View allAll Photos Tagged windowsxp
Summer landscape (Harz - Germany). The sky and clounds blew my mind. The colours are so deep. Further it reminds me of an old Windows XP wallpaper :)
This is a Windows XP-inspired photo that I took during our Pangasinan-Zambales getaway last October 9. I just took that randomly because I really love the view, as well as its natural lighting that adds to the view's aesthetics.
Location: Zambales
Medium: Samsung Galaxy A52
Date Taken: October 9, 2022
Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved.
Locked in, but who's complaining.
Onboard "Berlin " looking out the nearside door & what a view, Lufthansa Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
Its certainly #GutenFlug
Lugar.Citadino
[Ciudad y Mucho Más] + {City and Beyond}
Photo 2.76
Data of The Place
>>>
Looks like Windows XP
A really amazing sunset over Lo Abarca valley
Specifically over Casa Marín Vineyards
Outside "Quillaicillo - Malvilla" route
In the middle of Lo Abarca town
Part of Cartagena
Next to the City and Seaport of San Antonio
Valparaíso region
Chile
Fotografía 2.768
Pareciera ser Windows XP
>>>
Un real e impresionante atardecer sobre el Valle de Lo Abarca
En concreto sobre la Viña "Casa Marín"
En pleno Valle de Lo Abarca
Afuera del Camino que conecta Quillaicillo y la Ruta 78
Pueblo de Lo Abarca
Parte de la Comuna de Cartagena
Cercano a la ciudad y Puerto de San Antonio
Región de Valparaíso
Chile
[Places of Lugar.Citadino]
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[Contact + Contacto]: lugar.citadino@gmail.com
Lugar.Citadino
Proyecto Creado en Enero de 2009 Por:
Project Created in January, 2009 By:
Felipe Burgos Álvarez {Santiago, Chile}
Posted in January, 2023 | Publicado en Enero de 2023
All Rights Reserved. Partial or Total Image Reproduction is Forbidden.
Todos Los Derechos Reservados. Se Prohíbe Reproducción Total o Parcial de la Imagen
A little tribute to the famous Windows XP desktop background called Bliss displayed on millions of computers screen around the world. Not a try to reproduce, just my own vision. (because obviously there's no hill here)
Un petit hommage au fameux fond d'écran de Windows XP "colline verdoyante" affiché sur des millions d'écrans a travers le monde. pas une copie simplement ma vision (car au premier coup d’œil il est facile de voir qu'il n'y a pas de colline ici) :)
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© All rights reserved Fabien Lecomte aka Fabien L76.
Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission. (it takes only 1 minute to ask)
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© Tous droits réservés Fabien Lecomte aka Fabien L76.
Merci de ne pas réutiliser cette images sur des sites internet, blogs ou tout autre média sans mon autorisation écrite. (demander ne prends qu'une minute.)
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This isn’t just a pop-up on my face — it’s the voice many women hear before they speak.
We rehearse, rephrase, soften, shrink. Not because we don’t know what to say, but because we’ve been taught to question how we say it — and how we’ll be judged.
We question our tone. Then we question our outfit. Is it too bold? Too plain? Too much leg? Too little femininity?
It’s exhausting to live between the fear of being “too much” and the pressure to be “just enough.”
Feminism isn’t about choosing between softness and strength, heels or flats.
It’s about giving yourself permission — to speak, to dress, to exist — without apology.
Rolling green grass beneath an open blue sky creates a scene reminiscent of the iconic desktop wallpaper that introduced millions to Windows XP. Captured at Beechwoods Nature Reserve near Cambridge, the landscape evokes the same sense of simplicity and calm, with soft contours, fresh greenery, and wide-open skies combining to produce a timeless countryside view.
