While Googling for the "For pony!" strip, I came upon this "Part of That World" spoof, starring LFG comic's Richard, a homicidal undead warlock.
WARNING: While it's not really graphic, the LFG comic video's content is definitely for mature audiences only.
Enjoy:
NOTE: Disabling your anti-virus software is a risky affair. I'm only posting this for my personal reference. Do the procedure at your own risk. (It does however, free up your system resources while gaming and will greatly improve performance. I promptly undo the procedure everytime I finish gaming however. )
I have posted the following in the Avast! forums, trying to determine if there's a better way of going about the procedure.
---------------------------------
I am a PC first-person shooter gamer (well actually, I am an RPG nut who really likes games that have great interactivity with the NPCs like Golden Sun and Zelda but all that went out the window ever since office work became hectic) and as such, do not like any AV to be running in the background/consuming memory when I play my games for optimal performance.
I've been using AVG 7.5 for years now as it was simple to disable/enable when I play games. Sadly, with AVG 8.0, that feature was eliminated.
I did some research and opted for Avast! instead of AVG 8.0 and so far it's good. I haven't any problems with my rig. The question is, how Avast can be temporarily disabled since simply pushing "Terminate" leaves several processes still running, particularly "ashServ.exe," which consumes 9-22Mb of memory.
This is how Avast! can be temporarily disabled in my system:
1. I click on "Less Details" on the "Resident Protection" interface. (Accessible by left-clicking on the blue Avast! ball in the system tray.)
2. With the Avast! Resident Protection interface fused into one, I click on "Terminate."
(UPDATE: According to Vladimyr, a 500-post member in the Avast! forums, the first two procedures can be simplified. Simply right click on the blue Avast! ball and click on "Stop On-Access Protection" This is more convenient.)
This shuts down the resident shield activities of Avast! However...
3. When you check "Processes" in the Windows Task Manager (accessible by pressing Ctrl-Alt-Del), you will still see Avast! processes still running. While the other ones are negligible, the 18-22Mb consumed by "ashServ.exe" bothers me.
4. To disable this, I go right-click on the blue Avast! ball again, click "Program Settings" and then in the interface that pops up, click on "Troubleshooting."
5. Under "Troubleshooting," I check "Disable Avast! self-defense module" and click "OK."
6. A window will pop up to confirm your action. I simply click "Yes."
7. I go back to the Windows Task Manager and terminate the "ashServ.exe" process.
8. I game.
Note: After gaming, I restart my PC, which will cause Avast! to run again. I then go back to Avast!'s Program Settings and uncheck "Disable Avast! self-defense module." I never forget to do this as it's dangerous to leave it checked. Also, I do not surf the Net if Avast! is in any way disabled.
How Avast! is disabled/enabled may not be as easy as that of AVG 7.5 but it can be done without the various registry hacks that AVG 8.0 requires.
So far I have no problems with my system. I've also installed various on-demand anti-spyware software.
Version 2.0 of Lightsmark, a video card benchmark test, has been out for quite some time. This video card benchmark test is a
"multiplatform benchmark/demo with REALTIME GLOBAL ILLUMINATION and PENUMBRA SHADOWS"
"faster engine (up to 3x higher fps, so scores are different)"
A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about a free defragmenter, Defraggler. The free defragmenter intrigues me as it's a product of Piriform, the makers of the popular CCleaner. All they had as that point however, was a release candidate of Defraggler, so I opted not to download the free defragmenter.
I still have not installed it but if you are interested, Piriform released v1.02.085 last August 18.
UPDATED: Added two more video links of intense PC first-person shooter firefights. See the last two vids.
WARNING: Videos contain graphic details of soldiers in firefights.
Video clips of me playing the PC first-person shooter game F.E.A.R. (First Encounter Assault Recon).
There's no audio but I hope you'll like the action (perhaps I'll register my GameCam copy one of these days to unlock the audio feature...) :
It's a baby boy!
