Here's your burger, good delicious!

Coming soon....

2012-02-11T00:28:00.001Z

Rayman plays Golden Golf over a Ridge of Symphony.

Stay tuned....

It snowed!

2012-02-05T18:27:00.001Z

It was love at first sight....

2012-01-21T23:22:00.001Z

More Tuesday ;)

Waterblocks!

2012-01-21T10:39:00.002Z

On Tuesday I should get the 2 waterblocks (EK) for the 7970s.

Wish me luck.

I also learnt that, if you install a waterblock on a 7970, you can get a replacement bracket that changes the card to a single-slot space, rather than two slots. This has the crucial benefit of freeing up the PCIe 1x slot right underneath one of the cards, something I desperately need.

More about that later ;)

A word about intel Smart Response Technology

2012-01-16T18:57:00.005Z

As you know, the new PC is based on the SandyBridge Z68 which can benefit from intel's Smart Response Technology (SRT).

SRT lets you use an SSD drive (up to 64gb) to boost the speed of a platter drive significantly. Essentially, intel's SATA controller uses the SSD as a cache for the HDD, and hence most frequently accessed files are sped up significantly.

A common misconception about SRT is that you can only use to to boost your boot drive, ie you have to install Windows on an HDD to benefit. THAT IS FALSE. You can have windows installed on another SSD and use a separate SSD to boost an HDD of your choice.

As an example, my system has an OCX Vertex LE as the Windows drive, and an intel 311 SSD to boost a 1TB SpinPoint that has my games installed on it.

SRT offers two modes: "maximised" and "enhanced". Think of it as RAID 0 and RAID 10. Maximised (RAID 0) offers faster reads AND writes, but comes at the risk of losing data. If you set up a maximised SRT boost, the controller will sync the SSD with the HDD at set intervals. If anything happens between a write to the SSD and then (for example you crash) then you lose that data.

"enhanced" mode is more secure. Data is read from the SSD and written back to the HDD in real time. This means that, compared to maximised mode, write times are much slower. Read times are the same.

Initially I had SRT set up as "maximised", mainly because that was what all the reviews had used. Due to system instability recently (as you've read :P) I crashed quite a bit, and funnily enough lost quite a bit of data! I had downloaded ChopLifter HD from steam for example, only to find that the game had disappeared and was found much later on in an archaic "FOUND000.CHK" folder. Similarly, Steam had lost some files causing it to refuse to log in.

I've now set it up as "enhanced", and as I'm boosting a games drive, ie I don't need fast writes but fast reads, then things have been fine since then. If you crash, you don't have that extra risk of losing uncached data.

I guess if you want to use SRT to boost a drive that you use for massive writes (example video/audio/photo editing) then maximised mode makes the biggest difference, but with the risks above.

If, like me, you want to speed up your gaming system, then make sure you set SRT to "enhanced". The last thing you'd want is to lose gamesaves, or your rank in Battlefield 3 :D

Finally, it's worth mentioning that you can defrag an SRT-boosted volume. As you know, SSDs shouldn't be defragged but with SRT, defrag entirely ignores the SSD thankfully.

Hello world. Again

2012-01-15T15:17:00.000Z

Replacement CPU worked fine. Thankfully.

Now I've got to send back the mobo that I don't need, and RMA the CPU. Wish me luck.

You really gotta laugh

2012-01-14T09:51:00.003Z

So, a few nights ago my 5-day-old PC died again. I got a BSOD, I rebooted, and I faced a black screen. A serious one at that, because the monitor was still on standby. Meaning the PC was failing to complete POST.

Even more worryingly, the motherboard's diagnostic LEDs were pointing to a VGA problem. Fuck. Double fuck 'cos the VGA happened to be a 2-day-old HD7970. I removed the VGA, and attached the other HD7970: nothing. I attached the 5870: nothing.

I then remembered that SandyBridge has a built-in iGPU, so I attached the monitor to that and removed all other VGAs: nothing.

A quick google tells me that such an issue has happened before to other people with similar set ups, and it turned out to be the motherboard. I ordered a replacement, with a view to sending the faulty one back for a refund once the replacement is working.

Amazon promptly delivered the new mobo yesterday, so I thought I'd quickly breadboard it, with just a stick of RAM and CPU. Guess what: nothing! And the diagnostic LED was stuck in the same place, ie at VGA.

I can only assume that the CPU is dead. Probably what was happening is that the POST process was stalling after detecting VGA, hence the diagnostic led wasn't turning off (the motherboard doesn't have any diagnostic LEDs after VGA, so it's the last one).

Funnily enough, it's universally accepted that CPUs very rarely are the cause of a dead PC. I've now gone through trying to start the PC with 5 different GPUs, 10 different sticks of RAM (seriously), and two motherboards. Still nothing.

I remember ages ago (10 or 11 years ago) the same thing happened to me. I ended up buying a new everything including a PSU and it turned out to be the CPU. Back then when I sent it back they refused the RMA because the CPU had magically acquired bent pins (it hadn't when I sent it). I wished I'd taken a picture of it before sending. This time, there are no pins on the CPU to bend, as I know full well.

A replacement CPU is on the way.

RIP 5-day-old mobo

2012-01-12T23:29:00.001Z

That's right. Replacement arrives tomorrow.

This has become fucking irritating.

then...

2012-01-11T23:39:00.001Z

Tonight the PC decided to die again. Seriously.

An innocent reboot and the motherboard won't POST. Why, I don't know. I've tried every solution known to man.

Sigh.

SO....

2012-01-07T18:23:00.006Z

SO.....

The PC was dead. Either the motherboard or the CPU, or maybe both. Problem is, to find out which one it is, you need a spare of each. My initial reaction was to order a cheap replacement motherboard as well as a CPU. First of all I'd replace the motherboard and if all's ok, just send the CPU back.

Of course, the problem is the original Core i7 processors (LGA1366) have more or less been discontinued, having been rapidly replaced by SandyBridge. The cheapest Asus motherboard I could find was a Sabertooth X58, for £160. The only CPU I could find was a 950, for around £240. Ironically, both the motherboard and processor would cost more than if I'd go for a SandyBridge!

I was, as you probably guessed, very annoyed. Worst case scenario I'd be spending around £400 to resurrect the same PC. I toyed with the idea of getting a SandyBridge-E set up, but then again the tech is new, not targeted at my PC use (gaming), and expensive.

Even more annoying was the fact intel would soon be releasing their IvyBridge CPUs, with full PCIe 3.0 support.

A LOT of research later (thank you Mr Jobs, wherever you've resurrected, for giving us the iPad!) and I discovered a few interesting revelations:

1\ IvyBridge processors are socket LGA1155 (ie current SandyBridge) compatible.

2\ Most current P67 or Z68 SandyBridge motherboards on the market will be IvyBridge compatible, some may need a simple BIOS update

3\ ASUS has already released 3 motherboards that have PCIe 3.0 ports already, and have shown the press in private events these motherboards running in full PCIe 3.0 mode (for a fully-functional PCIe 3.0 system, the processor, motherboard, and GPU must be PCIe 3.0. Currently, ATI's HD7970 is the only PCIe 3.0 GPU, and there are no CPUs yet).

4\ My Triple-Channel DDR3 RAM is fully compatible with IvyBridge's Dual-Channel set up, albeit I'd only run 8gb from my total of 12.

5\ SandyBridge Z68 chipsets benefit from two things: a built-in GPU (of no benefit to me), and something called Intel Smart Recovery Technology (SRT). SRT is a rather clever idea: attach an SSD and a platter HDD to the intel controller, and you can set the SSD as a cache to significantly boost the most frequently accessed files on the HDD. You can do this to boost your OS drive, or any platter drive. The only problem is that the SSD will be wiped (there's a slightly complicated workaround to fool SRT in to using a partition). Anandtech have a rather remarkable chart of the gaming benefits of SRT here.

6\ Fortunately, the Antec Kuhler 920 is LGA1155 compatible out of the box.

So I decided to do a little sidegrade. I can't really call it an upgrade as such, but I thought it made a lot more financial and future sense to get a SandyBridge build. I settled on the following components:

1\ Asus P8Z68-V Pro/Gen 3 motherboard. This is one of their 3 certified PCIe 3.0 boards.

2\ Intel Core i5 2500K CPU. Why Core i5 you ask? The main difference between the i7 and i5 is the number of threads (four i5, eight i7). For a gaming PC, there is absolutely NO difference whether you have four threads, or eight. Some people even advocate turning off hyperthreading all together. If you use your PC for other stuff (video editing, large photoshop file editing etc) then the i7 is a better proposition. The i5 is also £100 cheaper :)

(the K at the end of 2500K means that the CPU multiplier is unlocked, to a max of 57).

3\ Intel 311 SSD. You might remember I have an OCZ Vertex LE SSD already, with the OS on it. The Intel SSD is only 20gb, but is SLC-based, and is specifically built with SRT in mind. Anandtech's article above used this very SSD.

Luckily, the couriers behaved themselves again and my packages arrived on Wednesday as scheduled.

What happens next is a story for next time :)

Happy New Year. Here's a dead PC

2012-01-03T01:00:00.005Z

Happy new year!

Now that the formalities are out of the way, here's a little promise: I'm going to update this blog a lot more often than the dismal effort that was 2011. You can blame Twitter. Or, more specifically, @anmarmansur for introducing me to micro-blogging in the first place.

This year decided to start with a PC disaster. If you remember, I had a core i7 920 CPU cooled by a Noctua DH14, overclocked to 4.2ghz. All ok until the last couple of weeks or so. As I played Battlefield 3, the PC would lock up and turn itself off. No BSODs, no error messages, nothing. This made me think that something was overheating. Badly.

The GPUs and NorthBridge are all watercooled, and the Reserator wasn't overheating. So, it had to be the CPU, right? Of course, I hadn't cleaned the PC not once since installing it (I know I know, papa don't preach!). I decided to upgrade the CPU cooler to one of those all-in-one water solutions, specifically an Antec Kühler 920. I couldn't really add the CPU to the reserator's loop, it would have overheated.

I dismantled the (very dusty) PC on Friday night, and was very pleased when the delivery man delivered the Kühler at 08:30 in the morning. Always a good start when the courier company gets it right! I put Kraftwerk's excellent Minimum-Maximum DVD on, prepared my handheld vacuum cleaner, and some cans of compressed air.

I worked away feverishly, and carefully! I cleaned anything that could be cleaned. I dusted all the surfaces, washed all the filters, cleaned all the fans and even emptied the watercooling fluid. I took the CPU out gently and cleaned the thermal paste off it. By the end of it all, I had a shiny new PC, and a very painful back.

I then tried to decipher the Kühler's installation instructions. In typical German style, it was just a bit more than useless. It wasn't as difficult as the Noctua though, but it did take me a while to figure it out. I installed it, and then decided to turn the PC on "bareback", ie just CPU and RAM to make sure the cooler actually works before shoving everything in to the case.

I turned the PSU on and the reassuring gentle throbbing of the asus logo on the mobo came on. As did a nice Antec logo on the CPU cooler itself. A quick press of the motherboard's "start" button, and then........

Nothing.

I tried again. Nothing. I pressed the case main power button. Nothing. I disconnected all PSU cables and reattached them. Nothing. I took the cooler off. Nothing.

You probably get my drift. I tried at least 25 different variations. You guessed it, nothing. Nothing means no POST, no fans spin up, no bleeps, literally as if there's no CPU installed.

Could it be the CPU then? I removed that and even tried to power on (nothing). It was then that I noticed that some of the pins in the CPU socket were bent out of place. At least eight of them, in two seperate locations! How? Why? What? Who?! I ran through how I'd cleaned up and, as of this moment, I still can't remember going near those pins.

A quick glance online and I found many people with issues like this, mostly accidental bending/breaking of pins. The good news was that, if you're careful and very lucky, you could bend them back and they sometimes worked. I sat myself in a brightly-lit area, got a small tweezer, and set about bending things back in place. Worryingly, one of the pins seemed as loose as a child's milk tooth. But, you know how it is, a blind sort of optimism grabs hold of you during crises like this, and you cling on to the hope that maybe, just maybe what you're doing is going to work, all the while you're trying to ignore the sensation of dread and despair that's creeping up from that horrible dark place in your mind that knows from years of experience that you and your PC are well and truly fucked.

That horrible dark place was right. The PC was well and truly fucked. No matter how many times I tried, no matter what I did, or how I realigned the pins, it just wouldn't turn on. After about the 50th time in total trying to resurrect this dead puppy, I gave up. I admitted sour defeat and decided to replace the motherboard with the cheapest alternative.

But, you're gonna have to wait till tomorrow for that story :p

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T10:38:00.001Z

Have fun, hope Santa pops by with all the stuff you wanted :)

RIP Steve Jobs

2011-10-06T09:45:00.001+01:00

1955-2011

Dark Souls is out this Friday

2011-10-04T16:30:00.002+01:00

Oh HELL YEAH!

I can't wait for this, at all. I've cleared all my schedules, took the week off (seriously), and I can't wait to rot in hell.

This is gonna be one hell of a ride. See you in Lordran - if you dare......

Best. Bobblehead. Ever.

2011-10-04T10:48:00.001+01:00

From RAGE :)

It's a Pheasant Plucking Life

2011-09-14T21:08:00.002+01:00

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's son

I'm only plucking pheasants 'till the pheasant plucker comes.

Me husband is a keeper, he's a very busy man

I try to understand him and I help him all I can,

But sometimes in an evening I feel a trifle dim

All alone, I'm plucking pheasants, when I'd rather pluck with him.

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's mate

I'm only plucking pheasants 'cos the pheasant plucker's late !

I'm not good at plucking pheasants, at pheasant plucking I get stuck

Though some pheasants find it pleasant I'd rather pluck a duck.

Oh plucking geese is gorgeous, I can pluck a goose with ease

But pheasant plucking's torture because they haven't any grease.

I'm not a pheasant plucker, he has gone out on the tiles

He only plucked one pheasant and I'm sitting here with piles !

You have to pluck them fresh, if it’s fresh they’re not unpleasant,

I knew a man in Dunstable who could pluck a frozen pheasant.

They say the village constable had pheasant plucking sessions

With the vicar on a Sunday ‘tween the first and second lessons.

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's mum

I'm only plucking pheasants 'till the pheasant plucker's come.

My good friend Godfrey is most adept, he's really got the knack

He likes to have a pheasant plucked before he hits the sack.

I like to give a helping hand, I gather up the feathers,

It's really all our pheasant plucking keeps us pair together.

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's friend

I'm only plucking pheasants as a means unto an end !

My husband's in the forest always banging with his gun

If he could hear me half the time I'm sure that he would run,

For there's fluff in all my crannies, there's feathers up my nose

And I'm itching in the kitchen from my head down to my toes.

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's wife

And when we pluck together it's a pheasant plucking life !

Don't ask!

2011-09-11T14:47:00.001+01:00

Happy Eid

2011-08-30T23:43:00.001+01:00

Happy Eid everybody! Ramadhan is finally over!

I thought I'd blogged this morning, but my email-to-blog function seems to have gone tits up.

Yes, I just said tits.

Stay safe.

HDR shots

2011-07-30T14:49:00.003+01:00

Quick HDRs chucked together from some holiday snaps this year. Who'd have thought black and white HDR looks so good?

Amy Winehouse RIP

2011-07-23T17:51:00.002+01:00

I can't say it's that unexpected, drugs and alcohol addictions were her main vice.

Still, she was a superb talent and voice. She died aged 27.

Here's to you Amy, and may be you should have gone to rehab after all.

The Rise and Rise of Rameses II - Part 1

2011-07-10T15:54:00.004+01:00

It was the beginning of the 19th century. King Rameses II, was leading his glorious Egyptian empire to a peaceful existence. Four cities made up his civilization, each city focusing on a peaceful endeavour: culture, knowledge, agriculture, and production. The crown in the jewel of this wonderful empire was Thebes, an ancient city founded by the original settlers and one of many wonders, great people, knowledge, and science.

The Egyptian people were enjoying the fertility of their land: many mountains, planes, and rivers ensured that they had access to all the essential resources they needed, as well as many luxury resources to keep them happy, not to mention to help their democratic needs.

To the North was an uninhabitable tundra; to the East some military city states and a sprawling Mongolian empire. The West was bordered by impassable mountains, and beyond them were the Persian people.

One morning, Rameses II ordered a scout to traverse the land to the West, in pursuit of inhabitable areas for his kingdom. The scout came back to his king's court with a worried look on his face. "I'm afraid there might be trouble your highness" he reported. Rameses II wasn't very concerned - after all, the Egyptian and Persian people enjoyed a friendly relationship.

"There are many troops just outside our borders your highness, and I fear they come for the worst". The king could hear the concern in the scout's voice, and invited King Darius to his court to reassure his people.

Darius attended personally, and after enjoying a lavish banquet and watching the famous Egyptian entertainers, he reassured Rameses II that the troops were just passing by, en route to other business. King Darius even addressed the people publicly, and all around the empire a massive cheer was heard, for the Egyptian people had great respect for their Persian neighbours. The rumours and nervous looks in the streets and markets of Thebes all but disappeared, and Egypt continued it's peaceful existence and continued its pursuit for culture.

But not for long.

Quick iPad 2 Update

2011-06-18T09:34:00.002+01:00

The insurance company took the iPad for "testing" and, surprise surprise, found that it's beyond repair.

The rep that initially spoke to me said they'd give me a voucher for PC World to the value of an iPad 2 Wifi 32GB, and I could get one from there. That instantly induced a case of the heebie-jeebies in me, mainly 'cos PC World don't stock that iPad.

I was preparing myself for a fight when the next day they called me to say PC World doesn't stock this iPad model (D'Oh!) and they'll transfer the money value to my bank account instead. Relief!

I've ordered a replacement model from Apple, complete with free engraved message which I'll post a picture of later when I get the damn thing. You see, I've now got to wait 3 weeks or so before getting the machine, which is very annoying seeing that I queued up for six hours to get my iPad 2 on launch, in order to avoid the long delay of online ordering.

Why not buy it from the Apple store you say? Well, 2 reasons: first, the closest Apple store is about 40 miles away (Cambridge, where I queued!); and 2nd they hardly have them in stock either - it's a matter of luck if you get one there or not.

So, I now patiently wait. Of course, I'm not allowed to use the original iPad - it has become Kelly's and if I'm lucky I can use it for half an hour each day. Oh, the humiliation.

Adam feeds some ducks

2011-06-17T19:01:00.001+01:00

pWiised to meet U

2011-06-07T21:20:00.005+01:00

Nintendo, at their E3 conference today, have announced their next console, the "Wii U".

Other than boasting the usual HD gfx and all that business (not much is known about the specs of the console as such), but it's the controller that's garnered the most attention.

Have a look at this:

Yes - that's the controller. Remind you of anything?

Now, I'm not going to make fun of their naming scheme any more, nor am I going to question their wisdom (who'd have thought the DS or Wii were gonna be as successful as they are!), as I'm sure Nintendo know exactly what they're doing. After all, they are the grand old daddy of the 3 big names in gaming.

But - the controller above does look remarkably similar to something Apple make, something that has split opinion around the world over despite being a huge success - yes, it looks just like an iPad with controls bolted on. Even the screen is touch-enabled!

Funnily enough, the gaming community's response has been a big (WTF?!) - those at E3 sampling the device right now seem to be enjoying it, but those of us reading/watching about it are shrugging a big collective I DON'T KNOW. Reminds me of the iPad really :)

It's interesting to see that even Nintendo are taking something out of Apple's book here - again, who would have guessed the impact Apple's touch-screen toys would have had on gaming today, practically changing the landscape and introducing millions to gaming on the move; but also creating the concept of the "micro transaction" along the way. I, for one, never saw that coming!

Sadly, the anti-Apple people out there (and there are LOADS) are getting all wet about this new controller, and funnily enough seem to have forgotten where it's inspirations come from. It's a shame that people can't be more platform-agnostic, and just enjoy stuff and give credit where credit is due, and this time we owe a lot as gamers to Apple.

Am I excited? Of course I am! This is Nintendo we're talking about, they just know how to make games. Great games, some of the best I've ever played.

When the iPad was announced, I read an article in GamesTM discussing it's implications on gaming with various game devs. The most interesting views came from devs that envisioned the device as an "add on" to PC games - for eg as a map screen, or radar screen, or a hacking screen in a stealth game, etc etc etc. Sadly, these premises were never met, and the iPad has been used for gaming just as an iPhone with bigger screen real estate.

Nintendo, on the other hand, has toyed with big screen/small screen connectivity for a while now - the Gamecube had a rarely-used but much-hyped Gameboy connection, that was used to great effect in a few games, most notably Pac-Man Versus. Sadly, it was cumbersome to get 2 or more GBAs and a Gamecube together in one room (not to mentioned the spaghetti of cables!), so none of this really took on.

Now that the controller screen is default, Nintendo (and 3rd party devs) will have lots and lots of room to innovate, and that they will, bringing us open-minded gamers a whole slew of great games to play.

So here's a big thank you to Apple, for making the tablet as popular as it is today, and to Nintendo, for being the awesome company that they are.

Bring on the games!

Finally, have a look at the announcement video, and prepare to sense the deja-vu of that iPad announcement video a couple of years ago :)

I broke my iPad 2

2011-05-31T21:07:00.003+01:00

As in, properly broke it. It fell, right on to the only tiled floor in the house. It also fell face down, so the full force of the impact was taken by it's beautiful, beautiful screen.

Here's what it looks like now. It still works, which is amazing if you ask me. Luckily, it's insured. But still, it felt like I'd dropped my newborn child.

Sigh.

Different by design

2011-05-22T13:37:00.005+01:00

Now that Adam is almost 2 years old, we're having to carry him loads more than before. Yes, ironic I know but he's in that terrible clingy-tantrumy phase that just sucks.

Anyhow, this extra carrying has made me notice something: A big difference between how men and women carry children. I first noticed it on Kelly, and I've been looking close at every woman I see carrying a child, and I noticed that all of them carry babies different to how a man would.

To best demonstrate this, I took some pictures.

EXHIBIT ONE: This is how men carry children: Notice our forearm acts a seat for the child's bum, all his weight is carried on your forearm. Hard work.

EXHIBIT TWO: This is how women carry children: note how Kelly's arm is around Adam's back, his bum is actually seated on her hips. By design, women have wider/more stick out hips than we do, and this is used to great effect when carrying a child. His weight is almost all taken by the hip, rather than the arm.

This wider hip is a design genius really, it's there to give space to an ever-growing gravid uterus; to make the pelvis wider to give birth to the foetus; and it turns out it's also a great perch for kids to be carried on.

Amazing.

SpaceChem Challenge: In-Place Swap (single reactor solution)

2011-05-12T19:13:00.000+01:00

You either get it or you don't. I sure hope you do :)

Adam, meet Crazy Daisy

2011-05-07T19:39:00.000+01:00

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet

2011-04-20T20:23:00.007+01:00

I'm not entirely sure why I even started reading David Mitchell's latest novel. I think it was featured on the iBooks store, so I downloaded the free first chapter and had a look.

That first chapter, though captivating, was really difficult to read. The language was beautiful but full of old words, difficult sentence structures, and a single sentence could contain layers and layers.

Still, that first chapter kept me reading. To explain why would be to spoil the book, but it's a great start. So, I bought the full version.

And I've been reading it over the last few weeks, slowly. Each page, I've had to look up a word or two in the dictionary (thank God for iPad's built-in dictionary!), and I've sometimes had to re-read a paragraph or even whole page to make heads or tales of what is going on. It's been a slow, methodical read, sometimes I couldn't read more than 8 or 10 pages, sometimes I sat and greedily read 50. The book, despite its difficulties, kept me coming for more.

Mitchell hasn't made it easy for himself - he's chosen to write about the Japanese shutdown Era, where, under Shogunate rule, Japan closed itself to the entire outside world, except for one single artificial island called Dejima, from which the Dutch East India Company (VOC), and only the Dutch, could trade with Japan. This Era isn't fictional, neither is the VOC, but it's also not very well known unless you're a Japanese buff.

The story however, tells the tale of one Dutch clerk called Jacob de Zoet, and his life on Dejima. From the weird and wonderful mix of Dutch/American/Irish/English workers on Dejima, to their black slaves, and to the many ranks and officials of the Japanese League of Interpreters. The use of mostly foreign names (and archaic names for places, eg Batavia (the old Dutch name for Jakarta)) makes back-referencing a common occurrence. You'd have thought by 2 or 3 chapters I'd given up.

But that's the beauty of the book - the story captivates you from the very start, and even during the drier periods, you've already set yourself a challenge to get to the end of this book, if only to prove to yourself that you're not just about the "Great Summer Reads". You'll follow De Zoet, his falling for a Japanese (and hence untouchable) midwife called Orito, and then her abduction to a cult nunnery, and the valiant efforts there after of de Zoet (and others) to bring her back.

Mitchell is a master of words - he can describe things beautifully, enchanting the reader and making them feel that they're right there, near the stinking canal on Dejima, watching De Zoet mumble as he tries to talk to Orito. You'll even wince as you witness, first-hand, an example of surgery in the late 1700s. By the time Orito is abducted, the author's claws have hooked in to your flesh, refusing to let go - no matter how hard the last chapter was.

It's difficult to talk about this book any more, without spoiling any more or going into specific story points. I can't recommend it enough to anyone looking for more than just a quick read. It's not an easy book, but this is beautiful, poetic stuff, with a healthy dose of intrigue, love, betrayal, lust, greed, wit, action, trade, and wonderful imagery that'll stay with you forever.

I leave you with this wonderful passage where we find de Zoet, having just confessed to Orito, is left with a fruit that she gave him during their brief encounter:

“Hollows from the fingers of Aibagawa Orito are indented in her ripe gift, and he places his own fingers there, holds the fruit under his nostrils, inhales its gritty sweetness, and rolls its rotundity along his cracked lips. I regret my confession, he thinks, yet what choice did I have? He eclipses the sun with her persimmon: the planet glows orange like a jack-o’-lantern. There is a dusting around its woody black cap and stem. Lacking a knife or spoon, he takes a nip of waxy skin between his incisors and tears; juice oozes from the gash; he licks the sweet smears and sucks out a dribbling gobbet of threaded flesh and holds it gently, gently, against the roof of his mouth, where the pulp disintegrates into fermented jasmine, oily cinnamon, perfumed melon, melted damson . . . and in its heart he finds 10 or 15 flat stones, brown as Asian eyes and the same shape. The sun is gone now, cicadas fall silent, lilacs and turquoises dim and thin into grays and darker grays.”

This is why we need a second iPad

2011-04-10T12:43:00.002+01:00

A few instagram snaps

2011-04-10T12:36:00.008+01:00

Adam sleeps

Wooden play-thing in the forest: "The Terminator" (Seriously)

Adam swings (didn't we all)

CAT shoes

Some old castle thingie in the local park

Adam bathes (and poses)

Quick iPad 2 Review (for those of you with a first-gen iPad)

2011-03-27T22:08:00.001+01:00

First of all, apologies to everyone who doesn't have an iPad, this post is a bit useless for you. Before you leave, why don't you watch the awesome retro-synth orgy video below.

The new iPad is a strange beast. Fundamentally, it does almost nothing different to the first-gen machine. The addition of cameras is the major new function, used to snap (pointless) pictures, but more importantly it enables video-chatting. Currently, that's via Apple's own FaceTime software, letting iPads/iPhones/Macs chat to each other. Surely there will be loads of 3rd Party apps soon though, Skype et al. Of course there's a built-in microphone now too.

The G/CPU inside has been upgraded to an A5 SoC (System on a Chip) based on the ARM Cortex-A9. What this means is that the already-zippy iPad is even zippier. It is a palpable difference, but nothing to write home about. Apple is keen to stress that the battery life remains at 10 hours, something that is remarkably true.

The much-hyped form factor has changed as well. The iPad 2 is thinner and lighter than the iPad. The weight difference isn't huge, but it makes a big difference. Carrying the iPad single-handedly would be much simpler due to this, but the next point unfortunately works against it.

The new design has lost the side bevel of the original, meaning that the edge of the device instantly slopes inwards to form the much flatter back. This creates a sharp edge of sorts, which digs in a little bit when carrying the machine with one hand. It's not painful, but it can become uncomfortable. Unfortunately, as mentioned above, this kinda counters the weight loss advantage for single handed carrying.

Due to the lack of the side bevel, the buttons (which remain unchanged in position and function) are now at an angle , as they sit on the sloped edge. After a while you get used to this but for my first hours with the machine I thought they were getting stuck but that was because I was pushing them in the wrong direction.

Initially, the edge and back change feel weird. It's no secret that the iPad is a pleasure to use, so these changes are unwelcome to begin with. After a bit of use, you get used to them and won't turn back. I have the benefit of still having the original machine and have been comparing the two constantly, and I've reached the conclusion that the weight and back of the newer machine make it more comfortable than the first.

The speaker isn't as loud as the first machine, and that's probably a good thing if I'm honest - Kelly is playing Angry Birds right now on the first iPad near me, and it sounds like that annoying dude that sits next to you on the train with really loud music playing through open-back headphones.

My iPad is white, and I'm glad I chose that colour. It looks very slick and does not distract. But I guess the colour choice is down to personal preference.

One unmentioned but very important change is The home button. This is now much softer and barely clicks, something that, to me at least, is much better than the noisy click-clacking of the first one, especially when double-clicking.

Smart Covers are the big new addition also. Frankly, they are a stroke of genius and it's amazing how no one came up with these earlier. The cover attaches to the machine with magnets (that are polarised to accept one position only), instantly snapping on to a snug, precise fit. Lift the cover up, and the iPad unlocks automatically. The cover can also be "rolled up" to form a base or stand for the machine. Again, something very useful which incidentally I happen to be using this very minute, typing this blog post on the iPad in landscape orientation with the cover tilting it comfortably towards me.

Everything else remains exactly the same, with the iOS and apps being identical to the first iPad.

Overall, I personally don't think any of these new "additions" justify an upgrade. If you're happy with your iPad, keep it. It isn't worth paying full price for the newer machine, as the form factor and smart covers aren't enough to justify the asking price. I don't know if in the future certain apps/games will require the faster CPU, but by then the 3rd gen will probably be on the horizon.

If, on the other hand, like me you need a second machine, or have read through this post to decide if the iPad 2 is the right first tablet for you; then the design, interface, covers, and battery life make this a very worthy purchase.

Tubular Bells by the Brooklyn Organ Synth Orchestra

2011-03-27T21:01:00.001+01:00

Just watch it

Don't eat the chilli

2011-03-20T17:21:00.012Z

"In Szechuan frog, don't eat the chilli. They too spicy" is what the waitress told me. 10 hours later, the following morning, that was all I could think of as I was struggling to "evacuate".

You see, I'd done a long and busy on-call. a 12-hour shift of utter madness that goes exactly like this: Enter department at 09:00 AM, work work work until 09:00 PM, leave department dazed, confused, with aching legs and absolutely no idea what's up from down.

As a reward for running this gauntlet, I thought I'd find myself a nice Chinese restaurant and order a takeaway. I asked around and was told that Chinese food in Cambridge couldn't get any better than Peking Restaurant. I was warned it was a bit expensive, accepted only cash, but made some great food. It was also a simple 5-minute drive away. So far so henhao.

Sure enough, a simple 5-minute drive and there I was, parked right outside Peking Chinese Restaurant. I was greeted inside by the lady owner who was very keen to introduce me to her daughter after about 30 seconds. She gave me the menu and waited as patiently as the Chinese do while I tried to speed read/pick a meal.

I was feeling brave. Rather than my usual (trusty) Won Ton Soup, Crispy Chilli Beef order, I thought I'd go for something more... exotic. So, I ordered:

Hot and Sour Soup "my hot and sour soup is veeeerrryy good. See, my daughter eat it now"

2 Meat Spring Rolls "my spring rolls are mmmmmmmm" (accompanied with an OK hand sign and a wink)

Szechuan Frog With Cashew "you try frog before? ooooh so spicy and crispy is very nice"

Steam Boiled Rice (this I didn't have a choice in. Lady Peking explained that the only thing you can have Szechuan Frog with is plain boiled rice)

Before you navigate away in disgust, I have to point out that I've had frog before and it is actually a very nice meat. The bones are a bit small and fiddly, but otherwise it tastes like a chicken/rabbit hybrid.

I also asked for a can of Coke with all this. I was told to have a seat and suddenly Lady Peking came to me with a can of Coke she'd poured in a glass, for me to drink while the food was cooked. "Never mind" I thought. A while later the waitress bought me the food and the bill. She then went on to tell me the understatement of the decade: "In Szechuan frog, don't eat the chilli. They too spicy". I couldn't quite understand why she'd issue such a warning. I'm sure I can pick one or two chilli pods out of the meal, no big deal.

I drove back to the temporary room I'd booked overnight, set my table up ready to indulge in this long-awaited feast. Naturally, I started with the soup (good), then the spring rolls (very very good), and then on to the jasmine-smelling steamed rice, and the very generous portion of Szechuan Frog, always mindful of the chilli I had to remove.

I started eating, and found that the dish was literally full of chilli. Big, red, narrow, angry chilli. Seeds and all. I'm talking about at least 30 full-size chilli pods. It was also full of big frog chunks, deliciously cooked with Cashew and a batter, but the overwhelming taste was that of immense heat.

Now, I'm partial for a bit of heat in food, and enjoy a curry or three. But this wasn't enjoyable spicy heat, this was a painful, burning, torture. For every mouthful, I'd taste a bit of meat/batter/cashew, and the rest of the mouth full was just fire. In a futile effort to try and enjoy this (remember, I had no drink - the Coke was consumed in the restaurant. Nor did I have any bread or yoghurt, the Indian-favourite way of quelling spicy heat) I started having one spoonful of frog with at least 3 spoonfuls of rice. This helped precisely nothing.

About a half way through I gave up. My mouth was a raging hole of fire, frog, and cashew. I was also very annoyed. I'd been looking forward to this takeaway since I first knew I was going to be working this shift, in other words for at least 3 months. I chucked the remainder in the bin, and walked to the local shop to buy an ice cream, both to cheer me up and to quell the fire. I went to sleep grumpy, exhausted, a bit hungry, and with a painful mouth.

Come morning time, I woke up and I'd almost forgotten the whole saga. A call of nature soon followed, and it's then that I was abruptly and rudely reminded of the whole ordeal. I was practically having to get up from the toilet seat and run a cold tap on my poor behind to cool things down. Seriously. They don't call it The Ring Of Fire for nothing.

For those agonising hours the only thing I could think of is the shy waitress,and her then-unusual remark. It all made sense now, she was trying her best to warn me of this oncoming violation of my alimentary tract:

"In Szechuan frog, don't eat the chilli. They too spicy"

Poor Adam...

2011-03-07T01:42:00.001Z

... he's doomed already. Like father, like son eh?

I have this sneaky feeling

2011-03-06T17:06:00.003Z

that one day Valve are going to charge for "premium" Steam accounts, benefits could be:

* More cloud space for pictures, and perhaps even videos.

* Early or even exclusive access to demos, betas, etc.

* Discounts for premium subscribers, during pre-orders and sales.

* More pre-order bonuses.

Kinda like a PSN Plus model. Steam Plus if you like.

I don't know why, but I just got that feeling in my bones. Not sure what to think of it either, on one hand it would be a shame but on the other PSN Plus really has been beneficial, with its exclusive and even free stuff for members.

Anyhow, it might not even happen. If it does, I'll come back here and comment on my future-telling skills.

Here's a video of me

2011-03-02T00:13:00.002Z

playing a perfect run on BIT.TRIP: RUNNER's longest level, Odyssey.

PC/Mac version out by the way on Steam :)

2nd of March. iPad 2?

2011-02-23T17:00:00.004Z

Or so it seems. Apple is holding an event then, with invites now out to the usual suspects. The now-customary invite picture can look like someone's unwrapping an iPad wrapped with a big number 2 wrapper.

With over 14 million iPads sold, Apple has definitely nailed this one on the head, and with so many competitors out this year it makes perfect sense that now's the time to strike with a newer iPad. If the rumours are true, and it really does have a resolution of 2048x1536 (double the current iPad and almost as much as my 30" 2560x1600 Dell), then it really would be a feat of engineering if it can push that many pixels while staying cold. If it has the same battery life as this iPad, then there's no explanation other than Apple is a face for a very advanced alien civilisation. Seriously.

Intriguing, exciting, and also probably damn expensive! I promised myself I'd resist this year, but seeing that Kelly (and now Adam) can't let go of the damn iPad since I got it, I can kinda justify a new one. Particularly if I sell my now-defunct MacBook Pro.

Stay tuned Apple fans! (and I know there's lots of you now ;))

Here's another picture of Adam (since you asked)

2011-02-20T15:03:00.002Z

And here's how to dry yourself and your clothes at the same time

2011-02-20T14:48:00.002Z

On how gareth170 made a change

2011-02-09T20:28:00.003Z

gareth170 is a regular forum user at Overclockers UK (a store, and very popular forum for everything PC).

On the 31st of January 2011, at 20:13, gareth170 posted the following message:

i payed for dead space 2 today. installed it and ran the game. went to settings, controls , to custom them, and guess what!!! theres no way to have the walk forward on a mouse button... it makes me so mad that game companys don't make they games fully custom controls....

if they can have the fire assigned to a mouse button, surely they could of assigned to a mouse button...

so now i can't play this game and i wasted £25..

Initially, gareth170 faces the usual barrage of OcUK hostility - ridicule, poking fun at him, etc.

It then turns out gareth170 is a quadriplegic (ie can't move any of his 4 limbs) gamer. He plays games with his chin. To prove his point, he uploads a video of himself playing a number of games (including Dirt 2 and Fallout 3 - New Vegas).

Of course, suddenly the forumites that were making fun of him were hailing him as a legend (see page 3). The best bit though, is that gareth170, along with the quadriplegic comedian/videogamer Chuck Bittner successfully rally EA/Visceral to add disabled-friendly options in Dead Space 2 (and hopefully future games).

gareth170 has now been interviewed by PC Gamer, featured on Eurogamer, and has been emailed by company CEOs to show their support for the cause.

It's a heart-warming tale of gamers uniting for a good cause, despite initially being sceptical and perhaps even mean towards gareth170, before he bravely uploaded a video of himself for all to see.

Have a look at the thread, at least the first 3 pages of it until he uploads his videos - you can literally here people's jaws dropping as they realise how skilled the man is.

So, here's to you gareth170, and to you Chuck Bittner - and may you play long!

Dark Souls debut trailer

2011-02-03T20:50:00.003Z

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!

The (spiritual) sequel to my beloved, BELOVED Demon's Souls is coming this year to all regions (Thank you Namco Bandai!), and promises to be even more sadistic than its big brother!

I saw the trailer below this morning, and I tell ya, I CAN'T WAIT.

360 and PS3 this time. Pre-order it, if you dare!

This time, he's REALLY all out of gum!

2011-01-22T10:42:00.002Z

The Duke is back! 6th of May for PC, 360 and PS3!

COD: Black Ops Easter Egg delights!

2011-01-13T16:51:00.002Z

Just read about these Easter Eggs in Black Ops, and am not sure how we all missed them, they were "discovered" November last year!

In the Single Player menu, look down at Mason's arms. If you're playing the PC version, press your jump button repeatedly to break out. For consoles, alternate pressing LT/RT.

Once you've broken out you can walk about freely. Behind the chair where you were held you'll find a computer terminal, complete with a unix command line!

Have a good browse around there, you'll find letters from Mason's father, other "emails" and pictures and even sound files. It's well worth the effort.

BUT - the best thing is, you can play 2 games in that terminal!

1\ Zork (the classic text adventure from Infograms): Just type Zork in the PC, it's the full version too!

2\ Dead Ops Arcade: a 2.5D top-down twin-stick shooter, complete with retro music and even cabinet graphics. Just type DOA.

Enjoy!

CLiNT

2011-01-10T18:19:00.006Z

My relationship with comics has always been on and off. My first real foray in to their world was in the mid 90s, when a friend of mine (INDIA) introduced me to the world of the then excellent MAD magazine.
INDIA had many friends who studied at Baghdad International School, as such he had access to a lot of MAD copies. Of course, MAD is a very cool kinda comic. It's a satire of everything mainstream, and featured many great artists and writers, and the infamous side comics scribbled around the margins of each page.

When I came back the UK in 2000 (Damn! 11 years ago!), I almost immediately subscribed to MAD via a magazine import specialist. Unfortunately, the magazine has lost a lot of its charm. Advertising (something famously missing from it) crept in and has taken over almost every other page. Also, "political correctness" has generated a very "safe" and "bubble-wrapped" MAD. I very recently saw some digital copies of the magazine and unfortunately its just the same.

And that was about the end of my relationship with comics. When I lived in London I used to regularly visit the amazing Forbidden Planet, a haven for everything movie/cartoon/comic. But I used to mainly go there for the figurines or Muppets toys. I hardly ever went down to the basement where the comics lived.

Things changed a few years ago when I bought my first laptop, an Apple PowerBook Pro. I stumbled upon a programme called Comic Book Lover that let you read digital scans of comics on the mac, and even included an awesome portrait mode, where you held the laptop like a book, hence the screen orientation was more like a real page. The digital comic scene is still very vibrant, and still mostly underground and illegal. With the rise of iPad and the slew of tablets to follow, comic publishers like Marvel and DC have all got their own dedicated comic apps and stores for you to legally purchase and read comics. The underground scene on the other hand is a group of very dedicated people that painstakingly scan comics and compress them. You can get these scans from anywhere naughty on the net, and read them using many programmes, one of which is Comic Book Lover.

So I started reading comics again. Some I found myself, others given to me by another friend (anarki13) and so on. And I started realising how awesome the world of comics is. The art just adds a huge dimension to the story, and the stories aren't all "man has super powers and saves damsel in distress". In fact, the stories of many writers (Mark Millar, Garth Ennis to name two) are in fact dark, vicious, and very adult.

Comics also tackle some hard subjects, in a way that perhaps a traditional novel can't. The amazing Pride Of Baghdad is a great example of a comic tackling the harrowing effect war has on the country, and particularly on a pride of lions starving in the zoo of the city. The art combined with the story give a real sense of depth and emotion to such a dark and difficult topic. Something I doubt the writer could have expressed with words alone.

And, just like with music, people who read/listen to illegal material also tend to be the people that actually purchase the most legal stuff, or attend more music gigs and buy merchandise, actually spending more on the industry than the average CD buyer. Hence, I started paying attention to real print comics, and also built a collection of digital comics purchased from the publishers.

Which takes me to CLiNT. CLiNT is a magazine published in the UK by Mark Millar, and has only just reached its 5th issue. The magazine features many regular strips by Millar and others (including the phenomenal Nemesis series), but also features articles. These articles are what I love about the mag. They're simple, printed in a large font and very easy to read. The longest article is 2 pages, and they cover topics like "magicians who died on stage" to "actors who have been fired". Trivial stuff but exactly the kind of thing you want to read between comic strips.

The language throughout CLiNT is very adult, swear words and soft sexual scenes can be found in the strips and articles, but it's all done with good taste and in context. There's none of that "sexy woman in bikini holding a piece of tech" crap you find on the cover of almost every man-interest magazine out there.

In fact, what CLiNT reminds me of a lot is the heady days of MAD. True the strips and subjects are very different between the two, but it's that exciting sense of getting the magazine and reading it from cover to cover in one delicious, greedy sitting. CLiNT has literally been designed for this purpose. I've subscribed and bought all issues, only because I really want the magazine to thrive, but if it doesn't at least I'd have the full set.

Mind you, nine years a go I thought the same about GamesTM, a new multi-format games magazine that I loved but I was convinced would not survive two years.

I've collected every one of the 104 GamesTM issues, and it's still going strong. Here's wishing the same success to CLiNT.

PS: the magazine is called CLiNT because the word was actually banned from print in British comics during the 70s, just in case a couple of letters merged during the printing process, creating a whole different meaning.

SEGA makes hardware again!

2011-01-06T18:30:00.002Z

YES! YES! YES!

SEGA, my all-time most favourite company EVER, are back in the hardware business after bailing out in 2001 following the demise of the gem that was the Dreamcast!

What are they bringing out I hear you all shout and scream?!

Introducing the SEGA......... TOYLET!

Yes, you read right, the SEGA TOYLET is a console that fits in to men's urinals. It's made of two parts - a screen on top of the urinal, and sensor that detects flow strength AND angle (wow, technology!) and plays the "game" accordingly.

It is utterly and totally amazing stuff! I can't wait to build myself a toilet with a urinal, and preorder this baby!!!

C&VG have more here, and I have a video below of the actual hardware in action to prove I'm not lying and this is not a joke. And to think we all thought Nintendo had gone mad when it revealed the Wii's final name.

Voxatron

2011-01-06T00:52:00.001Z

or how someone has tapped into my mind and created EXACTLY the kind of game I'd like to play. Like now. RIGHT NOW.

Ted Williams - the man with the golden voice

2011-01-05T14:06:00.002Z

He's homeless, carries a placard that claims he has "a God given gift of voice", and that he was once a radio presenter.

Ted Williams stands at an interchange in Columbus, Ohio asking for spare change. In return, he'll "announce" something for you in that golden voice of his.

Little does he know that the person filming him doing so also happens to work in the media, and the rest is a heart-warming tale of how he now has many many offers for work, starting with a $10,000 voiceover deal. Good for him!

Read the whole story here, and watch the video below.

Happy 2011 - You BASTARDS

2010-12-31T19:24:00.002Z

Why? 'cos I've got Swine Flu that's why.

I hate you all.

Not really, I love you all, please don't leave me and please don't stop reading Good-Delicious. Without you all, there is no Good-Delicious.

See you on the other side!

The Tippex Experience

2010-12-08T22:36:00.001Z

Clever!

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=tippexperience

Dance Fortress!

2010-12-05T22:57:00.002Z

This one is kudos to Blue Blood (who else!), and is also one of THE FUNNIEST machination videos ever made!

Before you watch it, here's the rules:

1\ Watch it fullscreen, HD if possible.

2\ Replay it and watch every character on their own.

3\ Once you've wiped away the tears from the hysterical laughing, you can download the 1080p file here.

4\ Thank Blue Blood on steam when you see him :)

New Widget (goodreads)

2010-11-20T20:50:00.001Z

Just a quick heads-up, I've put a new widget in the sidebar to the right that shows my currently reading/recently read books via goodreads.com.

The books are shown with nice covers and ordered according to date read. Clicking on them will take you to the goodreads.com page.

Finally, if you like reading books then make sure you join goodreads, where you can discover new books and meet reading-buddies who share the same interest.

Good-delicious!

The 20-year Itch

2010-11-16T18:44:00.019Z

It was 20 years ago, I still remember it like it was just yesterday. Like all bad (so to speak) things, remembering them is all to easy and all to vivid.

Manchester 1990 - a 13 year-old me is begging my mum for a new computer. I begged and pleaded and grovelled and wrote letters and left notes and everything I could think of, to buy what I thought was THE best computer ever at that time: A ZX Spectrum +2. 128kb RAM! built-in datacoder (cassette player)! The possibilities were endless. If I got it, I'd be the talk of school once we inevitably went back to Baghdad.

The begging eventually worked - and I went to the local Tandy (now called Carphone Warehouse or RadioShack depending on which side of the pond you live) and I was smiling all the way back, with me was my amazing ZX Spectrum +2A, complete with light-gun and loads of amazing games!

Oh how I enjoyed it! I hooked it up to the teeny TV we had in the flat and played and played and played! It was just superb.

Unbeknown to me at that time, my brother's friend was in London at the same time. They had spoken once or twice over the phone, and that friend was talking about the computer he had bought. He mentioned to my brother that we really should get one. I only found this out AFTER we had gone back to Baghdad. To say I almost wanted to kill my brother there and then was an understatement.

Fast-forward to 1991 - sometime after the first Gulf War. We were in Baghdad, a city mostly in chaos trying desperately to rebuild itself, but also one that was still high on the spoils of invading Kuwait. I started my 2nd year of intermediate school (college if you wish), and just couldn't wait to show my new Spectrum off, especially to all those friends that had a 48k last summer, just like me.

I was still making new friends early in the year (in their infinite wisdom, the school decided to shake the groups up after just one year) when a good-but-bad-influence friend suggested it would be a good idea to bunk school and go to "Hassan's" to play games.

Brief interlude:

Hassan was an Egyptian guy that owned a shop near our school where you went and played video games. The shop had a name, but we all called it "Hassan's". It wasn't an arcade as such, because a\ arcades were banned in Baghdad (cos they led to gambling allegedly) and b\ it didn't have coin-ops, but actual computers and consoles to play on. You paid the man a price and you got your go at say a football match, or a round of some shoot 'em up etc. If you were a good player and lasted long, Hassan would come threatening to reset the machine unless you paid up.

It was also somewhere to smoke freely. In other words, for a computer geek who also smoked during his teenage years, Hassan's was an institution, a Mecca, a way of life.

So, off we went to Hassan's. I walked in to the smoky room and also into a scene from my dreams - loads of kids playing games, shouting at the screens and at each other, swearing, and most importantly those amazing sounds. It was the sounds that hit me first - these were no ordinary bleeps and bloops, these were fully-fledged and meaty sounds. Amazing music, awesome voice effects, and rumbling bases.

By then, I could tell something wasn't right. What were these machines they were playing on? Some fancy console stolen from Kuwait, one which would have a few games and then disappear cos it's too expensive to maintain? That's what I thought initially.

I saw the first TV and stood to watch. I was transfixed by a scene I could never forget: two boys were playing a coop game. Each player controlled a dude who was just bad ass - jumping, shooting, and amazingly even FLAME THROWING (complete with 2D flame physics and effects!) through some amazing levels. All to the beat of some phenomenal music. The graphics weren't the usual 8 colours a Spectrum could do - these were graphics with MILLIONS of colours, pixels you couldn't see, and backgrounds that scrolled, not flipped.

I literally died a little that day. I watched with awe and an ever-dropping jaw that game, and then I dared to look at the computer below. What greeted me was the most sexy, beautiful, enigmatic, out-of-reach computer I had ever seen: The Commodore Amiga 500.

I traced every line of the machine, poured over every little detail, and took as many mental pictures as I could of this thing from the future. I watched as disks went in and out of the side, as the iconic hand-holding-a-disk would briefly flash before the game's loading screen came on, and as how the game loaded within a minute, as compared to after 3 or 4.

I also watched Battle Squadron being played that day. A space shoot 'em up with vertical scrolling and 2 player coop, and one of THE BEST SOUNDTRACKS you will ever hear.

I watched. I cried inside. And at home, I cried outside. A lot.

You see, my beloved Spectrum +2 was nothing compared to the Amiga. With its 8 colours, colour-bleeding, tinny bleeps, and stupid built-in datacorder, it was nothing but a huge disappointment. Still, I could show it off at school to my old 48k friends right?

Wrong.

All except a very few (who had actually moved on from playing games anyway) had bought an Amiga that summer, the same summer we were in Manchester, THE SAME SUMMER MY BROTHER WAS TOLD BY HIS FRIEND TO BUY AN AMIGA. Yup, his friend had bought one and told my brother we should. Except my brother kept that little fact to himself.

So, my friends were telling me how awesome their new computer is - how it had 4096 colours, how it had 4-channel sound, how it could read double-density floppies; and how, most importantly, it had the most amazing games ever.

By then, a jealousy of Othello-proportions had built inside me. I spent every waking minute obsessing over the Amiga. I would doodle the Commodore logo everywhere; beg, steal, or borrow scraps of Amiga magazines to read and read and read again and again. Trouble was, all the magazines I saw were UK publications: Amiga Format, Commodore User, Amiga Power, ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment) and I would see what I missed out of in Manchester - all those great £499 deals, the Flight of Fantasy Amiga pack, the Batman Amiga pack and so on.

Of course, I also become obsessed with going to Hassan's A LOT. During the initial chaotic years after the war, we were kind of excused if we couldn't make the first lesson at school (cos of lack of petrol in that oil-rich land). I could walk to school (would take about 45 minutes) but the teachers didn't need to know that. Instead, I'd walk to Hassan's, help him open the shop (literally) and play most of the morning. We were so frequently there that Hassan reserved an Amiga for us. If we showed up that would be our machine that morning, and sometimes for the whole day. How we graduated is still beyond me.

And that's more or less how I spent practically all my teenage years. I was forever in the shadow of that C= logo, and my Amiga-owning friends. Of course I also begged and pleaded and cried to my mum that I really needed one - but deep inside I knew that would never happen. The period wasn't an easy one for her (my dad was in prison for exactly those years 1990-1995) so there was never gonna be any spare cash to throw around to buy me that stupid computer. And I already had a Spectrum and didn't I beg for that and claimed it was the best thing ever?

When I finally managed to get a new computer, it wasn't an Amiga. It was an Atari 520 STFM. Now, had that been in the UK it would have been fine - more than fine cos by then (1992) the Atari ST was more popular than the Amiga here. Not as good, but as popular. Many games, demos etc.

In Baghdad however, it was different. The ST had been imported by a company who's owner wasn't really interested. It wasn't advertised, and it didn't take on. I had a handful of games, all of which were a\ old b\ were much better on the Amiga and c\ crap mostly. This definitely was no Amiga.

I tried to show it off to my Amiga friends. I would quote how it was a musician's dream machine (to date some musicians STILL use an Atari ST, cos if its MIDI capabilities). Of course, this was nonsense to me and my friends - none of us were musicians. They had the games, I had MIDI.

Looking back, I loved my Atari ST then. Even though I thought I hated it, it was still my first "real" computer, one I spent many hours on playing games I mostly convinced myself were better. While it was miles better than the Spectrum, the fact that it wasn't an Amiga and had very few games meant that its image was always going to be tarnished.

Slowly, the tide started to change. In 1992 also, a certain German-Iraqi man who called himself Nile Warp came back to Iraq to live for a while. Nile happened to be friends with another guy called AveHave (pronounced aa-ve-haa-ve). AveHave was very large in the PC Scene back then, being a founder and site-op of many BBS groups and boards.

So, Nile came to Baghdad with 1.2 GIGABYTES of games - all on tape streamers. Nile was quickly introduced to two other guys, one called SnakeHead and the other called DMA48!!!

Together, they opened a computer office called Orbit Computer Company (or OCC) and the rest is history - the PC went from being a crappy bulky machine that played Prince, to a highly desirable games machine, with amazing 3D games like Doom, simulators like TFX, and even all those Amiga games like Turrican 2, Pinball Fantasies and the like.

It wasn't an instant transformation. The Amiga fought on till its dying breath (the ill-fated 1200) and the PC market never really took off before 1994 or so, mainly cos of the expensive components. Not many people could afford a PC that could run these newer games, and except for the elite few (OCC included), most of us started off with XT or simple 286 AT machines that could run perhaps one or two games properly.

OCC became the new "Hassan's".

The seed was sown, and people paid more attention to the PC as a games machine. Also, and perhaps most importantly, in the mid-nineties PC components started coming thick and fast, and very cheap from one important place: The United Arab Emirates. Jebel Ali area to be precise. Suddenly, a 486 with VESA gfx and a Super I/O became within reach.

By the time I left Baghdad (June 2000), the Amiga was well and truly dead, and the PC was king. But that still didn't change the first 5 years of the nineties, those years I spent longing for something I never got.

Until now that is.

You see, for the last 10 years I've been content with the amazing Amiga emulation scene. WinUAE and the great Amiga Forever packages are all good, and go from strength to strength. Except, you're not really using an Amiga.

So, a few weeks ago I decided to buy a real Amiga, and I went on eBay and bought an Amiga 600 + Joystick + internal Compact Flash IDE hard drive. Along with a MASSIVE 1mbyte RAM extension, and a HUGE 2mb Fast RAM card.

It turns out the Amiga hardware scene still hasn't really died. Companies are still making products for it, the CF/IDE HDD one of them. With that installed, games can be loaded within seconds from the Hard Drive directly. This turns the failure Amiga 600 into a very desirable retro games machine.

I've hooked the machine up in my spare room, with my old-fashioned CRT TV. I turn it on sometimes, load Battle Squadron, close the door, crank the volume up, and for a brief moment I imagine it to be 1990, and for me to be 13 years old in my room in Baghdad, playing this cutting edge game on this futuristic machine.

And sometimes when I press the reset keys (CTRL+AMIGA+AMIGA) I imagine Hassan, how he would come over to our machine, cigarette in his mouth, his fingers ready to press the reset button if we didn't pay up. All the time shouting at us (tikamil? tikamil?) - continue?

It's been 20 years, but I've finally gotten what I wanted: An Amiga all of my own.

Happy Greater Bairam!

2010-11-16T09:31:00.001Z

Eid Mubarak everybody!

Stay safe.

Also, for the first time in ages I'm actually off this Eid!

How to climb a 1768 foot tower

2010-11-12T19:42:00.001Z

Oh. My. God.

Remember Eubrick The Retired?

2010-11-07T22:27:00.007Z

Of course you don't - unless you've recently played DeathSpank. He's the guy behind this good delicious post from many moons ago.

Eubrick is one of the most funniest video game characters you'll ever meet. A retired "bastard", his stories and dialogue in DeathSpank are just too clever and funny. The whole game as a matter of fact is just brilliant - full of humour at all levels, clever jokes upon jokes, all done in a subtle, semi-serious way.

If you do play DeathSpank (and why aren't you?! it's available on Steam, 360, and PS3!) then make sure you meet Eubrick and talk to him about his younger life, especially about his "eternal youth" remedy :D

Coming soon....

2010-10-29T21:07:00.001+01:00

an exciting and new addition to the computer family here at Good-Delicious HQ.

STAY TUNED!!

hello, hello, is there anybody in there?

2010-10-25T19:21:00.002+01:00

just nod if you can hear me....

Just a quick hello/sorry for being blog-less for the last few weeks. I've started a new job in Cambridge, which means each day I travel 40 miles to work, and 40 miles back. Which means that each day I leave at 8 and get home at 7. Which means I'm too tired to do anything when I get home. Which means I haven't had much time to blog. Which doesn't mean there's nothing new though. Which means more later.

Which means stay tuned ;)

I'm at Jarre live!!

2010-10-10T19:35:00.000+01:00

Quick blog to say am at the London O2 waiting for the master to come on live!

Got a good seat and got my merchandise already, so all set!

Been tweeting regularly from there, so keep an eye out on twitter.com/alialsawaf. You don't need to have a twitter account to see the tweets.

Excited!!

I launched the Apollo Project!

2010-10-03T13:40:00.003+01:00

Yes! I won the latest Civilization V campaign by launching the Apollo Project!

This scientific victory is a bit gruelling effort - your empire has got to strike a fine balance between Science and Production. You'll need the science to research the technology required, and a hell of a lot of production to make the 5 components of the rocket itself.

All the time while thinking about your citizens' food, wellbeing, happiness, work etc etc.

And it's testament to the game's amazing design that someone as un-strategic as me can learn the game, play it, get very addicted to it, and even win it! Albeit on chieftan difficulty though :P

Just.One.More.Click.

2010-09-25T14:14:00.003+01:00

Can't wait to play your Steam copy of Civilization 5?

2010-09-22T19:18:00.004+01:00

EDIT: I get a lot of hits to this entry when any Steam game is released in the states, but not in Europe.

To clarify, this method will work with any Steam game that you've got preloaded, but not released yet - as long as it's released in the states.

Also, I've discovered from using this method many times, that you don't need to do anything to the VPN/Steam once in game. What happens is, the VPN will disconnect, and steam will automatically reconnect using your real IP address - hence you can just keep on playing :) Unfortunately, you'll still need to do the VPN trick each time you run the game. Until it's released officially, that is ;)

Well you've come to the right place!

Follow these simple instructions, and get your Civ Crack fix TODAY!

1\ Make sure you've preloaded Civ V, and that Steam is OFF

2\ Download this file (it's a free demo from VPN company usaip.eu)

3\ Double click the file. You will see a window like this:

4\ Choose any USA PPTP connection (I chose California), and click Connect

5\ For the username and password, use "demo" (without quotations)

6\ Once connected, run Steam and decrypt the game!

Important
The proxy isn't the fastest, be patient.

Once the game is running, the VPN isn't needed any more. This demo VPN autodisconnects after 7 minutes. Put Steam in offline mode, or alt-tab to disconnect the VPN manually.

Unfortunately, each time you want to play the game you have to connect to the VPN then run Steam, as it seems that it keeps checking your IP each time it runs. If you don't do this, you'll be greeted with the "this game is preloaded and ready to play when released" message.

Enjoy.

Attention to detail

2010-09-19T23:27:00.004+01:00

We're back to playing Left4Dead 2. It's a game I've always enjoyed, but after finishing all the campaigns on realism, we didn't really get back to it much.

But now there's a whole bunch of fresh blood on the scene (read: new L4D2 players) so am back to playing it, and I'm glad I am. It really is a fun game, very well designed and the zombies/effects are great. Also, like Bad Company 2, the sound design is just superb.

Anyway, today we were trying (and failing) to get through The Passing, when I noticed this bruise on Rochelle's arm. It looked just........ right. Exactly as a bruise should look, this attention to detail (that probably won't be seen most of the time) is exactly what makes this game so immersive.

Brilliant stuff.

Light painting with the iPad

2010-09-15T00:53:00.000+01:00

Don't ask, just watch.

Making Future Magic: iPad light painting from Dentsu London on Vimeo.

Eid Mubarak!

2010-09-10T14:09:00.002+01:00

Yes, yes, Happy Eid to you all! It's time to start eating lots all day, instead of just eating lots in the evening.

Today's breakfast, courtesy of Kelly (and my day off) was a typical Arab affair: Basturma and eggs; cheese, tomatoes, cucumber, and mint; Rashi (Tahini if you like) and Dibis (Date syrup if you must). With LOTS of hot bread. Mmmmmmm.

Have a good, and most importantly safe, one!

This road will be closed

2010-08-21T12:48:00.002+01:00

Damn diversion yesterday made my journey home from work 2 hours long (normally it's 40 minutes). Grrrr.

Here's why: the road I normally use (the A14) takes me directly from work to home. It's a national speed limit road (ie 70 MPH). Except this Friday, the direction I take to go back home was closed from 21:00 to 05:00.

Of course, that Friday was also the day I'm on call, and don't finish work till 22:00.

The road signs mentioned there would be a diversion, and indeed there was one. So I took the diversion exit and followed the signs and drove on.... and on..... and on..... and on.... through country lanes at maximum 50 MPH (due to lorries), through at least 12 villages at 30 MPH limit.

To make things worse, the diversion was taking me WAY PAST where I lived, up up and up and then down down and down another road. In other words, I drove up about 30 miles and drove back down that 30 miles on narrow country lanes. Picture a triangle with one arm "closed"... so to get from A to B I had to go all the way up to C, then all the way down to B.

By the time I got home at 23:00 I was grumpy, hungry, and tired. The Big Mac I'd sneaked in just before leaving work came in very handy.

Quick Question

2010-08-06T18:11:00.002+01:00

You know when you're playing a game and you have X many lives left. Do you prefer it that:

a\ X = the total amount of lives left, including the one you're playing with. Meaning when X=1 and you die it's game over.

b\ X = the total amount of lives left in stock, ie excluding the one you're playing with. Meaning when X = 0 and you die, it's game over.

I personally much, strongly, positively prefer the scenario B. In fact, scenario A just down right annoys me.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 star count at 97!

2010-08-05T22:38:00.001+01:00

(twitter is down)

"my drawer"

2010-08-04T15:23:00.002+01:00

I recently bought a new desk. My 10 year old classic was just too small - way too small in fact, still I had a love relationship with it (my first desk in the UK!) and it's travelled with me far and wide.

Anyway, my current desk is a nice big office desk, with cable management holes and lots of space for everything. It also has 3 drawers, and the most important thing ever: MY DRAWER.

Yes, my drawer. Our hobby (PCs? Games? Technology? Gadgets?) is messy. There's lots of odd bits and pieces, lots of fittings and adaptors and cables and tools and stuff that just don't go anywhere else. There's that 2nd favourite mouse, the extra headset you might use, the keys that came with your case etc etc, all little things that need to go somewhere right?

There's also the screws and screwdrivers, the joypads and the screen wipes, the glasses wipes and so many other things you just have to have near by to you, at arm's reach.

The best thing about "my drawer" is that it should never, ever be tidy. If it is tidy, it's not "my drawer" any more, and someone else has been in it and tidied up (a BIG no no). It has to be haphazard, with a cable here, a pen there, a screw here etc. Yet, I can tell you blind-folded exactly where everything is. Ask me about something and I'll just put my hand in my drawer and take it out without even looking.

We've all had that moment - you subconsciously knew that 6 years ago a video card you bought have a VGA2VGA extender. You put it away in your "my drawer" and "forgot" about it - not exactly forgot but filed it away under "could be useful later". This "useful later" moment comes after 6 years, and you know you own it, and you know it's in your drawer. You look and look and, initially, a small sense of panic comes along "Where did I put this? Surely it's in here somewhere? If it isn't, have I started putting stuff away "randomly"?"

Then you find said item - safe and sound in your "my drawer" and instantly a sense of calm, elation, and relief comes over you - a little reminder that you, and only you know what's inside "my drawer" and remember every little thing there. You also get that even better feeling of knowing that one day, that silly little cable that you put away all those years ago did come in useful.

So, what's your "my drawer"? Where is it and is it messy, or tidy and organised. And if you don't have one-liar.

How to watch TV, Adam style

2010-07-27T13:32:00.001+01:00

Notice what's on telly....... money. He's got his eye on it already. Dear me.

Before Buyer's Remorse Kicks In

2010-07-27T13:19:00.003+01:00

Let me quickly blog (happily) about what I just purchased. I have to explain/justify that, as usual, this whole chain started with me looking for a new headset for my PC.

1\ Sennheiser PC360 G4ME headsets: I currently use a PC161, and @anmarmansur loves and recommends his 350s, but I like open back cans (I prefer the soundstage) hence I didn't want the 350s. These new 360s are the 350s but open back.

2\ Razer Mako 2.1: YES, STEREO and not surround speakers! why you ask? Well ever since moving to our house the surround speakers (ie the side and rear ones) have been nothing more than dust collectors on the floor. The cables are in the way (particularly with Adam) and almost all surround gaming I do on the PC is via headphones (hence the new cans). The Razers are co-designed with THX and include a headphone amp and look gorgeous. The reviews all concur that they're the best 2.1 bookshelf speakers.

The creatives are also 5 years old and have gone through at least 3 house moves - they need to retire.

Perhaps when there's no babies crawling around I can reinvest in surround.

3\ Asus Xonar Essence STX - perhaps the stupidest thing of all. Said to be the pinnacle for stereo/headphone cards. With features galore, including the all-essential Dolby Headphone (for games) and even an EAX emulator (though I can't remember the last time I used EAX - ever since vista hardware legacy sound has dwindled). I am a little apprehensive about this, because I game as much as I listen to music on the PC (don't watch many movies on it) so proper headphone surround is crucial here.

We'll find out tomorrow.

Adam meets a tub of Sudocrem

2010-07-27T12:41:00.001+01:00

Sudocrem = nappy rash stuff. He was literally alone with it for about 10 seconds :|

Night 7 - 09:25

2010-07-23T09:28:00.001+01:00

And it's all done! Here's a picture of my 6 year-old air freshener :)

Night 6 - 05:25

2010-07-22T05:31:00.002+01:00

Introducing the dreaded "150 bleep". Pronounced one-fifty. It's what I carry with me all shift long. I hate it :/

Night 5 - 05:50

2010-07-21T05:53:00.001+01:00

I played some FIXPIX on the iPhone and this was one of them. I thought it was cool.

Night 4 - 04:30

2010-07-20T04:30:00.000+01:00

This is what "greets" children coming out of their ward, poor bastards.

Now now kids!

2010-07-19T10:18:00.004+01:00

I was messing about with Incredibooth this morning (recommended if you have an iPhone 4 and remember the days of the photobooth!) so decided to get Kelly and Adam together for one of those silly photobooth things that kids love!

Well, kids of the 70s and 80s used to love. Have a look at these 00s kids:

1) yaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwnnnnnnn. OMG WTF are they up to?

2) eeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Is that mum's tongue? GROSS!

3) LAME! Now it's both of them sticking their tongues out. I'm looking away..

4) F*** this, looks like they're never gonna stop. Imma outta here.

Night 3 - 06:25

2010-07-19T06:28:00.001+01:00

The rip off keyboard. Meant to be hygienic and "safe". Said to cost mucho dinaros :/

Night 2

2010-07-18T02:05:00.000+01:00

02:05 - mmmmmmmmmm! Everything tastes better at night!

Night 1

2010-07-17T00:22:00.000+01:00

00:15 - is this thing working? Is this bad?

Oh shit........

Two Box Solution

2010-07-12T20:12:00.002+01:00

I recently realised something - almost all the wireless devices in this house are Apple. The only other wireless ones are the Wii and the 360, and the PSP/NDS. The PS3 is wired so I can stream 1080p files smoothly.

Which led me to realise something else - all the wireless router/adsl modem devices I've tried aren't very good with Apple products. I've always suffered connection drops or slow speeds or what have you.

Which made me realise something else - why don't I invest in an Apple router. This was something I had categorically refused in the past, because of the higher price of their products, especially seeing that you can get a wireless router/adsl modem solution in one box for half the price.

But I did some research, mainly on non-apple websites (to avoid Apple Fanboi Bias) and it turns out the Apple AirPort Base Extreme is one hell of a capable router, especially as it broadcasts a dual network signal, hence making it compatible with older and newer devices. The only problem was that it's a pure router, ie it has no modem function.

This would be a two-box solution, ie one device as a modem, and the AirPort as a router. I bit the bullet (well, my bank account did) and ordered one.

