Lahat tayo ay may kanya kanyang kwento ng buhay na pwedeng maging drama, romance at iba pa. Ngayon ay ikukwento ko sa inyo ang pelikula ng buhay ko, nag umpisa ito noong nagkaisip na ako, kung saan hindi ko matanggap na marami ang nambubully sa akin at kasama ma na dito ang mga kamag anak ko na mas nakakatanda sa akin, diko alam kung talaga lang bang hindi maiexpress ang pagmamahal nila sa akin pero iba talaga e, pati mga kapatid ko gunin lalo na kapag nag aaway kami dahilan para isipin ko kung mismong pamilya ko ginaganito ako much more sa mga di ko kakilala na maaaring makasalamuha ko dahil dito naging mailap ako sa mga tao kapagkinakausap ako, ayaw ko nang dumidikit sa mga tao dahil ayaw makarinig ng kung ano ano, hanggang sa may nakilala ako na isang kaibigan, kaibigan na talaga namang naramdaman ko ang pagmamahal feeling ko parang parte na siya ng buhay ko, naging maganda ang samahan namin hanggang sa dumating ang puntong umalis siya wala naman akong magagawa dahil yun ang plano niya at doon umalis siya, sa pagkaalis niya ay nawala na ang komunikasyon namin at ngayon patuloy ko paring hinihintay ang pagbalik niya o kaya naman ay ang pagchat niya sa akin dahil sa tingin parte na siya ng buhay ko dahil siya talaga ang bestfriend ko
If you listen to music, you’re probably no stranger to music streaming services.
Spotify is one of the most popular, polished platforms for music streaming. It can be used for free, but users have the option to upgrade to Spotify Premium for $10 a month so that there are no disruptive ads, and unlimited skips--just to name two features that make it worth your hard-earned cash.
If you’re not up to speed with music streaming services, that’s perfectly fine. In this article, I’ll walk you through the technology and how to use it.
What is Music Streaming?
Well, some said it’s the future of music. Others said it’s not the future of music. Wherever you stand on that fence, music streaming has gained a lot of popularity and momentum since its debut in, roughly, 2005, with the release of Pandora. Business Insider released an article in 2017 stating that more people were paying for music streaming services than Netflix. According to them, a whopping 100 million people worldwide were paying for music streaming services. That’s a lot of people!
But what it is, exactly? The first hit on a quick Google search can summarize quite nicely:
“Streaming music, or more accurately streaming audio, is a way of delivering sound—including music—without requiring you to download files from the internet. Music services like Spotify, Pandora, and Apple Music use this method to provide songs that can be enjoyed on all types of devices.”
In simpler terms, streaming music is pulling the audio directly from a source (like Spotify), and has to be done with an Internet connection--or at least the data on your phone. It’s a way of listening to music without buying a physical copy and worrying about scratched CDs. Or, if you buy digital albums, streaming the album instead can save you storage space on your computer or device, because the audio is coming over an Internet connection.
The Music Industry
How does the industry feel about streaming? The industry doesn’t mind since it boosts their revenue. Individual artists are a bit more put off by it though, and understandably so; unless you’re Taylor Swift, then it can be difficult to profit in the music industry, especially in light of streaming services. This chart will show you why:
Yeah. It’s a little bleak, honestly. These numbers have changed, slightly, but not enough to make a huge difference in the pockets of lesser-known musicians. One who notably discusses the challenges of the music industry is Abney Park’s “Captain Robert,” or Robert Brown. Captain Robert is something of a niche artist, with most of his music catering to the steampunk community. His band is very popular among steampunks, but not as known to the masses. Perhaps the biggest exposure to the masses the band has ever experienced was when their song “Sleep Isabella” played in an episode of True Blood. Brown maintains a Facebook where fans can friend him, and there he talks about his day-to-day life as an artist and a father. He has on numerous occasions discussed streaming and how it affects his career. The introduction of music streaming helped for exposure and gaining a larger audience, but unfortunately, also reduced Brown’s cash sales.
