Veteran software developer / sysadmin and holds a PhD in Computer Science. Avid computer enthusiast (geek) who has been dabbling with technology ever since his Dad brought home an 8086 computer.
Videogames
I bought an iPod Touch about a year ago, at the same time the iPhone 3G and 3GS were becoming very popular. I couldn’t afford the iPhone, and the iPod Touch seemed like a reasonable compromise. I was impressed by the App Store and all the applications available on
Jobs
I’ve posted [https://www.technodabbler.com/absurd-job-posting/] about this before, but it always gets to me. As a grad students, I see a lot of job postings. After a while, you see a couple of these postings looking for a student with the following skillset: Requirements: * Experience developing in
Travel
Tokyo has one of the most confusing mass transit systems I’ve ever encountered. It’s not surprising considering you have at least 3 distinct subway providers (note I said providers, not lines) and local rails. This means there are at least a combined 20 subway/train lines covering the
Videogames
Akihabara is often describes as an anime lovers’ and gamers’ paradise. Every year, thousands of foreigners will visit this district, in the hopes of finding that cheap/rare find that they can’t find on the Internet. However, to properly explore Akihabara, you must first understand it. The first time
Market
In our consumer market right now, the trend is to reward consumers for buying. Point cards, reward programs, it amounts to the same: the more you spend, the more rewards you get. But how much reward do you get? I’m thinking of buying an Ipad and I was wondering
Computer
For years, I’ve been a Windows user. However, since I’m doing a lot of iPhone development, I’m working a lot more on MacOs X. I’ve got to admit, I’m impressed by the operating system. Today, as I was preparing a Powerpoint presentation, I discovered a
Videogames
Just finished a good play session of Left4Dead 2 and let me tell you, it’s very difficult. Even that sentence seems an understatement. For those new to the world of Left4Dead, an appropriate description is zombie apocalypse. You play one of four survivors, using a wide variety of weapons,
Computer
I love my iPod Touch. I carry the little thing everywhere. The synchronization between its application and google apps (mail, contacts, calendar, etc.) is seamless, which is a huge bonus for me. I also get to carry all my music and pictures. I’m even writting this post using the
Videogames
It’s been a while since I’ve posted. I blame my thesis work, which is sucking up all my free time. But I do find some time to turn on a console or two, enjoying my Ps3 or my XBox 360. On the Ps3, I’m playing Assassin’s
Videogames
Back in September 2008, I wrote about a new company called Good Old Games [http://www.gog.com]. They sell old games, DRM free, which is especially cool. This has become a very lucrative business. Last year, GoG started with only a few games, two of which were Freespace and
Computer
Have you ever heard about iPod envy? I’ve heard it’s when you buy a second iPod, the first gets envious. I bought my first iPod about three years ago, a 2GB nano to replace my dying rio player. About a year after, I upgraded to a 80gig iPod
Videogames
While reading Massively, I saw a mention of a game that I didn’t know before, Torchlight. That was the second time I saw the game name today, the first time was praises from Penny Arcade. So I decided to check it out. The reviews were pretty impressive, a meta
Videogames
I have a very bad track record with PC games ported to consoles. My first experience was Diablo for the Playstation. Latter, I discovered a rare copy of Eye of the Beholder for SNES. Both games left a bitter taste in my mouth. Imagine my surprised when it was announced
Videogames
I had a chance to see Wet [http://www.rubiwet.com] early in its development, when I visited A2M [http://www.bhvr.com]‘s office in Montreal. My first reaction was: “Hum, this is just like Stranglehold, but with a sword.” The moment I got to play the demo, I
Jobs
Students sometime ask me what is the best way to get into the game development business? Well, if you want to become a developper, you can help yourself a lot by getting some development experience with consoles. The easier console to learn happens to be the Gameboy Advance (GBA) and
Computer
Last week, I received a coupon from TigerDirect [http://www.tigerdirect.ca]. I could save 20$ of my next 200$ purchase. The catch, the coupon expired in less than two days. I also received a similar deal from Dell [http://www.dell.ca]. I could get great savings on computers,