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links for 2010-10-25

  • Building a Hackintosh from scratch—that is, installing Mac OS X on non-Mac hardware—has never been easier, and the final product has never performed better. Here's how it works. Note: This is our third and most recent Hackintosh build (here are the now-outdated first and second). This time, to make things really easy on you, we put together a video walkthrough of the entire process. You can watch the video in its entirety below, but we've also broken up the video next to the accompanying text in each step below.
  • The Dark Sun has risen again on the parched, magically devastated world of Athas, bringing with it the new rules and mindset of Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition. First introduced in the early 1990s during D&D 2nd Edition, Dark Sun was meant to be a brutal, unforgiving dark fantasy setting unlike anything the game had seen. Noble hobbits, wise wizards, and forthright knights gave way to a world devastated by an arcane apocalypse. Where once there had been a bright, green planet, there was now just sand and death. Civilization lived on in a handful of city-states dominated by all-powerful sorcerer-kings. Players took on the role of slaves, gladiators and other peons thrown to the bottom of society’s latter; the setting wasn’t about saving the world – it was about surviving it. It was also the first setting where psionics dominated the landscape, while magic was rare (and profane, as it caused the apocalypse that turned verdant Athas into a wasteland).
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    links for 2010-08-18

  • Die-hard "Star Wars" fans have visited the imaginary worlds of Hoth and Tatooine countless times in the sci-fi films, and now they want NASA's help to do some real intergalactic exploring. George Lucas thrills fans, explains R2D2 difficulties Star Wars speed dating: Looking for love in Alderaan places? National Star Wars Day: Our top 10 Star Wars quotes At the Star Wars Celebration V convention in Florida over the weekend, "Star Wars" filmmakers and fans asked NASA representatives to develop a hyperdrive that can transport astronauts through space at light speed. And to make it snappy. After all, in the "Star Wars" universe, the technology was developed a long time ago, in a galaxy far away. IN PICTURES: Star Wars Droids "The idea of spending six months traveling to Mars doesn't seem very exciting," said Gary Kurtz, producer of the original "Star Wars" in 1977 and its first sequel, "The Empire Strikes Back."
  • imgs.xkcd.com/verizon_billing.mp3
  • Life in Athas is a harrowing experience. The land abounds with perilous hazards and deadly monsters. In spartan gladitorial arenas, contenders battle armored braxats and hardened muls that are intent on eviscerating them for the crowd’s pleasure. In the merciless wastes, belgoi draw adventurers to their doom with the alluring jingle of bells, or savage humanoid tribes of gith or halflings hunt travelers for pleasure, loot, and even food. And, in the Sea of Silt, giants guard their borders against any trespassers who manage to survive the constricting tentacles of the silt horrors. The Dark Sun Campaign Setting provides exciting character options for D&D players, including new races, new character themes and class builds, new paragon paths and epic destinies, and new equipment. It also provides everything Dungeon Masters need to run 4th Edition Dark Sun campaigns or include Dark Sun elements in their homebrew campaigns. It has rules and advice for handling survival challenges, arena
  • The Dark Sun Campaign Setting introduces the concept of character themes. With this new mechanic, players can add an extra layer of depth to their characters and have that reflected in the powers their characters use. Slaves have always been a part of Athasian society. Their lives are hard, often short, and for most, deprived of dignity. A small minority—those who are sufficiently brace, desperate, or lucky—escape to better things, but they can never lower their guard against the threat of discovery. An escaped slave’s only hope is to see freedom as a rebirth. Old haunts, one-time friends, even family—all need to be avoided for fear of being recognized and turned in. Hide the brand, disguise the tattoo, cover up the scars, explain the calluses away—successful escaped slaves do all this and more. Escaped slaves must take up a new name, a new history, and if one can manage it, a new appearance. The strong will and
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    links for 2010-07-18

  • In this remixed narrative Edward Cullen from the Twilight Series meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer at Sunnydale High. It’s an example of transformative storytelling serving as a pro-feminist visual critique of Edward’s character and generally creepy behavior. Seen through Buffy’s eyes, some of the more sexist gender roles and patriarchal Hollywood themes embedded in the Twilight saga are exposed in hilarious ways. Ultimately this remix is about more than a decisive showdown between the slayer and the sparkly vampire. It also doubles as a metaphor for the ongoing battle between two opposing visions of gender roles in the 21ist century.
  • Beneath a crimson sun lie wastelands of majestic desolation and cities of cruel splendor, where sandal-clad heroes battle ancient sorcery and terrible monsters. This is Athas, the world of the Dark Sun campaign setting, a dying planet of savagery and desolation. In today's Dark Sun Campaign Setting excerpt, we introduce the social order of Athas, where everyone has their place… whether they wish that place or not.
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  • Yesterday's release of Twilight made certain that your weekend will be filled with the sound of screaming tweeny fangirl hordes, an auditory experience that the movie's lead actor Robert Pattinson described as "terrifying … like the sound you hear at the gates of hell." It would be easy to hate these creepy, utterly mediocre books and the phenomenon they've spawned — but I think you'll find it's even easier just to throw your head back and laugh. Next to the fangirl hordes are even bigger crowds of "lolfans," and they are here to remind us that Twilight has truly given us the greatest gift of all: oodles and oodles of hilarious, sardonic ass-kickery from people on the internet. Actually, you don't even have to go to internet fandom for some of the most entertaining critiques of Stephenie Meyer's work — Pattinson himself got the jump on everyone by mocking the series himself in an interview with Empire magazine (published in their October issue).
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    links for 2010-06-24

  • Web Design Tools are always handy to a web designer and coder, with tons of features, fantastic UI, these tools provide best results if used wisely. Every tool has its pros and cons, you have to choose which suits your needs, investment planning and the OS you are using. Some of these are not cross platform and some are free, yes totally free design tools. But this list is not completed and can never be completed, without your input. With emerging trends of online apps some of the software are not needed to be installed on your computer. I hope you will like the collection for a start and I will be adding more and more web design tools which designer and developers use in day to day life. So stay connected and bookmark this post for future reference.
  • From the DMG: It's easy to overlook the effects of terrain when building adventures and encounters. After all, the party's enemies are the monsters, not the dungeon stairs, the low rock wall, or the crumbled statues in the dungeon room. Yet, terrain provides the context for an encounter. Beneath a crimson sun lie wastelands of majestic desolation and cities of cruel splendor, where sandal-clad heroes battle ancient sorcery and terrible monsters. This is Athas, the world of the Dark Sun campaign setting, a dying planet of savagery and desolation. Life hangs by a thread in this barren land, and now it is up to you to write your own story in blood and glory. Dungeon Tiles: Desert of Athas releases this month, containing four double-sided sheets of illustrated, diecut terrain tiles printed on heavy cardstock, plus two sheets of three-dimensional terrain elements, allowing you to create desert oases, sandstone vaults, and other dungeon and wilderness fixtures.
  • Cheatsheets and various quick reference guides are available for almost any type of software and language these days. Unfortunately they’re not always easy to find when you actually need them. This is why I decided to take some time to gather up as many as possible and share them with you here! Hopefully this can be a timesaver for you, along with teaching you a new trick or two. The resources have been divided into various categories to make them easier to find. Below are more than 100 cheat sheets and reference cards for the following topics:
  • This font is a set of cut-out layouts with which you can build 3D pixel style letters. They should all work. Just cut along the solid lines, fold along the dotted lines, put some glue on the shaded flaps, stick them together and there you go… If you want to use this for commercial projects, please contact me: tobias.sommer[at]gmx.ch I also appreciate it if you send me links/images of your non-commercial work featuring this font. Have fun! 🙂
  • Here's a way to turn your doodle or sketch into a clean vector.
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    links for 2010-06-07

  • A Dark Sun novel I’ve read over a hundred Forgotten Realms novels, a dozen Ravenloft novels and all of the Eberron novels, but this was my first Dark Sun novel. Having never played in the Dark Sun camping setting when it was originally released back in the early 90s I never had any desire to read about a world I was unfamiliar with. However, in light of the upcoming re-launch of Dark Sun for 4e D&D I felt it was time to give the Dark Sun books a chance. I had no idea what I was in for. Part of the reason I read and enjoy the books form Wizards of the Coast (and TSR before them) is the familiarity that comes with a shared world. Regardless of who the characters are and how the story unfolds, the setting is constant. The rules of D&D apply in these worlds so I know what’s reasonable to expect in any given situation. I quickly learned that Dark Sun is unlike any of the D&D shared worlds I’d read about before.
  • Just picked up my package for season two of Encounters. So far it looks pretty cool. Having not played the original I'm not sure what to expect. My biggest concern is that the books, minis, and tiles aren't due out until Aug. I already have questions about the geography and geology of Athas and I'm not even half-way through the module. I'm guessing I should just revert to the original for any questions. It appears that they are using the same places and races in this incarnation. Also troubling is the fact that there is no big map of the Tyr region. Now, in the forums it's been said that the '91 maps were consulted. How much, I'm not sure. If anyone has heard anything different please let me know. Here's to 15 weeks of fun.
  • Earlier, we have indexed “20 Mozilla Firefox Add-ons For Your Browser” and we are back with “7 Best Mozilla Firefox Add-ons for Web Development Of Year 2010”. We believe that these Firefox add-ons will help you in solving your web development challenges much easier. Mozilla Firefox is first and foremost choice of every Internet users so its community always try to introduce best solution for everyone’s need and rang of interest whether they are common user or professionals. We are lucky that we are having a brilliant development community.
  • This is a blog about the miniature world that can only be explored with the aid of a microscope. Most of the images were taken with a basic, inexpensive microscope and a consumer digital camera (Pentax W20) held against the eyepiece. Some images were taken with the same camera but using a more sophisticated research microscope that I use professionally, which is capable of showing minute structures more clearly. Whenever I’ve used this more elaborate instrument, I’ve indicated it in the text. Comments and questions are very welcome.
  • We have so many things to worry about right now, I figure we can stand a little good news, right? Whenever I read a story like this column by Rick Reilly, it makes me feel a lot less hopeless about humanity: We live in a world where Peyton Manning walks off the Super Bowl field without shaking anybody's hand. Where Tiger Woods leaves the Masters without a word of thanks to the fans or congratulations to the winner. Where NFL lineman Albert Haynesworth kicks a man's helmetless head without a thought.
  • Wedding Anniversary Quotations
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    links for 2010-04-20

  • IDW’s Dungeons & Dragons series will each offer new stories and playable characters to existing game campaigns. The Dungeons & Dragons title will take place in the core world, as seen in the gaming supplements and upcoming novels, followed by a Dark Sun series starting in January 2011. Plans also include a series for the longtime fan-favorite Forgotten Realms setting. Each comic book will also be collected at intervals into graphic novels. The many planned projects will be distributed to a wide audience through comic book outlets, trade bookstores and mass retailers.
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