Xzertion - Stuart Thompson's Web Journal

Blog Moved

2005-06-02T08:43:00.000-07:00

This blog has been moved to http://www.codeborg.com

Scoring for pride

2005-01-06T14:07:00.000-08:00

In moving from England to the USA I have encountered many cultural differences that have taken some time to adapt to. In particular, the two countries apparently have absolutely no overlap in the sporting events that they enjoy watching. Growing up in England I was indoctrinated into watching sports such as football(1), tennis, cricket and F1 grand prix racing.

As part of my cultural transformation, I attended my first ice hockey game on New Year's Eve courtesy of a good friend at work (Travis you are the man!). We had a lot of fun and, in keeping with the American sporting tradition, I learned that hockey (the prefix 'ice' is superfluous in the US) is a pleasingly violent mix of mangling your opponents into the perspex guard plates that surround the rink and when that fails simply throwing down gloves and stick and beating the living snot out of them with your bare hands.

The Portland WinterHawks (our side) were playing the Seattle ThunderBirds, and although Seattle were clearly ahead in the 'goal scoring' objective of the game, the Hawks were more than making up the score by excelling in the 'beat the shit out of them' objective. We had a lot of fun and even though Seattle were winning 3-0 in the final 10 minutes, the Hawks first scored a goal for pride and then successfully won a five-man brawl for the big finish.

1. Real football (a.k.a soccer), in which the objective actually involves kicking the ball with your feet as opposed to 'American Football' where you throw a rugby ball as far as you can down a field while wearing full platemail armor and then run as fast as you can at someone who is nowhere near the ball and try to smash them into the ground.

Christmas 2004

2005-01-01T10:20:00.000-08:00

Tiffany and I had a fantastic Christmas this year. Unfortunately, due to pilot error with our digital camera, I will not be able to post pictures for a little while until we get a new scanner. I have gloss print photos from Christmas but nothing digital and our scanner is currently on the blink.

It was a nice and quiet two-seater Christmas, which I personally enjoy far more than celebrating with crowds. Tiffany and I both did very well with the presents we received, and I hope that people receiving gifts from us felt the same way. DVD movies were the order of the day, with over 30 hours of watchable material being given and received. I was pleased with my new sword, Myst IV, and a radio-controlled truck among other things. Tiffany opened many new toys and books as well as the somewhat intangible, but nonetheless pleasurable, massage appointment. Surprise of the day went to an HP photo printer received from Tiffany's parents. A most welcome gift that has already received much usage.

The meal was fantastic, the turkey tender, and the jacket potates well cooked. Liberal usage of Christmas cheer, a log fire, and blinking lights around the tree rounded out the entourage.

Merry Christmas to all & a Happy New Year!

Requirements & Specification

2004-12-29T13:34:00.000-08:00

Quick reference to a lesson we all should heed about requirements, specifications, and the danger of making assumptions:
http://www.spuriouspundit.com/archives/2004/12/picture_hanging.html
(click this link or the title of the post)

Prease Flasten Your Sleat Bert

2004-12-27T14:17:00.000-08:00

As though it were of no concern to the well-being of other fragile minds, a document was circulated for review amongst myself and several work colleagues that was harder to read than an olde english text translated by a non-engligh speaker into pig-latin and then encoded into base-64. I believe that peer-reviews are among the most valuable of tasks that can be performed at work, especially in software development. However, when the first hour of the review consists of nothing but untangling webs of lexical confusion, the value of the process is utterly lost. The actual content of a document cannot be reviewed until the rot and decay of partial sentences, inconsistent references, and calamitous word-choice have been purged. Our poor reviewer does not now have the energy, inclination, or required sanity to actually perform the crux of their task. The whole process begins to feel like climbing a steep mountain of sludge, carrying a backpack full of steel anvils while angry gnomes throws rocks down upon your head.

So I ask that we all just take a few moments before distributing our disjointed excerpts and try to collect them together into something more worthy of review. At the least, try reading the document ourselves just once before hitting 'Send'.

