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Capturing The Moment — Without A Camera Taking pictures used to be a well thought-out process. Since most film rolls only allowed for about 24 photos, you needed to be pretty selective in what pictures you took. Plus, every picture in the roll would get developed, meaning each photo had to be worth keeping.
Well, those days are long gone. In the age of digital photography, taking dozens of pictures in a single day is not uncommon. No longer bound by the chains of film, amateur photographers are free to snap photos until their hearts are content. Instead of capturing a few key shots at an event, people can now capture every minute of it. After all, it's digital, so why not?
Well, there may be an answer to that rhetorical question. Since digital cameras make it so easy to take photos, we often shift our focus from the people and environment around us to our cameras. Instead of experiencing the moment, we get caught up trying to get the perfect shot or making sure we don't miss any good photo opportunities. As one who has experienced this first-hand, I have come to realize that life is better lived through my own eyes than through the lens of a camera.
So next time you are out with your friends or at an event, try taking less pictures. After all, how often do you really look at all those pictures you took last month, or last year. And when you do view them, do you really need five different photos of the same thing? You may actually be doing yourself a favor by taking fewer pictures, since you won't have to scroll through so many later on.
More importantly, you'll be less likely to miss the moment. Instead of using your digital device to record your surroundings, look around and take it in with your own eyes. Stop for a moment and capture the sounds and smells of the environment you are in. You may be surprised at what you were missing. So go ahead and take your camera with you – just don't let it get in the way.
3000 File Extensions The Sharpened.net File Extensions Reference has now reached the milestone of 3,000 file extensions! As most regular visitors know, the Sharpened.net file extensions database is unique in that it lists detailed information about each file type, including how the file type is used and what programs will open the file. Therefore, each file extension entry can take awhile to research and enter into the database. This is why it has taken several years to enter 3,000 extensions, contrary to the belief that I am lazy, which is only partly true.
My goal is to provide as much useful information as possible for each file association. This means that when you look up an unknown file type in the Sharpened.net File Extensions Reference, you're bound to find the information you need. And while I continue to add new extensions, I also frequently update extensions already in the database. So, if you ever think a file extension should have more information, just let me know!
The Whole Nine Years Today marks the ninth anniversary of Sharpened.net. I know that may surprise some people, especially younger visitors, who may not have known the Internet even existed nine years ago. But it did, and so did Sharpened.net.
Of course, like the rest of the Internet, Sharpened.net has evolved quite a bit over the past several years and has continued to grow in both size and popularity. Just take a look at the Sharpened.net History to see how much the website has changed. But one thing that has not changed is my commitment to providing useful information in an easy-to-understand way. If you haven't visited the Glossary or Help Center in awhile, you may be surprised at how much these sections have grown. The file extensions section alone now has nearly 3000 entries.
So, after nine years on the Web, Sharpened.net is alive and well and has a bright future ahead. As always, thank you for visiting and for giving me a reason to keep updating the site!
Can I Get Some Privacy Please? Gabby Talksalot has had a bad day. And it's all because of what she calls "a complete invasion of privacy." Read her story to find out why.
"It all began when I got to school and talked with my boyfriend. He said he wasn't sure if he wanted to go out with me anymore. I was like, 'W/e, idk wat ur talking about!' He told me he read some stuff in my blog where I described my feelings for him. He said it was just too mushy for him to handle. As if! I can't believe he read my personal blog! That is so not cool. He should be ashamed of himself. I don't want 2 talk 2 him anyway. Though I really hope he calls me.
"A a few hours later, I ran into my BFF Amy on the way to class. She said she was really upset with me since I didn't invite her to the party last Friday. I could only bring one person, so I went with my BFF Sarah, since it had been like 4ever since we hung out. But I had rly hoped Amy wouldn't find out because I knew she would ttly want 2 go. I guess she saw a bunch of pictures I posted on my Facebook profile that I took at the party. I mean I only posted like 78 photos, so I'm rly surprised Amy noticed. I can't believe she would pry into my personal life like that. It's her fault for being so nosy.
"Then I got home, and my mom was like, 'Is it true that you skipped school yesterday?' I was like, 'WDYM?' She was like, 'Well, the pictures you published in your MySpace album last night, entitled "Skipping School," made me wonder.' I was like, 'OMG mom! WRUD prying into my personal life like that?' She actually viewed the photos in my MySpace album! How inconsiderate! I was like, "I only skipped one class, and it wasn't even a BD." But then my mom grounded me anyway.
"So I went to my room and blogged about my day. Then, like an hour later, I had all these new posts from total strangers saying how like not smart I was. I mean, I added them all as friends, but I've never met them, so I can't believe they would write on my wall like that. I hope they don't view my photos too. It's just such a complete invasion of privacy! I mean, 4 serious. This has been worst day ever."
When asked about how she intends to deal with the situation, Gabby replied, "IDK, I think I just need to blog about this right now. Maybe I'll take some pictures of myself that show how depressed I am and post those too."
Happy April 1st, and remember to always use discretion in what you post on social networking websites or anywhere else online.
Only 10,000 Messages I was recently going through the mailboxes in my e-mail program and noticed my Sent box had just over 10,000 messages in it. "Wow, that's a lot," I thought to myself. It means I have written and sent over 10,000 messages in the past 5 years (since I started saving messages back in 2003). That number breaks down to over 2,000 messages per year, 38 per week, or about 5.5 messages per day.
Considering I often feel like my life revolves around e-mail, I found this number to be surprisingly low. 10,000 is a big number, but five or six messages per day is pretty manageable. After all, who doesn't have time to send five e-mails per day? But then I started to think about it a little more. What about those days when I don't send any e-mails? (Yes, even I take a weekend off here and there.) Or what if I am gone on a trip for a few days? If I miss three days of e-mail, the next day I will have around 20 messages to reply to. That can start to become overwhelming, especially if there are several other tasks I need to do during the day.
In November of last year, I wrote an update about how to avoid e-mail bankruptcy. I had finally cleaned out my Inbox and was once again up-to-date with my e-mail. I also set a goal to continually stay on top of my e-mail. So far, I am happy to say I have done pretty well. I seldom have more than 30 messages in my Inbox and I respond to most messages within a few days. My recent discovery of how many messages I send on a daily basis reminded me that managing my e-mail is possible. More importantly, it proves that e-mail doesn't have to control my life. And if I can keep my e-mail in check, I bet you can too.
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