In light of Sony retiring the Walkman Cassette player today, I thought it would be neat to put together a Infographic representing some of the history of audio recording formats. In my generation, vinyl records and cassette tapes were the norm although I remember my Father’s love of his reel-to-reel. However there is much more history beyond that… and how far we come!

Click to view full size image.

Text Version

Phonograph Cylinder

Phonograph cylinders were the earliest commercial medium for recording and reproducing sound. These cylinder shaped objects had an audio recording engraved on the outside surface which could be reproduced when the cylinder was played on a mechanical phonograph.

Piano (Music) Roll

A piano roll is the music storage medium used to operate the player piano, pianola or a reproducing piano which consists of a roll of paper with perforations (holes) punched in it. The position and length of the perforation determines the note played on the piano. The roll moves over a device known as the ‘tracker bar.’

Gramophone Record

Commonly known as a phonograph or vinyl record, the gramophone record is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove starts near the periphery and ends near the center of the disc.

Reel-to-Reel

A form of magnetic tape audio recording in which is held on a reel which is then mounted on a spindle. The end of the tape is pulled out of the reel, threaded through mechanical guides and a tape head assembly, and attached by friction to the hub of a second empty takeup reel.

4-Track (Stereo-Pak)

The Muntz Stereo-Pak, commonly known as the 4-track cartridge, is a magnetic tape sound recording cartridge technology. The in-car tape player that played the Stereo-Pak cartridges was called the Autostereo, but it was generally marketed under the common Stereo-Pak trade name.

Compact Cassette

The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette or cassette tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format originally designed for dictation, but eventually supplanted the Stereo 8 track and reel-to-reel tape in most non-professional applications.

8 Track

Stereo 8, commonly known as the eight-track cartridge, is a magnetic tape sound recording technology that was popular in the U.S. from the mid-1960s through the late 1970s, but was relatively unknown in many European countries.

Compact Disc

A Compact Disc (also known as a CD) is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store sound recordings exclusively, but later it also allowed the preservation of other types of data.

MP3

MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer 3, a.k.a. MP3, is a digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression. It is a common audio format for consumer audio storage, as well as a de facto standard of digital audio compression for the transfer and playback of music on digital audio players.

DVD

DVD, also known as Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc, is an optical disc storage media format, and was invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Time Warner. Its main uses are video storage and is capable of storing just under seven times as much data as the CD.

Blu-ray Disc

Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The format defines as its standard physical media a 12 cm (same as DVDs and CDs), 25 GB per-layer optical disc, being dual layer discs (50 GB) the norm for feature-length video discs, and the addition of more layers left open as a future possibility.

I have always been a huge fan of Netflix. What’s not to like about them – get as many DVDs as you can watch delivered by mail for a very reasonable price. Add to that the ability to live stream movies via your PC, specific set-top devices and even some TVs and it is a match made in heaven for any lover of media on DVDs.

Unfortunately as of late, Netflix has been driving me away. I have been courting another DVD rental “lover” and that is Redbox. “What can possibly be the problem,” you might ask? Just look at my current queue of DVDs I’m waiting on.

(right-click & select “view image” for larger version)

Notice that the top 11 selections ALL have either “long wait” or “very long wait” holds on them. In fact “Inglorious Bastards” has been in my queue with “very long wait” for months. What’s the deal Netflix?

Either two things are happening: Netflix has a very limited supply of DVDs on hand and cannot meet the demands of its subscriber base or they are moving more towards live-streaming and will eventually get out of the mail order business. Sadly, I feel it is the latter.

So, I have cut back my “3 at a time” to “2 at a time” and to be honest, if Netflix does not improve its service to their DVD mail-order rental customers, I may move my subscription service to “0 at a time.”

I’m not sure how the “waits” placed on mail-order DVDs operates. The way it should function, at least in my thinking, is the same way as any queue works whether that be standing in a line at the local grocery store or waiting for a customer service rep on the telephone. If I’m 20th in line then after 20 people have rented and returned Netflix’s supply of any particular title, I should get the next one.

