Temple of Elemental Evil

these are some bugs ive found playing toee with patch 3.

- pc ranger spells arent listed. even when they are available (supposedly).
- druid spells appear out of place at the radial menu.
- mage sorc spells can display duplicates at the radial menu.
- gems carried by player characters are withheld.
- the game thinks its owned by non player characters.
- some scenes bog my machine down. or probably its my video card
- how does one use the rope of entanglement in the game?
- what about multiple wands?
- the cleric domain powers are stuck at level one.

i have tried searching for the answers from google. and it appears like im not the only one looking. ToEE is a particularly nice game esp for those familiar with the dungeons and dragons the old RPG game. its too bad though that its rigged to the rim with bugs. i dont know how it fared in the market. but i hope it did well. otherwise it would have been for nothing.

Rating: 3 of 5 ***
For effort and attempt

Podcasts, IP TV, and Leoville

There's a revolution going on in broadcast entertainment these days. I believe we're seeing a shift from conventional TV, radio, and cable to a form of grassroots user broadcasting via the web. Younger people these days trend towards less TV, and more internet. If you fall asleep, you'll miss it. A lot of my favorite programming I get directly from the web. And they're all freely produced and distributed. Here's a list of some of the good stuff that's available.

1. Podcasts
Radio is alive and well. Podcasts are similar to recorded radio programs that you can download and listen to. The best and most popular podcast is TWiT - This Week in Tech, hosted by former TechTV personalities Leo Laporte, Patrick Norton and others. Other good ones you can get are Ebert & Roeper Movie Reviews, Leo's own weekend tech radio show on KFI, and several NPR news shows. You can save a bunch of them on your portable mp3 player and listen to them while taking the bus to work, or on long plane flights.

2. Online Tech Shows
Once upon a time, there was this channel called TechTV that was all about computers and technology. Alas, it was too good to be true as the channel was sold and broken up last year. But good things that die eventually come back in another form. Lately there has been a renaissance in tech-oriented shows that you can now download for free over the web. Check out Digital Life TV, NerdTV, among others. These hardworking folks sacrifice their time and energy to produce quality programming for the rest of us who's tired of the lowest common denominator programs they show on cable. I love these guys.

3. Bittorrent Downloads
Technically, these are TV programs that people record as video files and make them downloadable from the web. Missed an episode of The Simpsons? Living in an area where they don't show your favorite show? No problem, with some luck you can download your favorite shows using the revolutionary Bittorrent utility. Bittorrent works by sharing the bandwidth among all the users downloading the file. It is the great equalizer and can help promote a good show that's not widely available. If I'm living in a country where the Canadian-produced Call for Help isn't available, I can still download and watch it through Bittorrent. I can even envision a future where TV programs are distributed through the web, foregoing cable and network TV entirely. Wouldn't that be great? At least until they spoil it with commercials.

I find the story of the former TechTV personalities, particularly everyone's pal, Leo Laporte very interesting. This guy is an icon in the industry. He makes complicated tech topics easy to understand. And this guy genuinely loves what he's doing. I'm amazed at his energy level and how he has the time to do so many different projects.

His comeback story is amazing. Despite being one of the most loved TV personalities, his program Call For Help was canceled and he was eventually fired after Comcast acquired TechTV. I'm thinking the reason was because Comcast wanted to focus more on game-oriented shows, and dumb down the programming to have more mass appeal. The result was a whole channel, G4TV focused on the lowest common denominator audience composed of gaming/low attention span teenagers. While all this was going on, Leo had to move the Call For Help show to Canada and record a weekend radio program in LA, in effect being exiled from his regular US audience. The reason I like this story is because it proves you can't put a good man down. Just this past month, G4 bought the rights to show the Canadian version of Call For Help in the US. Apparently, some executives there felt they needed Leo back. Ahhh... sweet vindication. I'm watching Call For Help and it is a breath of fresh air. We now have at least one entertaining and intelligent tech show on cable. And I actually learn something new in every episode. I have no doubt in the future we will eventually see Leo back in a US-produced show. When it happens, the whole tech world will welcome him back.

kampanerang kuba

[english] one if not the hottest actress in the philippines today - the humpback bell ringer. it seems like there is a resurgence of interest towards true halfbreeds. not a few years has passed, we observe a decline especially since the advent of korean and japanese tv shows and music. i told myself once. this is it! the reign of mestizas is over. since anybody can feign hair and even skin color which in the beginning were sole trademarks. what made it so special was it was so rare. anne curtis is akin to mestiza actresses like susan roces, nida blanca, and rosa rosal. until i saw how hot she was in an episode (every night at channel 2) of the humpback bell ringer. (i might have sounded like a pedo hehehe but i truly admire her from a different standpoint). my cable was disconnected. i was late in payment. i am left with channel 2, 7, televised radio program - radio ng bayan, and thank the universe for channel 23. there are two things which i hate about the show. (1) i dont see how the catholic church got involved. it seemed like there is an agenda behind it. and there is. its instant promotion of the religion (2) the kids who mostly comprise the audience are taught to judge by appearance rather than by merit. this show teaches how to be shallow. reinforcing the wrong habit. how we interact with people has got something to do wether or not they are good looking.

