New InstantAction preview site is up and running!

Just in time for our holiday vacation, the InstantAction Preview Site is up and running!

It's really exciting to think that we're getting closer to the launch. Can't wait to see more games and more features as the weeks pass.

Way to go, team! :-)

Logging some links for posterity:

Strangest Christmas card ever. Be sure to try *all* of the options as some are better than others!

Philip talks about Second Life now and going forward

Bacon Chocolate Bar

People at work think I'm crazy. And yeah, I'm trying to eat better, too, so this is really a bad idea anyway.

However. That being said...I MUST try this new candy bar:

Mo's Bacon Chocolate Bar from Vosges Chocolate.

IGDA Leadership Forum wrap-up

I just checked the IGDA Leadership Forum page and found it updated with session reviews, articles from Gamasutra and even some cool pictures.



This is a picture of me (right) with my two favorite game industry guys -- Don Daglow (left) and Rodney Gibbs (center).

Oh yeah -- on the front page of the Leadership site, there's a nice picture of Mark DeLoura, too!

The Family Cookbook...part one

I have added the first Peterson Family Cookbook entry to this website. Check out the famous Christmas cookie recipe!

Oh how I love Christmas!

Mass Effect - Week Two

Yes, week two...and the final week, too. I beat it. Full Paragon and Completist were awarded, but not too many other achievements.

So now I have to go back and play it again as a Renegade and beat it again. G*d, I do NOT look forward to collecting all of those damn minerals and medals and stuff again. The missions are fine -- at least I can treat those differently.

Oh yeah -- speaking of Mass Effect...you really must see the Something Awful version "Ass Effect." Yes, it's crude, but it's funny, too. More reverent than SA usually is, that's for sure!

What to do in case of attack

Nuclear Armageddon?

Terrorist attack?

It's okay...just follow the helpful tips here!

Mass Effect - Week One

I got my copy of Mass Effect on Tuesday night and have been playing it quite a great deal. Not as much as I would have if life didn't get in the way, of course, but I think I'm past 16 hours now!

THE GOOD

• The story, man. The story is amazing. I can't imagine how many hours - nay, days! - it must have taken to craft such an epic yet personal adventure.


• The character and ship design. As rich and deep as the story is, it wouldn't work if you didn't feel immersed in the universe of Mass Effect. The ships are realistic, as are the characters and locations. Every scene is a work of art.


• The variety of missions. Every new "quest" sends you somewhere new and exotic. When you return to the Citadel, for instance, there are new tasks and new faces.


• The battle system. It's easy to learn, hard to master. Lots of different ways to disable or kill your foes. Very fun, almost infinitely customizable.

THE BAD

• The vehicle. Is it just me or is that truck thingy damn hard to drive?


• The important dialogs don't show up in your journal. Sometimes I don't get all the details in one discussion, and I (foolishly) assumed that key points would just be in the journal. But they aren't. Someone says "Go to planet X and find person Y at building Z." Then the journal says "Go to planet X." Ugh! Don't make me buy the guidebook, Bioware!

Life with Cats

What it's like to live with a cat, clearly created by a cat owner.



That reminds me a lot of the classic Japanese manga/anime series What's Michael? If you like cats, or have lived with them, you should really check it out.

The Best Intersection of Dorkedness EVAR

LOLTHULU.

Priceless

StumbleUpon is the future!

I'm totally hooked on StumbleUpon, a browser plugin that lets you view sites in various categories recommended by other users. (Thanks, Andy!) If you haven't tried it yet, go download it today and give it a whirl. Super cool stuff. Finally, we're getting the kind of features that we thought the Internet would provide long ago!

Case in point is this super awesome video that I "Stumbled Upon": Mario, Man of the People.

Metrics for Social Media?

Really cool blog post and discussion of the feasibility of gathering metrics on social media.

As I am launching into my new role at GarageGames, I'm faced with the challenge of putting processes in place that will allow us to build a community around our sites. Exciting stuff! Entering the post-MySpace/Facebook-crazed second half of 2007, I contemplate ways that we can be pioneers and yet provide an interesting, tangible contribution to our users.

On a Swarovski Spree

Look at all of the pretties...

Swarovski beads at Harlequin, located here in Eugene.

WTF is up with the GG Plague?

Are we being poisoned by our environment? Are we simply passing the same germs around time and time again? WTF is up with the GG Plague?

Snap. Crackle. Pop. Crunch?

All the time I spent at Linden Lab working 14+ hour days, weekends...heck, sometimes even overnight (grey goo attacks, anyone?)...none of it ever seemed like "crunch" time. Maybe that's because being in perpetual crunch means there is no crunch. Just work.

