Nowadays instead of Googling articles I find interesting, I just trawl thru the various blogs. Mostly photoblogs like Senor Enrique's (http://www.senorenrique.blogspot.com/ ). I forayed into his del.icio.us link had a quick look. Clicked on Luis Liwanag's Street Documentaries (http://pitikbulagdokyu.blogspot.com/ ) and ended up reading one his blurb and the link to this article... wheew. BTW Luis Liwanag, a Filipino photojournalist, has this penchant for old school photography. He likes, as I do, film cameras (those that you do need to develop the film and the photograph!) and has a Leica camera and some Russian lenses.
I guess that is the reason he linked this article. It's like digital vs traditional film photography. I call it "frame-grab photography". All you need is a high definition digital moving camera, keep rolling as far as your memory (or blu-ray disc) can go. Re watch the whole "movie" and freeze frame grab the images you wanted to print or "capture" in stills. It's like cheating for those purist. Anyway, here is a snippet of the article:
"If the change from film to digital was the equivalent of a magnitude 5 earthquake, the changes to photography in the next 10 years will be equivalent of a magnitude 10.
The Digital Journalist, the monthly online magazine for visual journalism, has been predicting many of these changes for the past 10 years. In 1997 we stated that the days of the use of film were coming to an end. We also said that in the future photojournalists would no longer be shooting still pictures, but instead would be using video as their prime medium of acquisition.
All those things have already happened. Still cameras that shoot film have already been abandoned by most manufacturers. Increasingly, newspaper photographers are being asked to shoot video for Web sites.
These seismic shifts, as we are already witnessing, will literally change the way photographers take pictures and how they are displayed.
Of course, in the next 10 years there could be a third world war, in which case all bets are off, but certain evolutions are already too far along to make it unlikely they will be stopped.
First, most of the major camera manufacturers that are now associated with still photography will probably be out of business by 2016. Of the majors now selling cameras, I would put my money on only Canon to survive. That is because they have a farsighted video division, which will provide the research and development that will be a key to their survival. Already, Sony is moving to become the number one still-camera company. Their newest top-of-the line digital still cameras are based on designs from Konica, a company they absorbed.
However, it is video that will undoubtedly become the main means of acquisition in photography. Today, almost all the manufacturers of prosumer video cameras have moved to High Definition. These cameras, off the shelf, are capable of delivering a 2-megapixel still image. The Dallas Morning News is now equipping their still photographers with Sony Z1U video cameras, and they have created an algorithm that allows those frame grabs to be boosted to 16 megapixels, which only two years ago was the maximum you could get out of a professional 35mm camera. The Dallas Morning News is regularly running 4- and 5-column front-page pictures from these video grabs. Then, they put the streaming video on their Web site."
Read the whole article by Dirck Halstead by clicking the title above.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Dov Seidman: Lisa Belkin On Office Theft
While Googling several Blogazines, I came across this article re office theft. While not strictly tech in nature, this issue represents a greater part of company-employee governance. I found it to be very interesting given my experience with "empowerment" in the workplace in the 90's.
To read the full article, please click the title. Why do I do this? So you, the reader, will be motivated to visit the source of this article. That source is How Blogazine and points to Lisa's Life’s Work column: “I Lost My Laptop in Outer Space, and Other Tales of Office Theft" in The New York Times.
"How much is too much?
In today’s New York Times, Lisa Belkin writes about the shifting threshold companies and employees have regarding personal use of company items. Lisa interviewed me for the piece and I offered that a possible solution to the problem of theft may be as simple as not classifying minor thefts as transgressions in the first place.
Lisa’s story looked at the fine points of the issue, but there are some larger points here as well.
If you embrace the notion of governing through culture, it’s clear that the most important issue here is shared understanding. Companies that can successfully inspire their stakeholders with common purpose and enlist them in a shared idea of what kind of company they want to be will breed less of the cynicism and sense of entitlement that sparks retributory actions by their employees. If you share in the goals of the group, you’re less likely to feel that they owe you something.
When oppositional thinking declines and alignment increases, instances of larger-scale theft is likely to decline, too. So, in an odd way, when a company’s culture attains a shared understanding that, say, taking a row of staples home is okay but taking the stapler is not, instances of embezzlement or expense-report cheating might also decline. (I think Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner at Freakonomics would like this thinking.)
The key issue is that every group must seek to build a common understanding of what belongs to the company and what belongs to company’s shareholders. Every group can answer that question differently—some might say take anything one likes and some might say hands off everything—but all must seek shared understanding."
To read the full article, please click the title. Why do I do this? So you, the reader, will be motivated to visit the source of this article. That source is How Blogazine and points to Lisa's Life’s Work column: “I Lost My Laptop in Outer Space, and Other Tales of Office Theft" in The New York Times.
"How much is too much?
In today’s New York Times, Lisa Belkin writes about the shifting threshold companies and employees have regarding personal use of company items. Lisa interviewed me for the piece and I offered that a possible solution to the problem of theft may be as simple as not classifying minor thefts as transgressions in the first place.
Lisa’s story looked at the fine points of the issue, but there are some larger points here as well.
If you embrace the notion of governing through culture, it’s clear that the most important issue here is shared understanding. Companies that can successfully inspire their stakeholders with common purpose and enlist them in a shared idea of what kind of company they want to be will breed less of the cynicism and sense of entitlement that sparks retributory actions by their employees. If you share in the goals of the group, you’re less likely to feel that they owe you something.
When oppositional thinking declines and alignment increases, instances of larger-scale theft is likely to decline, too. So, in an odd way, when a company’s culture attains a shared understanding that, say, taking a row of staples home is okay but taking the stapler is not, instances of embezzlement or expense-report cheating might also decline. (I think Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner at Freakonomics would like this thinking.)
The key issue is that every group must seek to build a common understanding of what belongs to the company and what belongs to company’s shareholders. Every group can answer that question differently—some might say take anything one likes and some might say hands off everything—but all must seek shared understanding."
Monday, November 5, 2007
End of an Era: Computer World (Vic) Pty Ltd
The other day, I received a letter from a company down in Melbourne:
http://www.grantthornton.com.au/business-portal/melbourne/computer-world-victoria-pty-limited.aspx
It is a letter stating that my former employer is into receivership.
I guess that was a matter of time. Thinking back when suppliers would not release goods and paychecks are not forthcoming as promised; you sort know that there is a cash flow problem.
Imagine running a business with only 5% margin!
Well, computers and PC peripherals shops are so many, from top end stores to garage-ran business, you can't be blamed for running out of business. The competition is so stiff that margin tends to be so small. I am amazed that businesses can survive that long, let alone one that started life in 1992.
Working for that mob for nearly four years, while not the greatest experience of my life; have taught me some facts about running and how not to run a business! It is so easy to talk about shortcomings and be an armchair critic. But to be in the actual firing line. I am not amazed that at one stage the owner sufferred a heart attack! You can also recall how the owner of another Victorian icon, Crazy John, died of a heart attack just recently.
With consumers wanting cheaper products, greater support, customer service and free after sales service, businesses will not stop closing down. While is it not a justification for shody and unethical businesses, it is a powerful motivation to do the wrong thing if your business' survival depends on it.
Now with the closure of this business, people who bought from them would have to find ways to access their various warranties. From experience there is no problem with laptops, printers, LCD screens and TV. But the rest of the components and PC assembled by Computer World (unless you took out one of those 3 year warranty from a 3rd party supplier!); there would be a lot of angst finding warranty.
If the product is Seagate, Logitech, Western Digital, etc., I suggest you go to the manufacturer's web site. Seagate and Logitech are some of the best manufacturers when it comes to warranty claims. That is from my experience.
Any problem with warranty, you can post your query to me and I will be glad to answer them. A good tip, if you still have the CWorld red bar code sticker attached to your component or box, that tells you the wholesaler, invoice and invoice date. Some of the best suppliers are Altech and Synnex comes to mind.
But working for CWorld gave me contacts in the industry, I've formed some lasting friendships as well and gave me the experience and knowledge of new PC stuff. I am sorry for their loss as well.
http://www.grantthornton.com.au/business-portal/melbourne/computer-world-victoria-pty-limited.aspx
It is a letter stating that my former employer is into receivership.
I guess that was a matter of time. Thinking back when suppliers would not release goods and paychecks are not forthcoming as promised; you sort know that there is a cash flow problem.
Imagine running a business with only 5% margin!
Well, computers and PC peripherals shops are so many, from top end stores to garage-ran business, you can't be blamed for running out of business. The competition is so stiff that margin tends to be so small. I am amazed that businesses can survive that long, let alone one that started life in 1992.
Working for that mob for nearly four years, while not the greatest experience of my life; have taught me some facts about running and how not to run a business! It is so easy to talk about shortcomings and be an armchair critic. But to be in the actual firing line. I am not amazed that at one stage the owner sufferred a heart attack! You can also recall how the owner of another Victorian icon, Crazy John, died of a heart attack just recently.
With consumers wanting cheaper products, greater support, customer service and free after sales service, businesses will not stop closing down. While is it not a justification for shody and unethical businesses, it is a powerful motivation to do the wrong thing if your business' survival depends on it.
Now with the closure of this business, people who bought from them would have to find ways to access their various warranties. From experience there is no problem with laptops, printers, LCD screens and TV. But the rest of the components and PC assembled by Computer World (unless you took out one of those 3 year warranty from a 3rd party supplier!); there would be a lot of angst finding warranty.
If the product is Seagate, Logitech, Western Digital, etc., I suggest you go to the manufacturer's web site. Seagate and Logitech are some of the best manufacturers when it comes to warranty claims. That is from my experience.
Any problem with warranty, you can post your query to me and I will be glad to answer them. A good tip, if you still have the CWorld red bar code sticker attached to your component or box, that tells you the wholesaler, invoice and invoice date. Some of the best suppliers are Altech and Synnex comes to mind.
