Day Three Hundred-three: Evening of June 4th 2010

Nothing much happening, other than feeling frustrated when I don't have enough time to finish an activity in Red Dead Redemption. I want to finish some side quest, check the time, and start the activity. I have misjudged the amount of time necessary for the activity, pick up speed, get sloppy, and boom - start over again with even less time. Then I try to complete a section of the task and save using the camp fire save point. When I return to the game, I don't restart at the campfire, but at the nearest owned house or room. That means that I will have to travel through territory that I might has just travelled through - frustrating.
I hope I can make some time to finish more of the game.
We shall see
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Three Hundred-two: Evening of June 3rd 2010

I was just watching a program on the Military Channel about Coast Guard snipers and how they interdict narco-terrorists by shooting out the smugglers' go-boats engines. That is a very impressive act considering the number of forces working against the shooter. I'll have to catch the ending of the recording later this evening or tomorrow morning.
DVR (Digital Video Recorders) are boon to watching interesting shows later on. The ease of use comes from the menu driven controls and a hard drive for storage. Once you get familiar with the cable providers' menu structure (sometimes daunting), your only limit is the size of the hard drive which contains the recorded shows as files.
Something has just come up, and I'm probably going to pull an 'all-nighter' putting labels on envelops for a school activity tomorrow.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day ThreeHundred-one: Evening of June 2nd 2010

Like I said yesterday, a lot of time was spent running errands, but on the return from one I stopped in at f.y.e. (for your entertainment) store in the Loop just off of a Brown Elevated Line station. I had seen a advertisement for a Nintendo DS puzzle game called PICROSS 3D. The goal is to discover what the hidden form contained in cube. You can chip away from the cube based upon a set of clues. It reminds me of the Windows mini game Mine Sweeper, where you identified where the mines were by removing the non-mine squares. The difference here is it is three dimensional and the object contained in the large cube isn't a collection of randomly generated squares but an abstraction of an real object. It sounded interesting, I know my daughter likes puzzle solving games, and the price was reasonable, so I picked up a copy. Hopefully, we'll enjoy it.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day ThreeHundred: Evening of June 1st 2010

I checked out my progress and, after completing the Mexican missions, found that I had completed approximately sixty-five percent of the game. I've received seventeen percent of the awards. I am moving along.
I wouldn't last very long out in the forest areas. I get cocky and the next thing I know is a grizzly is turing me into a rag doll and dead simultaneously. Later I began to use my hearing act as a early warring system. It helps but I was still ambushed by some cougars (big cats) and some massive bears. Taking out a charging bear is a bit harrowing, but using Deadeye and taking the bear head on.
Well that does it for now. The next couple of day will be duty packed, so I'm not sure what condition I'll be in at the end of t he day.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-nine: Evening of May 31st 2010

I'm beginning to wonder when I'll get back to Alan Wake. I thought I was more than halfway done, but the Red Dead Redemption keeps me hopping all over the place and my avatar is faced with deceitful and condescending allies who send me out on dangerous missions, playing on my desire to save his family. Wild herrings abound, whether assign by an ally, or a perfect stranger. I've gotten to the point that I play with the same understanding that I'm being used but I know that my ultimate goal is worth it, especially if I can maintain a decent 'Honor' Level.
Next time I start the game up, I'll have to check the stats to see where I stand.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-eight: Evening of May 30th 2010

Red Dead Redemption is extremely addicting. I played it on an off for about five hours and wished I had more free time to work on additional missions.
When you south of the border into Mexico, go to Chuparosa and become the student of the old gunfighter. You'll achieve the final level of the Deadeye skill, and you'll see the benefits immediately.
Travel all over the place noting land markers. It took me forever to get the first three levels of treasure hunter, but my explorations of out of the way places started to pay off and I'm at Level Nine of the Treasure Hunter and I know the final site will be in the Blackwater area, so I can relax.
I'll see what I can do tomorrow.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-seven: Evening of May 29th 2010

Red Dead Redemption is a deep game. There were hint to this early on with the protagonist being forced by railroad men/federal agents operating out of the town of "Blackwater." I can't go to Blackwater, yet. Apparently, there are more missions/objectives that need to be completed before access to the town and the related scenarios become available.
Currently, my antagonist has escaped to Mexico and linked up with another outlaw. When I arrive, my avatar becomes embroiled in a civil war. The nature of the military organization is masked. Some of the comments sound noble and others suggest a warlords power grab. So I'll have to wait and see what develops.
As an aside, I had one of those visual glitches occur during a gun battle. A bad guy mounted a horse, was riding away as I winged him. He appeared to be losing control of his mount near a fork in the road when it happened. The rider went one way and his mount went the other way. I watched for a fraction of a second and shot the rider. He fell to the ground and became an 'x' on the map. This became a "You had to see it to believe it" moment.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-six: Evening of May 28th 2010

I just finished playing Red Dead Redemption, and I was going to report my progress by describing my confusion regarding what path I am on. Currently, according to the map, I only have a single loose end. So I wonder how this will unfold in the hours to come. I shall see.
But, when I sat down, my daughter needed help setting up the playlist for the her upcoming prom. I opened iTunes to confirm the names of the artists performing the piece, or the reverse, getting the name of the song. We could, also, listen to the 30 second audio clips. That was fun. We wondered why the students selected the particular piece for the prom. Now she needs to send the completed list off to the prom DJ.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-five: Evening of May 27th 2010

As I played Red Dead Redemption memories neighborhood play from the 1950s surfaced. One of the frequent after school activities on the block where I lived was a variant of Cowboys and Indians. Now please realize, this was back in the mid to late 50s, and this shooter usually was just Good Guys versus Bad Guys or Hermitage guys against Wood Street guys. None of us thought deeply about what the rolls meant in the grand scheme of it. We were just in a competitive mode and one side tried to eliminate the other, frequently enhanced by the shouts of "Bang your dead!", "Am not!!", and "Cheater!!!" I think that you might say that this type of activity is at the heart of team deathwatch in video gaming with the an algorithm set up to keep everyone honest. This not always accepted and results in a remark that the machine cheated. Sometimes negative results can still produce the fervent claims based on the distrust of the unseen umpire.
None of us, as far as I can remember shifted over to a life of crime just because we enjoyed being a villain. We knew it was fantasy play. I wonder if the immediacy of the Second World War, the Korean Police Action, and the constant threat of nuclear destruction had an impact on our perception of what was real and what was fantasy.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-four: Evening of May 26th 2010

Just Red Dead Redemption today and only about two and a half hours.
There was a horse shoe throwing competition, which I lost, that took about ten minutes to complete. It was similar to some of the older golf sims that require a swing meter with a 'sweet zone' that you need to hit in order to get close to the iron rod.
The balance of the time was spent exploring, defending the virtue of defenseless maidens, killing gang leaders, and learning how to kill using my Bowie knife.
I, also, attempted getting my daughter to play Allan Wake. Nothing like getting another opinion regarding the scary environment and maybe a co-op partner.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-three: Evening of May 25th 2010

