All Posts By

Chris

People are crazy and other news of the world

Posted on August 16, 2005

this is sad. its a shame what people are willing to do to save some money. i love the mac too but really, get a grip people. and i have to wonder if the Richmond Police slept through the lecture about crowd control at the police academy.

in other more positive news and tidbits from around the web:

the Xbox 360 is about ready for production (i want mine)

want a Dell computer? here’s how to get the best deal on a new piece of Dell technology from a guy who should know.

Intel (my new fav chip maker) is going to deliver dual core chips sooner than expected. now if only Motorola and IBM could have delivered something earlier (or even on time. 3Ghz G5 anyone?).

run Windows on your PSP. wasn’t that supposed to be impossible? much like running IntelOSX on non-Apple hardware was supposed to be. but that didn’t take long either.

an interesting take on the future of gaming on the mac, especially with the pending switch to intel chips. personally, i hope the switch leads to more games for the mac. and really, it should be easier to code now that we are all one big Intel family. maybe we will even get games released on both platforms at the same time? i can dream, can’t I?

and, hurry before this is gone. if you want one of the cool, black Motorola Razr phones for free (after rebate) check this out at Amazon.com. looks like its Cingular only but still, free is pretty cool.

Apple – the final countdown

Posted on August 11, 2005

no, not a mid-eighties rocker ballad. it is, in fact, come to the final countdown for my g5, still in the hands of the glendale apple store. but here’s a miraculous bit of news that i got just yesterday. a nice young man from the store called and told me that due to them having my computer “for so long” and not being able to repair it, they have decided to give me a new one.

yes, you heard it right (or read it, actually). apple is giving me a new computer to replace the one they cannot fix. is this a great country or what? kudos to the entire team at the apple store glendale and especially my new best friend conan. i think this is what could be called outstanding customer service.

granted, i did originally pay over 3 grand for the computer only a year and a half ago and i do have apple care and i did leave the computer there to be fixed almost a month ago and i already replaced it with a new g5 tower at my expense but hey, at least they are finally doing the right thing. i think its very cool. it makes sense. if they can’t fix it, they should just replace it.

i have heard of apple doing this before but not very often. i’m sure this is a last resort type of thing. not something that they want to do. but its nice to know that they will, if they have no other option. and i didn’t even have to ask them to do it. it might also help that my mac consulting company is a preferred consultancy for the store and that i am personal friends with the top managers. so, as they say, your mileage may vary if you try to get them to replace your mac.

regardless of my personal relationships, its just nice that a company will take the steps necessary to satisfy a customer. it gives me hope in these uncertain times of intel chips and sagging ipod shuffle sales. despite all the turmoil, i think things are going to turn out ok. at least in my little apple computer world. its the rest of the world i’m not so sure about.

in other news not necessarily about me (yes, there is some, believe it or not):

apple scraps their shiny new “switch” campaign without firing a shot.

apparently, the rumors of drm preventing you from installing osx for intel on a non-macintosh are not so true after all.

martin sargent, late of the screensavers and unscrewed fame, returns to the web, ready, it seems, to get back to work.

CBGB’s gets to stay put.

and, my favorite news anchor, peter jennings, died recently of lung cancer. he was a class act and loved the daily show. was he cool or what? RIP peter.

Testing Dashboard

Posted on August 9, 2005

i’m testing a dashboard widget that allows you to post to my blog. so, how does it look? i guess its the same. why wouldn’t it look the same?

anyway, things are going well. busy and all that. saw “the island” on sunday and i gotta say, it wasn’t that bad. of course, i went into it with low expectations after hearing all the critics bash it and it not making much money, but i was very surprised.

its not perfect but it is fun and has a great look. plus, scarlett johansen looks fantastic so that’s a plus. i mean she really looks fantastic. almost unbelievable. ewan mcgreagor looks pretty good too, if you go that way. but really, just look at scarlett, will ya?

