Holiday Gift Guide 2022, with David MacDonald and Craig McClellan

I've got a new podcast episode out, and while it's probably not in time for most of your shopping, the stuff we discussed are amongst my favorite things of 2022 and are certainly great ideas to treat yourself with down the road, if not sooner.

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Show regulars Craig McClellan and Dr. David MacDonald join the show to talk about stuff we like.

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Show Notes:

Music Ed and Tech News

• Music Ed Tech Talk Episode 62
• Free Form
• Ableton Note
• Ableton Link in Logic

Books

• Two from Dan Charnas:
  • Dilla Time
  • Clean Work
• Liz Lerman and John Borstel: Critique is Creative
• New Standards: 101 Lead Sheets By Women Composers

Software

• 1Password Gift Cards
• Farrago
• Affinity Apps - Designer / Photo / Publisher
• Drafts
• AirBuddy
• Fantastical

Services

• Trade Coffee
• YESPLZ Coffee
• Apple Fitness+
• Peloton Educator Pricing
• Headspace for Educators
• Duolingo Family

Hardware and Gadgets

• Apple MagSafe Battery Pack
• AirPods
• Kindle Paperwhite

• Stream Deck Notation Express Stream Deck Profile for Dorico - Notation Central

• Anker 733 Power Bank, 2-in-1 Hybrid Charger, 10,000mAh 30W USB-C Portable Charger with 65W Wall Charger, Works for iPhone 13, Samsung, Pixel, MacBook, Dell, and More https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09W2H224F?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details) Anker 733 Power Bank (GaNPrime PowerCore 65W), 2-in-1 Hybrid Charger, 10,000mAh 30W USB-C Portable Charger with 65W Wall Charger, Works for iPhone 13, Samsung, Pixel, MacBook, Dell, and More

• Insta360 Link Webcam

Bags, Pens, and other Misc stuff

The Pen Addict Podcast

Pilot Metropolitan - 6 Cartridges https://www.jetpens.com/Pilot-Iroshizuku-Shin-kai-Ink-Deep-Sea-6-Cartridges/pd/34517)

JetPens.com - Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-kai Ink (Deep Sea) - 6 Cartridges

Rhodia Notepad

Plotter

Tom Bihn Bags

• Paragon
• Medium Cafe
• Freudian Slip
  • Peak Design Everyday Backpack
  • BAGSMART Electronic Organizer Small Travel Cable Organizer Bag for Hard Drives, Cables, USB, SD Card Grey BAGSMART Electronic Organizer Small Travel Cable Organizer Bag for Hard Drives, Cables, USB, SD Card Grey

App of the Week:

Robby - Spring for Twitter

David MacDonald - Cleanshot X / Spaceteam (Board game version)

Craig McClellan - Timery

Music of the Week:

Robby - Carly Rae Jepsen: The Loneliest Time

David MacDonald - Béla Fleck, Mike Marshall and Edgar Meyer: Uncommon Ritual

Craig McClellan - Bonny Light Horseman: Rolling Golden Holy

Tech Tip of the Week:

Robby - Curating your social media experience

David MacDonald - Firefox add-on: Display Anchors https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/display-_anchors/

Craig McClellan - Focus Mode Updates

Where to Find Us:

Robby - Twitter | Blog | Book

David MacDonald - Twitter | Website

Craig McClellan - Twitter | Website

Please don't forget to rate the show and share it with others!

App of the Week: Reeder 5

The Reeder widget can serve up articles from blogs I subscribe to or that I have set aside to read later (or both using a stack of widgets).

On episode 18 of Music Ed Tech Talk, Reeder 5 was my App of the Week.

It's a really good app and I thought it was worth linking to the review from MacStories if you want to learn more.

Reeder 5 Review: Read Later Tagging, iCloud Sync, and Design Refinements - MacStories:

Last year we named RSS client Reeder 4 the Best App Update as part of the MacStories Selects awards for a good reason. Reeder has been one of the best-designed RSS apps available for a very long time. With the release of version 4, developer Silvio Rizzi rebuilt the app on a modern foundation from the ground up. Roughly one year later, version 5 is out as a brand new app that takes what Rizzi began last year and extends it further with a host of excellent new features and design refinements.

I don't trust social media to show me what I want. If I like a blog, a Twitter account, or an email newsletter, I subscribe to it through Feedbin, and then read my Feedbin articles through Reeder 5. I also log into my Instapaper account through Reeder 5 and clip articles I want to read later to it with a speedy swipe-left.

On page two of my home screen, I have this medium sized widget at the bottom that rotates between different news sources: Apple News, Apollo, Feedbin, and Instapaper, the later of the two using the Reeder 5 widget. It's a great way to stay on top of the news that's important to me.

🔗 SoundCloud, Which Rose to Stardom on Indie Talent, Lays Off 173

SoundCloud, Which Rose to Stardom on Indie Talent, Lays Off 173: 

Not long ago, SoundCloud was one of the fastest-growing and most influential players in the streaming business. Now it is shrinking, and faces an uncertain future in the rapidly consolidating online music market.

On Thursday, SoundCloud announced that it was laying off 173 employees, about 40 percent of its work force. The company will also close its offices in London and San Francisco, concentrating its business in Berlin and New York.

Note: this article is a couple of weeks old now.

SoundCloud is a brilliant service, essential for new and upcoming artists to be discovered, and perfectly applicable in a music education setting for sharing projects. It is great for hundreds of other things too, including podcasting, though my own is not hosted there. I am not sure what the solution for SoundCloud is but I would hate to see them go. If they do, I would be curious if someone could think up a more disruptive and pervasive model for an audio based social media platform.