[Texascavers] Bacardi adds bat housing to Florida plant :
To the bat cave! Bacardi adds bat housing to Florida plant JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Bacardi has long used a bat as its company logo. Now the liquor industry giant has added bat habitats to its Jacksonville bottling facility. According to a statement from the Bermuda-based company, the three wooden "bat caves" that stand 20 feet off the ground are part of a partnership with Lubee Bat Conservancy. The conservancy's director says there are four bat species found on the Bacardi property. Wildlife experts will monitor the bat populations, but no cameras have been placed in the caves. The three habitats can house up to 500 bats. According to Bacardi's statement, the company has supported bat conservation since 1862 when the founder's wife spotted a colony of fruit bats in its first distillery in Cuba. A bat logo remains on every bottle of Bacardi rum. http://www.dailyprogress.com/to-the-bat-cave-bacardi-adds-bat-housing-to-florida/article_3304e38b-b124-523c-91a7-c0b7ea5fccb4.html Jerry Atkinson jerryat...@aol.com ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
Re: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping
I think that I have served as a Texas Caver editor in the past. My purposes for this laptop are for Mexican caving trips, drafting maps, writing trip reports, keeping inventories, etc. Diana ** Diana R. Tomchick Professor Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Rm. ND10.214A Dallas, TX 75390-8816 diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu (214) 645-6383 (phone) (214) 645-6353 (fax) > On Oct 27, 2016, at 12:52 PM, texascavers@texascavers.com wrote: > > Diana, > You may consider getting one with a powerful word processor so after the cave > map is drafted the trip report can be written in conjunction with it. Then > you can take the map and trip report and jump right into editing the rest of > the Texas Caver articles for the next months issue. > What do you think? > > > > From: Diana Tomchick via Texascavers > To: Cave Tex > Sent: Thursday, October 27, 2016 12:24 PM > Subject: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping > > I’m preparing to purchase a new Windows laptop that will be used for cave > mapping, along with other tasks. > > Is there any particular reason why I might want to get a laptop with a touch > screen? It appears to me that it only adds extra weight to the laptop without > adding great functionality (I personally love to use a computer mouse, and > would use an externally attached drawing tablet for drawing). > > Comments or suggestions are welcome, > > Diana > > ** > Diana R. Tomchick > Professor > Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry > University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center > 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. > Rm. ND10.214A > Dallas, TX 75390-8816 > diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu > (214) 645-6383 (phone) > (214) 645-6353 (fax) > > > > > UT Southwestern > > > Medical Center > > > > The future of medicine, today. > > ___ > Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com > Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: > http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ > http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers > > > ___ > Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com > Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: > http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ > http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
[Texascavers] The Texas Caver
No thanks, Diana. I did my 12 monthly issues of the Caver back in 1970 and then I did the 50th Anniversary issue that finally completed the four issues due to TSA members for the 2005 volume of the Texas Caver. I’m sure you remember that year. I have always supported the Texas Caver in one way or another and always responded to the editor’s requests for help. Many of the people who publicly note Caver shortcomings have also offered assistance, myself included. There was plenty of constructive criticism offered. For example: “How about captions for the photographs?” In many cases we were ignored or rebuffed. I think most finally gave up. If the Caver is somehow rejuvenated, I stand ready to be a supporter. ===Carl Kunath carl.kun...@suddenlink.net -Original Message- From: Diana Tomchick via Texascavers Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2016 12:31 PM To: Cave Tex Subject: Re: [Texascavers] The Texas Caver This leads me to ask—Carl, since you have so much time to critique the issue and write at length about it, and you care so deeply about it, would you volunteer to edit the Texas Caver? Diana ** Diana R. Tomchick Professor Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Rm. ND10.214A Dallas, TX 75390-8816 diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu (214) 645-6383 (phone) (214) 645-6353 (fax) > On Oct 26, 2016, at 11:05 AM, texascavers@texascavers.com wrote: > > The Texas Caver > > So here we go again with the Texas Caver. Every few years we are seeking a > new editor or at least discussing options that might disburse the rowdy > crowds that are assembling at the gates with torches and pitchforks. > > What is gong on here? Why is it that every few years there is a Texas Caver > crisis and a less than graceful transition to a new editor? > > There is lots of talk about the Texas Caver. From the outset, there seems to > have been some confusion regarding the difference between good journalism and > nice graphic arts. Unfortunately, neither has been regularly in evidence. > Maybe I've missed it, but I can't recall anyone praising the Caver for high > quality journalism or the reliability of production. The editor has a few > passionate defenders who are willing to do battle with any and