Admittedly, uber-high fidelity requires something along the lines of a high quality DAC or dedicated source components, but just below this is a very large range of very good sounding devices.
The Cowon/iAudio X5 and longer-life-battery version, the X5L is widely accepted to have the highest audio quality output of any HD-based portable music player (search Hydrogen Audio). It's a true iPod killer. In addition to mp3, it supports ogg vorbis(up to -q 10) and FLAC and a bunch of other codecs. It's got audio recording and mpeg4 video playback too. (not that I'd ever watch videos on a screen an inch by an inch, but whatever.) Hot, hot stuff.
Even the best ear buds sound ass-y compared to real headphones. I recommend kicking the earbud habit toot sweet. You just paid 300+ bucks for a sweet portable music player, don't skimp on the earphones man. I'm a big fan of AKG's line when it comes to headphones. The K240S would be a good semi-isolating design. They let enough sound in to detect approaching coworkers, and are designed to take a lot of abuse (taking them on and off, table knocks, etc.) The K501 sounds absolutely magical, but it leaks some sound out, it bothering your cube neighbors is a concern. The upside is that their fully open design allows a full natural conversation to be possible without taking them off. Whatever you do, don't get the closed K270 cans. They sound like crap and are way fatiguing due to the excessive bass, and they don't even isolate that well. For a completely isolating and highest-fidelity design, I recommend the Etypotic E4P. The E4P's are "canalphones" (as in you stick them in your ear), but their $200 audio quality is second to none short of spending $500. Then just like other people mentioned, get a mirror to see approaching coworkers. There will be no taps on the wall, as they leak no sound, and even if they did, you wouldn't hear them.;-)
I have owned all of these headphones, but I haven't bought the X5L yet. Soon though, soon. Good luck!
I just got done with a stint provisioning an RV for a news crew down in Beaumont TX. Never having done it before, I hope someone learns from my mistakes.
This town was without running water, and gasoline was impossible to come by for 150 miles. Depending on your situation, YMMV.
- an appropriately sized gas-fueled generator - gas cans (at least 40 gallons worth) - a mini-fridge - large coolers, stocked full of ice - frozen meats (sausage, hamburger, with all the fixins) - charcoal grill w/ charcoal - fresh foods (much harder to come across in these situations than canned foods) - multivitamins - handi-wipes, or paper towels + a big thing of rubbing alcohol - detergent for washing clothes - lots of pairs of socks (with that fancy hiker "wicking" action if possible) - coffee + coffee pot + filters (guaranteed to be appreciated) - tons of plastic utensils - regular and heavy-mill trash bags - gatorade out the wazoo - trail mix (Planters makes a hot trail mix) - first aid stuff - flash lights + rechargeable batteries - linux cds
Finish your project, sell it through some other entity (not traceable back to you). Accept the project. Use your experience with the type of product to build a good (but different) implimentation of the same product. DONT USE YOUR OLD CODE. Your product will be first to market, and your boss will think you're doing a good job.
The best of both worlds. The trick is to disassociate yourself from your (original) product.
Don't get me wrong, I think college is wonderful for many people. Just not for me. I went to a community college for a couple years (comp sci), and dropped out for a software development job in Austin, TX. It's been a very exciting move for me. It's refreshing that this industry judges based on ability instead of that the posession of that "piece of paper". College is great for undisciplined personalities. People that need someone else to enforce and judge learning. I find it much more satisfying to achieve a level of understanding on my own. Buy a book, code up a project. Whatever. Do what you're passionate about.
Tell me if this sounds like a good deal:
I pay you Eighty Thousand Dollars (over 4 years), and you give me a piece of paper that says I lasted through it. A contractor with a BS degree in computer science came to work with us a while ago. He was an idiot. Absolutely no work ethic, afraid to ask questions, not passionate about computers, absolutely no cleverness. How does a person like this get a Bachelors degree? Which brings me to my second point:
Degrees certify endurance, not aptitude.
Besides, most of the great innovators and creative thinkers had non-traditional educations. Some of the highest suicide rates are frin college kids. I wish this percieved NEED for a college degree would work it's way out of public opinion.
