I don't feel like going to Pokemon Center today.

(tags game, hardware, DualScreen, Nintendo, ECsite)

As always I ignored Japanese news sites and get the filtered news through Kotaku. This time I learned Pokemon on the DS is a hit, with people lining up at game stores. I wanted more info on the Pokemon Center, so I went into the Famitsu news site and saw the 800 people line up on 9/28 article, for the store in Tokyo. Almost all the people who wanted to buy the game also wanted to buy the new Pokemon DS Lite as well, it said. There wasn't any mention of any selling out, but then again I doubt they had more that 800 DSLites in stock, and it's already the middle of the weekend, so there's no way.

Privoxy is back from inactivity!

(tags browser, filtering, proxy, software)

I just noticed it today, but last week Privoxy, the competent web filtering proxy, has finally received an update, version 3.0.5 beta. It's been over 2 and half years since the last update, which is like an Ice Age ago in Internet years, but the built-in rules for annoyance and ad filtering is so good in last version (3.0.3) that I never became dissatisfied. The change notes reveal some significant and interesting features, such as multiple filter files (for page rewriting) and new and improved "actions" (per URI directives). Also the well written User's Manual has been revised, with "What's New in this Release [3.0.5]".

Though I heard that Firefox has had significant ad-blocking extensions and a defunct Windows-only web proxy Proxomitron seems to have more mind-share, Privoxy satsifies my surfing needs and allows me to use Internet Explorer freely.

One thing that has annoyed me though is the relationship with Electronic Frontier Foundation's (EFF) Tor, an anonymous Internet communication system. Tor uses Privoxy as a base "library" for its operations, and in fact is a recommended configuration (1, 2, 3). I have no problems with Tor, but I don't use it, so I am disinterested. However, Tor newbies flood the Privoxy mailing list with seemingly Tor related problems, which drown out the Privoxy-only discussions. Privoxy hasn't been a very popular web proxy, and it's gratifying to see it being used for a high profile Internet service, but at the same I'm tired of seeing "Tor isn't working".

"tell her about me"

(tags interactive fiction, game, Windows)

I started playing some interactive fiction on a whim. Downloaded a scenario (Glowgrass) and the  appropriate interpreter (TADS2) and my score just went up 5 points! (Score 6 out of 25). Both are available at The Beginner's Guide to Playing Interactive Fiction. I like this site because it actually has some recommendations, instead of just a review/index. I'm not a hardcore interactive fiction fan, so any "for beginners" site is welcome. Actually I look for the scenarios that appeal to kids, because maybe they are easier. "tell her about me". How am I suppose to guess that is what I need to type to proceed in the game? I thought it was "say 'I am a visitor' to the girl", but I get the dreaded parser error.

This started from the discussion about Infocom's Wishbringer (Apple IIe) and how I had a copy with some "feelies", like a glow in the dark (pseudo) rock and envelopes from in-game. Remember the 80s? Remember when packins were also copy-protection devices?

I completed Glowgrass, and I also completed another scenario called Babel on the same page. The former didn't have much of a conclusion, and the latter was interesting in a cliched sci-fi way. Both evoked that special atmosphere you can't get from other types of gaming. Imagination is a powerful thing, and I still have the images I generated just from reading words (!), retained in my mind.

Ah. My fingers are tired from typing "e, x book, i, plug cable into cube, sit, stand, x frisbee, open door with lockpick".

Sold on iPod gaming

(tags iPod, game, puzzle)

So far, so good with the iPod 80GB. I haven't yet gotten really good video onto it, but I did put a transcode of the Ever 17 promo video, mp4. Not great, but not bad.

iTunes

• - CD ripping is sometimes good, sometimes slow (dying DVD reader?)

iPod

• : A hassle to transcode my videos, one I haven't yet surmounted. Welcome to platform lock-in, level 2.
• - Notes/Memo still has the insane 4KB text limit. I can't believe this in the year 2006.
• - Text encoding needs to be UTF-16-LE (Windows Notepad output), not UTF-8, for Japanese.
• + OMG Cubis 2 (GamePro review, original PC version) is too addictive. This 2004 game, now ported to the iPod, has me believing that iPod gaming can take off. Control is tight and responsive. Game mechanic is forgiving. I didn't believe I would forgive the jumpy touch wheel, but I think I've already racked up 8 hours. The wheel is not a problem, even though sometimes it jumps away and I miss a shot. But that's like 1 time every hour. I already passed the two groups of puzzles (at rookie, though), one more set left.
• - Other games I bought like Vortex (Breakout/Arkanoid in a tube), Tetris just plain suck. I could bear with Bejeweled, but now that I have Cubis 2... As far as the other games, I haven't bought them. I'm not a poker fan, etc.
• - The "select button" is scratched up (only visible on reflected light) because of my gaming?
• + Battery lasts longer than 4 hours. Heh, my expectations are low.

