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Look at the adsense ad^^ I've made 60 cents on it. Woohoo...

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NEW BLOG

I've finally switched to Wordpress, at the insistance of others (Lloyd and Chris from Flock, as well as Jake Dahn ). There were several things that were holding me back, mainly the lack of an import feature (it may have been there, but I didn't see it). So all of my posts are now over there. Plus, Wordpress is more open source than blogger, with much less downtime and connection issues. So, if you want to keep up, here's your destination:

http://danakin.wordpress.com

Enjoy the site.

Um, Yay?

Had my interview with Heineman today. It went well? Did it?
I think so. The first thing he asked was about my living arrangements here and in Chicago. So that must be a sign that they want to make sure I have a place to stay so I can work for them.
Next question: When will you have your ACI Cert? That is a very good question. I honestly don't know, and tell him this. I kinda screw up and say that I might not get it at all if someone didn't turn in their test. But that is the truth. However, the ACI certification is something that they were looking for. Here's how it breaks down...
New job site in Mount Pleasant (which the contract has not yet been pushed through...) will require substantial concrete placement, which requires a fair amount of testing. McDowell's of Midland could be subcontracted to test the concrete, but at $45/hr. With me, they can have me test the concrete for a relatively low price ($7-?? an hour, plus cost of new equipment) and save money in the long run.
So that's that. Kinda. Then, we have a conversation on my resume, which I'll admit is pretty lacking. I mention the things I should in it, I just simply do not have the experience others might. Finally, Dale, the guy who was interviewing me, explains that you need to be self motivated out in the field. I think he may have wanted a response, but in a way, he never gave me the opportunity to give one. So, not sure what to think of that.
I would say my chance of getting a job there is 50%. The interview was alright (much better than with Holland at Cabot, because I had no clue what the job really entailed and what the field was like), but it wasn't the greatest. I wish I had said some things, and wish I hadn't said others. Meh.

In any case, I'm hanging out in Midland a while longer. I'll be leaving once I hear from Heineman again, or Saturday, whichever comes first.

Oh, and I'm down to nine bucks. Had to buy a nice new black belt (I grabbed a brown one at home) and gasoline for my oldfangled automajigger. My debit card is coming in the mail tomorrow, though.

By the way:
PS3 will be sold in two versions: 20Gb stripped down version for $499 and a 60Gb full featured version for $599.
Controller is the same as any other controller for the PS2, except that there is no vibration, and it's wireless. Also, they stole Nintendo's idea of a motion sensing controller. Nintendo noticed this. "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," said one rep.
Speaking of the controller, there's still quite a bit of lag between the controller and the unit response. Maybe it was just the demo acting funky, but it looked unplayable for shooter games.
Graphically, not impressed. Same as the 360. Don't care if it is 1080p, it won't mean a thing for quite a while. You know, when the next nextgen systems come out, then 1080p might be a thing to look for. But right now it's like buying a turbocharged Geo Metro. Yeah it may be turbocharged, but you won't get to see the benefits of it. Well, bad analogy, but you understand.
Blu-Ray is not gonna catch on, in my opinion, Hd-DVD will, because it already exists, and there aren't that many problems with it. The technology is already out there, and it is a pretty universal format. Blu-Ray ain't got any of that going for it. Kinda like the UMD, or Universal Media Disc. Remind me how it's universal...'cause last I checked, being a proprietary medium for a single device does not make you universal...
There are a couple of neat looking games, though, for the PS3. One uses a new Eye Toy and collectible cards. Basically, you put these cards on a playing mat, and focus the Eye Toy on them, and the cards are read and spawn creatures that can fight each other. As you move the card, the creatures move too. Pretty neat, but a niche game for sure. Or an instant fan fave, can't tell yet. The other game I liked was called Eight Days, which looks like it plays like a movie. However, some of the in-game footage was definitely prerendered.
Worst part of the entire Sony E3 conference (aside from all the rhetoric that they promised they wouldn't use in the opening speech, or the blatant lieas about how good UMD sales are...) was the Gran Turismo HD demo. Don't get me wrong, the game looked stunning (except for the crowd, which looked pretty crappy when they ran). However, the demo went on and on, showing us tracks we have already seen. The last track, Grand Canyon, was a new one I believe. It was the only track where I saw any difference between GT3/4 and GTHD. However, the game was in a demo mode, not really a playable one, so again, it could have been prerendered.

I'm not a Sony fanboy at all, and while I do enjoy some Playstation exclusives (Katamari Damacy, We Heart Katamari), there isn't really reason to buy the PS3. Whoopdidoo that it has a cell processor. Whoopdidoo that it has a good graphics card. It's nothing innovative. And when Sony spokepeople laugh at the Nintedo Wii (pronounced "we" by some, "revolution" to others), it really makes you think that they are thinking 100% in the box. Same thing with the Xbox folks. I would rather have a 360 than a PS3 for many reasons, but really, the Wii is looking like the only thing that will be affordable, and the only system that is looking to change the way games are Experienced, not just played. For that, Nintendo gets my vote.

Sony= evil corporation, wants money from every citizen, and a rootkit on every computer
Microsoft = gigongous corporation, inaccessible, business plan is to make lots of money, and they have no problem with it, which creates problems for others
Nintendo = gamer corporation, one which focuses on the wants and needs of gamers, rather than money

Challenge

Got 52 bucks in my pocket. Has to last me until Saturday and it has to get me home to Naperville, and I have to eat and stuff still. May be leeching off others this week.

Been with Solo this weekend. Went to the race on Saturday with him, and he did alright. Placed 4th out of 6 in his heat, and 7th out of 14 in the feature. The winner in the Factory Stock feature had an illegal compression ratio which got him DQed and bumped Solo from 8th to 7th. Solo was running on a broken engine (pushrod got bent, another one got broken, and the studs that hold the rocker arms were cut [really odd]) and a bad hop in the rear end (a result of dirt and rust and stuff building up in the back right brake drum). As a result, yesterday we pulled the rear end off, and pulled the engine and transmission. Fun stuff.

Still waiting on a call for my Heineman interview...