Tactical Gamer - Blogs - Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/ Tactical Gamer is the PREMIERE mature online gaming community. We feature games such as PlanetSide 2, Battlefield 3, Armed Assault (ARMA2), Natural Selection 2, DayZ, and more. Our community is geared around teamwork, strategy and tactics in a mature environment. en Thu, 23 May 2013 21:44:14 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.tacticalgamer.com/images/styles/UndergroundStyle/misc/rss.jpg Tactical Gamer - Blogs - Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/ SnowCAM 29 DEC 2012 http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/1013-snowcam-29-dec-2012.html Sat, 29 Dec 2012 21:32:20 GMT Felt like throwing up my SnowCAM today to live-stream the pending storm.

[link]

Forecast is changing constantly, but it looks like we're expected to get about 10". The first real snow of the year! ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/1013-snowcam-29-dec-2012.html A little Tactical Gamer photo history. http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/998-little-tactical-gamer-photo-history.html Fri, 19 Oct 2012 20:32:16 GMT So, I was going through the server graveyard at my house that contains a lot of OLD hardware. Some of it will get junked, but some of it I just can't get rid of.


That's the old web and database server that ran Network 42 Tactical Gaming, which was re-branded as Tactical Gamer. The philosophy has never changed, but the name and hardware sure has!

That thing had like a 40GB hard drive in it. Eventually, I was running out of space so I splurged and bought another whopping 40GB drive.


It was pretty bad-ass, in it's time...

That hard drive isn't sitting on top of Andromeda. It's on top of it's sister.


That ran Counter-Strike along with a couple other Half-Life and Quake mods and some other stuff.

I'd like to try and fire these things up this weekend, see how well I remember Solaris 5.1, and see what kind of old legacy stuff I can pull off them. If they still power up, that is...... ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/998-little-tactical-gamer-photo-history.html <![CDATA[I helped support SOPA / PIPA / ACTA and DMCA... And I'm ashamed.]]> http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/895-i-helped-support-sopa-pipa-acta-dmca-im-ashamed.html Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:19:31 GMT Last night I did a little bit of thinking about ACTA, SOPA, PIPA and the DMCA. I started to feel overly disgusted with the MPAA, RIAA and their affiliated labels and studios. I felt disgusted with the way that our politicians are bought and sold with lobbying dollars by the industry. Then I had a... Last night I did a little bit of thinking about ACTA, SOPA, PIPA and the DMCA. I started to feel overly disgusted with the MPAA, RIAA and their affiliated labels and studios. I felt disgusted with the way that our politicians are bought and sold with lobbying dollars by the industry. Then I had a horrible realization; I helped fund these very things that I despise. I helped fund the studios and thereby the industry associations through my media purchasing history. For every dollar I spent buying media, most of that was going to line the pockets of the industry.

I used to be a HUGE movie fan. Going back over a decade I would buy DVDs like they were gold bars being sold at half-price. I subscribed to the Columbia House DVD club and let them send me their movie of the month, every months for YEARS. I was buying batches of movies 5-8 at a time from various online retailers. I have spent TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars on movies and by proxy, delivered this money to the very people who now treat me like a criminal and assume that I'm just a "freetard" because I don't support the legislation that the industry purchased from our politicians.

Penance is in order….

I have several hundred movies on DVD, all purchased legitimately. I have another hundred DVDs full of box-sets of TV shows that I really enjoyed. So we're talking about a LOT of media here.

Here's the real question: What can I do with all this media that will allow more people to view and enjoy it WITHOUT putting further dollars in the pockets of those who buy our politicians and expect them to act AGAINST the wishes of the population to benefit corporations? I thought about selling the whole collection on eBay to give someone else the opportunity to view all this content without purchasing; but there has GOT to be a better way…..

I have no interest in making money with this media transfer. I simply want to allow others to view and enjoy the content in a manner that does NOT support these industry shills. With that in mind; I started thinking about donating it all to a local library. With that sort of donation, a HUGE population of people will have the opportunity to view the content without additional expense and I'll feel good about it in the process.

This is going to happen one way or another, I just want to make sure I'm getting the most bang for my buck.

UPDATE: It's done. I just returned from the library and had a GREAT conversation with the people there. Not only do they understand and support the opposition to legislation like SOPA and PIPA, but they really appreciated what I was doing for them and the community in terms of making this content available to those who may not be able to view it otherwise.