Unfortunately I don’t think it works that way but rather when I return a DVD and am eligible for another, if one of my top picks is not in the inventory, I ain’t getting it. That my friend sucks!

Therefore, we have been doing a lot of Redbox as of late, at least for new titles. And I have to say, Netflix’s inability to keep up with demand is only helping this new competitor become a viable threat to them.

How about it, Netflix? Are you listening? I can’t be the only long-time lover who feels jilted as of late. The real question: are you going to do anything about it?

After many years of wanting to see U2 live but always missing the opportunity (concerts sell out), I finally got to see themalong with my lovely wife Irma in their biggest, baddest show yet – U2 360. Tuesday, October 20th at the Cardinals stadium is where it all took place and although the show here didn’t sell out (Phoenix you suck), there were about 55,000 in attendance.

They played for about two hours and twenty minutes – 24 songs in all which included two encores. Some highlights of the show in addition to the awesome stage, light show and video effects occurred when Bono brought up three sisters who he sang and danced with during “In A Little While.” They even got to remain on stage and sit near Larry during “Unknown Caller” as Bono lays across their laps during Edge’s guitar solo.

One lucky little girl got to walk the catwalk with Bono during “City of Blinding Lights.”

At different times during the show, Bono namechecks Muhammad Ali, Shane MacGowan of the Pogues, and John and Cindy McCain, all of whom are at the show.

Below are a few photos.

Most of my close range shots did not turn out well thanks to the sucky Nikon P90 I was using (I returned it to Costco soon after). Had I been able to bring my Nikon D80 with its 200mm zoom lense, the close-ups would have been much much better. However, I had heard that no “detachable” lense cameras were allowed. Such is fate.

The remaining photos are available on my Flickr account.

We hope to see them again next June when they play at Angels Stadium in Anaheim during the second leg of their ongoing tour. Maybe then I’ll be able to get my trusty D80 in and get some killer shots!

In celebration of our 18th wedding anniversary, Irma and myself decided to do something we had both desired to accomplish for some time – to ride in a hot air balloon. We did just that this last Monday where we reached heights of up to 4,300 feet and lows just above the rooftops of Anthem homes.

We chose a smaller balloon company – Aerogelic Ballooning – mostly due to the fact that their baskets contained smaller groups of people (up to 6 compared to a dozen or more with larger companies). We were hpoing because it was a Monday that we’d be the only ones that showed up. This was not the case as two other couples showed up, however I must say they were pleasant people that I did not mind sharing the ride with at all.

In fact, we shared our ballooning experience with a young couple (boyfriend and girlfriend) who were celebrating the gal’s 25th birthday and an older couple (older than us) who were celebrating a new home purchase (balloon ride supplied by their realtor). It was a first time experience, that is ballooning, for all of us.

Without going into all the minute details of where we decided to launch from, the process of filling the balloon, the details of balloon flight, etc., I will say it was quite a pleasant experience. It was a bit cramped in the basket but the fact that you are essentially floating in the air was pretty awesome. Add to the experience, it was very cool that even though we did not launch from our little community of Anthem, Arizona, the wind took us there anyway.

It was neat that at one point we were literally within a few feet of Anthem rooftops which prompted many to come out of their homes and stare, wave, even take pictures. Just minutes prior, we were 4,300 feet in the air!

All in all I’m glad we did it and I would do it again in a moment’s notice. maybe next time we will try a sunset flight (did the sunrise this time) and see if going with a larger balloon company with larger baskets enhances the experience.

Here are a few photos taken from my Blackberry (apologies for the quality).

I just love the song “Magnificent” of U2′s new album, No Line on the Horizon. That is why I was thrilled to come across this very well done cover of the song done in “acoustic style.” It is really phenomenal that the guitarist can play and sing the song at the same time.

It appears from the URL that is included in video that the trio is a band from Brazil called “Lunares.”

With no further ado, here is the video that was uploaded to YouTube followed by U2 themselves performing the song recently at the Somerville Theatre in Massachusetts.

I like the Letterman show and watch it from time to time, especially if there is a guest on that I want to see. I don’t think I have ever watched the show religiously for a week straight. Last week was an exception because one of my favorite bands, U2, appeared on the show every night.

In all my years of watching Letterman (been watching since I was a kid), I have never seen an audience get so excited, so enthused, so jubilant over a musical guest than with U2. They lit the place up each and every night. I believe Dave himself has become a fan of the band.

Not only did they perform a different number each night, they were featured in a few comedy skits and were interviewed for a few minutes on Thursday night.

I have compiled videos of all their performances, the comedy skits and the interview below for your enjoyment. Now I can’t wait for the North American tour which should happen later this year.

The Music

Monday Night – Breath

Tuesday – Magnificent

Wednesday – I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight

Thursday – Beautiful Day

Friday – Get On Your Boots

The Comedy/Interview

Monday Night – Shoveling Snow

Wednesday – Top Ten List of Things U2 Has Learned Over the Years

Thursday – U2 helps Around the Office

Thursday – The Interview

Friday – Ask U2

Have you ever dreamed of flying? I’m not referring to airplanes, balloons or even hang gliders but to fly as the birds do would be simply fantastic. Good news for such enthusiasts is that there are several companies that are working hard to make such a dream a reality.

There are in fact several products either already available or being developed that will make human flight a very real possibility. Unfortunately for now it is reserved for those who are quite well off finally.

This was brought to my attention after reading the story of Eric Scott of Jet Pack International (Jet P.I.) who recently used a standard hydrogen peroxide-fueled jet pack to get across the 1,250-foot-deep gorge south of Denver. And while he was successful in his attempt, the downside is that his entire flight lasted only 20 seconds. The maximum flight time for a hydrogen-peroxide pack is about 45 seconds, though one company in California has recently extended that to 75 seconds by mixing in a little kerosene.

There is hope however for longer flights.

Scott Rhodes, chief operating officer with Go Fast Sports, a sister company of Jet P.I. (both are based in Denver), says they’re trying to break that barrier with a turbine jet-powered machine that lasts as long as 9 minutes in the air.

“It’s got one engine on the top, pointing backward, and two facing down to provide lift,” he explained to FOXNews.com about the T-73 model.

The turbine engines are much more fuel-efficient than the standard hydrogen peroxide jet pack, which is really a rocket because it doesn’t use the oxygen in the surrounding air as additional fuel.

The turbine-powered machine, named the T-73, which runs on standard jet fuel, will be available in the near future for around $200,000.

That is not all. Martin Jetpack, based in New Zealand, makes a propeller-driven machine that’s really not a jet at all. I doest have a maximum flight time of half an hour at 60 mph — enough to get you to work, if you live within 30 miles — and runs on easily available standard gasoline.

You can reserve one with a $10,000 deposit, though you’ll be paying $100,000 by the time it’s delivered (when that will be was not disclosed). That doesn’t include the cost of mandatory pilot training.

Finally there is Thunderbolt Aerosystems, based in San Jose, Calif., who is selling its standard hydrogen-peroxide model now for $90,000. It says it’ll have its aforementioned hydrogen-peroxide/kerosene blend model, which lasts 75 seconds in the air, ready next summer for $98,000.

Although I have yet to hit the financial status to justify the expense of any of these machines, it is thrilling to see such inventions being developed, bringing humans closer all the time to being able to fly like the birds.

The band U2 has always been one of my favorites. From Bono’s superb singing voice to Edge’s unique guitar playing style to the quality and substance of their music, they have always thrilled me with their music and performances. Now a new book has been authored by my very good friend, Matt McGee that details all of the relevant day-to-day events that have shaped U2 into the band it is today. It provides the important stories behind the ‘who, what, when and where’ including insights about key moments in U2s development that have never been told before.

And who is this Matt McGee and why is he qualified to write a book about one of the all time greatest bands to ever have existed? Matt runs the most popular U2 fan site – @U2, which is not only the oldest independent site for U2 fans on the Web but has been invited to co-host events at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and has earned numerous awards over its long history. In December, 2007, Entertainment Weekly included @U2 at #4 on its list of the 25 Best Fan Web Sites covering music, movies, or television. All these accomplishments make me very proud of my friend.

