Tablet vs. Laptop vs. Desktop PC – what to choose?

A comment on LifeHacker web site gives a good hint on this: A laptop was neither powerful, nor particularly portable. I always had to go back to a desktop for heavy graphics and video work. And it was never such a pleasure to lug it around from airport to airport, with a five or six hour battery, making necessary a second battery and charger. Ugh. So I jumped on the opportunity to replace my laptop when the first iPad came out. I had to adjust my workflow a bit, but I found the best setup is an ultra portable tablet and a super powerful desktop. (source + article with more comments

Why at first, you should buy a “test” DSLR?

It seems counter-intuitive: Why buy, in the beginning, only a test DSLR? Why not start with the “real thing” (good body, good lens, blitz etc.)? The answer is simple: By the time you will learn how to decently used all the above (body + lens + lights), you will have wasted a lot of time on a good machine. It actually costs you to have a performing DSLR and not use it at its real value.

“Nu pot adăuga contacte în Yahoo! Messenger” – care e soluția la problemă?

"Nu pot adăuga contacte în Yahoo! Messenger" - care e soluția la problemă?

Folosesc și eu Yahoo! Messenger pentru … a sta pe “mess”. :) Recent, am reinstalat Yahoo! Messenger la o variantă mai nouă și am schimbat contul de Yahoo! Surpriză! Nu reușeam să adaug niciun contact nou, stătea, se gândea, și până la urmă îmi dădea eroare la fiecare încercare de a adăuga un contact nou. Care a fost soluția, găsită în urma unei căutări pe Internet? Am dezinstalat complet Yahoo! Messenger, am șters toate fișierele din C:\Program Files\Yahoo! (mi-am făcut, totuși, back-up la arhiva mesajelor) și am reinstalat programul. Ulterior, am putut adăuga contactele, după pofta inimii.

Two mistakes about the video camera & photo camera

I own these two: Camera video Sony CX130, Red + Card 8 GB CX130R8GXXDI.EU – eMAG.ro Aparat foto DSLR Nikon D3100, obiectiv 18-55 VR, Black The two mistakes I made while buying them? I paid (around) 1,600 + 2,000 = 3,600 for the two and some extra 3-500 for extra stuff (cards, tripod). I would have been better off with a single device, which could do both movies & photos. I’m not sure how would that device look like, but this would be my bet on. So a photo + videos device would have proved better for me. While in May 2012 (end of it) the price for my photo camera made it a best buy, right now I wouldn’t pick it. There are better alternatives than my camera right now (D3200, D5100, others yet). There are degrees of mistakes, and I estimate I get 80% of what I could have gotten with other extra research. Still, it’s troubling me a bit. Update: I thought about the above and … it doesn’t matter. At that specific time (5 months ago for the photo camera and 10 months ago for the video camera), the decision was top notch. Now it isn’t. Well, it’s rather irrelevant. I doesn’t matter that in 1997 I programmed in Pascal, rather than C++. For that time, it was a good choice. Also, about photo lens – it still puzzles me why I would even bother to read about them. There is no free lunch, a starting good lens is worth, new, more …

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On tablet / phone / small screen usage

Tableta GoClever TAB A73

I’ve tested some devices (smartphone / tablet). Some thoughts: The experience is much poorer than on the PC. Much. I find a good pleasure in navigating HotNews on a PC. On a tablet? Not so much. On the other hand, it is better to be entertained on a tablet / phone than on the PC. At the PC I have two options – fun / work. On a tablet / smartphone, since I’m on the road, and I can’t work on them, I have to pick between various types of fun. Thus, the experience is nicer. A physical keyboard means a lot. So does a mouse. Reading stuff on the tablet goes pretty well, as long as there’s nothing else but text (& some photos).

Researching products – it’s for the value also, not only for the better price

Researching products - it's for the value also, not only for the better price

Whenever I buy something online, I do some research. Things which interest me: Price (Is it a cheap product? Where can I get the product at a better price?) Price per value. Have I tested the products? Have other users tested the product? If so, what is their feed-back? Have famous reviewers (magazines & blogs) reviewed the product? What is their opinion? How does the product stand when you look at the top products sold in the category, at eMAG? What’s the product’s place on price.ro Top 10 lists? What’s the brand? Is it a reliable brand? Compatibility with other products in my house. Design. Can I buy the product without caring for warranty, or should I look for a store which gives me good warranty conditions? OK, if I have to pick, I generally pick a combination between “not to expensive” and “top sold products on eMAG”. Then I look for a cheap provider of the product (if I don’t care for the warranty that much). What’s to notice? When I buy a product, the value of the product matters also. It’s not all about the price. Price matters, but isn’t everything.