Fox 2 tour

I went to Fox 2 news on Saturday morning with my class, News Discovery and Radio Reporting (taught by Ken Rogulski). Professor Rogulski set up a tour of the facility with Roop Raj. Were were to meet at LTU...

Rogulski pulls up with his truck, the "News Cruiser" with WJR logos all over it. He is being followed by an LTU security vehicle. Apparently, they thought that he did not belong on the campus (Oh crap! The Media is here!). Anyway, he explained to the Security guy that he was a professor. It was quite a funny way to start the morning off seeing your professor getting tailgated by the LTU security van.


This was my first time at Fox 2, and it looked really nice. The tour was really tailored to reporting and story writing. It's interesting to me, but I really wanted to learn more about the technical aspect of doing the news. I spent the last 15 minutes of the newscast in the control room. It was amazing to see this control room. Everything looked so modern. Instead of having multiple monitors, there were around 5 flat screen TVs. These TVs had video feed from multiple sources, such as the cameras and graphics. The director that morning, Donnie Hopps, was one of my former instructors from Specs Howard. When I went to that school, he directed news in the morning and taught in the afternoon. He always had stories about directing at Fox 2, and it was nice to finally see him directing in person. One of the funnier things I witnessed in the control room was when the producer got mad, because the lower thirds graphic was wrong. Jay Towers was reporting from an Apple store on the iPad launch, and the graphic said "I-Pad" instead of "iPad."

I was also interested in the camera system they had. The cameras are all robotic, and they are operated by a person in the back of the studio. Roop was in the studio talking to us about reporting, but I was more interested on how the cameras worked. He also told us that news stations are creating automated control rooms where only one person is necessary. The person sits in front of a computer and has access to pretty much every piece of equipment. The one drawback is it is harder to fix a problem if something goes wrong, because there is only one person. He said there is a control room being built at Fox 2 that will be automated like the one he described.

Anyway, the trip was really nice. The next one we are going on is to WJR. It's going to be nice to finally see the place that Rogulski talks about pretty much every day.



Here is a pic I took from my DVR. You can see where we were watching the broadcast from, because two of us ended up in the shot. Rogulski walks behind them later on in this shot.

April Fools...

In recent years the Internet has been the stage for April Fools Day pranks. Websites change their layout, add fake stories, and even add fake products. I have to admit, I am rarely every fooled. 2010 has changed that. I was pranked good.
My friend Kiel posted a link to a product on the ThinkGeek store. The product was a "Dharma Alarm Clock" inspired by the TV show LOST. It was amazing! It looked just like the computer in the hatch! I wanted it, even though it was $49.99. I quickly ran to grab my wallet, and get my debit card. I clicked "buy now," but only disappointment followed. The page refreshed with the message, "GOTCHA! April Fools."
I could not believe it....

I really wanted this alarm clock, and there was a period of sadness that overcame me. Then I went to talk to Kiel about it. Kiel recently got into Lost, and he has watched fives seasons of it in under three months. He told me he planned to buy it on Friday when he got paid. Kiel, who I thought had pranked me, didn't even know it was a prank! I told him to click "buy now." He replied with, "DAMN IT!!!"

We were both victims of April Fools Day.

Top 5....

In this post I am going to describe some of my favorite websites.
These are the websites that I usually have open in Firefox. They are also responsible for stealing my precious time. Time, that could be used doing more productive things... like schoolwork.


5.) Macrumors
I am a fan of all things Apple. I frequently go to the forums on Macrumors.com. However, Macrumors is also one of the best sources for Apple news. They have also been responsible for predicting updates to iPods and Mac computers. Overall, the forum consists of a great community. The members there are very helpful. They usually can answer your Apple related questions, and have helped me many times when I have had problems with my Macs. One of the best features of the website is the main page. The main page is full of Apple news, and rumors. Macrumors has risen above all other Apple rumor sites because their rumors are compiled from credible sources, and they almost always come true. (Apple tends to keep their product updates/releases a secret to the public. This is the one thing I hate about Apple.)

4.) Facebook
I think this one is self-explanatory. I made a facebook page a long time ago when Myspace was still in its prime. Myspace eventually faded away, and facebook became the new king of social websites. I use facebook for socializing. I talk to my friends from all over the country. I especially like the chat feature on Facebook, because there are no "screen names." When I used AOL instant messenger, I would sometimes get confused as to who I was talking to due to the screen names being used. Facebook is my number one source for networking with friends, coworkers, and classmates.



3.) Dark UFO
Dark UFO is a popular blog for the TV show Lost. It is most famous for dishing out spoilers. I like to be surprised when watching Lost, but I find myself browsing Dark UFO for filming updates. This site will probably fade into obscurity when Lost wraps up in May. I also like to visit it to read theories on what is actually going on in Lost. Fans can submit their theories, and they can be featured on the site.

