Getting your computer ready for a software install can often make the process a lot less painless.  And I am all about making things a bit easier.

I visited the Windows Installation Guide for True Combat: Elite.  As I mentioned I am not a real gamer, but I know enough that if your machine isn’t powerful, you can’t run the games.  So looked over the “Preparation” section carefully.

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As we jump in with two feet today, I felt it would be cool to use another immersive metaphor, first person shooter (FPS) games and this one is FREE!  For those unfamiliar, this a game where your on-screen view matches the perspective your character is seeing the world.  An example:

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A trailer for a free video game.  Gotta love the dedication.

You hear a noise above you, you actually need to make your character look up to see it, from the first person view.  The shooter part should be pretty self explanatory.

So I found a really neat game, True Combat: Elite, a free FPS based on another free game called Wolfenstein – Enemy Territory (both downloadable at the True Combat site). 

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Reader Response

TechLife has news!÷š Good News?÷š Bad News?÷š I know you are dying to know.÷š You might think you even guessed it from the title of this column. Keep reading and let×?Ts see if you are right.

Remember the last column?÷š ×??Passion Publising, Get Paid.×??÷š My challenge stirred something deep in the heart of TechLife readers.÷š The result is we have been busy this past month helping quite a few readers get their blogs setup.÷š The schedule is filling up for next month too.÷š It has been really exciting. Contact us if you want to get publishing.÷š This is not the last time this topic will come up.

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Me?  Have a blog?  Why?

Do you make the best LEGO creations ever?  Are you the gardening expert people ask about deadly nightshade?  Maybe you breed and are uber-knowledgeable about champion poodles?  Whatever your passion is, there are undoubtedly others in the world that share your passion and see you as an expert.  Today TechLife is going to take your passion and turn it into stardom.  (we have a few blog headers sprinkled throughout)

 

Before reading further, you must answer one question: Do you have a passion? Examples include golf, scuba diving, solving complex math problems, even using dryer lint in interesting ways. Did you answer yes?  Great keep reading.  Did you answer no?  Perfect we will randomly assign you a passion to choose from, and yes the following all count as passions:  watching television, reading the newspaper, eating, going to work, playing video games.  Pick one.

Great now everyone reading this column has at least one passion, let’s publish.

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Dwight “The Elf” Schrute

One of TechLife’s loyal readers is my uncle on my dad’s side.  Every year he and my aunt have a holiday party at their home. I’m sure all the readers have the same party they probably attend.  You are instructed to bring a gift no more than $15 (your limit may vary), which you then likely put in a big pile and some game is played where you end up with a set of matching dog sweaters, and of course you don’t own a dog.

Of course the other option is “Secret Santa” a common office game, as overly dramatized on NBC’s Emmy Winner, “The Office”.   One thing the first few seconds of the episode highlight is the organization of “The Elf”, a key ingredient to running the best gift exchange.  Of course Dwight, as usual takes it over board, but hopefully you can learn from his blunders.  Read on, TechLifers the fun awaits, we are going transform you into TechElfs.  And ask you to join a TechLife experiment!

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Love the LifePoster  
Click. Click. Click.  Snapping digital photos has never been easier.  Sharing them is getting pretty boring these days, with all the websites allowing a hum-drum interface that is basically the same.  TechLife is always looking for new ways to spice up photo sharing, and today we have great entry, in the free Postcard Viewer!

People love their digital cameras.  They love them as low-end phones, high-end DSLRs, and handy point and click models.  Readers of TechLife also love our Picasa LifePoster article.   It still gets comments.  I think people enjoy finding unique ways to use their digital photos other than printing them out one at a time.  This article is considered “graduate level” and assumes the reader has read the previous LifePoster article and the first Picasa article from TechLife. 

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MacGyver’s Notebook
To any origami master, a crisp, single sheet of paper can be turned into a beautiful creation with just a few folds.  The Japanese art of taking a simple object and turning it into something beautiful is just that, artistic.  In TechLife, “the useful” is much more my area of expertise.  Television’s poster-child of usability was MacGyver, who seemingly every week used duct tape and a paperclip to defeat the bad guys.  One utility item MacGyver always carried was his Swiss Army knife, a multi-utility tool about the size of a cigarette lighter.

While there doesn’t appear to be a revival of the television show, the idea of a utility tool in all areas of life is always appealing.  I have a special treat for you today, something I call MacGyver’s notebook, also known as a PocketMod.

