To The Metal

‘Beer Pong’ Game’s Teen-Friendly Rating Criticized

We’ve got a war in Iraq.

Record high fuel prices.

A presidential race with two people who aren’t qualified to operate a McDonalds fry-vat in the lead.

And the CT attorney general is attacking virtual beer pong?

CT voters shouldn’t stand for this sort of bunk.  Besides, anyone who has actually played the beer-pong game on the Wii knows how difficult it is, and if anything – it DISCOURAGES playing the game.

Seriously, don’t we have better things to do?

If anything has become abundantly obvious over the past 10 years, gas prices are going up and they really don’t appear to show any sign of slowing. Rest assured, people are making money off this, be it the oil companies with record profits, or politicians with record tax revenue. The people who aren’t making money off of it are you and I.

I regularly spend upwards of $50 to fill the fuel tank in my Volkswagen. Don’t even get me started on the pickup truck, I’m almost glad the engine is broken right now.

New Jersey Democrats are working to implement a ban on off-shore drilling from Maine to North Carolina.

Now maybe the states from Maine to North Carolina are fine with our dependence on foreign sources of energy – but shouldn’t the individual states have a say in it? After all, Lautenberg and his cronies have absolutely no problem proposing tax increases on gas and other energy sources to pay for the decades of waste in the Garden State.

We need a new way of thinking that acknowledges the current state of energy costs by not only implementing stopgap solutions to bring immediate relief to consumers… but also involves PERMANENT tax relief to the producers and resellers from the top through the bottom, including incentives to small business owners that enable them to sell fuel at a lower cost – plus the immediate lifting on drilling bans off-shore, within the contiguous United States, and Alaska, including the lifting of moratoriums and bans on improving domestic refinement capacity. Alternative energy is great, but if I’m spending so much fulling up my 34mpg Volkswagen that I can’t afford a 50+mpg hybrid or diesel based vehicle – what the heck will alternative sources do for me?

Yes, I’ll admit that burning fossil fuels is bad for the environment, but our environment is designed to DEVOUR CO2, and RE-USE WATER, two of the primary components in automotive exhaust. The technology is there to create cleaner burning fossil fuel based engines (catalytic converter anyone?). The technology is THERE to create motors and vehicles which provide outstanding performance as well as outstanding MPG. To give up on the Internal Combustion Engine because a bunch of greenies spend more on lobbyists than Joe Commuter who has an hour commute every day, or people who just want to STAY WARM when they take a shower or survive a frigid winter does not give those arrogant pricks the right to dictate policy. Last I checked, the multi-trillion dollar budget that comes from the pocket of people like you and me SHOULD have more say than a bunch of disgruntled hippies who could care less about the plight of folks like me.

Lets continue to develop hybrid, solar, electric, fuel-cell, and other technologies – but for the sake of our economy and our citizens who are forced to decide between gasoline, fuel oil, and food – do not give up on the ICE until we’ve got something better!

America used to innovate! Now we consistently bend to the whim of knee-jerk reactions to junk science and rumor, where once we lead the world in technological development, now the so-called bastions of Socialism (ie France) lead the WORLD in DOMESTIC NUCLEAR ENERGY PRODUCTION. Nobody’s asking the middle eastern oil conglomerates or other world powers with vast oil reserves to cut back. We’ve got a massive investment in the future infrastructure of Iraq and its oil supplies – and people are actually fighting to keep oil companies from utilizing the resources! Lets have that war for oil! It wouldn’t be the first time brave Americans fought and died to protect the former economic sovereignty of the USA.

I get it, the environmentalists have a weak argument and a fat wallet, money always wins in rock, paper, scissors until someone finally has the BALLS to cut through the bullshit!

I don’t give a rats ass that China is finally enjoying the motor vehicle in vast numbers, welcome to the party! All the more reason that we should be exploring every single opportunity of our vast domestic resources, including oil production and refinement, so that the world economy and the absurdly high cost of oil right now does not dictate whether or not I feel like driving due to the high cost of gasoline!

America needs to rethink its priorities, and it needs to start with telling jackasses like Lautenberg and his ilk that those of us who don’t have all their bills paid by taxpayers that they can GO TO HELL.

So after beating GTA IV for the 2nd time and starting up on Saints Row again for the Xbox 360 – it struck me that if the strengths of both games could be combined into 1 title – it would be an unstoppable monster in the ‘sandbox’ genre of games.

First, GTA –

Physics, graphics, missions, sound effects, weapons control.

Second, Saints Row –

Missions, mini-games, character development and customization, vehicle customization, environement.

As far as I’m concerned, GTA IV excelled when it came to improving upon the immersion factor which covers physics, graphics, sound effects, and the weapons control.  Each of those factors is the best in the genre.  Sure the cover-fire system can be flaky at times, but we’re not talking Gears of War, we’re talking Grand Theft Auto.  It’s great.  Also, while some of the mission structure can be stale and redundant – it has a greater and more developed story-line than any previous GTA title except for San Andreas.

Now where I find Saints Row superior is the fluidity of the gaming.  It’s still a game!  The developers at THQ haven’t forgotten that we’re here to play a game, and they put in gobs of features that can only increase the level of FUN.  Mini-games like mayhem, where you must wreak destruction to succeeed, or insurance fraud where you must toss the player into the path of oncoming traffic for financial benefit, even snatch where you must kidnap hookers and hijack where you must damage an enemy vehicle and then steal it in order to win – offer excellent distractions from the in game play while providing resources in the form of cash and respect that allow the game to continue.

Also, character and vehicle customization stand out in Saints Row.  Maybe I want to drive the black muscle car with the hood scoop all day, in GTA you’ll have to hunt one down if you’re lucky, and store it outside one of your safe houses.  Saints Row?  Save it on your garage, customize it at any of the shops in the city, and pick up where you left off.  Sure, you might end up with dozens of different vehicles to choose from – but that’s half the fun – making your own custom rides and showing them off around town.  As for character customization – we can all agree that Rockstar made a modest effort at providing a few different clothing choices, but it lacked the depth of Saints Row where you can customize every bit of clothing, as well as your appearance – on the fly.  While the physical appearance may have detracted from the eastern European plot-line of GTA4 – you don’t give us Manhattan as a playground and only 3 clothing stores!

That leaves me to my greatest complaint about GTA4, and in my opinion its greatest failing.  It’s based on New York.  Sure, there is plenty of eye candy, but in my peronal opinion basing a game on a real environment limits the scope of the game to that environment.  I can only drive down broadway at full speed through a line of parked cars so many times before I ask – is this it?  I hope the next title or chapter in the game involves some real innovation, I could care less if I’m driving through a 3D rendered Brooklyn.  I don’t want to go there in reality, why waste my time there in a game?

From the previews I’ve seen on Saints Row 2 – it looks to be another outstanding addition to one of my favorite gaming genres.  That said, Saints Row upped the bar, even GTA 4 gave it a nudge – but I’m expecting MORE from both games.  I want more FUN, more CUSTOMIZATION, and more reasons to keep playing besides the story.

I’m the proud owner of an ’89 Chevy Pickup.  My goal is to restore it, and have a good solid running truck that’ll last longer than any of the cars I’ve owned.  Thing is, I’m a gearhead without a garage.  I’d absolutely LOVE to take the engine apart and fix it myself – right now it’s developed a really nasty valve tap and I’ve essentially parked it.  20 years old, 174k miles, purrs like a kitten until I give it some gas.

It needs a rear main seal, an oil pump, and from the sound of it – probably could use a valve job / cylinder head.  So far I’ve only found one local shop up to the challenge and off the top of their head quoted around $2000 to rebuild the motor, or half that to install one that I supply.  Course, I don’t know these guys from a hole in the wall.  Could they be the best?  Maybe.  Could the $ figure go way over that quick and end up leaving me broke with a 20 year old truck?  Maybe.

What I want is a good, reputable engine builder capable of either overhauling the motor I have or installing a new one, plain and simple.  Quality Engine is gone, apparently the owner died and that was that.  Precision in Middletown apparently only wants to work on race motors, they won’t touch what I’m working on.  The Engine Shop, LLC doesn’t return my calls.  One private guy I got a recommendation for didn’t call me back either.  So right now my main options are A: Do it myself in my dirt driveway or B: have Orange County Custom Hot Rods take care of it.

Doesn’t seem that complex!  All I want is a solid stock motor, no frills, no extra performance, I just want a reliable engine that’ll last as long as what I’ve got has lasted.

So I’m using Google to try and find a good remanufactured engine source, or a builder, and coming up with nothing.  Anyone have a suggestion that returns calls?  I don’t want to go to the first person that answers me but at this point, it’s all I’ve got.

So George Carlin died yesterday.

All these comedians and other people are making really poniant remarks.

Personally, my only question – is when he lost control of his bowels – did a wicker swingset pop out?

Rest in peace, cocksucker.

Heading home from NAPA this weekend, had to get some coolant for the Chevy, and there’s this red Ford Fusion in front of me.  Now we come up on the 4 way intersection, both hanging a left.  We’re now between 2 gas stations.  The guy in the Fusion hits his left turn signal and begins to turn left.

I do what I’ve done a million times before, start to go around on the right.

Guy in the fusion must have realized fuel at the Valero was $.02 cheaper than Citgo, so without signaling he immediately breaks left, forcing me to punch the gas and go around him partially in the Valero parking lot.

I get past him, and in my rearview I see the dumbass sitting in the lane like a stick in the mud, probably wondering where the hell I came from.  Now I realized my mistake, had I been a little more patient I could have avoided the whole mess.

Still doesn’t change the fact the guy was a dumbass though.

Street sweeper crushes Bronx dog

How stupid do you gotta be walking a Boston Terrier close enough to the shoulder in NYC that it gets sucked into the thing and killed? I mean seriously – ALTERNATE SIDE OF THE STREET PARKING for starters, if all the cars are on the other side, that doesn’t mean WALK ON THE STREET let along let your dogs walk on it. Secondly, it’s a STREET sweeper, not a sidewalk sweeper – but regardless – HOW STUPID DO YOU HAVE TO BE TO WALK THAT CLOSE TO THE STREET!? It’s NYC! Lastly, how does a street sweeper SPEED!?

Simple explanation – idiot dog owner got careless and as a result, his dog was killed. Do I feel bad for him? Sure, I feel about as bad for him as I do some stupid kid that palms a hot iron then cries about it. Is the city responsible? No. Will they likely forward some taxpayer dollars to this moron to shut him up? Sure.

Personally, I think the guy should get cited for not keeping a better eye on his dog, as well as for littering.

Ass.

Had a case where a file was printed, and immediately the spooler service started dying.

If I started the spooler, the printer objects would hang any time I tried to clean up the spool.  A reboot would result in the spooler crashing on startup, then subsequently hanging.

Quick & Dirty Method:

1. From a CLI run NET STOP SPOOLER and wait for the spooler to stop.
2. Navigate to the C:\Windows\System32\Spool folder and then rename the folder PRINTERS to PRINTERS.OLD.  Lastly, create a new folder named PRINTERS.
3. Back at your CLI, run NET START SPOOLER.  The spooler for every printer on the system should be clear.

Don’t buy this game.

Now since the advent of smart cellphones, where one could play a game on it – one of my favorite little pass-times is to fire up a game while I’m waiting for something.  It’s rather handy, and takes a lot of the boredom out of waiting.

My list of complaints:

1. Horrid AI.
2. Likelihood to spin Bankrupt or Lose A Turn is too high.
3. Mystery Wedge almost ALWAYS reveals BANKRUPT.
4. Player 3 almost ALWAYS wins.
5. “Daily Play” offers no re-play option.
6. Too easy to cheat.

Now 1-4 are all linked.  If the real game had as many bankrupt’s or lose a turn’s – it’d have been off the air years ago.  The way the basic game works is that you have 2 toss-up rounds.  Both of these involve random letters being revealed in the puzzle, and the first one to buzz-in and solve it wins money.  Then we’ve got Round 1 which is your typical WOF round.  Then there’s the Jackpot round, where a jackpot builds of all the winnings each time the wheel stops, if you happen to hit the jackpot bit and solve the puzzle in the same turn – you win the jackpot.  Lastly, there’s the Mystery Round.  Real dumb.  There’s one spot on the wheel with a ‘mystery wedge’ which isn’t really a mystery, it’s most likely BANKRUPT.

One of the cooler features is the “Daily Play” function which downloads a new puzzle each day online.  The part that sucks majorly, and ruins it – is that you get 5 turns within the realm of the horrible AI to solve each round.  If you don’t get it in 5 turns, game over – no replay.

Lastly, I found this out completely by accident, it is way too easy to cheat.  Say you’re losing around?  Close the phone or hit the hang-up button.  When you restart, you’re at the beginning of the last round – that far ahead of your “opponents.”  It’s honestly the only way to finish the daily game without being Stephen Hawkings.

For $6 there are much better word games available for the Verizon mobile phone (Bookworm, Scrabble, and Scrabble Blast come to mind).  Don’t waste your time with Wheel of Fortune Deluxe.  Whoever wrote this game is an idiot.