Hjalmar Broch was the first chairperson of Norges Naturvernforbund from 1916 to 1920 and later from 1951 to 1956. Photo: Leif Ørnelund (1914 – 1992)
Norges Naturvernforbund (NNV) = The Norwegian Federation for Nature Conservation is Norway’s oldest nature and environmental conservation organization. NNV is a democratic membership organization with over 35 000 members The members are the foundation of the organization and carry out the local work. The members are organized in local branches, which in turn are organized in county branches. This weblog post celebrates its founding exactly 111 years ago on 1914-02-18. However, activities only started two years later, in 1916.
The organization works on a wide range of issues, including area protection, watercourse protection, species protection, climate emission reductions, energy saving, transportation, environmental toxins, forestry, fishing and farming. The Federation also works internationally, with partner organizations, notably in Russia, Ukraine, Togo and Mozambique.
The Federation for Nature Conservation is the parent organization of Natur og Ungdom (NU) = Nature and Youth founded on 1967-11-18, and also established Miljøagentene = Environmental Agents, for children, in 1992. Originally, it had been called Blekkulfs miljødetekiver = Blekkulf’s environmental detectives, with Blekkulf being the name of a cartoon octopus. I translate the name as Bleached Wolf. It also helped with the founding of the Rainforest Fund and a Development Fund. It is affiliated with Friends of the Earth, one of the world’s largest networks of environmental organizations.
NU was to work for environmental protection.
NNV consists of county and local branches as well as a national secretariat. The organization has county branches in all of the country’s counties, and a total of about 100 local branches. A local branch can cover one or more municipalities.
The Norwegian Federation of Nature Conservation’s highest authority is the national congress, which meets every two years. Between national congresses, the association is led by a national board with representation from the county branches, and by a central board with five members. The head of both of these is the organization’s elected leader. There is also a secretary general who leads the daily operations of its secretariat, which is located in Oslo. Most of the approximately 30 employees are based there.
For the first 50 years, the Nature Conservation Association was an organization for a few, but professionally qualified members who were mainly engaged in classic nature conservation. In the 60s and 70s, however, the organization began to work on a much broader range of issues and became more critical of the government’s environmental protection work. Among other things, oil pollution, acid rain and river development = damning, were put on the agenda.
A critical change occurred at Mardala, a small valley named after the pine martin (Martes martes). It was the site of non-violent political actions against electrical power development in the summer of 1970 in Eikesdal = Oak Valley in Møre og Romsdal county. The action was an important symbolic event for the importance of preserving untouched nature. The action became particularly well-known because of the high Mardalsfossen waterfall in Eikesdal, which was to be put in a pipe, to be turned into electricity.
The Mardøla action was ideologically motivated, non-violent direct action, which made it unique at the time. The actions used civil disobedience as a means of resistance against power development, which was new in Norway. The leaders of the action were removed by the police after a camp was organized along the route of the construction road. Among the several hundred protesters were several well-known people, including philosophers Arne Næss (1912 – 2009) and Sigmund Kvaløy Sætreng (1934 – 2014) as well as the politician Odd Einar Dørum (1943 – ). The action was supported by the local population in Eikesdal and Eresfjord. But the actionists had to withdraw after threats from other Romsdal residents, especially there was resistance in Rauma municipality which wanted to get income from the power development.
The watercourse was developed and Mardalsfossen is dry most of the year. Only a few weeks during the tourist season each summer 2 m³ per second of water is released into the waterfall. The old water flow could be significantly greater, 40 m³ per second was not uncommon during snowmelt.
Protests against the development of hydroelectric power were much of the basis for building up an effective nature and environmental protection movement in Norway.
The waterfall is by the south end of the lake Eikesdalsvatnet, which also can be seen in the photograph. The waterfall’s total drop is 655 metres. The largest free fall is 297 meters, which is among the tallest in Norway.
Mardalfossen. Photo: Peter John Acklam 2004-07.
The next significant action was called the Alta controversy, involving a plan by the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) to construct a dam and hydroelectric power plant, creating an artificial lake inundating the Sámi village of Máze. After political resistance, a less ambitious project was proposed that would cause less displacement of Sámi residents and less disruption for reindeer migration and wild salmon fishing.
When work on the project started again in 1981-01, more than one thousand protesters chained themselves to the site . The police responded with 10% of all Norwegian police officers being stationed in Alta, quartered in a cruise ship. Protesters were forcibly removed by police. For the first time since World War II, Norwegians were arrested and charged with violating laws against rioting. The central organizations for the Sámi people discontinued all cooperation with the Norwegian government. The Norwegian Supreme Court ruling in favor of the government in 1982. Organized opposition to the power plant ceased, and construction of the Alta Hydroelectric Power Station was completed by 1987. Despite this, the government lost the ethical war, especially among intellectuals, with respect to its racist anti-Sámi policies. Because of their civil disobedience, four leaders, including Per Flatberg (1937 – 2022) from Inderøy, were sentenced for encouraging illegal acts.
This conflict put Sámi rights over lands in Northern Norway, as an indigenous people, onto the national political agenda. With the passing of the Finnmark Act in 2005 the Sámi made important long-term gains, and revived interest in their culture. In addition, the conflict unified environmental groups.
The Fosen wind farms discussed here are about 100 km to the north-west of Cliff Cottage. Article 27 of the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) has become the most important international provision for the protection of indigenous peoples’ cultural practices. This article was central to the Norwegian Supreme Court’s consideration of the case concerning wind power plants on the Fosen peninsula in 2021-10. This was a historic decision because it was the first time that affected Sámi parties, in a case concerning a development project in their traditional areas, won in the Supreme Court through reference to human rights. This judgment is central because it clarified several key issues regarding indigenous peoples’ protection against interference in their traditional reindeer grazing areas.
The Supreme Court Fosen judgment, from 2021, concerned the validity of the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy’s decision from 2013 to expropriate and grant a licence to the Storheia and Roan wind power plants on the Fosen Peninsula. The windfarms are located in an area where reindeer husbandry is practiced. The herders claimed that the construction interfered with their right to enjoy their own culture according to Article 27, but this was rejected by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy in 2013. Although the issue was brought before the courts, the company was nevertheless permitted to start the construction, and the windfarms were ready in 2019 and 2020, respectively. They are part of the largest onshore wind power project in Europe.
The case before the Supreme Court concerned whether the construction of the Fosen windfarms amounts to a violation of the reindeer herders’ right to enjoy their own culture under Article 27 of the ICCPR. The ICCPR is incorporated into the Act Relating to the Strengthening of the Status of Human Rights in Norwegian law (the Human Rights Act) of 21 May 1999. ICCPR thus applies directly as Norwegian law. It also takes precedence over other Norwegian legislative provisions through Section 3 of the Act in the event of a conflict with them. A grand chamber of the Supreme Court unanimously found a violation of Article 27 and stated that the licence and expropriation decisions were invalid. As of 2025, the Wind Farms are still in place, producing energy and profits for the companies that own them.
What surprises many is the ingrained racism of Norwegian society, especially with respect to Sámi people, and the attempt by the Norwegian government to Norwegianize this population. However, this racism is also directed to other ethnic groups, particularly Gypsies and immigrants from the Middle East. Rather than receiving assistance to conform to Norwegian laws, these ethnic groups, have had their children taken away and placed in institutions or foster homes, for violating parential laws, particularly related to corporal punishement. Even when the Norwegian Government loses cases at the European Court of Human Rights = the Strasbourg Court, the international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights, lights do not always start to flash.
In the future people should expect other environmental cases to emerge. Some will involve the extraction of petrochemicals in environmentally sensitive areas, others will involve the extraction of minerals, and the use of fjords to dispose of mine tailings. NNV will undoubtedly need to spend more time (and money) advocating its principles in court, than linking members to equipment or fences in the field, or outside Stortinget = the Parliament, to protest damage to the environment.
While the Norwegian population supports offshore wind projects, these can be more expensive to build, and more complex to extract energy from, than the proven technology of onshore wind farms.
A Renault 4 on display for the opening of the Paris Auto Show, 2024-10-14. Photo: Renault
This post was published on the second anniversary of acquiring Buzz, our Volkswagen electric minivan = 2025-02-13.
I note that automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), such as VW, GM, Ford and many others, but especially Stellantis, are doing little to promote inexpensive electric vehicles, on dedicated EV platforms. Stellantis wants the flexibility to drop a random power plant (gasoline, diesel, hybid, electric) into an engine bay. All of these OEMs have been prioritizing dedicated EVs for people with high incomes, and are begging authorities to delay mandatory production percentage goals, while our planet – the only one we have – is boiling, at least figuratively.
Another trend that I notice, is that OEMs want to upgrade features, by making them available on a subscription basis. For example, on 2025-02-10, /. (slashdot.org) reported that Stellantis had introduced full-screen pop-up ads on Jeep infotainment systems, for Mopar’s extended warranty service. These ads appear every time the vehicle comes to a stop, for example at a red light. This means that drivers are now forced to manually close out ads just to access basic vehicle functions.
Recently, I read that VW was spending €60 billion to develop a new fossil-fueled engine, to be available in 2028. Yes, they are living in the past! They also have an agreement to sell some of their factories to Chinese OEMs. The German government reluctantly approved this. Reluctantly, because that would allow cars produced in these plants to be considered European, much like VWs produced in China are considered Chinese. However, if the government had not approved it, they would then have to pay a large sum to VW, as compensation. Yes, international agreements can be messy.
The two existing automotive OEMs that I appreciate the most are Renault and Volvo. Saab could have been on the list, except it was taken over by General Motors, then died. Renault and Volvo had a close relationship, including shared dealerships in Norway. This is no longer the situation. When both Volvo and Saab were Swedish owned, all their vehicles were suitable for Scandinavian roads. Police in Vail and Aspen, both ski resorts in Colorado, used Saab patrol cars from 1974 to 2005.
Sometimes, even a few Renault models ended up with appropriate characteristics for Scandinavia. That did not apply to all models, because they were also interesting in selling their vehicles in more southern climates.
Here are some American vehicle longevity estimates. The Environmental Protection Agency assumes a typical car is driven 24 Mm = 24 megameters = 24 000 km per year. According to the New York Times, in the 1960s and 1970s, the typical car reached its end of life around 160 Mm. Due, in part, to manufacturing improvements, by 2012 the typical car was estimated to last for 320 Mm. Junk Car Reapers estimates the average car in 2024 lasted almost 260 Mm. So there has been a decline. Junk Car Medics puts the average vehicle longevity at 16.58 years and almost 250 Mm. Daniel Bleakly, writing in The Driven in 2023, estimated that by 2030, ICE vehicles will only make it to 225 Mm while EVs will last 800 Mm. If this is true, then Buzz can expect a lifespan of 80 years, since for the past two years, he has gone less than 10 Mm a year.
I support a right to repair law, so that consumers are not at the mercy of OEMs, or their dealers. This would be aided if open source automotive computer systems were developed, capable of replacing proprietary systems. There are efforts to do this. Even OEMs want open source, because that would reduce their software investment costs. They just don’t want the public to have access to them. These two measures could free car/ truck/ tractor users from being serfs to their OEM overloads.
Fueling and charging
While petroleum product fueling stations provide for access to fuel tanks on three sides of an ICE vehicle, EVs are generally charged at home with a dedicated charger. The location of a charging port is a subject of discussion, with differing opinions. Most often the services of an electrician are needed to install a charger, so it can be expensive to change its placement. We ended up putting the charger near the front right of Buzz, when fronted into the carport. The charge port on Buzz is located at the right rear, as it is on most German cars. This charger location allows three of the most common charge port locations to be served. Only the left rear is difficult, and would probably require a vehicle to be backed in for charging. Some manufacturers, such as Renault, vary the charge port location with the model. For road trips another measure = DC charging, is needed.
In some forgotten source, I had read that the reason for the left rear location on a Tesla, has to do with it being the location most suitable for Elon Musk’s charger at the Bel Air house he rented while designing the Tesla Roadster. Many, should I add older?, drivers find backing into a charging stall difficult, but necessary because of the short leads at Tesla supercharger stations. Thus, some people maintain that a charging point on the front (but not in the middle) is ideal.
When we bought Buzz, it was being heralded as the ultimate family vehicle. We agree, that it has many characteristics families want, including space for five people and for luggage. However, it has a price that puts it out of the reach of families with young children. Families wanting to buy a new vehicle, may have to accept that they must survive with something more affordable. In addition, there are two dimensions that make this vehicle problematic for Norway: 1) its large width, and 2) its limited ground clearance. We were aware of the width when we put in our order, but not the ground clearance. In addition, it was first announced that it would come with a heat pump. We do not have a heat pump on our Buzz, and one is not available for aftermarket installation.
Buzz has the following specifications: length x width x height = 4 712 x 1 985 x 1 937, with a wheelbase = 2 938; ground clearance = 153 mm; curb weight/ mass = 2 459 kg; maximum power = 150 kw; maximum torque = 310 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 10.0 s; maximum speed = 145 km/h; wheels driven = rear wheel drive; battery capacity = 77 kWh with a theoretical range of 418 km; charge port = rear right; trunk space = 1 121 litres; towing capacity = 1 000 kg.
On 2025-01-22 at about 10:05, my assistance was requested. While Buzz had managed to back out of the carport, he refused to move forward with Trish driving. Sensors told him there was an obstacle. Initially, everything under him seemed fine, but he still refused to move. After I dislodged a small icicle growing underneath him, the warning disappeared, and Trish could head off to Straumen. Yes, a 10 cm long icicle disabled the vehicle. In terms of batteries and operating systems, I regard Buzz as a mule, a test bed to try out new components and systems, over a period of decades, possibly by several generations of owners.
Buzz is vastly different from the first car we purchased in Norway, Robin, a red 1986 Subaru Justy. length x width x height = 3 540 x 1 540 x 1 390, with a wheelbase = 2 280; ground clearance = 150 mm; curb weight/ mass = 670 kg. It was equipped with a 3-cylinder gasoline engine. Maximum power = 40 kw; maximum torque = 80 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 16.4 s; maximum speed = 150 km/h; wheels driven = front or all; fuel tank capacity = 35 litres with a range of 585 km; trunk space = 200 litres.
We used Robin when, with two young children, we travelled through Sweden and Denmark to Germany, Netherlands and Belgium and, in another direction, to England and Scotland. Yes, it was cramped, but Robin was all we could afford. Indeed, we had to borrow most of the purchase price from our bank, paying 17% interest! Somehow we survived. One of our secrets, learned in the days of high interest rates, was to prioritize living within our budget, and to become debt free as quickly as possible.
One of the things we learned with Robin, was that its 150 mm ground clearance, was an absolute minimum, given Norway’s road conditions, with lots of snow. At delivery, we were disappointed, but aware, that Buzz barely met this requirement, but concluded that we could avoid driving when driving conditions were unacceptable. This was not possible in our working years, when we were expected to show up for work. Over the seven years of owning Robin, we also learned that we didn’t need to have drive on all four wheels. From 1993 to 2023 = 30 years we survived with just front wheel drive. We quickly learned to accept that Buzz has rear wheel drive.
Our years of driving in Norway, taught us that, apart from ground clearance, the most important dimension is vehicle width, for that influences the roads people can drive on. We have been able to buy a wider car than otherwise because we made a decision to restrict some of the roads we would drive on.
When we looked at EVs back in 2022, we were mainly looking at vans, but also investigated various other vehicles to understand the market. This included driving a Renault Zöe. It was the most pleasant of the small cars we drove. The negative side was that a purchase of such a vehicle, would require us to keep our Mazda 5, in order to tow our utility trailer, used to transport building materials. In Norway, utility trailers are a common, cheap substitute for a pickup truck. The ground clearance on the Zöe was totally unacceptable.
Zöe specifications: Length x Width x Height = 4 087 x 1 730 x 1 562, with a wheelbase = 2 588; ground clearance = 120 mm; curb weight/ mass = 1 577 kg; maximum power = 50 kw; maximum torque = 245 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 9.5 s; maximum speed = 140 km/h; wheels driven = front; battery capacity = 52 kWh with a theoretical range of 386 km; charge port = front middle; trunk space = 338 litres; towing capacity = not permitted. The Zöe is now out of production, to be replaced by the Renault 5.
The parents of one of my friends were the first people to sell Datsun vehicles in Vancouver. In the years before Japanese manufacturers offered four wheel drive (4WD) vehicles, I knew people who modified these pickups trucks to 4WD for use in the British Columbia forest industry. Yes, Japanese manufacturers make good cars, but they have their challenges. With respect to Toyota, I liked their Yaris Verso, especially, but Trish found it awkward to shift gears. Toyota is better at making iterative changes, but finds it almost impossible to take revolutionary steps necessary to produce EVs. My mother always liked her Honda Civic, my sister liked her Subaru Outback. I considered a Nissan Evalia, when we bought the Mazda. I considered a Mitsubishi Lancer, when we bought a Volkswagen Golf.
There is no point in comparing the technical specification of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles with EVs. So here, these characteristics will just be ignored. What won’t be ignored is the fact that combustion is unhealthy, and noisy. Thus, I am puzzled by Dodge making an electric 2024 Charger Daytona, with a Fratzonic chambered exhaust = two speakers driven by a dedicated 600 W amplifier, mounted in a 42.5 litre enclosure hung under the back of the car = meaningless, excessive noise.
The rest of this weblog post will look at Renault’s upcoming EV lineup, to be made available in Norway. It consists of four vehicles. The place to begin when choosing a vehicle is with something small. If there is some reason why it is too small, then look for something larger. That said, the Twingo will not be offered in Norway. It is too small, but is suitable for more southerly, less wealthy markets. The same applies to the Mobilize Duo (2-seater tandem = one behind the other) and Bento (cargo) quadricycles made in Tangier, Morocco, that have replaced the Twizy, a 2-seater tandem quadricycle made in Valladolid, Spain (2012 – 2018), then in Busan, South Korea (2019 – 2023).
Unfortunately, I have been unable to find all of the specifications for Duo. Here is what I have been able to find: length x width x height = 2 430 x 1 300 x 1 640, with a wheelbase = ?; ground clearance = ? mm; curb weight/ mass = ? kg; maximum power = 7 kw; maximum torque = ? Nm; acceleration 0 – 30 km/h = 10.0 s; maximum speed (45) = 45 km/h (80) = 80 km/h; wheels driven = rear; battery capacity = 10.3 kWh with a theoretical range of 160 km (summer) 100 km (winter); charge port = front middle; trunk space = 300 litres; towing capacity = 0 = unavailable. In some places the 40 version can be driven by unlicenced people aged 14 and over. The 80 version generally requires a driving licence, with the person aged 18 and over. One cannot buy this vehicle outright. It appears to be only available on lease. Private persons can enter into agreements for 3 months and longer. Companies may have to have longer terms, one year or more.