all > detractors, but the current editorial has now acknowledged what has been > evident for several years. > > The coming transition is an opportunity to learn from previous mistakes. > Texas cavers appreciate good grammar, proper spelling, and nice graphics but, > failing that, are willing to forgive a lot if the Caver shows signs of having > been carefully crafted with attention to detail: nice photographs properly > captioned and credited; articles well laid out with all elements present; no > space used as a personal blog; and perhaps most importantly, timely > production. > > I was handed a copy of the most recent Texas Caver at the TSA meeting Sunday > morning, October 16. When I looked at the cover, my first thought was "huh?" > I rotated the page through 360 degrees as I searched in vain for a person > or anything for scale. Despairing, I then looked inside for the caption > information. I didn't find much. The picture credits Peter Bosted and > apparently depicts a scene from the Big Island, Hawaii. I infer that it > pictures something within a cave and is not merely a hand sample from a flea > market or mineral show. As usual, there is no proper caption information. A > closer look at the cover reveals "haul" to be misspelled and a Government > Canyon report proffered as being from "2105." Those errors are egregious > and, sadly, are but a preview of others to come. > > In the present issue (the word "current" can't properly be applied since it > is about six months late), pages 4 and 5 are mostly filled with > pictures—none with caption information—and the top photo on page 4 suffers > from a lack of pixel information by at least one order of magnitude. Where > is the graphic arts expertise we are often reminded of? If a photo is > essential and a small file is the best available, then please reduce the > printed size. At the top of page 5 there is a full half page devoted to two > guys stirring a large pot of food. What about the "hero" shot at the top of > page 6? Neither photo is captioned or credited. It's a poor use of space > that TSA's hard copy subscribers are paying for. In fact, there is a lot of > "white space" in every issue. I am reminded of some prior issues with long > personal "blogs" that should never have appeared in the Caver. Furthermore, > we are subjected to the new English word, "givin." Page 8 treats us to > another low resolution photo
Re: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping
Actually, I wasn’t planning on taking the computer *into* the cave… After some discussion with people at work, I’ve decided that the extra expense and lowered battery life of a touchscreen isn’t worth it for my purposes. Diana ** Diana R. Tomchick Professor Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Rm. ND10.214A Dallas, TX 75390-8816 diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu (214) 645-6383 (phone) (214) 645-6353 (fax) > On Oct 27, 2016, at 12:51 PM, texascavers@texascavers.com wrote: > > The few people I've seen actually using a computer in-cave for mapping > have used something smaller than a laptop, like a PDA (Palm Pilot, etc.) > or even an old Android cell phone. I wonder how an actual laptop would > hold up. > > Mark Minton > mmin...@caver.net > > On Thu, October 27, 2016 1:24 pm, Diana Tomchick via Texascavers wrote: >> I'm preparing to purchase a new Windows laptop that will be used for >> cave mapping, along with other tasks. >> >> Is there any particular reason why I might want to get a laptop with a >> touch screen? It appears to me that it only adds extra weight to the >> laptop without adding great functionality (I personally love to use a >> computer mouse, and would use an externally attached drawing tablet for >> drawing). >> >> Comments or suggestions are welcome, >> >> Diana > > ___ > Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com > Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: > http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ > http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers UT Southwestern Medical Center The future of medicine, today. ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
Re: [Texascavers] The Texas Caver
I think constructive criticism is acceptable. However, it does not have to be harsh. I have offered to do proofreading and I am happy to help if I can. Sheryl Rieck sheryl.ri...@gmail.com "You can't always get what you want but if you try sometime, you just might find you get what you need" Rolling Stones > On Oct 27, 2016, at 10:33 AM, Fritz Holt via Texascavers > wrote: > > Carl, A nice critique of the state of The Texas Caver. I don't have an > opinion but do enjoy reading it when it is published. Fritz Holt > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Oct 26, 2016, at 11:05 AM, Carl Kunath via Texascavers >> wrote: >> >> The Texas Caver >> >> So here we go again with the Texas Caver. Every few years we are seeking a >> new editor or at least discussing options that might disburse the rowdy >> crowds that are assembling at the gates with torches and pitchforks. >> >> What is gong on here? Why is it that every few years there is a Texas Caver >> crisis and a less than graceful transition to a new editor? >> >> There is lots of talk about the Texas Caver. From the outset, there seems >> to have been some confusion regarding the difference between good journalism >> and nice graphic arts. Unfortunately, neither has been regularly in >> evidence. Maybe I've missed it, but I can't recall anyone praising the >> Caver for high quality journalism or the reliability of production. The >> editor has a few passionate defenders who are willing to do battle with any >> and all detractors, but the current editorial has now acknowledged what has >> been evident for several years. >> >> The coming transition is an opportunity to learn from previous mistakes. >> Texas