Amazingly, when I was ego-surfing iTunes the other day, I found that a track by my old band Attrition, featuring none other that my own talented sister, is available on the iTunes Music Store already.
It's only 99c - you know you want to...Since they're shopping for a new label, perhaps they should just go exclusively direct.
Atomizer (Custom Mother) - Attrition [Darkness and the Machine Vol.2 ]
Attrition
In further removing the artist from the creative process, NAG is a tool for OS X and Win XP/2K that searches P2P networks for music files based on keywords you specify, extracts tiny phrases from the results and then creates a sonic collage from these fragments. The results are strangely haunting, extremely avant garde remixes, dada for the P2P generation.
The results are generally closer to sound art than conventional music. Searching for "Madonna," for instance, spawns a staccato string of song excerpts, some as short as one-twentieth of a second. But chance can yield a mellifluous outcome, as when overlapping versions of "Yesterday" by the Beatles, James Taylor, Boyz II Men and José Feliciano produce a near fugue.
How to Make a Sonic Pureé From Pop Snippets [New York Times] (Registration Re-blahblah)
Downloadable from: Turbulence.org
It's very enlightening to spend some time listening to non-technical people describe their computer problems. For anyone developing software to be used by mere mortals, I recommend it. Recently, I overheard a couple of choice quotes at the Genius Bar in the Palo Alto Apple Store:
"...and so I bought a home network. The box it came in said it was 'wireless ready' but normally I find that means it's really not."Upon finding out that the error with her computer was something that she herself was doing, a flustered and frustrated middle-aged woman huffily remarked:
"I'm going to switch back to a PC. It was so much nicer when it was always their fault."
Blogging gets a boost today - Google has bought Pyra Labs who run Blogger. Nick Denton wonders if they'll use blog cintent to improve Google News. He's probably worried about how this will affect his meta-blog media plan: The Lafayette Project.
Google Buys Pyra: Blogging Goes Big-Time [via Nick Denton]
What is the Lafayette Project? [Nick Denton]
Apparently, it's time for the quarterly story on Location Based Services again - this time instead of Starbucks coupons, it's Mobile Dating.
Now that wireless carriers are setting up the necessary infrastructure to help emergency dispatchers pinpoint the location of emergency 911 callers, they are mulling over ways to make money from knowing exactly where customers are.When out and about, users could ping the service asking for compatible singles in the area. After notifying the other members nearby, the system would provide the user with a list of people in close proximity and their location. A potential match could be right across the street.
It would be fun to see this actually launched - I personally have been demonstrating this service for the past two and a half years at my previous firm. We have the application already built - including a 'go ugly' option should it be getting late on a Friday night and you've still not pulled. Just call me, I'm ready when you are.
Ring Ring, It's Your Soul Mate [Wired News]
The latest update on what Nick Denton is up to with his Weblog Media idea looks interesting. Gizmodo is already a great gadget resource, and the plan to turn disparate weblogs in to a coherent new media form sounds intriguing, but I'm not so sure about another guide-to-NYC blog; we'll see how compelling that turns out to be. In any case, he seems to have enroled some of the great and the good - Jason Kottke, Meg Hourihan et al. This looks well worth watching.
Weblog Media, A New Venture [Nick Denton]
Gawker
Cometa, a new venture from IBM, AT&T and Intel will aim to provide ubiquitous WiFi - competing with 2.5G/3G Networks and older services like Ricochet (which is slowly re-emerging from bankruptcy). With the rise of open access (NYC Wireless, SF Wireless, Consume.net & Warchalking and Starbucks wireless access through T-Mobile's HotSpot there will be plenty of choice soon - but at what price? Full disclosure: I already have several antiques in this area - three old Ricochet Modems, two Omnisky receivers and a current solution - a recently GPRS-enabled Treo 270.
High Speed Wireless Network is Planned [New York Times]
One reason we don't like photos of ourselves is that they're not what we see in a mirror, writes Nick Denton. A photo shows us how others see us, a mirror shows this in reverse.
The answer: TrueMirror, which I stumbled over late one night whilst walking home - stop by and take a look if you're in the neighbourhood, there's a TrueMirror in their shop window for you to try.
TrueMirror
I look terrible [Nick Denton]
Just like a pet, electronic devices are becoming used to their owners. But sometimes they get the wrong idea - examined in this article on personalisation gone awry. A similar thing happened to me when I sold my TiVo to a friend; he inherited my peccadillos - and then had some explaining to do to his wife.
My Tivo Thinks I'm Gay [Wall Street Journal]
