Here’s the pic I would draw regarding the budget battle….

 

 

So I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and guess what?  It turns out Customer Service Manager #2 was wrong when she said "all you’ll get is $50.00"  The coughed up another gift card for $50.00, making us down only $4.00, 4 phone calls, and 2 hours on the exchange.

I went to K-Mart, spent the $100.00 on a bluray, some ON SALE Christmas lights, and a DVD.

 When I have to go to the BBB to get satisfaction, I am NOT inclined to do business with a company any more.  Goodbye Sears!  You’ll only see me when my Craftsman tools need replacing….

A little over 2 months ago we bought a Maytag Washing Machine from Sears, because they had free (ok, rebate equal too) delivery and hookup.  So far, the Washing Machine has been great - no problems.  It’s a relatively low-tech version (no beeping control panel, no fancy lights or anything) but it does do "load adjustment" on it’s own.  That part bothers me a little, but so far, no problems.

The problem is that their delivery contractor came out and said our "connection valves" were corroded.  He claimed he couldn’t get the hot water to turn off, and that we needed a plumber out to fix them before he did the hookup.

Enter our trusty friends from Knochelman.  They came out the next day, examined the valves, said they were fine - the hot water was already off…apparently turned off by the installer - and that there was just some hose corrosion around hose connectors.  They charged $104.00 for the call - which we were happy to pay them because we figured Sears, with their reputation, would make good on it.

The next day, the delivery contractor re-appeared, finished the hookup, and said we needed to talk to the Store Manager about the $104.  Well, I talked to the Store Manager, and he said I need to file a "damage claim," which I did.  Immediately.

Two weeks later, I called Sears to see what the situation regarding the claim was, and I was told it was denied by the installer, and I could expect nothing.  I pursued the matter through all channels they offered, and finally mentioned to one of their warehouse people that I could still return the Washing Machine.  Apparently this raised some concern on their end, because they then offered me a $100.00 Sears Gift Card for my "trouble."  It would arrive in 2 to 3 weeks, and I told Ellen in customer service that I wasn’t completely happy, but that was an acceptable resolution.

So today, 6 weeks after being offered the card, 5 weeks after I am no longer able to return the washing machine, I called to find out where the Gift Card had gotten to.  A nice young man told me it had been canceled the day it had been requested.  THE DAY THEY OFFERED IT TO ME!!!  I guess I should have called back the next day, or the day after, or the week after, to find out the status of the gift card, but I was naive and trusting, and I took Ellen at her word.

Well, I talked to another "Customer Service Manager" and found out that all she could do for me was send a $50.00 gift card, if I wanted it, to make up for the trouble.  I told her fine, send me the card, but she won’t get another dime of MY money.  She seemed confused by this, so I spelled it out for her.  "I’ll gladly spend YOUR money at your store, but I won’t be spending any of my OWN!"

So, basically, Sears is now a NON-ENTITY for me.  Do not buy anything for me from Sears, do not offer me anything from there.  I don’t care what the deal is, or how cheap it is - unless it is completely disposable and/or costing them LOTS of money (Give me old broken Craftsman tools that I can exchange for new, shiny ones) I have no interest in it.

What a bunch of completely useless idiots.

So BP has pledged to put $20 billion with a b dollars into an escrow account to pay the claims of Gulf Coast residents who are adversely affected by the damage from the New Horizons spill.  This came after President Obama "got tough" with the BP executives visiting the White House.

However, what we are really seeing is political theater that benefits not only BP, but Obama as well.  Some important things to remember for everyone:

1. BP has been saying all along that they are prepared to pay the losses of the "little people."  They’ve already been paying claims, and placing this money under an independent controlling authority similar to the 911 fund is simply semantics.  BP will pay.
2. The $20 Billion will most likely come with very similar strings to the ones attached to the 911 settlement fund - that is, sign here, get your check, DON’T sue us.  The payment you get is the FINAL payment, and don’t come back later and say it’s too little, or that we owe you more.  True, all claims combined will probably exceed the $20 Billion, but they’ll be nothing like the $100s of Billions in liability that BP would be facing if all of the claims were litigated.  Those who apply early for claims may also be out of luck if they realize they’ve settle for too little.
3. The President scores politically by "standing tough" for the American People - except that what he has created is a false perception that he’s gotten something out of BP they weren’t expecting to pay anyway.  BP is probably ecstatic, Obama gets his "pound of flesh," and Obama supporters will be able to say "He really has led on this issue!"
4. Did anybody notice this has nothing to do with plugging the leak?

