Month: December 2015

Goodbye 2015

We enjoyed the snow. We had a lot of it. A lot of it.
We enjoyed the snow. We had a lot of it. A lot of it.
We realized that the Rocky Hill Inn was more than just a place to get a pint.
We realized that the Rocky Hill Inn was more than just a place to get a pint.
We celebrated Albert Einstein's birthday at Princeton University with friends.
We celebrated Albert Einstein's birthday at Princeton University with friends.
We hiked into the Sourland Mountains and learned about the creatures that lived there.
We hiked into the Sourland Mountains and learned about the creatures that lived there.
We celebrated Bhavana's birthday and the Hindu festival of Holi.
We celebrated Bhavana's birthday and the Hindu festival of Holi.

-NIKON D5100-20150419-NIKON D5100_20150419_5794-blog

Standing: Khurt, Shaan, Sitting: Bhavna, Kiran
Ken Lockwood Gorge · Monday 25 May 2015 · Nikon D5100 · 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6
We celebrated connections that were made a long time ago in a galaxy ...
We celebrated connections that were made a long time ago in a galaxy ...
We hung out at the foot of the Sourland Mountains and relaxed to the sounds of local bands playing classic Americana.
We hung out at the foot of the Sourland Mountains and relaxed to the sounds of local bands playing classic Americana.
The music sounded even better with a pizza from Nomad Pizza.
The music sounded even better with a pizza from Nomad Pizza.
We camped out with friends and neighbors to watch bombs bursting in air.
We camped out with friends and neighbors to watch bombs bursting in air.
We spent a week in the Outerbanks of North Carolina enjoying sunrises, sunsets and the company of family.
We spent a week in the Outerbanks of North Carolina enjoying sunrises, sunsets and the company of family.
Some of us joined a marching band and turned into a penguin.
Some of us joined a marching band and turned into a penguin.
We finally accepted Nathan's invitation for BYOB and bonfire. Oh the HEAT!
We finally accepted Nathan's invitation for BYOB and bonfire. Oh the HEAT!
We learned that we are brilliant and beautiful.
We learned that we are brilliant and beautiful.

Create a Multi-Room Wireless Speaker System with Apple Airport Express and AirPlay

Robin Birkel recently wrote an article about using Apple TV to create a multi-room wireless speaker system. It's a novel solution that's easy to implement. But Robin's solution wouldn't work for my home. I love movies but perhaps I love music more. We have one TV in our home connected to the Apple TV, TiVo, Wii U, and Sony Blu-ray DVD. Using the Apple TV as a basis for a multi-room audio system isn't doable.

A few years ago I created a multi-room wireless speaker system using Apple AirPort devices. I have three of these devices in my home configured to work as a wireless mesh network. This configuration extends my wireless network to all corners of my home and even extends out into the back yard. Every Apple Airport has an audio jack. I connected a powered speaker to each Airport. Using AirPlay, anyone on my wireless network can stream music to any speaker from any Mac, iPad or iPhone. I can also stream music to the speakers connected to my AppleT V. iTunes on the Mac supports multiple speakers. From the Mac I can stream music to specific wireless speakers. The volume for each speaker can be controlled independently. That covers the inside of the house but what about the backyard. That's the largest room in the house!

I have three portable speaker systems. Two are Bluetooth and one has I have them setup to stream music from my iPhone or Mac via AirPlay on my wireless network. The Bluetooth speakers are great for backyard parties or where you want to allow your guests to play their own music. We have a few teenagers in the family and at large family gathering they love showing off their favorite music. With the Bluetooth speakers everyone gets a chance to choose and I don't have to give out my wireless network password to allow them to use AirPlay.

But sometimes as a host, I want to use a specific playlist I created to set the mood. When hosting a party, it can get quite hectic, and I may not want to dedicate my phone to Bluetooth music streaming duty and run down my battery. During a recent store sale, I purchased an iHome iW1 AirPlay Wireless Stereo Speaker System with Rechargeable Battery. With this speaker, I can wirelessly stream music from iTunes, iPad, iPhone and iPod touch via AirPlay. Summer parties are a blast. I have music from a playlist on my iMac streaming throughout the house and the backyard via AirPlay.

