Free Republic

Liquid pig manure - plentiful, able to use high-pressure spray trucks (think fire fighting tanker/sprayer) and organic (kinda). Don’t want to hurt the environment you know!

I am sure the US had nothing to do with this but brining ashore a CAT3+ hurricane is always welcome

according to the website - 50ft/sec is within reality for a bear to cover - lets round it down to 15yd/sec - that would be less than a 3 second run (40 yards) for a determined bear (let alone 2)

http://www.bearsmart.com/about-bears/dispelling-myths/

maybe the runner was inspired and coud do 10yd/sec - after all, that only a 100yd dash in 10 sec - anyone can do that!

it’s an AP story - more fake news?

Any TV + device. The device could be as hands off as Apple TV or Roku or even a ‘fire’ device.

Personally, I like KODI on a version of Linux called OpenElec. The one on my larger TV is actually based on a Raspberry Pi - newest version. Total hardware cost - less than $50. With the addons - I am totally ‘off’ cable but can see almost every show on (and most that are no longer on). Google KODI if you are curious (it’s open source and runs on almost any platform).

Bottom line - let those ‘things’ hit the ‘net (or locally stored media). The TV is for showing it.

It’s already available — I’ve downloaded it and started the upgrade prior to leaving work this morning.

Do you suppose that the full slate of lawsuits against the city will be filed by the time voters get to decide?

Or perhaps the better question is will the civil rights of the 100+ who are being held without due process be restored by then?

I read in an article in TIME — a particular politician was highlighted for his role in the Jim Crow laws. Of course, TIME did not mention the party - but a simple search shows that Democrats were the party of most Jim Crow legislation.

I must have missed that in the prayer breakfast speech.

come on up to the Minneapolis area — relatively common even in the shadow of the airport

or if you really want to see them — Alaska!

Full ‘office’ capabilities - no software to download. What else could a tablet want. And, you can use it on a ‘real’ computer too. And, it is FREE

Minnesota cut taxes? State runs on a 2-year budget cycle. year 1 - DFL (democrats) raised taxes by $2.1B. Year 2 - they cut taxes by $400M.

Yep. They cut taxes.

hmmm — attempting to claim that because the law has ‘changed’ - he shouldn’t be convicted of what the law said when the crime was committed.

So if a speed limit got changed a week after he got a ticket for speeding, should that ticket be rejected too?

How about this to keep the court calendars clear — just dismiss all cases against everyone in case the law is ‘changed’ at some point in the future? Let’s be progressive about this type of thing.

He ‘broke’ the law that was in effect at the time of his actions.

Just a thought — GoogleVoice to ‘answer’ and forward the home phone to a cell (TMobile unlimited plan).

That way the phone number we have had since dinosaurs roamed the earth still ‘rings’ my wife and there is no geographical limitation (free to travel).

I have a Boxee box (now pseudo-supported) that provides access to my network attached storage as well as browsing and application support.

The external monitor is a good alternative when you are at a ‘workstation’. Limitations on HD space is also overcome by using external disk drives — giving you unlimited storage.

The question you need to answer is how much is increased portability worth? MBAir won’t have as fast of CPU processor - won’t have as much memory or HD space. Even your ethernet connection is not a standard jack! But, you get the full utility of the machine - essentially wherever you want to be (and with the new battery times - as long as you want to be there).

The ‘replaced’ machine has a few years on it - so whatever you decide will run circles around the old technology. There are software options that will allow you to ‘do’ the same things as your old machine did - in a more integrated fashion. And, as far as your old files, you can remove the HD from your old machine and have that as an external drive for your new machine (keeping all of your old files handy).

Amid the uncertainty about the camera/lens(es), it is important to remind you of some information that might have gotten buried in the camera talk.

Regardless of what camera solution you settle on — make sure you have (1) extra ‘film’ (memory cards) (2) extra battery and (3) a way to store the photos while you are in AK.

