

Thoughts & Stuff Volume 1: 2010 to 2011

By Graham Hall

Copyright 2011 by Graham Hall

Published at Smashwords

Dear Reader,

Hello, my name is Graham Hall, writer and editor (guess which job I suck at more) of the random blog Thoughts & Stuff (formally known as Grahamtastic). I have been blogging on and off since I was in middle school, and I have ran blogs on sites like Angelfire and BlogSpot, as well as hosted my own blogs using WordPress. After all these years I finally drifted to Tumblr in 2010, and this eBook is a compilation of the results.

I have decided to take some of (what I think is) my best work so far on Thoughts & Stuff, and compile it into a single, portable eBook file so that in case something happens to my Tumblr blog (like what has happened to my blogs in the past). I have lost so many years of writing to my own stupidity and the frail nature of technology that I think it's wise to preserve what I write. Furthermore, I want to make it easy for new readers, and old readers alike, to be able to read my work from the past 2 years.

Everything is presented in chronological order. In order to maintain compatibility with as many eReaders as possible, any important links are written in parenthesis within each piece.

As always, I do this for fun. I don't ever expect any compensation for my writing, except I do ask my readers that if they feel the need they can donate to the Child's Play Charity ( http://www.childsplaycharity.org ), a charity founded by gamers to provide toys and games for sick children in hospitals.

If you do like what you read in this eBook, you can always find my latest work on my blog ( http://ghall.tumblr.com ). You can also follow me on Twitter ( http://twitter.com/ghall ) if you're so inclined.

Please enjoy.

Graham Hall

Hello, I'm a Mac

I've always been a Mac user, I literally grew up with Macs. Some of my earliest memories was playing Kid Pix on an SE/30. For a good portion of my life 'Macintosh' meant 'computer'. I didn't know about Windows, and I certainly had no knowledge of Linux. You might say I was blissfully ignorant.

I have to say I wouldn't be so passionate about computers if it weren't for the Macintosh. Something about them was so magical (much like the iPad) that it just drew me in. Sure a majority of my time early in life was dominated by various games, but I was still mesmerized by the awesome power that a computer put right at your finger-tips.

The Mac has always been at the center of my self-discoveries. My interest in web design stemmed from my early experiences with the internet on a Mac (I've been coding in HTML since I was 8). My interest in film production came from fiddling with iMovie. My love of music was sparked by the iPod my mom gave me. My passion for design was inspired by the wonderful icons, graphics, and typography present in the Mac, and the rest of Apple's products. And finally, as I mentioned before, Macs are the reason I love computers, and technology in general.

So yeah, Macs are much more than just computers to me, they represent a life of discovery and wonder. It's no wonder every time I turn on my MacBook Pro and hear that distinctive start-up chime ("bonnnng!") I get a warm feeling in me that I just can't describe. Mac's are everything computers should be: they're simple, secure, and magical.

Oh and about that iPad thing...

Random Musings

I never feel like there's enough time in a day. I get up at 7AM and before I know it, it's 12:30AM the next morning. Where did the time go? All I really did was go to work, come home, make dinner, play video games, talk my my girlfriend on the phone and then browse the web.

Sometimes I think it would be so great to not need sleep. When you think about it, we waste 6-8 hours of every day being unconscious. That's time that could be spent doing other things, either fun or work.

Maybe I'm crazy (actually thats probably it), but that's how I feel about life. I guess the only thing to do is to do as much as possible each and every day.

Twilight - How I Lost What Little Remained of my Manliness

Tonight I watched Twilight with a friend of mine. It was (and I can't believe I am about to write this) not that bad. Sure I can name quite a few movies better than Twilight but for what it is, it's not that bad. Some of the dialog is pretty poor, but it does seem to fit the general cheesiness of the plot.

Basically the movie is about a girl who falls in love with a vampire that only drinks the blood of animals, and sparkles in the sunlight. Not exactly as frightening as Count Dracula or Barnabas Collins (20 internets to anybody who knows who that is), but he does look very creepy...in a pervert-like way.

The film itself is very spastic. One moment it's all cute and happy, then without warning you're thrust into a scene with the not-so-nice vampires hunting someone down, then back to happy and cute.

The movie doesn't really start making any sort of sense until the very end, and even then everything is happening way to fast to keep up. Then just when I was getting into it the movie abruptly ends. I know its just part 1 of a series of movies, but at least give us some closure. I've never read the books, so maybe this is how the book ends as well, I have no idea.

So yeah, it's not the greatest movie, but it's a classic case of "it's so bad its good". And while it feels like its just the first act of a much longer story (actually I guess thats pretty much what it is), it has at the very least got me curious to see the next installment. Wow, I can't believe I just admitted that...

Why Macs Are Better Than Windows (Or Linux)

I know what you're thinking. "Oh boy, another Mac fanboy piece." Well sorry to disappoint. I'm not going to blab on about Macs having a better user experience, or not getting viruses, those arguments are done to death.

The Mac OS is built to run on a specific line of computers. Windows (and also Linux) is designed to run on as many different hardware configurations as possible. In theory the Windows approach sounds great, but in practice it's a terrible idea.

Apple has full control over the hardware that their OS goes on, so they can take the time to make sure everything works great with a specific GPU or a specific trackpad. Microsoft on the other hand has designed Windows to run on any computer with an Intel or AMD CPU and any ATI or Nvidia GPU, resulting in limitless configurations of hardware that can't possibly be completely optimized for.

Then there's drivers. All the necessary drivers are built into Mac OS X because Apple knows exactly what hardware it's going to be installed on. With Windows you usually have to install or hunt online for the drivers you need for optimal performance, and even then you may hit issues with driver incompatibilities.

The only way Microsoft can fix Windows is by controlling the hardware it's installed on, but chances are that will never happen. Thankfully, we have Mac.

Some Thoughts on Religion

I don't really believe in an after-life. I don't think that if we do bad things we go to Hell or if we do good things we go to Heaven. That's not how I believe the world works. I do believe though that these concepts of 'good' and 'bad' really do affect us in some way. I believe the choices we make affect our lives right now, not what happens when we die.

My grandmother once encouraged me to follow a religion. She didn't care which one, just that I chose one. I half-jokingly told her I would just make up my own and follow that, which she didn't like very much. But I have my own beliefs that don't really align with any religion that I know of, so it would be pretty pointless to just pick one.

This can get very interesting because of my Jewish background. Even though I really don't follow the Jewish religion, I still call myself Jewish, which confuses a lot of people. What these people don't seem to understand is that being Jewish is not just a religion, it's a race, it's in my genes! Chanukah, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, they're still important to me for reasons that aren't religious. (Though admittedly I never had a Bar Mitzvah)

At this point you're probably calling me an atheist. Well no, I don't consider myself an atheist at all. Why? Because being associated with a certain group means you're automatically labeled with a stereotype. Yes I am aware that even atheists can be crazy lunatics. I often wonder how the sane Christians can even stand sharing a label with the crazy extremists who want to kill gays and non-believers. Seriously guys how can you stand it? I feel even worse for the muslims who aren't going around bombing people. Every group has their crazies even though they don't represent the majority, so I feel it's safer to just distance myself from putting a label on my beliefs.

So, I believe that everyone has the right to believe what they like and nobody has the right to tell them they are wrong. People are so concerned about being right to the point of being scared that they could be wrong. There is no way of knowing who's right so why don't we all just believe what we believe and keep an open mind?

Yes, I Was Wrong About The iPad

Back when the iPad was first announced I hated it. To me it didn't have much of a point. Why would someone buy a tablet with a cell phone OS? But like my initial hatred towards the iPhone, I have come to change my mind and now find myself wanting one. Yes, I went from "this is stupid" to "holy crap I want one"

"But Graham, you love your MacBook Pro!" Yes I do, but I've been looking for an excuse to want an iMac to replace it. But my lifestyle does not lend itself to being tethered to a desk whenever I want to use a computer, even though the iMac offers a much better cost to power value, and its large screen lends itself well to graphic design. But now with the iPad I have found the perfect solution; have an iMac for my heavy lifting like graphic design and gaming (which I normally do at my desk anyway), and an iPad for more relaxed use, like web surfing, Tweeting, and blogging.

So yes, I was wrong about the iPad being pointless. Just like I was wrong in my belief HD-DVD would trounce Blu-Ray, or my predictions that the Wii motion controller would be a flop (despite this prediction I still wanted one really bad, and now I love it).

I still stand by my firm belief that 3D is a fad though. But if I see any evidence to the contrary I will be among the first to admit my wrong-ness (though I will still think its a stupid gimmick).

My (Long Overdue) Review of Super Mario Galaxy 2

I got this game just days after release (because of Nintendo's odd tradition of releasing games on Sundays making it impossible for Amazon to offer release date delivery on their stuff) even though I was less than in love with the first game.Yes, I loved the gameplay of the original, but it seemed to be packed with lots of unnecessary story.

The story in Galaxy 2 is simple: Princess Peach gets captured by Bowser (seriously I think she's just getting kidnapped for kicks at this point), and Mario must venture into space to save her. In order to progress though, Mario must find power stars, which fuel Starship Mario, which is simply a planet in the shape of Mario's head.

The gameplay is pretty much the same as it is in Galaxy, but you get all new levels, and a few new power-ups. And don't forget Mario's good pal Yoshi! Each level brings something new, and unlike most previous Mario games, themes do not seem to repeat themselves much, if at all, which gives Galaxy 2 some very nice variety that lacks greatly in most of today's video games.

It's a fun game, from the moment you start the first level, to the ending where Mario gets a cake that is decidedly not a lie. But wait! There's more! Even after dealing the final blow to Bowser (in probably the most epic Bowser fight ever) there's still more to do! The main game is only 6 worlds long, but after beating it, you unlock a secret 7th world. Though you will have to go back and get all the stars if you want to unlock all the bonus levels. The ones I've unlocked so far aren't very long (each one takes about 2-3 minutes if you don't die) but they are very tricky. While far from the hardest levels in the game, they will present a significant challenge to players who aren't prepared.

So the final verdict? If you have a Wii, you need to get this game! No seriously, buy it. Now.

What is Genius?

Genius is not just someone who is smart. Genius is something more. Genius thinks creatively, outside the box. A genius uses their knowledge in new ways. Genius moves the world forward. Genius brought us the best in science, technology, and art. Genius doesn't always get straight A's. Genius doesn't always do everything right. Genius is not always understood or appreciated.

Can genius be learned? Or is it something you're born with? Neither. Genius is the way one sees and perceives the world. Genius is the way one hears and listens to the world. Genius is the way one touches and feels the world. Take the time to look at the world from a new perspective and you may discover the genius in you.

Video Game Ratings

I've never really liked the ESRB (Entertainment Software Ratings Board) ratings that all the game boxes in America are plastered with. This is because they are not very informative, and because kids are different. Whats appropriate for one kid might not be for another, and vise versa. Sure the ratings often come with small descriptors, but these are usually quite vague and unhelpful. "Rated Teen for comic mischief." Gee thats helpful.

There should be a set of categories assigned to each game, each one rated out of 5 based on the severity. So for example your average shooter would have ratings like:

  1. Language: 2

  2. Violence: 4

  3. Drugs & Alcohol Use: 1

Also, game retailers could train their staff in the specifics on this system so that parents can direct their concerns to them. Obviously games with strong adult content should be marked as such though.

Also, maybe this would stop game retailers carding everybody for M-Rated games, though I doubt it.

Fanboyism

It's a hot and muggy today and I decided to be curious about fanboyism, basically extreme brand-loyalty. I was curious as to why people get so defensive about their choice of product. I did a bit of research on the topic (2 minutes on Google) and found an interesting piece on Gizmodo Australia.

