12th Night. Decorations go away and Christmas is over. The first of it's kind I believe and the first over a very sad watershed.
When I was a pup I remember Christmas. I was the fourth of five lads and when it came to judging the mood of my parents they always deferred to me. Why? I don't know. My memories of Christmas morning commenced with being asked "Do you reckon we can go down now?". It was exciting going down to find a pile of presents. Well a pillowcase stuffed generally. Five pillowcases around the the living room. We would open presents and there would be calls of "Look!" and we would. The room would be a mess and the toys would be played with and chocolate eaten. Mince pies for breakfast and excitement all day - until bedtime. At bedtime the magic collapsed and disappointment leapt in as you realised - That was it! Christmas DONE!
I have seen that disappointment crash in at each Christmas for my daughters until they reach a certain point. I suppose it's called Maturity. Our eldest had long past this as she sat her A levels and her sister was born and so for me to see the pre Christmas excitement/disappointment cycle start again was truly magic.
This year was different. Throughout the run up our youngest kept telling us that she was the only one of her group who was not excited about Christmas. I felt disappointed but we did everything we could. Come Christmas eve the two were together again for the reading of "The Night Before Christmas" and I hope that will continue. But as her sister went home again our youngest retired for the night asking what time she could get up. Come Christmas day we heard "How did you know I wanted this?" on more than one occasion but come bedtime she was not suffering the depression that she had previously and so I didn't go and sit on her bed and try to console her as in previous years.
But now we won't have another child of our own and so the Christmas excitement/disappointment magic is gone from our Christmases and while there may be grandchildren they won't carry the same involvement.
It's a sad time this year but a happy time as I am assured that it was still one very good Christmas.,
Wednesday, 5 January 2011
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
A Christmas Present For Grandma and Granddad.
SOC's and FOC's Grandparents on wifey's side are now both in their 90s. For nonagenarians they are both doing very well and, while they don't understand technology they do have ideas of what can be done. Granddad asked if his Super 8 home movies could be put onto DVD for him for Christmas. I had a think, with FOC present, and suggested I would need a video camera to do it - something I don't own.
A couple of weeks later, out of my hearing, he asked wifey if he could buy me what I needed to convert his home movies - for my Christmas present. This meant he was serious - but I don't want a video camera! So what to do? I asked FOC and she said she had one but it was to tape and I would need to then copy them using cables and software and it was messy. I then thought about our newly acquired Lumix compact camera. I had not explored it's video capabilities but what were they? I tried a couple of videos of Dylan in the snow and was surprised that they are VGA or QVGA specification. Interesting, but how to get them to DVD for the average DVD player. I sourceforged and found DVD Flick for DVD Authoring. So first thing is to take those videos of Dylan and put them to DVD and see DVD Flick work. It worked a treat and has a selection of inbuilt menus for multiple titles (chapters). I tried the final DVD on the playstation and his DVD player and they worked. Things were looking good.
I fetched a few movies and the projector and screen and set about the first one. Mounting the compact camera on a tripod beside the project and as near to the projection source as possible I then zoomed in to capture the image. I JUST managed to fill the screen of the camera (it's 4 times optical zoom) with the projected image but was losing out on colour. Over several days I played with lots of settings and eventually bumped in to a setting that is not on the menu - that of exposure. I set this to -1 and started to get the results. I was also projecting onto less than A4 (I had abandoned the aged screen) as this reduces pixelation. Also my compact will only record for 15 minutes before stopping the recording so I found it necessary to record some in 2 chunks and then 'splice' them together later.
Obviously I made the movie 'lead in' blank of the tape longer while I fiddled with getting the camera started and the same would happen at the end so I planned on removing them by Windows Movie Maker (WMM). Problem is that Windows Movie Maker doesn't recognise the file format (mov) that the Lumix produces. I picked up Any Video Converter - Free (AVC) from sourceforge.net and used it to convert the mov format files to mpeg2 which WMM will recognise. AVC gives you the ability to edit out sections of the recording - except I couldn't get it to work so I continued to use WMM and WMM does give the ability to add titles where ever required and also gave me the ability to splice bits together.
