I wanted to share a trailer for an awesome documentary. It's called "Icons Among Us" and it depicts the state of jazz music in the 21st Century. As a student of the music, I'm very interested to see what some of today's young lions (term for the young jazz musicians) and veterans have to say about where the music is traveling since it's gone past the more traditional styles and has branched out into varying formats. Let me know what you think (and yes it's 8 minutes long)!

I didn't know that some folks still didn't know that this was possible, but here ya go: You can sync the Zune cards of your friends to your device. If you have a Zune Pass what happens is that full-length songs will get synced to your device and attached to your friend's Zune Card.

So, for example, I have Jetherealz card sync'd to my device -- I go to her for all of my electronic information. Whenever I connect my device to my PC (and I think this also works if you're in a wireless hotspot and select syncing -- friends from the settings menu), then I get a sampling of some of the music that Jessica is currently listening to. It's not a snapshot in real time, remember that the Zune card is updating every 15 minutes or so.

It's been noted that a typical friend card will take up 100MB worth of space on your device. If you have a Zune 120 that means you can take a lot of friends with you. If you don't have a Zune Pass, you can still sync friends except all you'll see is basically a listing of what they're listening to.

How to Sync:

1. Open up the Zune Software. Your device doesn't have to be connected yet.
2. Click on SOCIAL
3. Click on FRIENDS
4. After a few seconds the Zune Cards of your friends will populate on the screen.
5. Click on one of those cards and hold the mouse button down
6. Drag that card over to the bottom left corner and place it over the device icon
7. When you connect your device you will see Syncing: [friend's zunetag] as part of the process
8. To find it on the device, go to SOCIAL and then over to FRIENDS
   

Vox Circle is a new, weekly column by Julio Angel Ortiz, discussing various topics related to the Zune, music, and digital world.

If the rumors are to be believed, then Microsoft's next iteration of the Zune will be called the Zune HD, will feature a full-screen, touch interface, and will resurrect your dead ancestors. It will also be out within the next couple of months and, no doubt, will spawn countless discussions regarding which is better: the iPod Touch or the Zune HD.

Here's the thing with the Zune HD: it will absolutely fail in comparison to the iPod Touch if it does not include a real developer API. Because the game toolkit won't cut it.

Now, before I find myself martyred on the alter of Zune fanaticism, allow me to explain. Microsoft provided the XNA development environment so that hobbyists could create games for the Zune. That, by itself, was a fantastic move. However, it has also been implemented, to be blunt, rather poorly. Thus far, there is no mechanism from within the Zune Desktop to install 3rd party games. Oh, sure, you can install the five or so games that have been bundled with the latest firmwares for the Zune, and you're out of luck for anything beyond that. To install 3rd party Zune games, you need, at a minimum:

• The XNA development SDK
• Microsoft Visual C# 2008 (or Visual Studio 2008)
  
• Technical savvy and patience to install a game using these tools and use them to download games to your Zune
  

Not to mention that fact that, when playing a 3rd party game, you must reset your Zune every time you exit. As you can see, the experience is anything but user-friendly or convenient. Couple this with the fact that the iPod Touch (and let's be honest, this is the device the Zune HD would be compared to and directly marketed against) features more than just games as add-ons, but applications with a variety of functionality, such as Internet Radio, productivity apps, and more. The XNA library cannot take advantage of the built-in wireless on the Zune to any useful degree beyond peer-to-peer gaming, which boggles the mind.

Unless, of course, the Zune HD (and whatever version of the Zune platform that debuts with it) changes this.

And that's exactly what Microsoft needs to do. The Zune HD, if it is indeed the next version of the Zune, needs to be a game changer for Microsoft. It needs to open up the development tools and full capabilities of the device (WiFi, I'm looking right at you). It needs to make it easy for users to convert their DVD collections (I mean, why advertise "HD" in the name and then not make it easy for users to convert movies? At least form a partnership with a company that makes a DVD conversion tool, Microsoft!). The Zune HD needs to be that true "3.0" product that Microsoft is known for, where they hit it out of the ballpark and the Zune really comes into its own.

