Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

Arguably the best Star Trek episode of all time, The Inner Light is a masterpiece of science fiction, incorporating philosophical elements and a theme of inner growth. Let's dive into this brilliant story:
https://avidandrew.com/inner-light.html

#startrek #scifi #sciencefiction #review #philosophy

June 25, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

At first glance, ZFS snapshots, bookmarks, and checkpoints may seem similar. Let's explore what these features are, how they differ, and example use cases for each:
https://avidandrew.com/zfs-snapshots-bookmarks-checkpoints.html

#opensource #zfs #foss #openzfs #storage #freesoftware #nas #TrueNas #linux #freebsd #selfhost #selfhosted #ubuntu

June 11, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

[Mastering Darktable] At first glance, the exposure module might seem quite basic. However, this module combined with darktable's powerful masking features can be used for a wide variety of purposes; let's explore these below:
https://avidandrew.com/exposure.html

#darktable #photography #tutorial #opensource #artwithopensource #foss #fossart #canon #camera #linux #freesoftware #travelphotography

June 05, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

This two-parter from the Matt Smith era of Doctor Who features a compelling story, the return of the Silurians, and a call to bridge cultural divides and bring out the best in yourself and others:
https://avidandrew.com/silurians.html

#scifi #doctorwho #review #sciencefiction #bbc

May 30, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

April showers bring May flowers, but what do May flowers bring? An article about color harmonies. Let's explore how color theory can help make these photos of spring flowers pop:
https://avidandrew.com/spring-flowers-color-harmonies.html

#darktable #photography #flowers #tutorial #opensource #foss #canon #camera #linux #software #freesoftware #macrophotography

May 16, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

Let's examine the Orville episode Twice in a Lifetime, a touching and emotional example of a Kobayashi Maru scenario:
https://avidandrew.com/twice-in-a-lifetime.html

#startrek #orville #scifi #sciencefiction #review #SethMacFarlane #timetravel

May 06, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

On the surface, taking photos of cars seems easy enough. However, you can really take your automotive photography to the next level with a few simple capture techniques and some creative post-processing in darktable:
https://avidandrew.com/car_photography.html

#photography #tutorial #classiccar #car #tutorial #opensource #foss #darktable #canon #camera #linux #software

May 01, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

No matter which side of the great Tuvix debate you fall on, this season 2 episode of Star Trek: Voyager is a powerful, thought-provoking story:
https://avidandrew.com/tuvix.html

#startrek #scifi #sciencefiction #tuvix #review

April 21, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

As we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the release of Tracker, Mark Knopfler's eight solo album, let's revisit some highlights from this complex, heartfelt record:
https://avidandrew.com/tracker.html

#music #review #direstraits #markknopfler #rock #britishgrove #guitar

April 15, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

When your subject is old and historic, it may be desirable to give the entire image an aged, analog look. Using the color wheel, let's explore how to create an analogous color harmony and give and old-time look to this photo:
https://avidandrew.com/analog-tram.html

#photography #tutorial #opensource #darktable #canon #camera #linux #software #travelphotography #portugal #lisbon

April 06, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

The political, social, and economic structures of Europe are complex and unmatched anywhere else in the world. Let's explore how these different pieces work together to create modern Europe:
https://avidandrew.com/europe.html

#geography #europe #learn #world #eu #travel

March 14, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

Scenes with a high dynamic range can be challenging to work with - either you risk blowing the highlights or the shadows are way too dark. Let's learn how to compress a high dynamic range scene in darktable using both filmic rgb and sigmoid to compare how each of these tone mapping modules work:
https://avidandrew.com/hdr.html

#photography #tutorial #opensource #darktable #canon #camera #hawaii #ocean #beach #sand #linux #software #travelphotography

March 04, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

I'm reviewing Star Trek episodes that really embody the core principles of the franchise. DS9's Children of Time is a touching story of family, perseverance, growth, and sacrifice. Let's explore the core Star Trek principles it presents below:
https://avidandrew.com/children-of-time.html

#startrek #deepspacenine #scifi #sciencefiction #philosophy #review

February 25, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

Transferring files from one disk to another or one computer to another sounds like a trivial task, but when you're dealing with a huge number of files and directories, ensuring that the data was fully copied and exactly matches the source becomes harder to do. Fortunately, the venerable file syncing utility rsync makes it easy to handle large directory trees, verify that all files were synced successfully, and update the destination later quickly with only the files that changed. Let's dive in to how to use rsync:
https://avidandrew.com/rsync.html

#software #opensource #linux #freebsd #samba #rsync #backup #storage #nas #homelab #tutorial

February 18, 2025
Avid Andrew
avidandrew@universeodon.com

The mighty Sigiriya rises from the surrounding plains in dramatic fasion. This UNESCO World Heritage site is both impressive and beautiful to see. Let's look at how to bring out this beauty and detail in darktable:
https://avidandrew.com/sigiriya.html

#darktable #photography #SriLanka #sigiriya #travel #travelphotography #opensource #canon #camera #linux #software

February 08, 2025