Category Archives: Technology

The Joy (And Pain) Of Audio Streaming

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It’s been a while since I blogged; I’ve been running, working and enjoying the latest (U. S.) holidays.  So, I guess it’s about time to update the site.

Season 9 Logo

Season 9 – Spacemusic.nl

While I’m typing this, I’m listening to streaming audio from one of my favorite podcasters, TC, of SpaceMusic fame.  TC has been airing his space, ambient, downtempo and lounge music electronically for years.  Season 9 of Spacemusic has just launched, and yes, it’s entirely FREE.  I generally subscribe to it via iTunes, but there are other mechanisms provided, including RSS.

Fresh Air is another podcast of TC’s, and he’s now moved it from one streaming source to another: Mixcloud.com, which is itself a fascinating place to find music mixed by folks according to their tastes.

So why the “pain” of the title? Well, simply put, it’s mostly because I do most of my listening while running.  Since I hate running with a phone — smart or otherwise — streaming audio just doesn’t do it for me.  So I have to find a way to capture the audio and load it on my listening device. These days, my listening devices are iPods of one type or another, so transferring a podcast from iTunes to and iPod is a simple matter. But what if it’s not a podcast?

Another site I enjoy is Music From the Hearts of Space.  I pay a relatively hefty subscription fee for the premium service of listening to any broadcast, any time. Each week a new one hour program is aired, and is made available free for a limited time. Sadly, HOS uses an embedded Flash plug-in, which makes listening to it on an iPad or iPod impossible.

Then there’s the Australian weekly program, Ultima Thule. Covering all the bases, their

Ultima Thule

Ultima Thule. Music from around the world and across the ages.

podcasts are available via iTunes, as mp3 downloads, and even via a YouTube channel (no link provided, as I never spend time on YouTube).

From time to time I might happen across a web site airing one of more pieces I might find enjoyable as a running accompaniment. If I wish to, I might be able to record it using a quirky program from a company called OndeSoft, called SoundBlaster.  I say “quirky,” because when Apple updated OS X to Mavericks, it broke a lot of utilities such as SoundBlaster.  Thus, I can use it with the Google Chrome browser, but not with Safari.  Hmm.

Unless I’m running an event, there are two things I never go without: my Garmin Forerunner GPS watch (I just got the new 220 – maybe I’ll write a review on that) and my iPod.

This being the end of the year, let me take the opportunity to thank the people and companies that make my running more enjoyable: Apple, OndeSoft, TC, Stephen Hill and the Hearts of Space gang, and the Ultima Thule Aussies.  Happy New Year!

I Vote “No” On Instant Replay

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I love technology. It’s enriched my life and working in the technical field has enabled me to earn a relatively comfortable living. I also love baseball. I grew up a fan of the Washington Senators, of whom it was quipped, “Washington: First in war, first in peace, last in the American League.”

Yet when I heard the news that Major League Baseball was instituting a new instant replay policy, my gut reaction was swift and sure.  I’m against it.

Rafael Soriano pitches for the NatsYesterday I watched a game with my new favorite team, the Washington Nationals. The Nats were leading the San Francisco Giants 3-1 in the top of the ninth. The home plate umpire clearly missed calling what would have been the game ending third strike. Both the pitcher and the batter thought so. On the next pitch, the batter hit a three-run homer that put the Giants ahead, and the Giants wound up winning the game, 4-3.

Instant replay would have reversed that call, right? Maybe. But that’s not the point.

Baseball is a unique game in many ways. For one, it’s the only game where the defense has the ball. It also isn’t ruled by a clock. It’s a game where every player has the same opportunity to contribute to the offense (n.b. the designated hitter rule in the American League, to which I also object). And that’s the point. This is a game for and by human beings. And being fallible, human beings make mistakes. A baseball box score lists runs, hits and errors. Errors are as a much a part of the game as everything else.  Bill Buckner, anyone?

Last night on the radio, a local sportscaster, obviously stung by the loss, disagreed with the “human element” of the game. He argued that the technology exists (and the media uses it prolifically during broadcasts) to accurately measure balls and strikes. Why leave it to a human umpires, who can – and often do – misread the strike zone? My response to that argument: The technology also exists to throw a perfect strike. Every time. Why not replace the pitcher with a machine that gives each batter the exact same hitting opportunity?

Because that removes the human element of the game and turns it into little more than high-priced batting practice. Fans of the game know this well: A game of baseball changes with every pitch; with a runner on second and the count three balls and two strikes, the strategy will be different depending on how many outs there are.

Do we want to reduce the subtlety and nuances of the game just because we can? Certainly I’m not happy the game was lost on a blown call. But I also believe these things tend to balance out, and I think teams are the beneficiaries of as many blown calls as they are victim to them.

And that’s as it should be, in my opinion. Because we’re human and bystanders to technology.