Little Book Review: Photos
01:16 Saturday, 19 July 2014
Words: 339
I was browsing around the iBooks bookstore yesterday, and I ended up buying a small digital media volume called Photos, by Tom Rudderham ($5.99).
It’s the kind of book I’d recommend to people who want to get the most out of their iPhone’s camera, especially the 5s. It’s a lovely ebook, filled with video and multi-image, semi-interactive illustrations. It offers practical advice and tips, as well as a great deal of inspiration.
My one reservation about buying the book now is that Apple will release a new Photos app for iOS 8 and for Mac OS 10.10 Yosemite, which will likely alter the behavior of the app described in Rudderham’s book somewhat. But the rest of it is still worth the $5.99 asking price.
It’s very well-written, though I noted a couple of errors a more thorough editorial scrub might have detected, nothing that affects the utility of the book. It covers the basic iPhone/iPad platforms, the Photos app, the operation of the Camera app, general photography tips, then some third-party photography apps, and then a large chapter on iPhoto, which is very well done. The final chapter includes the work of four photographers who use the iPhone as their camera.
Sometimes I buy photography books from O’Reilly or Amazon, and I end up being a little disappointed. This one was not a disappointment at all.
Update: Something I’d intended to write as I thought about this yesterday, but forgot! One interesting omission I noted was in the use of the panorama feature of the iPhone. The book describes the usual horizontal panorama, but you can also do a vertical one as well. I don’t recommend them if you’ve got tall vertical elements in your composition, but if you just want to get some additional sky in an otherwise normal landscape frame, you can use the panorama feature in a landscape orientation as well. I tried using it for some buildings in downtown Jacksonville and you get some very distracting distortion from the verticals.
Movement
18:43 Wednesday, 19 July 2023
Current Wx: Temp: 75.24°F Pressure: 1014hPa Humidity: 91% Wind: 1.01mph
Words: 339
I mentioned the other day that walking was about the only exercise I got. I used to run a fair amount. A couple of marathons, a bunch of half-marathons, 15Ks, and so on. But I developed a persistent case of achilles tendonitis that always seemed to reappear once I got up to about 5 miles. (Not the 5-mile point in a run, training to be able to run 5 miles.) So, I gave up. Alas.
Well, that was several years ago. Now I walk and occasionally bike. I'm several years older and a lot heavier. Don't really know if I can ever run again, but I figured it was time to find out.
So, the other day, at the Outlet Mall, I bought a pair of Asics Gel Kayanos, an extra-large sleeveless, bright yellow, "Please don't hit me," running shirt and an extra-large pair of shorts.
Then I proceeded to self-sabotage by eating several pints of Ben and Jerry's, which were on sale BOGO at Publix, and that's like makin' money!
Meanwhile, the shoes have been sitting next to the bed and I try not to look at them in the morning.
This morning I was awake at 0430 and I figured, "What the hell. Let's go see."
I exercise (I won't say "run.") in the dark, so no one can see this fat old man lumbering down the road. I got a little $5 app for the phone that sets intervals for me. I did 2-min walking and 30s "running."
The good news is that the interval split was just about perfect. I didn't have a coronary. Did my usual 2.5 mile loop at a pace about 15s faster than my "fastest" walking pace. (That normally requires temps in the 50s. My pace really seems dependent on temperature/humidity.) Nothing really hurts, yet, though my right knee seems like it wasn't happy.
I'll play with this for a while. No big ambition, just see what I can do.
I'm not dead yet.
✍️ Reply by emailRainbow Test
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This is a test post. I've embedded the Photos to Tinderbox AppleScript into an Automator action, which I will save as a Quick Action. I can assign a keyboard shortcut to that. As "fiddly" goes, hitting that little FastScripts menu icon and then hitting the right item can be a bit fiddly. A keyboard shortcut might be nicer.
So far, the script runs fine in the Automator editor. I'll save it and try again as a Quick Action.
Then I may try it as a dictation command.
The fun and games continue here at marmot headquarters.
✍️ Reply by emailWeather Approaching
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Works from the Services menu. Couldn't find it in the System Settings to assign the keyboard shortcut, but I just wanted to make sure it ran as a service first. Now I'll dig a little deeper and give it a shortcut.
