my wyrd

New App

2011-04-19T00:42:00.001+01:00

So perhaps I will starting posting again. Watch this space. Or not.

Harlot

2010-06-07T23:58:00.003+01:00

I have three tracks from the local band Harlot to mix and produce. This has been slow work so far - distracted as I have been with other activities. No longer! Henceforth this is my main task. I will post up on my progress.

You can hear them on myspace.

I intend to produce something very much in character for the band. And then do something nasty.

This is all good practise for me. It allows me to focus on the mixing & 'mastering' - to develop my skills in that space using Logic.

What to do?

2010-04-15T20:16:00.002+01:00

I have not been particularly creative of late. A combination of too much work and pondering a workable approach to making music.

I love the ease with which I can get ideas down in Live but I hate mixing down.

Moving stuff over to Logic is laborious. But Logic is a joy to mix in.

So what to do?

The thing about Live is that it is also part instrument - in the sense that you can 'play' it and 'create' new sound in it - in addition to capturing ideas. I do wonder if, on occasions or even all the time, 'printing' to an audio file in Live and then working on these files in Logic might be the best way forward.

I am a bit loath to work primarily with audio. No reason why really. A lack of familiarity - which is absurd the more I think about it. It seems like a rather week excuse to me. Of course I am familiar with audio files. Duh. So what is holding me back? No idea. Pure muppetry.

Write and create in Live, finish in Logic. Why not. And of course I can use the ReWire link for some of the effort perhaps. Mind you I am looking at the Record & Reason combo and wondering how that might fit in my workflow. I suspect it would just add unnecessary complexity right now. But further down the line that combo might offer some pretty interesting results.

Its all enough to get me back into the swing of things and perhaps to actually get some tracks finished off. I don't lack material - just a sense of misgiving over the workflow and 'style'. Music can be presented in various ways. At the moment I don't feel my approach is leading to a finished result that I can be happy with. And I do think this is my workflow rather than the material itself. I want to create a particular sound that appeals to me. No I don't know what that is but yes, I will recognise it when I hear it.

Getting the workflow right will give me this sound.

I guess one of my biggest problems is a lack of time to just simply experiment. But no more excuses, come May when my calendar clears up, I will be making some noise.

I am not insane - Michael Gira

2010-02-24T19:55:00.006Z

Gira created a CD worth of what he refers to as 'rough' material which will be the source material for the forthcoming Swans album. I ordered the album, plus the DVD and artwork... and the forthcoming album.

And guess what was waiting for me when I got home tonight... An envelope with 'Thanks Mike!!' in thick black letters scrawled across the back of it. Once I opened it up, you are presented with this palpable sense of energy and enthusiasm. It's infectious!

From Blogger Pictures

There is a request not to copy the album all over the place on the sleeve notes. Given that Gira has expressly created this album to raise money for the new Swans album it begs the question what kind of tosser would post up the material on the 'net. And yet amongst the 1000 copies sold it seems inevitable. If that is you, then you should have 'muppet' tattooed across your forehead.

I am listening to the album while typing this. Bliss.

I can only hope that Gira brings Swans over to Europe. Well.. Newcastle of course :-p Unfortunately I suspect that will just be too damn expensive. But fingers crossed.

EDIT: its already online and downloadable. Tossers.

Swans

2010-01-20T19:36:00.002Z

I a week or so ago I found out from Jim that M Gira had reformed Swans and was releasing a new album. Some digging around revealed that Gira was releasing a demo album (in effect) to raise the funds to produce the new album.

Well I am rather excited - I have just ordered the fund raiser album (CD&DVD). Cant wait to get it!

I came late to the musics from the Swans but I am really enjoying their material now. I just hope that if Gira tours, he does some dates in Europe. Fingers crossed.

Testing... from PING.FM!

2010-01-03T23:10:00.001Z

Ok just kinda playing here....

Music

2010-01-03T22:18:00.006Z

I love Einaudi. In an entirely manly kind of way of course. Um. I am referring to the piano works of course. Ludovico Einaudi - you could do worse and look him up. The link is to iTunes (UK) and his latest album Nightbook.

And just to contrast I also find Manufactura simply awesome. In fact the whole rhythmic noise thing is fantastic - where it doesn't descend into clubby, dreadful detuned synth crap. It must be an LA thing 'cos W.A.S.T.E are also fantastic. The new album was very good indeed (the link will take to iTunes UK).

Beauty and the beast. It was ever thus.

New Year

2010-01-03T21:33:00.006Z

Master of the obvious...

I am not expecting much this year. Last year was pretty awful really and this 2010 I expect to be no better. More job threats and with that, a whole boatload of hassle. As the year progresses I should know more but I do not expect a lot of notice. Since I joined this company it has lurched from problem to problem. It seems to be addicted.

On the creative front I am working on a set of tracks for a kind of mini-album. I am still not completely satisfied with the feel & sound of the music. I suspect I will not have real satisfaction for quite sometime. Time. That is the thing that will ultimately shape things. I just need to keep banging away at it. Eventually I will find what I am looking for.

This mini-album is a noise-fest. I will work on more musical stuff later in the year... when.. I hope... I have a decent mic for recording vocals.

In terms of software I have all I need. Yes, there are always extras but honestly... I have what I need.

Reading? I have ground to a halt. I just cant get into books at the moment. I dont understand why. A friend would say: stress. Aye, possibly. Whatever.

I have been reading lots of Charles Bukowski poetry. I must get some of his novels soon. When I have some dosh! His poetry doe not even remotely conform to classical form. But they are quite wonderful. One moment funny, the next disgusting. And the next profoundly sad. They are like streams of consciousness.

My own early efforts as a teenager followed a similar pattern - without the depth & meaning - as I struggled with my circumstances at the time. What is inspiring (by Bukowski) is the 'punk' attitude. Got something to say? Then say it! And classical poetic form be damned!

Games? I find so very little fun in games these days. Most are simply rubbish. The few good ones are too short. There are a few new games coming out in the New Year which might be worth grabbing. First up is the new Splinter Cell. This looks like it will be well worth having. Its from the Montreal team I believe and if the series follows the pattern so far then it will be a great improvement on the Shanghai teams efforts (they did 2 & 4 - I think). One of the more enjoyable features of the 3rd instalment was the mickey-taking of the previous effort. That and the 'in' jokes (heavily armed heating engineer - fans of the film Brazil take note).

On the interesting list is Global Agenda, Mass Effect 2, and some others that I cant remember. Oops.

Global Agenda might just turn out to be a Tribes rip off complete with straight jacket classes. So team death match with a monthly fee if you want the extra functions. I remain unconvinced but I will give it a go since my sons want to try it.

The biggest problem with games is the XBox effect. Most developers do not make sufficient effort to make a decent port over to PC. The consequence of which is a short, limited gameplay, over simplistic game that might pander to XBox lovers (attention deficit types like my sons!) but which fail to address a more demanding gaming palate.

