The Instance to Give Away Cataclysm Beta Keys

Posted on 24 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 1

Already the best World of Warcraft related podcast, The Instance has recently announced they will be giving away keys to play the Cataclysm Beta! Oh Scott and Randy how much we love you already, but to bribe us with a Beta key? Oh you shouldn’t have… well, you should… to me. :)

Gaming, PC Gaming, World of Warcraft , , , , , ,

Justifying the Expense of WoW

Posted on 24 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 2

Short of being rich, we all have to budget our money. Money has to be set aside for housing, utilities, automobile expenses (unless you are in a city and take a bus, in which case you still need to budget for the bus), clothing, personal care and of course food. Those of us with kids have to budget for diapers and all other child related expenses. Some people have profession related expenses. There is also a small budget for entertainment. That entertainment budget comes at the end as all the others are a bit more necessary. It can include books, going to the movies, DVDs/Blu-rays, TV, video games, renting movies/shows/games, board games, and a whole host of other stuff. For most of us, that entertainment budget is tight, for some of us it is very tight.
Blizzard‘s World of Warcraft isn’t free to play. You have to buy the game. As I write this, the World of Warcraft Battle Chest which includes the game, the first expansion and two strategy guides is $29.99, which is a steal since the game itself is $19.75, the expansion itself is $29.82 and the guides another $19 each. Then you will probably want the expansions (as I noted, the Battle Chest includes the first one for a few cent over the expansion itself), the second one, Wrath of the Lich King is another $29.99. They have a third expansion coming out called Cataclysm (available for pre-order for $39.99.
After you buy the game, install it, download all the patches (this is something that for us took overnight), setup an account and then you get to play the game for 30 days… after that you have a monthly fee. Read more »

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Ari and Sidd Got Haircuts

Posted on 20 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Seems Ari’s haircut for the wedding wasn’t enough. Today Ari and Sidd both got drastic haircuts. If I can ever find my webcam, I’ll take some pics of them and post them up.
Sidd looks more like the bruiser I see him becoming (if he ever starts walking anyhow). And Ari… well Ari still looks like Ari, just with short hair.
Sidd got basically a buzz cut, Ari’s hair is just really short.

Ari Update, Sidd Update

The Problem With the Cataclysm Talent Calculators Thus Far

Posted on 18 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 1

I have looked at two or three talent calculators for Cataclysm thus far, and while they have the talents correct, you can spend them willy nilly, and one of the big changes coming to Cataclysm is that your first 31 points have to be spent in your first tree, so you have to choose wisely.
The calculators out so far let you spend a point or two in one tree, then spend more in another. To be accurate it should gray out the other trees until you have spent the 31 points. So all you people making talent calculators, get them up to spec. :)

Actually before I posted this, I see WoWHead has put their calculator up and it works exactly as it should. Well done.
I think this looks like a nice Balance Druid build…

Gaming, PC Gaming, World of Warcraft , , , , ,

I So Need to Roll a Goblin in Cataclysm

Posted on 18 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

When Blizzard releases the Cataclysm expansion for World of Warcarft (or I get in the Beta…puppy dog eyes at Blizzard) I need to roll a Goblin. Yes, a Worgen Druid as well, but the Goblin zone looks to be a ton of fun. TotalHalibut, who did the vids I posted before has followed up his Goblin one with the second Goblin area. It looks to be a blast. I think I’ll roll a Fire Mage for that alt. Read more »

Gaming, PC Gaming, World of Warcraft , , , , ,

I Need a New Video Card and Router

Posted on 18 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Near the start of the year my old computer died. It had been acting flaky, and finally the HD kicked it. While I could have replaced the HD, the PC itself was being flaky so I got a super cheap new computer. This one has an integrated video chip, which can be disabled to use a regular video card. The integrated chip is equal, or not just a hair better than the old video card so I decided against moving the card over. Read more »

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Trying to Block Some Posts from the Front Page

Posted on 13 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Calling all WordPress Gurus.
I am trying to block posts from a category from showing up on the front page. I tracked the category number down and put this code at the end of my functions.php file, but they are still showing up.

[php]// remove from home page
function exclude_category($query) {
if ( $query->is_home ) {
$query->set(‘cat’, ‘-11′);
}
return $query;
}
add_filter(‘pre_get_posts’, ‘exclude_category’);
// remove from home page[/php]

Am I supposed to put a call to this in my Index.php? Or am I missing something? Did they change how this works with WP 3?

Site News

Next Round of Cataclysm Beta Invites Going Out Soon

Posted on 13 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

WwW.com is reporting that next round of Cataclysm beta invites are going out soon with the usual warning not to click any links in any email you get, to log into your Battle.net account and check for your self. Most of the emails that are phishing, install keyloggers, trojans, and the like look like official invites.
Here is Blizzard’s official take:

We hope to distribute additional invites to the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm beta sometime this week, possibly as soon as late Tuesday or Wednesday. This is only an estimate, though, so the schedule may change and, as a result, invites could be distributed earlier or later than anticipated. Either way, we’ll work to keep you as updated as possible. :)
 

For those who might be behind on the news… Blizzard is getting ready to release their next expansion for World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. Right now they are doing what is known as Beta testing, where they invite a select group of people to test their software. In this case the goal is to test the new client with a vast number of different computer systems so that they can work out any issues with it before they release the game, and to test the new races, class/race combos, talent systems, dungeons, quests, etc. While in beta, lots of things can be flaky or just not work. For example, last I heard the Worgen female wasn’t available for people to roll yet as they are still working out issues there.
Blizzard, if you are there. Please… pretty please… with sugar on top. Of course the email to this account isn’t what the email is for the account, so I guess that makes it a bit harder to say, oh sure, lets toss one to that blogger… :)
Read more »

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Our Crumb Cake Recipe

Posted on 12 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

I have fond memories of baking with my grandma Thomas (I would link to her in the Thomas Family Tree, but she wouldn’t show up yet due to privacy settings). We made cinnamon jumbles, cookies and this crumb cake. The recipe cards always say “Olive Crumb Cake”, but it is supposed to read “Olive’s Crumb Cake.” As I understand it, Olive was one of my grandmother’s friends, and this was her recipe.
The cake is nice, moist and spongy. The cake sort of crumbles, but it is the crumbs on the top that give it its name. It is a wonderful breakfast cake as well as snack cake.
Ari and I made this the other day, and I thought I would share it.

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 Cups Brown Sugar
  • 1/2 Cup Shortening (I recommend butter flavored stuff… I’ve used butter itself as well, but the recipe says Shortening so I’ll repeat what it says).
  • 2 Cups Flower
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Cup Sour Milk (to make Sour Milk, pour 1 cup milk into a bowl, add 1 Tablespoon Vinegar and let stand for 5 minutes)
  • 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon Baking Soda

Directions:
Read more »

Ari Update, General , , ,

Journey to the End of the Universe and Back

Posted on 10 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

With this video we travel from Earth all the way out past the edge of the universe and time then back in. Everything is in the correct position, moving properly as it has been mapped. Large swathes of the universe haven’t been fully mapped yet, so at one point the universe looks like two cones pointing to the Earth, but this is due to a limit of what we have accurately mapped not only its position relative to the Earth but its movement through space time. It is a wonder to behold.

Read more »

Science , , , ,

Quick Time Events in World of Warcraft?

Posted on 10 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 1

Not sure how I feel about this, Quick Time events come to World of Warcraft in the Cataclysm beta. Hey Blizzard… if I had a a Cataclysm invite I could tell easier. :)

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Reverse Geocaching?

Posted on 09 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Geocaching is a really cool hobby where somebody hides a container, sometimes so small it only fits a tiny bit of paper for a log all the way up to ammo cans (sometimes larger). They then post the coordinates of the container on a geocaching website where other people then try to find it.
One would think a hobby using GPS like that would be easy, but it can be a real challenge.
Anyhow, there is a new take on it called Reverse Geocaching. In this case you are given the cache up front, but it has a special device on it to keep it from opening until it is in the correct location.

Geocaching , ,

14 Kids in 30 years starting at 25

Posted on 09 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Looking over the family history, I see the people with the most kids was Irish born Henry Shaw and his wife Saeah Hamlin. From the time she was 25 until she was 55 the couple had 14 children. I guess 30 years for 14 kids isn’t too bad, but they started and ended late. I don’t have much on their kids…

Family History , , ,

Family History Page Backup

Posted on 08 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

It has been down for a couple years, but now the Brian A. Thomas Family History page is back up.
Information on the Drake family, Jolley Family, Sollers Family and of course the Thomas Family among others. 919 people from 1620 on.

Family History, Site News , , , , ,

I guess not PHPGedView

Posted on 08 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Since I used it before I thought I would return to it, but when I go to access the page it takes me to one of the WordPress pages… this may be a WordPress issue, I’ll know for sure when I try the other one.

Family History, Site News , , , ,

Quick Update on Ari, Sidd and Me

Posted on 07 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

It has been over a year since I last updated on Ari and/or Sidd. So let us get caught up.
Ari went to Kindergarten last year. He seemed to enjoy it. Made some school friends and some bus friends, and a few kids who pick on him… for whom he wishes were never born. He grown more and more head strong, which gets him into all sorts of trouble. He is still super bright, though he seems to have a bit of the ADHD and most likely Aspergers. He loves video games, making his own levels for games, and Lego Bionicles.
Sidd is now over a year old. Still refuses to walk or talk… he makes sounds and we have learned what some of them are, but he doesn’t really say “ma”, “da” or “ba”. He will say “Ummm” which can mean he wants food or his bottle. For a long time he wouldn’t sleep more than an hour or two at a time, which made getting any sleep really hard. He now sleeps through most of the night. He screams and cries loudly. He does little of that in moderation. Lol.
Read more »

Ari Update, Sidd Update ,

Site is back and updating again

Posted on 05 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

I am back to updating this site again as one could perhaps tell.

Site News

New WoW Cataclysm Starting Zones

Posted on 05 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

I have been playing a bit of the World of Warcraft and having a good time. I have started and abandoned a number of characters. Right now I have Ardaamis, a level 44 Dwarf Hunter, and Sthel, a level 25 Night Elf Druid. I probably would be near level 80 now if I would stop creating new alts and leveling them for a while then deleting them.
Anyhow, there is a new expansion coming out this fall called Cataclysm, and it looks to be pretty exciting. There will be two new races to play Worgen, a type of warewolf, and Goblins, which we have seen around and interacted with a lot, but are just now coming up as playable. Two of the races get their own starting zones (they have been sharing) Trolls and Gnomes. It is all pretty exciting. Right now the game is being Beta tested (I am not on the Beta yet… grrr….)
Somebody made some videos of how the starting zones look and played through them. They are after the break. They are about 30 minutes each, but are all cool.

Read more »

Gaming, PC Gaming, World of Warcraft , , , , ,

First Amendment Shut Down to Protect BP

Posted on 05 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

The first amendment has been shut down to protect BP from looking bad. Officials at BP and the government are lying about how many skimming vessels are in each perish. In one perish they say they have 96, but the perish only has 19. How much worse would this disaster have been if we had an even more oil industry friendly government in place?

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PHPGedView vs GenoTree

Posted on 05 Jul 2010 by Brian A. Thomas | Permalink 0

Once upon a time I used to use PHPGedView, but they haven’t updated since 2009. Is that project still alive? Is it safe to use?
There is a newer program called GeneoTree, which appears to do much the same thing. Perhaps not as pretty, but still the same thing, and more important has been updated recently.
How do they compare? I know there is Second Site, but I prefer to avoid an HTML based solution, even if it works more directly with The Master Genealogist more directly.

UPDATE: In the end I went with Webtrees as I was having issues making PHPGedView work. For some reason every time I would go to the PHPGedView directory it would get rerouted here.

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