You don’t want to have to ration yourself because you don’t have enough ‘film’. Deleting images in the field is just asking for something bad to happen.

You don’t want to be caught with only 1 battery. While battery life is very good — running out of battery is not something you want to be reminded of (over and over and over again!)

Image storage while in AK — you don’t want to have only 1 copy of your photos. You could backup the images to an internet storage service - bring a portable hard drive - have a laptop with way more storage than you will need. The choice is yours. When I was in AK - I would backup my camera media to a laptop and then get a 2nd backup to a portable HD. Only after I had 2 good copies, would I reformat the camera media for the next day. Was I too careful? Maybe. But I have yet to lose an image due to the failure of camera media - laptop disk or portable HD.

Isn’t taking photos easy? ;)

If it only were as easy as — pick this one and this lens — there would be a lot less companies in the market.

If you have decided on a DSLR - it is hard to go too wrong with one of the major players (Nikon/Canon/Pentax). Don’t forget to include lenses in the total purchase. A DLSR only captures the light that the lens provides.

BUT - do you need a DSLR for the type of photography you want to do? The choices in the super-zoom P&S (point and shoot) market offer image stabilization and some very impressive functionality - all in 1 package - at prices that are in your price range.

Don’t ignore the DLSR market — but investigate the super-zoom P&S market prior to making your purchase. You might be very pleased with the products that exist there.

One major point to consider (any camera) - is how does the camera feel in your hand (and anyone else who will be using it). If the camera doesn’t fit - you won’t enjoy capturing the sights of Alaska.

(And for those who think I’m pushing that because I don’t like DLSR - I shoot Canon DLSRs with an assortment of L and non-L lenses - so yea, I do have some background in what I am saying.)

When you call the police, simply tell them that you thought you heard the person say he had a gun and wasn’t afraid to use it - or something like that. Then hang up and see how long it takes for the police to arrive.

You will be able to get good results with almost any current (within a few years) digital SLRs that are on the market. As mentioned earlier - knowing what you want to shoot will help direct your purchase.

‘Shooting sports’ doesn’t really answer the question. Indoor or out if the most basic question. Indoor = closer to the action (typically) and artificial light. Outdoor = longer shots with natural or artificial light. General rule to ‘stop’ action is get in as much light as you can to let you shoot with a faster shutter. This means finding a ‘low’ aperture lens that still has enough reach (magnification/zoom) to get the shots you want.

After you get over that sticker shock - then its time to start making trade-offs. If you have no investment (yes, investment) in a particular brand of lenses, take a look at which camera body / lenses will perform for the type of shooting you like. It could be a 4/3rds camera - it might be a 1.6 crop or a full frame camera. Guess what - ALL can provide the results you want - if you match the lens to the type of shooting you will be doing.

For me and my wife - we enjoy shooting airshows and nature settings. We both have Canon dSLRs so the lenses are interchangeable. For an airshow, my favorite lens is a 100-400L while she uses a 70-300. Shooting planes - outdoors - on sunny days is far different from shooting an indoor wrestling match. That said, I’ve used a different lens to shoot indoor action too. That is the primary advantage of interchanging the lenses, you change to what you need for a setting.

With all the choices that exist, see if your friends have equipment that you can try out sometime. That way you get your hands on the cameras and lenses to see what ‘fits’ you. In addition, consider renting equipment before you buy - again, to see if it fits what you want. To rent, I have used LensRentals.com and received outstanding service (and equipment) from them.

When you are finally ready to purchase, DONT ignore the pre-owned market. There are excellent deals out there - once you decide what you want to own. Always try to take some shots prior to being separated from your money. What can look great on the outside does not always work great. With pre-owned units, they are being sold for a reason. And with interchangeable body/lens combinations - you don’t need to find the ‘entire’ unit at one place.

And, to muddy the waters a bit, there have been some outstanding point-and-shoot cameras that probably have been introduced since you purchased the one you are using. Don’t necessarily decide that you need a digital SLR when some more advanced P-n-S models could provide you the shots you want.