"LIVE" from the Liberty of the Seas/ 1-05-08

[Radio]

Hi, Radio,

 

I've been living vicariously through your live posts! Thank you soooo much. Our b2b on Liberty is in May and you've driving us even crazier than we were (if possible) with your photos.

 

I have a quick question. Your photos are FABULOUS, and we're considering buying a new smaller camera than what we have. The one we're looking at is the Canon SD 950, and it's 12.1 megapixel. How do you scale your photos down for posting online and on the cruise boards? Do you have special software to do this? I want to make sure I wouldn't be making a mistake (do you think I would?) buying such a high megapixel camera? Basically, I'd like to know how YOU reduce the size of your photos to make them more useable online.

 

Thank you so much!!!

 

Lynn

 

 

I re size all of my pics to about 640 X 480 (sometimes 800 X 600), I us MS Office to resize the pics.

 

A 12 mp camera would be great if you wanted to print the photos (8 1/12 X 11 ) print size.

 

 

You can adjust each camera to the setting that you wish to use ( 2mp,4mp etc...)

 

You would still want to resize before posting. . .

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

[knuckles]

Thanks for the nice comments. . .

 

I am not sure what ship I will be on in March. . . I usually am not able to book until a few weeks before the sailing.

 

My rooms are not comped. My internet access is not comped. (I wished it was !)

 

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

My wife is still skeptical. We're just curious why is it that you are unable to book until a few weeks before sailing. She thinks that's because they assign you to the ship and that is not your own choosing.

 

If not, you should be. You've probaly generated more interest than any commercail on air. lol

 

Take Care,

Knuckles

[FenwayFan33]

I've been reading your posts and it has really gotten me even more excited (if that is possible) for our cruise next week. Just wondering if any of the crew mentioned the charter that starts next Saturday?

 

The ship is sold out and I heard they typically have to bring on extra Grey Goose vodka because they run out. Our cruise is not the typical Liberty cruise because we're going to Turks, Labadee and St. Thomas.

 

Thanks again, you're pictures were wonderful.

 

 

I don't get it. why specifically grey goose?

[PVDCruiser]

The Liberty of the Seas (and Freedom ) is a little different from the rest of the fleet.

 

There is no Cybercabin option. There are 2 choices for Internet:

 

#1. Royal Caribbean On-Line (Internet Cafe`) This option is extremely slow (45-60kps) You can purchase packages of minutes to get the cost down to .36/min (It used to be .30/min, but the price has gone up)

 

#2. Wi-Fi. With this option, you can use your lapton ANYWHERE on the ship, including all cabins. This method is the same price as the internet cafe`, but it is much faster (350-450kps) It is still not as fast as your High Speed Internet at home, but it is very good.

 

The Adventure of the Seas and all other Voyager Class ships are a little different. You can get Wi-Fi for your laptop, but you will have a signal only in the HotSpot areas on the ship. Some cabins do have access if they are near some of the Hot Spots.

 

They also offer a Cybercabin option, that hooks your laptop with a special cable to your cabin, This option is the same speed as the Internet Cafe`(45-60kps), but There is a set price for Cybercabin that gives you Unlimited use throughout the Cruise. The price varies per cruise (usually about $10-$12 per day)

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

Thanks for that info, Radio. I think that I read once here on the boards that suite passengers would get complimentary internet. Is there any truth to this? Also, how much does the Wi-Fi cost?

 

Thanks!

[sweet angel]

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

My wife is still skeptical. We're just curious why is it that you are unable to book until a few weeks before sailing. She thinks that's because they assign you to the ship and that is not your own choosing.

 

If not, you should be. You've probaly generated more interest than any commercail on air. lol

 

Take Care,

Knuckles

Perhaps it's nothing as clandestine and mysterious as your wife suspects. Perhaps Radio is self-employed and can only go when his work schedule permits....which a self-employed person might not know months in advance.

 

Honestly, who cares? Radio provides a wonderful cyber cruise to all of us who are not as fortunate to sail as frequently. Why look a gift horse in the mouth?

[karenbf]

Radio- Thank you so much! I'll be on Liberty for the Jan. 26th cruise.

