My commute to and from work every day runs somewhere between 25 and 45 minutes one way, depending on traffic, weather, and trains.  The thing I’m loving about that now is that I’m able to listen to audiobooks while I drive.  I now have this marvelous 160GB iPod Classic (in black), and I have several podiobooks loaded onto it.  Currently, I’m working my way through J.C. Hutchins’ fantastic trilogy 7th Son.  I’ve actually been downloading it almost from the very start but haven’t been able to listen to it until now.  I don’t listen to podiobooks while I’m working on the computer – too many distractions – and my previous 2GB iPod wasn’t big enough to hold my music plus an audiobook.  So I waited.  I knew I’d eventually get a larger iPod that could store everything, and my Transpod allows me to plug in and play while driving.  It’s really quite nice.

I’ve downloaded a couple of Scott Sigler’s books, Singularity by Bill Shmedt, and a couple of others.  I’ll work my way through them in random order, and I’ve got plenty of books to keep me occupied on my daily commute for several weeks to come.

What podiobooks are on your iPod?

Ok, it’s official – I’m a podcast junkie.

I’ve always enjoyed talk radio – but only when I’m driving somewhere.  Talk radio keeps my mind engaged in something, which is especially useful for when I’m feeling tired because it helps me stay awake.  I also just simply enjoy hearing other people’s opinions about topics I care about, getting different perspectives on various issues.

Books on tape are fun, as well – or, in this case, books on iPod.  For that matter, recorded readings of speculative fiction are appealing.  For instance, I’ve added Cory Doctorow’s (semi-?)weekly podcast to my listings, though he’s not currently reading his own work.  I’ve also had Imagination-X on my iPod (and that’s one I still have figured out the broadcast schedule on yet).

I love these podcasts, and I really enjoy listening to them as I drive to and from work.  Probably the best thing about it is the fact that I can get ‘talk radio’ anytime I want it, and it will always be on topics and subjects that I actually care about.  I don’t have room for all them on my iPod currently.  In fact, I keep having to delete old podcasts I’ve already listened to in order to make room for current ones.  But since I’m planning on grabbing the 160GB iPod Classic soon, I’m getting things queued up, especially a couple of podcast novels, in preparation for that.

Here’s my current podcast list, all of which can be located right from iTunes:

• Cory Doctorow
• Imagination-X
• 7th Son
• WordPress Podcast
• Bungie Podcast

• Spider on the Web (Spider Robinson)

  I have Cory Doctorow, WordPress, and Bungie on my iPod right now.  The rest will be added later when I actually have room for them.

The fellas over at Gizmodo posted up some news about some changes in Apple’s iPod lineup that, quite frankly, had me a little nervous.  You see, I’ve had my eye on one of the black, 80GB iPod Videos for awhile now, and I’ve always really liked the way they look.  I currently have a first-generation iPod Nano, courtesy of Jean, and I much prefer the ‘square’ design of the first-gens to the rounded design of the current models.  So when Gizmodo shared the news and a screenshot of the new iPod Classic, I was nervous.  I saw a sleeker, more rounded iPod instead of the sharp-edged look I’ve grown attached to.  I expect to be getting my new iPod sometime in the next couple of months, but I was somewhat afraid that the new iPod Classic would completely replace out its predecessor before I could acquire one.

I took a look at the Apple Store, though, since none of the stores around here seem to have the new iPods in stock yet, in order to get a better look at the new models.  From the front, it almost looks like the iPod Classic is just a larger version of the 3rd-generation iPod Nano – rounded sides, just with a larger hard drive.  But the profile view revealed that it was still pretty boxy looking and just the face had slightly rounded edges, which made me much happier. 

It was then that I noticed something very exciting, at least for a geek like myself.  All of Apple’s iPods now have double the space for the same price as the previous generation.  So now, instead of getting an 80GB iPod Video for $350, I can get a 160GB iPod Classic for the same price!  Very exciting stuff. 

I’m also very pleased with Apple’s new iPod Nano with its video capability.  I’ve always thought the Nano would benefit from being able to play video, so it was very cool to see them chop the legs of the iPod and call it the next generation Nano.

