In a minute...

"In a minute..." That's a phrase I'm used to hearing now. Sara's busy making dinner, or selling some stuff on eBay. I'll use it because I'm working on one of my blogs, doing some model photography, mowing, or working on some models. I never gave it much thought. But, like everything else, R3 has put a new spin on it. Lately, when we request his presence at the dinner table, want to show him something cool, or we need to discipline him, we hear "In a minute!" I'm rather self critical by nature, so I started thinking about it. I'm not upset that he uses this term to buy some time to finish up what he's working on. In fact, I really don't mind that he uses the phrase at all. What does bother me, is how many times did he have to hear us saying that to him for him to add it to his vocabulary? How many times did he want to share an idea? How many times did he just want to enjoy our company while he played? And our response was "In a minute.."

More than 12 years without Antivirus

After over twelve years of computing, I finally installed an anti-virus/anti-intrusion/keep-me-safe/anti-spyware/anti-hacker software program today. I only put it on my computer at work, too. (My Mac goes on in this cruel, cruel world, uprotected and naked to all those nasty bugs out there.) I tend to not care for those things. They take up unnecessary computing power, typically cause erratic behavior, and generally just stink. One reason I have gone so long, is that I have a Mac at home. 'Nuff said. I do believe Macs can get a virus, etc. I'm not naive, it's just not very common. But I think if you just use some common sense, computing can be very safe, without the need for additional software. At work though, I have to count on the lowest common denominator. I'm not always the one commanding my computer. Since I share my little compy, I felt it was time to go ahead and lock 'er down. I have had enough of cleaning everyone elses Winboxes of that foul junk for awhile. By the way, anti-virus is only as smart as it's user.....hint, hint.

Tip: If your computer asks you to buy software to rid itself of viruses, don't. Plain and simple. We had a fellow pay $40 to some mysterious anti-spyware company that showed up in a pop up ad and installed a mess of a programs onto his computer. That included what? Spyware! Viruses! And Bloatware! Oh my! After formating the stupid thing, it seemed to run fine.

The regulars around here seem to know what's going on. But the short timers invariably get to screwing around with a computer and put some junk on it that completely destroys the OS. Just because "The computer told me too..."

Second, if you like fancy screen savers, games, and weather trackers... Wait, I'm not even going to go there, either. Just don't. All I'm saying is use common sense. Get to know you're operating system. You know what real error messages look like. If you are surfing the web, and something pops up and tells you you just haaave to put a program on (and the window has home, back, and forward buttons), go to download.com, or cnet.com, and see what others say. Or run your updater from Windows or OSX and use that. I am not some sort of guru when it comes to computers, but for me to go my ENTIRE computing life, and not get ONE virus, I must be doing something right. I just installed a name brand Antivirus on three computers at work, as a precaution. Mine was the only one that didn't have a single virus on it. Just be smart, do your research. Try to go to trusted sites. Use programs like McAfee, Norton, Panda, etc. If you don't know what to do, ask someone that does. No, not your neighbors kid. Call a computer repair shop, or find a real personal reference. I may sound like I am venting, I am. I just hate spending time, and having to spend money working on computers, when the whole problem was caused by ignorance. It's not that difficult, but fixing it can be.

Update: Sara's fine

We got a call from the doctor this morning. Sara is going to be fine. The area in question was in fact something to be worried about. However, they feel that all of it was removed. God definitely answered our prayers. Thanks for all your prayers as well.

Just some thoughts on photography

I am an avid amateur photographer. I've just got a couple of point and shoot cameras. A Canon A530 and a Sony DSC-S85. I really enjoy trying to capture good shots. It is amazing how well a decent point and shoot will do, though. Above are a couple of shots I took while in Springfield, Illinois. When I was in school, I took an awesome photography course at OSU. I had some really wonderful professors. They really opened my eyes, and showed me alot about the process behind photography. I ended up leaving the course with three first place photos. One of the subjects we covered was shooting with slide film. It was a bit more difficult to get that elusive "great shot," but the resulting photos were so well colored. Typically, the photos were much more vivid, and deeper in color. I was pleased to find that one of the modes on my little A530 attempted to replicate that style of film. I'm not big on scene modes, but I thought I'd give it a try. I happy to announce that this little Canon does a fine job. Neither of the shots above were retouched. The one on the left was taken in "Auto," the one on the right was taken in "Positive." As you can see, it really made the sky pop out. It also seemed to add a bit more depth to the overall picture. I will definitely be using this mode more often.

However, I think the reason these colors come out so well, brings me to my next point. I photography, light is very important. Most real photographers have reflectors and lights to help illuminate their subjects and eliminate shadows. As always, I'm a little too thrifty for a couple of hundred dollars worth of this equipment. What I normally do is take most of my shots in the late afternoon/dusk light and without a flash. Two things result from this. First, very little shadow. The light is bouncing off the atmosphere, houses, typically everything, except the subject. So you don't have people squinting, a harsh black outline around them (from the shadow the cast with your flash), or overexposed whites. The other added bonus, is that the light in the evening adds a wonderful warm tone to everything. Again, look at the pictures above, notice how warm the colors are? The warm building, against the cool blue sky? To me, it just adds a little richness. By the way, I forgot my tripod at home, please forgive some of the camera shake. Like I said, these are just my thoughts. If you have any tips or tricks, please leave a comment, I'm always looking to improve.