A certain person, who shall remain nameless and doesn't have a MySpazz account, likes to make mixtapes for me.  The start of this exchange was sort of a contest to see who could mix a CD with the most eclectic selection of music, ordered to as to cause audio misdirection.  It was a fun little game we played, I was declared the winner of the first few rounds, and then it became more of a service we performed for each other.  I'd like, at this time, to offer a few pointers for people who endevour to share their taste in music with their peers:

1. If this isn't going to be the only mix you give a person, keep track of the playlist.  Unintentional repeats are both distracting and disheartening.

2. This might just be me being uppity, but if you take joy in putting together collections of music for people, especially if you're shooting for a 'random' feel with contrasting music styles, use a program that will not put two seconds of dead air between songs.  It disrupts the flow and gives you time to mentally adjust to potential genre shifts.

3. Point three is akin to the old "If you don't have anything nice to say…" idea.  If you're trying to impress somebody with mixology, make sure your mix is light on stuff with heavy radio play.  If I wanted Fall Out Boy followed by Justin Timberlake followed by Rascal Flatts, I'd listen to the Kage more often than I do.

4. This is the most important, so I'll make it bold: Know your audience.  I personally believe it is more important to know that a person hates than what they like.  A good mixtape will introduce a person to new realms and varieties of things instead of just regurgitating familiar niceties into a CD that a person could have made themselves.  It's better to be adventurous and use a song that may have a flat reception than to use a song that will be skipped every time.  I mean, it's okay to use a song that you know is bad or otherwise unlistenable for comedic effect, if it will get at least one full listen and a laugh.  However, the use of Nickelback on a mixtape will cause that mix to go largely unlistened to.

5. It's also nice if your mix has a name that would distinguish it from the myriad unlabeled CD-R's in your friend's CD case.

Okay, that's just a few ideas I have.  I hope you'll take these to heart and be able to rise above your peers' "Mix #2".  Happy mixing, and God bless.