Chordophony, Music Technologist

Show and Tell #411: Chordophony

Based in Texas, Chordophony, is a software engineer by day who moonlights as a music technologist and sound explorer. He has developed innovative devices and software to facilitate sonic creation and streamline production workflows. Chordophony is an avid collector and enthusiast of music-related tools and instruments.

Social Media Links:
Instagram.com/chordophony
Twitter.com/chordophony

TOOLS:
0:00 – Intro
0:45 – Bluetooth MIDI Footpedal
8:18 – iPad Air as musical instrument
13:45 – AUM
20:10 – Custom Hybrid Pedalboards (aka CHyPboards)

To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7

11/29/24

Extra-warm Beanie/Prague Visitor Pass/Buying Residency

Nomadico issue #132

A weekly newsletter with four quick bites, edited by Tim Leffel, author of A Better Life for Half the Price and The World’s Cheapest Destinations. See past editions here, where your like-minded friends can subscribe and join you.

Beanie With Extra Heat

I got caught in a cold snap in Europe this week and have been glad I packed my Columbia Sportswear Trail Shaker Beanie I’ve used for years. It has the Omni-Heat reflective feature built in, which seems like a gimmick but it really works. It reflects back your body heat, especially useful for the top of your head. It packs down small, so it’s easy to add on a trip to cold places, and comes in nine colors. (They also make jackets with the same tech.)

Young Americans Want to Move Abroad but…

If you believe this survey that came out before the most recent election, one in three Gen Z and millennial-age Americans want to move abroad. Wanting to and doing it are two different things though, with most held back by financial reasons (77%), family (65%), or work (44%). They may be more perceptive than we think, with 69% saying the quality of life is better abroad, and many are prepared already, with 76% having a passport.

The Prague Visitor Pass

I only had two full days in Prague recently, so we went into full tourist mode and joined tours, went to museums, and saw the sites. With the Prague Visitor Pass we could do all that for one price, including unlimited public transportation on the metro, trams, and buses. See the details here on how it worked out for us.

Buying Residency or a Second Passport

If you’re looking for a Plan B and you’ve got plenty of money to work with, some countries let you skip the line and become a citizen. this doesn’t come cheap, with the figures ranging from low six figures to seven, but it’s usually an investment or bank deposit required, not an outright payment. This article runs down all the options and approximate costs, though keep in mind the rules are regularly changing. Portugal, for one, is trying to close this door after it became too popular with foreign real estate investors buying up buildings and turning them into short-term rental properties.

11/28/24

What’s in my NOW? — Tim Sismey

issue #195

Sign up here to get What’s in my NOW? a week early in your inbox.

I’m a Process and Productivity consultant from the UK, particularly interested in how the design of our work affects our mental health and happiness. Also a coffee snob, enthusiastic home brewer, voracious reader, lapsed musician, dilettante and hobby collector. — Tim Sismey

LINKS:

• Me on LinkedIn
• My Website
• New project! Apparently I’m designing t-shirts now.

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PHYSICAL

• Ember Heated Mug – the best gifts are things you would never have bought for yourself, such as this USB-charging, bluetooth-enabled heated coffee mug my wife got me. No more letting my coffee go cold when I get distracted!
• HebTroCo Menswear – I’ve been making a conscious effort to buy less but better things that will last, and love the thoughtfully-designed, traditionally-made-in-the-UK clothes from this opinionated brand. I lived in their super-comfortable waxed canvas Outback shorts over the summer, and now winter is approaching, I’m enjoying layering up with their over-shirts and jackets. 
• Elgato Stream Deck Pedal – I use a standing desk, and do a lot of virtual facilitation and presenting. I’m also a hand-talker. I recently bought this pedal board that enables me to trigger slides / polls / other tools with my feet, keeping my hands free for waving around.

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DIGITAL

• Longplay – This iOS (and soon-to-be Mac) app presents your Music Library as a gorgeous wall of cover art, ordered and sized by various criteria. It’s helped me rediscover forgotten gems and old favourites, and restores the old iPod ‘Shuffle Album’ feature.
• Bunch – a tiny Mac app that lives in your menu bar that enables you to launch / quit / hide a ‘bunch’ of apps / windows / documents with one click. I use it to switch contexts cleanly between different clients, or between professional and personal computer use.

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INVISIBLE

People like being good at their jobs. If you give them that opportunity and get out of the way, they will almost always delight and impress you.

