Yay! I just received the 2010 Autopano Panobook, and look what I found on page 150!

View the original image here and here.

View the review of The Year’s Work in Lebowski Studies” and other books on the serious subject of Dudeness here.

I attempted to recreate exactly the black and white photo, shot in 1962. I took several shots, but could not seem to find the exact spot the original was taken from, but one thing seems clear – the middle of the road has shifted somewhat to the left.

I upgraded to Windows 7 yesterday. The install from scratch option took less than one hour, and my system is humming along nicely. The move from Vista to Windows 7 may have caused a barely-noticeable performance increase. I’m not sure. I did the upgrade from XP at work last week, and the speed increase from XP to 7 was significant. Of course, any speed increase is most noticeable with all of the Aero crap disabled. Give me font anti-aliasing and thumbnail icons and keep the rest. It’s just annoying! I’d like to see Microsoft sell a stripped-down version that does not include any of the so-called eye-candy. Who needs all that visual noise?

If there’s one gift that won’t wind up in a landfill in three months, it’s pictures of the grandkids.

One of the most charming events we’ve seen this holiday season is the Oakland ZooLights. Periodically, the tens of thousands of Christmas lights are set to music in a dazzling light show. Fun for kids and bah-humbuggers alike!

Thanks, Tom and Julie for a wonderful party last night. As always, the food and the company were exceptional!

A few more images can be viewed here.

I love barter. In trade for some web work, I get days at this fabulous house. This works out great for everyone involved, but the biggest beneficiary is definitely me. Its on trips like this that I am reminded how great my friends are and that I have the most wonderful wife in the world. Lucky me!

With temperatures on the bay hovering around 50 degrees, it might not have been an ideal day for a Hornblower Cruise. Nevertheless, the mighty IT team braved the elements and posed for the obligatory group shot.