So now we're crunching over the weekend to get ready for IGC. I am only here for one day of it -- not that bad. The others who've been here longer than me seem in good spirits.

Still, I wish I could have had a day off after attending the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland yesterday.

The World's Worst Commerical

Yes, believe it or not...this is real.

The IAC cat is out of the bag!

It finally happened! After months of "secrecy," the IAC/GarageGames deal has finally been announced!

It is so exciting to be part of yet another great disruptive technology, especially since I wasn't sure where I'd end up when I decided to leave Linden Lab. I must say I feel extremely lucky to have found a new home at GarageGames, getting to work on new and exciting technology.

More news as it develops...for now, wish us luck!

The Application Process

I don't know why I thought it would be easy to apply to grad school. I've got a few of the required documents submitted, but my master plan (no pun intended) was to get everything together over the three-day weekend. Which I didn't do.

On the plus side, we got an awesome new bed on sale at Macy's. So there IS that. :-)

"AIM" high!

I did it! I finally found a master's degree program that I want to participate in. Best of all, it's ONLINE. Woohoo!

I hope to start Winter 2008, which is about four months from now. How exciting!

Please, Lord, give me a sign!

I hate being in this quandary. I seem to always be here. Or, at least, I start here, forget about it for a while due to distraction or crisis, and yet here is where I land.

Programming? Grad school?

Damnit.

Most amazing Christmas present EVAR

Are you sitting down? If not, do so now. You might just fall over when you click on this link.

I warned you.

My Dream Job

Apparently, kittens are the future, says a Microsoft exec.

The idea is to use an ever-changing image, such as that of a kitten jumping around a room, to confirm that a human is making an email account rather than a computer program. So, clearly this means a new role has just been invented: Internet Image Kitten Wrangling.

Dude. I'm so there!

The magic of software engineering

Alright, this isn't specifically about software engineering, but we've all been there...

Oregon Trail

We were just having a lovely discussion about our early computing days, and Evie mentioned Oregon Trail. How many hours did we spend, how many dead oxen did we leave upon the trail? How many trunks of goods had to be sacrificed, not to mention our own dear family members?

On a happier note, looks like there's a matching LOLCAT for this topic:

Is jailtime the new black?

First Paris, now Nicole?

I predict jailtime will be the new hotness -- those tiny dogs are sooo 2006 -- and soon you'll see Brit and La Lohan and maybe even Mischa (in a desperate attempt to revitalize her dying career) following suit.

Jesuits in Second Life

Apparently Second Life is being used by Jesuits to proselytize to a whole new generation of potential "recruits."

In other news, I joined the Elebits group in Facebook. If you like the game, you should join, too!

OMFG! Squirrel paper doll!

Thanks to Alexia Mechanique for passing this along:

Virtual Squirrel Paper Doll!

This totally makes my day! :-)

Car lust

Why in God's name am I lusting after a new car? (No comments, please, Bethanye!) At least it's a good car this time:

Lexus RXh hybrid SUV

Quote of the Day

From Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest:

Lord Cutler Beckett: No doubt you've discovered that loyalty is no longer the currency of the realm as your father believes.

Elizabeth Swann: Then what is?

Lord Cutler Beckett: I'm afraid currency is the currency of the realm.

The Go Center of Second Life

Finally, a place in Second Life that I can spend *hours* visiting! The Go Center of Second Life is an amazing place, created by my friends Zarf Vantongerloo and Bambam Sachertorte. Long live the Go Center!

I spent some time downloading and playing the latest XBox360 game demos yesterday. Most were mediocre, but I did really enjoy Overlord. It's a mix of Pikmin and Fable. I mean, if you'd chosen the evil path in Fable and the Pikmin were evil goblins who ate sheep whole... All in all, a pretty good time.

New games on the horizon!

I played the XBox 360 demo of Blue Dragon tonight. It's much better than I had anticipated. Innovative combat system -- you can even fight as you wander about the map, at least a bit -- and the "Corporeal" move offers pretty cool effects. Looks like it might be a good old-skool RPG for the 360. Due out at the end of August, 2007.

Bioware's Mass Effect is also coming soon...if November, 2007 fits your definition of "soon." But hey, it's Bioware. I'll wait.

I never thought I'd say it, but I'm crazy for Hellgate London. This is nothing I usually would dream of playing, but something about it compels me. The only launch date I can find is for Summer 2007...whatever that means.

...it was tough, but I learned so much...

Seems like a common theme: people discuss a terrible time in their professional life -- a new job, a tough class, a summer working on the potato farm -- it doesn't really matter what, exactly. The point is that many, many "important" people who have accomplished a lot in life had to start somewhere. They did something (or some number of things) that were uncomfortable, dirty, difficult, or just plain miserable. But they were smart enough to seize the opportunity to learn and grow and move forward with those lessons learned making them a better person.

