Top 10 List: Gear that I use...

Despite the fact that I've become almost completely virtual, there is still a requirement for gear of one sort or another. Not all of it is in daily use; in fact, some of it doesn't get used more often than once a quarter. But these are the things that either make my life easier or make me smile:

10. Bose L1 Mark II Personal Amplification System

This was a rather silly purchase for me: I'm not a singer/songwriter, which seems to be the target audience for this thing. But I do host singer/songwriters occasionally for gigs, and it meets the need exactly. It also turns out to be a great way to do one-off DJ gigs, larger scale installation bits and laptoppery. Sounds great, disburses sound nicely, and is a non-backbreaker. I love it.

9. AKG C-214 microphone pair

I was never a fan of the 414, and when I got these in for a review, I was less than overjoyed. A cheap version of a mic I don't care for? Why bother? Well, it turns out that these things sound good no matter what I put in front of them. I'm not sure about the difference between them and the 414, or maybe my ears have changed since I last used this series - I don't know. But the bottom line is that they are my go-to microphones, and I don't know what I'm going to do when AKG remembers I've got 'em and they want 'em back.

8. Apogee Duet audio interface

Simple, elegant, works perfectly and sounds a dream. I've recommended this to so many people I should have angled for a royalty. Dead-on favorite audio interface in the world.

7. Native Instruments Maschine

I bought this out of my habit of buying anything that is an attempt at an MPC upgrade. In many ways, it is much more than that - the library functions are wonderful, and the hardware/software integration kicks butt. However, what has me really excited about it is the hardware itself: it feels better than any of the drum pad things that I've gotten in the past several years, and completely out-classes the current generation of MPC's. Handles a light touch with grace, but is still willing to take a pounding.

6. Sennheiser PX100 Collapsible Headphones

I move around a lot, and having something easy to carry (meaning, not my HD280's) and good sounding (meaning not earbuds) is important. I also need something that won't hurt my ears and won't overwhelm with ear fatigue. The PX100's fit the spot, and I do use these daily - in fact, probably hourly. I've been working on a big modular system in Max/MSP, and try to squeeze in 10 or 15 minutes wherever I happen to be at. The internal speakers of the Mac won't pull off the frequency range necessary, and the PX100's get popped out and used constantly. Wonderful headphones, very comfortable and not completely unsightly.

5. Korg Nanopad

I've written about this thing before. It doesn't feel that great, and it's probably quite fragile. But it goes everywhere with me. It is the "controller that I actually have on my person", which makes it the controller I actually use. It's right here next to me, see? Oh, you can't see. Well - take my word for it - I always have it on me.

4. Synderphonics Manta

I've written about this one, too - especially on the O'Reilly blog. This is the only playable controller I've ever used, and anytime I have a chance to settle back and work with it, I always end up overjoyed. It has a Monome-like hand-built lovely quality, but somehow feels like using an instrument in a way that no button pack does. Love it, love it, love it. I have some Max patches that work with it, but Vlad Spears' Honeycomb interface is what I use most. In fact, I'm having a hard time finishing up this blog given that the Manta is *right*there*...

3. Seagate FreeAgent Go portable hard drive

Much more than a memory stick or other portable bit of hardware, I use the FreeAgent to carry my life around with me. I have a massive number of samples on this thing, the current 5 or 6 projects I'm mixing or mastering and a pile of personal music and video project that are in the mix. It is never my sole location for data (since there have been reports of reliability problems), but it is the way that things move with me. It fits in the camera pocket of my laptop bag, and gets popped out anytime I've got a free minute.

2. M-Audio Axiom-49 and -25 keyboards

I've had issues with M-Audio keyboards over the years, but the Axiom series works for me, feels right and has enough controls to make my life easy. I never use the transport controls, but the pads, knobs and (on the -49) sliders are really handy when working with bot Max and Ableton Live. There are other keyboards that have tried to entrance me (especially, lately, the Novation stuff), but they don't have a chance because I've found something that feels and looks right, and doesn't make a damned sound while doing it.

1. Apple MacBook Pro

What do you call something that you use 10+ hours a day? Does it cease to be gear and become a limb? I can't imagine not having this thing under my fingers, and it is more than my constant companion - it is also my cubicle-mate, confessional and writing partner all in one. I know there was a time when I didn't have this sort of attachment to a laptop, but I don't like thinking about it that much. The best gear I own.

[ddg]

Free (open source?) storyboard paper

After striking out at the school bookstore, I decided to dig online for someone willing to sell me some storyboard paper. How silly. Our friends at Konigi are more than willing to let me make my own, preventing me from ever having to leave my stinking fat-boy chair.

Have I mentioned how much I love the intertubes?

[ddg]

Top 10 List: Microsoft Wins...

