Well for starters it is very obvious to me just looking at my blog dates that I have been down for the count more than not.
For the record, the past three days were productive. Although, each day began with morbid headache and spinal pain.
Today, was another matter. I don't understand any of this. It is 100 degree warm sunny weather. The heat usually helps me. And, the level of pain and dysfunction that I am experiencing today is the worst that I can think of let alone remember.
Now 6 hours into the day and medicated to the gills, I am finally on my feet. Whoopdeedoo.
I know catastrophe's such as the 50,000 deaths in the recent China earthquake are devestating to their families and friend... and to the world. But honestly, today is one of those days that I find myself hard pressed to find a reason why I should be here. I'm tired of this. I'm sick of this.
As many of you know I laugh a lot and have a good time most of the time. Well, most of the time, "that you see me". That's the key phrase.
I have so many projects and things I want to accomplish and I feel myself slipping away from them. My music studio gear is stowed and I am not physically up to dragging all of that out and jacking it up so I can fiddle with some music. I can hear the music in my headache ridden skull. The sweetness of music never tarnishes in my mind and heart regardless of the pain and chaos that may be burying me at the time.
Last night I talked with an online friend in Australia. Her son recently was injured and sustained brain trauma. I'm not sure at this time that even the medical community is sure what his problems are. It's too soon. But my heart goes out to her and her family who are now having to cope with, "this new person they used to know" and I personally know how hard it is.
Today I am having an extremely HARD time. And it doesn't go away. It keeps coming back and this is a hell that I would not wish for anyone to have to live with. I lose over 50% of my life to this nonsense. And I gave up trying to count the days, months and years a long time ago.
On another note, I know there are times when I break through the pain and agony as though I was rocketing into the 4th dimension. And, this is very true. But, when I am experiencing these extreme levels of pain and physical dysfunction, I don't yearn for the so-called, "nice days" because even those days begin with some level of morbid headache and I usually wake up stiff like a tin man. Besides the skeletalmuscular problems and advanced arthritis which stems from the trauma sustained in 1993, the level of screaming headaches, occipital nerve pressure and pain, blurred vision, very impaired and/or loss of equilibrium... jeez I haven't even got to the brain part. Sure I can babble and take turns opening my eyes to check my typing. Like talking, I type with my eyes closed to construct sentences. Otherwise any visual input, "distracts" me from my thoughts and writing comes to a halt.
I was 39 when I got hit by that car and now I am 54. In 2000 the neuro-doctors gave me 15 years with the year tumor they found. Of course, I was not willing to live with that so I used a compliment of modalities such as prayer, visualization, positive affirmations, and all that. Two years later when they scanned me the tumor was 80% less. So I spose, there is power in personal home medicine and simply the determination to tell bad things to go away.
Still, that doesn't change the facts and daily reality. My partner Kathy does every thing. I am not totally useless. But, I am usually focused on my projects, whatever they be. Example: today when I woke up, I did the usual spending most of the day just getting onto my feet while still inundated with pain. Kathy had set up the FedEx package pickup, and made arrangements for some banking matters, made coffee and left me a note before she went out. I am very lucky to have someone who gives a shit enough to want to be in my life. Because although it is true that, "I am HappyHarry" WHEN I am, there is a lot of down time. This is where many people get hung up. I'm getting hung up right now writing to you about it.
Brain injuries are a bitch. They are ever-challenging. The are not understandable. And it's nobody's fault. It's a confusing mish-mash of chaos and things that don't make sense. And all the while, everyone on the sidelines must just wait and see. And just maybe, they get their loved one back in the same shape they were in before. I think its fair to say, eventually, much of the original personality of the survivor will return. But, there will be inconsistencies that you are not accustomed to.
Accept and Resist. We are either accepting or resisting. Which are you doing right now? You see I am doing both. I am accepting the pain and sharing with you about this pain in the ass life of mine. And I am also resisting, because I am sick of it and I want out. I've lived a good life and although I have not achieved some of my dreams, you never achieve all of them anyhow. Life isn't THAT long. You grab a hold of what you can and who you can and you ride the waves of life before the rapids run calm.
My Internet is down so I will post this when I can. Today is Monday, May 19, 2008 according to my system tray clock. If not for computers I would not know what day or date, but I usually can say what year it is. Unassisted with any databases of information and the like, I must look up most things or use someone else's brain to jog my memory. And yes, it is great that I have learned how to manipulate that.
Well I am going to slam some coffee and try to beat this. I am fed up with this slow-motion state of affairs. I had plans to finish the Spybot video today/tonite. We'll see.
For more information about brain injury and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) visit my website at http://happyharry.net and click on MTBI.
Thanks for listening.
;;cheers;;
Monday, May 19, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Busy Life
After a couple days recuperating from a headstorm which ended Thursday, April 24th, (mind you I'm having to use a calendar to even construct this sentence) it appears I am back in saddle and getting personal life projects accomplished.
A couple glitches surfaced, delaying NASAV Studios™ construction again. Shall blog on this under separate cover.
I am currently making 4 new PC Help Videos. I am not impressed with Camtasia 5. Although some of its new features are nice, editing and doing post production in the time line has UNACCEPTABLE LAG TIME which seriously hampers production. Some users might view this as a "upgrade your PC hardware" sort of thing. I don't think of it that way. I am using a 800 FSB, Pentium 4 3.2GHz, optimized XP SP2, and the performance degredation from Camtasia versions 4 through version 5 are simply unacceptable. There is no point having the ability to adjust and slide things on the time line in any editor having to do with video and sound, if you cannot precisely preview your content exactly how it will be rendered. So, I am back to using Camtasia 3.01 which is easy to use and you can actually edit smoothly in real time and have an accurate preview prior to rendering your final production.
Meanwhile, 11 hours into PC Help Video production, my operating system decides to take a dump. Will not boot to safe mode, reboot loop. Taking video with my little DV cam I was able to see the flashing BSOD (blue screen) which contained no stop error and was a generic, "remove or reinstall bad hardware" error message. Attempting an XP Repair, Windows found 5 partitions. Drive 0, the 80GB HDD which went bad, showed up with 76GB of free space meaning Windows XP is reporting the drive to be empty. Booting up using my custom UNIX boot CD, the partition is found and I can view ALL of the data and their filenames on the drive using short and long-filename modes.
At this point I have 3 options. 1)Killdisk the drive, and install XP; this would be my last choice. 2)Boot @Active File Recovery Enterprise (AFRE), recover data and save to CD/DVD, LAN or external USB (which I don't have an external USB now) and 3)Boot System Commander 9 and disable the "active" partition on that bad 80GB drive. Then connect the bad drive to the PC I'm using now which boots from a 200GB SATA drive, run AFRE, recover data from the bad 80GB drive and save to the 190GB of free space on this 200GB drive. BEST CHOICE. And it worked. Flawlessly.
Initially AFRE found the 80GB IDE HDD partition in "Bad" shape. However, in less than 25% into its thorough scanning process, AFRE upgraded the partition status from Bad to Poor to Not Bad to Acceptable to Good to Excellent! This is wonderful software and totally worth $100 dollars. When logical drive letters get scrambled or when XP cannot boot to safe mode, it's AFRE to the rescue. Note: XPs Recovery Console proved fruitless trying all partition utilities and commands. Actually, the recovery console made things worse, but again, System Commander instantly fixed that!
But before recovering data, first stop was System Commander which I used to disable the active partition on the bad 80GB drive. I won't bother naming them, but just for giggles, I tried 3 name-brand partitioning programs, that people tell me, "they're good partition managers" and yet NONE of the 3 I tried had the ability to change the bad hard drive's, "active" status. In my case, it was paramount to disable the active partition. Without disabling the "active" boot status, the IDE and SATA drives cannot be connected to this motherboard because the BIOS doesn't support toggling to SCSI, which happens to be a workaround for this SATA/IDE drive scenario. So, as long as the IDE partition is active, my SATA C: drive will be ignored and the bad 80GB HDD will continue its boot_looping BSOD_ing nonsense.
If I had an external USB drive to use, I would have simply fired up a AFRE boot CD, recovered the data and saved to the external USB drive. But, I live HOURS from a city where I could purchase a USB drive (today) but I'd rather not pay $30 dollars just to FedEx it overnight. So, I chose to remove the drive from its case, and jack it into this PC. Ran AFRE and recovered the data and saved to the free space on this 200GB drive. Long story, good ending. Data recovered. Problem gone. Thanks again to System Commander and AFRE.
Changing topics, we're going to be changing camp spaces here at the resort. We were offered an incredible offer saving over $3,000 dollars annually. This move will help me to buy a 3GHz iMac 24-inch. The 3GHz dual core provides ample power to run XP/Vista under Apple Boot Camp, Parallels Desktop or VMWare Fusion. I had considered dedicating my P4 2.4GHz XP SP1 PC to use for DAW with my O1X and MOTIF XS, but now I have chosen to bail entirely from Windows and music recording production. The Intel iMAC manages native OS X running Cubase 4 and Tracktion 3 better than its PC counterpart. Even, running XP under Boot Camp, Parallels or VMWare Fusion is better than running native on the Intel P4. So, Harry is headed, "back to MAC-land". I say this because I began my personal computing adventures FIRST on a Mac back in 1984. I find it ironic, now 24 years later, I am returning to Macintosh.
In other news, I am continuing exterior painting of the RV. The mirror struts are finally done and it's time to remove the masking tape. The rear of the RV needs to be cleaned, sanded and taped where it will receive some flat black and crimson red stripe painting to finalize the elimination of this truck looking 24 years old. So, although my plans to construct the NASAV website and post photos and videos of the, "before and after" is now 4 months behind, this project close to completion.
Still enjoying the NDS and during my PC death, it was handy to jump online via wi-fi and twitter and do some email. Go NDS ^5!
For those of you who take your time to read my blog, I would like to thank you for your time and consideration. I trust you will have a nice spring season and I think we're all going to have an exceptional summer this year.
;;cheers;;
A couple glitches surfaced, delaying NASAV Studios™ construction again. Shall blog on this under separate cover.
I am currently making 4 new PC Help Videos. I am not impressed with Camtasia 5. Although some of its new features are nice, editing and doing post production in the time line has UNACCEPTABLE LAG TIME which seriously hampers production. Some users might view this as a "upgrade your PC hardware" sort of thing. I don't think of it that way. I am using a 800 FSB, Pentium 4 3.2GHz, optimized XP SP2, and the performance degredation from Camtasia versions 4 through version 5 are simply unacceptable. There is no point having the ability to adjust and slide things on the time line in any editor having to do with video and sound, if you cannot precisely preview your content exactly how it will be rendered. So, I am back to using Camtasia 3.01 which is easy to use and you can actually edit smoothly in real time and have an accurate preview prior to rendering your final production.
Meanwhile, 11 hours into PC Help Video production, my operating system decides to take a dump. Will not boot to safe mode, reboot loop. Taking video with my little DV cam I was able to see the flashing BSOD (blue screen) which contained no stop error and was a generic, "remove or reinstall bad hardware" error message. Attempting an XP Repair, Windows found 5 partitions. Drive 0, the 80GB HDD which went bad, showed up with 76GB of free space meaning Windows XP is reporting the drive to be empty. Booting up using my custom UNIX boot CD, the partition is found and I can view ALL of the data and their filenames on the drive using short and long-filename modes.
At this point I have 3 options. 1)Killdisk the drive, and install XP; this would be my last choice. 2)Boot @Active File Recovery Enterprise (AFRE), recover data and save to CD/DVD, LAN or external USB (which I don't have an external USB now) and 3)Boot System Commander 9 and disable the "active" partition on that bad 80GB drive. Then connect the bad drive to the PC I'm using now which boots from a 200GB SATA drive, run AFRE, recover data from the bad 80GB drive and save to the 190GB of free space on this 200GB drive. BEST CHOICE. And it worked. Flawlessly.
