Another Change of Major

I have just completed another change of major, at Fayetteville. This time I can safely say that it is not my fault. I received an email a while ago, stating that I should change my major from “Psychology” to “Psychology-Online” or else, I would not be allowed to register for any online courses for Summer or Fall. To make things more fun, the page created by the Distance Education coordinator reminds students that even after being accepted to the university, it is not guaranteed that you will be accepted to a degree program, she goes on to state that there are limited spaces for students in online courses. I am a little worried, since I don’t exactly have the option of taking courses in person on the campus. There is also a little part of me that knows that the process should go ok, since all it takes is the psychology department secretary to OK my request and all is well with the world. I might just have to write a little note to Ms. Lopez later to make sure (why not, she’s been emailing me a lot lately).

I do not like the fact that I was sent this email just 2 weeks before registration opens. It takes a minimum of 5 days for these things to be processed, and I am already convinced that the registrar hates me, so there is another worry to add to this.

I have always been very excited about the distance education concept and very confident in the possibilities there, but sometimes there is no replacement for having the ability to go see your registrar and be within slapping distance of them.

Widescreen Wallpaper

Remember when 1024×768 wallpapers were distributed by like every major company as soon as they had a website? Well, I’m wondering why that same thing has not yet happened at the 1600×900 level. I have a new Dell 20” Wide LCD (16:9 ratio) and have discovered that I have no wallpaper for it. I have a few that came with the Dell Mini, but they are 1024 x 800, which does not help much. Where does one begin the search for wide wallpapers that do not suck?

Working with a new monitor ratio is going to require me starting anew with my wallpaper collection. I miss the days when you could get a 1024×768 wallpaper and know that it would look so great on your 800×600 display.

Stuff That Goes in the Bag

I don’t have a list posted or recorded anywhere of what is actually in my bag that is taking up so much space, so here it is, for my blog readers to find out more than they need about me as well as for my personal record.

    • Nikon D60 DSLR
    • Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Lens
    • Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom Lens
    • Nikon Lens Hood for 55-200mm Lens
    • Phoenix 500mm Mirror Lens
    • Opteka Wide Angle Converter
    • Opteka Close-Up Kit
    • UV Filter
    • Circular Polarized Filter
    • T-mount to F-mount Adapter Ring
    • 55mm to 52mm Step Down Adapter Ring
    • Spare EN-EL9 Battery
    • Spare 4GB SDHC Card
    • Nikon ML-L3 Wireless Remote Shutter Release
    • Soft lens wipe cloth
    • Nikon Lens Pen
    • Nikon Body Cap

I think this is all, I can’t remember.

Selecting a Camera Bag

Last week was the adventure of finding the perfect tripod, now comes something even harder, picking the right camera bag.

The past few weeks I have been traveling with my camera and its accessories spread across 3 bags. The camera and a single lens is in my SLR holster, everything else is in a separate bag, and of course, the tripod stands alone. I have also added my Dell Mini 9 to this mix once and found that to be even harder, since it gets placed in an  old laptop bag and also tossed on to my shoulder. That is 4 bags for what should be a fairly simple thing, traveling with my camera.

The holster has its place, primarily as a super mobile way for me to take the SLR with me (hiking and such), but have it protected (and not have it dangling from my neck like a tourist). Today I was on the UNC-Charlotte campus with the camera, and the holster was extremely useful for keeping the camera dry (light rain) as well as giving me a way to “store” the camera when I was not actively photographing anything. The biggest problem with it on the campus is it does not hold anything extra and it is a long walk back to the car if I decide I want to change lenses.

I am looking for a bag that will hold the D60, the Mini 9, all three lenses, all filters and a few cleaning supplies (I do not need the rocket in the bag). It is probably a lot to carry, but it is what I am likely to need during a photography expedition, given my enjoyment of both the very close up and the very far away, oh and my new interest in wide angle photography. I have to be able to get to my supplies primarily from the top. I change lenses while standing, and not always with a table around, so one of the back-opening shelved bags will not work for me at all. I have to go for a bag that is spacious, comfortable to carry and will leave me with a little room for expansion. It would be great if could hold by tripod on the side, but that is not a requirement.

A lot of “camera bags” are not camera bags at all, they are “gadget bags”, which hold lenses and some other supplies, but never usually the camera (unless it is a compact or bridge design).  This is the category of the bag for my Fuji’s bag. It holds the camera and accessories with reasonable comfort, but would never work for an SLR. The “camera bag” that came with my D60 kit is merely a gadget bag, and even with the camera is not in the bag, there is not enough space.

I was before leaning towards a Lowepro bag, but too many of them are rear open and seem like they  would be  cramped for space, and for the expense, cramped isn’t what I am going for. I have been looking at Case Logic lately. I have had a CD player bag, several CD cases and a phone holster by them, and loved them all, so they are getting serious attention in this particular issue (the SLRC-5 is my current bag of interest).

Summer 2009 Course Options

The longer I attend college, the fewer class options I have (but I suspect that will change with graduate school). I do have some choices to make about courses though.

First, I have my Psychology courses, I am pretty much decided on what I’m taking, because there is a fairly firm set of courses in the beginning of the program. I could do others, but I might hurt my ability to be full time in future semesters.

PSYC 233 – Statistics for Psychology: Basic statistical theory and techniques appropriate to psychology and related fields; introduction to statistical inference and the testing of hypotheses. This course includes a lab which incorporates the use of computer packages for statistical analyses.

PSYC 320 – Theories of Learning: A review of major theories of human and animal learning and motivation, with emphasis on individual and environmental factors affecting learning and performance in various contexts, including experimental and educational settings.

PSYC 233 is required as a pre-requisite for a lot of higher level requirements, as well as a requirement for the major.  PSYC 320 is a requirement for the major, as well as is a pre-requisite for many of the fun courses I may want to use as electives.

I have also taken a look at Gaston College’s Summer schedule and while there are no courses that apply to my major that I am interested in taking (since the only course related to AFA is Painting), there are some that apply to my general interest and to my hobbies.

NOS 120 – Linux/UNIX Single User: This course develops the necessary skills for students to develop both GUI and command line skills for using and customizing a Linux workstation. Topics include Linux file system and access permissions, GNOME Interface, VI editor, X Window System expression pattern matching, I/O redirection, network and printing utilities. Upon completion, students should be able to customize and use Linux systems for command line requirements and desktop productivity roles.

WEB 210 – Web Design: This course introduces intermediate to advanced web design techniques. Topics include customer expectations, advanced markup language, multimedia technologies, usability and accessibility practices, and techniques for the evaluation of web design. Upon completion, students should be able to employ advanced design techniques to create high impact and highly functional web sites.

Either of those courses would be purely for my enjoyment Web design would be beneficial to much that I do, but I am not sure I would want to sit through another course on the topic and have things so formally instructed. Unix on the other hand would be a most useful course for me personally. I enjoyed my experience with Ubuntu and would really like to get a deeper understanding of Unix and Linux.

My options are less varied than they usually are, but then again, CPCC will not be reporting in for Summer until March 30th. I originally planned a 6 credit hour summer, but I think I will need a break from psychology at some point, although, I would much prefer a creative course to something technical, but I will take anything fun that I can find at this point.

Road Runner Turbo with Wireless

Along with the deal I got suckered into for having TWC for 2 years, I received the Road Runner Wireless Home Networking service. TWC provides very few details about the service initially, except that it provides wireless access for several machines. Originally the service was not installed because an appointment was never scheduled for it. I didn’t worry about it at first, until discovering that my uncle’s contract was terminated because when TWC attempted to install his wireless and he refused the service. Instead of marking the work order as complete and ignoring the issue, the tech reported a user request to cancel the service (he had no way of knowing that it was in a contract package). I began to fear things being reversed if I didn’t accept the service, so I scheduled an appointment (after being told that I could not self install).

This morning was the day scheduled for the install. The appointment was for 1 – 3pm. The tech called at 12:30 and arrived before 12:45. I was originally told that the ticket (the install was submitted as a trouble ticket since it was TWC’s error that it was not scheduled) was for a tech to bring an install a wireless router. I was surprised that the tech brought in a wireless MTA modem. I did not like the idea originally, since the replacing of a modem is often the worst thing that can happen to a Road Runner user (modems either work or have quirks, we adapt to the quirks we are familiar with). The old Arris modem worked great and I was a little sad to see it go. That being said, the new modem is so sweet. Its a Ubee U10C022 and has so many cool features, including multiple VLANs, a public access side (family can connect without being admitted to my actual network) and the ability to route multiple networks. The access point portion also seems particularly strong.

Not what I originally wanted, but I do like the device.

Finally, A Tripod That Doesn’t Suck

I am very close to picking a  tripod now. I have fondled the SunPak 7500TM, and it seems to be the right tripod for me. It is 72” tall and flips (fluidly) to the left by 90°, is very stable and is under $100, which makes it all around a great tripod for my uses.

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