Alteil: Special EX Aisha

The new special EX cards have been released by Alteil today. The Gowen card, Rusted Colossus seems complicated, so I'll probably have to see that in play to get an idea of its usage. One thing I can say about that card though, its a better SS than Russel in that it gives LV+2 and DF+5 to a friendly unit. That's a welcome bonus against return files.

Anyway, HCS Aisha, being a Refess warrior, seems like she would fit really well in a Catira - Toromea file.

As usual, we start with stats. AGI 3, HP 60 and RNG 2 would seem fine for a Level 4 card. Attack is dependent on positioning, but area 5 is usually free in a Toromea file. Placing her there would even allow her to survive Blackstorm. She would also benefit from buffs from Folrart Swordswoman, and of course, Toromea. That means, her attack would roughly be either 50 or 60, and AGI could be 5 or 6, depending on the setup.

Her action skill HCS seems like fun with Toromea around, giving you the SP needed to trigger it, and again, potentially hitting enemy units in area 1, 3, and 5 for 50 or 60 ATK. The 10 HP penalty to a friendly unit in area 3 seems a must though. I would probably position Catira in that slot.

Her other action skill, HT should be good against undeads, lycanthropes, or Dilate. As a bonus, she self-heals.

Finally, her SS is like a nerfed Sergis. Useful against undeads or EN files. But you'ld only use her as an SS if you didn't have Sergis.

But at 1000 Gran a piece, despite all the added extra level 4s and level 3s, I'm afraid I won't be able to get her. 1 card is even more expensive than 2 Set 11 EX packs. And with 200 more Gran, you could get a complete set of the coming EX 12 cards. (Dunno when these will be released, but that's what I'm trying to save for).

Still, those with money to burn should find no trouble completing an Aisha set. And I guess I'll just enjoy watching the action from the sidelines.

Ikariam Town News Filters

Although there hasn't been any recent Ikariam version released, a new feature has been subtly introduced today. I dub it the Town News Filters, similar to the way you may filter through your email messages.

Below is a screen shot.

As you can see, you can filter your town news messages based on the following categories:

• Military
• Goods Transport
• Production
• Espionage
• Diplomacy
• Piracy
• Ikariam Plus

Searching for that Military report is a little bit easier during times of war. Thanks Ikariam Team =)

Now, if only they would introduce town messages that inform you when your warehouse space has surpassed a certain amount, say 95% full or your town's wine supply is going below a certain amount, say 10,000 units. I bet those messages would be useful.

Running Ubuntu 12.10 from a USB

This post is being done from Ubuntu 12.10 ran from a USB drive. I simply followed the instructions on how to create a bootable USB on Ubuntu's website. Just make sure your system can handle it, (check system requirements, like the computer being able to boot up from a USB device), download Universal USB Installer 1.8.9.2 and the Linux flavor you would like to install, (figured I'd try the latest version of Ubuntu). I would recommend getting Ubuntu via torrent since directly downloading it off of their site using your browser is prone to disconnections and interruptions which can ruin the file.

So far, the main advantage of this installation is that my DSL Internet connection was immediately detected even during the boot up process. For other Linux installations, getting the Internet up and running can be a pain if you aren't very knowledgeable with Linux.

Ubuntu 12.10 immediately gives you the option to run the OS from a USB or to install it alongside Windows. After seeing the first fee screens of the installation option, I immediately backed out. It wasn't recognizing the partitions I had set up in windows and I was afraid I might overwrite my stuff. I will probably check this option out once I am sure that the hard drive partition I am messing with is the correct one.

My files in Windows 7 are inaccessible from Ubuntu. I guess it has something to do with Windows having its own file system format, and Ubuntu running under FAT and FAT32. I'd have to create a FAT or FAT32 partition in Windows so that files in that partition and in Ubuntu can be shared between the two OS's.

Running the OS from the USB can become slow at times. I guess the performance would be faster if the OS was installed directly on the hard drive.

Just discovered that I can't get Youtube to work because of a missing Flash plugin but when I try to install that, it keeps messing up. I also don't have any audio so those two problems might be inter-related.

In terms of applications, Libre is the Ubuntu equivalent of Microsoft Office. The Word document saved fine. I'll try the Excel equivalent (Calc) and the Power Point equivalent (Impress) some other time.

Gotta go for now! Will just add to this post if I find more interesting things on Ubuntu 12.10. If your the tech-adventurous type, then try it out.

NBA: New Orleans Pelicans

"The New Orleans Hornets plan to announce the official change of their nickname to the Pelicans and unveil their new colors and logo during a news conference Thursday, sources told Yahoo! Sports.

