file naming convention

classic and OS X file naming conventions are changing. with the limitation of 32 character file names in classic, one had to fine tune file name. up came programs like portfolio and cumulus to making sorting file and images easier. with OS X we get 128 character names, so file description are much nicer. ever since OS 8.6, the HFS+ filing system allowed long file names, but it was never implemented.

OS X solved all these issues, and now i make an effort to make long file names. if i have a link file name, it may be called “www.greenconcepts.com tradeshow listing”, instead of the classic way of “greenconcepts.com shows.” now that most of my files originate on the web, i name most of my files with “apple.com white paper on dual processor platforms” instead of “apple.com dual G4.” so i’ve included the URL where i’ve found the original content, so i can go back in the future to download updates. my next class might be OS X secrets. maybe it should be a book?

web expansion

teaching is fun. for now nearly five weeks i’ve been doing a three hour computer platform class. my students are doing relatively well, but my greatest success is developing the software for the course. maybe course and curriculum development should be in my future. i have several interests: computer science, energy efficient and resource efficient residential contstruction, and DVD production. i’m developing a website for my course, now with all the links filled with correct information (still typos), and soon will renew greenconcepts.com for take advantage of future technologies like PHP and dynamic database linking. i know there are many groups and individuals looking for a competent web architect, along with a good thermodynamisist.

mike bonin outreach

in the last five days i’ve put out some leads to make contact in the offline world. i’ve written letters to mike bonin, deputy chief of staff of the sixth council distict, to see if he needs help improving citizen outreach on the city of los angeles. i’ve written mike horton of the los angeles final cut pro user group to see if you needs a presenter on troubleshooting mac OS X, so final cut and DVD studio pro can run, and lastly i’ve written the DVDA to work with their website and update since the july 2002 meeting. i have lots of skills that have matured enough to make a dent in the bricks and mortar world. i’ll keep you abreast of what the outcomes are.

sigma SD9

at just 3.3 MP, the sigma SD9 might seem like old technology. both nikon.con and canon.com both have 6 MP cameras, but no one on the planet has a full color imager other than sigma, a silicon compliment to film. a new sequence of SD9 images recently appeared on a german website. now under studio conditions the lighting and exposure can be very well controlled, but the hair detail and othe facial characteristics would translate to my type of photographs. i can’t wait until this foveon X3 chip is in a better camera!

foveon and mac OS X

for now foveon only exists in one product, a still image camera from sigma-photo.com, but soon this imager will be in a video camera. the chip premiered february 2002. as a still imaging system, the $1600 SD9 from sigma, is the greatest camera ever made. it has an effective pixel count of 6 MP, and the images are stunning. take a look at some samples:

there have not been any announcements of the progressive video camera version yet, but in january/february 2003, expect something from foveon.

i think every videographer and imager need the heads up on this upcoming technology.

i’ve been using mac OS X since september 2000 (public beta), and then bought into the lie that in march 2001, the OS was ready. only since september 2001, did apple have a functional OS, and now with 10.2, i can do some work. the audio apps and video apps are mature, but the arcane command line is still here to stay. running “fsck -y” is like rebuilding the desktop. “top” in terminal to see system performance. fix your permissions regularly.

faith walk

we live in a nation state founded on judeo-christian values. the community of presidents, and most nearly everyone else prayed to a higher power for guidance and strength to start a civil war against the british empire now over 200 years ago.

for over 2000 years most westerners believed that God sent a messenger, a Christ, in the form of Yahushua of nazareth, now known as Jesus (a greek/latin combination of the original aramaic). the Father Yahweh sent his only son Yahushua as his human representative to warn and teach on the coming of the imperial rule of God. now we live under and in the imperial rule, and i’ve taken it upon myself to learn the teaching of Yahushua since august 1998.

under the teaching of dale bruner, a retired professor from whitworth, i’ve had the pleasure to walk through the gospels of Yahushua, starting with Matthew, then Mark, and now in Luke. as long as my teacher has breath, we’ll march right on through the entire Christian bible. reading word by word, multiple translations, along with the original translation from greek and latin of dr. bruner, i have come to my own conclusions of what the gospels of Yahushua really mean to humanity, and how it relates to my life. as a test of devotion, my personal tranlation is from the jesus seminar, a left wing group striving to recognize the historical jesus, but also appearing to discount everything that this historical figure said and did. recently a tomb dig uncovered a coffin with the words, “here lies james, brother of Yahushua.” i would suggest that if you start your own journey into the ancient religous texts, this is the starting platform along with other texts of Funk. goodluck on your own spiritual journey.

apple financial Q4 2002

i’m hearing the apple financial report and thinking about what is to come in the technology industry. i’m following the progress of the danger hiptop and expect that apple.com will brand something similar in january 2003. on wednesday i got a hands on tour of OS X server, and gazed at the 17 inch imac along with the dual G4 tower. this month four exciting things happened: sony.com introduced the DVD everything burner, panasonic.com introduced the first progressive imaging DV camcorder, sigma-photo.com introduced the SD9, and DSL is once again returning to NoHo. i should be back online at 256 kbps by 1 december 2002!

edwards day

for the last two days, i’ve been in lancaster, running through my computer class and attending the annual edwards airforce base open house. in the high desert, some 45 km away from lancaster, sits the most famous military testing facility in north america. more pilots, experimental aircraft, and legends were born at this dry lake bed, than any other place. chuck yeagar was there, along with other military platforms like the B1-B, global hawk, V-22, F-117, F-22, C-130, and the JSF. the crowd i estimate at 500,000, since this secret base only opens once a year to the public. i enjoy reminding myself of the awesome force the USA has, along with the awesome responsibilty that we as citizens know what our government is doing and what we are capable of doing.

standard time

a new day has come, and a new time zone. for all those around the world today we celebrate daylight savings time ending, so our clocks go back one hour. my body feels like 5 AM, but the clock says 4 AM. time differences from los angeles to new york stay at the constant 3 hours, but japan goes to 17 hours time difference ahead. i hope this means i will find my japanese brother more frequently via IM.

DVD+R

i suggest the new sony dual format drive. it will burn both DVD+R and DVD-R, the best of both world at 4x on -R and 2.4x on +R. who will win the format war, who cares when you are covered? if FCP or DVDSP does not support the drive directly, get a copy of roxio toast. it supports all formats and drives, and you just export you project to a file, instead of using the drivers directly from FCP or other tools. my bet is the DVD+R/DVD+RW camp is going to win over pioneer. i’ll know more after comdex in vegas. the model is the 500A.