Basically, the article says that we rationalize preferring the things we do, often to the point of absurdity. Here's an excerpt I found very interesting:

"In experiments where people were given Coke and Pepsi in unmarked cups and then hooked up to a brain scanner, the device clearly showed a certain number of them preferred Pepsi while tasting it.

"When those people were told they where drinking Pepsi, a fraction of them, the ones who had enjoyed Coke all their lives, did something unexpected. The scanner showed their brains scrambling the pleasure signals, dampening them. They then told the experimenter afterward they had preferred Coke in the taste tests.

"They lied, but in their subjective experiences of the situation, they didn't. They really did feel like they preferred Coke after it was all over, and they altered their memories to match their emotions."

This also got me thinking that it's not just companies and brands that people become "fanboys" of, but also religions and political parties. It certainly makes sense, you see it everywhere, people rabidly defending their position with Christianity vs Atheism, or Liberal vs Conservative, while putting down the opposing viewpoint. So next time someone says Obama is a socialist, or atheists are devil-worshippers, you can just call them a fanboy.

(quote source: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2010/06/fanboyism-and-brand-loyalty/ )

The Good Things

I'm feeling pretty down, and when I feel that way I like to remind myself of the things in my life that are good. It's easy to forget what's good in our lives when there's so much negativity in the world.

• My new cousin who was born on Monday. From what I've heard he's doing well.

• My family, who are there to support me when they can.

• My lovely girlfriend, who puts up with my crap, and is always there for me when she can.

What's good in your life?

Kids and Video Games

A while back I wrote some ideas for the video game rating system, well today I learned why maybe the rating system in its current form is not so bad after all. I was at a cookout with my girlfriend (some church thingy) and I was talking to this kid, had to have been 8 or 9, and he was telling me about all the video games he likes to play. I missed the name of them, but I'm pretty sure one of the games was half-life 2 (a game that made me poop myself a couple times) and the other one I didn't recognize but involved cutting peoples heads off.

Now I'm not one of those people whos like "VIOLENT VIDEO GAMES ARE EVIL AND MUST BE BANNED!!" but it just goes to show that some parents are to lazy and/or incompetent to pay attention to what their kids are playing. Ok I really shouldn't assume but what would this kids mother say if she actually saw what this kid was playing?

Maybe I'm just a bitter 20 year old gamer who pines for the golden age of gaming. Before trophies, quicktime events, and elaborate cinematic cutscenes.

Being Alone

After a night out with friends, or a family gathering, or even just a day of work I like to just be alone. I'll just spend all my free time on that day just reading a book, playing a video game, surfing the web, or cleaning my apartment. Maybe it's not the healthiest way to live but there you have it.

To me, solitude is just as important as interacting with people. But either one in excess drives me crazy! If I was around people all day, every day, I would lose my mind. Likewise if I was alone al day every day I would lose my mind. Like anything its about finding balance.

Alone time is when I get everything done. I vacuum the floor. I wash the dishes. I write on my blog. I beat a video game. This is why I live alone, I would find roommates a distraction from what I need to do. Fortunately I have a girlfriend who is very understanding of my quirky ways and would probably be very easy for me to live with, beyond the normal difficulties of living with someone.

So what are some of your weird quirks or habits? Are there people in your life who are understanding of these quirks?

The Bus

Once in a while I have to take public transportation and I really don't like it. It's not the inconvenience of it's crappy state in Rhode Island, but it's the people. It's not that I hate being around people, I just don't like being around more than a few people. It's the same reason I avoid parties or crowded restaurants, it just bothers me a ton.

Usually I like to drown out the people by bringing my iPod and listening to music or sometimes watching a TV show (Doctor Who is my favorite) and this usually works, but is only really acceptable on the bus.

I also find ways to discourage people from sitting next to me if I don't know them. Usually my bag occupies the seat next to me, unless the bus is so crowded that it would be insanely rude of me. Though that doesn't usually happen unless people are flocking to the beach like it's their last chance before the eternal winter to cook themselves with UV rays.

I have had people try to talk to me on the bus. These are usually crazy people with no sense of body language. To them "please don't talk to me" means "please talk to me, I'm so lonely". So they do. They also tend to be very good at detecting somebody who is not having a good day, because they seem to gravitate towards me when I'm feeling cranky.

There are also people who like to blast their music (with music being a very generous word) so you can hear exactly what they're listening to. Did I mention they're wearing headphones? Yeah, why do these people think everybody else wants to hear their crap? At least I can take comfort in the fact that these people will be deaf in a few years. Of course now I hear that headphone use at any volume can lead to hearing loss. I would say that's ironic but the Internet has totally screwed me up on what that word means.

And do I really need to talk about the moms yelling at their equally obnoxious kids? Or the random guy who asks you for cigarettes?

Do you take public transportation? What kind of people do you see when you do?

The State of Broadband

So I read an article on Ars Technica today about broadband speeds in the US. I was reading some comments from people and they all seem to say the same thing: my broadband sucks. One commenter said "forget the 4mbps dl; how do i get my hands on this 1mbps up? thats a bit wild." Now I pay a reasonable amount for my broadband and I get 13-15 Mbps download and 4-7 Mbps upload, depending on the day, so this guy either has very cheap internet access or his ISP sucks.

Out of curiosity I looked up average broadband speeds by country. The US averages at 3.9 Mbps download. I had to read that twice for it to sink in. I can upload data faster than the average American can download it! Now again, I'm not paying some outrageous amount of money for my broadband. In fact, I checked the average cost of broadband in the US and according to the FCC, its about $46.25, which is actually more than I pay!

Ok, so I have higher than average broadband speeds, yet I pay less than average. This seems crazy to me. I think what I've learned here is that the average American gets ripped off by their ISP, and that I should never again complain about my broadband speeds.

iOS and the Death (or not) of the Mac

The more advanced Apple's iOS gets, the more I realize that we're looking at the future of mainstream computing. iOS is actually a very powerful operating system, it is built on Mac OS X after all. But iOS is able to deliver this power with a very simplistic presentation. Sure, until recently it couldn't do basic things like cut-and-paste, and even more recently, multi-tasking, but it's maturing. In a few years I expect that iOS will start getting some serious competition.

iOS takes out all the hassle that is present in its bigger brother, Mac OS X. Of course, this comes with a tradeoff, and that's freedom. You don't have access to the filesystem, and you're restricted to using apps available from the App Store (unless you jailbreak, but thats another story). It sounds crazy, but to the average user it can be very liberating. The average user doesn't want to worry if they're deleting something they shouldn't, or if the app they're downloading isn't trustworthy. Apple led the way in usability with the GUI and the Macintosh, now they're going to the next step with multi-touch and iOS.

Now I'm not saying computers as we know them will disappear, but I think they'll be reserved for the people who need the power and flexibility. To use an analogy made by Steve Jobs at All Things Digital this year, not everybody needs a truck. So for all you people who fear the end of the Mac, don't fret. The personal computer isn't going anywhere, and the people at Apple aren't stupid. iOS devices will certainly be Apple's biggest sellers, but what are the people who develop and create the content for these devices going to use? A Mac!

I think Apple wants to control the creation (Mac), distribution (iTunes), and consumption (iOS) of content. The developers, the authors, and the artists (the 'crazy ones') use the Mac to create their content, which is then sold through iTunes to the masses to be consumed on iOS.

Well I started writing this intending on writing a piece on why I think iOS is the future of computing and I ended up talking about how it's not really the end of the Mac. That how my mind works, I start off thinking one thing and I go off on a tangent. I'm done now though, I could just keep on going and going.

My Thoughts on Music Pricing

If you're familiar with iTunes you'll know probably see lots of $0.99 songs and a few $1.29 songs. Until a couple years ago all songs were $0.99 but the record industry wanted more flexible pricing. Now I think this was a stupid move.

$0.99 is the perfect impulse purchase price for a song. If I find a song I like and it's $0.99 I don't even think about it, I just hit the buy button. But if the song I want is $1.29 it becomes more of a thought out position. "Do I really want this song? Is it worth that much to me?" I don't think I'm the only person who thinks that way, and I know that a couple record companies have lost a few sales to me simply because their song was $1.29.

Or maybe I am just crazy which is very likely.

Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland - A Review

A few weeks ago I heard about a new RPG coming out for the PlayStation 3 called Atelier Rorona and I was very intrigued. So about a week after it came out I hustled down to my local GameStop and picked it up. It came in a large box for a video game because it included a very nice hard-cover art book. You can check out my full unboxing here.

The style of Atelier Rorona is very different than most games of the RPG genre. Instead of focusing on battling and making your characters stronger, you focus on crafting items through alchemy, and raising your skill level in that area. That's not to say that fighting isn't an important part of the game. You often find yourself in the wilderness, searching for items you can use for alchemy, and of course you're guaranteed to run into a fair share of monsters.

The battle system usually makes or breaks an RPG, but in Atelier Rorona the simplistic battle system actually works. Yeah it's not the strongest part of the game, but it doesn't need to be. The battles are short, and can actually be pretty challenging if you haven't upgraded your equipment. One element of the battle system I have issue with is how special skills are handled. Unlike most RPGs that have separate meters that get depleted when you use special skills, in Atelier Rorona using special skills take away from your HP. It creates an interesting challenge but in can get annoying when your healer doesn't have enough HP to use a healing move.

The alchemy system is where this game shines. At first it starts off very easy with most items only requiring 1 or 2 ingredients. As you progress though, you'll be able to create more items requiring more ingredients, and even other alchemy items. Also, the traits of the items you create become very important, so you end up having to choose your ingredients very carefully. Another factor is quality, which is pretty simple, basically the higher quality ingredients you use the higher quality your final item will turn out.

The story it pretty basic. You play as a young girl with self-confidence issues, named Rorona, who works for a very incompetent and lazy alchemy master, named Astrid, at a shop that the kingdom of Arland is threatening to shut down unless they can complete certain jobs for the kingdom. So of course the whole thing gets unloaded on you, and Astrid puts you in charge of the alchemy shop. Every 3 months (in-game time, thankfully) you get a new assignment that must be completed by the time you get your next assignment. This occurs over the course of 3 years, and during that time you meet some very interesting characters, most of whom can join you to gather ingredients.

The graphics are beautiful. When you first put in the game you are greeted by a very lovely anime movie, and all the in-game graphics fit in very nicely. The game itself is almost entirely 3D, but the graphics are rendered with cell shading, very similar to The Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker. Also, all characters have beautifully drawn 2D sprites that pop up during dialog scenes, though unfortunately these are not animated.

Yes, there are voice overs. You have the choice between English and Japanese, and though I haven't played it with Japanese turned on, I can tell you that the English voices are...decent. Rorona's voice can get annoying after a while, but thankfully only the major scenes even have voice over, which would seem like a bad thing but in this game it's not. I have read that the Japanese voice-over is much more extensive.

Overall it's a good game. I have thoroughly enjoyed playing it, and while it not be everybody's cup of tea, it's certainly a unique experience and perfect for someone who's looking for something different. The inclusion of the art book really makes it a great value. If you're a fan of Japanese RPGs you'd be doing yourself a great disservice by overlooking this game.

Video Game Morals

I've noticed something about how I play video games with moral choice systems. When I play these kinds of games I tend to make decisions based on what I think I would do if I was in the characters situation.

In the game InFamous when the protagonist, Cole, must choose to save his ex-girlfriend Trish, or a group of doctors I went right for the doctors. It makes sense to me, the city around me is decrepit and diseased so it needs all the doctors it can get. Needless to say I saved the day and finished the game with the 'good' ending where I am revered as a hero. So then I decided to go back and play for the bad ending, and try to be the biggest douchebag I could be, and thats when I stopped playing.

