Tuesday, October 27, 2009

App Addiction: 5 4 3 2 1 (Games)

*i should note, the 5 4 3 2 1 will typically be followed with an indication of how long it is worth keeping around, but not always*
5 Seconds - Two games that are almost fun for one go around are iDare and iDrunk Tank. 
In iDare, you stab a pencil in the pattern that you choose trying to avoid hitting your virtual hand. The game might be enjoyable if there were actual game modes other than free-for-all trying to get a high score. They appear to be available for $0.99, but no thanks. The highlight is when you actually stab your hand.

 
In iDrunk Tank, you are a drunk sitting on a barstool so naturally i thought i should do quite well. The object is to keep him from falling off by balancing him using your iPhone while also trying to grab drinks as the bartender throws them down the bar. If you can maintain interest long enough to beat 7 drinks in 56 seconds, you're a bigger lush than me. One good feature of this game was that it didn't force you to save your score like some other games do, rather it gave it as an option. 



 4 Good- The game that got me through several flight delays and has me considering paying a whopping $0.99 for the full version is called Rope 'n' Fly 2 Lite. In the lite version, you simply start off by falling out of the sky and you proceed to shoot a rope to the next building by touching the screen. To release the rope touch the screen again. Repeat and see how far you can swing in 30 seconds. It's like a lego man with the ability to shoot out webs like SpiderMan looking all Pitfall-like in his swinging.The full version has a number of game variations that sound enticing: seeing how far you can get on one rope, timed modes, distance modes. Even if i don't upgrade, i'll keep this one around for good. 



 3 times - TightWireLite recently improved the free version to include two settings and improved sound and complete falls. Still, i can't seem to enjoy it much. The 3 times you will use this include two times playing and one time to show someone else. It's a neat looking game especially now with the complete fall and sound, but i don't do well in games where you have to balance using the iPhone (accelerometer-based games).


2 Versions - It seems like some sort of unwritten requirement to have some sort of word puzzle game on your iPhone. i chose Word Scramble and then ended up with Word Scramble 2. i don't know if there is much difference if any. i like this over another version i played because you can drag your finger over the letters to form your word rather than just picking at the letters (still an option). Playing online against others is nice and all, but i am nowhere near their scores. Maybe i just need practice or learn more words, but i'm not familiar with the following: etui, inti, seton, lunet, haint, gerah. All of which scored points. So, maybe it's not the best game, but it is still addicting to play.

#1 for now - WarpDefense is a tower defense type game. Addicting as expected, you just set up different weapons around a maze and try to prevent the bad guys from making their way through. Just to make sure i still liked this game, i took a break to play and 20 minutes went by before i realized that i was in the middle of doing something else.
The weapons give a description of what they do on the side, but it takes some playing to actually know what weapons you want where and how increasing their range, power, etc works out in the end.
Apparently i lucked out and got it when it was free because now it is back up to $0.99.


Monday, October 26, 2009

Thanks for voting.

Thanks to all three or four visitors who voted 16 times and let me welcome you to the unofficial Official Spin Off to Artanisknarf.com: sampstar.com. As we all know, spin offs are never as good as the original and if that holds true i apologize for the quality of what you will find here. Also, i want to apologize for the abundance of iPhone App talk you might see, it's a minor addiction.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Modern Family

Watch "Modern Family (Hulu link)." It is funny. It has the Al Bundy guy, a hilarious gay couple, funny kids, Arrested Development humor, and an unfortunate 'does so much to make you feel uncomfortable for him Michael Scott' character. "How I Met Your Mother" is the only other show i currently look forward to watching every week. Two quick scenes...

While the mom was talking about her newfound love interest...
Mom: "He's a logger"
Claire: "Like a lumberjack?"
Mom: "No, he logs data in a cholesterol study."

Another scene...
Mitchell: “Mom’s back.”
Jay: “Your Mother?”
Mitchell: “No, your mother. She’s back from the dead. Yes, my mother.”
Jay:  “My mom would be less scary.”

