As posted a few days back, the Zune Pass is now available in Canada for Xbox 360, Windows Phone, PC and your web browser.

Up until now in Canada, it was iTunes or…well iTunes if you wanted music online. Except if you did a bit of research and downloaded your MP3s from Puretracks.com or some other obscure place. I have tried the iTunes software and like most people I think it’s bloatware, a memory and resource hog, plus the interface is somewhat primitive. But in reality what I dislike most about iTunes is that it won’t let you share music with anything else, like an Xbox 360 for example.

Microsoft’s Zune services is not a newcomer to Canada, it’s been available on the PC and the Xbox 360 for quite a while now, the only caveat is that up until now, the only thing you could do is rent streamable movies. But now with the Zune Pass Music service available in Canada, it changes everything.

Unlike iTunes, Zune is pure eye candy, it’s just a great user experience, and this across all devices. I personally really enjoy it on the Xbox 360, and with the Kinect sensor it allows me to use my voice or hand gestures to change tracks or search for music. And trust me, with over 14 million songs to choose from, you’ll be doing lots of searching. Why limit yourself to a few hundred of your favorites when you have the entire music library to explore at your fingertips.

For Just $9.99 a month or $99.90 a year, you can “borrow” an unlimited number of songs and download them, you get access to 14 million songs, plus unlimited music video streaming. This means that if you ever cancel your Zune Music Pass subscription, the songs you downloaded will not be playable anymore thanks to DRM (Digital Rights Management) technology.

If you prefer not to subscribe to the Zune Music Pass however, you can still buy and own the songs you download from Zune (Like you would on iTunes).

The main difference is that with a Zune Music Pass subscription, you can download, stream, and listen to as many songs from the Zune Marketplace as you want, as often as you want, you just don’t own those songs unless you buy them. But as long as you are prepared to be a subscriber, over 14 million songs are all yours to listen to, download, and share amongst your devices (PC, Xbox 360 and Windows Phone).

Not sure if you’ll enjoy the Zune Music Pass? Don’t worry, a 14 day FREE trial is available.

You can download and sync Zune Music Pass items to a combination of four different computers, Zune players, and Windows Phones. For example, you can download music to your home computer, work computer, laptop, and a Windows Phone. Or if you have multiple devices, you can download music to one computer and then sync that music to one Windows Phone and two Zune players.

Once you’ve downloaded or synced music from Zune Music Pass to a computer or device, that computer or device is associated with your Zune Music Pass. If you want to change the computers or devices that are associated with your Zune Music Pass (maybe you replaced your home computer), you can swap out a computer or device every 30 days.

And don’t forget that you can also stream music with Zune Music Pass over the web, even on computers that are not associated with your Zune Music Pass. For more, see Streaming music with Zune Music Pass and Zune Music Pass on Zune.net.

NOTE:
To use your Zune Music Pass on a Windows Phone, make sure you sign up for a Zune Music Pass using the primary Windows Live ID that is associated with your Windows Phone. If you have multiple Windows Live IDs, see What to do if you’re using multiple Windows Live IDs and the Windows Live ID Selection Wizard to help you choose which Live ID to use for your Zune Music Pass.

You can only use your Zune Music Pass on phones that use your Windows Live ID. Zune Music Pass is designed for a single user. If other members of your household have Windows Phones, they will have their own Windows Live IDs associated with their phones and therefore will need their own Zune Music Pass.

Source: Microsoft

Rock on, Canada!

Starting Monday October 3rd 2011, the Zune Music Marketplace and Zune Music Pass is expanding north, giving Windows Phone owners in Canada access to more than 14 million tracks from all the major labels, as well as tens of thousands of indie labels.

A Zune Pass will cost C$9.99 per month (or C$99.90 a year). Besides a Windows Phone, subscribers can also listen on a Xbox 360, Windows PC, Zune device, and Zune.net. (New to Windows Phone? Here’s how to use a Zune Pass on it.)

