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dolariI do entirely too much maintenance on my computer. And it takes entirely too long. And it didn't help that today was
DAY OF THE WEBCAM
It gets pretty tech heavy from here, so if you don't wanna read about Jenn Dolari and The Logitech QuickCam Express of Doom, feel free to go to the part marked "HOW JENN DRAWS"
Around 2PM or so, I plugged in my Web Cam so I could pose for a picture I'm planning to draw. And I got That Familiar Error:
The "Logitech QuickCam
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Jenn's an old pro at this. She's gotten that error before, no problem. Easy fix. I just loaded up that old archive I made a few weeks ago and simply overlaid it on the Windows 98 I already had.
Rebooted it up and it was raring and ready to go. So I go to the Logitech button and click on it. While it loads, I imagine the pose I have to do to get this to match the background that's already done...
The "Logitech QuickCam
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Woah. That wasn't supposed to happen. Maybe it didn't take right.
Rewrote over Windows again. Clicked the Camera button.
The "Logitech QuickCam
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Deleted the old Windows install and installed from the archive. This time I also gave the computer a very stern look.
The "Logitech QuickCam
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Ever play the Atari 2600 Donkey Kong? Watch Donkey Kong as you move Mario up the ladders. He stomps his little feet and shakes his little hands, and it's so cute. Considering I was stomping my little feet and shaking my little hands, I hope I looked half as cute.
So I read their little FAQ, and as usual, nothing helps. Trust me, I know it doesn't help. I worked at Dell - I know how FAQs are written on a corporate level. :) But I DO read that it uses Video for Windows! Hey, I've got a VERY old CD with Video for Windows Utilities on there! I can use that instead! Jenn's an old pro at this. No problem. Easy fix.
I pop the CD in, and click the install button:
Video for Windows 1.0
llgl@
I look at it quizzically. Scratch my head a few times. I go into a very very deep thought process on how I can fix this. And I actually do! Popped into Safe Mode and installed it from there, thereby fooling Windows and Microsniff's Direct X with a surprise sneaky attack. Long live Safe Mode.
HOW JENN DRAWS
So the web cam is finally sorta working. It won't function as a web cam anymore, but I can take pictures from it, and that's all I really use it for anyways (When it comes time to restart Betta-cam, I'll have to find a way to get it to work, but I'm not to worried about it right now).
The picture I have in mind right now is Zand looking up at the Tower of the Americas. I've already got the actual photograph which I took back in 1997. The picture is a long panoramic shot of the Tower from ground level looking up. I really lucked out on taking this pic on a clear cloudless day, so I can fill in the background with a standard blue, instead of having to go into it and manually erase clouds and airplanes.
When I draw, I usually pose for the pic then redraw my pose on paper. Helps to get a more natural looking figure, since mine tend to be very stiff an unnatural. It took me a good two hours to get the angle right so it would look like I was looking up at the tower. I took a picture and threw it over to Paint Shop Pro.
Once the picture was there, I redrew it on paper, replacing the laundry basket I was holding for a basket of fruit.
Well, I wasn't very pleased with the results, and I'm gonna redo it. The picture I came up with looked more like a microcephalic Fat Albert with long hair. Even once I colored the image with shades and the like, it just looked horrid. Obviously I need more practice in foreshortening. But I ain't giving up, I'm gonna try again tomorrow, especially now that I have the camera set up, and the pose down.
In other news, my mother has commandeered my truck and has decided to keep it, after it being in my possession for six years. I'm very unhappy about this, as it is the first handcuff she's using to keep me from leaving home again. I got to watch out for more. She doesn't want me to leave home again, despite the fact that I'm 27, she still sees me as an 8 year old, and does her best to make me play my part.
I got an EMail from Lori with pictures of her little girl, she's a cutie. Plus it's nice to see some of my fellow schoolmates ten years later. I didn't keep up with many of them, but...well...I disappeared off the map for a bit.
Wow, this is was mighty entry, ain't it?
It gets pretty tech heavy from here, so if you don't wanna read about Jenn Dolari and The Logitech QuickCam Express of Doom, feel free to go to the part marked "HOW JENN DRAWS"
Around 2PM or so, I plugged in my Web Cam so I could pose for a picture I'm planning to draw. And I got That Familiar Error:
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Jenn's an old pro at this. She's gotten that error before, no problem. Easy fix. I just loaded up that old archive I made a few weeks ago and simply overlaid it on the Windows 98 I already had.
Rebooted it up and it was raring and ready to go. So I go to the Logitech button and click on it. While it loads, I imagine the pose I have to do to get this to match the background that's already done...
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Woah. That wasn't supposed to happen. Maybe it didn't take right.
Rewrote over Windows again. Clicked the Camera button.
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Deleted the old Windows install and installed from the archive. This time I also gave the computer a very stern look.
Express" camera device is
currently in use by another
application.
Ever play the Atari 2600 Donkey Kong? Watch Donkey Kong as you move Mario up the ladders. He stomps his little feet and shakes his little hands, and it's so cute. Considering I was stomping my little feet and shaking my little hands, I hope I looked half as cute.
So I read their little FAQ, and as usual, nothing helps. Trust me, I know it doesn't help. I worked at Dell - I know how FAQs are written on a corporate level. :) But I DO read that it uses Video for Windows! Hey, I've got a VERY old CD with Video for Windows Utilities on there! I can use that instead! Jenn's an old pro at this. No problem. Easy fix.
I pop the CD in, and click the install button:
llgl@
I look at it quizzically. Scratch my head a few times. I go into a very very deep thought process on how I can fix this. And I actually do! Popped into Safe Mode and installed it from there, thereby fooling Windows and Microsniff's Direct X with a surprise sneaky attack. Long live Safe Mode.
So the web cam is finally sorta working. It won't function as a web cam anymore, but I can take pictures from it, and that's all I really use it for anyways (When it comes time to restart Betta-cam, I'll have to find a way to get it to work, but I'm not to worried about it right now).
The picture I have in mind right now is Zand looking up at the Tower of the Americas. I've already got the actual photograph which I took back in 1997. The picture is a long panoramic shot of the Tower from ground level looking up. I really lucked out on taking this pic on a clear cloudless day, so I can fill in the background with a standard blue, instead of having to go into it and manually erase clouds and airplanes.
When I draw, I usually pose for the pic then redraw my pose on paper. Helps to get a more natural looking figure, since mine tend to be very stiff an unnatural. It took me a good two hours to get the angle right so it would look like I was looking up at the tower. I took a picture and threw it over to Paint Shop Pro.
Once the picture was there, I redrew it on paper, replacing the laundry basket I was holding for a basket of fruit.
Well, I wasn't very pleased with the results, and I'm gonna redo it. The picture I came up with looked more like a microcephalic Fat Albert with long hair. Even once I colored the image with shades and the like, it just looked horrid. Obviously I need more practice in foreshortening. But I ain't giving up, I'm gonna try again tomorrow, especially now that I have the camera set up, and the pose down.
In other news, my mother has commandeered my truck and has decided to keep it, after it being in my possession for six years. I'm very unhappy about this, as it is the first handcuff she's using to keep me from leaving home again. I got to watch out for more. She doesn't want me to leave home again, despite the fact that I'm 27, she still sees me as an 8 year old, and does her best to make me play my part.
I got an EMail from Lori with pictures of her little girl, she's a cutie. Plus it's nice to see some of my fellow schoolmates ten years later. I didn't keep up with many of them, but...well...I disappeared off the map for a bit.
Wow, this is was mighty entry, ain't it?
