Ambivalent Quarrellings

Hugh "gotta love" Grant

2005-09-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

After a Saturday full of sport (Grey came down to play against us, Paul Roos), me and my bro went to the video shop.
After browsing for 20 minutes, finding nothing (Hollywood is getting real stale), we finally came to the last shelf, Romance. After seeing cheesy, sappy, romantic titles like Love actually, something hit us.

Three quarters of the videos on the shelf contained one actor... Hugh Grant. If he didnt star as the lead role, he was someone associated with a movie, even as being Boomstick holder (just kidding).
Now the big question arrives... What the hell does he have that woment want?
Is it because he has a pretty face?
Is it because he is always portrayed as this handsome, loving, caring guy?
What?

If someone can tell me, or even shed some info on this fact, please enlighten me with your movie wisdom!

Crazy Frog

2005-08-28T07:30:00.000-07:00

Bing Bing Braaam!

This strange few syllables has swept the world. It is quite strange that something so simple can be so successful...
It topped the box offices in the UK, sweeping away eager artists.

I have been thinking to why this thing sells so good...
-> I think it appeals to evey kid inside us. All remembers playing with "Ferraris" chasing each other with sounds similar to Crazy Frog.
-> It is a Crazy Frog that does the sounds. The industry has never had something like this (excluding Paris Hilton's dog). It easily recognised.
"Have you seen that frog thing?"
"There is the frog song!"
-> Well then it also makes a cool ringtone of course.
-> Then the last one which I think lends to this things success....

ABSOLUTELY IMPECCABLE MARKETING. Aim...
This guy managed millions to fall in love with a crazy frog re-enacting a Formula 1 race. Truly brilliant.

Of course with this success everyone is trying to cash in on it. Horrible clones are sprouting everywhere.
Nifty Ninja
Party Monkeys
Humping Bumblebee (I am not kidding).

What is next?
Pacman Punch?

I-Robot review

2005-08-20T10:54:00.000-07:00

Well, to keep you off my back, here is a quick rewiew I had to do for English.

I-Robot
Time: 1hour 44 min

I-Robot is a sci-fi tale set in the not-too-distant future in 2035 Chicago. Robots are a part of society as much as Taxi's are in New York. They do your bidding mindlessly. Beneath all these robots lies the company that created them, USR. USR has become more powerful than any company in history. USR is about to reveal its latest creation, their newest robot, the NS-5. USR has even offered to upgrade the previous model to the new one for free...

Humanity basks in its newest creation doing their bidding, until a scientist, Dr. Lanning responsible for designing these robots gets murdered. The immediate blame is put on a robot helping Dr. Lanning.
This robot is named Sonny.

This story is based on a series of books written by Isaac Asimov.

Will Smith portrays Del Spooner, a detective stuck on the fact that robots can think out of their accord, bound to take over the world. Will Smith does a believable job, but none the less none could've done better. The director, Alex Proyas, did a brilliant job, working close with the cinematographer to create spectacular scenes. The set is brilliantly designed making Asimov’s reality even more believable.

The movie keeps it pace throughout, always keeping you thinking. The movie keeps amazing you with twists and a well-written script.

In the end, I-Robot is a very underestimated movie. It is sad that most people thought it is a Terminator clone.

4/5

Days seem to fly

2005-08-18T10:23:00.000-07:00

Geez, I just cant seem to keep up with posting in my blog! All my internet time is spent on WoW :P

Sorry for that!

World of Warcraft

2005-08-10T10:04:00.000-07:00

Here is my review on World of Warcraft, the massively multiplayer online role playing game from Blizzard Entertainment.

Blizzard has yet to fail me. They have once again succeeded in making an impeccable game. Like their previous games they take best things out of a certain genre and mix them together in a game and then adds lots of nice goodies. World of Warcraft provides nothing new in terms of MMORPG games, but takes the best from all the rest and make a brilliant game. In short it caters very much for the casual player, but also rewards hardcore players at the same time. If you log out at the local inn or Capital city, your Experience bar becomes what is called "rested". In other words your character rests while you are away with real-life duties. The "rested" status of your xp bar allows you to gain more xp from creatures. After a certain amount of xp your characters xp returns to normal. In other words you dont get anymore bonuses.