2.) 4chan (not safe for work)
Oh boy. How do I describe this website? Pretty much anything funny you see on the internet today was born on 4chan (lolcats, rick roll, and Chuck Norris jokes to name a few). 4chan is an imageboard website where anyone can post anonymously. I started visiting it back in 2003 when I was really into Anime. Today, it has morphed into some weird melting pot of Internet culture. There really is no way to describe 4chan. It will make you laugh, it will make you cry, and it will shock you. Not every post is family friendly, and this is apparent in /b (the most popular board on 4chan. In fact, I am breaking the unwritten social rule of talking about /b outside of 4chan). I visit 4chan to get my daily dose of lulz.

1.) Digg
Digg is probably the site I visit the most. Digg compiles what I like to call, "the best of the internet." I usually head straight for the "top 24 hours" tab, where the most popular website links of the day are compiled. The majority of these websites are funny/interesting stories, pictures, and videos. I visit this website every day, and I like it because it does the work for me. I don't have to search google for interesting topics. With Digg I can see these websites without the hassle of searching for them.

From hate to love (Dr. Pepper pt. 2)

In a course of a month I have gone from hating Dr. Pepper to actually liking it.
It all started with the promotion that I talked about in one of my previous entries. I started buying Dr. Pepper to get the codes from the caps for the Battlefield game. I ended up giving most of the bottles to my brothers to drink. However, there were a few that they didn't want. I ended up drinking a few of them, and I think I might actually like Dr. Pepper.I never like it before, and it had always tasted gross. It was one of those drinks that would sit in our refrigerator if anyone actually bought it. Well, the promotion is now over. I still find myself choosing Dr. Pepper if I buy pop. I'm not sure what changed over the years. I have gone from hating it to actually liking it.

This can be applied to other things in my life. I used to never like the show King of the Hill. I would always sit through it on Sunday nights waiting for the Simpsons to come on. Today, it is one of my favorite animated shows. Perhaps I didn't understand the humor when I was younger. A lot of the humor in that show revolves around the stereotypical Texan lifestyle. I also never liked football when I was younger. I love it now. I guess life is just weird sometimes, and this is one fine example of it.

A little over a month to go

There is little over a month to go until the semester is over.
For some people this may be a good thing. However, I wish there was more time. I have several projects to complete: Video Editing final, International Politics paper, finish reading a book for international politics, a camera for broadcast final assignment, interviewing people for the WLTU Quest project, editing that project, and other various writing assignments. Right now it seems like a lot. I know it can get done, but it is going to be a lot of work. April is going to be a month purely dedicated to school. It will be a race to the finish, and full of much schoolwork.

The things I am most worried about are the International Politics paper, and the video editing final. The paper is a majority of the grade in that class. My midterm paper was great. I got an A on it, but I don't know if I can pull that off again for the final paper. The Video editing final will (hopefully) be easy to edit. However, it is the production stage that I am worried about. I am working with my brother and his friends (high schoolers)as the talent, and I have stressed to them how important this project is. I plan to record that project in 2 weeks.

On top of all this, I need to study for various tests. The most important thing I am doing now is reading the third (and final) book for international politics. These books have been brutal, but I am hoping this one will be better. The book is called "Descent into Chaos," and it deals with the United States' involvement in Afghanistan after 9/11. Hopefully this will be better than the last two books. The problem I have with reading for this class is that it takes a long time. I stop and highlight important sections of the book, and take notes on the chapters. The tests in that class are highly dependent on the reading.

I want an iPhone

Flashback to 2007 if you will. After years of horrible service, my family dropped AT&T in favor of Verizon. About a month or so later the iPhone came out. The iPhone is an AT&T exclusive phone. I had no intention of switching back to AT&T for the iPhone... even though the iPhone was amazing.
I have been waiting ever since for the iPhone to come out for Verizon. Rumors would surface, and then disappear over the years of a Verizon iPhone. I am eligible to upgrade my phone this month, but I am going to wait it out until June. AT&T's contract with Apple expires in June, so there is a possibility that the iPhone may come to Verizon. My mom just got the Droid, a really awesome iPhone competitor phone. I really wanted to get it, but if I did I would be tied to that phone for two years. I would be devastated if the iPhone came out during that time. So I still wait with my old eNV 2.... waiting.... and waiting.... for a Verizon iPhone. I might eventually get the Droid if there is no word of a Verizon iPhone at the end of June.