How about a clip...

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Home again.

After traveling the past few weekends, we are finally back home in Charlotte with no major travel plans in the foreseeable future.

Boston
Very enjoyable city. Megan claimed it may be her new favorite city to visit. Utilizing real public transportation systems always leaves me wondering why every city does not have a convenient rail system. Yes, the answer to my wondering is probably money.
Ironically, we got to hang out with multiple friends from Indy who happened to be in Boston at the time and not even for the wedding we were there for.

Purdue
In an equal opportunity trip, we went to a Purdue football game to try to offset the higher number of Butler games attended. We couldn't have picked a better game. For the first time ever, i saw the end of the game as Purdue defeated The Ohio State.
Highlights include: Purdue win, going to Jakes twice on Friday then getting denied entrance on Saturday morning and having Megan's ID taken away and having to chase down this Royal Douche Bag to get it back.

Sick house
Now we are home and both cats are on liquid amoxicillin and one gets an eye ointment twice a day. Luckily our neighbor is a vet...although i do have him to blame for having more than one cat these days.

Friday, October 9, 2009

iPhone App of the Post

With this post, i will start by explaining a new term i plan on using: PPR or Potential Product Replacement simply referring to an app that could replace another device or product in your life.

Remote

Could have used this in college to DJ from afar or the other week when i was on the couch and forgot to turn off my music. As of right now, i've simply used it to avoid Alt-Tabbing while sitting at my computer. However, it is clearly a handy app to have. This app acts as a remote control for the iTunes on your computer or if you have Apple TV

Extremely simple to use and easy to setup. All you need is to be on the same wireless network, type in the code from your phone into iTunes and you instantly have access to change songs, adjust the volume and search your iTunes database.

Thanks to the other Sam at CVS for informing me of this one.


Categories: Useful, PPR

Thursday, October 8, 2009

pay phone finder?

Some people have mentioned bad service with the iPhone, but fortunately i have not experienced any AT&T dropped calls yet. i thought this clip was pretty funny though:

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

iPhone App of the Post

i suppose there should be yet another location to find recommendations for an iPhone app that could be worth trying, so here it is. These don't have to be new, just whatever i have found and feel like sharing...more than likely they will be free of charge. App of the Post is more fitting and less demanding than claiming there will be one of the week or even month.

Bump

This application provides an easy way to share your contact info or up to four photos or contacts with another iPhone user. Sure there are other ways to send this type of information, but none provide the simple satisfaction that this program does.

Open the program, select the information, contacts or photos you wish to share and your screen will say "Ready to Bump." Now you just hold your iPhone in your hand and bump fists with another iPhone that is ready to bump and it magically transmits your information to the other phone.

Granted i haven't used this in weeks, but i still love the thought of using it and think it will likely hang around for awhile.

Categories: Useful, Entertaining

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Life

White Wussian 1 vs. White Wussian 2
Aristocrat vodka and Kamora vs. Absolut and Kahlua.
First taste was not too convincing one way or the other per Megan or fellow neighborhood Lebowski fan Jason. However, both leaned toward the mix with the higher quality ingredients. Of note, the cheaper concoction did have a half shot extra of vodka which may have altered the taste. My conclusion: after one round, it would not matter.

2nd Cat
Somehow it appears we have a 2nd cat (Millie). i suppose it was to give Ralphie (cat 1) someone to play with. At first, Ralphie didn't seem to mind but now since the little one is only 6 weeks old and apparently the runt of the litter, Ralphie chases him around like she is a rodent. i suppose they are just playing.

Volleyball Championship
Just wanted to announce that our team (Bumpinators) ended up winning our volleyball championship again. Thanks to our first-time playing volleyball phenom Megan. Can't wait to sport our championship t-shirts.

Traveling
During the next month, we are going to Boston for a wedding, Indiana for breakfast club (i suppose a Purdue football game as well), having visitors and then i may tag along when Megan has to work in Asheville. Who needs a house?