![]()
0 Comments
![]() I do understand some things will be lost in translation however, I did not find any here. Perhaps the translation creates some awkwardness in the wording and dialogue, but not nearly enough to distract me at all from the overall story. I can’t find anything negative about this novel to mention, really. It is quite as much a political thriller as it is an action/adventure and historical fiction novel. The background of historical events comes to the reader in small, news-type snippets at the beginning of each chapter, like a quote, and the rest of the story stays in England and gives information through the daily activities of the people around whom the story revolves. Truly, they provide the bulk of the narrative and kept the interest going for me the whole time I read the book. The main highlight for me in this narrative is the characters and their relationships with one another. Roerhig’s tale takes us to the origin of the relationship between Little John, Robin’s main lieutenant, and focuses on the main goals of Robin’s resistance movement-maintaining Richard’s kingdom as his while he is away in the Crusades and ensuring equal treatment for Saxons in a Norman-ruled England. It’s not a romantic tale, and it truly shows a side to the guerrilla-style warfare that Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men engaged in that is not squeaky-clean and romanticized. This book, however, does not retell, it does reweave, and it remains faithful to the cultural and ethnic backgrounds of the people from where the tale comes, which I found encouraging.Īs a reweaving, many of the lesser known or utilized aspects of the Robin Hood legend show up in this version of the tale. I don’t really like retellings, as they mostly simply copy the story from another person and appropriate other aspects into the narrative to change it, which I find mostly distasteful. ![]() I hadn’t quite heard that term before and wondered if the book was a retelling or what. I was confused at the term “reweaving” when I picked up this complimentary copy sent to me by the wonderful people at Arctis Books. ![]() This Robin Hood “reweaving,” as the synopsis puts it, is excellent. Historical fiction with no fantastic elements usually bores me to tears, though I must read it to incorporate it into curriculum. I was taken quite by surprise with Tilman Roerhig’s Robin Hood telling. There were some minor flaws with the writing, lots of POV switching mid-paragraph, some clunky moments in the dialogue, and there weren't any major twists or changes to the story as we know it so sometimes it wasn't holding my attention but it would be one that historical readers of high school age and up will enjoy if they love the tale of Robin Hood. It didn't necessarily stand out from other Robin Hood books, but it was an enjoyable read. Little John and Marian must prove themselves and gain Robin's trust, and ultimately friendship, if they want to make it in his not-so-merry band. The legendary outlaw doesn't quite live up to the stories told about him. The outlaw Robin Hood catches them and takes them prisoner. The two flee to the woods, but quickly find that they aren't safe there either. Young Marian is rescued from the Sherriff of Nottingham's murderous soldiers by Little John when her entire village is killed off simply for poaching a deer to feed their families. This one was okay, a fairly straightforward tale with a lot of focus on Marian and Little John's backstory and a more realistic tale of how Robin Hood may have actually been in real life. Told with earthy historical detail and unforgettable characters, this is a must for any young reader fascinated by knights and fights, kings and peasants, or who wants to delve into the many tales that built the Robin Hood legend. Thrust into life in a world of fearless bandits, uncertain allies, and merciless vendettas, Little John and maid Marian earn their place-and build an unshakable friendship with Robin Hood. For all Robin’s dazzling bravado and clever tricks, the reality of his fight against oppression by the Norman nobility is a rough and dirty life in the forest, outlawed and constantly hunted.Īs the newly dubbed Little John gets an education in how to fit into Robin’s dangerous band, Marian, too, grows into a force to be reckoned with. Robin Hood does not quite match the heroic stories that are already told about him. But dangers lurk there, the outlaw Robin Hood soon catches them and takes them prisoner. When peasant John Little witnesses the Sheriff of Nottingham’s men destroying his village for John’s crime of poaching deer to feed his people, he flees into the tangle of Sherwood Forest with the only other survivor, his young foster daughter Marian. An action-filled retelling of the story of Robin Hood as seen through the eyes of his trusted strong right hand, Little John. However, like Lightroom, the editing workflow is divided into different modules. ![]() It allows users to edit pictures without building a catalog within the program. One of the main functions where it differs from Adobe Lightroom is that even though it has the option to import photos, it’s not a necessary step. The current all-in-one version of ACDSee Photo Studio that I’ve been testing allows users to process both RAW and JPEG image files. The first iteration of the software was launched in 1994 for Windows 3.1! Some advanced editing tools may not be as powerful as those in other software optionsĪCDSee is an image organizer, viewer, and image editor program for Windows, macOS, and iOS.ĪCDSee comprises various programs and ‘packs’ used for Digital Asset Management, Photo Editing, and even video editing and conversion.Ĭhoosing between all the options is rather confusing, so for the sake of simplicity, we have selected to review the most popular choice for photographers in 2023:ĪCDSee Photo Studio Ultimate, which is only available for Windows PCs.ĪCDSee Photo Studio Ultimate is an all-in-one software for your photo management and editing needs.ĪCDSee shouldn’t be confused as a new tool that recently came into the market instead, It’s been around for decades. ![]()
