I GOT A JOB!

[thewayne]

Starting April 2, I will be working for the City of Las Cruces as a SQL Server Database Administrator! I just spoke with the IT department's HR person and she confirmed the offer and scheduled me for my orientation day (such fun that will be!).

Initially I'll be staying with my aunt for probably two months, basically to get some money stayed up, some debt cleared, then get an apartment (and a new laptop). If all goes well and I survive the probationary period, then I'll look into the concept of buying a house. Obviously that's a wait and see.

Unfortunately this will mean living 100 miles from my wife. I'll be going home most weekends, and hopefully she'll be coming down when she's off-shift, as long as it doesn't get too hot. ;-) She's allergic to high temperatures, she's half crayon and half candle. 'Cruces gets over 100f in the summer, but it also cools down at night: something that no longer happens in Phoenix.


I am SOOO looking forward to this! My database skills have definitely become a bit rusty, but apparently they were good enough.

(and I'm going to spend a few days in Phoenix before I start in 'Cruces, so I'm hoping that I can get some of my friends to run something)


This will also let me work towards a Bachelor of Information and Communications Technology with a minor in Security Technology and Intelligence Studies. Sadly, it also means no more darkroom access. :-(

Comments

[thewayne.livejournal.com]

Sounds interesting, sort of a return to Wizard/Melee. They used a single d6, came out in the late 70's IIRC. And since they make d20's at around 1cm in diameter, you could conceivably package one with the game.

You'll have to do a lot of layout work before you're satisfied, but you might want to consider using a 6x8 paper if it's more available. Also, I know it doesn't get as hot in Germany as it does in Phoenix (100-115f), consider a problem with laser printers: the toner is actually melted plastic, and if your book is left in the heat with some compression or weight on it, the pages can stick together. You might want to consider a good ink jet instead. Also, if you can get a ink jet printer with an L paper feed path instead of a U path, you can run heavier card stock through it.

I'll tell you about some commercial printer problems that you might encounter, along with a couple of game developer sites that might be useful later.

[zentraedi-shep.livejournal.com]

There are inkjets that leave a clear line instead of slightly blurring the letters? At the mo' I'm using a Canon i320 inkjet. It's quite good, with a clear picture and everything, but even on best quality it tends to slightly blur the letters. Inkjet might be the best idea though, since maintenance is far less expensive than with a laser printer...
Since the i320 has a L feed, I'm fully aware of its advantages. :)

Oh my, 100F? It's gotta be a really hot summer till it gets that hot over here. About 82F is a good average for summer (though the last few were quite hot)...

The problem with the paper size is that US sizes like 6x4 or 6x8 are not regular here in Germany. We have the DIN norm, which would be A4, A5 aso. 6x4 is a tiny bit larger than A6, which fits perfectly into any pocket. I want that size simply because it is quite small. As I said, Pocket Adventures is thought to be carried in let's say a back pocket... It'll be no problem to get A6 paper. If I don't find a factory producing it, I can buy A4 and let it cut two times in almost any copy shop. I'd just have to find the one that does it for small money...

I even think that for the first edition I might not even buy a new computer. Before investing that much money, I should perhaps start with what I have and only buy a new printer and a thermal binder. That way, I can keep the amount of needed money low for a maximum profit. And if noone buys the game, the loss is not as high as if I'd bought everything for a small publishing business...