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Live is Better

While some people think live albums are just a sales ploy, most fans would much rather see their favorite band performing live than listen to a studio album.  Seeing all the members working together to create beautiful music onstage is part of the whole experience.

In the past “your band” could play together on stage, but when writing lyrics or tracking things like album sales, it was tough to keep everyone playing the same song at the same time.  Even worse while things like MySpace.com made creating a band editable site easier, creating a community was pretty difficult.  So our word for the day is collaboration, specifically online collaboration.    

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Good Karma

We all have had the experience (I hope), you do something nice for someone and you feel good inside.  Good Karma.  That is what makes this article special, it’s full of good karma.  I have two software toys that I want to give you as gifts, and here’s some even better karma, they are free.  With names like Electric Sheep and Stellarium TechLife readers are in for a treat.  

More after the jump…

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Wielding Massive Power 

Batman has Robin. The Lone Ranger has Tonto.  Who’s your sidekick? I know, I can already hear the arguments, ‘Superman doesn’t have a sidekick and he’s the most powerful Superhero of all.’  My retort, ‘Are you sure?’  When Lex Luthor or The Joker plan diabolical schemes to thwart our Super Friends, one of the first places all of these super smart defenders of justice turn is their computer.

How many times has Batman exclaimed, “Robin, to the Bat Computer!”?  While recent feature films have updated this notion, almost all Superheroes have very powerful technology research tools.  These marvels are often small, concealable and now within our reach.  Meet your Sidekick.

More after the jump

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 Newest Agency Takes Shape

Through an unmarked door, up a narrow staircase, past about two thousand DVDs (give or take), sits the operation center of one of the most powerful agencies in the world.  From this non-descript headquarters, a 3-5 minute video on demand message is regularly sent out to the global masses.  Are you being informed about the latest in high tech from International Director Cali Lewis of the G.I.A?

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Mops are so 2004
The future is now. Since 2002, iRobot, makers of the Roomba line of vacuums have been pitching us on the idea of robotically cleaning our carpets. They are now releasing third generation Roombas that can be scheduled to perform their vacuum tasks. But up until now, the dirtiest room in the house, the kitchenÁ-?s floor, was left to the mop.

Welcome in the era of the Scooba, a robot that is more than a mop. A machine that takes a special Clorox cleaning solution, safe for even hardwood floors, and scrubs your floor clean. Sound good? TechLife, thought so too, so we got one for the Á-°lab.Á-?

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Eiffel to Empire
Say you find yourself in CBS’s The Amazing Race or maybe just the urge to visit the Big Apple hits you. How fast could you get there? Pretty fast you say. Now the bonus, can you reach NYC’s Planet Hollywood and tell us what’s across the street? Easy! Not so fast, we want to know what’s across 45th Street, not across Broadway. How about finding out before you arrive using only your PC?

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Happy 1 year Birthday Life Poster
The holidayà-?s are over. (sigh) The gifts have been opened. (sigh) You have mountains of digital photos (with your new camera) from Thanksgiving through New Yearà-?s totaling 100 shots? 1000 shots? 5000 shots? (sigh)

Not a problem if you recall TechLifeà-?s November 2005 article about Picasa; an easy to use and free of charge tool to organize digital images. While Picasa is great for digital organization, it also has a few hidden tricks; one of them is a Life Poster. A Life Poster is a collection of photos grouped together in a single image. Usually they focus around a specific subject. The best part is they are easy to make, and Picasa makes them even easier.

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Content Consumption
Are you interested in the Japanese toilet craze? Yes, really there is a craze. Today’s digital universe has created global interest in reading and following the developments the Japanese have regarding their bathroom experiences.

Do you sell iPod socks? Yes that’s right, socks. The digital storefront has allowed the smallest micro-entrepreneur to launch a line of iPod Socks, basically a hand knit iPod case.

Do you know someone uprooted by Hurricane Katrina? Okay maybe not. The uprooting of life, by powerful forces of nature is seemingly more commonplace. You are likely to know someone displaced by a job, family or schooling. Interestingly, staying in touch has never been easier.

Do you like to comment on the local, state, national or worldwide politics? Before you say no, ever thought about how high your taxes are? Commentary on politics has always been reserved for those that have an own audience; the digital universe has made the audience one click away.

So what do these four seemingly unconnected topics have in common? They are all Blogs.

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