I personally believe games are supposed to be fun (which is why I refuse to play Farmville) and somehow being evil for the sake of being evil just isn't that fun, even when it's all pretend. Running around blowing up cars and killing random civilians started off as a fun diversion, but after a while the guilt sets in and I just start feeling pity for the half-dozen polygons I just snuffed with my thunder drop.

Fable: The Lost Chapters had a similar moral system and I reacted very similarly to the negative choices I made. After massacring an entire town I began to feel very guilty, to the point where I actually reverted to a previous save from before my virtual mass homicide.

This might be why I have trouble playing games like Grand Theft Auto. I once tried to seriously play through Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and I completed maybe 2 or 3 missions before I just decided it wasn't any fun simply because shooting innocent civilians just isn't fun. Though I will say I had no problems bustin' some digital caps in some trigger-happy NPCs' behinds.

Does anyone else apply their own real-life moral compass to how they play video games or am I just insane?

My Favorite Video Games!

A couple years ago on my old blog I did a piece on my favorite video games of all time. Well, it's been a while so I thought I could do it over, and in the process bring it up to date. I have played more games than I can count but these are the games that really stood out for me and that I enjoyed more.

Keep i mind, these games are in no particular order, so just because one game is higher on the list doesn't mean I like it more.

Donkey Kong Country - I don't know if it's the combination of the awesomeness and nostalgia of this game, but I think it's the greatest platform game ever. Ok, maybe not the greatest, but it's definitely up there. Even to this day, it's hard to tear me away from stomping Kremlings, and blasting out of barrels.

Super Mario Bros 3 - Another Nintendo classic, and happens to be my favorite Mario game. While I didn't grow up with the original version on the NES, I spent countless hours playing the All-Stars version on the SNES. Not only is this one of my favorite games of all time, it is also my favorite Mario game of all time.

LittleBigPlanet - Yes, I seem to have a strong preference towards platform games. This was one of the first games I bought when I got my PS3 earlier this year and it has already grown on me. What draws me in is the practically infinite amount of levels, thanks to the large focus the game puts on creating and sharing. While I do enjoy creating occasionally, I tend to spend most of my time browsing the countless user created levels.

Pokémon Silver/Gold - I've always been a fan of the Pokémon series (though I've never been a fan of any of the side-games like Snap, or Coliseum).Out of all the variations throughout the years, the Silver/Gold duo are perhaps my favorite. It had just the right amount of everything, and while I still enjoy the series I feel Nintendo has gone a tad overboard with the series since (I don't even know how many Pokémon there are anymore!). The recently released remakes, SoulSilver and HeartGold on the DS have rekindled my love for these games, and they remain the primary reason I own a DS.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time \- Yeah, I know, not a surprise at all. This game has it all, a compelling story, exciting combat, and challenging dungeons (not to mention the infamous Water Temple). Sure the graphics look a bit dated today, but that doesn't stop this game from being nothing short of amazing. In fact, I plan on buying a Nintendo 3DS just so I can play the remake of this game.

Star Wars: Rogue Squadron - There are more Star Wars games than I can count, but none of them have anything on Rogue Squadron. I got this game when it first came out on the Nintendo 64, and I was blown away. There was nothing quite like flying around in an X-wing shooting down TIE fighters. While there were 2 sequels on the GameCube that were far superior technically, this game still has the charm that the sequels just didn't have.

Anyways, those are just some of my favorite games. What are yours?

Is It Christmas Yet?

The amount of obsession we have in our culture for Christmas is crazy. To me the Holidays are about just spending time with your family and friends, though the gifts are fun too. But the amount of stress and obsession that surrounds this time of year drives me crazy. A lot of the insanity is fueled by commercial interests who hope you get yourself into debt buying their stuff.

All this starts the day after Thanksgiving with Black Friday, when most consumers engage in an epic struggle (occasionally to the death#Violence)), and everyone with half a brain goes to Amazon.com (not a sponsored plug). It's also a day when the unruly misfits (such as myself) shun the materialistic crap and observe what is known as Buy Nothing Day, when they don't spend any money at all.

Now don't get the wrong impression, I like Christmas (despite the fact that I'm Jewish, THANKS MOM!). I just dislike the stress that goes along with it.

Anyway, I want to wish you all a stress-free and simple Christmas.

Assassin's Creed - A Review

Yes I know this is an older game but bear with me. I picked up this game a few weeks ago at GameStop because I was curious to try out the series. After finishing White Knight Chronicles (a game I have very mixed feelings on) I started on Assassin's Creed.

Assassin's Creed puts you in the shoes of an assassin named Altair...or rather it puts you in the shoes of some guy named Desmond who gets put in the shoes of an assassin named Altair. See, some evil mega-corp is trying to use Desmond's biological memory (which apparently stores every detail of every memory that ones ancestors ever had) to help them find some treasure. In these memories, Altair has been tasked with assassinating 9 very evil people who may not be evil, but maybe they are, I don't know.

Now Assassin's Creed is, at it's core a very fun game. The story is ok, though a tad predictable, and the gameplay is fun. Nothing is more satisfying than sneaking up on an armed guard and taking them down before they even know what hit them. The concept is great, but in execution the game falls flat.

First off, the controls are terrible. There are different button combinations that you have to press just to do basic tasks, and while you do get used to it after awhile, the fact that Altair takes your input as mere suggestions gets very frustrating. I try to jump a gap between 2 buildings but Altair decides he'd be better off swan-diving into a haystack.

Secondly, combat is ridiculous. This goes under controls too I guess, but whatever. You can use attacks or counter attacks. Attacks are generally useless unless you're going after a single enemy, and counter attacks, while useful in more dire situations, don't always work. And even if they do work, Altair seems to just kick the enemy down 90% of the time, or kill them epicly the other 10%. In fact, I'm rather sure Altair has a mind of his own. At first I forgave the crappy combat system because the game was supposed to be stealth-based. Well apparently the game forgot all about that at the end when it basically forced me to take on about 8+ guys at once.

Thirdly, repetitiveness. There are lots of repeating elements. There are only 4 mission types (and each of the 9 targets have 6 missions associated with them). Dialog gets repeated over and over. Seriously, how many times do I have to hear a crazy man rambling about the will of God? And why the hell is this man following me to every town I go to? It's creepy! Then there are beggars who badger you non-stop for money. I'm sorry did I say 'beggars'? I meant to say beggar, who stalks me along with the 'God man'.

Fourthly, crappy sound. Besides the repetitive dialog, there's some pretty crappy sounding audio throughout the game. Due to the multi-platform nature of this title, the game was constrained to fit within a DVD, which meant a few corners had to be cut. The most annoying are the low-quality, highly compressed, voices. You're walking along hearing fairly decent quality vocals, when out of the blue a robot-like voice starts asking you what you're doing. Why this is even an issue on the PS3, which uses frikin' Blu-Ray for heavens sake, is beyond my capacity to understand.

Finally, the visuals. For some reason, the game designers thought it would be cool to make the game all glitchy-looking. You're about to die and the screen starts flickering and rather than try and run away you just get distracted. Or maybe thats just me and my ADD. Either way, it would be nice to have an option to turn it off, like WET does for it's annoying film grain.

To the games credit though, the environments are well designed, and very fun to jump around (when Altair isn't feeling grumpy). Not to mention the stealth aspect, which is fun until the game chucks that out the window. Unfortunately, these do not make up for the fact that overall, Assassin's Creed is a mediocre game. I really wanted to like this game (and for the first few hours I did). The concept is fun, the story is interesting, but the execution was so poor.

I would say don't buy it, but the game is old enough where you've probably already bought it and either loved it (for some reason) or hated it. But if you are one of the lucky souls who have yet to play this game, I suggest you keep it that way.

2001-2010: A Decade of Tech

So this is it. We're in the second decade of the 21st century. The past 10 years have been interesting in many ways, especially when you think about how much the world of technology has changed.

Back in 2001 nobody could have predicted where we would be today. Nobody could have guessed that we'd have entire music collections in out pockets. Or that we would be able to stream HD movies to our living-rooms over a high-speed Internet connection. Or that we'd have constant access to the web wherever we went.

The prevalence of technology has certainly increased as well. There was a time when all anyone had was a computer and maybe a cell phone that just did calls and texting. Now almost everyone has their own laptop, smartphone, and even portable game consoles (my grandmother has a Nintendo DS for crying out loud!) My mom, who swore she'd never buy herself a computer for the house bought 2 MacBooks (the first one was stolen)!

The biggest revolution this decade was in how music is purchased. Do you remember a time when you had to go down to the record store and physically buy a CD? It's almost unfathomable in this age of iTunes and AmazonMP3. Sarah Bareilles has a new album out? You can just log on to your computer, buy it, and download it all within a minute.

It all seems so natural to us now, but 10 years ago nobody could even fathom this stuff. Technology now plays an important role in more peoples lives than ever. More people than ever are able to share their ideas (case and point, this blog). People are more connected than ever possible. And yes while there are downsides, I think the benefits far outweigh them. I for one cannot wait to see where we end up in 2021.

I Don't Get It

Why do we send messages out into space? As a society, have we learned nothing from our science fiction films? When aliens come to Earth in these movies they seldom come in peace. Any aliens that would bother to drop by out planet most certainly wouldn't be here on vacation, they would come to conquer. So why call attention to ourselves?

Thankfully if aliens do come to our world, we have a secret weapon that no alien invasion could ever withstand: Justin Bieber. Just broadcast his latest hit single to the alien mothership and they will flee, spreading the word of Earth, and warning others to stay clear of it and it's dreadful pop music.

LittleBigPlanet 2 - A Review

It was early 2010 and I was looking for some good games for my PS3 and I stumbled upon one such game called LittleBigPlanet. Hours upon hours of hopping, playing, crafting, and sharing were spent. Nearly all my free time was consumed by this game. Then I learned of a sequel and I became excited. The sequel would boast more robust tools for crafting levels and that was one thing I could not wait go get my hands on.

LittleBigPlanet 2 has a heavy focus on user created content, one might argue even more so than the first game. As such many of the new features in this sequel are made mostly to benefit creators.

One of the major innovations is the "Controllinator", which allows aspiring level designers the ability to map controller buttons to objects and contraptions, and can even allow for entire games to be created. Another major new feature is the music sequencer, which allows musically inclined players to create their own music to use in their levels or games.

Another welcome addition to the creation tools are Sackbots which are programmable NPC characters. You can even dress then up, and add stickers and decorations, just like you can with your Sackboy. Sackbots can be programed with a set actions or with predetermined behaviors. They can be great friends, or worst enemies with the player.

Like the original, LittleBigPlanet 2 has a story mode. Also like the original, the story mode serves as more of a showcase of what's possible with the games creation tools. Despite this, it is quite fun and has a much greater variety than it's predecessor. It not only consists of good ol' platforming, but also competitive mini-games and a few shoot-em-up-style levels.

My only gripe with the game has to do with a pretty significant bug which should be fixed in an upcoming patch. The first is a very annoying lag and random loading screens. This wasn't a significant problem while playing with my friend just a few towns over, but it ended up making the game unplayable while playing with someone in Germany. I don't recall having any similar problems with the first game.

The best part of the game are its create and share tools. Even if you're not that into creating, browsing the seemingly endless stream of user made content gives this game an infinite replay value. I say this is a must buy for all PS3 owners.

Valentine's Day 2011

Another Valentine's Day is upon us. Oops? Did you forget to get your special someone something? Well here are a few last minute gift ideas for your sweetheart that is sure to make your day unforgettable (whether you'll want to forget it or not is an entirely different story).

This idea came to my email just a couple weeks ago in the form of a marketing newsletter: why not get your special someone an iPad? Seriously you can afford it right? I'm sure she won't get the impression that you're trying to buy her love either. (I'll be your special someone if you buy me an iPad...)

