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Last month we bought the Canon Powershot A80 online for about $325 including shipping after looking at digital cameras for about a month. It had all the features we were looking for in our price range and the stylish gleaming metal case didn’t hurt either. We looked at a few other cameras, notably the Fujifilm FinePix S7000, but settled on the Powershot and we are glad that we did.

The Canon Powershot A80 is a 4-megapixel compact digital still camera with a high quality, swiveling, flip-out LCD; built-in flash and a 3x Optical / 3.6x Digital /11x Combined Zoom. It has a Shutter Speed of 15 - 1/2,000 seconds, and a variety of shooting modes and photo effects built in. It stores photos on a Type I compact flash (CF) Card and is powered by non-proprietary AA batteries

The camera can be used in a simple point and click manner that is trivial for novice users but is expandable with optional lens adapter’s and full manual control. Its ready to use after a very short power up, the zoom lever is very smooth, and the menuing system is easy to use. Photoshop found the camera’s USB connection right away and we were downloadig photos within minutes of plugging it in.

On the downside it does have a noticeable shutter lag and it does not do a great job capturing video, small quibbles that do not detract from the overall usefulness and quality of the camera.

Even though the Powershot A80 is a joy to use, the real value is the photo quality. Indoor and outdoor photos are exposed well and have excellent saturation. Our biggest problem with previous digital cameras was jpeg artifacting - with the Canon A80 this is not even an issue. Family and friends raved about the quality of the photos that we posted online and with very few exceptions we have been exceedingly happy with the image quality of the photos taken with Powershot A80. We’ve used it in every type of lighting situation imaginable and have come away impressed in every single instance. The strong flash is a big plus in low light situations.

In conclusion we think that the Canon Powershot A80 is an excellent value for the money. Forget the numerous features - it’s worth the money for the picture quality alone. If you are in the market for a small digital camera priced under $500, you could do a lot worse than this Canon Powershot A80.

Although the DRM movement of the MPAA, the RIAA, and their surrogates in congress and the FCC is still not very advanced or effective in practice, these groups are still pressing to force tech companies to include copy-protection hardware in personal computers and other consumer electronics.

However, some countries are discovering that proposed DRM solutions are incompatible with their laws. Additionally, advocacy groups in the U.S. are fighting the good fight to try and preserve fair use in the face of blatant attempts to circumvent fair use rights with DRM.

While the RIAA and MPAA get all the headlines, the very people that are supposed to be standing up for the rights of we the people have figuratively and literally told fair use advocates told to sit down and shut up. Implicit in these types of reactions from the government is the the R in Digital Rights Management stands for the rights of big business and has nothing to do with the rights of individuals.

If you are interested in getting more info about DRM vs. Fair Use - check out the EFF DRM page, and if you are interested in helping to maintain our collective fair use rights, consider donating to the EFF.

I’ve been using an Alienware MJ12 at work for the past few months, so I thought that now would be a good time to write the obligatory review. Before we get into the particulars, I am not a gamer, I got the Alienware to work, and I haven’t been disappointed.

The machine is packed into a metal frame case inside of a large plastic shell that looks like something between the mothership and a 1950’s Buick. My co-workers didn’t care for the plastic case, but I think that it is well done, I especially like the low-slung grille. The unique integrated cable management system was great until I tries to plug a second monitor in with the adapter, and then it wouldn’t work. The thermal management system keeps the internals nice and cool - overheating is not a problem. The secured front panel is a perk too as are the four front-accessible USB 2.0 ports.

The first time we took the case off to examine the interior we almost ripped the fan off that is connected to the exterior of the inner shell… Once we got inside we found quick-release hard drive and 5.25” Drive Bays Cages - nice touch. As you would expect all of the wiring is neat, well organized, and out of the way - another reason why cooling is not a problem. One of my co-workers didn’t like the way two of the USB’s cables run around to the back in between the internal and external cases. There is a lot of room to get around inside, should be easy to upgrade when the time comes. The cardkeeper retention devices are a nice touch to help protect expansion slots from being damaged during transport - another nice touch.

This particular machine shipped with an American Megatrends bios, has a 64 bit Opteron 244, 2 120 GB Seagate Barracuda Serial ATA drives running in Raid 0, and 2 GB of PC3200 DDR memory. To say that this is the fastest PC that I have ever used would be an understatement. I am running Windows XP on it and can have a dozen big apps ( photoshop, premiere, dreamweaver, etc. ) all open at the same time and notice very little reduction in performance. The NVIDIA Quadro FX 500 that this unit shipped with is very impressive - suffice to say that the advantage of going with NVIDIA Quadro instead of the consumer line is readily apparent. Rounding out the major hardware: Creative SB Audigy 2, Plextor DVDR, and a Lite-On CDR. Adding to the list of nice touches is that it comes with a gigabit Ethernet adapter.

On the software side it shipped with a half dozen restore disks, for windows, drivers, etc. I haven’t needed to try the re-install yet, but will follow up when I do. Also included was Nero Express, some Soundblaster software, and some other similar, expected bundled packages. The Accessories were better than expected, the IntelliMouse Explorer optical mouse is the best input device I have ever used.

