SunfallE

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Oh my, the image that one brings to mind. o_O Hehe, it?s about time I quit lurking and comment on how much I?ve been enjoying your comics. I look forward to seeing more of them. ^_^ EDIT: I forgot to mention that what I love best is how simple, yet funny they are. I find I can't help but laugh at them. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]Ezekiel:[/B] What I like about your piece is the messy grungy feeling. The choice of colors and the font all fit together nicely. And I love the expression on his face as it really fits what the piece says. The only thing I don?t care for is the border; the outer dash one is fine it?s the inner red one that I don?t care for. Still over all I love how well your piece fits the words. [B]sakurasuka:[/B] What I like about your piece is how everything flows together. The colors blend beautifully and the border is gorgeous. The placement of the text and the circles add a nice touch. What I don?t care for is the over all picture doesn?t seem to fit the words. It just fits together too well. I hope I makes sense. Anyway, great work, both of you. ^_^ For this one my vote goes to [B]Ezekiel[/B]. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][quote name='Raiyuu][FONT=Trebuchet MS']This thread is going downhill! Please, explain what each quote means to you, otherwise we end up with every post just being a list of quotes and no insight. You supposedly live by these quotes, so you must be able to tell us something about them, right?[/FONT][/quote]Just a reminder since it seems Raiyuu's warning about explaining why you live by a certain quote has been forgotten. Please be sure to take the time to explain why the quote you listed is important to you. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][QUOTE=Miss Anonymous]I probably did miss some points of SunfallE's message, seeing as there were so many posts to read. I am not saying that the American government should rule with only Christian or religious beliefs. Someone would easily take advantage of that, in the end. And yes, separation of church and state is for the best. I just don't want people to misconstrue the whole thing too much, because that also shouldn't happen. Ruling a country according to one religion shouldn't happen, because religion is a choice. I can see where you're coming from, but there are still a few things I can't completely agree with.[/QUOTE]I didn?t exactly spell it out as clearly as I could have. I?ve been following it a little on my own for the past few years and the reason I linked to that site is that I?ve been arguing with other people (not here at OB) that claiming we need to return to the Christian principles on which is was founded is not something that?s really provable. The document in question can be interpreted both ways. Which is what that site shows. ^_~ I was forgetting that I haven?t been discussing this issue with everyone here so I didn?t properly clarify that point. Aaryanna_Mom is right about what I meant with my post, but then I know her in real life and we?ve discussed this many times in the past couple of years. (Oh and by the way Aaryanna_Mom, I?m glad you finally decided to join OB ^_~ ) [quote name='Cat14']I would like to know why everyone keeps going to the Christian belief on this subject? [/quote]I would imagine that people keep using Christian beliefs since it is where they learned or were taught that homosexuality is wrong, so it?s only natural that someone is going to cite the source of their information or belief. I was raised to believe it is wrong, but I decided to make my own choice instead of following what I was told to believe. I think this discussion is starting to run in circles since it?s unlikely any of us are going to change our opinion based on what others think. Though it is interesting to see where people stand on the situation. And to discuss it with people who are civil towards one another. Trying to discuss it with some of the religious fanatics here in Utah is just a waste of time as it quickly turns into a nasty shouting match of how you are going to hell for thinking everyone should have the same rights. Feh! [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][quote name='Aaryanna][COLOR=SeaGreen] marriage has changed drastically through out the years: [URL=http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/5692/marriage019qz.jpg][COLOR=SeaGreen][B][U]Marriage[/U][/B][/COLOR][/URL] [/COLOR][/QUOTE]Just the same old story when it comes to marriage or other forms of discrimination. If we can?t stop one thing it seems people have to find something they can oppose.