The Widescreen Centre sells a pretty wide range of slide projectors/viewers. I've used them in the past and their service was top notch: link

Al

Another vote for Iiyama (and Micro Direct). I prefer the 4:3 format. You need a heck of a size of widescreen monitor to get the same vertical height as you do with a 4:3. I find this format is more suitable for photo editing, desktop publishing and word processing.

Al

The 16-45 can produce professional results that compare with the best, albeit with a maximum aperture of f/4. What more do you want, unless it's f/2.8?

Al

I don't suppose it could be anything as simple as a clogged jet on your printer? Might be worth trying the test print utility that's found on most printers. What are the colours like if you print a web page containing some full-colour photos? For what it's worth, I leave colour management turned off in my software (Serif PhotoPlus) and let my Epson printer sort things out. The results are pretty well spot-on. I doubt if monitor calibration is the issue. Good luck.

Al

I find Neat Image does a good job, although I haven't tried the others to make a comparison.

Al

At £14, PhotoPlus X4 is a no-brainer (as we like to say nowadays). I've used the various incarnations of PhotoPlus for years and I've yet to find a function it doesn't have.The reason it's so cheap is that its successor, X5, has now been released. The new product seems has a couple of added "features" but, for most photographers, there aren't enough practical benefits to make the upgrade a must-have. I'd be surprised if you found anything you needed missing from X4.

Al

It's also worth remembering that you tend to view large prints from a greater distance, so the "apparent" quality stays about the same down to surprisingly low dpi. Modern interpolation techniques work pretty well. I'm particularly impressing with the Laczos3 setting in Serif PhotoPlus.

Al

It isn't only photography, and the guy makes a good point about restaurants.

I'm asked regularly to proofread new menus for my local pub/hotel. This involves checking the spelling of obscure dishes and ingredients (as well as tricky words like "restaurant") and correcting the text to maintain a consistent style. My labours are apparently worth the price of a pint -- £3.20 -- and the opportunity to run a tab if I need to or cash a cheque without supporting identification.

It's all about greed and the perception that anyone's skills outside of a company's business area are virtually worthless. Go along with it by all means if you see it as a way forward, but be aware you're being suckered.

On the bright side, I've found it's easier to convince people you should paid if you're carrying a bagful of camera equipment than if you've just got a pencil.

Al

In fact, Arbroath Smokies are made only in Arbroath (or thereabouts). It's an EU-registered designation. For the pedantically minded, both Arbroath and Forfar are in Angus. An equally pedantic observer might wonder if an earlier post referred to Tom Waite the dog trainer or Tom Waits the gravelled-voiced singer. We may never know.

Al

They can be. I bought a new 52mm adapter by mistake and had zero response in the classifieds. Might as well go to a good home. If you PM me your address, I'd be happy to pop it in the post. If it fits, great. If not, it'll be adding to your clutter instead of mine

Al