Zebra3

Public access gaming
Ok the title sounds posh but all I'm really going to say it that the guys/company that runs the servers we play Counter Strike on have opened up their game slightly. Before to play on their servers you had to be a member of Thrust World. Now this gives you some great benifits, piles of servers that you have full control over any time you want and can password them so that only your mates can get on and the like. The downside was if you were not a Thrust World member bad luck you couldn't play on these servers :(

However they have taken on board the subscribers suggestions and there are now TW servers that are also open to the public. So next time you fancy a game of CS do a search for me [TW@]Zebra3 or the rest of the TW@'s and come for a frag. Don't forget to say I sent you. Second thoughts don't bother they'll still shoot you
.21:01/21/10/2002/zebra3

Steaming
Last night was a semi regular IDGA/GGDev get together down at the Power House in Guildford. All the drinks were courtesy of the folks from Havok, who we've just given a few tens of thousands of pounds to to use their physics engine in out next couple of games so this was our chance to claim some back ;) The boys from Rebellion were there and talked about buying 2000ad (which they did a year or so ago now), how that was such a clever thing to do, and how life's just great for them...

After a few pints and with the discussion of games outta the way we got to a pet hate of mine Thomas The Tank Engine. Now in the first couple of months of Zac's life he got a pile of TTTE books and four steam train toys. Now at one and a half has he ever seen a steam train? No! Is he likely to unless we take him specifically to see one? No! What does he love then? Things he does gets to see rather unsurprisingly. You know cats, trees, trucks, birds, cars. There are a host of every day things that children love to read about and then see in the flesh. He does like his trains and TTTE books but the toys are just trucks to him and he spends his time with the books spotting the obvious bits he knows cats, sheep, children, etc.

An old friend of mine pointed out that I was missing a valuable point. TTTE teaches children about process, place and working together. The coal and water has to be loaded, boiler stoked, points switched, tickets punched etc. Now it's fair to say I had never considered the above as a positive thing... In my view steam trains are so incredibly antiquated that the only point they get across to children is that the world is over complex with many many actions being needed to trigger any result. So why is TTTE so big? Well it's not the little toddlers buying in it's 30years+ mums, dads, uncles, aunts, grandfolk and the like and to them steam trains are lovely reminders of "simpler" times. Or am I just ranting 'cause I never had a train set?

.23:47/17/10/2002/zebra3

Why Don't you,
Well you know all about them programs so what's the new stuff that I'm watching. Well there's FireFly which is Joss Whedon's new show. A frontier western set in space. Yep a classic scenario, no not the show the writer... you know writer has a huge hit so the studio lets him play out a big big risk idea next. Hope it all works out for him or he'll be back writing sitcom stuff before he knows it... hah! Who am I kidding the guy must be minted. But back to FireFly it's based on a ship company who get into scrapes as they bounce around on the fringes of civilised space. It works well and sticks more to the idea of each episode being based around a encounter on a planet rather than many sci-fi shows that play it cheap by setting most of it in the one cheap ship set ;)

Other than that I'm checking out Jeremiah. Which I knew nothing about but links kept showing up on the feeds I use to find the other stuff I do usually watch. Checked out the first episode and couldn't help myself but watch more... 'twas like watching a train wreck. Luke Perry as a mixed up young man with weight of then end of the world, loss of parents, death of brother on his shoulder. Never gunna be a cheery one this one I thought then... Malcolm-Jamal Warner turns up. Who? Took me a while but then it has been a while, he was Theo in The Cosby Show. Obviously he's done shed loads of work since then so it must really annoy him to always be known as Theo. So what's the plot... nope sorry I'm not gunna waste my breath. If it's on and your around it may be worth a watch but not one to stay in for folks. Ok ok in six words... V meets Outbreak meets Logans Run.
.22:27/13/10/2002/zebra3

Turn off your TV set and go
So what am I watching ATM... well I'll admit to being a Buffy addict (or possibly a bit more of a Willow addict but that's another story). So yep watching series 7 and so far it's just getting going but it looks like this season may well be a cracker. I'm giving Star Trek : Enterprise Season 2 a brief chance, after the rather lack luster run out of the first season and so far it has got a bit better though some don't agree (warning site is one big spoiler). Can't decide if I'm going to bother with the second series of Alias. Though Roger Moore and Quentin Tarantino's guest appearances did make for some good episodes last season. In fact the acting as a whole was good just the plots let them down (and the some of the effects). Hum maybe I do need a bigger pipe...
.23:20/12/10/2002/zebra3

Do something less boring instead!
I spend less and less time in front of the TV what with a decent home net connection, finishing games (playing and making), Zac keeping me busy and the like. However being able to pick up copies of TV shows to watch fairly easily over the net means I can catch up with a series I've missed a few episodes of or indeed sample new ones. 'tis very strange watching the shows in sync with the US seasons. I was on about the eighth episode of Buffy season 6 when the UK started drooling about the first episode. I finished watching 24 over two months before it finished in the UK. The two best thing about this is that you save so much time and enjoy the shows that much more. I'll explain... It means I don't waste time reading the hyped up season trailing articles that appear in magazines, papers, and web sites as I already know what happens and have made a choice to carry on watching or not. The other benefit is I don't get spoilers forced on me. Journos (and friends) love dropping hints and you only have to read a couple of reviews and see a couple of stills to work out a seasons major plot twists.
11:30/10/10/2002/zebra3

