Wrote this just now... Deeply personal; I've never opened up this much.
---
Can't sleep; mind spinning. Prayerfully consdering my future. Is this God's will or just a dream I have? Will anyone understand?
Injustice, poverty, depression; these things break God's heart. They MUST break our hearts also. A gospel that does not compel people to love unconditionally, as Christ did, is pointless. Religion that does not compel us to seek justice & peace is dead.
My dream is to open a coffee house, a place where I can share God's love with everyone I meet. Through music; through literature; through art; through open discussion with people of all worldviews; through a simple smile and a cup of coffee.
This world needs Christ, and I'm called to share His love.
God, is this Your will, or just my own dream?
☮ ♥ ☺
Thursday, September 03, 2009
My Dream
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Art, The Church, and John Milton
As a student in the Department of Mass Communication and Mass Media, my studies include a history of media in America. In fact, I'm taking an entire course in which I focus solely on the history of the media.
Interestingly enough, John Milton is mentioned in the very first chapter of my textbook. John Milton is a familiar name amongst literature buffs and historians alike. Before learning about him in this class, my first thought when I heard Milton's name would have been Paradise Lost, hands down. It would be hard to think of a more epic piece of poetry than Paradise Lost (I'm sure someone will get smart and prove me wrong, but I stand my ground when I say that it's a spectacular piece of poetry).
It is important to take into consideration the social and religious context in which this piece was written. Milton wrote Areopagitica in direct response to the "powers-that-be" who would not let him circulate a pamphlet he had written about divorce.
What is most interesting is that Milton did not approach freedom of expression and freedom of press from a political viewpoint; he approached it from a religious perspective. His entire debate was theological:
As I studied this, it struck me as oddly ironic. When I think of Protestants and Catholics today, it seems these stances have been reversed. When I think of Christians, and I think of art and culture, I see far more Protestants staging an uprising against the arts than Catholics. Today, I believe Catholics embrace the arts much more fully than many evangelical protestant churches. Thomas Merton, a Catholic writer, wrote in his book, New Seeds of Contemplation:
By rejecting some art, simply because it doesn't completely align with their ideologies and worldviews, are many Christians missing out on opportunities to learn more about God through that art? After all, we're all created in His image.
Interestingly enough, John Milton is mentioned in the very first chapter of my textbook. John Milton is a familiar name amongst literature buffs and historians alike. Before learning about him in this class, my first thought when I heard Milton's name would have been Paradise Lost, hands down. It would be hard to think of a more epic piece of poetry than Paradise Lost (I'm sure someone will get smart and prove me wrong, but I stand my ground when I say that it's a spectacular piece of poetry).
What I had not heard of before (I must have slept through that history lecture) was his work, Areopagitica, which is available in its entirety online. In this work, Milton provides one of the most incredible arguments for freedom of speech and press ever written. In fact, when America's founding fathers prepared to write our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain, John Milton and John Locke were two of Jefferson's biggest influences. We owe Milton our gratitude for the inclusion of freedom of speech and press; nevertheless, I digress.
It is important to take into consideration the social and religious context in which this piece was written. Milton wrote Areopagitica in direct response to the "powers-that-be" who would not let him circulate a pamphlet he had written about divorce.
What is most interesting is that Milton did not approach freedom of expression and freedom of press from a political viewpoint; he approached it from a religious perspective. His entire debate was theological:
As good almost kill a man as kill a good book: who kills a man kills a reasonable creature, God's image; but he who destroys a good book, kills reason itself, kills the image of God, as it were, in the eye.Milton firmly believed that it was God's will for people to be free to discuss and publish whatever they wished. This desire for freedom of expression is important because of the fact that Milton was a Protestant Christian. In his day, Protestants wished to separate themselves from Catholic Christians by being more tolerant of opinions that differed from their own. In a time when the Catholic Church was banning books left and right, the Protestants of Milton's time wished to support the arts, even if it meant allowing the publication of ideas that opposed their own beliefs.
As I studied this, it struck me as oddly ironic. When I think of Protestants and Catholics today, it seems these stances have been reversed. When I think of Christians, and I think of art and culture, I see far more Protestants staging an uprising against the arts than Catholics. Today, I believe Catholics embrace the arts much more fully than many evangelical protestant churches. Thomas Merton, a Catholic writer, wrote in his book, New Seeds of Contemplation:
Better to be known first as a good artist than as a "Christian" artist, as your good art can lend credibility to your witness, while explicit art done poorly is more likely to disparage your witness.
