iPod Nano, or iPod with video (can download movies and such).

Should check if they have wireless there, or if it's in an area where you could conceivably find an unsecured wireless network (and simply get a bigger antenna).

You may be stuck with having to convert CDs to MP3s for the more arcane stuff. However, if you have a fast connection in the chemo room, I can give you some IP addresses to Maghreb/Mashreq radio stations online. Then all you need is Winamp (software), headphones and your laptop.

Or I could rip the radio station music into MP3s and somehow get them to you.

Lots of possibilities, really.

Afraid more advanced consumer technological playthings are right out. There seems to be a concern for the actual medical machinery.

No, I shall have to convert and/or store.

BTW I-Pod seems rather advanced for my primative needs, and watching video not likely to be done. I shall take my primative self step by step.

Another highly enthusiastic vote for the iPod. You will become addicted, so don't do like my well-meaning friends did when they bought mine and go for the Mini. You want more storage capacity than that - 1,000 songs seems like a lot, but really it isn't in the end, so get the regular size - I believe the smallest current model holds 30 GB. I ran out of space long before loading even my relatively modest CD collection onto my Mini. Plus the battery capacity makes for a much longer playing time.

Well, the I-POD seems rather expensive for something I am highly likely to grow bored or and/or lose.

Recall, I am not a music collector and am ordinarily indiferrent to such things. Nor do I desire to save me entire collection.

Just looking for a means not to talk to depressingly chatty blue hairs for 2-3 hours a day.

The iPod is so easy even a monkey could figure it out, that's why it's a best seller. Don't sell yourself short.

Get the regular iPod (you don't have to use the video). If iTunes (the online music store) doesn't have what you want, I will send you a list of MENA radio stations that broadcast over the internet. Pick your favourites and I will rip 5-7 days worth of MP3s for you and send them on a few CDs. You stick those songs on your iPod and have fun.

I will even walk you through it and not charge $50/hr for my services.

The iPod has several pluses, even for non-technogeeks, of which I am essentially one as well – it is the first thing I have owned that might conceivably be described as a technogadget. It predates my Palm, for that matter, and I use it a lot more (mass transit commuting, ~10 hours/week, for someone who gets carsick reading on trains).

#1: having your entire collection in your pocket, to listen to anything that strikes your fancy without having to lug around a pile of crap.

#2: battery life. ~16 hours for current models, IIRC. Battery is rechargeable, too, which means no fumbling around for additional pieces (as with separate rechargeable batteries, which don’t last nearly as long anyway) or having to replace alkaline batteries all the time.

#3: durability, believe it or not. Mine was a gift after I complained of having to replace my Discman something like 3 times inside a year, which ain’t exactly cheap, either – 3 Discmans still comes out to about $150-$200 even if you don’t get anything fancy.

Trust us, you will be sucked in.

Having just done a bit of research, let me say that I am excluding the I POD as too expensive for my purposes. I frankly don't want to spend much money on something I am likely to lose, and I always lose such things.

Does anyone have wisdom about non-I POD players. Ease of use (although I am perfectly capable of mastering the complex) and easy ability to xfer is desirable. I note I keep most of my current digital music in Realplayer (which works just fine for me).

Nope, won't get sucked in as it is too expensive. 300-400 USD for a gadget I am merely using to avoid talking to blue hairs is absurd, my dears. And I don't even have a bloody collection of bloody music, I'm living out of my suitcase.

Now, this being established, does anyone have wisdom on players in the reasonable price range of 100 USD or so? The sort of thing I will not be annoyed about if I lose (when I lose it).

Best MP3 players of 2005

I can't vouch for any non-iPods, unfortunately.

iPod shuffle ~$99

Solid-state memory iPod. You will regret buying it, as it is too small and somewhat limited in its featureset.

As an aside, I don't have a music collection either. Not really sentimental or overly interested in music. I just rip a week of radio stations off the internet (classical, jazz, ambient, etc.) and put them on my iPod. No fuss.

Another option is to listen to the blue hairs.

Advantages:

1 -- Free
2 -- Anthropological Ethnography, esp if there's a mideast newsitem you can get the latest in ignorant popular sentiment in the empire
3 -- A few may be desirable rich widows (overlooking the cancer, OTOH, with cancer it could mean you'll inherit sooner)
4 -- An otherwise interesting person (nurse/doctor, patient, visitor, etc.) may show and you won't be out of the loop
5 -- Speculative from a rational perspective: time is write off for karma/purgatory
6 -- Some useful tidbits about the facility and its operations/personnel from the gossip

Or perhaps you can ask to be sedated.

Oooh, another advantage to the iPod, that I haven't tried myself: podcasts of all sorts (news, etc.) You can listen to all sorts of stuff, not just music.

Podcasts will work on any music player/computer. The term is a misnomer.

(at work, everyone on holidays, nothing to do but lurk on 'Aqoul)

dear L,

i can highly recommend archos products. i have a gmini 400 & love it. they are much, much cheaper than apple products, and as easy to use.

unless you're fine with having just a few albums on the harddrive, you'll have to look at around $250. sorry, mate, that's how it is. wasn't there just x-mas? couldn't you exchange some gifts & then pool the resources to get an mp3 player?

once you have it - get the music, convert it to whatever format your "shiny & new" player can read, load it onto the player et voila you're listening to maghrebine tunes.

in the end, though, the best solution for you might just be to simply tell eerie how much $$$ you are willing to spend & the titles of music you want & then she'll get & program a gadget & send it to you. with or without charging $50.

cheers,

--raf*

The solution to your problem is to get a generic MP3 player. Here's a 1GB one for about $100. For your purpose, you can get one with somewhat less memory than that if you want to save $20 or so.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00066EK2W/104-6223510-7347900?v=glance&n=172282

Forget the music. You want something at least mildly stimulating. Otherwise, after 3 hours of utter boredom, you'll be begging the blue hairs to talk to you. What you want is podcasted radio programs. The BBC, for example, has a library of World Service radio documentaries. if that's not to your taste, there are literally tens of thousands of different radio programs available now. Try looking on http://www.podcast.net.