Alan Wake and Red Dead Redemption, Alan Wake and Red Dead Redemption, Alan Wake and Red Dead Redemption . . . decisions, decisions, decisions . . . I have to play both because they are a lot of fun, and a total distraction regardless which I'm playing. The only thing that places a limitation on my game play is time, and as good as the games are, that limitation rests in the back of my mind.
The first chapter of Alan Wake is complete and I know I need to learn how to duck when I'm attacked by multiple Taken, the possessed entities from the town, if I intend to survive. I, also, found out that the downloadable content will expand the experience of the protagonist, a la additional chapters, that flesh out the story for Alan.
In Red Dead Redemption, I learn how to snap shoot with accuracy, this was demonstrated in a piece on Xbox Live. I always try to get close and do a one shot takedown with my opening volley, and this technique enhances the following volleys.
Well, I even have to pay attention to time when I'm preparing my entries for this blog. So, I'm going to close this piece, wish you a good night, and say, "Don't let the bed bug bite."
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-two: Evening of May 24th 2010

Just a little bit of this and a little bit of that and a whole lot of the chores (housework, errands, filter changing, dog walking, letterbox cleanup, etc.).
I fired up Alan Wake but fell asleep in "The Recliner" until my wife called about four in the afternoon. From then on until now, it was dinner and some of the above tasks.
I hope to hit Red Dead Redemption or Alan Wake, but if tomorrow mirrors today then that may not come to fruition.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety-one: Evening of May 23rd 2010

I managed to sneak in a session with the Xbox 360 game, Alan Wake. It's wasn't really a sneak, but rather a break in the Sunday routine. I had set the laundry in motion, washer and dryer, put the disk in the console, committed the usual mistake of sitting in "The Recliner" before launching the game. So after a brief nap, I found that the intro graphics are great, the term cinematic could be used. The training scenario, linking learning the controls to the story were solid and smooth. The opening scenarios follows what occurred in the training period seamlessly. I was having an engrossing experience, but had yet to hit the real scary event that the reviewers mentioned. I hope that I haven't jaded my expectations enough to diminish the impact of a future shock.
Now I have divided my loyalties. On the one hand, Red Dead Redemption is worthy of my full attention, but on the other, so it seems, is Alan Wake which as of my initial exposure may require my similar attention. It seems like I have a pleasant dilemma brewing.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Ninety: Evening of May 22nd 2010

Today was spent helping my wife prepare for an upcoming citywide high school graphic design exhibit on Monday. However, we had to finish silk screening some tee shirts for one of the local clubs at her high school. So, from about 6:30am when I awoke, until around 3:30pm, I was busy pulling screens for her three color design. Once that was completed, we started culling student work to be included in the exhibit. We had to finish by 2pm, so that maintenance personnel could close up the the school.
When I returned, I was exhausted and sat in the recliner, knowing full well what was about to occur.
Tomorrows workload will be mundane but time intensive. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to pop in a game and explore any of the game.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-nine: Evening of May 21st 2010

"Red Dead Redemption for the PS3 lives up to the various positive reviews that I have run across online," was the opening line in yesterday post. I'll stand by that but there were distractions that proved to be a hitches in the overall experience.
It has taken me awhile to work with controlling my horse. Primarily, changing the direction of travel was a puzzlement. Traveling in a straight line or even a gentle turn wasn't a problem, but maneuvering in tight places or sharp turns was proving to be where my control broke down. I started studying the control of the horse and noticed that I had to move the controls to actually move the horse's head to make a tight turn in a corner. I'll have to try this a few more times, and maybe check the manual to see if it has statement regarding mount control.
This leads into the next problem, which was solved when I checked the manual, was crouching to utilize cover. There is a scenario with a shoot out and as you approach the site with the local Marshall (you're a good guy), the avatar automatically goes into a crouch, so I thought that would happen anytime some one starts shooting at you. Boy was I wrong. Chalk up a few deaths until I found that pushing the left control stick (L3) in would cause my avatar to duck so that I could crouch behind any type of cover. As I hinted in the opening sentence, I knew that I could find this in the manual.
I didn't get a chance to play today and because of a number of chores tomorrow, I probably won't play Red Dead Redemption or Alan Wake tomorrow.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-eight: Afternoon of May 20th 2010

Red Dead Redemption for the PS3 lives up to the various positive reviews that I have run across online.
I've played it for over five hours and go "Wow!" every time I play it. The graphics, the fluidity of movement, the story line, and the open world, all helps me 'suspend disbelief' as I interact with the game.
So far I been scammed by a road side diviner, accidentally shot a rancher as I rescued his daughter (damn sniping without a scope), and unsuccessfully hunted for treasure (I know what I'm looking for, I just can't locate it).
Tomorrow, I have some errands in the afternoon, but I hope to get into Alan Wake on the Xbox 360.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-seven: Afternoon of May 19th 2010

I just finished posting my Birthday thank-to all my well wishers on Facebook. So, that's about it, although I did receive two video games as birthday gifts and a small PowerShot Canon (camera not ordinance). The two games are Red Dead Redemption for the PS3 and Alan Wake for the Xbox360. I've already received an invitation to do a multiplayer hookup from an old student of mine, thanks to my daughter's Facebook photo post. I hope to take him up on his request.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-six: Afternoon of May 18th 2010

I downloaded an app for the iPad, that proved to be an interesting puzzle game. It's called Implode! Lite by IUGO Mobile Entertainment, Inc.
The object of the is to demolish structures. You're presented with a structure, given a fixed amount of explosives, a rubble height goal to come in below, and then try to destroy the structure by the strategic placement of the explosives. As you complete each task, you are given the option of moving on, retrying (for more points), replaying the event to admire you handy work, or quit. The new challenge increases the difficulty by adding some twist to the previous scenario. The lite version only has ten challenges, with three levels of difficulty. I've forgotten how many challenges there are in Implode! XL, over 100 I think. The price is $ 2.99 and, I not sure about this, but there seems to be updates that add new challenges.
At first, I thought that this might be an easy game, and initially that was the way it played out. By the time I reached the eighth or ninth level, I saw the the assignment demands required a more thoughtful assessment explosive placement. I could begin to see the possibilities of this game as a time killer, and if there is DLC then it could prove to be a decent acquisition.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-five: Afternoon of May 17th 2010

Well, if you have been following this blog, you know the string of consecutive days of activity ended this past Saturday. Nothing serious occurred, just assisting my wife with a graphics job for a Chicago Public School Program. I had to assemble/construct a set of banners. Very time consuming, but they looked good when assembled. It took two days. One day to assemble the components, the other to put the banner together from the components. Although this task would chew up around eight hours, it was the regular chores that interrupted creating a flow to finish the project. I was beat at the end of the day (or evening as was the case), so I passed on updating the blog.
Hopefully that will be the last time I'll be involved with a project of this type for a while.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-two: Afternoon of May 14th 2010

I'm running out of time and I want to make an entry in order keep the string running.
Today was an errand day, but due to an unusual schedule, my wife and daughter didn't arrive at the normal time so I was able to actually complete a couple of hours of Dead to Rights: Retribution. So I was happy as I re-familiarize myself with the controller buttons. It took about an hour before I got back into the swing of things. It is one of the things that always happens when you shift games or pick up a game after a period of time away from that game. Hopefully, I'll keep my edge in the coming sessions (if I can sneak in a few hours).
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty-one: Afternoon of May 13th 2010

Some minor chores and a little errand were that were required of me today, so I was able to pick up where I left off in Lost Planet. I defeated the first level boss and I'm moving through the second level now. I had some issues moving vertical in one area because I had forgotten about the grappling hook device that is part of my equipment. Using that device solved the problem, and I moved on. I stopped a little while later, it was time to take the dogs out.
Later in the evening, I fired up Fieldrunners (now that it's repaired) for the iPad and played the Skyway scenario. I only needed to complete fifty levels in order to access the final scenario. Not only did I open up the next field, but I reached the 100 round - w00t.
So it was nice being able to play on the console with a game that was downloaded from XBox live for twenty dollars. I'm glad that I held back on purchasing it when Lost Planet first came out. I'm a bit better prepared for handling the action in this game, but I wonder what the bosses will be like later on.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Eighty: Afternoon of May 12th 2010

Other than fixing the crash that was happening with Fieldrunners, I just ran my errands, did some laundry, and fell asleep (in that darn recliner) watch Clone Wars: The First Season.
Fixing the hangup in Fieldrunners was achieved by doing a reset on the iPad. In other words, holding down both the activate button and the on/off button for about five seconds until the Apple logo appears completes the reset. That's it, and I found it when I 'Googled' it (fieldrunners and crash). Talk about being relieved over such a simple fix, I certainly was.
As an aside, I was impressed with the quality of the animation in Clone Wars Blu-Ray collection. When I was awake, I noticed the the scripts seemed a bit darker than the older 2D animation. I'm looking forward to the Second Season collection.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-nine: Afternoon of May 11th 2010

I didn't play much today, but I managed to get my avatar into some serious trouble in about an hour. I bit off more than I could handle. It was in Mass Effect 2, and I decided to try to recover some hidden supplies on a planet in the same system that "The Convict" is located. Basically, I didn't have the firepower, armor, or the variety of team members to take on the three geth heavy mechs. I forgot to save before I landed, so now I will have to pay the penalty and load the save from an hour earlier. I'll go after "The Convict" instead, build up my team, and return later in the game.
And that was it as far as any serious gaming today. Maybe, I'll sneak in a little bit of Lost Planet this evening (and get out of another pickle in my first 'Big Boss' battle.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-eight: Afternoon of May 10th 2010

Well, as I predicted, very little in the way of gaming occurred today. Getting ready for the errand, running the errand, coming back about three hours later, figuring out which console to use, then which game play (Dead to Rights: Retribution) rounded out the activities just prior to my sitting down in the recliner and falling asleep - Bam! Getting ready for supper sealed the deal until now, when I began typing this entry.
I managed to sneak a peek at the iPad Apps Store for a while during desert and noticed that moving around for current apps was fairly easy, but going deeper (without searching) is a bit more time consuming. I wanted to check out the iPad version of Civilization, and it wasn't listed in 'New' or 'What's Hot' of the 'Featured' category. The 'Top Charts' category search turned up no hint of the game, so I shifted to the general category section. Here I decided to skim thought the games just to see if there was anything else of interesting the Games category. As I moved through each page I was amazed at the number of, and types of, games available. After a while I wondered how many pages I had move through I checked the upper left-hand corner, noting, not pages but number of game looked at, and What amazed me was, and I don't know how I failed recognize it before this look, that I had checked out about two hundred and fifty game out of (wait for it) 1,507 games. Holy cow (Harry Caray reference)! In just six weeks the game developers had posted that many games for the iPad. Not all are good, some are enhance versions of iPhone games, but still that is a lot of apps for such a new device in a six week period
Tomorrow will be rainy, and still on the cool side, although warmer than today. Hopefully, I will not be lulled into sleep when I sit in the recliner after running my errand, but I'm not counting on it.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-seven: Afternoon of May 9th 2010

I hope that anyone reading this was able to have a pleasant Mothers' Day.
On the other hand, I did not find the time to do anything, other than finishing a previously started Strategery (which I managed to win for a change), and updating iTunes on the Toshiba netbook.
There was a minor glitch, when the installer locked up and I had to restarting and then reinstall iTunes. The Quicktime update was completed before the lockup. Iwonder if the dual install caused the lockup with the iTunes part. I'll never know. At least it works now.
Again, I hope that anyone reading this was able to have a pleasant Mothers' Day.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-six: Afternoon of May 8th 2010

We're going out to see Joel McHale this evening - the 10:30 PM performance. That accounts for this early entry.
Today's activities, household chores and doggy maintenance, dominate the time available for video gaming, but that is normal for Saturdays and Sundays. I can pull off some casual gaming, like most of the games on my iPad.
Just before beginning this post, I played one of the tables in Pinball HD this app is really a combination of three iPhone pinball games (The Deep, Jungle Style, and Wild West). The way I play, they are great short time killers, but judging from the scores posted online, some individuals have killed a significant amount of time playing these tables. Currently, I've begun to recognize some of the point patterns to shoot for.
I've got a couple of solitaire games (Shanghai, Aurora Feint 3, and Solitaire HD), some tower defense games (Plants versus Zombies HD, Creeps HD, and Fieldrunners), a Risk like strategy game (Strategery), and some arcade games (Top Gun, and the 10 PinShuffle). I have a number of other games but they are designed and formatted for the iPhone. I would say that Shanghai, Plant versus Zombie HD, Pinball HD, and 10 PinShuffle are my favorites now.
Generally, I'll send about fifteen minutes on a game, so minor waiting situations are not a problem. I'll usually bring a earbud headset along if I want to listen to the game's sound track. Like I said yesterday, I'll usually get interrupted, and, the benefit of casual games, it doesn't matter. You can get back to it without really losing your place.
Well, I've got to find out what's happening, so I am going to end it here.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-five: Evening of May 7th 2010

Even less done today, other than errands, and a Mothers' Day bouquet.
While I was waiting in one location, reading Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, when it happened again. Somebody asked if I was using an iPad, followed by a brief Q and A, and then an exchange of computer anecdotes. Fun, but I didn't get a lot of reading done. And I find the interaction far superior to falling asleep reading my eBook.
Anyway that was it until just before I started writing this entry, when I played a few rounds of 10 PinShuffle, then downloaded copy of Captain Blood through iTunes.
I started watching it when I realized I hadn't done today's entry. Which I am finishing up - now.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-three: Evening of May 5th 2010

Today was a repeat of yesterday, except with more sleep - darn recliner. I started downloading the Lost Planet video game at about three o'clock pm. I noted how slow it was downloading, opened the Xbox 360 network settings and adjusted the wireless antenna until the signal was the strongest. The whole game, about 6.6 Gigabytes, was finally loaded close to 8:30 pm. I fired it up and it looks interesting (I've died twice with the difficulty level set at easy). I've more errands to run tomorrow, hopefully I'll get a chance to play a few hours of the game, but I'm not sure that will happen.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-three: Evening of May 5th 2010

Nothing! Nada! Nil! Nic! I thought that I was going to be able to get in some gaming today, but boy was I wrong. I was so busy (and tired) that I didn't even play a new iPad app, 10 PinShuffle by Digital Smoke Games
I'm reminded of playing bowling shuffle on a mechanical version depicted in the app. That was a long, long time ago, and it was both fun and frustrating then and this game follows in that tradition. It was worth the $3.99. As a matter of fact, I'm going to play a few rounds as soon as I finish this post (which is now).
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-two: Evening of May 4th 2010

