In yet more tie-in news, Team Fortress 2 and Steam have paired up with Hero Academy. It's a turn-based strategy game, but with players able to participate in an unlimited number of games, the waiting around for the other team to make their move virtually drops to nil.
And, if you own the PC version of the game, you'll get a bobble-head version of the Team Fortress 2 characters to send into battle. I guess, if you really wanted a chibi Heavy, tiny Pyro and wee l'il Spy to send off to wreak havoc, then...Hero Academy's your best bet.
Also, if you're willing to sign up for an Adult Swim account, you can get a code to get your very own...Robot Chicken hat. Yeah, I have no idea either.
It's a really odd thing--I do run occasional sponsored ads on the sidebar. They haven't made me a dime, so it's fairly whimsical in choosing what I want to put up--ultimately, it comes down to what I'd be most interested seeing pop up if I were reading the blog.
The annoying thing comes in when I realize, yet again, that to see any of the coding--to make sure it's working right--on the blog, I have to pull up IE and run it down through them. Even now, with the security updates to the browser, I have to practically be held at gunpoint to choose to use it. Neither Chrome nor Firefox will show the video links.
I suppose that would be another reason why these programs aren't paying me--if most (if not all) of my readers aren't using IE.
The attempts to monetize remain interesting to me, in an odd disconnected way. Would I like to get paid for what I do? Sure, wouldn't we all? But considering what I cover on this blog is so vastly wandering, there's not one single, solitary thing I can point to and say Yes--all my readers would be interested in that. So, in a curious sense, there's a lot of internal flailing going on.
Which isn't helped by the fact that running under Chrome, I can't see the vids I'm linking.
I'm also in the closed beta of the Wizpert thing, and...I haven't decided yet if I'm staying with it. Mostly because I was tapped to be a "Relationship Wizpert", and...yeah, cue hysterical laughter now. This blog was considered good material for giving advice to people on their love lives.
Letting that sink in does not diminish the bafflement behind that statement.
Maybe it's a good thing, though. Keeping this blog steadily in the not-making-a-dime camp means I don't push any particular thing I might be getting paid to do. Obscurely, maybe this keeps me honest, or at least, keeps me opinionated.
I really have no idea. Maybe it's just me--I'm not good enough yet to get paid for blog entries. I should get back to writing the Great American Space Epic and see where that goes...
Showing posts with label Team Fortress 2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Team Fortress 2. Show all posts
02 July, 2012
27 June, 2012
bounce down the dark until it hits the floor
Valve is now telling us that the long-anticipated "Meet the Pyro" video for TF2 will be released...soon. Or at least...at some point. Some point relatively...soon.
Maybe.
[Edit before posting: They weren't kidding! It's been released! Wooo!]
Kotaku runs a "fake gamer" of the week post every now and again, and for the most part, they're just found images put out by retailers or game companies to push some game or other. Most of the time they're at least mildly diverting, but this one I thought was just hysterical. Poor thing--it must be hard growing up without a couch.
If you like the BioShock games, and you like the idea of playing Little Big Planet in a more portable way--you'll want to look into pre-ordering it to get your very own Little Big Daddy and Little Big Sister costumes.
And this is just priceless:
But it's deeper and richer than that, if you break it down: Google's researchers are attempting to learn more about how our brains work, and process data, by inventing a synthetic brain to do the same thing. They filtered its experience through YouTube, as one of the wider data channels on the net, and--on its own--this synthetic brain began to search for amusing cat videos. They didn't teach it to follow any specific data path. They just rigged it, set it in motion, then let it loose on the internet to learn.
And the first thing it learned was to identify and understand a cat. I'm thinking of all those Dick and Jane books that were used to teach children to invent the concept of language and understanding in written form. To grasp a thing, after all, we must first be able to perceive it.
These researchers have taught their synthetic brain to perceive cats. I'm dying to know what it chooses to learn next.
In the meantime, I'll leave you with an interesting City of Heroes bio--sadly, the gentleman in question left before I could snap a pic. He was a big guy, dressed all in black, with long black hair. His name? "Luscious Mary". Here's his bio:
Maybe.
[Edit before posting: They weren't kidding! It's been released! Wooo!]
Kotaku runs a "fake gamer" of the week post every now and again, and for the most part, they're just found images put out by retailers or game companies to push some game or other. Most of the time they're at least mildly diverting, but this one I thought was just hysterical. Poor thing--it must be hard growing up without a couch.
If you like the BioShock games, and you like the idea of playing Little Big Planet in a more portable way--you'll want to look into pre-ordering it to get your very own Little Big Daddy and Little Big Sister costumes.
And this is just priceless:
"We never told it during the training, 'This is a cat,'" said Dr. Dean, who originally helped Google design the software that lets it easily break programs into many tasks that can be computed simultaneously. "It basically invented the concept of a cat. We probably have other ones that are side views of cats."Teach a computer algorithm to interpret data, and the first thing it reaches for is a lolcat. How appropriate.
But it's deeper and richer than that, if you break it down: Google's researchers are attempting to learn more about how our brains work, and process data, by inventing a synthetic brain to do the same thing. They filtered its experience through YouTube, as one of the wider data channels on the net, and--on its own--this synthetic brain began to search for amusing cat videos. They didn't teach it to follow any specific data path. They just rigged it, set it in motion, then let it loose on the internet to learn.
And the first thing it learned was to identify and understand a cat. I'm thinking of all those Dick and Jane books that were used to teach children to invent the concept of language and understanding in written form. To grasp a thing, after all, we must first be able to perceive it.
These researchers have taught their synthetic brain to perceive cats. I'm dying to know what it chooses to learn next.
In the meantime, I'll leave you with an interesting City of Heroes bio--sadly, the gentleman in question left before I could snap a pic. He was a big guy, dressed all in black, with long black hair. His name? "Luscious Mary". Here's his bio:
Description: RP AnyI actually adore that there's an explanation to go with the name. Full points, sir, for innovation. Carry on.
Walk up friendly
Tell friendly
Real Name: Kent Summers
Day Job: Activist, Artist, mostly known for artwork with highly suggestive religious themes. His most famous piece "Raptured Madonna" a.k.a "Luscious Mary" has every religious zealot trying to get him banned from just about everything.
TS: Army of me
Dislikes: Those who sit on the sidelines, religion, magic hokem (but likes magic magical creatures; go figure), those who manipulate and control (you know who you are)
Likes: Art, Literature, Alcohol (alcoholic), Fire (pyromaniac, secretly wishes he was a fire tank, usually carries a mixture of napalm and greekfire), strong minds, those who expose the truth. Way less Zen then he thinks he is...
22 July, 2011
and there's a need for songs that are sung, for chances not taken, for deeds not yet done
Team Fortress 2 has gone steampunk! Well, at least a little. I have no real idea why, except that it's a promotional tie-in to WETA Workshop's line of ray-guns (using the Dr. Grordbort character, even!) for ComicCon.
Hey, if that works for them...Me, I'd rather have the Righteous Bison in hand rather than its reproduction in game...but I won't lie, getting it for TF2 would be considerably easier than ordering--and paying for--the real thing.
More excerpts from the City of Heroes files.
First up: The Highly Visible Ninja. The Highly Visible Ninja is a level 42 Natural Stalker. His one-line bio, complete:
The Water God:. No, really. His bio, for what it's worth:
And finally, my favorite: Lu the Bi-Polar Bear, a level 45 Mutation Scrapper. Her avatar was quite winsome, with white hair, white skin, and rounded little teddy-bear ears.
Her bio:
Though I should explain this, more because it's massively amusing in light of Lady Serra, the Seneschelf of Winterfell: there's a high-level villain group in City of Heroes called the Carnival of Shadows. The Seneschals are among the most dreaded--dressed like harlequin acrobats and wearing full-face masks, they carry wrought-iron cage torches and breathe fire.
Fire tends to cut through a lot of heroes, no matter who they are. And the Seneschals have a wide dispersal range for that fire. They can also take a hell of a lot of damage before they go down.
I've been terribly amused whenever I come across them.
Also, ran across some amusing text on the part of the Fir Bolgs that litter Croatoa. While this has no relationship to actual Celtic mythology, they're pretty much walking sticks with pumpkin heads who can detach those heads and throw them as incendiary bombs towards attackers. But sometimes, if you're far enough away, they won't attack. In those times, the most bizarre little interchanges can be heard, like this one, from a cluster of three young Fir Bolgs around a pay phone on a side street:
[NPC] Telephone: Riiiing! Riiiing!
[NPC] Soldier: What magic is this?
[NPC] Soldier: The thing is enchanted.
Or maybe it's just a phone...Poor, poor confused pumpkin-heads.