New life!

Sitting here in our new apartment.

Preparing for work at a new job.

Lots of change. Lots of excitement, and a bit of nervousness, too.

Didn't they see Westworld?

Taser, iRobot team up to arm robots

All Hail the Flying Spaghetti Monster

When Facebook asked me what religion I follow, I initially left the field blank. Then I realized "Hey wait! I'm a Pastafarian!"

So now my profile is correct. w00t!

Using Second Life as a (regular old) Resident

It's really weird being on the other side of the fence now. To tell the truth, I have had a better time using SL in the last three days than I did when working for Linden Lab. I guess it's because I can finally relax and be myself -- not trying to hide my allegiance to the company or get annoyed with things I can't fix. Instead, I'm now a regular ol' Resi...and actually loving it!

The first day of the rest of my life!

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. I have left my role as Program Manager at Linden Lab and am moving on (figuratively and literally) to a new life. I will update everyone once we're settled in our new digs. For now, though...time to pack. (Have I mentioned how much I *love* moving? :-P )

3.14159...

Have you seen the Pi video from comedy duo Hard 'N' Phirm?

Best cartoon ever

Well, best cartoon ever that's NOT FOR CHILDREN:

Super Jail Pilot.

My favorite new book

Given reviews I've read, I seem to be in the minority of readers who enjoyed Grey by Jon Armstrong.

And you know, I don't care. Grey was a revelation -- I haven't read a book so unique in years. It's a mix of sci-fi, high fashion, music, and social commentary. Sure, it's a future-day Romeo and Juliet story but that's what makes it so interesting. Knowing how that story ends keeps you guessing through the whole book. The Pure-H fashion world reminded me of Japan, and Armstrong confirms this suspicion on his website.

I am not doing the book justice with this meandering "review." Just take my word for it and find out for yourself.

Beware your darkest fears...

From The Onion:

What I'm Listening To

Interpol

Lady Sovereign

DJ Fresh Bass Invaderz

Goldfrapp

I CAN HAS SUCCUMBD TO TEH PEER PRESHAR

Yes, I finally looked at the damn site.

Yes, it is really funny!

Are you happy now?

Google Street Views gone wild!

Top 15 Google Street View Sightings

BTW, it's worth it to go check out the 180 degree views as the site suggests. And what's with that E.T. in New York!?

Get your Japanese DS games here!

An email list that I'm on had a post about Play Asia recently. It's a great site with tons of games for sale...best of all, they have Japanese games of all types. I've been looking at the Nintendo DS games.

Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2, here I come!

I <3 threadless.com!

My new shirts:


"Diabolical Hot Dog"...



...and "Sugar High"!

I sooo love Threadless! Everyone needs a Threadless shirt...or two.

Easy game programming app from MIT

I recently downloaded Scratch from the MIT site and played with it a bit. In about 10 minutes I had a cute little scene with a cat changing color and beeping as it walked back and forth, accompanied by a little blob changing its facial expressions to the beat. Not exactly a stunning technological achievement, but fun, easy and cute! I encourage everyone to try it.

BTW: I shamelessly stole this link from Mark's blog post about it.

New Pelican album and more...

Pelican new album + special offer!

I need a new friend!

Have I fallen into a pit of girly stereotypes, filled with Barbies and pink tiaras and dreams of becoming a Beauty Queen? Or is it a totally normal to want to own the upcoming Nintendo DS game Pony Friends?

I saw an ad for the game at EB Games today and can't stop thinking about it. Apparently, it's like Nintendogs...but with horses. You can have up to three ponies at a time, from standard breeds to "grow-your-own" versions. After raising your level by interacting with and training them, you get chances to buy new saddles, bridles and so forth. Eventually you can enter them in contests, but I think I'd prefer to take them out on walks and just groom them.

Here's a sample horse:


Look, you can even get designs for your horse!


So how many girl points do I gain from this admission, and how many cynical geek points do I lose?

Perhaps this threadless.com shirt will redeem my foray into the Pink Side. It's called "We Are All Pink":

Sooo happy to see Jenna!

My dear friend Jenna moved to Sweden last year. We got to see her again this weekend, along with Jamie, and it was awesome.

After two weeks in Sweden, Jenna became pregnant...she's the perfect candidate for motherhood. I know she will do great!

I was really excited to see Wim Wender's Tokyo-ga in the box set that just came out featuring eight of the director's movies. Tokyo-ga is a thoughtful meditation on the films that inspired Wenders, specifically the work of Yasujiro Ozu, one of Japan's master film makers.

I hope that the documentary is available alone someday -- I've been waiting for it to be released on DVD for years now!

blog.dismoralfish.com!

Yes, I finally did it. After years of threatening to buy this domain I finally did. And moved my blog there. And...yeah. Here we are now!

Now, to link my Twitter and Flickr and Yahoo! accounts together to form a single behemoth of technological might! Mwaahaahaaaa~!

WIGI Los Angeles Community Mixer!

We drove down to Los Angeles for the Women in Games International (WIGI) Community Mixer on Thursday. We attended the event -- it was lots of fun -- and then drove home.

Yeah, I drove to L.A. and back in one day. 730 miles round trip. Wewt.

Actually, I've forgotten how much I enjoy driving. The highlight of the evening was driving on Highway 152 at 2:30am listening to Bass Invaderz and Dungeonmaster's Guide.

Ever read "Getting Things Done"?

I was given this book Getting Things Done. It has some good concepts but somehow bothers me in a way that I cannot explain.

A friend sent this link today. Priceless.

Ugh.

All of the stress of the last week and a half caught up to me the minute I left work Friday night. Got home and found I had a sore throat and fever, and have been feeling terrible ever since. Guess I need some rest!

Tiltshifta

Tiltshifta
Originally uploaded by Torley.

Yet another amazing photo-surrealism-Second Life mashup by Torley Linden!

*plays dramatic orchestral music as the camera pans over the houses*

*plays dramatic orchestral music as the camera pans over the houses*
Originally uploaded by Torley.

Amazing photo-surrealism from Torley Linden's Flicker page.

Twitter needs help

Twitter is a good idea, but appears to be poorly executed. The UI has weird glitches, the settings don't seem to stick for me (and I'm using Firefox 2.0.0.3 on Windows XP, hardly a rare combination!), and I can't simply search for friends if I already know their names.

I wish the Twitter folks all the best, and I will keep using it...but not to manage or even communicate one-way with my social circle.

Twitter?

I am taking the big step of posting on Twitter.

To most people, Web 2.0 simply means they can share info with the world or some portion of it (friends, colleagues, etc.). To me it means a big risk in sharing with people I don't know. I've never been shy per se, at least, I get nervous when talking in front of a crowd but that usually fades about 2 minutes in to the talk/discussion/presentation/whatever.

But the Internet is forever, in a way. This is different.

No school. More work.

Yeah, so I talked to my mentor at work and he said that a graduate degree is useless compared to doing actual work. So, yeah. No school for me.

Now, what will I spend that $15,000 on -- oh yeah! I didn't have it in the first place. Wheeeee~!

Long time no post!

It's been a while since I've posted here. Too much going on in life and at work to bother with a blog! Geez.

Anyway, so...yeah. Do I want to get a M.A. or not? That's the question du jour...and has been for the last several jours.

I finally found a program that meets my requirements:

M.A. in Organizational Management
Accredited by North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
12 - 24 month committement to finish the degree
Completely online -- no campus visits
$15K

So...do I?

Cool casual games site

I just heard about this from James:
orisinal.com

Great design, cool games -- very pleasant and stress-free!

Quote of the week

Awesome quote from this week's 30 Rock:

Kenneth the Page: "Mr. Jordan, aren't you the man who told me to live every week like it's shark week...and that nothing is impossible except for dinosaurs?"

Tracy Jordan: "Wow...the manatee has become the mento!"

Amazing GDC action!

Amazing! Awesome! Holy crap!

No, those aren't comments about "Home," the new PS3 social networking - 3D space - SL/Myspace.com killer...

...they are about the amazing Linden Lab GDC party held at 111 Minna on Tuesday, March 6th! (I am assuming there will be photos somewhere on the web at some point, and I will link to them then.)

I was totally exhausted from chatting up a storm at the Women in Games International conference at EARS (EA Redwood Shores) but still had a great time schmoozing and meeting lots and lots of game folk.

Way to go us!

New bike and cool links

This is my awesome new bike. I <3 it!

+++

Awesome online things you may not have seen yet (because you live in a cave):

Random web shorts

• Kitty Cat Dance
  
• Star Wars Rap (Special Edition)
  

Cartoon Network gems

• Metalocalypse
  
• The Venture Brothers
  
• Stroker & Hoop
  
• Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!
  

GDC 2007 coming up + more

In addition to participating in the WIGI conference at EA Redwood City campus, I will be at GDC at least one day during the week.

Lots to see, some sessions that sound good, and hopefully I will get to catch up with some old friends!

+++

I just signed up for the Lord of the Rings Online beta. As far as I can tell, I won't get to participate till March 30th. Having seen a sneak preview at E3 last year, I just can't wait!

Wii

I <3 my new Wii.
It rules.

Of the four games I purchased, Elebits is by far the best. Dynamic, fresh game play -- like Katamari Damacy + Pikmin = FUN!