Beginning the Wild Rumpus

Hang on tight, because this is going to be a wild ride.

It didn't take me long after I started this blog to realize that my chosen blogging platform and host (chosen because of prior familiarity) were going to limit what I was able to do here.  Still, once the mistake was made, I had to ride it out.  It is not legal to transfer a domain name such as geekcentricity.com to a new host for a minimum of sixty days.  So I waited.  I bided my time.

The sixty days ended in early May.  But I had "irons in the fire."  I had "things going on."  The "timing just wasn't right."  I got my domain unlocked about a month ago.  Still, I waited.  I didn't want the down time on the site.  Also, I couldn't find a wordpress theme that I liked as much as I like the current theme here at good old Blogger.  Today, I found a theme.  It was difficult.  I really wanted to keep my current logo and color scheme.  So I couldn't use any old wordpress theme.  I had to find one that was either set-up for the current color scheme or could be customized to that color scheme.  My new theme is ready to roll.

Now that I'm giving more time and mental energy to my non-blog writing, the timing is right to make the move.  This post is to warn you that you may see some strange things here at times over the next few days.  Once or twice (hopefully not, but the possibility is there), you may not see anything related to Geekcentricity.  As soon as it smoothes out, I will get the word out through Twitter and Facebook.  I am keeping the same domain name, so once things come back up, you won't have to change anything rss feed or bookmark related.  Please wish me a smooth transfer.  This space should be back to the new normal within about 72 hours.  I'll see you then.

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Yes, I'm Propositioning You

It's been over a week since I last filled this space.  It's a shame too, because I was averaging an all-time high in page views per day and when I disappeared, that fell off a cliff.

Where have I been?

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you have some clue about how I've been filling my days without filling these screens with funny little characters that string together to form funny little words that mean something to us. If you don't follow me on either of those forms of social media, the briefest synopsis I can offer you is this: Work called.  I answered.  I'm going to spare you the details of most of it.  Let it suffice to say that the responsibilities of my day job temporarily far exceeded my time allotment for it.  It spilled over into everything else.  Those responsibilities grew like kudzu in the southern heat and I had to grab a machete and spend some time hacking it down.  Okay, so a machete and a flamethrower.  My writing related activities have been almost non-existent for the past week.  My sleeping related activities even suffered drastic cuts.  I can't help it.  I need my job and the money it provides us to almost-but-not-quite meet basic necessities every month.  But I'm back in the writer's saddle again.

One of the activities that forced me to unplug from the matrix for a bit was a camping trip.  Yes, the outdoor kind.  With tents.  And fire.  Ooooh, pretty colors.  Wait, what?  Sorry.  So, I went camping.  In a tent.   On the beach.  On the hottest day of the year so far in coastal North Carolina.  Believe me, it was definitely not by choice.  It was a work thing.  It was organized as a stress release by and for my colleagues and I.  It wasn't bad.  Compared to taking a knife in the eyeball.  It was hot.  There were lots of small biting insects that seemed to know how to squeeze through the netting on my tent.  There were a lot of people drinking tremendous quantities of alcoholic beverages (THIS is phenomenal with juice).  Did I mention that it was hot?

The whole trip did remind me that my wife and I used to go camping.  When we were younger, we'd load the tent into our van and drive to the mountains of North or South Carolina and spend a night or three.  Now, we've been thinking that we should do that again.  Except, our giant two room plus screened porch extremely expensive cabin tent is mysteriously missing its poles.  And an air conditioning unit.  Seriously, I can't figure out what happened to those poles.  I had to borrow a tent for the trip.

When I returned to the real world and plugged back into the matrix, I was reminded by a friend on Twitter that I had missed the release of some phone that came out last week.

For those of you who are regular readers, if any of you are left, you remember that I wrote some flash fiction for a couple of contests over the last few weeks.  I've decided that I'm going to be posting more fiction in the near future.  I am going to have to decide first what is the most appropriate venue for said fiction, but I will be sharing more of my writing with you as soon as I figure it out.