And now he is an author! His book – U2 – A Diary is available for pre-sale and is scheduled to be released tomorrow. With the release of this book, Matt invited several of his friends and peers to ask him five questions about the band, the book or even Matt himself. I decided to take him up on that offer and below are his responses to my questions.

1. When did you first become a U2 fan and why?

My first encounter with U2 was 1981, when I heard “I Will Follow” on a Philadelphia radio station — WMMR-FM. I liked the song well enough, but not enough to really investigate the band or even buy the BOY album. Then when I heard “New Year’s Day” in 1983, that was it. What an amazing song — it gave me chills then, and still does today. That prompted me to buy the WAR album, which prompted me to learn more about the band, and I was hooked. Why? Great music, and music with substance. They had something to say, and I was all ears.

2. How did the @U2 site come about? Did you ever envision it becoming the number 1 fan site for U2?

Heck no! It started out mainly as a place for me to post some photos I had and some old news clippings I’d been saving over the years. Like every other web site in the mid-1990s, it was pretty much crap in terms of design and usability. But I think it was the only place you could find and read old news articles about the band. So that attracted an audience, and then other fans would send me their own clippings to transcribe and add to my site. It snowballed from there to the point that I needed to start adding people to help covering current news and adding old news.

3. Have you ever met any of the band members and if not, do you think you ever will?

I have not met any of them. I’m not the type of fan to stand in line before or after a concert to get a handshake and an autograph, and I’m not the type to wait for them outside their hotel or anything like that. It’s just not my style. I’m not real comfortable with the typical band-fan relationship, where the artist is WAY UP HIGH on a pedestal, and the fan is WAY DOWN BELOW. I’d like to meet them some day, but only when it can be on an equal footing, man to man … not fan to band.

4. Do you know the “real” names of Bono and Edge (or is that their real names)?

Sure — Bono is Paul David Hewson. Edge is David Howell Evans.

5. To your knowledge, is U2 a Christian band?

Oooooh. Now that’s a loaded question! This is something that gets discussed pretty regularly in Christian music circles, and also in U2 fan circles.

Here’s my take: They’re a band of believers who make music that praises God, questions God, is inspired by God, and inspires others to know God. They write songs about the same stuff you read about in the Bible, and hear about on Sunday mornings. They make a lot of Biblical ideas palatable to people who might not otherwise be comfortable reading the New Testament or sitting in a pew.

So, are they a Christian band? I think that evidence says yes. But they also use swear words, drink alcohol, and enjoy some of the fruits of their riches. So, some Christians say they’re not a Christian band. I suspect U2 likes it that way.

============================

Well there you have it – a peek into Matt’s extensive knowledge of this remarkable band. Want to learn more? Pick up a copy of his new Book – U2 – A Diary either online or when it becomes available in book stores.

For years there have been rumors that a major amusement park would be built in Arizona. Recently it was speculated that Six Flags had bought land somewhere north of New River Arizona and was planning on building an amusement park. It was a rumor. There have also been rumors that an all-indoor park was being planned. Now there is news that a group is planning on building a park somewhere between Phoenix and Tucson.

The group, One Dream, One Team, plans to build a 350-acre park near Florence. The group says the park, called Coyote Canyon, will be themed on Arizona history and geography. Roller coasters, rides and entertainment would center on five districts: Old West, Indian High Country, Rocks and River County, Canyon Country and the Central Corridor (representing the Valley’s metro area and where hotels, shopping and office space would be located). Rides could also include a roller coaster that dives underground, where thrill seekers would plunge into a “canyon.”

The group chose Florence because it’s between the two cities and because of the area’s Old West history. The group’s CEO says estimates show the park costing $600 million, but there are no plans to request public funding.

We will see if this comes to fruition or if it simply pans out to be another rumor. It would be awesome to have at least one decent roller coaster to ride on a regular basis within driving distance. A collection of coasters would be even better.

