Archive
New Tech
So today I walk into the Mac Lab at lunch and what do I see? Three large cardboard boxes. In those boxes are the first of the new 21.5 inch iMacs that will be replacing the old white computers. During lunch, Kyle and I unpacked one of them and right now (during 7th period) I am in the process of transferring the data from my old computer, as I get the honor of receiving the first of the new iMacs. According to the computer, in 35 minutes the data transfer will be complete and the new Mac will be up and running. Everyone who sits at computer #14 is going to have the best computer in the room, at least for a couple days.
I have been working on those 22 pictures that Mr. Skocko was given and have finished about ten of them. I would be working on them right now, expect that my computer is off the network and so I can’t get to the files. Overall, they are good pictures from a content point of view, but are very small and in some cases distorted. I have been trying my best to bring out the best in them, but it has been rough going. Wish me luck.
That’s it for now. Don’t forget to check the “This Is How We Do It” page for the new tutorials I made yesterday.
Reaping In The Benefits
Well, as Christopher mentioned in the previous post, we spent over 8 hours in the Mac Lab last Friday, during our day off from school, cleaning and revamping the lab. Within that 8 hours we not only installed Snow Leopard on all the computers, but we also created an awesome work station, mostly due to the fact that there are two screens to work with. It is powered by an older Power Mac G5 and is connected to two very large displays. Today, being the first day of second semester, we got to work at our new and improved work station. Although it is not our primary computer, it is still quite fun to work at, with the two displays and all.
The only con to the newly set up work station, currently “maclab47,” is that the computer is still running Tiger, Mac OS X v10.4. The only thing preventing us form installing Leopard (Snow Leopard is only supported by an Intel processor) is Pro Tools, with parts that cannot handle the already 3 year old operating system.
After today, the first work day back from the end of first semester, I thought I would try and make a final copy of the “red flower,” something that has been hovering over our heads for days. Using the G5, I created this image, which is featured on this post.
On a different note, I have decided to apply to the Marine Technology Society Summer Internship Program this summer. I believe it would be a great experience and quite interesting. Although I do not have any interest in pursuing either of these fields as a career choice, it will be something worth having under my belt as I enter college and “real” world in just over a year. The best part of applying and being accepted into the program, is that after 6 weeks of work you receive a check for almost $2,000. Not that money is the most important thing in life, but that part will be very nice!
Anyway, enough for now!
8 Hours of Fun in the Mac Lab
Well, yesterday was quite the day. Kyle and I spent eight and a half hours in the Mac Lab, and it wasn’t even a school day. In the last post, I talked about our plans to install Snow Leopard on all the Mac Lab computers, as well as new fonts, and set up a new workstation. We met these goals, and it took us from 8 am to 4:30 pm to do so.
We arrived at school just before 8 am and Mr. Skocko took a break from a teacher meeting to let us into the Lab. The day before, we had updated all the computers, so as soon as we were in, we were ready to go. Kyle and I started with Snow Leopard. It took us the better part of two hours to install it on the 44 remaining computers (we installed it on #8 on Thursday as a test). During the time we spent waiting for the installation to be completed, we took the opportunity to continue our work organizing the lab. We started on the corner where the projector is, and basically tore it apart. By the time it was finished, nothing was left, but two things were added. Those two things are two new computers, maclab46 and maclab47. The first is an old PowerPC G4 that is quite a few years old, but still powerful enough to be useful. It once was the server for most of the Grossmont Union High School District. The second of the two computers is a newer PowerPC G5, which on the exterior looks like a Mac Pro (we opened up the computer to clean it, and found out what it was that way). Both computers are hooked up to very large screens, but I am not sure what the actual measurements are. The G5 has a also has a second screen, which is smaller. The two other computer we found on Thursday, another G4 and another G5, are broken beyond repair and so we sent them to be disposed of by the district. Due to legal issues, we are not allowed to dispose of them ourselves; the district has to do it, as the computers are GUHSD property. We also set up the $2,500 scanner that Mr. Skocko bought, which will be accessible from ANY computer in the room (once we finish the setup).
After the Snow Leopard install was done, we updated the Adobe products on every computer, as well as Perian. We also disabled the automatic login to the admin account. Last, we installed the fonts, but I am not sure exactly how many. These last steps were completed a long time after the Snow Leopard install, because we were so busy setting of the computers and organizing that we didn’t have time until the very end.
