they can't. It isn't that they don't want to, I'm sure even their bad designers are smarter than me on this, its just that they can't. they can't do it for the most simple of reasons - ther aren't enough suitable memory chips on the market.
Apple has hoovered them all up, and still they can't make enough Nanos. So my non-rotating drive Classic must be on hold. Until you read about a major new plant being built to double or treble peoduction. Then watch out.
See what I mean? Isn't it big, and , er ... clunky? Sure it holds tons of music, videos, photos and other vital stuff, but its big. Why not do the obvious and put the nano on steroids?
Well maybe I now understand why they can't. It isn't that they don't want to, I'm sure even their bad designers are smarter than me on this, its just that they can't. they can't do it for the most simple of reasons - ther aren't enough suitable memory chips on the market.
Apple has hoovered them all up, and still they can't make enough Nanos. So my non-rotating drive Classic must be on hold. Until you read about a major new plant being built to double or treble peoduction. Then watch out.
Sonos Silence Solved
23/09/09 08:04
Got a call from a puzzled Sonos owner. He had a system installed throughout his (large, country) house a few months ago as part of a major renovation. Worked fine, even keeping the builders amused as they did various renovations to the house.
When the project was over and all the furniture moved back into the house, half the Sonos system stopped working. Obviously the network had failed to reach through the new fixtures and fittings. To address this a network repeater was installed. While this improved computer network access through the house it did nothing for the Sonos silence. I was asked why?
Easy - Sonos runs on its own network and won't piggyback on a traditional home network. Solution - install a new zone player midway to boost the signal, or relocate an existing player closer its neighbour; or buy one of the new small zone units. That will do the trick.
When the project was over and all the furniture moved back into the house, half the Sonos system stopped working. Obviously the network had failed to reach through the new fixtures and fittings. To address this a network repeater was installed. While this improved computer network access through the house it did nothing for the Sonos silence. I was asked why?
Easy - Sonos runs on its own network and won't piggyback on a traditional home network. Solution - install a new zone player midway to boost the signal, or relocate an existing player closer its neighbour; or buy one of the new small zone units. That will do the trick.
It's Today.
09/09/09 07:43
Later today (UK time) it will all be revealed when the Apple event takes place.
Looking at some of the rumour mill sites last night it's surprising how people are back tracking on what might be unveiled. The shopping list at the moment looks like iPods with cameras (lifted from the iPhone), a new version of iTunes to support Blu-ray media, and - well - that's it.
People are back tracking on The Beatles link. Indeed the event tag line "It's only rock and roll" is lifted from a Rolling Stones track. No more suggestions on a flash based Classic replacement.
My question is, is it all worth it if that's just the sum total of the announcement? We'll see in a few hours time.
Looking at some of the rumour mill sites last night it's surprising how people are back tracking on what might be unveiled. The shopping list at the moment looks like iPods with cameras (lifted from the iPhone), a new version of iTunes to support Blu-ray media, and - well - that's it.
People are back tracking on The Beatles link. Indeed the event tag line "It's only rock and roll" is lifted from a Rolling Stones track. No more suggestions on a flash based Classic replacement.
My question is, is it all worth it if that's just the sum total of the announcement? We'll see in a few hours time.
This Week?
07/09/09 21:08
In two days time, as I mentioned last week, Apple is scheduling a major announcement with the tag line saying it's about the music. One of the commercial radio stations in London has been running a Beatles special week (along with The Times newspaper) tied in with the launch of newly remastered CDs.
Could it be a coincidence? Well, there have been long running rumours that having settled the long running legal dispute over the use of the term "Apple" in a musical context, that The Beatles would appear in iTunes Music Store. You'll remember the special U2 iPod (which didn't actually have any music on it, you had to download it from Music Store) so maybe there will be a Beatles iPod. Nice.
Nice enough to justify a whole launch event? I doubt it, further rumours suggest that iPod boxes are not being replenished in Apple's retail centres which suggests a revamp of the product line. My feeling is that the hard drive version of the iPod will go in favour of a flash memory based unit. This would offer substantial capacity, maybe a sleeker form factor, and better battery life.
