Saturday, August 01, 2015
Chauncy Creek Lobster Pier, Kittery, Maine
Note: Photos shot with Samsung #NX1 in AUTO mode.
Buy on Amazon.com (affiliate link):
Disclosure:
Samsung supplied the Samsung NX1 28.2 MP Wireless SMART Mirrorless Digital Camera with 16-50mm f/2.0-2.8 "S" Lens to me on loan to play with and requested a short write-up and/or photos shared with the #NX1 hashtag.
Baby in 4K
I'm a babysitter.
It's a perk of being an Uncle.
My wife Carol and I are babysitting a 6 month and 2 1/2 year old once a week. These really are adventures in babysitting. ;-)
This week I had a Samsung #NX1 camera with me for review. I wanted to take some photos of the baby to see how they came out.
PHOTOS
The detail is amazing. I'm used to shooting photos with the camera that I have on me, the iPhone 6, but quality of these images far surpasses what I usually get with the iPhone. The iPhone is great for sharing on Facebook and Instagram, and viewing on a smartphone or even Facebook. But when you look at the detail here, it's stunning.
All these photos were taken in AUTO mode without any post processing.
VIDEO
Next up video. I shot these handheld videos in 4K mode. That's 4096x2160 resolution.
H.265
The resulting video gets saved to the camera's SD card in H.265 format. That's an up and coming format that uses less space to save video and provides greater resolution, but you can't upload this format to Facebook or YouTube, yet. You can't edit it either unless you convert it first. It will be good in the long run, but right now it's an extra step that's cumbersome.
Samsung supplies an app for that: Samsung Movie Converter.
Buy on Amazon.com (affiliate link):
Disclosure:
Samsung supplied the Samsung NX1 28.2 MP Wireless SMART Mirrorless Digital Camera with 16-50mm f/2.0-2.8 "S" Lens to me on loan to play with and requested a short write-up and/or photos shared with the #NX1 hashtag.
It's a perk of being an Uncle.
My wife Carol and I are babysitting a 6 month and 2 1/2 year old once a week. These really are adventures in babysitting. ;-)
This week I had a Samsung #NX1 camera with me for review. I wanted to take some photos of the baby to see how they came out.
PHOTOS
The detail is amazing. I'm used to shooting photos with the camera that I have on me, the iPhone 6, but quality of these images far surpasses what I usually get with the iPhone. The iPhone is great for sharing on Facebook and Instagram, and viewing on a smartphone or even Facebook. But when you look at the detail here, it's stunning.
All these photos were taken in AUTO mode without any post processing.
VIDEO
Next up video. I shot these handheld videos in 4K mode. That's 4096x2160 resolution.
H.265
The resulting video gets saved to the camera's SD card in H.265 format. That's an up and coming format that uses less space to save video and provides greater resolution, but you can't upload this format to Facebook or YouTube, yet. You can't edit it either unless you convert it first. It will be good in the long run, but right now it's an extra step that's cumbersome.
Samsung supplies an app for that: Samsung Movie Converter.
Buy on Amazon.com (affiliate link):
Disclosure:
Samsung supplied the Samsung NX1 28.2 MP Wireless SMART Mirrorless Digital Camera with 16-50mm f/2.0-2.8 "S" Lens to me on loan to play with and requested a short write-up and/or photos shared with the #NX1 hashtag.
Monday, July 27, 2015
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Campy Man from U.N.C.L.E. opens in the UK and US on August 14, 2015.
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. movie used exposition to set up the plot where two no-name agents from the US and Russian band together to defeat somewhat Nazi allied villains who want to rule the world with the threat of atomic weapons.
Fans of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV show know the agents as Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin, but younger audiences attending this movie will have to wait a while to figure out the character’s names, especially when Napoleon Solo keeps calling Ilya, Pasha. At least that’s what I heard.
Henry Cavill as Napoleon Solo and Armie Hammer as Illya Kuryakin had great chemistry. When I saw Jared Harris, I thought, hey, that’s the English guy from Mad Men!
One upsetting part of the movie for me was when they used a photo album to show the atrocities that the former Nazi doctor did to Jewish concentration camp victims. That part went on way too long. We get it. The doctor was a bad man.