I had a rather busy day with the errands and household chores, but I managed to check out the HD Camera app.
To start with, I laid out six quarters on the table and photographed them using the iPad app, Camera, and the HD Camera app. I framed them to cover the same area, then emailed both to my email account. I opened the account on the iPad and found that I couldn't transfer the images to any of the graphics apps or the Photos app. I shifted to my laptop, opened the email application, and downloaded the images. When I opened them in Photoshop, they were jpeg files and the standard definition file was larger than the high definition image. I considered this to be strange because the HD image should have been larger. It is possible that the compression algorithm might account for this discrepancy. So I decided to import the iPad images directly into iPhoto and then export the images as TIFF files. After completing this transfer, the file sizes were reversed, the standard definition file was around 9 megabytes and the high definition file was around 31 megabytes. I don't know if that would achieve the 7 megapixel claim of the HD Camera app, but it was a significant improvement.
When I opened the two images in Photoshop, both images appeared the same size on the screen. When I checked the magnification of the images, the HD image was at 16% and the SD image was at 33% magnification. So the higher definition image has more information available to present to the viewer.
Now this isn't the only quality that is needed. Color balance, contrast, lens quality are some other elements that would contribute the the appearance of an image. But I wasn't checking any of those out, but I did notice an exposure difference. I couldn't be sure what cause it, so I decided to forget about it and concentrate on the resolution issue.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Seventy-one: Evening of May 3rd 2010

The big issue today was getting the iPad to work with the flat screen through the VGA adapter. At first we, my daughter and I, thought that we didn't have the correct setting on the TV, but the 'PC Connect' was the correct setting.
My daughter went on line and found that only certain apps work with the adapter. Safari is supposed to be one (it didn't work) and Video, too (it did work). She has a Netflix account and wanted to use that, so she downloaded the Netflix app onto the iPad and found that it didn't work.
After being frustrated for about twenty minutes, we returned to the Xbox 360 logged in and activated her Netflix account through the iPad (weird) and began watching her film. The Xbox 360 catch - a Gold membership account is needed.
Earlier, we tried to find the working throughout the Playstation 3, but I couldn't find anything in the store, so we passed on that. Later in the evening I found the setup link, so the next time my daughter needs to access Netflix, she can work through the PS3 without any membership program.
So to summarize, the iPad has a mystery, the Xbox 360 requires an gold membership, and the PlayStation 3 can work once you locate the Netflix link ('What's New' window).
I thought that I would play a bit more video games, but I kept dosing off. I must have depleted my batteries yesterday.
Oh well, tomorrow is another day.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
-- Post From My iPad using Pages

Day Two Hundred Seventy: Evening of May 2nd 2010

I checked out some of the photos that I took with an iPhone app, HD Camera by OutmanTech, that claims to increase resolution, cut down on noise, and an improve details. It seems to work. At least the size of the files are larger, so more information is stored in the image's file. What I should do is to shoot the same scene with both the native iPhone app, Camera, and the HD Camera app. If it's sunny enough tomorrow I'll give it a try.
Other than that, it was the usual household chores with a bit of Dead to Right: Retribution (enough trophies to advance to the 8th Level on the PlayStation Network) and Splinter Cell: Conviction (a deniable ops scenario) mixed in. Basically, today was a typical Sunday.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-nine: Evening of May 1st 2010

Army of Two: The 40th Day was played for about an hour, but beyond the morning session with the Chapters of Deceit DLC, the rest of The day was spent on chores, dog upkeep, and laundry all in preparation for an evening performance by Craig Ferguson at the Chicago Theater in Chicago's 'Loop'.
It was a fun seeing the host of a late night show live and on stage. It was a very smooth and humorous performance.
Next week it will be Joel McHale performing at the same location. I'll be seeing the host of The Soup on stage at 10:30 pm. I hope to have another. I hope I'll enjoy it as much as I enjoyed Craig.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-eight: Evening of April 30th 2010

Splinter Cell: Conviction has been played through, and I was wrong about Sam Fisher's Third Echelon tech contact, Anna "Grim" Grimsdóttír. The designers did a nice job of misdirection. Sam would talk to Grim and the next thing you know enemy operatives were all over the place. It seemed like she would always send him into the teeth of the storm. Of course, it might be the fact that I don't 'sneak' well, but still it seemed strange that I wasn't able to find the path of least resistance. Oh well, it's done and I hope to return and try it at a higher level of difficulty, but I have other games to explore and test my skills.
Speaking of other games, I played Dead to Rights: Retribution for about three hours and the there were times when I was having fun, but then I would have trouble figuring out what I should be doing. I could check the objectives but they were broadly painted and weren't much help. So muddling through would occur, and I would be happy that I was playing on the easiest level of difficulty. I think that I'm about halfway through, but I can't be sure.
I want to get back to Army of Two: The 40th Day and finish Chapters of Deceit on the PS3 and I've forgotten about Bioshock 2. It not as engrossing as the first installment but still a good game and I'm going to have to have the manual open to refresh my memory regarding button assignments. Hopefully, it will come back to me quickly.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
-- Post From My iPad using Pages

Day Two Hundred Sixty-seven: Evening of April 29th 2010

Time consuming activities (not negative, just time intensive) and plumbing damage control were the key elements of today's twenty-four.
I did manage to check out the copy of Dead to Rights: Retribution that I received yesterday before I left the house. I spent a little over an hour and a half of running, punching, shooting. I began playing as the hero's canine sidekick. That was a first for me, and was fun most of the time. I hadn't learned the controls, but I enjoyed running through some of the bad guys.
Playing as the lead character, my initial objective was to save the employees at a large media corporation. This scenario introduced the key combat components of the game. One component that is explained is called 'focus' which is Slo-Mo view of the action. It can only last as long as an indicator show it can, and not only acts as an offensive bonus, but your defense is improved. I don't recall any other game that I have that offers this feature, but I'll check somewhere down the line. It does add a bit of control in a hostage situation. I'll probably play a bit more tomorrow, but I'd like to get back to Splinter Cell: Conviction and finish that one.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-six: Evening of April 28th 2010

I was going to write about accessing the downloadable content, Chapters of Deceit, for Army of Two: The 40th Day. Something came up as I was about to start typing out the entry.
Earlier in the day, I received the camera adapters for the iPad (USB port and SD Card reader). So, before typing the intended entry, I tried importing photos from my iPhone to the iPad via the USB adapter. I selected a small set of photos on my iPhone, hit the sync, and it worked. It worked too well, I accidentally sent duplicate images to the iPad. When I opened the Photos app, I discovered the duplicate images. I highlighted one of the duplicates and the word 'Copy' showed but that was all. What happened to 'Delete'? I plugged in the iPad to my Mac Book Pro, opened iTunes and tried to find the photos on the device - No Luck. I went online and searched to find how I might be able to delete the doubles. The forum that I hit said to do what I just did. Right now, I'm not sure what to do, other than go back online and do a deeper search. Hopefully, I'll be able to find a solution to this problem.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-five: Evening of April 27th 2010