WH40K? Still ongoing. I have so many models to complete & paint it is silly. And I still want more. I have become a real collector. Sigh. Gabe and I still play but it has been a few weeks since we last visited the GW. I expect to be back this coming weekend, weather permitting.

And it is SO damn cold at the moment!

Speaking of games, DAW2 was very disappointing. The forthcoming WH40K MMORPG will be interesting. I wonder what approach they will take with the game. Surely they cant have players as Space Marines? Dark Eldar? Simply being human and playing the role of inquisitor would be quite enough of a game for me. It would combine SciFi horror with cyber- & steam-punk elements. Yeah that would be fun. So that is not going to be the case. Oh well.

Its been a long while

2009-08-19T21:32:00.006+01:00

I have some modelling to finish and then I will spend 4-6 weeks on music.

So my desk will be cleared of anything and everything that is not music related.

I will be starting approximately mid-September, depending on progress with the models.

I am really quite looking forward to it. It is long overdue - that and reviving all the accounts I set up to promote the music.

So until then folks.

Test entry

2009-07-15T22:10:00.001+01:00

A test entry from MacJournal.

You never quite know how these things will look once they arrive on blogger so here goes.

It does updates which is nice - but has a different text size to the rest of the blog.

(EDITED: reduced text size in blogger)

ShoZu

2009-07-15T16:18:00.003+01:00

I don't like it.

I attempted another post with it and said post vanished. It doesn't enable the landscape keyboard.

Why oh why has Google not released a dedicated Blogger application for the iPhone? Its almost enough to make you switch to Wordpress or TypePad. They have taken the time to make available mobile versions of pretty much everything else. But no Blogger for mobile users.

I am considering acquiring BlogPress. But I am not convinced blogging from the iPhone makes much sense. Twittering - yeah I get that. Short & to the point.

blogging from my iPhone

2009-06-21T00:11:00.001+01:00

It's a start.

Still

2009-01-06T22:52:00.002Z

Things are not good... and so I am not engaging much with my blogs and other 'creative' mini-projects.

The only thing keeping me going is something that I shouldn't be doing! But then nothing ventured, nothing gained... and I can't quite believe my luck.

ICS Lodge

2008-07-10T22:23:00.003+01:00

I 'discovered' the ICS after reading 'Guerilla Home Recording'.... and took part in a virtual session not long after. That was in 2006.

Here we are in 2008 and I finally have set up a lodge here in NE England. Hurrah! OK there are only two of us as members but it is a start. We are the Wyrd Lodge!

And meanwhile I must find some motivation to get back to my music again. Still have no idea how I am going to record vocals in a crowded house full of noise. When I crack that, all will be well... meantime plenty to get on with if I can find the energy.

Busy!

2008-07-01T21:24:00.003+01:00

Frank and I completed our first ICS game at the weekend. Still havent had time to sit down and properly listen to his tracks. I should be able to do so before the weekend - I hope.

I have made good progress on reworking some old material - more on that later.

But now I need an early night - sleeeep!

Logic?

2008-04-28T22:27:00.004+01:00

Slowly but oh so slowly, I am getting up to speed with the new Mac and software. Logic is my main focus at the moment.

I will never understand why Logic has never spawned a dedicated drum editor. Instead you have the 'hyper editor' and Ultrabeat (its step sequencer). Die hard Notator/Logic fans will doubtless tsk at this point but the lack of a dedicated drum editor in Notator was what turned me into a Cubase fan back in my Atari days. Well I have to get on with it. Hyper editing I will a go-go.

Presumably there is some kind of Germanic logic to the lack of a dedicated drum editor... and for the existence of one.

Logic is undoubtedly a powerful tool but logical it ain't. As with all programs of this level of complexity it has it's own 'special' operating paradigm. Unfortunately in that respect it seems very un-Apple.

I have made a start. Sonically it seems more harsh than Live... I really need to understand which plugins will give me the sound I prefer. I am wondering what amongst the plugins, will 'warm' the sound.

What is becoming quite clear is that I will have to spend a fair bit of time up front getting things set up the way I like it. Not just Logic, but also Reason and other software such as Stylus RMX (more on that at a later time).

First up I want to be certain/confident that I can produce a good drum sound when I need to. I have the means, I just need to learn how on the new box.

I have been rather busy of late and as a consequence haven't spent all that much time on the software. Annoying really. So the Mac remains really quite thoroughly untested.

It's late

2008-03-16T01:30:00.004Z

But here is a quick update.

My new Mac arrived late on Friday. I have been gradually getting to know the Mac and along the way, install Vista.

That was not very successful... Until I tried to do the boot camp setup on the second of the two disks I ordered from scan.

That worked... very quickly in fact.

So I have one duff disk which is irritating but hey ho, hopefully scan will quickly resolve the problem.

More later.

Mac 2

2008-03-08T19:13:00.001Z

The beast is ordered and now it is just a matter of waiting. I can understand the build time, but the delivery time is eight whole days. Where do they build the Macs in Europe? So far away?

I have ordered up extra disks and the software updates. I have retained some of the money for one of those OSIDTOT (oh shit I didn't think of that) moments.

I also decided to go for Boot Camping Vista. Now that the EULA permits virtualisation on the home editions, it seems more sense to go with the newer OS.

I also switched to VMWare Fusion - and dropped Parallels - since it seems to be the better product. Thanks to a heads up from a friend, I will be able to better integrate the two operating systems. See. Told you it would get geeky.

Oh but of course. Being a Mac person I am not supposed to be 'technical'. Oops.

Mac Pro... here I come?

2008-03-02T21:35:00.003Z

All being well, by the end of this week I will have ordered a Mac Pro.

At long last I will be able to make a noise again. I can't wait.

This is also opportunity to update my music applications; this time for the Mac. In all this will be a lot of fun. Not only will I be back on the creative front, but I will have the geeky pleasure of migrating over from XP.

Don't get me wrong though. If I was still very much into PC based development & games I would be very unlikely to switch. But now I can create music and Boot Camp into XP for the odd game, the Mac seems like the best option for me.

I will be updating MyWyrd with my progress so watch this space!

Still frustrated

2008-02-12T21:33:00.000Z

My PC... argh! I thought I had nailed the problem and then it goes flaky on me again.

I will just have to accept that I will not be making any more music for the time being.

Talk about frustration. GAH!

New versions of pretty much all my software armoury are out there. There is no point to buying any of them given my current circumstance. Hey ho...

Still here!

2007-11-07T14:32:00.000Z

NO updates for a while since my main computer - the one for music etc - is dead. I should try and change the CMOS battery but I am worried that if the new battery doesn't fix it, I am truly doomed. Yeah feeble I know.

I am about to remove the 'Semantic Architecture' blog on the basis that work related blogs are something you have to be very careful about these days. Besides which I have precious little time as it is.

