Thursday, April 24, 2014
Movenote
As part of the Google Platform of free apps that sync with the Google Office Suite, comes Movenote.
Movenote is a program that allows you to record video and audio using your web cam while you show material in the form of a Powerpoint-type document on the screen. In other words, you can change slides, use a pointer to highlight information and sync your description with what you see on the screen. Here's a demonstration of Movenote.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Ques Que Se Arroz El Hombre?
Audio Files on this blog are best viewed if you have the free Windows Quicktime Player for PC. You can download the free player here.
Ever remember a time when you misheard lyrics to a favorite song or a song you just kept hearing on the radio? It's fun sometimes to hear people's perceptions of what they heard and what actually was being said. I Googled the search term "misunderstood song lyrics" and came up with a list of fun songs. One of my all time favorites is the Manfred Man Earth Band hit: Blinded by the Light, which was a 70's stalwart (I know I'm dating myself) that everybody claimed they clearly knew what was revved up. Here's a link for anyone who can remember Burt Sugarman's Midnight Special > Blinded by the Light.
Fun stuff for sure, and here is a sample list from Yahoo for discussion of what you heard where and when as you were bopping to your favorite tune. (Again, I apologize for those of you under 40 reading this) Elton John's songs have tended to be a favorite for some. Remember Rocket Man? Ok, what was that chorus again? It's funny how songs we remember as a late teen, early twenty-something seem to stay with us for a lifetime.
So a colleague and I have been having a fun disagreement around a song performed by both a seminal 1970's super group - The Band - and a still relevant superstar, Bruce Springsteen, around the lyrics to the song "Atlantic City." We've debated about what we remember and heard way-back-when. I inform that I remember something about a "chicken man." My colleague disagrees and says, "No Way!" Both of us have shared YouTube videos which support our point-of-view. (a really cool feature for those of us over 40 reading this) Anyway, my colleague was able to showcase and show two videos from both the Band and Bruce Springsteen that do not include any reference to a "chicken man in the title." I was impressed. I was also challenged - as can often happen in the equality laden arena of popular music - to prove him incorrect.
I Googled the Search term, checked out iTunes and eventually downloaded some songs. I was convinced that the "chicken man" was real. Anyway, as I began to access more-and-more information, I realized that actual list-servs exist where others are discussing - amazingly - the same topic. I checked out one list-serv and got the following explanation: The "chicken man" reference in "Atlantic City" is from the crime section, not the bill of fare (some thought it was an oblique food reference). Phil "Chicken Man" Testa, briefly the Philidelphia mob kingpin, was in fact blown up in Philly one night in 1980 by a nail bomb set off when he opened his front door, an act apparently related to a union dispute in Atlantic City.
As I was documenting my research, my colleague was doing the same, sending me his own YouTube videos about the songs and artists. My friend also referenced the exhaustive iTunes Song Library for downloads and clips to support his claim: "Yup, no chicken man at the beginning of that one!" I began to doubt what I had heard, or thought that I had heard. Our disperse research was both valid and informative to support our points of view. I also noticed a certain reflection based on age and cultural id's. Here is a cover by The Levon Helm Band of Atlantic City around 1994 from my younger colleague. So now we were disagreeing about the semantics of the title which was both fun and ironic but needing to agree that "Yes, a chicken man is definitely referred to as being blown up in both songs."
Click the Start Arrow to begin and the Pause Button to stop playing the music.
Ever remember a time when you misheard lyrics to a favorite song or a song you just kept hearing on the radio? It's fun sometimes to hear people's perceptions of what they heard and what actually was being said. I Googled the search term "misunderstood song lyrics" and came up with a list of fun songs. One of my all time favorites is the Manfred Man Earth Band hit: Blinded by the Light, which was a 70's stalwart (I know I'm dating myself) that everybody claimed they clearly knew what was revved up. Here's a link for anyone who can remember Burt Sugarman's Midnight Special > Blinded by the Light.
Fun stuff for sure, and here is a sample list from Yahoo for discussion of what you heard where and when as you were bopping to your favorite tune. (Again, I apologize for those of you under 40 reading this) Elton John's songs have tended to be a favorite for some. Remember Rocket Man? Ok, what was that chorus again? It's funny how songs we remember as a late teen, early twenty-something seem to stay with us for a lifetime.
So a colleague and I have been having a fun disagreement around a song performed by both a seminal 1970's super group - The Band - and a still relevant superstar, Bruce Springsteen, around the lyrics to the song "Atlantic City." We've debated about what we remember and heard way-back-when. I inform that I remember something about a "chicken man." My colleague disagrees and says, "No Way!" Both of us have shared YouTube videos which support our point-of-view. (a really cool feature for those of us over 40 reading this) Anyway, my colleague was able to showcase and show two videos from both the Band and Bruce Springsteen that do not include any reference to a "chicken man in the title." I was impressed. I was also challenged - as can often happen in the equality laden arena of popular music - to prove him incorrect.
I Googled the Search term, checked out iTunes and eventually downloaded some songs. I was convinced that the "chicken man" was real. Anyway, as I began to access more-and-more information, I realized that actual list-servs exist where others are discussing - amazingly - the same topic. I checked out one list-serv and got the following explanation: The "chicken man" reference in "Atlantic City" is from the crime section, not the bill of fare (some thought it was an oblique food reference). Phil "Chicken Man" Testa, briefly the Philidelphia mob kingpin, was in fact blown up in Philly one night in 1980 by a nail bomb set off when he opened his front door, an act apparently related to a union dispute in Atlantic City.
As I was documenting my research, my colleague was doing the same, sending me his own YouTube videos about the songs and artists. My friend also referenced the exhaustive iTunes Song Library for downloads and clips to support his claim: "Yup, no chicken man at the beginning of that one!" I began to doubt what I had heard, or thought that I had heard. Our disperse research was both valid and informative to support our points of view. I also noticed a certain reflection based on age and cultural id's. Here is a cover by The Levon Helm Band of Atlantic City around 1994 from my younger colleague. So now we were disagreeing about the semantics of the title which was both fun and ironic but needing to agree that "Yes, a chicken man is definitely referred to as being blown up in both songs."
Click the Start Arrow to begin and the Pause Button to stop playing the music.
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