Impacting Videogames

For some reason this morning, the thought entered my head that I should get a digital camera now rather than waiting until May as I had originally intended. Now I'm putting serious consideration into ordering this one next week. Comment if you have any thoughts please, because I've wanted a digital camera for many a year. IGN wrote a surprisingly insightful article (and fairly objective) about the impact of violent videogames on children and young adults. The verdict? It's hard to say because, as I mentioned, it's rather objective and presents you with a good summary of all the evidence. Personally, I think that it should be the responsibility of parents, not the government, to regulate the sale of rated M games. I know what you're thinking: society blames parents for any and every problem related to youth even when it's not their fault, but I think that this is an exception because of the nature of today's world. I grew up when technology just started to boom, and now you can't turn a corner without facing it. It's permeating our childrens' lives and just as parents try to make sure their kids only watch educational shows (and fun cartoons) at a young age and learn right from wrong, they're going to have to teach them how not to get addicted to video games and which ones they should play (and why). If you push your responsibility onto government regulations then it's going to cause further issues for everyone, and retail stores already aren't supposed to sell M games to minors. This isn't alcohol though people, you don't play a game too much and then start driving like a maniac or something. Just let it be and do your job and everything will be fine.

Ars Technica finally put up their review of the MacBook Pro, and despite some minor issues they seemed to genuinely like it. The main issues they cited were annoyances with the screen brightness, the MagSafe thing coming out too easily, and a non-impressive battery life. As you can tell, all pretty nit picky things. There's actually one more nugget on Apple today: Think Secret is reporting that they're readying a new video-enabled iPod with a 4 inch screen for the end of March (or mid-April), but negotiations with movie studios could delay it. I can definitely see a delay as likely, but the geek in me hopes that Steve can fast-track it. Google has strangely switched to AMD for their servers, despite Paul Otellini (Intel CEO) being on Google's Board of Directors. I think that this is a larger hit on Intel's image than their wallet because Google must've had a pretty good reason to switch considering that they have 200k servers. C++ programmers will want to pull some tips away from this article pushing the "Rule of Three" for allocating dynamic variables, so do check that out. Lastly, if you have trouble waking up in the morning, you should either use two alarms (like I do) or try out this puzzle alarm clock. It's very neat, but a bit overpriced if you ask me.

It looks like Talladega Nights (the next Will Ferrell flick) has already started screening, and one such audience member sent their impressions to AICN. It sounds like a pretty good movie, but his thoughts didn't seem to ooze with the same awesomeness we got from Anchorman so we'll have to wait for some more reviews (which are sure to come sooner than later). IGN has a small clip from Block Party, and I probably wouldn't mention it even except that today is a slow day for movie news. It looks a like Saw 3 is definitely on the way, and it's set to release just in time for this upcoming Halloween. Does this seem a little too soon to anyone else? Can you say "rushed for quick cash"? I'll probably be wrong though, so we'll see. Lastly, Joss Whedon said a few words about Wonder Woman, and it looks like he's putting a lot of thought into how the audience perceives her. Keep up the good work Whedon!

I'm going for the 3x Thursday meme this week:

Pick any 3 things that you remember from your kidhood (ages 0-18) and describe them. This could be anywhere from people you were around a lot, to a certain family vacation, to a certain moment that you remember. Be creative!
When I was 9 my parents took us to Disney World because they felt that we were old enough so that we'd remember it (my brother being like 16 at the time), and I only vaguely remember it but it may be my fondest memory of a vacation that just the four of us have taken together.
I went to New York City when I was like 16 with my parents and my uncle's family, and I don't know how easily I can forget that trip either. I really bonded with my cousins (we finally reached a be-all end-all truce and had a ton of fun), and now I have to go back to NYC after I turn 21.
I'm going to go with a friend I made in confirmation class, Trang, as my last choice. She represented a beacon in my life when I was having many internal conflicts (also when I was 16, a big year for me) and remembering her really restores my faith in women (I say this not because I'm a misogynist, but because I just can't endure any more mind games).

Bonus Question: Where did you grow up (location-wise)? Did you like it? Do you still live there? Why/why not?
Houston, but I didn't like it much. I don't really hate it because I still have family there that I love and it will always be my hometown no doubt, but I won't live there when I graduate. It's just too big of a city, the traffic is a mess, and it's not nearly as fun or scenic as Austin.