Jomskylark Blog

App Store Reaches 1,000 Games

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 01:07:00 +0000

Just thought I'd share: The App Store for the iPhone/iPod Touch has now reached and gone over a breakthrough 1,000 games. Incredible.

Other stats (as of now):

Books - 201

Business - 102

Education - 215

Entertainment - 383

Finance - 112

Healthcare & Fitness - 163

Lifestyle - 144

Music - 129

Navigation - 82

News - 48

Photography - 53

Productivity - 217

Reference - 186

Social Networking - 70

Sports - 90

Travel - 173

Utilities - 420

Weather - 25

Thanks!

Ten Cool Games For iPhone/iPod Touch

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:15:00 +0000

Here are ten cool games for iPod Touch/iPhone via the App Store. 3 are free, 7 are not.

In no particular order... enjoy!

A) Galcon - Phil Hassey/Imitation Pickles - 9.99

Galcon, a great RTS game originally for the desktop computer. Conquer planets with a large fleet of ships, and use quick thinking to outsmart the enemy.

B) Super Monkey Ball - SEGA & Other Ocean - 9.99

Who ever thought a rolling a ball around with a monkey in it would be so much fun? While criticized for difficulty, once mastered, it's unstoppable.

C) iMazePro - Hackosphere - 0.99

Good things come in small packages. Use the accelerometer to roll a 2D ball around in several mazes. Fight against robots, and race against the clock to finish various types of mazes.

D) Cube Runner - Andy Qua - Free

Incredibly simple, yet addictive. Pilot a small ship around colored boxes for your best time. I have a blast every time I play it.

E) Tap Tap Revenge - Tapulous - Free

How many of you remember the good times of DDR? Well, TTR is the new DDR. Elegantly simple, yet loads of fun, as you pop the bubbles while listening to good songs.

F) Spinner Prologue - Fuel Games - Free

This game really takes advantage of the device. Turn your iPhone/iPod Touch every which way to guide your arrow to the exit. The catch? Don't touch any walls.

G) Papi Jump - Sunflat - Free

Jump from platform to platform, to gain a good score. There's one slight problem: Papi will keep on jumping until Papi falls, and it's game over!

H) Marble Mash Lite & Labyrinth Lite Edition - Jirbo, Inc. & Codify AB - Free

Both games are similar, based on classics. Guide the ball around and get it to the exit. However, watch out for the holes!

I) Comet Cowboy Lite - Maverick Software - Free

An unique game that combines comets and quickness. Draw circles around moving comets to gain points, and save the day.

J) Squares - Chris Haynes - Free

Last but not least, Squares is an interesting game the involves copying and moving squares to win. It's enjoyable and challenging.

H)onorable Mention xD

15 Puzzle - Gandreas Software - Free

A fun version of the 15 Puzzle pocket game.

Note: Some games are Lite, or full versions of games. At this time, I have only purchased 3 games for the iPhone/iPod Touch.

Thanks!

// sky_lark OUT.

10 Twitter Helpful Hints

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 03:53:00 +0000

Twitter is a great way to be social: Update your life every few minutes, kinda like a mini-blog. Very cool stuff. However, your characters are limited! Here's a few helpful hints to get you rolling faster.

In no particular order:

1. Use one space. Normally, you would have two spaces between each sentence.

One space. One space.

Two spaces. Two spaces.

Use one space to save room!

2. Symbols rock! $ = dollars, & = and, etc. Really helps.

3. Abbreviations are OK. B-day = birthday, etc.

4. Smileys! To show that your are happy, use :), instead of "I'm happy!".

5. Multiple twitters are no problem. Make a twitter for gaming, then another for work, then another for magic.

6. Don't sign your name. They already know who you are, hopefully. No need to sign your name or initials.

7. Wording helps. If you've ran out of room, word your words-haha-and move them around to make it work.

8. While grammar and spelling are usually important, it's alright to use "u" and "2" on occasion.

9. Little punctuation needed. Take away that comma or semicolon when you're seperating something, this isn't the grammar nazis (But they're the grammar teachers, so don't go crazy with the bad grammar and spelling)!