Here are my three options:

1. Continue posting fiction here.  This allows it to be seen by a larger number of people who visit here, but tends to crowd out the other content (news about that will be later in this post).
2. Start a fiction blog.  This option allows me to get a clean start for a blog, but will require setup and design work, as well as the marketing work to get people to go there and read.  I'm not sure I have the time for that effort.
3. Start an online fiction magazine/community/blog beast.  This is my favorite option.  If I could find a few other aspiring writers who want to share writing duties on a fiction blog/online magazine, it would be a great opportunity (I think) to get short fiction out on the web for people to read and critique.  It might also give some other new writers a chance to get some exposure and confidence.  I wouldn't mind designing a wordpress (NOT Blogger) site to host this.  I just don't have the money for the hosting or domain name right now.  The basic premise would be that a group of writers, myself included, would each retain administrative access to the site and each of us would post one piece of short fiction (typically 1,000 words or less - but if it runs long, hey it would be our site, damn it!) each week (serial works are also acceptable).  We would also invite others to post their original works to the blog (as guest writers), showcasing original talent.  I'm not attached to setting up/maintaining this, so if someone else has a burning desire to do that, it's fine, but I'd be more than happy to do it, allowing others to just be responsible for their writing.

Please give me feedback on the above ideas.  If you are interested in #3, please let me know!

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I also have a proposal to throw out into the void of cyberspace regarding this wonderful place I call Geekcentricity.  I think that the wide variety of interests and pursuits that are geekcentric offer an excellent opportunity to cover more aspects of geekdom than I can possibly cover alone with my interests and limited time (remember, I'm in the "Learn My Craft" phase of my very own Operation: Awesome, so I need to have time to write other projects - my game, The Broken Veil, has suffered a horrible lack of attention of late). 

With this in mind, I am initiating my own contest. More like an open call.  Here's the deal: If you have an interest in some geekcentric topic (video games - console/pc/mmo/whatever, board games, ccg's, pen & paper rpg's, photography, technology - phone/computer/whatever, geek-related pop culture, whatever - the possibilities are staggering) and a desire to share your knowledge/passion/expertise with the wider world, then I have an opportunity for you!  Here's what I need:

1. Comment on this post and tell me that you would like to write for Geekcentricity (it is totally voluntary for you, just like it is for me - I have no money to pay anyone). 
2. In your comment, include the type(s) of topic(s) you are interested in writing about.

That's all!  I will contact you and we will decide on a topic and when the post will be finished and ready for posting.  I will retain editorial control (but will let you know in advance about any major revisions) and will set up access for you to post your content here as a guest blogger.  If it works out and you enjoy it, then we can talk about continuing the process, but writing a single post in no way obligates you to any long term commitments.  The way I see it, if you're interested in geeky stuff and enjoy writing, this gives you the opportunity to share that with others without having the responsibility of coming up with daily content or dealing with the setup, marketing or maintenance of your own blog.  It also helps Geekcentricity gain more content and the perspective of fresh minds and voices.  Have a video game that you loved/hated?  Have an rpg you want to pimp?  Got a book you want to tell people about?  Cool iPhone app whose features you want to share?  Awesome new video card coming out that you think would be perfect for gaming?  Want to share the joys and trials of raising a little geek in today's world?  All of those things and more would be perfect!  What do you think?  Is anyone interested?

Okay, there are some things I need your feedback on peeps!  Help me out here.  Drop me some comments.  I'm waiting with bated breath.  Or at least a trickle of drool on my lip.

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Pirate Busting - German Style!

Over the past few years, at one time or another, my wife and I have both had the luxury of using laptops provided by our employers.  We didn't have a wireless internet connection at home, but thanks to the wonder of unsecured wireless, we had access to nearly a half-dozen networks from our very own home.  That's right neighbors.  That was me sucking up your bandwidth.  That was me making your internet run as slowly as a one-legged mouse on a cold day.  Actually, one of my neighbors even gave me his password and his permission to log on to his network whenever I wanted.  Oh, the fun I could've had if I were a slimier person.

Now, we have a wireless router in the house, but no laptop.  We only use the wireless for my iPhone and my wife's Nintendo DSi.  We also have it secured.