[QUOTE=Prons]I also think most people hate Bush just because they love bandwagoning. [/QUOTE]49% of the population did not vote for Bush in the last presidential election. I?d hardly call that ?bandwagoning? I?ve never cared for Bush as I often disagree with his political views. Not just because others are [I]doing it[/I]. [QUOTE=Sandy]What comes to the [B]banning of gay marriage[/B'], I honestly believe Bush is trying to direct the attention away from his own mistakes he had made in the foreign politics. [/quote]I agree, Bush is very unpopular these days and this attempt, which was doomed from the start, is nothing more than an attempt to make religious and conservative people happy. The thing that bother?s me the most about the whole idea of making gay marriage illegal by amending the constitution is this: [INDENT]"One of the most common statements from the "Religious Right" is that they want this country to "[B][I]return to the Christian principles on which it was founded[/I][/B]". However, one only needs to do a little research into American history to discover that this statement is a lie. The men responsible for building the foundation of the United States had little use for Christianity, and many were strongly opposed to it. They were men of The Enlightenment, not Men of Christianity. They were Deists." [I]the rest is [/I][URL=http://freethought.mbdojo.com/foundingfathers.html][COLOR=RoyalBlue][U]Here[/U][/COLOR][/URL] [/INDENT] The whole point was that they were trying to get away from religion, to keep any religion from making the claim of being the official religion. From deciding what others could and could not worship or believe. Banning gay marriage is nothing more than another form of discrimination. They lost the battle on denying women rights, blacks the right to marry and interracial marriage so now they are attempting to deny yet another form of marriage... And distract from the fact that Bush in many ways is incompetent. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]I don?t have any set beliefs about what happens when we die. I only have what I would like to happen if there was a Heaven and Hell. Until I actually die I won?t know and what I believe won?t change what actually happens so it almost seems pointless to think that ?this? is what happens because I believe in it. I?m not really concerned over reincarnation or simply ceasing to exist since both of them comes across, as I won?t be aware of it anyway. So in that case, since I will be unaware it?s unimportant to me. The only one I think about is if there is a Heaven and Hell so to speak then I do want it to be like it is described in various religions where sinners either go to purgatory or Hell and the rest go to Heaven. Primarily because I think that people who murder or beat their wives and children to death are not someone I want to have to live with in Heaven. I?ve had a few experiences with people like that and they tend to continue their destructive behavior if given a chance. Being a spirit may make killing others impossible, I certainly don?t know, but there are other ways to hurt someone without laying a finger on them and from the same people I?ve dealt with who hurt others, I?ve also learned, that often they will take any route to hurt you, even if that hurt is only mental and not physical. From that line of thinking I also try to do my best to not hurt others and lead a good life. After all if Heaven does exist, then I do want to be with the people I love after I die. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]I know I?m looking forward to Bleach coming to Adult Swim. I?ve only read the manga and I really want to see the anime. What I?m most pleased with is that it is going to be on Adult Swim. Unless they change before it?s aired, other aspects of cartoon network has started putting up popup banners that cover the bottom fifth of the screen during the show to advertise other shows. I?ve quit recording shows since it?s really annoying. So even if the dubbing isn?t the best, at least I won?t have to deal with those annoying popups. Who ever came up with that idea needs to be dragged out in the street and shot. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][QUOTE=Pumpkin][SIZE=1]Sorry guys for the long reply! I want to thank [b]Cancer, eclair, and SunfallE[/b] for their hard work in making me excellent banners and finding such great images as well. I will be sure to use all of them, unfortunately I've run into a little problem. I've lately have fallen in love with the anime Paradise Kiss and wish I had made this request instead since it would have been easier with the images and all. Even though I love the banners that I received from you guys. I will definately use your banners, but in the meantime if anyone could give it a shot (if your bored, otherwise don't bother ^^) would be able to make me a set of [URL=http://miwakooo.blogatta.org/imgs/f96f9750ccb1.jpg][b]this[/b][/URL] image? With my name on the avatar and and on the banner "lonely in gorgeous tears" and on the side my name as well. I would appreciate it but otherwise don't bother if its too much work. Thank you! [/SIZE][/QUOTE]I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who does that! I've made up banners and such only to change my mind the next day. :p Anyway, here's my attempt. I kept them in photoshop so if you want to use them I can tweak them if you need me to. ;) [IMG]http://img56.imageshack.us/img56/3264/pumpkinavatar02copy8gi.