No, I am not 'refusing' to get the possibly abandoned kitty scanned for a microchip. I just don't think the poor mite would like to be caught, hogtied, and stuffed in my bike basket as I have made it abundantly clear I do NOT have a car, and Wing gets home after the vet is closed. And when he gets home it's between 9 and 10pm.
So, take to an after hours place? Sure, if you pay.
Yes, I know you are new there, but your phone skills leave much to be desired.
And you question my flyers lack of phone number? Sorry, but I don't post my phone number publicly anywhere, which is why I gave my gmail address.
Kitty in Question:
If after another mass shooting (no matter what political/social spin or 'reason' for said shootings) the first thing you do, is hold a '2nd Amendment Party' (ignoring the 'well regulated militia part yet again), you are part of the problem.
If the first thing you do is buy more guns, you are part of the problem.
If you all you do is offer thoughts and prayers instead of DOING something about assault weapons/universal background checks, you are part of the problem.
If you support politicians who want to deny health care to everyone but themselves, while voting down sensible gun reform, you are part of the problem.
The UK had a mass shooting at a school, killing dozens of children, and gun reform was passed by CONSERVATIVE government.
Australia had a mass shooting, killing dozens of people, and National gun reform was passed by a conservative government.
In the U.S., Assault Weapons ban enacted in 1994. The number of mass shootings drop.
8 years ago, the Assault Weapons ban allowed to lapse (Thanks GOP). And it's gotten to the point that there are more mass shootings in the U.S. than there are days of the year.
Just to name a few: 6 people shot and killed. Congresswoman Gabby Giffords critically injured...nothing done. Aurora Colorado, 12 people were killed and 70 others were injured. 20 babies and 6 adults slaughtered in Sandyhook Elementary School, CT.. nothing done. 33 dead at Virginia Tech.. nothing done. Charleston S.C., 9 people shot and killed.. nothing done. Planned Parenthood 12 shot, 3 dead. Now, San Bernadino shooting, 14 dead, 21 injured.. nothing done (with the notable exception of THIS one being called an act of terror, even when one done just a few days prior wasn't.).
All these shootings done with either assault weapons, high capacity ammo clips, and/or combination of both.
Correction, something was done. That ghoul, Wayne LaPierre from the NRA crawled out of the shadows and peddled more guns with catch phrases "Bad Guy with gun/Good Guy with a gun" (let's forget the two good guys with guns sitting in a diner who were shot and killed by bad guy with a gun.) NRA solution, add more guns to an overwhelming number of guns already out there. Rather like adding more whiskey to a drunk driving problem.
You want to use high powered assault weapons, trot your ass to a military recruiter.
You say you need it for protection, and you keep it in a gun safe? Sorry, it's not protection. This idiotic obsession with unregulated guns is deadly. This lust for assault weapons is insane. Do you really thing a Bushmaster is going to protect you from a tank or drone strike, or other military action? Do you really thing access to such a weapon will?
The days of when the 2nd amendment was needed is long past, and this amendment needs to be changed. Just like the amendment that allowed people to own other humans as slaves. And the amendment that gave women the right to vote. The amendment that got rid of the 3/5th of a person status for 'non-white' people.
Amendments can be and have been changed. The 2nd amendment is in desperate need of an overhaul that is long past due.
So, keep your thoughts and prayers, Governors, Senators, Representatives, and pull your thumbs out of your asses, and crowbar the NRA out of your wallets and decision making, and actually DO something about the problem.
If you don't want to get stuck renting CC from Adobe just to keep current with the latest Camera Raw files, there are some great alternatives. They all can be used as Standalone. Two can be used in Lightroom, and one can be used as a plugin in Photoshop CS6. (Earlier versions of OnOne work in CS5) Each one of them you can save the results to use in even earlier versions of Photoshop, or other photo editing programs.
On1 Photos Tools
DxO
CaptureOne.
Did some price checking, and two of them cost a little bit more than renting CC for one year, BUT upgrading them afterward cost less than Adobe's Rental program.
Whatever ditch or orifice you have it.
You were asked about how the GOP is cutting off women's access to birth control, and your comments were not only dismissive, but self centered. You went on and on about how YOU and other MEN had condoms to use.
Hello? Women.. birth control. Or are you saying that only men can and should have the option of engendering children or not? That women can't decide to NOT get pregnant and take steps to prevent it?
I would say there is a special place in it for those who abandon pets.
I would say there is a special place in it for those who abandon pets.
*sigh* There is this very pretty, light light grey medium long haired cat, I think female, that used to come around last year, very friendly, chatty. In good condition, wearing a collar. So, she belonged to someone near by.
The past few weeks, we have noticed she no longer has a collar, and has been hanging around our back yard. She is also a bit timid. She appears to be a bit underweight, or just not in as good condition.
All of this leads us to believe her owners have abandoned her. She was at our side door, meowing in a very pitiful way. Yes, I know the rule, but I don't want a cat hunting in our back yard, so I gave her some kibble. She inhaled it. Have left water out there for her in a stainless steel bowl.
I will call CatHaven and RSPCA to see what can be done for her. I am hoping she just slipped her collar, and is a bit a mooch, but not holding out much hope for that.
Again, if I believed in hell, I would say there is a special place in it for those who abandon pets.
I came up with the idea of how to stop Ziggy and Trance (the two very territorial Bengals) from getting into knock down, drag out fights.
I came up with the idea of how to stop Ziggy and Trance (the two very territorial Bengals) from getting into knock down, drag out fights. Replace wooden doors with security screen doors, so they can see each other, yowl and hiss to their hearts content, but NO INJURIES! It will cost less to have two doors (one on my office, one on Wing 's office) with security screens, than one vet visits to take care of fight injuries.
I connected my phone with my desktop to transfer some photos from the micro SD card. I was rather shocked to find that I had hardly any memory on the device. Shocked because I have moved all movable applications to the micro SD card.
So, I disconnect the phone and opened AppManager and said Whohuhwha? All programs that had been on the SD card were once again on the device instead.
This is where "you'd think smartphones would be smart"... I had updated the apps on the device, and instead of installing them where they were, the updater deleted them from the micro SD card, and wrote them to device memory instead. I just spent about an hour moving them all back to the SD card. Oy.
And annoyances...
Some update to Firefox and Waterfox caused a pretty serious glitch. Both Mozilla browsers would 'forget' what addons were installed, they would vanish from the "Add-Ons Manager" list. They would still be visible on tool bars, though. After a few restarts, though, both browsers would have all the addons open in a new tab and ask if I wanted to install them.
I did all the troubleshooting, even ripping out every little bit and piece of firefox/waterfox including profiles and plugins. I had made a list of what utilities and addons I had, and then spent 2 hours reinstalling the browsers, and the addons... only to have the freaking problem persist.
I threw my hands up, and installed Cyberfox. Yes, AIRoboform doesn't automatically load a page once the login information is place where it needs to be, but it's not getting amnesia about its settings and addons.
And in other news, France caught the mad man who plotted the mass murder of Parisians. He's dead. And as much as I don't celebrate the death of another human being, the world is a better place without someone so enamored with death, and the killing of others.
Allowing doctors to get away with citing religious beliefs, and their supposed superior morality to not do their sworn jobs needs to be stopped. If this keeps on, what next? A Jehovah's Witness doctor that will refuse to allow transfusions during surgery? Or a Christian Scientist who believes you can pray cancer or heart disease away refusing chemotherapy and medications? Or other fundie religion that only sinful people have children with cerebral palsy (wasn't took long ago this was the 'belief') What about diabetes? Stop giving patients insulin or other BGL lowering medications.
Right now, the Conservative Right Wing Nutjobs are focused on birth control for women, as they still think pregnancy is the punishment women get for having sex. It's ok for men to have recreational sex, but women? Oh no, can't have that. The RWNJs are doing their damnedest to drag the world back into screaming barbarism.
