Avatar photoSteven Savage

Link Roundup 8/5/2013

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Plenty of interesting news today, so a roundup is in order!

Technology:

Put on your sci-fi boots and go to the virtual farm, vat-grown meat is a reality.  Apparently a dry, not overly exciting reality, but still this is progress (for a remarkably cheap experiment).  Food production is going to be an issue in a complex world facing climate change, so this may provide some career ideas for you, or just some ideas for you writers.  Or a Better Off Ted episode.

A look at the cultural problems startups may have that’s really been making us MuseHackers talk among ourselves.

Video Games:

Muse Hack Friend Jose San Mateo went to Gaymer X and takes a look at a need for Indies to respect gay gamers, and the convention and culture in general.  Ok game developers get reading and get thinking.

OMGPOP is dead as Zynga continues to work to find ways to make people dislike them.

Media:

The Washington Post was sold to Jeff Bezos.  Take a moment and smell the irony.

– Steven

 

The Personal Is Always Important

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So Rob showed me RWBY, a CGI animated series that fuses video game and anime styles. It’s by Monty Oum, and thus has quite a pedigree. I found it enjoyable if needing fleshing out, and did enjoy the use of game stylings a great deal – there’s a very definite Suda 51 vibe that appeals to me.

But what was weird in watching this fan production by a fan favorite is that I found my reactions were odd. How was I to judge it considering its pedigree? Considering it’s audience-friendly involvements and previews? Considering it wasn’t from a big company?

It reminded me when I saw Pacific Rim, which is a giant love letter to mecha films (both military and super). I mean I knew I liked the idea of it, I like what I saw, but my reactions felt strange. On one level it was totally targeted at . . . well me. On the other I wanted to judge it as I would any film.

Then I thought about Rogue Legacy, which I noted “spoke” my language. It was also a personal experience, and one that made judging the game different because that was the very goal.

I was not judging these things based on artistic merits entirely. I was evaluating them in a series of contexts like who did them, focus on the audience. It was very personal. Oh sure there were merits I could note, but in many cases they came down to merits that existed in a personal/social context.

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Check Out Proinsurance

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In my last job my company worked with a fantastic insurance provider, Proinsurance. I worked with Adam Houchins, who provided excellent support and information directly.  Literally, he took time to talk to me and answer my questions one on one.

Best of all, they handle insurance for businesses of all kinds – from the large to the very small.  So I wanted to give them a plug because the service I received was excellent – and may be right for your business, which I know a lot of you are thinking of!

Insurance is a pain to handle in a lot of cases, but the staff made it real easy. Give them a ring!

– Steven