Meantime I continue to work on the WH40K stuff for my sons (and myself). I have started up on some scenery and I think this particular effort will take me well into next year.

TTFN...

Interesting....

2007-09-05T00:50:00.001+01:00

A fan made film blocked due to IP concerns?

Sometimes companies lack vision and courage - don't you think?

Petition here.

Website here.

DAMNATUS was an attempt by WH40K fans to make a non-profit movie. Due to some legal IP shenanigans it did not get released.

War without end

2007-09-05T00:20:00.000+01:00

To encourage my sons to write better English (yeah ever hopeful), I have set up a blog for them.

War Without End will give them the opportunity to write battle reports and describe their growing armies. I intend to let them cut lose with the camera so they can upload some images as well. I figure if they are going to play a game, then why not add in some kind of side benefit?

So check it out and post up some encouragement for the boys!

Its called 'ScribeFire' now

2007-09-05T00:09:00.001+01:00

I have not had much luck with this Firefox add-on for blogging for some time now. It just doesn't work in a way I find useful. This is mainly an issue for formatting text.

It also stopped working for a while on blogger. Not good!

Giving it another go since there have been updates. So here goes...

UPDATE: Well I tried an edit - it duplicated the post! The text size adjustment resulted in text much too small - not one size smaller (small or 85%) but something smaller still (approx 80% size perhaps?). It also adds div tags which seems to override the para spacing. Yuk. Everything looks double spaced (almost).

Still... for quick posts it ain't bad. Trouble is it is just as easy to launch the blogger editor where I am typing this now.

Games?

2007-08-13T19:30:00.000+01:00

It is or at least occasionally can be, a curious life. Who would have thought I would end up playing a table top miniatures game with the space wombles?

But I am. My fault. I told my sons if they showed that they would genuinely get into Warhammer 40K then I would help, buy into the space wombles and play with them.

I really didn't expect they would go for it. But they did. Big time.

And so I find myself with this vast number of space wombles, tyranids and necrons to build. My eldest is pretty much self-contained - as you might expect. But number two son needs some help. He is pretty much self-sufficient and getting better all the time, but hey... he is nine!

Meanwhile I have this space womble army to build. Why space wombles? When the Warhammer stuff first came out they all had womble heads.

Now the snouts have been cut off so they dont look quite so silly. A fact for which I am very grateful. Of course my sons have never seen the wombles... Again - I am quite grateful!

I tried to locate some pictures of space wombles but I suspect that Games Workshop have had a purge. Then again, the models inlcude some womble heads so maybe I will make one and post up a picture. Meantime check out the space womble second from right. A bit small to see but the resemblance is obvious.

So as I find computer games gradually lose their appeal, I make a return to a more traditional war game. Not quite Advanced Squad Leader but I am not complaining. It will be fun to do this stuff with my kids.

Just gotta work out how to put together lots of scenery!

We are off!

2007-08-06T22:37:00.000+01:00

The weather looks like it might settle and be at least dry for a few days. So off to the Lakes.

All being well we will be at Low Wray National Trust camp site. Photos to follow I suppose...

The camp site is a first come first served affair so wish us luck.

I haven't managed anything musical over these holidays. Quite frustrating really. But by the time things are quiet, it is way too late. I just want to read, watch some telly or otherwise veg-out.

Oh well.

Noise!

2007-07-18T22:08:00.000+01:00

Just been entertaining myself with Reason's Matrix. Although truth be told I have little experience using the Matrix and the CV outputs so I have no idea if the screaming noise was down to its influence on the Subtractor filters... or just my sound design.

Not satisfied with the screaming coming from Reason, I then added not one but two instances of MFM2 onto the audio in Sonar. Ouch. But I like it. Lots.

Just getting ready for this coming Saturdays ICS session... A little familiarisation with aspects of my software as yet untried. Fun!

The great choke

2007-07-15T23:00:00.000+01:00

I have been trying to upload my old material from Elka CR99 floppies.

First I tried Sonar PE (6.2.1). I got quite a few tracks loaded but the biggie. The huge 'medley' we used to perform live, well that was just too much. Sonar go boom. It had already done this on some of the other tracks but had scraped through on subsequent attempts. Not this time. Same thing each attempt: boom. Sonar died.

So I loaded up Ableton Live (6.0.7). The medley recorded ok but the following tracks killed Live as well. Gah!

Its late and I have had enough for now. It does make me wonder that stuff I did around the early 90s on far less capable computers and software causes such difficulties now. My current PC and software is in a different universe. And therein lies the problem I guess. Power and complexity bring their own problems.

Skint

2007-07-10T22:18:00.000+01:00

Every damn month there seems to be some additional expense that kicks snot out of any plans to recoup.

June was the month I shut down my old web business and, working through some accountants, it has cost a fortune.

This month or perhaps August it will be the collapsed ceiling. Since the insurers have decided not to pay (in dispute so more about that later) we will have to cover the repairs. The collapse happened in APRIL! It is getting beyond a joke it really is.

Meantime my current employer seriously underpays me. I guess it is time to move on but that will almost certainly mean moving to the SE. Not exactly a positive spin is it?

Busy busy

2007-06-26T22:53:00.000+01:00

I have been creating entries on various music community/showcase sites. At this rate I will lose count and forget one.

Not that it is an issue with just a single loaded demo at this point in time.

On the writing side I am accumulating a fair number of unfinished tracks. I am going to have get down to actually finishing this material and soon. But time is not something I have a lot of and late night sessions are just knackering me. So I will have to plan this out somehow and see if I can manage things more effectively.

On the gear front I am learning the new s/w but as ever, it is a slow process. Getting there.

There is another ICS virtual session coming up on the 21st July. I think I will go all experimental for this one. Just see if I can seriously fux0r sounds and create some kind of unpleasant musical texture. Oh. Did I day musical? Heh. Just kidding. It will be anything but.

And just what is with the weather? Are we going to get a summer? Ugh...

The Tele

2007-06-19T12:04:00.000+01:00

Here it is. Or at least here is a crappy mobile phone photo. If I can find the camera I will post up something better!

Change

2007-06-18T00:14:00.000+01:00

Change... the only thing that is constant. If you could bank on it we would all be rather wealthy. And here it comes again.

I am going through a change. A change of thinking, feeling, of direction. It is past time to move away from the old and look to what might be in the future. Of course some things you just cannot and would not want to leave behind. Family for example. But this is not necessarily true for friends. When you find your previous common ground and mutual respect no longer holds, it is time to move on.

Nothing bad about this. Sad perhaps... but it is just the process of age and change taking effect.

On the whole my current mood is bleak. I cant find much in the way of fun and relaxation. Work is simply tedious. Home seems a place of anxiety. I cant place my finger on why or how. I know full well that quite often what you bring to a situation is what will mostly determine what you will get out of it. So I guess I will just have to 'think positive' even if talking about it risks extreme nausea. Bleurgh. OK enough of thinking positively... and 'embrace the wave'.

