Drinkin' The Kool-Aid

So today I pre-ordered a "new iPad": this time I'm going 64GB so I'll be able to fit my entire music collection plus apps plus books plus even some videos.

I also went with Verizon 4G LTE capability. This is kind've an experiment, since I've been totally happy with WIFI-only on my first-gen iPad. But given that the "new iPad" -- they have got to do something about that name -- will act as a mobile hotspot, I figure the family can use it when we go on road-trips, etc (lack of Internet has been a problem in the past).

Choosing between AT&T and Verizon was a tough call. In the end I went with Verizon because their coverage seemed better, and reportedly they don't charge extra to use the iPad as a hotspot. And also AT&T already gets waaaay too much of my money -- I want to try the competition.

I only bought one device this time. We'll see how well that goes. FWIW, yesterday R and I got the kids iPhones, so I think their thirst for new gadgetry is satisfied (for now, anyway). R says she doesn't want a new iPad -- in fact, she doesn't use hers much anymore since I got her a Kindle Fire. The Fire has its share of "issues", most notably the battery life is abysmal, but R likes the smaller form factor for reading e-books, which is a lot of what she did with her iPad. So we'll see how that goes. She may see the "new iPad" and change her mind. Or -- what I expect -- she'll hold out until Apple releases the rumored "small form-factor iPad" sometime later this year. I wonder what they'll call that one? "iPad Mini"? "iPad Nano"? "Li'l iPad"? "newer iPad"?

Maybe this is just me, but after Apple's Official Announcement, it seemed like people were ... well, not sad, not unhappy, but ... not happy and elated and stuff. I think this is because many of us had been watching the rumor websites for months before the event, and so -- just like kids who found their parents' stash of Christmas presents -- when Apple finally made the big announcement, it was mostly stuff we already expected. It's our own damn fault, of course, but still ... they could have at least come up with a spiffy name.

All that said, the high-rez screen is the one thing I've been waiting for, and they delivered on that, and so I'm fairly happy. On the other hand: I was hoping for a 128GB version. And it ticked me off that I had to choose between AT&T and Verizon at purchase time. I confess that I am not knowledgable in the area of wireless communications, but -- they couldn't make it one-size-fits-all?

I'll have more in the next week or so after the device arrives and I've had a chance to play with it.

But I really do question their choice (or, non-choice) of name. Calling it "new iPad" begs comparisons with "New Coke". iPad 3 or iPad HD were both fine choices, it beats the hell out of me why they didn't go that way.

A Moment

I had a really nice "father-son moment" last night with my son Aidan, who is turning into quite the talented guitarist.

The musical landscape is a lot different today than it was when I was a kid. For one thing, there's simply a LOT more music out there: one of the promises that the Internet made good on is the widespread distribution of music by any band or musician, no matter how small. When I was a kid circa 1973, the music you were exposed to was largely determined by the local radio stations and your friends. Nowadays that sounds like a bad, restrictive thing, but it made things simpler, and despite the hate that the recording industry gets nowadays, they actually did a reasonably good job of promoting bands that were actually good: Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rush, Van Halen, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Yes, Jethro Tull ... I could go on, but if you were a teen in the 70s, you know what I mean.

(Oh, there were some losers in there, too: I grew up in the midwest and heard waaaaay too much REO Speedwagon and Lynyrd Skynyrd and ... well, maybe it's just a matter of my personal taste)(just reminiscing, one of the first concerts I went to was a big outdoor thing sponsored by a local radio station, the "KSHE Kite-Fly", and the headliner was the Charlie Daniels Band. And opening for them was Rush. Which is hilarious to me today).

But I digress ... when Aidan started playing guitar, I went out and bought him a nice collection of Led Zeppelin and Rush CDs: IMNSHO, these are two of the seminal "classic rock" bands that every teenaged guitar player needs to hear. And my son did indeed listen to them -- but it was only last night that he actually listened them.

My wife and daughter had gone to bed, but somehow I got to talking with Aidan about Rush's _2112_, and he pulled out the CD and we dropped it into the disc player and listened to the Overture and The Temples of Syrinx and he had his guitar and did a pretty decent job of picking up the chords and playing along.

We are the priests
Of the temple of Syrinx.
Our great computers
Fill the hallowed halls.
We are the priests
Of the temple of Syrinx.
All the gifts of life
Are held within our walls.

(I don't think there is a 15yo boy in the entire world who can hear that and not fall in love with it>

And then we pulled out Led Zeppelin IV and listened to Black Dog and Rock and Roll and When The Levee Breaks and it was great fun for all. Well, okay, my daughter was trying to sleep and she was pissed, and I feel a bit badly about that. But it was a truly wonderful moment for me as a father, and I'm pretty sure my son felt the same way.

