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What do you call YOUR A Drive?

I call it 'A Drive'.

But everybody I know seems to call it '3 and a half inch floppy'.

"Open your 3 and a half inch floppy" for instance. Which sounds wrong on two levels.

I would jump on the bandwagon, but I am afraid the bandwagon is full of idiocy.

What do YOU call YOUR A Drive?

1.

This
2. This
3. This
4. This
5. This
6. This
7. This
8. This
9. This
10. And this

[/list]

I guess this just reminds me how much I love you, and how I value you as a spy friend.

A friend.

From John Romero to David Henry, tell us all about your favourite ASSHOLES from the gaming industry!

John Romero is a John Romero.

David Henry is a moron that was on the Crimson Skies team, that may or may not be an actual moron, but comes across as being an extreme moron. Man, what a moron.

I was organising the development schedule of Luna yesterday and, as I was arranging milestones, something struck me.

Who the hell cares?

I mean, I could set a milestone, and tell myself that I'm going to stick by it and that the team is going to stick by it. But really, what incentive is there to stick to it? The reason milestones work in the game industry is because the developer has to show the publisher that yes, they're working on the game and yes, everything is going to schedule. But unless you have a team of extremely dedicated people with a lot of time on their hands, that's not going to work in the amateur game industry, where we have nobody to look up to and fear.

Which is where I got an idea. I grabbed a pen and paper. Then, I went to get something to eat. Then I left the pen and paper and started typing instead.


What if Amateur Adventure Developers could get publishers? It could give Amateur Developers a whole new incentive. It would help publicize amateur games, and-- okay, who are the publishers?

Let's take, for example, Penny Arcade. A famous gaming and comic website. Now, let's take the FoY development team for example. Screen 7 ask Penny Arcade to publicize their game. Now, for PA to agree to this, they're going to want to see that a) the game is going to be good b) their audiences are going to like it and c) they're not going to be advertising a title that's going to go dead after a few weeks of empty promises. If artists or something are needed for the project, PA can advertise for them. If Mark wants fully animated cutscenes, PA can advertise for animators to volunteer for the project. PA basically supports the project (obviously I don't mean FUNDS the project). In exchange, Mark must make sure the FoY team stick to the set milestones and that the game is released on schedule, and also FoY is 'published' by PA, in that PA get to claim a certain amount of credit by sticking their logo somewhere in the game.

Okay, so, long and complicated description there. But basically, Amateur Publishing could benefit both sides of the agreement (admittedly, mostly the developer).

It could benefit the developer by;

1. Giving the Project Leader and the Team an incentive to work consistently.
2. Helping to find animators/programmers/other resources.
3. Helping to release the game to a wider audience
4. Promoting adventure games, and amateur adventure games.

It could benefit the publisher by;

1. Making them known as a site that's 'supporting the arts'
2. Being able to stick their logo in the games, and getting their name known as publishers of certain games.
3. Probably other stuff I haven't thought of?

It was just a wild, and probably stupid idea I had, that I'm going to regret telling you about later.

But, it's worth thinking about. Especially for people like the FoY team, or the Rise of the Hidden Sun team, who are aiming for more professional-looking finished games.

Comments?

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/04/23/news_6094471.html

Among those 'let go' was Sean Clarke.

Sigh.

I'm doing my Mom's college computer project my college computer project, and it needs to be in by Tuesday, but I'm leaving this evening until Wednesday, so really it needs to be done today.

I'm a little stuck.

Seems that my Mom I fall asleep during ECDL class, so she I have no idea what to do. I have completed most of the project since this morning... the Microsoft Word part, which I am familiar with. However, I'm stuck as regards Mail Merge. I have never used it, or been taught how to use it, and I've never heard of it or had any need to use it.

Here's the question;

Write a database as a data source for the above document, which consists of six different lecturers. The information of the database to be stored, for each lecturer, is:

Title
First name
Last name
College
Department
Address
Specialist.

[/i]


Could somebody please, please, PLEASE begin to explain to me what the hell I'm supposed to do?

Hey, I was just wandering around the internet aimlessly and I came across this:

http://www.2wdh.com/~dota/images/3d_billy_front.jpg

It's a character I drew, ages ago, for somebody... rendered in 3D!!! By somebody else!

It feels almost sexual! Definitely not worth starting a topic for, though. What was I thinking?!?

But yet it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

They say adventure games are dead. Some say they committed suicide. Some say they are dormant, sleeping, like dragons from a Terry Pratchett book. Or something like that, anyway.

