GeekSugar

Geek We Love: The MPMan With a Plan

Anna Monette Roberts — Fri, 18 May 2012 03:11:03 PDT

The MPMan was short-lived, but the first MP3 player mass-marketed in the US paved the way for the portable media player revolution. Now that we've gotten to know Kane Kramer, who developed the first MP3 player, and Nathan Schulhof, who created a precursor to iPod and iTunes, it's time to take a look at the history surrounding the MPMan.

Korean electronics company Saehan created and distributed the player in 1998. Michael Robertson, CEO of MP3.com, imported the MPMan into the US and sold it on the MP3.com website. Around the same time, Eiger Labs also imported the player and rebranded it (pictured).

The MPMan came in two versions: the MPMan F10 ($299), which held 32 megabytes, or 35 minutes of music; and the MPMan F20 ($459), which held 64 megabytes, or 90 minutes of music. The player was palm-sized and featured a small LED screen on the front, with the headphone jack and control buttons on top of the device.

Read more about the MPMan after the break.

Geek We Love: The Father of the MP3 Player Market

Anna Monette Roberts — Mon, 14 May 2012 06:11:05 PDT

Although Kane Kramer developed the first MP3 player in the 1970s, it wasn't until 20 years later that MP3 players hit the consumer market. For that we have Nathan Schulhof to thank. In the early 1990s, he envisioned a "portable device [that] would allow the selection, retrieval, storage, and playback of audio content delivered to the device via the Internet."

The founder and CEO of Audio Highway, Schulhof has been dubbed the "father of the MP3 player industry" for creating, patenting, and introducing the Audio Highway Listen Up MP3 Player in 1996. The first of its kind to be introduced to the public, the Listen Up Player had a retail value of $299 and held up to 60 minutes of digital audio files. To give you some perspective, today an iPod Classic ($250) stores up to 40,000 songs.

Even though the player was not mass-produced (only 25 devices were made), it still received a lot of buzz and recognition in the tech world. The player won an Innovations Award at the Consumer Electronics Show in 1997 as well as a People's Choice Award at the second annual Internet Showcase Conference in 1998.

See how Schulhof feels about Apple's success.

Geeks We Love: An MP3 Maker of History

Anna Monette Roberts — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:53:05 PDT

Arguably one of the most important tech inventions of our generation, the MP3 player didn't just invent itself. For that, we can thank Kane Kramer. He may not be a household name, but Kramer developed the first portable digital audio player 20 years before it became industry standard. In 1979, he designed the IXI digital audio player, the first of its kind to transfer and store music to-go. The player contained a credit card-sized IXI chip that held between 30 minutes to an hour of music, depending on the audio system (mono or stereo). All of this in 1979!

Kramer told us in an email that before the age of Internet, he imagined the "idea and concept of delivering music, data, and video down telephone lines on demand" via a small, portable device. Kramer's sketches, which are over 40 years old, very closely resemble what we now know as the iPod and iPod Mini. In 2008, Apple admitted that Kramer is the true genius behind the iPod technology.

The players that Kramer developed fit in the palm of your hand and featured a small LCD screen and a central navigation control panel. Despite several websites claiming the player only held three and a half minutes of music, Kramer insists the IXI held one hour of mono audio, half an hour of stereo, or 16 tracks of master recordings. He even thought of attractive aspects that we often take for granted, like having the ability to "select any track in any order" or download new content onto the device "in a matter of seconds."

It's truly fascinating - and almost unbelievable - how many trends Kramer invented almost 20 years before MP3 players would hit the mainstream market. In his 1979 proposal for IXI Systems, Kramer predicted that MP3s would "replace the heavy costs of distribution of records and tapes," would provide "immediacy of delivery," and "eliminate the need for retailers to carry any inventory." Sure enough, in the past two decades, almost every music store has closed down, while online MP3 sales have skyrocketed. If you're wondering what music will look like in the next 20 years, you better turn to Kane Kramer.

Source: Kane Kramer

10 Geek-Chic Movie Makeovers

Laura Marie Given — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 03:14:14 PDT

Hollywood loves a good makeover story, especially when it's about a geek. But not every geek-to-chic transformation ended up better than it started, though we may be partial to the geek love. Take a look at 10 of the most notable geek-to-chic transformations, from Mia Thermopolis to Josie Grossie, and tell us if you prefer the before or after.

