Maybe it is the perfect timing to tell you about gaming messenger named Xfire.

Xfire™ is a new, free tool that automatically keeps track of when and where gamers are playing PC games online and lets their friends join them easily. It works regardless of game type, server browser, or gaming service that a player is using. Xfire eliminates the hassles of running multiple programs like IRC, instant messengers, or in-game friends lists to keep track of when and where a gamer’s friends are playing. It supports the best and the latest online PC games including server and non-server-based First Person Shooters, Real Time Strategy, and Role Playing Games.

But how good is Xfire really? It is time for a…

Review

The Look

First Look – it is a free software you can download. So what do you expect? The website looks great, but it doesn’t help to evaluate the casing of the software as there is no casing.

Installation – using the usual installer. Nothing spectacular, but it allows you to chose the installation path and if you want to create icons for the desktop, start menu and quick launch. It also shows which files it is installing. 4 of 5 points

First Time – The look is cool, but of course you either have to create a free account first or you have to log in with your account to actually use the messenger. 5 of 5 points.

Requirements and Look – The requirements are low, the look is great. Full points.

Installation Process

Time – Installation begins with downloading the software: The download is pretty fast if you got broadband. And 10 MB aren’t that large either. The installation process is also quick, so just give a fast 4 of 5 points.

Complexity – The installation is easy, which means I end up with 5 of 5 points.

Usage and Performance

Requirements, Look and actual performance – Xfire has surprisingly low requirements:

• PC with a Pentium processor running Windows XP, 2000 or Vista
• 10 MB available hard drive space recommended
• Desktop resolution of 800 x 600 at 256 colors (1024 x 768 at 16 bit color or higher recommended)
• Internet Explorer 5.0 with Service Pack 1 or higher
• Internet connection (broadband recommended)

It runs smooth on my old computer and it runs even smoother on the computer I use to write this article. I’d give full points, but the fact that you need Internet access and Internet Explorer makes me give 4 of 5 points.

Complexity – Xfire is easy to use, but there are some parts you will only use when you running Xfire as your major messenger -> 4 of 5 points.

Learning Curve – Using this gaming messenger, you do it by using your intuition. Full points.

Bugs – Unfortunately there are a few bugs in the software. Occasionally the file transfer won’t work, a supported game is not recognized or, although very rare, Xfire crashes without a reason. 3 of 5 points.

Personal Impression

Xfire is a very, very useful messenger. At least for me. It allows me to keep track of my gaming times, play a game and chat with my friends without having to “tab out” or getting issues with the messenger running in the background. Unfortunately there are some games which are not supported, but there is hope that they will be supported in the near future. There are many people in the community who suggest new games for support and so far the developers listen to the community. You can even suggest features or, for the more experienced user, create your own Xfire skin (or you just chose one of the many existing already).

Summary

I believe Xfire deserves the 4.4 points out of 5 possible points. It is one of the best messengers for the gamer. There are a few things I had to leave out as those don’t belong to a review. I’ll write another article in the near future to talk about some of the more advanced parts of Xfire.

It is called “MyMiniCity” and it is very easy to play, if you can actually say “playing”:
First of all you create your own mini city (or not, if you prefer helping a friend…)
My mini city is called Coruin City, not a fancy name but I have to live with it. After you created your city you visit it each day once. You can also bug your friends or fellow bloggers to visit the page each day.

When you or someone else visits the page, a new citizen will “move” to your city, making it grow. Once a certain amount of citizen are living in your mini city, you get more options to increase parts of your mini city. These options are:

• Increase population
• Increase industry (50 citizens)
• Improve the transport network
• Increase security
• Improve environment
• Increase business

The first option exists right from the beginning and since my mini city is still young I can’t tell when I will unlock the next option. Once I unlock the next option(s), I’ll update this post.

I hope I woke your interest for this neat browser game. Let me know if you also start a mini city or if you decided to help me with my mini city.

Update 2008-01-30: I finally unlocked the “Increase Industry” option with 50 citizens

My fellow bloggers Matt at Webmaster- Source and Michael at Pro Blog Design reviewed their year 2007, including a list of their best articles. Since I’m new to this business and my plans didn’t turn out like intended I will hold it a bit like Slevi while doing some kind of review.

What happened 2007?

In the first few months of the year I decided to re-do my website and it got a design close to this one. However, after playing with “AJAX” and doing other “fancy” things with my website I decided to start an own blog and trying to become a problogger, if possible.