Well, I'm doing a little bit of research, and there's some stuff you might be able to help me with. Because we are such good friends.

1. When you hear the term "adventure game", what do you think? Point n' Click in 256 colours? Keyboard Controlled with 3D enviroments such as Grim? Or Lara Croft? What's the first, and most familiar/comfortable image that springs to mind when you hear that term?

2. What do you think are absolute neseccities for a game to fall into the adventure genre? I mean, is an adventure game the same without a Point n' Click interface? Is a keyboard control system as good as a mouse control system?

3. Name the current developers/publishers of Adventure Games that you know, and the titles they've released/are working on in the past three years.

4. Name your top five adventure games of all time.

Hello my name is ivan u erased me of your msn I dont know what did i do but i only know that i want to be your friend Ok.
And wait me Im gonna send you new emails about me
I really want your frienship...

Hi!!!
I cannot live separated of you and I cannot forget your way to speak... but I... cannot live so distant of you.... You are so perfect!!!!!!!
I need you.....
And I think i love You!!

I dead if i dont see you one more time
I dont know what happen with me
Im really in love of you

Haaaaaaaa ha ha ha.

If I deleted this guy of MSN, I certainly don't remember it.

Do you suppose he might be overreacting a little?

No matter how much I listen to the FT soundtrack, I can't make out the Lyrics to the three songs: Hammerin' it Up, Born Bad and Full Throttle.

Anybody else know where I can find the lyrics, or maybe you know them?

[EXCEPT THIS]

On Wednesday I traveled there via Train to get my passport. I've left it a little late; I'm traveling on the 1st of April (no joke there). I was going to pay the extra E25 and get it on the same day, except I forgot there was a postal strike, and the queues stretched from the waiting room in the Passport Office, to halfway across Trinity College Grounds. Luckily I arrived early, and was only number 140 in the queue.

After three hours of waiting, I was called in to cubicle 1. It was exactly like a toilet cubicle, except imagine that there's this old guy staring at you instead of a toilet.

"Hi." I said.

"Now, let's see if all your documents are here." He flipped through an inch of papers. I stood there, fidgeting annoyingly, for ten minutes, until he passed some papers back through to me.

"Excellent. Everything is in order. EXCEPT THIS!!" He yelled, with unnecessary force, and pointed to part of the Application Form. I jumped back with a start, and fell backwards out of the swinging cubicle door. A group of people gathered quickly out of concern, which was, actually nosiness concealed by mock concern as I picked myself up and returned to the cubicle. Maybe that didn't actually happen.

"What seems to be the problem?" I asked.

"It says you need your Parents' Marriage Certificate. But you don't have it here."

"That's fine. My parents weren't married."

"Your parents weren't married." He echoed. "Well then, I'm afraid I can't issue you with a passport."

"That's ridiculous."

"Unless you give me their marriage certificate, I can't issue you with a passport."

"Are you saying I can't have a passport, because my parents aren't married?"

"Yes."

ARHGAHRGHHARGHAHRGAHRAHRGAHRGHARGHARGH.

All is not lost! The fight goes on! You have a chance to redeem yourself with the extra-life that brought Grim down in the first place!

That's right! By clicking the cleverly hyperlinked "extra life" on the first paragraph, you'll be transported to STRAIGHT TO THE VOTING PAGE! Like MAGIC!

We could still win! Batman may not have been lying! Skinkie may yet keep his head!

And this time, when I say vote 500 times each, I really mean it.

Looky what I found while replaying Full Throttle.




Very hard to read. Perhaps you could decipher them. All I know is that Tim digs chicks who talk about their SOMETHING exploits on the radio, and Larry is the one with the SOMETHING hair? Chez/Chaz was Scanboy... Collette and Steve are fugitives on the... lamb in europe? And Someone is always happy.... I hope she isn't dangerous...

I love this sort of guff.

If Grim Fandango wins this round, I will post a picture of myself in a bikini. Or at least, that's the word that's flying around MIRC at the moment.

But enough promises already! Vote Grimin the gamespy title fight now! It needs 1000 more votes, but if every person here and on all the other places I posted votes 50 times, that'll be no problem! Heck, I voted 100 times! It's not cheating per se, because Grim Fandango deserves to win.

And if you're still not convinced, check out this cute little kid with tousled hair that will be CRYING if Grim Fandango loses.

That child is Tim.

Go! Go now! Vote Grim, 500 times!!! We can still win!

Today was the TOTAL FINALS of the Mini Company Competition and... well, I got prize for Most Innovative Company. Hurray for Beyond Reality! We totally screwed those candle making companies over!

