tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-244497842010-02-12T23:29:40.421-08:00ioyuIt's like one giant 404 message... with linksLeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-66003422420153664252010-02-02T07:46:00.001-08:002010-02-02T07:47:58.949-08:00google signed me out<p>So I had to sign in again. It also signed <a href="http://ironhive.com/">Bryan</a> out too. I have a sneaking suspicion we're not the only ones.</p><p>Coincidence or conspiracy?</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-6600342242015366425?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-22255531949657356192009-12-03T15:38:00.000-08:002009-12-04T06:49:21.073-08:00hotel internet topology<p>The Internet service at the Moorpark Hotel in San Jose was abysmally slow. I could only imagine this to be the cause:</p><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/4158092358/" title="moorpark modem internets by Thelbane, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2619/4158092358_8f5bee7856.jpg" width="450" height="120" alt="moorpark modem internets" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2225553194965735619?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-54764996448421666972009-11-14T06:27:00.001-08:002009-11-14T06:57:14.510-08:00i hate football<p>I hate the notion of tailgate parties too. In fact, I hate pick up trucks almost as much as I hate football. Okay, maybe I don't <i>hate</i> these things as much as I <i>don't share your enthusiasm for</i> these things. Ergo, when my family and I are out enjoying a quiet, nearly post-apocalyptic game night, where everyone is huddled in front of their TVs and crowding up sports bars, and you are forced to work at whatever deserted establishment my family and I have darkened the doorway of, please refrain from asking me what the score is. I have obviously not chosen to transfix myself on a television with beer and pretzels, and could not care less about "the score."</p><p>Thanks!</p><p>Next week: Religion, politics, and other things we disagree on.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-5476499644842166697?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-51503943196773574972009-10-30T07:17:00.000-07:002009-10-30T07:37:42.515-07:00response to why devs hate designers<p>My response to <a href="http://www.elisabethhubert.com/?p=328">this post</a> on a friend/colleague's blog got really long-winded, so I'm using it as an opportunity to actually create content on my own site! Yay!</p><p><a href="http://www.elisabethhubert.com/?p=328">Now go read that article first</a>. I'll wait.</p><p>Yes. And I'd like to add that the designer/developer relationship shouldn't be without friction. Without friction, there is no change; there is no innovation. But with too much friction, there is no progress.</p><p>Developers these days, particularly UI developers, cannot be the code-monkeys of yesterday who were generally happy building mind-boggling algorithms only to have the results dumped as a stream of ultimately meaningful, but cryptic numbers and letters. These are the devs who need requirements so granular that they actually read like source code, and who more or less disengage when presented with a visual comp.</p><p>Today's developer works with UI frameworks that make strong considerations for design, usability, and accessibility. And through better understanding of these frameworks, many developers have grown to understand and empathize with user needs. (These are the ones you need to watch for and hire before someone else does!) These developers understand that requirements and visual comps can only go so far and that communication with designers is crucial.</p><p>Likewise, software UX and UI design as a discipline has matured greatly since the days of flinging visual comps at the wall and seeing what sticks. Successful designers and developers will have passionate conversations that consider requirements, user experience, technology, timeline, budget, and where to go for lunch. There will be frustration and compromise, but it should be in the best interest of the user; not the designer; not the developer.</p><p>Luckily, I work in an environment that encourages such relationships and pretty much frowns on using our "designer" and "developer" titles for anything but distinguishing our roles in the eyes of the client.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-5150394319677357497?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-27006956343681680022009-10-26T12:43:00.000-07:002009-10-26T12:46:12.303-07:00psn portable id<a href="http://profiles.us.playstation.com/playstation/psn/visit/profiles/thelbane"><img src="http://fp.profiles.us.playstation.com/playstation/psn/pid/thelbane.png" width="230" height="155" border="0" /></a><p>Neato. I like how the portable ID has evolved over the years. The addition of trophies have made it more meaningful for sure... Now what do I do with it? (i.e., It's too wide to fit in the bar to the right.)