This week I posted my Lens-Artists response on Saturday, so for my usual Thursday post, I thought I’d try something different. This post features links to my most-read posts for 2021.

Number 10

This Lens-Artists Photo Challenge was published February 18, 2021, and titled Glimpse Into Your World. In this post, I shared some of my aviation stories. (Don’t worry, they are short stories punctuated by photos.) Click on the image above each number on the list to visit the respective post.

Number 9

Smithfield Virginia is a city that was developed in the 18th century and is home to some of the earliest history of the then colonies of Great Britain. The post recounts our visit with a photo tour hosted by a cousin who lives in a nearby community.

Number 8

High above the Missouri River in the city of Bismarck, North Dakota, on land once occupied by Chief Looking and his Mandan Indian tribe, there is now a state historical archeological site. In this article from November 6, 2018, we visited this park and discovered a beautiful memorial garden created to honor the memory of Sonali Seth. Whenever we get the chance, we visit the park and the garden to enjoy the sunset over the Missouri River.

Number 7

In June 2016, I published a photo story about the Shrine of St. Joseph of the Mountains, a Catholic shrine featuring stations composed of wood and concrete. This shrine is now part of a larger retreat and conference center. While we were there, we happened upon a very moving tribute to a dearly departed person that was in process.

Number 6

In one of my first published images from the drone I acquired in 2019, I shared how starlings were attracted to the noise and movement of the drone while flying over Lake McConaughy. The post also features images captured from the dam and reservoir near Ogallala Nebraska. The major recreation area is a popular camping site in the summer, and I learned something about sharing the skies with our avian friends when flying the drone to capture images.

Number 5

In November 2020, we were on a road trip through Montana and we happened upon a long line of train cars apparently being “stored” on an unused 20-mile section of track. Some drone images feature the unusual line of grain cars and the small unincorporated community of Lindsay, Montana.

Number 4

On a Sunday drive in 2017, we headed west to Valley City, North Dakota. Known as the City of Bridges, Valley City is built around the Sheyenne River. If you stop at the city’s visitor center, you can even get a map that shows you how to visit each of the bridges in the city. The opening photo features that High Line Bridge that rises high above the valley and spans the entire width of the valley. On June 13, 2017, we visited seven bridges in total.

Number 3

In July 2021, the Lens-Artists team asked me to host that the first week of the month. The challenge, #155 On the Water, was popular, no doubt because of all of the Lens-Artists Challenge responses. The post featured some of my favorite images captured near water, from morning dew drops to the crowded beach scene on Grand Turk Island in the Caribbean.

Number 2

Her name is Dignity. A tribute to the Native American woman, the stainless steel sculpture used three Lakota Native Americans as models to create the face. The statue overlooks the Missouri River at Chamberlain South Dakota and stands to honor the first residents of the region. The article, published February 18, 2020, documented my second visit to the monument. The story features more background on Dignity and her creator as well as the beautiful and scenic location high above the river valley at Chamberlain.

Number 1

The most popular post on my blog in 2021 wasn’t actually written by me. In 2016, my son, Josh, was writing his own blog and after a joint visit to Siler City, North Carolina, he wrote a guest post on my blog about our visit. The article, posted on February 16, 2016 featured images from both my camera and his.

This article has been viewed far and away more times than any other blog post on my site. I attribute it to the title, The Changing Face of the American South: Siler City, NC. What I find most interesting is that its first four years of publication averaged about the same number of hits per month as any of my more popular posts. In 2020 and 2021, however, hits on this post increased 7 fold over previous years. As this article is being written on January 5, 2022, the post has already averaged almost as many hits in January as the average monthly number of hits in any given month in the first three years since publication.

There you have it, my top 10 posts for 2021. Click on any of the images above to visit the original post.

Happy New Year.

John Steiner

Buckeye, Arizona

Let me start out by saying that this article isn’t going to be a “how-to” on do-it-yourself upgrades. Consider it a recommendation as to what you might consider doing to improve the performance of your work computer. It is ever so true that no matter how fast your computer is, after awhile it seems slow, even if it hasn’t really slowed down. The two biggest improvements that can be made for the average user is adding more memory and improving drive storage (read/write) speed. Of the two, the first and easiest is to add more memory. Been there, done that.

On occasion, when I’ve been travelling, I used the WordPress iPad app to create, edit and submit my blog posts. Though my usual writing and photo production tool is a laptop, it’s just so much extra hassle to carry it on the road. I leave the laptop at home unless I am headed on a very long trip. The iPad’s biggest operational advantage is quick startup and application access. Those of a younger generation, more accustomed to mobile devices may disagree, but for me nothing beats a laptop for being able to run full-blown applications. About a year and a half ago, I purchased a Samsung ATIV 8 laptop. It would be my major tool for processing photos with Photoshop Elements and eventually with Lightroom. It would also be my writing and blogging tool. I usually create in Microsoft Word and export the text to my blog post. From the first day, I wasn’t overly happy with the performance of the computer. It was my first Windows 8 machine, my other machines being Windows 7 or earlier. After doing some searching on the web, I learned that Windows 8 really likes RAM, so a few months back, I added an 8 GB memory card to the 8 GB internal RAM. The difference it made, especially when working with Lightroom was impressive. I realized my original disappointment in the machine was due to lack of RAM.