A camera? Much as I love photography I can't see there being too much demand for snapping while you bop. I can see that having a web-cam device in an iPod would be great, and a camera-as-scanner to interact with albums could be useful - to acquire album art for tracks that aren't in iTunes Music Store.
Well - in about 48 hours all will be clear. But if you just happen to be reading this Steve, and it's not too late, can you please shoot that silly iPod Shuffle thing.
Could it be a coincidence? Well, there have been long running rumours that having settled the long running legal dispute over the use of the term "Apple" in a musical context, that The Beatles would appear in iTunes Music Store. You'll remember the special U2 iPod (which didn't actually have any music on it, you had to download it from Music Store) so maybe there will be a Beatles iPod. Nice.
Nice enough to justify a whole launch event? I doubt it, further rumours suggest that iPod boxes are not being replenished in Apple's retail centres which suggests a revamp of the product line. My feeling is that the hard drive version of the iPod will go in favour of a flash memory based unit. This would offer substantial capacity, maybe a sleeker form factor, and better battery life.
A camera? Much as I love photography I can't see there being too much demand for snapping while you bop. I can see that having a web-cam device in an iPod would be great, and a camera-as-scanner to interact with albums could be useful - to acquire album art for tracks that aren't in iTunes Music Store.
Well - in about 48 hours all will be clear. But if you just happen to be reading this Steve, and it's not too late, can you please shoot that silly iPod Shuffle thing.
Next Week?
03/09/09 18:57
Next week Steve Jobs (I assume) takes to the stage again for another Apple extravaganza, said to be about music.
Knowledgable sources have scorned suggestions that this event will include upgrades to Apple TV, so what will be there? For some time it's seemed sensible to extend the iPod line so that from iPod Shuffle right up to Classic you have flash memory based units. So maybe this is goodbye to rotating hard drives.
There's also speculation that iTunes will also be able to ship ring tones. Not a great improvement, but what about a DVD ripping function built into iTunes?
Knowledgable sources have scorned suggestions that this event will include upgrades to Apple TV, so what will be there? For some time it's seemed sensible to extend the iPod line so that from iPod Shuffle right up to Classic you have flash memory based units. So maybe this is goodbye to rotating hard drives.
There's also speculation that iTunes will also be able to ship ring tones. Not a great improvement, but what about a DVD ripping function built into iTunes?
iPod Error -48
18/07/09 10:38
Suddenly, after a period of normal working, our client’s iPod refuses to sync and reports Error -48. What is it? Why does it happen? How can you fix it?
I’m not aware of any official list of what various odd iPod / iTunes error messages actually mean. In this instance I think what your little device is trying to tell you is that it has found some corruption on the iPod hard drive. Looking at suggested fixes for the problem the hard drive seems to be the culprit.
In cases such as this my first suggestion would be to reset your iPod to factory settings. If you’ve never done this before it sounds drastic but really it’s straightforward. Just connect your iPod, then when iTunes recognises the unit from the main iPod management screen in iTunes select the option to restore to factory settings. This will take a few minutes and a couple of do-yo-really-want-to boxes and then the iPod will be wiped and a new operating system installed. Some more waiting and the flash memory will be refreshed and away you go. The final step should be an automatic re-sync of music, photos, contacts etc. It may take an hour but when done you should be back to a functioning iPod, problem solved.
Looking at other iPod users experiences (and these are mainly Windows rather than Apple Mac OS X) you can go a long way by using My Computer to locate the iPod and right clicking, then running the standard disc check facility. Many people have reported that this works for them and may be quicker than a full restore as it leaves the music etc on the iPod.
Personally the restore route is more attractive to me as it stays within the iPod / iTunes family, and that is developed by the people responsible for your portable music package.
What happens if the fault repeats? If this were my iPod and it was still within warranty I’d be inclined to lob the unit back to Apple. They’ll send you a new unit as a replacement and it might just be that your original iPod was the one bad apple in that days barrel.
