10 posts tagged “technology”

Prompted by an article about the Kindle on the NYTimes blog, I've taken a moment to review my own thoughts on the product and various things surrounding it.

Crosspost! http://adviceandfables.wordpress.com/2009/05/08/the-kindle/

Give yourself some awesome : Bookmarks And Coffee.

http://www.randomwire.com/2008/09/01/google-creates-a-browser/
Google creates a browser called Chrome (not yet live) and presented it in comic form. No beta yet.

See full details here: http://blogoscoped.com/google-chrome/

Since my interests now have gone back to the tech/social-networking side of things, this is an interesting read for me.  I have to wonder what the sad face means (haven't really delved in fully yet), as I am browsing online while currently in the queue for my fourth run of EoTS.  We've won two out of three so far (go Horde), so that's kind of nice.  I'm just farming honor and don't really know why.  PvP isn't really my thing, but it's a nice break from the monotony of what I've been doing for the past several years.  

Back to Chrome: I particularly liked the monkeys. :)

It seems they're beta-testing a pre-beta, or something like that.  My immense hunger beast (which will soon be soothed by this delicious delivery from Pita Pit) is making it hard to think properly.  In any case, I am impressed and will probably use it secondarily for awhile, until it becomes second nature, and then replaces Firefox for me.

Sorry gang, no punchline.  It just sounded good in my head.

1) New car!  Please reference this LJ article for further details.  His name is Chubbles and I proclaim it Good.  Pictures of *my* car needed, but the default photo is pretty close.

2) Holidays make me crazy.  I am going insane. 

3) Art makes me crazy.  I am going insane.  But I love art.

4) If you've been following along, you'll know I'm bipolar.  This session is less of a mood swing and more of a mood tsunami.  My manic phase has kicked in to overdrive and my friends are to blame... they are starting to want more from me (by this I mean products/art for themselves).  This is not a bad thing in any way, I love my friends and love making things for them; my friend Eric called this the "design high", and it's very nice to hear someone else put a term to the craziness that happens.  Unfortunately the output can't keep up with the input right now.  I've been ingesting epic amounts of inspiration, mostly via MySpace ...yes, that site can actually be a goldmine for artsy folk.  It's like a giant Juxtapoz or something, but with hundreds of thousands of people.  The major problem happens when I go into a high-speed mode, and start putting out quantity instead of quality.  My perfectionism wins out, my brain then processes all of whatever I just made as Utter Crap, and I become totally depressed, resulting in a complete shutdown that lasts anywhere from a week to a year. 

The only way this process seems to work appropriately is if I'm on a deadline - if I'm not creating for just myself, then the shutdown seems to be voided by the fact that Someone Else Wants My Stuff.

So....... if you picture my brain as a normal, functioning cog inside a machine inside a building inside a city... the short version of what's happening to me right now is something like this:

-------------------------------

Hey you...
Have you felt like this before?
You got style but ain't got soul
Are you happy now?
Are you happy, tonight?
Or did Punk Rock get it right?
Is there no future in sight?
Oh is it different now? Is it different?

Come on
Come on, come on, come on
Where are you? Where are you?
I'm kicking and screaming
You're not listening...
Where are you? Where are you?
Everything I've believed in, has lied to me
But this could be the best day, of my life
The best day of my life

Hey you
Have you got everything you want?
Or do you want more than you got?
Is it different now? Is it different, tonight?
Or did Jesus get it right?
Or is the devil behind the light?
Are you happy now? Are you happy?

Come on
Come on, come on, come on
Where are you? Where are you?
I'm kicking and screaming,
You're not listening ...
Where are you? And where are you?
Everything I've believed in, has lied to me
But this could be the best day of my life
Oh this could be the best day of my life
Ohhh sons and daughters,
Mothers and fathers,
Everyone's waiting for our luck to change
Sons and daughters,
Mothers and fathers,
Everyone's waiting, waiting

Cause this could be the best day
And this could be the best day
And this could be the best day, best day, best day

Come on
Come on, come on, come on
Where are you? Where are you?
I'm kicking and screaming
You're not listening...
Where are you? And where are you?
Everything I've believed in, has lied to me

- - -

Sometimes I wish I was medicated.

The past four days have been a spin cycle of eating and sleeping.  Wednesday night was a hot tub party at this place my coworker was house-sitting.  Did that get mentioned?  Is that proper grammar?  I don't know, but it was okay either way.  There was wine, cheese and good times, and I slept well.  On Thursday and Friday Jason and I just ate, slept, then ate more.  So much food.  Saturday was an 1130-8 shift, followed by meeting up with Maria & Trent for a Rancho's/Claire de Lune session.  Even more food, good lord.  Then yesterday they came over for brunch... April missed out due to being stuck at work and Sandy missed out due to being hungover.  Anyway, MORE food and champagne resulted in my taking a four-hour nap.  Then I spent the rest of the day leveling and being pleased at how my progress towards a level 70 is going.  I'm not pleased at how my progress towards an expanding waistline is going, but I do like food.

There's a whole hell of a lot going on for me right now, with things involving and not involving the drama llama.  He's been trampling all over the place for the past couple weeks, but I've decided not to feed him. 

It's my current social experiment to see if I am up to the task of just relating facts as they occur, and to try to leave all my opinions out.
ALL my opinions, which means also leaving some facts out, because by bringing them up it causes nothing but tension and general evil... therefore leaving me no choice but to expound upon my opinions. 

That was a mouthful, but the short version is:  There's a *lot* going on around me, and I'm not happy about all of it.  However I need to vent, so these short bursts of vagueness are the best I can allow myself to do.  They allow me to get out some frustration without stirring up more crap.

An even shorter version would be a nod to Fight Club:  Don't let the things you own end up owning you.  This counts for the Internet too.