And I hope that this happens. I've been a big fan of the platform for a couple of years now, since the 1.x days, and I really want to see Zune succeed and grow beyond what it is today. Microsoft's purported "Pink" project (Zune software / player on multiple devices, i.e. Windows Mobile) is an interesting step in that direction, and in itself the subject of a future column. However, there is still a market to be had for a dedicated personal multimedia player, and the Zune HD has the potential to make a big impact in that space, if Microsoft isn't timid.

Otherwise, the Apple fanboys will be flaunting the capabilities of the iPod Touch in the face of the Zune HD. And they would have every right to do so.

Hey, this is kind of catchy. Fingertips music blog has a free download of Immaculate Machine's "Sound the Alarm." An interesting, groovy tune with a raw, indie feel. Possible underground summer hit? You make the call...

• The 90 minute Battlestar Galactica/Caprica discussion from the Paleyfest event is now available in the Zune Marketplace (160 points). Get a chance to hear from the stars and producers about the thought process behind the end of BSG and the goal for Caprica. I can tell you, from being there, it was an interesting listen. They're also offering other panel sessions from past Paleyfest events.
• So I posted this question on Twitter and I've decided to open it up to the floor here: If Hollywood was to remake "The Breakfast Club" who would play the five high schoolers and the detention master. Someone has suggested Christopher Walken for the detention master and I would totally see that happening. So, what do you think? Who would be right for these characters?
• Finally, speaking of Breakfast Club, can someone explain to me what the hell this is about?
  

Here's Access Hollywood's interviews with some of the folks behind Battlestar Galactica and Caprica. Get a load of that Zune logo displaying proudly while they walk the "red carpet". Brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it? Okay, maybe it doesn't but seeing Tricia Helfer makes you smile doesn't it?

After a couple of weeks off, I'm back to plague the 'Circle with my free music propaganda. And just in time for you to put it on a sweet Battlestar Galactica Zune.

• Indie Rock Cafe loves them some Earth Day... and what better way than to put together a 12-track compilation including artists such as Deastro, Grandaddy, Fleet Foxes, Love and Rockets, and more.
• Obscure Music Blog has 3 tracks from Neon Indian.
• Bmbx has a mixtape featuring Fall Out Boy, the Killers, Hello Goodbye, and more.
• Stereogum has the new Sonic Youth track, "Sacred Trickster." Run, don't walk to it!
• Amazon.com is offering a free Sub Pop sampler, with tracks from Flight of the Conchords, Handsome Furs, Vaselines, and more.
• Ever lovable Fluxblog has free tracks from Still Flyin' and Feadz (featuring MC Wesley).

That's all for now. Have a great weekend!

Lots of things in life come and go; fads, pets, significant others, jobs, and tv shows.



Its also right around that time again, too. A lot of tv shows are having their series finale and are being replaced by brand, spanking new shows. E.R. recently ended and SouthLAnd took its timeslot.




The Sopranos and The George Lopez Show no longer air. Battlestar Galactica is the most recent to go.
There are also a slew of NBC shows that were pulled from the airwaves.



So, which television series finale is your favorite? What show(s) do you wish still existed? What tv shows should end?

So I've taken a break from the rockers and decided to waddle in the realm of R&B/Pop. Luckily I was able to locate Miss Stephanie Carcache. Her track "Mr. Playa" is one of those cool songs you could totally hear on the radio or blaring out of some DJ speakers in a nightclub. While I'm not a total fan of what I call the Rihanna style of singing -- which is essentially repetitive syllables where they really aren't necessary, I still found this song to be infectious, danceable and worthy to be in my permanent rotation.

Miss Carcache had a definitive flair, flavor and style to her singing and she carries the tune quite well. So feel free to check out the track for yourself and let me know what you think.

Brian Seitz was awesome enough to give me a 16GB Zune Original to offer as a prize. I tried to think of an interesting way to have people enter this contest – something that can be related to the Caprica/BSG universe but not be too hokey, crazy or complex and I think I’ve figured out that method.

First off, let me describe the prize package. There is only one grand prize, consisting of:

• (1) Black 16GB Zune Original – This Zune has the Pegasus Emblem designed on the back and comes preloaded with 30 Battlestar Galactica episodes.
• 1600 Microsoft Points – Winner could use this towards the purchase of the unrated Caprica pilot now available in the Zune Marketplace (Price in ZMP: 1200 points).
• (1) Copy of the Zune Arts “The Lost Ones” comic book.

