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donnerpartyofone · 4 years

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I know I never sound older than when I complain about the internet, but I cannot deal with the perpetual increase in everything I do being fed back to me as an ad. My gmail account has over 23,000 unread messages in it, because every time I so much as breathe on my phone, my address gets sold to a zillion scammy little lifestyle companies that swarm me every day for the rest of my life. I started a separate account purely for a project I never started, and now that one is full of spam even though I've never used it. I've gone through a few rounds of unsubscribing/blocking/deleting, but it's just not worth it. This is life now, and it cracks me up to think about these legions of parasites who think they're sooo smart for accumulating all these email addresses, because data is the new crude oil, but because they did this, I can't even use the fucking address they stole at all. So good job, suckers, I'll never read any of your emails or sign up for your contests or become aware of your brand or do anything that could affect my engagement or spending habits or whatever, because you guys specifically made it so that I'm totally paralyzed. I imagine like a bunch of cavemen passing the same huge bag of rocks back and forth between themselves forever, with no change or increase in anything, and they think that's "business"...

The most recent Facebook debacle was extra traumatic for me. I had this moment where I was making fun of a Tumblr ad for some shitty mobile game with a few of my friends; I didn't know the name of the game or anything about it really, but I sent some screenshots around and we all had a laugh. Next thing we knew, all of us were seeing ads for it on Instagram. Then I had this thing happen where I was looking up exercises for a strained elbow using this little indie web browser that's not supposed to sell your shit, and suddenly I had ads on every platform I use for athletic compression sleeves. That type of thing had been happening more and more recently, but my personal worst version of it came when I ordered breakfast on Seamless one morning. My food included a chili crisp dressing, which I had never heard of. It was really good, and my husband and I talked about it as we ate. Within a day, I saw an Instagram ad for some extremely off-brand-looking recipe site telling me how to make this chili crisp dressing. So either the contents of my Seamless order, or our actual voices, had been converted into an advertisement immediately. With each new incident, my friends and I racked our brains to remember if we had truly Googled something or clicked on a link to associate ourselves with the ad we're seeing, or if it could only have been leeched out of personal conversations, financial transactions, or something else you normally think of as relatively private. It created this churn of paranoia and unease, it made me really fucking sick and I hope it was all the fault of the new "off-Facebook activity" function that gives that app the right to your entire life, and not a bunch of other things that I have yet to be unpleasantly surprised by.

Whenever I get ambushed by ads, I fly into a rage and rant to myself about how fucking stupid these incredibly invasive marketing techniques are, because their main effect is to make me not want to use the internet AT ALL. I basically abandoned my email address, and the more I see an ad for something the more angry I get about it, so that there is absolutely no chance I will ever Engage with that Brand even if it's something I could have really used. Basically what's happening is not only creepy and awful, but it's having the exact opposite effect of what's supposed to happen. And like, you don't have to be smart or political or whatever to feel like something bad is happening when "private" chats get turned into ads. Do the people behind this stuff really think that the average user will go, "Oh wow, it seems like I was just THINKING about X, and now I see a link to buy it everywhere I go online! This is extremely convenient and it makes me feel catered to, which sure puts me in the mood to spend money. I am grateful for this and I love the future!" I mean is that how it was sold to the companies who adopt this practice or buy information from virtual spies, do people believe that happens? Probably not, it's probably all exactly the same as the douchebag who tells you to hit on every single girl you see no matter what you think could happen, because it's all just a numbers game.

But yeah, this shit makes me want to leave the internet forever. It makes me want to delete all my user profiles, wipe my phone, and only keep it in case I need to dial 911. You'd think that would be counter to the original purpose of all this spying, but I actually have a personal conspiracy theory about it. It involves the post office, and net neutrality too. On the surface, it seems like the deliberate Republican-backed degradation of the USPS is designed to make the government some money, when they completely defund it and sell it off. On the surface, attacks on net neutrality seem like they're designed to make money by further commodifying internet access as it already exists. On the surface, relentless spying seems designed to make more money by constantly feeding your perceived desires back to you as spending options. But let's say the actual effect of all this is you want to be online less because it's such a creepy, intrusive experience, and because it's becoming too expensive, and also you stop sending and receiving as much mail because that's too expensive now that it's privatized. And let's take the Republican "EARN IT" bill, that would mandate that the government scans every single message sent over the internet--on the surface it seems designed to collect more data than ever, but let's say its actual effect is to make people stop communicating as much, out of fear and disgust. Wouldn't it be a huge accomplishment for a fascist state, to establish a scenario where people just don't talk to each other almost at all, because it's so cumbersome and invasive and costs too much money? Wouldn't it be great for such a government if people had less access to information than ever before, and the people who do have information were less willing and able to transfer it to others? I'm not saying I truly think that everything that's going on is NOT just business as usual for capitalism, but that capitalism is the cover for a conspiracy to prevent civilians from being able to communicate with each other. I mean, nobody's ever NOT trying to make more money. I'm just saying, like, I would not be surprised, at all.

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jupitermelichios · 4 years

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Binding Safety: what the Binding Health Project study tells us

[sorry in advance for the long post, but this is important health stuff so i didn’t want to hide it under a cut where most people won’t bother reading it]

There’s been a lot of talk lately on trans/nb/gnc tumblr about a 2016 study on the health impacts of binding, after a user made a post about how choosing to bind should be a decision taken very seriously due to the serious long-term health effects, and linked to the study.

I was curious, because as someone who’s been binding for several years now, the study results referenced sounded somewhat extreme. So I went and read the study to see for myself. (Which you can access HERE, and I encourage you to read it for yourselves. It’s not as daunting to read as it initially looks provided you have a decent grasp of English). This is in no way intended to be a callout or response to that user, which is why I’m not naming them. I just read the study and realised I hadn’t seen the results being talked about. Thank you to the op for directing me to the study.

The study is pretty broad with a reasonably high level of responses (1800 people in total were used - some more responded but were excluded for being under 18). There’s a few things that might immediately jump out at you though.

Mainly, this was the first ever study of the kind, and as such, it’s intended to gather preliminary data (that is, a broad overview intended to provide a starting point for other more in-depth studies in the future). There’s a lot of questions I would say definitely need to be answered before any serious conclusions can be drawn that just aren’t covered at all. Which is fine, it’s a preliminary study, but that also means we should take care when viewing the results.

First of all, my qualifications. I’ve been binding regularly for three years now, and my degree involved some studying and inpretting of questionnaire and other study responses, so I am relatively familiar with this format of data. I am also a fully qualified first aider, so I have some medical knowledge. However I am not a sports scientist/biologist/medical professional, and three years really isn’t all that long in the grand scheme of things. As such, you should definitely consider seeking out other opinions on this study, and on binding safety in general, before making any kinds of decisions about whether to start/continue binding.

With that out of the way, here’s a run down of limitations to bear in mind before I talk about the actual results:

1. This was an online study and as such is most going to capture a younger target demographic, and also therefore people who had been binding for a shorter period of time. More than half the respondants were under 24, and the average respondant had been binding for only 2 years. The study does not report on whether there is any correlation between age and experience with binding and health impact or not, which is a question that it’s definitely worth asking. (To put it simply, I think it is likely that people who are older or have been binding for a long time are more likely to spot if the way they bind is hurting them than younger people, but I don’t have evidence for that assumption because there hasn’t been any research yet that covers that topic).

2. This is not a longditudinal study (where subjects are studied over a long period to track changes over time), and as such it is only capturing a snapshot as at the point people filled it the questionnaire. Some questions did cover before and after experiences, but that’s not the same as a long term study, and the study itself mentions this as a limitation.

3. This is anecdotal evidence with no input from medical professionals (in case people aren’t familiar with the terms, asking someone if they eat a lot of spaghetti would get you anecdotal evidence, as opposed to a researcher following someone around and recording whether they actually ate spaghetti, which would be empirical evidence. Neither type of evidence is superior, they’re just useful for different things). Self reported data is important and useful, but there’s also going to be some blindspots, and one of those could potentially be whether binding is actually the root cause of the health problems reported. (Which isn’t to say that it isn’t, just that the study didn’t try to rule other possible causes).

4. Over 80% of respondants used commercial binders (garments made specifically for the purpose of binding, purchased from a shop, rather than improvised/homemade garments, or repurposed garments intended for other things like playing sport), and so the data on other binding methods is limited, meaning the ability to compare accross different binding methods is likewise limited.

5. All commercial binders are grouped together with no distinction between the different types, but annecdotal evidence from the community strongly suggests there are major differences between binders with fastenings and elasticated binders when it comes to health

6. Respondents were asked only what they currently or most frequently bound with, not whether they had used other binding materials in the past. Many people, especially those who begin binding young, will start with something improvised before moving on to a commercial binder. Some of the health affects the study associates with commercial binders may actually be the long term result of other binding methods. (Again, they also may not be, the point is just that we don’t know)

7. There has yet to be a study of the effects of binding which compares it to wearing a bra regularly, but some of the health impacts reported have also been linked to bras, especially amoung people with larger chests. (Back and shoulder pain especially). This suggests (although obviously in no way proves) that some of the results may be related to more body shape than they are binding.

8. The study itself mentions several times that they did not cover the size of binder/level of compression people chose, or whether they were layering binders (except layered shirts or sports bras), both of which have been strongly linked to health impacts by community anecdotal evidence

There’s almost certainly more I haven’t thought of, but those are just the ones that immediately spring to mind. Again, this is not to say this study is worthless. This study is, and was intended to be, a useful jumping off point for more detailed studies.

So what does the study actually say:

1. Most people who bind report some impact on their health. These impacts can range from fairly minor (itching and overheating) all the way up to very serious (skin/soft tissue infections and rib fractures, which in can lead to more serious infections and punctured lungs respectively). The most common effects are back pain and overheating. Binding without getting side effects of some kind is extremely rare.

2. The number of days a week you wear a binder is a much better indicator of whether binding it going to negatively impact your health than how many hours at a time you wear your binder.

3. Within the limits of this study (see above) commercial binders are the most associated with health impacts, while binding methods developed for sports, such as sports bras and compression vests, are the least associated.

4. The impact of binding on mental health is generally very possitive

So what if I already bind and don’t want to stop / am considering starting to bind. Should I be worried?

This is where we’re getting much more into my personal anecdotal experience and interpretation of the results. Other people may not agree with what I’m about to say, and it’s important that we listen to those voices, especially if they come from people more qualified than me.

IMO the answer is not especially, if you’re being sensible. It definitely is a decision to consider seriously before you begin, but unless you’re doing something really dangerous it’s probably not going to do serious harm. However there are some safety steps you need to take to protect yourself. Some of these will be stuff you’ve probably seen before from the community. Some of them may be new, because there’s bits of this study which do contradict what the community thought they knew about binding safety.

Based on this study, and my own/community anecdotal evidence, you should:

1. Take regular breaks from binding. Take days off as often as you can. This is the biggest predictor of low/minimal health impacts. If you’re not going out, or if you’re not feeling dysphoric, take a day off. Binding can become a habit easily, but if it’s not necessary avoid it. Try and, at the minimum, get into a ‘if I’d be happy wearing sweat-pants or pyjamas today, then I shouldn’t be wearing a binder’ mindset.

2. Do not sleep in your binder. Even a looser or more comfortable one. (Also any bra-wearing people wearing this, don’t sleep in your bra either. It’s really bad for you). While length of time you wear a binder while awake doesn’t seem to impact health, sleeping in a binder can.

3. Bind with material that stretches. Using stiff binders, whether that’s homemade, tape/bandages/plastic wrap, or one of the velcro/hook commercial binders, is how you end up with fractured ribs and breathing difficulties. If something is able to comfortably expand with your breathing, it’s not going to break anything when you breath. If it isn’t... well, that’s how you get 8% of responses being from people who’ve cracked ribs in the past.

