Games That Play Themselves

Take a look at your video game library. How many of those games have you completed? How many those games did you intend to complete, but abandoned because their challenges became too difficult or repetitive? How many role-playing stories have you dedicated dozens of hours to without seeing their endings?

I’ve always prided myself on completing most of the games I play. Sometimes it is a labor of love; other times it’s a labor for labor’s sake. The sense of accomplishment that comes from toppling a difficult boss is a large part of what makes video games alluring. But, even as someone who welcomes a challenge, I often find myself thinking a particular fight is ridiculous, that the design is working against the player, or that I wish there was a way to skip a particular section of a game. While I’m a poster boy for shelving my social life for a night with a boss battle, the reality is that most players do not finish the games they play.

The ultimate goal for game developers is to create an experience that blends challenge with accessibility. How this is achieved is still a wok in progress for the majority of the industry. Most developers still rely on a difficulty level system that allows players to select their skill level at the outset of play. Others implement adaptive AI that adjusts on the fly to your struggles or towering achievements. The most controversial yet highly praised innovations in this field as Bioshock’s vita-chambers and prince of Persia’s saving hand of grace. Both of these games basically wave a white flag in terms of finding a balance in between accessibility and challenge. I love both of these games, but couldn’t shake the feeling that I was cheating in both of them, as neither penalizes the player for failure.

Sucking challenge out of a game is disheartening for a player like me, but for newcomers or the skill-free, being able to complete games that would normally be outside the range of their ability must be a rewarding experience. Developers also get the gratification of knowing that the majority of players are seeing the entire game to which they dedicated years of their lives.

At this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, Shigeru Miyamoto detailed another option, one at which I immediately scoffed. In Miyamoto’s upcoming Wii title, New Super Mario Bros., players can activate a function currently dubbed “demo play”. When activated, this mode plays the game for you. It is intended to help stuck players get to the next section of the game. After giving this idea some thought, I realized this might be the white whale developers have been trying to spear since the inception of games.…

Whether you want to grow your consulting business or your medical practice, you have a lot of options. However, not every option is the best in terms of getting interested clients to book their first appointment with you. Here are a few ways you can attract new clients and grow your business.

1. Social Media DMs

If you’re a solo business owner and work directly with all of your clients, direct messages can be a great tool. You can use your social media posts to ask questions and encourage your audience to interact. If someone has a question or likes something you post, you can send them a message thanking them. Then, you can offer more information and send them the information they need to book an appointment.

2. Outsource Calls

Talking on the phone can be an excellent way to convince someone to book an appointment, but it can be time-consuming. If you don’t have anyone to manage your phone throughout the day, you can hire a service to handle scheduling appointments New Milford CT or elsewhere. Then, you can focus on working with your clients once they get to you, and you can get them to come back for another appointment.

3. Free Downloads

Another common way to attract new clients is to use free downloads or events. You can promote the download online or wherever you market your business. Then, you can set up the free offer to require an email address for people to gain access. You can then connect the offer and email address to your regular mailing list. Whenever you send a newsletter, more people can get it, and you can stay on top of their minds when they need your services.

Growing a business and getting clients can be difficult. However, it doesn’t have to be impossible if you use the right strategies. Keep these tips in mind next time you need to book more clients.

Have You Met Social Media Consultants?

You must be an avid reader of information from the web. You must have discovered a lot about the different things because you have been reading different website online. Indeed, the internet has helped people learn more about the rather strange things in life because they have spent a lot of time on the web actively reading the information provided in the different sites. It was not very long when people started using the web but from that time until now, the internet has greatly developed so many different minds and aroused their curiosity.

Social media marketing is one of the most popular forms of internet marketing. It is really undeniable that the potential for tapping the marketing of those who enjoy checking their profile pages in different social networking sites is really good. In fact, so many other marketers have tried it out for themselves just when social media marketing was starting to be popular. They were happy with what they have reaped and they want to continue doing what they were doing.

Social media consultants are so lucky to be in the position where they are now because it is the best so far in the internet market today. In fact, they are not the only ones who can see how they lucky they are. The people around them have realized that doing the kind of job that they do is very easy and very economical too. Social media consultants usually seem very relaxed compared to the others who are suing other forms of internet marketing. Perhaps there is some truth in that considering that they do not need to convince people to come to them and check out the profile page of their client. People are already interested and all they need is to get hooked so that they will continue exploring the main website of the business.

