31
Everything Else / Sick
« on: July 11, 2007, 06:22:57 PM »
I'm at home ill, with no AIM, so somebody get online and play Carcassonne with me.
News:
"Magic is what makes fantasy fantastic," someone says, "you can't apply rules to them or else it loses wonder!" I respond, "Sure, but if you want to write them you will certainly want to know how they work." Writing is all about execution, and I find applying some basic laws of physics to magic systems make them more understandable and realistic. Here, I'm going to outline my basic method for developing a magic system.
Column by Chaos2651
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32
Movies and TV / Transformers
« on: July 02, 2007, 06:20:44 PM »
Read the review: http://www.timewastersguide.com/review/1561/Transformers
Sounds pretty good--I had no high hopes for this, but it's getting raves or near-raves almost across the board.
Sounds pretty good--I had no high hopes for this, but it's getting raves or near-raves almost across the board.
33
Movies and TV / AFI 100 Greatest American Films
« on: June 21, 2007, 09:41:02 PM »
The list itself is kind of interesting, but more interesting is the essay by Ebert, which is essentially a justification of this kind of list at all; his main point is that, accurate or inaccurate, the lists serve to interest people in good films.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070621/COMMENTARY/706210301
For those interested, I've only seen 47 of the movies on the list. Guess I have some watching to do.
Also: Titanic? Forrest Gump? Give me a break.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070621/COMMENTARY/706210301
For those interested, I've only seen 47 of the movies on the list. Guess I have some watching to do.
Also: Titanic? Forrest Gump? Give me a break.
34
Video Games / The redistricting game!
« on: June 14, 2007, 04:23:08 PM »
One of the weird, highly corrupt aspects of the American government is that elected officials get to draw the borders of voting districts, thus allowing themselves to decide with almost certainty which party will win. A congressman in California is trying to change that system, at least in California, by giving the redistricting power to a bipartisan group. That has problems of its own, but we'll ignore them for now--far more interesting are the methods this guy is using to persuade voters: he's had some guys at USC create a redistricting video game to show how powerfully it can affect an election. Plus, the game's pretty fun.
http://www.redistrictinggame.org/
http://www.redistrictinggame.org/
35
Video Games / Blog Comments: Danger! UXB
« on: May 30, 2007, 08:46:54 AM »
She's back...
http://www.timewastersguide.com/deparment/Blogs/section/2/
edit: apparently I can't edit the blog, which is too bad because I screwed up all of the html. You'll have to imagine paragraph breaks and a cool image, because they're a little ethereal right now.
http://www.timewastersguide.com/deparment/Blogs/section/2/
edit: apparently I can't edit the blog, which is too bad because I screwed up all of the html. You'll have to imagine paragraph breaks and a cool image, because they're a little ethereal right now.
36
Books / I Am Not a Serial Killer
« on: May 03, 2007, 05:41:00 AM »
The book is done! And not only is it done, but the character and story arcs have satisfying conclusions, in my opinion, which is new for me. I'm very pleased. It clocks in at just under 66k words--I suppose that if I truly cared about my craft, I'd write 900 more just to make it 66600, but this will do for now.
I'm sending it out now to a handful of preselected alpha readers, not to mention an editor I know, but I would appreciate some additional eyes. If you're interested in a YA horror novel about a sociopathic kid who hunts a demon, post your "reader resume" here.
I'm sending it out now to a handful of preselected alpha readers, not to mention an editor I know, but I would appreciate some additional eyes. If you're interested in a YA horror novel about a sociopathic kid who hunts a demon, post your "reader resume" here.
37
Table-Top Games / Huge Change-o-rama in store for Heroclix
« on: March 22, 2007, 11:18:06 PM »
http://www.wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/marvel/gameresources.asp?cid=41324
Figures will finally include rarity information (hallelujah!) and character cards similar to those in Horrorclix (which are awesome, and which is a welcome change).
Figures will finally include rarity information (hallelujah!) and character cards similar to those in Horrorclix (which are awesome, and which is a welcome change).
38
Site News / Find Fell a job!
« on: February 02, 2007, 09:34:34 PM »
Hi everybody! I'm calling in every favor and kindness that I can right now, I'm afraid: I need a job, and I need one fast. I was laid off today, and they gave me no severance at all. We can make it for about a month, and then we're living on credit cards. If you know of any real or freelance jobs that require a lot of writing and/or editing, please let me know (or, frankly, anything else that could help tide us over), please let me know. Thanks!