Some weeks ago, THQ released a trailer about their upcoming real-time strategy game Dawn of War 2. The trailer ended with a dying Eldar Farseer pointing at a strange cloud-like formation that was rapidly enveloping the night sky. While some fans commented that it was surely a Warp storm, the majority believed that it was the Tyranids.
See the video below:
Oops sorry, WRONG race. The Eldar fanboy in me haha! That's an Eldar Wraithlord exchanging blows with a Terran Dreadnought (which encases the body of a Space Marine. Hmm. That will sound familiar for fans of another strategy game. Meh.)
Gamespot have released details that just like in the tabletop strategy game that the Dawn of War series has sprung from, Tyranids rely on "Synapse creatures" to keep the otherwise unthinking, voracious Tyranid troops into an organized army. Destroying one of these creatures will result in total chaos for the swarm as they will flee or turn upon themselves.
That Space Marine must be deaf. I haven't read about Tyranid Carnifexes having an infiltration ability. The Lictors (the Tyranid that appears in the ending of the video above) however, are another story...
Waste of muscle; these things can break apart tanks.
The "Emperor's Finest" will have their power armor-encased hands full of Tyranids this 2009.I just woke up.
Yesterday was so crazy --- officmates, work, fit of mania, Rhilanthos' regular grilling session courtesy of Daryl --- that I have FIRMLY decided that if I do invent this time machine I have been planning to make (but have put off in favor of this Cold Fusion stuff that's bouncing around in my cranium right now) , I won't ever go back to that date. Ever.
Reality warping I tell you.
Anyway, I just saw this vid and I think that this is just a bad dream and today is still yesterday, judging from how this damned cat has learned to strike up this pose:
Hoooooooooge!
So I actually never got around to searching the Net for video clips of those colossal Warhammer 40K Eldar Forgeworld models. I got bored this night though so I checked out YouTube and oh man...
WARNING: LEVEL LAYOUT SPOILER; BLOOD
Man! I won't be getting tired of this game anytime soon!
The AI is just so advanced as to be jaw-dropping sometimes. Their tactics change whenever you replay a level. The second time I went through this LZ firefight, I was stuck in the room on the second floor, killing anyone who came in. This time, the AI waited below.
In this game, no firefight replays the same.
Take note of how one of the soldiers vaults over a vent and ran for cover. Those guys at Monolith (makers of the game No One Lives Forever and its sequel) ... geniuses.
(Sorry for the frames --- GameCam and other video recording software tend to be resource-hungry affairs. My gameplay is smooth when I'm not recording.)
It's surprising but v4.1.7 of the K-Lite Codec Pack is now out just days after the release of 4.1.4.
I've been using this excellent codec pack for several months now. I've made an article about the thing HERE.
Enjoy the improvements in audio quality!
This is hilarious.
I've often wondered why in the worlds would an alien race design ships that fired slow moving plasma balls causing them to lose fleet upon fleet of fighters and capital ships to a single terran fighter.
Here's CollegeHumor's take on the same thing with the denizens of Mushroom Kingdom:
"We have mastered the art of destruction."
Here's a short video clip of one of my favorite units of the Eldar army. These guys just melt away any enemy infantry who gets in their way. Being Eldar though, they are specialist troops. This means they are VERY good at what they do (shooting) but eat dirt at everything else (melee). You have to dance away these troopers if any melee squad makes a beeline for them.
Improving audio without shelling out moolah
Several of my friends who are new to the PC field asked me how I update my audio drivers. Below is the procedure.
Please take note that I have an integrated sound solution using Realtek AC97 audio drivers. Our update procedures may differ if you are using a soundcard.
The basic procedure of replacing old drivers is still the same though. (ie "Uninstall, restart, install)
Also take note I will not provide technical advice. Do the procedure at your own risk.
1. I download the latest version. (Of course! There's no reason to update if there's nothing to replace the old drivers with.)