There are other changes around me at the moment. Not just the negative. All being well tomorrow I will be in possession of the first guitar I have purchased in something like 15 years or so. Needless to say, I hope I am not disappointed!

More and perhaps some photos later.

The deed is done

2007-05-24T21:14:00.001+01:00

I have placed my 'buy now, panic later' order with Dolphin Music. So in due course (all being well) my spangly new Fender Telecaster will be in my grubby paws.

Along with a couple of other things.

My lack of PC power has pushed me into a Pod XT and my need for some kind of fully fledged DAW to master material has landed me in the Sonar 6 camp.

I downloaded the Sonar 6 demo and several things impressed me. Firstly I was able to get a basic track up and running with a softsynth without reference to the manual.

With a bit help from the basic demo manual, I created a drum map for ErsDrums and created a simple drum pattern in the drum editor. All very easy indeed.

Ease of use is important to me. I really do not want to get lost in geeky software exploration. I want to get on with the music. I succumb to geeky stuff all too easily.

The fact that Sonar 6 PE is the best part of £200 less than Cubase 4 also helped swing my decision.

So now all I have to do is wait... assuming my credit is good for a 12 month panic later scheme (which it should be). But you never know.

I am a bit concerned with the 'ordered on request' tag on the Tele and the Sonar. That could make for a longer wait than I want. Oh well.

I am also a bit concerned over a guitar being sent via courier. Will it survive?

More on this soon.

Oh. Almost forgot. My wee shuttle is now up to a 4200 dual core. Next month 2GB memory. And that will have to do for... well for quite some time I suspect.

ScribeFire

2007-05-23T00:49:00.001+01:00

Performancing no more?

Well I haven't used 'ScribeFire' for a while so I thought I would check it out. Until recently it hasn't worked at all.

If you can see this. It worked.

EDIT: It double spaced everything. Yuk. More to fix.

Ready?

2007-05-23T00:43:00.001+01:00

All being well my wee Shuttle should be running on a 4200 dual core sometime tomorrow afternoon. Assuming it arrives and nothing breaks.

I have flashed the BIOS, updated the chipset drivers. Sacrificed the appropriate animals and made liberal offerings. Etc.

For a brief moment I was concerned when my box blue-screened during the driver update. I think that was just the god of mischief reminding me I am just some mere mortal. And not to get carried away.

uhuh. Good point. Lesson learned.

Next month I will hopefully move up to 2GB. Watch this space.

All this means one thing: no Mac Pro this year. Not happy about that but that is the way it is.

On a positive note I hope to have a new guitar soon. More on that later.

EDIT: Seems google/blogger have changed the way text is sized. Great. I so love inconsistent text.

Back to it

2007-04-21T16:47:00.000+01:00

Ok I will confess - I have not been very 'creative' of late. But I have started.

Armed with Ozone, I have started to finish some tracks. Essentially demos but I have to start someplace. I suspect it will take me a while to get used to Ozone - it is a rather complex bit of software. My initial results sound a little harsh and the bass end still sounds rather muddy and lacking in 'punch'. Practise makes perfect, etc.

Still working up the courage to discuss with SHMBO my desire for a nice shiny new Mac Pro. Sigh. Yeah I know. What a wimp. Are you a mouse or a man.

Mouse apparently.

Lethally Dangerous Nonsense

2007-02-26T20:55:00.000Z

I have just finished reading 'Letter to a Christian Nation' by Sam Harris.

What is most disturbing is just how hidden religious nonsense actually is in our society. There is this desperate attempt to be inclusive in the face of Islamic extremism despite the obviousness of Islam's real nature. And meanwhile our supposed kindly and compassionate Christianity is nothing of the sort.

Islam is the fastest growing religion in Europe apparently. Nukes are being developed by people who believe to die for their religion is a good thing (instant paradise!). I really do fear for my kids and the world they will inherit.

Oh and meanwhile people with a rational, ethical, genuinely compassionate view of the world are branded as being the worst kind of people imaginable. To be an atheist is to be pariah. Apostate. Kafr.

Nightmare.

Ug

2007-02-18T23:13:00.000Z

With that highly articulate subject line, I find myself with flu. Now on the mend but damn it quickly arrives and then is loath to leave.

Considering the run of colds since before Xmas I am sick (hahah) of these niggles. 'Niggles' in this case confining me to bed.

So still feeling unwell but at least the fever is broken. Rest. Drink. Ibuprofen. Sigh.

Normal service to this blog will resume in due course (etc).

First ICS virtual game done!

2007-01-21T23:23:00.000Z

It was great fun but hard work with my sons sharing the attic space. Their constant noise and chatter was quite distracting and I didn't get into my stride until they left to watch TV.

So the first lesson: don't participate unless you can work uninterrupted! Or expect to work slowly.

The second lesson is don't work when knackered but that's not an option in the game and part of the fun! One of the tracks really shows the period when I was feeling completely wrecked. It sounds disjointed and reviewing it I discovered why - the time signature is completely off! Well I had to laugh but really, how stupid. Oh well.

A couple of other things struck me as I worked. The first is that I seriously lack good drum samples outside of Kontakt 2 . Without a decent drum mapper I doubt I will tackle Kontakt's drum sets from Live.

This is one of the reasons I have avoided software like Battery and BFD. Since I want to focus on song writing, not messing about with potentially complex mappings/mapping work-arounds.

However if I can upgrade my computer, then Battery 3 has to be in my sights. I suspect Battery is more appropriate for the kind of music I am producing (as opposed to BFD... but of course both would be fantastic).

Ah the music.

I cannot say I am satisfied with my current sound. But I have to go with the flow. With no guitar and no immediate prospect of getting a guitar the electro noise I am currently making will at least get me into the software.

I also need to focus on sound design. I need a toolbox to work with, something in line with where I want to go musically.

My current lack of a working guitar is really hurting. I was surprised how much I wanted to pick up a guitar and just jam a little. Instead I have this tiny Axiom 25 that I cannot get two hand to play on. Very frustrating.

Of course learning to work within a set of constraints is a useful tool in and of itself. Of course my only real constraints are my 'input' devices. The computer grants me a huge unconstrained working environment well beyond anything I have experienced previously. Right up to the point my PC hits about 65% CPU utilisation!

Final note - roll on the next virtual event!

New Synths

2007-01-18T21:22:00.000Z

At long last we have the imminent arrival of a Roland Jupiter 8 soft synth. Arturia are to release the Jupiter 8V. About time! I was never a fan of Roland analog synths but the Jupiter series was special. They had this wonderful sound...

The only problem with Arturia is that they use one of those awful USB dongles. Yak.

Fortunately PropellerHeads are not so paranoid and they look as though they may be about to announce Reason version 4. Their website has a very nice picture of Thor - a modular synth for the Reason rack. Very nice.

NAMM will be interesting methinks...

The ICS

2007-01-17T21:35:00.000Z

ICS = Immersion Composition Society.

