Should There Be Age Restrictions on Online Play?

After a long, tiring day of retail work, I usually like to wind down by playing some online Team Death match on Modern Warfare 3 or Black Ops. Or Zombies, whatever I am in the mood for! Unfortunately, it seems that more often than not, once I get connected to a host I end up right in the middle of a big argument between a few of the players. There is cursing between two grown men, one was camping while the other was trying to find him. And then, way in the background of the fighting with their microphone turned down is a little ten year old boy who is cursing at everyone, or he is the one in the middle of the fight!

Shouldn't there at least be some kind of age restriction for online play? Like how the PS2 was for DVDs back in the day. You had to put in a code for parental controls if it was over a certain rating. It is seriously more annoying than anything else to sit and play, then listen to some kid in his microphone scream at the top of his lungs as he starts to throw a fit, "SHUT THE **** UP, MOM. I DON'T WANT A SANDWICH!" And then carry on from there with more complaining and cursing.

It is not even the violence of the game or anything that is the problem, but as soon as kids get online and turn on their microphones, it is another story. Of course there always is an option to "mute" the other players. It is a Godsend. But, once you've migrated to a new host, here comes more of the little kids fighting and trying to act all tough.

In the past, there had always been a lot of controversy over ratings, which is probably where the problem starts. It is not usually a sales clerks’ fault; it's the parent's for being uneducated on what their child is getting. That, or maybe they just don't care; which is sometimes the case. And if they latter is the case, then that is really sad. I would never want my children to be online bothering other people when they're so young and immature. It sounds mean, but it really does get annoying really fast. I think that if you are under a certain age, you should not be trusted with a microphone to play online with.

The World of Adobe Master Collection

As I sat in the computer lab I wondered what allowed me to complete my assignments for class. The answer was so obvious, yet it alluded me for days. Of course i'm kidding. It's the wonderful collection of software programs that Adobe has created for the continually advancing world of technology that we live in. You can't miss one if you're looking in the aisle of a store when you see that they cost from a few hundred dollars to a thousand dollars. These prices can make your eyes pop out of your head in astonishment and amazement. And I'm not talking about the good kind of expressions either. The difficult thing to do is look past the prices, but once you do that; you are on your way to discovering a whole new world with graphics to animations to basically everything. So on that note, lets dive in to basic programs that I myself have used.

Adobe Flash Professional CS5. I've been using this program alot while in taking 2D animation which i'm sure most of you who are reading this are currently enrolled in it. The program is fantastic. I could talk about how amazing it is and everything is great. But the sad truth is its not. There are some things that would make you want to pull your hair out. Now don't get me wrong, it does all the things it was ment for. It's just sometimes flash can be like a little brat and annoy you and refuse to do things. What can you do though? You can't punish flash, you can't give it a spanking unless you can pull out some money to give to the school. So the only thing you can do is get depressed and raise that pretty little hand and say, "Mrs. Goines!! Flash is picking on me!!" Other than that, its great, you can do wonders with it. Make a bunch of amazing things.

Adobe Photoshop CS5. Ahhh, photoshop. This is probably one of the greatest thing's ever invented. Well not like electricity, or fire, or transportation. But probably one of the cornerstones for digital media. In my opinion I believe it enhanced what we call graphics. You can do hundreds of things to simple pictures or items. That is if you really know how to use it completely. I really can't find any fault with photoshop. If you do comment in the sections below. Now on to the next one.

Adobe Dreamweaver CS5. Another awesome program. This sweet baby made web design fun again after having a certain teacher for web design 1 where everything was made from notepad. Who still hasn't changed my grade even though i've reminded thousands of times. Anyway, Dreamweaver was a life saver, making web sites was so much easier and it actually looked good which boosted my self confidence. I made a very simple but elegant web site in about 30 minutes. Ill post a link to let you check it out at the very end. As I will with all of the programs.

3D Max. This program is pretty neat. I'm currently taking a class called 3D animation which allows you(if skilled enough) to take a real object, and recreate it in this program. I'm still learning how to use it so of course it's given me fits so far.