New streaming music videos

That’s not the only big Zune news today. Starting Monday, Zune Music Pass subscribers in the US and Canada can also now stream tens of thousands of music videos through the Zune PC software (and soon the Xbox 360).

Cheaper Zune Music Pass

Budget-minded music buffs are also in luck. On Monday, Microsoft starts selling a new, less-expensive Zune Music Pass. The new plan costs $9.99 a month (about $5 cheaper than the current plan) but gives you unlimited, on-demand access to the same catalog of music and (now) music videos. It also includes unlimited streaming access on a Xbox 360 and Zune.net.

There is one important change: Under the new plan, you no longer get 10 free MP3s to keep each month. (Current subscribers can stay on the $14.99 plan with 10 free downloads, if they choose. )

Subscribers to the $9.99 plan can synch downloaded songs with up to four devices (1 PC + any combination of PC, Zune HD, or Windows Phone).

Look for the official announcement on the Zune Insider blog—or sign up for a Zune Music Pass.

Source: Microsoft

Make your start screen even more personal by pinning who you listen to the most. Just long press on the album or artist and select pin. If you are a Zunepass subscriber you can pin mixtapes from the marketplace as well as Smart DJ playlists – a great way to discover new music on the go!

Discovering new music

This works best with a Zunepass subscription which gives you unlimited music at your fingertips. In Mango Smart DJ is finally built-in. Smart DJ automatically picks a playlists of songs similar to the artist you’re listening to. Sort of like a Pandora built into Zune. Its awesome. Also in each artist page is a section titled “Related”. Here you can navigate to similar artists and their songs.

Use apps that integrate with Zune

A strong selling point of Windows Phones is the way apps integrate into the various hubs making the phone easier and more intuitive to use. Swipe to the apps section within the Zune hub main panorama and easily access your music or video apps like Lazytube a great YouTube app, or quickly tweet what you’re listening to using “Tweet this Song” without missing a beat! In mango you can use the Zune music controls to control playback in streaming apps like Slacker Radio. Your listening history in these apps also integrates into Zune hub panorama too. It’s all very nice!

Listen to real FM radio

All Windows Phones have built-in FM radio tuners so use it You can also pin your favorite radio station for easy access to the start screen – just remember that the long press is the skeleton key of the windows phone OS – it presents you with lots of extra functionality like sharing songs with your contacts or adding songs to a “now playing” playlist.

Enjoy your podcasts on the go!

If you subscribe to podcasts then you’ll be happy to know its integrated into the Zune hub in Mango allowing for easy streaming or downloads on the go. It’s recommended you use wi-fi to save on your data plans.

Make your lock screen display now playing artist in Mango

A pleasant feature is mango is disabled by default to save battery but in Settings under lock + wallpaper you can turn on the ability for Zune to display the artist art of your now playing on the lock-screen.

Use Bing audio to tag new music and download from Zune

Hear a song you like in a clothing store? Simply press the Bing key and tap the music icon. This launches Bing audio a shazam like service that tags the song and present a link to download the song from the Zune marketplace if found.

Most of all enjoy music using the best UI experience on a mobile handset and desktop using the Zune player. No other software player comes close.

I’ll keep my response short.

When I bought my HD7 on Novemeber 8th last year, In the Tmobile store I logged in with my live ID and immediately my phone usable without connecting to a computer. I could call any of my contacts, send emails, browse the web, download apps and yes download music. Infact, my zune pass kicked right in and I was able to stream any track I wanted or even download it. Now I understand that she wishes to upload her music to the cloud and have it available on the phone, but clearly with zunepass that is mostly redundant! Why should I upload over 20gb of music to the cloud when my Zunepass lets me play those very songs on the go? Isn’t that the defintion of untethered cloud experience? Sighs…

But change is coming to Xbox Live’s video offerings, say our sources in Redmond, Wash. Rumblings around the Microsoft campus there suggest a new way to watch videos on the Xbox 360 is coming, with Microsoft as the direct source of the content. Sick of watching content partners like Netflix and Hulu eat its proverbial lunch, Microsoft is said to be rolling out its own subscription-based video service under the Zune label sometime this year.

