Month: September 2022

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Chick-fil-A is bland, overrated chicken. Being honest with ourselves is important. It’s generic fast food in desperate need of a few more herbs and/or spices. That doesn’t mean the legend of Chick-fil-A employees isn’t something to both praise and marvel at. They go above and beyond in serving their community. As opposed to lazy Mcdonald’s employees who expect $25 an hour to throw frozen meat in the microwave and never fix the shake machine.

The legend grows in Florida as one employee took a break from slinging barely seasoned nuggets to save a woman and her baby by choking the f*ck out of their would-be carjacker.

The punk’s name is William Branch. According to Whiskey Riff (who, like me, can’t wait for the new Koe Wetzel album on Friday), Branch tried to jack the car using a stick. This does not look like the face of the man who grasps the irony.

The woman screamed as Branch worked his way into her car. Upon hearing the cries of a damsel in distress, the mystery Chick-fil-A employee lept into action. He pulled Branch from the car, wrestled him to the ground, then put Branch in a chokehold until help arrived. It was a solid chokehold, too. If the anonymous Florida resident isn’t training at American Top Team yet, he should.

Branch is being charged with carjacking with a weapon (the stick Branch used) and battery. Our mystery Chick-fil-A employee remains just that, walking off into the horizon until he is called on again to save the day.

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The post 10 Best Lightroom Alternatives (Free & Paid) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.

Interested in the best Lightroom alternatives for organizing and editing your photos? You’re in the right place.

Lightroom is one of the most popular photo editors and managers on the market, but it’s certainly not your only option. Below, we share our top 10 favorite alternative post-processing programs – so whether you’re a Lightroom user looking for a change or you’re a beginner researching all potential software, this article will help you out.

Our list includes free and paid options as well as programs for beginner and advanced editors. By the time you’ve finished reading, you’ll be ready to choose the best software for your needs.

1. RawTherapee

An open-source program for photo editing and management, RawTherapee is a fantastic free Lightroom alternative. It’s not difficult to use, but the interface can be off-putting if you’re used to working in Lightroom or other popular programs.

Fortunately, the learning curve isn’t especially steep (depending on your photo-editing requirements). And there’s a RawPedia full of material to help you figure out whatever you need.

RawTherapee also allows for batch editing, and it can be synced with Photoshop or GIMP if you need to do advanced photo retouching and manipulation.

If you’re interested in learning more, check out our in-depth Lightroom versus RawTherapee comparison.

Pros

• Free
• Syncs with PS and GIMP
• Windows, iOS, and Linux versions are available

Cons

• No cloud storage
• Steeper learning curve

2. Luminar

Skylum Luminar is a paid editing program that includes a photo manager. Until recently, it was only available as a one-time purchase, which could be an advantage, especially when the software was on sale. (Skylum did release new products somewhat frequently, so if you wanted to use the company’s cutting-edge software, you needed to purchase a new program every year or so.)

Now, however, Skylum has a more complicated approach to product development and sales. You can still buy the company’s Luminar AI program with a one-time payment, but it’s not the latest and greatest product. The best program, Luminar Neo, is offered as a subscription (monthly or yearly plans are available) or as a one-off purchase. But it’s not a single asset; instead, you can purchase “extensions” that are sold separately from the main software.

Regardless of your payment preferences, what’s especially important to remember is that both Luminar AI and Luminar Neo are powerful photo editors, and they also include a section where you can manage your images. The biggest difference is that Luminar AI is designed to offer easy one-click solutions for photo editing, while Luminar Neo gives you more creative control and therefore has a steeper learning curve.

Pros

• AI tools
• Easy to use
• Selective editing

Cons

• Paid
• Confusing pricing model

3. Adobe Bridge

Adobe Bridge is Adobe’s assets manager. Unlike Lightroom, it supports multiple video and audio formats, AI files, PDFs, 3D materials, etc.

To edit a photograph using Adobe Bridge, you need to install Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). It works as a plugin, so you can launch it from inside of Bridge (but you can’t open it separately).

Adobe Camera Raw has a very similar interface to Lightroom, and the features are essentially identical. It basically gives you Lightroom – and when you combine ACR with Bridge, you get a more powerful file manager.

To use Bridge, you do need an Adobe membership plan; if you decide to go this route, consider purchasing the Photography plan or the Photoshop app.

Pros

• Supports multiple file formats
• Free with any of the Adobe CC apps
• Syncs with Photoshop

Cons

• Photo editing via ACR plug-in
• Requires an Adobe membership

4. ACDSee

As far as paid choices go, ACDSee offers some of the best Lightroom alternatives you can find. The company offers multiple products to fit the needs and budgets of different types of photographers (though it may be difficult to decide which is best for you).

