Internet Explorer 9 Released, YouTube Embeds Fixed April 5, 2011
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I’m usually the last person to toot the horn that there have been any major updates to the Microsoft Windows Operating System on the site, however since this is site related I thought it would be important to post it here.
For those of you who have access to Windows Vista (sorry) or Windows 7 (like me), you’ll notice Internet Explorer 9 added to your Windows Update list today. IE9 has been in it’s final version for at least a week or two (and it’s been in beta testing for longer), but today is the first day that it’s being brought through on Windows Update.
I’ve been pretty embarrassed by the performance of the YouTube embeds on the site, because the performance across the board was likened to a flipbook. This was probably because WordPress had changed their embed from flash-based to HTML5. While this made it compatible with whatever people were throwing at it (it would work on your iPhone, and probably if you didn’t have flash installed) the embeds ran poorly across the board to the point of being personally embarrassing.
Well, since IE9 is now doing everything hardware based, HTML5 sings pretty good, and my site YouTube embeds now run MUCH faster. So if you’re looking for better site performance, please consider accepting the update to IE9. There are still going to likely be problems with it (I’ve noticed problems with some Blip.tv embeds on other sites and Blip has told me they’re working on getting a fix to their users) but at least you’ll be able to watch videos on my site again without getting sick!
Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club Code March 16, 2011
Posted by Maniac in Site News.1 comment so far
Here’s what you been waiting for all day! This code will grant it’s user First Access Club status for Duke Nukem Forever, with the promise of early access to the demo when it’s avalible. Instructions on how to input the code are in the announcement article. Whoever can redeem it first gets it.
CODE REDEEMED
I please ask that whoever does redeem the code successfully first please post a comment that they were able to get it so I can take it down. When you do that I recommend not posting under your email address to protect your anonymity.
Podcasting March 16, 2011
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I’ve been thinking about creating a simple podcast for this site for a few weeks now. I have the hardware and the software to do it already and have for some time, and I knew in advance that the site’s backend tools will support audio playback. The only thing that had up until this point been holding me back was the fact I don’t know RSS or how to build an iTunes compatable RSS feed so it can be listed for iPod/Pad/Phone playback, and if you can’t have that, then what’s the point of calling it a podcast?
So last night, diskreader117 and I recorded our first podcast. It turned out pretty good with some minor audio background errors that were forgivable (and entirely the fault of other people who were interrupting it). File size was a tiny 15mb file, and it was a hair under 30 minutes in length.
The problem is that while my site does support podcasting through various formats, my hosting provider does not. Even though I’m sitting on 3GB of storage space, WordPress does not allow any audio files to be uploaded for podcast purposes unless you buy at least 2GB more. Their reasoning is completely lost on me.
So unless a bunch of money decides to fall out of the sky, or I have a change of heart, unfortunatly I’m not going to be able to host a podcast on this site. I’m very sorry to everyone, it’s something I wanted to do, but the decision is out of my hands.
Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club Code Giveaway March 15, 2011
Posted by Maniac in Site News.1 comment so far
I’ve got a surprise for my regular visitors of the site. To thank you for visiting every day I’m going to offer anyone who visits the chance at access to the Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club and all the goodies that go along with it.
At some point tomorrow, I’m going to post up the code. The first person to redeem it at the official redemption site gets it. Keep checking back tomorrow (Wednesday) for when the code gets posted! Good luck to all!
One Year Passed…Thank You March 4, 2011
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It occurred to me just a few moments ago that today marks exactly one year since I actvated this website, and my obligatory Hello World post confirmed that.
It has been one heck of a year. There have been articles, videos, news, controversies, secessions, revolutions, but more than that there have been games, games and more games.
I don’t really have anything further I want to say about the site or my thoughts on the past year right now, but if anything there are a few people I want to thank, this is mostly in chronological order.
Matt Jersey – For contributing the awesome banner you see above you, thanks a bunch Matt!
diskreader117 – For being the first person I knew who was willing to be IN FRONT of a camera.
anachronos – For being a great friend and mentor for the past ten years, and for all your contributions to the site, if you ever want to go to E3 Ruben, you just have to ask.
E3 Expo – For letting me in.
The Unknown Cameraman – For being an enigma, and a damn good handheld cameraman.
And finally…
Thank you to all the site regulars. You’ve seen my articles and videos and you just keep visiting! I hope to be seeing more of you.
YouTube Changes February 23, 2011
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For those of you who have wondered why I didn’t post any content yesterday, especially after what I promised on the twitter feed yesterday, you can blame YouTube for that.
They give and they take away it seems. I had an account which in December was granted the capabilities to post videos in excess of 15 minutes. Yesterday, when I tried to upload the first part of the series I had scheduled this week (a video of 22 minutes in length), it was rejected due to length. It seems my ability to post videos of any length was quietly taken away from me by YouTube. I have to this point posted videos in excess of 30 minutes over the past two months which are still active, so why can I no longer post videos of a reasonable length anymore?
YouTube did not provide any explanation to why they took away my 15+ minute ability. My account is in good standing and has not been blocked. Nor did I post too many videos in excess of that time duration while I could.
Regardless, the fact I’m currently limited to 15 minute videos again will severely impact video uploads, and some series like “So, What Happened?” will have to be re-examined.
I wish I had better news to report, but I was planning an entire series this week which was already shot and partially edited (which I worked on with a new site contributor), and because of this it will have to be trashed.
E3 Preparations February 12, 2011
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We at gameXcess.net are putting a lot into our first E3. I thought I’d share this picture with you guys of just what the Unknown Cameraman is planning to bring just to get our videos shot.
This will likely be the closest thing to a picture you’ll ever see of them online on this site.
So, we’re ready E3, is E3 ready for us?
About YouTube Embeds January 27, 2011
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This is just a small bit of information to anyone visiting the site. For the past few weeks, WordPress has updated its YouTube embed client to a newer version, but it seems that performance on my videos when viewed through the embed is pretty poor, even when the resolution is cranked up to full.
I don’t know what is causing this problem, but I’m sure it’ll likely resolve itself when WordPress or YouTube again updates its YouTube embed software. If the performance of the video is just that distracting, feel free to just watch the video on YouTube directly at my YouTube profile. There will not be a performance problem there, and I can assure you that you won’t offend or upset me.
gameXcess.net is going to E3! January 4, 2011
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Big news! I just got the confirmation letter from the organizers of the E3 Expo, confirming my eligibility to attend this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo!
This will be the first E3 I have attended in many years. I had previously attended E3s 2003 and 2004 on behalf of GameSpy. I also had been invited in 2002, but due to the fact that E3 required attendees to be over 18 at the time (it’s now 17), I was unable to attend.
I’d like to thank the E3 organization and their parent companies for allowing me to attend on behalf of my site. Rest assured I will be covering all I can with my cameras, demoing everything I can get my hands on and interviewing whoever will stand in front of me and take my questions. The hope is to spend the whole day on the show floor capturing all the video I can, and spend each night editing and uploading those videos. In anticipation of this, I’m going to bring the lightest cameras I can get my hands on, because I’ll be carrying them everywhere during the trip.
E3 2011 will be June 7th-9th, 2011 in Los Angeles, CA.
Background Image Request December 14, 2010
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I have been doing more tweaking on the site’s backend for more behind the scenes improvements and I noticed background images are now supported by the site. This would make for a great way to improve the site’s appearance, but the problem is that if I do a background image, it might make it hard to actually read the articles on top of them. If anyone has any interest at all in submitting a possible background image for the site, feel free to comment! I’d be more than happy to credit you for your assistance.
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