I hope to get a UK based lodge going - with of course a special focus around the N.E. and Hexham. In the meantime I will be participating in a 'virtual' game with the society this weekend. SHMBO has granted permission for me to do this. Hurrah!

So this Saturday I will attempt to write 20 songs. Given that I have much less than the permissible 24 hours to do this, it will be quite the challenge. Quite looking forward to it!

It will be fun to just focus on the ideas, the creative side of things... and not to worry about all the technical crap that typically gets in the way.

The following critique and banter will also be fun. Should be a fun weekend.

Some ICS links

Wikipedia entry.
MySpace entry.
ICS website.
ICS Forums.

AdSense?

2007-01-12T21:55:00.000Z

I was approved for the AdSense thing and it is now working on this page (to the right).

But what is it with the subject material? Self-help CDs? Blogging advice? I was expecting a focus on music, maybe games, etc.

Perhaps I need to go to my account page and do some tweaking...

UPDATE: Apparently tweaking isn't required. The page content should be sufficient. So what conclusions am I supposed to draw from the latest ads to appear? Something about dealing with cocaine and another about drug tests. Right.

So musical stuff is actually about drugs? Is that it? Considering I drink very little, have never smoked and the only drugs I take are aspirin and those prescribed by my Dr I am beginning to feel insulted.

Soft Synth galore!

2007-01-11T20:53:00.000Z

One of the reasons I hanker after the mighty Mac Pro is that software is the only thing I can (a) afford and (b) find space for.

As this reality starts to bite down on me I have been trying to find solid alternatives to hardware synths. Don't get me wrong - I would love to have the hardware. There is nothing like that spread of keys and sliders and knobs and stuff. Unfortunately it is expensive - very expensive - and takes up loads of space (not to mention power, etc, etc).

And I would dearly love some old analogues but hey, I know I can make a good job if it with a computer and software. Even much maligned software like Reason I have found to be very capable of great sounds. Like everything, it is just a case of applying yourself to the task.

Of course there are lots of seemingly well regarded software out there. I have been looking at Dimension Pro, Ultra Analog, WusikStation and Zebra.

Currently I am not in a position to acquire all these goodies, and mac desires not withstanding I have acquired WusikStation. First impressions were not good! It crashed!

I have not done much as yet with WusikStation - my feeling grot kinda precluded any real efforts by myself to get to know it better. So that will be one of my first tasks.

~~Native Instruments STILL haven't got their collective arse in gear and made a download update to Absynth 4. I suppose I will have to get a box. Sigh. Wasteful isn't it?~~

Wups - I really must read stuff more carefully. The download update for Absyth v4 is in fact now available. Apologies to NI - you did get your collective arse in gear!

Adsense & absence

2007-01-11T20:38:00.000Z

I am finally on the mend but the last four weeks has seen me suffering with some damn virus. Or at least that is what the Doc says. Not the kind of fall-over-and-crawl-into-bed virus. No. The kind of virus that saps your energy, makes you feel miserable and introduces you to a cough that just will not go away.

It makes everything hard work. Anyway I am now coming out the other side of it. At bloody last.

So making my return to a more regular blog I thought I would add Google's adsense. Who knows, perhaps if I write more interesting material people might even come here and read. Stranger stuff has happened.

Feeling as I have been, rather under the weather, I have not done much at all with my music project. I expect I will get back to that soon. Meanwhile I have got to figure out how I can make a case for a Mac Pro. I desperately need a powerful computer and hell, why not a beast like a Mac Pro? We shall see.

The good news is the company I work for now has a discount scheme with Apple. About time. With a product like the Mac Pro that discount is very welcome.

So only one hurdle really: the boss. As in wife!

iTunes - GAH!!!!

2007-01-03T11:28:00.000Z

It has done it again.

Open iTunes - empty library. All gone. Vanished.

So back again to re-importing the library, creating AGAIN my playlists. And of course the only rated tracks will be the ones with ratings currently on my iPod.

Is iTunes version 7 some kind of malware?

Performancing back online?

2006-11-13T23:01:00.001Z

Since the changes to blogger, I have not been able to use the excellent extension to Firefox: Performancing.

With the release of version 1.3.5, perhaps I can now blog from within Firefox... so testing, testing!

Well it worked... but it added an unwanted footer, spaced things badly and made the text way too small. Hopefully I can fix those things.

bloody iTunes

2006-11-13T20:41:00.000Z

Since apple released iTunes version 7 I have experienced a number of problems (this is the Windows XP version).

Firstly I found that it regularly forgot previous authorisations. Yes it is easy enough to re-authorise but it is also easy not to notice. Sync your iPod without checking if the PC is still authorised and you will find your iPod has had all iTunes shop sourced material removed. Irritating.

With the latest version (7.0.2) I have found it is ignoring my previously created iTunes setup. I.e. goodbye ratings, album art & playlists.

I expect more from Apple. This is extremely disappointing.

Steam & UBI

2006-10-27T10:54:00.000+01:00

On the face of it Steam is a great idea.

In reality, on new game days their servers are overwhelmed. They never seem to plan for the inevitable much needed extra capacity.

Then there are the numerous very odd bugs that usually require the end user to engage in local butchery of their own PC settings & applications in order to satisfy the god of steam.

And since you cannot play new games until the god of steam lets you, you can be stuck for some indeterminate time waiting for 'activation'.

I have just acquired Dark Messiah. No place on the box does it indicate that I need to use Steam to play the single player game. There is a comment regarding broadband for multiplayer, but no indication of a dependancy for single player.

Currently the god of steam is downloading for Dark Messiah. It is currently at 3% and running at 479 kb/s. Having just installed 7GB from the DVD why do I need to (it appears) download the game contents all over again? And yes this is for the single player game.

Perhaps I should have avoided the multi-player element but curiousity got the better of me.

And then there is UBI. I have an account with UBI. It is quite old and I cannot remember my login details. So I attempted to retrieve said password. I was told 'no such account'. So naturally I attempted to create a new account and was told 'already an account with that email address'.

UBI ahd EA have reputations for being incompetant. I guess this remains true. It is a shame that these companies have developed such arrogance that they have utterly lost a customer focus (assuming they ever had one in the first place).

I HATE PCs

2006-10-06T20:59:00.000+01:00

My lack of posting is down to losing the disk on what is now my main PC. The Seagate on it went tits up and that was that.

It now has a new disk and I am working from it now. But all is not well.

For starters all my Native Instruments software refuses to register. 'Error ID 5' is the result and so far NI have not provided me with a solution. So in due course my software will cease to function. Annoyed? Oh yes.

Play time

2006-09-21T23:00:00.000+01:00

Decided to have a bit play with some of the sounds in Absynth. I can't make up my mind with Absynth. It can produce some interesting sounds but getting a more traditional synth noise out of it is not really it's forte.

Some doodling later and I have a track that may or may not go someplace. I will just have to work on it.