4. Pay attention to your body, and keep binding in mind as a possible cause for any new pain or other health problems, especially if those problems affect your chest, shoulders, lungs, or digestive system. (Your stoumach is way higher up in your body that you probably think it is, so it can be impacted by some binders.)

5. Consider athetic supports for binding. If you can/are comfortable with them, binding options which have been designed and tested by sports scientists for their impact on the body, and breathing in particular, are going to be your safest option. Consider whether a sports bra or compression vest would work for you rather than a commercial binder (and/or swap them out with a commercial binder).

6. Accept that you’re never going to be completely flat, just like most cisgender men aren’t completely flat, and don’t try to aim for that, especially if you’ve got a bigger chest. Trying to achieve an idealised body is never healthy, whether that relates to musclemass, weight, or chest size, and it’s this kind of thinking (tempting as I know it can be) that leads people to make dangerous choices.

7. Never forget that it is possible to bind so tightly that you cut off blood circulation to parts of your chest, which is how you get infections and even necrosis. Which in turn, as well as being horrible and possibly impacting your ability to have top surgery if that’s something you want, is how you get sepsis, which has a terrifyingly high chance of killing you, but especially if it’s starting right next to your vital organs. Because you’re not watching the tissue go white the way you would if you tightened something around your arm, for instance, it can be easy to forget this is a possible outcome. Bear this in mind, and choose your compression levels accordingly.

8. Wear a binder that fits. If you’re buying a commercial elasticated binder, make sure you’re picking the right size for you and only wear one at a time. The big brands like GC2B, Underworks, and Trans-Missie have size charts. Read them, and don’t order a size smaller becuase you think you know better.

9. Stretch regularly and be aware of your posture as much as possible. (Honestly this is good advice for everyone, especially extremely online people; laptops are great but their impact on posture and therefore spinal health has been pretty catastrophic). Excercises that strengthen your core muscles are also great, because those muscles help hold your spine in place. I’ve been told by way too many physiotherapists/osteopaths/chiaropractors that my lack of core strength is the root of my recurring back and neck problems, and since binding can negatively affect your spine, this goes double for those of us who bind.

10. Be aware of heat stroke and heat exhaustion, they’re real and they’re dangerous. Stay hydrated, stay in the shade, and consider not binding on hot days if possible. (Generally just avoid tight clothing and synthetic fabrics wherever you can when it’s hot, and since binders are both, that goes double for them). Also talc often has some really bad stuff in it, but some sort of anti-stick powder in your (sorry for the gendered language, couldn’t think of a good neutral alternative) cleavage and underboob areas is an absolute lifesaver on hot days, and as long as you pick something smooth and skin safe will help with itching.

11. Take the time to choose a binder that’s right for your body. It’s really easy if you’re new to binders to assume that however the first one you buy fits is normal, even if it actually doesn’t fit at all and causes you pain. It’s entirely possible to bind without pain, especially if you take regular days off, so if your binder hurts, even if it’s just mild discomfort, it’s probably the wrong size. This is one of the reasons it’s so important that folks who bind talk about their experiences, and that younger or newer members of the community reach out to more experienced members for advice and support.

Binding can have a serious impact on your health, no one is denying that, but if anything looking at the results of this study, limited though it was, suggests that there’s a lot you can do to make it relatively safe. It’s still a decision you should think through, and it requires a level of physical monitoring many people aren’t used to, but it’s not some big scary life threatening thing.

Anyway, I hope that was interesting and/or set some people’s minds at rest. I know I’ve seen that post a lot the last couple of days, and it had me worried before I went and read over the results, which again, I’d urge you all to go and do if you can (warning that it’s probably not super screen-reader friendly due to the formatting of the reports). I’m not a medical or scientific professional, so if people better qualified to interpret the study than me, or if people who have been binding for longer and have more anecdotal evidence than me, have dissenting opinions it would be great to hear them.

I’ll leave you with one last tip, which isn’t health related but which I wish someone had given me when I was starting out:

12. If at all possible, order binders from your country or at least continent, because chances are the first one you order will need to be returned or adjusted and international shipping and customs charges are a bitch, especially if you’re on a budget. The closer to home it ships from, the easier it will be to return it.

TL:DR; binding is very likely to have some impact on your health, but how serious that impact is is heavily dependant on how, and how safely, you bind. Taking days off from binding is the best way to protect yourself, and garments designed for sports are the safest binding method. However there still needs to be a lot more research done before we can draw up anything more than rough guidelines for safety, and you should therefore take care and pay attention to your body if you decide to bind.

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soundrooms · 5 years

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Soundrs: DJ CYBERDAD

My name is John Verchot, I’ve released music under several names: J-chot as well as DJ CYBERDAD. Locally, I’m usually just billed as DJ Verchot. I feel like the first thing I should tell you about myself is that I have severe ADHD, which seems to be the single most consistent force guiding my art and existence. I often get distracted and always get ahead of myself when I try to explain things. DJ CYBERDAD started out as a funny pseudonym to release more profane songs that I didn’t want my son to hear, but changed into an outlet for my smoother dance jams as well as more introspective music.

What are your inspiration sources?

It varies from project to project. Often times with tracks, the inspiration to work on them comes in two or three different phases. Inspiration to create sounds is one thing, as inspiration to finish and structure tracks, create moods/themes, or even package them into a finished project, all feel like different driving forces/processes that need to happen in order for me to get anything done. However, whichever one of those forces I am able to utilize when I sit down at my laptop often seems to be beyond my control.

Most times I’ll hear a sound, loop or phrase, I’ll start to wonder what I can do with it, or how I can change and manipulate it. It might be the timbre of an old instructional video’s narrator, or an odd metallic sound I’ve managed to coax out of some equipment. Occasionally I’ll think of a concept, either of overall sound or thematic content and before I know it, I’ve got half a track planned out in my head. Many times I’ll hear other tracks or songs, and want to use just one part/concept/sound or re-do the whole track differently. With “Emotional in Destin”, I was trying to convey moods or feelings I felt during an unexpected trip to Florida in the middle of a crushing depression. It sounds bizarre, but I've never channeled personal experiences into my music before.

Overall what inspires me to create different sounds is the novelty of technology and bits and other people’s music.

What makes me want to sit down and make music is personal or professional success.

What inspires me to finish tracks and projects is the distant white noise of overwhelming anxiety and dread setting in as the ennui of the imminent collapse of western society fades giving way to the dark, almost imperceivable thrumming of the void drawing nearer, and is definitely getting louder. Your “time” is almost up John. Did you even do anything, or are you too skiddish and feeble of heart and head to make any clear decisions, impulsively flitting from one animal urge to another bad habit, clogging the chemical receptors of your brain for simple stupid pleasure. It’s night now and your eyes and fingers grow weary…

What was the question again?

Tell us something about your workflow.

Most times, it starts with just noodling around. Sometimes, it’s with synths and sequencers, either recording sounds or looping notes and tweaking/loading patches (virtual or real synths), sometimes I’m browsing potential sample material, but what happens next is the same regardless of how I’m making sounds or what I’m doing:

…I think hear something.

…And I STOP noodling. Basically, I either hear something I like, or I hit a riff or whatever and it’s like a tiny, tiny light bulb that blinks barely. Occasionally it’s like a hundred watt, and other ideas quickly fall into place. Most times, it’s a process of trial and error, but I’m making sure to document or isolate the little pieces that click and then attempt to refine or improve on those ideas. Ideas can quickly diverge, multiple sets with different names get saved, and I often jump around and get lost. I use color coding on clips and pieces in Ableton to help me sort those ideas. Some ideas form by running one sequence I’ve had already through a whole different synth/patch.

Very rarely, I’ll get a concrete idea while I’m driving, maybe I’ll make some notes on my phone (text to speech notes, voice recording).

When I get a spark that makes me imagine a full concept (“Charles Nelson Riley”, or that “My P**sy tastes like Pepsi Cola” remix for example), the track is formed VERY quickly (four to eight hours working time) and I finish the mix, structure, everything. This is rare, but these tracks are almost always my better material.

The next step is always the same: Let the track “cool-off”. Leave it alone. Do something else for a few days, or weeks… or in some cases, years… Then I’ll fuck around with it even more, or move on to:

STRUCTURE & MIXING:

I look for/experiment with arrangements that compliment my DJ style, or allow someone to do a rough edit if they want, (breakdowns at the end), or I’ll load a track that I like to DJ that’s similar enough and I will STRAIGHT UP copy the song structure in terms of intro, (drums or keys?) repeating bits, breakdowns, outros… Most times I fuck with it until it sounds okay, which is kinda bad because I end up drastically overscrutinizing it.

When it comes to mixing, something that I should do more often but don’t is load a reference track (someone else’s track) and try to get my mix to sound like theirs… This technique REALLY helps stop “nasty surprises” when you listen to it on a big system, or in the car.

Most of the time, I’ve been tweaking the mix the entire time I’ve been working on the project.

TL;DR

The “Emotional in Destin” EP is almost entirely soft synths, but lately my flow is:

1. dick around on hardware

2. “oh that sounds good, let me make another sound to go with it” (see step 1)

3. record a few pieces to an Ableton project.

4. “I don't know what to do now.” …maybe mixing or structure…

…almost ALL THE TIME, however I jump around and do everything very non-linearly. Hardware helps me not spend so much time tweaking patches or EQ-ing a snare drum for an hour. Texture is SUPER important to me, so I’ll often get hung up on EQ and compression before I even start on structure or mixing.

How would creative rituals benefit your workflow?

The hardest part for me is ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS getting started, or shifting gears from other activities (resting after work, reading tumblr, goofing off…) and going to sit down at my desk and start music stuff. I’m certain it’s an executive dysfunction thing. The less I think about doing it before I do it, the better.

Animal sacrifice SIGNIFICANTLY speeds things up. Try not to get blood on the gear/laptop, and make sure never to clean, but regularly sharpen the ceremonial dagger (VERY important).

How do you get in the zone?

I don’t really try…

As soon as I start to approach a task as “a thing” I get nervous and anxious. If I go “okay, I’ve got this task to complete…” my subconscious hijacks my higher functions to make me look at memes or tumblr for three hours instead of do what I “should” or “want”… The problem with me in the past has been how do I get OUT of the zone?

How do you start a track?

Oh jeez, I really jumped the shark with that question earlier, didn’t I? A technique I’ll sometimes employ is load up an old track, keep the drum sounds/patches but delete all the data, and make an entirely different genre of track… or one that's very similar… That’s kind of a fun exercise if nothing else. Also it often winds up getting tweaked and adjusted to hell and back.

Do you have a special template?

Nope. I make TONS of drum, EQ, and effects presets though. And they all have terrible names like “gooddrums”, “$GOODrums” and such.

Even though I’ve started with carbon copies, they ALWAYS end up sounding completely different by the time I’m finished with the track, because I can’t leave em well enough alone.

What do you put on the master channel?

Sometimes EQ, but always a phat ass compressor (limiting). I’ve been thinking about investing in a nice non-free one lately, but for some reason I am not comfortable with purchasing software plugins… I also have learned recently, that I’ve been using compression on the individual tracks way too much… which makes final-mixing a pain in the ass.

How do you arrange and finish a track?

DAMN IT. I really did go too hard with the first couple questions. The “finishing” of a track for me (arrangement, mixing) is usually done much later than the rest of the process. I try not to force stuff, but lately I’m realizing more and more that I need to not do this as much.

I can’t stress enough how using a reference track for structure or mixing can very often break up stagnation on a project.

How do you deal with unfinished projects?

