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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 5, 2021 1:39:34 GMT
September already? How time flies as we get older...
My new computer is being worked on, and new new monitor arrived today. I plugged it in and unfortunately it is not compatible with my old computer, so now I have a small monitor sitting in front of a gargantuan monitor. I'm trying to deactivate my old software, but some of the companies have been bought out and now new sites are hosting the apps- and the apps run on Windows 10, not Windows 7 like my current model. Tech support is probably cringing reading my tickets, but there's not much I can do. I'm not installing a new OS on a computer that's going down permanently in a week or so.
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Post by Bean on Sept 5, 2021 9:01:44 GMT
Well spotted Baz, I totally forgot!
Glad Operation New Computer is coming together. Have you got a particular project you're hoping to start when you get the new one up and running?
Schools here are going back after the summer break next week, although many are just doing covid tests next week, and not lessons (why the tests couldn't have been done at home last week, I have no idea, but hey ho!). Let's hope this school year is less disrupted than the last couple have been!
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 5, 2021 15:29:58 GMT
Definitely well caught, and definitely glad the new computer will be home, soon I'm sure tech support is used to this, and curses the company for not making things compatible, rather than the customer for trying to save some money. If it's anything like it was when I did support, they've seen and heard just about everything I don't know what your laws are like, but here in the land of the free to screw up as much as we want, I don't think schools can ask students/parents to do anything during break time. Not the schools time to tell people what to do, and you know how Americans hate to be told what to do. That's why no one can be asked to provide a vaccination card, to prove they don't need to wear a mask. It's invading their privacy, yet them giving me the virus isn't invading mine? I doubt schools even give out summer reading lists, anymore, as that would be telling students/parents books had to be read on personal time ) I don't recall my daughter even having a summer reading list.
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 5, 2021 18:01:14 GMT
Glad Operation New Computer is coming together. Have you got a particular project you're hoping to start when you get the new one up and running? Actually, I do- after I finished that WW2 short, I realized that this yer marks the 30th anniversary of another project I helped those guys out with. This one was titled Xenomorph, and it's a shameless ripoff of two movies: Aliens and Predator. How they ever got approval for this at the school was beyond me, but I just dropped off the master tape at a facility yesterday and I hope they can meet my specifications. (I need it transferred to a file I can use for editing, as the master tape is a format I don't have access to- a U-Matic 3/4" tape which is a rarity these days, but a professional format 30+ years ago.) I plan to redo as much audio as possible and see what I can do to correct numerous errors with the original edit. It's not as bad as the WW2 movie, as I had some limited control over the original edit, but there are still loads of cringe-worthy moments that should be removed.
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Post by Bean on Sept 6, 2021 9:03:32 GMT
That sounds fun too. Is it expensive to get the tape transferred to a file? It's good there are still places that can do these things, so older formats aren't lost. My neighbours would like some old slides converted into regular photos, so I need to look into that.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 6, 2021 13:25:34 GMT
That sounds like a really fun project, as not only do you get to relive the making/editing of the film 30+ years ago, but do some modern day things to it to make it much better. Your redux will be an interesting contrast to the original Bean, I hope you find a good place to get the slides made into photos. There's software for that, but I don't know what the requirements are for memory space, etc. Vic was scanning all of our photos into the computer, for a while, and could print any we wanted printed. Obviously you'd need a photo quality printer and good photo paper, but he's done a lot of them over the years.
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 6, 2021 23:08:48 GMT
That sounds fun too. Is it expensive to get the tape transferred to a file? It's good there are still places that can do these things, so older formats aren't lost. My neighbours would like some old slides converted into regular photos, so I need to look into that. Price depends on what format and how much material needs to be transferred. I had to pay $100, although the price tag normally would have been $50- this is because I had some specifications; I needed the two audio channels as separate files so I can remove the outdated audio. If they had to just run the tape normally there would have been no extra charge. I'm getting the files on a memory stick (which increases the price) although I had an option of being able to download them from the company site.
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 6, 2021 23:10:03 GMT
That sounds like a really fun project, as not only do you get to relive the making/editing of the film 30+ years ago, but do some modern day things to it to make it much better. Your redux will be an interesting contrast to the original I'm looking forward to it- I already have a few ideas I can't wait to use. I hope I can get in contact with a few of the guys involved so they can see the end product.
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Post by Bean on Sept 7, 2021 6:36:50 GMT
Glad it wasn't too pricey to get it done exactly how you wanted it, Baz. Sounds like a good excuse to check in with some old friends too, see how everyone's doing. I spent a couple of hours tidying the shed yesterday, and had to work around this beauty - a (very active) wasps' nest. It's right in the back corner of the shed, which is at the bottom of the garden so not near any houses, and they'll be gone in a couple of months anyway. So we'll leave them to do their pollinating work in the meantime. Hopefully I won't realise I need whatever's in that box underneath it! The shed's looking loads better now, and I need to make time to put a few things on ebay/ freecycle this week.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 7, 2021 23:19:10 GMT
It's great that you can get all of these specifications done, and the way you want. What's available to the public has come a long, long way Oy! That's quite a hive! Are you going to take it down once they've vacated, just in case you need what's in the box underneath? Glad the shed is look much better. Hubby spend much of yesterday cleaning the shed, and while it will never meet my specifications, I can definitely move around in there a bit better.
