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PC
Game Review
STAR
TREK ELITE FORCE II
The
story revolves around the discovery of what appears to be an insectlike
alien race, which has ravaged a Federation starship as well as a nearby
space colony. Picard sends Munro and his colleagues to check it out.
They eventually discover the nature of this threat, as well as who
or what is actually behind it. Elite Force II's single-player campaign
is of average length for a shooter, but it packs in plenty of variety,
keeps you headed in the right direction, and is loaded with scripted
sequences and surprises similar to numerous other shooters ranging
from Medal of Honor: Allied Assault all the way back to Half-Life.
Elite Force II does pack in some of its own unique twists. It's got
some pretty decent boss battles in it, as well as some sequences where
you'll need to defend certain characters or lead them to safety. You'll
also need to use your tricorder to scan for walls with weak structural
integrity (you can blast them open), for hidden energy signatures,
and for sources of gas leaks. The tricorder also comes into play in
some puzzle-solving sequences where Munro will essentially need to
hack certain systems. There are two basic variants of the tricorder
puzzles, one that makes you match frequencies and another that makes
you connect a circuit by rotating pieces around--this plays a bit
like the classic LucasArts puzzle game Pipe Dream. The puzzles do
seem a bit contrived, especially in the midst of all the shooting,
but they successfully vary the pacing of the missions and sometimes
effectively create tension.
Judged solely as a shooter, Elite Force II is good but not without
some noticeable and pretty typical problems. The game's AI, for both
friends and foes, often leaves much to be desired. You'll fight alongside
other members of the hazard team, who will often run straight into
your line of fire and get shot in the back, but they won't mind, and
they can't actually get killed except at certain key points. The squad-based
combat just doesn't look very good, which seems to partly explain
why Munro will take every opportunity to split off from his group
and get the job done all by himself. Meanwhile, your enemies' evasive
maneuvers largely consist of dodging from side to side, which is about
the extent of their intelligence. They'll typically come running at
you while shooting. Actually, since you'll be fighting bugs more than
anything else, and fighting them in some cramped corridors at that,
Elite Force II can often seem almost more like a game based on Aliens
than on Star Trek, not that that's necessarily a bad thing.
The game also provides a good amount of fan service for Star Trek
aficionados. Between combat missions, you'll typically get to wander
about the Enterprise and eavesdrop on conversations and such. You'll
get to test new weapons in holodeck simulations, and you'll get to
choose different dialogue options when speaking to certain key characters.
Missions tend to have numerous hidden areas and secrets that you can
go out of your way to find if you wish, and by collecting the secret
items you can unlock a number of new multiplayer maps. So while Elite
Force II's single-player mode isn't particularly long, it does pack
in a good amount of content, and it rarely loses steam, except maybe
briefly during a later sequence where you're stuck wandering through
some bug-infested sewers.
Just like its predecessor, Elite Force II uses the Quake III engine,
which has actually aged gracefully over the past several years. Though
the game doesn't look incredible by the high standards of the genre,
it looks better than previous Star Trek games, and features convincing
environments and effects, crisp textures, and fairly detailed character
models. The levels can seem a bit small, as transitional loading sequences
will seem to come up fairly often as you blast your way through missions
or even as you wander the Enterprise, but Elite Force II's graphics
certainly get the job done. Likewise for the sound, as the various
weapon effects and the voice acting are in line with what you'd expect
from a Star Trek game. During battle, hazard team members and some
enemies will repeat the same lines too often, which can be distracting.
Elite Force II was developed by a different studio than the one that
did the original game, but it stays true to the spirit and style of
its predecessor, making it another well-done Star Trek game. Like
the first Elite Force, the game packs enough pure action to make it
appealing to those who like first-person shooters in general, and
it's got plenty of Star Trek science fiction in it for those more
interested in the source material. That makes it readily recommendable
to those who fall into either category, and especially to those who
fall into both.
Black Eyes
A Cool Exposure Feature
In
1995 'Black-Eyes' launched their first album, produced by Touch Audio,
under the title 'Dhushor Mrittikay Raktim Ava'. Their second album
under the title 'Kotota Shukhe Achho' produced by Prime Audio in the
year 1999. After a long four years gap, this year 2003, they have
published their third album under the title of 'Chander Buri'.