I was fairly intrigued by the iPod Touch, with its WiFi ability and widescreen video, but the storage space isn’t quite right for me yet.  If you can’t tell, I’m all about the big hard drive, and 16GB just isn’t enough space for what I want.  Given time, though, I’m sure the size will grow as the price comes down.

I should probably stop drooling now.  My keyboard’s liable to short out any minute.

I’ve finally loaded my first podcast on my iPod Nano, even though I’ve been downloading podcasts for several months now.  I made some room on my Nano by removing some music I don’t listen to very often, and then added Cory Doctorow’s podcast.  I’m working on catching up on Cory’s reading of Bruce Sterling’s The Hacker Crackdown.  I just finished listening to part two of the series today.  So far, it’s an interesting and sometimes amusing rehash of the history behind the telephone.  I’ve always heard the generic story of how Alexander Graham Bell was the first person to communicate a voice message through a telephone, but I’d never heard the story from there.  Sterling does a fabulous job of describing the sequence of events that follow that event, and Cory reads the story with enthusiasm.  I’m looking forward to hearing more about the Hacker Crackdown of 1990 and then, afterward, hearing Cory read some of his own writing.  Hopefully by then, I’ll have my 80GB iPod, and I won’t have to worry about space limitations anymore.

This Gameboy iPod case is for the true gamer geek.  Personally, I think it looks pretty cheesy.

Holy smokes!  Somebody wipe the drool of my chin.

It’s confirmed – 2GB is simply not enough space to store my entire music collection.  And let me just say this – while I may not have all that many readers, I do have some of the coolest.  One of my readers was gracious enough to send me a used 1st generation iPod Nano she no longer had a use for.  It arrived Saturday, and I spent the better portion of the day importing CDs into iTunes.  I was at least able to get the vast majority of music that I wanted from my collection synced with the Nano.  There’s still a handful of CDs and all my podcasts that didn’t make the cut, but I’m content with this – it gives me a way to listen to my music at work without having to rely on the latest (and crappiest) version of Windows Media Player (which just sucks all the RAM right out of your computer).

And let me just say that iTunes is fabulous.  It made it super easy to import my music and organize it into playlists.  Plus it can handle podcasts and, should I ever choose to do so, I can get music from the iTunes store that I can instantly put on my iPod.  I know, I’m behind the game.  Most of you probably have already experienced this. 

I’m loving my new little toy, so a big thank you goes out to Jean for being awesome.  I appreciate the generosity, lady.  I believe I’m going to end up running this little sucker through its paces for the foreseeable future.

A couple of friends treated my wife and I to dinner at The Cheesecake Factory this past Saturday¹, and afterwards we walked around The Fashion Mall for a bit to work off a bit of the meal.  We ended up stepping into the Apple store there, which may have been a big mistake – I think I’ve become an even bigger fan of Apple products.

I’ve been drooling over iPod for a little while now, and previously I’d mentioned that I was interested in acquiring an 8GB iPod Nano in the black flavor.  However, after having actually handled a couple of these devices in-store, I’ve been wooed and won by the iPod itself.² The 8GB iPod Nano runs the same prices as the 30GB iPod, the only difference, of course, being the physical sizes of the two devices.  Being the practical man that I am, I have repented of my desire for the smaller iPod Nano and have changed my allegiances to the larger, more powerful iPod.  And for just $100 more, I could nab the larger 80GB iPod, leaving me plenty of room to further expand my music library.

Apple has also done very well in product design.  All the Apple products now look sharp, sleek, and sexy.  They actually look like the electronic devices of the future and are built in such a way as to be immensely functional and practical while also being easy on the eyes.  The graphics displays are all exceptionally crisp and clean and almost make my mouth water.  Plus, Apple products are work-horses – they’re built for power and durability and are designed to last a long, long time.  My wife has wanted a G4 or G5 for quite some time now, and after having seen them up close and personal myself, I think now I want one, too.  Another marketing device that Apple has done right – opening up a store to let people come in and play with all the ‘toys.’

Does that make me a mindless automaton?

1. Excellent food.  Excellent cheesecake.[back]
2. It seems that iPod and iPod Video have now become one and the same.  iPod Nano seems to have taken the place of the regular iPod with iPod Video becoming the standard for the larger variety.[back]