| A Look Back At The Future Of Electronics
I have a professional photographer friend who spent $25,000 for a digital camera back in the 90s. Now you can get great pro-sumer cameras for under $800. At CES, Sony debuted its $699 Alpha DSLR-A100. Like the Canon EOS Rebel XTi and the Nikon D40, this is a full featured camera with interchangeable lenses sold as a kit with a starter lens. The new Sony camera features a 10 megapixel sensor, the ability to take up to 3 frames per second and the support for ISOs ranging from 100 to 3,200. What that all adds up to is a camera that can perform well in a variety of lighting conditions. Also, like the competition, it has image stabilization which compensates for our shaky hands, especially when using a long zoom.
Casio introduced one of the most innovative cameras at show. It isnt an SLR, but the new Exilim Pro EX-F1 has a 12X optical zoom and what Casio says is the worlds fastest burst shooting performance.
Got a great photo of a fuzzy, furry or feathered friend?
The Oregon Humane Society is looking for great pictures of cats, dogs, birds, rabbits, horses and other pets for its 17th annual Fuzzy, Furry and Feathered Friends Photo Contest. The contest is open until May 31, 2008. Winners will see photos of their pets published in the full-color OHS Magazine and will also receive great prizes from Pro Photo Supply and Canon. Prizes will be awarded for the best photos in the following categories: Top Dog, Top Cat, Top Other Animal (rabbit, bird, etc.), Funniest photo, Child with Pet, Me & My Pet, Editor’s Choice, and Grand Prize. "Me & My Pet" is a new category for 2008, and focuses on adults posing with their favorite furry or feathered friend. The Grand Prize winner will receive a Canon Rebel XSi Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm lens.
Find your Digital Rebel's inner Holga
If you love the look of pictures taken with the Holga —those cheap, plastic cameras made in China—but don't want to deal with the oh-so-last-century idea of film, check out Holgamods' Holga Body Cap. Randy Smith, the man behind Holgamods, has taken the lens off a stock Holga and grafted it onto a Canon body cap that fits all of the Canon D-SLRs, including the Digital Rebel series, the EOS 5D Digital, the new EOS 40D Digital, and even the top-of-the-line EOS-1Ds Mark III (it would probably fit any of the more modern Canon film cameras as well). The result is pure plastic goodness without the darkroom. Like the Lensbaby (another of our favorite toys), the Holga Body Cap isn't an automatic lens. You'll need to shoot in manual mode, and set the shutter speed accordingly, but it's a lot of fun, and you end up those dreamy, variable-focus images that tell everyone you're just a little bit off-kilter.
Technology and Sports: Blurring the Line Between Virtual and Reality
Already, there are glimpses of 3-D technology in sports and entertainment, notes James Oliver of Iowa State University. More movies are being shown in 3-D, including this month's release of U2 3D featuring concert footage from the rock group U2. The Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum in London features cinematic techniques designed to give the sensation of seeing championship tennis in 3-D. Whats Linux with a Lineage?Verio Linux VPS delivers root access, advanced FairShare technology for better performance, and support that's actually supportive. It's all from Verio, the Virtual Private Server technology pioneer with over 500,000 customers. Test-drive Linux VPS here. .
Update: Library Has 10 Copies of "Water for Elephants"
No Zags: Candidate endorsement is one of the most antiquated and soon-to-be-extinct functions of the newspaper industry. In a world where anybody can publish any opinion they want and anyone can read it, it seems pretty silly that the "wise old minds" of an editorial board still feel the need to put a newspaper's stamp of approval on a political position. Endorsements are relics of the old-journalism past, as are editorials. Question: I'm curious about the last sentence of No Zags' comment. Are editorials, indeed, relics. Or are the still important contributions to the public dialogue -- and help form community opinion? .
Charter amendments issue looms
While all the insider and kin appointments were being made, Harmon and Hammond said nothing in protest. I don't know why these two just watched quietly while honesty and openness were burned to ash. We had no defenders. No one spoke up for us. There was not one stand-up guy on the whole commission. Harmon and Hammond stood shamed by their conscenting silence. But consistantly since then, they have responded to the avalance of revulsion from us. They have, in many ways, lead the charge to change this debacle into an opportunity for much better representative government. They have not used rear guard delaying tactics, like some have, hoping we would in time, forget. They have been proactive and aggressive in their proposals. They have conducted themselves well.
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