text:
I believe in the power of ten—more specifically, in the power of the tenth person. In Jewish tradition, certain prayers—including the prayer for mourning—cannot be recited unless ten adults—over the age of 13– are present. For certain orthodox communities the number may be restricted to ten males; for others, men and women are counted as part of what is called a minyan. The saying goes that anywhere in the world a Jew who has lost a partner, a parent, a sibling or a child, ought to be able to enter any synagogue or temple and receive the opportunity to say Kaddish.
What is the significance of the number ten? Can the universe, as some assert, be defined in powers of ten? Is there some deep, numerological meaning to the number? That I can't say. What I can do is tell a story that confirms my belief in the power of that number and in the benefits that accrue when that critical mass is achieved. I was eleven years old in November of 1964 when my father died of pancreatic cancer. Our family officially began a year of mourning. That year began with the ritual of sitting shiva—seven days of intense mourning, during which a minyan met in our home and kaddish was recited there. When the week was up, and for eleven months, my brothers and I became part of a daily minyan at our local synagogue.
Only eleven, I did not count as part of the ten but I felt the special power of being part of a wonderfully supportive and nurturing community. It was not easy waking up in the darkness of those wintery mornings but the dark seemed dispelled by the light of the sanctuary and by the beaming smiles of the regular minyan makers. A bit of schnapps at the end of each morning service no doubt helped to warm us all on those chilling mornings.
Each member of the ten had a kind of signature personality and a nickname or shorthanded way of being named. There was the tall and handsome gentleman whom we all called "the missile man," who, we were told, worked in the aero space field. There was "the egg man," a jovial elderly man who sold eggs on a truck every day. And there was a mysterious old gentleman, a "professional mourner," Mr. Norman, who really hadn't lost anyone at all but was being paid to say the Kaddish for others. I recall, though, how passionately he read a particular prayer, the Shema, striking his chest, for emphasis, so passionately.
When the eleven months of mourning lifted, I recall feeling a mixture of relief (I was, after all, a child who would rather have been at the playground most afternoons) and sadness that I would no longer be part of this group of ten. Perhaps I felt some jealousy as well—near the end of our year, a new boy came, a boy as young as I had been, who had just lost his father. It was his turn now, to enjoy the power of ten.
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text:
Wildcat Grants Options to Directors, Officers, Employees & Consultants at $1.58
December 19, 2006
Vancouver, B.C., December 19, 2006 - Wildcat Silver Corporation (CNQ: WILD) ("Wildcat" or the "Company") announces the granting of 1,270,000 stock options to directors, officers, employees and consultants of the Company at an exercise price of $1.58 per share for a period of 5 years expiring on December 18, 2011.
ABOUT WILDCAT SILVER CORPORATION �" Wildcat is developing the Hardshell silver project in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, USA. The Company has contracted Pincock, Allen & Holt of Lakewood, Colorado to complete a Preliminary Assessment Scoping Study due by January 2007. Wildcat trades on the CNQ Exchange in Canada under the symbol WILD.
For additional information please visit www.wildcatsilver.com or contact:
Marlo Hamer-Jackson, Investor Relations Manager
Phone: 604-687-1717
Fax: 604-687-1715
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Donald B. Clark
President and Director
The statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements involving known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to vary materially from targeted results. Such risks and uncertainties include those described from time to time in the Corporation's latest annual report and management discussion and analysis. The Corporation assumes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
The CNQ has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
These recommendations are what I typically either install or suggest to anyone who is less than proficient with computers, and also use myself.
Browser: Mozilla Firefox
Really the main reason I suggest this browser is the Adblock Plus addon. Now I know that websites need ads in order to be profitable, which is why they exist in the first place, but a great deal of these ads are very misleading. In many cases they are setup to look like a download button ( CNET is a prime offender ) on pages where users are searching for legitimate software ( such as free anti virus ) and cause the less than skilled to download adware. Until ad companies phase out these misleading ads, this will remain my preferred settings.
In one case I suggested a free anti virus to a friend, and he ended up downloading some horrible malware instead because he could not recognize the difference between an ad and the actual download location. Who got the Blame? Me of course.
Another addon I highly recommend is WOT or Web of Trust. This allows a user to rate any website based upon how trustworthy it is. There are many similar tools available, but this particular one is the most highly used. Keep in mind that many websites are unfairly ranked poorly due to advertising techniques, but that is another issue. In my personal opinion, the pros in this case greatly outweigh the cons.
AntiVirus: Avast or AVG
Either of these will be effective, and there is very little difference between the two. It is imperative to have an antivirus program installed, and the free ones provide almost as much protection as the paid versions.
Paid versions typically do more to monitor your network security more than anything else, and is really only essential for advanced users. In a rural area such as where I live, you would have to be so close to my house ( and trespassing ) to hack my network that you are likely to be shot.
Now these programs are more suited to repairing damage already done from NOT using my recommendations, but will end up being important at one time or another.
Spywarebot: Search and Destroy
You can save a great deal of money using these programs by not having to take your computer to a grossly overpriced repair shop. Call any computer shop and describe just about any problem. The very first thing they will almost always say is "Sounds like a virus". This is why it is much better to be proactive, and these programs are essential.
As always, be vigilant and read user reviews from third party sites before installing anything. And NEVER click on a link from your email in order to log into ebay/google/paypal/any site at all.
Recommended Free Software
These recommendations are what I typically either install or suggest to anyone who is less than proficient with computers, and also use myself.


text:
Actress Amanda Bynes, who has been on a mental-health hold by Ventura County authorities since a bizarre incident Monday, will remain under evaluation for at least the next few days.
A judge in Ventura County agreed to extend the mental-health hold at her family's request, according to E! Entertainment.
As a more long-term solution, Bynes' parents are considered seeking a conservatorship against the troubled star, a source close to the situation told The Times.
Under a conservatorship, which must be granted by a judge, a person turns over the most basic decisions of their life to another person or persons, including about money, medical treatment and even where they live.
Bynes' parents have expressed concerns about her welfare for more than a year and discussed seeking a conservatorship, according to a source familiar with the actress but not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
They visited her Wednesday.
Britney Spears' parents obtained a conservatorship after a series of erratic incidents in 2008, including a much-publicized visit to a salon where she had her head shaved. In Spears' case, her father has overseen her life with a court-ordered attorney since she was deemed legally incompetent.
Bynes was detained Monday by Ventura County sheriff's deputies and is being held for an involuntary mental-health evaluation, authorities said.
Bynes was detained after igniting her pant leg while setting a small fire with a gas can in the driveway of a Thousand Oaks home, according to deputies and witnesses. The actress grew up in Thousand Oaks, where her father had a dental practice.Bynes, already facing drug charges in New York and the subject of a series of charges in L.A. County, was taken into custody for her own safety under California's Welfare and Institutions Code, known as a 5150 hold, after the incident, Sheriff's Capt. Don Aguilar said.
Under the law, she can be held for 72 hours. But sources familiar with the incident say the actress may be held another 14 days if she is determined to be a danger to herself or others.
A witness who called 911 reported seeing Bynes with a small gas can and was concerned it could explode.
Andrew Liverpool told reporters he saw "this girl lying down here with her left pant leg on fire and there is this gas can right here and it is trailing fire."
Liverpool said that when he went to help she had already managed to snuff out the flames on her pant leg.
He said Bynes was with a small dog and that when he asked if she was OK, she said she was fine.
As he was moving the gas can away and others arrived to help, he said, Bynes left the scene, but he found her on the next block. He said she then tried to leave in a cab, but he told the driver not to take her anywhere.
When he looked at her he said he realized "it is Amanda Bynes." He said Bynes claimed that her dog had been burned.
Deputies arrived at the home in the 200 block of Avenida de los Arboles about 8:46 p.m.
"There was a call about a small fire that she'd apparently set in front of the residence, kind of out on a sidewalk on the concrete," Sgt. Eric Buschow said. "It wasn't an attempt to burn down the house or anything."
Buschow said the fire caused no property damage.
Police investigate overcrowded Hancock Park home
Police investigate fatal shooting of man in Baldwin Park
Democratic leaders ask Filner to resign amid sexual harassment claims
Twitter: @lacrimes| Google+