Whichever program you choose, you’ll gain access to solid software that offers digital asset management and photo editing. And at the time of writing, all the ACDSee editing products include Luxea Video Editor for free.

ACDSee programs are intuitive and easy to use, which makes them perfect for beginners. They also have some very powerful tools both for managing and editing, so professional photographers will be plenty satisfied. Furthermore, Lightroom users needing to migrate their photos can easily import databases from Lightroom Classic.

Pros

• Multiple solutions to choose from
• Reasonably priced
• Easy import of LR database

Cons

• Only one product for Mac
• No photo editing in the free version

5. Apple Photos

Apple Photos is free and pre-installed on every Apple device. In fact, iPhones and iPad cameras automatically upload their images to Apple Photos – but you can also import images from other cameras and devices. It supports all image formats, including RAW files, and it supports video, as well.

Apple Photos uses on-device machine learning to help you organize and filter your files. This is a great way to manage and search through your images more efficiently. You can also sync your files using Apple iCloud so that you can access them on all your iOS devices.

Photo and video editing are non-destructive, and Apple Photos offers automatic tools that you can use to fine-tune your files. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have many advanced editing features – not yet, at least. But it is continuously being updated and has greatly improved in the last few years, so who knows? Maybe it will get more professional in the future!

Pros

• Free
• iPhone Live Photos preview
• Nondestructive editing
• On-device machine learning AI tools

Cons

• Only for iOS
• Not many advanced tools

6. ON1 Photo RAW

ON1 Photo RAW is an excellent Lightroom alternative – one that’s available as either a one-off purchase or a subscription. If you go with the subscription plan, you get all the products and plug-ins, all future updates, and even cloud storage. But if you grab the program as a one-off purchase, you’ll need to pay for future updates separately.

Photo RAW is a powerful photo editor with multiple AI tools that work very well; the NoNoise AI feature is particularly impressive. You also get plenty of manual features if you want to have full control over the editing process.

The program also has management tools that allow you to organize, cull, and rate your files. It supports all RAW formats and allows you to switch to a fast preview option if you need to browse your files quickly. (You can create full-quality previews at a later time.)

Pros

• Subscription or purchase available
• Compatible with PS plugins
• Excellent NoNoise AI tool
• Free cloud storage with a subscription plan

Cons

• Paid
• Interface could be better

7. Darktable

Like many open source programs, Darktable can be overwhelming for beginners – especially those who aren’t tech-savvy. You don’t need to know coding to use the program, but when browsing resources or checking out the FAQ section of the website, you might get confused. This is mainly because you’ll come across programming terms that aren’t part of the average photographer’s vocabulary.

However, once you understand how to use Darktable, you’ll realize that it’s a very powerful software and an amazing free Lightroom alternative

You can import your photos into Darktable for easy search, rating, and tagging. The program supports all raw formats and has both basic and advanced editing features. It also offers multiple export formats and the ability to export images directly to email, Facebook, and Flickr.

Pros

• Free
• Non-destructive editing
• Available for all platforms

Cons

• Not such a friendly interface
• Steeper learning curve

8. DxO PhotoLab

DxO PhotoLab is a powerful photo editor. The management tools are more basic, but this is understandable because the Library and organizing features were only recently added.

It boasts outstanding editing tools; one of the best is the noise reduction upgrade. If you like to have full control, you’ll love the U Point technology that offers customizable Control Lines and Points for easier and more precise masking.

As I mentioned above, the management tools are on the simpler side, but you can still cull and organize your images. You can also browse them using the new dynamic search option.

Note that you receive a free copy of PhotoLab 5 with the purchase of the (outstanding) Nik Collection.

Pros

• AI tools
• Nik collection plugins
• U Point technology for precise selective editing

Cons

• Paid
• Management tools could be better
• Confusing pricing model

9. Capture One

Capture One is an incredible Lightroom alternative, but be warned: It’s not targeted at beginners. It costs more, it offers full control over every step of the workflow, and it has very few auto or one-click features.

Capture One’s management capabilities allow you to efficiently cull and organize your images. You can also create smart albums, export photos in different formats to different locations, and preview the export recipe before processing.

You can use Capture One for wireless tethered shooting with compositional overlays. It’s possible to customize your workspace and make annotations on your images. The software is jam-packed with editing tools and the results are very high quality.

Pros

• Subscription or one-time purchase available
• Includes tethered shooting
• Customizable workspace and workflow
• Solutions for businesses and teams

Cons

• Expensive
• Steep learning curve

10. Google Photos

Google Photos offers photo editing and management features, and for amateurs and beginner photographers, it’s a decent pick.