Not bad at all.

What is Moetan Shooting?

(tags game, Windows, Moetan)

I saw a pre-order slip for Moetan Shooting (もえたん ☆しゅ～てぃんぐ☆) today, but no info or anything else. Intrigued with the 3000 yen price, I placed a pre-order, only 100 yen. Net searching reveals no official homepage, many retailer sites. It was supposed to be released last month (8/25), and even my pre-order slip does not mention a release date. It's most likely to be 9/29, given the Friday release co-inciding with payday and also the 3 day only pickup window. It's probably a Windows, all ages release.

Moetan (もえたん). It also begat very cute figures which I covered in May 2006. Also recall that there was a fan created game called Moedan (もえだん), which was also a shooting game that I covered in March 2005. There are also 2 "Listening CDs" (1, 2) starring A-list anime seiyuu Yukari Tamura (田村ゆかり) as Inku Nijihara / Pastel Ink, available at Tora no Ana but I'm in no hurry to buy the second one for 2000 yen. And now shooting game. Hopefully it will be more than just shooting down English words.

The married, video game art creator draws and feigns

(tags Japan, culture, criticism, humor, urban)

I've been meaning to link to Japanmanship, but this is the quote I've been waiting for: "Deflecting Sword... Remembering never to touch an opponent, simply tap the umbrella from the inside." Brilliant.

So much of his posts reflect my life, and contrast it at the same time. Is he living in the same Japan? Apparently, yes and no. I like his style, employing humor and sarcasm to illuminate Tokyo living and working. But I have to keep reminding myself, there's more than one kind of foreigner in Japan.

His Tokyo Game Show 2006 post draws some parallels from my own TGS pilgrimage, if only for the personal disappointment. It sure is a realistic counterpoint to the breathless "wish you could be here" blogging at Joystiq and Kotaku.

so long 40GB, hello 80GB

(tags music, hardware, iPod, unboxing, photo-expose)

So I bought the white 80GB Apple iPod. I also bought a felt, skin tight cover and of course applied the screen film (with no air bubble w00t!) mere seconds after I ripped off the "Do Not Steal" sticker. Booted it up (it was battery charged out of the box) and since this is mostly a game log, brought up full color Solitaire. OMG, color rocks, even though the game still controls like... pass.

I did the full "unboxing" ritual, even photographing taking off the various films and covers. Very satisfying. There's probably better unboxers out there so I'll just leave it at this resolution:

I have to load some pictures, now that I can use this as a photo album. And the idea of games on the iPod intrigues me, so I bought Bejeweled and Tetris, for the second and billionth time, respectively. 600 yen each, not too cheap, but not bad. There's a seperate page on the iTunes app that shows the games and how to play them. I'm surprised the directions aren't localized to Japanese (or is it because I using localized US English?), but at least the review page has Japanese comments.

Ah, the box is half the size of the older one. Maybe I'll snap a picture comparing 3G versus 6G 5.5G (third generation iPod 2003-4 versus sixth minor rev up 5th generation iPod 2006-). It turns out I can't use that dock adapter with my 3G dock, and the dock I need costs 4500 yen. Ugh.

Yeah, I went for the white instead of black. That skin is a "Poco" by Bird Electron, made out a material called Torex Ecsaine (register trademark), which feels like chamois leather or buck skin. Heh, sure. It's halfway between a iPod "condom" and designer leather cases, and it feels grippy and soft at the same time. Very nice.

I also bought the 2 year Apple Care for iPod, 7800 yen. Hey, a sucker born every minute. The sales guy was pretty helpful and non-pushy, explaining the difference between Docks and size and covers and stuff. I braced myself for the "warranty?" speel, but he said if the battery goes 50% within the 2 year period, I can get it (? battery? iPod?) replaced. I had my 3G iPod for 2 years, and 40 minutes is definately below 50%. Battery tech just doesn't improve as fast as I want it too. I just hope this isn't a Sony made battery, explode.

While I'm on this iPod/iTunes topic, let me just say iTunes 7.0 is the crap. Editing album and track information is harder, the songs are played with annoying scratches, it sometimes crashes. I had a problem with syncing music because the settings I thought I knew had its interface changed. This software feels rushed. Yes, that album cover library thing is very nice, and "album artist" fields make much more sense, but I expect 7.0 to be followed with some point-updates.

