Just as an f.y.i. in case you see some replies of mine inside comment areas and that I don't reply to everyone and are curious.
I will try my best to email everyone that leaves a comment and their email address and at least say thank you if not something more substantial.
I will answer comments with questions that I feel are pertinent in the comment area, and if it's something I want to make a post about, I will do that instead :)
Just wanted to give you all a head's up, in case anyone was like, hey, why does he only answer x or y but not z?
Continue to full post . . .
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Hey anyone really who likes stuff from the 80's
Guess what I'm playing!!!
After I do a Let's Play of Prototype I will be doing one of this game. I'm still trying to get all my ducks in a row for doing my let's play series, now I really just need a good microphone/headset. After that: it's on like Donkey Kong.
You can watch in HD quality at youtube, which will be a feature of ALL of my videos.
Continue to full post . . .
After I do a Let's Play of Prototype I will be doing one of this game. I'm still trying to get all my ducks in a row for doing my let's play series, now I really just need a good microphone/headset. After that: it's on like Donkey Kong.
You can watch in HD quality at youtube, which will be a feature of ALL of my videos.
Continue to full post . . .
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Computer differences
I have been asked a question by Rocio, and I am going to answer it here so that maybe everyone can benefit from it.
I was asked whether I would choose a laptop from Dell, HP, or Apple:
I would NEVER choose Apple, and here is why. (keep in mind that I am in no way a PC fanboy, these are just facts I've run across in my tech support work over the years.)
Reason 1: The sad-face.
Apple computers are not troubleshoot-friendly. There is no tech outside of an Apple store that can take an apple that has an error and decode it. The most common error screen that comes up is the sad-face, or the sad-face-and-a-bomb. What the HELL do those mean? I've worked on a ton of Apples, and it can mean any one of dozens of problems. THIS MEANS: that you have to, have to, have to send your laptop or ipod or iphone OFF TO APPLE. this is bad because not only do they have access to your personal data (you are not allowed to open Apple products without voiding your warranty) but it takes WEEKS. When I worked at a major tech support company (think Nerd Crew, only said differently) we sent off 12-14 ipods per week to apple. some of them took 5 weeks to come back, and all they needed was a battery replacement. Not Acceptable.
Reason 2: Cost.
Apple computers are INCREDIBLY overpriced considering how low the specs are. Sure, MacOS is smooth and doesn't take long to load and can run a bunch of crap... So can Windows 7. Apple's nice operating system is no longer king of the roost. Vista was not a good operating system by any means, but 7 is poised to blow Apple's OS out of the water. Especially when you take into account the increased power and the sheer number of graphics cards you can get in a PC. On top of that, Apple computers can run very few games. As a gamer this is a huge detriment. You can also do anything that an Apple can do using a PC if you find the right programs.
In this point is the fact that everything Apple does, and I mean EVERYTHING, is proprietary. The ipod is a great point here. You used to be able to only use them with iTunes, which costs a buck per song. I am an avid supporter of Rhapsody, where you can have an unlimited number of songs to transfer to your portable mp3 player and you can switch them out all you want for only 15 bucks a month. I'd rather pay a 15 dollar monthly fee than a dollar per song. ipods can be hooked up to Rhapsody now too though, so that's less of a problem.
3. Elitism:
Apple computer users buy their machines because they're pretty. They also have a very elitist attitude of "my computer is better than yours" when it clearly isn't. This isn't a fight about who's comp is better though. Just because the computer is a nice white plastic with some clear resin around it, doesn't mean it's actually a better product. I prefer dark colors anyway. Also there are thousands of different looks you can achieve with a PC, especially a desktop. I'll take pictures of my desktop some time. Thing looks like a tank.
Now to move on to HP.
HP used to be only a printer company. What most people have forgotten is the fact that HP actually bought a bankrupt computer manufacturer called Compaq. They then promptly closed the BEST plants Compaq had (not saying much) and left open the crappy ones to start making HP computers. HP computers use low quality components just like Compaq used to. There's a reason Compaq went under. Don't let the quality of HP printers fool you into thinking their computers are good. They simply aren't.
So my choice would end up being Dell. I build my own computers, even laptops, but I do like Dell a lot for two reasons.
Dell uses market standard quality products. This is good and something few computer builders do (especially locally owned ones).
Dell has the best tech support I've ever seen.
I recently purchased a 27" Dell monitor and it had a problem. I called them and 3 days later there was a brand new 27" Dell monitor on my doorstep (it's widescreen of course).
Also their monitors are amazing. From their desktop monitors to their laptop monitors, they are kings of the LCD. My monitor, the Dell Ultrasharp WFP 2709 is brigher and clearer than the 30" Apple cinema display and my monitor only cost around 800 dollars, the cinema display, only 3 inches more screen space, can cost up to 3,000. I'd say that's a big discrepancy when you take into account the fact that Dell's 30" version of my monitor is only 1200.
So for me, someone who has done a lot of tech support and really knows what he's talking about, I would say avoid Apples unless you simply MUST have the sleek look, and go for a beautiful Dell. They come in lots of neat colors and patterns. The one I bought for my fiancee is a very pretty pink with a purple flower-stem pattern. I think it looks better than some plain white MacBook. Bleah.
Continue to full post . . .
I was asked whether I would choose a laptop from Dell, HP, or Apple:
I would NEVER choose Apple, and here is why. (keep in mind that I am in no way a PC fanboy, these are just facts I've run across in my tech support work over the years.)
Reason 1: The sad-face.
Apple computers are not troubleshoot-friendly. There is no tech outside of an Apple store that can take an apple that has an error and decode it. The most common error screen that comes up is the sad-face, or the sad-face-and-a-bomb. What the HELL do those mean? I've worked on a ton of Apples, and it can mean any one of dozens of problems. THIS MEANS: that you have to, have to, have to send your laptop or ipod or iphone OFF TO APPLE. this is bad because not only do they have access to your personal data (you are not allowed to open Apple products without voiding your warranty) but it takes WEEKS. When I worked at a major tech support company (think Nerd Crew, only said differently) we sent off 12-14 ipods per week to apple. some of them took 5 weeks to come back, and all they needed was a battery replacement. Not Acceptable.
Reason 2: Cost.
Apple computers are INCREDIBLY overpriced considering how low the specs are. Sure, MacOS is smooth and doesn't take long to load and can run a bunch of crap... So can Windows 7. Apple's nice operating system is no longer king of the roost. Vista was not a good operating system by any means, but 7 is poised to blow Apple's OS out of the water. Especially when you take into account the increased power and the sheer number of graphics cards you can get in a PC. On top of that, Apple computers can run very few games. As a gamer this is a huge detriment. You can also do anything that an Apple can do using a PC if you find the right programs.
In this point is the fact that everything Apple does, and I mean EVERYTHING, is proprietary. The ipod is a great point here. You used to be able to only use them with iTunes, which costs a buck per song. I am an avid supporter of Rhapsody, where you can have an unlimited number of songs to transfer to your portable mp3 player and you can switch them out all you want for only 15 bucks a month. I'd rather pay a 15 dollar monthly fee than a dollar per song. ipods can be hooked up to Rhapsody now too though, so that's less of a problem.
3. Elitism:
Apple computer users buy their machines because they're pretty. They also have a very elitist attitude of "my computer is better than yours" when it clearly isn't. This isn't a fight about who's comp is better though. Just because the computer is a nice white plastic with some clear resin around it, doesn't mean it's actually a better product. I prefer dark colors anyway. Also there are thousands of different looks you can achieve with a PC, especially a desktop. I'll take pictures of my desktop some time. Thing looks like a tank.
Now to move on to HP.
HP used to be only a printer company. What most people have forgotten is the fact that HP actually bought a bankrupt computer manufacturer called Compaq. They then promptly closed the BEST plants Compaq had (not saying much) and left open the crappy ones to start making HP computers. HP computers use low quality components just like Compaq used to. There's a reason Compaq went under. Don't let the quality of HP printers fool you into thinking their computers are good. They simply aren't.
So my choice would end up being Dell. I build my own computers, even laptops, but I do like Dell a lot for two reasons.
Dell uses market standard quality products. This is good and something few computer builders do (especially locally owned ones).
Dell has the best tech support I've ever seen.
I recently purchased a 27" Dell monitor and it had a problem. I called them and 3 days later there was a brand new 27" Dell monitor on my doorstep (it's widescreen of course).
Also their monitors are amazing. From their desktop monitors to their laptop monitors, they are kings of the LCD. My monitor, the Dell Ultrasharp WFP 2709 is brigher and clearer than the 30" Apple cinema display and my monitor only cost around 800 dollars, the cinema display, only 3 inches more screen space, can cost up to 3,000. I'd say that's a big discrepancy when you take into account the fact that Dell's 30" version of my monitor is only 1200.
So for me, someone who has done a lot of tech support and really knows what he's talking about, I would say avoid Apples unless you simply MUST have the sleek look, and go for a beautiful Dell. They come in lots of neat colors and patterns. The one I bought for my fiancee is a very pretty pink with a purple flower-stem pattern. I think it looks better than some plain white MacBook. Bleah.
Continue to full post . . .
M.W.W. Post Windows 7 Edition
So I am now running Windows 7 and I have to say I am VERY impressed.
I'm no big fan of Microsoft, but I think they're on the right track with this one.
The window at the bottom of the screen is the window that pops up when you hover over an "icon group" for lack of a better way to say it.
When you hover over an item in the icon group, all other windows on the screen turn totally transparent except for their borders, so you are able to determine the position of all your windows and decide if you want to bring up the one you are hovering on. It's a really simple idea but SO effective.
Full review on Windows 7 coming soon.
Large size picture is 1920 x 1200 (click on it).
Yes, that's a video of prototype. It's just there for "flavah".
Continue to full post . . .
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Testing
This is a test from the desktop gadget for blogger in windows 7.
This is also a test of Windows 7. it's fairly nice so far.
This is also a test of Windows 7. it's fairly nice so far.
Continue to full post . . .
Saturday, July 4, 2009
My love/hate relationship... with Prototype.
Prototype:
Prototype is a relatively poorly reviewed game. This is in large part due to it's dated graphics. However Prototype and I have a very unique relationship. I both love and hate it.
The game is half-ugly. The critics are fairly spot on about this. It looks like an XBox game. Not even XBox 360, just the first one. This is coupled with nigh-indestructible buildings. I say nigh because there are a few types of buildings that are destructible, but they are few and far between.
I have created a video of Prototype's gameplay. This is your only warning: This game is rated M due to gore and language. The gameplay is fairly gory. Besides that, the awesomeness might just melt your eyeballs.
Prototype is a power fantasy. You are all powerful when compared to normal people. you can take a missile or a tank shell to the face and keep on truckin. The thing is, there aren't any moral choices.
The main character is out for revenge, plain and simple. With no memory of his past beyond what he finds out through the game, he simply wants to destroy those responsible for his condition.
The thing about prototype is that the story and the voice acting are actually very good. The story kept me engaged all the way through the game, and the voice acting in most cases made the characters fairly believable.
Despite the dated graphics, the animations are as smooth as silk. Thanks to the graphics engine, though, even dated graphics push my video card pretty hard. I have a Radeon HD 4890 and it struggles to push 30 fps. This seems to be the case no matter what I do with my video settings. I have tried different resolutions besides my monitor's native 1920x1200 and I have tried playing with the shadow quality and texture qualities and nothing has really changed.
Despite the graphics and the repetitiveness of the missions in this open world (Think GTA3: Vice City) the game retains it's fun factor for me. This is due to the sheer power your character has.
I get some sort of primal enjoyment out of causing this level of mayhem.
So without giving you a boring rundown of what scores I gave every section of this game, I'll just skip to the overall.
I give this game 8.5 out of 10 invaders. A great game that keeps sucking me back in, if even just to kill a few military goons.
Continue to full post . . .
Prototype is a relatively poorly reviewed game. This is in large part due to it's dated graphics. However Prototype and I have a very unique relationship. I both love and hate it.
The game is half-ugly. The critics are fairly spot on about this. It looks like an XBox game. Not even XBox 360, just the first one. This is coupled with nigh-indestructible buildings. I say nigh because there are a few types of buildings that are destructible, but they are few and far between.
I have created a video of Prototype's gameplay. This is your only warning: This game is rated M due to gore and language. The gameplay is fairly gory. Besides that, the awesomeness might just melt your eyeballs.
Prototype is a power fantasy. You are all powerful when compared to normal people. you can take a missile or a tank shell to the face and keep on truckin. The thing is, there aren't any moral choices.
The main character is out for revenge, plain and simple. With no memory of his past beyond what he finds out through the game, he simply wants to destroy those responsible for his condition.
The thing about prototype is that the story and the voice acting are actually very good. The story kept me engaged all the way through the game, and the voice acting in most cases made the characters fairly believable.
Despite the dated graphics, the animations are as smooth as silk. Thanks to the graphics engine, though, even dated graphics push my video card pretty hard. I have a Radeon HD 4890 and it struggles to push 30 fps. This seems to be the case no matter what I do with my video settings. I have tried different resolutions besides my monitor's native 1920x1200 and I have tried playing with the shadow quality and texture qualities and nothing has really changed.
Despite the graphics and the repetitiveness of the missions in this open world (Think GTA3: Vice City) the game retains it's fun factor for me. This is due to the sheer power your character has.
I get some sort of primal enjoyment out of causing this level of mayhem.
So without giving you a boring rundown of what scores I gave every section of this game, I'll just skip to the overall.
I give this game 8.5 out of 10 invaders. A great game that keeps sucking me back in, if even just to kill a few military goons.
Continue to full post . . .
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
First M.W.W. post for me! FEATURING: Prototype
Caution: Full size is in epic 1920x1200 resolution. Bleeding eyes may follow usage. For my first M.W.W. post I wanted to post a picture of the game I will review in a couple of days. This game is Prototype. It's a next-gen sandbox game. It's ugly as sin compared to other next-gen games, but it's an absolutely awesome power-trip of a game and it kicks ass.
And those claws? Yes, they dismember.
And those claws? Yes, they dismember.
Continue to full post . . .
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