Can you use shadows and lighting effects? I can't. But because I can't, I don't even really grasp what it's like for those that do. This helps with that. Though shadows are still buggy for many people (and, as said, I can't use shadows or lighting effects at all; in fact, I can't use any "deferred rendering" display features with my current configuration), that gives a very good idea of what it's like to have them employed.
Hey, if that works for them...Me, I'd rather have the Righteous Bison in hand rather than its reproduction in game...but I won't lie, getting it for TF2 would be considerably easier than ordering--and paying for--the real thing.
More excerpts from the City of Heroes files.
First up: The Highly Visible Ninja. The Highly Visible Ninja is a level 42 Natural Stalker. His one-line bio, complete:
"Misdirection is one of the key skills of the ninja."Okay, then. Moving on...
The Water God:. No, really. His bio, for what it's worth:
My eyes have gone blackHe's level 15. Is anyone surprised?
I'll never look back.
I'll never stop swimming
I'll always be tracked.
My life has transformed
My power has grown.
My minions stretch for leagues
For a bloodied coral throne.
A crown of murdered foes
Will sit on upon my head.
Those that wish to challenge me
Will wish that they were dead.
The beasts of the sea
will collect and submit
Prey for my forgiveness
and live as I permit.
Swim on. . . . . I am The Water God.
And finally, my favorite: Lu the Bi-Polar Bear, a level 45 Mutation Scrapper. Her avatar was quite winsome, with white hair, white skin, and rounded little teddy-bear ears.
Her bio:
PPD Clinical Case Files: 6 yr old Lulu describes her happiest days as being a featured attraction at the Paragon Zoo. "I loved to ride my unicycle, and wait for them to throw me fish. People would clap and cheer, but I didn't want to eat them, because I got fish!"Hee!
A year ago, in a daring move by the Carnival of Shadows, the zoo was held hostage, and people subjected to magical experiments - including Lulu's trainer. Rushing to protect her fish supply, Lulu's DNA merged with her trainers', resulting in permanent mutation.
The trauma of this incident has blocked her memories of the event, nor does she remember subsequently eating a ring mistress, 2 seneschals and an iron man. Currently suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Lu suffers from bouts of depression focused on her mutated appearance ("opposible thumbs. WHY?!?"), and extreme anger control issues.
Though I should explain this, more because it's massively amusing in light of Lady Serra, the Seneschelf of Winterfell: there's a high-level villain group in City of Heroes called the Carnival of Shadows. The Seneschals are among the most dreaded--dressed like harlequin acrobats and wearing full-face masks, they carry wrought-iron cage torches and breathe fire.
Fire tends to cut through a lot of heroes, no matter who they are. And the Seneschals have a wide dispersal range for that fire. They can also take a hell of a lot of damage before they go down.
I've been terribly amused whenever I come across them.
Also, ran across some amusing text on the part of the Fir Bolgs that litter Croatoa. While this has no relationship to actual Celtic mythology, they're pretty much walking sticks with pumpkin heads who can detach those heads and throw them as incendiary bombs towards attackers. But sometimes, if you're far enough away, they won't attack. In those times, the most bizarre little interchanges can be heard, like this one, from a cluster of three young Fir Bolgs around a pay phone on a side street:
[NPC] Telephone: Riiiing! Riiiing!
[NPC] Soldier: What magic is this?
[NPC] Soldier: The thing is enchanted.
Or maybe it's just a phone...Poor, poor confused pumpkin-heads.
Can you use shadows and lighting effects? I can't. But because I can't, I don't even really grasp what it's like for those that do. This helps with that. Though shadows are still buggy for many people (and, as said, I can't use shadows or lighting effects at all; in fact, I can't use any "deferred rendering" display features with my current configuration), that gives a very good idea of what it's like to have them employed.
While wearing white.
And being chased by zombies. You're welcome.
05 July, 2011
we're marching to a faster pace! look out, here comes the master race!
On some days, people suck beyond the telling of it:
[06:13 PM] Welcome Mat: Ƚαɖγš .:ℕ:. ƓεиτεȽℳεη ☆ ℬ��⋋s .:ℕ:. ԌίяԼ§ (*≗*) Ŵ㉫し⊂✪๓Ξ Ⓣ◎ ｲⓗΞ ℱՐℨΛⓚ ઽℎⓄట
This is one of those days. I am told that translates as "Ladys [sic] & Gentlemen, Boys & Girls, Welcome to the Freakshow." Yeah. Whatever you say.
If you ever wondered what character to play in Team Fortress 2 (now that it's gone free-to-play), MightyGodKing has you covered.
And an in joke for players of City of Heroes...you're welcome.
So the kerfluffle over Nazi imagery has reached its twenty-fifth page over on SLUniverse. And, while there was a bizarrely crazed fur who jumped in the middle of the conversation and sent it careening off into the walls of deep-dish conspiracy theory, for the most part, we seem to have reached some general agreements.
Those of us who protest such things aren't protesting WWII recreation. That's ridiculous, on the face of it. And while we don't have consensus on this point, I'm not sure myself that we're even protesting fetish uses--while they're tacky on occasion, and can be seen as offensive, fetish is fetish (and there are worse fetishes to have).
I think what we're protesting is use of the symbology, or referencing the Nazi regime, with zero context. Like, for example, that last link--to a child's version of the SS uniform.
On the other hand, while there's some confusion as to why "Nazi" is not a banned search term, there's also some great hilarity to be found by searching the term on the Marketplace. Like this lovely number:
Beyond the giggle-worthy factor of something like this being casual attire, isn't he the...wrong skintone, shall we say? I mean, not to be racially insensitive, but what do we call this?
Nazispanic?
It can be yours for only L$40. Though I'm not sure why anyone would want to...
Finally, Google's rebranding Blogger and Picasa. I'm not sure what this will mean to those of us who have existing Blogger and Picasa accounts, but...we'll see. No one seems too worried over it so far.
[06:13 PM] Welcome Mat: Ƚαɖγš .:ℕ:. ƓεиτεȽℳεη ☆ ℬ��⋋s .:ℕ:. ԌίяԼ§ (*≗*) Ŵ㉫し⊂✪๓Ξ Ⓣ◎ ｲⓗΞ ℱՐℨΛⓚ ઽℎⓄట
This is one of those days. I am told that translates as "Ladys [sic] & Gentlemen, Boys & Girls, Welcome to the Freakshow." Yeah. Whatever you say.
If you ever wondered what character to play in Team Fortress 2 (now that it's gone free-to-play), MightyGodKing has you covered.
And an in joke for players of City of Heroes...you're welcome.
So the kerfluffle over Nazi imagery has reached its twenty-fifth page over on SLUniverse. And, while there was a bizarrely crazed fur who jumped in the middle of the conversation and sent it careening off into the walls of deep-dish conspiracy theory, for the most part, we seem to have reached some general agreements.
Those of us who protest such things aren't protesting WWII recreation. That's ridiculous, on the face of it. And while we don't have consensus on this point, I'm not sure myself that we're even protesting fetish uses--while they're tacky on occasion, and can be seen as offensive, fetish is fetish (and there are worse fetishes to have).
I think what we're protesting is use of the symbology, or referencing the Nazi regime, with zero context. Like, for example, that last link--to a child's version of the SS uniform.
On the other hand, while there's some confusion as to why "Nazi" is not a banned search term, there's also some great hilarity to be found by searching the term on the Marketplace. Like this lovely number:
 |
| (from the bizarre album) |
Beyond the giggle-worthy factor of something like this being casual attire, isn't he the...wrong skintone, shall we say? I mean, not to be racially insensitive, but what do we call this?
Nazispanic?
It can be yours for only L$40. Though I'm not sure why anyone would want to...
Finally, Google's rebranding Blogger and Picasa. I'm not sure what this will mean to those of us who have existing Blogger and Picasa accounts, but...we'll see. No one seems too worried over it so far.
03 July, 2011
he took a white rose from my hair
There are now seventeenth-century Chopines on the grid. They look amazing in the picture; as soon as I can, I am so getting a pair and checking them out in person.
And the first set pictures from Dark Shadows have surfaced. That's bound to be an odd film for several reasons.
Team Fortress 2 server runners now have the ability to ban free-to-play players. Here's what gets me about this--yeah, it's a sleazy tactic, but a) server owners don't have to download the plugin, it's completely voluntary, and b) to become a premium player of TF2, you just have to buy something--anything--from the Mann Store. With their current sale (some items dropped to ninety-nine cents, even!), how is that in any way difficult?
And then the plugin wouldn't work anyway. So why the outrage?
Meanwhile, in news of the real world--well, sort of--there's a guy who set up a Tumblr page advertising hunters to come and hunt him down for cash. I am baffled by every single aspect of this. Is it comedy? Is he serious? No one seems to know.
