[MF3D.FORUM:723] Re: Palm Software Review (1)

[Brian Reynolds <reynolds@xxxxxxxxx>]

Tom Deering wrote:
> On 6/8/00, Brian Reynolds wrote:
> >Phil Davis (author of "Beyond the Zone System" and many magazine
> >articles in Photo Techniques USA and its predecessors) has written a
> >program called ExpoDev for the Palm devices 
> ><URL:http://www.darkroom-innovations.com/>
> 
> Wow.  This must be good software.  It's $74.95 for the basic version, 
> $129.95 with graphing.  There is no demo, no screen shots, and only a 
> basic description, although I am sure a person who is familiar with 
> "Beyond the Zone System" would understand.  Me, I didn't, because 
> there is not even a simple explanation of  BTZS on this web site. 
> For this price, I would expect more info, or at least some screen 
> shots.
> 

Basically if you haven't read Phil Davis' "Beyond the Zone System"
most of his software won't be of any use to you.  It automates the
film and paper testing (including plotting data), and exposure and
development calculations from the book and includes notetaking (that
the original BASIC handheld couldn't do).  I'm putting off buying it
until I can set up a darkroom.  I have bought the cardboard widget,
but I haven't spent enough time with my large format camera to play
with the widget yet.

> >Bob Wheeler has written a Palm program called VadeMecum that does many
> >of the things ExpoDev does, but does not keep a database of exposures.
> >You can see it, and his papers on various photographic topics, at:
> ><URL:http://www.bobwheeler.com/photo/>.
> 
> This is available for a free download, but I wouldn't recommend it. 
> It encompasses a dazzling array of 47 photographic formulas in ten 
> groups.  Many only apply to large format cameras.  Once you choose a 
> formula, there is an info screen that explains what parameters are 
> needed.
> 

I guess I should have mentioned that most of my non-Sputnik
photography is done with 4x5 cameras, there fore the slant towards
large format B&W software.

Bob Wheeler also has a paper available on his page that does a
comparison of various photography software and gadgets.

> >My wife has the Metroworks
> >Code Warrior for the PC and Palm environments and has been busily
> >working away on her sock calculator
> ><URL:http://www.panix.com/~ilaine/socks.html>.
> 
> Now this is good software.  I was able to use Liz's software without 
> knowing anything about knitting, and I was amazed with the results. 
> Basically, you take  4 or 5 foot measurements, add some parameters on 
> stitch size, and the thing spits out two pages of instructions for 
> knitting socks.  It's very cool.  Besides hand knitting, it also has 
> a setting for machine knitting, which frankly still looks like a lot 
> of work.  I only wish photographic software worked as well.
> 

Just to avoid confusion, the version you saw on her web page is a CGI
script.  The sock calculator is the application she uses to learn a
new programming environment.  Liz is still working on the Palm
version.

-- 
Brian Reynolds                  | "Dee Dee!  Don't touch that button!"
reynolds@xxxxxxxxx              | "Oooh!"
http://www.panix.com/~reynolds  |    -- Dexter and Dee Dee
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