With a single monthly subscription and a huge library of videos to choose from, Netflix’s app has many advantages over the current native Xbox Live offering. Microsoft did announce more than a year ago that the Xbox Live Video Store would be merging with the Zune Marketplace, so the arrival of Zune-branded video streaming isn’t surprising. Moving to a monthly subscription-based plan, on the other hand, is a new twist.

What isn’t known is how Microsoft is going to handle subscriptions. The company currently offers an all-you-can-hear music subscription service with the Zune Pass; this new video offering could be similar, or it could be folded into the existing Zune Pass itself. Or it could be a premium feature for those with Xbox Live Gold memberships, likely as an add-on to recurring subscriptions already in place.

Either way, with the Zune licensing, Microsoft will have access to a larger number of videos than it does with Xbox Live. And the new system would give viewers an instant way to watch videos instead of the downloading method used now. More importantly, Zune Video could be and most likely will be shared among multiple Microsoft devices, like Media PCs and Windows Phone 7 series handsets.

Microsoft doesn’t want to put Netflix out of business, per se, but it’s clear that it’s tired of seeing potential revenue from its own hardware going to someone else.

Source: The Daily

Yesterday, as you know, I dragged Sarah Welch along with me to see my friends Mark and Abbi and to support Mark’s “Body Confidence” book signing.  Along the way, Sarah mentioned that one of her training clients, Molly Durand, had a CD.  We popped it in and I was impressed.  I think I described her as having “a lovely, mature voice with a healthy dose of passion”.

This is a long process! read all the way through before starting it!

1. Get Google Chrome you’ll need the incognito window feature.

2. Create a Hotmail account in the incognito window saying that your region is U.S.

3. Create a new Zune account under this email also in the incognito window (Saying you are in the U.S.).

4. Go to Control Panel>Regional and language options>change your region to U.S.

5. Log into the Zune software under your U.S. account, you’ll see the marketplace in your software now.

6. Close all Google chrome windows and open a new one. Go to page (top right corner beside tools) and new incognito window.

7. Leave the incognito one open but close the normal one.

8. Now go to your Zune software, Settings>account>Zune Pass

9. This will open the registration window in the incognito window. Now it will let you register your Zune pass under a U.S. address use the address of a hotel or a friend’s house in the U.S. they won’t get any mail from Zune anyways.

10. Continue the registration process with your credit card and be on your way to getting a Zune pass.

Source: ZuneBoards

Read more from the original source:
Kin ONEm and Kin TWOm back at Verizon

Zune to Expand Multiscreen Entertainment Services Into International Markets

Major entertainment companies provide music and movie catalog to the U.K., France, Italy, Germany and Spain.

REDMOND, Wash. – Sep. 20, 2010 – Microsoft Corp. today announced the further international expansion of Zune, its digital entertainment service. This fall, Zune will expand its music and video footprint and bring the free Zune software, Zune Marketplace online store, Zune Pass1 music subscription service and enhanced features on Zune.net to new markets, providing a comprehensive entertainment experience on Windows-based PCs, on the go with Windows Phone 7 and in your living room through Xbox LIVE.

“The integration between Zune, Windows Phone 7 and Xbox LIVE is an exciting expansion in our entertainment offerings,” said Craig Eisler, corporate vice president, Interactive Entertainment Business Group at Microsoft. “Zune enables users to access the entertainment they want, wherever they want it – and now, more people than ever will be able to enjoy the freedom and flexibility that the Zune service offers.”

Zune software has been upgraded with new features and functionality and will serve as the Windows Phone 7 synchronization client. The new software (version 4.7) will be available to download for free in more than 20 countries, including the U.K., France, Italy, Germany and Spain, to easily manage your personal collection of movies, music, podcasts and pictures. Zune software continues to set the standard for entertainment software, providing best-in-class experiences to organize, discover and enjoy digital media with a variety of exclusive features. For example, the Quickplay menu enables immediate access to recently played content and personal favorites, and Smart DJ 3 automatically creates playlists from your personal music collection and takes the extra step of mixing in suggested music from the Zune Marketplace. The updated Zune software will also enable instant streaming of high-definition movies, allowing you to watch some Zune Marketplace movies in HD, with no download time, directly on a Windows PC.