Several ways. The first step is to judge an old file and see if it's worth finishing. If there is ANYTHING of creative/sonic merit, I put it in a folder with the other “sketches and ideas” (project graveyard). Otherwise, I have been trying to delete the “junk” projects… this can make it easier to focus. Another thing I often do is to make presets/patches/Ableton instruments from the parts I like, then drop it in a folder called “meh”. Or I drop them into several categorical folders, i.e.: “uncircumcised electro bangers”, “abrasive techno”.

How do you store and organize your projects?

Aw jeez. Oh gosh-oh darn. (See above answer.)

How do you take care of studio ergonomics?

Trial and error, trial and error, trial and error. This year alone my studio has been restructured and moved about my downstairs room at least five times. I’ve finally settled on something that feels very useful and productive. I am also this way with my work station at my job. CHANGE IT UNTIL IT WORKS GREAT. This can also help with creative stagnation, or can trigger it, so be careful. I keep my “electronics laboratory” close at hand so that more of that tinkering can find it’s way into my music… no such luck, YET.

I’ve currently decorated my space with all the crap I’ve saved up over the years, that for some reason, I’ve looked at this and thought: “This makes me happy” …SUUURE, my studio now looks like a fourteen year old decorated it, but I gotta say, I feel pretty phenomenal. Soon I’m gonna try to put this “stars and space” wall paper on my ceiling… I’ll update with a photo when that’s done.

Also I would like to say:

Minimalist spaces and studios are bullshit, y’all look like sick baby birds in empty shoe-boxes.

I mean, NOBODY LIVES THAT WAY, right? Maybe some boring rich people do, but damn… I mean, I try to clean and stay organized… and it helps, but I also try not to get to hung up on it.

Tell us something about your daily routine, how is your day structured, how do you make room for creativity?

**LOUD SUCKING SOUND THROUGH TEETH** I don't… at least, not very well at all… but I’m working on that.

I am not the person you should ask this question, because THIS RIGHT HERE is the BANE of my existence…

Share a quick producing tip.

MAN, I’ve already dropped like… seven, but okay, here goes:

BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY, FINISH THE TRACK. For me, this means ghetto-rigging, DIY, using the same goddamn audio interface from 2002 for f****ng fifteen YEARS… (recently fixed) don’t get hung up on “proper” ways, or ways that are outside your current means. Also, get a set of decent monitors… or use several pairs of headphones/speakers to double check mixes.

Recently, I’ve had less time, but a little bit of money, which is the opposite of how I’ve ALWAYS operated… it’s been difficult to unlearn “time consuming but cheap”. Also difficult not to impulse buy synths.

Making music with just a mouse and keyboard may be the least sexy thing ever… it works tho… cheap MIDI controllers CAN work faster however.

Share a link to an interesting website (doesn’t have to be music related).

My son just showed me this ➜ https://dddance.party/ and I have to say, this is an outstanding achievement of mankind.

List ten sounds you are hearing right this moment : )

Traffic outside my window, gentle hum of laptop cooling fan, dog snoring, fingers typing, birds chirping… that’s it.

John has a lo-fi house EP out on UltraBold Records as DJ CYBERDAD. It’s called ‘Emotional in Destin’. Stream it ➜ here, audio cassettes are available ➜ here.

Thanks John! If you want to get featured next, send a message here on tumblr or email [email protected].

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sol1056 · 5 years

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Something I don't understand. According to those stats you posted, VLD has got more or less similar traffic rates as other shows like Castlevania and The Dragon Prince. So why is its Twitter and Tumblr presence so massively higher? For example the trailer for S8 on Twitter has 12k likes, but the trailer of S2 of Castlevania has only got 3.6k, almost just 1/4 of Voltron. I know you said Fandom can't be used to detect actual traffic, but I thought different Fandoms could be compared to each other.

You can compare fandoms, yes, but what you’re comparing in twitter stats vs the stats I listed is the difference between engagement and viewership.

We can determine engagement by looking at traffic on twitter, tumblr, facebook, instagram, and google searches. As google is the only one of those five that has a reach beyond 20% of the internet-using public, I find it’s the best for a blunt-force measurement of audience engagement, which really boils down to “how much people are talking about it.”

Wikipedia’s page views are an extrapolation of viewership. That’s a massive segment of the population who don’t get on twitter, use facebook for family stuff, aren’t into instagram, and have never heard of tumblr (yes, lots of those people exist).

Remember, a controversial show can get people talking but that doesn’t translate automatically to them watching. If you go by twitter stats, S7 should’ve been THE most watched season of VLD ever, ‘cause boy was it blowing up the charts in terms of engagement. Thing is, its viewership stats were just fractionally higher than S6, and still nowhere near S1/S2 levels. It didn’t bring in that many more eyeballs; it just got talked about. A lot.

The other thing to keep in mind is that you’re comparing one show’s seventh season to another show’s first season and a third show’s second season. VLD has had 2 more years to build up its audience than tDP, and a year more than Castlevania (which also doesn’t come with the massive marketing push that DW puts into even its half-assed-marketed shows).

On top of that, Castlevania’s audience skews older, and those of us with jobs don’t have the time to spend all day on various platforms, so our engagement may be as strong but it’s rarely as noisy. (in other words, we’ll miss stuff ‘cause we don’t have the time to go back and see everything in our feed that happened while we were busy elsewhere.) Meanwhile, tDP’s audience skews slightly younger, and twitter is much more a 18-30 kind of platform. So tDP’s audience is either slightly too young for twitter, while its other audience (parents) are just a little older than twitter’s core audience.

So, comparison graphs. Colors for each show in each graph are:

blue: Voltron (VLD)green: She-Ra (SPOP)red: The Dragon Prince (tDP)orange: Castlevaniapurple: Trollhunters (TH)

Viewership stats (via Wiki)

Stats run from 6/1/2016 to 11/17/2018.

VLD’s S1 viewership peaked at about 38K; TH’s S1 peaked at about 21K, same as SPOP over on the far right. Castlevania hit about 72K in its first season, so its S2 drop to around 48K is about standard. tDP managed almost 50K in its first season.

Viewership drops by 30-40% with each subsequent season for the average show; a drop of less than 20% means you have a major hit on your hands. The last season almost always shows a spike, as people come back to see how it ends. If a show ends without that spike, consider it dying a quiet death.

That reality of each subsequent season losing viewers means SPOP is in a really bad place right now, unless it can do a turn-around like TH and have a powerful ending. If SPOP has more than three seasons, by the time it gets to its final season (and that resurgent viewership for the finale), it might barely be a blip on the scale. The longer the show, the higher you want the S1 levels, to offset that expected decline over the seasons.

Engagement stats (via Google)

Here’s the chatter, of people searching for each show (or related topics like toys, merch, news, fic, art, etc). Same colors as above, for each show, for the same time period.

Unfortunately, Castlevania drowns everyone else out by such a degree that we can’t really see much until we get that out of the way. So this second one, I narrowed it down to ‘Castlevania netflix’ to temporarily quiet it, a little.

Compare this to the viewership, and you can see some interesting behaviors. People talked about TH a lot more than VLD, despite TH having such lower viewership stats. There was a major spike when SPOP released its character designs, and kerfluffles get people talking. For VLD, its S3 viewership dropped as in standard but the chatter went up; S3 and S7 came close to matching S1 levels of engagement (for not always good reasons, natch).

Notably, tDP may be somewhat quiet (comparatively) over on twitter, but it’s got people talking, too. If you’re wondering, the most common related search terms are for the cast overall, then ‘avatar the last airbender’ and then Ralya, Callum, Amaya, and Claudia. Going by frequency, Rayla is the most popular character by a large margin.

The dotted line in green, at the far right, is Google’s prediction based on the past few days’ traffic, as we haven’t quite completed the first week. (A query for a year+ gets compressed to a weekly Sun-Sat view.)

Speaking of which, let’s take it down to just the past 90 days, and remove the narrowing filter on Castlevania. This graph has a bumpier view because it’s back to a daily value for each.

tDP and SPOP look very close, and there’s really only a few points difference: tDP maxed out at 43%; SPOP maxed at 37%. (Basically, take Castlevania’s highest-rated day as x, and tDP’s highpoint is 43% of x.) If I narrow Castlevania down again, we can see tDP vs SPOP chatter.

People are talking about SPOP but still not quite to the degree of engagement as tDP. Then again, SPOP also hamstrung itself by releasing three days early without a lot of warning, so it’s possible we may see another spike similar to tDP’s once word gets out that the series is actually released. Or, once early adopters create buzz and lure more people into watching.

bottom line

What people talk about isn’t always what they’re watching. And people will watch and not have the place, time, or energy to chat about it online. All of these shows are on Netflix, too, so no advertising income as a comparison point. That makes engagement a more useful data point, because the income doesn’t change based on viewership.

By that measure, TH is probably DW’s most successful series of these, followed by VLD, and then SPOP. TH is the only one inside shouting distance of what tDP managed it its first season, and none of them come close to competing with Castlevania’s numbers.

Hell, if I were DW, right now I might be having serious regrets of making VLD a Y7 property, considering Castlevania’s M rating. By platform and viewership, Netflix might be the best home for adult-oriented series where stories can explore darker themes. Of all the franchises DW has right now, VLD was possibly the best candidate for taking advantage of the platform. That M rating hasn’t hurt Castlevania in the least, and in fact may’ve been part of what propelled it so high.

#vld #voltron #castlevania #the dragon prince #she-ra #trollhunters #doing the data cronch #sol thinks about stuff

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mobilemechanics45 · 3 years

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Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service and Cost in McAllen TX |Mobile Mechanic of McAllen

More information is at: http://24hourmobileautorepairmcallen.org/fuel-delivery-and-refill-near-me/

Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: Are you looking for the Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX? Mobile Mechanic of McAllen, Whatever your situation, we will strive to provide you with speedy, on-site fuel delivery when you run out of fuel. After we receive your call, we will dispatch one or more of our workers to bring a supply of fuel to you. Cost? Free estimates! Send us a message or call us today. Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service around McAllen TX . We serve McAllen TX and other areas. Get a Free Quote Now!

BEST FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL SERVICE IN MCALLEN TX MCALLEN TX FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL

24 Hours fuel delivery service Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: Cars can run out of gas at any time of day, and when they do, there’s not much you can do about it. The line between a fairly operational car working on its last drops of fuel, and a car that’s been rendered completely inoperable by its gas thirst is quite thin indeed. McAllen TX Towing.com makes it our priority to ensure all of our customer base that we can deliver all manners of fuel, to all McAllen TX locations, at any time of day or night. There’s no reason to stay stranded, or leave your car unattended while you hike to the nearest gas station - simply contact us, and we will come right to you and refuel your vehicle, so you can be on your merry way. ● How much gas will the driver bring? ● Our driver will bring up to 2 Gallons for Gas ● My car runs on diesel fuel, can diesel fuel be delivered? ● Upon request we will deliver diesel fuel ● My owners’ manual states that my car runs on premium gasoline. Will that be delivered? ● Upon request we will deliver premium gas to your vehicle. Fuel Delivery There is always enough fuel on the gas station, but there are not as many gas stations as we want, so when it comes to fuel delivery, you know who to call. OH…you don’t know who to call. Don’t worry! The answer is simple! Call us! Why should you call us when you need a fuel delivery? Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: Because delivering fuel fast is our nickname and we earned by simply delivering fast fuel to everyone, anytime, anywhere. We are exactly like those athletes ready to conquer the first place. We are on our marks waiting for your call. Not getting the perfect measure of fuel can genuinely obstruct your vehicle’s operation. Perceiving the manifestations of a defective fuel conveyance framework early keeps a separated ride and squandered gas cash. By permitting more fuel than you have to enter your motor, a failing fuel conveyance framework makes your vehicle turn into a gas hoard. This surge of gas surges your engine, slowing down your ride totally. Then again, if the fuel framework isn’t providing enough fuel to your motor, it can render your vehicle pointless. In the event that your fuel conveyance framework is expanding excessively or too little, it’s an ideal opportunity to supplant it with our fuel delivery service. There are a lot of reasons that you can find yourself without gas. If you are working as a driver for a company something like this may happen: you may forget to buy enough fuel and you will find yourself in a bad situation of not being able to do your job. We know that things like these may happen, that’s why we are always ready to help you. Just make sure you have saved our number and call us right away if something like this happens. We won’t leave you behind. Another thing may also happen. You can be a little behind with the schedule and you simply don’t have time to stop for gas. You can call the gas to you. Yes, you really can do that. Take a shortcut so you can recuperate that time you have lost and we will find you and solve the problem. Our fuel delivery service is top-quality. We understand this need and we know this business you are in. As drivers, we have to help one another. That’s why we have created this service. The Basics Behind Fuel Services at Mobile Mechanic of McAllen Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: A gasoline engine, or a combustion engine, uses internal combustion to generate power. Engine pistons compress air that mixes with fuel, and this mixture is then ignited to create the energy that powers a car. To keep vehicles running, drivers are encouraged to keep an eye on the level of gas in their tanks. However, there are many reasons drivers run out of gas. A faulty gas tank gauge or overlooking the necessary time to refuel are two reasons drivers may need to call a fuel service provider. Running out of gas while driving can be both dangerous and stressful, but our fuel delivery services can help. When you’re away from a gas station and have no fuel left to make the trip, we can send someone with fuel. Our workers will deliver the fuel needed to safely reach the nearest gas station. If you need roadside assistance, please give us a call for our fuel service.