Or why not be totally creative and give your sweetheart those nasty heart-shaped edible pieces of chalk with phrases printed on them. What better way to tell her "I luv u" or "u rock". Seriously, she will not be expecting that.

Also in the candy department, get her some edible underwear. Seriously, thats probably one of the best gag gifts you can give someone. I mean, c'mon who wouldn't get a kick out of edible underwear? It's such a pointless...oh...I just figured it out.

Ok well this just got awkward. Happy Valentine's Day I guess...

Games and the App Store

In the summer of 2008 Apple opened it's app store with the release of iOS 2.0. Nobody could have predicted that this app store could change the face of portable gaming, leaving Nintendo, the king of games-on-the-go, quaking in their boots.

When Apple first announced the App Store I was ecstatic. Just months before the announcement I had sent an email to Steve Jobs asking him if Apple had any plans to allow 3rd party apps on the iPhone. I remember exactly what he said, in typical Steve Jobs fashion: "We're working on it." In hindsight, I wish I had saved a copy of the email for posterity. Live and learn.

Even with all this excitement I never expected games to be a huge part of the App Store. For me, portable gaming came in the form of a Nintendo DS with physical buttons, not the greatest touchscreen phone on the market (at the time). This still holds mostly true for me, though I do have a few games loaded onto my iPod touch for those times I forget my DS at home. In my opinion iOS devices can't really stand up to the DS (or dare I say the PSP) as far as gaming goes. Though I'm not going to beat the dead horse of "touch controls suck", I have played plenty of games with well implemented touch controls.

The App Store has popularized the idea of 'cheap games'. Why do we have to pay $30+ for a brand new DS game when we can get an iOS game for 99¢? The problem with this mentality is that a $30 DS game generally offers a much deeper gameplay experience, while a 99¢ iPhone game tends to offer very little in the way of depth. There is nothing inherently wrong with these bite-sized games, they're perfect if you need to pass the time waiting at the DMV but if you want to sit down for an hour or 2 and just relax and play a game you'll find yourself getting bored pretty quickly.

On the App Store you'll be hard pressed to find a game that costs more than $10. In order to stay competitive, developers have to sell their games cheap, and to do that they have to cut a lot of corners. As a result, games on iOS have become cheap, mass-produced, disposable, commodities. There are a good number of fantastic games, but they tend to get buried under the crap and shovelware.

Great gaming experiences are rare on any platform but it seems harder to find them on iOS. For every Chaos Rings there are 50 Angry Birds (yes I went there). I have over 100 games for iOS (only 22 currently loaded on my iPod) but can you guess how many games I've spent more than 1 hour playing? By my estimation, 12. How many for more than 10 hours? 1, maybe 2. As an extreme example, I have logged over 170 hours on Pokémon Platinum. So I would have to buy 170 somewhat decent iOS games to get that amount of play time and those games tend to be at least $3 so I'd be looking at $500 for 170 iOS games vs $35 for 1 DS game.

Now I'm not the kind of person who goes around smack-talking casual games, hell I've played more Bejeweled than I care to admit, they have an important place in the market. But the App Store has created a weird race to the bottom price war, as a result even the hardcore games tend to have weak gameplay, and those that play well are mostly ports from other platforms.

If someone offered a deep, highly polished game on the iOS for $20 (which I think is a fair price after factoring out cost of media and packaging) on par with some of the best DS and PSP games it would fail. Why? Because the App Store has created this skewed price perception. Anything over $2.99 is beyond the impulse buy category and anything above $10 is unthinkable! This is something that Apple can't really fix unfortunately, and while the iOS devices are fantastic for music, movies, the internet, and apps, they seem to be doomed when it comes to deep gaming experiences that hardcore gamers crave.

Music

I'm not a musician at all, though I did play trumpet in my middle school's band. Even so, I still find the subtleties of music compelling. Call me a nerd but my favorite thing to to while listening to music is to listen to all the details, and kind of explore how the sound is constructed.

There are always little details in the music that you don't pick up on while just passively listening. You really have to focus and it becomes easier to isolate something like a subtle drum beat that you may be subconsciously aware of, but don't really hear until you're looking for it.

My main focus is visual art but I feel that I can appreciate the thought that goes into constructing a single piece of music. Both mediums rely on subtleties that the viewer/listener usually isn't consciously aware of but can affect them in some way. Wether it's a color, shape, rhythm, or musical tone, it has some kind of psychological effect.

When I'm creating something, I look at colors like a composer looks at musical notes. I pick my colors carefully. Imagine if a composer just used random notes, chances are their song would be an ugly, overstimulating mess, much like if I were to choose random colors.

Why I Hate Call of Duty

I'm not really the kind of person who hates something just because it's popular (just check my iTunes library), it just seems to me that the more popular something gets, the crappier it gets and the lazier its creators get (with few exceptions).

I used to enjoy Call of Duty. No really, I did. I played the hell out of 2 and 3, but since then the series has lost my interest. With each iteration it seems that very little new things are brought to the table. The 4th game, Modern Warfare, changed the traditional World War II setting to a present day setting. Since then the series has become a major success, not because the games are good, but because Activision is good at marketing.

I'm not saying a well marketed product is always bad, but marketing has a lot more to do with the success of the product than the actual quality. For example the iPod is an wonderful little gadget, but it's not popular because it's the best portable media player on the market (which it is, IMO), it's popular because Apple is great at marketing.

So why do I have so much hate for a video game? Why do I care what other people play? Well one major reason has to do with online multiplayer. I enjoy playing video games online with other people but every time a new Call of Duty comes out, the multiplayer lobbies for games that are actually good are pretty bare. It's pretty frustrating when you want to play online but everybody else is playing the latest Call of Duty. It must be even more frustrating for developers who put a lot of work into their games only to have the vast majority of their multiplayer community snagged by Activision's re-skinned shovelware.

Well then why don't I just buy a Call of Duty game so I can have a rich online experience with lots of other people? Well because I don't have $60 to blow on a game that really has no entertainment value to me.

The problem with Call of Duty is that it doesn't really add anything to the shooter genre. It's a bland 'run to the next objective while shooting down anybody who gets in your path' game. It completely forgoes the puzzles and the exploration that makes shooters so fun.

So why remove important and proven elements from a game genre? Dumbed down games appeal better to the masses. It's the same line of thought that lead Square-Enix to the sub-par game that was Final Fantasy XIII. I do believe that games should be more accessible to more people but dumbing them down is just lazy.

I look at the Pokémon series as a perfect example of an increasingly complex game that still manages to be accessible. In Pokémon you can get through the game with just a basic knowledge of the mechanics, or you can really get into it and learn about stats, EV training, and breeding. It doesn't limit hard core players and it doesn't alienate casual players.

So Activision, if you take some time on a new Call of Duty game, which God forbid will mean no more yearly installments, really add something worthwhile and add some depth to the gameplay for the people who want it, then you have yourself a new customer. Not that you care, because you seem to be able to sell this garbage to millions of people regardless of quality.

Silly, Silly Humans

There's a reason I tend to shy away from religion and politics on my blog, with a few exceptions. No matter what you say about either of those topics you're guaranteed to piss someone off. Even something that sounds non-atagonistic like "I agree with Obama on a lot of issues but don't agree with his methods" would send both Liberal and Conservative people into a tizzy. Not saying that's my opinion on the matter, it just serves as an example (that clarification probably ticked more people off).

So for those of you still reading, first off, thank you. Secondly, doesn't this drive you crazy? Part of what makes the human race so special is that we're all very different. You'd think that we could all just put our differences aside for once. Instead we judge people who are different then us. "That conservative is an idiot." "That muslim is a terrorist." These are all broad generalizations that even the best of us seem to succumb to.

Another fun factoid about us humans is that we hate to be wrong. We automatically think we're right and everyone else is wrong, stupid, or evil. "You're an idiot for voting for Obama!" "You're going to Hell for not believing in Jesus!" Yes, people do say things like this. Why? The fear of being wrong, plain and simple.

I used to be of the belief that if everyone was the same the world would be better. And in a sense, I think it would be. But what would really be even better is if the world was still as diverse as it is, but everyone accepted and embraced that diversity. Because at the end of the day, does it really matter who someone voted for, or wether or not that person believes in a higher power?

Embrace diversity. Accept the fact that even you might be wrong. But at the same time believe in what you believe, and allow others the right to believe what they believe without being judged or persecuted. Sounds beautiful doesn't it? Well for some people, it's a pretty scary concept. We're just a bunch of silly, silly humans.

I Can Haz Epic Space Battlez?

Forgive the lame title.

I realized something the other day. Something I'm surprised I didn't realize sooner. Where are the space combat games? Games like Rogue Squadron and Star Fox were some of my favorite games of the last couple console generations (I can't tell you how many hours I spent playing Rogue Squadron 2 on the GameCube). Now here I am, with the PS3, dreaming of how awesome a space combat game would be on the latest hardware.

I spent some time searching, in vain, for a space combat game for the PS3. The closest thing I could find was some crappy multiplayer thing inside PlayStation Home. It's quite depressing to think how much potential there is for an epic space combat game on the PS3 that could put the previous games in the genre to shame. Not to mention the multiplayer possibilities.

Pokémon Black: A Review

I've played every iteration of Pokémon since the originals came out on the GameBoy, and before I get started I'll just say that yes the core game is still the same as the originals. People say that Pokémon is just the same game over and over with minor improvements and I can't really disagree. I am of the opinion that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", and the Pokémon series has followed that mantra to a tee. Nintendo hasn't made any revolutionary changes to the series in the past 15 years, but that's because they've chosen to refine the experience.

One of the most obvious additions brought to the series are the 150 new Pokémon, bringing the total number of creatures to well over 600, and frankly it shows. I do somewhat miss the simple yet adorable designs of the first two iterations of the series (Red and Blue & Silver and Gold), and it seems that the designs and names seem to get more outlandish and uninspired. Also, catching them all has become somewhat impossible.

Another thing you'll notice as you go along is that there are no familiar faces. In fact, not a single Pokémon from a previous version will show up until after you complete the main story. While I disliked this at first, I grew to enjoy the challenge of the unknown. My near memorization of the strengths/weaknesses of certain types didn't help much when I had no idea what type Bouffalant is.

The story is the deepest so far in any Pokémon game thus far and deals with the morality of using Pokémon for battle. The obligatory team of villains, known as Team Plasma, and lead by the mysterious N, want to free Pokémon. But they use Pokémon for battles, which is kinda hypocritical. It has an interesting ending, so I won't spoil it for you. It's definitely not the strongest of stories, but it does the job. Of course there is still the aspect of defeating the 8 gyms and beating the Elite Four. After you beat the game there's plenty of post game content. There are a total of 3 more towns to visit, several previously inaccessible areas to explore, and more Pokémon to catch.

But this game brings more to the table than just new Pokémon, a new region, and a deeper story. It also brings animated battle sprites (FINALLY!) and some weird 3D camera motion which make battles way more visually interesting. Also, the game finally makes good use of the DS's 3D hardware with really nice 3D effects and angles that really give scale to the world you're exploring.

The introduction of seasons that change each month is also a nice touch. It works similar to the day/night and day-of-the-week systems in that certain events only happen and some Pokémon can only be caught depending on the season. I would have liked to see more done with it visually, as in most cases the only visual cue is the name of the season popping up when you start playing. I would have preferred obvious visual cues throughout the games world, like trees with brown leaves in winter, or blossoming flowers in spring, but it seems that only certain areas in the game have these visual cues. Oh well, maybe they'll fix this when the obligatory Pokémon Grey comes out in a year or two.

