Messages

She didn't even keep the packaging.

She was that sure I'd love it.

I feel really awful.

But I'm never going to use it. Ever. I didn't even use it when she gave it to me. I just took it out, looked at it, smiled and said "thanks" and then put it back and put it on the furthest edge of the table, and started drawing. But she didn't notice. She actually didn't notice. I felt mean for doing it, but I didn't know what else to do. I really didn't want it. I couldn't even pretend to like it, very well. I said, "Uh, wow." when I was looking at it. In the same sort of voice you whisper "oh my god" when you hear one of your best friends just died in a car accident.

A DIGITAL CAMERA!!!!

I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, "But why?"

Because I love cameras! I love taking pictures! I always have! Although I haven't had a camera to take pictures WITH, because I wasn't interested in cameras and never took pictures. Then I took photograph classes and I hated photograph and kept telling my mom about how crap photography was. Then, when I got back from the tour, my mom asked why I had so few photos and I said, "I hate photos."

But secretly, underneath it all, I obviously love cameras, and my mother knew this, and knew it was a relevant present for me that I'd use for the rest of my life. How she knew? I do not know.

But best of all, this camera is nearly the same price as a small wacom, and they sit next to each other, side by side, like brothers, on the shelf of PC WORLD. Although I have wanted a wacom since the beginning of Wacom Time, I guess my mother knew that I would prefer, and get more use out of a camera. And I was going to be so much more delighted when I found out that it was a camera, and not a wacom, that she dropped hints that it was a wacom. Like, "It's pen shaped!" and "It's going to help your artistic ability!" and "You're not even going to want to go in to school when you get it, so I'll give it to you in the evening." And then, later on, "It's triangular!" which was a lie.

Thank you, mom. Thank you for this wonderful, horribly expensive, yet incredibly thoughtful present. You keep coming in to the room to see if I'm using it yet. Remember when I first saw it, and my grin sort of froze on my face in delight? I turned it on to see if a pen fell out, or whether it unfolded into a flat, wacom like surface? And when the memory card fell onto the floor, I picked it up and scratched it on the camera to see if it was some sort of disguised pen? After that, I pressed the record button by mistake, and it wouldn't stop recording, so I put it away and left it on the far end of the table, and quietly started my concept art for Luna using a pencil and some paper. I'm not sure if I want to record anything because I already have a webcam to do that with, except the webcam also has a microphone. And we already have hordes of cameras lying about the house not being used because I don't like cameras. But I'm going to go outside in the rain and find something to take a photograph of, later, when it stops raining. If it stops raining. Maybe I'll take some pictures of a wacom! That's the best part about a camera instead of a wacom. With a wacom, you only own a wacom. but with a CAMERA, you can own a camera AND PICTURES of a wacom!

Thanks again. This horribly, horribly expensive present is the best present ever, and I don't know how I can word my delight because it's horribly expensive.

I have to go now, because I have to draw concept art. I was putting off the concept art until my birthday because I was going to use my new wacom to draw it. But you got this, instead! And I am delighted. So delighted. And I am delighted for YOU, because it was not a waste of your money.

However, I think people should stop buying 'surprise' birthday gifts and start fucking consulting the people they're buying them for. Just in case they one day don't get the right present, but they spend lots of money on it anyway, and the person getting the present has no use for it whatsoever but they have to pretend to like it because it's horribly expensive and they might seem ungrateful. All it would take is a simple question to save this awkward predicament.

I hate surprises.

More.

I hate Terran because one of his poser faces looks like Tilc from SG1. Also because he made me try to spell Tilc.

Man, Cale. I hate you! You can't even spell Criticism!

I hate LGM! I hate all constipated people, and love to discriminate against them.

More Critisism! MORE!!!

You guys REMEMBERED!!! After some reminding.

I love you guys!!!

More Attention! Quick!

ShatteredSponge thinks I'm always trying to avoid him or something.

(But unlike you bastards, he remembered my birthday, and got me a present)

EDIT: Oh, shit. Okay. Zor. Well, I don't know much about Zor, to be honest. I hate that I don't know much about him.

I would just like to bring to everybodies attention that it's my birthday, and the AGers care more than you bastards, except Sponge. And they got me a cake, a knife, and Raz. And I am quoted in THREE SIGNATURES.

Goddamnit! When I was routinely sending out viruses to people the other day, I accidently sent one to my OTHER mail address!

"Unusual," said I, opening the email, "I must be trying to remind myself of something."

"READ!!! FUNNY!!! use pasword to on zip11!" The e-mail read. Below were two attachments.

"Odd! I never recall sending myself an attachment!" I said.

I scanned the attachment. It was a virus!

"Man. I must really hate myself!" I said.

There is a three hour period yesterday where I cannot recall any of my actions. I sent myself a virus; if I sent one to you too, don't open it! I must have been drugged up because I usually don't spell like a friendly wealthy nigerian heir.

Even if I try to tell you it's funny!

