Digital Impulses

iPhoto '08 photo library corrupted

So this evening, after stopping by Best Buy to pick up a sandisk Multicard reader, I took the time to install it correctly and then I made a MONUMENTAL GAFFE:  In trying to free up a USB Port on my Mac Mini to plug the card reader into, I UNPLUGGED my External Seagate 320 GB hard drive that is home to my iPhoto library. With iPhoto '08 OPEN.

Not good.

Upon restarting my Mac after all of the iLife 08 patches had DL'ed and been installed, iPhoto 08 presented me with the dreaded "gray box with the dotted lines outline" where most of my pictures used to be displayed.

After a bit of Googling this problem, I learned from the Mac Observer that you can hold down "command-option" and double-click the iPhoto 08 icon.  This will result in iPhoto '08 launching with a dialog box that prompts you to select a number of different rebuild and repair options for your thumbnails and your photo library.

Unfortunately for me, none of these options worked for me and nothing I did brought my images back into iPhoto.  Now the images appear to still be on the external Seagate, so I should be able to ferret them out and get them re-imported into iPhoto '08.  It was nearing 10:30 P.M. last nigt when I gave up the ghost and decided to call it a night and tackle the issue again tomorrow evening after work.

We will see how I fare in my first iPhoto '08 disaster.

Iphone Rebate

This morning, Apple announced a slew of new products, including the iPod Touch, Ipod Nano w/Video, Ipod 'Classic' and also made it known that the 8GB iPhone was being discounted $200 to $399.

Most important to me of course, was the $200 price reduction, as I just bought my phone 3 days ago.  After Jobs keynote was over at the Special Event, I raced over to the Apple web site to look at their policies in terms of price protection.

Sure enough, there was a paragraph there that stated that customers are entitled to price protection within 10 days of the purchase date.  I printed out the relevant section and highlighted it, with the intention of heading over to the Apple store in Manhattan Beach after work to see what they would say.

After work, I headed over to the Apple store with my son and his girlfriend, iPhone receipt in hand along with my earlier printout. 

Print-out not needed.

I walked up to the green-shirted employee at the register and explained that I had bought my iPhone on Sunday 9/2/07 and that I was hoping to get re-imbursed the $200 as part of Apple's price protection. BAM. Done.  The kid looked at me, smiled and said "...Of course.  Would you like store credit or are you going to buy something today?" 

feeling a little shocked because I was expecting them to put at least some resistance, I told him that a copy of ILife '08 and an Apple BlueTooth headset for $129 would be just fine.  He rang me up, I paid a few dollars to cover the difference and again I was o n my way inside of 10 minutes.

The Apple Retail experience is nothing short of AMAZING.  I cannot say enough good things about my experience with Apple dating back to last December when I got my Mac Mini.

Apple Rocks.  Plain and Simple.