But then again everything was not as smooth as it first started. They also had their share of challenges when they were just starting with internet marketing but they never gave up. Social media consultants knew that their kind of marketing had that magic and indeed it sparkled in the crowd.…

Building a Gaming Computer is the Ultimate in Gaming

Think about it. What could possibly get you more involved in gaming than building a gaming computer? Not only can you play it, but you’ll know exactly what makes it tick. How do you begin a project like this?

For starters you’ve got to know what you want your computer to do. Besides knowing which games you’ll be playing on it now, plan for the future. Allow enough space to upgrade it in the future. This starts with the case. If the case is packed with components just to take care of what you’re currently playing, you’re doing yourself a disservice. You’ve not left yourself anywhere to go.

The two areas after case size to think about are memory and graphics. A gaming computer needs a lot of memory to be able to perform all of the functions that are required of it. Plan to buy as much memory as you can, at least 512MB. Even better would be 1GB or more. Also consider what type of memory to use. RDRAM is currently the latest development in memory. When you’re ready to build, do a little research and see if it’s still the leader. When it comes to a graphics card, don’t cut corners. A couple of the current leaders in graphics cards are the ATI Radeon HD 5870 and the BFG GeForce GTX 295. These are high performance components that are going to generate a lot of heat. You’ll want to have a large enough case to house adequate fans or a liquid cooling system.

You’ll need to make sure that you have an adequately sized processor. Don’t scrimp when it comes to your CPU. It has to handle all of the commands that the software that you’re running tells it to. That’s a lot of work! Especially if you’re running games that are in 3D. The two big processors for this application would be either the Intel Core 2 Quad or the AMD Phenom X4. A little research will help you decide which one is best for you.

Now that the computers built, you need a monitor to view it with. While LCD is becoming more popular, many gamers prefer a CRT monitor. Take a look at widescreen monitors. They’re becoming increasingly popular and can really enhance the gaming experience. Go for a monitor that’s at least 19″ wide that has a 5 millisecond or less response time.

These guidelines should put you on the right track when you begin building a gaming computer.…

Cancer is scary. Even though there are screening methods and treatments that have been proven to save lives, there are some cancers that are deadly. These cancers most often cause death within five years of diagnosis.

The most deadly form of cancer is pancreatic cancer. Just about 7 percent of those diagnosed survive. The pancreas is an organ that is shaped like a finger that is nestled behind the stomach. It helps digestion and hormone secretion. Diabetes, stomach problems, and cirrhosis of the liver are greater risk factors for developing pancreatic cancer. A family history of pancreatic cancer is also a potential risk factor for you developing it. There have been new tests recently that are able to help with the early detection of this type of cancer, but it is incredibly hard to diagnose. It is usually not diagnosed until it has already spread to other organs, which is a leading factor in the death rate associated with it.

Cancer of the liver and bile ducts is another deadly cancer. It has a slightly more than 17 percent survival rate beyond five years after diagnosis. The liver is the largest internal organ, and it sits right below the right lung. It helps break down food that is eaten and pull out nutrients. Heavy alcohol use can really abuse the liver and can be a risk factor for liver cancer. There are some signs of liver cancer which include a feeling of fullness even when eating something small and significant weight loss. These symptoms could indicate something else, so they are not always indicators of cancer.

Another deadly cancer that is not often talked about is mesothelioma. This cancer has roughly a 9 percent survival rate within five years of diagnosis. There is a thin layer of tissue called the mesothelium that is wrapped around the lungs, heart, and other organs. Mesothelioma is cancer of this lining of tissue. Most of the mesothelioma cases are connected to exposure to asbestos. Those that work in construction, plumbing, or other building trades have a risk of exposure and therefore a risk of this cancer. Some symptoms do include pain in the abdomen, chest pain, shortness of breath, or swelling of the abdomen. The symptoms correlate directly to where the cancer is located. Because mesothelioma is not given much attention, those suffering from it may feel like they do not have enough support. The surviving families may find themselves at a loss for dealing with medical bills. There may be some way for the families to access the resources they need by getting a payout from the mesothelioma trust funds.…

The Perfect Monitor Setup For Your Gaming PC

In order to have the perfect gaming PC, you need to have all of the parts you want, including the tower, the software, all of the internal hardware, and the monitor or monitors of your choice. There are plenty of brands and sizes to choose from, and ways to mount your ideal monitor setup.