This iPod better last me 2 years. The 3G still works, but I had to baby it. Here's to hoping.

(edit: the conventional Internet wisdom names this a 5.5 generation iPod. So be it.)

So long, Final Fantasy 12

(tags game, Final Fantasy, PlayStation 2, complete, spoiler)

Well I decided not to tackle the optional last last last boss because it's such a chore. Therefore I gotta wrap it up with a visual collage to my fun times with Final Fantasy XII.

I bought a used copy of FFXII on 2006/06/24, but it was part of the FFXII PlayStation 2 bundle (SLPH-75000 FF). Not that it was anything special or different.

I was hoping for a romantic twist in the game, just like in FFX, but this time around they only tease your imagination.

These shots illustrate that I love mind-numbing level up XP crawls, what with 178, 324, and 251 chains. They represent at least one or two hours of work without saving. Actually, achieving more than a 100 chain is not very effective for your money (literally), since you max out the item drop from the enemy you are hitting.

I completed Yazmat, 2 months after I started the game. Just a little while after I started the fishing game, but I turned of the PS2 for the final time. 178 hours + 3 or 4 hours of lost times, and ending.

Actually for this post, I played the story end one last time. We can totally see the sequel coming, can't we? I would definately play a "Final Fantasy XII-2" if they would make it.

The perfect anime volume: Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl vol. 3

(tags anime, Kashimashi, DVD region 2)

Here I just finished watching Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl vol 5 (かしまし ~ガール･ミーツ･ガール~), which reminded me that I was going to claim vol 3 is the topper. Volume 3 has episodes 5 and 6, better know as the kicker and backoff. I mean it has this scene:

The love triangle solidifies in this episode. The heroines run through the full range of emotion: shock, determination, realization, anger, frustration, despair, and of course, fear, uncertainty, and doubt. Here is Yasuna on top, Tomari in the middle, and Hazumu on the bottom.

So many high points in these two episode. But let us not forget the DVD special, the voice actor interview. Kana Ueda (植田佳奈, left) interviews Masumi "Masumin" Asano (浅野真澄, right). Masumin plays the quiet Ayuki Mari in the anime. In the interview, Masumin is more lively than Ueda, more witty than Ueda, more of a character than Ueda. She playfully engages the camera, drawing the audience into the conversation. Can't you tell I'm a fan?!

One point she brought up is that she wasn't the typical reticent kouhai during grade school, rather more like a tomboy and preferring to talk excessively like the boys, and thus was disliked by senpai, girls in higher grades. Also she mentioned that in her radio show she and her co-hosts were trying to lose weight, but she wasn't successful. Well she does look like she's getting fat actually (see the Aice 5 posters), but she's tall so she can hide it. Not that it would affect her voice.

Only two more DVDs to go now, coming on the 9/22 and 10/22. The not yet broadcasted 13th episode will be in volume 7, I can't wait. Megami Magazine spoiled it a little though, showing some winter scenes. I quickly turned the page to ignore it. Ahha. Will Hazumu kiss Ayuki? That is totally unlikely, but still I'd like to see the story turn that way.

Apple iPod upgrade time

(tags hardware, mp3, Apple)

So I own a dying iPod. It only holds a charge for the ride to work or back: 40 minutes. I am annoyed with that. I don't even have a face film to keep the screen scratch free and it's all scratched up. It's Firewire so I can't charge it anywhere. I don't care anymore. Die die die.

Now that Apple has rev'd the iPod lineup I figure it's time to upgrade to the 80GB version. I still can't decide between black or white, though. Will that new index system work in Japanese with any effectiveness? I doubt it.

I checked Sofmap and they'll be getting the goodies at the end of the month. Perfect timing. Only 42800 yen to take home. Hot diggity. The price markdown on the older iPods isn't very attractive. Empty wallet.

Princess Princess at PS2, Animate point win

(tags anime, boy's life, cross-dress, game, PlayStation 2, Animate)

The cross-dressing boys life fun that I am infatuated with is coming to the PlayStation 2 as (my trans) Princess Princess - Princesses' After-School Danger (プリンセスプリンセス：姫たちのあぶない放課後後) SPLS-25693. Actually the catch phrase for this game is (my trans) "pretty boys' friendship adventure" (美形ボーイズ友情アドベンチャー), which pretty much sums it up coherently without innuendo. The official page has much more infomation.

I am totally looking forward to this game, not that it's a reflex game but that it is should be just as good when Kashimashi made it onto the PS2, that is, there should be a new story. Not much of the canon delves into the after-school time. I have the drama CDs which expand on the universe a bit more, and I am planning on getting the character songs CD as well. The cover picture of the regular version is by Atsuko Nakajima (中嶋敦子), but the special version is by original author Mikiyo Tsuda (つだみきよ). Sorry to the original author, but I like the anime style better.

