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I can point to way more examples of non-DRM content making money: Brian Eno, Joss Whedon, hell, Louis C K did something profitable recently. You can make money off non-DRM content, but you have to make more of it inexpensively in order to make *the same* profit you would from DRM content and suing pirates. Making a profit isn't the problem. It's the expectation of getting wealthy off each project that is a product of corporate greed and is a problem.

I am sorry, but the notion that you have to DRM content to make money is just categorically untrue, and is a lie perpetrated on the public by the greedy. The bottom line is copyright (and trademark and patent) law needs to be reformed and business models need to change. All we are seeing now is the old establishment trying to hold onto a failing business model and squeeze as much money out of the system until the ride is over, regardless of the cost to anyone.

How are the good folks in the UK not in the streets about all this?

They did - in 1994, thousands of people protested (one source claims 40,000). Sadly protests don't stop laws (as millions marching against the Iraq War showed) - though I still think it's worth doing out of principle, and for raising awareness.

Although I can't help thinking, thousands protesting laws like this as happened in the 90s seems much bigger than anything that's done now against the various restrictions that Labour have brought in, as you mention. I'd have hoped that the Internet would make organising activism like this easier. OTOH, perhaps the long term effect of laws like this is that it breaks up people's ability and will to organise and protest.

You highlight the value of vinyl here: performance. I first want to mention that even though some high price CD players with pitch control and scratch pad probably offer all what you need, there is no standard interface to access those features yet. What is a DJ to do? Carry all his equipment with him? Some do but if you can handle a turntable you can expect to find all what you need already plugged wherever you go. A vinyl also has the advantage of displaying the waveform (scroll down a bit). Some digital players do, most don't.

But the true value of vinyl is performance. After all, if there is a DJ instead of a pre-mixed recording it's probably because people want a show. There is something stimulating in seeing the vinyls doing backflips and the DJs clamping the headset with his shoulder. He could do all his stuff with a laptop and a mouse but that would not look as good. With the demanding live performance of the DJ, the dancers feel that someone is working hard just for them, they feel some kind of exclusivity. Early electronic band understood the importance of performance a long time ago. Both signers of Front 242 could just press play and jump around on the stage. Yet, they prefer to hire musicians for shows. Others like Wumpscut prefer not to do live performance because they feel that it would be be way too close to a karaoke. Drum machines did not replace drummers and you will see DJs flipping vinyls in raves and top dance clubs for the years to come. Any technical argument is completely missing the point.

Here's another one: "Reservations", off the Wilco album "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot". In fact, the numbers station sampled repeats the words "Yanke Hotel Foxtrot" over and over again.

For my money, the most disturbing numbers station messages are:
1. The Swedish Rhapsody, with a music box-style version of the musical piece, followed by a little girls' voice that sounds positively robotic.
2. "Nancy Adam Susan" over and over again.
3. The High Pitch Polytone, although this one has no numbers being transmitted.

I found the most famous compilation of numbers stations, The Conet Project, on an online store under the tag aural terror and dammit, that's not too far from nailing it right in the bullseye. There was one station that broadcasted a single tone being repeated for something like thirty years, then one day in the early nineties suddenly transmitted numbers for a couple of minutes, and then it was back to the single tone ever since. Firty five years, and one single two minute burst of numbers! Holy cow, that must have been quite an important message.

In criminology, the perfect crime consists of the police not being able to identify three things:
1. The identity of the victim.
2. The identity of the perpetrator.
3. The motive for the murder.

Similarly, the three main pieces of data for numbers stations remain a mystery to the general population:
1. The identity of the broadcaster.
2. The identity of the recepient.
3. The content of the message.
There you have it, numbers stations are a perfect mystery.

There is definitely a sinister undercurrent in these stations, but they are also one of the greatest examples of accidental art in history. I mean, the most avant-garde artists in the world could not have come up with something like this in their wildest and most ambitious dreams.

Good news, everybody: Irdial has made available the full Conet Project audio files in low-fi mp3, so you can jump to their archives page and start downloading - http://irdial.hyperreal.org/the%20conet%20project/ . Have fun while scared sh*tless, in a ghost-stories-by-the-campfire sort of way.

You can download the mp3's for free: http://irdial.hyperreal.org/the%20conet%20project/

I'd love to hook-up a Synthi AKS (http://machines.hyperreal.org/manufacturers/EMS/O verview/synthia.gif) to that thing!

I used to hang out on the Analogue Heaven mailing list a few years ago. At that time the news that Mr. Moog would come out with a modern version of his classic Minimoog synth was all the hype.

Lots of people were willing to fork over $2500 for this monophonic synth... many even paid a few hundred bucks extra for a "Signature Edition" which the man had personally autographed. I thought this was all a bit ridiculous, but it was evidence of his synth superstardom. I wonder if these autographed Minimoogs will raise in value now that the man has passed away...

some other stuff (some of it FOR FREE mind you)
-another mp3 store
-ANOTHER mp3 store
-unfound sound, netlabel
-thinnerism/autoplate, TWO netlabels
-Archive.org's netlabel page, more techno than you could possibly consume in a lifetime!
-313 discussion list
-who is what and who

Here is where you can download the album. I got it off Xarph.net. It's pretty decent stuff. They are put out by a publisher who provide their recordings for free, but ask that you still buy the CDs. Though I'm not sure exactly where you can get the CDs, you can get their merch Here.

By the way, Google is very useful. I plugged in "Mario Paint" + "Electric Family" and got those results instantly. Try Googling well before saying you can't find any useful info on the web.
And someone might want to make some mirrors, this is Slashdot after all.

Another application I've seen is an article I received the other day, about the BBC using BitTorrent to distribute programming to viewers (http://www.hyperreal.org/~mpesce/fbm.html).

Another application I've seen is an article I received the other day, about the BBC using BitTorrent to distribute programming to viewers (http://www.hyperreal.org/~mpesce/fbm.html).

I know there are all sorts of DJ turntables out there, but I thought the de-facto standard was the Technics SL-1200 and similar models. These only having 33/45 rpm with some pitch control, not enough to take it to 78.

I find it hillarious that Brian, one of the people behind Apache is also behind the very raveriffic Hyperreal

Now if he'd only bring back V-rave..

I just bought five albums on iTunes. Not one of them was on an RIAA label. One of the labels I bought from is owned by the artist himself (Pete Namlook's FAX label). The others were similar independent labels (Ninja Tune and Tresor). There is non-RIAA music on iTunes in spades, and I will continue to buy from them.

Jimmy Cauty aka Rockman Rock of the techno act The KLF allegedly had an interesting mobile sound system, courtesy of the British Army. From the KLF FAQ:

Q: What's Jimmy's sonic weapon?