A Mobilize Bento (left) cargo vehicle and Duo (right) passenger vehicle. Photo: Renault
Many people enjoy hot hatches. Yes, a hot hatch EV can represent a minimalist solution to transportation nightmares. Cars have to fulfill multiple rolls. Small vehicles are more problematic, because there is less dedicated space for any particular role. At its most basic, an EV should be small enough to be comfortably driven in cities with narrow streets, yet hot = powerful enough for highway driving. In Norway, one can add over mountain passes, to that last sentence. Minimal storage space requirements is a weeks worth of groceries. We have owned a couple of cold = underpowered hatches that have been inappropriate to drive, and I would not encourage anyone to take that pathway. The best example of a cold hatch in the EV world is the Dacia Spring. Fortunately, most modern EVs can accelerate faster than muscle cars could in the 1960s, despite having their maximum speed controlled.
Renault 5 in Pop Green Photo: RenaultThe yellow interior of a Renault 5 e-Tech. Photo: Renault.
When we looked at EVs back in 2022, one of the smallest vehicles that appealed in snowless May was the Renault Zöe. This has been replaced with the Renault 5. Its dimensions length x width x height = 3 930 x 1 770 x 1 550, with a wheelbase = 2 540; curb weight/ mass = 1350 – 1450 kg; maximum power = 90/ 110 kw; maximum torque = 225/ 245 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 9.0/ 8.0 s; maximum speed = 140/ 150 km/h; wheels driven = front; battery capacity = 40 kWh/ 52kWh with a range of 300/ 410 km, respectively; trunk space = 326 litres. Storage space of 300 litres is a minimum for carrying a week’s worth of groceries. Three disappointment with this vehicle are: 1) its 500 kg towing capacity, 2) 145 mm ground clearance and – more importantly – 3) its 4-star Euro NCAP test results.
We also looked at a Renault Megane in 2022, which was larger and more expensive than the Zöe, However, it is totally unsuitable in 2025. Its dimensions length x width x height = 4 210 x 1 780 x 1 500, with a wheelbase = 2 700; ground clearance = 128 mm; curb weight/ mass = 1650 kg; maximum power = 96 kw; maximum torque = 250 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 10.0 s (the same as Buzz); maximum speed = 150 km/h; wheels driven = front; battery capacity = 40 k with a range of 298 km; charge port = front left; trunk space = 440 litres. Again, the Megane can only tow 500 kg, There are so many characteristics that make this model unsuitable for families.
Back in 1996, Alasdair encouraged me to test drive a Renault Scenic, when it first appeared. He was interested in getting some sort of premium to be awarded to people who test drove the vehicle. If I remember correctly, despite being the first people to test drive one, the local Renault dealer did not have any of these premiums to give away. So we met with false advertising, an important lesson.
Original Renault Scenic ICE version: Length x Width x Height = 4 168 mm x 1 719 x 1 609 mm, and a wheelbase of 2 580 mm, the original Scenic was much smaller than the Mazda 5. The new Renault Scenic EV version is still smaller than the Mazda 5, but closer in size, with length x width x height = 4 470 x 1 964 x 1 571 with a wheelbase of 2 785 mm; ground clearance = 121 mm; curb weight/ mass = 1727 kg; maximum power = 125 kw; maximum torque = 280 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 8.6 s; maximum speed = 150 km/h; wheels driven = front; battery capacity = 60 kWh with a range of 430 km, respectively; charge port = front left; trunk space = 545 litres. It can tow 1 100 kg, making it 100 kg better than the VW Buzz, but 100 kg worse than the Mazda 5. The Renault Scenic E-Tech has 5-stars in the Euro-NCAP, and won the award for European Car of the Year 2024. However, like the other Renault EVs, it has minimal ground clearance.
A 2024 Renault Scenic e-Tech. Photo: M 93 2024-06-30.
When we lived in Molde, 1980 – 1985, we knew two families who owned Renault 4s. We even borrowed one of them to go on our first automotive holiday in Norway! From my perspective the Renault 4 seemed to be more in harmony with the Norwegian spirit and values than the hot hatch Renault 5. That applied then, and it applies now. Here are the specifications for the new Renault 4 (with differences from the new Renault 5): length x width x height = 4 140 (+210) x 1 800 (+30) x 1 570 (+20), with a wheelbase = 2 620 (+80); = 181 mm ; curb weight/ mass = ?; maximum power = 100 kw; maximum torque = 245 Nm; acceleration 0 – 100 km/h = 8.5 s; maximum speed = 150 km/h; wheels driven = front; battery capacity = 52kWh with a range of 400 km, respectively; charge port = front left; trunk space = 420 litres.
As I was writing this weblog post, I came across an article in the Norwegian automotive magazine, Motor, which began (translated into English): PARIS (Motor): The car [referring to a Renault 4] completes a renewal of the Renault portfolio that has happened at an astonishing pace under the Italian boss, Luca de Meo.
“I would say we now have the best model range that Renault has presented in more than 30 years. This year has been rock’n’roll for us, with a new model every month, and now we are releasing the fireworks with four launches this month”, [de Meo] said when he opened the Renault stand at the Paris show on [2024-10-14].
Only one of the four is relevant for Norway. And that is the Renault 4. (end of quotation) The photo below will explain why.
A typical country road in Mosvik, across Skarnsund Bridge from Cliff Cottage, in 2016-01. Cars can use this road without complaint. There are some meeting points along this road, where it is safe for two cars to pass each other. Photo: Patricia McLellan.A country road in Mosvik, across Skarnsund Bridge from Cliff Cottage, in 2025-01. Buzz complains when he has to use this road. This road is considerably worse now in 2025, when the municipality decided to save money by using a snow plow, instead of a snow blower. It resulted in the ditches on either side of the road being filled with gravel, which will have to be removed at a cost that far exceeds the savings that came from using inappropriate snow equipment. Yes, in Norway everyone, even people born in Vancouver, is entitled to opinions about the quality of winter roads.
I understand what the journalist is referring to. The Renault 4 is appropriate for Norway, and roads where snow does not get removed as quickly as possible. It has a ground clearance that exceeds my mental minimum = 160 mm. It also has a towing capacity of 750 kg.
Renault 4 Photo: Renault.
While I am happy with Buzz, I am less happy with Volkswagen. Trish often compares Buzz with previous vehicles, such as the Mazda 5, that could drive 1 Mm = 1 000 km between fuelings. Buzz offers less than 400 km. A 250% increase, or even doubling of the current range = 1 000 or 800 km, should be a realistic goal in the next ten years. I see no need for a larger range than that.
Currently, we have absolutely no plans to purchase another EV. Buzz is a sunk cost. I encourage the people who inherit it from us to upgrade it regularly at, say, ten year intervals. New batteries will be developed, and equipped with heat pumps. Sodium based batteries, while being heavier in terms of their power/ mass ratio, appear to operate better in cold weather, compared to lithium based batteries.
Once the ability to have Volkswagen pay for anything expires (such as after 8 years for batteries), I hope the owners of Buzz, will be able to comoditize the vehicle, so that it conforms to their needs. This is a task for the upcoming generations, not an old man.
I prefer to call my smallest computer a hand-held device, rather than a phone. That is because it has to perform numerous tasks, most of which are totally unrelated to making voice calls to another human bean.
One of the conversations I frequently have with myself, has to do with technological choices. Why do people opt for smart devices, rather than their slightly less intelligent siblings? Or, why are people willing to pay a premium for smart devices? An even more alluring question is, why are people willing to pay a premium for dumb devices? This can be a very real situation, especially when the dumb phone in question is a Light Phone. My standard answers have to do with apps. Someone I don’t know and don’t want to know, will demand that I install and use some specific app in order to undertake something, that could be done with a much simpler and more generic, procedure. That someone has mandated the use of a specific app. I need to use that app because I need (want, is usually the more correct term) the service or product being provided. In other words, I opt to make a bad choice, because I want a particular product or service, more than I value my privacy.
Yes, I can give specific examples. Buzz, our daily drive, is equipped with studded snow tires in the winter, the result of driving on under-plowed, but over-iced roads. Some places, such as Trondheim municipality, require vehicle users with studs to pay a stud use fee. We accept this fact. Unfortunately, installing an app to do so is not something that can be done on the road. The information needed to associate a bank account with the app is safely locked/ hidden in our house. It is not taken on road trips. Of course, we would prefer to pay with our bank card, which was possible to do through the end of 2023. However, on a drive to Trondheim during the winter of 2024, the organization collecting the fee had removed the option to pay with a bank card, and wanted to collect additional information about us. As this situation arose about 120 km away from Cliff Cottage, our only solution was to: 1) not register for the app; 2) not use an uninstalled app to pay the use fee; 3) risk having our snow tires discovered, which would result in a fine. We were not caught. Since then, we do not drive into Trondheim in the winter. This means that we buy fewer things in Trondheim. Sorry, Ikea!
Paying for electric vehicle charging is another area where it has been possible for the energy providers to demand use of an app. For years, the Norwegian electric car association has been encouraging the Norwegian government to enact legislation that will allow the use of bank cards. This has now started to happen, and all new stations have to provide this option. Established stations will have until the end of 2025 to implement changes.
This is an interesting situation because most stores in Norway are required to accept cash payments. So, if I enter the coop to buy an orange, they are required to accept a cash payment for it. If I then drive across the street to the local charging station, that station is allowed to insist that I install their app, until the end of 2025! The government that is demanding that stores allow people to pay in cash, have managed to create a situation that allows charging stations to avoid cash or card payments!
Apart from a few conversations, some messages and taking lots of photos, there is not much that I want a smart device to do. Yes, I have the capability to use a smart device, but agree with many users who complain that smart devices have become too demanding, especially with abusive social media algorithms.
There is an entire industry developing anti-smart phones. One example is the Light Phone originally launched in 2015 following a successful Kickstarter campaign. A Light Phone II arrived in 2018. They were minimalist devices, with black-and-white displays, but without a camera. In 2024, the Light Phone III emerged, with a 50 M pixel front and 8 M pixel rear = selfie camera. This resolves my main complaint, but opens several new ones. The display is still black-and-white, despite the phone capturing colour images. This means they have to be viewed in monochrome until they are downloaded. There is no headphone jack, a feature I appreciate on my smart device.
More positively, its dimensions are: 106 x 71.5 x 12 mm. Its display is 100 mm with 1080 x 1240 pixels resolution. It has a 1 800 mAh removable battery. Other tools include optional: alarm, calculator, calendar, directory, turn-by-turn directions, hotspot, music, notes/voice memo, podcast and timer features. It provides a near-field communication (NFC) chip, that allows devices to exchange small amounts of data with each other over relatively short distances. It also has 5G connectivity and fingerprint ID.
Yet, I hesitate to enter the dumb phone world. One problem is a 2 Mpixel camera. It is far from the 50 Mpixel camera I am used to. Then there is the under-powered Unisoc T107 chipset, minimal 64 MB RAM and 128 MB storage, expandable up to 32GB via the microSD card slot. Then there is 4G, not 5G.
A Light Phone III, expected to launch in 2025.
The Light Phone III is durable, constructed with a metal frame and recycled plastic panels, with an accessible and replaceable battery. The display and USB port are claimed to be more easily replaceable than those on conventional smart devices. When it launches in 2025, it is expected to cost about ten times the price of a Nokia 3210, or about 30% more than the price of my current smart device, an Asus Zenfone 9.
If I were to revert to a dumb device, I hope it would be a more stylish Nokia product, with its origins in Finland. Unfortunately, this device is targeted towards younger users, those under 16, who are likely to be banned from taking smart phones to school.
This Nokia 3210 (2024) is shown in Y2K gold. It is probably more suitable for younger users, than the elederly.
The revived Nokia 3210 was relaunched in 2024. The original Nokia 3210 was designed by Alastair Curtis (? – ) in Nokia’s Los Angeles Design Center. It was released in 1999, and became the 7th most-sold phone in history. The new phone has been restyled , appealing to dumb phone fans. Its dimensions are: 122 x 52 x 13.1 mm. It offers a 60 mm 240 x 320 pixel, in-plane switching (IPS) display, characterized as having the best colour and viewing angles, a USB-C connector for data transfer and charging, 4G connectivity, Bluetooth support, and dual-SIM capabilities. It runs Series 30+ based on Mocor OS, a proprietary operating system, and has Cloud Phone technology support. This means it is capable of accessing YouTube, and Google Sign-in Services as well as real-time modern web applications. The battery is removable, providing a Li-ion 1 450 mAh for up to several days of service. In terms of price, it is less than 15% of my current smart device.
For an old geezer/ geezette, the most likely brand for a dumbish device is probably Doro, with its origins in Malmö, in southern Sweden. It refers to itself as a consumer electronics and assistive technology company. It was founded in 1974 as a challenger to the state-run telecommuncations monopoly, and developed communications products and services for the elderly, such as mobile phones and telecare systems.
The 8080 model is produced for people with eyesight, hearing and motor skill issues. If one is having dementia issues, the 8050 model could be more appropriate. In a smart move, Doro claims that these are smartphones. Yes, anyone can claim that because there are no official definitions about what is dumb and what is smart. However, Doro also produces other devices, including those with a clam shell shape, that they refer to as dumb phones.
Doro’s interface, Eva, is described by them as: patented, intuitive and action-based. Their sales propaganda claims it is: like having someone who understands your needs always by your side. Users never need to look around for things they can’t find. Eva simply gives them a few clear choices, and then does what the user wishes based on their response. She’s also the perfect companion when starting up the phone for the first time, guiding the user every step of the way. And because she is designed by Doro, Eva makes the technology fun, available and easy for everyone, whether new to Android, or a long-time user and fan.
The Doro Quick Start Guide admits that three types of people may be setting up a phone. One can choose between “Yes, I am a beginner”, “No, I have already used one” or “I’m setting the phone up for someone else” .
The phone is 174 x 74 x 9mm in size and weighs 175g and has a 5.7 inch 1440 x720 display with a narrow bezel so will fit into a pocket, handbag or backpack. The screen is large enough to be readable. There is 32 GB of storage, which is minimal for such a device. However, the SIM drawer can accommodate a microSD memory card of up to 128GB. To open the drawer one just uses one’s fingernail. On the top edge of the phone is a standard 3.5mm headphone port while at the bottom is a microphone, a loudspeaker and USB-C power connector.
The display has very clear icons, its brilliance can be adjusted, and there is the option to change the type size. Similarly, its audio can also be optimized for moderate hearing impairment as well as offering hearing aid compatibility.
A proximity sensor turns off the touch screen when the device is held up to one’s ear. Cameras include a 5 MP front/ selfie camera. On the rear is a 15 MP camera with a flash that can also act as a flashlight, as well as a second microphone. There is also a fingerprint sensor. My major concern is that the photo equipment won’t meet the needs of the target audience or, at least, myself.
Also with the phone are ICE = In Case of Emergency, and other assistance features. Personal contact and health data, such as blood groups and allergies, can be stored on the phone so as to be readily accessible. An assistance button on the rear of the phone will initiate a call and an SMS alert, complete with location, to be sent to the programmed telefone number of someone relied upon to respond.
The OS is based on Android 9 (formerly Pie), from 2018. While relatively old, it is also straightforward to use, with most of the bugs worked out. The View button offers a choice of 1) messages, 2) emails, 3) call history or 4) pictures and videos. The Send button takes one to messages, emails, a picture or video or the device’s current location. There are also pre-installed Android/ Google apps: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Extra apps can be downloaded and installed. All apps are listed alphabetically, while the most frequently used ones can also be displayed on the opening screen for immediate access.
The Doro manual for the device can be downloaded. It provides useful background information and instructions for using apps. While the phone is only available in either black or white, there are cases/ covers available that make the phone more colourful.
Other related products from Doro include: HandleEasy = a seven-button basic remote control for radios and televisions; 3500 alarm trigger = a wristband/lanyard pairable with all Doro mobile phones with texting ability; Tablet = an Android tablet based on the EVA Android interface; Watch = a smartwatch similar to Motorola smartwatches, compatible with Android touchscreen phones; HearingBuds = sound enhancement devices compatible with Android touchscreen phones.
Compromise
It has been difficult to find reliable statistics about dumb and smart hand-held devices. Here are some best guesses from statcounter.com. At some point in 2024, it was estimated that there were about 4.88 billion smartphone users = people worldwide, representing more than 60% of the global population. At the same time, the number of smartphones = devices in use globally was estimated to be about 7.21 billion. It is easier to get percentage data. In 2025-01, more than 72% of hand-held device users, use some variant of Android, while more than 27% use iOS from Apple. This means that far less than 1% use something else. The number of Linux based hand-held devises (including Lineage) is estimated at 0.01%, with Lineage on 1.5 million devices.
The distribution of devices varies geographically. Here are the market shares in % for Android, followed by iOS in 2025-01: Africa = 85.29/ 13.58; Asia = 80.1/ 19.4; In Europe = 65.61/ 33.92; North America = 48.86/ 50.89; Oceania = 47.99/ 50.24; South America = 87.04/ 12.79. So in places like Canada and Australia there are more iPhone users than Android users. Norway follows European trends with a 65.06/ 34.54 split. The poor prefer Android.
One solution is for people to refuse a transition to a new device, such as a Doro by for keeping their existing devices, but updating them with appropriate software. For us that means keeping our current Zenfones, far into the future, potentially beyond the manufacturer’s end of support. There are some sites that claim that support for the Zenfone 9 ended on 2024-07-28. This would come in conflict with European consumer protection rights. So far, there is no indication with our phones, that we have experienced this. I suspect that Asus will not provide us with new versions of Android (we have version 13), but that security updates will be available for at least five years = 2027-07-28, possibly longer.
We have two 2018 Xiaomi Pocophone F1s in storage, that could become test mules for new device operating systems. I am most keen to investigate the e.foundation variant of Lineage OS. One could be installed on one Pocophone, along with the Bald Phone launcher. Hopefully this can be set up at Easter 2025 (with school holidays in the period 2025-04-11 to 21). While doing this, detailed plans for transitioning the Zenfone 9s to these variants can be developed and documented. They can then be implemented when an appropriate time comes.
It should be possible to test out basic programs/ apps and to see if they work better with one or the other variant of Lineage. As the Zenfone 9s age, it should be possible to pick up a third one cheaply, that could be regarded as a spare, in case one of the original ones fail.
Admittedly, people have valid concerns about Lineage as a serious supplier of an OS. At best, their 2018 April Fools Day prank was in bad taste, and is still remembered almost seven years later. It should not have happened. The prank involved a request for users to install specific software that most thought was an update. Once installed the device advised that the prank related software could not be uninstalled, and would be used for coin mining, others would profit by. Official apologies were issued on 2018-04-10. A company with so few users can’t afford to offend anyone with any sort of prank.
To appreciate the next section, it can be important to understand the definition of a launcher, in terms of a computing device. It is an app that changes the user interface of a device’s home screen, allowing the customization of the layout, icons, and overall look of the device. It helps people organize apps, access notifications and personalize their device experience.
BaldPhone is an open-source launcher that targets elderly people. A German psychology and aging journal examined responses from over 14 000 participants in the German ageing survey, who were asked at what age someone becomes “old”? People in their mid-60s generally said 75, suggesting that as people approach old age, they tend to push the marker further back. There is a demographic shift occurring in the world, with decreased fertility, and an increasing number of individuals aged 60 and over. Yes, at 76, I fall into that category myself. According to the United Nations, by 2050, the global population of older adults is projected to reach 2.1 billion.