By the time it was 4 pm and Skocko was ready to leave, the Mac Lab was a very different-looking place. The corner with the projector (where we spent the majority of our time) is completely different, and very much better. The two new computers are not completely finished being set up, so they are not yet open for business, and are still running Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger. We will update them to Leopard as soon as we find out if the software they have is compatible with Leopard. Their processors, PowerPC’s, do not work with Snow Leopard. They are more likely just new work stations rather than new high-end work stations, but it is still good to have two new computers in the room, and having two screens is really cool.
Take a look at the before and after images to see what we did for yourself. It doesn’t look like we did a lot, but we really did.
(I had to go back and edit the after image, because the serial number for the CS4 Master Collection was written on that paper!)
The Illusive Snow Leopard and Other Stuff
Today, Kyle and I stayed two hours after school and prepped the Mac Lab for a much-needed update.
It all started three weeks ago, when Kyle offered to organize Mr. Skocko’s cabinet. For extra minutes, he offered to come in during MLSS™ and revamp Mr. Skocko’s organization system. I tagged along. That Saturday, we spent four hours going through the camera cabinet and completely reorganized it. We also vowed to do the same to the adjacent tables and the corner with the projector.
Three weeks later, we have made a small amount of progress, but we have also accepted another task. Tomorrow, we will arrive at the Mac Lab at 8am and install Mac OS X v10.6.2 Snow Leopard on all the computers. For those of you who have been living under a rock, Snow Leopard is the newest and greatest operating system for Mac. Mr. Skocko has the software disks, he just needs to install them. That is where we come in. We will spend many hours updating each computer to the latest and greatest software from Apple.
Back to today. We spent two hours after school installing all the software updates for the current operating system, Mac OS X 10.5.8 Leopard,which are required before installing Snow Leopard. We also ran a test install to see how long it would take (1 hour 20 minutes). We took all the pen tablets from the computers and packed them in a box for us to organize tomorrow. Also, we took all the headphones from the computers and are going to sort through them as well.
Lastly, we found two Mac Pros and two old G4′s. We plan to set these computers up into a high-end work station with even more professional tools. With any luck, we will be able to salvage parts from the old G4′s to make the newer Mac Pro that is missing a hard drive work. The other Mac Pro works just fine. With any luck, by Monday, there will be an extra high-end station or two for people to work at.
And so, tomorrow we will update the Mac Lab to the latest and greatest operating system from Apple. After that, we will install some extra software including new fonts, which will definitely come in handy. Hopefully, we will also make good progress on our reorganization of the clutter that is literally piled throughout the Lab.
As for my other plans this weekend, I hope to do some more light painting, but without Kyle (he is going to Orange County) it will be less fun. I borrowed two lenses (10-22mm wide-angle and 18-200 telephoto), a remote shutter release, a gorillapod, and a 58mm Circular Polarizing filter from the Mac Lab, and will try to put them to good use. I own a Rebel T1i, so I didn’t need to take a camera, although I was tempted to take a 5D Mark II anyway. Also, I bought a tripod for myself today, so I don’t have to fight with anyone for the only remaining Mac Lab tripod with a mount piece. Last week, I bought the 50GB expansion for Dropbox, so I will have plenty of room to keep my photos updated across five computers.
On another note, we hope to print some of our images tomorrow. Whether or not they will go on the wall or will just be for our own enjoyment is yet to be determined.
Everyone in the Mac Lab should appreciate what we will do tomorrow.
Well, that’s it for now. I don’t have any image for today, as I have spent so much time studying for AP Chemistry, that I haven’t had time to edit anything new.
Sources of Inspiration Update 01
As this blog grows, we will compile a page filled with the resources that we have found especially useful. Whenever we add to this page, we will post as update.
What we use…
Here I sit, surrounded by a 12 inch Wacom Cintiq, a 15 inch MacBook Pro, and a 27 inch iMac. Behind me, I have my Canon EOS Rebel T1i, its standard 18-55mm IS lens and the Sigma 70-300mm Marco lens, that I borrowed from school, along with a whole bag of camera accessories and goodies. These are just a few of the tools that my friend and I use in our quest for success. Life is good when you live in a world of technology.
And by the way, just to make it clear, we are Mac people.
