|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-15-2010, 02:24 PM
|
| |
I use Western Digital Velociraptors. These are actually 2.5" drives with an aluminium heat sink around them, the size of a 3.5" hdd... They run @10k rpm and are very fast. There is no way you could compare an ordinary 5400 rpm drive with this. They are a day and night difference.
These are the fastest drives you can buy nowadays...
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-07-2010, 11:39 AM
|
| |
Barondla,
You shouldn't worry too much. Even if you need the patch to sort the problem, it is only 449kb in size so even on a modem it would only take a couple of minutes to download.
Besides, if you were to buy an off the shelf computer from HP or the like, it will probably be patched already. The problem is related to the NVIDIA USB Enhanced Host Controller Interface (EHCI) chipset. I doubt that any of the mainstream manufacturers is not aware of the problem.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-07-2010, 03:47 AM
|
| |
Robin,
Just read your blog. Very good and informative. I understand where you are coming from needing a quiet PC. I never had those requirements but still like a reasonably quiet system so I opted for very large slow rpm fans with fan controllers so I can turn them full whack should I need to.
I too went for an Intel/Gigabyte combination with Kingston HyperX RAM. For HD's I now only ever use WD and for my OS I use WD Velocityraptor 10k drives. Graphics is an NVidia GTX295 with an aftermarket cooler a) for better cooling and b) less noise. My case has been the same for many years: a Lian-Li aluminium case. Modular and toolless.
You are probably on the ball with £1000. Sounds like a lot but if you compare the specs to an off the shelf system of the same price, I'd say that I know what is in there and only quality components.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-07-2010, 03:01 AM
|
| |
Barondla, I understand where you are coming from.
Building your own computer is not cheaper; far from it. You'd never be able to buy parts at prices large manufacturers can. But the problem with pre-built PC' is that somewhere they will try to cut costs. Also, some parts are propriety and won't be user changeable should things go wrong. Take f.i. Dell: they use their own motherboards. Should something go wrong with the motherboard, you cannot fix it yourself.
The advantage of building your own system is that you learn how things stick together and so be able to fix them. YOU choose your parts and so make no compromises on quality.
Now, as for that NVidia card: I think you are getting your wires crossed here. The NVidia problem they were talking about was about motherboards with an NVidia chipset controller, not NVidia graphics cards. NVidia graphics cards are fine and do not need anything else but the driver that comes with it. Besides, the hotfix to fix the chipset controller is likely a very small file anyway.
I understand now why you use external HD's. In that case, I'd make sure to go for Firewire 800. Much faster than USB. There is however also the option to have hot swap bays in your computer but again this is something you are unlikely to find in a pre-built PC.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-06-2010, 05:21 PM
|
| |
Thanks, that is Bodiam Castle just up the road from where I live. It is a 2 image pano if I remember correctly.
Seriously, building a computer is not hard. If you can use a screwdriver, you are good to go so to speak. There are plenty of guides on building computers.
What do you mean by "unfortunately that Nvidia card"?? Of all the graphics cards, I prefer NVidia to ATI.
To be honest, I think you'd be wasting your time trying to patch that old computer. You might get it going again but it is never going to be quick. More RAM is NOT going to speed the computer up that much. Going from 512Mb to 1 or 2Gb is going to make the most difference. Beyond that, you will not really notice a difference.
I don't really understand your obsession with external HD's. They are either USB or Firewire. Regardless, they will be a bottleneck for speed. I'd stick to internal HD's. Should they fill up and you want to upgrade to a larger model, it is easy enough to swap them out. 4 screws, a SATA and SATA Power connector is all it takes to take them out. 5 minute job.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-06-2010, 03:31 PM
|
| |
Building your own computer is not rocket science. It really isn't that difficult and buying your parts like the processor, memory and mobo as a bundle takes a lot of the guess work out as far as compatibility is concerned.
Windows 7 is not much different than Vista so it is not hard to change from Vista to Windows 7. It is definitely not a learning curve. Windows 7 however is what Vista should have been. It is nowhere near the memory hog Vista used to be.
You can run XP on any new computer, no problem but it is beyond me why you'd want to. XP is not over in 2014; they just stop supporting it. You can run it until you are old and grey if you want. Heck, I could still run Windows 3.11 for Workgroups if I wanted to but I don't so I won't :lol:
And yes, all your programs would still run as they do today.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-06-2010, 06:16 AM
|
| |
Not quite true. That depends on how you look at it. You'd still have manufacturers warranty on the individual parts so if something does go wrong with f.i. the motherboard, there should be no problem getting it exchanged within the warranty period.
|
|
Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
02-06-2010, 04:19 AM
|
| |
I think a decent external flash and diffuser would be your best friend which in turn makes a fast lens a bit of a moot point. I mean, a fast lens will give you higher shutter speeds but would you shoot child portraits @ 1.4? The DOF will be extremely shallow. A higher quality zoom, yes. Nothing against a fast prime but I wouldn't rely on it's speed to capture portraits unless you like a very shallow DOF.