So I got my own blog. That was on April the 22nd. You can read the start article here, please excuse the lack of professionalism as it was my first blog post ever. After writing some more articles I happened to stumbleupon to either a post at ProBlogDesign or Webmaster-Source. I don’t remember exactly where it was, or do I remember the article. Anyway, the article made me review my blogging style.

The quality of my articles was…uh…ok, yet the environment didn’t fit. I then made an own design instead of using the (although modified) standard wordpress design.
Another article made crop the categories and doing some other tweaks. I also installed some plugins and some more work made the current design of my blog.

Now as the look was professional I needed to work on the content. I believe the categories I chose are ok, but then real life went bad on me. It turned out that I had almost no time at the end and my last professional article is dated September 15th. You can find it under the title “Useful Tools for validating HTML, CSS and Accessibility“.

What will 2008 bring?

First of all I hope to get some more time for my blog. I always enjoy/enjoyed writing the articles and I intend to go on with them. I just need to get a better system for my time management and I should be set.

Aside the time management I’m looking forward to the Webmaster-Source Podcast “BlogCast”. Yes Matt, that’s a reminder to both of us to get the first episode going

I also have a few websites I need to take care of, like some minor things at Thorsten Kramer‘s website or the website of my dad. Maybe it is a mistake, but I also got a second blog I need to take care of. It’s topic is way different and I hope to get a few co-authors there, so I don’t fear to get into trouble with my own blog because of it. For your interest, the other blog is named New Republic Navy Times.

That’s everything I can think about right now when it comes to blogging and my “online life”. Though there is one thing I want to mention. One of my goals this year is to finally meet my online girlfriend. Last year, after both of us figured out that we are in love with each other, we didn’t manage to arrange a meeting. Unfortunately it is some distance both of us has to travel which adds a bit to the difficulty.

Enough said for now. We’ll see how 2008 will turn out.

Marco

P.S.: just to have it mentioned:
I finally update my wordpress and all plugins. I also added one or two new ones.

P.P.S.: I just thought about my best articles and I believe “Web Standards and Accessibility Guidelines used in a Blog?“, “CSS – First letter of a paragraph larger than the others” and “Useful Tools for validating HTML, CSS and Accessibility” are the best of them…feel free to share your opinion. I can only learn how to increase the quality of my posts.

Fortunately we are not alone. A fellow sufferer, named Nick Hodges, decided to write a useful tool called CapsLockBeGone and I think it is worth to review it on here after I had a lot of time to evaluate the program.

Review

The Look

First Look doesn’t apply here because this software is freeware.

Installation
The program uses the default Microsoft Installer, if I’m not wrong. So I give it 3 of 5 points.

First Time
Plain simple, easy to use, ‘nuf said, full points (5/5).

Requirements and Look
CapsLockBeGone is not a game, so I don’t evaluate this point.

Installation Process

Time
After installing in less than a minute I guess I’m allowed to give it full points again.

Complexity
The installer is easy to use and if you are not experienced enough, you can run it with the default configuration. 5 points.

Other
It doesn’t require a reboot, so I give this software another 5 points.

Usage and Performance

Requirements, Look and actual performance
It is some kind of run-once program. You only use it once to disable the caps lock key and you may use it again to enable the caps lock key again. The look is ok, it fits to the easy to use style. Requirements? The only requirement, as stated on the website, is only Microsoft Windows and it should even run on Windows 95! Performance…I don’t know how to evaluate this because it is a really easy program… Overall I give it 5 points.

Complexity
The program is self-explanatory, so this point also gets 5/5pts.

Learning Curve
There is no learning curve, see above. 5/5 points

Bugs
I found no bugs at all, so full points.

Personal Impression

Overall this tool is very useful. How often did I swear on the caps lock key and now it is gone. No longer using caps by accident, just because of a tiny, easy to install and use program. Thank you Nick Hodges! Without you, I would still struggle with my caps lock key. Again full points.

Summary

CapsLockBeGone is the first software I’m evaluating using my review scheme. Surprisingly, well, maybe not, anyway, it got full points. I really tried to find any flaws, but no success. Maybe you could be worried about the fact that the program “messes” with the registry to have the caps lock be gone, then again, it is easier to use this program than messing with the registry on your own.

CapsLockBeGone fully deserves the highest rating I can give. What do you think? Is this tool as useful for you as it is for me?