39
Movies and TV / Oscar Predictions 2007
« on: February 01, 2007, 07:44:39 PM »
The Oscars are virtually upon us, and whether you like them or hate them, it's still loads of fun to try to predict them. This year we have two excellent prizes for whoever picks the most winners:
First, everyone who correctly picks the winners in at least 6 of the 10 categories will receive a lovely forum to display next to their avatar.
Second, the person who correctly picks the greatest number of winners in these 10 categories will receive a 6', free-standing, cardboard cut-out of Oscar himself, which will be mailed free of charge. How awesome is that? Very awesome.
The rules are simple, post your picks in the following 10 categories, and whoever picks the most wins a prize. In the event of a tie we will look at the categories in descending order, eliminating entries as soon as they guess wrong, and the last one standing wins. In the event that more than one person picked all 10 perfectly, we will declare you all tim-traveling cheaters and keep the prizes for ourselves.
All entries must be posted on or before Saturday, February 24, at 11:59 pm. Anything later than that will not be counted.
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Babel
The Departed
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen
Best Achievement in Directing
Clint Eastwood for Letters from Iwo Jima
Stephen Frears for The Queen
Paul Greengrass for United 93
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Babel
Martin Scorsese for The Departed
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Leonardo DiCaprio for Blood Diamond
Ryan Gosling for Half Nelson
Peter O’Toole for Venus
Will Smith for The Pursuit of Happyness
Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Penelope Cruz for Volver
Judi Dench for Notes on a Scandal
Helen Mirren for The Queen
Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada
Kate Winslet for Little Children
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine
Jackie Earle Haley for Little Children
Djimoun Hounsou for Blood Diamond
Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls
Mark Wahlberg for The Departed
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Adriana Barraza for Babel
Cate Blanchett for Notes on a Scandal
Abigail Breslin for Little Miss Sunshine
Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls
Rinko Kikuchi for Babel
Best Original Screenplay
Guillermo Arriaga for Babel
Iris Yamashita, Paul Haggis for Letters From Iwo Jima
Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine
Guillermo del Toro for Pan's Labrynth
Peter Morgan for The Queen
Best Adapted Screenplay
Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Peter Baynham, Dan Mazer, Todd Phillips for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Alfonso Cuarón, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby for Children of Men
William Monahan for The Departed
Todd Field, Tom Perrotta for Little Children
Patrick Marber for Notes on a Scandal
Best Cinematography
Vilmos Zsigmond for The Black Dahlia
Emmanuel Lubezki for Children of Men
Dick Pope for The Illusionist
Guillermo Navarro for Pan's Labrynth
Wally Pfister for The Prestige
Best Documentary Feature
Amy Berg, Frank Donner for Deliver Us from Evil
Davis Guggenheim for An Inconvenient Truth
James Longley, Yahya Sinno for Iraq in Fragments
Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady for Jesus Camp
Laura Poitras, Jocelyn Glatzer for My Country My Country
First, everyone who correctly picks the winners in at least 6 of the 10 categories will receive a lovely forum to display next to their avatar.
Second, the person who correctly picks the greatest number of winners in these 10 categories will receive a 6', free-standing, cardboard cut-out of Oscar himself, which will be mailed free of charge. How awesome is that? Very awesome.
The rules are simple, post your picks in the following 10 categories, and whoever picks the most wins a prize. In the event of a tie we will look at the categories in descending order, eliminating entries as soon as they guess wrong, and the last one standing wins. In the event that more than one person picked all 10 perfectly, we will declare you all tim-traveling cheaters and keep the prizes for ourselves.
All entries must be posted on or before Saturday, February 24, at 11:59 pm. Anything later than that will not be counted.
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Babel
The Departed
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen
Best Achievement in Directing
Clint Eastwood for Letters from Iwo Jima
Stephen Frears for The Queen
Paul Greengrass for United 93
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Babel
Martin Scorsese for The Departed
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Leonardo DiCaprio for Blood Diamond
Ryan Gosling for Half Nelson
Peter O’Toole for Venus
Will Smith for The Pursuit of Happyness
Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Penelope Cruz for Volver
Judi Dench for Notes on a Scandal
Helen Mirren for The Queen
Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada
Kate Winslet for Little Children
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine
Jackie Earle Haley for Little Children
Djimoun Hounsou for Blood Diamond
Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls
Mark Wahlberg for The Departed
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Adriana Barraza for Babel
Cate Blanchett for Notes on a Scandal
Abigail Breslin for Little Miss Sunshine
Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls
Rinko Kikuchi for Babel
Best Original Screenplay
Guillermo Arriaga for Babel
Iris Yamashita, Paul Haggis for Letters From Iwo Jima
Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine
Guillermo del Toro for Pan's Labrynth
Peter Morgan for The Queen
Best Adapted Screenplay
Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Peter Baynham, Dan Mazer, Todd Phillips for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Alfonso Cuarón, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby for Children of Men
William Monahan for The Departed
Todd Field, Tom Perrotta for Little Children
Patrick Marber for Notes on a Scandal
Best Cinematography
Vilmos Zsigmond for The Black Dahlia
Emmanuel Lubezki for Children of Men
Dick Pope for The Illusionist
Guillermo Navarro for Pan's Labrynth
Wally Pfister for The Prestige
Best Documentary Feature
Amy Berg, Frank Donner for Deliver Us from Evil
Davis Guggenheim for An Inconvenient Truth
James Longley, Yahya Sinno for Iraq in Fragments
Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady for Jesus Camp
Laura Poitras, Jocelyn Glatzer for My Country My Country
40
Site News / LTUE Rifftrax party: Reign of Fire
« on: January 30, 2007, 10:06:43 PM »
It's time to plan this sucker. The best night is looking like Thursday, and thanks to EUOL's class we'd be starting the movie at 8:30 or 9. We could do games or food before that. Is this groovy with everyone? Make yourselves heard!
41
Table-Top Games / Pirates of the Frozen North
« on: December 14, 2006, 05:48:41 PM »
When Wizkids first announced that the next Pirates expansion would include Vikings, everyone wondered how they were going to address the issue of time--i.e., how are they possibly going to explain why pirates and vikings exist together? The simple answer turns out to be that they are ignoring the issue altogether, and presenting "modern" vikings with unbelievably massive longboats. I, for one, am willing to give them a pass on this one, because the boats are incredibly cool:
http://www.wizkidsgames.com/pirates/article.asp?cid=41163
http://www.wizkidsgames.com/pirates/article.asp?cid=41163
42
Movies and TV / Superman
« on: December 03, 2006, 08:48:53 AM »
So I finally got around to seeing Superman Returns, and have mixed opinions. It was well-enough made, I suppose, but it seemed really hollow--aside from beating us over the head with Christian symbolism, it didn't have anything to say. If Lois Lane writes a Pulitzer winning essay about why the world doesn't need Superman, I doggone want to know what it says; the comics have dealt with that subject quite a bit, and presented some intriguing arguments, but here the subjects gets frequently mentioned but never explored. Then at the end she starts to write about how the world really does need Superman, but stops--is that because she doesn't beleive it? Or can't express it? Has she been convinced or not? These are incredibly weighty issues: does the world need a savior? Why or why not? The movie has no idea, but it does have a cool shot of a bullet bouncing off Superman's eye. Yay.
As for Clark Kent, I can never look at him the same again after seeing Kill Bill 2, and being fascinated by the following bit of monologue:
"Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero and there's the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone. Superman didn't become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears - the glasses, the business suit - that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent: he's weak... he's unsure of himself... he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race."
As for Clark Kent, I can never look at him the same again after seeing Kill Bill 2, and being fascinated by the following bit of monologue:
"Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero and there's the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone. Superman didn't become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears - the glasses, the business suit - that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent: he's weak... he's unsure of himself... he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race."
43
Suggestions Box / Poll 11/30/06
« on: November 30, 2006, 06:12:36 PM »
The moral to this week's poll is: don't smoke.
Several people have reported huge problems trying to vote on the main page, but it seem sot be working here. If you can't vote, or see the poll, or whatever, please tell us here so Sprig can figure out why. If you just can't decide what to choose, that's your own problem.
Several people have reported huge problems trying to vote on the main page, but it seem sot be working here. If you can't vote, or see the poll, or whatever, please tell us here so Sprig can figure out why. If you just can't decide what to choose, that's your own problem.
44
Video Games / FBI crackdown on illegal MMO server
« on: November 20, 2006, 06:08:00 PM »
FBI, NCsoft Close Down Computer Game Operation
Year long investigation results in raids in multiple search and seizure warrants; Individuals questioned in unauthorized game server scheme
AUSTIN, Texas, November 20, 2006— FBI Agents working in conjunction with officials from NCsoft’s® North American business successfully closed down a computer game operation alleged to be reaping profits by providing a fraudulent service to its players. The operation was closed down after multiple raids and interviews were conducted in various cities from California to Virginia.
Federal search warrants were served on owners of L2Extreme who were also questioned during the raid. L2Extreme was providing its users with unauthorized service and code for NCsoft’s online computer game, Lineage® II. The warrants enabled officials to halt L2Extreme’s operations while collecting further evidence in the course of the investigation.
The FBI estimates L2Extreme has up to 50,000 active users on its service. NCsoft estimates that monetary losses and damages from the operation are costing NCsoft millions of dollars per year.
L2Extreme advertised on its website, www.l2extreme.com, that more than half million registered users had subscribed to play.
“Operations like this essentially are defrauding customers by stealing from companies like NCsoft,” said Matt Esber, NCsoft North America general counsel. “In the end those losses impact our customer support, product development, operational areas and ultimately they impact our player communities, most of which are trying to play games legitimately. This group in particular was downloading our version of the Lineage II software from our servers, costing us close to a million dollars in realized bandwidth costs during the period it was operational.
“We’ve taken this action because we strongly believe in defending the intellectual property rights that we’ve worked so hard to create. We’re extremely pleased that the FBI has worked with us so diligently to bring this particular case to its current state and we want our customers to understand that we will continue to fight similar operations in the future in order to maintain the integrity of all NCsoft games.”
The investigation into the L2Extreme operation is ongoing.
(editor's note: I think the weirdest part of this story is that there are half a million people who play Lineage 2. Ha ha! Just kidding. Of course people play Lineage 2. I'm just amazed that at least half a million of them are American.)
Year long investigation results in raids in multiple search and seizure warrants; Individuals questioned in unauthorized game server scheme
AUSTIN, Texas, November 20, 2006— FBI Agents working in conjunction with officials from NCsoft’s® North American business successfully closed down a computer game operation alleged to be reaping profits by providing a fraudulent service to its players. The operation was closed down after multiple raids and interviews were conducted in various cities from California to Virginia.
Federal search warrants were served on owners of L2Extreme who were also questioned during the raid. L2Extreme was providing its users with unauthorized service and code for NCsoft’s online computer game, Lineage® II. The warrants enabled officials to halt L2Extreme’s operations while collecting further evidence in the course of the investigation.
The FBI estimates L2Extreme has up to 50,000 active users on its service. NCsoft estimates that monetary losses and damages from the operation are costing NCsoft millions of dollars per year.
L2Extreme advertised on its website, www.l2extreme.com, that more than half million registered users had subscribed to play.
“Operations like this essentially are defrauding customers by stealing from companies like NCsoft,” said Matt Esber, NCsoft North America general counsel. “In the end those losses impact our customer support, product development, operational areas and ultimately they impact our player communities, most of which are trying to play games legitimately. This group in particular was downloading our version of the Lineage II software from our servers, costing us close to a million dollars in realized bandwidth costs during the period it was operational.
“We’ve taken this action because we strongly believe in defending the intellectual property rights that we’ve worked so hard to create. We’re extremely pleased that the FBI has worked with us so diligently to bring this particular case to its current state and we want our customers to understand that we will continue to fight similar operations in the future in order to maintain the integrity of all NCsoft games.”
The investigation into the L2Extreme operation is ongoing.
(editor's note: I think the weirdest part of this story is that there are half a million people who play Lineage 2. Ha ha! Just kidding. Of course people play Lineage 2. I'm just amazed that at least half a million of them are American.)
45
Video Games / Sid Meier's Railroads!
« on: November 20, 2006, 05:33:19 PM »
Once again, Sid Meier has destroyed my sleep schedule. Full review coming later, but for now let me just say: excellent game.