Category: Random Rants

Today’s Poll: The TSA’s Search Techniques

Thanksgiving is coming up and some of you will be traveling. Are you ready to be fondled by the TSA? Don’t get me wrong, a lot of TSA agents provide great service that help keep airports and flights safe. Others are…not-so-bright people that strip-search kids (see the video above) and spill urine on passengers.

The TSA has been getting a lot of negative press lately, but some polls show that people don’t mind the new search procedures and body scans. How do you feel about them? Kindly take today’s poll and share your feelings (like a Care Bear).

[poll id=”86″]

I Hate FedEx…So Much

I was supposed to receive a FedEx overnight package today. The item was integral for a video I’m shooting this week. I was at home when the FedEx driver “attempted” to deliver it. Unfortunately, he was a moron. For some reason, he didn’t bother coming up to my apartment. He didn’t bother going to my building’s security desk and leave the package with them, which is normal procedure. Instead, he left a FedEx door tag on the side entrance of my building.

Fortunately, I went down to the local convenience store shortly after he left the door tag and was furious at the driver’s ineptitude. I called FedEx customer “service” — a department that was completely useless in my last go-round with the company — to complain and get another delivery attempt. The CSR contacted the driver, who claimed that management wouldn’t let him into the building. That’s complete b*llshit, since that’s handled by security, not management. The genius must have been speaking with the management of the pizza parlor next door.

The CSR also said that it would be difficult for the driver to deliver the package to me because he doesn’t have a cell phone. My friend’s five-year old has a cell phone. The CSR said that he would contact the driver and call me back. I never received a callback.

This is the second time this year that FedEx ineptitude has interfered with my work. I receive packages all the time. I haven’t had major problems with Ontrac or UPS. I’m impressed that FedEx has managed to completely f*ck up two of my deliveries in major ways. That’s a special brand of idiocy.

Today’s Poll: What’s Your Favorite “Morning After” Food?

Being jet lagged in a foreign land means eating strange foods at 3:00AM. A lot of people swear by cold pizza, as if it undergoes a magical transformation overnight that turns it into a completely different food. Growing up in New York, my pizza standards are pretty high and I dislike what passes for pizza — cold or hot — in most of the world (especially California). As far as morning after foods go, I love cold KFC. Colonel Sanders secret blend of herbs and spices definitely combine for some magic that makes it taste great hot or cold in two very different ways.

Anyway, vote in on this silly poll I’ve concocted and share your thoughts. I’m sure you’ll provide some excellent answers.

[poll id=”65″]

The Genius of Nick Pantazis

Ah, the story that keeps on…irritating. Remember those two kids from VGChartz that pissed me off? Aside from insulting my web site, my story, and me, one of them has started spreading false information. So in addition to making libelous statements, senior editor Nick Pantazis is lying to sites like Southern Fried Gamer where he’s quoted as saying:

The way he obtained his information, as he explained it to me, was that he walked around the show floor and asked people in booths what they knew about it. I’m not privy to all embargoed information nor all information under NDA, but in my experience at the events I’ve gone to (including this one), people you are able to talk to by simply walking up to booths are generally PR reps, and not developers as he claimed.

The funny part is that I never said anything to Pantazis about getting my information from company booths at GDC. For someone that accused me of making up a story, it’s funny that he made one up himself. It’s especially hilarious when you consider that I spent less than an hour on the GDC show floor. Most of my time at the show was spent in private meetings and informal networking chats.

I just rechecked my email exchange with Pantazis. I made it very clear that I got my information from developers. I said nothing about asking people in booths anything. I just don’t get this kid. What’s wrong with him? Is he crazy? Is he slow? Should I call up RPadholic jpkmets and sue VGChartz/Pantazis/Zucker for libel? Or maybe I should just take an Advil.

Source

Blast From the Past: Marc Saltzman and I Talk E3 2007

My friend just sent me this video I did for Comcast’s Game Invasion at E3 2007. It’s funny watching it through the old retroscope. Nintendo just introduced Wii Fit and my co-host, the amazing Marc Saltzman, thought it was neat, but nothing extraordinary. I was mostly indifferent to it. Neither of us had any idea that it would become one of the most popular videogame products in the industry’s history. Ha!

*sigh* I miss having a video crew.

Anyway, check out the video and let me know what you think of our E3 2007 press conference analysis.

Coffee Talk #91: Why Am I Here (Part II)?!?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, U.S.A. trouncing the Royal Kingdom of Canadia in Olympic hockey, Bryan Danielson finally making it to a WWE broadcast show, or the WWE making Bryan Danielson change his name to Daniel Bryan, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Way back when I started this site, I posted an entry called “What Am I Here?!?”. It’s been what? About four months since I started? RPad.tv has definitely had its ups and downs, and lately I’ve been questioning why I’m doing what I do since I’m not making any money and bills are piling up. DICE 2010 was a brilliant reminder of why I love all of this. I’m definitely recharged from DICE and I wanted to use today’s Coffee Talk to tell you why.

First and foremost, I love interacting with you guys and gals (I think RPad.tv has three female readers now). I love talking about games, gadgets, and geek culture with you. I love that I was able to share some of DICE with you. It was like bringing you all to Vegas with me (though you didn’t see me drunk). Talking about OnLive and Bobby Kotick with you was definitely fun. I’m sorry I didn’t get to do more of that during DICE, but you’ll understand why when you read reason #2.

So yeah! The second reason DICE was reinvigorating was that it reminded me of how ridiculously lucky I am. I get to write about one of my favorite hobbies and talk with the people that create the games I play. It was fun catching up with people like BioWare’s Dr. Greg Zeschuk, Gas Powered Games’ Chris Taylor, Insomniac’s Ted Price, and so many others. I feel incredibly honored that these amazing people remember my name — I’m a nobody! To me, it’s the same as writing about movies or sports and getting to hang out with actors or athletes. The one difference is that gaming is still small enough and fun enough that I still get to interact with a lot of these guys on a somewhat social level.

So today’s Coffee Talk is late because I wasn’t sure about sharing all of this because it makes me feel kind of exposed…but then I remembered that you guys are awesome. As always, thanks for visiting!!!

Random DICE 2010 Notes: Jesse Divnich and David Jaffe

– I just finished an interview with EEDAR’s Jesse Divnich. I wanted to get his perspective on the business as a prominent analyst, but it was also important for me to interview him for potential analyst RPadholic bsukenyan. It was a really fun chat on the gaming business, Jesse’s background (dude lived in a trailer park!), and his relationship with other analysts.

– Five minutes ago I bumped into David Jaffe. He once went off on me on his blog for (jokingly) calling out his use of the chicken-and-egg analogy (I subscribed to Aristotle’s view that the chicken came first). I was worried that he was mad at me for the last year and wanted to clear things up. It turns out that he was just calling me stupid and there was nothing more to it than that. Jaffe is all kinds of awesome, by the way.

Best Care Package Evar!!!

My friend Justin (RPadholic @jpkmets) sent me an awesome care package consisting of an Amazon Kindle, a Big Trouble in Little China t-shirt from The Wing Kong Exchange, and a Porkchop Express sticker. Everything in the box is pure awesome.

As many of you know, Big Trouble in Little China is one of my favorite movies of all time. I want to be more like Jack Burton. I reviewed a first-generation Kindle for a friend’s newspaper and loved it, but had to send it  back. I love the look and feel of the Kindle 2 and promptly downloaded Bill Simmons’ The Book of Basketball (i.e. the reason why I started late on the site today *snicker*).

Thanks Justin!!!