jpelg

Sony NEX-5K/B w/kit zoom lens $450 shipped: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003MPWBB6?m=A185V8Q901AMWI

Canon S95 for $280 shipped: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&N=0&AID=10848188&PID=552179&Q=&Ntt=EMBL1212CA95&A=endecaSearch&SID=VHVpUWZBb0JDamdBQUVuVUFRd0FBQUc1

Is there a possibility of obtaining the form in a Word or Excel format? From there you could do a simple mail-merge from your Excel data. Then save the results in PDF format, which Office can do without Adobe Acrobat Pro. Even if you don't have access to the form in an editable format, it might be worth spending some time recreating it in Excel (assuming it's not overly complex). Or even better, spending the $$ for Acrobat Pro, compared to your time spent doing more mundane things, especially if this is more than a one-time function.

Happy Birthday Tom - enjoy the 'Scampi'!

Thanks for all the responses guys. Are there any issues using a SATA III drive in an older laptop with a SATA II controller (other than missing out on the speed advantages)?

I'd like to extend the life of a 3.5 y/o laptop by replacing the stock HD with an SSD. The plan is to use it for OS (Vista64) & apps only, with data kept external. Don't want to overspend since it is an ever-aging laptop, so I figure the 64GB models strike a good balance between capacity & price (~US$100). Trying to catch up on this tech by reading various reviews & comparing to what is for sale these days. It seems older models were plagued with reliability issues, which I don't need. Brands with better track records include Plextor, Crucial, & Samsung. Surprisingly, Kingston has more than their fair share of negative reviews. So, although they cost a bit more, I will likely stick with the former brands mentioned. Since many of you are computer-tech cognoscenti, including building silent HTPC's & such, I thought I'd pose the question before pulling the trigger. Any other recommendations, or pitfalls to avoid (obvious or not-so-obvious)? Thanks y'all.

You are getting better & better Jeff. I love this one:

Sometimes I think John Grado has a major chip on his shoulder when it comes to reproducing his uncle's flagship cans. It's almost like it's a competitive thing. John saved the business with his wooden cartridges & headphones, and he refuses to make a solid metal headphone (other than the OOP PS-1's originally meant for a limited German professional market). Dunno if that's actually true or not, but that's how it seems sometimes.

^ Awesome post Wayne!

What is your source? Even the best amp won't make the K1000 sound "right" to you if your source isn't up to snuff. I love tubed sources, such as Modwright gear, with the K1000's.

A terrific episode for the series ending. Had the entire season been packed with as much content & intensity, there is no doubt they would have grabbed a bigger fanbase more quickly. From the beginning, I wondered how the series would continue once the Alderman storyline was finished. Either Gibbons would continue to elude capture (where I'd be constantly frustrated), or they would need to come up with an entirely new "enemy" to battle. Ending the series in one season allows us to view it more as a mini-series, with a predefined end date. One chapter from the book of Teresa Colvin, during which she began her tenure as the first female superintendent of the Chicago PD & her crusade against corruption in her city. As such, I found the ending quite satisfactory.

Overall, a relatively satisfying pseudo-ending. Not tying everything up neatly with a bow, and definitely leaving things open-ended enough for possible pickup later. I like that the characters gain permanent injuries & scars throughout their travels. I wouldn't have minded seeing more Lt. James, but other than that, it was cool. What did you all think?

I don't anticipate being called up, so I'll still be here to watch.

Unfortunately among the many good shows being cancelled this month. Catch part II of the series/season finale on Monday.

thanks y'all. you've given me enough info to springboard into more of my own research, along with a workday chuckle.

Can someone briefly explain the differences between Adobe Photoshop vs. Lightroom, or why I'd want one or the other or both? TIA.

Nice shot, Zip. Good to see someone still using K/M gear.

Anyone run into download limits from your ISP? I've heard that Comcast, for one, clamps down on this hard.

Not sure that jitter is the, or the only, culprit for differences. I once compared a portable Sony PCDP with optical-out with another Sony model (also portable, also optical), and there were easily detectable differences in the output levels. A full-sized home CDP was still different. Each increasing in output level respectively. This was using the same DAC with its own internal headphone amp, and the same headphones. Since the digital output on all of these players is not variable, I can only assume that the players' internal software that controls the digital signal is preset at a certain output level. I can also reasonably assume that other digital-outs are also not equal. Don't know how you measure that though. Also don't know if this occurs when using coax/RCA-type digital connections (or any others, for that matter). But I bet that that this accounts for more differences between transports than jitter. Benchmark also did a comparison between a small sampling of DVD players as transports, with considerable differences between those used. But this mostly had to do with sample-rate down conversions at the digital-out side even if the players' DAC chipses could read a higher-level signal. Of course those player/transports that preserved the full sample rate sounded better.

FTFY

Last ten (already filmed) eps to air this Spring. Dang.

WHAAAA?!!!

After nearly a year of prodding by my brother about this show, my wife & I decided to catch up with season 1 via Netflix streaming (way cool now that the PS3 doesn't require a disc!), and jumped into with season 2 this Fall. I must say that, although none of the previous Stargate franchises caught more than a passing glance from me, this latest series has both of us totally hooked. Honestly, there is not so much original here. But it is packaged very well, and the human quality is engaging. Now that it is off for a few weeks/months mid-season, we recently marathoned the Firefly series. My wife had never seen it, but is a Nathan Fillion fan from Castle, so it was an easy sell. Whedon's production held up as well as I remembered it. Next, I may introduce her to Farscape (my personal fav).

I've become increasingly interested in a computer-base library, as late to the game as it is, for all of the advantages of convenience. At the last NY meet, I sat down to listen to the Ayre QB-9 dac that was attached to a Mac laptop. Unfortunately, I could not evaluate the DAC because I was so distracted by the strange sputters that came thru my headphones every time I moused thru the iTunes library while listening to a song. Dunno if that is a common issue or what, as I have so little computer-base audio listening experience. And the system owner wasn't nearby for me to ask. I imagine anything that increases speed (processor power, more memory, increased caches, faster hard-drive access, & such) would improve things a lot. But that sputtering was quite off-putting, and something that would piss me off if I planned on using such a system as my primary delivery method.

Cyndi Lauper last night at the Tarrytown Music Hall. Great show.