http://www.ask-steve.com/ Your definitive online source for information from Steve en-US 2011-04-30T22:04:08-07:00 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/olPuQzo7RcU/rhapsody-retakes-the-online-music-throne.html The folks at Rhapsody have impressed me. Since I posted my last entry, Rhapsody has pushed multiple updates to their iPhone app and has introduced an impressive update to their web-based service—currently in beta. Both are stable and offer a set of features and music catalog that MOG can't seem to touch at this point. That makes me very happy because I've been a Rhapsody member since 2005 and I have all kinds of radio stations, playlists and other customization that I wasn't looking forward to losing. I decided to hang on to my Rhapsody account while I evaluated MOG... Entertainment Media Music Steve Kemper 2011-04-30T22:04:08-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2011/04/rhapsody-retakes-the-online-music-throne.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/D0fgP2-hegk/rhapsody-dethroned-by-mog-itunes-still-for-suckers.html In an August 2003 (!!!) post here, I asked whether Rhapsody was the heir to the online music throne, replacing MusicMatch MX, Yahoo! Launch and Spinner. (Blast from the past, no?) Four months later, in December 2003, I removed the question mark and anointed Rhapsody the undisputed king. And there it has stayed, with a few hiccups, ever since. I’ve scoffed for years at people who drink the Apple-flavored Kool-Aid by the pay-per-sip gallon. People who still don’t realize that iTunes is no more a music service than Borders is a book service. iTunes is an MP3 store and a... Steve Kemper 2010-12-29T21:48:16-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/12/rhapsody-dethroned-by-mog-itunes-still-for-suckers.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/WE0rBbiT8J8/meet-roku-the-cable-killer.html I had no idea when I got a Roku streaming media player for my birthday that it was going to be my ticket to finally dumping cable TV. And I certainly had no idea that it was going to revolutionize how I consume music, photos and more. I’ve wanted a Roku for a while now, but all I knew was that it plays Netflix and Hulu. It wasn’t until I hooked it up (which took all of about five minutes) and went to the Channel Store that I just about tipped over and tinkled. It quickly became clear that the... Steve Kemper 2010-12-28T20:43:41-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/12/meet-roku-the-cable-killer.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/iC07DYFowUc/wherein-the-pug-gets-his-kibble-and-some-peace-of-mind.html George seems to have a keener sense of smell than I thought. We were just back from a walk and I was making an Americano in the kitchen. I put a new liver-flavored disc in his magic treat ball and set him to work on it. There is an almost constant stream of unpleasant sounds that he makes when working on the treat ball (not unlike when he's cleaning his nether regions), and as I was pressing the espresso, I realized he'd been silent for a while. I looked over and he was standing stone still, staring at one place... Coffee General Photography Steve Kemper 2010-10-30T11:21:38-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/10/wherein-the-pug-gets-his-kibble-and-some-peace-of-mind.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/SQWWzVnS2k8/its-good-to-be-out-in-the-neighborhood.html A dear friend of mine once jokingly called me a flâneur. I wasn't familiar with the term at the time, but I liked the sound of it. The word, it turns out, comes from the French masculine noun flâneur—which has the basic meanings of "stroller", "lounger", "saunterer"—which itself comes from the French verb flâner, which means "to stroll". (Thank you, Wikipedia!) I like the derived meaning from Charles Baudelaire, though: that of "a person who walks the city in order to experience it," having a key role in understanding, participating in and portraying the city. I decided to go car... General Health Steve Kemper 2010-10-11T22:07:41-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/10/its-good-to-be-out-in-the-neighborhood.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/PCQII7mbffM/and-were-back.html Hello nebulous group of esteemed readers. It's been far too long and I apologize for that. It horrifies me to think of the void you must have felt in your lives every time you pulled up Ask-Steve.com and discovered, to your aching dismay, that I hadn't posted a new entry. Please know that no matter how much time passes, no matter how good life gets, I'll always cringe when I think of the pain I've caused you during this time of blog juice drought. So what brings you back now, you heartless bastard, you may ask. The answer may surprise... Food and Drink General Steve Kemper 2010-10-10T19:30:48-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/10/and-were-back.