Best Fonts of 2008

Back in college, I was fortunate to find others who shared my then secret admiration and fascination with fonts. I thought maybe it was this odd personality trait, that I liked you know, letterforms. I actually had favorite fonts, and they weren’t “Times” or “Geneva.” Things like Poppl-Pontifex, Adobe Garamond, or Bodoni.

As I met more folks with what might even be called fetishes for fonts, I realized just how expensive a proposition owning these things might become. It was likely the cost involved, and no professional access to the specimens I loved, that has excluded me from the coveted member’s club. I took my oddball fascination with letterforms and then began committing to memory the catalog numbers of Bach’s works (the so-called BWV system). I’m not sure what’s hot on my mind today other than an odd collection of miscellany; collections of obscure things, like composer’s dates, the members of boutique baroque orchestras, and published recipes that promise profound flavors and requisite emotional responses.

It is then, a special thing, when I run across and article such as this, foretelling what one man considers the best fonts of 2008. I mean, it could be the best wines, the best hotels, the best cars, the best hi-fi equipment, or the best investments. But no, it’s the best fonts, and that tickles me.

I liked Utility, Soho, and Skolar, especially, not to mention a few specialty typefaces such as Compendium. I picture that one on a classy wine bottle.

I think those of us who dabble in the design of things, but don’t find it our daily passion or means for sustainability, ought to be allowed a font a year. A little personal vice, if you will, healthier than cigar smoking, less expensive than a truffle dinner, and something that we are in special, limited company to appreciate and savor.

Regrets 2008

As I was driving this morning away from Starbucks, several thoughts entered my head. I began to think of regrets I had for 2008. I thought I’d pen a little list.

• I regret not returning to Starbucks today after they served two poorly-created drinks. I could not taste any flavor of “white chocolate” in the so-called white chocolate mocha drink, and they did not put whipped cream in it, either. Also,
• Not reporting the marriage announcement to the New York Times,
• Not getting my parents here for the Christmas holiday,
• Dragging XS into the Exploratorium in San Francisco,
• Not losing weight,
• that Cavanna Pasta here in Richmond won’t be selling their tiramisu anymore (but that may help with the weight thing),
• that I’ve purchased too many sadly-made pastries from the new Short Pump Whole Foods market,
• that I hadn’t discovered applewood smoked bacon earlier in my life,
• that we didn’t get the cheese course during the 4-figure wedding meal,
• that I didn’t stop for a Southern Kitchen biscuit while in Chapel Hill earlier this year,
• that I had a low blood sugar reaction in California, and consequently just had to eat a Thomas Keller Bouchon bakery chocolate chip cookie (the cookie was awesome, but it left me less hungry at the French Laundry, later in the day), and
• that I only ordered one tray of steamed soupy-buns at the Shanghai Dumpling King restaurant in the Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco during our vacation.

Those are my regrets. Nothing too deep or important, I wager, but that is probably a good thing. The theme for 2009 is “cutback,” in a number of areas. Food (sheer amount), gluttony (and the associated cost), extravagance, luxury, etc., etc. It will be the year to lose weight, but also live more simply and economically.

What I do know is that we are fat. Obese. See WALL-E. That is the future. We have fat lifestyles, fat habits, fat minds and arteries. Last week, Obama said that it was going to get worse but that we would emerge, leaner and meaner..I don’t think lean is mean…it just rhymes. Lean is healthy. Most of us eat too much, super sized lives and meals…

• Jamie Lee Curtis, Huffington Post

O.k., one last look at that delicious dumpling:

Happy New Year to the readers.

Edward Aldwell, Bach WTC

As a little Christmas present to myself, tonight I picked up the recordings by Edward Aldwell of Bach’s two Well-Tempered Keyboard collections, Books 1 and 2.

These have been around for a long time, but the second book just came up on Amazon, so… before I talk about what I hear, I’ll mention why this collection is of interest.

First, Aldwell performs Bach on piano. I have book 1 by Hantaï on harpsichord, among my favorites, compared to others. Hewitt is nice on piano, but Aldwell has been compared to Gould in some respects, and his fugues are especially interesting for the clarity of lines.

Second, Aldwell is dead. Sad story really; he died in a car accident several years ago. He put me through some rough times in college, as I used his textbook in my music theory classes. It’s one thing to read about music in terms of notes and text, quite another to hear how someone who intimately understands the structure of the works might change the performance to demonstrate that understanding.