Rating: 2 of 5 **
Anne Curtis is hot ..

The Best PC Games of All Time

OK, it's actually my personal favorite PC games of all time. All the ones I've enjoyed playing the most from childhood to adulthood. Here are the top twelve:

12. Kingdom of Kroz
Probably one of the most addictive games of all time. It showcased what you could do with ASCII text graphics. The whole game was in text mode. You control your little ascii character, the smily face (ASCII '001' I believe), and go through the dungeons solving puzzles and avoiding traps. I'd like to play this again.

11. Leisure Suit Larry III
Great soundtrack for this one. Every single scene had background music. I used this game to showcase the capabilities of my new Adlib sound card. It was during this time that graphics, music, and story were starting to be combined in a single gameplaying experience. This was one of the funnier Larry games made and my favorite of the series.

10. Hero's Quest (aka Quest for Glory I)
Sierra created this unique adventure/RPG. Good story and you can finish the game in many different ways depending on whether you play as a Fighter, Magic User, or Thief. I played this as a Thief and I robbed houses, joined the Thieves' Guild, and sneaked past enemies instead of fighting them. Pure fun.

9. The Sims
Game Designer Will Wright creates another fun hit game. In The Sims, you control one character's life. You have to eat, sleep, clean the house, get a job, get some recreation, and even invite other Sim characters over for dinner. Very addictive game. My character, a single computer programmer, eventually became Corporate Overlord, bought the most expensive mansion available in the game, and scored with my female neighbor KimP (who was actually my brother's character). Now if only it was real life...

8. Space Quest IV
I love Roger Wilco in Space Quest and I consider this to be the darkest one in the series. Very interesting time travel storyline. Roger starts out in a post nuclear holocaust world which is a glimpse of the future "Space Quest XII". He then travels through past and future Space Quest games, even making an appearance in Space Quest I with old school EGA graphics where aliens make fun of you for being in VGA. I was surprisingly moved by the unexpected dramatic ending, good one Sierra.

7. Lakers versus Celtics (aka 'bball')
This game was huge back in college. My friends and I would play bball every chance we got. It was pretty revolutionary at the time, being the first 5-on-5 basketball game for the PC. Kareem was the most unique player because he had his unblockable sky hook. Worthy and Bird had a unique look too so you could distinguish them on the court. But the rest of the players looked and played very similar. For instance, Michael Jordan had no special skills because this was the 80's and the focus were on the Lakers and Celtics. Hector once beat me with a last second three point shot from the backcourt! Lots of good memories with this one.

6. Space Quest III
The music on this one was unbelievable, particularly the opening music and Fester's Theme. It was also the first (and only?) Space Quest game with a nonlinear map, you could go to any of the two planets and Monolith Burger after you escape the janitor ship. Monolith Burger was my favorite section of the game, you can hang out, order and eat food. Just avoid the Big Belcher combo unless you want to see Roger throw up.

5. King's Quest III
Storyline: An evil wizard, a wicket pet cat, and a servant boy unaware of his true identity. This had me hooked from the very beginning. In the first part, you have to escape the clutches of Mannanan the Wizard. In the second part, you have to find a way back to Daventry. And in the last part, rescue the princess, restore order to the kingdom and uncover your real identity. Fantastic story and my favorite Sierra game of all time.

4. Phantasie
A simple and easy to play party-based RPG game. Free the land from the Black Knights and the Evil Nicodemus. Retrieve the rings from the dungeon inhabited by J.R.R. Trollkin. Assemble your party, fight monsters, level up your characters. But wait, the story is actually quite good. I've played several RPGs since, but none were as good or as fun as this one. Phantasie III was good too. And it's too bad they never ported Phantasie II to the PC.

3. Star Control 2
This was a fantastic epic game that blew me away. You were born away from earth, returning to find it is now in control of the Ur-Quan Overlords. So you and your crew travel around the galaxy, fighting and befriending different alien races, expanding your fleet until you are eventually strong enough to defeat the Ur-Quan Masters. Along the way you will unravel the massive history of the galaxy races. You'll learn how the Ur-Quan Kzer-Za and Kohr-Ah are destined to be locked in a titanic civil war which will result in the destruction of the known galaxy. This simply put is the best story ever put in a game. Finishing it gave me the most satisfying sense of accomplishment I've ever had on the PC.

2. SimCity 2000
You're the Mayor of a city. Your task is to design and build roads, schools, power plants, industrial, commercial, and residential zones, and do it in a way to keep the residents happy. It's up to you what you want your city to be like. You can design it to be a huge Metropolis filled with pollution or crime, or you may want a smaller one with fewer jobs and residents. This is a wonderful open-ended game where you have to deal with many decisions that will affect your city. Raise taxes? Lower taxes? More schools and museums? Build a new stadium? Legalize gambling? Build a new highway? It's tough too because there are so many tradeoffs and you need to keep your city economically viable. I was hugely addicted to this, foregoing sleep and food just to make my city a little better.