Initially AFRE found the 80GB IDE HDD partition in "Bad" shape. However, in less than 25% into its thorough scanning process, AFRE upgraded the partition status from Bad to Poor to Not Bad to Acceptable to Good to Excellent! This is wonderful software and totally worth $100 dollars. When logical drive letters get scrambled or when XP cannot boot to safe mode, it's AFRE to the rescue. Note: XPs Recovery Console proved fruitless trying all partition utilities and commands. Actually, the recovery console made things worse, but again, System Commander instantly fixed that!
But before recovering data, first stop was System Commander which I used to disable the active partition on the bad 80GB drive. I won't bother naming them, but just for giggles, I tried 3 name-brand partitioning programs, that people tell me, "they're good partition managers" and yet NONE of the 3 I tried had the ability to change the bad hard drive's, "active" status. In my case, it was paramount to disable the active partition. Without disabling the "active" boot status, the IDE and SATA drives cannot be connected to this motherboard because the BIOS doesn't support toggling to SCSI, which happens to be a workaround for this SATA/IDE drive scenario. So, as long as the IDE partition is active, my SATA C: drive will be ignored and the bad 80GB HDD will continue its boot_looping BSOD_ing nonsense.
If I had an external USB drive to use, I would have simply fired up a AFRE boot CD, recovered the data and saved to the external USB drive. But, I live HOURS from a city where I could purchase a USB drive (today) but I'd rather not pay $30 dollars just to FedEx it overnight. So, I chose to remove the drive from its case, and jack it into this PC. Ran AFRE and recovered the data and saved to the free space on this 200GB drive. Long story, good ending. Data recovered. Problem gone. Thanks again to System Commander and AFRE.
Changing topics, we're going to be changing camp spaces here at the resort. We were offered an incredible offer saving over $3,000 dollars annually. This move will help me to buy a 3GHz iMac 24-inch. The 3GHz dual core provides ample power to run XP/Vista under Apple Boot Camp, Parallels Desktop or VMWare Fusion. I had considered dedicating my P4 2.4GHz XP SP1 PC to use for DAW with my O1X and MOTIF XS, but now I have chosen to bail entirely from Windows and music recording production. The Intel iMAC manages native OS X running Cubase 4 and Tracktion 3 better than its PC counterpart. Even, running XP under Boot Camp, Parallels or VMWare Fusion is better than running native on the Intel P4. So, Harry is headed, "back to MAC-land". I say this because I began my personal computing adventures FIRST on a Mac back in 1984. I find it ironic, now 24 years later, I am returning to Macintosh.
In other news, I am continuing exterior painting of the RV. The mirror struts are finally done and it's time to remove the masking tape. The rear of the RV needs to be cleaned, sanded and taped where it will receive some flat black and crimson red stripe painting to finalize the elimination of this truck looking 24 years old. So, although my plans to construct the NASAV website and post photos and videos of the, "before and after" is now 4 months behind, this project close to completion.
Still enjoying the NDS and during my PC death, it was handy to jump online via wi-fi and twitter and do some email. Go NDS ^5!
For those of you who take your time to read my blog, I would like to thank you for your time and consideration. I trust you will have a nice spring season and I think we're all going to have an exceptional summer this year.
;;cheers;;
Friday, April 25, 2008
Nailed Again • Life Is Slowing Down
Well isn't that special. It's Friday already. Jeee, that was a nice week that just whizzed past me without even saying, "Hello".
It's [comparatively] warmer today. Still, in the 50's but my body's whacked-out thermostat is aware that the barometric pressure has changed and the mean temperatures have increased. There have been times when I am just plain boiling up and I will turn on the air conditioner when it is only 65ºF ;;heh;; I can remember when any temperature lower than 80ºF was freezing cold to me. Well... that was 8 years ago in Florida. Wow, almost a decade already since Ohio and the girls, then back to FL, then dad sick and then California. All seems like a blink of the eye.
I think I might be getting old. I spose up until now it hadn't occurred to me that fifty-four years have zipped by me while I was pretending that time stood still. Then one day you wake up and realize that life only let's you pretend just ONCE and then it's over.
When I get NASAV_Studios™ operational I will feel emotionally better. I am frustrated now. I am at least four months behind schedule. I thought it would never stop raining. But, it finally did. So, now it's time to customize the table and to acquire some ABS PVC to test it as a substitute mixer stand pole which will rise up through the table. Hopefully, this idea will work. If not, then I will have to build something using wood. So, again, I need to drive into town with my measurements and see what I can work out. Ideally, if I could buy a piece of aluminum or steel with the two different dimensions for each end, that would be sturdier than the plastic, but I think the thick ABS will suffice. The mixer weighs less than 20 pounds and the length is not excessive.
I'm feeling laziness set in already and spring isn't even here yet. I look up at the ceiling and remember that I never repainted it flat-black as planned and now from the kitchen back to the bath and bedroom I am going to paint flat-white. So, I have painting work to do before summer 2008 passes; which it will; everything does.
As the days pass, I notice I nap several times within a 24 hour period of time. This napping is on top of my existing 4 to 6 hours sleep that I experience most days unless I am in coma sleep due to pain. Things are slowing down. The other day I thought back to 2001 when the doctors gave me 15+ years. Perhaps, what I am expriencing is the autumn of my life. I am spending time caring about what ultimately matters. Though I don't think I have sorted out what that is as yet. Perhaps I will write a song about that.
Still enjoying the NDS which has strayed my time away from the PC more and more. I plan to get my PC projects done before spring is over. Help videos, a couple new websites and other ideas I've had on paper to construct and be done with.
It's nice that James and Kathy has joined twittering with TheGraz and me. I twitter and even blog now using my NDS. Surprisingly, it is not much slower than using a PC. Sure, typing a story using a standard keyboard is a plus, but many other times, it is very convenient to hop onto the NDS via wi-fi and post my 2 cents.
Time for a nap. We'll catch up later.
;;cheers;;
It's [comparatively] warmer today. Still, in the 50's but my body's whacked-out thermostat is aware that the barometric pressure has changed and the mean temperatures have increased. There have been times when I am just plain boiling up and I will turn on the air conditioner when it is only 65ºF ;;heh;; I can remember when any temperature lower than 80ºF was freezing cold to me. Well... that was 8 years ago in Florida. Wow, almost a decade already since Ohio and the girls, then back to FL, then dad sick and then California. All seems like a blink of the eye.
I think I might be getting old. I spose up until now it hadn't occurred to me that fifty-four years have zipped by me while I was pretending that time stood still. Then one day you wake up and realize that life only let's you pretend just ONCE and then it's over.
When I get NASAV_Studios™ operational I will feel emotionally better. I am frustrated now. I am at least four months behind schedule. I thought it would never stop raining. But, it finally did. So, now it's time to customize the table and to acquire some ABS PVC to test it as a substitute mixer stand pole which will rise up through the table. Hopefully, this idea will work. If not, then I will have to build something using wood. So, again, I need to drive into town with my measurements and see what I can work out. Ideally, if I could buy a piece of aluminum or steel with the two different dimensions for each end, that would be sturdier than the plastic, but I think the thick ABS will suffice. The mixer weighs less than 20 pounds and the length is not excessive.
I'm feeling laziness set in already and spring isn't even here yet. I look up at the ceiling and remember that I never repainted it flat-black as planned and now from the kitchen back to the bath and bedroom I am going to paint flat-white. So, I have painting work to do before summer 2008 passes; which it will; everything does.
As the days pass, I notice I nap several times within a 24 hour period of time. This napping is on top of my existing 4 to 6 hours sleep that I experience most days unless I am in coma sleep due to pain. Things are slowing down. The other day I thought back to 2001 when the doctors gave me 15+ years. Perhaps, what I am expriencing is the autumn of my life. I am spending time caring about what ultimately matters. Though I don't think I have sorted out what that is as yet. Perhaps I will write a song about that.
Still enjoying the NDS which has strayed my time away from the PC more and more. I plan to get my PC projects done before spring is over. Help videos, a couple new websites and other ideas I've had on paper to construct and be done with.
It's nice that James and Kathy has joined twittering with TheGraz and me. I twitter and even blog now using my NDS. Surprisingly, it is not much slower than using a PC. Sure, typing a story using a standard keyboard is a plus, but many other times, it is very convenient to hop onto the NDS via wi-fi and post my 2 cents.
Time for a nap. We'll catch up later.
;;cheers;;
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Nailed Again
Ain't gonna happen today.
Starting a technews site. Sneak peak at http://happyharry.net/technews where there is only one article.
See ya on the flipside.
;;cheers;;
Starting a technews site. Sneak peak at http://happyharry.net/technews where there is only one article.
See ya on the flipside.
;;cheers;;
NDS Heaven
Hello everyone!
Here I am blogging to you using my NDS (NintendoDS) on wi-fi and Opera browser. This is very cooL and I am able to access email, chat clients, online chess, twitter and blog, all with the ease of using the on-screen keyboard and the NDS stylus!
For my first hours online I am impressed that I can walk quite some distance away from my NASAV home and have solid wi-fi performance. Way to go Nintendo!!
;;cheers;;
Here I am blogging to you using my NDS (NintendoDS) on wi-fi and Opera browser. This is very cooL and I am able to access email, chat clients, online chess, twitter and blog, all with the ease of using the on-screen keyboard and the NDS stylus!
For my first hours online I am impressed that I can walk quite some distance away from my NASAV home and have solid wi-fi performance. Way to go Nintendo!!
;;cheers;;
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Nailed Again
Another batch of days seemingly drop off the radar. Which would be mathematically correct. Nevertheless, my projects and ToDo lists from 2007 for 2008 are getting lined out a little slower than projected.
NASAV Studios™ originally scheduled to be operational by FEB 2008 has been pushed out to JUN 2008. Better late than never, eh? It is exciting to finally get the studio rigged and the cables jacked. Most of all, it is fantastic to consider the O1X digital mixer being taken out of its case and getting permanently set up for use! There will be a dedicated website coming for NASAV Studios™ to keep you up to date with what's going on there.
Personally, I've let time slip away in NDS-Land. It's a busy and fun place. And, I am enjoying microSDHC memory cards. Much better than their SD and CF counterparts in terms of how they are manufactured and constructed. I just threw out into the trash, another 2GB SD card simply due to, "wear and tear" because the casings begin to come loose. When this happens, it affects the locking mechanism on the card which in turn affects WRITING TO the card. When this happens there is nothing you can do. Your data ON the card is safe, which is good because you can drag it off to someplace more safe. I also keep a copy of my data on a free server site at http://adrive.com which gives you 50GB free. Check it out.
Finally got into town and purchased new strings for my 12-string guitar. So there's another day to plan. The guitar is "like new" so doesn't require much cleaning up, and changing the strings is a fairly easy job. I have somewhat grown out of this 12-string and am looking to sell it and will purchase an instrument that is more in line with my caliber of playing. I have yet to determine a selling price, and yes, I shall announce its price when it is available to sale.
Shall blog again tonite. I have PC Help Videos to make, create and post.
;;cheers;;
NASAV Studios™ originally scheduled to be operational by FEB 2008 has been pushed out to JUN 2008. Better late than never, eh? It is exciting to finally get the studio rigged and the cables jacked. Most of all, it is fantastic to consider the O1X digital mixer being taken out of its case and getting permanently set up for use! There will be a dedicated website coming for NASAV Studios™ to keep you up to date with what's going on there.
Personally, I've let time slip away in NDS-Land. It's a busy and fun place. And, I am enjoying microSDHC memory cards. Much better than their SD and CF counterparts in terms of how they are manufactured and constructed. I just threw out into the trash, another 2GB SD card simply due to, "wear and tear" because the casings begin to come loose. When this happens, it affects the locking mechanism on the card which in turn affects WRITING TO the card. When this happens there is nothing you can do. Your data ON the card is safe, which is good because you can drag it off to someplace more safe. I also keep a copy of my data on a free server site at http://adrive.com which gives you 50GB free. Check it out.
Finally got into town and purchased new strings for my 12-string guitar. So there's another day to plan. The guitar is "like new" so doesn't require much cleaning up, and changing the strings is a fairly easy job. I have somewhat grown out of this 12-string and am looking to sell it and will purchase an instrument that is more in line with my caliber of playing. I have yet to determine a selling price, and yes, I shall announce its price when it is available to sale.