Thus far, listening, I’m in the C-sharp minor fugue. He doesn’t play in any exaggerated style that would suggest he was Glen Gould II. His playing is very clean, tempos for the most part are particularly regular, although he will slow down to show emphasis. Dynamics too are present, but not in any particularly jarring way. For the most part, I’d say Aldwell was of the camp of letting the music speak for itself. I think I read that once about Keith Jarrett in his recording of Bach or Handel. “I’ll let the music speak for itself.” Yes, but Aldwell isn’t totally letting the music do its thing naked. It’s a better thing, I think, for performers to add some of their own intellect and “interpretation” into the score.

I think I’m going to enjoy taking these in. Far too many preludes and fugues for one night. I may reference these in a future piece on the WTC I/II, each book on its own, with some favorite performances.

Merry Christmas.

Cooking Notes

Tonight I worked on a few “things” for an upcoming get together. Namely, I worked on the topping for bread, some so-called “fire-roasted” tomatoes, and then I also prepared a sauce for beef.

The tomatoes come from a recipe that appeared in Gourmet magazine, and consequently, in the Gourmet cookbook. It’s really simple. You slow-cook tomatoes in the oven. They recommend 6-8 hours for this type of procedure, at 200 degrees F. I played with the temperature a bit, but the preparation is really simple: season the cut tomatoes with salt, pepper, garlic, and EVOO.

These tomatoes didn’t “look” great, mind you. They were not cheap, but it’s December, and they came from Florida. They’d never compare to local Hanovers in June.

But wow. The garlic slices turned into chewy candy, the pepper magnified into something spicy, and the tomatoes were… divine. Still juicy, but a concentrated, rich juiciness that you simply wanted to savor. I just placed them in the refrigerator… they’ll emerge again on top of bread slices, and a really good fruity olive oil. This beats other things so more complex.

The sauce I made will be served “alongside” a beef tenderloin cut. The roast will be unusual: I plan on coating the beef tenderloin in coffee, cocoa, and porcini mushrooms (dried), after they’ve been finely ground in a spice grinder. So, the sauce should play off of some of these flavors.

The approach was simple enough: take shallots, get them really soft, and add mushrooms. I added a lot of chunky portobello mushrooms and lots of red wine. Add veal or beef demi-glace. Reduce. Reduce. Reduce.

The mushrooms soften, the qualities of the wine(s) intensifies… check for seasoning. I let a big stem of rosemary play along for about 40 minutes in the sauce as it reduced.

I then took most of the resulting liquid and about half of the solids and buzzed them in the blender. This thickened the sauce. It now awaits reheating and service.

The sauce came off just a tad tart. I’m going to round-out the flavors a bit before serving by adding a secret ingredient when it gets reheated… a thick, syrupy concoction that sweeten things up a bit… The only question–the sauce can be served a couple ways. As is, or completely smoothed and mounted with butter. I think I’ll go chunky this time, to show off the still-texturiffic mushrooms.

BWV 1044

Among Bach’s gems is the so-called Triple Concerto, one that mimics the scoring of his equally famous Brandeburg Concerto #5, but this concerto lives on its own, some anomaly, perhaps; some lonely child in a minor key. BWV 1044 is scored for harpsichord solo, flute, and violin against an orchestral accompaniment. It very often gets packaged in recordings with the Brandenburg set, as it’s an “authentic” Bach concerto that has familiar scoring… and like the Brandenburgs, it’s also known in other formats or arrangements.

But I thought I’d listen to several versions I now have on file.

Le Concert Français

Hantaï and friends perform the work well, with clear sound and a medium tempo. What’s missing is anything too extreme. No super-fast tempi, no odd quirks or accents; his ensemble has a rich, rounded sound, with the harpsichord especially so forward and rich in texture. At times, the middle movement most obvious, the rhythm might just relax a bit in its perfection, and the first movement, and especially the second, could use a short burst of speed.

la Stravaganza Hamburg

Good tempos! Horrible sound recording. It is a shame these talented musicians, under Sigbert Rampe couldn’t have been treated to better acoustic and a better sound recording. Their speed is too fast for their acoustic, and the microphones are too far away. The sound isn’t focused.

But boy, your foot will be tapping and you’ll just wish it was more “Claritin clear.”

Musica Antiqua Köln

I often return here as the baseline recording. It’s solid, well-recorded, and the tempos are just about right in each instance. The flow of melodic lines in the last movement, for instance, sound far more humanistic than the “stable machine” Hantaï and Co. exhibit in their recording. Each soloist is clear, from Staier on harpsichord, Hazelzet on flute (not the strongest flute sound among the lot, but certainly adequate), and Goebel on violin.