The game also sports some new online features which were supposed to become active by now but due to the earthquakes in Japan, Nintendo has delayed the launch to conserve energy. When the online portion will be available is not clear, but I'm willing to wait a little longer if it means it'll help the people in Japan. As far as I know online battles and trading still work, and they're even easier to access than before, as it's now integrated in with the other multiplayer functions in the Pokécenters.

So yeah, my verdict probably won't come as any shock. Pokémon Black, and it's companion version White, add sufficient new content for Pokémon fans and newcomers to enjoy, but if you haven't really enjoyed a previous Pokémon game chances are you won't like this one.

My (Kinda) Quick Thoughts on Android

I've been using an Android phone for a few months now (specifically the Motorola Backflip) after destroying the screen on my iPhone 2G. I couldn't really afford a new iPhone so I settled for the Backflip. Now I wish I had waited and got the iPhone 3GS for $50 but I had no idea that just a couple months later the price would drop. I'm still kicking myself though.

Well I'm not here to bash Android. Not at all. I just want to share my personal experiences with Android. First off I should say a couple major problems I have that I don't really attribute to the Android OS.

First off, the reception sucks and I get dropped calls a lot, especially in my apartment. I attribute this to the poor Motorola hardware, and the fact that my phone prefers to use 3G over 2G even if the reception is better for 2G coupled with the fact that there is no way to turn 3G off. Secondly, the phone is slow and can't run games at a half decent framerate (not even Angry Birds, I kid you not). I attribute this again to the crappy Motorola hardware, a cheap CPU, and a pathetic amount of RAM.

Ok, now that my gripes with my specific phone are out of the way, the rest of this blog entry will focus on the Android OS itself.

Let's first hit upon the open-ness aspect. Everyone, including Google, trumpet the fact that Android is an open OS. Ok, to an extent it is. You can customize it to your liking, replace pretty much anything with 3rd party software (even the home and lock screens!). This is nice, but is it really open? I would argue that it's not. In fact I would argue that Android is not truly open.

Now before you Droid-bots start flaming me with hate mail, let me explain my position. Have you ever tried to uninstall carrier apps from your Android? Or for my fellow AT&T users, have you ever tried installing an app from a source other than the Android Market? Unless you're a turbo-nerd who hacked their phones, chances are you had no luck. Until every user can install and uninstall apps at their will, remove the bloated manufacturer custom UIs, and install custom ROMs, I will continue to say Android is not open.

Now this isn't to say I dislike Android. It's not the most well designed mobile phone OS out there, but the default Google apps have a Google-eque charm to them that I have a soft spot for. The Maps app in particular is one of my favorites. Some of the apps can get little daunting, like the settings and music apps. Hell I hate the Music app on Android so much I carry around my iPod when I want music.

So Android is a pretty decent mobile OS. It's not going to win any design awards, and some of the 3rd party apps make me want to vomit, but it's does what it's supposed to do. I just think Google needs to tighten the reigns a bit and set some standards, because for all of Androids problems, the biggest one is consistency, and I think when thats solved the rest will fall into place.

Cherish What You Have

So the other day I read this blog (  http://www.jamesshelley.net/2011/05/fight-consumerism-love-your-stuff/ ) about loving your stuff. It was very interesting so I wanted to share my thoughts on the topic.

Now I am by no means a materialistic person. In fact I go so far as rejecting objects that I don't see as adding anything to my life. Our lives have become over encumbered with useless trinkets that don't do anything to enrich our lives simply because we allow these objects to make our lives more complicated.

The biggest enemy of this way of thinking is consumerism, which is basically the attitude that buying lots of shit makes you a better person. Wether it's in your own eyes, or someone else's, the more you can buy the better you look. The ads people are bombarded with every day are probably the biggest contribution to consumerism.

Not only do we buy objects that don't really enrich our lives, but we tend to treat the objects we do own as disposable. Something breaks? We just throw it away and get a new one without a second thought. A new iPod comes out? The old one is cast aside as a useless piece of junk.

Consumerism has lots of detrimental effects on our lives. It can lead to debt and money problems, stress, and depression. While indeed these are problems one can have due to circumstances beyond their control, why would anyone choose to inflict such issues upon themselves?

Here are some of the rules I try to abide by:

Only buy stuff that you'd actually need for survival, or stuff that would enrich your life in some way. The first point is pretty obvious (I hope), though the second is more vague. Basically, if you can't see something playing a large role in your life on a regular basis, don't buy it. Avoiding impulse purchases helps. Also, don't buy something and try to find a use for it, buy something BECAUSE you have a use for it.

If something breaks, try to fix it. What do you have to lose? It's already broken! If you don't feel comfortable fixing it yourself, find someone who knows how. Sometimes it can be a fun project trying to fix something, thought if you're not very handy you'd be better off leaving it in someone else's hands.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. This rule is especially relevant in the tech world, so as an example I'm going to use iPods. You bought an iPod and it's been working great for you, it does everything you need it to and more. Then comes a new version, and suddenly you have the need for more features. Resist that, just because a new version comes out with a new gimmick doesn't mean that your current iPod (or anything really) is suddenly useless.

Be resourceful. You don't always have to go out and buy something new just to complete a certain task. Maybe you can find a way to do it with something you already have. It may not always be elegant, but it can be rewarding, and you may even surprise yourself.

Donate or sell things you no longer need. If something has outlived it's usefulness to you don't just leave it sitting around cluttering up your life, and certainly don't throw it out. Sell it or donate it. Put it up on Amazon, see if anyone you know is having a yard sale, or just drop it off at Goodwill or the Salvation Army. Or you could even give it to someone you know if they're in need of it.

Well that was a bit more long-winded than I had originally intended...

Quick Thoughts on YouTube Movie Rentals

So YouTube launched it's own movie rental service today. It seems pretty standard. 30 days to start watching and then it expires 24 hours after you start the movie. Dunno why but with the same prices, and the same terms as other online movie rental services I really do fail to see what it offers over it's competitors (especially Amazon which offers streaming).

Do we really need another cookie cutter online movie rental service? How about some innovation!

Portal 2: A Kinda Sorta Review

Last year I heard about this game called Portal 2. I had dabbled with the original game but never really played it much. I had bought the Orange Box mainly for the Half-Life games, but I never gave Portal a second thought. The announcement of Portal 2 piqued my interest, and I figured I should give Portal another try, but other games got in the way and I never got around to playing it.

Finally the game came out but I didn't have the money to get it at the time, which ended up working out for the better. Last week I ordered the PS3 version of Portal 2 for $39. Now what to do while I wait for it to come in? Well with the PSN down I figured it would be a great time to finally play through the first game. So I did. And it was really fun.

So a few days ago Portal 2 arrived at my doorstep and I was pretty excited to start playing. It took me a few days of playing on and off but I finally finished the game and it was a very satisfying experience. My only complaint about the first game was the fact that it just left me wanting more, and not in a good way. Yes the game was fun, but it wasn't really long enough to be satisfying (in before "thats what she said).

Portal 2 is not only the perfect length, but the story is pretty fun to play through. I won't summarize the story as it could reveal a few spoilers, but suffice to say there is a bit of a twist part way through. The story in the first game was a bit of a surprise, in that you didn't even know there was a story until the end, which I enjoyed, but I'm glad they didn't pull that out again.

I've heard people say that Portal 2 is easier than the first, but to me they seemed about the same. I found myself stumped a bit more in 2 than I did in 1 but I attribute that to the increased length. Sure, once you figure them out the puzzles are a piece of cake (see what I did there?), but as the puzzles become more complex figuring them out becomes that much harder. Though at one point in the game a few of the puzzles are absurdly easy, which is supposed to be part of the humorous element.

Portal 2 is not void of it's predecessors witty humor, which can be annoying if thats not your thing (but why wouldn't it be?). The main antagonist of the first game, GlaDOS returns to tear down your self-esteem once more with some new humorous insults. "I'm looking at your latest test results. They say you're a horrible person. Odd, we weren't even testing for that."

LIke the first game though. Portal 2 has limited replay value, mainly because the puzzles aren't as fun to solve the second time. Though Valve should be fixing this with some upcoming DLC which is going to add some challenge modes. Also there is a co-op mode with all new puzzles included with the game, but with the PSN down I haven't had a chance to play that yet.

Now that you can get it on Amazon for $39 on the PS3 and Xbox 360, and $29 on the PC/Mac (though as of this writing it's still $49 on Steam) I would totally recommend it, especially if you played the first game and were left wanting more.

Cable TV Is Dying, Get Over It!

With the advent of YouTube, Netflix, and Hulu, as well as Amazon Video and iTunes, can someone tell me why cable TV is still around? I mean, besides the fact that cable companies and TV networks are dragging their heels. You can't? Neither can I.

In an age where we can stream HD content over the internet on demand right into our living rooms, broadcast TV has become OBSOLETE! But like any change, the corporations involved will fight tooth-and-nail to keep things the way they were instead of embracing the change. These corporations think they have everything to lose, and unless they embrace the change, then they're right.

Let's take a look at the music industry. Not long ago everyone who bought music purchased them on CDs. The music industry was afraid of the internet because they, like the film and TV industry today, believed that the internet would destroy their business. Now I have a lot of negative things to say about the music industry, but I have to give them credit where it's due. Sure it took a lot of nudging by Apple, but the music industry eventually embraced the new way of doing things and guess what? It's still around, and it's still as successful, if not more, than it was before the 'revolution'.

Now there is one extra obstacle with online video content, and that's cable. Most of us have our internet service provided by the very companies who provide our cable TV, and they seem very keen to keep customers locked into both services. We're starting to see things like data caps on most cable ISPs because they want to keep people paying for cable, or get them to pay crazy amounts of money for their internet connection. This cuts into the potential success of services like Netflix, Hulu, and iTunes. While data caps are usually more than enough for "regular" use (web surfing, email, music, gaming), they handicap a users ability to use online video services.

Here's a suggestion for cable companies. Don't fight the change. Cable TV is dying, get over it! Start phasing out your cable services over the next few years, and offer on demand services online. Don't try to hamper competition with data caps, just try to beat it with more content, and integrated services.

Here is an example plan selection I came up with (based on my internet plan with Cox, who don't have enforced internet caps BTW):

$45/month for 15Mb/s down, reasonable caps (maybe 700GB-1TB if you insist on capping). No integrated video services.

$60/month for same as above except with streaming HD video to your computer or TV.

Or just stick with your current business model and become an obsolete dinosaur by the end of the decade. Cox, Comcast, Verizon, and whoever else offers cable internet, you all have a choice. Embrace the change, or become irrelevant.

The Cloud

So it's becoming more apparent by the day that our data in the cloud is becoming an inevitability. Is it scary? Yes. Change is scary. If you asked me just a few months ago if I would want my personal data stored in the cloud I would respond with a resounding "hell no!"

But when Apple announced iCloud I quickly realized that a cloud future isn't so bad. That is, as long as data can also be stored on the users device.

Google has a different idea. They believe that all users must have all their data in the cloud and nowhere else. No Internet connection? Deal with it. And that's what has turned me off of cloud computing until now.

Apple's iCloud takes the approach I believe is the correct way to go. While I don't know exactly how iCloud will work it seems like the concept is similar to Dropbox. Your data is still on your device but it gets pushed up with the cloud for backup and syncing with other devices.

Someday though I think that a complete cloud solution like Google is trying to create will be viable. But not until high speed Internet is easily accessible everywhere.

What do you think of cloud computing?

Sports

So I get home from work and I do my rounds of the RSS feeds and I come across a photo gallery of pictures from the riots in Vancouver last night. Now before I continue, I should say that I live in Rhode Island which means that, by law I'm supposed to be a Bruins fan. The reality is I really don't give two craps, so yeah. Whatever.

