Ober Dicta

2008-06-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

Well, even if I won't be going with WizKids, there are just too many people I want to see not to cobble together a trip to GenCon on my own. So I'm getting plane tickets, and pre-registering for a badge (and the price on both has sure gone up in the last few years)... now I just need a place to stay. I'm thinking it might be time for a bit of old-school floor crashing.

Anyone from the Madison crowd (who it's increasingly looking like I won't get a chance to see on my earlier summer expedition to the Midwest) going to GenCon and interested in getting together at some point? The good news is that I'll have fewer professional obligations this year (though I do really want to go observe some of the HeroClix World Championships for a bit.)

In related news, new employment is coming together more smoothly than I had expected. Updates on that when they can be provided.

2008-06-16T21:36:00.000-07:00

I suspect that given today's news, I'm going to have more eyeballs on this site soon--so it's time to start updating again.

For those who miss the old-school Ober Dicta linkblogging, I suggest you check out my Google Reader Shared Items to the right--that's where I'm linkdumping these days.

For those who have no idea what I'm talking about, here's the post I'm making to HeroClix fan site HCRealms tonight in this thread:

Thanks to everyone who had nice things to say in this thread, and also to those who owned up to not liking some or all of my work--I come to the Realms every day for honest, no-holds-barred feedback on our products and you never disappoint.

That said, let's run through the Good News-Bad News-Good News cycle (from my perspective, of course) :

The Good News: I'm not gone from WizKids or HeroClix.

I'm sitting at my desk right now, as a matter of fact. I've still got previews to write, and I'm trying to lock down a couple different set lists for late 2009 and rough up some products designs for mid-2010.

The Fantastic Four starter is coming out in a few weeks. Not long after that comes Secret Invasion, which still has some cool, cool secrets for you guys to find out about. Later this year, Arkham Asylum, with some of my favorite dials and character cards yet. (Not to mention some kick-ass sculpts by Brian and Ben.)

The Bad News: I'm not gone from WizKids or HeroClix....yet.

My time sitting here at this desk will be drawing to a close, probably sooner than August (I have to take my new fianc� back to meet my family in the Midwest 'round that time.) After I do leave, I won't be working for WizKids full-time any more.

However.

The Good News: I'm not gone from WizKids or HeroClix....yet--and I might not be for a long time to come.

Even after I do leave, WizKids has been very clear that they want me to stay involved with HeroClix. I'm looking forward to doing so--I may have that new fianc�, but I'm loathe to leave old loves behind (don't worry--she understands.) Like I said, we're already (and still) talking products off into the far future. That includes some really exciting stuff, and I'm glad I might have a chance to work on it (particularly if it means I get to do dials for a few of the characters I can see listed in the window just to the right of this one, like ** *****and *********, not to mention ****** *****.)

It also means that I'll have the chance to pursue some exciting projects and opportunities that have been on the back burner for a long time--and a few new ones I've been hearing about recently. I'm sure I'll still be around the Realms, but you can always check in on me at www.inkslinger.org if you want to see what I'm up to. (And keeping you guys up to date will be a good motivation for me to start keeping that site up to date, something I've fallen behind on.)

Enough about you! What does this mean for me?

It means that no matter where I go, HeroClix isn't going anywhere unless you do. If you're looking for fresh voices in HeroClix design (beyond those echoes of your own feedback--we are always listening), you're in luck--after Arkham Asylum comes Hammer of Thor, where Kelly is bringing not only her long experience but some cool new ideas to the game. I was by her desk today to see some of what she's doing, and it's going to be a pretty awesome set. Following Arkham, even moreso than in the past, that�ll be the way HeroClix goes�my voice will be just one of many on the line, and that�ll be a good thing.

So while I appreciate the support, I'd hate to see HeroClix take any sort of sales hit for the wrong reasons, particularly when there�s so much good stuff to come, and every possibility of the game going on for years and years to come. Even when I'm not here at this desk--especially when I'm not here at this desk--I still want to see new figures coming out, and new dials previewed on the web. I can't wait until the day when a HeroClix product I don't know about gets announced and I get to be here on the Realms getting excited and speculating with the rest of you.

HeroClix is a great game. It was when I started working on it, and it will be long after I'm gone.

Let's keep playing it together.

Now, back to that list. And Friday's preview; you won't want to miss this one--I think it's the most expensive figure in Secret Invasion...

Oh, yeah--did I mention that I'm getting married? You can stop blogging, but life just keeps on happening.

More soon.

2007-09-11T21:59:00.000-07:00

I'm playing around with adding some new functionality to Ober Dicta, and starting to suspect that I might actually want to do the long-promised full redesign. Maybe.