Friday report

Posted on August 5, 2005

last night we spent some time in los feliz. i have to say that although it was pretty trendy i had a good time. we ate at a restaurant called fred 62 and then went on to the LAist one year anniversary party at the vermont bar. a good time was had by all. or, at least, me and most everyone. i went with add and jrod. add has little trouble talking to other people and i can walk away from him to mingle and he will be fine.

jrod, on the other hand, is a little more socially handicapped. he’s a great guy and i like him. he just seems to have trouble in social situations. its easy for me. i can walk up to pretty much anyone and strike up a conversation. and, as this was a party for LAist, a website i write for, it was even easier for me to talk to people. not so much for jrod.

although, i don’t know exactly what i expect. do i think he will be the life of the party and go around charming all the ladies? maybe i expect too much of him. i just want him to be happy. he is single and has a new job that he regrets taking. he was making good money in the freelance world but had an opportunity to move to a full-time gig with room for advancement so he took it. now, he regrets it as the new job hasn’t yielded the results he was hoping for. that’s life i guess. perhaps it will work out in the end.

anyway, i met some nice people like the go fug yourself girls (they were cool and didn’t make fun of my outfit), Mark from Buzznet, Tracy of Little Lady Red and had some good conversation and stayed completely sober the entire night.

i’m sure there are pictures floating around the internets from the event but i didn’t take even one. if i find any, i will post them or link to them. i know people had cameras as i got flashed in the face a few times. as to what happened to the pictures, its anyone’s guess. well, on to the weekend.

Last Call (and some news)

Posted on August 2, 2005

i’m at my “office” (aka Starbucks) and people watching a little. The summer is always interesting here in the warmer climes. much more skin is shown and many times that’s a good thing. in fact, there are some pretty good examples of that here right now.

sadly, sometimes it isn’t. you know what I mean. now, i’m not small or thin by any means. In fact, i’m pretty big. however, at least I have the sense not to wear a shirt where my entire stomach is exposed so it can hang way over my belt. although, mine doesn’t do that. anyway, you’ve seen that person before, i know you have. people just should look in the mirror a little more before leaving the house. i’m not against them, i feel bad for them.

anyway, i am at least taking steps to remedy my situation. first, and this will definitely come as a surprise to many, i have stopped drinking alcohol completely. yes, that’s right. no more booze. i’l give you a minute. . . .ok, you may wonder why? its not because i think i have a problem or that i think alcohol is bad or that i’ve found God or anything. nothing so dramatic. it is just time to stop.

all the rest of you can keep drinking as much as you want. i am not going to judge anyone. what i’m doing is only for me. just to see if i can. it’s really more of an exercise to help me get healthier. i don’t like the feeling i get after a night of going out for a few. the next day (sometimes the next two days) are just not as fun when you have a hangover and feel like crap.

this started after my last trip to vegas for add’s birthday party. that was early june. so it has been a couple months already. i won’t say i have not had a drink at all in the last few months. i have had one or two. stopping completely is harder than it sounds. however, my intake is way, way, way down and is going to stay that way. its just time for a change, that’s all.

also, i have started back to the gym and am eating less and exercising more. just like you are supposed to. i want to try it this way and see if things improve. i don’t want to resort to an all liquid diet like my friends tm and jh are trying. a doctor supervised ucla experiment. i guess its come to that for them. not for me. not yet anyway.

in other news of the world:

apple comes out with a 2-button mouse! hell does not, in fact, freeze over.

the space shuttle will get some in-space repairs.

and, NASA shows a few designs for the next-gen shuttle (nyt reg required). change for the better is good. let’s hope they are on the right track.

a noted Windows expert calls for a boycott of the next version of Internet Explorer (IE7).

and this guy has a lot of time on his hands but he might have a point. i have heard of this. at least it hasn’t happened to me yet. i hope netflix isn’t like that but you never know.

Interesting Sites ‘O the Day (and a little news)

Posted on July 28, 2005

From across the www direct to you. Some interesting sites that might be worth a visit. Especially if you are looking to kill a few minutes (or a few hours). Enjoy.

The Playstation 3 info page of things known so far.

Microsoft Windows Vista (i really love that name. no, really. at least no animal names. kinda tired of that too) info page with screenshots.

Some speculation on the innards of the Video iPod, to be released real soon (i am holding my breath. i hope it doesn’t take too long).

Some good tips that every webmaster (like me!) needs to know to enhance his or her use of Google Adsense.

