ON Digital Cameras --               On_Other_Stuff

This is presented as true to the best recollection and is offered for guidance with NO warranty expressed or implied.
Your mileage may vary.

Early-on when I started to think about this sort of stuff, did
a bit of tooth nashing, and came to the realization that...
.. if I want slide/tranaparencies, then Digital is of NO value.
.. if I want prints for an album or general future reverence/remembering,
     then Film is best as all the processing is left up the the
     Lab of my choice.
.. in the case of digital, then I become the "Lab".
.. digital cameras require down-time between exposures to digest
     the pic and record it somehow/somewhere.
.. digital cameras require their recording medium (i.e., their "film")
     to be either downloaded or swapped/changed and downloaded later;
     many schemes abound; some storage media are EXPENSIVE.
.. the best Digital camera and printer that I'd ever want to afford
     will produce prints below the quality of the cheapest film
     camera that I'd ever use.
.. if I want to take pics and put them in an ONLINE/WebSite catalog,
     then Digital is best as it avoids scanning the images from film prints
.. if I want to manipulate images: cut/paste/contrast/brightness,
     then Digital is best
.. the digital camera that I'd want would have to have LOTS of
     knobs/features, and I'd have to become an expert at it;
     if it was sooooo simple that I could work it out of the box,
     then I wouldn't like its product.

The questions which I have come to consider are prudent to be asked are ..
 .. what is the re-cycle time to take the next picture
      some media takes a while
 .. what is the resolution and compression-ratio and are they selectable
 .. any motion available; believe it or not, some "still" cameras do
      take a few seconds of motion
 .. on what medium does this camera store its pics
 .. is additional media available and possibly in larger sizes.
 .. is the storage medium removeable and replaceable to take more
      pics when it fills-up or must it be off-loaded to a PC
      in order to continue taking more
 .. can/must the pics be off-loaded from the media to a PC thru the camera
 .. can/must the pics be sent directly to a printer without a PC?
      by connecting? by media being moved?
 .. can/must previously removed media be re-inserted into the camera
      to be reused, added-to, or off-loaded
 .. can/must the pics be off-loaded from the media to a PC thru
      some reader/adapter
 .. what is the battery pack? Recharageables? Commonly available?
      AAs? AAAs? Special/Unique?
 .. can/must the battery be rechrged ON the camera or via and
      external charger
 .. what is the required connection to the PC? Parallel? SCSI? USB? USB2?
      does it come WITH the camera or needed additionally?
 .. does the image data include information re the exposure parameters?
 .. can the images be off-loaded as normal files withOUT any need
      for special software? What format?
 .. what is the software required to up-load/receive the pics on the PC?
      does it come WITH the camera or needed additionally?
 .. what level of Windows is needed to run the software?
 .. what is the native format of the up-loaded/received files? JPG? GIF? PSD? BMP?
 .. does the software allow for adding titles? for adding undisplayed comments?
 .. does the software allow for editing? adjusting brightness/contrast/color?
 .. does the software have any special affinity for targeting an up-load WebSite
 .. does the software have any special affinity for a particular printer

 .. can the camera accept all of those high quality 35mm lenses that I
     have from my years of film photography?
 .. is there an Optical Viewfinder or ONLY an LCD screen?
     These can be tough for use in sunlight or for those farsighted
     users whose eyesight is not good enough to focus on the screen
     at close range. For these folks, an optical viewfinder IS A MUST.

Have been toying/researching Digital Cameras and have made some feature discoveries...

** Viewfinder
  There are 3 kinds ...    (noted with +advantages and -disadvantages)
     a. LCD Viewer/Screen on the back
         + image to be taken shows on screen
         - tough to see if you are farsighted or in a WELL lighted place
     b. eye-piece viewfinder - separate lense path
         + easy to use in a WELL lighted place
         - image to be taken does not identically match what is seen in finder
     c. eye-piece viewfinder - same lense path
         + easy to use in a WELL lighted place
         + image to be taken DOES identically match what is seen in finder
  Some cameras have just (a), some (a+b), some (a+c)
  As I see it (no pun intended) ...
      the (a's) are to be shunned,
      the (a+b's) are to be avoided,
      the (a+c's) are to be embraced;
        they are the digital equivalent of the SLRs in film cameras.
  SUGG: Seriously consider the (a+c) type, like the Fuji Finepix 3800 or Olympus C750UZ;
              the Fuji has a nice eyepiece shroud, not sure about the Olympus;
              the Olympus has a nice eyepiece optical correction, not sure about the Fuji.

