My Mercedes-Benz Dealership, Mercedes-Benz of Burlington, gives out loaner cars when you get your car serviced. I asked for an E300, while my C300 was in for it's B service.
It's a little bigger than my C300 and does away with the semi-floating 8.4-inch screen, replacing it with an inline 12.3-inch high-resolution central display.
Display
The 2017 E300 also has a USB plug in the cupholder section.
After I plugged my iPhone 7 Plus in, the car detected it and asked me if I wanted to connect to Apple CarPlay.
"A new Apple CarPlay device has been connected."
I accepted "Automatically" and the CarPlay display came up. It's impressive. The colors are vibrant and details are very pronounced.
I saw Pandora on there, so I scrolled over to it using the COMAND system with touchpad controller.
It was easy to scroll around my artists.
I selected Paul McCartney & Wings.
Next, I selected Maps, and chose to browse local shopping, and my supermarket came right up, so I selected it, and navigation led me there.
The final thing I'd like to share is the 64-color LED ambient lighting. This was fun to play with and decide on a color.
A network of LEDs can create not just a soothing ambience in the cabin, but one you can alter to suit your mood, or even create one. An incredible 64 selectable colors and adjustable brightness let the driver control the atmosphere like never before. Edge-lighting glows from beneath the "waveform" dash trim and door armrests, and from behind the instrumentation screen panel. Even the footwells, door handles and rear overhead assist grips are bathed in a soft glow.
Disclosure: Mercedes-Benz of Burlington provided me with a 2017 Mercedes-Benz E300 as a service loaner. I have a financial interest in Mercedes-Benz of Burlington. I was not asked to write anything about the car and was not provided any other compensation of any kind. All opinions I express regarding the Mercedes-Benz E300 are my own.
PhotoScan iOS and Android App for scanning photos, makes it easy to use your smart phone to scan in old photos, but it can't match the quality of a flatbed scanner.
The Shure Documenter MV88 iOS Digital Stereo Condenser Microphone joins the landscape of new microphones that utilize the iPhone Lightning connector providing a greater confidence that recordings will sound good, as opposed to using the headphone jack.
In all my tests, the MV88 worked well, without any problems. As you add on external devices to help you record, you usually add in the possibility of technical failure. Not with the MV88. I was confident to use it each time.
The sound quality was very good and I appreciated the ability to modify the direction of the audio capture depending on the environment. The app was easy to use.
Here are the features of the mic, some video examples recorded directly to the camera and through Facebook Live, some of my suggestions for the next version, and some photos.
Features
• MFi certi ed compatible with all iOS devices equipped with a Lightning connector
• Matched cardioid and bi-directional 1 cm cartridges for best-in-class audio
• Mid-side architecture for a phase-perfect, clear stereo image
• 5 DSP preset modes (Speech, Singing, Flat, Acoustic Instrument, Loud)
• Automatically adjusts EQ, compression and limiting for optimal results
• Innovative hinge/rotation design supports multiple recording angles, including video applications
• All-metal construction engineered to withstand the most demanding recording conditions
System Requirements
iOS 7.0 and higher: iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus; iPod touch 5th generation; iPad 4th generation, iPad Air, iPad Air 2; iPad Mini 1st generation, iPad Mini 2nd generation, iPad Mini 3rd Generation
ShurePlus™ MOTIV™ App Featuring:
–24-bit/48 khz .wav (uncompressed) recording
–Control over DSP mode selection, microphone gain, stereo width, raw mid-side adjustments, wind reduction, capsule selection, Left-Right Swap, 5-band EQ and compression/limiting
Buy on Amazon.com (Affiliate Link):
Testing:
iPhone 7 Plus Recording
iPhone 7 Plus Facebook Live Stream of Christmas Car Tree Review
ASSEMBLE
INSTALL ON CAR ROOF
A few notes that I would pass on to developers:
1. I would like the mic to be able to be adjustable 180 degrees. So it can both be pointed at an interviewee or the person recording.
2. OR All the microphone to twist so that the side pics work while in landscape mode, allowing both mics to work at the same time for interviewer and interviewee.
3. I’d like the mic to have a daisy chained lighting port on it so that I can plug in another lightning cord to power the phone while using the mic.
4. I’d like a longer lightning connector so that I can use the mic while keeping a case on my iPhone
This was fun to drive around with on the top of my car last night. Little kids were yelling, "Hey mom look at that!"
We also got a few "Merry Christmas" greetings.
Hear from real Americans this Election Day, not pundits and projections. Exit Poll is bringing you the voices of voters all across this country as they share who they voted for and why LIVE today on Facebook.