Having finally produced the 'titles' (or 'chapters') it was time for DVD Flick. I was really surprised by how DVD Flick smoothed out the flickering images and enhanced the colours. Problem is the projector's chattering is carried through on the sound and DVD Flick needs a soundtrack. At each title (11 so far) I have edited the screen title and the time index of the tumbnail (so that the added title shows) as well as added a new soundtrack (mp3) from a CD I own and removed the original soundtrack. It was at soundtrack level that I found a bug. If the soundtrack is shorter than the movie then DVD Flick just unloads itself and any unsaved changes are lost. I used 'Audacity' to add all my soundtracks together to get one large enough to cater for all my videos.
A few years ago I paid for some movies to be put to VHS professionally for him and comparing the results I feel my efforts have produced the better results. Oh, and cost less as NONE of the software I used cost money - Many thanks to the open source world (and rather unusually Microsoft!).
One cost I did incur though was an extension hard drive as this process is, by necessity, disk hungry and the old laptop is about full - well was anyway.
A couple of weeks later, out of my hearing, he asked wifey if he could buy me what I needed to convert his home movies - for my Christmas present. This meant he was serious - but I don't want a video camera! So what to do? I asked FOC and she said she had one but it was to tape and I would need to then copy them using cables and software and it was messy. I then thought about our newly acquired Lumix compact camera. I had not explored it's video capabilities but what were they? I tried a couple of videos of Dylan in the snow and was surprised that they are VGA or QVGA specification. Interesting, but how to get them to DVD for the average DVD player. I sourceforged and found DVD Flick for DVD Authoring. So first thing is to take those videos of Dylan and put them to DVD and see DVD Flick work. It worked a treat and has a selection of inbuilt menus for multiple titles (chapters). I tried the final DVD on the playstation and his DVD player and they worked. Things were looking good.
I fetched a few movies and the projector and screen and set about the first one. Mounting the compact camera on a tripod beside the project and as near to the projection source as possible I then zoomed in to capture the image. I JUST managed to fill the screen of the camera (it's 4 times optical zoom) with the projected image but was losing out on colour. Over several days I played with lots of settings and eventually bumped in to a setting that is not on the menu - that of exposure. I set this to -1 and started to get the results. I was also projecting onto less than A4 (I had abandoned the aged screen) as this reduces pixelation. Also my compact will only record for 15 minutes before stopping the recording so I found it necessary to record some in 2 chunks and then 'splice' them together later.
Obviously I made the movie 'lead in' blank of the tape longer while I fiddled with getting the camera started and the same would happen at the end so I planned on removing them by Windows Movie Maker (WMM). Problem is that Windows Movie Maker doesn't recognise the file format (mov) that the Lumix produces. I picked up Any Video Converter - Free (AVC) from sourceforge.net and used it to convert the mov format files to mpeg2 which WMM will recognise. AVC gives you the ability to edit out sections of the recording - except I couldn't get it to work so I continued to use WMM and WMM does give the ability to add titles where ever required and also gave me the ability to splice bits together.
Having finally produced the 'titles' (or 'chapters') it was time for DVD Flick. I was really surprised by how DVD Flick smoothed out the flickering images and enhanced the colours. Problem is the projector's chattering is carried through on the sound and DVD Flick needs a soundtrack. At each title (11 so far) I have edited the screen title and the time index of the tumbnail (so that the added title shows) as well as added a new soundtrack (mp3) from a CD I own and removed the original soundtrack. It was at soundtrack level that I found a bug. If the soundtrack is shorter than the movie then DVD Flick just unloads itself and any unsaved changes are lost. I used 'Audacity' to add all my soundtracks together to get one large enough to cater for all my videos.
A few years ago I paid for some movies to be put to VHS professionally for him and comparing the results I feel my efforts have produced the better results. Oh, and cost less as NONE of the software I used cost money - Many thanks to the open source world (and rather unusually Microsoft!).
One cost I did incur though was an extension hard drive as this process is, by necessity, disk hungry and the old laptop is about full - well was anyway.
Monday, 29 November 2010
The freeze sets in....
It doesn't look like I will be going to the allotment for a while and running out doors looks and feels positively treacherous!