To all you suddenly 'my moral and religious beliefs' doctors, you need to be reminded of the Hippocratic Oath, which I am quite sure didn't have a codicil of "unless I can force my beliefs on the patient"
No one is asking YOU to take birth control/contraceptives. And it's rather hypocritical of you to deny women birth control as it's against "God's Will" (excuse me for this interruption, but doesn't you own holy writings state that claiming to know the mind of your god is a most egregious sin?) then so is impotence, so stop giving men prescriptions for Viagra, Cialis or other erectile dysfunction.
No one is asking for your approval.. we are only asking... no, DEMANDING you do your damned job and keep your nose out of OUR reproductive choices.
There is a highway funding bill, an infrastructure bill, being debated on. This is so needed, as the roads and bridges in the U.S. are in serious need of repair and maintenance.
What the GOP is trying to do is attach a rider to the bill, something that has zilch to do with fixing roads or bridges.They want to slip in banking deregulations. SotH Paul Ryan, The House Freedom Caucus (aka The Tea Party) and a well known DINO, Patrick Murphy.
Does anyone really want to go back to how the banks gambled with your money, and when they lost it, YOU had to pay to bail them out again?
Did three loads of laundry, and the first one hung out on the line was dry before the 3rd load was washed.
Of course, I am waiting for people to start complaining that it's too hot. They will be the same people who complained about what passes for winter here.
After getting a buzz on my watch that I had an SMS, I also noticed I had a missed call. My phone is set to DND from 11pm to 6am on weekdays.
I checked phone, and sure enough, there had been a incoming phone call... at 5:53 am from a unknown (mobile phone) caller. Don't recognize the number either. All I can figure is it someone from "The Eastern States" once again with ZERO regard to the fact that W.A. is in a different time zone. Hmm, maybe I should dump rude (attempted) caller into the Auto Block list.
I fully understand "Intellectual Property Rights" and copyright. Kind of have to.
So, the 1st time I was accused via Redbubble Email of IP violation, it shocked the beejeebus out of me, and pissed me off, as I was 'guilty until I proved myself innocent". (UBISOFT claiming my "Assassin's Guild" photo series, the one that predates their games by over a year was an IP violation. I shuffled through all the legals and hoops, proved myself innocent, my work was reinstated, as UBISOFT does NOT own copyright of the word "Assassin".
Last month, I get hit with another one. For an original artwork. Fighting this one too, because:
1: It's an original artwork. A digitally created portrait, using an art program.
2: Song titles themselves are not copyrightable
3: There is no music involved, no audio, no video (see #1)
4: There are literally HUNDREDS of other portraits of the same person on the same site.
What really gets me burning is the "Guilty before you prove yourself innocent" bullshit.
My ribs hurt, starting just under my shoulder blade, going around to the front, almost to the sternum. But only on the right side of my body.
Pulled some weeds yesterday, using long rake to get the ones with long roots up and out when needed. Didn't think it was that strenuous. *wince* Guess I was wrong.
And that solitary Lorikeet was back again today. Same spot. I chatted with it for a while. I really miss Archimedes, but this guy makes it hurt a little less for a while.
Archimedes ‘chat buddy’, a wild Rainbow Lorikeet, stopped by again. I will resist the urge to tame it, as I can get pretty close to it. It might have been someone else’s pet, but it’s doing ok on it’s own.
Alan says he is surprised at how much he misses Archimedes. Just got through putting groceries away, and we used to have Archimedes as a cheering section. Squawking and bouncing on his perch as we worked. It's just so quiet.
Odd thing happened this morning, though. A wild Lorikeet landed in the yard... it started calling, then waiting. and called again. Flew off after a few minutes. I'm wondering if it was Archimedes 'chat buddy'.
People who don't have pets, or don't like them, don't understand that it's not "just an animal". They become part of your life, and you do love and care for them. And when they are gone, especially because of a stupid accident, it hurts a lot. As childish as this reads, I want him back. Logically, I know that isn't possible.
Did laundry today. Went to hang it outside and automatically said "Hey Archimedie sweetie!"
It's going to take a while.
We spotted him in his cage dead. It looks like he tried to squeeze his way out through too small a gap in the cage, got his head stuck, panicked and broke his neck, died instantly.
Alan and I have buried him in the back yard.
G'bye you crazy, stupid bird. I'll miss you challenging goshawks, cats and other large things that would prefer to eat you, and chattering at me when I am in the back yard. :(
Pulled some weeds this morning, near the mail box. Used the pitchfork to loosen the deeply rooted ones, pulled them and others out. One wheelbarrow full.
Right hand is very stiff and sore along the heel of the palm, the thumb, and between the thumb and index finger.
Of course, it could be left over from cutting chicken last night for stirfry.
That calculates and correlates why when cleaning out a room or a closet, you make a bigger mess before it starts looking tidy.
1: Dear Software Makers; could you all just get together and decide where to CONSISTENTLY put the INSTALL/DECLINE buttons.
2: Dear Epson; why did you make your downloadable installation file of the drivers and software want you to insert a CD, instead of installing the file from the files extracted from the downloaded one? If I had the disk handy, I wouldn't have had to DOWNLOAD the the file!
and being someone who wants to control her computer and its' OS, not having the OS control her, I might just tough it out with Windows 8.
Why? My hosts file is edited/customized, to stop spam and other ads. Also, after installation and activation, there is NO reason for my software to 'call home' every time I start it. I prefer to manually check for updates, because updates aren't always a good thing. Alan told me that Windows 10 has it rigged that even if you have an edited hosts file, it has a DLL, and if the address you are blocking is in it, guess what? You have no choice, it will call home.
Updates whether you want them or not. Even if you keep your computer off the net, if any of the other home computers are connected peer to peer with yours, it will update that way.
Now, if I did that to someone's computer, I would be in deep shit, but since this garbage is in Microsofts EULA, that huge fucking file that you have to have business and legal degrees to not fall asleep reading it or to understand it. How many of us actually read them from stem to stern?
And then there's Windows Media Center. Yes, I know about PLEX, but I don't need something that big. It's only for watching TV on the computer with a USB stick receiver. There is Media Portal, and it's not bad. I can understand them not adding it to their latest and greatest, but disabling the one I had to PAY for because someone at MS managed to 'lose' my freebie serial number.
And I was seriously thinking about upgrading my Win8 laptop, but after that conversation, I am going to put it off for a while longer.
On my old netbook. Well, here you go! This is the finished edited in CS5 jpg, from the CR2 file from the Canon 5DS
CS5 Bridge: Note the image in the preview, and the information below the preview.
Edited in CS5.
But now, I get “Unknown file format”
Even if this was some sort of compu-fluke, it proves that Adobe could easily provide Adobe Camera Raw update for CS5.
On my old netbook (yes, I still have one) I started up Photoshop CS5/CS5 Bridge. I opened the folder where I had photos taken in Denmark W.A., using the Canon 5DS, 5D3 and 7D2.
This is where the happy horseshit comes in: the first time I opened bridge, I could view the Canon 5DS RAW files, popped up in Adobe Camera Raw 6.7 to take a look. Space Bar to make them zoom in from bridge. But the second time I got "unknown file format".
Oddly enough this wasn’t just a fluke on my netbook. Our host, Greg Edwards, had the same thing happen when using earlier version of Adobe Lightroom running on a Mac. He viewed them the first time, and then tried to again later only to get "Unknown File Format".
No, I didn't accidentally open a JPG, thinking it was a CR2 file, because I ONLY shoot in RAW.
So, there is something, a poison pill, in Adobe Photoshop/Lightroom, a 'call home' feature maybe, that flags what version of their product you're using that forces you to do one of two things: pay for subscription/upgrade, or double storage space used by converting to DNGs.
There has been much ado and hype about the mega megapixel Canon DS and Canon DSR. I am comparing it to my 5D3 and 7D2.
To use the DS was easy enough. Same set up as my 5D3 and 7D2. Are the photos taken good? Oh hell yes. Higher ISO shots are no problem. However, I have found the FPS very slow (compared to 5D3 and 7D2) and I did miss shots because of this. That being typed, the 5DS isn't made for sports photography. Planned shots, and carefully composed shots, not a problem. Tracking surfers, birds or anything in motion, I found it lacking in performance.