</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2700695634368168002?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-82308718412153024512009-10-19T19:11:00.000-07:002009-10-19T20:02:02.498-07:00overpriced software<p><i><rant></i></p><p>Gawd, I'm sick of people complaining about overpriced (i.e., "not free") iPhone apps. They just don't appreciate that quality software takes a huge investment of time and money to design, build, and test. They'll even sit there and write a glowing review and then blast the $.99 price tag. Insane. I, on the other hand, have been very impressed with the overall bang-to-buck ratio of most of the apps I've purchased. I even find it difficult to complain about the occasional steaming pile of an app that I paid a dollar for. Seriously. What should we expect for one dollar these days? Walk into a convenience store with a buck and ask yourself that question again.</p><p>These people have probably spent more on a single console game than they have on their entire collection of iPhone apps. They need to get some perspective! Complain about features, write meaningful reviews, then the rest of us can make an informed determination about whether the app is worth the money. Whining about the price just makes them sound like a bunch of cheapskates who wish the App Store would just get hacked already.</p><p><i></rant></i></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-8230871841215302451?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-74812114324380798572009-10-14T18:30:00.000-07:002009-10-15T07:37:40.168-07:00windows 7 likes<p>I had Win7 installed on my work laptop earlier this week. While I have Vista Ultimate on my HTPC, I can't really draw comparisons between these two OS's since these machines are used in very different ways. However, here are some of my favorite improvements over XP (thus far):</p><ul><li>Taskbar redesign is simple and intuitive, yet rich in features.</li><li>Same goes for the system tray.</li><li>Connecting to my home network used to take seconds, now it takes milliseconds. I hate playing the "refresh" game in my browser, waiting to connect to the Internet.</li><li>Detecting USB devices is now fast and consistent whereas it used to be very hit or miss. By "hit," I mean "slow;" by "miss," I mean "required a reboot."</li><li>The exact same thing goes for external display detection.</li><li>Gesture-based and smart Window management features such as docking and ghosting.</li><li>Aero glass, but snappy and just as responsive as the old opaque XP chrome.</li><li>It's about time Windows shipped with an attractive set of themes, sounds, and wallpapers!</li><li>And best of all, I get all this without switching to a Mac OS!</li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-7481211432438079857?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-26767002173785418002009-08-17T12:41:00.001-07:002009-08-17T12:45:00.981-07:00videogame review: prince of persia<p><a href="http://www.ironhive.com/">Bryan</a> gave me a copy of Prince of Persia (PS3) for my birthday and I finally got a chance to play it last night. It's a lot of fun! </review></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2676700217378541800?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-80791597140675560882009-08-07T07:19:00.001-07:002009-08-07T07:21:23.171-07:00sms blogging<p>Blogging via SMS is insane! Inspires me to use words like "convergence" and "synergies."</p><p>Note: Discovered that my template isn't nice to blog posts without titles.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-8079159714067556088?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-29210156948673952522009-07-30T21:53:00.000-07:002009-07-30T23:32:56.772-07:00minor milestones<p>Maybe related... I'm waging my first successful campaign against fat through diet and exercise, and I've been writing some really effective code that's more smart than clever both at home and at work. The former started about two-and-a-half weeks ago and I've lost eleven pounds so far, going from 236 down to 225. I'm pretty sure I won't sustain that rate of loss—my goal is to lose at least two pounds per week and get under 200 by mid October. I've been diligent about working out every weekday, but most of the weight loss can probably be attributed to the great, <i>free</i> iPhone app <i>Lose It!</i>, which tracks every calorie I consume.