Mahalo How To » Entertainment

Card Magic in Wizard 101

Ashasekayi — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:50:02 +0000

Wizard 101 is a MMO (massively multiplayer online) game that has grown in popularity the last few years. It is a card magic strategy game that pits young wizards against menacing creatures of darkness. Not surprisingly, it has much in common with Harry Potter. Yet, it does have a unique spin on the concept.

Like most other games in this genre, you must level up and fight increasingly harder foes.You gain experience points by travelling around Spiral (the name of the world in Wizard 101) and completing tasks for the various characters. The company, KingsIsle Entertainment, has added the ability to farm for items in 2009. The player can use these items to craft cards and magical gear. By in far, the most exciting part of the game is fighting with magic.

The game uses turn based card magic battle. Every player starts off by choosing what school of magic they want to join. The schools are fire, myth, ice, storm, life, death and balance. Each school has a weakness and strength. The key to the battles is harnessing that knowledge so that you can plan out how to best handle the opponent. The card system seems complicated at first since it has many different cards and types for each school. However, the How to Fight in Wizard 101 Web site provides many helpful tips and tricks on the subject of winning fights in the game.

Creating a podcast

Emeri — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:40:20 +0000

Internet podcasts have a host and are generally pre-recorded. Almost any subject or topic can become material for a podcast. A favorite interest can become a topic of conversation and on some of the web-hosted podcasts, listeners can call in to ask questions or to participate in the discussion. Ideally, the podcast website will allow interested parties to just click a link to connect and participate in a podcast discussion directly from the computer headphones and microphone. However, some podcasts require that listeners call in to a specific number on their own phones to be connected into the podcast conversation. Listeners can also access the podcast anonymously by playing back a pre-recording.

A podcast is any digital media file that is released in episodes or timed increments. The most common digital media file format is the MP3. The .wav file is also popular, and is for video podcasts, often called vidpods or vodpods.

The first podcasts were in 2004, but it was only after the iPod was produced. Podcast is just the combination of the words iPod and broadcast. That same year, many companies, with the root word ‘pod’ in it, attempted to obtain a trademark. None of them were successful, with the exception of Podcast Ready, Inc. Apple Corporation was unable to obtain a trademark for the acronym ‘pod’ simply because it is an acronym.

The good thing about podcasts or vodpods is that you can spend as little or as much money on it as you wish. A web feed, called an RSS, is automatic, free and is downloadable in text format. Rather than an independent website, podcast presenters can host their radio talk show or video show on a podcast-capacity website, such as BlogTalkRadio and TalkShoe. The ready-made podcast is totally connectable to the social websites Facebook and Twitter. If you do have your own blog or website, these podcast hosting websites furnish script to place a widget for the podcast on your own pages. With the embeddable widget script, no other software is required to create an original website around the theme of your own podcast.

Get your five minute film shown at a film festival

Emeri — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:59:11 +0000

Every film had a beginning. Whether it was first compiled by someone with a movie camera, camcorder or digital camera, the idea for the screenplay was the first step towards a completed movie. Sometimes, the producer of a movie is also the writer of the screenplay and the creator of the characters. Having characters in a film isn’t always necessary to make a movie. It all depends what the movie is about. For instance, a movie about nature may have just a narrator and various scenes shot at different angles.

A movie about animals may be filmed at a sanctuary for wild animals or even at a neighborhood park where squirrels or other small animals live and routinely go about in search of food while interacting with the other animals. A two person movie might consist of a couple on a first date that goes comically wrong. With a bit of imagination, the right movie plot will come to mind. The best movies will be about the things that the filmmaker knows the most about or has done the most accurate research about.

Many completed films are done by what would be called amateurs or someone who just wanted to give filmmaking a try. If the film is good, it can be presented to a film festival for showing. Some of the most accomplished movies had their beginnings as a very inexpensively made film. Just because it didn’t cost much to make the movie, doesn’t mean that the movie can’t make money and end up a very lucrative investment. With movie making software, it’s rather easy to incorporate words on the movie screen, whether it is rolling script or stationary words. The title of the movie and the names of the movie’s producers, as well as the names of the actors are shown at the beginning of the movie. The end of the movie lists the actors again, plus the names of all who were involved with making the movie and the copyright credits.

If a filmmaker can get that far, it’s only a little bit further to get the movie into the media. IMBd, an Amazon company, has free pages for filmmakers to prepare the movie to be distributed via several types of media vehicles, the main one being via the internet with downloads from Amazon’s company, CreateSpace. The link site, Withoutabox, specifically for indie movie makers, enables the filmmaker to submit the movie to selected film festivals. Copying relevant portions of the movie to make a short trailer as well as creating a graphic picture for the movie renders the film ready for showing. There is also a PR and Press Kit section to let people who browse IMBd know about the new movie. Include a favorite movie review on the PR page. A good start with reviews for your movie includes possibly setting the tone for future movie reviews.

