Disclaimer: Generally my boss catches me in random tickets that I forget to update.  I am only posting this because I had done everything correctly and he thought I didn’t.  For me, its like rewarding the one time I did something correctly as opposed to the 20 times I didn’t do it..

Director of IT [11:18 AM]:

there’s a ticket on CLIENT

is that fixed?

Koopa:

yes

Director of IT [11:18 AM]:

 TICKET NUMBER

OK..

please update

Koopa [11:19 AM]:

did you read the ticket?

faxes stopped converting. I had him stop and start the workserver modules to no avail. Rebooting the server seems to of resolved the issue. Will leave ticket open for a couple of days just in case issue reoccurs

Director of IT [11:19 AM]:

ok

Every time I can zap him one, I just like to….

I am mostly bitter that he is doing my old job except getting paid 4 times the amount that I did.  I did all the work but didn’t get any of the respect or $$$ that came with it.  Now, I get to sit back, not worry about 1/2 of that stuff and just work my 7-4 shift and be happy.  It really isn’t a bad tradeoff if you ask me…

Here is a step-by-step guide to solving all the puzzles in Gateway II.  The puzzles in this game are challenging, and you should try to solve them yourself first.  If you get stuck, though, all of the answers are below.  If you’d like to play Gateway II, you can here, on Kongregate:

http://www.kongregate.com/games/struma/gateway-ii

1. Enter the gateway on the left.  Walk to the end of the hall and press the button to open the door.  Enter the door.

2. Pick up the handheld mirror.  Click on the big mirror on the wall to look at it.  Click the faucet knob on the right to turn on the hot water.  Steam will rise up and fog the mirror, displaying a number. (7997)  Click on the wall to go back to the bathroom view.

3. Click on the keypad on the cabinet below the sink.  Enter the number into the panel to open it.  Pick up the video tape and leave the bathroom.

4. The door will close and an eye will appear above the door.  Stand under the light and use the mirror on the eye.  Continue back into the main room.

5. Click on the television.  Drag the first video tape into the slot and press the transfer button.  Press the eject button to remove the tape.  Watch the two videos for story, and turn off the TV by clicking next to it.  You don’t have to watch the videos to continue.

6. Enter the doorway on the right.  Walk to the second red square, then back to the first.  Then walk ahead to the 4th and back to the third.  Finally, walk ahead to the sixth, and back to the fifth.  Then walk to the door on the right and it will open.  Go through it.

7. Pick up the lighter and newspaper on the table.  Open the drawer in the top left corner and take the screwdriver.  Look at the painting on the wall and there is a sequence of numbers. (786)

8. Use the newspaper on the door, then use the key on the lock.  Step out of the way and pick up the newspaper to get the key.  Then use the key on the lock and go through the door.

9. There is an invisible path on the ground heading straight out from the door.  You can see the footprints under your mouse when you move it over the path.  When you walk on the path, it shows up for a brief time, and you have to make it entirely visible.  Standing on the standing location just inside the door, click on the farthest point along the path where the mouse still shows footprints.  You will walk straight there and display the whole path.  Take the second videotape and head back through the living room.

10. When you get to the red light path again, walk out to the other door using the same pattern as you did walking in, but in reverse.  Walk out two squares from the right, then back to the first square, then out to the fourth square and back to the third, then out to the sixth square and back to the fifth, then to the other door and it will open.

11. Watch the TV.  Put the second videotape in the slot and press the transfer button.  When it’s done transferring both clips, eject the tape.  Watch the video clips for story and turn off the TV.

12. Enter the second door on the right.  Flip the light on and off three times until you see the light in the distance blink three times.  Examine the table.  Pick up the pen and draw all over the ripped off part of the paper at the bottom.  A number will be revealed. (86763454)  Pick up the phone and call this number.  Proceed to the next room.

13. Use the lighter on the sprinkler, and head to the next room.

14. Get the videotape.  When the eyes appear, open the refrigerator and hide in the shadow behind it.  Your avatar should get very dark gray.  The blinking will speed up, and then stop and the door will open.  Leave the room.

15. Stand under the light and use the mirror on the water.  This will create a spectrum.  (Blue, Purple, Yellow, Green, Red, Orange)  Click on the alarm override near the left door and enter in the same color sequence.  Leave the room to the left and head through through that room back to the main room.

16. Watch the TV.  Put the third videotape in the slot and press the transfer button.  When it’s done transferring both clips, eject the tape.  Watch the video clips for story and turn off the TV.