Scion Pictures

2004-12-07T13:08:00.000-08:00

I have (finally) got some pictures of Tiffany's new car ready to post. It had just stopped raining when I took these shots, and I was on my way to work (hence the Jeep with the open door) so no submitting remarks for photographic quality.

Here are the shots of Tiffany's new Scion XB:

Click for larger image

McMinnville Air Museum

2004-11-26T18:45:00.000-08:00

Today we visited the McMinnville air museum and, although I visited only 3 months ago, there was still more than enough material and interesting things to see that I could happily spend another 5 hours there and still not see everything that they have.

Tiffany and I currently have visitors with us for the Thanksgiving holidays, and so there were seven of us that travelled to see the Spruce Goose (www.sprucegoose.org) today. There was a little confusion with waiting for the second vehicle to arrive, my wife claiming that it was because I was "speeding away" from them, the truth being more that they were all talking and not paying attention to directions! We simply got a few coffees and sodas and waited for them to arrive.

Several cell-phone calls later, and a few laughs, we were on our way into the museum. The focal point of the area is the "spruce goose" itself, spanning almost the entire museum in both directions. However, the WWII planes are the area that I spend the most time wandering around.

The photos below are pretty dark, because there was not enough light in the museum and the flash was ineffective at those ranges. I have tried to correct the brightness and contrast levels to make them more visible. Click for larger pictures.

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Thanksgiving traffic....

2004-11-23T20:01:00.000-08:00

Thanks a lot! People on their way to their Thanksgiving get togethers were making my life hell on the way home tonight. Something about a long road-trip and being on the same road that I use to commute meant that several idiots were forced to pay no attention while driving over 2 tons of metal at high speeds. Fortunately there were other large pieces of metal there to stop them, that and some concrete barriers and ditches. I crawled past 4 minor accidents on 26, 217, and I5 on my way home. All of the accidents were low speed shunts by the looks of things, presumably caused by changing a CD, turning around to talk to the kids, or general stupidity.

I fail to see how the word 'accident' can be applied to something that I call 'predictable'. An ACCIDENT implies something unavoidable that was beyond the scope of reasonable mitigation. Whereas when you place continuous lines of cars bumper to bumper on wet, dark roads and have people paying absolutely no attention while they are driving, they should be refered to as 'results' or 'outcomes'.

However, what really burns me on a night where I have already been sitting in traffic for over an hour due to needless 'outcomes' is when I see a brainless waste of skin reading a book to his kids who are in the back seat while driving down the road. Additionally, this isn't just reading while stopped in a line of traffic, but resting a large picture book on the steering wheel while regularly turning round to show the kids the pictures at approximately 45 mph in heavy traffic. Needless to say that tonight saw multiple additions to my 'List of people I HATE'.

OK, rant over...but seriously people, can we try really hard to reduce the number of 'outcomes' on the road...PLEASE!!! Accidents I can handle, but a constant stream of wrecks that could be avoided by just maybe looking FORWARD while driving!!!
GRUMP!

First there was light...

2004-11-09T23:06:00.000-08:00

and on the eighth day he created Halo...and their was much rejoicing. After being surgically removed from my XBox only long enough to eat dinner, I now face a long inner struggle to do anything other than play Halo 2 for the rest of my natural existence. From the suped-up intro music (now with extra guitar) to the ability to dual-wield awesome alien weapons, Halo 2 is faaaannntastic. Before I was pried away from my utopia, I managed to "own" a few games online and blast my way through the opening two scenarios in the single-player campaign. Already I can tell that this is something very special. Apart from the fact that XBox Live has never been this busy...EVER...and the fact that people in Wilsonville were queuing at the Game Crazy at midnight to get their copies, the game itself is simply outstanding.

