Big Tech In Big Trouble

Most folks probably aren't aware or concerned that the Big Tech companies have seen something like a reckoning lately. Most of it is related to regulation and trials about antitrust and monopoly. Google and Apple are especially in the hot seat. Might we see a world where Google no longer has the Chrome browser? What if Apple loses control of its App Store? Has Big Tech peaked?

The Push And Pull From Mac To Windows

In January 2024, I had a quasi-resolution: No New Tech. And I mostly kept it, sort of. But then not at all. My iPhone gave way to a new Android phone that year. And at the very end of last December, I ordered a Windows gaming computer to replace my MacBook. Yeah, instead of no new tech, I, uh, totally switched my entire tech platforms. Why though? Good question.

RAW Phone Snaps In Affinity Photo 2

I'm happy to share newfound facts. First, my 2024 Moto Razr can shoot RAW pictures natively; I didn't know that before! It makes .dng files. Second, those pictures automatically open in the RAW developer part of Affinity Photo 2, where edits are made easily. And the icing on the cake: I was wide-eyed when I first saw how good Affinity's noise reduction and detail enhancement are. Sure, these are tiny-sensor, tiny-lens phone snaps. Yet being able to shoot RAW provides a little more leverage to make the most of pictures.

Software Company Relies On Blogger

Going steadily since 1999, Blogger is not only used by random prolific writers, it’s also relied on to this day by at least one for-profit company. Case in point: modern PC game developer, SCS Software.

It's Time For Affinity Manager

Since refocusing on Adobe Bridge to manage photos on my laptop, I've been trying to choose a good image processor to go with it. At first, I thought Photoshop Elements was best, but now I'm favoring Affinity Photo. I noticed two things: it could use a digital asset manager of its own, and the Affinity company (Serif) was bought last year by Canva. So now I wonder (worry?) about the quality of Affinity's future.

Managing Photos On My Laptop

A few months ago, I was deciding between traditional photo apps and settled on Adobe Bridge. But then I reverted to Google Photos because I had started to lean back into a Chromebook. Yet moving my photo collection from my local PC into Google's cloud over time pressed me: I would soon need to subscribe to a paid cloud storage plan, and I would need to further cull and organize my picture files on my laptop. Then I snapped out of Google Photos. Bridge is the way to go.