Tag Archives: iTunes

CDs vs. Downloads

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I couldn’t have said it better myself.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about the inconvenience of downloading music from iTunes. Yes, you read that right. I said inconvenience.

Sure, it’s great to download music immediately, when I want it, and pay only 99¢ per song. But what’s not so good is the restrictions on music use:

  • I must register every computer I want to play my purchased songs on and I only get 5 of them. That covers my desktop Mac, my PowerBook, my Mac test mule (for writing Mac books and articles), my Windows test mule for writing Windows books and articles), and my husband’s laptop. About a year ago I was faced with a not-so-unique problem: the motherboard on my dual G5 went bad and needed to be replaced — before I could unregister it from iTunes. I lost one of my computer registrations and had to do battle with Apple to get it back.
  • I can’t easily back up my purchased music. I need to go through some kind of procedure that I simply haven’t had time to explore. In fact there seem to be restrictions on how I copy the music, period.
  • Apparently, there is some loss of quality if I burn purchased music to a CD and then rip that music to a computer. I haven’t played around with this enough to have the full story, but I shouldn’t have to spend the time to figure out why my music quality should change. It shouldn’t change.

Fortunately, I have an iPod (or three) so the fact that iPods are the only MP3 players that can play iTunes purchased music isn’t a problem for me. But I understand that it’s a major gripe for other people.

I was going to write a blog entry about all this, but now I don’t have to. I just read a piece that expresses my feelings and frustrations on this matter better than I could. From Alpha Geek: CDs vs. Downloads on Lifehacker:

DRM, the chief source of all this grief, is the love child of Satan and Osama bin Laden. If I could pay 99 cents for an unprotected, unrestricted, 320Kbps MP3, I’d do it in a heartbeat–and it would be all over for CDs. Instead, online music stores treat us like thieving children, locking us into one bit rate, one file format, a limited number of CD burns, and other annoying handcuffs. Apple and Microsoft impose the worst kind of restriction: Songs purchased from iTunes and Zune Marketplace can be played only on iPods and Zunes, respectively.

And later:

Call me old-fashioned, but I’ve rekindled my love affair with CDs. They let me do things, to borrow from Old Blue Eyes, my way. See you in hell, DRM.

Thanks, Rick Broida, for putting my thoughts into words. See you at the CD store.

Podcast Stuff

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Maria Speaks Episode 31: Podcast Stuff.

This episode marks my return to Maria Speaks after a two-month break. It covers my change in podcasting technique, a new video podcast I just created for Flying M Air, and the podcasts I subscribe to.

Transcript:

Hi, I’m Maria Langer. Welcome to Episode 31 of Maria Speaks: Podcast Stuff.

I just spent the past three hours redoing the Maria Speaks podcast. I used to publish it with Blogger and FeedBurner. Now, since my personal Web site is blog-based using WordPress, I cut Blogger out of the picture. It took me three hours to create or modify blog entries to embed my thirty existing podcast entries on this site. Well, twenty-nine. One of them covered an eBook I no longer distribute, so it didn’t link to it.

I developed this new method of podcasting — new to me, I should say — to reduce the amount of work required to publish a podcast and keep all podcast information together. I used to use a WordPress plugin called podPress, but I removed all references to it and disabled it today. Keep it simple — that’s what I decided. And the technique I worked out is relatively simple, utilizing an existing WordPress blog and FeedBurner. I wrote about it in an article to be published soon by Informit.com. When it comes out, I’ll link to it on the Aritcles page of my Web site and create a podcast based on its content.

For some reason, my “Maria Speaks” podcast has more subscribers than ever. That makes me wonder, since I haven’t released a podcast episode since September, and that episode was a bit more commercial than I like. This time last year, I was releasing one or two episodes per week. I ran out of steam last December and have been releasing them far less frequently. Still, my subscriber numbers have been climbing steadily. It doesn’t make sense to me, but it did convince me to release more content. The way I see it, when all these new subscribers start getting the new content, they’ll either like it and stick around or not like it and leave.

In the meantime, I started a new video podcast in October for my helicopter charter company, Flying M Air. I have literally thousands of photographs taken throughout the southwest, in places I fly to. I also have photos taken by my husband and by professional photographer and Bigfoot Hunter, Richard Noll.

Rick accompanied me on a test run of Flying M Air’s Southwest Circle Helicopter Adventure. The deal we struck was that in return for all all-expense paid trip, he’d let me share copyright on all the video and still images he took. While he has the ability to sell these images as stock photos or use them in other projects, I have the ability to use them in marketing material to help sell the excursions and in articles I plan to write for publication about the trip. It was a win-win deal. Richard took lots of pictures from the air, which is something I simply can’t do while I’m flying. He also took video images with something a few clicks better than the little Canon digital video cameras I have. I’m still going through the over 1,000 still images and 3 to 4 hours of video he left on my MacBook Pro’s hard disk before departing back to the Seattle area.