Images: HUGE, but bigger isn't always better. I took these shots, one using the 5DS and one with my 5D3, using the 11-24mm wide angle.
5D3, 11-24mm Wide Angle
5DS, 11-24mm Wide Angle
I know it would have been better to do both photos at the same time of day, but that wasn't an option, but this does well enough to demonstrate.
Both images are sharp, clear and have good colors and tones. For me, there is no real difference, except if you wanted to you could closely crop in on the 5DS image and because it’s 50+ megabyte 50megapixel image, you would still end up with a large image. This will also require you to have a lot more storage space. Not just for the finished products, but to store the raw files.
Same 5DS photo as above, but cropped in. I guess the larger image size allows for some wiggle room for post editing (cropping out unwanted items, leveling horizon etc etc), but for me (and I mean, this is just MY opinion) nothing beats composing image before you take your shot.
My conclusion: to quote a friend, ‘Horses for Courses’. Great camera, but not for me. It would not supplant my current cameras, and if I really want a huge 50mp image, I will stick with photo stacking and merging.
Onto the 11-24mm Wide Angle lens – Omygoodness was a luscious piece of glass. Bulbous Goodness! Even with the distortion you get using such a wide angle lens, it was crisp and sharp even to the corners. Landscape shots are a dream with this lens. Especially compared to my older 17-35mm wide angle. If I was going to save my shekels for another lens, this would be the one.
I have a bump/cyst on the back of my left hand, and it has been getting smaller.
And though it doesn't hurt, there is discomfort when the tendon closest to it snaps over it. Especially if I move my hand left and right, palm down.
I managed to find one of my wrist splints, which will keep that tendon snapping over the cyst to a minimum
Yes, Thank Goodness It's Monday. Have been running full on for the past week, especially this weekend.
Two Canon Collective photo sessions. One was supposed to be sunset shoot at the Shelley Jetty, south of Perth, but the weather didn't cooperate. We had a fallback plan; light painting.
The one on Saturday night was fabulous. Was it was a long, cold session, but so well worth it.
Milkyway over the Serpentine Dam, Armadale, W.A.
Stayed up to get the photos edited before they ended up just saved the HD and nothing done with them. Taking a bit of time off for some rest. Laundry can wait until tomorrow.
First off, Happy 1st Day of Spring (in the southern hemisphere)
I, for one, am not sorry to see the month of August is over. It's not been a good month. I caught the worst case of the flu I have had in more years than I can count. The cough was so hard and harsh, I ended up stretching/tearing a bit of cartilage that connects ribs to sternum. The cough is still lingering, but not rib cracking any more.
Keito, our 12 yr old cat was sick, and because cats can hide illness until they're almost on death's door, we almost lost him. Acute bladder blockage. He spent 9 days in vet hospital, 7 of those days in ICU, as he needed round the clock care. Problem resolved with surgery, and luckily, no kidney damage. Best way to describe the surgery: Keito is genetically male, but architecturally female when it comes to peeing.
Next on this list (which I am listing in order of their occurrence) was my son, Alan, being brought to the ER due to abdominal pain. It was thought to be a blockage of a different sort, so when there was no good resolution, he was admitted to the hospital. He called me and said the doctor on call wanted to do a laparoscopic exam. I told him to go for it.
He was knocked out, and had the procedure... and it was a damned good thing he did, because it showed that he had a perforated appendix, and he was immediately wheeled into the O.R. and had it removed. He's home, recovering. Had to be on high dose of extremely strong antibiotics, which led to other issues. He saw his GP and has some pro-biotics and other intestinal health items.
So, yes, I give the month of August a fare thee well wave, and hope that September is a better one.
I brought a list of questions to ask about the 5DS and 5dsr... and oddly enough, it's not something I want or need. Nice piece of hardware, but for what I do, not of any use.
Larger megapixel sensor means it’s more sensitive to camera vibration. Since most of what I do isn’t studio, or landscapes or other tripod mounted shots (photographing birds, wildlife, street) tracking erratic flight of birds, if using 5DS/5DSr, it would cause a lot of sensor vibration, and screwed up shots.
Also, I asked "If I want a 50mp shot, I will take 4 photos, import them into layers, align them, blend them.", and he honestly added that I would get the same results, but with studio work, you get that all in one photo. Fair enough, but I don't often do studio work or landscapes.
After asking all the questions I had on my list it comes down to this: The new Canon 5DS and 5DSr are great pieces of hardware. But what I've got now does everything I want and more.
Finally got my hands on the new Canon 11-24. Focuses surprising fast. Only got to use it indoors, though. Will have to hire it to try outdoors.
The 300mm Prime is ok, but I have 100-400. True, it's 'only' an F4, but I am normally shooting at f/8 or above.
I have been using the Kipon EF Mount Adapter on my Olympus EM1 using both the Canon 100-400mkII L f/4.5 and the Canon 70-200mkII L f/2.8 with interesting results.
I have found that of the lenses that Kipon didn't test, the 100-400 performs better on speed of focus, and locking focus than the 70-200mkII. This includes when using 1.4xMkIII extender.
Lighting: HUGE thing they don't mention is that you have to have nice bright ambient light to use autofocus, but need to switch to manual focus in dimmer light. I suggest using a flash if you have to do this.
Also, with or without the 1.4x extender, when using the 100-400, when zooming about 50 to 60% (200mm to 300mm) the image in the viewfinder goes dark, f stop misreads to 0.09. It does return normal when I get to the full 400mm zoom.
Focus Speed: Today, it was cloudy, rather dim ambient light. The 100-400mkII focusing speed is fractionally slower than using the Olympus Lens with the MFT adapter. The 70-200mkII is extremely slower, if it would focus at all.
I think part of the problem with this is that it's the "Mark One" adapter, mostly tested with older lenses. You have to really dig to find out which lenses were tested with this adapter before it was put out on the market. The older Canon L glass were tested as were the 'kit' lenses. Who knows, maybe Mark Two will be address these issues.
Do not take this to mean it's of no use. For the price, it's a great way to extend what lenses you can use with your MFTs kit. Just remember, if you're using the MkII lenses, make sure it's nice and bright outside and expect it to be a bit slower to focus.
Dana, council member, came out to examine the gumtree that shed a huge branch a few months back. It was scheduled for pruning, with the promise that I would get the mulch, and my neighbor would get log sized branches.
Tree lopper came out, and was privvy about the arrangement, pruned the tree.
This morning, the chipping crew came out with nary a clue about the mulch/logs arrangement. They couldn't cut the branches because last week, someone stole the chainsaw out from the truck during a job.
But never fear, they came up with a way. They fed the branches that were thicker than my forearm in backward, chipped away until it was log sized, and put it aside. They did this with many of them.
So, neighbor has firewood, and I have a HUGE pile of mulch. I have already spread out 5 wheelbarrows full. I am done as my left calf muscle is having nerve pain fits, and this activity is a bit much while I am still wheezing and coughing from this flu.
But it smells soooo nice!
I put a crow bar into one of my savings accounts and purchased a Kipon Mount Adapater, so I could use the most excellent Canon L glass with the Olympus EM1 body.
I did notice that it is slower to focus than it would be on the Canon Body. I expected that, the same things happens when you use the Olympus 4/3 adapter on the MFT body. What I didn't expect that unlike when I use the 1.4x L adapter with the 100-400 mkII L, with the Kipon, there was no difference in the focus speed. IOWs it wasn't any slower than using just the Kipon adapter. And unlike when you use the 7D2 with the 1.4x adapter, you don't lose all the focus points, being 'stuck' with the center one ony.
What really surprised me is you don't lose the autofocus when using the Canon 2xmkIII adapter, although it does become a bit 'nose heavy'. I would suggest using a monopod when using the 100-400 with the 2x extender.
Image quality: So far so good! I took many photos of the bees in the blossoming agave. The images are just as good, if not better, than when I used the Lumix 100-300 (Sorry, Panasonic), but I am using L Glass.
Zooming in, clear sharp image.
Wing is now in the process of going through the flu I had.
