Time to Kill Traditional Radio

Perhaps it's time to revoke all broadcast licences and yank broadcast radio off the air. It seems to me that the precious radio spectrum could be better utilized to blanket the country with cheap Internet broadband.

I have only come to the conclusion since getting a smartphone. Up until quite recently, I had sort of fallen out of favour with radio. I was hardly an active listener anymore. It's strange that I listen more than ever now, especially as not a minute has been via a traditional transmitter and receiver. Since cheap 3G, I listen to a lot of radio, some local but much from far-away distances. I'm not talking here of services such as Pandora but real radio where announcers and inane commercials interrupt the news and music. It's just that whether at home through the home theatre system's speakers or by my phone's ear-buds, I listen via TuneIn.



Now, on the recently upgraded Android app, many stations carry the name of the tunes being played. I notice that on my Nexus One, with the newest version, album art automatically appears for most common songs.

I can get a world-wide selection of stations and more accurate information with Internet radio.

Dust Removal

My poor media server! I stuffed my old PC, with its miles of cords and wires, behind the television a year ago. My intention was to figure out some sort of shelving for it. It streams my Netflix, Hulu, and Pandora. It also acts as the file server for my home network.

The machine was often working too hard. The fan would kick in quickly if I gave it a CPU intensive task. I figured the computer was probably dusty inside. As it's sitting directly on the carpet, fuzz and lint gets sucked into the machine through the power-supply fan. I opened it up and gave it a good cleaning. A blow-drier which never gets to work on hair, came in handy. The housing around the CPU was packed with dust.

It's now running much cooler (and more quietly). It's ready for hours of instant streaming, DVD copying, and assorted networked media tasks.

Proving One's Age

I've been catching up on the television program called Mad Men. I'm nearly at the end of the first season, so I'm only about three years late! As you can can see by the image, I'm not watching the episodes on Blu-ray; rather, I'm streaming them via Netflix Canada and my PS3.



It has crossed my mind, that I'd really would like to drop my satellite TV subscription through Bell Canada, but I don't think we're quite ready in this country to live on just Internet delivery. It's a hassle trying to watch things via Hulu or the US Networks because my IP gives me away. Many Internet media services, including Pandora, are designed to be used only within US borders. It's all a matter of distribution rights and media ownership.

I also started considering that perhaps needing cable or satellite might have to do with our ages as well. It is fairly easy to guess whether an individual is over 40 by asking if he or she has a home phone. We've not given up our landline, hence we must be of a certain age.

If that weren't enough of a giveaway, then the fact we still have a daily newspaper delivered, might prove our maturity beyond a reasonable doubt. I love unfolding a tactile, bundle of newsprint in the mornings. Coffee and the paper seem to go together. Damn, that proves the rocking chair is only a few years away!

We're Sorry, Your IP is 99.199.190.60

It's great being back in the apartment as it didn't take long to get the bags unpacked and things feeling like home. Actually, I'm rather surprised that although we used the Internet a lot during this trip, being connected to the usual data stream also helped to make things seem like normal.

While gone, I received an email from Netflix that they had become available as a streaming-only service in Canada. We're very happy with our local DVD-by-mail company called Videomatica. Yet, I did sign up for my free month with Netflix to check out the service. There are a number of approved devices on which their service will presently operate and my PS3 is one of them. The main reason we have the PlayStation is not for gaming but rather for Blu-ray capability, so it's already connected to the living room flat-screen.

After just a short trial, I can see the benefits of streaming through a legitimate source. The actual television and movie pickings look pretty slim at present, but I'm sure they'll build up the library quickly. As Canadians, we run up against content provider copyright problems a lot. If one tries to sign onto Internet services such as Pandora or Hulu, one gets a polite road block and warning screen which usually looks something like this:

"Our service is only for Americans, by which we mean people who live in the United States. Unfortunately, by your IP address, we have figured out that you are at least several meters north of the 49th Parallel. Therefore, you are not entitled to access our system. Although you watch and listen to many of the same things as we do, you have an entirely different set of monopolies, media barons, and licence-holders. If you are smart enough to know your way around the Internet, there are ways to pretend to be residing in sunny Los Angeles, and which will trick our site into sharing its contents. If this applies to you, happy viewing. If you are an average consumer, you are shit out of luck."

