Randy Hoyt » computer

Photo Editing By A Professional

Randy Hoyt — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:58:18 +0000

I have played around in PhotoShop to edit family photographs before, combining two different takes to make one good one and making various minor tweaks. A client of mine, a professional photographer who teaches photography classes in Dallas, recently published a post on his blog about a recent project of his that required some major photo manipulation. I was a quite impressed and a little stunned by how much he could change and still have the photograph look so real: thanks, Peter, for this behind-the-scenes glimpse into your work. Check out the post: Just A Little Retouching.

Calendar Change: November

Randy Hoyt — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:00:33 +0000

November is here, and today I changed my Tolkien calendar and my desktop wallpaper. I have the 2009 Tolkien calendar illustrated by Ted Nasmith, with landscapes from the First Age of Middle-earth, and I continue to use a monthly desktop wallpaper from Smashing Magazine. (The scene in the Tolkien calendar depicts the opening of the mountain range that leads to the land of the gods.)

Calendar Change: October

Randy Hoyt — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 03:00:25 +0000

October is here, and today I changed my Tolkien calendar and my desktop wallpaper. I have the 2009 Tolkien calendar illustrated by Ted Nasmith, with landscapes from the First Age of Middle-earth, and I continue to use a monthly desktop wallpaper from Smashing Magazine. (The scene in the Tolkien calendar comes from one of the best and most tragic stories in The Silmarillion, when Féanor betrays the other elves leaving Valinor with him.)

EmEditor

Randy Hoyt — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:10:41 +0000

Free software is great, and I use quite a bit of it. One type of software in particular that is known for having a lot of free options is the text editor. I have tried out so many free text editors, but I have never found one that feels as comfortable to use as one that isn’t free: EmEditor. I’ve used an older free version of it for over a year now, and it just feels right. I paid for and upgraded to the latest version today, and I’m very happy with it.

Sansa Clip

Randy Hoyt — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 04:00:46 +0000

For the last few years, I have used one version or another of the Creative MuVo to listen to music, audio books, and podcasts. After some extensive research last fall, I asked for a new MP3 player for Christmas: a red Sansa Clip made by SanDisk. It has a couple of differences that have required some adjustment, but a few key features have made the transition a great success.

New Features

Resume Playback: Most MP3 players only remember your location for the most recent audio file. This is fine for listening to small music files, but it was quite a nuisance with longer audio books and podcasts. When I would listen to an audio book at the gym but then switch to music on the train, I would have to remember my position on the audio book and fast-forward back to that spot. This was the most important feature for me in a new player, and the Sansa Clip handles this very well.
FM Radio: My gym shows ESPN on some of the televisions near the exercise equipement, and they broadcast the accompanying audio over an FM signal. I like having the radio built into my MP3 player so that I can take one device with me and then decide after I get there to listen to an audio book or to ESPN.
Protected WMA Files: I am not a fan of audio files with digital rights protection that provide restrictions to where they can be played. Although I hope these techniques eventually disappear, I suppose I can understand why many companies are not willing to publish audio files in open formats. Our local public library offers cardholders access to many audio books on NetLibrary.com. Many MP3 players cannot play these protected files (including iPods), but I wanted to have one that could take advantage of this service.

Differences

Cable Required: Many MP3 players require a cable to connect them to a computer and transfer files, but I have primarily used players that could be plugged directly into a USB port. The cable is a fairly standard one, though; I picked up a couple extra cables so I can keep one at home, at work, and in my bag for when I want to transfer files.
No Batteries: All my previous MP3 players have used a battery that I could swap out, but the Sansa Clip requires charging. I can see the advantages and the disadvantages of each approach. If the Sansa Clip dies when I’m on the train, for example, I cannot charge it back up until I get to a computer. I have to be a little more diligent to keep it charged, but I no longer have to carry triple-A batteries around with me everywhere.

The Sansa Clip has definitely improved my audio life over the last couple of months, and I would highly recommed it.

Shop for Sansa Clip at Amazon