NaughtySpawn

Archive for 2009

So here we are on the last day of the year. I remember how 2000 came in, and it wasn’t good (the fact that I remember it means it wasn’t good). You remember all that B.S. hype around the whole Y2K problem (that never actually turned into anything?), well I was one of the IT people at the ready in a call center should something happen. I had to start work at 5am, so clearly having a party with friends was out of the question, but most of them were at work with me anyway. Back in 2000 we had a lameass toast with cheap apple cider (since none of us could drink – drinking and troubleshooting just don’t mix) and then we all sat around in the building until we had to go to work. There was no point in going home since I would have to drive 30 minutes and face all manner of checkpoints and drunks, then do the same thing on the way back. So I sat there in my cube, in the cold (since the heat isn’t on after 7pm, thanks for remembering us), watching absolutely nothing happen for Y2K. In fact, I despise that stupid term and just writing it down has conjured up all sorts of bad memories. I think I just gave myself hives!

So that’s how the decade started, I’m hopeful that it will end on a more positive note. I have champagne (sparkling wine for the picky amongst you), I have port, I have merlot and I have Corona. So even if it is bad, there’s a pretty good chance I won’t remember But I hardly think it could be any worse. 2000 ranks up there as the worst New Years ever…

Just in case you don’t already have an AV solution, Buy.com is selling Norton Internet Security 2010 for $33.99 plus free shipping. I just bought my copy today. It’s a 3 PC license, so that’s only $10 bucks a PC and 50% off the regular price. Not bad kids!

Norton Internet Security 2010

It’s finally here! And it rocks!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Since everyone else is listing their favorite apps for 2009, I thought I would go ahead and throw in my .02 cents worth. There’s tons of good software out there, but this is the list of stuff I pretty much use everyday. I use these at home and at work.

Writing/Publishing
Microsoft OneNote 2007
Microsoft LiveWriter
Notepad++
Wordpress

I obviously use Wordpress on a daily basis for my blogs and Live Writer is one of the best tools for publishing articles. It might be a couple years old now but OneNote is one of the handiest apps I’ve used in a long time. Grabbing notes from the web and compiling research is a breeze with it. And Notepad++ is the best plain text editor out there.

Graphics
Corel Paint Shop Pro X2
Adobe Lightroom 2
Irfanview
FastStone Image Viewer

These are the graphics apps I use pretty much every day. Irfanview is my primary viewer and FastStone is a great folder viewer. For simple editing PSP is so easy to work with and Lightroom is amazing when it comes to working with photos.

Internet
Firefox 3
Digsby
Roboform
Internet Privacy Pro
Firebug
Web Developer Toolbar

Firefox is my choice in browser since it gets updated every few weeks versus the years it takes Microsoft to update IE. Digsby has become my choice for IM client since it connects to multiple services at one time and has tons of features. I really can’t live without Roboform these days. I now have hundreds of logins stored in it (and I have it on the iPod too!). Internet Privacy Pro cleans up all the cookies and left over temp files while Firebug and the Web Developer Toolbar let me debug web pages with ease. Everybody working on the web is using Firebug aren’t they?

Media
AnyDVD
CloneDVD
CloneDVDMobile
Handbrake

AnyDVD is the only way to get your DVDs on to your media center. CloneDVD just makes it all the easier. CloneDVDMobile gets DVDs onto my iPod with just a couple of clicks and Handbrake makes it easy to convert my AVIs to MP4s so I can play them on the iPod. Handbrake can convert from DVD to MP4, but my machine hasn’t had much luck with it.

Utilities
Windowblinds
ObjectDesktop
7-Zip
O&O DiskImage
O&O MediaRecovery

Windowblinds and ObjectDesktop offer tons of tools and enhancements to Windows. Make it look better, make apps easier to launch, tweak the settings and clean up the desktop. Some of it’s just for fun, but there is still a lot of power in the tools they make.

7-Zip is a great open source way to handle Zip and Rar files. For backups and file recovery, O&O makes some of the best tools out there. They’re small and fast and do a great job of imaging drives and finding lost/damaged files.

New Graphics Apps
DxO 6
Artisteer

These are some new apps I’m trying out this year. I got DxO at version 4 and thought it was pretty good, but seriously lacked some camera support. Version 6 seems to pick up the slack and offer lots of new cameras and bodies, as well as new features for adjusting pictures. I got it for a great price so I’m willing to give this new version another chance.

Artisteer is a new app I bought for making Wordpress themes. For the most part I have been very impressed with it. I made a bunch of themes for Halloween and even a couple for Christmas. Making themes is incredibly easy, but it does have a cookie cutter sort of feel to it. It’s a little on the expensive side, but it let’s me swap out themes whenever I want without having to spend hours searching the web. Plus, the code is easily modified so I can make adjustments where I see fit.

Like I said, this isn’t every software program I use, that list would be unruly, but these represent the apps I use all the time. When I build a new machine these are the first apps to go on. I’m sure some of you are using a few of them yourselves. If you’ve got a favorite app, let me know, I’m always on the lookout for useful utilities.

I mean damn, everybody has games on sale right now. Impulse is selling off tons of games at dirt cheap prices. And what Impulse isn’t selling, Steam seems to have in stock. I’ve bought dozens of games over the past couple of days and I have some kickass entertainment ahead of me. And if by chance the PC market isn’t your thing, then there are tons of games for the iPhone at dirt cheap prices. Lots of companies have dropped the price to $0.99. It’s a good time to be buying software.

Wow, it looks like Steam is putting their catalog on sale too. Some games are on sale for next day or so, some have a few more days. Games like Grand Theft Auto 4 is on sale for $7.49, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl for $1.99, Atari games 66% off, THQ games 50% off and tons of other sales. If you’re looking for games, Steam is the place to go.