A: Jimmy purchased two Saracen armoured vehicles at a scrap yard for ukp 4,000 and found equipment in them which he thought could have been used for sonic warfare. He has tried to assemble the acoustic gun from information he found on the Internet. Installing huge amplifiers and special speakers to cope with the very low frequencies cost him tens of thousands of pounds.

The 25,000-watt sonic gun can project sound for around 7 miles, and Jimmy annoyed his Devon neighbours by testing it on Midsummer's Day, 1996. Jimmy said: "I moved to Devon six months ago for a bit of a rest and this is a project I am taking an interest in. I do not see it as music or art." He said that he aimed the gun away from homes and it seemed to have no effect on sheep.

The Melody Maker said: "He was testing his two Audio Weapon Systems in a field near his new home. 'He alerted people to the fact that he was doing this by setting off some military flares. Then he
tested his Audio Weapons System for an hour for a very select group of scientists and friends. The Audio Weapons System is not designed to kill people." ... [Cauty] first tested it at a Wire gig on Hungerford Bridge in May. ...
In January, Panasonic [ the "Finnish conceptual techno nutters"-NME] borrowed one of the Audio Weapons Systems for tests on how sonic waves affect the human body at Brick Lane in London. ... A fax from Mr. Smith, the Head Of Commercial Exploitation at Advanced Acoustic Armaments, was sent to The Maker. It read : "The test took place to establish the parameters of the new vehicle solo and in tandem with its sister model, SS 9000K+L. The test featured new software generated for our latest commercial client, EXP LTD, and is described by Mr. Cauty as featuring 'the ultimate battle between sound and commerce ending in the death of all musicians and their ascension to rock-n-roll heaven or hell as befits them.' Yesterday we received communication with ex-Government employees who, in the Sixties, worked on audio weapon development with an offer of help and some ex-classified equipment. We regret any such death or damage that has resulted from our tests, but there are casualties in every war. The Triple A Formation Attack Ensemble will perform 'Foghorns Of The Northern Hemisphere' as part of an educational programmed supporting our research shortly."

Most of this is probably scam, but Cauty has recorded an album of sonic waves for Paul Smith's Blast First label under the name AAA. The album is in the hands of lawyers who are trying to clear some of the samples used on it, and has yet to be released (07/96). It appears to be a Cauty solo project.

More recently, Jimmy teamed up with new Asian-techno group, Black Star Liner for a _happening_ in a field on Dartmoor. Jimmy chartered a 'chopper to take BSL and assorted journos out to Dartmoor, where he intended to remix the Halaal Rock track in his tank. Apparently, BSL bumped into Cauty on London's South Bank, while he was driving about in his tank, he got hold of their album, and said that he wanted to work with them. Anyway, the chopper was grounded by severe fog, so everyone was put on a convey of buses. All the journos were given _orange_ jackets to wear. They eventually arrived at a field full of military vehicles, and people in _yellow_ jackets, wearing goggles and ears protectors, doing some form of formation dancing. The journos were lead to the ir seats, and had large floodlights shone into their eyes, while the yellow jackets let of flares all around them.

There were a load of goats skulls on sticks around the field, and a whole pile of fireworks let of towards the end of the mix, when Cauty was mixing in some Jimi Hendrix. However, this d

First, we sent mice to Mars. I have no idea why, maybe it was to eat the red cheese.

Next, we sent cats to take care of the mouse problem.

Now, we have to send dogs like Rover to take care of the cats?

What next? Will we have to send gorillas to eat the dogs, and hope that the Martian winter then kills the gorillas? Skinner: "When wintertime rolls around, the gorillas simply freeze to death"

Anyone who's hung out on the Analogue Heaven or Synth-DIY mailing lists has known about these kind of mods for years (i'm talking mid-90s and earlier here).

It is SO MUCH FUN to play with old sound-making gear and randomly bypass resistors and short chips just to see what will happen. I've broken one synth doing this randomly, after that i always bought schematics :-) But with schematics you can do All Sort Of Cool Shit. It doesn't really work with newer, "System On A Chip" kind of gear, but who cares - it's only the late 70s and early 80s stuff that you get at garage sales for $10 anyway. Even if you're not musical and just an EE head it's a ball to go in and connect shit up and make it go "wheeeeeee" "waaaarrgggghhhh" "w00t".

Sorry, don't mean to be a smartass, but your original comment inspired me to pull out my copy of Discreet Music and throw it on the turntable. I'm listening to it now.

As I look on the back cover it says nothing regarding the 16/33 issue or even anything to do with the speed the record was played at. It was however played at a very low level, with only one of the stereo channels functioning. The end of the paragraph that describes the experience is more than worth the cost of the record in my opinion.

This is the original release (that I was very excited to find in my local record shop, Last Chance Records). A copy of the text can be found on probably the best Eno site on the web here.

One interesting thing about this album is that it is well documented. He explains the purpose and the method involved in creating the album and provides a operational diagram for the setup he used to create (or more accurately direct) it. I guess this appeals to the Computer Scientist in me as well as the music appreciator.

You jest, but it could happen! Remember the man who taught his asshole to talk?

Hyperreal

...the first "religious" ceremony in virtual reality?

Far from it: a quick Web search turns up, for example, Mark Pesce's CyberSamhain in 1994.

For one thing all this prior art.

I read Caffeine Blues by Stephen Cherniske a while back. Before the book, I was a regular coffee and soda drinker, and Penguin Mints were a staple on my desk. Since reading it, I've been caffeine-free for 6 months. And I've felt much better ever since.

The book cites tons of studies, and none of them claim anything beneficial about caffeine consumption. At best, most industry-funded studies showed no harm, and some of the more nuetral studies showed potential problems associated with chronic caffeine intake.

In fact, prior to reading this book, the only good thing I read about caffeine was about 10 years ago on Hyperreal's chemistry archive. I found a tidbit that said some study showed that coffee drinkers were less prone to suicide than non-coffee drinkers. I can;t seem to locate it, though.

I'm not preaching to anyone -- I still sneak in a morning coffee. And I really do miss my regular morning cup. However, if a die-hard (and quite rational) coffee drinker can be turned by this book, then all I'm saying is tread carefully. Thumb through this book while drinking a latte at Barnes and Noble. :)

It's like George Clinton and Kraftwerk stuck in an elevator. - Derrick May


I'm probably not the best qualified, but since nobody else is contributing this:

According to the legend, Detroit Techno started when eclectic radio genius The Electrifying Mojo started playing Kraftwerk in the early 80's. I used to listen to Mojo; he was late night on an urban station, and would play anything from James Brown to Prince to AC/DC, interview the B-52s, and give trippy inspirational sermons to the city's youth.

The story goes, the Belleville Three (Derrick May, Juan Atkins, and Kevin Saunderson (better known as part of Inner City)) heard Mojo and started making their own music, including Clear by Cybertron (Atkins), the 'first' techno record.

