I waited 'til later into the evening, then tried talking with my wife last night using Intel's Video Phone software. We had done this before while I was staying at my sister's place, but with my sister's "Lite" internet hi-speed service (about twice the speed of dialup), the picture was choppy, and I would get constant hints that things might go better if I reduced bandwidth requirements (a euphamism for turning off video).

Now, with real hi-speed service (though still crippled), I thought I'd try again. It went much better, though there were still occasional hints. As the speed improves I should be able to manage a real conversation. There is a slight problem while using Video Phone. I have to drop my "shields" by turning off ZoneAlarm. Unfortunately, that means that while I'm on the phone, my computer is buffeted by "successful" attempts to locate my machine. I find that each time I use the software, there are days, if not weeks of increased attempts to hack my machine - because the bots determine that my IP address is a live one.

I've been toying with the idea of experimenting with ZoneAlarm - by adding my wife's IP address to my "local zone". I think that would allow me to use the Video Phone software while still keeping ZoneAlarm running. I'm just not sure whether there is any chance that my Windsor IP address could be multiplexed by Cogeco - and be shared by some unscrupulous user who would then be able to penetrate my firewall. I'll need to give that some thought, and perhaps decide that a configurable firewall is more to my liking.

On another digital front, my digital cable TV package was installed at the same time as the Internet, and it too had some initial problems (the cable company's installer recorded the serial number on the set-top box incorrectly, and when I went to authorize it online, they thought I had a stolen box). Luckily, the number was off by only one digit, so they realized it wasn't my fault, and after a couple of days with technical difficulties, I was able to receive acceptable service by 11:30PM last Sunday - literally minutes before the Sopranos encore broadcast I had wanted to watch.

I have the weekend to myself, probably for the first time since coming to Toronto. I've spent a weekend alone before, but I was still busy getting things settled, so I had lots to keep busy with. This weekend, I don't have much to do, and I'll probably be bored out of my tree. Next week, I'll be back in Windsor for the weekend. Maybe I should just concentrate on those positive thoughts.

There have been all sorts of things I've been wanting to photograph and post, but the digital camera is back in Windsor with my wife (who technically owns it, since I bought it as a gift for her). And it's not like she's not using it - she's the designated photographer for all work functions, and she never misses an opportunity to take pictures of our grand-daughter. With another grandchild on the way, there's really no way I can justify taking the camera with me to Toronto.