Seriously, dear, time to upgrade. I know your computer technically still works, but nowadays they come powered by electricity instead of a hamster wheel. It is sooo much more useful and less prone to starvation when pressed into server duty.
my digital & analog workbench
Voigtländer vitomatic I
color-skopar 1:2,8/50 mm
by voigtländer braunschweig 1957
kodak gold 200
by eastman kodak company 2020
DELL latitude d520
Intel Core Duo 4mb, 533 mhz; Intel 945GM 64bit
by dell ireland, limerick 2003
Epson perfection 1660 photo
1.600 dpi x 3.200 dpi (horizontal x vertikal) / 48bit
by Seiko Epson K.K. / suwa, japan 2003
windows xp - professional
by microsoft corporation redmond, usa 2001
photoshop cs2 (cs vers. 9)
by Adobe Systems Incorporated san josé, usa 2005
(foto with Canon G12)
not in focus some bottles of beer - some bottles full others empty- a permanent state of disorder and on background a digital/analog mix by Arthur Rubinstein - Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 'Emperor' in E-flat major and REVOX / Studer 1976
my photos a overview:
THUMB this up? OR View Large On White?
________________________________________________
About The Shot | Banjaran Titiwangsa:
This is the landscape version from my previous upload of the same photo HERE.
Location, Date & Time:
- Darul Quran, Kuala Kubu Bharu | 20 September 2010 | 8:20am (+8GMT)
Canon EOS 7D + Kitlens:
- WB: Kelvin 2900, WB Comp: B8,0, ISO400, f/9, 1/2500" at 135mm.
Photoshop:
- Sedikit Level dan Curves adjustment sahaja.
Me:
I'm really appreciate your kind visit and support =)
All comments, criticism and tips for improvements are welcome.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• Feel free to view my BEST INTERESTING SHOTS according to Flickr: Search here:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Search for ISLAM
- Search for MALAYSIA
- Search for 350D
- Search for 500D
- Search for KITLENS
- Search for MASJID
- Search for MOSQUE
- Search for HDR
- Search for Handheld
- and search for Annamir ;p
_____________________________________________
© & ® 2010 annamir[at]putera.com | www.facebook.com/annamir
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________________________________________________
About The Shot | Layers:
Teringat pada satu wallpaper masa guna Windows XP dulu, rasa nak mencuba shoot macam tu dah lama, pagi tadi nampak ada peluang sebelum masuk kerja, gunung belakang DQ ni jadi tempat percubaan. Cuma saya pilih shoot dlm posisi portrait bukan landscape. Berikut hasil UNEDITED-nya.
Location, Date & Time:
- Darul Quran, Kuala Kubu Bharu | 20 September 2010 | 8:20am (+8GMT)
Canon EOS 7D + Kitlens:
- WB: Kelvin 2900, WB Comp: B8,0, ISO400, f/9, 1/3200" at 135mm.
Me:
I'm really appreciate your kind visit and support =)
All comments, criticism and tips for improvements are welcome.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• Feel free to view my BEST INTERESTING SHOTS according to Flickr: Search here:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Search for ISLAM
- Search for MALAYSIA
- Search for 350D
- Search for 500D
- Search for KITLENS
- Search for MASJID
- Search for MOSQUE
- Search for HDR
- Search for Handheld
- and search for Annamir ;p
_____________________________________________
© & ® 2010 annamir[at]putera.com | www.facebook.com/annamir
First class seat, what a view.
Seen at London City Airport, the home of the CityFlyer fleet of Embraer's, ideal for the short runway & steep landing/ take offs required.
As well as the convenience of London City Airport with quicker access to London itself, the airport provides amazing views for departing passengers, you can almost touch the wings from the gates, plus all boarding is done by walkway, there are no airbridges.
SANTORINI, GREECE, view MAP - geotagged! 18 images (music embedded) with the software Microsoft Photo Story 3 - a free download...
Another shot from my Eastern Washington collection. Here's an article that I wrote for DPS
all rights reserved
I tryied to remake windows xp wallpaper, the clouds r not so nice like the original :/ damn!
but the shadows in the plants r cool i fink n the sun line on the top bring so more for this : )
Hope u all enjoy it
;D
Lovely Friday
Applications Software over 25 years old.
