The Coffee House

[cgw]

Just finished all of the christmas slideshow 3d videos my mom will be sending to distant relatives this year and my gosh, do I already hate Christmas music!

Just change it up:

 

[SunriseAvenue]

Just change it up:

I wish I could, but my mom would be furious and it's not the type of fun anyone in the family would want for a Christmas eve lmao However, I can see my uncle absolutely loving it!

 

[terri]

I know I'm a bit late to the conversation, so my apologies.

Anyways, 2021 Macbook Pros with the M1 Pro chip are insanely fast and efficient, even for being considered old or out of date by tech standards, and because they're considered old, you can find really great deals on these amazing laptops. I have been using a 2021 14" MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro chip and 16GB RAM since early 2022, and I am still absolutely blown away by the speed and efficiency of this computer. It very rarely gets warm and I have never heard the fan come on since getting it, even with multiple TIFF files open in Photoshop with several other applications open at the same time. The charge also lasts for a really long time because the power management in Apple Silicon chips is very efficient. This computer should get OS upgrades for at least three more years, and security updates for at least 6 more years if kept on the latest OS that it's compatible with. Years ago I swore I would never buy an Apple computer again after buying an iMac that refused to keep up with my workflow, but the Apple Silicon (M chip) computers made me eat my words because these things are insanely fast. If you do go this route, just be sure to get 16GB RAM or more. 16GB has been more than enough for me personally. Also consider getting AppleCare + or another type of warranty protection, as it can be very costly to have accidental damage repaired on these. My AppleCare + saved me from having to spend $800 to replace the display when i dropped my phone on it and damaged it. The deductible ended up only costing me $99, which I was happy to pay instead of $800. When I first bought my Macbook I was worried that a 14" display would be too small, but honestly it ended up being the perfect size, even after being used to a 21.5" iMac display. If 14" is too small, the 16" 2021 model is also a great deal in 2023.

Good info, Dan - thanks!

 

[snowbear]

You are creative! Post photos please when you finish

Will do. I made a number of fountain pens, years ago, but had to get rid of the lathe when we moved to the apartment. I hope I'm not too far out of practice.

The other wood projects are a seam ripper for a family friend whom is a designer, and a fountain pen for a former coworker.

The pen and pencil kits require drilling a hole through the wooden "blank" (3/4"x3/4"x5", then cut roughly in half) and a brass tube glued inside. The pen/pencil parts are then pressed into the tubes. I bought a tailstock chuck (the part of the lathe that is pretty statioinary, opposite the spinning end) that holds a drill bit (aka: a Jacobs Chuck). It still takes a few steps to drill a hole, but it is easier and faster than using the little drill press I have. I'll turn the seam ripper tonight, and epoxy the tubes into the rest of the projects tomorrow night.

I have to fit the Christmas lights to the truck Thursday (MLW works form home on Thursdays so the truck is home). I picked up a light net and am going to put it on the cab. There is a light display at a sculpture garden in the southern part of the state, and the Jeep club has been asked back to put the lighted Jeep on display again. The show is Saturday and all I've done to it is a non-lighted wreath on the grill. I'm such a slacker.

 

[CherylL]

Just finished all of the christmas slideshow 3d videos my mom will be sending to distant relatives this year and my gosh, do I already hate Christmas music!

What program are you using to edit? I used to make 3d (well 2 1/2D) slideshows in After Effects.

 

[CherylL]

Finished wrapping except for one present that is back ordered. Finished the cards today. Our card list has greatly diminished. I don't do the big holiday bake-a-thon like I did 20 years ago. This year making two types of cookies and an easy crockpot candy.

 

[smoke665]

Well two days in to the upgrade. Security software and office software installed, accounting software and company files up and running, Adobe creative cloud, Photoshop and Bridge up. 20000+ images transferred. Tomorrow I'll bring up LR, restore the catalog and I'm done with the upgrade.

Update: LR restored and all 20,000 plus images are safely nestled where they're supposed to be.

 

[SquarePeg]

Finished wrapping except for one present that is back ordered. Finished the cards today. Our card list has greatly diminished. I don't do the big holiday bake-a-thon like I did 20 years ago. This year making two types of cookies and an easy crockpot candy.

You are mikes ahead of us all!

I stopped sending cards a few years ago. One year I just got behind on things and that was an easy cut. Not sure if my not sending got us scratched off of everyone’s lists or if many of our friends also stopped around that same time… once everyone’s kids grow up those family photo cards taper off.

Our annual moms and daughters cookie bake has become Princess and her friends doing all the baking and decorating in the kitchen while we moms have a holiday martini and apps in the dining room.

 

[adamhiram]

My 2015 iMac still gets security updates for OS Monterey, just not OS upgrades. I think this is reasonable considering it's 8 years old and doesn't have the hardware to keep up with current operating systems. Unfortunately the security updates for Monterey are expected to stop in Fall of 2024. 9 years of support doesn't seem all that bad in my opinion.

You make an excellent point, 9 years is 2-3x the expected useful life for a computer used for something like this. However I still have two major complaints:

• The hardware is still more than sufficient to run existing software, but with a subscription model the software is constantly updating. Some applications can simply be rolled back to a version that works, while others just stop working.
• Apple does not have a viable replacement in the same price range. They no longer make 27" iMacs, so that upgrade route will mean settling for a smaller display. An equivalent Mac Studio with display starts around $5k.

 

[jeffashman]

You are mikes ahead of us all!

I stopped sending cards a few years ago. One year I just got behind on things and that was an easy cut. Not sure if my not sending got us scratched off of everyone’s lists or if many of our friends also stopped around that same time… once everyone’s kids grow up those family photo cards taper off.

Our annual moms and daughters cookie bake has become Princess and her friends doing all the baking and decorating in the kitchen while we moms have a holiday martini and apps in the dining room.

I'm going to introduce my granddaughters to the art and fun of spritz cookie baking. I can already smell the cookies baking...

 

[Original katomi]

Hi all, I stick my hands in the air and go HELP
reading the recent posts, it’s showing that I am ignoring comments by Dan’s.
have I clicked on something that I should not have. I remember that I upset Smoke some years ago by accident
and wondering if I have clicked a button....

 

[Original katomi]

Well night all

 

[jeffashman]

Well night all

G'night!

 

[smoke665]

Hi all, I stick my hands in the air and go HELP
reading the recent posts, it’s showing that I am ignoring comments by Dan’s.
have I clicked on something that I should not have. I remember that I upset Smoke some years ago by accident
and wondering if I have clicked a button....

My memory isn't what it used to be but I don't recall you ever "upsetting" me. To edit your list of people you ignore, in the task bar at the top of the page on the "members", click on your profile avatar. It will bring up a box with your profile, and account options. At the very bottom on the right is "Ignoring" click on that and it brings up a list of members you are ignoring. At the right of each name is a box "unignore". Click on that box for each member you want to take off your list.

 

[smoke665]

@adamhiram many years ago when I first started out in business, there were two options for business computers on network, IBM (horrendously expensive) or to use a network software (Novell) to link Pcs running DOS. Apple wasn't even an option at that time. When Microsoft networking came in, I pitched Novell and never looked back.

There's been several times over the years that I've looked at crossing over, but I just haven't been able to justify the large expense difference. My new HP box with a 2TB and 4TB SSDs, 64 GB ram, the latest nVidia graphics card with 12GB vram, a host of other features and monitor was well under half the Mac $5k price. So far its handling everything LR and PS can throw at it including AI features.