But working for CWorld gave me contacts in the industry, I've formed some lasting friendships as well and gave me the experience and knowledge of new PC stuff. I am sorry for their loss as well.
Pyrotenax
TAFE students this morning are doing Pyrotenax cable termination exercises.
I've seen this strange looking gadgets here around the store, but with my years of experience in defence and computing; this is the first time I've come across this type of cabling. I've done mostly RF transmission cabling and in the advent of computing, category 5 cabling.
So this, to say the least, is something new to me. And that is great, I am still learning!
A quick info to those who's not in the know (well, most electricians would -- my excuse is I am an electronics tech!); this cabling are mostly used for fire survival cable systems. I am also amazed that they are the same cabling system used for underflooring heating!
For more info, use link in the title; or try Googling it for the many applications and suppliers.
I've seen this strange looking gadgets here around the store, but with my years of experience in defence and computing; this is the first time I've come across this type of cabling. I've done mostly RF transmission cabling and in the advent of computing, category 5 cabling.
So this, to say the least, is something new to me. And that is great, I am still learning!
A quick info to those who's not in the know (well, most electricians would -- my excuse is I am an electronics tech!); this cabling are mostly used for fire survival cable systems. I am also amazed that they are the same cabling system used for underflooring heating!
For more info, use link in the title; or try Googling it for the many applications and suppliers.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Revolution ahead in data storage--IT wizards
Agence France-PresseLast updated 10:39am (Mla time) 11/01/2007
PARIS--The world's smallest hard drives have already shrunk to the size of a postage stamp, but nanoscale computing may soon make that achievement look elephantine, say some of the stars of information technology.
Breathtaking change is on the horizon in personal and industrial data storage, the experts say in a review of vanguard technology, published on Wednesday in the British journal Nature Materials.
The newest developments in "spintronics," for example, are poised to go beyond the electrical charge of classic electronics to harness the quantum "spin" state of electrons, writes Albert Fert, co-winner last month of the Nobel Prize for Physics.
That could usher in dramatic advances in hard disk storage capacity and date retrieval, says Fert. Along with Peter Gruenberg of Germany, Frenchman Fert was lauded for discovering the principle, called giant magnetoresistance (GMR), that lies at the heart of the past decade's most popular electronic devices, from iPods to cell phones to Blackberries.
Fert's new holy grail -- called Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM) -- could essentially collapse the disk drive and computer chip into one, vastly expanding both processing power and storage capacity."
For full article see link above.
Also see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_magnetoresistive_effect
PARIS--The world's smallest hard drives have already shrunk to the size of a postage stamp, but nanoscale computing may soon make that achievement look elephantine, say some of the stars of information technology.
Breathtaking change is on the horizon in personal and industrial data storage, the experts say in a review of vanguard technology, published on Wednesday in the British journal Nature Materials.
The newest developments in "spintronics," for example, are poised to go beyond the electrical charge of classic electronics to harness the quantum "spin" state of electrons, writes Albert Fert, co-winner last month of the Nobel Prize for Physics.
That could usher in dramatic advances in hard disk storage capacity and date retrieval, says Fert. Along with Peter Gruenberg of Germany, Frenchman Fert was lauded for discovering the principle, called giant magnetoresistance (GMR), that lies at the heart of the past decade's most popular electronic devices, from iPods to cell phones to Blackberries.
Fert's new holy grail -- called Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM) -- could essentially collapse the disk drive and computer chip into one, vastly expanding both processing power and storage capacity."
For full article see link above.
Also see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_magnetoresistive_effect
WARNING: device driver updates causing Vista to deactivate
I had the same problem with my Dual Core E6400 PC with Vista Premium. I googled the problem and came up with this article from APC.
With activation, the hassle is waiting on the phone keying all these codes... a bit frustrating!
In short watch out for changing components (hard disk, memories, CPU, video card...) and device drivers. That would trigger a de-activation.
"After weeks of gruelling troubleshooting, I've finally had it confirmed by Microsoft Australia and USA -- something as small as swapping the video card or updating a device driver can trigger a total Vista deactivation.
Put simply, your copy of Windows will stop working with very little notice (three days) and your PC will go into "reduced functionality" mode, where you can't do anything but use the web browser for half an hour.
You'll then need to reapply to Microsoft to get a new activation code.
How can this crazy situation occur? Read on for the sorry tale."
To read full article see link: http://apcmag.com/vista_activation
With activation, the hassle is waiting on the phone keying all these codes... a bit frustrating!
In short watch out for changing components (hard disk, memories, CPU, video card...) and device drivers. That would trigger a de-activation.
"After weeks of gruelling troubleshooting, I've finally had it confirmed by Microsoft Australia and USA -- something as small as swapping the video card or updating a device driver can trigger a total Vista deactivation.
Put simply, your copy of Windows will stop working with very little notice (three days) and your PC will go into "reduced functionality" mode, where you can't do anything but use the web browser for half an hour.
You'll then need to reapply to Microsoft to get a new activation code.
How can this crazy situation occur? Read on for the sorry tale."
To read full article see link: http://apcmag.com/vista_activation
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