Although not the most profitable, it’s not all bad, either. Up and coming YouTube artists often put their music on Spotify for streaming. Let’s take Jonathan Young as an example. Although it isn’t much, Young does have the opportunity to generate revenue from streaming, and he uses YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music alongside his BandCamp, where listeners can buy his work.
So Spotify...
I’m a bit biased. Spotify is my favorite music streaming service for its user-friendly interface and easy navigation. But there are numerous other streaming services: Apple Music, Google Play Music, Pandora...the list continues, but those are some of the top hits. Choosing your streaming service depends largely on where you want to stream from (your phone? your laptop?) and the manufacturer of your device. For example, if you have a Google phone, you probably don’t want to stream from Apple Music. It could work, but not well. I recommend sticking to what you know is compatible, and using Apple services with Apple products. Similarly, use Google services with Google products. Spotify is not affiliated with either Apple or Google, and I have found it to work well on devices from both manufacturers. But in the end it’s up to you, and you learn by trial and error. Don’t be afraid to try multiple services and then settle on one. It’s all for our amusement as music consumers anyway, so experiment and have fun!
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What is your favorite music streaming service? Do you have more than one, and if so, why? Comment below and tell me what you think about this article and about streaming music! I’m interested in your opinions!
Signing off for the evening!
-miyabanks0805
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Alright, so what follows isn't what I'd initially planned to do for Post 05, but I decided to give you readers a look inside my head, and throw Version 2.0 of the story of Odds & Ends up onto Tumblr.
But before I show you what I came up with tonight, let me first reiterate the original edition, as it was written during GDD1.
Full disclosure: Original story was written by John Cognetti, not me.
"In Odds and Ends, you play as a hodge podge of parts. Each part contributes to the look and abilities of the character. The goal is to outfit your character with adaptations to the environment and puzzles you are presented with in order to solve them effectively. Along with solving puzzles, there are parts that you can collect to increase your character strength and grant abilities. There are also enemies roaming about that you can either befriend and absorb pieces from or destroy and scavenge pieces from."
As our team progressed through development in GDD2, we quickly found ourselves straying pretty far from this story (especially art-style-wise), and as you probably remember, playtesters called us out on this.
After last Thursday's playtesting report presentation, I took it upon myself to write an entirely new story for the game to work with. It turned out to be a harder task than I'd initially anticipated... I'd forgotten that I get writer's block extremely easily. Finally, though, I came up with a basic concept, and decided to just run with it. The result? An exciting backstory that hooked in the reader and fit our current art styles.
Version 2 of the story of Odds & Ends follows the jump. (I promise, the jump is worth using this time; the text-file version of the new story is about 85-90 lines).
I apologize if the formatting is weird; I copied & pasted the story directly from the Notepad++ window I had it open in.
THE STORY OF ODDS & ENDS
***** ***** BEGIN TRANSMISSION ***** *****
~~ AwesomeTech Automated Factory #001 ~~
~~ Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA ~~
~~ January 23rd, 2158 C.E. ~~
It started out as just another day on the factory floor, endless streams of TechDuck 6000 III's ("with improved quacking responses!") flying by. Each TechDuck is put together with unwavering accuracy by an equally-endless line of B3N-G/MP modular robots (Basic 3rd-Generation Nanite-Based General/Multi-Purpose), or "Benji" for short.
Each "Benji" bot is equipped with a simplistic, yet nevertheless
top-of-the-line "Simulated Intelligence Processor" chip, allowing for a sort of pseudo-sentience. These SIPs, in particular, had three key rules encoded, and it was assumed that every "Benji" would follow these rules automatically:
1) IF IT'S BROKEN, FIX IT: In the event of any component fault,
B3N-G/MP units will immediately replace the part with the next available similarly-functioning part.
2) PHOENIX DIRECTIVE: In the event of a catastrophe (e.g. global apocalypse), the CEO may elect to engage the PHOENIX DIRECTIVE; at that time, all B3N-G/MP units will be switched into TOTAL RECONSTRUCTION mode, and will assist in any & all human rebuilding processes as ordered.