10. Use TinyUrl to shorten your links-or some other redirection service. Also, only post links once or twice in a twitter or a set of twitters. Arctic, my friend, helped submit this one.

Bonus: I have some more material over at tinyurl.com/a3av and tinyurl.com/22uwsg. Arctic, my friend, helped submit this one. :D

Thanks! Peace!

Life & More Life

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 03:45:00 +0000

Tidbits:

Birthday tomorrow! I'll be four. Okay, not really. :)

Got a new (first) cell phone yesterday, I think. It's a Samsung Muse by Alltel, around 70 dollars. Bluish-blackish, that's the only color they had. I like!

iPod Touch is on the way.

Zap!:

_k's Contest ends in nine minutes. I submitted a level. :P

Clans are underway! Also, subscribe to the Play Zap! newsletter! All at the Zap! forums.

That's all! Bye!

Hello Again!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:38:00 +0000

Hey all! Sorry I haven't been on in a great length of time, and I guess there's no excuse really. I just haven't been in the blogging spirit! Oh yeah, isn't that an excuse.. Hmm...

I hope to get back on my feet for the summer. Thanks!

- sky_lark / Jomskylark || 7.3.2008

Wall-e!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:45:00 +0000

Sorry I haven't posted in a while! Just wanted to share with you Wall-e, a GREAT new movie!

iPhone 2.0 Suggestions

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 03:21:00 +0000

1) Copy and Paste. A simple hand motion would do the trick.

2) Re-placeable Battery. Much better than having to give up your iPhone for several weeks.

3) 3rd Party applications. Open the doors to outsiders.

4) Lower prices. Apple has a good price on iPhone, but AT&T needs to lower their prices down if they want more customers.

5) iPhone screen recorder. This would be nice for doing tutorial videos and such.

6) More networks. AT&T isn't the only network out there that people root for.

7) Camera upgrade. Add video camera, zoom, more sharing options, and maybe a little editing palette on the side.

8) iChat. Be able to talk with your friends easily and on the go.

9) Menus Upgrade. Customization of your menus, like naming them (ex. "Games", "Web Clips" etc.), adding backgrounds/color/themes, allowing more room to move around icons (ex. not having icons shufflle back as you move an icon around). As for more menus, more docks, etc... isn't crucial, but would be nice.

10) Mini-Dashboard/Widgets. Make a spot for widgets or a mini-dashboard. Allow the computer to sync with computer's dashboard widgets.

Honorable Mention 1) More ports. A USB port & cable would be nice.

Honorable Mention 2) Allow safari to have a default homepage and bookmarks.. I'm sure these are already made, but they are hard to get to and confusing to use.

// sky_lark OUT.

Mac OS X Crashed

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 17:12:00 +0000

When comparing a mac to a windows, the general input is Mac never crashes, and Windows always crashes.

And for the entire few years I've been a mac user, that statement has held up. Until now.

But wait, there's more. This report came up AFTER Mac OS X had crashed, and restarted. And my computer gave me a bit to restart the computer. It didn't force me. So there's kudos for Mac.

If you see symptoms of applications bouncing in the dock and not starting up, then quickly save what you're doing; for it just might be a crash coming on.

// sky_lark OUT.

Introducing Play Zap!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 17:09:00 +0000

Play Zap :: Get ready -- the future is here.

http://playzap.co.nr or http://gamerscentury.home.mindspring.com

Check it out now.

A look at the new Zap! fansite.

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 16:33:00 +0000

It used to be Gamer's Century. And now it has evolved into a Zap! Fansite.

I'm not giving anything big away, but it'll be located at http://gamerscentury.home.mindspring.com

Obviously, this is a long URL, so I'll be adding in a co.nr URL redirection.

