So apparently I have reached 40,000 tweets on Twitter. I’m surprised people aren’t like super annoyed of me.
Speaking of annoying…. I did pick one of these up.
Technology
Investing in Sound
I’ve wanted a better record player for ages. I had one of those 3-in-one box things that were a CD player, radio and vinyl player at the same time. The problem was that it often didn’t work well for new records because the needle weight couldn’t be adjusted. I usually would mend the problem by putting dimes and nickels on the needle but I came to the realization that it would not be healthy for my records as my collection started to grow. I headed to Planet of Sound for some help.
They were super helpful and was able to find a perfect player for my needs and price range. They’re super honest about quality (price doesn’t always mean it’s better etc). I ended up choosing the TEAC TN 300 which has a built in pre-amp and also the ability to connect to the computer via USB if I wish. Not to mention it’s beautiful.
Planet of Sound helped me set my needle weight, as well as put the belt on properly at no extra charge. I was afraid I’d break it if I did it myself.
I also bought a Harmon Kardon Aura speaker. It has both Bluetooth and Airplay wireless capabilities. I can also plug it into my new record player. It is perfect for me because I don’t live in a big apartment so this is super simple and the sound fills the entire room.
I am now prepared for the best of both worlds, analog and digital. I can’t wait to annoy my neighbours blasting Carly Rae Jepsen or Arcade Fire. Investing in systems to play all my music is so worth it.
Thoughts on Apple Music
Tomorrow is exactly 3 months from the day Apple Music first launch, so it means that those of us who signed up on the first day for the free trial will realize that it comes to an end and be charged $9.99/month if you don’t unsubscribe.
I decided to unsubscribe. To be honest, the only reason for my unsubscribing is a big one. I can’t use it in a browser. What both Spotify and Rdio have going for them are browser versions that I can use literally anywhere, including at work. To keep up with Apple Music means I have to keep an updated version of iTunes, which results in fighting with IT to let me download something that they might not deem worthwhile.
The interface and selection were great. Beats One has some interesting artists as guests, but all this goes to waste if it remains inaccessible to people who don’t have wifi at work (waste of data on phones and devices) or can’t download iTunes on their computer.
Moved Ride the Tempo to the Cloud
Over the past week, I moved Ride the Tempo to a Cloud. I don’t fully know what this means as I was hosted on a shared server on Bluehost before. I’m still on Bluehost but I made the switch to their Cloud service with not much variation in price.
I always thought everything hosted on the internet in general was already “on the cloud”. From what I understand, cloud hosting means that your stuff is mirrored on multiple machines so that if it goes down somewhere it will still be live elsewhere. That seemed like a plus to me as any downtime detracts people away.
It also allows for more files to be hosted on the server (unlimited is never really unlimited) and the load times are bit faster. There were a few glitches and 403s I had to work through that were a bit frustrating but now that it is finally up I can definitely see an improvement in speed.
I now welcome the Cloud!
Adventure Time Card Wars (iOS)
I caved and purchased the Adventure Time Card Wars game for $4.95. Despite it being a paid game there are still in game purchases such as heart energy and premium games. However the quality of the content is worth the more than 99cent price tag.
It plays a bit differently than physical card version. Attacks have a spinning wheel that are a little bit up to chance and effects that increase or decrease attack and defense stack.
There are a ton of cards in the game that can be earned in battle or discovered through treasure chests. Buying premium gems will give you rare cards, but you can get them with in game money as well so there isn’t a need to spend more than the original $4.95.
There are hundreds of levels and also a function to battle other random people. This is my favourite iPhone card game yet.
Twitterature
While having a mini adventure at BMV, I stumbled on this little book I had to have on my work desk (since I do social media as my day job). It is a collection of “Twitterature”: reworkings of recognizable books told in 20 tweets or fewer by the protagonist of the story.
Here’s an example:
That’s totally how Bilbo Baggins would tweet right?
It’s a funny book to have on your desk for quick entertainment.
My First Bunz Trade
I finally got invited to Bunz Trading Zone, a secret Facebook group where people trade their useless stuff for things they need. No money is allowed. The philosophy behind it is that things aren’t really worth their money value if they are not being used.
One of my first posts was for my Smithers minifigs. I wrote “Have 3 Smithers need to get rid of 2.” I got an overwhelming number of responses. It’s amazing how many people will reply if you post anything, even empty bottles. Your garbage is someone else’s treasure.
I traded one of the Smithers for this today. An Ionix Ash in the box. I wouldn’t have even know this existed if it weren’t offered to me. Now I can’t wait to build it!
The other Smithers trade will happen over the weekend along with something else. I am just so excited with the possibility of treasure trading! This is so much fun.
Growing Up and Claiming My Name
Back when I was young teenager, I created the moniker “teepoo” so I could play online games, go on forums and just for general anonymity. Those aren’t things I really care about anymore and I’ve become more open and transparent about the person I am. I’ve slowly been dropping the username from everything, claiming my own name as bi-line for everything I do on social media.
So, you may have noticed that my main tumblr account is now tianafeng.tumblr.com as opposed to “teepoo.tumblr.com”. I was previously using my name for my photography tumblr but for general copyright reasons, I decided that Flickr (and partially this blog) will be the home for my photos. I’ve gotten to the point where uncompensated exposure isn’t something I need anymore, plus it takes time to post photos in so many different places. I love having one (tumblr) account that accumulates all the content I create and collect, so therefore I decided to make the relatively painless switch.
I’ve already changed Ride the Tempo to show real bi-lines around 2 years ago. I became comfortable with my own writing enough that I no longer needed to hide behind a fake name, and I encouraged all my contributors to do the same. Now it’s relatively normal (in the past few years anyway) to have your real name everywhere and if you don’t, people can figure out your true identity if they really wanted to. I’m not ashamed of the things I post, nor do I post anything that I wouldn’t want certain people reading. If you google my name, it’s all things I’m relatively proud of or I would have never hit publish. There’s nothing wrong with filling up the Google Search with things that highlight positive things about me when people search my name!
What do you think about names online? Do you use your own?
Comfy at Home
Lately, I’ve been loving any time that I can spend home in my apartment. My summer’s been so crazy busy with events that any time at home is so relaxing. I’ve also been consciously trying to spend less time on screens while not at work. Of course I’ve still been blogging but I’ve also been finding hobbies that solely take place offline like building things out of Lego or Playdoh. It’s amazing how relaxing both these things are when you get into it. You don’t have to think much but about the project at hand.
It’s a great way to also to encourage my other art projects again. I do still wish I drew/painted/doodled more and I do want to make my way to those eventually. It’s shocking how much time you do have to do things when you spend less of it staring into (space) a screen.
An app for when you poop
Did you know there is an app for chatting with people when you poop? It’s called Pooductive and I tried it when I was doing my business today.
It is mostly super awkward. People mostly ask you how your poop was and where you are from. Technology is really weird right?
Tiana Feng 