Oh, for those paying attention, I mentioned "things involving and not involving the drama llama".  The things not involving him are almost fantastic enough to balance out the evil right now, so that's cool.  I've been making more art than I know what to do with, which pleases me greatly.  This is good.

The external world is fragile, and he who meddles with its natural way, risks causing damage to himself.
He who tries to grasp it, thereby loses it.
It is natural for things to change, sometimes being ahead, sometimes behind.
There are times when even breathing may be difficult, whereas its natural state is easy.
Sometimes one is strong, and sometimes weak, sometimes healthy, and sometimes sick, sometimes is first, and at other times behind.
The sage does not try to change the world by force, for he knows that force results in force.
He avoids extremes and excesses, and does not become complacent.

Times, they are a-changin'.  

Before I get into the rest of this post, I’d like to say that it’d be nice if Verizon would let me do per-call blocking.  816-420-1002 has been calling me almost non-stop (up to 5 times a day) for about two weeks, so after the first few repeat calls I googled it.  Oh Google, how you’ve changed our lives.  From that link as well as a few others it appears to be a credit card / phishing scam, which is just what we all want.  Yesterday, Sunday, my phone was showing six missed calls from them, between 9 and 7.  They start as early as 8 and end as late as 8, so I think what’s going on is that someone has rigged up an auto-dialer or script to call consumers.  It just keeps trying their phone until someone actually answers (or at least makes a noise when they pick up the phone), then boots them over to a rep.  I would think if it’s a collections agency they would actually leave a message or at least send me some paper mail.  Yes, answering these calls would end the mystery, but I'm stubborn.  This section will be x-posted to local communities; is anybody else having a similar problem?

Another link shows that it’s a phone number for Las Palmas Apartments in Vegas, so ... man, if somebody needs an apartment reference then TELL ME FIRST.  You know I’m down.

Back to the music: lately the black hole that is bellydance has sucked me back into its' void – the music (included related fusions) mainly, but the dancing as well.  Besides window-shopping for furniture, clothes, shoes and stuff that is out of my less-than-astronomical budget, I’ve been eyeballing some bellydance costumes.  I miss all of it so much, the scene as well as the feeling good about myself.  Thanks to the online stations out there (and random songs on people's Myspace profiles) I've been able to listen (and practice to) more than the little bit of stuff I own.  This is not a bad thing, because a lot of other music just isn’t cutting it right now.  The goal lately has been to find a quality streaming radio station, which is tougher than you’d think.

Live365 only works half the time, but when it does it's fantastic (excluding the commercials that go away when you're a paid subscriber).  That lack of working is definitely unfortunate because it was my uber-favorite in the streaming radio world and had any kind of music you could think of.  SomaFM is my saving grace at the moment as far as stable, commercial-free background ambient/chillout music goes.  Pandora is decent however sometimes it goes off on tangents and tries to translate my tastes into things I have no desire to hear.  XLNC1 is a classical station that inspires me to test out the clarinet more often, but plays a little too much opera and not enough Mozart for me.  

BassDrive is something that one of my Aplus buddies showed me and when I’m feeling for some DNB, that’s the station to hit up for sure.  There are a few breaks where the DJs talk, but mostly as introductory and it’s tolerable.  RadioTower may have been where I found XLNC, it’s commercial free, however the stations are pretty limited (for my tastes).  LoudCity looks to be somewhat limited and I haven’t had time to check that out thoroughly, but it seems like it could indeed be a contender once the word got out.  MusicChoice is courtesy of our cable company, but I don’t know how (or if) the online version works at this time.

Now my newest venture is Last.FM.  Somebody recently blogged about it but it’s not coming to mind who made that post.   After booting up a browser and going to choose a username, it said that my (somewhat unique) name had already been taken, so of course I was totally curious about what other pantherqu33n was out there.  There was no info in the profile so I clicked “resend/forgot password” just in case it *was* me - and a password reset link showed up in my email!  Having no recollection of signing up I researched the site a bit more, and did not realize that it used to be AudioScrobbler.  That’s similar to AudioGalaxy, although I remember A.S. having a really funky interface.

Last.FM seems to be exactly what I want, but it’s frustrating at the same time.  there is so much potential but either I’m missing some major part of the interface or that part just hasn’t been integrated yet.  It seems like the site focuses on randomization and will allow you to play *similiar* artists, or only 30 second clips from an artist you actually want to hear.  Also it drops connection a lot.  That last bit (plus the short versions of things) is a definite no-bueno moment, especially if a fabulous song comes up and I’m practicing moves to it.  Natacha Atlas, you are quickly becoming one of my favorite artists, thanks for having enough tracks to come up all over the place… now if only I could sing along.  

There’s software that lets you play from your desktop, and overall it isn’t terrible for being totally free.  No DJs talking, no commercial breaks, the only problem is it keeps switching.  I think what may be happening is you can’t actually select an artist - you have to select a station that plays items by that artist as well as similar items, which is why things keep switching up on me.  For example, I put "Natacha Atlas" down, they played a few small clips, and then suddenly it's Bjork... I mean DJ Spooky.  Don't get me wrong - he's the man and all, and that feature is definitely something that can help you learn to vary your tastes, but sometimes I want to hear DJ Cheb I Sabbah and that’s it, okay?  I noticed that if you mark a favorite/loved track, it's similar to Pandora in that it will start playing very similar things.  That may make up for everything else, but I'm not sure yet.

Courtesy of their FAQ, something else I ran across and am finding flaws with is this:  
Scrobbling a song means that when you listen to it, the name of the song is sent to Last.fm and added to your music profile.  Once you've signed up and downloaded Last.fm, you can scrobble songs you listen to on your computer or iPod automatically. Start scrobbling yourself, and see what artists you really listen to the most.
Perhaps you have to be a paid subscriber?  It says everything is free (though they appreciate donations), and full-length songs from the artist I ask for would be great, but I am not in a situation where paying for online radio is going to happen.

