All posts by Eric Troup

Testing the New Equipment

They’re here, they’re here! The brand-new mics are here!!!

In this episode, we unbox the new in-ear binaural mics and take them for a test run to Starbucks. Fun times to be had! I’m very interested to know if you, the listener, notice any difference in the spaciality and/or quality of these new microphones. I know how they sound to me; I’m just curious to see how they sound to you.

One caviat: I talk in the podcast about how I’ve turned the limiter of the recorder off and am hoping the traffic doesn’t cause clipping or distortion. Well, as it turns out, the Olympus LS-14 has a recording mode called Quick Mode which automatically adjusts the recording levels to compensate. So as I understand it, regardless of what I have the limiter set to, Quick Mode is kind of doing its own thing. Which means we get that “limiter effect,” which seems more noticeable to me with the increased output of these microphones. So next outing, I’m putting the recorder in Manual Mode and will try recording with the limiter really off this time.

Or perhaps I should just leave well enough alone…?

Anyway, here’s our test run. Leave feedback at blindgeek@lioncourt.com, or follow me on Twitter (@blindgeek) and leave feedback there.

And now, fellow Adventurers…

…don your headphones…

…Download the episode…

…And enjoy!

ApplePlay with ApplePay

Here’s the episode discussed in the previous one, from October 30, 2014. Step into the WayBac machine and let’s go.

Incidentally, I do still have the mono recording mentioned. So if there’s interest, I’ll post it… although I should tell you, we’re going to be exploring that whole area in depth on this podcast in a short time, so the recording’s relevance is not what it would’ve been when it was made.

We’re off to experience ApplePay for the first time. This isn’t the most impressive demo, since neither I nor the McDonald’s employees had much of a clue what we were doing. I’ve since become much more adept at using ApplePay, as have the employees. Even so, I think you’ll find the speed of the transaction impressive.

And with that, we’re back to our friends, the binaural mics, so don your headphones…

…Download…

…and enjoy!

End of the Beginning

Hi, folks. Glad to finally be back.

Please forgive the audio quality in this particular episode. The why of it is explained in the episode itself, so I won’t bother to repeat it here. It sure feels great to be back!

The website mentioned in this episode is Dreaming with Jeff. As I did on our walk, I strongly encourage you to check it out. It’s an awesome thing Jeff Bridges is doing over there, and it’ll feel damn good to be even a small part of it.

If you want to send me feedback on this, or any other, episode, please send it to blindgeek@lioncourt.com. Watch for the Blind Geek Adventures Facebook page, coming soon.

I think.

That’s the plan, anyway.

You can grab your headphones for this one if you want, but it’s not nearly as necessary. This one’s just in good old-fashioned stereophonic sound. Grrrrrrrr…

In any case, download…

…and enjoy!

In Line for a New iPhone

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Wow, has it been a long time! Over a year! Not an intentional break, I assure you, and not something I plan on repeating. We’ll get into why the break happened in a future podcast, during a walk. And when I say future, I mean a couple weeks at most, not a couple months.

Anyway, assuming we still have any listeners left, thanks for sticking around, and welcome back!

On September 19th, I was one of many people who were out en masse in the wee small hours of the morning, in order to obtain the much-anticipated iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus. Zeke and I went unaccompanied, so I decided to record the adventure. Unlike most of these podcasts, this one was heavily edited for time. As it stands, it’s just over 90 minutes. In its full glory, it would’ve been about 160 minutes. Trust me, it’s better this way.

So grab a beverage, grab your headphones, download and enjoy.

A Trip to the Pool

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If you listen to this podcast for the chatter, this may not be the podcast for you. Zeke and I put BlindSquare to the test by tagging the entrance to the Cascade Swim Center. I tagged the entrance as opposed to just the address because in order to get to the entrance itself, I knew we’d have to cross a parking lot, a small park area, and who knew what else? Just asking for a blind guy and his guide dog to get lost. Not only that, but this was our first attempt at walking to the center. Consequently, there’s a lot more ambience in this podcast, as I was thinking on my feet and trying to cope not only with a new route, but with a rather irritated Zeke. He was forced to wear dog boots. It’s a condition of the folks who run the center. I’m not sure why, but they said if he was going to come in and hang out where the pool was, he had to wear boots of some kind. For all I know, they may have very good reasons for this. Chemicals on the ground, slippery surfaces, etc.. However, he hates these boots, and let me know it during our walk through obstinate behavior at nearly every turn. Still, we came across some fun people in our journey, so I still think it makes for enjoyable listening.

