About three years ago I got to check out the Nuvomedia and their "Rocket eBook" (as it was known then) at the BookExpo America. Sure the screen had above-average resolution, but the device itself was about the weight (and size/shape) of a brick.
Also, about the same time I was getting into AvantGo on my Visor (which I still use btw) so I asked the eBook rep what the Rocket eBook had that my Palm didn't. She couldn't give me a solid answer, besides "the screen is bigger" and "you can download books to it over the phone" (whoop-dee-doo). Then she would change the subject by playing goofy "South Park" sounds on the eBook's speaker (books need speakers). I saw her use the "SouthPark" technique, so there wasn't much there.
Interesting sidenote - it turned out the NYC ooffices of Nuvomedia / Rocket eBook were just two doors down from my (then) employer - so I was able to con them into loaning me one of the ebooks for a week (we were "thinking" about putting our web site's content on the eBook - but had no such plans because it turned out Nuvomedia was making its money by charging an arm and a leg to convert content to eBook format). Long story short - the device sat on my cubicle shelf for a week.
Later, when Gemstar (TV Guide?) inexplicably bought Nuvomedia / Rocket eBook my only thought was "are they crazy." Obviously, some TV Guide bigwig decided that they need to get "in" on the digital media revolution, and the eBook was their ticket.
I still don't see a market for the eBook reader...not when we've got AvantGo and Plucker to fill up our Palms' memory. And now most Palm devices can play goofy South Park sounds too!
After a false start with Teach Yourself Java in 21 Days *shudder* I got into programming with Beginning Programming for Dummies (Wallace Wang - 1999 Edition).
The book introduces a lot of great programming topics using QBasic - mainly because QBasic was freely available with every Windows 98 distribution. It's the lowest common denominator of MS programming. Not sure if this is the case with Windows XP (seeing as XP isn't DOS, probably not).
The best part about the book is that the author places snippets of C and Java code throughout the book - so you can get an idea of where you're headed.
Of course, what it doesn't do is teach you how to program anything more than example programs - no "serious" applications. But why would you want to in QBasic? On the other hand, there seems to be a small but active community of QBasic programmers on the Net.
My initial reaction was "this guy is a big-time loser." But then I thought about his story a little more deeply...
First of all, his failiure in Real Life was probably inevitable - after all, it is fairly clear from the article that his AO addiction followed his failiure, not the other way around. He encountered failure, and chose to escape it through online gaming.
Considering this, his situation is actually very similar - almost identical - to thousands (millions?) of other Americans - except that in his case you substitute
"watches daytime TV all day"
"is drunk of his ass all day"
"sends spam emails all day"
with
"plays a MMORPG all 7 hours a day."
Therefore, you have to recognize that at the very least his chosen activity is on the whole a positive, not negative, force. Sure, as its not helping him improve his Real Life (not yet anyway), but at least he is enriching others' lives through his contribution to AO. He's helping to make the game more enjoyable for dozens, hundreds or thousands of other people - therefore having a positive impact on people around him, however small.
If more unemployed disillusioned types played online games all day instead of getting drunk and beating their kids, America might actually be a slightly better place.
Fatter and pastier skinned, yes, but still slightly better.
Yes but if one's Charisma is 15 or higher, than one doesn't need high intelligence or wisdom because their retainer (a level 5 fighter) will be so loyal that he will watch one's back all the time!
Camping is when someone stays in the same spot from a few seconds after spawn till the round ends. HUGE difference...
Whenever I played counter-strike cautiously - i.e finding a good hiding place and sneaking up an people - I would get hit with a torrent of insults such as "c@mper" and "f@g." Your definition On the vast majority of servers, players who don't "rushrushrush GO!" but instead stake out the objective points are lambasted as "campers."
I did find one server - [TOC] - their motto was "camping is a strategy." Anybody who complained about camping too much was actually kicked! Of course, their server had an average of 4 players online at peak hours (6 if you were lucky) which shows how much CS players value this style of gaming.
The BBC article about the British army experimenting with counterstrike is interesting, actually a pretty good counter-argument. However, keep in mind that they are approaching the game as diciplined soldiers, not "733t Cyb3r N!nj@ 007" types. So naturally they are going to use more diciplined, conservative real world tactics in the game - the kind of tactics that most hard core CSers would scoff at.
Plus their mod has a one-hit-kills policy: all awp all the time. Sounds like a MUCH different game from typical CS - in which anyone using the one-shot kill weapon is derided as a "awp whore."
The concept of "rushing to crucial location" is not an uncommon one in many different sports - my opinion is that CSers will not have any advantage over non-CSers in this area.