11/27/24

At Home with Monsters / Rick and Morty

Issue No. 42

Books That Belong On Paper first appeared on the web as Wink Books and was edited by Carla Sinclair. Sign up here to get the issues a week early in your inbox.

GUILLERMO DEL TORO: AT HOME WITH MONSTERS: INSIDE HIS FILMS, NOTEBOOKS, AND COLLECTIONS

Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters: Inside His Films, Notebooks, and Collections by Guillermo del Toro (Author), Guy Davis (Illustrator), & 3 more
Insight Editions
2016, 152 pages, 8.0 x 0.8 x 10.0 inches, Hardcover

Buy on Amazon

If you were one of the lucky Del Toro fans who got to see the At Home With Monsters show at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art this year I hope you found the photo-mural of his house on the way out and took a selfie there — it looks like YOU are right there inside Bleak House, Del Toro’s home of monsters! (see my pic above). Seeing that show was about as close as any of us will ever be to getting inside to see his collection. If you missed the show, then this book is the next best thing.

Any fan of horror, sci-fi, and Del Toro films like Hellboy, will love this handsome book designed to go along with the museum show. The legendary film director’s collection of original art, movie props and extraordinarily realistic life-size figures is truly amazing. His appetite is omnivorous and wide-ranging from low- to high-brow and everything in between: William Blake etchings, pulp novels and comic books, Japanese woodblock prints, Simpsons vinyl collectibles, Phillip Guston paintings to Todd Browning Freaks stills, and much, much, MUCH, more. Also included, are pages directly from Del Toro’s own notebook with sketches and notes for his films, including Pan’s Labyrinth and Blade.

Monstrously good!

– Bob Knetzger

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FOLLOW THE INTERDIMENSIONAL ANTICS OF A DEPRAVED GENIUS CRIMINAL AND HIS AWKWARD GRANDSON

Rick and Morty Book 1
by Zac Gorman (Author, Artist), CJ Cannon (Artist), & 4 more
Oni Press
2016, 296 pages, 8 x 1.1 x 12.2 inches, Hardcover

Buy on Amazon

Yo Dawg! You’re going to want to pick up this book! BUUURP! Okay. Now that, that’s out of the way. This hardcover comic collection is the perfect thing to hold Rick and Morty fans over until the show is back on the air. If you’re unfamiliar with the show, you’re missing out. It follows the antics of super genius, alcoholic, and interdimensional criminal Rick Sanchez and his grandson Morty.

The comic takes place prior to the season 2 cliffhanger, or in another universe…sometimes it’s hard to tell. Some old characters make an appearance, while some new ones show up in delightful stories that fans will appreciate. The art is fantastic — in some comics it perfectly replicates the cartoon, while others nicely transition into other styles. Also, the book’s huge! And it talks to you. Seriously, there’s an original introduction recorded by Justin Roiland, co-creator and voice of Rick and Morty, just for this book. While a talking book is delightful, you might want to keep the tab that keeps it from talking every time you open the cover.

Like the show after reading the comics, you’ll be left with all sorts of existential thoughts. Like maybe in another dimension you’re living in a comic book and someone’s reading a review about you! Or something…I don’t know. Everyone’s gonna die, so you might as well pour a drink and enjoy this comic.

– JP LeRouxShare

11/26/24

Reliable Vehicles

Tools for Possibilities: issue no. 113

Once a week we’ll send out a page from Cool Tools: A Catalog of Possibilities. The tools might be outdated or obsolete, and the links to them may or may not work. We present these vintage recommendations as is because the possibilities they inspire are new. Sign up here to get Tools for Possibilities a week early in your inbox.

The people’s truck

Toyota 4×4

Because I’ve worked for years at the edges of computer research, and have grown accustomed to flakey and fragile gadgets that only work intermittently, then crash, I have for my private life adopted a farmer’s’ frugal aesthetic when selecting durable tools. I favor poet Gary Synder’s measure of dependability*:

I lie in the dusty and broken brush
Under the pickup
Already thought to be old –
Admiring its solidness, square lines
Thinking a truck like this
Would please Chairman Mao

My own people’s pickup is a 1996 4-cylinder Toyota Tacoma 4×4 with 110,00 miles. Toyota pickups were widely visible during CNN coverage of the middle east as the vehicle of choice in the rugged mountains of Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Indeed you find these almost anywhere in the world where reliability is difficult but critical. My mechanic for years, an expatriate Iranian, says that every mechanic he knows admires, and many own, the Toyota 4 cylinder trucks for their durability and reliability.

