FREE/BARGAIN — Media Deals (non-eBook/non-audiobook)

[GtrsRGr8]

Google Play has a 75% off promotion going on right now on movie rentals.

I got word of it by email, but I noticed that, on this Google Play webpage, there was a banner ad, that directs you to this webpage, making the offer again. So, it certainly seems like if you are on different webpages of theirs that they make this offer to you. In the simplest way of saying it: it's available to the general public.

Like fine print? Neither do I. But here is some that you might want to know about ahead of time:
Get 75% off the store price of any one movie rental of your choice, including the collection below. Your discount will be applied at checkout. Redeem your offer by January 22, 2017, on Google Play from compatible Internet connected devices using a Google account.

Also, there are these Google Play content promotion terms of service:
These terms of service apply where a third party or Google runs a promotional offer in which promotional codes may be redeemed solely for content delivered through Google Play. Such promotional codes are non-transferable and have no cash value. You must be over 13 years old to accept the offer. If you are between the ages of 13 and 17 (or otherwise below the age of majority in your jurisdiction), you must have parental or guardian permission. To accept the offer, you must also have a compatible Internet-connected device and have or activate a Google account.

All promotional codes must be submitted within the term of the promotional offer period. Lost or stolen promotional codes cannot be redeemed.

This is in addition to "Google Play Terms of Service" that we all agree to, without knowing it, every time that we go to their website or, at least, make a purchase from them.

[curtw]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

Google Play has a 75% off promotion going on right now on movie rentals.

I got word of it by email, but I noticed that, on this Google Play webpage, there was a banner ad, that directs you to this webpage, making the offer again. So, it certainly seems like if you are on different webpages of theirs that they make this offer to you. In the simplest way of saying it: it's available to the general public.

Nope. "The code you entered has already been redeemed." Looks like a one-shot tied to your account. Just go to play.google.com/store, and you should get your own personalized code.

[GtrsRGr8]

Today's freebie from YourClassical comes from composer Gioachino Rossini. It is his Semiramide: Overture.

This 12 minute, 25 second piece comes from a Naxos album, Rossini - Complete Overtures - 1. This piece is performed by the Prague Sinfonia Orchestra. The conductor is Christian Benda.

Want to know more about the album than I've provided above? There is a wealth of general information about it at this webpage. If you are interested specifically in reviews of the album, however, the thing to do is to click on the "Reviews" link (in blue, in a menu on the far lefthand side of the webpage). Alternatively, go to the webpage directly by pointing your browser to this webpage. In contrast to the YourClassical albums that I've posted in the last couple of days, there is a large number of reviews for this particular album.

You can find the "Direct MP3 download link" for the free piece at this YourClassical webpage.

[ATDrake]

Free video game for the next two days (until about Saturday the 12th around 11 AM Pacific Time, if I'm mathing correctly):

Dirt 3 Complete Edition, an off-road car-racing simulation game @ the Humble Store as a promo for their Birthday Sale. Available for Mac and Windows via Steam key, requires a Steam account linked to your Humble Bundle/Humble Store account, actual key needs to be redeemed in the Steam app by November 19th.

[GtrsRGr8]

Okay, I looked over all of the possible legitimate forums and threads on MobileRead where this could possibly go. It seemed like there weren't any, but this thread seemed the most legitimate of all of them. I know that MobileRead was not intended for discussion and posts about non-book/non-audiobook, and that this very thread is a concession to those people who had an interest in it/them.

Giveaway of the Day's free giveaway of the day (the "day" ends at 3 a.m. tomorrow (Friday) morning) is a piece of software that says that it is able to convert the free videos from 100+ websites to popular formats.

Usually I ignore this kind of software. For one reason, talk is cheap, and they often either don't do what they say that they will do or do a poor job of it. Followers of GOTD get to rate the software given away, however, and this software has a stunning 92% positive rating. In my experience, any rating over 75% on this website usually means that the software is serviceable, at least. Usually there are enough malcontents, cranks, and miscreants that won't give a positive rating on anything, that no piece of software will break 90%. So, this looks like a good one.

The name of the software is Allavsoft. The version is 3.12.

As always, the giveaways come with some restrictions. In the case of this one, there is no (company-provided) support (I've seen companies bend the rules here sometimes, though). However, the license is lifetime (sometimes it is one year or even six months. Ack!).

Here's the Giveaway of the Day website, where you can download the free software

[GtrsRGr8]

The week's final YourClassical freebie is a 4 minute, 59 second piece from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Laudate Dominum.

It comes from a Naxos album, Chill with Mozart. The album is performed by Kosice Teachers' Choir. There is solo singing on this free piece from the album, at least, also. That is performed by soprano Priti Coles.

You might be interested in knowing more about the entire album. If so, I suggest that you head over to this Naxos webpage, where they've got tons of miscellaneous information about the album. I was unable to find any Naxos webpage anywhere that had any reviews of the piece or even the album, however. But, trust me, the performance of the free piece is good. Have I ever steered you wrong? No.

The piece is formatted in MP3, as we have come to expect from these freebies. Download it by clicking on the "Direct MP3 download link" on this webpage.

There should be a new 5-day slate of free classical pieces from YourClassical beginning on Monday!

[GtrsRGr8]

I was starting to get the heebee jeebies. All week, we practically get inundated with free music, mostly classical. But I didn't have anything for today (Saturday) to share with you.

Then, I check my email for the last time before going to bed tonight, and if there wasn't an offer for a free piece from Domo Music Group!

This may be a disappointment to some of you, but it's not classical music. I would describe it as electronica/party. The name of the song is Keep Dancing, and it's from the album These Times. Here's the information that Domo provides about the album, the free piece, the artist, etc.:
Artist: Tao Of Sound

Song: Keep Dancing (feat. Jacob Luttrell)

Album: These Times

“Tao of Sound’s new full-length, 11 track album These Times, is a masterwork and triumph, blurring the lines between musical genres and delivering an amazing melodic and rhythmic delight.”

In May of 2016, Tao of Sound steps to the front of the stage via their eclectic, always evolving style. With their signature edgy pop sound and epic, world-electronica orchestrations, Tao of Sound has carved out a completely original musical identity for themselves.

Comprised of multi-instrumentalists Taku Hirano and Daniel Pearson, Tao of Sound has worked with music’s biggest superstars including Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Lopez, Nine Inch Nails, Whitney Houston, Nelly Furtado, Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Prodigy, Dr. Dre and Lionel Richie. Taku was named as one of the Top 3 Best Percussionists by Modern Drummer Magazine's 2014 Readers Poll.

As expert remix artists, Tao of Sound has worked their magic on Kanye West’s “Heartless” and tracks from the Michael Jackson Remix Suite. Internationally, they have performed and recordings with two-time Academy Award-winning Indian film composer A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire), Japanese pop superstar Utada Hikaru, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Golden Globe/Grammy Award-winning artist, Kitaro.

Taku is one of the top-call percussionists on the touring and recording circuit. Daniel is Bass Player/Composer/Producer and has written and composed music for television productions and motion pictures. These world-class musicians have performed live, recorded with, and consulted a who’s who in the music industry, spanning practically every genre of popular music. Their music has been heard on HBO, NBC, ABC, PBS, and major motion picture scores for Twentieth Century-Fox and DreamWorks, film soundtracks for DreamWorks, Atlantic Records, and Capitol Records.

Combining Zen-like Eastern influences with electronic beats and a rock swagger, Tao of Sound delivered a striking, memorable debut for Domo Records in June 2010 with Metro, continued their evolution with RONIN and now expertly displays their mastery of music with 2016’s These Times.

Wow.

The free piece is in MP3. My opinion of the piece? I think that it is excellent, though it's not the kind of music that I typically listen to.

To obtain the free piece for yourself, navigate to this webpage. Submit your email adddress. Check your email, and click on the link in the relevant message. Payloadz is the name of the company that actually handles the distribution of the free pieces offered by Domo, and I have every reason to believe that they are "on the up and up." I've gotten freebies from Domo through them, a time or two before this one, with no issues.

Important: the link that Payloadz provides you in the email that you get expires "quickly" (how quickly that is, I don't know). So, if I were you I would stay your computer until I got the piece downloaded (I think, however, that you can make the request again, and get a new link that will work).

Maybe something will drop in my lap on Sunday, so I'll have something to offer you before the YourClassical daily freebies begin for another five days.

[Froide]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

free piece from Domo Music Group!

Thank you.

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I was starting to get the heebee jeebies. All week, we practically get inundated with free music, mostly classical. But I didn't have anything for today (Saturday) to share with you.
[...]
Maybe something will drop in my lap on Sunday, so I'll have something to offer you before the YourClassical daily freebies begin for another five days.

There's always eMusic.com's 7day/week daily download (when the download link actually works). http://www.emusic.com/dailydownloads/toolbar/main.html

Today's selection:

Saturday November 12, 2016
"Strands"
Artist: Steve Hauschildt
Album: Strands
Label: kranky / The Orchard
Genre: Electronic
Styles: Electronic Ambient

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Froide

Thank you.

There's always eMusic.com's 7day/week daily download (when the download link actually works). http://www.emusic.com/dailydownloads/toolbar/main.html

Today's selection:

Saturday November 12, 2016
"Strands"
Artist: Steve Hauschildt
Album: Strands
Label: kranky / The Orchard
Genre: Electronic
Styles: Electronic Ambient

Glad to be of service.

