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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Sun Nov 22, 2020 12:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Even I was still rushing around on Saturday to get things bought before lockdown.



The only difference was that I was not going to traditional stores. Firstly I bought some radiator fluid for the Mustang from Ford, two jugs that have to be mixed 50/50, so 4 gallons of it in the end. That should carry me though to the New Year or to the dealer bay for the warranty work. But I may check out all the bolts and such this week off before things really start to leak. Right now nothing is leaking but it never lasts..... I also rust proofed my dad’s car on Saturday afternoon. I used up all my spray rust proofing and all the cans I bought were all that were on the self at Canadian Tire – so no more rust proofing to be bought. I had just enough to do the job – so at least I got that miserable job out of the way. If it snows badly I prefer to take that car (it’s actually a truck) than the bus with all those people coughing and sneezing Covid 19 around.



I still go to the drive-through at Starbucks but that is far away, so unless you have something to do in the area you are done with Starbucks for awhile. With the snow falling all that is off the table anyway, but I made a trip into Starbucks before the snow stated falling. I pity those that have to shop during a snow storm and last day of stores being open. That is wrong on so many fronts but at least I am not there among them!



So I can relax at home and forget about the weather. I am trying to learn to live with the new iPhone and the mask “Face Id” business. I tried the alternative appearance and that actually worked for half of the mask on your face. Then I tried one Face ID with one half of the mask on and the second Face ID with the mask on the other half. It surprised me by knitting my normal face together but not the masked face. So I gave up there but may return with more tricks up my sleeve. But otherwise the phone is all completely set up, but I will have to add that getting the watch to where it was before was a pain as un-pairing it and re-paring it to the new phone wiped everything out and I had to start all over again – but that was my choice.




Yes, I’ll be taking pictures and shooting video this week!



Next was turning all passcodes and Face ID off and try to lock critical apps instead. Some could work this way but standard Apple apps don’t have the passcode option. I even tried the 'Screen Time" passcode lock thing but could not get the passcode to appear. But I will try that again at a later time. So it was back to the regular Face ID. I will keep trying and let you know what works best. Well I know what works best in a pandemic – Touch ID! That is the only sore spot with this phone – but I had to upgrade. You can even make a case for not having the high refresh rate as a high refresh rate drops resolution from 4K to HD like on Samsung and Apple has the best screen in the world right now – so…..but there is no argument for Face ID alone. The phone does have the best photographic and video cameras on the planet right now – sorry Samsung and Huawei it is true. You get the best photos via their soon to be released “Raw” codec and turning off Dolby HDR gives you the best video in a smartphone. The Dolby HDR thing is just an advertising tool, no popular editor really uses it and even if you get it in you have to deal with the blown out images – it can be done but why bother? In low light the Pro Max alone is king as it can snap a shot instantly in very low light and that is it – while the Pro and non-pro models make you wait 2 seconds to get enough light and knit together a shot. Pro Max wins hands down here! Its not obvious for just snap shots, but for real photographers and videographers, Apple has given you the raw tools to get the job done better than in any other smartphone and that is the reason I got it – Face ID was just a miserable appendage you had to deal with.



Still no 5G showing up on the phone – so all the 5G hoopla means nothing in Canada yet – the Pro Max is really a one trick pony but that one trick (photo and video) just happens to be the best on planet earth – there is always that….. I’ll be working on the music and the car and the phone for the next week. So I’ll keep you in touch on all that as it progresses.




Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/uPqJ76xqfwc
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Mon Nov 23, 2020 2:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote





It looks like ZX/81 and The Brawlers will be coming out next to each other. I say ZX/81 comes out first but we shall see. They come out when they come out and the pandemic just makes people concentrate of their music as there is nothing else to do. So expect more updates and announcements in the next few days.







That photo above is actually an embarrassment to me as it has no detail and no definition especially in the blacks. This was taken with the old iPhone 6S Plus and I never noticed just how good the new sensors are against Apples best in 2015 – Wow…..