BP provides photo-op for Obama - Obama provides financial cover ("I worked so HARD to get this money, be grateful and take it!") for BP.

Brett:

Sarah did mention that you were interested in discussing my experiences in Video Game development, but I also suffer from procrastination, so I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner.  I can’t speak to the whole industry, and my experience is several years old, but I can tell you what I observed as a Software Developer for 2 Video Game companies.

This gets a little long and rambling – but I’m an old man, and my stories get like that (Sarah should have warned you…)

I worked for about 3 years for a Development Studio called “Pyrotechnix.”  When I say “studio,” I think I should talk about how the Video Game industry is set up.  Often times, the “Developer” is not the “Publisher.”  Sometimes they are completely different companies, and sometimes the one is a wholly owned subsidiary of the other, but operates as its own business unit.  Pyrotechnix was a “wholly owned” subsidiary of Sierra On-Line, which means we were run as an independent unit within the Sierra family.  While working for Pyrotechnix, I was involved heavily in 3 development projects:  SnowCrash (never finished), “Space Combat” (never finished), and Return to Krondor (link below).

http://www.mobygames.com/game/raymond-e-feists-return-to-krondor

As you may notice, two of the three games I worked as a developer  on at Sierra were never finished.  I found out while working at Pyrotechnix that this is a very common occurrence – approximately 2 out of every 3 games that begin development never see the light of day.  We’ll talk about that a little more later on.

 

The “Studio” System:

Back to the business model.  Many of the big Publishers also have in-house development teams – Electronic Arts (EA), Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft.  However, many of their titles are actually developed by “3^rd Party Studios” who then sell publishing rights to the big publishers.  This has a huge advantage for the publishers – they don’t have to fund any of those “2 out of 3” games that aren’t going to make it to market, while reaping the benefits of the 1 out of 3 that is worth publishing.  If, however, a title is so well received that it warrants a sequel, or better yet, a “franchise,” the Publishers often sign exclusive, long-term deals with the Development Studios, or buy them outright.

Obviously, nobody without a huge bankroll goes into the industry as a Publisher.  Publishers are the mega-entities that actually put the CDs in the box and on the shelf at Best-Buy, Costco, and Wal-Mart.  Development Studios, however, start with as few as 3 people, sometimes working out of a garage or basement, who have a “cool idea” and want to see it published.  Half-Life – one of the most successful video games in history – started out as a Garage Project.  Pyrotechnix started as a “technology” company – developing a 3D Rendering Engine – and was bought by 7^th Level in the early-90s.  They then continued as a Game Development Studio based on their “True3D” technology.   “Everquest” actually used the True3D engine, licensing it from Pyrotechnix (technically from 7^th Level, as they owned Pyrotechnix at the time).

Your Own Company

Obviously, the best way to get into gaming is to go to work for an established, successful company and work on OTHER PEOPLE’S ideas.  This has the advantage of working in an established business, somewhat regular (if insane) hours, a steady paycheck for a while, and maybe even some benefits.  Of course, if you want to work on your OWN ideas, you may be disappointed.

So how do you start up a Development Studio?  Basically you and a couple of very techno-geek buddies get together and say “We’re committed to spending the next 18 months to two years not knowing where our next meal is coming from, hoping and praying to God our idea is as good (or at least as marketable) as we hope it is, and that we can find a Publisher to pick us up once we get the Proof-Of-Concept working.”

Ok, so maybe not exactly that bad.  You may be able to eat if at least one of you is gainfully employed – but that person won’t sleep much.  First titles are works of love by people committed to success.  Long hours, hard work, and a good idea are where you start. 

 The design process consists largely of writing a complete description of the game – everything from the background story to the final scene.  You have to produce a clear vision of what the game experience will be when the programmers, artists, musicians, and voice talent are all done.   The Design Document is the game’s “Bible.”  Unlike the Bible, however, your Design Document will be living, breathing, changing document – for a variety of reasons.  Often technology does not allow for some aspect that you intend for your game.  Other times, new technology becomes available that you want to leverage (and, God willing, you have time to incorporate) in the game.  Sometimes, something that sounds really cool on paper really sucks when put into the game.

