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HootSuite - The Google Analytics of Twitter

I just found this service called HootSuite. I am very familiar with Google Analytics since I track many of the sites that I have designed over the years. Twitter lacked a service like this and with the increasing use of Twitter as a means to market a business and build a brand, it needed one.

Enter HootSuite. With HootSuite, an individual or company now has the ability to track "buzz" about their brand or products. One great feature is the RSS/ATOM feed connector. If you currently have a blog and tweet about every blog post you make, then this feature will be very handy. Set the RSS/ATOM feed url and select the Twitter account that you want to use to tweet from. Every time a blog post is made, HootSuite will send a tweet from your Twitter account announcing it.

A great time saver. This feature can also be paused if you do not want to send tweets.

Countdown to Beatles: Rock Band

Rock Band 2 Drums

Well, I finally broke out of being solely a PC Gamer. What did it? A little game called Rock Band. Being a music lover and having enjoyed the few rhythm based games on PC, I had taken notice of Rock Band when it first came out. I hoped that by some miracle they would decide to come to PC like Guitar Hero did. I waited.

I had never actually gotten my hands on the game. I passed by it at Best Buy never wanting to sit down and try it out out of fear of the audience around me. Finally, I was given the opportunity to play it at my brother-in-law's house. I sat at the drum set and waited anxiously for the song to start.

I immediately got it. The drums just seemed to come naturally, unlike the guitar that took some getting used to. I did well and really had fun.

Rock Band 2 had me hooked. I finally broke down and got an Xbox360 and a Special Edition Rock Band 2 kit. I played it a few hours a day for a week. Friends and family both jumped in and played a little bit of drums, a little bit of guitar and some were brave enough to do vocals. It was a good time.

Well, that is where the good time ended. Just a week after dropping all of this money to get a system and the kit, the drums suddenly went AWOL. A notice popped on screen stating to reconnect the device. So, I reconnected and attempted to re-sync the drums to the Xbox. It worked for a few seconds then switched off again. "Okay, it just needs new batteries", I said "after all, I have been playing for a week straight." After changing the batteries, the issue persisted. A lump grew in my throat.

After establishing that this was indeed a hardware failure I contacted EA Rock Band support. They were extremely helpful and quick to set up an RMA for a hardware switch. They asked that I scan in my receipt and email it to support with the RMA number attached and they would verify and send out a new drum pad set.

It took merely minutes to receive back confirmation that they were sending the kit and I had a tracking number. I was impressed.

I hate that the drums have these issues, I've found after searching the web, but I am glad that EA is so quick to resolve it. I'm sure there are kits out there that have never and will never have this issue.

At least this gives me the push I needed to take a break from the drums and brush up on my guitar skills.

Its been a long time coming...

Here it is April and as you can see by the previous post, it has been a while since I've posted. A lot has been going on since that last post.

In November I was laid off due to lack of work coming in as well as everyone else in the company. I was lucky enough to find a job quickly at another agency and was back to work . Unfortunately, that agency could only afford to keep two designers and had no room for a third.

I was out of work. Again.

With our first baby on the way, I was scrambling to find anything I could to keep everything together. I took freelance work left and right. To be honest, I was busier being out of work than I was in the last three years of being employed.

During this period I listened to my favorite podcasts as they too were going through some changes and restructuring. I saw 1UP's layoffs and felt the heartache. The ability that the cast had to pick themselves up and keep going inspired me.

Suddenly, the ex-staff members were building new podcasts that have now become my favorites. I saw the beginnings of Geekbox, RebelFM and A Life Well Wasted. I still missed the 1UP Show. That is when CO-OP showed up. My iTunes subscription list had quickly changed from a few favorite podcasts to now a handful of really great shows.

1UP's restructuring also spawned a few new shows that I've added to my list. At1UP, Good Grief and Listen UP (formerly 1UP Yours).

Through my freelance work, I showed my dedication and hard work and have been picked up by a company that is a very caring and family oriented company. I'm very excited about the work I am doing now and enjoy going to work more than I have in the past.I know that in order for me to find this job I had to lose my old one. I know things are looking up and I've got a lot to look forward to in the next month.

If anyone else is feeling down in the dumps about the state of the economy, try to pick yourself up and remember...

everything happens for a reason.


Tips for the unemployed:
1. Stay Positive.
2. Don't watch the news. This is to ensure that you follow tip 1.
3. Keep busy. Stay on a normal, work schedule. Get up and get in the shower.
4. Find inspiration. Read, listen to your favorite podcast, draw, etc.
5. Take this time to learn new skills and polish old ones. You wouldn't normally get this time if you were working, so appreciate the education time. It will pay off.

The flood gates have opened...

It is the end of the year. This is the time that game publishers have decided to saturate the market with games. That wouldn't be a problem, except the majority of these are A-class titles.

Just to give you and idea of the problem, here is a look at the PC releases I am interested in from October -> December:

10/20 - Dead Space
10/21 - Far Cry 2
10/21 - Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
10/28 - Fallout 3
10/28 - Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3

11/04 - James Bond 007: Quantum of Solace
11/17 - Left 4 Dead
11/17 - Need for Speed: Undercover
11/18 - Tomb Raider: Underworld
11/18 - Legendary

12/02 - Grand Theft Auto IV
12/09 - Prince of Persia

Whew!
----------------

Okay, so with that release calendar in mind here is what I am currently playing (in order of time invested):

• Fallout 3
  
  I'm totally engrossed in this game. It feels like I am getting close to the end, so I am trying to avoid certain Quests. I would like to explore more of this vast landscape. There is so much to see and do that this game has capture most of my time. I will try to write a piece on this soon.


• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
  
  Not sure about this, yet. I missed the first 2, but have played the other C&Cs. I don't really like the "CO-OP" feature of the single player. On the levels I've played so far it feels like the "CO-OP" player gets in the way especially when building a base. On the flip side, it is nice to have someone else there when large battles begin.


• Call of Duty: World at War
  
  After about 30 minutes of play the feeling of COD 4 started to come back. It never quite comes back completely and I am left longing for more play in COD 4, but going back to it now I feel would not be a good idea. I would have my butt handed to me by the elite players since I would have to start from scratch.I started up the single player once to see the visual difference in single vs. multiplayer.


• Left 4 Dead: Demo
  
  Playing in preparation for the full game. It feels like a TF2 with Zombies.


• Far Cry 2
  
  This game is massive. I am not captured by it as much as I am by Fallout 3. It is like GTA FPS and that makes it awesome.


• Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
  
  Contrary to reviews, I see this as the best Spider-Man game to date. It has a few flaws that don't make sense, like webs that attach to nothing a lot of times. This was fixed in Spider-Man 2, but has digressed in this version.

Game Graphics (Part 2)

Check out part 2 of this great article