Got a little sidetracked. Sorry.
Last week's lecture was interested in MMORPGs, MUDs, MUVEs and, most memorably, Greifing. An interesting little history lesson, stating with Adventure! ("There's a coffin!"), on to MUDs (I played one or two of those), through Ultima Online, Lineage and World of Warcraft (too expensive, get a job!). I always had fun playing these types of games, co-operative adventure/RPGs. It's one of my favourite genres. Paul, though, has had bad experiences with online RPGs, and I can see how that could happen. His expeiences are not due to griefers, more due to (bad analagy time) "religous" gamers who, zealous in thier beliefs, want to "convert" players to thier own personal gameplaying style. (apologies to anyone who dislikes my analagy)
Having been told about griefing in the lecture, we then went on to experience it in the lab. The lab was fun. A SL speed building challange. Best Allan's chip shop in 2 hours wins. So, off we hopped to a public sandbox, starting to make some little progress, when people started flying off the sim in cages. Turns out that some eejit (I've been censored) called Grimm was firing things at us. This slowed us down for a bit, but the other group won out- and this looked to be the most likely outcome in any case.
Far from the madding crowd, however, I've made a kilt, sporran, sgian dubh, montrose doublet, and crevat. and I've scripted a box that sells them. my group were looking for a box to put stuff in, I can do it now. So, I've finally made myself useful. lol
I want to make stuff, but I have to work on my project! MUST DO PROJECT! PROJECT!
Friday, 23 March 2007
Wednesday, 14 March 2007
Wiki-Wiki-Wow
Covered a lot of ground today. Felt like I had to use a bit of a delta function (yep, i gave them a kick in the pants!) to get us going, but as it turns out, the work was being done all along. Actually, I already knew that it was, but the wiki didn't.
As a matter of fact, and this is probably the first positive thing ive posted on this blog, I'm confident that we will have a good coursework now. The way things are going, (theyre gonna crucify me!) everything might just start to come together pretty quickly.
I have to be honest, the wiki was worrying me, and I wasn't sure if it was being taken seriously (i mean, It's all fun and games, we can be free to post funnies, but we need to POST) but there's progress reported on it now, along with a few links.
Also, after the skype meeting, which was a laugh, we even seem to have started doing some of the things that we said we would! Gasp!
Well, Well Done Us!
Just as well someone was taking notes tho- eh Karsnik?
As a matter of fact, and this is probably the first positive thing ive posted on this blog, I'm confident that we will have a good coursework now. The way things are going, (theyre gonna crucify me!) everything might just start to come together pretty quickly.
I have to be honest, the wiki was worrying me, and I wasn't sure if it was being taken seriously (i mean, It's all fun and games, we can be free to post funnies, but we need to POST) but there's progress reported on it now, along with a few links.
Also, after the skype meeting, which was a laugh, we even seem to have started doing some of the things that we said we would! Gasp!
Well, Well Done Us!
Just as well someone was taking notes tho- eh Karsnik?
Tuesday, 13 March 2007
Harsh Reality
OK, so I was a bit harsh yesterday when talking about Kevin Thompson's Ultraversity. My opinion stands, however. I think the guy has a groundbreaking idea, and the delivery method is a good idea, but I still don't see what you get out of the degree. But then, I have never seen any point in teaching art, which is supposed to come from the heart.
That said, as I was writing yesterday, I knew that I was being a little too scathing, and I am never one to advocate prejudice. I wouldn't knock it till i tried it.
I'm sure that part of my opinion is born of the fact that I went to university knowing that if I did my work, I'd leave with a set of skills that could be put to use in a trade. I suppose that the point was more of a call to move forward from ancient academia into modern learning.
Another point, though, is that I like paisley university, because I can talk to my lecturers, none of whom are monsters, cloaked in mystery, or even unassailable. If I had not met them regularly, and seen them buying their coffee in the same shop as me, I might not be of this opinion.
Yes, I was harsh. Perhaps I sounded heartfelt. But I'm just keeping it real!