So how do you win this grand prize?

Step 1: Watch the following snippet from “Caprica”:


Step 2: Here’s what you saw. A pair of glasses and a code can take you to any place that you wish. In this particular case, the young lady used them to go to an underground nightclub. The infinity symbol was the mark of an organization that she belongs to, that’s why she was able to draw it on the sheet of paper and press the symbol on the door to enter the special room – think VIP section :-)

Imagine that you had such technology: A pair of glasses that could transport you to anywhere you wish.
You’d never have to leave your home but you could still go anywhere and it would be as real as physically being there. What would you do with this technology? Where would you go? What would you do? What did you think of this particular scene, even?

Think about it for a minute or two…

Step 3: Leave in the comments your thoughts on the technology that you saw and feel free to even comment on the scene itself. One random winner from all of the comments will be chosen to get the grand prize. Comments will be accepted until May 4, 2009 at 8:00pm (Pacific Time). One winner will be chosen on Cinco De Mayo (haha).

Be sure to also leave a way of contacting you should you win – either a Zune Tag or email address.

Fine Print: No purchase necessary. Writers of Inside the Circle are ineligible. Winner will be chosen at random from all eligible comment submissions. Entrants have until May 4, 2009 @ 8pm (PST) to enter. Only one comment allowed per person. Sorry, I can only offer this prize to readers in the U.S. only. Only one winner will be chosen. Prize package may not appear at one time. 1600 MS Points will be delivered using a redemption code to either the winners Zune Tag or email address.

Step 4: Wait for the winner's announcement. I've gone ahead and allowed all comments until now (9:38pm) to count. Good luck, everyone.

Through the magic and influence of Paul Davidson, who works with Zune in getting all of the great video content that you see in Zune Marketplace, Zune was able to sponsor one of the Paleyfest events. Paleyfest is a 2-week event that brings together the cast and producers of some the hot and favorite shows currently in production. This year’s crop included “Desparate Housewives”, “The Hills”, “Fringe” and others.

Zune was a sponsor for the event that revolved around the show “Caprica” which is a show that takes place in the Battlestar Galactica universe, 58 years before the events of BSG. This particular event offered a screening of the pilot episode (the first screening for any members of the viewing public), a Q&A with some of the actors of both BSG and Caprica, followed by a reception on the second floor of the ArcLight Hollywood Theatre.

Brian Seitz, Marketing Manager for Zune was able to get me a couple of tickets for the event. What I ended up finding out when I got there was that these particular tickets were press tickets, meaning that I was sitting about 5-6 rows front/center – great view of both the screen and the actors as they were discussing the show.
I’m never one for doing a great job recapping play-by-play of an event so bear with me for the next few moments while I try to highlight what I can…ready?



The screening began with a montage of the television shows that were doing panels as part of this year’s event. I found it quite funny that everyone booed “The Hills”. I mean booed!

Prior to showing the episode, they ran a clip from “The Outer Limits”. It was a scene in which a man who thought he was very much human finds out that he is indeed a robot with the ability to save the human race. Everyone in the audience was pretty much laughing at this clip only because if you see it today it looks pretty ridiculous. However, the scene did set the stage up great for the type of events that start to unfold in the Caprica pilot.

The screening involved showing the unrated/uncensored version of the Caprica pilot. By unrated/uncensored I mean that there were breasts, sexual scenes and profanity. Not to give too much away but there’s a club that teenagers had created for themselves where they can go to have free sex, shoot people (yes, shoot people) and sacrifice virgins to the Gods. Pretty weird stuff if you ask me. However, the show was also about a great struggle/battle between those people who believe in more than one possible entity (God) and those who believe that there is only one possible entity (God). A terrorist bombing aboard a train brings people’s lives together in ways they couldn’t have imagined. When you see the show (if you wish to see the show) then you’ll find out that there’s much more to the surface than just some standard Sci Fi robots and weapons type of thing.