✍️ Reply by emailLights
Current Wx: Temp: 75.02°F Pressure: 1014hPa Humidity: 92% Wind: 3.44mphWords: 18
CTRL-Shift-P (Post pic? Photo to marmot?) seems to work. Now if I can only remember it.
✍️ Reply by email!AKMA Reply
22:08 Wednesday, 19 July 2023
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Words: 48
Bloggin' like it's 1999! AKMA tips his metaphorical hat at my fitness efforts. He's been doing remarkably well with consistency, even grappling with plantar fasciitis, which I know quite well.
I'll be fumbling along with this for a little while anyway. I actually miss running, but we'll see.
✍️ Reply by emailCake
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This is a test post, the latest of many. This one seems to be successful. The next post will determine if this success can be replicated.
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Mission accomplished!
In the Photos to Tinderbox script, now a system service with a keyboard shortcut, the last step was to run an Automator application called Export Photo. That's the one that actually takes the image from Photos and places it in the folder that gets sync'ed to the server and then cleans up after itself.
I figured I'd add another Automator action to that application in the form of "Watch me do..." and have the computer upload the image for me. There are probably other/better ways to do it, but that seemed easy to me.
Well, it wasn't. It would work fine in Automator, but it wouldn't work within the Export Photo application when called by the Photos to Tinderbox script. After much trial and error, I had to create a separate application called "Sync Server," that included "Watch me do..." by itself. Then the Photos to Tinderbox script calls Sync Server after Export Photo, and everything works fine.
It seems to have something to do with keeping application permissions straight in Accessibility, it can't control more than one app at a time it seems. But the script can call as many apps as it needs to.
All this does is eliminate another fiddly mouse movement, and does it faster than I can. So when I select a photo to post in the marmot, everything but the text is done for me.
After I "Export to html" from Tinderbox, I can then call Sync Server directly using LaunchBar, which is also a nice convenience.
I feel very productive today. I'm taking the rest of the day off...
✍️ Reply by emailSeneca Falls
12:18 Friday, 19 July 2024
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Words: 449
Spent some time in Seneca Falls yesterday. Lovely little village. The National Women's Hall Of Fame is located there, and we toured that facility. It's located in an old woolen mill, the Seneca Knitting Mills, which was in operation for over 100 years, closing its doors in 1999.
Seneca Falls is also the location of the First Convention for Woman's Rights (July 19-20, 1848), and the church where it was held is a national park with a separate building housing a number of exhibits about women's rights. The church had been significantly altered throughout its history, it's been restored to the closes approximation of what it is believed to have looked like. There are portions of the original brick remaining, and the roof beams and decking are supposedly original.
The village is also supposed to be part of the inspiration for Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life, where, in 1917, a young man drowned saving the life of a woman who had jumped into the canal. The village leans into the movie with George Bailey Lane and Clarence Street.
We stopped by the post office so Mitzi could put a couple of postcards in the mail. It was quite an imposing edifice for such a small town.
Then it was back to Geneva to catch the 2:00 PM boat for the lake tour. We've been on Cayuga Lake every time we've been up here. This is the first time we've been on Seneca. Since we're at the north end of the lake, the geography is much different, without the high cliffs adjacent to the shore. The air was actually quite cool and I spent some time trying to memorize the feeling before heading back to Florida.
Stopped at a craft brewery on the way back to the cottage and enjoyed a couple of beers and a view of the lake while sitting outside on the deck.
Mitzi had a zoom meeting today, so we're just heading out now to a couple of antique stores, before we do the bus tour this evening.
Only a couple of days left before we head back. While I'll welcome being in my own bed, I will really miss the scenery and the weather here.
Speaking of weather, I learned yesterday that a tornado touched down in my hometown, Canastota, as part of that severe weather system that went through on Tuesday. One man was killed in the village. Pretty rare for a tornado up here. My brother said that historically, there are an average of 13 tornado warnings per year, seldom an actual tornado. This year, there have been 62 tornado warnings and 12 confirmed tornados.
"We're not in Kansas anymore."
✍️ Reply by emailLast Night's Sky 7-18-25
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Stayed up late last night (to 2300!) and stuck the OM-1 on a tripod out on the porch. Sky was clear, so I wanted to see what I could see. Posted a couple of "test" shots, (Live Composite, but only two frames) on Flickr, along with this one. Moved the tripod between the test shots and the star trails.
The Milky Way was visible to the naked eye, which was something seldom experienced where we lived in Florida. I saw it once out in Macclenny, Florida at my friend's little farm, but never in Ponte Vedra. Might have had some luck down in the preserve, or in Guana, but was never really there at night.
I'll try and make a more "serious" effort as the opportunity presents itself. It was just a spur of the moment thing, since the sky was cloudless and the moon wasn't going to be up until after midnight.
✍️ Reply by emailA Good Life
16:02 Saturday, 19 July 2025
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Words: 928
Recently, a certain amount of angst, or public introspection, has made its way into my feeds regarding Apple and its products. Mainly because, I think, for very many years Apple had enjoyed a reputation for being one of the "good" corporations. I'm not going to rehash all the reasons why that came about; if you're reading the marmot I trust you're at least somewhat acquainted with Apple's history.
And, Apple's descent into darkness didn't just happen recently. It began during the second reign of Steve, but his illness and early death kind of obscured the darker aspects of his competitive nature. Suffice to say, this is not something recent, it's been there all along. Apple benefited from being surrounded by larger villains like Microsoft and Google.
Until Apple grew larger in so many dimensions, and began throwing its weight around in ways that invited public scrutiny and criticism.
Here are three posts from three different blogs that speak to this issue from somewhat varying perspectives.
First is from Denny at Beardy Guy Musings, who represents what may be a somewhat extreme view. He reduces the issue to a binary choice, which I think is the hallmark of most extremist positions.
I like Denny, I enjoy his blog and I understand his passion. But still:
You can agree to your own subjugation, that’s your choice. It may seem more convenient. It may seem comfortable. It may even seem pleasurable and safe. But in the end, you’re handing over your own fate.
To quote the noted philosopher Jodi Ernst, "Well, we are all going to die."
Except Kurzweil maybe. Anyone checked on him lately? Has he uploaded yet?
More recently, Manuel Morales. While not exactly an extreme view, it did prompt this post, The cost of selfishness, from Ricardo Mori that seems to locate itself somewhere in between the views expressed by Denny and Manuel.
Denny has a pretty good view of the larger picture, which is clear in his archives. Manuel and Ricardo have had less to say about the broader landscape. No judgement implied, just acknowledging that Denny has framed the discussion in a larger context, which is helpful.
Record scratch...
While Mitzi's daughter and son-in-law were here, we visited a farm animal sanctuary called, er, Farm Sanctuary. It was an interesting visit, and I'm sympathetic to many of its views, but it's another binary thing. They tried to kind of "meet people where they are," by encouraging them to maybe "consume less" meat, poultry, dairy and eggs. But any effort to engage with them eventually devolved to the binary view.
Very nice people. Well run facility. They do wonderful things, but it is strictly within their own context. (Ethics?)
For instance, the animals aren't "free." They don't have any agency of their own. Most particularly, they are not allowed to reproduce. This, after telling us how much cows suffer when separated from their calves. (They have PTSD.) So presumably a "fulfilling" life for an animal includes reproduction and raising offspring, but that's not part of their program. They're allowed to live out their days in relative comfort until they die, as confined creatures exploited to promote a certain agenda.
The hens they "rescue" still lay eggs, but they compost the eggs. I guess it's better for some vegans that some humans go hungry than an egg go to feed them.
Humans. We're such funny creatures.
But, back to Apple. And ethics.
Huge topic. Larger than I can address in a marmot post. ("So why even bother, Rogers?" So I don't have to do any of the other things I know I ought to be doing right now.)
Nobody gets to choose their parents. We find ourselves where we are, in this place and time, and we do the best that we can. There are forces, dynamics and trends, cultural practices, social customs and constructs, economic systems that we have to somehow navigate and maintain some sense of self-worth, or upright morality. And we do all that in this fishbowl we call the "internet."
Look, I think mindfulness is a good thing. I think it requires effort, because the first thing it requires is your attention, and well, everyone wants that. Attention is a finite resource. It's also has a fairly narrow aperture. That is to say, well, if your immortal soul, or your freedom from, you know, subjugation, depends on what you're giving your attention to... Well, like the lady said, "We are all going to die."