1. Civilization
Simply put, the best computer game of all time. More addictive than heroin or crack. Spans the entire history of man. Start at 4000 BC with a wandering tribe. Discover technologies like The Wheel, and The Alphabet. Build up your armies and upgrade them as you get better military knowledge. Encounter rival tribes and nations. Engage them in diplomacy or go to war, it's up to you. Play through to the middle ages, industrial revolution, up to the present time where you can develop nuclear weapons and even use them against your enemies (resulting in accelerated global warming). Then you can even build a spaceship and send it to Alpha Centauri. Sid Meier remains as one of the greatest game designers ever. The amount of decisions and possibilities you have in this game is mind blowing. You can play this thousands of times without getting tired of it. Many nights in the past, I've seen the sun rise while playing 'just one more turn'.

The last game I got into was The Sims back in 2002. The year before, I got interested in Black and White, which had its flaws, but a very unique experience. The last original PC game idea I believe was Black and White. Nowadays the industry is littered with First Person Shooters, Real-time strategy (warcraft, etc.), and MMORPGS. I notice a lack of innovation. Understandably, game development companies want to play it safe and ship products they are sure to sell, rather than gamble with new ideas.

There is some good news, Peter Molyneux (creator of Black and White) plans to release a new original game called 'The Movies' where you control a movie studio. Civilization 4 is also due out late this year. I'm also threshing out ideas for a new simple and easy RPG that I can code in my spare time. Happy playing!

Luther

luther. martin luther was a brillant academic. a roman catholic monk who lived early in the 16th century. he was responsible for starting the reformation movement. majority of his supporters were peasants but there were nobles, who were simple minded, perhaps not fully understanding, fell into the mob, into a bloody massacre of catholics. into a revolution. we filipinoes can not lay claim to inventing people power. or mob rule after all. i find that the reformation has many parallels to jose rizals cause of reformation (rather than revolution).

the manipulation was earlier demonstrated by the church itself by intimidation (the inquisition was upheld), reinforced by superstitions. the sale of indulgences, pilgrimages, granted powers of holy relics, a saint for each ailment.

martin was also against church policy disallowing suicide victims to be buried in hallowed ground, never to be granted the last rites inside the church. he believed that judgement lies with jesus alone. not to the beureaucrats who ran the church.

however, martin was not perfect. he is known to have had episodes of talking with unseen spirits. he joined the brotherhood because he thought god ordered him to, during a thunderstorm. he also believed that there is salvation outside the roman church. refering to the church which followed the greek tradition. but not outside faith in jesus. in other words, he believes in condemning all peoples who werent christian (by virtue of having not heard of jesus at all, people are to spend eternity in hell). makes sense?

lastly, martin translated the bible to german. which allowed the common folk to read, understand, and finally reinterpret it. this made the roman catholic church heirarchy furious because they claimed sole authority. we know how this ended. these days there are numerous interpretations. each carefully translated to suit an agenda against women, homosexuals, other religions and minorities.

not until the second vatican council (300 years later), did the roman catholic church attempted to make any improvements in its policies. and even any attempt to reconcile with the offshoot churches. even now as we speak, the church encourages graven images, praying to saints, relics, and making big business out of it. today, religion is undoubtedly one of the most profit making enterprises in the world.

rating 3 of 5 ***
very inspirational

Frente! - Labour of Love EP

This little known, not-so-widely available release completes my Frente collection. This CD is one of the best kept secrets ever, an overlooked gem.

Both hits, 'Labour of Love' and 'Bizarre Love Triangle' are here. You probably already remember those.

Follow those with the songs 'Testimony', 'Not Given Lightly', and my personal fave in this compilation 'Paper, Bullets and Walls'. Each tune showcases Angie Hart's remarkable singing voice. My computer speakers have never sounded so good. 'Not Given Lightly' is just a sweet 50's-style love song:

What can I say?
The words destroy all meaning
There's only cliches
To get across this feeling
This is a love song
For John and Desha's mother
This isn't easy
I might not write another

In contrast, 'Paper, Bullets and Walls' has the more modern sound and cutting-edge lyrics, but 50's-cute in its own way:

Your diamonds are dirt
I'd much rather hurt than have all your addictions
If you want forever we'll fuck you baby
Is it paper or bullets in the walls
When it could be possible, beautiful, wonderful
Every little wing
Flaps for something
But no one knows one
I got governments!
I got continents!
This is important baby, come on, get up

Very impressive. The CD sounds great from start to finish. I have only one complaint, it's too short at 7 songs, one of them, 'Risk' being a quick 30-second acapella.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars * * * *
Surprisingly good!

New Order - Waiting for the Sirens' Call

I'm stuck in an 80's time warp at the moment. And there's no better soundtrack to our retro adventure than New Order's latest album, Waiting for the Sirens Call. The band has stayed together for over twenty years and this may be their best group of songs yet.

This CD is loads of fun. The songs are so enjoyable to listen to. I can still feel the synthesized bass beat ringing in my head. Sometimes I break into a smile when I realize that these are twenty-first century songs played in the eighties style. The tracks are upbeat, positive, lollypop, energy-laden fun. I love all the beeps, whistles and pops. It makes me feel stupid enough to be back in high school.

