ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2007
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Welcome to the 480th issue of the PC Improvement News. PCIN consists mainly of news highlights and tips. There is something for everyone, and if this is your first issue, I'm sure there will be something for you. If you give me two or three issues, I know that you will come back for more!
You can reach me at editor@pcin.net with any suggestions or comments.
Support PCIN at http://PCIN.net/donate.php
Sorry for not getting this out on time yesterday. We had a big get-together Christmas Eve, and over the next 24-48 hours 6 of us got pretty sick. We're not sure exactly what it was, but I was pretty much out of commission yesterday.
I hope you all had a Merry Christmas. If you got any new "toys", drop us a line. We'd love to hear about it!
As I mentioned last week, this is a shorter version of the newsletter. I have a few news stories, and Chris has his Digitial Photography Tip of the Week. The remaining regular features will return next week.
Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net
Are you a 'cyberchondriac'?
First-year medical students are some of the biggest hypochondriacs around. Bombarded with information about every disease under the sun, they start to imagine they have them all. In their minds, every mole is skin cancer. A nosebleed is surely a sign of a tumor. Headache? Must be skyrocketing blood pressure.
"People get terribly anxious," says Dr. Arthur Barsky, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "One woman who came to see me was convinced she had melanoma. She brought in 20 pages of color photos of various skin lesions, trying to figure out which one looked most like hers."
And now, because of the Internet, we can all be first-year medical students.
Study: Wii gaming no substitute for exercise
Younger gamers looking to con a Wii out of parents this year by selling them on the physical benefits of "active" gaming, it's time to dream up a new strategy. A UK study entitled "Energy expenditure in adolescents playing new generation computer games" reveals that a round of Wii Sports doesn't work the body nearly as hard as proper exercise. While it expends more energy than "idle" gaming with a controller, the difference is negligible.
YouTubin' the Queen
Britain's 81-year-old Queen Elizabeth II, considered an icon of traditionalism, launched her own special Royal Channel on YouTube Sunday.
The Queen will use the popular video-sharing Web site to send out her 50th annual televised Christmas message, which she first delivered live to the nation and its colonies on Dec. 25, 1957.
Buckingham Palace also began posting archive and recent footage of the Queen and other royals on the channel Sunday, with plans to add new clips regularly.
2008 Calendars
For the past few years, I have created a small wall calendar for friends an family. I have used 13 images, one for each month and one for the cover. I created the calendar pages in Photoshop including such customizations as birthdays and anniversaries, printed them first 6x4 (6x8 calendar) and later 7x5 (7x10 calendar), then had them bound by a local copy store. I realize I have a certain amount of bias but I do feel they have been a nice gift.
This year I have created a small, full year, calendar, 4x6, with a single photo and all 12 months of the calendar year. I downloaded a calendar template from the web, then customized the calendar with my name and web site address then laminated the calendar to a magnet. I am sending these calendars to new clients as a small thank you and a year long reminder of my services. For my existing clients, I have customized their calendar with a photo from one of their sessions over the previous year.
Use of your photos does not have stop with a picture in a frame. Local labs and online printing services offer a very expansive range of products to use with your photographs, though you do not always have pay a lot for them. A little bit of time on your own and you can have a few nice products to pass around to your friends and family.
This is my last tip for 2007. I wish everyone a happy Christmas and holiday season. If you happen to receive any new photo goodies over the next little while, remember to read the manual... there is a wealth of information included in that little book.
Until next time, happy shooting.
Leave a comment on this week's Digital Photography Tip of the Week
The digital photography tip of the week is written by the PCIN Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Chris is a long time photographer and is currently the President of the Niagara Falls Camera Club. You can see more of his photography at his Photo of the Day website.
If you have a tip to send Chris, or a question about digital photography he can address in the newsletter, send it to chris@pcin.net.
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Paragon Software Group Hard Disk Manager 2008
http://PCIN.net/help/software/paragonhdm2008.phpAdobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 and Adobe Premier Elements 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/photoshopEL5_Premiere3.phpExpoDisc White Balance Filter Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/expodisc.phpParagon Software Group Partition Manager 8.0 Professional Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ppm8.phpUpdate PCIN.net home page with "Top 10 Most Popular..." features
http://PCIN.net/
Both of us have other sites other than PCIN.net. These are all sites that we are actively involved in (they aren't client sites). Don't forget to check them out from time to time for updates:
PCIN is brought to you by Graham Wing. The opinions expressed are those of the Editor, Graham Wing and the Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Graham Wing and Chris Empey accept no responsibility for the results obtained from trying the tips in this newsletter.
Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net
Copyright 1998-2007, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.
This publication may be reproduced in whole, or in part, as long as the author is notified and the newsletter is presented as is.
Support PCIN by visiting http://PCIN.net/donate.php