youtube loses value under google

when Wired magazine recently highlighted Google's acquisition of YouTube, they made an admirable effort to try and explain the 1.65 billion dollar beating that Google accepted for the deal. the article YouTube vs. Boob Tube effectively mentioned a number of YouTube's hits. for example, the evolution of dance, and Noah takes a photo of himself every day for 6 years.

undoubtedly, these videos are great, but there's a problem. of the best videos that Wired could find a few of them are already gone.

even Wired's links to the afformentioned value-add videos are not immune; the first embedded video in the article has been removed "due to terms of use violation." I'm not even sure what they were trying to show me.

XNA beta code migration

these are some quick and dirty notes on migrating XNA GSE beta code to GSE V 1.0.

when you are migrating, refer to the XNA GSE documentation (in the Programs folder for GSE). the migration information is under Getting Started with XNA Game Studio Express -> Migrating from Beta 1 to Beta 2 (see below). this information also applies to the release version.

-------------------
GameTime
-------------------
double dblMS = (double)this.GameTime.Milliseconds;

becomes:

GameTime gameTime = new GameTime();
double dblMS = (double)gameTime.ElapsedGameTime.Milliseconds;

-------------------
loading Texture2D
-------------------
mTex2DSprite = Texture2D.FromFile(this.gfx.GraphicsDevice, @"..\..\light.dds");

becomes:

mTex2DSprite = content.Load(@"..\..\light") as Texture2D;

-------------------
VertexPositionColorTexture
-------------------
VertexPositionColorTexture parameters are in a different order

mVertSprite[0] = new VertexPositionColorTexture(pos, uv, Color.White);

becomes:

mVertSprite[0] = new VertexPositionColorTexture(pos, Color.White, uv);

-------------------
DrawUserPrimitives
-------------------
gfx.GraphicsDevice.DrawUserPrimitives
(PrimitiveType.TriangleStrip, // triangle strips
2, // two primitive objects
mVertSprite); // use sprite vertex

becomes:

gfx.GraphicsDevice.DrawUserPrimitives
(PrimitiveType.TriangleStrip, // triangle strips
mVertSprite, // use sprite vertex
0, // vertex offset
2); // two primitive objects

-------------------
EffectStateOptions
-------------------
EffectStateOptions is gone

mfxTex.Begin(EffectStateOptions.Default);

becomes:

mfxTex.Begin();
-------------------

from the documentation:

Migrating a Beta 1 project to Beta 2
"Create a new project by selecting New Project... from the File menu. Select Windows Game, name your new project, and click OK.

Add classes from your old project to your new project by selecting Add Existing Item... from the Project menu. Navigate to your Beta 1 project, select the class or classes to import, and click OK.
Add resources from your old project to your new project also by selecting Add Existing Item... and choosing Content Pipeline Files from the Files of type: drop-down box. You can select models, textures, effects and sounds to add to your project. See "Importing a resource into the Content Pipeline" below for more information.

Migrate code from your old project's Game1 class to your new project's Game1 class, including your Update and Draw methods. Use LoadGraphicsContent to load automatic and manual resources (note: "automatic" was called "managed" in Beta 1).

The Game Designer from Beta 1 does not exist in Beta 2. Use the Game constructor to set properties on the GraphicsDeviceManager (formerly GraphicsComponent).

Some code changes will be required before your Beta 1 code will compile properly in Beta 2. See "Framework Changes" below for a list of some of those changes. "

other resources:

Migrating an XNA Application from Beta 1 to Beta 2

pimps at sea invite

one of my oh-so-hilarious former microsoft colleagues just sent me an Xbox 360 invite to play Pimps at Sea (Alpha) - which, of course, is Halo 3.

and, of course, I don't have a copy of the Halo 3 Alpha DVD.


jerk!

microsoft bob lives

thanks to the miracle of Virtual PC, I am able to run the Microsoft Bob operating system. here are some screenshots (click images for full-size versions).

this UI was meant to revolutionize the OS business, but it fell flat on its cute puppy face. you may notice though, that the dog survived. you can find him in Windows XP.


- the Microsoft Bob OS sign in screen

the idea for Microsoft Bob was that you click on the picture that represents that task that you want to do. want to call someone? click on the phone.


- the main room in the OS

there is even a Microsoft Bob box in the company museum. within Microsoft culture, the project has become the archetype of failure.


- how deep was this mouse hole?

my kittens hate nazis

lucky guy that I am, santa brought me a copy of call of duty 3 this Christmas. here's my sob story for the day.

being a fan of the xbox 360 achievements, I've been working through some of them. today I was trying for the close combatant award which requires that you finish a mission without firing a shot - only melee attacks and grenades are allowed. I was on the last checkpoint and about to launch into the final assault when one of my cats nuzzled up to the controller and managed to press the trigger. my rifle fired and that was it for my hard work; I had to start again from the beginning. :(

I guess she was just too eager to get into the fight.