AriaGirl77's blog

Skype: A new internet phone service that's FREE

Mon, 12 Jun 2006 00:02:42 -0400

Skype is an internet phone service that is FREE for the basic service, and a minimal charge if you wish to have a phone number assigned to you where you can receive landline calls and obtain a voice mail account. But to call from computer to computer via internet is no cost! This service differs from other ‘talk’ internet programs because it isn’t like a walkie talkie where you press a button to talk, and then the other person talks. Instead you can have dynamic phone conversations that have exactly the same feel as a landline conversation. You get an instant messenger style buddy list, and then you can start making free calls to anyone on your list who also has the program. One of the best features of the program is the conference call where you can invite 2 or more people to join the conversation. This application has all kinds of potential, and is the first program I have felt comfortable suggesting for use to business associates. Other landline conference call companies are quite costly, and this the first real internet option that I’ve found and it’s absolutely free for the basic service (which I think is all you really need anyway). You can download the 2.0 software for free at www.skype.com.

Oblivion: Maps & Transport

Thu, 25 May 2006 00:31:24 -0400

Since Oblivion is the game I can’t pull myself away from lately (not even to update my blog! The horrors!) you, my dear readers, will be subjected to yet another article about the latest edition to The Elder Scrolls series.

To those of you who have been glued to Oblivion since it’s release this is old news for you, but I think that due to it’s innovative game mechanics is worth mentioning. Travel in the game took me some getting used to as it’s slightly different, but in a good way! Not only can you take the obvious meathods of travel such as on foot and on horse. But you can also ‘fast travel’ to any destination on the map that you’ve previously visited. If you choose to fast travel, your horse will also be conveniently ‘parked’ near your final destination.

Legacy Lite

Tue, 23 May 2006 01:15:39 -0400

Have you ever wanted to try the Sims 2 Legacy Challenge but found it took you WAY too long to even get past the 3rd generation let alone 10th? Then you should try the Legacy Lite Challenge recently released by Pinstar on the Sims 2 BBS. The full Legacy rules can be found at www.legacychallenge.com and the Lite rules can be found by searching for Pinstar’s post on the BBS at www.thesims2.com. For your convenience here are the full rules.

Game Review: Oblivion

Thu, 11 May 2006 00:36:52 -0400

Rating: ***** (5 stars)

Oblivion is the latest RPG game in the Elder Scrolls series. The previous game, Marrowind was highly acclaimed, so the expectations for Oblivion were HUGE and it definitely delivered the goods.

When I first started up the game the thing that struck me the most was the vast choices in character building. Not only do you have 10 races to choose from, but you also can alter the face of your character using sliders for areas such as chin, cheek bones, nose length, eye depth, etc. You can even choose the age of your character! You can pretty much make your character look however you want with the only limitation being your imagination. If customizing looks isn't your thing, they also offer a handy dandy randomize feature and I noted that those options were good too.

Use the Library!

Thu, 04 May 2006 13:24:40 -0400

Ever have a problem or issue and think to yourself, "I wish I had an instruction book for _________ right now." Well, you DO! It's called the public library. Most of us have gone to the library as kids, (my mom used to take me once a week) but have you tapped that resource lately? I stopped using the library about 8 years ago because by the time I'd get my books returned they'd be WAY overdue. At that point I might as well have bought the book in the first place...which is what I've been doing ever since. But things have changed at public libraries and they're worth re-investigating!

Game Review: Fable: The Lost Chapters

Tue, 02 May 2006 13:13:23 -0400

Rating: ****

Fable: The Lost Chapters is a RPG game about a boy on a quest for revenge for the death of his family. The game starts out before his village was ransacked with a basic tutorial teaching you how to accept quests and perform them. Then after the village is destroyed it takes the boy to a hero academy where he learns the basics of combat before sending him out into the world to defeat his enemies. After this you have to decide what kind of character you want your hero to be, do you want him to be a caster, fighter or stealthy hero, and do you want him to be good or evil. The main thing this game touts is that as your hero ages his appearance will change based on his alignment. Good heroes will walk around with a halo over their head and butterflies flying around their face, while bad hero’s will walk around with horns growing out of their head, a long slinky tail, and billowing smoke trailing behind them.

Delicious Kabobs to Grill!

Sun, 30 Apr 2006 20:32:40 -0400

My hubby and I made these last night for a dinner party and everyone RAVED about them. Give them a try!

Ingredients:
Your choice of meat (we used shrimp)
Turkey Baccon
pineapple
jalapenos
mushrooms
Your choice of maranade

Maranade your meat using the time suggested on the bottle. We used a baja lime maranade that was FANTASTIC on 1/2 the kabobs, as well as some Soy Vay Terriaki mixed with liquid smoke on the other 1/2.

The Sims 2 and the Legacy Challenge

Sat, 29 Apr 2006 17:56:12 -0400

I was a huge fan of The Sims 1, but The Sims 2 took me completely by surprise. The first time I loaded up the game and started the tutorial I looked down on that little tutorial couple talking to each other and using hand gestures and I thought to myself, “WOW!!!�? It’s like they’re real little people down there! But after a year or so of playing the game to you begin to ‘figure it out’. You know that every time they have conversations they use pretty much the same hand gestures based on the personality points they’re created with. You know that they are designed to do what they do, and you’ve learned how to design them so that they exhibit certain characteristics. The “WOW!!�? factor is long gone. You still think it’s fun of course otherwise you wouldn’t buy every expansion that comes out, but the challenge and mystique of it all is now just a fond memory.

Game Reviews from the Female Perspective

Sat, 29 Apr 2006 17:26:11 -0400

Hi Everyone! My name is Aria, and I play games. Computer games to be specific. Yes, I am an addict. I think it all started way back when playing Super Mario Brothers on my brother’s Nintendo, and since then it has graduated to me being a full fledged gaming fanatic. At the moment I only play PC games, but who knows what the future holds for me and my gaming exploits. Someday I may actually splurge for an x-box or whatever the munchkins are playing now-a-days.