Not much to write...

Greetings all,

Don't have much to write at this point in time as I've been busy with things at work and a death in the family.
I will join you all again shortly with some new pics from our Minecraft server along with some more SW TOR updates etc.

Take it easy!

Hiyo!

My apologies for the lack of updates, I've been rather busy with work etc.

Just a heads up to those in cyberspace, the governments of the world are trying to pass another SOPA/PIPA style law called ACTA. So please have a read up on it and do what you can to spread awareness of it.

We are entering very scary times...

Minecraft

I've just found out that the new Minecraft patch (1.1) has come out! A few friends and I run a private server and we've just fired it back up for this patch. There are some pretty cool new additions that were pushed out with this latest update. 

Check 'em out below (from the Minecraft Wiki):

• Bows are now enchantable, with four new enchantments specific to bows: Power, Punch, Infinity, and Flame.

• Arrows which are on fire now set entities they hit on fire.

• Golden Apple recipe changed to use gold nuggets instead of gold blocks.
  

• Golden Apples now fill 4 hunger rather than 10 and cause regeneration for 4 seconds rather than 30.
  

• 56 new language translations, including fictional ones such as Pirate, Klingon, and Quenya.

• Infrastructure for improved mob AI added, allowing for more complicated behavior than before. These behaviors themselves have not been implemented yet.

• Slightly smoothed color transitions between Biomes.
  

• Swamp land and water colors now smoothly transition to other biomes.
  

• Re-added beaches.

• Taiga biomes now contain snow and ice.

• Decreased randomness of enchantment levels at Enchantment Tables.

• Biomes are slightly more varied, with differing elevations of land in previously flat biomes.

• Reduced brewing time to 20 seconds from 30.

• Added Spawn Eggs to Creative Mode.

• Added a world type option (available types: Superflat and Default).

• Removed collision box from Ladders.

• Sheep eat Grass (converting it to Dirt) and Tall Grass to regain their Wool.
  

• Sheep only drop 1-3 wool per shearing.
  

• The collision box on Fence Gates now matches that of Fences instead of being square.

• Fence Gates can now be opened and closed with Redstone.

• Leaves now have a 1/200 chance of dropping Red Apples.

• Blacksmith buildings in NPC Villages now hold chests with loot of the same type as Strongholds

• Void fog removed in creative mode.

• Melons and Pumpkins can now grow on Dirt, instead of only on Farmland.
  
  
  
  This is only a short list of what has been updated, so check out the Wiki for more in depth stuff.
  
  
  I'll be posting more and more screenshots of our map once I get it upgraded to 1.1!
  
  
  Keep on digging!

TOR!

My apologies for the lack of posts, I've been playing many TOR marathons this weekend haha!

I will be back in posting action this week if I'm not too busy :P

See ya next time!

So about Mega Upload...

Wow, today has been incredible! I can't believe the gall the feds have for shutting down Mega Upload and all their related services. Sure there may have been some illegal content on there, but it doesn't mean you can take down the entire website and all it's subsidiaries!

Imagine if someone posted a copyrighted image on Blogger.com, another party could claim it was their image and this entire website and all our hard work will be gone... in the hands of the government.

These are worrisome times we live in folks, please keep your eyes, ears and minds open to everything. We cannot let them take away our internets! It's the most integral part of human society as we know it.

What do you all think about this latest development? It sure is going to be an interesting year...

Website black-outs!

I'm sure many of you have seen the black-outs occurring across the Internet today in protest of this horrendous SOPA/PIPA bills. I am in full support of these websites because I believe in a fair, open and free Internet. Any attempts at censorship can be a slippery slide into tyranny!

So I'm urging all US citizens to take a stand and help protect the Internet! There are numerous ways to do this, so just have a quick Google (which is also participating in the black-out, but just on their logo) and see what you can do. I'm sure the links that Google provides on their logo will show you how, also Wikipedia has a pretty informative page on the SOPA/PIPA bills. So check them out!

Relaxing

Back home now after a super busy day at work. Non-stop phone calls and emails! I managed to get all of the important stuff done by the end of the day but there were a few jobs that I had to leave until tomorrow.

Now it's time to kick back and watch some TV and maybe drink some tea!

Speaking of tea, I've been drinking a lot of green tea lately and I'm really enjoying it. I feel very refreshed after a cup of it and a bit energetic (no doubt due to the caffeine)! I don't drink coffee at all so it's nice to have a hot drink on a cold day that warms your body.

