RHFtech Help Desk (and more)

Yesterday I installed a Logitech Squeezebox Boom for a client. He purchased it on a friend’s recommendation. The unit retails for $299.99. Logitech describes it as a, “…compact all-in-one Wi-Fi music player that combines award-winning Squeezebox functionality with an integrated amplifier and speakers to deliver crystal clear sound—in any room in your home.”  

My client was unable to set it up on his own. The device requires a network connection, wired or wireless, and registering for an account with Logitech at mysqueezebox.com. You then configure various streaming Internet services and finally you listen. So I first set up a wireless network. It took me a few minutes to install and configure the newly purchased Linksys wireless router.

I next configured the Squeezebox to connect to the Wi-Fi’s encrypted SSID. I also installed a “server” application on the iMac that was supposed to connect the iTunes music collection to the Squeezebox. I had to configure the iMac server IP address on the Squeezebox. This step is likely to confuse many home users. We did not successfully access the iMac’s music. This was of no consequence as he had only two music files in iTunes.

We next subscribed to some “apps” at mysqueezebox.com that are installed on the Squeezebox. We installed Pandora and hooked to my client’s Pandora account without issue. I also installed the Shoutcast app to provide the client with a large choice of Internet audio streams.

The Squeezebox works. Once configured it can be controlled and programmed from the on-device controls, the small remote control or via a web application from any computer. It is easy to add a stream you like to your favorites and then to find and play it later. The sound quality is good and the choice of audio streams is large.

I prefer and recommend Sonos systems over the Squeezebox. Sonos is more elegant, simpler to control and more flexible in whole house audio configuration. Sonos is also more expensive. It you cannot afford a Sonos system then the Squeezebox may be what you are looking for.

Radio is dying. The audience for broadcast radio, AM, FM and satellite, is rapidly shrinking. Commercial radio, which began in the 1920s, is unlikely to survive much longer. The distribution of streaming audio is moving from the radio waves to the Internet. Many radio stations stream their shows today, most will if they want to survive. You can usually find a link to listen to their stream on their website, via iTunes, Windows Media Player, RealPlayer or the Shoutcast.com directory.

From the 1920s to post World War II, when broadcast radio was the only streaming entertainment medium, it featured a huge assortment of content: live and recorded music, comedy, drama, game shows, mystery shows, and news programming. FDR used the radio as a way of communicating with the nation via his 30 fireside chats.

Television forced radio to change its format. Radio focused first on music and news. More recently it has evolved the talk radio format with hosts such as Rush Limbaugh. Unfortunately for radio broadcasters, the Internet provides more personalization and sharing for music and greater tools for discussions. President Obama distributes his messages via YouTube.

Music radio is challenged by MP3 players like iPods and Zunes, and by web services such as Pandora.com, Slacker.com, Imeem.com, last.fm, AOL Radio, Spotify.com and many others.

My favorite one of these is Pandora. It has both free and paid versions, as do other services. Pandora charges $36 a year to get a commercial-free listening experience and access to its premium player application. Slacker charges $4 per month for similar benefits.

Internet streaming music has several advantages over radio. You can pause a track and answer the phone or the door. You can instantly buy a track just it clicking a link if you want to own it. Or you can skip a track if you don’t like it. There is no way to do this on AM, FM or satellite radio.

Pandora lets you create your own radio stations after you register. It uses database technology (the music genome project) to help select music that fits with whatever you start with. You can add variety to your station, songs or artists, and vote thumbs up or down on an individual song.

Recently I showed it to a client. I clicked on the “Create a New Station…” button and typed Glenn Miller. Pandora began playing “Moonlight Serenade” followed by a Jimmy Dorsey tune. If I want more Dorsey I add him as an artist to the station. You can share a station with people simply by emailing them a link.

Netcasting is replacing talk radio. The best example of this new media is Leo Laporte of TWIT.tv who was recently voted President of the Internet because of his TWIT network. Leo, a former radio DJ and technology TV host, started the This Week in Tech podcast several years ago. He now features 16 weekly shows, not only about technology. He does food and fun shows as well. He typically produces 25-30 hours a week of new content. Besides recorded podcasts, the TWIT network’s shows stream live on the Internet at twit.am for audio-only, and video at live.twit.tv. The audience can participate via chat rooms, email and the occasional call-in.