Music: November 2005 Archives

At the time, it was unclear whether portable MP3 players would be legal. The 32 MB Diamond Rio was rushed into production before the RIAA could get an injunction killing it.

A single AA battery brought the player back to life. My playlist from maybe five or six years ago? Five songs encoded in the absurdly extravagant 128kps format (64 kps was recommended if you wanted any hope of getting a full album loaded). Two songs from Patty Smyth's self titled solo album, two songs from the Pet Shop Boys "Introspective", and one song from U2 "Achtung Baby".

The 60 GB iPod, on the other hand, contains 4,200 songs, 1,200 photos, several hours of podcasts and a handful of music videos.

A friendly introduction and a subtle warning. New iPod, I love you but you do not want to cross me.

I learned a few tips for dealing with unruly iPods. A hammer blow to the front panel of the iPod will destroy the hard disk without leaving incriminating trace evidence. Stay away from the display as the crystals shatter easily. For maximum damage, repeated blows to the back permanently deface the case and break the player open.