It looks like walking with Dylan, who loves biting the snow, and the gym is now the agenda for a while.
Saturday, 27 November 2010
Nearly first week on the allotment
Tuesday I lifted the beetroot and carrots. It amounted to about 50 pounds of beetroot and about 70 pounds of carrots. Both taste great and I am a true lover of beetroot - but this may prove a little too much this year! We have also been eating carrots in most every known way but, as yet, we are maintaining a healthy skin pigment!
But today it has snowed for the first time this year and that may mean less done for a little while.
Sunday, 21 November 2010
First day at the allotment
The previous occupant of our plot quit the allotment rather abruptly and left a lot of things behind. We haven't identified everything yet but are trying to 'tidy up'.
I have started by moving some of the blue plastic out of site and gathering up the bags with compost that have been left sitting around and consolidating them into the compost heaps at the back. I have also been clearing brambles from along the back fence and consigning them to the council bin as they don't compost at all well.
Amongst the things left on the allotment is a poly-tunnel which has 3 young vines in. We are still deciding whether this stays or goes.
After that I have been clearing some of the surface weeds and seeing what lurks below..
it's still in fruit.
So I brought a little home with me while we decide how to store the carrots and beetroot.
On top of all this there are currant bushes as well, but I missed out on photos of them!
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Digeus System Optimiser
I run Windows Vista SP1 with a 68gb Hard Disk installed. I don't like Vista (like so many others) and it really wants reinstalling. People talk about reinstalling like it's no big deal, but I hate the idea. Why? Well we are using 60gb of that 68 and that all needs to be backed up first and then check you have all the installation media for all the packages you have installed (quite a number) , then start the install of Vista (a couple of hours with a fair wind) then patch Vista (a couple of days with a fair wind) then install all the packages (a day or so) then retrieve the data - and finally reset all those packages the way you like them again. And in the meantime.... no pc!
The thought appals me - and my family even more. The solution is to do what is possible to keep Vista working and perform and protected.
I have just returned from holiday to find this email waiting for me:-
I had to say the idea sounded a bit attractive...
It offered the ability to get more from my present installation without the reinstall. I downloaded it, installed it and started to play....
First thing I decided to try the junk file cleaner and therein hangs a tale. It kept crashing about my ears. I persisted - cos that's the kind of guy I am and eventually found a few things. It was crashing because there were too many files for it to handle. (I found in excess of 66,000!). Why did I have so many? I had a gut feel that it was caused by HP Update and using the startup manager disabled it. Lo and behold - the files stopped being created.
I then, through windows, removed the application to prevent a recurrence. After that the junk file cleaner ran without any issues BUT and it's a BIG BUT it listed the zero length files and included, the C:\BOOT directory BCD.log1 and 2. These are system files and I would hope that they are adequately protected but I certainly would not recommend deleting them! and therein lies a warning - SOME programs have empty directories and zero length files as an 'in case' and removing them could cause the application to crash so treat this list of files as a guide and not a safe list of files to delete. If you delete a file that causes a problem then it's on YOUR head not Digeus' and that goes for ANY optimisation software.
I chose to run this one 'type' at a time and found little else that was controversial although 'sorting' by file size is alpha numeric so '729 bytes' is greater than '1,101,124 bytes'. This ought to be sorted. Additionally I would like to see an 'export' button throughout the system so you can print the results and review them off line (and if you are geeky enough) use an editted version of the results to create a batch file - but certainly to review off line in a spreadsheet or similar would prove useful.
One nice thing about this software is that it moves the 'deleted' files to the recycle bin and asks if you want to empty it first. If you leave the recycle bin's contents in tact then you can test the effect of the deletions you have chosen by rebooting and testing the applications and 'restore' any files that you shouldn't have deleted before clearing the bin.
I reviewed the services in service manager and liked the presentation and prompts to help me see more clearly the options and found it clear and concise and took the opportunity of turning off a couple of services.
I then looked at the duplicate files finder. This works by comparing file dates and times and sizes - so files with different names [ e.g. jpg and a(1).jpg] are identified. I liked this feature BUT CARE IS NEEDED. It sees duplicates across user profiles so where two user profiles use the same software you could end up rendering one users software inoperable.