Shall blog again tonite. I have PC Help Videos to make, create and post.
;;cheers;;
Monday, April 14, 2008
A Week Of Life
Wow a week of life!
One thing that I am appreciating about "blogging" is it gives me a sense of time. When I look at the time and date in my system notification tray and see Monday, April 14th and realize my last blog was on the 7th and only remember like one day that I was off my feet, it gives me great satisfaction to know that I enjoy a great WEEK of life. Seven solid days give or take a headache and some pain here or there.
In this blog I am going to skid over the topics that I may later post more specifically about. But, for the sake of time and that I don't want to forget what is on my mind, I will keep the topics brief for this posting.
First, it was very exciting that the DIMM RAM finally arrived for the Yamaha MOTIF XS and I prepared ahead of time for its installation. The workstation must be flipped over so having a secure "stand to support the unit" is imperative. I used bricks and wrapped them in 12"x12" cloth towels available in sets of 9 for $5 dollars at Wal-Mart. The installation took around ten minutes tops. I also wore a grounding wrist-strap whereas I am one of those people who naturally carry on their person, 50,000 volts of static electricity so it is imperative that I be strapped and grounded before I get near electronic parts such as highly sensitive DIMM memory. After installing the DIMMs, I fired up the XS and it immediately showed 380 minutes of sampling time available. I patched into SONG mode, called up a song I am working on and then mixed it down to stereo to be resampled in the sampler. The process was painless and worked well. I did go through the process 3 times because the amplitude was less than I expected. Yamaha apparently purposely [for a lack of better word] attenuates the signal gain so people don't get distorted samplings. You can adjust the sampler; -12db, -6db -3db -zero +3db +6db and +12db. This is actually a handy feature when you simply want to take a song from the XS, and create a 44 kHz WAV file to send or take to a PC/MAC for mp3 without having any plans to edit, mix or do any post production on the data in any DAW or mastering app such as Wavelab or Yamaha's mastering suite. In my case, this was a simple, somewhat quiet, yet lovely piece of 2 spanish guitars and harmonica and the +6db resampling option worked well.
All of the NDS accessories I purchased finally arrived. This includes the M3DS ReaL slot1, RAM expansion slot2, 4GB microSDHC including USB 2.0 SDHC adapter (very cooL) and an extra RAM expansion called the 3-in-1 which is needed for fast browser cache when using the Opera web browser on the NDS. I'm glad I bought the 3-in-1 because now, both of our NDS units will have Internet capability. All I must do is order another M3DS ReaL which I will do. In my first hours of toying with its features and "home brew" this is really exciting stuff and a fun hobby. If you enjoy handheld gaming and like to get into other venues such as viewing pictures, movie conversion, listening to music and the like, then you owe it to yourself to either find a friend who has one and is doing this so you can check it out OR just go buy a Nintendo DS Lite, and get yourself a M3DS ReaL, download and install the latest firmware v3.4 and get "brewing" ASAP. If you're wondering how much does all this junk cost? Well, the NDS is $129, my really cool case to carry it all was $26, the M3DS ReaL including a rumble pack and RAM expansion plus a USB 2.0 microSDHC reader was a whopping $63 and the 3-in-1 expansion was $20. The Kingston microSDHC 4GB including SD and MMC adapters was $30. So, for $268 you can have a totally custom NDS, with Internet connectivity, watch movies, listen to music, view pictures and do TONS of Linux apps and utils, plus play DS and GBA games. This is handheld heaven. And, yes I was considering a Sony PSP. Still am. It can do a couple more things better. Such as watching home brew video and it has a neat add-on live chat-cam package. But, feature for feature and price vs. price, the NDS costs way less and does AS much as the PSP. Neither handheld can play Flash yet, nor can they view PDF files. Shall be interesting to see who gets any of THAT first. But, in June, Sony will be releasing the "Cherry Red" PSP bundle including the game, "God of War" and it will be a must buy for me. But a PSP with all the bells and whistles and accessories about $500. So... if you're interested at all, leave me a note right here on my blog using the Shoutcast OR email me. But, for under $300 USD, the NDS delivers a TON of entertainment for years to come.
Kathy and I had our 1st "shindigg" here yesterday. We threw a birthday barbeque for her twin daughters. 11 people showed up, plus a gorgeous white pet husky dog. We all had a great time, the weather was gorgeous and I will be adding these videos to the upcoming NASAV website which is the web for our RV life. The party lasted about 5.5 hours and although I enjoyed listening to our favorite music and watching the girls dance and fool around, it was nice to get back to, "nature quiet" after everyone left to drive back to the city.
I'm back to playing Mass Effect on the 360. And a couple days ago I got an itch to play Dawn_Of_War_Dark_Crusade. Enjoyed that so much that I happen to see their new RTS, DOW_Soulstorm so I went ahead an bought it. Great game and now this fine real time strategy game includes, "air units" and I like one of the new factions called, "The Sisters". Fun game, and it's fun to be playing RTS again on the PC.
Tirtiary note: I was surprised that during the birthday barbeque, the guys opted to play Call_Of_Duty_2 instead of playing the new COD_4 which proves that the 2nd incarnation of the game provides a better split-screen experience. Personally, I think the weapon sounds in COD2 are much better than in COD4, this includes experiencing them in full 5.1 digital surround via TOSlink.
In other news: days before the barbeque, I have already finalized all roof maintenance due to the winter. This rig is 25 years old and our roof repairs consistently have worked for us, but each spring, a few spots need upgrading or simply repatching. The entire process took me around 2 hours and I am very pleased with the RV roof.
Also, all of the RV trim got a, "Spring Coat" of flat black latex and I am preparing to do the cab_steps and order a couple rolls of molding for the outside skirts. Also the front grill (in front of the engine) although still looking good, needs to get a fresh spray of black along with the rear wheel skirts. I do this once a year anyhow. This process takes about 2 hours as well. So, you're asking, "When do we get to see all of this so-called customizing?" Okay! You're entitled to ask and to gripe! But the NASAV website is in the works. The transformation of the RV from what it was when I bought it to what it is now, is not night and day, but it is very unique. The main attraction being our RV is probably only 1 in millions of RV motorhomes that DOES_NOT have factory logo decals on it. That was the FIRST thing we ripped off. There will be pictures and video of those experiences.
In the past WEEK, I spent an entire day just learning more about the MOTIF XS song and pattern mode. The pattern mode is very powerful with its 16x16x5=1,280 parts to be used in song creation. It takes some getting used to a different way to [physically] construct songs. Yet, the process is still linear and works well for musicians like me who do write parts such as intro, verse, bridge, chorus, fills, key changes, ending.
Am very excited to finally find a OFFICIAL Yamaha O1X travel case. I say this because I got lazy and didn't buy one when I bought my O1X and then when I went online to order one, they were no longer available ANYWHERE. I was freaking out. So this is great that not only did I find a place that has them, but the price dropped $30 too. This case is a padded, zippered, wheel_around with slide-up extended handle (just like airline pull me's). The case includes space for a laptop in a separate layer of the case along with pockets for cords and cables. So, come the tail end of April I will order one along with a Gater-case for the XS, and 2 nylon dust covers for both units. Once the studio is setup permanently, the units MUST be covered at all times when not in use. Quality towels DO_NOT keep out dust, dirt and debris!!
The month of May will be to INSTALL the studio table, saw, drill and paint and setup the gear, jack all the cables and get excited to begin losing days and nights at NASAV_Studios™.
I spent half a day kicking around some PCTech documents that I am still editing and working in collaboration with the room owner. I expect these to be approved and get published to the net sometime between now and May.
More later!
;;cheers;;
One thing that I am appreciating about "blogging" is it gives me a sense of time. When I look at the time and date in my system notification tray and see Monday, April 14th and realize my last blog was on the 7th and only remember like one day that I was off my feet, it gives me great satisfaction to know that I enjoy a great WEEK of life. Seven solid days give or take a headache and some pain here or there.
In this blog I am going to skid over the topics that I may later post more specifically about. But, for the sake of time and that I don't want to forget what is on my mind, I will keep the topics brief for this posting.
First, it was very exciting that the DIMM RAM finally arrived for the Yamaha MOTIF XS and I prepared ahead of time for its installation. The workstation must be flipped over so having a secure "stand to support the unit" is imperative. I used bricks and wrapped them in 12"x12" cloth towels available in sets of 9 for $5 dollars at Wal-Mart. The installation took around ten minutes tops. I also wore a grounding wrist-strap whereas I am one of those people who naturally carry on their person, 50,000 volts of static electricity so it is imperative that I be strapped and grounded before I get near electronic parts such as highly sensitive DIMM memory. After installing the DIMMs, I fired up the XS and it immediately showed 380 minutes of sampling time available. I patched into SONG mode, called up a song I am working on and then mixed it down to stereo to be resampled in the sampler. The process was painless and worked well. I did go through the process 3 times because the amplitude was less than I expected. Yamaha apparently purposely [for a lack of better word] attenuates the signal gain so people don't get distorted samplings. You can adjust the sampler; -12db, -6db -3db -zero +3db +6db and +12db. This is actually a handy feature when you simply want to take a song from the XS, and create a 44 kHz WAV file to send or take to a PC/MAC for mp3 without having any plans to edit, mix or do any post production on the data in any DAW or mastering app such as Wavelab or Yamaha's mastering suite. In my case, this was a simple, somewhat quiet, yet lovely piece of 2 spanish guitars and harmonica and the +6db resampling option worked well.
All of the NDS accessories I purchased finally arrived. This includes the M3DS ReaL slot1, RAM expansion slot2, 4GB microSDHC including USB 2.0 SDHC adapter (very cooL) and an extra RAM expansion called the 3-in-1 which is needed for fast browser cache when using the Opera web browser on the NDS. I'm glad I bought the 3-in-1 because now, both of our NDS units will have Internet capability. All I must do is order another M3DS ReaL which I will do. In my first hours of toying with its features and "home brew" this is really exciting stuff and a fun hobby. If you enjoy handheld gaming and like to get into other venues such as viewing pictures, movie conversion, listening to music and the like, then you owe it to yourself to either find a friend who has one and is doing this so you can check it out OR just go buy a Nintendo DS Lite, and get yourself a M3DS ReaL, download and install the latest firmware v3.4 and get "brewing" ASAP. If you're wondering how much does all this junk cost? Well, the NDS is $129, my really cool case to carry it all was $26, the M3DS ReaL including a rumble pack and RAM expansion plus a USB 2.0 microSDHC reader was a whopping $63 and the 3-in-1 expansion was $20. The Kingston microSDHC 4GB including SD and MMC adapters was $30. So, for $268 you can have a totally custom NDS, with Internet connectivity, watch movies, listen to music, view pictures and do TONS of Linux apps and utils, plus play DS and GBA games. This is handheld heaven. And, yes I was considering a Sony PSP. Still am. It can do a couple more things better. Such as watching home brew video and it has a neat add-on live chat-cam package. But, feature for feature and price vs. price, the NDS costs way less and does AS much as the PSP. Neither handheld can play Flash yet, nor can they view PDF files. Shall be interesting to see who gets any of THAT first. But, in June, Sony will be releasing the "Cherry Red" PSP bundle including the game, "God of War" and it will be a must buy for me. But a PSP with all the bells and whistles and accessories about $500. So... if you're interested at all, leave me a note right here on my blog using the Shoutcast OR email me. But, for under $300 USD, the NDS delivers a TON of entertainment for years to come.
Kathy and I had our 1st "shindigg" here yesterday. We threw a birthday barbeque for her twin daughters. 11 people showed up, plus a gorgeous white pet husky dog. We all had a great time, the weather was gorgeous and I will be adding these videos to the upcoming NASAV website which is the web for our RV life. The party lasted about 5.5 hours and although I enjoyed listening to our favorite music and watching the girls dance and fool around, it was nice to get back to, "nature quiet" after everyone left to drive back to the city.
I'm back to playing Mass Effect on the 360. And a couple days ago I got an itch to play Dawn_Of_War_Dark_Crusade. Enjoyed that so much that I happen to see their new RTS, DOW_Soulstorm so I went ahead an bought it. Great game and now this fine real time strategy game includes, "air units" and I like one of the new factions called, "The Sisters". Fun game, and it's fun to be playing RTS again on the PC.