It'll have video, images, bio, and more. It's about 95% finished. Hopefully I can get it done by sometime tomorrow.

As for life, the month has eased up a little. Like I said before, I was sick and missing too many of the community group thingy. So I dropped out of the one that has practices every day. :(

So life is a bit better. And I'm feeling much better. :D

There will be a Zap! Valentine's Party in place of the weekly party, Friday, Feb. 22, 2008 from 8-11 PM EST. Come one, come all. You do not have to submit levels, but be sure to take your girlfriend/boyfriend. :)

Skicker: Can can can you do the can can can you do the can can?

// sky_lark OUT.

Zap! Tournament 2008 - Pre-Details

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:45:00 +0000

Zap! Tournament 2008 is coming. I hinted at it before, and now I'm revealing it to the world.

Details can be found here.

As for other news, I'm sick, like sick sick. Flu-sick. And this month suckz.

I have community play (blah) practice for nearly two hours weekdays until the 20th of Feb. That may not seem like a lot, but trust me, it is.

Plus, I'm gearing up for a different group competition, a group practice, and more. All this month.

Jeez, I feel like Cupid stuck a sword in my heart.

Zap! Tournament 2008 has been canceled. Just kidding. But I may not get around to it as much as I hope to.

Magic Trick of the Post:

Feel. Hear. Take Control, January 2008.

Cause your pulse to slow down and stop. Then start up again. It can beat rhythms. Featuring Daniel Garcia and his bonus effect, Stop, and allow your specators to LISTEN to your heart slow down and stop. Also a bonus watch stop effect. Plus an interview with magician Dexter, walk-around with Randall, and more.

An amazing effect. Get it here.

Skicker: MacBook Air is amazing, but be wary. One USB port, no internal optical drive (for you no-brainers out there that's no place for CD/DVDs and more), as well as a massive price. I'll wait for it to get an update or two before considering buying it.

PS. By the way, I never told you all what happened with my finger (that's still in a splint, mind you :P). So I'm out with my pocket knife, right, trying to cut down a tree, right. Suddenly the knife says " no, no, i dont wanna cut down no tr33!! " and jack knifes back on my finger. Bleeding and immune to the pain, I get some help. Later I take revenge and knock down the " tr33!! ".

Google Bug!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:42:00 +0000

Ok, so it's not really a bug, but it still is cool.

I don't know if it's my browser or Google was changing its logo and I saw it in between changing, but I feel it's significant. :)

I took a screenshot in the few seconds before it vanished (see above).

Right.

50 Posts!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 21:56:00 +0000

It's time! The 50th post!

Sorry all, I forgot about doing the post on my half-birthday in all the hype (events, snowing, etc.).

But I think today's good-it actually snowed!

If you've lived in North Carolina, or are currently living in, or even visited NC, you'd know that we never get snow.

Like, maybe once in two years. It gets cold enough, but doesn't actually snow.

It flurried for five minutes a couple of days ago, but today it was supposed to get 5 inches. At the last minute, however, the meteoroligists (however you spell them) decided to give us the facts and told us it barely missed us. By a couple of cities over.

We still got a little snow, enough to play in. I made a foot tall snowman and named him Snowy. Shh! He's sleeping.

I plan to do what Mitchell did over at Theory11-build a snowpile for peace, later on in the day.

So, it's the 50th post. 547 days since the first post. We've come a long way, eh?

And it's been fun. So to honor the 50th post, I've chosen one winner out of the one comment. It was a tough choice. And the winner is...

ME!!!!

Just kidding. Congrats to lax_dude, who thought of the excellent idea of top 10 skickers. I was slightly disappointed in the number of participaters, but hey, nobody's perfect. :)

// Top Ten Skickers

10. Press control and scroll button on a mac to zoom.

9. Stick a flipflop on a railing when it's snowing. The collection of snow is amazing.

8. Shopping isn't so bad. Especially when the stores you're going to allow you to play fooseball and Xbox/Playstation.

7. When you're a fanatic of Apple brochures, be cautious of the ProCare ones. Some have ProCare cards inside them, and they look like brochures. So don't walk out with them, like I did. Well, I stopped two feet from the door, but man, it was close!