I use mine to haul feed for the animals, to clear brush from the pastures, to haul firewood, to traverse the high country through deep snow, and for regular commuting over mountain roads and congested freeways. Despite only 4 cylinders, power is ample for any use on or off-road. A used Toyota like mine would sell for $6,000. But I’m pleased to see that prices for a new one are about the same as I paid in ’96: dealers sticker is under $18,000, retail around $19,000. The basic four cylinder engine is unchanged throughout the years. It’s a classic, like the old GMC/Chevy straight six, and the Dodge slant six; only the running gear and comforts are improved.

It is a truck, I bet, that would have pleased Chairman Mao. — Mike Liebhold

Toyota is well known around the world for its durability. Mike Liebhold mentions Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan and other notorious places where Toyotas reign. In fact the United Nations uses a Toyota fleet for its peace keepers and observers around the world. Most don’t realize they are using Toyotas that are not available in the USA due to lower emissions standards. The Toyotas you see NGOs using are made by a special unit of Toyota called Gibraltar. They have SUVs, Pickups, etc.. same lines as you’d find at dealers but different models and configurations. My favorite option is the ballistic mat. It’s an explosion-proof padding that goes underneath the carpet in case of landmines.

I just spent the past 8 weeks on a “vehicle dependent expedition” in the deserts of Nevada in a Toyota 4Runner with no mechanical breakdowns (other than flats). It really is wonderful engineering. However, it is not always the best tool for the job. Toyotas are rock solid but they do wear out and when on an extended trip you want a vehicle that is easy to maintain in the field. Toyotas are good for short and medium term trips where breakdown is hopefully not going to happen, for long-term expeditions where breakdown is inevitable, you want something that is fully self-sufficient.

For example, on an extended African trip you won’t find a certified Toyota mechanic and parts everywhere. Older Land Rovers are often a better choice because they are essentially fully repairable in the field. Everything is bolted on and can easily be swapped out. Like the windshields come off with a few bolts. Fixing a windshield in a Toyota is more involved and complicated . With a Land Rover it’s possible to bring all spare parts and keep the vehicle going indefinitely with no outside help short of catastrophic damage.

To sum up: Toyotas are more modern design using newer technology; the older Land Rovers are basic nuts and bolts. The Land Rover will probably break down more often, but be easier to fix. Land Rovers are kind of like the hackers’ vehicle, an old PC running Linux, while the Toyota is more like a Macintosh, well designed and reliable.— Stephen Balbach

I have owned three Toyota 4-cyl. 4×4’s over the years, but the basic unit is the same.

I had an ’88 that I put about 170 K miles on. In 14 years it never failed to start up (except once when the starter motor went out). I went through arroyos, all over the desert, on beaches with soft sand. I pulled people out of ditches. It was also my city vehicle. I sold it last year to a surfer dude for about $1500. The only thing wrong was that the body was pretty completely rusted out, since I live on the ocean (and also I figured in retrospect because I would never rinse it off after hauling surfboards dripping with salt water).

Then I bought a 2003 and it’s a dream. Toyota has re-thought every part of it, and redesigned where necessary. The radio, the wipers, the seats, the exterior and interior design.

There’s an old Yakima rocket box on the top, and the cylindrical thing is a pull-out tarp for quick shade that I got used . Note the metal camper window on the drivers side (where you don’t need visibility). — Lloyd Kahn

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Superior compact

Honda Fit

I’ve been driving 4×4 trucks for over 30 years. The tradeoff for the weight and truckiness being that I could pick up firewood, haul lumber and sacks of concrete, and go anywhere, any time. I spent 12 years 4-wheeling in Baja. Three long trips to British Columbia. 4-wheeling it across the river to my friend Louie’s house in Mendocino county. I’ve been a truck guy forever.

But there came the time, several months ago, when I realized I was through with the long truck hauls, the 3,000-mile trips, and hauling the truck over the windy roads homewards from my weekly trips into San Francisco was a chore.

I embarked on a study of cars, and ended up settling on a Honda Fit. Other contenders (in this field of scaled-down, aerodynamic SUVs) were the Toyota Yaris Liftback, Mazda 2, Scion XD, Prius C model, VW Golf diesel. The Cube too cartoony, the Scion xB too boxy. In the end I settled on the Fit largely because of its ingenious cargo space in the rear: 4 x 5 feet with rear seats folded down. 20 cubic feet of space vs. 15 for the other cars. 4 doors and a hatchback so you can get into the rear from all sides. Like a small truck bed. (I could get into my truck bed camper shell on all 3 sides.)