The backups I made of my DVDs on my media server are also gone now as well. Format completed. ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/895-i-helped-support-sopa-pipa-acta-dmca-im-ashamed.html The Ridiculousness That Is My Logitech MX 1000 Laser Mouse http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/781-ridiculousness-my-logitech-mx-1000-laser-mouse.html Thu, 11 Aug 2011 22:32:26 GMT So, I have a Logitech MX 1000 cordless laser mouse. It's not the most modern, but I like it. It feels good in my hand, the battery lasts FOREVER and still recharges properly, all the buttons work, and has great range. I have no reason to buy a new mouse.

When I first bought it, I was running Windows XP. If I plugged the wireless base/charger into a USB port, the mouse would behave erratically. It would take on a mind of its own and start jumping across the screen. It had a particular fondness of the far right hand side, about 2/3's of the way up the screen. I tried driver updates, re-installs, other generic drivers, and more swearing than actual speaking. I ended up trying it in a PS/2 port using an adapter and all the problems went away. So from that point on, in all my system rebuilds, I've always used the PS/2 port on the motherboard with a USB adapter for the mouse.

I just did my system rebuild and everything has been going great on a technical level. I have some physical issues I need to finish, but from a tech side; it's done.

In this new system I have no more PS/2 ports, so I don't have anything to plug the adapter in to. I figured I would try it using USB again. We're talking about YEARS of use, four different operating systems with about 6 different generations of rebuilds. Whatever bugs the thing had back in those XP days must be fixed by now.

Surely not. With the new hardware the same problem exists as it did on day 1. I've gone through all the support forums again and tried all the solutions. The Logitech supplied driver is just a mess and just enrages the demon. With the Logitech crap installed, the mouse now seems to forget at times that it can move on both the x AND y axis. I'll my moving my mouse up and it will just suddenly stop and REFUSE to move up any more unless I move it a good distance to the side first. Picking it up and slamming it on the desk also seems to work. It's odd that a driver update would enable such violent troubleshooting interfaces, but it's allowing me to reach that top menu at least!.

I started writing this to post a simple photo showing what I went through to get this thing hooked up and solve the problem. I found it relatively amusing and thought I would share. Unfortunately, the solution SEEMED to resolve the problem but then during the course of cutting & pasting URLs for the links, the old demon-possessed mouse reared it's crazed head. So, before I continue, let me at least share that picture.

I had a couple of those USB to PS/2 KM adapters from years ago that were still new in their packaging. I also had my other trusty green PS/2 to USB adapter. So I went from USB on the motherboard, to PS/2, back to USB to the mouse. Surely, this would do the trick and satisfy the demon.

I need a new mouse.

Logitech has failed me. It's not the first time either.

Now that I think about it, just about EVERYTHING I own from Logitech suffers from some sort of flaw like this. My new Logitech G930 Headset is fantastic. Wireless, great sound. But it gets really picky about me turning the thing on and off sometimes. It just has a mind of it's own and is going to do what it wants. The power button is little more than a suggestion at this point. It's not physically broken, or pushed in. Mechanically, it sounds great. It just doesn't WORK.

I also have the Logitech Revue. I really like Google TV. I think most of the reviews of the product are complete BS and I don't honestly believe the "reviewers" ever really even used the product other than giving it a cursory look. And then there are countless numbers of people who are just parroting what they read on other sites with ZERO experience. Google TV is a fantastic product for so many reasons. The "...but I can just..." arguments that say it's just as easy to use a laptop, build an HTPC, use an iPad, or any other number of combinations don't convince me. I have all of those devices, but the thing is; you don't NEED to use anything else. Once you adjust how you think about finding and watching content, the thing is just amazing. The networks are loosing a MASSIVE revenue opportunity with this thing because they are blocking it rather than monetizing it. So much potential.

So. I like Google TV, but the Logitech Revue has it's demon moments too. The media player app they include on the device as bloatware doesn't work for crap. It's been in "beta" since the day the Revue was released and they haven't done a damn thing with it. I don't care what format I transcode or recode a file into, it simply doesn't work.

I think I'm done with Logitech. Unless they GIVE me a product that works properly, make a PROMISE to work to support their products better and THEN let me pay them, I'm not going to send another dime of my money to that company.

