tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-200405122024-02-03T11:58:12.537-07:00jon's magical world of awesomenessBUSINESS, GAMES, and WHATEVA!jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1163820595605236142006-11-17T20:29:00.000-07:002006-11-17T20:29:55.616-07:00bobfet1.comnew blog up @ <a href="http://www.bobfet1.com">bobfet1.com</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1161086838289405612006-10-17T04:59:00.000-07:002006-10-17T05:07:18.313-07:00MonstersIn the few weeks remaining towards the midterm elections, I think there's a quote we should remember:<br /><br />"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster."<br /><br /> - Nietzschejonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1157526173790886742006-09-05T23:53:00.000-07:002006-09-06T00:02:53.803-07:00AustinJust got into Austin for AGC, and I have a feeling it is going to be awesome. The shuttle I took from the airport actually was full of other games industry-related people, and it was interesting. It's exciting to be around people who are also interested in games and that are actually in the industry making them. <br /><br />At this point I'm feeling a mix of excitement and fear. Excitement about the fact that I'm actually here and among all of these people, but fear that maybe I'm totally out of my league and I didn't know what I was getting myself in to. Hopefully all of this will subside after the conference starts tomorrow.<br /><br />The hotel room is pretty nice, and close to the conference center - damn, I love that internets.<br /><br />Noob lesson #1:<br /><br />Always have a business card ready - I was offered one, but all of mine were in my luggage so I couldn't reciprocate! Ack!jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1156159575729583992006-08-21T04:15:00.000-07:002006-08-21T04:26:15.743-07:00Say No to DomainsParents, if you want what's best for your children, keep them away from domain name registration. Sure, it seems innocent at first. "I'll just register my name, for personal use, maybe a blog." But it doesn't stop there. If you can't find that first one, it becomes an obsession - "If I don't register it now, someone else will get it!" And then you try more. And more. And more. Soon, any remotely good domain MUST be registered, or else it will be lost forever.<br /><br />Before you know it, you are hunched over at your computer, cursing at those names in the WHOIS database, who have STOLEN your domain from you, registering it before you could, only to never do anything with them. Letting them sit there, mocking you for all eternity: "This page is coming soon!" You look at your own collection of domain names - there is no way you will ever be able to use all of them. But even so, there's that part in the back of your mind that thirsts for more - "I just made up a new word! It MUST be registered before someone steals it! BLOOBITYBLAH.COM? OMG no one has it yet? Quick! Sign on to GoDaddy!"<br /><br />Domains are worse than crack.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1155976513100326582006-08-19T01:29:00.000-07:002006-08-19T01:35:13.113-07:00Decisions, Decisions.I envy people who are able to make major life decisions so easily and decisively. For me, it is a very hard thing to do. <br /><br />Options I am considering:<br /><br />1. Continue at current job, save some money, take a celebratory "finding myself" trip somewhere, get real job.<br />2. Continue at current job and conduct job search in the background.<br />3. Continue at current job, save money, move somewhere, and find job there.<br />4. Quit current job and do job search full time.<br />5. Quit current job, move, and find job there.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1154328141146462762006-07-30T23:34:00.000-07:002006-07-30T23:42:21.166-07:00The Cursing Black PreacherIf this guy was at my local church I might actually think of going.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6DtsKkMBZwI"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6DtsKkMBZwI" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;">more:</span><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dRqwQfRbhc"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">two</span></a><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcbJ9no1ut4">three</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1153967854052685792006-07-26T19:36:00.000-07:002006-07-26T19:37:34.066-07:00Staredown: Sport of KingsMockumentary, free to see on the website:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.unflinchingtriumph.com">http://www.unflinchingtriumph.com</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1153563928442779642006-07-22T03:20:00.000-07:002006-07-22T03:25:28.443-07:00TURTLE POWERThey're baaaaaaack:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/teenagemutantninjaturtles/">http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/teenagemutantninjaturtles/</a><br /><br />Man this movie is going to be sooooo sweet... I think by using the CG it can be more true to the original TMNT comic. The turtles a lot like they do as I remember them from the Eastman & Laird graphic novel I had in like the 80's. The turtle's aren't all muscular and buffed up - they're a lot more quick, ninja-ey, and turtle-like. AWESOME.