Hao Tran - Blog

Please support an open internet by protesting SOPA & PIPA

Hao — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:05:03 +0000

It's begun: today is the designated day when many sites will "black out" in protest to SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) & PIPA (Protect IP Act). They come from noble intentions: to stop online piracy, but the current wording of these two bills are incredibly dangerous and would be a huge threat to the freedom of the internet, should they pass (there is an alternative act: the OPEN Act (Online Protection and Enforcemen of Digital Trade Act), which still tries to stop online piracy, but does not sacrifice the openness of the internet to do so).

Wikipedia and Reddit are probably the biggest sites to blackout today, with Wikipedia having already started, and running for a full 24 hours, and Reddit blacking out for 12 hours.

If you haven't been following this, and/or have no idea as to what SOPA and PIPA are, you can read an explanation on Reddit and Wikipedia. You can also read about the OPEN act here.

As a person who enjoys exploring the internet, reading little blogs like mine, it's important that we don't allow bills like these, which were written with little technical and expert input, to pass. We cannot allow ourselves to be put in a position of fear over legal action because we want to express ourselves. We cannot allow a government-regulated internet, especially to this level, to be (it hasn't really worked for other countries either). Contact your local representative, and (respectfully) show them that the people they represent do not support these bills.

Game On starts with a bit of a sputter

Hao — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 05:56:55 +0000

First off, if you've never been to twit.tv, I'd recommend checking it out. They have lots of great tech-related shows (with its flagship show, This Week in Tech, as well as its award-winning Tech News Today). They have a couple of other non-tech related news as well, such as Frame Rate (focusing on movies, TV shows, etc), NSFW (a general humor show), and now they've debuted their new gaming show, Game On.

Review and video after the break.

Pixel Noise 13 - Chapter's End, Continuing Journey

Hao — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 04:48:20 +0000

A bit of sad news, but this will be the last Pixel Noise. I don't think this particular format is working, so I'm going to try to develop something new and improved in the meantime. However, I do plan on keeping the spirit of Pixel Noise alive, so I'll be sure to incorporate a music feature in whatever I do next. It's been a fun ride, and these songs are amongst my favorites. I think they convey the feeling of an ongoing journey well. It's the end of this chapter, and transitioning to a new one. Hopefully I'll see you there!

Track List:

00:19 Dragon Quest IX - Overture

03:25 Disgaea 4 - Last Engagement

09:22 Headhunter - Jack's Theme

15:41 The Last Remnant - Gates of Hell

20:49 Etrian Odyssey III - Those Who Slay and Fall

25:10 Scott Pilgrim vs. the World the Game - Leave the Past Behind

28:55 Katamari Damacy - Lonely Rolling Star

35:41 Final Fantasy IV - Theme of Love

40:51 Final Fantasy Tactics - Ovelia's Worries

45:11 King's Bounty: Armored Princess - Dreamland

51:03 Eternal Sonata - Heaven's Mirror

59:43 Mirror's Edge - Still Alive

66:39 Soul Calibur 2 - Path of Destiny

Pixel Noise 12 - It's Good to Game Again

Hao — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:29:18 +0000

I've got my gaming time back, and I've already finished Eternal Sonata! Still plenty of games in the backlog to power through, but it's all still lots of fun. No particular theme for the week, other than games I'm playing, will be playing soon, or songs I stumbled into on my iPod on shuffle.

Track List:

00:10 Bayonetta - Fly Me to the Moon

03:58 Dark Souls - Firelink Shrine

08:05 LoZ: Skyward Sword - Ballad of the Goddess

11:24 Lost Odyssey - A Mighty Enemy Appears

15:52 Xenoblade - Those Who Bear Their Name

20:27 Dynasty Warriors 7 - Pierce

25:54 Final Fantasy XIII-2 - Main Battle Theme

31:13 Final Fantasy Type-0 - Boss Theme

37:19 Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together - Chivalry and Savagery

41:34 Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions - Ovelia's Worries

47:43 Eternal Sonata - Heaven's Mirror

Pixel Noise 11 - Video Game Music is Serious Business

Hao — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 08:21:20 +0000

We're on a mission to spread some video game music to the masses! Though, seriousness all the time probably isn't fun, so there's a few quirks in it too. You can just feel the tension and excitement!

