I have been devoting a lot of my time over the past couple months to getting my MCDST certification. Today I passed the first of two exams needed for that certification. The MCDST certification is for a new IT job which I will be starting soon.
Updates will probably continue to be slow as I hit the books for the second exam. If I focus, I should be ready for the test in about a month. I could probably use a fast track method to be ready sooner, but I'm going to be expected to know this stuff and I would look pretty stupid if I didn't. A lot of people are book smart, but book smart doesn't always cut it... you have to have experience so you know how to handle the situation when it comes up in the real world.
On the photography front... I have been dabbling in HDR. Real HDR... not the fake HDR using single image in Lightroom that I posted about earlier. I don't have any images to share just yet, but I'll post something soon.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
Studying and getting my Wii Fit on
It's been a couple weeks since my last post. I've been really busy with some other things and haven't had much time to just sit back and relax.
I am starting a new IT job soon, which I am very excited about. I have been hitting the books hard studying up for the Microsoft MCDST certification exams. The MCDST certification consists of two tests. I am taking the first test on Monday and then I'll start studying for the second. I am pretty confident that I will pass. I was already comfortable with most aspects of troubleshooting Windows XP, but I have learned a lot, so it has been time well spent.
I have also been focusing on exercising to get in better shape and lose weight. I decided to make an experiment of it by using Wii Fit on my Nintendo Wii. I have committed to using Wii Fit for 90 consecutive days to see how well it works. I have created a blog so that anyone can track my progress, and hopefully it will enspire others to exercise. Please come check it out: Wii Fit 90 Day Experience
I am starting a new IT job soon, which I am very excited about. I have been hitting the books hard studying up for the Microsoft MCDST certification exams. The MCDST certification consists of two tests. I am taking the first test on Monday and then I'll start studying for the second. I am pretty confident that I will pass. I was already comfortable with most aspects of troubleshooting Windows XP, but I have learned a lot, so it has been time well spent.
I have also been focusing on exercising to get in better shape and lose weight. I decided to make an experiment of it by using Wii Fit on my Nintendo Wii. I have committed to using Wii Fit for 90 consecutive days to see how well it works. I have created a blog so that anyone can track my progress, and hopefully it will enspire others to exercise. Please come check it out: Wii Fit 90 Day Experience
Friday, September 12, 2008
How to fix an iPhone which fails restore
Apple released the iPhone 2.1 Software Update today. When I got home, I immediately put my iPhone in its dock, launched iTunes, and clicked Check for Updates. There it was... the iPhone 2.1 Software Update waiting to be downloaded. I told it to continue and then I popped in a movie because these updates tend to take a while.
A while later, I went back to my computer to find a message stating that the update had failed and the iPhone would have to be restored. That sucked, but I didn't give it a second thought (since there were no other options presented to me) and chose the Restore option.
As the progress bar reached the end, I was presented with this fun message:
The iPhone "iPhone" could not be restored. An unknown error occurred (6).
When I clicked OK, it told me that iTunes found my iPhone in a safe mode state and I repeated the process of clicking Restore which led me right back to this same error. I went through this a third time (third time's a charm... right?) but had the same results. My phone was officially bricked!
I clicked the Help button and that took me to the "Update and restore error messages on the iPhone and iPod touch" article on Apple's support site.
I have worked in technical support for most of my adult life, and I could tell immediately that this is your very typical 'all-in-one' BS article that does not resolve the issue. I didn't even have to try the steps mentioned. Someone at Apple needs to take a good look at their knowledge base and review answers such as these. It is rediculous that you would have your customers jump through a lengthy string of hoops only to not resolve the issue or be told to call support (we all know how long those phone calls can be).
The REAL problem was that the file that iTunes downloaded was corrupt. The problem, however, is that once your iPhone is bricked there is no way to tell iTunes to re-download it.
(Note: These steps worked for me. I don't claim that this will work for everyone. I am not responsible if these steps make your situation worse, but let's face it... at this point your iPhone is already bricked so how much worse could it get?)
STEPS TO RESOLVE:
Mac OSX: ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates
That's it! Now why couldn't Apple provide a simple soution such as that instead of making their customers get frustrated spending hours going through troubleshooting steps that are not going to resolve their issue or having to call support? Their support team surely doesn't need the extra workload! The customer is already frustrated and upset. They just want a quick and easy solution.
A while later, I went back to my computer to find a message stating that the update had failed and the iPhone would have to be restored. That sucked, but I didn't give it a second thought (since there were no other options presented to me) and chose the Restore option.
As the progress bar reached the end, I was presented with this fun message:
The iPhone "iPhone" could not be restored. An unknown error occurred (6).
I clicked the Help button and that took me to the "Update and restore error messages on the iPhone and iPod touch" article on Apple's support site.
I have worked in technical support for most of my adult life, and I could tell immediately that this is your very typical 'all-in-one' BS article that does not resolve the issue. I didn't even have to try the steps mentioned. Someone at Apple needs to take a good look at their knowledge base and review answers such as these. It is rediculous that you would have your customers jump through a lengthy string of hoops only to not resolve the issue or be told to call support (we all know how long those phone calls can be).
The REAL problem was that the file that iTunes downloaded was corrupt. The problem, however, is that once your iPhone is bricked there is no way to tell iTunes to re-download it.
(Note: These steps worked for me. I don't claim that this will work for everyone. I am not responsible if these steps make your situation worse, but let's face it... at this point your iPhone is already bricked so how much worse could it get?)
STEPS TO RESOLVE:
- Manually download the appropriate iPhone 2.1 firmware from Apple (iPhone 2G / iPhone 3G).
- On the iPhone screen in iTunes, hold down the 'Option' key ('Shift' on PC) and click the Restore button. In the file selection window, point it to the file you downloaded in step 1 and click OK.
- After the firmware is installed, it will ask you whether you want to (1) set your phone up as a new iPhone, or if you want to (2) restore from a backup of
. Choosing the latter will restore your phone to it's previous condition.
Mac OSX: ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates
That's it! Now why couldn't Apple provide a simple soution such as that instead of making their customers get frustrated spending hours going through troubleshooting steps that are not going to resolve their issue or having to call support? Their support team surely doesn't need the extra workload! The customer is already frustrated and upset. They just want a quick and easy solution.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Google updates Picasa and Picasa Web Albums
Google had a busy day today! The Google Chrome web browser release was the shot heard around the world. But in the shadow of Chrome's news, Google also released updates to it's Picasa line of photo editing and sharing products... Picasa 3 and Picasa Web Albums.
Picasa 3
Picasa 3 is Google's latest release of their photo organizer and editor software for Windows. I use Adobe Lightroom for my needs, but I am warming up to Picasa and tend to recommend it to friends and family who have a Windows computer but don't need the features of Lightroom. I didn't care for the first version of Picasa because it just seemed awkward and difficult for a novice to use.
Picasa 2 addressed many of my concerns and I installed it on my parents computer when they got a digital camera a few months ago. Picasa was simple enough that they learned how to use it to import and organize/display photos. They can also upload photos to Picasa Web to share with family and friends.
The release of Picasa 3 brings several new features. Here are some of my favorites:
There are several other features. Visit the What's New and What's Changed pages to see what has changed. Google also released the following video to explain what's new in Picasa 3.
Picasa Web Albums
Google also updated their Picasa Web Albums photo sharing service today with a couple of new features. I have been a longtime Flickr user, and I feel that it is the superior service for it's community aspects, but Yahoo! sorely needs to invest in updating the Flickr technology or they are going to lose ground to Picasa Web Albums and other services. With these latest changes that Google has made, I may be recommending friends and family that aren't involved in the community aspect to use Picasa Web Albums instead of Flickr.