Zune Marketplace online store is accessible from within the Zune software and offers the ability to purchase millions of individual songs or albums from its catalog, all in MP3 format. Here, consumers can also subscribe to Zune Pass,4 which provides unlimited downloads and music streaming capabilities from the Zune music library, including content from major music labels such as Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music and Warner Music Group, as well as thousands of independent labels. Zune Marketplace also has a large library of videos from major studios such as Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution for purchase or rental. Video purchases will be accessible through Xbox LIVE and Windows-based PCs, and can also be added to a Windows Phone 7. Simply buy your favorite video from Zune Marketplace and watch it on the screen of your choice.

Zune.net is the perfect resource for consumers as it allows them to download the software and set up a Zune account with a new or existing Windows Live ID.5 Zune.net will also provide Web access to Zune Marketplace so you can purchase music or use a Zune Pass to stream music directly through an Internet browser,6 as well as purchase video content.

Zune Expansion to New Markets
As Zune expands internationally, its music and video service will be tailored for each market. Genre experts will custom program Zune Marketplace and feature the top songs, videos, movies and unique promotions for each country.
The fall 2010 international expansion of the Zune music and video service includes the following:

• Zune Marketplace will extend services to several markets in Europe and beyond.
- Zune Pass (U.K., France, Italy and Spain). The monthly music subscription service will be available for 9.99 euros /8.99 pounds per month for unlimited download and streaming access to the Zune music catalog and will be accessible on Windows-based PCs, Windows Phone 7 and Xbox LIVE. The offer in the U.S. will remain at $14.99 per month for unlimited downloads and streaming access, with the ability to keep 10 MP3s per month.8
- Music purchase (U.K., France, Italy, Spain and Germany). Expansion to these markets will enable consumers to purchase MP3s and listen on their Windows-based PC, Windows Phone 7 or any other device that supports MP3 format. Users will also be able to purchase music videos to enjoy on Windows-based PC, Windows Phone 7 and Zune on Xbox LIVE.
- Video purchase (U.K., France, Germany, Canada, Australia and New Zealand). Consumers will now be able to purchase movies to download and watch anywhere – on the big screen in the living room with Xbox LIVE or their Windows-based PC as well as sync it to their Windows Phone 7 to enjoy on the go.9
- Movie rental (U.K., France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Mexico, Canada, Australia and New Zealand). In addition to Zune video on Xbox LIVE, consumers in thesecountries will now be able to rent movies for viewing on their Windows-based PC or choose to sync the rental to their Windows Phone 7.

The global expansion of the service is the latest step in a series of milestones for Zune, including powering Bing music search results, the added ability to purchase music and video on Zune.net, and the forthcoming integration with Xbox LIVE and Kinect for Xbox 360. By continuing to integrate Zune across the most important screens to consumers, Zune provides an all-in-one music and video service for users to discover, enjoy and experience their entertainment wherever they want.

[via Engadget]

When one glances upon the ZuneHD, it is impossible to steer yourself away from that beauty, for it oozes with sexiness, and boy oh boy, it is Sexy alright !

And if people can’t remember, Zune makes up only about under 2% of the overall portable media player market share. And why would have Microsoft put in so many efforts and resources to make a iPod Touch killer ? The answer is as plain as daylight. Microsoft doesn’t entire a market unless its sure of what it’s doing, and if its beaten the first time, it comes back again, packing some serious stuff. But has MS emulated its Xbox success story here with the ZuneHD ? It is yet to be seen considering that it has much going for it, but Apple’s device is well placed and priced much more competitively.