There was this really in-depth and interesting and revealing interview with me, conducted by the awesome Rachel Chall. There are a lot of questions answered, like "Why do you talk so much" for instance, but I'll let you see it for yourself.

Problem is, the AVI file is 43 megabytes. Somebody link me to something that can make it like, maybe, 3MB, and then somebody provide me with hosting because I'm tired after hauling my entire computer for maybe two miles today.

Okay here's a transcript of the interview anyway. You'll need it if I ever get it uploaded because it's bad quality sound.

Interview Now Available in AVI format!


[transcript removed]

I was learning about Irish Monks there, yesterday. Amazing stuff.

These guys only washed four times a year and changed clothes twice. This was back in the 1200's I think. Anyway, the reason they washed was because they had to be bled four times a year. They would be washed and drained of blood until they were completely white, and then taken to the infirmary to recover. This was to stop them becoming too aggressive and such toward each other. The blood was put into a huge pit and used to build other monastaries... (satanic, or WHAT?)

They stayed within a tiny yard all their life and lived mostly vegetarian diets. They took a vow of silence and for the most part spent their life in confinement and silence. They were only allowed to warm up for five minutes at a time in the one warm room of the monastary, at other times it was freezing. They were terrified of not confessing to their sins so every day they did, and were punished for them.

Which brings me to this:

Perhaps Ants are terribly, terribly religious. Has anybody ever tried breeding a single Ant on it's own and seeing how it behaves? Perhaps it could be raised in America and lead the first Insect Revolution over there? You could even let it watch Antz and A Bugs Life, two EXTREMELY liberal Ant Based Movies. With man and god quite clearly on its side, it could go on to lead all freedom-loving ants across the globe into a new era of love and liberty and democracy.

For this, we will need a single ant egg. I recommend Canary Food.

Check out the Double Fine Action News on how to vote for Grim Fandango! Go on, do this, for ME!

Except Vel, because I know what HE'LL bloody vote for...

Go! Now!

San Francisco (my future home and all that) has been in the news a lot lately. In case you're dumb, here's why; the Mayor of San Francisco, Gavin Newsom, has defied the state law against Gay Marriages, and has allowed officials to hand out over 2,800 marriage licenses to gay couples in the past 10 days. San Francisco plans to take California to court on the grounds that the banning of Gay Marriages is unconstitutional.

To quote Arnie:

"In San Francisco it is license for marriage of same sex. Maybe the next thing is another city that hands out licenses for assault weapons and someone else hands out licenses for selling drugs, I mean you can't do that,"

What the hell? First, Gay Marriages. Next, Machine Guns. Right. Maybe he means that a law is a law and shouldn't be broken. But to compare Marriage Licenses to Gun Licenses is at the very least, stupid.

It's not just the symbolism of marriage that Gay people are being denied; there are certain tax reductions and insurance benefits that only married couples can obtain.

So it may not be 'christian'. Does it not say in the bible to "Live according to the Sign of the Times"?

President Bush 'the monkey' Jr has called for a federal ban on Gay Marriages. That should not happen. The American Constitution says that people are entitled to live, to love, and to pursue happiness. Gays are pursuing happiness and love in their struggle to be equal members of society. It is unconstitutional to disallow this. They are entitled to right for their rights.

The American Constitution, and the bible itself, claims that all people are equal. But how can some people be more equal than others?

To the Christians that don't believe in gay marriages; consider that the bible instructs to live according to the sign of the times. Also consider that god made everybody equal, apparently, and it is not our place as mortals to judge others. It is not OUR decision whether a Gay Marriage is valid or not. All people are sinners according to Christian belief, and therefore Gay people are no more or less 'dirty' than the rest of us.

Of course, I'm agnostic. So my belief is based soley in human rights.

What do you think?

I was waiting for my sister while she got her hair cut, and you know the way these hair cutty places have magazines... I started flicked through one out of sheer boredom. I paused when I saw this one article on Arnold Swanknerger... (sp)....

It was a short write up by this guy called Patrick who had known Arnie and sent him a congratulations email on becoming Governer. This was the reply he apparently got. It can't POSSIBLY be true, but it's still funny. And who knows, with people like Info Cow in the world...




Dear Patrick

Jeez, I thought you had forgotten all about me, but thanks for the e-mail. It really does my Austrian heart a power of good.
It's great to be the new Governor of Good Ol California, although it hasn't really sunk in yet. But when it does, I will be makin' mighty big changes around here.
All those 135 losers whom I bear in the election say I have no policies but I'm goin' to show 'em. You just wait and see. When those skunks discover that I have a policy on my military barracks in New York, and one on my villa in Austria, plus a fully comprehensive policy on my Hummer motor car they'll be red with rage. And speaking of reds, I'm planning on terminating those varmints and blowing them all the way back to Moscow.

I'm gonna clean up California too. I don't care if the state is broke, I'm goin' to do it anyway. From now on the great state of California is going to be finger lickin' good. Those puny accountants and those spineless politicians are gonna feel the red-hot wrath of Arnie. That's a promise. And I keep all my promises.

Those 135 crooks said some bad things about me before the election. They said I was a groper. That was tougher then a ten ton tank to swallow and I was real upset. Upset enough to telephone my momma and all my cousins in Austria and deny the filthy allegations.

You know my Patrick. You know that I wouldn't even harm a fly, let alone a gal with a cute little butt. Of course I throw the occasional eye over a good lookin' broad, but that's as far as it goes. But you know that I'm human too, despite all those bullets and bombs that I had to contend with in my movies. If a fal approaches me and gives the 'I like your butt' look, I just clutch my bible to my heart and say a quiet prayer to the Good Lord, and think about the offer. But seriously, Patrick, that's as far as it goes. And if it goes any further I always say "never again" when my minder picks me up at the motel the following morning.

But there's one real mean coyote out thereand he's doin' my clean-cut Calfironian reputation no good at all. He works for a newspaper and he's always miquoting me. Like the time when he wrote in his rag that I said: "I think that gay marriage should go between a man and a woman." That one hurt real bad. He might think that I'm only a kingergarten cop, but blelieve me I'm gonna get that guy. Yeah, that would be great. I'd lock him up in Alcatraz with Conan the Barbarian and leave him there till he rots. YEs siree, I'm gonna have ea ball ruling California and when I'm finished there I'll go for Bubba Bush's job in the White House. They say I haven't a prayer gettin' that one coz I'm not a naturalised American.

I don't believe this because my wife Maria says that I have all the right credentials. Seemingly her great great great grandpa came from the old sod in the Republic of Eire and one of his kids down the line got the big gig in washington.

So if I don't get the white house job I'll be on to you about the possiblitites of becoming Prez of YOUR country. I think I stand a good chance because my momma once told me that my great aunt was actually born in Inchicore, which, I believe, is a cute little part of Dublin. Anyway the aunt, whose name was Baroness Von Crapp, had a mouth as big as my Hummer and she constantly spoke of her huge gang of brats who made a few bucks by singin' some old song called EIDELWEISS.

Well if my Aunt was Irish, then so am I. At least as Irish as those guys who come from Jamaica and are allowed to play for Ireland at some ball park called Lansdowne Road. Then there was that guy who actually became prez of your country. His name was Deevalera and I'm told he was really born in spain, and only came to Ireland because the heat got too much for him. Seemingly he was a nice old guy in a funny sort of way. He just wanted to see the whole country to be a hootin' and a hollerin' at old Deevalera while he waved his Colt 45 at some other gang of dudes from up the road.

Anyway, enough of the old days, this is where you come into the picture, Patrick. I want you to drop a line to that cute little gal called Mary who rules your Emerald Isle up in her big ranch in the Fenix Park - Did I get that right? Tell her that Arnie will be available when she hangs up her spurs in a few years' time.

You can also tell her that I know a lot about her country and I'll be the man to sort out all the shit that's goin' down. Transport problems? Jeez man, that's no prob. I know all the guys goin' crazy every morning at the place they call the Mad Cow Roundabout.

Just tell them the Terminator is coming over the hill in his Hummer and then you'll see em scattering. I'm also told there are some seriously mean dudes running show in toughhouse called Dale Eyrin. Real nasty guys there, but I know how to deal with them. I'll put on my Conan the Barbarian gear, just to make them feel comfortable when I go into their hideout with my heavy duty guys. Then you'll see the angry Arnie. Tribunals? Boom boom, gotcha, ya bunch of skunks. Land deals? There won't be any crooked land dealers left when I pump up my Hummer and roll all over them.

No smokin'? Yeah. I agree with that. The only smoke blowin' when I arrive will be the stuff coming from my specially designed 28-barrel machine gun. If you don't believe me just ask the guys I blew away in Terminator Three.

Your ol' buddy,
ARNIE

He's so annoying. You're having a religious argument one moment, and god is all on your side, and suddenly Mark chips in with, "everybody should agree to disagree, folks" or something sensible like that. Why be sensible when god is quite clearly already on your side?

I hate him.