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March 28, 2006 Digg | del.icio.us | Facebook | newsvine | Reddit
iPod Ruminations
In December 2005 I procured a G5 iPod, w/60 GB hard drive, and could not have anticipated the effect that it has had upon my lifestyle. On the day I purchased it, I thought to myself, "it's nice, but it won't change my life as much as getting a cell phone. "

It has altered my life @ least as much as getting a cell phone, although in a more aesthetic way. Having the ability to listen to any song that I own whenever I feel like it gives me an avenue by which I can positively affect my mood @ virtually any time. In addition to this, I have found that having an iPod can also be quite practical:

In the fall of 2005 I took a French class through the Boston Language Institute and, anticipating that I would soon be getting an iPod, converted my French audiotapes into mp3s, via my Cakewalk Pro Audio software. Now I listen to them in the car, as a part of my daily commute.

Mobile computing w/a small form factor has made major progress in recent years & will continue to do so, especially as corporations can now see the money to be made in this market. Future generations of the iPod (and similar devices) will be wireless, touch-screen sensitive, have more memory, and more multimedia capabilities.

Even today, an iPod loaded with a Linux operating system can record professional-quality audio. For that matter iPods are technically capable of recording video of a decent quality, though I don't personally know of anyone who has successfully made this happen.

The number and quality of iPod hacks is growing, and I look forward to tapping into some of these Linux-based apps, as I seek to maximize the iPod's impact on my lifestyle.