Why Should You Have Fuel Services Performed at Mobile Mechanic of McAllen? Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: The next time you’re stranded on the side of the road, allow us to help. Whatever your situation, we will strive to provide you with speedy, on-site fuel delivery when you run out of fuel. After we receive your call, we will dispatch one or more of our workers to bring a supply of fuel to you. We have all types of fuel to meet the needs of your vehicle, from diesel fuel to regular gasoline. Let us know what you need, and we’ll make sure to bring enough fuel to get you safely to the nearest gas station. We aim to have a fast response time and will work with you throughout the process. Contact us today to learn more about our roadside fuel delivery services, and remember our name the next time that you run out of gas. In being that there are seven different types, it can be a bit difficult to know which type to request be delivered to you. Below are seven different types of fuel and how to tell if you should request to have them delivered for your vehicle. ULP ULP stands for Unleaded Petrol, which is characterized by having an Octane number of ninety one and ninety two. This is the standard fuel that most vehicles use within the United States and throughout the world. It was first introduced in 1985 in an effort to remove lead from fuel after studies showed that lead is harmful to the environment and the people around it. PULP PULP stands for Premium Unleaded Petrol, it has a higher Octane number then ULP, its number is ninety five to ninety six. Anything above a ninety six is considered to be Super Unleaded, which goes up to ninety eight which is the highest level of Octane available. This type of fuel is usually used in high performance vehicles such as sports cars. Race cars would use Super Unleaded fuel in order to handle the fast speeds that these cars are designed to reach. Ethanol and E10 Ethanol is made from alcohol and is mixed with either petrol or diesel and is widely used in the United States and South America. It can also be made from sugars and grains and typically comes as E10 which is ten percent ethanol and ninety percent petrol. OPAL OPAL has an Octane level of ninety one and can be used in most standard vehicles. It is manufactured by BP and characterized by its low aromatic levels. It is mainly distributed in towns with high population density such as McAllen TX City. Diesel Diesel is made using sulfur and oil, and is mainly used by tractor trailers. The most common form of diesel is 10ppm, which is an Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (or ULSD). This type of fuel attempts to limit the pollutants produced by diesel. Bio-Diesel This type of fuel is created by using plant crops rather than oil. This type of fuel works the same way as fuel made with petrol and diesel, and has been around since 2008. There are various types of biodiesel, which is commonly mixed with plant crops and diesel. For example, if you go to a tank that is labeled as being B30, that fuel is thirty percent plant crops and seventy percent diesel. LPG LPG has an Octane level of ninety one and is used by most motor vehicles. LPG is also referred to as auto gas and is made from a mixture of propane and butane.

COST Fuel Delivery Costs In McAllen TX Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near McAllen TX: McAllen TX (CBS) Gas prices are on the rise in McAllen TX, and April reports on fuel costs show it now costs nearly 20 cents more per gallon to fill up your tank compared to this week last year. This week, gas prices climbed by 1.8 cent-per-gallon, to an average cost of $3.12 per gallon, according to Gas Buddy, a fuel cost tracking company based in Boston. Gas Buddy tracks gas prices at 1,437 gas stations in the McAllen TX area to come up with the data. Prices seem to be climbing steadily, with gas costing an average of 34 cents more in April compared to March. As for the cheapest places to buy gas in the McAllen TX area, try the Costco gas station in Berwyn, 2500 S. Harlem Ave. or the Sam’s Club gas station in Cicero, 2601 S. Cicero Avenue. Both gas stations have the lowest gas prices in the area, with fuel priced at $2.77. Drivers could pay up to $3.99 at some other gas stations in the McAllen TX area, according to Gas Buddy’s gas price map. Statewide, McAllen TX drivers are paying between $2.57 and $4.19 per gallon. Across the U.S., the cheapest price for gas in the entire country today stands at $1.82 per gallon, and the highest price is $5.29, the data shows.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

When can I get Mobile Mechanic of McAllen? Mobile Mechanic of McAllen fueling service operates six nights per week, serving individual routes twice weekly. Delivery nights vary by location. You can check your designated delivery night by entering your home address into our sign-up page. Delivery occurs overnight between the hours of 9pm and 5am. We limit service during peak transit hours to avoid crowding of roads during heavy traffic times. Delivery windows may vary by location. Where the Mobile Mechanic of McAllen App is available on-demand ordering and additional on-demand delivery slots may be accessible.

Do I need to be in my car while it’s being Mobile Mechanic of McAllen? No. Just open and unlock the gas flap, and we’ll take care of the rest. Our delivery drivers are trained to a high standard of safety and service, and operate specialized fuel trucks built to securely contain and distribute fuel. Your cars will always be treated with the utmost care.

How does the Mobile Mechanic of McAllen delivery driver identify my car? Before making an order, you will be asked to provide some basic information about your car: make, model, color, year and license plate number.

How do you deal with locking gas flaps? Mobile Mechanic of McAllen reminds you to open your gas flap when you order. You then leave the gas flap open so your Mobile Mechanic of McAllen driver can access the tank. When your car’s tank is filled, we will close your gas flap for you.

What if my car isn’t easy to access? Mobile Mechanic of McAllen trucks are equipped with a 50-foot hose, so we’re able to reach most vehicles, even if our truck can’t get close to them. We will contact you if we are unable to access your vehicle. After reasonable attempts to do so, you may be charged a cancellation fee if the delivery cannot be completed.

Can you fuel my car in my garage or driveway? We deliver to your driveway, but not your garage. To follow safety regulations for mobile fueling, we ask that you park with your gas flap a minimum of 10 feet from your home when getting a fill (and 25 feet for vehicles older than 2006). Parking with your nose toward the building is a good way to create distance between your home and gas tank! Our drivers are trained to assess the placement of your vehicle and will not fuel your car if the distance is too close. We appreciate your help in making sure that we can serve you safely! CALL FOR US: ● Fuel Delivery And Refill Service Near McAllen TX ● Doorstep Delivery Of Fuel ● Fuel Delivery App ● Fuel Delivery Companies ● Fuel Delivery License ● Fuel Delivery Startup ● Mobile Fuel ● Fuel Delivery Companies McAllen TX ● Emergency Fuel Service ● Doorstep Delivery Of Fuel ● Fuel Delivery App ● Fuel Delivery Companies ● Fuel ● Emergency Fuel Service ● Mobile Fuel Station ● Fuel Delivery McAllen TX

BEST FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL SERVICE IN MCALLEN TX MOBILE MECHANIC OF MCALLEN REQUEST MORE INFORMATION. CONTACT US NOW!

CONTACT US: Mobile Mechanics of McAllen 24-hour mobile mechanic roadside assistance services in McAllen, TX! CALL (956) 278-8017 MOBILE MECHANIC CALL (956) 278-8258 MOBILE AUTO MECHANIC CALL (956) 278-8619 MOBILE TRUCK MECHANIC CALL (956) 587-3435 TOWING & RAODSIDE ASSISTANCE WEBISTE: www.24hourmobileautorepairmcallen.org http://www.mobilemechanicmcallentx.com/

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mobilemechanicsabq · 3 years

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Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service and Cost in Albuquerque NM |Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque

More information is at: http://mobilemechanicalbuquerque.org/fuel-delivery-and-refill-service-near-me/

Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: Are you looking for the Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM? Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque, Whatever your situation, we will strive to provide you with speedy, on-site fuel delivery when you run out of fuel. After we receive your call, we will dispatch one or more of our workers to bring a supply of fuel to you. Cost? Free estimates! Send us a message or call us today. Best Fuel Delivery And Refill Service around Albuquerque NM . We serve Albuquerque NM and other areas. Get a Free Quote Now!

BEST FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL SERVICE IN ALBUQUERQUE ALBUQUERQUE NM FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL

24 Hours fuel delivery service Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: Cars can run out of gas at any time of day, and when they do, there’s not much you can do about it. The line between a fairly operational car working on its last drops of fuel, and a car that’s been rendered completely inoperable by its gas thirst is quite thin indeed. Albuquerque NM Towing.com makes it our priority to ensure all of our customer base that we can deliver all manners of fuel, to all Albuquerque NM locations, at any time of day or night. There’s no reason to stay stranded, or leave your car unattended while you hike to the nearest gas station - simply contact us, and we will come right to you and refuel your vehicle, so you can be on your merry way. ● How much gas will the driver bring? ● Our driver will bring up to 2 Gallons for Gas ● My car runs on diesel fuel, can diesel fuel be delivered? ● Upon request we will deliver diesel fuel ● My owners’ manual states that my car runs on premium gasoline. Will that be delivered? ● Upon request we will deliver premium gas to your vehicle. Fuel Delivery There is always enough fuel on the gas station, but there are not as many gas stations as we want, so when it comes to fuel delivery, you know who to call. OH…you don’t know who to call. Don’t worry! The answer is simple! Call us! Why should you call us when you need a fuel delivery? Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: Because delivering fuel fast is our nickname and we earned by simply delivering fast fuel to everyone, anytime, anywhere. We are exactly like those athletes ready to conquer the first place. We are on our marks waiting for your call. Not getting the perfect measure of fuel can genuinely obstruct your vehicle’s operation. Perceiving the manifestations of a defective fuel conveyance framework early keeps a separated ride and squandered gas cash. By permitting more fuel than you have to enter your motor, a failing fuel conveyance framework makes your vehicle turn into a gas hoard. This surge of gas surges your engine, slowing down your ride totally. Then again, if the fuel framework isn’t providing enough fuel to your motor, it can render your vehicle pointless. In the event that your fuel conveyance framework is expanding excessively or too little, it’s an ideal opportunity to supplant it with our fuel delivery service. There are a lot of reasons that you can find yourself without gas. If you are working as a driver for a company something like this may happen: you may forget to buy enough fuel and you will find yourself in a bad situation of not being able to do your job. We know that things like these may happen, that’s why we are always ready to help you. Just make sure you have saved our number and call us right away if something like this happens. We won’t leave you behind. Another thing may also happen. You can be a little behind with the schedule and you simply don’t have time to stop for gas. You can call the gas to you. Yes, you really can do that. Take a shortcut so you can recuperate that time you have lost and we will find you and solve the problem. Our fuel delivery service is top-quality. We understand this need and we know this business you are in. As drivers, we have to help one another. That’s why we have created this service. The Basics Behind Fuel Services at Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: A gasoline engine, or a combustion engine, uses internal combustion to generate power. Engine pistons compress air that mixes with fuel, and this mixture is then ignited to create the energy that powers a car. To keep vehicles running, drivers are encouraged to keep an eye on the level of gas in their tanks. However, there are many reasons drivers run out of gas. A faulty gas tank gauge or overlooking the necessary time to refuel are two reasons drivers may need to call a fuel service provider. Running out of gas while driving can be both dangerous and stressful, but our fuel delivery services can help. When you’re away from a gas station and have no fuel left to make the trip, we can send someone with fuel. Our workers will deliver the fuel needed to safely reach the nearest gas station. If you need roadside assistance, please give us a call for our fuel service.

