Archive for August, 2006
More Planets?
Aug 19th
Doesn’t anybody else think we should drop Pluto as a planet, rather than adding one, two, or eighteen more?
This guy agrees with me. He’s Michael Brown, and he discovered the celestial body 2003 UB313 — he nicknamed it Xena — which set off the current debate over what defines a planet. Interestingly, he doesn’t get to vote on the international definition of a planet.
I Ordered a New Camera
Aug 17th
Earlier this week I placed an order on a website for the Sony Cyber-shot® DSC-H2 Digital Camera. I initially placed my order with Royal Camera, a business that has an online store through store.yahoo.com. I chose Royal Camera because the price this business offered on the DSC-H2 was roughly one hundred dollars less than what most other online retailers offered.
After placing the order, I received no confirmation email and began to feel nervous. However, the final screen that loaded into my web browser after I entered all of my personal information included a phone number in case I wanted to track my order. I called it the next day and discovered a few things:
- Royal Camera must have no more than two customer service reps, because I waited on hold for a while
- Royal Camera really wants me to buy a memory stick, or batteries, or a case
- The camera I ordered will take 6 to 8 weeks to ship — because
- It’s being shipped from Japan — because
- It’s the international version — oh, and
- The international version does not come with cables, batteries, or a charger — so
- To use the camera, I’m going to need batteries, cables, a memory stick, and what do I mean I don’t want a case?
- Yes, Royal Camera offers the camera with the standard USB cable, batteries, and charger included, but that will be another $180, which means this is no longer a bargain
I cancelled my order with Royal Camera. Before I finalized my order, Royal Camera’s website told me that the camera was in stock and that it would ship in 1-2 days. Remember: Don’t ever buy anything from Royal Camera’s website. They are part of the store.yahoo.com system. Some merchants on store.yahoo.com might be honorable. Royal Camera is not honorable. Avoid it.
Anyway, to get off of Royal Poopy, I’m looking forward to the new camera. It’s six megapixels (yes, I could have had more megapixels for another hundred bucks), has a 12x optical zoom, and will not slip easily into a jeans pocket. But I don’t really want a camera that will fit easily into a pocket. I want a camera that will let me zoom in on Michael Vick or Jeff Francouer or a skittish deer. I believe a 12x zoom will allow me to do that.
Also, this may force me to pull a Lewis and get a Flickr Pro account.