Wait!  That's hypocrisy!

Okay.  I agree.  It is hypocrisy.  But it's just too risky to have my network unsecured.  Only idiots would leave their wireless network so open to intrusion and too bandwidth-suckers like myself.  Well, idiots and extremely nice, wonderful people like you, neighbors (Neighbors - I was definitely not calling you idiots.  DO NOT firebomb my house.).

Well, it turns out that there's even more risk to leaving your network unsecured than we thought.  In a ruling by Germany's highest criminal court, it was found that owners of personal wireless networks that are unsecured can be held liable for the actions of people who are accessing your network.  Even if they are accessing it without your knowledge.  Even if they are accessing it while you are out of town on vacation.

That's right.  Germany's highest court ruled against the owner of an unsecured personal wireless network that was used by a third-party to download illegal music files while they were out of town on vacation.  The third-party then shared the illegal music on a file sharing site, again using the unsecured network of his unsuspecting neighbor.

The owners of the unsecured network were fined the equivalent of $126 for failing to adequately secure their wireless connection against "the danger of unauthorized third parties abusing it to commit copyright violation" (source: MSNBC).  On a side note, I hope nobody in your neighborhood has any weird, illegal fetishes that they want to use your wireless network to download pictures of.

It is an interesting ruling considering all of the piracy conversation I've been reading online lately.  Some of the best discussions are in the two posts (one & two) and their comments at Chuck Wendig's Terrible Minds blog, and David Hill's response over at Machine Age Productions.  Go, read them.  Let me (and them) know what you think.

Personally, I think the German court is going about the piracy issue in the wrong way.  Their approach is like tackling the urban drug problem by arresting the owners of convenience stores on street corners where low-level drug dealers  choose to sell their product.  Asinine.  Agree?  Disagree?

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Sheppard's Pie

Have you ever eaten shepherd's pie?  Unfortunately, I have.  From what I can tell, it's an unappetizing mish-mash of whatever happens to be leftover from previous meals.  At least it was when I was eating in school cafeterias.  Which wasn't all that long ago.  This post is the shepherd's pie of Geekcentricity.  These are odds and ends.  Leftovers that I covered in mashed potatoes and served up for your eating... enjoyment?  Or tolerance.  Yes, I know that some of you may like shepherd's pie.  Yes, I also know that I spelled it wrong in the title.  I promise I intended to spell it that way.  You'll understand in a few paragraphs.  Now, open wide...

I'm glad to see that things have picked up around here a little bit.  There are a few discussions that have originated on some of my most recent posts.  That gives me a clue about what you, my readers, find interesting.  Or at least care enough to comment on.  Which is actually easier to do now that I fixed my comment form.  Apparently the comment form was a victim of my redesign.  Anyway, it's all better now, so comment away.

Here are the posts that have been generating some comments:

• Laying the Cornerstone of Concept - Building an RPG, pt. 1:  The post in which I laid out the concept for a project that has been beckoning to me for a long time.
• Fear Itself:  A look at what scares us and why.  It is really more thoughts for the rpg I'm working on.

What those two seem to have in common is that they are the two posts about the survival horror rpg I'm working on.  With that in mind, look for the next installment sometime tomorrow.

I am now the proud owner of a shiny new (okay, so I've had it for a few weeks) Google Page Rank (cue the heavenly chorus of "Aaaahs").  It's only a "1" and I know it really means nothing at all, but still.  It's good to know that the Matrix has taken note of my existence.  Speaking of which, people are starting to come here from search engines.  The number one search term that people have used to get to my site?  Of course.  It's obviously "i4e for iPhone."  Something I've never written about.  Until now.  Here's a link to at least make your visit somewhat worthwhile.  I guess this means it'll continue to be my top search term.  Unless it get taken over by the ever popular "mi llamo es bob brent spiner."  At least I included Brent Spiner in my Geekcentric Guide to Twitter.  By the way, Mr. Bob Q. Googlesearcher, it should be "me llamo es bob."  I'm not sure why.  Actually, I know exactly why.  It should be that way because my wife said it should be that way and she's the Spanish speaker in the family.

