I finally got out canoing/camping this weekend.

The weather was decent, the bugs were minimal, and it was alright.

Wildlife pics inside.

warning - hockey content inside

Watching the Sens/Sabres was like waking up in an alternate universe.

The Sens played tight, tough, well-organized hockey against a talented team that only sporadicly lived up to their potential.

Warning, hockey content

So it's down to the Sens vs the Sabres in the East.

You don't see many line brawls in today's pro hockey, and goalie fights are even rarer.

I don't know if I've ever seen a goalie fight twice during the same brawl.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49sqgSv5SE0

I bought myself a new digital camera for Festivus, thanks to Chuckles for the recommendation.

The nice big pics from my new camera are thrashing my home network - generating thumbnails and browsing pics is slow and annoying.

Is anyone running GigE on their home network?

I'm looking to replace my old 2MP digicam. I'm a camera moron, so I can't tell snake oil from essential features. I'm told that 5MP is plenty for the amateur, so that's the range I'm looking in.

I know there are a bunch of shutterbugs here, can I start a camera flamewar?

Must haves:

• small (no SLR plz!)


• takes decent pics


• sub $300

Nice to have:

• uses AAs so I'm never stuck with a dead battery/camera


• multishot/continuous mode


• relatively low light photos (longer exposures, ISO something something, duh I'm a camera moron)

I'm horribly out of date on video cards and monitors, I haven't bought new video hardware for 5 years.

I found a deal on an off-lease 21" CAD CRT (1600x1200), a nice monitor that might still be running in 10 years. But it only has old fashioned 15 pin VGA inputs.

Question 1 - most video cards have both 15-pin VGA and DVI outputs right now. Anyone care to guess if VGA ports are immortal like PS/2 ports, or going the way of floppy disks?

Question 2 - has anyone used a DVI-VGA converter? Do they suck?

Large map, Noble, Inland Sea map

Russian, Peter the Great (love the 2x great people points)

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Found an outstanding location to establish my first city. Moscow is in a river valley with access to corn, sheep, and 2 gold mines. Life is good.

Hello out there, we're on the air
it's hockey night tonight!

...

Oh!
The good old hockey game!
Its the best game you can name!
And the best game you can name,
is the good old hockey game!

I do lots of stuff around the house. Some of it I enjoy, some of it I tolerate, but there's one job that drives me absolutely fucking bannanas.