Let's Do the Time Warp Again
Rumours are abound that Lou Adler is trying to resurrect The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Arrgh first S&H now this. Apparently he wants to do a TV movie version in honour of the thirtieth anniversary of the originals London debut. Major sticking point has been finding someone that lives up to Tim Curry's sparkle as Dr. Franknfurter. The latest rumour is he's found just the person. Suddenly I'm a little more interested in the project which should be hitting TV around February 2003 (just remember your props).
.22:42/06/10/2002/zebra3

Loop the loop
The Burnhams have been out for a stroll in the woods of Blackheath with Cath and Gareth today. Good company, pub, weather, walk what more do you need. Also nice to see some real faces rather than just their text on a screen. Cath and Gareth were following a walk from a TimeOut! book of country walks through areas on the outskirts of London. All starting from, and ending at train stations. I mentioned it to Pete (Amanda's dad) and he said he had something similar. The London Loop a book based on fifteen connected walks (each a good full days haul) that take you around London. Hum and I was wondering what to do with my holiday time this year...
20:55/06/10/2002/zebra3

Car keys and Clutch
Starsky and Hutch is to be made into a film next year. I don't know if I should cheer or cry. Ben Stiller is to star as Starsky and Owen Wilson as Hutch. Now they say it's a prequel to the 1970's TV show but set in the present day, what does that mean!!! But the main question is what car are they going to use. At least one thing we are sure of is what the call sign is going to be(warning 228k wav you may want to right click and "save as" before playing).
22:58/30/09/2002/zebra3

Tonight I sleep the sleep of the just
We spent the day at LegoLand in Windsor. It's on the site of the old Windsor Safari Park and is directly under the Heathrow flight path. So you're buzzed all day by low flying Boeings. Zac loved almost everything water jets to fire, trains to ride, boats to sail, roller coasters to ride (when the attendent came to help us out Zac was crying he

assumed it was cause he was scared but no it was just that he didn't want it to stop), and not forgetting a big cargo net climb he did himself (about 4 meters of net going up about 3 meters) this was to an adventure playground that Amanda and I enjoyed as much as Zac :)
23:11/26/09/2002/zebra3

10 * Fun lovin crims = 2 * Cake = 1 * Bill Crosby
Amazing what some people put on the net without even rudimentary data protection (cue someone pulling my bank details and inside leg measurement off this site). But what I want to know is WTF (who, not what this time) is Reba McIntire and why is she one of the very top paid turns above such as Oasis, Radiohead, and James Brown (in fact you could have all three at your college gig for the same price as her). Turns out arrrrgh! Yep she's a C&W star... oh America whatever shall we do with you.
22:42/25/09/2002/zebra3

Lots of pics of one kind and another

We went out to Burpham Court Park Farm and let Zac meet some of the animals we keep reading about in his books. Cows, pigs, sheep, ducks, and chickens I expected but Llamas, goats, guinea pigs, and peacocks I didn't. Good way to spend part of an afternoon. Zac loved it and I think he's learned even more animal noises.

When I got back I sat down and spent some time getting the Webcam and remote working, both are now live. I'll try and remember to point the cam at the fish if I leave the PC on in the day time.
23:25/21/09/2002/zebra3

All work and no play, does not make Jack a dull boy.
After three massive seasons on MTV Johnny Knoxville's Jackass failed to get a fourth as MTV was too worried about the lawsuits and pressure that started to mount up from injured chimps... sorry children. Great news is they have been working on Jackass the movie. Now that is going to be massive... all the regulars features, huge stunts, and no MTV execs to tone it down.
23:05/19/09/2002/zebra3

Spin on this!
Well the spin on filter conversion kit is here for my GT6 but I've only got a couple of liters of oil. A quick Haynes manual reference later I find I need eight pints... <sigh> don't you just love imperial measurements. hey ho it turns out (a calcutation later) that that's around four liters. So it'll have to wait till the weekend when I get chance to grab some more classic weight oil and a oil catch tray.

22:36/17/09/2002/zebra3

We're off...
Just back from trooping around the 6th Triumph World Picnic with Zac. Good day out for me and Zac got to see some of Beale Parks farm animals as well as shed loads of noisy Triumphs so definitely a good day for him.

The bad news is Warren Zevon has been given two months to live. Warren is a cracking folk/rock/blues singer/songwriter with a wickedly dark and amusing style. The report I read said he was recording as much music as he could in these final days and it's still unknown if he'll do the David Letterman show in a few weeks time (he stands in when the normal band leader takes a few weeks break).
20:34/15/09/2002/zebra3