A favorite.

AAM with Egarr/Manze

The Academy of Ancient Music tackle this on their HM release with other harpsichord concertos. With the AAM, the concerto is more treated like a harpsichord concerto with obbligato flute and violin; in any sense, they are not all three equal players. While the ensemble achieves a nice warm bass sound, clarity of the principal parts is lacking, the orchestral sound a bit muffled (as with the whole set), and the tempos lacking just so to the point that they are awkward.

Final Thoughts

The triple concerto, BWV 1044, is a really good work. I just feel it has a lot of passion behind it that some folks miss. While each version/recording mentioned here has some weakness, they together offer us different viewpoints and readings. None would be a waste of your time. I look forward to future ideas on this work by the daring performers of the 21st century.

The Visuals

I like the (new) view in iTunes that lets you see all your albums, akin to photos in iPhoto.

I began listening to the first track of every album (I didn’t get too far), and it was an interesting way to sample them. When you hover over each album, you can click a “Play” button to start that one off. You can also view albums according to genre, composer, and artist… and re-size them accordingly to fit more or fewer in the browser.

When you view things this way, you begin to realize just how much music you have. Seeing that biberfan.org began as biberfan.com and was principally about music (not to mention creative stories), 2008 presents us with more options than ever for music. According to iTunes, I now have 1,101 albums. My favorite statistic? 43.9 days of start-to-finish playback. That’s a silly number, but would work out to be 44 days x 24 hours x 60 minutes to come up with the number of minutes, right? Anyhow, that’s more than a month’s worth of content.

I started collecting music on CD in 1990. 18 years, 63,000 some minutes. That works out to 3,520 minutes a year. In 25 years, at that same rate, I will have collected 88,000 minutes worth of music. That’s roughly 2 months worth there. That’s if, of course, if my musical tastes continue to develop and classical/baroque music continues to be recorded.

What’s interesting, I think, is the question as to whether or not we need to collect all of this data (i.e., “software) for ourselves. At some point it seems to become silly. I mean, some big server out there could hold all the recordings. When I hit “play,” does it need to come from my hard drive? There were advantages to this up until recently.

Subscription models are being tried now with some musical services, of course, but require a monthly rental fee. How much would you pay for access to a collection of every CD? And for how long?

Let’s do some basic math. Let’s round down my CDs to 1000. Lots of folks who collect music have reached and surpassed this number. Let’s also assume I paid $15 for each one (in some cases, this is too low, but let’s just stick to some basic math). $15K for my collection. I don’t own every CD, mind you (or recording), but I have about enough. Add maybe 450, and I’d have everything I’d ever want to listen to. This of course is from around 1950-present day. What about the recordings made next year? And after that?

Let’s say my “useful” collection grows to 2000 CDs by the time I’m done collecting, and let’s say this cost me again, $15 per CD. I’ve spent, then $30K for my music collection. I’m 70 years old now, I’ve got this nice collection.

If a music subscription service cost $15/month (Rhapsody is $13) (basically the cost of a single CD), I’ll have 2000 months to listen for my $30K. That’s roughly 133 years worth. Another way to think of it: for the price I’ll have paid for my music, I could have rented it for 133 years. It seems rental might be more economical, despite not being able to “own” the music in the way I currently do with iTunes.

There are ways to mess with my math and scenario here, of course. A resource like Rhapsody might prove to be more valuable by offering more than the 2000 recordings. They advertise 6 million tracks, as of this writing at Rhapsody, so… while the numbers may be in my favor, practicality may not.

Are all albums equal in value? How much time do I really have to listen to a library of over 6 million tracks? How does the human brain organize and make sense of 1,000,000 or more tracks?

Here’s a thought: what if my collection doesn’t grow any more. I already feel the number of tracks I have is too many to really listen to them all. The iTunes interface is nice because I can “see” what I have, because I’m still stuck (mentally) on this whole CD/album concept.

I have a feeling our capacity to remember/like/listen has real limits. There’s likely a number of “new” stuff we can take-in each month. There’s a holding area for favorites… but there’s likely to be a mechanism for the neglected stuff to fall-out of the system.

Question: what’s the most ideal system to accommodate our needs/tastes/abilities for listening? All the virtues of iTunes are likely to be implemented today on the Web… so as long as you have an Internet connection, you can have your library (any size), organize by search or visual, and maintain stats for keeping track.

