A quick apology

Hey everybody,
I just want to quickly apologize for not running the hot time event at all this month. I have a lot of stuff going on for school, and I've never got the opportunity.
I'd really like to get a few runs before the end of the month though. Expect back-to-back events all night (most likely tomorrow).
I'm currently on a tight schedule; getting home at 11PM, and getting up to go out again at 5AM. 6-hour window for sleep, and I'd like to use it all. Currently going through a 12-hour day, and I got a 10-hour day tomorrow at the crack of dawn.

I'm typing this during my break actually. I won't be back until tomorrow around 4:30PM (EST). Then, I'll give information about the back-to-back events. Look forward to it.

Alright that's all, I gotta work.

Just a little update

Hey guys, just thought I'd fill you in on what's been going on.
First I'd like to apologize for the lack of events recently. I want to make sure that everything checks through my publishing account before making any further progress. I've had some issues in the past with bad quality leads, and I want to make sure that this isn't the case before things really get started.
I'm going to find out today whether the events from February are clean or not. If they are, I'll begin having regular events, hopefully a couple at a time every few days. It's great to see so many people participating! Hope it's keeping you all entertained (:
Overtime I'll probably be upgrading the events to something bigger, like gift codes to unlock games in Steam or something. We'll see.

Alright, aside from Hot Hour, my second term started a couple weeks ago. Things are moving well so far, but I do have a lot of things to get done. I'll most likely be off this summer, so I'll have more time to waste yay (:

During the week I have the time to maybe kick in one or two games of LoL. Yesterday was my first game in a while, went 14/0/14 with Brand, wooo

Aside from LoL, I'm still kinda playing GMS. I'm in Windia, main = iishJJx3. 13X Demon Slayer. I know, they're ridiculously overpowered, but I don't care what they say, I can f**king fly son.

I think me and some others were going to try out Lineage 2? I don't know where that went.. but it doesn't look to appealing, to be completely honest. Also I heard the game's dying, and nobody likes a dying game. If I find out anybody's actually playing it, I'll try it out considering I already installed it.


I'm getting a new laptop. I'm finally 100% sick of my current one. I know I've been saying 75%, 85% sick in the past, but I'm now 100% sick of it ):
The processor works way too much for simple tasks, I'm lucky to even be able to use an Internet Browser, and even a DX8 game like MS runs under 10 FPS at times. I try playing LoL on my laptop now and then. I play on absolute optimal settings on a low resolution, and I'd be lucky to hit 20 FPS when not in combat.
There's only so much you can do with Intel integrated graphics from 2005.

So, I'm upgrading. The model I'm looking at is the Asus G73.

2nd Gen i7 Processor
8GB DDR3 RAM
17.3" HD Display (1080p)
AMD Radeon HD 5870 Video Card
1TB HDD
Built-In Webcam + Mic
HD Audio EAX (3D Sound)

I can get this for about $1000, which is a very reasonable price. Hopefully I can get my hands on it by the end of next month. We'll see.

Ehh, that's about it.

More Hardware Updates

So recently I bought a Corsair Hydro H70 (Liquid Cooling) for my processor.

Reason being is, there was cooling issues with my processor, which caused my computer to freeze and shut down on me.
I thought that was the only issue.

Turns out my processor was actually damaged over time by my previous motherboard's built-in OCGenie. My processor is nearing the end of its life now. Time to upgrade processors.

Through further investigation, I discovered that my motherboard suffered some damage from the faulty processor as well. My RAM didn't help either. Bad voltage settings and clocks really took a toll on the motherboard.
I had this OCZ DDR3 Low-Voltage RAM back when I had my i5. Upgraded motherboard, started using OCGenie, defeating the purpose of many things.

Bottom line: I'm now buying a new motherboard, new processor, and new RAM.

I'm leaning towards getting a P67 Sabertooth Motherboard. It's known for its efficiency and life.

It'll support up to 8GB of DDR3 memory per slot, so I'll be looking at upgrading to 32GB along with it.

I'm also thinking about getting the Intel i7 2700K. It's very powerful for its price, with an unlocked multiplier. It will go well with my new cooling system.

