April 7, 2020

How to install “untrusted” iOS shortcuts.

If you try to install a shortcut, but get a warning that you can’t because your security setting doesn’t let you install untrusted shortcuts, here’s how to fix it.

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ios shortcuts
April 5, 2020

The great "smart quote", er “smart quote” conspiracy.

For years, typographical snobs have pushed us to adopt smart or curly quotes and smart or curly apostrophes. Often the reasoning is that “real” quotes are not those foot and inch marks you see on your keyboard. But here’s the problem: The foot and inch marks on the keyboard—are totally a myth.

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culture
March 2, 2020

How to play Hyve Touch Synth.

Keyboard players have a real disadvantage when they first lay their hands on Hyve. Sure, your keyboard knowledge is of great use, but your keyboard skills: well, throw them out the window. Not only are the “keys” on Hyve smaller than a standard keyboard and limited to 12 physical keys, each key plays five octaves of that note and pans in stereo depending on where you touch. Then there’s the Hyve grid above the keys that’s arranged to play chords with one of finger, but not in a chromatic layout. These aren’t criticisms of Hyve, just observations on its uniqueness. In ways, Hyve is so simple, someone with no musical knowledge may get the hang of it faster, since they don’t have years of keyboard training to unthink.

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music hyve
January 22, 2020

Bling it on.

How to accessorize your Roland SP-404 sampler.

Legends: Dibia$e and the Late Ras G with his 404.

The Roland SP-404 remains an enigma among samplers with approximately one million units sold. Numbers aside, what’s most interesting about the SP-404 is the bling factor: No other sampling work station is as personally modded with stickers, custom skins, colorful knobs, etc.

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music
January 4, 2020

Current pedal obsession: Recovery Effects Dirty Murals v3 Delay+Reverb

Graig Markel at Recovery Effects creates so many wonderfully quirky pedals. So it’s hard to imagine the latest version of his Dirty Murals rabid tape delay evolving into an almost a normal pedal. The emphasis is on the almost, since Dirty Murals v3 retains that Recovery Effects uniqueness, despite its downright practical usability as a go-to, always-on delay+reverb.

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music Pedalurgy
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