The real question is: what happens when they arrive at the rushed-to location. Someone emulating CS tactics will immediately see an enemy and start shooting...and then find themselves tattooed from several different directions.
I also think "CSers" would be used to team work and know where to look for them damn campers...
Nothing personal at all...but this is the attitude that drove me away from counterstrike. CS is advertised as this "realism mod" but the tactics used by most public server players are anything but. But people who use cautious strategies (from what I understand - how the game was intended) on public servers get chastised and sometimes even banned! Particularly if you use the awp, which exists (again, from what I understand) to prevent unrealistic gung-ho rushes.
Meanwhile, most paintball games consist of people creeping around taking aimed shots at people - i.e. "camping." In good games, the volume of fire is very little. Rushing positions - "bunkering" - is extremely risky and in my experience paintball newbs (myself included) don't have the guts to do it.
As far as teamwork...My experience with paintball has been that "teamwork" is much less important than having good technique - knowing how to stay under cover, how to choose and fire good shots, etc.
Meanwhile, the only instances where I have seen teamwork implemented in CS is through the use of voice chat. Unfortunately, it is impossible for this to carry over to PB because you don't get headsets in most fields.
Talking loudly (or yelling) is usually not a viable option in most situations (first, they'll hear you; second, you'll give away your plan). You basically have to learn hand-signals, so now we're out of the world of CS.
Perhaps CSers would have a better concept of "team play?" I don't agree with this either. PB is much more like a traditional team sport than a FBS game. Anyone who has played soccer or football is going to have a big advantage over those with only CS experience. (Of course, anyone with military training would have an advantage over both).
My point is this: "733t" players who dash around CS maps raking up headshots will probably be the first to get tagged if they take their online tactics to the PB field.
The "obsessed CS fans" who are behind this field are in for a suprise.
("Speedball" is different but that's certianly not the kind of course they're building (I presume it will be bigger than a basketball court). And on such as small field the 733t counterstrike players are going to be killed even MORE quickly.)
The only situation where I think a CSer would have an advantage is in a pb game against someone who had no FPS or shooting or "combat game" experience at all. But that is pretty obvious.
Granted. But the headline is "play counter strike for real" and supposedly they will be running around in costume versions of the CT and Terrorist skins (?)
Plus some other posters *are* implying that CS skills and strategies are transferable.
Crossmap headshots ("snipping") is nearly impossible with paintguns. At long range, the paint loses velocity and won't break.
The other common cs tactic is shooting at point blank range...which is a BIG paintball no-no. Most fields require that you yell out "surrender!" instead...but years of CS makes for an itchy trigger finger.
And let's not even think about all the broken legs as people try to jump down ramps, etc...
Finally, the "rushing" tactic so common in CS is suicide in PB. No lag to save you during the sudden encounters that ensue. Winning requires MUCH different tactics (accurate shooting, stealth, knowing how to take cover, etc).
And at most fields *any* hit disqualifies you. You get hit on the back heal of your shoe and you're out. (Of course, you can "remedy" this by becoming a "wiper" - something that the vast majority of CS players will do I'm sure).
Indeed, hard-core CSers with no PB experience are in for a shock. The skills are NOT transferable.
On the other hand...maybe the field will set up a "variant" with weird CS inspired rules (only chest and headshots kill, for example). But then, people who actually want to do something lame like that might as well join a "heavy weapons" SCA club or something.
Ah, but how many american youths actually play little league? I was thinking just "catch" (i.e. two people one ball) which is far more common (or at least used to be).
Also, 10 year-old kids chawing tobaccy? Yech. Not unheard of though.
With medicine, an artificial restriction on the supply of doctors keeps their salaries high. It's still tough as hell to get into, but once you're in, there IS no competition.
Not really a fair comparison...presumedly, those governing bodies are *primarily* there to maintain some standards of competence - keeping the Dr. Nick Rivieras ("Hi everybody!") out of medicine.
Please don't take this the wrong way...it is an interesting theory, one which gave me a real head-trip when I first heard it...but it has been disproven from primary sources:
Q) What color are Asuka's eyes at the end of the film? And, is the person at the end of the film actually a combination of Asuka, Rei, and Misato? Is she, Shinji's 'perfect woman'?"
A) This perposterous theory has been around for a while now, but it was never as popular as it is now. Asuka's eyes are blue, not brown, at the end of the film.
As you can see, her eye is clearly blue (somewhat greyish, but this is because of the color tones/lighting of the scene - it is night afterall).
And further, no - the person on the shore with Shinji is Asuka and Asuka only. Shinji rejected Human Complementation Project, and as such he has no control over whatever happens next. He is an ordinary boy. Yui says that anyone who can "imagine themselves in their own hear" can come back, on their own. Apparently, Asuka is one of those people. A person with the will to live. A combination of people is impossible outside of the Complementation project that Shinji rejected.
Read through the rest of the linked FAQ. The author draws upon official Gainax materials for his answers, such as official trading cards, sourcebooks, and so on. He even has information on the missing live-action sequence that was originally supposed to be in EoE. Interesting stuff.
(On the other hand, Anno has been quoted as saying that each individual brings their own meaning to Evangelion...so if you choose to believe the "Shinji's perfect women" theory, he probably wouldn't mind.)
The Ask John over at Animenation.com has a few interesting short essays about the meaning of Evangelion and observations on the strong impact it has on its fans:
Well, this little "flame-war," as you AC troll fags call them, was interesting...but now I've grown bored. Think I will go read my collection of Love Hina manga, vols 1-10 to unwind!
Yay! I was able to sink down to a pathetic AC troll's level! I never thought it would be possible.
I also just had a revelation...anime is nothing but an endless loop of pedophilia and tentacle-rape scenes. Wow, these trolls have great insight! I have become a better man! Thanks!
That's why I am hoping this movie doesn't get made...I have been working really hard in the last year to develop more interests besides Evangelion/anime in general. After a while I just got sick of the whole thing.
Slashdot Mirror
They should just get one of the systems guys to go in and smack the server a few times - problem solved!
And the fun part is that I used Google to find it Slashdot search sux0rz :P
Correct link to the PW article about Gemstar purchasing Nuvomedia:
Later, when Gemstar (TV Guide?) inexplicably bought Nuvomedia / Rocket eBook my only thought was "are they crazy?"
About three years ago I got to check out the Nuvomedia and their "Rocket eBook" (as it was known then) at the BookExpo America. Sure the screen had above-average resolution, but the device itself was about the weight (and size/shape) of a brick.
Also, about the same time I was getting into AvantGo on my Visor (which I still use btw) so I asked the eBook rep what the Rocket eBook had that my Palm didn't. She couldn't give me a solid answer, besides "the screen is bigger" and "you can download books to it over the phone" (whoop-dee-doo). Then she would change the subject by playing goofy "South Park" sounds on the eBook's speaker (books need speakers). I saw her use the "SouthPark" technique, so there wasn't much there.
Interesting sidenote - it turned out the NYC ooffices of Nuvomedia / Rocket eBook were just two doors down from my (then) employer - so I was able to con them into loaning me one of the ebooks for a week (we were "thinking" about putting our web site's content on the eBook - but had no such plans because it turned out Nuvomedia was making its money by charging an arm and a leg to convert content to eBook format). Long story short - the device sat on my cubicle shelf for a week.
Later that year they released the eBook for sale nationwide - complete with a promient point-of-sale display at Barnes and Noble stores...but several months later sales were so low that they didn't even release the figures to the public.
Later, when Gemstar (TV Guide?) inexplicably bought Nuvomedia / Rocket eBook my only thought was "are they crazy." Obviously, some TV Guide bigwig decided that they need to get "in" on the digital media revolution, and the eBook was their ticket.
I still don't see a market for the eBook reader...not when we've got AvantGo and Plucker to fill up our Palms' memory. And now most Palm devices can play goofy South Park sounds too!
1) Is Jar-Jar's race in this game?
2) Is xenocide allowed?
If so, $50 + $14.95/mo is a bargain!
I can see it now: Gungan_Killah
After a false start with Teach Yourself Java in 21 Days *shudder* I got into programming with Beginning Programming for Dummies (Wallace Wang - 1999 Edition).
:)
The book introduces a lot of great programming topics using QBasic - mainly because QBasic was freely available with every Windows 98 distribution. It's the lowest common denominator of MS programming. Not sure if this is the case with Windows XP (seeing as XP isn't DOS, probably not).
The best part about the book is that the author places snippets of C and Java code throughout the book - so you can get an idea of where you're headed.
Of course, what it doesn't do is teach you how to program anything more than example programs - no "serious" applications. But why would you want to in QBasic? On the other hand, there seems to be a small but active community of QBasic programmers on the Net.
Anyway, you can pick up a used copy real cheep at half.com (I'm keeping mine tho
First of all, his failiure in Real Life was probably inevitable - after all, it is fairly clear from the article that his AO addiction followed his failiure, not the other way around. He encountered failure, and chose to escape it through online gaming.
Considering this, his situation is actually very similar - almost identical - to thousands (millions?) of other Americans - except that in his case you substitute
"watches daytime TV all day"
"is drunk of his ass all day"
"sends spam emails all day"
with
"plays a MMORPG all 7 hours a day."
