Friday, January 21, 2005

Ecoding new Xvid movies. :)

Well, I’m back again. I’ve been having problems with the pirated version of MS Visual Basic .Net 2003. The programs compile correctly although can only be seen on my computer, but no one elses. So I to make certain that it was the software….I installed it on my custom PC which has a much cleaner file system, and was able to compile VB script that can run on any computer. After I backup new MP3s and internet downloads on DVDR, I’ll reformat my hard drive. I’m encoding Laurence of Arabia to Xvid format. It could have been the fact Novell Log-in 4.3x system was installed on her computer too. Yes, I mean the same bloody firewall that blocks most P2P clients and MSN Messenger. Even if I did have MSN Messenger I don’t have any one to talk too. I can’t remember the last time I talked to Bob. Dyane said that she reads her student’s script many times, and this never happened to her. I should have said,”Well it’s happening to you now! It’s your fault for burning me faulty discs.” To make sure it won’t cause future problems, Dad will get a copyrighted version for me.

I figured out that VB6 uses a different file extension than VB7. VB7 uses *.vb extension and VB6 uses *.vbs. Anyhow, Visual Basic 7 is compatible with some Visual Basic 6 files, but not the other way round. I completed the first two chapters in the book on Visual Basic. The only problem is I have never gotten a Visual Basic 6 file to work on my computer.

Updated handheld collection

I downloaded Xvid 1.1.0-beta1 today. It is noticeably faster than Xvid 1.01 forgetting I was using a 7 month old codec for couple films. Xvid developers got their source code from DivX :) 3.11 which was made open source through legal issues of MS’s WMV9 video codec. The next release of DivX would be known as DivX 4, while a new open source spin-off codec called Xvid appeared from nowhere. Both codec use the same technology, and are compatible with each other. Xvid 1.1.0 beta 1 Binary. The program I use to make Xvid video from NTSC DVDs is a brilliant tool called 1Click2DVD Ripper. It couldn’t be simpler to use. It has a Wizard for all those difficult things, and in 2 minutes you can have a movie compressing in a codec of your choice.

I also got a chance to play Resident Evil 4 two nights ago. School was holding me up for a while. Gamecube graphics look stretched on the LCDTV giving its true pixilation. The textures are very detailed for a Gamecube game, but the Gamecube isn’t powerful enough to take away the jagged lines. The “jaggies” were much less apparent on my analog TV. Anyways, I set the game audio to Pro Logic II so there is a noticeable surround sound effect with everything. Rain drops coming from RE4 are really life-like! Hmm, all Capcom had to do is record REAL RAIN plus have the developers moan, grown, and taunt! For some reason dead people (those ones where I shot the head off) keep coming back to kill Leon and Ashley. RE4 gives the gamers who play it the impression all zombies are immortal (can not be killed because they’re already dead) My LCD TV has Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Sound is sound regardless right? At least I think so. So if you want to have surround sound that’ll stay in you’re room, there isn’t any need to have 5 satellite speakers now is there? It’s a nice to have, but not essential. Problem is about speakers these days are Pro Logic II amplifiers, 2 satellite speakers, and bass speaker costs around $170. After I spend money on PSP shall I buy bigger speakers for my TV? It would sound a heck a lot better than the TV’s internal speakers. I have the President’s daughter, Ashley, and am going to exit the T-virus very smart zombies infested village once I can find the scanner (an eye ball) for the door. Actually, this game isn’t any less difficult than Resident Evil Zero only the zombies taunt you, open doors and throw grenades at Leon & Ashley. I’m not using a game FAQ either. Maybe I should – it’ll surely accelerate game play. I’m cheating with Action Replay so I can complete the game before Monday. I also have to type up a small document for technical writing Monday. Hmm, wonder if I’ll get it done in time? :) Anyhow, back to describing Resident Evil 4….I believe the voice acting is well done for any videogame. Meaning it doesn’t get much better than this people! Usually I hear untalented actors speaking lines – Leon and Ashley sound above average because this is a Resident Evil, and it MUST live up to the expectations of previously seen in Resident Evil: Reborn or Resident Evil Zero. Resident Evil 4 is also coming to Playstation 2. Don’t believe that only For Gamecube label on the case because it ain’t true!

So I got pass the door, and what do I find? – More Smart Zombie Monks of course, and they’re catapulting fireballs at me! I believe I dead once or twice. It’s safer to find shelter from fireballs than trying to dodge them! This game doesn’t scare me at all like the reviews said it would. I know it’s suppose to be scary, but I’m not scared! Wonder how much harder the game gets? I can get use to this shooting off heads with shotgun thing ….

I forgot to add Final Fantasy XII and Gran Turismo 4 to my highly anticipated list about 3 posts back. It’ll add those two games to it. Final Fantasy XII will be better than Final Fantasy 10 I imagine. I played Final Fantasy X back in 2003. There are gamers who like role playing, and gamers who like action games. I like both, and many of the clerks at Toyriffic would say the same. Four out of five RPGs come from Japan – that’s not bad, it’s just how it’s been done for over a decade. Speaking of which - Gran Turismo 4 will have a lot more cars, tracks, and soundtracks this time around. I can’t wait! It’s coming out February 11, 2005. IGN and Gamespy are giving it the same score as Gran Turismo 3 - A Spec! This is absolutely excitement going on right now!

I downloaded trance totaling 100 MB off Kazaa Lite including the other 5 songs off iMesh. I found a Radio Shack advertisement on DVDRs for only 13 bucks, so I had Radio Shack mail the 25 pack spindle to me. I saved 60% off the normal cost. [4.5 x 25 = 112.5 GB] I want to use the entire DVDR, which is hard to do because IT’S A LOT OF DATA to fill. It’s easiest putting DivX movies on them. Dual-layer DVD burners are out costing anywhere from $80 – $180 though I am having a really hard time finding dual layer DVDs to buy. If it was easy to buy spindles – I would buy a dual layer DVD burner immediately. It’s a lot of storage for the dollar. Approximately 2¢ for a MB. Think of that in terms of compressed data – it’s mind boggling! Today, I’m duplicated/converting a lot of movies to MPEG4 including Saving Private Ryan, Sleepy Hollow, and 1951 version of The Christmas Carol starring Alastair Sim. This version was supposed to be the best version of a dozen versions. Of course, never trust everything that Hollywood tells you.

Shining Tears (2005 SEGA) Looks good doesn't it?

I found Shining Tears for PS2 in Game Informer. It’s Sega’s next RPG. It’s 2D like Shining Force II. I might buy it because Shining Force II is a highly regarded game for Genesis. Now that Sega is a 3rd party I’ll keep buying sequels on non-Sega consoles. I’ll check out the review first, but it won’t be long before I get to play it. It’s a strategy RPG. I’ve played Shining Force II through emulation – it was fun for couple hours, but I always get distracted with Internet browsing. I don’t see how it can be a short attention span since I’ll still looking at the monitor. I don’t play old games long enough to make an accurate judgment. The new Shining Tears will be a hack ‘n slash old school RPG made recently to bring back old charm. Those of you who like old games -- look for this one from Sega in March.

I downloaded the Gamecube emulator, Dolphin 1.03 on Tuesday, and it seems to be capable with commercial games. I looked on the interface for a BIOS input, where there was none. So this means there must be a way to get Gamecube GCMs off the Internet – either from Bittorrent or Emule.

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