The standard interfaces of popular mobile operating systems—iOS and Android—typically feature small icons, intricate menus and difficult to understand settings. Some people admit that this can be confusing for older people. Others avoid such comments, and simply say that there is a need for a more user-centric approach to device operating system design.
An alternative to buying a new devise is to replace/ update parts of the operating system, such as the BaldPhone open source interface. Its propaganda states that: BaldPhone offers a clean, straightforward layout that minimizes distractions and focuses on essential functions. With large, easy-to-read icons and a simplified user experience, BaldPhone empowers elderly users to interact confidently with their devices.
Key Features: User-Friendly Interface with oversized icons and a limited number of options per screen. An attention to size ensures that users with limited dexterity can easily tap the desired applications.
Customization: Users, other family members, friends or caregivers can personalize the launcher according to the user’s preferences. This adaptability helps instill confidence in users, as they can easily access their favorite applications and communication tools without wading through unnecessary features.
Essential Applications: users can highlight essential applications such as calls, messages, and emergency services.
Accessibility Features: Built-in accessibility tools, including text-to-speech capabilities and voice commands. This functionality is particularly valuable for seniors with visual impairments or those who may struggle with traditional typing methods.
Emergency Services: Quick-access emergency buttons allow users to reach out to their emergency contacts or dial emergency services just by tapping a single button.
Notification Management: Many older people find frequent notifications from various apps distracting. BaldPhone allows users to reduce or eliminate non-essential notifications, enabling them to focus on what matters most.
BaldPhone is built on the Android operating system. Developers claim it combines the robustness of a mature platform with a specialized user interface for older users. The open-source nature of the project allows developers to modify the code and tailor features, fostering a collaborative community focused on enhancing accessibility.
More information about BaldPhone can be found here.
Accessories
Neither a smart (or dumb) hand-held device, can operate alone. In the European Economic Area (EEA = an extended European Union) users no longer receive a charger when they buy a phone. All new phones, even those made by Apple, connect using USB-C. Currently, both Trish and I have chargers that allow charging through four ports: two use USB-C and connect to our laptops and hand-held devices; two use USB-A to attach to other items, including: portable lighting, Trish’s hearing aid container, uses a USB-micro connector. We have connectors fitted with USB-micro at one end, and USB-C or USB-A at the other end. The USB-C standard applies (or will soon apply) to all smaller devices needing to be charged to operate. We bought our two Acer Swift 3 laptops in the same store, the same day. When they came home, they were fitted with two very different barrel jack chargers, despite having power available through a USB-C port (as well as a barrel jack). We believe these charges with both USB-C and USB-A ports will have a life in excess of ten years, meaning they could be the last chargers we acquire.
Most hand-held device users, strengthen their displays with Gorilla glass, or its equivalent. Wikipedia tell us: The iPhone that Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011) revealed in 2007-01 still featured a plastic display. The day after he held up the plastic iPhone on stage, Jobs complained about scratches that had developed on the phone’s display after carrying it around in his pocket. Apple then contacted Corning and asked for a thin, toughened glass to be used in its new phone. The scratch-resistant glass that shipped on the first-generation iPhone would eventually come to be known as Gorilla Glass, officially introduced in 2008-02. Corning further developed the material for a variety of smartphones and other consumer electronics devices for a range of companies. There have been seven generations of Gorilla Glass produced, the latest being Gorilla Glass Victus 2. We have not fitted this type of product to any of our laptops or screens, and all have survived without issue. We have Gorilla Glass Victus (1) on our hand-held devices.
The third accessory that we have on our hand-held devices is a cover. This allows us to store cards with the device, eliminating the need for any other type of wallet. Our covers are in turquoise (Trish) and pink (Brock), which helps identify the specific device, since both devices are black. My covers always wear out faster than Trish’s. Thus, I bought three covers to last the lifetime of the device. I am still on the first cover. Trish has bought just one, and shows very little wear. One always has to be very selective about covers, especially if other needs than just physical protection are to be served.
The last accessory that is useful with a hand-held device is a stylus (passive or capacitive), that acts like a substitute finger when touching a device screen. With a passive stylus, there is no electronic communication between the stylus and the device. The device treats the stylus as a finger. These are considered less accurate than active styluses.
An active stylus includes electronic components that communicate with a device’s touchscreen controller, or digitizer. These are typically used for note taking, on-screen drawing/painting and electronic document annotation. They avoid the problem of a finger or hand accidentally making contact with the screen.
A haptic stylus uses haptic technology = realistic physical sensations which can be felt. Sometimes these can be enhanced by auditory = sound and tactile = touch illusions. A stylus is particularly useful for typing on a miniature keyboard. My fingers are too large for the virtual keyboard provided with hand-held devices.
It is possible to make an inexpensive passive stylus. My starting point is a dead Pilot V-ball 0.5 mm pen, originally filled with liquid ink. Other pens work equally well. Pens regularly run out of ink, making them useless for writing on paper, but ideal as a passive stylus. At my current rate of writing, I am able to construct a new stylus about every three months. It is repurposing, rather than recycling. To distinguish a pen from a stylus, I use white electrical tape around the clear ink tank on the stylus, so that it differs from the pen. My latest intention is to give them away as holiday season gifts.
Two styluses, former pens, marked with white electrical tape to avoid confusion with pens currently in use.
Note:
Despite my obsession to date people and things, I have been unable to determine when Alastair Curtis was born. However, he received a Bachelor of Science at the Brunel University, then Master’s degree in Industrial Design Engineering at the Royal College of Art in London. He worked as a designer for Nokia starting in 1997. This probably indicates that he was born in 1974 or earlier. He became chief designer, senior vice president and head of the design department at Nokia in 2010. He was chief design officer for Logitech from 2013 to 2024. Logitech’s designs hold great appeal with me, and most of my peripherals are made by them. That includes all of my keyboards, pointing devices, head sets as well as my only desk mat, 30 x 70 cm in lilac! In 2024, Curtis became chief designer for VF Corporation (Vanity Fair Mills in a previous life), known for their outdoor wear, with brands such as The North Face and Timberland. Of which, I use none. This move by Curtis may be related to former Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell becoming CEO of VF Corporation in 2023.
This weblog post is the ninth of a series of about optics and optical equipment. It is about hand lenses, stereo microscopes, compound microscopes and digital microscopes, in that order!
Buntzen Lake looking north from public beach at south end. Photo: Patleahy, 2007-05-28.
In my childhood, my father, Edgar, called Mac (1906 – 1991), would regularly take my sister and I for long walks out in the woods. A favourite location was Buntzen Lake. It is 4.8 km long occupying an area of 182 hectares. Located north of Port Moody about 24 km from our house in New Westminster. These walks were the main source of my continued enjoyment of nature.
We usually circumnavigated most of the lake. Today, after the construction of a suspension bridge, the usual walk is about 8 km long, with which would take 4 – 5 hours, and an elevation change of 100 m. Before the suspension bridge was built, a shorter walk around most the lake took about 3 hours, with limited elevation change, possibly 20 m. The lake has provided hydroelectric power since 1904.
Both of my parents were hunters and fishers. One of my mother, Jennie’s (1916 – 2021) only regrets, was her failure to buy a particular rifle when she had the opportunity. Yet, she travelled the world, visiting in excess of 100 countries. As a parent to an adopted child, I think she was somewhat surprised that I had so little interest in her pastimes. In my childhood I had an interest in birds from pigeons to loons to falcons.
In my early teenage years, I developed an interest in marine biology, especially plankton, but also marine invertebrates. Several books led me in this direction. One of the first was, Rachel Carson’s (1907 – 1964) The Edge of the Sea (1955). This was actually the third of her Sea trilogy, and looked at three edges: rocky, sandy and coral. The focus was on the east coast of North America. The rocky shores were typical of the Cape Ann region of Massachusetts, the sandy shores were of the intermediate coast off the Carolinas, while the corals were part of the Florida Keys.
I also wanted to read something related to the Pacific Coast, where I lived. This was found in Ed Ricketts’ (1896 – 1948) Between Pacific Tides (1939). I am sure I read a later edition than this. Currently, I own a copy of the 5th edition, from 1985.
The third work that inspired me was Ralph Buchsbalm’s (1907-2002) Animals Without Backbones (1938). Originally, I owned a Pelican edition in two volumes from 1957. My current reference copy is from 1987, in a single volume.
I acquired a compound microscope in 1962, for my 14th birthday, As explained in Optics 6, I used this with a camera to take photomicrographs of plankton and other organisms. In high school use of a compound microscope was part of the biology course. When, I studied biology at college, we were required to use hand lenses, stereo microscopes and compound microscopes, in that order.
An Opticron glass hand lens = inspection magnifier, with chrome plated metal protective cover, 10 × magnification, with a 23 mm diameter glass lens. There is space for the attachment of a thin lanyard. Photo: Opticron.
The college biology program I undertook emphasized field trips to various ecological areas, and in all seasons. In addition to other equipment such as skis, we were required to have a pocket lens = inspection magnifier with us that could magnify up to 10 ×, for field trips. The lens can be made of glass or plastic, with plastic being cheaper and lighter but of lower optical quality and more difficult to clean. I prefer glass lenses.
An element is an individual piece of glass within a lens. Hand lenses can be constructed with one (singlet), two (doublet) or three (triplet) lens elements. Each element is specially shaped to correct for a particular type of optical distortion so the more elements, the higher quality the image. A singlet is gudenuf.
A 10 × magnification hand lens is adequate for most purposes. Higher magnification lenses are harder to use. Large diameter lenses provide a wider field of view = they are easier to use but, but are more expensive. I have always used a hand lens 20 – 30 mm in diameter. The description of a hand lens often follows the same convention as binoculars, with lens magnification followed by the lens diameter in mm. Sometimes, the order is reversed.
Some people comment that the use of a hand lens can be challenging. People often start holding the lens close to their eye then a) move the subject closer to your eye (if the object is moveable) or b) move their head with the hand lens, closer to the subject until it comes into focus (is the object isn’t moveable).
Some lenses come with multiple LED-lights for effective illumination in weak light. Some are further optimized with UV lights, so that it is possible to see fluorescence, not just in plants, animals and minerals, but also postage stamps and paper currency.
A lanyard should be fitted to the hand lens. I use braided mason’s twine. It is durable and comes in a variety of bright colors. Mine comes packaged will three 80 m bunts, in red, blue and yellow. Braiding adds strength and reduces tangling. Bonded twine means that it is coated to make it stiffer and more resistant to wear and moisture. Blue is a useful colour, since it is not often found in nature. The lanyard should be put around the person’s neck, so that the lens won’t be lost.
Stereo Microscope
When we returned to our classroom from a field trip, we would re-examine specimens using a stereo microscope. My current Dutch BMS stereo microscope has 10 × eyepieces, with a 2 × and 4 × combined objective, giving a magnification of either 20 × or 40 ×.
This Galilean optical system used here is an arrangement of fixed-focus convex lenses is used to provide a fixed magnification, but with the crucial distinction that the same optical components in the same spacing will, if physically inverted, result in a different, though still fixed, magnification. This allows one set of lenses to provide two different magnifications. Yes, it is important to know what magnification one is using, so that sizes in the microscope can be converted into real world sizes.
In my student days, stereo microscopes were commonly used as an aid for dissection. The major problem with this microscope is that it is not designed to take photomicrographs.
A BMS stereo microscope, with 10 x eyepieces, and 2 x and 4 x objectives allowing 20 x and 40 x magnification, suitable for dissecting biological samples.
Modern stereo microscopes are often coated with anti-bacterial paint. It is thanks to Charles Wheatstone ( 1802 – 1875) that stereo microscopes have two eyepieces. He discovered stereopsis = the fundamentals of depth perception, in 1840, allowing people to see objects in three dimensions. Eyepieces are typically inclined 45º with at least one tube being adjustable ±5 diopter, so that users can adjust the microscope to their eyes once. There should be no need to use eyeglasses while viewing through a microscope. There is a focussing knob, sometimes two for coarse and fine adjustments.
Illumination in a stereo microscope is most often incident = reflected from the surface of an object, rather than diascopic = transmitted through an object. In the new millennium, LED lights have been used for both incident and transmitted illumination. LED lights have a life of about 50 k hours. Usually, they work from mains electricity, 230 and 110 V through a transformer. Many stereoscopes include a rechargeable battery, so they can work offline, for up to about ten hours, with three hour charging times. This means stereo microscopes can now be taken out into the field, something that was not possible in my student years. Today it is common withDouble Pole Double Throw (DPDT) switches offer full separation from the mains power. The claim is safety, but I think part of the reason is related to prevention of battery drain. Power cords are typically detachable, and can be fitted with a C13 connector to the microscope and an appropriate power socket connector. For the model shown in the photograph, length x width x height = 150 x 133 x 358 mm, mass = 2.3 kg
In addition to its uses in biology, I also use my stereo microscope to inspect soldering and to examine electronic circuits.
Compound Microscopes
The compound microscope shown above is a MAGUS Bio 240T, a biological microscope, mainly used for education. It is designed for work with transparent and translucent biological specimens using brightfield illumination. The microscope has a revolving nosepiece suitable for four plan achromatic objectives . The 3W LED illuminator, has an intelligent control system to remember and maintain a different light intensity for each objective. There is an LCD screen, which displays operating parameters. The operational life of the illuminator is 50 k hours = 30 work years = almost a lifetime of work! Color temperature can be changed within the range of 3000 to 7000 Kelvin.
Magnification is from 40 – 1000 ×. The trinocular head has a vertical tube for mounting a digital video camera. There are two eyepiece tubes, both equipped with diopter adjustment rings, The head revolves and can make a full rotation. There are 2 standard 10 × /20mm eyepieces, fitted with rubber eyecups.
The microscope is equipped with coarse (left side) and fine (right side) focusing knobs. The coarse focus lock knob is located on the left side. It is used for adjustment after switching objectives.
The specimen stage is equipped with a belt drive mechanism that gently moves the specimen along the stage. The specimen holder is mounted with two screws. If necessary, it can be removed.
An Abbe condenser is centered along the optical axis. It is fixed, preventing the condenser from being moved accidentally, an important consideration in an educational microscope. The condenser has a numerical aperture of 1.25. Markings indicate objective magnifications. The iris diaphragm is adjusted by a knob. This can be used to increase image contrast, improving specimen visibility.
Selected settings are displayed on the LCD screen. Using a pair of knobs, you can adjust the light, set the sleep mode, or set the auto-off time.
After installing the microscope on the work area, the power supply and power cord can be hidden. The side openings in the stand act as handles allowing the microscope to be carried. or moved around.
Infinity plan achromatic objectives: 4×/0.10; 10×/0.25; 40×/0.65 (spring-loaded); 100×/1.25 oil (spring-loaded); Eyepieces 2 each 10×/20mm with long eye relief; 2 each eyepiece eyecups; C-mount camera adapter; light filter; bottle of immersion oil; power adapter = transformer, and power cord; dust cover; user manual. Additional equipment: Digital camera; calibration slide; monitor. Size (LxWxH) 450 x 300 x650 mm; mass = 9.8 kg; Mass = 9.8 kg
Digital Microscopes
Is a digital microscope a real microscope? This is a question I regularly ask myself, with the prepared answer being no. Unfortunately, for my prejudiced view of the world, digital microscopes are becoming better. Yet, my mindset, formed in the 1950s, still has difficulties accepting these as anything more than a slightly different digital camera, inferior to an optical microscope. The good news is that my world view is slowly changing. I have avoided purchasing a new compound microscope, in the hope that a digital microscope will make that investment unnecessary.
Part of the reason for my initial skepticism was that the first digital microscope I met was being sold as a toy. It was low-powered with a plastic lenses, and used a USB interface to connect to a computer monitor. It was incapable of working like a real compound microscope. A real digital microscope has to be more than a webcam attached to a macro lens.
An acceptable digital microscope should be computer controlled and automated, allowing advanced image analysis. At a minimum, it should be able to find/ calculate distance and area measurements. In a Wikipedia article about this topic, quantitation of a fluorescent or histological stain are mentioned.
What at one time was called USB 3.2, released in 2017, with two lanes of 10 Gbps simultaneously, with a maximum transfer rate of 20 Gbps over a USB-C connector. This is now called 3.2 Gen 2×2 = SuperSpeed USB 20 Gbps = USB 20 Gbps. Whatever its name, this allows a video resolution of up to 4k = 4096 × 2160 pixels, at a frequency of 60 Hz. Variable illumination should be provided with an LED source close to the camera lens. Modern, modestly priced digital microscopes offer magnification from about 20 × to 400 ×, sometimes more.
The real challenge with digital microscopes is obtaining software with device support. μManager provides professional microscopy software able to connect to a large number of devices. Some types of hardware are automatically supported, others not so much. μManager’s open device interface lets anyone write code to control microscope-related equipment, resulting a large and growing list of supported equipment. A scripting interface makes it possible to accomplish tasks that can not be executed within a graphical user interface (GUI).
The advantage of a digital microscope should not just be its low cost, and eyepiece elimination. It should also eliminate the mess and work of staining and preparing slides. With the use of sensitive photon-counting digital cameras, digital microscopy should be able to avoid damaging vulnerable biological samples.
The more advanced digital microscope units have stands that hold the microscope and allow it to be racked up and down, similarly to standard optical microscopes. Calibrated movement in all three dimensions are available through the use of a step motor and automated stage. The resolution, image quality, and dynamic range vary with price. Systems with a lower number of pixels have a higher frame rate (30fps to 100fps) and faster processing. The faster processing can be seen when using functions like HDR (high dynamic range). In addition to general-purpose microscopes, instruments specialized for specific applications are produced. These units can have a magnification range up to 0–10,000×, are either all-in-one systems (computer built-in) or connect to a desktop computer. They also differ from the cheaper USB microscopes in not only the quality of the image, but also in capability, and the quality of the system’s construction giving these types of systems a longer lifetime.
Conclusion. When people think of optical devices for biology, they think that they will get the most value for their money be acquiring a compound microscope. For me, the most value comes from a hand lens. After this, a stereo microscope is the most practical. It is only if one is interested in cellular biology that a compound microscope is needed. In my old age, I have lost interest in preparing slides, so that I can view samples with a compound microscope. Appropriate preparation takes time. Samples have to be cut very thinly. Most often they have to be stained, so that contrasting parts in a cell can be seen. When pressed for advice, buy a good quality hand lens. Use it for a year before even considering anything else. Except for people with an interest in cellular biology, that something else should be a stereo microscope. Use it for at least a year before investing in a compound microscope.
This post was originally written on Friday 2024-03-22 as Optics 2. It was saved, for the first time at 18:10. On 2024-04-09 at 20:06 it was scheduled to be published on 2024-06-29 as Optics 6. Later on 2024-04-25, it was rescheduled for 2024-07-06 at 12:00. On 2024-04-27, it was it was reconstituted as Optics 9, and rescheduled for 2025-01-25
On 2025-03-01, Optics 10 will be published. It is about digital cameras. On 2025-03-08, Optics 11 will be published. It is about photographic collections.
This is a Celestron Nexstar 8SE, often described as a good telescope for beginners/ hobbyists. It is the biggest telescope in Celestron’s iconic orange tube family. Its optics are acceptable, and it gathers lots of light. It is even affordable, at about US$ 1 000. Despite this, I am unconvinced this is a telescope for me. There is too much automation, hiding its operations. I want to know what is happening. Photo: Celestron.
