Must Watch Video: Jane McGonigal on the Power of Video Games

Video games are more popular than ever and continue to grow in popularity. Jane McGonigal talks about how video games can have powerful, positive impacts in people's lives and in the world.

Kihon Games Internship!

I am excited to announce that I am going to begin an internship with Kihon Games, a small iOS game company in Tucson, Arizona. I am lucky enough to get to be Kihon Game's first intern ever! I can not wait to begin the internship! Kihon is currently made up of four guys, who all seem very smart and talented. I think this is really a  great opportunity. I am passionate about games and developing games and I will get to be developing games on one of my favorite platforms, iOS! I can not imagine an opportunity that I would be more excited about. That being said, I know I have a lot of learning ahead. Even though I have experience developing applications on iOS, I have no experience developing games on iOS. So stick with me, follow the blog for updates on my learning process, more details about my internship, and upcoming news from Kihon Games.

Enough about me, let's talk more about Kihon. You can find their blog with lots of information about them at http://blog.kihongames.com/.  Follow the break for more:

So You Want to Be a Programmer(Java): Get Started NOW!

Open Eclipse and create a new Java project in the same manor that you created the Hello World project. Name the project Raven and create a new class named TheRaven. Be sure to check the box that says "public static void main(String[] args)".

Create a program that prints the following excerpt from Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven:

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. `'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door - Only this, and nothing more.' Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore - For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore - Nameless here for evermore.

Your output should appear exactly like this:

Necessary Information (Click on links for more info):
There are two ways to print in Java, System.out.println(); and System.out.print(). The only difference is that System.out.println(); prints a return at the end of what you are printing.
The sentence or words that you put in the quotes in the print statement is called a String.
To print a new line in Java you use, "\n".
To print an apostrophe, you use "\'".


It is possible that you may need help with this. Contact me with any questions you have!

Tip (Mac): Task Manager

Yes, you read that right! Macs do have task managers! Well, sort of, it is not as powerful as the task manager that is commonly found on Windows machines, but it does at least have the option to force quit, which is the most common use of the Windows task manager. The keyboard shortcut is Command > option > esc. So there it is. Enjoy force quitting your applications!

So You Want to Be a Programmer(Java) / Computer Scientist?

A lot of people want to get in to programming but really do not know where to start. This post will hopefully help you get a sense of what is all involved in programming, and where to start.

The first thing you have to ask yourselves is, "Do I really want to be a computer scientist?" Computer Science and programming really does take a lot of time and effort to master, but I find it to be one of the most rewarding experiences. I think it is very much worth the effort, but many, many people do not see the enjoyment in programming. How do I know this? Next time you meet someone, just tell them, "I am majoring in Computer Science," and get your camera ready because they are gonna have a funny look on their face. The reality is most people just don't know what Computer Science is, but that is changing. Computer Science is one of the fastest growing fields and will continue to be a growing field as the consumer electronic market grows. But that is enough about how people are dumbfounded about what Computer Science really is.

Let's talk about what Computer Science actually is, because how do you know if you want to be a Computer Scientist if you don't know what a computer scientist is or does? Wikipedia says, "Computer science or computing science (abbreviated CS) is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems." That definition makes it sound way more terrifying than it really is, so let's just focus on one aspect of being a computer scientist, programming. So what is programming? Wikipedia says, "Computer programming (often shortened to programming or coding) is the process of designing, writing, testing,debugging, and maintaining the source code of computer programs. "  Now doesn't that sound much more enjoyable? It is.

So what does it take to start programming? 

1. The desire to learn how to program. If you don't want to learn, then you won't learn. You won't persist when you have problems and you will just give up.
2. Time. Unfortunately, you will not be programming Android apps after just one day.
3. You find joy in the little things. With programming you have to start small. You have to be amazed by something as simple as getting a sentence to print out. If you get excited over the little steps that you make as you learn to program, then you will be successful with programming.
4. A computer. You can't program without at least having access to a computer. It does not matter if it runs Windows, Mac OSX, or Linux.

If you have all four of those things, then I recommend that you give programming a try! You never know if you will like it until you try it. Let's get started! Click on words with links for more information of the subject. And get pumped you are gonna learn to program!

Getting Started

1. You need an integrated development environment or IDE. The most popular one in the world is Eclipse. It is available for a wide range of systems. We are going to use Eclipse for Java Developers. Download it here. The links are on the right side of the page just select your operating system.