Just how competitive is the iPod touch compared to the ZuneHD ? For starters the ZuneHD is actually cheaper when you compare them price-capacity wise, but the iPod Touch has the advantage of having an ocean of Apps, right from the fun yet useless Fart apps to the quintessential Productivity apps. And the iTunes ecosystem is no match for any competitor, moreover the recent upgrade makes it a device of its own, and in many ways, a cellphone radio-deficient iPhone 4; In light of this, MSFT needs to ramp up its Zune software and put out a OSX version and stop alienating Macs ! ZuneHD’s UI which in recent times has been referred to as the Metro UI, which is at its heart a true digital UI. Because it doesn’t mimic the age old 3D physical buttons used in almost all UIs. The fact is even more spelled out cause the work behind it has been a lot. And the result is a drop dead, gorgeous UI that makes us question all the other companies’ efforts !

UI delineations apart, the Zune ecosystem itself is poised and supposed to stand out, cause MS pursues a subscription model built around the wonderful Zune Pass, similar to an all you can eat buffet in a high class hotel to Apple’s efforts which aren’t unlike the traditional Gourmet restaurant fare. While people might swear by their Zune Passes, it just can’t hold a candle to Apple’s behemoth of an App Store! This is one of the facts that MS is looking to rectify by throwing its weight and first party developers behind homegrown mobile development entertainment studios and investing in other 3rd party developers.

But, do applications really determine a device’s worth? Are we overlooking some of the most important facts that goes into the making of a portable product let alone a product that is supposed to be perfect ! Yes, till now we have. One of the most important features are battery life, and how does the ZuneHD hold out against its competitors ?

From my research of averaging most reviews and personal impressions from users, it lies somewhere around 30-33 hours for Audio and 8-9 hours for Video. Although, the stated battery life is true only when used in a power-saver mode, i.e., with the Wifi turned off, and lowered screen brightness (around 5%). MSFT does claim that there are battery life extending techniques, http://support.microsoft.com/kb/927710 . Not sure if they really work though !

Now, looking at the Goliath side of the competition, the iPod Touch, Apple advertises the battery life as being 40 hours for Audio and 7 hours for Video. Certainly better figures than the ZuneHD, although debatable since its an official source, and reality usually tends to fall behind official figures, as always.

In closing, I expected a lot more from Microsoft, but unlike the Xbox experience, the phrase “Portable Perfection” is just used as a marketing tagline, and not as the ultimate goal for MSFT’s Zune line of products, for updates are deficient, apps are non-existent ( save for a few ), wavering support, and an uncertain future. I’m gonna have to quote Uncle Ben again, albeit in a different manner,

“With great Hardware, comes a need for great Content”.

For once, MSFT has better hardware, but deficient software and content support, something which I never expected from them. In contrast, Apple might well be laying stake to that tagline in the upcoming years !

This one by Dutch design firm Studio:ludens animates the amount of a good that is produced a second.  If I just read the facts verbally, they wouldn’t be as interesting, but showing us what that means in the context of something I am familiar with (in this case, time) then it comes alive.

Another example I saw some time back is a Microsoft commercial attacking the iPod for its Zunepass music subscription service.  Even though I’m a longtime Mac fan, this campaign actually got my attention by reframing a simple pain: it takes $30,000 to fill your iPod with songs.

Éste es un artículo escrito por Brian Morrissey @ adweek.com

NEW YORK Microsoft is continuing its attacks on Apple products as overpriced with a new Web campaign for its Zune portable media player.
 
In a Web video, financial planner and former reality show star Wes Moss presents the case that the 120GB iPod would cost $30,000 to fill with music buying songs at $1 each at the iTunes Store. “People worry about the capacity of their iPod,” Moss says in the 30-second spot. “What about the capacity of their bank account?”

The spot promotes Zune Pass, Microsoft’s music service that offers unlimited song downloads for $14.99 per month. “One costs a lot and one costs a little,” Moss says.
 
MDC Partners’ Crispin Porter + Bogusky, which won the Zune assignment last November to add to its work for Microsoft Windows Vista, did the campaign. Its earlier work, starring rapper Common, focused on turning PCs into “music discovery” machines.

