Hey everyone. Although I think I deserve some credit for the photo posts, I don’t think they really count all that much. As most of you know, there has been a lot going on recently that isn’t really the best for internet wide broadcasting, so I honestly haven’t had much to say. But enough excuses, on with the post!

So last night I went to a friends for a very nice dinner (thanks!) and watched The Chronicles of Narnia. I hadn’t seen it before. Now, I did not read the series as a kid, only reading the one when I was in high school. (Mostly because it was suggested by a girl I had a crush on. What? Can you think of a better reason to read a book?) As a result I can’t really comment on how close the movie was to the book, but I don’t remember howls of outrage from people when the movie came out, so I am hoping they did a good job. It did feel to me however that they pulled most of the religious overtones out of the story; I can see why they would, but it seems wrong to take out one of the underlying themes of the books in making the transition.

As a contemporary (and friend) of J.R.R. Tolkien, it is interesting to see the way in which the authors handled a difficult time in their country’s history in their work. I see the The Chronicles of Narnia as more a parallel to The Hobbit rather than the Lord of the Rings as the story (although having tragic events in the middle) pretty much turns out positively in the end. I am no literary scholar, but I found it interesting that C.S. Lewis took the route of basing his story on children who were being displaced due to horrendous events while J.R.R. Tolkien wrote stories that although they dealt with struggles paralleling the real world, had no direct connection to them. On a less serious note, I’m not sure it would be a blessing or a curse to live probably 20-30 years in a magical realm only to find yourself transported back to your adolescent bodies all of a sudden; probably a little bit of both.

And for whatever reason, the movie resulted in me having some seriously wacked out dreams last night. Very strange.

I took a walk Sunday morning, camera at the ready.

[Updated] Would have been good if I put a link - Photo Page

As some of you know, I have been lusting after a digital SLR for quite a while. The limitations of a point and shoot camera were getting more and more frustrating to the point that I had stopped taking pictures, which is no fun at all. So after a fun discussion last weekend about photography, I decided that I should just bite the bullet and get the camera I wanted, a Canon EOS 20D. Well, let me tell you, it is a very nice camera. My primary complaint with my old digital camera was the lack of manual controls; well the 20D does not lack in manual controls. I have quite a bit of learning in fornt of me, but I am looking forward to it.

I have posted a first set of pictures I took wandering on the paths that surround lake Matoka on campus. Enjoy.

Photo Page

Why? Because it is funny, and I can. Oh, and because I got a pretty high score. Stay away from me with that needle.

The story didn’t end with the last post (here).

Shipping: I got notified that my laptop had shipped back to me complete with a tracking number for DHL. Apple wisely ships things next day air, so I knew exactely when it was going to arrive. I also knew that it was being shipped to my house; on a weekday; to be delivered at 10:30 am. The question of whether a signature would be required was paramount in my mind. So, I called the DHL number and asked if it would require a signature; seems simple enough, wouldn’t you think? The woman said it would not. Being paranoid I kept checking the DHL tracking website to see when it got there. At around 10:45 I saw a new notice: “Delivery attempted. Will attempt next business day.” CRAP! So I called DHL back and spoke with a wonderfully nice woman in the local office. She was quite considerate and said that if I could go and sign the delivery ticket they would swing back around that afternoon. So I did, and they did. The package got left at my door and I eagerly went home at 4:00 to see how the repairs had gone.<p>

Unpacking: When I unpacked the box, everything initially looked ok. I saw from the letter included that they had replaced the inverter board (as expected) and the LCD screen. Unfortunately, when I powered it up, I noticed two long scratches down the right side of the LCD. the more I looked, I noticed that at the top of the LCD (where the iSight camera is mounted), the bezel surrounding the LCD was not fully seated in the case, and as a result it had gotten bent. Not good. Tech Support: So I called Apple again and explained the situation. The guy on the phone was not particularly apologetic, but he also was perfectly accepting of my explanation and opened another support ticket. My MacBook Pro was going to take a second trip. Home again, home again: I got my laptop back today, and everything is in good shape. Apple replaced both the LCD and the bezel that was bent. I'm happy. Oh. The picture? I find it very commendable that the support guy verified that the iSight camera was working. I find it amusing he forgot to empty the trash. But since this is the second support guy (the one who fixed everything properly) I can only raise my hat to this unnamed Apple employee for doing a much better job than the last guy and getting my MacBook Pro back in only 2 business days

R8442269

That would be my AppleCare support incident number. I feel it is only fair to list the bad things that I have experienced with my MacBook Pro along with the good things I have listed in previous posts (here, and here). On Wednesday of last week, I was at home and using my laptop to play World of Warcraft when the screen went dark. I don’t say blank because the display was still showing data, just no backlight. So iputzed with it for a while to verify it wasn’t a software issue, but the subtle fritzing noise that happened from the bottom left hand corner of the screen when I powered it on pretty much convinced me that the inverter board had burned out. (The inverter board is the thing that converts the DC power that comes from the battery to AC current to power the backlight.)

Side note: This kind of problem is what I usually refer to as “infant death syndrome.” Most parts in a computer either die very early in their life or last for their expected (long) lifetime. I have ahd this happen with several computers in the past, so while annoying, it wasn’t overly surpising.