There are even podcasts in arabic.

http://www.podcast.net/cat/90

Conclusion: Buy a cheap MP3 player, find 3 or 4 hours of interesting podcasts, download them, enjoy. Repeat as needed.

TS

Or you could just bring reading material. I happened to bring my dad lunch at his chemo center today, and I wouldn't be too concerned about having to engage in conversation. Most people seemed to either have visitors or be too tired to chat. My dad just brings a book and a newspaper and reads.

I have a low tolerance for overhead stupidities, ergo some musical etc filters are best.

TS has a good suggestion, I think I shall follow up on that one.

there is a decidedly less expensive option. get an MP3 CD player. it plays regular cds and MP3 cds which is just a fancy term for data CDs with music files written on them. you would have to download or rip (copy off of CD into mp3 format) some music onto your computer and then burn (write) them onto CD. as i recall last i looked these things are running at around 50 USD for one that'll last for six months or so. if you're interested, i can root out some more details.

Also, i have a modest collection of rai music in MP3 format taken straight from the CD shops of the Hotel Majestic in Tunis which i'd be more than happy to forward on to you. perhaps eerie can arrange for something?

Dr: I would, if he wished it. I'm somewhat curious about this Rai stuff now.

Rai is crap. REAL MENA nuts listen to koranic chant. on really crappy cassette tapes that constantly require violent action to keep them playing. inside tightly packed automobiles that smell quite bad. turned up entirely too loud.

now if there were MP3's of that stuff... and the sermons where some form of western bashing is involved... then L would really have something to listen to during chemo!

E: i trust you can get in touch with me more directly if you wish for a transfer to occur.

Leaving aside our Dear Dr Fir's typically rant, let me provide you with the following sample links:

From Amazon, the samples from the new Khaled (ex Cheb Khaled) CD
http://music.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.asp?userid=DM6VqSnCs1&EAN=740042413528&ITM=2

Also from Amazon, samples from the great 1,2,3 soliels CD
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00005TQ72/qid=1135971543/sr=1-6/ref=sr_1_6/103-6673262-1112623?v=glance&s=music
I recommend in particular Ya Rayah (also found on Rachid Taha).

Otherwise, can some one tell me what the bloody hell podcasts are. the websight does not seem instructive to this impatient person.

Podcasts are audio files (MP3 or some other compressed format) of news broadcasts, blog postings, radio shows, etc.

Thanks for the links, will see what all the fuss is about now. BTW I have come across software to convert your realplayer stuff to MP3 in case this becomes necessary.

re: podcasts

yet another damn fad, like button shoes. it's just a fancy name for a digital audio file created by some 34 year old guy in his suburban californian parent's basement who hasn't seen sunlight since the first "civil unrest" in Albania. podcasts have a dirth of content and an overabundance of stupidity. the herd needs to be culled before it'll be worthwhile for me.

and i hope you enjoy my childish rants. they certainly provide me with entertainment.

re: rai

if anyone reading this happens to be passing through tunis in the near future, i can give you the location of the main CD shops to fulfill L's rai requests at quite the discount price.

and also in regards to rai... i actually do enjoy the stuff. in fact, i've managed to addict my parents to the music. my father becomes paticularly excited when the musician throws in a few words of french. i also just passed off multiple cd's to an uncle who enjoys "off beat" things. no word yet on how much his wife hates me now. some people just have no taste in music.

Podcasts are only as good as the imagination of the person creating the content, but then that goes for any audio file. 95% of pretty much everything is crap. The format sure sounds handy, though.

Well, the potentially interesting thing about podcasts is that you can get an aggregator (similar to the 'Aqoul blog/news aggregator) that checks for new files and grabs them automatically.

Of course, judging by the cesspool that is the internet, it doesn't seem worthwhile to go searching for useful podcasts beyond major news outlets, etc.

Luna:

truer words have never been spoken. i'd venure a guess though that it's more like 99.99%

E:

perhaps we need to create the Lounsbury podcast of L complaining. i think it would be an instant success. we could postprocess his voice too so as to mask his true identity.

L:

you better get well soon mister or these off-topic tangents will continue for some time to come!

Otherwise, can some one tell me what the bloody hell podcasts are. the websight does not seem instructive to this impatient person.

Eerie is correct as to the technological end of things.

Doug's ranting notwithstanding, Podcasting is not a fad. It's actually a transformative development in the media industry. Podcasting isn't a technology so much as it is a distribution model. It's a "pull model" rather than the "push model" used by traditional media. I could write a monograph on this -- in fact, I have. But that's not important now.

Podcasts are MP3 files that you download over the internet. You can either listen to them on your computer directly or put them on an MP3 player and listen to them later. While there certainly are "audio blogs," there are also any number of well-produced radio shows available. The link I gave you previously is a way to help find podcasts that are available -- and even it isn't by any means completely comprehensive.

Here's a very quick guide to using podcasts which, as short as it is, goes into more detail than you actually need. You don't have to use an aggregator if you don't want to.

http://www.tsfpn.com/faq/onpodcasting.html

TS

You know, I was looking at cell phones three months ago, and Nokia had one that had a MP3 player included in its' electronic guts.

If you need to get a cell phone, you'd kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. And I'm sure there's probably some non-Nokia brands that have done the same thing.

You'll be glad to know that if you get a non-iPod MP3 player you're buying at the bottom of the market. Two years ago you'd have paid the same amount or higher for something with 25% the memory the current models have.