Do you want to laugh?

I laughed so hard I started to cry.

Screencast Test -- Using my iMac

I've been testing out screencasting software and decided to make a video showing the progress I'm making on configuring and using my new iMac. I highlight my C-64 emulator as well as music software and Chad's Spatula City BBS, now available via telnet.

[EDIT] Well, the video doesn't quite look as good after the upload conversion. I will fiddle with the settings and see if I can get a better result.

Everything you wanted to know...

If you weren't convinced that the Internet contains the total sum of all information in the world, past and present, this should prove it to you. I found a scan of the entire manual for Temple of Apshai and the coveted "Command Card" that shows all the key commands needed to play. I think it's time to revisit an old favorite and beat it this time.

Temple of Apshai and other C64 games...

I finally got my new iMac somewhat dialed in so today I started looking through all the disk images I have for the Commodore 64 emulator and found this little gem -- Temple of Apshai. I do remember spending a lot of time playing this way, way back in the day. It is not joystick driven (I tested out the joystick compatability with another old favorite, River Raid!) so I had to fumble around with the keys to figure out what I was doing. I did manage to kill the giant mosquito in this room. I need to find the directions somewhere that outlines what key does what -- that might be challenging seeing as this game is well over 20 years old. I'm having fun just launching various games and suddenly remembering the screens and music associated with them. When I launched "Jumpman" I remembered the crazy font used in the cut scenes. I guess nostalgia sometimes has an upside, too.

Synthesizer Sam

Ghosts From The Past

During the early to mid eighties I lived in this house. It was never a great neighborhood, but our house looked pretty decent compared to the others on the block, even though we were renters. I took this picture a couple of weeks ago. I will drive by there every so often -- usually once a year or so. The house has never looked this bad.

I've had to come to terms recently with why I make the yearly trek out to the old house; or why, for that matter, I constantly have to look up old and lost friends on the Internet. I have this strange form of "Nostalgia Anxiety". I'm not sure if that's really a disorder or condition, but I'm ready to once and for all give this a name. Nostalgia Anxiety seems to describe it well enough. Google returns zero hits on that particular string, so maybe I've coined a new phenomenon. Yay.

Nostalgia Anxiety manifests itself in many different ways for me. For all local things, I tend to go out of my way to drive by old schools, houses where I've lived, friends houses, etc. I'll park there for awhile -- sometimes I'll take a picture or two. I'll compare the modern version to the version I still have in my brain. I'll think about it for awhile and then move on, satisfied for another year or so.

For old friends, I'll take spare time I have in front of a web browser and meticulously search for their name. I've found quite a few people from my past that I had completely lost touch with. But the funny things is, once I speak to them, the desire to talk to them is gone. Their lives all pretty much followed a particular pattern based on their personality form back when I knew them. I could almost guess exactly how their lives turned out and I have a an 80+ percent chance of being right -- it's a bit uncanny, and sad in a way.

Sometimes I wonder if my "condition" is rare or somewhat unique. It's my own personal version of Fermi's Paradox in that I've never had someone from my past come looking for me, even though I'd be pretty easy to find online. Fermi's Paradox addresses why, with the infinite possibility that extra-terrestrial life exists, why haven't they contacted us yet? Somtimes I wonder the same in my life -- if there are so many people out there I've come across in my life up to now, why haven't any of them come forth looking for me? Most people I know don't have this overwhelming need to hunt out people from their pasts. Maybe it's more healthy that way.

Classic Rodney Mullen - 1984

Lego House Under Attack

Sam has directed a plush toy parrot to attack the lego house.

Studio E-Doo Version 4.0

The new home studio / computer area is coming together. I purchased a new iMac today (24" monitor, 2.8 Core Duo) and unpacked the D888 Korg Digital Recording System. Here's some pictures of the new area (Ikea Vika modular desk system).

The living room is also shaping up with a new couch, loveseat, and ottoman. The  couch and loveseat have recliners built in for mega-kickback video game action.

 

 

Bitter Sweet Guinness Cupcakes

Jennifer made cupcakes with Guinness in them. Yum!

Live from the park...

Incredible Skate Video

This video has some pretty amazing moves, but the stuff Ryan Sheckler is doing at the end of the video I thought only possible in video game physics. Crazy.

Early Morning Mantis

Caught this picture this morning on the porch...

Civilization Revolution

I downloaded the demo for Civilization Revolution when it first came out and liked it ok, but without instructions I really didn't spend the time getting into it. When it became available on Gamefly, I got it and tried it out. I loved it and went ahead with purchase. The game captures all the fun and depth of the PC version, but makes it easily controllable on a console. I've read in forums that some people think it has been dumbed down for console play, but it seems just as deep and strategic as the PC version to me with the convenience of completing a game within a couple of hours.

So far I've beat the game on the first two levels using all four victory conditions (Economic, Technological, Cultural, and Domination) using five different cultures. I'm taking on the medium level soon and look forward to new challenges. The Technological victory seems the hardest to achieve. You have to construct a spaceship and get it to Alpha Centauri before another culture wins. I had no problem reaching a level where I could win, but had a hard time getting to Alpha Centauri before the game ran out of time and granted me a Domination victory. I finally figured it out by focusing on the tech tree and making sure I got everything necessary for the spaceship parts as soon as they came available.

If you enjoy turn based strategy games (my favorite), you should get a lot of mileage from this game.