That said, as I was writing yesterday, I knew that I was being a little too scathing, and I am never one to advocate prejudice. I wouldn't knock it till i tried it.
I'm sure that part of my opinion is born of the fact that I went to university knowing that if I did my work, I'd leave with a set of skills that could be put to use in a trade. I suppose that the point was more of a call to move forward from ancient academia into modern learning.
Another point, though, is that I like paisley university, because I can talk to my lecturers, none of whom are monsters, cloaked in mystery, or even unassailable. If I had not met them regularly, and seen them buying their coffee in the same shop as me, I might not be of this opinion.
Yes, I was harsh. Perhaps I sounded heartfelt. But I'm just keeping it real!
Monday, 12 March 2007
The Kingdom of Strife
Today's CVE class was interesting, a lecturer from Fife who lectures down south through the internet gave us a lecture over the internet.
I'll give you a second to catch your breath after that. The guy advocates "distance learning", which is the use of communication technologies (including the internet) to facilitate teaching. This in turn means that he needs only visit his university three times a year. He never needs to meet his students until graduation. This is an interesting concept, and the portion of the lecture that pertained to this concept was rather good.
The lecture went on (and on) about various internet sites devoted to the empowerment of the average person. YouTube, for instance, where one can upload a video for anyone to see, and Bebo, where friends can leave messages. there were a few site mentioned that I hadn't heard of. I really enjoyed this part of the lecture.
Nextly, though, the lecturer talked about the course he was teaching. He himself admitted that it was curriculum free, and that this was a problem for some people. He told us that the course introduced many of the web (2.0) 's tools for the sharing of information and communication (he had "4 Cs") and that the coursework was research based, with no firm structure. Sounds good, but what do you learn? It sounded to me like you would come away having learned how to use web tools that were outdated by the time you had finished your course, and that apart from that, you would have a degree that was a bit of an "IT engineer's" qualification.
Yes, I came away with that low an opinion of this degree. IT engineers, those who call themseves such, have succeeded in giving computers and programmers a bad name, one which we are only just beginning to lose. They are the people who have self taught computer skills, and demand high pay for simple tasks, because of the fear of computers. This fear is evapourating due to web 2.0, and this guy is teaching a degree in web 2.0 so that we can have web 2.0 experts. Surely it's web 2.0 that needs to be simpler, not professional. Of the people, for the people, by the people. Bah!
Use web 2.0 as a tool for teaching- good idea
Teach the use of web 2.0 as a tool- bad idea.
I'll give you a second to catch your breath after that. The guy advocates "distance learning", which is the use of communication technologies (including the internet) to facilitate teaching. This in turn means that he needs only visit his university three times a year. He never needs to meet his students until graduation. This is an interesting concept, and the portion of the lecture that pertained to this concept was rather good.
The lecture went on (and on) about various internet sites devoted to the empowerment of the average person. YouTube, for instance, where one can upload a video for anyone to see, and Bebo, where friends can leave messages. there were a few site mentioned that I hadn't heard of. I really enjoyed this part of the lecture.
Nextly, though, the lecturer talked about the course he was teaching. He himself admitted that it was curriculum free, and that this was a problem for some people. He told us that the course introduced many of the web (2.0) 's tools for the sharing of information and communication (he had "4 Cs") and that the coursework was research based, with no firm structure. Sounds good, but what do you learn? It sounded to me like you would come away having learned how to use web tools that were outdated by the time you had finished your course, and that apart from that, you would have a degree that was a bit of an "IT engineer's" qualification.
Yes, I came away with that low an opinion of this degree. IT engineers, those who call themseves such, have succeeded in giving computers and programmers a bad name, one which we are only just beginning to lose. They are the people who have self taught computer skills, and demand high pay for simple tasks, because of the fear of computers. This fear is evapourating due to web 2.0, and this guy is teaching a degree in web 2.0 so that we can have web 2.0 experts. Surely it's web 2.0 that needs to be simpler, not professional. Of the people, for the people, by the people. Bah!
