December 11th, 2012
This is ambitious and a bit ridiculous… but it must have been a lot of fun to work on. Bold Poker.
Something I’d like to see is for an app that is as well-designed as this to handle what is arguably the much more difficult part of poker – the betting. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had split-pots and difficult-to-count bets that a machine could do in seconds.
/via John Gruber.
October 8th, 2012
This time, the pigs aren’t the Rebels.
September 25th, 2012
People make budgets for everything. Vacations, new cars, gas, a new home, gym memberships, etc. Some even budget in a morning coffee from their favorite barista everyday before work. Why is it, then, that some still have an issue with paying for an album on iTunes?
Most applications on the App Store are only a few dollars. The most expensive application I’ve ever purchased for the iPad or iPhone was somewhere around $10. There are more expensive apps, sure, but the median cost of an application is even lower than $10. So why is it that some would rather put up with free applications that don’t work well (or not having any applications at all) rather then to pay for a good one?
Going to the movies with your loved one today costs anywhere from $16 – $30 (depending on where you live in the US). And that is just the ticket price. And you don’t own anything when you leave. The big screen experience is certainly worth it for some movies but, if you’re like me, you probably have a decently-sized high-definition television hanging on the wall in your living room. Imagine taking that money, spending it on a movie in iTunes, through Amazon, or on Netflix or YouTube, and having a few friends over.
Again, I ask, why is it so hard for people to part with a few dollars for these things? I think, among other factors, it is because of how easy it is to pay for them. People are afraid to tap a button and spend $2.99 no matter how good the app is. Or $10 no matter the Rotten Tomatoes rating of the movie they haven’t seen. They’re afraid of losing track of how much money they’ve spent on applications, games, movies, and music only to turn around and realize they’ve spent their lunch money.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Just make a budget. Like you do for other things. Set aside a few dollars per month – I’d recommend $10 – and use that to buy the apps, games, movie rentals, and music you want. Well-made apps are worth their sticker price. Watching movies at home (without worrying about getting letters in the mail from the MPAA) is a fantastic experience. Buying music is quick, easy, and supports the artists. These innovations (and the hard work of the people behind them) help make your life more productive, easier, and even more fun.
Stop being so afraid of spending a few dollars. You’ll be happier.
October 27th, 2011
How in the world is Codify only $7.99? Watch the video demo. Trés impressive.
/via John Gruber.
August 27th, 2011
Good weekend for games.
August 22nd, 2011
A 48-hour solo hackathon for game developers to create a game. Pretty fun.
Shaun Inman, who just released The Last Rocket for iOS, put together a quick game called Data Entry Sentry that works on an iPad (or any Webkit browser). Fun to play. I don’t know where he gets the energy.
February 14th, 2011
Since posting about the iPhone apps that I use most I’ve had a few requests to do the same for the iPad. So, here are the iPad apps that I use most.
These are the applications that I use the most. I’m a fairly “light” applications user in that I spend a lot of time in a small amount of applications – rather than a little amount of time in a lot of applications. I see other people’s iPads and I wonder how they can possibly keep everything straight with so many applications.
There are, however, some applications that I use from time-to-time that deserve honorable mention. Flipboard, NPR, iSilo, iPod. Also, Devour.com is a great way to watch video on the iPad.
*Update 08/30/2011:* I failed to mention in this post that I use the core iPad applications (the apps that ship with the iPad by default) all the time. Safari, Mail, Maps, Music (iPod), Calendar – I use them all and often.
If you have any suggestions for applications that you think I would enjoy please feel free to send them along. My email address is on the front page of my site.
August 4th, 2010
Over 1,000 people found my post on playing Oregon Trail online yesterday. Yes, yesterday alone. Since I linked to it 18 months ago nearly 100,000 people have found that post via Google, Bing and other places and the day-to-day visitors to that post is growing faster than any other page on this site.
It seems everyone is playing Oregon Trail online.
April 28th, 2010
Quite possibly the most impressive emulator I’ve seen in recent memory. Super Mario Crossover allows you to play Super Mario using Mario, Mega Man, Link and more – all with their own individual controls, sounds and gameplay. Superb.
/via Chris Coleman.