More from Hair Fair!
First up, the Godiva hair/dress from ChiChickie:
The tone is Mocha, the adjustment is finicky, and the prim count is VERY very high. It also comes with an underpant/undershirt layer, and trust me, with the finicky adjusting, you so want to wear them! Still, if you want to make an impact at that next party, or want to take some really unusual pictures, this is your outfit.
They can be found on Hair Fair II (aka Oceania/Platinum).
On to the rest of it:
Style: Colette #1
Color: Light Brown
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Donna Flora, located on Hair Fair I (aka Independence/Iridium)
Style: Jesse (with jewel)
Color: Platinum
Materials: Entirely sculpted hair with separate sculpted accessory
Maker: Donna Flora, located on Hair Fair I
Style: Bailey:Roots
Color: Goldrush
Materials: Sculpted and flexi strands
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II (aka Oceania/Platinum)
Style: Glory:Roots
Color: Vanilla
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
Style: Hollie Dae:Roots
Color: Sunset
Materials: Sculpted and flexi strands
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
Style: Lady Versailles:Roots
Color: Fawn
Materials: Sculpted strands and flowers
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
Style: Aerhe
Color: None given; I'd say black iron and Blonde
Materials: Black metal and flexi strands
Maker: Griddie, located on Hair Fair II
(I haven't been commenting on these, because I'm going through so many demos, it's taking long enough as it is. But this one...this one is just so completely bizarre, I had to say something.
(I'd been doing a run of close shots, so I didn't understand what I was seeing at first. Until I pulled back.
(Here's a slightly closer shot:
It's an intense sweeping braided updo in back, and that braided sweep is surrounding the metal struts that make up the rest of the piece--thirteen explosions of hair that flex in sinuous patterns. I can't imagine a single place I could wear this--but I'm tempted towards getting it all the same, just for the absolute epic nature of this hair.
And the first set pictures from Dark Shadows have surfaced. That's bound to be an odd film for several reasons.
Team Fortress 2 server runners now have the ability to ban free-to-play players. Here's what gets me about this--yeah, it's a sleazy tactic, but a) server owners don't have to download the plugin, it's completely voluntary, and b) to become a premium player of TF2, you just have to buy something--anything--from the Mann Store. With their current sale (some items dropped to ninety-nine cents, even!), how is that in any way difficult?
And then the plugin wouldn't work anyway. So why the outrage?
Meanwhile, in news of the real world--well, sort of--there's a guy who set up a Tumblr page advertising hunters to come and hunt him down for cash. I am baffled by every single aspect of this. Is it comedy? Is he serious? No one seems to know.
More from Hair Fair!
First up, the Godiva hair/dress from ChiChickie:
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
The tone is Mocha, the adjustment is finicky, and the prim count is VERY very high. It also comes with an underpant/undershirt layer, and trust me, with the finicky adjusting, you so want to wear them! Still, if you want to make an impact at that next party, or want to take some really unusual pictures, this is your outfit.
They can be found on Hair Fair II (aka Oceania/Platinum).
On to the rest of it:
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Colette #1
Color: Light Brown
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Donna Flora, located on Hair Fair I (aka Independence/Iridium)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Jesse (with jewel)
Color: Platinum
Materials: Entirely sculpted hair with separate sculpted accessory
Maker: Donna Flora, located on Hair Fair I
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Bailey:Roots
Color: Goldrush
Materials: Sculpted and flexi strands
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II (aka Oceania/Platinum)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Glory:Roots
Color: Vanilla
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Hollie Dae:Roots
Color: Sunset
Materials: Sculpted and flexi strands
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Lady Versailles:Roots
Color: Fawn
Materials: Sculpted strands and flowers
Maker: Exile, located on Hair Fair II
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Aerhe
Color: None given; I'd say black iron and Blonde
Materials: Black metal and flexi strands
Maker: Griddie, located on Hair Fair II
(I haven't been commenting on these, because I'm going through so many demos, it's taking long enough as it is. But this one...this one is just so completely bizarre, I had to say something.
(I'd been doing a run of close shots, so I didn't understand what I was seeing at first. Until I pulled back.
(Here's a slightly closer shot:
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
It's an intense sweeping braided updo in back, and that braided sweep is surrounding the metal struts that make up the rest of the piece--thirteen explosions of hair that flex in sinuous patterns. I can't imagine a single place I could wear this--but I'm tempted towards getting it all the same, just for the absolute epic nature of this hair.
Anyway. Back to the rest of the pics:)
Style: Link
Color: None given; I'd say tarnished steel and Fire
Materials: Metal and flexi ends
Maker: Griddie, located on Hair Fair II
Style: CurledTail Mohawk
Color: Brown/Red
Materials: Sculpted and flexi waves
Maker: Hair Studio ONE, located on Hair Fair IV (aka Salt Water Taffy/Osmium)
Style: 10 Hour Hair
Color: Not given, I'd say Rose Brown
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Hairoin, located on Hair Fair III (aka Carnival/Rhodium)
Style: Leviathan
Color: Not given, let's call it Dark Blonde
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Hairoin, located on Hair Fair III.
Style: Just Jen
Color: Red2
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Head Mistress, located on Hair Fair II)
Style: Rolling Tides
Color: Brown3
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Head Mistress, located on Hair Fair II)
(Worn on this shoot: Rue's Gem Thaumaturge eyes in Peridot [no idea if they're still available, but you can always check on the Marketplace]; Nomine's Papillon skin, China tone, in 'aftermath wasteland'; and SD Wears' Ladybug Costume [from their L$25 'everything red' sale this weekend, in honor of Canada Day].)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Link
Color: None given; I'd say tarnished steel and Fire
Materials: Metal and flexi ends
Maker: Griddie, located on Hair Fair II
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: CurledTail Mohawk
Color: Brown/Red
Materials: Sculpted and flexi waves
Maker: Hair Studio ONE, located on Hair Fair IV (aka Salt Water Taffy/Osmium)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Color: Not given, I'd say Rose Brown
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Hairoin, located on Hair Fair III (aka Carnival/Rhodium)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Leviathan
Color: Not given, let's call it Dark Blonde
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Hairoin, located on Hair Fair III.
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Just Jen
Color: Red2
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Head Mistress, located on Hair Fair II)
 |
| (from the Hair Fair album) |
Style: Rolling Tides
Color: Brown3
Materials: Entirely sculpted
Maker: Head Mistress, located on Hair Fair II)
(Worn on this shoot: Rue's Gem Thaumaturge eyes in Peridot [no idea if they're still available, but you can always check on the Marketplace]; Nomine's Papillon skin, China tone, in 'aftermath wasteland'; and SD Wears' Ladybug Costume [from their L$25 'everything red' sale this weekend, in honor of Canada Day].)
28 June, 2011
not bloody cotton swabs and lies, stolen checks and empty eyes
Sometimes we look back, and see the world as it was through new and different eyes. Sometimes this gives us that gloss of nostalgia, and it's a bittersweet but enjoyable reflection.
Other times we wonder about M Linden's Twitter feed and we get unbearably depressed. Kingdon never, never, ever understood SL. At all. Saddest thing in the history of sad Linden things, and something that Second Life is still struggling with, months after he left.
In happier news--or at least weirder--a couple of folks have come out with a Minecraft hack that allows you to 'roll up' the world, aka Katamari Damacy. It's bizarre to watch.
In video game news, the Supreme Court, led by the landmark decision of Justice Scalia, voted against a California law that would require government-level restrictions on the sales of video games to minors. While I profoundly believe that some games should be restricted by ratings to exclude sales to people under certain ages--just as we do with movies--I am also profoundly against such restriction to be based around existing obscenity laws. And it turns out, Justice Scalia agrees with me. Yay!
Comics, Everybody! explains how the Green Lantern saga couldn't possibly be explained in one movie. I think that's my biggest complaint, honestly--that they not only tried, but that they then did such a bad job that there will never be another Green Lantern movie.
(Unless, you know, kids are involved.)
In scientific news, Markus Kayser has built two amazing devices, both designed to use what the harsh climes he's currently in have in abundance: namely, sun and sand. It's fascinating stuph, and, while purely in the realm of scientific possibility, I'm rather with the writer--who views them as "magical".
Meanwhile, God still pops up now and again with odd requests:
I love your supple back: emmmmm
I love your supple back: play tf2
I love your supple back: i wont stab you in the back
I love your supple back has changed their name to i want to stab you in the back.
Needless to say, I did not go play TF2.
Other times we wonder about M Linden's Twitter feed and we get unbearably depressed. Kingdon never, never, ever understood SL. At all. Saddest thing in the history of sad Linden things, and something that Second Life is still struggling with, months after he left.
