MAMA's Techno-Geek Thread

[GadgetGav]

Quote: Originally Posted by MGB Boy (original)

I had to google "wall wart", and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

You've just relinquished all geek thread posting rights..!

Quote:

Instead, I get the "joy" of dealing with Verizon. They are the only cell carrier I've had (they own the lion's share of business up here, the other carriers are just catching up in terms of coverage in this area). Don't know if their terms are typical, but I suspect so. To get a decent deal on a phone requires a two year contract, and the standard warranty is one year, leaving what I lovingly call the "ass hanging out in the wind year". Good stuff. I get an employee discount with Verizon, and oh the tales I could tell of dealing with their CS when trying to get that set up. I can't decide if it's better or worse than Comcast. But it's close...

Oh, I get it now... all those people that crowd around in the background on the ads are the different levels of CS that you have to go through to get a problem solved...! Now it makes sense.

[MGB Boy]

Quote: Originally Posted by GadgetGav (original)

Oh, I get it now... all those people that crowd around in the background on the ads are the different levels of CS that you have to go through to get a problem solved...! Now it makes sense.

Yes, and once... just once... with two months of diligent climbing I managed to scale that mountain and reach the very summit of Verizon CS, finally burning my way thru to that rarest of CS creatures; "Someone who gets what I'm saying and can do something about it"! I should have kept their name and number...

-Ricardo

[Theo]

Recommendations for Image Printing Services?

I know several of you use Image Printing Services for your best photos. I was wondering if there are establishments that you have come to depend upon for excellent work.

I will be printing my own photos for "album-quality" shots, but fear that my learning curve (and available time) for mastering the high-end printers on campus will prevent me from making larger prints in a timely manner.

Any Image Printing Services recommendations?

TIA,

Theo

[GadgetGav]

Not to beat the removable / non removable battery thing to death, but something occurred to me over the last couple of days. I'm at a conference with my MacBook (removable battery), iPhone (non removable battery) and digital camera (removable battery).
The thing about removable batteries and second batteries is that they're really only useful when you have an external charger with them. The digital camera has an external charger ie you take the battery out of the device and put it into the charger to recharge it. If I had a second battery for that, I could keep it topped up and switch the dead one for the fresh one and be on my way.
The laptop doesn't have an external charger - you have to charge the battery in the device. That means I couldn't drop in a fresh battery and keep going because before long I'd have two flat batteries and would only be able to charge one. That's a real PITA. Say I used two batteries during the day, I can't charge them both overnight unless one is fully charged between the end of business and lights out so that I can switch them before I go to bed.
So... effectively I treat the laptop as if it has a built in battery (a second battery costing $129 is another reason to just use one...!) so maybe that's why Apple feel that putting a sealed battery in the MacBook Air is not going to affect sales. The only time I'm going to spend the money on a second battery is when this one won't hold charge and if I had a MacBook Air, they will charge the same to fit a new non-removable battery than they will to sell me a new replaceable one for one of the other computers. I'd hazard a guess that if the iPhone had a removable battery they'd charge $69 for that and I wouldn't buy one of them either..!

OK maybe that does risk beating the dead horse but what the heck...

[blalor]

Quote: Originally Posted by Theo (original)

Any Image Printing Services recommendations?

I've used the one integrated with Aperture, Kodak, I think. The 4x6 prints were very nice. I'm planning on ordering some 8x10s in the near future. That's about all the experience I've got.

[Actual Size]

Ricardo recommends this one.

[blalor]

I printed a couple of 8x10s at Costco last night. They were $1.49 each, half what it would have cost to do it through Apple's store, and I got 'em in 2 hours. I'm quite impressed. They have ICC profiles available for download, so you can install those and then proof the images against that profile (provided you have a calibrated monitor, which I don't...) to get the best output. I don't love Costco as a whole, but my membership has paid for itself just through the liquid glucosamine I buy for my dogs, so cheap, quick prints are an added bonus.

[rfinprc]

Cheap SD memory?

I need to get 3 2 gb SD cards for daughter to take to Tanzania. Brand names at Microcenter run around $24-30. But they have their house brand for $13.99.

Question is, how touchy are SD cards? Is it safe to go generic? (opinions based on actual facts are especially helpful)

And no, I don't have time to order online. She leaves Friday.

Thanks all.

[Theo]

Quote: Originally Posted by rfinprc (original)

Cheap SD memory?...{snip}...
Thanks all.

I have experience with SD and CF. I much prefer the CF for durability...but...you need SD. Considering the cards will be holding images that may not ever be able to be "re-shot", and considering their flexible physical structure (compared with a CF card), it might make sense to go with one of the name brands (Sandisk, Lexar, etc.) if they are not too much higher in price.

Whatever you choose, I strongly suggest purchasing some kind of hard-sided, waterproof media case. I have THIS one (~$20) and it survived Cooper's jaws. I believe Hunt's carries it.

Theo

[GBMINI]

I was talking with a Nikon guy once and he said everyones moving away from CF because of the risk of bending a connector pin inside the camera - no pins with SD and the other formats!

I'd go with Theo's advice and use something with a good name, even though I feel it's probably not different! Best option is a PC or something to upload on to, so you have duplicates/backups.

[blalor]

I've got one of those Gepe cases. I think I got it when I bought some filters from 2filter.com a couple of years ago (Keene represent, yo!). It's a sturdy little thing, but it's actually kind of tough to get my CF cards out of. Better that than falling out...

Is your daughter taking a computer to download the pictures to? You might want to do the fatherly excess thing and get her a fistful so that she doesn't run out of space.

Ian, I haven't seen much of an exodus from CF. Canon's newest dSLR, the 450D, does use SD, but the general consensus seems to be that they're doing it to attract the point-n-shoot crowd. From what I can tell by looking at Nikon's and Canon's higher-end models, CF is alive and well. All of Canon's SLRs (with the exception of the 450D, released last week) use CF as the primary storage medium. I can see it appealing to pros because the cards are more durable and less likely to get lost... That's how I feel about 'em, anyway.

[rfinprc]

Update -- Staples online has Sandisk Ultra II 2 gig for $19. That's fast enough for the Canon Powershot, and it's a good price for a name brand. Problem solved.

[Actual Size]

Whatever happened to those days when you took the perfect shot, developed the film, enlarged it, made a perfect print and framed it?

[GadgetGav]

Quote: Originally Posted by Actual Size (original)

Whatever happened to those days when you took the perfect shot, developed the film, enlarged it, made a perfect print and framed it?

You got back foggy pictures from where the TSA zapped them with mega-XRays...

[Actual Size]

Been there, done that.