I decided to turn my library of photos into video brochures for Flying M Air’s tours, charters, and excursions. The result is “Come Fly With Us!” (subscribe), which currently has three episodes. Another episode will be released Monday. (That’s one of the good things about my new podcast publishing technique; I can schedule a publication date and time. This makes it possible to record several podcast episodes at once and release them periodically over time.)

Part of the learning experience for creating this new podcast was finding legal music to play while the images were showing. I wasted a lot of time looking. Some sites promoting “royalty-free” music for podcasts required that you buy the songs to use them. That wouldn’t have been so bad if the songs were sold at iTunes prices or even a few bucks, but they were asking for $25 or $39 dollars per song. I use each song on just one video podcast episode and plan to release new titles once a week until I run out of material. That music was simply over my budget.

The much hyped GarageBand.com promised royalty-free, free downloads music. But the vast majority of artists didn’t allow free downloads of their songs. And since I was looking for relatively mellow instrumentals — you know, mood music — I had trouble finding what I wanted there in the first place.

I finally wound up on MagnaTune.com. I heard about it during an interview with the site’s founder, John Buckman, that Miraz had referred me to. MagnaTune predates iTunes by about two weeks. Although it has a limited number of artists on board, it offers very reasonable licensing of its music for podcast use. I’ve been getting tunes for my “Come Fly with Us!” podcasts from MagnaTunes since then and giving credit to the artists at the end of each video. I hope they sell some music.

Speaking of music, if you’ve been listening to Maria Speaks for a while now, you may have noticed that I changed the “theme song” for this podcast. The reason: I had a one-year licensing agreement with FreePlay Music for the old tune, Floater. Last year, when I bought that license, it cost $25/year, which I thought was reasonable. When I went to renew, the price had gone up to $100/year. I guess they decided to cash in when podcasting took off. That’s above my budget for a free podcast that doesn’t even earn any advertising revenue, so I decided to find a new tune. The new tune is is a segment from a nameless bit that I got off a public domain music CD I acquired back in 1996. I spent about an hour yesterday going through the one thousand plus songs on that CD set to pick this one. I’m not sure how much I really like it, but I do need something for my opening and closing credits.

The main topic of this podcast episode was supposed to be a quick discussion of some of the podcasts I listen to regularly. So let me dive into that for a few minutes.

I want to start off by telling you what I don’t listen to. I don’t like podcasts that mix discussion and “Garage Band” music. For example, I used to listen to a podcast about words hosted by two guys who seemed to guess more about word origins than actually research them. They’d pick few words or phrases and do a 40-minute podcast about them. The way they’d stretch out that podcast is by inserting a few Garage Band songs into it. Trouble was, their taste in music was nothing like mine, so I found myself having to fast forward through the music filler to get to the discussion meat. Fast forwarding is not always easy when you’re listening on an iPod and driving in traffic. When I realized that the content I was interested in wasn’t that good to begin with, I dropped the podcast. Ditto for the writing podcast some woman was doing. I wasn’t listening to hear music. I was listening to hear content. If the content was music related, the music would make sense. But it wasn’t and it didn’t.

In general, I don’t listen to music podcasts at all. Finding new music is low on my priority list. So if you you think you might find some tips for new and exciting music podcasts here, you will be disappointed.

What I do like listening to is podcasts that can enlighten me, teach me new things, or make me laugh with intelligent humor. I listen to podcasts primarily when I’m driving or flying, although I do have a i-Fusion speaker thing that makes it easy to listen when I’m working in the kitchen, making dinner or tidying up. So if I can be trapped in a place doing a relatively mindless thing and listen to something that’ll expand my horizons or make me laugh, I’m pretty happy.

That said, here’s a brief summary of some of the podcasts I listen to. You can find links to these podcasts on the transcript for this podcast. Go to www.aneclecticmind.com and click the Podcast link in the navigation bar to find it.

First on the list are a handful National Public Radio (or NPR) podcasts. There are 355 of these podcasts and I’ve tried at least 20 of them. I listen to five of them regularly.

  • NPR: Story of the Day is a daily selection of a story from NPR’s programming. These stories are wide-ranging in topics: business, war, travel, entertainment — you name it.
  • NPR: Business Story of the Day is a daily selection of a business story from NPR’s programming. Stories cover anything business related, from Silicon Valley news bits to global oil production information and lots of stuff in between. It keeps me informed about the business world.
  • NPR: Satire from the Unger Report is a weekly podcast of satire by Brian Unger. It’ll make you laugh — and think.
  • NPR: Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! is a weekly radio quiz show about the news. It has a panel of three celebrities (no, not the kind in People magazine) and call-in contestants. The questions and answers lean toward the comical, so the show is extremely entertaining.
  • NPR: Sunday Puzzle is a weekly podcast of word games with an NPR host, Will Shortz (of the New York Times), and a telephone contestant.

