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How to make the audio in your projects sound better

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

Tired of tinny sound, echoes, inaudible dialogue or just bad audio in your home recording efforts? The popularity of social media videos and podcasts has led to a variety of affordable microphones, software and other tools for creating better-quality audio for personal projects.Even if you don’t plan to start a podcast, understanding digital audio a bit more can make tasks like recording Grandma’s stories for a family history archive or adding a narration track to your vacation videos sound much cleaner.Here’s an overview. Hardware Just about every laptop includes a microphone for videoconferencing and audio calls, but the fidelity can be lacking. An external microphone that plugs into your computer’s USB port gives you much better sound quality. Logitech’s Yeti ($130) and the Shure MV5 ($99) are two models recommended by Wirecutter, the product review site owned by The New York Times. (Setup is usually simple, but if you plug in the mic and nothing happens, make sure the new hardwa...

Less home for more money: Home prices rise as buyers swallow higher interest rates

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

When Joseph Atkinson and his wife Cecilia began shopping for a home this year, they realized that anything they could afford would be smaller than the home they were renting. The culprit? High mortgage interest rates.“It’s kind of upsetting to see what you’re getting for your money,” he said.The Atkinsons are not alone. Across the Bay Area, home buyers are seeing their budgets shrink with each rate increase. They’re paying more to get less square feet than they might have a year earlier. Even just half a percentage point increase can raise monthly payments by hundreds of dollars.“I made sure we got locked into our interest rate as soon as possible,” Joseph Atkinson said. Turns out, he was right to — rates spiked a week later.Mortgage rates, at their highest level in 23 years, also have discouraged would-be sellers from trading up their homes, creating tight supply. The lack of inventory has pushed up prices for a second month in a row. The median home p...

Incredible! Livermore running back rushes for 534 yards against Dublin

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

Livermore’s Kamarri Robinson etched his name in the state record book on Friday night.The running back ran for 534 yards and five touchdowns in 29 carries to lead the Cowboys to a 45-35 victory at home over Dublin in an East Bay Athletic League Valley Division game.According to records kept by Cal-Hi Sports, Robinson’s rushing total ranks fifth all-time in state history, 13 yards behind the player who ranks fourth.Laguna Beach’s Nathan Lancaster ran for 547 yards in a game 10 years ago.The record is held by Ronney Jenkins of Hueneme-Oxnard, who rushed for 619 in 1995.The 5-foot-8, 175-pound Robinson had 13 carries for 179 yards and two scores in the first half, then ran the ball 16 times for 355 yards and three TDs over the final two periods.He had second-half runs of 41, 42, 55 and 73 yards, then capped it with a 90-yard race to the end zone that cemented the game for Livermore.The Cowboys (4-4, 1-1 EBAL Valley) were leading 38-34 when Dublin picked up a first-and...

What happens to the 49ers if the stars don’t come out Monday night?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

SANTA CLARA — Let’s go ahead and assume the worst. Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel are all out for the 49ers’ Monday night road game against the Minnesota Vikings.That may not be the case. McCaffrey (oblique) was working diligently on the side Friday during practice and looking pretty nimble. Williams (shoulder) stayed hidden, while Samuel (shoulder) appeared to get some work on a side field.The best guess is that coach Kyle Shanahan proclaims all three “questionable” as the 49ers (5-1) face the Vikings (2-4), and those designations becoming official Saturday.The cold, hard fact about the NFL is it includes missing your best players from time to time, and the good news for the 49ers is none of the above injuries looks overly serious over the long haul.If any or all of the big three can’t play, the 49ers will have had a week to prepare. That was part of the problem in the Cleveland loss, with Shanahan saying the ripple effect o...

Playoff berth at stake for San Jose Earthquakes: Here are the clinching scenarios

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

SAN JOSE — It all comes down to this.Saturday evening at PayPal Park could mark the turnaround of a struggling franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game in 11 years. It could be the sign of a club that’s changed directions behind a new coach with a new vision.For the San Jose Earthquakes, a win in their regular-season finale against Austin FC would clinch a berth in the MLS Playoffs for the first time since 2020. A win combined with either a loss or tie from either FC Dallas or Portland, and the Earthquakes will host a playoff game at PayPal Park for the first time in the stadium’s eight-year history.“I think we’re all hungry,” said striker Jeremy Ebobisse, who has 10 goals in 33 matches. “I know it’s been a while since the Quakes have had a chance to play for a playoff position.”With MLS’ new expanded playoff format, the top seven teams in each conference earn a berth to the first round of the playoffs, which feature a best-of-three format in which the higher...

