tekHedd – the blog

http://youtu.be/6b2kTdcYt_E

Blogging can be entirely pointless. Not as pointless as Facebook, and nothing could be as pointless as Twitter, but blogs are, as a rule, self indulgent crap. Mine is no different, although I like to think that once in a while I squeeze something in there that is useful to someone. This is probably self delusion, though.

I blog, even though it is pointless. I assume that I do it for the same reasons everybody else blogs, because I think what I have to say is somehow valid or relevant or something. But, mostly, I blog because I enjoy the pointless write-only nature of blogs. I blog because it is pointless. Nobody reads these things except for a few tolerant friends and the occasional Alpine car stereo owner trying to figure out how to get a decent sound out of his IMPRINT system. In the interest of maximizing the irony and pointlessness, I have decided that it would be a good idea to supplement these blogs with video.

Video. Nobody reads any more. Text is so twentieth century. But because I enjoy writing, I have decided simply to read the blog, forming a sort of blogs on tape experience, except of course that it won’t be on tape. So Blogs Not On Tape, then. It’s quick, it’s easy, it’s Youtube. Also, everyone else is doing it. I want to fit in, right? No, that’s really not the reason. I’m really doing this because it is pointless.

Because I plan to read the blog, the video version will have to be made after the blog is posted, so the video will lag the text version somewhat. Possibly by a lot. I may just stop updating the videos entirely. Because, you know, it’s not a real blog unless you stop updating it as soon as life gets interesting.

What more is there to say? Yuck! As a cinematic experience it’s pretty good. (Although in terms of canon it’s a bit weird. Why is Shaundi suddenly competent?) But… that’s all. Yes, there’s a “big open world”, but in the plot so far, there’s a tiny bit of shooting, and a lot of “shooter on rails” action. And the second you hit someone with a melee attack– quick time events! Oh, and QTE’s all through the plot.

I guess it annoyed them that Yahtzee liked Saints Row 2. Apparently it annoyed them so much that they had to add exactly the things that we all hate. Lame.

I’d like a refund, please.

Edit

OK I admit it, I don’t really want a refund. The game seems to be mostly OK. It’s lost a lot of its groove though. If you’re thinking about buying it, wait until this time next year when they come out with a bundle that has all of the DLC included.

And I feel sorry for the people who actually worked on the game, because it looks great and controls very well on PC. But just cruising around looking for trouble–well–to be honest there really isn’t much to do. I guess they didn’t want activity icons cluttering the world, but picking out challenges from your cell phone isn’t as cool as stumbling across them by accident in the world.  I think they’ve fallen victim to their own success. :(

For some reason my bids have been canceled. I would like to know why.

Dear [ebay user name],

Yes, I’m sorry about that, but I do not feel like I am able to meet your expectations.

Your feedback history shows that in your two most recent purchases (out of only three this year), you’ve left neutral feedback with a comment indicating that you were happy with the transaction. Perhaps you do not understand how much neutrals damages the reputation of a seller. eBay says that neutral means neutral, but ten seconds on Google will show that the community feels differently. As a low volume seller (I just sell things that I realize I just don’t use–as a musician this is a life risk) a single neutral is a lot more important than with a major store.

I take great care to describe items accurately, explain their defects, and package them with care. I do this so that because I want to accurately set and then meet or exceed buyer expectations. I cancelled your bid because I do not believe I can meet your expectations.

Again, I am sorry.

References:
https://www.google.com/search?q=ebay+neutral+feedback
http://reviews.ebay.com/NEUTRAL-FEEDBACK-vs-POKING-EYES-OUT-with-a-STICK