The cameras are now in a different universe and I’m not exaggerating about that. Anyway it’s pointless to show you with a severely compressed file in 72dpi - but trust me the difference is night and day! Anyway the photo shows some of the cheap plastic equipment I will use for iPhone photos and videos. The good old selfie stick that I lamented didn’t come with instructions. Then you realize that the kids know all about this stuff from the get go and it is you – you old fart – that foolishly wondered where the instructions were. Ok, I figured it out myself but things like the remote trigger and the ring light had to be figured out. The ring light is rechargeable off a USB connection and the trigger is a standard 2032 battery. The opposite can happen though – like watching a kid try to work an old rotary dial phone by pushing non-existent buttons in the holes of a rotary dial ring – so it goes both ways. You also see my mini dolly with a cheap camera that can go under water. If it’s not going under water the iPhone 12 will take its place. Then the Manfrotto professional tripod with the microphone that actually seems like a good deal for the 60 bucks I paid, with the tripod mount as a bonus. And there is the mini tripod looking like a small handle with an Arca Swiss mount holder with a Bluetooth trigger unit on top. So I’ll be using this stuff at the start but some of the more professional stuff can also be plugged into – all in due time…..



I spent all of Sunday from mid-morning on at home as we had some snow – but I will dig out and start Monday and just take it easy from there…..



Goodnight…..
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 9:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The snow on the weekend made Monday a crappy day.



I walked to my dad’s place than risk the Mustang on the first real snowfall of the year - I needed the exercise anyway. Contact some of the gang and did some web work, but Tuesday I start on The Brawlers artwork.



Now I did get the new iPhone to unlock with a mask on for the first time - which was a thrill - but it was like 50 to 60 percent of the time. This surprised me as from OS 13.5 on they just went to passcode if your lower face was obstructed. So me thinks Apple was not able to put in a finger print scanner for 2020 but relaxed things a bit to allow for a mask for those who really wanted Face ID with a mask. Apparently it is still secure but not as much as a full face, so it looks like Apple bent a bit for it’s users and kept it quiet.....






Strangely I am still setting up the phone and just now I was Airdropping stuff into the Books section of the phone - didn’t know you could do that till now - but now all the necessary stuff from the old phone is in the new phone. I’m up to 56gigs now so no regrets about paying more for the 512gigs as I will probably need all of it over the next few years. You also want the extra 2 gigs of ram as the phone will use 4gigs on its own.







Tear downs of the cameras show sensor shift stabilization in the main lens instead of optical stabilization (just like a real pro DSLR). I hate to say it but if you are thinking “Pro” you have to get the Max. Even the 2.5 zoom lens is a mimic for a professional portrait lens. Once again only in the Max. So I’m happy with this phone so far! I can’t blame them for the pandemic screwing up Face ID but the pluses outweigh the minuses here and I needed to upgrade now!




Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/lq2tnTlELzE
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Wed Nov 25, 2020 1:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's Wednesday and I have determined that the weather will suck till next week so it's a 100 percent work in home vacation.....







The only fun I've had is fooling around with the new phone, so much that I re-enrolled with Apple to test out 14.3 which unlocks the raw images for the camera app. More on this in the next few days. Now for most of you the picture you get out of any iPhone 12 will probably look the same as it stitches several photos to get the best image. But it you go it RAW you can do much better - that is in the Pro Max - but you have to know what you are doing. It was the actual camera sensors and stabilization and configurations that got me excited about this phone in so many ways. So I'm another human guinea pig in the beta program trying to improve the RAW program for the rest of you.....







I also was able to achieve 90 percent unlock using a typical mask with Face ID - of course the one I use covers the most of any mask available and that is still hit and miss, but you can function with a normal mask and Face ID, and today is the first time I can state that with any empirical evidence to back it up. I still would have loved it if they had Touch ID but they don't and this is the best you will get. What else: You can Airdrop bookmarks but only the webpage and then you have to bookmark that on the receiving phone. It also took me four days to debug the Apple Watch after re-pairing it to the new phone. I would say that the weight is more of an issue that the size for the Pro Max, You literally could give someone a concussion if you threw this phone at someone's head. So this phone is not for everyone, but if pictures and videos mean something to you - If you post to Instagram and social media in general - then you could put up with the size and weight because you still have the ability to save any shot that is important to you with this phone at least. Man, if you look at some club shots and videos in low light you will see why I am so giddy about this. I don't have to lug around a big ass camcorder anymore. I can get what I need from my cell phone. I can take a piss at a club without having someone watch over my equipment. Or look like a one man band arching back and aiming your piss stream to hit the urinal because it is all hung throughout your body and you can't leave it anywhere - those days are now officially gone! And that is it for the new phone update.




United Nations



The UN is sort of getting back to normal and I received an invitation to register to a General Assembly event about Covid, this was the first real event that looked like a traditional UN event. I'm not going as I have nothing to say on the topic, but it is refreshing to see something happening at the UN that remotely resembles normalcy.....



