I have a Canon 80D camera. I recently purchased a RRS Arca Swiss plate (which I really like) for my Vanguard tripod, which I then had to convert for the Arca Swiss plate. (I tend to learn things the hard way.)

Now I am in need of a second tripod and I would like it to be compatible with my RRS plate.

The more I look around and try to research this the more confused I am getting.

I am retired on a meager budget and need some advice as to how to find a decent tripod with a ball head that will work with my RRS plate.

I know for sure that I am in the Really Right Place to ask this question.

Would like to find a used RRS ARCA Swiss plate for my backup Canon 80D.

My email is ROBT.BYRD@GMAIL.COM

The camera was hand delivered to my front door this morning in tip top shape. The USPS tracker history is still not up to date.

I am grateful that we have the USPS and I sympathize with the hardships they have faced. I am even more grateful for the Ebay seller who has been communicating with me the whole time.

Take heart! Sometimes the system works.

Update 12/16: USPS now says it will be delivered today!! We shall see.

The USPS has opened an investigation into the loss. It was shipped from Charlotte, NC to Mars Hill, NC.

My question is, how do these things get resolved when the item does not arrive for an extended period of time? I haven't been able to find any information on the inter-tubes.

I know I can contest the payment via Paypal or my credit card company. Is that my best option?

There are plenty of options the seller had to properly represent the item. "open box" comes to mind.

As an Ebay user for over 20 years, I suggest that, if you want to keep the camera, that you give the seller a scathing review and move on. If you don't want to keep the camera, that is a long slog, but, if the seller is reputable (which you could have checked before purchasing), he will work with you to your satisfaction. If the seller is combative or non-respondent, it can be very difficult but your options are to cut off payment from your credit card or go through Ebay's tedious process for dealing with a bad seller.

I may be interested in your Canon Speedlite 600 EX-RT if you can offer a better price.

robt.byrd@gmail.com

I have looked at and tried several high-end Windows laptops including Lenovo, MSI, Dell, and Asus. They all perform well rendering and editing RAW and JPG photos.

The Asus absolutely would not accept a new SSD card, even though the specs said it should and crashed and burned.

The MSI keyboard is nearly impossible to replace when it wears out, and it will wear out because the lettering is coated on each key and not embedded.

The Lenovo will not run Zoom video without dropping the video regularly due to a systemic issue with its nVidia GPU which Lenovo has refused to address. The GPU is soldered in. (This may not be the case for all of their dedicated graphics laptops.)

The Dell G7 has had the fewest issues and keyboard membrane covers are readily available for it. I have never been a fan of Dell machines, but I have to admit that this one beat out all of the others I have tried for photo processing as well as streaming video.

Not all Dell XPS machines have dedicated graphics so be advised.

My two cents.

This is what makes UHH so great. I learn something useful here every once in a while. ;-)

It's the randomness that makes it so rewarding.

How does one "subscribe"?

I get my Zeiss-geit on Amazon. Love 'em.

I can vouch for gaming laptops for value and speed. Dedicated (discrete) graphics is a must.

I own 2 MSI machines and a Lenovo Legion and all process RAW files with aplomb. They boot from cold in about 10 seconds because they have SSD's in them.

You can find them used in good condition, but beware and know who you are dealing with. It also helps to have a reliable hardware repair person handy in all cases.

I support my wife's online video psychotherapy practice as well and I do my own video and RAW photo processing. All of our machines are MSI gaming laptops that I get used in the $600 - $800 range. All have discrete GPU with SSD main drive and 16 GB to 32 GB RAM. All four machines perform very well.

I also am running Linux Mint dual boot on one of the machines with excellent results.

I am an old IT guy and am starting work on a Linux Mint machine and am fairly new to Linux.

Looking around there are not a lot of options for processing software. And Faststone doesn't have a Linux version.

So I am wondering what folks are using, other than GIMP, for photo processing in Linux Mint.

Is there a forum here somewhere for this that I didn't see?