In the meantime, if you've been missing OD linkblogging, check out my Google Reader feed to the right. You can also bookmark this page or even subscribe to the Shared Items Feed by clicking this button:

2007-07-25T01:04:00.000-07:00

The creative process behind Michel Gondry's video to the Chemical Brothers' "Star Guitar" video:

And in case you haven't seen the brilliant final product:

2007-07-12T10:33:00.000-07:00

Via BoingBoing, so everyone may have already seen it, but this was too brilliant not to link here: artists in San Francisco have created a Choose Your Own Adventure tale, told in stencils on the sidewalks, and intended to be played by two players simultaneously; it's a love story, and if both players make the 'right' decisions, the end of the story brings them back together after they wander through the Mission District. Brilliant.

2007-07-09T23:36:00.000-07:00

One day, a whole lot of trucks and concrete.

2007-07-03T14:47:00.000-07:00

I'm not entirely sure what's going on with this pirate-themed USB hub, but it looks kinda fun.

2007-07-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

The Hitchcock toolbox. (via Kottke)

2007-06-28T16:40:00.001-07:00

First you wait for it....and then the brilliance begins.

2007-06-24T18:22:00.000-07:00

"Be ready to ride the big dipper of the mixed metaphor. Be ready to dip your hands in the lucky bag of life, gather the storm clouds of fantasy and anoint your own genius. Because it is only by following the clear and concise instructions contained in this book that you can realise your childish fantasies of having a Number One hit single in the official U.K. Top 40 thus guaranteeing you a place forever in the sacred annals of Pop History."

How to have a Top 40 Hit, according to KLF (via Coudal.)

2007-06-19T23:19:00.001-07:00

Devious: How to solve a maze using Photoshop (via Waxy.)

2007-06-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

The largest island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island and other lake-island wonder combos.

(It's Vulcan point in Crater Lake on Vulcano Island in Lake Taal on Luzon, by the way.)

2007-06-09T20:12:00.000-07:00

Two memories from Saturday mornings as a kid:

and (more cheerful):

Man, everything is on YouTube, isn't it?

2007-06-01T17:41:00.001-07:00

I recognize just enough of these places (or places like them) that it makes me a touch homesick: On Wisconsin (via Coudal.) I'm glad I'm going to be visiting the homeland in a couple weeks.

2007-05-30T21:24:00.000-07:00

My complaints and worries about online software and applications being useless when I'm not connected to the web might be answered if Google Gears is adopted and works like promised.

2007-05-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

I IS IN UR CLIX MESSIN WIT THEIR STATS

Gotta love the fans over at the Realms!

2007-05-30T10:52:00.000-07:00

When I do finally decide to shave my beard, I may have to donate it to the Wisconsin Museum of Beards. Mainly because Locks of Love has already turned me down, despite my argument that any kid would love to have a good beard.

2007-05-29T17:30:00.001-07:00

Apologies to those of you reading OD via RSS; clearly I need to do less post-post editing to prevent double entries in the RSS feed.

2007-05-29T17:23:00.001-07:00

It pains me just to type this: pictures of India's street dentists (via J-Walk.) (Although there is a nice cameo by Flat Stanley in one of those pictures.)

2007-05-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

The ZOMBIE programming language:

Introduction
ZOMBIE is a programming language designed for Necromancers, particularly evil ones. (Actually, what other sorts are there?) ZOMBIE is an acronym, and stands for Zombie-Oriented Machine-Being Interface Engine.

Design Principles

The language should allow the necromancer to animate dead bodies, summon and control spirits, and solve any computable problem.
There should be sensible guarantees against overwriting system memory, monopolising CPU cycles, and releasing malicious entities into the world.
The language must be inherently evil.

2007-05-29T14:25:00.001-07:00

Via StoryGames, the Random Game Generator. The first game it generated for me:

Pool Frisbee Bag

Jump in your pool or your friend's pool. Bring a Frisbee and some bean bags. Let the bean bags float around in the water. From outside of the pool, try to hit them with the Frisbee. Whoever can hit the most bags wins and then gets to do a cannonball back into the water.

I would play that game, provided that I could find beanbags that floated.

2007-05-29T12:01:00.000-07:00

Lifehacker's Better Gmail extension for Firefox has been proving really useful, with new functionality being added on a regular basis. So I'm excited to see that they're putting together a new package for another of my online favorites: Better Flickr.

2007-05-25T03:36:00.000-07:00

Petra Hayden released an acapella cover of the Beach Boys' "God Only Knows" recently that fought it out in a no-holds-barred knife fight with her cover of the Who's "Armenia, City in the Sky" (part of her brilliant cover of the full Who Sells Out album) for supremacy in the Petra Hayden part of my heart*, yet didn't win.

Armenia reigned supreme.

Then I went to the music player on her site and listened to her cover of...wait for it..."Thriller".

Armenia best rest up while I put Thriller into heavy rotation on my iPod. I think another fight is a-comin'.

* If you think my heart is eclectic, you should see my head

2007-05-24T14:31:00.001-07:00

MODOK has a blog.

2007-05-24T14:22:00.001-07:00

An utterly astonishing video featuring lions, buffalo, and a few surprise guests. Do not stop watching part way in--it doesn't have the ending you might be expecting.