By rejecting some art, simply because it doesn't completely align with their ideologies and worldviews, are many Christians missing out on opportunities to learn more about God through that art? After all, we're all created in His image.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
iPhone Apps
With the new iPhone 3G S launching in just eight days, now would be a good time to do what all iPhone owners/bloggers must eventually do: write about his or her favorite iPhone applications. This will serve two purposes. First, I want to share with the blogosphere what apps I use and I why I use them. Secondly, my parents are getting iPhone 3G S - their first iPhones. This will be their very own quick-start guide to useful and fun apps.
Apple Apps
It is important to become familiar with the Apple apps that are available on iPhone when you get the device. If you're already familiar with the Apple apps included on the iPhone, click here to continue to my App Store recommendations.
Calendar.app is very useful, miniature version of iCal for Mac OS X. It allows you to view your calendar by list, day or month. You can set up multiple calendars (Personal, Work, School, Church) and filter them if you like. Quickly add events, giving them custom titles, locations, starting and ending times. You can also set an alarm to remind yourself of the event. I believe Google has now set up their Google Calendar to sync with iPhone also, although I have not tried this yet.
Mail.app can be set up to sync multiple e-mail accounts, including Microsoft Exchange, MobileMe, Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, and AOL. Most useful for me are Gmail and Yahoo! Mail; however, I've used Gmail exclusively for years.
Camera.app and Photos.app work together seamlessly to provide one of the best photography experiences available on a mobile phone. Camera.app is extremely easy to use, self-explanatory, and receiving a significant update with the release of iPhone 3G S. You can access your "Camera Roll," containing all of the photos you've taken directly from Camera.app. This opens Photos.app. All of your Camera.app photos go directly into Camera Roll within Photos.app, and you can set up additional folders in Photos.app to sync through iTunes.
I use Maps.app frequently, as it is the quickest way to easily find a business phone number. In addition to the standard features you would expect from a map application, you can place calls and add contacts directly from Maps.app. The new compass application for iPhone 3G S will also bring many new features to Maps.app, allowing for turn by turn directions and true GPS.
Clock.app serves as a world clock, alarm clock, stopwatch, and timer. Once again, this is very self-explanatory. I use Clock.app as my alarm clock every day (or at least every day that I remember to set my alarm!)
YouTube.app brings full YouTube functionality to iPhone. While it was decent before iPhone OS 3.0 (which I'm now using, thanks to @toxinide), YouTube.app will soon have many new features. YouTube.app now allows you to sign into your own YouTube account, gives you access to your YouTube favorites, and will allow for direct YouTube uploads from your new iPhone 3G S's video camera.
Stocks.app remains fairly unused by most iPhone users, but it received an upgrade in iPhone OS 3.0 also. I like to use it to track how my favorite (and least favorite) companies are doing economically. I track AAPL, DELL, YHOO, LOGI, T, SNE, MSFT, WMT, DIS, and MMM.
Weather.app is a quick way to check the six-day forecast for multiple locations. It shows the current temperature, accompanied by an attractive visual symbol of the current conditions (rainy, sunny, storms, cloudy). I had high hopes that Weather.app would receive an update in OS 3.0, allowing you to view more details in landscape mode, but no such luck.
That's a quick rundown on most of the included Apple apps.
Assorted Apps
USA Today (free) is my favorite source for news on the iPhone. In the app, you have access to headlines from the Top News, Money, Sports, Life, Tech and Travel categories. Each category has sub-categories of news with each article available in its entirety. From each article, you can share the story via e-mail, text, Twitter or Facebook. The app also has a weather page with a brief forecast and still image radar map. You can access the current day's NFL, MLB, NHL, NCAAF and NCAAB schedules and scores. All of the popular "Day in Pictures" categories from the website are available, plus all the graphs and charts that make USA Today so popular. Overall, this is an outstanding, feature-packed little free app.
Restaurant Nutrition (free) is a very handy tool for finding nutrition facts for several restaurants. The developers update it with new restaurants frequently.