(Tip: This is just for convenience's sake but I usually take measures to recall my settings with my old driver. The simplest way to do this is by taking a screenshot.)
2. I uninstall the old one. (Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs)
I make sure I highlight the correct program. Uninstalling the incorrect one might render my system unoperable. 
I click on "Yes."
I click "Analyse," check "Realtek - Sound," and click on "Clean." That's it.
I ignore this prompt and just press "Cancel."
I ignore the resulting popup too --- I've got the updated software. ;)
The icon of the new audio driver's configuration utility shows up in the lower right corner. I click on that to launch it and tinker a bit with the settings. (I turn off my speakers everytime I change the speaker settings from the default "Desktop speakers" configuration to "5.1 surround speakers." After I have made the shift, I turn them back on.)
Start > Run
uncheck it (taking care NOT to uncheck other startup items I'm not familiar with --- doing so might render my system inoperable) and click "Apply." I then press "OK" and restart. W00t!
Realtek AC97 Audio v4.05 has been out for several days now.
I've been checking their site day after day after day after day and now a new version is finally out. While updates for the aging Realtek AC97 audio is progressively getting slower and slower, it still is heartening to know that Realtek is still developing new versions for their AC97 audio.
I'm currently listening to my favorite tracks and so far this version --- while not possessing radical improvements --- is continually justifying my enthusiasm for watching out for new Realtek AC97 driver versions.
I am v4.05! Hear me roar!
We Made History.
As far as I know, we were the first unofficial cosplay group to ever enter our city's biggest shopping mall without asking permission from the management. A Warhammer 40,000 Eldar Dark Reaper, a Jurassic Park scientist, V from "V for Vendetta," Agent 47, a Bleach character, and an Akatsuki ninja went strolling around, drawing stares, comments from Anime fans, and frightening/delighting numerous children. (There were more of the latter though.)
Kudos to Raffy who successfully rounded up willing companions. (Encased in an Eldar Dark Reaper costume, I tried hours earlier but the ones I invited didn't have masks so they refused.)
My only regret is that we weren't able to invite Anth since the guy seemed to have activated his cloaking device right after the competition.
I'm sure his getup would have drawn oohs and aahs from the crowd what with the gazillion doodads he made for his costume. The gathering would have been more impressive.
Still, due to Raffy's roundup, I fulfilled my dream of presenting a character from the wildly-successful Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War unit to the city (regardless of how wildly inaccurate my costume was).
Also, thanks to Jeedo who thought up the idea of hosting a cosplay party.
Not by a long shot: the armor was too big, there simply wasn't enough time to model the Dark Reaper's Reaper Launcher exactly as it should look, and it was my first time making a helmet from cardboard and wall sealant. Still, the Reaper Launcher that my wife made for me as a surprise had an impressive shock value. ("Whoa! Death carrying a tank!" an unknowing shopper commented) I'm sending her off to Mars to train as an Adeptus Mekanikus.According to this Yahoo! article, even the hobbies of Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Mario, Donkey Kong, Zelda, and Pikmin, are closely guarded by Nintendo for fear of leaking what could be potent game ideas to competitors.
Shigeru Miyamoto --- now there's a real-life King Midas.
WARNING: BLOOD AND GORE
Screenshots I took using FRAPS:
Life must be hard being a Replica soldier in the employ of Armacham. You have to sleep while on your feet. While holding your rifle.
No they're not here. They're in the barn. Asleep. Like horses.
Take your time?! What do you mean take your time?! He's not getting up any time soon! And no, I didn't do that!
"Specialist my foot." You're lucky this game doesn't have friendly fire. 
Look I finally have feet at last! And I can kick! I'm a real boy! (And the blood? No, I didn't do that either. Honest.)
Where the f---- do they get these m0r0|\|$?
Okay sorry for the language but what I saw --- that was the last straw. Why is it that every single d@|\/||/|ed time I watch local TV shows and movies I get a visual feast of blatant imitation designs?!
