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  1. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Damnit! I re-read your post three times to make sure you hadn't mentioned that lens. Oh, well. Today I had some time to kill between clients, and I took my lenses one at a time on a walk. The thought was to see what I could make with any single lens. The 10-22 was fun and made for some very...
  2. ddrueding

    Horizontal Database scaling

    Rather than attempting to have queries bridge the two databases, I was thinking that the "current" database would only replicate 90 days worth of the "old" database, and "old" would hold _all_ records, including the last 90 days. The "old" database would be the master that received writes. The...
  3. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Great write-up Tannin. And you are correct, I want an EF-S 14-150. I know 14mm is a very tricky beast for a FF sensor. I don't know anything about optics or lens design, but I can imagine that going from ultra wide to normal would require the optical elements themselves to change shape. All...
  4. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    Seems to be quite loaded language, no?
  5. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    Is it just me, or was there a considerable slant to the language in that article?
  6. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    Great points, timwhit. The most effective steps a president could take would be the most suicidal; have realistic conversations with the people about what is likely to happen and how best to handle it. I can't remember the last time a politician voluntarily gave out preemptive bad news.
  7. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    I would so love a 14-150 for Canon, that would be a single lens walk-around easily. And only 535g? I would certainly pay over $1400 for that lens.
  8. ddrueding

    WD velociraptor. It's nothing if not different

    Sweet. Competition rules. I'll buy one.
  9. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    That is my current walking around setup. If the 10-22 were a 10-35 I would feel much more comfortable carrying just it in urban settings, but it doesn't have the reach for, well, anything really.
  10. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    I'm actually being fairly pragmatic on this one. Keep in mind my fiancee's point of view. If I went out and bought a 40D, then I would have successfully replaced my 20D, and have no need for more. As it stands, I can defend my choice to spend less money and get the 20D repaired as well. And even...
  11. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    That sums it up very nicely. That was kind of the purpose of this thread. I had enough cash in my pocket to buy any of the three, which caused me to begin to think realistically about the decision. Up until then my logic had been simple and clear; I like my 20D and want a new body - 40D it is...
  12. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    I knew you were going to say that, I remember your previous comments on the subject. But honestly, it hasn't bothered me yet, and I don't think it will. The loss of a wheel is made up for by the addition of more hard buttons and a better menu system ("My Menu" rocks). Quick sample pics here.
  13. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    First impressions? Love it. The lighter weight makes everything easier. The biggest unexpected surprise? Live View with a 10x zoom allowing very fine control of manual focus. I'm still playing with the menu system, but the basic controls are logical enough and quick to get around. Oh, and...
  14. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Thanks! And they only had the kit in stock, so I now have an 18-55 IS as well...
  15. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    And not to bag on your dreams, but I finally took a look at the OM-2, and I'm not sure how I would hold the thing. Ergonomics aren't exactly its strong point.
  16. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Just as you say, they had the 5D, 40D, 450D, and 400D lined up in that order. The 5D and 40D had about the same weight and size, and the viewfinder was better, but only marginally so. The difference was subjectively 5%, where the difference between my 20D and the 450D is about 20%. The 400D was...
  17. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    I was worried that it was mirror-based instead of prism-based, but it is bigger and brighter than my 20D. Though it had had a hard life...
  18. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Well, the battery of my 450D is charging as we speak. The weight completely won me over at the store, and the viewfinder is better than the 20D, and the one wheel is the only one I used before anyway! More impressions to come!
  19. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Great point, e_dawg. I'm finding that I'm bringing my camera along on hikes and long walks, taking pictures as they present themselves. The reason I didn't get a PnS while finishing my trip in Russia is the lack of manual control and the poor image quality. I'm almost never caught out not...
  20. ddrueding

    Monitoring a computer

    Interesting configuration. I assume this is for fail-over? I was going to suggest that you remotely connect to the performance monitor MMC and track it for irregularities, or the task manager for the existence of certain processes. I'm not sure if that program supports that kind of thing.
  21. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    For your info, I'm about 6'3" (6'4" with shoes). But I don't really want a tripod that is exactly eye level. I'm torn between a small/light one that I am likely to carry often, and a serious overhead that (combined with Live View) will let me get shots I couldn't get any other way.
  22. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Thanks for pointing out those issues uda, I do appreciate it. I did run across most of those while reading reviews @ DPreview and Digital Picture. You are right, I think both Tannin and Lunar have 400Ds and not 450Ds. I know the MP difference isn't significant, but it seems they were able to...
  23. ddrueding

    Monitoring a computer

    So you are looking for a way to monitor the status of a program? All programs? The OS in general? What OS are you using?
  24. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    Just about made up my mind, 450D, 17-85 IS, and a Gitzo GT0530.
  25. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    The review at The Digital Picture allows a better comparison between the 450D and the 40D (with roll-over comparisons between the two cameras). I'm leaning more towards a 450D and a nice tripod at the moment.
  26. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    So far my largest complaint against the 450D is this: (underline mine)
  27. ddrueding

    450D / 40D / 1DMkIII

    As mentioned in the massive DSLR thread of doom, I'm getting a second camera body. I was thinking of a 1D MkIII over a 40D, but other than the inability to use my EF-S lenses and more weight, I'm not sure what I would be getting. Then I started looking at the 450D, and I'm not sure what I would...
  28. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    Bozo, I agree with everything you just said. Your nice house in the country is a luxury you can afford (and one I'm aspiring to, so congratulations). Your aunt driving to the grocery store in an average vehicle every day costs about the same as your one pill. Even if gas prices went to $10 a...
  29. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    I think we (NorCal) should just start charging you (SoCal) triple for all the water you use, serves you right for living in a desert ;)
  30. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    I'm sure you thought of this when you wrote it, but one of the things they certainly couldn't afford was a 10 year old car or truck. My grandmother lives on a very modest fixed income in a very small town. She was given the opportunity to sell her house and move into a less expensive managed...
  31. ddrueding

    New Antec case

    Well, they will only sniff the CPU fan once ;)
  32. ddrueding

    New Antec case

    Cool idea. Just this morning I wall-mounted a VIA motherboard for easy cleaning in a very dusty environment. Not in a case, just the motherboard, CPU, RAM, a PicoPSU, and a CF-IDE adapter for Smoothwall duty. I wish my camera still worked :(
  33. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    How many of these people have cars? The only people around here who complain of gas prices are those who made stupid purchasing decisions. Trucks and (particularly) SUVs are a luxury item.
  34. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    How do you figure? Aren't there vehicles for sale right now that meet the standard?
  35. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    One hell of a stitch... Apparently, they actually printed the thing 180 feet long.
  36. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    My argument would be that CAFE standards are useless; the auto industry and our very business-friendly administration set the goal so low that free market pressures (as Clocker described) will prevent them from ever being a ceiling. A law that won't affect anything shouldn't be a big deal, but...
  37. ddrueding

    Suggestions for speeding up a Vista laptop

    Hell yes. More RAM would make a massive impact. I took one of my Vista laptops from 1.2GB to 2GB and it made an appreciable impact, I don't think you can fit "too much" into a laptop these days if Vista is what you have to work with. Last I checked, Dell was defaulting to 3GB on Latitudes with...
  38. ddrueding

    Storagereview now looks like SF.

    Were they hosted here?
  39. ddrueding

    Horizontal Database scaling

    Replication was what I had in mind, but I am not a DBA. Replicating the more recent data to another server, and running the common queries off that seems like not-so-complicated answer.
  40. ddrueding

    WD 7.2k/320GB lappy drive

    Lunar can save some money by buying the 50-pack ;)
  41. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    I'm with Handruin on this one. Your attention to maintaining backups and protecting your IP led me to believe that this was your business.
  42. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    Agreed. But a good eye is something that takes time and experience, and planning and executing a job is not something I can do while on the run with friends. All I'm doing now is building a collection of equipment and techniques, and taking a lot of pictures. Learning what I like/don't and how...
  43. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    The thought had occurred to me ;)
  44. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    I'm still finding myself in the linear algebra of focal lengths; banging the corners of whatever I have with me. The first day I was here I must have done two dozen lens changes between the 10-22, 18-55, and 75-300. I'm just guessing, but I'd bet 90% of my shots were at 10, 18, and 300mm. If I...
  45. ddrueding

    Samsung 256GB SSD, world's fastest?

    I did a search on the model number listed, and got this. Seems to be the same model #.
  46. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    I can get by, but for the last 2 weeks we've been averaging 6 miles on foot, 4 subway rides, 2 bus rides, and at least 3 private cars per day. I'm already leaving lenses at home, and looking forward to the 28-135IS that I plan to get in conjunction with the 40D. That and the 10-22 should be all...
  47. ddrueding

    Samsung 256GB SSD, world's fastest?

    DVNation has been around a long time. When I first started looking at SSDs, they were the only game in town. I have never purchased anything from them, (I bought from rocketdisk.com) but they are a long-standing player.
  48. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    Whether in jest or not, I was thinking of making on offer on a 1Ds Mk II. I would really like to be able to make large prints without stitching, but that is a heavy frickin' camera.
  49. ddrueding

    Why C.A.F.E Standards are Dumb

    I got the tickets to Moscow (SFO->JFK->SVO) for under $1k each round trip. I'm sure it took more gas than that to get us here.
  50. ddrueding

    dSLR thread

    Although I would love more dynamic range and exposure latitude (as you put it), I think I'll stick with the big dog for a while. I'm picking up a nice collection of lenses (just 5 so far, with 2 more on the near-term shopping list), and I like the options available to me. Picking a company that...
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