[The Wisdom of a Distracted Mind] I should have just taken up crack.

*sigh*

Well, I bought a new lens.

Actually, truth be told, it's not new at all, and it hasn't been new for at least thirty years or so. However, it was cheap (something like $50 which is a far cry from what its price was thirty years ago, I tell you), and according to those in the know, it's one of Nikon's sharpest lenses ever built. So, I am certainly looking forward to getting my grubby little mitts on my 55mm f/3.5 micro (which technically means macro but Nikon has to be different for some reason and use micro).

Now, I honestly can't explain why I ordered this. There's a part of me that really gets a kick out of using all those old lenses on my new digital camera. Not only do they look absolutely twisted in a completely anachronistic sort of way, the quality of some of those older lenses has always been tough to beat.

In other words, I didn't need it, but it was only $50, and sometimes that sort of thing is impossible to pass up.


In other news, the latest version of Firefox has hit the general population, and after futzing around with it for a while, I'm going to say it's pretty damn nifty.

Not only is it a smidge faster than Firefox 2.0, perhaps one of the more interesting upgrades in version 3 is the ability for color management for rendering color spaces other than Adobe sRGB, so photos as they appear in the photo-editing software will look the same in the browser.

Yes. It's a very subtle, and barely noticeable feature which, up until now, only the Safari browser was capable of. Of course, I'm certain eventually Microsoft's Internet Explorer will pick this color management feature up one of these days, but until then, if you're using IE, you're stuck with Adobe sRGB. Granted, you're really not missing much, but you are missing something (for now).

As for the add-ons for which Firefox is famous, the last couple of days I've been really having a fun time running the PicLens add-on (pictured on the right) It's a real blast on sites like Flickr and YouTube as it lays the content out in front of you in a panel of thumbnails whose size can be adjusted with the scroll-wheel, and the left to right movement is operated on a bar on the bottom. And, with a simple click, you can zoom in and activate the content.

For example, what you see here is my Flickr photostream; however, if I were poking around on YouTube, that would be a list of videos, and if I wanted to play one of those videos, I only have to click on it. It's actually a hell of a lot of fun and easy to use. In fact, it's one of those things which is easier to use than it is to explain how to use it.

Other than that, it's the usual add-ons: AdBlock Plus, One-Click Answers, Hyperwords, Greasemonkey, etc..

Well, I think that should do it for now. I was planning on dragging this out, but naaah! You don't need that. Plus, I've got to watch Doctor Who since I missed the 8 PM matinee because I was out walking the neighborhood looking for DogCat who's been gone all day (I found him squaring off with another neighborhood cat, and all is right with the world again).

Anyway, if you've got Firefox 2, you might want to upgrade. Of course, doing so with a young release as this can be a little dodgy since something will most certainly be an issue somewhere. But, so far, on this end, it's running great.

Finally, Barry (Not Bob), the guy on the other side of the pond who takes awesome pictures, said he was thinking about getting a polarizer or an infra-red remote, and to that, I've just got to say, get them both.

The remote for my Nikon was probably the best camera purchase I'd ever made. And, the circular polarizer was just this over-priced hunk of junk I picked up at Best Buy for $15. I'm honestly (and pleasantly) surprised that my fish pictures even turned out, and I'm kind of stunned the polarizer worked at all (I've had terrible luck with the company who makes these filters. I bought a UV filter that just ruined every picture with lens flares and whatnots). Of course, I'd like a better one since I really don't think the one I've got could handle much more than simply cutting through the glare on water, but then those things start getting pricey fast. Still, it's nice to know that I do have this cheap, but functional thing, in my camera bag should I need it.

Okay... I'm off.

-DP

P.S. What's everyone's plans for this weekend? Is anyone taking a limo to a Bon Jovi concert?


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Posted By Dan to The Wisdom of a Distracted Mind at 6/20/2008 09:34:00 PM