text:
The Witness
3.9 359 5 1
Paperback(Mass Market Paperback - Reprint)
Want it by Thursday, October 18
Order now and choose Expedited Shipping during checkout.
Same Day shipping in Manhattan. See Details
The Witness by Sandra Brown
The 16-time New York Times bestselling superstar presents her new blockbuster--a suspenseful tale of deception, passion, and murder. A brave young woman risks her own life and that of her unborn child to turn state's witness against her white supremacist ex-husband and father-in-law.
Product Details
|Grand Central Publishing
|Publication date:
|Edition description:
|Sales rank:
|Product dimensions:
|4.10(w) x 6.70(h) x 1.40(d)
About the Author
Sandra Brown is the author of seventy New York Times bestsellers. There are over eighty million copies of her books in print worldwide, and her work has been translated into thirty-four languages. She lives in Texas. For more information you can visit www.SandraBrown.net.
Hometown:Arlington, TX
Date of Birth:March 12, 1948
Place of Birth:Waco, Texas
Education:Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters, Texas Christian University, 2008
Customer Reviews
Average Review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
The Witness based on 0 ratings. 358 reviews.
I love Sandra Brown books just so tired of Barnes and Noble being so deceptive and hyping these books as a new release beginning to appear that B and N is hoping we will reourcgase something published decades ago All they need to do is add a statement that its first time published as an ebook thats what KINDLE does
This book really sucked me in. Coudln't put it down. A warning to people that don't like going back and forth in the time sequence. I usually don't like that but it was esential to the story Brown wanted to tell. This would have been 5 stars by me but Brown didn't provide enough of an ending for me. I was looking for an epilogue or something.
Enjoyed this thriller by Sandra Brown as I do most of her books. This was unusual plot, but kept you on the edge of your seat.
They need to tell you that it is an older book. Now ive bought it twice. I think I should get a store credit or something. Again, why preorder? Very disappointed Barnes and Noble!
This was the first sandra brown book i read, and it blew me away. After that i read a ton of her books and became a huge fan. This book has so many themes that I look for in a good read and just the right touch of romance. It instantly became one of my favorites...this and Slow Heat in Heaven! Read them both!
377 pages......I like this book it kept my interest....a lot ofgoing back and forth and I was surprised at the end......it was different writing for SB.
Product Details for this book says that the Publication Date is 6/25/2013. So, I thought this was a new book by Sandra Brown. I'm not sure what that date means, because I have read this book previously. Very Frustrating. It is a good book though.
I loved this book as I have loved all the Sandra Brown books I have read. I highly recommend it.
This was a first with Sandra Brown, but it won't be the last. What a great read for everyone. I just kept at this book until it was finished...just couldn't put it down. Even though I figured out what the ending would be, it was fantastic reading right to the end. Highly recommended to anyone.
This book was great! If you have never read a Sandra Brown novel before, this is the one to get you started! It is filled with suspence and romance! You are not going to want to put this down!
The story is very instense from beginning to end. It'll keep you on the edge of your seat. The romance is just as instense as the plot. I really enjoyed this book so much so that I had to listen to the audio cassette.
Good story, but I thought it was a new release. This happens a lot when buying Nook books.
I loved this book, Although some of the content was so sad to me I couldnt beleive the brutalness of Gibb and Matt. And some of the scenes were just hard to think about. But it was a great suspense and really hooked me in from the start. On a negative side I found it hard to think that someone as kind as Kendall would have such a trashy best friend who would sleep with two strangers she had never even met and spill her secret location to. So some things were just so unrealistic but on the whole a great fast read
Great suspense, with the plot building up slowly to immerse you into the characters and mistery. It sucks you in. I agree with other reviewers that the end was cut too short and the book would have benefited from an epilogue. That's why I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. Also, it is true that this is a rerelease. The book is many years old. You can pick this up here and there in the story (for example, when the male character, who is 42, tells us that he was born in 1952). It did not bother me, but I can understand why some reviewers were thrown off. Regardless, it is a terrific thriller with a good dose of romance, just the way I like it.
First book i've read by this author, but i'm sure it won't be the last, i would have preferred her best girlfriend's character to have been a nicer character
This a great story but i read it about 3/4yrs back. Bn gives the impression it is a new book.
Written in and interesting manner to keep you guessing. A little gruesome at times, but the overall story line is a good one.
Highly recommend. It was great
Well written full of adventure, action, and adventure. A enjoyable read.
The book is sooo cool
Wow! Great book! This book had me on the edge of my seat in this nail biting thriller! This was a fast paced page turner that I could not put down until I was finished! Excellent book! I loved it! XO
Well written. Exciting read with good plot.
Sandra Brown displays remarkable talent in her new book The Witness. The story goes back and forth in time, but done in a way that is easy to follow. The book has a very unique plot that really draws you in with each and every page.
This book was really rwisted. I had a hard time putting it down
Some of the violence is more than I cared for but I loved the story. I read it in two days.


text:
Marvin Redpost: A Flying Birthday Cake? (Marvin Redpost: 6)
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- Synopsis
Does anybody like being the new kid at school? The new kid, Joe Normal, doesn't, and since his parents are always moving, he is forced to be the new kid again and again. Joe tries to fit in, but the kids never like him. They talk about him behind his back for kissing the flagpole, they laugh out loud at him in class when he doesn't know what an elephant is because he says there aren't many of them in Chicago where he's from.
At recess they don't want to let him in line to play ball and after school they say if he goes home with them to play, their dog will bite him. Marvin agrees that a kid who shakes hands with everyone he meets is weird, but even if it means Marvin's friends will stop playing with him, Marvin decides to take Joe home. Marvin thinks it's hard being the new kid.
Strange things continue to happen when Joe and Marvin go home. Joe is wild about Jell-O, teaches the family to play a new game where they step on paper plates instead of slimy fish, and eats his pizza with a knife and fork, but everyone, even Marvin's teen aged brother, likes Joe. Marvin and Joe become best friends and suddenly the kids at school like Joe, too.
Then why does Joe come to Marvin's house in a big limo driven by soldiers? What does all of this have to do with a giant flying birthday cake with green frosting?
- Copyright:
- 1999
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Excellent
- Book Size:
- 77 Pages
- 9780679890003
- Publisher:
- Date of Addition:
- 08/10/07
- Copyrighted By:
- Louis Sachar
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Categories:
- Children's Books, Literature and Fiction, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Education
- Submitted By:
- Mayrie ReNae
- Proofread By:
- Lissi
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.
Other Books
- by Louis Sachar
- in Children's Books
- in Literature and Fiction
- in Science Fiction and Fantasy
- in Education