Finally, I want to share another link that has been brought to me by the Great and Powerful Twitter.  Someone I should have included in my guide is Stephen Lea Sheppard.  You probably have no idea who that is.  Unless you've seen the excellent but short lived television show Freaks & Geeks.  Stephen played Harris Trinsky.  That's the guy who was Dungeon Master for the geeks on the show.  Yes, he's really a gamer.  He has actually written some gaming materials.  He also reviews video games.  I had the good fortune of participating in some great conversations with Stephen on the rec.games.frp.dnd newsgroup many years ago.  

Wait... I was saying something about a link...  Right?  Okay, right.

So, Stephen tweeted a link to the blog post he wrote today.  It involves something near and dear to my heart... horror gaming!  It turns out that Stephen is a fan of Dead Space, one of my favorite video games.  He too has read the interview regarding the upcoming Dead Space 2. I was disappointed to learn that Dead Space 2 would be more of an action game than a survival horror game.  Except that it won't be.  Yet, it will be.  Now I'm confused.  It will be everything!  It slices!  It Dices!  You can even make julienne fries with it while cutting through a tin can!!!  What???  I'll let you read the conflicting statements for yourself.  Visceral says they want to empower the protagonist.  But Stephen brings up an excellent point about horror gaming:

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't horror traditionally entail giving the audience the impression of a disempowered protagonist?"

That's exactly what I've been thinking since I first watched the interviews.  I agree.  That also sets the stage for tomorrow's (actually, now later today's) post.

EDIT:  Twitter brings me yet another example of a horror game being written with the "characters as ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances" theme in mind.  The game is Razed, by Will Hindmarch.  Today, he tweeted a link to his latest design diary about the game.  That entry contains a quote I'd like to use here:

"This creates a hybrid environment where the familiar is rendered strange, yet the people who inhabit it are immediately understandable. They are us. My goal is to make Razed about ordinary people rendered extraordinary by their circumstances."

That's Once again, that's exactly what my thoughts are about the game I'm working on.  The world is going to be strange and unfamiliar, so I want the characters to be easy to identify with and familiar.

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A Geekcentric Guide to Twitter

Since I started using Twitter again about a month ago, a bunch of people (and when I say a bunch, I mean a staggering 3 or 4 people at least) have been asking me questions about it.  After I got past the obvious ones, like "Why in hell are your tweets so boring?" I actually got down to some good questions about the nuts and bolts of using Twitter.

I actually had a Twitter account a few years ago and found it incredibly annoying and practically useless.  First, the format as a pain in the ass.  I had to say something meaningful in how many characters?  To quote a friend of mine (bitemeNsuckit - you should follow her, she's wicked funny and is going to be a great Twit once she gets used to it) who just joined Twitter, "I have more characters than that in my head."  My other huge failing was not following the right people.  "Wait" you say, "There are 'wrong' people to follow?"  Yes.  There are wrong people to follow.  There are also wrong reasons to follow people.  The person who lays out some of those wrong reasons better than just about anybody else is Wil Wheaton.  He also mentions another of the dangers I ran into in my first Twitter-go-round.  I had the updates of everyone I was following sent to my cell phone as text messages.  My cell phone battery had an average daily life of about 3 minutes.  Actually, it was about 4 hours, but you get the idea.  So, my first venture as a Twit was doomed to fail.  I stopped using it after only a few weeks.

This is where I take one for the team.  If you've never used Twitter, or barely used it and haven't really been able to "get into it," then LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, BOYS AND GIRLS, STEP RIGHT UP and learn from my failures (and my successes).  I hereby present to you...

A GEEKCENTRIC GUIDE TO TWITTER

First off, if you have an Android, Blackberry or iPhone (my Tweapon of choice), you should find a good app that delivers your tweets not just to Twitter, but also to Facebook or whatever social networking platform you use.  I use TweetDeck and love it.  TweetDeck isn't perfect, for examply, it makes it a bit difficult to quickly look up your list of followers or followees.  So, I also have Twitteriffic on my phone for circumstances when I want to do something that TweetDeck doesn't do well.  For anything else, I just use the Twitter site.