The drawing style for the PS2 doesn't look too bad, but I'm annoyed with characters facing orientation. It's as if they are ignoring you. It was the same in Kashimashi. But, at least we will get the fast-talking clothing maniac Nadasho-senpai's omake mode. This is going to be grand.

Last month, I had some incredible luck at Animate's AV Fair point campaign this last summer:

I purchased a couple of Princess Princess CDs and received a bundle of scratch off cards. Most of them were the usual 1 point. For reference, you get one scratch off card per 1000 yen. The fair has items from 5 points to 40 points, so you automatically hope for multi-point cards. When I got to Princess Princess themed cards, I got a set of 5 of a kind 3 points cards, in a row. Boo yah. Someone at Animate must really like me. So what could I do with the points? Get a special fan for 20 points:

Geez, leather, guys? I suspect the image will be reused on the cover of one of the DVDs. Not so exclusive, but that's how it goes.

Toki wo kakeru shojo final check

(tags movie, character goods, Osaka)

(This was written 3 weeks ago)

I did go to see the only theater in the Osaka area to see if there was some Toki wo Kakeru Shojo character goods like in that blog (my previous post). It was in this fashionable "Loft" area where lots of young people hang out. Nice. Unfortunately they only had the soundtrack CD (pictured later) and the ED single. Even the poster campaign was over:

Actually the same theater has a "girls' glasses" day. If you wear glasses and buy a ticket to this movie, you'll get a special not-sold-in-any-store postcard. (kuyashii!) Supposedly it's to celebrate one of the characters in the story. What kind of sexist strategy is this (it's not really sexist)? I'm not a girl and I don't wear glasses, at least, not outside.

I couldn't find the ED single in the Tower Records so I settled for the OST CD. I also purchases a couple of days later the "Notebook".

(comment in the present)

Well, to tie this up, there is currently a telephone card set being on sold on Chara-ani, based on the movie poster. Plus I visited Cine Quanon in Kobe (シネカノン神戸) which was showing the movie 2 weeks ago, but they didn't have goods for sale except for the OST CD.

No more Toki wo Kakeru Shojo posts for the foreseeable future, until the DVD comes out, maybe?

irc saps my blog stats

(tags irc, game, Emacs)

It's been a week since I (rediscovered) IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and I was totally spent. No energy to write a blog. I blame the liveliness of irc://irc.freenode.net/emacs (Emacswiki official IRC channel) and irc://irc.esper.net/insertcredit (Insert Credit official IRC channel). Greetz to all, howdy to all.

It's GNU Emacs 22.0.50 inclusion of the IRC client called ERC (Emacs Relay Client). It's fully featured and configurable. Now Emacs can hack the code, show the web pages, and now participate in IRC. This is great time, or it has been for a long time, but Emacs 22 brings the packages together.

Wii at only 500 yen per day

(tags game, hardware, Nintendo, Wii, purchase)

If somebody said you can have a "next-gen" console, I would say Wii, first.

See, there are 79 days before this Nintendo console comes out. If I saved 500 yen a day, that would be enough to cover the hardware, accessories and one game. Of course, I should have started saving up before that if I was that proactive.

All this talk, and even watching the video clip highlight the vast array of game "experiences" possible with the Wii (official site top dir), but I still don't see a game that makes me want to take it home, except Wii Sports Tennis.

The urge to play Starcraft, scratch that, I mean Tetris

(tags game, RTS, Tetris, puzzle)

Well I had the thought of buying Starcraft for the nth time in the last 5 years. Did I buy it when I went stateside? Okay I can't even remember. I tried checking Sofmap's used section but it's all Koei strategy games. Heh there was Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 "A Century of flight" going 3000 yen used. Oh that's the English version. The Japanese version was 9000 yen, used. Same "tin" box. Bah I don't play flight sims away, since I crashed and burned on that Apple IIe flight sim which I can't remember, either. No it's not Chuck Yeager's flight sim.

Well okay, Tetris (DS) on a train has gotten a hold of me. I play regular time-limited 7-5 game, and when I don't feel so peppy, I play the mission timed mode. That latter mode is great, just ignore the timer and you have free rein with no speed ups. Perfect for just lining up tetris after tetris. Ahhh. Puzzling fun. So much so I feel like I should dig up my Tetris with Card Captor Sakura game (PS1) and finish it off. I can see Sakura's smiling animated face now, and it makes me feel guilty for playing the game first without finishing the manga or anime.

just a quick note of despair

(tags game, hardware, Pokemon, DualScreen, pre-order, failure)

I went to the Pokemon Center Osaka store to really check if they aren't taking pre-orders for that new Pokemon DS Lite. Yes, no pre-lite. Disappointed but I cheered myself up by buying Pikachu towels. Ahh isn't it cute.

