Ok Computer in FLAC (96Khz, 24bit)

It's no secret that Radiohead is my favourite band. Ok Computer, their masterpiece from 1997, arguably one of the best rock albums of the nineties, is high on my list of favourite albums of all time. I've owned the CD for years, and it gets played often on my computer in lossless format. I recently downloaded a rip of the vinyl version, encoded in a much higher sample and bit rat than what CDs allow.

I haven't had a chance to listen to whole thing in one sitting, but from what I've listened to so far, it is so much more concise, clear and NOT squashed compared to the CD version (especially in the higher end). Most people would argue that you can't hear the difference between mp3 and CD, let alone the difference between CD and vinyl (other than hiss). I can hear the difference on my substandard headphones and speakers, but I guess I know what to listen for. If someone had a top notch hifi, they would definitely be able to hear the difference between the two. You notice the biggest difference in the busier parts, where the extra headroom allows the music more room to breathe.

Because of the higher sample rate, you get a much more realistic representation of the higher end of the spectrum. At 44.1Khz, the highest frequency we can hear (~20Khz) is only being sampled just over two times, which in the digital world pretty much equates to a square wave. At 96Khz, the same frequency is being sampled almost 5 times, giving a much better representation of how it is actually supposed to sound. It isn't analogue, but its definitely better for those tingly parts in music that can sometimes make you cringe when listening to a CD.

If only audio formats like DVD-A and SACD were more affordable and widely available/used. Unfortunately the market seems to be going towards convenience, portability and inferior formats like mp3, and even worse, DRM riddled formats like wma and aac. Buying music online has never been easier, but the "major" sellers don't even offer lossless formats. We are the people who embraced the internet long before you could buy music on it, yet they cater to the general idiotic masses!

Feisty Fawn

I upgraded my powerbook to the latest Ubuntu beta, Feisty Fawn. It's not too bad, but I'm still having issues getting the wireless working. I downloaded the alternate CD and installed off of it, thinking that would save me a lot of downloading time. The CD was ~500mb, which was better than 850mb downloading at slower speeds off the repositories. Turned out I still had to download 500mb of updates after I installed off the CD. So that fucked me. This was after failing to download the CD image the first time.

NB. Install new linux distros with a clean install.

If you don't know what Ubuntu is or even linux for that matter, you should check it out. Unlike Windows, you don't need to go through hours of installing before you can test it out. With a linux "Live CD", you can boot it up and try out the operating system without installing anything. You can do anything you want, but none of your changes will be saved unless you install the OS. You can check out Ubuntu @ http://www.ubuntu.com

That survey I posted prior to this ruins this blog. I won't post anything that big ever again.

Happy Easter.

Transport Tycoon Deluxe

Transport Tycoon has been one of my all time favourite games ever since it came out, which was a long time ago! If you don't know what it is, its a strategy game centred around transporting passengers and/or goods from one place to another. You can use trains, trucks, buses, boats...whatever tickles your fancy. Check out some screenshots.

Now...OpenTDD is a rework that has been out for a long while. Its made possible because the source code of Transport Tycoon was released a while back. The best thing about OpenTTD is that it runs on all major platforms (Windows, Linux and Mac) which is great for me since I have all those running at one time or another. It has many other benefits over the original game, which you can read here. You can download it there too. Thats only the OpenTDD files though, you still need files which you can grab out of the Transport Tycoon Deluxe game, for download here. And its all legal, because its now considered Abandonware.

I must admit I've racked up thousands of hours playing this game, trying to get the perfect train system or making millions every year from an efficient airport setup. So if you do give this game a go, beware, it is addictive.

Also, if you do find it enjoyable but a little outdated, you could always buy Locomotion, the very belated followup. (Only for Windows though)