By the mid-80's my friends in northwest Detroit were playing house and techno on turntables in their basement. In the late-80's the Music Institute was the epicenter (just ask my cool friends). Since then there's been an explosion of techno and electronica talent in Detroit, most prominently Richie Hawtin (Plastikman) and the more experimental Carl Craig.

Unfortunately, if you had asked most Detroiters in the mid-90's -- apart from the small but loyal group who listened-- they wouldn't know what you were talking about. You couldn't find techno on the radio (Mojo was gone). The DJs were international stars, but they had plenty of privacy at home. In the late 90's, Carl Craig and a promoter put together the Detroit Electronic Music Fest (DEMF). Much to the surprise of many native Detroiters, over a million people came from all over the world to hear it. The vibe (and I don't use that word often) was incredible. It included a truly touching moment when Derrick May stepped on stage and finally got his due from his hometown; he started his set with "The Payback" by James Brown.

Now, most Detroiters are aware, and local popularity has exploded. The city is rich in very interesting music , and the very open-minded scene hasn't been overwhelmed with trendiness.


... Probably more than you wanted to know, but here's a few more links:

History
Techno Rebels, an excellent history (I've heard) in book form, by Dan Sicko.

Someone's thesis that is a history of Techno.

Meta Soul, an interesting site (in design and content) about electronic music, including a Detroit Techno section.


Today
The 313 list, an active list with high signal-to-noise, full of techno geeks.

Record Time, the best place to find the latest from Detroit

The Metro Times, probably the best place for current news on Detroit music (click music at the top left).


You also may not realize how much music originates, even if it's not popularized, in Detroit: Motown, punk (Iggy Pop in the 60's), funk (George Clinton and Bootsy X), and techno.

It's like George Clinton and Kraftwerk stuck in an elevator. - Derrick May


I'm probably not the best qualified, but since nobody else is contributing this:

According to the legend, Detroit Techno started when eclectic radio genius The Electrifying Mojo started playing Kraftwerk in the early 80's. I used to listen to Mojo; he was late night on an urban station, and would play anything from James Brown to Prince to AC/DC, interview the B-52s, and give trippy inspirational sermons to the city's youth.

The story goes, the Belleville Three (Derrick May, Juan Atkins, and Kevin Saunderson (better known as part of Inner City)) heard Mojo and started making their own music, including Clear by Cybertron (Atkins), the 'first' techno record.

By the mid-80's my friends in northwest Detroit were playing house and techno on turntables in their basement. In the late-80's the Music Institute was the epicenter (just ask my cool friends). Since then there's been an explosion of techno and electronica talent in Detroit, most prominently Richie Hawtin (Plastikman) and the more experimental Carl Craig.

Unfortunately, if you had asked most Detroiters in the mid-90's -- apart from the small but loyal group who listened-- they wouldn't know what you were talking about. You couldn't find techno on the radio (Mojo was gone). The DJs were international stars, but they had plenty of privacy at home. In the late 90's, Carl Craig and a promoter put together the Detroit Electronic Music Fest (DEMF). Much to the surprise of many native Detroiters, over a million people came from all over the world to hear it. The vibe (and I don't use that word often) was incredible. It included a truly touching moment when Derrick May stepped on stage and finally got his due from his hometown; he started his set with "The Payback" by James Brown.

Now, most Detroiters are aware, and local popularity has exploded. The city is rich in very interesting music , and the very open-minded scene hasn't been overwhelmed with trendiness.


... Probably more than you wanted to know, but here's a few more links:

History
Techno Rebels, an excellent history (I've heard) in book form, by Dan Sicko.

Someone's thesis that is a history of Techno.

Meta Soul, an interesting site (in design and content) about electronic music, including a Detroit Techno section.


Today
The 313 list, an active list with high signal-to-noise, full of techno geeks.

Record Time, the best place to find the latest from Detroit

The Metro Times, probably the best place for current news on Detroit music (click music at the top left).


You also may not realize how much music originates, even if it's not popularized, in Detroit: Motown, punk (Iggy Pop in the 60's), funk (George Clinton and Bootsy X), and techno.

It's like George Clinton and Kraftwerk stuck in an elevator. - Derrick May


I'm probably not the best qualified, but since nobody else is contributing this:

According to the legend, Detroit Techno started when eclectic radio genius The Electrifying Mojo started playing Kraftwerk in the early 80's. I used to listen to Mojo; he was late night on an urban station, and would play anything from James Brown to Prince to AC/DC, interview the B-52s, and give trippy inspirational sermons to the city's youth.

The story goes, the Belleville Three (Derrick May, Juan Atkins, and Kevin Saunderson (better known as part of Inner City)) heard Mojo and started making their own music, including Clear by Cybertron (Atkins), the 'first' techno record.

By the mid-80's my friends in northwest Detroit were playing house and techno on turntables in their basement. In the late-80's the Music Institute was the epicenter (just ask my cool friends). Since then there's been an explosion of techno and electronica talent in Detroit, most prominently Richie Hawtin (Plastikman) and the more experimental Carl Craig.

Unfortunately, if you had asked most Detroiters in the mid-90's -- apart from the small but loyal group who listened-- they wouldn't know what you were talking about. You couldn't find techno on the radio (Mojo was gone). The DJs were international stars, but they had plenty of privacy at home. In the late 90's, Carl Craig and a promoter put together the Detroit Electronic Music Fest (DEMF). Much to the surprise of many native Detroiters, over a million people came from all over the world to hear it. The vibe (and I don't use that word often) was incredible. It included a truly touching moment when Derrick May stepped on stage and finally got his due from his hometown; he started his set with "The Payback" by James Brown.

Now, most Detroiters are aware, and local popularity has exploded. The city is rich in very interesting music , and the very open-minded scene hasn't been overwhelmed with trendiness.


... Probably more than you wanted to know, but here's a few more links:

History
Techno Rebels, an excellent history (I've heard) in book form, by Dan Sicko.

Someone's thesis that is a history of Techno.

Meta Soul, an interesting site (in design and content) about electronic music, including a Detroit Techno section.


Today
The 313 list, an active list with high signal-to-noise, full of techno geeks.

Record Time, the best place to find the latest from Detroit

The Metro Times, probably the best place for current news on Detroit music (click music at the top left).


You also may not realize how much music originates, even if it's not popularized, in Detroit: Motown, punk (Iggy Pop in the 60's), funk (George Clinton and Bootsy X), and techno.

It's like George Clinton and Kraftwerk stuck in an elevator. - Derrick May


I'm probably not the best qualified, but since nobody else is contributing this:

According to the legend, Detroit Techno started when eclectic radio genius The Electrifying Mojo started playing Kraftwerk in the early 80's. I used to listen to Mojo; he was late night on an urban station, and would play anything from James Brown to Prince to AC/DC, interview the B-52s, and give trippy inspirational sermons to the city's youth.