So let's review. September 28 is going to be a frenzy, not only because of the hardware but because of the two Pokemon games coming out. Plus, September 28 is the day when many other games will come out, PC and console. Plus let's not forget the months DVDs will come out around that time. Oh yeah magazines too.

That's it, I'm punting this DS Lite purchase attempt. Maybe in October or November I'll try again. I am certainly not going to attempt to camp the store.

(edit: fixed the misspelled post title, can't let that go)

Back to Tetris

(tags game, Tetris, DualScreen, commute)

I've been playing Tetris DS because I don't have book to read during the work commute. It's very satisfying. I'm trying to mimic Hikaru Utada (宇多田ヒカル) speed but I just can't get there. I play the 25 lines mode and also the mission mode. I hate it when I make gaps.

I also tried a WiFi battle or two but my "speed" does not win against people who line up Tetris after Tetris. I retreated from online battle.

Unit testing in place of learning

(tags programming, unit testing, library, Ruby, Emacs Lisp)

I've been "test-infected" by Ruby's Test::Unit library. I wanna get the same kicks in Emacs Lisp. I wrote up the RubyGarden UsingTestUnitToLearnRuby. I rewrote the EmacsWiki UnitTesting page and I'm now trying to decide between regress.el and ElUnit. Both aren't as expressive as Test::Unit, but ElUnit surely looks promising. Except it doesn't have unit tests for itself. Huh.

It's going to be a frenzy (Pokemon DS Lite)

(tags game, hardware, DualScreen, Pokemon)

Finally, a official, non-contest Pokemon version of the Nintendo DS Lite (thanks Kotaku). And the bottom text says no pre-order system! (「予約は受け付けておりません」) 2006/09/28 Thursday is going to be a madhouse (!) at Pokemon Centers nationwide.

I remember for the light purple Pokemon regular DS there was a pre-order system at the Pokemon Center Osaka shop. But seeing this frenzy over the regular black DS Lite version (thanks Kotaku) makes me think parents will be fighting out come Thursday.

Personally I would rather have that contest-only "Pikachu Daisuki Club" white Pokemon version. Black is cool, but what is that character on it? "Tearuga Parukia" Edition? Not Pikachu? Hm, pass. Pikachu FTW.

Quantum computing visualized

(tags video, game, machinima, car)

This swiped video may be a demo for the game Trackmania (thanks Joystiq), but it really is quantum computing visualized, all possible outcomes calculated at the same time.

Cars. Lots of them. They probably automated the driving for each replay data, then merged each of them together.

PlayStation 2 Trance Vibrator: But does it run (on) Linux? Yes! Oh yes!

(tags controller, hardware, Linux, device driver)

A crafty kernel hacker named Sam Hocevar created a PlayStation 2 Trance Vibrator device driver patch for the Linux kernel (thanks Pete Zaitcev). This allows your USB 1.1 capable computer running Linux to control the infamous "Synesthesia" game enhancement hardware. It appears the only thing you can do is change the vibration rate, from 0 Hz to... "Yes! Oh yes!"

Finally, does this mean that we'll be looking for Rez knockoff games for your Linux OS to supplant novel controller games like Frets on Fire (Guitar Hero free-as-in-speech knockoff), and Pydance (Dance Dance Revolution free-as-in-speech knockoff)? Or are we finally going to master up the excitement of Tux Racer, muh ha muh ha?

Dinking around with Internet searches, this looks like the first time someone has tried to make a driver, though I could be wrong.

Did I mention I have 3 of these things? At 580 yen (but originally 2000 yen) they were a steal at Sofmap in 2003.

Rocket-propelled ballet: Quake 3 "tricking" by Infinite Trajectory/Shaolin Productions

(tags video, FPS, stunt)

The beauty of pure movement in a First Person Shooter: Shaolin Productions' "Infinite Trajectory: Tricking iT", now available as a swiped Google Video (thanks Game Girl Advance). Quake 3 fancy moves in God Mode, with excellent video editing and weird music. Calling it just a "rocket jump" video is an extreme disservice. This was a video copyrighted in 2004, so maybe it's older than the hills, but it's the first time I've ever sent a Quake 3 stunt video. Of course I am a Unreal Tournament fan, so I don't know diddly.