We have two classic new wave songs in this compilation: First we have 'Krafty' - a very addictive tune which you will want to listen over and over again. It's so carefree and playful, with good synthesized drums and music in the background. This has to be my favorite song so far this year.

We also have the slightly more serious, yet kickass track 'Jetstream', which I believe has one of the best song refrains ever made: "J-E-T. You are so good for me. You are my jetstream lover. You're how I wanna be." The buildup to the J-E-T part, followed by the actual refrain is genius.

I also like the choice of titles for the other songs: "Dracula's Castle", "Who's Joe", "Working Overtime", and my favorite title of all time "Guilt is a Useless Emotion". All this solid music packed into one CD.

My only complaint if I had to have one, is that so many of the songs sound alike. And some of the synth beats are even recycled from one song to the other, sometimes used to good effect. So this may sound repetitive after numerous listens. Which wouldn't be a problem if you enjoy the eighties new wave sound. Come on admit it, we all know the eighties were the best era in music.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars * * * *
Modern retro fun.

The Devil's Arithmetic and Local Shows

it is alice and wonderland except wonderland is a nazi operated camp in poland. and alice is played by kirsten dunst. isnt she awesome?

why do we lack patriotism? its one obvious problem that is plaguing our country. we fail to commemorate our own history. the result. we dont have a sense of who we are. it is the combined fault of a commercialized media, its artists, and producers concerned only with fame and profit. and our society bereft of ambition and pride. that, i find, is one of the lessons of this film. from a tragedy. take the holocaust story, repeatedly told, so that younger generations have a mind to appreciate themselves. take pride from where they come from.

why cant we come up with something like this. we also have our own holocaust stories. we had our liberation from the spaniards, americans, and japanese. these are as rich a source of meaningful tragedies (or in business terms - entertainment).

instead we insist on fairy tales (darna, kampanerang kuba - exception i like this one, sugo), even condemning ourselves in the process (sugo portrays the native culture as barbarians while the catholic invaders morally superior). another is we romanticsize the victim, not the martyr. martyrs are those who triumph from their convictions, from their own merits. while victims willingly suffer. subjecting themselves to fate. and they take pride in it. they think being the victim, is virtue. this is the obscenity. when these shows are inadvertently teaching this "virtue" to the kids. what do you think we'll end up with several years from now fom watching all this crap? in this film, we see this contrast of cultures.

one last thing. i dont get why its entitled devil's arithmetic. it sounds smart but it doesnt seem to have anything to do with the story. (or im just ignorant)

Rating 3 of 5 ***
Simple but highly effective message

Hotel Rwanda

this is another film about the genocide that happened in Rwanda. the hatred between the hutu majority and the tutsi minority. similar to the film parfois en avril (sometimes en april) which was earlier reviewed in this blog. while the latter is historical fiction, the previous is based on a true story.

the story revolves around the manager of mille collines (a thousands hills), his family, some hutu and tutsi refugees managing to survive the massacre of hutu extremists. its was less morbid than sometimes in april. or maybe ive become jaded.

the UN seems impotent to do make real changes. it took an estimated one million lives before they and the rest of the world intervened. because there wasnt any oil? because the problem involved blacks. africans? and that means they were good as dirt? i wish the UN could have done more that it should. my favorite scene was when the UN ordered all the white people out of rwanda abandoning all the africans behind.

Rating 3 of 5 ***
Humanity at its worst

Blade Runner

I watched the theatrical version of this film as opposed to the Director's Cut, which I heard more people prefer over the original. The Director's Cut reportedly did away with the narration (which I thought was a good touch), and had a darker, more ominous ending. A friend with good taste in movies once told me he considered this one of the most important sci-fi movies ever made." So I couldn't wait to check it out for myself.

The movie has a dark, futuristic, Terminator-like feel to it. It's set in Los Angeles in the year 2029 or close to that. The streets are dirty, crowded, with brightly-lit billboards and flying vehicles. The story revolves around the presence of 'Replicants', or advanced human-like androids that exist way past their lifespan. The unusual thing about these Replicants are that they are given false human memories to make them think and act like the part more effectively. Harrison Ford is a 'Blade Runner', a cop whose function is to terminate wayward Replicants. The movie raises many ethical questions: What defines being human? How moral is it to terminate non-living beings who act and feel human?

Sounds very interesting on paper, but frankly this movie failed to capture my imagination. I felt like a lot of the scenes were moving in slow motion, I got impatient all throughout the film waiting for the plot to progress. This is the type of movie that would have been fun to watch when it was first released in the early 80's, but it feels dated and tired. Maybe it's just me.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars * *
Slow and shows its age.

Favorite CDs from 2004

Feeling lazy so I'll just copy and paste this article from an old website last year. Here's a list of the CDs I enjoyed the most from 2004. Note, they don't have to be new releases, the only requirement was that I had to like 'em.


1. CAKE - Pressure Chief

CAKE returns with the kick-ass Pressure Chief CD. If you like CAKE you will enjoy this album from start to finish. All songs are good. You will sing and chant along with the band, particularly with songs such as 'No Phone', 'Carbon Monoxide', 'The Guitar Man', and others. Excellent to listen while coding or driving.