Tip: Speed up Your Internet

No matter how fast your internet is, you always want it to be faster. Life Hacker has a great how to on giving your browser a little speed boost. Find it here. Directions for Mac and PC are included.

Must Read Book: ZMOT

Winning the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) is a book written by marketers at Google. It is completely free!

The book touches on how businesses should be using technology and the internet to target consumers at the "Zero Moment of Truth". You have ZMOT's everyday. ZMOT's are the moment when you get a cold and you google the best cold medicine or when you see a movie trailer and instantly google the new movie coming out. The key to winning the zero moment is targeting the consumers immediately when they have that first intent of learning about your product.

Must Watch Video: Gotta Have a Goal

Zig Zigler talks about the power of setting goals.

Must Watch Video: Inspiring Movie Mashup

Here is an entertaining video compiled of some of the best speeches in movies meshed together into one epic speech.

Must Read Book: "Reality is Broken"

Jane McGonigal's book, Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World is a must read book. It really conveys how games of all kinds can improve life and make tasks that are not that enjoyable, actually fun. It is inspiring, informative, and an entertaining read. Also, check out her blog, for even more information on how games are changing the world.

Must Watch Video: Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

Words can't really describe how incredible of a person Randy Pausch is, so I am not going to try. The video below is his last lecture. I highly encourage everyone to watch it. It's long, but I really think that the messages and stories will have a lasting, positive impact on your life.

5 Weeks! Great Scott!

Today I had a job interview for an Android programming job for a company that I can not disclose. The company was started by three recent Entrepreneurship graduates. They are looking for an Android developer to make an application for them. I wish I could say more, but legally I can't.

I believe that they have a breakthrough idea, but I do not seeing them succeeding unless they learn a lesson. Don't make unrealistic timelines.  Dr. Emmett Brown pretty much sums up my shock when they said they wanted a full blown app in five weeks, and that I would be the sole developer on the project.

Business people do not understand software development. That is why they hire engineers to make the software for them. Unrealistic timelines will scare off potentially valuable resources, demotivate the team, and flat out stress people out.

As far as the interview goes, I nailed it. My answers for the questions were perfect. I got a lot of "good answer's" from the interviewers and they were really into my ideas for the app. Unfortunately, I can not meet their timeline. I do not know whether or not they were interested in hiring me or not, but as my decision stands right now, I would have to respectfully decline their offer, solely because of a bad timeline. This is not just a message to business people, I have learned that many people, regardless of their field are often unrealistic with timelines. Do yourself a favor, set realistic timelines, surpass your expectations and feel good about doing so.

Gadget: Buttkicker LFE Kit

If there is one gadget that can bring some excitement to your home theatre system, it is the Buttkicker LFE Kit. The Buttkicker connects to your surround receiver through the low frequency output and is powered by its own amplifier. Essentially the Buttkicker let's you feel your bass. It vibrates your couch really adding an immersive experience to your sound. You feel the bass drum in music. You feel the explosions and gunfire in games. I really can't recommend it enough. It isn't  cheap though. It can be purchased for $399.99 from Buttkicker Gear. I think it is worth every penny.

Must Get App, Mac Edition: Carbon Copy Cloner

Everyone should be backing up their files on their computer. No, everyone needs to be backing up their files on their computer. Unfortunately it is much easier said then done. There is an app for Macs however that makes the process a little less painful. Carbon Copy Cloner is a FREE download that will help you quickly set up your back up. You can schedule your backups or enable options like eject drive when the backup is complete. There are many features which make backing up your files a much more pleasurable experience. So download it and try it out! Download Carbon Copy Cloner here.

EDIT:
If you need to purchase a hard drive feel free to ask me to help you find the best one for the money.

Hello World

Welcome to my blog! This blog is somewhat of an experiment. I have so much that I want to share but no place to really share it. I don't want to bore my Facebook friends, and I'm just not a huge fan of Tumblr. Which brings me here. I don't know what brought you here, but I hope you enjoy what you find on my blog. It is called AbouT because it is a compilation of all things that I, "T" (Taylor), enjoy or find interesting. As I add more and more things, you will learn more and more about "T", but whether or not learning about me is really of interest to you or not, I hope that you find the content interesting. On this blog I will be posting about: Technology, Computers, Software Development, Programming languages, TV shows, Sci-Fi, Movies, Books, News Stories, School, Sports, University of Arizona Info, Products, Science, Video Games, YouTube (seek Cat videos elsewhwere), and whatever else I feel like. Anyway, I appreciate whatever time you do spend reading the content that I do post.