text:
NOTICE: This opinion is subject to motions for rehearing under Rule 22 as well as formal revision before publication in the New Hampshire Reports. Readers are requested to notify the Reporter, Supreme Court of New Hampshire, Supreme Court Building, Concord, New Hampshire 03301, of any editorial errors in order that corrections may be made before the opinion goes to press. Opinions are available on the Internet by 9:00 a.m. on the morning of their release. The direct address of the court's home page is: http://www.courts.state.nh.us/supreme
Hillsborough-southern judicial district
No. 2001-172
Argued: September 18, 2002
Opinion Issued: December 24, 2002
Philip T. McLaughlin, attorney general (Susan P. McGinnis, attorney, on the brief and orally), for the State.
Christopher M. Johnson, chief appellate defender, and David M. Rothstein, deputy chief appellate defender, of Concord (Mr. Johnson and Mr. Rothstein on the brief, and Mr. Johnson orally), for the defendant.
NADEAU, J. The defendant, Bruce Watkins, was convicted in Superior Court (Hampsey, J.) for driving after having been certified a habitual offender, see RSA 262:23 (1993) (amended 2000, 2001), and disobeying a police officer, see RSA 265:4(I)(b) (1993). In his brief on appeal, he seeks reversal of only the driving after certification conviction. We reverse and remand.
The record supports the following facts. The defendant was stopped for a traffic violation on June 3, 2000. When it was discovered that he had given the officer who stopped him a false name, the defendant was arrested for disobeying a police officer. He was also charged with driving after certification as a habitual offender, having been certified on January 27, 1993.
After a jury trial, the defendant was found guilty on both charges. On appeal, he argues that the trial court erred by: 1) failing to dismiss the indictment for driving after certification as a habitual offender where the certification occurred more than seven years prior to his arrest; 2) failing to charge the jury on a lesser-included offense; 3) allowing the State to introduce his prior conviction for driving after certification as a habitual offender; and 4) failing to instruct the jury regarding the States misrepresentation of the law in its closing argument.
The defendant first contends that the habitual offender charge should have been dismissed because his certification as a habitual offender expired prior to June 3, 2000. Specifically, he argues that as a matter of statutory interpretation, a person may not be certified as a habitual offender for a period longer than four years. Alternatively, he argues that if the applicable statutes are interpreted to allow a longer certification period, they violate the constitutional separation of powers doctrine by delegating unlimited legislative power to an administrative agency.
We review questions of statutory interpretation de novo. See Scheffel v. Krueger, 146 N.H. 669, 671 (2001). "This court is the final arbiter of the meaning of a statute, as expressed in the words of the statute itself. We interpret statutes not in isolation, but in the context of the overall statutory scheme." Appeal of Mikell, 145 N.H. 435, 439 (2000) (quotation omitted).
RSA 259:39 defines a habitual offender as a person whose driving record shows a specified number of convictions for certain offenses committed within a five-year period. See RSA 259:39 (1993) (amended 2001). RSA 262:19, in turn, provides a mechanism for revoking the drivers licenses of persons determined to be habitual offenders. It provides, in part:
If the director [of the division of motor vehicles of the department of safety] finds that [a] person is the same person named in the transcript or abstract [of the persons conviction record] and that the person is an habitual offender, the director shall, by appropriate order, revoke the persons drivers license and direct the person not to drive a motor vehicle on the ways of this state for a period of one to 4 years effective upon the date of the order or upon dates of final conviction of the offense that resulted in certification.
RSA 262:19, III (Supp. 2002); see also RSA 262:19, I (Supp. 2002); RSA 259:20 (1993).
The defendant asserts that RSA 262:19, III restricts the period for which a habitual offender may be certified to a maximum of four years. Although he recognizes that a habitual offender must petition to have his license restored, he argues that "[t]he question posed by this case concerns the status of a person after the habitual offender certification period has ended, but before any request for the return of the license is made." He contends that because his certification as a habitual offender had expired prior to June 3, 2000, he could not be convicted of the offense of driving after certification.
We find nothing in the statute to support the defendants interpretation. RSA 262:19, III makes no reference either to a period of certification or to a time limitation on habitual offender status. Rather, the time period of one to four years referred to in RSA 262:19, III is the period for which the habitual offenders license may be revoked and he may be ordered not to drive upon the ways of this State. This period of license revocation is referred to as such in two other provisions of the statute. Thus, RSA 262:22 provides:
No license to drive motor vehicles in New Hampshire shall be issued to an habitual offender:
I. Until such time as the period of revocation imposed pursuant to RSA 262:19, III has been served;
II. Until such time as financial responsibility requirements are met; and
III. Until the license of such person to drive a motor vehicle in this state has been restored in writing by an order of the director or of a court of record entered in a proceeding as hereinafter provided.
RSA 262:22 (1993) (emphasis added). RSA 262:24 provides:
Upon the expiration of the revocation period imposed pursuant to RSA 262:19, III, or under conditions established by the commissioner [of safety] pursuant to RSA 262:19, VI, such person may petition the director for restoration of his license to drive a motor vehicle on the ways of this state. Upon such petition, and for good cause shown, the director may restore to such person the license to drive a motor vehicle on the ways of this state upon such terms and conditions as the director may prescribe subject to other provisions of law relating to the issuance of drivers licenses.
RSA 262:24 (1993) (emphasis added); see also RSA 259:13 (1993).
Read together, these statutes provide that the director is authorized to revoke a habitual offenders license for one to four years, at the end of which time the habitual offender is entitled to petition for restoration of his license. Thus, the revocation period of one to four years specified in RSA 262:19, III constitutes the time during which issuance of a license to a habitual offender is absolutely prohibited. At the end of that period, and upon petition of the habitual offender, after satisfying the requirements for licensure including those of financial responsibility, see RSA 262:22, II, and for good cause shown, the director may restore the habitual offenders license. See RSA 262:24.
Moreover, RSA 259:90 provides, in part:
After a license, registration, permit or privilege has been revoked, no application for reissue of said license, registration, permit, or privilege may be acted upon by the department until the expiration of the period of revocation. The revocation of any license, registration, permit, or privilege shall remain in effect until a license, registration or permit has been reissued or the privilege has been restored by the department.
RSA 259:90 (1993). In State v. Batchelder, 125 N.H. 694, 695 (1984), we held that "[i]f the revokee fails to seek restoration of his driving privileges after the four years have expired, he is still an habitual offender because the original order remains in effect until he takes the affirmative step of seeking restoration." The evidence presented at trial, in this case, indicated that the defendants license had not been restored as of June 3, 2000.
Finally, we note that RSA 262:23 itself, the section under which the defendant was convicted, says nothing about a certification period or the expiration thereof, but rather requires for conviction that an order prohibiting a person from driving be in effect. See RSA 262:23; see also State v. Crotty, 134 N.H. 706, 710 (1991). RSA 262:23, I, provides, in part:
It shall be unlawful for any person to drive any motor vehicle on the ways of this state while an order of the director or the court prohibiting such driving remains in effect. If any person found to be an habitual offender under the provisions of this chapter is convicted of driving a motor vehicle on the ways of this state while an order of the director or the court prohibiting such operation is in effect, he shall be sentenced . . . to imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than 5 years.
(Emphasis added.) Reference to the order remaining in effect, rather than to the duration of the revocation period, accords with the language of RSA 259:90, reiterating that a license remains revoked until restored, even after the initial revocation period has expired. Thus, we conclude that the defendant could properly have been charged with violation of RSA 262:23 and the trial court did not err in denying his motion to dismiss.
The defendant nevertheless argues that if RSA 262:23 is so interpreted, it is unconstitutional. Specifically, he contends that it violates the separation of powers doctrine because it delegates unlimited legislative power to the director to continue the habitual offender status of a person indefinitely. The defendant argues that this case is similar to Guillou v. State, 127 N.H. 579 (1986), in which we struck down a statute that allowed the director of motor vehicles to suspend or revoke a license for any cause he deemed sufficient. We also noted in Guillou, however, that an "example of motor vehicle statutes which contain adequate standards for administrative determinations and court review is the habitual offender law." Id. at 583. Accordingly, we reject the defendants argument.
The defendant next argues that the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury on the lesser-included offense of driving after suspension or revocation. A defendant is entitled to have the jury consider a lesser-included offense if the following requirements are met:
First, the lesser offense must be embraced within the legal definition of the greater offense. This requires a comparison of the statutory elements of the offenses in question without reference to the evidence adduced at trial. Second, the evidence adduced at trial must provide a rational basis for a finding of guilt on the lesser offense rather than the greater offense.
In re Nathan L., 146 N.H. 614, 617 (2001) (quotations, citation and brackets omitted).
We held in State v. Moses, 128 N.H. 617, 621 (1986), that driving after suspension or revocation, see RSA 263:64 (Supp. 2002), is a lesser-included offense to driving after certification as a habitual offender, see RSA 262:23. We stated in Moses that "the only element in either offense that is not common to the other is the habitual offender status of the defendant." Id. Our holding in State v. Lillios, 128 N.H. 385, 386 (1986), however, indicates that another element of driving after certification not common to driving after suspension or revocation is that operation of the vehicle take place on a way. Nevertheless, the offense of driving after suspension or revocation is still embraced within the legal definition of driving after certification. Thus, as the State concedes, the first requirement for a lesser-included offense instruction is satisfied, and the only issue before us is whether the evidence adduced at trial provided a rational basis for a finding of guilt on the offense of driving after suspension or revocation rather than on the offense of driving after certification as a habitual offender.
The State first contends that the defendant failed to preserve this issue for appellate review because, although he made a pre-trial request for a lesser-included offense instruction, he failed to renew that request at the close of evidence. Assuming, without deciding, that the issue is preserved, we nevertheless conclude that the court did not err in declining to give the instruction.
The defendant argues that the second requirement of the test was satisfied at trial because he challenged the non-common element of his habitual offender status, and its related mens rea requirement, by contending that the status had expired and by undermining the States proof that he knew of his status. Because we have rejected the defendants expired-status argument as a matter of law, we hold that it did not entitle him to a lesser-included offense instruction.
To obtain a conviction for driving after certification as a habitual offender, the State was required to prove not only that the defendant drove a motor vehicle on the ways of this State while a habitual offender order prohibiting such operation was in force, but also that he did so with knowledge of his status as a habitual offender. See Crotty, 134 N.H. at 710. The defendant offered to stipulate, if the court would instruct on the lesser-included offense of driving after suspension or revocation, that the lesser-included offense would constitute a class A misdemeanor.
Conviction of the misdemeanor offense of driving after suspension or revocation requires proof: "(1) that the defendants license to drive had been suspended or revoked; (2) that the defendant drove a motor vehicle after such suspension; and (3) that the defendant did so with knowledge of the revocation or suspension of his license to drive." State v. Curran, 140 N.H. 530, 532 (1995). Thus, both the greater and lesser offenses have a knowledge requirement.
The sole license revocation, of which there was any evidence, was the one imposed as a result of the defendants habitual offender certification. The only evidence that formed a basis for the defendants knowledge of the revocation was that he was served with notice of his certification hearing, attended the hearing, and was served with a copy of the certification order indicating that his license was revoked. Thus, the only evidence upon which the jury could rationally find that the defendant knew his license had been revoked also supported the finding that the defendant knew of his status as a habitual offender. The evidence, therefore, did not "provide a rational basis for a finding of guilt on the lesser offense rather than the greater offense." In re Nathan L., 146 N.H. at 617 (quotation omitted). Accordingly, the trial court did not err in refusing to instruct on the lesser-included offense.
The defendant next argues that the trial court erred by allowing the State to introduce his conviction in 1996 for driving after certification as a habitual offender. He contends that admitting evidence of the conviction violated New Hampshire Rules of Evidence 401, 403 and 404(b). We review the trial courts decision to admit the prior conviction under the unsustainable exercise of discretion standard. See State v. Brewster, 147 N.H. 645, 648 (2002). "To show that the trial courts decision is not sustainable, the defendant must demonstrate that the courts ruling was clearly untenable or unreasonable to the prejudice of his case." State v. Lambert, 147 N.H. 295, 296 (2001) (quotation omitted).
Rule 404(b) prohibits the admission of "[e]vidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts . . . to prove the character of a person in order to show that the person acted in conformity therewith." N.H. R. Ev. 404(b). "Prior bad acts evidence is admissible when it is relevant for a purpose other than proving the defendants character or disposition; there is clear proof that the defendant committed the act; and the probative value of the evidence is not substantially outweighed by its prejudice to the defendant." Brewster, 147 N.H. at 648. Because the first and third prongs of this test entail determinations of relevance and probative value versus prejudice, see, e.g., State v. Marti, 140 N.H. 692, 695 (1996); State v. Dushame, 136 N.H. 309, 316 (1992), we need not separately address the defendants contentions that Rules 401 (relevance) and 403 (probative value substantially outweighed by danger of, among other things, prejudice) were also violated.
The State sought to admit the prior conviction as tending to prove the defendants knowledge of his status as a habitual offender. We agree that the prior conviction has some relevance to the issue of knowledge. "Relevant evidence need only have a tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence." Dushame, 136 N.H at 316 (quoting N.H. R. Ev. 401).
We do not believe that the prior conviction has the relevance which it appears to have been accorded by the trial court. The court allowed admission of the prior conviction to counter the defendants argument that his status had changed after the expiration of the revocation period. The 1996 conviction, however, was for an offense that apparently occurred on September 1, 1995, less than three years after his certification on January 27, 1993. Thus, the defendants 1996 conviction is not necessarily relevant to his knowledge of his status at the end of the revocation period.
Turning to the third prong of the analysis, we conclude that the probative value of the 1996 conviction is substantially outweighed by its prejudice. We acknowledge that the prior conviction was not for a particularly "odious or provocative" act, and thus is "less likely to appeal to the jurys sympathies, arouse its sense of horror, provoke its instinct to punish, or trigger other mainsprings of human action that may cause a jury to base its decision on something other than the established propositions in the case." State v. Smith, 141 N.H. 271, 280 (1996) (quotations and brackets omitted). Nevertheless, we have also "recognized that unfair prejudice is inherent in evidence of other similar crimes or prior convictions." State v. Bassett, 139 N.H. 493, 502 (1995).
On the other hand, we conclude that the probative value of the 1996 conviction does not weigh heavily in the probative versus prejudicial balance. "The probative value of the other bad act evidence must also be considered in the context of its incremental value: trial courts must consider the extent to which the issue is established by other evidence, stipulation or inference." State v. McGlew, 139 N.H. 505, 510-11 (1995) (quotations omitted).
The State presented evidence of the defendants knowledge of his habitual offender status through testimony about the 1993 certification proceedings. Moreover, the jury heard testimony that the defendant stated at the time of his arrest that he did not have a license. Although the 1996 conviction, because it occurred more recently, is arguably more probative of the defendants knowledge of his habitual offender status in 2000 than his 1993 certification, its probative value is not significantly greater when considered in the context of this case.
We conclude that the 1996 conviction was cumulative of other evidence of the defendants knowledge of his habitual offender status in 2000, and that its probative value was substantially outweighed by the danger of prejudice to the defendant. We specifically note the increased danger of prejudice where the prior conviction is for the same offense as that currently charged: "Because of the similarity of the [prior] conviction . . . and the charged crimes, the jury may have been persuaded to find the defendant guilty, at least in part, because he had previously" committed the same offense. Bassett, 139 N.H. at 502. Accordingly, we hold that the trial courts exercise of discretion in admitting the conviction is unsustainable and we reverse the defendants conviction and remand for a new trial.
Because we reverse on the Rule 404(b) issue, we need not address the defendants remaining argument that the trial court erred in failing to give a curative instruction following the States misrepresentation of the law in its closing argument. As guidance to the trial court in similar cases, however, we offer the following. See Ebbert v. Ebbert, 123 N.H. 252, 255 (1983).
In its closing, the State argued, "In fact, ladies and gentlemen, based on the testimony and evidence that you heard in this case, the law requires you to convict." The defense objected and requested "an instruction to the jury informing them that [the States] statement was incorrect, and the law does not require them to convict." On appeal, the State concedes that the prosecutor misstated the law. Cf. State v. Bonacorsi, 139 N.H. 28, 30-31 (1994) (discussing Wentworth charge and jury nullification).
We recognize that "the trial court is in the best position to gauge any prejudicial effect the prosecutors closing remarks may have had on the jury," State v. DeCosta, 146 N.H. 405, 415 (2001), and we therefore review a decision not to give a curative instruction under the unsustainable exercise of discretion standard. See id.; Lambert, 147 N.H. at 296. We believe, however, that in this case, where the prosecutor blatantly misstated the law, a curative instruction would have been appropriate.
Reversed and remanded.
BROCK, C.J., and DALIANIS, J., concurred; BARRY, J., superior court justice, specially assigned under RSA 490:3, concurred.