Even if your movie is only five minutes in duration, a filmmaker can still submit the movie to film festivals that accept five minute movies. Several of these film festivals carry a six figure prize for the movie chosen as the best. The duration of the film is a bit flexible, as the requirement is for no more than 7 minutes, yet last year’s winner entered a film of 20 minutes duration. It is a good movie and is perhaps the form by which all other indie movies are measured at The Doorpost. There are 7 possible topics for The Doorpost Film Festival: authenticity, sacrifice, identity, community, commitment, truth, hope.

It’s a good idea to attend some of the film festivals, especially the ones that are showing your movie. Start and keep a blog about the progress of your movie, in addition to your professional IMBd pages. You will see the reaction of your audience and gauge as to how you would change or improve your next movie.

Making a cartoon with stick figure animation

Emeri — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 11:27:03 +0000

Creating an action cartoon with stick figure animation is easy. The stick figures don’t require much effort: just a changing of the shape of the eyebrows for anger or surprise and moving the stick body in angle positions. The stick figure only consists of straight lines for arms, legs and body and a circle for a head. The points indicated on the software can be bent and posed as you wish. Stick figures can be programmed into action and tell an entire story when converted to a video. Objects such as balls, bats, weapons and stick figure horses can be incorporated into the stick figure scenes.

Pivot 3 Stick Figure Animation Software

The animation can be enhanced by audio or sound effects which would give additional meaning to the stick figures’ actions, reactions, and interaction. Deciding the points that the audio or background sounds will be incorporated will make the animation fun to view. The creator of the animation should want the viewer of the work to know exactly what is going on with the story line. So the first step in creating the stick figure animation is writing out a story line.

Smooth story line and precise action will make your end product an original work that is a bit different from many other examples of stick figure animation. Too much violent action without a story line would make the end result have no meaning. So the finished animation should have a purpose, characters that have a personality or a specific function and a goal. The end of the animation is just like the end of a story. If the stick figure animation is really good, it can be displayed on a website.

Virtual Lives, Virtual Worlds

Ashasekayi — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:03:07 +0000

In an age of hectic lives, some people have found the need to escape for a while through the Internet. One of the growing fascinations is MMORPGs which stands for “massively multiplayer online role playing game”. These games allow users from all over the world to interact with each other in real time.

There are two main types of MMORPGs. The first type is combat multiplayers. One of the most famous is World of Warcraft (WOW) that has over 11 million users. These types of MMORPGs center around various themes that pit players against monsters that they must fight to gain levels of experience and coin. Most of them allow users to chat with each other as well.

The other kind of MMORPG is the “virtual world”. Second Life is an example of this type. These worlds do not follow the typical video game structure. Frankly, many wouldn’t recognize them as a game. There is no winner, loser or test of skill. It is a completely free form virtual mimic of real life. Users can build real money making businesses, shop, date or join immersive roleplay communities. Some even have real educational opportunities.

Both styles have their advantages and disadvantages. In virtual worlds, you can find amazing friendships and learn from people all around the globe. However, just like in real life, it can have its own version of interpersonal drama. On the other hand, combat MMORPGs are pure escapism. For a moment, you can take a break and destroy some villians and save the universe. Of course, it lacks the deep relationships and learning available in virtual worlds.

Either way, MMORPGs are worth trying if you have some spare time and a need for a safe adventure.

Some Other MMORPGs:
Wizard 101
Blue Mars
IMVU
Free Realms

Homemade Video Games

Emeri — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 11:40:03 +0000

Video games have expanded and now there are literally thousands of video games to choose from. While we tend to think that video games are a new thing, the truth is, these types of games have been around at least since 1948 when Thomas Goldsmith and Ray Mann created the first patented video game (U.S. Patent 2455992) for an analog device that used a sort of joystick to fire missiles at targets.

The Japanese market is the largest and earliest video game market, funded mostly by a successful ‘manga cartoon’ market, starting from the early 1960’s. Programming courses specific to video games was introduced within mainstream education in both China and India. As early language translations were not as accurate as wanted, English speaking programmers from Australia the United States and Germany assisted with these early video game works prior to distribution in North America.

Video games basically have two forms: played on a free-standing electronic console devise or played on a TV or computer screen. The handheld joysticks or other handheld devices shaped in the forms of various types of steering wheels. Some console games utilize buttons or a mouse.