Last night, just before slipping off to Nod, I reached the big battle in Splinter Cell: Conviction before the final scene (I hope). I'm basing this statement on the intensity and difficulty of the fire fight that developed. I have had the most trouble moving through this scenario. I have moved through the banquet room in variety of ways, without success. Once or twice I've come close to clearing the room, but have failed because I tried to take on the remaining enemy fighters head on. I should know better, but I still don't sneak well. Somewhere along the way I'll figure it our. I'm to close to quit.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-four: Evening of April 26th 2010

"Hold down the left trigger" - That is the action needed to take advantage of cover in Splinter Cell: Conviction. Now I just have to implement this when needed, but it's going to be hard because I've developed some serious bad habits, and I'm homing in on the conclusion to the game (I think).
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-three: Evening of April 25th 2010

I've notice that I have developed a bad habit in Splinter Cell: Conviction of jumping out in front of the enemy soldier that I'm trying to take out using hand to hand combat. Part of the problem is patience. I need to wait until the soldier has walked past my hidden position. And I still don't quite have a handle on the directionality of my character. This is most apparent at corners. I thought that holding the 'A' button would flip my avatar in the correct direction, but I haven't been very successful with using it. I'm going to have to pull the manual out and double check what the correct button or button combination is.
On the plus side, I figured out how to move to the next part of the mission that I was stumped on last night. Of course it was right in front of me, and how I missed it, I don't know. But I found it and moved on.
I think that I'm very close the the final mission. There is a character that is leading me on, using lies and misdirection to move me forward. So I know that there will be a serious settling of scores with this character in the near future. The question will be what that character's motives are. I hope that I can discern what those motives are.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-two: Evening of April 24th 2010

So I managed to play about two an a half hours of Splinter Cell: Conviction. I played until I hit a stump point and then a dizzy spell.
The 'stump point' occurred when I finished a hold a place mission and now have to move on to complete the primary mission. I spent about twenty running up and down stairs, climbing through windows, moving along ledges, shinnying up and down pipes, and not finding any avenue of escape. I'll try once more before I call up a walk through.
The 'dizzy spell' happened because of all the spinning around. This usually happens when I play first person shooters, and I move around in a dark closed in spaces. That pretty much describes the area that I'm in right now. What this means to future game play? Simply put, I've got to get out of the situation as soon as possible. If not, I'll be repeating the 'dizzy spell' again with an increase in the frustration level. That is something I'm not looking forward.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty-one: Evening of April 23rd 2010

I managed to play some Splinter Cell: Conviction and I'm sorry I haven't been playing it every day this past week. This is a fun game, easy to get into and challenging to play. And the fact that I have to relearn the controller keys is bothersome. I keep throwing grenades when I want to reload my primary weapon. That is a very frustrating mistake, but at least I haven't killed myself doing it.
The other thing is how wonderful the graphics look on the 40 inch flat screen sent through the HDMI connection - Wow. I don't know why I haven't finished this game, but I think I'm going to devote more time finishing it in the near future.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Sixty: Evening of April 22nd 2010

My wife left with the Torx (not Torq) screwdrivers in my tech repair kit. She had the adapter to hook up the internal hard drive. She was, as we used to say on the firing line, locked and loaded. I wondered if all the files would be recoverable.
About ten o'clock I received a call from my wife that she was having trouble with taking the iMac apart. She started to read the tools needed and she mentioned a Torx-10 and a Torx-8. I stopped her and said we don't have that small of a Torx bit. Then, I told her that I'd check and get back to her. Checking my tools, confirmed the initial assessment. I wondered if I could overnight an inexpensive set of bits, and work on the project. I went online and found an inexpensive Torx set at Amazon.com. When I called my wife and told her what I had found, she asked me if it might be at a local hardware store. I knew it wasn't at the local hardware store, but there was a Home Depot on the way home. Returning to Safari, I find that there is a similar set at that hardware store. I text the part numbers and description to my wife so that she can pick it up on the way home.
After dinner the disassembly begins. Unbelievable, the engineers a Apple must not have wanted anyone to increase the storage capacity of the computer. Luckily, my wife isn' planning on using the machine anymore, so I didn't need to be really careful about the pull apart. I had the hard drive out in about a half hour, and my wife was transferring the students' files to her external hard drive - mission accomplished.
Now it's time to clean up. I'll ask my wife if she wants me to salvage anything else before the unit is trashed.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-nine: Evening of April 21st 2010

The hard drive issue from yesterday remained unresolved because a Torq-10 bit wasn't available to unscrew the external cover from the back of the defective computer.
When researching the procedure for opening the Mac, the images associated with disassembling the unit showed Philips head screws, so my wife knew that she had that type of tool, so she left the bit set at home. Low and behold, the screw head showed the asterisk shape of a Torq bit. The phone call was made and the search began. It really wasn't much of a search, I knew where all the bits were. My only question was, "Did I have a T-10 bit?" Both sets of tools contained the needed Torq bit. That means tomorrow we will find out if the adapter works, and the students' will be rescued. I certainly hope so.
On the gaming side, I can, with certainty, say the insanity difficulty setting requires a serious re-evaluation of my tactics and use of cover. I managed to finish the Omega quests, but only after restarting the scenario from the beginning once and eight restarts from various locations. So I managed to play Mass Effect 2 for about two hours before I had to get dinner.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
-- Post From My iPad using Pages

Day Two Hundred Fifty-eight: Evening of April 20th 2010

So a minor excursion into Mass Effect 2, seeking Archangel, a long afternoon errand, and then dinner.
So what was the adventure with technology today?
It started with a phone call from my wife. A sense of urgency was evident. A computer was down, and student's project was trapped on the hard drive. That project was important and of course there wasn't current backup (aah, teenagers). Troubleshooting for the computer had resulted in no improvement. The unit started, flashed a gray screen and ultimately shut down. My wife visited the Apple forum and FAQ support site to double check her troubleshooting procedures, tried a few additional suggestions, and then called me about the availability of a hard drive enclosure to salvage the data on the student's hard drive.
So the search began. I knew that there were plenty of enclosures, but I decided to to check out the price range. Offhand, I didn't think that she would have to spend more that fifty dollars. The search confirmed that. So, I texted her that she needed the basic specs for the HD - size (2.5" or 3.5") and type (SATA, PATA, IDE) to make sure we picked up the right case. From previous experience, I knew it would be a 3.5" SATA, but a double check is worthwhile. About twenty minutes after the initial post, I remembered that there were adapters the bypassed the enclosure and hold up to the 'naked' hard drive. I informed her of this and she was excited about the possibility of getting it. With it you can pull a drive out, collect the data, return it to the machine, and ship it off for repair if needed.
That evening after dinner, we went to a local MicroCenter and checked out the enclosures and file transfer adapters. As we walked in, there were two enclosures on shelves to the left of us. I think they were about thirty dollars. We studied them and then moved to hard drive section, knowing that if all else fails we could return to that shelf and pick up one of those enclosures. There was a large selection of enclosures. Prices ranged from about twenty five dollar to almost ninety dollars. Continuing the search, we found the adapters, and started looking through the selection. That became a problem, because we couldn't figure out which one to get. To further compound the problem, the price range was reasonable and very close from model to model. We picked one that had the Mac OS symbol on the box.
Of course we didn't leave, she needed a new keyboard, which we found in the Apple section of the store. Browsing is fun,and we had fun. She finally picked out the latest Apple keyboard, and we returned home. It was a successful excursion.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-seven: Evening of April 19th 2010

