iTunes: Thanks for the free stuff …

Hello.

I have said it before and I'll say it again. I am not crazy about iTunes. Its one of the most unresponsive piece of software I use on my Mac. Maybe, I'm not using it right, maybe I'm not using it enough, I don't know. But that doesn't mean I won't use iTunes, I will. Especially when they give me free music, videos, apps and more.

I don't exactly know when I started checking out the free stuff they offer on iTunes, but I'll tell you this; some of the songs and stuff iTunes offers for free are really good. Free is not always crappy.

Problem is, they keep the free stuff up for a limited time only. Mostly, a week or so. After that, you got to pay for it.

So its important that you check iTunes regularly for free stuff. Thats easier said than done. However, I did find some blogs that help you find free stuff on iTunes. They keep their blogs updated with all the latest offers in all iTunes markets. They all pretty much have the same information, so subscribing to one of them would probably get you all you need.

Here are the links to those blogs:
Free iTunes Donwnloads 
iT’S Free Downloads 
US iTunes Free Downloads 

Also, if you are in dire need to update your music collection, check out SPIN magazine. They come out with free playlists on iTunes about once a month, I think its called the LSTN series. Just head over to SPIN website and grab the code. Make sure you redeem it and download the playlist from iTunes before it expires at the end of each month.

If you know or use anything free like SPIN playlists to get your music, please do let me know in the comments. I would like to check them out. Free is always good!

Enjoy your music.

Laterx.

Desktopography: Got some good stuff ...

Hello.

It goes without saying that these days, one has to spend a lot of time in front of a computer. Be it work, play or both.

I spend a few hours on my laptop everyday and I have this bad habit of saving my current and no so current projects on my Desktop. As it happens, I get to stare at my Desktop more than I want to. I never could break the habit of organizing my Desktop files, but did manage to pick up on changing my Desktop wallpaper in a desperate effort to make my Desktop look better.

I know people who are obsessed to change their Desktop backgrounds everyday. Hell, I know people who use special programs to automatically download and change their Desktop backgrounds everyday. I am much too lazy. I don't change my backgrounds months on end.

The picture you see here is the current Desktop background on my laptop. Got it free from Desktopography.

I went from Landscapes to Gothic to semi-nude girls. Movie posters to pictures I took while out and about to default OS X Backgrounds. Having a liking to dark abstract these months.

What does your background look like and where did you get it from?

Laterx.

Ordered: KODAK PLAYSPORT Zx5 video camera ...

Hello.

So it has been a few months since I've been thinking about getting myself a small video camera. Not a big HandyCam type, but the small home movie type.

I have been researching this for a bit now and it seems there are only three good options available to me for the amount of money that I want to spend. The GoPro series, the Flip Series and the Kodak Zi8. The latter has been in active development and had a few recently upgraded models available.

The GoPro was a bit expensive and was designed for extreme sports and fast action recording. Surprisingly, The Flip wasn't available anywhere and I read somewhere that the company has gone belly up. So, the only real choice for me was the Kodak models.

Kodak has a few models available right now but what I had a good look at was the KODAK PLAYSPORT Video Camera. It looked good and the specs were nice enough. FULL HD 1080p recording. HD 720p@60fps for fast action recording. Dustproof, shockproof and waterproof down to 10feet. I read a few only reviews, watched a few YouTube videos reviews and I was sold.

So last week I got on the internet and ordered myself the KODAK PLAYSPORT Video Camera Zx5. I went for the BLACK version. Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals were in full swing. I crashed the party as well and got a steep discount. Good timing I guess.

My camera has shipped and is on the way here now. Can't wait to get my hands on this and shoot some baby videos. Looks like I can do exactly that later this week.

• Processed Through Sort Facility, November 23, 2011, 11:16 pm, ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS)
• Arrived at Sort Facility, November 23, 2011, 11:15 pm, ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS)
• Shipment Accepted, November 22, 2011, 8:53 pm, BROOKLYN, NY 11256
• Electronic Shipping Info Received, November 22, 2011

Also, I guess now I need to familiarize myself with some video editing software. Come to think of it, I have never even opened up iMovie, ever. Not once.

would appreciate if you could point me in the direction for home video editing. Nothing fancy, just trimming and adding audio tracks and stuff. Thanks.

Laterx.