The first month of Netflix in Canada is free. I expect to keep my subscription at this point. Although it allows unlimited viewing, it would only take several movies in order to justify the $7.95 monthly fee. Now, when exactly, can I drop satellite TV?

Fly Me to the Moon

Although you can't tell by the title, I'm thinking about the opposite side of the decade from the lunar landing. I can't really say why I've been so keen to listen to these songs, many of which pre-date my time on earth; however, I've been recently fascinated with the Vegas's Sin City era and the entertainment prowess of the Rat Pack.


I also added a bit of local boy, Michael Bublé, to update the sound a bit. In this case I've been trying to teach Pandora to keep my station's selections primarly of the male crooner type. Take a listen by clicking the graphic above. If you don't have a free account, take the time to sign up. (If you are not in the US, send me a note and I can give you ways to get access.) Using Pandora had changed my whole concept of music.

Teaching an Old Dog

As a kid at our dinner table, my father would inevitably ask me what I'd learned in school. I don't know how I managed to be a fairly good student as I remember always answering, "Nothin'." Even though I was never forthcoming with an answer, it was not a silly question to be asked each day. In fact, on a daily basis, we should still probably ask ourselves to recount the new things we've learnt.

Getting new input should be a goal of life. It needn't be an erudite new concept or theory. For example, new the information might be discovering a supermarket isle where the birthday candles can be found. Or testing an alternative way of driving to a common destination may quality. Certainly, one's choice of television shows could educate as well as entertain.

I frequently do new things at my computer. Of course, I have been experimenting with these machines since personal computers came into existence. I love figuring out a new program. New hardware excites me. I love making things work. This type of problem-solving keeps one open to new ways of thinking and doing things. Entries in my eJournal and images are full of such details.

For example during the past few weeks, I've discovered Pandora Internet Radio, a way to buy a e-visa for Cambodia, and a method for saving Internet articles I've read on my Facebook wall. Also, I created my own version of crasher squirrel photo and began a real fascination with the volunteer micro-loan site called kiva.org.


Probably my most life-altering blog entry of recent days was yesterday's dealing with my reintroduction to Skype. We've had a fine day running around getting hold of gift items for the trip to Sri Lanka which begins on the 11th of next month. However, I started the day by answering a welcomed free call from Lynne who was at their place in the Weneas. I also put the contacts from my cell phone into Skype. Lastly, I talked a half an hour with my dad from my laptop. At less than 2.5 cents a minute, it's comparible to buying a calling card but much more convenient.

I Finally Opened the Box

I'm a little late to this game. While researching data-capable phones, I kept running across references to Pandora Internet Radio apps. That name was familiar to me. Facebook will even automactically import its activities to a person's wall. I had never bothered to give it a try for a reason. When visiting www.pandora.com, being Canadian, I get notification that the service is unavailable as I am not in the United States.

Of course there's a way around anything.


After only a few hours, I'm definitely hooked. All one has to do is type in a favorite song or artist and Pandora creates a personal station based on the selection. It chooses other music from that song's specific musical characteristics and genre. It's uncannily accurate in choosing things the user will determine as being a favourite. Pandora must use collective intelligence in their algorithms. The user can vote a thumbs up or down on specific songs as they play. Additionally, new 'seed' songs may be added by the listener at any time.

Music will never be the same. Of course albums are already history even though that's the way I have organized 50 GB of music files on my hard disc. It's easier to let Pandora create a playlist. More interestingly, one is exposed to songs and artists one may have never considered. Although I just wrote it a few line back, it demands repeating: Music will never be the same, again.