Before we dive into this discussion, I want to first say that I will try to be more objective and less subjective about this particular topic. Personally for me, the larger the bitrate, the better sounding the music, of course. However, the purpose of this article is to explore the optimization of MP3 bitrates in accordance to their quality and file sizes.

First of all, if you don’t already know, there are two main types of bitrates: Constant BitRate (CBR) and Variable BitRate (VBR). As their names imply, CBR is basically MP3 encoding that has a consistent bitrate of data, no matter the situation and quality of the music/audio. In this form even the simplest silences and rests in music will be played back at the same bitrate as the most complex segments in a symphony. Thus, the general result is that CBR is simply non-efficient in memory usage.

Thus, to increase music encoding efficiency and to optimize MP3 file sizes, there is another form of audio encoding that follows the form of a Variable BitRate (VBR). To simply put it, VBR has a dynamic set of bitrates that change depending on the complexity of the music. Thus, the simpler the music form, the lower the bitrate as less data is needed to code for silence as opposed to high bitrates for many instruments and sounds being generated at once. To quote Wikipedia, “VBR allows a higher bitrate (and therefore more storage space) to be allocated to the more complex segments of media files while less space is allocated to less complex segments.” In general, when we encode MP3s as VBRs, the VBR that we select will be based on the average VBR as the mean of a music selection with actual bitrates oscillating above and below that value depending on sound complexities.

Now, onto actual differences in music qualities as a function of bitrates.

In the world of music encoding, there is a phrase know as “Near-CD Quality,” which basically refers to the fact that a piece of audio is encoded so well (and perhaps encoded to be lossless) that it sounds like music from a CD, which has very high qualities. Personally, I would say that MP3s coded around 320Kbps (CBR or VBR) is pretty much near-CD quality and pretty much sounds exactly like a CD. However, unless we’re all audiophiles, there’s not really a need to have all our songs stored with 320Kbps. However, we do want to obtain high audio quality while optimizing file sizes. Thus, after doing much research and speaking from personal experience, these are some of the basic MP3 audio bitrates and their experiences:

• 128–160 Kbit/s: Standard Bitrate quality – I personally use this for portable music devices to reduce file sizes.
• 192 Kbit/s: DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) quality – This is what I use for the MP3s in my music library. In my opinion, this strikes the perfect balance between size and quality.
• 224–320 Kbit/s: Near CD quality – Obviously, this has a really high quality, but is not optimal in terms of file sizes.

After reviewing through other articles online and polls about this topic, I believe that the general consensus is that A.) 320Kbps (CBR or VBR) is simply not worth the extra memory. However, 192 VBR and anything from 192Kbits to 256Kbits gives unnoticeable differences while improving file sizes.

[Do Higher MO3 Bit Rates Pay Off]

[Poll: What is the best MP3 bitrate for good quality with small file size?]

After a while, long, dull, and super descriptive messages tend to clog up answering machines and force listeners to the brim of their patience. If you are someone who tends to cause this problem, stop doing it. Here are some tips you should take to save time while making a phone call and recording a voice message:

• If your call has already ringed for a couple of times, start thinking about what you could say in a voice message.
• If you do need to record a message, try to keep it under 10 seconds.
• If you’re one who either likes to talk on and on or one who just speaks extremely slowly and quietly, try to articulate a clear, concise message without all the details.
• Remember, a main point of voice messages is to state your point and to leave a return option for the listener to follow up with millions of questions.
• Of course, there are also certain times in which you need to record a long message. If such is the case, then it’s pretty much advanced common sense…

This is a VERY LONG VIDEO. Therefore, the best way to watch this is to not watch this. Just turn up the speakers and listen while you do some other easy task. Actually do listen/watch this… because it actually helps and is useful. This Google Tech Talk seminar beautifully describes methods to not burn all your time on emails but rather process them efficiently. Good luck with Advanced Common Sense…

“I haven’t shown you anything here that you don’t already know how to do. But if you actually do it, you’re gonna see extraordinary differences.“

Slides of this Presentation: Inbox Zero [Slide Share]

There are plenty of great BitTorrent directory sites and search engines. Among theme are the popular Mininova, Demonoid, Pirate Bay, TorrentSpy (once great but now sucks because it doesn’t allow U.S. based searches anymore), and plenty of other websites. However, non matches ScrapeTorrent, a torrent search engine that searches on all the directories of the most popular BitTorrent websites.
Quote from ScrapeTorrent.com:

ScrapeTorrent combines torrent search results from the top bittorrent index sites into a single page of results. You can sort search results by name, date, seed count, category, and file size.

ScrapeTorrent inherently removes the need to move from one torrent site to another while searching for a specific file. It is a great BitTorrent search optimizer. In addition, it allows for personal preferences, filters and organization of results.

These are the current Torrent sites covered by ScrapeTorrent: TorrentSpy, IsoHunt, PirateBay, TorrentReactor, SeedPeer, MiniNova, Demonoid, TorrentPortal, BTJunkie, and FullDls. It is most likely that the number of included sites will increase in the future.

Link: ScrapeTorrent.com [ScrapeTorrent]

Most of us have already heard of Google Pack, a collection of useful programs, Googlers believe we should possess. These free applications include StarOffice (the original Sun Microsystems office suite that became the OpenOffice.org foundation), Google Earth, a neat Google Photos Screensaver, Picasa, RealPlayer, etc. However, the greatest two softwares carried for free by Google Pack is its two antivirus/spyware protection programs. Spyware Doctor Starter Edition kills and stops spyware, adware, and internet related malware while Norton Security Scan is designed as a pure virus scanner and destroyer for hard drives. When ran side by side, Spyware Doctor and Norton Security Scan creates a formidable defense for your computer, stopping all types of evil junk. These two applications are not just free as in free trials. They are absolutely free because they were special editions designed for Google Pack.
To get them, simply click on the white Google Pack button and select the check boxes for Norton Security Scan and Spyware Doctor in the menu. Then just click download Google Pack and the programs will automatically download and install when Google Pack is started. Read the rest of this entry »