This one was shot with a K10D, Sigma 24-70 F2.8 EX DG Macro and a Metz 58AF-1 wit a Gary Fong Lightsphere:
 |
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-05-2010, 05:03 PM
|
| |
Just because you did a nozzle clean doesn't mean your nozzles aren't still blocked. There should be a nozzle check option as well which prints a pattern for each colour nozzle. If any of the colour patterns has an interrupted pattern, you still have a blocked nozzle.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-24-2010, 05:33 PM
|
| |
That's correct. It is a plugin for PS, Lightroom and Aperture.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-24-2010, 10:28 AM
|
| |
Lightroom is DAM and RAW conversion software with some tools for editing but nowhere near as many as PS or PSE. It has got a crop function, spot healing, local adjustment tool via a brush etc. You've got your curves, sharpening, noise reduction but not quite with the control you have in PS. It also can't do layers. It all depends how much editing you tend to do; for some it is has more than enough features, for others it hasn't and they like to further edit in PS.
It is a stand alone product but you can export your photos straight from Lightroom into PS. Lightroom uses the same ACR as PS but IMO it is better laid out and so is easier to use than ACR in PS.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-24-2010, 08:21 AM
|
| |
You could try a bit of software called Everything Search. It indexes all your files in a heartbeat and finds anything very quickly. Do a search for it in Google. It runs in your system tray (you'll see a little icon after you've installed it in the tray where your clock is on your taskbar).
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-24-2010, 05:15 AM
|
| |
First of all; Documents and Settings is a folder that is hidden by default in Vista and Windows 7. You would need to unhide these before you can see them. The second problem you have is that in Vista and Windows 7 you cannot access them even if you unhide them. You would need to change the permissions on the folder and sub folders to get access to the folder in question.
I am not in front of my computer now (working off an iPhone) but you might want to try and look for a folder called "Users" instead of Documents and Settings. I can't remember whether this folder is hidden as well but it doesn't have the permissions issue if I remember correctly. After Users the rest of the folder path is the same as mentioned for Documents and Settings.
Hope this helps.
P.S. If all you want to do is delete the file in question, use the search function in Windows Explorer but make sure you use the advanced option to search hidden and system files as well. Once found, you can delete or rename the file as per normal.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-24-2010, 04:51 AM
|
| |
If by that you mean the use of control points to manipulate your photos; Lightroom works in a similar way with it's brushes. Other than that, I highly recommend Nik Software's Viveza 2 which if I remember correctly you can call up from PS but also from Lightroom. I don't know whether they are seperate plugins i.e. require seperate licences; I only use it from within PS CS4.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
01-23-2010, 05:24 AM
|
| |
You are all making it way too difficult. Just install the following codecs which supports nearly every RAW file under the sun including DNG; 32 and 64bit and works under Windows 7:
Fast Picture Viewer | WIC RAW Codec Pack for Windows 7, Vista and XP
The codecs are free but the viewer isn't but you only want to view the thumbnails so you don't need the viewer. When you install, be selective as to which codecs you want to install as it supports all makes.
As for PSD files: this was supported by older versions of Photoshop but CS4 does not include the required dll anymore. Some had luck restoring the dll from an older version of Photoshop but I couldn't get that to work. I did manage to display thumbnails of PSD's under Windows 7 but for the life of me can't remember off the top of my head how I did it. I'd have to look it up if anybody wants this functionality. I probably have notes somewhere.
|
|
Forum: Post Your Photos!
12-20-2009, 05:08 PM
|
| |
I'd just like to share a photo of my Great Dane Millie while she was asleep (best time to shoot her as she is a bit camera shy :()
Post processed in Lightroom and Photoshop CS4 and given an antique plate effect.
Hope you like it.
|
|
Forum: Site Suggestions and Help
12-13-2009, 11:21 AM
|
| |
I'd love one but I was made redundant back in April and still jobless so at the moment I cannot justify spending any money on a calendar unfortunately.
But they look fantastic!!
|
|
Forum: Monthly Photo Contests
11-25-2009, 03:52 PM
|
| |
You mean more like this one?
 |
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
11-13-2009, 06:20 PM
|
| |
Not sure but that is the dpi they state you should upload your photos at and I was told that that was the default for Fuji Frontier printers.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
11-13-2009, 05:35 PM
|
| |
My photolab uses Fuji Frontier printers and the dpi stated for these printers is 254, not 300...
|
|
Forum: Monthly Photo Contests
11-02-2009, 04:25 PM
|
| |
Shot in our local British Wildlife Centre on a dull and overcast day.
|
|
Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
10-24-2009, 03:26 PM
|
| |
Are we talking trial versions of these software packages as I cannot understand why you would spend lots of money on software and asking this question?
|
|
Forum: Winners' Showcase
10-01-2009, 05:33 PM
|
| |
Thanks guys, it was the first time I entered on this forum. Only recently started posting here even though I've been a member for quite some time.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
09-24-2009, 05:01 AM
|
| |
Why on earth are you still running Win2k? Is it because of your hardware?
You'll find that eventually every manufacturer will drop the older OS's. And even if the manufacturer doesn't support the OS, have a look at Vuescan. Much better than any scan software bundled with scanners. And it supports scanners with or without available drivers i.e. you can use the drivers that came with a recent scanner or use the built in driver to support older scanners for which drivers are not available anymore.
Oh, and you can calibrate the scanner and use colour profiles.
|
|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
09-24-2009, 04:56 AM
|
| |
I've just bought a Canoscan 5600f. Should get it by the weekend. Only reason I bought it is that I got it about half price, brand new. Up till now, I've only used SCSI scanners (Epson and HP). This will be my first USB scanner. I doubt it will match the speed of SCSI but I am now running the retail version of Windows 7 64 bit and SCSI support is minimal. The only Adaptec cards supported are the 29320 and 39320 which are expensive cards.
We'll see what the Canon is like soon enough. Luckily, I don't scan all that much.
|