This'll be a pricey investment, so it'll be done overtime. It will be a good purchase overall in the end though (:

-JJ

LIVE Commissions Giveaway!

This event is currently INACTIVE!

This event will go LIVE in:
0 Minutes and 0 Seconds

Welcome to the LIVE Commissions Giveaway! Here, you have a chance to win a free personal art commission!
To enter the contest, click the button below when the event is active. Then you complete a survey. Upon successfully completing a survey, you will be prompted to submit your email. Then you're successfully entered the giveaway! Then you wait until the countdown above reaches zero. Then the LIVE broadcast show will begin! We'll announce the winner live, and hopefully get you on the air with us!

Remember, once we go Live, the button becomes inactive and the list is finalized! You have one hour window to enter!

Good luck to everybody!

Hot Hour Giveaway!

This event is currently INACTIVE!

Welcome to the Hot Hour Giveaway!!!  Here, you'll get a free pack of three art pieces from NJP.  These art pieces are full quality and have no watermarks!!
They'll only be available during the hour it's active!  At the end of the hour, the button will be deactivated!

These art pieces are chosen at random, and will not be available for free twice!  You get one shot every time, so make it count!

Don't forget to enter the LIVE Commissions Giveaway as well!  Entries are accepted throughout the hour, and the LIVE draw of the winner will begin immediately afterwards!

Click here to go to the LIVE Commissions Giveaway!

Back in Action! Commissions and Artwork are back up!

Hey everybody (:
It's a new year, a new semester, meaning more artwork to come!
There will be much more work available for the public to see in the soon coming weeks.  Commissions and art purchases will be back up fairly soon.
I noticed that many of you took advantage of the survey & offers options I had for getting some free art every week.  In summer 2011 I've had over 300 entries from people using the weekly free art campaign.  The weekly free art campaign was a success last summer, and I'm currently preparing to start it up again this winter/spring.  I'll do what I can to keep it running as long as possible.
I'm currently working towards becoming a publisher at a particular CPA company.  If things go well, you can all expect more commissions and weekly free art.  I will be bringing much more work to the table, so you can expect a larger variety of pieces to get, as well as payment options.

Speaking more towards the source of the artwork, I currently have 6 three-hour courses this semester, all of which consist of providing art assets, on a weekly to bi-weekly basis.  I will be producing a lot of assets to the table, many of which are not disclosed.  As I am proceeding farther into this program, I'm beginning to lean from 2D assets to 3D assets.  I may be heading towards 3D animation a bit more than 2D now, as well.  This will expand my variety of work to many other people.  I will soon have 3D models available for purchase.  Maybe even 3D model commissions.
All of these possibilities will rely on the results of my application to this CPA company, so let's hope for the best!

I'll keep you updated in the next coming days!
-JJ

Animations in work

Hey everybody.

Again, sorry about deserting this blog.  I'm going to try to use it a lot more.

So, I haven't released anything to NJP in almost 2 years now.  Everything has been put on hold, and by now all of the fans probably think that I gave up.

Well here's an idea why:  We started with a team of 8 people.  Now it's just me and Ryuu.

Every from the recruiting team, the co-producers, and even the "N" of NJP.  All either inactive or quit.

I'm doing most of the work.  Thankfully I have Ryuu here that's helping me with some licensing issues and even character voicing.

Alright, aside from that, I'm going to mention a few animations that I've been working on for NJP, that will be coming.

A few thousand of you may remember an old series I started and supposedly abandoned about 4 years ago, called Truth.

If you do remember it, you may also remember how I've been talking about the third episode coming for about 2 years.  Then the announcements stopped, and it was never heard of again.

Well this is the first announcement I'm making about "Truth" after 2 years:

It is still in production.

Why is it taking so long?  I decided to go back and re-animate episodes 1 and 2.

I was putting SO much work into the third episode, I started to think that it would look odd to have the series jump from in-game recordings + MS Paint + Windows Movie Maker, to a full-on flash animation.

So then I re-animated the 1st and 2nd episode, and changed the storyline + dialog a bit to seem more than amateur.

I ended up making each episode a decent length.  The story development was impressive, and I was really looking forward to working on the 4th episode.  And so I started it.  And I finished it.