I’m not aware of any official list of what various odd iPod / iTunes error messages actually mean. In this instance I think what your little device is trying to tell you is that it has found some corruption on the iPod hard drive. Looking at suggested fixes for the problem the hard drive seems to be the culprit.
In cases such as this my first suggestion would be to reset your iPod to factory settings. If you’ve never done this before it sounds drastic but really it’s straightforward. Just connect your iPod, then when iTunes recognises the unit from the main iPod management screen in iTunes select the option to restore to factory settings. This will take a few minutes and a couple of do-yo-really-want-to boxes and then the iPod will be wiped and a new operating system installed. Some more waiting and the flash memory will be refreshed and away you go. The final step should be an automatic re-sync of music, photos, contacts etc. It may take an hour but when done you should be back to a functioning iPod, problem solved.
Looking at other iPod users experiences (and these are mainly Windows rather than Apple Mac OS X) you can go a long way by using My Computer to locate the iPod and right clicking, then running the standard disc check facility. Many people have reported that this works for them and may be quicker than a full restore as it leaves the music etc on the iPod.
Personally the restore route is more attractive to me as it stays within the iPod / iTunes family, and that is developed by the people responsible for your portable music package.
What happens if the fault repeats? If this were my iPod and it was still within warranty I’d be inclined to lob the unit back to Apple. They’ll send you a new unit as a replacement and it might just be that your original iPod was the one bad apple in that days barrel.
iPod + Camera? iSpy
07/07/09 09:14
Just a few days ago Apple carried out major relaunch of their mobile phone, the iPhone. Part of the new model and upgrade features was the addition of a movie function to supplement the traditional camera. Apple is a very secretive company, it’s hard to get good quality rumours from within but there’s less control on their partners. Such as the myriad of companies making covers for iPhone and the iPod Touch.
You’ll be aware of the massive similarities between the iPhone and the iPod Touch, so in many ways its strange that the Touch lacks the camera of its big brother. In the last few days posts have appeared showing samples of new cases for the iPod Touch, they clearly show a new aperture in the back of the cases just where the lens of a camera might appear. So we’ve all jumped to the obvious conclusion - the next variant of the ipod Touch will have a camera.
So what?
Well, why not? The cost and technology overhead of adding this must by now be minute. It might make individual component costs come down as Apple would be sourcing even more lenses. The software has been developed for the iPhone and I’d imagine porting that to the Touch would cost very little.
Increasingly pictures are being taken for granted. Just try and buy a mobile phone without a camera. So you can take snapshots - post them online (boosting Apple’s MobileMe?) and print them (another Apple service). You could shoot movies which in all probability you’d like to edit - perhaps leveraging you to buy an integrated Mac computer rather a Windows box.
Video conferencing via chat? Better location finding? And what about Skype for video chat from the local wi-fi hotspot. For a small additional cost (whether passed on to the consumer or not) Apple could add a major new boost to an already successful product. My fingers are crossed.
You’ll be aware of the massive similarities between the iPhone and the iPod Touch, so in many ways its strange that the Touch lacks the camera of its big brother. In the last few days posts have appeared showing samples of new cases for the iPod Touch, they clearly show a new aperture in the back of the cases just where the lens of a camera might appear. So we’ve all jumped to the obvious conclusion - the next variant of the ipod Touch will have a camera.
So what?
Well, why not? The cost and technology overhead of adding this must by now be minute. It might make individual component costs come down as Apple would be sourcing even more lenses. The software has been developed for the iPhone and I’d imagine porting that to the Touch would cost very little.
Increasingly pictures are being taken for granted. Just try and buy a mobile phone without a camera. So you can take snapshots - post them online (boosting Apple’s MobileMe?) and print them (another Apple service). You could shoot movies which in all probability you’d like to edit - perhaps leveraging you to buy an integrated Mac computer rather a Windows box.
Video conferencing via chat? Better location finding? And what about Skype for video chat from the local wi-fi hotspot. For a small additional cost (whether passed on to the consumer or not) Apple could add a major new boost to an already successful product. My fingers are crossed.