I reviewed a video series from O'Reilly recently: Strata Conference New York + Hadoop World 2013: Complete Video Compilation - Tools and Techniques That Make Data Work
I have not yet watched all of the 71 hrs+ of conference content but from what I have seen I have been absolutely blown away by this series. The quality of the content and format makes it the next best thing to being there.
On my Mac, the conference sessions download as QT movies. The presentation from each speaker appears in a main window on the left and there is a smaller window in the top right where you can see the speaker. The quality of both the video and audio is first rate and I was able to stream the content to my Apple TV and watch it on a big screen and it was like having front row seats at the conference.
One day I would like to get to a Strata Conference and this video series from O'Reilly has made me want to go even more. However, I don't think I have missed any of the content last year by not being there. For much, much less that the price of the airfare, I now have the whole conference program to watch.
PROS
Quality of content
Able to watch any sessions from the conference I choose
CONS
Presentations are large so make sure you have enough disk space and bandwidth
Bottom line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend!
Showing posts with label OReilly. Show all posts
Showing posts with label OReilly. Show all posts
Monday, January 13, 2014
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Game theory can be fun
I reviewed a book recently: Theory of Fun for Game Design, 2nd Edition by Raph Koster
I have always been an aspiring game designer and developer and thought this would be a good one to read to get a few ideas.
When I think of 'theory' I usually envisage something that, while useful, is going to have a hypotheses and some research and analysis... a stereotype I know, but I dot usually expect it to have any fun. Despite its title, this book bucks my stereotype.
The author's style is easy to read and 'conversational' and gives good practical examples of the 'theory', supported by lots and lots of nice hand drawn illustrations.
One of the points made in the book is that fun games are a form of 'pleasurable learning' and I certainly had fun reading this book and feel like I learned a lot.
As an aspirational game designer, I am not sure how I would apply what I have learned as there appears to be no 'formula' for designing fun games (and maybe that is just as well) but there are a lot of good stories and examples to get you thinking and this is what makes the book a good read.
PROS
Easy to understand
Helpful examples
Well-written
CONS
Might Be Hard To Apply The theory
Bottom line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
I have always been an aspiring game designer and developer and thought this would be a good one to read to get a few ideas.
When I think of 'theory' I usually envisage something that, while useful, is going to have a hypotheses and some research and analysis... a stereotype I know, but I dot usually expect it to have any fun. Despite its title, this book bucks my stereotype.
The author's style is easy to read and 'conversational' and gives good practical examples of the 'theory', supported by lots and lots of nice hand drawn illustrations.
One of the points made in the book is that fun games are a form of 'pleasurable learning' and I certainly had fun reading this book and feel like I learned a lot.
As an aspirational game designer, I am not sure how I would apply what I have learned as there appears to be no 'formula' for designing fun games (and maybe that is just as well) but there are a lot of good stories and examples to get you thinking and this is what makes the book a good read.
PROS
Easy to understand
Helpful examples
Well-written
CONS
Might Be Hard To Apply The theory
Bottom line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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