A note about sidewalkless travel with a guide dog: It’s slow going, annoying, and neither Zeke nor I like it much. You’ll hear me say “Left-left,” or “Right-right,” followed by “Follow the shoulder” a lot. The essence of this command means get as close to the shoulder of the road as possible, and follow it. Guide dogs generally tend to want to stay in the middle of a sidewalk, and so, they tend to drift away from the shoulder if not kept in check. So every twenty to thirty steps, we stop and turn back toward the shoulder, walking up to it, and then turning back on-course for another twenty to thirty steps. LIke I said, it’s slow going. But in an area like Redmond, it’s necessary.

Okay, enough babbling from me. Grab some headphones, download, and enjoy.

Spaghetti Making 101

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We’ve been doing a lot of walking in these first episodes, so I thought I’d show you another kind of fun to be had in this podcast. We’re taking a trip in the time machine, back to June of 2009, when I took a crack at making spaghetti. This was originally published on the Blind World Blog and Podcast, but now that I have a podcast of my own, and since I just happened to accidentally stumble upon the recording, I thought I’d include it here. You’ll also be hearing some of these people in future podcasts, so this is as good an opportunity as any to introduce them. Anyway, it’s all in my opening remarks on the podcast itself, so…

Download, don your earphones, and enjoy!

Support Your Local Savage

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No, its not what it sounds like. Zeke and I are heading to the local monthly blindness support group. We hit a bit of a stumbling block at the beginning, but once we’re back on track, it’s smooth sailing and fun for all. Then, on the way home, we get into a discussion about one of the coolest heroes to emerge from the pulp era–the one and only Doc Savage.

Download, grab your earphones of choice …

… and enjoy.

BlindSquare Test Run

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In this podcast, Zeke and I put BlindSquare, an app for the iPHone which uses Foursquare and an open-source map system to combine into a formidably competent GPS app for blind travelers, to the test. We start out simply going to meet our friend Terry for morning coffee, and wind up getting more of an adventure than we bargained for on the way home. We end up getting a little lost and must use a combination of technology and skill … okay, mostly technology … to get un-lost. Some particularly nice 3D sound in this one, if I do say so, so once again, if you’re not listening with headphones or earbuds, you’re missing out on 80% of the fun of the podcast.

Also, when I refer to my recorder as the Olympus LS-2, that is incorect. It’s the Olympus LS-14. Can’t recommend the recorder highly enough, and you can get one for yourself here

And don’t forget, you can make this a two-way interaction by sending email to blindgeek@lioncourt.com, following me on Twitter, or exchanging messages with me on Audioboo and sending me messages there.

Now, go forth, grab some earphones … and enjoy!

Skecher’s Go-Walks Go for a Walk

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Hi, everybody.

Already, some changes are upon us. The theme is gone. I still love the song, but it came down to a simple choice between more or less post-production. So thanks, Kevin Reeves, for letting me use your song. No hard feelings. Just decided to go themeless.

Anyway, in this podcast, I unbox my new Skechers Go-Walk slip-on shoes and take them for a small test run. Well, a test walk, actually, but …

Cram those earbuds in, and enjoy.

Hello, and Welcome to my Podcast!

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Hi, everybody. Thanks for checking out this blog and podcast. The purpose is very simple: Follow me on walks, interviews, trips, and whatever other adventures come our way. All you need is a pair of headphones, enthusiasm, and perhaps a method of walking along–whether it be a treadmill, or taking a stroll through your own neighborhood as we go. Due to the amount of traffic noise and such that occurs in this podcast, I don’t recommend listening while driving. Could get … messy.

In this, Zeke’s and my first podcast, we introduce ourselves, and we go for a walk. I give some background on who we are, why I’ve created this podcast, and what you can expect from same. Hope you enjoy.

Think of this particular podcast entry as a TV pilot. Some things have changed in subsequent entries–notably, the quality of the sound. I learned a lot in putting this entry together, to the point where I almost didn’t post it. First impressions and all. But for the most part, this entry is a good sample of what you can expect from this podcast. Just know that if you found the sound quality lacking, or didn’t think the podcast needed a theme … well, those things have been addressed in subsequent entries.

Okay, enough babbling from me. Enjoy the adventure!