I guess things have come a long way, because this very efficient little car reminds me of going from a truck to this car is like going from logging boots to running shoes. Like a 250 pound guy losing 60 pounds.

360-degree visibility, automatic windows, a USB connector. There are a dozen things that delight me about this car. I could drive all day and arrive rested. I’m in auto heaven. — Lloyd Kahn

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Cheapest reliable used car

Volvo 240

The Volvo 240 series of cars is quite possibly one of the best used car deals for the cooltools crowd. They were made from 1975 until 1993 — so there are plenty of them to go around. In fact, Volvo wanted to stop making the cars three years before they actually stop producing them — the community demand was so great they just didn’t stop!

240s are roomy (especially in wagon form), reasonably fuel efficient (20 – 30 mpg), durable (engines with 200,000+ miles are not blinked at), solid (steel construction), safe (one of the many cars that built the Volvo=Safe reputation), comfy (lumbar support, heated seats, et cetera), simple to work on (thanks to a roomy engine bay), excellent community support (comprehensive FAQ & online forums), excellent parts support (online junkyard parts galore, and you can still get parts at dealerships), good in the winter (with proper snow tires) and best of all, cheap! A 240 in good condition can be had for anywhere from free (it needs a little work and it’s so old and has so many miles… who’d want it?) to $2,000+ for a well looked after example. (The 240’s latter siblings, the 740 and 940, are both fine cars as well – based on the same mechanicals as the 240)

I’ve had two previous Vovlo 240s and love my current 1990 240 wagon. I purchased it with 225,000 miles already on the odometer for a trip to Alaska. It may be a 16 year old car, but it brings a smile to my face. — Zach Zaletel

11/25/24

Vestus Mysteria/Best blinds/Flat glasses

Recomendo - issue #437

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Library of the mysterious

If you’re curious about the occult and esoteric but unsure where to begin, Vestus Mysteria is a great newsletter to subscribe to. Joe, the writer, is a history buff who provides clear and easy-to-understand context on the most mysterious subjects. I appreciate that he includes links to sources and book recommendations for those who want to learn more. Each issue feels like taking a sip of the unknown. Here’s a link to a recent issue where he explains the origin of the phrase “Dark Night of the Soul“. — CD

Best blinds

In our home we went with window blinds instead of curtains. Over three decades we’ve tried all kinds of blinds, and have settled on these Persilux Cellular Cordless Shades as the best. Through some kind of magic you can raise or lower the blinds with two fingers, and the blinds will rest at the level you leave it. There are no strings to haul or to get tangled. You can get translucent or blackout versions. A number of different brands make them; the key words seem to be “cellular cordless.” The Persilux brand has worked great and I order them online. — KK

Public Domain Review Print Shop

The Public Domain Review website resurfaces forgotten visual treasures and literature. It’s one of my daily visits. Its online store offers museum-quality prints from their vast archive of historical art, illustrations, and curiosities. Check out this surreal 1892 illustration of meteor showers over Niagara Falls. — MF

Ultra-slim reading glasses

These nearly flat ThinOptics reading glasses are made from elastic nitinol metal and shatterproof polycarbonate and weigh less than two sheets of paper. The genius is their magnetic case, which attaches to your smartphone for quick access and secure storage. — MF

Capture your thoughts on the go 

AudioPen is a voice recording tool that transforms my rambling thoughts into coherent, well-structured text. I recommended it last year, but it’s worth resharing since it’s now available as an app on both iOS and Android. The free version allows you to record voice notes up to 3 minutes long and save up to 10 processed notes, all without needing a credit card. The prime version offers more features, including the ability to record up to 15 minutes, save unlimited notes, and adjust the writing style. I continue to use AudioPen regularly for summarizing calls, capturing ideas, and drafting newsletter posts. — CD

Fantastic history museum

The Museum of the History of the Polish Jews in Warsaw, Poland is one of the best museums I’ve ever visited and I’ve visited a lot of museums. It’s a several hours meander through recreated time periods over thousands of years, which immerses you into that period with brilliant veracity. It emphasizes the everyday life at each period, which makes it larger than just a Jewish experience. I recommend a visit to the museum even if you are only interested in the art of exhibits, storytelling, and immersive experiences. — KK

11/24/24

What’s in my NOW? — Tim Sismey