I have heard rumors that the single-player campaign is uninteresting and short. I can't yet speak as to the latter, but I can guarantee that the action so far is absolutely top notch. Anyone thinking that this game is either too easy or straightforward is obviously playing it on pansy difficulty rather than Heroic or Legendary. Try cranking the difficulty up to Legendary and the game becomes a whole different beast. Even the hardiest Haloite will find a challenge when four or five red elites are bearing down on them in a closed corridor.

Then you fire up XBox Live and really prove who you are by duking it out online. After completely owning the whole arena for the first couple of matches, I was introduced to the 'matchmaking' system in Halo 2. Nothing to do with romance, the matching system endeavors to always pit you against players of a similar skill level. It evidently didn't take me long to raise my head just high enough on the rankings for the matching system to put me in with people who would happily take it off at the neck. I proceeded to come in last for the next three matches. I did manage to get a couple of shots off in one match, but unfortunately it was not enough to deter the more elite combatants from slaughtering me. Fortunately I should now be matched up with the 'how do I control this thing again' crowd for a while, at least until I win a few.

In short, Halo 2 not only rocks, it re-defines what it is to be a passive aggresive pass-time where pixel pushing is king. Wish me luck...the master chief IS BACK!!!!

Jump, jump, jump

2004-11-09T22:57:00.000-08:00

Every show has to eventually run its course, but watching NYPD Blue tonight and seeing Andy Sipowizc talk to the ghost of Bobby (Jimmy Smits) in one of the most vomit-inducing sappy-ass scenes ever was like watching it jump the shark in slow motion with instant super-slow-mo replay. I am simply thankful that this is the final season of what is probably one of my favorite TV shows, I only hope that the final death throes do not soil my fond memories of some great characters.

Creating distributable .pdb files

2004-11-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

I found a useful .NET compile switch last night while studying through my latest in-depth .NET debugging tome that allows you to create safe debug information (.pdb) files ready for distribution with your .NET assemblies.

This is the switch used to create the .NET assemblies supplied by Microsoft. If you ever noticed that the stack trace is correct while using these assemblies but that the error 'No source code is available for the current location' is displayed when pausing, and if you want to replicate this behavior then read on.

The /PDBSTRIPPED compile switch generates a stripped pdb file that contains only the public functions and all-important FPO data (required for correct call stack information) without including the private information, such as variables, source code and line information.

A file named $(ProjectName)_STRIPPED.PDB is generated alongside the regular pdb file that, once renamed to (ProjectName).pdb, can safely be distributed to clients as part of your product.

Halo 2 Leaked

2004-10-16T18:58:00.000-07:00

In a horrible turn of events for the gaming community, GameSpot reported today that a complete version of Halo 2 was leaked to the Internet last night. Although Microsoft is standing by it's official release date of November 9th, with the scandal and subsequent delay of Half-Life 2 about the same time last year I as a gamer now worry what this means for what is probably the most anticipated FPS this year.

The largest cause for concern with games that are leaked is that if the source code for the game is openly available, hackers will probe the code for vulnerabilites. With games such as Halo 2 that feature XBox Live support, these vulnerabilities can pose security risks and can allow the otherwise unworthy to emerge victorious by finding ways to cheat.

With pre-orders for Halo 2 topping 2 million copies, I am certain that the legal department of Microsoft is currently conducting a Witch Hunt of the likes that would impress even the most stoic Spanish Inquisition. I only hope that I can frag and be fragged in "fair-play" and not see Hack$RRulez0r scoring 4,000 kills per minute by using some mod or exploit.

Is it too late to learn?

2004-10-15T23:42:00.000-07:00

Do you reach a point in life where you can't change your situation and just have to make do with what you've got? What if you're really unhappy with what you're doing? These questions were raised in our family in August of last year when Tiffany (my wife) decided that she did not want to file papers and answer phones for the rest of her life. But after seven years of college and a bachelor's and masters degree in politics, losing all interest in the arena offered few other choices.

So we talked about what would hold interest, and finally discovered that it lay on the other side of the academic spectrum in the field of BioChemistry. After many months of groundwork and financial planning, she finally began her studies at OSU in a field that she has not touched in over 10 years. A scary prospect for anyone. But apart from the commute being a real bear at over 70 miles each way, the rewards both academically and to her self-esteem are already worth the price of admission.