That brings me to this next bit - these headphones are fantastic, but if I could find a way to pipe the music into our living room sound system then rest assured it would be done.  Paid radio stations (commercial free and hopefully full-length) would definitely be something to look into as a ‘luxury’ option, because there just aren’t enough MusicChoice channels to suit my tastes.  The neighbors could just pretend our construction workers have switched from Mexican polka to Asian/Indian fusion.  Woohoo!

In closing, anybody who wants some new noise to listen to, check out these folks.

I was trying to dig up some of my old band-nerd photos (no, they haven't been burned to a crisp) and came across a presentation from pre-Cali days.  It appears to be from December of 2000, which means it was possibly for some class... but then again it could very well have been a random essay.  My memory fails me yet again.  Not surprisingly there was a lot of gaming then, mostly to keep my mind off reality. By saying "a lot" I mean.... that was pretty much all I did.  LAN parties, pizza, homework, art.  

In a sick way I sort of miss those days, but you have to sleep sometime.  Yes, for the ENTIRE month before moving here I played the Sims.  Sleep - wake - take a walk - eat quick breakfast - Sims/email/chat-with-J - eat - Sims/email/chat-with-J - Repeat.  For a month, maybe even six weeks.  And it's not much different now except that Sims has been replaced with WoW, Myspace and blogging.  Oh, and that whole having to work thing.

Anyway, here you go, copy-pasted without edits. Christ, this makes me want to ship out my Performa. 

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Hyper-violence In Three Dimensions: The Fine Art of Gaming
Larissa R. Young

December 22, 2000

Bleep.  Bleep.  Bleep.  Bleep.  "Arrrgh!!"  Bleeeeeeeepp…

Apparently Pong doesn't cut it in the "intense frustration" category. 

From Atari to Playstation 2, from Commodore 64 to Pentium IV gaming has evolved incredibly.  Gone are the 8-bit shoot-'em-ups of yesteryear, welcome to the world of Geforce and VooDoo accelerated graphics.  We've retired the choppy, pixilated battle tanks and gone on to super charged, anti-aliased plasma guns.

So many games, so little time.  This paper (and my presentation) is going to cover only five of the thousands to choose from.  In no particular order, they are: "Soldier of Fortune", "Half-Life", "Unreal Tournament", “Sheep”, and "The Sims".  A list of helpful links can be found at the end of this paper.  But before the games are discussed, the ratings must be brought to everyone's attention.  No one wants their new-to-the-pc-six-year-old engaging in hyper-violence, do they?  No.  There needs to be a detailed list of what's good for whom to play.  Thanks to ESRB (dotcom), the Electronic Software Rating Board, there is just such a list.  This can also be found at the end of this paper.

After one gets past the ratings, there's got to be some basic knowledge before you even begin to play.  Layout is a key part of the game, and some people refuse to play certain kinds of layouts.  My personal favorite is the 1st-person shooter, and the occasional aerial.  Here's a brief rundown of the types of game layouts:

1st-person shooter: You are the player; you see through their eyes, handle the weapons, and make the rights or wrongs.

2nd/3rd-person shooter:  You are usually behind the player, and follow him/her around, although you have control over them.  Classic racing game style; think "Midtown Madness".

Aerial: Think "Legend of Zelda".  You are hovering above a portion of the map, still in control of your character, just with a much broader range of view.  This can be helpful sometimes.  Lately it's become a semi-trend to do a weird sideways aerial angle, where you're about 45 degrees above and/or to the side the player, and follow them.  Think "Sheep", "The Sims", or "Lemmings".

Non-character 1st-person: It's you, you and only you.  You play, you die, and you start over.  Think "Myst", or "Riven".

Side-scrollers: Old school, 2-d.  Think "Super Mario Brothers".

Now that you understand the basic layouts, how far can gaming really go?  Far.  Being a professional gamer is something some kids only dream of, but hard work can get anyone there.  Angel Munoz, head of the CyberAthlete Professional League has proved that gaming can be an actual sport in her recent interview with PC Gamer.  Here's a snippet from said interview:
" PCG: How big do you expect CPL to get, and what are your goals for the future?
AM: When you look at the world of sports, you encounter a number of activities that are considered sports but do not appeal to the general masses and still are very huge industries. For example, in the US there's bass fishing. Here's a "sport" that is covered on ESPN, that has millions in sponsorship and has created an entire industry, all because people wanted to brag about how large their fish was. I think the CPL computer game tournaments are much more interesting than bass fishing and therefore our potential should be greater. The meteoric rise of the CPL to worldwide prominence is a direct result of market dynamics that now exist to support our business model. We think that the gears of these diverse market dynamics are just starting to spin and should assist the CPL organizers in elevating computer game competitions to the level a professional sport. Therefore, we think that the CPL has the potential of impacting millions of people worldwide through the weekly broadcast of our events, through the perpetuation of the high standards that all traditional athletes adhere to and through the quest of being the best that all of our competitors strive for. So the CPL's overriding goal is to be at the same level as any other professional sports league in the world.
PCG: When do you think you'll be able to achieve these goals?
AM: Tomorrow! Ok maybe it will take a bit longer than that. :)   Our business plan clearly outlines a progression of 10 years with major landmarks at yearly intervals that will get us to our final goal. But interestingly enough, we are now almost two years ahead of schedule so it may take less time than we originally anticipated. "

But what makes a game a GAME?  Something worth shelling out cash for?  Graphics are big right now.  Good, excellent, otherworldly graphics…and a good plot.  With cheat codes.  There is too much detail to go into, so without further adieu, I present

The Games.