10 Favorite Geeks From '90s TV Shows

Laura Marie Given — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:49:03 PDT

Some of our all-time favorite geeks come from classic '90s television shows. Whether it was their supersize specs or their strange, silly mannerisms, these nerds managed to win our hearts with their quirky, lovable personalities. From Steve Urkel to Screech Powers, here are 10 TV geeks we couldn't help but adore.

Awesome Females Who Left a Mark on Science

Kelly Schwarze — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:25:59 PST

On this year's celebration of International Women's Day, we're paying respect to the women who left their mark on modern life through science. Proving that physics, wireless technology, and computer programming aren't just traits of a boys' club, and years ahead of their time at that, learn more about the women who showed us that science is the coolest subject of all.

11 Movie Geeks Who Got the Girl

GeekSugar — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 06:30:46 PST

Everyone loves it when an underdog takes the lead - especially when it comes to love. In movies, especially, there's something about the nerdy guy getting the girl. From Revenge of the Nerds's Lewis to Superbad's Seth, these 11 favorite big-screen geeks win over the girl of their dreams.

Honoring Some of Our Favorite Geeks For Black History Month

Michele Foley — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:01:38 PST

We may have Valentine's Day on the brain, but February also marks an important time of the year - Black History Month. In honor of Black History Month, let's take a look at some of our favorite geeks, both past and present. Everyone on this list has made vast contributions to furthering tech as we know it.

Dwayne McDuffie - The recently passed McDuffie wrote comic books for both Marvel and DC (including Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, the Fantastic Four and the Justice League of America) before founding his own company, Milestone Media, which helped pioneer the use of multicultural characters as its heroes.
Mark Dean - Nerd alert! Without Dean, there may not have been a PC - he holds three of IBM's original nine PC patents, leading the teams that developed the ISA bus and the first one-gigahertz chip.
Mae Carol Jemison - It doesn't get much geekier than space travel; Jemison was the first black woman to travel in space.
Philip Emeagwali - We can all blame Emeagwali for our Internet addiction. He developed the fastest supercomputer software in the world. His IQ is too high to be measured by conventional standards, and he's won a Gordon Bell Prize, which is like the Nobel Prize for computer science.

See the rest of the notables when you read more.

5 Reasons to Love People's Choice Winner Nathan Fillion

GeekSugar — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 03:13:52 PST

Nathan Fillion may have risen to science fiction fame and glory in the gone-before-its-time show Firefly, it's his role as a crime solving novelist that found him award glory last night at the People's Choice Awards. The prolific Twitterer was selected as Favorite TV Drama Actor by the voting fans.

If you aren't already a devoted Castle, Firefly and Nathan fan in general, here's why you should catch up on our favorite geek.

Upping the nerd appeal, Nathan has voiced characters in Justice League Unlimited, King of the Hill, and the Halo video games.
He's a Game of Thrones fan!
He isn't afraid to show his emotions for science fiction films. In a recent interview, Nathan admitted to crying when watching A.I.
He's a believer in renewable energy. He used his star power to bring awareness to the Arcimoto car, an electric car prototype.
He's Canadian. Nathan exhibits our neighbor to the north's enduring friendliness, love of poutine, and allegiance to family. Aww.

What do you love about this sci-fi turned crime drama hero and People's Choice winner?

Geek We Love, Sherlock, Joins Star Trek

Kelly Schwarze — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:48:46 PST

The newest addition to our Geeks We Love list, Mr. Sherlock Holmes himself, Benedict Cumberbatch upped his cool geek factor this week by signing on to play the villain in the upcoming Star Trek movie.

JJ Abrams' second take at Captain Kirk-era Star Trek isn't due in theaters until 2013, but based on Benedict's performance as the intense and tech-savvy Sherlock Holmes in BBC's Sherlock, we'll gladly wait patiently for the final touches of his fearsome Star Fleet enemy.

Benedict will also voice Smaug the dragon in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit coming to theaters at the end of the year. Though the second season of Sherlock is already under way for lucky British viewers, Americans must wait until May for their Benedict fix on BBC America. Rest assured, we'll be seeing much more of him in the coming two years.