Adam Kalsey

This is the blog of Adam Kalsey. Unusual depth and complexity. Rich, full body with a hint of nutty earthiness.

Personal

Living in stereo

27 Apr 2003

I gave up on trying to find decent speakers for my computer. So I bought a bookshelf stereo system and ran the output from my sound card into the input on the stereo. MP3s now sound great, but the system is limited to my office. The next step is to get a wireless transmitter and receiver so I can broadcast music from the computer to my home’s main stereo system. I’ve had some luck hooking up my 802.11-powered laptop the the stereo and using it to play MP3s from another machine on the network, but that’s not a very elegant solution.

It seems to me that there’s basically three ways to wirelessly connect a computer’s MP3 library to your stereo system. You could use a component or computer connected by 802.11. That component should allow you to control what is being played from the stereo system. Either the component will contain the player and simply read the MP3 files from the source computer or the component will be able to control the computer-based player remotely.

You could also do the same with a proprietary wireless system That seems to be what the X10 media systems seem to do. If you use a proprietary wireless system, you have the same control options as you would with an 802.11 system.

The third option would be to hook a low-powered FM transmitter to the computer and then tune your stereo to the broadcast frequency. That’s how some aftermarket CD changers for cars work. It’s probably the easiest method to set up and maintain, but doesn’t offer much in the way of control. To skip songs or change playlists, you would have to go to the source computer.

Recently Written

Your OKR Cascade is Breaking Your Strategy
Aug 1: Most companies cascade OKRs down their org chart thinking it creates alignment. Instead, it fragments strategy and marginalizes supporting teams. Here's what works better than the waterfall approach.
Your Prioritization Problem Is a Strategy Problem
Jul 23: Most teams struggle with prioritization because they're trying to optimize for everything at once. The real problem isn't having too many options—it's not having a clear strategy to choose between them. Without strategy, every decision feels equally important. With strategy, most decisions become obvious.
Behind schedule
Jul 21: Your team is 6 weeks late and still missing features. The solution isn't working harder—it's accepting that your deadlines were fake all along. Ship what you have. Cut ruthlessly. Stop letting "one more day" turn into one more month.
VC’s Future Lies In Building Winners
Jun 21: AI and megafunds are about to kill the traditional venture model, forcing smaller VCs to stop hunting for hidden gems and start rolling up their sleeves to fix broken companies instead.
Should individual people have OKRs?
May 14: A good OKR describes and measures an outcome, but it can be challenging to create an outcome-focused OKR for an individual.
10 OKR traps and how to avoid them
May 8: I’ve helped lots of teams implement OKRs or fix a broken OKR process. Here are the 10 most common problems I see, and what to do instead.
AI is Smart, But Wisdom Requires Judgement
May 3: AI can process data at lightning speed, but wisdom comes from human judgment—picking the best imperfect option when facts alone don’t point the way.
Decoding Product Leadership Titles
Mar 18: Not all product leadership titles mean what they sound like. ‘Head of Product’ can mean anything from a senior PM to a true VP. Here’s how to tell the difference.

Older...

What I'm Reading