6. Just like #7, look inside brochures before taking them.

5. The Cloverfield monster is a mutated Harry Potter.

4. I'm not kidding. Harry Potter is the Cloverfield Monster.

3. Store a small snowball in your freezer until summer, or if you get time, until the next draft of snow. It's very rewarding to view how disgusting your snowball gets.

2. Dropping large pieces of ice off a two story building and watching it explode is very cool.

1. Being yourself is the best. Do what you do, and only you can limit yourself.

Honorable Mention: Snowy deserves an honorable mention. He's got pinecones for eyes, a stick for a nose, a longer stick for the mouth, and ivy leaves for ears. He rox my (wet [from snow]) sox.

And skicker of today: Didja know? Snowy has a brother. From last year/year before. I'll try and upload pictures of them when/if I can.

I like snow. Goodbye all, and happy happy evening. :)

...Nearing 50 posts!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 23:41:00 +0000

This is the 49th post. And as you all probably know, 49th is.. um... the... uhh... comes after 48!!!

Yeah. The 50th post will be special. Not really, but still. Not still, but really. Anyhow, I need suggestions on what to make it be about.

Rules:

1. No profanity, vulgar, or spam; please.

2. Please submit ideas: Comments section of this post; jomskylark (AT) gmail (DOT) com; AIM: Jomskylark.

3. As many entries per person.

4. Please send entries by 5:00 PM Eastern time, on January 14, my half-birthday.

5. I will post the post of the post the post by 11:59:59 January 14, my half-birthday (just like I mentioned above).

Thank you all! I look forward to your ideas. I may do several, one, or all. I may even pop in some of my own. :)

Note: I got my Guardians deck from Theory11. I didn't win the holiday contest 2007, but I still got a fancy schmancy package with little styrofoam pieces that covered my deck and made the suspense unbearable. I also recently won a Saturday Night Contest from Theory11 (finally! :D), and my prize was SIX BROWN WYNN DECKS in perfect condition. Those arrived yesterday, I think.

Six Brown Wynns: $300 total on ebay.

Guardian: $5.00

Annoying suspense from the styrofoam pieces of doom = Pricelessly annoying.

Yeah. Beat that.

Skicker: People these days don't understand how awesome card decks can be. So it's not going to fly high when you try and show off. :P

Grab This!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 06:29:00 +0000

Grab this Widget and make me happy!

Outcome

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 23:53:00 +0000

Overall the camping trick was fun. Normally I would post more but I cut myself with a knife... haha. Anyhow my finger is in a splint and thus I cannot type.

Peace.

11 Days! / Camping

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 03:29:00 +0000

Sorry I haven't kept up with this, and there were some days with nothing Christmasy happening.

Anyhow, I got some photos with my family with Santa. I also got a kick awesome coloring book for free. :)

I also got a chance to visit the Apple store, and I spent the entire time at the iPhone. I LOVE iPhone! XD

I went and saw Alvin and the Chipmunks, which turned out pretty good. Jesse McCartney, a favorite actor of mine, played Theodore. It premeired today.

Camping: Well, I'll be going camping for morning and afternoon, tomorrow, Saturday. I have a bunch of work so I'm not staying the intended time (friday evening, saturday, sunday morning). I should be home by 6:00 or more or less on Saturday, just in time for Theory 11's Saturday Night Contest!

Other stuff: I was cleaing out my space and I discovered a mountain of yu-gi-oh cards and stickers. Man I really missed that stuff! :D

I get break off of "activities" dec. 22-jan. 6. Excited. There's a Zap! party coming up as well.

