What's This?

What's this little thing then eh?  

Well, let me tell you a story...

We changed cars recently. The replacement car is awfully modern and features a USB port. 

A USB port.. really? What is that for, do you charge your phone on it? No, in fact you connect your iPod* to it. However it will also accept a standard memory stick and play mp3 music files from folders directly.

Now that is a cute trick, as I don't own an iPod*. However, I wouldn't want a conventional memory stick poking out of the car for all to see, so I set off in search of the smallest stick I can find.

Here it is, a Busbi Mini 4GB stick. In the background are just some of the CDs and tapes I transferred to it. Even this version looks like it will hold about 40 albums, which is all we will need in the car.

So, this leads me to a nostalgic moment.

In order to convert the tapes to mp3, I had to record them on the PC, cut 25 minutes of audio into individual tracks and export as WAV files. Each file gets converted to mp3. Repeat for the other side of the cassette and the job is done. The novelty was the time it takes.

Remember when you taped your vinyl albums? It had to be done in real time. It took over an hour. We have become used to the speed and accuracy of digital media transfer and copy.

When was the last time it took you an hour to rip a CD to disk? If it takes 5 minutes we get cross. It is so easy to copy your CD and use it elsewhere these days. I suppose this is at the core of the Digital Rights Management business.

*I am a resolute non iPod owner. I don't have an iPod or iPad or iMac or an iPhone, and I don't wish to become an iPerson.. More on this particular rant in the future. Watch this iSpace...