I mean, not enough to justify all the crashing this game is doing, but they're nice. I swear, I went into this game actually excited to play a good trading sim, and it seemed to want to do everything it could to make me absolutely hate it.Īt the very least, the game's visuals and music are pleasant enough. Thankfully, you can use the touchscreen for menus in handheld mode, but it's frustrating that this should even be necessary just to not have to be tortured by the tedium of selecting choices in menus.Īs if this wasn't bad enough, during my time playing this game, it outright crashed on me multiple times. This game wasn't made for consoles, and it shows. At multiple points, I was approached by someone who wanted to be taken to a specific place, but I wasn't given a chance to check my map before agreeing or refusing, and couldn't locate the place on the map afterward - there certainly wasn't anything highlighting the place or denoting it as a destination.Įven if you're fine with all of this oppressive difficulty and poor luck, and lack of helpful information, the game still makes playing it a frustrating chore, with menus that have you dragging a slow cursor across the screen instead of simply snapping to the options you can click on. and even if you find something that works well for you, misfortune could always strike anyway.Īlso, much of the information that you need is either nestled away in menus, or not available to you at all, and none of it is presented in a helpful or user-friendly manner. The costly business of simply getting from one place to another can lead to slim margins, and you're discouraged from exploiting a good route because it could lead to robbers attacking you. It doesn't help that the game is difficult enough as-is. ![]() whenever one of these events happens, it's always frustrating. Encouraged to bet on a race? Refuse and you may suffer unintended consequences from disheartened staff. A woman with empty buckets passes in front of your cart? Your luck stat goes down. Firstly, there are a lot of events in this game that are completely out of your control. In addition, you'll be investing in businesses, encountering events that can change your luck, and taking on quests that can help increase your fortune and status.Īll of this sounds good, but the game is plagued by problems. Here, you'll start by trading in just two resources, food and furs, and gradually move on to others as your status rises. ![]() Merchants of Kaidan is a Trading Simulation game with a focus on arbitrage, the practice of buying low in one location and selling high in another to turn a profit - compare this to games like Star Trader, Trade Wars, and Dope Wars, to give you an idea what you're in for. ![]() This action RPG is a little different form the rest. After a long time of frequent disappointments from AAA titles, this game is a relief! Only €17,99 and the game is very solid and enjoyable. … ExpandĪfter a long time of frequent disappointments from AAA titles, this game is a relief! Only €17,99 and the game is very solid and enjoyable. It puts your focus a lot less on loot, and more on succeeding through game play, which is a bit more satisfying than waiting for the RNG to give you what you want. If you want to clear the harder challenges, there's an obsessive level of planning involved. It keeps things interesting and avoids the typical feeling of grinding one build for hours on end. Through out an entire play through I never stuck with one build or weapon for long. Often an area will demand you totally change up your play style to achieve the goals within. There's a lot of cards/powers/weapons to mix and match to figure out the most effective play style. The game also has quite a bit going for it in the area of customization. It's definitely not the sort of zone out and farm ARPG most are used to. A lot of deaths have more to do with player error than simply not having enough HP/armor. If you like you're ARPGs to be more on the blistering hard action side, than a simple loot grind, this is a game you'll likely enjoy. If you like you're ARPGs to be more on the blistering hard action side, than a simple loot grind, this is a game A real diamond in the rough. Given that it costs much less than $50, most of the criticism can simply be ignored. I've spent 10 hours on the game so far, and I plan to 100% complete it. The story could've had a bit more to it, but I suppose the money runs out quickly when you hire Geralt of Rivia to voice the main character :) It still has its moments, but this is more of a gameplay-driven experience. If you like that sort of thing, you'll have a great time. In terms of humor: it's hit-or-miss, but at least there's a lot of it. There are many clever secrets that hit the right spot of being "fun to find", but not "too tedious to find". ![]() Each weapon requires a different playstyle - it's not like "The rapier is like the sword, but it's faster and does less damage". Here, it feels like "I am slashing the enemies with a sword". In D3 it always felt like "I am doing DPS to the enemies". The game has a very dynamic combat system that is - in my opinion - superior to Diablo 3. The game has a very dynamic combat system that is - in my opinion - superior to It fills the void of the disappointment that was Diablo 3. It fills the void of the disappointment that was Diablo 3. Since then I have seen this effect in many images (in localized areas), and as I stated way back in my first reaction, it is an