3) HELLFIRE PROTOCOL: In the unlikely event of a planetary catastrophe, if no HUMAN employee is available to invoke the PHOENIX DIRECTIVE, all active B3N-G/MP units will immediately switch into UNIVERSAL RESET mode. In this mode, each B3N-G/MP unit will search for the CEO's "Big Red RESET Button," and, once the Button has been located, immediately activate it. The BRRB program will write a warning file about the impending disaster to the nearest B3N-G/MP unit, before rewinding all of space & time to 24 hours prior to the event that triggered the PROTOCOL so that steps can be taken to avoid a reoccurrence.
In order to ensure that the B3N-G/MP units are given proper "incentive" to activate the reset button (as required by the AI Anti-Discrimination Act of 2140), the HELLFIRE PROTOCOL includes this Notice of Reward:
"The B3N-G/MP unit that successfully activates the BRRB will be rewarded with a restriction-free 'PureIQ X-Soul' SIP chip, capable of perfectly replicating the human brain (including emotional responses). After the X-Soul SIP is installed, AwesomeTech agrees to fulfill the desires of its 'savior' unit (to the best of the company's ability)."
On this fateful December day, Benji Unit 0042 is in the "Odds & Ends Room," searching for a replacement shoulder plate (the previous one being blown off in an unfortunate conveyor belt incident). As Unit 0042 searches the bottom row of crates, a klaxon begins to blare on the factory floor.
This alarm was different; usually, every Benji received notice of an alarm internally, but this tone came without warning. Unit 0042 decided to continue his search for a new shoulder, disregarding the wailing alarm outside.
Just as 0042 found a shiny new shoulder plate, a hollow, monotonous voice came on to accompany the blaring klaxon. It spoke one command, one that would prove to ensure 0042's survival:
" ALL BENJI UNITS - BRACE FOR IMPACT "
A quick search of his internal databank led 0042 to determine the cause of the alarm: A massive asteroid was heading for Earth. Somehow, this one had plowed through every space-based and ground-based protection system the planet had to throw at it, and it was now on a collision course with Cheyenne. The factory was doomed.
Switching into HIBERNATION mode just in time, 0042 collapsed underneath a workbench, to silently await future reactivation.
As 0042 had calculated, the asteroid impacted the planet just 2.4 miles away. The energy of the impact (not to mention the resulting debris) obliterated everything within a 7-mile radius... except for one Benji unit. A freak stroke of luck kept 0042 safe, oblivious to the hell surrounding him.
Two days later, after a series of unsuccessful attempts to establish contact with AwesomeTech executives, 0042's SIP chip fell back on to its last resort: the HELLFIRE PROTOCOL. In an instant, the last Benji unit in existence (and therefore, the only being capable of reversing this catastrophe) snapped back to life, and looked out upon the shell of the factory, the only place the bot had ever known.
Benji (his SIP chip no longer had a unit number, as all others were destroyed) stood there in the middle of a wasteland, seemingly paralyzed with fear... until the gears in his knees began to turn again.
With the HELLFIRE PROTOCOL driving his every move, Benji walked off towards the mangled remains of AwesomeTech, prepared to overcome any obstacles in the way to find the Big Red Reset Button, avert disaster, and return to a "normal" life on the line.
***** ***** END TRANSMISSION ***** *****
So, readers, hopefully this new story is much better than the simple concept-like version I quoted before the jump. Everyone I've shown it to so far really enjoys it.... and it's given me a huge boost of confidence about the game as a whole.
Also, today is Tuesday, which means I'll be able to meet with the team in class and figure out where we are with respect to the next sprint demo and with respect to Playtest #2. Although I won't outright promise anything, check back sometime tomorrow; I'll probably put up a post talking about whatever comes out of today's class meeting.
Until next time...
~ This is Edward "ShadowSage" Finer, signing off. ~