Why Should You Have Fuel Services Performed at Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque? Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: The next time you’re stranded on the side of the road, allow us to help. Whatever your situation, we will strive to provide you with speedy, on-site fuel delivery when you run out of fuel. After we receive your call, we will dispatch one or more of our workers to bring a supply of fuel to you. We have all types of fuel to meet the needs of your vehicle, from diesel fuel to regular gasoline. Let us know what you need, and we’ll make sure to bring enough fuel to get you safely to the nearest gas station. We aim to have a fast response time and will work with you throughout the process. Contact us today to learn more about our roadside fuel delivery services, and remember our name the next time that you run out of gas. In being that there are seven different types, it can be a bit difficult to know which type to request be delivered to you. Below are seven different types of fuel and how to tell if you should request to have them delivered for your vehicle. ULP ULP stands for Unleaded Petrol, which is characterized by having an Octane number of ninety one and ninety two. This is the standard fuel that most vehicles use within the United States and throughout the world. It was first introduced in 1985 in an effort to remove lead from fuel after studies showed that lead is harmful to the environment and the people around it. PULP PULP stands for Premium Unleaded Petrol, it has a higher Octane number then ULP, its number is ninety five to ninety six. Anything above a ninety six is considered to be Super Unleaded, which goes up to ninety eight which is the highest level of Octane available. This type of fuel is usually used in high performance vehicles such as sports cars. Race cars would use Super Unleaded fuel in order to handle the fast speeds that these cars are designed to reach. Ethanol and E10 Ethanol is made from alcohol and is mixed with either petrol or diesel and is widely used in the United States and South America. It can also be made from sugars and grains and typically comes as E10 which is ten percent ethanol and ninety percent petrol. OPAL OPAL has an Octane level of ninety one and can be used in most standard vehicles. It is manufactured by BP and characterized by its low aromatic levels. It is mainly distributed in towns with high population density such as Albuquerque NM City. Diesel Diesel is made using sulfur and oil, and is mainly used by tractor trailers. The most common form of diesel is 10ppm, which is an Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (or ULSD). This type of fuel attempts to limit the pollutants produced by diesel. Bio-Diesel This type of fuel is created by using plant crops rather than oil. This type of fuel works the same way as fuel made with petrol and diesel, and has been around since 2008. There are various types of biodiesel, which is commonly mixed with plant crops and diesel. For example, if you go to a tank that is labeled as being B30, that fuel is thirty percent plant crops and seventy percent diesel. LPG LPG has an Octane level of ninety one and is used by most motor vehicles. LPG is also referred to as auto gas and is made from a mixture of propane and butane.

COST Fuel Delivery Costs In Albuquerque NM Fuel Delivery And Refill Service near Albuquerque NM: Albuquerque NM (CBS) Gas prices are on the rise in Albuquerque NM, and April reports on fuel costs show it now costs nearly 20 cents more per gallon to fill up your tank compared to this week last year. This week, gas prices climbed by 1.8 cent-per-gallon, to an average cost of $3.12 per gallon, according to Gas Buddy, a fuel cost tracking company based in Boston. Gas Buddy tracks gas prices at 1,437 gas stations in the Albuquerque NM area to come up with the data. Prices seem to be climbing steadily, with gas costing an average of 34 cents more in April compared to March. As for the cheapest places to buy gas in the Albuquerque NM area, try the Costco gas station in Berwyn, 2500 S. Harlem Ave. or the Sam’s Club gas station in Cicero, 2601 S. Cicero Avenue. Both gas stations have the lowest gas prices in the area, with fuel priced at $2.77. Drivers could pay up to $3.99 at some other gas stations in the Albuquerque NM area, according to Gas Buddy’s gas price map. Statewide, Albuquerque NM drivers are paying between $2.57 and $4.19 per gallon. Across the U.S., the cheapest price for gas in the entire country today stands at $1.82 per gallon, and the highest price is $5.29, the data shows.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

When can I get Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque? Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque fueling service operates six nights per week, serving individual routes twice weekly. Delivery nights vary by location. You can check your designated delivery night by entering your home address into our sign-up page. Delivery occurs overnight between the hours of 9pm and 5am. We limit service during peak transit hours to avoid crowding of roads during heavy traffic times. Delivery windows may vary by location. Where the Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque App is available on-demand ordering and additional on-demand delivery slots may be accessible.

Do I need to be in my car while it’s being Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque? No. Just open and unlock the gas flap, and we’ll take care of the rest. Our delivery drivers are trained to a high standard of safety and service, and operate specialized fuel trucks built to securely contain and distribute fuel. Your cars will always be treated with the utmost care.

How does the Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque delivery driver identify my car? Before making an order, you will be asked to provide some basic information about your car: make, model, color, year and license plate number.

How do you deal with locking gas flaps? Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque reminds you to open your gas flap when you order. You then leave the gas flap open so your Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque driver can access the tank. When your car’s tank is filled, we will close your gas flap for you.

What if my car isn’t easy to access? Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque trucks are equipped with a 50-foot hose, so we’re able to reach most vehicles, even if our truck can’t get close to them. We will contact you if we are unable to access your vehicle. After reasonable attempts to do so, you may be charged a cancellation fee if the delivery cannot be completed.

Can you fuel my car in my garage or driveway? We deliver to your driveway, but not your garage. To follow safety regulations for mobile fueling, we ask that you park with your gas flap a minimum of 10 feet from your home when getting a fill (and 25 feet for vehicles older than 2006). Parking with your nose toward the building is a good way to create distance between your home and gas tank! Our drivers are trained to assess the placement of your vehicle and will not fuel your car if the distance is too close. We appreciate your help in making sure that we can serve you safely! CALL FOR US: ● Fuel Delivery And Refill Service Near Albuquerque NM ● Doorstep Delivery Of Fuel ● Fuel Delivery App ● Fuel Delivery Companies ● Fuel Delivery License ● Fuel Delivery Startup ● Mobile Fuel ● Fuel Delivery Companies Albuquerque NM ● Emergency Fuel Service ● Doorstep Delivery Of Fuel ● Fuel Delivery App ● Fuel Delivery Companies ● Fuel ● Emergency Fuel Service ● Mobile Fuel Station ● Fuel Delivery Albuquerque NM

BEST FUEL DELIVERY AND REFILL SERVICE IN ALBUQUERQUE NM MOBILE MECHANICS OF ALBUQUERQUE REQUEST MORE INFORMATION. CONTACT US NOW!

CONTACT US: Mobile Mechanics of Albuquerque 24-hour Mobile Mechanic Roadside Assistance Services in Albuquerque, NM! CALL (505) 485-1736 MOBILE MECHANIC - 1 CALL (505) 485-1618 MOBILE MECHANIC - 2 CALL (505) 346-2682 TOWING TOW TRUCK CALL (505) 346-2463 ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE WEBISTE: www.mobilemechanicalbuquerque.org http://mobileautotruckrepairalbuquerque.com/ http://towingalbuquerque.org/ http://roadsideassistancealbuquerque.org/

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attract-mode-collective · 7 years

Photo

CASE SHOTSHOT STAGE4, aka THUNDERBOX’s Summer Collection 2017

… But first: Toco Toco’s season finale (I wasn’t aware that there was one in the first place) is here, and the subject is the man responsible for perhaps my favorite video game of all time? And maybe yours as well? It’s Tetsuya Mizuguchi…

youtube

Alas, the focus is squarely on the most recent iteration of Rez (aka my fave game). Was hoping it would touch upon his earlier work, in particular, Sega Rally. Older games are oh so briefly mentioned, with the role of audio being the primary emphasis. And even though it’s not a music game… holy sh*t does Sega Rally have an AMAZING soundtrack.

BTW, I’ve got game music on my mind because… will explain later! Also, the gifs above are courtesy of Prosthetic Knowledge, cuz they make them far better than I ever could.

Anyhow, it’s been a while since the last game culture round-up, hasn’t it? So long in fact that… there’s a new THUNDERBOX lookbook to, well, take a look at. Which actually just came out, so this particular round-up ain’t that overdue…

Whereas the HuCard was the hottest fashion accessory of last spring, summer will see this rather nifty take on the Sega Saturn Lightning Brain design (also, RIP 1CC shirts)…

There’s also a really nifty shirt, a collab with INC NOXXX SCREAMING…

… plus a single Famicom cart holder/wallet…

Along with LEBLANC GIRL, either on a shirt…

… or as a pin…

Back to INC NOXXX SCREAMING, real name Yozi Shimoda, who’s been grabbing my attention more and more as of late. Was going to share his latest shirt in the next Instagram dump, but no point in waiting right?

Sticking with fashion for just a tiny bit more; it’s been over three years, but the King of Games has finally updated their YouTube channel, and they now have a trailer?

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Which video game-centric footwear do you prefer? These sneakers, based upon Sonic’s (via miki800)…

… Or these sneakers, based upon the Super Nintendo, one that’s also running NBA Jam (via FreakerSNEAKS)…

As you may have heard, a new Super Famicom cart is going to be released later this year. Am talking about Kaizou Choujin Shubibinman Zero, originally released 20 years ago for the Satellaview.

Now, something that’s getting far less attention is how the same publisher, Columbus Circle, is also releasing a new Famicom game called Heiankyo Alien around that time as well (via tvgame)…

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In other news, there’s a manga based upon Daigo Umehara, which you may or may not have heard about. Anyhow, UDON Entertainment has just revealed that it’s become translated and published in the West…

Here we have a nice little piece from José Salot, one that’s simply entitled: “Gamer Room”; I really want that poster that’s on the wall, of the Famicom karts…

And a somewhat similar scene, except it’s a girl playing games while in bed, and that girl also happens to be Sailor Moon (via sixteen-bit)…

Check out these photos of a strategy guide, for that Godzilla game that came on a Dreamcast VMU, which I want to say pre-dated the release of the console itself (could be wrong, but am pretty certain; via jimpluff)…

And on a related note, here are some pics from a shmup supplement that accompanied an issue of Famitsu, way back in 1990 (via videogamesdensetsu)…

On another related note; which bonkers shmup flyer do you prefer? This one for Darius (via shmups)…

… or this one for Space Bomber (via obscurevideogames)…

It’s Mario and Bowser, adorning a nuclear command bunker, taken by NPR originally, that suppermariobroth recently re-posted it (if you want to catch glimpses of some of the other oddball Mario artwork that exists alongside, then watch this video)…

And on that note, time once again to see some of the more interesting discoveries and observations that the Broth has made as of late. Including the actual note for the coin sound effect in the Mario games that Nintendo filed a trademark for only last year…

This question posed in a strategy guide back in 1987…

This “extremely rare official artwork of Mario holding up a Super Koopa” from a pog…

This image of a Thwomp on a moped from a Mario Party…

This curious depiction of Donkey Kong from an ad for the GBA port of DKC…

This photo of a goofy looking Mario with a Korean boy that looked just like me when I was his age…

This photo of a scarier looking Mario with Wil Wheaton and his younger brother; apparently it was from a tournament where the Star Trek TNG star had the highest score among all the celebrity guests…

And this fascinating bit of intel…

“In one particular piece of official art for Super Mario Odyssey, Mario’s hair is rendered in great detail. Zooming in to the part above his ear, we can see what appears to be a single gray hair. This seems to be deliberate, as analysis of the image reveals that this is not a transparency issue, but that the hair is indeed colored a lighter color than the rest. Due to the image being released in a lossless format by Nintendo, this also could not be a compression artifact.”

