Music Magic!?

So, about a month ago I told you about how I was shocked to find out that Shazam is now charging for tags. Ouch! Well after some searching, I discovered that they have a new version of the app for a one time fee of $4.99 that will give you unlimited tags. I can live with that!

Now some of you are probably wondering why I’m making all the fuss – what’s Shazam, and why do I care so much? So, the quick answer: it’s like Google for songs…truly music magic! Shazam “tags” a song you are listening to and tells you who the artist is, the name of the song, and if applicable, the album on which it's released. Now you probably want to know what “tagging” is and how Shazam does it!

First, tagging. In Shazam, tagging is the process for creating a unique identifier for a song. Shazam has a proprietary method for creating these unique identifiers, called tags.

Next, how Shazam does it. They have a database of millions of songs they have already tagged. By taking a 15-20 second recording (they say they really only need 5 seconds) of the song you’re listening to they can create a tag and match it to a song in their database. Impressive? It gets better.

The first version of Shazam was free. It had to be free because if it wasn’t, I would not have bought it. I wouldn’t have believed it could be so accurate if I hadn’t experienced using it first. I got so addicted to it! I was constantly showing it off every time someone asked me, “Hey CJ, what’s your favorite app?” I used it on multiple genres of music: R&B, hip hop, jazz, country, rock, house, etc. - and in multiple listening environments. The most amazing experience was when it accurately tagged the background music playing in a busy TGI Friday’s!

Since I’ve made 2010 the year I adhere to a spending plan (some of you might call this a budget, yet that feels to restrictive so I call it my spending. This has helped a lot!), the idea of a few bucks going on a credit card or coming out of my checking account every month sets off an alarm. If I was going to be asked to pay Shazam $3.99/mo, I’m immediately wandering what app is next? These little incremental charges will add up and potentially become a significant monthly expense. Glad, this isn’t happening yet.

So, I’m willing to pay for Shazam because it works and I love it! And for all you non-iPhone users that have versions for Nokia, Blackberry, and Android.

Knowledge the ultimate fashion accessory,
GoGadgetGurl!™

Interview Series: My Gurls and their gadgets!

Since I’m always talking about me, I decided to find out from my friends and inspirational women (of course, some of my friends are inspirational women ;) how their personal gadgets and technology has enhanced their careers, relationships, and passions.
So, first up is a conversation with one of my best friends, Joanne, a high school math teacher and entrepreneur. It’s amazing to me, but some of my friends don’t think of themselves as “gadget gurls”. Yet I see them using tech gadgets and other technology in multiple areas of their lives. So, you’ll see in the questions I posed it took a little coaxing with Joanne but her passion for her tech gadgets came alive….

GGG: Why do you like your Mac Book? Has it changed how you watch TV? ;)
Jo: I love my MACBOOK! I watch my dvd/movies on it as well as catch up on my Ugly Betty if I miss an episode.

GGG: How does it make your life easier or better?
Jo: iWork.com has made my life much easier! I no longer have to save a file as a particular type and then attach. I can just upload, choose types for downloading, and send a link. I also like iPhoto for its accessibility and user friendliness. Everything on MAC acts, behaves, and responds so intuitively!

GGG: Do you use technology in the classroom? How does it affect the educational experience? Does it enhance it?
Jo: I use Geometer's Sketchpad, TI-84 Graphing Calculators, Fathom Dynamic Data Software, and CAHSEE PREP software. I use the two listed every class session. I also use an LCD projector to display and guide my students through the investigations we’re doing. If I find somewhere where I've already written how technology enhances my curriculum, I'll send it to you. It's not a short answer and I'm sure I have it written up somewhere for a grant.

GGG: Do you have any ideas on how you would like to use technology in the classroom? Either things you have seen or ideas you have but have yet to see implemented?
Jo: YES YES YES.... will send response later.... also a long one.

GGG: Switching gears... I know you and your parents video chat sometimes, how or why did you start? Has it caught on with other family members and/or friends?
Jo: I started because of the renovations on our house.... wanted to share them with my mom and dad. My cousin started too because of the same reason... I encouraged her to iChat me in to show me the house.... she's anti-computer for the most part but now loves it. Although, now she wants to do it with me all the time and I don't have that kinda time. I also don't see a need for iChat as opposed to chatting on the phone with her, unless she literally has something to show me.