Tirtiary note: I was surprised that during the birthday barbeque, the guys opted to play Call_Of_Duty_2 instead of playing the new COD_4 which proves that the 2nd incarnation of the game provides a better split-screen experience. Personally, I think the weapon sounds in COD2 are much better than in COD4, this includes experiencing them in full 5.1 digital surround via TOSlink.
In other news: days before the barbeque, I have already finalized all roof maintenance due to the winter. This rig is 25 years old and our roof repairs consistently have worked for us, but each spring, a few spots need upgrading or simply repatching. The entire process took me around 2 hours and I am very pleased with the RV roof.
Also, all of the RV trim got a, "Spring Coat" of flat black latex and I am preparing to do the cab_steps and order a couple rolls of molding for the outside skirts. Also the front grill (in front of the engine) although still looking good, needs to get a fresh spray of black along with the rear wheel skirts. I do this once a year anyhow. This process takes about 2 hours as well. So, you're asking, "When do we get to see all of this so-called customizing?" Okay! You're entitled to ask and to gripe! But the NASAV website is in the works. The transformation of the RV from what it was when I bought it to what it is now, is not night and day, but it is very unique. The main attraction being our RV is probably only 1 in millions of RV motorhomes that DOES_NOT have factory logo decals on it. That was the FIRST thing we ripped off. There will be pictures and video of those experiences.
In the past WEEK, I spent an entire day just learning more about the MOTIF XS song and pattern mode. The pattern mode is very powerful with its 16x16x5=1,280 parts to be used in song creation. It takes some getting used to a different way to [physically] construct songs. Yet, the process is still linear and works well for musicians like me who do write parts such as intro, verse, bridge, chorus, fills, key changes, ending.
Am very excited to finally find a OFFICIAL Yamaha O1X travel case. I say this because I got lazy and didn't buy one when I bought my O1X and then when I went online to order one, they were no longer available ANYWHERE. I was freaking out. So this is great that not only did I find a place that has them, but the price dropped $30 too. This case is a padded, zippered, wheel_around with slide-up extended handle (just like airline pull me's). The case includes space for a laptop in a separate layer of the case along with pockets for cords and cables. So, come the tail end of April I will order one along with a Gater-case for the XS, and 2 nylon dust covers for both units. Once the studio is setup permanently, the units MUST be covered at all times when not in use. Quality towels DO_NOT keep out dust, dirt and debris!!
The month of May will be to INSTALL the studio table, saw, drill and paint and setup the gear, jack all the cables and get excited to begin losing days and nights at NASAV_Studios™.
I spent half a day kicking around some PCTech documents that I am still editing and working in collaboration with the room owner. I expect these to be approved and get published to the net sometime between now and May.
More later!
;;cheers;;
Monday, April 07, 2008
A New Day
In other news I am at least a day behind, but am feeling better so shall tackle projects I had planned to finish 20 hours ago, including PCTech's newsletter for April.
After much research and shopping I believe I found a chair that will be suitable for the studio.It is a task chair with arms covered with suede and is immediately comfortable.
Still having upload difficulties and this problem appears to be with my ISP. I had their technicians triple check my hardware and lines here only to find that the equipment on this property is so old that trying to achieve a sustained 460 kbps upload speed under load is asking too much. I'm not sure as yet how to resolve this matter. Just one of my website designs has literally thousands of, "image slices" which time out when trying to upload them. This means, a project that I have designed and completed over a month ago, is still not published. This is a very frustrating situation whereas my hosting service just replaced their servers and hubs with the latest hardware technologies making for fast service to visitors. Now, if I can only get my files ONTO my server!
Still shopping for digital camcorders.
My XP install is acting up on my 6 year old P4. I couldn't find the install CD for my nVIDIA graphics card and the latest version Forceware drivers do not work well with this chipset. So, today I shall go through all of my discs to find that driver CD.
The Vista laptop received a juicy, "KILLDISK" yesterday along with BIOS diagnostics and a fresh factory restore from the 2 HP DVDs. It's again running like a champ and this machine now has a dedicated purpose serving Kathy's needs.
I shall return here when I get caught up with yesterday.
;;cheers;;
After much research and shopping I believe I found a chair that will be suitable for the studio.It is a task chair with arms covered with suede and is immediately comfortable.
Still having upload difficulties and this problem appears to be with my ISP. I had their technicians triple check my hardware and lines here only to find that the equipment on this property is so old that trying to achieve a sustained 460 kbps upload speed under load is asking too much. I'm not sure as yet how to resolve this matter. Just one of my website designs has literally thousands of, "image slices" which time out when trying to upload them. This means, a project that I have designed and completed over a month ago, is still not published. This is a very frustrating situation whereas my hosting service just replaced their servers and hubs with the latest hardware technologies making for fast service to visitors. Now, if I can only get my files ONTO my server!
Still shopping for digital camcorders.
My XP install is acting up on my 6 year old P4. I couldn't find the install CD for my nVIDIA graphics card and the latest version Forceware drivers do not work well with this chipset. So, today I shall go through all of my discs to find that driver CD.
The Vista laptop received a juicy, "KILLDISK" yesterday along with BIOS diagnostics and a fresh factory restore from the 2 HP DVDs. It's again running like a champ and this machine now has a dedicated purpose serving Kathy's needs.
I shall return here when I get caught up with yesterday.
;;cheers;;
Didn't Mean To Bite
During one of my recent bouts of pain, I misinterpreted a, "anonymous comment" made about my scooter. For the record, I wanted to apologize for being snippy. Perhaps, next time, we both can communicate better by stating exactly what we mean.
Sorry, didn't mean to bite.
;;cheers;;
Sorry, didn't mean to bite.
;;cheers;;
Saturday, April 05, 2008
It's Great To Be Back
Wonderful. Today I am blessed with a obnoxious and witty sense of humor and pain levels are relatively low which makes for fun times.
Today I will be yanking the 3 lines of cable in the RV and rerunning new lines. The main purpose is to eliminate 1 of the 2 splitters and replace with a proper 3-tap splitter. Also, the splitters in here are the wrong dB type for the Internet cable. Additionally, I am running a line to feed outside.
The forecasted rain never came. I'll wait another week and if still dry I will begin the NASAV Studios™ table construction and order a nice suede desk chair.
One of my P4 XP machines got redone yesterday. After a whopping 4 months, the OS blew out leaving me with no Start menu. Luckily I was able to use task manager and get to FastLynx and shoot all of my apps over to the Vista laptop via the LAN. So am now just setting back up my usual apps such as Studio 8, Canvas X and Camtasia to do some more help videos.
We did 6 hours of metro hysteria days ago and although enjoyed that time, I was majorly trashed the following day. Nevertheless, I found a couple Xbox games that I wanted and at prices below my expectations. Ultimate Alliance is a fun button-masher game, great graphics and I like the RPG element blended into a 3PS action game based on the Marvel super hero cartoon characters. The surround is well done this is truly a pick up and play game.
I am just about ready to create stands to use for installing the sampling DIMM memory into the MOTIF_XS. I think I will use bricks and wrap them in towels. The 61-key workstation must be flipped over and positioned in a very specific way so the brick supports miss the keys and buttons yet hold the unit firmly so the DIMMs can be installed properly.
The animal life outdoors is nice to hear. The squirrels are back and it appears we have 2 couples of Mallards that hang around our place during the day. They wander around looking for "food handouts" but even if we don't feed them, they just sit down and nap here most of the day.
Providing Monday is dry, I will give all of the exterior RV trim another "once_over" with flat black latex. This includes the hood, bumpers, and skirts. Really looks nice and lasts about a year.
Bought some new wheel covers (hub caps) for the car and will install those after picking up a rubber mallet. I gave mine away with a set of tiki lamps and stakes.
Late this afternoon I shall construct the April edition of the PCTech newsletter and publish on Monday the 7th.
;;cheers;;
Today I will be yanking the 3 lines of cable in the RV and rerunning new lines. The main purpose is to eliminate 1 of the 2 splitters and replace with a proper 3-tap splitter. Also, the splitters in here are the wrong dB type for the Internet cable. Additionally, I am running a line to feed outside.
The forecasted rain never came. I'll wait another week and if still dry I will begin the NASAV Studios™ table construction and order a nice suede desk chair.
One of my P4 XP machines got redone yesterday. After a whopping 4 months, the OS blew out leaving me with no Start menu. Luckily I was able to use task manager and get to FastLynx and shoot all of my apps over to the Vista laptop via the LAN. So am now just setting back up my usual apps such as Studio 8, Canvas X and Camtasia to do some more help videos.
We did 6 hours of metro hysteria days ago and although enjoyed that time, I was majorly trashed the following day. Nevertheless, I found a couple Xbox games that I wanted and at prices below my expectations. Ultimate Alliance is a fun button-masher game, great graphics and I like the RPG element blended into a 3PS action game based on the Marvel super hero cartoon characters. The surround is well done this is truly a pick up and play game.
I am just about ready to create stands to use for installing the sampling DIMM memory into the MOTIF_XS. I think I will use bricks and wrap them in towels. The 61-key workstation must be flipped over and positioned in a very specific way so the brick supports miss the keys and buttons yet hold the unit firmly so the DIMMs can be installed properly.
The animal life outdoors is nice to hear. The squirrels are back and it appears we have 2 couples of Mallards that hang around our place during the day. They wander around looking for "food handouts" but even if we don't feed them, they just sit down and nap here most of the day.
Providing Monday is dry, I will give all of the exterior RV trim another "once_over" with flat black latex. This includes the hood, bumpers, and skirts. Really looks nice and lasts about a year.
Bought some new wheel covers (hub caps) for the car and will install those after picking up a rubber mallet. I gave mine away with a set of tiki lamps and stakes.
Late this afternoon I shall construct the April edition of the PCTech newsletter and publish on Monday the 7th.
;;cheers;;
Friday, April 04, 2008
Nailed Again
Okay another wonderful day of the, "The Tin Man Does Morbid Pain".
Hey whoever the "anonymous" commenter is, who said, "blog about your scooter you big banana" well, 1) i WILL do that after i drop the $16,000 dollars for "my scooter" and 2) it is people like you who I do wish you could at least just go through one of my waking days so you can get some PERSPECTIVE ON REALITY. Obviously, you don't live in any real pain, and if you were just joking, then you have poor taste and I can't possibly imagine that you get laid much.
I'm medicating and bailing out. Perhaps, Saturday has something in store for me.
;;cheers;;
Hey whoever the "anonymous" commenter is, who said, "blog about your scooter you big banana" well, 1) i WILL do that after i drop the $16,000 dollars for "my scooter" and 2) it is people like you who I do wish you could at least just go through one of my waking days so you can get some PERSPECTIVE ON REALITY. Obviously, you don't live in any real pain, and if you were just joking, then you have poor taste and I can't possibly imagine that you get laid much.
I'm medicating and bailing out. Perhaps, Saturday has something in store for me.
;;cheers;;
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Meds Kicked In
Just hours ago I was dealing with a morbid headache. It's good to be on my feet so I can fiddle about, however, as usual the pain dropped to a dull roar leaving me over-medicated which makes for, "cloudy times" when trying to accomplish something.
Nevertheless, I finally got around to making the edits and got the updated Welcome and Room Rules pages up for PCTech. Previsouly, the Room Rules were all on one page and the text was pretty small in size, and the page being a graphic, the text could not be resized. Now the dozen rules are spread over three pages and much easier to read.
In other news, there isn't any.
;;cheers;;
Nevertheless, I finally got around to making the edits and got the updated Welcome and Room Rules pages up for PCTech. Previsouly, the Room Rules were all on one page and the text was pretty small in size, and the page being a graphic, the text could not be resized. Now the dozen rules are spread over three pages and much easier to read.
In other news, there isn't any.