BTW, I completely forget where I got the following. I may have blocked it out of my memory to be honest…

Gizmodo recently ran an interesting piece about an astronomy student who strapped a Game Boy Camera to the end of a 179-year-old telescope to take pictures of the moon…

Meanwhile, The Verge recently ran a story on Shawn Wasabi, that musician with a MIDI controller that has 24 arcade buttons, whom Eric and later myself wrote about over two years ago.

Though it reminded me that I hadn’t checked his YouTube channel in a while and totally missed the following, posted on this past Valentine’s Day. So if you haven’t seen it before either…

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Sticking with musicians for just a bit; here we have a guy who plays music with a Famicom on his head, playing a game with a Famicom that’s on a table…

Isn’t this Tron movie poster from Japan the raddest or what? (via gaijira)

You Mortal Kombatants get off my lawn (via horrorsoflife)…

meldowiseau asks: “from Mortal Kombat Advance’s credits; does that imply they spent a fraction of their budget on a new coffee machine?”

vice-s-assistant notes: “Oh shit’s its Robert From King of Fighters’ bank password“…

Let’s say hello to the cast of Primal Rage, shall we? (via thewaragainstgiygas)…

And let’s check out what Josh’s top 3 games are, shall we? (via xxx.hypnosis.party)

Is this image from a TED talk for real? (via smart-elec)

Whereas as I know for a fact that this isn’t some piece of Gex fan art, it’s an official image, from the cover of Gex 3 on the N64…

Please enjoy this rundown of assorted Pac-Man clone covers, courtesy of vgjunk, with perhaps my favorite one being…

It’s funny how the Game Boy was essentially the video game equivalent to the Walkman, which someone would clone and make it resemble a Game Boy (and which Nintendo would officially sanction, according to nintendroid)…

And speaking of music, by someone who goes by Motocross Saito…

Oh, so at the very top I mentioned that I had game music on my mind… game music by Treasure to be exact. And that’s because, earlier this evening, I was a guest on the Video Game Grooves podcast! Where I was asked to talk about the just released Gunstar Heroes record by Data Discs. Alas, I didn’t get a chance to touch upon the music of Guardian Heroes, but at least I have this super cool gif by kyn…

And finally, why yes someone has modded fidget spinners into Grand Theft Auto V, did you even need to ask?

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Don’t forget: Attract Mode is now on Medium! There you can subscribe to keep up to date, as well as enjoy some “best of” content you might have missed the first time around, plus be spared of the technical issues that’s starting to overtake Tumblr.

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aprilpillkington · 5 years

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Ah, the GIF. We’ve all seen them. They populate the Internet on...

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Ah, the GIF. We’ve all seen them. They populate the Internet on blogs and social media and are part of what makes news and entertainment sites like Buzzfeed very popular. When a GIF is used with the right content, it can go viral, which is why it has become a powerful marketing tool. Whether you are using it on Twitter, your blog, website or other social media channel, you can now create one easily. There are plenty of free and premium online tools which let you create GIF files quickly, but before you get started, what is a GIF file? A GIF (with the file extension, .gif) is basically an image file format that is animated by combining several other images or frames into a single file. This single file is encoded as graphics interchange format (better known as GIF). Unlike the JPEG image format (.jpg), GIFs typically use a compression algorithm referred to as LZW encoding that does not degrade the image quality and allows for easy storing of the file in bytes. The multiple images within a single GIF file are displayed in succession to create an animated clip or a short movie. By default, animated GIFs display the sequence of images only once, stopping when the last image or frame is displayed, although it can also loop endlessly or stop after a few sequences. But social sites like Tumblr and GIF creation tools like Giphy gained in popularity more recently and a GIF can be an effective and low-impact replacement for a video and, essentially, valuable as a business tool. GIFs are often used for bite-sized entertainment and as statements, replies or comments in online conversations. They are also commonly used online to convey reactions, illustrate or explain concepts or products in a fun, creative and succinct way, and also to make GIF art. Take, for example, this visually striking form of GIF art by Graphics artist Kevin Burg and photographer Jamie Beck, depicting a scene at a New York Fashion Week. In an interview with Time magazine, Beck likened it to freezing time and letting a single moment live, breathe. Not surprisingly, the popularity of GIFs now defines the Internet’s lexicon, legitimized by Oxford Dictionary naming it the Word of the Year in 2012. And GIF art, itself, is legitimized by contemporary art galleries and institutions like the Museum of the Moving Image in New York City that showcase the best GIF art pieces by talented young graphics artists. Abigail Posner, Head of Strategic Planning and Agency Development at Google, writing in Fast Company says animated GIFs With Sound and other such visual media like memes “reconnect us to an essential part of ourselves.” The GIF graphics file format was created by Steve Wilhite in 1987 at CompuServe. In the years since, a debate has been raging as to the correct way to pronounce “GIF”: Is it pronounced “jif” as in the peanut butter, or “gif” with a hard ‘G’ as in “gift?” Most people pronounce it “gif” with a hard ‘G’, but Wilhite, who was honored with a Webby Lifetime Achievement award in 2013 for inventing the GIF format, insists it is pronounced as “jif.” “The Oxford English Dictionary accepts both pronunciations,” Mr. Wilhite said. “They are wrong. It is a soft ‘G,’ pronounced ‘jif.’ End of story.” GIF has become the calling card of modern Internet culture. Businesses — large and small — have embraced the file format and use it to liven up their messages online. Many savvy businesses, for example, edit, rearrange or combine one or more video sources to create an absurd juxtaposition designed deliberately to emphasize a minor detail or fire off a quick market commentary. Aside from using GIFs as a medium for humorous effect and to show a fun, likable company culture, many brands and creative agencies commonly create GIFs that have commercial messages and seamless advertisements, such as banners and leaderboards. A seamless product 360-rotation demo can also be a highly effective animation. It helps illustrate the product design and generate interest.

Moreover, GIF file format is supported by nearly all Web browsers and Apple’s iOS also supports GIF but not its rival Flash. So GIF has become popular with brands marketing on social media, news media and the mobile Web. A looping GIF perfectly embedded into an article and published at just the right places can deliver your message powerfully. Several image editing programs like Adobe Photoshop, GIMP and Microsoft GIF Animator can be used to create simple animated GIFs that spread short company videos or messages across the Web. If you’d like to create and share videos longer than a few seconds, however, you might want to use the MPEG format because the GIF format is not as efficient with video clips longer than a few seconds. Social media is fun—why else would we spend so much time on it? Brands who manage to stay human and share authentically can create a deep and special relationship with their audience, and funny/weird/endearing GIFs can be a part of that. Want to give your audience a closer look at your product? GIFs With Sound can show off the kind of details and motion that can entice shoppers. Who’s using it? Marie Claire took advantage of the GIF format to offer viewers a look at a product: their killer gladiator sandals. Sometimes it’s a lot easier to explain something in an image than it would be with words. For step-by-step how-tos, following along with processes, or even quick recipes, a GIF can be exactly what you need. Saying “thank you” with a GIF on Twitter can provide an extra touch of delight. Our own Kevan Lee shows you how in this quick video: Think a GIF is too brief a vessel to get a real point across? I was skeptical, too, until I saw some of the amazing mini-presentations that can be shared in this format. GIFs can be particularly effective when you want to string multiple still images together to tell a story of motion or change over time. Got a TV or print advertisement you want to get a bit more play out of? Transfer it into GIF form! A really awesome way to use a GIF is to give your audience context into a piece of data or statistic through an animated diagram or graphic. Want to share just a tiny look at a future product, big announcement or upcoming release? A GIF can be the perfect bite-size teaser. Give your audience a peek inside your company: Who you are, what you look like, what makes you laugh and what you’re up to every day at work. GIFs can be a fun, lighthearted way to share a bit of your company culture and bring your fans closer to you. Pronounced gif or jif, the GIF file type was originally designed for graphics, but it’s now most commonly used for simple animated images on the Web. It might be easiest to think of a GIF as a tiny movie that plays over and over in your web browser. This video from PBS gives a really nice introduction to the history of the GIF file format. Google has made it a lot easier to find animated GIFs. Just go to images.google.com in your web browser, enter your search term, then select Search Tools > Type > Animated. This is the image search tool we’ve used a lot in our office. It’s been really fun to surprise each other with animated GIFs of our favorite TV shows and movies. There are animated GIFs out there for almost anything you can think of, so have fun looking for them! A Youtube compilation is a fun montage video assembled from the best parts of other videos. Compilations can be of sports highlights, fail videos, Vines, or anything else. Each clip adds to the total of the compilation and makes sense with the other clips. Think about the theme of your compilation to find videos. Do you want it to just be interviews with a celebrity? Or also clips of their acting? Do you want your music video compilation to only have the chorus? Or connect through a specific visual? You can use as many or as few as you like. To keep track of your videos you can keep their tabs open or write down a list of links. Upload the videos to the Kapwing video montage maker. You can copy and paste the links directly so you don’t have to download anything from Youtube. Once your clips are done uploading click “Edit trim” to trim them to the part you want in your compilation. You can choose the dimensions of the video using the drop down menu. Reorder the clips as you see fit. When you feel like your compilation is done, click Create! You can share the Kapwing link to your video or download the video to your device and share the file via text, email, or social media. Most of us have pretty much never lived our adult lives without the internet. It’s affected us in innumerable ways – some good, some very bad – and despite not really knowing what a world without it looks like, it still continues to surprise us. In our Extremely Online series, we explore the apps, trends, subcultures, and all the other weird stuff the internet continues to offer. Cruelly neglected by its sugar daddy Twitter, the short-form video platform Vine shut down for good January 17 2017, much to the disappointment of fans of excessive bass boosting and Spongebob Squarepants. Mourning the loss of fresh, high concept, whip-sharp fast comedy, most turned to YouTube, where people were already archiving the most iconic, face-hurtingly funny of Vines. These YouTube compilations, generally created while Vine was still alive and well, were 10-minute selections from about a given month of uploads on the app. They were heavily monetised and bookended by obnoxious movie editor stock intros and crap music. This was the digital petri dish from which the bacteria of vlogger Nash Grier and the Paul brothers festered and spread. With Vine shutting off the tap as it were, these styles of videos stopped appearing for the most part, and Vine’s breakout stars jumped ship to create their own longer form YouTube content.

But if the algorithm, FBI agent, or reptilian globalist behind your browsing habits is anything like mine, you’ll have seen another type of Vine comp in the YouTube recommended section. Videos with deadpan, cumbersome titles like “Underrated and overrated Vines that redeem me” and “Vines that get me friggin jazzed”. For the most part, the awkwardly preplanned “skits” that plagued Vine’s comedy section are gone, and instead, these compilations celebrate the head scratching, esoteric underbelly of Vine that was always there. Like obsessive DJs scouring record shops for old overlooked 12”s, introducing oddities to mainstream audiences and recontextualising classics, these uploaders have turned the Vine compilation into a different beast, unique from the platform itself, a kind of midway point between internet art and mixtape. Similar to constructing a decent mixtape for a friend or crush, there’s a few things you should bear in mind if you want to create a fire Vine compilation to share with the world. Hold on to your croissants. If you want to get some traffic rolling in, you’ll need to pick your title wisely. It’s difficult to describe the tone you should try to emulate, but it’s essentially a kind of sleepy post-irony – just scan some @dril tweets to get a flavour. There’s also a soothing familiarity and repetition to these videos, and some of the titles speak to that self-care utility, referencing how they might help assuage symptoms of anxiety or depression.

