EPKPhoto's Tidbits

Friday after work, my mom and I began a bit of a road trip in a rented SUV to pick up two of my cousins and grandfather in West Virginia.  This was really my first chance to test my new Palm Treo 700p on the road with its unlimited data plan from Sprint.  I have gotten great reception the whole way along major interstates (I-64 and 460 mostly).  This has enabled me to browse the web, check my email, and simply entertain myself without having to worry where I will be able to pick up a wireless connection next with my laptop.  I'm loving my experience with the 700p so far (except for a few issues getting the right plan from Sprint).  By the way, I find it quite surprising (and telling of where our world is heading) that I can see five wireless networks from grandfather's house in this small West Virginian town.  Two of those are not password protected…that is, anyone could connect to them and use the Internet.

It has been quite some time since my last post, and I could no longer stand it :).  I have been home from Rochester for a couple weeks now, and all is well.  This weekend my grandmother, aunt, and cousin are visiting and attending the Norfolk Harborfest festivities.  I have been doing a bunch of computer maintenance around the house since I have been home.  More recently I have been applying some extensive updates to the Linux servers since Thursday night's thunderstorm ended their stretch of uptime.  One had not been rebooted for more than 180 days!  More news to come…

For those of you wondering…I am still at RIT.  It is finals week for the spring quarter.  Two exams down, and two to go.  I am getting really anxious to get home!  Many things await me:  a haircut, Mom, Dad, the animals, going to the Sprint store to check out the about-to-be-released Treo 700p, catching up with friends, putting off buying a MacBook Pro, checking up on my Linux servers, and a bunch of other fun stuff :).  Every day more people around here leave because their exams are finished, but I got stuck with a Friday exam this time.  Oh well, I'll be home before I know it!

I just got an email in my inbox today announcing that Skype is offering free calls to mobile and land phones in the US and Canada for the rest of the year. I doubt this would have happened anytime soon if eBay had not acquired Skype and given them a few extra funds with which to work. Like eBay probably wants me to, I am going to use this opportunity to encourage you all to download Skype, set up a Skype name, and add me (epkphoto) to your contact list. Feel free to try out the service by giving me a call (if I'm online) or by calling someone you usually call with a standard phone. This is a big move for Skype, and the other services, like the Gizmo Project, better watch out.

Ever since I switched to using a Mac as my primary computer over two years ago, I have been waiting to see Apple actually advertise the product that defines them. In the wake of the iPod, mainstream advertising for the Mac has dwindled to nothing…until now! Apple has replaced its switch site with http://www.apple.com/getamac/. They have also placed 6 video advertisements online for your viewing pleasure :). It really is nice to finally see Apple acknowledging the Macintosh (operating system and computer) as a product worthy of advertising now that they are well into the transition to Intel processors and are able to boot Windows. I do believe, however that Apple is still suffering from the "good for graphics, but not for business" stereotype. Apple needs to challenge Microsoft by placing more ad dollars toward their server and storage solutions. I think this just might come when the Xserve gets an Intel processor.

To coincide with the National Association of Broadcasters conference that started today, Apple released the 17-inch MacBook Pro. I do have to say, although I am in the market for the 15-inch model, the price on the 17-inch looks appealing. My desired configuration of the 15-inch looks like it will cost around $2599 plus AppleCare, tax, etc. The 17-inch is just $200 more and has a slightly faster processor, Firewire 800 support, a third USB slot, and an 8x double-layer SuperDrive (versus the 15-inch's 4x single-layer drive). I'm not too keen on the huge size of the 17-inch though. I wonder how much longer I can hold out?

I just got back from a dinner celebrating the Monroe County Honor Guard's 25th anniversary. A small group of us was invited since we raised over $500 for them earlier this year. I do have to say, the food at the dinner was quite good :). In other news, I won a $100 set of juggling clubs in a raffle at the 29th annual RIT Juggle-In. This convention is quite well attended by some impressive, famous jugglers. You'll want to make sure you read this full post to see some photos of the clubs! More news after the jump: Mamiya selling its camera business and I'm running for RIT Honors Treasurer… Read the rest of this entry »

I finally broke down and bought the lens I have been thinking about getting for nearly six months. It is a Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens. All that stuff essentially means it is good :). The EF-S part means it is one of Canon's lenses designed for the APS-C sized CMOS sensor found in the Digital Rebels, 20D, and 30D. The IS means it has in-lens image stabilization to reduce shake and allow for sharper hand held photos. Lastly, the USM means it has an ultrasonic motor to handle focusing in a very quiet and fast way. This lens is quite a step up for me and will effectively replace two of my other lenses. Click the image by this post for a slightly larger look.

Although quite a bit of the web is currently discussing Apple's new Boot Camp software, I thought it worthwhile to mention here since much of my audience would not hear about it otherwise. Here's the deal: On Wednesday, April 5, Apple announced and provided for download a beta release of its new software called Boot Camp. This utility allows users of new Intel-based Macs to create space on their hard drive and provide driver support to install and run Windows XP on their Mac(s). Read the rest of this entry »

I should start this post by saying the weather in Rochester was amazingly good today. The best part was that our photo class shot a 4×5 assignment outside, so we were able to spend several hours in the sunny weather rather than stuck in a studio. In the meantime, my roommate and a couple of our friends down the hall have been trying to guess my middle name. It stunned me that even I could not find my middle name spelled out online anywhere. How can I run a website with a domain name that includes my initials (EPK) and not remotely publicize my middle name?! Read the rest of this entry »