Skicker: iPhone is waay overpriced. :P

16 Days!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 05:11:00 +0000

...until Christmas!

We put up the beatiful lights yesterday. Today we'll get photos and the tree.

Are you excited (for the holidays in general)?

I still haven't done my shopping... hehe!

As for other news, Free Rice is now donating 20 grains of rice for every word you get correct.

Smarter Child came to life on my AIM account. He's a super computer and he's my buddy.

When using the terminal on Mac OS X, type emacs, return, esc, x, doctor, return. It's a psychiatrist super computer! You can also type tetris, snake, after the x, etc (*thanks edshin95!).

I didn't win the Saturday Night Contest at Theory 11. I was too busy copying down all of the previous entries.. I didn't even get an entry in! Ah well. Better luck next time!

I'm somewhat experienced in iMovie, so I'm taking the next step to iDVD. It's challenging, but worth it! What comes next (lol)?

A card is selected. Memorized. Placed back into the deck. A different card is chosen and torn into four pieces. One by one, amazingly, each piece, gets restored. Each piece is shown carefully, front and back, and then restored. The card is then turned over to be the SELECTED CARD. Signed version and hand-out-for-inspection versions available.

This is TnR, by Mathieu Bich, taught in detail by Chris Kenner. Available here at Theory 11.

Skicker: Don't play baseball at night. Even when you can barely see. The ball gets lost. I know this from VERY RECENT experience. :D

I'm going to start with 17: On the 17th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, 17 christmas lights!

Yeah. It works. Goodnight.

PS. I'm now a Zap! forums moderator! Check out the Zap! Forums at Zapforums.notlong.com.

Free Rice

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 20:50:00 +0000

www.freerice.com

Free Rice is this great website where you can achieve two things:

1. Help end world hunger.

2. Have fun by playing a game AND increase your vocab skills!

Here's how it works.

You choose the synonym of the word shown, out of four choices. If you get it right, you'll move on. Otherwise, it will tell you the answer and you'll do another level.

For every word you get right, Free Rice donates 10 grains of rice through the United Nations.

The rice is paid for by the sponsors at the bottom of the screen.

Note: If you get 10 grains, and then another 10 to make 20, free rice doesn't donate that 20 grains plus 10 grains, only the two 10 grains. Hehehe.

There is a special graphic that tallies your score at the right. If you miss a question throughout, it doesn't matter, you don't lose any points!

The scores are sent instantly, so you don't have to worry about saving, though if you leave the site, you'll have to start over.

I once reached about 1,000 grains.

Enjoy! www.freerice.com

Skicker: A special thing happens when you gain (donate) around 1,000 grains of rice on FreeRice...

Grr....

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 23:41:00 +0000

What creatures in the Beauty and the Beast play say "Grr"?

Well, we have the beast, but the beast is sad, so it moooooans.

We have the dog, which can speak, but usually says Bow-Wow! Bow-Wow!

We also have Greedo, which would be... oooo MONEY!!!! I'M RICH!!! Aye.

But we have only one character that the Napoleon, Zapper, and your very own Jomskylark can fill--

"Grr..." -- Beauty, who would finish her sentence: "Grr... the beast scares me"

Okay, so that wasn't the best foolery.

I actually got the wolf, which is good for several reasons.

1. He's lovable. "Grr... How many children do you have?"

2. He has a few lines. 13, to be exact.

3. He gets to wear an awesome costume.

Photo: http://www.heartlandcostumes.com/img/portfolio/wolf2.jpg

You have to admit that costume is kick awesome.

"Bow-Wow Bow-Wow!"

Skicker: Coincidence or not--you decide: I was wearing a shirt with wolves on THE DAY I learned my role. Heh.

Beauty and the Beast Play

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 00:43:00 +0000

So I made the local Beauty and the Beast play--though I don't know what role I got. I hope I got the part of the Beast-or maybe the Prince, or perhaps Greedo/Graspo. We'll know Nov. 13 (This tuesday).