** Memory
  There are LOTSA kinds of removeable Media units...
    Smart Media,
    xD Picture Card,
    Compact Flash, 
    Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro,
    MMC, 
    SD 
    and IBM Microdrive.
   Most come in a variety of sizes.
   There are readers available for all of them;
    some readers will read more than 1 type; 
    some (Lexar has one) will read all of the above.   
  SUGG: Make sure that you can get one BIG enough for your needs; 
        and enough of them within your budget to last until you can copy
        the files to your PC.

** File format and connectivity
   Make sure that it will ...
      ... store in the JPEG format (possibly among others).
      ... store that JPEG with varying levels of compression
      ... allow media to be removed for copying (else must use the camera as the reader)
      ... allow copy directly from  the  camera (else must remove the media and use a reader);
            USB connectivity is a MUST.
     the last two are NOT contradictory,
           the implications being that BOTH means should be available.

** Store time
   Make sure that it's short; otherwise you gotta wait to take the next picture.

** Power Source
   Some operate on special batteries; some on AAs; all accept recharageables.
   Avoid AAAs; they are NOT plentiful and have a small capacity.
   Most of the former come with rechargers.
   Make sure that you can keep the battery(ies) well charged and on-hand.
   It's a plus if there is a battery-condition indicator that is continuous,
     rather than just "Getting-Low" or "All-Gone".
   SUGG: It's nice if you can run it directly from an A/C adapter 
         (even if its an extra) 
      this will allow reviewing and copying withOUT draining the battery.
   SUGG: It's nice if the charger works on 220v, just in case you ever travel.

** ZOOM
   Optical is best; make sure it's got enough for you.
   Digital just crops off the edges, re-frames the center, and degrades the quality.
   It's nice if the finder/screen data-display tells when you cross the line between them.

About purchashing and Printing ...


Some mail-order houses are GOOD, some aren't; some have nice prices,
 cheap shipping, and NO tax.
Some extended warranties are the same way.
If you were to print-off some online price quotes and take them with you to local stores,
 then the Dept.Manager might "DEAL" with you pricewise -- epecially if you have
 NOT wasted his salesman's time educating you (so shop one store and buy at another).
 Some products are "FairTraded" and they can't "DEAL" much,
 but they might toss in some goodies, like a free bag or (better yet) a BIGGER memory
 chip or spare battery or REcharger or extended warrantee.
GoodGuys may make the best "DEAL"s, BestBuy may not be quite so willing;
 likely it won't hurt to ask. If they get nasty, then try another store.

As to the question of what to do with the images which the camera places in a file,
 there are several avenues ...
 1. enjoy it in the original memory on the camera's screen and then delete it.
 2. connect the camera to a PC and either ...
   a. copy the files like any other file to a folder of your choice
   b. use the software which came with the camera to do the copying
       into what it will likely call an "Album"
   c. use thrid-party software to do the copying
       into what it will likely call an "Album"
 3. put the removeable memory device in a reader and then proceed as in 2.
 4. connect the camera or the memory device DIRECTLY into
     a printer designed to accept them; doing so requires NO computer.
    Some printers have screens on which the preview the results.
    Some accept BOTH a camera connection AND memory plug-ins; some only one or the other;
      some accept more/different memory device types, be careful.
 5. take the memory device to SavOn or WalMart to have them printed;
      the latter even have do-it-youself machines.

Most color inkjet printers will give a recognizeable color picture on plain paper.
Most color inkjet printers will give a better color picture on photo paper.
Most color inkjet printers will give a still better color picture on photo paper with
 THEIR brand name.
Then there are color PHOTO inkjet printers which are designed to produce BEST color
 pictures; these  will also print B&W text, but that are NOT as fast as the
 general purpose units.
  (The same paper /vs/ picture quality comments apply as above)
Some printers have limited "stalls" for the ink cartridges,
 and these need to be changed for  standard-grade /vs/ top-grade prints.
Also need to consider Total Cost of Ownership;
 some cheap printers require EXPENSIVE inks rather often.
The best that I've seen are Epson (e.g., the 925),
 but last I looked they did NOT come with preview  screens as standard,
 and the add-ons were sub-optimal.
The H-Ps tend to have more whizbang features,
 but the Epsons tend to produce better quality at lower cost.
Most multi-function machines (fax, printer, copier, scanner)
 do NOT handle the last 3 functions as well as a stand-alone unit -- especially
 for color photos.

The BEST photo retouching, cropping, and tinkering software is Adobe PhotoShop;
 Adobe makes a few sub-sets of this product by various similar but different names;
 the grand-daddy is PhotoShop; it nearly takes an operating-engineer's license to use it well;
 there are excellent after-market books on it;
 there are even night-school classes taught on how to use its features to their fullest.