I’ve tried other NPR podcasts, but eventually lost interest in them. And as I prepared this list, I noticed a bunch of new ones to try out. So I might report on some additional podcasts from NPR in the future.

I also listen to American Public Media (APM) Future Tense. It’s a great podcast with short episodes about technology topics.

I listen to three PBS podcasts:

  • American Experience is a podcast with short episodes about historical topics. Recent episodes included the Gold Rush and New York.
  • NOVA is a podcast of brief stories from the NOVA science television show.
  • NOW is a podcast of rather lengthy stories form the NOW news television show. Sometimes the stories interest me and I listen to them. Other times, the stories don’t interest me and I just delete them.

I also watch a NOVA video podcast, which I find excellent. It combines science information with video and still images in a 2 to 3 minute podcast. I like some episodes so much that I save them as movies on my iPod so I can show them to others.

Speaking of video podcasts, I also subscribe to a number of others:

  • GARY-PAUL TV is a video podcast of weird stuff published by Gary-Paul Prince of Peachpit Press. My favorite episode, which I’ve saved as a movie for future viewing, is “Drinking and Driving Texas Style.”
  • Comedy Central: Stand-Up is a video podcast of stand up comedy segments. I only like about half of these, but the ones I like arae really good, so I keep checking in.
  • National Geographic Video Shorts are short video segments from National Geographic television shows.

I also used to enjoy a video podcast called CockpitCast, which showed video out the front window of various commuter jets as they landed at airports in western U.S. cities, but there hasn’t been a new release in a long time, so I don’t know if the pilots are still doing it.

Another aviation podcast I enjoy is Betty in the Sky with a Suitcase. Betty is a flight attendant who loves to travel. She brings along her tape recorded and gets stories from other flight attendants, pilots, and people at the places she flies to. The stories are great but the audio quality is pretty bad sometimes. Still, I think it’s worth a listen. My favorite story? The one where a passenger who died of natural causes during a flight was not declared dead until after the flight was more than halfway to its destination.

For tech news and info, I’ve been trying two Wired magazine podcasts:

  • Wired Magazine is a podcast of short pieces from Wired magazine columns.
  • Wired News is a podcast of short news stories from Wired magazine.

I also subscribe to Slate magazine‘s Daily podcast, which includes interviews about Slate’s online pieces as well as audio versions of some of Slate’s online pieces. It gives me a chance to “read” Slate without having to visit the site. Of course, I only get a small portion of the thoughtful gems available online. I used to subscribe to Slate’s Explainer podcast, but have given it up because the topics weren’t all that interesting to me. You might like them, though, so check them and out see for yourself.

I subscribe to the WordPress podcast because of my interest in WordPress software. I admit that I’ve downloaded all episodes and have listened to just three of them. I think the podcast is good, but I have to be in the right frame of mind to listen to them.

The same goes for the Podcasting Underground podcast. Good, informative stuff, but I have to be in the mood to listen to information about podcasting.

For politics, I listen to a pair of real left-wingers. Sorry, but I am not a conservative at all, neo or otherwise.

  • Real Time with Bill Maher is an hour-long podcast of Maher’s HBO television series. He does an interview and then discusses one or more current political topics with a panel of three that usually includes one celebrity entertainer and one political figure. His panels always include someone sitting on the right, so both sides are represented. While I don’t agree with everything I hear, I like to hear the various viewpoints on current political topics. New Rules is a much shorter podcast that includes just the New Rules he lists at the end of his show.
  • MSNBC Countdown with Keith Olbermann is a collection of Olbermann segments from his MSNBC Countdown television show. Olbermann is a Bush basher — do doubt about it — and it amazes me that he says some of the things he says. It’s a real example of the First Amendment in action — if Olbermann said these kinds of things just once in a place like North Korea or Iran or Iraq under Saddam Hussein, he would have been shot dead for treason. But in our country, we’re allowed to voice all kinds of opinions. Olbermann’s aren’t the kind that’ll ever get on Fox News. My favorite bit? The count of times our president said “Stay the course” after Tony Snow told the press he’d only said it eight times. Classic reporting.

I also started listening to Penn Jillette’s weekday radio show on FreeFM, PennRadio. Penn Jillette is the big, fast-talking guy from the magic duo of Penn and Teller. An atheist (his Nevada license plate is the word “ATHEIST”) and libertarian, he definitely has some non-standard views of politics. But he also covers non-political topics. I don’t enjoy all of Penn’s podcast episodes — I probably delete about half of them without listening to more than a few minutes — but I like enough of them to keep my subscription. One of my favorite episodes was his interview of Phyllis Diller (who I didn’t even know was still alive). Ms. Diller had some fascinating stories to tell and I was especially touched by Penn’s patience when her memory failed her more than once during the interview.