;;cheers;;
Nailed Again
Since my last post my hosting outfit upgraded to the latest blazing fast optical servers, hubs and other equipment. I went through a bit of inconvenience and moved PCTech to its original location at 50megs.com which was important to me to do now that I took ownership of the 50megs account which has annual fees. The only issue is 50megs tends to be, "down and offline" often so PCTech visitors are just going to have to live with it. This is also a pisser for me when I attempt to login to the 50megs FTP to do site maintenance and this is why I moved everything to MY servers last year. But now I am busy with my own life and have automated as much as I can to minimize having to login to 50megs. I also have an open tech ticket with 50megs to investigate the FTP login problem and FTP timeouts.
On a tertiary note, people need to stop moaning and complaining about the creativity and work that other people do. These complainers have no intention to PARTICIPATE other than to bitch about their shortcomings and their inability to bring anything to the table. "Life is short—get TO it rapidly" ©HappyHarryNET
Meanwhile, today is nothing. I'm medicated and I'm bailing out. Hopefully, I will be back Wednesday to blog new stuff I am doing on the MOTIF.
;;cheers;;
On a tertiary note, people need to stop moaning and complaining about the creativity and work that other people do. These complainers have no intention to PARTICIPATE other than to bitch about their shortcomings and their inability to bring anything to the table. "Life is short—get TO it rapidly" ©HappyHarryNET
Meanwhile, today is nothing. I'm medicated and I'm bailing out. Hopefully, I will be back Wednesday to blog new stuff I am doing on the MOTIF.
;;cheers;;
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Nailed Again
Well when I went to bed, I thought I would wake up and sew up the rules and protocol documents for final approval and publishing. But, to my surprise my day began with another screaming headache. Now 5 hours after medication and 122ºF shower, things are down to a dull roar and I am not in the mood to make myself do anything, let alone edit documents that have words and sentences which convey true meaning to a group of 118 people. So this will get kicked to Monday and we'll see if there is anybody in the end zone to catch the ball.
;;cheers;;
;;cheers;;
Friday, March 28, 2008
What Am I Doing?
For starters that is a Twitter question. And, if you don't know what Twitter is, you need to find out and get involved using it. Personally, I think you'll enjoy Twitter because it is an easy, fast way to keep in touch and up to date with your friends and what they're doing. You can do this on a desktop, laptop, PDA and other mobile devices including hand held gaming consoles such as NDS (NintendoDS) you heard right. You can do Internet and Twitter on a hand held Nintendo!
http://twitter.com/
This past week has been a complete failure for the local HillbillyNET cable company. No cable and no Internet for hours at a time. Thursday I literally spent 6 hours watching DVD instructional videos on my MOTIF XS because I had no cable. So this is good use of time when common resources are no longer available. Had I lost power, as in 110v AC, I would simply fire up the RV generator and continue home schooling my brain.
Taking breaks, I am creating two PC Help Videos. One is done and the other has to be completely rerecorded due to bugs in the latest version of Camtasia running on XP. I backed up TWO versions and will complete the second video. Also, it takes more time because I must configure the PC to be in a specific state of affairs. In this case, the PC must be infected with spyware. So between uninstalling the program, gutting out the registry entries so when showing how to install the program will actually look like it does when THEY install the software... all of this takes excessive time.
So you people out there that claim you can make a quality Camtasia help video in 10 minutes, let me clearly say it now, "You're full of shit". Okay, I feel better now. Also, adding zooms, pans and other effects during post production enable users to actually see what you're doing on the screen. Many Camtasia content creators simply just record the screen at some small dimensional size, and if you can't read whatever is on the screen, "You're screwed". I do not subscribe to that nonsense and believe that a help video should do just that, help you.
Next in the line up are some document projects that were 90% finished and needed that final touch so I plan to deliver those for approval over this weekend.
Next on deck is a unannounced project that involves one of my best friends' cartoon work. He returned to college for his degree in cartooning, 3D animation and all that, so for now his website is down. So I begged him for 16 of his cartoon strips and I plan to create a simple site where you can flip through the comics. I have enjoyed having CoyoteVille™ on my site since its inception and I don't mind tooting my own horn that although Steven Graziano invented CoyoteVille™ it was me, Harry James, 15 year veteran typographer who suggested that he change the logo to initial-capping the C and the V, so the idea took and stuck. I like that... took and stuck.
Okay next. While I am waiting for the weather to decide if it is going to rain or be kinda-sorta rainy, I am ceasing the construction of NASAV Studios™. Perhaps Paramount Studios works in the rain NASAV doesn't. So until the weather clearly clears up, and for good, I will not begin final construction because it demands DRY weather for at least 3 weeks. Besides the installation of the studio itself, there is construction, sawing, drilling, caulking and painting to be done. All requires dry weather, "For Harry to enjoy doing it". So this project is delayed.
However, in lieu of the delayed studio setup, I am daily working on the MOTIF XS learning and doing my best to fathom its enormous features and capabilities. As I learn these modes and details, I am noting and marking favorites which I will use to construct arrangements and songs later down the road. Meanwhile, EVERYTHING audibly sounds gorgeous. It brings tears to my eyes to listen to my own creations. Especially the orchestral arrangements. They remind me of songsl like Randy Edelman's, "Kathleen Mavourneen" which is an absolutely brilliant, intensely emotional composition which became just one of his stellar soundtracks for the finest Civil War movie produced, "Gettysburg" which is a Ted Turner production. The next time you find yourself with nothing to do for 4 hours, you owe it to yourself to watch, "Gettysburg" and hopefully you have a surround system or at least a stereo system connected to your VCR/DVD or TV. Prepare to be blown away by the movie and the musical soundtrack. I was lucky to see this film 70mm full screen in one of the best surround theaters in the United States, bar none. The music, the cannons, watching men load their rifles a mere 15 feet from each other to see who gets their shot off first, wow! Those men had pride and determination not found in today's modern men. And, they respected their duty to their country. And, they were passionate about their beliefs and were willing to die to achieve them. But with all wars, "...Different dreams" amongst men (and women) is the culprit to all wars. Well, besides the international bankers... Ahem...
Well the point is, I am really enjoying learning and composing music on my XS while I wait for the actual studio to get constructed, installed and wired up so I can get busy recording music. With a little luck I might get half my album recorded in 2008 and sew the rest up in 2009. Then of course, MASTERING my own album will be a new venture. But, I have confidence in myself because during this entire process, I am teaching myself to be a recording engineer which is a VITAL part to mastering an audio CD.
WHAT ELSE AM I DOING?
My life with Kathy is wonderful. We love living in our RV motorhome and we truly enjoy living here at this beautiful resort on the lake here in Soda Bay. Although closer to civilization, this is nicer than hundreds of miles further out up north near Mt. Lassen where volcanic ash replaces the nice forest and abundant wild life here. We enjoy the water fowl here. Mallard ducks and Coots, or commonly called Mud hens. The Ravens are back as are the squirrels, crows and deer. It's neat to watch, listen and learn how they go away during winter and come back pre-spring. And they add another level of wonder to our lives and we are thankful for that. We go for walks, spend time [not enough] hand-holding and just hanging outdoors. Kathy has some natal family reasonably close, and they have become MY family. But, Kathy and I mostly do each other here in the NASAV. He keeps saying, "NASAV" what is that? Well, had you read all my blogs you would know. So I shall repeat for those of you who have skipped ahead or just happen to plunk into this blog. NASAV is the acronymn for North American Surrealistic Adventure Vehicle. I apologize the NASAV website is not ready yet, but it is coming. So you will see photos and videos of the before and after of the RV. It's our home and we love it. Kathy and I have our own set of hobbies that we're content dabbling with, and yet we spend a great deal of time together doing things we enjoy together. Enjoying walks, wild life, watching movies on our TOSlink digital THX home theater and other times just relaxing back in the bedroom on our luxury bed while enjoying movies, TV or video games on the 19" inch LCD/DVD combo back there. In the bedroom we have (SNES) SuperNintendo and IntelliVision. Up front on the 30" inch we run both Xbox1 and Xbox2 (360) but I call them box1 and box2. I also have a PC jacked into the 30" inch which was to be used for Studio Manager software and displaying lyrics to read while recording in NASAV Studios™ but this idea has already been replaced with using a 19" LCD and XP SP1 PC which actually works better. Between the PC, MAC, and gaming consoles we have over 600 games with not 1 over 3 years old. They are all databased and bindered for quick and easy retrieval (finding and storing them) so that's a boatload of fun. Most recently, Kathy and I have both taken a liking to the NDS (NintendoDS) and we each have our own. I bought Kathy her Nintendo DS Gold Edition during Christmas 2007. Just 2 weeks ago I ordered my Crimson and Black NDS and have added a slot1 and slot2 ROM technologies and 4gb of microSDHC RAM to get things started, including homebrew, free SIP VoIP telephone calls, surfing the net, email, twitter and ebuddy. Check out my other Blogs about this stuff. It's totally fun and it's totally cool. These are not niche products but rather hand held gaming machines that can perform MORE than most cell phones, PDA's or even an iPhone which will cost you at least $60 dollars a month to use and more than likely if you have an iPhone you're paying $99 to $120 a month. So mind your P's and Q's when shopping iPhone contracts. Don't get me wrong. The Apple iPhone is phenomenal. It's just that I am waiting for A) 2nd generation product so by that time, the iPhone will actually do what I want it to, and B) the contract costs need to be HALF what they are for new subscribers.
Also, let's not forgot I still play Shanghai on the Atari Lynx which, "Is the first hand held color gaming system in the world". When I ordered mine on TV from HSN.COM http://hsn.com/ I bought a Atari-logo'd case, so my Lynx is "like new" and still lots of fun to play. The graphics are great, the controls are easy to use and the games are fun. There are even a couple new games now that I want to order for the Lynx. The Atari Lynx was released in 1989! I bet some of you reading my Blog weren't even born yet! LOL
Anyhow, thanks to Activision, a game called, "Shanghai" happened, first coming to the PC in all_green_monochrome 320x200 graphics. Later, they released a 2nd version supporting MCGA 320x200x256 color and 640x200 black and white. Although Shanghai is not the actual Mahjongg game, its 144 stacked tile matching madness became America's FIRST tile-strategy game on the PC. To this day there are hundreds of variations of this game. Many can be found at RealArcade.com and you can even buy and download a very nice Shanghai/Mahjongg from Apple iTunes to play on your iPod 5th generation or greater and the graphics looks gorgeous! And, thanks to the NDS supporting GBA on slot2, I can play the Shanghai game that I already have on my NDS.
On another note, right about the time Activision was creating blockbuster game cartridges for the Atari 2600 there was internal brewing going on within the company. This eventually led to one of the programmers, Al Miller, leaving Activision and founding Accolade which became famous for the games Hardball and Test Drive on the Commodore 64/128, Apple II and later on the PC. Further down the road Accolade began producing games on the Sega Genesis, Nintendo Gameboy, Super Nintendo and Macintosh where I actually corrected over 150 typographical errors in what they considered to be, "Their final draft of its game manual". Wow, those were the days. And, don't forget Elvira on the Amiga. Although one of Accolades best European games, Hardball and Test Drive truly put Accolade on the map. I was ecstatically employed at Accolade for years when on August 6, 1993 I was hit, head-on by an automobile while driving my motorcycle just 2 blocks from my home. If interested, you can read the rest of that story on my website. http://happyharry.net/ and click on MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.
I believe this would be quite the appropriate time to close my Blabbing-Blog mouth. I do hope to see you here again, same bat-time, same bat-channel.
;;cheers;;
http://twitter.com/
This past week has been a complete failure for the local HillbillyNET cable company. No cable and no Internet for hours at a time. Thursday I literally spent 6 hours watching DVD instructional videos on my MOTIF XS because I had no cable. So this is good use of time when common resources are no longer available. Had I lost power, as in 110v AC, I would simply fire up the RV generator and continue home schooling my brain.
Taking breaks, I am creating two PC Help Videos. One is done and the other has to be completely rerecorded due to bugs in the latest version of Camtasia running on XP. I backed up TWO versions and will complete the second video. Also, it takes more time because I must configure the PC to be in a specific state of affairs. In this case, the PC must be infected with spyware. So between uninstalling the program, gutting out the registry entries so when showing how to install the program will actually look like it does when THEY install the software... all of this takes excessive time.
