http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112 Fri, 18 Sep 2009 20:43:47 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en With the final exam fast approaching, I thought this might express some of the feelings you may be experiencing: No, it's not new, but I really like the stick-figure treatment. Très Kingdom of Loathing. And no, I have no idea where I got it. It's been sitting on ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=41 Second Life has updated their client programs once again, and that means that you'll need to update the program you use to access it. (Which you must do because we'll be spending class on Monday in Second Life, and part of the final exam will be in Second Life.) If ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=40 In class on Friday we'll be discussing virtual worlds (VWs) other than Second Life. Here's a list of VWs to explore: Chat-type VWs: Dubit Kaneva There Virtual Zones Furcadia Game-type VWs: Achaea Entropia Kingdom of Loathing Meridian 59 Neopets/Neotopia Ryzom Most require a downloaded client to run, but Kingdom of Loathing and Neopets/Neotopia are browser-based, which means that you can run either from any computer ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=39 Check it out: Yo! William Wordsworth lays down a hot rap. Respect! Choose Your Own Adventures, those fab "turn-to-page-87" adventure stories from the 1980s are back with slightly updated stories, and a massive update in technology. Now each of the reissued books has "secret" endings built into the book ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=38 Here's this week's machinima goodness: a music video to those upbeat kids, Breaking Benjamin, and their song, "So Cold." Keep smilin' guys! The video was made by Paul Marino using Half-Life 2, and features a lot of footage from the game. (In fact, if you haven't finished the game ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=37 You may have heard about the recent resignation of Monica Goodling, the former top aide to US Attorney General Alberto Gonazales, who quit amid continuing questions about the US Department of Justice's firings of a group of US Attorneys. When MSNBC reported on Goodling's resignation, they used this photo: But they might ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=36 I have heard the cries of pain, the howls of despair, and I understand. Not everyone thrives in conditions of extreme open-ended-ness. If you're flourishing in the freedom afforded by the current format of the meditations, read no further. Go forth and frolic in your liberation. If, on the other ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=35 I've updated the Course Calendar for the readings/assignments for April 9th through the 16th, so check that out. For Monday April 9th, make sure you've read Louis Althusser's "Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses," in the orange (second) edition of the Media and Cultural Studies. If you've got the first (blue) ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=34 Photoshop. It's cool. And disturbing. And it's what we're going to be talking about in class on Friday. So, to prep for class, check out two of the largest sites for Photoshop Phreakishness: Something Awful and Worth1000. Here are the links: Something Awful Worth1000's current and most recent contests Worth1000's archive of ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=33 Spring is just around the corner, and something (besides pollen, mold, and dust) is in the air. It seems that everywhere you look, sites are getting EXTREME MAKEOVERS! Click the link to read all about it. First, Arizona Senator John McCain launched his new campaign website: Stormtroopers for McCain '08. ... http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/112/?p=32