2. Barenaked Ladies - Everything to Everyone

This most highly anticipated CD came out last year and was the most collaborative effort of the Ladies. All songs are good, well worth your money. The longer you listen to the tracks, the more they grow on you. I was surprised that it didn't sell as well as previous BNL albums. Lyrics are very deep and meaningful as is the Barenaked Ladies' style.


3. Barenaked Ladies - Gordon

This was Barenaked Ladies' first commercial album and contains some of their best, most inspired songs. I love listening to 'Hello City' and 'Box Set' on quiet Saturdays or early morning drives. For some reason I can relate a lot to those two songs. It has a more acoustic or jazzy style as compared with their later releases.


4. Frente - Marvin the Album

I remembered that the band Frente had a few minor hits back in the 90's. Angie Hart has a killer voice that will make you fall in love with her. Their music is raw, crazy, and touching. 'Ordinary Angels' and 'Labour of Love' are the best tracks here. If you like something sickeningly sweet, listen to 'Accidentally Kelly Street'.

(Update: I still occasionally listen to the two Frente albums up to now. They really are good.)


5. Paperboy - Nine Yards

This is a classic. It's rap, but it's good rap. I ordered it mainly because I recalled the song 'Ditty' from college days. And was pleasantly surprised that many of the other songs were good too. Good driving and programming music. It contains a considerable amount of profanity and explicit lyrics which you will love to rap along with.


6. Tears For Fears - Everybody Loves a Happy Ending

Tears for Fears evokes fond memories for many of those who grew up in the 80's. I didn't share that nostalgia, but still found this CD very inspiring and entertaining. I like the first song which starts with the line 'Wake Up' as if Orzabal was speaking directly to me. 'The Devil' and 'Call Me Mellow' are my other faves. If you like the style of the Beatles, you'll like this one.


7. Barenaked Ladies - Barenaked for the Holidays

Barenaked Ladies needed some extra cash so they recorded this special Christmas album. What a bonus! I even got into the Christmas spirit for the first time in a long while. The original BNL songs are what makes this great. In particular I enjoyed the country-style song 'Footprints' though I'm still trying to figure out what it's about.

(Update: I'm convinced that 'Footprints' is a Christmas song about stalking.)


8. Frente - Shape

This was Frente's second and last CD. Very underrated album. This was very CAKE-like. Just replace John McCrea's monotone voice with Angie's sweet angellic tone. More low-key and serious than their first release. 'Horrible' (a tongue twister-like song) and 'Jungle' (60's-style) are the tracks that stand out.


9. Marc Almond - The Stars We Are

I had this on cassette tape back in high school. Lots of nostalgia while listening to this one. 'Bittersweet' and 'The Very Last Pearl' are so good, you will listen to them over and over again. Perfect to play in the afternoon with the sun out and the windows open.


10. CAKE - Motorcade of Generosity

CAKE's first album. For some reason I kept playing this CD over and over last summer. The music is pure and raw. Very underrated. Good to listen while working on the computer. Lots of good songs: 'Ruby Sees All', 'Jolene', 'Rock n Roll Lifestyle', and my fave 'You Part the Waters'.

Favorite Books from 2004

I like to rehash old stuff, so here's a list of my favorite books read from 2004. It was originally posted in another website. Enjoy!


1. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Robert Cialdini

This book was so good I read it twice to make sure I remembered the new ideas and concepts it presented. It changed the way I looked at a lot of things. It shows you how and why people act in certain ways. How we are manipulated into doing things we don't like, and how to defend against these tricks. A wealth of information on human psychology and human nature.


2. Programming Pearls
Jon Bentley

Probably the best programming book you'll ever read. You can feel just how much Jon Bentley loves his craft. It will teach you how to think of the problem, evaluate different solutions, implement the best one for the given situation, make tradeoffs between performance and maintainability. I read the first edition of this book, and am looking forward to read the new chapters added in the second edition.


3. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams

After I bought a used copy of this, I thought it would be a throwaway fiction book to pass the time. To my surprise it was one of the most enjoyable reads I've had in a long time. For some reason I could really relate to Arthur Dent's character and predicament.


4. Die Broke
Stephen Pollan, Mark Levine

I first read this book five years ago, then read it again this year after I came across a used copy in the bookstore. There are a lot of revolutionary ideas here on how to think about your career (quit today, don't retire), money (pay cash), and life (die broke). If you ever felt lost in your life or job, this book is a must read.


5. Maximum Achievement
Brian Tracy

I have to confess, this is a very cheesy book on Success. I cringed while reading some of the chapters, and don't necessarily agree with everything the author says. Still, there are a lot of great techniques and ideas here on utilizing the powers of your mind, setting goals, and how to find a parking space. Napoleon Hill to me is still the best Success writer, but Tracy manages to embrace and extend many of Hill's best teachings.


6. Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus
Andre Lamothe

I'm indebted to Andre Lamothe for his great work in writing this book. He's a hero to ordinary programmers everywhere who dream of being world-class developers. This is not just a book about game programming, but a book on how to write good quality, high-performance code. A lot of software development techniques with lots of working code you will learn from. Reading this book made me a better programmer.

