I've cached for a number of years, and learned the benefits of having a quick chat with local businesses before planting full-on urban caches. Not only could it put them at ease, but it's also another group of people that would be "in the know" should someone unfamiliar with the sport panic about it.
The main thing that I found was that, in nearly all cases, local businesses were thrilled with the idea of a dedicated group of people actively travelling to an area near to their business! Many went so far as to pass a few coupons along to hide in the cache, or offer a 'cacher discount' if people mentioned the cache when paying up at the counter.
Absolutely agree - you can also hitch a bus that takes you on a driving tour around the grounds of the nearby AMARG (Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group) which is absolutely astounding just for the sheer number of planes they have resting on the grounds. Don't take my word for it either - have a look at them in google maps.
Yup - exactly the boat I'm in. I'm Canadian, and have been living in the UK for the past four years and will have to travel to one of the (very few) biometrics offices and pay an outlandish fee for the privilege when my visa comes up for renewal. They've slowed down the pushing of mandatory cards on citizens, but have no issue in trialling them on the rest of us - including foreign students, I believe.
Admitting freely that I haven't RTFA, I'll ask all the same...
Does Chrome now support Firefox-style smart bookmarks with keyword support? Currently, that's really the only thing keeping me tied to FF.
As a simple example - I keep a bookmark to dictionary.com in Firefox that I associate with a keyword 'd' which can be used to open the page directly from the address bar. The bookmark's URL definition inclues a '%s' to allow it to pick up additional parameters. The end result is that I only need to type 'd myWord' into the address bar to be taken directly to the specific page I was looking for, instead of having to first navigate to the top-level URL and kick off the search from there.
I have similar links for imdb, wikipedia, google maps... it's really convenient to skip those introductory pages.
For me, the perfect example of narration as a means of effective and immersive storytelling has to go back to the old Tex Murphy games - Under a Killing Moon, Pandora Directive & Overseer. The storylines were spectacular to begin with, but the ever-present narrator set the mood perfectly. (Another reason for their success could probably be attributed to the excellent quality of the sound production in all of their games.)
...and, purely as a rabid fan of the work the 'Tex' creators, I can't resist a chance to pitch their latest - Three Cards to Midnight was released just a few hours ago. Haven't had a chance to play it yet, but it sounds as though they've stuck to their trusted method of immersive story-driven gameplay and quality audio production. Can't wait!
I've seen a few other people mention story writing, and I'd second that whole-heartedly. My friend and I first got hooked on programming when we started writing simple 'Choose-Your-Own-Adventure' style branching games in Q-Basic (complete with sqealing PC speaker musical soundtracks).
My friend even got more sophisticated and started creating simple RPGs - random number generators with modifiers for the attacks, variables for vital character stats, etc.
They were alwasy *very* simple, but we had a great time, and learned a lot as a result of it.
As any pimply-faced 14 year old surfing the web alone in his bedroom could've told you, all it takes is your Mom unexpectedly calling your name from right outside your door to cause IE to be shut down immediately.
Star Trek was a fantastic series - heck, I enjoyed all of the runs, which is more than a lot of fans would claim - but if you want to bring back the brilliance and optimism of Roddenberry's world (FTA), you don't do it with a "when-they-were-young" storyline which would most assuredly contain:
1 - A necessarily predictable storyline, to the extent that we know who manages to pull through into their later years.
2 - Shameless references to the more familiar versions of the characters (e.g. A young Scotty trying unsuccessfully to fix a coffee machine and making references to a lack of available power OMGHILARIOUS.)
I recently picked up Oblivion, and have since been having a heck of a time deciding on birth sign / character class before exiting into the outside world. This indecision is due in large part to the fact that I know how expansive and complex the game is, and an inappropriate choice from the get-go could lead to my losing interest further along. (I never wanted to be a fighter...I always wanted to be....a LUMBERJACK!)