And finally, one of the first podcasts I ever subscribed to, podictionary. This daily podcast, with 2 to 5 minute episodes, discusses the origin of a word or phrase. A weekly digest version is also available. Many, many thanks to Charles Hodgson for his dedication to the subject of word history.

Now you know what I’m listening to. What are you listening to? Share your comments and suggestions with me and other listeners by posting your comments on the transcript for this episode. Go to www.aneclecticmind.com, click the Podcasts link in the navigation bar, and scroll down until you find the “Episode 31: Podcast Stuff” entry. Or just use the Search box to search for the number 31. Then use the Comments link at the bottom of the entry to read other people’s comments and add your own.

And as always, thanks for listening. More later.

Come Fly with Us! Has 7 Subscribers

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Already! Cool!

Come Fly with Us!, the video podcast I whipped up for Flying M Air the other day, already has 7 subscribers. I think that’s pretty cool.

I checked the iTunes Music Store and found that it was listed there. Oddly enough, only two subscribers are checking in with iTunes. The others are using MyYahoo, Jakarta Commons, and a Java-based reader. I’m wondering if they’re all seeing the video that goes with the podcast. I hope so, since that’s all there really is.

I wrote an article about how to publish a video podcast using WordPress and submitted it to InformIt for possible publication on their site. If they take it, I’ll link to it when it’s published. If they don’t, it’ll appear on this site and on our WordPress VQS support site.

I created the second release for Come Fly with Us! on Tuesday. It’ll be released next Monday. I’ve decided to create the episodes in advance and release them on Mondays. It’s pretty easy to do with WordPress — just date the entries in the future and they won’t appear online until that date and time rolls around. I sometimes do that with entries on this site — like the About the Photos entries that were appearing quite regularly for a while. I wrote all of those in August and set them to release weekly for the next four months. (Time do do more, too.)

Next Monday’s release will show the Swansea Town Site ghost town. Those photos were taken on the ground. Some of them are a few years old. I think I’ll do a release on Wickenburg for the following week. Got some pictures today when I was out flying with my friend Kathy. Then possibly Sedona, from the air and on the ground.

Now if only I could get this ambitious with my personal podcast. I haven’t recorded an entry for a few months now.

Flying M Air Video Podcast Now Online

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It took me a while to figure it out.

Come Fly with UsI spent about 4 hours yesterday morning and another hour this morning publishing a video podcast for Flying M Air. Why so long? Because I couldn’t find a single how-to guide online to explain how to do it the way I wanted to get it done.

On Friday, I got back from a 3-1/2 day trip around the southwest with photographer Richard Noll. Rick and I took tons of pictures and video — much of which was from the air — of the places we visited. The goal of our trip was not only to perform a final check on travel, hotel, and tour arrangements for the Southwest Circle Helicopter Adventure, but to gather images I could use to market Flying M Air’s tours and excursions. I now have over 1,000 still images and 4+ hours of video to go through.

iMovie HD 6 and iDVD 6: Visual QuickStart GuideI spent some time early Saturday morning with iMovie and Jeff Carlson‘s excellent book, iMovie HD 6 and iDVD 6: Visual QuickStart Guide. The book has everything you need to know to create a great looking movie in iMovie HD, from choosing a video camera to building the movie with titles, transitions, and effects. It then goes on to discuss IDVD (which I’m not ready for yet). I learned a lot of things, including that I can reverse and slow down video clips — two effects I’ll need for my final project: a 20-minute promotional DVD.

Yesterday’s starter project was to build a slide show of images taken in the Phoenix area. The slide show would make good use of the Ken Burns effect to add motion to still images. I’d also included opening and closing titles, transitions, and music. It was a very simple project, and with Jeff’s guidance, I was able to knock it off in about an hour with about 15 slides. The final video is about 2-1/2 minutes long.

Although Jeff’s book discusses publishing a video podcast with iMovie and iWeb, I was not interested in using iWeb. It might be a great tool for Web publishing newbies, but it lacks the control features I need. (This might sound strange, but the software is so easy that it’s hard for an experienced user to use.) I wanted to publish a video podcast of this and future Flying M Air movies right on the blog-based Flying M Air Web site. This way, the videos would be available immediately to site visitors as well as by podcast to subscribers. I knew this was possible, but I couldn’t find any clear guidance on things like format (Was the export to iPod format the right one?), linking (Was it as easy as just including a link to the file?), and server settings (Did I have to modify .htaccess?).

Phoenix Tour ThumbnailI got the answers to all of these questions through Web research and trial-and-error. I got it working at about 5:30 AM this morning and was pleased to see the new podcast file being downloaded into iTunes. I then spent another hour tweaking the settings for Flying M Air’s WordPress theme files so instructions would appear onscreen when a site visitor checked the contents of the new Video & Slide Shows category.

Interested in seeing my first effort? You can download the m4v file (which can be viewed in iTunes or QuickTime) or subscribe to the podcast.