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1153560214542449702006-07-22T02:22:00.000-07:002006-07-22T02:23:34.553-07:00Bill Gates is a P-I-M-P<a href="http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2679657">http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2679657</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1153380664734193932006-07-20T00:18:00.000-07:002006-07-20T00:31:04.760-07:00TAKE DOWN THE ORPHAN WORKS BILLa bill is going through the house RIGHT NOW that threatens the work of all American Artists, no matter if they are photographers, painters, illustrators, writers, or composers. It doesn't matter if you are an artist yourself - if you read the newspaper, watch TV, or consume any type of media at all, this should matter to you!<br /><br />Imagine if you drew a piece of art and published it. A few weeks later, some company steals it to use in their own ads, without attributing the art to you or rightly compensating you for it. When you contact them about it, they say that they "made a reasonable effort" to contact you and you have almost no legal recourse against them. With this HR 5439, THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ARTISTS EVERY DAY.<br /><br />the ORPHAN WORKS ACT (HR 5439) makes it easy for people to steal the original work of artists by allowing them just to say that they made a "reasonable effort" to contact the original artist and after that it would be considered an "abandoned work."<br /><br />WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMAN (well, FAX them):<br /><br />contacting them:<br /><a href="http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=00175">http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=00175</a><br /><a href="http://www.asmp.org/news/spec2006/orphan_tools.php">http://www.asmp.org/news/spec2006/orphan_tools.php</a><br /><br />target members + model letter:<br /><a href="http://www.asmp.org/news/spec2006/orphan_update.php">http://www.asmp.org/news/spec2006/orphan_update.php</a><br /><br />Cagle has a lot about it on his blog but he doesn't have permalinks so you may have to dig depending on the time when you read this:<br /><a href="http://www.cagle.com/news/blog/">http://www.cagle.com/news/blog/</a><br /><br />an example of what it would do:<br /><a href="http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=00235">http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=00235</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1152692164549883442006-07-12T01:10:00.000-07:002006-07-12T01:44:51.526-07:00GenesisI just found the new theme of the Democratic party for election 2008:<br /><br />Genesis - Land of Confusion<br /><br />(this came to my attention because Disturbed did a cover of it, and that would also suffice)<br /><br />video:<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56QSkTnTTDg"> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56QSkTnTTDg</a><br /><pre>Disturbed video: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KW8DRSvEoQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KW8DRSvEoQ</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">This is the world we live in</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">And these are the hands we're given</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Use them and let's start trying</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">To make it a place worth living in.</span><br /><br />...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I won't be coming home tonight</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">My generation will put it right</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">We're not just making promises</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">That we know, we'll never keep.</span><br /><br /></pre>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1152266319665890492006-07-07T02:41:00.000-07:002006-07-07T02:58:39.690-07:00Project Runway: to soon?The best show on television (imo) is <a href="http://www.bravotv.com/Project_Runway/">Project Runway</a>. After the second season ended a few months ago, it was sorta a sad thing because you know you had like 9 months of non-Project Runway time ahead.<br /><br />Apparently the show was so popular, however, that <a href="http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13739865/">Bravo immediately put the third season together</a> - and it begins airing JULY 12! WTF?!<br /><br />I'm conflicted about this. On the one hand, it's good that we won't have to wait for so long. On the other hand, the fact that they are churning these things out really cheapens it. It's at the peak of popularity - why ruin the exclusivity and specialness of each season?<br /><ol> <li>How will it end? The series traditionally ends at the spring NYC Fashion Week - if we end in the fall, where will it be? Was there enough time to tape the show and give the final 3 enough time to get their collections together?<br /> </li> <li>I hope the redo the whole model selection method, or revert it to the season 1 system. The keep-you-model-forever way of season 2 was LAME.</li> <li>Is the show becoming too fashion-centric? I realize that in general better clothes make for a better show, but with the comments in that article that there will be more older designers now, I'm sorta afraid the balance of personality and entertainment might not be there. <br /> </li> </ol><br /> I guess we'll just have to wait and see.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1152166412262471312006-07-05T23:11:00.000-07:002006-07-05T23:13:32.276-07:00OMFGWHY DID I NOT HEAR ABOUT THIS EARLIER?!<br /><br />A VIDEOGAME TO MOVIE TRANSITION THAT CANNOT FAIL<br /><br /><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0398913/">http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0398913/</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1152155518780538732006-07-05T20:10:00.000-07:002006-07-05T20:11:58.800-07:00Wow.