The squishy-wishy writing style is reminisent of Omni magazine. Bleh!
And to answer the Q: why are today's laptops so damn slow? A: 5400rpm IDE drives.
Kindof grim tone, huh? I Think thats the intention. Check out these lines:
Back then, at our office in Westford, Mass, we used boxes of our software inventory as office dividers. Everyday was casual day.
Juxtaposed with this:
So today I find myself actually ironing a pair of pants in a hotel room at the Sheraton New York then rushing downstairs for a cab to our booth at LinuxWorld.
And this:
I've never met Larry Augustin. I don't even recognize all of the people I work with now. Most of my coworkers have no idea who I am either. What a short, strange trip it's been.
The whole breakdown of Larry Agustin's keynote is in short, trite language. Cold and dispassionate.
The fact that Roblimo posted this article probably suggests that Kurt's sentiment isin't all that rare. Throughout Andover, Slashdot, Freshmeat.. Who can blame the Slashdot boys for cashing in? I'd take the money too. I understand it was quite a bit. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted. Whats kindof neat to think about is that because of Malda's pseudo-celebrity status, he could recreate slashdot in it's original image somewhere else, out of the clutches of money interests. that is.. when he's done getting paychecks.:) I'd follow. What about you?
What new features is 5.0 supposed to have? The last few releases have been pretty much the same. When is a browser based on "Genko" supposed to come out? It would be good if they beat Opera to the punch by getting a full-featured browser out that doesnt take 30M of memory.
Why would the NSA admit to not being able to handle their current load?
To justify a larger budget, or to justify something else? A larger budget seems like the obvious answer.. US history is chock full of examples of this sort of thinking. They create an imagined threat and enact into law things giving them more power. Keep an eye on what they do next...
Oh My God, they killed Google! You Bastards!-not h
on
FBI Shuts Down Website
·
· Score: 1
try searching 'crowdedtheater' on hotbot.. the link comes right up.
Using a sufficiently large room is probably the easiest and most realistic feeling solution. Heres an idea for an "endless floor".
create a floor composed of tiles on wheels. As the user walks towards a wall, have the floor tiles behind him move around and re-assemble themselves in front of him. He will feel almost natural inertia as long as he doesnt move in the same direction too fast for too long (so the tiles dont have to shift under his feet too quickly.)
And the tiles would shift to keep him in the center of the room.
An "American Gladiators"-style joust VR sim would be awesome. With VR glasses just replacing the eyes. with or without contact it would still rock. For an arcade type machiene, there would probably have to be no contact for liability reasons.
I was interested in improving my memory, and generally feeling "sharper". I found this good book that describes how different chemicals in foods effect the brain's functioning. On it's recommendation I started munching on raw potatoes. After reading this article, I imagine the glucose in raw potatoes is just absorbed slower than the glucose in mashed potatoes. So I started munching on raw potatoes. They're fun to eat, just like apples. Except a little pasty.. waxy. Anyway, this stuff definitely works. The book is called "Peak-Performance Living"-Easy, Drug-free Ways to Alter Your Own Brain Chemistry for improved productivity, greater energy, sharper thinking, optimal health. Oh yeah, it describes caffeine's effects. (i know a few of you're interested in this one;) ) Another thing.. St Johns Wort is an herb that's supposed to be a natural antidepressant. You can buy it at any drug store/supermarket. It's supposed to promote balanced brain chemistry. If I take a couple capsules of these before bed I have incredibly vivid dreams! and I wake up feeling rested and full of energy. Try it! Us geeks are so willing to hack at our computers, lets start hacking at our brains!
How happily is sun going to fork over the only technologies that are left to differentiate Solaris from Linux? Like NUMA. Will they just keep selling their product as long as theres a poor sucker left buying it? And then embrace Linux before they're crushed in it's path? Will the seperate unix vendors be cutting their R&D departments? Oh so many questions!