And if you’d like to read a how-to article that provides step-by-step instructions for publishing an iMovie project as a podcast with WordPress (rather than iWeb), keep checking in. I’ll write it up today, but Informit.com has first dibs. After all, I do like to be paid for my work.

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2005 News

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Old news from my old Web site.

December 22, 2005
Informit.com has released my latest article for them, “TV to Go: Watching Video on Your iPod.”

December 19, 2005
How often do you get to land a helicopter right next to a major roadway? I did it at the beginning of the month for Don Green, who was photographing a bridge under contruction further up the road. He was kind enough to take a photo of me with Zero-Mike-Lima and e-mail it to me today. Is that helicopter RED or what?

December 15, 2005
Just got my advance author copy of QuickBooks Pro 2006 for Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide. It should be in stores within the next few weeks — just in time for a new year accounting software change.

December 14, 2005
Did my first Classic Rock Cuts radio show on KBSZ-AM. Many thanks to Miss Holley King, the Rock-a-Billy Queen, for helping me out, teaching me how to use the board, and e-mailing me a bunch of Webcam images (including this one) while I worked.

December 10, 2005
Took delivery of 28 baby chicks today! Unfortunately, I only ordered 12. Even worse, all the extra chicks, which were packed in for warmth in shipping, are males! Anyone want a rooster?

December 9, 2005
My Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Visual QuickStart Guide has been translated into French! Just got my author copy today and it’s just as big and fat as the English version.

December 5, 2005
Have just begun the major project of upgrading my Web server to Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Server. I’m sick and tired of the unreliable operation of WebSTAR and want to take advantage of all the cool Web publishing tools Mac OS X Server has built in. If you’re interested in this project, follow along in the “Call Me a Geek” category of Maria’s WebLog.

November 27, 2005
Just returned from a very short trip to the New York City metro area for Thanksgiving with my family. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

November 22, 2005
Just put the finishing touches on my latest book for Peachpit Press, QuickBooks 2006 for Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide. Look for it in stores in December.

November 18, 2005
Informit.com has published my latest article, “Yes! You Can Use Your GPS With Your Mac!“

November 14, 2005
I decided to simplify my podcasts and have merged Maria Speaks and Maria Speaks Plus into the original Maria Speaks podcast. I’m also actively seeking suggestions on topics for future podcast episodes.

November 13, 2005
Just finished up a busy weekend that included two big charters for Flying M Air: I took two people to Sedona and three people to the Grand Canyon.

November 10, 2005
MacDirectory’s Winter 2005/6 issue includes a rave review of my Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide. Read more on the companion Web site for the book.

November 7, 2005
After a careful comparison of service quality, I’ve decided to shift from Amazon.com to Barnes & Noble.com as my source for books—and my preferred vendor for my books. B&N simply offers better service. Bear with me as I change links throughout my site.

November 5, 2005
Went to a nice airport open house in Boulder City, NV. Mike flew us up in his plane. It was a real pleasure to go to a small-town airport event that was so well organized with so much to do and see.

October 30, 2005

Just had a great weekend in Glendale at the Thunderbird Balloon Classic and Air Show. Flew a total of 131 passengers in my R44, doing rides during the weekend-long event. Best of all, I got to park next to a pair of F-16 fighters while waiting for passengers.

October 20, 2005
I’ve discovered enhanced podcasts. Learn more on the Maria Speaks home page.

October 14, 2005
I couldn’t resist. I had a spare iSight camera with nothing much for it to do and decided to use it as a Webcam. So now you can watch me work. I put the image at the bottom of the Home Page. We’ll see how long it lasts. I’m not so sure I want to give my editors the ability to keep tabs on me when a deadline approaches.

October 10, 2005

My podcast, Maria Speaks, has finally appeared in the iTunes Music Store’s Podcast Directory. Search Podcast titles for Maria and it’ll come up. I seem to have caught a cold, but if I don’t sound too nasal, I’ll add a few episodes this week.

October 8, 2005
Just got back from a week-long trip to Maine. The fall colors were a bit disappointing, but I did get to experience two weather phenomena that I seldom see: fog and rain. Had a great time, but it’s good to be back in sunny Arizona.

October 1, 2005
Had a great time doing a presentation at the Tucson Apple Store. Had a good turnout with lots of folks who had great questions and tips. Thanks very much to the Apple Store folks for letting me come by.

September 26, 2005
After experimenting with podcasting by publishing KBSZ’s podcast, I finally got around to recording episodes of my own. Called Maria Speaks, it’s a sort of audio blog that includes information about my work and some tips and tricks for Macintosh users. To subscribe, use the URL http://feeds.feedburner.com/

mariaspeaks. I’ll also be publishing transcripts for entries related to a specific book on that book’s companion Web site, accessible from LangerBooks.com.

September 25, 2005
Had the weirdest flying day of my life: picked up two campers on top of a remote mesa, dropped 1000 golf balls onto a golf course green, and practiced flying in formation with a car. Want the details? Read more on Maria’s WebLog.

September 20, 2005
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide has been translated into Dutch!

September 19, 2005
Just got back from a 4-day helicopter gig at the Mohave County Fair in Kingman, AZ. I took well over 100 people for helicopter rides — many of them for their first flight! Many thanks to Betty and Phil at the fair for helping make this a smooth (and profitable) gig.

September 14, 2005
Well, that didn’t last long. I gave notice at my coffee shop job. Too much time away from my office and too many editors asking for articles. I need to get back to my real work!

September 10, 2005
Finally completed the tale of my roadtrip. Read up in Maria’s WebLog.

September 6, 2005
I’m starting a job at the Old Nursery Coffee Company in Wickenburg. I’ll help out at lunchtime during the week, making sandwiches, espresso drinks, and smoothies, until the permanent helper returns from an Alaskan “fish camp” in November.

September 1, 2005
Just found out that a lot more people are reading Maria’s WebLog than I thought. It appears that my travel stories have become quite popular. Now if only I can find the time to write up the last day’s story…

August 31, 2005
Did a fun helicopter charter out of Prescott yesterday with three folks dropping paint bags to mark the corners of their remote property. I’m still trying to figure out why they chose lavender paint.

August 30, 2005
Made a last-minute trip to the FileMaker Pro Developer Conference at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort today. Got a personalized demo of FileMaker Pro 8 and can’t wait to start using it.

August 26, 2005
Informit.com has published an excerpt from my book, Creating Spreadsheets and Charts in Excel: Visual QuickProject Guide, titled “Building a Budget Worksheet in Excel.”

August 25, 2005
I’m back from my trip. I put about 4,500 miles on my Honda S2000 visiting 9 states in 16 days. My favorite places: Goldfield, NV; Cedarville, CA; Redmond, OR; Hood River, OR; Walla Walla, WA; Lewiston, ID; McCall, ID; and Cascade, ID. You can read all about my trip in Maria’s WebLog. Thanks to the folks who used my special roadtrip e-mail address to suggest possibilities.

August 20, 2005
My 60th book, Quicken 2006: The Official Guide is now available. You can find this book at Amazon.com. All support for my Quicken books is on the McGraw-Hill/Osborne Web site.

August 15, 2005
My latest eBook, Maria’s Guide to Pubishing an iTunes-Compatible Podcast, has been picked up for distribution on David Lawrence’s 10QuickSteps Web site.

August 9, 2005
I’m off on a road trip. My search for a new home begins with a 19-day journey throughout the U.S. northwest. Follow my progress in my blog. If you live up that way and want to try to sell me on your town, e-mail me at roadtrip@theflyingm.com. No support questions, please—I’m on vacation!

August 8, 2005
I was taday’s guest on KBSZ-AM radio’s “Around the Town” show here in Wickenburg. Host Pete Peterson asked me about the podcasting work I’m doing for KBSZ as well as my recent books and helicopter tour business. Want to hear me? Visit www.kbsz-am.com and click the Podcasts link. The KBSZ podcasts are also available for subscription from the iTunes Music Store.

August 5, 2005
Informit.com has published my article, “Creating a Photo Book with iPhoto.”

August 4, 2005
I just finished my newest eBook, Maria’s Guide to Publishing an iTunes-Compatible Podcast. You can learn more about this book on the Maria’s Guides Web site. And if you subscribed to the LangerBooks.com notification list, check your e-mail box for a 20% off offer on the book—the offers went out today.

July 31, 2005
Flying M Air ended the month on a high note. In the past week, I’ve done 4 custom charters: 2 in the Wickenburg area and 2 to Sedona. (And I thought summer would be a dead season!)

July 29, 2005
Informit.com has published my article about Mac/Windows file sharing, “Setting Up Macintosh & Windows File Sharing.”

July 28, 2005
Appeared at the Las Vegas Apple Store this evening. Many thanks to the folks at Apple for having me.

July 25, 2005
My production Mac, a dual processor G5, is comatose. I dropped it off at the Chandler Apple Store for a new logic board. This $715 repair (ouch!) should be finished by Friday.

July 24, 2005
I’m back from Howard Mesa—at least for a while. It was an interesting and relaxing month away.

July 22, 2005
Informit.com has published the update to my Faxing with Mac OS X article, “Throw Out Your Fax Machine. All You Need is a Little Tiger.” (Hey, I don’t name them, I just write them.)

July 18, 2005

Apple’s eNews newsletter included instructions for getting a free copy of my eBook, Maria’s Guide to What’s New in Tiger. This offer is only available until July 31, so act now if you want your copy for free. Many thanks to Apple and Peachpit Press for making this offer available.