So you people out there that claim you can make a quality Camtasia help video in 10 minutes, let me clearly say it now, "You're full of shit". Okay, I feel better now. Also, adding zooms, pans and other effects during post production enable users to actually see what you're doing on the screen. Many Camtasia content creators simply just record the screen at some small dimensional size, and if you can't read whatever is on the screen, "You're screwed". I do not subscribe to that nonsense and believe that a help video should do just that, help you.
Next in the line up are some document projects that were 90% finished and needed that final touch so I plan to deliver those for approval over this weekend.
Next on deck is a unannounced project that involves one of my best friends' cartoon work. He returned to college for his degree in cartooning, 3D animation and all that, so for now his website is down. So I begged him for 16 of his cartoon strips and I plan to create a simple site where you can flip through the comics. I have enjoyed having CoyoteVille™ on my site since its inception and I don't mind tooting my own horn that although Steven Graziano invented CoyoteVille™ it was me, Harry James, 15 year veteran typographer who suggested that he change the logo to initial-capping the C and the V, so the idea took and stuck. I like that... took and stuck.
Okay next. While I am waiting for the weather to decide if it is going to rain or be kinda-sorta rainy, I am ceasing the construction of NASAV Studios™. Perhaps Paramount Studios works in the rain NASAV doesn't. So until the weather clearly clears up, and for good, I will not begin final construction because it demands DRY weather for at least 3 weeks. Besides the installation of the studio itself, there is construction, sawing, drilling, caulking and painting to be done. All requires dry weather, "For Harry to enjoy doing it". So this project is delayed.
However, in lieu of the delayed studio setup, I am daily working on the MOTIF XS learning and doing my best to fathom its enormous features and capabilities. As I learn these modes and details, I am noting and marking favorites which I will use to construct arrangements and songs later down the road. Meanwhile, EVERYTHING audibly sounds gorgeous. It brings tears to my eyes to listen to my own creations. Especially the orchestral arrangements. They remind me of songsl like Randy Edelman's, "Kathleen Mavourneen" which is an absolutely brilliant, intensely emotional composition which became just one of his stellar soundtracks for the finest Civil War movie produced, "Gettysburg" which is a Ted Turner production. The next time you find yourself with nothing to do for 4 hours, you owe it to yourself to watch, "Gettysburg" and hopefully you have a surround system or at least a stereo system connected to your VCR/DVD or TV. Prepare to be blown away by the movie and the musical soundtrack. I was lucky to see this film 70mm full screen in one of the best surround theaters in the United States, bar none. The music, the cannons, watching men load their rifles a mere 15 feet from each other to see who gets their shot off first, wow! Those men had pride and determination not found in today's modern men. And, they respected their duty to their country. And, they were passionate about their beliefs and were willing to die to achieve them. But with all wars, "...Different dreams" amongst men (and women) is the culprit to all wars. Well, besides the international bankers... Ahem...
Well the point is, I am really enjoying learning and composing music on my XS while I wait for the actual studio to get constructed, installed and wired up so I can get busy recording music. With a little luck I might get half my album recorded in 2008 and sew the rest up in 2009. Then of course, MASTERING my own album will be a new venture. But, I have confidence in myself because during this entire process, I am teaching myself to be a recording engineer which is a VITAL part to mastering an audio CD.
WHAT ELSE AM I DOING?
My life with Kathy is wonderful. We love living in our RV motorhome and we truly enjoy living here at this beautiful resort on the lake here in Soda Bay. Although closer to civilization, this is nicer than hundreds of miles further out up north near Mt. Lassen where volcanic ash replaces the nice forest and abundant wild life here. We enjoy the water fowl here. Mallard ducks and Coots, or commonly called Mud hens. The Ravens are back as are the squirrels, crows and deer. It's neat to watch, listen and learn how they go away during winter and come back pre-spring. And they add another level of wonder to our lives and we are thankful for that. We go for walks, spend time [not enough] hand-holding and just hanging outdoors. Kathy has some natal family reasonably close, and they have become MY family. But, Kathy and I mostly do each other here in the NASAV. He keeps saying, "NASAV" what is that? Well, had you read all my blogs you would know. So I shall repeat for those of you who have skipped ahead or just happen to plunk into this blog. NASAV is the acronymn for North American Surrealistic Adventure Vehicle. I apologize the NASAV website is not ready yet, but it is coming. So you will see photos and videos of the before and after of the RV. It's our home and we love it. Kathy and I have our own set of hobbies that we're content dabbling with, and yet we spend a great deal of time together doing things we enjoy together. Enjoying walks, wild life, watching movies on our TOSlink digital THX home theater and other times just relaxing back in the bedroom on our luxury bed while enjoying movies, TV or video games on the 19" inch LCD/DVD combo back there. In the bedroom we have (SNES) SuperNintendo and IntelliVision. Up front on the 30" inch we run both Xbox1 and Xbox2 (360) but I call them box1 and box2. I also have a PC jacked into the 30" inch which was to be used for Studio Manager software and displaying lyrics to read while recording in NASAV Studios™ but this idea has already been replaced with using a 19" LCD and XP SP1 PC which actually works better. Between the PC, MAC, and gaming consoles we have over 600 games with not 1 over 3 years old. They are all databased and bindered for quick and easy retrieval (finding and storing them) so that's a boatload of fun. Most recently, Kathy and I have both taken a liking to the NDS (NintendoDS) and we each have our own. I bought Kathy her Nintendo DS Gold Edition during Christmas 2007. Just 2 weeks ago I ordered my Crimson and Black NDS and have added a slot1 and slot2 ROM technologies and 4gb of microSDHC RAM to get things started, including homebrew, free SIP VoIP telephone calls, surfing the net, email, twitter and ebuddy. Check out my other Blogs about this stuff. It's totally fun and it's totally cool. These are not niche products but rather hand held gaming machines that can perform MORE than most cell phones, PDA's or even an iPhone which will cost you at least $60 dollars a month to use and more than likely if you have an iPhone you're paying $99 to $120 a month. So mind your P's and Q's when shopping iPhone contracts. Don't get me wrong. The Apple iPhone is phenomenal. It's just that I am waiting for A) 2nd generation product so by that time, the iPhone will actually do what I want it to, and B) the contract costs need to be HALF what they are for new subscribers.
Also, let's not forgot I still play Shanghai on the Atari Lynx which, "Is the first hand held color gaming system in the world". When I ordered mine on TV from HSN.COM http://hsn.com/ I bought a Atari-logo'd case, so my Lynx is "like new" and still lots of fun to play. The graphics are great, the controls are easy to use and the games are fun. There are even a couple new games now that I want to order for the Lynx. The Atari Lynx was released in 1989! I bet some of you reading my Blog weren't even born yet! LOL
Anyhow, thanks to Activision, a game called, "Shanghai" happened, first coming to the PC in all_green_monochrome 320x200 graphics. Later, they released a 2nd version supporting MCGA 320x200x256 color and 640x200 black and white. Although Shanghai is not the actual Mahjongg game, its 144 stacked tile matching madness became America's FIRST tile-strategy game on the PC. To this day there are hundreds of variations of this game. Many can be found at RealArcade.com and you can even buy and download a very nice Shanghai/Mahjongg from Apple iTunes to play on your iPod 5th generation or greater and the graphics looks gorgeous! And, thanks to the NDS supporting GBA on slot2, I can play the Shanghai game that I already have on my NDS.
On another note, right about the time Activision was creating blockbuster game cartridges for the Atari 2600 there was internal brewing going on within the company. This eventually led to one of the programmers, Al Miller, leaving Activision and founding Accolade which became famous for the games Hardball and Test Drive on the Commodore 64/128, Apple II and later on the PC. Further down the road Accolade began producing games on the Sega Genesis, Nintendo Gameboy, Super Nintendo and Macintosh where I actually corrected over 150 typographical errors in what they considered to be, "Their final draft of its game manual". Wow, those were the days. And, don't forget Elvira on the Amiga. Although one of Accolades best European games, Hardball and Test Drive truly put Accolade on the map. I was ecstatically employed at Accolade for years when on August 6, 1993 I was hit, head-on by an automobile while driving my motorcycle just 2 blocks from my home. If interested, you can read the rest of that story on my website. http://happyharry.net/ and click on MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.
I believe this would be quite the appropriate time to close my Blabbing-Blog mouth. I do hope to see you here again, same bat-time, same bat-channel.
;;cheers;;
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Answers To Your Questions
Since I'm back to blogging, some of you have asked me questions about previously announced projects that I am currently working on.
Q: What about PC Help Videos, are more coming?
A: Yes, two are in production now.
Q: What do you mean in production now? I thought it took 10 to 20 minutes to make one?
A: Correct. Some help videos do only take a few minutes. Other videos take much longer for they require your PC to be in a certain state of affairs. Meaning, perhaps it's necessary to manually infect the PC first in order to show [in the video] how to remove malware, etc. Then there is post production. Adjusting audio, and adding zooms and pans so you can easily see what I am showing you in the video. Many content creators on the Internet simply record the screen and it's not easy to see what they are showing you because things are just too darn small. I don't subscribe to this formula so my way of producing videos adds up to taking much longer to create them.
Q: Where are the ducks?
A: You'll see them upon the completion of the NASAV website still in design.
Q: You mentioned "Flashing" your websites?
A: Yes, two have been drafted to legal pads and are ready for construction.
Q: When will these sites get constructed?
A: That's a good question. Considering that I am already buried, I'd say Q4 2008.
Q: What about your music?
A: I am very busy home schooling myself. But, some audio snippets are coming soon.
Q: What is HappyHarryNET_TV?
A: HHNET_TV is a new website where you can watch videos of HappyHarryNET projects such as live music recording sessions from NASAV Studios™ and see photo albums too.
HOME SCHOOLING HARRY
Some of the materials that I am currently studying are very interesting and fun to explore. However, for example, shown below is just ONE paragraph where you will find a bevy of verbiage and terms that are all real and they really do what they say they do. And until you learn how they work, you don't get anything accomplished. Agreed, had I recorded and captured every minute of practice on the MOTIF you would be hearing interesting music along with a lot of not-so-interesting audio junk. Most of it has been bits and pieces with a ton of mistakes. Remember... making zillions of mistakes equals unparalleled success at whatever it is you are trying to accomplish. Once I am up to speed with my new toys I can begin creating serious audio productions.
==========
EXCERPT FROM YAMAHA ABOUT MOTIF XS PERFORMANCE MODE:
Each Performance can be up to four Voices (each placed in a PART 1-4) and can include an AD INPUT Part, as well. [Harry note: the AD INPUT just mentioned means recording something using the Analog/Digital inputs via the integrated sampler] All PARTS of a Performance can recall their Dual Insertion Effects. And since you have the capability to use up to four simultaneous ARPEGGIOS, each of the synth PARTS can be under the control of a separate ARP phrase. Additionally, five sets of arpeggio phrases can be associated with each Performance – allowing you to have 5 different musical segments. You have the innovative [PERFORMANCE CONTROL] functions that allow you to dynamically control what is happening with each PART and the [SELECTED PART CONTROL] functions that give you the ability to apply 24 knobbed parameters to all four PARTS in common, or you can select a single PART and apply those 24 parameters to just the one PART.
==========
I don't expect anyone to understand the above complex paragraph. But, no other keyboard workstation currently on the market even has peer to peer multi channel Firewire connectivity, never mind the possibility to expand to more flexible connectivity with other products. The MOTIF XS is significantly ahead of any other workstation on the market in it's computer integration. This is, in part, what interested me in buying a MOTIF XS in the first place. Although Korg Karma is really cool stuff, again Yamaha TYROS 3 will be finding a new home when it releases to the public.
What I'm trying to convey is this stuff is complicated and takes time to learn. I don't care who you are or how good you can play music. Simply put, it takes TIME to learn professional audio equipment and become proficient using their features. This extends to other devices such as my 28 channel digital O1X mixer, which now is a joy to use!