This weblog post is the eighth of a series about optics and optical equipment. Optics 8 is about astronomical telescopes. Optics 9 is about microscopes. Later in 2025, two additional posts will appear: #10 is about digital cameras; #11 is about digital photograph collections.
Scandinavian winters are long and dark. Every year, in January, I go through a period where I considered acquiring a telescope. So far, I have not done so. In large part, it has to do with the reality of cloud cover. Norway is one of the most extreme places in the world for cloud cover. That said, Trøndelag is better than most places in Norway.
There has only been one type of telescope I have ever consider buying: a Celestron 8.
Before discussing it, and other telescopes suitable for amateurs, there is the history of astronomy to endure.
Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) investigated some of the laws of optics in his lunar essay (1600). In 1603, Kepler focused on optical theory, published as Astronomiae Pars Optica = The Optical Part of Astronomy (1604). It described the inverse-square law governing the intensity of light, reflection by flat and curved mirrors, principles of pinhole cameras, the astronomical implications of optics such as parallax and the apparent sizes of heavenly bodies. This work provides a foundation for modern optics, despite the absence of anything about refraction.
In physics, refraction is the change in direction of a wave passing from one medium to another or from a gradual change in the medium. Refraction of light is the most commonly observed phenomenon, but other waves such as sound waves and water waves also experience refraction.
Willebrord Snellius (1580–1626) developed the mathematical law of refraction = Snell’s law, in 1621. René Descartes (1596–1650) used geometric construction and the law of refraction = Descartes’ law, to show that the angular radius of a rainbow is 42°. He developed the law of reflection, Dioptrique (1637, French) = Optics = Dioptrics (both English) a short treatise that was the first published to mention this law.
Christiaan Huygens (1629–1695) wrote several works about optics. These included Opera reliqua and Traité de la Lumière (1690) which presents a wave theory of light. This theory was initially rejected in favour of Newton’s corpuscular theory of light, until Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788 – 1827) adapted Huygens’s principle to give a complete explanation of the rectilinear propagation and diffraction effects of light in 1821. This principle is now known as the Huygens–Fresnel principle.
Isaac Newton (1643–1727) investigated the refraction of light, demonstrating that a prism could decompose white light into a spectrum of colours, and that a lens and a second prism could recompose the multicoloured spectrum into white light. He also showed that the coloured light does not change its properties by separating out a coloured beam and shining it on various objects. Newton noted that regardless of whether it was reflected or scattered or transmitted, it stayed the same colour. Thus, he observed that colour is the result of objects interacting with already-coloured light rather than objects generating the colour themselves. This is known as Newton’s theory of colour. From this work he concluded that any refracting telescope would suffer from the dispersion of light into colours, and invented a reflecting telescope (today known as a Newtonian telescope) to bypass that problem. By grinding his own mirrors, using Newton’s rings to judge the quality of the optics for his telescopes, he was able to produce a superior instrument to the refracting telescope, due primarily to the wider diameter of the mirror.
In 1671 the Royal Society asked for a demonstration of his reflecting telescope. Their interest encouraged him to publish his notes On Colour, which he later expanded into Opticks. Newton argued that light is composed of particles or corpuscles and were refracted by accelerating toward the denser medium, but he had to associate them with waves to explain the diffraction of light (Opticks Bk. II, Props. XII-L). Later physicists instead favoured a purely wavelike explanation of light to account for diffraction. Today’s quantum mechanics, photons and the idea of wave-particle duality bear only a minor resemblance to Newton’s understanding of light.
In his Hypothesis of Light (1675), Newton posited the existence of the ether to transmit forces between particles. In 1704, Newton published Opticks, in which he expounded his corpuscular theory of light. He considered light to be made up of extremely subtle corpuscles, that ordinary matter was made of grosser corpuscles and speculated that through a kind of alchemical transmutation “Are not gross Bodies and Light convertible into one another, …and may not Bodies receive much of their Activity from the Particles of Light which enter their Composition?”
A Telescope
Selecting the right equipment is vital in amateur astronomy. Optical quality is the most important characteristic of any telescope because it contributes significantly to the clarity of celestial bodies.
The three most commonly used types of telescopes:
1. Refractors: These use glass lenses at the front of the tube, a design often favoured for planetary observations.
2. Reflectors: These use mirrors instead of lenses. These are preferred for observing deep sky objects such as faint galaxies and nebulae.
3. Compound/ catadioptric: These combine lenses and mirrors. They are versatile, and can be used for viewing a variety of celestial objects.
The Tracking Platform
A telescope tracking platform can be built to allow a telescope to move in sync with the rotation of the Earth: to track stars, planets and other celestial objects as they move across the sky. While mechanical components provided timing, increasingly computers provide this today. Part of my interest in tracking involves the Forth programming language.
Everything in the night sky is in constant motion. This is mainly due to Earth’s rotation. Without a tracking system, a telescope, regardless of its quality, will only provide fleeting views. Tracking systems help a telescope to consistently follow celestial bodies, by moving the telescope at a similar rate and direction, mimicking the sky’s movement. This is especially important for astrophotography, that could require long exposure times.
Building a telescope tracking platform requires diligence, patience and persistence. Platforms can be complex and require fine-tuning and troubleshooting. Telescope tracking platforms come in two basic types:
Alt-Az Mounts: They move up-and-down (altitude) and side-to-side (azimuth). These mounts are often easy to use, making them suitable for beginners, for general observation and short-term tracking. They are not suitable for long-term tracking or astrophotography.
Equatorial Mounts: These mounts rotate along an axis parallel to Earth’s rotation. They require alignment with the Polaris = North Star. Equatorial mounts offer superior tracking for longer periods and are needed for astrophotography.
A mount alone doesn’t make a perfect tracking system. Location, local climate, the telescope’s size and weight have to be taken into consideration, along with motor drives and functionality.
Designing a telescope tracking platform is dependent on location. This impacts the effectiveness of a tracking system. A northern hemisphere, polar alignment will be different from that in the southern hemisphere. The altitude and azimuth of the celestial pole vary with latitude and longitude.
Humidity and temperature influence the telescope’s operation. In extreme cold, the lubricants in the mounts may thicken, hampering smooth movements. High humidity can lead to rusting of the metal parts.
The size and weight of a telescope also affect mount choices. Heavier telescopes require sturdier mounts to support their weight.
Maximum weight capacity varies with the mount. A typical amateur alt-azimuth mount can have a mass of 20 kg, while for an equatorial mount this can be 50 kg. While a a casual stargazer, can co-exist with an alt-azimuth mount for general observation, someone actively engaged in astrophotography, will need an equatorial mount, because of its superior tracking capabilities.
While tracking mount components are widely available online, it is sensible to acquire all the necessary materials before starting to build a telescope tracking platform. This prevents surprises and unnecessary delays. The functionality of the platform directly depends on component quality.
Some crucial components include the mount. Metal bars are needed for the base and rocker. Here, durability is important, so consider stainless steel or aluminum. Quality ball bearings used in the pivot point, will ensure smooth rotation of the platform. Motor and Gears should be selected to enable auto-tracking, with an adjustable motor speed capable of matching the Earth’s rotation.
Minimum tool requirements, include a screwdriver set, drill, hacksaw, wrenches and a level.
Before building the telescope tracking platform create a detailed design on paper or using design software. This design should show the mount, metal bars, ball bearings, motor and gears.
Start assembling the components beginning with the mount. Because it forms the core support system for the tracking platform, it must be sturdy and well-balanced. Affix the metal bars to provide a frame that can withstand your telescope’s weight, ensuring better stability and tracking accuracy. Place ball bearings in strategic locations to allow smooth rotation of the platform. Connect gears appropriately to the motor, to ensure their rotation is synchronized with the tracking process.
Integrate a controller into the platform to governs the motor speed and direction. Most modern controllers come with a capability to store star maps and tracking speed presets to make tracking easier and more efficient. Once the platform build is completed, a regular maintenance schedule must be devised, and followed.
Once the telescope tracking platform is assembled, it is crucial to run initial tests to ensure everything functions as expected. Drift alignment aligns the telescope with the Earth’s axis of rotation. Point the telescope at a bright star near the celestial equator and monitor its movement. If everything is correctly assembled and calibrated, the star should stay stationary in your telescope’s field of view. If the star drifts, adjustments will be necessary.
Correct controller calibration is essential to align the telescope with celestial objects. Polar alignment aligns the telescope’s rotational axis with the North Star.
Mechanical issues often involve simple corrections. Ensure the metal bars are firmly in place, the ball bearings move freely, and the gears are properly interlocked. Listen for unusual noises when it is operating. This could indicate a component is not operating as it should.
Power supply issues can cause problems. This applies to both battery and mains power. Ensure the supplied voltage matches the motor’s requirement, and there are no power fluctuations.
The Celestron Nexstar 8SE (shown in the photograph at the beginning of this post) is one often suggested for amateurs. It has a fully automated GoTo Mount, allowing users to select an object they want to observe with a database of 40 000 + objects. At the push of a button, the telescope will automatically point to it. The telescope is compact and Portable. With its Schmidt-Cassegrain optics it has a 20 cm aperture with good light-gathering power allowing views of the moon, other planets and deep-sky objects.
The telescope comes with a built-in wedge to polar align the telescope. A camera adaptor will allow the connection of a mirrorless or digital single lens reflect (DSLR) camera, for astrophotography. Other accessories are available that extend capabilities.
Tom Johnson (1923 – 2012) was an American electronics engineer and astronomer who founded Celestron, a company which revolutionized the amateur astronomy. He served as a military radar technician during World War II. In 1955, he started Valor Electronics, which produced electronics for military and industrial use, in Gardena, near Los Angeles, in California.
Celestron was created as the Astro-Optical division of Valor in 1960. Johnson had been looking for a telescope which could be used by his two sons, but found no child-friendly models on the market at the time. While building a 6-inch reflector telescope in 1960, Johnson encountered a lens-grinding kit. After several days of hand grinding, he invented a machine that would grind the lens for him.
Soon, the company was attempting to build various models of Schmidt–Cassegrain telescopes. However, these proved difficult to mass-produce because they needed Schmidt corrector plates, a hard to manufacture aspheric lens. To solve this production problem, company engineers invented a new type of telescope, the Celestron 8 in 1970, that was compact, affordable and easy to manufacture.
Meanwhile, further north in Watsonville, California, Meade Instruments, founded by John Diebel (1943 – ) in 1972, started selling Japanese telescopes. It became the world’s largest manufacturer of telescopes, starting in 1976. Unfortunately, they used litigation as a means of preventing competition. They ceased operation in 2024, after losing some important lawsuits.
The largest telescope brand in the world is now Sky-Watcher, established in 1999 by the Synta Technology Corporation of Taiwan. It markets telescopes and astronomy equipment, such as mounts and eyepieces, aimed at the amateur astronomy market. The products are manufactured in Suzhou, China. The brand is primarily distributed in North America and Europe.
Buying a telescope is usually an easy and inexpensive way of acquiring an astronomical telescope. However, some people are more inclined to make rather than to buy. Amateur telescope makers (ATMs) build telescopes as a hobby, for personal enjoyment of a technical challenge. They will claim, often to a spouse, that they are saving money, but this is seldom more than an excuse. Sometimes it is done to provide custom features on a telescope, or for research purposes.
John Lowry Dobson (1915 – 2014) was an American amateur astronomer, best known for the Dobsonian (light bucket) telescope, a portable, low-cost Newtonian reflector telescope. He promoted awareness of astronomy through public lectures and sidewalk astronomy performances. His Dobsonian telescope is an alt-azimuth mounted Newtonian telescope design popularized in 1965. It vastly increasing the size of telescopes available to amateur astronomers. Features included a simple, easy to manufacture, mechanical design, using easily available components to create a large, portable, low-cost telescope. The design is optimized for observing faint deep-sky objects such as nebulae and galaxies, with a large objective diameter, short focal length. Their portability allowed travel to less light-polluted locations.
At some future date, I intend to construct a small astronomical observatory, with its own telescope. The major problem with Vangshylla is its lack of clear skies. The Climate Research Unit of the University of East Anglia calculated cloud cover between 1991–2020 in 196 sovereign countries and Greenland. Norway had 81.5% cloud cover. Algeria has the least at 21.0%. There are only two countries with more cloud cover than Norway: São Tomé and Príncipe with 83.5%, while Greenland has 83.7%. Finland, the United Kingdom and Sweden are close with 79.6, 78.4 and 78,2%, respectively.
The following applies to Steinkjer, ca. 35 km north east of Vangshylla. In Steinkjer, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year. The clearer part of the year in Steinkjer begins around 04-07 and lasts for 5.3 months, ending around 09-17. The clearest month of the year is May, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 45% of the time. The cloudier part of the year begins around 09-17 and lasts for 6.7 months, ending around 04-07. The cloudiest month of the year is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 74% of the time.
Of Canada’s sunniest places = least cloud cover, ranks 9 to 18 (with one exception #13) are cities in British Columbia. These are: # 9 = Kelowna (where my mother grew up), # 10 = Kamloops (where Trish’s sister and other relatives live), # 11 = Penticton, # 12 = Vernon, # 14 = Prince George, # 15 = Abbotsford, #16 = Nanaimo (where my father grew up), # 17 = Chilliwack and # 18 = Victoria.
In my childhood, I visited the The Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, located on Observatory Hill, in Saanich, British Columbia, near Victoria. It was close to the experimental farm, also in Saanich, where my uncle was director. The main instrument is a 1.83 m Plaskett telescope. In its day, the observatory was a world-renowned facility where many discoveries about the Milky Way were made. It was one of the world’s main astrophysical research centres until the 1960s.
The Plaskett telescope was planned to be the largest telescope in the world, but delays caused by World War I, and production errors requiring two regrindings of its mirror, meant it was completed 1918-05-06, six months after the 2.54 m Hooker telescope at Mount Wilson Observatory, in Los Angeles, California.
Note: This post was cloned as Optics 5 from Optics 4 on 2024-03-23. It was saved, for the first time at 8:00. On 2024-04-09 at 20:09 it was scheduled to be published 2024-06-22 at 12:00. On 2024-04-27 it was reconstituted as Optics 8 and rescheduled to be published 2025-01-18 at 12:00. Later that date was changed to 2025-01-25.
Originally, this photo was supposed to be one of Trish’s maternal grandmother’s opera glasses. Immediately before publication, they could not be found for a photo shoot. So this pair, appearing in Wikipedia were substituted. Early 20th century mother of pearl opera glasses & leather case. The glasses are marked with the name of the vendor “Ryrie Bros. Toronto” Photographer: Sobebunny, 2009-12-26.
This weblog post is the seventh of a series about optics and optical equipment. This post is about binoculars, but also includes opera glasses, monoculars and spotting scopes. Future posts: # 8 is about astronomical telescopes; and, #9 is about microscopes. Later in 2025, two additional posts will appear: #10 is about digital cameras; #11 is about digital photograph collections.
Binoculars specification values include information about strength (magnification power) and size (objective lens diameter). These are typically designated with two numbers, such as 8×40, where 8 is the magnification power while 40 is the diameter (in millimeters) of the objective lenses = the lenses closest to the object being viewed. Objective lens size tells: 1) how big physically the binoculars are, and 2) how much light they can gather. These numbers fail to provide information about the quality of the optics or other features such as: rubber protective covering, waterproofing and fog-proofing or – often importantly – type of prism and type of glass.
Binoculars provide users with a three-dimensional image because each eyepiece presents a slightly different image to each eye and this parallax = displacement = difference in the apparent position, allows a viewer’s visual cortex to generate an impression of depth. Monoculars are unable to achieve this.
Most early binoculars used Galilean optics = a convex objective and a concave eyepiece lens. It presented an erect image but with a narrow field of view and low magnification. This construction is still used in cheap models and opera glasses. Aprismatic binoculars with Keplerian optics = twin telescopes, provides each tube with relay lenses to erect the image. A relay lens is a lens or lens group that inverts an image and extends the optical tube. Relay lenses are found in refracting telescopes, endoscopes and periscopes to extend system length. This is done before the eyepieces, which is used to invert an image.
An endoscope = an inspection instrument composed of image sensor, optical lens, light source and mechanical device, which is used to look deep into the body by way of openings such as the mouth or anus. A periscope = an instrument for observation over, around or through an object, obstacle or condition that prevents direct line-of-sight observation from an observer’s current position. In its simplest form, it consists of an outer case with mirrors at each end set parallel to each other at a 45° angle.
In optics, an erect image is one that appears right-side up. An image is formed when rays from a point on the original object meet again after passing through an optical system. The opposite of an erect image is an inverted image.
When lenses are part of a computing device, there is no need to transform images to form an erect image. This can be done efficiently by a graphics processor inside the device, before the image is shown on a screen.
Classification of binoculars and related optical instruments
Indoor vs outdoor: Opera glasses are designed to bring clarity to indoor/ theatrical experiences, while most of the other instruments, including binoculars, are designed to bring clarity to outdoor experiences.
Size of objective lenses: Binoculars are categorized into compact, midsize and full-size models, based on the size of their objective lenses. Variations in optics, design and construction can mean that models with the same size objective lenses will differ in bulk and weight. Some binoculars are bulky so that they will float.
Bulk: Lightweight compact models make sense for hiking. Midsize models with larger objectives, are bulkier, but provide brighter images and can be more comfortable to hold for long periods. Full-size binoculars can be useful in low-light conditions, but are heavier, and less comfortable, without a tripod.
In comparing lenses it is often useful to compare the area occupied by the objective lens, not its diameter. Thus, Area = π · r2 where π = 3.14 and r = 20 mm for a 40 mm diameter lens. This gives an area of 1256 mm2. but r = 40 mm for an 80 mm diameter lens, gives an area of 5024 mm2 which is 4 times as much.
In an article about binoculars for old people, it was suggested that consideration should be given to three features that younger people may be able to ignore. First, use light weight binoculars, substituting a roof prism, for a Porro prism; second, to maximize eye relief, buy binoculars that have an increased distance between the eye and the eyepiece to see the full image; third, decrease magnification from 10× to 8× or even 6×.
Prisms
Isaac Newton (1642 – 1727) used a prism is to disperse white light into component parts. Dispersion is of limited interest when it comes to using prisms in the real world. There is no perfect prism, but two have become standard in binoculars. The Porro prism is named after Italian Ignazio Porro (1801-1875) who invented it ca. 1850. The roof prism is a later invention.
Since the 1960s, handheld binoculars with roof prism-based reversing systems have become increasingly popular. Yet, these prisms are also problematic. Their use has led to a loss of image resolution, which turned out to be the consequence of unwanted interference: the total reflection occurring in the prisms causes a partial polarization of the beam. This beam is then split at the roof edge, with the two half-beams being reflected in different directions. After all the partial beams have been combined, however, their polarization vectors point in different directions, which corresponds to a phase shift and leads to a loss of resolution via the interference effects mentioned above. This phase shift occurs in perfectly manufactured prisms!
Binoculars with roof prisms are more compact and streamlined, lighter weight, and much easier to carry around than binoculars with Porro prisms. Roof prisms are more complex because there is no easy horizontal offset. Roof prisms take advantage of intricate and convoluted machined paths that reflect the light from the objective to ocular lenses. In 2025, people should choose roof prism binoculars, if they can afford it.