<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5150118.stm">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5150118.stm</a><br /><br />And I though <span style="font-style: italic;">I</span> got a hard time watching World Cup games.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1151004935360690522006-06-22T12:34:00.000-07:002006-06-22T12:35:35.373-07:00CrapNow that America has been knocked out of the world cup, I'm supporting Brazil. And maybe Mexico next if that doesn't work out.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1150487769456736362006-06-16T12:36:00.000-07:002006-06-16T12:56:09.473-07:00welcome to the dark sideMy decade-long one-man boycott of Apple comes to an end. I bought an iPod nano, the first Apple product I've ever owned since the Apple IIGS my parents had when I was in like 1st grade. <br /><br />It's sad, but I just wasn't strong enough. Even though I know about the scratches, the cracked screens, Steve Jobs' evil management, and the DRM-laced iTunes music, I couldn't take it anymore. In the world of pod-people with their podcasts and their white earbuds, even the most anti-Apple person on earth gets worn down.<br /><br />The unit itself is actually pretty nice. The earbuds that came with it really suck ass, so I'll need to replace those. The iTunes interface makes me really angry, but I'll just have to deal with it. How do they get away with REQUIRING you to install Quicktime with it? I thought that type of bundling was illegal! Didn't Microsoft get sued for that shit with Windows + IE?jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1150054339562537792006-06-11T12:28:00.000-07:002006-06-11T12:32:19.576-07:00World Cup FeverYou know, I'm really getting in to this whole soccer thing. I wish they played it on TV more here, because I think I'd watch it. Maybe it will be bigger after this world cup?<br /><br />The biggest problem we have is the announcing. When I watch the games on ABC, it just seems so boring because the announcers don't have a lot of inflection in their voices and just don't seem passionate about it. The ones on Univision, even though I have no idea what they are talking about, are actually even more fun to watch because the announcing is so good. The announcers get excited and so you get excited with them.<br /><br />go USA!jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1150014715630134192006-06-11T01:31:00.000-07:002006-06-11T01:31:55.646-07:00PLOOB.COMMy thoughts on video games and the video games industry will now be located <a href="http://www.ploob.com">here</a>.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1149905197472626952006-06-09T19:01:00.000-07:002006-06-09T19:06:37.493-07:00GM wins.In a spat with the New York Times editorial page, GM <a href="http://fyi.gmblogs.com/2006/06/the_ban_on_rubbish_in_the_new_1.html">leverages its corporate blog</a> to gain the upper hand. NYT comes out with egg on their face.<br /><br />As much as I criticize GM for sucking total ass, I do respect them for their understanding of new media using it to disseminate their POV and connecting with customers.<br /><br />What can I say, NYTimes? PWND.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1149796905230818932006-06-08T13:00:00.000-07:002006-06-08T13:01:45.243-07:00GM, Ford lose.<a href="http://www.toyota.com/fjcruiser/index.html">http://www.toyota.com/fjcruiser/index.html</a><br /><br /><a href="http://blog.scifi.com/tech/archives/2006/06/07/honda_fuelcell.html">http://blog.scifi.com/tech/archives/2006/06/07/honda_fuelcell.html</a>jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1149577943531788032006-06-05T23:52:00.000-07:002006-06-06T00:15:28.780-07:00Game RegulationThe Washington Times has a good <a href="http://washingtontimes.com/op-ed/20060604-092820-2500r.htm">editorial </a>on the video game legislation backed by Senators Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman to restrict sales of violent games to minors.<br /><br />While I would in general consider myself a Democrat, this shit makes me really angry. First of all, what is considered acceptable? What is too violent? No matter where we draw the line, it starts us down the horrible path of censorship. Secondly, I have played violent video games since childhood, and am pretty non-violent as you can get. The only time I feel the urge to frag people is when politicians act like this.<br /><br />I thought regulating morality was for the GOP?<br /><br />Joe and Hillary, why don't you waste more of our time plz k thx.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.senate.gov/%7Eclinton/news/statements/details.cfm?id=249368">Clinton's original November press release</a><br /><br />via [<a href="http://biz.gamedaily.com/industry/feature/?id=12874">GameDaily BIZ</a>]jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1149134518416156302006-05-31T20:59:00.000-07:002006-05-31T21:01:58.426-07:00Nintendo Wi-FiI just got Metroid Prime Hunters and a Nintendo Wi-Fi USB adapter for my computer. I didn't even know it existed before, but am happy they thought of people who don't have wireless routers.<br /><br />My excitement over the Wi-Fi was promptly crushed after I got pwned 0-7 by some dude in MPH and dominated 0-3 by some Japanese person in Tetris.