conflict between the love of power and the power of love

Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644
e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com
www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Quote of Greatness

"Baby, I'm too busy being an epic hero to worry about pretending to be some other epic hero."

- Said by my friend Sha in response to a query about playing D&D

Intellisense

Sometimes I turn it off .... Just to make sure I haven't lost it

Core

--
Sent from my mobile device

Cory Trese
ph#: 937-609-9644
e-m: cory.trese@gmail.com
www: http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Iran

"It's not the voting that's democracy, it's the counting."

Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644
e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com
www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

There, I fixed It

http://thereifixedit.com/

Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644
e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com
www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

On Being a Photographer

This came up in my Google "Wedding Photography" Alert and I thought it was interesting.

http://blogs.todayonline.com/techtalk/2009/06/on-being-a-photographer/

and I quote the author, Trevor Tan:

These days, everyone can be a photographer with their mobile phones and compact digital cameras. But what they might not understand is that every photograph they take is a snippet of history, reality and time. As social critic Susan Sontag wrote in her 1977 seminal work "On Photography", "… images are indeed able to usurp reality because first of all a photograph is not only an image, an interpretation of the real; it is also a trace, something directly stenciled off the real".

Thus, being a photographer means you are a recorder of "a thin slice of space as well as time" - Sontag's description of a photograph.

And this might just be the answer I will give the next time when I am asked what I do for a living.

Something I found interesting as a Sacramento Wedding Photographer.

Photographer, Cory Trese
For Appointments Call: 937-609-9644
California Wedding Photography

I Want One Of These LCD

http://www.eizophoto.com/cg301.aspx

I saw one.  They're as good as a CRT.

Finally, an LCD that can do what a high end CRT has been able to do for 10+ years.

Woot.  Too bad they're $2000.




Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644
e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com
www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Funny Wedding List

Not all wedding ideas are good ones. 

On that note, here is the "Top 10 Worst Ways to Save Money at Your Wedding"

The 10 worst ways to save money at your wedding
San Luis Obispo Tribune - San Luis Obispo,CA,USA
Who needs to spend $2.1K on photographers when your guests' iPhones have 2.1 megapixels? Tell everyone that in order to come to your wedding, ...
See all stories on this topic


San Francisco California Wedding Photography

Quote

In matters of principle, stand like a rock; in matters of taste, swim
with the current. -- Thomas Jefferson

Book List

• Change Management – Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
• Innovation – Innovation Nation by John Kao
• Growth – The Breakthrough Company by Keith McFarland
• Attitude – Radical Edge by Steve Farber

D&D Co-Creator Dies, Nerds Everywhere in Mourning

'Dungeons & Dragons' co-creator dies
http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/04/10/obit.david.lance.arneson/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

(CNN) -- David Lance Arneson, who helped trigger the global phenomenon of role-playing games as co-inventor of "Dungeons & Dragons," has died at the age of 61.

A statement on the game's official Web site, wizards.com, said Arneson died Tuesday evening "after waging one final battle against cancer."

Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644
e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com
www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Google Advertising

I saw this story about openness is Google's advertising model and I agree with a lot of the points.

However, I can't quit using them no matter how opaque the advertising model becomes. 

Google outperforms even niche advertisers like TheKnot for me. 

To Google:  "I can't quit you, baby."

---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Pictage, VPS LLC and Prior Art

In early 1996 the APS photo system was being introduced at the PMA show. Also at this show was the introduction of new digital products and talk of the then new "cyberspace".

Although the APS marketing efforts overshadowed the digital offerings (APS), many of us were more interested in the new "cyberspace" and had already invested time and money toward displaying photos on the Internet for sale.

Here is an excerpt from a book that talks about the 1996 PMA and the urgent need for all photographers to prepare to sell photography and digital-photography derived products on the Web.

http://books.google.com/books?id=syH4h4ZPi0sC&pg=PA128&lpg=PA128&dq=February+1996+PMA&source=web&ots=Irv7gxeLPE&sig=H-l9TkDTYucrIAbErF40ZzUyKYM&hl=en&ei=Y6eLSbB5gqqwA5PFxZgJ&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result

There were so many people talking about web sites that at that point the idea was without a doubt in public domain, and anyone with the tools(that were available at that show), and minor skills could be selling pictures online in no time.