17. Enter the second door on the left.  Note the code above the opposite door.  (24 79 163)  Look through the window.  Enter 12, 12 into the keypad so that the subject responds 24.  If he is wrong, hit the punish button.  Reset and enter 35, 44 into the keypad so that the subject rcesponds 79.  Again, use the punish button if the result is incorrect.  Reset and enter 99, 64 into the keypad so that the subject responds 163.  Again, use the punish button if the result is incorrect.  Proceed to the left into the next room.

18. Use the telescope.  Watch as the girl comes in and blinks the light three times.  Blink your light three times.  When the light comes on in the distance, use the telescope again.  The phone will ring.  Answer it and dial 11223311 to match the tones.  Proceed into the next room.

19. Watch the TV.  Enter the code from the pyramids into the TV channel console.  (786)  The bookcase will open – take the videotape and return back to the main room.

20. After the little sequence, watch the TV.  Put the fourth videotape in the slot and press the transfer button.  When it’s done transferring all three clips, eject the tape.  Watch the video clips for story and turn off the TV.

21. Pick up the wire.  Examine the girl and plug the wire into her neck.  Enter the numbers into her chest in the chronological order of the videos.  All of the videos are dated (DD/MM).  The order is 2, 6, 4, 3, 7, 9, 8, 5, 1.

22. Watch the final conversation and leave the same way the girl did.  Congratulations!

A step-by step guide to spending all 49 of your lives for Karoshi: Suicide Salaryman.  Karoshi is death by overwork, and the object of this game is to kill yourself on each level.  It’s a unique twist on platformer games and has jazzy music.  You should try it now if you haven’t played it yet.  You can play it here, on Kongregate:

http://www.kongregate.com/games/Venbrux/karoshi-suicide-salaryman

The “Level Number” is how many lives you have left.

49. Jump up the stairs and fall into the spikes.

48. Jump on the ledge and push the first safe to the right so it falls off.  Jump off the ledge and continue pushing the safe to the right until it hits the wall.  Jump on the safe and onto the next ledge.  Push the second safe to the right, and jump over it and into the spikes.

47. Step on the button.  Push the safe to the left so it rests on the button.  Jump onto the ledge and run into the spikes.

46. Step on one of the buttons.  Jump up onto the big ledge and push the safe so it’s overtop the right button.  Step on the right button and the safe will fall on you.

45. Jump over the button and push the safe on the floor so it’s lined up beneath the other safe.  Push the button and the safes will stack.  Push the bottom safe out from underneath and the top one will fall on you.

44. Get the gun and stand on the wall on the left.  Tap right to aim that direction and hold down the up arrow while you continuously press space.  When the safe falls, jump on it and jump on the wall and jump onto the spikes.

43. Get the gun.  Stand on the ledge with the wastebasket and fire the gun to the right as fast as you can.  Make a continuous stream of bullets bouncing all around the screen and over your head.  Jump onto the ledge and again into the stream of bullets.

42. Get the gun.  Stand underneath the picture frame and walk all the way to the right until you can go no further without jumping.  Tap the left arrow key to aim the gun to the left.  Fire two bullets in quick succession and immediately run and stand over top of the wastebasket.  The bullets will bounce around and hit the safe, causing it to fall on your head.

41. Get the gun.  Stand on the small ledge on the left facing right and fire two bullets in quick succession.  The first will hit the wooden block.  The second will hit the safe, knocking it clear of the pit below it.  Push the safe to the right against the wall.  Jump on it, then onto the ledge, and run into the spikes.

40. Get the gun.  Jump on the spring, facing right, and shoot a continuous stream of bullets.  Eventually one will ricochet back and hit you.

39. Get the gun.  Fire a continuous stream of bullets.  Eventually one will ricochet around the screen and hit you.

38. Get the gun.  Shoot the first danger block and start a chain reaction of explosions.  Stand between where the first and second blocks used to be and wait for the safe to land on your head.

37. Get the gun.  Jump onto the ledge with the danger block and push it off the ledge to the right.  Fall off the ledge and continue pushing the danger block to the right until it is exactly on top of the real ledge barely connecting the two chains of danger blocks on the ground.  Stand underneath the safe on the left, face right, shoot the first danger block and wait for the safe to land on your head.

36. Get the gun.  Push the safe to the right one block width so it’s squarely on top of the right danger block.  Stand to the left of the group of danger blocks and shoot the closest one.  The safe will jump onto the second group of danger blocks.  Push the safe to the right so it’s squarely on top of the right danger block.  Stand on the ledge at the far left beneath the safe and shoot to the right.  The safe will jump to the final group of danger blocks.  Jump in the air and continuously shoot.  You will hit either the safe or the danger block.  Either way, the danger block will be sent onto the button and the safe will fall on your head.