'Black-Eyes' are mainly a soft-rock band and very naturally they have
emphasized on soft, romantic and melodious songs, along with a few
social-aware songs too. This album was an attempt of metaphorically
expressing dreams of some group of young people. Rasel Habib wrote
the title song. Tarun wrote the next number, which is quite poetic
in nature and expression and the presentation is very much soft rock
in trend. Guitar played a major role in this number which can certainly
draw someone's attention. And their co-called 'social-awareness' song
'Nesha birodhi santan gori' written by Shamim Mashreki, where the
main message is presente quite clearly. Likewise, the next two numbers
are capable of drawing its listeners as well, which are written by,
Mamun Khan and Bappi Khan.
The first track of side-b 'smitir aagoon' is written by Nibhritachary.
This number is totally a romantic song. The instrumental chord-progression
is as usual. It should at-least be liked by group of teens that suffers
from nostalgia. This track has a well-balanced patchwork of drumming
and guitar. Next songs are written by, 'Nirob prahar' (Mamun Khan),
'Hai garbini' (Kamran Khan), 'Mukhosher aubhishap' (Niaz A. Angshu),
and 'Nakkhattrer daak' written by Dehlavi. And Rasel Habib wrote the
last track. 'Black-Eyes' has gradually improved from their previous
albums, in their presentations, compositions, playing instruments
and definitely in lyrics.
In a recent interview, bandleader Suja Islam said, "Band Music
means a natural flow of teen spirit. Since 90's, we had gone through
Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Aero-smith, Guns & Roses,
Scorpions etc. and we were very much influenced by them. There's a
time comes when you come out of your old folk taste and start to listen
some modern music. So did we.
But listeners in our country are basically fond of melodious tracks.
So if it is melodious and you have something to say in a soft and
trendy way, people normally accepts that. When asked, what do they
think of this current trend of 'so-called alternative rock' which
at present gained a bit of popularity, they commented, "we think
this sort of music is for a limited number of listeners. As a race,
we are very romantic in nature and basically melody loving people
in context of music. So it will always remain so. No one can just
simply change it over-night, just by doing some personally biased
and liked format, by introducing it in our taste for music. In contrast
to that, the trend of soft-melodious rock will gain more popularity
and spread through. And commercial songs are nothing so significant
except the fact that it brings you money. We mainly give importance
on a good lyric first, then comes tune and composition and at least
presentation, because it's a total teamwork, isn't it?"
When asked why you guys are in music rather than doing any traditional
business? Their answer was," At first we have to be satisfied
with what we are doing, and then through our music we want to build
some awareness among our listeners. We believe that, music is a very
strong media to communicate mass people. About the senior musicians,
their comments are, "Most of them has done a lot for the enrichment
of our music, and we believe, they are doing quite well, still going
strong. And in our coming days, we are planning to perform in open-air
concerts and as well as in indoor concerts too."
What is their future plan besides these? They answered," Doing
some more and bettermusic and staying alive in or listeners' heart.
We don't want our listeners to jump into a conclusion after listening
our tracks." When asked what would you guys do if you have to
give-up music, their honesty answer was "If someone asks us to
give it up, we think we will simply die, the joy of living will simply
wither away." What makes you annoyed mostly? And they said "Any
form of social discrimination. If we could, we would have stopped
all sorts of social injustices that take place now a day. But it can
be solve by us along."
Saatronga Saatjon - A band mix album of Tamal
with difference
When
there's a vacuum created by the so-called remix albums, everyone's
enlighten and hopeful for a new mixed album "Saatronga Saatjon."
Even among the show-biz people the album has been able to draw their
attention. Seven popular singers of today's music arena have performed
in this album. Popular singer Pothik Nabi says, "I've sings two
songs which is very beautiful with good lyrics and tune." Pantho
Kanai has sung two songs. He says, "there is a song of rain that
will take your breath away. Sanjib Chowdhury of Dalchut says "I
normally do not perform in mixed albums but in this case the tune
attracted me, so I've performed. Likely expectation for the other
co-stars Partho, Sumon. Duray, and Tamal. With twelve songs holding
this album has been tuned and composed by Tamal, who has started his
music career through the Band "Tirthok." For the past ten
years Tamal has played keyboards and piano in many bands, mix and
solo albums. Of many blockbuster albums Tamal was the magician. Although
'Saatronga Saatjon' is Tamal's first mix album as a music director,
but he has also his debut album "Telephone" which was able
to attract listeners of-course. In this 'Saatronga Saatjon' most of
the songs (nine) written by famous column writer and journalist Ahsan
Kabir and one song blend from the poem of Palash Mahbub. Other songs
written by Golam Murshed, Tarik Mahmud and Srabon. This album is released
by G-series and marketed by Gitanjoly.
On 11 July (Friday), opening ceremony of "Saatronga Saatjon"
will be held at Fantasy Kingdom. From the evening you can catch the
seven those popular singers at Fantasy Kingdom. You also wondering
that you might collect autograph, photo of them by buying CD. Another
great offer from G-series that if you bye one CD you will get a VCD
(music video) free. The final attraction is the live performance of
those singers, which will be started from 8 PM and music lovers you
can head banging with them. So will you miss it?
Jack
Nicholson
Actor,
screenwriter, producer, director. Born John Joseph Nicholson, on April
22, 1937, in Neptune, New Jersey. After graduating from high school
in New Jersey at age 17, Nicholson moved to Los Angeles, where he
got a job as an office boy at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) film studio.
He made his film debut in the 1958 thriller The Cry Baby Killer, produced
by cult filmmaker Roger Corman.
Over the next decade, Nicholson would appear in a string of low-budget
B-movies, ranging from horror films (1960's The Little Shop of Horrors,
1963's The Raven, and 1963's The Terror, all directed by Corman) to
Westerns (1966's The Shooting). He also began a short-lived screenwriting
career, penning the scripts for the political thriller Thunder Island
(1963) as well as two of his starring features, including Ride the
Whirlwind (1966) and Flight to Fury. In 1968, he co-wrote and co-produced
(with Bob Rafelson) Head, a comedic fantasy romp starring the boyish
pop band The Monkees.
During the 1970s, Nicholson attained A-list status in Hollywood, making
a number of very different films and continuing to elude definition
with an array of complex performances. In 1971, he appeared opposite
Candice Bergen in the Mike Nichols-directed drama Carnal Knowledge;
he also starred in Rafelson's crime drama The King of Marvin Gardens
(1972) and earned his second Best Actor Oscar nod for The Last Detail
(1973). His star rose even higher in 1974 with his starring role as
Los Angeles private detective Jake Gittes in Roman Polanski's acclaimed
film noir Chinatown, written by Robert Towne and co-starring Faye
Dunaway and John Huston. The film netted Nicholson his third nomination
for Best Actor and elevated him from an acclaimed cult favorite to
one of America's most well-known actors.
By that time, Nicholson had begun a romantic relationship with Huston's
daughter, Anjelica, an actress and the third generation of a famous
Hollywood family. They soon become one of the most prominent couples
in Hollywood, endlessly scrutinized by the media and seen as the perfect
blend of class, talent, and cool.
Nicholson finally took home Oscar gold in 1975 for his portrayal of
mental patient Randle McMurphy in Milos Forman's acclaimed drama One
Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. In addition to Nicholson's Best Actor
statue, the film scored four other major awards, including Best Picture,
Best Director, Best Actress (Louise Fletcher), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The film marked the high point of Nicholson's career during the 1970s.
He went on to make several poorly received films in the latter half
of the decade, including the 1976 Western The Missouri Breaks, co-starring
Marlon Brando, and a film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's final
novel, The Last Tycoon (1976), starring Robert De Niro.
Nicholson kicked off the 1980s with a manic, sometimes terrifying
performance as a novelist driven insane in Stanley Kubrick's film
adaptation of Stephen King's novel The Shining. Aside from such critical
disappointments as The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981) and The Witches
of Eastwick (1987), co-starring Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle
Pfeiffer, Nicholson won enormous acclaim throughout the next 10 years.
He earned an Oscar nomination for his supporting role in Reds (1981),
starring Warren Beatty (who also wrote and directed the film) and
Diane Keaton. In 1983, Nicholson took home his second Academy Award,
this time for Best Supporting Actor, for his portrayal of the womanizing
ex-astronaut Garrett Breedlove in Terms of Endearment, starring Shirley
MacLaine and Debra Winger. He garnered two more Oscar nods for Best
Actor for Prizzi's Honor (1985) and Ironweed, co-starring Meryl Streep.
Other films included Heartburn, also with Streep, and Broadcast News,
starring Albert Brooks, William Hurt, and Holly Hunter.
In 1989, a gleefully wicked Nicholson appeared as The Joker in Tim
Burton's blockbuster hit Batman, co-starring Michael Keaton and Kim
Basinger. Nicholson's merchandising deal for the movie reportedly
helped net him close to $50 million. The next year, Nicholson had
considerably less success with The Two Jakes, a sequel to Chinatown
that he produced, directed, and starred in alongside Harvey Keitel
and Meg Tilly.
After working for a total of only two weeks on the set of A Few Good
Men (1992), Nicholson scored an Oscar nomination for his supporting
role as the menacing Marine colonel Nathan Jessup. His buzz far eclipsed
that of the film's heavy-hitting stars, Tom Cruise and Demi Moore.
That same year, Nicholson starred as teamster leader Jimmy Hoffa in
Hoffa, directed by Danny DeVito. He later reteamed with Michelle Pfeiffer
in the thriller Wolf (1994) and starred with Anjelica Huston in Sean
Penn's little-seen directorial debut, The Crossing Guard (1995).
The 1997 comedy-drama As Good As It Gets marked a major resurgence
for Nicholson, whose performances many critics thought had begun to
seem like a caricature of his earlier roles. The film, written and
directed by James L. Brooks (Terms of Endearment), starred Nicholson
as the obsessive-compulsive novelist Melvin Udall, an immensely unlikable
man who is forced to come to terms with his own faults while falling
in love with a long-suffering waitress and single mother, played by
Helen Hunt. Both Nicholson and Hunt won Academy Awards for their performances,
bringing the total number of Nicholson's Oscars to threewith 11 nominations,
he trails only Katharine Hepburn and Streep, who both have 12.
In 2000, Nicholson starred in The Pledge, his second collaboration
with actor-director Penn. Two years later, Nicholson became an Oscar
contender once again for his tour-de-force role in Alexander Payne's
About Schmidt. He earned a Golden Globe for his portrayal of a man
forced to deal with an ambiguous future as he faces retirement. In
2003, he starred opposite Adam Sandler in the hit comedy Anger Management.
Aside from his impressive acting career, Nicholson has also made headlines
for the goings-on in his personal life. In 1974, after researching
a cover story on the actor for Time, a reporter informed Nicholson
that the woman he had thought was his mother (the late Ethel May Nicholson)
was actually his grandmother. His mother, June Nicholson, was the
person he had known as his older sister; she had died of cervical
cancer in the early 1960s, at the age of 43.
Nicholson has also repeatedly made news on account of lawsuits filed
against him. In 1996, he was sued for breach of contract by former
lover Susan Anspach (his costar in Five Easy Pieces), with whom he
allegedly had a son, Caleb. Automobile accidents in 1994 and 1999
both resulted in legal action against Nicholson; after the 1994 incident,
he was charged with misdemeanour and assault after using a golf club
to smash the windshield of a car whose driver he believed had cut
him off.
His tumultuous 17-year relationship with Huston ended in 1989, when
she learned he had fathered a child with Rebecca Broussard, a former
waitress who appeared in The Two Jakes. Nicholson and Broussard's
on-again-off-again romance lasted until the late 1990s and produced
two children, Lorraine and Raymond. Nicholson has another daughter,
Jennifer, from his four-year-long marriage to the actress Sandra Knight
during the 1960s. In 1999, Nicholson began dating Lara Flynn Boyle,
an actress best known to audiences from her role on the popular television
show The Practice.
Nicholson lives on an estate in Los Angeles.
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Bangladeshi Websites
Solitary Sniper
Not
so long ago I had written a report mentioning some Bangladeshi websites.
I hope you took some time visiting them and also that you did like
them. I also promised to write again if I found some more websites
like the ones that I had mentioned earlier. And now, just then you
thought it was safe to open RS again, I am back with more deshi web
news ! If you did visit the websites I mentioned the last time around,
I hope you will also give a shot at the websites that I feature today.
If you did not check out those sites mentioned earlier, I strongly
recommend you do so. The sites really are not all that bad, and they
do give you a chance of getting into a forum and exchange views with
other people in the country, something that few other sites can do.
Anyway, let's get down to the facts. www.colorsofbangladesh.com is
a monthly e-magazine. The organizers of the website call it an event
magazine. Such magazines are rather common in other parts of the world
but this is the first of its kind in Bangladesh. The organizers plan
on presenting this website just like a monthly magazine and will include
all sorts of information and articles that paper magazines feature.
In addition to that, the magazine will include regular columns directed
towards foreigners who are planning on visiting Bangladesh places
to stay in, places to visit, entertainment, trends, fashions and stuff
like that. The site is neat in terms of graphics and presentation.
Probably the most popular among Bangladeshi websites are those that
deal with music or even offer download of Bengali songs. One of the
most popular among such sites is www.ganerbhubon.net. They have an
MP3 download section that offers not only band songs but also classics,
folk songs and even Tagore and Nazrul songs. They also have the facility
to listen to songs online, although it is probably not an option for
the people of Bangladesh. Besides the music sections, they also have
e-cards, music videos, song lyrics, artist profiles, Bengali ring
tones for your cell phone and the facility to send Bengali SMS. As
you can see, there is something in this site for everyone.
I guess that will be all for today. Wasn't very big was it? I am afraid
that is an indication of the dearth of Bangladeshi sites that can
be mentioned as being worth a visit. Nevertheless, it is evident that
the number of Bangladeshi sites are increasing day by day. Although
many of them follow what is essentially the same pattern, it is still
a positive sign. Here's hoping that the number of websites designed
and managed by our own people keeps increasing and that we get to
see more and more different types of websites.
Waltzing the
Web
By Synergie
Howdy folks! Summer vacations have kicked
in for everybody. Exams are over and afterwards… there's nothing to
do?! Well, what happened to that r-e-a-l-l-y long list that you scribbled
up in your mind of ' "to do's" after exam'? I remember my
list consisted of installing XP. Actually, it was on my list last
year too, but I simply never got around to it. Well, now instead of
remorse, I'm quite glad I didn't. Why?
A TOUCH ON MICROSOFT XP:
It's because Microsoft has admitted that its Windows XP1 service pack
causes some programs to function drastically slower (up to 10 times
slower). The programs the memory management glitch affects are those
that repeatedly swap large sums of memory data. As one would expect,
there is a fix for this problem, however it is not so easy to get
as Microsoft wants concerned users to first contact its Product Support
Services, as system testing may be needed. Unless there are very noticeable
slowdowns Microsoft recommends users to wait for SP2 for a full fix.
But can such a small glitch compare to the other amenities that XP
provides. No way! My grapes are still sour.
DESKTOP THEMES:
There's this great site I came across the other day that displays
an assortment of cool and cute screensavers you can download. The
site is-
http://themes.tucows.com/
You'll surely want to look at this site because it has a frame for
Matrix Reloaded. Here are two other sites where you can get more desktop
treats:
http://www.cdxpo.com/
http://www.a1b2c3.com/free/
DICTIONARIES:
www.cup.cam.ac.uk/elt/dictionary
This Cambridge University site has five English dictionaries including
English, American English, Idioms, Phrasal Verbs and a Learners dictionary…all
free! And another thing, this stuff is really good.
FOR CHARITY: www.mandopolis.com
Its true that being charitable is expensive. There have been so many
times when you wished you could let those soft corners of your heart
flow out in the form of pennies. Well, surprisingly here's a way of
giving money to charity at no costs to you. A little disbelieving?
Then check out how it's possible. For every e-card you send to the
mandopolis.com site, their sponsor sends 2p's to the charity you choose.
So simple but so considerate. So send a card and show those people
in need that you really care.
Well guys, that'll be all for today. See ya next week. Until then,
live life.
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