"Woot! VLC has been approved :) Need to give it a test run when I get back home. iTunes link: http://tinyurl.com/29s2tea"
— yaustar
Disappointed with VLC for iPad v1.0
In short, tried three files that play normally in VLC on PC and none of them play well on the iPad which was very disappointing as I had high hopes for it. They were:
- MKV with SSA soft subs. Video at 704x400 using AVC1 and Audio using VORB 48000Hz at 128kb/s. Crashed the application trying generate a preview.
- AVI. Video at 848x480 using H264 and Audio using MPGA 48000Hz at 128kb/s. Video was extremely choppy and unwatchable.
- MP4. Video at 1280x720 using AVC1 and Audio using MP4A 48000Hz. Application gave a warning about being too slow to play, video was extremely choppy and unwatchable.
Admittedly, this was the first release and will undoubtedly be constantly updated by the VLC team but for now, I have to give it a miss.
EA Louse - Inside Story of EA Mythic? »
It really annoys the hell out of me when I read stories regarding studio closures/layoffs as normally it isn’t the fault of developers but decisions made by higher-ups and executives yet they stay employed and the developers are the ones that get the cut.
If what EA Louse has written is true, then EA Mythic is no exception.
Game Dev Story iPhone Game »
Just saw this and thought it was worth a mention based on the game idea itself! Need to grab a copy myself and review it at a later date.
(Source: toucharcade.com)
Sony's 360 degree autostereoscopic display at British Library »
This looks awesome! A Star Wars R2D2 hologram display, I need to go and see this for myself sometime!
Press release for the exhibition, Growing Knowledge.
Secret Network Options for Kindle
Typing ‘311’ in the settings screen of the Kindle brings the wireless provider list where you can manually switch to another provide or network in the situation of loss connectivity.
(Source: kindleworld.blogspot.com)
Revenue breakdown for Solipskier iOS and Flash game »
It is great to see developers share breakdowns of their revenue as it does help others to project possible income. I was surprised to see only $1k generated from ad revenue on Kongregate since it was a popular game and considering it generated over $70k on iOS sales.
Still, it made a very tidy profit for two months worth of sales and look forward to seeing their next game.
Hg Init: a Mercurial tutorial by Joel Spolsky »
Great tutorial and induction to the Distributed Version Control Mercurial which includes a section dedicated to the differences between using Subversion (SVN) and Mercurial for those that are used to using a Centralised Version Control system.
i'm mid way through my masters degree. i'm studying msc 3d games modelling and have indeed though of giving up but decided to just go for it anyway.
i know your probably busy as anything but if you could spare any time at all to contact me about any tips or tricks about getting into the industry or what industry is looking for in particular within a portfolio i would be so indebted to you.
my email is - blitz1000@hotmail.co.uk
Anonymous
There is a good series of articles from Lee Winder at Blitz Games on Portfolios. It is geared towards programmers but the same rules apply about what should be shown, the quality of work and presentation of work.
Make sure the work you show is relevant to the type of job you want to get (for example, seeing a written story in a 3D modelling portfolio is just noise) and make sure it is of high quality. Anything half finished doesn’t belong there.
My old colleague’s portfolio (Max Boughen) should give you an example of work that should be in one. Bear in mind that he is experienced so his quality bar is quite high compared to what a student would be.
Network. You are more likely to get a job through a contact that you have met and talked to then through generic company application process. This also includes other students who have not yet got a job because when they do, it then becomes possible for them to recommend you and/or you apply through them.
This happened to quite a few of us on our MSc. One person got a job at EA via the application system and then pass along his HR contact contact details to us and essentially fast tracked us through the system.
You may also find that few companies will reply back. This can mean many things ranging from your portfolio and CV may need some work to the job has already been filled. You just need to keep trying and applying while improving your CV and portfolio.
Without industry experience, your application to interview ratio will be quite low which is why many recommend doing an internship if possible. Once you have a few published games under your belt, you find getting a job interview much easier.
Finally, here is a site of games companies in the world (may be outdated): GameDevMap.
To recap:
- Network
- Show only your best work
- Continue working on your portfolio
- And keep applying
Hope that helps.
