Month: May 2007

  • May 31, 2007

    Freelancing

    In the days approaching graduation, the number one question I was asked is, “What are you doing after?” Most of my friends were relaxing for some time and finding a job, a few had jobs lined up, and some were going to grad school. I fall in the third category. What exactly does that mean for me job wise for the summer now that I actually have a degree? Freelancing. I am finally at a point, I feel, where I can make freelancing my main source of income. I have grown a lot as a developer and a business man, and I actually have clients. More than one. While I have spoke about my business and some tips and advice, I have never talked about the subject of freelancing. Until today.

    As many of my friends know, I think this is the best thing anyone can do. Start your own business. Work for yourself. Do what you love to do and do it your way. My brother and friend are into photography- sell your pictures. Take pictures for people. My friend is a teacher- tutor on the side. Why not? Anyone going into the workforce I encourage to open their own firm. Working for myself is an amazing experience that has helped me grow as a person. I get to work with people to attain some goal or idea they have. I get to learn new things as I go along, and get paid to do it. With web design, I have a tangible product on the web that anyone can view whenever they want.

    So what do you do if you want to get into freelancing. Well for me it was a no-brainer. I was in high school and really had no expenses. I figured if people are willing to pay me to do what is essentially my hobby, why not. As I got older, I really started seeing value in my own work. It’s not just a hobby, it’s a commodity that people need and I am part of the few that can actually provide it. That is the most important lesson I’ve learned, and something anyone who wants to freelance should keep in mind. Do not short change yourself. I’ve spend a lot of time “cutting people breaks” and charging way less than I should have because I thought it was fun. I should have seen the value in my work. So that is the first thing you need to do to get into freelancing.

    There is a lot more I could cover here, and maybe I will. But for now, Freelance Switch has a nice write-up on the basics of freelancing.

  • May 29, 2007

    Financial Responsibility

    Now that I’m (dun dun dun) a college graduate, I feel like it’s time for be more fiscally responsible. My senior year I feel I really wasn’t, and I’m OK with that, but now I think it’s time to buckle down, especially since I will be freelancing my way through grad school (with the help, hopefully, of an assistantship). I think I have pin pointed a few of my problems and will be able to work on them to be financially sound.

    Don’t impluse buy
    This is a HUGE problem of mine. I’ll go out to a store, maybe with a friend or to buy stuff I actually need, and then pick up something on a whim. If I stopped this, I’d have so much more money. And it could be as little as a couple of $5 movies from Wal-Mart, but each of those purchases Nickel and Dime me.
    Don’t be so generous
    I kind of blame my dad for this one, but when I go out to the bar with some friends, I usually feel the need to buy them a drink. Or when we go to dinner, I will sometimes treat or eat the bill a little. This probably bothers my friends more than it does me, but I also need to recognize that I can’t be doing that all the time.
    Don’t spend more money when I don’t have to
    This could come in the form of late fees for bills or (ahem) my first speeding ticket ever. It could also be spending more money for convenience. I’m not saying I should be completely frugal now, but a little frugality is never a bad thing.

    This summer will be a pilot program for these 3 little rules. With that in mind, I will also be doing some big things this summer- concerts, Texas (hopefully) and I’d like to buy a new digital camera (yes I know, That would be 3 within a year- am I already breaking one of my rules?). But these are things I am planning and saving for. With any luck, by the end of the summer I’ll have a nice little bundle saved up that I can put in some nice savings account to build interest on. Any suggestions?

  • May 19, 2007

    Marvel Ultimate Alliance

    Marvel Ultimate Alliance

    It’s been a while since I’ve reviewed a video game. Heck, It’s been a while since I’ve played a video game. But as the school year thankfully and sadly (seeing as I’m a senior) came to an end, I found some time (and took some liberties) and decided to get and start a new game. That new game is Marvel Ultimate Alliance.

    Admittedly, I did not think the game would be this fun. I knew my brother had it and enjoyed it, but I had no strong urges to play it. It was picked up kind of on a whim, which is why I have it so late after it came out. However, the game is incredibly fun. You pick and choose your team of four Marvel heroes, switching them out whenever you have the opportunity. You start off with Wolverine, Spiderman, Thor and Captain America. Unless they were incapacitated, I’ve kept Wolverine and Spidey in the whole time. My other two favorites so far are Human Torch and Thing. Deathpool and Storm are also very good choices. The first thing I really like about the game is the team management. If you keep a set of characters together a lot, they learn to work together. It’s also up to you to give them upgrades and spend the money you pick up wisely to get the best team you can. (Also, I was able to unlock the symbiotic suit for Spidey. I cannot wait to upgrade that baby!)

