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March 21, 2006
Pandora - music profiling
Terry Heaton writes: "I've developed a new habit over the past few months that I want to share. It's called Pandora, and I think it may be the most significant new concept to come down the pike in years. You may have heard of it -- you may even be an experienced user -- but Pandora is much more than it seems, and that's what I want to share with you. ¶ For the unenlightened, Pandora is a music application connected to what the founder calls the 'Music Genome Project.' In a nutshell, the creators have listened to thousands of songs and coded each with 'genes' -- common attributes that enable users to find music they like. ..." Link: The POMO Blog
Updated 3/18/2006: Tim Eby in a comment below reminds us to also check out Last.fm. Steve Krause writes about both in
Updated 3/19/2006: Check out Mahashunyam's comments on this at Bubblegeneration. --Dennis
Posted by roymond at 02:33 PM | Comments (0)
March 09, 2006
Digital static on AM
Digital Signals Spark Static From AM Radio
"... A growing number of radio listeners are encountering similar interference -- hisses, whistles or static -- on their favorite AM stations. The problem for WTRI began about a year ago, when Bonneville International Corp.'s WTOP, the AM station at 1500, began using a digital signal that interfered with WTRI's analog signal in some broadcast areas. It's one of the unexpected consequences of the radio industry's transition to digital broadcasts. ...¶... The AM stations most affected are those whose neighboring stations -- nearby on the dial -- add a digital signal. In most cases, including Mr. Rizer's, the interference doesn't stretch into a station's core coverage area, as defined in its Federal Communications Commission license. But in fringe areas, signals can be fuzzy, or lost entirely. ..."
Posted by roymond at 06:37 PM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2006
Copyright in a Digital World
p2pnet.net - the original daily p2p and digital media news site
DRM news / p2pnet: "The battles over copyright policy in
Washington D.C. are nothing new, but the digitizing of copyrighted
works and the ability to quickly and widely distribute protected works
has raised the stakes on this debate," says the US Public Policy
Committee of the Association for Computing Machinery web site, going on:
Posted by roymond at 06:53 PM | Comments (0)
Radio Broadcast Flag
New radio Broadcast Flag legislation seeks to control innovation, eliminate fair use
Ken "Caesar" Fisher writes: "The radio broadcast flag is gaining momentum. House Representative Mike Ferguson (R-N.J.) is introducing legislation that would establish a broadcast flag for audio and also change the way in which the music industry licenses radio itself. The Audio Broadcast Flag Licensing Act of 2006, H.R. 4861, is quite a shocker. Or maybe not, depending on what brand of cynicism you like with your afternoon tea. ..." Link: Ars Technica.
Posted by roymond at 06:51 PM | Comments (0)
Another "Tivo for Radio" service
SnapTunes
Bsquare - the Seattle Post Intelligencer reports that the software and high-tech consulting company has launched Snaptune, a software application which enables users to record FM radio broadcasts on their PC. Users can then browse and play the recorded tracks without having to listen to commercials or DJs. Snaptune also allows users to transfer the tracks to a portable music player. According to the article, the service displays track information as well as a direct link enabling users to purchase the album from Amazon.com.
Posted by roymond at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)