VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[vox1]

Call me old fashioned but i am one well traveled voiceoverist who does not relish working during a vacation - or marvel jubilantly about the ability to do so -- be it from the 'back of a rental car' or my condo's quietest closet.

C'mon. For a few days or a week or whatever i want to entirely unplug...
relax...reflect..read...Do Nothing and Enjoy It!

That aside...I'll now put forth this technical question about my 'road' set-up



Okay, for years I've gone to a certain resort locale where i have only a wi-fi connection...dutifully hauled along a 416, fully-loaded macbook and in recent years a Centrance micport pro (used to be alot more gear). I also had my own variation of a porta-booth long before Harlan branded that but hey, kudos to him for fashioning a nice package and marketing the idea.

(should this be in the "Gear" section yet?



Yep i have a couple area isdn connections if absolutely needed. I can generally rely on the wi-fi - but -there can always be issues which brings the question of cellphone web access. I now have a Blackberry. I've considered a datacard but don't travel THAT much to justify cost.
BBs can "tether" to a Macbook for a connection -using a tether a. and bluetooth. Has anybody here ever used SourceConnect successfully
with a cellphone/tethering setup - or is it simpler with a datacard.

As for a datacard - anybody ever use one of these 'pay as you go' plans where you pre-pay rather than lock in for a long-term contract? Is it more hassle than it's worth?

All this from a guy who doesn't want to work on vacation. Ha.

Thanks for your thoughts and a Joyous Holiday to One and All,

Mike
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Mikey ... Vox-Versatiliti

Saying something since 1970-
something

[bransom]

I had a Sprint datacard for three years and it worked pretty well. No, it wasn't as fast as what they claim, and they most definitely do throttle you, but overall I was pretty happy with it. It was $60/month which didn't bother me in months that I travel but did bother me on months that I didn't. And I never tried it with Source Connect.

In September I decided to try the Virgin Mobile pay-as-you-go card. They advertise that it's 3G, $40/mo for unlimited data. Bought the $79 card and a month of service. And, boy, does it suck. Software doesn't work properly, virtually no support, and slow as dirt. Major fail.

And I've talked to someone who tried the Clear card, another pay-as-you-go, with the same results: slow as dirt.

I've also had several opportunities to test the Verizon MiFi — the little wireless hotspot thing — in several cities and found it to be amazingly fast. I expect I'll be ordering one of these shortly.

As for Source Connect, they used to have a "case study" on their site about some VO guy in Detroit that connected regularly using a Sprint card. You might want to check it out (and take it with a grain of salt.)

Bob
_________________
Bob Ransom
"I really need a pithy quote here."

[SkinnyJohnny]

I have a travel set up, but if I work while on vacation, it's not really a vacation is it? But then again, is this really work?

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John Weeks Voice Overs
www.johnweeksvoiceovers.com

[Bob Bergen]

Great topic!

I'm in my mid to late 40s. I went on my first vacation as an adult about 7 years ago. I was always afraid to miss work. Not the occasional radio spot, but something huge. Something ongoing, where my temp replacement could become their permanent choice. So, now I travel with a portable studio. And on most trips it's used daily. It has never gotten in the way of me being able to enjoy the trip. First of all, I love what I do. I get as much joy at the mic as I do seeing new sights. It's not strenuous. It's not labor intensive. It's pure creative fun.

A couple of years ago I was in my stateroom on a cruise recording auditions while looking at Venice, Italy. Not a bad way to try to get a gig. Now, if I have major plans during a trip I won't cancel them to record. But I don't have to. I give every agent my schedule while on vacation. "Monday the second I will be touring Pompeii from 8am to 5pm." This way the are able to work around my schedule. But I do this anyway when I'm home. My agents know when I am and am not available when I'm in town, so it's not different when I travel. When I travel domestically I research studios before the trip in the event I need to have one ready to go for those last minute gigs.

What I won't do is skip on vacations. I need the getaway. But I'm blessed that technology allows me to continue with the career I love while enjoying the getaway.

BB

[ccpetersen]

Bob points out a good thing; I do the same thing with projects when I've got a vacation scheduled. On every trip I've done in the past two years, I've had whatever I needed along with me to get the job done. I don't honestly think of it as work either, and as long as I can get a connection to send material back to the client, I'm happy. Earlier this year I wrote material for an entire exhibit about astronomy and planetary science while onboard a cruise ship in the south Pacific. Just shipped off copy as I got it done, along with audio notes, and that was it.
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Charter Member: Threadjackers Local 420

[Lee Gordon]

[JTVG]

Mike,
I did the Verizon mobile broadband USB card thing this past summer on vacation and Source Connect worked well on a test call with Out Of Hear. I was getting 4 bars of reception the whole time. It didn't work for the actual session. But to be fair, I was having other computer issues at the same time so I need to try it again. I've also tested it with 2/3 bars and the high send setting didn't work great, but the medium setting did. Either way, that technology has some growing to do.

I'm actually the opposite of Bob. I rather dislike working during vacations. Sure, I love what I do but I'm also on call pretty much 24/7 on weekdays all year. It would be really nice to throw my phone away for that one week as ASAP auditions, and all the technical headaches described above tend to dampen the feeling of letting all my cares float away. Not to mention my wife & kids having to put up with the "shhh, I'm recording in here!" speeches. But it is what it is.
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Joe Szymanski
http://www.joethevoiceguy.com

[todd ellis]

i don;t mind working on vacation - but my family HATES it - so i try to limit the voicetalking as much as possible on the road with family - but - i also tested out the Verizon MiFi and found it to be all it was advertised to be. so, there's your +1 for that.
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[vox1]

Thanks for your thoughtful replies guys. Interesting about the mi-fi thing..
I wonder what the difference is between those and the usb 'stick' version
I don't need the wi-fi ability- just a solid 3G or better data connection - but,
if these get better signal strength or whatever, i'm interested. I'm with
Sprint which has their version of the VZ hotspot. Presumably it would be
similar as far as performance. Dunno. Maybe i'll get a 30-day trial and
test it out in a couple weeks.

Cheers,

Mike
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Mikey ... Vox-Versatiliti

Saying something since 1970-
something

[danbrantley]

[quote="vox1"...Interesting about the mi-fi thing..
I wonder what the difference is between those and the usb 'stick' version
[/quote]

I've used several of the USB "stick" modems and would now choose a MiFi type device, for a few reasons...
1. WiFi is built into most/all modern laptops and a new wifi connection is relatively easy to set-up. A new "device" (the USB stick) can be more difficult and less reliable.
2. There isn't anything hanging off a USB port on your laptop that can catch, snag or do other nasty things.
3. A USB device usually has be disconnected and shut down before being removed. You just turn the MiFi off, put it in your pocket and put your laptop to sleep.
4. Sometimes a weak signal can be boosted by raising the modem to a higher point... tough to do when it is attached to your laptop, Easy when it is a separate unit.
5. If you have other family members who want/need to use the internet, I believe up to five can share a MiFi.
6. I have heard that Sprint boasts similar speeds to Verizon (YMMV)
7. One drawback could be battery life. The MiFi has its own battery that may choose to "die" At an inconvenient time. A USB stick draws power from the computer. (But there are USB cables that will charge the MiFi from your computer. So, never mind.)
8. Since you are with Sprint already, and if you only occasionally need a connection, check to see if your phone can act as a modem, you might have to pasy extra, sometimes as much as you would for a MiFi for this feature.

Hope this helps.
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I'm still...
Dan Brantley