 

A good game design will be well organized , complete enough to share the vision with everyone who reads it, and flexible enough to adjust to changing realities.

 

Sometimes you can sell a good design as its own product to an interested Studio, but that never really happens unless you have some product Tie-In that you can sell along with it.  A game based on “Avatar” sounds cool and would be really marketable, but if you don’t have the rights to use it, you can’t sell it.  If your game is based on a book or other media, you have to make sure you aren’t stepping on anybody’s copyright, or you could end up doing a fantastic job for somebody else, free of charge.

 

Platform Target is another issue.  Each platform incorporates a different technology base, and so must be developed with different tools.  PC Games are the easiest to get the tools for – there are free compilers, free render engines, free code examples – but because it’s the biggest market, it is also the most crowded.  Margins on PC Games are razor thin, so unless you have a mega-hit, don’t expect to make a lot of money.  Platformers (PS3, XBOX-360, GameCube or whatever the current generation is called) are different.  These require very specialized (and expensive) development tools.  A PS2 development target from Sony used to cost $20,000 for the box and compiler – for EACH developer.  Also, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo have very strict content and quality requirements – if you want to sell to their platforms, you must get their permission to market the game.  They also set the price for the game – which is good from a margin standpoint – but they get a cut of each game as well.  Just information you should be aware of.

 

So you’ve managed to select a target, and by the grace of God (pray a lot, it helps you focus) you have a “Proof of Concept” built.  That is, you have the first level (or some introductory level) of your game done.  The developers are busy, busy, busy continuing development, but now someone (and in a small Studio, if you’re not the developer, you’re going to be that “someone”) has to start trying to market the game to a Publisher.  This involves figuring out how to submit games to each of 20 or so companies, each with its own set of rules for submissions (they get hundreds of “startup” submissions a year – you have to stand out) and then doing the pavement pounding, the mailing, the form filing, etc to sell your GAME to them. 

 

Here’s where you also need a lawyer – you don’t want to present your outstanding, highly marketable, totally awesome game to some company, have them pat you on the head and say “nice try,” and then see your concept on the shelf with somebody else’s name on it next Christmas.  You (or someone in your company) needs to be fully versed in protecting all your hard work, and making sure you don’t give it away by some oversight or accident.

 

2 out of 3

 

I mentioned earlier that 2 out of every 3 games that start the Development process don’t make it to a store shelf.  This is a very disheartening number – and the reality of game development.  Reasons are numerous, but they boil down to just a few issues.

a.       The game looks better on paper than on the machine.  This is a common issue with ambitious game designs.  Somewhere, your fanciful world of nymphs and faeries gets lost in the translation to pixels and processor-cycles.

b.      The game isn’t fun.  This isn’t always as easy to fix as you’d think.  I’ve seen lots of competent game designers show a prototype enthusiastically, only to discover that, beyond themselves, nobody really likes the idea.  The problem here is, you can’t tell until someone plays your game if they think it’s fun or not.

c.       Finishing the game would be too expensive.  The reality is that each publisher is going to look at your game as a piece of property to be sold.  If they agree to publish your game, they will give you money to “finish it” and then a cut of profits (if you have a good negotiator on your side).  But they make these decisions based on what the game will “probably” make on the market.  I was involved in a game that the Publisher had spent $2 million dollars on, and we had completed a grand total of 2 levels.  The projected cost of completing the remaining 18 planned levels was another $2 million.  The profits from the game were not expected to surpass $2 million dollars.  The game was cancelled (simple math – Sony was in the hole $2 million either way….).

d.      Other considerations.  The Lead Developer’s wife says if he doesn’t find a REAL job, she’s leaving him.  Your “go to” guy on Sound gets an offer from EA for a “real” job.  (One of Half-Life’s developers actually chose the game over his wife….)

 

The Dream Job You’ll Hate

 

Ok, let’s talk about what happens when your proto-type is done, you have a Publisher lined up, you’ve deposited the check, and your Studio is actually paying people to work on the game.  It’s smooth sailing from then on, right?