There are various races and classes you can choose from to quest in this epic world. The classes is race determined.
You dont see an Orc Paladin, do you?

There are certain realms (all replicas of the game world, which caters for every play-style) on each server.

WoW is very based on what is called Player-Versus-Player. The two opposing factions, Horde and Alliance are continually at war. They promote this by adding the Honor System. The Honor System tracks the amount of times you killed a player or NPC (Computer-Controlled players) of the opposing faction. The more you kill players of the opposing faction, the more you are rewarded for your actions. It also caters for people who doesnt want to stress with dealing with other players trying to take their head, while questing. There are realms which is called PvE (Player Versus Environment). You can only get killed by other players if you attack NPC's or want to duel. There are also RP realms where you are completely immersed in-game. There are strict naming restrictions, so that it doesnt break down the feeling of Role-Playing. You are also not allowed to talk about things outside the game.

How does it play with 56k? I have 56k and I am happy to say that it is completely playable. Although it might irritate some players with 1.5 second waits when opening your inventory, it really doesnt make a difference.

In the end, WoW caters for every player and is certainly a game for every person who is vaquely interested in online gaming.

One Word..........wow!

P.S. Sorry for waiting so long for the post, I have been playing too much WoW! I play on Frostwhisper-pvp on the Europe servers.

Happy gaming!

Hitchiker to Our world.

2005-07-31T08:43:00.000-07:00

Well, it is Sunday and I have lots to say...

First, I went to watch Hitchikers Quide to the Galaxy, and I must say it was really a spectacular Fun-filled Hour of Movie entertainment.

Another thing is that I have bought 2 books that I really wanted to read.

The first is Perdido Street Station by China Mievelle.
The second is none other than Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

These books will keep me occupied for hours of escapism, so forgive me if I neglect Ambivalent Quarrellings.

War of the Worlds

2005-07-25T10:45:00.000-07:00

Ok....

here is the Review from me. Total 3/5.

At first the movie captures your interest very quickly. It is full of special effects, like your typical movie nowadays.

Why it gets 3.

First, the movie aint very true to the book. The only that is the same is aliens (No mentioning of Mars even) and the Ending. Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning make a brilliant duo on screen. To see this young upcoming actress, beside a legend in a Steven Spielberg film, spells Oscar all over it. Although it was very entertaining, it gets dragged on too much. Way too much booms and Bangs and Whizzos. Also most of the time, the people get out of impossible situations unscathed... Weird. Then there is the blatant continuity. Somethings just doesnt make sense. A Boeing rips through their Neighbourhood, but their is unscathed. Truly remarkable.

Albite its shortcomings, it keeps you entertained and I would recommend you go watch it!

P.S. How is my first Movie Review?

War of the Worldcraft

2005-07-24T05:29:00.000-07:00

Well, todays topic revolves around 2 things. Mainly War of the Worlds and World of Warcraft. (Tonque Twister!).

Firstly War of The Worlds. War of the Worlds is now a movie based on the book by the same name, by HG Wells. I am going to wathc this today, and I am eagerly going to watch how this turns out. I have the original radio broadcast of War of the Worlds. Going to quite interesting to see the difference.

Second, World of Warcraft. For those that dont know, this is Massively Multiplay Online Role-Playing Game. I am very intriqued by it and ordered the EU version! I am getting it in August. I will give a review on how it is, how it plays on 56k, and why Trolls are the best. :P
If you are looking to paly with me, I will be playing on Sylvanas-PVP on the EU servers.
Name: Boerewors (So that South Africans can recognise me)

Anyway, Happy Gaming!

Well Well Well

2005-07-22T10:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been very busy and have been neglecting my blog.
But dont fear for Tr00jg is here!

The holidays are over, and it was very interesting. Me and my family went to a lot of places and met the most strangest and friendly people.