To sum this up, this is precisely why I stopped posting music snippets to the Internet. Yes, I know. During the first few days after receiving my MOTIF XS and O1X I got excited and immediately created some junk and stuffed it onto my FTP for you to hear and announced that you can go there to hear new stuff.
But I needed a lot of learning before I truly got started. It's amazing to acknowledge, that by comparison to those December 2007 snippets, my present audio quality has skyrocketed into the 4th dimension. And this is because I have taken MONTHS reading and studying how to use this gorgeous music production synthesizer called the MOTIF XS. If you are interested in learning more, I'd be glad to give you access to the educational portion of my FTP which houses the learning materials specific to the MOTIF XS.
Digressing back to one of the original questions, "Harry when do we get to hear some of your music?" Well, it's gonna be a while still. I am pleased with my progress yet NASAV Studios™ is not complete. Between real life and the speed-bumps that my health tosses in front of me, the months have a way of zipping by. Admittedly I bit off more than I can chew and it has taken me time to get up to speed with all of my new audio toys in between the continued myriad of headaches, spinal issues and BrainCrap that I physically deal with.
WHATS NEW THIS SECOND?
Glad you asked. Right now I am fiddling with the MOTIF XS Vocoder. Initially developed by Bell Labs in the 1930s, music application vocoders started to appear in the 1970s and have been used thereafter in many musical contexts. To name a few; Alan Parsons, Herbie Hancock, Daft Punk and Cher are known for using vocoders in their musical recordings. So, learning how to use the vocoder in my XS was very important to me, because I have some original ideas exclusively intended for use of the vocoder. Vocoding on the MOTIF XS is designed as a real-time, live feature. You can accompany a song live using the vocoder or record the Vocoder to any DAW which I use both Cubase4 and Tracktion3.
;;cheers;;
Q: What about PC Help Videos, are more coming?
A: Yes, two are in production now.
Q: What do you mean in production now? I thought it took 10 to 20 minutes to make one?
A: Correct. Some help videos do only take a few minutes. Other videos take much longer for they require your PC to be in a certain state of affairs. Meaning, perhaps it's necessary to manually infect the PC first in order to show [in the video] how to remove malware, etc. Then there is post production. Adjusting audio, and adding zooms and pans so you can easily see what I am showing you in the video. Many content creators on the Internet simply record the screen and it's not easy to see what they are showing you because things are just too darn small. I don't subscribe to this formula so my way of producing videos adds up to taking much longer to create them.
Q: Where are the ducks?
A: You'll see them upon the completion of the NASAV website still in design.
Q: You mentioned "Flashing" your websites?
A: Yes, two have been drafted to legal pads and are ready for construction.
Q: When will these sites get constructed?
A: That's a good question. Considering that I am already buried, I'd say Q4 2008.
Q: What about your music?
A: I am very busy home schooling myself. But, some audio snippets are coming soon.
Q: What is HappyHarryNET_TV?
A: HHNET_TV is a new website where you can watch videos of HappyHarryNET projects such as live music recording sessions from NASAV Studios™ and see photo albums too.
HOME SCHOOLING HARRY
Some of the materials that I am currently studying are very interesting and fun to explore. However, for example, shown below is just ONE paragraph where you will find a bevy of verbiage and terms that are all real and they really do what they say they do. And until you learn how they work, you don't get anything accomplished. Agreed, had I recorded and captured every minute of practice on the MOTIF you would be hearing interesting music along with a lot of not-so-interesting audio junk. Most of it has been bits and pieces with a ton of mistakes. Remember... making zillions of mistakes equals unparalleled success at whatever it is you are trying to accomplish. Once I am up to speed with my new toys I can begin creating serious audio productions.
==========
EXCERPT FROM YAMAHA ABOUT MOTIF XS PERFORMANCE MODE:
Each Performance can be up to four Voices (each placed in a PART 1-4) and can include an AD INPUT Part, as well. [Harry note: the AD INPUT just mentioned means recording something using the Analog/Digital inputs via the integrated sampler] All PARTS of a Performance can recall their Dual Insertion Effects. And since you have the capability to use up to four simultaneous ARPEGGIOS, each of the synth PARTS can be under the control of a separate ARP phrase. Additionally, five sets of arpeggio phrases can be associated with each Performance – allowing you to have 5 different musical segments. You have the innovative [PERFORMANCE CONTROL] functions that allow you to dynamically control what is happening with each PART and the [SELECTED PART CONTROL] functions that give you the ability to apply 24 knobbed parameters to all four PARTS in common, or you can select a single PART and apply those 24 parameters to just the one PART.
==========
I don't expect anyone to understand the above complex paragraph. But, no other keyboard workstation currently on the market even has peer to peer multi channel Firewire connectivity, never mind the possibility to expand to more flexible connectivity with other products. The MOTIF XS is significantly ahead of any other workstation on the market in it's computer integration. This is, in part, what interested me in buying a MOTIF XS in the first place. Although Korg Karma is really cool stuff, again Yamaha TYROS 3 will be finding a new home when it releases to the public.
What I'm trying to convey is this stuff is complicated and takes time to learn. I don't care who you are or how good you can play music. Simply put, it takes TIME to learn professional audio equipment and become proficient using their features. This extends to other devices such as my 28 channel digital O1X mixer, which now is a joy to use!
To sum this up, this is precisely why I stopped posting music snippets to the Internet. Yes, I know. During the first few days after receiving my MOTIF XS and O1X I got excited and immediately created some junk and stuffed it onto my FTP for you to hear and announced that you can go there to hear new stuff.
But I needed a lot of learning before I truly got started. It's amazing to acknowledge, that by comparison to those December 2007 snippets, my present audio quality has skyrocketed into the 4th dimension. And this is because I have taken MONTHS reading and studying how to use this gorgeous music production synthesizer called the MOTIF XS. If you are interested in learning more, I'd be glad to give you access to the educational portion of my FTP which houses the learning materials specific to the MOTIF XS.
Digressing back to one of the original questions, "Harry when do we get to hear some of your music?" Well, it's gonna be a while still. I am pleased with my progress yet NASAV Studios™ is not complete. Between real life and the speed-bumps that my health tosses in front of me, the months have a way of zipping by. Admittedly I bit off more than I can chew and it has taken me time to get up to speed with all of my new audio toys in between the continued myriad of headaches, spinal issues and BrainCrap that I physically deal with.
WHATS NEW THIS SECOND?
Glad you asked. Right now I am fiddling with the MOTIF XS Vocoder. Initially developed by Bell Labs in the 1930s, music application vocoders started to appear in the 1970s and have been used thereafter in many musical contexts. To name a few; Alan Parsons, Herbie Hancock, Daft Punk and Cher are known for using vocoders in their musical recordings. So, learning how to use the vocoder in my XS was very important to me, because I have some original ideas exclusively intended for use of the vocoder. Vocoding on the MOTIF XS is designed as a real-time, live feature. You can accompany a song live using the vocoder or record the Vocoder to any DAW which I use both Cubase4 and Tracktion3.
;;cheers;;
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
MOTIF XS - What Time Is It?
We all have hobbies and many hobbies surely do help us to pass the time. But not since my entering into the world of Yamaha MOTIF XS have I ever experienced such time loss mayhem.
This is a world class music workstation with a zillion features and I find myself toying around and playing music all day, through the night and into the next day. It is very common to turn the XS on and ;;poof;; 7 to 9 hours just zips by.
Yesterday I was persuing through over 6000 arpeggios to try and learn about, "some" of them. Then I got on a mission to find a great sounding harmonica to accompany the spanish guitars and cello. After looking at the samples list I learned there was one. I just didn't know where it was. Afterall, there are over 1000 sounds per se, but in fact there over 3000 samples in this super musical time consumer.
Then I had a blast using the integrated sampler where you can overdub tracks within the MOTIF itself. Totally cool. Then I spent a lot of time adjusting the mix and effects using its onboard mixer. This is massive fun!
I have some other projects to finish up and I became sidetracked with the MOTIF. So now that I have rediscovered myself, I spose I will finish up my document projects and burn a couple help videos that I've been meaning to get done.
Gosh. I can't wait to get back to losing days while learning how to use my MOTIF XS.
;;cheers;
This is a world class music workstation with a zillion features and I find myself toying around and playing music all day, through the night and into the next day. It is very common to turn the XS on and ;;poof;; 7 to 9 hours just zips by.
Yesterday I was persuing through over 6000 arpeggios to try and learn about, "some" of them. Then I got on a mission to find a great sounding harmonica to accompany the spanish guitars and cello. After looking at the samples list I learned there was one. I just didn't know where it was. Afterall, there are over 1000 sounds per se, but in fact there over 3000 samples in this super musical time consumer.
Then I had a blast using the integrated sampler where you can overdub tracks within the MOTIF itself. Totally cool. Then I spent a lot of time adjusting the mix and effects using its onboard mixer. This is massive fun!
I have some other projects to finish up and I became sidetracked with the MOTIF. So now that I have rediscovered myself, I spose I will finish up my document projects and burn a couple help videos that I've been meaning to get done.
Gosh. I can't wait to get back to losing days while learning how to use my MOTIF XS.
;;cheers;
Saturday, March 22, 2008
NDS Homebrew
My Nintendo DS Lite (NDS) is really getting customized. And, the NDS is truly delivering pure excitement unrivaled by any of my other toys, with perhaps exception to the MOTIF and O1X.
I just bought some really cool add-ons for my NDS. I chose the M3DS ReaL slot1 ROM. This allows me to play games AND do everything you do on your PC and MAC. I can listen to my favorite music in OGG and MP3 formats. I store videos and photos that I like to share with others when I am mobile. Providing I got a hotspot to jump onto, I can surf the net, do email and even chat using all of my favorites thanks to ebuddy where just TWO taps of my stylus on the NDS logs me into AIM, MSN and Yahoo chat clients! By the way, ebuddy works great on any PC and MAC too using your web browser. But, having these capabilities on a handheld gaming rig is pure joy. And, the NDS is a deluxe all-in-one mobile solution. The only thing better is the Apple iPhone and it doesn't have the gaming capabilities of the NDS.
The M3DS Real is a single slot1 passcard solution that supports microSDHC memory up to 32GB. Additionally, I plugged my slot2 with a EZ-Flash 3-in-1 Expansion, mainly because I wanted its 16MB SRAM for fast browser cache. The expansion also hosts 256Mbit Norflash for GBA ROM and sports both a battery for no data loss and a 3-level rumble-pak for games supporting that feature! Now that I have the M3DS Real rigged, I had to jack some memory for all my stuff. After sorting brands, pricing and performance I settled with a Kingston 4GB microSDHC. This easily accommodates EVERYTHING I want on my NDS including 100's of OGG, lots of WMV video and at least TWO full length DVD movies, and still have tons of space for all of my homebrew apps with room to spare! This is Handheld-Heaven! The NDS executes everything FAST, but stick to mobile apps when using the net. Going for the gold using the Opera browser will add to loading times if you fancy MySpace and the like. Afterall, the Nintendo DS is not an Intel Pentium. But let me tell you something. Surfing the net on this handheld using the stylus is pure magic. In the time it takes most PC's using Windows to coldboot and get to the desktop, I can check my Yahoo! mail, turn off my NDS, and put it back in my pocket! Does it appear that I am sticking my tongue out at PC and MAC users? You bet I am! Now the Nintendo DS is a productive pocket computer. It can do what most iPods do. But, unlike the iPhone it doesn't cost $$$ to use it. Plus, using SIP DS you got FREE wi-fi mobile telephone calls. Did I say free? I thought so ;;grin;; Saving the best part for last, the NDS is a FUN-tastic handheld gaming system, and the 2008 games are incredible. Awesome, awesome, awesome!!
;;cheers;;
I just bought some really cool add-ons for my NDS. I chose the M3DS ReaL slot1 ROM. This allows me to play games AND do everything you do on your PC and MAC. I can listen to my favorite music in OGG and MP3 formats. I store videos and photos that I like to share with others when I am mobile. Providing I got a hotspot to jump onto, I can surf the net, do email and even chat using all of my favorites thanks to ebuddy where just TWO taps of my stylus on the NDS logs me into AIM, MSN and Yahoo chat clients! By the way, ebuddy works great on any PC and MAC too using your web browser. But, having these capabilities on a handheld gaming rig is pure joy. And, the NDS is a deluxe all-in-one mobile solution. The only thing better is the Apple iPhone and it doesn't have the gaming capabilities of the NDS.
