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Archive | October 20, 2015
October 20, 2015  

‘6 images for the day’ + 1 — October 20, 2015.

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by Anura Guruge

Related posts:
 ++++ Search ‘images’ for other posts >>>>

++++ Check Category ‘Six Images’ >>>>

Second day …

Taken with my Panasonic Lumix FZ1000. JPEGs, as usual, with no post-processing, whatsoever. Straight out of the camera. I am not a lover of post-processing.

Original 5472 x 3648, ~7Mb,
 JPEGs reduced to 1024 x 683, 280Kb, for display here.
So v. low resolution. Sorry.

Click pictures to ENLARGE.

Attribution WILL be enforced.






Enjoy. Thank YOU.

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October 20, 2015  

Brandon McPhee: Award Winning Scottish Accordionist I Met On Facebook.

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.by Anura Guruge

Related posts:
>> Scottish, John Carmichael.
>> Devanee with ‘The Brigadoons’.
>> ‘The Brigadoons’, 2015 — Part I.
 >> ‘The Brigadoons’ — Unplugged.

++++ Refer to ‘Highland Games‘ page (↑) for other posts ↑↑↑↑

Click image to watch quite an amazing, virtuoso musical performance.

Paddy Kelly with Devanee at Loon.

He is friends with accordion-playing Scottish legend John Carmichael and as such I am going to call him John Carmichael’s protégée, though I am not sure whether that is actually the case. But I am sure John, one of the nicest guys ever, and ever so proud (quite rightly) of all things Scottish, will mind.

Brandon is also friend with our ‘The Brigadoons‘ friend, music maestro, Paddy Kelly. So Brandon, given his talents, his moving in the right circles.

Brandon McPhee Facebook page. Please check out and ‘Like’.

October 20, 2015  

Another Photo-Studded Post On “New England Nomad” Blog — King Richard’s Faire, Carver, MA.

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by Anura Guruge

Other Related posts:
 1/ New England Nomad WordPress Blog.
++++  Search ‘Strawbery’ or ‘Portsmouth’ for possible similar posts >>>>

newengnomadcarver

Click to access the ‘New England Nomad’ blog.

Tons of great pictures — again. Lots of descriptive prose. He spends a lot of time and effort finely crafting his posts. Inspiration to us all.

October 20, 2015  

IBM, IF It Has Any Sense, Would Resurrect ‘Grid Computing’ To Augment ‘Cloud Computing’.

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IBM’s latest stock price. From ‘marketwatch.com’. 52 week high was $176.

.Anura Guruge December 2014 thumbnail
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by Anura Guruge

Related Posts:
>> IBM, Bob Dylan & Watson.
>> Donate Hursley House …
>> Get rid of unproductive R&D.
>> IBM’s 26% layoff is NOT enough.
>> Punch-drunk IBM, 40% layoff. >> “Think” sign — Aug. 28, 2014.
>> Hursley’s John Fairclough …
>> Mainframe 50th.
>> Gene Amdahl & I.
>> IBM Hursley pictures.
>> Malaysia flight 370: And ‘Poor’ IBM.
++++ Search on “Hursley”, “IBM” & “mainframes” for other IBM (Hursley) related posts … and also ‘Dylan’ >>>>

IBM ‘RedBook’ on ‘Grid Computing’ from 2005. It is still on IBM’s Website. Click image to access (the PDF).

gridanu23424

Click to ENLARGE and read. First two pages of a book I started to write in 2004, with encouragement from IBM, on ‘Grid & Autonomic Computing’. I was glad I managed to find a copy on this PC after 11 years!

‘Cloud Computing‘, nebulous as it is, is the latest IT ‘very hip’, ‘ultra-cool’ buzzword — in the same league as some of those from the past, such as XML, ATM (for Asynchronous Transfer Mode), OSI and OS/2.

95% of those that glibly bandy the term ‘Cloud Computing’ have absolutely no idea what it means! It is the hip term to drop. ‘Cloud Computing’ is a the latest way to describe a decades old methodology, i.e., server-centric processing and storage. ‘Cloud Computing’ as such is NOT new, not by a long chalk.

‘Cloud Computing’, at IBM, is just the latest of a long list of futile, high burn projects that IBM never was able to capitalize on. Everybody else may have forgotten, BUT I still remember Nways. And I also remember SAA, Liza (no, no, not that one), NetView.

And then there was ‘Grid Computing‘. ‘Grid Computing’ makes sense and is more relevant TODAY than it has ever been.

Google and Amazon understand that and they have now stolen IBM’s march on ‘Grid Computing’ — though way back in 2002 – 2005, this was IBM’s bailywick.

‘Grid Computing’, see MY definition above, goes hand-in-hand with ‘Cloud Computing’. It is a way to make ‘Cloud’ more efficient and as such cost-effective.

IBM, if it had any sense, would resurrect its Grid initiatives. IF they can’t remember what they are they should give me a call.

Grid …

That is what can SAVE IBM.

Remember, in July, I already told you that IBM revenues would continue to decline. 

October 20, 2015  

Canada 2015 Election, And Trudeau Win, Does NOT Make It To CNN U.S. News.

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by Anura Guruge

Other Related Posts:

 >>>> Search for ‘Canada’ &  ‘Canadian’ >>>>

cnncanadaelection

From CNN, U.S., a few minutes ago. Click to ENLARGE and view. Original at: cnn.com.

Of course we are all conditioned for U.S. news, even from CNN, to be parochial to the ‘n-th’ degree.

But I was amazed, when it dawned on me, that I had watched CNN’s 9 am (Eastern) news for 27 minutes and had NOT heard anything about Canada. It had been ALL about, all 27 minutes, bar the commercials, Donald, Carson, Biden and the CIA Director’s e-mail account being hacked.

Yes, we are used to U.S. news media cutely ignoring World news but Canada is like pretty close — you know next door. I would have thought, but I am an alien, that Canada’s election results might have warranted some air space instead of the endless speculation as to whether Joe is going to run.

October 20, 2015  

Christmas Revels 2015, Cambridge, ‘A Welsh Celebration’ — Got Tickets.

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by Anura Guruge

Related posts:
>> Christmas Revels 2015: Cambridge.
 >> Christmas Revels North, 2015: Scottish Highland Bash.
>> Christmas Revels 2014: RAVE.
>> Christmas Revels 2013 at Dartmouth.
>> Christmas Revels 2012 at Dartmouth.

++++ Search for ‘Revels’ & ‘Cambridge’ for MANY other related posts >>>>

++++ Refer to ‘Highland Games’ page (↑) for other Scottish music posts ↑↑↑↑

revels2015both

 

Well that worked out. Just got tickets to go and see Christmas Revels at Cambridge — AS WELL.

I bought (our customary, front-row, center) tickets for Revels North 2015 in August — the very first day they were open for members.

I am NOT a member of Cambridge Revels, and today was the first day for non-members. So I could not get front-row seats. But these seats are OK. Obviously cost more than front-row at Dartmouth! What can I say. I am pumped. 2012 was the only time we have been to BOTH Revels. The kids will be excited. They love Revels. Plus going to Cambridge is always an adventure.

October 20, 2015  

For $100 Less It Is Not Worth Getting The Canon Rebel T6i vs T6s.

Anura Guruge December 2014 thumbnail…
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by Anura Guruge

Other Related posts:
>> I get a Canon G1X.
 >> Canon G5X could be next camera.
>> Lumix FZ1000 stunning pictures.
>> Lumix FZ1000 blog.
>> Got a Panasonic Lumix FZ1000.

** Canon G3X is ugly.
** Canon G3X: 80% my next camera.
** ‘Camera Labs’ review of Canon G3X.
 ** Sony RX10 II vs Canon PowerShot G3X.

>> Search ‘Sony’, ‘Panasonic’ & ‘Canon’  for other related posts >>>>

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Click to ENLARGE and read. Comparison from Amazon. Yes, it is exactly a $100 price difference.

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Click to ENLARGE and read. Extract from the Nov. 2015 issue of ‘Digital Photo’.

I was shocked, to the core, when I read the above in my latest issue of ‘Digital Photo‘ this morning.

That is crazy and Canon, for a start, should be ashamed. Having these two cameras $100 apart is ludicrous. As an ex-Senior Product Manager for multi-Billion dollar companies, as big, if not bigger than, than Canon I am shocked. The cost and expense of releasing, maintaining and promoting a single product, for a company like Canon, is HUGE. To get technical, each product sold by a company, is called a ‘SKU‘ — Stock Keeping Unit. Each SKU costs companies millions to just keep it on the books. There are huge studies about this ‘cost of SKU maintenance’. IF Canon didn’t bother with the Canon Rebel 6Ti it would only have to maintain one SKU for the 6Ts — and that would have saved Canon a ton of money. Enough money to have reduced the price of the 6Ts by $100! That was my first gripe. This is pathetic business management. Somebody should be fired.

Now the other side — the consumer side. Yes, I know that $100 can be a lot of money and in the case of these cameras come to ~13% of the cost. But in the scheme of things it would be rather detrimental in the long run to try and save $100 by getting the 6Ti, when one is likely to regret that decision, for years to come, down the road. Interestingly enough the top LCD panel is the least worthwhile of the features. Yes, I, when I had a Canon Rebel T3i, desperately wanted a camera with a top LCD panel. I had great hopes for one. Then I got the Sony a77 mk II which did have quite a nice top LCD panel. I never, but never, used it! Everything I needed was in the EVF and on the 3″ LCD back display. What was the point of having a harder to read LCD panel. But, control wheels are in short supply on Canon Rebels. I would pay $100, on any $700+ camera, for an ADDITIONAL control wheel! I have learnt. Control wheels are useful. One of the reasons I opted for an (interim) (refurbished) Canon G1 X was that it has lots of control wheels. Plus Servo AF, digital zoom and HDR are all useful features. Losing all those for $100, in my opinion, is just not worth it.

That what I think.

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