Thanks to the auto-backup feature that uploads directly from your gallery, it’s a great manager for smartphone photos. You can also manually upload photos from other devices using the browser version. You get 15 GB of storage for free, and you can always purchase more if you need it.

Google Photos offers basic photo editing including a one-click feature. It also has fun tools like Cinematic Moments (which animates two similar photos).

It uses AI to help you find your images by place, face detection, and more. However, it does lack professional management tools like keyword tagging.

Pros

• Free
• AI search tools
• Auto-backup from your phone
• 15 GB storage

Cons

• No longer offers unlimited storage
• No advanced editing features
• No keyword tagging

Extra alternative: Lightroom Mobile

If you’re looking for the best Lightroom alternatives because you don’t like Lightroom, then simply ignore this suggestion – but if you’re simply looking for a free alternative, then consider Lightroom Mobile, which has a (very functional) limited free version.

Although some tools are limited to paid members, the free version can handle quite a bit of editing. It also offers 2 GB of cloud storage so that you can also use it as a file manager.

Pros

• Free
• Selective editing
• Cloud storage

Cons

• Limited features
• Mobile-only
• Requires an Adobe account

Which Lightroom alternative should you choose?

Though Adobe products are very powerful tools, they’re certainly not the only game in town. As you can see, there are many valid alternatives for those wishing to switch from Lightroom (or those who simply want to avoid it from the start).

If you’re looking for a free Lightroom alternative, you have two types of programs to choose from: free and open source or free and commercial. And in the paid category, you have a choice between one-off purchases or subscriptions.

To make the right decision, make sure you balance your budget with your editing and file-management needs as well as your personal skillset.

Best Lightroom alternatives: final thoughts

Lightroom is both a photo editor and a file manager. Taking this into account, I’ve aimed to share Lightroom alternatives that include both capabilities.

Of course, if you only need editing or file-management software (or you’re willing to use separate programs for each task), then you have many more choices.

Which program do you plan to use? Why? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post 10 Best Lightroom Alternatives (Free & Paid) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.

Digital Photography School

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The San Diego Jam Knot, as its name implies comes from a sportfishing capital of the world. The city is the gateway to the Pacific for anglers chasing after tunas, seabass, and yellowtail. The San Diego Jam Knot was originally tied as a quick and easy way of tying “irons” jigs when chasing big tuna on long-range boats off the coast of Mexico.

This knot is a great choice for all line types: mono, fluorocarbon, and braid. When making sure the jam knot is fully set and tight on a hook or lure, you can attach the hook to a fixed object and give a strong pull. That will make sure the knot is set tight and won’t come loose when fished. This knot is one of the stronger knots available and has been tested rigorously by the San Diego Tuna boats.

Step 1

Run the line through the eye of the hook and bring the tag end of the line back along the mainline.

Step 2

Take the tag end of the line and then wrap it around the main line multiple times, a minimum of 4 wraps, the more the better. The thicker the diameter of the line the fewer wraps needed, and the thinner the line or if using braided line more wraps are needed

Step 3

Take the tag end of the line and pass it through the double line next to the eye of the hook and then the loop made by the first wrap.

Step 4

Hold the hook or lure and pull and adjust the tag end of the line to tighten the knot up after moistening the line. Be careful not to mess up the wraps and have them go over each other.

Step 5

Trim off the excess line from the tag end of the line, leaving about 1/4″ behind for the tag. Then pull the knot down to the eye of the hook and tighten it up. You can put the hook or lure somewhere solid and give it a solid pull to make sure the knot is tight. This is the finished San Diego Jam Knot.

The post Are You Nuts? Know your Fishing Knots! – The San Diego Jam Knot appeared first on AllOutdoor.com.

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Chivalry is not dead and a Rhode Island middle school teacher is put on leave thanks to a student-created "pedo database" tracking him creeping on twelve-year-old girls.

Starting in sixth grade, boys at Davisville Middle School noticed one of their teachers, who was also a coach, getting way too close with the female students. He’d make the girls dance for him. He’d give them pet names. He’d treat the students like he was Joe Biden spotting a girl in pigtails.

Sometimes they’d laugh. Sometimes they just kind of just sit there awkwardly. Even the ones that said he was "creepy" laughed because they were obviously not trying to tick him off or anything. So they’re just fake laughing, awkwardly laughing.

When the students would speak up, no adults would take them seriously. Worse, the teacher himself is alleged to have "told the students that for nearly 30 years, he’s dealt with complaints from parents and there was nothing anyone could do to him."