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Release Scheduled: 2014-11-06 (CANCELED)
Update: this release was canceled at 3:50pm EST due to a bug. It was not deployed to any customer accounts and was replaced by version 8.10.637.
- You can now set the milestone for a case directly in the case list. Just show the milestone column and click on its value for an in-place editor
Tons of bug fixes! We fixed…
- A long-standing behavior (bug) where the opener of a case was changed each time the case was RE-opened. Now the opener persists across closing and re-opening a case. The plugin Original Opener for the non-FogBugz Ocelot UI has been removed as a result since it is obsolete. All cases have been updated to set the opener to the first user who opened
- A bug where saving the site configuration could disable the legacy custom fields "Version" and "Computer"
- A bug where a parent case didn't have a linked pop-up for estimated time if it and its sub-cases had not yet been worked on
- A bug where one could enter time on a closed case via the timesheet editor without there being an estimate. You are now correctly prompted for an estimate
- A bug where the elapsed time on a case linked to a full page instead of showing a pop-up with details of the time
- A bug on the account page where the next billing date was incorrect for free trials in certain circumstances, and for users with date format settings other than month-day-year
- A bug that showed a "stop work" link next to another user's interval on the list of time intervals for a given case
- A bug where editing timesheet entries while the case edit page is up might refresh the page, losing the case edit
- A bug where the timesheet editor did not resolve conflicting (overlapping) time intervals
- A bug that prevented showing deleted milestones and projects on the projects configuration page
Notification Center and Activity Feed:
- The notification and activity feeds now remember which filters you have set, e.g. only unread
- Better message when you deselect all filter options
- We are continuing to roll out these new features introduced in the previous release
Non-FogBugz Ocelot UI:
- Fixed a silent failure when using the Wiki Article: Case Relationships plugin to create a new case directly from a wiki page
- Discontinued the Original Opener plugin. It is obsolete now that the "opener" field on a case is immutable. Re-opening a case no longer changes the opener.


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Paris Games Week was held recently from October 28 through November 1st, 2015. It was the 6th iteration of the show and took place at the Paris Expo fairground and was the largest one since it began, with over 300,000 attendees. All of the major game companies were in attendance, including Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, Riot, Square Enix and more. However, the big takeaway from the event was the major press conference held the day before by Sony.
Sony Press Conference
Sony was relatively quiet during Gamescon this year, but decided to unleash a flurry of news and announcements in Paris this year. One of the biggest announcements was the unveiling of a release date for No Man's Sky, which will ship in June 2016. No Man's Sky has been a popular game at trade shows for the last few years, scooping up multiple "Best of Show" awards and dazzling audiences with its procedurally generated galaxy. It is being developed by Hello Games, a studio based in the UK who is famous for the Joe Danger franchise.
Another major announcement from Sony was another installment of the Gran Turismo Franchise, titled Gran Turismo Sport. This game will be one of the first franchises on the platform to support the Sony VR headset known as Playstation VR. Playstation VR, formally known by the code name Project Morpheus, is designed to be used with both the Playstation 4 and the Playstation Vita. Playstation VR is the latest in a series of VR helmets that are being developed by several different companies.
One of the other major features in Gran Turismo will have two sanctioned FIA Championships running. Those FIA events will feature actual prizes at the end of each series. FIA has been the governing body of multiple autoracing events. Polyphonal Digital, the studio behind GT, has also announced that beta testing will begin for the game in 2016.
Sony spent the majority of the rest of the conference announcing a few new titles, including Nier 2, and a new title called Detroit, from designer David Cage of Heavy Rain and Indigo Prophecy fame. They also showed expanded footage from games they had revealed earlier in the year at E3 including Wild and Uncharted 4.
The Show Floor
With over a quarter of a million attendees, the show floor was a major attraction at the conference. The entire week saw E-sports tournaments from League of Legends, Counterstrike: Go, HearthStone, TrackMania Turbo and Just Dance. Major tournaments went on throughout the 5 days for show goers to attend, including the grand finals of the League of Legend's women's tournament. There were also many pavilions set up for show goers to get their hands on demos for a ton of games. Each of the big three console manufacturers had large booths on the main floor, showing off the latest unreleased titles from various studios.
One of the biggest attraction of the show was the various virtual reality devices. A lot of them made their major debut at the show last year, but this year it was all about the Playstation VR. The other major competitor in the VR market, Facebook owned Oculus Rift, surprised many by not attending the event at all. Last year they had a huge presence at the show, but decided to skip the show this time around. This left a huge window for Sony to expand its market share by showing off some its newer titles running on the new hardware.
Another attraction of the show was the museum-like corner dedicated to gaming history. Popular with the kids, the classic game corner gave them an opportunity to play consoles the way their parents did during the 80's, 90's and early 2000's. Getting to play the N64 on a small CRT television is something that most of the kids never got to experience, as the system is nearing 20 years old.
No trade show would be complete without cosplay, and this year was no exception. Thousands of attendees dressed up as their favorite video game characters with elaborate makeup, costume and props. Game's like Assassin's Creed, Halo and other major franchises provided many fans with opportunities to be extremely creative with their costume designs.
Paris Games Week is the last major show of 2015. Now game companies will turn their attention to 2016 and CES, which is held annually in Las Vegas.


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Max Payne 3 has sold more boxed copies than Diablo 3, sending it to the top of the UK all formats chart. Rockstar's shooter shifted 8,000 more physical units than Diablo 3 securing it the number 1 spot on the chart.
It's the second biggest launch of the year behind Mass Effect 3. 58% of the copies were sold on Xbox 360, while the remaining 42 per cent were snatched up on PS3. Steam sales and digital downloads aren't taken into account on the chart, so the overall picture may be very different.
Of those who did opt for Diablo 3, apparently 11% bought the swanky Collector's Edition. Rounding out the top 5 last week are FIFA Street, Sniper Elite V2 and FIFA 12 respectively.
Thanks, Eurogamer.


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- March 26, 1930 - March 25, 2015
- Obetz, Ohio
of Kenneth's Passing
Share This Obituary
Make a Memorial Donation
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Kenneth was born on March 26, 1930 and passed away on Wednesday, March 25, 2015.
Kenneth was a resident of Obetz, Ohio at the time of passing.
Kenneth was married to Margaret.
A Masonic Service will be held at 8:00pm Monday at the funeral home.
If desired, contributions may be made to Shriners Hospital for Children-Cincinnati, 3229 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45229 in his memory.


