Bay 12 Games Forum

I think Dell does that too, but they don't advertise it. I've had this computer for 2 years and never knew it was there until I was searching for a recovery disc and found their FAQ about how they don't give us those anymore. Bit late now. Anyway, I want to reinstall the OS from scratch, not restore to a backup (and definitely not to factory defaults)... Blarg.

Once I get back to Prague in a month, I'll have my new desktop, but I still use this computer for VJing and it would be really nice if I could have it clean and fresh instead of puttering along constantly threatening to die.

EDIT: By the way, this computer has Windows 7. Not sure if it's possible to make your own OS disc for this, but it'd be cool if it was. It'd have to be a DVD though - I don't have any spare USBs, and I'm not about to sink any more money into it. I know I can get one from Dell if I hassle them, just hate to have to go to all this effort for something they should have given me in the first place.

I find it interesting that so many people judge the value of a game by how many hours they'll play it. I have two jobs, a thriving social life, and a lot of responsibility - I don't have much time in life for games (and I already have a massive backlog of games I'd like to play but don't have time for). The longer a game is, the less likely I am to bother even starting it. Some of the best games I've ever played were over in half an hour, but were well worth the money spent because that half hour was so great. I guess I'm a proponent of the Awesome Per Second metric: "five minutes of great is better than thirty minutes of good."

When I interviewed the CEO/founder of KEEN Software House (makers of Space Engineers) for my magazine, this was one of the questions I asked him. He told me that what really matters is that you get really good at making games. He said that in his experience, it makes no difference whether you get that skill from a school or by teaching yourself, but that you must get really, really good at it before you consider making it a profession. He said he got good at it by practicing and doing nothing but designing and coding things for years. He got most of his experience in a software company (not games), always waiting for the day when he felt he had the skills (and enough money) to get started. He suggested that you should focus either on code or on some specific design skill (3d modeling, graphic design, etc.) - and that the programming will make it easier to find work than the design will. He advised against trying to do both sides of it on your own, though he admitted you can get a lot of experience very quickly by trying to make games entirely on your own (making both the code and the art).

Many years ago I also had the chance to chat with the team who made another game (I think it was Asheron's Call - it was something I had never played but I went to a convention with someone). This was before I went to college, and I was considering going into games somehow. He told me that when someone applies to work with him, all he wants to see is a game demo. He doesn't care about a degree. If you can show him a game that you've made yourself and it impresses him, you've got a chance. To him, a degree means you finished a program in school, not that you're good at making games.

So I pass that on to you. : ) According to the only game designers I've talked to about this, school is generally not necessary - BUT it can be a simple and focused way to get good at programming or digital art, so it's not necessarily a bad decision if you want to get a degree.

Wow: Bundle Stars All Stars

For 2.99 monies you get (Steam keys):
Tropico 4
Magicka
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky
Mount & Blade: With Fire And Sword
System Shock 2
Deponia
To The Moon
Prime World: Defenders

I already have most of those, but I'm thinking of picking this up just for SS2...

It helps to be consistent. Even on the weekends, make yourself wake up at 5:30. You can go back to sleep afterwards, but if you force yourself to wake up at the same time every single day, your body will start to do it automatically. It's easy to assume that you should "make up for" lost sleep on the weekends or days you can sleep late, but this actually ends up being counterproductive. If you're 100% consistent, your body gets into a rhythm, and waking up at that time just happens.

If you consistently wake up at 5:30 every single morning and you are still having trouble with sleeping through your alarms, it means you desperately need more sleep and your body is refusing to get up until it's rested. If that's the case, you should be careful to take care of yourself, get to bed earlier (darkened rooms are very helpful, as is staying away from computer screens and such for a while before bed). If the problem still doesn't improve, you might need some time and stress management advice rather than sleep advice. : )

Well I know that running shoes are really bad for your feet and joints in general, been studying that for a while with help from my tai chi teacher and a few other friends who are into barefoot running. But I guess the pavement is probably not good for you either. So I'm guessing I hurt it on the pavement, and I'll just need to rest it until it stops hurting. I had still been exercising quite a bit, hoping it was just soreness, but I guess I'll have to lay off for a while until it stops hurting... Figures, I was trying to get into shape finally! I'll just have to wait for now and be more careful in the future... Do my jogging on grass or something...

I wonder if it would be okay for me to ride a bike now? Will that put pressure on that part of my foot? I don't have a driver's license, and I'm used to walking everywhere. Not sure how to get around if I have to rest. : /

First of all, I'm only posting this here because for the next 2 months, I'm stuck in America. I can go home to Prague (where I have insurance) in May, but until then, I cannot see a doctor. I know there's new health care here and I could probably get free insurance, but it would take too long to sign up for it. So I'm just hoping to find some kind of information on my own, just to get me by until I can get home and see a doctor. So please, I know that just going to a doctor is the best bet, but that has to wait for 2 months. Right now I'm just looking for general advice and ideas.

I'm getting pain in my left foot. It started about 3 weeks ago. I'd been doing a lot of walking (on paved surfaces) and a bit of hiking, and I did go jogging once, but nothing extreme, nothing much more than usual. I certainly don't remember doing anything to injure it. The pain started really gradually, but it's been getting steadily worse. At first, it only hurt when I put all my weight on it, but now there is a slight dull pain there all the time.

The pain is at the front (ball) of my foot, seems to be on the top (not the sole), right in the middle. It hurts mostly when I walk. Touching the top of my foot doesn't seem to hurt it, but putting my weight on my heel does cause pain (again, on the top of the foot), and the worst pain comes when I'm walking, taking a step, and the ball of my foot/my toes bend. Starting yesterday, it started to hurt when putting any weight on the front half of my foot. It's getting to the point where I am having trouble walking. When I walk, I just put all my weight on my heel. I'm limping a bit.

The pain is not extreme, but it is worrying me that it's still getting worse after 3 weeks. I tried looking up the symptoms on WebMD and all that, but there are a few possibilities, all of which have contradictory treatments. For some things, it says I should exercise, that sitting still will make the pain worse. For others, it says I should rest. I'm not a doctor and I have no idea which one of these things is most likely, so I don't know what I should do. Whatever it is, I don't want to make it worse!

So does anyone have any idea what could be causing this pain? Has anyone ever had a similar experience? I'm 30, and I have a history of joint/connective tissue problems, but I've never had a broken bone. I'm not a strong or particularly active person, and I suppose it's theoretically possible that I damaged one of my bones while out jogging or something, but I always thought that something like that would hurt right away. This built up gradually.