So on Thursday I drove up to the Apple store in Richmond and made myself known to the Genius Bar. Being a rainy day in the middle of the week, Chris was able to help me almost immediately. He asked what was up as he was finishing with his last customer. I explained the problem and he nodded. We booted up the laptop, he verified that there was actually video even though the backlight was dead and confirmed it was the inverter board. He filled out some paperwork and my laptop was prepared to take a voyage further west than i had ever been (that would be Texas).

Apple has declared my MacBook Pro fixed and I should be getting it back today. 6 day turnaround seems quite good to me. Oh and it was completely free. I’m obviously not happy that I had a problem, but I was very impressed both with the help at my local Apple store and the speed at which they have taken care of the issue. Let’s just hope it is fixed.

Found on the ground outside our garage.

Such vigor and forcefulness is really to be appreciated.

But, on the other hand, spelling takes away from the true intent of the writer.

Sad, but true.

Since Matt asked how things were going with the new laptop now that I have had it for almost 2 weeks, I’ll try to put down some of my observations.

Known Issues — There have been many reports of MacBook Pros making odd hissing noises. Now, these reports came out after the first MacBook Pros were purchased. Mine is after Apple made a small upgrade in speed and after a silent hardware revision (or so I understand). If I take mine into a very quiet room (no other computers, people, etc.) I can hear a very small noise; but given any amount of ambient noise, I don’t hear anything. I find the MacBook Pro to be quieter than my old Titanium Powerbook both in terms of fan and hard drive noise.

Speed — This computer is fast. No questions asked. I have played games, compiled software, done everything I do with other computers and I have no complaints. It is obviously faster than my old laptop, but I think it is probably faster than my dual 2.5GHz G5 tower I have at home. I honestly don’t want to test that as it would just bug me if I knew for sure.

Heat — This could be considered a problem for some people. The bottom of the case gets quite warm; I would not recommend running it on bare skin as you will probably hurt yourself after some time. I use it at work on my desk and when I do use it “freehand” I usually cross my legs so I have it perched in the air. I don’t see this as a problem, but other people might.

Display — Gorgeous, not much more to say than that. The display runs at 1440 by 900 and the video card has plenty of umpf to back it up. Text is crisp and clear. Games run fast.

Light Sensors — This is just cool. If the light in the room dims, the computer dims the video display and lights up the keyboard (there are lights under each letter of each key that glow). How useful is this? I don’t entirely know. But what I can say is that when I first got it, I went into a room with no windows and turned the lights on and off many times to see it work.

Well that is all I can think of now. Want to know anything else? Ask in the comments.

My trusty PowerBook has been showing its age quite significantly over the last few months. The display connector on the motherboard has been working itself loose resulting in the display to start “tearing” horizontally in a most unpleasant manner. That was managable in that I just had to open the case every once in a while and reseat the cable. Unfortunately, lately it has been crashing when I open the lid to wake it from sleep or if I move it while it is running. Both issues seem to be the result of heat issues flexing the motherboard and most likely causing some hairline fractures in the motherboard. This was supported by numerous reports of the same problem on the Apple support forums that were all fixed by motherboard replacements. Since those run upwards of $1000, and it was over 3.5 years old, it seemed like it was appropriate to get a new one. (note self-justification in previous sentance.)

Last Sunday Elizabeth and I made a pilgramage to the Short Pump Apple store. The Apple guy I cornered seemed a little taken aback that he didn’t have to give me any pitch on the machine. The conversation went something like this:

Me — Hi. Do you have any of the new 2.16 15” MacBook Pros with the matte screens in yet.

Apple Guy — Yeh.

Me — Good. Can you get one.

Apple Guy — ::blink:: ::blink:: Yeh, sure. ::wanders off::

Aside from the Apple guys harassing me about Applecare (shush Braz), he was very helpful. I don’t think the store employees get any commission for selling computers, however, I get the feeling they get something for selling Applecare packages as they rabidly push these even after you have said no multiple times.

So I have a new shiny MacBook Pro now. It is quite nice and one would never know that it has a different processor architecture inside (except maybe for the tons of heat it pumps out). I was pleasantly surprised to find that just about all of the applications I use on a daily basis are Universal binaries. The only biggie that isn’t is Microsoft Office, and I don’t notice any problems running it under Rosetta. In transitioning over to the new machine I did have an experience that made me very happy for open source software. I use an application called SSHKeychain to manage my SSH keys. When I checked the website, the author did not have a universal binary version of the app, however, he did have the source available. I downloaded the source, compiled it myself, and voila, I had a native version that works like a charm.

I always hate having to give up an old computer, so I was pleased that I will be able to put my old Powerbook to a productive task; it will be attached to the entertainment center to play movies that I have captured electronically. The only task left on that front is to get an ethernet cable down 3 floors from the attic to the bottom floor. I think I know how I’m going to route it, but it should be an adventure. If I’m feeling energetic, I might even post pictures. Who knows.

So that is it; new laptop. very nice; very happy. More impressions to come.

(I’ll leave it to Elizabeth to relate her adventures at the Apple store. If she doesn’t, bug her.)

Who knew that the son of god worked at the Williamsburg Papa Johns? Wow.

I will say that it was a very good pizza, so obviously having a divine being make your pizza results in superior quality. Hats off to Papa Johns for their excellent choice in pizza experience hiring policies.