Day 406

It was a good day. It's nice to start a new year with new projects that I'm able to work on using brand new tools. I worked on prototyping one of the new websites I'm currently designing and got approval from my client to proceed to the next step. This is always an important step, because it means the job is real now. I've got two new websites in the works and I go back and forth between the pair to keep from getting in a design rut. I'm starting to enjoy the new features I'm finding in Dreamweaver CS-5 and wondering why I waited so l waited so long to upgrade. The application still works basically the same as my trusty old Dreamweaver MX, but there are lots of little refinements that help to speed things up. I have a feeling I'm going to find the same sorts of improvements in Photoshop and Illustrator.

Paypal and ConnectionPoint, the developers of the FundRazr, have decided to use our recent Dalmatian Rescue FundRazr campaign as a case study for how to raise money through social networks. Evidently, Dalmatian Rescue's recent Facebook fundraising effort was a big success and the developers want to do a feature story about us. I think that's fabulous. Paypal is known all around the world. and if even a small percentage of Paypal users learn something about Dalmatian Rescue, it will be a huge plus for our group.

I was so enthusiastic about work today that I'm starting to think about new equipment again. Last year's computer purchases have certainly helped the company and I'm thinking that it might be time to bite the bullet and upgrade my video production capabilities as well. When I heard that Panasonic's new AG-AF100 camera uses the same SDXC memory cards and Olympus lenses as my still cameras, I began to get excited. Lenses are the most expensive part of pro video cameras and I already have the lenses. If I got this camera, I could finally abandon video tape and tape machines forever. It's still hard for me to contemplate walking away from the Beta-SP studio it took me so long to build, but nobody wants it anymore. If I don't upgrade to modern HD equipment soon, I'll probably never get another video production job again.

Somehow, I managed to erase all my sent messages on my old computer today. I meant to just move the folder, but foolishly clicked on "rebuild" instead. Oops. Now, I guess it is a good thing that I've got my e-mail scattered all over the place. I really only lost about a third of my sent messages, because the other two thirds are sitting on other computers. And why am I even worrying about my sent messages anyway. They are the replies I've already answered. It would have been a lot worse if I'd erased my in-box instead.

Dalmatian of the Day

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