Re Ipods and my Luddite opinions thereof (My I-Podick rant)

[iamthecosmos]

As far as whether or not iPods and iTunes are good products.... I have never, ever had an issue with iTunes on Mac. Never. It doesn't run in the background while I'm working. It doesn't cripple anything else I need to use my computer for. It just organizes my media in a sensible way, and provides me with a super simple, elegant interface for enjoying my media. Maybe it's a miserable experience on Windows or something? Or, maybe some people just gotta hate what's popular. But, somehow, iTunes and the iPod have become the most popular media app and device in the world. Maybe all of those people are suckers??

Nail/head. iTunes on Windows seems to be absolutely rubbish, friends of mine report various weird problems that I've never encountered on a Mac. Ever.

I love vinyl, especially the discipline it instills in you in terms of engaging with the listening experience. However, I spend about an hour travelling to work (and back home) every day, and the fact that I can spend that time listening to the stacks of music on my iPhone makes the commute almost enjoyable. Vinyl & coupon for MP3 is a massive win for me.

Never use crap earphones though, I never understand people using the ones that come with iPods/iPhones, they're atrocious even on a casual listener level.

[BrontoSoreAss]

Never use crap earphones though, I never understand people using the ones that come with iPods/iPhones, they're atrocious even on a casual listener level.

I used them briefly (briefly!) when I first got my ipod which meant by the end of the day I'd have some serious ear fatigue. Really put a damper on listening to vinyl on my hi-fi system at home

[shedshrine]

Leave tonight for Thanksgiving break down south, 4.5 to 5 hours. 160 gig iPod drive nearly full and battery charged, Meier Headsix headphone amp with new 9 volt installed, Westone 3 in ear phones de waxed with new foamies. Once the wife and kid crash backseatwise, I'm cruising the lossless...

(Happy Tday in advance folks.)

[calaverasgrandes]

actually, on macs and pcs "iTuneshelper" runs in the background all the time once you have installed iTunes. Since you probably had iTunes installe don your mac since it was bone stock you wouldnt notice the difference anyway.

I perssonally dont love iTunes or iPods/iPhones but they have the standard Apple experience. All the croners rounded off, all the advanced settings hidden or not available. Heck you cant even delete files off of your ipod when its not connected to a host!
I do like being able to listen to hours of music on shuffle, by genre with a device that weighs less than a lighter. Audio quaslity? Well the deep bass and high treble arent there, and yeah I have converters that stomp this thing, but I can still hear things on my ipod I never noticed on cassette or vinyl. Maybe my headphones are better, maybe my listening has gotten better. My hearing certainly hasnt!

I also find it handy to have the roger nichols test tones on my ipod for troubleshooting and such.

[vvv]

So, no Discman love?

[shedshrine]

So, no Discman love?

Well, miniDiscman love..

[Snarl 12/8]

As far as whether or not iPods and iTunes are good products.... I have never, ever had an issue with iTunes on Mac. Never. It doesn't run in the background while I'm working. It doesn't cripple anything else I need to use my computer for. It just organizes my media in a sensible way, and provides me with a super simple, elegant interface for enjoying my media. Maybe it's a miserable experience on Windows or something? Or, maybe some people just gotta hate what's popular. But, somehow, iTunes and the iPod have become the most popular media app and device in the world. Maybe all of those people are suckers??

I guess iTunes' updater is bundled in with the OS on a Mac, so it doesn't have to do anything special, extra, to bog you down. That's the upside of a closed, proprietary system. I still don't think the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. I even prefer Windows over Mac because at least it's somewhat open. Remember when they used to be called "compatible"? I like to come as close as possibly to what I refer to as "commodity" gadgets/computers as possible. Generic. Interchangeable parts. Hackable OS. Etc. Not always possible, but I think it's better. I really don't understand why some people are so pro-being locked into a proprietary system, but they are legion, so there's probably something to it. I bet it's genetic or something. Like gay/straight, conservative/liberal, alcoholic/sober, melancholic/euphoric kinda thing.