This looks promising. Record everything on TV and play what you want. When you want. No more season passes or setting the timer on the VCR (although, if you really have a VCR, its time to move into the 21st century and get a Tivo at least. I mean really people, tape is so nineties).

And, it seems some debris fell off during the latest shuttle launch. It looked so perfect too. So, NASA has grounded the fleet again. Well, the comet thing was cool anyway. Can we get something else besides foam? It doesn’t work guys. You’re really, really, really smart. Think of something else. Please.

And last but certainly not least, some very cool tips on how to speed up Mac OSX. Many of these I already use. I guess I could have posted them too. Oh well, easier just to link to this guy. Less work for me.

Interesting Sites ‘O the Day (and a little news)

Posted on July 28, 2005

From across the www direct to you. Some interesting sites that might be worth a visit. Especially if you are looking to kill a few minutes (or a few hours). Enjoy.

The Playstation 3 info page of things known so far.

Microsoft Windows Vista (i really love that name. no, really. at least no animal names. kinda tired of that too) info page with screenshots.

Some speculation on the innards of the Video iPod, to be released real soon (i am holding my breath. i hope it doesn’t take too long).

Some good tips that every webmaster (like me!) needs to know to enhance his or her use of Google Adsense.

Yahoo gets into the widget business and other stuff

Posted on July 25, 2005

Yahoo! for some reason decided that widgets were another great way of competing with Google. So, they purchased Konfabulator and today, debuted their own Yahoo! widgets site. They say Mac support will continue and may even get better as they want to be more “cross platform”. That’s nice. Will that make up for the less than stellar version of Yahoo! messenger now on the Mac? I hope so.

Also, quite a bit of fanfare for the new XBox 360 in Tokyo recently. Having seen it at the recent E3 event here in LA, I can say that it looks great and could help push Microsoft ahead in the console wars. Of course, there is a big difference between a demo and actual released product so anything is possible. It could still suck.

Lastly, Microsoft also wants to bring you the world. Or is that dominate the world? I get those mixed up sometimes. Anyway, they now have the Microsoft Virtual Earth site. Which is, of course, in direct competition with Google Maps. Which is better? Too early to say. However, I did have some issues using Virtual Earth with Safari 2.0 in Tiger so . . . . I guess it’s still Google Maps for me for now, which works perfectly fine in Safari.

Fad diet

Posted on July 23, 2005

In order to help us figure out what is real and what we should and should not care about, CNet has posted its Top 10 Web Fads. Like it or not. Agree or not. It sure makes you think. Or not.

Whatever you think or feel you own it. Even if its influenced by the mass media or the cute girl who served you your Starbucks this morning. No matter what, that feeling is yours.

Enjoy it. No, I feel like going to bed. So, I am. Perhaps I will dream about Ellen Feiss.

Life with the Canon EOS 20D Digital SLR (so far)

Posted on July 17, 2005

I realize that when I write something here and say I am going to do something, I should probably do it. So, in that spirit, following are my much considered observations on the Canon 20D digital SLR. As a former Nikon user who previously had a Nikon D100 and used it frequently, the Canon has taken some getting used to. It’s not bad, just different.

Some people have also asked me why I switched from Nikon to Canon. My reasons are simple. I looked at the new Nikon cameras like the D70 and the new Canon cameras like the 20D and decided that I liked the 20D and its features. And, after a few test shots with the 20D, it felt right. So, that was it.

Plus, I originally had been a Canon user, owning the very cool EOS A2, before I ever got a Nikon so it was really more like I was going back than switching to something new. And, I had used one or two of the Canon “L” lenses that a friend owned and had really liked the way they work. Now, of course, I am in love with Canon “L” glass and that causes problems of its own because those suckers are expensive.

People always want to get into the Canon v. Nikon debate much like the Macintosh v. Windows debate. It is usually a hotly contested issue where people take opposing sides and defend those sides with near religious zeal. I look at technology as a tool. A tool that allows me to accomplish things and sometimes even to create things.

The big question for me is always what tool can i use to do something and almost as important, what tool will help me do what i want to do and not get in the way. I use a Macintosh because it helps me and doesn’t hinder me (not usually anyway). Windows simply takes more time to get working correctly and requires more diligent maintenance. The Mac just works. Turn it on and go.

