I'd rather TiVo link the information back to my user ID and use that information to further customize what I see, especially commercials.
What's so bad about having 2 minutes of ad's that are targeted directly to your interests? I don't give a damn about low fat yogurt or female hygine products, but I might stop and watch a commercial about a new action flick or computer game.
I really enjoy the TiVo suggestions; often, I find shows I wouldn't have seen otherwise there. Why not do the same for the advertisements I fast forward through anyway?
Use the tried and true method held dear to contractors and other hourly employees since the dawn of industry...
Overbill. If you get a call that lasts thirty minutes, bill 2 hours for it. Or four, or whatever you can get away with.
For those who cannot get away with that, the construction industry has a great way of dealing with overtime and on call for their service people. When it's a person's turn to go on call, they receive a set amount of money ($50 at the company I know most about), regardless of if they get called or not. If they do go out on a call, they still get the $50, plus they bill for the hours worked.
Maybe you and the others in this position can negotiate a flat rate like that; if the company itself won't ante up, maybe you can work a deal with your management to bill a few extra hours for on call weeks, no matter what.
If a company was going to budget 2 Mil for the game, and now has 1 Mil of ad revenue to add to the pot, they can either boost the budget (possibly making a better game) or use the now spare Mil for another well funded title.
So long as I don't have to stare at ads when I normally wouldn't, like I have to stare at the DVD warning screens, what's the problem?
If you want pre-built, check out Compaq's small form factor and slim desktop PC's. They aren't much larger than a laptop, weigh just a little more, but have a few slots for upgraded components (like video card) and are affordable.
I wouldn't say that adventure games are dying. The genre is just now catching up.
Consider - FPS were the first 'massivly multiplayer games'. Sure, we enjoy running around a map, solving puzzles and fighting battles, but does that compare to the glee elicited when graphically shredding your best friends head? A complete stranger? Who lives in another country?
I belive multiplayer gaming, in grand scale, caused the decline of adventure games. Now, look at games such as Everquest, Ultima Online and Acheron's Call... While I'm lax to call them RPGs, they hold close to the 'graphical mud' model, and are tremendously popular.
I'd like to think (quite possibly just wishfull thinking) we are seeing a new awakening of adventure games, played under the new phenomenon of the multiplayer arena.
One of the coolest projects I heard of, but was not a part of, involved psedo-AI combat. The premise was to start with an already designed 'combat' arena, where you code a robot (worm, bug, whatever it is) to fight another bot in simulations. Complexity can range from 1 on 1 to teams of bots working together against other teams, depending on the programming level of your class. After the semester / period / whatever was over, the class then shifted into a business style project, and worked as a team of developers to write a new 'arena' program. This program was then used by the next class, as their starting 'arena' to code bots for. Repeat cycle. Since the first term is about the individual, students hone their code ability. The second term is about real-world teamwork to produce an application. And everyone was much more interested, knowing they would have a legacy for the next class.
Maybe he really isn't counting on a percentage. Personally, if he said 100k was the magic mark, being a cynical geek, I'd say no way he'll make it and pass. If he said 10k, I'd be too likely to think he'll easily make the mark, and not pay. A percentage of the total is more apealing to me as a catch all, so no matter how many do it, as long as most of us pay it will continue. But who's to say King *doesn't* have a magic number? If he makes it, regardless of the percentage, he'll continue.. if not, drop it, regardless of the 'percentage'. Not like we'll ever know, for sure, how many actually paid.
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I'd rather TiVo link the information back to my user ID and use that information to further customize what I see, especially commercials.
What's so bad about having 2 minutes of ad's that are targeted directly to your interests? I don't give a damn about low fat yogurt or female hygine products, but I might stop and watch a commercial about a new action flick or computer game.
I really enjoy the TiVo suggestions; often, I find shows I wouldn't have seen otherwise there. Why not do the same for the advertisements I fast forward through anyway?
Just don't take that ability away from me.
Use the tried and true method held dear to contractors and other hourly employees since the dawn of industry...
Overbill. If you get a call that lasts thirty minutes, bill 2 hours for it. Or four, or whatever you can get away with.
For those who cannot get away with that, the construction industry has a great way of dealing with overtime and on call for their service people. When it's a person's turn to go on call, they receive a set amount of money ($50 at the company I know most about), regardless of if they get called or not. If they do go out on a call, they still get the $50, plus they bill for the hours worked.
Maybe you and the others in this position can negotiate a flat rate like that; if the company itself won't ante up, maybe you can work a deal with your management to bill a few extra hours for on call weeks, no matter what.
While it won't bring the cost on the box down...
If a company was going to budget 2 Mil for the game, and now has 1 Mil of ad revenue to add to the pot, they can either boost the budget (possibly making a better game) or use the now spare Mil for another well funded title.
So long as I don't have to stare at ads when I normally wouldn't, like I have to stare at the DVD warning screens, what's the problem?
If you want pre-built, check out Compaq's small form factor and slim desktop PC's. They aren't much larger than a laptop, weigh just a little more, but have a few slots for upgraded components (like video card) and are affordable.
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http://www.compaq.com/products/desktops/index.sht
I wouldn't say that adventure games are dying. The genre is just now catching up.
Consider - FPS were the first 'massivly multiplayer games'. Sure, we enjoy running around a map, solving puzzles and fighting battles, but does that compare to the glee elicited when graphically shredding your best friends head? A complete stranger? Who lives in another country?
I belive multiplayer gaming, in grand scale, caused the decline of adventure games. Now, look at games such as Everquest, Ultima Online and Acheron's Call... While I'm lax to call them RPGs, they hold close to the 'graphical mud' model, and are tremendously popular.
I'd like to think (quite possibly just wishfull thinking) we are seeing a new awakening of adventure games, played under the new phenomenon of the multiplayer arena.
One of the coolest projects I heard of, but was not a part of, involved psedo-AI combat. The premise was to start with an already designed 'combat' arena, where you code a robot (worm, bug, whatever it is) to fight another bot in simulations. Complexity can range from 1 on 1 to teams of bots working together against other teams, depending on the programming level of your class. After the semester / period / whatever was over, the class then shifted into a business style project, and worked as a team of developers to write a new 'arena' program. This program was then used by the next class, as their starting 'arena' to code bots for. Repeat cycle. Since the first term is about the individual, students hone their code ability. The second term is about real-world teamwork to produce an application. And everyone was much more interested, knowing they would have a legacy for the next class.
Maybe he really isn't counting on a percentage. Personally, if he said 100k was the magic mark, being a cynical geek, I'd say no way he'll make it and pass. If he said 10k, I'd be too likely to think he'll easily make the mark, and not pay. A percentage of the total is more apealing to me as a catch all, so no matter how many do it, as long as most of us pay it will continue. But who's to say King *doesn't* have a magic number? If he makes it, regardless of the percentage, he'll continue.. if not, drop it, regardless of the 'percentage'. Not like we'll ever know, for sure, how many actually paid.