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 8, 2021 0:16:51 GMT
I already have one addition to my project- a never-before-seen shot of the alien spaceship leaving the home planet! This was originally created for Odin's Tooth, but since that went under I've had this short clip and nowhere to use it! Now, I'm going to insert it at the beginning as a brief prologue! Just as a side note, the spaceship is a downloadable file from another site, but I was able to create the planets & starfield myself through that AfterEffects software I learned back in 2019!
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Post by Bean on Sept 8, 2021 8:04:05 GMT
Cool!
Wasps don't reuse nests, so it should be good to go once they vacate it. They're fascinating structures so we will enjoy dissecting it! And be glad to find out what's in that box...
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 8, 2021 18:09:16 GMT
That's really cool, Baz! I'd love to know more about that side of filmmaking, but I'm kind of an old dog to be learning new tricks
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 8, 2021 21:26:35 GMT
That's really cool, Baz! I'd love to know more about that side of filmmaking, but I'm kind of an old dog to be learning new tricks The program I used to create that shot is very complicated, but once you know what all the buttons do, it makes creativity easier. The planets are simply a flat picture that's compressed into a globe, then you animate them wherever you want them to go by selecting them and moving them around on an X, Y, or Z axis. The spaceship is pre-created, but I simply animated it to move from right to left and it looks like it's getting closer because I increased its size as it moves. The red planet is actually a picture from one of my vacations; a cave wall that was originally a golden-brown color. I changed the color in Photoshop, then imported it into AfterEffects and compressed the picture into the ball. I can't buy the software anymore; it can only be rented on a monthly basis- but I think it's within the budget to spend some money a few months out of the year to stay proficient with it.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 9, 2021 19:13:09 GMT
It might be better to rent software on a monthly basis, at the rate most apps are updated/upgraded, you should be able to get the latest and greatest version, at least I hope that's the case. I don't do much with software, here, as hubby is a software engineer, and knows what we need. I leave that up to him. You're talking to someone who couldn't work Photoshop
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Post by bazookagoof on Sept 10, 2021 0:00:10 GMT
It might be better to rent software on a monthly basis, at the rate most apps are updated/upgraded, you should be able to get the latest and greatest version, at least I hope that's the case. I don't do much with software, here, as hubby is a software engineer, and knows what we need. I leave that up to him. You're talking to someone who couldn't work Photoshop That's what I'm seriously considering. I think financially we can afford it; right now we're only talking about a hundred dollars a year or so. I just use it a few months out of the year for projects when the need arises. I have another plan, but I'll post that elsewhere.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 10, 2021 20:44:53 GMT
I'm never sure exactly what to say about days that mark horrible happenings, but tomorrow is 20 years since the 9/11. Every country was hit buy those planes, even if remotely. Every country lost someone. We've just withdrawn our troops from Afghanistan. 20 years is way too long to be in someone else's country trying to keep them under control, but it's pretty obvious our leaving removed any control there was in Afghanistan.
I remember that day, listening to it on the radio, then watching on TV. I think I watched TV for 5 days or more, as the saga unfolded, watching for someone to be rescued. We watched the mob owned refuse removal trucks truck away ton after ton of debris, you know, evidence. The situation was so unbelievable, it took three days for someone in charge to realize the debris was being trucked away, and assign people to go through it all, collecting whatever they could find.
The fire department used a different frequency than the police department, who used a different frequency than the EMTs, so there was an immediate breakdown in communications, yet the messages managed to get where they needed to go, and the job got done.
So many heroes were created that day, people who never thought about being heroes, and people who died for their heroism. I hope we never forget.
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Post by Bean on Sept 11, 2021 8:22:33 GMT
There's quite a bit of coverage of the anniversary over here. I too remember that day so clearly, watching events unfold on tv and just not being able to believe what we were seeing. It was horrendous.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 11, 2021 21:13:26 GMT
I turned off the notifications for the local news station, as they were posting about every tiny thing anyone was doing, saying, you name it. I feel strongly that we need to remember, and I realize survivors and those who lost loved ones need to get a lot off their shoulders. It just doesn't change anything. I'm happy to let everyone have their say, just don't notify me of every single comment. It's been an interesting day. Gorgeous weather, at least here. Lots of sporting events that gave them a chance to have a memorial, etc. I think it was a good 20th anniversary day, just because a lot more people turn out when the weather is really nice, than when it's wet, cold, too hot, etc. I also think Biden withdrew our troops specifically because it was the 20th anniversary. If he's going to pick a time, make it one that has a lot of impact on the voters. I'm sure the devolved Republicans will find endless fault with everything about how he handles the memorial, as they did about how he handled the withdrawal. That's what US politics has become In other news, our weather pattern is heading down in temperature. It's not taking a huge dive, but it's getting colder overnight, and probably no more heatwaves. High temps are now in the high 70s, low-mid 80s, which isn't too bad. I nice, gradual cooling down, just as we had a nice, gradual warming up after winter. Weather the way I remember it, and haven't had in years. Also, we had a black bear in the yard last night, during dinner. He came over the berm from the woods, and was just nosing around on the berm. Vic got up and banged on the slider, and he ran off. He must have smelled the seed I toss on the berm. He was gorgeous. I wanted to get a picture of him, but Vic started and banging before I even got out of my chair, and he was gone. At least we've now met the source of the hand/foot prints in the mud
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Post by Bean on Sept 12, 2021 7:48:17 GMT
Oh that sounds amazing, what a treat! Next time tell Vic to hold off making a ruckus for a few seconds so we can see too!
Our temperatures have cooled significantly too, but we've still had some nice sunny spells to help finish off the crops in the garden. I need to keep an eye out for some bulbs to put in for spring.
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