The disk space analyzer is nice and concise and gives a very immediate picture.
One thing I struggled with when I first got Vista was the scheduled tasks. There are a lot set to start too frequently, but the windows interface is less than explanatory and to see a pretty face put on the front of scheduled tasks would be nice - maybe later?
I have not tested the entire product and I certainly would not encrypt my disk for anything.
The product does claim to work on all windows platforms from 95 to Windows 7.
On the whole - if used with care - I liked this product despite the bugs and despite some of the interesting spelling - it really needs to help the less experienced more though and I would suggest that there are some areas where the 'select all' feature should not exist or carry a severe warning about the possible use.
If you would like to try the product you can download a trial and if you would like to review it after contacting Digeus using the email address alise.johnson AT digeus.com then you may also be able to qualify for a free copy.
The thought appals me - and my family even more. The solution is to do what is possible to keep Vista working and perform and protected.
I have just returned from holiday to find this email waiting for me:-
Dear The Mole, I would be honored if you’d take the time to review our product on your blog. In exchange for an unbiased review, We will provide a copy of the product for free! We will also place link to your review from our product's page with your logo. The review may be written in any language you want, min 100 words. You are free to get photos and sample description from our site: http://digeus.com/products/systemoptimizer/system-optimizer.html If you use Facebook, Twitter, Digg or MySpace, please add this tool to your bookmarks. The button for adding to bookmarks is located here: http://digeus.com/products/systemoptimizer/system-optimizer.html Here is a brief information about our product: Digeus System Optimizer 8.2 Digeus System Optimizer is the smartest way to solve computer problems and protect your valuable data. This easy-to-use software helps you eliminate system crashed, prevent computer problems, and restore your system to a healthy state. Here is a list of tools included in suite: * Digeus Data Encryptor * Digeus Disk Space Analyzer * Digeus Drivers and Programs * Digeus Duplicate Files Finder * Digeus Icon Manager * Digeus IE Manager * Digeus Junk Files Cleaner * Digeus Memory Cleaner * Digeus Multimedia Settings Tweaker * Digeus Optimization Wizard * Digeus Privacy Protection * Digeus Process Manager * Digeus Registry Cleaner * Digeus Registry Defragmenter * Digeus Repair System Settings * Digeus Service Manager * Digeus File Shredder * Digeus Smart Uninstaller * Digeus Startup Manager * Digeus System Customization * Digeus System Info * Digeus System Security Tweaker * Digeus System Speed Optimizer * Digeus Unnecessary Files Cleaner Download and install System Optimizer 8.2: http://www.digeus.com/downloads/systemoptimizer/files/8/sysoptimizer_8_2.exe Learn more what is included in System Optimizer 8.2: http://digeus.com/products/systemoptimizer/system-optimizer.html Looking forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Alise Johnson PR Manager Digeus, Inc
I had to say the idea sounded a bit attractive...
It offered the ability to get more from my present installation without the reinstall. I downloaded it, installed it and started to play....
First thing I decided to try the junk file cleaner and therein hangs a tale. It kept crashing about my ears. I persisted - cos that's the kind of guy I am and eventually found a few things. It was crashing because there were too many files for it to handle. (I found in excess of 66,000!). Why did I have so many? I had a gut feel that it was caused by HP Update and using the startup manager disabled it. Lo and behold - the files stopped being created.
I then, through windows, removed the application to prevent a recurrence. After that the junk file cleaner ran without any issues BUT and it's a BIG BUT it listed the zero length files and included, the C:\BOOT directory BCD.log1 and 2. These are system files and I would hope that they are adequately protected but I certainly would not recommend deleting them! and therein lies a warning - SOME programs have empty directories and zero length files as an 'in case' and removing them could cause the application to crash so treat this list of files as a guide and not a safe list of files to delete. If you delete a file that causes a problem then it's on YOUR head not Digeus' and that goes for ANY optimisation software.