As for the 140 character limit for each of your tweets, think of it as learning to write more concisely.  Challenge yourself to say things creatively, but please... PLEASE for the love of all that is holy, don't use so many abbreviations and/or "leetspeak" (if you don't know what that is, then I revoke your Geek credentials) that your tweets require a translator to read.  Also, you should use a link shortener to make your links fit into your tweets without using up all of your 140 characters.

That said, there are some necessary abbreviations, commands and acronyms you should learn.  Here are what I consider the bare minimum:

• @ - This directs your tweet "at" someone.
• RT - retweet.  If you like something that someone else tweeted, then by all means share it with your followers.  Just please remember to give credit where credit is due and attribute it to the original Twit.  The best way to do this is to preface it with RT @[original poster's name here].  That way, the original author knows that you found value or humor in what they tweeted and, most importantly, attributes their intellectual property to them.
• D or DM - direct message.  This is a private message that only you and the intended recipient receive.
• # - hash tag.  This is a meta tag used to group tweets about similar topics.  For example, you could hashtag any tweets about this blog as #geekcentricity.
• #FF - Follow Friday.  This is a Twitter meme where Twits share people that they enjoy following with others.  Fridays are a great time to recommend some of your favorite Twitterers to other people.

That leaves the biggest question of all:  Who am I supposed to follow on this thing?  This single question can make or break your Twitter experience.  The short answer is to find people you are interested in and follow them.  

If you're into shallow celebrities, then by all means follow Britney Spears,  Kim Kardashian, or Lady Gaga.  If that's your thing, then go right ahead.  I won't be joining you.

Since this is the Geek's Guide to Twitter, here are some suggestions of people for you to follow (in no order):

• Wil Wheaton - He's more than the guy who played Wesley Crusher and Gordy LaChance.  Actually, before you follow him, you should read why it will disappoint you. 
• Larry Hryb - XBox Live's Major Nelson.
• Grant Imahara - from Mythbusters.
• Kevin Smith - Yep, THAT Kevin Smith.
• John Kovalic - The cartoonist who writes/draws Dork Tower.
• Levar Burton - Another ST: TNG alum.
• Bill Amend - Writes/draws Fox Trot.
• Berin Kinsman - RPG blogger.
• Jane McGonigal - Game designer.
• Brent Spiner - Yet another ST: TNG alum.
• Neil Gaiman - Author.
• Stan Lee - Comic book genius.
• William Shatner - Actor from the original Star Trek.
• Leonard Nimoy - Another Star Trek cast member.
• Zachary Quinto - Different actor, different Star Trek.
• Sheldon Cooper - From Big Bang Theory.  Yes, he is a fictional character, but his tweets are hilarious.
• Johnn Four - From RoleplayingTips.com
• Steve Jackson Games - Venerable game company.
• Robin Laws - Gaming author.
• Gameplaywright - A gaming/writing site.
• Todd McFarlane - If you own action figures based on comic books, he probably designed them.
• Monte Cook - Writer, game designer.
• Jim Butcher - Author of the Dresden Files novels.

If you have any other Geekcentric names to add to this list, please let me know and I will edit the list.  My disclaimer here is that I don't follow all of the people above because I would suffer information overload and my brain would explode, spewing flaming chunks of my gray matter around for someone to clean up.  Also, there are other Geekcentric Twitterers that I follow, but I won't list them here without their permission, in order to save them from being flooded with followers.  If you really want to know who I follow, feel free to check in on me and follow my tweets.

I hope this helps you neophyte GeekTwits... or is that Tweeks?  If you have any more Twitter related questions, please ask.  In the near future, look for a Geekcentric Blog Reader, with some blogs I follow.  Until then, you can find many of them on the right sidebar.  Also, pt. 2 of my RPG building series is on tap soon.

I'll see you around the Twitterverse, my fellow Tweeks.  Yes, Twitterverse sounds as bad as Blogosphere.  Later.