Still working thanks to virtual machines.
Anwendungen Software über 25 Jahre alt.
Arbeiten dank Virtueller Maschinen immer noch.
Well, there have been many things/people that have been a source of inspiration to me during my quest to learn a bit of photography. One of the initial sources of inspiration were the various landscape backgrounds on the Windows XP desktops! I have always wondered about the beautiful places and scenes shown in those backgrounds.
While visiting the Wray Castle in the Lake District, the adjacent fields reminded me of one these backgrounds and I had to stop, take a pause and to capture the wonderful view.
Have a great journey in 2013 to wherever your inspirations might take you!
Wray Castle was built as a large private house at Claife in the English county of Cumbria, in the Gothic Revival style in 1840. In its lifetime, the castle has been used for a variety of purposes, including as a training centre, and is now a National Trust property.
© All rights reserved - Using any of my pictures without permission is illegal. If you want to use some of them, please contact me by Flickr email.
This is a view from Rt. 360 East between Burgess and Reedville, Virginia. This photograph was taken using an Olympus OM-4Ti / 50mm f/1.8 / Fujifilm Provia 100F on 5 frames. The frames were stitched together using Photoshop CC. Color is actual color from the film and the slight vignette is from a Cokin A series Gradual ND (G1-2 stops). I also should have thought twice about using the polarizer but it still turned out pretty cool.
I was going for an image that evokes the Windows XP "Bliss" image.....I think I made something pretty close....
Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.
Renting a Velib bike
UPDATE (25 October 2007): The system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have the EU smart chips! Good news for visitors that do not have an EU bank card.
UPDATE (28 October 2007): Be VERY careful out there... I'm sad to write that the the first fatility involving a Velib bicycle occurred on 19 October in the 13th arrondissement at the corner of boulevard Morland and Bastille. This is first fatility since the service started July 15 2007. The 60 year old woman was struck by a truck while riding in the shared bike/bus lanes that are still commonly found in Paris. While the majority of Paris bike lanes are dedicated to bikes, there remains many that are shared between bikes, taxis, and buses. Riding in these shared lanes is tricky and I've found myself having to compete for space with very large vehicles that do not always see the bike riders well if at all. Bike helmets are not required nor used in Paris and perhaps they may catch on as there have been many fatalities involving bicyclists each year. www.liberation.fr/actualite/societe/285982.FR.php
UPDATE: With the transit strike over, bikes are now being repaired more quickly...
The French transit strike increased ridership but conversely resulted in many bikes not getting repaired. Twice while going to rent a Velib I found many bikes in the stands that were broken. The strike made transporting the bikes to the repair depots difficult resulting in many broken bikes being left in the stands.
So, WATCH OUT for flat tires, broken chains, bent wheels, etc.
The interface is a bit confusing... but it works (eventually) and you can rent a nice bike very cheaply.
Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.
THE BIKES
The sturdy grey bikes come with a metal basket on the handlebars and are heavier than standard bicycles, built to withstand heavy use. In line with the program's green image, Vélib‘ maintenance staff get around town on 130 electrically assisted bicycles. A barge with 12 stops along the Seine will pick up bikes in need of major repairs. Cleaning staff drive electric vehicles and use rain collected on the roofs of JCDecaux offices
Shimano (brake systems)
Prowheel (core hardware)
Nexus (gear shifts, cables, etc)
The bikes are 3 speed “roadster”-type bikes.
I had some luck as when I arrived at the Jaures station as there was a ratp truck unloading new bikes. I spoke to the RATP employees and found out there are currently about 13,000 bikes in place right now with plans to have 20,600 by the end of the summer in 1,451 stations. The bikes just arrived a few days ago (on the 15th of July – right after bastille).
I walked down to the Jaures Vélib station and rented one! It’s a pretty cool bike; a bit particular looking but no one seems to mind riding them. I road it about 30 minutes and it did well. It’s not meant for comfort so watch out for bumps in the road and cobblestones. It has 3 speeds so is fairly flexible. It also has lots of illumination so seems fairly safe at night (I’ll try it tonight and see how it goes).
You have to buy a Vélib pass first:
Daily card is 1 euro
Weekly card is 7 euros
1 YEAR is 29 euros
To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days. You can also obtain the 1 year card by filling out a form at the Mairie (the various city halls in each arrondissement), any metro ticket station, or many pastry shops as well!
UPDATE: I've found that I can get the Velib yearlong form online and link it to my metro pass by mailing in the form (along with a check for 29 euros and an authorization for 150 euros) to the Velib HQ outside Paris. Once this is done I can much more easily get a bike by just passing my navigo card over the sensor!
The three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.
There is a 13 point legal summary that you must accept to obtain a Vélib pass (one of the annoying features is having to read through the entire legal acceptance form on a small screen) NOTE: I have since found that you can "skip" the entire text. Another issue is that when you pay with a bank card you have to switch to a different interface screen. The Main interface (a color plasma screen) for the details of the bike pass then the smaller LCD screen for the details of your bank card. But, it’s very similar to the RATP and SNCF machines used to get metro and train tickets (at least in the complexity of the user interface).
To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days.
Either of the three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.
The first two options can be done right at the Vélib station. There’s not a person there so you have to use the interface.
Payment:
You can use French bank card and it looks like most ATM cards will work as well. I tried using my navigo and it worked great! I also used my Bank Card and it worked also. You can also use your navigo card (your metro pass which you can obtain free from www.navigo.fr/ - you’ll need to upload a photo and provide a French address – use the address you will be staying at even if it’s a hotel; the navigo card will arrive in a few days so do this before you leave)
UPDATE: The Velib system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have smart chips! Good news for foreign visitors who don't have an EU smart card...
Language:
The interface says it’s in French, German, English but these languages don’t work yet (I guess they have not translated the interface so these buttons don’t do anything). So, you’ll need to read French but it’s not that hard and there are always people around willing to help. The RATP employees say there are plans to include other languages (up to 8) but right now there are only 3 (and only French is actually working right now!).
UPDATE: During the 2nd week the interface was updated and is now working in English, Spanish, and French.
Once you receive an abonnement card you will have to select a PIN (code secret) that will allow you to use your card in other stations.
Once you process a payment, you select the stall number, then go push the button on the stall corresponding to the bike you selected. Then you just go ride off into the sunset! Then return the bike at any other station.
Once you have the pass and bike you are charged based on how long you ride it – simple. If you check out a bike and ride it for less than an hour and a half it’s free! But if you ride it longer you have to pay - A supplement of 1 euro will be charged for an additional half-hour, 2 euros for another 30-minutes and 4 euros for every addition half-hour after that.
Don’t forget to push the button on the stall to get your bike! I don’t know how many people I’ve seen try to “swipe” the paper bike ticket on the navigo interface!
SECURITY
The bikes come with a cable lock. This is passed around a pole or other object then connects into the frame of the bike. There is a small key that will release once the cable lock is snapped into place. I've had a little bit of trouble at first then realized that after clicking one end of the cable in place, to unlock it, you must also push it in a bit further to get the key to release. It's not the thickest.
RETURN
To return the bike just put it into one of the stalls. Make sure the slot is engaged. It will "click" into the slot, the light will go "yellow" then to "green" about 5 seconds later when the RFID system recognizes your bike as being returned.
If there are problems you can call Vélib’s emergency number: 01 30 79 79 30. This number is also printed on the bike's handle-bar.
JCDecaux
JCDecaux sponsors the project in exchange for advertising rights in Paris. JCDecaux is Europe’s largest outdoor advertising company. Like a similar scheme in Lyon, where 10 percent of the city's population has a subscription to the local sharing scheme, Vélib is operated by outdoor advertising giant JCDecaux, which is footing the bill in exchange for exclusive rights to 1,628 Paris billboards.
UPDATE: I've been renting one 2 or 3 times a week and it seems to work well so far. Theft has not been a huge problem so far but it does happen. The bikes come with a lock but it is not a substantial one and is easily cut. When I stop to eat somewhere I lock it up but keep it in sight. Right now they program is regarded with some pride by parisians so it seems including the appropriate marketing and presentation has some benefits. For example, the program was marketed outside of normal medial channels (outside of France). The support infrastructure is also highly visible with specialized electric vehicles, boats, and even uniforms for the maintenance personnel. This makes sense though given that the company financing it is JCDecaux (Europe's largest outdoor advertising firm).
The UI terminals: These are two-sided. One side is the main UI for renting a bike, the other is a map and a smaller interface for obtaining the balance on your bike by entering the ticket number.
There have been glitches:
1. Terminal's are sometimes offline so no way to get a bike
2. There are bikes available but the terminal doesn't know this (RFID system goes down sometimes) so it sends you to an interface to find another Velib station.
3. Sometimes the terminals will be rebooted remotely and will be unavailable for about 5 minutes while it reboots.
The UI is based on windows VB script and runs on the Windows XP embedded OS. The BIOS is Phoenix 1.14. The hardware is a 1.3Ghz Pentium III with 500MB memory.
This is my first attempt at a transparent screen.
I spent about 2 hours in the kitchen this afternoon trying to get this to work out perfectly (moving my laptop around, trying different angles, re-shooting the wallpaper picture, etc.), and I ended up with this. Actually, I kind of "gave up" and this was the best of my pictures - so therefore it is my final result.
I wish I would've moved the cereal box over to the right a little bit more...
Other than color correction (auto levels, auto contrast, etc.), no editing was done to this picture.
Since I am sorta-kinda unsatisfied with the result of my picture, I plan on attempting this again sometime later this summer.
#DSC04953
This photo was taken close to Canberra along the Sydney to Melbourne Hume highway. The landscape reminded me of the famous "Bliss" default wallpaper of Windows XP.
Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.
See more info at www.en.velib.paris.fr/
I place my notes, tips, tricks on Velib on my Veliblog: velibobsession.blogspot.com
Renting a Velib bike
These bikes are fun to rent and ride but, depending on how long you are in Paris, you may just want to buy a bike and lock it up outside where you are staying. I love the Velib system but it is more appropriate for short-term point-to-point transportation. If you're in Paris for more than a few weeks it may be more useful to buy a 100 euro bike at Decathalon (along with a good lock). Buying a bike is also better if you plan to ride more than just 30 minutes each time. Having said that I still like this system and use it often to get from place to place more quickly.
UPDATE (25 October 2007): The system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have the EU smart chips! Good news for visitors that do not have an EU bank card.
UPDATE (28 October 2007): Be VERY careful out there... I'm sad to write that the the first fatility involving a Velib bicycle occurred on 18 October in the 13th arrondissement. This is first fatility since the service started July 15 2007. Marthe Coppel-Batsch, 59, a prominent Psychologist and Psychoanalyst, was struck by a truck near the corner of Boulevard de la Bastille and quai de la Rapée. The accident was caused when the driver of the truck could not see the bicyclist due to the "blind spot".
While the majority of Paris bike lanes are dedicated to bikes, there remains many that are shared between bikes, taxis, and buses. Riding in these shared lanes is tricky and I've found myself having to compete for space with very large vehicles that do not always see the bike riders well if at all. Bike helmets are not required nor used in Paris and perhaps they may catch on as there have 4 fatalities now involving bicyclists each year. www.liberation.fr/actualite/societe/285982.FR.php
UPDATE: With the transit strike over, bikes are now being repaired more quickly...
The French transit strike increased ridership but conversely resulted in many bikes not getting repaired. Twice while going to rent a Velib I found many bikes in the stands that were broken. The strike made transporting the bikes to the repair depots difficult resulting in many broken bikes being left in the stands.
So, WATCH OUT for flat tires, broken chains, bent wheels, etc.
The interface is a bit confusing... but it works (eventually) and you can rent a nice bike very cheaply.
Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.
THE BIKES
The sturdy grey bikes come with a metal basket on the handlebars and are heavier than standard bicycles, built to withstand heavy use. In line with the program's green image, Vélib‘ maintenance staff get around town on 130 electrically assisted bicycles. A barge with 12 stops along the Seine will pick up bikes in need of major repairs. Cleaning staff drive electric vehicles and use rain collected on the roofs of JCDecaux offices
Shimano (brake systems)
Prowheel (core hardware)
Nexus (gear shifts, cables, etc)
The bikes are 3 speed “roadster”-type bikes.
I had some luck as when I arrived at the Jaures station as there was a ratp truck unloading new bikes. I spoke to the RATP employees and found out there are currently about 13,000 bikes in place right now with plans to have 20,600 by the end of the summer in 1,451 stations. The bikes just arrived a few days ago (on the 15th of July – right after bastille).
I walked down to the Jaures Vélib station and rented one! It’s a pretty cool bike; a bit particular looking but no one seems to mind riding them. I road it about 30 minutes and it did well. It’s not meant for comfort so watch out for bumps in the road and cobblestones. It has 3 speeds so is fairly flexible. It also has lots of illumination so seems fairly safe at night (I’ll try it tonight and see how it goes).
You have to buy a Vélib pass first:
Daily card is 1 euro
Weekly card is 7 euros
1 YEAR is 29 euros
To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days.
UPDATE: I've found that I can get the Velib yearlong form online and link it to my metro pass by mailing in the form (along with a check for 29 euros and an authorization for 150 euros) to the Velib HQ outside Paris. Once this is done I can much more easily get a bike by just passing my navigo card over the sensor! The process to get the Navigo metro card linked to the Velib system is lengthy and requires several forms to be filled out (very very French).
The three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.
There is a 13 point legal summary that you must accept to obtain a Vélib pass (one of the annoying features is having to read through the entire legal acceptance form on a small screen) NOTE: I have since found that you can "skip" the entire text. Another issue is that when you pay with a bank card you have to switch to a different interface screen. The Main interface (a color plasma screen) for the details of the bike pass then the smaller LCD screen for the details of your bank card. But, it’s very similar to the RATP and SNCF machines used to get metro and train tickets (at least in the complexity of the user interface).
To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days.
Either of the three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.
The first two options can be done right at the Vélib station. There’s not a person there so you have to use the interface.
Payment:
You can use French bank card and it looks like most ATM cards will work as well. I tried using my navigo and it worked great! I also used my Bank Card and it worked also. You can also use your navigo card (your metro pass which you can obtain free from www.navigo.fr/ - you’ll need to upload a photo and provide a French address – use the address you will be staying at even if it’s a hotel; the navigo card will arrive in a few days so do this before you leave)
UPDATE: The Velib system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have smart chips! Good news for foreign visitors who don't have an EU smart card...
Language:
The interface says it’s in French, German, English but these languages don’t work yet (I guess they have not translated the interface so these buttons don’t do anything). So, you’ll need to read French but it’s not that hard and there are always people around willing to help. The RATP employees say there are plans to include other languages (up to 8) but right now there are only 3 (and only French is actually working right now!).
UPDATE: During the 2nd week the interface was updated and is now working in English, Spanish, and French.
Once you receive an abonnement card you will have to select a PIN (code secret) that will allow you to use your card in other stations.
Once you process a payment, you select the stall number, then go push the button on the stall corresponding to the bike you selected. Then you just go ride off into the sunset! Then return the bike at any other station.
Once you have the pass and bike you are charged based on how long you ride it – simple. If you check out a bike and ride it for less than an hour and a half it’s free! But if you ride it longer you have to pay - A supplement of 1 euro will be charged for an additional half-hour, 2 euros for another 30-minutes and 4 euros for every addition half-hour after that.
Don’t forget to push the button on the stall to get your bike! I don’t know how many people I’ve seen try to “swipe” the paper bike ticket on the navigo interface!
SECURITY
The bikes come with a cable lock. This is passed around a pole or other object then connects into the frame of the bike. There is a small key that will release once the cable lock is snapped into place. I've had a little bit of trouble at first then realized that after clicking one end of the cable in place, to unlock it, you must also push the cable connector in a bit further to get the key to release. It's not the thickest cable and so I prefer to keep the bike in sight when locked (if possible). Theft is not yet a serious problem for the program but it does happen. If you happen to lose the key, call the emergency number listed on the bike (01 30 79 79 30) and someone will come unlock the bike for you.
RETURN
To return the bike just put it into one of the stalls. Make sure the slot is engaged. It will "click" into the slot, the light will go "yellow" then to "green" about 5 seconds later when the RFID system recognizes your bike as being returned.
If there are problems you can call Vélib’s emergency number: 01 30 79 79 30. This number is also printed on the bike's handle-bar.
JCDecaux
JCDecaux sponsors the project in exchange for advertising rights in Paris. JCDecaux is Europe’s largest outdoor advertising company. Like a similar scheme in Lyon, where 10 percent of the city's population has a subscription to the local sharing scheme, Vélib is operated by outdoor advertising giant JCDecaux, which is footing the bill in exchange for exclusive rights to 1,628 Paris billboards.
UPDATE: I've been renting one 2 or 3 times a week and it seems to work well so far. Theft has not been a huge problem so far but it does happen. The bikes come with a lock but it is not a substantial one and is easily cut. When I stop to eat somewhere I lock it up but keep it in sight. Right now they program is regarded with some pride by parisians so it seems including the appropriate marketing and presentation has some benefits. For example, the program was marketed outside of normal medial channels (outside of France). The support infrastructure is also highly visible with specialized electric vehicles, boats, and even uniforms for the maintenance personnel. This makes sense though given that the company financing it is JCDecaux (Europe's largest outdoor advertising firm).
The UI terminals: These are two-sided. One side is the main UI for renting a bike, the other is a map and a smaller interface for obtaining the balance on your bike by entering the ticket number.
There have been glitches:
1. Terminal's are sometimes offline so no way to get a bike
2. There are bikes available but the terminal doesn't know this (RFID system goes down sometimes) so it sends you to an interface to find another Velib station.
3. Sometimes the terminals will be rebooted remotely and will be unavailable for about 5 minutes while it reboots.
The UI is based on windows VB script and runs on the Windows XP embedded OS. The BIOS is Phoenix 1.14. The hardware is a 1.3Ghz Pentium III with 500MB memory.
for the "BERLIN BLUES" Slide Show I used Microsoft Photo Story 3 for Windows - a free download; embedded music played by myself on an acoustic guitar; visit my BERLIN SET
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I was just about to go out yesterday, when I turned off my desktop. Right then, Chestnut, my second cat, decided to get up from the window where she was sleeping in the sun (behind the computer tower). It was getting too warm for her. When that happens she decides to plop herself down at my keyboard. Now I know enough to move it out of the way (it is a wireless keyboard).
Yes, you read right; I'm still using Windows XP on this old clunker. I've had it for nearly 12 years now, and it still works well. I am looking into getting Photoshop for my laptop, in which case I can move all of my files over to my external hard drive, or move some to my laptop, and eventually ditch this machine. But it still serves me well when tweaking my stuff on Photoshop. And there isn't a lot of room to use both this and my laptop on the same desk.
But I thought the way Chestnut was sleeping her was worth getting with my smartphone camera.