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img56.imageshack.us/img56/8895/pumpkinbanner02copy8cm.jpg[/IMG] Hope you like them. ^_~[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Out of the one?s you?ve listed the movie I liked the best was Spirited Away. It reminded me Alice in Wonderland with all the bizarre and weird imagery. The paper birds and cute little soot creatures were whimsical and fun to watch. It?s also the only one of his movies that I got to see in the theater and it was fantastic to see on the big screen. Now my favorite movie is Howl?s Moving Castle. I love Sophie?s character and even Howl, though he seems a bit off, is very lovable. I just cracked up when he [spoiler]got upset because his hair color got changed. [/spoiler] I enjoyed Princess Mononoke as the visuals were stunning, but like Dagger I don?t really care if I see it again or not. And like you Dagger I haven?t seen all of Totoro either. I?ve only caught bits and pieces of it. It looks charming though and one of these days I want to see all of it. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]If you just submitted it yesterday then give it a little more time to go through the approval process. Usually it?s fairly quick, but it can take up to 48 hours for a submission to be approved. I just took a quick look and there are still submissions waiting to be approved. So I would wait on re-submitting it, as one of the ones waiting for approval could be the wallpaper you submitted.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]I think it?s a great idea. Most of my friends that have done it have either found out that the person they were about to marry wasn?t for them or it has strengthened their relationship. I know if it were me I would want to know what someone?s wacky habits were before I married them. And living together makes it harder to hide weird habits. I don?t think you should do it immediately, but if you?ve been dating long enough to consider getting married, at that point I think living together to try it out is a smart move. I certainly intend to do it if I ever meet someone I want to marry. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Welcome to OtakuBoards [B]dougpfaff[/B], Please be aware that we have a rules page that all members are required to read before posting. These [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/rules.php?"][U][COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]Rules[/B][/COLOR][/U][/URL] and [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/faq.php?][U][COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]FAQ[/B][/COLOR][/U][/URL] can be found on the left navigation menu and the [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=52331][u][COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]Otaku Lounge Rules[/B][/COLOR][/u][/url] are pinned at the top of the forum. You can also use the underlined links I have just provided. I will be closing this thread for several reasons and once you?ve reviewed the rules it will make more sense. First of all this is the wrong area of the forum. Anime related discussions are found in the Anime Lounge. Secondly, OtakuBoards is not a search engine. If you want to find a box set a good place to check would be at retailers that sell them like Amazon. Also the reason you are not finding complete box sets is that some of them are not available in English yet. Take Case Closed, there are over 400 episodes and less than 50 episodes have been released in English so it?s only natural that you can?t find it in a complete box set. If you have any questions feel free to pm myself or another member of the staff. ~SunfallE [B]Thread Closed[/B][/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][QUOTE=Kura][size=1]Good to see this RPG is on its way to being in the Square. I was getting worried that it might not actually start. But I'm glad to see that it is.[/size][/QUOTE]I'm glad to see it's going to start too. Especially after crossing my fingers all week hoping I would be selected. ^_~ I?m looking forward to being a part of your rpg Pumpkin. So thanks for choosing me. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]In forums where the member base is on the younger side I?ve noticed that the trend you are describing is fairly accurate. But that?s only from looking at a few places and I?ve no idea if it?s prevalent or just a small percentage. I would have to agree with Dagger that generalizations like that don?t hold true once you move through different age groups. Being a girl myself, I?ve never cared for using anime avatars, I?ve always preferred video game characters since I was a video game fan long before I became an anime fan. Though in that respect I probably fit what you are describing as I tend to pick cute video game guys. I tend to avoid trying to guess what someone?s gender is since the few times I?ve tried I?ve been wrong. I?m often mistake for a guy and I?m assuming it?s because I tend to use video game themes instead of anime.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]I can't see the pictures either. I was already working on these so I'll just go ahead and post them. [IMG]http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/8677/pumpkinavatar014cp.