It seems like males are more inclined to "master" a skill (video games, computers, sports) than females. Females seem to emphasize social status, and males seem to emphasize ability. Personally, my computer was always a constant source of challenges (especially after installing linux). And I'd like the recognition and status that that gave me amongst my friends. Today, people on the street or whatever are impressed when they hear you have a swanky computer job. Positive reinforcement. Unlike the real world, programming follows rules. And the program is as perfect as you make it. No bully to punch you in the head or girl to break your heart. It can be a sanctuary, a safe place, where you can build your skills. This paragrath just lost it's direction, so I think I'll put it down now. BaNG!
Slashdot Mirror
I wonder if there are any plans to make a FAH client.
There are a WHOLE lot of Xbox 360s out there already.
Admittedly, uber-high fidelity requires something along the lines of a high quality DAC or dedicated source components, but just below this is a very large range of very good sounding devices.
;-)
The Cowon/iAudio X5 and longer-life-battery version, the X5L is widely accepted to have the highest audio quality output of any HD-based portable music player (search Hydrogen Audio). It's a true iPod killer. In addition to mp3, it supports ogg vorbis(up to -q 10) and FLAC and a bunch of other codecs. It's got audio recording and mpeg4 video playback too. (not that I'd ever watch videos on a screen an inch by an inch, but whatever.) Hot, hot stuff.
Even the best ear buds sound ass-y compared to real headphones. I recommend kicking the earbud habit toot sweet. You just paid 300+ bucks for a sweet portable music player, don't skimp on the earphones man. I'm a big fan of AKG's line when it comes to headphones. The K240S would be a good semi-isolating design. They let enough sound in to detect approaching coworkers, and are designed to take a lot of abuse (taking them on and off, table knocks, etc.) The K501 sounds absolutely magical, but it leaks some sound out, it bothering your cube neighbors is a concern. The upside is that their fully open design allows a full natural conversation to be possible without taking them off. Whatever you do, don't get the closed K270 cans. They sound like crap and are way fatiguing due to the excessive bass, and they don't even isolate that well. For a completely isolating and highest-fidelity design, I recommend the Etypotic E4P. The E4P's are "canalphones" (as in you stick them in your ear), but their $200 audio quality is second to none short of spending $500. Then just like other people mentioned, get a mirror to see approaching coworkers. There will be no taps on the wall, as they leak no sound, and even if they did, you wouldn't hear them.
I have owned all of these headphones, but I haven't bought the X5L yet. Soon though, soon. Good luck!
I just got done with a stint provisioning an RV for a news crew down in Beaumont TX. Never having done it before, I hope someone learns from my mistakes.
This town was without running water, and gasoline was impossible to come by for 150 miles. Depending on your situation, YMMV.
- an appropriately sized gas-fueled generator
- gas cans (at least 40 gallons worth)
- a mini-fridge
- large coolers, stocked full of ice
- frozen meats (sausage, hamburger, with all the fixins)
- charcoal grill w/ charcoal
- fresh foods (much harder to come across in these situations than canned foods)
- multivitamins
- handi-wipes, or paper towels + a big thing of rubbing alcohol
- detergent for washing clothes
- lots of pairs of socks (with that fancy hiker "wicking" action if possible)
- coffee + coffee pot + filters (guaranteed to be appreciated)
- tons of plastic utensils
- regular and heavy-mill trash bags
- gatorade out the wazoo
- trail mix (Planters makes a hot trail mix)
- first aid stuff
- flash lights + rechargeable batteries
- linux cds
Evan
Finish your project, sell it through some other entity (not traceable back to you). Accept the project. Use your experience with the type of product to build a good (but different) implimentation of the same product. DONT USE YOUR OLD CODE. Your product will be first to market, and your boss will think you're doing a good job.
The best of both worlds. The trick is to disassociate yourself from your (original) product.
Evan
http://koax.org
But it's not even up, it's all about "VA to save the day". Evan
Tell me if this sounds like a good deal:
I pay you Eighty Thousand Dollars (over 4 years), and you give me a piece of paper that says I lasted through it.
A contractor with a BS degree in computer science came to work with us a while ago. He was an idiot. Absolutely no work ethic, afraid to ask questions, not passionate about computers, absolutely no cleverness. How does a person like this get a Bachelors degree? Which brings me to my second point:
Degrees certify endurance, not aptitude.