The story goes, the Belleville Three (Derrick May, Juan Atkins, and Kevin Saunderson (better known as part of Inner City)) heard Mojo and started making their own music, including Clear by Cybertron (Atkins), the 'first' techno record.

By the mid-80's my friends in northwest Detroit were playing house and techno on turntables in their basement. In the late-80's the Music Institute was the epicenter (just ask my cool friends). Since then there's been an explosion of techno and electronica talent in Detroit, most prominently Richie Hawtin (Plastikman) and the more experimental Carl Craig.

Unfortunately, if you had asked most Detroiters in the mid-90's -- apart from the small but loyal group who listened-- they wouldn't know what you were talking about. You couldn't find techno on the radio (Mojo was gone). The DJs were international stars, but they had plenty of privacy at home. In the late 90's, Carl Craig and a promoter put together the Detroit Electronic Music Fest (DEMF). Much to the surprise of many native Detroiters, over a million people came from all over the world to hear it. The vibe (and I don't use that word often) was incredible. It included a truly touching moment when Derrick May stepped on stage and finally got his due from his hometown; he started his set with "The Payback" by James Brown.

Now, most Detroiters are aware, and local popularity has exploded. The city is rich in very interesting music , and the very open-minded scene hasn't been overwhelmed with trendiness.


... Probably more than you wanted to know, but here's a few more links:

History
Techno Rebels, an excellent history (I've heard) in book form, by Dan Sicko.

Someone's thesis that is a history of Techno.

Meta Soul, an interesting site (in design and content) about electronic music, including a Detroit Techno section.


Today
The 313 list, an active list with high signal-to-noise, full of techno geeks.

Record Time, the best place to find the latest from Detroit

The Metro Times, probably the best place for current news on Detroit music (click music at the top left).


You also may not realize how much music originates, even if it's not popularized, in Detroit: Motown, punk (Iggy Pop in the 60's), funk (George Clinton and Bootsy X), and techno.

Richard D. James (aka AFX, Aphex Twin, Polygon Window, Caustic Window, etc.) is a genius!

I'd recommend visiting the Selected AFX Loops site for previews og RDJ's work.

Be sure to start with his 'Selected Ambient Works' volumes though, as the other EPs/albums may scare you off at first. Everything he's done is amazing, but you have to gradually slide into his music. Second try 'On', then 'Come to Daddy' and the other Aphex Twin releases. Finally try the Polygon Window and Caustic Window releases, and the AFX Analogue Bubblebath releases if you're brave enough.

BTW: there are alot of easter eggs in his music, you'll love it. Just read the Official Unofficial Aphex Twin FAQ.

Some of my faves:

Infected Mushroom
Paul Oakenfold
Yahel
Dj Irene
Dj Tiesto
Space Cat
Felix Da Housecat
GMS
Master of Rave
and lots more i'm forgetting...

Oh, get these songs too (just do it dammit):

Dj Red - Enter the Dragon
Dj Irene - Blood is Pumpin'
Playboi - Whistle While You Squirt

Yeah. Hope you have lots of bass, cuz it all sort of sucks without =\

Having said that, I'd also like to say that I hate the term "electronica", as it really only describes the range of electronic music that MTV and MuchMusic dare to tell you about, and doesn't even hope to cover a wider range of electronic music that doesn't necessarily include techno.

Here are some electronic artists with a bit more diversity:

Genesis P. Orridge (Throbbing Gristle/Psychic TV)

Kraftwerk

Brian Eno

Laibach

Nash The Slash

Coil

David Thrussel (Black Lung/Snog/Soma)

Pieter Bourke

Boards Of Canada

David Kristian

cEvin key (Skinny Puppy/Download/The Tear Garden/and more...)

Brian Eno

Merzbow

CPI/DXM

Tribes Of Neurot

Lab Report

Thighpaulsandra

Atari Teenage Riot

Now that you've got a real place to start, find out who the artists you listen to collaberate with, and who they are influenced by, and listen to their music too. You'll discover a whole new world of electronic music that mainstream music outlets will probably never even hope to tell you about.

Having said that, I'd also like to say that I hate the term "electronica", as it really only describes the range of electronic music that MTV and MuchMusic dare to tell you about, and doesn't even hope to cover a wider range of electronic music that doesn't necessarily include techno.

Here are some electronic artists with a bit more diversity:

Genesis P. Orridge (Throbbing Gristle/Psychic TV)

Kraftwerk

Brian Eno

Laibach

Nash The Slash

Coil

David Thrussel (Black Lung/Snog/Soma)

Pieter Bourke

Boards Of Canada

David Kristian

cEvin key (Skinny Puppy/Download/The Tear Garden/and more...)

Brian Eno

Merzbow

CPI/DXM

Tribes Of Neurot

Lab Report

Thighpaulsandra

Atari Teenage Riot

Now that you've got a real place to start, find out who the artists you listen to collaberate with, and who they are influenced by, and listen to their music too. You'll discover a whole new world of electronic music that mainstream music outlets will probably never even hope to tell you about.

Another important item (posted to NWR on Mon, 13 Sep 1998 18:33:08 -0700 (PDT) ) was a list of Top 100 DJs In The World, adjusted for hype and cobbled together in response to the ever inane, almost exclusively talent-free and over-inflated annual Mixmag Top 100 DJs list, which exalts people like Oakenfold, Sasha, Digweed, etc. IMHO, such charlatans no longer do anything to further turntable art and culture (if they ever did at all, that is), other than to dilute its hard-earned significance. Admittedly, this list contains a slight north-western North America slant. Nonetheless, it also contains all the necessary world-renowned acts of any actual worth.

After this, I strongly recommend EPITONIC.COM, where you will spend days, if not months edumacatin' yo-self. SHOUTCAST.COM will also provide you with more music than you can shake a stick at in terms of streams. To download, nothing beats SOULSEEK.ORG in terms of the users' geekily-high encoding rates and unbelievably pedantic album/track-naming schemes.

While it's all downloading, check out the grand-daddy of them all: HYPERREAL.ORG.

One word of warning, however: electronic music is virtually boundless and can take most of your lifetime to discover. I started listening some 13 years ago, and to this day I simply cannot keep up with all of it. Good luck!

Defining a 'best' in electronic music is like defining a 'best' in rock....Electronic music has the most sub-genres of any music type I know of. Nevertheless, there are the major categories, but keep in mind that often the most talented artists do not confine their music to one type alone.

The most well known word for electronic music is probably techno, however techno != electronic, rather it is a type of electronic popular earlier in the 90s, while electronic music was growing more mainstream. You'll most often hear (for subgenres):

Techno | Trance | Drum n' Bass | Breakbeat | House | Jungle | Industrial | Ambient | Chill

often used with the modifiers 'hard', 'acid', or 'progressive' as in hard house, or progressive trance. In a lot of ways, these are self-explanatory...hard means that the music is rougher, and is usually faster paced; drum n bass consists of drum beats and heavy basslines.