No Zap! Party this weekend-though I do have the day off on Monday. I'll keep my server up however.

Featured Magic Trick:

A nickel is borrowed from a spectator. A full, sealed (never been opened, factory sealed ) bottle of water is produced. The coin is pressed under the bottle near the bottom-so you can see the coin magnified through the pure water.

On the count of three, the hand holding the coin is slowly dragged away, with no coin. The coin has litterally--protruded a bottle OF WATER.

Give your spectators a moment to glorify over this. Then show the bottle has never been opened, and let the coin be examined.

Everything is fully examinable.

This, is factory sealed. Created by Nick V. and taught by Justin Miller of Ellusionist.

Skicker: Nick V. not only created Factory Sealed, but Bullet as well. See it at Ellusionist.

Have a good night.

All the best,

Jomskylark

This is my Virtual Self!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 22:48:00 +0000

Hehe.

PS. 40th post! Don't you feel like we've come a long way?

P.P.S. Does the P or S come again when you have to do this a second time?

P.P.S.S. Both come now. Anyhow, There just might be a party for my 50th post... keep in touch.

Twitter

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 20:56:00 +0000

Be sure to check out my twitter located on the right hand side of the blog. It talks about great stuff, and sometimes has a featured game.

Featured Magic Trick:

Bicycle Guardians. Created by Theory 11.

The Bicycle Guardians are a work of art. Currently I'm waiting on my autographed copy, but these things are phenomenal. They have grey backs. The creatures seem real, they're guardians. The ace is redesigned.

Amazing. Get yours now at http://www.theory11.com/playingcards/guardians.php.

These are my favorite TV shows right now:

-Journeyman • NBC: Fantastic show. I love it.
-Phenomenon • ? (NBC?): I don't have to drool over not being able to see Mindfreak! A great magic show! Though I don't think very many people like it... hmm...

Skicker: Blogger/Blogspot has a cool coding system that they don't mention. Replace x with desired text.

= "x"
= "x"
= "x"

I'm sure there are many others, possibly including a url code, but I'll leave those for you to find out!

Have fun!

PS. Try pressing Option+8. Also, just try holding down Option and pressing random keys.
Note: This may only work on a Mac.

Tiger Balm Answers & Zap! Party TONIGHT!

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 20:41:00 +0000

Okay, so I've finally finished, uploaded, and entered my Tiger Balm Contest video.

I portray Napoleon Dynamite when he is rehearsing for his dance.

By the way, the t-shirt says:

Vote
For
Pedro

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/v/j5y-WTha4qc
Contest Video Link: http://youtube.com/contest/tigerbalmcontest&results_all=true?goto=88

My video is number 88.

97 videos!? Whaa? Ahhhhaghaghaahgaagghaah!!

Important Upcoming Dates:
--
October 26th - Midnight: Tiger Balm Contest Submissions due.
October 26th - ZAP! PARTY! See below.
October 27th-31st - YouTube/Tiger Balm Contest Administrators select 10 finalists (hopefully me!).
October 31st - Halloween!
November 1st - Finalists Announced
November 1st-13th - VOTE FOR ME!!!! Tiger Balm.
Around November 15th - Tiger Balm results--youtube voters select 5 winners--1 grand prize, 4 runner ups.
--

Zap! Party!

I unfortunately probably will NOT be there until 9:30 PM Eastern, though my server should be up.

Enjoy!

Here's a poster I made for Theory11. Sorry, it's a bit cramped.

More news to come.

Cerca Trova means - He who seeks shall find. Or Seek and you shall find. Thus, be sure to Cerca Trova a way to come to the Zap! Party. Cerca Trova a way to vote for my tiger balm contest entry.

- sky_lark

New Template

noreply@blogger.com (Bill) — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 19:31:00 +0000

Like it? Nothing changed, just the template, to prevent confusion.

Skicker: Be at the Zap! Party or die!!!