    As far as game play goes, it’s pretty good. The controls are easy to use and intuitive, but not so simple you can’t do really cool stuff. I personally like the combos you can do with other heroes on your team. Movement, jumping, swimming (there is an Atlantis level) and fighting are easy to do. I love flying with Human Torch and swinging with Spidey. The graphics are amazing. The people at Raven/Activision stepped up the graphics for the 360, which is excellent because the game looks great. Multiplayer is awesome. Me and a couple of friends played together yesterday and it’s well done. They just join in and are now part of your team. The only complaint of have about that is you can only advance so far apart from each other. It’s tough sometimes when you are in a big battle and you can’t move in a certain direction due to the fact that Player 2 is in the other corner.

    Finally, there is the camera view. I think the developers made the best choice here with how the camera moves and how you can control it. With a team of four, there isn’t much other choice, and while sometimes the over-top view can get a little annoying at times, it’s the best option and usually works well. All in all, I really love the game and have been playing it pretty obsessively. I haven’t really played this much since around November, when I got Gears of War.

  • May 12, 2007

    The Business: Document Tools

    Google Docs

    Hands down the best tool for documents is Google Docs & Spreadsheets. With Microsoft Office support and the ability to access the documents anywhere as long as you have an internet connection, why use anything else?

    With Google Docs, I am able to upload Word and Excel documents, edit them, and export them into Word and Excel documents. They stay in your documents until you delete them, and there are multitudes of ways to organize them. Much like GMail, Google Docs has labels and the ability to star documents. You also only view your “Active Documents” (edited within last 30 days) until you choose other wise.

    One other really nice thing about Google Docs is the ability to share any document with anyone with an email address. Excellent for collaboration. With Google Docs, I can get a lot done, and have access to all of my important documents from anywhere at anytime. And best part is, it’s free!

  • May 7, 2007

    Spiderman III

    Spiderman and Venom

    The build up was great. Spiderman III- an older, more mature Peter Parker. Harry following the footsteps of his father. A new villan. The Venom suit. How could this possibly get messed up? Apparently in a lot of ways. While Spiderman III had some good parts (really good parts), the movie over all was an utter disappointment.

    The Spiderman Template: Peter goes through a change. He loses who he ‘really is.’ He fights an epic battle where at least one person finds out his identity. The villan either dies or has a change of heart or both. Peter does change… Let’s see if III fits the mold.

    Change/Loss of Self
    Venom suit takes him over. He loses himself and finds a meaner spirited, more selfish version of himself. He loses MJ because she doesn’t know who he is. Again.

    Click to read Spolier

    Epic Battle
    Peter and Harry vs. Sandman and Venom. Honestly, a pretty bad ass battle. Peter of course loses his mask. Sandman has a change of heart and JUST LEAVES. Venom is destroyed. Peter realizes he needs to be less selfish and MJ and him are back together in the end.

    Now I try to be forgiving with some lame/cliche parts in comic book movies because that is their nature. But this movie was full of them. First off, everyone cries. EVERYONE. That is not necessary in a comic book movie. I know the director, Sam Ramini, wanted to be prolific and deep, but Spiderman doesn’t really serve that purpose. And then there is the “wise” butler. Michael Kane was an awesome Alfred in Batman Begins. That’s because Kane is an awesome actor. But also, we know the relationship between Bruce and Alfred. Who is Harry’s butler? There was no re pore developed in the other movies. There was also a lack of development in this movie, as well as just useless parts.

    Towards the beginning Harry gets a head injury and forgets why he is mad at Peter/Spiderman. I feel like this was just a machine to cause more drama than needed. The worst part of the movie, however, was Peter when the Venom suit took him over. The Venom suit is supposed to be bad ass. Make Peter cool, but evil. However, the suit just made him a emo, almost edgy/cool guy, but still clearly a nerd. And the lameness of this went on for half an hour.

    Don’t get me wrong with this movie- The visual effects were stunning. The battles were cool. But Ramini should have focused more on the story than making the movie look cool, because ultimately that’s what makes a good movie.