Microsoft is running ads for the two-month campaign on sites like MySpace, Pandora, Gamefly and Hulu. It includes a YouTube channel with the Moss video. The campaign is Web only.
 
Microsoft introduced Zune Pass as part its effort to crack into the digital music market. The Zune player, which Microsoft introduced in November 2006 to compete with the wildly popular iPod, has failed to find much of an audience. According to financial filings, Microsoft sold just $85 million worth of Zunes in the most recent holiday quarter, a drop of more than 50 percent from the same period a year earlier
 
Digital music has remained mostly an a la carte business dominated by iTunes. Subscription services like Rhapsody and Napster haven’t been as popular. One thing not mentioned in the ads: thrifty iPod owners can’t use the Zune Pass subscription plan, which is only compatible with Zune.
 
The value message isn’t new for Microsoft. Crispin pushed a similar line of attack with its “It’s a PC” ads. Those show cash-strapped consumers choosing PCs over Macs after determining they can get more for their money with Microsoft alternatives. Those ads star real-life consumers.
 
For Zune, Microsoft has turned to Moss, a former contestant on The Apprentice (he was fired) who is a financial planner in Georgia, has his own personal finance radio show and appears on cable networks to comment on business matters.
 
Moss also stars at Zunepass.net, where visitors can use the sliders of a “Max’d calculator” to determine how much they’re spending at iTunes versus a Zunepass subscription.
 
Crispin plans to refresh the campaign with five new videos starring Moss.

its been quite awhile since i’ve had a good Micro$oft Sucks rant. but i’ve finally found a good one to latch onto.

and amazingly, it doesn’t involve the brain-dead stupid Laptop Hunters ads of “regular people” going to buy an HP or a Dell or Sony laptop. my biggest reaction to that, thus far, has been a big ol’ look down my nose and a shrug.

no, this one involves the Zune vs. the iPod.

yeah. its dumb.

and so completely far fetched and misleading that it screams for someone to tear it limb-for-limb.

i’ll do it.

———

• “at a buck a song…”- ok, seriously? $30,000? this, of course, presumes, you’ve never purchased any music before. at all. ever. that if you were to go out and buy an iPod today and came home, you suddenly realized that you’ve never purchased a CD. this completely misses the mark that has been one of the beauties of the iTunes/iPod revolution: the ability to take whatever music you already own and dump it into iTunes for syncing with your iPod. not to mention that with the new tiered pricing scheme, there is actually a good chunk of good music available for $.69.
• “to fill the latest iPod…”- (BZZZZZT) wrong. the iPod Classic, which has the ability to store up to 120GB of info (music, video, photos, notes, etc.) hasn’t been updated in ages. its sat at that number for quite awhile. the latest iPod, the Shuffle, holds a whopping 4GB of music. yes, its a small point, but a valid one. let’s face it: no one is buying the Classic anymore. everyone is shifting to the Nano and/or Shuffle and/or iPhone/iPod Touch.
• “i don’t have 30 grand layin’ around for music…”- no, of course you don’t. no one does (well, almost on one). no one buys $30k worth of music in one sitting. no one goes to the music store and buys $30k worth of CDs. over your lifetime… maybe. and you know what? since iTunes is now DRM-free, you own the music after you purchase it. its like… magic! leading to the next point…
• “consider… ZunePass”- this is just laughable. at first blush, a subscription service sounds nice, but in the end, you get your ass bitten. ZunePass is especially chuckle-worthy: at the end of every month (wherein you pay M$ $14.99), you get to keep 10 tracks, DRM-free (errrr, if available that is) forever. after that, like every other retard, manipulative subscription service endorsed by M$, if you quit paying, all those other tracks you got your hands on suddenly switch off and are unplayable.

might i show you the door, Microsoft? oh, and please: don’t let it hit you on the arse on the way out.

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

Well, then I bought a ZunePass and got unlimited downloading of songs and podcasts. Now I have more than 20 gig worth of old gospel songs and bunches of contemporary Christian songs that my daughter hopes will expand my mind. I also have downloaded soundtracks to musicals I was in nearly 30 years ago. Plus, I downloaded some classic rock and roll from my teen years (Ssshh, don’t tell my Mom and Dad about that last part)

Here is a little window into the world of my Zune.