Then I got pumped to work on episode 5.  So I started it.  And I finished it.

I figured that I'd go all the way and finish the series before I started uploading them, to relieve you of any more long-term waiting.

So here's the information for the series:

-It will be 13 episodes.

-8 episodes are completed so far.

-Each episode is over 6 minutes.

-When the series is complete, there will be one episode per week.

-The story has been changed a bit for potential material later in the series.

There is no release date for the series yet.  The free time I have is limited, so I can't guarantee decent progress at this time.

Alright, other than Truth, I am also slowly working on another animated MS series.  It won't be the actual pixelated characters though.  It will be completely drawn.  This series is taking a lot of effort and time, so please don't expect it to come anytime soon.  The series includes full episodes and voicing.  The series will be in Japanese.  It will be available in a number of different subtitle languages as well.

The same this that happened to Truth is happening to this series.  I've been working on this for a long time, and I've improved on my drawing and animation skills over time.  Now the recent episodes are looking much more impressive than the first.  I plan to completely finish the series, and if I'm not happy with the first episodes, I may change some things, or even re-animate it.

There are also many other school animations that I've completed, and currently working on.  I'll put those up soon.

I'll give updates on how "Truth" is going once in a while.

I'm thinking of putting together a trailer, but there's this scene I have planned for the 11th episode that I'd really like to include in the trailer, so I may wait until then to release the full trailer.

-JJ

H1N1 Virus

About a year ago now, everybody (companies and schools at the very least) was getting hyped about H1N1, and how they will not take any risks.  People were waiting on the H1N1 shots so that they can get them, especially pregnant women and children.

A lot of people were not that concerned with how big the threat was, since they were looking at the amount of deaths by H1N1 compared to the amounts of deaths from the Flu in it's entirety.

There was a lot of people who weren't that worried about the virus, and were most likely joking about it the whole way through.  In fact, I was like that too.

Last year, I caught the H1N1 virus.  And I thought I'd tell you how it was, first-hand experience.

First day.  A cough and a runny nose.  Thought it was just a cold.  Got kicked out of school, because they didn't want to get any chances, and my religion teacher was pregnant.  She told me herself that she was scared.for her own being because of my presence in the classroom.  At this point, I was just laughing at it all, and was happy that I got the day off.  Went home, told my parents, they laughed too.  Sat home all day, took some benadryl, went to bed.

Second day.  My mom woke me up to get ready for school.  I was paralyzed by pain.  The first thing I felt was my eyes.  They felt like they were 10 pounds, weighing on my brain.  I tried to bend up-- bad idea.  Numbing pain that literally flew through my body from my ears to my little toes.  I was hopelessly lying still to try and relieve the pain.  My bed was drenched of sweat.  Talking normally was just as bad as moving, so when I tried to call out to my mom, "Mo-agh" the pain came right back.  Of course, I stayed home.  Fell asleep once the pain calmed down.

Third day.  I wake up, my parents are gone for work, my sister left for school.  It's almost 1PM.  I'm shocked that I slept for over 24 hours.  I was able to move my body quite a bit.  Moving my head was a problem though.  I never had to go to the washroom so bad though.  So I forced myself up, and slowly walked to the washroom.  As soon as I started peeing, it felt more like I was draining the blood out of my head.  It felt like I blinked, and next thing you know, I'm lying flat on the floor.  I didn't know how I got there, and I didn't even give myself a second to think about it.  I got up, and threw myself on my bed, and fell asleep almost immediately.

Fourth day.  I woke up and it's almost dinner time.  I'm not even concerned with the time anymore.  Needed to go to the washroom again.  I don't remember getting up to go to the washroom before.  I don't even remember falling down.  Yet I was trying to figure out why my head was aching from the outside on the back. Got up to go to the washroom, to see a huge gaping hole in the wall next to the shower, where my head hit when I fell.  Then I remembered everything.  So I pretty much blacked out.  Managed to use the washroom without falling, but still felt extremely light-headed.  Decided to sleep downstairs so I could use the computer at least, to keep in touch with people.  I went on Facebook and MSN to see a bunch of messages from my friends worried about me, saying things like "DID YOU DIE D:" "We miss u".  That made me smile.  Fell asleep on the couch.