You will want to consider what budget you have for your monitor or monitors. The cheapest monitor available is a 20″ monitor, and getting two of these may be ideal if you want dual monitors but don’t want to pay a fortune. If you have a greater budget, you may think about getting a 24″ or 27″ monitor. Also available are 28″ and 30″ monitors, but 30″ monitors are very costly for the time being.

If you decide to get dual monitors, your best bet would be to buy identical monitors, or two of the same monitor. Two different brands of monitors display things differently. Also, your computer will need to have a video card that supports dual monitors.

The response time will is important for video games because a faster response time helps to avoid ghosting, blurring, and streaking of images. Also ensure that you have adequate memory within your computer to support the features of your monitor and your video games. Even with ideal features and a fast response time for your monitor, you may still experience lag due to inadequate memory.

There are other features you might want to consider for your monitor. Consider the brightness of your monitor, as well as the contrast ratio range. Other monitor features are HDMI input and built-in speakers. A tilt monitor can also be very useful if you want to move it from the standard stationary position.

The final thing to consider will be how you will position your monitor or monitors. With dual monitors, they usually sit side by side. This allows your images to display as if it is one long screen. However, another way that your monitors can be positioned is by mounting them on a wall. Depending on the size of your monitor, this may give the look and feel of playing a video game on a TV. It also gives you options for dual monitors, since they can be mounted vertically or horizontally.…

When It Comes To Content, Creating Beats Curating

In social media, content is king. The content you share online ultimately determines your social media success. If you aren’t sharing relevant, engaging content with your fans and followers you aren’t supplying value or giving your audience a reason to connect with you online. Good content is the backbone of any social media strategy, and it is impossible to excel in the social sphere without it. So where does good content come from? There are two options: you create it, or you curate it.

Content is the currency of the social web, and creating good, original content is always the best way to go. However, creating valuable and compelling content may present a challenge for many businesses. Therefore, more and more brands are trying to establish themselves through content curation – rather than creation.

Marketing expert Rohit Bhargava defines a content curator as:”someone who continually finds, groups, organizes and shares the best and most relevant content on a specific issue online.”

According to a recent eMarketer report, 85% of marketers curate content in order to establish thought leadership. However, while content curation is a good way of supplying your online audiences with relevant content, sharing someone else’s content does not make you a thought leader.

Time is money, and since creating good content takes a lot more time than curating it, many businesses and marketers are sharing curated content and confusing the resulted attention with thought leadership. There are billions of content pieces shared on the Internet daily, and sifting through the noise to find the “needle in the haystack” can be difficult and superfluous. Therefore, content curators are valued for what they discover and share – that’s it. They are not valued for their own perspectives on a subject matter, and thus cannot be considered thought leaders.

According to “Thought Leadership Marketing is an Oxymoron” there are three key tenants of thought leadership. They are as follows: thought leadership is recognized, thought leadership is expansive, thought leadership is pushing boundaries.

Content curation, though valuable, is not a marketing shortcut. Your prospects connect with you online because they want to learn more about you. They want to know your views on a certain industry. However, when you simply curate the content of other’s your audiences doesn’t learn anything about you, your brand, or your thinking. Curating content doesn’t set you apart, because everyone else is doing the same thing. If you want to stand out and reach your audience you need to create content – not just curate it.…

So How Do We Build an Online Marketing Strategy That Uses Social Media?

So how do we build an online marketing strategy that uses the social media platform to promote our online Social Media Approach

Social marketing Approach

Well you could use a 3 step approach which would be:

• Identify your market with Social media search tools

• Start to pay attention to the conversations taking place at those locations

• Connect with your target market by developing good relevant content

When you are looking to connect with your target market initially one of the first places to go is blogosphere, here you will find bloggers having conversations about your interests and your products. Also you will find these same people having conversations about other products that they enjoy, you could even use this as great intelligence for brand development.

Another important piece of information you will take from these conversations are products that they don’t like and the reason that they don’t like the, again fantastic market research about your target market place.

The next step to finding / researching your market is to go over to Google BlogSearch and search for the keywords you are highlighting in your campaigns. You can also put other search terms that relate to the business that you are researching

When you go to this site you will see a short listing of related blogs, if there are too many results returned you can tune the time etc to all blogs posted within the last hour, day, month. Some of these blogs will be extremely relevant to your subject matter whilst some be using the search terms out of context. The idea here is that you click through the “Related Blogs” to see if any of them are posting about subjects related to your subject matter.

