• 10th Anniversary of Napster

    June 14, 2009 / No Comments

    I first experienced downloading MP3s back in 1994. Back then it was easy to find copyright infringing MP3s right on the web. The problem was they took forever to download, and took up so much space. Back then a 1 GB hard drive was huge, so 3 and 4 MB files started to add up. I didn’t download too many MP3s back then. CD burners were way to costly, so you pretty much had to sit at your computer to listen to them.

    Eventually the RIAA and record companies discovered MP3 and started cracking down on them. When that happened I starting download music from FTP sites. I would sit in IRC rooms that would announce different FTP sites, and I would check to see what they had. It was a long and tedious process to find anything I wanted. That’s when I really started to download music though. It’s not that I wanted to steal it, I just wanted to hear it before I bought it. I discovered many bands that way, which lead me too more CD, concert ticket, and t-shirt purchases.

    Then in 1999 Napster came around and changed everything. Suddenly anybody could download music, not just geeks. This month is the 10 year anniversary of Napster. Once Napster came out it was much easier to search for anything you want and find it. It was at that time also that I first got broadband, and a CD burner. It was becoming too easy to steal anything you wanted. I admit I download my fare share. There was no way to purchase song online, so we really had no choice.

    Napster was shut down, but many other similar file sharing networks popped up. It was still easier to steal music online than to buy it. iTunes would eventually start selling music, but it contained DRM, so I refused to buy any of it. I don’t want my digital music to be locked down to anything. Once Amazon launched their MP3 store I finally had a place to buy music online, and now that iTunes is DRM free I even buy from there too.

    Now days you can check out bands on Myspace, and then buy their music on Amazon or iTunes with just a few clicks. I can finally preview the music before I buy it, and I can buy it in my underwear in the comfort of my own home. Things have sure changed, and I am glad it’s getting easier and easier to support the bands I love. I never wanted to steal, I just wanted the convenience, and now I am getting it.

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  • iPhone or Palm Pre

    June 10, 2009 / No Comments

    Every time Apple announces a new iPhone it pisses me off that AT&T doesn’t have coverage here, so I can’t get one. There is one way I could get one. I can order one and use my home address as the billing address, but then use my Mom’s or Brother’s address as the primary place of use. From what I hear that would work as long as I don’t go over the “off-net usage allowance”, which would be no problem because I really don’t talk on the phone much. The downside is I would have to get a different number, and it would be long distance to anybody local, but I could get around that using my Google Voice account. The main downside though is the price. I would have to pay $70 for the Wife’s phone on Verizon, and then another $70 or so for my phone, and I don’t even know if it would be worth it since I wont be on 3G, so it will be slow. It’s probably always going to be cheaper for us both to be on the same carrier, and she talks a lot more and needs Verizon’s coverage.

    I am due for a new phone, and really want one, but I think I am going to wait six months to get one. The Palm Pre is the other phone I am thinking about. Right now I would have to switch to Sprint to get it. There are rumors that Verizon might be getting it which would be cool. If the Pre lives up to it’s hype and gets lots of good apps, it will probably be my next phone. If not, I might have to use the iPhone work around.

    I don’t think anybody likes their cell carriers very much. I love Verizon’s coverage, I just wish they would get the phones I want. An iPhone is highly unlikely because I don’t think Apple will make a CDMA phone. A Palm Pre is very likely going to be on Verizon eventually. I just wish I knew what the chances are that AT&T would get coverage here anytime soon.

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  • Straight Outta Fosston

    June 3, 2009 / No Comments

    While I’m not from Fosston, I have driven through Fosston and do know people from Fosston, so I thought this was rather funny. Anybody from a small northern Minnesota town would probably get a kick out of this video too.

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  • Sing It Loud

    May 28, 2009 / No Comments

    Sing it loud are an up and coming Minneapolis band. I have seem them, and they put on a pretty good show. Here they are doing an acoustic version of one of my favorite Jimmy Eat World songs.

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  • Back From Denver

    May 27, 2009 / No Comments

    We got back from Denver Monday, but today has been my first chance to get any computer time. We had a great time in Denver, but the weather could have been better.

    Friday right after we got there we toured Invesco Field. It was pretty cool to see parts of the stadium that most people don’t see. We were able to see the party suites, press boxes, visitors locker room, and many other areas. It would have been cooler to see some of the private suites, and Broncos locker room, but those areas were off limits for tours.

    Saturday was my Sister’s Graduation. It was your normal standard graduation. Nothing too exciting. After graduation we hung out in a local park. That evening we went to the Denver Aquarium. I wasn’t expecting much, but it was a pretty cool Aquarium.

    Sunday we went to Pikes Peak. Nine years ago we went to Pikes Peak in October and it was amazing. This time it wasn’t so great. It was cloudy, so we couldn’t see much. We were in clouds and only had a few breaks in the clouds where we could see. There was also a lot more snow up there this time of year. After Pikes Peak we drove around the Garden of the Gods. We could have gotten some cool pictures, but it was raining. Oh well, I am sure we will be back sometime.

    Monday we flew back and it was raining in Fargo. They said it was a good weekend here, but we missed it. The rain followed us around.

    I can’t wait to go back to Denver. We really like the area. If there was another city we could live in it would probably be Denver. Well, maybe not Denver, but a smaller city near by. Sometimes I wish I could just pick up and move, but I really like where we are now also.

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