35. Walk to the left and wrap around the screen.  Jump onto the sequence of ledges and jump into the spikes.

34. Push the bottom safe to the left so it’s slightly more than one safe’s width away from the left side of the screen.  Jump on it and up onto the ledge above.  Push the safe that is up there to the right so that it falls on top of the other safe.  Walk all the way to the left, fall off the ledge, and push the safe on the bottom all the way to the right up against the wall beneath the two safes.  Go stand on the switch on the far right side of the screen.  Push the safe on the top far enough to the right to get it past the switch with enough room for you to jump on top of the safe and jump over the wall above the switch.  Jump on the electric boxes to electrocute yourself.

33. Get the gun.  Stand on the electric boxes and shoot the switch to the right to electrocute yourself.

32. Push the safe on the electric boxes to the right until it triggers the box switch.  Push the danger box to the right far enough so that it barely touches the last electric box.  Push the safe to the left to be flush with the danger box, without stepping on the regular switch.  Jump over the ledge, and quickly walk over the switch and stand under the safe as it lands on your head.

31. Grab the gun.  Use the spring to land on the nearby platform.  Face to the right and fire.  When the safe falls, fire again.  When the second safe is out of the way, continuously fire and jump until you fire at least two bullets that are at the right height to hit the pink rebounder.  Then stop jumping and hold the right arrow key and you’ll run underneath the bullet.

30. Run into the spikes.

29. Grab the gun and shoot the two wooden boxes.  Stand on the ledge to the left of the remaining three wooden boxes.  Shoot three bullets and quickly press right to fall off the ledge and stand over top of the right flowerpot.  The safe will fall on your head.

28. This level takes luck.  Jump to the right so that you get the gun, firing continously with space bar even before you have the gun.  Keep restarting and trying this until you get a bullet bouncing between the rebounders.  Then, when the bullet heads to the right side of the middle, step on the switch and quickly go and stand far enough from the middle wall so that exactly two blocks can fit between you and the wall.  The bullet will hit the safe and it will fall on your head.

27. Get the gun.  Stand at the far left side of the map, facing right, and shoot.  Quickly run left to wrap around the map and get hit by the bullet on the other side.

26. Push the bottom safe slightly to the right, but not far enough to hit the switch.  Jump on it and up onto the ledge with the second safe.  Jump on the second safe and use it to get on the ledge with the gun.  Be careful not to push the second safe off the ledge.  Get the gun.  Jump onto the ledge to the left with the third safe, and push it off the ledge to the left.  When it falls, push it left so that it lands on the first switch.  Push the first safe all the way to the right to hit the switch.  Jump onto that safe, then the ledge with the second safe, then onto the second safe, then onto the ledge at the top right.  This next part is pretty tricky.  Run off the ledge to the right, and immediately hold down left and start shooting.  Keep holding left to bring your character to a spot half a box width away from the left wall of the pit.  If you shot the safe, it will fall to the left and hit you.  If you shot the wooden block, the safe will fall on you.

25. Get the gun.  Push the danger block to the left so it’s not on top of the switch blocks with the red circles.  Push the safe on top of these switch blocks instead.  Go and press the button to drop the safe to the bottom.  Also flip the switch to turn the electricity on.  Push the danger block to the right so it rests on top of the wooden block and shoot it.  Fall into the hole, jump to the left, and push the safe on top of the switch.  Electrocute yourself.

24. Grab the gun.  Run to the right and jump, shooting the safe at the apex of your jump.  Continue pressing right until you fall and the safe lands on you.  This one may take a couple resets.  Try to jump as late as you can without jumping on top of the platform that the safe is on.

23. Grab the gun.  Push the safe as far to the right as you can.  Stand on the first ledge and shoot left so that the bullet starts bouncing off the rebounders.  Quickly, jump onto the top ledge and run next to the safe and start pushing it to the right, even though it won’t go any further.  Keep pushing it to the right as the bullet hits the other safe at the end of the rebounding and knocks it onto the button.  When I do this, I seem to drop faster than the safe and by pushing right I get under it and die.  If this doesn’t happen, presumably you can just push the safe onto the switch and run into the spikes.  I’ve never had the opportunity, though.

22.  Grab the gun.  Jump on the spring and onto the platform.  Jump over the switch, and stand to the left of it, but don’t hit the switch.  Fire a stream of bullets to the right, then quickly stop firing and hold down the right arrow key until you get underneath where the safe will fall.  It will land on your head.

21. Grab the gun.  Stand to the left of the switch.  Fire one bullet and run right over the switch.  You should be firing the bullet after you start running, but before you hit the switch.  The wall will come down just long enough for the bullet to pass by, and the safe will be moved to the next platform, safe from falling.  Repeat this process again to move the safe again.  Then, step on the switch and shoot the safe onto the final switch.  Jump over the first pit and into the spikes.

20. Jump into the pit.  Keep falling continuously.  Shoot continuously left and right until you hit both safes twice.  Walk into the spikes.

19. Hold the right arrow through this whole level.  As soon as you pick up the gun, start shooting.  Your first shot will ricochet back and hit you before the safe has a chance to fall in the way.

18. As soon as you land on the ground, run to the right so you can get under the safe.

17. Push the safe just far enough to the right to activate the switch.  Walk to the left off the screen and come out on the right.  Jump down and walk into the spikes.

16. Jump up the ledges, and jump above the ceiling onto the big ledge at the top.  Fall off the right side and land on the spikes.

15. Jump onto the bottom ledge, then jump up and to the left off the screen, landing on the ledge on the right.  Flip the switch on, then jump over it to the left and onto the electric blocks.

14. Hold down the right arrow key until you are electrocuted.

13. Stand on the switch and press “R” to reload.  Do the same thing three more times in each area of the stage.  Then turn on the electricity and electrocute yourself.

12. Only the spikes on the right side of the screen at the very bottom are real.  Impale yourself on them.

11. Every jump goes higher than the last.  Keep jumping until you can get the gun.  Then, continuously shoot left and right as you jump off the ground to catch a bullet in the rebounder.  Then, continuously jump until you hit a bullet.

10. Repeatedly tap the left arrow key as fast as you can until you impale yourself on the spikes.

9. Jump into the first pit and grab the gun.  Jump into the second pit and land next to the danger block.  Push it to the left so it falls on top of the safe.  Shoot the danger block and the safe will fall into the first pit.  Jump into the first pit and run into the safe.  Somehow it will squish you as you wrap around the world.

8. Jump over the switch without stepping on it.  Push the safe to the right so that it barely touches the edge of the closest danger block.  Get the gun and stand on the safe, facing right.  Shoot three times to clear the three wooden blocks on the bottom.  Jump and shoot the other wood blocks, but be careful not to shoot the danger blocks.  When all the wooden blocks are destroyed, the danger blocks should be arranged like steps.  Jump over the middle to the right and push the final danger block all the way to the left next to the wall.  Stand under the safe, face left, and shoot the danger block.  The chain reaction will send the safe over the switch, and the other safe will fall on your head.

7. Move one block width to the right from your starting location and press the “K” key on your keyboard.

6. Hold down the up arrow so you are constantly jumping.  While doing this, move so that you’re landing repeatedly on the switch.  The block should disappear and reappear, but the safe should not fall.  Jump about a dozen times on the switch and you’ll explode.

5. Jump up to the spikes and impale yourself against them.  The trick here is that the left and right arrow controls are reversed.

4. Click on the map to create blocks.  Make stairs climbing to the ceiling and jump up and impale yourself on the spikes on the ceiling.

3. Wherever your mouse is, there will be an invisible block.  So use this to navigate the map to get over to the safe and push it onto the switch.  Then jump down and impale yourself against the spikes.  You can move up by jumping and moving the mouse underneath your guy, and then just moving your mouse up.

2. Click on “Return to Menu” and you will explode instantly.

1. Avoid the hearts and eventually the square will land on you, squishing you.  Each heart you collect will be one more life you get, and one more time you will have to be squished.

There’s also a little after game where you only have to run to the right three screens and die.  Congratulations, you’re dead!

OK – so for some little background information.  I have just had a baby a few weeks ago.  She has been in the NICU and might be coming home this week.  I then send an email to my bosses letting them know that I will need some time off.

Hello,

I am not sure of the exact day…(possibly Tuesday but I think it will be Wednesday or Thursday) but I will need off the day she comes home and I would like to work from home the rest of that week.  I think I have been storing WFH (work from home) days…

Let me know if there will be a problem with this.  Once I know more information, I’ll be sure to pass it on.

Koopa

OK – that is all fine and dandy.  The “Director of IT” (don’t get me started on how silly that title is…) sends me an email with the following:

Koopa,

Sorry for the late notice but will you be able to do a RightFax training class Wednesday/Thursday?  There are only 2 students, 1 is a VENDOR employee and the 2^nd would be DIRECTOR OF SALES.  I currently confirming with OTHER TECH if we have 2 training laptops that are ready to go.