Use web 2.0 as a tool for teaching- good idea
Teach the use of web 2.0 as a tool- bad idea.
Sunday, 11 March 2007
Do you like my blimp?
After writing yesterday's blog entry, i had a wee peek at some of the other blogs (Peter's obviously been practicing, his blog is by far the longest and most regular). Got a bit of a reminder from Paul's blog, and I figured that it would be a good idea to mention it here.
Last week's class was quite interesting. We met (in Second Life) a professional Second Life builder. He will hereafter be referred to as "Dreadlock Guy" and he had a blimp floating around his head. He was kind enough to show us around some of his creations, including Dell's SLHQ. I have been impressed already by some of the buildings in Second Life, but most of his creations were top notch. I personally visited Dublin, which was one of his creations, and found it to be rather good. As to whether it mirrors the real Dublin, I couldn't really comment. Dreadlock Guy gave each of us a handy building tool, which will help to make larger shapes possible.
Notibly, the meeting included sound, transmitted using Skype. This was far better than the last meeting, where the sound transmitted suffered a two minuite lag.
Although this was interesting, and I have since then been doing a little more modelling, I dont think that this type of career would interest me. Also, who really thinks that this career is in any way secure. Second Life Second Edition or even Second Armageddon would render the skillset in question (questionable?) (outdated?) less useful in any case.
Now, do not misunderstand me. I don't for an instant believe that a career in 3d modelling is hopelessly insecure. No, I simply suggest that a specialisation so platform specific could handicap ones future prospects.
I'm trying out the Opera browser at the moment. It has a couple of nice features (zoom, built in BitTorrent client, etc.) but writing this blog was a little annoying on it, as some spaces acted like blank letters, not allowing an automatic carridge return at the end of a line (like a shift-space). Strange.
But I digress. The last order of business is the mention of the models that i have been working on. They are:
Stephenson's Rocket - the first "modern" steam locomotive, and
A Pedal Powered Bicycle - a Scottish Invention, With Pneumatic (spell what?) tyres- another Scottish Invention
Ramble On- Perhaps it was a Led Zeppelin.
Last week's class was quite interesting. We met (in Second Life) a professional Second Life builder. He will hereafter be referred to as "Dreadlock Guy" and he had a blimp floating around his head. He was kind enough to show us around some of his creations, including Dell's SLHQ. I have been impressed already by some of the buildings in Second Life, but most of his creations were top notch. I personally visited Dublin, which was one of his creations, and found it to be rather good. As to whether it mirrors the real Dublin, I couldn't really comment. Dreadlock Guy gave each of us a handy building tool, which will help to make larger shapes possible.
Notibly, the meeting included sound, transmitted using Skype. This was far better than the last meeting, where the sound transmitted suffered a two minuite lag.
Although this was interesting, and I have since then been doing a little more modelling, I dont think that this type of career would interest me. Also, who really thinks that this career is in any way secure. Second Life Second Edition or even Second Armageddon would render the skillset in question (questionable?) (outdated?) less useful in any case.
Now, do not misunderstand me. I don't for an instant believe that a career in 3d modelling is hopelessly insecure. No, I simply suggest that a specialisation so platform specific could handicap ones future prospects.
I'm trying out the Opera browser at the moment. It has a couple of nice features (zoom, built in BitTorrent client, etc.) but writing this blog was a little annoying on it, as some spaces acted like blank letters, not allowing an automatic carridge return at the end of a line (like a shift-space). Strange.
But I digress. The last order of business is the mention of the models that i have been working on. They are:
Stephenson's Rocket - the first "modern" steam locomotive, and
A Pedal Powered Bicycle - a Scottish Invention, With Pneumatic (spell what?) tyres- another Scottish Invention
Ramble On- Perhaps it was a Led Zeppelin.
Friday, 9 March 2007
The beginning of the beginning of the middle of the end
So, Coursework season has begun. This is the season when student's like myself fart about and prtend that we should be feeling the weight of the workload. Those of you who have been good at getting started early on your courseworks will be used to hearing the last minuite complaints of the rest of us. This time, however, we have another, newer problem with this (tried and tested) strategy. Wikis.
