Mark Wood

October 24th, 2008 – Weekly VideoCast from Mark Wood on Vimeo.

Sorry about the lack of Monday’s blog post, I have been really busy with my new Kitten, Edward Fox at home. He is taking up a lot of my time and I’m loving every minute of it.

So for two weeks now, I have been getting increasingly lonely when I come home to an empty apartment. So, I figured it was time to get a new addition to my family. I knew that getting a dog was not a good idea because they require constant attention and can not be left alone for more then 3 hours a day. (Well, they should not be left alone for any longer then 3 hours) So I figured the next logical step would be a kitten. I thought long and hard between getting a cat and getting a kitten, and I chose to get a kitten because I want to start out with something young that will keep me busy and teach me things.

I talked it over with my girlfriend Amy, and she thought it was a great idea. I wanted to make the newest addition “our” pet, so I asked her to come down and help me pick one out at the Kingston Humane Society. (I did not want to buy from a pet store because I do not agree with where they get their animals and the fact that in most pet stores, they are getting their animals from Puppy/Kitty mills.) So we went down on Sunday and looked at a few different cats. Some 2 years old, some 8 weeks old. We decided on going with a kitten because I had already purchased most of the things anyway. So then it was trying to choose from about a dozen or so kittens. We looked at about 6 or them to see what they would be like.

Our first pick was “Monster”, a 10 week old black Domestic Short Haired (DSH) kitten. His name was monster because he looked like he was 3 months old with his size. He was really cute and playful. Our next choice was my favorite until I picked him up. It was a Grey DSH 8 week old named “Scooter”. Once I picked him up and started playing with him, Amy and I both noticed very soon that he was a biter. A very STRONG bitter. So he went to the bottom of the three because I figured that he was still very young and could be broken of the bad habit. Then came “Tarzan” and “Angel” one male and one female Brown and White DSH 9 week old kittens. They are siblings and were playing along great. I stuck my finger into the cage and was greeted with a playful pawing of my finger. At first I thought they had been de-clawed, but they in fact were not. So that made them jump to the top of my list.

Amy was playing with a 2 year old Grey DSH cat called “Nibbler”. She fell in love with all the cats and kittens but really like nibbler. He was a little old, but I admit, very cute and cuddly. If I was looking for an older cat, I would have gotten her. Amy being the softy, wanted to take them all home, and I must admit that I wanted to take them all home with me as well. But alas, I did not have the money.

So when it came time to choose which kitten we wanted, we thought long and hard about splitting up “Angel” and “Tarzan”. But in the end, we thought that choosing “Tarzan” was going to be the best choice. So I brought the papers up to the counter and they processed my papers right away. They asked me which one I wanted and I told them, “Tarzan” They took him out and Microchipped him before I was able to take him home with me. So my Kitten now has the Microchip ID of: 982009105095912.

We took him to my mother place and let him meet Zoee (The dog) and Simon (The cat) at my mothers place. We spent some time there and then took him home. The ride was interesting because I decided not to get a cat carrier and let him walk around the car freely. Watching to make sure he did not end up near the peddles. He ended up curling up around my neck and watching as the cars passed by.

When we are out at peoples places, he loves to sleep on my neck and sit on my shoulders. He is such a cute kitten and I can understand why they called him “Tarzan”. But both Amy and I wanted to name him something different. So I tossed “Edward” and “Neko” out there and she fought it for a while not thinking that he looked like an Edward. Eventually she gave in and said that Edward was fine, Eddy for short.

It has been two days so far and every time I leave the house, it’s heart breaking to hear his tiny, but loud, meows when he can’t find me because I have gone to work. He is a little bit of a trouble maker and like to gnaw on my cables. So I am going to go and pick up a squirt bottle today to teach him to stay away. I also have to set up a vet appointment for him to get fixed and de-clawed in the front. I hope it’s not going to cost all that much.

For more pictures of Edward, head over to my Pictures page.

Update:

Edward Fox from Mark Wood on Vimeo.

