September 28th, 2011 by jay

Indulging the curse of an active mind and restless spirit, I’ve hung out a shingle to do Organizational Consulting.  Not only is it something I’m passionate about, it’s something I’m good at.  It’s one of those rare combinations where my widely dispersed skills, travels, and experiences come together to create something new and exciting.

I’m not sure where it will lead, but it will be a fun journey.

September 25th, 2011 by jay

Because this is only a pipe dream:

and even this is a over my budget:

I went and built this:

Now I have no excuse for not practicing my disc golf skills.  Time to work on my short game.

September 8th, 2011 by jay

I didn’t end up using these headers for my consulting practice web site, but I liked the way they turned out.

July 21st, 2011 by jay

Since I made a wand for my oldest child when she became enraptured with all things Harry Potter, I knew it was only a matter of time before her brother was old enough to follow suit and I’d be making another one:

For my daughter’s wand, I actually included her mother’s hair in the wand’s core (“There’s no stronger magic than a mother’s love.”). In this case, my wife was not available at the moment of assembly, so my own hair was substituted. We’ll chalk it up to some kind of gender kinship and call it intentional.

The whole affair is tied up with string, addressed according to wizard post standards, and will be delivered “by owl” tonight. I even have a (clean) feather to leave at the scene of delivery.

Unfortunately, a lack of foresight required me to recreate the template for the box from scratch.  I have no idea why I didn’t save it, but I did this time.

May 13th, 2011 by jay

I’ve done some long overdue content revisions. Mainly, I’ve updated the “About Me” section and I’ve installed a new and improved portfolio of creative work.  Check it out with the “My Portfolio” link on the right.

April 5th, 2011 by jay

Originally published as a contribution to The Secret Lair titled Geek Husbandry – Care and Feeding of Yourself and Your Minions

Part 1 – Myths About Introverts

I was recently in need of some educational credits for work, and I decided to check out a book about introverted leadership. To my dismay, I quickly discovered that the book was written by an extrovert. I gave up about halfway through the small tome, feeling ickier and more ill-used than usual.

After stewing on the issue for a while and writing a scathing review on Amazon, I decided to set the record straight regarding those whom society has judged based on their personality types. I have a personal hypothesis that geeky pursuits tend to appeal more towards introverts for a number of reasons, and so introversion may be overrepresented in that crowd. Feel free to use the following as a quick and easy reference for understanding the introverts that walk among us.

Myth: Introverts are shy and socially incompetent.

The first thing you need to understand about introversion is that it is all about energy. Where does your energy come from and what causes you to burn it? Introverts live in their heads, where they indulge rich and vivid imaginations. They charge their batteries with solitary activities where their minds are free to wander and explore. By contrast, extroverts live outside of their head, processing their thoughts out loud and gaining energy through interactive experiences.

Introverts are not shy. They simply do not feel the need to verbally share every thought that crosses their mind. Find a topic that interests an introvert or something about which they are passionate and you will find more conversation than you bargained for. At times, an introvert may seem unresponsive, but in fact they may be internally processing what is being discussed. Unfortunately, conversations often leave introverts behind, moving on to other topics before they have fully processed their thoughts. This reinforces the stereotype of shyness.

Myth: Introverts are afraid to speak in public.

Speaking in public is a skill, just like social skills or any other. It can be developed and honed through practice and training. You would be surprised at the number of actors, instructors, and professional speakers who are actually introverts. Anyone can be afraid of speaking in public, and being an extrovert does not give one a natural advantage at the skill. We have all seen the person who gets to a microphone, is obviously quite nervous, and then won’t shut up. Their abundance of words does not make them a good public speaker. It makes them an embarrassment. An introvert that overcomes a fear of speaking and hones that skill may actually make a better speaker, remaining succinct, entertaining, and on topic.

Myth: Introverts don’t like to socialize

Correction: Introverts don’t like to socialize with large groups of strangers making small talk about topics that do not interest them. To an introvert, that is a waste of words and emotional energy. Introverts prefer small groups of close friends discussing things about which they are passionate.

Myth: Introverts don’t have any friends.

Think in terms of breadth versus depth. An extrovert is more likely to have a broad group of people they refer to as “friends,” but an introvert might refer to those same people as “acquaintances.” Placing value on their private lives and thoughts, introverts may bring fewer people into that inner circle. It is mostly semantics. Introverts may have many friends, but only a few that they consider “close friends.” Extroverts are certainly capable of deep relationships, but may not draw clear boundaries between those and others they know.

Myth: Introverts are a minority.

This is actually a myth that stems from bad data that has been quoted and requited until it has become its own source reference.¹ The collective results of years using instruments like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator has shown that introverts, like most personality traits, represent half of the American population if not a little more. The problem is that we have created a culture that values extroversion. Professional expectations, the entertainment industry, and pervasive myths place introverts at a cultural disadvantage for success.

Myth: Introversion is a disability to overcome.

Baloney. Knowing that I am an introvert does not communicate anything about my skills and abilities. It tells me how I gain and spend my emotional energy; what will feed my soul or drain me. I don’t need to “overcome” anything in order to communicate effectively, manage people, or be productive. I just need a little self awareness.

Introvert husbandry is not such a difficult line of work. If you find yourself in a position to care for an introvert, understanding how their brain works will go a long way to smooth the road in developing your relationship. If you consider yourself to be an introvert, remember that a little self awareness is good for anyone. Understand the myths that exist out there, the expectations of an extroverted society, and your own natural tendencies, and you won’t seem like such a weirdo.

1. Introvert Power: Why Your Inner Life Is Your Hidden Strength, by Laurie Helgoe Ph.D. – an excellent read, if you are so inclined [↩]

March 9th, 2011 by jay

This was an earlier contribution to The Secret Lair and can be read in context here.

I confess. I am a wannabe junky for Massively Multiplayer Online games (MMOs).  I say wannabe, because I have yet to find the right game that scratches my itch for the MMO experience. Perhaps the closest I have ever come to that level of passion and devotion was when playing the original Everquest.  That experience ended with the birth of our first child, when my wife said to me “I don’t think you realize the extent to which this child has changed our life.”  She was right, of course. Being a dad is a lot more important (and fun) than camping for another <generic creature> to kill and acquire another <generic material> to make another piece of <generic armor>.

Since that time, I have sampled many MMOs, but I have not stuck with any of them for more than a month or so. I have also spent a lot of time thinking about why those games fall short of what, in my opinion, prevents them from being great games.  Let us hit a few of the highlights:

Endless Combat
Is this all the Role Playing game has become? Must everything be about the next kill / battle / raid?

Grinding
Constantly repeating actions in order to advance skill just so you can reach the next level is not that much fun. I have seen people wedge their keyboard keys down so they can keep running or swimming just to increase those skills.

Career Options
Really, you can only be an exceptional craftsperson (merchant) if you have the fighting skills to go out and get your own supplies. Want to be a priest, monk, or cartographer, you’d better be a fighter first.

Instances
“Lord Muckgrunk is a real challenge to take down, so we’re going to let everyone kill him once every ten minutes.” or “That other group just entered that dungeon, but don’t worry about running into them. They have entered a parallel dimension where everything is fresh and new for them.”  Instances might as well be minigames in a pub for as much as they contribute to a persistent game world.

Yard Trash
Apparently, all major metropolitan areas within games cannot extend their peaceful existence more than about fifty yards from their front gate.

NPCs, or Lack Thereof
I played a game for a while where frequently I was the only person in the entire city, and the only NPCs in the city  stood stock still in their shops all hours of the day and night. There were no wandering NPCs, no other players, and apparently undead shopkeepers. It was creepy.

Ganking and Consequences, or Lack Thereof
I’ll address the accusations of “Care Bear” gaming a bit later, but giving gamers free reign to kill or take advantage of other players without consequence is just dumb. I’m all about dangerous gameplay, however there should be consequences beyond “this faction now hates you and you have to sneak into this city.”

The list could go on and on.

Why do games fall victim to these common and worn out elements? Personally, I blame the wildly successful consoles. The rise of the console gaming platform has contributed to a decline in role playing. If not a decline, then it is certainly transforming role playing as a genre. Role playing was originally born of the desire to explore and develop a character as though one were living in a story.  Gamers were less concerned with loot and power than developing a memorable character.  Console games have created an endless loop of “cut scene for exposition, follow with mission, follow with training or loot, follow with cut scene, follow with boss battle. Rinse and repeat.”  Since those games make lots and lots of money, it is only natural that all games try to mimic that success by using the same formulae. Unfortunately, it is the traditional roleplayer that gets left out in the cold. It may not be the most lucrative market, but I think there is room for a healthy niche.

This is where the Minister of Crackpot Schemes earns his title. If I had the capital, I know exactly how I would design and implement an MMO appealing to real roleplayers. Take a stroll with me now through Crackpot Scheme Number 763:

Permanent Character Death
This should go a long way to shut up all of the griefer gamers who complain about “Care Bear” games. Time to put your money where your mouth is.  Before you go up against an enemy or another player, better be sure you can win or escape, because there is no such thing as a “corpse run.” Your character is gone and so is your stuff. Sneaking through dangerous areas is much riskier now, not to mention raids. Big, bad monsters are big and bad for a reason. How much of your guild is an “acceptable loss” when going up against a dragon guarding its lair?

Consequences, Consequences
Want to be a thief? Assassin? Fine. Are you prepared to have a price on your head that other players can collect? If you ganked another player, how would you feel if his guildmates put a bounty on you? Let the thieves actually sneak into homes and businesses to steal things, but also create a way for some Crime Scene Investigation to occur that might reveal who they are. Combine consequences with permanent character death, and you have yourself a recipe for excitement that does not require massive monsters and demigods.

Limit the Grand Storylines
Provide an expansive and interesting world for your characters to play in and populate it with lots of NPCs and human actors. Leave out the global cataclysm. The only reason anyone cares is because it usually opens up high level raid areas to keep the 1337 crowd happy.

No Levels. No Classes
The open skill trees have been explored a little with existing games, but I’d take it further. There’d be no such thing as level. Skills and abilities come as you explore, train, and use other skills.

Real Player Housing
Put your house wherever you dang well feel like it, but you’d better be able to defend it. That’s where the mercenaries come in…

Mercenaries
Hire NPCs to run your shop, guard your house, and do menial tasks when you’re offline. You want to have a wizard’s tower in the middle of nowhere? Maybe you should invest in some guards. Are you an awesome blacksmith? Hire some NPC apprentices to create armor while you’re offline. It won’t be as good as yours, but it will provide you with a revenue stream.

Human NPCs
Less eye candy and more story. There are tons of people out there who would love to spend time as a game character in exchange for free play, in-game items, or even a small salary. Recruiting and managing a corps of gamers willing to contribute to the game world is completely possible.

Creating great MMOs should not be as hard as the industry has made it. I have notes upon notes of what else I would do regarding merchant classes, ships, mounts, physics, priests and tons more. That’s what it means to be the Kingfish – the crackpot schemes are a never ending stream, for better or for worse.

And if someone came to me with a pile of money and asked if I knew how to turn this into reality, the answer is yes.

Yes I do.

January 4th, 2011 by jay

Behold – the exercise bike iPad stand!

Ideal for sweating to Netflix Streaming.

Personally, I think PVC pipe is a perfect project building material, especially for quick and sloppy craftsmen like me. Measurements can sometimes be approximate, and you always end up with perfect angles and joints.

January 1st, 2011 by jay

The general rule for getting new toys at my house is that I must purchase the new and shiny using the proceeds from the sale of older toys. This allows me to buy fun things without guilt and generally keeps me from collecting too much crap.  The downside is that most of my toys involve technology in some way and decrease in value over time.  This leaves me with a general shortage of fun money when the urge to buy kicks in.

Enter the need for a new computer.

My workhorse PC is now 8 years old and due for replacement.  A modest new computer would be totally appropriate to purchase out of normal household expenses. However, if the next one has to last another 8 years, then I want to start off with a screaming, fire-breathing, drool-inducing rig worthy of legend.  That, and I want to play the newfangled games that all of the cool kids play.

So, once again I begin shambling distractedly around my house, looking intently at my personal possessions and mumbling “I wonder what I could get for that on eBay?”  After decent headway is made towards my new computer, I find myself short, so I enter another round of shambling, mumbling, and calculating. On one particular jaunt into the basement, I spy a rug rolled up in a corner, and there I find the next victim in my selling spree.

The following collection is my homemade Jumbo Monopoly Set, circa 1998.  It was sort of a compulsive endeavor, starting with a pewter Monopoly token paperweight.  Then I bought a few more tokens and stumbled across the rug – a 6.5 foot square Monopoly board rug which is almost exactly to scale with the tokens.  It was all downhill from there. Many hours of scanning, layout, and printing brought forth all of the Money, Chance, Community Chest, and Deed cards to play a giant game of Monopoly. Throw in a pair of oversized novelty dice and some wooden blocks to stand in as houses/hotels and I was good to go. (I had actual plans to make scale buildings as well, but never got that far)

Now, it’s all going up on eBay.

It was fun to put it all together, but I have to admit that it’s probably the closest I’ve come to being compulsive about a project.

You see, I don’t really enjoy playing Monopoly.

November 10th, 2010 by jay

A bit of artwork from an old project.  I still feel this way most of the time.