I'm a big-time Machead, and tend to only use Windows when I'm required to. Recently, though, I've been using it more; using it with Sound Forge 10 for sample editing, doing Processing development there and generally enjoying the system. It helps that my (now operational) HP Pavilion dv3 system is pretty sexy, and I bought an additional battery pack that will work for a reasonable period of time.

Anyway, in celebration of Windows 7 (which I'm going to pick up today, I think), I thought it would be fun to do a Top 10 list of Microsoft Wins. They get beat up for not being innovative, but some of their decisions have made modern computing the Good Thing that it is today. So here goes...

Top 10 Microsoft Wins (from my perspective):

10. Bing. I know, I know - it's an also-ran in the search department. But have you actually used it? It is so much superior to the Google "I paid for top spot, so you are going to get my link jammed into your face" results that it's ridiculous. Getting out of the habit of "google.com"'ing is a little tough, but the Bing results page is exactly what I want. Oh, and it came complete with a great set of ads!

9. DirectX. There are a lot of anti-DirectX sentiments out there, but the only real competition is from a hodge-podge of OpenGL and other BS interfaces - none of them coordinated, and none of them particularly stable. By creating a system that is able to embrace all of the various media types, Microsoft has create a beast that not other system can match. Yeah, and don't talk to me about Apple's Core Whatever systems. Zzzzz....

8. Gaming for Adults. I hate to even mention this, because grown-up gaming is one of those things that nobody wants to talk about. A lot of people (including, for example, my wife) claim to hate computer games and all they stand for. But, of course, getting a chance to play FreeCell along with the morning cuppa coffee is acceptable. The fact is that the basic games that come with Windows are commercial quality monsters, and the Mah Jongg game that shipped with Vista makes me tear up. Just don't tell anyone I'm spending hours on the thing.

7. Super-broad hardware support. You know what? Sometimes I just need to use a touch-screen display. Or maybe a crazy new audio interface, bar code reading device or Blu-ray DVD burner. As much as I love Apple, I hate having to choose from their list of 20 printers or 3 display devices. When I have to do bleeding-edge hardware, I'm almost always using a Windows box.

6. SQL Server. I've got some friends that are running a development business that works with large document storage and support. They've used a number of database systems, and they now swear by SQL Server. The developer support is great, the database is super-stable and deployment is easy enough (once you get used to it). I remember the rocky roads with database development, and it is great to see a company like Microsoft take on this mundane utility. Also, it's nice to see someone give Oracle a run for their money.

5. Third party software vendor support. Any platform that can support Sony/Sonic Foundry, Cakewalk, Image-Line Software and other killer companies - and do so over a long period of time - is, by default, a winner. Think about Mac-only companies for a minute: Opcode, Casady & Greene and others suffered for hitching their wagon to the Mac OS. Makes me very worried for MOTU (a company with some of the nicest - and smartest - people in the world).

4. Corporate Determination. One thing that I really appreciate about Microsoft is their determination to stick with something, even when it doesn't seem to be working out. What (for the broadsheet press) seems like failure may be exactly what a vertical market needs - and Microsoft isn't willing to abandon this market on a whim. A good example is Windows Mobile. Right now, it is being written off as dead meat. But my wife's book business is built around this unit, and she has been able to continue upgrading over the years with very little pain. Imagine if she had built her business around a Newton, Go or other Superior Technology. Thanks, Microsoft, for sticking with the hard stuff.

3. Microsoft Office. I can hear the moans from here. Sure, it is pretty bloated, and 90% of the stuff you get is unneeded. For you. What about me? I use this package several hours a day, every day of my life. I have for the past many, many years. You will pry MS Office out of my cold dead hands, baby. This software rocks!

2. Scalable product development. Any co2pany that creates software to support server farms while still supporting Netbooks gets a tip of my cap. The Netbooks phenomena is really exciting, and there are a lot of people that are computer-mobile using teeny-tiny Windows boxes that can fit in their purses or glove boxes. Anything that gets more people using gear is OK by me.

1. The Visual Studio development environment. By creating a development system that empowers the programmer, they've created an environment that allows third-party developers succeed - no matter how they prefer to work. Visual Studio has defined the de facto work environment for programmers, and has forced XCode, Eclipse and others to chase their overwhelmingly useful environment.

[ddg]

Digital Resistance examined.

For our Tech Foundations class...:

In the time since Digital Resistance was published (in 2000), much has changed regarding the possibility of a digitally-based civil disobedience. Much of what was proposed by the CAE would now be characterized as “cyber-terrorism”, and has become the fodder for overwrought news reports and countless new security groups, both governmental and private. The process of having a person’s records be more valuable than their physical body is now complete, with illicit data capture now named “identity theft”.

As the global economy has become more centered around the Internet as a marketing and commerce center, governmental agencies have reacted by further criminalizing actions outside the norm. This has the effect of reducing the opportunities to mount effective (while still quasi-legal) resistance using computer- or network-based means.