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Robert Wayne Crockett
It is with profound sadness that his family announces the death of Robert Wayne Crockett on May 11, 2017. He will live on through his wife, Linda Drake Crockett, his children, Robert Wayne Crockett, Jr., Claudia Amelia Crockett and James T. Eastmead, Jr., Jonathan Drake and Allie Randall Crockett and his grandchildren, Parker, Claudia and Leila Eastmead and Emmalyn, Drake and Eva Crockett.
Born Sept. 24, 1946, to William Evans and Annie Laurie McNorrill Crockett, he is survived by his siblings, William Evans Crockett, Jr. and Grace Crockett Quick. Wayne will be remembered for his service to Burke County where he lived his 70 years, his dedication to the school he helped build and support, his fairness and his generosity.
The family received friends from 6-8 p.m. Friday, May 12, at the funeral home. Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 13, in the DeLoach-McKerley-Prescott Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. David Boggs and Bill Tinley officiating. Pallbearers were Kenneth English, James Evans, Robert Gradous, Paul McKie, John Cleve Newton and Carroll Price. Honorary pallbearers were Dr. Bonnie Jenkins, Bill Lively, Grady Mobley, Melvin Mobley, Raleigh Daniel and Franklin Dyck. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to honor Wayne can do so with a memorial to the EBA Endowment Fund, P.O. Box 787, Waynesboro, GA 30830, or their favorite local charity.
DeLoach-McKerley-Prescott Funeral Home & Cremation Service, 220 East 6th Street, Waynesboro, GA 30830 (706- 554-3531) You may sign the guest book at www.deloachfuneralhomes.com.


text: Home > Entertainment LOOK: Pokwang shows 'first picture' of baby ABS-CBN News Posted at Jun 19 2017 08:41 PM Share Save Facebook Twitter GPlus LinkedIn A post shared by Mayette (@itspokwang27) on Jun 18, 2017 at 8:53pm PDT Although it's not her first time to conceive, Pokwang seems very excited for her new baby. On Monday, the 44-year-old comedienne shared on Instagram the "first picture" or sonogram of her baby, whom she fondly calls "O'Brian," the surname of her partner, American actor Lee O'Brian. EXCLUSIVE: American boyfriend shares details of Pokwang's pregnancy The couple paid a visit to their physician. Pokwang is due to give birth in February next year. Meanwhile, the grateful mom thanked her followers for their continued prayers. "Thank you sa lahat ng mga dasal niyo para matupad ito, at sa patuloy niyo pang dasal para ligtas si Baby O'Brian," she wrote. A post shared by Chokoleit Garcia (@hot_chokoleit) on May 30, 2017 at 2:25am PDT She also joked that because of her delicate pregnancy, her friend Chokoleit is temporarily banned from their house. "Iwas din ako sa sarili ko," she quipped. Pokwang has a 20-year-old daughter with a former partner who is based in Japan. Share Save Facebook Share on Twitter GPlus LinkedIn Read More: Pokwang Lee O'Brian pregnancy comedy celebrity couples /life/05/10/17/watch-housekeeping-lessons-from-pokwang/entertainment/06/15/17/pokwang-is-pregnant-at-44/entertainment/06/16/17/pregnant-pokwang-thanks-fans-for-support/entertainment/06/16/17/exclusive-american-boyfriend-shares-details-of-pokwangs-pregnancy


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I want to put this recipe on my handy-dandy blog here so I don't FORGET to make them this week when we begin school at home again. I didn't make up this recipe so if you know where it came from, please let me know so I can give them props. UPDATE: Juicy Alligator posted this and I HAD to do it. Thanks Juicy!!
They look easy enough to make. I'll try to report back when we've made some. :o)
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 tsp pure peppermint extract (or another flavor of choice)
gel-paste food coloring of your choice
Grease a baking sheet (rimmed)
Greas a metal spatula
Add sugar, corn syrup, and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Stirring at all times. Once the mixture is boiling, allow it to boil without stirring. Once the mixture hits 304 degrees on your candy thermometer remove it from heat. (about 10 minutes)
Add lemon and your flavoring extract.
Pour onto the Greased pan.
Fold mixture into itself from all sides using spatula until the mixture starts to turn a little opaque.
Wearing rubber gloves, you will want to pull the candy as soon as it's cools enough to handle. It will be hot.
Pull to about 8-10 inches, twist and fold back into itself.
Take a small ball and drop food coloring in--you will need to continue to fold and twist both pieces until the candy mixture begins to whiten. Just a minute or two.
Lengthen both pieces about a foot and twist into each other. Twist from one end and use scissor to cut the length you desire. You can wrap it around candy sticks or cut into bite sized morsels.
You will have to work quickly!