He has the aches and chills, along with the cough. I walked into the bedroom, he looked up at me and in a croaky voice asked "How did you survive this?"
I'm feeling better, but no where near the 'all better' stage. Keito is on the mend... miffed because we won't take the 'Cone of Shame' off, or let him outside. He'll get over it.
This bug is really nailing my ass to the floor. Wing has it, too, but it doesn't seem as severe. Every part of my body that has had any trauma, or injury is throbbing like a bad tooth.
Note to self: no matter if Wing forgets, *I* will make sure we get flu jabs next year. I do NOT want to go through this again.
Keito is Genetically Male, but now in the peeing department, architecturally female. And he is peeing all on his own.. because he CAN.
Still has feeding tube in because he won't eat there, but he is getting all he needs to eat and all the fluids that way.
Barring meteor strikes, or alien invasions, Keito will come home on Monday.
Back to feeling cold and in a lot of pain (ribs, diaphragm, large joints). Got up, took some ibuprofen with codeine, and got into the shower. I normally take 4 min shower, with the occasional 10 min when I am washing my mop. Not this time. Lets just say I wasn't conservationally motivated this time.
Once the teeth stopped chattering, I shut the water off, pulled thick terry cloth robe into shower stall, and put it on. Dried off any parts not covered by robe. Draped a blanket over me.
Immediately went into kitchen and nuked a cup of water, added LEMSIP. Currently sipping it now.
Alan said I look like shit, and I am not going to gainsay him on that. He also said "You don't get sick often, but when you do, get hammered." He has been great, making sure I can rest during the day, making sure that I eat something even if I don't want to.
And now Wing thinks he might be coming down with it, too.
It's as if the support just can't deviate from their script.
Acer TouchPortal - from day one, I couldn't get it to connect to Facebook or Flickr. I even did a factory reset to make sure it wasn't something I had installed blocking it. Still, nothing.
So after a long long time trying to get it work, I submitted a support ticket. It goes as follows:
I know this is a long time coming, but I have always had a problem with TouchPortal connecting to Facebook or Flickr. I keep getting "cannot access, try later". Touchportal is white listed, not being blocked, but I have yet to get it to connect to my Flickr or Facebook account. I have looked all over Windows 7 forums and acer forums, to no avail.
The reply (and just an FYI, it's almost verbatim for a different problem. Replace Video Drivers with TouchPortal):
Good day,
Thank you for contacting Acer Online Support. We apologise for the inconvenience that this has caused you.
Please make sure that you are connected to the internet.
By uninstalling and reinstalling the application, but before you uninstall Acer Touch Portal, kindly check in Acer eRecovery Management if it is available for download.
If it is, kindly uninstall and re-install it.
If the issue still persist, we may need to perform factory reset on the unit.
Note: During the process, all data stored on your computer will be overwritten. This means all your files, such as email and photos, will be erased.
Therefore, we recommend making a backup of all personal data before starting the recovery process.
Use the following steps to start the system recovery:
1. Restart the computer.
2. When the Acer logo appears on the screen, press the left Alt, and the F10 keys.
3. If you are prompted with a Microsoft Windows boot screen, press the Enter key.
4. After the Acer eRecovery Management application has loaded, select your restore type.
5. Read the notice, and then click Next when you are ready.
6. Click Next to begin the restore process. The restore can take anywhere from 10 minutes up to an hour.
7. Once the restore is complete your computer will load Windows and start installing your drivers and software. Your computer may reboot several times during this process.
After everything is complete your computer will be like it was when you first purchased it.
Please let me know if you have further questions.
If you need phone assistance, you may contact us at 1300 365 100 option 2 for Technical Support.
Thank you and have a nice day!
Regards, **** ********* ********** Acer Online Support
My rebuttal:
Resetting to factory default again would be a waste of time, as this has been happening since day one. I could never connect with Facebook.
Even with my resetting it to factory default it wouldn't connect to FB or Flickr.
I uninstalled TouchPortal, and reinstalled it (yes, it was in Acer Recovery Management) but the problem persists.
Again, resetting to factory default again would be of no use, as I already tried that when I first got the computer, thinking that something I installed had blocked it.
I reset, went to set up connection to Facebook and Flickr, and got the same message. And that was with nothing new installed.
Let's see if that kicks her off her script.
And he's feeling much better. Still not ready to be discharged and come home, but so much more active, smoochie, and alert. He snuggled with me and gave me such a hard headboop it hurt my forehead. I didn't mind in the least.
Came home and took off the hoodie I was wearing and gave it to the other purrkids to sniff and check out. Loki is now relaxed on top of the pet tower, and Trance is sleeping on the hoodie now. Ziggy is still Ziggy. :D
Here's hoping I get a reply.
One of our cats is currently in the Veterinary Hospital. The reason I am writing this isn't about coverage, as we have it, but the payment arrangements.
Now I know that too often veterinary practices get stiffed on what they are owed, and that there are unscrupulous people making false claims. however, I am not one of those.
I don't want to skip on necessary treatment my moggie needs, but the credit card is having fits.
Then after he comes home, I get to submit the claim, and then wait.
I have had great experience with your claims department, so please do not view this as complaint on that. But is there some way that PetPlan could come up with something like HBF or Medicare card? That we pay the gap, and PetPlan pays directly to the vet instead of this 4 step method of paying the vet, submitting the claim, waiting, and the you processing it?
Thank you Sandra Chung
Vet called... Keito's bladder re-obstructed, although not as severely as the catheter went in much easier. It was a mucus blockage rather than the hard one, meaning the left over of infection combined with inflammation.
Also, since he hasn't eaten since Friday, feeding tube will be necessary to prevent him from losing condition.
The good news is when cath re-inserted, urine totally clear of blood.
He was given a bath, a blowdry and brushing which he seemed to enjoy.
The bill is making me wince. Yes, we will get a goodly amount of it rebated, but we have to pay it first.
Wing and I just got back from Murdoch Emergency Vet Centre where we visited Keito. He is up, alert, bright eyed, smoochie, but still won't eat. Vet said not to worry about that because it's not unusual for cats to go on a 'hunger strike' when they are at the vet. He is being hydrated with an I.V. and there is no worry about him starving.
The catheter is out, and as long as he 'umm errs' tonight and in the morning, he comes home tomorrow.
Much relief.
I use Brita Faucet filters, the older version and the filters are getting harder and harder to come by. I managed to find some on eBay but the postage for just two of them was more than the filters were ($41 for the filters, $44 to ship them).
So, headed over to Amazon. This is where the bizarreness comes in. The more expensive seller ships to Australia. $60 for 2 filters + $27 shipping.
I spotted less expensive ones, 2 for $21... but that seller doesn't ship to Australia. So, I order two twin packs, for $42, + $8 shipping to be sent to my drop address. Another $25 to forward them to me from there.
Twice the number for less than the cost of two. Makes me wonder when Amazon will stop shooting themselves in the foot.
Wow, sometimes troubleshooting failures can pay off.
I have Audible audiobooks, and use AudibleManager. I did a data migration which is essentially a system restore. I kept getting error about my desktop not being activated. I would shut that down, and everything would still work. Kept getting popup that there was an update to AudibleManager, but it wouldn't install. So I went through all the troubleshooting steps, with no success. I kept getting shunted to Amazon Australia. No, I am AUDIBLE customer, and wanted to keep my Amazon and Audible accounts separated.
So, started a chat with a tech. Went through all the trouble shooting with her, which only made things worse, as I could no longer play my audio books on my desktop. She apologized, saying it was standard Troubleshooting steps.
Me.. *LIGHTBULB*
I started up Windows Media Player. Selected an Audible file. Got "Sign into your Audible Account" with user name and password. Did so, and SUCCESS! Not only did they play in Windows Media Player, they once again played in AudibleManager.
I passed this nugget to the tech.
ME: AHA! Fixed it! Here, make note incase someone else has this problem I opened Windows Media Player, selected Audible title, got the "Activation/password" window to my audible account. Logged in with my user name and password, and NOW Audible Manager works.
