Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Book Review: Ready Player One

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On January 28, 2014

In Book Review, Geek Canon

Ready Player OneReady Player One by Ernest Cline

My Rating: [rating=5]
Click here to read the review on Goodreads.

The star ranking of “it was amazing” seems trite compared to how much I enjoyed this book. I knew within the first three chapters that this was going to be a top five book for me. The entire book was living my early childhood from the 80s. I grew up playing several of the games that were mentioned in the book. I still watch all of the movies that were mentioned in the book.

I am an avid gamer so the concept of the story had me completely immersed as if it were the OASIS itself. It’s also kind of humorous to think that I actually live fairly close to Middletown, Ohio. While I don’t think our MMO games will ever dominate our lives as the OASIS does, it’s still rather exciting to imagine the world Halliday created becoming real; although some of the concepts (i.e. attending school or performing a regular job in a virtual world) are not really that far fetched. In fact, in today’s world, I think it’s quite conceivable.

Ender’s Game is #1 on my list of non-classic literature. I haven’t decided if this book has dethroned Ender’s Game yet, I may have to read it again to decide; in the meantime, its definitely a tie.

If you are a product of the 80s and a gamer geek, this book is a priority 1 must-read.

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Book Review: Sherlock Holmes, Vol 1

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On January 14, 2014

In Book Review

The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume IThe Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume I by Arthur Conan Doyle

My Rating: [rating=4]
Click here to read this review on Goodreads.

I love a good classic and the last time I read a classic was probably right around my senior year in high school. The popularity of Sherlock Holmes has grown immensely since the release of the movie starring Robert Downey Jr. Now we have two modern day interpretations of Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved character so I had to finally read the original stories so I could understand where the inspiration came from.

These stories are classic literature so if you’re not a fan of classic literature then I wouldn’t advise trying to read this book. There is a chapter early on that seems completely out of scope of the rest of the book; clearly it’s purpose is to give the reader some perspective on the details of the life of one of the criminals.

Every story is told from the perspective of Dr. Watson (except for the aforementioned chapter). Personally I don’t feel that I am violating any Conan Doyle Canon by saying that I can definitely see several plausible parallels between all three interpretations of Sherlock Holmes (i.e. RDJ, Johnny Lee Miller, Benedict Cumberbatch). I can also, quite easily, draw parallels between the other characters and themes of the book and television series/movies. Granted, nothing is ever as good as the original, but reading this book has greatly improved my enthusiasm for all three renditions of Sherlock Holmes.

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The MMO Times: Gobble, Gobble!

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On December 3, 2013

In Gaming, MMO Times, MMORPG

mmotimesheaderIIIssue 93: Greetings Gamers! I hope everyone had a safe and happy Thanksgiving (for those that were celebrating it). Hopefully all of you have recovered from your tryptophan-induced comas. It’s not uncommon for me to be a week late around the major holidays so my apologies for a delayed post but my RL schedule didn’t really allow much research time over the past week. Be that as it may, here are some headlines that you may, or may not have missed.

This issue has some shocking World of Warcraft news (which you may already know about if you follow any WoW news). A preview of the upcoming SWTOR expansion, a new hero in Marvel Heroes, what Trion meant by “Trove” and much more. So if you’re waiting for a realm restart or your MMO-of-choice is performing maintenance today, perhaps the following articles will help to pass the time. Gobble, Gobble Gamers!

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My Tropical Turkey Trip

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On November 30, 2013

In General Cogitation

20131129-155944.jpg

I took this picture of the sunrise the day after Thanksgiving this year. We had a difficult year and we decided we would do something completely different for Thanksgiving this year so we spent it at a house that is on the Atlantic side of Florida. A little place called Daytona Beach. The roller coaster temperatures and weather patterns back home have definitely made the trip worth it. It’s quite a unique experience to stroll along the beach on Thanksgiving. I have my amazing in-laws to thank for creating a truly unique holiday experience.

My first stroll along the ocean, the beach was absolutely littered with jelly fish that have been washed ashore by the ebbing tide. I have never seen so many jelly fish. We spotted live crabs, sand dollars and pelicans skimming, literally inches, above the water. Shattered shells also littered the coast, most likely from the hawks that patrolled the skies, swooping down for a “mollusca munchie”. So, despite the dangers of the daystar, I did leave technology on the counter a couple times this week to indulge in the brilliance of the beach (though I admit I’m still not much of a beach person).

Our first night here, we sat out on the patio and listened to the waves crash on the shore while staring up at a cloudless night sky. It’s not very often where you have such a clear night to star gaze. There was also a rocket launch schedule for this week down at Cape Canaveral, however it was postponed twice during our trip. Had they launched the rocket, the chances were good that it’s trajectory would have taken it nearly right over our heads.

While I am feeling a bit homesick and anxious to see my dogs again, I don’t think my body is quite prepared to board a plane where its 68 degrees and deplane where it’s 30 degrees. However, now that its after Thanksgiving I can start putting up my Christmas lights, which I plan to do first thing. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving this year and survived the Black Friday madness.

/cheers

Missing Images

By

On November 26, 2013

In General Cogitation

Thanks to those who pointed out that all of my older posts are missing images. I am aware that they are missing. When my WordPress was compromised a few weeks ago, I had to quarantine all my files and install a fresh copy of WordPress, therefore all the links to all my media are no longer valid. The effort to go through each post and try to reset all the images is more than I’m willing to spend. I might restore a few, but I doubt I will get around to doing it to all of them.

Purdue Tailgate Season 2013

By

On November 20, 2013

In General Cogitation

team-entrance-hdrSadly the Purdue tailgate season has ended (ended sooner for me as I cannot attend the last home game). Granted Purdue’s football team was terrible this year; and when I say terrible I mean awful! I don’t think I have the vocabulary to express in text just how awful they were this year. Be that as it may, I really enjoyed tailgating with my old tailgating crew and college friends!

A friend and I started the tailgate for our group of friends nine years ago when we encroached in among several other veteran tailgaters and alum. We quickly made friends with all those around us and were soon welcomed into the group and there we stayed for these nine years (and counting). While my friend and I had to stop running the tailgate a couple years after we started it, Mike and Tammy picked up the reins and have done an amazing job to keep in running year after year.

We returned to the tailgate this year and we quickly found out how much we missed West Lafayette and how great it was to hang out with all our friends again. It’s amazing how much has changed on campus. There seemed to be new buildings springing up everywhere, but it still felt like home.

The future is impossible to predict so returning for every home game next year may, or may not, be in the budget. However, returning to a couple of the tailgates and/or a game, or two, may still be manageable. I wish my friends safe and successful tailgating for the remainder of the season and I hope to see them all again next Fall!

Boiler Up!!

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