Name tags: Name tags use clustering technology to identify photos with similar faces so that you can tag those photos quickly and easily. You can then display groups of photos with a specific person or set of people.
Explore page: The new Explore page displays recent photo contributions from people around the globe. There is a slideshow of new photos from members around the world, and you can also display photos by popular tags. There is also a fun game called 'Where in the World?' where you are presented with a string of photos and have to place a pin on a map of where you think that each photo was taken. You are given points based on how close you are to the actual location. I don't know the object of this game (besides to earn points), but I quit after a few rounds.
I think that Google is headed in the right direction with Picasa Web Albums. In some ways they have surpassed Flickr, but overall they are still quite far behind. In addition to the lack of community (which they appear to be working on), Google really needs to re-evaluate the amount of storage they provide.
You get 1 GB for free with Picasa Web Albums. Adding 10 GB of shared storage (used by all Google products) will cost you $20/year. Other annual plans include: 40 GB for $75; 150 GB for $250; 400 GB for $500. With online storage services such as ADrive providing 50 GB storage free, Google's pricing needs to change if they want to stay competitive.
Picasa 3
Picasa 3 is Google's latest release of their photo organizer and editor software for Windows. I use Adobe Lightroom for my needs, but I am warming up to Picasa and tend to recommend it to friends and family who have a Windows computer but don't need the features of Lightroom. I didn't care for the first version of Picasa because it just seemed awkward and difficult for a novice to use.
Picasa 2 addressed many of my concerns and I installed it on my parents computer when they got a digital camera a few months ago. Picasa was simple enough that they learned how to use it to import and organize/display photos. They can also upload photos to Picasa Web to share with family and friends.
The release of Picasa 3 brings several new features. Here are some of my favorites:
- Add multiple word tags: Enter 'New York' as a tag instead of entering 'New' and 'York' as separate words.
- Capture screen: You can now press the Print Screen button and have the screenshot automatically put into Picasa.
- Retouch images: Ability to remove blemishes from an image. Similar to the clone tool in Lightroom and Photoshop.
- Add text or watermark: Easily add text or a watermark to a photo. You can set the text attributes and easily choose the location and angle of the text.
- Create movies: Picasa 3 includes a movie editor so you can create movies from your video clips. I don't have any videos to try this out, but it appears to be very simple to use.
There are several other features. Visit the What's New and What's Changed pages to see what has changed. Google also released the following video to explain what's new in Picasa 3.
Picasa Web Albums
Google also updated their Picasa Web Albums photo sharing service today with a couple of new features. I have been a longtime Flickr user, and I feel that it is the superior service for it's community aspects, but Yahoo! sorely needs to invest in updating the Flickr technology or they are going to lose ground to Picasa Web Albums and other services. With these latest changes that Google has made, I may be recommending friends and family that aren't involved in the community aspect to use Picasa Web Albums instead of Flickr.
Name tags: Name tags use clustering technology to identify photos with similar faces so that you can tag those photos quickly and easily. You can then display groups of photos with a specific person or set of people.
Explore page: The new Explore page displays recent photo contributions from people around the globe. There is a slideshow of new photos from members around the world, and you can also display photos by popular tags. There is also a fun game called 'Where in the World?' where you are presented with a string of photos and have to place a pin on a map of where you think that each photo was taken. You are given points based on how close you are to the actual location. I don't know the object of this game (besides to earn points), but I quit after a few rounds.
I think that Google is headed in the right direction with Picasa Web Albums. In some ways they have surpassed Flickr, but overall they are still quite far behind. In addition to the lack of community (which they appear to be working on), Google really needs to re-evaluate the amount of storage they provide.
You get 1 GB for free with Picasa Web Albums. Adding 10 GB of shared storage (used by all Google products) will cost you $20/year. Other annual plans include: 40 GB for $75; 150 GB for $250; 400 GB for $500. With online storage services such as ADrive providing 50 GB storage free, Google's pricing needs to change if they want to stay competitive.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)