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Rebellion is an important – and much abused – part of society. It is an anonymous Chinese man standing in the middle of a city street in the middle of the night in front of a tank, blocking it on its way to smash a futile effort to create the world's largest democracy. It is also privileged middle-aged white people, angry about promises of a life free from government intrusions smashed on the rocks of a financial system run amok. It is hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians rallying under an orange banner to refuse the megalomaniacal dreams of a former KGB-apparatchik dictator, but it is also a bored kid giving the finger to a teacher who is trying her best to make his life better. It is a tiny voice speaking out for the good of us all, but it is also a superpower-backed junta crushing a neonatal democracy.
Enter Misspent Youth (MY), a roleplaying game steeped in the juices of punk, a movement that didn't quite manage to define a generation, yet somehow managed to fend off death for 34 years and counting. MY's layout is an homage (for better and for worse) to the handmade zines that held pockets of geeks, thinkers, artists and hobbyists together before the advent of desktop publishing and ubiquitous blogging. It swears like a sailor that's gotten a little too comfortable in a new port. In its sincere little heart it wants to teach a few people the importance of righteous rebellion.
In Misspent Youth, you tell the tale of a group of Young Offenders (YOs) – teenagers in a science fiction world under the thumb of oppression who are pushed into rebellion. Over the course of several episodes (sessions) you reveal why they rebel, how they protect themselves from The Authority when it tries to put them back in their place, how the fight forces them to grow up (for better and for worse) and, finally, whether they succeed in bringing The Authority to its knees.
How to Start a Revolution
This is the point where I give a summary of a game's mechanics. It may take a few paragraphs, but I manage to hit all the high points. Let me tell you, although the rules only take about 50 graphic novel-sized pages of moderate text density, it wasn't easy this time. MY is a game where almost every rule bears a significant load, making it hard to summarize a mechanic by skipping all the fiddly bits. The pieces fit together snugly.
You begin by creating your Authority and its milieu of rules, called the Dystopia. The Authority is described mostly using traits and descriptors that act as cues for the players, describing what kind of story they're going to tell. The Dystopia could be the entire world, a small subsection of it, or even something like a spaceship or an arcology. It gets described in terms of "Systems of Control" The Authority uses to oppress those under it and the Exploits the YOs have available when they try to strike blows for freedom. As we shall see, Systems of Control and Exploits are also a sort of scoreboard for the story.
Creating a Young Offender means coming up with a description and then choosing a few Convictions – traits that describe how the YO tends to deal with problems. Convictions begin relatively innocent and idealistic, but in moments of crisis a YO may break a little bit, committing a horrible act for the sake of the struggle against The Authority, subverting one of his Convictions forever.
All of these follow a pattern of answering specific questions, using predefined lists of options for the first few and then, once they have a feel for where they're going, an open-ended question or two as cappers. This helps players get past "white paper syndrome," the problem of being creatively paralyzed because there are too many possibilities. Also, The Authority, The Dystopia and the YOs can turn out slightly different than the players' original vision when an option from a list is too shiny to resist. This kind of creative friction is a good thing – playing something a little different from your usual schtick is a good way to stretch your creative muscles – but if you disagree it's not too hard to keep your eye on the ball.
It's important to note that all of this is a group activity. It's a good idea to set aside a session for Authority, Dystopia and YO creation, since it will likely take a couple hours to finish. While it's possible for The Authority to come up with an Authority and Dystopia he wants to play on his own and bring it to the other players, it's a bad idea unless you really understand and agree with your players' tastes. Misspent Youth is a game that demands strong buy-in from all players, and group creation – including paying attention to all players' input and keeping an eye out for silent dissent – is the best way of generating it.
One Wrench at a Time
Play is broken up into episodes (as in television). An episode takes about a session to play, although that will vary a bit depending on your group's tendencies. At the beginning of the episode, each player comes up with an Authority Figure – an NPC agent of The Authority that stands a good chance of causing the YOs trouble during the upcoming episode. Each YO than asks the YO to his left a question, which may also become a focus of play, about their friendship.
It's a good idea to do the Authority Figures and Friendship Questions for the first episode as part of the world and character creation session. This creates less pressure to get through them in a hurry when the group is still getting comfortable with their setting and characters. It also lets The Authority (and the rest of the players) digest all of this freshly generated material a bit before hitting the Play button.
Between the creation processes, Authority Figures and Friendship Questions, The Authority has a lot of material to work with. Any time he finds himself at a loss, he can browse the YOs Convictions, The Authority's Systems of Control, and the Friendship Questions and Authority Figures for inspiration. This is by design, and there are a lot of roleplaying games that could use a dose of it.
An episode is made up of seven scenes, and the rules provide very broad guidelines about what kind of action should occur in each one, helping the group follow a traditional story arc. At the start of each scene a player chooses one of the Authority Figures or Friendship Questions to put in the spotlight for the scene and, knowing what kind of scene it should be, the player then describes the first five seconds, setting it in motion before handing off to the other players.
You will love or hate this kind of structure. Many roleplayers will, quite reasonably, find the scene guidelines an unnecessary straitjacket. Also, a lot of roleplayers avoid GMing because they want to avoid the kind of creative responsibility scene framing offers. If either of these sound like you, it's a good idea to stay far away from Misspent Youth. On the other hand, it empowers players yet again to include creative material that they find interesting in a timely fashion, and the scene structure maintains the story's pace and focus.
Giving The Authority the Finger
The climax of each scene is a Struggle: a dramatic conflict between the YOs and the (witting or unwitting) forces of the Authority. Once it is apparent that a Struggle is taking place, the YOs and Authority figure out what the Struggle is for, and then the Authority puts down 2d6 and asks "Who will stand up?" One YO stands up each time the question is asked by taking the dice and rolling them.
Struggles use a heavily modified form of Craps. Numbers are claimed by the YOs as they are rolled for the first time while The Authority gets to claim numbers one at a time in a predetermined pattern. If the dice show an unclaimed number, the YOs get to claim it and the rolling YO associates it with one of his Convictions. He then describes efforts at winning the Struggle, coloured by that Conviction. The Authority then narrates how the YO's efforts are frustrated, claims another number, describes The Authority's next stab at winning the Struggle and asks "Who will stand up?" again. If the YO rolls a number previously claimed by her side, she narrates how her YO wins the conflict. The Conviction associated with the number she rolled inspires the method of defeating The Authority, so YOs cannot describe what they are doing until after they roll. If she rolls a number The Authority has claimed, the YOs lose the Struggle and the Authority gets to screw with them. Except…
If a player loses the Struggle, that player (and only that player) can Sell Out. Selling Out wins the Struggle for the YOs, but the player must choose one of his Convictions that is not associated with a number in this Struggle. That conviction becomes darker, less innocent and less idealistic, and the YO must describe how he commits some heinous act inspired by the Sold Out version of the Conviction to win the Struggle. In short, you must give up a piece of your soul for the sake of your friends.
In addition to the normal stakes, the final Struggle in each episode decides whether the YOs manage to strike a blow against The Authority, or if it closes in on shutting down their rebellion. If the YOs win the final Struggle, they can remove one System of Control from the Dystopia, and if they can make a convincing case out of the fiction, they can even turn it into an Exploit. If The Authority wins the Struggle, it removes an Exploit, possibly converting it into a System of Control.
Selling Out is also a timer for the campaign. The series ends at the end of the episode where one of the YOs Sells Out his last Conviction; the fate of the YOs and their battle to take down The Authority will be resolved. If, at the end of the final episode, the number of Systems of Control equals or exceeds the number of Exploits, the YOs efforts have been in vain. They are defeated and The Authority continues to ruin the lives of those under its thumb. If there are more Exploits, though, the YOs succeed in bringing The Authority down, striking a blow for freedom. The fate of each YO is also determined, with YOs that have sold out more of their Convictions having a harder time of it. The player that paid the ultimate price of Selling Out all of his Convictions is doomed to an unpleasant fate.
While the fiction is always the most important element of roleplaying Struggles, and especially Selling out, are the heart of Misspent Youth. They drive the fiction in interesting new directions and ask the players interesting questions. If you can't buy into the tension of the Struggles, Misspent Youth will probably be lost on you. To have any hope of buying in, you have to find The Authority and YO interesting, which gets back to the importance of group creation.
Struggles and Selling Out also give The Authority a measuring stick for how well he is doing his job. If the YOs never Sell Out, he's not pushing them hard enough; he needs to be more of a bastard. If YOs regularly Sell Out without thinking, you need to ease up a little. It's fine if they Sell Out in every Struggle they lose, but there should be real tension in the decision to do so. It should hurt.
The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
As I've mentioned, Misspent Youth is a graphic novel-sized book. It is 88 pages long, but that includes an exhaustive index, several pages of references (both at the end of major sections and again at the back of the book) and sheets for YOs, The Authority, The Dystopia and tracking Struggles. That means that the rules themselves probably total about 50 pages.
The layout emulates old 'zines from the 70s and 80s. The single column of text has ample space on either side, loaded with photos and other bits of graphics intended to evoke the mood of the game. The text is set in a "grunge" typewriter face called Obsolete (with chapter names set in a grungy condensed sans serif named Cracked) with the text column canted a bit off vertical. The overall effect is extremely evocative of Bohl's punk rock inspirations, although it does so at a non-trivial cost to legibility. I don't think it's any worse than some of the densely-set blocks of condensed sans serif type we see in a lot of RPG books, but it's far to the style end of things when I have a strong bias toward legibility.
On the other hand, the references I've mentioned are great. The index is thorough, and there are summaries at the end of each chapter covering the rules in detail (and they're all printed again in a collection at the end of the book). They do a marvelous job of providing a guide for someone that's already read the book. Except for rare edge cases, I'm confident I could run MY from the back of the book.
The voice of the writing is also worthy of note. I bridle a bit when "conversational tone" gets praised; even Vincent Baker's tone in some of his books causes me to stumble through the text sometimes. Bohl does an excellent job of using an appropriate, unaffected tone in Misspent Youth, though. Even the (ample) profanity feels natural and appropriate here.
He also uses that casual tone to convey tips and offer guidance on how to get the most out of the systems. They're usually no more than a sentence or two, but they helped a lot with how the game should be played, and how to squeeze the most fun and engagement out of it.
Do You Have What It Takes?
As much as I have tried to be objective in talking about the mechanics and their implications, it's probably clear by now that I love Misspent Youth. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but it does what it says on the tin, and it does it extremely well. It is also a marvelous example of a finely-crafted RPG. The pieces fit together snugly, do their jobs well and deliver a whole that is significantly greater than the sum of its parts.
It also goes the extra mile to make it easy play to The Authority. He is practically inundated with signs of what the players are interested in, but leaves him free to put his own stamp on things. Authority Figures, Systems of Control, Friendship Questions and the traits of the YOs and the Authority are all little notes, telling The Authority what the players are interested in. The scene framing mechanics let the players communicate with The Authority in the moment without having to pause for a metagame discussion, too.
The Authority is not the only player who gets ample support. At every turn, the book provides guidance, explaining what to look for when making choices; it doesn't tell you what you should create, but it does help you figure out the answers for yourself. Sometimes this may be obvious, but when it's not, the guidance is a blessing.
Now that you've read this review, trust your instincts. If it sounds like an intriguing game about a fascinating topic, buy it as soon as possible. I doubt you'll regret it. It is not a typical RPG, though, and it violates some preconceptions that many gamers hold dear of what an RPG should be. If that's an problem for you – especially if you find the idea of buying into a character and a setting on an emotional level off-putting – MY probably isn't your thing.
Be brave. Be bold. Be a rebel.


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Forecast: 'Captain America' Takes Aim during Apr Record This Weekend
April 8, 2014 - box officeby Ray Subers
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
April 3, 2014
Thursday Update: Captain America: The Winter Soldier got off to a clever start on Thursday night. The film warranted $10.2 million, that is a conspicuous alleviation over Thor: The Dark World's $7.1 million.
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In comparison, Iron Man 3 took in $15.6 million, while The Avengers banked $18.7 million. For all 3 of these titles, Thursday shows accounted for 8 to 9 percent of a weekend gross; if Captain America follows this pattern, it will breeze adult between $110 million and $120 million for a three-day frame.
Forecast: Riding a call of goodwill from The Avengers, Marvel's Captain America: The Winter Soldier is staid for a biggest opening nonetheless in 2014.
At 3,938 locations, a ninth film in a Marvel Cinematic Universe will expected tip Fast Five's $86.2 million Apr record, and could even make a run during $100 million. That would put a Captain on a superhero A-list alongside Batman, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Superman and a X-Men.
Similar to Thor: The Dark World and Iron Man 3, Captain America: The Winter Soldier serves as a supplement to a approach prototype (2011's Captain America: The First Avenger) as good as 2012's The Avengers. As a third highest-grossing film ever, The Avengers gave this set of superheros rare exposure, and combined new fans in a process.
The opening of a initial dual follow-ups indicates that a "Avengers bump" is a genuine thing: Iron Man 3 non-stop 36 percent aloft than a predecessor, while Thor: The Dark World was adult 30 percent. If Captain America performs on standard with Thor 2, it will acquire around $85 million this weekend. There are a few reasons to trust that it can do improved than that, though.
More so than Iron Man 3 or Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier feels like a approach delay of a events of The Avengers: a film stars 3 Avengers characters (Captain America, Black Widow and Nick Fury) and facilities S.H.I.E.L.D. and a few Helicarriers. Along a same lines, a movie's complicated D.C. environment helps The Winter Soldier compute itself from The First Avenger, that was set roughly wholly during World War II. That tends to be a good sign: if a supplement looks like a treading identical ground, it's reduction expected to be a must-see. The film also moves a story brazen by introducing an iconic knave (The Winter Soldier) and a fun new favourite (The Falcon).
Disney's selling has managed to communicate all of these points while also compelling a dirty movement and nationalistic aptitude ("In Heroes We Trust"). So far, it seems to be profitable off: on Fandango, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is now outselling Thor: The Dark World.
As a bonus, Captain America is receiving clever reviews. As of Thursday afternoon, it's during 89 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, that creates this one of a best-reviewed Marvel cinema nonetheless (behind Iron Man and The Avengers). While reviews don't make or mangle a large film like this, they can positively assistance pull it to a subsequent turn (in comparison, Thor 2 perceived a so-so response from critics).
With a clever selling effort, certain reviews, and probably no competition, Captain America: The Winter Soldier will expected open to during slightest $90 million during a domestic box office.
The film got an early start abroad final weekend, earning $75.2 million from 32 territories. Across a Top 10 markets, Captain America non-stop 17 percent reduce than Thor: The Dark World, that suggests it might be tough to compare that movie's $438 million total. This weekend, Captain America expands in to Russia, Australia and China.
Among singular releases, Frankie Alice opens during 171 locations this weekend. Back in 2010, Halle Berry was nominated for her purpose here; for whatever reason, distributor Freestyle Releasing couldn't get a film in to theaters during a time, and a rights eventually wound adult with Codeblack Entertainment (a multiplication of Lionsgate). Berry has finished a bit of press for a film lately, nonetheless it would still be startling if this non-stop above $500,000 this weekend.
Meanwhile, CBS Films releases found footage fear film Afflicted in to 41 theaters. While a film is well-reviewed, it's removing a day-and-date VOD treatment, that typically translates to below-average box bureau returns.
Forecast (April 4-6):
1. Captain America – $98.6 million
2. Noah – $18.9 million (-57%)
3. Divergent – $11.3 million (-56%)
4. Grand Budapest – $7.1 million (-17%)
5. God's Not Dead – $7 million (-20%)
6. Muppets – $6.9 million (-39%)
Bar for Success
The initial Captain America non-stop on standard with a initial Thor. With improved reviews than Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier's entrance ought to be during slightest equal to that movie's $85.7 million.
Discuss this story with fellow Box Office Mojo fans on Facebook. On Twitter, follow us during @boxofficemojo, and follow author Ray Subers during @raysubers.
Related Stories:
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July 13, 2011
Sketching in the Country
Now, architecture.
Father's eyes are getting worse every day. He was completely caught 2009 summer by the idea to construct this small barbeque place (summerhouse?) with his own hands with only little help of his friend. He was proud to show us that he could do it, that his eyes were very good. That time his left eye was blind and his right eye was 40% functional. Dad, I am sure you'd like this sketch if you could see it.
12 comments:
Beautiful, fresh, cheerful, an excellent sketch!!ReplyDelete
a hug!
It is a beautiful painting, Irina, a wonderful tribute to your father's summerhouse! I'm sure he would like it very much.ReplyDelete
Well done; I really like the additional ink lines - they make it so clean looking. So sorry about your father's eyesight, but how wonderful that he built this to prove he still could do it :)ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJuly 13, 2011 at 4:27 AM
It's wonderful that you painted this for posterity. Now your ancestors will not only be able to see what an accomplished painter you are but also what your father could do. A nice tribute to your father.ReplyDelete
what a fine picture and touching post!ReplyDelete
Aloha from Waikiki;
My new blog posts are still not updating in blogger/reader OR links on others' blogs
Comfort Spiral
> < } } ( ° >
Great work Irina!ReplyDelete
Saludos desde Bilbao.
Beautiful work Irina. I would love to sit on that bench...your father too, I'm sure.ReplyDelete
Your idea of a sketchbook is splendid, it will slowly become a work of art.
Irina, his work is beautiful, too beautiful are your words, I have no doubt that her father would want.ReplyDelete
The art recording overruns.
A big hug!!!
Beautiful words and drawing, Irina. I like your avatar too.ReplyDelete
Francesco, thank you!ReplyDelete
Judy, I hope, too. Thank you.
Rhonda, thank you for your kind words.
Jean, thank you!
Cloudia, thank you! I will check you blog.
Thank you Monste!
Helen, thank you! You are very kind!
Nil, big hug to you, too!
Linda, thank you!
Very touching Irina, I am sure he will feel the vibrations from this wonderful piece and enjoy as much.ReplyDelete
Very beautiful!ReplyDelete


text:
So, I have a AMD Sempron 140 currently at 3.1 GHZ, but I'd like to get better performance from it.
So I've looked around on the net watching and looking at all those lucky people who have unlocked their cores.
I know how to do it. I just need to know, can it be done on my motherboard???
My Motherboard: Asrock ALiveXFire-eSATA2 R3.0.
As usual, I thank all you tech gods in advance.


text:
Executive Summary:
One of the most-discussed advantages of virtualization is consolidation—the ability to merge many systems into a few. Organizations usually consolidate servers, thereby saving the business big money on maintaining expensive enterprise infrastructure. But infrastructure isn't always made up only of hardworking, powerful server equipment. Most organizations have evolved over time, as have a wide range of supporting systems, such that many business environments have legacy Windows-based workstations running a couple of applications in the traditional client/server model, servicing the handful of users who need those particular resources.
Historically, such systems are little workhorses. They sit in a corner beyond the attention of admins, happily humming and gathering dust—until that fateful day when the ancient hardware finally packs it in. Rather than waste time and effort rebuilding the system (after tracking down the only technician who knows anything about it), a neat solution is to make a snapshot of the entire thing and dump it into a virtual machine (VM). Then you can eliminate the old hardware, and the system gets a new lease on life with some decent resources.
The Problem
I faced this situation recently when a desktop that contained the company's security database reached the end of its lease. The current IT department wasn't involved in the system's installation, so we had little understanding of the product, and we potentially faced a large amount of downtime to rebuild it because we would have had to source new hardware and get third-party technicians out to handle the data transfer and to configure a new installation.
We were also worried about the security implications of sensitive data being stored on a physically accessible portable system, so we decided to perform a physical-to-virtual (P2V) migration to a VM running on Microsoft Hyper-V. The original system was a Pentium D-class desktop with 1GB of RAM running Windows XP Professional. Hyper-V fully supports this OS, and we were able to assign less RAM in the virtual environment because the original 1GB was overkill for the application's needs.
We'd been running Hyper-V with Windows Server 2008 since April 2008, but we were still migrating our imaging procedure from Symantec Ghost Solution Suite to Windows Deployment Services (WDS). We had all the existing tools and utilities for ghosting but only a rudimentary WDS environment. It was mission-critical to minimize downtime, so we decided that we would move the system to Hyper-V using Ghost rather than Microsoft's imaging tools for WDS, and thereby take advantage of existing inhouse knowledge rather than spending time building WDS skills for this one task. If it had been a more complex and time-consuming task, we would have made the time investment to work with WDS.
The trick was to get the Ghost tools to the VM so that the system could talk back to the GhostCast server. We were deploying the DOS-based Ghost client across the network using WDS on Windows 2003 R2 in mixed-mode—the Symantec Ghost Boot Wizard lets you create bootable disk images using packet or network device interface specification (NDIS) 2.0 network drivers that are compatible with Microsoft Remote Installation Services (RIS). The Ghost images were stored on a central GhostCast server that clients were connected to. It's a simple setup and lightweight, although you're faced with the problem of creating a new boot image every time you need to support a new NIC.
Rather than tracking down compatible drivers for the virtual networking devices in Hyper-V, we decided to update things a bit and make use of Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE). The main advantages of WinPE in this situation were
- It's free
- It's based on the Windows kernel, so it's very flexible
- It supports multiple hardware platforms and devices
- It uses up-to-date hardware drivers
- A WinPE boot image can be used from CD-ROM, an ISO image, or over the network via WDS
- Did I mention it's free?
The Setup
Naturally, you'll need to make sure you have some prerequisites in place. To create a bootable WinPE image with the Ghost client and deploy it to a Hyper-V virtual system, you'll need the following:
- Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK), which is a free download from Microsoft.
- A Symantec GhostCast server, which can be any workstation with Ghost installed and enough disk space to hold your images—it certainly doesn't have to be an enterprise system. The version of Ghost doesn't matter, but the later versions have better file system support. The Ghost system can be a VM as well; the supporting platform doesn't matter.
- Ghost32.exe, which is available on the GhostCast server. It's the 32-bit executable version of the Ghost client and runs as a standalone application.
- A Hyper-V VM. This VM should have a network adaptor attached, but it doesn't need to be a legacy network adaptor unless you're planning to boot from the network; it also needs at least one virtual hard disk and should be able to contact the GhostCast server via the virtual network. The VM can run on Server 2008 or Hyper-V Server.
- Vmguest.iso, the CD-ROM image containing the Hyper-V guest integration components and drivers for the virtual hardware platform, which is found at C:\Windows\System32 on the Hyper-V host.
- WDS running on Windows 2003 SP1 or Server 2008; OK, WDS isn't actually necessary because you can use a bootable CD-ROM (more on that later), but it's a useful way to deploy the WinPE image across the network.
First, download and install the WAIK to an administrative machine; this can be the GhostCast system if the OS is supported, or any other workstation. It's packaged as an ISO image, so you can mount the image, extract the contents, or burn it to a disk with a free tool such as InfraRecorder. From the AutoRun menu, select Windows AIK Setup. If the AutoRun menu doesn't launch automatically, double-click StartCD.exe.
After the WAIK is installed, create the WinPE working structure by going to Start, All Programs (on Windows Vista or Server 2008), Microsoft Windows AIK, Windows PE Tools Command Prompt to open a command window with various WinPE tools loaded into the system path for easy access. Use the copype command to create a WinPE structure:
copype x86 c:\winpe-x86
As Figure 1 shows, this command creates the C:\winpe-x86 folder and extracts the necessary files for a 32-bit version of WinPE—the winpe.wim file, a Mount folder that you can use to mount the Windows Imaging Format (WIM) file via ImageX, an ISO folder that contains all the files needed to create a WinPE ISO image, and the BIN file needed to make the ISO image bootable. If you want to use a 64-bit boot environment, replace x86 in the code with amd64, but bear in mind that any applications or drivers you inject into the image must then also be 64-bit.
To customize the image, you need to access its contents. From the same command window, type the following command:
imagex /mountrw c:\winpe-x86\winpe.wim 1 c:\winpe-x86\mount
As Figure 2 shows, this command mounts the first image contained in the WIM file in read/write mode to C:\winpe-x86. Browse to that folder and you'll see the WinPE file structure.
The next step is to inject the Hyper-V platform drivers into the image so that when the VM boots into WinPE, it will be able to see the network and fully support the VM's hardware. From a networking perspective, the Hyper-V drivers are necessary for the synthetic NIC to function, but to boot a Hyper-V VM from the network, you must install a legacy network card, which doesn't need extra drivers. However, injecting drivers is easy, and it's good practice for later supporting different hardware platforms.
Mount the vmguest.iso image with a virtual drive utility such as DAEMON Tools or extract it with WinRAR or any other application that can read the contents of ISO files. Then, enter the following command in the WinPE command window:
peimg /inf=w:\support\x86\en-us\*.inf c:\winpe-x86\mount
In this case, W:\ is the virtual drive I mounted the image in; you'll need to substitute the appropriate path for your system. Next, copy ghost32.exe:
xcopy PATH\ghost32.exe c:\winpe-x86\mount\windows\system32
WinPE defaults to \Windows\System32 on boot, so ghost32.exe loads more easily if it's in that folder. As Figure 3 shows, you save the changes with the following command:
imagex /unmount /commit c:\winpe-x86\mount
If you forget the /commit switch, none of your changes will be saved.
Finalize WinPE
After you've customized WinPE, you have two choices. First, you can create a bootable ISO image from the modified WIM file, which you can then either attach to the VM within Hyper-V Manager or burn to disk. Burning a disk is slower than using an ISO image, but a Hyper-V VM can read from physical media so you could use the disk on other systems. To create an ISO image, type the following command in the WinPE command window:
oscdimg -bc:\winpe-x86\etfsboot.com -n -o c:\winpe-x86\iso c:\winpe-x86.iso
The command outputs the image as winpe-x86.iso. To attach it to a VM, make sure that the Hyper-V host can access the ISO image, then open Hyper-V Manager. Right-click the VM, then select Settings. In the left-hand window under IDE Controller 1, select DVD Drive. Next, in the right-hand window, select Image file, then browse for the ISO image. Click OK to confirm.
Your second option after customizing WinPE is to make it available over the network via WDS. To do this, you need a configured WDS server—either Windows 2003 SP1 or Server 2008. Copy C:\winpe-x86\winpe.wim to the WDS server, then launch the WDS management console on the server.
Expand the tree and right-click Boot images. Select Add Boot Image, browse for the winpe.wim file, click OK, then Next. Enter an appropriate image name and description (or accept the defaults), click Next, then Next again. WDS adds the image file to the list of available boot images. Make sure the VM is on a network that can find the WDS server and boot it from the network, then choose the image in the boot menu, as Figure 4 shows.
Prep the Physical System
Now it's time to get the physical system ready to take a snapshot. You should start by performing a thorough cleanup of the system. I didn't do enough of this and paid the price later with a mind-numbing repair installation. Go through Add/Remove Programs and strip out all driver packages—graphics drivers, network drivers, and so on; they won't be needed on the VM. Keep only what you need to maintain basic functionality.
It's also a good idea to do a disk cleanup and defrag on the hard drive—this is always a good idea before imaging because the process arranges data better on the disk, which results in fewer problems during image transfer. Also, go into System Configuration (Start, Run, msconfig) and disable all startup applications—when the VM comes online for the first time, it won't be fully functional until the Hyper-V Integration Services are installed, so it's better to prevent startup software from running until the system is stable.
If you're moving from a physical system with an IDE hard disk to a VM with an IDE virtual disk, chances are that the image will restore easily onto the VM. If, however, the physical system has a RAID controller or SATA drive, there's a strong likelihood that a straight image up/image down procedure will result in a VM that instantly bluescreens due to a change in the disk controller on the boot disk. You're most likely to have this problem on earlier OSs such as Windows XP and Windows 2000; Vista should cope.
However, because we're rescuing legacy systems, there's a strong chance you're dealing with an older OS. Therefore, you can save yourself a lot of time and bother by using Sysprep. Performing a basic Sysprep on the physical system to trigger the mini-setup gets you past any bluescreen problems when the VM reboots after image deployment. If you want a more elegant solution, incorporate the contents of the \support\x86\en-us folder into the file system on the physical machine before running Sysprep so that the virtual device drivers are present when the guest OS runs through plug-and-play detection. However, you still have to install the Integration Services software after imaging—there's more to the package than just the drivers, such as data exchange, heartbeat, and time synchronization.
Because I was in a rush to get my system migrated, I didn't run Sysprep and paid the price when the VM instantly bluescreened. A repair install fixed the problem, but it took so long that it would have been worth spending the time to go back, run Sysprep on the machine, and recapture the image.
Deploy the Image
When you've prepared the physical system, shut it down and boot into the Ghost client. If you don't have a pre-existing method in place for this procedure, you can use the custom WinPE ISO image created earlier. Or, if the older system supports network booting, let it access the image from the WDS server. You can even take the bootable ISO image and transfer it to a USB key and boot the physical system from that—which makes a great portable tool.
To create an image, open the GhostCast server application and select Create Image. Nominate a session name and file name. Then from the client, go to GhostCast, Unicast and enter the session name to begin the capture session. After it's captured, it's good practice to open the capture file with Ghost Explorer on the GhostCast system to make sure the image files are OK.
When you've created the image, fire up the VM on the Hyper-V host and boot into WinPE, as Figure 5 shows. Remember that if you're booting from the network, you need to attach a legacy network adapter. When the system loads, you'll be presented with a command window. Navigate to X:\Windows\System32 and enter ghost32.exe to launch Ghost, as Figure 6 shows.
If the VM and GhostCast system are on different subnets, you'll have to enter the server IP address manually for the client to connect. If you're planning to do more ghosting across subnets, consider entering an IP helper address on the router so that you don't have to type in the IP address every time. Wait while the image is restored, then reboot the VM. The only post-install task needed for system stability is to install the Integration Service components—then you're done.
Next Time?
This method of P2V is, to be honest, not exactly elegant. However, it does have the advantage of being quite robust—using Ghost for imaging means that if something goes horribly wrong with the VM, you've still got both the original machine (obviously, don't throw it away until you complete the migration successfully!) and the captured image, so you haven't lost any data.
This method also has the advantage of letting you get your hands dirty with WinPE and WDS. They're a powerful combination and can form the basis of a wide range of custom tools for supporting systems. WinPE is a great platform for deploying useful utilities to any corner of your network, physical or virtual—like ghost32.exe.
Would I follow the same path next time? As long as we still have a supporting Ghost infrastructure, yes. After we've moved across to WDS completely, no. There are ways of converting a physical hard disk to a VHD that you can then attach to a Hyper-V VM—that's a much more straightforward (although apparently equally time-consuming) process, and certainly worth a look. The other, more sensible, option is to make use of System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM), which has supported P2V methodologies. The downside is that SCVMM is an extra purchase, and businesses that are just playing with Hyper-V at this stage might not consider the cost worth it. If, however, you're considering Hyper-V as your virtualization platform of choice, SCVMM is an invaluable management tool and should definitely be investigated.


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Modeling process from a concept guide to a more finished modular model.
fractured state environment process: warrens
Timelapse video of rough model Ancient Fist from concept to show thought and process behind models
modeling the fist
Early stage models for propaganda, signs and an industrial monument.
1sign, 2 sign, 3 sign....statue?
Early Look at the knight model and his weapon. Model optimization, animation concerns and camera showing detail.
staring into the (blocked in) face of the opposition
Time spent modeling divided among creating, editing, and optimizing models from an early to finished state
something about todd's treads
New models based on concept work in varying levels of doneness. A comparison of modeled buildings.
the end of the world post
This week we have an early Industrial faction bank model
i like buildings.
Animation rigging/skinning concerns on very low poly characters. Early iteration
it's aliiiiiiiive! sort of. maybe?
An early character model sculpt and a group of new props for both the character and environment
from concept comes life
Talk of modeling and efficiency with a concept in mind
the importance of scale
Fractured State now has a new team member doing 3d art!
new! new art - new face
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In the run-up to election day, a Riverside County private investigator said he was hired to gather dirt on two Costa Mesa councilmen seeking re-election, and sent a woman into a local sports bar to flirt with one of the elected leaders with the hope of catching him behaving inappropriately.
The alleged setup came the same August night that the investigator called police to alert them that another councilman appeared to be driving under the influence. A subsequent field sobriety test revealed that Councilman Jim Righeimer was sober.
Chris Lanzillo, a Menifee private investigator and former police officer, said in an interview that his effort to catch the council members doing something improper was legal and he declined to reveal who had hired him for the job.
In the past he has worked for Lackie, Dammeier & McGill, an Upland law firm that works with more than 100 law enforcement agencies in California and bills itself as "former cops defending current ones."