When you find ones that may be related and are therefore good to keep an eye on, you can then plug their RSS feeder into a Google feed reader ( ) account and that way you can be sure to watch what these blogs are posting and keep ahead of any technology changes.

Social Media Accounts – Twitter

Twitter offers a “Find Users” or “Find People” search facility that allows you to go and look for individuals who share the same interests in the products or services you may be offering. You can use this facility to find keywords in descriptions or in the author bio section

( )

This another great utility that allows you to search through twitter posts to find ones that include your keywords. From there you can click through the twitter users you find in both sets of search results, and check to see if they are discussing.

Social Media – Facebook

Facebook offers a similar single search box facility; from there you can browse through user profiles, groups and “Fan Pages”. You can start by connecting with groups that identify with your interest’s or product types. Using these sorts of …

PS3 No Power – How to Fix My Playstation 3 That Has No Power

Got the PS3 no power problem? And now, you are wondering how you can possibly fix your PlayStation 3 that has no power? Well, basically you’ve got 2 options. You can either send your console over to Sony, or you will perform a fix by yourself with the step by step help from a repair guide.

Some tips that might fix the PS3 no power error

1) Restart your console.

2) Check for loose cables.

3) Try to unplug all cables except the power cord, and plug them back in.

4) Take out the hard-drive and put it back in.

Didn’t these tips fix the PS3 no power error? Than it’s time for you to either send your PlayStation 3 that has no power to Sony, or to fix it yourself with the step by step help from a repair guide.

PS3 no power fix by Sony?

First of all I have to say that this option sound very good… Right? But the truth says it’s not. You see, when you do this, you will have to pay $150 if your warranty has been expired.

Another downside is that you’ll have to wait 3-8 weeks before the PS3 no power error is fixed and you can get back playing your favourite games. Quite expensive and time consuming… Right?

PS3 no power fix by myself with the step by step PlayStation 3 repair guide?

Actually, this is your best option if you ask me… This is because it’s cheap and fast. But now you are probably wondering how you can actually do a Ps3 no power fix by yourself… Right? Well, it’s very simple… Because you are going to use a PlayStation 3 repair guide… So why should you use one…?

A PlayStation 3 repair guide will basically give you step by step instructions and that’s also coming along with highly detailed photo’s. This way, the repair will be easy.

A great thing about fixing your PlayStation 3 that has no power by yourself, is the fact that it’s cheap and fast.…

Gaming Laptops Under $1000

If you’re doing a little digging to find a decent gaming laptop under $1000, you might run across several options out there. Your best bet would be to create a list of features you want from the laptop and search according to that list.

A good gaming laptop must first be configured to carry a powerful processor. Now for this limited budget, some good suggestions would be dual-core processors, since these are both powerful and affordable at the same time. Single core processors are great for simple tasks, but since games demand more from the gaming system, it’s a lot better if you start with a dual-core processor just to make sure everything runs fine.

In terms of system memory a good target to start at would be 3GB. Extreme gaming laptops might carry up to 16GB, but for a modest gaming laptop, 3 or 4GB of RAM is a good start, since most modern games don’t even go beyond 3GB in their system requirements list. This amount will allow you to also do some editing work, graphic design and even a bit of multitasking.

The video card that comes with a gaming laptop has to be dedicated. What this means is that it has to have its own dedicated memory, so it doesn’t take from your available RAM in order to run. For this budget you’ll probably get away with a decent model from either nVidia or ATI with about 512MB to 1GB of dedicated memory. This is fine if you don’t mind running games in medium to high quality settings, but for extreme graphics you’ll definitely need to do better than this.

Games are better played when they’re viewed properly and you don’t have to strain your eyes to keep the crosshair on your target. This means that the screen size on your gaming laptop should not go under 15 inches, since then all the targets you’re hunting will be mere pixels. Average laptop screen sizes are in the 15.4 inch range, but you might also find 16 inch screen laptops in this budget range and they’re quite capable of displaying decent resolutions too.

The hard drive is often an overlooked feature in gaming laptops, since all it does is store information. You should not overlook one aspect of HDD though, and that is their rpm. More is better in this case, so don’t settle for an average laptop hard drive with 5400rpm, but try to go for a 7200 rpm model, or, if you’re willing to spend a bit, go for an SSD drive.…