So yeah the Bruins beat the Canucks and some of the people of Vancouver had a giant collective hissy fit that destroyed property and even worse injured, and even killed a few people. Well that's wonderful, sounds like a wholesome family outing at the hockey rink. (To quote Homer Simpson, "In case you couldn't tell I'm being sarcastic!")

Honestly, it's stuff like this that make me hate sports. While I don't understand, I do appreciate the appeal and why people get so excited. But really when you break it down, it's just a game. A game that some people take way to seriously. There are enough problems in our world to get upset about, why would anyone voluntarily create more things to get upset about.

I am seriously fed up with the childishness of some people. What happened last night in Vancouver was essentially the same as a baby having a fit because he didn't get his way. I don't care how into sports you are, you can not defend actions like that.

World hunger? Homelessness? Global climate change? Crime? Aren't any of those worth getting serious about? Or are we just gonna get violently upset when our man-crush doesn't make a goal?

5 Things I Hate About Facebook

Despite being a Facebook user since they opened their virtual doors to high school students, I have had quite a few things that really irk me. Over time these issues have been remedied but where Facebook stands now, it still really sucks. Why do I continue to use it? Because I'm an idiot.

Anyway here are the things that really tick me off about Facebook in it's current state.

  1. People You May Know. Facebook, in a vain attempt to be helpful, searches the friends lists of the people on your friends list and then randomly presents them to you. 95% of the time I have no idea who that person is, and the other 5% are people who I have no desire to stay in contact with for one reason or another. The point I'm trying to make is that if I care enough for someone to be on my friends list then they'd already be there, so STOP TELLING ME WHO MY FRIENDS ARE!

  2. Facebook Chat. AIM's retarded and gimpy little brother. Yes, while AIM was once the go-to service for online chat, Facebook Chat won us all over with it's cry for pity and people have been flocking to it in droves. I have about the same amount of AIM buddies as I do Facebook friends and at any given time there are at least 3 times as many people on Facebook Chat than on AIM. Facebook Chat has no voice or video chat, no file transfers, and you're basically relegated to using a tiny 3 inch chat box on the bottom of a cluttered web page. Well now I see why AIM is the underdog here.

  3. Facebook Messages. This is to email what Facebook Chat is to AIM. I really don't know what else to say about it. Oh yeah! Integrating it with Facebook Chat in the last major update to the site was BATSHIT INSANE!! What were they thinking? Not only is it stupid to have chat logs stored in an inbox, but it confused the hell out of the Facebook Android app because it tells me I have a new Facebook Message every time somebody tries to chat with me. Not to mention the fact that the Facebook Chrome extension can't even access my messages anymore.

  4. Games. Ok, thats a fairly generous term for the crap on Facebook. Now I've tried playing games on Facebook, but they are not fun. At all. The only objective I can see in these games is to see how many of your friends you can dupe into helping to grow your farm/city/whatever. Well either that or to see how many clicks of the mouse it takes for your finger to fall off. I for one would like to not horrify my friends with game invites, and I hope they all return the favor. I wouldn't know for sure though because thankfully I've blocked ALL games from sending me messages. Think about that next time you need help growing that stalk of corn.

  5. Pokes. Oh God really? Why do these even exist? Yeah ok they were cute way back in 2006, but seriously guys? Somebody pokes you, then Facebook has the gall to ask if you'd like to poke the person back! Whenever somebody pokes you in real life do you poke them back? No you don't! You turn around and depending on your personality you either punch them in the face or say "what the hell is your problem?" A far more effective way to get somebody's attention is to talk to them. The same rings true on Facebook. If you want to talk to me then send me a message (despite my hatred of them). If you don't want to talk then LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!

Initial Thoughts On Google+

So thanks to a friendly fellow Engadget reader I scored a invite to Google+, which is Google's answer to Facebook. Anyways, with it being an unfinished product and all I don't think it would be fair to give it a full assessment. It's obvious Google needs to put a bit more work into it before it's ready for primetime, but what they have so far is a damn good starting point.

The most interesting aspect of the site are things called Circles. Basically they're groups of people that you can choose to share, or not share things with. So basically I have 3 Circles, Family, Friends, and Internet Peeps. I can choose to share, for example, my contact info with my Family and Friends, but not my Internet Peeps.

I seriously hope this is the "Facebook Killer" I've been waiting for, and I am really interested in seeing what Google does with this.

Ocarina of Time 3D - A Review

It's The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on a handheld! What more do you want?

Oh fine I'll elaborate.

So I'm not going to talk about the content of the game simply because this is just a remake of a game that came out in 1998, and if you haven't heard of the wonders of Ocarina of Time then you're a seriously deprived person.

So anyway, the most obvious change to the game is the graphics. Nintendo did an amazing job at updating the graphics but at the same time retaining the feel of the original game. While it seems a lot of the environments are just taken right from the N64 original, the textures are all upgraded to a higher resolution and aren't as blocky. The characters and items seem to have been completely redone though which is nice.

Another obvious addition is the 3D brain-screw. Despite my well documented hatred of 3D movies I don't hate the 3D in this game. Yeah it makes me nauseous after like 2 minutes but it still looks really cool. It feels like you're looking through a window into Hyrule. And when Link does his famous "item get" pose, it almost looks like you could just reach out and grab the item from him.

Now for the controls, these are a mixed bag. I absolutely adore the new item management via the 3DS's bottom touch screen. I love the way the circle pad feels when controlling Link. But I hate the L-targeting system. It feels very awkward to hold the 3DS in the correct position to target an enemy and move at the same time. I found myself setting L-targeting to toggle instead of hold for the first time in the history of me playing Zelda games.

So yeah. It's not perfect. The occasionally awkward controls have cost me their fair share of hearts. But really, it's totally worth it to be able to play the greatest video game of all time on the go.

Even if you have never played this, or even any Zelda game before give this one a shot. Unless of course you can't stand awkward controls, in which case you can grab the N64 version on the Wii virtual console.

Zelda vs Nier

So in playing Ocarina of Time on the 3DS, I discovered something: exploring Hyrule is still just as fun as it was 10 years ago. Yes the 3DS version sports a new coat of paint which gives the game a fresh feel, but it has something thats blatantly missing from a game with a very similar style, called Nier.

Now I picked up Nier earlier this year and played through it once. It was a great game that basically plays like a cross between Zelda and Final Fantasy, and features a world much more expansive than the Hyrule seen in Ocarina of Time. There are many more sidequests, may more NPCs, just an overall bigger, more interesting world to explore. But it felt like a chore to adventure around the world that Nier throws you into.

I thought this was because I had grown up too much and that I'm just no longer interested in games that let you explore. But when I picked up Ocarina of Time 3D and started playing I felt that sense of adventure again. Yes I already knew Hyrule like the back of my hand thanks to owning nearly every version of Ocarina of Time that has ever come out (the original N64 game, the GameCube port, the Wii Virtual Console version, and now the 3DS remake). Somehow the journey around Hyrule never feels like a chore.

I honestly can't explain what the difference is. Perhaps it's the fact that the world of Nier is far to overwhelming. It could just be a nostalgia factor. Or maybe Nier is just missing something that Ocarina of Time has. Any ideas?

The Gay Way Is Okay!

Call me crazy but this anti-gay rally in New York is absolutely STUPID! These people are just incredibly ignorant if they think that gays being allowed to marry affects them in any way. Nobody is telling you that you can't marry someone of the opposite sex, so get over yourself! Gay marriage doesn't affect you, unless you're gay!

The pastor of the Empire Christian Center, Tre Staton said of New York's new gay marriage law, "we're not against anybody, but we don't want his imposed on us". Dude take a chill pill, nobody is imposing ANYTHING on you.

Or how about this gem; "I'm worried that the younger generations will think this is normal, and it's not". Chilling words from Gloria Sanchez, who seems to know much about the ways of normality...

I was wondering, after we get all this gay marriage stuff straightened out, can we pass a law that keeps these assholes from breeding? It'll be a double-whammy! We'll solve the overpopulation problem, and we'll keep these bigots from raising more bigots.

So as a straight person why should I care? Well I like to think myself as a reasonable person who doesn't judge people based on which gender they happen to be attracted to. These people who waste time and energy just to be horrible, prejudice losers simply enrage me!

I should point out that this isn't one of my over-the-top exaggerated rants. My anger in this case is 100% sincere. I HATE ignorance, bigotry, and prejudice with a passion. Thanks, and I hope I'm not just preaching to the choir here...

Mac OS X Lion - My Thoughts

So I've bee using Lion for about 5 days now and I'm really starting to get the hang of it. Since I feel that I've had ample time to play with it and use it as my primary OS I have decided to share some of my thoughts on Apple's latest entry to the Mac OS X line. This isn't so much a review as it is just a overview of Lion and my thoughts of it.

Unlike Snow Leopard, which felt like a revision to it's predecessor Leopard (and essentially that's what it was), Lion feels like a whole new beast. Many of the features and built in apps have been completely redesigned, and there are plenty of new features to be had as well.

One of the biggest changes you will see is that Apple integrated Spaces and Exposé to make Mission Control. It makes managing multiple desktops a breeze. Also, Dashboard has been integrated into Mission Control and now is contained within it's own Space (but it can be configured to show up as the original overlay). My only complaint is that there is no way to rearrange your Spaces manually (as far as I know).

Many of the built in apps like Mail, iCal, and Address Book have had a complete visual overhaul. Mail now sports a layout more friendly to widescreen displays, as the message list and message view are now side-by-side. iCal now actually looks like a real calendar, which has upset some people but I think it looks great. Address Book on the other-hand has looked better, though the layout is very nice and iOS-like.

Lion also has a plethora of new features, a couple of which seem to have taken inspiration from the iPad. Launchpad is an obvious example of this. Launchpad displays all the applications on your Mac in a fashion similar to the iOS home screen. Another, autocorrect, works exactly as is does on iOS devices, but can be turned off if you prefer.

Fullscreen apps are another major new feature in Lion. Any applications you have running that support fullscreen will have to outward-pointing arrows on the top-right of the window. Clicking that will put the application into it's own Space and put it into fullscreen mode, which creates a distraction-free, focused experience. No dock, no menubar, just the app you want to use. This is probably my favorite Lion feature, and I use it all the time for Safari, Mail, and iTunes.

So Lion seems like the first step towards Apple blurring the lines between Mac OS X and iOS. While I don't see the Mac going away anytime soon, I see the Mac becoming a niche product within the next couple years. It will certainly be hard to get used to, because when I think Apple, the first thing I think of is Mac.

Thoughts on the 3DS Price Cut

So the other day Nintendo announced that they would be cutting the price of the 3DS from $249 to $169. That's an $80 price drop. Pretty huge for a gaming system that came out only last March in America. This price drop is a result of poor sales of the system, as sales have come out far below Nintendo's expectations.

Now the 3DS is not a terrible system, I'd say it's pretty good. There are just a few problems that I see with the 3DS that definitely contributed to its poor sales.

Firstly, the fact that Nintendo rushed the system out. It launched with a very poor lineup and so far the only game out that I would consider a "killer app" would be The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D. Now the game selection has been slowly growing, but we won't get to see the best games, like Super Mario 3D Land until later this year.

Secondly, timing, which is very much tied to my first point. The Nintendo 3DS was released in March here in most of the world, and February in Japan. A huge demographic of video games are kids, and kids tend to get new gaming systems for Christmas. Releasing the 3DS in October or November would not only have ensured a much beefier launch lineup but also attracted flocks of holiday shoppers looking for the latest toy for their kids.

Finally, and something Nintendo is remedying now, is the price. $249 is a pretty huge investment for a portable gaming system, especially when Sony's next portable, which is promising far superior graphical power, will sell for the same price.