Prior Art
PMA international convention
02-1996:
Durst Dice America displays to the public its OPUS (On-Line Photo User System) for storing, selecting and production of digital images.

PMA Industry Trends Report 1995-1996
02-1996:
Wolf Camera and Video, Atlanta Ga, introduced the Wolf Photo Net On-Line Photo Center, allowing customers to access their pictures on the Internet.

PMA Industry Trends Report 1995-1996
02-1996:
Photographers around the globe chronicled cyberspace and uploaded their images to the Internet as part of "24 Hours In Cyberspace" They documented how the online digital revolution changed peoples lives.

PMA Industry Trends Report 1995-1996
04-1996:
Seatle Film Works, Seattle, Wash, launched a new service enabling photographers to build their own Web pages on the internet.

PMA Industry Trends Report 1995-1996
07-1996:
http://prnwire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/23469&EDATE=

NEW YORK, July 18 /PRNewswire/
Applied Graphics Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq-NNM: AGTX), the largest provider of outsourced digital imaging and archiving management services in the country, today announced it will operate its Digital Link imaging system in a mobile unit on site in Atlanta to provide immediate scanning and handle remote transmission of Allsport photography taken at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games

As a byproduct of the scanning service, the Olympics images will be simultaneously added to the existing Allsport on-line archive of 100,000 images, which is supported on site by AGT in Los Angeles and London.


Kodak Files for patent 6017157
12-1996
"Method of processing digital images and distributing visual prints produced from the digital images"
Awarded the patent 01-25-2000

Amazing, Affordable, Professional Digital Wedding Photography (Northern California)

When everything else fades away, all that remains are the photographs.

Incredible, affordable professional wedding photography by Cory Trese.


Would you like to discuss your wedding plans? Interested in a custom package? -- e-mail 'cory.trese@gmail.com' or call us at 530-753-2541. We still have dates open in 2009!











I photograph your wedding personally. I do not send anyone in my place.

To ensure your precious moments last forever, all of my wedding packages include all of the negatives,

originals and digital files at no extra charge. In most cases I have the DVD of originals shipped to you within a few days of the event.

I will assign printing and enlargement rights to you so you can order prints from your vendor of choice (WalMart even!)

Want a la carte professional prints? I make my preferred pricing at a professional printing lab available. You pay only $8 for an 8"x10" from one of the best printers in the United States, shipped directly from the printer to your door.

Looking for premium quality wedding photography at affordable prices? E-mail 'cory.trese@gmail.com' give "Cory" a call at 530-753-2541!

• Platinum: ALL DAY, 300 Prints, THREE Custom Designed Coffee Table Book, Digital Negatives on DVD = 3700


• Gold: 7 hours, 250 Prints, Custom Designed Coffee Table Book, Digital Negatives on DVD = $2700


• Silver: 6 hours, 150 Prints, Digital Negatives on DVD = $1600


• Bronze: 5 hours, 75 Prints, Digital Negatives on DVD = $1300


• Engagement Session: 2 hours of bridal portraits + 50 prints = $400

Smoking Ban Reaches Apartment Buildings

This is so awesome!

http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/27/america/smoking.1-416522.php

I lived in a horrible apartment building in Dayton, Ohio (Cooper Lofts, downtown Dayton at 111 Harries Street) and my neighbors smoked so much that it caused health problems and damage to my property.

I hated living at Cooper Lofts because of the constant smell of smoke in the building, common areas and my loft.  It would have been a nice place to live if it was not for the smoke.

I hope the ban on smoking continues to extend to cover everywhere that they can harm other people with their toxic fumes.

FYI, I used to be a pack-a-day smoker and I never smoked inside my house or any apartment building.  I would never smoke in an enclosed space shared with other people.

Maybe I'm just not as self-centered as my Cooper Lofts neighbors.  The rude (evil?) smokers are the problem -- if they would have some common sense and decency these types of bans would not be necessary.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/27/america/smoking.1-416522.php

Nikon Sensor Quality King!

Nikon's new SLR leads the pack for sensor quality

Scientific proof!

It's not a surprise that the Nikon D3X, the company's brand-new $8,000, 24.9-megapixel SLR, tops DxO Labs' sensor performance test. What is a surprise is the margin by which it leads its rivals from Canon and Sony.

When the French firm unveiled its DxOMark Sensor benchmark test last year, Nikon's D3 was the top scorer at 80.6, a composite number that represents various performance features. Very close on its heels were Nikon's D700 at 80.5, Canon's EOS-1Ds Mark III 80.3, and later Canon's 5D Mark II at 79 and Sony's Alpha A900 at 78.9.

VPS, LLC + Pictage = Anonymous Laywers Comments

This was posted to my other story, VPS, LLC + Pictage = Patent Highway Robbery?, but I thought it was too important to leave languishing in the comments section.

My wife is a photographer and forwarded this discussion to me. I followed the link to the docket sheet provided by Ryan (I think) but that was little help. It contained links to the ECF site for the case, but only registered attorneys who pay fees can access that. Darn.

Oh, wait: I'm an attorney and I pay those fees. So, on I went.

The first suit was against Kodak in 2002. There was alot of tussling back and forth over discovery issues, lots of high powered law firms running up massive fees. In the end, it was dismissed pursuant to an agreement which I am sure was and is confidential. No trial, no Motions to Dismiss, no Motions for Summary Judgment or other proceedings that could give us some insight into the actual merits of the case.

The next one was against Shutterfly. It was originally filed in Chicago but was bumped to Oakland. Here, too, a bunch of lint-picking over discovery issues but, in the end, dismissed by agreement.

The last one was against Pictage. Here, there was not even much argument over discovery. I'm not signed on right now, but I don't think Pictage even filed an Answer (the responsive document that defendants must file setting out its basic defenses) before the case was dismissed by agreement. This puppy was over in less than 4 months, a legal micro-second.

There are some interesting aspects and I did link to and download some pleadings and "Letter Briefs". On their face, these discuss discovery disputes only, but they do shed some light on the general parameters of the parties' underlying disputes.

Let me know if you want to know more.

What this tells me is that Pictage did not fight VPS, LLC like the other companies did...

• Is this because they have an under funded legal departement?
• Or did they just need an excuse to raise prices on the photographers who are already getting GOUGED by Pictage and beat up by the general economy?

I don't know which would be worse. If Pictage has a poorly funded legal department, who else will be able to hurt us via our relationship with them? If they just wanted to raise prices but couldn't be honest about it, can we trust them to tell us the truth in the future? I am going to wait to see what happens with SmugMug ... watch for filings from VPS, LLC and pray ;)

EDIT: Updated new Prior Art at http://digital2noise.blogspot.com/2009/02/pictage-vps-llc-and-prior-art.html

SmugMug + VPS, LLC = No Comment (But We have Awesome Attorneys)

Hi Cory,

I can't comment on something we're not a part of.  Thanks for your concern but at the moment, we've no involvement.

We do have awesome attorneys, yes :)


All the best,

Andy
COO & House Professional
SmugMug
www.moonriverphotography.com

SmugMug Pro Resources:
http://wiki.smugmug.net/display/SmugMug/Pros
http://www.smugmug.com/help/pro-start.mg


Cory Trese wrote:

Hello,

I am worried about SmugMug.  VPS, LLC seems to have a patent on your services.

I blogged about it and the impact it has had on the other service I use, Pictage.

http://digital2noise.blogspot.com/2009/01/vps-llc-pictage-patent-highway-robbery.html

Have you been contacted by VPS, LLC?  Is SmugMug in danger?  Do you have good lawyers?

Cory Trese
ph#:     937-609-9644

e-m:    cory.trese@gmail.com <mailto:cory.trese@gmail.com>

www:  http://www.corytrese.com/

VPS, LLC + Pictage = Patent Highway Robbery?

I received this somewhat depressing e-mail from Pictage today...

Dear Valued Pictage Partner:

Last week Pictage completed a settlement of a patent infringement lawsuit brought against Pictage and some of our clients by VPS, LLC. Among other things, VPS's patents cover the online display of digital images and sale of products based on those digital images. VPS has licensed these patents extensively and requires that companies (including professional photographers) providing online sales of products based on online digital images pay VPS a license fee or royalty on all such online sales.

As part of the settlement with VPS, Pictage is paying a multi-million dollar fee for a license covering past and future online sales on Pictage.com. All of your past sales and those you will make in the future on Pictage.com are covered by the license to Pictage and the fees paid by Pictage. However, it is important to note that any sales that you have made or will make on any other website (including your own) are not covered by the license to Pictage.