As a result, the public face of digital resistance has changed – largely as a result of the crackdown on “hacker” behavior and the widespread theft/fraud present in E-commerce. Since this system is seen to be fragile, CD efforts that target the movement of goods or money are considered too intimidating to be effective. One area where CD has thrived – despite the CAE’s skepticism toward the media – is the movement toward presenting user-created media on public channels.

Recently, after a particularly corrupt election in Iran, local residents were able to shape global public opinion using updated versions of classic resistance techniques. With makeshift media tools (like cellphone video and photo captures) and homespun communications (including blog entries, YouTube videos and Twitter messages), the Iranian public burst forth with information that would otherwise have been unattainable.

In this case, the Iranian citizen-reporters found a willing audience for their information, and received worldwide attention for their cause. Because this resistance didn’t interfere with first-world commerce, because it was inexpensive to produce and display, and because it was directed at an already vilified governmental entity, the resistance movement was greeted with open arms and great praise.

This new form of resistance is flexing its muscles by “showing” revealing examples of systemic misuse and forcing transparency. A good example is the China Channel add-on for the Firefox browser. This tool allows a user to experience the level of censorship found among the Chinese populace. This provides an opportunity to see that the “borderless, nationless” Internet it limited by a government attempting to control data flow. China’s “Golden Shield” content blocking system is a constant overlord of incoming data, and will target users that search for or access “inappropriate” data.

Another example of forced transparency is the creation, by the Electronic Freedom Foundation of a TOS tracker. User advocates had been disturbed with the secretive way that Facebook, YouTube and other large companies could change their terms of service without any notification to end-users, and how this could easily lead to privacy concerns. By creating a program that would keep track of policies and user agreements, the EFF forced an improvement in transparency – without support or acknowledgement by the companies in their sights.

Recently, I was forwarded a link to an ACLU-based Facebook application that would show how a simple quiz could reveal much of my personal data to the quiz creator. I was shocked – not only my available personal data, but by how much of my friend’s data was also provided to the quiz creator. This forced me to change many of the privacy settings, mostly using the information on this site:
http://www.allfacebook.com/2009/02/facebook-privacy/

So, while digital resistance – especially against large-scale entities (both governmental and corporate) – has changed, there are still ways to cause change using digital means. By either co-opting the media (ala Iran) or making systems more transparent (ala China Channel, the EFF and ACLU), there are opportunities for cause change through digital means.

[ddg]

Design project - of a sort...

For our first design project, we were required to make something that wanted to be touched. I immediately know what I wanted to do - I'd seen some sorority girls wearing these funny antennae headpieces, and I wanted to do something similar that would also have sonification.

I decided on balls perched on top of bass guitar strings. Why that? Because I'd always liked the action of bass strings, and I thought that ball could provide an interesting bouncing action. My first prototype used little "superballs", with the bass strings poked into an eraser as a temporary base. It bounced around interestingly, but the superballs didn't really provide any sort of interesting sound.

What I really thought I would like is ping-pong balls, but wasn't sure how I would perch them on top of the bass strings. Finally, I found an answer using my Dremel tool and a steady hand. The balls made a nice popping sound when impacted, and they also made an interesting swishing sound when they rubbed together.

The base was the harder part. I wanted something that would transmit the sound well, but that I could manage to work with limited tools. Initially, I tried different types of tile, but they were almost impossible to drill mounting holes into. Finally, I settled on a sandwich of two cedar closet hangers. This was easy to work, and provided a way to route them to place the pickup and run the cable.

I tried a number of transducers, and settled on using a mini-speaker as a microphone. This picked up the sound transported by the cedar base, and I ran that into a mini-amp for amplification. I also made a little Max patch to create an augemented sound. The whole thing is called "Cloud Formation", with a weather-like audio output from the Max patch. It may look kind of crude, but it is really cool.

[ddg]

Many future Max-heads germinated today...

I had a chance to do a quick intro class on Max today. The Tech Foundations class at DU opened the door to me and let me do a quick patching introduction (with lots of participation). Everyone seemed to get it, and by the end of the class they were pointing out ways to improve the test patch, automate some of its functions and reduce the complexity of subpatches without any prompting on my part. I couldn't be happier. Thanks to Chris and the boyz for the opportunity.

[ddg]

OMG!!! BoingBoing strikes a Hit!

Normally, a troll through BoingBoing is done for the sake of keeping up with the proto-Joneses, trying to see what ideas I shouldn't bother having anymore and watching the wacky world of Etsy without actually having to grace the site. Today, I was doing my slide-through when I happened on an entry about some hand-printed calendars with the artwork of Jim Flora.

Money flowed frictionlessly from my Paypal account to the Jim Flora Studios. The memories behind these pictures is so visceral I can taste it, and the artwork is to die for. He combines some of the twitchy visuals of Joan Miro with the vitality of 40's and 50's jazz and pop music to create the ultimate "Of A Time" album covers - ones that I would be happy to display anywhere I happen to be squatting.

Must see visuals.

[ddg]