</p><p>One neat side effect of all this dieting business is that I actually enjoy food more, which in turn gets me to appreciate formerly unpalatable "health foods" and makes the "bad foods" that much more awesome and memorable. Example: Maudie's had always struck me as barely passable purveyor of Mexican food. It's always busy, but I assume that's because most Austinites haven't experienced an abundance of really good, authentic Mexican cuisine. Well, I've been to Maudie's exactly once since I started dieting... let me tell you... every morsel I consumed that night is captured in high-def slow-motion in my mind and has a memorable story all its own.</p><p>An even better side effect of the diet and exercise has been an overall boost in energy. I've gone from "needing" one or two espresso beverages per day down to (maybe) one cup of coffee per day. That equates to a significant drop in calories, caffeine, and expense. My blood circulation is improving, getting more oxygen to my brain, which makes it work better. Like I said earlier, I've been writing better, stronger, smarter code... and enjoying doing so more. Probably every other night, just for fun I'll drop into my Apple II's built-in mini assembler (a really basic line-by-line assembler... no symbols, labels, equates, or anything) and scratch out some fairly complex logic that does fun stuff, like make sound effects or do fun things with the hi-res graphics pages. In the mini-assembler, most small mistakes usually mean retyping lots of code. Somehow, this is fun to me.</p><p>The moral of the story is: It's really late and I hadn't blogged in forever, so I figured... what the hey. (Plus, I was getting sick of looking at that sewing machine in my previous post. [That's right, I just got all meta on your ass.])</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2921015694867395252?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-66656734293878399442009-05-07T09:11:00.001-07:002009-05-07T09:17:43.341-07:00file under "where are they now?"<div align="center"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/3509971929/" title="file under "where are they now?" by Thelbane, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3599/3509971929_3f55213656_o.jpg" width="298" height="298" alt="file under "where are they now?"" border="0" /></a></div><br/><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-6665673429387839944?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-41689169894117753952009-05-01T07:43:00.000-07:002009-05-01T07:51:02.769-07:00if you really want to punch my buttons<p>Just ignore the orange, moron-proof blinking light with the sign that reads "SCHOOL 20 MPH." Seriously. It works <i>every time</i>.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-4168916989411775395?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-25178738449502285102009-04-27T22:28:00.000-07:002009-04-27T22:38:24.556-07:00ye olde data<p>I found a stack of poorly labeled CD's in my office tonight which contain all sorts of stuff from around eight to ten years ago, including some archived web content that I decided to republish. Don't get too excited... unless <a href="/apple/old_pics/default.asp">old Apple II box art</a> excites you, that is.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2517873844950228510?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-49070267658448534182009-04-22T21:10:00.000-07:002009-04-23T08:41:51.357-07:00IQ, others don't<div align="center"><image src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3632/3467893379_6781747b20_o.png" /></div><br/><p>This morning, I got a first hand taste of this sense of entitlement that afflicts so many young people these days. A couple of co-frogs and I are standing in line at The Hideout, a local coffee house a couple blocks from where I work, and I'm awaiting my turn to purchase one of the breakfast tacos they stock every morning. The line is unusually long, but moving at a reasonable pace.</p><p>When I'm around the third customer from the register, a female about 25—let's call her Missy—enters the store and sort of hovers in front of me, but a little off to one side. It's apparent to me that she's trying to access the breakfast tacos sitting on the counter, so I take a small step back.</p><p>Missy moves in and begins rifling through the breakfast tacos, desperately searching for one that might bear satisfactory labeling. I figure that once she finds whatever taco she's seeking, she'll move to the end of the line, which is still just as long as when we had walked in due to a steady influx of customers. After all, why should she waste her time standing in line if they don't have her favorite breakfast taco?</p><p>So she eventually finds her taco. I even feel a mild twinge of relief as I revel in the leavings of her minor victorious moment. Except—she doesn't go to the back of the line. Instead, she turns to face the register, her back to me, with money in hand. Okay. I turn around to give my co-frogs the obligatory quizzical WTF expression and turn back to face this horrible, horrible person who has just <i>cut in line</i>. Does this young professional-looking woman really think she is going steal my spot in line? Really?</p><p>"Really?!"</p><p>She turns slightly and I crane my neck to make eye contact. "Really?!" I repeat.</p><p>"I'm sorry?" Missy asks, surprised and confused.</p><p>"I'm sorry. The end of the line is back there," I point toward the back of the store.</p><p>"But I'm not ordering coffee," she explains. The Hideout, being a local establishment and not having a small squad of barristas at its disposal, is... well... slow at preparing its espresso beverages. So Missy has a system. In her system, non-espresso orders are faster and therefore should have a higher priority than espresso orders. I'm sure that in her mind, everyone in line would query one another and sort themselves accordingly. Non-espressos up front, espressos in the rear.</p><p>Aside from this generally being a shitty system (as systems go), Missy is the only one using it. She believes in her system and she defends it by saying things like, "But I'm not ordering coffee."</p><p>"I'm not ordering coffee either." I smugly proclaim. Guilt makes a sudden deep impression across her face.</p><p>The system that Missy designed, which was meant to bring harmony and efficiency to local coffee shops around the globe, has failed. She apologizes and relinquishes her spot and takes the one directly behind me...</p><p>F*ck.</p><p>(A shout out to <a href="http://broadcast.artificialcolors.com/">Gregg Wygonik</a> for the awesome image above.)</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-4907026765844853418?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-28285323376165684322009-04-13T04:21:00.000-07:002009-04-13T20:24:55.372-07:00spbmmwiizzz?<p>Maybe I'm getting old, but I just don't understand spam these days:</p><blockquote>From: nrlTvocucHwr<br />E-mail: cbdqmc@cobgbi.com<br />Sent: 4/13/2009 4:33:25 AM<br />IP Address: 163.21.47.12<br />----------------------------------------<br />77c8JU <a href="http://dnqsescxfurg.com/">dnqsescxfurg</a>, [url=http://nahxepciyzib.com/]nahxepciyzib[/url], [link=http://pamyquinrltz.com/]pamyquinrltz[/link], http://ipqptgrvweyk.com/<br />----------------------------------------</blockquote><p>I received the above via a site message (through a CAPTCHA). What's the product? What's the scam? Help me out here. Is this a phishing attempt? There are no url-encoded parameters to identify me... or perhaps the domains themselves are unique per spam recipient, which seems excessive. (Characters have been transposed above... just in case.)</p><p>All in all, this spam is <i>unusable</i> and I've reported it to <a href="http://useit.com/">Jakob Nielsen</a>.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2828532337616568432?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-79014037013696159022009-04-05T08:29:00.000-07:002009-04-13T04:37:21.000-07:00easycare? not so much<p>I just had to give the receptionist at the ADC EasyCare clinic in North Austin the business for telling Karen and me that they're a "walk-in clinic" (as their website claims) insofar as one is able to "walk in to make an appointment." No. She said I could leave a comment on the website! Uh, no! "I'm leaving a comment here. Fix the website. We drove in from South Austin and this is incredibly inconvenient." They even have a sign in the lobby that says this is a walk-in clinic, yet the receptionist is giving us some line about the website being innacurate. All the while, ONE PERSON in the waiting area! She confers with someone in the back, a doctor I assume, and finally agrees to let my wife be seen without an appointment. Not the first crappy customer experience story I have with these jokers. It's their front office people who are so terrible at their jobs... The nurses and doctors are great. Will defnitely bring this to someone's attention. </p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-7901403701369615902?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-20542270459730620362009-03-14T14:59:00.000-07:002009-03-14T15:37:52.721-07:00wpf applications made better<p>I like .NET, WPF, and C# a lot. But I really should be obsessing over them like a creepy ex-boyfriend—making wall-sized collages of all my favorite code-snippets pulled from <a href="http://www.red-gate.com/products/reflector/">.NET Reflector</a>, having awkward conversations about them with my wife, calling them at 2AM. How can .NET be my new <a href="http://ioyu.com/io/atari/reflex/source/reflex99a.txt">6502 assembly</a>?