New Year's resolutions are pointless. No, I'm not saying change is bad.
Rather I'm saying, If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right now.
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Saturday, 28 December 2013
Tuesday, 10 December 2013
Twenty years on, I'm still in the MOOD for DOOM
On December 10, 1993, a two megabyte file was uploaded by a six-person software company in Texas onto the computer systems of University of Wisconsin–Madison. What was done as a favour by U W-M's sysadmin turned into an event which crashed their system.
DOOM was released. And the world would never be the same again.
DOOM was remarkable as a computer game in four significant ways:
1) It was the first widely-popular First Person Shooting game (FPS).
Yes, there were others before it (Catacomb, Wolfenstein 3D), but it was DOOM that popularized the genre and changed gaming. The sense of being in the game was unlike any other on the market. The only other widely player first person types of games at the time were car racing games. DOOM added fear and paranoia, sound and lighting to make gameplay seem almost real.
2) It proved that shareware was a viable and profitable method of distribution
DOOM's shareware release (today, it would be called demoware) meant people could download the program and play before paying, able to get a taste without buying the whole meal. And because the meal was so tasty and new, people did pay. Sure, there was a shareware market and distribution system, but it was used mostly by individual programmers, not large computer companies who continued to sell programs in packaged boxes.
3) DOOM introduced modding to the world
Other people had modded games before id (e.g. Ms. Pac-Man), but DOOM made it easy for less technically proficient people to create and insert their own graphics, sounds and level design into the game, something never before possible for most. Modding spawned (pun definitely intended) its own industry of add-ons that people made and sold.
4) DOOM introduced networked gaming
Before DOOM, "multiplayer gaming" meant either taking turns (playing until you "died" and then handed the controller to another player until that person "died") or two players looking at the same screen with the same view (or worse, a top/bottom split screen with a smaller view).
DOOM's appearance meant that two people could now play against each other with full computer power to themselves. And not just separate machines, but separate viewing and playing. It meant you could play someone across a room, in another room, another building and eventually, another country. DOOM make the internet a near necessity for multiplayer gaming.
Whether you like DOOM or not, you have to respect its place in history and its influence. Just as the Lord Of The Rings movies could not exist without Dungeons and Dragons, so too could today's gaming not exist without DOOM.
DOOM is likely to remain popular for the next decade given John Carmack's decision to release the source code. There are many high quality ports of DOOM still in development, with additions of sound, graphics, player movement and many other features. And with the plethora of fan-made WAD files to use, there's no end to customization. DOOM is nowhere near the end of its playability.
DOOM World has a list of ports to various computer systems including DOS, Windows, Macintosh, Linux and several others. ZDOOM, Brutal DOOM, and Chocolate DOOM are among the more popular and recently updated versions.
http://www.doomworld.com/classicdoom/ports/
Onegenius maniac obsessed individual person went so far as to create a Flash side scrolling verion that can be played in a browser.
http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/470460
DOOM was released. And the world would never be the same again.
DOOM was remarkable as a computer game in four significant ways:
1) It was the first widely-popular First Person Shooting game (FPS).
Yes, there were others before it (Catacomb, Wolfenstein 3D), but it was DOOM that popularized the genre and changed gaming. The sense of being in the game was unlike any other on the market. The only other widely player first person types of games at the time were car racing games. DOOM added fear and paranoia, sound and lighting to make gameplay seem almost real.
2) It proved that shareware was a viable and profitable method of distribution
DOOM's shareware release (today, it would be called demoware) meant people could download the program and play before paying, able to get a taste without buying the whole meal. And because the meal was so tasty and new, people did pay. Sure, there was a shareware market and distribution system, but it was used mostly by individual programmers, not large computer companies who continued to sell programs in packaged boxes.
3) DOOM introduced modding to the world
Other people had modded games before id (e.g. Ms. Pac-Man), but DOOM made it easy for less technically proficient people to create and insert their own graphics, sounds and level design into the game, something never before possible for most. Modding spawned (pun definitely intended) its own industry of add-ons that people made and sold.
4) DOOM introduced networked gaming
Before DOOM, "multiplayer gaming" meant either taking turns (playing until you "died" and then handed the controller to another player until that person "died") or two players looking at the same screen with the same view (or worse, a top/bottom split screen with a smaller view).
DOOM's appearance meant that two people could now play against each other with full computer power to themselves. And not just separate machines, but separate viewing and playing. It meant you could play someone across a room, in another room, another building and eventually, another country. DOOM make the internet a near necessity for multiplayer gaming.
----------
Whether you like DOOM or not, you have to respect its place in history and its influence. Just as the Lord Of The Rings movies could not exist without Dungeons and Dragons, so too could today's gaming not exist without DOOM.
DOOM is likely to remain popular for the next decade given John Carmack's decision to release the source code. There are many high quality ports of DOOM still in development, with additions of sound, graphics, player movement and many other features. And with the plethora of fan-made WAD files to use, there's no end to customization. DOOM is nowhere near the end of its playability.
