Penny Arcade

So I picked up my MacBook Pro a few months back and I would not call myself a convert but I do really like it. I’ve been doing all the basic iLife stuff, like making DVD’s of Gabe’s birthday party and photocasting pictures to the family. I am getting much more comfortable with the Mac but there are still some things I don’t quite understand and so I have a couple questions for you guys.

I know I’m sort of late to the dance but I did recently acquire an iPod. Well technically I got Kara’s ancient iPod after she upgraded to one of the new video ones. Anyway, I’ve been using it with iTunes and some of the problems I’m running into don’t make sense. I assume I just don’t know how to use it because some of this shit is so stupid that it can’t actually work the way I think it does.

So my iPod is set up with my laptop. I have had no problem putting the music from my MacBook on the device. The problem is that I also have iTunes on my desktop and as far as I can tell an iPod can only sync with one computer. It seems to me like an iPod should sync with an account not a specific computer. If I have two or three computers authorized to use an iTunes account why can I not put all the music I’ve purchased on all those machines on my iPod? Am I doing something wrong?

I upgraded to the newest version of iTunes, seven I guess it is. They added some new iPod functionality that I thought at first glance might solve that problem. I tried to make it work last night and this is the conclusion I came to. I can still put all the music from my laptop onto my iPod. In addition I can now transfer any iTunes purchases ( and only my iTunes purchases) from my laptop to my desktop via the iPod. However I still can’t put any of the music I purchased on my desktop onto the iPod. Is that right?

I have one iTunes account. I’ve used it to purchase music on three authorized machines, my laptop, my desktop and my wife’s laptop. The 99 cents for every one of those songs came out of my credit card that is attached to that account. It seems to me like I should have access to any of the songs I’ve purchased on any of my authorized computers. It also seems like I should be able to put all the songs I’ve purchased onto my iPod. Can I really not do that? Am I missing some setting or menu option? Don’t I own that music? What the fuck am I missing here?

I’ve been looking at all the news coming out regarding the Zune and it’s certainly interesting. I think the device is cool and although I find the Urge music store to be pretty cumbersome I’d certainly be willing to switch if it worked the way I think the iPod should. From what I understand I can subscribe to Urge for a monthly fee (ala Napster) and sync all the music I want with my Zune. To me, that means it doesn’t matter what computer I use, I should have access to all the music on Urge from any authorized machine and I should be able to throw in on my device. Is that true?

If I just want to use the service like iTunes and purchase individual songs and albums can I access that purchased music from any authorized computer? Will the Zune sync with any of these machines and grab the music from all of them? I’m gonna call up some friends at MS today and see if they have any answers for me. I’m curious what you guys know or if you have any insights.

I’m ready to pay for my music online. I am willing to purchase a mobile device to haul it around. I just want a system that isn’t bullshit.

-Gabe out

Mario Hoops 3-on-3 is impressive in many ways, as I’ve suggested: certainly as a technical showcase, it’s nice to have in your bag.  As a catalogue of Japanese aggression toward gamers, it’s clear now that future generations will refer to these advanced cups as a deeply scandalous exhibit.  I have seen a Goddamn ninja weave a dark circle, disappear with a burst of leaves in some strictly Hattori Hanzo type shit, and then phase back into the physical plane to haunt our mortal hoops. 

The mode of play, while often logical, is still pretty sophisticated:  imagine trying to catch an electron with a pair of chopsticks and you’ll have an approximation of the kind of dexterity it can demand of the stylus.  It’s a real gamer’s game under the hood, even on a system that is purportedly "for everyone."  The Wii has games like this too, at least, if they haven’t changed since I last played them.  The new Mario (as I’ve said in the past) doesn’t shy away from complex interactions or strange spacial concepts just to court some encroaching mainstream, but there’s certainly games designed with…  with those people in mind. 

I essentially skipped the THUG phase of Tony Hawk, having preserved my fond memories of TH3’s baggage claim cryogenically and moved to other extreme simulations.  Once I heard that the Playstation 3 "sku" of the game wouldn’t feature multiplayer, I started to get curious.  Didn’t Tony Hawk Goddamn inaugurate my PS2‘s network adapter?  I began to wonder what trifling, incremental half-measure they added this time to warrant this its being called Eight.  It turns out that it’s not incremental, it’s not a half measure, and it might even be hot to death.  Check out the "New Move: Nail The Trick" video to see what it would look like if Max Payne took up the sport.  Honestly, I don’t know if I’d even miss the multiplayer if it were stripped out of the 360 version.  I played against people back in the day who would do a single trick, continuously, throughout the entire round I’d play them.  Then, when the time was almost up, they would finish their trick and the world would crack open like a huge mouth. 

Their combo had physically gouged the Earth. 

We’re heading Norph into the wilds of Canadia to work on some Precipice stuff, and (hopefully) eat some Dim Sum.  But I’ll be keeping an eye on the Tokyo Game Show coverage on various sites when I can, and hopefully by the time I’m back home there’ll be some of the promised videos and/or demos available on Marketplace.  Of course, when the other two systems are out, gamers of every stripe will feast this well.  I’ll be really happy when the term "next-gen" refers to a range of available experiences as opposed to a single product.   

(CW)TB out. 

  you’ll find that they’re quite stationary