I need a new mouse manufacturer. ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/781-ridiculousness-my-logitech-mx-1000-laser-mouse.html Datacenter Maintenance http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/745-datacenter-maintenance.html Thu, 30 Jun 2011 22:12:42 GMT As the PR guys have noticed, things have not been so rosey in the DC datacenter recently. There have been a lot of upgrades happening and equipment being shifted around to improve network performance. There is a rather LARGE upgrade coming up that should change things considerably. ... As the PR guys have noticed, things have not been so rosey in the DC datacenter recently. There have been a lot of upgrades happening and equipment being shifted around to improve network performance. There is a rather LARGE upgrade coming up that should change things considerably.

============================================
Maintenance Summary:

In a continuing effort to improve the SoftLayer network, SoftLayer Engineers will be performing maintenance in the Washington, DC (WDC) facility the week of July 11, 2011. During the maintenance we will be replacing the existing CER and BBR routers (Cisco 7600 platform) with with new routers (Juniper MX platform) that will greatly enhance our capacity and reliability in that market. Because of the scope of the changes that are planned we will be splitting the work across 3 nights beginning the morning of July 12th at 12:01am. This is necessary to ensure that the work can be done with the least impact to our customers. The details of the work are as follows:

Maintenance Times:

Tuesday July 12, 2011 :: 12:00 AM - 8:00 AM EDT

SoftLayer Engineers will replace the CER01/02 distribution routers. In order to do this change with minimal impact to our customers we will be replacing the routers one at a time. This will allow us to take down one of the redundant routers and unrack it, rack the new router and configure it, and insert it inline. Once we've completed insertion of the new router we will then repeat the process for the second router. Because these routers are deployed as a redundant pair we don't anticipate any measurable downtime. This work will likely result in some sub-optimal routing, connections will be disconnected as the routers are removed from service, and customers may experience higher than normal latency. There is also the potential for some connectivity issues during the work. We will have engineers working on site to replace the equipment as well as engineers working remotely to mitigate any potential issues that arise as quickly as possible. It is anticipated that this !
work will consume all 8 hours of the scheduled window.

Wednesday July 13, 2011 :: 12:00 AM - 8:00 AM EDT

SoftLayer Engineers will replace the BBR01/02 backbone routers. As with the CER's we will be replacing these routers 1 at a time to minimize the impact to our customers. Also as with the CER's we anticipate that customers will experience some sub-optimal routing, connection disconnects as the routers are brought offline, and higher than normal latency, but we do not anticipate a complete service outage. This work is expected to consume all 8 hours of the window as well.

Thursday July 14, 2011 :: 12:00 AM - 8:00 AM EDT

While we anticipate being able to complete all of the work on Tuesday and Wednesday, we may need to extend some of the work into a third maintenance window. If this is necessary we will update the maintenance tickets with the pertinent information. If not we will cancel the maintenance for this night.

============================================
]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/745-datacenter-maintenance.html <![CDATA[Thomas Claburn's article on Google TV - He got it wrong]]> http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/682-thomas-claburns-article-google-tv-he-got-wrong.html Thu, 28 Apr 2011 00:50:49 GMT I just read this article over on InformationWeek; http://www.informationweek.com/news/...ogle/229402312

Lets just say it got me annoyed. After writing a rather lengthy reply only to find out that IW's commenting system is completely BROKEN (must be their focus on the speed of getting their articles out rather than their excellence), I figured I would post it here.

If you read the article first, my comments in parenthesis will make a little more sense. :row__542:

----

I have Google TV (Logitech Revue) as well as Apple TV. One thing that really has been frustrating me lately is the number of articles I see where the authors clearly don't have any real experience with either platform.

Google TV is a fantastic product as it stands right now. Sure, it would have been GREAT if it had an App ecosystem out of the gate, but it certainly doesn't make the platform any less usable. It's a great experience being able to easily search content right from your TV and find out when the shows you are interested in are coming on (via your cable or satellite providers guide data) as well as where the content is otherwise available (Netflix, HBO GO, Epix and more!).

Does it suck that the networks somehow treat the Chrome browser included in Google TV as anything other than a normal web browser? Absolutely. But if you look at the history of our media producing industry, they had to be dragged kicking and screaming into almost every bit of technology we use today. VHS, DVD, DVR and now Google TV. The problem isn't that Google gave us a web browser and interface that WORKS on your living room screen, the problem is that the networks are so short sighted that they don't realize they should be looking at ways to increase revenue from the content they already provide over the web.