Therefore, you have to recognize that at the very least his chosen activity is on the whole a positive, not negative, force. Sure, as its not helping him improve his Real Life (not yet anyway), but at least he is enriching others' lives through his contribution to AO. He's helping to make the game more enjoyable for dozens, hundreds or thousands of other people - therefore having a positive impact on people around him, however small.
If more unemployed disillusioned types played online games all day instead of getting drunk and beating their kids, America might actually be a slightly better place.
Fatter and pastier skinned, yes, but still slightly better.
Yes but if one's Charisma is 15 or higher, than one doesn't need high intelligence or wisdom because their retainer (a level 5 fighter) will be so loyal that he will watch one's back all the time!
It's mmm-mmm good! (tm)
Camping is when someone stays in the same spot from a few seconds after spawn till the round ends. HUGE difference...
Whenever I played counter-strike cautiously - i.e finding a good hiding place and sneaking up an people - I would get hit with a torrent of insults such as "c@mper" and "f@g." Your definition On the vast majority of servers, players who don't "rushrushrush GO!" but instead stake out the objective points are lambasted as "campers."
I did find one server - [TOC] - their motto was "camping is a strategy." Anybody who complained about camping too much was actually kicked! Of course, their server had an average of 4 players online at peak hours (6 if you were lucky) which shows how much CS players value this style of gaming.
The BBC article about the British army experimenting with counterstrike is interesting, actually a pretty good counter-argument. However, keep in mind that they are approaching the game as diciplined soldiers, not "733t Cyb3r N!nj@ 007" types. So naturally they are going to use more diciplined, conservative real world tactics in the game - the kind of tactics that most hard core CSers would scoff at.
Plus their mod has a one-hit-kills policy: all awp all the time. Sounds like a MUCH different game from typical CS - in which anyone using the one-shot kill weapon is derided as a "awp whore."
The concept of "rushing to crucial location" is not an uncommon one in many different sports - my opinion is that CSers will not have any advantage over non-CSers in this area.
The real question is: what happens when they arrive at the rushed-to location. Someone emulating CS tactics will immediately see an enemy and start shooting...and then find themselves tattooed from several different directions.
I also think "CSers" would be used to team work and know where to look for them damn campers...
Nothing personal at all...but this is the attitude that drove me away from counterstrike. CS is advertised as this "realism mod" but the tactics used by most public server players are anything but. But people who use cautious strategies (from what I understand - how the game was intended) on public servers get chastised and sometimes even banned! Particularly if you use the awp, which exists (again, from what I understand) to prevent unrealistic gung-ho rushes.
Meanwhile, most paintball games consist of people creeping around taking aimed shots at people - i.e. "camping." In good games, the volume of fire is very little. Rushing positions - "bunkering" - is extremely risky and in my experience paintball newbs (myself included) don't have the guts to do it.
As far as teamwork...My experience with paintball has been that "teamwork" is much less important than having good technique - knowing how to stay under cover, how to choose and fire good shots, etc.
Meanwhile, the only instances where I have seen teamwork implemented in CS is through the use of voice chat. Unfortunately, it is impossible for this to carry over to PB because you don't get headsets in most fields.
Talking loudly (or yelling) is usually not a viable option in most situations (first, they'll hear you; second, you'll give away your plan). You basically have to learn hand-signals, so now we're out of the world of CS.
Perhaps CSers would have a better concept of "team play?" I don't agree with this either. PB is much more like a traditional team sport than a FBS game. Anyone who has played soccer or football is going to have a big advantage over those with only CS experience. (Of course, anyone with military training would have an advantage over both).
My point is this: "733t" players who dash around CS maps raking up headshots will probably be the first to get tagged if they take their online tactics to the PB field.
The "obsessed CS fans" who are behind this field are in for a suprise.
("Speedball" is different but that's certianly not the kind of course they're building (I presume it will be bigger than a basketball court). And on such as small field the 733t counterstrike players are going to be killed even MORE quickly.)
The only situation where I think a CSer would have an advantage is in a pb game against someone who had no FPS or shooting or "combat game" experience at all. But that is pretty obvious.
Granted. But the headline is "play counter strike for real" and supposedly they will be running around in costume versions of the CT and Terrorist skins (?)
Plus some other posters *are* implying that CS skills and strategies are transferable.
Plus I friggin hate counter strike.
Let's think about this for a second...
Crossmap headshots ("snipping") is nearly impossible with paintguns. At long range, the paint loses velocity and won't break.
The other common cs tactic is shooting at point blank range...which is a BIG paintball no-no. Most fields require that you yell out "surrender!" instead...but years of CS makes for an itchy trigger finger.