Absynth 4 is about to be released. The update/upgrade doesnt seem too costly so I will probably go for it. Live 6 first however.

Meanwhile Native Instruments are about to release Massive which looks more like the kind of thing I would like. Of course what I really want is the Virus TI but that will have to wait a wee while. Next year I hope. Early next year. The Virus is quite simply awesome. It delivers on several 'needs': a nicely sized keyboard (61 keys) and provides a immensely powerful voice & fx generator. It is a must have. Did I mention it can do all its audio over USB? That it plugs into your DAW via VST?

Knowing my luck they will discontinue it just before I can buy it.

The Mouse Wheel

2006-09-18T20:25:00.000+01:00

Once in a while I get seriously frustrated attempting to make fine adjustments on some VST/DAW or other music software. Sure I could spend some time binding my Axiom to the damn thing but I would rather be writing than programming.

The quick and easy solution is right there. On most of our rodent pointers. Its called a mouse wheel. Why oh why oh why isnt the wheel used for control?

Well first up it seems that most instruments dont allow sliders, knobs and the rest to take 'focus'. And those that do ignore the wheel anyway.

Or maybe this is a Logitech mouse user problem since that is what I point with.

Sigh.

Are you listening DAW & VST makers?

Bloody tired

2006-09-16T15:57:00.000+01:00

Having got all excited about the OP-X, I have not even got near it to make a noise.

I am so damn tired at the moment. Not a good feeling for creativity.

It is easy to write about negative stuff. And tired as I am, that is what is foremost in my mind. Work. Life. The Universe. Everything.

I need some serious downtime and relaxation. No hassles and stresses. Of course that is not going to happen. You just have to get on with it and weather spikes of 'bad things happening'.

OP-X: Virtual Oberheim

2006-09-11T22:16:00.000+01:00

A VST simulation of the classic OB-X:

This is such an awesome synth - I simply cannot wait to get tweaking!

Better beta?

2006-09-11T12:49:00.000+01:00

Time for something new. The beta blogger is now the underlying tech for my blog and I am going to be 'playing' a little with the new features.

Please try not to notice.

Revolution State 2

2006-09-11T12:15:00.000+01:00

Now that I have had time to listen to the album all I can say is wow. 'Ec0-Terror' must be a classic whatever the case, it is now on my favs list.

Do yourself a favour and buy this album!

More info here: revstate.com

I would post you an iTunes link but they never seem to work.

Revolution State

2006-09-07T20:21:00.000+01:00

Well how could I resist with VAC screaming check them out? So I did.

And lo and behold their album Revolution State vs NoiseKatt is on iTunes.

If you like a heavy, dark techno-industrial sound, you will surely like this.

Audio Recovery

2006-09-06T23:25:00.000+01:00

I am gradually recovering some material I recorded with Frank what must have been around 1989? 1990? I really can't remember.

It brings back memories. That was a fun time... all the struggles with dodgy MIDI cables. Dodgy PA systems that could never quite cope with our backline. A terrifying trip in high winds to Frank's hometown and the desperate run home.. desperately trying to stay awake!

The tape has lots of sentimental value for both Frank and myself. Happy days.

I am also learning more about Sony's SoundForge 8. It seems a rather complex piece of kit and I have much to learn methinks. Oh well. Better get on with it.

xdrive

2006-09-05T23:32:00.000+01:00

I have just set up an account with xdrive. First 30 days free.

I am hoping this service will provide the means to share material with Frank so we can get this collaboration thing moving.

As ever, time will tell.

The Goth test

2006-09-05T02:07:00.000+01:00

Hrm... could be right...

You scored as Industrial/Rivet-Head. You're a rivet-head. You like industrial music, warehouses, and you are a minion of the machines. Click on my name to take my other tests if you liked this one.

Industrial/Rivet-Head

54%

Anything-Goes Goth

50%

Understanding Outsider

33%

Fantasy Goth

33%

Romantic Goth

25%

Ethereal Goth

21%

Death Rocker

21%

Old-school Goth

17%

Cyber-goth

13%

Confused Outsider

Perky Goff

What subcategory of Goth best fits you?
created with QuizFarm.com

Doing my bit

2006-09-05T01:54:00.000+01:00

MySpace Chug

2006-09-05T00:46:00.000+01:00

I have a MySpace entry but boy is that site overloaded. Or at least that is how I read the incredibly long load times and malfunctioning web toys.

I suspect that the site will suffer an exodus unless they deal with the poor performance.

And they want to sell unsigned bands music? I can't see it working unless they get serious about some kit to support the activity. Watch this space eh? Well. MySpace.

Guitar woes

2006-09-04T23:42:00.000+01:00

Not that I ever liked the damn thing, but my Washburn KC70 is knackered. No sound so I guess something 'technical' is broke. I suppose I could get it fixed. Or. I could just explore using samples. Hey if its good for the Young Gods its gotta be good for me. Right?

Meantime I am starting to explore some of the other 'soft' synths. Lets talk Reason.

Reason is my workhorse. My musical Swiss Army Knife. I use it all the time and I use it first. It is so easy to use and is pretty much all I could use if I were so inclined. There is one small chink in Reasons armour. The sound quality just isnt quite right. It is hard to put my finger on it but it lacks that sparkle. That something special that makes it stand out.

I do feel a bit of a nit picker saying this. It is SUCH a good tool. And you cannot argue with how very little it costs your PC in CPU cycles. But the sound isnt quite there.

So I have started to use Absynth 3. I first used it on a bass sound for a track and that change rescued the track. It really lifted the whole thing. Absynth loves CPU though so use sparingly. The quality of its sounds encourage you to go overboard but do that and your system will be brought to its knees.

Oh and 80% of the supplied sound libary is junk. Why do they assembly libraries full of demo cak?

Next up: Kontakt 2 and guitar samples.

Hurrah!

2006-06-16T23:38:00.000+01:00

At last... iTunes have Velvet Acid Christ and Razed in Black. About bloody time. So along with the forthcoming new FLA album I will have plenty to listen to.

Just as soon as I can afford it of course.

Back into music

2006-04-20T23:47:00.000+01:00

I have not touched a musical instrument in about 11 years.

And now I have a full virtual instrument setup, including Guitar Rig for playing my guitar. It is remarkable how things have evolved over the past 11 years but not surprising. The indications were there even then. Now I have no excuse for not realising some of my wilder ideas. The virtual world is so much more plastic and ready for manipulation. Throw in the years that the software vendors have had to refine workflow and you have some very effective and mature kit.

I just need to learn to use it. And use it well. It is a fairly steep learning curve but this curve is fun. I will post up accounts for each of the software as I get into it and experience the inevitable problems and revelations.

Something to actually write about for a change!