The networks make it sound as though Google TV somehow rips their content in some nefarious manner. This simply isn't the way it works. You search for a show and if it happens to be available ON THE WEB, provided BY THE NETWORK, Google gives you a result for it. You click on the result and end up going to the network's web page where you can click play, and then maximize the video window just as you would on a PC.

The value-add of Google TV to the networks needs to be realized by the networks themselves. They're looking for a monetary handout from Google to get paid for content they already give out through the same mechanism (web browser) for free if you happen to be on a PC. If I connect my PC to my TV I can do the very same thing that the networks block, simply because of the form factor of the device my browser operates on.

To make matters worse, the networks put up ridiculous messages when they detect the useragent string is coming from a Google TV Chrome browser vs. a Windows or Mac OSX Chrome browser and tell me that my hardware is "incapable of playing this video". They could at least be honest and say "We're blocking you from viewing this video using your current browser because we feel we should get paid extra because you're watching this on a larger screen than we would like".

Stop blaming Google for the content stranglehold and start placing the blame where it belongs. I'm looking at you, ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, and Viacom.

Here's an amusing part of this... If I use my DVR and record these very same shows, I *ALWAYS* skip through the commercials. But using a browser, the networks have more control and can FORCE you to watch the commercials. That is something that their advertisers should appreciate. When I watch an episode of Fringe on my laptop, I have no choice but to watch said commercials. If anything, the advertisers should be furious with the networks for NOT supporting Google TV and NOT getting their advertisements viewed by the public.

More and more content providers aside from the major networks are connecting to the Google TV platform. As the days tick by and the stubborn networks keep their content away, I'm finding alternative content to view. They're losing MY eyeballs as a result. And let me make this clear; I'm not doing it out of protest. It's just easy and enjoyable.

In regards to Apple TV. The whole product is simply a new consumer wallet designed to funnel your might right to Apple. Don't get me wrong, it's a great device and I use it as a Netflix streamer as well as to stream content purchased through iTunes on my PC to two TVs in my house via the iTunes Home Sharing protocol. But so called tech writers that talk about how Apple is going to kill Google TV should spend a little more than 10 minutes looking at the product.

Example: I was watching an episode of Mythbusters where they were talking about a viral video of some guys running on water. I immediate hit my little picture-in-picture button on my Google TV remote and did a quick search for the video. Google TV found it on Youtube. I paused the live show and watched the viral video they were referencing, then went back and continued watching Mythbusters. For me, this functionality ADDED to the experience of the show as I was easily able to pull up this content and see what they were talking about without having to power up my laptop and watch it on a relatively small screen. It was quick and convenient. THAT is the power of Google TV. If the networks don't want to leverage that technology, it's their loss. Watching Discovery Channel and see something on their show that looks neat? PIP up another Chrome browser and go do some searching or go to the Discovery web site to learn more about the program! Value-add. You don't get this with Apple TV. You just get an easier way to give Apple money and they're loving it. But I'm tied in there too, I bought two movies through iTunes last week because it was just so easy and so well integrated.

What hurts platforms like Google TV is "me too" reporting where little research and proper evaluation was done before going to press. Read a few articles someone else wrote about the platform, MAYBE look at the hardware yourself for 20 minutes, then regurgitate the same ill-formed conclusions back out to the public. ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/682-thomas-claburns-article-google-tv-he-got-wrong.html Google Cr-48 Laptop - Day 1 http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/670-google-cr-48-laptop-day-1.html Mon, 18 Apr 2011 21:03:01 GMT I got my Cr-48 in today to start playing with and testing. I'm pretty excited.

Out of the box the setup was seamless and quick. Not much to do really! It's certainly a unique take on a laptop though. Setting it up on my wireless was a breeze and once I added in my credentials to sync Crome up with the rest of my browsers I was good to go.

I know there are a lot of detractors of this technology, but having a RAPID booting (1.12seconds) laptop that keeps all your data in the cloud is SERIOUSLY convenient. Most of my laptop use is confined to Internet based content and this thing fits the bill perfectly.