(Click to enlarge)
Picture taken at a BioChemistry club picnic at OSU.

Finish Him!

2004-10-11T11:00:00.000-07:00

Finish Him!These immortal words were first heard in arcades around the world in 1992. Over the past twelve years there have been several subsequent iterations of the Mortal Kombat franchise.
Last year saw the series first true venture into the realm of truly 3D arenas with the release of 'Deadly Alliance'. Recently, the sixth major release 'Deception' takes the experience online. There are the usual updates including more characters, more ways to kill defeated opponents (fatalities), and other bells and whistles. However, the addition of a chess-style combat game, a puzzle mode, and the mini-RPG 'Konquest' mode make this an impressive upgrade. Ultimately though, the major appeal of Deception is the fact that you can challenge opponents online. The game is fully integrated with XBox Live! and supports rank-based opponent matching. This means that when searching for games online, you can specify the skill level that you would like to face in terms of 'Better', 'Equal', or 'Worse' than your current ranking. This is a welcome addition to someone who is used to getting completely owned when they venture into gaming-cyberspace and means that most of the fights are kept very close. Playing against other humans means that the game is based more upon psychology than ultra-fast reflexes, as applying strategies and tactics can actually work.

Despite the variety of game modes though, the most satisfying aspect is getting home from work on a Friday night and taking out a whole day's stress on someone hundreds of miles away. After both of you have dealt out more punishment than a cartoon character could survive, one combatant is afforded the honor of applying one of the game's signiture 'Fatality' finishing moves, the ultimate in animatic destruction.

When you REALLY need to talk....

2004-09-26T01:17:00.000-07:00

What better place to have a conversation with a friend than at the movies? This philosophy appears to be stringently adhered to by at least a couple of people at every showing I attend lately. The most recent demonstration of this blatant fucking lack of disrespect that I was treated to was this evening during 'Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow'. It is amazing to me that the radical ideas of basic manners, respect, and keeping your bloody mouth shut during a movie are so far out of reach for certain people.

We still had a great time of course and, apart from the sparsity of Angelina Jolie's on-screen appearances, the movie was great! I can only wait for the DVD release to hear the dialog that was obscured by the riveting commentary provided by the assholes two rows closer to the screen....

Vintage gaming.....no, even older than that!

2004-09-08T20:59:00.000-07:00

Few, and I mean few people remember a computer called the BBC Micro. It was manufactured by Acorn computers, who today are the creators of the ARM chip. At the age of four it was the first computer I had ever seen, and within minutes I was hooked. Bosting a full 32K of RAM, and a fairly advanced disk operating system (Watford DiscFS), it appeared magical to me. But beyond it's more practical uses, I quickly came to realize that it was also a prime platform for what is now referred to as vintage gaming. With the graphical capabilities of an Intellivision console, the benefits of a floppy disk drive for save games and the clearer image delivered by a vga monitor versus a television, I considered myself lucky to have such a slick gaming machine!

Anyhow, one of the first games I played on the Beeb was called Repton, and involved controlling a little green man (known only as "Repton") around a set of underground caves collecting diamonds, avoiding falling rocks and ravenous monsters. The levels were very challenging, especially to a four year old, and contained some of the most brain-twisting geometric rock-pushing puzzles ever devised. I used to plot the maps onto A1 (approx. 4ft x 3ft) sheets of graph paper and sit puzzling out the solutions by plotting notes onto the maps now mounted on my bedroom walls.

Recently, I was exstatic to find that this wonderful game has been written for the PC and is being published by an old BBC sotware firm called Superior Interactive (previously Superior Software). I immediately downloaded their Trial Version to ensure that my $$$ would not simply grant me a license to junk, and within 10 minutes had purchased the full product. Complete with the original levels, three extra level packs, and a sufficiently complex level editor I am very please with the final package.