Soldier of Fortune:
With the password-encrypted violence lock at the beginning, you can tell that this isn't a game for the faint of heart.  It is, however, a great stress-reliever.  Raven has added a brutal edge to the action genre, resulting in probably the most violent game ever to come to the PC.  Starting off as the mercenary John Mullins, you begin with a hostage situation in a New York subway system and move on to locations all over the world.  As you progress with the 31 vaguely connected missions, you learn that something big is going down, and you're the only one who can stop it.  Which isn't pretty.
Headshots result in a blood sprays and leave behind the stump of a head, brain matter fully visible. Gut shots cause intestines to spill out, and limbs can be blown off with ease. Every bullet leaves behind gaping exit wounds from which blood gushes out by the gallon. Your victims scream and writhe in pain, clutching their wounds in a futile attempt to stop the blood flow. Cops and hostages get blown away, and the sea of blood grows.
Parents and sensitive gamers should be wary; the ESRB has given Soldier of Fortune an "M" rating, and it deserves it. Raven's violence lock enables you to set the gore to a more timid level, for those who can't deal.  Thankfully, Soldier of Fortune is not just about the violence, but has some brains, too. You're rewarded with survival for understanding the value of patience and cover, and penalized with death for rashly charging in to every gunplay situation.
Lastly, watch your back. You never know when some fool will get the drop on you.   There are some inspired levels. One of them has you fighting from one end of a train to the other while a gunship peppers you from above. Another level has you gunning through a run-down hotel full of hostages.
So despite the high praise and great design decisions, why doesn't it get an Editors' Choice Award? S. O. F. is a good game with some real inspiration, but it's not an instant classic. Sure, it's deeper than the average shooter, but not by much. The last few levels start to get tedious as you survive ambush after ambush. Also, there are too many button and switch finding puzzles.   This is quite a spectacular game.  But once the initial eye-opening effect of the game's violence wears off, you're left with a shooter only slightly better than the rest. Ultimately, it's an entertaining and memorable first-person shooter with a healthy serving of bone and gristle thrown in.

Half Life:
It was another stimulating day at the subterranean Black Mesa Research Facility. The loyal staff of privileged scientists at the Sector C Test Labs arrived for work in anticipation of another in a series of attempts to create a "resonance cascade." A mysterious "sample" delivered that morning by military escort created quite a buzz, and the lead scientists were under pressure from the administrator to deliver success. Pressure, it seems, that was applied too hard. Stark pandemonium struck the facility when a malfunction opened a pan-dimensional rift through which hostile aliens entered our world. Gordon Freeman, a scientist who aided in the dreadful incident, awoke from unconsciousness to a Black Mesa wrought with destruction and chaos. Aliens were terrorizing - and mutating - his fellow humans. Armed with a crowbar and whatever weapons he could scavenge, Gordon slowly crept toward the surface. Eventually, the cavalry arrived in the form of a crack military unit sent to rescue the Black Mesa stuff.
Or so it seemed. Before his astonished eyes, shadowy US marines assassinated Gordon's innocent colleagues. The armed grunts were not there to rescue, but to cleanse and silence. Stunned, terrified and enraged, Gordon silently calculated his escape strategy. Trusting no one.
The rest, as they say, is gaming history. Gordon, with our help, evacuated the facility, traveled to the alien world of Xen, conquered the alien threat, and saved the world - and his own neck - in the process. A final cryptic encounter with a mysterious government agent served to draw the curtain on the story, leaving unanswered questions and a neon vacancy sign for a sequel.
Although violence is a key factor in Half-Life, the game keeps the player focused enough on the plot to concentrate too much on the bloodshed.  Gordon rolls nicely through the levels, making you a bit nervous at times, while pulling off alien kills in a wonderful way.  Good game, good plot, good waste of time.

Unreal Tournament:
My current favorite 1st-person shooter, this game is up there with the classics…Quake, Super Mario Brothers, and the Tony Hawk Pro Skater series.  When the day at the office is just a little too long, when the phone rings just a little too shrilly, it's always good to snipe off a headshot or two from a high window.
Unless the multiplayer function is on, this game is not complete without the bots.  Artificial Intelligence at its' finest, these are what make a good game a great one.  You don't progress through a linear storyline; instead you fight your way through a series of firefights with increasingly ferocious bots. (U.T. also has the capability to change their settings anywhere from "Beginner" to "God-Like"…and oh! the glee!)  In a single-player tournament you'll have to defeat bots in Deathmatch, Domination, Capture the Flag, and an innovative Assault mode.
The deathmatch level design takes full advantage of the Unreal engine's powerful editing tools. Thanks to this wealth of geometry, you'll fight battles in futuristic Space ships, atmospheric Space-Galleons and creepy Space-castles. Each level is extremely detailed, which makes the game look great, though occasionally the complex architecture gets in the way of game play. For instance, in the deathmatch level called "The Peak," you'll occasionally run around the outside of a building on narrow passageways. If you drop off these walkways and die just by accident, you won't care very much that the architecture looks cool.
This is an overall problem with Unreal Tournament. It seems as though many of the levels were designed with aesthetics taking priority over game play. In comparison with prior games of this type, you can notice how often UT sacrifices substance for style. You'll appreciate a beautiful level the first few times you play, but you'll appreciate quality game play design every single time you play.
In the excellent Domination mode, you and a squad of friendly bot-buddies fight to gain control of three strategic areas. Domination allows you to really appreciate the bot's A.I. Even if you don't tell them exactly what to do (you can command them very easily if you so desire), they still play intelligently. This mode is the most frantic of all because you simply can't win it on your own, and you have to learn to trust.  Coordination between you and your team's bots seems a little strange until you realize that the bots are conforming beautifully to "human" responses in the firefight. It's amazing.
Capture the Flag is maybe the weakest game play mode available, if only because it adds nothing to this very familiar style of play. For what it is, though - a standard Capture the Flag variant - it's still great fun.
Assault is not as innovative as some people tend to think…unless they have a preference for a timed game.  The game gives you several objectives and you have to solve them before the clock runs out.  Not as easy as it sounds…especially underwater fights.  The quality of these levels is often hit or miss. Levels like the high-speed train, the Normandy assault, and a boat attack are great fun, while a few of the others are a bit too complicated to provide the same thrill. They're more examples of too much visual flair and not enough solid game play justification in the level design.
The bots also give the UT single-player game a longer life than any previous single-player mode in a first- person shooter. Long after you've finished the final chapter in Half-Life, you'll still be having fun playing against these bots. By changing any number of their properties, you can make a botmatch play like an entirely new game. But no matter how good the bots are, they still can't beat real, live competition. And thankfully, the Internet play in Unreal Tournament is dramatically better than that of its predecessor. No matter how well you play against bots, you'll find it an entirely more enjoyable experience to take your skills up against humans online. While the online game play is not quite as fast as that in some of the current competition, it's fast enough that it won't drag down your deathmatch experience.  Overall, this is an excellent game, and kept me busy for… a long, long time.