I continue to work on The Brawlers CD - literally - and will start the DVD box set of The Positive Mandate for Humanity TV Series, scratch that itch and be done with physical media. I am becoming a dinosaur but the physical media and packaging in a touchable form still appeals to me - I am funny that way.....



Goodnight.....
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 7:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

A late one this Wednesday and an early on this evening - then I just slept on it.....



I hesitated because I was a bit depressed. Not for now but for the future. I really wish I was twenty years younger. Life now is just scrambling to get things done and prepare the orgs for life without you. You do put things into perspective, like how I always wanted a home of my own and it could have been, but the reality is that I’ll retire to a much larger house than the one I’m now (and that’s saying something as I currently live in a two story for bedroom home) - really - it’s just an investment property now. And that’s fine as it paid for all this and the advocacy.



I did a lot in my life and undoing it for retirement will be a challenge. Of course some would say you are still spry and young for your age - act like your 20 years younger and simply roll with it. I may just do that in the short term but nobody beats the devil - or Father Time. Let’s say I have an extra seven years.




The Fates!



Everyone wants their lives to last forever as long as it’s not some form of hell, but everything has an expiration date. The future is spelled out pretty accurately for me. I can see the current advocacy to its conclusion, but like being hooked on a drug - you always want more. Sometimes The Fates give you a health problem, and sometimes they don’t - just to see what you do. And that may be my situation. That’s more than enough insight into the workings of my brain and and it would be better to just talk about the new iPhone and the improvements to come.




The raw photo not messed with and blown out by the windows - full control!



So now I get my choice of RAW or JPEG+RAW. What you want is JPEG+RAW like in all my Nikon DSLRs. So the idea is you work with the JPEG but if the image does not cut it you use the RAW. That’s how I’ll handle the bugs now. The plus being in the beta program is I can use one of my apps to see how it behaves with the RAW files you can’t use right now. It’s a lot of fun but perhaps a boring thing for most. But it is fun or me and I’m on vacation.



And actually it’s just fine to not have the pressure to do anything when you have a week off - just play “cat and mouse” with working on The Brawlers CD. Just play with your new toy and wander around shopping while you can. Spend time with the family and wonder where all the time went. That’s as close to a traditional vacation as I can get. Things will start getting more time consuming later on so I may as well “do nothing” now. Like buying the phone, I could have hung out till next year but then I’ll be flying the globe like a mad man burning through cash. Better to pay off that expensive phone now while things are laid back - even without Touch ID. The same thing goes for down time. Take advantage of the opportunity before it is gone. There is still time and so far the principles I follow have lead me to the precipice of possible major change. Stay the course even in a pandemic.



Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/p93w7MpbZRw
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 3:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

An early one today and mostly free of the iPhone stuff although I will say that 14.3 seems to extend battery life a bit more.....



I have finished the first round of files for The Brawlers and we will take if from there. ZX/81 will get back to me when ready.



I’m watching “Nerve” which is a 2016 film about an online game that takes risks or nerve a bit too far. I can’t be shut down as there are no servers but nodes of contestants and watchers that keep it going - similar to the original Freenet Project. Strangely I get included in the teen fun as I’m one of the folk who actually helped shape the internet governance till 2025 - not just with my journalist survey at UNESCO - but with a speech on the floor of the General Assembly and then two days on the floor of the General Assembly Hall leading up to the vote that ratified that governance but also legitimized citizen journalists and bloggers as legitimate media workers by majority vote at the United Nations for the first time! You do this but it takes a few years to fully realize just what you did back in the day. The movie sort of mimics the “Coronavirus Challenge” earlier in the year, with some bad outcomes; but these were honestly unforeseen when legislation was crafted and ratified. But the weirdest part so far has an old geezer like me still so totally relevant with the teens these days.




Maurice begins his speech!



I’ll be there for the next vote on internet governance in 2025. I had my day but I will position myself to hop in there if nobody else will. People who have now since retired gave me a chance and opened doors for me to do what I have done. I owe them and will carry out my duties via my moral imperative. I’m totally healthy and have the monetary resources to do whatever needs to be done. Heck that 2,300 dollar iPhone is already paid off. Seriously, I have no excuses.... If there is one thing I learned in the last five years, it is that if people of good intentions and ability don’t get involved, the more nefarious elements take their place and lead humanity down a bad path. So one more kick at the can in 2025 and to then I hand it off to the kids. I do belong in their universe still - I’m not their parent - try to get your head around that.....




TikTok Coronavirus Callenge!




Coronavirus Challenge!




Results of the Challenge!



Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/T4Xf2Efb6_w
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2020 6:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Progress on the brawlers CD. Still early days but we now have direction in the imagery. The audio files get sent off for mastering today.



Big Foot!


I got bored early in the morning and so hopped in the Mustang and drove downtown to see it I could actually get 5G for somehow in the phone. A guy from Bell called earlier trying to sell me internet but he did have some ideas for 5G. So I pulled the SIM card and reinserted it and restarted it - no luck. So after midnight I drove downtown to the birth of 5G in Canada which is the financial district. I also wanted to walk around the trendy Queen Street area to see how many stores were going out of business - it didn’t look too bad. Going down there - still no 5G and it should work here! But going back I went down Peter Street to turn onto Adelaide and I just glanced at the phone and it said 5G! I was actually startled to see that and then I wanted to screen capture it but couldn’t find the assistive touch ring while panicking and then did the button squeeze as it change to LTE. Crap - as it just captured LTE. I walked back to the spot but no Bueno.



UFO!


I wanted that screen capture as 5G in Toronto (at least with Bell) is like taking photos of Big Foot or a UFO. Without that evidence I started to second guess myself - as in: Maybe I just thought I saw 5G? But I recon it was there for 5 seconds when I noticed and panicked and tried the screen grab - no - it happened! At home I looked at Bell’s 5G coverage map and it goes street by street downtown- this isn’t mmWave but sub 5G so I expected huge swatches of coverage! But the map predicted when I was in 5G and even when it cut out so it must have happened! In any case at least I know the antenna and modem work - but that experience was almost laughably pathetic. Look at the coverage map as it’s street by street! Even funnier it the little half block areas marked as“Future Service”! I capture the map as nobody would believe me when I talk about how small coverage is in my city.





And that was Thursday.....



Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/wV0Jco7dyus
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Sat Nov 28, 2020 1:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A short one today as much is going on.....







First is that ZX/81 has finished mastering! They will have a thirteen song album and all I need is to publish the songs and then out it goes to the world at large!







Next up is The Brawlers and they are presently at the mastering stage and as soon as that is done and the artwork – off to distribution and the world at large!



So at the end of this one week off I got an album and an EP for the orgs. I also finally sorted out the new phone. The BlackBerry Enterprise and PGP encryption for the email now is on the new iPhone and it all works. I haven’t powered up the old iPhone in two days so it is complete. Today was the first day I took the battery up to 100 percent and will drain it to calibrate the things and then it’s between 40-80 percent to save the battery as long as possible. Like I said before – this was an expensive phone so I had to purchase it now. It’s not perfect but it works and it is serviceable for me when we do our globetrotting around the world in a little while. Time is running out and no mistakes and the phone was – in the end – no mistake. You may wonder why I still support the music even though the experiment is over. I do this because the pandemic has bankrupted almost every one of the corporate musical entities apart from the major players. When the pandemic ends – and it will – FOF will be in an advantageous position to capitalize on things. I won’t pay for concerts out of pocket anymore, but other corporate entities will support concerts in our area as long as they have a history in the music industry, a track record and run by someone they can trust with their money - and that my friends is FOF! As long as we are active the equity in all of the corporations is up there, I’m still a multi-millionaire (on paper at least) but drop all the activity and I’m a pauper panhandling on the street. There is always that…..



Goodnight.....





https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHNr8w4PL9Ez3TsCaCwQdTg
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Sat Nov 28, 2020 7:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

An early one and nothing much to say.



I finished watching Nerve which is colourful fodder for the kids. Then I watched the final “Resident Evil” movie which was better than I thought. I spent more time with the family and bought some groceries.



I did spend early Saturday looking for that elusive 5G signal and came up with nothing. I now know how spotty 5G is here. First of all only Bell, Rogers, and Telus currently have 5G with Rogers having a tower for Ryerson University and Bell at another university for example - that is how spotty coverage is! I was lucky to have got anything at all the other night. Freedom Mobile, Virgin, Koodo, Shaw and Videotron may get some towers next year. Strangely mmWave should start to appear in 2022 and American iPhones have the antenna but not in Canada - pity.....







