About the Equalizer
This is fairly confusing! iTunes has a global equalizer and "presets". Presets are assigned to a song through the "get info" fields. If the global equalizer is enabled it overrides the presets, if its disabled the presets work.
This makes sense. One could set the equalizer to "classical" as a default behavior, but enable the global equalizer for "small speakers" when not connected to a quality sound system.
It's not quite so logical on the iPod. Assume there's an iTunes preset already.
- If the iPod EQ setting is "Off", the iTunes preset is ignored.
- If the iPod EQ is "Flat", the iTunes preset is used. (If there isn't one, no equalization is done.)
- Any other setting: the iTunes preset is used! In other words the setting is ignored.
The last seems wrong to me. The correct behavior should be to override the iTunes preset. Otherwise, when there's an iTunes preset present, the third option is meaningless. If one hooks small speakers to the iPod, for example, one may wish to switch to a "small speaker" setting.
Friday, August 29, 2003
iPod Access: Worth testing ...
iPod Access
Mess up your iTunes library? You're stuck. No way to recover your music from the iPod without something like this.
Mess up your iTunes library? You're stuck. No way to recover your music from the iPod without something like this.
iPod diagnostic mode
iPoding | What's that in your pocket?
Diagnostic mode -- hold the two side and center buttons down for 5+ seconds and then release.
Diagnostic mode -- hold the two side and center buttons down for 5+ seconds and then release.
iPod: Testing battery life
iPod: The Battery Status Indicator Is Approximate: "The iPod battery indicator shows, approximately, how much charge is left in the battery. In some cases, you may find that the battery indicator shows a charge left, but iPod stops playing because the battery is, in fact, depleted. This does not necessarily mean anything is wrong with your iPod's battery. Follow the steps in this document to determine if your iPod's battery is working correctly."
Cocktail - for OS X
Cocktail - a perfect mixture for Mac OS X
Need to download this newer version ...
Need to download this newer version ...
Thursday, August 28, 2003
PocketDock: iPod adapter for 6 pin firewire connector - Apple's Hardware Extensions
PocketDock: iPod adapter for 6 pin firewire connector
Apple is the master of proprietary, patented, connectors. It's the hardware equivalent of digital rights management; it provides customer lock-in. Microsoft, a software vendor, is strongly incented to "pervert" (add proprietary extensions) standard software interfaces, Apple, a hardware vendor, is strongly incented to "pervert" (add proprietary extensions) hardware interfaces.
Customers, of course, want open interfaces and open connectors -- but we're not smart enough to insist on them.
I suspect SendStation is challenging Apple to smack them down, and thus demonstrate that their customers are very much locked in. It will be interesting to see what happens!
If they get away with this, they'll sell a ton of these things. I'll buy one of course!
The tiny PocketDock lets you connect the new iPod’s docking port to a standard 6-pin FireWire cable, .. want to connect to another Mac or PC — to exchange files, or maybe just to charge the iPod’s battery...
accessories for the previous-model iPod, such as a car charger, the PocketDock will let you use them with the latest model...starts shipping September 12 for US$18.95
Apple is the master of proprietary, patented, connectors. It's the hardware equivalent of digital rights management; it provides customer lock-in. Microsoft, a software vendor, is strongly incented to "pervert" (add proprietary extensions) standard software interfaces, Apple, a hardware vendor, is strongly incented to "pervert" (add proprietary extensions) hardware interfaces.
Customers, of course, want open interfaces and open connectors -- but we're not smart enough to insist on them.
I suspect SendStation is challenging Apple to smack them down, and thus demonstrate that their customers are very much locked in. It will be interesting to see what happens!
If they get away with this, they'll sell a ton of these things. I'll buy one of course!
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
SonyStyle USA - SRS-T55 Travel Speakers (for iPod) - Text from an Amazon Review
SonyStyle USA - SRS-T55
I wrote this one for Amazon:
Music from atop the cabinet filled the (small) room. It was as loud as we would want, and the sound was remarkably clear. The slender speakers and the elegant iPod were almost invisible.
"There are times that I really feel I'm in the 21st century", Emily said, "This is one of those times."
Very impressive. The speakers are a bit bigger than I expected; I think the SONY SRS-T77 is more compact. It's the only comparable product; but it's twice the price of the SRS-T55. Mind you, these are so good I'm tempted to keep them by my iBook and buy the SRS-T77 for the office.
The speakers folded up are 2x3.5x4 inches. The battery compartment, holding 4AA batteries, makes up a fair bit of the size -- to be significantly smaller the device would probably need an internal rechargeable lithium battery and the price would be much higher.
SONY claims 24 hours of battery life at 10mW output. Maximum output is 1 W/speaker or 2W. You can buy an external SONY adaptor (ACE60HG) for about $20; I think it's a 6V/700mA adaptor. SONY of course says not to use any other adaptor, a possibly compatible RadioShack universal charger is about $16 -- not much less.
If you think you'll buy the charger, however, remember than the SRS-T77 comes with a power adaptor. Once you add in the cost of the adaptor you should consider getting the SRS-T77.
I thought that for convenience and portability I'd run off batteries, but we'll see. I may end up using them so much at home that it'll be worth buying the SONY power adaptor.
The speakers will work when powered off, but my iPod doesn't put out a strong enough signal to use for long in that mode. If you want to use your iPod as an alarm clock, and you're a light sleeper, this may come in useful however. I think leaving the speakers turned on overnight might drain the batteries. I'll experiment a bit with this.
I wrote this one for Amazon:
Music from atop the cabinet filled the (small) room. It was as loud as we would want, and the sound was remarkably clear. The slender speakers and the elegant iPod were almost invisible.
"There are times that I really feel I'm in the 21st century", Emily said, "This is one of those times."
Very impressive. The speakers are a bit bigger than I expected; I think the SONY SRS-T77 is more compact. It's the only comparable product; but it's twice the price of the SRS-T55. Mind you, these are so good I'm tempted to keep them by my iBook and buy the SRS-T77 for the office.
The speakers folded up are 2x3.5x4 inches. The battery compartment, holding 4AA batteries, makes up a fair bit of the size -- to be significantly smaller the device would probably need an internal rechargeable lithium battery and the price would be much higher.
SONY claims 24 hours of battery life at 10mW output. Maximum output is 1 W/speaker or 2W. You can buy an external SONY adaptor (ACE60HG) for about $20; I think it's a 6V/700mA adaptor. SONY of course says not to use any other adaptor, a possibly compatible RadioShack universal charger is about $16 -- not much less.
If you think you'll buy the charger, however, remember than the SRS-T77 comes with a power adaptor. Once you add in the cost of the adaptor you should consider getting the SRS-T77.
I thought that for convenience and portability I'd run off batteries, but we'll see. I may end up using them so much at home that it'll be worth buying the SONY power adaptor.
The speakers will work when powered off, but my iPod doesn't put out a strong enough signal to use for long in that mode. If you want to use your iPod as an alarm clock, and you're a light sleeper, this may come in useful however. I think leaving the speakers turned on overnight might drain the batteries. I'll experiment a bit with this.
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