Besides, most of the great innovators and creative thinkers had non-traditional educations. Some of the highest suicide rates are frin college kids. I wish this percieved NEED for a college degree would work it's way out of public opinion.
Sigh,
Evan
http://koax.org
The squishy-wishy writing style is reminisent of Omni magazine. Bleh!
And to answer the
Q: why are today's laptops so damn slow?
A: 5400rpm IDE drives.
http://koax.org
Check out these lines:
Juxtaposed with this:
And this: The whole breakdown of Larry Agustin's keynote is in short, trite language. Cold and dispassionate.
The fact that Roblimo posted this article probably suggests that Kurt's sentiment isin't all that rare. Throughout Andover, Slashdot, Freshmeat..
Who can blame the Slashdot boys for cashing in? I'd take the money too. I understand it was quite a bit. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.
Whats kindof neat to think about is that because of Malda's pseudo-celebrity status, he could recreate slashdot in it's original image somewhere else, out of the clutches of money interests. that is.. when he's done getting paychecks.
What new features is 5.0 supposed to have? The last few releases have been pretty much the same. When is a browser based on "Genko" supposed to come out? It would be good if they beat Opera to the punch by getting a full-featured browser out that doesnt take 30M of memory.
Why would the NSA admit to not being able to handle their current load?
To justify a larger budget, or to justify something else? A larger budget seems like the obvious answer.. US history is chock full of examples of this sort of thinking. They create an imagined threat and enact into law things giving them more power. Keep an eye on what they do next...
try searching 'crowdedtheater' on hotbot.. the link comes right up.
Using a sufficiently large room is probably the easiest and most realistic feeling solution. Heres an idea for an "endless floor".
create a floor composed of tiles on wheels. As the user walks towards a wall, have the floor tiles behind him move around and re-assemble themselves in front of him. He will feel almost natural inertia as long as he doesnt move in the same direction too fast for too long (so the tiles dont have to shift under his feet too quickly.)
And the tiles would shift to keep him in the center of the room.
An "American Gladiators"-style joust VR sim would be awesome. With VR glasses just replacing the eyes. with or without contact it would still rock. For an arcade type machiene, there would probably have to be no contact for liability reasons.
I was interested in improving my memory, and generally feeling "sharper". I found this good book that describes how different chemicals in foods effect the brain's functioning. On it's recommendation I started munching on raw potatoes. After reading this article, I imagine the glucose in raw potatoes is just absorbed slower than the glucose in mashed potatoes. So I started munching on raw potatoes. They're fun to eat, just like apples. Except a little pasty .. waxy. Anyway, this stuff definitely works. The book is called "Peak-Performance Living"-Easy, Drug-free Ways to Alter Your Own Brain Chemistry for improved productivity, greater energy, sharper thinking, optimal health. Oh yeah, it describes caffeine's effects. (i know a few of you're interested in this one ;) ) Another thing.. St Johns Wort is an herb that's supposed to be a natural antidepressant. You can buy it at any drug store/supermarket. It's supposed to promote balanced brain chemistry. If I take a couple capsules of these before bed I have incredibly vivid dreams! and I wake up feeling rested and full of energy. Try it! Us geeks are so willing to hack at our computers, lets start hacking at our brains!
arp has to be run as superuser.
How happily is sun going to fork over the only technologies that are left to differentiate Solaris from Linux? Like NUMA. Will they just keep selling their product as long as theres a poor sucker left buying it? And then embrace Linux before they're crushed in it's path? Will the seperate unix vendors be cutting their R&D departments? Oh so many questions!
It seems like males are more inclined to "master" a skill (video games, computers, sports) than females. Females seem to emphasize social status, and males seem to emphasize ability. Personally, my computer was always a constant source of challenges (especially after installing linux). And I'd like the recognition and status that that gave me amongst my friends. Today, people on the street or whatever are impressed when they hear you have a swanky computer job. Positive reinforcement. Unlike the real world, programming follows rules. And the program is as perfect as you make it. No bully to punch you in the head or girl to break your heart. It can be a sanctuary, a safe place, where you can build your skills. This paragrath just lost it's direction, so I think I'll put it down now. BaNG!