I personally found the episode a bit long in the tooth. There was some dialogue I could’ve done without, but overall I thought it was a well done show. Of course, I may have to give it a few episodes (when it comes out in 2010) to really see how much I’ll get into it, but at the moment, it seemed better as say a 2-hour movie event than a regular series.



The panel discussion was moderated by Seth Green, who was an avid fan of the show. He was really personable and down-to-earth. The questions that he asked of the panel were really well done and gave everyone an inside look into the thought process behind some of the events in both BSG and Caprica. The executive producers of the show (pictured above) were very insightful and forthright about what they were thinking when they did certain parts of the shows and certain story arcs that they took. The actors were very humorous and seemed to have a lot of fun talking about their roles and feelings about the show.

Some of the actors even admitted that they weren’t all that familiar with BSG prior to accepting roles in Caprica. Probably, for me, one of the highlights was when one of the actresses had to excuse herself in the middle of questions because she really had to go to the bathroom.

And for some odd reason, the panel was fixated on the word “penetration”. I’ll just let you create your own jokes here.




After the panel discussion, they offered a quiz in which people were able to win prizes. Obviously, they offered Zunes but they were pre-loaded Zunes with Battlestar Galactica media synced to them. Brian (Seitz) gave me one that I could giveaway and when I figure out the proper contest for that I’ll be sure to post it somewhere (here or Twitter or sky writing, who knows!?)

This is a picture of Brian and me, by the way.



The evening was capped off with a reception at the ArcLight Hollywood Theatre. Free booze and a chance for an up-close one-on-one with the actors. It was great to get a chance to thank people for some great work that they do on television and I even got to tell Seth Green that he did an awesome job moderating (and I didn’t sound like a total idiot doing that).

Overall, I had a lot of fun. It’s not all of the time that you get to go to such events like this and I was thrilled that Brian was able to get me tickets. I should point out that the Paleyfest events are public events, you just have to make sure you get tickets as soon as they are available as these events quickly sell out.
Much kudos also goes to Zune for sponsoring, simply because this really puts the name out there. With the Hollywood buzz around this event and having your name all over the place it really puts you into people’s mind. Seth (Green) did poke a bit of fun at Zune’s expense during the giveaway. He’d say the giveaway like: “And you’re getting a ZUUUUNNNEEE with some BSG stuff on it!” You just had to hear how he said it.

Overall good event and I think Caprica will end up being a hot show.

Editor’s Note: I sat next to one of the XBOX MVPs who took some great shots of the event. You can check them out here.

Artist: Petey Pablo [zune.net]

Song: Vibrate

Album: Still Writing in my Diary [zune.net]

First it was Daydream on Autopilot, then Omar Alexander and now it's Underwhelmed. I seem to be finding some really good rockers recently. I was checking out Underwhelmed on my way into work and I found myself listening to pretty much every track that was available. My only thing is that with enough spins the songs start to blend together and sound like one gigantic thing.

Beyond that, this is a group with a great sound. If I had to venture a guess I would say that they have this Nickelback aura about them (which isn't essentially a bad thing -- it's a thing with the MVPs). I also want to say that I think it's Christian rock based upon the context of the lyrics, but then again people thought Creed was a Christian group too, so it's up to you to decide that.

I encourage you to give these guys a listen and tell me what you think. Because it's Friday, I've decided to offer two of their tracks, free and non-DRM just for you and your Zune!

One of our readers, and overall cool guy, SlickRickOG, will be holding a Zune Meetup in Arizona. It will take place on Saturday, May 2, 2009 from 7:00pm - 8:30pm. The location has yet to be determined, however, if you want further information you can contact Rick through his Zune Social account.

He also plans on giving away a Zune 4GB device.

Zune meetups are always fun events to meet Zune users, share some music, play some games and conversate about Zune, Music and whatnot. Thanks to Rick for hosting this event for Zune users.

Just a quick update for everyone. Zune announces some new Zune Originals designs based upon the approaching Springtime. Head on over to their official press release for details.

So I was wondering if this was official, but I guess it is. I’m attending a special panel discussion and viewing of the new “Caprica”. Caprica is a show that will first debut on DVD this year and then become a series on Sci-Fi channel next year. The show takes place 50 years before the events of Battlestar Galactica.