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Ding! Another Level In Blog Posting

Happy Tax Day to all you Epic Procrastinators out there!  Me?  I would never wait until the last minute to do something so incredibly important...

I just finished filing my taxes.  Hey, it's not last minute.  I had until midnight.  That leaves me at least 14 hours ahead of the game.  So, I win.  I level up in Tax: The Frustration.  Wait... They don't give XP for that sort of thing?  Well, they should.

Actually, in the "If Life Were More Like Games" category (which would sure help Jane McGonigal realize her dreams for gamer productivity in society), I think more of our gadgets should be like my GPS.

My wife bought me a GPS for Christmas this past year.  Since, like all geeks, I have always been fascinated with technology of pretty much any kind (she bought me a weather station a few years ago), she thought this would be a great gift.  It was.  I use it every day.  I even have it running when I drive to work, a route which I'm pretty sure I could drive in my sleep, or to the grocery store two miles from my house.  Really, who knows when I might need to detour around a loose herd of water buffaloes that wandered into the road or something.  For that, the GPS would come in really handy.

A few months ago, we went to Florida in a rental truck to clean out my mother-in-law's house (she passed away last year as a part of our "2009: The Year From Hell" celebration).  We made a little nest in back for the dog (which he never used, as he wanted to see everything, so he stayed up front, wore sunglasses, and slept between the seats) and plugged in the trusty GPS for the 500+ mile trip.  Of course, the trip was one we've made hundreds of times over the past 20 years or so, but I had never used the GPS to plug in an actual route and have it direct me from the mythical point A to the equally legendary point B.  So, we plugged in the GPS and off we went.

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Super Size It! A Tale of Electronic Devices and Theme Parks

This seems to be the week for larger versions of popular technology.

This past Sunday, Nintendo launched the DSi XL, an oversize version of the DSi.  It has exactly the same features as the DSi and exactly the same look, just... bigger.

Today is the launch of the iPhone XL, also known as the iPad (except you can't make calls with it, so I guess it's more like an oversize iPod Touch).  Is it a giant iPod or is it a netbook-sized tablet PC?  I am firmly in the giant iPod camp.  It is definitely not a technological feminine hygiene product (though I tried to say those last three words once and it came out as "Feminine Hygiene Project" which I still think would be the coolest band name ever).

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Finally... An Actual Post About HDR Photography

Not that you were eagerly awaiting it, but on a couple of different occasions I've tried to write about my interest in, and the general awesomeness of, HDR photography.  During the first attempt, I was beaten over the head with a broken PS3.  The second time, the great owl god swooped in and pecked my eyes out as punishment for the murder of one of his subjects.

Or, I just got sidetracked.

This time, in honor of April Fools' Day (which I abhor), I present you with something serious.  Oh, the irony...

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"The Play's the Thing"

I love toys.


It's true.  I never really grew out of playing with toys... or accumulating them.  I'm pretty sure that almost every geek in the world can identify with my condition.  We're a bunch of postmodern Peter Pans and if growing up meant that it would be beneath our dignity to collect or play with toys, then we would just refuse to grow up.

"Where does he get those wonderful toys."
                     - The Joker, Batman (1989)

Except that we did grow up.  We just kept our toys.  We also replaced them with newer, flashier, more expensive toys.  We traded in our toy cars for real cars filled with more toys, like GPS systems, satellite radio, integrated hands-free communication, and docking stations for our iPhones.  Some of us have traded in the bicycles of our youth for Harley-Davidson motorcycles (also with lots of onboard gadgets).  We buy (or build) the best computers we can find.  We graduated from our NES or N64 to a Playstation 3 or an XBox 360.  We are suckers for the latest and greatest gadgetry.  As soon as we find out about that new game or gadget is being released, we reserve it.  We stand in line at midnight to be among the first to own it (or some of us wait until the second or third generation is released and all of the bugs are fixed).  I'm not ashamed of this.  I revel in it.  I love the feeling of having a new toy and the anticipation I feel as I bring it home to set-up, plug in, or slip into my drive tray.  Go ahead, admit it.  You love it too.

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