PHIDONG.COM . 5.0

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You probably didn't notice it. It happened in a blink of an eye. One moment, there were four galleries with over a thousand images and then the next instant they were gone. All of the sudden, one second and one hundred and eighty degrees later all of the UVSA galleries on phidong.com were physically deleted. Strange? No, not really. Just about as strange as the reception we got after the Tet Festival last year.

It seemed like the most promising year, ever, for IT. Organization, check. Talent, check. Dedication, check. Team players, check. Leaderhsip, check. Some of the most talented photographers and videographers worked together to form what seemed like the best thing UVSA IT has ever seen. And then everything went awry.

One moment we're headed forward, to the promise land. The next instant, 180 degrees the other way. "Anyone with a digital camera can do what you guys did," they said. They critisized a "me, me, me" attitude that they suggested each of the members of IT had. And then they did something that any photographer, regardless of his or her level, should frown upon.

They said that from now on, any and all photographs taken at a UVSA sponsored event, including but not limited to all copyrights and other intellectual property rights thereto, were sole property of UVSA.

Welcome to UVSA media, please check your self-respect at the door, as well as the rights to all of your images.

Let me set things straight. There was never any personal gain from any of the photos I've ever shot for UVSA. I never got into this mess thinking there would be any personal or monetary gain. This was a community service. I help cover the event so that the people involved in it, the people who were there could remember it. Then suddenly fingers start getting pointed.

They accuse me of being selfish. Doing this for myself. They say that anybody can replace me and that if I ever shoot again, I can't watermark or post images anymore because they don't belong to me and they aren't being used in an "editorial" sense.

That's fine then. I'll stop posting UVSA images. It'll be easy for me because I won't be taking anymore. The only thing worse than lack of apperciation is disrespect.

If you don't see me or Loc, Chris, Tim, Anne, Nick, or anybody out there shooting UVSA events, now you know why. It's kind of like a media embargo.

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Three more weeks to catch up on seven.

I need to really pull myself together now and get 'er done. I might disappear for a while only to resurface again after finals.

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Kind of.. I got this box in the mail today and I was like What did I order? when I saw it.

Turns out it is all that Mt. Dew every10minutes stuff.

Now I can't wait for my xbox360.

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It's 7th week and I finally get to take my last midterm of the quarter. I don't think professors fully understand the prefix "mid", but in this case I don't mind too much that I had an extra week to study for this (even if I only studied for the last two days).

After this, I get to play catch-up. This is a good week to get back on top of things. Gotta stay focused.

It wasn't that bad. It was actually easy. Relative to all my other exams, it was a walk in the park. The only downside in my mind was all the damn writing. Way.. too.. much.. writing. I had to take a half way break just to let my wrist chill.

The fact that my TA is pretty chill with grading helps me relax. I always think the worst part of an exam isn't the exam itself or checking your horrible grade the week after. The worst part of an exam, you see, is the anxiety before it. The anticipation. That's the worst part. Did you study the right things when you gambled? Do you remember all the formulas? Or all 7 things that cause this or that? It maybe be only the first 5 minutes before the exam, when your heart starts to beat out loud. THUMP. THUMP. THUMP. But it feels like an eternity.

If it wasn't for that, I'd take midterms everyday. Just kidding.

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What was once meant to be is now reality.

I'm not going to lie and say this is what I intended to use 4MUL8 for when I first bought it a year and a half ago. In fact, I had no idea what I was going to do with the domain. I didn't even like it. The letters and numbers didn't like each other and they didn't look good to me.

But I'll lie anyway. 4MUL8 launched sometime last month, but I didn't want to announce it because I doubted the fact that it would succeed (yeah, that's how much confidence I have in myself and others) but after a rocky half month, it looks like it will be able to sustain itself, even if only for another couple of months.

The idea is simple enough. A daily/weekly blog where only pictures are posted. The catch? There are 5-7 photographers posting content weekly/daily (The requirement is once a week, the maximum is once a day). I've noticed a steady improvement in the photography of those who have been participating (for the most part). I think if anything, the blog gives everyone who is a part of it a reason to shoot. At least, that's how I see it. When I don't shoot, others will and that in turn motivates me to shoot.

So at least, that's the concept. Now for the fun part. Open the doors and let everyone watch as we learn. Let them comment and critique and help us mold ourselves into the photographers that we aren't, but want to be. Let everyone watch our journey from the ground up.

Hopefully this bond can be symbiotic. The people watching will enjoy themselves as much as the people participating. As time goes on, the photographers should theoretically improve their content and the viewers will get better quality entertainment. So that's the theory... at least.

www.4mul8.net

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It's been about a week now since I got my new keyboard. My initial impression of it ws that it was one of the most comfortable boards I've ever used in my entire life. I quoted something I heard once, that keyboards are like mattresses; you never know yours sucks until you've tried something better.

Guess what? Your keyboard sucks.

My first impressions of this keyboard still stand. It is definitely the most comfortable typing experiences that I have ever had. The one thing about this keyboard is its unique curvature and shape. This is somthing that is definitely difficult to capture with a camera. You really have to see it for yourself and you definitely have to type on it to feel the difference. I can try to explain how it is like in words and pictures, but this is really the type of thing that I think you need to experience first hand to appreciate.

Looks good!
First off, let's talk about the appearance. The keyboard looks great. One thing a lot of MS Ergo users of old will notice is that they can now rejoice. All the keys are in the right places. The keyboard is a little longer than my old Logitech wireless duo keyboard, but that's mainly because the main typing area has been split and raised. The INS/HOME/PAGEUP key block and number pad are all normal, which is good.

Secondly, the shape. The keyboard is thin and has a hump in the middle that slowly fades in a gradient-like curve. The keys are different sizes and are perfectly placed so that each finger has easy access to it. What does this mean? Less effort typing. You reach less!

As you can see it curves, much like some of the (literally) split ergonomic keyboards out there. The curves really allow the keyboard to live up to its name. If typing were meant to do, this is how it was meant to feel. It is definitely natural feeling. Like many of the newer keyboards, you'll notice that there are some favorite keys, a couple audio controls. What is unique is the back/fwd buttons and zoom slider being where they are. We'll get to that soon!

Zooming ahead
Great, the keyboard is split and angled for a more natural typing posture and arm positions. But what about that empty space in between the keys? A zoom slider.

In theory, it's a really good idea. It works great for what it does. You can have it accelerate where it zooms faster if you hold it down or turn it off completely. It is within easy access. But really...

HOW OFTEN DO YOU ZOOM?

Viewing webpages, never. Sometimes in photoshop and stuff, I'll notice it will come in handy, but come on... no scroll slider? With that said, I use zoom more often than I used to, which isn't too bad.

Next subject
Audio controls. The software that comes with the keyboard works and it works very well. Unlike the logitech that I had before, the keyboard responsiveness is almost immediate. When you press a favorite button there is no pause, the program launches. The same can be said about the audio controls/pause/play/etc.

What kills me is the fact that there is NO prev/next buttons for audio. There is more than enough space for it, but they just neglected to put it on the keyboard. Unfortunately, Microsoft dropped the ball here. Their software doesn't allow you to set the favorite keys as keyboard strokes either, so you can't set a global hotkey for winamp or whatever you use.

Fortunately for me, I found out that the forward/back buttons can be mapped to switch the audio tracks, which means I can no longer go forward/back in my browser but my mouse (Mx700) has back/fwd buttons on it which I use more frequently than I did with my keyboard anyway. The good news here is that I can now reach down with my thumb while typing and change the track on Winamp, with no delay.

Do you hear me??
The first thing I notice when I hop back onto the Logitech after typing on the MSE4000 for a little bit is that it feels very uncomfortable, which is weird because I've typed on that board for over a year and it felt just fine! So what they say is true. The second thing I notice is the sound.

The Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 is, well, silent. I wouldn't say silent because it's a little deceiving, but the sound of keys being hit don't make that clicky-clacky sound. It's really muffled and not that annoying. I have no idea how I put up with my old keyboard.

It's all downhill from here .
The keyboard comes with a little block that is placed under the keyboard that puts the board at a decline. It was weird to get used to but what this allows you do do is rest your wrists on the pads (which might I add are SUPER comfortable.. they aren't plastic and hard like other keyboards, rather they are a "pleather" like soft pad) and type "properly" still. I'm enjoying it so much that I haven't lowered the bottom of the keyboard to see what it feels like without the little raising block.

Worth the price?
Mainstream ergonomic keyboards have come a long way. From being just split to angle your arms to curvy boards optimized for the typist. For me, I think the board was worth every penny. At ~50 dollars shipped, the price is a little steep for a wired keyboard. You get what you pay for though. I can't really remember any time that I ever really moved my wireless keyboard away from the computer anyway, so I don't really see having a wire coming out of the back as a downside. Yeah, it's wired but who cares? It's the most comfortable thing I've ever typed on in my entire life and trust me, I do a LOT of typing!

Some people will never like ergonomic keyboards. I personally didn't the first time I tried one, but this is different. I can't put into words how it feels. You have to try it for yourself. It'll be worth the time, I promise.

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