 

I have one question, please. Did you find the temperature in the cabin comfortable? I tend to be warm natured and wondered if I needed to pack a small fan.

 

Again, many thanks!

[beachlovergirl]

The sea days were all windy, but warm with little rain.

 

The Little Divi Bay Resort charged me $10 for a lounge Chair and Umbrella for all day.

 

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

Did you have to go to the front desk to pay? Did you eat at the outside restaurant and was it expensive? More details please!

 

Thanks

Dee

[Radio]

Did you have to go to the front desk to pay? Did you eat at the outside restaurant and was it expensive? More details please!

 

Thanks

Dee

 

Hi Dee. . . Here is how it went. I arrived at the resort, and just walked over to get an umbrella, and just carried over to the beach. (I didn't know if it was free or for a charge)

 

When I set it up at a chair on the beach; a Divi employee cane over and asked if I was a Cruise Ship Passenger. Of course I told him yes, and he said it would be $5 for the Chair and $5 for the umbrella. I took both because it was a very sunny day. . . . The price would have also included a towel, but i brought my own.

 

Another Divi employee came over within 2 min to ask if I wanted a Cold drink or Menu for some food. A burger, fries and a coke cost about $10. I declined. . .

 

I would say that by the time I left that there were 200 Cruise Ship Passengers over there.

 

The resort was very nice. Sandals Resorts are better in my opinion, but there are no Sandals in St Maarten. . .

 

The water was calm. . . There was Music with a DJ there, I won a resort Cup for answering a trivia question.

The question was " What are the names of all ships in Port Today"

 

Hmmmm. . . I knew that answer !

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

 

My Spot at Divi Resort

 

 

 

 

 

 

.

[Radio]

Thanks for that info, Radio. I think that I read once here on the boards that suite passengers would get complimentary internet. Is there any truth to this? Also, how much does the Wi-Fi cost?

 

Thanks!

 

 

Yeah , there was some discussion about Internet being free for Suites, but I don't think it has been impemented yet. I do think you will see this happen in 2008.

 

I will check my Sea Pass bill when I return home ,(I am on the AutoTrain now; heading north) I think it was about $55 for 150 minutes.

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

[cot427]

Radio, when were the formal nights? Or do you have the order of the nights in the dining room?

 

Are they the same for both Eastern & Western? (I'm going on Western in October)?

[Radio]

Radio, when were the formal nights? Or do you have the order of the nights in the dining room?

 

Are they the same for both Eastern & Western? (I'm going on Western in October)?

 

 

I was told that this is the same Dining Schedule for East or West Caribbean. . .

SAT- Bon Voyage Dinner

SUN- Captains Gala Dinner-Formal

Mon- Venetian Feast

TUES- Crown and Anchor Dinner

WED- Chef’s Dinner-Formal

THUR- Surf Dinner

FRI- Feast of Nations

 

 

Radio

 

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

 

 

Front to Back

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to Front

 

 

 

 

.

[cot427]

Thanks Radio. I was planning when to go to Portofino. I think since we think were going to an all inclusive for the day in Jamaica, we will go to Portofino on Tuesday. We don't miss the formal nights, the bon voyage, and the last dinner.

[swooldri]

dup post

[swooldri]

Radio...do you ever have anything not so positive to say about any of your RCI cruises? Just curious.

Thanks, Steve

[matt690]

Hi radio!

 

Thanks for the live blog. You did a great job!

 

Just wondering about a few rumors... is Royal Caribbean really getting rid of the midnight buffet? Also how is the poolside reggae band? Do they only play for two hours a day like they did on our Mariner cruise over the summer (compared to all day like it used to be)? Is it true that RCCL might get rid of this as well?

 

How was the entertainment - any good magicians or comedians (was there a variety... not just singing-type entertainment)?

 

Thanks again!

[LynnAB]

I re size all of my pics to about 640 X 480 (sometimes 800 X 600), I us MS Office to resize the pics.

 

A 12 mp camera would be great if you wanted to print the photos (8 1/12 X 11 ) print size.

 

 

You can adjust each camera to the setting that you wish to use ( 2mp,4mp etc...)

 

You would still want to resize before posting. . .

