On Software Developer Limits

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Feb 17 0
  • amf_programming

As a matter of fact, if you try to launch an unsigned or unvalidatable app on a Mac with Gatekeeper enabled, the default button is “Move To Trash”. Pretty hardcore. Kind of awesome.

Panic, the developer of my favorite code editor on Mac, wrote a great review of the need for the recently announced Gatekeeper feature, which protects Macs from villainous programs/code.  While I don’t do any Cocoa or Carbon development (I’m all web-based, baby …) — this feature sounds like exactly what’s needed.

Mac users will proceed at their own risk … knowing Apple has their back.

Back from flickr

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Feb 16 0
  • Life

The usage statistics for last month showed people going back to my article on why Flickr was better than Picasa Web Albums.  I feel I should set the record straight:

I’m back on Picasa, 99%.   Picasa Web Albums, now known as the photo section of Google+, have fixed most of the “sharing” features I decried (it’s now the CORE of the social network).  They’ve also taken care of the organizational aspects.  No longer am I stuck with a one-off app that does photo uploading at a throttled speed. Google+’s photo section now uses a gorgeous AJAX-based photo uploader that is the promised simplicity of drag-n-drop.

There’s still a couple of things that would seal-the-deal for Picasa Web Albums Google+:

  • Enable the oEmbed functionality that Flickr and YouTube have.  Being able to post a link to the album in a blog and have it automatically embed the slideshow / gallery view would be appreciated.
  • Give an option for Downloading Full Album.  Right now I post the higher-res versions of photos to my Amazon S3 account and send a link manually.  Giving a Download All option in Google+ like you used to have in Picasa Web Albums would also clear that issue.
  • Prepare for Apple TV.  I realize this is probably a port Apple made on their end with the iOS version of Apple TV … but flickr has a section, why can’t I see my Google+ photos as my screensaver rather than my flickr photos?  Do that, and I’m yours … 100%.

People have asked me, “why flickr?” or “why Google+?”  “Why not Facebook?”  While Facebook has more of my friends than any other network — Picasa reached me first.  When I was studying abroad in Italy during college, Picasa was there, ready to share my photos with my friends / family back in the USA.  Once I had over 30 albums in Picasa, the conversion hurdle became too great.

In the end, all of those photos I’d migrated over to flickr … I stayed with my Google+ and in one click, I was back to the beginning.

Ping me (ask me) if you have questions or need advice for your church’s image hosting setup.

On Creative Ruts

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Feb 13 0
  • Life

Last November I was in a creative rut. Lots of maintenance work for my jobs, little “new stuff” =(‘ed) the time for pushing myself a little.

So at the Deacon ordination of one of my seminary friends, I decided going into it, to photograph as if I would convert the whole album to black and white. Exposure was different, color saturation didn’t matter; and, in the end, I pushed through. Limiting myself with that constraint completely unleashed the creativity.  Limits are good.  :)

And the ordination service was extra special as Ian Gerdon, also a friend from the Disciples House, left his wife and newborn son in South Bend and came to Ben’s ordination. It was an unexpected (but expectedly awesome) reunion for many of us!

While black and white photography may be “natural”, there’s certainly a case to make for HDR photos that are still creative and more realistic (even if being more manufactured).

Here’re some HDR blends I took at my parents’ house in November 2011: