I Have Set a Dangerous Precedent

I missed blogging last Wednesday because I was driving to a writers' retreat, but nobody complained. (Maybe you were all distracted by the awesome new Puzzled Pint blog?) I will continue to make my best effort to blog weekly, but no promises, Mister Scott.

Anyway. A lot of terrible things have been happening lately, and we (as individual people) can't really do much about most of it. The world is full of systemic ills that require long-term solutions.

I can't tell you how to fix racism or improve disaster relief. But I can tell you how to make ringtones in iTunes, because I had to do this myself recently, and it was a bit of a pain to figure out.

1. Follow these instructions to change your import settings from MP3 to AAC.
2. Follow these instructions to create ringtone files, BUT...
3. ...BEFORE step 7 above, FIRST delete the .m4a library tracks (keep files on disk), THEN import the .m4r files

That's it.

I know, it's a tiny, small, insignificant thing, but the tallest dune begins with a single grain of sand. And it doesn't help with the problems of the day per se, but I appreciate anything that makes life a little easier. Even if it's a tiny, small, insignificant thing.

Big things take a long time to build. Big changes take a lot of little actions to bring about.

Meanwhile, as Abraham Lincoln once said: "Be excellent to each other... and party on, dudes!"

I am once again busy

So, no blog post; please enjoy this animated GIF of Peter Dinklage (as Tyrion Lannister) dancing back and forth.

I am busy

and don't have time for a proper blog post today so instead please enjoy this animated GIF of Alison Brie winking at you.

SnoutCast #180: How the Goodwins Met Your Mother

We set out to do a show on subverting expectations--narrative and otherwise--but our conversation with TV writer Chris Harris took a slightly different direction and ended up (wait for it) subverting our expectations. WHAT.

(Colophon: this is what it sounds like when you record a telephone call using Google Voice.)

[ Download mp3 - 26 MB ]

00:59 - "Canadian"
02:21 - putting the "games" in The Goodwin Games
05:21 - Easter Eggs
07:28 - DeeAnn on Magic and Showmanship
11:11 - "no more actual games"
12:42 - a Game Control fantasy
16:50 - based on true events?
19:07 - the 9th and final season of HIMYM
21:51 - "I didn't leave the room once!"
23:10 - one last Easter Egg from @BenGoodwinRIP
28:07 - The End

Tell us we're wrong on the Internet! E-mail podcast@snout.org or post a comment at www.snout.org/podcast.

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "Tom Cruise Crazy" by Jonathan Coulton

[ Subscribe to SnoutCast / iTunes link ]

  

Friday Flash Fiction: "Five for Fighting"

You know what they say: it's not easy being super. Or even just fearless, for that matter.

And hey, look, a black cat! For Halloween I guess! Spoooooky.

Read "Five for Fighting" at 512 Words or Fewer

SnoutCast #39: "Playtesting"

In which we address playtesting-related questions raised by Larry, creator of 2 Tone Game, and refer to playtesting-related insights from Matt, co-creator of Ghost Patrol.


[ Download mp3 - 36 MB ]

00:58 - "exciting"
01:29 - our inspirations: Puzzled Pint preparations, Larry's "Question for GCs: Observing Playtesters," and Matt's "Puzzle Authoring and Editing In A Game Control Setting"
03:32 - "We probably shouldn't do podcasts in bed anymore"
04:18 - pondering the properties of pontification
05:20 - how Team Snout approaches playtesting
11:19 - playtesting parties and other good things about the San Francisco bay area
14:32 - the hindsight effect: un-hating puzzles in retrospect
20:32 - prototype revision anxiety
25:15 - The Game is bigger than any one person on GC
27:49 - "The needs of the many..." (Q.E.D.)
28:27 - remote playtesting in Hogwarts Game and DASH 1 & 2
36:18 - the playtesting hierarchy (worst to best): e-mail, phone, in-person
36:53 - Pope hat! Pope hat! (7:42)
37:37 - upcoming events: Ghost Patrol BANG/SNAP 7 (10/31, Bay Area/Seattle)
39:10 - The End

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "I Crush Everything" by Jonathan Coulton

[ Subscribe to SnoutCast / iTunes link ]

 

P.S. A hearty shout out to Dann Webster and Jonathan McCue, with whom we spent a lovely evening in Los Angeles earlier this month! DeeAnn and I had a great time chatting with them about puzzle hunts and related topics, while enjoying California ribs and frozen yogurt (not at the same time).

Postcard #20

I'm not sure what Raj was doing in Beantown, but he seems to have no trouble finding fellow Stanford football fans, wherever he goes.

(This postcard is out of sequence due to a sanitization delay.)

SnoutCast #30: "And Now For Something Completely Different"

I'm not going to lie to you, Marge: this week's podcast kinda sucks.


[ Download mp3 - 30 MB ]

00:58 - "intelligent"
01:47 - banter: what your characters do while the plot happens
02:10 - "Is this a horror movie?"
02:55 - an anecdote
06:33 - let's talk about TV shows!
07:38 - our viewing habits
10:35 - now watching: Burn Notice and Leverage
11:27 - DeeAnn is dissatisfied with these shows
13:50 - what's different about Burn Notice this year?
15:55 - DeeAnn also does not like "reality" shows
19:49 - possible advantages of scripted television
20:55 - Curtis knows it's a lot of work to produce a show
23:23 - some actual facts (which we probably misread)
26:18 - semantics of the verb "watch"
29:22 - upcoming events: Burning Man, PAX, Puzzled Pint, BANG 23 re-run, Ghost Patrol BANG
30:58 - math is hard. RUN MORE GAMES
32:33 - The End

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "Tom Cruise Crazy" by Jonathan Coulton

[ Subscribe to SnoutCast / iTunes link ]

  

SnoutCast #29: "GC Karma's Gonna Get You"

It's not that we can't come up with original content on our own. It's just so much easier to read and respond to our listeners' insightful feedback. Thanks, listeners!


[ Download mp3 - 36 MB ]

00:00 - Random Teaser™: Superman is a dick, Space: 1999, and dog food
03:43 - "fightin'"
04:52 - Larry's feedback
06:18 - DeeAnn and Curtis are in the minority, per Red's GC Summit 2009 chart
07:27 - Statistic: 62.5% of Games since 1991 have been run by first-time GCs, and most of them never ran another Game
09:43 - Disclaimer: Curtis and DeeAnn don't believe in "GC karma" with respect to Game applications
13:26 - an anecdote about the assignment of "GC credit" in certain circumstances, followed by discussion
17:26 - splitting hairs: "karma" vs. "credit"
19:44 - a cautionary tale about "scoring" GC efforts
21:33 - DeeAnn's Free Advice™
23:09 - how to prevent us from reading your comments on the air
23:28 - Scott's feedback
25:13 - in which we do our best to completely misinterpret an analogy
26:40 - know your GC; know your judge
29:26 - Curtis guesses at the origin of Game applications
34:28 - "No, there is too much. Let me sum up."
37:47 - Upcoming Events: BANG 23 re-run (September), Ghost Patrol BANG (October); see also: 2-Tone Game notes from Game Control
39:13 - The End

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "Skullcrusher Mountain" by Jonathan Coulton

[ Subscribe to SnoutCast / iTunes link ]

 

Friday Flash Fiction: "Who's Your Daddy?"

Thank you for reading. I have anticipated your questions, and supplied answers below:

1. I apologize for the title. Deal with it.
2. This is the opening scene of a longer story (a work in progress).
3. Maybe he's Jewish. Does it matter?
4. Leah Shugan.
5. Twenty-one.
6. Yes.

Read "Who's Your Daddy?" at 512 Words or Fewer

Friday Flash Fiction: "It's Not the Heat, It's the Stupidity"

The title of this week's story was my single favorite line of dialogue from the animated series TaleSpin. It was completely out of context even in the original episode, and that is why I love it.

Read "It's Not the Heat, It's the Stupidity" at 512 Words or Fewer

Friday Flash Fiction: "There Will Be Banter"

When I can't think of anything to write, I write cops.

Also, I consider it something of an achievement that despite being sick for most of this week, I managed to rewrite two short stories for critique this weekend and bang out this entry in the further adventures of Jake and Andy, Futurismic Detectives.

Now it's time for a sandwich.

Read "There Will Be Banter" at 512 Words or Fewer