Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Remix First Impressions

Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Remix First Impressions

I adore my HP Mini 1000 netbook. It's got a fantastic keyboard (one I can actually type on), and the screen is gorgeous. It's a little cramped for space, though, given that it uses a solid-state drive, but in general that's not a problem -- this isn't my primary machine, after all. (Just don't expect it to handle your entire MP3 collection!)

But Windows XP didn't get along well with the SSD. I don't know why -- it should handle it just fine, but XP would often freeze for no apparent reason and then come back after a few seconds, and I tracked that down to accessing the SSD. So anytime an application needed to load a good bit of data from storage, the entire computer stopped. That gets annoying after awhile, to say the least.

I was originally going to just install Windows 7 on it, hoping it would do a better job, but that 16gb SSD kept nagging at me -- that's not a lot of space for XP; Windows 7 would eat even more. Not only that, but there was no guarantee that performance would be acceptable on the netbook, and so I bit the bullet, and switched the operating system to Linux -- Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Remix, to be exact.

My first impressions are very favorable. There were some installation difficulties, and I just wish that Adobe would release their products on Linux, but other than that things are going really well. The OS starts up far faster than XP, and once going, the OS is fast, responsive, and actually pretty. Not only that, but the HP is more than capable of supporting Compiz, which adds some pretty nifty effects to dragging windows, switching desktops, etc. 

Installation

Installation was not as simple as it should have been, in my opinion. For one, of course, is the lack of a CD or DVD drive -- this is a netbook --, but Ubuntu provides a nice utility for putting the OS on a USB stick and installing from that. Which does work, but with a very big quirk that wasted a lot of my time.

Because some people use the stick as their primary storage (which means they can take the OS anywhere and use it on any machine that can boot from USB) the USB stick tool assumes that's what you're going to do. Nowhere is it obvious you have to select the option to discard all your changes (like documents, etc.) when the OS is shutdown. For one, that's a scary way to phrase it, and two, the install fails if this isn't selected! 

So, check the option, and relax; the install proceeds normally, and you're left with a machine that runs just fine, and since you're installing to internal storage, the scary "discard" word isn't a problem -- you'll be saving to your hard drive, not to the USB stick.

That problem solved, the installation went without a hitch, and WAY faster than any Windows install I've ever seen. Granted the UNR version of Ubuntu is a smaller OS than the full version, but it's still pretty cool to see an OS install in something like seven minutes. ;-)

But wait, that's not all...

So everything's installed, and I'm pretty impressed. The machine responds quickly to any of my actions, and exhibits none of the slowness and freezing that XP exhibited. Score one for Linux. 

And then the next problem: no wireless. Uh oh - that's a pretty big problem -- I'm not always going to be hooked up to a wire - that's part of the point of a netbook.

So I scour the web, and it turns out that the wireless isn't supplied by default because the HP uses a Broadcom Wifi controller, and there are some legal issues that means that Linux can't use it out-of-the-box.

So I follow as many instructions as I can, and end up installing b43-fwcutter and try that. It's supposed to work, but fails for some reason. No matter what I do, no wireless. Even more annoying, I keep losing my wired connection at random, forcing a reboot to get it back.

And then, by magic, I find a post that indicates that Broadcom has released their own drivers. Downloaded, installed, rebooted, and...

*poof*

No go. Crashed computer. Ick.

Reboot. No wifi. Ick.

And then, after a few more tries, suddenly after a reboot, the wifi controller is there. (!!!) I don't know how it got there, but it was, and so I wasn't going to complain. I set it up to connect to my network, and voila! I had wifi access! YAY!

Elation aside, however, this is where Linux tends to fall flat on its face for new users. I've had experience with various flavours, and am pretty tech savvy, so I was able to eventually get things working. But a new user who knows none of this is going to get stopped by either the first failure (getting the OS to install), or by the second (getting drivers to work). So until Linux gets better at this, it's never going to beat Windows or OS X.

Happy Days Are Here Again...

With the Wifi enabled, happy days officially started. Mostly ;-) Being that this was a brand new installation, there were all sorts of programs I needed to install to get a familiar environment. Here's a few that I installed:

• Adobe Air
• Tweetdeck
• Google Chrome (Dev)
• Last.FM
• Mozilla Sunbird
• Gimp
• RawStudio
• AbiWord
• MonoDevelop
• Audacity
• Hulu Desktop
• Wine

(Yes, Wine. I know it is heresy to install something that would allow some Windows applications to run, but hey -- you never know when you'll need it. And no -- Lightroom does not work under Wine. *Sigh*)

After all that, and configuring each application (like adding plugins to Chrome, getting Flash working, etc.), I have a machine that I can use without feeling frustrated at it because it feels slow or keeps freezing. Responsiveness is amazing, even when I push it. If an application freezes for any reason, the rest of the system still works, which wasn't always the case with XP.

Minor Glitches Remain

Not everything is 100% rosy, but it isn't enough to cause me to drop Linux on this machine. Here's a bit of what is glitchy:

• Flash: sucks. Period. While it technically works, it quickly slows any browser or application that uses it to a crawl. I suspect this may be in part to my use of Compiz and extra desktop effects, but seriously -- I like me my eye candy. So watching Hulu in my browser or via the desktop application is a bit painful, but any other flash use is too. It could also just be that Flash for Linux really isn't all that optimized, but whatever the cause, I'll only be using it whenever necessary. (For that reason, I've got FlashBlock installed in Chrome.)
• The UNR interface, while very nice, occasionally breaks down when using an application that isn't aware of the limitations of my display. (Chome, I'm looking at YOU.) Granted, UNR is just window-dressing, but it'd be nice to have some way to get to parts of windows that  have decided to be off screen because surely no one would ever think to use the application on a screen that's only 600px high. 
• Also, some portions of the UNR desktop could use extra customizability. Granted, this is supposed to be easy for end-users, but I think we could all grasp moving icons around on our desktop, something I haven't convinced it to do yet. 

Even so, Things Are Grand

Even with the glitches, things are grand. Most things have improved, including:

• Responsiveness - the HP now hums along beautifully. 
• Speed - No longer does the HP feel like it's struggling to keep up -- programs open quickly, desktops change fast, application switch is quick, and the machine is even able to render some 3D effects reasonably well.
• Compiz - The closest thing I can compare this to would be Windows Vista Aero, but Compiz is really a bit more than that. You can have the things Aero gives you, and so much more, and the HP handles many of these with aplomb. Not everything is within its capabilities -- this is a built-in video card --, but for the most part things are nice and smooth. 
• Audio - Somehow the drivers supplied with XP made the audio sound like crap. High-pitched, tinny, lacking any punch. I originally chalked that up to the small speakers in the chassis, but the same applied to listening by headphones. So then I assumed the chipset was just crappy. But the Linux drivers have surprised me -- it's not excellent sound, but it's WAY better than under Windows. There's actually some bass involved, and it doesn't sound like I'm listening over a bad telephone connection!

Our Future Together...

Granted, I've only used this on my netbook for a short time. It's possible the same freezing problems will creep up on Linux too, but I doubt it. It's possible I'll run into some sort of horrible bug that'll ruin me on it forever, but again, I doubt it.

My only wish was that Adobe released Lightroom on Linux. Because if they did, I'd seriously consider switching on my primary computer as well -- I'm that impressed. While Vista x64 never really bothered me (x32 is horrible, though), I've never been all that impressed, either, and it quite often feels like molasses, even on a 2+GHz machine with dual cores, 4GB of memory, etc. Ubuntu on that thing would literally fly... :-)

But until then, I'll live in Windows on my primary computer, and keep Linux on my netbook.

My New Best Friend

Okay, this post is totally not related to photography. At all. Instead, I wanted to introduce you to a new addition to my tech family: the Sony MDR-NC60 Noise Cancelling Headphones.

I had recently the opportunity to try out Bose’s new noise cancelling headphones, and was thoroughly impressed with the noise-cancellation. The first time you put them on, it nearly felt like you were going deaf. There were only two cons: a painful price ($299), and a lack of bass response (though mid- and treble-tones sounded wonderful).

And so, having discovered the joys of noise-cancellation, but wanting a little more in the bass department (I’m like my Dad in this – the more bass, the better) and not wanting to drop quite as large a chunk of cash, I went and found these babies, and for less than the Bose, they deliver excellent noise cancellation and good audio quality – especially bass.

The Sony MDR-NC60 headphones run on a single AAA battery, but you can run the headphones without if you don’t want or need the noise-cancellation. This is nice if you happen to run out of batteries, as you can still listen to your music (other NC headphones require a battery to play music). A battery tends to run about 30 to 40 hours – get a good set of rechargeables and you won’t be always spending money for new batteries.

The headphones also feature a special “monitor” button. When the headphones are cancelling noise, this button, when pressed, will enable you to hear the conversation around you (muting the music) – great for flying when the flight attendant comes by asking if you want something to drink! (Note: this button does not work if NC is turned off.)

For those times when you don’t want to listen to music, but still want the benefit of cancellation, you can actually take the audio cable and unplug it from the headphones so that it doesn’t get in the way. I can see this being useful in a lot of situations, though I’d make sure not to lose that audio cable!

Audio quality is quite good, though as with all NC headphones, there is a little bit of distortion, especially when playing loud music or when playing pure tones (like piano solos), but otherwise audio is quite good. Along with the noise cancellation comes the benefit of not having to blast your music, and so distortion at high volume is less of an issue. Also, depending upon the external noise conditions, distortion may appear even on quiet music; but this is common in all NC headphones.

While cancelling noise, bass response is excellent, but not overpowering. Midtones are rendered well, and higher tones are rendered with good clarity. (In many ways, you’ll hear things you never heard before in your music – especially if you’ve previously used only cheap headphones.)

When Noise Cancellation is off, the audio quality changes a bit; the bass response drops a bit, but the headphones are more able to render louder and purer tones. In other words, when I want to listen to a piece of Bach, I’ll turn NC off; otherwise NC is on all the time.

Build is quite nice; you don’t have the feeling that these will fall apart on you anytime soon. They are also very comfortable, being over-the-ear headphones, but the band itself is also very soft. My previous set of headphones would cause my ears to hurt after a time; these have no such effect.

The headphones come with a nice carrying case to protect them, as well as to carry the extra accessories that come with the headphones, like the adapter so that you can plug into airplane audio ports. It also has a nice little pouch useful for carrying along extra batteries. While it isn’t a hard case, it should protect against most typical issues (like dropping). Crushing, on the other hand… well… just don’t sit on it.

One thing to be aware of is the way noise cancellation feels. Due to the way NC works, you may feel a pressure on your ears – as if you were at high altitude. For some, this is uncomfortable, so I’d advise you to try a pair first and see if it bothers you. For me, the sensation was something I quickly got used to, and now barely notice it. But for others, it may be a different matter.

These are a tad pricey; you can get them at most stores for about $200, although if you look in the right places (like Amazon), you can find them at some very nice prices. And given that they are at least $100 (if not more) cheaper than the Bose equivalents and perform just about as well, I’d say they’re well worth every penny. All I know is that I love mine, even if they have nothing to do with photography, cameras, or expensive lenses!

Want a pair? Check them out at Amazon: Sony MDR-NC60 Noise Cancelling Headphones (List Price: $199.99, click-through for Amazon’s price.)

Lens Review: Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM IS

Quick Specs:
Focal Range: 70-200mm; 35mm equivalent for 1.6x crop sensors: 112-320mm
Maximum Aperture: f/4  •  Minimum Aperture: f/32  •  Diaphragm: 8 blades
Minimum Focusing Distance: 4 feet  •  Magnification: .21x
Weight: 1.7 pounds  •  Filter Size: 67mm  •  ✔FTM, ✔USM, ✔IS (+4 stops)

First Impressions

This lens is simply beautiful. From the light cream color on the exterior, to the feel of the rubber rings and the motion of focusing and zooming, you know this lens is built to last and scream “look at me!” – the latter part could be a bad thing or a good thing, depending on how you look at it!

This lens is not as heavy as its bigger brother – the EF 70-200 f/2.8 L USM IS lens, but if f/2.8 is important to you, the non-IS EF version is roughly the same size and weight. If you have a Rebel body, the EF 70-200 f/2.8 L USM IS lens quickly makes the camera look absolutely tiny. (Get a battery grip and that impression goes away.)

Usage

Focusing and zooming are as smooth as butter with enough internal resistance so that zoom creep isn’t an issue. All focusing is internal – as such the front element neither rotates nor moves. Zooming is also internal; this helps protect against sucking in dust.

Autofocus is generally reliable, though not as precise as the f/2.8 variety. But if focus is missed, the full-time-manual focus makes it a breeze to refocus on your subject. Anymore, this is very near to the top of my list of important items for a lens to have; switching to a lens without FTM is difficult for the first few moments as I realize I can’t just focus whenever I want.

One thing that initially surprised me about the lens was the sound it made when it was stabilizing the image. You get used to it pretty quickly, and it isn’t loud, by any means, but the first time you engage the IS, you wonder what’s going on in there to cause that noise. After using it for awhile, I barely notice it anymore.

Image Stabilization is also very effective. Canon claims 4 stops – in reality this will vary between 2 and 3 stops depending on how steady you are to begin with. I’ve had rare success at around 4 stops, and usually can’t count on more than 2.5. Even so, for still objects, this effectively makes the lens an f/1.8 or f/2 lens; but when you introduce a moving subject, all that goes out the window. If you’re going to be shooting moving subjects handheld and in low light, you’ll want to consider the pricier and heavier f/2.8 IS version (if IS is still important to you), or the roughly equivalent (in terms of weight and price) non-IS f/2.8 version.

It is important to note that using this lens will get you noticed. Photographers who don’t have a lens like this will whisper behind your back, wishing they had this lens, and most people immediately have “respect” for you as the photographer. Whereas when shooting with a point-and-shoot, most people don’t watch if they are getting in your way, they definitely take care when they see this long lens. Add the lens hood, and people really take notice; with the lens hood attached, you’re looking at one foot of extension from the mount.

Getting noticed can be a good thing (it actually got me a shoot!), but it can also be a bad thing. Security personnel are far more likely to keep a close eye on you, and some people who wouldn’t otherwise have minded being photographed will balk when faced with this monster pointing at them. One thing is for sure: this lens immediately brands you as a “pro”, and not a “tourist” – so if you want to do the tourist thing, take your P&S, or a much smaller walk-around lens.

Image Quality

Image quality is exceptional, as it should be with any L series lens. Contrast and colors are captured very nicely, and light flare is well controlled. It isn’t as fast as its siblings, meaning that I have to increase my ISO more than I would like, but on a modern body, that doesn’t usually present a problem.

Bokeh is gorgeous, resulting in a very creamy out-of-focus background at large apertures. Even stopped down, the bokeh is quite good. The effect is more obvious at 200mm than at 70mm due to the smaller depth-of-field, but at either end things look wonderful.

Color Fringing is virtually invisible on this lens. I’ve seen a few traces here and there, but of all the lenses in my kit, this one takes the cake in terms of controlling fringing. Flare is also exceptionally controlled; short of pointing this thing into the sun, you’ll hardly ever see any flare.

There is a little lens distortion at either end of the focal range, as is typical with any zoom lens. There are simply too many compromises that have to be made with a zoom lens versus a prime lens. While the distortion is evident in lab tests, I’ve yet to have the distortion be truly visible or worrisome in real life. For a zoom, this is fantastic, and while it isn’t quite as good as a prime lens, the ability to reframe without having to change lenses is a huge benefit.

This lens is, quite simply, tack sharp, even at the maximum aperture of f/4. This is really impressive for a telephoto zoom lens, and rivals (if not exceeds in some areas) the performance of the various primes that fall within the focal length of this lens. However, this only applies to this lens – the other lenses in the family do not have the same optics, and though they are also exceptionally sharp, they are just a little less so.

Macro:

This lens isn’t going to win any awards in the macro lens world. Even so, under the right conditions, you can get some decent closeups, but don’t expect anything like a 1:1 ratio. This lens is closer to 1:5, but if you need better, you can always add extension tubes. Even so, it makes for fantastic flower shots or portraits, so unless you need to get really close, this shouldn’t be too terrible a concern.

Pros:

• Nice, constant maximum aperture of f/4
• Good range of 70-200mm
• Excellent image quality with minimal flare and negligible fringing in very high contrast areas
• Full-time Manual Focus
• Beautiful bokeh
• Very well built
• Tack sharp at all apertures; rivals primes in the same focal range.
• Image Stabilizer can live up to the claimed 4 stop improvement if you’re very steady to begin with.

Cons:

• 67mm filter ring; most lenses in this range take 77mm, and so you’ll be buying more filters rather than re-using your existing filters.
• Image Stabilization can’t stop a moving subject, so if f/4 isn’t fast enough, consider either of the f/2.8 variants. If you need faster yet, you’ll want to consider a prime lens.
• 70mm on the low end can be limiting at times; you’ll need to switch to another lens if you’re in even relatively cramped quarters. 200m is good reach, but if you want to bird, you’ll need a longer lens yet.
• Price – Amazon has this lens for just over $1,300

Conclusion

If you want great image quality, good zoom range, with fantastic image stabilization, grab this lens. Your pocket-book will scream when it sees the bill, but once you start taking pictures, you’ll quickly forget about the price.

Lens Review: Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM Review

Quick Specs:
Focal Range: 24-70mm; 35mm equivalent for 1.6x crop sensors: 38-112mm
Maximum Aperture: f/2.8  •  Minimum Aperture: f/22  •  Diaphragm: 8 blades
Minimum Focusing Distance: 1 1/4 feet  •  Magnification: .29x (@70mm)
Weight: 2.1 pounds  •  Filter Size: 77mm  •  ✔FTM, ✔USM, ✘IS

First Impressions

This lens is simply gorgeous. It feels very well constructed and the focus and zoom rings turn smoothly. It presents a nice bright image in the viewfinder, being an f/2.8 lens, and is easy to get very attached to. It is a tad heavy (2.1 pounds), but when you see the results you forget about the weight. (Besides, after awhile, you’ll build up your muscles and won’t notice it anymore!)

Usage

This lens is an absolute joy to use. Focusing is internal, so the front element never rotates – important for filters. What isn’t internal is the zoom – at 70mm, the lens is at its most compact, but extends an additional 2-3 inches when zooming out to 24mm. A little odd, but it doesn’t affect me in practice. When the lens hood is attached, the reason for this becomes obvious – the hood is always the correct distance from the front elements, whereas on cheaper (or other) lenses, the hood is really just made for one focal length, and out-of-place (or in the way) for all other lengths.

Autofocus is generally accurate on a Rebel body, and if the camera misses, the full-time manual focus comes in very handy. Honestly, this is very nearly the most important feature of a lens to me anymore – whenever I switch to a lens that doesn’t support this, it always takes me a moment to realize that I can’t manually focus after the camera has attained what it thinks is a focused image. (And on some lenses, doing so could screw up the focusing motors…, not good!)

It is important to realize that this lens does not have image stabilization. At wide angles this is not as important, but when you get out to 70mm, it quickly becomes an issue if you are shooting handheld and in low light. And, to be honest, even though this lens is a fast f/2.8, it would be a nice addition to have IS at the wide angles as well. Of course, that would add to the price and weight. (If, however, you do want IS, you could consider the 24-105 f/4 L IS USM lens, but you will lose one stop of light.)

Image Quality

Image quality is exceptional, as it should be with any L series lens. Contrast and colors are captured very nicely, and light flare is well controlled. That this is also a fast lens means I can shoot at a lower ISO setting – reducing the noise in the image.

Bokeh is very nice, even when stopped down a bit, resulting in nice, creamy backgrounds. You’ll notice this the most when at the far end of the focal range, as telephoto focal ranges result in a shallower depth of field.

Color Fringing isn’t bad, but not totally absent, either. Here the 70-200mm L telephoto lens seems to outshine this lens, as it is next to impossible to cause very obvious fringing. Even so, the fringing that is present in this lens is manageable, and is no where near what the cheaper wide-angle lenses generate. (I’m talking to you, 18-55mm kit lens!)

There is a little vignetting evident on some images on a 1.6x crop sensor; light fall-off will be more evident on a full-frame sensor, but not at all bad. Stopping down helps alleviate this.

There is a little lens distortion at either end of the focal range, as is typical with any zoom lens. There are simply too many compromises that have to be made with a zoom lens versus a prime lens. While the distortion is evident in lab tests, I’ve yet to have the distortion be truly visible or worrisome in real life. For a zoom, this is fantastic, and while it isn’t quite as good as a prime lens, the ability to reframe without having to change lenses is a huge benefit.

Macro:

This lens isn’t going to win any awards in the macro lens world. Even so, under the right conditions, you can get some decent closeups, but don’t expect anything like a 1:1 ratio. This lens is closer to 1:3.5, but if you need better, you can always add extension tubes. Even so, it makes for fantastic flower shots, so unless you need to get really close, this shouldn’t be too terrible a concern.

Pros:

• Nice maximum aperture of f/2.8
• Good range of 24-70mm
• Excellent image quality with minimal flare and only a little bit of fringing in very high contrast areas
• Full-time Manual Focus
• Good bokeh
• Very well built

Cons:

• A tad on the heavy side (2.1 pounds)
• No image stabilization (though this isn’t a deal-breaker at wider angles)
• 70mm can be limiting at times – if you need more range in a single lens, try the 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM
• Price – Amazon has this lens for just over $1,300

Conclusion

If you want great image quality, good zoom range, with excellent low-light capabilities, grab this lens. Yes, the credit card will wince a little when it sees $1,300 come across, but it is SO worth it. My only wish would be to have image stabilization on the lens, but that would add to both the price and the weight.

Side Note: On a 1.6x crop sensor this doesn’t give a tremendously wide angle of view – only equivalent to 38mm. If you need wider on the smaller sensor, you could consider the 17-40mm or the 16-35mm. You could also go after the EF-S 10-22mm, but this lens would not be usable on any non-1.6x crop camera.

Stop! Don’t Delete That Picture!

Here’s a quick & dirty reason why you shouldn’t just delete pictures – at least not before you’ve given some thought as to how you could salvage them:

First off, let me say this: isn’t this little guy adorable? And yet the picture is obviously a “mistake” – accidentally taken with far too long an exposure, blurred, moving, etc.

My first instinct was to delete the picture.

Then a thought flitted into my head… “maybe I can do something interesting with it…”

And so I tried, and here’s the result:

 Face of an Angel (1/2 second at f/7.1, ISO 400, 116mm)

I don’t know about you, but I think it was one of the best from the shoot. There’s just something so… beautiful… innocent… intangible about the image that I have fallen in love with it.

And, it was a perfect example for this quick lesson: before you delete a picture, think about what you could do to save it. Unless it’s a picture of the lens cap, chance are you can do something with it!

Until next time, keep writing with light!

Something Different

When a gaggle of geese visits you every few months, you tend to get familiar with them – as much as they will allow, of course. But this year there’s something different in the midst of this gaggle:

“Something Different”

I’m not sure if this is an albino Canada Goose, or if it is a Snow Goose. Either way, it is strange seeing this white goose amongst all the other geese. Even more interesting is that this goose is tolerated in the group.

“Looking for Food”

It’s not obvious from these two images, though, that this bird is injured. This poor thing walks with a limp – not sure if he has a broken or simply malformed leg, but it is painful to watch him try to walk. He gets around enough to eat and such, and his wings look normal, so he can probably fly okay, but still, it is sad to see, especially when he is such a beautiful bird.

The next couple of images have nothing to do with this white goose; just some friendly geese from the same gaggle:

“Taking Flight”

These geese took flight as I was photographing the other white goose. This was the only decent photo I got before they were all behind the tree. The lead goose’s head was, in reality, already behind the leaves, but a little post-processing work, and you get to see the whole thing!

“Enjoying the Evening”

More like “watching me”, but there’s just something pleasant about this goose and the scene. He’s not really that far away from the rest of the geese; but he was on the outer edges of the pack just standing there with his eye on me. After a few more pics, I hurried on to my car – it was cold out! –, but he apparently didn’t mind the temperature. Must be all those feathers!

On a totally different note, I get to go down to St. Louis this weekend and visit family and get to see my two nephews… they are going to be so fun to chase around with my camera!!!! Here’s hoping for some great pics…

Music to Work & Relax By

This technically has nothing to with photography. I just wanted to point you to some musical artists whose music I find inspiring and/or relaxing and/or easy to work or relax with:

• Enya
• Celtic Woman / Orla / Lisa
• Secret Garden
• Mysteria
• Loreena McKennitt
• Josh Groban
• Norah Jones
• Diana Krall

I can’t imagine you’ve not heard of many of these before, but if you’ve not had the opportunity to hear their music, or just haven’t listened to them in a while, you may want to try them again (or for the first time).