The Hornets will have a new look next season. (USA TODAY Sports)The new nickname, colors and logo will be used during the 2013-14 season. The colors will be blue, gold and red. Yahoo! Sports first reported the expected change Dec. 4. The Hornets had been expected to change their identity since being purchased by Tom Benson on April 14."

From Yahoo Sports

We've all heard of Michael Jordan's once charging Chicago Bulls, of the dynasty that could have been if Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady brought a championship to the fast and lethal Toronto Raptors, but for the New Orleans Hornets to change their name to the New Orleans Pelicans, to me, makes no sense.

Perhaps if I research about the Pelican, I might find distinguishing and redeeming qualities that might give light to why the new owner of the team wants to change its name. Here's what I found out about Pelicans so far:

• they often hunt cooperatively
• relationship between pelicans and people has often been contentious... they have suffered from habitat destruction, disturbance and environmental pollution, and three species are of conservation concern
• in ancient Egyptian walls, it was a protective symbol against snakes
• the pelican was thought to be particularly attentive to her young, to the point of providing her own blood by wounding her own breast when no other food was available... as a result, the pelican came to symbolize the Passion of Jesus

So a little bit of research will bring up the qualities of an animal that thrives on teamwork, an animal that fights for survival, an animal that protects, and an animal that symbolizes self-sacrifice. These are traits that are admirable if you think about it. And perhaps the owner wanted fans to think and broaden their imagination.

Still, from a passionate standpoint, I don't think the Pelican is as exciting as a charging bull or a slashing raptor. But name changes are commonly made whenever a team or a company is changing leadership or direction. Can Eric Gordon and Robin Lopez take this newly named team to the next level? Or will the drastic change in name also signify a drastic change in roster in order to build up a team that can live up to the symbolism of the Pelican? That, remains to be seen in the years to come.

From God Above Guitar Chords

Here's my chord attempt at From God Above by Marty Sampson. I'm using the Key of A. I hope you'll be blessed by it.

Intro:
F#m - D - B - E  

F#m - D - B (Prolong)
(Repeat)

Verse 1:
F#m   D          B
As I look at the world
    E          F#m      D    B
I begin to dream of the future
F#m    D      B
What’s yet to be
     E       F#m
Your love so strong for everyone
   D        B            D D5 D4 D
You made us all in Your image


PreChorus:
        F#m
And You saved the day
     A        

When Jesus came
        D
And You took away all my sin and shame
        F#m           E
And You made us right again


Chorus:
              A       E
You came from God above
             F#m      D
The Father’s only Son
             A
Saved my soul
           E
Made me new
                  C#m  D (C#m 3rd time around)
Now I live for You


Verse 2:
F#m  D       B
My heart is alive
       E         F#m       D
and my spirit free, In the Saviour
B                  F#m
Gave His life for me
        D            B      E
By Your Word, We will be the light of the world
F#m   D     B                D D5 D4 D
My Father shine Your light in me


Other:
A  AM7


Bridge:
D                 DM7
I’ll stand on the Word
D                 DM7
Be a light in the world
D                     DM7
When Your praises are heard
                A - AM7 (alternating)
We’ll be singing


Ending:
F#m  D  B  E  F#m  D  B

Zoho Creator vs Grubba vs SodaDB

I've been checking out free online databases out of curiosity and so far, Grubba, SodaDB and Zoho Creator are the three which are really free. But being free actually has its drawbacks.

Most of these databases have existing templates such as an "address book" or a "to do list". So creating a database that you can VIEW, ADD, EDIT and DELETE, (VADE) can be done within minutes. But below are my criticisms for each DB.

Grubba cannot be embeded in your own website. To access the user interface, you have to access grubba.net. I guess this is fine for some users, but if I want to display my data on my site, this is not a viable option for me.

Zoho Creator is the best looking online DB option, and it has a lot of features that are only available if you upgrade to a paying subscriber. But their free plan works - the only drawback, only a single user can access the database. The only way other users will be able to see the database is if you become a paying customer. I guess some people still need a personal database so there will still be some people opting in.

SodaDB actually allows anyone to VADE through the database you create. And it gives you the option of setting user permissions on the DB. The problem is, the only permissions available so far are either complete VADE or only View. Data integrity and security is compromised if everyone can edit or delete the data. If you only allow the view option, then I guess this solution works best since it is the only free solution that anyone can access. Adding, Editing and Deleting data becomes the responsibility of a single user.

All these DBs require your email address, this at the end of the day is the price you pay.

So if your excited to build that site with a back end, check out these three installation-free options.