AP Mobile News Network (free) is my source for local news. All of the biggest headlines from my local papers, Daily American Republic and Southeast Missourian, come straight down the AP wire and land right here in this handy little iPhone app. This app also serves as a huge source of national and internation news from the Associated Press. It now features weather forecasts and a fast loading still image radar map from AccuWeather.com
Remote (free) is a handy little app, designed by the gurus at Apple, which allows me to control iTunes from anywhere within my wireless network. Unfortunately for my parents, it is only compatible with Mac; they could control my iTunes, but not their own.
WeDict ($5.99) used to be free, and I'm really glad I picked it up when I did. This is the best electronic dictionary I've ever used, and I find myself looking up words daily.
Shovel (free) provides a native app for viewing the top stories from the popular social news website, Digg. This makes it a quick and easy source for Apple, Mac, and iPhone news on the go for me. If you are a Digg user, or simply like browsing articles on various subjects, Shovel is an excellent source.
Movies (free) is an app provided by Flixster which allows users to view box office information, local theater listings, DVD releases, and movie reviews.
Wikipanion (free) is the best native Wikipedia app available for iPhone. The Wikipedia website can be viewed in Safari.app, but it's hard to see and not very iPhone friendly. Never fear, Wikipanion searches Wikipedia as you type and displays Wikipedia entries as they should look, complete with links. The Wikipanion interface is nothing short of perfection, allowing you to save the pictures you find on Wikipedia in Photos.app.
Bible (free) is the best Bible app I've found for iPhone, with the added benefit of the excellent price. There are several translations available offline, with even more available online. It is fully searchable, and has all of my favorite translations: NIV, ESV, NLT, NKJV, The Message. It features a daily reading plan to allow you to read the entire Bible in a year, allows for bookmarking passages, and has small, medium, large, extra large and giant font sizes.
Shazam (free) is the popular little app seen on television that lets you record 10 seconds of a song and magically analyzes the clip to reveal the title and artist. You can store songs that you've tagged however long you'd like, and many songs give you direct links to download the song from iTunes, watch videos from YouTube, and access a biography and discography of the artist or band.
Backgrounds (free) has a nice little iPhone interface for finding new wallpapers for your phone, broken up into categories. Easily save new backgrounds and set them as your wallpaper or assign them to contacts.
Google Earth (free) gives you the same features as the desktop version, on your iPhone.
Sports Apps
Sometimes, USA Today's sports information is not enough -- perhaps you're looking for a full schedule or real-time updates on a game. That's where these apps come in handy.
Sportacular (free) offers updates and standings for 17 different sports, sports news, team specific updates, and stats. Scores auto-update every 30 seconds, and I love the play by play updates. This app has several international sports updates available.
SportsTap (free) is missing some of the international sports, but I still prefer it over Sportacular. The live play by play updates are better in this app, and the main menu displays how many games are in progress for each sport. It has tennis updates, which are highly important to this sports fan. Another great feature is the build in "LocalTap" which finds local sports within 50, 100, or 200 miles from your current location. A quick tap gave me Arkansas St., SIU, SEMO, and Tennessee sports. All data refreshes automatically. These features make SportsTap my favorite iPhone sports app, hands down.
Weather Apps
As far as weather apps go, these are the best free options. Some of the nicest paid weather apps have more features, but the prices jump by large increments. I recommend you try as many free weather apps as you can find and use the ones that suit your tastes.
AccuWeather (free)is a great little weather app; it's not necessarily always my weather source of choice, but it is probably my weather app of choice, at least aesthetically - more about that later.
AccuWeather gives the current temperature, as well as the "RealFeel" heat index. Also readily available are humidity percentages, pressure levels, and wind information. You can access hourly and 5-day forecasts; UV, air quality, arthritis and flu indices. Both still and animated radars are available. Videos are available, but they work best on wifi. I really like AccuWeather's risk meters which include t-storm, rain, snow, ice, wind and fog. The app also provides weather alerts, watches, and warnings.
The Weather Channel (free) is, of course, the app from the big boys themselves. This one is nice too: hourly, 36 hour and 10 day forecasts; wind, humidity, UV index, visibility, sunrise and sunset times; video; severe weather alerts. Overall, I don't think this is as feature rich as AccuWeather, but it does have a few things AccuWeather doesn't have - most notably, the radar is laid over an attractive Google Map.
