Switches and Changes at 4:37 PM

I'M ON LINUX.

No, seriously, I'm using Ubuntu as my main, and have for quite a few months. So far, I'm loving it! Of course, nothing is without its problems, Ubuntu isn't very friendly with Dell computers, so there was a lot of reworking to be done to get it running like I wanted. But today I have finally achieved what I have wanted for so long. (nearly) Perfect usability!

Here is my first official screenshot of my (now) main OS, Ubuntu!



So yeah, this is it. I'm lovin it.

As for changes in my life, I'M FINALLY WITH HER!

Yeah, for those of you who know me personally, I've never actually had a physical girlfriend (up until now that is >:3). We stuck together, through thick and thin, and it finally happened.

Here we are!!!
(Dude on the right is my best bud: John)

Gp2x Wiz Review Part 1 at 3:52 AM

Upon receiving my Wiz, the box it containted was considerably smaller than I had expected.  It was extremely well contained, probably took me about 10 minutes just to get the packaging opened.  Once opened, however, I couldn't help but admire the box inside.  Its too bad I don't have a camera, or this review would've been two parts and already up on youtube by now.  Instead though, this text review is all I can offer.


Hardware:

It is small.  Smaller than the past two GPH handhelds, but for the Wiz's lack in size, it more than makes up for with whats inside.  At 533 mhz, the Wiz has almost twice the processing capabilities of the Sony PSP.  Of course though, due to its open-source nature, it does not run this fast.  Yet.  The screen boasts a very bright display viewable at almost any angle with little to no glare or dimming.  The battery is a rechargeable lithium battery, and after countless times of leaving it powered on for hours on accident, and of course, using it for hours on end, it has yet to die on me. 

A small 2 ft. cord that resembles a cell-phone charger comes with the unit, that is probably the only thing I have a major issue with.  The connection feels really flimsy and feels as if any sudden jerk would break the plug.  Its usb, so it can connect to any usb-compatible computer and reads as a storage device, thus you can access the NAND (internal memory) or SD card connected to it on virtually any computer. 

The buttons have been a cause of concern for many following the development of the Wiz, and I for one had low expectations after reading and seeing pictures of the dev units.  Some say it is hard to push diagonally on the D-Pad and even though you can press down on the entire pad, it has yet to hinder any gameplay experience for me at all.  Instead of a dual d-pad system that GPH was shooting for, there are now four pressable buttons in the form of an A, X, Y, and B.  The L and R buttons are rather small compared to other handheld devices but I have no trouble pressing them comfortably.  Others will bigger hands may have difficulty though. 

The whole rectangle feel of the system had looked appealing to me at first, and to be honest is still stylish in my eyes, it reminds me of the days I had picked up my first nintendo controller.  Unlike the original nintendo controller, though, all the buttons are arranged so that they are naturally beneath your thumbs while holding the system comfortably.  That is, every button except the volume buttons and on-off switch.  The volume is handled by two buttons located on the bottom left of the console, which shouldn't be a problem for left-handed people, but I am right handed and I'm still trying to get used to it. 

The four buttons on the right side though, have started to gum up, and are less responsive than they were a week ago, and I rarely press harder than needed.  This worries me, as I plan to use this little system a lot, so the wear and tear factor is very low so far.  I have had to keep the flimsy screen protector that came with the unit on since I opened it, for I still have not tested the durability of the touch-screen, which by the way, is unaccurate to say the least.  Though this is probably a firmware issue I'm sure will be corrected in the near future.



Firmware:

The firmware feels less like a stable menu and more like a work-in-progress.  This is where I had hoped that user-input would come into play, but as of right now, its nearly impossible for anyone who isn't profficient with computers, reducing the appeal to the casual user considerably.  Although a recent firmware release fixed the lag while playing videos, music playback is still very incomplete and is very unresponsive to controls.  Instead of a promised visualization, it is just an animated images that repeats over and over.

Using the Wiz for the first time felt like something I'd expect from a knock-off chinese gameboy, and was hardly professional in terms of quality and visuals.  The bright orange theme, although stylish in a way, can become a real eye-sore after extensive use.  With 533 Mhz and 64mb of ram, the system is capable of much more than this and would almost be a deal-killer if it weren't for the great open-source following GPH has. 

Do not get me wrong though, just because the Wiz is released, doesn't mean there won't be updates.  Unlike the PSP and DS, firmware updates are not required, though recommended, and not updating won't make your games stop functioning, which is a definite plus and was a reason I put down my psp in the first place. 

The wiz, for me, was more of an investment than a purchase.  All of the potential this piece of hardware has is very promising.  With emulators ranging from atari to snes to arcade units already being ported, the library of games available to the Wiz at launch and purchase is staggering and the numbers will only increase. 

Gp2x Wiz Review Intro at 3:49 AM

No, this is not an article about your special place, this is actually my first hardware/firmware review!

I present to you:

Part 1: Intro
A quick explanation of various aspects of the Wiz before the review, if you'd like to skip this, click on "Part 2" on the table of contents (Not finshed yet).



(Please note:    Many texts in this review are linked to official websites and deeper explanations of various topics.)




What is the "Wiz"?

    The Wiz is a portable, linux-run, media center.  Much like the psp, it can play movies and music, and look at pictures.  Unlike the psp, however, you can read texts, manga, and run emulators (natively) and has a touch-sensitive AMOLED screen.  There is also no need for any type of hacking on your system to run an emulator developed by the open source community.


What is "Open Source"?

    A good way to explain open source is to compare the Wiz with such gaming devices as the NDS (Nintendo DS) and PSP (Playstation Portable).  The PSP and NDS are sold (like the Wiz) as hardware.  Software is designed and developed by companies and the source (main coding that makes up the software) is kept to themselves.  This is called closed-source.  Whereas for the Wiz, most of the programs and games are developed and released for free (along with the source codes) over the internet.  You may think this is counter-productive, but because of the nature of the open-source community, everything is custom-tailered for the users' experience.


What is an "AMOLED" screen?

    You know how when you look at a laptop screen at an angle, or an LCD TV, it gets dark and hard to see?  An AMOLED screen is basically a very bright display that eliminates that entirely. 


What is an "Emulator"?

    An emulator emulates hardware designed to run specific types of software.  There are many types of emulators that are both legal and illegal, the latter of which are very popular, and is a prominent feature of the Wiz's capabilities.  Such emulators include Dr. Pocketsnes, AlexKidd2x, FCE Ultra, and MAME4All. 

So Much So Little So Short at 4:52 AM

So my brother and his wife and daughter have been here for the past week, and its great to see them after 3 years+.  I've grown very attached to my niece, she's so very cute!  Which is really something new for me, I've been much for children.  Turns out I'm pretty good with them, her friend grew attached to me as well, hah.

Also, Next Friday is a small concert my friend's band is playing at, I used to help manage and make graphics for them.  But since I started working with OnFPS.com I kinda lost touch, but I'm hoping to get back into working with them, they're really motivated and I like the way they're going with their music.  You can check them out here: www.myspace.com/emergingfrombelow

Also found this guy who made a bunch of dbz vids, some worth mentioning cuz they're the first vids in a long time to make me laugh really hard, check them out here.



Alright, not much else to report, I'm signing off!

PBWYATHIS,
~Jack (josh)

Javascript Guitar Hero at 8:48 AM

So I've got a treat for the.. 2 followers of my blog.  I found a website that has scripted a guitar-hero like program that goes to the song "Smells like Teen Spirit". 

http://ejohn.org/apps/hero/

Plus I've also found out, theres a very small movement of websites that incorporate the infamous konami code (up up down down left right left right b a).  If you push those buttons on some sites (like www.digg.com and facebook) You'll get little treats.  Which is how I found this guitar hero thing.

Lemme tell you, guitar hero is hard on the keyboard.

Testing and Tutorialing at 1:42 AM

So I guess I'm trying out the new Windows 7 RC (Release Candidate). Really, the only reason I decided to post is because theres a gadget that lets me post from the desktop, which now that I think about it, might get me to post more often, heh.

Also, I made two tutorials regarding the use of BBCLean, my default desktop shell. You may find them here: www.youtube.com/user/jacksterson

Enjoy! Don't forget to comment/rate!

Oh Well at 9:13 AM

I guess you can see now, there's a pattern going on here.
3 months without posts (exaggerated), and then I come back and say "I promise I'll post more".

Not sure what that says about my character. You can probably guess that either I'm too busy, or I'm just procrastinating. Its a bit of both, but then again, when is it not?

I have been missing a number of days lately. Not because I want to, but my stomach has been very queasy in the mornings lately. I have night school I can attend, but that is a victim of my procrastinate lazy self as well.

This time though, I forgot my wallet. I didn't want to chance walking all the way to school on an uneasy stomach, so I'll attempt night school again.

A quick update on my life:

Becca is in east texas, summer home. She'll be there for a week with no phone or internet.
I already miss the hell out of her. I gotta admit, I was a bit nonchalant about the whole thing, which probably made her feel bad. But now that I've actually gone a few days without her, I really am feeling the loneliness. I really have grown very attached to her.

For the past month, I've been designing a world map for a Byond game developer. Its quite fun really. On the side, I moderate the forums, as usual. Not a whole lot of activity there, we really do need more posters, to keep the site alive for v 2.0. Who knows when its coming, I'm not even going to give an estimate, due to lack of tangible evidence as oof late.

I joined a group on deviantart, for writers. Its called Litgeist. Check it out if you want.

PBWYATHIS,
Joshua "Jacksterson" Elmendorf
OnFPS Head Writer/Forum Administrator