I recently posted about a trick in iTunes to fix an issue where the sort order chosen for a playlist in iTunes doesn’t get copied over to the iPod unless you right click on the playlist in iTunes and choose “Copy to Sort Order” before syncing.

In a strange twist of fate this trick stopped working for the Smart Playlist I use to listen to Podcasts on my iPod Touch within days of posting the tutorial. It seems that a new bug appeared in either the iPod OS 3.1.x, or perhaps in iTunes itself, and so far there is no official fix.

The issue is that certain combinations of settings for Smart Playlists result in the sort order selected in iTunes not being synced onto the iPod, regardless of whether “Copy to Sort Order” is selected. Note that the sort order appears to transfer if you look at the iPod version of the playlist within iTunes, but not when you look on the iPod itself.

There are various combinations of settings for the Smart Playlist that will resolve this problem (including turning off “Live Updating”, but that defeats the purpose of using a Smart Playlist for Podcasts in the first place), and certainly multiple combinations for which the error occurs. I haven’t even begun to look for all of them, but I have found one that works very well and gets my Podcast Playlist working perfectly.

If you want iTunes to be able to update your Smart Playlist for Podcasts correctly with the sort order you selected in iTunes, try setting up your playlist as follows:

1. Checked: Match ALL of the following rules:
2. Playlist IS NOT Music
3. Media Kind IS Podcast
4. Checked: Match only checked items
5. Checked: Live updating

Most likely the only change is the addition of item 2 above. The other settings are all defaults for Smart Playlists and will only be different if you intentionally changed them for some reason.

NOTE – You will still have to use the “Copy to Sort Order” trick I previously posted (because that’s how iTunes was designed). Today’s fix merely gets you back to the point where that trick actually works…

I have submitted this as a bug to Apple, but similar bugs have existed for ages so I’m not holding my breath that they’re going to fix this one anytime soon.

With the recently announced release of the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV many photographers, myself included, have a major dilemma ahead of us. It’s not that this won’t be a great camera; it appears to be a fantastic upgrade to its predecessor, the Canon EOS 1D Mark III, and it would be very hard not to love it.

The problem is that Canon really muddied the waters in the SLR market with the recently issued Canon EOS 7D.  Although these two cameras have different target markets, their feature sets overlap in many areas and a lot of photographers will find both to be very attractive.

The main difference between the 1D series cameras and the rest of the SLR’s in the canon family is that the 1D’s are designed to be much more rugged, much more weather proof, and built to much tighter tolerances.  These things definitely have value, but how much is going to be a personal opinion.  For the price of the 1D Mark IV you can pick up 3 of the 7D’s.  It will be very compelling for many people to buy a much cheaper camera that has most of the high end features of a more expensive model.  In fact many people will never even take advantage of all of the high end features found in the 7D, never mind the few extra offered by the Mark IV.

My personal dilemma is that what I really want is a  mix of the two cameras.  I’ve been looking forward to buying a new camera for almost year, but none of the available cameras fully met my needs, and I was happily and patiently waiting for the right camera to show up.  Now there are two cameras that get me most of the way there, but neither takes me all the way.  Unfortunately it appears that the less expensive model is missing a couple of the main features that were on my “must have” list:

• Autofocus that works with lenses (or combinations of lenses and teleconverters) having a maximum aperture as small as f/8
• Auto Exposure Bracketed (AEB) sequences of more than 3 images

The 7D also falls short of the Mark IV on my list of “high wants”:

• expanded usable ISO range
• integral battery grip
• only 1 memory card slot

The 7D does have a couple of features that I wish the Mark IV includes:

• built-in popup flash with wireless E-TTL Speedlite master flash transmitter
• dedicated Live View/Video mode start/stop button

While these features would be really nice to have, I can easily live without them.

Putting all of this together, I’ve decided that my next camera will be the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV.  The Canon EOS 7D looks to be a great contender, but for me it just doesn’t quite match up where it counts. 

What would you decide if you were in my position??

For interest’s sake, here is a table I put together showing a comparison of the key specifications for both cameras:

	Canon EOS 1D Mark IV	Canon EOS 7D
Sensor	16.1 Megapixels APS-H, CMOS 1.3x Crop Factor	18 Megapixels APS-C, CMOS 1.6x Crop Factor
Processor	Dual DIGIC IV	Dual DIGIC IV
Autofocus System	Redesigned 45 point AF 39 cross-type points Range: -1.0 to 18 EV	Brand New 19 point AF 19 cross-type AF points Range: -0.5 - 18 EV
ISO	100-12,800 default, 50-102,400 extended	100-6400 default, 100-12,800 extended
Shutter	10 fps max 300,000 actuations	8 fps max 150,000 actuations
Metering	63 metering zones linked to all 45 AF points EV 0 to EV 20	63 metering zones linked to all 19 AF points EV 1 to EV 20
Memory Card	Dual card slots 1 CF, 1 SDHC	Single CF card slot
Battery	LP-E4 (same as 1D Mark III) Integral Battery Grip	LP-E6 (same as 5D Mark II) BG-E7 Battery Grip
Movie Mode	up to 1080p Video 30, 25, or 24 fps	up to 1080p Video 30, 25, or 24 fps
Lenses	EF Lens Mount (no EF-S lenses)	EF-S Lens Mount (all EF and EF-S lenses)
MSRP (Body Only)	$5499 USD	$1699 USD
Release Date	Expected December 2009	October 2009