The market has been flooded in the past six months, so if you want your comp to really slap and do big numbers, you’ll have to study the competition, and do some Vine-mining of your own. The app is still running as an archive-cum-memorial of saved Vines, so if you dig hard enough, you can still find some hidden gems that no-one has seen before. This is an essential rule for most collections of art – how do your Vines fit together? Do you want to hit them with a few classics at the start to ease them in before the weird shit? Do you want your compilation to tell a story? Could there be a thematic link between the Shetland Pony tip toein’ in his Jordans and the old dudes in the playground yelling “I’m a cowboy, baby!”? Recording and visual artists think hard about the movement of their work before releasing an album or presenting a collection: you should too. It occurs to me now that I may be overthinking something that defies satisfactory analysis, but we’ve come this far, and you’re still reading, so let’s just power through, shall we? Shooting straight from the hip here, just so you don’t have to: I watch Vine compilations when I’m sitting on the toilet. It’s okay. We all do. It struck me during one of these trips to the WC that the length of the average bowel movement is actually a decent yardstick to consider when you’re figuring out how long to make your fail compilation. Generally, over five minutes so it feels substantial, but any more than 10 and you run the very real risk of leg cramps – sorry, boredom. If you want to take your social media strategy to the next level and really say what you mean online, it’s essential that you know how to make a GIF. You can use GIFs to create eye-catching ads, or to connect with your followers through relatable moments from pop culture. This article will show you how to make a GIF, and also explore the most effective ways to use them on social media and beyond. The Graphics Interchange Format, or GIF, chains together multiple bitmap (BMP) files into a single animated image. Each pixel within a GIF can be one of 256 colors, which is why GIFs generally look low-res compared to other videos we see online. GIF have lower frame rates, too, which works to their advantage. More frames equal bigger files, and GIFs need to stay small and shareable. You could think of GIFs as the midpoint between images and videos. The main advantage of using GIFs is that you can tell a story quickly, and it doesn’t take much bandwidth to load them—making them perfect for mobile. If you’ve ever thought GIFs seem a little primitive, well, that’s because they are: the animated GIF has existed in its current state for 30 years, predating the Internet itself! GIFs have exploded in popularity in recent years. GIPHY, one of the web’s more popular GIF databases, claims to have over 300 million daily active users. Last month, Google acquired Tenor, a keyboard app and GIF archive designed to help iOS, Android and desktop users find the GIFs they want quickly. Tenor processes over 400 million GIF searches per day. GIF was 2012’s Word of the Year, and even though we engage with GIFs every day, we can’t seem to agree on their pronunciation. Is the G soft (like gin) or hard (like giggle)? In my humble opinion, it’s “GIF”, not “JIF.” Remember, GIF stands for Graphic Interchange Format: that’s graphic, not jraphic. I’m willing to die on this hill, but you don’t have to agree with me. Steve Wilhite, grandfather of GIFs, initiated a storm of Internet discussion when he accepted a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Webby’s in 2013. His five-word speech expressed solidarity with the soft G camp, proclaiming, “It’s pronounced ‘JIF’ not ‘GIF!” Cue side-eyes from half of the Internet. Ultimately, there’s no right way to say GIF. Even the Oxford English Dictionary has remained neutral on the issue. The debate will probably rage on until we invent a new file type to express our feelings online.

Even if you can’t decide how to say it, it’s still fundamental that you learn how to make a GIF. Let’s check out the basic steps, then explore some tools to help you make GIFs With Sound in a jiffy. If you’re looking to make a GIF quickly, the best approach is using a GIF conversion site like GIPHY, Make A Gif, or Gifs.com. These platforms all function slightly differently, but the following steps will give you a rough idea of what to expect when you’re using them to make a GIF for the first time. 1. Choose the video you’d like to make into a GIF The best GIFs target relatable moments that apply to specific feelings or situations. Pick something that will resonate with your target audience. For example, in my article about YouTube ads, I used a GIF of someone angrily smashing their computer with a hammer. If you’ve ever had your solo kitchen dance party interrupted by an unskippable ad, you can probably relate. Find a video that captures your moment. You can use one you’ve saved to your computer or mobile device, or search online: YouTube and Vimeo are widely-used resources for clips. 2. Upload the video for conversion If you’re uploading your own video, select that option within the converter you’ve chosen, and upload the video. If you’re using a video hosted on YouTube or Vimeo, paste the complete URL into the converter’s URL field. 3. Establish the length of your GIF When you’ve uploaded your video file, isolate the moment you’d like to capture by bookending it with timestamps. GIFs support up to 3 minutes of footage, but two to six seconds is more than ideal. 4. Optional step: add text GIFs don’t include sound, so you can add text for extra direction or meaning. Subtitles can provide context if you’re GIF-ing a quotable moment. Alternatively, you can use text to highlight a situation or feeling you’re hoping to express with the GIF (e.g., “Social media influencers be like…”). 5. Download your GIF If you’re on desktop, you’ll notice that if you try to open the newly-downloaded GIF file it won’t be animated, and instead shows a series of frames. Don’t panic! Simply drag the GIF into your web browser and the animation will start looping. On mobile, GIFs play instantly when opened. These are the basic steps of how to make a GIF, but there are actually several different approaches, especially if you want to use your own source material.

Ah, the GIF. We’ve all seen them. They populate the Internet on... published first on https://the4th3rd.tumblr.com

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lucids · 5 years

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11 Organic Social Media Marketing Tactics to Increase Your Reach Online

There’s a world of difference (and difficulty) between using social media as a consumer versus harnessing it for your business.

Some people can post a picture of their kids to Facebook and see 100 Likes overnight. But small businesses with growing audiences might have a harder time trying to get the same results organically.

If you want to realize the long-term potential of social media, you can't just focus only on promoting your products. You also need to incorporate tactics and types of content that create organic (unpaid) engagement.

Focusing on organic engagement as a pillar of your social media marketing:

Extends your organic reach, which you can then pay to amplify. Lowers the costs if you choose to pay to promote your posts. Establishes social proof by the numbers (total follower count and likes/shares on individual posts) Potentially turns your fans' friends into followers if they see that someone they trust has engaged with your post. Social Media Marketing today might be 'pay to play', but organic engagement still matters. A lot.

Achieving this kind of real engagement, however, involves a mix of strategy and creativity. So, here are some tactics you should consider trying.

1. Unleash a Thunderclap

What if, instead of a generating a consistent stream of likes and shares, you saved them all to go out at the same time—a strategic BOOM that could be heard all around the internet, all at once?

That’s the thinking behind Thunderclap, a platform that lets you collect Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr shares—the “digital voices” of your supporters—so that you can strategically let them loose at a time of your choosing in the future.

Thunderclaps are great for social causes and product launches, and are best when used in tandem with other crowdfunding sites, such as Kickstarter or Patreon, to leverage the support you have there.

Keep in mind though, if you're on the free plan, you'll need to reach your supporter goal (a minimum of 100 supporters) or your Thunderclap won't get shared.

2. Use Emojis in Your Social Copy to Boost Engagement

Emojis have become an accepted part of our online vocabulary, and are a good way to spice up your social copy.

Larry Kim, Founder of Wordstream suggests using emojis in your social media posts to reliably boost organic engagement and lower the costs if you choose to pay to amplify them.

Used appropriately, emojis don’t just humanize your brand but also help you capture more attention by conveying the general emotion and ideas around a post even before a person has had a chance to read it.

In simpler terms, sprinkling an emoji into your social copy can earn you more eyeballs, attention, and reach.

3. Pin Your Best Performing Posts to the Top of Your Profile

Any time you engage with others through a social profile, you're not just building your online presence. There's also a chance that those people you engage with might quickly check out your social profile feed and click through to your site or content.

Be sure you’re using all the features at your disposal so your profile communicates what you want and funnels clicks where you want:

Update your cover photo to something eye-catching like a product image or a banner to promote a sale. Include links back to your site in your bio or profile. Strategically feature or "pin" a post at the top of your feed. While you might be inclined to pin a post about one of your products or promote a sale, also consider pinning posts that did particularly well so they can continue to show off your engaged audience plus generate retweets, likes and shares for you instead of simply getting buried.

4. Be Active on the Right #Hashtags

The hashtag has organized a big part of the social web according to conversations, making it easy to join in on discussions and events by posting under the ones that are relevant to your brand.

A social media monitoring tool like Hootsuite can help you find, like, retweet and reply to posts under several hashtags. Use Hashtagify to find other hashtags related to the one you're trying to target.

Be careful not to treat hashtags the same on every channel. According to data from Buffer, hashtags affect engagement differently depending on the social network:

Twitter posts with one hashtag generate 21% more engagements than tweets with three or more. Instagram posts, on the other hand, see the most engagement when using 11+ hashtags. Facebook posts do better without hashtags. If you know of a high-profile event coming up, you can prepare in advance to make sure you're ready to get in on the action. The more targeted, the better. If you’re a fashion brand, for example, consider live-tweeting or covering high profile events and commenting on what celebrities are wearing.

Most events are accompanied by hashtags that you can hop on. But the key to hijacking a hashtag is not to hijack it at all. Instead, you should aim to contribute to the conversation in a meaningful, natural way.

5. Align Your Social Media Post With a Trending Topic

You can also reach new people with your social content by aligning your posts with trends that are relevant right now. If you pay attention to hashtags and news cycles, you can likely find an opportunity to add your voice to a conversation or parody what's happening in the world.

6. Tap into the Virality of Memes

Memes have taken over social media.

While there are some of the most common examples of memes, memes are a much larger phenomenon.

Memes are cultural behaviors that spread from person to person through imitation. That gives them an innate virality that businesses can use. They don't necessarily need to make sense at first—after all, they catch on through repetition. However, memes are only as effective as they are culturally relevant, easy to replicate and properly timed.

Look out for memes that are trending right now and find ways to adopt them into your social strategy that relate to your brand.

You can find and make basic image memes using Meme Generator. Just be sure they're memes your audience is familiar with, as memes function kind of like inside jokes where the uninitiated won't get as much value from them.

7. Post Quotes as Images

A picture is worth a thousand words. But what if you layer words on top of your pictures?

You don’t need to do the math to know you’re doubling down on engagement by communicating with your audience through both language and imagery.

That's where adding quotes on top of social images can be part of an effective strategy.

When you quote well-known words, you also borrow some of their speaker's credibility by associating yourself with them. So look for quotes that come from the people your audience adores and loves, and use Pablo by Buffer or Canva to bring them to life easily through drag-and-drop design.

Some good places to look for quotes include:

Good Reads Brainy Quote Pinterest Shopify's Daily Motivation

8. “Tag a friend who...”

Have you ever seen a post on Facebook and engaged with it after thinking “This is just like me” or “I know someone like that”?

That's because it speaks to you as an individual while at the same time being relatable to many.

If your audience can see themselves in the things you post, it's only natural they'll be more inclined to consume and engage with them.

"Tag a friend who..." is a type of social media post you might’ve seen on Facebook or Instagram. Done right, these posts provoke others to tag their friends.

Consider using this strategy to encourage your audience to:

Highlight someone in a positive light: "Tag a friend you couldn't live without". Invite someone to take a challenge: "Tag 3 friends to take the ice bucket challenge". Poke fun at a friend: "Tag a friend who snores really loudly". Not only does this contribute comments to your posts, but each comment that includes a tagged friend will all but guarantee that they, too, at least visit your post.

9. Run a Contest/Giveaway

Contests and giveaways tend to produce significant engagement because they ask your audience to do relatively little for the opportunity to reap some reward.

The more compelling your prize, the more hoops people will jump through for the chance to come out on top.

You can run your contest directly on social media, or facilitate it with a tool like Gleam.io (which lets you do quite a bit with just the free version).