The M3DS Real is a single slot1 passcard solution that supports microSDHC memory up to 32GB. Additionally, I plugged my slot2 with a EZ-Flash 3-in-1 Expansion, mainly because I wanted its 16MB SRAM for fast browser cache. The expansion also hosts 256Mbit Norflash for GBA ROM and sports both a battery for no data loss and a 3-level rumble-pak for games supporting that feature! Now that I have the M3DS Real rigged, I had to jack some memory for all my stuff. After sorting brands, pricing and performance I settled with a Kingston 4GB microSDHC. This easily accommodates EVERYTHING I want on my NDS including 100's of OGG, lots of WMV video and at least TWO full length DVD movies, and still have tons of space for all of my homebrew apps with room to spare! This is Handheld-Heaven! The NDS executes everything FAST, but stick to mobile apps when using the net. Going for the gold using the Opera browser will add to loading times if you fancy MySpace and the like. Afterall, the Nintendo DS is not an Intel Pentium. But let me tell you something. Surfing the net on this handheld using the stylus is pure magic. In the time it takes most PC's using Windows to coldboot and get to the desktop, I can check my Yahoo! mail, turn off my NDS, and put it back in my pocket! Does it appear that I am sticking my tongue out at PC and MAC users? You bet I am! Now the Nintendo DS is a productive pocket computer. It can do what most iPods do. But, unlike the iPhone it doesn't cost $$$ to use it. Plus, using SIP DS you got FREE wi-fi mobile telephone calls. Did I say free? I thought so ;;grin;; Saving the best part for last, the NDS is a FUN-tastic handheld gaming system, and the 2008 games are incredible. Awesome, awesome, awesome!!
;;cheers;;
NASAV Studios™ Update
The 1GB RAM (2-512MB DIMM) is ordered for the MOTIF XS and I can't wait to jack my microphones and Takamine AE12-string guitar into the MOTIF's 24-bit, 16-track sampler. Also, I am very excited to pipe vocals into the TC-Helicon vocal processor BEFORE it hits the MOTIF. This allows me to shuttle my voice and up to 5 harmony parts with effects, before pumping all of this into the MOTIF. The XS can sample while monitoring, making "overdubs" a snap in real time. Everything on the MOTIF is done in real time ;;grin;; For me, the real genius is working exclusively at the keyboard WITHOUT the need to sit at a computer during recording sessions. Eventually, the MOTIF mix will get shuttled into Cubase4 or Tracktion3 via LAN or Yamaha mLAN. You read correctly. The entire recording session can be transferred using ethernet 10/100 LAN and the Yamaha mLAN (1394). I use both LANs for different reasons, which perhaps at a later time I will explain their usage. Meanwhile, the Yamaha O1X is show-boating and managing the entire digital domain while storing every technical setting, so when I come back to the mixer 3 days later after a screaming headache, I've got, "total recall" including mixer automation, rotary encoding and motorized fader positions. Finally, the mix ends up in Cubase or Trackion where again the O1X runs the show and treats the session to more tracks. At this point, I'm working more vocal tracks or arranging additional instrumentals. Many times, after I shoot a mix from the MOTIF to the O1X, I will polish things up and prepare for final mixing using some sweet Yamaha plugs. This is where a song gets embellished, cleaned up, mixed, mastered and burned to CDR along with OGG and MP3 formats for web distro.
Be on the lookout Q4 2008 through Q2 2009. HappyHarryNET_TV will be shooting live video during recording sessions at NASAV Studios™ and publishing the videos, audio clips and photos at these websites:
• HappyHarryNET
• NASAV Studios
• YouTube
• Click and Listen
• MySpace
• SoundClick
• Flickr
I am already enjoying the spacial improvements inside the NASAV RV thanks to the renovations needed to begin the NASAV Studios™ construction. This is a true, "win-win" situation.
;;cheers;;
Be on the lookout Q4 2008 through Q2 2009. HappyHarryNET_TV will be shooting live video during recording sessions at NASAV Studios™ and publishing the videos, audio clips and photos at these websites:
• HappyHarryNET
• NASAV Studios
• YouTube
• Click and Listen
• MySpace
• SoundClick
• Flickr
I am already enjoying the spacial improvements inside the NASAV RV thanks to the renovations needed to begin the NASAV Studios™ construction. This is a true, "win-win" situation.
;;cheers;;
Thursday, March 20, 2008
NintendoDS Lite News
Well after much debate and research I finally ordered my personal, "Crimson and Black" NintendoDS Lite (NDS) along with a custom G-Pak™ case by NAKIWORLD. I had to wait months to find a red & black case to match the DS, but finally one appeared on Ebay. Luckily they had 2 auctions because I lost out on the first one but won on the second and saved a whopping $3 dollars. Also ordered the new Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring Of Fates.
Currently I am playing Fire Emblem on the GBAmicro (GameBoyAdvance micro) and just began Chapter 23. Fire Emblem is a fantastic RPG series that incorporates excellent story-writing, amazing characters that you become attached to, and a fun TBS (Turn Based Strategy) gameplay system that never becomes tiresome. Previously to finding the first version of Fire Emblem I had been playing Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones, the sequel to this game. At the time, I had played through Chapter 9 when I found the first Fire Emblem cartridge. I then ceased playing the sequel and began playing the first game which proved enjoyable because the first game is the start of the story and introduces you to the cast of characters. You start out as the group tactician who manages their battle decisions. The characters in this game have an uncanny way of growing on you to the point you WILL become upset when you lose a character. And, when you lose a character, they are gone for the rest of the game! Luckily, you can always replay an entire chapter and try a different strategy to avoid losing a character. Still, as the story progresses, you will find yourself making decisions along the way as to which characters you will let go of, in spite of continuing the game to finish playing the game. This is where the true strategy of this game lies.
Playing GBA titles on the GBAmicro is a bit more comfortable than playing them on the NDS. But the NDS has additional features not found on the GBAmicro and you learn to adapt to the NDS rather quickly. It's nice having a full clock, calendar aboard your gaming rig. Also, the screens are much larger and the NDS has a more powerful CPU and GPU. Additionally, the NDS has wonderful stereo separation with its built-in speakers. Also, games like Metroid Prime Hunter and two of the new Pokemon games support multiplayer voice chat via Nintendo's stereo headset with microphone.
Then there is NDS homebrew. NDS homebrew has a ton of really neat things you can do using your NDS. Whether you're chatting on MSN Messenger or surfing the Internet using Linux, it all can be done. You can easily run the Opera browser to surf the net with full WYSIWYG color graphics. It is recommended that you stick to the, "mobile websites and apps" such as the Goggle-suite and other online mobile apps if you want perky wi-fi performance. But, you CAN visit websites such as MySpace and CNN, but loading times are slow. Also ;;frown;; there is no Flash support [yet] which means no YouTube video watching, and there isn't [yet] any JAVA. But, thanks to javascript, life is good. And, don't let those Sony PSP geeks tell you otherwise. PSP doesn't support Flash either. Sure you can convert Flash content and watch it on the PSP and DS, but that's a different topic. Nevertheless, the NDS manages all of these duties with relative ease and it is a relaxing unit to spend time with. Whether curled up in your favorite spot at home, or hanging out at your favorite hotspot, where ever that happens to be. You can also view PDF files on the NDS. But, this is a HappyHarryNET invention that I am keeping secret for right now. But, I will blog about this and create a how-to video in the future. And, by the way, the NDS sports no wi-fi configuration. It simply works! You can surf the Internet, check your Yahoo! or Gmail, chat on ICQ, AIM and MSN Messenger, but I prefer ebuddy. Nintendo's built-in PictoChat is always available for local wi-fi (30 feet range) the same as you would play local wi-fi multiplayer games with other NDS players. MP3 and OGG music files sounds great, WMV video plays nicely as well as converted VOB data. You can even use the NDS as a wi-fi MIDI controller to your MAC or PC. This is a bucket-of-fun to say the least. Look to the future when HappyHarryNET_TV will post a music video using my NintendoDS as a MIDI controller to my Yamaha MOTIF XS during a recording session! Is that awesome or what!? And, to frost the cake there is a video chat cam coming to the NDS.
Well that's my NDS rant for now. Until I finish my Fire Emblem games, I won't be starting any new games on ANY platform. Keep checking my blogs for updates on this hot topic.
;;cheers;;
Currently I am playing Fire Emblem on the GBAmicro (GameBoyAdvance micro) and just began Chapter 23. Fire Emblem is a fantastic RPG series that incorporates excellent story-writing, amazing characters that you become attached to, and a fun TBS (Turn Based Strategy) gameplay system that never becomes tiresome. Previously to finding the first version of Fire Emblem I had been playing Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones, the sequel to this game. At the time, I had played through Chapter 9 when I found the first Fire Emblem cartridge. I then ceased playing the sequel and began playing the first game which proved enjoyable because the first game is the start of the story and introduces you to the cast of characters. You start out as the group tactician who manages their battle decisions. The characters in this game have an uncanny way of growing on you to the point you WILL become upset when you lose a character. And, when you lose a character, they are gone for the rest of the game! Luckily, you can always replay an entire chapter and try a different strategy to avoid losing a character. Still, as the story progresses, you will find yourself making decisions along the way as to which characters you will let go of, in spite of continuing the game to finish playing the game. This is where the true strategy of this game lies.
Playing GBA titles on the GBAmicro is a bit more comfortable than playing them on the NDS. But the NDS has additional features not found on the GBAmicro and you learn to adapt to the NDS rather quickly. It's nice having a full clock, calendar aboard your gaming rig. Also, the screens are much larger and the NDS has a more powerful CPU and GPU. Additionally, the NDS has wonderful stereo separation with its built-in speakers. Also, games like Metroid Prime Hunter and two of the new Pokemon games support multiplayer voice chat via Nintendo's stereo headset with microphone.
Then there is NDS homebrew. NDS homebrew has a ton of really neat things you can do using your NDS. Whether you're chatting on MSN Messenger or surfing the Internet using Linux, it all can be done. You can easily run the Opera browser to surf the net with full WYSIWYG color graphics. It is recommended that you stick to the, "mobile websites and apps" such as the Goggle-suite and other online mobile apps if you want perky wi-fi performance. But, you CAN visit websites such as MySpace and CNN, but loading times are slow. Also ;;frown;; there is no Flash support [yet] which means no YouTube video watching, and there isn't [yet] any JAVA. But, thanks to javascript, life is good. And, don't let those Sony PSP geeks tell you otherwise. PSP doesn't support Flash either. Sure you can convert Flash content and watch it on the PSP and DS, but that's a different topic. Nevertheless, the NDS manages all of these duties with relative ease and it is a relaxing unit to spend time with. Whether curled up in your favorite spot at home, or hanging out at your favorite hotspot, where ever that happens to be. You can also view PDF files on the NDS. But, this is a HappyHarryNET invention that I am keeping secret for right now. But, I will blog about this and create a how-to video in the future. And, by the way, the NDS sports no wi-fi configuration. It simply works! You can surf the Internet, check your Yahoo! or Gmail, chat on ICQ, AIM and MSN Messenger, but I prefer ebuddy. Nintendo's built-in PictoChat is always available for local wi-fi (30 feet range) the same as you would play local wi-fi multiplayer games with other NDS players. MP3 and OGG music files sounds great, WMV video plays nicely as well as converted VOB data. You can even use the NDS as a wi-fi MIDI controller to your MAC or PC. This is a bucket-of-fun to say the least. Look to the future when HappyHarryNET_TV will post a music video using my NintendoDS as a MIDI controller to my Yamaha MOTIF XS during a recording session! Is that awesome or what!? And, to frost the cake there is a video chat cam coming to the NDS.
Well that's my NDS rant for now. Until I finish my Fire Emblem games, I won't be starting any new games on ANY platform. Keep checking my blogs for updates on this hot topic.
;;cheers;;
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