Usage:
Binoculars for backpacking and hiking should be small and light weight. Suitable models are often referred to as compact binoculars, with magnification of 8 or 10, and an objective lens diameter less than about 28 mm. Rubber coating, water resistant or waterproof will be appreciated.
Binoculars for wildlife viewing also include those used on safaris and for whale watching. They use a higher magnification (10 rather than 8) if one is likely to be located far away from the animals. Midsize (32mm) is preferred rather than full-size (42mm) if one wants something more compact. Water resistance is useful, but waterproof models are preferred for whale watching (or any other watching) from a boat.
Birding is a sub-genre of wildlife watching. Many birders are less concerned about size and weight, preferring midsize or full-size models such as 8×32 or 8×42. A 10-power magnification will have a narrower field of view compared to an 8 power pair. A wide field of view is useful for locating birds, and other wildlife that is moving. Water resistance is also a good feature, as are those that limit fogging when they go from a warm vehicle to cooler outside environments.
Binoculars on boats should have a low magnification (8 or less) because boat movements can make steady viewing challenging. Waterproof models are useful. 8×32 is a popular size.
For stargazing, one should maximize magnification and light gathering capabilities by choosing full-size binoculars: preferably, 10×50. With higher magnification, a tripod will be necessary. Telescopes for astronomy will be discussed in Optics 8.
Opera glasses = theater binoculars = Galilean binoculars, are compact, low-power optical magnification devices, usually used at indoor performances. Magnification power below 5× is usually desired to minimize image shake and maintain a large enough field of view. A magnification of 3× is preferred. The design of many modern opera glasses of the ornamental variety is based on the popular lorgnettes of the 19th century. Often, modern variants are equipped with an LED flashlight, allegedly to help people find their place in the dark.
Binoculars at Cliff Cottage
Our oldest optics are opera glasses previously owned by Trish’s maternal grandmother, made by (or at least labeled by) G. E. Trorey, in Vancouver. The Trorey jewellry company was started in 1893, and is famous for building what later was called the Birks clock. It was made to celebrate Trorey’s fifth anniversary. Birks bought Trorey in 1906. So, these opera glasses date from before then.
In the early 1980s we purchased a pair of Tento BPC 7 x 50 binoculars, in Molde, Norway. Tento = Technointorg = the Russian Ministry/ Office of Foreign Trade selling Russian optics outside the Soviet Union. БПЦ = BCP = бинокли призменные с центральной фокусировкой = binokli prizmienne s centralnoj fokusirowkoj = binoculars with central focusing. These were most likely made by Загорский оптико-механический завод = ZOMZ = Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant, in Sergiyew Posad, 70 km north-east of Moscow.
On 2024-04-18, we decided that we needed better optical equipment. Yes, age may have been part of that decision. Since we have a optician in Inderøy, we decided to patronize them and buy a Breitler Ultima 10 x 42 binoculars. Specifications are provided below:
Brand/ model:
Breitler Ultima
Objective diameter (mm):
42
Magnification (x):
10
Field of view at 1000m (m):
101
Near limit focus (m):
2
Exit pupil:
4.2 mm
Glass
Bak-4
Prism type
roof
Features:
Waterproof, Nitrogen filled , Protective covering
Product type:
Binoculars
Diameter front lense (mm):
42
Dimensions (L x W x H, mm)
147 × 129 × 63
Mass: (g)
670
Monocular vs Spotting Scope
Monocular scopes share most features with spotting scopes, but in a smaller size and with less power and capabilities. For instance: Head: It provides support for the eye piece and connects it to the objective lens. Nose piece: A rotatable component that holds and selects the active objective lens. Eye piece = ocular lens = the lens nearest to the eye which you look through to observe objects. Objective lens: They are usually 2 or 3 lenses, with a prism in the middle that folds the optical path and extends the entire optical system length for an erect image. Arm: supports the head and connects it to the base. Focusing ring: is located around the body in some monocular scopes. Some use a focusing lever or slider button instead. Zoom is optional on monocular scopes. Those that have them have a magnification that varies from 4× to 12×, with 8× considered standard.
Most spotting scopes allow the user to alternate between fixed length and zoom magnification. Zooming allows users to find objects at low magnification, and then to narrow the field of view and magnify the object to observe the details. A variation from 20× to 60× is common.
Spotting scope characteristics. Eye cup: A small and twist-up shield for the eye. Eye cap: A flexible rubber shield that protects a user’s peripheral vision against light, wind and dust, prevents glare caused by ambient light on the ocular lens, and limits distractions. It is also known as eye shield. You can extend or contract it to use it with glasses, or without. Ocular and objective lens caps: These are rubber coverings that protect the lenses from damage from water, dirt and impact during transit or in storage. Some of them can be flipped up. Focusing ring: You twist it to the right or left to adjust the focus for a clear picture. Some models have focus knobs instead of focus rings. You will also find dual focus spotting scopes with coarse and fine adjustments.
My formal training as a biology teacher began when I was over fifty. The emphasis was on observation in the field, which included instructions as to how to use a spotting scope for the observation of wildlife, particularly birds. Since a spotting scope comes with large objective lens and higher magnification, a fold-able tripod is needed to mount it on for support and to lessen the scope’s vibrations for steady viewing. In addition, they often have a lens hood = lens shade, to minimize objective lens glare in sunny conditions. These should be retracted in dim environments.
We have a Breitler Pant(h)er 20-60×60 45 degree spotting scope. It was a demo being sold for less than half price. Since we have an unloved tripod, that is no longer being used to hold a camera, it is being used as a support device for the spotting scope. Specifications are provided below:
Brand/ model:
Breitler Pant(h)er
Objective diameter (mm):
60
Magnification (x):
20-60
Field of view at 1000m (m)/ :
31.6-16/
Near limit focus (m):
6
Exit pupil:
3 – 1 mm
Glass
BaK-4
Prism type
unknown
Features:
Waterproof, Nitrogen filled , Protective covering
Product type:
Spotting scope
Diameter front lense (mm):
60
Dimensions (L x W x H, mm)
340 x 90 x 165
Mass (g):
873
Summary
People considering buying a new pair of binoculars may want to consider a spotting scope as an alternative, it is better for some activities, such as viewing wildlife from land. In terms of binoculars, a Porro prism with Bak-7 glass may be preferred if expense is an issue. These will be cheaper. In addition they offer greater clarity and a wider field of view. Most often they will be heavier, and not as durable. Binoculars with roof prism and Bak-4 glass will be more expensive, but offer: more durability, lighter weight, more compact dimensions, superior waterproofing, greater magnification strength, but they will have less clarity and a narrower field of view.
This post was originally written early in the morning of Monday 2024-03-18, under the title Magnification, that was later in the day changed to Optics 3. Saved, for the first time at 18:10. On 2024-04-09 at 20:08 it was scheduled to be published 2024-06-15 at 12:00. On 2024-06-27 it was changed to Optics 7 and rescheduled to be published on 2025-01-11 at 12:00. Somewhat later it was rescheduled to 2025-01-18. Additional content was added during the week immediately before publication.
A Kodak Petit camera, identical to the first camera I used.
Since the first set of 5 weblog posts was published about optics, I have made some changes about upcoming post content. This weblog post is the sixth in a series. It is about analogue cameras; Future posts : #7 is about binoculars, but also includes opera glasses, monoculars and spotting scopes, scheduled for publishing 2025-01-18; # 8 is about astronomical telescopes, scheduled for publishing 2025-01-25; #9 is about microscopes, scheduled for publishing 2025-02-01. Later, two additional posts will appear: #10 is about digital cameras, scheduled for publication on 2025-03-01.; #11 is about digital photograph collections, scheduled for publication on 2025-03-08.
As I started preparing to write this post, my mind was comparing analogue photography with riding a horse. Something obsolete. However, I then began to remember that much of my photographic career was dependent on using specific types of cameras for very specific purposes. So yes, this is about analogue = film cameras.
My main objection to film cameras is the expense of film purchase and processing. In contrast to the camera that comes with almost every handheld digital device = smartphone, the marginal cost of taking an image is almost zero. Admittedly, those images have to stored somewhere, hopefully in multiple places.
Reminder: The 3-2-1 rule/ data protection strategy = save three copies of data, stored on two different types of media, with one copy kept off-site. This is very expensive to do with analogue photographs, especially if the negatives are missing. Flatbed and slide scanners can create digital copies inexpensively.
In general, a high quality colour image of 2 400 x 4 000 pixels can be reduced in size, without reducing quality, to occupy less than 1 MB, A 10 TB hard disk costs NOK 3 500 or less, and can store 10 million of these images at a cost of about NOK 0.00035/ image. That is about 1/300 of a cent/ image. Yes, one should keep three copies for backup purposes, which raises the cost to 1/100 of a cent.
Film
Unprocessed film is a perishable product that can be damaged by high humidity and high temperature. Fresh film is better able to provide true colour. Film should remain unopened in its original canister or plastic wrap. To protect against humidity, include a silica gel desiccant bag in the film storage container. Reuse of desiccant bags is possible.
Yet, because of a digital revolution, it was not always possible to buy film, so people attempted to preserve the film they had available. The situation in 2025, is much improved compared to 2005. In much the same way that some people prefer to listen to antiquated LP records played on turntables, some people like to revert to antiquated film technology.
Film that is expected to be used in less than 6 months, could be stored in a refrigerator at 8°C or lower. For longer term storage, years rather than months, a freezer can be used at -18°C or lower. Before use, film stored in a freezer, should be placed in a refrigerator for 24 hours. Film removed from a refrigerator, should be given 2 hours or more to adjust to room temperature. At one time, even after I had gone over to digital cameras, I had stored rolls of 35 mm Fuji slide film in our refrigerator, just in case. Currently, our refrigerator hosts one undated roll of Illford Pan F film.
Film available in 2025
Here are some notable films being manufactured
ADOX 20, a black and white film with ISO 20. “No other film is sharper, no other film is more finegrained, no other film resolves more lines per mm (up to 800 L /mm).”
Fuji one of only two remaining major manufacturers of colour film. The film range currently comprises: Consumer films = FujiColor/ FujiColor Superia and Professional films = Neopan, Velvia and Provia. Instax is a range of instant films and cameras launched in 1998 which now outsell the traditional products.
Kodak was established in 1888 and is the other major manufacturer still producing colour film. While these are manufactured in Rochester, New York, since its bankruptcy in 2012, distribution and marketing is controlled by Kodak Alaris, a UK based company, acquired in 2024 by Kingswood capital management. The film range is divided into Consumer films = ColorPlus & Gold/Ultramax, and Professional films = Tri-X, T-MAX, Ektar, Portra & Ektachrome.
Background
Analogue cameras are dependent on using light to create an image on film. Film is used as a generic term, because sometimes a film emulsion is placed on glass plates, or even a piece of metal. At Vangshylla, one of the local farmers has a hobby of using a 4″ x 5″ camera, with glass plates to produce images. I have assisted him once, to take a photo of his family, with him in it.
Personally, I have no intention of reverting to analogue photography again, even if I have stored the equipment needed to develop film in our attic. These items are historical objects to show people how humanity has progressed, technically.
Twentieth century photographic techniques
Photography uses a lens to capture a lighted image on a photographic plate in a camera. It is analogous to images passing through the lens of an eye, to create an image on the retina. In much the same way that it can be advantageous to live in a lighted room, sometimes additional light is needed to create a suitable photograph. A common approach is to attach an electronic flash. An important characteristic of photographic film is its light sensitivity, revealed in its ISO number. The actual amount of light hitting a photographic plate is determined by the shutter speed and the aperture opening. Both of these can be adjusted on most advanced modernish analogue cameras.
Shutter speeds are expressed as fractions of a second, a higher shutter speeds means a faster shutter speed, a shorter period of time that an aperture is open. Typical values are shown in the image below, typically starting with 1/1 000 and ending with 1/2 s. Most films did not produce normal results if the film speed is longer than 1/15 s. Speeds of 1 s or more are often referred to as time exposures. Shutter speeds of a longer duration, introduce blur in objects that are in motion.
Aperture openings are also stated numerically. The smaller the number the bigger the opening. Therefore, an f/1.4 is a very large opening while f/22 is a very small opening. A small opening is necessary to provide focus at depth. Large openings have a very limited focal depth.
Some people like to describe exposure in terms of a bucket being filled with water. The aperture is analogous to an adjustable hole that opens and closes at the top. The duration of the hole remaining open is analogous to a continuous stream of water entering the bucket. The smaller the hole at the top, the longer the hole would need to be open to fill the bucket with water. Conversely, a larger hole will need a shorter amount of time to fill the bucket. So in this analogy the water pouring in represents light. A full bucket of water is a properly exposed image.
Film speed is the measure of a photographic film’s sensitivity to light. The ISO, referring to the International Organization for Standardization, system was introduced in 1974. It combined a linear ASA = American Standards Association, scale used in the United States, with a logarithmic DIN standard 4512 by the Deutsches Institut für Normung used in Europe. Almost since its introduction, the DIN component has often been dropped.
The ISO arithmetic scale means that a film with an ASA 200 rating needs only half the light of a film with an ASA 100 rating. However, film with a higher rating, produce images with more grain.
Both the ASA and DIN systems have a long history, and many revisions. DIN goes back to at least 1934, but with links to The Scheinergrade system devised by the German astronomer Julius Scheiner (1858–1913) in 1894. It uses a logarithmic scale. My direct experience of ASA starts with PH2.5-1960, but versions of it date back to 1943.
Daniel Peter of Fotoblog Hamburg created this free downloadable cheat sheet card for photographers providing a basic overview of aperture, ISO values and shutter speeds.
The camera I remember best from my youth, shown at the beginning of this post, was my mother’s Kodak Petite, made between 1929 and 1934. Since she was born in 1916, I imagine it was purchased towards the end of this time period. It was equipped with a bellows, and used 127 film, which was 46 mm wide. It produced negatives that were 40 x 60 mm. The reason I used this was to take photomicrographs, especially of small marine and fresh water plants that I had collected trailing a plankton net behind my 2.4 m long Sabot sailing dinghy. I used black and white film exclusively. This camera rested on the eyepiece of my microscope, while a 30 second time exposure was made.
More modern cameras suitable for use with modern microscopes will be discussed in Optics 9 Microscopes, scheduled for publication on 2025-02-01.
In grade 12, I was tasked as the official student photographer for my high-school newspaper and year book, I used a 35 mm camera for the first time. It was a Contax II, that was used with Kodak Tri-X black and white film with high speed 400 ASA, which was purchased in 35mm x 100 foot lengths. In the school darkroom, I would load film onto cassettes. Because the camera lacked flash possibilities, dark situations often required that I push the film to ASA 1600, and develop it accordingly. Unfortunately, this increased the film’s grain structure. Kodak, attempted to market this as adding a level of realism to photographs. I was never convinced.
I developed all of the film I used, then spent numerous hours making prints with an enlarger. Working alone, and in the dark, except for a red light, this was the process I liked the most. In essence an enlarger is a camera with a light at the top, that projects a negative image onto photographic paper. One could set the aperture opening, and the exposure time. In this case there was a large timer that controlled the light inside the enlarger, then counted down the seconds before turning off the light. It was 1960s automation.
I am not sure how many times I visited the local camera shop on 6th Avenue in New Westminster. I was interested in an Asahi Pentax Spotmatic camera. It used a Through The Lens (TTL) centre-weighted light meter. This camera allowed one to focus the lens at maximum aperture with a bright viewfinder image. After focusing, a switch on the side of the lens mount stopped the lens down and switched on the metering which the camera displayed with a needle located on the side of the viewfinder. This stop-down light metering was innovative, but it limited the light meter, especially in low light situations. A M42 screw-thread lens mount was used to accommodate high quality Takumar lenses. This meant that it took considerably longer to change lenses, than with a bayonet mount.
Exakta VXIIb
Unfortunately, I could never afford to buy a Pentax. Some years later, in 1973 or so, I bought my first camera, a used Exakta Varex IIb called an Exakta VXIIb in USA. It was a 35 mm camera, produced between 1963-67, and referred to as version 6. Film speeds could be set on the top of the shutter speed dial. Shutter speeds followed the modern geometric progression from 1/30 to 1/1000 second. The rewind knob has a crank handle, but there was no view-finder release knob. The camera did not have a built-in metering system, but I had a hand-held light meter. Despite, this limitation, I especially liked the camera for two reasons. First, it came with a bayonet mount system for interchangeable lenses. Second, and more unusually, it allowed interchangeable view-finders. I had two, a pentaprism as used on most 35 mm cameras, and another one that allowed viewing from the top. This was especially useful when I studied archaeology, because it could take photos of an archeological excavation’s stratigraphy = cultural layers.
Exakta is no longer a recognizable brand, but James Stewart (1908 – 1997)/ L. B. Jefferies and Grace Kelly (1929 – 1982) / Lisa Fremont used one attached to a Kilfitt 400 mm f5.6 lens in Alfred Hitchcock’s (1899 – 1980) Rear Window (1954). It is one of the most iconic cameras in film history.
With this new camera, I switched to Illford Pan F black and white film with ASA 50 film speed, which, with its fine grain, suited my personality better. I have never been a user of colour negative film, but with this camera used Ektachrome, a slide/ transparency film that was developed by Kodak in the early 1940s. It allowed both professionals and amateurs the opportunity to process their own films. I always used the ASA 64 version, because it gave better results than High Speed Ektachrome, announced in 1959 with ASA 160. At the time, many north Americans were Kodachrome enthusiasts. However, it required professional processing.
Ektachrome processing is simpler, and small professional labs could afford equipment to develop the film. I used the E-6 process variant. which allowed amateurs with a basic film tank and tempering bath to maintain the temperature at 38 °C, to obtain suitable results.
Yashica FX-2
A Yashica FX-2 35 mm Camera Photo: Joe Haupt
After Trish and I married, we bought ourselves a modern Yashica FX-2 35mm single lens reflex (SLR) camera. This type of camera was manufactured in Japan, starting in 1976. It was Yashica’s second camera to use the new bayonet lens mount known alternately as the Contax/Yashica = C/Y mount. The intended advantage was that one could start off with inexpensive Yashica lenses, then progress to better quality Contax lenses when finances allowed it. In reality, one stuck with Yashica lenses because they were more robust than the more delicate Contax lenses.
Its viewfinder provided 0.89x magnification and nearly 90% field of view. The through the lens (TTL) light meter used Cadmium sulfide (CdS) as a photoconductive material in its photoresistor. The film speed could be set from 12 ASA to 1600 ASA. There is not much film that is sold over 400 ASA. However, this allowed users to set the film speed that the film woud be developed at. This is an important characteristic for that group of people.
The results of this metering was shown with a needle on the right side of the viewfinder display. When a proper shutter speed and aperture opening combination was selected, a proper exposure would result with the needle between the + and −. Manual focus is provided by manually turning the lens to the left (closer) or right (further away).