In happier news--or at least weirder--a couple of folks have come out with a Minecraft hack that allows you to 'roll up' the world, aka Katamari Damacy. It's bizarre to watch.
In video game news, the Supreme Court, led by the landmark decision of Justice Scalia, voted against a California law that would require government-level restrictions on the sales of video games to minors. While I profoundly believe that some games should be restricted by ratings to exclude sales to people under certain ages--just as we do with movies--I am also profoundly against such restriction to be based around existing obscenity laws. And it turns out, Justice Scalia agrees with me. Yay!
Comics, Everybody! explains how the Green Lantern saga couldn't possibly be explained in one movie. I think that's my biggest complaint, honestly--that they not only tried, but that they then did such a bad job that there will never be another Green Lantern movie.
(Unless, you know, kids are involved.)
In scientific news, Markus Kayser has built two amazing devices, both designed to use what the harsh climes he's currently in have in abundance: namely, sun and sand. It's fascinating stuph, and, while purely in the realm of scientific possibility, I'm rather with the writer--who views them as "magical".
Meanwhile, God still pops up now and again with odd requests:
I love your supple back: emmmmm
I love your supple back: play tf2
I love your supple back: i wont stab you in the back
I love your supple back has changed their name to i want to stab you in the back.
Needless to say, I did not go play TF2.
12 April, 2011
and even though she's dreaming, she knows
Short brief entry/explanation, just so everyone's on the same page.
First, I have no idea what's going on with Photobucket. A friend pointed out the images weren't loading; another mentioned that mayhap there was a copyright challenge going on in the background. (I'm thinking that's not the case, because I've seen the things that Photobucket puts up if there is a reason for them to delete content; this graphic doesn't match their previous observed behavior.
But however it is--or isn't--I'm planning on transferring the images for this blog to another service that won't spontaneously replace them with black and white print on a whim.
Secondly, yes, I'm planning on getting back to the doll entries, but I got tied up in how to define things, and I'm still not sure how that's going to play out. But they're still on the table, and I'll post them when I'm done.
Third, I have what may well be a hundred or more images of Team Fortress 2 and Minecraft--possibly each--that I haven't posted. I'm still pondering whether I want to just flip up pic-heavy entries of some of the happenings. No or little text, and would that still be interesting 'reading' for people who don't play either game?
But there you go, the news, or announcement, or what-have-you about the last few days of strange graphics and radio silence (so to speak).
Me, I'm going back to pondering changing dwellings, and wondering on the best way to measure a tower when the ground levels of surrounding plots in the same sim are uneven...
^&^
[Update: this tweet from the Photobucket account came in a few hours back:
First, I have no idea what's going on with Photobucket. A friend pointed out the images weren't loading; another mentioned that mayhap there was a copyright challenge going on in the background. (I'm thinking that's not the case, because I've seen the things that Photobucket puts up if there is a reason for them to delete content; this graphic doesn't match their previous observed behavior.
But however it is--or isn't--I'm planning on transferring the images for this blog to another service that won't spontaneously replace them with black and white print on a whim.
Secondly, yes, I'm planning on getting back to the doll entries, but I got tied up in how to define things, and I'm still not sure how that's going to play out. But they're still on the table, and I'll post them when I'm done.
Third, I have what may well be a hundred or more images of Team Fortress 2 and Minecraft--possibly each--that I haven't posted. I'm still pondering whether I want to just flip up pic-heavy entries of some of the happenings. No or little text, and would that still be interesting 'reading' for people who don't play either game?
But there you go, the news, or announcement, or what-have-you about the last few days of strange graphics and radio silence (so to speak).
Me, I'm going back to pondering changing dwellings, and wondering on the best way to measure a tower when the ground levels of surrounding plots in the same sim are uneven...
^&^
[Update: this tweet from the Photobucket account came in a few hours back:
Hey PB peeps - just got an update on the maintenance issue - looks like after 12am MDT (-6 GMT) for things to get back to nrml[The problem with this? It's not fixed yet. I'm hoping on the morning...but I'm still planning on transferring my graphics off.]
^&^
[Update II: Turns out, I didn't keep the original background or the logo. *sighs* So tomorrow, I have to decide how badly I want to retain the original look, or if I just want to spend a few hours recreating my blog. This is so irritating.]
12 December, 2010
we got it wrong from the start
Valve hates us. (That's part one; there's also part two, part three and part four.)
From Vasha Martinek's profile (to Dysturbed Sin, natch):
On days like today, I realize that I'd give you the other gun and half my bullets. Without you having to ask. It must be love.
Wau, it must be. That's a huge compliment.
So, Winter Ventura, out of the blue today, sent me this:
Doesn't that look amazing on the mantle? Probably look even cooler in homes that aren't set on 100% black wood and black stone textures...but still.
Even cuter? This is the back of it:
Wau. Just wau. It has present radio stations (including holiday ones!), it's very low-prim, and the internal card can be modified to put in your own favorite tunesmiths. Lovely little bit of work.
You can find it at Eclectic Randomness' Healy annex store, or her main store in Kloimar. (I b'lieve her main store is Adult-verified only, but the Healy annex store isn't.)
Gift cards, btw, are available for all her holiday items, and I think everything else, so you don't have to worry about buying something and then not being able to transfer it. Go Winter!
In further news of people sending me random things, Miss sachi Vixen sent me an advance copy of her new Lena skin (at the time, not out; but, at this late date, out):
Just gorgeous. I meant to go back and take fancier pictures, without the cat ears and eyes, but I never got around to it. I was just standing around the land office in these. Still, this says something, I think.
If it looks this good in regular system light, no facelights, no special post-processing, no Photoshop enhancements...think how good it will look if you're actually in a human shape (I was in the kittyshape, naturally), and you pull a little effort together with the facelights or the post-processing.
The lips are just divine on this skin. You can go get her in the Skins section of the Adam & Even main store.
And while we're on A&E, she sent me a pack of eyes. This is taking a while to photograph, because there were a TON of things in the pack. But it's from her new fantasy eyes collection, and they're well worth a trip down to the store to check those out, too.
Cannot remember if the eyes are next to skins still, so if you go here to their lobby, there'll be a map with eyes marked. Just click that to teleport directly there. I'm going to have to go retake the eye shots, though, because a) as much as I love Winterfell, eternal twilight does not good eye pics make, and b) I can't remember which ones these were.
Save for the first pic. Those are called "Dampsong".
Lastly, I'm now a contributor for the Metaverse Daily! What does that mean? Absolutely nothing other than someone wandered over to the blog and dragged something off for republication. It's more views, I guess, and ordinarily I wouldn't mind, but there was a Twitter post in the publisher's feed that made it sound like I'd been hired as a contributor.
And, y'know, wouldn't mind that, but I certainly wouldn't volunteer for it, you know?
From Vasha Martinek's profile (to Dysturbed Sin, natch):
On days like today, I realize that I'd give you the other gun and half my bullets. Without you having to ask. It must be love.
Wau, it must be. That's a huge compliment.
So, Winter Ventura, out of the blue today, sent me this:
Doesn't that look amazing on the mantle? Probably look even cooler in homes that aren't set on 100% black wood and black stone textures...but still.
Even cuter? This is the back of it:
Wau. Just wau. It has present radio stations (including holiday ones!), it's very low-prim, and the internal card can be modified to put in your own favorite tunesmiths. Lovely little bit of work.
You can find it at Eclectic Randomness' Healy annex store, or her main store in Kloimar. (I b'lieve her main store is Adult-verified only, but the Healy annex store isn't.)
Gift cards, btw, are available for all her holiday items, and I think everything else, so you don't have to worry about buying something and then not being able to transfer it. Go Winter!
In further news of people sending me random things, Miss sachi Vixen sent me an advance copy of her new Lena skin (at the time, not out; but, at this late date, out):
Just gorgeous. I meant to go back and take fancier pictures, without the cat ears and eyes, but I never got around to it. I was just standing around the land office in these. Still, this says something, I think.
If it looks this good in regular system light, no facelights, no special post-processing, no Photoshop enhancements...think how good it will look if you're actually in a human shape (I was in the kittyshape, naturally), and you pull a little effort together with the facelights or the post-processing.
The lips are just divine on this skin. You can go get her in the Skins section of the Adam & Even main store.
And while we're on A&E, she sent me a pack of eyes. This is taking a while to photograph, because there were a TON of things in the pack. But it's from her new fantasy eyes collection, and they're well worth a trip down to the store to check those out, too.
Cannot remember if the eyes are next to skins still, so if you go here to their lobby, there'll be a map with eyes marked. Just click that to teleport directly there. I'm going to have to go retake the eye shots, though, because a) as much as I love Winterfell, eternal twilight does not good eye pics make, and b) I can't remember which ones these were.
Save for the first pic. Those are called "Dampsong".
Lastly, I'm now a contributor for the Metaverse Daily! What does that mean? Absolutely nothing other than someone wandered over to the blog and dragged something off for republication. It's more views, I guess, and ordinarily I wouldn't mind, but there was a Twitter post in the publisher's feed that made it sound like I'd been hired as a contributor.
And, y'know, wouldn't mind that, but I certainly wouldn't volunteer for it, you know?
06 August, 2010
we cannot linger on this stunted view, like rabid dogs of war
I'd Blow Guys Away: BLOWING SO MANY DUDES
I'd Blow Guys Away has changed their name to Stiv.
Stiv is now Offline.
I'm going to just assume God meant, "blowing away so many dudes"...because past that the visuals start to scare me.
Miss friskie Quintessa:
And her eye collar. Unfort these are two really quick pics, she was still rezzing in (as you can see), but the first glimpse I had of her, her collar was circling around her eye. I may be wrong in this, but I'm fairly sure collars go around the neck.
And, while it's very attractive as hair jewelry, I really don't think it's supposed to go there, either.
I am glad for one thing, though--I pulled her profile to see who I was dealing with, and found this line:
Shifting topics, why are some freebie blogs starting to blog...well...non-freebie items? I know we're all feeling the pinch, and we're trying to encourage grid economics despite the big, flaming spiked socket wrenches the Lindens throw in from time to time, but still...it seems odd.
Case in point: FabFree's coverage of the Platinum hunt. (Which is annoying on another level, because now I want/need/crave some of the hunt dresses! So irritating...) It's a freebie blog--it's one of the longest-running freebie blogs--but it's covering a 10L hunt.
This behavior isn't new; a lot of the free blogs are doing it, and it's happening more and more often. Why?
More on the Golden Wrench controversy over at Valve. First, between eight and ten people have now stepped up to formally destroy their Golden Wrenches, a once-in-a-lifetime acquisition, to benefit the charity Child's Play. While I laud the concept of the giveaway, the push behind the donation raising should be something Valve should be paying attention to, and I really don't think they are. To wit:
All for love of the game...but that's not why Valve did this. I honestly think they mishandled this situation, and Valve being Valve--generally speaking, they make Linden Labs look like shiny happy people who are effusively in contact with their user base--they're not going to apologize.
Which is a pity. But on the plus side, more than $20,000 US has been raised to benefit children in need. That is a very good thing indeed, and there's still time to donate.
Help the cause if you can. Or just trip by Child's Play directly--it's never a bad time to drop off spare change, and that change always goes to good places.
I'd Blow Guys Away has changed their name to Stiv.
Stiv is now Offline.
I'm going to just assume God meant, "blowing away so many dudes"...because past that the visuals start to scare me.
Miss friskie Quintessa:
And her eye collar. Unfort these are two really quick pics, she was still rezzing in (as you can see), but the first glimpse I had of her, her collar was circling around her eye. I may be wrong in this, but I'm fairly sure collars go around the neck.
And, while it's very attractive as hair jewelry, I really don't think it's supposed to go there, either.
I am glad for one thing, though--I pulled her profile to see who I was dealing with, and found this line:
"Sometimes one puts up walls, not to keep people out, but to see who cares enough to knock them down."A very good point, indeed.
Shifting topics, why are some freebie blogs starting to blog...well...non-freebie items? I know we're all feeling the pinch, and we're trying to encourage grid economics despite the big, flaming spiked socket wrenches the Lindens throw in from time to time, but still...it seems odd.
Case in point: FabFree's coverage of the Platinum hunt. (Which is annoying on another level, because now I want/need/crave some of the hunt dresses! So irritating...) It's a freebie blog--it's one of the longest-running freebie blogs--but it's covering a 10L hunt.
This behavior isn't new; a lot of the free blogs are doing it, and it's happening more and more often. Why?
More on the Golden Wrench controversy over at Valve. First, between eight and ten people have now stepped up to formally destroy their Golden Wrenches, a once-in-a-lifetime acquisition, to benefit the charity Child's Play. While I laud the concept of the giveaway, the push behind the donation raising should be something Valve should be paying attention to, and I really don't think they are. To wit:
The Steam community has seen a bevy of bad emotions resulting from this distribution (and, in some cases, from hacking-related fallout), and as an owner of the Wrench, I've also experienced a bit of its curse. While it's certainly fun to wield this magical weapon, it's also served as a source of constant inquiry, hate, jealousy, and unwanted negative attention. It's a shame that such a fun item was so limited; it has ultimately made Team Fortress 2 less fun, not more.He's not wrong. Again, he's doing everything he can to make this tragedy benefit someone, but this has resulted in more animosity, bitter resentment, and actual account hacking than I'd ever heard of in any video game feud.
All for love of the game...but that's not why Valve did this. I honestly think they mishandled this situation, and Valve being Valve--generally speaking, they make Linden Labs look like shiny happy people who are effusively in contact with their user base--they're not going to apologize.
Which is a pity. But on the plus side, more than $20,000 US has been raised to benefit children in need. That is a very good thing indeed, and there's still time to donate.
Help the cause if you can. Or just trip by Child's Play directly--it's never a bad time to drop off spare change, and that change always goes to good places.
08 January, 2010
oh, I can hear them saying, keep on dreaming even if it breaks your heart
I found another "Meet the..." video for Team Fortress 2! Meet the Sandwich.
Yes, seriously.
To celebrate the coming Year of the Tiger (which, this year, is accompanied by the element Metal, making it the ideal year to perfect your armored takeover beast), Miss Risusipo Jun has completely redecorated her sim, and a lovely job she's done of it, too.
(The fire on the beach. Don't forget to pick up an acorn to roast!)
She's set up several little homes, made of acorns, naturally, and the adorable factor is very, very high.
(Nomming the piano. I told you. Did I not tell you? Twee, I say. TWEE!)
The homes are simple, with comfortable furnishings, pillows, futons, and simple fireplaces. Very few sculpts, all in all, but very cute. Homey, even. Peaceful, with the water rushing past the mini-waterwheel, and the barely-there chimes heard near the shrine.
(Chipmunk on the bridge. Konbanwa, Acorn Valley!)
Everything's in epic Tiny scale--by which I mean, huge, in comparison to the average Tiny size, where bridges and landmark pushpins are involved, yet scaled appropriately for most things one can sit on and nap in (there are a few cases where this is not so, but they're truly exceptions to the main).
(Small but sumptuous arboreal creations abound. Including the cute little chipmunk toes seen here.)
There's a lot of just plain nifty little details, too. A spa for Tinies. Leaf shadows underneath the standard Linden oak trees. The caps of the acorns generally match the bark on the larger trees, and while that's not standard for RL acorns, here, we buy it.
(Wandering a sim devoted to acorns? At this point, expected in SL. Wandering a sim devoted to acorns in a chipmunk avatar? Priceless.)
The point of the thing, though, is not to laud the invention of one acorn-obsessed Japanese lady. No, no no. Did I mention there was an acorn hunt? For kimonos and yukatas, designed for men and women, to be used in conjunction with her chipmunk (and, quite likely, her otter) avatars.
And if you don't have one? Find the box with the yellow pointer and pick one up for L$7! How cool is that?
(In addition to being cute as all get-out, did I mention blinking is standard? Though there is a head included that doesn't blink at all.)
This is the Black kimono found in one of the acorns, for girls, naturally. It comes with the head bow.
(Yukatas for wee Asian mammals. Hajimemashite yoroshiku onegaishimasu. And there's at least one additional yukata color.)
This is one of the mens' offerings, a yukata in blue sized for Tinies, with one of the male wigs she's created (though it's somewhat hysterical seeing a 'bald' chipmunk!), available at the Shrine (more on that later). There's also a yukata in black, and a male-wrapped kimono named "Iono" (making seven acorns in all).
(If you're a wee chipmunk lass covered in pink flowers? I think the greeting starts and ends at Domo! Or maybe Kawaii! Don't you think?)
She's even made a lovely little teahouse, with shoji screens, low tables, and oranges in a tiny bamboo bowl. (You can even pick up a Tiny orange to take home.)
(The adorable Tiny-sized Japanese open-air vacation hotel.)
She's really outdone herself. The hotel, the comfy hostel up the hillside, and the waterfall beneath, heaped lovingly with bamboo--it's wonderful.
(All the decorations you see here? In terms of the year-festival ones, the simenawa donguri over the door, the two variants of donguri kadomatu outside the door, plus some things inside? All free. There's a small variety of really great freebie items to pick up and cherish, here.)
Three-room cottages are unusual, even on the grid, but this one is just charming. A lone sock drying by the fire, the low table for eating, an ice pack if your head hurts, and plenty of options for sleeping if you get tired--plus pictures of your 'host family' on the narrow shelves. It's a wonderful little dwelling, I wish she had it for sale.
(The gachapon selection at the Shrine.)
That's Mr. Lobelt Farrjones, to my right, who happened to be in the Shrine when I took this pic. He's wearing the black yukata for men, and he's standing next two two gachapons and a shoe-base giver. Gachapons are catching on in a big way on the grid, though they're still mostly restricted to Japanese sims.
The usual way they work is to pay them a set amount, which will then give you a random toy, item of clothing, bit of food or candy--what-have-you. On the grid, they've expanded the concept to everything--homes, outfits, avatars, hair, eyes...it's absolutely limitless. In Miss Jun's case, once per day, while she's running this, you can stop in and touch each gachapon twice, and get a free Tiny-wearable sandal (either the left, or the right, and at least geta or zōri, if not waraji or okobo>--or you can get one of seven Asian hairstyles designed for Tiny avatars.
(I'm assuming the twice means you could, conceivably, get a matching pair of sandals, but it's a gachapon, sometimes they just don't work like that.)
(The Shrine to the Radiant Acorn.)
And don't forget to check the Radiant Acorn at the shrine!
In other news, Blizzard, home of WoW, is apparently developing a new MMO. They say it will be "significantly different" from WoW; sources close to the company, how'ver, dismiss the "new MMORPGFPS" format as simple hype around a title Blizzard has already announced--namely, Starcraft II.
I'm not entirely sure how "space-based MMO" equals the new social/interactive MMORPG (with FPS tendencies). I am amused at the sarcastic reference to "Mr. & Mrs. Smith Online". Though to be fair there, if we don't have the chance to play Angelina Jolie with a gun? Not interested.
Yes, seriously.
To celebrate the coming Year of the Tiger (which, this year, is accompanied by the element Metal, making it the ideal year to perfect your armored takeover beast), Miss Risusipo Jun has completely redecorated her sim, and a lovely job she's done of it, too.
(The fire on the beach. Don't forget to pick up an acorn to roast!)
She's set up several little homes, made of acorns, naturally, and the adorable factor is very, very high.
(Nomming the piano. I told you. Did I not tell you? Twee, I say. TWEE!)
The homes are simple, with comfortable furnishings, pillows, futons, and simple fireplaces. Very few sculpts, all in all, but very cute. Homey, even. Peaceful, with the water rushing past the mini-waterwheel, and the barely-there chimes heard near the shrine.
(Chipmunk on the bridge. Konbanwa, Acorn Valley!)
Everything's in epic Tiny scale--by which I mean, huge, in comparison to the average Tiny size, where bridges and landmark pushpins are involved, yet scaled appropriately for most things one can sit on and nap in (there are a few cases where this is not so, but they're truly exceptions to the main).
(Small but sumptuous arboreal creations abound. Including the cute little chipmunk toes seen here.)
There's a lot of just plain nifty little details, too. A spa for Tinies. Leaf shadows underneath the standard Linden oak trees. The caps of the acorns generally match the bark on the larger trees, and while that's not standard for RL acorns, here, we buy it.
(Wandering a sim devoted to acorns? At this point, expected in SL. Wandering a sim devoted to acorns in a chipmunk avatar? Priceless.)
The point of the thing, though, is not to laud the invention of one acorn-obsessed Japanese lady. No, no no. Did I mention there was an acorn hunt? For kimonos and yukatas, designed for men and women, to be used in conjunction with her chipmunk (and, quite likely, her otter) avatars.
And if you don't have one? Find the box with the yellow pointer and pick one up for L$7! How cool is that?
(In addition to being cute as all get-out, did I mention blinking is standard? Though there is a head included that doesn't blink at all.)
This is the Black kimono found in one of the acorns, for girls, naturally. It comes with the head bow.
(Yukatas for wee Asian mammals. Hajimemashite yoroshiku onegaishimasu. And there's at least one additional yukata color.)
This is one of the mens' offerings, a yukata in blue sized for Tinies, with one of the male wigs she's created (though it's somewhat hysterical seeing a 'bald' chipmunk!), available at the Shrine (more on that later). There's also a yukata in black, and a male-wrapped kimono named "Iono" (making seven acorns in all).
(If you're a wee chipmunk lass covered in pink flowers? I think the greeting starts and ends at Domo! Or maybe Kawaii! Don't you think?)
She's even made a lovely little teahouse, with shoji screens, low tables, and oranges in a tiny bamboo bowl. (You can even pick up a Tiny orange to take home.)
(The adorable Tiny-sized Japanese open-air vacation hotel.)
She's really outdone herself. The hotel, the comfy hostel up the hillside, and the waterfall beneath, heaped lovingly with bamboo--it's wonderful.
(All the decorations you see here? In terms of the year-festival ones, the simenawa donguri over the door, the two variants of donguri kadomatu outside the door, plus some things inside? All free. There's a small variety of really great freebie items to pick up and cherish, here.)
Three-room cottages are unusual, even on the grid, but this one is just charming. A lone sock drying by the fire, the low table for eating, an ice pack if your head hurts, and plenty of options for sleeping if you get tired--plus pictures of your 'host family' on the narrow shelves. It's a wonderful little dwelling, I wish she had it for sale.
(The gachapon selection at the Shrine.)
That's Mr. Lobelt Farrjones, to my right, who happened to be in the Shrine when I took this pic. He's wearing the black yukata for men, and he's standing next two two gachapons and a shoe-base giver. Gachapons are catching on in a big way on the grid, though they're still mostly restricted to Japanese sims.
The usual way they work is to pay them a set amount, which will then give you a random toy, item of clothing, bit of food or candy--what-have-you. On the grid, they've expanded the concept to everything--homes, outfits, avatars, hair, eyes...it's absolutely limitless. In Miss Jun's case, once per day, while she's running this, you can stop in and touch each gachapon twice, and get a free Tiny-wearable sandal (either the left, or the right, and at least geta or zōri, if not waraji or okobo>--or you can get one of seven Asian hairstyles designed for Tiny avatars.
(I'm assuming the twice means you could, conceivably, get a matching pair of sandals, but it's a gachapon, sometimes they just don't work like that.)
(The Shrine to the Radiant Acorn.)
And don't forget to check the Radiant Acorn at the shrine!
In other news, Blizzard, home of WoW, is apparently developing a new MMO. They say it will be "significantly different" from WoW; sources close to the company, how'ver, dismiss the "new MMORPGFPS" format as simple hype around a title Blizzard has already announced--namely, Starcraft II.
I'm not entirely sure how "space-based MMO" equals the new social/interactive MMORPG (with FPS tendencies). I am amused at the sarcastic reference to "Mr. & Mrs. Smith Online". Though to be fair there, if we don't have the chance to play Angelina Jolie with a gun? Not interested.
07 January, 2010
I turn to the crowd as they're watching, they're sitting all together in the dark, in the warm
GlaDOS as Venus? It's a theory.
Meet Pun-Pun, the single scariest creature in D&D.
Via William Gibson, finder of so many intriguing things, comes an article from the Ladies' Home Journal, circa 1900, predicting events a hundred year hence. I'm surprised how close they came.
Someone really needs to update the ISC page on the Caledon Wiki. Just sayin'.
Pixels & Policy comments on what happens to virtual goods upon the owner's death. And true, there's no specific law for individuals, though I do remember two times in my history when the death of someone else directly affected me, in terms of property.
First, was the idiot vampire prince, who died through fraud. Though I had my home set to his sim, and had, in fact, decorated his house with my belongings, when he died, the sim owners erased his house and sent everything back. This was my first brush with the 'fire-and-forget' method of sim cleaning, and it was shocking at the time.
Second, of course, was Sumie Kawashima, whose RL family dedicated a virtual executor for her estate. What could be passed on, or what was under individual names, was, quietly and without fanfare.
Was it legal, in terms of what the current laws regarding the metaverse say? Not sure, though in a head-to-head legal challenge, probably not. Was it ethical, however, and morally responsible? Yes. And to that end, I look forward to laws--or at least, guidelines--developed for such instances.
Sort of on the heels of that--considering Sumie died from a deep bone infection--scientists have now discovered how to graft specially-treated rattan wood onto bone. If the sheep survive the process--and to date, none of the test herd has rejected the implants out of hand--then within a few years, we could see implanted rattan-wood bones for people who've lost bone mass, with little risk of rejection, retaining the strength of original bones.
So very very close...yet another dollop of sadness, but still.
Runes of Magic is further narrowing how diamonds can be used. Believe me, they're trying to pimp the cards, because the cards are supposedly "safer"; I get that, and I don't mind the diamond cards. I use the diamond cards; in fact, that nifty translucent mount we all got for the game? Came from a diamond card.
But it's still irritating. I buy diamonds, I'm putting money on the line for in-world funds, which cannot, thereafter, be translated back into cash. I want to know I can gift them, if I wish to; trade them in the Auction House if I want; I don't want or need restrictions like this.
"[T]his fantasy of being under constant siege by a multitude of external feminizing forces is really an unconscious defense that is employed to keep out of mind something even more disturbing - an identification with women."
The whole article is telling, but wau, that bit just leapt out and hit me. Only two years ago, Cory-at-the-time-Linden said there was, on average, 45% of all players in SL being biologically female, and 50% "playing as" female--and most of us at the time thought, yeah, the 'playing as'? That's higher than you think.
"I can tell you a million personal experiences of me covering this industry as a woman where people are just clearly freaked out by the fact that you're a woman but you're not a booth babe," Heather Chaplin commented in the article, and I believe her. I'm not going to go for the obvious and say there's a retrogression in gaming, of wanting to make females both accessible and minimized, but a woman executive in the gaming industry is still treated as something of a puzzle.
Take Team Fortress 2, for instance, my current obsession--there are no female characters in the game. There are no female voices in the game. It practically drips testosterone as if it's an engine for the stuph.
Had at least one female designer on the game. Who was a designer on the game because she liked the game, because she wanted to play that game, because she wanted to code and design that game. It's not an all-male industry anymore, and it hasn't been for some time, yet men are still somewhat shocked to discover women like to play games.
"Our secular culture produces all kinds of fear, including fear of the female anatomy," said Janet Jakobsen. And I believe that, too, I know that one. Fear of the feminine goes way back. Shub-Niggurath, the Goat with a Thousand Young, is presumed to be female, and when described at all is described as a dripping, oozing, fatally fecund presence. Fast-forward to Starship Troopers--at least, the movie version--and the "big bad" at the end is the Brain Bug, who--when defeated--is shown tied down while a group of men shove a sharp probe deeply into its...let's just say "mouth" and not go farther.
And Silent Hill...man, the entire game is pretty much Man Faces the Monster--and the Monster is, variably either female, neuter with female attributes, or male intent on hurting females. From Silent Hill comes Miniaret, the Nurses, what can only be described as a femipede...and that's without going into the horrors of the film version, where the evil mastermind behind the world's ills is female, ruthless, insane--and gets raped to death by barbed wire at the end.
"It is not that there's something pathological about being male," Ducat said in The Wimp Factor. "Rather, the problem is the psychological cost of developing a male identity in a culture that disparages the feminine and insists that the boundaries between the masculine and the feminine remain unambiguous and impermeable."
I'd agree with that, too. There's a lot going on, in the Western world, at least, that's very conflicting. Men are told to prize women--and then told that women have no worth. Men are told to be strong, to take control, to dominate--and then told that that dominance doesn't matter, won't matter, and is, in large part, a joke. Men search for an identify as men and are offered examples of men that vary from gay and celibate, to sociopathic, as role models. And on top of that they're told gender should play no part, and everyone should be equal.
It's no wonder men are confused. In this light, it's easier for women to develop an identity on their own--we're told we're weak, emotional, and without worth, but that's both easy to incorporate and move past, as well as easy to reject to search out new paradigms. I'm not saying men don't do this as well, but I do think we put more pressure on growing men, and it's not surprising that their heads spin, trying to process it all.
"If you could kill male prostitutes in the game, then it would be different, but you can only kill female prostitutes," Samhita Mukhopadhyay said. "It's clearly a fantasy. This is not the real world, and you have the right to fantasize about what you want to fantasize about. I'm more interested in what informs that fantasy. It's not coming out of nowhere."
It's not, and it is interesting to note that fantasies of destruction pervade a lot of countries' darker corners. The film Hostel, Eli Roth's tribute to snuff, has been censored in several countries, and it's been both critically acclaimed and lambasted for its subject content.
It's uncomfortable to think about what births these fantasies of vaginal gore and dominance through aggression. We argue that Chaplin is wrong because not all men are the way she says. Mukhopadhyay is wrong because there is so much more to GTA IV than sex and killing hookers. But making these observations is not an all-or-nothing statement.
And that's true, too. They're not saying all men are "bad", all men will destroy before preserve; ostensibly, this is about the fear of the female overall in online and console games. But it does make an impact when, time after time, men are shown a protagonist that is female and that tries to kill them, or shown a female that is obviously weak and frail, and then told either to protect her (with the game rigged for the player to fail), or to kill her (to gain achievements down the line).
I think, overall, games have gotten better in the past few years, both for female gamers, and the industry at large. Ten years ago a game like Portal--with a female antagonist and protagonist, a game somewhat drenched in estrogen, in a sense--would never have been made. And I think it's a good step forward that it has been, and that Portal is pretty standard in terms of FPS gameplay. It's centered on the feminine, but the only pink hearts in the game come from the Companion Cube--who never talks, and interacts only to the extent that it can be lifted and carried, and subsequently dropped.
We have a long way to go, sure. But I don't think more 'female-positive' games will really do the trick. I think we need to figure out why we're raising our children with these expectations, and change those expectations for them. The rest of us are dinosaurs, at this point, men and women alike. It's their world.
Let's see what games they come up with in ten years.
Meet Pun-Pun, the single scariest creature in D&D.
Via William Gibson, finder of so many intriguing things, comes an article from the Ladies' Home Journal, circa 1900, predicting events a hundred year hence. I'm surprised how close they came.
Someone really needs to update the ISC page on the Caledon Wiki. Just sayin'.
Pixels & Policy comments on what happens to virtual goods upon the owner's death. And true, there's no specific law for individuals, though I do remember two times in my history when the death of someone else directly affected me, in terms of property.
First, was the idiot vampire prince, who died through fraud. Though I had my home set to his sim, and had, in fact, decorated his house with my belongings, when he died, the sim owners erased his house and sent everything back. This was my first brush with the 'fire-and-forget' method of sim cleaning, and it was shocking at the time.
Second, of course, was Sumie Kawashima, whose RL family dedicated a virtual executor for her estate. What could be passed on, or what was under individual names, was, quietly and without fanfare.
Was it legal, in terms of what the current laws regarding the metaverse say? Not sure, though in a head-to-head legal challenge, probably not. Was it ethical, however, and morally responsible? Yes. And to that end, I look forward to laws--or at least, guidelines--developed for such instances.
Sort of on the heels of that--considering Sumie died from a deep bone infection--scientists have now discovered how to graft specially-treated rattan wood onto bone. If the sheep survive the process--and to date, none of the test herd has rejected the implants out of hand--then within a few years, we could see implanted rattan-wood bones for people who've lost bone mass, with little risk of rejection, retaining the strength of original bones.
So very very close...yet another dollop of sadness, but still.
Runes of Magic is further narrowing how diamonds can be used. Believe me, they're trying to pimp the cards, because the cards are supposedly "safer"; I get that, and I don't mind the diamond cards. I use the diamond cards; in fact, that nifty translucent mount we all got for the game? Came from a diamond card.
But it's still irritating. I buy diamonds, I'm putting money on the line for in-world funds, which cannot, thereafter, be translated back into cash. I want to know I can gift them, if I wish to; trade them in the Auction House if I want; I don't want or need restrictions like this.
"[T]his fantasy of being under constant siege by a multitude of external feminizing forces is really an unconscious defense that is employed to keep out of mind something even more disturbing - an identification with women."
The whole article is telling, but wau, that bit just leapt out and hit me. Only two years ago, Cory-at-the-time-Linden said there was, on average, 45% of all players in SL being biologically female, and 50% "playing as" female--and most of us at the time thought, yeah, the 'playing as'? That's higher than you think.
"I can tell you a million personal experiences of me covering this industry as a woman where people are just clearly freaked out by the fact that you're a woman but you're not a booth babe," Heather Chaplin commented in the article, and I believe her. I'm not going to go for the obvious and say there's a retrogression in gaming, of wanting to make females both accessible and minimized, but a woman executive in the gaming industry is still treated as something of a puzzle.
Take Team Fortress 2, for instance, my current obsession--there are no female characters in the game. There are no female voices in the game. It practically drips testosterone as if it's an engine for the stuph.
Had at least one female designer on the game. Who was a designer on the game because she liked the game, because she wanted to play that game, because she wanted to code and design that game. It's not an all-male industry anymore, and it hasn't been for some time, yet men are still somewhat shocked to discover women like to play games.
"Our secular culture produces all kinds of fear, including fear of the female anatomy," said Janet Jakobsen. And I believe that, too, I know that one. Fear of the feminine goes way back. Shub-Niggurath, the Goat with a Thousand Young, is presumed to be female, and when described at all is described as a dripping, oozing, fatally fecund presence. Fast-forward to Starship Troopers--at least, the movie version--and the "big bad" at the end is the Brain Bug, who--when defeated--is shown tied down while a group of men shove a sharp probe deeply into its...let's just say "mouth" and not go farther.