One was Duncan Ferguson.
Duncan Ferguson lives in a little town, by the name of Cradock (South Africa). We have been searching for our ancestors and cant seem to track them down. Weve searched countless archives about our surname, de la Rouviere. We talked to the local people, and discovered that this Duncan Ferguson, or Uncle Fergey, knows a lot about Cradock's history and almost everyone that died there. Supposedly my ancestors lived in Cradock. We met Uncle Fergey, coincidentally, while patrolling the streets. He led us to his, which felt like a Discovery Channel documentary. The house was littered with Bookcase upon Bookcase of Records.

Luckily we found our Surname and have to pick up the trail Port Elizabeth!!
Anyway....

Happy Gamin!

Blogs

2005-06-29T10:54:00.001-07:00

A blog. It is just pieces of data being littered on the net... I can see why blogs is so popular. Everyone can (I think).

We are tied up in this world. Tied with relationships, tied up with material things. No matter hard you try, these ties will stick to you forever. It is how we are created... Sometimes when things go wrong, divulging it to someone near you might not help, for certain reasons. You have to deal with the thought that, that person knows what you told him/her. Sometimesm you regret telling them things. They react differently. You don't want to go through these unnecesarry feelings and trivilations.

But, you can't keep it within yourself. Everyone knows that. It becomes a mental Splinter that slowly tears you away from the inside. That is why blogs is there to save your day! Divulging you life to a stranger, is a feeling that no-one can pin point. Is it because the stranger doesn't give a hoot about what you have to say? Or is it sharing your troubles or tribulations with some guy/girl? Maybe this is what drives the Internet. Anonymonity (sp?). In fact it is... 3/4 of the Internet is Porn. You are browsing the sites completely anonymous. If you walk into a magazine shop and pick up a Porn mag, people are going to check you out, immediately getting prenotions about you. Many bulletin boards, otherwise known as forums, are littered with alter egos. Vorkon, the Destroyer. Shadow Stalker. Pink Fluffy. etc. You can do what you want, no-one will know who is really is sitting behind the screen. Again, I use the term, appearances can be deceiving. Another thing that makes blogs so popular is seeing people experiencing the same troubles/tribulations. You immediately connect to the person, although you may be reading a forty-year old paedophile's (sp) blog.

It is strange, that although only one or 2 people will actually trouble themselves to type in a confusing URL to come read this. Yet I still feel as if I got something off my shoulders. I am littering a piece of myself into the World Wide Web.

Happy gamin!

Exams are finally over!!

2005-06-21T10:29:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is right (for me at least)! Exams are over!

But before we crack open the cases of beer (well, not really, for me it will cracking open cases of Oros), a crucial period must first complete itself. I have dubbed this period the Alcatraz period... Let me explain why!

You see, after you finish your exam you are usually elated and in a party mood, right? We all are, but deep inside you is that fear for when the TIME comes, the time to get your results! Now compare this to an escapee from Alcatraz.

You just want to scream with joy, when you jump over the walls of Alcatraz right? You actually escaped this hell-hole... Not really. In front you lie troubled waters to safe haven. You don't know if you will survive the swim!

Who else feels this when you finish your exam and have to wait for your results. The excruciating Alcatraz period!!

Mu controversy...

2005-06-17T10:17:00.000-07:00

Recently I have heard that the free MMORPG is gonna (or already did) receive a huge new patch. You can have pets and other cool stuff. But what does these cool new things help if the main game mechanic is repetitive as a bulldog chewing on a steel pipe?

Yes, guys and gals here comes my opinion of Mu...

The first that catches your eye is the nice graphics, but believe me, as I have told, appearances can be deceiving! You begin the game with absolutely no clue what to do! So after an half an hour of qeustioning everyone beside me. I run into insanely high level creatures and get killed. I respawn and head another way. I begin to kill some spiders and mini dragons... It looks very promising! I expected something in the form of quests, but it was non-existent. The only thing you do is kill and level and look cool. That is all!

I stopped playing.

After a while I heard a huge new patch arrived and thought maybe it deserves a second chance. I downloaded it and played again. Before ten minutes was over I quit and oathed to never set my virual ass in that game again. The new patch will most likely not convince me to play again.