Everyone here will try to tell you the best artist to listen to....but I can tell you for sure that I know no two people with the same taste in electronic music. You really have to discover for yourself the kind that interests you most. I suggest listening to some generic online radio if you want to know the mainstream electronica, most of which is a carryover from europe's tech-pop eurotrash trance. That's where you'll find the names most people will refer to you.

However, the best way to discover electronic music is to support your local scene. I would list true local websites, but being low-budget community supported as they are, I wouldn't subject them to the bandwidth of the slightest slashdotting. You can, however, find your nearest real record store (good electronic comes out on analog lps for real djs) and they will be happy to direct you to flyers and websites informing you of local happenings. Go out and hear some of your best local djs, and truly experience the music for yourself (many djs of different styles will play in the same night) - that will be the fastest path to knowing your interests. Also, once you find a dj you like, find out his/her influences, and that will point you to some excellent (lesser-known?) artists.

Some of the best cuts are the hardest to find, but there's a ton of great music out there. I wish you (all) luck, and PLUR!!

As far as artists, top on the list is Aphex Twin aka Polygon Window aka Richard D James... His bulk work travels from ambient and soundscapes (Selected Ambient Works v2) to the hyper beats of the more recent WindowLicker and Come To Daddy. He is an excellent place to start...

Underworld is also one of my favs (up until recently w/ DJ Darren Emerson). The beats are heavy, full of groove and the lead singer is a human sampler - pretty amazing stuff.

Other artists to lend a listen too:
1)Saafi Brothers
2)Young American Primitive
3)The Orb
4)Brian Eno
5)Orbital
6)Felix da Housecat

These are things I like, old and new, a small sampling, and very narrow in the truly broad scope of electronica. They tend toward the the darker, deeper and slower side of ambient, trance and house...

A great site on the web for quite some time was Hyperreal.org. Haven't checked it in some time so it may be that it's drifted... I should look again now that I'm thinking about it.

I highly recommend this genre of music. there's plenty of bad in electronica but a lot of good, ingenuitive stuff... Definately an exciting area of music in my mind. Enjoy!

actually, the eno recording you are referring to is called discreet music, from 1975. from the liner notes:

"In January this year I had an accident. I was not seriously hurt, but I was confined to bed in a stiff and static position. My friend Judy Nylon visited me and brought me a record of 18th century harp music. After she had gone, and with some considerable difficulty, I put on the Record. Having laid down, I realized that the amplifier was set at an extremely low level, and that one channel of the stereo had failed completely. Since I hadn't the energy to get up and improve matters, the record played on almost inaudibly. This presented what was for me a new way of hearing music - as part of the ambience of the environment just as the colour of the light and the sound of the rain were parts of that ambience. It is for this reason that I suggest listening to the piece at comparatively low levels, even to the extent that it frequently falls below the threshold of audibility."

i have to agree, "silent music" is nothing new or groundbreaking. also of note are ambient masters moby (yes moby--check out the album "ambient"), orb, orbital, and aphex twin. and not to forget matthew herbert, using everyday environmental sounds and bodily functions as the basis of composition.

``the use of ambient sound as part of the composition. brian eno was inpsired to make "music for airports" (for intents and purposes the first non-classical "ambient" record) when he was recovering from a car accident and asked a friend to put a harpsichord record on the turntable..but she didn't raise the volume high enough before she left so he had to put up with it at a very low volume, barely loud enough to hear over the rain on the windows in his room.''

The recording you're thinking of was Discreet Music released in 1975 on the Obscure Label (Eno's label). If memory serves, the event you are referring to was either from the liner notes or the back of the album; can't recall just now. Music for Airports was released in 1978.

But, as you said, Eno wasn't the first to get involved in this sort of music. Check out http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/. It has some pages that go into a lot of the background, thoughts, etc. about ambient.