Like that time I went to see this local mech film just to promote the local film industry --- this juggernaut of a mech comes lumbering into the screen somewhere in the last part of the movie. It had superb design really.
Until it showed its backside and you see these protrusions from its back that reminded me strongly of a---
"Isn't that a character from Halo?" my wife asked, oblivious that Covenant Hunters are heavy troopers in that PC game, and not a unique character.
Great, even my wife who's not a gamer recognized the source. Why'd they have add the darned protrusions?
The source material. Heavy trooper at the far left. Looks familiar? (The pic is not mine. It was taken from HERE.) THEY COULD HAVE TWEAKED THE PROTRUSIONS A LITTLE, JUST TO DEVIATE FROM THE ABOVE SOURCE. BUT NOOOOOOO......
Awesome.
I've never seen anything like this. A while back I made an article about Far Cry 2 and Red Faction: Guerilla. That time, I wasn't so interested in the game but after seeing this vid, I'm all ears to any news about the release of this shooter.
Disaster.
I should have listened to my wife's advice about using contact cement and a stapler. But nooooo, I had to be so stubborn that I used plain school glue. My Chaos Space Marine helmet fell apart last night.
Also, the enormity of the project sank in. Emulating bio-engineered soldiers who turned to darkness. What was I thinking? Chaos Space Marine armor?! The amount of sealant I need to complete the breastplate and the shoulder armor would cost a tiny fortune.
Luckily, I registered two costumes so I think it's time to go to Plan B.
Plan B. Methinks without the guns though. Too expensive.Whoa!
This version is the best so far! Everything is so clear! The Corrs never sounded so good!! W000000T!!!
HAADO GEI! UFOOOOO!!
UPDATED: Nag screen shown. See the last picture of this article.
Given that there's a consensus that one of the best defragmenters around is Diskeeper, I tried its freeware version, Diskeeper Lite.
It's way better than the default Windows XP (SP2) defragmenter; it detected a lot of fragmented files that the default utility did not.
Here's a screenshot:
A caveat though: the "Smart Fragmentation Analysis" feature of this freeware bothers me. The freeware defragmenter, according to its "Help" manual,
periodically checks the fragmentation levels on your disk volume(s) automatically. This "smart" technology analyzes your disk volumes, and when the fragmentation increases to a sufficient level, a message is displayed reminding you to defragment the affected volume(s).
DKService.exe
I've been using this excellent codec pack for several months now. I've made an article about the thing HERE.
Enjoy the improvements in audio quality!
This is me playing the horror/action PC first-person shooter game F.E.A.R.
Finally got GameCam to display right in YouTube.
I'll discuss details about the vid tomorrow. Meanwhile enjoy Pentium 4 action at Extreme Difficulty without SloMo. You may want to click on the "Full Screen" button on the lower right (second from the edge) to see the bodies falling down clearly. >)_)
(Apologies for the frames though; video capture software do tend to be resource hogs. At least GameCam is lighter than FRAPS. Also, I'm using the trial version so there's no audio.)
ENEMIES!!! MUST NEED ENEMIES!!!
Between my work and the upcoming company party, I'm finding it hard to update this blog. I can't promise any new posts from now up to the 16th.
Wish me luck on this task I've imposed on myself.
BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!! SKULLS FOR THE SKULL THRONE!!
This is so cool. A bunch of guys cosplaying as Tranformers have gotten the whole Cybertron thing right --- even the transforming bit.
All Transformers fans see the video below. Guaranteed drop-jaw transformation or your money back. ;)
Beauty will be in the eye of the informed.
Less than two months back, I posted an article that provided a link to AnandTech's forum about a useful thread that discusses LCD basics. Two or more resources are better than a single one however, so I give you this link to HardwareSecret's "Everything You Need to Know About LCD Monitors."
Two things buyers should take note of are the concepts of "native resolution" and "contrast ratio."
It's better to arm yourself with knowledge than recklessly shell out more than $200 on something that you'll be stuck with for potentially more than a year.