image quality defect that I have not seen over the years of shooting my Nikon D800/D800E. But as Alex points out, probabilities tend to result in clumping (non randomness) in visible effects, an idea I fully support in seeing some coarseness in tonal transitions, an effect I immediately detected (by eye), and immediately commented up on in my review when first shooting the A7R. The general “internet rejection” of this stepping delta idea relies on the premise that photon noise exceeds the stepping.The effective stepping can be around 3.4% which is very much discernible by the eye., the figure of around 1% can be considered just discernible. ![]() So, if data range within 16 pixels is too wide, then “step size” of each transition increases, so posterization occurs. Pixel value = minimum + delta_recorded_for_this_pixel * step. This 'step' is the same for all 'delta' pixels in block (smallest integer power of two (1,2,4.) such that step*128 > max-min) Step = (maximum - minimum)_rounded_to_the_nearest_largest_power_of_two / 128. = 11 + 4 + 11 + 4 + 14 * 7 = 128 bits for 16 pixels = 8 bits per byteģ) 'delta' pixel value is calculated from delta, minimum and maximum: and 14 7-bit deltas for remaining 14 pixels. The minimum and maximum values in block - two 4-bit coordinates of min/max pixels in block are stored too. According to Alex:ġ) In each 32 pixel block we have 16 pixels of single color.Ģ) For the 16 pixels of each color: - two 11-bit values ('base pixels') are stored exactly. On my to do list is exploring these new Sony-specific features, which appeared just recently. RawDigger is the only tool to display areas that might be subject to posterization due to Sony lossy compression. You can read it in Russian or in the Google translation. There is a difference, and I am certain it explains some of the not-so-great pixel quality I’ve seen in field images (in localized areas, not in totality), but it has been hard to pin down.Īlex Tutabalin of RawDigger has posted an essay on the posterization effects that can be observed with Sony ARW raw files due to the 7-bit delta compression. Compare that to a Nikon 14-bit lossless image file. Order the Sony Vario-Tessar T* FE 24-70mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens at B&H Photo.Īs discussed in some detail in the review of the Sony A7R, the Sony A7 and A7R and other Sony cameras all use an 11 + 7-bit lossy compression scheme: 11-bit range with 7-bit delta values from 14-bit pipeline (8 bits per pixel in effect). Update: Sony A7R II offers lossless compression option. SEND FEEDBACK Related: exposure, histogram, LibRaw, noise, RawDigger, Sony, Sony A7, Sony A7 II, Sony mirrorless Add your three different round scores together.Repeat this process for the next two rounds using lists 2 and 3.All players fill the first column with words or phrases that fit the category and start with the letter rolled.The first player rolls and then flips the timer.We recommend rolling for it, and whoever gets the earliest letter in the alphabet (A, B, C, etc.) goes first, then play clockwise. Determining who rolls first is up to you. Set up the game so each player works from the same list.However, the current iteration only has the components listed above since most players have tables and writing implements readily available. Interesting Fact: Some older editions of Scattergories included small pencils and a board for rolling your dice. There aren’t enough words starting with these letters to fill some categories. Since it only has 20 sides, the letters Q, U, V, X, Y, and Z have been omitted. You will note that the die has letters instead of numbers. Begin by rolling your die to determine the first letter of your first round. It’s vital to ensure these are in the same order. Next, select the first three lists so everyone works from the same list each round. Additionally, each player will need a pencil or other writing implement, and you need a flat tabletop or another level surface to roll your die.Įach player needs one answer sheet, one cardboard folder, and a copy of each category card. Your game box should contain six cardboard folders and six copies of the 13 category cards, a pad with answer sheets divided into columns for the three rounds, a D20 (twenty-sided die), and an hourglass timer. You will need at least one other player, but three or more is preferable since games with only two players tend to take longer. Select a Letterīefore you can play Scattergories, you need to set up the game. ![]() There are free printable Scattergories lists for different occasions such as Christmas, Halloween, birthdays or everyday categories. Print one of these Scattergories printable lists for each player. The player with the most points wins the game.After the last player reads, everyone can tally their scores.Circle only the answers that do not match what the other players read aloud.Any word that someone else chose is invalid. Beginning with the player who rolled, each person will read off their answers.When the timer runs out, everyone puts their pencils down.During the 3 minutes, all players fill the first column with words or phrases that fit the category and start with the letter that was drawn.Have someone close their eyes and pick out a letter for each round. ![]()