Yes, our choices matter. But we lack the capacity to be fully cognizant of the consequences of all of our choices. We lack the cognitive ability to make conscious choices at every moment that they may possible. Nearly all of our behavior is habituated.
Unconscious.
So, you know, be kind. Even to the folks who eat animals. Or use commercial software. Or vote for demagogues. (You don't have to be kind to demagogues, though it's unlikely you'll ever be in a position to really extend kindness to them. They generally don't like to be, you know, "among the people.")
"Do unto others..." And so on.
Yes, choices matter. I don't go on "cruises." I don't fly internationally anymore. I try to make choices that are congruent with how I wish to be in the world. I often don't get it right. I try to do my best.
There's a better world where the marmot doesn't exist, doesn't consume resources, doesn't consume others' attention.
But here I am.
By the grace of God, perhaps?
The beat goes on...
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09:43 Sunday, 19 July 2026
Current Wx: Temp: 62.62°F Pressure: 1013hPa Humidity: 76% Wind: 10.42mph
Words: 692
I watch a lot of YouTube videos. That's probably not something to be proud of.
When I was single, I could sit down and spend a couple of hours writing a blog post. That was mostly in the Groundhog Day era. Today I'm lucky if I get 45 minutes. And it bugs me because I feel like I have something important to say, but I can't make the time to say it.
Hopefully that'll change once the new house is done and I'll have the "Dave Cave."
Anyway, AI came up again at the Tinderbox meetup. The first half was a worthwhile exploration of the Attribute Browser; but the host had kind of given people in the forum a reading assignment about AI and that was about the last third of the meetup.
I wasn't planning on saying anything, but I got called on.
I don't really have a strong opinion about AI. That feels like the right position to have, because it seems like we're surrounded by people with strong opinions about AI, which suggests to me that nobody knows anything. It's impossible to have a nuanced discussion because everyone already comes to it with a set of fixed notions that they just want to argue about.
AI doesn't scare me. If AI is an existential threat to humanity or civilization, tell it to take a number. We have plenty of those confronting us already, and it isn't clear to me at all that AI is of greater magnitude than any of the others.
What scares me is climate change, extreme wealth inequality, rising authoritarianism, ignorance, and disease.
And all those threats are the products of our culture, society and economy. "We have met the enemy, and they is us," as Pogo said.
The seeds of our destruction were sown long, long ago. The fatal flaws of our civilization are not seen as flaws. Indeed, they are regarded as the pillars of our success. Capitalism, competition and individual liberty divorced from responsibility.
We delude ourselves about the things we supposedly value. You can tell what a culture values by what it teaches its young. We teach ours the minimal skills necessary to be a functioning member of the economy, chiefly as consumers.
We don't teach values. We don't teach morals. We don't teach ethics.
We impose rules, and that's not the same as teaching.
We don't teach those things because we do not value those things. We do not value them because they offer no way to compete, no opportunity to monetize, no way to achieve status or rank in the hierarchy. Indeed, ethics, morals and values all serve to impede those goals in a culture based on competition.
Our children learn from the screens they peer into every day. They learn from watching their parents.
Capitalism, competition and individual liberty divorced from responsibility do not build character. It is no surprise we have a transactional, hedonistic, meaningless culture.
It is no surprise that Donald Trump is our president, that we are confronting existential challenges from the climate consequences of our industrial society, which is driven mainly by consumerism and waste. They are the logical outcomes of a culture, society and economy that are devoid of human values.
It is probably too late to save this civilization. Perhaps it is not too late to record the lessons of its collapse, so that whatever follows can avoid them. One advantage that whatever follows will have is that it will not have the enormous quantities of fossil fuels to supply the energy that accelerated our errors and masked our mistakes.
Anyway, back to YouTube and character. I watched a video that included a conversation between Sarah Longwell of The Bulwark and David French, ostensibly about character. I have a lot of problems with David French, and I'm not certain about the nature of his character.
Next I listened to an interview with John Bolton. He's a despicable human being. No one should take so much pride in their bloody-mindedness.
Finally, and thankfully, I watched an interview with retired general Stanley McChrystal.
If you think character matters, it's worth watching the whole thing.
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