The R.A.P. Interview: Jinny Laderer, vCreative, Inc., Babson Park, Florida
by Jerry Vigil
This month's RAP Interview visits with another fellow Creative who has managed to find success with her own business. But this isn't the usual story of a production person turning major voice pro or creator of a fabulous imaging library. Jinny Laderer has found success making life easier for other radio Production Directors, Traffic/Continuity Directors and salespeople. It's the vCreative PPO, or Paperless Production Order. While the product sounds like the answer to all our production prayers, it's the story behind this product and this company that we focus on. Jinny, and her husband/partner John Laderer, offer a wonderful example of what can be accomplished when your set your mind, and your heart to it. And while the vCreative PPO sounds like an amazing product, the cost to your station is even more amazing. We won't tell you what the cash deal is; call and be blown away by that affordability on your own. But we will tell you about the barter deal, the only one this editor knows of that wants your overnight spots, and not so they can sell them to sleazy late night advertiser types, but rather to outreach ministries.
Production 212: Serendipity Do
by Dave Foxx
Some of you will feel like you're not being served well by this column this month. For that I apologize. Those of you who work with someone else's script or VO or both might feel like this won't work for you at all. Hopefully, you've established your creds with whoever is in charge well enough, that they'll at least give you the chance to work your magic on your own. The real hope is that whoever is pulling your strings isn't so "my way or the highway" about things and allow you a little time for some good experimentation. This method of production can produce amazing results. Just remember the first, last and only rule is that it must communicate the message clearly.
Test Drive: Apogee ONE Audio Interface and Microphone
by Steve Cunningham
Apogee Electronics is well known among high end recording studios for building accurate multichannel analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters, along with digital clocks like Big Ben that are used to eliminate jitter and errors when connecting multiple digital devices. My own experience has been that Apogee converters are several steps above any others I've listened to critically, although they carry a price tag that is commensurate with their quality. More recently the company has delved into a somewhat more popular price point with their Firewire-based Duet two channel interface at $499. Now they've pulled the trigger on what could be seen as the Duet's younger cousin. The Apogee ONE is a single channel USB audio interface with a built in microphone, and a US list price of $249.
Feature: The Year Of The Penguin - Part One
by Andrew Frame
Microsoft has the Flying Windows, the Paper Clip, Search Dog, and a little old guy that I'm guessing is supposed to be Einstein. Apple has their apple, a southern California hip dude, and the Happy Mac face. And, Linux has a fat, Buddha-esque penguin named Tux. No wonder the propeller heads only have a one percent market share. How can you take an operating system seriously when the mascot is a overweight flightless waterfowl with fish breath? Once you peek under the bonnet though, you'll find you can take that OS very seriously, and I just spent a year doing it. I'd like to make clear on the outset, this isn't an Us versus Them thing. The one thing that has to be kept in mind is that you use the computer system that works best for you. Period. I wanted to find out what worked for me, so a year ago I set out to do that.
...And Make It Real Creative - Heads and Tails
by Trent Rentsch
Hang around long enough, and all those old sayings you've been hearing your entire life start making sense. Recent chestnuts that have resonated with me include, "It'll shine when it shines... Don't have too many irons in the fire... Clean underwear is its own reward." (I seem to be the only person who ever heard the last one growing up. Uncle Harv used it a lot. He had a point). The latest one to slap me in the face? "What goes around comes around." It took my youngest to point out how true that is.
Monday Morning Memo: Thinking Outside the Box Part Two: If You've Got the Nerve
by Roy H. Williams
Need a fresh perspective? Want to alter your perception, think new thoughts, create a whole new paradigm? 1. Look at a map of your city. Choose an area unfamiliar to you. Drive there, then get out and walk for an hour. Call a friend to come and pick you up. 2. Go into a restaurant you suspect you won't like. Order something weird. 3. Sit at a bus stop for 30 minutes. Talk with whoever sits down next to you. 4. Attend the worship services of a faith that is not your own. 5. Read out loud to someone else The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. 6. Watch How to Hype a Black and Mild on YouTube. (7 min., 38sec.) 7. Attend ESCAPE THE BOX, the advanced session of Free the Beagle at Wizard Academy.
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