Since then I’m some kind of a fan of Peter Gabriel. I’m owning some music from him, but I didn’t attend a concert or so.
Anyway, I don’t know if you ever heard about him. So let me give you some information about him.

Who is Peter Gabriel?

I could try to write an own description, but I think Wikipedia has a very good article about Peter Gabriel:

Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. He first came to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career. More recently he has focused on producing and promoting world music and pioneering digital distribution methods for music. He has also been involved in various humanitarian efforts.

After I saw the recorded concert on TV, I did some research about Peter Gabriel and found a lot more songs I really like.
One of my favorite Genesis songs is “You can’t hurry love“. The deep meaning of this song is amazing and I listen to it whenever I’m somehow sad about the fact that I’m still a single…

There are some more Genesis songs I like, but this review is about Peter Gabriel and not Genesis, so I will concentrate on his music

My personal top 5 of Peter Gabriel’s songs are:

1. Sledgehammer
2. Solsbury Hill
3. The Barry Williams Show
4. Burn you up, burn you down
5. Shock the monkey

Sense behind the songs

Note: with “sense” I mean the message I see behind the song. If I see none, I try to provide additional information about the song.

Sledgehammer

The song was influenced by 1960s soul music, as evident by the use of horns and a general Stax sound. The distinctive Horn section was provided by the Memphis Horns – who were house musicians for Stax records. The song was also known for its use of a synthesized shakuhachi flute.

It contains somewhat subtle sexual innuendo, which was common in soul music from the time. The lyrics include phallic references such as a steam train, bumper cars, and a big dipper (roller coaster). It also includes references to the sexual reproduction of plants, mentioning pollination, fruit and bees.

When I heard this song, my mother told me that the video to the song is the most amazing she ever saw. After some research I was able to watch the video on YouTube and I have to agree.
I can imagine that back when this video was broadcast it influenced the music film industry. The use of stop motion aside other rather unusual video effects make this song the most unique and most amazing one I ever saw. Wikipedia wrote that Peter Gabriel laid under a sheet of glass for 16 hours while filming the stills for the video! That’s just another reason to like that video.

Solsbury Hill

Solsbury Hill was Peter Gabriel’s first solo song and in the song he dealt with his departure from Genesis.

Gabriel explains the reasons behind his departure in this song. These reasons where the difficult pregnancy of Gabriel’s wife, Jill, and birth of their first child, Anna. When he opted to stay with his sick daughter and wife rather than go record and tour, the resentment from the rest of the band led Gabriel to conclude that he had to leave the band.

The Barry Williams Show
The title and the lyrics are telling you everything: Peter Gabriel is criticizing the talk shows. I can only agree with him, because I don’t like those shows either. Are you really interested in the (senseless) problems of other people? Those people are only on TV because they want to become famous by all means, even if it means that they have to put themselves down. The talk shows are not only “famous” because of the people shown, but also because of their talk masters.

Burn you up, burn you down
As I understand the song, Peter Gabriel is talking about a relationship which is not running well at the moment. It seems to me as if he points out that there is a need of dialog between both partys. However, one party carries his or her intentions through the wind, meaning that the persons just does his or her own thing ignoring the other one. The other person sees that and tries to tell how to solve this because the person never thought [they] had so much time to lose.

Shock the monkey
There are many opinions about the meaning of this song:

• The song is about the consuming of cocaine because around 1985 “Shock the monkey” meant that someone who took cocaine shows paranoia and other symptoms. This rumor is not confirmed by Peter Gabriel, but people keep on assuming this.
• The song is about the mistreatment and abuse of monkey in the industry and at other places. Again, this is not confirmed by Peter Gabriel and if you watched the video you can be sure that this meaning is just a wrong assumption.
• The confirmed meaning says that the song is about jealousy. However, many people are skeptic, especially after watching the video.

I‘m undecided on what the meaning of the song is for me. I prefer to say it is just another great song from Peter Gabriel.

Wrap up

Peter Gabriel wrote and still writes many great songs. I always enjoy listening to his music especially because of the touching lyrics which usually have a deep meaning which can be difficult to discover. Also, I have to admit that I like his voice (no pun intended) which is just awesome for his music.
Of course I’m also wondering what would be if Peter Gabriel stayed with Genesis… Either way, it would have been a great success, I’m sure.

I‘m giving Peter Gabriel 5 points, which is the maximum of points I can give and equals to very good.
He has an amazing voice and combined it with touching lyrics in his songs, I’m looking forward to more songs from him!