July 15, 2005
Informit.com has published my article on Widgets, “Widget Watch: Dashboard Widgets to Download Now.”

June 25, 2005
Well, I’m off to the middle of nowhere: Howard Mesa, AZ. Although I’ll be back once in a while during the summer, don’t expect many updates to this site. I’m going off-the-grid in the cool, high elevations of northern Arizona and I plan to enjoy every minute of it. I’ll be updating my blog while I’m away, so check in there if you want to see what I’m up to.

June 24, 2005
Finished my latest book revision. Sadly, I can’t say what it is! Look for it in stores in August, when I can reveal the big secret.

June 17, 2005
Just moved all downloadable files and book excerpts to a new, faster server. If you have trouble downloading any of these files, please use the Web Feedback form to report it.

June 16, 2005
Got the French translations for two of my books in the mail today: Creating Resumes, Letters, Business Cards, and Flyers in Word: Visual QuickProject Guide and Creating Spreadsheets and Charts in Excel: Visual QuickProject Guide.

June 15, 2005
Just updated my Calendar to add two rescheduled Apple Store appearances, as well as a helicopter rides gig in September.

June 4, 2005
Two good things today: First, our shed was finally delivered to our property at Howard Mesa. I’ll be going up there for July and August to escape the heat of Wickenburg. Second, I had a great presentation at the Chandler Apple Store. Many thanks to the folks there for hosting me. And if you’re wondering how I survived about 450 miles of driving in one day and was fresh enough to do an Apple Store appearance, here’s the answer: I didn’t. I flew. Total flight time was only 3.5 hours. Sure beats the 8 to 9 hours it would have taken by car!

June 1, 2005
Looking for a good deal on my books? I just discovered that Informit is selling all current Peachpit Press titles I’ve written for 30% off—if you’re an Informit member. Go to Informit.com and create a free account. Then click here to view a list of the books. That link will also display all of the articles I’ve written for Informit, all of which are free to read online.

May 28, 2005
Had a great time doing a presentation in the Biltmore Apple Store. The crowd may not have been large, but it was enthusiastic, and full of questions that I could answer. Many thanks to Robert and the other folks at the Biltmore store for having me.

May 27, 2005
Just got a call from my editor, Cliff. He was pleased to tell me that Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide is currently the #5 computer book. Cool!

May 20, 2005
InformIt has published my latest article on their Web site, “Publishing Your Photos on the Web with iPhoto.”

May 18, 2005
Added excerpts for my two new Maria’s Guide eBooks to the Maria’s Guide Companion Web site.

May 17, 2005
I just released the second eBook in the Maria’s Guide series: Maria’s Guide to Writing a Book Proposal. This book, which sells for $9.95, is available for immediate download via BitPass.

May 16, 2005
I’m the featured author on Peachpit Press’s Web site this month. Look for me right on the Peachpit home page! (Now cool is that?) Peachpit has published details about my Tiger Book Tour on its Web site. You can find other information about my upcoming appearances on my Calendar page.

May 15, 2005
Just got back from a weekend camping trip to the Groom Creek Horse Camp in Prescott, AZ. This excellent facility is one of a few campgrounds in the state that allow people to camp with their horses. We were part of a big group that included the Wickenburg Horsemen’s Association and the Morgan Horse Association (of Prescott). There were great rides every day, up in Prescott’s cool pines!

May 13, 2005

It’s final! I’ve sold the 5-unit rental property I owned here in Wickenburg. That’s a big weight lifted off my shoulders. Best wishes to the new owner. (Better her than me!)

May 12, 2005
Informit has published an interview with me called “Ten Questions with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide Author Maria Langer.” The article page also has a link you can click to buy the book for 40% off—heck, that’s cheaper than I can buy it!

May 9, 2005
Finished my first eBook in the Maria’s Guide series: Maria’s Guide to What’s New in Tiger. This eBook, which was written to introduce Mac OS users to the new features of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, sells for just $9.95 and is available for immediate download via BitPass.

May 7, 2005
Just got back from a helicopter trip to Georgetown, CA (near Sacramento). It was about 11 hours round trip. You can read the details in Maria’s WebLog.

May 5, 2005
Had a busy day with Apple. First, I took part in an AppleCare Vendor Fair in Elk Grove, CA. Later, I did a presentation at the Apple Store at Arden Fair, Sacramento, CA. Had a great time and met a lot of really nice people.

April 29, 2005
It’s out! My Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide was released today with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. Look for it in bookstores or on Amazon.com.

April 26, 2005
Next week, I’ll be flying out to the Sacramento area to do an appearance at an AppleCare Vendor Fair and the Arden Fair Sacramento, CA Apple Store. If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll stop by and say hello. Check my Calendar page for more information.

April 22, 2005
Updated my Calendar page to add some upcoming appearances at Apple Stores.

April 21, 2005
Appeared at an Apple Vendor Fair in Austin, TX. Got to meet a lot of the Apple support folks. Also, Apple has been plugging my book in its Apple eNews.