Audible Tech:I don't know how to make this not sound as sarcasm in a chat, but it is not. I'm impressed, thank you
Me:Doesn't sound like sarcasm at all. Gee, can I get a Audible credit for solving this? ;)
She said yes and added it to my account.
Everything is up and running as it should. One thing won't update, Windows Explorer 11. Oddly enough, when I tried to update it via downloading the update file, doing a clean boot with updating services enabled, I got message that the update didn't apply to my system. Fine, I hid that update, and IE doesn't trip my trigger.
Right now, I'm performing a full system scan for viruses and malware. And when that is done... then comes the fun part (part two). Using Samsung Migration tool, move the OS to the 1tb SSD, leaving program files on the 2tb, moving some that I might want to run faster onto the SSD.
Zinstall was mostly to make a full system back up that would migrate to a new system. Now time for the final stage. Good thing about this, i can refresh windows installation without mucking up the data.
I have to give a shout out to On1 and Intelligent Imaging Solutions. Their quick response, and patience helped to get things up and running very quickly, with minimal time loss.
aka data migration, 2nd attempt.
After sending diagnostic reports to Zinstall and my trading emails, they called me (gawd I wish they would pay attention to the time difference. I clearly stated UTC +8 Perth) but they told me that disabling Malwarebytes isn't good enough, that it has to be uninstalled. Also, even though it's not running, the AVG toolbar included in Google Chrome would also interfere with a clean data migration.
So, started Zinstall, letting it run overnight and made a new container/image with no anti virus/spyware running. Then last night, I started Zinstall migration. Since I have it on an external USB drive it's taking longer. Currently at 22% done.
So, on my Vaio, but this time I have external HDMI monitor hooked up. Yes,my workflow is so ingrained, I hooked up monitor to the laptop.
Ok, for some odd reason, CS6 won't kicks back all Camera Raw files as not the right kind of document. And OnOne PhotoSuite 9 keeps erroring out with a strange code (have forwared it to OnOne)
CS6 64bit Bridge isn't reading Camera Raw files, but CS6 32bit does.
So, for now, until the problem is actually fixed the workflow is as follows.
Open Photoshop CS6
Open Bridge CS6 32bit
Open Raw image by right clicking "Open in Camera Raw"
Make Adjustments in ACR.
Save file as Jpg from ACR.
Open file in Photoshop, and use PhotoSuite version 8.
Yeah, a bit finicky but it will keep me working until this is figured out.
Sort of.
It seems to have migrated the data over, but I have already had a few hiccups. Adobe Photoshop CS6 is grouching that I am past my trial period, and giving me "Can not complete your request because it is not the right kind of document" when it comes to CR2 files. BUT CS5 isn't having a problem. So, looked at About Plugins and noticed that ACR isn't listed. Oy. Easy fix.
Actually much of what will probably have to be done will have to wait until I have it set up in here proper. And then this computer will be boxed up and put away. And I will be keeping the image file on a small external drive.
Although it seems it's taking so long to migrate the image file to the external SSD I have hooked up, I know that it would have taken a helluva lot longer to have had to deactivate, reinstall, reboot over and over. Weeks before I had everything up and running the same. My only problem might be some software that was on sale for a special price, might not work on the new computer. If not, I will send email off to the vendors in hopes they will rectify the situation.
It's been a while since I've used my laptop for an extended time. I also think I got a bit spoiled with the dual monitors. I got so accustomed to multitasking that I find it difficult to do it on a single screen. heh
Although I have been 'lapping' the back yard, I had no way of keeping track of what I was doing, or progress, so installed a pedometer app on my phone. I also have audio books installed so I don't get bored and stop too soon.
The only problem is this: I don't always keep my phone on me, so making sure I get X number in each day, not just during when I do the laps is a bit problematical. Now, I do the laps at a quick clip, to increase heart rate and respiration and to maintain the elevated rate. I will slow down if I find my left leg going all 'jelly' on me, and when it stops feeling as if I am dragging, the speed goes back up. When I find that slowing down doesn't stop the jelly leg feeling, I walk slowly to cool down, and then come back in.
Still find it funny that I can feel the muscles in my right quads twitch when I'm done, but nothing in the left leg.
I finally pinned down why I feel someone's 'judgment' was so unprofessional and so wrong. Here is a clear explanation:
I don't like asparagus. I mean I loathe the stuff. I think it's the nastiest vegetable/plant in the world. It is on my 'hit list' of what should go into a composter, not on a plate.
That being said if someone took a photograph of it, on a plate, dressed with hollandaise sauce, it was well lit, properly exposed, all the right things, and I had to judge it, I wouldn't look at it and say "Oh I hate this, just the sight of this vegetable make me gag." and then ripped the photographer apart for taking a photo of something *I* hate.
This is what was done to me regarding my photograph. In my opinion, I felt the judge, who is a professional photographer, was extremely unprofessional. I feel he allowed his personal bias for something he didn't like to run rampant.
Yes, I know judging is subjective. I know this, but what was done to me was not subjective judging.
Now, I hope that clears up, and stops all the questions.
I was contacted by a CatMax representative. She said she was going to refund my credit card $400. Funny thing is I was overcharged $450.07.
Hello ********;
when you called today to get my credit card details, you said I was being refunded $400.
According to P**** C*****, I was overcharge $450.07. I hope there was no miscommunication between he and yourself about the amount to be refunded.
> On 2/06/2015 2:14:25 PM, p***c******* (*****@catmax.com.au) wrote:
> > Hi Sandra
>
> yes you are correct on this being over charged. the problem is is should
> have just been a call out fee plus materials. but was done as a quote of
> pictures and spread sheet.
>
> so here is what you should have been charged
>
> 3 hours @ $76.00 = $228.00
> clearnet @$21.22
> cable ties@$12.00
> GST @ $26.12
> *TOTAL = $ 261.22*
>
> CHARGED $ 711.29
>
> Sandra, sorry about the mix up I do apologise. you have credit for $450 .
> if it is any conciliation we can send you a new three teer pethouse nomally
> $475.00 plus $75 freight. we would send as exchange no freight charge. no
> more to pay.
According to Australian Consumer Laws, as they admitted to overcharging me, and even by what amount, they are LEGALLY obligated to give me a refund of the full amount of the overcharge.
CatMax keeps trying to get me to accept goods in place of giving me a refund for being overcharged.
We don't need or have the room for other items. We have cat towers (3), mini towers (2), scratch posts (2), hammocks (2)
What I don't have is the $400+ I was overcharged! I have put something off I wanted to get done because I did the responsible thing and had damaged property repaired. They need to pony up and do the responsible thing and give me my money back.
I got a response regarding the repair cost:
Hi Sandra
yes you are correct on this being over charged. the problem is is should
have just been a call out fee plus materials. but was done as a quote of
pictures and spread sheet.
so here is what you should have been charged
3 hours @ $76.00 = $228.00
clearnet @$21.22
cable ties@$12.00
GST @ $26.12
*TOTAL = $ 261.22*
CHARGED $ 711.29
Sandra, sorry about the mix up I do apologise. you have credit for $450 .
if it is any conciliation we can send you a new three teer pethouse nomally
$475.00 plus $75 freight. we would send as exchange no freight charge. no
more to pay.
I have replied thus:
Thank you for seeing to this so quickly, it is very much appreciated. And so is the offer of the cat tower, but as we already have three cat towers, there is no room or need for a 4th. As this was charged to my credit card, I would prefer to have it refunded to that credit card. You have my credit card details there, but if you need them again, I will gladly provide them.
Regards
CatMax got back to me, sort of, trying to make excuses for their exorbitant charges (remember, I thought the damanged mesh wall was being replaced, and a few holes patched)
> Please see a break down of the total price of the job that you requested
> totaling $ 711.29.
>
> Clearnet
>
> $ 21.22
This is the mesh I presume?
>
> Materials
>
> $ 195.41
What materials?
> Labour
>
> $ 380.00
$190 an hour??!!
>
> Freight
>
> $ 50.00
What freight? There is no freight on original CatMax enclosure.