This is my opinion and I am very interested to what your views are on the game.

Mu online site

Exam bores...

2005-06-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

Wrote maths today. I ran out of time and rushed the last questions which will probably result in 60-75%.

Anyway, after learning for Comptuer Studies Theory I stumbled upon an interesting thought. Binary consists of 0's and 1's. Each letter or character consists of 8 binary digits. The letter "A" is something like this. 10010001. Now imagine if you take DOOM3's code, which equals to about 500,000 lines of code.

mmmm. 500,000 lines of code probably holds 100 characters. That equals 500,000,00 characters. In Binary it will equal 8X500,000,00. Doom3 has alot of 0's and 1's!!!

So let's start.

100101000110010101001010101001110010100001010100101..... Nah, just kidding!

Happy gaming!

Appearances can be deceiving.

2005-06-12T05:55:00.000-07:00

Today, after getting up at 11, I began some Maths revision. Pretty easy stuff, but you just have to go and fetch it in your memory banks!

Now back to the topic. Everyone has heard that appearances can be deceiving, and most you seem to believe that. Well... Here is more proof!

Yesterday, me and my bro went to buy a new monitor for one of our PC's. By habit I also went to check if there are some new games... On the shelf was Trackmania Sunrise! A new racing game with high speed races and jumps, even half-pipes!

After seeing the brilliant trailer on the June NAG magazine DVD, I turned the box to see the minimum specs...

(Prepare to be amazed!!)
-> 500 mhz processor
-> 128mb RAM
-> 16mb 3d card!
-> 900mb of space!

I was flabbergasted. The only proof to see if it really was as good as the trailer is to buy and play it. And yes people, absolutely brilliant! It redefines the term fun!

If you have a few extra bucks, grab a copy and play this hectic, fun game. If you LAN regularly it might even give the old Counter-Strike a go!

Go here now!
Trackmania Home page

Our little SA war3 server :(

2005-06-11T07:24:00.000-07:00

After my abscence from our local War3 server, I decided to give it a go...

I logged on, meeting many new faces. My happiness couldnt have lasted longer. Just when wanted to see what games were playing, my joy went down the drain. Our peaceful and loving server was swamped by DOTA! Yes... DOTA

Now for those of you that dont know, DOTA is a custom-made map where 2 forces of heroes face each other joined by computer-controlled units. I have played it twice and it sucked! It is detrimental to our local competitive War3 community. No-one wants to play a 1v1, because they want to play DOTA!

It is really sad... really sad.

I need empathy/sympathy (whatever).

Game developing

2005-06-10T10:12:00.000-07:00

If you are like me and like to create your own world in which you survive, then you would like to delve into the world of Game development.

There are a lot of questions as to with what language to start with... C++,Delphi,Java,etc. Well it depends on what you are trying to make, but I will assume that you would want to make "games".

The best way to start making games is to head to http://www.gamemaker.nl
Gamemaker is a neat packaged tool for the beginner programmer. With easy tutorials, you are on your way to "gamemaking" heaven.

But...

Dont get me wrong. Dont think that Gamemaker has limited capabilities! It has functions for network play and extended 3D capabilities plus the added functionality of DLLs.

Anyway, head there and go download and give it a go!

Here is a few examples of games I made using GM.
-Defriance- 3.4mb (forgive the crappy screenshots :) )
Download

-Protegis- 3.2mb (forgive the crappy screenshots :) )
Download

After you checked this out, head to http://www.nag.co.za
They have a local game development section that is worth a check if you are interested!

SA's Geological location

2005-06-05T04:32:00.000-07:00

In competitive gaming terms South Africa seems to be stuck in the worst possible place for gaming to succeed.
I'll take a clan of Counter-Strike players as an example.

If you want to succeed internationally you must have constant competition against other nearby countries...
Now let's look at SA's neighbours.

-Zimbabwe. Under the rule of Mugabe hunting the white boer... Nope, no chance. I think Zimbabweans may actually be good since they have to defend and attack the farms, respectively. (No offense meant to Zimbabweans :) )

-Mozambique. Nope...