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iTunes uses AirPlay to send a single audio stream to multiple speakers.
iTunes uses AirPlay to send a single audio stream to multiple speakers.

But I want more control. I don't want to leave my iMac logged into my account. I don't want to rush to the iMac when I need to adjust the volume of the music on one of the speakers. I want to use my iPhone or iPad to control the setup. That's the problem Rogue Amoeba's Airfoil solves.

Airfoil is a $30 app for OS X and Windows that captures any audio source on a computer and streams it to multiple Airfoil enabled receivers. Each receiver can be configured independently. I can stream music to any of my AirPlay enabled devices -- Apple TV, Airport Express, iHome iW1 -- and control them via the Airfoil app on my iPhone or iPad. I can even use my iPhone as a receiver. I can dock my iPhone into one of my Bluetooth speakers and stream audio from another Airfoil device to that iPhone.

There is a slight delay when enabling a receiver but after that all the devices stream in sync. Airfoil works with music services like Spotify and iTunes Music. Because the Airfoil app can hijack any audio source I can even stream audio directly from the web. For example, I can listen to Soundcloud, Pandora or setup a playlist of YouTube music videos and stream the audio via Airfoil. Airfoil is also available for Windows, Android and Linux users. The Airfoil receiver software is free to download. For $40 you purchase the Mac and Windows software as a bundle.

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Use Airfoil to stream to AirPort Express units, Apple TVs, iPhones, iPads, and iPods Touch, and even other Macs and PCs!
Use Airfoil to stream to AirPort Express units, Apple TVs, iPhones, iPads, and iPods Touch, and even other Macs and PCs!

To recap. My Multi-Room Wireless Speaker System uses:

  • Airport Express and Apple TV devices configured to stream audio to connected speakers via Airplay.
  • Airfoil or AirPlay to stream audio/video sources to these connected speakers.

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Not Your Basic Grilled Cheese

I'm practicing my food photography skills. They are quite basic. I am experimenting with lighting but most of my shots have been during the day, using a combination of window light and a strobe bouncing off the ceiling. For my first few attempts, I mounted the camera on a tripod and shot the food from above. For this set, I tried a direct front composition for one of the shots and I also played around with a reflector. I think it works but I would prefer to have a lighter background.

I made a "wooden table" to create surface for shooting the food but I have yet to stain or paint it. My design is a combination of four different designs -- DIY Distressed Wood Photo Backdrop from love and olive oil, Wooden Table Top Tutorial by the brewer and the baker, Reversible Wood Table Top Tutorial by semi sweet, and Wood Table For Product Photography by DIY Photography.

For this capture I modified a recipe I found on the food joy. The recipe is called Adult Grilled Cheese which my teenage daughter Kiran thinks is stupid because she doesn't understand what's grown up about it. I explained that I don't think kids would eat a sandwich with smoked Gouda, fig jam and apple slices. She disagrees because she would eat it and ... well, she's a kid. So my sandwich is called "Not Your Basic Grilled Cheese" since kids and adults can eat it.

The original ingredients included Fig Jam, sliced smoke Gouda and thick turkey bacon. I could only find Fig Preserves and a brick of Gouda. Turkey bacon isn't, so I use real Applewood smoked bacon and baked it in the oven.

Not Your Basic Grilled Cheese

  • Servings: 1
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

A grilled cheese with grown-up ingredients.



Harpoon Black IPA makes an excellent accompaniment to this sandwich.
Credit: islandinthenet.com

Ingredients

  • 8 slices of semolina bread
  • 16-20 of smoked Gouda
  • 8-12 strips thick cut Applewood smoked bacon
  • Fig preserves
  • 2 Granny Smith apples, sliced thin
  • Butter

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Place bacon strips on the top of a broiler pan and place in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes. Remove the bacon and pat down with paper towels to remove any excess grease.
  2. Slice the smoked Gouda as thinly as possible.
  3. Butter the outsides of each piece of bread. On the inside, spread the fig jam on one side, then add 2-3 pieces of bacon, 3-4 slices of apples, and 4-5 slices of cheese. Top with the other slice of bread (buttered side on the outside!).
  4. Place the sandwich in a sauté pan on medium-low heat, browning each side of the bread. I use a cover while it's cooking to help melt the cheese.