Yeah, I have mentioned eMusic's daily (as you noted, they are truly daily--7 days a week) offerings occasionally. In fact, I was posting them every day for a while after I first discovered them, but the downloading issue (there were two intended downloads last week which wouldn't work as advertised) was one thing that put me off. The other thing is the fact that none of the artists are popular/famous (they may be up-and-comers among them, but most of them will be down-and-outers). However, I listen to the songs every day (when available. ha) and actually save a few. They sound good enough that I figure that they might be hits one of these days. However, some of them are so awful that I don't even finish listening to the piece. As I mentioned in a message, somewhere on MobileRead at some time recently, I will occasionally post, on this thread, a song that I think is especially listenable.

[koland]

Originally Posted by Froide

Thank you.


There's always eMusic.com's 7day/week daily download (when the download link actually works). http://www.emusic.com/dailydownloads/toolbar/main.html

Although not working when posted (tried in three browsers), the link IS now working, for those hankering to get some electronica in their libraries.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by koland

Although not working when posted (tried in three browsers), the link IS now working, for those hankering to get some electronica in their libraries.

At least a couple of days this week, when I clicked on "download free track," nothing happened. The second or third time that happened, I tried right-clicking "open in new tab" (or it may have been some other item in the right-click context menu) and it worked that way.

I know sometimes that MobileReaders don't test their links before posting (I've been guilty of it in the past, but I'm much better about it now). That's undesirable. But if you run a website that may get 100,000 hits (just a guess) per day and don't check before you put up a webpage, that's inexcusable in my book.

[Froide]

Originally Posted by koland

Although not working when posted (tried in three browsers), the link IS now working, for those hankering to get some electronica in their libraries.

Sorry to read that the link wasn't working at the time you first tried it. It was working just fine at the time I posted it and it's working again right now. Today must be another of the eMusic.com website's "iffy" days.

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I know sometimes that MobileReaders don't test their links before posting (I've been guilty of it in the past, but I'm much better about it now). That's undesirable. But if you run a website that may get 100,000 hits (just a guess) per day and don't check before you put up a webpage, that's inexcusable in my book.

I actually DID test the link after posting, and it worked just fine (for me). Sorry it didn't work well for everyone.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Froide

Sorry to read that the link wasn't working at the time you first tried it. It was working just fine at the time I posted it and it's working again right now. Today must be another of the eMusic.com website's "iffy" days.


I actually DID test the link after posting, and it worked just fine (for me). Sorry it didn't work well for everyone.

I may have not been clear. Today's link worked fine, and I had checked it early the day.

Links provided by eMusic did not work two or three days this week. except for the one which I opened in a new tab.

There is no criticism of you, on my part.

[Froide]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I may have not been clear. Today's link worked fine, and I had checked it early the day.

Links provided by eMusic did not work two or three days this week. except for the one which I opened in a new tab.

There is no criticism of you, on my part.

My reference to the link's not working was a reply to:

Originally Posted by koland

Although not working when posted (tried in three browsers), the link IS now working, for those hankering to get some electronica in their libraries.

[GtrsRGr8]

Here's a very pleasant free piece of organ and strings music, from baroquemusic.org.

The composer's name is a new one to me--John Stanley.

Let me just quote the information from baroquemusic.org about this piece. In addition to being informational, I find it very interesting:
Concerto No. 3 in G Major for Organ & Strings, Op. 2 - 1: Adagio-Allegro. The blind English organist-composer John Stanley, a contemporary of Handel, specified these Six Opus 2 Concertos "for string orchestra, with solo organ, or harpsichord, or strings". Our recording (BMC 1) explores every combination. Here is an excerpt from Concerto 3 in G, with organ solo played by Conductor Leslie Jones, and The Little Orchestra of London. The organ is a Byfield of 1764, in the church of St Mary, Rotherhithe, historic port on London's Thames River from which the Mayflower set sail.

I am not a fan of the harpsichord, the melodion (the 18th/19th century variety, not the modern one per se), and similar musical instruments. But, the harpsichord music in this piece is so subdued that it is not bothersome at all, and actually adds to the piece, in my opinion.

This free piece runs about 3 minutes and 45 seconds, and is formatted MP3. Like the free piece offered by Domo Music Group, that I posted early yesterday (Saturday), the giveaways from baroquemusic.org are not made on a regular basis. And, they don't have a stated expiration date.

Here's the webpage to go to in order to download the free piece. When you get there, the audio will start streaming (or you might have to click on the play button to start it, I've forgotten now). I think that everyone reading this probably knows this, but in case someone doesn't, what you need to do then is to right click somewhere on the progress bar, then save the MP3 link to the drive on your computer where you'd like to send it. Then open the file in your MP3 player of choice in order to listen to it.

Easy peasy. And no account is required! Why can't we get the freebies from everyone this way?