In some ways, this is related to my previous blog-post, but I decided to dedicate a separate post to this.
I have a dilemma. Every proper household needs equipment that can be used to listen to music. We (that is, Mrs. and I) have none. Which is ironic, considering that we own more music than we have ever owned before. What do we have? Well, we have two radios and a laptop. And those aren't really ideal for this purpose. Yes, you can play back music through the laptop-speakers. But can you really LISTEN to music with it? Add to that the fact that the laptop is not ideally located for music-listening.
So we need something to listen to our music with. First thing would be to buy some speakers. Of course we need something that will play back/store our music. For this use we are looking at something like AppleTV or maybe Playstation 3. PS3 costs more, but it also does more, and it could replace our old DVD-player as well. But anyway, I mention those just to give you an idea what I'm looking for.
So, so far we have the speakers and the actual playback-device. We might also need an amplifier, in which we will hook up the speakers and the playback-device (although Genelecs are active speakers, they do not need apmlifier as such). This is optional in the beginning, but might come handy if we (for some reason) get more devices that need to use the speakers/television.
Since we are talking about devices that will hold thousands of songs (and video), it needs to be hooked up to a television for proper usage. But the thing is that my TV is an older model that does not properly work with AppleTV and other devices like it. So I would have to get a new television.
Could someone tell me how and when this thing got so damn complicated?!
I have bought few stereos in my life. And the process was relatively simple and exciting. I read the reviews and compared products. I went to the store, bought the components I wanted, put them together and I was all set. Now, if I want to upgrade, I need to upgrade everything!
Excitement is still there, but simplicity is nowhere to be found.
Granted, this problem is caused by the fact that I'm still on "old" technology (that is, tube-televison) which doesn't work with the "new" technology. If and when I buy in to the new technology, things should work quite smoothly. That is, until something new and better come along.
I have been planning this upgrade for few years now, and I guess I will be planning it for some more time. But I try to aim for longevity. The television? I could get one of those "HD-Ready"-televisions quite cheaply. But I think that FullHD has more legs in the long run. For speakers, I want Genelecs. The thing with Genelecs is that they might cost more, but they are so good and high quality, that you might not need to replace the speakers for the next 30 years. And I can buy a pair now, and build the system up in the future.
But still, doing all this would mean spending thousands of euros! Sheesh! Back to the drawing-board it seems....
Things to do
It seems that there are always lots of things I want to do. Quite often nothing ever comes of those plans, because I'm inherintly lazy person. And it could be said that often my plans don't make sense. I mean, I could do stuff that improve me as a person and as an employee, therefore boosting my future prospects. But often my plans are something that have pretty limited benefits for me. But then again, if I enjoy doing those things, then surely that is a benefit in itself?
Looking at my plans, I can see these things:
Buy a netbook (one of those subnotebooks that cost about 300-400 euros)
I have been on and off about this one. I want one, and I can see it as being very useful. But do I really, REALLY need one? I mean, I have coped just fine without one as well. I already have a computer, but my MacBook Pro is so big and heavy (relatively speaking) that I don't want to carry it with me. It also costs so much that I would be worried that I would damage it somehow. Also, that's the only computer in our household, if I carried it with me, the MRs. would not have a computer to use. If I did buy one, it would enable me to do the next two things:
Learn to use Emacs
Emacs is.... Emacs. Do I REALLY need to know how it works? Not really. But it seems like such a hardcore piece of application. My nerd-score would go up a few notches if I knew Emacs.
Learn LaTeX
Like Emacs, LaTeX is one of those things that I could do without just fine. But it seems so... Interesting. It might also be vanity, because then I would be using a system that relatively few people are using.
Why do I need a netbook to do those two things? Well, I have 1 hour of commuting every day, I might as well use that time to do something semi-useful.
Enroll to a photography-class
The price is right, and I'm interested in photography. I have been to a one class already, but this time it would be more comprehensive. It would be a proper classes, whereas earlier it took place through the net.
Off the wall-stuff
Sometimes I think that there might be some activities/hobbies in the world that I have never tried, but I might actually love if I gave them a shot. And I mean things that I would never try out normally. Such as.... Oh, I dunno, a class about making silver-jewelry.
Looking at my plans, I can see these things:
Buy a netbook (one of those subnotebooks that cost about 300-400 euros)
I have been on and off about this one. I want one, and I can see it as being very useful. But do I really, REALLY need one? I mean, I have coped just fine without one as well. I already have a computer, but my MacBook Pro is so big and heavy (relatively speaking) that I don't want to carry it with me. It also costs so much that I would be worried that I would damage it somehow. Also, that's the only computer in our household, if I carried it with me, the MRs. would not have a computer to use. If I did buy one, it would enable me to do the next two things:
Learn to use Emacs
Emacs is.... Emacs. Do I REALLY need to know how it works? Not really. But it seems like such a hardcore piece of application. My nerd-score would go up a few notches if I knew Emacs.
Learn LaTeX
Like Emacs, LaTeX is one of those things that I could do without just fine. But it seems so... Interesting. It might also be vanity, because then I would be using a system that relatively few people are using.
Why do I need a netbook to do those two things? Well, I have 1 hour of commuting every day, I might as well use that time to do something semi-useful.
Enroll to a photography-class
The price is right, and I'm interested in photography. I have been to a one class already, but this time it would be more comprehensive. It would be a proper classes, whereas earlier it took place through the net.
Off the wall-stuff
Sometimes I think that there might be some activities/hobbies in the world that I have never tried, but I might actually love if I gave them a shot. And I mean things that I would never try out normally. Such as.... Oh, I dunno, a class about making silver-jewelry.
Holy crap!
I'm few weeks late, but I literally found out about the existence of this trailer just few minutes ago! Of course I have know that they are making a movie about "Watchmen", but I had no idea they had a trailer up & running.
Yes, it kicks ass. If the movie is even half as good as the graphic novel, we are in for a treat.
Yes, it kicks ass. If the movie is even half as good as the graphic novel, we are in for a treat.
It's my way, or the highway!
Yesterday I had a short discussion with the Mrs.:
Me: "Honey, what would you think if I bought this collection of hardcover Calvin & Hobbes-comics? It contains every single C&H-strip ever published! And they are in these beautiful hardcover-volumes!"
Her: "How about not?"
Me: "But I don't have all the strips at this moment. Also, I could then sell my current C&H-comics to the used-books-store"
Her: "No, that's stupid"
To hell with it, I did it anyway! I wear the pants in this relationship! Yeah!
Let me enjoy my sense of triumph for few minutes!
Me: "Honey, what would you think if I bought this collection of hardcover Calvin & Hobbes-comics? It contains every single C&H-strip ever published! And they are in these beautiful hardcover-volumes!"
Her: "How about not?"
Me: "But I don't have all the strips at this moment. Also, I could then sell my current C&H-comics to the used-books-store"
Her: "No, that's stupid"
To hell with it, I did it anyway! I wear the pants in this relationship! Yeah!
Let me enjoy my sense of triumph for few minutes!
'39
I might be a geek, but '39 by Queen is a brilliant song on so many levels. No wonder Brian May got a Ph.D in Astrophysics.
When the cat is away....
For the last four weeks I have been more or less totally out of the loop, thanks to my summer-vacation consisting more or less of living in the middle of the forest (literally! Well, almost). This utter cluelessness is best demonstrated by the fact that I'm oblivious to this "Star Wars: Clone Wars"-thingy that greeted me this morning as I stepped out of the train. Huh? Clone Wars? Premieres later this month? Did I miss the memo or something?
So far my workday has consisted of going through my backlog of email (100+) and re-learning the stuff I'm supposed to be doing as a living. It's all coming back to me now (*. Slowly.
* = No, that is not a reference to Celine Dion in any shape or form. Seriously. *shudder*.
So far my workday has consisted of going through my backlog of email (100+) and re-learning the stuff I'm supposed to be doing as a living. It's all coming back to me now (*. Slowly.
* = No, that is not a reference to Celine Dion in any shape or form. Seriously. *shudder*.