>
> Gst
>
> $ 64.66
Had I known that we were only going to get holes patched, I would not have agreed to have to pre-pay the full $711. I was expecting full replacement of the damaged wall, not patching. I am looking
at the original order for the Enclosure. There was no freight, and there was a lot of materials, not just one square meter of mesh and a few cable ties. You did not send me the break down of the
charges, leaving me to presume the damaged mesh wall was going to be replaced. All you sent was your estimate, and bank details.
I did not expect to be charged over $700 for one square meter of mesh, a dozen cable ties, and 2 hours of work. I could have done that job myself.
Again, I do not feel that asking for a rebate is unreasonable.
I'm not going to hold my breath.
Some rats attracted to our neighbors chicken coop invaded our cat enclosure. They chewed through it and it needed to be repaired.
I called Catmax, sent them photos, and was given a quote of $711.29 to repair the damage. Seeing as it cost us $2100 for the original installation, I thought it was fair because I thought they would be replacing the short side that had been rat chewed.
Now, don't me get wrong, the tradesman did a great job, but all he did was patch the holes with, using 1 sq meter of mesh and some small cable zip ties. It was what he was told that was to be done.
3hrs billable for over $700 for patched holes, when the last time the enclosure needed a bigger repair job (pergola being repaired caused a problem, Nigel fixed it) the bill was $200.
$711.29 for 3 billable hours? That is over $200 an hour! For 1 sq meter of mesh? Again, for that price, I expected the wall to be replaced, not just patched!
I have submitted a polite displeasure to CatMax and have said "I don't feel it's unreasonable to ask for a rebate."
And I am of two minds as to what to do.
A few weeks ago, a photo judge allowed his personal bias to derisively dismiss and insult me and my work in a rather rude, arrogant manner (calling the photographer, me, lazy and the photo not a 'challenge’ ). His actions, in my opinion, were unprofessional, rude, and cruel. I came >.< this close to just putting all my gear on ebay. No joke. As it was, I just packed almost all of it away.
Turns out my husband kind of ranted about it on his own. I didn't know, I had no part in that.
Because of his rant, and in a totally creepifying move, the camera club president showed up at my door, unannounced, and proceeded to vicariously threaten me for said judge.
*I'M* the injured party, willing to just shut up and go away, and the judge is in a snit? This was a person I had respected, who turned out to be unworthy of said respect.
Ok, my choices:
1: Just brush my hands off, and let the incident fall to the past. Sounds good in theory, but to me, this not only allows but encourages him (and possibly others like him) to repeat this unprofessional behavior.
2: Mediation. His lawyer has offered mediation, and the mediator he suggested is member of photography group, one which the judge was a member of, and is probably a good friend of. Figure the odds of THAT being unbiased. Call me paranoid, but that would be as unbiased as a certain "Fair And Balanced" cable news show.
Still 2: I am intimidated and scared of said judge. I don't want to be anywhere near him, and even typing this out, the very thought of it is bringing me to tears and making my hands shake. I don't think he realizes or cares. But you should ask my husband how much my hands were shaking when I picked up a camera a few days ago.
So, do I face him, scared spitless and wanting to throw up, or just let him slide, and allow him to do it to someone else again?
But I just has someone come up to my door, and tell me if Wing doesn't stop complaining/talking about what happened last week, the person he has complained about will sue. That said person has gotten a lawyer and is drafting a cease and desist. Smart move to not email the threat to me, just threaten face to face.
I told him last week to just let it go. That what's done is done. I've said my piece, and I'm done. And for some reason the person who dropped by seems to think I control Wing? It's not like he's wearing a shock collar, or other device to make him behave. They might have better luck going to his mom and telling her to tell him to behave.
But threatening to sue me, and then him?
Barratry: the offense committed by people who are “overly officious in instigating or encouraging prosecution of groundless litigation” or who bring “repeated or persistent acts of litigation” for the purposes of profit or harassment. It is a crime in some jurisdictions.
When said person left, I sent a panicky message to Wing. He called me back almost immediately.
Like I really need something else to be keeping me awake at night.
I was quite willing to just go away, to not be heard from again. And to chalk it up to it was just something else I was no good at (as I have been told all throughout growing up, and into my adulthood).
But I do have to clear something up. For one thing, I am not thin skinned. If I was (for example) I would have dropped out of high school, instead of graduating on the honor roll. I would never have gotten married or been a mother. I never would have started my dance company which grew and thrived for 6 years, in spite of certain people who actively tried to sabotage me, until a medical problem cropped up. (An accident I had in my 20s caused a disc to calcify and collapsed in my back, making it impossible to dance or even teach dance again.)
I have zero problem with constructive criticism (ie, re-frame with cropping, or burning/dodging). And I know that judging is subjective. BUT I do, however, don't react well to abject ridicule and humiliation. On to the show:
Exhibcompetition: aka why I have packed my cameras away...not sure for how long.
One photo I submitted was a candid photo of an infant, taken on the sly in a dark room, while the mother was talking to him. He smiled and I got the photo. How was I to know I was supposed to, in an auditorium setting, go over to the parents and ask them to strip their baby to the skin, in a cold room, for me to photograph him? Oh well, it was a nice portrait, and the parents were thrilled to get it.
After submitting different bird photos over the past 2 years to different competitions/exhibitions, I took away comments and criticism, and improved. One of the major things I was told "Bird perching, nothing to distract, clear skies". I read up on it, and looked at examples from other pro Wildlife photographers, especially one who had visited our camera club a few times that specialized in birds. After weeks of stalking, and acclimating a family of birds to my presence in the garden, and many flubbed photos, I got one that was exactly as it should be. And bonus was the diagonally bisected sky (clouds on upper section, clear bright blue sky on the bottom).
I submitted it in an OPEN category.
What I expected was an honest critique of the technique, composition, exposure, sharpness, etc.
Even if it bombed, I expected to walk away with useful information.
What I didn't expect was to have it eviscerated because the judge, who had graciously stepped in at the last moment when the one scheduled fell ill, didn't like the subject. That it was the product of a lazy photographer, that didn't challenge his/herself. That he personally didn't like these sort of bird photos. That it was what he derisively called a "bird on a stick". (Actually, it was a bird at the very top of a palm frond getting ready to launch itself into the air, but I digress.) That it was one of his 'pet peeves', that he mentioned in his blog (who knew his blog was required reading), that these photos were on his "hit list", and it would be automatically marked down, regardless of the quality of the image itself.
I left wishing to all that I held dear that I had submitted anonymously, as he led the room in a chorus of ridicule and laughter, and all would know who was the 'lazy unchallenged' photographer.
And when I got home, packed up most of my gear (still have a few things out because I didn't want to empty the closet getting the boxes out.)
And I wasn't the ONLY one, but I can only speak for myself. As someone said, there are critiques and then there are critiques. I don't expect anything I submit to win/place/show. I expect to come away with information to improve my photography skills. I didn't expect to be treated with kid gloves.
But what I did expect was professionalism, respect, a critique of the above mentioned composition, exposure, clarity, sharpness. Not to have it ripped to to shreds because the judge didn't personally like the subject. Especially from a photographer I had respected.
And not overly surprised at that. My son was taken to the hospital early yesterday morning, before 6am, in extreme abdominal pain. No, not gall stones, not appendicitis, so any keyboard diagnosticians take a break. Spent almost the entire day with Alan in the ER and then hospital ward.
After being awake for over 20 hours, I come home and find some really rancorous comments from RWNJs that think they're being witty because they look at the header of my weblog, and stupidly assume it's referring to my mental health. No, it's a bit of prose from a book about arguing with oneself and choices, and how close we come to making wrong decisions. Literacy is great, and when you see it fail, it can be either amusing or sad.
This time, it just pissed me off. I don't mind disagreements, but when you take it to personal attacks, all your comments have lost any merit you thought they might have had.
Now pardon me, while I go back to waiting.
Oh, and in case you think I'm bullshitting/lying :
My son Alan, at Fiona Stanley Hospital, letting concerned friends know he's 'okay', taken yesterday afternoon
Now fuck off.