dominik@schnitzer.at, mozparty-at-subscribe@relax.ath.cx, dominik@schnitzer.at, david_markvica@web.de, johannes_richter@gmx.net, kairo@kairo.at, rossi@chello.at, markush@world-direct.com, cbiesinger@web.de, jenskager@gmx.net, jo-at-mt@gmx.net, johann.petrak@gmx.at, dviper01@gmx.net, simon@simonschwaighofer.net, dreckskerl@glump.at, wt-lists@trexler.at, dusty@strike.wu-wien.ac.at, kasparhauserjr@hotmail.com, b.schallar@gmx.net, mutato@libero.it, phil@goli.at, diddalick@gmx.net, studio@paw8.com, croco@utanet.at, petru@paler.net, jlemmerer@node.at, bigkub@time2change.at, patrick@seher-it.at, ronald@hartwig.at, mozilla_party@webterminate.com, stefan@kleinhans.it, horst.jens@gmx.at, jjan@gibts.net, mjahn@agency.at, gpoul@gnu.org, green@eggs.ham, gerhard.hipfinger@openforce.at, mailto:moz@moz.org>, florianweinwurm@yahoo.com, christian@precht-jensen.dk, Bill_Gates@microsoft.com, Tux_the_penguin@linux.rules.microsoft.sux.open.sou rce.is.the.way.to.go.net, domi@schnitzer.at, joe_ringmaster@gmx.at, sifu@isohypse.org, dk@perm.ru, nobandwidth@bigpond.com, nobandwidth@bigpond.com, luke@strangemonkey.com, mrundataker@optushome.com.au, mcgarry@tig.com.au, chris@think.net.au, Mathias.Burbach@Bigfoot.com, acuteparanoia@optushome.com.au, syzh401@cse.unsw.edu.au, maillist@jasonlim.com, ram@digitalmethod.org, jason@sydneypubguide.net, geek@digitalone.com.au, curious@ihug.com.au, bill@maidment.com.au, kristof@staesis.org, bill@microsoft.com, belle@netset.net.au, ksosez@softhome.net, jruderman@hmc.edu, andyed@surfmind.com, down8@yahoo.com, mozparty@sigkill.com, bulbul@ucla.edu, gavin-mozparty@doughtie.com, roger@digitalfountain.com, matt@linuxschooltorrance.com, mozparty@ventura.nu, rombouts@compuserve.com, ian@freenetproject.org, tristanreid@yahoo.com, groovefx@yahoo.com, jj@lacasabonita.com, gmoudry@hotmail.com, eyezero@yahoo.com, ian@primewave.net, jlawson7@adelphia.net, el_arturo@att.net, janie@freenetproject.org, 145371217@numenor.net, infinite_8_monkey@yahoo.com, charshman@divus.org, mozparty@shadowlurker.net, john@marinapacific.com, ilanterrell@yahoo.com, aafes@psu.edu, bustamam98@yahoo.com, mozparty@myunixbox.com, yaten@sbcglobal.net, joelinux@pacificnet.net, dgc@penguino.net, poserskater69@yahoo.com, lheartb@hotmail.com, ncmother@zimage.com, daniel@likeicare.com, digital.evil@lycos.com, cjeburke@yahoo.com, jblow@hotmail.com, zachary.anthony@verizon.net, boogah@23.org, mebelost@yahoo.com, nickkricheff@netscape.net, mikemcg@ucla.edu, gogomozilla@denofslack.net, mike@mm1.com, seanmcoleman@attbi.com, jsm@bigfoot.com, hoarycripple@crippl3.net, mozparty@nslu.x.myxomop.com, mozparty@camworld.com, mozpartyNYC@isoga.net, ccarlen@netscape.com, h@rediffmail.com, lefever@rcn.com, tedjackson@accounting.org, darren@ny.com, marlon@nyc.com, plui@hyperreal.org, dzeluff@zeluff.com, joel@natividads.com, ken@bigbadapple.com, treebeard@treebeard.net, florent@nyc.com, chad@macristy.com, spud@montelshow.com, gbman_of_gvill@yahoo.com, eam-mozparty@learningpatterns.com, pkrause@primavera.com, tossoffus@yahoo.com, ryan@pantz.com, nichomof@eecs.tulane.edu, billg@microsoft.com, DevilsRejection@msn.com, petergunn@hotmail.com, bagerj@sullcrom.com, isaac@structuredsystems.net, bobk@panix.com, ngellner@hotmail.com, luke@sigterm.org, vivake@yahoo.com, jon@mediavortex.com, groovefx@yahoo.com, brendan@sighup.net, jds@panix.com, bluerose@bluerose.com, chris@allermann.net, dimkal@yahoo.com, preppyl@yahoo.com, blujoker@blujoker.net, nowell_h@hotmail.com, aragorn@cs.stanford.edu, treed@cpr.com, brt204@nyu.edu, andreas@antonopoulos.com, dj@randomwalks.com, lists@pote.com, mike@mhudack.com, reliable57@yahoo.com, jared@geek-boy.com, ondadl@mac.com, floss@myrealbox.com, xod@thestonecutters.net, mozilla@sectae.net, tywonm@screamingmedia.com, Odin_NT@hotmail.com, crooney@panix.com, bg25222@binghamton.edu, eugenem@brainlink.com, dave@downneck.net, romspace@mac.com, sdaejo@yahoo.com, masseo1@yahoo.com, jim@fearandloathing.net, mike@mjoy.us, miles@openly.com, LuciferSD@hotmail.com, nsdilwor@intertechmedia.com, chrisdowden@yahoo.com, pgs10@columbia.edu, sbrennan@ovid.com, lthomiso@rcn.com, paralox@paralox.ath.cx, Jester_458@yahoo.com, jsadove@beltion.net, stuehmke@yahoo.com, mike@realfx.com, alex@risky-roosky.com, shava@efn.org, kra10@columbia.edu, saihung@ix.netcom.com, gropo@mac.com, scottnym@yahoo.com, shaas@vibe.com, roon_toon@hotmail.com, ajaygautam@yahoo.com, jhdaly@mindspring.com, manuel@sphinx.ms, very_itchy_rash@yahoo.com, emeldrum@drew.edu, jeld@mindless.com, as867@columbia.edu, slams@penguin.rutgers.edu, wassa@columbia.edu, tony@vegan.net, zilla@bibliotrack.com, zeno_lee@hotmail.com, fosh@fishnet.cx, linux@gpl.us, jblow@hotmail.com, dkrook@hotmail.com, ivesti@yahoo.com, arek@arekwyderka.com, bljoechang@yahoo.com, brian@tribrothers.com, sparky@marklife.org, charles@softwareprototypes.com, scottkundla@hotmail.com, ccharabaruk@meldstar.com, ian@pottinger.ca, netdemonz@yahoo.com, diatribe@mailcity.com, nick@tomkinet.com, shawnlin@yahoo.com, sculley@pathcom.com, herd.killing@rogers.com, dave@renouf.com, aliyamin@hotmail.com, aswitzer@ispgn.com, netm0nkey@ispgn.com, hyakugei@hotmail.com, geduggan.mozparty@peri.csclub.uwaterloo.ca, lwhite@darkfires.ca, jorel@the-wire.com, js@tap.net, davew@tap.net, tmh@whitefang.com, vid_mozillaparty@zooid.org, anon@foolswisdom.org, morris_mk@yahoo.ca, colinmc@idirect.com, marcus.brubaker@utoronto.ca, akish@kishcom.com, nconway@klamath.dyndns.org, jason@thegeekcave.com, rampaging_simian@hotmail.com, garret@sirsonic.com, piowie@myrealbox.com, m5m5m@yahoo.com, ivan.brovko@net-sweeper.com, returnofthedorks@hotmail.com, axxackall@yahoo.com, tednye@sympatico.ca, darren.fuller@bell.ca, jbailey@nisa.net, swangeo@yahoo.ca, Hercynium@yahoo.com, cinetron@passport.ca, jotaroh@hotmail.com, aghajani@principle.com, fzv@yahoo.com, rocketmail_com@rocketmail.com, foo@bar.com, wolfe@alt.net, drew@xyzzy.dhs.org, jimmiejaz@nixhelp.net, bofh@swma.net, nilesh_mehta@email.com, mslack@rogers.com, m-cahill@rogers.com, tworkowski@sympatico.ca, george@openlight.com, irina@openlight.com, ilia@lobsanov.com, rjs@tao.ca, paul-mp@it.ca, alvarolists@aycuens.com, xan@dimensis.com, ike@lab.org, miguel@asiinfo.net, marevalo@marevalo.net, iolalla@yahoo.com, peluz0n@justice.com, weeddeveloper@yahoo.com, alfonsobugs@terra.es, sgala@apache.org, z_gringo@hotmail.com, santiz@madritel.es, murphy@litio.net, fox@mozilla.gr.jp, party@mozilla.org.uk, danj@fledgeling.com, fun@thingy.apana.org.au, moz@the-allens.net, onelists@hotmail.com, joel@fysh.org, simon.mozilla-party-if-its-in-central-london@rumbl e.net, bigboyjim@excite.com, andrew.and.friends.iff.central.london@sent.freeser ve.co.uk, itwillbecentrallondon@mozilla.org.uk, noahsark2x2@tiscali.co.uk, mmm-central-london@smileyben.com, jonathan-for-central-london@peepo.com, dave-Party-in-Central-London@dgta.co.uk, DJGMOL@netscape.net, srick@europe.yahoo-inc.com, moz-party@zpok.demon.co.uk, moz-party-central-london@trickofthelight.org, marc@brosystems.com, party@budge.net, rillian@telus.net, uphillsurfer@hotmail.com, edward@debian.org, mozilla@robertbrook.com, reagan@technomoose.com, lew@saltbeefsandwich.co.uk, osama@afghanistan.com, barking@insaneworld.org.uk, john@billabong-media.com, leith@cs.bu.edu, mozparty@noseynick.org, jonasj@jonasj.dk, bugzilla@kenneth.dk, chr_damsgaard@hotmail.com, alring@email.com, hp.grondal@get2net.dk, martin@marquentein.dk, Lovechild@foolclan.com, Kim@schulz.dk, kl@vsen.dk, mbendix@dunghill.dk, schnitzer.at@tange.dk, tommy@svindel.net, moz10@pbb.dk, dezral@despammed.com, nick@tioka.com, ask@fujang.dk, gecko@c.dk, spam@deck.dk, bugzilla@gemal.dk, b@bogdan.dk, kenneth@gnu.org, jee@email.dk, daniel@rtfm.dk, umfalvo@yahoo.com, christian@ostenfeld.dk, xor@ivwnet.com, Jason@screaminweb.com, alex@spamcop.net, dustym@riseup.net, rmcgee1@earthlink.net, dr_zeus@hotmail.com, chris.lozano@myrealbox.com, looney_binn@yahoo(dot)com, apendell@attbi.com, dantrevino@wrevolution.org, fireball1244@mac.com, tommyo@hargray.com, natas@redtailboa.net, emmett_in_dallas@yahoo.com, razzbuten@yahoo.com, igdavis@truculent-telephone.org, foobar@null.net, bob@kludgebox.com, cgrimland@yahoo.com, ghamlett@swbell.net, bgood@inceptual.com, slot0k@pogox.org, kwhudson@netin.com, jimjamjoh@softhome.net, jimmys@utdallas.edu, charlesv@mfos.org chris@focus2.com jest6r@hotmail.com steve@ncc.com, usrg@mail.utexas.edu, steve@deltos.com, alex@avengergear.com, mkoenecke@alum.haverford.edu langley@hex.net mordred@inaugust.com swapan@yahoo.com drosoph@hotmail.com, goulash1@mac.com, ean@brainfood.com, vj@vj.com lpret42@hotmail.com bugoff@hotmail.com chad@digitaltriage.net, stewart@digitaltriage.net scottvr01@yahoo.com adam@dfwuptime.com dsaint@gnumatt.org naltrexone42@yahoo.com, webmaster@bast.net, tommyo@hargray.com, ladd@kryp.to, jtaylor5@bayou.uh.edu, jgschmitz@linuxmail.org, enslaver@enslaver.com edfierro@yahoo.com, moz@photonsphere.com, rayw@fuckmicrosoft.com, rfmobile@swbell.net, kevin@unif.com trident5@bigfoot.com Erik_Osterholm@ieee.org, tmunson@houston.rr.com, alessi_brand@hotmail.com, rballa1@lsu.edu, wasted@kewlhair.com, jofficer@martinapparatus.com, idiot@mylinuxisp.com, j0sh01@ev1.net faust@wintermarket.org bouncer@hotmonkeyporn.com tk-mozparty_@perljam.net janisch@students.zcu.cz, aha@pinknet.cz kuzi@atlas.cz scat@reboot.cz, petr@dousa.cz, ruzicka@core.cz, roman@management.cz, hojan@students.zcu.cz, tille@soti.org, cas.tuyn@hetnet.nl, aeon@pandora.be, sensi_millia2000@yahoo.com, crypto@shiftat.com, jan.fabry@vsknet.be, monkeyboy@fruru.com, adulau@foo.be, johan@linux.be, karu@pobox.com, soggie@soti.org nick@tomkinet.com, why_are_you_too_lazy_to_drive_1_hour_to_toronto@yo u_lazy.com try_grammer_class_a_while@get_a_life.com john@interlynx.ca asharp@axo.cc, unionstation@ryder.ca, prade@hotmail.com, 2600@hamilton2600.ca, chris.lozano@myrealbox.com, dantrevino@wrevolution.org, jksteinhauer@netscape.net, i_love_junk_email@yahoo.com, cmiller@surfsouth.com, jan@bestbytes.de, me@phillipoertel.com, sebastian@pixelsalon.de, ccozan@andtek.com, ben@itlib.de, martin.ament@gmx.de, pulsar@highteq.net, muid@gmx.de, cedi@zooomclan.org, soapy@soapy.ch, deep_blue_ocean@gmx.ch, stamp@zooomclan.org, hans@switzerland.com, milamber@zooomclan.org, mtettea@switzerland.com, cylander@zooomclan.org, duke@zooomclan.org, pegirun@gmx.ch, pilif@pilif.ch, mlati@yahoo.com, Mozillzooom@holophrastic.com, erichiseli@yahoo.com, la_burdet@yahoo.com, rkoerber@gmx.de, dotzmasta@hotmail.com, B.Eckstein@cli.de, rtfm@linux.de, info@phosmo.de, gz@disintegrated.de, byronbay@gmx.de, stiwi@mac.com, mage@koeln.netsurf.de, mozilla@portfolio16.de, wrede@fh-aachen.de, ilikemozilla@html.de, cloud@final-fantasy.de, sfricke@sfricke.de, info@flossbau.de, no@dom.de, julian.suschlik@gmx.net, omero@m4d.sm, lapo@lapo.it, alcor78@email.it, info@fuelcat.it, mutato@libero.it, ildella@inwind.it, a.marabini@spinthehumanfactor.com, uomoman@criticalbit.com, thefl74@netscape.net, elbardo@libero.it, clem131@libero.it, t-i-e@bigfoot.com, gng74@libero.it, moz.party.20.gnes@spamgourmet.com, ema.cerqui@libero.it, ubertob@tin.it, mozparty.20.anagoor@spamgourmet.com, gianpaolo@preciso.net, ian@deepsky.com, marco@porciletto.org, planetx2100@hotmail.com, billabong@tiscalinet.it, piofree@libero.it, skunkyboy@tiscalinet.it, vincenzo@mondopiccolo.net, macmatteo@interfree.it, contreras@jce.it, hereandnow@libero.it, pza@students.cs.mu.oz.au, caedwa@students.cs.mu.oz.au, mgi@students.cs.mu.oz.au, bah@humbug.net, mfp@cs.mu.oz.au, nospamplease@indevelopment.org, peter@simplyit.screaming,net, pmj@users.sf.net, xanni@sericyb.com.au, agh@kalcium-is.com, felicityconsult@ozemail.com.au, lucas@lucaschan.com, andrewg@nopninjas.com, andym@abnormal.com, ts@meme.com.au, jasonpell@hotmail.com, syngin@gimp.org, mhammond@skippinet.com.au, szutshi@devraj.org, rmoonen@bigpond.net.au, fawad@fawad.net, ufs@softhome.net, kotrade@yahoo.com, ben@benscorp.com, stevesmith@columbus.rr.com, kkimmelosu@yahoo.com, neal.lindsay@peaofohio.com, pat@linuxcolumbus.com, chrisbaker@iname.com, hiroki2c@yahoo.com, seth@remor.com, jsohn@columbus.rr.com, ross@nanonet.net, mark@cushman.net, swinghammer.2@osu.edu, roberto.12@osu.edu, farhat@hotmail.com, pgunn@dachte.org, jwagner@gcfn.org, bp@osc.edu, joepletch@postmark.net, dsherman@iwaynet.net, glenn@uniqsys.com, bernstein.46@osu.edu, trent_reznor@nothing.com, erikniklas@bobanddoug.com, walters@gnu.org, timo@bolverk.net, annek25@aol.com, jlamb@leader.com, bart@osc.edu, jason@mcvetta.org