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

 

 

Hi, Radio,

 

Thank you so much for your advice. I have MS Office, too, and never thought about using that program for resizing! I'm feeling dumb here. I checked it out, but I'm not seeing where I can compress to 640 x 480 or anything specific ... it's giving me choices of email, web, etc.

 

We're definitely looking at new cameras that are smaller than what we have now ... which is the Canon S2 IS ... nice but my husband wants a smaller camera.

 

I'm not sure whether you know the answer to this or not, but is there any word on WHO the Cruise Director would be in May? Who did you have, and is he/she leaving anytime soon? And I'd also like to know about the captain. Again, I'm not sure whether you have this info yet, but I thought I'd ask.

 

Get home safely!!!

 

Lynn

[PVDCruiser]

Yeah , there was some discussion about Internet being free for Suites, but I don't think it has been impemented yet. I do think you will see this happen in 2008.

 

I will check my Sea Pass bill when I return home ,(I am on the AutoTrain now; heading north) I think it was about $55 for 150 minutes.

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

 

Thanks for the information. Greatly appreciated. :)

 

There seems to be a lot of discussion on another thread about poorly behaved children and guests on this sailing - what's your take on that? (Apologies if this has already been asked and answered)

[Radio]

Hi, Radio,

 

Thank you so much for your advice. I have MS Office, too, and never thought about using that program for resizing! I'm feeling dumb here. I checked it out, but I'm not seeing where I can compress to 640 x 480 or anything specific ... it's giving me choices of email, web, etc.

 

We're definitely looking at new cameras that are smaller than what we have now ... which is the Canon S2 IS ... nice but my husband wants a smaller camera.

 

I'm not sure whether you know the answer to this or not, but is there any word on WHO the Cruise Director would be in May? Who did you have, and is he/she leaving anytime soon? And I'd also like to know about the captain. Again, I'm not sure whether you have this info yet, but I thought I'd ask.

 

Get home safely!!!

 

Lynn

 

Ok Lynn. . . If you have MS Office, then you dont need to use or open MS Office.

 

Here are the steps:

 

#1. Load you JPG's from your camera into a folder (On your desktop)

 

#2. Open the folder, and you should see all of your photos (jpg's)

 

#3. Double click on the jpg file (the icon . . .not the name)

 

#4.When you do that, your photo will be opened (automatically) using Microsoft office Picture Manager.

 

#5. Click on "Edit Picture", then click Resize.

 

 

I hope this helps. . .at no time do you every have to open MS Office to do a re-size. If that program is loaded on your PC, jpg files will default to that program. If Office is not loaded, the jpg's open with MS Paint I think. . .

 

 

Radio

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[LynnAB]

Ok Lynn. . . If you have MS Office, then you dont need to use or open MS Office.

 

Here are the steps:

 

#1. Load you JPG's from your camera into a folder (On your desktop)

 

#2. Open the folder, and you should see all of your photos (jpg's)

 

#3. Double click on the jpg file (the icon . . .not the name)

 

#4.When you do that, your photo will be opened (automatically) using Microsoft office Picture Manager.

 

#5. Click on "Edit Picture", then click Resize.

 

 

I hope this helps. . .at no time do you every have to open MS Office to do a re-size. If that program is loaded on your PC, jpg files will default to that program. If Office is not loaded, the jpg's open with MS Paint I think. . .

 

 

Radio

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

 

 

 

OH, MY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you, Radio. You are FANTASTIC. I feel soooooooooo ridiculous. I just did what you said and it's perfect. Thank you, thank you! You have NO idea what I was going to go through ... like searching for software to resize pictures with <g>.

 

I really appreciate your help more than you know.

 

We're still in camera mode here in the house. It seems even our Canon S2 IS does not take great low light photos. Do you have a problem with that? We find our light light pictures tend to be blurry. I know you're probably thinking I'm really stupid based on my previous questions, but I'm truly not <lol>. The Canon is my husband's camera, and he is much more accomplished with photography than I am. Somehow, though, we're not getting sharp pictures. Any ideas?

 

I use an Exilim EX-500 camera, which is so-so. I do like the movie feature.

 

Lynn

[Radio]

Hi radio!

Thanks for the live blog. You did a great job!

Just wondering about a few rumors... is Royal Caribbean really getting rid of the midnight buffet? Also how is the poolside reggae band? Do they only play for two hours a day like they did on our Mariner cruise over the summer (compared to all day like it used to be)? Is it true that RCCL might get rid of this as well?

How was the entertainment - any good magicians or comedians (was there a variety... not just singing-type entertainment)?

 

Thanks again!

 

I dont know what the future holds; but for my Sailing, the Midnight Buffet was on Tues night. (ooops. . I missed it)

 

The Reggae band was great ! They played 2-4 times per day (2 hr sets) plus they performed at all of the parades (3), and they played in the Royale Promenade a couple of times.

 

They had 2 comedians on my sailing. One was extremely funny (Ladder Guy) the other comedian was ok. . .

 

No magicians on my sailing.

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

[Radio]

OH, MY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you, Radio. You are FANTASTIC. I feel soooooooooo ridiculous. I just did what you said and it's perfect. Thank you, thank you! You have NO idea what I was going to go through ... like searching for software to resize pictures with <g>.

 

I really appreciate your help more than you know.

 

We're still in camera mode here in the house. It seems even our Canon S2 IS does not take great low light photos. Do you have a problem with that? We find our light light pictures tend to be blurry. I know you're probably thinking I'm really stupid based on my previous questions, but I'm truly not <lol>. The Canon is my husband's camera, and he is much more accomplished with photography than I am. Somehow, though, we're not getting sharp pictures. Any ideas?

 

I use an Exilim EX-500 camera, which is so-so. I do like the movie feature.

 

Lynn

 

I use the ISO mode when taking low light photos for all of my pics (Sony DSC-W50. . .W70 . . .W80). I know that when you use that feature with out enough real light, that the picture becomes grainy ( I took 1100 pics this cruise , and about 900 will go in the delete file.

 

Maybe TPKeller can jump in here. . . He is the photo professional, that I contact. . .

 

Theron are you there ?

 

 

Radio

;) ;)

[TPKeller]

Hey my ears were burning... :)

 

I'm actually a Nikon man... but according to DPReview, this camera only goes up to ISO 400. That's not particularly sensitive for low light situations. However, it also says it has three different image stabilization modes. I would pull out the manual and read up on that. That may be the best solution to your problem. Image stabilization can usually buy you an extra two or three stops of sensitivity, which in this case (assuming you were shooting at ISO400) would be equivalent to ISO1600 or 3200.

 

Generally you would want to avoid the Night settings, as they are usually designed for dark situations where you have a stable platform. Those tend to use longer exposure times, and would end up blurry if you were holding the camera in your hand.

 

Not much help, but hopefully a point in the right direction...

 

Theron

(who is STILL working on the album from his LAST cruise in December!)

[Nutzaboutcruzin]

My thanks to Radio and Theron

 

I guess I have to resign myself to the fact that the Canon

S2-IS is not a low light shooter. Very grainy at ISO 400.

Auto focus set to continuous as is auto focus. Tomorrow

in the daylight I will experiment with various setting to see

just how crisp a picture the camera can take.

 

I can get acceptable pictures with flash but need to use a full stop

flash compensation to prevent overexposure. I guess I can live with

that.

 

Thanks again for your suggestions.

 

Alan

[JLY Girl]

Hi Radio,

 

Loved your live broadcast and the amazing pictures. I noticed that you'd mentioned going to Starbuck's when you were in San Juan. Do you remember (approximately) what time they're opened to? We're going to be in San Juan in March, and would love to grab some on the way back to the ship, and don't want to get there just to find out they're closed.

 

Thanks!

[Radio]

Hi Radio,

 

Loved your live broadcast and the amazing pictures. I noticed that you'd mentioned going to Starbuck's when you were in San Juan. Do you remember (approximately) what time they're opened to? We're going to be in San Juan in March, and would love to grab some on the way back to the ship, and don't want to get there just to find out they're closed.

 

Thanks!

 

I asked then when I arrived there, and Starbucks told me 9PM is closing time.

 

I love Starbucks ! :)

 

Radio

 

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: