return void;

i know this may be zealot like, but i have to confess that i loathe Windows, and other proprietary software developed for the platform.

for over a week now, i’ve been trying to get a crystal report to dynamically change via code. the general policy: just because it’s documented to do something (or is logical) doesnt mean it will act that way.

oh, and if it works one minute, it may not work the next.

bugs bugs bugs, that’s all i see when i look through windows.

so i’m still finishing 3 games right now: armored core 3 silent line, the mark of kri, and freedom fighters.

freedom fighters is the version for the gamecube. its an alternative future game (russia beat us to build the bomb, now we’re seen as the evil creeps of the world, as compared to how it is now, lol). its not your basic TPS (third person shooter). you can recruit fighters, and give them instructions like hold position, defend position and attack position. the fighters are the sharpest knives in the drawer, but if you can position them well, they can be extremely smart. for example, if you split your troops into groups of 2 to cover 4-6 different sections (ie seperate locations at a barrier), they can complement themselves, and get the job done quick. sending them all (up to 12) into a crowded area will lead someone to recieving friendly fire, which is not good. the game’s beauty lies in the tactics you must master to command your troops. but dont worry, you WILL have to do plenty of fighting yourself. there are even a couple sneak missions, which are awesome.

the mark of kri is a unique game. it has this 3d cell shaded look. it is definately a tacticle espianoge (sp) game. you CANNOT be seen, which is a lot of fun. you can walk behind enemies, around corners and even jump from rooftops in order to snap the neck of the enemy. the only problem is the gameplay is rather repetative. after about a half dozen to a dozen levels, you’ll start to get tired of the game. you eventually earn new weapons, and thus new attacks, but i dont feel its enough to keep you entertained to the end. however i still think this is a wonderful game.

armored core 3 silent line however is a work of art, as usual. agetec/from software never ceases to amaze me. each incarnation of the armored core series is not just a graphic overhaul but an improvement in gameplay. more features are added, more parts are added, more of everything you love. i love AC3SL is so good, i can’t wait till Nexus. ACN is supposed to have LAN play, so im eager to play AC online!

i still want to get pandora tomorrow, and front mission 4.

it kinda sucks being a college student.

i’ve racked up quite a bit of debt in 4 years. student loans, credit cards, it sucks being a full time student and a part-time employee.

i haven’t even gotten paid this week and my money is already spent. in fact, the check immediately following that will be completely spent on bills and paying my debt.

for anyone who’s starting college, or wants to get a first credit card, keep the limit LOW. when i say low, i mean <= 500. You will thank yourself after 6-12 months of use. i would also recommend keeping the balance as close to <= 20% of the maximum balance as possible.

sigh, and i wanted to get a nokia 3660.

i’m really looking forward to next year’s tax return, uncle sam is robbin me blind!

i read the funniest article on the register…

my favorite lines:

“You’re kidding right? So now if someone mugs me for my iPod they may cut off my finger as well?”

“UNDERTAKER: Madam, I’m truly sorry about the loss of your husband. Is there anything we can do to make his passing more comforting?

BEREAVED WIFE: Any chance of you cutting off his finger before you bury him? I haven’t been able to listen to any of his music since he dropped dead.”

needless to say i think this is hilarious, and i hope they actually try it. the backlash of the elusive “Joe Sixpack” having to authenticate for every track being played would be great.

as a side note, i love how access rights are randomly removed around here at work. one minute an account is valid, the next, it’s deleted. one minute you have admin rights, the next, you don’t. its great. no one is runnin this show. if someone decides to remove your access, there’s about a 90% chance they won’t double check if you actually need it. for example, we had an application periodically connecting to a machine. suddenly, without warning, the account it was using was disabled, and we are warned about our repeated abuse of a dead account. ironic?

success!

i finally landed a gmail account. notice that the account name mirrors my name. this is because i indend on using this for professional reasons as well as recreation.

i tried to create an account for crystal, but no go. couldn’t even find the invite functionality.

josh still hasn’t been able to create an account. its a shame cause 1000M is lovely.

You are currently using 0 MB (0%) of your 1000 MB.

here’s some of the features that it touts in the welcome email:

* How to use address auto-complete
* Setting up filters for incoming mail
* Using advanced search options

so basically, gmail hands down beats the pants off other free webmail. nothing beats incoming filters and search options.

figured out how to get titles set up for my posts, so now the links on the side wont be so ugly. maybe i should go back and change them, maybe i’m too lazy to do that…

since graduation, i started development back on my high performance audio extraction library that i started in my concurrency and communications course. im at somewhat of a design road-block, so once i get past it, development should roll right along. i’ll eventually start a sourceforge account that will hopefully not die right away. once that gets somewhat stable, i will finally work on the autoleecher i’ve always wanted.

“it says there was an error, and wants me to click ‘ok’. that’s not ok, do you understand, NOT OK!”

my day never ceases to amuse me.

what are they thinking

i wonder what exactly these people think this will accomplish. killing 1 unarmed civilian is like a full grown man beating up on a 5 year old. to think these people are supposed to be religious too. maybe everyone living there should be required to carry a gun of sorts…

ok as to the whole graduating thing, i walked in may, and have 3 hours of lab makeup to complete which i am currently working on (steganography). it was a blast, and i have a full CD’s worth of pictures to share. eventually i’ll post them on my webserver and link here. i got all my credits transferred, switch catelogs, everything is going fine.

i had to unfortnately take an incomplete for my ind. study so i could ensure an A. i am waiting on it to finish running so i can finish assembling the final report. all the bugs have been ironed out and there are HUGE rewards to the techniques that i designed.

back to work.