I’d been reading about how solid state drives (SSD) can bring new speed to a computer system. Indeed, tablets and smart phones boot and operate more quickly in part because they use solid state memory storage, not a mechanical hard drive. After reading about the improvements other people see when they convert their mechanical hard disk drive to an SSD, I knew this would be my next major upgrade. The reasons I hadn’t switched out my hard drive sooner are capacity and cost per GB. Solid State drives are relatively expensive, and they aren’t economically available in large sizes. My laptop shipped with a 1 TB mechanical drive.

Recently I noticed that PNY introduced a 480 GB model SSD, priced under $200. For comparison, I could purchase a mechanical hard drive with over 8 times the capacity of this SSD and spend less money. A Samsung 1 TB SSD would have set me back nearly $400. The only question is what do I need more, storage space or speed? Having seen the night-and-day improvements in boot time and application load times on a solid state drive, I knew my answer would be speed, but it would be speed on a budget.

Looking at my own storage needs, I put my RAW images on an external hard drive, backing it up to the online service Crashplan.com. The Lightroom catalog and my collection of videos and all images exported from Lightroom found their way to the Samsung’s internal drive. Checking available space, I realized that I couldn’t fit everything I have on the 1 TB drive onto a 480 GB SSD. No matter, a sale on the SSD caused me to place the order. It would be a few days before the drive arrived. By then, I better have a plan to reorganize my drive structure to put more data on the external drive. A cleanup was in order as well, removing software I don’t use, deleting unneeded data. It’s been a lot of time in front of the computer, not so much out taking photos.

I decided I would keep my applications and my Lightroom catalog files on the SSD. I would appreciate the performance boost. My videos and all of my exported images would move to my external 1 TB drive. After deleting unnecessary data and moving or reorganizing file locations, I pared my boot drive down from a little over 600 GB to 226 GB. That would give me about 200 GB free space on the SSD (allowing for overhead needed by the operating system.) Images and video from now on go to the external hard drive. I reorganized my online backup software to insure it is backing up the extra data being stored on the external hard drive, and I backed up the contents of my external drive to another external drive that I keep in my car (in case of fire or theft of my originals.) I also used Windows 8’s System Image tool to make an image of the internal drive in case of a boot drive failure. This is something a computer user should do on a regular basis anyway. It makes restoring from a boot drive failure much easier. If you don’t do the repair yourself, bring your external hard drive along with your broken computer to the repair shop. The tech will be happy you have a recent system image, and you’ll be rewarded with a lower repair bill. Another bonus is that there will be much less recovery hassle on your part.

In addition to the SSD, one other purchase must be made. A temporary drive cable will be needed that connects the new SSD to a USB port so the internal hard disk can be “cloned”. Instead of buying a cable, I purchased a kit that includes an external drive housing and a DVD with cloning software. This added $40 to the cost of the upgrade, instead of $25 for just a cable. For the extra $15, once the conversion is complete, I can put the old internal drive into that case and use it as a separate external drive. I’d read some reviews of this specific kit, the Apricorn EZ Upgrade 3.0 upgrade kit for notebooks. There were a handful of bad reviews because for whatever reason the cloning software didn’t work properly. I didn’t know whether this would be a problem for me or not, but I wasn’t worried as a techie friend recommended a handful of free downloadable cloning apps, one of which I watched in use in a YouTube video (here) on converting from mechanical to SSD drives.

Once I had my computer files reorganized and drive cleaned up, I installed the PNY SSD into the external case, downloaded the latest version of the Apricorn cloning software from their website and started the clone. We left the house to run errands and when I returned, the progress bar on the clone app hadn’t moved off of zero %, and the elapsed time counter was at over 3 hours and 30 minutes. It looks like I am one of those users for whom the software failed to operate.

Referring to my techie friend’s email, I found the EaseUS website here and downloaded the EaseUS Todo Backup Free software. After a quick install, I ran the software following their online instructions. I checked the box to shut down the computer when the clone finished and headed out to the gym. When I returned over an hour later, the progress bar was a little over half finished. At somewhere around the three hour mark, I noticed that the computer had shut down. The clone was finished.

I carefully removed the screws from the bottom of the laptop case and unscrewed the hard drive housing from the laptop. I then unscrewed the drive from the housing and inserted the new SSD. The original screws are just a mm or so longer than needed, but the drive is secure, the screws are tight, and the extra length they stick out aren’t in the way of anything. I replaced the housing in the laptop, replaced the cover and with much anticipation, pressed the power button. Boot time is at least five times faster than before. Login time is still a bit longer than I’d hoped, but so much faster than it was. I am more than happy with the results. My slowest apps to load, Lightroom and Photoshop Elements both load to image and ready to work in under 4 seconds. I’m extremely happy with the performance of my “new” computer, and I highly recommend an upgrade to SSD.

I did notice that I am running into a few housekeeping bits. For example, when I first synced my iPad to iTunes after the upgrade, Apple wanted me to authorize this computer. I had to log into the Apple Store and do the authorization procedure. I also had to reinstall some Google Chrome add-ins and reset a few preferences. I expect as I run more apps, I might run into other similar issues with software that recognizes it’s residing on a different physical drive than it was originally. So far, after about 15 hours on the new SSD, I still marvel at how fast the computer has become. Whether you have a Mac or a PC, if it’s got a mechanical hard drive, consider upgrading. If you’re not a techie type, the labor for a professional to do the swap shouldn’t be excessive. Other than the time for the clone, where the tech doesn’t even have to be there, the swap should take well under an hour. Just be sure you have your data reorganized and moved to an external drive if needed. That process will take the most time by far. If you are like me, a good closet cleanout is probably warranted anyway.

John Steiner

This week I learned about Tony Verna’s contribution to sports broadcasting and how it ultimately changed the rules as several sports are currently played. Tony passed away Sunday, January 18, 2015 at the age of 81, but his legacy lives on.

Before there was a Super Bowl, the “must watch” Army-Navy football game, at that time happening on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, attracted a large audience. Tony Verna, a 29-year-old director was in charge of television production for the game rescheduled to December 7, 1963 because of the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Among his career successes, Tony found himself in charge of five Super Bowls, the 1984 Summer Olympics and the Live Aid benefit concert, however, his 1963 contribution to his craft would be used by others in televised events and eventually by officials at sporting events around the world.

Verna knew if his idea didn’t work, he might find himself out of a job. He didn’t even tell his crew what might be happening until they were driving to the game. He had a truck with a large machine, the size of two refrigerators, brought to the game. It would turn out that due to a technical glitch, his invention would only be used once in that inaugural game, but it would change forever how sporting events are broadcast.

The young director would have his chance when the quarterback for Army, Rollie Stichweh, carried the ball for a one-yard touchdown run. Fans saw it live on TV. Moments later, fans that missed the short run got to see it replayed. The TV game announcer said, “Ladies and gentlemen, Army has not scored again.” In those few seconds, Verna had introduced the first Instant Replay to live television.

With early video tape recorders, the replay process was a difficult technical achievement. Finding and cueing a specific moment took several minutes before Verna’s system of coding the tape with audio tones that could be heard during the rewind process. Though the system ended up being used only once at the 1963 Army-Navy game, it would go on to be adopted by game officials and ultimately replays would have the power to change on-field rulings in several sports.

Click here to view a short video with Tony Verna describing the inaugural use of the instant replay.

John Steiner

Good morning! Here’s hoping for a safe and happy 2015 to readers and followers alike!

On this last day of 2014, I’d like to take the time to thank my collection of loyal followers for a great blogging year. The folks at WordPress, the hosts of my blogsite, have provided me with an annual report. Though they made it possible for me to share that report in its entirety, I decided instead to highlight and share links to my favorite blogs and feature a gallery of my favorite photos of 2014. I won’t forget to share links to my most popular posts, just in case you missed them.

The raw numbers from the report were interesting, over 11,000 views, busiest day of which was March 10, with 227 views that day. The most popular post of the day featured a gallery of images from Carlsbad Caverns. You can review that blog post and view the gallery of images here.

Interestingly, four of the five most popular posts viewed in 2014 were all written in 2013. The report noted these stories have “staying power”. Of the top three, the number one post, uploaded in July 2013, features images taken on the Norwegian Pearl. I suspect this article is popular as people looking to cruise on the Pearl find my post when they “Google” the ship name. You can read the post and view the gallery of images here.

The second most popular post features a gallery of images taken at Puerto Chiapas, Mexico. I suspect this post is popular with cruisers “Google” searching for information on what to do in Puerto Chiapas. As it turns out, we found very little to do there. You can read the post and view the gallery of images here.

The third most popular post, also from 2013 features a story about a hike on South Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona. When the weather is clear, which that day, it wasn’t, there are some spectacular views of the city along the National Trail. The trail, along with the detour via Fat Man Pass is one of my favorite hikes, and one Lynn and I have completed on several occasions. You can read the post and view the gallery of images here.

Of course, I have a personal favorite post from 2014. It features the beaches of Kauai, Hawaii. This post features two of my favorite images. You can read the post and view the gallery of images here.

