RE: MD: The future of minidisc. (was Best buy, phasing out MD equipm
BEGIN QUOTE=== Well, I have to say that my own anecdotal evidence from the UK is rather different. In the UK, the minidisc scene seems to have exploded in the last year. I see almost as many people with personal minidisc units as cassette walkmans now. Everyone seems to be buying them. Additionally, if you go into any branch of Dixons (the dominant high street electronics retailer in the UK) its difficult to find a hi-fi system *without* an integrated minidisc. And in contrast to the US, I've only ever *seen* ONE person actually using a personal MP3 player, and I certainly don't know anyone who owns one. Can anyone else back me up on this (perhaps with some industry figures?) That said, I think in the long term, Minidisc is doomed. As soon as someone comes up with a personal MP3 player with integrated IBM Microdrive, I think MP3 will have found its 'killer player'. Afterall, it'll be *tiny* with massive capacity. In fact, does anyone know this hasn't happened already? (And please nobody point out that you *can* slot a Microdrive into some PDAs, and then use it to play MP3s. Thats clearly not what I meant) Robin. ===END QUOTE Hi everyone! One key factor that MD has about it is that there are _portable_ recorders that hook into sound systems and make stereo recordings on the discs. Also, the bookshelf systems and MD decks are able to record material on the discs from any source without tying up a computer for the job. Most PCs need to be dedicated to the task of recording audio or they will make a poor job of it. MD is the only "non-computer" consumer-grade digital audio format that permits non-linear editing. From my experience with a Sony JE520 that I have regular access to and a secondhand Sony MD Walkman that I bought, I find it fun to work with -- "chiselling off" silent gaps at the start and end of recordings in order to achieve smooth joins between tracks even when my Sony MD Walkman is in Shuffle-Play mode, positioning appended tracks in my preferred position on the MD and joining tracks together for an interesting mix. I also make "relevance notes" about favourite songs when titling them so I know where they fitted in to my life. With regards, Simon Mackay - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: The future of minidisc. (was Best buy, phasing out MD equipm
That said, I think in the long term, Minidisc is doomed. As soon as someone comes up with a personal MP3 player with integrated IBM Microdrive, I think MP3 will have found its 'killer player'. Afterall, it'll be *tiny* with massive capacity. In fact, does anyone know this hasn't happened already? (And please nobody point out that you *can* slot a Microdrive into some PDAs, and then use it to play MP3s. Thats clearly not what I meant) Robin. I sometimes wonder that nobody seems to have come out with an MD drive for computers. At least not that I've heard of. I think that if MDs were used for things other than music, then their advantages (i.e. cheaper/higher quality than MP3, portability, the way they don't have tape to jam, etc) may become more apparent to people. Alas, I guess with the proliferation of Jaz and Zip drives, it is hard to sell the media as a mega-floppy. The record industry wouldn't be happy about it either I suppose, but it is a long time since I've heard of them being happy about anything they didn't think of. Just a thought, Anna - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: The future of minidisc. (was Best buy, phasing out MD equipm
Now, if Sony (for once) did the right thing, and marketed their 600 MB MiniDiscs for their portables, along with their new long-play capabilities, I bet MP3 would have more than a worthy contender. Francisco. Alas, I guess with the proliferation of Jaz and Zip drives, it is hard to sell the media as a mega-floppy. The record industry wouldn't be happy about it either I suppose, but it is a long time since I've heard of them being happy about anything they didn't think of. - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: The future of minidisc. (was Best buy, phasing out MD equipm
From: "Robin Landy" [EMAIL PROTECTED] That said, I think in the long term, Minidisc is doomed. As soon as someone comes up with a personal MP3 player with integrated IBM Microdrive, I think MP3 will have found its 'killer player'. Afterall, it'll be *tiny* with massive capacity. In fact, does anyone know this hasn't happened already? Not that I'm aware of...but the Nomad Jukebox is getting damned close! Once again...all the more reason for MD to be marketed as a live recording medium. Don C. - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