Bad Company 2: The Review

Battlefield Bad Company 2 released on March 2, 2010. I have been playing the game almost every day since the release, and this is my review.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 is the sequel to Bad Company. The first game of the series never released on the PC, but this didn't stop EA from releasing the sequel to the PC platform.
DICE, the developer for the game, has a great history of buggy games. Pretty much every Battlefield game has been riddled with glitches when they first came out. Bad Company 2 was no exception. My first major complaint was a connection issue problem in multiplayer. I was unable to connect to about 50% of the games I tried to join during the first week of owning the game. I was not alone. It turned out that every gamer running Windows Vista encountered this issue. DICE recommended right clicking on the game icon in Windows Vista and choosing the "run as administrator" option. This ended up being the fix to the connection issue. However, there was one other problem to deal with. I pre-ordered the game, and I was supposed to be given early access to upgradable weapons. These weapons showed up in every online gaming mode, except for Rush mode. This was a glitch that occurred for everyone who pre-ordered the game. I was actually prepared for glitches with this game, because of DICE's history with these glitches. DICE usually cleans up their mess on the second or third game patch.

There are several different multiplayer game modes in Bad Company 2, but the two most popular are Rush and Conquest. Rush mode involves two teams, the attackers and the defenders. The Attackers rush into the battlefield and try to destroy two mobile command stations (M-Com stations). After the attackers destroy the first two, the defenders retreat back to two other M-Com stations. This process repeats, and the attackers win if they are able to destroy the third set of M-Com stations. The defenders, of course, are charged with protecting these stations. Conquest mode is the classic Battlefield multiplayer mode. Two teams have to hold various positions on the map. There is a number countdown for both teams, and it counts down faster for the team with less objectives held. The goal of this mode is to force your enemy’s ticker to reach zero. Overall, I think these game modes are fine. However, I really liked a game mode called "Titan mode," which was available in 2006's Battlefield 2142. That mode involved capturing missile silos. There were 6 to be captured, and held. The two teams also had giant hover ships in the air called Titans(one for each team). The Titans are protected by laser shields. The missile silos fired missiles every 5 minutes at the enemy's Titan, and over time would destroy the enemy's shield. This allowed for another stage of game play where the goal was to rush onto the enemy's Titan, and destroy the reactor core. It was pretty fun in the futuristic Battlefield 2142. However, it would feel very out of place in the modern setting of Bad Company 2.

There are four soldier classes in Bad Company 2: Assault, Medic, Engineer, and Recon. The assault class' special ability is to provide ammo to other soldiers. They are also equipped with grenade launchers. The medic can heal injured teammates, and they can also revive downed players with a defibrillator. The engineer (my favorite soldier class!) can repair vehicles, and they are equipped with RPGs/rockets that can damage enemy vehicles. The Recon class are snipers and have the ability to plant C4 explosives, or call in mortar strikes on the enemy's position. Overall, I like the classes of Bad Company 2. However, DICE seems to be set on reducing the amount of soldier classes. In Battlefield 2 there were Assault, Engineer, Medic, Sniper, Anti-Tank, Support, and Spec-Ops. Battlefield Bad Company 2 seems to combine Assault with Support, Anti-Tank with Engineer, and Sniper with Spec-Ops. I guess in a way this is a good idea. The Engineer class in Battlefield 2 could only repair vehicles, and the Anti-Tank class could only destroy vehicles. Bad Company 2's Engineer class has the ability to do both. Now, these abilities are only specializations. Every soldier class is equipped with guns for dealing with the enemy infantry.

Finally, I would like to talk about the graphics of Bad Company 2. I was blown away. The graphics in the game are amazing. Everything looks realistic, and it is very detailed. For example, trees are actually blowing in the wind. Almost every building can be destroyed in this game. This definitely changes the tactics of the battlefield. In previous games you would have to sneak into a building to take out any snipers hiding in an attic. Bad Company 2 allows you to just destroy that said attic with RPGs or tank fire. This is revolutionary, and Bad Company 2 is the first in its class to have these destructible buildings. A building can even totally collapse if most of the walls are destroyed. This helps out in the Rush mode, where M-Com stations are located inside of buildings. Traditionally you have to go in and destroy the M-Com station. However, sometimes it is almost impossible to break through the enemy's defense. Snipers can help the team out by placing mortar strikes on the enemy building from a safe distance. Eventually, it will collapse and destroy the M-Com station. The graphics/physics of the game are phenomenal.

Overall, I love Bad Company 2. It is sort of a spinoff to traditional Battlefield games. I am really looking forward to Battlefield 3, a sequel to 2005's Battlefield 2. However, Bad Company 2 can definitely perform the job of holding me over until Battlefield 3 releases. I recommend this game to any fan of first person shooters/war games. I play Bad Company 2 on the PC, but it is also available on Xbox 360 and PS3.

(This shall be my final post on Bad Company 2. I was eagerly awaiting it, and it met all my expectations.)