Tootfinder

Because I constantly hear myths about the good old compact cassette here's a longer post dispelling them:
1. They can sound as good as CDs
2. They don't wear out
3. You can't use a pencil to wind them
4. You can go to specific tracks automatically
5. You don't need to carry around extra batteries
I will elaborate below:
1. Sound Quality
Many higher-end decks can record cassettes on metal tape with various Dolby noise reduction settings; especially the combination of metal tape and Dolby S will make tapes that are pretty much indistinguishable from listening to a CD.
Even normal or chrome tape with Dolby B (around since the 1970s) will give great results; likely indistinguishable from a CD when played in a car or while out and about with a personal player.
Some extremely high-end tape decks produce better than CD results in some regards (for example some Nakamichi models go to 26KHz with frequency response, while CD are inherently limited to top out at 22KHz).
It's true that the dynamic range of CDs is much better than either vinyl records or tapes. However, unless you're super into classical music there's likely not much music for which this truly matters, as 99% is mastered to use much less dynamic range than provided by any audio media format. (If you're super into classical music you probably want SACD or other high-res lossless sources anyway, not CDs.)
2. Yes, it will wear out mechanically but you will wear out mechanically before it does. Please watch VWestlife's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dgJ4hRHBiw
3. European and American pencils are too thin to engage the cassette reel cogs. (You'd need to get a Japanese pencil. People mostly used BIC pens for this purpose which have the right thickness.)
4. Most (nice) decks and personal players from the early-to-mid nineties onwards have track skip features (e.g. Sony has AMS, Automatic Music Sensor), which allow precise winding to a specific track.
Some decks even did this in the early 80s!
5. My late-90s Walkman has seventy-eight (78) hours of playback on one (1) single AA battery.
Anyway, the main reason why I like them is they're fun to use and recording them is very deliberate instead of algorithms selecting music for me. :)

Ryzen AI 400G: AMD spendiert Desktop-PCs nur den Billigchip
AMD bringt endlich neue Desktop-Kombiprozessoren. Das große Die mit dicker GPU fehlt allerdings.
https://www.heise.de/news…

Heute für eine kleinere #Radtour mit dem #BromptonElectricGLine #rausgeschafft. Am Ende waren's 12.4km und je nach Wetter-Äpp -4℃ bis 0℃. Auf manchen Feldwegen lag auch noch festgefahrene…

A look at AVA, an AI chatbot developed by Alaska's court system to provide aid in the probate process, which has been plagued by delays and hallucinations (Jared Perlo/NBC News)
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/alaskas-court…

Alaska's court system built an AI chatbot. It didn’t go smoothly.
Alaska’s courts spent more than a year building an AI chatbot to help with probate, revealing how difficult it is to deploy AI in government services.

Das ist schon der dritte Warnstreik an den Hochschulen Bielefelds in diesem Jahr, zu dem ver.di und die GEW aufrufen.
Es nervt, aber ich bin dabei. Wir müssen die Gewerkschaften stärken, denn wir werden sie noch brauchen.
#ZusammenGehtMehr #Warnstreik

"Destroy London and Berlin!": Kremlin propagandists go hysterical over new EU army: https://benborges.xyz/2026/03/04/ampquotdestroy-london-and-berlinampquot-kremlin.html

“Nuclear talks with the United States are scheduled to be held in Muscat on about 10am Friday,” wrote the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi.
“I’m grateful to our Omani brothers for making all necessary arrangements.”
US officials also indicated the talks in Oman will go forward.
They will take place amid a massive buildup of US naval and airpower in the region and appear to be a last chance for Tehran to avert a US strike against the country’s leadership and nuclear …

Is ‘Bad Feminist’ More Relevant Than Ever? Dua Lipa In Conversation With Roxane Gay
#feminism

Ukraine's experience priceless as Iran war sees long-range strike drones go global: https://benborges.xyz/2026/03/04/ukraines-experience-priceless-as-iran.html

Ryzen AI 400G: AMD spendiert Desktop-PCs nur den Billigchip
AMD bringt endlich neue Desktop-Kombiprozessoren. Das große Die mit dicker GPU fehlt allerdings.
https://www.heise.de/news…