cavers appreciate good grammar, proper spelling, and nice graphics >> but, failing that, are willing to forgive a lot if the Caver shows signs of >> having been carefully crafted with attention to detail: nice photographs >> properly captioned and credited; articles well laid out with all elements >> present; no space used as a personal blog; and perhaps most importantly, >> timely production. >> >> I was handed a copy of the most recent Texas Caver at the TSA meeting Sunday >> morning, October 16. When I looked at the cover, my first thought was >> "huh?" I rotated the page through 360 degrees as I searched in vain for a >> person or anything for scale. Despairing, I then looked inside for the >> caption information. I didn't find much. The picture credits Peter Bosted >> and apparently depicts a scene from the Big Island, Hawaii. I infer that it >> pictures something within a cave and is not merely a hand sample from a flea >> market or mineral show. As usual, there is no proper caption information. >> A closer look at the cover reveals "haul" to be misspelled and a Government >> Canyon report proffered as being from "2105." Those errors are egregious >> and, sadly, are but a preview of others to come. >> >> In the present issue (the word "current" can't properly be applied since it >> is about six months late), pages 4 and 5 are mostly filled with >> pictures—none with caption information—and the top photo on page 4 suffers >> from a lack of pixel information by at least one order of magnitude. Where >> is the graphic arts expertise we are often reminded of? If a photo is >> essential and a small file is the best available, then please reduce the >> printed size. At the top of page 5 there is a full half page devoted to two >> guys stirring a large pot of food. What about the "hero" shot at the top of >> page 6? Neither photo is captioned or credited. It's a poor use of space >> that TSA's hard copy subscribers are paying for. In fact, there is a lot >> of "white space" in every issue. I am reminded of some prior issues with >> long personal "blogs" that should never have appeared in the Caver. >> Furthermore, we are subjected to the new English word, "givin." Page 8 >> treats us to another low resolution photo with no credit or caption. Page 9 >> credits the photographer but tells us nothing else. More of the same on >> pages 10-11. Sadly, this trend continues throughout the remainder of the >> issue with a few other photos offering no information whatsoever. This has >> been a problem for many years. The Editor seems unable to grasp the notion >> that a picture without caption information looses a major portion of its >> potential value. On pages 13-17 there is a change from two columns to >> three; then a change back to two columns for pages 18-22. Page 23 reverts >> to three columns once again. Oh, well. I wonder where the back cover photo >> was made. Is it a continuation of the "Forged in Fire" photos from the >> previous two pages? Who authored the few words of text that accompany the >> photos? "I had the good fortune. . . . We spent a day. . . ." >> >> It's discouraging to think that this is the best that Texas cavers can >> manage,
Re: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping
Diana,You may consider getting one with a powerful word processor so after the cave map is drafted the trip report can be written in conjunction with it. Then you can take the map and trip report and jump right into editing the rest of the Texas Caver articles for the next months issue. What do you think? From: Diana Tomchick via Texascavers To: Cave Tex Sent: Thursday, October 27, 2016 12:24 PM Subject: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping I’m preparing to purchase a new Windows laptop that will be used for cave mapping, along with other tasks. Is there any particular reason why I might want to get a laptop with a touch screen? It appears to me that it only adds extra weight to the laptop without adding great functionality (I personally love to use a computer mouse, and would use an externally attached drawing tablet for drawing). Comments or suggestions are welcome, Diana ** Diana R. Tomchick Professor Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Rm. ND10.214A Dallas, TX 75390-8816 diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu (214) 645-6383 (phone) (214) 645-6353 (fax) UT Southwestern Medical Center The future of medicine, today. ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
Re: [Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping
The few people I've seen actually using a computer in-cave for mapping have used something smaller than a laptop, like a PDA (Palm Pilot, etc.) or even an old Android cell phone. I wonder how an actual laptop would hold up. Mark Minton mmin...@caver.net On Thu, October 27, 2016 1:24 pm, Diana Tomchick via Texascavers wrote: > I'm preparing to purchase a new Windows laptop that will be used for > cave mapping, along with other tasks. > > Is there any particular reason why I might want to get a laptop with a > touch screen? It appears to me that it only adds extra weight to the > laptop without adding great functionality (I personally love to use a > computer mouse, and would use an externally attached drawing tablet for > drawing). > > Comments or suggestions are welcome, > > Diana ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
[Texascavers] Laptop question for cave mapping
I’m preparing to purchase a new Windows laptop that will be used for cave mapping, along with other tasks. Is there any particular reason why I might want to get a laptop with a touch screen? It appears to me that it only adds extra weight to the laptop without adding great functionality (I personally love to use a computer mouse, and would use an externally attached drawing tablet for drawing). Comments or suggestions are welcome, Diana ** Diana R. Tomchick Professor Departments of Biophysics and Biochemistry University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Rm. ND10.214A Dallas, TX 75390-8816 diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu (214) 645-6383 (phone) (214) 645-6353 (fax) UT Southwestern Medical Center The future of medicine, today. ___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