Further Reading

• petergabriel.com
• Wikipedia about Peter Gabriel

Update: I’m sorry, but I made a mistake in my review. Don’t hurry love is not a song by Genesis. I don’t know how I messed it up, but the song is from Phil Collins. I’m really sorry for any confusion caused

Computer Configuration

If you are evaluating a game or any other kind of software, you need to know the hardware specifications and the environment of the computer.
So before I explain how I evaluate software let me give you some details about my computer.

Hardware Specification

• Processor: Intel® Pentium® D 3.40GHz
• Memory: 3070MB RAM
• Video Card: ATI® Radeon X1950 Pro
• Monitor: Yakumo® TFT 19 WJT XFast
• Sound Card: Realtek HD Audio Terratec Aureon5.1 PCI
• Speakers/Headphones: Sharkoon X-Tactic 5.1
• Keyboard: Logitech Easy Internet Keyboard
• Mouse: Logitech G5 Laser Mouse
• Mouse Surface: Revoltec Lightpad

Software Environment

• Operating System: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2
• Firewall: ZoneAlarm (the free version)
• Antivirus: AVG (the free version)
• and some other software…

Evaluating Software

#1 Note: There are slight differences when it comes to Games. These differences are indicated by italic text.

I’m giving points from 0 to 5, with 5 points being the best.
At the end, all points are summed up and divided to giving an overall point ranging from 0 (worst) to 5 (best).

When I’m evaluating a software or game I have the following rating categories with a few elements.
For the elements and category point calculation I also use the sum up/divide method. I have an example at the end of the categories list

#2 Note: If a software is for free, I will leave a few elements out. The excluded elements will be mentioned in the review article.

The Look

• First Look – What kind of impression makes the case of the software?
• Installation – Neat design or something you can’t call a design?
• First Time – The impression you get when you run the software for the first time.
• Requirements and Look – Comparison between the look and the minimum requirements as stated by the game description.

Installation Process

• Time – How long does it take?
• Complexity – Difficult or easy to install?
• Other – Autostart? Reboot required?

Usage and Performance

• Requirements, Look and actual performance – Does the Software run as expected? (Games: Frame-Lag or is it running smooth?)
• Complexity – Easy to use/play?
• Learning Curve – Is it easy to get into the software/game or does it take a lot of time?
• Games: Multiplayer – Easy to get into the online part of the game and do you have fun online?
• Games: Singleplayer – Is the “SP” short or extensive? Can you reach the level goal easily or not?
• Bugs – I don’t like these nasty little things…

Personal Impression
Although the above categories are already influenced by my personal impressions, I add this one to express my final opinion.

So, how do I calculate the points software X? Let me show you an example, which is not a game:

The Look
First Look – 4 points of 5 (4/5)
Installation – (5/5)
First Time – (3/5)
Requirements and Look (3/5)
–> 3.75 of 5 points for The Look

Installation Process
Time – (1/5)
Complexity – (4/5)
Other – insert explanation… (3/5)
–> 2.66 of 5

Usage and Performance
Requirements, Look and actual performance – (4/5)
Complexity – (3/5)
Learning Curve – (3/5)
Bugs – (0/5)
–> 2.5 of 5

now we sum each category up:
3.75
2.66
2.5
–> 2.97 points of 5, so the software is moderate, not really good but not bad either

Easy to understand, I hope.

Evaluating Music

Since the taste for music differs I will only provide a personal review of the music, mentioning how much the music costs, how it looks like and so on.
Depending on the music I extend my review on demand while I will stick to my 0 to 5 points evaluation system. Basically I can say that at the end of the music review I will give points. You can tell that this is really influenced by my taste, so don’t take the review too serious

If you have no clue about what a Rubik’s Cube is, let me try to explain it.

Wikipedia defines a Rubik’s Cube as followed:

Rubik’s Cube (commonly misspelled rubix, rubick’s or rubics cube) is a mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by the Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. Originally called the “Magic Cube” by its inventor, this puzzle was renamed “Rubik’s Cube” by Ideal Toys in 1980 and also won the 1980 German “Game of the Year” (Spiel des Jahres) special award for Best Puzzle. It is said to be the world’s best-selling toy, with some 300,000,000 Rubik’s Cubes and imitations sold worldwide.

