You know those photos where you think ‘I could’ve done better’ or ‘I don’t really like it, but I’ll share it anyway’? This was one of those photos.
Thing is, the response to this has literally blown be away. I’m used to seeing maybe 7 views on my photos and getting excited. This photo has topped 318 so far, and I keep getting more visitors. It may not seem like a lot to some, but to me this is spectacular!
A big thank you go to all who take the time to view it!
亞歷克斯的！
Originally, I was just going to let 2012 slide by, but I felt the need to say something.
2012 has been a pretty rough year. Not just for me, but for all of us. Jobs have been lost, relatives deceased, friendships destroyed, bridges burned, and a whole lot of other things in-between.
2013 isn’t looking much better either, from this angle, but only time can tell.
Remember though, that this past year, and especially the year to come, are what you make of it. You can choose to think of 2012 and instantly bring up the negatives, or think fondly of the positives, and remember the moments.
The same goes for 2013, but on a daily basis. Most of 2012 may have seemed miserable or dull, simply because we focused a little too much on the negatives of our situations and the circumstances going on around us.
This year, let’s try and make 2013 different, and daily think of what was good, rather than what was bad.
Who knows, maybe, when we enter 2014, we’ll be feeling a lot more optimistic!
Before I go, I ought to mention who took the beautiful photo above. Their name is Kiyoshi Noguchi (memories of time), and with the end of the year drawing closer by the hour, this photo seems to take on a much more solemn meaning, yet it still retains the beauty and the brilliant composition.
Now, I’m not going to end by saying ‘Have a Happy New Year’, like we do on a day-to-day basis after the 25th. No, that phrase seems to get older and older every year, so, this time, I think I’ll go with something a little more out of the ordinary.
This is Alex, hoping that all those who are reading will remember this year with fondness, and enter the new one with a renewed sense of optimism that things can indeed get better.
See you in 2013.
Well, I finally found the willpower to do another one of these! I think I’ll go back to my standard Newsspot and photo scheme from today onward. I’ll have to go back and review how exactly I did it though…
Anyway, today’s photo comes from another one of my contacts (American, this time) called Thomas Hawk who’s real name is Andrew Peterson!
I’ve always loved photos like this one, with the ‘miniature’ effect due to the DOF and focal length (or simulated via application). The vivid colors on this photo make it stand out, too, with it’s contrasting whites, reds, and array of colors. Of course, the ‘stay’ sign sticks out the most, with it being the only noticeable words in the photo, and the item with the most color, and I like that. It gives a viewer some definite thing to focus on in a cityscape-like photo, which can be very rare these days.
Nice job Andrew!
Now, I’m not really super keen to put a picture of myself up here, nor was I to put it on Flickr in the first place, but it illustrates my point well, so I’ll use it.
It’s easier to make the wrong choice.
In today’s society, it seems to be easier to make the wrong choice, especially for younger generations.
Take stealing, for example. I’ve found it’s becoming increasingly acceptable for some of my friends to steal from supermarkets and the like without a guilty conscience, even going as far as to try smuggling multiple goods out at a time. At first it was a big shock, and I immediately tried to sway them from the idea, but it became apparent that my words were going unheeded, so I just decided to separate at that stage and not take part in any of the dealings.
Point is, everywhere I see, dishonesty, cruelty, etc. is becoming more acceptable everywhere as each generation comes and goes.
What’s the reason, you ask?
Answer is…
I’m not sure.
This is Alex, signing off.
The new Windows 8 ‘Start Menu’. A bit bigger than the one we’re used to.
So, it’s that time of day again. Or maybe that time of year? I could never quite pin that down. Anyway, today, yesterday, and the day before that have been very productive indeed. Especially if you count productive as getting Windows 8 Pro, and Microsoft Office 2013 Professional Plus. To be honest, it’s been more of a hassle than I expected, and even now, my faithful Windows Store is having to re-install the Photos app, due to some…err…technical difficulties. Now, I’m not sure what this post is going to come out as, seeing as I’m typing on the bare minimal WordPress Modern UI app, but hey, I’ll check it out once I’m done, so no big deal.
Anyway, so I mentioned hassle, and oh was I serious. For starters, it took me countless DVD’s (I only have 5 left…thanks Microsoft), numerous re-downloads of my ISO files, and the patience worthy of a saint just to get the damn operating system to upgrade from Windows 7 without an error popping up at the last minute telling me it had failed. After I had managed to get the golden combination of good ISO + good burnt DVD, I installed flawlessly. Maybe I did a little dance of joy when it did…but that’s for you to figure out. So, after the numerous screens (including the ‘eye destroyer’), I ended up at my very own start screen!
After I had gotten over the initial excitement, I decided to customize my goods, and went about testing my apps (new & old) setting up software, tweaking settings, and doing what I do on a daily basis till everything was just right. Then, after I had uninstalled Office 2010, and cleaned my registry, I decided it was time to give Windows a little gift, and put the gloriously square Office 2013 onto it’s desktop. So I did.
The newest incarnation of the office’s favorite software. Square, is it not?
After that, I found out that I had run into an even bigger snag…and this one will explain why I didn’t insert photos as I went. You see, due to my use of the Tune-Up Registry Cleaner, it seems to have deleted a very empty, and seemingly obtuse key…which actually enabled Modern UI apps to use the file system.
Oops.
So, I can’t change my lock screen without considerable effort, insert photos into this post, or…well…do a lot of things that TIFKAM (The Interface Formerly Known As Metro) Apps should be able to do really.
Not that it bothers me, to be honest. Oh no, I’m quite happy sticking to my good old desktop, thank you. In fact it’s the only thing on the entire system that I’ve had an issue with (bar Photos, but we’ll come to that). Hey, maybe in three months time someone will have worked out a registry fix for the rest of us. Or maybe I should go spelunking myself…but that never has ended well for me…
Now onto the Photos app.
It sucks.
In fact, the only thing it’s good for is setting my lock screen picture. I much prefer using good old Windows Explorer (C:\Windows\explorer.exe LOOK IT UP). The Photos app…is so pitifully basic…well…even the Apple built in photo app on the iPhone 3G would be classed as several leagues above. Sure, once you get past having to re-install the app once a week, seeing as photos mysteriously fail to show in the library (explorer.exe has no issues), it’s alright for browsing, but if you want to crop, straighten, or just do a decent slideshow…you’d better shuffle along to your desktop, cause this thing can do not one thing to help you. No wonder it’s got a two point five star rating in the Windows Store already.
The other TIFKAM apps, I’m alright with. I’m bearing in mind that the system is still somewhat young, so I’ll give them some leeway on the fact that if you play music in the TIFKAM app…you have to switch back to it to stop it. Plus, there’s the issue of the messenger…I don’t use it anyway, so it doesn’t bother me, but the fact that is refuses to load anything may tip some users off. The ones on the store, however, have great potential. Take the Wikipedia app, for example. It’s clean, it’s tidy, it matches the OS look, and more importantly, it does what you’d expect it to. Some apps have sacrificed functionality to match the signature OS look, but somehow the guys/gals over at Wikipedia have pulled it off. Nothing has been left out, which means I can browse the app without worrying that the web version will have any extra info. Remember though, not all TIFKAM apps are like that. I could name a few, but I think that’d be too many spoilers.
So that’s the TIFKAM apps done.
How about taking a trip down memory lane?
Think of Windows 95, or even 3.1, if you were like me. Yeah, it all comes back, doesn’t it? You remember that thing? Start menu, was it?
Gone.
Yup.
Gone.
Make no mistake, I knew what I was getting into when I got Windows 8. How could I not? I’ve been following the production since the earliest builds known to man! The problem is, the start menu is an integral part of a Windows user’s every day life. You pin your favourite programs there, your frequently used ones appear automatically, and it’s a handy shortcut to those all-important places like ‘Network’, ‘Computer’, ‘Control Panel’, and also the all programs list.
It made no sense to remove it…but I guess this is the sacrifice of bridging the PC, Laptop, and Tablet.
A sacrifice I wasn’t ready to make.
So I made plans.
Start 8.
Yeah, I know the name means nothing to you really, but it has that word in it. A word by which you can probably guess what the whole program does.
It brings it back.
Back from the dead.
Better than ever.
Shinie- Ok, maybe not shiner…it’s actually quite matte, to be honest.
Anyway, the point is that ‘Start 8′ brings the start menu, and all it’s glorious functions back where they belong.
It actually brought tears to my eyes.
Sure it’s £4.99 from the makers (Stardock), but when you’re as desperate as me, nothing matters. I had to have my start menu back. The start screen just isn’t the same. I know it’s not meant to be either, but it’ll never replace it like Microsoft are hoping for.
Start 8 brings it all back. Jump lists, shortcuts, the lot. Plus, it’s got that shiny (matte) new Windows flag to boot!
So, as you may have guessed, I’m not a Windows fan boy, and I could give Windows 8 some even meaner hits if I wanted to, but for now, I’ll treat Microsoft like a young child, and allow them to get back on their feet, make mistakes, and help (review & suggest) them where possible. I mean, it’s only fair, with Apple currently looking to dominate the market.
Right?
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