When I started this blog, I had no expectation that there would be readers from all over the world. Obviously, most of my audience is from the US, but as this graphic from the report shows, any country shaded in a color other than white indicates at least one view from someone in that country. Of the people who follow my blog as a subscriber, the most followers I have from outside the US live in Canada, followed closely by Australia.

Most of my new followers are courtesy of the Weekly Photo Challenge. One of my most anticipated emails each Friday is the posting of the challenge for the week. I love featuring my work to a larger audience, the wide variety of bloggers who also submit photos to the challenge. My favorite photo challenge entry in 2014 is posted here.

2014 has been an eventful year for my wife and me. On February 1, while staying in Buckeye, Arizona for the winter, we got a call early in the morning from one of our neighbors in our condo building in Fargo, North Dakota. The call was not good news. A fire in the unit above us caused major damage and the loss of most of our personal belongings. We spent the summer with our travel schedule curtailed as I pretended to supervise the reconstruction of our unit. It took nearly 11 months for us to get back in our home again.

Since that week, I’ve learned that I need to forget what’s gone, appreciate what still remains and look forward to what’s coming next.

I submit for your review and approval, a gallery of my favorite images of 2014. Here’s hoping you have a safe and happy 2015! Click on any image to enlarge it and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

This week, Jen H. asks us to share our photos of twinkling light. The challenge is simple; you can read the entire challenge post here. The image above is my obvious choice, taken especially for this challenge.

This season we are thankful that after a fire in our condominium building last February, no one was hurt, and though the building required a major renovation, everyone is now home again. All residents of the nine units in the building were displaced until mid-November. Most units had only smoke damage cleanup. I submit for your holiday spirit an image taken of our Christmas tree and fireplace, all ablaze with twinkling lights. It was only this week that the fireplace damage inspection was completed and we were allowed to use our fireplace again.

We are finally moved in our unit which, due to its proximity to the fire source, had large amounts of smoke and water damage. The floor of the unit above, and therefore our ceiling was completely destroyed in the kitchen and dining areas, resulting in a complete teardown of all interior walls of our two units. Our unit, and the unit above us are not yet fully completed, but we are all happy to be back in our respective homes. If the wall above the fireplace looks barren, we miss the painting that originally hung there. Wall art and photos will have to wait until the final construction is complete.

In addition to the holiday photo, I submit for your electric stimulation, a small gallery of images featuring twinkling light. Click on any of the images to view a larger image and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

To all of you who follow my blog and celebrate the U.S. holiday of Thanksgiving, Lynn and I wish you safe travels for the holiday and wherever your future travels take you.

John and Lynn Steiner

Department of Credit Where Credit Is Due

It wouldn’t be a good idea to start off my first blog post by plagiarizing someone else’s blog title. It just so happens that Bob’s blog was one of the catalysts for beginning this blog series, along with my son, Joshua, who blogs on The People’s Press Project (The People’s Palate). Joshua’s blog is located here:

Until today, I didn’t know Bob’s last name. Mr. Lowry’s blogs, as I receive them via email, don’t usually mention his name, but I found it when I looked at his website. In any case, I feel like Bob and his wife, Betty, are old friends. Shortly after we retired, I stumbled upon his blog while searching for information about living in, and adjusting to retirement. If you are contemplating retirement or are already there, I could do you no better favor than to recommend that you subscribe to Bob’s “A Satisfying Retirement” blog. You’ll find his latest blog entry here:

Department of Why am I Writing This, and Why You Should Read It (Hopefully)

After a rewarding career in education and information technology spanning over 33 years, working with many colleagues who have become our friends, my beautiful wife, Lynn, and I decided it’s time to change direction. We would become snowbirds, Arizona in the winter, and back to our home state of North Dakota in the summer. I can now more fully embrace my hobby of photography. What fun is a hobby if you have no one to share it with?

We’ve been blessed with good health (so far), an adequate retirement fund (up to now, anway), and the time to travel and see the country, and even parts of a few other countries. As a lifelong photo hobbyist, I’ve had my share of good and bad cameras, taken my share of good and bad pictures, and lost, on purpose, many more photos than I’ve kept.

The function of this blog is to share some of those photos with you, provide some historical and geographical background of the locations featured, and even include some technical details on the photos for those who give a damn about that sort of thing. On occasion, I’ll even share some of the photos that I should have deleted immediately, in the hopes that sharing my mistake will keep you from making the same mistake.

Almost a year ago, Lynn and I made our first visit to Monument Valley. In a future blog entry, I will tell the story about the 3.2 mile hike around the closer of the two stone monoliths pictured. The monuments, known as the Mittens, and the trail presented a challenge to us novice hikers. After our hike, a passerby offered to use my camera to take our picture.

I hope you enjoy this blog, and look forward to hearing your comments and suggestions. Thank you for reading.

John Steiner