until recently, things were pretty slow on the xbox 360. i’ve had it for almost a year and had only 2 games (PGR3 & GRAW) and a few xbox live arcade games (smaller $5-15 games that you downlooad).
Gears of War was easily the most anticipated game of the year, mostly because of it’s incredible graphics. the gameplay is great as well, and now that it’s finally out it’s getting great reviews all around. playing co-op w/dr. jon was a blast, and hosting a round of deathmatch games (where about 8 other xbox live members joined us) was a hoot!
Call of Duty 3 isn’t much different from COD2, but it’s still a great, immersive game that really feels like you’re thrown into a WWII movie.
the $199 HD-DVD player add-on is out, and it’s the cheapest HD-DVD drive available. plus, it also happens to plug right into any windows XP machine and works. the 1080p picture is pretty amazing.
microsoft is hitting on all cyclinders with the 360, as sony’s ps3 is off to a miserable launch (product shortage, malfunctions, poor reviews, bad launch titles). the 360 is clearly a more polished product/user experience, it’ll be interesting to see how much marketshare it can steal from the ps3 juggernaut.
though i can’t root for xbox too much, because with the announcement that they’re now offering tv & HD movies for download on xbox live, they’re now in direct competition with the itunes store.
today was my first day at apple. from a consumer perspective, i already knew they were a well thought out company. everything from the marketing campaigns to the way the products are packaged. but it’s also been extremely evident as a new hire. the orientation class (about 20 new hires) covered every little detail, and really left us feeling valued as new employees. all the various benefits, discounts and employee services are still swirling in my head. and it finishes off in a ‘kindergarden moment’ where the new managers swoop in and take you out to lunch.
(contrast this to my last position (ET), where i was the only new hire in a rushed orientation, didn’t have a cube or phone or computer ready, and didn’t even meet my boss until the next day)
to top it off, i also learned that i’ll be managing a large, high visibility project that’s just kicking off (good timing!). everyone i’ve met so far seems genuinely nice, smart, and helpful.
…and i’ll be getting a nice new macbook pro to work on. =)
i’ve drunk the kool-aid, and it tastes good…
864this is the new fitness ball that amo got us. i love it! for some reason, my back is always stiff when i wake up in the morning. laying on the ball feels so good, i could do it all day. =)
866Fat to Firm: Fitness Ball Workout for Dummies (2004): we netflixed this ball workout dvd…it’s alright. some parts are way easy, others way hard.
870Basic Ab Workout for Dummies (2002): this ab workout, on the other hand, is great. there’s a 45 min instructional scene that you watch to learn it, and from then on watch only the 10 min workout each time you do it. we’ve been pretty good about keeping it up (so far), and can already feel a difference…no abs of steel just yet, though…
868Ultrametabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss (Hardcover): finally, i browsed through this book at border’s the other day and learned a few new things:
- dietwise, you should strive to eat as much “real food” as possible. that is, unrefined, unprocessed stuff. you can eat practically as much as you want, as long as it’s real.
- interval workouts are the best for increasing your overall metabolism (which helps you keep the pounds off). that is, cardio workouts where you push yourself at 90% of maximum for about a minute, then rest about 1.5-2 mins, then do it over about 5 more times. your overall workout is quicker (30 mins with warmup & cooldown), but it should provide better results than longer, lower-intensity workouts.
- artificial sweeteners are bad for you: i never really bought into the ‘it causes cancer’ argument, b/c those tests were always based on giving rats like 1000x the normal amount. but i do buy his claim that they screw up your body’s insulin levels because it thinks that sugar is coming, when none really is.
the ps3 has been out for about 3 days now. i took a look on craigslist SF, and saw tons of them for sale at outrageous prices. filtering the ads with a minimum price of $3000 (most retailers are selling them in bundles that cost around $1k), there are still 166 active ads!
news at 11…