Fifth day.  Woke up in the afternoon, home alone.  Decided to not move at all, to recover as soon as possible.  Turned the computer screen from the table to use it.  On the internet, and trying to finish Fate/Stay Night VN and Ever17.

I tried going back to school on Monday, when it wore down enough for me to walk normally.  I had the VP explain to me just how serious it was, and they told me to stay home until my condition is 100% better.

I had to take this special medicine the entire time.  It did the trick.  I was out of school for about 3 weeks, and the virus left me with a sinus infection.  My family doctor helped me take care of that, and now I'm perfectly fine.

I never knew what mind-numbing paralyzing pain was until I got H1N1.  It was hundreds of times worse than the worse headache I ever had.  (Trying to be realistic here.)

My Computer.

Hey everyone.

Several months ago, I said that I was planning to buy some upgrades for my computer.
So, this is what my computer is today.

I got 2(two) Radeon HD 5770 video cards.  The graphics are more intense than five PS3s put together.  My PC display has never been clearer, you can't see the pixel squares, no matter how close to the screen you go. 

I guess I have the new 25" HD 1080p LCD Monitor to thank for that.  As I said my goal was, I don't have to worry about managing with a small resolution anymore. (:
And with Windows 7, my windows are so much more organizable.  It's great, really.

I was having a problem with doing crossfire (putting two video cards at once) inside my computer.  I ended up having to buy an entirely new motherboard.  I found a great one-- the MSI P55-GD65.  I was drooling when I read the specs.
But I rushed too fast in my purchase..
I got the motherboard, I begin to take everything apart from my computer, and properly installing the board into the computer.  The whole time I had a big smile on my face.
It's installed onto the tray of the computer.  Time to plug it all together~
Install the Intel i7 onto the board...
plug in the power cords from the 1000W power supply..
Try putting in the ram..
It won't go in the slot.
Me: "..Eh?"
I'm staring at my hands, trying to fit my 8GBs of DDR2 RAM into my motherboard.
I look at the slot on the board--
DDR3...
I was frozen in that position for about 5 minutes. LOL.

So, I just bought a sexy motherboard with DDR3 RAM slots, and I have 8GBs of DDR2 RAM worth hundreds of dollars.  What should I do?

I ended up selling all of my DDR2 RAM on Craigslist.
I then found out that DDR3 RAM costed DOUBLE what DDR2 RAM cost (at the time.)
So with the money I made from selling my DDR2 RAM, I bought 4GBs of DDR3 RAM.

Me: FML I JUST WASTED A LOT OF MONEY

Eventually, I worked and earned the money for 4 more GBs of DDR3 RAM.
In the end, I think it was worth it.  Now I have a sexy motherboard, 8GBs of DDR3 RAM, which is faster than DDR2 (thus why it was so much more expensive), and an Intel i7 Processor :3

Comparing the amount of money I spent on these to how much money I made from selling my old motherboard and RAM,  I had to spend about $220 more.

I did all of this for DirectX11.  haha...


Even though everything is wonderful right now, some games and applications are having crossfire problems with my two 5770's.

So I'm going to plan to sell my 5770's, and buy a 5970... Yes, that 15" video card.  It's currently rated as the fastest single-slot card in the world.  It's expensive, but it'll be worth avoiding crossfire.

But first I'm going to wait for nVidia's competitive release against the 5970.  If it's better, and a reasonable price, than I'll get that.  But we'll just have to see..

In case you haven't catched on, NO, I don't like slow computers, and for what I do, I shouldn't be using one ._.

I know a lot of you will skip this entire post that I wrote, most likely because most wouldn't really understand the terms..

its k.
i'm just speaking my mind.  that's what blogs are for, right?

-JJ

Upgrades!

Hey everyone.

My gosh, it's been 5 months.
I've been really busy, I didn't even get a chance to look at this blog.
Ah well, since March Break is 3 hours away, I'll try to take some time to write a full catch-up post.
Maybe a few.

Aagh, unfortunately, I can't write anything right now.  I have to leave in 20 seconds, cause my Computer Science class is about to end.

I'll post later, see ya.