If you are not one of the 8 million subscribers that Netflix currently has, you may or may not have heard about the DVD rental giant’s disaster last week when their shipping system all but died. It all started last Tuesday when Netflix reported a technical glitch that prevented them from sending out DVDs to subscribers. Those issues continued at many of their 55 distribution centers through Thursday when on Friday they finally appeared to resolve whatever issues they had.

Some customers were very understanding, recognizing that systems can break from time to time while others were downright upset, even threatening to switch to Netflix’s fiercest competitor – Blockbuster.

Myself, I was not really that concerned. So I have a few days with no new movies coming in. I do have a pretty active life and can find plenty of things to do besides watching movies. So I’m more on the side that gave the company some slack. In fact, I have always considered myself a Netflix brand evangelist, especially seeing that I am still bitter at all the late fees I have ever had to pay to Blockbuster during the pre-Netflix days.

When Netflix stated on Tuesday that they would be crediting people’s accounts, I thought that was a good move to attempt to absolve what was turning out to be a very nasty public relations situation for the DVD rental company. That is until I heard the actual amount – 15%.

Now I suppose mathematically, 15% is fair. However, I don’t feel it is enough to really appease customers who are let’s say – very passionate about their movie watching. Some folks seemed as if their life was ruined. And maybe it was for that week. Just look at some of their comments found at the Netflix community blog.

I wasn’t disappointed… I am PISSED…THANKS FOR SCREWING UP DATE NIGHT!

Netflix just lost a long time customer. I am gonna take myself to the video store, and grab a bite. Then I am going to go online and check out Blockbuster. I bet a new customer saves more than 15%.

Now my queue says movies will ship next Thursday. Great work Netflix. My solution is simple – I will cancel my account. I suggest others do the same for a month or two and give Netflix a nice revenue hit so they rethink their 15% discount. For me if the disk are not shipped until next Thursday, that will be 2 weeks.

15% is not adequate, I’m sorry. I get 3 movies at a time, and in a rare moment of PLANNING AHEAD, I returned all 3 movies to get 3 more for my movie party tonight. Suffice to say, no movies arrived, so instead I have to go to the local movie store and rent 3 replacements. Total cost for 3 rentals? $12. Thats about 75% of my total monthly Netflix cost, so this 15% discount is bullshit.

Oh, and I love this one – the conspiracy theory (second paragraph):

I had no inkling there was a problem at Netflix until I received an email today. Movies I had returned last week were just ‘received’? 15% for a week of no movies is definitely insufficient, regardless of whether you are whiny or not. This is a business, we expect a product for payment. Point is our credit cards will no doubt be charged on time.

It’s Friday, a rainy weekend ahead, bored kids and NO movies. But worse no explanation at all about the source of the problem and THAT concerns me more. It’s not about being whiny – I am concerned about hackers, identity thieves and so on. NETFLIX: IS there anything we need to know that you’re not telling us? The truth always comes out so I think if somebody is not being honest now’s the time to tell the customers what the heck is really going on.

There are a lot more – upset people I mean. This is inevitable as there are just some people that demand perfection. Of course we know that no company is perfect and today’s technology is far from perfect. It does have imperfect mankind behind it.

While I can certainly understand technical glitches, I feel pretty strongly that Netflix should have offered minimum 50% credit or nothing at all. 15% is like a spit in the face. It is not the money but rather then principle. Of course 50% would have cost Netflix a lot more money and they know this. However, it may have helped them to get through this public relations nightmare in a much smoother fashion.

Don’t worry, I’m still a Netflix loyalist. I’m not going to be chased away by some technical glitches and a measly 15% credit. I do hope for Netflix’s sake that they learn from this lesson and should something like this happen in the future, that they will take into consideration the feelings of those who have voiced displeasure in the way Netflix handled this situation.

What about you the reader? Whether a Netflix customer or not, do you feel 15% is justified? Should customers have received more? Or maybe you fee they should not have received anything at all? I’d love to hear your opinions.