One could always see how a particular aperture opening would affect focus by pressing a depth of field preview button, located at the base of the lens. The light meter was powered with a 1.3v mercury battery (EP-675R, RM-675R, or equivalent) located underneath the camera, Its housing could be opened with a coin. Yes, younger readers may need to understand that smaller units of currency involved small round pieces of metal that were often carried in wallets or pockets. These days it would be considerably easier for me to find a slotted screwdriver than a coin. Yes, technology changes.
It was a very easy camera to use, and conventional for the period. The focal plane shutter operated from 1/1000 to 1 sec and B = bulb. If one needed a longer shutter opening than 1 second, then one set it to B, and held the shutter open for as long as one wanted. To use it properly, the camera would have to be mounted on a tripod, with the exposure made using a cable release. A flash could by synchronized by using X sync at speeds from 1/60 and slower. A self-timer was built into the camera. This gave the photographer about 10 seconds to position her/himself.
The mass of the camera body (without lenses) = 690 g. Camera dimensions were: 144.5 x 94 x 51 mm.
With this camera, my darkroom career almost ended, although I continued to develop black and white film. For colour slides, we increasingly used Fujichrome, usually Fujichrome 64.
Tripods
While I have learned to brace myself to take photographs without tripods, they are useful! Of course, to take full advantage of a tripod, one should use a cable release = threaded cable release = a device used to actuate the shutter of a camera without touching the shutter button. It consists of a flexible wire moving within a sheath, with a threaded connector on one end, an a plunger on the other. The sheath is usually vinyl. It is purely mechanical, in contrast to an electronic remote shutter release.
At one time I found a used tripod on sale for less than a reasonable price, I bought it, so that I could give it away to someone with an unmet and often unrealized need. So, my gift suggestion is for people to stock up on unusual, inexpensive used items that can be given away. They make much nicer gifts than yet another box of chocolates that people will despise you for because they went up an additional 100 g, eating those unnecessary calories!
This is the last camera that will be discussed here. We bought one additional 35mm SLR camera before entering the digital age. It claimed to be more modern, but my favourite camera will always remain the Yashica FX-2.
In much the same way that I have an aversion of audiophiles, who claim to hear music much better than their anatomy is capable of perceiving, there are terms to describe two types of annoying users of cameras. In Swedish, the term linslus with lins = lens & lus = louse, refers to someone obsessed with being photographed. In English, that person could be called a lenslouse. A person obsessed with taking photographs is a shutter bug. It is a kinder term, if only because I include myself in that category. These two terms cover annoying people in front of, or behind the camera, respectively.
Yes, I would like to encourage other people to share their thoughts/ experiences about analogue photography, by making comments or sending an email to me.
On 2024-04-27 this post was scheduled to be published on 2025-01-04 at 12:00. Sometime later that was changed to 2025-01-11 at 18:00.
The photographer, George Hunter (1921 – 2013) presumably in the background standing beside the Willys Station Wagon, described this photo as: “1949-07-00 Eileen O’Rourke and Rita Kennedy rest at the base of a sign for the Glynmill Inn, Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador.” The reason for putting this expired copyright work here is precisely because of the Brooks Stevens designed all steel wagon, with its fake woody body, It is one of my favourite car designs, and the only American car I have attempted to buy. In the 1960s, it was beyond my meager budget. Alasdair and I stayed at the Glynmill Inn in 2024.
This weblog post is being published on the 30th anniversary of Brook Stevens’ death on 1995-01-04.
I did not start out admiring Brook Stevens. Instead, I admired a car, then found out that it had been designed by Stevens. In my opinion, Stevens was more of an industrial designer than a vehicle stylist. He was working with companies that could afford to use complex processes in large, well financed plants, as well as other companies that often had to outsource processes that larger companies would perform internally. He also had to know how the products he designed would be used. That said, not all of his designs were successful. The worst one was the Jeepster!
Stevens had a very severe case of polio at the age of eight. For a time he was unable to walk without help, but after a regimen of exercise (especially swimming) he regained almost full mobility. He always had a limp and suffered stiffness and pain in one half of his body. Towards the end of his life, more severe symptoms returned and he was eventually forced into a wheelchair. Stevens was encouraged by his father to draw while confined to bed. He studied architecture at Cornell University, at Ithaca, New York, from 1929 to 1933. Then, in 1934, he established a home-furnishings design firm in Milwaukee.
When he started working with vehicles in the mid-1940s, after the end of the second world war, he was working with unconventional products, including Harley-Davidson motorcycles in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Willy-Overland jeeps in Toledo, Ohio. He later worked with Studebaker, in South Bend, Indiana.
Stevens role at Willys was subordinate to Chief Engineer, Barney Roos (1888 – 1960). Roos had served as Studebaker’s head of engineering from 1926 to 1936, specializing in straight-eight engines. He later worked for the British Rootes Group in the design of Humber, Hillman and Sunbeam Talbot cars. Before World War II, he returned to the United States, where he co-designed the Willys MB.
The Willys MB and the Ford GPW, were both formally referred to as the U.S. Army truck, 1⁄4‑ton, 4×4, command reconnaissance. They were commonly known as the Willys Jeep, Jeep, or jeep. They were sometimes referred to by its Standard Army vehicle supply nr. G-503. Whatever they were called, they were highly successful American off-road capable, light military utility vehicles. 640 000 were built to a single standardized design, for Allied forces in World War II, from 1941 until 1945.
Much of the success of Willys jeep was its use of the L134 Go-Devil engine. This was probably the company’s greatest asset.
The engine started life as a less than impressive 36 kW 4-cylinder automobile engine. Roos increased its performance and durability beyond the Quartermaster Corps specifications of 115 Nm of torque at the rear axle. The extra power made it the engine of choice for the U.S. Army. It ended up as a 2.2 litre undersquare = 79.4 mm bore x 111.1 mm stroke engine with an L-head design with valves parallel with the cylinders. Initial power output was 45 kW at 4000 rpm and 142 Nm of torque at 2000 rpm. Compression = 6.48:1. In the Utility Wagon power was increased to 47 kW. This L134 engine was phased out by the F-head Willys Hurricane engine beginning in 1950.
An oversquare engine has a bore that is larger than its stroke. This allows larger valves and more space for air and fuel to enter and exit the cylinders, potentially leading to higher horsepower at higher RPMs due to the increased airflow. Undersquare engines with a longer stroke typically produces more torque at lower RPMs, which can improve its pulling power.
Stevens was influenced by he streamlined style of Stevens’ early work owes a great deal to New York designers who emerged in the 1920s, such as Walter Dorwin Teague (1883 – 1960), Norman Bel Geddes (1993 – 1958), Raymond Loewy (1893 – 1986) and Henry Dreyfuss (1904 – 1972). He was more especially influenced by European custom automobile designer, Alexis de Sakhnoffsky (1901 – 1964) born in Kyiv, Ukraine. Stevens owned a car, made by the Cord Automobile Company of Indiana, that Sakhnoffsky had customized. He met Sakhnoffsky in Chicago in 1934. He was impressed to learn that automotive design could pay over $300 a day. Stevens early car designs were sometimes quite reminiscent of Sakhnoffsky’s creations, that emphasized streamlining. For a short period in the 1950s Sakhnoffsky worked for Stevens as a staff designer.
Stevens had his office in Milwaukee because of its proximity to manufacturers. Allen-Bradley, Harley-Davidson, Cutler-Hammer, and Edmilton were among his early clients, that were all located in Milwaukee.
He worked more as a sales person, than a designer. He had a support staff of about twenty. After being hired to design/ redesign a product, he would usually make some quick sketches, showing the basic lines of the new design, with an emphasis on the product’s look and function. A staff designer would make renderings from these sketches, often using an airbrush or marker. Stevens would then meet with the client and decide which version was best. Next, a three-dimensional model, either at scale or in full size, would be made by an in-house model-maker. Initially sculpting clay was used, but in the 1960s the firm used cast fiberglass. Then, the model was painted/ embellished.
I share one trait with Stevens, a love of peanut butter. However, he was frustrated by jars that had a too narrow neck, so it was impossible to get all the peanut butter out of the jar’s shoulders. Stevens insisted on a wide mouth.
When Willys’ made their prototype jeep shortly after USA entered World War II, it was overweight compared to Army requirements, but the powerful engine and its heavier and more robust transmission, was a power train combination that proved to be beneficial in the long-run for use in cross-country travel.
Willys did not have their own facilities for automotive bodywork. Their sheet metal manufacturing processes were outsourced to appliance manufacturers. These fabricators were restricted in terms of the shapes they could produce. Body panels could not have an offset of more than about 150 mm. In sheet metal drawing, a die forms a shape from a flat sheet of metal, the blank. This material is forced to move and conform to the die. Pressure is applied to the blank and lubrication applied to the die or the blank. Wrinkles will occur in the part, if the blank moves too easily. The correction is more pressure or less lubrication to limit the flow of material and cause the material to stretch. Too much pressure will result in the part becoming too thin, leading to breakage. Drawing metal requires finding a balance between wrinkles and breaking to produce a useful part.
To be a successful automotive designer, Stevens had to understand many different production processes: conventional sheet metal drawing, deep drawing, piercing, ironing, necking, rolling and beading.
Confession: I have attempted to buy one American car in my life, a 1956 Willys Station Wagon (rear-wheel drive). Unfortunately, my savings were just too little to afford it. I have also been attracted to some American vehicles produced by: International Harvester, Rambler, Studebaker and Willys. The Big Three = General Motors/ Ford/ Chrysler? Not so much.
This vehicle was in production from 1947 as the Willys Station Wagon (model 463), using the same engine and transmission, and with clear styling influence from the CJ-2A Jeep. The CJ in the model description refers to civilian jeep. In 1948, a Jeep Utility Truck emerged. Both it, and the wagon were available in four-wheel drive. In this formation it was referred to as a Utility Wagon the ancestor of all sport utility vehicles. It was an all steel vehicle, with a fake woody body.
A Jeepster convertible, model designation VJ, was also available from 1948 to 1950, with rear-wheel drive only, and the 4-cylinder Go Devil Engine. VJ apparently doesn’t mean anything. Wikipedia tells us the Jeepster’s problems in the marketplace were due to its limited utility and practicality. It looks rugged and off-road capable, but is not. Appeal is limited due to the basic construction, poor all-weather protection, and the low performance when equipped with the I-4 engine. Even with an optional six-cylinder engine and offering the VJ3 version at a lower price, Jeepsters did not draw many new buyers. One specific factor turning potential buyers away, was the lack of roll-up door windows.
Brooks also designed Harley-Davidson motorcycles, especially the 1949 Hydra-Glide, one of his first, helping create the new suspension forks in the front, bucket headlight, and the streamlined design. All Harleys since, including models in production now, are based on Stevens’s body designs.
Stevens worked with branding. His most ambitious projects were an ongoing series of package and logo designs for Miller Brewing in the early 1950s. For 3M he developed a unified package design, that was applied to 35 000 different products, in 1965.
Stevens started working for Studebaker in 1961, when the company was already in a lot of trouble financially. The auto manufacturer closed its South Bend factory in December of 1963. Thus, the only Stevens designs that Studebaker produced were the 1962 and 1963 Larks and Hawks and the 1963 Wagonaire. He did create several prototypes for other cars, projecting designs for the company all the way out to 1968.
Stevens’ relationship with Outboard Marine Corporation (OMC) was always extremely strong, in part because he was a friend of Ralph Evinrude (1907 – 1986). Stevens’ staff designers, especially Gordon Kelly and John Bradley, executed hundreds of designs for OMC’s products: Evinrude and Johnson outboard motors, Lawn Boy mowers, Cushman scooters, carts and motorcycles.
Stevens acknowledged the fact that all of his designs were ephemeral. He envisioned good design as changing from year to year, to adapt to new technologies and new tastes. Planned obsolescence was
Some people call them fake Hermès Kelly bags, but replica or faux, sounds so much nicer. Whatever one wants to call them, this approach is less expensive than the real thing. None of my friends can tell the difference, so spending money on authenticity is wasted. The smaller bag is comparable to the original 25 cm, while the larger one is is 28 cm. The bag is named after Grace Kelly.
This is the fourth Words of the Year. Instead of focusing on a single word each month, this year the focus is on phrases, that have attracted my attention, in some way. Some of these came about listening to a music video, or reading a book when a phrase jumped out at me, and demanded my attention. Then again, some come from the usual sources…
Brain rot
Oxford’s expression of the year, Brain rot = the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. The term gained prominence in 2024, capturing concerns about consuming low-quality online content, especially in excess and on social media. Its first recorded use was in American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher Henry David Thoreau’s (1817 – 1862) Walden (1854), a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Civil Disobedience = Resistance to Civil Government (original title).
Casper Grathwohl, Oxford Languages president, said: “Brain rot speaks to one of the perceived dangers of virtual life, and how we are using our free time. It feels like a rightful next chapter in the cultural conversation about humanity and technology.”
The five unsuccessful shortlisted words were: demure = reserved or responsible behaviour; dynamic pricing = a situation where the price of a product or service varies to reflect demand; lore = a body of facts and background information related to someone or something; romantasy = a fiction genre combining romance and fantasy; and slop = low-quality artificial intelligence generated online content.
The Power and the Glory
The Power and the Glory alludes to the doxology often recited at the end of the Lord’s Prayer: “For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen.” is one example of many.
Graham Greene (1904 – 1991) has used this phrase as the title of a 1941 novel about a renegade Catholic ‘whisky priest’ living in Tabasco, Mexico in the 1930s, when the Mexican government was attempting to suppress the Catholic Church. It was initially published in the United States under the title The Labyrinthine Ways. A Wikipedia article about the novel explains the plot, and other details.
Whisky priest not only refers to Graham Greene’s unnamed protagonist, more generally it refers to a person or fictional character who shows clear signs of moral weakness while preaching to a higher standard. That preaching does not have to take place in a church.
Greene was part of the Catholic literary revival. It is a term that has been applied to a movement towards explicitly Catholic allegiance and themes among leading literary figures. These are generally converts to Catholicism. The other writers belonging to this movement that I have read extensively are G. K. Chesterton (1874 – 1936) and Norwegian Sigrid Undset (1882–1949) who translated Chesterton’s work, but also gave the world her best-known work, Kristin Lavransdatter, (a trilogy, 1920 – 1922) about medieval life in Norway from a woman’s perspective. Other prominent Norwegian writers who have also converted include 2023 Nobel literature prize winner Jon Fosse (1959 – ) and Karl Ove Knausgård (1968 – ).
Armed and Dangerous
Sometimes phrases are humorous while at other times they are deadly serious. Here is one example, looking at the not-so serious aspects first.
Armed and Dangerous might refer to Armed and Dangerous (original title: Вооружён и очень опасен = Vooruzhyon i ochen opasen, = Armed and Very Dangerous) the 1977 Soviet-Czech-Romanian western, based on the novel Gabriel Conroy (1875/ revised 1882) by Bret Harte (1836 – 1902). This movie was filmed completely in Russian, yet most of main characters were played by non-Russian speaking actors (Lithuanian, Romanian and Czech), who were dubbed by Soviet voice actors.
In 1986 another film appeared with the same title, minus Very. John Candy (1950 – 1984) had a major role in it. It opened to poor reviews and low ticket sales. After 38 years, I have still not found that this film has any redeeming qualities. In particular, it is not especially funny. My favourite John Candy film, watched many times over the years, often in classrooms, is Canadian Bacon (1995), where he portrays American Sheriff Bud Boomer, enthusiastically wanting to go to war against Canada. Candy was Canadian! These days, I think American President-elect Donald Tariff, must have been secretly watching the film, and Bud’s role, especially.
On from John Candy to Carl Canedy, producer of the Antrax thrash metal song Armed and Dangerous, released at the beginning of 1987. This is not the track I would recommend to get your mother to love thrash metal. At best it is mediocre. The defining song of that genre is Holy Wars … Punishment Due (1990) by Megadeth, with its intricate rhythm, memorable leads, bass and the meaning of its lyrics. Written in Northern Ireland, during the troubles. Some regard this the best thrash metal song ever! Unfortunately, there is no mention of Armed and Dangerous in it.
Wikipedia reminds us that philosophically, thrash metal developed as a backlash against both the conservatism of the Reagan era and the much more moderate, pop-influenced, and widely accessible heavy metal sub-genre of glam metal which also developed concurrently in the 1980s. Derived genres include crossover thrash, a fusion of thrash metal and hardcore punk.
The more serious side involves fungi, where the armed part is their ability to mutate. These are an ever present and real armed threat to humanity. There are many examples including: potato blight = Phytophthora infestans, infecting potatoes and tomatoes; black sigatoka = Mycosphaerella fijiensis, infecting bananas and plantain; witchweed = Striga hermonthica, infecting many species including corn, millet and grasses; rice blast = Magnaporthe oryzae, infecting grasses; Asian soybean rot = Phakopsora pachyrhizi, infecting soybeans and other legumes.
In the 1960s, stem rust led to the resistant wheat varieties that fueled a green revolution. Many farmers believed they were finished with the rust fungus Puccinia graminis. But in 1998, a dangerous new strain, Ug99, emerged in Uganda. By 2004, its spread prompted Norman Borlaug (1914 – 2009) an American agronomist and winner of the Nobel peace prize, to investigate it further. His research contributions led, indirectly, to extensive increases in agricultural production (the green revolution). Ug99 threatens wheat crops throughout the Africa, the Middle East and Asia. It has been found in Europe from Spain to Siberia. It’s presence increases the risk of famine in Pakistan, India and other locations where small farmers can’t afford fungicides.
Tarted up
Here is a phrase from the Free Dictionary, using tarted up: We tarted up the apartment with a pink shag carpet. The dancers tarted themselves up in feathers and sequins. I live with a greenish shag carpet. Pink was used extensively in my childhood living room, but not with a shag carpet. In yet another Guardian article it was pointed out that fashion brands mislabeled real feathers as faux. Wikipedia could tell me that sequins made with nautilus shell were found dating back 12 000 years in Indonesia. While not having any clothing that use feathers or sequins, I use pink extensively, and most recently ordered two more phone cases in the same pink I have used for the past two years. This is to ensure my Asus Zenfone 9 purchased in 2022, will last until I turn 80, in 2028. Currently (2024) there is a Zenfone 11. Zenfone 13 is a delightful designation, that I expect to emerge in 2026. By 2028, it should be sufficiently dated to attract a sizable price discount.
John Camden Hotten (1832 – 1873) in Dictionary of modern slang, cant, and vulgar words (1864) has this to say about tart: a term of approval applied by the London lower orders to a young woman for whom some affection is felt. The expression is not generally employed by the young men, unless the female is in ‘her best,’ with a coloured gown, red or blue shawl, and plenty of ribbons in her bonnet—in fact, made pretty all over, like the jam tarts in the swell bakers’ shops.
Pascal Tréguer (? – ) adds: The word [tart] therefore was originally a term of endearment, and what most probably happened was an ordinary semantic extension of tart, from the literal sense of a small openpastry case containing a sweet filling to the figurative sense of pastry case containing a sweet filling a sweet woman.
Loud Budgeting
For me, loud budgeting was always known, but nameless, before it received a name from Pass Notes Shops and Shopping in the Guardian newspaper. The term emerged in a viral post by TikToker Lukas Battle (1997 – ). My wife, Trish, does not follow anyone on TikTok. She tells me that when we spend money on almost anything, it is our scarcity brain taking control. Her focus now is on hoarding avoidance. This has not always been the case. Our goal during our first year (1980-1981) in high priced Norway was to be able to buy enough food. At the end of that first year, we had saved enough to buy a radio that also played tape cassettes, a luxury.
As an accountant, Trish was well aware that budgets have to be loud. Quiet budgets just encourage excessive spending. We have always been open about our economic situation, especially with our children. When one lives in relative poverty, indulging in quiet luxury is immoral. One is thankful one has a coat and a backpack. I am not sure either of us would recognize a Hermès Kelly bag (mentioned here, only because it was part of the Guardian article). For over forty years, we have rejected aspirational consumerism and have embraced thriftiness. Please do not ask about our VW ID.Buzz.
While the Hermès Kelly bag was popularized by Grace Kelly (1929 – 1982), it was just a simple, practical design. Kelly allegedly used it to hide her pregnancy in 1956. Yet, the bag was created in 1935 by Robert Dumas and called the Sac à Dépêches = dispatch bag, which in itself took design elements from the older Haut à Courroies (HAC) bag = top with belts bag, which was designed in the 1850s. There are website posts that explain details about this bag’s design, that allow/ encourage anyone to make their own DIY version. When doing so, please avoid using animal products.
Battle claims loud budgeting is being like rich people. They hate spending money. He encourages people to broadcast spending limits, and to be financially upfront with friends.
Then there are things I don’t understand, like putting deactivation stickers on credit cards. I only use a credit card to provide additional security when making some types of purchases, such as hotel accommodation in foreign countries. It had gone four years since a credit card was used! Except, before this text was revised, my bank sent me an email claiming that they would not renew my credit card, unless I used it. So, I used it for a purchase, then (for good measure) made a couple of other random purchases with it, while visiting Newfoundland.
Trish told me about one Norwegian woman who claimed that she was now leading a life of luxury. She was now able to eat nutritious meals every day! She was so rich that she could allow her children to make choices about what they wanted to do in their free time. I agree, that is what life should be, but I hope it becomes regarded as normal, rather than luxurious.
Battle is living in a vastly different world from the one I populate. In his world, people receive costly social invitations, that should be turned down, with honest reasons about why. He is following luxury brands on social media, that should be unfollowed. He is proudly packing his own lunch, and eating it in public. He claims that his actions are not communist, but contain the secret ingredient of capitalism: being mean. Being mean isn’t new, but it could be a novelty for Gen Z or Gen α. He wonders if they can survive financial catastrophe, by bringing their own coffee from home.
Coffee
My son, Alasdair, tells me that the greatest quality reduction in coffee from farm field to sipping/ drinking/ gulping the final product, comes in the grinding of its beans. He claims that one has only 15 minutes from grinding to filtering to produce coffee at its best. Thus, he is contemplating the purchase of a grinder. I might too, but the operative word here is might, because I have engaged in a purchasing habit that has lasted for 35+ years: The replacement of Coop Red = filtermalt, mørk og kraftig = filter ground, dark and strong coffee with unground coffee beans. I even know where the red coffee is located in our local store, but have no idea where coffee beans can be found.
Fortunately, I am better at comparison shopping online. I announced my finding of an Andersson CEG 1.0 grinder from Net on Net that uses 200 W to produce up to 70 g of coffee. It has a 3.7 (of five) star rating and costs NOK 200 now and during Black week (delivered). Normal price appears to be about NOK 120 – 140, so I suggested we wait until the sales start in the new year before purchasing it. I could also tell Alasdair that the most popular grinder with variable grain size settings, is a Wilfa WSCG2 with a 160 W motor that can produce 130 g of coffee. It costs NOK 740 and has a rating of 3.8. To obtain a higher rating (4.2) the price increases to NOK 4 000.
Unfortunately, my son knows I waste money buying inappropriate tools, then regret my decisions and buy something more appropriate. He suggested that I should watch some coffee grinder reviews on YouTube, that might explain the price difference. I watched three short, but informative, reviews before admitting that I would reconsider my choice. Conclusion: I will live without a coffee grinder, and continue to use Coop red coffee.
Overnight Sensations
Despite resolve to focus on phrases, it is sometimes necessary to understand some new words that are entering a language, are influencing these phrases. These typically come from younger generations, even beyond that of one’s children. Now that I have retired from teaching, I have very little input from anyone described as Gen Z or Gen α.
Anna Spanish‘s founder, Anna Latorra, provides some contemporary slang, noting its “power to turn phrases into overnight sensations.” Some of the more recent terms, with their urban dictionary meanings are listed below.
Term
Meaning
Pookie
A nickname you call your best friend or someone you really love
Gyat
Short term for god damn
Simp
It is when a man is overly submissive to a woman and gains nothing from it. Example: “Guys simp in her Instagram replies and she doesn’t even notice them.”
Rizz
“Rizz” comes from the word “charisma.” In southern Baltimore they’ve started shortening it, using “rizzma” (the noun replacing “charisma”) and to “rizz” (the action of showing charisma)
Coquette
“Coquette” is mainly an aesthetic based on reclaiming girlhood and embracing a fun-loving, bubbly personality
Preppy
A “preppy” girl is a girl who wears the “preppy aesthetic” style, this includes wearing Roller Rabbit, Love Shack Fancy, Sassy Shortcake, American Eagle, etc.
Yeet
To violently throw an object that you deem to be worthless, inferior or just plain garbage
NPC
Short for non-playable character, it means the opposite of a main character. This person is usually a background character in your life that doesn’t have significant importance
Moots
Short for “mutuals.” It’s when you follow someone on social media and they follow you back
No cap/capping
The use of the phrase “no cap” is meant to convey authenticity and truth. Example: “No cap, ‘Barbie’ is the movie of the year.”
Ick
Something someone does that is an instant turn-off for you, making you instantly hate the idea of being with them romantically. Example: “His cargo shorts gave me the ick.”
GRWM
A “GRWM” video is a vlog where you film everything that you do in your morning, night, ECT routine. Acronym for “Get Ready With Me.”
Delulu
A delusional fan girl/boy who believes they can/will end up with their favourite idol or celebrity and invest an unhealthy amount of time and energy into said idol
Cheugy
The opposite of trendy
Bussin
What you would say if something was really good
Opps
Anyone in competition or against you. Enemies
Sus
Giving the impression that something is questionable or dishonest, short for suspicious
PFP
Short for profile picture
OOMF
Short for “one of my followers”, usually used on X and TikTok to talk about one of your followers without mentioning their name
Beige flag
Something that’s neither good nor bad but makes you pause for a minute when you notice it and then you just continue on, something odd. Similar to “red flag” (a bad sign) and “green flag” (a good sign)
Sheesh
A word used as a substitute to “Daaaamn!”
OK Boomer
A slang term used as a response to someone from the Baby Boomer generation. Example: Boomer: “When I was your age I already owned a home.” Gen Z: “OK Boomer. Houses cost like $12,000 back then.”
Heather
When someone says that you’re “Heather,” they mean that everybody can’t help but like you
Mid
Used to insult or degrade something you don’t like, labeling it as average or poor quality. Example: “Personally, I thought ‘Barbie’ was mid.”
I discovered Argentinian Caro(lina) Kowanz, currently living in Germany, on YouTube, where she provides short videos explaining English. She portrays different roles in the same video. In one, for example, she was a passenger on an aircraft who faced assorted problems, including a seat that would not recline, and an air vent that couldn’t be closed. She was also the flight attendant, acknowledged these problems, but unable to resolve them.
On another video, she tried to help viewers understand these English idioms. I have not used any of these idioms.
Ghosting = an abrupt cessation of communication with another person. Often involving dating.
Throw shade = indirect criticism of someone.
On fleek = something looks perfect! Yes, this is positive.
Spill the tea = tell the gossip, especially with all the drama that goes with it.
Low-key = something that you don’t want to make an issue about, in contrast to high-key where one feels very strongly about an issue.
Binge-watch = watching many episodes of a series without taking a break.
Lit = something is amazing or very exciting.
Slide into someone’s dms = send a direct message to someone on social media.
No cap = honestly.
Bet = Right or correct.
That fit goes hard = That is a very nice outfit you are wearing.
Then on Christmas Eve, 2024-12-24, in a Guardian newspaper article, I came across three Chinese neologisms about China’s current predicament – slowing economic growth, a falling birthrate, a meagre social safety net, and increasing isolation.
躺平 = Tangping = lying flat, a term used to describe the young generation of Chinese who are choosing to chill out rather than hustle in China’s high-pressure economy.
润学 ? =Runxue = run philosophy, which refers to the determination of large numbers of people to emigrate.
对合 = Neijuan = rolling inwards = involution, a term used to describe the feeling of diminishing returns in China’s social contract. This is a concept from sociology that refers to a society that can no longer evolve, no matter how hard it tries. Applied to the individual, it means that no matter how hard someone works, progress is impossible.
For me, it is always difficult to know how to illustrate software. I had thought of putting a photo of an IBM punch card, or even key punch machine, used to produce the finished cards, which was the first way I used to input data. These cards were then put in sequential order, before being handed in to a punch card operator. At some point they were fed into and read by a card reader. Since it could go up to two hours before one would be given a print out of the results, one had to work on two or three different projects to make optimal use of time. Then I remembered that my use of punch cards was over 50 years ago, before smartphones, laptops, even PCs. Even in the 1970s, I was using a keyboard to input data. I searched through Unsplash until I found this illustration showing software in 2024. It was made by Dadi Prayoga, from Indonesia, who uploaded onto Unsplash 2024-12-17.
I ain’t perfec, and neither is software. One of the challenges people face is how they frame software, and its imperfections. In some conversations, it seems that users ascribe religious attributes to it. They worship the technology, are willing to forgive some of it sins and sinners, but condemn other sins, and crucify these sinners. This is true of operating systems (OS), programming languages, web browsers, almost every form of software. I attempt to be a software agnostic.
Ideally, what I want to do in this post, is explain how competent computer scientists/ software engineers approach problems. To begin with, it would be useful/ appropriate to look at how they learn to be professionals. After an initial programming course, the next step is often a course in algorithms and data structures. Students learn how to frame problems in terms of these key elements. After one gains a basic understanding of these, the student is expected to learn, in depth, about how data is organized, and how programs are written. One of the answers to both is, in a database. There are many different types of database systems. There are also courses about computer hardware, operating systems, and system design.
Within a software engineering education, there are certain people and texts that have come to prominence. These are examined critically. In this post several of them will be mentioned.
Ted Codd (1923 – 2003) expressed database theory in thirteen rules, numbered from 0 to 12. These defined database management system requirements, for a database to be considered relational. Yes, computing professionals have abandoned non-relational databases. In 2024, they only work with relational data bases! These rules were presented in 1970, and updated in 1974. In 2024-12, the most popular database engines are: Oracle Database, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Snowflake, IBM Db2, SQLite, Microsoft Access, Databricks and MariaDB.
Relational databases store data in tables. A database can consist of several/ many tables. A table has columns, with the same type of data stored in each column. Each record forms a row. A primary key is a field in a table used to identify that record. The point here, is that the primary key has to be unique.
One of the most important rules is to avoid redundancy. Duplicate information in a database schema = the structure of a database described in a formal language, can lead to inconsistencies. If the same data is stored in multiple tables, there is a risk that it will be updated in one table but not in others, resulting in discrepancies, which is a polite term for errors.
Open Source
Generally, I use the term open-source to describe software that is designed for anyone to examine, use, modify and distribute as they see fit. It is often developed collaboratively, by corporate partners or groups of people, who may be professionals, or talented amateurs. There are also examples of a single person developing all of the code for a project/ app. Other people want to emphasize that it is software that can be obtained without cost, so they refer to it as free and open source software (FOSS).
It is inappropriate to abbreviate open-source as OS, because that is the common, accepted abbreviation for operating system. So today, FOSS is most often used.
At one time FOSS was only advocated by long-haired, un-showered, left-leaning hippies. That was a long time ago. Now mega-corporations have discovered that using FOSS programs can reduce their costs significantly, and increase profits they can give to shareholders. The main idea is to make something appropriate once, then let everyone use it.
Yet the world of FOSS is changing in other ways. Simple programs are evolving into multi-task commodities (yes, that is the term often used) not to solve problems in a better way, but to make overarching products. Before, it was more common for a program to solve a limited task, appropriately. Unfortunately, this increased scope frequently results in badly designed programs that function poorly in practice. In addition, security and related issues arise, since solutions suitable for a product with limited capabilities, may be unsuitable and with multiple issues, that are increasingly overlooked, with an expanded product.
The FOSS ecosystem has contended with problems of scale and complexity at the same time FOSS has become increasingly important. In server environments, especially, there is no need for multiple vendors to produce competing products. Thus, they often work together to make a product that suits all of their needs.
Software is difficult, and it can make life more difficult because some decision makers do not understand how to evaluate it. Instead, they think that purchasing something can be a quick way of solving their challenges.
Software complexity and growth rate have exasperated traditional open-source governance models. New approaches are needed, but they also need to be evaluated to determine which offer improvements over existing systems.
FOSS participation is declining, in terms of funding, headcount and other metrics. Some for-profit organizations are invading FOSS domains. They offer free software that solves some challenges, but then sell paid solutions, for anything beyond that minimum. This is often referred to as freemium.
Meanwhile, cyber threats keep evolving, with many open-source projects becoming targets for malicious activity. Users are more vulnerable, exposed to more vectors = ways of attacking, than ever before. Attackers are big, smart, nimble yet patient. This leads to more intricate strategies, resembling games. When attacks occur, they give greater rewards to the perpetrators. Attacks provide not just economic, but political, profits. It is often claimed that the North Korean and Russian state are involved in some of these.
The increasing storage of data in clouds = someone else’s server, and the increased use of Software as a Service (SaaS) creates new challenges. This effectively means that what amounted to cultural diversity is being replaced by layers of technical and organizational monocultures that may enable attacks.
Users can assist with FOSS. Those with programming and other technical skills can contribute code. Those with user experience, can review products. Everyone can use FOSS.
Meanwhile, organizations have reduced their computer-system expertise. They shift capital expenditures to operating expenses, and depend on cloud vendors for security. This is delusional, as these cloud vendors do not guarantee any security, apart from some best-effort propaganda. Similarly, when organizations use off-the-shelf hardware and software solutions, these are often a mix of FOSS and commercial software, that create elaborate attack surfaces, yet whose components and interactions are accessible and well understood. This allows attackers to hide in the open.
Operating systems
The most fundamental type of software is the operating system (OS). A device has to have one in order to run other software. Different operating systems are required for different purposes, so people are expected to know how to use these different operating systems on their phone/ tablet, laptop/ desktop, media player and server. There are also specialty operating systems for real-time systems, including robotics.
It is often stated that people are influenced by the history of devices that they use. The first computer I used was an International Business Machines System /360. I am unsure which model, or even the type of operating system. There were several available: Basic Operating System/360 (BOS/360), Tape Operating System (TOS/360), and Disk Operating System/360 (DOS/360). I was using it to learn SPSS = Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Then I took a course in programming, based on PL/1 = Programming Language One, from IBM.
After that I used a number of different mini-machines. First there was a Hewlett-Packard in the 2100 series, probably a 2100S, with the “Real Time Executive” operating system, (RTE). In Molde, in Norway, I began using a Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) VAX-11/ 780, with a VAX/VMS operating system. I became very familiar with this machine, and used it extensively for many different purposes, including the construction of data base systems as well as simulation models. When we moved to Bodø in 1985, Norsk Data NORD-500 machines were used, running the Sintran III operating system.
When I took a position in Steinkjer in 1988, they were in the process of migrating from Norsk Data to Digital Equipment. I saw first hand how inappropriate purchasing decisions could be made. First, the college was told about the PRISM project to produce updated VAX machines, accompanied by the MICA project, which intended to consolidate VMS and ULTRIX into a single operating system. The school believed this was actually happening. They ordered workstations of type DECstation 3100, specifically designed and built to run a UNIX system, ULTRIX. They then discovered that no version of the VMS operating system would be released for the DECstations. They would not integrate with the other VAX utstyr, they had also ordered. The key takeaway is never to believe computer sales people. There is just too much vaporware that never emerges!
Fortunately, the Norwegian government had another mission, to bail out the faltering Norsk Data. They provided colleges with free money to buy lots of Nord computers to save the company from bankruptcy. So more expensive computers were bought. The Sintran operating system was modified so that it could mimic UNIX.
None of the above computers have any relevance today. This is the way of technology. For almost sixty years I used ICE = internal combustion engine vehicles. Then I switched to an electric vehicle. I have no intention of going back. All of those years of gearing with a manual transmission are history. Similarly, my keypunch experience has no relevance in terms of computing today. Surprisingly, my touch-typing skills learned starting in ca. 1963, are fully relevant today.
UNIX
Modern computing begins with Unix developed at Bell Labs research centre in New Jersey in 1969. A consensus was emerging in the computer world that having a handful of companies each producing a computer with its own OS, was counter productive. It just took time for an appropriate OS to emerge. There have come out some important books about computing that point towards open standards.
There were books that attempted to expand systems thinking beyond computers, two of which were written by Donella Meadows (1941 – 2001). These were Limits to Growth (1972) and Thinking in Systems: A Primer (1993/ restructured by others 2008). The major problems of the world = war/ hunger/ poverty/ environmental degradation are due to system failure. They cannot be solved piecemeal by fixing any one piece in isolation. This lesson has not been learned.
In terms of computing the most influential book of my list is Tracy Kidder’s (1945 – ) The Soul of a New Machine (1981). It explains the drama/ comedy/ excitement/ boredom/ exploitation of workers by a company bringing a new microcomputer to the mass market. This book explains a common attitude of start-ups, a total unconcern about the physical and mental health of employees, who are regarded as replaceable cogs in a machine.
Andrew S. Tanenbaum (1944 – ) wrote Operating Systems: Design and Implementation (1987) with Albert S. Woodhull. This book introduced me to operating system principles. While the source code for MINIX was included as part of the book, my own computer science education required me to construct my own operating system as a semester project. In addition, I also had to implement a compiler for a language resembling Pascal (1970), developed by Niklaus Wirth (1934 – 2024).
At this point, one should probably mention Wirth’s law, which is an adage = a saying that sets forth a general truth. This one states that software is getting slower more rapidly than hardware is becoming faster. Wirth discussed it in A Plea for Lean Software (1995). Pascal was based on Algol 60 = Algorithmic Language (1960). In Norway, this formed the starting point for Simula = Simulation Language, developed in Oslo, and often called the first object oriented language.
Back at Bell Labs, Brian Ritchie (1941 – 2011) created the C programming language, and with Ken Thompson (1943 – ) developed the Unix operating system. Sometimes inventors are not the best people to explain their inventions, so it was fortunate for these two that Canadian computer scientist Brian Kernighan (1942 – ), was better able to write about Unix and the C programming language.
I have learned several additional languages including: Objective C (1980) developed by Brad Cox (1944 – 2021) and Tom Love (? – ?), Smalltalk (1972) designed by Alan Kay (1940 – ), Dan Ingalls (1945 – ), Adele Goldberg (1944 – ) and others, at Xerox PARC = Palo Alto Research Center; and Prolog (1972) by Alain Colmerauer (1941 – 2017).
PCs
By 1985, almost everyone of a certain age with technical interests had discovered personal computers. One of the schools where I was working had ordered a computer lab worth of Apple II clones. Yet no one knew how to use them! I paid for our first family computer by teaching an introductory computing course to the teachers. The local Amiga distributor invoiced the school for the course, and in time we received an Amiga 2000.
At about the same time IBM compatible personal computers were becoming more popular, and encroaching on the Apple II market. By 1984 Apple had seen the writing on the wall, and had produced a more advanced Macintosh computer. At the time, both Macs and PCs were too expensive for secondary schools. The operating systems in IBM and other personal computers were referred to as PC- and MS-DOS, respectively. They were both renamed variants of 86-DOS, owned by Seattle Computer Products, written by Tim Paterson (1956 – ). Its development took six weeks. It was a clone of Digital Research’s CP/M used on Apple II machines and clones, ported to run on 8086 processors. In addition there was improved disk buffering and a new file system.
Windows
Microsoft released Windows 1.0 on 1985-11-20, as a graphical operating system shell for MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs). To begin with, this was just for people with special interests. Windows took off in 1990, with the release of version 3.0.
With the exception of an iMac, used to teach students studying media and communications, the work computers I have used ran various version of Windows. XP is the version I liked best, followed by 7. I was assigned 8 when I retired.
The latest variant, Windows 11 was released 2021-10-05. For the past several months, Microsoft has been encouraging a transition from Windows 10 to 11. At the same time, they have said that hardware will have to meet specific capabilities in order to allowed to upgrade. End of support for Windows 10 is scheduled for 2025-10-14. Except, one can pay for a one year delay, perhaps longer.
Shortly after Windows 11 came out, Microsoft and Intel found compatibility issues with Intel Smart Sound Technology (Intel SST) on 11th Gen Core processors running Windows 11. Microsoft applied a compatibility hold on affected systems, preventing those PCs from upgrading to Windows 11. Now, over two years later, Microsoft has resolved the issue and cleared a path for those computers to run Windows 11.
Windows 11 has minimum system requirements. An attempt to install it on other PCs will result in the installer refusing. There are unofficial ways to bypass this, but they are not for the faint at heart!
Users of Windows 7, 8, 10 or 11 may want to use Winaero Tweaker, a freeware app created by Sergey Tkachenko. It is an all-in-one application that comes with dozens of options for fine-grained tuning of various Windows settings and features. To encourage Windows users to consider Tweaker, I have listed several categories of its features here: Shortcut tools; To launch an app as Administrator without a UAC confirmation; To directly open any Control Panel applet or system folder; To directly open any Settings page; To create shortcuts to the classic Shut Down Windows dialog (Alt+F4), and Safe Mode; To remove or customize the shortcut arrow overlay icon; To remove the ” – shortcut” suffix; To remove blue arrows from compressed files. Manage Windows apps and features: Restore classic Windows Photos Viewer to use it instead of Photos; Restore the classic sound volume pop-up slider. Permanently disable Windows Telemetry and Data Collection; Permanently disable Windows Defender; Permanently disable Windows Update; Disable ads and unwanted app installation (Candy Crush Soda Saga, etc); Enable the built-in Administrator account. Enable automatic Registry backup; Change drag-n-drop sensitivity; Disable Action Center and notifications; Reset icon cache; Reset all Group Policy options at once. Networking options: Change the remote desktop port. Make mapped drives accessible for elevated apps; Tune up Windows appearance; Customize folders in This PC; Customize entries in Navigation Pane in File Explorer (in the left pane); Rename and change the icon for the Quick Access entry; Increase the taskbar transparency level; Show time seconds in the taskbar clock; Disable blur for the sign-in screen; Customize fonts, and the Alt+Tab dialog appearance; Change the title bar color for inactive windows; Add handy context menus using a huge set of presets, e.g. to switch a Power Plan with one click, open a Command Prompt, add a Settings cascading menu – plenty of them; Hide default entries from the context menu, e.g. Edit with Photos, Edit with Paint 3D, etc.; Add ‘Run as Administrator’ to VBS, MSI, CMD and BAT files; Change the default app for the Edit context menu entry for images.
Mac OS
System Software = Mac OS = Classic Mac OS ( retronym) was a series of operating systems developed for the Macintosh family of personal computers by Apple Computer, from 1984 = System 1 to 2001 = Mac OS 9. It is credited with popularizing graphical user interfaces.
It was based on concepts from the Xerox PARC Alto computer. The Alto was conceived in 1972, in a memo written by Butler Lampson (1943 – ). It was inspired by the Stanford NLS = oN-Line System, developed by Douglas Engelbart (1925 – 2013), released in 1968-12-09. The Alto OS was made by Chuck Thacker (1943 – 2017). This was the first computer that used a mouse-driven graphical user interface (GUI), Mac OS consisted of a Macintosh Toolbox ROM and a System Folder = a set of files loaded from a disk.
The Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) was a Unix operating system developed and distributed by the Computer Systems Research Group (CSRG) at the University of California, Berkeley beginning in 1978. It began as an improved derivative of AT&T’s original Unix that was developed at Bell Labs, based on the source code that, over time, was replaced by its own code.
After Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011) was fired as CEO of Apple in 1985, he started NeXT, and developed the NextStep, an object-oriented, multitasking operating system based on the Mach project at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, that ran from 1985 to 1994, The end results was the Mach 3.0 microkernel. It was developed as a replacement for the kernel in BSD.
OpenStep was an object-oriented application programming interface (API) specification developed by NeXT. It was written in Objective C, and released 1994-10-19, providing a framework for building graphical user interfaces (GUIs) and for developing software applications. OpenStep was designed to be platform-independent, allowing developers to write code that could run on multiple operating systems.
By 1997 Steve Jobs was back in Apple’s good graces, and had become Apple’s CEO once again. In 1996, Apple Computer had acquired NeXT. Apple merged the user interface/ environment from classic Mac OS, with NeXTSTEP and OpenStep to create Mac OS X. All of Apple’s subsequent platforms since iPhone OS 1 were then based on Mac OS X. This was later renamed macOS.
Linux
Wikipedia tells us that Linux is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on 1991-09-17, by Linus Torvalds (1969 – ). Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution (distro), which includes the kernel and supporting system software and libraries—most of which are provided by third parties—to create a complete operating system, designed as a clone of Unix and released under the copyleft GPL license.
There is a lot of hype from computer manufacturers to use Microsoft Windows operating systems. Having consumers buy it, undoubtedly adds to their profits, especially when it is almost impossible to buy a low-priced computer without Windows.
Microsoft is currently requiring people with older hardware, that runs on Windows 10, to buy new, computer hardware that is compatible with the Windows 11 requirements. This can be expensive. Another approach is for Windows 10 users in this situation, is for them to try a user friendly version of Linux to see if they feel comfortable with it. One such OS is the latest version of Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop.
A trial version can be explored by making a live version, which means copying a bootable version of Linux Mint onto a USB flash drive/ memory stick/ thumb drive. By booting up from this drive, Linux will be available. Those who, after this trial, feel uncomfortable using Linux do not have to do anything, except to avoid booting up from the USB drive again. Those that find they prefer Linux can, at some point, install it on their machine, either alone or as part of a dual-boot system with their original OS. The memory stick can then be used to boot Linux on other computers. Linux is particularly well suited for older hardware.
One of the main characteristics of an operating system is its file system or, in the case of Android, the lack of such a system, as it is up to each app to decide how its data is to be organized. At Cliff Cottage, we use a variety of file systems. On most machines, we use ZFS, previously known as Zettabyte File System. It was originally released in 2006. There are some challenges with it, or more correctly with TimeShift, a program that allows users to reset their hardware, after updates, to a prior point in time. TimeShift does not work with ZFS.
On some other machines there is btrfs = better/ butter file system,
Spyware
The content here began after Jeffrey Paul, hacker and security researcher living in Berlin, wrote, “… that in the current version of the macOS, the OS sends to Apple a hash = unique identifier, of each and every program you run, when you run it. Lots of people didn’t realize this, because it’s silent and invisible and it fails instantly and gracefully when you’re offline…. Because it does this using the internet, the server sees your IP [address], of course, and knows what time the request came in. An IP address allows for coarse, city-level and ISP-level geolocation, and allows for a table that has the following headings: Date, Time, Computer, ISP, City, State, Application Hash…. This means that Apple knows when you’re at home. When you’re at work. What apps you open there, and how often.”
This is not a unique problem for mac users. There are similar challenges with trackers on other operating systems. Paul continues, “Who cares?” I hear you asking. Well, it’s not just Apple. This information doesn’t stay with them…. requests are transmitted unencrypted. Everyone who can see the network can see these … This data amounts to a tremendous trove of data about your life and habits, and allows someone possessing all of it to identify your movement and activity patterns. For some people, this can even pose a physical danger to them. Now, it’s been possible up until today to block this sort of stuff on your Mac [with Little Snitch]…. The version of macOS that was released today [well, over four years ago: 2020-11-12], 11.0, also known as Big Sur, … prevent[s] Little Snitch from working the same way.”
Fortunately, this issue was resolved when Little Snitch 5 was launched. That said, people should be concerned about what their operating system is doing. Personally, living in Norway, I am less concerned about big government watching my activities, than I am of big business. This is the main reason why I encourage people to use open-source software, when possible. People living in anything approaching an authoritarian regime have to be vigilant. The content presented here is suitable for politically active people living in full democracies, where such activism is not a life threatening activity.
In each their own way, corporations, such as Alphabet (owners of Google), Amazon, Apple and Meta (owners of Facebook) dominate vast zones of the world wide web, with multiple trackers following (or at least attempting to follow) everyone’s movements through cyberspace. YouTube, an Alphabet subsidiary, can suggest new videos based on each individual’s entire cyber footprint, and not just visits to YouTube. Facebook is even worse, by asking rhetorical question about whether one knows Josephine Doe. Of course the user does, otherwise they wouldn’t ask! This situation arises despite every web browser in use being equipped with the latest in ad-blocking and anti-tracking software. Why? Well, the Corporatedom doesn’t respect privacy rights, necessitating this web-log post.
Personal comments
Our laptops continue to use Linux Mint, but upgraded to version 22. While we attempted to use a dual boot system with Windows 11, this proved impossible. So we upgraded our file system to ZFS – which is what we use on our server.
We intend to install Windows either on a dedicated machine, or as a virtual machine, at some unspecified point in the future. There are certain products that refuse to work under any other system than Windows. We have two: a library catelogue system, and a slide scanner. The system requirements for these are flexible. They will work with almost any version of windows, including outgoing 10, current 11, outdated 7 or ancient XP.
For sentimental reasons, and its connection with Mandrake Linux I would like to have one machine running the latest version of Mageia. Mandrake can be considered its forerunner, but with other intermediate steps. Mandrake was released in 1998, by Gaël Duval, mentioned above, to provide an easy-to-use Linux. In 2005-04, Mandrakesoft (as the company was then called) acquired Conectiva, a Brazilian-based company that produced a Linux distribution for Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking Latin America. As a result of this acquisition and a legal dispute with Hearst Corporation about the name Mandrake, the company changed its name to Mandriva. Mageia was formed as a fork of Mandriva in 2010. This occurred as the Mandriva subsidiary responsible for it, was declared bankrupt, and its assets liquidated. Mageia Version 1 was launched in 2011. Version 9 was launched in 2023-08. It still has not been installed on any of my machines.
Android & iOS
Android started in 2003 by Android, Inc., in Palo Alto, California. It was purchased by Google in 2005. Android 1.0 was released 2008-10. Unfortunately, a smartphone is nothing without its apps. Android software development is the process by which applications are created for devices running the Android operating system. Android apps can be written using Kotlin, Java, and C++ languages using the Android software development kit (SDK), while using other languages is also possible. However, all non-Java virtual machine (JVM) languages, such as Go, JavaScript, C, C++ or assembly, need the help of JVM language code, that may be supplied by tools, likely with restricted API support. Some programming languages and tools allow cross-platform app support for both Android and iOS.
iOS (formerly iPhone OS until version 4) is a mobile operating system developed by Apple exclusively for its mobile devices. The first-generation iPhone, was launched 2007-06-29. Major versions of iOS are released annually; the current stable version, iOS 18, released 2024-09-16.
It is the operating system that powers many of the company’s mobile devices, including the iPhone, and is the basis for three other operating systems made by Apple: iPadOS, tvOS, and watchOS. iOS formerly also powered iPads until iPadOS was introduced in 2019, and the iPod Touch line of devices until its discontinuation. iOS is the world’s second most widely installed mobile operating system, after Android.
Our hand-held devices continue to use Android as their primary OS. Android V13 is the operating system used on our Asus Zenfone 9 smartphones. Our son Alasdair uses this on his Samsung Galaxy, and our daughter Shelagh uses this on her Google Pixel. I never expect to be as comfortable using a hand-held device, as a computer. However, I do manage to use it, and the installed apps.
Hand-held devices (HHD): While some people refers to these as phones, telephony is only one use. For some, a smartphone or tablet is the only computing device used. Android may be open-source, but it also has a lot of proprietary input from Google and phone manufacturers. Personally, I kept threatening to go over to /e/, an e.foundation variant of open source Lineage OS. This would have been easy with a Fairphone. However, quality issues with that device are keeping me in the Android camp, for some additional years.
While I wrote about using a de-googlized Android OS from the e foundation, developed by Gaël Duvait, it has not been installed. I intend to try it out on one of the retired Xiaomi Pocophone F1s some time in 2025.
Apple also makes smart phones, tablets and other devices that need an OS. For larger computers, Apple offers MacOS. For other products, their solution is iOS for iPhones, iPadOS for iPads, watchOS for Apple Watches, and tvOS for Apple TVs. Each system is designed to optimize the user experience on its respective device.
Sometimes there are other factors than age that prompt a hardware change. The fact that we have an electric vehicle (EV), where much of its control is based on the use of hand-held devices, prompted us to buy new ones some months in advance of the EV’s arrival. We opted for two identical Asus Zenfone 9 devices. Our children have opted for Apple, Pixel and Samsung devices,
Laptop/ Desktop: The lifetime of a laptop computer varies with the individual using it. Take one resident user at Cliff Cottage, Trish. She used one laptop for over 7 years without any major issues. At one point her hard-disk was replaced because it was full, and she was encouraged to install one with a larger capacity. In contrast, another resident user, Brock, has managed to go through four different computers in the same time-period. He has multiple lame excuses to explain why none of these worked out.
Many users find that the main problem with Windows is not the lack of software, but excessive quantities of bloatware = Software with large, often unnecessary features, including some that spy on users. These features can make a machine slow/ unwieldy/ inefficiently, using excessive amounts of memory or disk space.
Because people differ in their needs, it is difficult to list all of the user programs/ software/ applications/ apps people need on their personal computers. Many of the most important programs come installed with the operating system. Additional programs can be installed using the Software Manager. To find additional/ useful/ important open-source programs, Alternative to, allows people to compare programs that may be useful.
Tails
The most basic way to achieve more privacy is to select an appropriate operating system, such as Tails. Tails is a security-focused Debian-based Linux distribution aimed at preserving privacy and anonymity against surveillance. It can run on almost any computer from a USB stick.
A live system contains a complete, bootable operating system, usually with writable storage that allows for customization, including the installation of software packages. They can save settings, and can be used for system administration, data recovery, or test purposes.
Tails lets users be anonymous on the Internet, and helps circumvent censorship. It does so by forcing all connections to the Internet to go through the Tor network. It leaves no trace on the computer unless explicitly ordered to do so by the user. It uses state-of-the-art cryptographic tools to encrypt your files, emails and instant messaging.
Despite being the best, and simplest solution, most users are reluctant to use Tails. They deliberately select a second best solution, because they are unwilling to set themselves into a new operating system, slightly different from the one they are currently using. Yes, the writer of this post is also in precisely the same situation.
Operating System Conclusion
A lot of ink has been used here to comment on operating systems. An OS is important because they are at the heart of computing. Yet, they also bring forward a lot of emotion. In some respects they are like brands of cars. People may argue that a particular brand is better than another, but many people would set aside these prejudices if they were confronted with a choice between no car, and a car of their least favourite brand. Most people would prefer to have a computer/ smartphone with the worst possible OS, than not to have one at all.
Similarly, I don’t think anyone really wants an old OS version. They are just not appropriate to meet user needs. This means that Windows XP is the earliest OS that should ever be considered. Windows 7 is probably a better choice. The latest version of Linux Mint, is probably more appropriate than either of these two, but there can be cases where one needs a Windows operating system. In our household there are two: for a library system, and to digitize slides.
Web Browsers
Most well-known browsers are controlled by these large corporations: Apple offers Safari; Google has Chrome; Microsoft has Edge, and previously provided Explorer. Mozilla Firefox is an exception. It is not owned by big tech. However, Google has provided financing. For most people, Firefox is gudenuf to use.
Here at Cliff Cottage we use Firefox on all of our machines, but also have Brave, as an alternative. Brave provides shields that automatically block ads and trackers. This means that Brave loads sites faster than most other browsers. Shields also offer additional protection by blocking malicious webscripts. When possible, HTTP connections are automatically forced to become HTTPS connections. This is because HTTPS sites use a secure encryption protocol to protect user traffic, whereas HTTP is unsecured.
Browsers needs to be able to protect users from: Phishing sites, deceptive websites that mimic legitimate websites in an attempt to get users to provide personal information; web trackers/ cookies, internet scripts that follow users browsing habits from site to site, sharing browsing data with hackers, advertisers and others; spyware/ adware, embedded malware, usually in a browser, that captures data and/ or redirects searches to unwanted sites; keyloggers are malware used to take screenshots of computer content or to harvest keystrokes; malicious ads that direct users to unsafe sites. There are other behaviours, but those are the main ones in 2024.
Android & iPhone Browsers
Firefox Focus is an open source browser from Mozilla, available for Android and iOS smartphones and tablets. It improves browsing speed and protects users’ privacy by blocking online trackers, including third-party advertising. It checks all URLs against Google’s Safe Browsing service to help people avoid fraudulent sites. Firefox Klar is a modified flavour of Firefox Focus, with telemetry disabled. It was initially released for German-speaking countries. For those with serious privacy concerns this is the only flavor to use.
One of the challenges with Brave is that the features differ, depending on the type of device used. For example, in 2021 iOS users – but not Android users – got access to Brave Playlist, which allows them to save media such as music and videos to playlists. So, instead of bookmarking a song or video in Brave, users can view/ hear content offline (for an unknown to me, but limited period). Brave saves content in a format that’s only compatible with the Brave Media Player and can only appear on the device you saved it on. It cannot be downloaded to other devices.
Chromebook Browsers
Many Chromebook users will also want to consider Firefox Focus, running Android apps. While Crostini Chromebooks allow the use of Linux apps, these features are still being developed, and there are challenges. For most systems, the Linux sound system doesn’t work, either on media players or the Linux version of Firefox ESR. Some programs, like LibreOffice, work well, others don’t work at all. In general, Linux programs can’t recognize USB devices, which can be a problem is content has to be stored. In general, there are workarounds for this problem.