[chris harris]

For me, it's just because the products and apps WORK the way that I expect them to. I did the Windows based stuff for a while. I found that I was just being forced to learn more about things like drivers and BIOS and IRQ than I ever had any real interest in knowing. There's something to be said for plug and play. And, honestly, as far as features and such, Apple usually knows what I want before I do. I wouldn't make many changes to any of the Apple products that I own. Of course, I'd love them to be cheaper. But, to me, it's the cost of convenience. If I had to open the case on a mic preamp to configure things and make sure it played nicely with my other gear, I'd probably be fine with paying a little more for a mic pre I could just plug in and go to work with.

But, I understand that some people are wired differently and are willing to dive in and invest the time learning to DIY. And, I see some value to that. That's why I don't complain about paying a little more for stuff that doesn't involve any under-the-hood work. I'd just rather use gear than learn to build it myself or troubleshoot it.

[trodden]

*is using his ipod nano to play back 1khz test tone to check calibration, routing, channels on mixing board, tape machine, AD converts right at this moment*


My ipod nano ruled today when i was priming and caulking a basement refinishing project today... I got to hear The Beatles, Fugazi, Cavity, Samhain, Old 97's, Dirtbombs, Big Lurch, Coalesce, Killing Joke, John Vanderslice, Superchunk, Ray LaMontagne, Split lip rayfield, and a ton of others.. ALL DAY LONG....

[trodden]

I also find it handy to have the roger nichols test tones on my ipod for troubleshooting and such.

YES!!!..

[JGriffin]

I guess iTunes' updater is bundled in with the OS on a Mac, so it doesn't have to do anything special, extra, to bog you down. That's the upside of a closed, proprietary system. I still don't think the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. I even prefer Windows over Mac because at least it's somewhat open. Remember when they used to be called "compatible"? I like to come as close as possibly to what I refer to as "commodity" gadgets/computers as possible. Generic. Interchangeable parts. Hackable OS. Etc. Not always possible, but I think it's better. I really don't understand why some people are so pro-being locked into a proprietary system, but they are legion, so there's probably something to it. I bet it's genetic or something. Like gay/straight, conservative/liberal, alcoholic/sober, melancholic/euphoric kinda thing.

For me it's that I don't like spending all my time chasing conflicts with all the "interchangeable" parts that kinda sorta work together, until you add this sound card or that printer driver and then the whole mess goes to hell because they're made by different manufacturers that didn't (and arguably couldn't) test whether all the possible combinations of interchangeable parts actually play nicely together.

That's my experience. Others' may vary.

[KoffeeKommando]

Anyway. Back to the "future sucks" point. American families used to huddle around the radio and listen to stories told over the airwaves at night, probably with a fire burning and not a fucking television. Sounds fun, right? Nothing's to stop you from doing that now, but for the most it's just not the world we live in anymore.

This brings up a point...

Communal listening KICKS ASS. iPods KILL that. Well, unless you are iPod DJ'ing or something. iGuess?

Can't entirely blame Apple. Sony stole the idea first.

People are all plugged into their own little worlds. I see so many electronic zoners in public. Between texting and yer pod and video games you just cut yourself off from reality.

I don't own a TV. I can't even remember when I got rid of the one I had laying around. Maybe 2000? Killing your TV is the coolest thing you can do.
The net takes up a lot of time. If you apply yourself you can learn anything there is to learn out there at least.

Imagine the "person-hours" that would be freed up if these other distractions were gone. Hey, we'd have a live music industry back again!

Ahh, it's all been said before. Why waste time typing?

I'm gonna be positive. I'll make a Youtube video:

Me looking haggard next to a campfire clutching AK-47. I'll reach over and grab a big handful of iPod Shuffle 1gens. and throw em on.

Patrick Swayze will look over at me: "All that hate's gonna burn ya up kid"

I'll say "Keeps me warm!"..........

[chris harris]

I still listen to music with my friends and family all the time.

[vvv]

Actually, as anyone who has read of my rants re cellphones knows, the isolation/insulation of personal music players is one of the only things keeping me doing the train commute to work to make money to buy more gear, and keeping me away from the Red Dawn campfires ...

[chris harris]

The existence of a technology doesn't PREVENT you from NOT using it. Just because we have DAWs and Autotune, doesn't mean you can't still practice until you can nail a performance in one take. And, just because we have headphones, doesn't mean you can't listen to music in a room with your friends.

And, oh yeah.. The sky's not falling. And, music isn't going down the tubes. And, if the world is going to hell in a hand basket, it's certainly not because people have more opportunities to listen to music more often.