Experimenting with programming, getting inspired from other programmers’ homemade 3D games can help you in formulating strategies for your video game characters. Many homemade video game characters are made in Milkshake. Download this program and play around with it, and see if it’s a good program for your video game. There is a lot of game art to choose from as well, with books detailing how the artwork is incorporated into your homemade video game.

Adding sound effects and additional backgrounds and items onto your game platform is easy enough with software. Not all homemade video game efforts require extensive knowledge of programming. If interested in further knowledge about programming, free online courses in C++ may prove worthwhile. Lots of video games have a basis in C++.

It’s not that difficult to make your own video game if you know the basics. Game making software makes it very easy to organize your effort into a complete video game and walkthrough that can be introduced on YouTube or another video-sharing platform. Your own website and brand can display your homemade video games, for free giveaway or for a price or donation.

Making a Documentary Movie Short that Earns Passive Income

Emeri — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 06:05:46 +0000

While you’re on that vacation, or at any time really, you can use your camcorder to make a documentary video, a daily diary of sorts. Footage that usually goes into your own personal computer for your viewing can easily be edited and uploaded as an indie movie short. The royalties from users downloading or viewing your movie creates passive income all year long.

With your video editing software, put background music and voiceovers into your video. You don’t have to be an expert filmmaker, producer or writer of screenplays to create a documentary movie that others will be happy to watch.

Some of these online independent movie “theatres” will display your movie as a free movie, but you as the filmmaker, will continue to garnish the royalties. Other indie movie websites will allow you to charge a fee for users viewing your movie, and your royalties will be much higher. The usual agreement is that you continue to own your movie and when you enter into a non-exclusive agreement, you can also upload your movie to YouTube to increase viewer awareness of your movie short.

Making an Indie Movie

Emeri — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 21:56:54 +0000

Making an indie movie short is easy. Even without formal training in a film school, your indie movie can win in a film festival. Making a 5 or 10 minute movie won’t take that long; maybe a few days or a week at the most. Everything you need for production can be found on the internet: sound clips, background music or editing software, for example.

Everything around you is a prospect for your movie genre and theme. Your friends could provide you with ready actors if they can say a few memorized lines from your screenplay pages. A little coaching might be in order for those that have never tried acting before. Not looking into the camera is one of the most important lessons for any new actor.

The first few seconds of the movie should be interesting and present the story line in an exact manner so that the audience doesn’t get confused or is left wondering what the story is all about. The first minute of the film is the most important – it’s when viewers will either be interested enough to continue watching or lose interest in the film.

The new movie producer can get an account with YouTube to showcase the short indie movie. Lots of producers, actors and singers have been spotted from YouTube and have garnered the attention of people looking for new talent. YouTube is a free platform that the new movie producer can use to refer and direct a new audience to an indie movie.

The indie movie short can win at film festivals, both nationally and at international film festivals. Getting a page at IMDb, an Amazon company, can get your short movie on the map. From there, you can also submit your film to as many film festivals as you want. Sundance is one of the major film festivals. There are many in all sections of the country. Try choosing some of the film festivals where you can attend to see your audience’s reaction to your movie first-hand.

All Things Pumpkin

susan — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:55:13 +0000

If there was ever a “National Pumpkin Week” in the United States, the week before Halloween would certainly be the time to observe it. All over the country, people are visiting pumpkin patches, farm stands, or grocery stores, to select the perfect pumpkin to grace their front porch on Halloween night. While most people focus on carving or cooking their pumpkins, some pay tribute to this versatile vegetable in other ways. There are pumpkin growing contests, with awards for size, and pumpkin chucking contests, with awards for creativity and distance. The gentleman in this this video did a little of both. He grew a 992 pound pumpkin which took fourth place at a fair – and then blew it up. Don’t try this at home!

Watch Your Favorite TV Shows at Your Convenience

Stephen Walker — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 17:21:31 +0000

Hulu is one of the online services on which you can watch your favorite television shows for free.

Miss the season premiere of your favorite show? Wonder what all the buzz is about for a new show? Want to catch up with a series that you just started watching? If so, then watching TV online is the solution. DVRs are great, but what if the show has already aired and you didn’t know you wanted to record it, or you just plain forgot to record it? Most shows are available on the web, although how long they are available varies by network and by series. Hulu is a popular video service which carries content from Disney (ABC), News Corp. (FOX), and NBC, among others. Other shows may be found on the networks’ websites. Check out this great guide on how to watch tv online for free. You may like it so much that you decide to save money and cancel your cable or satellite service!