http://www.chromecow.com Game designer, mad scientist and tinkerer. And on sabbatical. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:15:52 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Nothing too sexy here, unless you find Socket Servers sexy.Don't go there. Thank you.Scoot on over to the Downloads page, and you will find a new link for Palabre Modules.Therein you will find modules for telling if certain entities like nicknames and room names exist on the server, and a ... http://www.chromecow.com/2008/04/14/palabre-modules-page-is-live/ WARNING: What follows is a game only a Geek can truly appreciate.A while ago, I posted a design for a chess variant, that eventually became known as Eigen Chess, aka Schrödinger’s Pawn.  It turns out to have been a very popular idea, that has generated much comment.The success of Eigen ... http://www.chromecow.com/2008/04/01/dd-38-einstien-rosen-bridge/ Hah! It's only been nine months since my last post, so all of you who bet on a year between posts, pay up!So much to talk about, but for now you'll have to live with this little teaser.I'm building a multi-user Flash application, and having lots of fun doing it. ... http://www.chromecow.com/2008/03/27/palabre-socket-server-and-yes-im-alive/ Wow. My friends are really kicking ass this week. Rich and Tina launched their new show, and now Gareth grabs a little national media attention. You go!I've talked about my friend Gareth Hinds here once before, when he signed a deal to publish with Candlewick Press. While King Lear is ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/06/18/ny-times-book-review-beowulf/ Theatre is alive in well in Los Angeles, in no small part due to my good friends Rich Alger and Tina Kronis. They are the creative force behind Theatre Movement Bazaar. They've just announced their new show, Monster of Happiness. This is their tenth (by my count) original show, ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/06/10/monster-of-happiness/ Use the hidden secrets of the cosmos to impress your friends and family, see things otherwise hidden to the human eye! All this is within your grasp with  an astounding new tutorial.Head on over to the How-To section and learn the secret of checking the batteries in your remote control ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/06/05/new-how-to-harnesses-hidden-forces-of-nature/ The Game Design section was starting to look a little overrun by Flash and ActionScript tutorials, so I've added a whole new page for Flash and ActionScript. Check there for the latest experiments.Speaking of which: Drawing Regular nGons in Flash.That's right. NGons, baby! Try to curb your enthusiasm.I'm working on ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/04/08/more-flash-and-actionscript-fun/ WARNING: What follows is a game only a Geek could love.Today's design is a twist on the venerable game of chess, via quantum mechanics (See...I warned you). If you're the kind of savvy reader that hangs out at the Chrome Cow, you doubtless are familiar with a certain theoretical ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/03/10/dd37-schrodingers-pawn/ When a problem rears its head, Chrome Cow Labs leaps into action. I recently had some time-tracking chores to bring under control, and my first instinct was to write a series of calendar tools in Excel, driven by a couple of different Perpetual Calendar algorithms.I geek, therefore I am.Follow the ... http://www.chromecow.com/2007/03/04/a-spreadsheet-for-the-ages/ It's called a 'cowcatcher'for a reason It's been pretty quiet here for a couple of months, but I'm now back on track with some great news.. My wife and I have driven the final spike in our own figurative transcontinental railway, as I have just accepted a transfer to Locomotive Games ... http://www.chromecow.com/2006/09/26/next-stop-adventure/