A Rubik’s Cube has nine square facelets on each side, giving fifty-four facelets in total, and occupies a volume of twenty-seven unit cubes. Typically, the faces of the cube are covered by nine stickers in six solid colours; there is one colour for each side of the cube. When the puzzle is solved, each face of the cube is a solid colour. The cube celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2005, when a special edition cube in a presentation box was released, featuring a sticker in the centre of the reflective face (which replaced the white face) with a “Rubik’s Cube 1980-2005″ logo.[...]

Wikipedia gives more details about the cube, however, I just give you some common information

My friend, Martin K. aka JediKJ, was so kind and put together some trivia about the cube:

• A normal (3×3×3) Rubik’s Cube can have (8! × 38−1) × (12! × 212−1)/2 = 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 different positions
• if every permutation of a Rubik’s Cube was lined up end to end, it would stretch out approximately 261 light years.
• Daniel Kunkle and Gene Cooperman used computer search methods to demonstrate that any 3x3x3 Rubik’s Cube configuration can be solved in a maximum of 26 moves
• In March 1970, Harry D. Nichols invented a 2x2x2 “Puzzle with Pieces Rotatable in Groups” and filed a U.S. patent application for it. Nichols’ cube was held together with magnets. Nichols was granted U.S. Patent 3,655,201 on April 11, 1972, two years before Rubik invented his improved cube.
• Over one hundred million Rubik’s Cubes were sold in the period from 1980 to 1982.
• In 1994, Melinda Green, Don Hatch, and Jay Berkenilt created a model of a 3×3×3×3 four-dimensional analogue of a Rubik’s Cube called the MagicCube4D. Having more possible states than there are atoms in the known universe, only 55 people have solved it as of January 2007
• In 2006, Roice Nelson and Charlie Nevill created a 3×3×3×3×3 five-dimensional model. As of January 2007, it has been solved by only 7 people.

Now after I talked so much, let me show you the YouTube video:

If you are longing for more information about the Rubik’s Cube, I recommend you visit the homepage of my friend at “zrrbite.dk – On Cubing“.

I still didn’t find my cube after finishing this article, so I need to keep on searching for it and can’t brag that I just solved it while typing this article

Last but not least…Do you have a Rubik’s Cube? If so, did you solve it? Or do you have something else you want to say about this addictive toy?

Well, enjoy the one or the other not so funny joke about Sony Online Entertainment and what they are doing with this great game.

Note: This “chat” is not following a time line, it is more a mash up of past, current and up-coming events.

The Dev Chat

About 50 players are in the chat room, experience ranging from none to veteran. After some heated discussions the Sony Online Entertainment staff announced for tonights chat joins the channel.

SOE_X: Good evening, I’m X, the lead programmer of Star Wars: Galaxies.
SOE_Y: Hi, I’m Y, one of the designers of Star Wars: Galaxies.
SOE_Z: Hello, my name is Z and I’m the public relations manager for Star Wars: Galaxies. Tonight we are here to reply to as many questions as possible. So, let’s get started
n00b_A: Hi, I plan to get the game but fear that it will be too hard for me to get started. I heard some people saying that the beginning is really tough…
SOE_Z: No worries, at the beginning of the game is a tutorial and a tutorial quest location, so you have all the time you need to get used to the game. Also you can visit the official forums and ask around, even without using the forum search. Older players will be more than welcome to help you.
n00b_B: A player spam advertised in-game about a website where I can buy in-game credits. I bought 10 mil credits, but they never arrived ***n00b_B has been banned***
n00b_G: I’m playing the game for a few weeks now, but it is so hard to decide on the professions. Can’t you make it easier by reducing the amount of professions?
SOE_X: We are currently working on the next update which will introduce a new game play system and a limited amount of iconic profession to help you and other new players to have an easier start than any of the veterans ever had.
player_W: I’m working on becoming a Jedi for almost a year now, but so far I failed. Will the new update you mentioned before also make it easier to become a Jedi?
SOE_X: Yes, the Jedi class will be one of the iconic professions. It will allow you to become a Jedi like anyone else. It is no longer something special, reserved for only some players who invested a lot of time to grind this class.

Some more questions of newer players and n00bs follow, then the Veterans have their chance to ask questions

Vet_1: You stated that you plan to reduce the amount of professions we can choose. Why are you destroying the diversity we have at the moment? I mean, it isn’t that hard to get started and it is easy to select a profession and respec later if you don’t like it. Is this update like another CU, which will make even more of us leave?

About 15 minutes pass with no reply.

Vet_2: What will happen with the players who unlocked and fully grinded their Jedi? Isn’t it like a punch into the face if you make such a change now? Also, what will happen with the players who are working to become a Padawan, the first real step to the Jedi?

Another 15 minutes pass

Vet_32: Hello? Are you still there? Why does no one listen to us who played the game since it came out? Doesn’t our opinion count anymore? I’m sure I won’t be the only one who will stop playing…looks like you are only interested in our money

Vet_32 gets cut off because the Sony Online Entertainment staff has to leave in a rush

SOE_Z: Yes, our time is over. Thanks for everyone who attend tonights Developer Chat. We hope you had as much fun as we had and we are looking forward to chat with you again at the next Dev Chat.

The Sony Online Entertainment staff leaves the room, shortly followed by the veteran players

n00b_01: Can someone tell me how to open my inv….oh…where are the veterans…

When I bought the game about 2 years ago I did it because friends of mine were playing it and one of the posted a link to some Star Wars: Galaxies videos which impressed and convinced me. Originally I told myself I would buy that game only if I finished my exams successfully, but unfortunately I failed and I had to do the exams again, successfully. Anyway, although I failed my exams I bought the game because I couldn’t wait any longer. I don’t regret it. I still remember the first time I logged in, joined the Scylla server and created my character Coruin Halcyon.

One of my friends on the server gave me some money and we traveled to our city named Aiwha near Keren, Naboo. I was impressed when I landed first in Mos Eisley, Tatooine…but as soon as I saw Naboo, I was in love with the game. The profession skill tree system was easy to understand and I quickly decided to do the Teras Kasi and the Rifleman path.
At that time the Jedi class was still the special class you first have to unlock and then work hard on it to become a real Jedi.
During grinding my character from level 1 to level 80 I looked up and found out what I have to do to unlock the Jedi path and to be visited by the old man. There was a command which allowed to check your force sensitivity. If you are “glowy” you have to wait 3 days and you will be visited by said old man. I became glowy right after I finished Jabba’s Theme park and before I reached level 80 that day.

Overall that day was the greatest day in my life and so far I never again had such a day in Star Wars: Galaxies.

Three days later I was on my way to become a Jedi…ok, first I had to become a Padawan, but it was the first step. After I got the permission to visit the village of Aurellia I started to grind almost each day and did the Aurellian quests to unlock the force boxes. I planned to unlock them all….but thanks to Sony Online Entertainment I never should get the chance to reach that goal. I didn’t even had the chance to become a Padawan, so I would be eligible for the “Elder Jedi” title and related items!!!
Months of hard work for nothing, unfair, isn’t it?

As you probably already guessed, I’m now talking about the

New Game Enhancements (NGE or CU2)

At first I was as upset as anyone else, although I did not decide to quit my Star Wars: Galaxies subscription. I went with the stream and gave the “New Game Enhancements” a chance. Now the Jedi profession is one among the others, meaning everyone can become a Jedi. As “Jedi” I grinded the to level 90, which got added with these “Game Enhancements”. Ok, the quest xp rewards was/is great…but preNGE (before the New Game Enhancements) we would have done it by killing creatures in groups. It was a lot of fun and Entertainers and Traders had their income because of the buffs, battle fatigue/wounds and item decay. Most of this is gone now. Well, you have cloning sickness now, if you had to clone, and the Entertainers can give you great buffs, like armor protection and constitution…but the traders? They can have some income with vehicle restoration kits and some more items…but overall, if you see the amount of traders on a server and the demand, you can’t make real cash anymore.
Even worse, the traders weapons and clothes aren’t as good as any looted weapon or cloth you can get.

Sony Online Entertainment tries to address the issues, but they also have to create….errr….remove bugs, not to mention balance the game play.
Veterans I talked with stated that the game was never really balanced, but it wasn’t as worse as it is now.
Well, Sony Online Entertainment tries to give their best….without listening to the players.