Well done Superior Interactive and Richard Hanson for delivering an old favorite and putting classic entertainment like Repton "back in the game" so to speak.

If you want to sample some classic 1980's puzzle gaming and see what all this fuss is about, go to www.superiorinteractive.com.

XBox R.I.P.

2004-08-17T19:29:00.000-07:00

My XBox died this weekend. It was almost three years old to the day. It displayed it's first diagnostic code (11) citing that I needed to contact tech support early on Saturday morning. By that afternoon, while I was trying to transfer all of my save games to memory cards, I received 5 more different diagnostic codes ranging from 04 - 11. It was obvious that something was very wrong here. After researching the XBox technical support route and discovering that it would cost me $50+ each way just to ship the box to the tech address, and that then I would have to add the cost of repairs, I decided to simply pop out to the local store and buy a new one. After having visited three stores that were out of stock, I was beginning to get a little concerned about which deities I may have offended lately. It turns out, according to a sales girl at the EBX that sold me their LAST XBox in stock, that MS had decided to seriously cut back on production because people don't play as many video games during the summer months. Evidently something went very wrong in the chain of communications here because I had been chasing people all day who were bloodthirsty for their little green (black) boxes.

The other surprise that I received this weekend was the news that apparently three years is considered to be a long lifespan for an XBox, and that 1-2 years is more typical. Considering that I still have a working NES that is over 20 years old, I have to call into question that modern manufacturing techniques have progressed over the last couple of decades. It is times like this when the conspiracy theories about planned obselescence don't seem quite as far fetched.

Farewell to Intel Corporation

2004-08-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

This is my final day working for Intel and, as such, most of the morning will be spent reminiscing about the times spent here, passing contact info to friends, and making sure that I collect all of my precious junk before I leave.

This is not only my last day here, but also my last day as a contractor (for a while at least). As of Monday morning, I will be a permanent employee of Corillian Corporation. With my wife returning to school to study BioChemistry this fall, I am thankful to be working on solid ground.

So farewell Intel Corporation, it has been a brief yet rewarding relationship. I have met myriad interesting people and made many great new friends.

Custom gamertag and messenger icons

2004-08-12T14:58:00.000-07:00

After a couple of google searches, I found this very useful link to http://www.xboxfriends.com/bannergen that will allow you to create custom images for your xbox live gamertag and msn messenger handle. Just type in your tag or handle and click the button to have your own custom image created for use on your website.

Special formatting characters in SQL data

2004-08-12T14:19:00.000-07:00

I recently worked through a bug with someone who was storing data queries in sql data columns. Now I'm not going to get into why this is a bad idea in the first place. There are many limiting factors present in the development of this solution that substantiate the decision to store the query this way. The real interest here is that the query in question contained line feeds, carriage returns, and tab characters to make the query more readable in Enterprise Manager. Unfortunately, because this data was then read directly into a string by a data reader, the formatting characters were present in the query text when it was presented back to the RDBMS for execution thus causing an exception.

The database analyst argued that many of his queries contained carriage returns, line feeds, and tab characters and that the problem was therefore with the code that retrieved the query from the database. However, all of the other queries were stored procedures which the SQL data engine parses into compiled code thus removing the special characters. This example demonstrates one of the differences between stored procedures and plain text queries, especially where formatting characters are involved.

MCP 70-315

2004-08-11T11:07:00.000-07:00

I am almost prepared to take the 70-315 - Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Visual C# .NET and Visual Studio .NET. With a final pass of the exam cram book and a couple of practice examinations, I will be ready to register and (hopefully) pass the exam.

XBox Live Rocks!

2004-08-10T16:50:00.000-07:00

Finally, I have setup my XBox Live! service and I have to say that it rocks! I am amazed how slick the in-game voice communicators are. I didn't think that it was possible to have 8 people in a game, all chatting to each other real time while racing without any lag. Yet Project Gotham Racing 2 now provides that experience on a nightly basis.