These events seem to happen so rarely in my life. But that makes me appreciate them and love them all the more.

Interesting Times

The news has been very "interesting" of late.

I've been a Computer Geek for the vast majority of my life (learned to program when I was 13yo, started using the Internet in 1980, yadda) and as you might surmise, I'm one of those crazy liberal anti-censorship "the internet wants to be free!" kind of people. So I've been watching with interest as the "War For The Internet" heats up, with the (apparently successful) "blackout" protest of SOPA / PIPA:

SOPA / PIPA stalled

Which (I can only hope) may have backfired into the MPAA's face:

Online Petition Targets SOPA Comments from MPAA Chief Chris Dodd on Fox News

(And I'd urge you to join the fun by signing the petition yourself. I like the idea of us "free Internetters" going on the offensive versus simply responding to threats as they appear.)

That said, it looks like the government is fighting back:

MegaUpload raided, founder arrested; Anonymous launches mass DDoS against entertainment companies and US law enforcement

And it's got some people running scared:

Cyberlocker Ecosystem Shocked As Big Players Take Drastic Action

But on the bright side, there's been some good news in the Civil Rights arena:

Supreme Court rules warrant needed for GPS tracking

And there's this not-overly-reported tidbit:

DOJ urges judge to side with plaintiff in Baltimore police taping case

"The right to record police officers while performing duties in a public place as well as the right to be protected from the warrantless seizure and destruction of those recordings, are not only required by the Constitution," Justice Department attorneys wrote in a "statement of interest" filed Jan. 10 in the case. "They are consistent with our fundamental notions of liberty, promote the accountability of our governmental officers, and instill public confidence in the police officers who serve us daily."

Hell yes!

And finally:

US Senator Rand Paul refused a TSA pat-down

I would dearly love to see the TSA get their wrist slapped. Hard.

Alas, SOPA and PIPA are just two of a number of pieces of legislation that threaten the freedom of the 'net. ACTA is yet another, and you could do worse than sign the petition against it. And H.R. 1981, the deceptively-named "Protecting Children From Internet Pornographers Act of 2011" is yet another.

But I'm happy to see Things Happening. And some of them are even Good Things. I'm keeping my fingers crossed about the future, it might be bright.

My Favorite iOS Synthesizers

I've spent a somewhat embarrassing amount of money on music and synthesis apps for my iPad. Not all of them are jewels. I won't name any names here, but I'll warn that it pays to shop carefully, and to look at the app developer: is the app developed by one person who's just kinda futzing around with an idea, or by an actual company? The latter is preferable if you are hoping for any kind of support / bug fixes / feature updates.

The exception is, of course, free or $0.99 apps. For $0.99, who cares if the developer lives in his mom's basement in Belarus? (although it's sad to run across a $0.99 app that's *almost* perfect, which you know will never be updated or fixed).

Having said all that, I'd like to attempt to steer you, dear reader, towards the exceptional synthesizer and sound generator apps that I've encountered. Many of these cost $4.99 and up -- but they're worth it. (note: after one buys an app, it can be a bit difficult to determine the current price of the app -- some of my prices might be off.

Animoog for iPad $9.99 - A subtly seductive little synthesizer that didn't really impress me until I'd noodled with it awhile. It has an interesting synthesis paradigm, kind've like vector synthesis over a set of wavetables -- I suspect Moog will continue to add voices to this and really expand the kinds of sounds it can make. Also of note: it has a really charming kind of retro-Buchla keyboard that (among other things) registers the position of your finger along the length of the key, thus offering another control parameter on a per-note basis.

Animoog for iPhone $0.99 - If you just want to stick your toes in the water first, the iPhone version is cheaper and has all the same featurers, just the misc control panels are organized differently for the smaller form factor. This version also runs on the iPad, BTW.

Alchemy free / $14.99 upgrade to Pro - This offering comes from Camel Audio, who have a very solid reputation in the VST and soft-synth biz. It doesn't look like much at first, but if you start playing with it, it "comes alive". I haven't upgraded to Pro (yet) -- the app has a storefront that you can purchase additional waves / sounds for $4.99 a pop. This may sound like a lot but so far I've been impressed: some very high-quality sound design goes into these voices. Mac/PC/VST versions available.

Sunrizer $4.99 - If you can find a better iOS synthesizer for $4.99 -- buy it! But seriously -- you won't find such a thing. Sunrizer has a really great synth "feel" with great sounds for a great low price -- it's one of the best values on this list.