And let's not even think about all the broken legs as people try to jump down ramps, etc...
Finally, the "rushing" tactic so common in CS is suicide in PB. No lag to save you during the sudden encounters that ensue. Winning requires MUCH different tactics (accurate shooting, stealth, knowing how to take cover, etc).
And at most fields *any* hit disqualifies you. You get hit on the back heal of your shoe and you're out. (Of course, you can "remedy" this by becoming a "wiper" - something that the vast majority of CS players will do I'm sure).
Indeed, hard-core CSers with no PB experience are in for a shock. The skills are NOT transferable.
On the other hand...maybe the field will set up a "variant" with weird CS inspired rules (only chest and headshots kill, for example). But then, people who actually want to do something lame like that might as well join a "heavy weapons" SCA club or something.
But at least while you're fat you'll be able to keep track of five food dishes on the dinner table at once!
Ah, but how many american youths actually play little league? I was thinking just "catch" (i.e. two people one ball) which is far more common (or at least used to be).
Also, 10 year-old kids chawing tobaccy? Yech. Not unheard of though.
What else improves hand-eye coordination and tracking skills? Playing catch outside, perhaps?
Huh? What's that? Tracking 5 objects at once, you say?
Er, nevermind...
With medicine, an artificial restriction on the supply of doctors keeps their salaries high. It's still tough as hell to get into, but once you're in, there IS no competition.
Not really a fair comparison...presumedly, those governing bodies are *primarily* there to maintain some standards of competence - keeping the Dr. Nick Rivieras ("Hi everybody!") out of medicine.
A better contrasting example would be to the trade unions in this country that pump up janitor's salaries to $60k-$120k a year.
Can't bear the thought of their Little Girl discarding the (presumably) upper middle-class existence that they worked so hard to obtain.
You're also assuming they worked for it.
IT'S CALLED "SARCASM."
Read the context of the post before you waste your mod points.
Please don't take this the wrong way...it is an interesting theory, one which gave me a real head-trip when I first heard it...but it has been disproven from primary sources:
n 11
From the EvaOtaku web site:
http://www.evaotaku.com/html/evafaq2.html#questio
Q) What color are Asuka's eyes at the end of the film? And, is the person at the end of the film actually a combination of Asuka, Rei, and Misato? Is she, Shinji's 'perfect woman'?"
A) This perposterous theory has been around for a while now, but it was never as popular as it is now. Asuka's eyes are blue, not brown, at the end of the film.
This is a scan of the Cardass Wide Card for the scene in question:
http://www.evaotaku.com/other/IneedYou.jpg
As you can see, her eye is clearly blue (somewhat greyish, but this is because of the color tones/lighting of the scene - it is night afterall).
And further, no - the person on the shore with Shinji is Asuka and Asuka only. Shinji rejected Human Complementation Project, and as such he has no control over whatever happens next. He is an ordinary boy. Yui says that anyone who can "imagine themselves in their own hear" can come back, on their own. Apparently, Asuka is one of those people. A person with the will to live. A combination of people is impossible outside of the Complementation project that Shinji rejected.
Read through the rest of the linked FAQ. The author draws upon official Gainax materials for his answers, such as official trading cards, sourcebooks, and so on. He even has information on the missing live-action sequence that was originally supposed to be in EoE. Interesting stuff.
(On the other hand, Anno has been quoted as saying that each individual brings their own meaning to Evangelion...so if you choose to believe the "Shinji's perfect women" theory, he probably wouldn't mind.)
The Ask John over at Animenation.com has a few interesting short essays about the meaning of Evangelion and observations on the strong impact it has on its fans:
Can You Explain the Meaning of Evangelion?
Why is Evangelion so Popular?
Can You Explain the Final Episode of Eva to Me?
Full archive of Ask John questions. Fun read for anime fans.
Well, this little "flame-war," as you AC troll fags call them, was interesting...but now I've grown bored. Think I will go read my collection of Love Hina manga, vols 1-10 to unwind!
Blah blah blah you are a stupid head!
Yay! I was able to sink down to a pathetic AC troll's level! I never thought it would be possible.
I also just had a revelation...anime is nothing but an endless loop of pedophilia and tentacle-rape scenes. Wow, these trolls have great insight! I have become a better man! Thanks!
Now to find a boob to grab...
Lets just hope that this doesn't end up like the terrible G-Saviour Gundam Live Action Movie.
Or RobotJox...*shudder*
You're right, I don't have a life.
That's why I am hoping this movie doesn't get made...I have been working really hard in the last year to develop more interests besides Evangelion/anime in general. After a while I just got sick of the whole thing.