(Update: I'm starting to read this again, being out of shape, programming-wise.)


7. Nightmares and Geezenstacks
Fredric Brown

Sometimes I crave for short stories that stimulate the imagination, that make you think of things you won't ordinarily think of. Fredric Brown fits the bill nicely. Lots of weird stories, crazy scenarios, haunting endings.


8. Awaken the Giant Within
Anthony Robbins

Another cheesy Success book (I notice a pattern here) by renowned self-help guru Tony Robbins who cracks me up whenever I see him on TV. But this book did give me lots of useful techniques for managing my emotions, and on how to control and use them to my advantage. I like the chapters explaining how the mind works, how we can train it to serve us. The chapter on how to effect a revolutionary change in an instant is worth the price of the book alone. Also lots of good information on Neuro-Science and NLP techniques.


9. Relativity Simply Explained
Martin Gardner

A great science book. It explains difficult concepts in very simple terms. I didn't know anything about Einstein's theory of relativity before. Now I can at least start to grasp it. This is the type of book that will make you think.


10. Rebel Code
Glyn Moody

This book tells the stories of our open source heroes - the people who made sacrifices to give us the great computing environment we have today. I like the chapters on Richard Stallman, Larry Wall, and Linus Torvalds. It can get long-winded at times but if you want to get inspired after a long day of coding, this is the book for you.

Carandiru

Carandiru
a film by hector babenco
http://carandiru.globo.com/

this is a movie about a prison. it is in portuguese. there was nothing surprising in the movie. just as with other prison movies. no prisoner admits to their guilt. each has his own story of how he got in. everyone is innocent. (i think nobody is innocent). even outside of prison. each one of us is guilty. one way or another. the prision is in brazil. a third world. the state of the prison was similar to prisons in the philippines. cramp, over filled, and dirty. there was internal politics. gangs. drugs. sex.

it was not meant to be funny. but i thought it was. especially towards the end. the riot and the police killing everyone so that the incumbent governor would appear good in the media for the upcoming elections. prisoners cease to become human. even so when they get out.

Rating 3 of 5 ***
Regular prison movie

CAKE - Pressure Chief

"We're not joking. There's more hate in our heart than Creed and Nickelback combined. I hear a lot of music and it sounds like monsters. I don't believe it. It's mass-produced, registered-trademark anger.

CAKE is really a reactionary gesture against the sort of big, dumb, fake, angst-ridden rock of the early '90s that I hated, so we just tried to sound as small as possible as kind of a big (screw) you, and then we got criticized by rock critics for having dinky beats. They just didn't get we did it on purpose."

- John McCrea, CAKE


CAKE's 'Pressure Chief' finally arrived last year. And this is one of their best works. An excellent album from start to finish. All tracks are good. I've been listening to this for over a year and still never get tired of it.

We start with a song that will grow on you the more you listen to it, 'Wheels'. Here our hero narrates in the first person: seeing jets flying overhead, a sun going down, and a waiter setting a table just for one. Then he describes how he got there. Taking a plane to a place far away so 'we could be completely free'. Then some more descriptions about muscular cyborg German dudes, sexy French-Canadians and overweight Americans. Until we get to the gut-wrenching clincher, almost a twist ending where he shouts at the top of his lungs "Why you say you... are not in love with me". (gulp)

Then we get to the most addictive song on the CD, the most hated and the most loved at the same time, 'No Phone', a song about cellphones and how the singer feels about them.

I've been on fire
Yet I still say frozen
So deep in the night
My smooth contemplations will always be broken
My deepest concerns will stay buried and unspoken
No phone, no phone
I just wanna be alone today

There's lots other good stuff, as I said every track is good. 'Take It All Away' is a humorous, yet rage-filled breakup song:

Take your economy car and your suitcase
Take your psycho little dogs
Take it all away

'Dime' is a cute song about a dime left on the floor which no one wants to pick up. "I'm a president you don't remember, getting kicked around, not to be dented by a car, by a plane, or anything. Not yet invented." Is this just a song about inflation?

'Carbon Monoxide' has one of my favorite choruses ever, and it was a blast hearing everyone sing "After this my lungs will be so fucked up" out loud at the live concert. John McCrea is said to have wrote this song while waiting for a bus.

'Guitar Man' is a remake of Bread's classic song. How strange for CAKE to cover Bread. But I'm glad they did, and they should release this to radio. I'm convinced it will be a sure-fire hit. You've got to listen to this one.

Skip ahead to "She'll Hang the Baskets" and 'End of the Movie'. Now these are strange songs. I haven't yet figured out what they mean. I like how 'End of the Movie' talks about the people who sit through the credits at the end of the movie.

The last track ends it on a positive note, 'Tougher Than it is'. People always exaggerate things and make things sound tougher than it is. Keep things simple and basic.