I am Thankful for the amazing daughter Greg and Ann Fox gave birth to. With out these two people, I would not be dating this amazingly beautiful woman. I am also thankful of other things, such as my government job and my new apartment. But what I really love is the fact that I was able to get TWO Thanksgiving dinners this week. The one at my girlfriend Amy’s place, and the other at my mother Nancy’s place last night. The Thanksgiving dinner last night was more for my mothers 42nd 32nd birthday, but I still count it as part of thanksgiving since there was Turkey, Ham, Sweet Potatoes, Stuffing and Pumpkin pie.

I have been learning a lot about digital cameras, and I have been experimenting with mine on it’s Manual setting, changing the ISO, Shutter and Apature speeds in order to get better looking, more vibrant pictures. So far I have only been able to get a few nice pictures that I like, but I am sure that as I continue to learn all the different functions and read more into who to photograph objects and people, I will be able to take more and more superb shots and not have to do tones of post-production on photoshop or something similar (Since i dont have thousands to spend on the Adobe Photoshop suit). I am hoping to start document my learning on a site I am working on, so keep an eye out for some more updates later on in the new year.

October 10th, 2008 – Weekly VideoCast from Mark Wood on Vimeo.

Yes, I know this post should have been out two days ago, but I came down with a bad sinus cold and have not been able to think well enough to concentrate long enough to write all the things I want to talk about. So now that I am feeling a little better, I thought I would try and get through what I did this weekend.

To start things off, I will send you to xfep.com to read a funny little story about how the WordCamp Toronto 2008 hash tag battle happened. So in the end, my hash tag that I came up with in the morning before the event came out on top for both days! I think I should have one a prize for that. But no worries. At least I know that I created the hash tag for WordCamp Toronto 2008.

For those of you that have no idea what WordCamp is, I will take the next few minutes to explain WordCamp to you as best I can. WordCamp is a conference build around the blogging software called Wordpress. Markwood.ca and many other personal and professional blogs are based on this software. So WordCamp is a place for people that use this software to find out new things coming up with Wordpress as well as learn different ways to use Wordpress from other presenters. There are topics such as WordPress Gallery with Rannie Turingan, WordPress Security with Mark Jaquith, WordPress and Podcasting: The Good, The Bad and The Audible with Charles Hodgson, Running Your Blog Like a Pro with David Peralty and a few others that I will mention at the end of my post.

There is so much to learn at these events that I thought I would record them all for myself so that I can refer back to them on a later date, but then I thought, “Why hog these sessions for myself? Why not post them online for everyone to see?” So that is exactly what I did. I attended ever session (except for the last panel because I had to get a cab to make it to the train station on time for my train.) Being a novice at blogging and wanting to get into the world of professional blogging, this event was very useful for me. I hope that other people will take the 6 hours plus needed to watch all these videos and really use them to improve your blogging abilities or to get into the world of blogging.

WordCamp Toronto Schedule:

Day One
10:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. – Blogging as a Cornerstone of Social Media with Joseph Thornley
video: The Video
11:00 a.m. – 11: 45 a.m. – ‘State of the Word’ with Matt Mullenweg
video: Part A, Part B
1:15 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – WordPress Gallery with Rannie Turingan
video: The Video
2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. – WordPress: Beyond A Blog with Jamie Oastler
video: The Video
3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – WordPress and Podcasting: The Good, The Bad and The Audible with Charles Hodgson
video: The Video

Day Two
10:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. – WordPress Security with Mark Jaquith
video: The Video
11:00 a.m. – 11: 45 a.m. – Running Your Blog Like a Pro with David Peralty
video: The Video
1:15 p.m. -2:00 p.m. – Video Blogging with Mark McKay
video: The Video
2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. – Making the Most of Plug-ins with Brendan Sera-Shriar
video: The Video
3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – Entertainment Blogging: A Panel Discussion with Frank Yang, Tim Shore, Chris Budd and Jonathan Dekel

If you would like a copy of the presenters slides, please go to the WordCamp Toronto Wiki

Here is a list of the things I would like to have either from somebody as a gift, or buy myself in the future.

If you have any ideas you think I would like, please feel free to get it for me. I know I will love it just as much as this stuff I have listed here. This list is more to help people that have no idea what to get me.