After the movie was over, I tried to describe it as a less serious Mission Impossible, or Matt Damon Movie, but then narrowed in on calling it campy.
It lived in between being serious and humorous.
At the end, there was a set up to make more. Let’s see if audiences want it.
Watch the original TV series here:
Wonder how this will be. #ManFromUNCLE #movies pic.twitter.com/MT3uqxMil2
— Rachel Aubuchon (@iced782mocha) July 2, 2015Fans of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV show know the agents as Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin, but younger audiences attending this movie will have to wait a while to figure out the character’s names, especially when Napoleon Solo keeps calling Ilya, Pasha. At least that’s what I heard.
Henry Cavill as Napoleon Solo and Armie Hammer as Illya Kuryakin had great chemistry. When I saw Jared Harris, I thought, hey, that’s the English guy from Mad Men!
One upsetting part of the movie for me was when they used a photo album to show the atrocities that the former Nazi doctor did to Jewish concentration camp victims. That part went on way too long. We get it. The doctor was a bad man.
After the movie was over, I tried to describe it as a less serious Mission Impossible, or Matt Damon Movie, but then narrowed in on calling it campy.
It lived in between being serious and humorous.
At the end, there was a set up to make more. Let’s see if audiences want it.
Watch the original TV series here:
Monday, July 13, 2015
Bordeaux: Chateau Reverdi Wine Tasting and Blending Experience
Audrey Thomas, owner of Château Reverdi, gave us a great tour and then sat us down for a tasting and blending session.
We learned that all Bordeaux wines are blended. We then tasted the three wines that go into Chateau Reverdi's wine, and had the opportunity to blend out own.
With notes on how they bend, we got a graduated beaker and proceeded to blend out own.
Everyone on our tour took this seriously and had a lot of fun with it.
Here's my blend:
Needed more Merlot!
Tour: bordeaux-360
We learned that all Bordeaux wines are blended. We then tasted the three wines that go into Chateau Reverdi's wine, and had the opportunity to blend out own.
With notes on how they bend, we got a graduated beaker and proceeded to blend out own.
Everyone on our tour took this seriously and had a lot of fun with it.
Here's my blend:
Needed more Merlot!
Tour: bordeaux-360
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Friday, July 10, 2015
Sunday, June 28, 2015
Conrad Hilton Dublin
The Conrad Hilton Dublin is centrally located. It's a 20 minute walk to the Temple Bar area.
I arrived on a Saturday and enjoyed s fantastic buffet breakfast.
Monday, June 22, 2015
It's Good to be Gronk, a new book by New England Patriot Rob Gronkowski
Patriots Gronkowski Opens Up In New Book ‘It’s Good To Be Gronk’
BOSTON (CBS) — We already had a pretty good idea that Rob Gronkowski has a good life, but he’s opening up a bit in a new book.
The Patriots tight end has penned a new memoir with agent Jason Rosenhaus, fittingly titled It’s Good To Be Gronk (not to be confused with A Gronking To Remember). In the new book, Gronkowski shares some stories from his college days at Arizona, a few of his exchanges with Bill Belichick, and an interesting tidbit about his finances.
The MMQB posted a few excerpts from the book on Monday, with one revealing that Gronkowski hasn’t yet touched any of the cash he’s earned in his five seasons with the Patriots. That sweet party bus and all of his other cool toys have been paid for with the money he’s earned from his numerous sponsorships, leaving plenty in Gronk’s piggy bank for the future.
From Amazon.com:
New England Patriots record-breaking tight-end Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski offers fans a front row seat to a football superstar’s life on and off the field.
“One of the best tight ends the game has ever seen. Off the field, he’s unabashedly the cruise director of the NFL.” —New York Post
Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski holds nine league-wide records and three Patriots franchise records. His accomplishments include thirty-eight receiving touchdowns in his first three seasons (thirteen more than any other tight end in the NFL) and the 2011 record for most touchdowns made by a tight end, with seventeen receiving and eighteen overall. With a Super Bowl victory under his belt and a nationwide reputation for a personality that’s “comedy gold” (CBS Sports), he has continued to win the hearts of fans through his fun-loving attitude.
