Just a Reminder

I did do the Five Website Comparison, but I did it before the blog that came before it.

Here is a link to it if you didn't see it, but if you did, well, continue to have a nice weekend!

Chris Anderson - Designing Media

Chris Anderson has had a rare seat at the forefront of the redesigning of Media as we know it. Quite possibly, there was no better seat for this than being at the head of Wired Magazine during the hayday of the Internet boom in the late 90's and early 2000's.

Anderson has seen the way that media has changed, from a sort of "big boys" club, where only those "in the know" are allowed to do something in a certain field. He mentions that, before today, if you wanted to produce and broadcast something, you needed to be in the television industry. But today, anyone can get a cheap camera, cheap editing software, and upload anything and everything they create to YouTube. And this is seen in all aspects, where people write, sing, create, and just simply become apart of any medium they wish, with very little bar of entry to do so. Media used to be a way for those in power to communicate. Media has now become just another way for everyone to communicate.

Not only has the way people do this changed, but also the why. Beforehand, the predominant reason could've been stated as money. Media was big, fast moving, fun, and paid well. Everyone wanted in, and only a few could get in. But, as time went on, those in the spotlight seemed to be doing it for a different reason. Not so much for cash, but for the explicit reason of being in the spotlight. People all over the world would worship these people. And like before with the issue of money, people wanted in. They wanted to be seen for no other reason than to be seen.

People all over the internet now, offer their services for free, just to be apart of something bigger. Novelists write books, programmers design software, musicians make music, artists make art, and distribute them freely over the Net for anyone to see.

From Chris Anderson's eyes, the way media works is changing drastically. In some ways for the worse, but ultimately, for the better.

Five Websites of Awesome

First of we have Destructoid, a blog dedicated to gaming. Like most game blogs, it has a simple design. The stories get loaded in, and the new ones get placed on top, pushing the rest down. It is a design that is stories, simple, and works very well. I am also a fan of the general theme of the site.

On the other hand, we have Kotaku, another gaming blog that is under the Gawker brand of lifestyle blogs (other blogs include io9, a blog dedicated to sci-fi and fantasty, and Gizmodo, a blog dedicated to gadgets). The problem here is that, until a few weeks ago, Kotaku had the same blog style layout that Destructoid had, but then they decided to try out the new layout you see now, and it is quite horrid. Their are two many frames, some don't load all the way, and it's just generally confusing. I understand trying to innovate, but breaking something that worked so well just isn't a very good idea.

Next we have Reddit, which is currently the website to beat in term of Social News sites. A Social News site is basically any site that shares links to other websites, and has comments on those links built into Reddit itself, letting people have a discussion about said link, be it a picture, video, or link to a whole other website. It's simple, text based, and very easy to use.

Next, we have a message board website, called GameFAQs. This website is just about as old as dirt now. Founded way back in 1998, the overall design hasn't changed that much. The most major redesign came when the site was purchased wholesale by gaming news giant Gamespot, which now duplicates the GameFAQs message boards in it's own site, with it's own layout, while still allowing GameFAQs to keep it's own design on it's side. It's a bit of technical wizardry that worked for everyone.

Lastly, we have the web-comic Questionable Content (don't worry about the name, there really isn't any questionable content in there). This is another standard design that works well and doesn't really need much dressing up. For most web-comics, the central fixture is always going to be the comic, and thus the focus. Basically, all most web comic artists do is gussy up the back end, making it more functional. This site in general has one of my favorites, wherein if you are ever browsing the back catalog, whenever you click on the comic proper, it turns the page to the next strip. Extremely simple, but extremely functional.

I am a Reader

I am a reader who reads for fun.

I am a reader who reads to learn.

I am a reader who hates grounded stories.

I am a reader who hates when something ends.

I am a reader who has trouble visualizing characters.

I am a reader who can read anywhere.

I am a reader who reads the same things twice.

I am a reader who skims descriptions of landscapes.

I am a reader who reads for characters.

I am a reader who reads to live.


Based on these, I think it's hard to say exactly what type of reader I am. A lot of what I do seems to be from Behaviorist point of view. Growing up, it took me a little longer to get things, making me read things over and over again before I fully got them. Now, being an adult, I am able to understand things easily the first time, but I still read it twice.

But on that note, I have a hard time visualizing things with words, which would suggest Cognitive view on my reading.

Yet, I am also obsessed with characters, and viewing the various strife and troubles they go through, feeling connected to them through their actions. Is this a Community based mindset?

As said, from my stand point, I cannot honestly say that it is one way or the other definitively. For sure, I am an amalgamation of all four to different extents. But, if I have to choose one, I would say I was definitely influenced by Behaviorism the most out of them. I saw what others did around me, I was influenced by them, and emulated them. Or is that Social Constructivism? I still have so much to learn.

What is Reading?

You could write a book about what the true definition of reading is. You could then read about reading. It would hurt your brain. So, I have instead opted to write about what I feel reading is in a short blog post, as per the request of my Instructor.

All glory to the Madam Sloane!