But after some research I now realize just how bad 5G is over here. As long as the antenna and modem work - I’m fine to leave it alone for now. Just remember, I’m the guy who wants a global vote through smartphones at the United Nations - so if you bitch about why this guy spends his vacation playing with his new smartphone instead of concentrating on the advocacy - well then it should all make sense now. My rants and interests and actions are entirely consistent with my advocacy.....



Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/GH11MIDs2rY
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Sun Nov 29, 2020 8:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

For this post I’m going to talk about self doubt.....







So as you know I was downtown a few nights ago trying to get my fist 5G reception and didn’t even know if the new modems worked as I was one of the first to get the Pro Max. As you know not much happened until I was about to double back and go home and for about 5 seconds I was startled to see the 5G designation for the first time. I tried to take a snapshot as proof but by the time it happened it was back to LTE.





Almost immediately you start to doubt yourself. Maybe you only wished what you claimed to see and got confused. After much thought I figured it had to have happened because of the way I reacted - but there still was niggling doubt. I tried getting a 5G signal near cell towers with no luck. So I decided to go back down to the same spot and try again. This time nothing happened and I made at least two passes! The doubt started to creep back in, maybe I’m getting old and senile and this is what happens. Still I thought on balance it had to have happened and the coverage charts said it had 5G and my plan said I had 5G - yet now even more doubt.





So Sunday morning around 5:00AM I drove back downtown to try one more time and was met with failure. But driving back east on Adelaide I got the 5G signal and it persisted. I just stared at it for awhile - burning it into my mind, and then taking a couple of screen shots for proof. The signal was still holding this time so I ran my net analysis on the signal as a speed test. Downloads at 5G were 400mbs up from 300mbs on LTE. The uploads were more dramatic at 40mbs vs. 13mbs. However, the big takeaway was that I did get 5G that first night out and all that self-doubt was unnecessary. But I did start to doubt myself after a while.



So I’m not senile yet which is a good thing as I still have plays to make.




Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/9tNrov90pto
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Mon Nov 30, 2020 6:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

So - the so-called vacation is over.....



We are close to finishing an album and EP at this moment so stuff still got done. I would show you a teaser of The Brawlers main artwork but we are still looking at it. But stuff is happening. Like stuff is happening right now as a possible prelude to the next WSIS (World Summit of the Information Society) meetings happening in a few years. If possible I will disseminate an idea that will prevent closed information circles due to algorithms that result in people making decisions based on the information they have available to them rather than all the information that should be available to them. This is a subtle difference as the alternative is state governed control over news feeds - but my way solves the problem and gives maximum expression resulting in fully informed citizens now able to make proper choices and ultimately true self-determination. That happened Sunday morning.



But it is back to the usual.



I did a battery test on the new phone - finally - and got 28 hours endurance or 24 hours of constant use which is a record for me using iPhones! I am a power user so you should get two days on a full charge - and this is from an iPhone. I’m basically done testing the device, and it’s now my personal phone for me, warts and all. I seem to have avoided any hardware problems so (knock on wood) buying as a first adopter hasn’t made me regret doing it - yet.... I always have to add that caveat.



Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/NV9OA8HWMjg
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
Posts: 7656
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Tue Dec 01, 2020 8:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

So it looks like this will be the download artwork for the upcoming EP from The Brawlers:







It continues with artwork for the CD (yes CDs) and finishing up of the final files.



Next, I was surprised to see Bell actually give out realistic internet speeds for its 5G. Of course they brag about “theoretical” speeds of 1.7 gigs a second - and then - later down the page state that you will get the speeds that I got on the weekend (sweetened by 25mbs - but no biggie). And then they tell you that is in Toronto - so they must have known some journalist like me would test the claims. So they covered their asses legally and it endorses that my testing techniques were valid and true!







I was just going to quote the claims but you have to see the screenshot to see how far out there the unrealistic “theoretical” claims are (and at the top) and then the actual performance (at the bottom). But they were honest in the end.....









Goodnight.....
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
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Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Wed Dec 02, 2020 10:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hummm.....








I wrote a more emotional post for today yesterday but FOF stuff started up big time so I’ll leave that for tomorrow and update things at the org now.














Zoltan firm ZX/81 seems to be first in line for the physical Lucifari CD! It actually looks good and the files in the CD are the full 44.1/16bit files that are not compress like how you will find every where else.




Zoltan also delivered to us at FOF the artwork files for their new CD and a sample should appear here shortly.