From hamming it up at Super Bowl Media Day, to spicing up interviews with “Gronk-esque” dance moves, to cuddling with kittens in the pages of ESPN The Magazine, to christening a used party bus his ride of choice, Gronk’s good humor and playful persona make it seem like other players are “living in black and white, and Gronk is in color” (CBS Sports). But it’s not all fun and games. After multiple surgeries on his forearms, ankle, and back, Gronk tore his ACL and MCL, prematurely ending his 2013 season (but not before scoring four touchdowns and 592 receiving yards). His many injuries and subsequent recoveries made his key play in Super Bowl XLIX—which led to victory and the title of “Comeback Player of the Year”—all the sweeter. Gronk takes fans from the field to the locker room to the VIP room to the talk show green room to his parents’ kitchen table—a full tour of the world according to Gronk.
It's Good to Be Gronk Affiliate Link
Lord Hobo Brewing Company opens huge brewery in Woburn
Great write-up on our Lord Hobo Brewing Co in today's Boston Herald, Lord Hobo opens huge brewery in Woburn.
Photo courtesy Boston Herald by: Nancy Lane
Mon - Thu:
5:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Fri:
5:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Sat:
12:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Sun:
12:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Keep up with brewery news on our Lord Hobo Brewing Company Facebook Page.
Cheers!
Earlier: Lord Hobo Brewing Company Opens.
Photo courtesy Boston Herald by: Nancy Lane
Here comes the Boom Sauce.Hours are:
Lord Hobo Brewing Co. opened Saturday in Woburn — a big, bold, ambitious project from hop-loving local publican Dan Lanigan.
Boom Sauce is one of four beers he’ll pour in the days and weeks ahead at the Lord Hobo brewery tap room and at his popular Cambridge beer bar, also called Lord Hobo. Distribution in Greater Boston — and plenty of other new brews — will soon follow.
The $3 million, 47,000-square-foot facility is likely the largest craft brewery opening in New England history.
Mon - Thu:
5:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Fri:
5:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Sat:
12:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Sun:
12:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Keep up with brewery news on our Lord Hobo Brewing Company Facebook Page.
Cheers!
Earlier: Lord Hobo Brewing Company Opens.
Sunday, June 21, 2015
My Dad
Here's my dad, Aaron Garfield, when he worked at General Electric Aircraft Engine Group in Lynn, Massachusetts as a technical writer and editor.
Image: Aaron Garfield at GE
He worked at General Electric for ever. As long as I can remember, until he retired. He worked with engineers and photographers on jet engine manuals. It's funny, as I write this, I don't ever remember seeing one of the manuals that he worked on. He never took work home.
He loved working with people. He loved working with words. He would always correct me at home, when ever I said, "Yeah, but..." He'd jump in and say, "NO BUT!" I guess he took that part of work home.
Here he is in the office with his clean desk. It was the same way at home. Everything had to be in order. Every tool on the workbench had it's place. If you removed a tool to use it, you had to put it back exactly where you found it, so you'd know where it would be the next time you needed it.
I'm like that now. ;-)
Image: Dad at work. Clean desk.
Image: Dad, Mad Men style.
My dad was great for taking trips. A big one was to the World's Fair, but many other where day trips throughout New England.
Image: With Dad at NY World's Fair 1964 024
We'd travel to see all types of interesting places and have a picnic by the side of the road at a rest stop. In later years I found out one of the reasons for all those trips. My mom loved the beach, but my dad did not. So when it was time to do something on the weekend, my dad would say, "Let's go on a road trip!" We didn't go to the beach much.
My dad also had hobbies. One was magic. He bought tricks at a local magic store and joined the Society of American Magicians. Then he'd do shows at birthday parties. One time he did a show for my school. He called me up to make a glass of milk disappear, and I drank it. ;-)
He started doing shows at hospitals, but it became too stressful for him so he stopped doing that.
Image: Aaron Garfield doing Magic For Children
His other passion was gardening. We spent a lot of time in the yard together, taking care of the plants and vegetable garden. I loved working in the yard with my dad. He showed me how to cut the lawn with our electric mower, making sure that I did not cut the cord by running it over.
Image: Dad in the garden
In later years, my mom and dad spent winters in Florida. One time my wife Carol asked if my dad could swim, so he went into the pool and showed her that he could swim. As far back as I can remember, he never swam. My mom told me that he got chest pains when exerting himself, so never swam. That was a big deal.
He had two heart attacks, and ended up dying from pancreatic cancer.
I know that he would have enjoyed seeing me write a book, teach classes, speak at conferences, get involved advising and investing in start ups, and write about tech, beer, wine, cars and travel.
Thanks Dad. Happy Father's Day.
Image: Aaron Garfield at GE
He worked at General Electric for ever. As long as I can remember, until he retired. He worked with engineers and photographers on jet engine manuals. It's funny, as I write this, I don't ever remember seeing one of the manuals that he worked on. He never took work home.
He loved working with people. He loved working with words. He would always correct me at home, when ever I said, "Yeah, but..." He'd jump in and say, "NO BUT!" I guess he took that part of work home.
Here he is in the office with his clean desk. It was the same way at home. Everything had to be in order. Every tool on the workbench had it's place. If you removed a tool to use it, you had to put it back exactly where you found it, so you'd know where it would be the next time you needed it.
I'm like that now. ;-)
Image: Dad at work. Clean desk.
Image: Dad, Mad Men style.
My dad was great for taking trips. A big one was to the World's Fair, but many other where day trips throughout New England.
Image: With Dad at NY World's Fair 1964 024
We'd travel to see all types of interesting places and have a picnic by the side of the road at a rest stop. In later years I found out one of the reasons for all those trips. My mom loved the beach, but my dad did not. So when it was time to do something on the weekend, my dad would say, "Let's go on a road trip!" We didn't go to the beach much.
My dad also had hobbies. One was magic. He bought tricks at a local magic store and joined the Society of American Magicians. Then he'd do shows at birthday parties. One time he did a show for my school. He called me up to make a glass of milk disappear, and I drank it. ;-)
He started doing shows at hospitals, but it became too stressful for him so he stopped doing that.
Image: Aaron Garfield doing Magic For Children
His other passion was gardening. We spent a lot of time in the yard together, taking care of the plants and vegetable garden. I loved working in the yard with my dad. He showed me how to cut the lawn with our electric mower, making sure that I did not cut the cord by running it over.
Image: Dad in the garden
In later years, my mom and dad spent winters in Florida. One time my wife Carol asked if my dad could swim, so he went into the pool and showed her that he could swim. As far back as I can remember, he never swam. My mom told me that he got chest pains when exerting himself, so never swam. That was a big deal.
He had two heart attacks, and ended up dying from pancreatic cancer.
I know that he would have enjoyed seeing me write a book, teach classes, speak at conferences, get involved advising and investing in start ups, and write about tech, beer, wine, cars and travel.
Thanks Dad. Happy Father's Day.
Saturday, June 20, 2015
Facebook Adds Authorship
Mike Alton explains and shows you how to implement Facebook Authorship:
Image: Facebook Authorship provides a link to Blog author's Facebook page
In my test, it works better on a shared blog post without an image.
Facebook has released a new "authorship" feature that's powered by the Author meta tag. If this sounds remarkably similar to Google's Authorship which was shuttered last year, that's because it is.
With a simple meta tag, writers and publishers can now indicate the author profile or publishing page for any given piece of content. The result is a linked name attached to any shares of that content on Facebook that allows viewers to see the author and potentially follow them.
Image: Facebook Authorship provides a link to Blog author's Facebook page
In my test, it works better on a shared blog post without an image.
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Become a News Publisher on Apple News
Become a News Publisher on Apple News
To distribute content on News, you need to complete a sign-up and approval process. Use the iCloud-based News Publisher tool to register as a publisher, add your feeds, and get your channel approved.
News Publisher: icloud.com/newspublisher
I signed up my blog.
You can have channels, but I just signed up using my main RSS 2.0 feed using the name Off On A Tangent and the image Steve Garfield.