Track List:

00:10 Headhunter - Jack's Theme

07:13 Thief - Rising Hunger

11:50 Dragon Slayer 4 - Dungeon Entrance

15:53 Lemmings - Stage 1

18:30 Uncharted 3 - Main Theme

21:27 Strider Hiryu - Raid

24:44 Metal Gear Solid 4 - Main Theme

30:33 Heavy Rain - Ethan Mars' Main Theme

35:40 Advance Wars: Days of Ruin - Brenner: Hope Never Dies

38:15 Mass Effect 2 - The Normandy Reborn

41:28 Bayonetta - Climatic Battle

A Winner Am I! - Elemental Minds: NaNoWriMo 2011

Hao — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 23:50:58 +0000

Just before 1AM Tuesday morning, I finally completed my NaNoWriMo novel at 50,269 words! It was a long path, but it feels great to be done! I don't think I've ever written anything that long before in my life (Microsoft Word says it was roughtly 80 pages, single-spaced), and even though I know the quality of writing isn't all that great, and there are some continuity issues, the NaNoWriMo novel is supposed to be a rough draft. It was definitely good for developing some diligence, and it was also a great way to just relax my mind and let it wander.

If you're interested in reading it, for whatever reason, you can find it here.

I'm currently at that stage where I'm not sure if I want to do it again next year, but it's something I'll keep it mind when the time rolls around again.

Meanwhile, I'm going to start working on my gaming backlog again, and there won't be a Pixel Noise tonight (sorry about missing last week's, but it was Thanksgiving weekend and all). I have rehearsal tonight, so expect a new Pixel Noise tomorrow!

Pixel Noise 10 - Flow Into the Sky

Hao — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 06:57:10 +0000

Well, I was unable to keep up with NaNoBloMo, but here's another episode of Pixel Noise! Not much gaming lately, so we went with some Mistwalker, transitioning into Operation Rainfall, and covering some upcoming releases (or in Skyrim's case, already released). It's a fun little grab bag!

Track List:

00:09   Blue Dragon - Main Theme
04:00   ASH: Archaic Sealed Heat - Battle of History
07:52   Lost Odyssey - Main Theme
12:18   The Last Story - New Days
17:42   Pandora's Tower - Boss Theme
28:09   Xenoblade - Mechanical Rhythm
31:45   The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword - Romance Theme
35:51   Halo: Combat Evolved - Truth and Reconciliation Suite
44:55   The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Main Theme
49:02   The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Minstrel's Lament
54:13   King's Bounty: Armored Princess - Dreamland

Pixel Noise 9 - A Dash of Nexon MMOs

Hao — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:39:45 +0000

Not a lot of gaming over the past week or so, but I've rekindled my interest in Vindictus, so we'll visit some Nexon MMOs! And just so I step away from the Asia-train once in a while, I've put in Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3, and Oblivion too!

Track List:

00:05 Vindictus - Main Theme

04:57 Maple Story - Temple of Time

11:02 Maple Story Adventures - Main Theme (?)

16:22 Zombie Misfits - Map Screen (?)

21:30 Dragon Nest - Main Theme

25:07 Atlantica Online - Login

28:39 Dungeon Fighter Online - Golem Tower

34:45 Mabinogi - Final Boss Theme

39:33 Battlefield 3 - Fire From the Sky

42:49 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - Warlords

48:00 Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Auriel's Ascension

Mini-Update

Hao — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 07:38:00 +0000

I don't really have much to write about today, as I spend most of my Tuesday evenings at Oregon Repertory Singers (ORS) rehearsal. So a mini-update will do for NaNoBloMo:

I am making steady progress with NaNoWriMo. I'm currently at a little over 12k words, and I'm supposed to be a little over 13k by the end of the day today. The weekends have been really helpful in catching up, and I'm going to need to get ahead a little, as I have ORS rehearsal on the evenings of the 29th and 30th.
I closed my Bank of America checking/savings accounts last week, and put the money into a new checking/savings account at First Tech Credit Union. It's taking a bit of an adjustment period, but I'm sure everything will work out.
Regarding my finances, I'm feeling pretty good at paying off my student loans. If I can be a bit more aggressive from time to time, I should be done in the spring next year. It'll feel good to be debt free!
I haven't touched Eternal Sonata in over a week (been spending my time working on NaNoWriMo instead), but I really want to beat it so I can finish the story, and then move on to Dark Souls.
I recently became re-interested in Vindictus, so I logged in and caught up on all of my characters (spent unused AP, which reached the cap months ago). Hopefully I can start playing that again soon too.

That's all for now! Hopefully I'll have a new Pixel Noise ready for tomorrow's post, and I have a few plans for some more interesting posts in the days to come!

Cardfight!! Vanguard is the new children's card game on the block,

Hao — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 06:37:56 +0000

And in my opinion, it's so much better than YuGiOh. Cardfight!! Vanguard is a card game/anime, similar to YuGiOh, and the anime focuses on a timid kid named Aichi Sendou. He's kind of a typical kid with low self-esteem; he gets picked on pretty easily, and doesn't stand up for himself very much. Also, with a little bit of a spoiler warning, he actually doesn't pull a typical shonen anime character trait and win just about every match he's put in (see: YuGiOh yet again). Even though he's a brand new player in the world of Vanguard, he manages to hold his own, struggling with the best players in the country (though he doesn't quite make it most of the time).