Toolemera Blog

PNG. Gesundheit.

PNG. Possibly Nutritional Granola, which somehow sticks in my head more than Portable Network Graphics does. Or possibly an offshoot of some radical political movement. If you really want to know more about PNG, read it's Wiki. I'm certainly not going to attempt to figure out all the meanings of the tech-talk comparing PNG to JPEG to GIF to TIFF. All I care about is how the file format works and what the end result is.

When I first tried out the PNG image format a few years back, it failed miserably in the creation of PDF files in Acrobat. For that matter, when attempting to work with it in Photoshop, my results never seemed to match what was in my head. Over the past year or two, Acrobat has come a long way in it's ability to handle PNG. It may or not be intentional, but there it is. Acrobat 9 does a good job of converting PNG into PDF files.

On the Photoshop Elements side of things, PE does a great job of adjusting levels, contrast and shadows in PNG. I simply scan to TIFF and batch convert in PE to PNG. I have Acrobat set to process PNG files as Monochrome lossless, Grayscale high quality and Color high quality. The output looks great and behaves nicely when various size reduction processes are tried. PNG files are processed into PDF files seamlessly and quickly. What more could I ask?

Don't get me wrong now. I still swear by TIFF as a master file. Not Jpeg 2000, whatever the pundits say. TIFF is still my primary imaging output format. The problem is, trying to get a PDF created from TIFF files down to a reasonable size is a pain. Both TIFF and PNG files are converted into Jpeg files when Acrobat creates a PDF. For whatever the technical reasons are, starting with a PNG file produces a smaller file from the getgo. The less size reduction actions I have to go through, the more the liklihood the end result will look like the beginning. Just smaller.

I am sure some imaging guru out there can explain the why's and wherefore's but honestly, it doesn't matter to me. What matters are the end results. 

Till next, Gary

Patented Transitional and Metallic Planes in America (PTAMPIA)

Why am I awake at nearly 2:30 in the morning is not the question. The question is, why am I blogging about PTAMPIA, otherwise known as Patented Transitional and Metallic Planes in America, by Roger K. Smith? Easily one of the most influential books written on the history of woodworking planes, PTAMPIA was my first real introduction to what the printed word could do for the world of antique tool collecting (and using, if you must). Portraying the development of the patented plane in America, PTAMPIA covers the impact of industrialization and the explosion of inventions that occurred in the !9th and early 20th Centuries. Aside from the sheer creativity, and at times peculiarity, of the inventor's mind, the progess of the development of the woodworking plane as we know it today can best be appreciated by seeing from whence these tools came. PTAMPIA Vol. I has been long out of print.

Originally published in 1981 and reprinted in 1990, PTAMPIA remains the standard by which books on antique tools can be judged. That's my opinion, BTW. I'm talking now about Vol. I. Vol. II expanded upon the information provided in Vol. I, along with a wealth of additional new information on the patented planes that make us drool. Well, they make me drool. If they don't make you drool, you should think about where those pretty new fangled planes you love to use came from. The patented planes of yore created the road we now follow when it comes to woodworking planes of the metallic sort.

I could go on about this book, but I have to digress and complete this post before the clock hits 3 AM, EST. Why am I pontificating on the subject of PTAMPIA?

At the request of the author, I am digitizing Vol. I. The product will be on CD as a PDF complete with bookmarks, search and whatever other features I can think of throwing in there. The end result will be the digital Vol. to be sold with the print Vol. II as a set and at a reasonable price. Sorry, there are no plans to digitize Vol. II. Roger Smith will be selling the set through his website and in person, whenever you can tackle him. Never fear, I will post a blog and web page advertising said set when ready to go.

From my end, this is a challenging project. The book contains all that makes digitizing a juggling act: grayscale (halftones), color, text, reproductions of early paper and photographs, an immense amount of information to boil down into usable bookmarks and of course, the problem of wanting to stop and read each page instead of getting on with the job.

Roger is also putting together a 2010 calendar featuring new discoveries in patented planes. Just don't drool on the calendar pages as this activity is inclined to wrinkle the paper. More on that when more is known.

It's 3 and time for me to bid thee adieu. I'll keep everyone posted on what transpires as the project progresses.

Till next, Gary

PS: Sample page of the famous Knowles plane added by request

Table Saw : Solved? Not Quite Yet

Recently over on the Oldtools Email list, there was a question about the Table Saw and what it was, why it was called that and what in the world did it do? Back a ways I discussed this question in a blog post The Table Saw Conundrum. As chance would have it, I was watching a Roy Underhill episode - 2802 the other day on the building of a tool chest.

Of particular interest to me was the method Roy discussed to match up the edges of two pieces of wood. If memory serves, he was making the skirted base for the chest. The corners of the skirt were a combination of dovetails and a mitred joint. The mitred joint created the corner of the molded upper edge of the skirt. To get a good match between the two surfaces of the mitre, Roy cut the dovetails, dry assembled the pieces and cut a kerf between the two halves. This was done a few times until the two halves of the mitre met cleanly.

Which brings me to the Table Saw. Back in that first discussion, a definition of Table was the flat surface of an architectural element. There were also stories and guesses at the Table Saw being used in ship building trades to create scarfed joints. I have a theory, based on Roy's discussion, the shipbuilding mythology and pure function:

Out in the shipyard there was a need to create very long scarfed joints. There would also be a need to create a tight joint between two very long pieces of timber in preparation for caulking. How would you get those two long surfaces to match up using hand tools? A narrow blade saw is the answer. Not a saw with a thin blade, but one with just enough depth to give the saw some rigidity while allowing the saw to track smoothly. Clamp the two pieces of timber together and saw along the joint. The narrow blade will track along the existing joint rather than wandering off to create a new kerf. The Table Saw is perfect for that job... which would also explain why they show up as often as they do. And why almost every major saw maker seems to have offered this model.

There are numerous instances when the naming of a tool seems to bear little resemblance to the modern use of the term. I think this is one of those.

Till next, Gary

PS: A quote of sorts from Hodgson ...

Google and Antitrust

Antitrust and the Google Books Settlement: The Problem of Simultaneity

Eric M. Fraser
University of Chicago - Law School; University of Chicago - Booth School of Business
June 10, 2009

A thorough review of the Google Book Settlement and how US Antitrust laws relate to this impending fiasco for the written word.  I've read through this paper and will need to read through it a few more times. If you have any interest in what Google is doing and how it could change the distribution of the written word, and Google's bottom line, take the time to read this one.

Till next, Gary

The Google Patent

I just couldn't resist this one... US Patent # 7,508,978
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United States Patent	7,508,978
Lefevere ,   et al.	March 24, 2009

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Detection of grooves in scanned images

Abstract

A system and method locate a central groove in a document such as a book, magazine, or catalog. In one implementation, scores are generated for points in a three-dimensional image that defines a surface of the document. The scores quantify a likelihood that a particular point is in the groove. The groove is then detected based on the scores. For example, lines may be fitted through the points and a value calculated for the lines based on the scores. The line corresponding to the highest calculated value may be selected as the line that defines the groove.

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Inventors:	Lefevere; Francois-Marie (Mountain View, CA), Saric; Marin (Palo Alto, CA)
Assignee:	Google Inc. (Mountain View, CA)
Appl. No.:	10/938,727
Filed:	September 13, 2004

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Till next, Gary