Welcome to 'Transmitting to Earth'. I'm Charssun and I'll be your host. This blog and podcast is a byproduct of VoyagerRadio.com and is intended to provide the most timely information about this Internet radio station. It is also intended to be a fun and accessible electronic journal with commentary focusing on Internet radio, podcasting and webcasting issues and technologies, music, and some of my other interests. I also offer personal perspective about being an Internet radio broadcaster (and podcaster).
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Running Radio365 and other Windows Apps on LinuxI wish to share something thrillingly geeky with you today, especially if you have an interest in Internet radio and alternative operating systems.
Xandros, a Linux distro (operating system, like Windows or Mac), comes with a program called CrossOver Office which allows you to install and run Windows applications on your Linux system without needing a Microsoft Operating System license. The software has been tailored for use with Microsoft Office applications, but many other applications can also be installed and used with the program--for example, iTunes and Quicken. A few minutes ago I attempted installing a few Live365 Internet radio applications on my Linux system using CrossOver Office. (Live365's applications are intended for use by broadcasters and listeners exclusively within Mac and Windows environments; they have not been built for a Linux environment.) Here are my results: I was unable to properly install the broadcasting apps, but I was surprised to find that I was able to successfully complete an installation of Radio365 for Windows on my Linux system. The installation was simple; just fire up CrossOver Office, choose the software, and tell it to install. There was no "getting under the hood" or configuring or anything like that required--CrossOver Office, as well as Xandros, was designed for Windows users to be easily able to make the transition to Linux while still using the programs they're already used to (or need). I've tried other such "emulators" before, but nothing quite worked as advertised. I've heard good things about CrossOver and it gives me great pleasure to report that I'm now listening to Live365 stations using Radio 365 for Windows on a Linux box. It's been over an hour now, and I haven't had any dropouts in sound or anything. Certainly there are issues--the player isn't displaying the playlist, and I'm not sure I'm getting mp3PRO sound--but that's no fault of Live365, CrossOver, or Xandros, since none of these developers ever claimed this particular setup would work. I may even be surprising them with this very post. So now I can simply fire up my favorite Internet radio stations without having to open up my web browser and digging through my bookmarks (or searching online) for a station to listen to. Though I'm only testing it now, Linux is becoming more of a possibility with each passing day. Raoul Teeuwen, a blogger in the Netherlands, has been having problems with his WinXP system and has been testing out a variety of Linux systems, including Xandros. His overall experience has been positive; Raoul is only concerned about the availability of software on Linux. With solutions like CrossOver Office and its forebear, Wine (which allows you to play Windows games on your Linux system), I encourage anyone who's been--like Raoul--considering testing out another operating system, to try Xandros; you may find it satisfies your needs more than you think. Since I began using the distro a couple of months ago, I've been virus and spyware-free (since viruses basically don't exist on Linux)--quite a change from the infected Windows system that begged me to make a switch in the first place. Xandros 3.0 Currently Undergoing Beta TestingI'm currently beta testing Xandros 3.0, the next official release of Xandros' desktop operating system. I can't provide you with details of the testing experience, but I will say that it's great fun to be a part of this testing experience. Xandros could be the next great operating system, as it's extremely easy to install and use--fundamental qualities which are the first steps in making an OS ready for the world.
Of course, we're talking about Linux here--that's what Xandros is, a version (or distribution, as the geeks call it) of Linux--and as you may have heard, Linux hasn't exactly been the layperson's operating system. Not until now, that is, for Xandros makes running Linux on your PC a usability guru's dream. If you're interested in testing out Xandros for yourself, you can download the distro (that's short for "distribution") at Xandros.com. The download is about the size of a CD; if you don't have the bandwidth, you can also order a Xandros CD to be sent to you by mail. "Something that Happened" Podcast AvailableI've completed another episode of Something that Happened. This one is called "Neighbors", and you can listen to it here.
I spend a great deal of time working on these podcasts, but I must confess, I was too exhausted to complete this last piece the way I would have liked. In fact, I'm too exhausted to complete this post. Panic Lays Audion to RestI just received word from Panic that they're retiring their excellent Mac audio software, Audion. The stylish alternative to iTunes and the only Mac audio player able to encode files to the space-saving mp3PRO audio format (especially useful to Live365 Internet radio broadcasters), Audion has been around since the early days of MP3, competing with other retired audio players like Macamp and SoundJam MP (both of which can still be downloaded at software repositories like VersionTracker and installed on classic Macs).
If you're interested in reading more about Audion, Cabel Sasser, a co-founder of Panic, has provided a history of the application, a fascinating account which will probably finds its way into a podcast somewhere. (In fact, maybe I will do that!) I wholeheartedly agree with Jarrett House North who described the story of Audion's rise (and fall) as "exhilarating and heartbreaking and very, very informative". Movie/podcast of the week? So what's next for Panic? Panic develops a variety of applications, including a stable and gorgeous FTP program, Transmit. As for Audion--it's now freely available to the world. So if you're interested in trying an alternative to iTunes but don't want to pay any mula, or you simply want to check out what an mp3PRO file sounds like, download Audion and then enter the serial number Panic has provided so the program won't bust on you after 15 days. Just don't expect much support from the crew at Panic; they've got a ton of paying customers they're still going to be supporting for awhile. Podcasting TeachersD'Arcy Norman has some great ideas regarding uses for podcasting in educational settings, such as recorded lectures and supplemental interviews with experts (i.e., a recorded interview with a noted archaeologist). I can see the future: students recording the lectures of the most engaging professors and then podcasting these gems to the rest of world, as some of the profs become Superstars of the podcasting universe. I can't wait to hear about a professor who, encountering a student on the first day of class, has the student exclaim to him, "I'm so excited to be in your class. I've been listening to your podcasts for years." Podwhat? Am I Over-extended?My goodness, could I be over-extended? I haven't posted to this blog in a week! Here's why, in part: I've been investing alot of time in podcasting, recording, editing, encoding and uploading my podcasts to OpenPodcast.org and SomethingthatHappened.com I've also been working on other sites like my new blog, audioblogs.info. I also moderate the Internet Radio Lovers discussion group, which takes more time than you might thing due to the fact that I take time to carefully consider and compose my postings there. I've also been trying to learn Linux so I can set up a web server to host multiple websites for the new domain names (website addresses) I recently picked up. All this while trying to land a job web authoring!
Check out these sites, and don't forget to join VoyagerRadio's forum to chat with me and other VoyagerRadio listeners. Besides this blog, a narrative blog called something that happened, and various other projects, I also moderate a discussion forum: Please consider subscribing to engage in a dialogue about all things having to do with Internet radio! |
Send Us Your Music
Artists! Want to be heard on this station? Email your MP3 audio, one file at a time, to our Program Director or mail your CD promo(s) to the following address:
Harold J. JohnsonVoyagerRadio
547 Gayley Avenue #1
Los Angeles, CA 90024 Make certain to let use know whether we may use the audio in our podcast, too!
Download the Podcast
We are officially podcasters now that we have revitalized and reintroduced our downtempo show Tempo of the Down, this time around as a podcast. Now showcasing independent downtempo we've been granted permission to offer for download, Tempo of the Down is our entry into the future of Internet radio.
Head over to our new Podcast area to download the latest session!