So all in all, Adobe to me has done the world a huge favor by allowing students and schools to purchase their programs for less than normal value. As well as done the whole digital media world a favor by creating such a masterpiece it's ridiculous. I bet in years to come these programs will become even more advanced that even a 5 year old could do it. Which honestly makes me sad because these programs shouldn't become like a yo-yo where everyone can use it. I've spent a year and a half learning these darn things. And if some kid can learn it in 5 minutes, ill lose it. Well that's all I got for this blog. Comment if you wish in the box below. I will also post links of works i've done for each program listed. Well after looking at the page, it seems I cannot load them up. Sad. Oh well, okay readers, Later!

Netflix vs. the Video Store

Movies are a popular thing that people like to watch for fun or for when they have free time on their hands. For several years, going to the video store to rent movies was a good idea because it’s much cheaper than having to pay twenty dollars to view a movie.

The average price to rent a movie is $3.99-$4.99 at a video store. At Netflix they give a great deal that lets you rent or stream an unlimited amount of movies from $7.99 or $9.99 a month! You would also think that mailing in movies is a downside of the deal because usually to mail something in takes a week or so, but Netflix delivers movies surprisingly fast. Netflix also benefits from not having late fees, but has an incentive that if you want more movies you have to turn your previous one in to get the next on your viewing list. Their online streaming service instantly streams videos to your device as well if waiting for it to come in the mail isn’t satisfactory, and this also saves a trip to the video store. Having to use up gas, walk back and forth down aisles, and stand in line. So much time and money is saved!

Though Netflix’s great deals have help expand their company into a multimillion dollar franchise, they've done so by taking Blockbuster’s, Movie Gallery’s and other video stores business and forced them to close down. Their deals have also help them expand into several different marketing platforms such as gaming consoles, DVR’s, blue ray players, and mobile devices. Their actions have set the bar and created a new form of media people come to expect. Companies such as Blockbuster, Hulu, and now Amazon are trying to join the online video streaming war with the same low prices.

Redbox is also a top competitor for renting movies. You just run down to the nearest location and rent some movies for a dollar each. And though times are changing and the way things get done is evolving, it still was fun to run down to the video store and pick out some movies to watch. Sure Netflix has some very great benefits and made a huge impact on the video market, but it feels like they closed down grocery stores and if you want groceries you have the benefit of ordering them online.

However this change is for the good, the economy is rough and we could all use a break from high prices.

All in all movies make good business and draw in a lot of revenue, but people are more likely to rent if the price and deals are right.

Kindle vs Nook

Lets compare the Kindle against the Nook!! I have a huge love for reading books and will encourage anyone to start reading. E-readers are the best way to do that! I'm not doing any kind of research. I'm just going to use my experience with both devices. I had a Kindle for a few months and just recently invested in the Nook. Truthfully, both devices do exactly the same thing. They encourage people to read more books, which, in turn, builds a better vocabulary.
My first e-reader was the Kindle Keyboard. The set-up was smooth and the Kindle app for the computer was very user-friendly. The Kindle was very easy to use and very fast. It connected to the internet without any problems. However, stick to simple websites or the Amazon site and don't add a lot of books. It will slow the device down and cause it to freeze.
Amazon offers great deals on the website as well. Buying a membership allows you to "borrow" books for free and has great deals on books. Most of them are under $9.99. Also, Amazon has come down with their prices with the Kindles. I paid $115 for my Kindle, which now costs only $99. They also have different styles to choose from, the newest one being the Kindle Fire. I believe it is a great buy for the amount of money spent!
I gave my Kindle to my sister, who shares the same love for reading, and bought the Nook Simple Touch Reader. I fell in love with it immediately. It is an e-ink touch screen with wi-fi capabilities. It is smaller than the Kindle and just as fast. Same goes for the websites visited on the Nook, though. Heavy sites, like Facebook, will slow it down and possibly make it freeze. One feature the Nook has over the Kindle is the settings. You can adjust the size of the words and the display of the screen.
The Nook app is much more difficult to maneuver. I could never get it to connect to my device and I didn't like the setup of the app itself. The Kindle app was much more user-friendly than the Nook app. I also had to download a converter program for my Kindle files. Nook can only support certain formats, like PDF or EPUB. The Kindle can support all formats. If you decide to go with the Nook and have formats other than those supported, go to www.calibre-ebook.com and download the program. It will convert those files into formats supported by the e-reader.
There are also other e-readers to choose from. Do not limit yourself to just the two biggest names. Research ALL brands and choose the one you think fits you best. I do encourage you to invest in an e-reader. Its a great way to read not just one book but many at one time. It is much easier to keep up with books, rather than dealing with hard copies.