Thanks,

Director of IT

When I read this, I said, REALLY?!?!?  Of course I am going to try to do this unless the baby comes home.  I still find it funny that this email was sent as a RESPONSE from my email….

Another day another walkthrough.  This day’s walkthrough?  Warfare 1917 Walkthrough!

The strategy that I took in this game way simple.  The enemy has much more airfare than you do.  I decided to not invest much in airfare and instead focus on ground troops.  This allowed me to create ground troops faster than the enemy.  I would generally build up the quickest units and put them in a trench.  When the trench is full, I would send out the entire squad to attack the enemy.  Generally, I would try to wait until the enemy just charged (and failed) at me.  This worked until the tanks came along.

For this, the first thing I would do is build a tank.  Then, I would build two or three of the quickest units to run by the tank.  I would then wait and see how they do.  Ideally, it would be time to build another tank.  Repeat and hopefully you won’t run out of moral.  If you find that to be a problem, purchase the moral upgrade.  Once I did this, I did not run out of moral again.

Good luck and let me know if you have something else that worked for you.

I am getting this error # 80023017 when I try to open the Playstation Store on my PS3.  This is twice now in two days.  Warhawk doesn’t work either.  It’s frustrating.

It’s unscheduled maintenance that’s doing it, and I hope they get the issue resolved soon.  If you’re getting this error, try back later.  Hopefully it should just be a few hours.  I’d be surprised if it was still down tomorrow.

It’ll give me more time to work on SimYard anyways, and a new poker game on the way!

I am getting this error # 80029509 when trying to start Warhawk.  The playstation store is also down.  This means that the Sony servers are undergoing maintenance.  Please try again in a couple hours.

This is twice in two days now.  I wonder what’s going on.  I doubt they’d be upgrading in the middle of the afternoon right as kids are getting home from school.  There must be some sort of outage.

It’s frustrating, I wanted to take a Warhawk break.  I just made Sergeant and my next two levels are only point-based because I already have the achievement.

Oh well, back to SimYard!

When I try to connect to the Playstation Store (PSN) with my PS3, I get the following message:

An error has occurred.
(80023017)

What does this mean?

This means that the server is down due to maintenance.  Try again in a couple hours.

=====

In the meantime, why don’t you try SimYard?

This was a great web-based RPG that I played a long time ago and was uber addicted to.  I forgot the domain name and had been searching for it for years.  Finally, I just went through every page of MPOGD manually until I recognized the name.  Uh oh, now I’m hooked again.

http://www.carnageblender.com/ (use this link to start with an extra $400)

There’s a tutorial to complete, and challenges for bonus money.  These will get you started.  Be warned, this game is addicting.  Fight against other players and use the XP to train your minions stats and buy skills.  Use the money you get to buy new weapons and equipment.  This is only the start.  As you keep getting stronger, you keep walking up the ladder, but how far does it go?  There are lots and lots of players on this site, which means endless opponents.

Give it a shot.  I highly recommend it.  It’s a great way to spend your 15 minute break because you only have so many battle allowances, and they take time to recharge.  You literally can’t spend all day playing it!  (is that a bonus?)

Battleground States 2008 is a game like Risk where you control the different states to take control of the whole country.  Here are some strategies to use to beat the game.  If you’d like to play the game, it’s available on AddictingGames.com:

http://www.addictinggames.com/battlegroundstates2008.html

Factions: all factions are exactly the same.  None of them have any special attacks or advantages.

Starting map: Try for a map where your territories are all bunched up together.  These are easier to defend.  As soon as the game starts, you will want to attack in a direction to bring your armies closer together.  Once you have them bunched up, the real game begins.

Attacks: Any attack where you have more armies than your enemy is a good attack.  Any attack where you have less armies is a bad attack.  Only make good attacks.  For every army you have, up to the maximum of eight, you will be able to roll a 6-sided dice in combat.  Whoever has the highest value wins, and a tie goes to the defender.  So always make sure you have more dice when you attack.

Look Ahead: Whenever you attack a territory, make sure that you will end up with more dice than your new neighbors.  This will make sure you can defend from an attack.  If this will not happen, you should not attack.  Instead, just gather your forces.

Maximum 8 Armies: When your territory has 8 armies, your symbol is changed to that of your faction.  No more armies can be put in this space.  Once all of your territories have 8 armies, your armies will go in a reserve.  You will gain one army for every territory you control, so add this together with your reserve, and divide by 8, and this is how many attacks you should make.  This will ensure that all of your territories always have the full 8 armies, which is the maximum defense.

Use these plans to take out all of your enemies.  You will win in no time.