Click here for more information about the event.

This particular event, taking place April 20th at the ArcLight Hollywood, will have members of the casts for both BSG and Caprica in a discussion about the connection of both shows and what Caprica hopes to accomplish as part of the BSG storyline. Then, there will be a special screening of Caprica. The DVD itself will be available the next day for the general public.

Then comes the reception where I’ll get to chat it up with some members of the cast. I’m quite excited about this because I’m a fan of BSG (both the old school series and the new school edition). So this should be quite fun.

What does Zune have to do with this? Zune is one of the sponsors of the event along with companies like Netflix, the Los Angeles Times and American Airlines. If I don’t get too star-struck, I’ll try to get some pictures to share with everyone.

Check the panel members and the moderator, man:

In Person

Ronald D. Moore, Executive Producer
David Eick, Executive Producer
Jane Espenson, Executive Producer
Paula Malcomson (Amanda Greystone, "Caprica")
Eric Stoltz (Daniel Greystone, "Caprica")
Esai Morales (Joseph Adama, "Caprica")
Alessandra Torressani (Zoe Greystone, "Caprica")
Magda Apanowicz (Lacy Rand, "Caprica")
Tricia Helfer (Number Six, "Battlestar Galactica")
Grace Park (Sharon/Athena/Boomer, "Battlestar Galactica")

Special Guest Moderator:
Seth Green (Robot Chicken, Buffy The Vampire Slayer)

 

[image courtesy of Got Zune]

Suddenly, everyone is a buzz because a website, zunehd.net has popped up. It easy to think that it’s a legit Zune site because 1) it’s a .net and we know that Zune’s official site as we speak is zune.net, 2) the placeholder that is there looks convincing enough to make one think that it’s legit and 3) we’ve been hearing so much about the coveted future Zune HD device.

My opinion (and this is my opinion) the site can’t be real.

From what I know about companies, why would MS purchase this site name just as all of this news, rumor and speculation is breaking out. Who on the team decided that this would be the opportune time to snatch it up? Personally, I don’t see why they can’t just use the current zune.net as the central hub to talk about any new devices and upgrades that are coming down the pike. There’s already a page there about devices, why can’t they just update that page to include the new device when ready?

Also, some people have looked into the WHOIS about the site and find out that it’s registered to an Altman fellow. You know what that tells me? Some guy in the middle of this hoopla went and bought the site. They knew that zunehd.net is going to be a valuable domain to have because that’s naturally a site people are going to type into their browsers. Cyber-squatting, as it’s called, is a common practice. I work for an e-commerce company so I can tell you there are people all of the time who wait to get word of the next hot thing and then they try to buy every possible domain related to it in the hopes that either it draws more website traffic to their operation or the company/celeb/whatever asks to purchase the domain from them and they end up making a tidy profit.

Now, I honestly don’t know what’s the deal with zunehd.net. I do think that given the information that’s presented in front of me I can’t see why it’s a site that MS just decided to buy and placemark the day after a bunch of news explodes over the internet. I would think that they would already have domains under their belt, or – in this particular case – just use what they already have established at zune.net.

But that’s just me.

 

[image courtesy of ABI]

So we’ve seen all of the stories out there: Engadget, Apple Insider, Gizmodo. It’s become the buzz of the weekend. Apparent leaked images of a marketing strategy for something called the Zune HD. The question is: 1) Are we looking at a legit set of images or some elaborate hoax? 2) If it is indeed legit, what exactly are we looking at? Yes, there’s a large screen, but what’s that piece under where the screen is?

I’m sure you can come up with other thoughts and questions as we speak?

So begins the conversation: Are we seeing hints and tidbits of the next phase of Zune?

Inside the Circle extends a congrats and welcome to CS188. Known, in the real world, as Corey Shuster, this young man was given the Zune MVP award this past April 1st. I've personally seen him in the zune.net forums offering plenty of great advice for Zune users and I'm proud to have him as part of our team.

Congratulations, again, Corey! Rock, rock on!

When I was growing up, besides jazz music, hip-hop was one of my favorite forms of music. I remember listening to guys like Naughty by Nature, RUN-DMC, Whodini, Das Efx and all kinds of rapping cats and just getting my serious groove on. While my musical taste has *greatly* expanded, I still find time to enjoy a good hip hop track when I find it.