Try to establish what's called a "viral loop"—ask every participant to refer a friend or take an action that has the potential to bring in new entrants.

10. Create Quizzes and Other Interactive Content

In school, the idea of a quiz might’ve gotten groans from all around. But thanks to Buzzfeed, quizzes have made a strong comeback. These pieces of interactive content work really well on social media—that is, if they can provoke quiz-takers to show off their results publicly. To do that, you need to create a quiz that tells people something about themselves or how much they know, so they're compelled to share it to reflect themselves. If you want to try building your own, I suggest Playbuzz: a free and easy-to-use tool for creating interactive content.

11. Give the Gift of GIFs

A form of media that's somewhere between a picture and a video, GIFs can be found everywhere thanks to their versatility.

Here are the best ways I've found to discover or create GIFs based on your unique needs:

Source existing GIFs or create new ones on GIPHY (you can also customize them with captions) Turn existing videos into GIFs and compress them for sharing. Use Twitter's built-in GIF function to add an animated GIF to your Tweets. Use Boomerang to shoot your own video-GIFs on your phone that will play as a video loop on Instagram (like a Vine video). Use AZ Screen Recorder to record your mobile device's screen and turn the video into a GIF. Incorporate GIFs into your social media strategy and give your audience a reason to smile.

Social Media Marketing Needs a Creative Touch

Effective social media marketing should involve curating content, scheduling product-related posts, and automating what you can.

But bringing out the best in social media marketing is about more than broadcasting your brand—it's about understanding, engaging and reacting to your audience and the world they live in.

Because when so many brands use social media as a soapbox to pitch their products, it pays to be one of the ones building a real connection with their audience and adding a bit of joy to their day-to-day lives.

About the author Braveen Kumar is a Content Crafter at Shopify where he develops resources to empower entrepreneurs to start and succeed in business.

Source: https://www.shopify.com/blog/120051077-social-media-marketing-organic-engagement

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theinvinciblenoob · 5 years

Link

I dig on my employer Oath, and then Tencent Music notes and a major loss for the NYC ecosystem and what it means for open source.

TechCrunch is experimenting with new content forms. This is a rough draft of something new – provide your feedback directly to the author (Danny at [email protected]) if you like or hate something here.

My three word Oath? I’m with stupid

It goes without saying that this piece about my employer is my work alone, doesn’t reflect management’s views, and is done under the auspices of TechCrunch’s independent editorial voice. No usage of internal information is assumed or implied.

This is a piece about TechCrunch’s parent company, formerly known as “Oath:” (okay just Oath, but who am I to flout a mandatory colon?) and now ReBranded as Verizon Media Group / Oath (See what they did there? They literally slashed Oath. Poetic).

Oath is essentially the creature of Frankenstein, a middle-school corporate alchemy experiment to fuse the properties of the companies formerly known as AOL and Yahoo into the larger behemoth known as Verizon. You can feel the terrible synergy emanating from the multiple firewalls it takes to get to our corporate resources.

Oath has a problem:* it needs to grow for Wall Street to be happy and for Verizon not to neuter it, but it has an incredible penchant for making product decisions that basically tell users to fuck off. Oath’s year over year revenues last quarter were down 6.9%, driven by extreme competition from digital ad leaders Google and Facebook.

The solution apparently? Drive page views down. If that logic doesn’t make sense, well then, maybe you should fill out a job application.

The kerfuffle is over Tumblr, which is among Oath’s most important brands, in that people actually know what it is and kind of still like it. Tumblr, which Yahoo notably acquired under Marissa Mayer back in 2013, has been something of a product orphan — one of the few true software platforms left in a world filled with editorial content like TechCrunch and HuffPost (Oath sold off Flickr earlier this year to SmugMug — which also seems to be going through its own boneheaded product decision phase).

All was well and good — well, at least quiet — in the Tumblr world until Apple pulled the plug on Tumblr’s app in the App Store a few weeks ago over claims of child porn. Now let’s be absolutely clear: child porn is abhorrent, and filtering it out of online photo sharing sites is a prime directive (and legally mandated).

But Oath has decided to do something equally obnoxious: it intends to ban anything that might be considered “adult content” starting December 17th, just in time for the holidays when purity around family gatherings is key.

In Tumblr’s policy, “Adult content primarily includes photos, videos, or GIFs that show real-life human genitals or female-presenting nipples, and any content—including photos, videos, GIFs and illustrations—that depicts sex acts.” You’ll notice the written legerdemain — “primarily” doesn’t exclude the wider world of adult-oriented content that almost invariably is going to be subsumed under this policy.

Obviously, adults (and presumably teens as well) are pissed. As users are starting to see what photos are getting flagged (hint: not the ones with porn in them), that’s only making them more angry.

Oath is attempting to compress the content moderation engineering and testing of Facebook down to a span of a few weeks. And Facebook hasn’t even figured this one out yet, which is why people are still being murdered across the world from viral messages and memes it hosts that incite ethnic hatred and genocide.

I get the pressure from Apple. I get the safety of saying “just ban all the images” à la Renaissance pope. I get the business decision of trying to maintain Tumblr’s clean image. These points are all reasonable, but they all are just useless without Tumblr’s core and long-time users.

What flummoxes me from a product perspective is that it’s not as if banning all adult content is the singular solution to the problem. There is an entire spectrum of product, policy, legal, and product cultural ingredients that could be drawn upon. There could be more age verification, better separation of “safe for children” and “meant for adults content,” and more focus on messaging to users that moderation was meant to help the product and focus audiences rather than to puritanically filter.

Or you can just kill the photos, the somehow still loyal core user base, a safe space for expression via nudity and sexuality and, well, traffic along with it. And then you look at -6.9% growth and think: huh, I wonder if there is a connection.

*Mandatory colon

Tencent Music reintroduces its IPO

Tencent Music. Photo by Zhan Min/VCG via Getty Images

Maybe the IPO markets are thawing a bit after the crash of the last few weeks and…tariffs. From my colleague Catherine Shu:

Tencent Music Entertainment’s initial public offering is back in motion, two months after the company reportedly postponed it amid a global selloff. In a regulatory filing today, the company, China’s largest streaming music service, said it plans to offer 82 million American depositary shares (ADS), representing 164 million Class A ordinary shares, for between $13 to $15 each. That means the IPO will potentially raise up to $1.23 billion.

My colleague Eric Peckham wrote a deeper dive behind the lessons of Tencent Music for the broader music industry:

At its heart, Tencent Music is an interactive media company. Its business isn’t merely providing music, it’s getting people to engage around music. Given its parent company Tencent has become the leading force in global gaming—with control of League of Legends maker Riot Games and Clash of Clans maker Supercell, plus a 40 percent stake in Fortnite creator Epic Games, and role as the top mobile games publisher in China—its team is well-versed in the dynamics of in-game purchasing.

Tencent Music has staked out a very differentiated business model from Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, etc. It has used an engagement-based product model to make live-streaming and virtual gifts huge business lines, without dealing with the product marketing logistics of subscription. Where the West always asks you to pay for access, Tencent is asking you essentially to pay to have fun and be part of an experience.

Eric asks I think a deep question: why hasn’t this model (which seems particularly obvious in music given the overall events component of that business) been back-ported from China to the Western world? He sees a world where Facebook buys Spotify (I don’t) but I think there is absolutely a gap in the market for a music platform to really own this model.

NYC loses an open-source superstar

Photo: Amanda Hall / robertharding / Getty Images

Wes McKinney is a major open-source star and the engineer behind pandas, which is one of the fundamental Python data libraries, as well as a founding engineer of Apache Arrow, which is an in-memory data structure specification.

So it is big news that he has decided to decamp from New York City, where has has lived for ten years, to Nashville. Writing on his personal blog:

I’ve increasingly felt that open source development is at odds with the values that are driving a large portion of the corporate world, particularly in the United States. Many companies won’t fund open source work because there is no “return on investment”. This is deeply frustrating, and being surrounded by people whose actions align with profit-motive can be pretty discouraging. It’s not necessarily that people who work in NYC or SF are greedy or amorally concerned with making money. In many cases they are just responding to incentives coming from pretty low on the hierarchy of needs.

And

Full-time open source developers in many cases will make less money than their peers who work at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, or another major tech company. If we are to enable more people to do open source development as a full-time vocation, we need to grow supportive tech communities in places that are more affordable. (emphasis his).

I think this is a very interesting trend to watch in the coming years. It’s not just the small business and art types who want to move to lower cost locales to match their lifestyle spending to the (economic) value of their work. Software developers who want to work on more meaningful projects outside of advertising and finance will also increasingly need to consider these sorts of geographical adjustments.

As I wrote a few months ago about digital nomads:

From cryptocurrency millionaires in Puerto Rico to digital nomads in hotspots like Thailand, Indonesia, and Colombia, there is increasingly a view that there is a marketplace for governance, and we hold the power as consumers. Much like choosing a cereal from the breakfast department of a supermarket, highly-skilled professionals are now comparing governments online — and making clear-headed choices based on which ones are most convenient and have the greatest amenities available.

Economic migration — whether from cost-of-living, ecosystem or governance culture, or just for new horizons — is the watchword of this century. It’s a huge loss for NYC that people like McKinney can no longer find their work compatible with the city.

What’s next

I am still obsessing about next-gen semiconductors. If you have thoughts there, give me a ring: [email protected].

Thoughts on Articles

Imagined Communities – a major classic book of social science thought, it’s amazing how well it has held up, and the lessons it holds for us in the cyber age. Intending to write a review of it for this weekend, so expect more notes later.

Quietly, Japan has established itself as a power in the aerospace industry – I love industrial policy and national economic development, and Eric Berger has done a great job on both fronts with his dispatch in Ars Technica. Japan is roaring back into space, increasing its launch capabilities and also preparing to deploy its own GPS infrastructure. An important contextual read for those who follow SpaceX.

Why we stopped trusting elites — a compelling deep dive by William Davies in The Guardian into how populism is animated by the failures of elites. Couldn’t agree more that elites have lost significant trust over the last few decades, mostly from hubris, corruption, and outright fraud (the financial crisis being just the largest). Elites need to hold themselves to much higher standards if we want to ask our fellow citizens for their support.

Reading docket

What I’m reading (or at least, trying to read)

Huge long list of articles on next-gen semiconductors. More to come shortly.

via TechCrunch

#IFTTT #TechCrunch

0 notes

fmservers · 5 years

Text

Why Oath keeps Tumblring

I dig on my employer Oath, and then Tencent Music notes and a major loss for the NYC ecosystem and what it means for open source.

My three word Oath? I’m with stupid

The solution apparently? Drive page views down. If that logic doesn’t make sense, well then, maybe you should fill out a job application.

Obviously, adults (and presumably teens as well) are pissed. As users are starting to see what photos are getting flagged (hint: not the ones with porn in them), that’s only making them more angry.

*Mandatory colon

Tencent Music reintroduces its IPO

Tencent Music. Photo by Zhan Min/VCG via Getty Images

Maybe the IPO markets are thawing a bit after the crash of the last few weeks and…tariffs. From my colleague Catherine Shu:

My colleague Eric Peckham wrote a deeper dive behind the lessons of Tencent Music for the broader music industry:

NYC loses an open-source superstar

Photo: Amanda Hall / robertharding / Getty Images

So it is big news that he has decided to decamp from New York City, where has has lived for ten years, to Nashville. Writing on his personal blog:

And

As I wrote a few months ago about digital nomads:

What’s next

I am still obsessing about next-gen semiconductors. If you have thoughts there, give me a ring: [email protected].

Thoughts on Articles

Reading docket

What I’m reading (or at least, trying to read)

Huge long list of articles on next-gen semiconductors. More to come shortly.

Via Danny Crichton https://techcrunch.com

#TechCrunch

0 notes