SHEEP:
They’ve traveled vast distances through space They’ve colonized countless star systems They’ve forgotten why they’re here...  and it’s your objective to guide the lovable - but soooo stupid - Sheep to Mt Mouflon without getting them bashed, boiled, blown up or blow-dried.
Trying to wrangle 4 increasingly stupid breeds of Sheep through 28 levels is not easy, especially when Mr. Pear and his evil hench-cows aren’t having any of that bunk.  The wonderfully imaginative levels prove to be more difficult than one would think, and the Sheep seem to become dumber with every step.   Technopolis, armed with anti-gravity and laser blades is more eye-candy than actual “Game”, and things become frustrating quickly.
Four different herders can be chosen: Bo Peep, Adam Half-Pint, Motley and Shep.  But it doesn’t matter which herder you choose, the Sheep have a mind of their own. 
With the release of this game in November, I’ve only been playing it for a few days as a Christmas present and don’t really have much to say on it.  Congratulations are due to the Empire staff for their creative way of the resurrection of the wildly popular “Lemmings”. 
Being a fan of sheep in general, I was both enthused and curious when this title was released, and the stupidly amusing Sheep on the box cover was enough to make me beg for the game.  A cross between your average smiley face and a cotton ball, these little guys practically scream, “Buy me or I’ll die!” much like Squee (Johnny the Homicidal Maniac’s special friend) does.  (slavelabor.com – the ultimate in comic book oddities.) 
Sheep brings back memories of waiting impatiently in line, quarters packed into my sweaty little hand, hoping that I was the next one to vanquish Pac-Man’s evil friends, the multi-colored Ghosts.  You chase around a maze, being careful not to get harmed, and pick up several friendly One-Ups along the way.  Much like the Fruit of Pac-Land, the 28 danger-filled levels drop a few cute bonuses (Sheep treats: peppermint candies, Golden Goodies: Oscar-looking things that give extra lives) that keep both you and your flock happy. 
This is the point where I’d disclose the end, but I haven’t made it there yet.  In fact, Level 2 is proving pretty challenging.  Sheep manages to be imaginative, cute, and puzzling as all get-out all in one fluffy little package.  Baa!

The Sims:
Some people call me an addict.  Not true: I can stop anytime I want…it's just more fun than my real friends.  Come on, who doesn't want to play God for a few months?  Reminiscent of “Catz” or “Dogz”, this virtual game of playing house is so incredibly catchy it’s crazy.  Whoever would’ve thought that the simple tasks of cooking, sleeping and even peeing could take so much precedence in a game?  Even as this is being typed out, the need to go back to building my eclectic little twisted neighborhood is almost undeniable.   
It was perhaps inevitable that if anybody was going to take the next step in "people simulation" it would be Will Wright, the designer who has done so much to pioneer the idea of the software sandbox with the SimCity series. And that's exactly what he's done with The Sims, a game that allows you to create and control the lives of virtual suburbanites. But it’s not so much a next step as a giant leap.  Wright's Sims are powered by a complex set of emotional and behavioral variables. They're affected by both nature and nurture; five key personality areas (Neat, Outgoing, Active, Playful, Nice) can be defined prior to their "birth", and from then on, their happiness and success are determined by how competently you manage their lives.
The lives of the Sims under your control are faceted and detailed enough that you'll actually find yourself believing that you're living somebody else's life. Your Sim (or Sims) becomes a virtual alter ego through which you can attempt to make real your dreams - or, perhaps, nightmares.
The Sims is essentially divided into two sections - a "Live" mode in which your Sims work, play, and interact, and a Buy/Build mode that freezes time to allow you to change the environment. Starting with a meager 20,000 Simoleans doesn’t give much allowance by way of purchases, but if you’re a fan of cheat codes, the “Rosebud” maneuver is more than helpful.  With time frozen and such a powerful and easy-to-use design tool at your fingertips, it's possible to create virtually any kind of domestic abode you can imagine. Every aspect from aesthetically pleasing carpet to zany window placement is available, and just building the house itself can be quite fun.
After becoming the ideal decorator, the action starts in the "Live" mode, in which your happy (initially, at least) little band of characters gets down to the business of living their everyday lives. This being more of a computer toy than a game proper, the user is free to define their own objectives, but as in real life, you're encouraged to achieve social and professional success, which in turn are the key factors in determining overall happiness. After putting your Sim on a career path, either by perusing the newspaper or online job listings, career advancement becomes a major goal - after struggling up through the low pay and long hours inherent to the lower ranks of whatever career you chose (everything from medicine and politics to sports, entertainment, and a life of crime is possible), you can start earning some serious money, which can be ploughed into life-enhancing home improvements.  If you’re looking to just slack off and collect friends, skills and fine art exhibits, “Rosebud” is once again the way to go.
The other key goal of The Sims is to develop an active social life, and it's here - interacting with other Sims in the neighborhood - that the game throws up some of its most satisfying treats. Socializing is mandatory if you want to get ahead, since a Sim's social rating is one of the key contributors to overall happiness and promotion to the higher career levels also requires that a certain number of Family Friends be maintained (which seems more a function of game design than an attempt to simulate how real life actually works, but never mind).
As you get to know the Sims in your neighborhood, you can call them and invite them over. Once you've gained the pleasure of their company, you can chat, play, joke, flirt... whatever it takes to get them to like you. Certain household items can help move things along - well, wouldn't you be more likely to visit a friend if you knew he had a big-screen TV, basketball court, and hot tub?
Get friendly enough and Sims can become romantically inclined toward each other, and pleasingly there's no preset gender orientation so you can do what you will with your Sims' love lives. You need to be aware of pre-existing relationships, however…neighboring Sims can and will “Attack”, dropping your Friend points dangerously low.  Once in the red zone, a fight is almost inevitable, although after hard work they can fall back into the Family Friend zone within a day or two.
You can hire a maid and gardener to take care of most household chores, but even then it can be a real struggle to maintain a career and a social life. As in the real world, the essence of The Sims is all about making decisions and prioritizing based on what you want out of life. A balanced life invariably works best, and achieving that balance is the game's toughest challenge. As the size of your Sim family increases, the game gets both easier and harder - easier because you get more income and you can divide tasks among family members, and harder because taking care of more than one Sim's daily agenda can be a real handful.
There are, as with every good game, a few minor drawbacks.  For example: Sims don't age; it doesn't take thirty minutes to feed fish; you have to do the dishes but not the laundry; you can't visit other Sims' houses, they have to come to you; you don't see what happens when you're at work, and you can be married to more than one person at once.  These are all, on the surface, valid criticisms, but the people who make them could use a little education in the limitations of game design, particularly one that deals with a subject so broad as this. Any simulation developer has to make tough calls on what to include and what to leave out - the omissions just seem more obvious when the simulation is of something everybody does everyday.  
The fact is that, a few quirks aside, playing The Sims is one of the most curiously engaging and addictive hobbies I've ever had. I've gone to bed at night thinking about my Sims, woken up in the morning anxious to re-acquaint myself with them. It has that oh-so rare appeal that continues to linger in your consciousness long after you've shut down your PC for the night. We've long known that the idea of wielding God-like power over a virtual universe is a compelling one, but I never imagined that doing so in such an everyday world would be so maddeningly consuming. The Sims has an indefinable relaxing, therapeutic quality, right down to its wonderfully soothing, melodic soundtrack.
My only real criticism is the lack of a multiplayer mode when it's not difficult to imagine how a good one might have worked. Right now it's soft of fun to interact with other Sims created by friends or colleagues, but I would've liked to be able to hook up with somebody online and become virtual roommates or something. Or perhaps I could become a burglar in an online neighborhood, stealing stuff from other people's houses and furnishing my own with it (it could be a real riot when I invite everyone over to my place for a big party!).  However, with the help of a few cheat codes and the brand new “Livin’ Large Expansion Pack”, a few of my worries are gone.  Build a renaissance castle or a jungle palace, complete with leopard-print wallpaper. Want to improve your love life? Buy a heart-shaped vibrating bed and ask that special someone to join you.
Livin' Large is all about choices. Over 100 new objects (including the best from the Web) are included, more decorating choices, some fun non-player characters, new neighborhoods with a total of 50 lots, and links to 50 new Web pages.  Some of the best new stuff includes a guitar for the musicians in the family. It's a fun group activity because you'll draw a crowd while you play. There are also objects for the paranormal crowd -- a genie appears when you clean the genie's lamp, and you can gaze into a crystal ball and get fortune cookie-type predictions. And for those of you that like the hunting lodge look, there are plenty of mounted dead animal wall hangings and animal skin rugs for decoration.  There's a ton of cool new artwork, too, although the guinea pig picture is slightly disturbing. Be wary of hanging up the clown picture because that creepy clown will come to life and bug your Sims.  If you download “The Sims Art Studio” from the main site, you can even take your own images and hang them up.  Also available: Face Lift Gold—enabling the user to take tiny jpegs of their friends and family and map them onto the Sims.  Tired of that coworker taking over your desk space?  Import them into a neighborhood and starve them in a specially made maze.  Watch them soil themselves, curl into a fetal position, and eventually become a beautiful urn or headstone…selling at a value of 20 Simoleans.
A few annoying things popped up in this expansion pack, however.  For one, they say you can kill the roaches that autonomously spring up tile by tile; this is WRONG!  Those guys never go away, trapping whomever tries to stomp on them in a 2-tile space warp, including you, your maid, and Servo the Wonder Robot.  They also never mention how the computer gets feisty and locks up if you try to make a mansion with every single object you can squeeze into two floors.  Far be it from me to try that.  There’s also still no “more than 2 floors” option, which is kind of sad.  Who doesn’t want a sixteen-story house, with just a staircase floating from the ground to the first level?

Five new careers are available, and the careers are a bit more creative this time: musician, journalist, hacker, paranormal expert, and slacker.  (Imagine: paid to be a professional party guest.)  After a while, it becomes too much work to keep your Sims happy, clean, and well fed, especially when you have to go to work and maintain friendships at the same time (and don't get any weekends). The game play hasn't been changed or modified, and the new neighborhoods look exactly the same as the original.
There’s so much to be said for this game, but first-hand experience is best with this one.  Incredible amounts of first-hand experience.  And now, it’s time for me to go back to what I was doing before this wonderfully long review started…building a new castle, fine-tuning Servo the Wonder Robot, and watching evil neighbors trapped in my secret laboratory pee on the floor.

That’s it for my game review.  It took far longer than necessary, and basically the only thing really to be said is play, play and play some more.  Detailed reviews are always fun, but there’s nothing better than aiming that rocket launcher right between someone’s eyes, or starving your best friend in a moat.  And that’s the truth.

The following are quotes from avid players, not-so-avid players, and people who know me.  This is to help whomever get a little better look at the opinions of the aforementioned.

"I don't care about gaming in the next year.  Unless they fix it.  The
focus on the game is gone.  You know what made Asteroids cool?  The fact
that you didn't have to read a 300-page instruction manual to be able to
play it!  Why do you think people download NES emulators instead of
constantly playing the latest Direct-X laced, Force-Feedback enabled, 3-D
game that hit that market last month?  Because underneath the eye-candy
and technology, the game sucks."
      - Mike "Hobbit" Lambert

“Gaming is how I first lay my hand upon most young people.”
- J. "Satan" Demko

"[mumble mumble]…too much time playing…[mumble mumble]"
- Linda “I’m-Her-Mom-So-I-Have-To-Criticize-Constant-Playing” Young

“I’m waiting for the day when games will be projected directly onto your retina and there will be no need for any other hardware or software.  That’s all.”
- Matt “Tribes-Made-My-Friends-Queer” Scala

“Who needs friends when you can play the Sims all day?”
- Panther “Drama” Q’een

THE ELECTRONIC SOFTWARE RATING BOARD SAYS:

Early Childhood
Titles rated "Early Childhood (EC)" have content suitable for children ages three and older and do not contain any material that parents would find inappropriate.
Kids to Adults
Titles rated "Kids to Adult (K-A)" have content suitable for persons ages six and older. These titles will appeal to people of many ages and tastes. They may contain minimal violence, some comic mischief (for example, slapstick comedy), or some crude language.
Everyone
As of January 1, 1998, the new "Everyone" designation will replace the "Kids to Adults" rating. Titles rated "Everyone (E)" have content suitable for persons ages six and older. These titles will appeal to people of many ages and tastes. They may contain minimal violence, some comic mischief (for example, slapstick comedy), or some crude language.
Teen
Titles rated "Teen (T)" have content suitable for persons ages 13 and older. Titles in this category may contain violent content, mild or strong language, and/or suggestive themes.
Violence
Mild Animated Violence
Contains scenes depicting cartoon/animated/pixilated characters in unsafe or hazardous acts or violent situations.
Mild Realistic Violence
Contains scenes depicting characters in unsafe or hazardous acts or violent situations in photographic detail.
Comic Mischief
Contains scenes depicting activities characterized as slapstick or gross vulgar humor.
Animated Violence
Contains depictions of aggressive conflict involving cartoon/animated/pixilated characters.
Realistic Violence
Contains realistic or photographic-like depictions of aggressive conflict.
Animated Blood and Gore
Animated/pixilated or cartoon-like depictions of mutilation or dismemberment of body parts.
Realistic Blood and Gore
Depictions of mutilation or dismemberment of body parts in realistic or photographic-like detail.
Animated Blood
Animated/pixilated or cartoon-like depictions of blood.
Realistic Blood
Representations of blood in realistic or photographic-like detail.
Language
Mild Language
Product contains the use of words like "damn".
Strong Language
Commonly referenced four-letter words.
Sexual Content
Suggestive Themes
Mild provocative references or materials.
Mature Sexual Themes
Contains provocative material; including depiction of the human body in either animated or photographic-like formats.
Strong Sexual Content
Graphic depiction of sexual behavior and/or the human form (i.e., frontal nudity) in either animated or photographic-like detail.
Early Childhood
Some Adult Assistance May Be Needed
Reading Skills
Fine Motor Skills
Higher Level of Thinking Skills
Other Descriptors
Gaming
The depiction of betting-like behavior.
Use of Tobacco and Alcohol
Product contains images of the use of tobacco and/or alcohol in a manner which condones or glorifies their use.
Use of Drugs
Product contains images of the use of drugs in a manner which condones or glorifies their use.
Informational
Overall content of product contains data, facts, resource information, reference materials or instructional text.
Edutainment
Content of product provides user with specific skills development or reinforcement learning within an entertainment setting. Skill development is an integral part of product.

Helpful Links and Sources

http://astalavista.box.sk
http://www.ditto.com
http://www.empireinteractive.com
http://www.epicgames.com
http://www.esrb.com
http://www.gamecopyworld.com
http://www.maxis.com
http://www.mirc.com
http://www.pcgamer.com
http://www.ravensoft.com
http://www.search.com
http://www.sierra.com
http://thecrack.net/8080
http://www.thesims.com

One of the plethora(!) of cool things about Mozilla is it's user-friendliness... and how much of an enabler it is.  For example if you're feeling lazy, which you most likely are, and don't want to type a whole URL, you can put the main section of the domain and it will still redirect.  It seems most likely based on Google's search results but that's alright.  [Example: type 'vox' without the quotes in your address bar. It will take you to vox.com. Classy!]

My goal for the moment, maybe even for all of 2007, is to figure out The Power of WoW.  My friend Don (yes, a real-life friend/guildmate/boyfriend's coworker) were discussing the potential subliminal powers.  That portion of our conversation went like this:

D: WoW, though i'm addicted like everyone else. it's way too easy to get involved in. 12-14 hrs a day on the weekends?  christ, that's insane but we still do it. i think there's subliminal shit...
Me: there has to be. it's all very "oh just ..one more quest. then i have to turn it in and then i have to just kill these two dudes. and get this. and turn it in here. and then ... oh shit i have to level, im only 2 bubbles away!"

It's true. Having like mindsets is one thing, but almost Eight Million People?!  World of Warcraft is like the Starbucks of the gaming industry.  If that hasn't been said before, let me be the first to make the quote.  There's just something compelling about the whole thing.  The graphics are great, you don't have to be a D&D guru (or even a gaming guru) to play, and there's a storyline for everyone.  Want something a little more heroic?  Roll a toon on the Alliance's side.  Want a nice helping of sarcasm and dark humour?  Horde's waiting for you. 

One of the major problems now though is the whole "WoW-nnui" phase.  An article over on Terra Nova sums it up fairly well:  No one I've talked to *dislikes* the game; there's no sense of having been spurned or that the experience has curdled.  But in even the best parties there seems to sometimes come a moment when, amidst the music and noise you and your friends silently agree "great party; we're outta here."   For some people that moment has come with WoW.  And I'm guessing that trend is only going to accelerate. Here's hoping the long-awaited expansion can outdo itself... but what then?  I can't find the pie chart but it looks like Blizzard has 52.7% of the MMOG market filled up (www.mmogchart.com for more details).  I'm also not sure if this is Total World Numbers or US Market Only Numbers, but it's a goddamn lot.  I'm sure I can figure out the actual numbers later, but now is not that time.

I do love WoW though.  It's a good game; coming from someone who played the SiMS primarily all of her gaming career.  MYST got played for awhile but I think I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for Riven.  For anyone wondering where the name for my first car (Ryven) came from, now you know.  I almost had the big vinyl stickers put on the windshield in Old English text, don't hate.  Diablo2 brought me into the MMORPG realm, Neverwinter Nights was in there for a few weeks, Icewind Dale (mmm), and Baldur's Gate II was the last thing I played for a long time.  Jason was hooked on StarWars Galaxies for quite awhile but I hated that.  I hated looking at it, and had no interest in having an account.  Same thing for EverQuest. 

Then suddenly... along came World of Warcraft.  I don't know what happened, or how we even got to thinking of buying it.  Perhaps it was the graphics, perhaps it was the first character I made was a warlock (oh the glee!!!!!).  Somewhere along the line we were both staving off sleep to hit that next level, giving up weekends to finish quests, and loving every minute of it.  It wasn't the South Park effect but it was just... fun.  Now, almost two years later we both have a handful of characters on multiple servers, both factions.  He's got three 60's and I'm about to have two.  We joined a guild (now disbanded), we bonded with locals who played.  Millions and millions of people are playing RIGHT NOW.  (Luckily they're not farming the area I want to be in, thank goodness.)  It's all just madness, and I can't understand why but I love it.

It's one of the first games that has crossed the border into the physical world as well, at least at such enormous volume.  The shirts are everywhere, you hear people discussing raid plans on their breaks at work.  Some are lucky enough to be able to play at work.  Two or three weekends ago my friend Alicia and I were out having coffee and catching up on old times.  Out of nowhere, I hear someone slaughtering a murloc.  For those who know that noise, well, it's unique to say the least... and if I can make it into my ringtone, I will.  Common courtesy be damned, I need something wonderful to replace the loss of my beloved "Nothin' But A G Thang" midi.

Anyway, the burbling came out of nowhere during this a.m. coffee excursion, and I was completely thrown off guard.  Rare are the times when a total stun happens to my conversations, but there you have it.  Alicia was confused, I was in hysterics.  Then came the curiousity factor: "Okay - who's playing WoW and what kind of system is running it?" Someone with a souped up laptop in the corner no doubt, but I didn't go searching.

Ahh, the life of a WoW-addict.

One of the other things (amidst the plethora(!) o' stuff) that keeps me logged on until the wee hours is the random interesting new things that happen.  For example, purple drops from a bat two levels lower than you who aggro'd on you randomly... that may have been my defining moment so far.  Somewhere in my mid-50's on my first character (Evissick, the aforementioned warlock), I was running through Eastern Plaugelands, not even intent on killing bats at the moment, when one aggro'd on me.  More XP, sure, why not.  It crumpled to the ground, I looted. 

Me, yelling from the bedroom, in a confused voice: "So, is purple good?"
J, in the living room makes a strangled choking noise.
Me: Is that a yes, then?

Purple, by the way, is better than blue, better than green, way the hell better than grey, but not as good as orange.  Feel free to see this handy chart, which contained some info I did not know until just now.  As far as orange items go, I've seen one during my entire play time in the past two years - some character in one of the major cities happened to be holding one, but I don't think I got a screenshot.  It really wasn't even all that spectacular, but it was kind of cool to see that 'orange' isn't just a myth.

Also apparently that staff could have sold for roughly 1500G, but I made a tough decision and kept it to equip my 'lock with.  It's served her well so far.  (G = Gold, S = Silver, C = Copper. Nice & easy currency system.)  To put things in a better perspective, I currently have about 500G between ALL my characters.  J perhaps has 1000.  He's much better at making money than I, but neither of us are gold farmers by any means.

I started writing this on my flight from UC to EP, and didn't realize it would turn into something so lengthy.  However I've got just under 10k XP to go before Level 58, so wish me luck... I'm supposed to meet friends for brunch at 1030, so let's hope I can function on six hours of sleep.  Huzzah for three-day weekends, especially after a five-day weekend that just passed. 

...and what's this Echoes of Lordaeron buff I just got? New buff!! Yay!!

(!) Hot Word Alert.