For those who don't know, there are numerous health benefits to drinking green tea. For starters, it can lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, increases your metabolism, and some studies have shown that it can reduce the occurrence of breast cancer!

Considering most of my day is sitting at a desk, drinking a few cups of green tea in a day should hopefully alleviate some of the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle.

Finally, a little tip for those who don't find the flavor of it too appealing:
I find by adding some lemon juice and honey it can really add some nice flavorings to the mix and it really can quench your thirst!

ToR mini-review!

It's finally time for my much awaited review of the new Star Wars MMO - The Old Republic.

I've been playing this game since release and I can say with confidence that I am enjoying it more than WoW. A little history first, I've played WoW since before the first expac and was a pretty hardcore raider for a few years, but eventually the repetition of the game and the same overall story+quests eventually got me bored and I quit last year sometime.

Now before you go: "but wait, isn't ToR just like WoW but with lightsabers?!"

It is very similar to WoW I must say, but I do find the new character classes and worlds to be very refreshing and engaging. I also like the idea of the 'daily quest' where you go fighting in your own personal star ship and perform escorts or general destruction where needed (haha). This breaks up the normal third person combat you get with your average MMOs and injects some fast-paced (and graphically beautiful environments) into the game.

Another awesome aspect of the game is the crafting system. Rather than perform the craft of armor or the search for minerals; you are able to send off your companions (NPCs that you befriend/aquire during your questing) to do all the dirty work! Talk about streamlined! This frees you up to continue questing or performing whatever other duties you need.

I'm yet to try all the classes but I have played both the Imperial Agent and Jedi Consular (IA is ranged and JC is melee). They both bring a nice mix of new abilities that I haven't seen in WoW and some old favorites (but under a different name of course).

All in all, if you are a fan of MMOs I would highly recommend this to you, even doubly so if you enjoy sci-fi over fantasy worlds (which I do)!

I'll leave you with some screenshots I've taken while running around questing.
Feel free to ask questions!

                  Nar Shaddaa

 The Jedi Homeworld

Walking towards the main Jedi Temple 

Quick one before bed!

I will be posting some screenies and reviews of the quests in TOR very shortly. I have been extremely busy leveling so there hasn't been much time for blogging!

Stay tuned!

Work, work, work.

Wow! Finally after a hectic week of work I am back in action. I have finally managed to get some time playing Minecraft, Skyrim and the new Star Wars MMO. I must say that I am really enjoying The Old Republic. I might post some reviews/screenshots soon. I think it's time to play it now!

Busy busy!

A bit slow on posts lately, it has been hectic at work so I've had little time to visit my blog! Rest assured I will be back in action either tonight or tomorrow!

Don't forget about me ;D

Minecraft

I've been playing Minecraft for quite a while now, and let me tell you, it's one of the most amazing and engrossing games I have ever played. For such a simple idea, this game can keep you enthralled for hours on end. I've been playing on a friends server and we just build, build, build to no end.

I think I might start uploading more and more Minecraft and maybe other gaming related screenshots or anecdotes onto this blog. Hopefully I can inspire some creativity into you all!

This is on the railway towards The Birramid

This is the entrance toThe Birramid

Farewell evening.

Time to sleep

To rest my head

To go lie down

In my bed

Just a little something I whipped up off the top of my head. But seriously, I am tired and I'm about to hit the sack.

Now this is some serious fun...

Came across this LINK the other day and I cannot stop playing with it. God knows I've probably sunk the last 45 minutes here!
This is something I would really like to learn how to do. I'd imagine somewhere out there in the great world of cyberspace there are video lessons or something that can teach a person how to code things... I really have to look into that.

Skyrim - Obligatory arrow in knee comment

Skyrim.

Where do I begin?

This game is amazing and I don't doubt that it is the GOTY for 2011, hell maybe even 2012! There is so much content in this game that even after 130+ hours I still haven't finished ~50% of the available quests. I can surely tell that this will be keeping me enthralled for hours/weeks/months to come! I just hope my partner doesn't mind!

Here is just one of many in-game screenshots that I have taken (in awe of the graphics engine):

Howdy

It's the start of a new working week here and I'm about to start getting ready for it. This weekend wasn't too active, played a lot of games and ripped lots of billies. I can't complain though, I got to spend it with my best friend and we both had a great time!

More updates to follow!