youth are awesome.com

Courtesy Calgary Public Library

Do you love kids? How about seniors?  The Calgary Public Library is providing an amazing volunteer opportunity to connect with both generations this fall.

Be a cyber-coach and share your tech knowledge with an older adult in CyberSeniors Connect, or help a younger child improve their skills in Computer Buddies. Either way, you’ll work one-on-one to guide your learner through lessons and answer their computer-related questions.

“Volunteering at the library offers a great chance to connect with other generations and make a difference in their lives,” says Jessica Hagel, Volunteer Resources Assistant with the Calgary Public Library.

“Make an impact on your community and discover new talents at the same time.”

Volunteer openings at the library include:

• Bowness
• Country Hills (Cardel)
• Fish Creek
• Forest Lawn
• Louise Riley
• Thorn Hill

For more information or to apply to be a volunteer, click here. You can also call Jessica at 403-221-2036 if you have any questions.

Resident Evil,  Call of Duty, Pokémon and Legend of Zelda are some of our generation’s favourite graphic, fantasy-based and realistic video games that stimulate our visual perceptions of our imagination. But what was there before graphic designers, before these visual manifestations of our imagination? Books? Well, sure your imagination certainly creates images, but you don’t necessarily choose if Harry Potter dies or not (if I were cynical, maybe). However, for once I think I would like to be in control of my own adventure, where I’M the HERO, and I’ll be the chosen one. First introduced in the thrilling, spy-based television show series, CHUCK (this television show series definitely appeals to the romantic, thrill and espionage seekers in all of us), and later delved into in my computer science class, is the wonderful world of ZORK! With so many versions of Zork, I’m going to focus on the third edition: Zork III: The Underground Empire.

Zork is an interactive, fantasy-based computer game, set in an expansive and mysterious underground labyrinth, leading into the “Great Underground Empire.” You, the nameless hero, adventure into the depths of this menacing and threatening labyrinth, to finish and return with treasure and glory, defeating this perilous journey’s many challenges and monsters.

A basic and familiar plot for most gamers, what distinguishes Zork in terms of the fantasy genre is the fantastic and pragmatic storytelling, appealing to a player’s five senses and humour, the humorous, and unexpectedly sophisticated, text parser, which surprisingly recognizes complicated commands that involve prepositions and conjunctions.

So how exactly does this interactive computer programming work? A small descriptive paragraph or sentences will appear onto your computer screen, the starting paragraph to always begin:

“West of House                                                                                                                                                    You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door.

There is a small mailbox here.”

The amazing interactive ability you have with Zork is that you can ACTUALLY TYPE IN A COMMAND, and Zork WILL RESPOND BASED ON YOUR ANSWER. Pretty cool, huh?

So basically, you could type in “Open mailbox”, which will give you following response:

>open mailbox                                                                                                                                                              ”Opening the small mailbox reveals a leaflet.”

and further interaction would be like this:

>take leaflet     “Taken.”

> read leaflet                                                                                                                                                   “ZORK is a game of adventure, danger, and low cunning. In it you will explore some of themos amazing territory ever seen by mortals. No computer should ever be without one!”

Okay, simple commands and simple descriptions. However, if you continue the fascinating gameplay, and manage to enter the house, an extremely descriptive and option-leaded paragraph appears on the screen.

> enter house                                                                                                                                                 “Kitchen                                                                                                                                                                You are in the kitchen of a white house. A table seems to have been used recently for the preparation of food…A dark chimney leads  down  and to the east is a small window which is open. On the table is a elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. The glass bottle contains:

a quantity of water.”

So many options, leading to so many senarios, equals awesome gameplay.

If you wanna try this game, play here

Wanna try your hand at creating a similar interactive program?

Welcome to the world of C++.

Image Credits:

Resident Evil: http://www.twistysdownload.com/forums/games/76993-resident-evil-5-hotfile.html

Modern Warfare: http://news.softpedia.com/newsImage/Call-of-Duty-Modern-Warfare-Mobilized-Reaches-the-DS-This-Fall-2.png/

Legend of Zelda: http://wallpapers.pixxp.com/18__The_Legend_of_Zelda_Twilight_Princess.htm

Pokemon: http://www.bitmob.com/mobfeed?tag=pokemon-heart-goldsoul-silver

Zork II: http://struckus.tripod.com/Legacy_of_zork.htm

West of House display: http://www.myabandonware.com/game/zork-the-great-underground-empire-1j

Grue display: http://www.redbubble.com/search/infocom

Zork Nemesis: http://www.vaxdungeon.com/zork.asp

Want to be in the know? It’s easier than ever with Facebook, which has evolved into a great social media tool for businesses to share fantastic deals for shops, restaurants, events and more.  We also like Facebook because we can discover local, national and international new projects and innovative ideas.

Here’s our list of the 10 best Calgary pages to “like” on Facebook.

365 Things to Do In Calgary

Fans: 16,170

Why we like them: They post a list of awesome things to do in the city, suggesting activities, shopping, dining and more.

Most recent status update: #10: Stroll through a bit of nature and some great exhibits at the Calgary Zoo! This zoo features an absolutely amazing dinosaurs exhibit as well as six acres of botanical gardens! Stop by and have an adventure! If you go Sundays they have a Safari Brunch as well! What’s your favorite part about the zoo?

Calgary Flight Deals and Travel Specials

Fans: 1,212

Why we like them: We love to travel and this page posts tons of great deals for many airlines and holiday packages.

Most recent status update: Calgary to Chicago – $400 roundtrip after tax in October/November. http://www.ycheap.com/forums/topic/2929-calgary-to-chicago-400-roundtrip-after-tax/

Calgary Inter-faith Food Bank

Fans: 623

Why we like them: They’re a great cause and have put together an equally great Facebook page. Find contest and event information, plus pictures, videos and more.

Most recent status update: Follow us on Twitter for your chance to win a pair of tickets to this Saturday’s CFL game, Winnipeg Blue Bombers vs the Calgary Stampeders! http://www.twitter.com/calgaryfoodbank

Calgary Public Library

Fans: 1,824

Why we like them: The Calgary Public Library’s page is thorough and informative. They post photos, event information and fun facts about the library.

Most recent status update: More people visit the Calgary Public Library each year than attend the zoo, all museums, Heritage Park, Fort Calgary, all theatre performances, Spruce Meadows, all music concerts, the Calgary Stampede, and all professional hockey, football, baseball and soccer games combined!

The Calgary Zoo

Fans: 1,257

Why we like them: The zoo shares information about their animals and events through their Facebook page. It’s also a good way to ask questions and get more information about the zoo’s mandate.

Most recent status update: Check out Safari Sunday Brunch at the zoo for one of the best brunch deals in town! Brunch AND the zoo for one price before noon!

Chinook Centre

Fans: 1,022

Why we like them: With Chinook Centre’s ongoing expansion, this is a very exciting page to follow. We only knew that there’s going to be an Urban Outfitters and an Anthropologie in November because of this page.

Most recent status update: Have you started following Chinook Centre on Twitter yet? The 50 Days of Giveaways is underway and the prizes keep getting bigger and better! A little birdie told me when we reach 1000 there will be a BONUS prize…

Metro Calgary

Fans: 640

Why we like them: Metro Calgary consistently updates their page, giving us quick news headlines without bombarding us with too much information.

Most recent status update: It’s not just smog and haze – a reported 700 people are dying a day in Moscow as wildfire and a heat wave plague the area.

Telus World of Science – Calgary

Fans: 3,270

Why we like them: The Telus World of Science utilizes Facebook to its fullest extent. They have polls, pictures, links to news articles, event listings, hours and more.

Most recent status update: BODY WORLDS & The Brain is entering its final weeks… The exhibit closes on Monday, September 6^th. If you are planning on seeing it, see it soon. The last week will be extremely busy!

Youth Are Awesome

Fans: 339

Why we like them: It’s us! On our Facebook page, you’ll find links to current blogs plus discussions on all things youth and Calgary.

Most recent status update: What’s the best way to spend a summer weekend in Calgary? Leave a comment!

Youth Central

Fans: 37 (but it’s new)

Why we like them: Youth Central’s mission is to inspire, engage and celebrate youth through community participation. The Facebook page, while it is new, is a great way to find information on current volunteer projects and photos from past events.

Most recent status update: We’re currently recruiting volunteers for Shakespeare in the Park, the Between Friends Club and more! Check out http://www.cyfc.ca/involve/projects.aspx to get involved.

Ever got fed up with someone constantly talking and bragging about their golf swing, their new iPhone or their newest toy? Maybe even to the extent of thinking to …blending them?

Okay you can’t go and take someones belonging and turn it to pulp but you can see objects like a golf club and an iPhone being blended on willitblend. This is a really cool website where you can see many objects from iPads to marbles being tested in the blender! One of the most recent objects put to the wrath of the blender is the iPhone 4!

Warning: If you worship the iPhone 4 or any apple products you may not want to go further and view this video.

As a child I’ve always found watching the banana being blended in a smoothie entertaining so naturally I would love this. This website blends curiosity and hours of entertainment together so if you have time go check it out!

Happy viewing

If you haven’t been a PC gamer that has lived under a rock for the past several years, then you surely know the company by the name of oh I don’t know: Activision Blizzard?  Blizzard has been making phenomenal games since 1991, with their breakthrough hit being Warcraft: Orcs and Humans in 1994.  Ever since, the revolutionary gaming giant has released groundbreaking game after game, changing the online gaming community with their unique innovations and strive for the ultimate gaming experience.

With any online community however, there are almost always concerns over privacy, whether it be sites like Facebook, or Myspace, even online gaming forums are not exempt from such conflicts.  Recently, on July 6’th, Blizzard announced one of the most unprecedented changes they planned to implement on their online World of Warcraft forum – users would now be required to identify themselves with their real name when posting on the forums: Real ID.

This online dramatic episode caused massive uproar in the cyberspace community.  The blogosphere flared up with countless blogs and articles discussing the various nuances of the situation – some arguing that this was a violation of their privacy and freedom of expression, while others pointed that such a decision would inherently damage various aspects of the online gaming community.  The rationale behind such a radical idea was to prevent trolling.  But really, was that Blizzard’s true intent behind their words? And would such a decision solely prevent trolling without other unforeseen consequences that the company would regret?

Blizzard is certainly no foolish gaming corporation that has ignored the illuminated success of social networking sites such as Facebook.  It is obvious that Blizzard is trying to introduce a greater sense of community to their forums for the sake of adding a slight social networking flavor that the company has generally remained alien from.  Real ID would not only induce unwanted personalization onto the forums, but for Blizzard, it would also act as an opportunity for increased revenue from targeted advertising – can never have too much money right? Who cares about what your loyal customers think.

This is evidently a decision masked with the intent to create a friendlier online community by disabling the proliferation of trolls; but a decision made in poor taste by the company that will undoubtedly have severe consequences for not only gamers, but fundamentally the way in which users interact and communicate online.

So here’s what’s wrong with Real ID:

1. Privacy. This is the internet.  Is Blizzard crazy?  If they are indeed worried about trolls, have they thought about the characteristics of a person who is a troll? If one has enough time to troll another, do they not also have the redundant time to invade into the private lives of others? Let’s take a look at Facebook.  Without a doubt, online stalking, or creeping, is ubiquitous with Facebook usage.  It’s almost as if Facebook has legitimized stalking through bypassing the moral barriers that seem to only be present in real life.  Is this what Blizzard wants? Because that’s exactly what they will get on their forums – online predators (not saying there are many, but you cannot ignore their existence) will take advantage of Real ID for various purposes that are unhealthy for the online community.  One of Blizzard’s managers was audacious enough to reveal his own name on the forum in attempt to alleviate some of the propagating concerns – this resulted in his personal information along with other executives from the company being released online by players that were unhappy with Blizzard’s announcement
2. Harassment. This ties into the first one.  If you are unfamiliar with the gaming world, it is extremely easy to be harassed online, and having your real name exposed in cyberspace would only make matters worse.  I also hate to say this, but sexism and racism are native to the gaming community – with discrimination and prejudice culminating on the net on a daily basis.  Women are treated among the worst, and to have your gender unveiled through Real ID would instigate a wave of female harassment as this article comprehensively explains.
3. Safety. This ties into the first AND second one: without privacy, you become susceptible to harassment, and therefore you have no safety.  There was once a story which can be found here explaining how a video game fanatic tracked down a rival player for seven months when his rival killed his character online.  When the aggressor finally met his rival in real life, he proceeded to plunge a kitchen knife into his rival’s chest, just barely missing his heart.
4. Impractical. Does Blizzard honestly think Real ID will stop the flame wars on the forums? (That’s if that were their true intention anyway).  Like many other regulations on various websites, there is almost always a method to bypass rules and moderations if one chooses to do so, and Real ID is not outside of this realm of possibility.  Rather, Blizzard should spend their time focusing on increased moderation of the forums – that would actually aid in the gradual decrease of troll wars, along with a rating system for comments like the one found on YouTube.
5. Freedom. The internet is a place to express your ideas freely, because we have the freedom to speak without censorship or any limitation.  When you attach your own real name to your user ID online, there are immediately limitations placed on what you can say because of various reasons like the ones stated above.  One may argue that individuals must be responsible for what they say, and I agree, but this is the Internet, and I’m sorry, that’s just not how things work on the net.  The whole point to play a game like World of Warcraft is to escape reality – how on earth are you escaping into a fantasy when you can’t even become an imaginary character with a different name.

Blizzard has since repealed their decision as of July 9’th, but they have brought to light the importance of privacy on the internet.  The implications of Blizzard’s proposed but failed plans have demonstrated how tricky a situation can get when you have to balance freedom and responsibility in the 21^st century, but one thing is for sure, the controversy won’t be over for a long time – and perhaps, it never will be.

What would the 21st century be without Apple?

Undoubtedly, with its continuous innovation and strive for perfection, Apple has made tremendous leaps and bounds in our contemporary lives that are becoming increasingly integrated with technology. Apple’s continuum of products from the iPod, to the iPod mini; the iPod nano; the iPod Touch; the iPad, and let’s not forget the iPhone – especially their most recent release, the iPhone 4 – have built a legion of consumers that would rather die than forfeit their consumer sovereignty over to rivals such as Windows, Nokia, or Sony and the like.

But Apple may have finally stumbled upon the hiccup that its corporate enemies have waited for after nearly three years of Apple’s authoritarian rule of the mobile phone industry in North America. With the recent release of the iPhone 4, there have already been streams of consumer complaints on antenna issues many devices are currently experiencing. The blogosphere has been on overdrive with reports stating that the new golden child of Apple’s iPhone line misrepresents signal strength, and most flawed of all: drops calls when held in a certain way in the palm of one’s hand.

To add to the mounting controversy is that the issue arises from an inherent flaw in the design of the iPhone 4. Critics with growing evidence say that the product design of having the phone’s two antennae wrapped around the device rather than keeping them within is directly causing the new iPhone’s susceptibility to weakened connections.

As an avid Nokia mobile phone user for the past several years, all I can say is – finally. Please pardon my possible sardonic tone from this point and onwards. Apple is definitely a great company, don’t get me wrong, I am just at times disgusted at how their marketing campaigns – intentional or not – demonize their customers into loyal but mindless drones that ignore all other products on the market. I mean really, even two years ago, I had used the Nokia N95 8GB, and it completely stomped the iPhone 3G in virtually every aspect: the iPhone couldn’t even multitask third-party applications back then – but iPhone fanboys/girls continued to worship the phone on a pedestal as if it were the best smart phone to ever come out. I mean, have you seen Apple stores on the day a new product is released? People literally line up several days before an awaited release at some stores, and when the day comes, Apple employees run into the store with their fabricated enthusiasm as their beloved and loyal consumers engage in their infectious Apple dogma.

Don’t get me wrong, the iPhone 4 is a great phone in many aspects – it’s hard to ignore its sleek design, Retina Display, and HD video capturing capabilities – but people shouldn’t forget that there are other alternative smartphones out there, ones that are possibly better suited for different people.  We’ve got to be careful: we can’t make it THAT easy for Apple to achieve their monopoly, and believe me,

they are trying.

No, I’m not talking literally. =] I’m talking about my new phone…the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10! ♥

Remember back in April when I blogged about phones? Well, this post is basically my follow up to that one. I finally picked between the two phones I was considering (the Yari and the X10) and got the X10 near the end of May. Yes, I did get it in white, like I said I would. =]

Unfortunately, I’ve actually already gotten the screen protector replaced and dropped it once, which scratched the corners of it. Oops. I guess that says something about the durability/sturdiness of the phone…but I did drop it onto rough pavement rather than smooth floors and the phone itself actually comes with its own screen protector (hence why the added layer comes off easier than it should). However, the one that comes with the phone is hard to remove and so it would be next to impossible to change if it got scratched up. If you’re really particular about your phone like I am, definitely go and get the extra screen protector.

Since I am so particular about my phone, you can tell I’m one of those people who get that twitchy feeling if there are fingerprint smudges on it—which is bound to happen with a touchscreen phone. So you’re probably wondering why on earth I got one with such a huge touchscreen phone…(it’s 4.0 inches, to be exact)…but I’ll tell you why by doing something similar with this phone like I did with the S500i and the K350, and tell you about it’s functions and whatnot.