Well, there is no such thing as you
It doesn't matter what you do
The more you try to qualify
The more it all will pass you by


The group utilizes more synthesized instruments and less guitar. I read elsewhere that this was intentionally done by the band although they have been criticized for using this popping and beeping sounds as opposed to their more guitar and bass-oriented music of their previous releases. Personally I don't see what the big deal is. It still has the CAKE sound, great lyrics, catchy tunes, occasional trumpet, and monotone-like voice, although there is more real singing and less chanting/monotone here. Recent news is that the band is leaving its label to go independent. Is this the end of CAKE?

If you enjoyed the group's previous work, you will love this one. In fact, even if you hated their previous releases, there may be something here you will like. A must-buy and best album of 2004.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars * * * * *
Take it all away.

Blue Velvet

Blue Velvet was directed by David Lynch, who was also the director of one of my all-time favorite movies, Mulholland Drive.

Unfortunately I was bored and disappointed with this one. It's about a college student investigating a detached ear found in an empty lawn. It's set in the quiet suburb of Lumbertown, where the people are friendly, and nothing ever happens. But looks can be deceiving. As we go through the story you find that beneath the surface there lurks evil, perversion, and depravity. We get a nude and simulated sex scene with the attractive Isabella Rosellini, and some tense moments with the main bad guy, Dennis Hopper.

As is the trademark of Lynch, we get hidden meanings and funny colors suggesting dream sequences. Unlike Mulholland Drive, I wasn't that interested in any of them. I just never got into this film. It was unimaginative and dull. Not worth the time to watch.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars * *
Boring.

Suicide Club (Jisatsu Saakuru)

Also known as Suicide Circle or by it's original japanese title Jisatsu Saakuru. This was unlike any other movie I have ever seen. Very impressive.

The movie starts in the Tokyo Shinjuku train station, where 54 schoolgirls hold hands, chant '1,2,3' and simultaneously jump in front of the arriving train, resulting in their deaths. What makes this scene disturbing is that it is portrayed realistically, like it is really happening.

There is also a montage of different kinds of suicides acted out it in the film. And you get this creepy sensation all throughout. The feeling that something is not entirely right. This movie had the reputation of being sick and gory, I guess partly due to some of the blood and death scenes. But to be honest, my impression was it was more of psychological fear rather than gore fear. So I think most people who don't usually like watching horror would be ok to watch this. Either that or the DVD I got was the cut version.

Also, the guy in Audition is here! He's the lead cop, Detective Kuroda. This actor, Ryo Ishibashi, is so likable, you want him to succeed and get to the source of the bizarre suicides. There's a scene where the detectives stake out the train station to prevent any potential suicides. It doesn't seem like anyone cares though. The schoolkids even make jokes about the suicides and laugh at the face of one of the junior detectives, the very man who is trying to protect them. You sense there is a disconnect between the young and the old, with the young seeming detached from society.

There's also this J-Pop kiddie group named 'Dessert' or 'Desart', or 'Desrat', their name keeps changing. Teenagers and kids love them, they're the new craze, the new fad. The band has several catchy songs, it's most popular song is the aptly titled 'Mail Me'. Even Kuroda's kids are addicted to them.

One thing, this film is weird, but its weirdness has a purpose. I was engrossed the entire time watching it. Not a single bad scene. A warning, I did not understand it on first viewing and I still don't understand all aspects to the story as I write this. It's the type of movie which you have to think about to figure out the meaning. It's classified under 'horror', but this ain't no horror flick. It's a movie with a powerful message which will eventually dawn on you. Listen closely to what Misuko says in the end as I believe this is the closest message the director wanted to convey to the viewer.

The overall theme hits the right spot. The Dessert J-Pop group oddly resemble a lot of the musical fad groups you see in Japan and the US. It reminded me of how much my brother and younger cousins are obsessed with all aspects of j-pop/anime culture. They buy the CDs, read their comics, watch their anime. It's a reflection of today's society where our lives are connected and influenced by pop consumer culture. Where does it eventually lead us?

I'm interested to hear your interpretation if you watch this.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars * * * * *
A must-watch.

Update: The more I think about this movie, the better it gets. I would even say it is one of the most important movies I have ever seen. It is more social discourse than scares and gore. But that doesn't detract from the pure horror when you realize the true nature and sources of the suicide events.

Sixpence None The Richer - The Fatherless and the Window

I found this first Sixpence album very enjoyable. This has some of Leigh Nash's best singing that I've heard. I love her voice and the wholesome quality of her songs in this one.

The lyrics are straightforward, cute, and very christian in tone. The instruments blend well together. There are no jarring elements, it's smooth listening all throughout.

My personal favorites in this CD are the songs Spotlight - about fame and humility, Musings - great voice especially on the 'you have redeemed it' part, Trust - which is the closest to a Church song, but trust me it's good, even atheists and agnostics will like this one. And of course there's the track 'Meaningless', which has some pretty damn good lyrics:

Meaningless
It's all meaningless
All my life and labor is foolish
And now I don't have a reason
A reason to live anymore

Awww... she's so cute.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars * * * *
Great voice, wholesome songs.

Parfois En Avril

parfois en avril is a historical non-fiction (im unsure really) about rwanda. a country in africa. this movie ranks high, along with other great tragedy films such as schindlers list. its a must watch. its happened, its happening, and its bound to happen in the future. in all cultures. rich or poor. white or black. unless we are all aware of its consequences. esp since its beyond imagination. genocide.

facts. rwanda has three kinds of peoples. the tutsis. the hutus. and the twas. the hutus make the majority. they lived side by side in relative peace until the westerners arrived. the germans/belgians created a strict social structure, the tutsis having a higher station than the others, which created deep resentment between the peoples.

this was critical. it divided the country which made it easier to conquer and exploit. this might easily have been north america and the indians or the native tribes of pre-colonial philippines.

much later when the belgians left. they left control to the hutus. the hutus perpetuated the resentment. the hatred. the divisiveness. which culminated into the genocide of all tutsis and moderate hutus. the rest of the world, mostly unaware and busy with their own problems, including the UN stood back and watched. particularly the US, which i would have thought should be the first to be there. but since there is no oil. no clear benefit to its economy or politics. everyone stood back and watched.

the mob is mindless. tell it to jump and they will jump. the question now is. if i had been there would i prostest? would i pretend to be on the side of those in power? would i willingly participate? will i join the mob? its easy to say yes or no. but in retrospect im not really so sure what i would do.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars ****
Humanity at its worst.

Henry and June

henry and june is a biographical film about writers and their affairs in paris, 1931. mainly of anais nin's encounter with henry miller and his wife named june. [researched on anais nin. shes pretty hot for a writer. click on the link]

the main hero is anais. a writer in private. she has a zest for life, love, and poetry. curious about everything that has and can add to meaning or purpose. she is alive. feeling deeply about things, as anyone who is alive is meant to feel. shes married to hugo who is also an artist but has decided to join the mundane workforce (in a bank) to support his wifes writing. this also leads to a rift between them.

henry (henry miller) is just what anais needed at that time. he was basic. also a writer and a realist. he takes things as they are without being poetic. he sees drama in realism. for henry, sex is not just about pleasure, but is as natural and necessary like breathing.

hugo is the straight character in the group. he allows himself room, not to pretend he owns anais. a mistake many husbands feel about their wives. people thinking they own other people just because they share a bed and the like. he supports anais in everything she decides to do. including affairs with other men and women. there were no judgements. he freely loves anais. not the selfish kind where people are held in cages.

and finally the narcissist. june is played by uma thurman. she is henry's lover, wife, muse. she seduces anais when she notices her. exploring. she teaches her that kind of love that exists between free women. she is exquisite. she demands constant worhip. the rest of us are prey. helpless and willing victims.

the set is french. paris of 1931. there was homosexual behaviour (lesbian). orgies. pornography. narcissism. liberation. my favorite scene was at the brothel. where naked european women were showcased by the madame.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars * * *
A bit artsy and anais is hot.

Juliana Hatfield - Only Everything

I waited ten years to get this CD.

Juliana Hatfield has a uniquely addictive sound. Kind of hard to describe, you just need to hear it for yourself. Imagine a sugary pop voice with an edge. Then add an electric guitar, but not too much metal, electric that's sort of acoustic-like. Songs that are sweet, yet angry and smooth at the same time.

You get lyrics like this (from 'Live on Tomorrow'):

A heartbeat says you haven't died.
You gotta try to stay alive
Leave me to the vultures
Throw me to the wolves
I'll live on tomorrow
And purity of soul

Dump me in the ocean
Tied to a piano
But you forgot to rip my heart out
Before you let me go.


Or how about a song with one of the most creative titles of all time, called 'OK OK'.

Why you asking?
That's the last thing
Untrusted, not busted
What what what what what what what what

What a cheap shot. I did not.
Just believe it. Just leave it.
Shut up, shut up, shut up,
Shut up, shut up

OK, ok, whatever you say.
OK, ok, I did it but I didn't.
OK, ok, don't make me get crazy.
OK ok, ok, ok, ok.


Well, you get the idea.

Lots of good stuff. 'What a Life' sings about a feeling of angry pathetic desperation. 'Fleur de Lys' is sung entirely in french, and you get the sense that Hatfield doesn't know the meaning of the words she wrote. Good instruments too. I don't usually like electric guitar but this one is cool.

'Dumb Fun' sounds like some deranged verse with the words 'dumb' and 'fun' repeated over and over. I haven't figured out exactly what it means. I suspect it doesn't really mean anything, it's just dumb fun.

'Bottles and Flowers' is another good one. It slows down the pace, then does the technique of extending the syllables to match the melody. For example, the line "She's so alone" becomes "She's so alo-hone", only in a cute way.

One of my favorite songs of all time is here, 'Universal Heart-Beat'. I first heard it in 1995, and it still kicks ass today as it did then.

Beauty can be sad. You're proof of that.
When the damage is done, you're damaged goods.
That's not to say it's not okay.
I wouldn't have it any other way.

This song is almost perfect. Great intro, music and words. It marks a period of my personal music reawakening in the mid 90's. I'll definitely listen to more of Juliana Hatfield's work in the future.


Rating: 4 out of 5 stars * * * *
Great music, very innovative sound.