That aside, I really would like to point out that defining Reading is no walk in the park. Well, that is to say, Reading is like a walk in a park, or rather, walking in a park is kind of like reading. Now, you may be wondering what I’m talking about, and I will say that I am in the same boat. But, what I mean, is that Reading is taking in information, processing it, and forming an idea about what that info means. The most popular form of reading, is, well, reading, mostly books, magazines, or anything with words, symbols that represent sounds that help us contextualize the world. If you break that down some, it becomes interpreting symbols that help us take in pertinent information.

One could say, walking in a park, one must take in the symbols of the park, such as signs stating to stay of the grass, or a big pile of dog poo. We take this info in, read it, and come to a conclusion about what to do.

And that’s what it is at the end of the day, for me at least: reading is the taking in of symbols from an outside source, typically symbols that transmit a certain form of information, that we then as readers take in, interpret, and synthesize into our lives.

What you do, every day, is read. In one way or another. To live is to read. To read is to live.

So, whatever you do, don't be illiterate.

Games Most People Missed from 2007

Let us see here, lets take it from the top!

Zack and Wiki
Easily one of the most charming titles I’ve played this year, and I only got it a week ago! It has wit, charm, and it’s ingenious use of the Wiimote in most situations should be noted by all Wii developers on how to make good use of the Wiimote.

Earth Defence Force 2017
Probably the most mindless fun game of the year, and at a budget price to boot! Nothing but a pure arcade pick-up-and-have-fun game (PUaHF? A Pooaahf game I guess) and was so ridiculously addicting when played with a friend. Fully reccomended.

Pac-Man Championship Edition
Hands down, the best Xbox Live Arcade game of the year, and will probably only be beaten by Castle Crashers net year as the best game. The last game to be developed by Toru Iwatani, creator of the original Pac-Man arcade game, it took everything that made Pac-Man great and made it greater! The neon lights, the techno music, the sound effects, and the various timed modes made this a very constant addiction for me this year.

Hotel Dusk: Room 215
Sigh, what can’t I say about why I loved this game? Hands down the best adventure game on the DS, let alone one of my personal favorite adventure games I have ever played! (And I’m an old school Lucas Arts adventure fan) The game is a pure character driven story, with characters so real, you feel like you’ve actually met them and learned about their tragic life stories. Which is aided by the amazing sketch like art style (think of Ah-Ha’s Take On Me music video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIzUD7FKcBk ).
Not to mention it’s great, very logical puzzles. Need to open a door? Pick the lock on the maintenance closet and steal an axe! Oh, but make sure the surly manager doesn’t catch you or you get the boot! Simply a fantastic game and a must own for Adventure fans and DS owners alike.

Odin Sphere
Again, another game I just cannot express fully how amazing it is. Truly, a controversial title among friends and I, but in my honest opinion, a true masterpiece. Starting at the surface, the art style blows any other game’s attempt at art away. Going for the classic look, the game opts to use amazingly meticulous (and often HUGE) sprites. Everyone can agree on the amazing appearance of the game, but the arguements usually stem from the game play itself. Becoming more of a brawler RPG, you hack and slash your way through a circular battlefield until all enemies are vanquished. Then, you capture the spirits on your slain enemies to power and level up your weapon, OR, to “water” food you have planted, which ranges from apples to sheep. Yes, sheep.
Sound complicated? Well I haven’t even gotten into alchemy and cooking. All of that for me, had me sold to it’s unique charm, but I guess it isn’t for everyone.

Persona 3
A banner year for JRPGs, in my honest opinion, and Persona 3 was the flagship of the fleet. The, well, really, 4th title in the core Persona series (Persona 2 was two games…. long story), and one of the last JRPGs to come out this year and took the series in bold new directions. Truly, to only call this game an RPG is to not mention that not only do you level up, fight monsters, equip new items and learn spells, but you also go on dates, attend school, help people through dilemmas, and raise the ranks of local school clubs. All really, to help power up certain “arcana” which allow for certain monsters you collect (Persona) so you can fight more in the never ending dungeon! But don’t forget to study for exams!

Planet Puzzle League
Ever play Tetris Attack for the SNES? Like it? Get this game now.

Overlord
Man, my list is getting long but I need to talk about this game too. I might get short about it, but, well, you play an evil lord of darkness who controls evil minions whom you control in a very Pikmin-eqsue way, as you pillage the land to kill the 7 Heroes who killed your former master. Tolkien with a demented twist really.

Well, thats about it, I think. If I think of anything else I’ll let you know!

870 pages... Two hours and 18 minutes... equals... good?!

Yes. I saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, even though I was scared to DEATH about how much they were going to butcher the plot. I mean come ON! HOW were they gonna chizzle down 870 pages of solid PLOT into only a little over two hours?

Surprisingly, whatever they did, they did it well. SOMEHOW... AMAZINGLY... they turned this into one of the best Potter movies yet. AND THATS COMING FROM SOMEONE WHO WAS EXPECTING TO HATE IT! They were able to have every important character sound off, touch on every plot point, and evolve every important relationship well enough to make good.

I STRONGLY recommend to any Potter fan who was still on the fence about this movie, they make it work. Trust me. I mean for thing, they NAILED Tonks and Luna, my two favorite characters. And what more could I ask for? Not much.