id also recommend getting one of the national geographic field guide books. my dad let me borrow his 35mm one and it has some good photographic basics (equipment types and shotting tips for different situations). they have a digital version, which i assume would be just as good.

However, due to some unexpected income, we were able to buy the camera we’ve been pondering over since about Feb. We got the Canon S2 IS, which so far we adore. I did quite a bit of looking around, and for a DSLR-like camera, its pretty potent. We bought it so we could take nice quality (5MP) photos with a decent zoom (12x optical) while on our honeymoon. It also takes quite good quality videos with stereo sound at the full optical zoom length. About 9 minutes of the highest quality video on a 1GB SD card. Its definately not a DV camera, but it can also take much more video with less quality, which should work quite well for the upcoming capstone project stuff.

I did a lot of investigation on DSLR’s and purchased a Nikon D70s (which has come down in price since). If you want to take good snapshots, buy yourself a good point-and-shoot. The sensors are smaller and yoiu’ll have less flexibility with zoom, but they take good shots and are small. DSLR’s give you better picture quality, better optics, more lens options, more settings - what you want if you want to be a photographer vs. a snapshot taker. Neither is good - it’s all about how much time and money you want to invest in photography.

I’m happy to talk to you re: DSLR’s…

The big thing with the DS is that Nintendo is trying their best to broaden what constitutes a “game” — they’re actively working to create games for people who don’t necessarily like traditional games all that much.

Some of the highlights:
Animal Crossing: Wild World — A very freeform game: you can do things for people, earn money to pay off your mortgate, chop down trees, go fishing (ok, so this is probably a bad explanation of Animal Crossing, but it is pretty fun).

Brain Age — A collection of stuff that’s intended as sort of mental exercise games.

Electroplankton — A sort of “not-game” that just lets you play with odd little creatures in order to create music.

Nintendogs — Basically a “raise a puppy” simulator. You can talk to your puppy (with the built-in mic) and you can even pet your puppy (with the touchpad).

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney — A sort of court-room comedy game where you cross-examine witnesses and try to pick apart their testamony.

Trauma Center: Under the Knife — Imagine sort of a digital version of the game Operation (thought a bit more complex).

There are also a lot of more “normal” games available for the DS as well, but I just figured I’d give some of the highlights along the edges of what’s out there.

Though I will provide a word of warning — if you get a DS and Nintendogs, avoid letting any women you know near the two. (I’ve heard that the usual result is that you’ll wind up having to buy yourself another DS if you ever want to play again)