Heathrow again

2006-03-20T20:32:00.000Z

At least I have a room tonight. Not the usual conferance converta-room.
20 mins and no sign of my grub. Oh well.
At least I have Juffs Descent to watch.
Oh and 5 quid for a glass of wine? Ouch.
This joint has apparently got new owners. They seem to think using Italian names on the menu is somehow an improvement. It just irritates.
Kents book 'Data and reality' entertains while I wait.

Voice in the wilderness

2006-03-12T17:15:00.000Z

If you are a fan of the Rainbow 6 series on PC then chances are you are crying in your beer right now. UBI seem to have the remarkable talent of taking perfectly good, often unique game franchises and reducing them to dumbed down console kiddie fluff.

It happened with Ghost Recon and now sadly, with R6. Well... except for this guy. Presumably on UBI happy pills or something. Boy is he in for a shock when they wear off.

Fortunately I checked the demo first. The similarities to SWAT 4 are the first thing to impress. If impress is the right word. Well. Actually. No it is not.

Lockdown sports the most incredibly stupid AI ever. In fact I suspect UBI must have had to work extra hard just to make it that dumb. The best thing you can do when you get into the game is execute your team. It will make the mission more achievable.

Then there are the spawn boxes. Empty rooms full of bad guys who pop out when you cross some trigger point. Dear god... this is the 21st century! The previous PC version of Rainbow featured some of the most immersive and complex real-looking environments. And bad-guy placement.

Lockdown is locked-down in console mode.

This bodes ill for forthcoming titles in the Ghost Recon and Splinter Cell franchises. UBI are real hit 'n' miss. But they are not alone.

The PC has far more flexibility and for the most part, a more discerning gaming public. My suspicion is that game software houses and publishers are opting for the cheapest route to market. I don't think they have woken up to the risk of losing one platform for the sake of economics. Then again I don't have the numbers in front of me. Perhaps quick releases of console ports makes economical sense. Afterall these games still sell and perhaps they sell enough - perhaps more than enough - to justify their existance. If this is the case then as far as people like me are concerned, the PC game platform ceases to be of interest.

I will stop buying games. Stop upgrading my PC.

Will that matter? With a new generation of gamers trying PC games for the first time will they notice? Will they care when the experience is little different on a console and that console is way cheaper?

For the first time I do begin to see that there might be an end to games on the PC in the coming years.

Oh well time to get back onto the Apple platform again.

Technorati Tags: pc game, Rainbow 6 lockdown,

If hblogger won't work

2006-03-10T22:41:00.000Z

Perhaps email will.

Only problem with this if memory serves is the crap added by Vodafone.

[ Wow. No crap. ]

hblogger

2006-03-10T22:15:00.000Z

Well the Treo has been updated ok. So I thought I would get hblogger to work.

When I first installed it I had problems connecting and in the effort to get GPRS working rather neglected to return to hblogger. Having updated the Treo, trying hblogger was the first thing I did.

First up I discovered that the 'alt' key doesnt work. Marvelous if your username includes an underline character. I got around that using MobileWrite.

Now I find I cannot connect due to my account details not being recognised... no access. No permissions. Etc. I wonder what hblogger uses for the rpc URL? Don't know. And naturally the blogger.com help files do not provide information on that kind of thing. Time to get google at work.

Treo update time

2006-03-10T19:30:00.000Z

Scary moments.

Anyone else HATE doing ROM updates?

It all has that moment of finality doesnt it?

'Synchronizing ROMUpdater'... argh the tension!

Wot no games?

2006-03-09T23:27:00.000Z

I can't believe how few PC games are out on a week by week, month by month basis. What happened?

It seems as though the consoles are all-conquering. When PC games do come out, they are shabby, pale console conversions.

More on this soon.

Bugs

2006-02-09T15:54:00.000Z

Still ill with some damn bug.

The worst of the symptoms have passed thankfully but the headaches still pound and boy do I feel knackered. All my kids have had this bug so I know who to blame!

It's a funny thing being off work ill. At first it is quite nice to put your feet up (even when forced to). But after a while it just gets boring and irritating.

Asked the wife to bring a cure home. Don't suppose Tescos sell them tho'...

Feels like a Monday

2006-02-02T09:07:00.000Z

Tired and lacking energy this morning. Something about flying - even short trips - seems to have that effect. More coffee requried I suppose.

And while I was away yesterday our new TV arrived - a new 'Rome' Samsung 40". It is huge! And it makes the old TV stand look shabby (which to be honest is exactly what it is!).

Wondering if I should hook up the laptop to it... and acquire a wireless keyboard/mouse setup. Trouble is sitting on a couch a mouse isnt very practicle. I imagine there are keyboards with built in trackballs but I have not seen them. Time to do some digging.

dabs.com update

2006-01-31T18:31:00.000Z

Well they finally provided a 'manual reply' which included the courier (UPS) and my tracking code. Hurrah!

Now I just need to make sure someone is around at the right time...

UPDATE

I just checked the UPS site FAQ on tracking. The status of my delivery is set to:

"Billing Information Received: UPS has received the electronic transmission of package details from the shipper. It does not necessarily mean that UPS has taken possession of the package." (My emphasis)

This rather sounds like dabs has not actually sent my TV on its way. Not exactly 'completed' in dabs-speak: "This means the order has been fully packed and has been loaded onto the delivery van, which may well have left the premises."

Bah.

dabs.com

2006-01-31T16:16:00.000Z

Dabs can provide some very good pricing on various electronic goodies. Their fulfillment of orders can be excellent. Can't you just hear that 'BUT'?

Well here it is: their customer service is practically non-existant. Their 'Customer Promise' page carefully avoids mention of handling queries so that for example, when I asked about delivery regarding my LCD TV they replied:

"We can now confirm that your order has left our warehouse, and will be with you very soon."

When I asked quite specifically for the day of the delivery and a tracking code to use with the courier, they replied:

"We can now confirm that your order has left our warehouse, and will be with you very soon."

How very helpful.

I knew they were like this. I ordered on the price point. So serves me right. The moral of this tale? If you order from Dabs expect to be given the cold shoulder if you need to talk to them.

I swear if the TV doesnt work I will drive down to their offices and return it with extreme prejudice.

Update - On their 'help' pages I found this:

"Dianne Dillon, Operations Director of dabs.com explains the reason behind this: "Electronic retailing is all about empowering customers to serve themselves - in many cases more efficiently and effectively than by traditional means. Following the fine examples set by other leading Internet retailers, we firmly believe we can satisfy the needs of our consumer customers more readily via electronic means, than we've historically been able to achieve with a hybrid telephone and electronic approach"

In my experience with online retailers only dabs.com seems incapable of genuinely offering 'electronic means'. When the online help/FAQ is not good enough you need to be able to correspond with a person who can actually help. That person needs to read your email/message and respond in a relevant manner according to the context of your message.

If they honestly believe they come close to the likes of say amazon then they are delusional. The 'empowering customers' says it all. Hooked on buzzwords and hype they can sit back and reap the benefit of an efficient fulfillment system resting on an automated 'customer service' system designed to frustrate and deter.