The only thing with that is, take Rise of the Hidden Sun for example; he made the graphics before opening AGS, and when it got to putting it together he realized a lot of things weren't in proportion.

I created a folder for Luna, and in that folder I had other folders. Like 'Concept Art' 'Backgrounds' 'Music' 'Documents'. I even have a 'Trash' folder, so that instead of throwing things away into the recycle bin, I keep them all. Even discarded ideas I may use again.

I wrote a synopsis of the story. This didn't include puzzles. After writing a synopsis, I started on the script, right from the beginning. I think the script has helped because it's like ironing out your story and synopsis; it allows you to take a closer look at your characters and story than a short synopsis does, and a lot of small things change.

I haven't started putting together in AGS yet. I agree with Babyloi that you shouldn't do that until you know exactly what you need. I'm keeping a list of all of the animations and backgrounds I'm going to need, so when 'pre-production' is finished I can look at it and think, 'is that a decent amount compared to the size of the game?' and cut or add more if necessary.

Before we start actual production on it, as in gluing it together in AGS, I'm going to step back and look at it on a whole, to see what works and what doesn't work, and what story arcs just take away from the gameplay and what ones enhance it, and things like this.

So far, this method has proved pretty neat because a) everything is filed away neatly in the correct folders, instead of jumbled together in one massive folder, or all over my PC, b) pre-production is easier to keep track of, and c) because you know exactly what's happening in each department, it's easier to see what needs adding or cutting from the game.

Finally, when the pre-production is complete, I'm going to send some things to my slave in Austria, and he's going to draw one of those oh-so-fantastic graphs he draws to plot the course of the storyline, so everything is visualized and beautiful and it's nice and easy to convey ideas to the rest of the team for production.

To solve the problem of backgrounds and sprites not being in proportion; I scan concept sketches in to AGS and try the sprites over them, and if something needs fixing I fix it on the sketch before colouring it for use in the game.

I've never actually worked out whether Gilbot has anything to do with either Dave Gilbert, or robots. I hate that bastard!!!

Well, I can make the two later dates.

But not the earlier one as I will have approximately no money. Or at least, the original one will be hard for me to attend.

The later the better for me. I don't mind paying a little extra for a flight.

Yes. Because that is going to happen. I am not going to say, "I used to mess around with 3D packages when I was younger and got to know them, and then went into college and did a four year degree course at Ballyfermot" and stuff like this. I am going to say, "I learned to model with pirated copies of 3D studio Max!!!"

Besides which I don't think they'd care. They're not going to employ you because you learned to model with a pirated copy of 3D studio when you were younger? If anything, that shows dedication and a desire to learn. It shows you were deeply interested in these things when you were younger.

Which I am.

Increator: choosing between stupid and stupid? I understand what you mean, but I have to disagree on this point. As a female, and as a person who enjoys my freedom and my right to education and my right to live life as I want, and my right to freedom of expression and my choice of career, and my freedom of sexuality... I choose america over iraq.

Both sides may be hypocrites in this war. But overall-- WOAH, GIANT SPIDER ON THE WALL IN FRONT OF ME.

AWESOME!!!

That's stupid. That's like comparing murder and theft.

Oh, wait. That's what you just did.

My 'theft', which is what it technically is, I admit... isn't hurting anybody.

If I went out to murder somebody, I would have to acknowledge that I was causing the suffering and subsequent death of a person, as well as the suffering of people he knew and his family. I would have to make a definite conscious decision to take the life of another living being, with massive consequences whether I was caught or not.

You can't compare the two.

That's stupid. That's like comparing murder and theft.

Oh, wait. That's what you just did.

My 'theft', which is what it technically is, I admit... isn't hurting anybody.

If I went out to murder somebody, I would have to acknowledge that I was causing the suffering and subsequent death of a person, as well as the suffering of people he knew and his family. I would have to make a definite conscious decision to take the life of another living being, with massive consequences whether I was caught or not.

You can't compare the two.

I hate all Iraquis, most americans,and most hippies. Well I don't hate hippies, cause I do not know what they did to me

Ha ha ha.

You're comparing me harmlessly pirating 3D studio max (and it is harmless, I'm not just saying that from the piraters point of view) with me murdering a person and getting away with it?

How the hell..?! Where you there that night?!

...Or did Mark squeal?

P.S. Thanks InCreator! I may get your MSN or AIM SN and milk you for information!!!

But using violence against those who hug will work fine.

Which is why hugging isn't an option.

I just thought of an example in an MSN conversation I'm having.

Every society has a group of insane bastards. Even the most 'sane' of societies.

The Irish Sinn Feiners/Republicans
The Spanish ETA
The American Fundamentalist Christians
Pretty much every Fundamentalist Group in Existence

What we're seeing in the news is a group of fundamentalist islamics that a lot of people believe represent all of Iraq. Perhaps they do. Perhaps they don't. At the moment, with all the propaganda flying all over the place, it's hard to tell. But I don't think they do.

Although I still don't like the Iraqi way of life.