![]() Tea and coffee facilities as well as a hair dryer where provided (I brought my own.) Each day a breakfast slip was left for the following morning as well as the time you would have to be at breakfast. We stayed in room No.2 which was very comfortable despite the bath room being quite small. Providing maps of the local area, offering up some of the best places to eat in both of the nearby locations listed above and giving helpful tips to getting seated in some of her favourite restaurants during this current pandemic. On arrival we met Beverly who couldn’t have been more helpful and friendly if she tried. We both really loved the central location between Windermere village and Bowness. We have just returned less than a week ago from a one week stay at The Coppice. On our last day there was a little mix up, with cooked food coming. Breakfast the following day was lovely and always came very quickly and was always hot. Aside from this small flaw the room was very nice and was always cleaned to a high standard. ![]() There had been a leak in the bedroom above us and Beverly did apologies about the water stain on the ceiling but it didn’t bother us. This was either 8:15 or 8:45 AM (some may find this annoying and/or restrictive but it did make things more efficient and safer given the current situation) ![]() Call of Duty 2 was a major success, having an 85% attach rate to new Xbox 360 console sales, and selling 1.4 million units its first year. Much of the focus of Infinity Ward's development was improving its game engine to include realistic special effects, such as smoke grenades to hinder sight, or bullets piercing through weak materials. ![]() Collier said the request would help them lose the stigma of being only a personal computer developer, and so to make sure the console version was on parity, they tripled their staff to about 75 employees. Infinity Ward agreed to prepare Call of Duty 2 for release in the last quarter of 2005. Shortly after this release, Microsoft contacted Activision to seek a Call of Duty title as a launch title for the upcoming Xbox 360 console. Activision allowed Infinity Ward a great deal of freedom in how it developed its titles. During this period, the studio was about 25 employees including many who followed Collier, West, and Zampella from 2015. Initially, Activision provided Infinity Ward US$1.5 million for 30% stake in the company to start development on the first game Call of Duty, acquiring full ownership after the title was successfully launched in 2003. Dissatisfied with the current contract they had under EA, Collier, West, and Zampella engaged with Activision to help establish Infinity Ward, which became one of the primary studios within Activision for the competing Call of Duty series. The studio was formed by several members of 2015 Games, LLC., the studio that developed the successful Medal of Honor: Allied Assault for Electronic Arts (EA) in 2002. Infinity Ward was founded as an Activision division by Grant Collier, Jason West, and Vince Zampella in 2002. On May 3, 2014, Neversoft was merged into Infinity Ward. In 2010, West and Zampella were fired by Activision for "breaches of contract and insubordination", they soon founded a game studio called Respawn Entertainment. Infinity Ward went on to make Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, the Modern Warfare reboot, and its sequel.Ĭo-founder Collier left the company in early 2009 to join parent company Activision. The day after the game was released, Activision bought the rest of Infinity Ward, signing employees to long-term contracts. The studio's first game, World War II shooter Call of Duty, was released on the PC in 2003. Activision helped fund Infinity Ward in its early days, buying up 30 percent of the company. All of the 22 original team members of Infinity Ward came from the team that had worked on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault while at 2015, Inc. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity Ward in 2002 after working at 2015, Inc. They developed the video game Call of Duty, along with seven other installments in the Call of Duty series. ![]() Open Source software is software with source code that anyone can inspect, modify or enhance. Freeware products can be used free of charge for both personal and professional (commercial use). Please install and use BBEdit instead.įreeware programs can be downloaded used free of charge and without any time limitations. Note: TextWrangler is not compatible with macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) or later. ![]() Powerful Text Transformer And Manipulator.TextWrangler for macOS can without a doubt make your life easier if you give it a chance and try it out. With it, you can not only edit any text with wide variety of useful tools, but you can also manage much more complicated texts – writing HTML, editing professional code texts, cleaning up data, editing configuration files, and more. That window holds a truly incredible number of tweaks that are separated in 11 main sections – Appearance, Application, Editing, Editor Defaults, Keyboard, Languages, Menus & Shortcuts, Printing, Text Colors, Text Encodings and Text Files. Its preference screen, however, is anything but simple and sparse. Users have a big work surface, line counter, stats on the bottom and tabbed interface on the top with just a few tools for choosing a writing style and text style. The main interface of this app is incredibly simple, with almost complete lack of any tools or buttons being present on the surface of its main window. TextWrangler is now BBEdit - and still free! It's time to switch. In addition to those general purpose text editing tools, this app also has full support to be a constant companion of programmers who demand color coding of their code syntaxes, Unix and server administrator, and many other tools and services that are absolutely focused on providing stable, fast and easily manageable text support for professionals and seasoned users. This app was not created only to be used ordinary home Mac users who just sometimes need access to the freeware text editor that will be there to help them create text files. TextWrangler for Mac is a powerful tool for managing, composing, modifying and transforming other plain-text files. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |