Microsoft announced officially that they will be dropping their price on the Xbox 360 gaming console.  In fact, all three versions will recieve a price cut. The elite will be 449, the 360 will be 349, and the 360 Core will be 279.

Microsoft feels that leading the console market in sales while maintaining their initial price says alot about their product. They also feel that with the Launch of the latest Madden game their numbers will hit record peaks.

   Two firefighters were killed and a half dozen others injured in a fire in an abandoned skyscraper adjacent to the Twin Towers site.

Smoke was seen from the fire and it panicked people concerned with toxicity.

These fears  appeared to be unwarranted.

It seems the NYC fire department keeps taking hits. We salute these fine men and the efforts they put forth and the risks they take.

The injured men are recovering well. The cause of the fire is not apparent.

Yeah, we all want it, but how exactly does one get money? Theres the working method. Thats good for paying the bills, but suppose those the hot girl ( or guy) you want to impress, Fridays on its way, but your check it spent! Argh! The bills!

So here’s what i do:

I get a personal loan from a trustworthy lender, this gets me through the pinch, and can really impress the girl. *smiles*

Theres an alternative for those of us that require it, and its often the best and fastest choice, a secured loan will often do what you thought impossible.

Both of these options are viable and recommended. I have found the very low fee I pay is more than worth the pleasure and success I enjoy because of the extra money I possess on the weekend, or on vacation.

I enjoy UKpersonalLoanStore.co.uk because they are fast, friendly, have the best loans.

I waqs flabbergasted when i saw this.I thought it was a prank. But perhaps the old adage “if you cant beat them, join them” comes into play. Microsoft will not overcome the beauty and grace of the Open Source movement.

Perhaps its not a true concession. When music style changed from the 80’s to the 90’s, instead of retiring Metallica simply adapted their style and still sold tickets and albums. This cost them a few fans but gained them more, and kept them in the game.

And now Microsoft, who once referred to Open Source as communism steps into the fray. In my opinion thats real nice, finally skilled coders can review the drivel put forth by the capitalist giant  and maybe in a round about way Microsoft will turn out some good code.

Not only releasing a few pieces of Open Source code, but also surrendering some of its home grown licenses to the Open Source Initiative, Microsoft is really making waves in the Open Source community.  Whats going on?

I think its simple, in this age, theres no longer 1 single way to do things, and when open source didnt prove to be just a trend, they realized it was a “get in or move on” thing. Blend, and continue with business as usual. A quote from the Microsoft Press release:

“Open source is neither an industry fad, nor a magic bullet.”

Video game creation is difficult. Developers must make a quality, function product, it has to be enjoyable to play, they must dance around the ESRB so they can reach their target market, then the publishers have to liek the game as well. And hopefully the creators will still be proud of it when this is all said and done.

The creation of games is chaotic, you throw things about, shift it in and out, like pieces of a puzzle, finding things that fit and things that do not, what works and what wont. After a few weeks of that, the process really begins.

Often things areleft out of the game, but the code remains intact and within that game. Thats odd you think. But if ti were removed then it may create other bugs in the code.

Example: A dev creates a jumprope minigame and he decides it should be a rhythm type excercise, he goes on to develop the system for the rhythm(algorhtyhms and such), he adds some things like related graphics, and gets it approved and ready to go

Now,the other developers will review this work and see what of it they can build upon, the graphics people will add good graphics to the original devs stuff. These graphics might be exclusive to the jump rope sequence, and they may also be found elsewhere in the game.

In a few months time, the original coders work is used by several other devs in their code, and the art is spread around as well. Then suddenly some higher up cuts the jump rope sequence.

How can you remove such an embedded portion of development? It is present, and functional. Other portions of the development are built upon it, dependant even, the praphics are there as well. What now? Simple, you simply never have the jump rope sequence called by the game, essentially the main program never calls for that function. It doesnt alter any of the code, the sequence is just never seen by consumers.

Most games have “easter eggs”. We see this all the time, and the example above is likely what happened in GTA:SA. Most hidden code is not sexual, but then again GTA:SA is a “mature” rating.

Do we blame the ESRB? Of course not! The hot coffee minigame is only there if you hack it. Sure, its just a single bit, but its a modification to the game files, to play the game in a manner not intended by the publisher/developer.

I used to be really afraid of flying. Days before a trip I would get so stressed i would be sick, and i would stay sick.
I had to get meds from my doctor just so i could calm down some.

Over time i did get over my phobia. Now i can fall asleep during takeoff. Heres my strategy:

Try to sit in view of the attendants. This is routine for them, and they done it a million times, its just another day to them, and perhaps you will find that comforting.

If you cant feel the vibrations of the aircraft, it makes the flight seem a bit less real, and you can imagine you are simply in a a movie theatre. Try putting your feet on your luggage, or use the bar from chair in front of you.

Its a blessing when the pilots announce prior to trubalence that the chance is likely that the plane will see some. Its nice to be prepared, and its nice ot know that the pilots are prepared as well.

Bring a book, or a crossward  puzzle.  Anything that can hold your attention and  shift your focus. A good magazine is excellent.
In  the end, after you do this enough, it will become a second nature to you, and you will find yourself increasingly more comfortable with air travel.

The current low pay for a Broadway actor is 1422 a week. Naturally, thats for the nobodies. The extra types. After that its a negotiable issue. Since the supply is greater  than the demand, why would any producer pay more.

However, Broadway actors also get paid health insurance, and before taxes is mor elike 1700-1800 a week. A very recognized name though, nets far greater. As an example, Julia Roberts gets 35000 a week on Broadway, doesnt  that just pale the 1400! Of course, she makes 20 million a movie, so as you can see Hollywood > Broadway.

the world produces more than enough food to sustain itself. In fact large quantities are wasted each year. The quantity of food isnt what makes world hunger, its world economy that does. People in other nations cant afford it, and a failed harvest is terrible because import costs are prohibitive.

But, you may wonder, the food will rot in our warehouses, why not just GIVE it to them. Simple. It would destroy the economy of an already struggling nation. In a nation where food is a great concern , the economies revolve around it, and their people will likely work in a food related industry. Farmers are very populous in a country like that. Others would work in a packaging or processing plant, etc.

Now take that same economic model, and add free food to it. Why would you buy food, if you could get free food? People wouldnt, and as a consequence, noone would farm, noone would be hired to package. Business would be bankrupted. Noone with jobs, and the government would have no tax money, degradation and war would soon follow.

Giving food to a third world nation would actually make them poorer…