Feel free to check out some of the stuff that I am listening to at http://social.zune.net/member/kjkb2tx2

I am probably the only guy you know with 33Miles, Cathedral Quartet, Electric Light Orchestra, Antonio Vivaldi, and the soundtrack from Annie Get Your Gun on the same Ipod or MP3 player! But that’s just me!

Currently I am listening to the following contemporary Christian artists:

33Miles
Aaron Shust
Brian Littrell
Casting Crowns
Charity Von
Charlie Hall
Chris Tomlin
The Fray
Jadon Lavik
Jars of Clay
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Riddle
Kutless
Lincoln Brewster
Mat Kearney
Matt Redmon
MercyMe
Paul Baloche
Paul Colman
Robbie Seay Band
Sanctus Real
Shaun Groves
Skillet
Switchfoot
Third Day
and
Todd Agnew

So, what is on your MP3 player? What Christian music is on it? Is it old stuff? Is it new stuff? What are some of your favorites? I am open to your suggestions. After all, I have unlimited downloading with ZunePass! And I have come a long way from The Cathedral Quartet!

As I said at the beginning, I don’t have all my thoughts together on this one. Rather I have more questions than I have answers at this point. I’ll get to those in a moment. But first, I have a few observations.

I grew up in a series of churches that rarely exceeded 200 in attendance on any given Sunday. Most of the churches that I have been fortunate enough to worship in have been under 100 in regular attendance. In fact, my “favorite” church up to this point was right at 200 in regular attendance. It was my favorite for many reasons. I served on my first church board at that church. We went through a building program, a pastoral search and had many other real and exciting experiences in that church. We were part of a great group of young couples and we were heavily integrated into the life of the church through various avenues of involvement. We knew everybody. Everybody knew us.

By contrast, up until recently, we were worshipping in one of the largest churches in the metropolitan Houston area. A church with the stated goal of getting larger through acquisition of smaller churches, through satellite churches operating in theaters, and through traditional growth and influx. Their motto is “one church in three locations.” I know the pastor by name only. I think I know his wife’s name. I don’t know his children’s names. He doesn’t know me. He wouldn’t even know I was a member if we ran into each other in the grocery store. If I was to get sick, or be in the hospital, or have a family crisis I wouldn’t have a clue who to call. The Bible study class that we attended right before we left had about 110 people who attended regularly.

So, here are some questions that are in my head:

1. Is bigger necessarily better?
2. What is the ideal size church?
3. What is the value of a large church that cannot be found in a smaller church?
4. How do you achieve a sense of “family” in a church of 6000?
5. Is “one church in three locations” a Biblical model?
6. Is the small church passé?
7. Are we doing a disservice to many pastors who work hard and labor long in churches that may never be mega churches when we glorify these mega-church pastors?
8. Do you need a certain number of folks to make a “critical mass” before you can impact your community?
9. Is the community church a dieing breed as more folks flock to the mega-church?
10. Who is driving this? Is it the denomination’s leaders? Is it the pastors of these big churches? Is it the Church Boards and/or Deacons?

Again, I know there will be some strong opinions on this. But, let me ask you to look at this on a very practical level. For those of you who attend a mega church, who in your church would you call if you found out today that you were facing a crisis like cancer or the loss of a loved one? If that is too depressing to answer, let me put a positive spin on it. If you or your daughter was planning a wedding, would she want the pastor to officiate and hold it in the mega church, or would she prefer a more intimate setting?

I don’t think there are inherently right or wrong issues here. But, I know in my heart that I do not feel as connected to the church as I have in years past. And that is a desire of my heart. To be connected. To be connected to the Lord Jesus Christ. And to be connected to his body, the church.

I would gladly give up the big projection screens, the lighting effects, the professional musicians and the slickly produced worship services for a family altar time on Sunday morning and an offertory by a young person just learning to play the piano. But maybe that is just me.