The same holds try for my choice in cameras. The Canon 20D was easy to use right out of the box and with minimal effort, allowed me to take some decent photos. Turn it on and go.

Anyway, let’s get on with it:

First, here are some specs on the camera:

8.2 Megapixel: 3,520 x 2,344 pixel images. Also 2,544 x 1,696 pixel and 1,752 x 1,168 pixel settings. Choice of Regular JPG or Fine JPG. RAW mode and also RAW + JPG mode which lets you choose which kind of JPG you get along with your RAW file.

1.6x lens cropping factor. You have to buy a 10 – 22 mm Canon lens for ultra wide shots; any 17 mm or 18mm lens will only give an angle of view similar to a 28mm lens on 35mm film.

5 Frames Per Second Shooting Rate. Good for the sports shooter. Or, for me who likes to bang out several frames in a row to up the odds of a “keeper”.

9 Point AI Autofocus which is very good but still, not perfect. Compared to the D100 or the D70, it is much better but compared to the Canon “Pro” DSLR’s, and their 45 Point Autofocus, the 20D leaves something to be desired. Most of the shots I have taken are in focus and focused on the area i intended. Some are not. It could also be attributed to operator error so at the moment, until I take more photos, I will say the focus speed and accuracy is good.

ISO 100 – 1,600 in full stops. ISO 3,200 also if you enable it in a menu. This is pretty cool and provides a decent image. I don’t intend to get into a situation where I need this setting but you never know.

Mirror lockup. This is excellent for use with long telephotos on tripods for exposures between 1 and 1/30 second. Not found on the D100 or the D70.

The controls are in different place on the camera than they were (are) on the Nikon. Which, of course, makes sense as they are from different companies. I’m not sure why this didn’t stop me when I first examined the camera in a store but I guess I was not paying that close of attention to all of the differences between the Canon and the Nikon.

Nikon cameras, for the most part, all have similar controls in similar places. So, if you can use one, you can pretty much use them all. Canon does the same across its product line as well but as I am a switcher, I didn’t have the benefit of familiarity.

In the store where i first took some test shots with the 20D I was able to use it with little or no problem. It’s very simple to operate and takes pictures quite easily. Really, you could just leave it set on P or on one of the other “Auto” modes and happily snap away, assured that the camera will take very good pictures without much intervention from you, the user. With its 8.2 megapixel sensor and Canon’s Digic II system, the camera is very smart and can do a good job all on its own.

But really, this camera isn’t the one that you get if you are just a casual shooter looking for a point and shoot camera. This is a pro caliber camera that in the hands of even a somewhat experienced shooter can produce stunning results. I am not that shooter yet, but I am working on it. The more I use this camera, the more I like it. I still sometimes miss the D100. Not because I think the 20D lacks something but mostly because I was used to the D100 and I felt like I knew it pretty well.

Of course, after a time I will feel the same way about the 20D I am sure. The more you use something the better you get with it. I already have the photographic fundamentals as I have been shooting pictures for a long time. I just need a better understanding of my camera and its capabilities and quirks. Then I can start to take pictures that I can be proud of again. Until then, my percentage of “keepers” will stay pretty low.

Here is a list of my current main camera kit:

Canon EOS 20D Digital SLR
Canon 580 EX Speedlight (powerful yet compact flash)
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Zoom Lens (this lens rocks!)
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens (best bang for the buck in Canon’s lineup)
Canon EF-S 17-85mm f4-5.6 IS USM Lens (i like it and image stabilization is nice)

And, for fun, I also carry:

Canon Powershot SD300 Digital Elf Camera (i love this little camera and it takes some pretty damn good pictures. plus, its tiny and fits in your pocket)

Plus various other items and misc. stuff. All encased in my favorite camera bag:

The Lowepro Omni Pro with optional Hard Shell Case (i use a Pelican 1520) for travel.

Or, my new favorite camera bag, the Lowepro CompuRover AW which is a backpack that holds camera, lenses and laptop. It’s a cool bag.

More on my use of the camera and more observations as I continue to use it over the next few weeks and months.

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