Mastering for The Brawlers has happened and now we listen to the files and take things from there.










Syse is up next for music production when we distributed The. Raw lees and ZX/81. I’ll publish the songs for ZX/81 now - then go down to Starbucks for a Mocha - and back to work on rating a CD of mp3 files for The Brawlers to listen to.



Never enough time.....



Goodnight.....
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Maurice Ali



Joined: 14 Nov 2003
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Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Thu Dec 03, 2020 1:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Too much going on - too much going on.....


No time to update. I’m juggling four music projects at the same time!



No Time!




But I got done what I wanted to do. The strangest thing is that I am actually making music - me? And funnily enough it ends up better when I lay my hands on it - how is that possible? How is it possible we thrive while all the rest are gone?


The Brawlers are ready to be released. I just published ZX81’s songs and listened to them while publishing. And the only thing going through my mind is hysterical laughter that I of all people inherited a broken music industry where we thrive.



How F*cked up is that! Trust me - me as a music producer? Never - never saw that happening.



Never say never.....





https://youtu.be/9LYEbWnxzYc
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Maurice Ali



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Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

PostPosted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 11:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The music stuff is still intense – but not as bad as yesterday. So we may release some music on the weekend but I have to co-ordinate that with the band. But more on this as it happens.



More areas outside of Toronto may get locked down on Friday so I got whatever shopping done on Thursday. One thing I did do was to buy the stuff Apple should have put in an iPhone box that cost you 2,300 dollars. So I got the headphone jack converter earlier but bought a wired headphone to lightening EarPods on Thursday. Then I tried to get the official Apple 20 watt USB C charger but they are all sold out. So the idea that they are saving the planet not including chargers is BS because of the run on chargers that quick charge the new phones – but at extra cost and packaging. And don’t forget: More money for APPLE! So I couldn’t get that charger, but I got a third party charger that has dual USB A and USB C outlets which is better for travel as I can charge my watch and phone from the same charger. So at least that worked out, and I did check to make sure it works because I can’t even think of returning it because of the expanding lock down. I’ll keep the EarPods sealed in the box as I really use AirPods and the cheap 40 buck knock offs that are surprisingly the equal of the AirPods and going on strong coming up on two months.







cellphone used as a monitor - not the Max!




So I’m done with all the equipment for the new phone. I am gradually seeing what the new phone is capable of but it really “is” a phone for a pro while the regular smaller Pro phone is for the masses. Apart from the size, the large screen is starting to get used as a monitor on DSLRs! The screen is so good they use that instead of spending for a dedicated monitor - never saw that happening. The sensors are better but only if you know how to use them and where. Like I had to take a shot last night but could not use the flash as it would blow out the barcode I was trying to shoot. So the Lidar scanner set the focus and the sensor took the shot without having to wait for three seconds like the others – bingo – a perfect shot in impossible circumstances. That is the kind of thing you get but most people will not ever need. People using this phone professionally don’t use the HDR but use the 10 bit 4K files instead. Davinci Resolve may be the first to support Dolby HDR but the other NLEs don’t, so nobody bothers. Filmmakers using the phone like it but lament not being able to keep the shutter open for 3 seconds (for astral use for example) and stuff like that (hat regular users would never want to). Having its unique stabilization that acts like a gimble is unique to the Max but most would probably never need or plan to use ahead of time. Using Raw to get a great sky view and then using the Raw photo to bring out the light and details in the foreground – most non-pro would not even bother with this. Then they bitch about not getting time-lapse in 4K but only HD – this is a professional argument among professionals - I see nobody else bitching about stuff like this. You get the idea. Like me, most max out the storage at 512gig also which makes the phone super expensive but a workhorse tool for photo and video artists.



And that is basically my review of the iPhone Pro Max. It’s really for a niche group of people who actually want the size and know what to do with the subtle improvements in the cameras. For everyone else - go for the other iPhones unless you really need the battery life – which is a legitimate reason. Or want the large best in class screen. Like I said, the fact they are using this phone as a monitor speaks loudly as to its calibration ability and overall superiority in all areas even if it is only 60Ghz. It’s also really heavy and I notice it but just live with it. The girls may want the regular pro as it fits in the back pocket of a tight fitting pair of jeans while the Pro Max shouts “Geek”! It doesn’t look as good in a petite woman’s back pocket – that is if it will even fit in there.....




Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/W7wvO8CyOtY
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