If you’ve purchased a new computer in the past few months it likely came with Windows Vista installed AND an offer for a free upgrade to Windows 7 when the new operating system is released. It’s almost a certainty that if you purchased a new system sometime after June 26, 2009 then you qualify for an upgrade. Some refurbished systems will also be included. You will have to check with the manufacturer of your computer, or maybe with the retail store that you purchased it from, for the terms of the deal and for the specific details on how to get the upgrade package.

Windows 7 officially comes out today, so don’t forget to take advantage of the upgrade opportunity. By all accounts Windows 7 is a much improved operating system over Windows Vista so this is one upgrade that you don’t want to miss.

Just to make your life a little bit easier, I’ve compiled a list of websites that should help you to get your upgrade package faster and easier. You will need to have your Proof of Purchase dosucments as well as the make, model, and serial number of your computer ready before you apply for your upgrade. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it does include all of the major PC, Laptop, Notebook, and Netbook vendors, and even a few of the smaller ones as well:

• Acer – http://www.acer.com/windows7upgrade/
• ASUS – http://event.asus.com/2009/windows7/
• Averatec – http://www.trigem.com/us/event_win7.asp
• Compaq – http://www.hp.com/go/windows7upgrade/
• CyberPower PC – http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/LandingPages/win7/
• Dell – http://win7.dell.com/
• eMachines – http://www.emachines.com/windows7upgrade/
• Fujitsu – http://www.shopfujitsu.com/Windows7Upgrade/
• Gateway – http://www.gateway.com/windows7upgrade/
• HP / Hewlett Packard – http://www.hp.com/go/windows7upgrade/
• iBUYPOWER – http://www.ibuypower.com/Info/Windows7Upgrade.aspx
• Lenovo / Thinkpad – http://www.lenovo.com/us/en/windows7/
• LG Electronics – http://lg_upg.gmd.co.kr/
• MSI / Microstar – http://www.win7msi.com/
• Samsung – http://support-us.samsung.com/windows7/
• Sony – http://www.sony.com/ca/windows7/
• Toshiba – http://www.toshibawindows7upgrade.com/
• Trigem – http://www.trigem.com/us/event_win7.asp
• Velocity Micro – http://www.velocitymicro.com/windowsupgrade/

Note that in most cases these offers are totally free, but in some cases there may be an administrative or a shipping & handling charge.

Today Canon announced the upcoming release of the next camera in the professional EOS 1D series, the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV. Although this camera physically appears to be almost identical to it’s predecessor (the 1D Mark III), the new camera brings a host of new and upgraded features to the table.

The most notable new feature is the addition of high definition 1080p video and a jack for an external stereo microphone, while the biggest improvement over the previous release is the vastly expanded ISO sensitivity, which ranges all the way up to a whopping 102,400 in extended mode.

According to Vincent Laforet, on this camera “6400 ASA is the new 1600 ASA – maybe even the new 800 ASA”. Check out his video “Nocturne” which was shot using the 1D Mark IV locked at ISO 6400. The video is a bit cheesy but the image quality is amazing!

Here is a summary of some of the other specs for this camera:

• Sensor: APS-H (1.3x) Crop Factor
• Processor: dual DIGIC IV
• Resolution: 16.1 Megapixels
• ISO: 100-12,400 by default, 50-102,400 in extended mode
• Autofocus: 45 user selectable points (39 cross-type)
• Shutter: 10 fps max, shutter rated to 300,000 cycles
• Metering: 63-zone sensor, 0 to 20EV range
• Memory Cards: 2 card slots (1 each for CF and SD/SDHC)
• Battery: Canon LP-E4 (same as in the 1D Mark III)

The camera is due out in December of 2009 and will list at an MSRP of $4,999. Ouch.

If you want to learn more about this camera you should check out the initial information posted at Imaging Resource or you can visit the official Canon EOS 1D Mark IV product page. Canon has posted some sample still images and videos that are also worth a look.

No sniplet called Amazon-Canon1DMarkIV-Graphical

I’ve been asked several times recently to recommend a good website hosting provider. I’ve used quite a few hosts over the years, but I’ve never stayed with any of them for much more than a year. That changed when I found Dreamhost.

I moved all of my sites to Dreamhost a couple years ago and I’ve been very happy with the product they provide. I was looking for a faster and more reliable hosting package, but didn’t want to have to pay an exorbitant price. I got all of that with Dreamhost and I’ve been extremely happy with the fast response I always get when crap inevitably happens. Most importantly, they are readily available for communication, both through their website or on Twitter (@dhstatus).

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