Barabak: Laphonza Butler aces first political test, passing on uphill Senate run

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

Laphonza Butler has been living a whirlwind these last few weeks.Overnight, she went from being a campaign strategist and behind-the-scenes operative — unknown to most, save political insiders — to a U.S. senator representing nearly 40 million residents of the most important state in the union.Even Butler was surprised Gov. Gavin Newsom tapped her to replace the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein. It was like plucking a set designer from the wings and placing her, with barely any notice, directly at center stage.Since then — as Butler learned which Capitol Hill stairways lead where, flew cross-country to meet with assorted constituencies and developed a case of COVID-19 — one overriding question trailed her: Would she run for a full term in 2024?On Thursday, she gave her answer: No.It was the right decision, and a politically astute one.By foregoing a campaign that would have been difficult to win, Butler leaves herself well-positioned for a future run if she chooses...

St. Francis defense in top form during WCAL victory over Valley Christian

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

With every hit, tackle, and disruption, the St. Francis High defense gathered force and gained confidence.After a 24-14 victory over visiting Valley Christian on Friday night, the Lancers could savor a defensive effort that helped keep them in the West Catholic Athletic League race. Mack Mrowka’s third-quarter interception of a pass that seemed inches from becoming a Valley gamebreaker was crucial, and the Lancers (5-3 overall) moved to 4-1 in the WCAL and within range of Serra and Riordan, who take their 4-0 records into a Saturday showdown. “The most significant thing about this game was showing how good our defense really is,” said sophomore middle linebacker Shane Cahoon, who averaged 12 tackles going into the game and made his share of impact plays down the stretch. St. Francis’ head coach Greg Calcagno high fives Solomone Pifeleti (30) during the first half of a football game against Valley Christian on Friday, October 20, 2023, in Mountain View, Calif. (Brandon Vallance for t...

Una entrega secreta de armas y una incursión a través del río: esto es lo que debe saber sobre las últimas noticias de la guerra de Rusia en Ucrania

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

(CNN) –Durante la última semana, una entrega secreta de armas estadounidenses y una incursión a través del río han inyectado energía muy necesaria a la contraofensiva de Ucrania, en gran parte estancada.En el este, los ucranianos afirman haber infligido pérdidas masivas a las fuerzas rusas que intentaban rodear una ciudad en conflicto.Mientras tanto, en la capital, Kyiv, los parlamentarios ucranianos buscan eliminar la influencia rusa de la Iglesia.Esto es lo que necesitas saber sobre UcraniaLlegada sorpresa del Sistema de Misiles Tácticos del Ejército de EE.UU. (ATACMS)Un envío secreto estadounidense de misiles ATACMS de largo alcance atacó este martes aeródromos en la ocupada Berdiansk en la costa del mar de Azov y en Luhansk en el este de Ucrania, destruyendo helicópteros rusos y un depósito de municiones.Un video publicado por el comandante en jefe de las Fuerzas Armadas de Ucrania, general Valerii Zaluzhnyi, mostraba las poderosas baterías de misiles disparando, con una l...

La guerra obligó a los ciudadanos árabes de Israel a explicar que no son Hamas

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

(CNN) — Cuando Aya Najame, una árabe musulmana de 20 años, era una niña que crecía en la ciudad portuaria de Haifa, en el norte de Israel, realizaba viajes de intercambio cultural a escuelas judías para aprender sobre el estilo de vida judío. Los niños judíos harían lo mismo y visitarían la escuela de Najame para conocer su vida.Los ciudadanos árabes que son residentes permanentes en Israel representan poco más del 20% de la población del país. Los aproximadamente 2 millones de personas son distintos de los palestinos que viven en la ocupada Ribera Occidental y Gaza, pero están lejos de ser un grupo uniforme.La mayoría son musulmanes, pero también hay una gran minoría árabe cristiana. Y aunque alrededor de 1,5 millones tienen ciudadanía israelí, muchos de los que viven en Jerusalén sólo tienen estatus de residencia permanente y no son ciudadanos de pleno derecho. Algunos se identifican como árabes, otros como palestinos, algunos como drusos, una secta religiosa extendida por I...

What’s new with Metro this week?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:25 GMT

This weekend, Metrorail track work may affect your ride about town. All lines will be affected.Here’s what you need to know:Blue, Orange and Silver Lines:Buses will replace trains between the Eastern Market and Minnesota Ave./Benning Road stations as an aerial structure rehabilitation project at the Stadium Armory takes place.Trains run every 12 minutes during the day, and 15 minutes in the evening from Vienna to Eastern Market and Minnesota Avenue to New Carrollton.Silver Line service will only run between Ashburn and Federal Center SW stations.Red, Yellow and Green Lines:Red Line trains will single track between Medical Center and Grosvenor stations, running every 10 minutes between Friendship Heights and Glenmont stations, and every 20 minutes between Friendship Heights and Shady Grove.Green and Yellow line trains will single track between Mt. Vernon Square and L’Enfant Plaza stations, running every 20 minutes in both directions.Read more about track work this weekend on th...