I'm going to start doing some work tonight on some spreadsheets that I traditionally keep in Google Docs, so I'll have more to report later. But on first impression, I love it. ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/670-google-cr-48-laptop-day-1.html Mvix MX880-HD has arrived! http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/46-mvix-mx880-hd-has-arrived.html Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:21:36 GMT It look a few days longer than hoped because of all the snowstorms up here. That was mostly the fault of UPS. It came with all the bits and pieces and I really liked the packaging. It reminds me of how Apple products are packaged, very clean. It even came with a free t-shirt! Letting it... It look a few days longer than hoped because of all the snowstorms up here. That was mostly the fault of UPS.

It came with all the bits and pieces and I really liked the packaging. It reminds me of how Apple products are packaged, very clean. It even came with a free t-shirt!

Letting it warm up a bit now and then I'll get it fired up and run through the setup. ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/46-mvix-mx880-hd-has-arrived.html MX 880-HD Shipped from Mvix! http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/42-mx-880-hd-shipped-mvix.html Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:01:35 GMT Hooray! Mvix has dug themselves out of the snow and my brandy new MX 880-HD has shipped! Hooray!

Mvix has dug themselves out of the snow and my brandy new MX 880-HD has shipped! ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/42-mx-880-hd-shipped-mvix.html MX880-HD In-Stock or Pre-Order? http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/39-mx880-hd-stock-pre-order.html Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:04:05 GMT After some conflicting info on various sites; I was curious if the MX880-HD was actually in stock or if my order was placed in a pre-order queue. I sent out an e-mail to Mvix sales asking for verification and they promptly sent me back a confirmation; the product IS shipping. Although not... After some conflicting info on various sites; I was curious if the MX880-HD was actually in stock or if my order was placed in a pre-order queue. I sent out an e-mail to Mvix sales asking for verification and they promptly sent me back a confirmation; the product IS shipping. Although not likely anytime within the next 16-24 hours!

Hello Paul

Thanks for your email and interest in our product

Mvix Ultio Pro (MX-880HD) is currently in stock and is shipping as we speak
Your order is in the queue for order processing.

However, there is some delay in shipping your order from our Warehouse.

As you may know, Northern-VA received significant snow in the past 3-4 days and as a result all our warehouse operations are crippled. Not only are we facing significant logistical issues, most our warehouse staff is stranded as well.
FEDEX, UPS and TNT have canceled their operations for the next 24hrs till roads become drive-able and safe.

We expect to resume operations by tomorrow (TUE) afternoon. Due to overwhelming demand of our new product, there is a long queue of pending orders and we will try to dispatch as many orders as possible. We do expect to clear the shipping queue in 16-24hrs, once the warehouse is in normal operation.
You will receive an email with the tracking no. of your package as soon as it is shipped.

We regret the inconvenience caused due to this delay caused by inclement weather.

Thanks and have a good day
So chalk this up to an unfortunate snowstorm. Although the quick response from Mvix was certainly noted and appreciated! ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/39-mx880-hd-stock-pre-order.html Quest for the ultimate media server - MVix Ultio Pro MX880-HD http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/38-quest-ultimate-media-server-mvix-ultio-pro-mx880-hd.html Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:36:33 GMT So, I'm a big home theater/AV guy. Over the past few years I've been bouncing around trying to find the best streaming media server solution for my home network. I've done everything from FreeNAS using DLNA to stream through my PS3 or XBox 360, OpenFiler running iSCSI back to my desktop with TVersity, PlayOn or Microsoft's Media Server solution, and even a conventional HTPC connected directly to my TV.

In all these cases I've found numerous drawbacks from choppy playback, inability to properly stream NetFlix, cumbersome UI, or just having too many machines powered on just to watch some TV.

A few weeks ago I came across the MVix Ultio Pro MX880-HD. It's a set-top appliance that does EVERYTHING I'm looking for and it's very affordable, especially when compared to the amount of power I need to suck up to run the alternate solutions.

http://www.mvixusa.com/product/ultiopro

I placed the order today with 2 day shipping. I plan on reporting here through the receipt, unboxing, setup, and utilization of the device. Ultimately I am going to do a review of the thing (it's so new I can't find a single review out there).

Hopefully this will be the magic bullet I need to seriously simplify my home media setup. Time will tell! ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/38-quest-ultimate-media-server-mvix-ultio-pro-mx880-hd.html New Blogs http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/3-new-blogs.html Sat, 30 Jan 2010 04:47:09 GMT Looks like the new blog system is working already too! Woohoo! Looks like the new blog system is working already too! Woohoo! ]]> Apophis http://www.tacticalgamer.com/blogs/apophis/3-new-blogs.html