I chose to run this one 'type' at a time and found little else that was controversial although 'sorting' by file size is alpha numeric so '729 bytes' is greater than '1,101,124 bytes'. This ought to be sorted. Additionally I would like to see an 'export' button throughout the system so you can print the results and review them off line (and if you are geeky enough) use an editted version of the results to create a batch file - but certainly to review off line in a spreadsheet or similar would prove useful.
One nice thing about this software is that it moves the 'deleted' files to the recycle bin and asks if you want to empty it first. If you leave the recycle bin's contents in tact then you can test the effect of the deletions you have chosen by rebooting and testing the applications and 'restore' any files that you shouldn't have deleted before clearing the bin.
I reviewed the services in service manager and liked the presentation and prompts to help me see more clearly the options and found it clear and concise and took the opportunity of turning off a couple of services.
I then looked at the duplicate files finder. This works by comparing file dates and times and sizes - so files with different names [ e.g. jpg and a(1).jpg] are identified. I liked this feature BUT CARE IS NEEDED. It sees duplicates across user profiles so where two user profiles use the same software you could end up rendering one users software inoperable.
The disk space analyzer is nice and concise and gives a very immediate picture.
One thing I struggled with when I first got Vista was the scheduled tasks. There are a lot set to start too frequently, but the windows interface is less than explanatory and to see a pretty face put on the front of scheduled tasks would be nice - maybe later?
I have not tested the entire product and I certainly would not encrypt my disk for anything.
The product does claim to work on all windows platforms from 95 to Windows 7.
On the whole - if used with care - I liked this product despite the bugs and despite some of the interesting spelling - it really needs to help the less experienced more though and I would suggest that there are some areas where the 'select all' feature should not exist or carry a severe warning about the possible use.
If you would like to try the product you can download a trial and if you would like to review it after contacting Digeus using the email address alise.johnson AT digeus.com then you may also be able to qualify for a free copy.
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Rant on Hollywood explosions!
If there's one thing that annoys me then it's the way Hollywood using exploding vehicles! They don't explode! If they exploded like Hollywood vehicles do then we wouldn't be able to drive them around safely!!
In order for an explosion to occur then all the right components must be present in as close as possible the right quantities throughout the mixture. Petrol requires air in it to burn and that is what petrol does - it burns! In a car engine the fuel and air is premixed in the correct quantities to cause the mixture to burn rapidly in the combustion chamber. Note the word 'combustion' NOT explosion. It burns so rapidly, turning a small amount of fuel and air into a very large volume of hot gas that people talk of an explosion - but it's combustion.
Now if you set fire to a petrol tank it will burn rapidly and will heat up the metal around it and could cause the tank to rupture spilling burning fuel everywhere - but it will not explode. If you do this to a larger vehicle or vessel the same thing will happen.
There is a seemingly contradictory element to this... If you weld an empty petrol tank it could very well explode! No, it may very well combust so rapidly and with so much force it will rip the tank to shreds and throw shrapnel around. As good as an explosion anyway. This is because the tank is NOT empty but an 'empty' tank enjoys about the correct mixture of petrol vapour and air. So if you find yourself wanting to weld a petrol tank then fill it with water first!.
In order for an explosion to occur then all the right components must be present in as close as possible the right quantities throughout the mixture. Petrol requires air in it to burn and that is what petrol does - it burns! In a car engine the fuel and air is premixed in the correct quantities to cause the mixture to burn rapidly in the combustion chamber. Note the word 'combustion' NOT explosion. It burns so rapidly, turning a small amount of fuel and air into a very large volume of hot gas that people talk of an explosion - but it's combustion.
Now if you set fire to a petrol tank it will burn rapidly and will heat up the metal around it and could cause the tank to rupture spilling burning fuel everywhere - but it will not explode. If you do this to a larger vehicle or vessel the same thing will happen.
There is a seemingly contradictory element to this... If you weld an empty petrol tank it could very well explode! No, it may very well combust so rapidly and with so much force it will rip the tank to shreds and throw shrapnel around. As good as an explosion anyway. This is because the tank is NOT empty but an 'empty' tank enjoys about the correct mixture of petrol vapour and air. So if you find yourself wanting to weld a petrol tank then fill it with water first!.
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