One final thing I should point out is that we can now play games on our smartphones and tablets, not to mention iPods, which can do a lot more than just play games. The market seems to be shifting towards these devices, which I find very unfortunate. No matter how you dress it up, even the most graphically powerful phones can't compete with a dedicated portable gaming device in terms of the experience.

I will say though that I do expect sales to pick up after the price drop goes into effect (August 12th I believe), as well as once the holiday shopping season begins. Don't worry, I don't think Nintendo has another Virtual Boy on it's hands.

Eating Organic

Now I'm not the kind of person who is going to tell you you're a horrible person who's supporting the messed up American mainstream food industry just because you don't eat organic. My concern is purely health related.

Organic is appealing to me because it's down to the basics. There are no chemicals like pesticides or preservatives, you're just eating the food without the extra baggage. A lot of these chemicals have been found to cause cancer in lab rats. Pesticides are probably the worst, they're designed to kill insects, what do you think a lifetime of eating food that was grown with pesticides will do to you?

I don't see organic food as an extravagancy or a luxury, I see it as a basic need. Yes it is more expensive, but isn't a little extra money worth the health of you and your family? If you're tight on money it's always a good idea to find the things in your life that are luxurious and cut them down, or cut them out completely. Things like cable tv, and your landline if you have a cellphone.

I also realize that there are people who genuinely can't afford organic food (hint: if you can afford cable you do not fall into this category). It's a sad fact that these people are stuck eating this processed garbage because that's all they can afford, if that. That's why I think that everyone who donates food should donate organic. That's the only food I wouldn't feel guilty donating.

Even if you're the slightest bit curious I urge you to check out the natural food section in your local grocery store. Most of them have one, some more extensive than others. Or check out a Whole Foods or other natural food store. They can be a little more expensive but they have a much wider selection of organic foods.

Oh and did I mention organic food is much more delicious?

Some Movie Ideas For Hollywood

So with a movie based on Battleship coming out people have said Hollywood is officially out of ideas. I think these people have a very grim outlook on the film industry. In fact, if Battleship does well at the box office (and why wouldn't it?) there could be a whole series of films based on board games. In fact, I have a couple ideas for some great board game films that any writer can take an run with free of charge.

Sorry \- A bunch if kids get sucked into an alternate reality and must reach the center to get back to their own world. But an alien invasion wants to get to our world via the same gateway. The only way to reach the center of this alternate world is by picking cards making the entire journey a race against time, and luck. Just as all seems hopeless the aliens draw a 4 card with only 2 spaces left to move and they lose their turn, leading the kids to draw a 3, exactly enough to reach the end if there journey.

Yahtzee \- Grandma Hebert is the best Yahzee player in her social circle. Her husband needs an expensive surgery or he will die. Grandma must enter the World Yahtzee Tournament and win the championship prize which would be more than enough to pay for the surgery.

Stratego \- An army general must navigate his troops through a devastated battlefield. The catch? They can't see the enemy until they're face to face. The man with the best guns wins! But they must also be on the lookout for land mines, as they search for the enemy base which intelligence says is somewhere inside enemy territory. In this war of the wits, will the general lead his team to victory? Or will they be hopelessly defeated?

Star Fox 64 3D - A Review

Someone, somewhere at Nintendo HQ came up with some crazy idea for a game about a bunch of anthropomorphic animals flying spaceships and called it Star Fox. And the rest, as they say, is history. While not as wildly successful as Mario or Zelda, Star Fox will always have a nice cuddly warm place in the hearts of Nintendo gamers everywhere.

Their have been a few Star Fox games over the years, but the only one that is even remotely a masterpiece is Star Fox 64, and Nintendo realized this just in time for the 3DS. This past weekend Nintendo released Star Fox 64 3D (yes, I know that's a mouthful) and yours truly was fortunate enough to have picked up a copy.

Star Fox 64 3D (which shall be referred to as "the game" for the remainder of this blog entry disguised as a credible game review) is, of course a remake of the aforementioned Star Fox 64. The game is done in a similar vane to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, with pretty much the same gameplay but with a fresh coat of paint (enhanced graphics). Nintendo went a step further with this title and decided that the music should be redone and the voiceovers re-recorded.

The new music sounds great! It's still MIDI-quality music, but nevertheless it's a big step up from what we got on the N64. The music sounds much more elaborate, and most of it is something I wouldn't mind listening to (conveniently, there is a 'sound test' mode you can unlock after beating the game once which lets you do just that). The new voiceovers have left me less than impressed though. Nintendo was able to get most of the original cast back to do the voices but somehow Peppy's famous "do a barrel roll", along with other beloved lines, just don't feel the same way they did back on the N64.

The game is largely similar to the original version in terms of gameplay and level design though, so there is really not a lot to talk about there. But the multiplayer has been completely redone, with new maps and AI battles. I've only tried AI battles, because I'm the only one of my friends that was stupid enough to buy a Nintendo 3DS, but it gave me a feeling as to how the multiplayer works, and it's not bad. It's just missing online play, which would have been great.

There are some added features that take advantage of the 3DS hardware. The most obvious feature is the 3D effect, which is actually the only time I've felt the 3D effect actually added something to a game. The gyroscope sensor, which I felt helped precision aiming in Ocarina of Time 3D, felt very gimmicky in this game. Thankfully, like Ocarina of Time, it can be turned off and the slider pad can be used to maneuver your spaceship.

I would very much recommend this game. While the story is short (takes about an hour to finish), the fun comes in replaying the game and trying to figure out how to get to different levels, since there are multiple paths to get to the end.

The Netflix Split

So earlier this week Netflix announced that it would be spinning off it's DVD rental subscription into a new company called Qwikster. Now, besides the stupid name, I think this is good that we're seeing Netflix distance itself from the physical media side of things. But, it's probably not going to work.

The thought of putting a movie in a queue and waiting a day or 2 for it to show up seems rather antiquated to me, I exclusively use Netflix for streaming, and if I can't stream it there, then I can usually rent it digitally on iTunes or PSN. I would prefer not to have to rely on multiple services but it can't really be helped. And that is the problem.

Now, in an ideal world every movie and TV show imaginable would be available to watch instantly on Netflix. But that's not going to happen anytime soon because the film industry is run by a bunch of rich, backwards thinking, out of touch executives who are too dumb and/or greedy to see the long term benefits Netflix and other streaming services will have for everyone.

I think Netflix made the right move, but too early. Someday the film industry will come to it's senses, after all they gave into home video in the 80's. But we still have a lot of fighting to do. Physical media and cable TV are becoming outdated, but the powers that be will kick and scream the entire way. But it's ok if they lose out because we have a younger, more forward-thinking group of people who are interested in media, and they're more than willing to make content for this future.

Mobile Security

We're constantly putting more and more of our personal data on our mobile devices. For example, my iPod has easy access to my social networking accounts, email accounts, contact information for everyone I know (including myself), and my calendar. Yet it seems to me we don't put as much thought as keeping our private info on these devices safe as we do with our computers.

I personally have passwords on both my laptop and iPod, not only to protect my personal info and the personal info that friends have entrusted to me, but to keep unknown people from screwing around with my system. But I cannot tell you how often I have seen unsecured mobile devices, even I never really thought twice about it until recently.

Our mobile devices are becoming more and more integral to our lives, and as a result more and more of our personal data is going on these devices. As a result, we need to take steps to secure our devices to protect our personal data from prying eyes.

Doctor Who?

Warning! Here be spoilers.

Last night Steven Moffat seems to have laid the groundwork for the final episode with Matt Smith's as The Doctor. Obviously this episode is a ways off (with Matt Smith confirmed to be on board for at least another season/series), but I think this whole thing with The Silence will continue, and possibly be resolved with The Doctor's next regeneration. Will we find out The Doctor's name? What is it about his name that The Silence would see as a threat?

I think, though, that this episode resolves more questions than it appears to on the surface. It blatantly resolves The Doctor's death from the beginning of the season, it reveals the question that we've been wondering about since Let's Kill Hitler, and reveals a pretty big aspect of his relationship with River Song. But I think you can infer quite a few unanswered questions from season 5, like the whole deal with the Pandorica.

We know The Silence can influence people with post-hypnotic suggestion, and we now know that the Daleks have some knowledge of The Silence, so they most likely influenced The Doctor's various enemies to lock him in the Pandorica. Obviously that failed, so River Song/Melody Pond was some sort of alternate plan after their first attempt failed. So now they think he's dead...but do they?

Next are the makeshift TARDISes we've seen in The Lodger and The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon. I think it's reasonable to assume that this is how The Silence got Melody Pond back to the the 1960's. But why the 1960's? Because of the space suit, everything The Silence do seem to be in the interest of fulfilling some sort of prophecy. The Pandorica will open. Silence will fall when the question is asked. Demon's Run, where a good man goes to war. An impossible astronaut will rise and strike the time lord dead.

Also, this may seem obvious to most but I just wanted to clear this up for anyone who was confused, The Doctor who get's shot was always the Tesselecta, that was the fixed point, but everyone thought it was the real Doctor because, as you know, The Doctor lies. As I said, probably obvious, but I've seen some confusion over that in some forums.

Steve Jobs: 1955-2011

I was going to write up my thoughts on iOS 5 tonight but I think, considering the circumstances, I will hold off for now. As you probably know by now, Steve Jobs, co-founder and former CEO of Apple, passed away earlier today. And I just wanted to write a quick piece about what this man meant to me as not just someone who uses Apple products, but truly appreciates what they are.

Without this man, I don't think I would have ever became so enamored with computers. He made computers into more than just ones and zeroes, his vision transformed computers into 'bicycles for the mind'. Without him I never would have been brought up with the Macintosh. Sure, someone else would have eventually come along and sold computers with a GUI, but they couldn't have done it the same was as Steve.

While I have regretfully never met Steve Jobs, I was fortunate enough to exchange emails with him a few years ago. This was late 2007, before Apple had even mentioned anything about apps on the iPhone. I told him I was very happy with the iPhone and told him it was the greatest phone I had ever used. I then asked him about apps, and if they would ever come to the iPhone. Steve was kind enough to get back to me and told me "We like third party apps too, and we're working on a secure way to let them onto the iPhone." I have never forgotten how excited I was when that email came in, and I don't expect to soon. Just the fact that he took the time to respond to some random kid on the other side of the country is a testament to the kind of man he was.

This was a man who had beat all odds and changed the very Earth we live on. His drive, his passion, has, and will continue to inspire me. He didn't sell people products, the products are just the packaging. In that package, wether it's a Mac Pro, or an iPhone, you'll find an unmatched experience that almost feels like an extension of yourself. It was Steve Jobs vision that made this possible, but more than that, it was his ability to drive and inspire the people who craft the experience so that we can have a computer that works for us and lets us create art, music, writing, and film.

So thank you Steve, for everything you've done. You've accomplished a lot in your brief time on Earth. Anybody would be lucky to have achieved a fraction of what you have in an average lifespan, never mind in a life cut tragically short. When I was in high school and most kids my age were looking up to rappers, pop stars, and athletes, I was always looking up to you as my biggest hero, and you still are even though you are no longer with us.

"Here's to the crazy ones..."

PerkStreet Financial - A Review/Story/Love Letter

In this age of banks charging fees for increasingly stupid things, it's pretty easy to feel trapped. That's how I felt with Citizens Bank. While not as bad as larger banks like the infamous Bank of America, Citizens found ways to bleed the most money out of its customers. In fact a friend of my dad's who works for Citizens Bank (who shall remain nameless for obvious reasons) told us of a scheme that the executives came up with to get as much money in overdraft fees as possible.