Now, I'm not suggesting the class concept gets tossed out the window entirely - players should still be rewarded for specializations. All I would suggest is that playing class is more greatly influenced by the style of play.
The main change I would love to see is for these games to wait a while before forcing a class choice. Many players won't know what they really want so early on - just ask any kid in a Grade 11 career counselling class. And when the time finally comes to choose a specialization, the engine should give suggestions based on past gameplay style. (You appear to have strong interests in raping, pillaging and scurvy. Have you considered all of the perks a life of piracy can offer?)
You're a Nigerian businessman who really is sitting on a big stack of money that you need to get out of the country through the help of kind and benevolent strangers, each of whom will be rewarded handsomely for their assistance.
As a Sunday gamer who gets his ass handed to him nearly every time he logs online to play against live components, I completely agree with the parent. I enjoy FPSs very much, but have no delusions concerning my level of expertise comparative to the average player.
I tend to dedicate myself almost entirely to the SP campaigns, one of the reasons being that I enjoy taking a slow stealth approach to these games. Part of the fun in many SP campaigns comes from the fact that the enemies are not actively looking for you at the start of the mission - they're doing their rounds, they're sneaking off on coffee breaks... They don't know you exist.
However, I love the idea of more intelligent opponents - as others, I always think back fondly to the HL marines. I just want them to be intelligent and realistic for the setting, which may be too much to ask.
Slashdot Mirror
It was Wetherby Shambles (GC2H9A2 - login required).
There's quite an interesting discussion thread on the topic at the Geocaching Forums as well.
I've cached for a number of years, and learned the benefits of having a quick chat with local businesses before planting full-on urban caches. Not only could it put them at ease, but it's also another group of people that would be "in the know" should someone unfamiliar with the sport panic about it.
The main thing that I found was that, in nearly all cases, local businesses were thrilled with the idea of a dedicated group of people actively travelling to an area near to their business! Many went so far as to pass a few coupons along to hide in the cache, or offer a 'cacher discount' if people mentioned the cache when paying up at the counter.
Yeah, but just wait for the remake!
Oh for... here's the correct link.
Absolutely agree - you can also hitch a bus that takes you on a driving tour around the grounds of the nearby AMARG (Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group) which is absolutely astounding just for the sheer number of planes they have resting on the grounds. Don't take my word for it either - have a look at them in google maps.
Could we put them all on the 'B' Ark.
An excellent idea, and no time like the present - the bath water's nice and warm....
Yup - exactly the boat I'm in. I'm Canadian, and have been living in the UK for the past four years and will have to travel to one of the (very few) biometrics offices and pay an outlandish fee for the privilege when my visa comes up for renewal. They've slowed down the pushing of mandatory cards on citizens, but have no issue in trialling them on the rest of us - including foreign students, I believe.
Admitting freely that I haven't RTFA, I'll ask all the same...
Does Chrome now support Firefox-style smart bookmarks with keyword support? Currently, that's really the only thing keeping me tied to FF.
As a simple example - I keep a bookmark to dictionary.com in Firefox that I associate with a keyword 'd' which can be used to open the page directly from the address bar. The bookmark's URL definition inclues a '%s' to allow it to pick up additional parameters. The end result is that I only need to type 'd myWord' into the address bar to be taken directly to the specific page I was looking for, instead of having to first navigate to the top-level URL and kick off the search from there.
I have similar links for imdb, wikipedia, google maps... it's really convenient to skip those introductory pages.
For me, the perfect example of narration as a means of effective and immersive storytelling has to go back to the old Tex Murphy games - Under a Killing Moon, Pandora Directive & Overseer. The storylines were spectacular to begin with, but the ever-present narrator set the mood perfectly. (Another reason for their success could probably be attributed to the excellent quality of the sound production in all of their games.)
...and, purely as a rabid fan of the work the 'Tex' creators, I can't resist a chance to pitch their latest - Three Cards to Midnight was released just a few hours ago. Haven't had a chance to play it yet, but it sounds as though they've stuck to their trusted method of immersive story-driven gameplay and quality audio production. Can't wait!