You cant get away with reporting "I thought about doing something, but decided that I'd leave it till later" on a timestamped, signed Wiki page. So this time (and I've said it before) I'll get an early start on my CW. Maybe.
So, having started building Stephenson's Rocket, I placed some web pages on the wiki (http://www.pixelheaven.net/wiki/) then remembered that i was supposed to write a short novella here.
Esta aqui es mi blog. No me gusta mucho, porque no es bueno. Pero, es aqui y lo tengo.
You cant get away with reporting "I thought about doing something, but decided that I'd leave it till later" on a timestamped, signed Wiki page. So this time (and I've said it before) I'll get an early start on my CW. Maybe.
So, having started building Stephenson's Rocket, I placed some web pages on the wiki (http://www.pixelheaven.net/wiki/) then remembered that i was supposed to write a short novella here.
Esta aqui es mi blog. No me gusta mucho, porque no es bueno. Pero, es aqui y lo tengo.
Sunday, 4 March 2007
Professional Blagger
Yes, we've all heard of them. These are the people who phone major companies to blag some of their stuff. They might start by getting the name of a supervisor, whose name they might drop later in search of bigger fish. Their aims can be small, like a discount on their broadband, or big, like inside info on the companies trading position. Blaggers, the lot.
Seems, however, that there's a new breed. Professional Bloggers. Now, you might just think that this is another little dig, and that I'm just going after a little sympathy at having to write more than once a week in this thing I call blog. Not so. I remember, not so long ago, that there was a case where a blog was used as a product launch advertising campaign (apparently not very successfully, as i can't remember what the product was).
In fact, professional bloggers do exist! I was surprised to find these headlines on google news:
Kiwi blogger logs on to make a living
New Zealand Herald, New Zealand -18 Feb 2007
Read/WriteWeb attracts more than 600000 page views per month and is linked to over 4000 other blogging sites, making it the world's 51st most popular blog
Tools of Trade: Blogging to Inform
Carolina Newswire (press release), NC -27 Feb 2007
A popular off-line reader is Feed Demon (feeddemon.com). There are scores of popular blog aggregators available.
Could your blog earn you £70000?
BBC Berkshire, UK -28 Feb 2007
"I just entered my own blog and got a phone call one day. One judge said I was better than Jeffrey Archer..."
Viral Buzz Takes Blogger from 30 to 32000 Visitors and a Two-Book ...
PR Web (press release), WA -2 Mar 2007
The Blog Squad are co-authors of "Build a Better Blog: The Ultimate Guide to Boosting Your Business with a Professional Blog"
Hmm... and I thought it was all just a load of guff.
Seems, however, that there's a new breed. Professional Bloggers. Now, you might just think that this is another little dig, and that I'm just going after a little sympathy at having to write more than once a week in this thing I call blog. Not so. I remember, not so long ago, that there was a case where a blog was used as a product launch advertising campaign (apparently not very successfully, as i can't remember what the product was).
In fact, professional bloggers do exist! I was surprised to find these headlines on google news:
Kiwi blogger logs on to make a living
New Zealand Herald, New Zealand -
Read/WriteWeb attracts more than 600000 page views per month and is linked to over 4000 other blogging sites, making it the world's 51st most popular blog
Tools of Trade: Blogging to Inform
Carolina Newswire (press release), NC -
A popular off-line reader is Feed Demon (feeddemon.com). There are scores of popular blog aggregators available.
Could your blog earn you £70000?
BBC Berkshire, UK -
"I just entered my own blog and got a phone call one day. One judge said I was better than Jeffrey Archer..."
Viral Buzz Takes Blogger from 30 to 32000 Visitors and a Two-Book ...
PR Web (press release), WA -
The Blog Squad are co-authors of "Build a Better Blog: The Ultimate Guide to Boosting Your Business with a Professional Blog"
Hmm... and I thought it was all just a load of guff.
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