-Botswana. Botswana was claimed as the most promising economica country in Africal, in terms of growth, I see in the future a clan or 2 from Botswana.

-Namibia. At the moment, Namibia has the greatest potential out of our neighbours, but still none the less far off from SA clans.

Now you see what we are stuck with... No nearby countries providing sufficient challenge to succeed internationally. If you take Europe there are 10-20 countries to compete with, a much more competitive enviroment.

You might say, what about Online Play?

We are stuck under the tyrannical rule of Telkom. A monopoly. Only 1 telecoms provider is allowed in SA! Well... Not really, since deregulation has allowed more players to enter the field, they must still rent Telkom's lines to provide services, which means still exorbitantly priced DSL!

But SA still delivers on the international scene none the less. Our greatest achievement was Phantom, achieving a 7th place in Quake 3 at WCG. A ps2 Dead or Alive2 player also did very well, earning a second place.

The upcoming ESWC promises to yield great results, with Evolve (Counter-Strike) and the new upcoming War3 player, Shase! Good luck guys!

Exam time!

2005-05-31T10:03:00.000-07:00

Well, for most of the students in South Africa this time of year is called hell! It is the time when their academic prowess is tested. It is a time of sorrow and stress for some and heaven for others. I like exams...

Exams usually stretches over 3-4 weeks and the thing is I write 9-10 (can't remember) out of these days! Let's do the math. 4 times 7 equal 28. I write 10 days out of the 28. That means I have 18 free days (inlcuding weekends) out of 28!

In short terms, that means more blogging and gaming!

Now on to the learning part. Why am I blogging instead of learning? For me learning is easy, I am good academically (lucky for me). For those that need some help learning, here is a few tips.

-Take frequent breaks! Study 1hr and rest 15min.
-Get a good nights rest! It was proven that people who learn less, but have a good night's sleep get higher grades than those who learn through the night and sleep only 1-2 hrs!
-This might be hard for few, but don't LEARN the work, don't MEMORISE it. You might be thinking what the hell is this oke saying? Is he on endorsed protein pills?
NO! You must try to UNDERSTAND your work! You must try understand the logic behind the work.

For example. If you are learning Science, don't try to memorise it, try to understand it! Why does Calcium combined with Oxygen form CaO? Why doesn't it form Ca509 (the numbers need to be smaller)? You get my drift!

Well... I am off to go read the rise and fall of a Tragic Hero, Macbeth (damn Shakespeare).

Introduction to Magic:TG

2005-05-28T03:36:00.000-07:00

The game is called Magic: The Gathering, possibly because there is a gathering of many magical and mystical creatures. A deck of 60 cards (which you use to play with consists of 24 lands, and the rest is spells). Spells are divided into certain categories. Creatures, Sorceries, Instant, Enchantments and artifacts. These are the basic types and on these, many smaller types exist.

-Gameplay
Each player plays with deck of 60 cards. Most of the time this deck is built by the player himself. Each player shuffles his deck and draws seven cards. In short, lands are your "money", your "mana". The lands are used to play spells. Each player may play one land each turn. Using that "mana" restricts you from using it again that turn. The next turn it becomes available again.

-The goal
Your goal is to bring the opposing players life total to zero. A player begins with 20 life. Each turn a player can attack with his creatures. The opposing player can block with his creatures. If the attacking creature's power is higher than the blocking creatures toughness, the blocking creature dies, and vice versa. If a creature is left unblocked, that damage goes through to opposing player, bringing his life total down equal to power of the creature let through.

In the end, you must think strategically and outwit the other player.
Strategy comes into play a lot, but the real skill lies in building the perfect deck. Any player can win with a perfect deck.

Hope this helped!! Go here for MTG news http://www.mtgnews.com

Here is some cards. These are good!

Welcome!

2005-05-27T11:41:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Ambivalent Quarrelings. A blog witch will deal with most gaming related past times. Magic:TG, gaming, LAN, flash, and even game development!

Enjoy!