Which brings me to Shalone. This is another artist I’ve discovered in my travels through Ariel Publicity’s client list and I found myself really digging this young man’s work. In a couple of Twitter conversations he tells me that he’s working on some new material (as he calls it ‘in the lab cooking’).

I’m quite looking forward to seeing what else he comes out with. He definitely has a sound I could vibe with. As the usual course for my Zune Sound Bites, I’m gonna give you a free MP3 of one of Shalone’s tracks. This is the first one I heard when I was checking his stuff out and it’s the one I frequently come back to. Feel free to check it out and (possibly) making it part of your music collection.

On Twitter, it started with an innocuous tweet about seeing a Zune at the gym (a pleasure I've been able to enjoy as well):

Just saw a zune at the gym for The 1st time! yay

-volvoshine

It was followed by a tweet from another twitter user asking what many have already questioned:

@volvoshine I'm one of the few ppl who own a zune.Wish I could find more to use social feature with.Will zune hardware be discontinued soon?

-tmccurren

The response was reassuring yet cryptic:

@tmccurren nope, not anytime soon... MS may change "what" the Zune device is but its not going anywhere anytime soon

-volvoshine

Then came the tweet that made headlines:

@tmccurren new zune hardware this year.

-brianseitz

Lending to the credibility of this tweeting claim is the author of the last tweet. You may recognize the user name as that of Brian Seitz, a Zune Team member. Trent (tmccurren) received a quality reassurance that Zune is not going to be discontinued, seeing how he managed to eek a response out of a Zune Team member and a Microsoft employee enthusiast.

Flashback: As it relates to question of the device's future, we were in a similar situation back in January when Zune's sales droped 54%. People started to "predict" Zune's demise. After a conference call, the MVPs (and members of the Zune Team) reassured everyone that the sky was not falling.

Fast Forward: What was said on Twitter only serves to reinforce what we've stated before; new devices and new software are coming this year. Oh, and Zune is here to stay. Also recent job postings also show that things are far from quiet on the living room front.

Yes, there were only 4 of us. Yes, I had one of the best days evar.

Four of us: Me, my buddy Jon, Alfa (Raiderette) and her sister Amy met at L.A. Live. Well, not so much to discuss Zune, but we ended up at the Yard House having probably one of the best laughing sessions I've had in a long time -- mostly due to the fact that between Jon and I we have enough adventurous stories to fill a book. While I'm sure having more people added to the mix would've made things that much better -- since everyone involved had a great time I consider that a successful meetup.

Now, for those of you who ever make it to the Grammy Museum, here's some things you need to know. I didn't make note of it the first time I went there, but I noted some stuff now: On the 3rd floor, they have "studio" rooms. In these rooms, you and a musician go through a tutorial (hands-on) about an aspect of recording and mixing. My favorite room was the one hosted by Paul Oakenfold [zune.net] which talks about remixing. It really makes you appreciate the kind of talent he has and how hard it can actually be to make a remixed song sound right. My buddy, Jon, did a room that was hosted by DJ RAP [zune.net].

One of the more interesting highlights of the museum was the plethora of Michael Jackson [zune.net] jackets that they had on display. Man, those things are fkn bright. What happens when the museum shuts its lights off for the night and those damn jackets are still lit like lamps, man? MJ really liked his bling -- not to mention the awesome glove with the sparkles, painted fingernails and spikes (yes, spikes).

So the question becomes will there be a future meetup? The answer is yes, except I'm doing it slightly differently. My next planned meetup will happen here at Inside the Circle. The idea will be a "fireside" chat in which you all can log into a chatroom and talk about whatever is on your mind with a special guest that I bring aboard. This is still in development, but I hope to have the first 'fireside chat' available very soon. If this works out well, I may start doing these in lieu of a podcast that I had in the planning stages, too.

Much love to Jon, Alfa and Amy. The day was fantastic.

Song: Sweetest Thing

Artist: Lauryn Hill

Album: Love Jones (The Soundtrack)

"I don't want to call customer service, because I'm tired of incompetent people or hearing some stupid computerized system inform me of nothing."

