My Kimberley Walking Tour Work

Rack Card to advertize Walking Tour

Last spring, before birding season, I got wind of a volunteer opportunity where I could use my skills in digital photo editing, databases, and word processing AND learn some local history. I had great fun!

A local senior and the local Museum had gotten funding from the federal New Horizons For Seniors programme to research, write, and publish a walking tour of my city. Seems the group had been working on it for a few months already and was ready to get down to writing the text. There they hit the "Word" wall - how to format text and scanned photos, and work on it at home AND on the Museum computer, which didn't even have MS Word! They were making a valiant effort learning all the software for scanning, photo editing, and word processing - but were beginning to realize the task of digital publishing combined with researching and checking facts was a tad bit bigger than they'd anticipated. Good thing I stepped in.

We tried Open Office on the Museum computer but the logistics and software really didn't work very well for our purposes so we just used the museum computer to view our Word files and scan photos. Fortunately, they had an excellent scanner and accompanying software, a Kodak, and the photos were all 300 px resolution - commercial printing quality.



Old Newspapers
Going through old newspapers is a very time-consuming process. Our small museum doesn't have scanned versions of their documents. Some newspapers are on micro fiche in Victoria.  (Since finishing this project, Google search has done away with their "Timeline" search feature and now, as far as I can tell, old newspapers such as the Calgary Herald, are only available through paid search websites.) So, it is back to actual newspapers, yellowed, dried out and crumbling, bound in large, thickly covered books which must be handled carefully and with cotton gloves.

Wouldn't it be great if there were such a thing as a mobile scanning truck that could go out to all these smaller museums and scan their newspapers. (OR get digital copies of any micro fiches.) You'd need a scanner that worked from above - the big book of newspapers would be lying flat, open and the scanner would move over it. Then just flip the page (carefully) and do the next pass. All that history digitally searchable would be fantastic!

You know, the most frustrating thing about the old newspapers is that they never included the street addresses in their ads. We were trying to figure out exactly where various businesses were in the city centre and get the relative positions of the buildings in the photos we had, but - no addresses back in 1925! Even now, most of the buildings don't have their street number on the building.

With newspapers being chronological, I set up a database containing each item of interest (businesses, in this case) so that when we came across a reference, we could just write in the info on printed pages for each item (with a photo at the top) rather than on scraps of paper, or having to drag out several big books of newspapers looking for one item. But, it didn't work for multiple researchers for whatever reasons.

One troublesome street

Spokane Street, between Wallinger Ave and Deer Park Ave proved problematic. The buildings seemed to shift over the years - two buildings were combined, or two burned down to be replaced by a single building, businesses moved back and forth across the street, etc. 

In the top photo, the buildings on the far left were built later or not shown in the bottom photo. That means this is NOT the same building as the one on the left in the bottom photo.

Photo manipulation to the rescue! I was able to prove, by comparing photos taken at three different times, and matching the shapes, that there were two sets of buildings with similar shapes (a tall one on the left, with a little pup / annex on the right), not just one. This means that the current "Black Forest" business on the corner is in the building on the far left of the top photo, not the building in the bottom photo.


We used this photo for the cover of the walking tour book as shown in the top photo.


Top right photo: To advertize the book, we made up a "Rack Card" to send out to various Visitor Centres. For this, I took a photo I had of my daughter taken at Fort Steele a few years ago, and blended it in to a modern photo of Kimberley's Platzl which some desat and outlining on the left. It looks like you are stepping back in time. Looks good! Don't you think?!

Anyway, after many edits and rewrites, and discussions of what to include, the book was printed in October 2011 and is now available for purchase for $6 at the Kimberley Heritage Museum or Kimberley Chamber of Commerce Visitor's Info Centre.

It features three little walking tours of our city and tells about the businesses, the community facilities, and some of the pioneers and includes maps - also done by me.

Map of Kimberley "Townsite"

MBP Fonds

Here's a screen shot of what I am working on - scanning and archiving family photos - don't ask me why, because I don't really know - because it is there, I guess.

Anyway, I got a database, I am linking the photos to it and posting some on my flickr. Someone may be able to tell me who the unknown people are. If you do, please feel free to post in comments on the flickr page.

You and photos of you! It's getting more fun but a little creepy

You're going to have to be more careful with tagging your friends and family, and with your own face; especially this auto- tag thing. But, not just that! With Picasa's " face movie", anybody can gather photos, of anyone with public photos, and turn it into a movie.

Here's one explanation:
http://failbook.failblog.org/2011/06/08/funny-facebook-fails-facial-recognition-auto-tagging-feature-opens-pandoras-box/



Here's how you can opt out of auto-tagging when you are uploading photos:
http://www.business2community.com/social-media/how-to-opt-out-of-facebook-auto-tags-038181

But maybe you want to ask your friends not to tag you and maybe you w ill reconsider tagging them, at all. Maybe you can just put their names in the comments section of the photo and it won't turn up in a search?