DOOM World has a list of ports to various computer systems including DOS, Windows, Macintosh, Linux and several others. ZDOOM, Brutal DOOM, and Chocolate DOOM are among the more popular and recently updated versions.
http://www.doomworld.com/classicdoom/ports/
One
http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/470460
Monday, 18 November 2013
"Go bags" are a good idea
I like to have a "go bag" ready at all times. Yes, it's mainly in case of an emergency, but it's nice not having to pack if a friend says, "Hey, let's go to __________ tomorrow!" I can grab and go at a moment's notice.
If you live somewhere that a disaster could happen (i.e. you live on the Earth), it's a good idea to be prepared, even if it's just the basics. I don't want six months of food and water in my apartment, but I do have six days' worth at all times.
(Take note: Being prepared and being a "prepper" are not the same thing. The former hopes a disaster will end. The latter hopes it never does.)
If you live somewhere that a disaster could happen (i.e. you live on the Earth), it's a good idea to be prepared, even if it's just the basics. I don't want six months of food and water in my apartment, but I do have six days' worth at all times.
Tuesday, 29 October 2013
Monday, 12 August 2013
Old technology #1: AT-101 Keyboards
I grew up with a typewriter in the house. I had learnt to type before my family had its first computer...a TI99-4/A (which should tell you how long that has been).
I liked how the keys felt on a typewriter, how it took a lot of force to strike one. Making a mistake was difficult because you had to put in a lot of effort to hit the key. When the Apple II and later PCs came into vogue, they had much the same keyboards. Even the early Macintoshes were that way.
Early computer keyboards weren't just hard to hit, they were hard to break. They were heavy but well made, and not prone to breaking down or breaking, period.
I liked how the keys felt on a typewriter, how it took a lot of force to strike one. Making a mistake was difficult because you had to put in a lot of effort to hit the key. When the Apple II and later PCs came into vogue, they had much the same keyboards. Even the early Macintoshes were that way.
Early computer keyboards weren't just hard to hit, they were hard to break. They were heavy but well made, and not prone to breaking down or breaking, period.
Thursday, 8 August 2013
Feminist Frequency and Tropes vs Women: 3 for 3
The third part of Anita Sarkeesian's "Tropes vs Women" series was released, and like the first two parts, it's brilliant and insightful. It is also appalling because of the sheer number of examples of sexism.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjImnqH_KwM
Equally appalling is that Ms. Sarkeesian needs to block ratings and comments on her videos. It's not because she is afraid of feedback or disagreement. On the contrary, unlike certain feminists (not named here), Ms. Sarkeesian is willing to listen to and answer those who disagree with her, and she does not arrogantly assume she has all the answers.
But just because she is willing to listen to reasonable disagreement, it does not means she will be met with reasonable disagreement.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjImnqH_KwM
Equally appalling is that Ms. Sarkeesian needs to block ratings and comments on her videos. It's not because she is afraid of feedback or disagreement. On the contrary, unlike certain feminists (not named here), Ms. Sarkeesian is willing to listen to and answer those who disagree with her, and she does not arrogantly assume she has all the answers.
But just because she is willing to listen to reasonable disagreement, it does not means she will be met with reasonable disagreement.
Sunday, 4 August 2013
The Left Hand is the Proper Hand #1: Discrimination?
Discrimination comes in many forms, and for many reasons - usually, stupid ones. As societies mature, bigotries become less acceptable and those targeted treated as equals, though not always so. Sadly, some biases never go away. Has the attitude towards non-whites in the US today really changed from the days when the KKK operated openly?
When I was a child in the 1970s, it was still acceptable for public school teachers (not just mine, but elsewhere) to "discourage" left handedness in children with corporal punishment (read: beatings) to force children to change hands. Disparagement came in other forms - claims of "being satanic", "hamfisted", "awkward" and others. And just look at the language: many words for "uncoordinated" come from the word for left (e.g. gauche, sinister, etc.). It's comparable to the insult in the word "hysteria", the outdated and sexist mentality that all women are neurotic.
When I was a child in the 1970s, it was still acceptable for public school teachers (not just mine, but elsewhere) to "discourage" left handedness in children with corporal punishment (read: beatings) to force children to change hands. Disparagement came in other forms - claims of "being satanic", "hamfisted", "awkward" and others. And just look at the language: many words for "uncoordinated" come from the word for left (e.g. gauche, sinister, etc.). It's comparable to the insult in the word "hysteria", the outdated and sexist mentality that all women are neurotic.
Saturday, 3 August 2013
Out Of Touch: The Coldness Of Technology
I do not use Facebook and cannot understand the appeal that drives millions to obsess about it. Putting one's name on a commercial website? Allowing one's image and personal information to be distributed who knows where to do who knows what? And worst of all, calling complete strangers "friends"?
They are as much "friends" as a street corner huckster selling knockoff watches. Both misuse the word, devaluing it as they do. I only have friends online the same way I have family online: they were people I knew in person first, not "friended" on the internet. Unless I know them by voice, unless I have looked them in the eye, touched hands, I don't consider them friends. But this does not mean one cannot make true friends by correspondence.
They are as much "friends" as a street corner huckster selling knockoff watches. Both misuse the word, devaluing it as they do. I only have friends online the same way I have family online: they were people I knew in person first, not "friended" on the internet. Unless I know them by voice, unless I have looked them in the eye, touched hands, I don't consider them friends. But this does not mean one cannot make true friends by correspondence.
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