No games today, but I worked on shifting the WiFi router around to improve the signal strength on the first floor. I had purchased a specially designed wall mount for the Airport Extreme and spent the afternoon moving surge protectors around, shifting plugs around, and reorganizing the hookup cables. In the end, I managed to reposition the router about six feet from its current location. It seemed to work, but it wasn't until ten minutes ago, that I was able to see if the signal strength had improved. I'm sitting in a chair, that is the farthest away from the wireless unit, and just successfully downloaded an app. My wife confirmed the improved signal. After battling the tenatious cables, I feel a sense of accomplishment.
There was a 'Plan B' ready, just in case. That entailed the purchase of an Airport Express, and wirelessly extending the network. The drawback was the extra hundred dollars that needed to be expended to purchase the unit. So I am doubly happy about the success of the relocation.
Maybe I'll be able to play a bit tomorrow. We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-six: Evening of April 18th 2010

It was very much a pastiche kind of day as far as gaming was concerned - a little bit of this and then a little bit of that. The only console game played this afternoon was Mass Effect 2, and I made the mistake of sitting in the recliner, (or as I'm going to start calling it "The Seat of Slumber") and fell into a rather deep sleep. I didn't get much done, other than finding a few medallions from the crew of the original Normandy who didn't survive, before I had to break for dinner.
I didn't t get a chance to find a new location for the WiFi device, which is sort of disappointing because I could call down to the first floor to check on the signal strength before mounting it to the wall. I guess I'll get some exercise running up and down the stairs during the day.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-five: Evening of April 17th 2010

As usual, Saturday has filled with little chores, so it was difficult to spend any quality time with any of my console games. But I was able to install a utility, TuneRanger on my Mac book Pro and my Toshiba, that I though would help in synchronizing and organizing my various iTunes collections.
The key to synchronizing with this application in network stability. The directions are adequate, and the heavy emphasis on network settings should have clued me in. My first mistake was synchronizing all files, including movies and TV shows. The program seemed to freeze when it started to download the first movie, when in reality, the wireless network uploading/downloading speed was slow. I reset, which means restart, both my PC and my Mac, and made sure only the music was set to transfer. I started the process, watched for a while as the songs started to transfer, then left to work on the laundry. When I returned about thirty minutes later, about eighty songs had been transferred with more appearing as I watched. I checked the connection strength. The next thing I notice, song transfers were failing. I was confused, and wondered what was happening. As I flushed the failed tunes, I asked my daughter how the network was. Her negative reply pointed me in the right direction. The network let me down. I'll have to rethink my idea about what to do the next time I try it out.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
-- Post From My iPad using Pages

Day Two Hundred Fifty-four: Evening of April 16th 2010

Playing some the games that I had purchased has proven to be fun and a great way to kill some time. The three that have consumed the most time are Fieldrunners, Plants versus Zombies, and, my iPhone favorite, The Creeps! HD. They are all tower defense games, although Plants versus Zombies is more of a variation of that type of game.
I almost missed working on this post because I thought that I was doing really well in Fieldrunners, but I was wrong (I only reached the 63rd level). I guess that that means they are addicting. I know that my daughter has finished Plants versus Zombies, definitely lapping me (I'm at Stage 3-4, shy of halfway). The Creeps! HD is similar to the iPhone version, but not the same so far. It doesn't offer the expansion packs that are available for the iPhone, and the iPad version doesn't offer the "Door Buster" mode. Maybe that will appear as an update later. This game is still fun and frustrating to play. Maybe that balance is part of being a good game.
Right now, I'm considering getting the iPad version of Civilization. I've enjoyed the gameplay and the frustration of trying to successfully complete the PC game. Like I said, I'm considering it.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-three: Evening of April 15th 2010

I had a chance to get some quality time on Splinter Cell: Conviction, and found it to be an enjoyable experience. I don't mean that it was easy, on the contrary there were a number of situations that required thoughtful analysis.
Situational tactics and equipment selection require careful assessment of the potential choices. Then the "rubber meets the road" and you find out just how good your choices were. There is another saying that fits here, "Some times you eat the bear and sometimes the bear eats you." If you've eaten the bear, then things worked out as close as possible to your projected outcomes. If it doesn't work out then it's start over time from the last save. There were a number of times when I was required to react to unexpected challenges, and that's what raised the level of playing the game.
While watching Attack of the Show, the host mention a bug in the video game that caused the system to freeze. But a patch had been released prior to my start up of the game. So all thing seem to be functioning normally, and I'm glad. I wouldn't feel comfortable playing on the console knowing that anytime everything would go away, and then what? This is a mute question. I would descend to the deepest depths of frustration and put the game away until I forgot about the game - I would do a mental reset. That would take a while.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford. 
-- Post From My iPad using Pages

Day Two Hundred Fifty-two: Evening of April 14th 2010

A busy day with some chores inside and two errands out of the house.
I played a little Splinter Cell: Conviction, restarting the game on the Xbox 360 Elite. I was complacent, and was killed sooner the yesterday's attempt. I took a risk and, because I'm learning the cover system, I left myself open to a shotgun blast. Oh well tomorrow is another day.
Yesterday, I was waxing poetic about Apple's productivity software. When I was finished I wondered about a database and today I found the app that actually works between the iPad and a Mac or a PC. Its file compatibility isn't with Microsoft's Access, but FileMaker's personal database Bento 3. I glanced at Bento for iPad's specs today, and it seemed to offer a basic set of DB functions. There was one caveat that caught my eye. The iPad version of Bento might have trouble handling a large database created in Bento 3 on a Mac. It sounds like a memory issue, so would having the larger iPad memory eliminate that problem?
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad using Pages.

Day Two Hundred Fifty-two: Evening of April 13th 2010

I was watching the tour of the iPad apps and was amazed at the depth of features offered by Pages, Keynote and Numbers.
Pages is the word processing app, Keynote is the presentation application, and Numbers is the spreadsheet program. The tour spends a couple of minutes for each of the apps, demonstrating the major features. I like the import/export capabilities, especially the compatibility with Microsoft suite of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
If you are considering the iPad, you might want to check out the tour of the apps or read through the tech specs for the productivity set of Pages, Keynote, and Numbers.
On the game front, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction was released today and I picked up my copy. After playing for an hour or so, I'm going to have to re-think my approach to game play, stealth and cover are important, so I'll have to stay away from the run and gun approach that I've grown accustom to in Army of Two: The 40th Day.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
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Day Two Hundred Fifty-one: Evening of April 12th 2010

I found the last radio message in Army of Two: The 40th Day, and for the first time I found all of the messages,or items in a game without the aid of a cheat or a walkthrough - sense of achievement (not to mention a PS3 trophy).
I've had less success gaining access to the DLC, and my web search has only added to the confusion. One site describes Chapters Eight and Nine, while another states that it appears after the hospital scenario. I don't know. I'll keep playing the current game through to the end and see if I can find the DLC. If not then I'm shifting back to Final Fantasy XIII.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
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Day Two Hundred Forty-nine: Evening of April 10th 2010

