easy test:
prefocus the lens. lens on "A" setting, body on "AF"
move the camera slowly towards the subject, and at the point of focus the camera should fire.
It's called "Snap in focus" by pentax..and is a long time feature, that I doubt they'd just drop it on the newest model

Lily, you already have given back.
By posting a question.
There's alot of men out there who get lost and won't ask for directions...lol
no really, your question and the subsequent answers do help others!

ps I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've contemplated asking a question, only to find some noob beat me to it, and Mattmatic had already answered...or thought I knew something, and then found two new ways to skin that same cat.

FWIW...I checked out a k10 here in winnipeg, and it has the shakereduction menu greyed out when using any lens with an A setting or newer, and the menu only becomes selectable when a manual, non A lens is attached.
Therefore you can't set anything with a newer lens.

I wish I could fly you guys over her to show these kids in my college class how to do it.
they get so hung up on equipment, and don't seem to grasp the idea that it's the skill and quality of photographer, that makes an image.
love the sepia.

I'm ambedexterous, (and dyslexic....), and gotta admit, that I love the feel of my ds2 (which I use right handed) but no camera I've ever used has the balance and fit of my sony hdr hc1 camcorder.
having said that, I imagine any lefties out there would benifit from a bracket with shutter release for left handed comfort.

I know some people are hacking canons to remove the ir filter.
trouble is, unless you have the tools and experience to work with inredible percision, there's little an average person can do.
I'm playing around with a homebuilt lens that uses a bodycap, a bag/bellows of neoprene, a focus rail, and a motorized car door mirror mechanism to make a controllable tilt/swing lensboard for the front lens. the other mirror will eventually be used to tilt/swing the camera body.
I certianly wouldn't try hacking the body.

my ds2 does. so i'll wait till it's sorted before intalling the update.

Merry Christmas!

you could buy two lightstands and a peice of electrical conduit pipe (for a crossbar)
or you couls hit the hardware store for some abs plumbing pipe and some T and L pipe connectors and build a workable stand on the cheap.
you could use one lightstand if you stapple or tape your background to a length of 1x2 wood or a 2" wood dowel, and drill a hole in the wood to insert a rod that screws to the top of your lightstand (think along the lines of a slide projector screen)
Sheets and or hand painted canvas painters dropsheets make good brackgrounds.

interesting idea.
I vote for a softcover ( I tend to aggrevate people and hard cover books can hurt).
How 'bout a podcast to go with that?