Essentially Citizens Bank clears all your charges in order of highest to lowest. So say you have $20 in your account, and you make a mistake and buy something for $8, something for $5, and a third thing for $13, in that order. Well if they charged chronologically, they would charge the $8 first, bringing your balance to $12, then they would charge the $5, bringing you down to $7. Finally they would charge the $13 which would overdraw your account and you would be charged a single overdraft fee.

What Citizens actually does is first charge the $13, then the $8, and now you're already in overdraft by $1 so you get a fee tacked on. But oh look, there's another $5 charge so you get hit with ANOTHER overdraft fee. It seems like maybe it's just how their system works, but I was informed by this Citizens employee that this was a concise decision by the executives to get more money from customers. Ideally of course you will never overdraw your account, but sometimes things happen, you make a mistake, a check doesn't clear, whatever.

So finally I was fed up with the fees, practices, and terrible customer service that I decided to search for alternatives. I looked at small local banks, and credit unions, I even looked at ING Direct where I keep my savings account. Of course, my credit is toast thanks to some problems with student loans (long story, I'll spare you), and every bank I applied to rejected my application.

Then I found this little website called PerkStreet, and it looked perfect. Almost so perfect that I thought it had to be a scam of some kind. So I did my research, and it turns out it was totally legit. So I filled out an application and got a response the next day. I then proceeded to transfer the entirety of the balance in my Citizens Bank account to my shiny new PerkStreet account, and my life was changed forever.

First off I should mention that yes, PerkStreet does charge fees, but they're always upfront about them. In fact they have a very clear webpage that clearly explains their fees and how to avoid them. I personally feel their fees are reasonable, and very easy to avoid. The only fee I have issue with is the inactivity fee, but if you use this as your primary checking account then there's no reason you should ever see it.

Even though PerkStreet is an online bank they make is super easy to deposit and withdraw your money. You can drop your completed deposit slip and endorsed checks into a prepaid envelope for mailing via the USPS, or if you're in a rush you can drop it off at a UPS Store for free overnight. You can make withdrawals at most ATMs for free as well, though availability varies from location to location. This page ( http://www.perkstreet.com/atm.aspx ) is very helpful if you want to see which ATMs in your area you can use without any fees.

The customer service is amazing. You can call and get a live human, 24/7, which frankly is amazing. You can also email them and they usually get back to you in 24 hours. I had to deal with their customer service over the phone when I was having some issues transferring money from my Citizens Bank account, and they were courteous, helpful, and just as important, spoke English as a first language.

The only downside to PerkStreet is that they don't have physical branches, but in actuality it's not that much of a downside. They are able to pass the money they save from not opening and maintaining branches to the customer by way of excellent phone and email support, reasonable fees, and generous perks.

If you're sick of your bank stealing your hard earned money then you should definitely look into PerkStreet Financial. I will say that it's definitely not for everyone, but it's definitely worth looking into. I use PerkStreet as my primary bank account (I still use ING Direct for my savings since I do not believe PerkStreet offers savings accounts) and I couldn't be happier. It's an oasis in a desert of greed.

Mediocrity

I consider myself a patient person when it comes to most things. But when it comes to mediocrity, I have absolutely no patience at all. This extends from myself to the world around me. I don't think my expectations are unreasonable, I don't demand that everything in the world be perfect, but I do thing that a reasonable level of quality should be an expectation.

I'm not going to turn this into a Mac vs. PC argument, but I feel that Macs (and most Apple products) are of high enough quality to use. Sony (despite some of their corporate blunders) also make high quality products, which is why I choose to rock a PS3, and a Sony Alpha. Even something as simple as my microwave was chosen because of it's solid build quality, and simple-yet-sleek appearance (a Sanyo, for those who are curious). Even if the product I purchase does have some quality issues, if the company who made it goes head-over-heels to fix it, then they just won me as a customer for life.

Likewise I refuse to allow myself to be surrounded by a shoddy experience. The amount of stress it causes me is unimaginable, which probably is unhealthy, but I suppose it's good that I try to avoid it. Perhaps the only times I get angry enough to have outbursts are when things don't work the way they should because of poor design. Certain small imperfections have a way of getting under my skin.

As a designer I also have high expectations for what I do, even higher than the people I'm working for. Throughout my life, my grandmother always taught me that when you do something, you should always go above and beyond what's expected of you, not just because you'll earn the respect of others, but also because you feel better knowing that you didn't half-ass your work.

I know I probably sound like a snob, but I really don't think I am (if I am, than I am the poorest snob in the world). I don't think quality should be a luxury, it should be an expectation. Unfortunately, with our lives filled with fast-food, rude service, American cars, and shoddy electronics, we've come to expect mediocrity. Quality is pushed into being the exception rather than the norm

Ghandi once said; "Be the change you want to see in the world." If you don't do work that's shit, and you don't accept shit in your life, then we're one step closer to a world without shit. You can quote me on that, if you'd like.

Sandboxing != 'Walled Garden'

There seems to be a lot of FUD regarding the fact that Apple will be requiring developers to sandbox their apps by March if they want to continue being listed in the Mac App Store. Basically, sandboxing an app essentially prevents apps from accessing secure parts of your system. Many people believe that this policy means that the days of a locked-down Mac experience are drawing ever closer.

Look at it this way, the Mac App Store is designed for the mainstream consumer. Apple want's to offer a catered solution for these less tech-savvy customers, a vast majority of their customer base. This added level of security is for these customers who don't want to have to think about all the little things, they just want a computer that works.

As for the rest of us, I don't think Apple is going to lock us out of our computers. For iDevices it makes sense, those are strictly mainstream consumer products. But lots of people, ESPECIALLY the people who develop software/apps for Apple devices, need the breathing room that the Mac offers.

So rest easy my friends, all is not lost.

...unless you want a Mac Pro.

I Play Games For Fun, Not Achievements

I was at GameStop yesterday (finally got around to picking up Batman: Arkham City) and I overheard a slightly depressing conversation between a clerk and a customer. The customer made a statement on how games aren't worth his time if they don't have enough achievements. The clerk countered with: "Isn't it enough that the game is fun? What did you do before games even had achievements?"

I've never been too concerned about achievements (or trophies, as they are referred to on my console of choice) because I'm more concerned about how fun the game is. That's not to say I don't enjoy achievements, sometimes they can present fun challenges that are satisfying to conquer. But I never try to earn achievements simply for the sake of earning achievements, because I feel that when things go that far the game simply becomes a tedious chore.

I'm not against trophies at all, but I feel they have caused this strange compulsion amongst gamers to earn the highest gamer score or trophy level.

Flash Sucks, That's Why It's Dying!

Some guy named Mike Chambers, a product manager for Adobe Flash, had this to say on his blog, in an entry titled "Clarifications on Flash Player for Mobile Browsers, the Flash Platform, and the Future of Flash":

"No matter what we did, the Flash Player was not going to be available on Apple's iOS anytime in the foreseeable future."

Um...no. That's bullshit. Apple didn't have it out for Flash just for the hell of it. Just last year Steve Jobs himself wrote, in his piece "Thoughts on Flash", the following:

"We have routinely asked Adobe to show us Flash performing well on a mobile device, any mobile device, for a few years now. We have never seen it."

I think it's fairly obvious by that quote that Steve and the rest of Apple would have loved to give Adobe the chance to prove that Flash could work on a mobile device. But Adobe was unable to deliver a version of Flash that could perform reasonably well on a phone. All the Flash team had to do was create a version of Flash that ran efficiently and I'm sure Apple would have loved to put it on iOS, but something better came around that gave Apple what it needed, and that was HTML 5.

One might say that Apple was the one that killed Mobile Flash, but honestly, as much as I love Apple, that would be giving them far to much credit. Mobile Flash died because a stubborn company wanted to shoehorn their resource-hungry web technology into a mobile phone, and was surprised to find out that all they got was shit.

Honestly though, now that Adobe has committed resources to HTML 5, I'm curious to see what they come up with. Though they're probably going to stubbornly hold out on the desktop version for quite awhile in some pointless attempt to save Flash from it's inevitable doom.

Consistency Please

I've been using Lion since it came out in August, and I feel I'm really starting to adjust to it. There are weird little quirks, but I have been able to look past them to see what I think is probably, despite it's flaws, the best version of Mac OS X thus far.

One quirk I cannot seem to get past though is the new system-wide fullscreen mode. Specifically, the key combo to activate it. Now most people would just click on the little arrows in the top-right corner of fullscreen-capable windows, and that would be that. But there are quite a few people like me who prefer using keyboard combos, and that is where things with fullscreen start to get tricky.

First, I want to concentrate on the apps that appear to do it right so we have a frame of reference to go on. It seems most of Apple's software, and a few third-part apps use the 'control+command+F' key combo. While I'm not a fan of three-key combos because they're basically impossible to do with one hand (get your mind out of the gutter), this is obviously done to keep from interfering with the 'command+F' combo, which in most document-based apps brings up a bar or window to search the body of the open document, and in Finder brings up the Search window. Most major apps use this key combo, like iTunes (surprisingly), Safari, iPhoto, Pages, and a few third party apps like Reeder and 1Password.

But then we start looking at other apps, and things start to get weird. QuickTime X uses the 'command+F' combo to go into fullscreen, which is confusing because as I mentioned earlier, this key combo is apparently reserved for search functions. Then we have apps like GarageBand, which has no key combo at all for fullscreen. Then there's CleanWriter, which I'm using right now to write this blog entry, which uses a three-key combo, but instead of the apparent standard, uses 'shift+command+f". Don't even get me started on apps like Chrome which, last I checked, doesn't even use the system-wide fullscreen function.

It doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but it really is when you think about it. Can you imagine if every app had a different key combo for Quit or Undo? It seems that Apple really dropped the ball here by not standardizing the fullscreen key combo like it does for 'command+Q' or 'command+Z'. When you're dealing with a system-wide function like this, its pretty much UX 101 to make a consistent standard, and to set an example for your developers by using this standard across all your apps.

Update: I just wanted to add in regards to QuickTime X that I am aware 'command-F' has traditionally been used as the key combo to play video in fullscreen since the function was introduced to QuickTime Pro users. But now that Apple has an OS-level fullscreen function, which appears to be what QuickTime now uses to display video in fullscreen, should it not now use the same key combo as other apps?

How The Kindle Fire Lost It's Spark

Yeah, I'm kind of proud of that title. Yes, I'm a dork. Anyways...

So here's a tiny summary I've put together from all the reviews I've seen of the Kindle Fire:

"With it's slow web browser, lousy app selection, paltry storage, poor battery life, and lack of 3G connectivity, this tablet is not going to change the world. If you just want a device to stream video from the Amazon Unbox service though, you're in luck, because that's pretty much the only strength of this device."

Again, that's not an actual review, but a summary of the essence of each review I have read.

The biggest flaw I see is the 8GB storage. I mean, on a tablet 8GB is a JOKE, but it shouldn't be much of a problem since the tablet is limited to the Amazon App Store, whose selection pales in comparison to even the Android Market.

In addition, like the standard Kindle, the Fire is designed for reading eBooks. But also like the standard Kindle, the Fire does NOT have the capability to display the ePub format that pretty much every other eReader on the market has. Yes, even the iPad uses ePub, so much for the walled garden.

The Fire is a great example of a device being built to make money for a service that already exists (in this case, Amazon Unbox), quite unlike the popular standard Kindle which was built from the ground up along side an eBook store.

And it seems the world agrees. This time I have an actual quote from DigitalSpy:

"Amazon has reported a massive 73% slump in profits after the online retail giant invested heavily in its first tablet computer to compete with Apple's iPad."

Oops!

If you're expecting to pay $199 for a tablet and expect an all-around quality experience, then you are delusional.