WeatherBug (free) comes to you without all of the bugs, crashes and spyware which have always been the highlight of my desktop WeatherBug experiences. Decent app with maps from Microsoft Virtual Earth that can be overlaid with radar, satellite or temperatures. Not a bad app, but certainly not my first choice. Aesthetically, this is possibly one of the worst apps of its type.
WeatherEye (free) is yet another weather application. Its features are fairly standard for iPhone weather apps.
Social Networking
Twitterrific (free) is my favorite Twitter client for iPhone. Everybody tells me Tweetie is the best, but with the Twitterrific 2.0 version that's available now, I like this more than Tweetie. If you're a Twitter fanatic, get this app!
Facebook (free) - This is pretty obvious - the Facebook app for iPhone. Every Facebook user needs this app. It's not fully featured, and is in drastic need of an update (no update since the most recent update of the full version), but it is quite nice.
MySpace Mobile (free) - I don't use MySpace, but my mom (@mrsclanahan) will want this app. Poor design and mediocrity define MySpace Mobile, but that's par for the course when it comes to MySpace. At any rate, here it is...
These are just a few of my favorite iPhone apps. Check back later for an update, detailing my favorite iPhone games!
Apple Apps
It is important to become familiar with the Apple apps that are available on iPhone when you get the device. If you're already familiar with the Apple apps included on the iPhone, click here to continue to my App Store recommendations.
Calendar.app is very useful, miniature version of iCal for Mac OS X. It allows you to view your calendar by list, day or month. You can set up multiple calendars (Personal, Work, School, Church) and filter them if you like. Quickly add events, giving them custom titles, locations, starting and ending times. You can also set an alarm to remind yourself of the event. I believe Google has now set up their Google Calendar to sync with iPhone also, although I have not tried this yet.
Mail.app can be set up to sync multiple e-mail accounts, including Microsoft Exchange, MobileMe, Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, and AOL. Most useful for me are Gmail and Yahoo! Mail; however, I've used Gmail exclusively for years.
Camera.app and Photos.app work together seamlessly to provide one of the best photography experiences available on a mobile phone. Camera.app is extremely easy to use, self-explanatory, and receiving a significant update with the release of iPhone 3G S. You can access your "Camera Roll," containing all of the photos you've taken directly from Camera.app. This opens Photos.app. All of your Camera.app photos go directly into Camera Roll within Photos.app, and you can set up additional folders in Photos.app to sync through iTunes.
I use Maps.app frequently, as it is the quickest way to easily find a business phone number. In addition to the standard features you would expect from a map application, you can place calls and add contacts directly from Maps.app. The new compass application for iPhone 3G S will also bring many new features to Maps.app, allowing for turn by turn directions and true GPS.
Clock.app serves as a world clock, alarm clock, stopwatch, and timer. Once again, this is very self-explanatory. I use Clock.app as my alarm clock every day (or at least every day that I remember to set my alarm!)
YouTube.app brings full YouTube functionality to iPhone. While it was decent before iPhone OS 3.0 (which I'm now using, thanks to @toxinide), YouTube.app will soon have many new features. YouTube.app now allows you to sign into your own YouTube account, gives you access to your YouTube favorites, and will allow for direct YouTube uploads from your new iPhone 3G S's video camera.
Stocks.app remains fairly unused by most iPhone users, but it received an upgrade in iPhone OS 3.0 also. I like to use it to track how my favorite (and least favorite) companies are doing economically. I track AAPL, DELL, YHOO, LOGI, T, SNE, MSFT, WMT, DIS, and MMM.
Weather.app is a quick way to check the six-day forecast for multiple locations. It shows the current temperature, accompanied by an attractive visual symbol of the current conditions (rainy, sunny, storms, cloudy). I had high hopes that Weather.app would receive an update in OS 3.0, allowing you to view more details in landscape mode, but no such luck.
That's a quick rundown on most of the included Apple apps.
Assorted Apps
USA Today (free) is my favorite source for news on the iPhone. In the app, you have access to headlines from the Top News, Money, Sports, Life, Tech and Travel categories. Each category has sub-categories of news with each article available in its entirety. From each article, you can share the story via e-mail, text, Twitter or Facebook. The app also has a weather page with a brief forecast and still image radar map. You can access the current day's NFL, MLB, NHL, NCAAF and NCAAB schedules and scores. All of the popular "Day in Pictures" categories from the website are available, plus all the graphs and charts that make USA Today so popular. Overall, this is an outstanding, feature-packed little free app. Restaurant Nutrition (free) is a very handy tool for finding nutrition facts for several restaurants. The developers update it with new restaurants frequently. AP Mobile News Network (free) is my source for local news. All of the biggest headlines from my local papers, Daily American Republic and Southeast Missourian, come straight down the AP wire and land right here in this handy little iPhone app. This app also serves as a huge source of national and internation news from the Associated Press. It now features weather forecasts and a fast loading still image radar map from AccuWeather.com Remote (free) is a handy little app, designed by the gurus at Apple, which allows me to control iTunes from anywhere within my wireless network. Unfortunately for my parents, it is only compatible with Mac; they could control my iTunes, but not their own. WeDict ($5.99) used to be free, and I'm really glad I picked it up when I did. This is the best electronic dictionary I've ever used, and I find myself looking up words daily. Shovel (free) provides a native app for viewing the top stories from the popular social news website, Digg. This makes it a quick and easy source for Apple, Mac, and iPhone news on the go for me. If you are a Digg user, or simply like browsing articles on various subjects, Shovel is an excellent source. Movies (free) is an app provided by Flixster which allows users to view box office information, local theater listings, DVD releases, and movie reviews. Wikipanion (free) is the best native Wikipedia app available for iPhone. The Wikipedia website can be viewed in Safari.app, but it's hard to see and not very iPhone friendly. Never fear, Wikipanion searches Wikipedia as you type and displays Wikipedia entries as they should look, complete with links. The Wikipanion interface is nothing short of perfection, allowing you to save the pictures you find on Wikipedia in Photos.app. Bible (free) is the best Bible app I've found for iPhone, with the added benefit of the excellent price. There are several translations available offline, with even more available online. It is fully searchable, and has all of my favorite translations: NIV, ESV, NLT, NKJV, The Message. It features a daily reading plan to allow you to read the entire Bible in a year, allows for bookmarking passages, and has small, medium, large, extra large and giant font sizes. Shazam (free) is the popular little app seen on television that lets you record 10 seconds of a song and magically analyzes the clip to reveal the title and artist. You can store songs that you've tagged however long you'd like, and many songs give you direct links to download the song from iTunes, watch videos from YouTube, and access a biography and discography of the artist or band. Backgrounds (free) has a nice little iPhone interface for finding new wallpapers for your phone, broken up into categories. Easily save new backgrounds and set them as your wallpaper or assign them to contacts. Google Earth (free) gives you the same features as the desktop version, on your iPhone.Sports Apps
Sometimes, USA Today's sports information is not enough -- perhaps you're looking for a full schedule or real-time updates on a game. That's where these apps come in handy.
Sportacular (free) offers updates and standings for 17 different sports, sports news, team specific updates, and stats. Scores auto-update every 30 seconds, and I love the play by play updates. This app has several international sports updates available. SportsTap (free) is missing some of the international sports, but I still prefer it over Sportacular. The live play by play updates are better in this app, and the main menu displays how many games are in progress for each sport. It has tennis updates, which are highly important to this sports fan. Another great feature is the build in "LocalTap" which finds local sports within 50, 100, or 200 miles from your current location. A quick tap gave me Arkansas St., SIU, SEMO, and Tennessee sports. All data refreshes automatically. These features make SportsTap my favorite iPhone sports app, hands down.Weather Apps
As far as weather apps go, these are the best free options. Some of the nicest paid weather apps have more features, but the prices jump by large increments. I recommend you try as many free weather apps as you can find and use the ones that suit your tastes.
AccuWeather (free)is a great little weather app; it's not necessarily always my weather source of choice, but it is probably my weather app of choice, at least aesthetically - more about that later.AccuWeather gives the current temperature, as well as the "RealFeel" heat index. Also readily available are humidity percentages, pressure levels, and wind information. You can access hourly and 5-day forecasts; UV, air quality, arthritis and flu indices. Both still and animated radars are available. Videos are available, but they work best on wifi. I really like AccuWeather's risk meters which include t-storm, rain, snow, ice, wind and fog. The app also provides weather alerts, watches, and warnings.
The Weather Channel (free) is, of course, the app from the big boys themselves. This one is nice too: hourly, 36 hour and 10 day forecasts; wind, humidity, UV index, visibility, sunrise and sunset times; video; severe weather alerts. Overall, I don't think this is as feature rich as AccuWeather, but it does have a few things AccuWeather doesn't have - most notably, the radar is laid over an attractive Google Map. WeatherBug (free) comes to you without all of the bugs, crashes and spyware which have always been the highlight of my desktop WeatherBug experiences. Decent app with maps from Microsoft Virtual Earth that can be overlaid with radar, satellite or temperatures. Not a bad app, but certainly not my first choice. Aesthetically, this is possibly one of the worst apps of its type. WeatherEye (free) is yet another weather application. Its features are fairly standard for iPhone weather apps.Social Networking
Twitterrific (free) is my favorite Twitter client for iPhone. Everybody tells me Tweetie is the best, but with the Twitterrific 2.0 version that's available now, I like this more than Tweetie. If you're a Twitter fanatic, get this app! Facebook (free) - This is pretty obvious - the Facebook app for iPhone. Every Facebook user needs this app. It's not fully featured, and is in drastic need of an update (no update since the most recent update of the full version), but it is quite nice. MySpace Mobile (free) - I don't use MySpace, but my mom (@mrsclanahan) will want this app. Poor design and mediocrity define MySpace Mobile, but that's par for the course when it comes to MySpace. At any rate, here it is...These are just a few of my favorite iPhone apps. Check back later for an update, detailing my favorite iPhone games!
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Apple announces new iPhone 3G S
Apple kicked off their Worldwide Developers' Conference (WWDC) yesterday, much to the excitement of Apple enthusiasts everywhere. Apple refers to WWDC as "the premier technical event for developers and IT professionals innovating with Apple platforms," and have they ever proven it this year!
Phil Schiller led this year's keynote address because Steve Jobs is on medical leave until later this month; however, this did not diminish the magic that only Apple can create. Phil first introduced several upgrades to the MacBook and MacBook Pro lines, most significantly boosting the 13" MacBook to MacBook Pro status by increasing the specs. The new 13" MacBook Pro is incredibly low in price, at just $1199. The MacBook Air received in a bump in specs as well, in addition to a $700 price cut.
Apple then went on to demonstrate their new operating system, Snow Leopard, which touts some incredible new features. It will be available in September. The company wants Leopard users to upgrade and take advantage of the amazing new features so badly that upgrades will cost only $29. This may hurt Microsoft, whose Windows 7 operating system, will launch on Oct. 22 at the same prices as Vista. Apple's head of software engineering, Bertrand Serlet, even took a quick jab at the company during the keynote, saying, "What a big hole Microsoft has dug... They're trying to get out of it with Windows 7 [but] it's the same old technology as Vista. Fundamentally, it's just another version of Vista." ... And we all know how we geeks feel about Microsoft's most recent excuse for an operating system.
And for most of us, the biggest announcement of the day was the new iPhone 3G S, to be released in just a week and a half, on June 19. The phone will function at twice the speed of the current iPhone 3G, sports more storage (up to 32 GB), and has a better battery. The camera has been improved and will be video-capable, featuring both video recording and editing - could this challenge the Flip Mino? I think so! With direct upload to YouTube, e-mail and MMS capabilites (yes, Apple has added that too!), the iPhone is now a serious contender amongst digital video recording devices. The camera will also have auto-focus, auto-white balancing, and macro settings. The prices for iPhone are now iPhone 3G 8 GB $99, iPhone 3G 16 GB $149, iPhone 3G S 16 GB $199, and iPhone 3G S 32 GB $299.
Also touted amongst new features were a digital compass that will play nice with Google Maps, allowing the map to orient itself based on which direction you are facing. Voice controls will allow for hands-free operation, including voice dialing and complete iTunes control.
The new iPhone OS 3.0 launches June 17, and I've already gotten my hands on the Gold Master developers' release which Apple pushed out to developers yesterday. Thanks very much to @toxinide! I will be installing it this evening and will blog again later with my thoughts.
Who will be standing in line at midnight to get his new iPhone 3G S? That's right -- THIS geek definitely will!
Phil Schiller led this year's keynote address because Steve Jobs is on medical leave until later this month; however, this did not diminish the magic that only Apple can create. Phil first introduced several upgrades to the MacBook and MacBook Pro lines, most significantly boosting the 13" MacBook to MacBook Pro status by increasing the specs. The new 13" MacBook Pro is incredibly low in price, at just $1199. The MacBook Air received in a bump in specs as well, in addition to a $700 price cut.
Apple then went on to demonstrate their new operating system, Snow Leopard, which touts some incredible new features. It will be available in September. The company wants Leopard users to upgrade and take advantage of the amazing new features so badly that upgrades will cost only $29. This may hurt Microsoft, whose Windows 7 operating system, will launch on Oct. 22 at the same prices as Vista. Apple's head of software engineering, Bertrand Serlet, even took a quick jab at the company during the keynote, saying, "What a big hole Microsoft has dug... They're trying to get out of it with Windows 7 [but] it's the same old technology as Vista. Fundamentally, it's just another version of Vista." ... And we all know how we geeks feel about Microsoft's most recent excuse for an operating system.
And for most of us, the biggest announcement of the day was the new iPhone 3G S, to be released in just a week and a half, on June 19. The phone will function at twice the speed of the current iPhone 3G, sports more storage (up to 32 GB), and has a better battery. The camera has been improved and will be video-capable, featuring both video recording and editing - could this challenge the Flip Mino? I think so! With direct upload to YouTube, e-mail and MMS capabilites (yes, Apple has added that too!), the iPhone is now a serious contender amongst digital video recording devices. The camera will also have auto-focus, auto-white balancing, and macro settings. The prices for iPhone are now iPhone 3G 8 GB $99, iPhone 3G 16 GB $149, iPhone 3G S 16 GB $199, and iPhone 3G S 32 GB $299.
Also touted amongst new features were a digital compass that will play nice with Google Maps, allowing the map to orient itself based on which direction you are facing. Voice controls will allow for hands-free operation, including voice dialing and complete iTunes control.
The new iPhone OS 3.0 launches June 17, and I've already gotten my hands on the Gold Master developers' release which Apple pushed out to developers yesterday. Thanks very much to @toxinide! I will be installing it this evening and will blog again later with my thoughts.
Who will be standing in line at midnight to get his new iPhone 3G S? That's right -- THIS geek definitely will!
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Trying to decide
I haven't written recently. I think I haven't written because I'm torn about what to write. Up until now, this blog has been almost entirely personal, chronicling events that have occurred in the last five years of my life. That is all well and good, and it has been an excellent writing experience. Looking back now, I see things I can't believe I wrote -- things so poorly written that I am ashamed to call them my own. These musings have given my [very few] readers a glimpse at who I am by sharing the day to day events that have taken place in my life. Now, though, people who wish to keep up with those kinds of things can follow me on Twitter or add me on Facebook.
But, as everyone knows, I'm a multi-faceted individual. I am nothing more than the sum of my parts: my theology and beliefs, the music I listen to, the movies and television I watch, the games I play -- all of those things which influence my existence and make me the geek I am.
Here is where I am torn. Do I talk about all these things in one blog? If my goal is to gain more readers (and that is one of my goals), can I interest people in all of those things, or do I need to have a few, more focused blogs? This becomes exponentially more difficult when it comes to the topic of music; I enjoy an extremely diverse variety of music. My top three favorite genres, in no order, are acoustic/folk, progressive rock, and metal. The music I listen to at a given time depends on a variety of factors, such as who I've been around and what my current mood is. Should I -- could I -- talk about all of these things in one blog, or would I be better off splitting these topics into multiple blogs?
I haven't decided what I want to do yet. Recommendations?
But, as everyone knows, I'm a multi-faceted individual. I am nothing more than the sum of my parts: my theology and beliefs, the music I listen to, the movies and television I watch, the games I play -- all of those things which influence my existence and make me the geek I am.
Here is where I am torn. Do I talk about all these things in one blog? If my goal is to gain more readers (and that is one of my goals), can I interest people in all of those things, or do I need to have a few, more focused blogs? This becomes exponentially more difficult when it comes to the topic of music; I enjoy an extremely diverse variety of music. My top three favorite genres, in no order, are acoustic/folk, progressive rock, and metal. The music I listen to at a given time depends on a variety of factors, such as who I've been around and what my current mood is. Should I -- could I -- talk about all of these things in one blog, or would I be better off splitting these topics into multiple blogs?
I haven't decided what I want to do yet. Recommendations?
Friday, April 03, 2009
KDMC Looking For Disc Jockeys
The Southeast Missouri State University radio station, Rage 103.7, or KDMC, is home away from home for many up-and-coming disc jockeys.
As a low power FM radio station, KDMC only reaches listeners within an approximate five mile radius. According to the Federal Communications Commission website, the FCC introduced this new class of noncommercial radio stations in 2000.
Dr. Bruce Mims, faculty advisor and supervisor for the station, said, “As soon as congress approved low power FM stations, the department chair and I began making plans to apply for the license. It was a fairly lengthy process.”
That process involved having budgets approved, clearing the space necessary to house the station and purchasing the equipment, he said. The preparations took three years, but KDMC was ready to broadcast its first programming in August 2004.
Although KDMC may not be as far reaching as other local radio stations, it serves a niche audience – university students and faculty seeking alternative music, campus updates and relevant local news. In fact, Mims said that when applying for an LPFM license, “You’re expected to use that frequency to serve an underserved population,” making such stations ideal for universities.
Technologically, the only significant difference between KDMC and larger FM stations is the size of the transmitter, since LPFM stations are limited to 100 watts. The transmitter is located in Kent Library and connected to the studio in Grauel via fiber optic connection. The station uses the radio industry’s highest quality, most popular software, comparable to that of any large FM station, Mims says.
He also said that, “First and foremost, KDMC is a laboratory used for instruction.” More importantly, perhaps, it is used for experimentation. KDMC is often used to test new programming ideas in an attempt to reach listeners in new and exciting ways.
The station’s program director, Steven Northern, has already begun the task of training new radio personalities, giving students the chance to talk with experienced air-staff live on the radio. They also must receive instruction on how to run the various soundboards and software that allow the station to function.
In fact, students in Mims’ one credit hour course, introduction to radio, receive hands-on training and have the opportunity to become radio personalities. Additionally, Mims said, anyone interested in being a DJ for the station can do so on a voluntary basis after passing the same test required of Mims’ students.
As a low power FM radio station, KDMC only reaches listeners within an approximate five mile radius. According to the Federal Communications Commission website, the FCC introduced this new class of noncommercial radio stations in 2000.
Dr. Bruce Mims, faculty advisor and supervisor for the station, said, “As soon as congress approved low power FM stations, the department chair and I began making plans to apply for the license. It was a fairly lengthy process.”
That process involved having budgets approved, clearing the space necessary to house the station and purchasing the equipment, he said. The preparations took three years, but KDMC was ready to broadcast its first programming in August 2004.
Although KDMC may not be as far reaching as other local radio stations, it serves a niche audience – university students and faculty seeking alternative music, campus updates and relevant local news. In fact, Mims said that when applying for an LPFM license, “You’re expected to use that frequency to serve an underserved population,” making such stations ideal for universities.
Technologically, the only significant difference between KDMC and larger FM stations is the size of the transmitter, since LPFM stations are limited to 100 watts. The transmitter is located in Kent Library and connected to the studio in Grauel via fiber optic connection. The station uses the radio industry’s highest quality, most popular software, comparable to that of any large FM station, Mims says.
He also said that, “First and foremost, KDMC is a laboratory used for instruction.” More importantly, perhaps, it is used for experimentation. KDMC is often used to test new programming ideas in an attempt to reach listeners in new and exciting ways.
The station’s program director, Steven Northern, has already begun the task of training new radio personalities, giving students the chance to talk with experienced air-staff live on the radio. They also must receive instruction on how to run the various soundboards and software that allow the station to function.
In fact, students in Mims’ one credit hour course, introduction to radio, receive hands-on training and have the opportunity to become radio personalities. Additionally, Mims said, anyone interested in being a DJ for the station can do so on a voluntary basis after passing the same test required of Mims’ students.
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