The fees that we are paying VPS make it impossible for Pictage to continue to honor our legacy commission rate of 10%. Effective immediately, our commission rate will be 15% of online consumer sales. Those currently at 15% will see no change. In addition, we will now charge a monthly fee of 1.5% (still substantially below the best available credit card processing rates) for all sales made though our Pictage Payment Processing (P3) system.

I thank you again for your ongoing support. If you have any questions, comments or concerns please feel free to contact me.

Best regards,

Jason B. Kiefer
Founder & CEO

Did a quick Google search and found this docket:

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-ilndce/case_no-1:2008cv05172/case_id-223530/

Which is probably the one that they are settling out of court and passing along to there partners. I wonder if SmugMug and Yahoo are next. I am reading this VPS, LLC patent and I think it is bogus. I assume Pictage hired some competent patent lawyers but rolling over to highway robbers like VPS, LLC sucks and makes the entire patent system suck more.

Every time one of these blood suckers gets paid, it attracts more of them, like moths to the flame.

[EDIT:]
Thanks to a gentle reader, Ryan, I now have the actual link to the patent:

http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6321231.PN.&OS=PN/6321231&RS=PN/6321231

Thanks, and as always, comments & feedback welcome.

[EDIT #2:]

Another (this time anonymous) reader pointed out a few other important VPS related links. They have sued HP, Shutterfly and some other big retailers. I am in fear...

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-ilndce/case_no-1:2004cv01709/case_id-145809/

I cannot find the dockets regarding Flickr (Yahoo) or HP, but that might be just from bad googling again.

EDIT: http://digital2noise.blogspot.com/2009/02/pictage-vps-llc-and-prior-art.html

Cory Trese
ph#: 937-609-9644
e-m: cory.trese@gmail.com
www: http://www.corytrese.com/


---

California Wedding Photography
http://www.corytrese.com/wedding.html

Cooper Lofts - Lies, Damn Lies and Paper Trails

Here is one of the responses I got from my recent blog post:

Hey Cory...
I'm sorry you're not happy here at Cooper Lofts. It sounds like you have a specific complaint. Could you let me know what that complaint is? I'm on the board and might be able to help you resolve it...
Drop me a line or call me when you get a chance. My contact numbers are posted on our website.
Michael #205

I contacted Miachael about the terrible problems I was having at Cooper Lofts. His offer of board-supported assistance was a total lie.

The end result of my complaints? Renters are no longer allowed to petition the board with problems, no matter how terrible.

My downstairs neighbor smoked cigarettes constantly in her #302 unit downstairs from mine. Due to the shoddy construction work done at Cooper Lofts, this resulted in all of the smoke from #302 being vented into #402 -- so Sarah's unit did not smell of smoke at all but my unit did.

I guess I should clarify, "smell" is not really a fair description of how much smoke they created -- at some times it was so powerful that you could see it in the air and it eventually caused both Allison and I to develop asthmatic conditions. To be fair, my doctor did note that the breathing issue may have been compounded by Dayton's terrible air quality and the dangerous quantities of silica brick dust in the air in Cooper (we had an air quality specialist do a test for us.)

Her husband repeatedly threatened and harassed myself and my girlfriend after we complained to our (absentee) landlord, Timothy Anderson.

I lived at 111 Harries Street #402 Dayton Ohio, 45402

Cooper Lofts Dayton Ohio

First, some background. I am a resident at the Cooper Lofts in Dayton Ohio. These lofts were design and built by the same company, or companies using similar methods, to the Cannery Lofts, The Ice Lofts and the Merc Lofts.

These places are beautiful (at first glance) warehouse conversions in central downtown Dayton. The Ice and Cooper Lofts are conversions and extensions of existing Dayton buildings and the Merc is actually a renovation of an old DP&L power plant on Third Street.

If you are considering purchasing a unit in one of the buildings I would strongly caution you to think twice about the inherent problems. You may deeply regret your decision.

The thing about loft living is that you are faced with the worst of both a stand-alone house and an apartment building:

• In an apartment building you are protected by a lease and supported by an arbitrating party that is bound to all by legal requirements of reasonable action and protection from harassment and nuisance. In a loft you are protected by the bylaws, which the "condo association" is, by all appearances, able to change at a whim with little or no regard for non-owner resident's protection.
• In an apartment building no one can make claims of ownership and declare, from a self-righteous platform, that they do what they like on the property they own. In an apartment, ownership is centralized and all are bound to reasonable requirements of respect by that central party. In a loft all residents (or most at least) are owners and are therefore afforded a feeling that they can do whatever they want regardless of the negative impact on the quality of life of other residents.

In short, you have all the problems of an apartment (close proximity, lack of privacy) and all the problems with a house (bad neighbors, property ownership issues) without any of the advantages of an apartment (central authority, neutral party to provide arbitration) or of owning your own house (personal space, privacy.)

The so-called "Condo Association Board" exists only to protect the offices of the board and the friends they keep among the property owners. The members of the board will take whatever steps required to retain control -- including voting in modifications to the bylaws to make protest illegal.

Be very careful dealing with Cooper Lofts, you may be fooled initially but once the honeymoon wears off you will be sorry you got involved.

Very Funny Citi Video

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=937707022&play=1

But seriously, it is not a joke. This is not an SNL skit, it is for real. This is the man to whom the US Government just gave (essentially 27 billion USD.)

I would laugh if i wasn't crying.

Nightmoves

WinAmp you random bastard, you know I'll always love this song, even if Bob Seger is a little dated.

New Cars in Europe, 2008 Models Average 43MGP -- Is America Blind? Or Is GM Just Really Sneaky?

• New Cars in Europe, 2008 Models Average 43MGP
• New Cars in Japan, 2008 Models Average 50MPG

Who the hell is messing with America here?

The same Ford Motorcompany that makes the 59MPG Turbo Diesel Focus (which was a riot to drive!) in Ireland makes a 24MPG gas Focus in the States.

WHY??? Please someone, help me understand. Are we Blind?

Explore San Fransisco via Other People's Photographs

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/getaways/10/31/snapshots.san.francisco/index.html?eref=rss_travel

Late Night Cory Wisdom

Try 100 times.

If once you succeed, you have made a difference. 

The 99 other tries are to be viewed not failures -- they serve to motivate and instruct those who come to follow in your footsteps.

I Would Fly Ryan Air to Europe!

I saw this Wire Blog Post Today, Ryanair Plans $15 Flights to Europe

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/11/it-seems-kind-o.html

Seriously I don't care about ...

And cheap fares alone won't guarantee success. I'm all about finding a bargain, but I appreciate a plane with seat back pockets, window shades, and reclining seats, especially on a nine hour flight to Europe. If my fellow travelers feel the same way, then Ryanair's transatlantic strategy may not fly.

I love RyanAir for the same reason that I love SouthWest Air.  They fly cheap and don't crash very much.

It is my Birthday

Oh snap, I'm 27 years old.

Phish Tickets

We regret to inform you that you did not get the tickets that you requested through Phish Tickets.

Please note that your card was not charged and all billing info will be deleted from our system.

You will have another chance to purchase tickets on the public on-sale date for each show. For specific on-sale information please see below or refer to the tour dates section at www.Phish.com/tourdates

Tickets will be available Saturday, October 18 at 10:00AM Eastern here:
http://www.ticketmaster.com/Phish-tickets/artist/748766

3.06.09 Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA
3.07.09 Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA
3.08.09 Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA


This e-mail was sent from 5391 Three Notched Road, Crozet, VA 22932.

Running Out Of Milk

I ran out of milk.  It might happen to you too, seriously.

Ideas and Warnings:

• You cannot replace Milk with Orange Juice in any senario, not even in instant oatmeal.
• You can use Cranberry Juice in hot cereal (Kashi anyone?) instead of milk but you have to cut it with water.
• I do not know of any milk-substitutes suitable for Frosted Mini Wheats
  

SLR With Video -- Nikon Changes The Game Again

Wow.

Bibble Pro Windows Placed Off-Screen in Windows XP

I process many thousands of RAW (NEF, actually) photographs a month and one of my primary tools is Bibble Pro and when using Windows XP (on a multi-monitor system) it has a very annoying habit of moving off-screen so that the application cannot be sized across both monitors (or used.)

I found a fix for off-screen windows today, after running some Google searches.

A hack, for sure, but it will get your windows back into parts of the screen that are visible.

I will note that Bibble only does this under Windows XP and Windows Vista. X-Windows (under Linux/UNIX) does not have stupid problems with viewports outside of screens.