Well I was wrong about where the DLC occurs in Army of Two: The 40th day. I played the last section of the final chapter and "The End" was my reward. So it was time to go online and find out what was going on.
The search was frustrating. I started by searching for Just the DLC, and that gave me a number of release announcements, a few reviews, and not much else. I moved through about six or seven pages and nothing specific was found. I modified the search and added a request for location. Thinking back, I should have requested a walkthrough. As they say, "Hindsight is twenty/twenty." Anyway, the DLC occurs after the hospital chapter. Well, I'm glad I started a new game yesterday. As of this entry, I've almost finished the hospital chapter and will be looking for the DLC.
While I was playing, I noticed that there was a trophy for 150 kills with a pistol, so I decided that I would try to attain that level of proficiency with my pistol. You have to get up close to eliminate an enemy with the minimum number of shots. So let this challenge continue.
I noticed that this app, BlogPress, doesn't have font modification menu, other than size (Large, Medium, or Small). I'll have to edit these entries on my laptop later.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad

Day Two Hundred Fifty: Evening of April 11th 2010

Moving through the scenarios in Army of Two: The 40th Day, but no DLC has been accessed yet. I'm going through the mall right now and I'll be on the lookout for any clues to the upcoming adventure. I'm going to check out the Internet later to see if there is anything more specific than the earlier information.
An interesting thing occurred, when I was checking out my stats, I have found all but one of the radios without the use of a walkthrough or cheat sheet. The only missing radio with related transmission is the thirteenth one. It is appears later in the game, but I don't when or where.
Most of the day was spent on getting everything ready for the week. So, I was only able to play AoT for about an hour. I'll work on it tomorrow, but I want to get back to Final Fantasy XIII as soon as possible. I want to see if I can actually finish a Final Fantasy game.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad

Day Two Hundred Forty-seven: Evening of April 8th 2010

So Bioware's new DLC for Mass Effect 2 is challenging and I wish there had been an introductory adventure to meet Kasumi. Her special ability, an invisible phase move from one location to another, is similar to the Borderlands' female character. When the ME 2 character materializes it is usually next to an opponent, which she can dispatch if her victim is in a weakened state. This ability can be called upon through the skills select, fosters teamwork, and requires thoughtful targeting. I noticed that there are occasions when Kasumi puts herself in harms way-meaning in the middle of a pack of enemies. Every once in a while it results in her death and the use of a med-gel pack.
I made the mistake of playing the scenario on the 'insanity' difficulty setting. It really fostered teamwork and the use of cover. In the heat of battle, you could here Kasumi yell out the direction that the next wave of baddies were coming from in the final boss battle. It took me over two hours of actual combat to finish that final battle. It was very satisfying. I guess that playing at the most difficult level engenders that feeling. I'm glad and it wasn't a mistake to play it at the 'insanity' setting.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad

Day Two Hundred Forty-six: Evening of April 7th 2010

A new DLC from Bioware for Mass Effect 2, Stolen Memory, was released yesterday. It adds a new team member, the twelfth, a master thief named Kasumi. I downloaded it today, and just started the mission, so I'll have to play a while, before I really have a sense of the loyalty mission that is associated with the character. Although, the mission described in the setup is a break-in disguised as a party crashing with Shepherd acting as the primary diversion at a party, allowing Kasumi to get the data that she wants.
I tried to check out reviews and found that Bioware's servers had trouble handling the downloading requests yesterday. I'm glad that I didn't remember that the due date was April 6th. I would have figured it was my network that was at fault. I had to finish up the mission I was on before I could actually start Stolen Memory scenario.
Some how I have destroyed yesterday's entry. I thought that I had copied and pasted the closing statement, but it appears that I saved today's entry over my previous entry. I'll try importing from Pages tomorrow.
We shall see.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad

Day Two Hundred Forty-four: Evening of April 5th 2010

I guess you can say I'm iPadding. I thought it might be interesting to try typing out today's entry on my iPad. I'm working in portrait format and not having much of a problem using the keyboard, of course using the 'hunt and peck' method.
The ladies in the house continue to have fun utilizing their iPads. My wife commented on the iBook store, noting how the preview feature helped her decide not to purchase a book after read the first twenty-seven. My daughter is still miffed over some of the negative press regarding iPad, and enjoying skimming through her apps.
Well, I' going to cut this short and prepare dinner for the dog and give the cat her medication.
For as long as it's needed, I'll keep closing this way. Please check out a good organization that's providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you can afford.
-- Post From My iPad

Day Two Hundred Forty-three: Evening of April 4th 2010

Repeat of “OMG - The ladies of the house were totally into their iPads.”

I came down after getting everything settled in; dog walked, laundry dealt with, and I’m ready to help set up for our Easter dinner. What do I see and hear? The iPad is in use displaying recipes for rack of lamb, a string bean casserole and a conversation describing apps dealing with recipes. I’ve got some clearing out to do, so I listen, detecting the glee filling each cook.

Later, I begin to clean house on the iPad, removing any iPhone specific apps (camera and tool related) and minimally used apps (location of speed trap, bus stop times). Then I search through to see if there are any new updates for the iPhone apps and iPad counterparts. Of course I play The Creeps! on the iPad. I notice a difference in game play, minor variations, and some aren’t covered in the ’Help’ descriptions.

Finally, just before I started working on this entry my daughter informs me of an app, Desktop Connect, that allows you to access the desktop of her Mac Book Pro. It will permit the iPad to control the Pro, opening applications and seeing what is happening on the laptop. One benefit, no problems with Flash, because the iPad has become a virtual screen for the laptop. The downside, the setup directions are a bit confusing.

It was at this point that the screen went white and was unresponsive to any attempt to bring it back to a normal state. I am a bit perplexed and angry. there was a bit more information, but I guess I'll put that on a back burner. There is a storm outside, but nothing threatening. The computer was running on battery, so even that wouldn’t be a problem. I guess I’ll do some diagnostics now, just to see if it is anything detectable.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Forty-two: Evening of April 3rd 2010

OMG - The ladies of the house were totally into their iPads. I mean from the moment they had their hands on the device, they were into downloading apps, testing them out, and moving onto the next experience. I had to do my chores, so I had to control my urge to fool around with my iPad, but I definitely enjoyed seeing the ladies having so much fun. My wife popped with this quote, “Ka-ching Day for Apple!” Later in the day, my daughter commented, “Why so many haters?” noting that the iPad wasn’t intended to replace a laptop. I haven’t taken any time to look at what was being said around the Web. Truth be told, I really didn’t care (other than tech issues, when they show up).

When I opened the box, I noticed the single index card sized sheet printed on two sides. One side had an image of the iPad and the other side setup directions. Basically, you are directed to update iTunes and work your way through a sync. You make decisions about what you want to include and sync the device. I wanted to include the movies, the iPhone’s music collection and all the apps on it.

I wanted the apps to test out which worked and how they looked on the iPad. I found out that when you activate the app it opens iPhone size and you can enlarge it by pressing on a ‘2x’ button located on the lower right corner of the screen. Of course the doubling of the image degrades the aliasing softening the image, but the games that I played worked, along with some of the other productivity apps.