April 2nd, 2010
Many of the third-party iPad applications I’ve seen so far have me wishing that I wasn’t so sure that I’m not getting one. Game Table for iPad is no exception. It includes Checkers, Chess and a deck of cards (and some chips) for only $.99.
I love this bit.
“Game Table is not a video game. There is no “logic” built into these games. Game Table simply provides brilliantly designed game tables and game pieces along with an extremely intuitive and fun way for you and your friends to interactive with them. It’s so intuitive, you might even forget you’re not playing on a real table.”
/via Cameron Moll.
February 8th, 2010
A few more hands before our friend Burke goes away for two months.
December 5th, 2009
This was my first game of Risk ever. What a perfect day for playing a game!
November 24th, 2009
Sometimes Eliza and I like to treat ourselves.
November 21st, 2009
Playing with Eric and Terry. I love this game.
November 16th, 2009
I didn’t realize that Quake Live was available for the Macintosh now. Thanks to Sebastiaan de With for letting me know (and for the fancy Fluid icon).
There goes a few hours.
November 2nd, 2009
Recently the IconFactory guys, the same guys that brought you Twitterrific for the Mac and iPhone, Frenzic (another great game), RampChamp (another great game), and many other well-made things, found a bug in iTunes that potentially cost them loads of dough.
To help out, here is a link to their new game for the iPhone – Pickin’ Time.
April 10th, 2009
Random 60: Game systems | Favorite on Viddler.
As it stands I have, setup and working, an original Nintendo, Xbox 360 (which I use for Connect360), and a Nintendo Wii. The Wii is slowly replacing the original Nintendo completely while the 360 ends up being my media center more than my gaming console.
I never play games on my computer anymore, though I only played games on computers when I was a Windows user. I do play games on my iPhone but only when I have nothing else to do. Papijump!
Somewhere around here I have a Playstation too.
How many video game systems do you own? Do you use them?
April 1st, 2009
I’m not very much into playing “mindless” board or card games that rely on the right card falling at the right time. Which is probably why I enjoy playing Poker so much. It isn’t about the cards at all, really. Once the game of Poker is learned, and you’ve played a few times to get used to the flow, you begin to play the people instead of the cards.
I’ve only played Bridge twice. It is at the same time both incredibly fun to play and really, really complex to the point of nearly being frustrating. If you do not enjoy games that have a lot of rules, styles, and even unwritten rules – you will not like Bridge.
While Poker is a game of trying your best not to communicate your hand to others Bridge is the opposite. Your primary objective, being a game of partners, is communicating your hand to others using bidding styles. Bidding style choices really matter between team mates but, really, it ends up being critical to anyone playing at the table. If different bidding styles are at play one could easily come to the wrong conclusion about another player’s hand – whether that player is your teammate or opponent. While there is a variety of styles there are some ‘standard styles’ that are typically practiced.
Which, for me, is where a lot of the initial frustration comes in. Playing with someone that is much more skilled and experienced with Bridge means that by communicating the wrong message to your teammate you could, and probably will, sabotage that player’s ability to help you win. Make the wrong bid at the wrong time and, unwittingly, you will tell your partner that you have a strong or weak hand. Are you following the rule of fives? Are you using a point system? Are you bidding based on feel?
Obviously communication is needed between teammates prior to the game even starting. But even then misinterpretation runs rampant. (Or at least it has for this beginner.) I can’t tell you how many times I’ve taken too long to bid and ended up sending the wrong message because of it. Yes, taking too long to bid is a form of communication too.
It is madness!
Again, I’ve only played twice. Which is why I’m not getting into any of the rules about the game here at all. Nor suggesting any type of strategy or gameplay that I could recommend based on results. I’m simply stating that, although it can be frustrating at times, I’m slowly learning to play Bridge and I’m finding it enjoyable.
Thanks to my friend Dave Oberheu for his patience in teaching all of us to play.
March 25th, 2009
id Software recently released Wolfenstein 3D for the iPhone. This is fantastic news. The game that started the entire first-person shooter genre is now on the iPhone.
But there is more. id is releasing the source code for the game. (See link at the bottom of this page.) And John Carmack, the brains behind nearly every id project for the last several decades, wrote about his experiences with development on the iPhone.
Via: John Gruber.