 

This is the part of the industry I know best, because I did it for 3 years at Pyrotechnix and 2½ years at Acclaim Entertainment.  The fun has just begun.  What was a “labor of love” now becomes work, plain and simple.  Under that contract you got for your awesome game to be published, buried somewhere in the fine print, is a DEADLINE.  It will be sometime in the fall of some year (probably 12 to 18 months out from when you get the contract), and it will be non-negotiable.  The Publisher will hold you to that deadline for a variety of reasons:

a.       They don’t move Christmas.  The much lamented fact of the Video Game industry is people spend money on NEW titles at Christmas.  Franchises are different.  Half-Life 23 can come out whenever it pleases, as can Quake 39 and Unreal 22.  These are all well-established games with loyal followings which will make money whenever they appear on the shelves.  Your game, however awesome it is, will be released for Christmas, which means that it must be on the shelves BEFFORE THANKSGIVING.  Hope you weren’t planning any Summer Vacations.

b.      The Publisher will be paying for shelf space starting around Thanksgiving.  They will NOT be happy if, instead of “Brett’s Awesome Game” there is an empty shelf next to a cardboard cutout of “Brett’s Awesomest Evil Dude.”

c.       The Publisher will also spend a lot of money trying to tell everyone what an Awesome Game you have.  Marketing goes on for 6 months prior to a game’s release, with E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) disclosures, magazine ads, maybe even some gimmicks to sell your game.  The game has to be done.

 

Now is when all those long hours spent in the garage with your buddies will seem like the “Good Old Days.”  Crunch Time – the period when everyone is working 12 or more hours a day to finish the game (there’s an oxymoron – no game is ever “finished” when it leaves the Studio) – usually lasts 6 months or more.  Bugs will be found, prioritized, and then ignored as “minor.”  Features will drop like the Fall Foliage because they are deemed “too ambitious (confusing, idiotic, boring).”  Playtesters will provide conflicting feedback on your baby that you don’t want to hear (not fast enough, too fast, not cerebral enough, too much thinking involved).  The Publisher will want weekly (then daily) progress reports.

 

This is when you start to consider if maybe Air Traffic Controller wouldn’t be a less stressful career choice.

 

The Payoff

 

Is it worth all of the stress, the work, the various family functions you’ll miss (birthdays, anniversaries, the birth of your firstborn)?  The only way to answer that question is to walk into a Best Buy and see your game – the game that has YOUR name in the credits – on the shelf.  To read reviews and have people rank you overall 7 out of 10, or 9 out of 10.  To find out you actually sold your projected number of games – and then some.

 

The problem is, now everyone expects a SEQUEL!  The Publisher wants to know when they can see the Design for “Brett’s Awesome Game II: Awesomer!”

 

It starts over – but once you’ve got a Publisher who you’ve sold ONE success too, at least you can eat, and maybe clothe your kids too….

 

"What follows is an example of a scientific group that not only stopped a leading researcher from attending a meeting, but then—without discussing the evidence—applauds the IPCC and recommends urgent policies to reduce greenhouse gases."

Shun the non-believer!

SHUUUUUN

In 1 Samuel 23, David consults the Lord with the help of a device called an "Ephod," through which the Lord answers David’s questions about what he should do regarding battle plans.  The Ephod is apparently in the safekeeping of a priest named Abiathar at the time.

In "An Inconvenient Truth" former Vice President Al Gore consults his own "Ephod" of sorts, in the guise of Global Climate Models, in order to spread the Gospel of Global Warming.  This "Ephod" is kept by Al Gore’s own version of a "high priest," James Hansen, who runs the Goddard Institute for Space Studies over at NASA.

Sound familiar?

When Al Gore goes on tour, telling us all how we have to change the way we’re living or disaster will befall us, he sounds more and more like a prophet of doom from the Bible.  We must repent of our Carbon sins, lest the great Climate Change God strike us down with flood, famine, drought, and all manner of disaster.  And by repent, Al means pay for indulgences in the form of "Carbon Credits."

Al is also training disciples to spread this belief - just as Jesus did before him by sending out 70 of his followers, Al is sending out thousands to spread the word about Carbon, and how only by following his teachings (not his example, of course - he needs his private jet, his stretch SUVs, his 20 room mansion,  to spread the word, don’t you know) can we avoid disaster.

