And it cost me 7 bucks.
I decided to get out my old Minolta SLR for a project I want to do. It’s the only camera I have that will (A): do what I really want, and (B): can be dedicated to my project for the next 3 or 4 months.
Step 1: Pull out camera bag and inspect all contents. Pull out camera, clean off, and, with GREAT trepidation, open the battery compartment, HOPING that I put it all away properly. No crusty, leaky AAA’s in sight. HOORAY!!! I’m actually hedging my bets here.
Step 2: Load new batteries and look for signs of life. Nothing. Check batteries and find the one that is inserted wrong. Again, Nothing. Look at manual and check batteries again. Find the other battery that was in wrong. WE HAVE COMMUNICATION.
Step 3: I decide I want to use the Data Back Cover so I can time/date-stamp each photo because…I thought it would be cool for what I’m doing. So I work on finding out why it’s not responding. Manual says to check the battery after four years. This puppy is nearly 20 years old. Fortunately I pulled that one out too. Off to CVS for a good old 2025 lithium. WE HAVE COMMUNICATION.
Step 4: Bring Data Back into the 21st century. You get where this is going, right. Set time and calendar information. Default display is: 1 1 86. I bought it when the duckling was born. Time? check. Day? Check. Month? Check. Year? Don’t get ahead of me here. Well it’s showing 86, so I just start punching forward to 00 and then to 15. But there ain’t no fucking 15. At 00 it goes back to 86.
WTF You make a fucking electronic digital calendar that can only record 15 fucking years? Were the other 85 0s and 1s just too expensive?
So, no time/date stamped photos. I’ll muddle through.
Easy solution: put it back in the closet for 71 years.
The Year doesn’t “punch” backwards, I take it? They only expected you to get dates for 15 years?
They predicted the shift to digital way back then. You should be praising them for their prescience in predicting when each model would become obsolete.
So, what cost $7? The battery?
A film based 20 + year old SLR is the only camera that will do the job? You’d think you would go digital just to save on the film processing cost. I’m dying of curiosity, are you at liberty to say what this project of yours entails?
Yeah, the battery cost a full $7 at CVS.
I have a digital camera, but the Minolta is my only really good camera. I’m using it to make a time lapse film of a job I’m doing that, if it comes out right, will be really, really nice. Not into photography enough anymore to justify upgrading to a digital SLR which is what I would need.
You can rent cameras. Just google “camera rental.”
It has to stay on it’s tripod at the ready, in one position, for three to four months.
You have to understand that it was created from [Echo Chamber Voice] “The Mind of Minolta” [/Echo Chamber Voice].
ie- They just really didn’t have a lot to work with there…
Looks like they decided that one byte for the year field was enough. Saved themselves four bits they did.
And cost me 7 bucks. Totally wasted.
15 years? I few years ago I bought an HP camera. I’d been using it just fine. Then I upgraded to Windows 7 and needed a driver to mount/transfer. Went to HP’s web site: The camera had no drivers for Windows 7 (or later). None. Based on my guesstimate for when I bought the camera, Windows 7 came out around the same time. Could have been designed pre-Windows 7. But to not provide drivers for an OS that was at least in beta test and have them ready when it comes out? C’mon.
I assume you tried just installing the Windows XP drivers in compatibility mode? I’ve read many times that this can work.
And I assume you checked for Vista drivers? Because Vista drivers definitely work on Windows 7.