Re: [Texascavers] The Texas Caver
Carl, A nice critique of the state of The Texas Caver. I don't have an opinion but do enjoy reading it when it is published. Fritz Holt Sent from my iPhone > On Oct 26, 2016, at 11:05 AM, Carl Kunath via Texascavers > wrote: > > The Texas Caver > > So here we go again with the Texas Caver. Every few years we are seeking a > new editor or at least discussing options that might disburse the rowdy > crowds that are assembling at the gates with torches and pitchforks. > > What is gong on here? Why is it that every few years there is a Texas Caver > crisis and a less than graceful transition to a new editor? > > There is lots of talk about the Texas Caver. From the outset, there seems to > have been some confusion regarding the difference between good journalism and > nice graphic arts. Unfortunately, neither has been regularly in evidence. > Maybe I've missed it, but I can't recall anyone praising the Caver for high > quality journalism or the reliability of production. The editor has a few > passionate defenders who are willing to do battle with any and all > detractors, but the current editorial has now acknowledged what has been > evident for several years. > > The coming transition is an opportunity to learn from previous mistakes. > Texas cavers appreciate good grammar, proper spelling, and nice graphics but, > failing that, are willing to forgive a lot if the Caver shows signs of having > been carefully crafted with attention to detail: nice photographs properly > captioned and credited; articles well laid out with all elements present; no > space used as a personal blog; and perhaps most importantly, timely > production. > > I was handed a copy of the most recent Texas Caver at the TSA meeting Sunday > morning, October 16. When I looked at the cover, my first thought was "huh?" > I rotated the page through 360 degrees as I searched in vain for a person > or anything for scale. Despairing, I then looked inside for the caption > information. I didn't find much. The picture credits Peter Bosted and > apparently depicts a scene from the Big Island, Hawaii. I infer that it > pictures something within a cave and is not merely a hand sample from a flea > market or mineral show. As usual, there is no proper caption information. A > closer look at the cover reveals "haul" to be misspelled and a Government > Canyon report proffered as being from "2105." Those errors are egregious > and, sadly, are but a preview of others to come. > > In the present issue (the word "current" can't properly be applied since it > is about six months late), pages 4 and 5 are mostly filled with > pictures—none with caption information—and the top photo on page 4 suffers > from a lack of pixel information by at least one order of magnitude. Where > is the graphic arts expertise we are often reminded of? If a photo is > essential and a small file is the best available, then please reduce the > printed size. At the top of page 5 there is a full half page devoted to two > guys stirring a large pot of food. What about the "hero" shot at the top of > page 6? Neither photo is captioned or credited. It's a poor use of space > that TSA's hard copy subscribers are paying for. In fact, there is a lot of > "white space" in every issue. I am reminded of some prior issues with long > personal "blogs" that should never have appeared in the Caver. Furthermore, > we are subjected to the new English word, "givin."Page 8 treats us to > another low resolution photo with no credit or caption. Page 9 credits the > photographer but tells us nothing else. More of the same on pages 10-11. > Sadly, this trend continues throughout the remainder of the issue with a few > other photos offering no information whatsoever. This has been a problem for > many years. The Editor seems unable to grasp the notion that a picture > without caption information looses a major portion of its potential value. > On pages 13-17 there is a change from two columns to three; then a change > back to two columns for pages 18-22. Page 23 reverts to three columns once > again. Oh, well. I wonder where the back cover photo was made. Is it a > continuation of the "Forged in Fire" photos from the previous two pages? Who > authored the few words of text that accompany the photos? "I had the good > fortune. . . . We spent a day. . . ." > > It's discouraging to think that this is the best that Texas cavers can manage, > > The Texas Caver has a long tradition of service to the Texas caving > community. It is the face that The Texas Speleological Association and Texas > cavers show to the world. Prior to the advent of the Internet and all that > it entails, both good and bad, the Caver was the primary means of > communication within the Texas caving community. Its appearance on a timely > schedule was critically important. When the Caver faltered, so did Texas > cavi
[Texascavers] New Bat Cams aim to educate the public on the life of these mysterious creatures
New Bat Cams aim to educate the public on the life of these mysterious creatures From These Are A Few Of Our Favorite Things, a Flipboard magazine by Professor Futon Spoonin 12:31 a.m. ET Prince Mikasa, the oldest member of Japan's imperial family, died of cardiac arrest Thursday in Tokyo. He… Read it on Flipboard Read it on theweek.com Daniel Ramirez___ Texascavers mailing list | http://texascavers.com Texascavers@texascavers.com | Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers
