Tech Populi

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You are playing an interactive fiction game. This is not your typical video game, but more like an interactive novel, a game where you are presented a story in which you are the lead character and get to type in your commands to move the story along. A revolutionary force in computer gaming in the 70s and 80s, it was pushed to dormancy by the rapid and constant advancement in computer graphics. However, it is still enjoyed today among diehard fans and nostalgists, and even celebrated in a yearly competition. Has interactive fiction ceased to exist as a viable gaming genre, or is it poised to save the future of computer gaming?

Continue reading "At End of Road" »

Posted by A. M. Mattei at 9:11 PM | Permalink

Overview
The manager of a software development team is often chosen among the best developers in that team. Without formal management training, this transition can be arduous. This article explains how to apply some of the proven techniques of successful software development to the challenges of management of technical teams, offering advice to new managers and some new perspectives for experienced managers.

Continue reading "A Software Development Approach To Technical Management" »

Posted by A. M. Mattei at 6:16 AM | Permalink

In 1987, a German company called Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits discovered a way to store music on computers using less than a tenth of the space normally required. This discovery, MPEG Layer 3 or “MP3” for short, was meant to allow efficient digital audio broadcasts. Little did they know that a revolution was brewing…

Continue reading "A Brief History of P2P: From Peer 2 Peer To Pay 2 Play" »

Posted by A. M. Mattei at 8:54 PM | Permalink