blog @ stevendunston.com

Not sure how they found me, probably through Jamendo. But it’s very cool to have my song included with the open source competitive karaoke sensation that is Ultrastar Deluxe. For those who are unfamiliar with it, it’s a free program that tracks your voice as you sing along with songs, and then gives you a score based on how well you follow the original.

This is the perfect example of why I release my music under a Creative Commons license. They even have a link to my Jamendo album on their front page. Sweet.

I’m a huge fan of open software and free ideas. Ever since Windows XP launched, with its authorization schemes, I’ve been on a migration path away from Microsoft. And yet, while I use a Mac laptop and Linux on my desktop for web development, I still use Windows XP along with Cakewalk SONAR for all of my recording and sound design.

There are two primary reasons I have persisted in the proprietary world of Windows and Cakewalk. The first reason is that I have invested in a lot of Windows-only hardware. And the second reason is that open source audio tools have lagged behind their proprietary counterparts in terms of features and friendliness. But those reasons no longer suffice.

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According to Apple’s marketing campaign, if it’s on iTunes, it’s on the Apple TV. That may be true for Apple’s early adopters who plopped down $299 for the privilege of porting their media from their computer to their television. But it wasn’t true for Apple’s Global Sales Training Department, which frantically contacted me about a month ago, seeking to use my music for the launch of their Apple TV Sales Training DVD.

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