And every time some "tipping point" is passed, but doom does not follow - every season hurricanes do not increase, sea levels do not rise, temperatures remain flat - we are told that it is coming.  Really!  Ignore those who say otherwise - those heretics, agents of Carbon (Satan?) who are only working for their own enrichment.  It will be a disaster in fifty or a hundred years (long after Al and his cohorts have made billions in Cap and Trade and Alternative Energy subsidies).  Trust them, it IS coming!

Changing their story at every turn, assuring us that Universal (or at least Worldwide) Armageddon will be upon us, and using mystical means to "prove" it (every one-off is treated as a harbinger of doom, even if the one-off is a record cold snap or a drop in the rate of sea-level rise), they continue to scare young children into proper "behavior" and "reverence" for "Scientific Consensus."

Don’t think for a moment that they are doing it for the money, though.  Only evil agents of Carbon do it for the money.  Ignore the  $32 billion spent for climate research since 1989 - research that has, purely coincidentally, mostly come to the conclusion that Global Warming is real, is man made, and needs MORE research.  And that $36 billion spent on "climate related technologies?"  That could never, ever taint "the science."  The $20 million spent by Evil Oil for researching possible alternative theories, however, places every "denier" on the payroll of Satan!

Again, think about religions - we all know that we have to pay the preacher!   Of course, Al Gore preaches for "speaking fees."  You’d think if he truly believed, he’d be more like Paul, who preached for room and board.  Al seems to be more like Jim Baker….

"All praise to the prophet, death to the non-believing heretic, obedience or disaster, doubt is not allowed, and don’t confuse the argument with the facts!"

Sounds like a religion to me!

ABC TURNS PROGRAMMING OVER TO OBAMA; NEWS TO BE ANCHORED FROM INSIDE WHITE HOUSE
Tue Jun 16 2009 08:45:10 ET

On the night of June 24, the media and government become one, when ABC turns its programming over to President Obama and White House officials to push government run health care — a move that has ignited an ethical firestorm!

Highlights on the agenda:

ABCNEWS anchor Charlie Gibson will deliver WORLD NEWS from the Blue Room of the White House.

The network plans a primetime special — ‘Prescription for America’ — originating from the East Room, exclude opposing voices on the debate.

The Director of Communications at the White House Office of Health Reform is Linda Douglass, who worked as a reporter for ABC News from 1998-2006.

Late Monday night, Republican National Committee Chief of Staff Ken McKay fired off a complaint to the head of ABCNEWS:

Dear Mr. Westin:

As the national debate on health care reform intensifies, I am deeply concerned and disappointed with ABC’s astonishing decision to exclude opposing voices on this critical issue on June 24, 2009. Next Wednesday, ABC News will air a primetime health care reform “town hall” at the White House with President Barack Obama. In addition, according to an ABC News report, GOOD MORNING AMERICA, WORLD NEWS, NIGHTLINE and ABC’s web news “will all feature special programming on the president’s health care agenda.” This does not include the promotion, over the next 9 days, the president’s health care agenda will receive on ABC News programming.

Today, the Republican National Committee requested an opportunity to add our Party’s views to those of the President’s to ensure that all sides of the health care reform debate are presented. Our request was rejected. I believe that the President should have the ability to speak directly to the America people. However, I find it outrageous that ABC would prohibit our Party’s opposing thoughts and ideas from this national debate, which affects millions of ABC viewers.

In the absence of opposition, I am concerned this event will become a glorified infomercial to promote the Democrat agenda. If that is the case, this primetime infomercial should be paid for out of the DNC coffers. President Obama does not hold a monopoly on health care reform ideas or on free airtime. The President has stated time and time again that he wants a bipartisan debate. Therefore, the Republican Party should be included in this primetime event, or the DNC should pay for your airtime.

Respectfully,
Ken McKay
Republican National Committee
Chief of Staff

MORE

ABCNEWS Senior Vice President Kerry Smith on Tuesday responded to the RNC complaint, saying it contained ‘false premises’:

"ABCNEWS prides itself on covering all sides of important issues and asking direct questions of all newsmakers — of all political persuasions — even when others have taken a more partisan approach and even in the face of criticism from extremes on both ends of the political spectrum. ABCNEWS is looking for the most thoughtful and diverse voices on this issue.

"ABCNEWS alone will select those who will be in the audience asking questions of the president. Like any programs we broadcast, ABC News will have complete editorial control. To suggest otherwise is quite unfair to both our journalists and our audience."

Developing…

 

-FROM THE The Drudge Report