I think the future of music is going to get more complex. Today we have iPhones/iPods/computers/CDs to “hold” our music. What happens when our headphones connect directly to the Internet?

I read the other day someone was really enjoying the random tunes via Pandora. Pandora is like your bottomless-jukebox playing tracks at random. Right?

Despite what I know is on the horizon, I kind of like the idea of owning my music. I like having rows and rows of silver-colored platters in plastic holders (CDs) stored in the back room. I like my iTunes. Despite the expense and hassle, I like keeping track of my own music media. How long will it last?

La Pantomime

Sempé and Fortin record La Pantomime, works by Rameau on harpsichord for Paradizo (2008).

I own many recordings by the American harpsichordist Skip Sempé, but among my very favorite was his first duet with Canadian harpsichordist Oliver Fortin. Their Bach/Vivaldi album was like nothing I’d ever heard. Two of the most delicious-sounding harpsichords, all wrapped around one another in texture and sound. It was the most glittery, powerful, rich thing you might have heard from the Baroque.

I followed up with their Pavana album, where they add, for extra richness, a third harpsichordist, Pierre Hantaï. This album I thought was less successful, only because the music was not up to the same level as the Bach arrangements. But now we have another late Baroque release, in the music of Jean-Phillippe Rameau.

To be precise, Sempé mixes some of Rameau’s solo works in groups (a suite in G, and suite in A) and another pairing in D-minor with several groups of Rameau’s Pièces de clavecin en concerts, which are where he invites his collaborator Fortin to add the lines for bass and violin. While I really enjoy my recording by Rousset and company on this latter work, the collaboration here on this disc from Sempé is very rich and enjoyable.

As I sit here now listening at my computer, with each speaker located about 3.5 feet away from my head in stereo, it’s an almost overwhelming experience (much like that with headphones). Yes, you should really like harpsichord, but no matter your taste, the sound and texture of Rameau’s richly harmonized pieces will most definitely grab your attention.

As a bonus, they provide several short pieces on DVD. I most enjoyed the “credits” where more of the players’ personality emerged in outtakes.

Very highly recommended.

Handel’s Opus 6

Il Giardino Armonico perform Handel’s Concerti Grossi op. 6 on L’Oiseau-Lyre

It’s been some time now, eh, for a release on Decca’s early music label? And IGA? Wow.

My de-facto Handel has been by Pinnock and the EC. Manze did his recording, but frankly, Handel’s string concertos never afforded me that much pleasure. But I couldn’t resist this new collection from G. Antonini and friends.

The Italians (and here, I mean to saw Biondi with Europa Galante and Antonini’s IGA) like to “mess” around with the music. Tempi sometimes, but more often than not, they like to mess with the dynamics. This is no exception, but the two leaders take very different approaches.

Listening with headphones, this is real playing. It’s almost rustic in quality, you can hear grunts, digs into strings, harsh bowing at times, all in the spirit of the music. This isn’t polite “English” background music for high tea; it’s Handel turned inside out, guts showing, passions exposed.

The few times we do get a concertino solo here and there, Onofri and friends are on good form, never strident, but always with flair. Antonini makes some choices that make me sometimes put my head back… but there’s always a musical reason behind his approach.

The energy in concerto #5, for instance, is just non-stop. It’s all face-forward. What the ensemble loses in this recording can be found in the same work, last movement. The “smooth”-ness they are capable of is almost lost in the acoustic used for the recording, and close-placement of microphones. But movements like these also expose an interesting continuo section, here, adding notable contributions from Pianca on lute.

Other minor-moded movements like #6 in G minor, always seem to have drive and intensity. What’s most jarring, perhaps, is the intimate, delicate contributions from the one or more solo violins against the full-on attack of the ensemble in intensity.

None of these are complaints. Antonini takes his own style and applies it to Handel, which honestly for me, needed a little waking up. This is a modern interpretation, in many ways, but one that accentuates Handel’s gifts as a composer.

Very highly recommended.

Trip to California

This past week we traveled to California. The centerpiece of the visit was a dinner reservation at the French Laundry in Yountville. We flew from Richmond to SFO, and first up, was Thanksgiving at my friend Todd’s home in Merced, CA, about 150 minutes away from San Francisco proper.

Here’s a basic synopsis of the trip by day.