The male students viewed that as a challenge. In January of 2021, they created a "pedo database" named after the teacher on Discord, a social media platform that allows users to communicate privately. The students would log the teacher’s creepy actions and bad touches as they happened in real-time so there was a record.

This is now the official chat that we will later use as evidence against (the teacher) about pedophilia in case anything does come up in the future and we do turn out to be right.

The database proved to be useful this year. The teacher was removed from the school over allegations he stalked one of the middle school girls and was "inappropriate" with others. Again, the school ignored complaints. That is until an attorney for one of the girls threatened to take out a restraining order against the teacher.

The public was asked to come forward with any information. One of the students came forward with their "pedo tracker." It’s now being shared with lawyers, the school district, and the US attorney’s office.

One more pedo teacher taken away. Well done, lads.

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Swedish Election PROVES The Left Is Engineering Racism! | Louder With Crowder

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Louder With Crowder

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composer require laravel/telescope

php artisan telescope:install

php artisan migrate

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            return in_array($user->email, [
                'your@email.com'
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        });
    }

protected function gate()
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        Gate::define('viewTelescope', function ($user) {
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There’s savage, and then there’s ticked-off-British-wit savage:

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Taurus is known for making affordable, dependable guns. Yes, they’ve had their hiccups, but I believe those days are behind us.

The company’s new TX22 has recently been issued in competition finery, with a relieved slide, 4-pound trigger, threaded barrel, and optics-ready slide.

But does this budget-friendly pistol really stack up on the stages? We’re going to walk you through the pros, cons, specs, and features to let you know.

So keep reading!

Taurus TX22 Competition Review at a Glance

Pros

• The gun reliably spits lead with every pull of the trigger and shucked the empties clear.
• You get three 16-round mags with loading pull-down tabs.
• An optics base plate is installed at the factory, and adapter plates allow different red dot sights to be mounted.

Cons

• Grip texturing is fairly non-existent, and the grip feels slippery.
• The MSRP of $533 seems a bit pricy for a Taurus .22, even with the included accessories.
• One of the included mags was missing its round pull-down tab that allows quick loading. The mag was still functional, but this was a QC miss.

The Bottom Line

For a street price of around $450, you get three 16-round mags, a red dot-ready slide, a muzzle compensator, and a very nice trigger. Add in the lightened slide, adjustable rear sight, plus locked-in reliability and accuracy, and you have a winner, winner chicken dinner!

Specs & Features

Specs

• Width: 1.25”
• Length: 8.15”
• Barrel Length: 5.25”
• Height: 5.44”
• Weight: 23.2 oz.
• Capacity: 16+1
• MSRP: $533

Features

• Threaded barrel with standard 1/2×28 threads for a compensator or suppressor
• Fully Adjustable Rear Sight
• Reversible Magazine Release

Source: Taurus

Background

The .22 handgun field is crowded. From super-expensive tack-driving target guns like the Smith & Wesson 41 to inexpensive plinkers like the Heritage Rough Rider, you can get just about whatever you desire in a rimfire pistol or revolver.

In terms of pistols set up for competition, Taurus is a new player in the game.

The TX22 has been a steady seller for Taurus since its introduction. What sets the gun apart from most of its competition is reliability, accuracy, and capacity.

I mean, what other accurate .22 pistol holds 17 rounds and sells for what this pistol costs? There might be some out there, but Taurus seems to have nailed it with this gun. This is a company with its proverbial ear to the ground, listening to shooters and trying to supply our needs.

They decided to make a TX22 for competitors, so they modified the stock model and added some excellent features. Taurus’s recent releases seem to have been well received, and the TX22 Competition is no exception.

Who Is It For?

This Competition model is geared toward rimfire competitors. I know, duh…but it also is made for the casual shooter who may want to take their rimfire game to the next level.

You can easily customize this pistol.

On the Taurus Store, there are over 40 items you can buy for the TX22. This means that most shooters, from beginners to seasoned veterans, can modify the gun to fit their needs.

Another segment of the shooting market I should mention is the small-game hunters out there, of which I am one. The TX22, with its adjustable rear sight or a red dot, would make a great squirrel-getter.

Overall, it is an extremely versatile pistol.

What’s In The Box?

In addition to the pistol, you have three magazines, two red dot adapter plates, the muzzle compensator with O-ring, a washer and barrel thread protector, a magazine loader, a lock, and a manual. The case is a hinged, hard-plastic type that is better than previous Taurus boxes.

