Stuart...is not on Facebook

Whether it was the South Park episode I've just watched (South Park - 14x04 - You Have 0 Friends), or just a growing feeling of exasperation, but my Facebook account is now deactivated. In the space of 10 minutes I went from 90+ 'friends' to 37 actual friends (i.e. people I actually care about) to fully deactivating my account. Oddly I couldn't find anywhere to fully delete my account; Facebook kindly allowing me time to reconsider and reverse my actions at any time in the future.

Nikon D5000

I ordered my new camera last Monday. Sadly due to the awesome snow it was delayed in actually getting to me (conflict of interest or what!) However it arrived yesterday woohoo!

I chose the D5000 as it had a good ISO range, good mega pixel count, the option of a GPS unit to geotag pics as they are taken, and the reputation of Nikon lenses.  Having never used a SLR I knew I had a lot to learn.  Thankfully I found a few good websites that were designed for beginners.  They basically started from the end - what pictures do you like to take? For me, its clearly landscapes and low light shots. Therefore, a camera with good ISO range for those night shots, and a wide angle lens for those landscapes. Megapixel count wasn't a big factor for me as I'm not printing uber large prints.

I'm looking forward to discovering my new camera.  While my old one (a Canon Powershot S2) was rarely on automatic shooting mode for the past year, I think until I get used to the functions and basic use of the Nikon, it will remain of auto....

...well just for a little while ;)

Picture a Day

I've decided to post a picture a day (not actually post a picture a day, just take a picture a day and post when I get the chance) to my picasa gallery. I got the idea as I had already taken a picture on all 3 days this year (thanks to the awesome snow falls!), I'm getting a new camera soon, and I want to improve my skills. I want to see what makes a good picture and also paint a story of what will be quite a year.

Fingers crossed I can keep it going (and no - this wasn't a new years resolution)

Snow!

It's snowing! Well its been snowing on and off for a few days now but only thought of porting about it.

I am really excited about snow, even driving in it doesn't bother me, it is such a wonderful weather type. A blanket of white, making everything beautiful, peaceful, and so very Christmas.

Sugarhouse Insomnia

I've just found a MP3 on my computer. Its made me think of two things. First, my friend John, with the weekends I spend down in his diggs at Warwick Uni. Secondly, of a particular night out in Lancaster; at the Sugarhouse; with the LU Cinema crew; and having an absolutly wicked dance with Sarah.

Insomnia, by Faithless. There are many many mixes of this track. The one I found is the 8 minute long reverence mix, and if memory serves is the version the DJ played that night at the sugarhouse.

Not much gets me in the mood to dance, especially in night clubs. But Insomnia is one that does. That night the DJ started mixing it in and my ears picked up the beat. I just needed to dance. No one else would apart from Sarah. It took a few minutes to get from where we were to the floor, thankfully it was this extended version because once the main beat started, it was great! I can still remember it like it was yesterday.

Man I'm getting old! :)

Part 1 Flights booked

Last night L and I booked the flights for our part 1 honeymoon. They are all fully paid up so that's one less thing to have to pay for in the future. Its a little daunting thinking of all the things still to do, but luckily there is still over 8 months to go, and L's Mum will have it all planned, with timeframes, down to the smallest detail I'm sure :)

Freeholds Top - The first Marylin bagged

A collegue at work directed me to Hill-bagging.co.uk, a site that allows you to log the hills you have climbed (or 'bagged' as its known). My recent long weekend was a good opportunity to start with the closest one to my home - Freeholds Top.

I logged the walk with my HTC Hero using Google's "My Tracks". A great app that i'm still getting to grips with. I uploaded the route it captured and it can be seen below along with a picture and video I took






View Freeholds Top in a larger map

Blog Split

I've decided to split my blog into two - an IT, gadget and generally more geeky blog (The Calm Geek) and my personal one (The Personal Geek).

The reason is I didn't want people who might be reading my personal blog to get bored with my more geeky posts. If you want to read those then please, read The Calm Geek :)

Holiday pictures

L and myself went on holiday in Cornwall in mid September. Since we got back my PC hasn't worked. Don't know why, it just wouldn't switch on. After no-so-extensive diagnostics (I simply didn't have the time to look into the problem until recently) it was down to the power lead.

So i've spent the past few days sorting my pictures out from that holiday. We stayed in our big tent for a week in Carbis Bay, did some walks, saw the Red Arrows, and went to Lands End.



Now I've sorted those out, I will have to move onto the Isle of Wight snaps the family and I took last week. Over 700 in a week! eek! Still, there stands a good chance of being some good ones :)

Hero tethered!

Well my new phone arrived - and I have been playing with it while on holiday. I'm still getting to grips with it, but so far I am very happy with it. I got internet tethering working (currently on the laptop in the caravan browsing the web via the phone), I've got my number ported over from Orange, got a few apps from the Android market. A couple to highlight so far is the SMS backup app which saves all my text messages in my gmail, and the Google Sky Maps which shows the stars in the sky in the direction my phone (and therefore me) is facing.

The holiday is going well, and I'm enjoying seeing the Isle of Wight and playing with my new gadget. A few pics taken on my phone have been uploaded to Picasa, see below.

Laters,