Quite frankly, if I knew a kid who wanted to do drugs (parental/adult advice be damned), I would send them to a site like the above for at least some decent high-level info about some drugs. I'd rather someone make an informed choice about drugs than an ignorant one, regardless of the law.

Drug laws are pretty amusing, anyway. I can go to prison for possessing weed, but not nutmeg? :) Anyone with half a brain and a local library card can read up on things legally attainable in the produce department, the spice rack, or a local plant nursery that are just as potent and fun and the banned substances.

Besides... this entire "agenda" thing is bunk. Show me a Pepsi ad (pushing caffeine), a Marlboro ad (pushing nicotine), or a Budwiser ad (pushing alcohol) which doesn't have an agenda! Granted these are legal substances, but they are arguably responsible for more social grief than all the banned substances combined (plus they make a few companies a lot of money).

Disclaimer: IANAP (I am not a pharmacist)

They've been around FOREVER. I think I first visited them around '94 or '95. Their chemistry section is the one relevant to this discussion... they have a few other good info pages too though.

Uhm, this only makes sense to ravers... and again only when used with the analogy with pac-man and the notion that violent video games leads to violence.
I think you are at the wrong website

As you can see in the links, they link to notbreathing.com . Not Breathing is an awesome band. If you *ever* get a chance to see them, do it. They have a small flock of cute firedancer girls that tour with them (afaik - they were there for a couple shows at least). It was one of the most intense shows I've been to (and while completely sober).

Also, there are lots of groups within the "Intelligent Dance Music (IDM)" scene/genre (some info here) that do a lot of the same fiddling about with gear and various other things. If you look, you'll find a large amount of scientific minds making electronic music these days.

Really, these are tech geeks who like to think differently (just like you guys do), but instead, they produce music when they "hack". I recently saw Matmos (at a Bjork concert) connect some kind of mic to a bird cage and proceeded to *PLAY* the bird cage as if it were an instrument. And it made pretty sounds! I've also spent time watching Lexaunculpt play with MAX so obsessively that there's no way that someone could NOT call that being a computer geek.

Don't stop at carrionsounds.com! There's lots of great music out there!

Parts Express has the rails that you need. Search by keyword for "rack rail".

One should pause before making well-armed paranoids feel foolish, no matter how foolish they seem.

You'd better not use VRML, vi, linux, or a computer for that matter!

I wonder who else was "into" homosexuality, paganism, drugs, and general irreverence.

Such a bad rap these people had...

and they're such horrable people...

--Proud to be a Pagan Programmer!--

I found this today on the Analogue Heaven mailing list:

Paraller port SID synthesizer

The schematics are kinda sketchy but it's a neat idea. The guy who built it coded also a patch editor and step sequencer for the thing.

[Slightly OT]: While reading this discussion about the Pioneer 10, I've been listening to Orbital's song "Way Out", from their album _The Middle Of Nowhere_. It's beautiful and fitting.

Open Inventor, as the FAQs will tell you, is a 3d format designed to work with OpenGL.

Mark Pesce used Inventor as a starting point for VRML-1 around 1995. VRML-1 was the first real attempt to create a standard 3d file format that would work over the web. It has seen limited success as a standard of exchange betweed CAD programs.

A second version of VRML based loosely on VRML-1 (but not backward compatable with it) was proposed by one of the major industry players and rapidly became an ISO standard in 1997. By many arguments, it failed as a standard because the required plugin is not installed by default. There are other reasons too, but by and large, mention of VRML still gets a "huh?" even from some fairly computer savvy people.

The next version of VRML being developed by the Web3D Consortium is based on XML. The tags are designed such that conversion from VRML97 to X3D is quite straightforward. If X3D is built into IE and Mozilla, we could finally see the standard VR format gaining acceptance.

As for all the Open Source software flying around in the 3d community now, it tends to make things less exciting from a money point of view. OTOH, I'm sure the same web designers who like to make bandwidth hogging flash sites are getting very excited now.

I am obviously biased in certain areas. Other, less biased histories can be found at: http://hiwaay.net/~crispen/vrml/history.html

Rather Interesting Records serves as something of a sister site to Fax. It's run by, and releases records primarily by, a guy by the name of Uwe Schmidt. Typical of electronic music artists, he goes under a variety of pseudonyms, the most well-known being Atom Heart and Lassigue Bendthaus(A recent NYTimes article about LB's latest release, a collection of Kraftwerk songs covered as Brazilian music, can be found here).

There's an official Rather Interesting site, but it hasn't been updated in a while. In yet another bit of shameless self-promotion, there is a sister site to 2350.org, at www.datacide.org.

Back around 1991 or 1992 I setup what I believe is was the first drug information site on the internet using the University of Washington's publically accessable FTP server. The information in that site was incorporated into hyperreal and from there into lycaeum and erowid. I've authored texts on how to Synthesize MDMA and Synthesize LSD.

I would just like to know how we're supposed to have discussions about heavy metal contaminants in methamphetamine synthesis or chromates in methcathinone if we can't discuss how those drugs are actually manufactured? What is different about me reading about how to synthesize drugs on the net and going down to the medical and chemistry libraries at my local university and reading about them there? The latter information is necessary for professionals and scholars to be able to intelligently discuss issues surrounding the synthesis of illegal drugs. Why are people on the net being singled out for exclusion and not being allowed to access this information?

If this law passes I plan on putting up a site which contains exactly the same kinds of information that you can get from the journal of forensic science or journal of medicinal chemsitry but violates the law by including information on the synthesis of illegal drugs (just like those journals do).

This proposed law is blatantly unconstitutional and Diane Feinstein can kiss my ass.

I actually remember in '93 or so as I was first getting into the web (the web note, not the Internet ;-), wondering about mcdonalds.com and trying www.mcdonalds.com. At that time it pointed at hyperreal.org which was and is Brian's site.

For those that are interested in Moog music, the Dark Side of the Moog series on FAX Records out of Germany.. it's a collaboration between Pete Namlook, Klaus Schulze, and on a couple of the albums in the series, Bill Laswell. Really interesting stuff. Dark Side of the Moog I has been re-released a number of times on Ambient World records, as well as a couple of other labels, and is a fantastic example of what the Moog organ can do.

-s