TextEdit: Here’s to the crazy ones ...

Hello.

I've been on a Mac for several years now and have been using TextEdit as my "go to" word processor. Its simple, clean and quite powerful for normal day to day text editing requirements. At least for me it is.

Few weeks ago, I noticed the TextEdit icon and wondered if there was any actual readable text on the TextEdit icon. I thought it was probably some random unintelligent text made to look like a typical letter. The though has been bugging me since then but I never got around to finding it. Today, I got the chance and did some Googling. What I found was a pleasant surprise.

The Mac OS TextEdit icon contain an actual letter. Not just a letter, but a very nice poem from Apple's "Think Different" advertisement campaign. It reads:

Dear Kate, 

Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. But they have no respect for status quo. You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them, disbelieve them, glorify or vivify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. 

Take Care,
John Appleseed

I know John Appleseed is fictitious name akin to John Doe that Apple uses in their advertisements, but who is Kate?

Seems Apple has actually puts some good thought behind their icon designs. Cool, huh?

Laterx.

iTunes Plus: lets switch it on and see ...

Hello.

I may prefer using a Mac. I may love using Mac OS X. I may think Apple as a company has some good products out. Some of you may have even labeled me a Mac evangelist. Yet, they do have stuff I just don't enjoy using.

For one, I loathe iTunes!

I think iTunes is slow and bloated. And it updates with minimal changes the day Apple release any product or a product update. So, I try to stay away from iTunes as much as possible. However, thats not quite as easy if you are on a Mac.

I mainly use iTunes to play my music and catch podcasts. Even then, I have iTunes running minimized and in the background. I use the omnipresent menu bar controls to interface with iTunes and play my music. I like it that way. You never even have to see iTunes at all.

The last time I opened up iTunes, there was an link to iTunes Plus. I didn't know what it was so I clicked on it thinking it would tell me more. Well, it did, kind of. It showed me the above screen. I wish it did gave some kind of options whether I wanted it or not. It didn't, but I guess I do want my music to sound better. Here is what Apple says about iTunes Plus.

iTunes Plus is the new standard on iTunes. iTunes Plus downloads are songs and music videos available in our highest quality 256 kbps AAC audio encoding (twice the audio quality of protected music purchases), and without digital rights management (DRM). iTunes Plus music can be burned to CD as many times as you need, synced to any AAC-enabled device (such as iPod, iPhone, or Apple TV), and played on any Mac or Windows computers you own.

Apparently, iTunes is now re-downloading all my purchased songs in double the bit rate and all my music has apparently been upgraded to sound way better. I wouldn't know. Not with these cheap earbuds I use.

I used to have a good pair of Sennheiser earbuds. They were pretty awesome, until it literally started to come apart. I think now would be a good time for me to do a little bit of research and invest in a decent pair of headphones. What do you recommend?

Laterx.

Goodbye, Steve ... you'll be missed !!!

Hello.

Steve Jobs, 1955 - 2011.

You were a man with an extraordinary vision. You were almost single handedly responsible for the huge come back apple made last decade. You were a great CEO and gave us world class computers and magical gadgets. Somewhere in there, you also managed to make Apple one of the most successful technology company on the planet.

As a Mac evangelist, you will definitely be missed. You will continue to be in our machines and gadgets, memories and backups. Goodbye, Steve.

Laterx.

Gonna get myself a MacBook Pro …

Hello ...
Introducing Apple MacBook Pro …
This is one sexy machine … I tell u …
I'm seriously contemplating …
About getting myself one of these …
I'm sure this would raise …
A lot of eyebrows but …
I kinda like this …
I've heard a lot about switchers …
I've heard a lot about windows …
Read a lot about Mac OS X tiger …
Done a lot of googling … and reading …
And i dunno why …
But I still have hots for these …
I mean … it can't be that bad …
And now that it supports windows XP …
With bootcamp …
I think this can be a kinda …
And OK investment …
Now that I've decided on this …
I can stop humming this song…
Something ain’t right …
I’m gonna get myself …
I'm gonna get myself …
Gonna get myself connected …
I ain’t gonna go blind …
For the light which is reflected …
I see thru you, I see thru you …
I see thru you, I see thru you …
Ok …
Its a song from the movie Hackers …
Stereo MC’s - Connected…
It's a kewl song …
Laterx ...