Tech21's Evo Mesh Case powerfully safeguards your iPhone 7 with intelligent impact protection. That means impact force is absorbed, dissipated, and repelled away from your iPhone thanks to scientifically proven, hybrid impact-protection FlexShock material that’s injection molded into the Energy Absorbing System (E.A.S.). Ultra-thin and extremely lightweight, Evo Mesh offers tough protection for your iPhone, while preserving its natural beauty.
The information on the box and the website states that this case protects your iPhone from 9.9 foot drops.
That's better than what the standard Apple Leather case would do.
I've had this case for less than a week and really like it. All the buttons work fine and there's room for many different lightning connectors that I've tried.
YouTube is trying to do its part to ensure viewers are properly informed about sponsored content. It has launched a new feature that lets creators disclosed paid promotions by way of a small notice that appears in the bottom-left corner of the video player.
How to set up:
Video Example:
Note: New disclosure is on the bottom left as video plays.
In Salzburg, Austria we stayed at the Sheraton Grand Salzburg. At the front desk we asked for directions to the local shopping areas. The old town shopping was just down the street. The desk clerk, marked a footbridge that we should cross with a little heart shape, telling us to cross the love bridge.
I had no idea at the time, that this footbridge, would be covered in love locks.
“Arbeit macht frei,” or “Work sets you free,” is seen in the wrought-iron gate as you enter Dachau concentration camp in Germany. As we approached the entrance of the concentration camp, I had decided not to take a lot of photos. Maybe a few here and there, but mainly I was there to take in the site without any distractions. Little did I know that my experience at the entrance would be the most emotional moment of my visit.
Belkin's new $39.95 Lightning Audio + Charge RockStar for iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus was "developed closely with Apple," the company said on Thursday. It features a single male Lightning plug on one end, and two female Lightning ports on the other.
Highland Street's Free Fun Fridays offer visitors no-cost admission to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts. This program was created to increase access and enrichment opportunities for children and families throughout Massachusetts during the summer months. Every Friday, from the end of June through the end of August, multiple sites are open for free.
Franklin Park Zoo
Old Sturbridge Village
Freedom Trail Foundation
Museum of African American History
Norman Rockwell Museum
Berkshire Museum
Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum
Cape Cod Museum of Natural History
Highland Street's Free Fun Fridays offer visitors no-cost admission to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts. This program was created to increase access and enrichment opportunities for children and families throughout Massachusetts during the summer months. Every Friday, from the end of June through the end of August, multiple sites are open for free.
The Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston
USS Constitution Museum
The Discovery Museums
EcoTarium
The Children’s Museum of Greater Fall River
New England Historic Genealogical Society
Fuller Craft Museum
Griffin Photography Museum
Bacn is email that you have subscribed to, but don't want in your inbox. It's email that you want to read, just not right now. It's usually not a unique email from a person, but is an newsletter, promotional email, or ad.
I filter these emails into a folder called BACN.
With my new Mac email client, Airmail 3, they make it relatively easy to filter incoming emails.
Here are the steps.
1. OPEN the RULES Window.
2. SET UP A new rule that says IF ANY INCOMING FROM CONTAINS [ ENTER EMAIL ADDRESS ] THEN MOVE MESSAGE to [BACN folder]
3. COPY the EMAIL FROM ADDRESS to the [ ENTER EMAIL ADDRESS ] field
I like these shorts, and bought one pair, but that doesn't mean that I want to see an email from them every day!
Then when new email comes in, it will be evaluated for a match with the FROM field and moved to your BACN folder for reading later.
More info on Bacn, an offshoot of Spam. ;-)
Wikipedia defines Bacn:
Bacn
Bacn is email that has been subscribed to and is therefore solicited. Bacn has been described as "email you want but not right now." Some examples of common bacn messages are news alerts, periodic messages from e-merchants from whom one has made previous purchases, messages from social networking sites, and wiki watch lists.[76] The name bacn is meant to convey the idea that such email is "better than spam, but not as good as a personal email".
Highland Street's Free Fun Fridays offer visitors no-cost admission to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts. This program was created to increase access and enrichment opportunities for children and families throughout Massachusetts during the summer months. Every Friday, from the end of June through the end of August, multiple sites are open for free.
MIT Museum
The Museum of the NCAAA
Concord Museum
Garden in the Woods
Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center
Naumkeag, The Trustees
Emily Dickinson Museum
The Metropolitan Waterworks Museum
You can add captions to a video to make it accessible to a broader audience using the SubRip (.srt) file format. If you’re just getting started, learn about the naming convention for .srt files and common .srt formatting issues.