Steam Holiday Sale

Looks like EA Mobile has put a slew of games on sale for the holiday. Even their new Need for Speed Drift has had a price drop.  I’m still waiting for Monopoly and Need for Speed Undercover to drop down to a reasonable price, but there’s still plenty to choose from the list below. Drift might be calling my name before too much longer.

If you’re looking for a cool Boggle style game then this is it. I grabbed this game the last time it went on sale for $0.99 and have played it for hours. Unlike other games you can set the board in different sizes up to 8×8. It’s a great game and lots of fun.

Word Shaker is a word searching game with a twist: words don’t have to be in a straight line. Your goal is to earn the most points by finding words in a grid. Each letter has a particular point value, and you earn bonuses by forming longer words.

If you get stuck, just shake your device to shuffle the letters!

Online leaderboards, compete with friends and people around the world.

Grid sizes from 4×4 to 8×8
1, 3, 5 and 10 minute timed games
Relaxing untimed games

Shake to shuffle your letters
Fast unlimited board generator, no waiting
Easy & smooth word circling (tap or slide)
Full report of found and missed words after a game
Option to email the report+board for review
Customize with many different themes
Option to turn off sounds and/or special effects

Personal high scores, track your progress
Daily, Weekly, Monthly and All Time Online leaderboards
Highest scoring words toplist, personal and global

Word Shaker for $0.99

Defender Chronicles manages to push itself above the crowded App Store Tower Defense genre with nice visuals, incredibly deep and balanced gameplay, and RPG elements. Defender Chronicles is a new perspective on TD games that you won’t want to miss.
App Description

A castle defense game with an involving fantasy story that has led to numerous great reviews!

WHAT THEY SAY
If a Tower Defense game had babies with Warcraft and Diablo 2, it would be called: Defender Chronicles. iTunes US Review

After 50 or so reviews, I have struck gold. My first 5 star rating goes to Defender Chronicles. The game reminds me of Puzzle Quest, when it comes to being addictive and getting stuck in my mind. I have played this for more than 20 hours already. 5 out of 5 iPhoneGameNetwork

I am level 222 and have spent over 100 hours since I bought the game last month and Im still playing! – Defender Chronicles forumer

Defender Chronicles Its better than Percocet. It pretty much got me through my 3-day appendectomy stay in the hospital last month and made me forget the pain the way Percocet couldnt. – Macenstein.com

FEATURES

Epic storyline with Voice Over
Over 20 different types of units with distinct abilities
Unlockable secrets from the Great Library
Hundreds of unique items for hero
5 difficulty levels and 5 game modes
Endless mode included
Unlimited gameplay with freestyle mode
Extremely high replayability value, time flies with each round of the game
OS 3.0 READY: iPod music library access, email a challenge from the game
Online leaderboards, achievements, friends, chat using OpenFeint.
High production value: 9 original music soundtracks, spatial 3D audio, voice-acting, hand-drawn graphics, intuitive controls, auto-save, auto-flip, fast-forward, vibrate, HQ graphics option

WHATS NEW in 1.4.1:

Easier Siria quest (up to Mythic)
Easier Helegom quest (up to Heroic)
Fixed crash issue with Meteor Shower
New advisor voices for Gardbridge and beyond
DC comic (available from the Great Library)
More tokens for subsequent quests (i.e. Tarnwood will gives more tokens than Silverkeep)
Classic, Extended and Classic Extended will give tokens and exp rewards
Extended and Classic Extended have been adjusted so they will get harder much faster
Items with effects that all are not scalable by grade and rank are much cheaper now
Items can get up to +10% to their attributes. Their prices also get some randomization, by -10% to +10%
Meteor Shower spell now cost less to cast (100 mana)
Vibrate after victory

Gameplay video
@ youtube.com/watch?v=IUUZGyUGLOw

Walkthroughs, tips & tricks
@ defenderchronicles.com/forums

Defender Chronicles – Legend of The Desert King

App Description

From the makers of 2XL Supercross comes the hottest, action-packed racing game to hit the iPhone and iPod Touch 2XL ATV Offroad

KEY FEATURES
- 16 unique ATV Supercross and Outdoor Nationals tracks
- 2 Freestyle levels
- Massive career mode and achievement system
- Freestyle mode with advanced scoring system
-Multiplayer mode with up to 5 opponents
-Race up to 8 opponents in single player mode
- 250cc two-stroke and 450cc four-stroke ATVs
- Choose from hundreds of ATV and rider skin combinations
- Auto-gas and invisible controls feature
- 1st and 3rd person camera views
- 8 preset control schemes including Responsive Tilt Steering
- Adjustable level of difficulty
- View profile statistics and leader boards at live.2xlgames.com

FREESTYLE
Interested in extreme sports? Catch some sick air and combo as many tricks as you can for big points with our innovative new stunt system. Learn to back flip while tricking for extra point multipliers.

NATIONALS TRACKS
See how far weve pushed the graphics envelope as you ride the new outdoor Nationals tracks. Tear up and down huge mountains with beautiful views of the horizon.

SUPERCROSS TRACKS
Experience the rhythm-based style of racing we made famous with classic games like Motocross Madness and ATV Offroad Fury.

CAREER
The all-new league system guides you through an ATV career where you can become the champion.

MULTIPLAYER RACING
The most intense mobile head-to-head experience created to date. Race other players over your local Wi-Fi network. *

ACHIEVEMENTS
The all-new achievement system challenges you to unlock 100% of the skill-based goals in the game. Compare your trophies with your friends online.

2XL LIVE STATISTICS & LEADERBOARDS
See how you stack up against the competition in your quest to be the best on wheels. Sign up for a free 2XL Live account and all your game statistics will be viewable at live.2xlgames.com.

2XL ATV Offroad