From: Mike '/m' 

>  Radio sucks around here.

Here's one reason why:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,163537,00.html

===
I always say when people ask me that the so-called vipers of the movie
business would not last a day in the record business. Now Eliot Spitzer's
office has decided to prove the point.

"Please be advised that in this week's Jennifer Lopez Top 40 Spin
Increase of 236 we bought 63 spins at a cost of $3,600."

"Please be advised that in this week's Good Charlotte Top 40 Spin
Increase of 61 we bought approximately 250 spins at a cost of $17K …"

Ironically, it didn't help, as the memo notes that the company actually
lost spins — or plays of the record — even though they laid out money for
them.

See above: The internal memos from Sony Music, revealed today in the New
York state attorney general's investigation of payola at the company, will
be mind blowing to those who are not so jaded to think records are played
on the radio because they're good. We've all known for a long time that
contemporary pop music stinks. We hear "hits" on the radio and
wonder, "How can this be?"

Now we know. And memos from both Sony's Columbia and Epic Records senior
vice presidents of promotions circa 2002-2003 — whose names are redacted in
the reports but are well known in the industry — spell out who to pay and
what to pay them in order to get the company's records on the air.

From Epic, home of J-Lo, a memo from Nov. 12, 2002, a "rate" card
that shows radio stations in the Top 23 markets will receive $1000, Markets
23-100 get $800, lower markets $500. "If a record receives less than
75 spins at any given radio station, we will not pay the full rate,"
the memo to DJs states. "We look forward to breaking many records
together in the future."

...

===

  /m

On Sun, 24 Jul 2005 10:08:00 -0400, Mike '/m'  wrote:

>On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 23:12:28 -0400, Gregg N 
>wrote:
>
>>Mike '/m' wrote:
>>
>>>~$350 for the iPod kit, or $700 for the 6-CD changer option -- it was an
>>>easy decision.
>>>
>>> /m
>>>
>>>
>>I chose the third option, which is to have neither. For me, it would
>>cost $350 + $300 = $650, because I don't currently own an ipod. Plus, I
>>am reluctant to have the kit installed because I understand it involves
>>taking apart the dashboard to some extent. I don't know if I trust the
>>dealership to do that without screwing something up.
>>
>>Does it take up much space in the glovebox? Did they have to cut a hole
>>anywhere?
>
>re: cost - that is your choice.  Radio sucks around here.  The good
>stations (college stations) are fairly low-poewered and quickly fade in
>the hills.
>
>The dealership I used is most excellent.  I have been going there since
>1984. (they used to sell Mazdas also, the current car is the first BMW I
>bought from them).  From the looks of things, they may have removed the
>glove box, I don't see the need to remove part of the dashboard.  But if
>they did, it's fine now.  You are correct, if dashboard removal is
>involved, you need to have confidence in your dealer.
>
>In the glove box, all you have is a wire with a connector on it that
>plugs into the bottom of the iPod.  So the space taken up in the glove
>box consists of the iPod and the wire, which for all intents and
>purposes means the space taken up by the iPod.   Once you connect the
>iPod, the display shows only "BMW" and the controls don't
work, so there
>is no temptation to look at the song that is playing or use the iPOd
>controls while you are driving.  Probably done to keep the lawyers
>happy.  iPod battery is charged whilst connected.
>
>In the top back left of the glove box it looks like a 1/4 inch hole was
>drilled for the wire to go through.  A rubber grommet was put in the
>hole.  A very clean installation.
>
>What I would really like to do, and I had started to design the system
>before I found out about the iPod option, was to place a ruggedized PC
>in the car, and feed its audio output into the car stereo.  When the car
>is in the garage, the PC would be a part of my home wireless network, so
>I would be able to move music back and forth easily.
>
> /m

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