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/cO74pmYC7-o/sounds-of-a-bonerattling-ride-on-a-trimet-bus.html After one too many times riding the #75 and feeling deaf and broken afterward, I decided to record what it sounds like on the bus with my iPhone. This is the raw audio. No amplification, modification or anything else. It's only 90 seconds long. I bring you -- the music of TriMet. (And yes, it is just as deafening and teeth-rattlingly horrible as it sounds.) AUDIO: TriMet Bus #75 Business Current Affairs Health Society Travel Steve Kemper 2010-07-19T00:07:40-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/07/sounds-of-a-bonerattling-ride-on-a-trimet-bus.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/AW47NrGWPhc/the-sad-decline-of-trimet.html It turns out I picked a bad year to go car free. Though when it comes to public transit in Portland, it appears this year will be a far cry better than those to come. Despite the fact that the service is already failing to meet the needs of its riders, there are plans to cut back even further. It seems that every other time I attempt to ride TriMet these days I either end up late or have to give up on it entirely and walk or take a cab. Today was no exception; in fact, it was a... Steve Kemper 2010-07-18T23:28:04-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/07/the-sad-decline-of-trimet.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/AEduuFg3Qm8/chevrons-human-energy-really.html Is it just me that finds it a little odd - if not disturbing - that a company that is all about fossil fuel is now touting 'human energy'? Business Steve Kemper 2010-05-13T22:36:36-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/05/chevrons-human-energy-really.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/mrkKdawPgRA/adobe-you-must-install-this-mysterious-update.html When I opened my Acrobat Connect Pro desktop client, a message popped up telling me there was a mandatory update. I'm not even sure why they bothered to tell me at all if they're going to force me to download and install it anyway. When I clicked to expand the release notes to find out what was so incredibly important - it was blank. Nice one, Adobe. Does anyone do quality assurance testing any more? Steve's Peeves Technology Web/Tech Steve Kemper 2010-04-27T13:28:26-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2010/04/adobe-you-must-install-this-mysterious-update.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/IySLyw7Y3uY/free-rides-from-zipcar-and-whole-foods.html Zipcar is offering free rides home from Whole Foods (two locations) today and tomorrow from 4-8pm. Business Current Affairs Steve Kemper 2009-11-24T10:31:11-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2009/11/free-rides-from-zipcar-and-whole-foods.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/ReWagJdpf6E/worst-laptop-ive-ever-owned-lenovo-thinkpad.html The IBM and Lenovo service reps I've dealt with have always been very pleasant to deal with. And I've talked to a lot of them. Frequently. Which is the problem. Business Steve's Peeves Technology Web/Tech Steve Kemper 2009-04-26T14:24:19-07:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2009/04/worst-laptop-ive-ever-owned-lenovo-thinkpad.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/2NuTKw19Qf0/tough-times-taking-their-toll.html I’ve heard and read many times that tough times put people to the test. That petty crime goes up during recessions and more so during depressions. It seems to be a sad fact that folks who manage to stay honest when times are good are pushed over the edge when the economy tanks. Business Current Affairs Economics Society Steve Kemper 2009-02-28T14:33:51-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2009/02/tough-times-taking-their-toll.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/aBFYjstb2bc/salesforcecom-speaks-alaskan.html One can't help but wonder whether Marc Benioff, CEO and co-founder of Salesforce.com, is planning to enter politics. In a new book, The Developer's Guide to the Force.com Platform, published by Salesforce.com, you'll find the following... Books Business Language TypoWatch Web/Tech Steve Kemper 2008-12-23T20:30:03-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2008/12/salesforcecom-speaks-alaskan.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ask-steve/~3/M8cZLZou72Y/typo-watch-adobe-update.html It's always a little disconcerting to find a glaring typo like this in a piece of software. I can't help but wonder what else might have been overlooked... TypoWatch Steve Kemper 2008-12-07T21:24:31-08:00 http://www.ask-steve.com/2008/12/typo-watch-adobe-update.html