Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Category: General Cogitation Page 36 of 40

The Fuzzy Wedding

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On September 19, 2011

In General Cogitation

This past weekend I attended the wedding of a very good friend of mine; a guy I have known for about 17 years. It was Fuzzy that got me into computers, Linux and programming. We have worked together, we have lived together, we created Mayhem and Chaos together (there is a double meaning there that only Fuzzy, if you are reading this, would get).

When I received the invitation to attend the wedding, the RSVP card was in the mail the next day, I really couldn’t wait. I had never met the girl that “grepped” Fuzzy, I had only spoken with her on the phone, but every person I asked said she is awesome. I am beside myself in regret because I didn’t get the opportunity to get to know her more as they were growing together, but I hope to get to know her more as they grow together in marriage. She must be pretty special to have captured the admiration of not only Fuzzy but also his family and friends, because they too are very special people.

As I am writing this they are on their honeymoon now (a honeymoon that is eerily similar to my own; you know what they say about great minds) so while they may not read this I still speak honest and true. I wish them both all the happiness life has to offer and, although I know we are 300 miles apart, I hope to be there if they ever need me.

Congrats and God Bless Erin and Adam!

Ahhhhhhhh, Football

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On September 14, 2011

In General Cogitation

Football season is back! I do like the summer, having the long days is nice. I can get a lot of work done outside, but the fall is the best season. It isn’t too hot, it isn’t cold yet, oh and there’s football!

We are at the end of week one of football (week 2 for college) and I just love this time of year. Win or lose, I don’t care. I just love to watch the excitement and thrill of 60 yard field goals, hail mary passes, quarterback sneaks, interceptions, punt/kick off returns for touchdowns. It truly is the best sport.

I’ve also noticed that the commercials during the football season are always better than any other sport. Obviously the advertising budgets are bigger for the fall then any other time of the year.

I was so worried that we wouldn’t have an NFL season this year because of the lockouts and contract disputes. I’m ecstatic that they got everything worked out and I hope they don’t scare us with any of that crap again!

I will now finish this post with the following …

GO BOILERS!
GO FINS!
GO SAINTS!
GO GIANTS! 

No Gimmicks, Just Discipline

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On August 13, 2011

In General Cogitation

No Jenny Craig. No Weight Watchers. I didn’t count calories, I didn’t count carbs and I didn’t use any kind of diet pills or elixirs. So far I have nearly lost 15 pounds and all I have been doing is exercising regularly, making sure to push my body when it was necessary and managing my meal portions. I even still go to a pizza buffet once a week with co-workers.

I’m not going to say that all of those other gimmicks don’t work, everyone’s body chemistry is different; however if they don’t seem to be working for you then try plain old self discipline and routine.

Everyday, when I get home from work, I ride the recumbent bike using a preset program. The intensity of the program will depend on what I have eaten during the day and the pain scale of my knees. After the bike I will do some sit-ups, up to 70 now, with a 10 lb medicine ball. Every other day I will add some free weights into the routine. I have been doing it regularly long enough now that it has become a full routine for me.

My ultimate goal is to lose 40 pounds but I have set milestones for myself. I have already reached my first milestone. Two months ago I bought a new belt that was smaller then my normal belt. I have been wearing it now for two weeks. My new milestone is to fit into a new pair of shorts I bought while on vacation. I probably won’t be able to wear them this summer, but I should definitely fit in them by next summer.

Once I have lost the 40 pounds I will most likely push for another 10.

Biggs On: Google+

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On August 5, 2011

In General Cogitation

Google has thrown their hat into the social networking competition with their latest program Google+. I know several people that are trying it out, some really love it, some really hate it; so today I’m here to share my thoughts on it as I have been using it for about 2-3 weeks now.

It is definitely not as feature rich as Facebook, and when I say “feature rich” I really mean it doesn’t have any apps. There aren’t any games, there aren’t any surveys, its just a social dashboard. I really like the concept of “circles” where you can group your good friends, blah friends, family, acquaintances, co-workers, etc. You can post status messages to just a particular group that way your boss didn’t see that you were playing X-Box when you were “home sick” that day or that your parents won’t see that you went out drinking Friday night and woke up next to someone you never met before.

I’m not sure what the big deal has been with this whole “real name” issue I have seen scattered across the tech articles. I think the responsibility falls to the user, not to Google, to manage who will see your real name. Anyone who accuses Google of violating privacy because you don’t think _your friends_ should see your real name, well you are clearly a tool.

I would recommend giving Google+ a try, especially if you are tired of the overzealous presentation of Facebook. The one caveat I would keep in mind is that Google+ is still in beta so it will have bugs, it will misbehave, things may work differently from iteration to iteration.

Getting Caught Up

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On July 26, 2011

In General Cogitation

I am a little behind with posting regularly to my blog, primarily because I have been quite busy. I was on vacation for a week in Delaware; my in-laws rented a pretty incredible beach house near Dewey Beach for the 4th of July and the whole family made the trip. It was a fantastic vacation and I wish them both a very happy 60th birthday and hope for many more.

Work is busy, of course, but I’m doing well to keep my wits about myself. I have been learning how to develop iOS apps which is turning out to be pretty fun now that I have adapted to the convoluted syntax and semantics. I do have an app idea that I hope to prototype out by the end of the summer so stay tuned for that.

I have been doing very well to exercise regularly. While the scale doesn’t necessarily collaborate with me but it has been paying off. My clothes are starting to fit differently though the areas where I prefer to see results are taking a very long time to do so.

I’m still playing World of Warcraft and I have been actively beta testing Star Wars: The Old Republic which you may already know if you have been reading some of my other blogs. I wish I could share more about that beta with you but I am obligated under the NDA not to discuss details outside the game unless the information has already been released by Bioware.

I don’t have much else to say at this time but I will have one of my regular posts (ex: The MMO Times, Biggs On, etc) coming very soon.

Cheers.

**This post written and published from my iPad**

My Bewilderment Leaves Me Speechless

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On June 16, 2011

In Gaming, General Cogitation

I’m a gamer, most of you already know that. I get just as excited hearing about games that I don’t or won’t play as I do about the games that I have been playing for years. As much as I can’t wait to read the latest headline about the next MMO, there does come a point where I want so smack some people for their stupid ideas.

I mean, not every idea for an MMO is inane but some are down right ridiculous. I chuckled when I heard about Lego Universe and I even got into the beta for it. It was cute, it brought back very fond childhood memories but definitely not something I would play long term. The challenge for many software companies was to dethrone the king, World of Warcraft. I think, however, that companies are taking the MMO thing a little to far. It has become an obnoxious craze.

Here is some words of advice to those aspiring game manufacturers: NOT EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE AN MMO!!!!!!!!!

When I heard about Transformers Universe I wasn’t too surprised but I did roll my eyes a bit. Then, today, two unveilings had me clawing my head and muttering like an escaped mental patient: Pottermore, a Harry Potter MMO, and Family Guy Online. Now I do like Harry Potter and I love Family Guy but either one of those as an MMO is absolutely absurd! Will somebody please explain to me why someone thought it was a good idea to make an MMO based off of these two pieces of pop culture. It can’t be because they think it will generate ungodly revenue because not everything made into an MMO is a good idea.

Pardon me while I quote Garfield (the next likely candidate to be made into am MMO) but these people need to be dragged into the street and shot!

/endsoapbox

**This post written and published from my iPad**

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