The Ryan Air of electronic online retail? That'll be the dabs.

Doing some quick price matching on froogle, dabs.com isnt actually all that competitive on the majority of items. Is this a sustainable business model? I don't know - but it works nicely for the no-frills airlines... and many other businesses where price is largely the deciding factor.

Back at last

2006-01-31T11:16:00.000Z

When you have to rebuild your PC it is irritating to lose all of those nice auto-logins. In my case, that includes the login to my blog.

Duh, etc.

Well back again and this time with the excellent 'Performancing for FireFox'. Darn good it is too.

Vanishing post?

2005-10-18T22:52:00.000+01:00

Interesting... my smartphone post has simply... vanished.

I suppose I will have to recreate it sometime. A bug on blogger?

Rugby training night

2005-10-18T18:28:00.000+01:00

Watching my son play rugby would be fine with summer temperatures and an ice cold beer. This being October the only ice is in the air - well almost.
So a steaming hot cup of tea would not go amiss. Shame the club isn't open!
Brrr....

Grot, blather, etc

2005-09-30T13:08:00.000+01:00

Think I am coming down with the same cold that has Rachel laid up in bed. Urgh.

Meantime I am fed up with 'my' supposed gaming 'clan' and their
unwillingness to commit to anything. Social gaming is the only way to
go - anything else is a waste of (my) time.

So I have issued an ultimatum. Why should I fund the clans facilities
if they will not live up to any kind of commitment?

Seems fair to me. We shall see.

Treo a go-go

2005-09-28T00:07:00.000+01:00

Some hiccups with syncing - after I installed the Canon 350D utilities I found I could not use the cable to sync - the Treo would fail to connect.

Now I have switched to Bluetooth - and wrestled with the BT settings - HotSync works as it should. Somewhat irritating but at least it all works now.

I also managed to get the GPRS Web & email to function. I set up my gmail account and all is well. Now I just need to be able to create blog entries here from my Treo and I will be a happy chap.

Treo 650

2005-09-24T12:27:00.000+01:00

Took the plunge. With my phone contract coming up for renewal and as ever a serious lack of decent upgrade options I have decided to jump provider and go for this.

On Vodafone whose network coverage continues to expand.

Not that I have any loyalty to any of these providers - my experience with Cellnet/O2 showed that even if you had been with them for over a decade unless you were a high paying business user they really were not interested. So now I shop around every year.

Goodbye O2, hi Vodafone & Treo 650.

2005-09-21T20:26:00.000+01:00

8GB USB (Carte Orange) based storage from LaCie - must have!

UK etailers are offering the 8GB device around the £100 mark. For 8GB? I am pleased I have waited before buying a larger USB storage device.

The LaCie site indicates an October availability date.

Blather

2005-09-21T19:48:00.000+01:00

Seems the counter arguments are following a line I thought they would with regards to Firefox/Mozi etc. Nothing is ever quite what it seems - is it?

Meanwhile I am setting up a Web Calendar for my family so we can keep track of just what the hell is going on. Who wants to bet my techno-phobic wife will fail to use it? Nobody? Oh well.

My eyes are watering. Obviously I am spending too much time staring at a monitor at the moment. I took a break to start reading the Business Motivation Model and had a quick look for an OMG paper. Have you tried to find anything on their site?

I do hope their paid up members get a decent search facility - if the public one is anything to go by I would be asking for my money back. I didnt find the document I was looking for. Oh well.

Blather over for now. The ftp upload is done. Time to get installing.

State of the art: illumination, weapons, destruction & corpses

2005-09-20T00:07:00.000+01:00

Playing the FEAR demo lent some credance to my argument that you can have a scary game with proper illumination... except that the chink in the armour of this argument in FEAR is the 'head torch' only works for a few seconds.

It recharges very quickly but how is it that you can have in-game a nice man-portable particle accelerator but your torch drains in seconds?

I find this kind of thing very out of place in games supposedly from the (near) future. It is bizarre.

Where are the vision enchancers that take input from numerous energy sources/bandwidths and render it direct to your retinas? Real-time, no lag, bright areas and dark areas blended into a visual representation that provides the wearer with a real edge.

I think the tech is available now... just not all that rugged or portable.

So how about it game designers?

The other thing that gets me about games these days is the guns. Unless we start playing as some kind of strange alien there are certain ergonomic and exprience based constraints/guidelines for weapons. A cursory examination of current military research is all it would take.

So weapons are lighter. They fire more bullets (well... sometimes)... they try to maximise how many bullets hit their target at once. They might have higher bullet velocities with flatter trajectories - less leading your target (etc). And so on.

In games however we get presented with enormous guns firing exotic projectiles. Most bizarre of all is the Mary Popins suits that many games provide. Every gun imaginable crammed - somehow - into our characters clothing/armour. And still we dont get torches or other vision enhancement.

What about consequence? I guess we will have to wait until some future generation of 3D engine for truely interactive environments. So if you cut loose with some powerful weapon you just might bring the house down on yourself and have to reach for that quickload function key.

I want to blaze away with a plasma rifle and admire the molten pools of steel dribling down the walls. Sensitive electrical equipment exploding in sparks and flame... and so on

Perhaps the physics engine acclerator cards are the way forward. We shall see.

On the subject of physics can bodies actually have some substance in-game? Also, no more 'rag-doll physics' unless you can be bothered to have the 'rag-dolls' fall over in some semblance of reality. I recall Ghost Recon having some quite realistic 'movements' in this respect.

Bodies should be something you can hide behind. Use for cover. Trip over. And they shouldnt mysteriously disappear. Or blend with the furniture... or your foot.

I would be very happy to see these kinds of improvements in-game than more eye-candy & general visual accuracy. The physical environment is vital to producing a truely immersive game. Things are improving but not nearly as quickly as I would like.

Reproduced from elsewhere

Mozilla less safe?

2005-09-19T22:39:00.000+01:00

Interesting article on zdnet - it seems that Symantec have reported that Mozilla had more security problems than MSIE.

As ever the devil is in the detail. So... are more defects found in Mozilla (et al) because they are more open and accountable? Are they more open and accountable?

Well I would like to think so.

I use Firefox - unless MS come up with something quite astounding I cannot see me ever going back. As for security, it's all about layers.

Had a poke around

2005-09-19T22:26:00.000+01:00

The ftp based publishing looks interesting. I think I will have to have a play with that - a nice way to use the VPS & the domain I have set up on there for my blogs... you know the one I don't have time to do 'properly'?

I rather like the facility to publish multiple blogs and assemble them but I suspect that once again my time constraints will put a stop to that. For now, I will stick to the basics.

I give up

2005-09-19T20:52:00.000+01:00

Finding the time to launch (well re-launch) my own blog built on the excellent pmachine is never going to happen. Not unless I learn how to warp time.

So here we are on blogger. At least I get to post on my blog. Again.