As far as just how fast the machine is - I always wanted a machine that could run all of the software I use all of the time and still run as fast as I could think. That is not make me wait while it tries to apply a gradient blend and I am already trying to decrease the opacity. This Alienware passes this admittedly subjective test. If you want some benchmark type numbers :

CPU Dhrystone=6621 MIPS
CPU Whetstone=2678 MFLOPS
Quake3 FPS=162.1 FPS

Overall this is a superior machine. Is it worth the $3k price tag? Well that is up to each individual to decide for themselves, but in my case I would say that it is. Being able to get done what I need to in a timely manner and never having to wait for my computer is almost priceless - in fact the only negative is that it is difficult for me to use any other machine - I now expect a computer to be able to perform as fast as I do.

While one of the stated reasons for invading Afghanistan was to liberate its long suffering people from a repressive theocracy, it seems that some of the same folks that voted for that invasion would like to impose their own version of a theocracy here in the homeland.

The bill is called the Constitution Restoration Act of 2004 and claims to “limit the jurisdiction of Federal courts in certain cases and promote federalism.” But what it really aims to do is forbid all legal challenges to government officials who use the power of the state to enforce their own view of “God’s sovereign authority.”

This bill may seem shocking if taken out of context, but when one considers that many feel that our Commander and Chief is also the John Ashcroft and Tom Delay are card carrying members of the evangelical nation, this bill, as well as the U.S. policy on the middle east begins to make sense.

And although the religious extremists are trying to revise history, it is obvious that the only article in the constitution that directly addresses religion is the sixth and it plainly says “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States“.

Follow Up(s): MSNBC has posted an article outlining the influence of the conservative Christian political movement inside the Bush administration.

And grist.org thinks that Christian-right views are swaying politicians and threatening the environment.

American Fundamentalists, Christ’s Entry into Washington in 2008 by Joel Pelletier is a ‘watch dog” type site.

Wayfarier has posted this on a similar topic.

Don’t look now but celeblogs are popping up all over. From b-list actresses to legendary musicians and everything in between.

To be fair there are some really good blogs by famous people out there, and one or two that are even somewhat inventive.

And of course there is at least one celeblogger that may be more famous for his blogging then for his acting.

Revolver - The Beatles

Pleased to Meet Me - The Replacements

Songs in the Key of Life - Stevie Wonder

Nevermind - Nirvana

Nothing’s Shocking - Jane’s Addiction

The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground And Nico

Damn The Torpedoes - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Graceland - Paul Simon

Axis: Bold As Love - Jimi Hendrix

Paranoid - Black Sabbath

Appetite for Destruction - Guns N’ Roses

Stop Making Sense - Talking Heads

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars - David Bowie

Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town

A Night At The Opera - Queen

Sgt.Peppers Lonely Heartsclub Band - The Beatles

Synchronicity - The Police

Tommy - The Who

Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs - Derek & the Dominos

Burnin’ - Bob Marley

Harvest - Neil Young

The Wall - Pink Floyd

London Calling - The Clash

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back - Public Enemy

Sun Sessions - Elvis Presley

Highway 61 Revisited - Bob Dylan

Stand! - Sly & the Family Stone

Pretenders - The Pretenders

Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes

Dirty Mind - Prince

Closer - Joy Division

Raw Power - The Stooges

Call Me - Al Green

Deja Vu - Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

Computer World - Kraftwerk

Reckoning - R.E.M.

Disraeli Gears - Cream

Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd

The Clash - The Clash

Ten - Pearl Jam

Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys

Back In Black - AC/DC

Ramones - The Ramones

Mothership Connection - Parliament

Live at the Fillmore East - The Allman Brothers Band

The Doors - The Doors

Led Zeppelin IV - Led Zeppelin

Bitches Brew - Miles Davis

Let It Be - The Replacements

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John

Toys in the Attic - Areosmith

Highway to Hell - AC/DC

Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan

Who’s Next - The Who

EVOL - Sonic Youth

Get Happy - Elvis Costello

Never Mind The Bollocks - Sex Pistols

White Album - The Beatles

The Cars - The Cars

Sticky Fingers - Rolling Stones

Disintegration - The Cure

Argybargy - Squeeze

OK Computer - Radiohead

From The Mars Hotel - The Grateful Dead

Night Moves - Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band

Hot Rats - Frank Zappa

Electric - The Cult

Exile on Main Street - The Rolling Stones

Moondance - Van Morrison

Straight Outta Compton - NWA

Sex Machine - James Brown

Eat a Peach - The Allman Brothers

Sign O’ the Times - Prince

Hotel California - The Eagles

Tapestry - Carole King

Led Zeppelin II - Led Zeppelin

Skylarking - XTC

Rumours - Fleetwood Mac

Superfly - Curtis Mayfield

Born in the USA - Bruce Springsteen

Otis Blue - Otis Redding

The B-52s - The B-52s

Some Girls - The Rolling Stones

American Beauty - The Grateful Dead

RainDogs - Tom Waits

Remain in Light - Talking Heads

Sister - Sonic Youth

Licensed to Ill - The Beastie Boys

So, another year, another website….

Yes, I am launching yet another website. I really wanted to use a blog in the real sense of the word - I wanted a weblog. You can still find all of the great online music news that you are acustomed to getting over at Online Music Blog and Propagasm will be transitioned over to stricly articles, but if you want to know what’s going on in my day to day, this is the site to tune into.