It's a common sentiment I hear in the zune.net forums. People who run into issues that they can't seem to solve are hesitant to contact customer support -- for a number of reasons. One of the things I suggest is that support does something about that generic error code page because by the time people reach the forums to try and explain their issue, they're more confused than ever and sometimes that comes across in their post. That, in turn, makes it harder for people like me to help diagnose their issue and help them find the right direction to a solution.

Support is obviously one of the key components to a company. No technology is perfect or will function flawlessly. Having a support system that's uber reponsive, informative and helpful can be key to helping people have the best experience with whatever form of technology that they have.

In the one instance that I had to use customer support -- to fix some license issues with some of my music, I had a positive experience. The lady on the other end was very helpful to me and even teased me about some of the songs I was playing (yes, it was playful, folks -- she didn't say "What the fk are you listening to that for!?")

Zune has taken some great steps forward with their support system: For example, for $80 you can now have Zune repair the screen of your device. This doesn't apply to Zune 30s because they use a different screen material, but the $80 includes shipping, handling, the new screen and labor. After talking with them at the MVP Summit, I have the sense that they know how important support is for the overall customer experience and will try to make the necessary adjustments to help people solve their problems.

So let me ask you: What do you think of the current Support setup for Zune? What do you think should be changed about it? Improved? What are some of the experiences you've had -- good or bad?

An awesome group like Bloc Party [zune.net] managed to get some remix love from Armand Van Helden. He did a new version of their song “Signs”. I encourage you to go pick it up and get your groove on. The free track is available from the great folks at Rcrd Lbl.

Click here to download “Signs (Armand Van Helden Remix)” by Bloc Party.

 So here's the scenario: I'm sitting at McDonalds during my lunch break on Tuesday going through the Zune Marketplace. If you all remember, McD's offers free Wi-Fi for Zune users -- something that I should take more advantage of if I'm gonna be frittering my hour (or so) away on McNuggets and French Fries. Connecting is pretty easy and off I went searching for some stuff to download.

So I find this one new CD by Lily Allen and I decide to add it to my cart. Unfortunately, I actually forgot to begin the downloading process and I just left it in the cart and headed on to finish my workday. My thought process was I was gonna go home, connect my Zune and download it from the cart.

So I get home, I put my Zune on the breakfast bar, open up my notebook and start Twittering (yes, I can be a true Twitterholic). I was also looking through the Ariel PR stuff and downloaded and began listening to a few tracks.

This is where it gets interesting -- keep in mind my Zune is still sitting on my breakfast bar.

When I start up the software, I see this thing Inbox (2) Cart (1)... wait a sec, Cart (1)? So I click on Cart and there sitting there is the Lily Allen CD that I had selected when I was at McD's earlier in the day. Next to it were two buttons (cancel) and (download). So I decide to hit the download button and the CD downloads to my computer. Yet, it didn't go away. I actually had to hit 'cancel' in order for it to be fully removed from my cart.

This tells me that there's some connecting going on between the Wifi connection and my account. I should've known something was up because my play counts in Zune Social would update too whenever I was in Wifi mode somewhere -- unless I'm totally seeing things.

So remember that next time you're wireless somewhere. Even if you don't have time to finish all of your downloading you can still just simply pick stuff and let it appear in the software -- connected device or not -- when you get home. Pretty sweet, man.

And if this is something you already knew, just humor me and nod :-)

This must just be my week for discovering some awesome artists. I came across Omar Alexander in my trek through some of the artists being represented by Ariel PR. What struck me about his album cover was that it took on this Latin Daughtry vibe – don’t ask me why, that’s what I saw. I think it’s in his pose.

When I got to listening to some of his music, I couldn’t help but groove. The one track I downloaded that totally stood out to me what a track called “Shine”. It has a very tight groove and it's one of those songs you could find yourself singing out loud if it was played live in concert. I got the feeling that this is one of those tracks that you sing while standing on the roof of your house :-) Unfortunately, his stuff isn't available at ZMP (much like Lisa Bianco -- what's up with that!?)

So guess what? You’re getting the song for free. Aren’t I good to you? So fill your Zune up with this and get your groove on.