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1148980219705837742006-05-30T01:34:00.000-07:002006-05-30T02:10:19.743-07:00Games and RealityWhen video games first started out, no one tried to make them realistic. The technology simply wasn't there. Games had bad graphics and were mostly limited to a 2 dimensional space. They were so abstract from anything real that "real" wasn't thought of as anything that had to do with gaming.<br /><br />But as game systems have been getting more advanced for the past decade or so, a major goal and criterion games are judged on are how "realistic" they are. Historical like Call of Duty try to emulate real-life situations. New games like HL2 have sophisticated physics engines that try to make the game world act just like the real one. Whenever we look at a new game, the first thing we notice and look for is how good the graphics are (in comparison with real life). <br /><br />What I wonder, why should realism even be a goal? I mean, isn't one of the reasons why we play games because they aren't real? They are different dimensions where we can do things we couldn't and wouldn't normally do. Why should we impose these arbirtrary restrictions on ourselves just because it would be more realistic? If you want realism, why don't you put down the controller and go do something in your real life?<br /><br />For example, I just got Quake 4 (I know, I'm on the tail end of that curve). I was optimistic because it is the sequel to my favorite game of all time, Quake 3. While I am impressed with it and I do think it is a pretty good FPS, something didn't feel right. <br /><br />When I thought about it a little more, it dawned upon me - it's too realistic. When you run around, it's a little slower. When you try to jump around, you feel sorta tied down to the ground. The rockets fly slower. And the models, well, they look pretty real. <br /><br />"But Jon!" you might say, "that's GOOD! That's how games should be!"<br /><br />That's not how I think games should be. IMHO, Quake 3 is the purest FPS ever made. There isn't any story. All there is is you, your enemy, and the arena. That's it. There's no real physics to ruin the fun either - you can get a nice chain of jumps going like nothing. You can shoot a rocket at the floor and have it blast you halfway across the level. The models make no attempt to be realistic. You can be a fat lady, a dude riding a hoverboard, a skeleton, or even a walking eyeball. And it runs fast - you are encumbered. The only limit to what you can do is pretty much your own ability. <br /><br />And when you put the shackles of "reality" on the purity that is Quake 3, you get games like Quake 4 and HL2. Yes they look good, yes they are advanced. But as games get more realistic, we lose a lot of the fun that comes out of playing in an unrealistic world.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1148917620043937842006-05-29T08:40:00.000-07:002006-05-29T08:47:00.070-07:00Red State, USAYou know, Colorado is a nice place to live. In general, don't get earthquakes, hurricanes, or other horrific natural disasters like the coasts. The weather is great - it is mild most of the time.<br /><br />However, the one thing that has always really annoyed me is that when some interesting movies come out, they always come out in NYC + LA first, then they will roll out over the next few weeks to other theaters. Sometimes they get here, sometimes they don't play here at all.<br /><br />For example, there's a lot of buzz about Al Gore's new film, <a href="http://www.climatecrisis.net/">An Inconvenient Truth</a>. I want to go see it. In New York and Los Angeles, it came out last Wednesday. But for some reason, it won't come out here until mid- to late June! I feel so out of the loop.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20040512.post-1148710405536646322006-05-26T22:55:00.000-07:002006-05-26T23:13:25.580-07:00Wii BiasApparently Japan <a href="http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3103&Itemid=2">likes the Wii</a>. <br /><br />Umm... Duh?<br /><br />I mean, Japan tends to be more pro-Nintendo that here in America. I don't think that it's much of a surprise that the Wii is the most anticipated system there. <br /><br />What I wonder about is how anticipated it is here. If you read the internet, you would think that come october the Wii will rule the earth and no one will ever by a PS3 or a 360 again. However, I think that the games community on the internet (blogs, forums, IRC, etc) and even the community that likes to post and talk about their games tends to have a "Nintendo bias," meaning that they are more pro-Nintendo than the general gaming population. <br /><br />Because of this, any survey results in a selection bias with a slant towards Nintendo, simply because the people that are most enthusiastic and willing to answers such surveys will also tend to be more enthusiastic about Nintendo. <br /><br />For example, I think the base of games like Halo, Grand Theft Auto, and Madden tends to get underestimated in the face of games like Zelda and Mario. Obviously (according to sales) the majority of the US population supports Microsoft and Sony a lot, even more so than Nintendo.<br /><br />I'm not sure we have taken the non-rabid gamers into account. So I can't but help thinking that maybe the Wii hype has been a bit overblown. We just need to put it in perspective that the enthusiastic gaming community that writes, thinks, posts, talks, and interacts about their games is a very small part of the larger gaming community that buys and plays games, and it stops there.jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04792911513851630838noreply@blogger.com0