GGG: I know you're a huge fan of soccer :) And you often watch your nephews games on the Internet. Tell me more about that experience?
Jo: CRAP!!!! Just recently I found out that lots of the games I want to see are offered through an online streaming site (actually, there are lots of them) that you can pay a small fee (like $40/year) but the U.S. is blocked out from access!!!!! Other countries, no problem. What Crap!!!! I do use espn360.com to view some of the games, including my nephew's games, and I used the remote access option to set it up so my mom and dad could use my password and watch on their mac at home (there's some flash plug in something or other that had to be loaded on the computer first and my mom couldn't get it to work so i just did remote access and gave her my password). I'm also pissed that sometimes I can't watch accselect.com on my computer for the same reason... something about a plug in that I couldn't figure out!

Anyone know a good Subscription Aggregator?

I just discovered Shaazam is now charging a monthly fee to tag over 5 times a month! If all my apps are going to start charging me a fee I'm going to need a payment aggregator to manage all these little subscriptions...hmm...I wonder if anyone has done that? Gotta go get my search on....

Nails or Nubs (that is Resistive or Capacitive)...

I’m always amazed by what I learn when I ask a simple question. Recently I was at my fiancé's annual holiday gala, and one of his friend’s mentioned he bought his wife an iPod Touch. So, I asked her, “How do you like your iPod Touch?” She said, “I can’t use it because of my nails.” She lifted her right hand above the table to reveal beautiful long artificial french manicured nails. And she added, “I prefer phones that have a stylus.” And I immediately thought that’s the difference for us between resistive touch (stylus or pressure sensitive) screens or capacitive sensing (finger or conductive) touch screens. Being a diva that prefers short nails and sometimes nubs, this limitation had never crossed my mind. Back at Cal when I first started taking my major requirements (my major was computer science). One of the first things I learned was long nails were going to prevent me from getting out of the computer lab early. I had a study partner that had long artificial nails and I watched her painstakingly (I think it was more painstaking for me to be watching, waiting on her) peck the keys very slowly so she wouldn’t press more than one key, which often happened, when she tried to use the soft part of her finger. She decided computer science wasn’t the right major for her.

Fast forward to now and women with nails have options. At the dinner table, I wondered out loud, mostly in a conversation with her husband since he’s the gadget geek (I think he probably really bought the iPod Touch for himself), is it possible to develop a screen that can switch between capacitive and resistive, finger or stylus. In doing some research, there isn’t an obvious solution, but I’m sure given a significant consumer demand it isn’t impossible to design or approximate. I also discovered you can buy a stylus for the iPhone or iPod Touch. It is called a conductive stylus. Like the human body which is conductive (i.e. we can hold an electric charge, think static electricity), this stylus is designed to hold a charge and act like a finger when used on the screen. Ah! Very cool.

I love learning something new every day. I’m going tell him to get her a conductive stylus for Christmas, she just might enjoy putting some cool apps on her iPod Touch.

GoGadgetGurl!
"Knowlege the ultimate fashion accessory!"

GoGadgetGurl is Back!!!

Yes, I'm back! I was inspired when I saw the last page of the October O list 2009. Unfortunately, there isn’t an online version of the last page. So, what’s so great about it? It’s a whole page of cool gadgets! I love it! There is a a cool Sony VAIO netbook, the new Apple iPod Shuffle (that is now voice activated!), the new iHome Stereo speakers for the new iPod Nano, the Canon Selphy photo printer, the Flip MinoHD video camera, and a fully functional digital replica of a vintage Rolleiflex. Next O Magazine should hire me to review these cool products. Anyone know the editor?

Of all the gadgets, the one I’ll get is the Canon Selphy CP780 Silver Compact Photo Printer. I have a couple of pics in iPhoto that I want to print and haven’t because it’s isn’t quick and easy. A few years back, I bought my Mom a Kodak EasyShare printer for her digital camera and she took to it like a pro. She loved taking photos with her Kodak digital camera, coming home printing them, and immediately framing them. She printed copies for everyone else too -- neighbors, family, and friends, anyone that would come over. I was always being surprised by who had a picture of me. It was like she got the ultimate school picture package! Oh! Am I dating myself?! They probably offer school picture packages on CD now.

Seriously, seeing this page of tech gadgets in O Magazine is the reason why I started GoGagdgetGurl. I don’t see reviews and articles about the phones, digital cameras, and music players we are using daily in the womens’ magazines I read. They have changed our lives in amazing ways. I want to read about these stories and learn about the cool gadgets our girlfriends are using.

So stay tuned....I’ll tell you all about the my new little photo printer :)

Knowledge the ultimate fashion accessory!