Here's more on how this "face movie" works:
http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/thinking-tech/video-new-tool-animates-web-photos-might-raise-privacy-concerns/8075

On Facebook you can keep track of photo tags.
To be notified when someone else tags you in a photo, or tags someone in a photo of yours.
I'm not sure if you will get an email to the email address you used to register with facebook, or if you will just get a notification in your facebook Notifications.

On top right of your home page:
Click on Account
Account Settings
On the list on the upper left side click on Notifications
In the list in the middle look for Photos
Click on Edit
Put a check mark in the boxes Tags you in a photo
Tags one of your photos

Ya, All this security is way too complicated. It's a conspiracy.
The basic security settings should be total, then opt in to sharing.

Basic Irrational Ideas - from a counsellor

When you find yourself unhappy / out-of-control / not getting what you want, etc. maybe it isn't the situation, or even yourself; maybe it is just the WAY you are thinking - irrationally - like the thoughts below:



I (or the things I do) must be loved (accepted, approved of, etc.) by everyone who is important to me.

I must succeed in everything I do and be whatever the situation (other people) demands of me. I must never fail.

It is terrible (catastrophic, intolerable) when things are not going the way I want them to go.

Human unhappiness is externally caused and people have little or no ability to control their sorrows and disappointments or rid themselves of their negative feelings.

If something is (may be) dangerous or fear-producing, I should be very worried (upset, preoccupied) about it.

Things (I) have always been this way, so they (I) cannot be different.

I have to find a solution (alternative, way out, etc.) immediately or I won't be able to stand it.

If I get upset (angry, self-destructive, compliant, withdrawn, etc.) enough, something will surely change.

It is easier (better) to avoid facing life difficulties (responsibilities) than to undertake more rewarding forms of action.

Maximum happiness can be achieved by just letting things happen, doing as little as possible, and totally devoting myself to 'enjoyment'.

If I could just find the right person (job, solution, car, place, etc.), everything else would take care of itself and my life would be OK; or "if my bad luck would only change, that would 'fix' everything and my life would be OK."

The world is out to get me.

The world owes me a living (love, understanding, a chance, a break, etc.).

The world always must be (should be) fair.

I've got so many strikes against me now that nothing I do (say, think, feel, want, etc." is going to make any difference.

Some people are so bad (worthless, evil, unsympathetic, arrogant, etc.) that they should be severely punished (humiliated, killed, brutalized, etc.) for the kind of people they are.

Arrogance

There is no room for arrogance anywhere, anytime, about anything.  There is no time either, especially for Gaia.  Day to day it doesn't seem like much is happening, but it is, and the consumer society, of which I am entwined, is weakening us and the planet.

We know what the problem is, so enough said.  Keep on keeping on, whatever you can.

Bird thoughts

Does one bird species know that another bird species is a bird or is the other species as different as a human is to them?

One thing I envy about birds, besides their ability to fly, is their freedom. Of course, there is alot to not envy them for - their shorter life span for example but being able to go almost anywhere anytime, limited only by your own power is enviable, don't you think? Do they know it?

The myth is that someday they will acknowledge our concern for them. The myth is that someday we will acknowledge their concern for us.

Entry for January 27, 2007

"For God so loved the world . . ." Heck with 'Him'! - For I so loved the world, I give . . . myself!

Even if it makes you live in fear you still have to do what is right.

"...We can't always be talking about what's wrong - that just creates despair,"

Total love does NOT mean surrending your identity but survival does not depend on staying resolutely separate.

We can't really predict the future, we can only invent it.

All people are redeemable.

Tolerate change; accept that you don't always feel positive; communicate honestly.

Life is just one damn thing after another.

Time is a companion who goes with us on the journey and reminds us to cherish every moment.

Treat each other with decenty and respect - everyone gains from the experience.

Approach life as an explorer - "seek out" new experiences with intelligence, curiosity, and imagination; "boldy go" on your continuing mission.

When you're in the captains chair, be the captain.

People's actions are always appropriate given the way the world appears to them.

You can find something you like in everyone.

Living a good life is its own reward.

Change in life: - much of it is good but make sure YOU pick; - keep the parts of yourself you enjoy and never let anyone take them away; - write a new subroutine (like Data).

Listen to your principles; they are your guide to your inner feelings when your intuition is confuse. When you stick to your principles you will most often find that what you thought you wanted would hot have been good for you. Your principles help keep you integrated. DC

We do not live to extenuate the miseries of the past, nor to accept as incurable those of the present - Fairfield Osborne

I apologize to the authors for not jotting down their names beside my favorite quotes.