The Chapter 6

was a great improvement because they reintroduced the Beast Master which allows you to clone your very own pet.
At the same time the increased the damage NPCs do to you, making some quests almost too hard to finish. Either you can’t really solo it or you have no group to finish the quest. Both are going hand in hand, so we have to see what Sony Online Entertainment will do…

Right now everyone has to see how they come along with the latest chapter. I know at least one person who considers quitting Star Wars: Galaxies because of the Chapter 6 damage boost. I do not know what I will do, at this moment I’m enjoying the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars events and I’m waiting to hatch my devilish ubar pet…a diseased nuna! It will be my first one, so please don’t laugh

The Future of Star Wars: Galaxies

…clouded it is…

I don’t know what the future will bring to the game. If I could make the decisions, I would do a rollback to preNGE Star Wars: Galaxies, but some developers and public relations managers of Sony Online Entertainment stated already that this will never happen. Same for the hope of many veterans of a rollback to the original Star Wars: Galaxies, back then when the game was the best…

My hope is that Sony Online Entertainment will not “nerf” the game completely up, I mean even worse as it is now. Should this happen, I’m out for sure.
I can ignore much, but there is a border…well, I can only hope…

If Star Wars: Galaxies as we know it is supposed to die, I keep a look at certain projects which I don’t mention here…

May the Force be with us…

and may Sony Online Entertainment listen to it’s customers…

…hey, I can have hope, can’t I?

I don’t want to talk about Google itself, I’m more likely interested in sharing my experience with Google and Software provided/made by Google.

So let’s get started with my top 4 of the best software and products made by Google….I know, I know, there are more, but I tested only 4 so far

Place 4 – Google Custom Search

Did you ever create a website with a lot of content and wanted to give your visitors the option to search your page?
I guess you either wrote your own search code, which won’t be as good as the Google Search engine or you searched the Internet to find a freeware search code solution…again, it would not be able to compete with the power of the Google Search engine.
If you didn’t hear it already, Google now offers “Google Co-op“. It allows you to embed your own customized Google Search Engine. Either you let it only search your website, or you add a few more. It is your decision.
You can even adjust the layout of the search and the search results page to fit to the design of your website.

After implementing it to one or two of my other websites I also added it to my blog.
Go to the search page and give it a try. If you like it…let me know

Place 3 – Google AdSense and Google AdWords

I didn’t use Google AdWords so far because I don’t need it, but since it is connected with Google AdSense I have to mention it here

Google AdWords allows you to create your own Google advertisements which are then shown via Google AdSense. I don’t know how much you have to pay for AdWords and I’m too lazy to look it up on my own, so if you give it a try or if you are already using it, leaving me a comment with that info would be much appreciated.

As you see on this blog I’m using Google AdSense which is a nice and easy way to earn a little bit money. If a visitor sees an advertisement which catches his or her attention they will click it and with some luck I earned a cent or two…easy, isn’t it?
Well, it is getting better. As the name “AdSense” suggest, the Google Script you have to embed into your website will scan your pages and then place those kind of advertisement which fits best to the content. You no longer have to optimize the ads on your own, Google is doing it for you!

What are you waiting for?

Place 2 – Google Mail or Gmail

Did it ever happen to you that you ran out of space on your email account and had to delete mails you did not really want to delete?
Google Mail, also known as Gmail, solved this issue. As I’m typing this, everyone using Gmail has a storage space of 2849.336568 megabytes (and counting). No more deleting emails!
Gmail has even more features.

It organizes your emails to threads, which is useful if you are having a discussion going on via email. You won’t loose track of your previous mails and you can see how the topic you are discussing developed since the beginning. Oh well….there is so much to say about Gmail. You know what? You send me an email with the title “Ruelicke.net Blog – Gmail” to marcoruelicke[AT]gmail[dot]com and I will invite you to Gmail if you don’t have it already.

Place 1 – Google Maps

I discovered many handy maps, but this one beats them all.
Google Maps allows you to search place X in country Y and then it brings you to that place on the map.
You can select between Map, Satellite and Hybrid view, allowing you to see a city map, only the view from the space or both at the same time.
Aside looking for locations you can also search for businesses near your (or a location of your choice) and, my favorite feature, you can “ask” for directions.

Let’s get into detail of the 3 search modes:

Search the Map

As example you can search for the place I’m living at, that would be Magdeburg, Germany. Isn’t it a nice city in the Satellite view?

Of course you can also search for other places, like Area51, London or New York, NY.

Find businesses

You are looking for the next Starbuck? I looked for one in Berlin…I didn’t know that there were so many in Berlin…

Get Directions

You want to go from X to Y but have no clue which way you have to take?
Well, as long as you don’t want to travel from the US to the EU (like this) or something, Google will give you the directions you want.
As example I got you the directions from Magdeburg to a Starbucks in Berlin

You can print that guide and find your way…in my opinion the best thing Google created so far!