When it arrived, I briefly smiled at the Apple aesthetic of it (white box, one light, no power on switch, just simple!) and then set about connecting it to my current router/modem (Netgear MIMO). The idea was that the Netgear acts as a modem only, while the AirPort does the routing.

Except that just wouldn't happen (of course). The AirPort told me from the start that there was a router between it and the net, and it can act just a bridge, ie just as a WiFi access point with all the routing done by the Netgear. Try as I might, I just couldn't get the Netgear to NOT route, and just act as a modem. While functional, this bridged solution wasn't idea.

SO - this lead me to another thing: a search for an ADSL modem. I looked around and ended up finding a Draytek Vigor 120. This simple (and small!) device does nothing other than being a modem. It has no router or NAT functions, and has only one ethernet port to connect one device.

The best thing about the Vigor 120 though, is that it acts as a "converter" of PPPoA (ie my ADSL connection) to PPPoE. This latter protocol works magic with the AirPort. Draytek even go as far as to say that if you have standard UK ADSL (ie not O2 or Be LLU), you won't even need to configure the Vigor. Just plug it in to your phone cable, connect your router to the Ethernet port, and then set up the router and you're done.

It is this part that amused me most. For all this time I've had ADSL (10 years), the modem as always been the device that requires the ISP details (user/pass etc). What the Vigor was doing was passing on the ADSL connection (and IP address) unaltered to the router, albeit in a PPPoE standard.

SO - I ordered the Vigor 120. It arrived, and to test their claims I just did the following:

1\ Connect Vigor 120 to ADSL line, power cable, and Ethernet to the AirPort base.

2\ Turned on Vigor 120

3\ Ran the AirPort setup utility, and configured it to connect via PPPoE

4\ Entered my ISP username/password IN THE ROUTER, not the modem

Within 2 seconds the all-encompassing status light on the AirPort turned a steady green, meaning all was ok.

And all was ok! I had a rock solid internet connection, a strong wifi signal all over the house, and all the routing done by one device. I have tested around the house, in the garden etc and signal has been fantastic. One interesting thing I noted wit the iPad and iPhone is that sometimes in the weaker areas the signal drops and then magically becomes full. I have a feeling the devices are automatically switching to the stronger frequency network. It's something quite nice and useful, and has yet to disrupt anything.

As an added bonus, the Vigor is syncing at 1mbit more than the Netgear!

So, know I'm kind of converted to two-box solutions. I guess it's the age old mantra of having one device do something VERY good, rather than one that does two things OK. The combination of a dedicated modem and new router with dualband networks has really stabilised the network throughout the house.

It's a solution that I'd only recommend to geeks, or technophiles. For my family and friends I'd just tell them to use the router the ISP gives them, or get the DLINK or Netgear they can afford. For me and you however, I'd strongly recommend you ditch the crappy modem/router and get yourself some proper dedicated hardware instead ;)

How Nintendo will advertise the 3DS

2010-07-08T20:17:00.002+01:00

In case you missed it (where you been?!) - Nintendo demoed their latest handheld, the Nintendo 3DS at e3 this year.

The dual-screen device is like a more powerful DS, but with the added bonus of "glasses-free" 3D on the top screen!

Don't ask me how this voodoo works, but people who have used it are amazed at what Ninty have achieved! Problem is, screenshots can't show the effect, nor can videos!

This has given rise to the question - how can Nintendo advertise the platform? Will showing 2D images be enough? People might just think it's another DS (bigger, lighter) rather than a whole new platform.

Here's what I think they'll do - I think they'll do the same thing they did with the Wii, well before we even knew what it looked like. They showed videos of people playing with the wiimote, and the sounds coming from the game, but not the game itself, nor the device itself!

That way, all you saw were some genuinely impressed people experiencing this new device, without actually seeing it! You would see a woman pretending to chop vegetables with her wiimot, and you'd hear the sounds, just not see the game. A man playing tennis or golf, a boy swinging a sword, and so on.

It sound stupid but it worked, and it worked very well - whisking up a frenzy of hype for the Wii.

And I bet that's what they'll do here - show some "normal" and "core" people's reactions to playing on the 3DS - couple that with demo units in stores, and you've got yourself the best hype machine there ever is - the general public.

Remember, you read this here first!

too much to talk about

2010-07-01T23:31:00.001+01:00

I hate having not blogged for so long - and I'm sorry. It's just a combination of too little time, too much to do.

And I still blame twitter. It's much easier to tweet a 140 character update, than it is to blog :P

But there's so much I want to talk about - mainly the iPad and the iPhone 4, and the amazing Wii game BIT.TRIP: RUNNER.

Unfortunately, this isn't the time :p consider this a teaser ;)

Doom 2's secret weapon!

2010-06-26T12:53:00.001+01:00

And to think we've wasted so many hours playing Doom II, and we hadn't found this secret weapon out! And it pisses all over the BFG!

Amazing. Makes me want to play Doom 2 deathmatch all over again!

Test iPad blog

2010-06-20T04:38:00.000+01:00

Quick test using blogpress on the iPad.

Lots to talk about. Soon, promise!

In the meantime, here's a picture I made earlier.

Happy Birthday Adam Alsawaf!

2010-06-11T13:59:00.002+01:00

The little bugger is a big ONE year old today!

Soon, he'll be smoking and pretending that it was his friends that smoked, and he's as innocent as can be....

Pac Man is 30!

2010-05-21T18:28:00.001+01:00

Happy birthday from Good Delicious to the awesome Pac Man, who celebrates his 30th birthday today!

I'm of the generation of 80s kids who grew up with Pacman EVERYWHERE around them - TV, cartoons, magazines, games, lunch boxes, bed sheets, EVERYTHING.

And we still love him just as much!

Also - make sure you check today's Google Doodle for a fantastic Pac Man treat!

Lost Planet 2 - The Trailer of Trailers

2010-05-11T19:25:00.002+01:00

I didn't really like the first Lost Planet (360 version). Loved it initially, played quite a bit but then the mech sequences were just too...... boring. And clunky.

Doesn't look like I'll be playing Lost Planet 2 either, even though it promises to be an awesome coop game. Perhaps (if) when it's out on PC.

Still, that doesn't stop your favourite blog from posting about the game, especially when capcom have come up with a trailer that is JUST AWESOME. AWESOME I TELLS YA!!!

Watch it here

AVATAR

2010-05-04T01:01:00.004+01:00

We watched AVATAR again tonight, the film everyone's heard about.

Watching it again reminded me of how fantastically visionary and advanced the film is. Mixing cutting-edge technology/computer wizardry with live action filming to create a very believable world, Pandora, with its natives, the Na'vi.

Amazingly, the computer cluster needed to render the film (which is from the same company that rendered Middle Earth for us) is made out of 34 racks: each rack has 32 machines, 40,000 processors, and 104 terabytes of memory.

Even more mind-blowing, the final film footage takes up 17.28 GIGABYTE PER MINUTE of storage. Remarkable, once you consider that the film is 166 minutes!

Best thing is that James Cameron (the director) is a gamer, and his gaming inspired this film the most. The gaming inspirations are to be seen everywhere - from the title of the film, to the main character's alter-ego, to the world of Pandora and it's creatures and habits, it's like watching an amazing video game come to life.

Superb. Watch it, love it.

So THAT'S why Bill wasn't there!

2010-05-02T08:41:00.003+01:00

Courtesy of Nerf NOW!!

Like Father, Like Son

2010-05-01T14:56:00.001+01:00

ilomilo

2010-05-01T10:32:00.003+01:00

Southend Interactive, creator of the aweome R-Type Dimensions on XBLA, have released a trailer of their adorable puzzle/platformer (best. game. genre. ever!) Ilomilo.

Ilo and Milo work together in the game to solve puzzle, and traverse platforms, obviously..

Beautiful.

OCZ Vertex boot speeds

2010-04-24T16:26:00.003+01:00

Fuck me, 24 seconds to load windows (desktop appears and usable), another 11 seconds to finish loading all background apps/anti virus and so on.

Here's a video

OCZ Vertex LE

2010-04-23T19:41:00.002+01:00

As Wolf (semi)correctly guessed, my small update is an SSD. An OCZ Vertex 100gb LE SSD to be precise. As I'm sure you all know, they come in 2.5" form-factor ;)

First impressions - small, very light. Is this thing REALLY a drive that can take 100gb of data?
Installed it two days ago but a combination of sleep/long working hours (again) prevent me from testing properly.

But. OH. MY. GOD. The speed is OUT OF THIS WORLD. The time it takes windows to boot to desktop is about 12 seconds, everything responds BLAZINGLY FAST. One odd thing is that you don't hear it working (obviously) so that normal (and sometimes comforting) sound we're all used to of a hard drive churning away to run your application is now history. You just have to get used to very silent and lightning fast performance.

More later (am at work still) - but next post I'll tell you about how I was trying to save myself time installing it, but as Murphy's Law dictates, that cost me more time and effort and I ended up just installing windows fresh on the drive.

Stay tuned!

Small PC update

2010-04-20T14:19:00.001+01:00

A small (2.5? :p) PC update is making its way to the good delicious
towers as we speak.

Stay tuned ;)

Hell - The Game!

2010-04-17T11:52:00.001+01:00

Remember the excellent Hell comic? Well some clever bud has turned it in to a flash game.

Good luck!

A new kinda drum?

2010-04-17T10:32:00.001+01:00

It all ended in tears, by the way :)

Hell

2010-04-11T18:11:00.001+01:00

From the brilliant xkcd.

Pixels - the most beautiful short film you'll ever see

2010-04-08T18:23:00.003+01:00

So what would happen if the end of the world means that the pixels we so love (and hate) jump out and obliterate us? Find out in this AMAZING short film by onemoreprod and Patrick Jean.

PIXELS by PATRICK JEAN.
Uploaded by onemoreprod. - Watch original web videos.

Flickering in Battlefield Bad Company 2?

2010-04-08T06:40:00.001+01:00

Got the PC version of BFBC2?

Got some ATI cards in CrossfireX?

Suffering from flickering or horizontal lines when you play the game?

Well your lucky day has come! Just download this 500kb fix here, and enjoy the game as it was meant to be!