Once that was done I began searching for iPad versions of the apps that I had. I found a few of them, some were free and other cost ranging any where from $1.99 to $9.99. IBook was a free download with Winnie the Pooh as a sample book to view. I downloaded a book using my iTunes account to see how that worked.

Finally, looked for apps that I wanted to try. I was happy to see that Plants vs. Zombies was available for download. I also purchase Apple’s Pages and Autodesk’s SketchBook. I haven’t really checked out the functionality of either of them. I was to busy with the games, Plants vs. Zombies HD and The Creeps! HD (both time vacuums). Maybe I’ll check the productivity apps out later.

It has been a fun day with the iPad. I hope tomorrow will be another one.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Forty-one: Evening of April 2nd 2010

Ran errands, recycled boxes plus packing materials, and played The Creeps! for a while. The sinus problem is hanging on but in a much-diminished state.

We, my family and I, spent some time reading the early reviews of the iPad. Overall, they are positive but I’m sure that there are some negative reviews because of the new nature of the machine. If the reviewers are looking for a laptop, they’re probably not going to be satisfied. After reading and listening to the commentaries about the iPad, I began to wonder about something I hadn’t heard anybody mention – How long will it take to charge (or recharge). I guess I’ll find out within the next twenty-four hours.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Forty: Evening of April 1st 2010

Another heavy sinus headache day, so very little tech usage today. I tried some Mass Effect 2, played four hours, but dozed off for about three of those hours. Of course, I was mining most of that time, not the most exciting activity in ME2.

One thing that was exciting was the discussion about Apple’s upcoming release of iPad. Major reviews seem to be favorable (New York Times, Wall Street Journal), although techies will point out its short comings. The interesting point made is this device is neither a laptop replacement or a larger version of Apples iPhone. Apple has created a new category of computing device.

My iPad is coming and I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do with it.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-nine: Evening of March 31st 2010

I’ve been participating in an online competition to help get funds to rebuild an elementary school in southern Illinois. Basically, Pepsi has set up a online listing of participant generated worthy projects seeking monetary support from Pepsi. The winners depend on the number of votes received by visitors to the website who vote for those projects. There are a wide variety of categories and monitory awards ($5,000 to $250,000). I don’t live in the area, but used to spend some of my summers down there when I was but a boy. So when I received an invite in Facebook from a relative to help out, I decided to visit the site and saw that the competition was stiff and their proposal was ranked d 26th. I didn’t bother checking beyond that point and started to vote. I placed a marker on my Facebook page and later in the competition I even made a direct appeal on my page. I don’t know if it had an impact, but it was worth the try. Anyway, the competition ends in a few hours and the proposal has moved from 26th to 10th. It was nice to see the public response to all of the projects, but only the top two projects will receive the funding and that means the little school won’t be getting the award.

What bothers me about the situation isn’t the obvious issues with a competition like this (big market little market and its relationship to the nature of the project and there were a lot of quality projects). No what bothers me is the State of Illinois involvement in the rebuilding of the school. I didn’t see any mention of the State support for rebuilding the school. I mean the school served seven to eight hundred students and the community has to resort to this online popularity competition. Somehow that doesn’t sound like the way it is supposed to be, but Illinois politics is a very interesting animal.

If you‘re interested, here is a Facebook page with information (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=107567595931442&index=1) and the Ben-Gil Boosters webpage (http://www.bengilboosters.com/ )

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-eight: Evening of March 30th 2010

I don’t understand the battery situation on my iPhone. I shut off the 3G setting (supposedly a big battery drain) and the device is still acting erratically.

The primary manifestation occurs with the battery charge indicator which doesn’t always show the correct level of charge. I’ll play The Creeps! for an hour or so and the charge indicator goes down a little. I’ll shut it down, turn it on later, and the charge is significantly diminished. Why? Is it a polling issue? The charge isn’t necessarily measured at the conclusion of use. Is it a app issue? The app has a design flaw and bypasses the battery check upon closing. I’d have to check a bunch of apps to see if this occurs with other apps.

Previously, I went through the Apple Support system and followed various suggested solutions without success. So now I’ll go online to see if there are any other observation and suggestions addressing this issue.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-seven: Evening of March 29th 2010

Today was ‘help the wife out’ day. She had some student posters that needed to be mounted for a city hall competition. So it was about five hours (travel included) of work with foam board and spray adhesive.

It was funny, there was debate, while we were working, centering around matting or mounting the posters. This occurred because of a change in the competition guidelines came through requesting the student work be matted/mounted. What was confusing was the 20-inch by 30-inch dimensions. Was that with or without the matte? Anyway, she had everything printed out before the change. She had the foam board, and no matte board. So she decided to mount the posters. I agreed, because that presentation plays to the nature of a poster. How is a poster normally seen? It is on a wall, interacting with its environment. So it was so it was spray, place and trim.

Of course the travel time was filled with The Creeps! That is if we weren’t talking about the directions and changes for the competition.

A while ago, I might have commented on how this kind of work should be automated. After a recent Print Expo that I attended with my wife, I know that the equipment is out there. Of course it is expensive, so mere mortals will have to ‘spray, place and trim’ for a while longer.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-six: Evening of March 28th 2010

I played The Creeps! on and off for a few hours today, but housework, the last two games to determine the Final Four, and the recliner took big chunks of time way from my game play today.

Once I felt sure that Duke would maintain control over Baylor, I decided to go into the living room and play some Dragon Age: Origins. So I fired up the console sat back in the recliner, and began loading up the game. I pick up where I left off the last time I played, skirmished with some evil doers, and fell asleep. Duke won, and I lost about ninety minutes or so - damn recliner.

It is spring break and the public schools our out, so I’m not sure what I will be doing with my family. One thing for sure, I’m looking forward to the delivery of the Apple iPad, hopefully, at the end of the week.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-five: Evening of March 27th 2010

Again, The Creeps! won out, although I managed to replay the tutorial for PixelJunk’s Monsters on the PlayStation 3. Currently, the early scenarios of Monsters are all survival, but that might change as I get deeper.

Right now the iPhone is being charged, I drained the batteries because I played the game for over three hours. One thing that I did before I started this charge was to turn off the 3G acceleration. It speeds up the transmission and reception of information, but at a cost -battery drain. So when I play the game, from now on, I’ll turn off that function. Hopefully, it will prolong the game playing experience

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.

Day Two Hundred Thirty-four: Evening of March 26th 2010

I had some long overdue chores today. I took care of that, returned to The Creeps! and tried to open up any more levels.

Later in the afternoon, I checked to see if there was a tower defense game that I could download from the PlayStation Network for the PSP. There were at least three that actually used the term “tower defense” in the description and ranged in price from $7.99 to $19.99. I had purchased the PS3 version of Pixel Monsters, so that eliminated that, and the least expensive one was a hybrid game, mixing tower defense with a variation of the trading card war game. I picked out a game based upon the Final Fantasy franchise entitled Crystal Defenders.

The game looks like a straight port of a PS One game using 8 bit graphics and simple angular paths (so far). The reviews that I saw stated that the game was okay (Average, 3 out of 5, 6 out of 10, etc.) Right now the battery is charging on the PSP and I’ll get back to it later.

We shall see.

For as long as it‘s needed, I’ll keep closing this way, please check out a good organization that’s providing aid in Haiti and make what ever kind of contribution that you is can afford.