Thursday

• Thanksgiving, travel to Merced, Hampton Inn
• Gilroy, Los Baños, Central Valley

Friday

• Breakfast with Neumann/Smekals
• Tour of UC Merced
• Trip to San Francisco
• Check-in at Fairmont
• Walking tour of Chinatown
• Lunch at Noodle Place
• Afternoon walk to Embarcadaro/Ferry Building
• Pictures Bay Bridge
• Dinner Sushi Place
• Nighttime at Market/Union Square
• Apple Visit, Virgin Megastore

Saturday

• Breakfast at Hotel
• Walking tour to Fisherman’s Wharf
• Ghiradelli Plaza
• Lunch with Wu-Shi in Chinatown
• Cab to Palace of Fine Arts
• Exploratorium
• Back to Hotel
• Dinner at Wolfgang Puck Restaurant: Postrio
• Cab back to Hotel

Sunday

• Breakfast at Coffee Shop
• Car Ride to Golden Gate Park
• Japanese Tea Garden, Pictures
• de Young Museum
• Lunch at Shanghai Dumpling King, Richmond
• Drive to Golden Gate, travel 101 to Napa
• Arrive Westin Verosa
• Car trip to Yountville, pictures, Boucheron bakery
• Dinner at French Laundry

Monday

• Leave Napa Hotel, travel to Calistoga
• Tour/Tasting at Castello Amorosa
• Lunch at Rutherford Grill
• Drive to Berkeley
• Visit Amoeba Music
• Dinner – Vietnamese
• Drop off car at Airport

We had not planned terribly well, but despite that, we had a good time, and got to see/do a lot, all things considered. I thought I’d highlight a few things from each day.

Thursday

We drove from the airport following Todd’s directions. The Garmin nüvi didn’t like them, but we followed Todd’s directions. We enjoyed the trip, it was very unusual. First, we went down “the” 101, through Silicon Valley, passing places like Redwood City and Cupertino. Then you end-up in Gilroy, home to an outlet mall. Todd’s uncle would visit the next day, to inspect a store there.

The terrain and views going past a water reservoir, yellow hills, and farmland, was all very unusual and interesting. By the time we approached closer to Merced along route 5, it was misty and cloudy.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn which was great, save for the flood lights outside that illuminate the building. They shine into your room, and with only sheer curtains, your room is illuminated, too.

Thanksgiving was a good meal, complete with Staci’s friend from Parma High School, Todd’s aunt, uncle, and nephew, and his mom. This is the first time I got to visit his home, and it was very tastefully appointed and painted inside.

Thanksgiving went late, complete with FleetFarm dancing. The pie, a bit spicy.

Friday

We woke early Friday to visit Todd’s work. He works at UC Merced, and it’s literally in the middle of nowhere. It was kind of depressing, actually, with the cloudy skies, the abandoned, half-built homes, and the starkness of three large buildings against the barren horizon.

We then said goodbye, and made it to the Fairmont in San Francisco. Wow, what hills in S.F. I didn’t fancy driving there, so we parked the car for good.

We ventured to Chinatown and settled on a specialty noodle shop for lunch. This was an interesting lunch that I enjoyed. I dropped my iPhone into the said soup.

Seeing your $600 phone floating there, was surreal. It went in, face-down, right after I took this photo. As I got it out, it was still on, illuminated. As I would learn later, the SIM card got wet and things went downhill from there.

With more walking, I was growing tired. The hills will really work your ankles. I visited the Ferry Building, saw the bridge, sampled some Scharffenberger chocolate, and then we took a cab back to the hotel before dinner.

I wanted to try some good Japanese food, so close-by, the concierge recommended Sanraku, a local chain. This location is considered the best, and the fish I had was indeed very tasty.

We completed our evening by walking to the Apple Store and Virgin Megastore. I found 2 CDs of interest, and we got my phone checked out. I would be without it for the remainder of the trip.

Saturday

The only bad side of not planning well was Saturday. We had planned to ride the cable car to Fisherman’s Wharf. I didn’t want to go there, but XS insisted. We walked. That was a long walk.

Once there, we continued on to Ghiradelli Square, another tourist area, where we bought souvenirs and then took another cab back home to the Fairmont.

I was still full from our giant Fairmont buffet breakfast. But XS had booked us a lunch with two friends he knew in D.C., one of which used to work at Capital One. So, we ventured to Chinatown again and had lunch at Ying’s (or some such Y-name). I have to confess, that was a bad meal. Maybe traditional and typical, but wholly uninspired.

More bad planning: I thought the art museum was the “Palace” of fine arts. Whoops. So, we sat outside for awhile, but so much of it was still under construction. So, we visited the Exploratorium which XS didn’t care for. We were both tired. Another trip back to the hotel.