It'll be interested to see if I get approved and how my feed looks on Apple News.
Update: Looking into Blogger Topic RSS 2.0 feeds.
To distribute content on News, you need to complete a sign-up and approval process. Use the iCloud-based News Publisher tool to register as a publisher, add your feeds, and get your channel approved.
News Publisher: icloud.com/newspublisher
I signed up my blog.
You can have channels, but I just signed up using my main RSS 2.0 feed using the name Off On A Tangent and the image Steve Garfield.
It'll be interested to see if I get approved and how my feed looks on Apple News.
Update: Looking into Blogger Topic RSS 2.0 feeds.
Friday, June 12, 2015
Amazon.com Breaks Affiliate Code for Some Image Ads, Requires Fix
Just got this email from Amazon.com about their Associates Ad Unit Migration:
Amazon Affiliates Central will help, providing this link to show every blog post that contains, what will become, broken ad code.
https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/network/link-migration/dashboard.html
It shows me 230 broken links:
Note:
In practice, I went into the first example and found that text links do not need to be changed, but image links do.
So I changed the code and ended up with a blank image.
Oh man. What a mess.
New Ad
This new ad below, created with the new affiliate code, will still work after September 1, 2015.
New Ad: James Taylor
Sweet Baby James!
Good luck.
Hello,To paraphrase, go into your blog and find and replace every Amazon ad that uses the deprecated code in each blog post, or you'll have a lot of broken links after September 1, 2005. Unfortunately, my CMS, Blogger, can't easily accomplish this. If you've got Wordpress, you can do a global search and replace.
As part of our continuing effort to improve the Associates program’s products and services, we are making some changes to our technology platform. This platform change will require you to replace some older product links, banners, and widgets you currently have hosted on your website as they will no longer be supported after July 31, 2015. Text links are not impacted by this deprecation.
Action Required
We ask that you replace or update the impacted ad units prior to July 31, 2015. The links require the following update that can be facilitated through your CMS (content management system). You may make these replacements at whatever scale you are comfortable with.
- Find and replace ws.amazon.com with ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com
- Find and replace rcm.amazon.com with rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com
Keep in mind that starting August 1, 2015, any remaining legacy product links (text + image, image-only), banners, and widgets will be served with non-clickable public service announcements that will not send traffic to Amazon, impacting your referring traffic and potential earnings, if not addressed. On September 1, 2015, these legacy ad units will no longer render, thereby creating a broken link on your website.
Getting Started
To assist with this migration, we have created a dashboard on Associates Central that identifies those product links, banner ads, and widgets that are impacted by this technology change. Be sure to visit Associates Central, https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/network/link-migration/dashboard.html for instructions on how to get started.
Please review our FAQs for more information on this migration. Should you have any questions or need assistance, visit the Customer Service page for contact information,
https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/contact
We apologize in advance for any inconvenience this deprecation may cause.
The Amazon Associates Team
Amazon Affiliates Central will help, providing this link to show every blog post that contains, what will become, broken ad code.
https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/network/link-migration/dashboard.html
It shows me 230 broken links:
Note:
If you click the above link and get an error, it might mean you are not signed in or have no broken ad units.
Go to your associates central dashboard and look at the right sidebar
or
Try clicking it again, or refreshing the page
It errors out some times.
In practice, I went into the first example and found that text links do not need to be changed, but image links do.
So I changed the code and ended up with a blank image.
Oh man. What a mess.
New Ad
This new ad below, created with the new affiliate code, will still work after September 1, 2015.
New Ad: James Taylor
Sweet Baby James!
Good luck.
Thursday, June 11, 2015
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
MarketingProfs' B2B 2015 Marketing Forum - Photo Walk - First Draft
I'll be conducting a photo walk for the MarketingProfs' B2B 2015 Marketing Forum this year in Boston. We had a lot of fun on the photo walk last year walking through downtown Boston.
This year we'll be exploring the Boston waterfront.
Here's my initial plan.
Image: Planned Stops
This year we'll be exploring the Boston waterfront.
Here's my initial plan.
Image: Planned Stops
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