I just updated CS6 Extended and Bridge that goes with it.
Now, for the past 3 years, Adobe CS6 Bridge has been glacially slow loading thumbnails, and even if you worked in one folder, when you closed Bridge, and reopened it later it would treat it as a new import, grinding away at reading files, generating thumbnails.
I downloaded and applied the new updates. Then reset Bridge to factory default (something I do with every update) and suddenly CS6 Bridge is loading files/thumbnails as fast as CS5 did.
Not quite believing it, I opened a folder I knew had 300+ CR2 files. It generated thumbnails in less than 15 seconds. Closed Bridge, and reopened it. It opened to the last closed folder, and everything was immediately there. No "building criteria" stalling, no rebuilding thumbnails.
Now, after 3 years of telling me it was something *I* was doing wrong, and something wrong with my computer, they fixed something in it, and just passed it off as a typical update. Schmucks. Yes, I am grateful they fixed the problem, but still pissed off that it took them three friggin' years to do it!
I sent an email to SD Recovery Pro about how dismally their product performed on recovering accidentally deleted image files. I told them I had done all the trouble shooting (tried in camera, in built in card reader, using external card reader, using different computer, all with the same dismal results).
I get a simplistic "did you try a card reader. Many users have success that way", showing that whoever answered didn't bother to read my original support request.
I wonder if said person will like my reply:
Thank you for replying, although offering me such simplistic instructions is an insult to my intelligence, as I had already gone through all the trouble shooting methods.
It WAS in a card reader, the one built into my desktop computer. And then I tried another card reader, and external one, AND just for giggles I tried it with it in the camera. Same results. 74 photos recovered, but not one of the ones that had just been accidentally deleted. I even tried your software on my laptop's SD card reader, with the same results!
I ended up searching the internet, trying different programs, and found R-Undelete and not only did it recover the accidentally deleted ones, the ones it did find weren't 'unreadable' or corrupted. Regards.
Because I wasn't paying attention while Wing was getting ready for work, I chose the wrong delete option when clearing off a CF card. I chose DELETE ALL instead of DELETE SELECTED. And of course I couldn't stop the deletion while in progress.
I immediately started SD Card Recovery Pro... effing USELESS. It found 74 files. Some of which were from 2012! Too bad I had deleted over 300 images.
Then came EaseUS File Recovery. It found over 900 files. YAY! Unfortunately it recovered them as unopenable TIF and ICO files. Yes, I tried every graphics program I had on the computer trying, and searched for others. No Joy!
Iolo Search and Recover - Ok, this found more of them, but only two of this mornings photos. In total about 150.
Just about read to give up, I searched and found one called "R-Undelete". Not expecting much but hoping for the best, I installed it and ran it. it found over 900 images/files, and I recovered all the sunrise photos I took this morning, and then some. All in their proper format. All readable, openable, not corruptions. And the best part, is R-Undelete is free for home user.
I usually have nothing but praise for you, but not this time. I got an sponsored ad on my Kindle E-Reader. I was very interested, logged onto Amazon, look at the item, the options making note that it said "This item ships to Kardinya, Australia". So, ok, I tried to order it. Imagine my surprise when "There was an error with your order, cannot ship to designated address." Huh? So, back back back, try again, only to have the same error. Contact Amazon help. I'm told "Oh, but you're given a link to go to to get the item!"
Really? This is the item that says it ships to Kardinya, but doesn't.
Here's the same item that does ship to Kardinya.
$60 bait and switch difference due to location? My momma didn't raise any fools.... might have married a few, but didn't raise any. My 'personal shopper' has agreed to $25 over forwarding postage costs, should I so choose to get said item. And to Amazon.. next time you try to screw me, kiss me first.
My bike basket is not your rubbish bin. I saw you toss you sandwich wrapper into it, not thinking that this pudgy old woman was the rider of the bike when you looked my way.
I saw you put your things in your car, and head back into the shops. When you were out of sight, I removed your trash from my bike basket, and put it under you windshield wiper blades, as it does belong to you. I am just so sorry about the BBQ sauce that got smeared on the drivers side, eye level.
Maybe next time, you will carry you trash to the nearest garbage can, and NOT use someone's bike basket, but I won't hold my breath. Asses like you think you own the world and everyone/everything in it.
Wearing my 'desk' glasses. Crisp, clear text, and no more feeling as if someone is trying to gouge my eye out with a spoon, or instant nausea. Should make editing photos a lot less uncomfortable. 
Tried on my 'not desk glasses' and again, no feeling of eye strain.
Picked up my new glasses, both pairs. No more dreading to take out my contacts at the end of the day, as my old glasses gave me headaches and extremely tired eyes.
Also made appointment to have eyes checked after wearing new kind of contact lenses.
I like being able to see.. but why does it have to be so flipping expensive!
Good news; my nearsightedness is better. In both eyes, but more markedly improved in my left eye.
Bad news; astigmatisms are worse. Not a lot worse, but enough that I need new lenses. $1000+ worth of new lenses.
Ouch.
But "Doctors Without Borders" keeps calling me and asking me to increase the amount of the monthly donation.
I have told them over and over, that no, not happening, but they keep calling and wheedling.
So, what I did was create an "Auto Reject" caller list and have put them on it. *sigh* At least I didn't tell em to FOAD and cancel my current donation amount.
After treating my chili tree, successfully it seems, for woolly aphids, here are the first two ripe chilies from it. Don't let the small size of these fool you, one of these can boost a pot of chili from 2 burner to 3 burner.
I've been reading, and shaking my head at, commentary from people making excuses for the stunts the Republicans have been pulling. I don't mean the constant obstructionism they have been practicing since almost before President Elect Obama was sworn in, the 50+ APPEAL OBAMACARE even if it screws over millions of people.
I mean inviting the leader of one foreign country to speak on the floor of Congress, to dictate foreign policy, in an effort to undermine a twice duly elected president.
Then, this same group of fools write an open letter to the leader of yet another country, in blatant violation of the Logan Act... a FELONY. They tell the leader of a country to disarm nuclear weapons.. THAT THEY DON'T HAVE! And they insult him with a dose of condescension that made me grind my teeth. Are they TRYING to start a war? I know they are chickenhawks, and like to send OTHER people's children off to die for oil, but to do so so blatantly?
Next: they blame President Obama for their actions. Hello, Republicans.. I'm from Earth. Ever been there?
Do these people say to these Republicans what they have done is not only wrong, but illegal? No, they get annoyed when the word TREASON is applied to the writers of this letter, and inviters of Bibi. Not so much Bibi, but Republicans using his speaking in Congress to dictate policy.
A thank you to Stevo for his efforts...
Last year, a friend borrowed my "Welcome to Paradox SciFi Original Series" box set, and then never returned it. When I asked about it, I was told it had never been borrowed.
So, I went in search of it online, and it turns out that because of the sound track, there were copyright issues and places that had sold it before no longer did.
That left me looking for used. Twice, I got burned by people who claimed it was original discs, only to find they were bootlegged, some just recorded from TV airings, with station logos on them.
I checked ebay. No joy there either... until today. I just on the off chance typed in "Welcome to paradox box set" again, and TA DA!
To quote seagulls on FINDING NEMO.. MINE!
Again, thank you Stevo for what you did for me earlier this year.
Gawd it's hot outside. I got my almost daily walk in and was wondering why I felt like I was sweltering. 'Official' temperature 31c? My bet, a bit warmer here.
Came in, got a drink, went back outside to tend to the gardening. In this case, watering plants in back yards, feeding potted plants in front yard, and harvesting more chilies.
Might have to pickle this batch. Thinking about adding a bit of soy sauce to the mix this time around.
Such sad, but not unexpected news. Thank you for letting me be one of your 'unofficial grandchildren'. RIP Grandpa. You truly "Lived Long and Prospered".
Leonard Nimoy, the Beloved “Mr. Spock” in Star Trek, Dies at 83.