All these trips might have been easier on the pocket had we an understanding of the transit system. Next time.

We decided to upsize dinner at the Prescott Hotel, home to Postrio. I have to say it started well; service was good, but it was big and cramped. I liked the appetizer but not the entrée: my duck tasted too bland. XS didn’t care for his quail, served alongside a waffle with ice cream. Odd.

We were bushed.

Sunday

Sunday was a big day. It was time to leave S.F., but first, we visited the Golden Gate Park in S.F., home to many things to see. We only spent significant time in the Japanese gardens. Having parked and walked-through the de Young museum, I’m anxious to return. The newly-opened science museum was packed with a line. Not to mention the park was packed, it was a race day for runners.

Next, we ventured to the west-side of S.F. to the Richmond neighborhood. Our Garmin helped us find one of two recommended Chinese restaurants XS found, this the Shanghai Dumpling King.

The wait was long, but this small yet clean neighborhood spot was cheap and tasty. The soupy buns were really good (but not better than Joe’s in NYC Chinatown). Next, we drove onto the Golden Gate bridge.

Regret? Not stopping to walk on it.

We travelled north through Sausalito and then east onto Napa.

That night: the French Laundry. I plan to review it separately. Just a few notes: we were able to park right in front of the restaurant. It’s very subtle. Subtle attention in service, subtle flavors, etc. Hardly no decoration. Of course, the meal was great, but we felt stuffed and ready to die afterwards.

Monday

A long day. Before leaving Napa, we snacked for breakfast on Bouchon pastries and then went further north along 29 into Calistoga. No plans, really, but we noticed the infamous castle, and decided to stop.

The Castello di Amorosa is a winery/castle you can tour and visit. We spent over an hour on the paid tour, and it ends with a tasting. By the time we were done, it was just past noon.

A recommendation from the go-ers there at the castle was Rutherford Grill, in Rutherford (further south). We stopped there, and after a short wait, were seated.

I had a cheeseburger; XS had the infamous ribs. Both were outstanding. The burger was excellent, very smoky, excellent quality all around. A real treat.

We left there, not sure to visit another winery, or head back to S.F. After some indecision, we gassed-up, and trekked to Berkeley.

Among the things to see there were the university and the famous record store, Amoeba. After finding a parking garage, we got rain gear. The fog was thick and heavy. Gloomy day. We found the Amoeba store on foot, then walked briefly through campus. The famous archway was under construction. Oh well.

Berkeley surprised me. Home to legends Ruth Reichl and Alice Waters, I expected more. It looked old, a bit run-down. Oh well.

From there, we headed to the airport. Traffic was worse than I imagined, but we had plenty of time. Without the Garmin, I would have been lost.

So, those are the basics. I arrived home Tuesday, and am now planning to go to bed. Back to work! For more photos, visit my Flickr group.

GeoTagging

I’m really in love with the concept of geotagged photos. These are photographs where the location of the camera is embedded with the digital actual photo stored on your memory card (in a digital camera). Before going on my recent trip, I assumed all the latest cameras had this feature, and almost bought one.

What I was looking for was a high-quality point and shoot camera. My research told me only one model actually does this, and it’s the Nikon P6000. It has a built-in GPS receiver and does geotagging. It’s up to other software to take these codes and place them on a map or identify their location. In other words, the camera records 44 degrees north by 25 degrees west, and software like Flickr (for sharing photos) or Google Maps (for finding locations) identifies this location.

Why are geotagged photos valuable? I think this is valuable because it’s very useful metadata to have. “Here’s a picture of Susan in front of this giant bridge, and yes, to get back here, go to these coordinates.” But think of it this way… you can create a map where all of your photos were taken.

Of course, it is possible to take geotagged photos with other equipment aside from the P6000. Many cell phones with GPS capabilities (including the iPhone and iPhone 3G) record geographical data, and many add-ons to higher-end cameras now add geotagging data (memory cards and battery grips).

We were snapping away on part of the road trip off of the Golden Gate bridge and it would be nice (now) to know where those spots actually were.

Imagine you were house hunting, and shooting candidates. You’d know precisely where those homes were.

Of course, Google has already geotagged photos as part of their Street View program in Google Earth/Maps. But what makes geotagging compelling to me is this:

If folks are sharing their own geotagged photos, we’re building an enormous library of data about the world around us… what if GPS systems in cars could tap-into this data and show us the most recent photos from intersections, roadways, and points of interest?

Social computing is still under development.