To add captions to your video:
-Click Photo/Video at the top of your Timeline.
-Click Upload Photos/Video.
-Choose a video from your computer, add details about the video, then click Post.
-When the video is ready, it’ll appear on your Timeline. Click Just Now or the gray date and time at the top of the post.
-Hover over the video, click Options at the bottom and select Edit this video.
-Click Choose File below Upload SRT files and select a .srt file from your computer.
-Click Save.
To add captions in other languages, repeat steps 4-7 for each additional language you want to add.
How to create a .srt file:
Some options:
SRT Edit Pro-Make and Edit By bin liu. "SRT is the most popular subtitle format. SRT Edit Pro is a professional tool for SRT subtitles creating and editing. You can make your SRT file from scratch or edit your existing SRT file on Mac, do timing, timecode adjustment, subtitle editing."
Aegisub is a free, cross-platform open source tool for creating and modifying subtitles. "Aegisub makes it quick and easy to time subtitles to audio, and features many powerful tools for styling them, including a built-in real-time video preview."
How to Open Applications From Unidentified Developers in Mac OS X $9.99 in Mac App Store
If you choose to get Aegis, this is how you OPEN it after downloading.
-Hold down the Control key and click the application icon. From the contextual menu choose Open.
-Click Open.
Open Video.
Create Subtitles for Video
This takes a little getting used to. You set an in point, type in your subtitle, then select and endpoint.
Save that line, then do the same for every subtitle.
I formatted the first one to look right, then copy and pasted that formatting to each subsequent line.
STEPS:
Set in point
Past formatting
Watch video
Type text
Set out point
Repeat.
When done, save the caption file.
Oops. The file format saved is .ass
You need to save as .srt.
Here's how:
Does Aegisub allow saving to SRT?
Yes, but only if it means that no information will be lost. In other words, if you have any override tags that aren't \1c, \b, or \i, Aegisub won't allow saving directly to SRT. However, you can still export to SRT by using the File -> Export... dialog box. Just uncheck all the checkboxes (clean script info, VFR transform etc.).
This is what the .srt file looks like:
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,058
Record HD
2
00:00:04,028 --> 00:00:07,094
Hey everybody, it's Steve Garfield from SteveGarfield.com
3
00:00:07,092 --> 00:00:11,019
and Carol from Carol at Steve Garfield.com
4
00:00:11,066 --> 00:00:15,003
You don't have to lean over because it's big
5
00:00:15,003 --> 00:00:16,006
I can just relax?
6
00:00:16,023 --> 00:00:17,013
Yeah, you can just relax.
7
00:00:17,020 --> 00:00:19,006
...and I can put the camera on me.
8
00:00:19,006 --> 00:00:20,047
Hi Everybody!
9
00:00:20,047 --> 00:00:22,047
...and we're watching the Olympics.
10
00:00:22,047 --> 00:00:25,087
MEVO by Livestream, although I'm just recording.
11
00:00:25,087 --> 00:00:29,004
right now, Carol, now it's on you. OK, I'm here.
12
00:00:29,037 --> 00:00:35,035
The opening ceremony, people walking in, still has not started and it's 8:25 almost.
13
00:00:35,035 --> 00:00:38,052
When is it going to start?
14
00:00:38,052 --> 00:00:43,002
I want to go zoom in on me now. Let's see how that works.
15
00:00:43,056 --> 00:00:44,072
This little test.
16
00:00:44,089 --> 00:00:47,076
How can you see? Right here, zoom in on me.
17
00:00:48,016 --> 00:00:50,010
Then, go over to you. OK.
18
00:00:50,010 --> 00:00:54,040
...and a two shot. So we're going to watch the Olympics. Enjoy it.
19
00:00:54,067 --> 00:00:58,037
and we have some truck out side of the house making beep, beep, beep noises. Good timing.
UPLOAD TO FACEBOOK
I'm still working on this... When I upload to Facebook I get an error.
Help. ;-)
UPDATE:
I posted the same video and .srt file to YouTube and it works fine. So maybe it was just a temporary Facebook issue.
Highland Street's Free Fun Fridays offer visitors no-cost admission to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts. This program was created to increase access and enrichment opportunities for children and families throughout Massachusetts during the summer months. Every Friday, from the end of June through the end of August, multiple sites are open for free.
Harvard Museum of Natural History
The Old State House
The Greenway Carousel
Springfield Museums
Historic Deerfield
Hancock Shaker Village
The Old Manse, The Trustees
Worcester Historical Museum