I don't believe it.
...the horror adventure game Three Cards To Midnight by the people who made the Tex Murphy games...
Holy hell, WHAT?! Why wasn't I informed of this sooner? Someone's getting their ass fired over this one.
(Incidentally, thanks. You've just made my day.)
I've seen a few other people mention story writing, and I'd second that whole-heartedly. My friend and I first got hooked on programming when we started writing simple 'Choose-Your-Own-Adventure' style branching games in Q-Basic (complete with sqealing PC speaker musical soundtracks).
My friend even got more sophisticated and started creating simple RPGs - random number generators with modifiers for the attacks, variables for vital character stats, etc. They were alwasy *very* simple, but we had a great time, and learned a lot as a result of it.
Not to be confused with the hippest place in the universe, a title still held by Zaphod Beeblebrox's left cranium.
Eh, big deal.
Web videos have been showing off the wonders of biology for years.
Because a billion means different things depending on where you live.
Six words? Please.
As any pimply-faced 14 year old surfing the web alone in his bedroom could've told you, all it takes is your Mom unexpectedly calling your name from right outside your door to cause IE to be shut down immediately.
Intern Loses 800,000 Social Security Numbers, 1 Internship
Fixed it for you.
Seriously.
...okay.
Quit it.
Star Trek was a fantastic series - heck, I enjoyed all of the runs, which is more than a lot of fans would claim - but if you want to bring back the brilliance and optimism of Roddenberry's world (FTA), you don't do it with a "when-they-were-young" storyline which would most assuredly contain:
1 - A necessarily predictable storyline, to the extent that we know who manages to pull through into their later years.
2 - Shameless references to the more familiar versions of the characters (e.g. A young Scotty trying unsuccessfully to fix a coffee machine and making references to a lack of available power OMGHILARIOUS.)
So yes.
Stop it.
Okay?
I absolutely agree.
I recently picked up Oblivion, and have since been having a heck of a time deciding on birth sign / character class before exiting into the outside world. This indecision is due in large part to the fact that I know how expansive and complex the game is, and an inappropriate choice from the get-go could lead to my losing interest further along. (I never wanted to be a fighter...I always wanted to be....a LUMBERJACK!)
Now, I'm not suggesting the class concept gets tossed out the window entirely - players should still be rewarded for specializations. All I would suggest is that playing class is more greatly influenced by the style of play.
The main change I would love to see is for these games to wait a while before forcing a class choice. Many players won't know what they really want so early on - just ask any kid in a Grade 11 career counselling class. And when the time finally comes to choose a specialization, the engine should give suggestions based on past gameplay style. (You appear to have strong interests in raping, pillaging and scurvy. Have you considered all of the perks a life of piracy can offer?)Didn't expect that.
You're a Nigerian businessman who really is sitting on a big stack of money that you need to get out of the country through the help of kind and benevolent strangers, each of whom will be rewarded handsomely for their assistance.
As a Sunday gamer who gets his ass handed to him nearly every time he logs online to play against live components, I completely agree with the parent. I enjoy FPSs very much, but have no delusions concerning my level of expertise comparative to the average player.
I tend to dedicate myself almost entirely to the SP campaigns, one of the reasons being that I enjoy taking a slow stealth approach to these games. Part of the fun in many SP campaigns comes from the fact that the enemies are not actively looking for you at the start of the mission - they're doing their rounds, they're sneaking off on coffee breaks... They don't know you exist.
However, I love the idea of more intelligent opponents - as others, I always think back fondly to the HL marines. I just want them to be intelligent and realistic for the setting, which may be too much to ask.
...unless you've found out my details somewhere and are having me on, that's hilarious:
University of Victoria, Comp.Eng., class of 2003.
Some things never change.Sir, I'll have you know that Halliburton E-Voting & VLT Analysis Corp. fought a hard battle to win that contract.