Sky is always blue

http://www.cottontimer.com/2009/12/28/comics-a-seven-year-old-would-love/

Garfield is Stephen’s second greatest love, second only to Lego. Lilian’s Sean first introduced Stephen to Garfield in London when the two were about five years old but it wasn’t until a few months ago that Stephen really started understanding the sly jokes and not-so-subtle sarcasm that underlies the comic. He’s also a big fan of The Garfield Show on the Cartoon Network. I can see how it appeals to Stephen because it’s completely off-the-wall ridiculous with storylines that feature a time-stopping stopwatch, robots, and a mind-reading helmet but may I just say that this CGI bastardization of Garfield the comic strip is not really Garfield at all.

The trouble with Garfield is that Stephen feels compelled to try out some of Garfield’s sayings and mannerisms. He identifies with Garfield the curmudgeon and his distaste for Mondays and waking up, and his glee in thwarting Nermal (who I suspect Stephen equates with his sister).

Thinking that it might be healthier for Stephen to identify with another little boy rather than a fat orange cat*, I’ve been trying to introduce him to Calvin and Hobbes because Lilian mentioned that Stephen reminds her of Calvin. Although I should probably read some Calvin and Hobbes first to make sure Calvin is an acceptable role model. I must confess that I’ve never really gotten the humor in the strip but might be able to understand it better from the parents’ point of view. In any case, if GeekDad says Calvin and Hobbes is good then it must be good!

Other comics Stephen has enjoyed include the Geronimo Stilton graphic novels and the Bionicle graphic novels. Adeline’s RK likes Asterix and Obelix.

As for me, my favorite comic strip is The Far Side by Gary Larson. Marv’s is Dilbert.

What about you and your kids? Have any other comic strips to recommend?

*Super Skinny Stephen once made some comment about being too fat to get on some piece of playground equipment. I started stressing about eating disorders until I realized his comment came from Garfield. argh

Also visit me at: Eye on DNA - How’s it going to change your life?

http://www.cottontimer.com/2009/12/26/search-engines-designed-for-children/

http://www.cottontimer.com/2009/12/26/google-seeks-to-help-children-search-better-nytimes-com/

Google Seeks to Help Children Search Better – NYTimes.com

Good grief. What a misleading headline.

While I agree that learning how to use search engines to find information successfully is an important skill, I don’t know if I want my kids to search "better" per se. For primary school children, I’d want them to learn how to search in a limited, controlled environment.

When considering children, search engines had long focused on filtering out explicit material from results. But now, because increasing numbers of children are using search as a starting point for homework, exploration or entertainment, more engineers are looking to children for guidance on how to improve their tools.

Kids apparently like Bing because it uses more images than other search engines. Also, I did not realize that children tend to focus on whatever’s on the bottom of the computer screen because that’s what they see first when they look up from the keyboard after pecking out their search.

As for Stephen, I’ve installed Chrome on his computer and while he usually doesn’t have to search for much, he already knows that he only has to enter an approximation of the correct spelling and the computer will offer up the correct search term or URL to him. Frightening to think what he’ll be able to unearth online in the future. Perhaps some of what I’ve written about him but have since locked up….

If you’re interested in alternative search engines specially designed for kids, check out AskKids.com and Tyler Wainright has a list of safe and secure web browsers for kids.

http://www.cottontimer.com/2009/12/23/my-panasonic-lumix-dmc-gf1/

A few weeks ago, on my drive to work, I heard the three DJs on Class 95’s Morning Express going through their spiel about the Panasonic Lumix GF1 micro four thirds camera. Despite the fact that I work in advertising now, I’m not as immune to commercial persuasion as I’d like to think.  The three DJs actually sold me on the camera! They presented just enough technical info to get a gadget geek like me excited.

On the second day of hearing the same pitch, I researched the camera and made my decision. What features appealed to me?

1. Size – With the 20 mm pancake lens, the GF1 is a Micro Four Thirds camera that is only about half the size of a standard DSLR.
2. Interchangeable lenses  – I don’t intend to change my lenses frequently because I’m deathly afraid of getting dust and other dirt on the camera sensor but it’s nice to have the option.
3. Speed – The new 20 mm (F1.7) pancake lens is faster than my point-and-shoot.
4. Movie capture – There is a dedicated button on the GF1 that starts shooting in movie mode immediately and in exceptional quality.
5. Built-in flash – There’s a pop-up flash on the GF1 with adjustable brightness.
6. Manual controls – I wanted to be able to adjust aperture, ISO, white balance, etc. to produce a wider variety of photos.

Yes, I know that in the end it’s the photographer’s skill that matters more than the camera but having a better camera can’t hurt.

I mulled the idea over for a couple days because I wasn’t sure if I should spend more than a thousand dollars on a camera. In the end, I justified the purchase by telling myself that designer handbags cost even more than the camera and since my handbags never cost more than $100 SGD, I could darn well afford to buy myself a camera. So I emailed John 3:16, the camera shop where I’ve bought two of my three past digital cameras, to reserve it. Several days later, on 4 December, I was told the camera was ready for pick-up.

I had no idea what was waiting for me. I mean, I knew it was a camera and a step up from my Canon IXUS 90 (Powershot SD790 IS) point-and-shoot but other than that, I did not know how to operate such a fancy thing. At the exact moment when Samuel, the store owner, brought the camera out of the box, another guy came in the shop looking to buy the GF1. Sorry, no luck. Gotta reserve it first and stock should arrive the following week. This baby’s mine mine mine!

Before I had any time to learn about the GF1’s settings, I took some ok photos. Good enough for people to notice that they were not garden variety point-and-shoot shots but I didn’t know how to change any of the settings! I took it with me to a Ben 10 live show with the kids and had no idea how to take a picture of Stephen with the stage behind him without the background being completely fuzzy. As I studied the camera and all the different settings and with the help of DSLR owners Cindy and Lilian, I learned that I had to increase the F-stop to get the background as clear as the foreground. And I had to figure other important things out like what the letters stand for on the dial. Duh. By the way, “A” doesn’t mean automatic, it means aperture priority (and it also stands for addlehead).

For anyone interested, here are some great resources about the Panasonic Lumix GF-1 and photography in general:

• Digital Photography School
• My delicious collection of links on the GF1
• Scott Kelby’s Digital Photography Boxed Set
• Tutorials at Photoxels

I haven’t abandoned my iPhone and Canon Ixus. They’re just too handy to give up. I do think, however, that it is very apparent which camera was used to take which photo. Can you tell which camera I used for each of the following three shots? These photos were minimally edited.

What camera do you use? And what camera do you lust after?

If you’re in the market for a new digital camera, check out this list of best digital cameras of 2009 from neutralday.