(more…)

Hey readers.

This will be my final Perspective post (at least for quite some time), so I thought I’d leave you with something special.

As photographers, we can be obsessed with getting just the right shot. Sometimes it just takes a quick snap of the shutter to get what we want, and sometimes we can labour over a set-up to get just the desired effect. Sometimes though, the very act of capturing the beauty of the world around us is what makes us pass it by so readily. The next time you see something that you just need to take a picture of, leave your camera alone. Just enjoy it with all your senses. Take in all its beauty. Why? Because so much is lost when we see life through the lens of a camera.

Last night, I went out and took this picture:

But you know what? I could care less about the picture, because the ride out there was a thousand times as beautiful.

The pastel skyline, the road glowing under the streetlamps, the light sparkling off the raindrops on the windshield.

Signing off, The Gentleman Scholar

Chances are, you probably haven’t heard of Aviary, see as they are a relatively new company, but they sure are making waves these days.  So, who are they, and why should you be interested?

Well, in 2008, Aviary released the first installment of their web-based editing software to the public. Today, they have 8 different Flash applications for everything from music editing to drawing tools. These include:

… and just recently, they released Roc, which is similar to GarageBand for Macs, if any of you have every used it.

My only advice is to go try it out right away! You don’t need to download anything, and when I signed up it literaly took me 10 seconds to get an account; you can sign in with a Google, Yahoo, Facebook or Twitter account, and then just pick a username, and you’re in!

Go, begone, have fun making music and cool visuals!

The new health craze these days is Light Art! Low fat goodness for your eyes! Take a look:

The trick to this one is leaving the shutter open for long periods of time and “drawing” in the air with a light. Here’s a tutorial!

“On Monday April 12, 2010, The City of Calgary Parks was proclamated by City Council for 100 years”

In celebration, the City of Calgary is bringing you a bunch of neat programming for the summer. They’ve got a geocaching challenge going on (no GPS, no problem – head to the library), and will be hosting free concerts in parks across the city. The first concert features Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, the Ramblin’ Ambassadors, and Camie Leard in Baker Park on June 20th. And those weird orange poles in Olympic Plaza? That’s just one of six installations of “Landscapes of Celebration”. For more information about the goings-on, check out the Facebook page.

Fellow Canadians! Our salvation is here! We have henceforth been freed from having to lug around massive laptops, slow smartphones and underpowered netbooks! Behold, the iPad!

It lands in an Apple store near you today, and the online store has been opened up for Canadians to purchase them. If you’re in Calgary, your nearest store is in Edmonton, so the online store and a credit card is your best bet. (Update: Best Buy is selling them as well, starting at 10 o’clock today)

Whether or not you believe that this device will revolutionize the portable computing market, it certainly is a powerful device, and I’m looking forward to trying one out, if not buying one for myself.

Click here to check out Bo’s brief review of Apple’s “revolutionary” new device.

Last week, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the epic and legendary game of PAC-MAN, Google had their first ever interactive Google Doodle of the living game. All you had to do was “INSERT YOUR COIN” and start playing!

Here’s a quick history of the beloved game:

• The original name of PAC-MAN on release was PUCK-MAN. It was later changed for Engligh translation.
• Title chosen by Bandai Namco Games (Japan) for their popular character, PUCK MAN appeared for the first time in 1980.
• It was released in the US in October 1980.
• It became a huge hit worldwide.
• Sold over 100,000 a year
• Ms. PAC-MAN was released in 1981 and outperformed PAC-MAN (yeah! Girl power!! )
• In 2005 PAC-MAN received the Guinness World Records award for being the “Most Successful Coin-Operated Game”.

HAPPY 30th ANNIVERSARY PAC-MAN!

Be sure to check out the official PAC-MAN website: pacman.com

No, silly! We’re not blowing up pictures, we’re blowing out pictures! This is probably one of the easiest things to do in a shot, simply because you only have to adjust one setting

See that button just above the menu/set button in this picture?

Every camera should have a button with that little black and white logo on it somewhere. That’s the exposure compensation button. What it does is let you lighten and darken your picture to get the best colour balance. The positive end of the scale makes the picture lighter, and the negative end, darker. (+/- EV)

All it takes is turning it up to around 1.5+ EV on my camera to turn a normal picture into something striking…

Good luck, and remember: if you take a cool picture and you really want to show it off, go ahead and post it in out Flickr group!