I have set up my Kingdom Chess Set in the Waiting Room at the office, and I still get a charge out of sitting down and playing a ghost that can move real physical chess pieces, and is a stronger player than I will ever be. Now, a lighter, more capable, self playing board, the Neo, is coming out of KickStarter. Square Off is getting some complaints; but, the Pandemic, and the supply chain problem, are responsible for the delivery delays. Given Square Off's solid history, and my personal experience with the Kingdom set, I am sure the new sets will be available soon. They are half the price of the Kingdom set, at $229, and you know that I will be adding one to my collection of sets. Chess, anyone?
Chess For Oculus Quest 2. The very first video game I ever purchased, and for which I drove 50 miles to a store in Tampa, was an early Chess game cassette for the Atari 2600 game machine in the Eighties. I have played Chess all of my life, an addiction begun by my grandfather, and was really interested in how a computer game would allow me to play an imaginary person. I was influenced early on by the Chess playing automatons in literature, and Paul Morphy in particular. My addiction has come full circle now, with the introduction of Chess Club for the Oculus Quest 2, a $15 virtual reality simulation, in which you can reach out and grab the pieces and place them on the board, against a computer opponent, with your choice of classical music in the background. I don't have the time to use my VR glasses a lot; but, I suspect that Chess Club will become one of my favorite pastimes. It is easy to get lost in a game of chess, and the immersive nature of VR will enhance the experience. If you are a chess fanatic, this one game is worth spending $400 on a Quest 2. Movies on a big screen are another. Reality takes a back seat when you put this marvelous technology on your head.
Marcus Junius died in 256 A.D., in a Persian gas attack, and he has graciously consented to act as my sacrificial opponent. I can kill him, since he is already dead. Keep your King safe, and your Queen out of harms way.
I don't spend enough time with my Square Off chess set. It is pretty amazing to watch the classic Staunton wood, weighted pieces appear to move by themselves. The board itself is a beautiful Rosewood construction. I have always wanted a self moving chess set, ever since the iconic scene in which Charlton Heston plays by himself as the last man on earth. This video is interesting, and now all I need is time and solitude.
Not thinking about law or tech today. I have been a season ticket holder for the Tampa Bay Bucs (formerly known as the Tampa Bay Yucks) since 1976, and have attended most of those home games. I can't claim that I stayed past half time for many of them, and I only really enjoyed one season throughout, in 2002, when they won the Super Bowl for the first and only time. But, in a year when a Pandemic has been the big news, and when political protest has been a part of the game, and too much money has been thrown at too many young people unprepared to manage it, I am still moved by this year and this team. My 1976 Bucco Bruce jacket will be coming out of the closet, even though I can't afford to go to the game. I will watch on TV, with millions of others, not to support the players, good or bad. I will watch because we all are living the same life or death struggle that sport imitates. We win or we lose. Our teams win or we lose. We live or we die. Ultimately, all of us wants to experience joy. When I was growing up, I watched, in 1961, on a small black and white TV, when Jim Nance uttered a famous line: "Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sports... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... the human drama of athletic competition... This is "ABC's Wide World of Sports!" So, whether Tampa Bay experiences thrill or agony in two weeks, we will watch. We will be human.
Unlock Alexa Super Mode With Cheat Code. Mondays are always a challenge. So, I try to ease into them with something fun. We are all getting used to saying: "Alexa" or "Echo" and having our devices tell us the news or weather or hundreds of other useful bits of information. But, did you know that by saying a magical potion of words you could bring Alexa into Super Mode? I won't tell you what Alexa does. You have to find out for yourself. I will only say that it is totally useless, but entertaining. If you had an early Nintendo, and spent a lot of time learning cheat codes, you will understand.
If there were ever a time when you wanted to get away to a galaxy far, far away, it is now. Leave the mundane and distressing reality behind, and venture into a virtual world populated with Star Wars droids and monsters, with the new Quest 2 game. Walk around Batu with a blaster and make another world safe for democracy. Combining Wild West action with a first person shooter is just the thing to take your mind off of pandemics and politics. You can't escape to another world effectively without VR glasses, and the Quest 2 is the best option.
I have been enjoying the Rays journey to the World Series; although, the results don't look too good right now. But, any baseball lover has to be excited about MLB's adoption of the latest tech to enhance game watching by fans. When I attended two World Series games in 2008, and the Rays only World Series game win until this season, I only had a PDA in my hand. An app allowed me to record balls and strikes and keep track on a digital scorecard. I got stares from other fans who were still using paper and pencil. These days, everything is done on a tablet computer, and MLB TV allows me to track the games with stats, and pitch location, and a host of other tech coolness. But, the most fun I have had watching a game has to be using my new Oculus Quest VR headset, and watching the games in 3D VR. The stats are still there, and I can point my controller at them to see what is going on, all while looking at a 3D rendering of the game in HD. With a set of earbuds, it is the closest thing to being there other than being there. If you don't understand the purity of baseball, I can never explain it to you. If you do understand, I don't need to explain it. The Rays may not win the World Series; but, I am a happy fan. They did beat the Yankees and the Astros, no? Championships may be the goal; but, the journey is the point. And, virtual reality makes the journey more fun, and more compelling.
Lawyer,Poet, author, educator. Practices real property, corporation, wills, trusts and estates law in Pinellas County, Florida. Writes the FutureLawyer column. Gives seminars on technology and the law. Author of "Life is Simple, Really", Poems about Life, Loving, Family and Fun, and "Poems For Lovers".