Fit & Feel

The gun felt like a full-size 9mm in my hand, except for the weight. It is pretty light, even with a full magazine and a red dot installed.

The only issue I had with it concerned the lack of grip texture. Now, I get it – I assume Taurus figures that this gun is “just” a .22 and won’t recoil like its brethren with larger holes in their barrels. They probably figure that a less-textured grip surface is OK and won’t rub new shooters the wrong way (literally).

If you are like me and prefer a more aggressive grip texture, this gun doesn’t have it. The first thing I’d do is plug in my trusty soldering iron and stipple the snot out of it or add some Talon Grips.

As for sights, they don’t co-witness, so the plain-ordinary-white-dot-ness isn’t much of a factor for red dot shooters. At least the rear sight is adjustable.

How Does It Shoot?

I took the gun to my backyard range and grabbed three boxes of .22 ammo — Remington Thunderbolt, Winchester Wildcat 40-grain HP, and Aguila 40-grain target.

I installed my TruGlo Tru-Tec micro red dot on the gun for shooting.

It shot mostly low, so I used a high/right aiming point for the Remington. The other two allowed me to use a center hold on the orange dot and still keep the shots on the paper, about 2 inches low.

The Remington Thunderbolt spread itself a bit. Depending on the gun, this load is either very accurate or not at all.

The TX22 is somewhere in the middle…

The Winchester and Aguila loads allowed the use of the center orange “dot” as an aiming point. Windage was right on, but the elevation was low.

As you can see, the gun would be worth working with to find that perfect load for it.

I only tried three, but it is well known that .22 ammo varies widely in its accuracy potential with different guns. If I had more time with this pistol, I’d try some CCI 40-grain standard and high-velocity loads, but the potential is there.

What Sets it Apart?

Why would you buy this TX22 when there are other capable .22 pistols in the same price range or less?

From my perspective, it feels different in my hand than S&W Victory. The grip offers a more “Glock-like” feel…like a full-size striker 9mm than most other .22s I’ve handled or shot.

The frame is very close to that used on the TH line of Taurus guns and also is close to the G3 series frames.

You could practice with the TX22, then go to your bigger blaster without much fuss. My Victory or my Diamondback Sidekick can’t do that.

By The Numbers

Reliability: 5/5

It shot whatever I put through it.

Ergonomics: 4/5

The slick grip makes it a 4, not a 5.

Accuracy: 5/5

No problems here!

Customization: 5/5

The Taurus Store and many other vendors have you covered here with plenty of accessories to add on.

Value: 4/5

Its street price of ~$450 is a bit steep, but if you want to keep it under $500, it will do.

Overall: 4.5/5

Upgrades for the TX22 Competition

The Taurus Store is a great place to start for accessories, but a quick search will turn up a bunch of other vendors that should scratch your TX22 modification itch.

How about a raised, red competition magazine release? Tandemkross sells one.

If you own a standard TX22, you can buy a Competition model conversion kit for a few more dollars. That gets you the slide, barrel, and recoil spring of the Competition model. It’s a simple plug-and-play setup.

Final Verdict

To sum up, the .22 pistol market has just happily expanded, and the Taurus TX22 Competition pistol is a great addition to the neighborhood.

From its threaded muzzle, a great trigger, versatile optics base plate & adapters to its lightened slide and adjustable rear sight, the Comp has a lot going for it.

I wouldn’t hesitate for an instant to add this gun to my gun cabinet, and I don’t think you should, either.

What do you think of the Taurus TX22 Competition? Let us know below. Interested in the regular TX22 or .22 LR guns in general? Check out our article on the Best .22 LR Training Guns.

The post Taurus TX22 Competition Review: Best Budget Competition Pistol? appeared first on Pew Pew Tactical.

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The sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is called Tears of the Kingdom and it’s due to hit Switch on May 12th, 2023. Nintendo revealed the release date, name and a short teaser for the game during today’s Direct showcase. The studio says Tears of the Kingdom will travel into the skies beyond Hyrule, to an expanded world among the clouds.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild debuted in 2017, the same day the Switch came to market. It was a huge critical and commercial success, and the sequel has been hotly anticipated since. The new game was originally announced with a release window in 2022, but in March, Nintendo delayed it into spring 2023.

It wasn’t the only major game to be pushed out of 2022. A handful of titles from big publishers, including Starfield, Redfall, Hogwarts Legacy and Forspoken, were delayed into 2023 this year.

Engadget

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Okay, this video went viral again this week and I had to show it to you.

Not the Bee

The third part of a code review of an open-source repository called Skuul. This time, we’re talking about roles and permissions, with seeders, controllers, and policies.Laravel News Links