April 12, 2005
Apple Computer, Inc. has just announced the release date for Mac OS X Tiger: April 29th. Oddly enough, that’s the same day my book should get to bookstores!

April 8, 2005
Just finished up Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide. The book goes to the printer on Monday and should be in stores by month-end. Order your copy in advance from Amazon.com at a savings of 34% off the cover price.

April 2, 2005
Brought Zero-Mike-Lima to Buckeye Municipal Airport for their annual Air Fair event and took 65 people for rides. More the half the passengers, many of whom were kids, had never been in a helicopter before. Some of them had never been in any kind of aircraft! Had a lot of fun, even though I was flying nonstop most of the day. My thanks to the Buckeye Airport Manager for inviting me and helping to make the event a success.

March 29, 2005
What a nice surprise! Found translations of my Creating Resumes, Letterhead, Business Cards, and Flyers with Word: Visual QuickProject Guide and Creating Spreadsheets and Charts with Excel Visual QuickProject Guide on my doorstep this morning. In Italian! The books are in a smaller format and kind of cute.

March 20, 2005
Just got back from a trip to Lake Havasu City, where I was offering helicopter rides for spring break at a local resort. What a waste of time! All those kids care about is beer and boobs. Needless to say, I won’t be back next weekend.

March 14, 2005
Have finalized arrangements with the airport manager at Buckeye Municipal to offer helicopter rides there for their upcoming Air Fair on April 2. If you’re in the Phoenix area, I hope you’ll stop by for a visit — and maybe a ride!

February 24, 2005
I just discovered that you can link to my InformIt articles on Peachpit’s Web site. The benefit: the articles can be read without looking at all the advertisements for high-tech stuff on the page. The drawback: they’re still using a very old photo of me on the book/article list page. Ick.

February 23, 2005
I spent about two hours with iPhoto 5 this morning, creating the Flying M Air Memory Book, a photo album featuring photos from helicopter tours and destinations. The book will be available for sale on the Flying M Air Web site.

February 22, 2005
All the rain we’ve been having is getting a little too close for comfort. My office ceiling developed a leak that drips down about 18 inches from my chair!

February 21, 2005
Got my new business cards, rack cards, and post cards for Flying M Air. They all look great! I spent most of the afternoon distributing the rack cards at Wickenburg area businesses kind enough to let me display them.

February 18, 2005

I’m back at work on my Tiger book. Apple’s getting closer to software completion and I need to be on top of things to get my book out on time.

February 12, 2005
I “rescued” Arizona State Historian Marshall Trimble from the Kay El Bar Ranch in Wickenburg. He was trapped between a flooding river and a flowing wash and needed to get out. I picked him up in my helicopter, took him for a quick tour of the town, and dropped him off at the airport. My reward? An interview on the Arizona Almanac radio show.

February 9, 2005
Got my FAA Part 135 Certificate for Flying M Air. This means I can provide charter and air-taxi services with my helicopter.

February 1, 2005

Just set up a new WebCam for wickenburg-az.com and this one has live motion video! Check it out at http://66.218.237.73:81/Jview.htm and enter visitor as the User ID (leave the password field blank). It appears that WebCams are hot on wickenburg-az.com so I may be adding more in the future.

January 27, 2005
Have been playing with iCal on and off all day long, while writing about it for my Tiger book. Discovered a Web site where you can generate custom calendars based on Amazon.com book publication dates. So I created one for my books (just so I know when I’m supposed to be finished). Weird! Click here to subscribe.

January 23, 2005
Did some air-to-air photography with Jim Wurth and got a few good photos of Zero-Mike-Lima for my Flying M Air marketing material.

January 18, 2005
I’ve decided to try a mentoring program and am actively looking for people interested in writing computer how-to books. Click here to learn more.

January 15, 2005
Had a great day flying at Robson’s Mining World. Took 47 people up for rides — many of them for their first time. Many thanks to the folks at Robson’s for inviting me to be part of their anniversary celebrations.

January 13, 2005
I took Flying M Radio off the air today. It’s cool to broadcast, but not worth having my G5 turned on 18 hours a day.

January 11, 2005
Informit has published my latest article for them: “Absolutely the Last Article You Need To Read About Absolute References in Excel.”

January 7, 2005
It’s here! I went to Torrance, CA yesterday and managed to escape from LA with the new helicopter before the weather closed in. Photos to come.

January 3, 2005
Just accepted an invitation for a radio interview on KBSZ-AM, Wickenburg’s local radio station. Tune in to 1250 AM at 9 AM on January 5 (this Wednesday) to hear me.

January 2, 2005
Got back from a much-needed weekend away, in La Jolla, CA (just north of San Diego). We traded desert for seaside, basic American dining for gourmet cuisine. (The dining choices reminded me why people live in cities.)