</p><p>Enter <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc707890.aspx">Composite Application Library</a> (aka <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/dphill/archive/2009/02/20/prism-2-0-is-live.aspx">Prism</a>). At the recommendation of one of frog's most respected .NET gurus, <a href="http://www.brianromanko.com/">Brian Romanko</a>, I've begun looking into this framework for a project idea I've been toying with for a few months. So far, it looks like it supports the type of modularity my project could benefit from. If you have personal experience with Prism and have strong opinions about it, I'd love to hear them. I'll keep you posted!</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-2054227045973062036?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-6156491305193475852009-01-01T11:09:00.000-08:002009-01-01T11:20:01.132-08:00i resolve to...<ul><li>publish the $#@! game already</li><li>keep in touch better<br /></li><li>build something with wood and nails and glue & stuff</li><li>write an iPhone app like everyone else</li><li>blog more</li><li>upload to flickr once a month</li><li>work smarter<br /></li><li>change the battery in my keyboard so i can type without using the On-Screen Keyboard</li><li>be an all around better person<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-615649130519347585?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-14767737492259476312008-10-15T12:09:00.000-07:002008-10-15T12:23:14.324-07:00littlebigplanet beta has come and gone<p>This began as a reply to <a href="http://www.libipl.net/libiplblog/2008/10/15/so-i-sing-you-to-sleep-after-the-beta/">this post</a>, but it got a little long-winded.</p><p>Yes, the beta went quietly into this good night. I was at work when it happened (yes, the LBP beta ending is worthy of a "where were you when..." footnote in history). The next day, when I tried to launch LBP, I simply got a message stating that the content had expired. Simple and rather unceremonious, but that's how betas go, I guess.</p><p>I was one of the proponents of wiping the slate clean for the official release; clearing out all the uploaded levels and local user-generated content, but after Mm's announcement that they'd keep beta content, I really pushed hard on an RPG-like level I was building, but never got to publish it. I hope to publish it within a day or two of the retail release. I think it has a design aesthetic and narrative that could get traction with a lot of players.</p><p>For now, I find myself with graph paper and colored pencils trying to come up with creative mechanisms and puzzles to build when the game officially comes out.</p><p>I've been spending much of that time finding ways to represent logic gates, counters, memory and possibly a Turing-complete programming language... a <span style="font-style:italic;">very simple</span> Turing-complete programming language. :) And the fact that I've used the term "Turing-complete" three times now should be a clue as to which language I will probably implement. :)</p><p>Looking forward to seeing all my LBP beta friends and plenty of new folks online on the 21st. That's only six days away!</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-1476773749225947631?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-65858296105261153642008-09-11T20:27:00.001-07:002008-09-11T20:32:52.067-07:00a bit of ze_funstuff<p>Just taking a break from work to wax nostalgic... Who remembers this golden oldie?</p><div align="center"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/2850167892/" title="a blast from the corporate past by Thelbane, on Flickr"><img border="0" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3138/2850167892_aec6b4153e_o.png" width="371" height="231" alt="a blast from the corporate past" /></a></div><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-6585829610526115364?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-8041291307529799432008-09-05T20:41:00.000-07:002008-09-05T20:49:21.815-07:00second challenge over<p><a href="http://littlebigplanet.us.playstation.com/post/2008/09/LBC-002---Wrap-up.aspx">LittleBigChallenge 002</a> has ended and my submission made the top 5 out of <a href="http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=littlebigchallenge+002&s=rec&z=t">69 entries</a>!</p><p>Media Molecule <3 Me.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-804129130752979943?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-73275879603569434382008-09-04T02:47:00.000-07:002008-09-04T03:04:50.328-07:00so, this new contest... it vibrates?<p>I kicked off my participation in <a href="http://littlebigplanet.us.playstation.com/post/2008/08/LittleBigChallenge-002-%E2%80%93-DIY-LBP-Packaging.aspx">LittleBigChallenge 002</a>, as usual, with something terribly contrived. Just to get the mental juices flowing, naturally. The <span style="font-style:italic;">real</span> submission is yet to come... and will likely manifest itself in some hardcore nerdish way.