• Under $100
  • Clothes & Accessories
    • 1950’s Black and white saddle shoes (size 11 wide)
    • Dress shoes (size 11 wide)
    • Watches of any kind
  • Gift Cards
    • Starbucks
    • Canadian Tire
    • Ikea
    • Mark’s Work Warehouse
    • Henry’s
  • Housing
    • Wine Glasses
    • Wine Rack
    • Microwave cart (very small)
    • Spice Rack
    • Digital Picture Frame
  • Video Games
    • Mass Effect (PC)
    • The Orange Box (PC)
    • Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 (PC)
    • Wii Fit (Wii)
    • Rock Band 2 (Wii)
    • The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess (Wii)

• Over $100
  • Electronics
    • PlayStation 3
    • 47 inch Plasma TV
    • Nikon D80 DSLR
    • Electric Razor
  • Gift Cards
    • Starbucks
    • Canadian Tire
    • Ikea
    • Mark’s Work Warehouse
  • Housing
    • New Chairs for Dinner table
    • Bed side night tables
    • Digital Picture Frame
    • Pots
  • Random
    • Cigars
    • 6 Man Tent
    • 1 or more hour famil flight with Flight Instructor on C172
    • Bass Guitar with Amp
    • Kitten from the Kingston Humane Society
    • Chocolate lab puppy
    • Border collie puppy
    • Silver or Gold Neck Chain
    • Watches of any kind

• DVD Movies (Widescreen Format)
  • Box sets (DVD’s)
    • Indiana Jones (all 4)
  • Regular DVD’s
    • Hot Fuzz
    • Live Free or Die Hard
    • Shaun of the Dead

• Cars (In order of interest)
  • Hybrids
    • 2009 BMW 135i Coupé
    • 2008 Honda Civic Sedan Hybrid
  • Other
    • 2009 Mini Cooper S
    • 2009 Volkswagen Jetta 2.0 TDI Clean Diesel Comfortline
    • 2008 Jeep Wrangler Sahara

Going to Blue Man Group was a bit of a last minute decision on my part. Originally I found out two months ago that they were going to be playing at the new Live Venue Entertainment Centre (LVEC) that was just build in the worst location in Kingston. (That whole thing is a rant I don’t want to go on about)

I had not acted on purchasing tickets because I did not have anyone I knew of that was interested in going with me. Then, as the months faded into the past and the concert date came closer, I still had not done anything. I had eventually forgotten about the Blue Man Group concert that was going to be coming to Kingston. So two weeks before they were going to be playing at the LVEC, my mother asked me if I wouldn’t mind spending the night because she had to work nights and needed someone to watch my Brother and Sister. So I said yes right away forgetting that babysitting was on the same night as the concert.

The weekend before I was supposed to babysit, my mother informed me that it was just going to be Myself and my Sister for most of the evening because my grandmother was going to be taking my Brother to see the Blue Man Group. I was a little jealous because I was going to be stuck Babysitting and he was going to go see the Blue Man Group, one of my favorite bands from when I was growing up. So came to terms with it, because I would be helping out my mother in her time of need.

But then on the morning of babysitting/concert date, I called to see if everything was still a go for her to pick me up at my work and then she could take off to her work. Well, she informed me that she had come down with a cold and would not be going into work. My eyes popped out of my head for a second as I realized that this meant; If there were still tickets left, I could buy one for myself and catch a ride with my brother and my grandmother. Well, it ended up working out really well. I got an amazing seat and I was only two rows in front of my Grandmother and Brother.

The concert was SOOO much fun. I have to thank my mother for being sick on that night, but also hope that she feels better at the same time. I have so many videos and pictures from the event. I had a blast. Here is one of the videos I was able to upload. Sorry in advance about some of the shakyness. I was REALLY far away and it is zoomed in all the way. (I have a Canon PowerShot S3 IS which has a 12X Optical zoom. So any slight movement really shows.)

Blue Man Group from Mark Wood on Vimeo.

This week I managed to Hack three out of the four pieces of technology that I wanted to hack. It sounds all interesting and dangerous, but it really was not. I “hacked” my Canon PowerShot S3 IS with the CHDK software that gives me functions that the camera can do, but is not available out of the box with the stock software. I am able to take pictures with a shutter speed of 1 / 10,000 of a second open/close all the way to 64 seconds of the shutter being open and then closing. It also has the ability to take RAW file type pictures. Which I think means negatives.