Addictive Synth $9.99 - A bit pricier than Sunrizer -- think of it as Sunrizer's twin brother who's kept in the attic. Great sounds, great feel.

Sylo Synth free / $3.99 upgrade to Pro - An inexpensive app that uses "granular synthesis" to produce sounds. The free version has advertising and lacks a few features, but it'll give you a taste of what you'll get if you go "pro". Not as nuanced as some of the other synths listed here, but one of the better / simpler implementation of granular synthesis I've seen.

Argon $1.99 - A good basic synth that will surprise you with the number of parameters it offers. Not really my favorite but it's a steal at $1.99.

The apps above are all kind've "standard" in that they have keyboards and relatively low learning curves. The apps listed below are "paradigm breakers" that can make some marvelously twisted, complex sounds, but you need to throw caution to the wind and experiment and *gasp* perhaps even read some documentation before you'll feel comfy with them:

Moog Filtatron $4.99 - If the VCS3 was a synthesizer, then I suppose one can call the Filtatron a synthesizer, too. Maybe. The name doesn't matter -- Filtatron is great for making all manner of "soundscapes" - it's difficult to describe. Musical toy or Pro SFX generator? I think it's both.

Jasuto Pro $4.99 - Here's where we really begin to leave planet Earth. Jasuto is a bit like a modular synth in that it allows you to connect miscellaneous sound functions together in an arbitrary manner ... but then it gets weird. One nice feature is that it connects to a user repository where people share their creations. Not for beginners.
Also available as a VST module.

CrystalSynthXT $4.99 - I'm still not really sure what to think of CrystalSynth. It's got a lot of "standard" synthesizer controls, but the controls can be automated and -- well, in the end, you can make all kinds of cools sounds with it. It also has a "morph" function that allows you to "marry" two different patches and listen to what their children sound like.
Also available as a VST module.

Reactable $9.99 - This one is a bit like Jasuto Pro (above) but a bit easier to comprehend. You build small 'systems' out of samples and oscillators and other components, and then let it play. If you do it right, you can build a system that's interactive, ie, where you really can play it by turning the shapes and moving them around. Also like Jasuto Pro: not for beginners.

So far, these are my favorites. There are many many other music apps out there: MIDI utilities, micro-studios, sequencers, alternative controllers, etc. But today I'm limiting myself to synthesizers and sound generation apps.

SOPA / PIPA Blackout Day

“The instruction we find in books is like fire. We fetch it from our neighbours, kindle it at home, communicate it to others, and it becomes the property of all.”

- Voltaire

AJB, 1924 - 2011

So 2012 has been kinda sucking so far.

Long story short: my father went into the hospital in mid-December and passed away early on new year's eve. Yes, this is Major Suckitude. I -- and my family, and my sister and her family -- loved my Dad a LOT. He had 87 really good years, and over the course of his career he did a lot of good work and had a big influence on many people. So I'm left feeling sad, yes, but also in a strange way, proud of my father. He was a good man. I hope I die as well as him.

Still, it's one helluva cloud under which to start the new year. Work's beginning to start moving, which is something of a relief -- it gives me something to do, something to focus on. But I'm still sleeping a lot more than normal, which I'm going to assume is my own idiosyncratic method for coping with stress / depression. I'll snap out of it, sooner or later. Hopefully sooner.

The rest of my family is, I think, taking it somewhat better than I -- perhaps in part because they stayed in Texas while I hung out with Dad in the hospital in Illinois. This was not an easy decision to make: should I fly my wife and kids out to Illinois? Should my wife drive the kids out? In the end R and the kids stayed home until my father passed, I flew back to Texas, then we all drove back to Illinois for the funeral service. I won't even start to get into all of the thought and argument that went into doing it this way, but we had just visited Dad over Thanksgiving. I wasn't sure there was much value in dragging everyone off to Illinois so they could hang out in an ICU waiting room for 2-3 weeks (Dad agreed, BTW). As it is, through the internet the kids got to talk to Dad, even sent him a video postcard they made, and Aidan played some music for him. It was a tough call, but I think it worked out okay. The kids miss him, and are sad, but not to a pathological degree. Which is, frankly, probably about the way my father would have wanted it.

Yeah, I'm proud of my father, but I miss him a lot. It's going to take some time getting past this -- but isn't that how it's supposed to be?

Love you, Dad.

A Boy And His Moog

After 4 decades of lust ... I finally have a Moog synthesizer. Woot! I've had many others: Korg, Oberheim, E-mu, even a couple no-names that I designed and built myself. But I've never had a genuine Moog ... until now!

Love it love it love it love it love it!