</p><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/2826541625/" title="LittleBigChallenge 002 by Thelbane, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3267/2826541625_67b8d4abce_m.jpg" width="192" height="240" alt="LittleBigChallenge 002" /></a></div><br /><p>And it just figures that as soon as I upload this to <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/">flickr</a>, I find another <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/29621291@N08/2817896691/">GTA-themed submission</a>. I should be flogged for not looking through the other entries first.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-7327587960356943438?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-73719836067719066382008-09-01T21:24:00.000-07:002008-09-01T22:00:25.166-07:00did i win?<p>Okay, how do I start this? I know I've poked fun at my obsession with <a href="http://www.mediamolecule.com/littlebigplanet/">Little Big Planet</a>. I've pre-ordered the game, <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/thelbane/sets/72157606900857651/">submitted four entries</a> (yes, only two good ones) to Media Molecule's <a href="http://littlebigplanet.us.playstation.com/post/2008/08/LittleBigChallenge-1.aspx">LittleBigChallenge 001</a>, and I've even been <a href="http://www.mediamolecule.com/2008/08/16/8-bit-game-3-oh/">featured</a> on the Media Molecule blog (which has been really hard not to let go to my head). So why am I still agonizing over this contest?</p><p>I <span style="font-style:italic;">think</span> it's over. At least, Media Molecule has posted some of their favorites and started a new contest: <a href="http://littlebigplanet.us.playstation.com/post/2008/08/LittleBigChallenge-002-%E2%80%93-DIY-LBP-Packaging.aspx">LittleBigChallenge 002</a>. My 8-bit entry made the top of the list, which is awesome for sure. I think I won... Maybe. Maybe I'm just thrown off by the word "Challenge" in the title of the "contest." Is it really a contest? Is it over? Did I win?</p><p>Or am I just being overly competitive? (Rhetorical. I know the answer is yes.) I suppose I always knew the contest was more for fun than anything else... and it <span style="font-style:italic;">has</span> been fun, really. So I'll just stop whining like a baby now and thank Media Molecule for the entertaining diversion (and 4,500+ views on flickr).</p><p>:: cleansing breath ::</p><p>Okay, time to act like a grown-up again. I need to go wrap Karen's birthday presents now.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-7371983606771906638?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-33147621975697847422008-08-24T19:23:00.000-07:002008-08-24T19:48:55.119-07:00what are the odds<p>First some background. So I get the inspired idea to query "<a href="http://flickr.com/search/?q=i+was+there&s=int&page=2">i was there</a>" on flickr, hoping to see wondrous and amazing things like celebrity sightings, chemical fires, and amazing moments in sports, but I flubbed the search a little... Instead of putting "i was there" in quotes or tag-ifying it as "iwasthere", I ended up searching for matches on photos that contained "i" and "was" and "there."</p><p>Anyway, the result set was still interesting. But <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/hansvandevorst/216877526/">this photo</a> in particular caught my eye. Nobody is that stupid... but there it is. A man leaping between two rocks towering 900 meters above the ground... in flip-flops.</p><p>Naturally, I am compelled to then perform a search on "<a href="http://flickr.com/search/?q=moron&s=int">moron</a>". And look who is at the top of the list? <span style="font-style:italic;">What are the odds?</span></p><p>(Query results will change over time. Trust me, at the time of this writing, the flip-flop leaper was the top moron on flickr.)</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-3314762197569784742?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24449784.post-16695187334914520872008-08-22T21:34:00.000-07:002008-08-22T21:37:08.376-07:00yup, a fourth submission<p>One more entry can't hurt. (Can it?)</p><div align="center"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelbane/2788839738/" title="LittleBigChallenge 001 - four by Thelbane, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3062/2788839738_027e503854_m.jpg" width="222" height="240" alt="LittleBigChallenge 001 - four" /></a></div><br/><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/24449784-1669518733491452087?l=www.ioyu.com%2Fio' alt='' /></div>Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11399607147087971349noreply@blogger.com0