Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Listen

Should we really listen to others or trust our own instincts and do what we want?

weh546 — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:47:48 -0800

I think I care too much about what people say to me or about me I think I care too much about what people think or say about me. I think I read into people's reactions too much instead of being able to judge my own feelings about things.

Recently my roommate has had an issue with me which she just brought to my attention even though we've been living for a month now. We were completely thinking different things about each other, she was trying to be cold to me and steer me away while I was trying to be friendly to her. Maybe the reason I was being friendly to her was because I thought she was quiet and shy. But then maybe also because I wanted to have some physical relationship.

We had a conversation about what was bothering her which was me being extremely inconsiderate about things and not doing things she had asked before, continually repeating that I just didn't get it. That I was socially unacceptable (Since I had asked her to play Truth or Dare one time). Since then I've been worrisome about being inconsiderate towards others, but looking back upon it; I know I am a considerate person even though she can't see it. Is that something I should worry about. I didn't even know what was bothering her. She would get upset about tiny little things and I would laugh because I thought it was so funny.

Is it strange to laugh when other people get upset about tiny little things?

She asked me to close the shower curtain after my showers (which I continually forgot) and I would laugh because I could hear her frustrated and groan when she would rip the shower curtain close. It almost got to the point where I was purposely leaving it open to enjoy her frazzled reaction.

My point is she got so upset over something so small, and so trivial. I know I should listen to her words and advice but how can I when the source is so trivial?

Is it best to try to ignore other people's reactions to things?

iPhone: my ears are happy, but my eyes are bored.

grumblebee — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 14:31:47 -0800

I'm looking for a very specific sort of game for the iPhone: one that (a) takes almost no conscious brain power and (b) doesn't interfere with my iTunes music. I want a game I can play while listening to iTunes. I listen to music and audiobooks on my iPhone. Usually I do this when I'm out and about, so I have plenty of visual stimulation from the city or subway. Or I listen in bed with the lights off, so I don't need any external sights. But when I'm stuck waiting at the dentist or whatever, I find myself wanting something to look at while I listen. Better yet: something to look at and manipulate with my hands.

I can't surf the web, because I can't pay attention to that and an audio book at the same time. But a really simple game could work. For instance, I've listened to audiobooks and played snake (that game where you make a snake move through a maze and eat apples) with success. Something like Bejewelled might work, too -- basically, something that's more about getting into a zenlike state or a tactile state than a logical-deduction state -- the way you can drive your car down the freeway while listening to talk radio.

The other problem is that so many games override the iPod/iTunes functionality. I've heard people say there's a way to stop them from doing this, but I can't figure it out, despite reading "instructions" on many websites.

The instructions always say to start the iTunes song playing, then switch to the game, then double-tap the home button. When I do that, sure enough, my music controls pop back up, but I'm also closed out of the game. The game doesn't come back when after I start the music playing. If I close out of the music controls and restart the game, the game music overrides iTunes again.

As far as I can tell, the reality is that some games allow you to play your own music and some don't. So, unless you can tell me the secret of overriding any game's sounds with my own audio, please recommend simple games that let you listen to whatever you want while you play.

PS. I already know about Galcon.

How can I listen to Peel Sessions tracks?

rbs — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:42:40 -0800

Where can I listen to BBC's Peel Sessions? There doesn't seem to be a way to stream them, or to buy them? Am I dense? I'd like to listen to some Peel sessions from a few years back, in particular the Electrelane sessions, but sometimes others too. I can't find a way to do so. What am I doing wrong?

Watching media together in a virtual living room, is it possible?

Syntoad — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 21:02:41 -0800

Are there any sites online that let people watch movies or listen to music in sync with each other? One of my best friends has recently moved across the country. One of our favorite things to do together was watching movies, but it's pretty hard to do with a few thousand miles between you. I was wondering if anyone knows of a site where you can either listen to music or watch movies together, and be able to pause so it will stay in sync with the other person watching.

I'm especially looking for something flash based, no software to install. If that doesn't work, I am thinking about setting up a stream with vlc. Has anyone else ever set something similar up? I know technically how to do it, but I don't know if it's really something feasable to do (and yes I have a very fast connection, so upload speed is not an issue.)

I'm being sniffed!

wastelands — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 06:54:14 -0800

Should I worry about a WiFi access point owner spying on me? When using a public Wifi access point, should I assume that the owner of it could be viewing all of my traffic as it passes through? If so, does viewing encrypted content (e.g. https pages) help at all?

Love Rhapsody. Hate territorial restrictions.

skylar — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 15:34:15 -0800

Rhapsody has launched for free on the web, and it's compatible with Macs. Great - except I'm based in the UK, and they're using IP blocking to prevent non-US residents from using the service. So what's the most efficient, most reliable, least painful way for my UK-based Mac to spoof Rhapsody into thinking I'm in the States? I don't mind paying a little.