And Silent Hill...man, the entire game is pretty much Man Faces the Monster--and the Monster is, variably either female, neuter with female attributes, or male intent on hurting females. From Silent Hill comes Miniaret, the Nurses, what can only be described as a femipede...and that's without going into the horrors of the film version, where the evil mastermind behind the world's ills is female, ruthless, insane--and gets raped to death by barbed wire at the end.
"It is not that there's something pathological about being male," Ducat said in The Wimp Factor. "Rather, the problem is the psychological cost of developing a male identity in a culture that disparages the feminine and insists that the boundaries between the masculine and the feminine remain unambiguous and impermeable."
I'd agree with that, too. There's a lot going on, in the Western world, at least, that's very conflicting. Men are told to prize women--and then told that women have no worth. Men are told to be strong, to take control, to dominate--and then told that that dominance doesn't matter, won't matter, and is, in large part, a joke. Men search for an identify as men and are offered examples of men that vary from gay and celibate, to sociopathic, as role models. And on top of that they're told gender should play no part, and everyone should be equal.
It's no wonder men are confused. In this light, it's easier for women to develop an identity on their own--we're told we're weak, emotional, and without worth, but that's both easy to incorporate and move past, as well as easy to reject to search out new paradigms. I'm not saying men don't do this as well, but I do think we put more pressure on growing men, and it's not surprising that their heads spin, trying to process it all.
"If you could kill male prostitutes in the game, then it would be different, but you can only kill female prostitutes," Samhita Mukhopadhyay said. "It's clearly a fantasy. This is not the real world, and you have the right to fantasize about what you want to fantasize about. I'm more interested in what informs that fantasy. It's not coming out of nowhere."
It's not, and it is interesting to note that fantasies of destruction pervade a lot of countries' darker corners. The film Hostel, Eli Roth's tribute to snuff, has been censored in several countries, and it's been both critically acclaimed and lambasted for its subject content.
It's uncomfortable to think about what births these fantasies of vaginal gore and dominance through aggression. We argue that Chaplin is wrong because not all men are the way she says. Mukhopadhyay is wrong because there is so much more to GTA IV than sex and killing hookers. But making these observations is not an all-or-nothing statement.
And that's true, too. They're not saying all men are "bad", all men will destroy before preserve; ostensibly, this is about the fear of the female overall in online and console games. But it does make an impact when, time after time, men are shown a protagonist that is female and that tries to kill them, or shown a female that is obviously weak and frail, and then told either to protect her (with the game rigged for the player to fail), or to kill her (to gain achievements down the line).
I think, overall, games have gotten better in the past few years, both for female gamers, and the industry at large. Ten years ago a game like Portal--with a female antagonist and protagonist, a game somewhat drenched in estrogen, in a sense--would never have been made. And I think it's a good step forward that it has been, and that Portal is pretty standard in terms of FPS gameplay. It's centered on the feminine, but the only pink hearts in the game come from the Companion Cube--who never talks, and interacts only to the extent that it can be lifted and carried, and subsequently dropped.
We have a long way to go, sure. But I don't think more 'female-positive' games will really do the trick. I think we need to figure out why we're raising our children with these expectations, and change those expectations for them. The rest of us are dinosaurs, at this point, men and women alike. It's their world.
Let's see what games they come up with in ten years.
06 January, 2010
if I'm going down, then I'm doing down good
And another day in the life on Team Fortress 2...part II!
10001011101 again as a Soldier, shooting me to death with a rocket. A note: when a player guns you down twice--and you didn't kill them once in between times--they become your Nemesis. At that point, the game puts a little boxing-glove combat graphic over your head, presumably--at least in my case--to make you feel even worse when you fail to gun them down again.
Valve is so helpful when you get blown to bits--they do their best trying to identify which bit landed where.
Oops. He looks angry.
Guess I shouldn't have toasted his Medic.
This is what happens when you round the corner just in time for a Medic to unleash the Ubercharge. Ubercharge makes everyone connected to it shiny--and invulnerable to all damage.
Damn it.
Considering how much death and dismemberment goes on in Team Fortress 2, there's not a stunning amount of gore and violence--at least, realistically speaking. Pull up the full size of this and you'll see what happened the instant after I died at the hands of CEDA; it's like tomato soup in a blender.
With boots.
You can earn achievements for doing things in the game, depending on which class you are. Burning a Medic to death who's just captured a point? Is one of them.
Sorry, Fawkes.
When you win a round of TF2, you get a little pop-up telling you so. When the winning side gets this, they get a little free-range mayhem--several seconds where they can run around taking heads. Normally this means fire, shooting, or stabbing, but at least in one case--the Demo-man when he's equipped with the Eyelander sword--it will literally take heads.
You unlock enough achievements--it's generally eleven for the first one in any class, and from there it varies--and you get special weapon 'drops' that the game hands you. They can be special event drops--I have a crumpled top hat that originally came out during the Halloween event--or ones tailored to your class.
This is the Flare Gun. The flare gun is a reasonably long range weapon that shoots ammunition at any enemy which will light them on fire. I am in love with this weapon. It's made burning people to death SO much easier.
*coughs*
Welcome to the Spy's secret hell. The Spy is a fun character. They creep around cloaked and invisible, or disguised as someone else on the enemy team. But when a Pyro lights them on fire...well, it really doesn't matter if it's just a bunch of flames running around, attached to a guy the other team can't see. They'll still shoot at the flames.
See? Valve being helpful again.
And how do they know those are my lungs? Do they just look more lung-like than the other bits?
Apparently, when you are playing Heavy Weapons Guy? Only one of your teeth can burn. I did not know this. I have knowledge now.
I hate Pyro vs. Pyro battles. Just sayin'.
Mainly 'cos I always lose. But more, because he always wins.
The bots cheat.
Witch shot me with the mini-gun. But I set Witch on fire before I died.
(That probably shouldn't be funny, considering, witch, pagan, Burning Times...but I'm morbid. I found it hysterical.)
10001011101 again as a Soldier, shooting me to death with a rocket. A note: when a player guns you down twice--and you didn't kill them once in between times--they become your Nemesis. At that point, the game puts a little boxing-glove combat graphic over your head, presumably--at least in my case--to make you feel even worse when you fail to gun them down again.
Valve is so helpful when you get blown to bits--they do their best trying to identify which bit landed where.
Oops. He looks angry.
Guess I shouldn't have toasted his Medic.
This is what happens when you round the corner just in time for a Medic to unleash the Ubercharge. Ubercharge makes everyone connected to it shiny--and invulnerable to all damage.
Damn it.
Considering how much death and dismemberment goes on in Team Fortress 2, there's not a stunning amount of gore and violence--at least, realistically speaking. Pull up the full size of this and you'll see what happened the instant after I died at the hands of CEDA; it's like tomato soup in a blender.
With boots.
You can earn achievements for doing things in the game, depending on which class you are. Burning a Medic to death who's just captured a point? Is one of them.
Sorry, Fawkes.
When you win a round of TF2, you get a little pop-up telling you so. When the winning side gets this, they get a little free-range mayhem--several seconds where they can run around taking heads. Normally this means fire, shooting, or stabbing, but at least in one case--the Demo-man when he's equipped with the Eyelander sword--it will literally take heads.
You unlock enough achievements--it's generally eleven for the first one in any class, and from there it varies--and you get special weapon 'drops' that the game hands you. They can be special event drops--I have a crumpled top hat that originally came out during the Halloween event--or ones tailored to your class.
This is the Flare Gun. The flare gun is a reasonably long range weapon that shoots ammunition at any enemy which will light them on fire. I am in love with this weapon. It's made burning people to death SO much easier.
*coughs*
Welcome to the Spy's secret hell. The Spy is a fun character. They creep around cloaked and invisible, or disguised as someone else on the enemy team. But when a Pyro lights them on fire...well, it really doesn't matter if it's just a bunch of flames running around, attached to a guy the other team can't see. They'll still shoot at the flames.
See? Valve being helpful again.
And how do they know those are my lungs? Do they just look more lung-like than the other bits?
Apparently, when you are playing Heavy Weapons Guy? Only one of your teeth can burn. I did not know this. I have knowledge now.
I hate Pyro vs. Pyro battles. Just sayin'.
Mainly 'cos I always lose. But more, because he always wins.
The bots cheat.
Witch shot me with the mini-gun. But I set Witch on fire before I died.
(That probably shouldn't be funny, considering, witch, pagan, Burning Times...but I'm morbid. I found it hysterical.)
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