But people see no problem with asking me to bring and use several thousands of dollars worth of photo equipment (cameras, lenses, lighting, cables, backdrops, stands, etc etc) and to do a job that would at the least cost $1500 for just the day, and to do it for nothing, or for a 'photo credit'.
What's even worse, it's people who know better.
After week of feeding me copied and pasted bull$hit from the FAQs, that even though I had quoted their FAQs in my support ticket, I had enough of their non-support. Here is my reply to yet another inane copy/paste from FAQ with another link to the full version to download.
I did all of this, I even tried it on a different computer, running Windows 8.1, fully updated, firewall shut off, anti virus shut off, malware protection shut off, and the problem of it not connecting to DirectorZone persists.
After weeks of uninstall, reinstalls, manual edits, manual searches, registry searches, then the week of trading messages with you telling me to do what I had already done time and again, I ended up saying f**k it and I downloaded the trial version of PhotoDirector 6, renamed the PhotoDirector5 folder, and launched PhotoDirector 6 via Media Suite interface.
Guess what? THAT one connects without a single problem. There is an inherent problem in PhotoDirector 5, as PhotoDirector 4 connected without issue, and now PhotoDirector 6 connects, I think you should give everyone who just purchased PD5 a free upgrade to PD6.
I have been a long time customer, and yes, I seem to have problems with your software (whenever an update gets applied, the program no longer functioning was my biggest bugbear which was remedied by downloading full version and installing, rather than using updates) and I highly doubt I will be updating/upgrading to any newer versions again.
I know I am not your only customer, but offering a Media Suite for what turns out to be outmoded versions of your programs (do you have ANY idea how pissed off I was when I thought I had gotten a good holiday bargain, only to get nothing but update, upgrade notices from within the programs?) , and with a history of updates that ended up bollixing the programs, resulting in having to either purchase the next version or not being able to work?
You, Cyberlink, are the undisputed champion of the "bait and switch".
I posted something on a program makers "Facebook Page", asking a question. I get a reply the next day, to please go to their main site and submit a support ticket.
I dutifully point and click on over, copy and paste the exact question on their "Submit Support Ticket", and clicked on "Submit".
Today, I get notice that someone answered me. Their answer is "No it doesn't work with your browser (I know that) and there is no ETA as to when it will."
Ok, riddle me this: was was so dastardly that the person on the FB site couldn't have typed out "Sorry, we don't support that browser at this time, and don't have an ETA as to when we will"?
And on their survey, I pretty much told them exactly that.
When the pain medication kicks it, and you get that first ebbing of pain, it flows back but not as strong, and it ebbs again, comes back even weaker, you know it's been beaten back this time.
So there, Migraine wannabe, you are going away, and I didn't throw up.
But needed to be done. Got two bags of potting mix as I have two chili plants that need to be topped up. And one of the Geraldton Wax seedlings I rescued from a hole in a brick has more than tripled in size, so needed a new home. I used the pot I used to have my star jasmine in (before that got too large for it).
After I transplanted it, I gave it a dose of SeaSol, and then watered it. And when it's larger again, I'll get another large plastic pot, like the one the lime tree is in, and let it grow in that, trimming it to keep it short. Geraldton Wax Bonsai tree? Could be, could be.
Loki, just because I went to bed early did NOT mean to get me up early. Yes, pre-dawn birdsong is nice, but I prefer to sleep a bit later.
No matter, you're out, back in, back out, fed and I am sipping my morning brew. I do, however, see yet another early night… or possibly a nap.
For now.
I went into my office area, and could hear the steady growling of an pissed off cat. Ziggy. Loki was about 3ft away from her, and she was letting out a steady stream of growling (and for such a tiny cat she sounds very fierce. had deep guttural growl).
Shooed Loki away and spotted Trance's collar on the floor, by the looks of it, torn off of her. In the short space of Wing feeding Ziggy and his ducking it to take a shower, Trance went after Ziggy and Ziggy handed her her ass.. again.
The "they get to live".... I spotted two of my external hds knocked to the floor, the small USB fan I keep going behind the computer to prevent overheating (not that it's really a problem, but why take chances) broken, and cords unplugged.
Took about 2 hours to get everything set up to test. Other than the fan frame needing to be glued together, all seems to be in good working order.
Ziggy finally let me check her out (she was a bit umm smelly as Trance had, shall we say, bladder control issues when she decided to take Ziggy on again.) Ziggy is cleaned and groomed, and I checked her for wounds. Nada.
Now, I have to find Trance and do the same. I'm betting she is sporting some new scratches again.
And I keep what can be updated, updated.
There are certain software/hardware that never made it to the next generation of Windows, even with "compatibility mode". There is also the lack of full screen DOS window with Post WinXP. And all hype aside, Windows XP is a good stable OS.
So, my netbook is updated, Windows Virtual Machine on my Win7 desktop have been kept updated.
Just because I went to bed early-ish last night, doesn't mean I wanted to be up before the sun rose.
kthnxbai!
I submitted a support ticket to Cyberlink regarding one of their programs having a problem.
PhotoDirector 4 I could login to "DirectorZone" for templates and upload to Facebook, Flickr etc etc. Newest version, v5, suddenly I keep getting error.
Just for giggles, I clicked on "Forgot password" and PhotoDirector sent me to a non existent website. I can see the error in the link, but can't figure out how to correct it in the program.
So, I send support ticket. Yes, I've uninstalled, rebooted, reinstalled, rebooted, problem persists. yes, it's white-listed in both antivirus and firewall. I even tried shutting antivirus and firewall off. Problem persisted. I tried changing password on the site and in program, problem persisted. I sent them %#$%$ screencaps of it.
What do I get? Copy/Paste bullshit from the #$$@%#$$ FAQ!
Canon Australia has opened February's "Canon Light" entries a little over a week ago, subject "Street Photography".
I only have a single candidate so far because of firebugs!
I have asthma. There are fucking arsonists lighting fires in the bush areas. The air tastes of smoke and ash, and I have trouble breathing, to the point I am indoors with the a.c. running.
I know there is still time, but I don't want to have to choose one image at the last minute, but I also want more than one to choose from!
I ordered a Breville Coffee and Spice Grinder Model CG2B. I ordered in November last year. Now I don't mind it arriving so late because of holidays.
What I do mind is that I was sent the Breville Coffee and Spice Grinder Model BCG200. I specifically asked for and ordered the CG2B because I have two lids for it; one for coffee and one for spice. Those lids do not fit on the model the merchant sent.
Bait and Switch? Guaranteed to piss me off big time.
IINET said it was my network adapter, I said it was the router. Well, we are both right.
We got a new router from IINET, as our old one packed it in. Now, I never had a problem connecting to it, or maintaining internet connection with the old one.
This new one, however, is a different story. If I log in, I have internet immediately. If I start another program that accesses the internet, I will lose internet connection until I start troubleshooter, or just reset my adapter (quicker than going through troubleshooter which ends up doing that).
I had Windows check for driver update for network adapter, and according to Windows no new driver, mine was latest and greatest. Ever the doubter, I went in search of exact make and model of network adapter, and imagine my (non)surprise when I saw there was a new one. Downloaded, installed reboot, and still the problem persists.
Did a bit more research, and it turns out that some older network adapters (mine, it seems) aren't loved by new routers.
Solution isn't new network adapter driver (been there, done that, rebooted to prove it, and I have an All in one desktop) but possibly using a newer USB external wireless adapter. But until I get one, I will do the disabling/re-enabling network adapter whenever I start a new program that access the internet. Oh joy. :p
I read an article from a computer magazine. It says that cloud storage is the death knell for local hard drive storage units.
Uhh, no. Cloud storage has shown not only is it vulnerable to to catastrophic data loss, but it has also show itself to be hackable. Case in point, cloud storage theft of intimate celebrity photos. Then there's the Adobe hack and crack where via the cloud they cleaned out people's bank accounts.
This doesn't inspire confidence, does it? I have 7 yrs worth of photography on one hd hooked up to the computer. And I have two other external drives, which are back ups to the main photo storage drive. I've not lost data, nor have I had it stolen in all the years I've been doing this.
Cloud storage? Not a chance.
