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Snarky, I think it's great you gave Serenity a try, even though you didn't like Firefly. Gotta commend you for that. Of course, I think Serenity's the best scifi adventure movie of the--well, ever, actually.

All right, all you doubters, haters, and fence sitters... watch the first 9 minutes of Serenity online here: http://video.vividas.com/CDN1/3929_Serenity/web/index.html

Then get to the theater and see the rest!

I strongly suggest getting yourself over to the local cinema to see Serenity this weekend. I saw an advance screening in May. Let me tell you... BEST. MOVIE. EVER.*

* - Well, best scifi movie of the year, anyway. It deserves your $10 and two hours. You won't regret it!

Go!

Darth, this is a fantastic screen. I love it. Where can I learn more about your game?

Viktor--

Don't be too hard on yourself. This is a very good-looking screen. What is your game about? If the whole game looks like this, I think you'll have a winner.

Who knew that while I was watching Daffy Duck cartoons on the airplane TV (hey, it was either that or "Ice Princess"), there was utter pandemoneoum down below.Ã, 

Wait, what's wrong with "Ice Princess"?

Terrorism is carried out by persons who take advantage of the desperation of their people. You can't wage wars against it, nor can you refute it by debating over holy scrolls.

I agree. And I would probably extrapolate that some terrorist "foot soldiers" have been brainwashed into believing that what they do is in the name of their religion, without really having exposure to an environment that fosters enough context for them to understand just how insane that is. Does that make sense?

And what about christianity? Which religion do you reckon have most lives on their concience? Sorry to start an argument, but a terrorist act like this cannot allow us to all of a sudden make rash and irrational generalisations regarding world religions.

I don't think my statement was any more generalized than the statement that "Islam doesn't condone killing people in the name of religion." There are clearly interpretations of Islam that DO condone it. Just as there are intrepretations of Christianity that have led to some pretty sick and twisted things, too.

I'm solidly atheistic and I've never murdered a soul. My issues with religion go deeper than Islam.

I'd also like to point out that ... the Islamic faith does not condone the actions or methods of these extremist groups.

You know, I've heard this said a lot, but it's not really true. Some intrepretations of Islam don't condone it, but there sure as hell are some that do.

EDIT: To be clear, I feel for those that do not condone it and get unfairly grouped in with the extremists. I just mean to say that there are too many people out there who are Muslim and do believe in this stuff. This being exhibit A.

Update: Added a few pictures above for your viewing pleasure.

This wasn't in response to any particular threat, but "because if it happened there, it could happen here."Ã,  I'm not afraid, I just think that's a terrible reason.

If that were the reason then you'd be right. But I don't think it is. More to the point, they seem to believe it's Al Queda, and they know Al Queda likes to do things in waves to inflict maximum terror. So it's not unimagineable that they'd plan several waves of attacks in different countries; I've read that this was the initial plan in the early 9/11 stages. Anyway, I think the real reason they've raised the alert level here in the U.S. is to make us "feel better" -- to feel like it's safe to go to work, etc., today. I think it's mostly a psychological tool to reassure people.

My adventure travel article this month is about hiking and horseback riding in the Sierra Nevadas, which I visited last month.

As always, I would GREATLY appreciate it if you could forward that link on to family and friends who might be interested too. Every click makes it a little easier for me to convince my boss to keep sending me to write these articles!

Edit: Here are some pics from the experience.







You can read the article here:
http://rd.smartertravel.com/?r=i9255c35p779n12792&u=abcdefghij

Also, this month I'm unveiling my shiny new website to support my travel column. You can find the website online here: http://www.theamericanadventurer.com

Thanks!
Josh

I'm just sickened by this whole thing. Whoever is responsible are barbarians and savages without a trace of humanity. It's disgusting. My thoughts go out to everyone affected by this.

3.Ã,  Then, read the manual.Ã, 

Isn't the manual about three or four versions of AGS out of date? A lot has changed since the manual for 2.32 or whatever the version is that the manual was based on.

Folks, no offense, but this isn't the Critics Lounge forum. I'm not looking for ideas on improving it, and this isn't really the place to offer them anyway. Thanks.

I think having cds there disrupts your suspension of disbelief and reminds you that it is a game. Granted, the gui can do that anyway, but being reminded of modern technology in a western doesn't help ;>.Ã, 

Heh, everyone's a critic. The anachronistic touch with the old fashioned signposts and the modern technology is rather what Dan and I were going for, actually. It's a take off on the default GUI icons, which have old 3.5" disk icons for save and load.

Anyway, you know what they say about satisfying all of the people all the time? My plan is to satisfy myself and consider it good luck if others are happy with it too.

Also, I don't think making the icons flashier counts as a more sophisticated interface. No doubt Apple would disagree...

Maybe sophisticated isn't the word. Flashier? Prettier? That's kind of what I was going for.

Earlier this week, Adventure Gamers posted my new "Adventure Architect" column on the topic of implementing a GUI for my game. Most "advanced" users of AGS will probably not be impressed, since I just used the standard Sierra-style GUI, but there might be some interesting stuff in there about what the thought process was for choosing this over some of the other possibilities.

The other thing of note is that I tried to fancy up the GUI to give it a unique look even though it's not revolutionary. Anyway, if you're interested, give it a read here: http://www.adventuregamers.com/article/id,532

Hey hey!

As some of you know, in addition to working on Rise of the Hidden Sun, I also have a day job as a travel journalist. My most recent article (just posted today!) is about California's Big Sur -- driving it, hiking it, camping it. I don't think it's my best work because I had to pull this article together on the fly when my original travel plans fell through, but it turned out okay.

Why am I telling you this? Because, as always, it would be great if you all could read and/or pass this on to friends who enjoy traveling -- every click brings me a little closer to ensuring I get to keep doing this in the future! Plus I think it will be of interest to people who like outdoorsy pursuits. ;-)

Link to the article:
Big Sur delivers dramatic views on a small budget
http://rd.smartertravel.com/?r=i8776c35p779n11473&u=abcdefghij

Thanks!
Josh