A raw image file contains minimally processed data from the image sensor of a digital camera or image scanner. Raw files are so named because they are not yet processed and ready to be used with a bitmap graphics editor or printed. Normally, the image will be processed by a raw converter in a wide-gamut internal colorspace where precise adjustments can be made before conversion to an RGB file format such as TIFF or JPEG for storage, printing, or further manipulation. These images are often described as “RAW image files” (note capitalization) based on the erroneous belief that they represent a single file format, and thus deserve a common filename extension, .RAW. In fact there are dozens if not hundreds of raw image formats in use by different models of digital cameras

I rented the game The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in order for me to get the HomeBrew Channel onto my Wii. I used the Twilight Hack to install the channel and I have the Game until this Saturday so hopefully I will hack away at it for a while because I heard that it was a fairly decent game. The HomeBrew Channel means that I was also able to install software that allows me to watch DVD’s on my Wii which is a big plus since I traded my PS2 (which I would normally use to watch DVD’s on my CRT Television) to my younger brother for this Nintendo DS. His PS2 wont play games, so I thought that since I don’t play my PS2 really anymore, and he does not play his DS anymore, I would trade them. So now I have a DS that I have also “hacked”.

The last thing that I “hacked” was my Nintendo DS lite. I purchased the CycloDS Evolution and the EZ Flash 3-on-1 so that I could play GamyBoy Advanced Games on my DS. I also purchased a 4 Gig microSD card so I could put the games something. It was very simple “hack” but is going to save me a lot of money in the end.

I also spent some time at the mall and just looked around because I know I have no money right now and I just wanted to get out of my house. I am very lonely since I moved out on my own. So if you are in the area and feel like hanging out, let me know. My buzz code is 228. Till next Monday.

Well, last night was not a good night for me. I don’t really feel like talking about it, so I will just leave it at that. I am feeling better now, so no worries.

So, back to the update I should have done yesterday.

Two weeks ago, I traded my brother my PS2 for his Nintendo DS. I maybe used my PS2 once in the last three years but was having tones of fun with his DS. Also the fact that I could Homebrew the system and play any Nintendo game out there really appealed to me. So I purchased the CycloDS which allows me to play Nintendo ROMs on my DS via a microSD card that you have to buy separately. So that is what I did. I am looking to spend the least amount of money on this so I figured I would jump on eBay and see what they had to offer. I have never purchased anything from eBay because of fears of where it is coming from and that I will get ripped off. But I looked anyway. I found a Sandisk 4 gig microSD card for $15.95 plus $6 shipping and handling. So it came out to $22. something. Which is a very good deal considering the cheapest I could find in Kingston at a retail store for a 4 gig card was around $40. So this is more then half off the normal price. I’m hoping to get the microSD card some time today or in the next two days. This is the first time I bought something on eBay and am still very nervous about the whole thing. Lets hope it pans out for the best.

So living on my own has both it’s ups and it’s downs right now. I am able to keep my apartment really clean and organized because I know where everything goes and put stuff away right after I use it. But I get very lonely and don’t have cable to watch at night when I don’t feel like being on the computer. I know there are tones of other things that I could be doing like playing some video games or watch a movie, but for the most part, I just want to relax and channel surf. I might just end up breaking down and in the next few months, get cable. Who knows. I want to see how long I can go without purchasing cable. I also still need to build my media PC so I can hook it up to the TV so I can stream/play my downloaded shows to my TV easily. I’m not looking to spend any money on this project as I already have a majority parts. I think the fun thing for me going to have to learn Linux again and get MythTV setup on the box.

My apartment is all set up. I have a few boxes to sort but for the most part, I am all done. I have posted pictures on Facebook and will hopefully do the same on this site as well. So keep an eye out for new pictures on my new picture page that now works. (I found out that I made a bonehead mistake and thought the page was working, but that was because I was logged into Wordpress and did not realize that I forgot to publish the page. Oops, it works now. Thank you Dave for pointing out my error.)

Well, my day just turned to shit. I was going to update but I don’t feel like it anymore. I might post tomorrow, I don’t know.