-
Part Commonality: 2×1 Invert 45 Slope vs 1×2 Technic Brick
In the conversation on the TwinLUG list about the recent proposal for a change to the Micropolis module bases, there was an assertion that the use of 2×1 Inverted Slope 45 bricks would be a problem because they weren’t as common as Technic bricks. I didn’t quite disagree, however it seemed like a strong assertion to make without actually researching the available data. So I did. The result is the following graph which plots the number of sets that each part appears in from 1977 through 2011, the avg number of sets per year, as well as the trendline for the appearance of the part.
Read more… -
Thoughts on a new module base
Ri Co Le Go on Flickr has proposed a new module base for Micropolis. (Composite example and Building Instructions) I started working on a comment on the image with my reactions and analysis and it got really big very quickly, so I decided to move it here instead. Please be sure to look at those links and the associated comments first for better context. First off, I think it’s a really interesting idea and certainly deserves discussion.
Read more… -
Installations in Windows 8
If you follow my Twitter stream you’ll have noticed that I’ve been playing with the Developer Preview of Windows 8 this morning. I’ve gotten a couple of funny looks from the family but to me a new operating system to play with and especially one with as many interesting changes as Windows 8 is pretty exciting. As an installation developer though I figured I’d take a quick peek at things and see what was going on at this stage.
Read more… -
Thoughts on Driver: San Francisco
I used a cache of rewards points this week to pick up a copy of Driver: San Francisco. I haven’t quite finished absolutely everything in the game, but since I’ve finished the story and have played a bit of multiplayer I figured I’d put down some thoughts while they were still fresh. For all that the game narrative is absolutely ridiculous on it’s face, it was a lot of fun to play through it.
Read more… -
Recent reading
Between Alastair Reynolds and Charles Stross I have recently found two authors to look into, one pretty successfully and the other who had a free ebook of his first novel. First is Linda Nagata who Alastair Reynolds lauded/blamed for several of the ideas in his early work on his blog nearly two months ago. So far I’ve gotten through her first two novels and am enjoying them quite a bit.
Read more… -
The Robot Adventure
Last week I attended BrickWorld Chicago 2011 and had a great time. Unlike last year however, J and the kids (M and K) were not able to join me for various reasons. Disappointed that he was not able to go, M (age 7) insisted that one of his LEGO MOCs (based heavily on something from a Space Police III set) go with me on the trip to hang out in the Micropolis layout.
Read more… -
Pie Test
Just a post to test a new plug-in. This should include a tweet from my account: There was a problem connecting to Twitter.
-
Playing with settings
Part of the fun of helping friends host their own blogs is that I get to try out all the new stuff on my blog first. :-) So pretty much nothing to see here really, just mostly functional testing for some Twitter integration and checking some other settings. Update! Oh, right forgot to test these too: @cavorter @sigridellis
-
A Snowy Morning Antidote
I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in having occasionally experienced a time when hitting shuffle on one’s music collection, or some subset that fits onto your portable device of choice, just seems to work really well for the mood or circumstances you are currently in. This morning I have had one of those experiences and I thought I’d put it down for posterity. Right at this moment it feels like exactly the right antidote to having sat in traffic for an hour to get to work.
Read more… -
My Gaming in 2010 (Part 2): Xbox
(Read Part 1 here) My Xbox 360(s) are where I spent a large portion of my gaming time this year, and the platform continues to provide me with a lot of entertainment for the money I invest in it. According to my count I played 57 different games on the Xbox this year. Granted, I didn’t spent a lot of time on all of them but I do remember the experience with most of them distinctly and fondly.
Read more…