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/811/pumpkinbanner012rr.jpg[/IMG] I hope you like them, even if you go with someone else's set. ;) If you do want to use them, I still have them in PSD format so I can tweak them if you need me to. ^_^[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Actually this summer I am taking leave from my job so I won?t be doing a regular paid job. I have been working for the United States Postal Service, but honestly the research they have me doing is rather boring. I asked for the break since my father nearly died a year and a half ago from a tricky surgery related to kidney cancer. He survived, minus one kidney, but the last year he hasn?t been up to doing much of anything, so I plan on spending my summer getting his overgrown yard back in order. He has a big yard so it?s going to take a lot of work to fix. The only thing I might do different this summer is apply to work for a different company instead of going back to my current job. There is a company that recently got a deal with Intel to make memory chips for cell phones and other electronic equipment so they will be expanding their plant by 1,300 employees this fall. I learned about it from one of my friends since her husband is off in Virginia being trained by the company for the change and since they pay a lot better and will pay for college classes so long as it?s technical and related to your job I?m considering taking my friends recommendation to apply to work there. Especially since I was already considering returning to school to further my education. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][QUOTE=Corey][size=1]So far, so good. Nine hours into it and no fire, brimstone, or horsemen. How is everyone else handling this completely blown out of proportion date? Cowering at the steps of a church? Participating in lame examples of satanism? Or just going about it as normal, because it's nothing special? And perhaps we can get a goood theological discussion about the end of the world going while were at it.[/size][/QUOTE]Actually until you posted this thread I hadn?t even noticed the date. These sorts of predictions have never impressed me since I really don?t believe in any of them. Most of the time unless someone mentions it, I rarely notice if a date is suppose to be significant in that respect. Anyway it?s a nice warm sunny day where I?m at. Can?t say that it looks like the world is going to end or any other such nonsense. So I?ll just keep doing what I always do this time of day, which is fixing dinner. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]I fixed the typos. If you see any others let me know. ^_~[QUOTE=indifference][COLOR=Sienna]I do have a suggestion. Have you considered making a type of introduction summary? Like you see on the back of a novel or inside the front cover? Just a paragraph or two giving the reader an idea of what they are about to read? I also have a question, are you looking to add to your story? Or primarily for feedback on things you could improve? [/COLOR][/QUOTE]Actually I hadn?t thought of providing any type of summary. Now that I think about it, a summary or at least a teaser of what to expect would be a good idea. I?ll have to work on that. As for adding to it vs. improving, I guess you could say I am looking for feedback in how I could improve it. I?ve thought about trying an RPG from the beginning of the story just to see what direction it would take. Though for that I would have to write up an extensive scenario detailing what happens before the creation of the game Silver One. [quote name='Aaryanna][COLOR=SeaGreen]Drat, I was hoping you were posting the second part. :p The fact that you have a character who needs to [spoiler]die (well later on that is)[/spoiler] has nothing to do with my hoping the next part describing their [spoiler]demise[/spoiler'] was what you had posted. I know, I know, that would have been confusing to those who haven't read it before. Meh......And more importantly, I don?t suppose you?ve written any of the next part of the story? I?m eager to see what happens next. ^_^[/COLOR][/quote];) Although I haven?t actually written the second part, I have written up some ideas I have for it. As for the fate of a certain character?well that would be telling. :p Anyway, here?s the next chapter. Thanks for your input, both of you. ^_^ [B]Chapter Two:[/B] The game became more intense as even more aliens were attempting to corner Celestia. They were using cover fire to pin her down while others advanced on her position. Celestia quickly fired at them risking taking another hit, she had already been hit once. The aliens scattered briefly to avoid her fire and Celestia took the chance to run for a set of stairs going down to get away. She knew she could take two more hits without losing the game. Celestia figured that if she could get to the stairs and escape down to the next level she would stand a better chance. As it stood if they got to her position she would lose the game. Celestia made it to the stairs but before she had taken a single step, the aliens shot her in the left arm. To her surprise instead of hearing the usual chime indicating she had taken a hit, Celestia felt an electrical shock run though her arm from where the laser hit. The sudden pain and the fact that the blast actually pushed her a bit forward on the left side nearly caused her to lose her balance and fall down the stairs. She had to grab onto the railing to keep from falling as she ran down the stairs. Celestia wondered what the hell had happened to the program for it to create a malfunction like that. The holographic projectors had not been programmed to produce anything like that! Celestia regained her footing at the bottom of the stairs and said, ?[B]Jason! Shut down Silver One![/B]? Nothing happened. ?[B]Jason! Kendra! Respond![/B]? Still nothing. ?[B]Emergency override! Shut down Silver one![/B]? Celestia yelled. Again there was no response. Celestia barely had time to realize that there was something wrong with the program when the aliens appeared at the top of the stairs and took aim. Not wanting to be electrocuted again she took off barely avoiding the enemy fire. Jason watched as Celestia nearly fell down the stairs from being shot. Instantly he knew something was wrong, he could see her lips moving but there was no sound. ?[B]Celestia! What?s wrong? I?ve lost the signal. Celestia![/B]? Jason yelled. He could see that she was still speaking but there was still no sound. ?[B]Kendra! Shut down Silver One![/B]? Jason said. Nothing happened. Jason tried to enter the shut down code manually, but still there was no response. Jason looked up at the screen in time to see Celestia barely avoid further enemy fire. ?[B]Damn![/B]? Jason snarled. ?[B]I have to shut it down somehow![/B]? Jason got up and ran to the changing room, if he couldn?t turn the program off then perhaps shutting down the power to the building would do the job. He would have to turn off the emergency generators as well to keep it from switching over to emergency power. Jason had barely opened the door when the sound of movement came from behind him. Celestia began to feel just a little bit afraid. She couldn?t figure out what had caused the game to malfunction! ?[B]Damn it! Jason! Kendra! Shut down Silver One![/B]? she yelled. Still there was no response. For the next ten minutes Celestia ran like mad avoiding enemy fire and shooting at the aliens every chance she got. But this group of aliens seemed to anticipate her every move and not one shot actually hit! She knew that Jason wasn?t responsible, people often accused her of being arrogant but it was the simple truth that no one had been able to hack her systems or even produce a replica. So it just wasn?t possible for him to have re-programmed the game. Besides, she was fairly certain he liked her. She hired him because she knew he had no intention of stealing from her. How she knew that she didn?t know, but her instincts in hiring personnel in the past ten years had never been wrong. Celestia tried again to get Kendra (the computer) to shut down Silver One without success. Celestia hid in a closet in one of the many rooms to take a moment and catch her breath. Even if she could get to the door that connected with the control room, her way was blocked by aliens and unless she could get the program to shut down the electrical energy covering the door would keep her from even being able to leave the game. Celestia was glad she was the designer of the game; otherwise with all the running she had done she would be completely lost. The holographic scenery was just too realistic. ?[B]Kendra! Jason! Respond please![/B]? she whispered into the mike. There was still no response. Jason had to have realized that something was wrong by now. Celestia hoped he would realize that he could go to the circuit breakers in the changing room and turn off the emergency generators and cut the power. As she leaned against the closet wall the thought occurred to her that she was glad she had designed the game to end when you are captured and not when you are killed. Celestia was carefully moving on as staying in one spot was bound to get her caught when suddenly she realized she was going about this the wrong way! The way to end the game was to let them catch her! Once she was captured, the game should end! The program was designed to end at that point. Celestia felt almost foolish as she realized that she had run like crazy trying to escape a mere game. She ran into the next room and turned to await the aliens who were pursuing her. She raised her arms to surrender, as she wanted to avoid being shot again. In spite of knowing it was a game she still felt afraid since she didn?t want to be electrocuted again. Her left arm still felt a tiny bit numb from the first time she had been shot. The game allowed one to surrender so she hoped that the aliens recognized her surrender before shooting. Then suddenly the door opened behind Celestia. Cursing under her breath she tried to turn around quickly. The aliens had split in to two groups in order to catch her! She turned frantically; it was almost like time itself was moving slowly as the first alien raised his weapon preparing to shoot. ?[B]I surrender![/B]? Celestia cried out! But it was a fraction too late; the blast from the gun hit her squarely on her left shoulder. Celestia wasn?t completely turned around and the blast of electric energy knocked her off her feet. She fell backwards, landing hard on her back. The force of the fall caused the weapon she was holding to go flying across the floor. Celestia wanted to scream; the electrical blast was even more painful than the last time! She thought that she was going to pass out. Her vision began to gray and she fought it until her vision cleared only to see four of the aliens standing above her, their weapons pointed right at her. Celestia breathed a sigh of relief. Since they hadn?t fired again it meant that the program had recognized her surrender. The game was finally over. She started to get up but to her complete shock the aliens actually spoke telling her to not move! At their words Celestia froze in complete panic! The program hadn?t ended![/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]White:[/B] your submission is great in that it appears so simple. The words fit and I like the black border with a white inner border. I like the use of colorless leaves since the idea of leaves without color is very odd so it stands out and makes a good focal point. What I do not like is the size of the font. I?m thinking it would fit better if the larger text was a tad smaller and the smaller text a tad bigger. [B]Boo:[/B] your submission also is great in how it appears so simple. The word clockwork squeezed in along with the arrows give it a nice flow and feel. The arrows draw your eyes to them and then you naturally find yourself following them. What I don?t care for is that even though the overall piece appears to be squeezed, which looks good, it?s off in the middle since the gears are not touching? I just think it would look better if they all appeared to be touching. My vote goes to [B]White[/B].[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]Katana: [/B]your submission has a nice contrast to it and a good messy feel as well. I like how you went with a black background and the lines being in white instead of the other way around. I think it makes it stand out more than say having white with black lines would have. What I don?t really care for is the words. They don?t seem to fit and the placing seems to be off. The words falling apart just seem like they would look a little better if they were centered. [B]Ezekiel:[/B] your submission comes across, as being well structured with the words shadows are lovely company at the top and the dark background. It leads nicely down to the character who though touching the shadow?s so to speak is still in the light by virtue of the white background surrounding him. Hence the shadows are company. Or so it seems. What I don?t care for is the top border. I?m not sure if those marks are supposed to be stars? I can?t really tell. It?s nice; I just find it a little distracting. My vote goes to [B]Katana[/B]. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][B]sakurasuka: [/B]Your submission has a lovely retro feel to it and a nice crisp clean look as well. The circles and the sad look great together. I love the flower in her hair; it seems to draw you right to that spot. The thing I don?t care for is the placement of the world Colorless, but only because you end up losing part of the last s into the side. [B]r2vq:[/B] Your submission has a nice simple look with the plain text and lack of obvious graphics. I like how you have the words Chapter 5 Games in the center and how some of the text is at a different angle. The hole for a ribbon at the top is a nice touch. The only thing I don?t care for is the border. The shadow is fine; I just think the piece would be a little nicer with a bigger black border. My vote goes to [B]r2vq[/B].[/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Unless it?s been changed, deleting your account will result in all of your submissions being deleted as well. I?ve not done it myself, but I?ve known a couple of people who did and when they deleted their account, everything they had put in was deleted as well. [/COLOR]

[center][IMG]http://img125.imageshack.us/img125/439/silveronemc8.jpg[/IMG] [/center] [COLOR=RoyalBlue] First of all thanks to Revelation for encouraging me to post my story. ;) I?ve always been rather self-conscious about the stories I write since English is a subject that I struggle with. I swear! Grammar and spelling live to drive me batty! Anyway? Secondly this is a science fiction type of story. I?ve written the first part and eventually plan on writing the second part. So I?d love to hear what all of you think about what I've written so far. :catgirl: [B]Chapter One:[/B] Celestia shut the door behind her, making sure the electronic lock engaged. Now that final testing was about to be done it was even more important to keep everything secret. Celestia wasn?t worried about her technology being stolen. In the past ten years no one had ever managed to hack into her computer programs and no one had been able to duplicate the holographic program either. No she was more worried about someone taking her story and using it. Celestia could easily use another story line, but for some reason this one seemed special and personal. So she had been extra careful to keep it under wraps. She had even made other simple story lines for the new game to hide the true storyline. If all the tests went well Celestia?s newest technological breakthrough would revolutionize the gaming industry. Her holographic programs were already widely used but they lacked substance. The new energy and light configurations would make images feel solid and real. Sometimes Celestia wondered how she knew how to write programs that could do what they did. Or how she just knew what was needed for the hardware to support it. She had actually tried to explain to people how to do what she did, but it was like trying to explain what colors were to a blind person. ?[B]Kendra, begin startup sequence for Silver One[/B].? Celestia said. ?[B]Understood Celestia, starting Silver One, sequence will be complete in ten minutes[/B].? The computer responded. All across the room screens flicked on. Celestia turned and went into the changing room. She pulled out the black jumpsuit from the locker and quickly changed into the form-fitting suit. Jason would be arriving soon and Celestia wanted everything to be ready. He would be monitoring her from inside the control room while she tested the game Silver One. Celestia finished dressing by adding some hiking boots, shorts and a shirt. She pulled out the belt and holster for holding the laser pistol and fastened it around her waist. Celestia closed the locker and turned to leave the changing room. Celestia paused briefly to look at herself in the mirror. She reached up and ran her hand through her shoulder length strawberry blonde hair. With her blue eyes, heart shaped face and slender build she knew she was quite attractive. The form-fitting jumpsuit also clearly showed how athletic she was. Being just under six feet tall helped as well. She opened the door to find Jason sitting at the main computer logging in. Jason was also quite gook looking with his dark black hair, brown eyes and medium athletic build. He was just over six feet tall and she knew that they looked quite striking together. People had even made the comment that he was hired for his good looks, but Celestia was never swayed by a person?s appearance. Jason was almost as good a programmer as she was, and highly intelligent. He had been hired more for his technological abilities than what he looked like. In fact few people knew it, but she selected who she was going to interview based off their information, before she actually saw what they looked like. She closed the door and walked over to where Jason was sitting. ?[B]Good morning Celestia[/B],? Jason said. He turned around to face her, ?[B]Ah, I see you are ready, here[/B],? he handed her the proto type laser for the game, ?[B]I figured you were in there changing[/B].? Jason smiled. Celestia took the gun and placed it in the holster. ?[B]Kendra, what?s our status[/B],? Celestia asked. ?[B]Silver One is complete[/B],? the computer responded. Celestia looked at the screens to see that the game had finished loading. The people were motionless, waiting for her command for the game to begin. Celestia went over to the main control and opened a drawer and pulled out a headset. She fastened it on her right ear and positioned the mike so she could clearly speak into it. ?[B]Jason, do you copy?[/B]? Celestia asked. ?[B]Loud and clear[/B],? Jason responded. Celestia took a deep breath and let it out slowly. ?[B]Alright, time to get this show on the road, begin recording[/B],? she said. ?[B]Understood, begin recording Kendra[/B],? Jason said. ?[B]Recording started[/B],? the computer replied. Celestia went over and entered the main game room. She shut the door and watched as the door was covered by the electrical energy turning it into a wall. Celestia reached over and ran her hand along the wall. It felt so real that unless you knew there was a door there, you wouldn?t even be able to tell the difference. Celestia smiled to herself. So far everything was working perfectly. ?[B]Kendra, begin Silver One[/B],? she said. ?[B]Understood, starting Silver One[/B],? Kendra (the computer) replied. All around her the images came to life as the people began to move around. It was surprisingly realistic with all the sounds and people talking. The whole building was built with special computer equipment so that you could change the environment by holographic imagery. So basically the halls and rooms would look different based upon which game you loaded. Each and every room had many doors and so did the hallways. When you ran the program, the holographic images would actually make it where you couldn?t see any of the other doors unless it was part of the game. So even if a room had four or more doors only one would be visible, creating the illusion that you were in a room with only one exit. This way you could change the path and appearance of where the person playing the game went without having to create each and every place separately. The player could be directed through several rooms and yet if they came full circle the starting place could become a completely different location with the holographic imagery. With four floors to this building it was possible to build a game world that was surprisingly realistic. Celestia began to move cautiously through the game, in this particular game Earth was being invaded by aliens that looked human. The only way to tell if someone was an alien was by the silver color of his or her eyes. The eyes looked normal except where a human would have blue, green or brown they would have silver instead. Your job in the game was to stop the aliens from invading Earth. The proto type laser gun would actually shot out a ray of light making it easier to see if you hit your target and make it more fun as you had a chance to dodge if you were shot at. If you were hit by one of the beams of light your gun would change color, after 3 hits the gun would turn red indicating that one more hit would mean you had been stunned by the aliens and captured and therefore the game was over. As Celestia ran down the different hallways and up and down stairs avoiding the aliens as well as shooting them down the thought occurred to her that she was glad she was in good shape or the game would have worn her out by now. ?[B]Jason, how?s the data recording[/B]?? Celestia asked. ?[B]Everything is looking good here[/B],? Jason replied. ?[B]Good, I?m going to continue until either I win or lose the game[/B],? she replied. ?[B]Understood[/B],? Jason replied. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue][quote name='Heaven's Cloud']I have two big problems with traffic cameras in general. First, I think that installing a speed camera in an area where traffic patterns haven?t been monitored and studied for at least 5 years is foolish.[/quote]I agree. Part of the problem with the argument here in Utah over areas they are considering installing cameras is that there hasn?t been any studies done on the area?s where they want the cameras. A lot of people are under the mistaken idea that installing the cameras will simply solve the problem when in fact there are other solutions they are over looking. There?s a road close to where my father lives that?s has a serious problem with speeding and after quite a bit of arguing they finally installed a roundabout which in my opinion was far more effective at forcing people to slow down instead of speeding recklessly along the road. I think that for this area cameras would have been a waste of money. At the same time there?s another road two blocks from where he lives that is the main road through the area and even though there is a cross guard for the elementary school it has a repeat history of people driving as fast as 45 mph though the area regardless of the fact that they have flashing lights installed that are running when the kids are being let out or coming to school. There?s also a park right next to the school so there are lots of people and kids about pretty much all day long. The area isn?t idea for a roundabout so personally I think a speed camera is a good idea. At least for that area, there are other areas next to schools that have similar problems. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]In all honesty I think ADV is rather a mixed format. They seem to have a little of all kinds in terms of episodes, extras and pricing. When I got Pretear a few years ago for about $25-30 dollars you got three episodes a handful of extras like clean opening and closing character sketches and previews, though I don?t really consider previews an extra. It was a good thing Pretear was only 13 episodes or I probably would have never bothered to collect it. Then I picked up DNAngel, which is by ADV for the same price range. This time you got four episodes and much better extras. The nice clean opening and closing along with voice actor commentary, insight into the music and music video collection made the DVD?s a pretty good buy since the extras were very enjoyable to browse through. They also came with nice reversible DVD covers. Though now I understand you can get it in a slim set so I don?t know if you still get everything you got the first time around. Recently I picked up the slim case set of Rune Soldier. Also by ADV. You got all 24 episodes for $35 dollars, but other than previews there are no extras on the DVD?s unless one of them happens to hide a clean opening and closing section somewhere. It does have previews, but like I said before, I don?t really consider that an extra. The price was attractive, but the lack of extra features was rather disappointing. All three of the series I just mentioned came with the Basic English and Japanese with subtitles option. Now as for FUNimation, well though they have done a good job on some of their disks, others have features that really annoy me. The best I?ve gotten from them so far was Fruits Basket. I paid $30 for six episodes per disk and they were all loaded with tons of great extras. They came with both the English and Japanese with subtitles. I understand you can get Fruits Basket as a set now but I don?t know if they kept the extra?s in them or not. Another series I?ve been collecting from FUNimation is Case Closed. Other than the first disk, which had four, all of them have had three episodes on them. They run around $22 dollars each and in addition to having both the English and Japanese with subtitles. Which is very important for this show as all the English names were changed. The also had a few extras in addition to the standard previews. The biggest turn off is they have opening previews of other series that you cannot skip. You have to wait a minute or two for a stupid trailer on other shows to finish. That?s a feature that often has me wanting to return the disk and demand my money back. Now FUNimation is re-releasing Case Closed and though you get six episodes for $30 dollars, with both English and Japanese with subtitles. Other than previews, they?ve cut out the extras that came with the DVD?s the first time around. I have yet to purchase these so hopefully they dropped the idiotic trailers in the beginning that you can?t skip. That about sums it up for the moment. I would agree that ADV has declined in quality, but as for the others, I'm not sure, I would need more comparisons to be sure. I have others from different studio?s but I?d have to pull them out as I don?t remember what they came with. [/COLOR]