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"Computer software must not only work, it must also appear to work." - Carl Hewitt
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Saturday, December 24, 2005
Happy Holidays
It's that time of year again. Time to light the holiday candelabra for some. Or to decorate the giving tree. Or maybe even to burn the holiday log. It is a season of giving, when blowup statues of Santa Claus dance in your front yards. It is a time of making snowmen (for those of us who live in colder climates) or simply relaxing with a cup of good cheer. It is a time to remember what the year has been like, and to make promises to ourselves about what we will do right in the year ahead. Promises we know we can't follow but we'll try for a few days anyways. Time to remember that calories don't count if someone else eats more than you. In short, it is a time to get together with family and to celebrate another year. May you all have good times this holiday season.
Happy Holidays.
Ah, bah Humbug. Political Correctness just doesn't become me. ;-)
Let your Menorahs shine bright if you have them. Let all the world see your Christmas tree. May a nativity scene be arrayed somewhere near. I hope you get the chance to light a Yule Log, and in the ways of an old song, may your Yule Tide be gay. And may Saint Nicholas be remembered in your house for why he did what he did. To celebrate a child. To give children surprises and joy on the morning of the Christ Mass. May your holiday season be filed with such joy, and may your surprises be many.
And Merry Christmas.
From P.R.I. to you.
Medron Pryde :-)
Sunday, September 11, 2005
Never Forget
Four years ago, our people were attacked. Attacked by people who chose to target those who could not defend themselves to make their point. People who have continued to kill the weak amongst us since then. In America, Spain, England, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, and in other countries they have targeted those who do nothing more than live their lives from one day to the next. Their choice targets are not those who carry guns, or who are ready to protect themselves or others. Their choice target is the father or mother coming home from work. The child coming home from school. They kill the families, hoping to terrify other families into wondering if they are next. To be fearful of leaving their house. Their goal is to stop the common people from living their lives. To make the lives of everyone as terrible as possible. And then, when those around them are fearful, they will offer them a way to live, but only if the common people swear to support them. To allow them to store weapons or people in their houses. To allow them to torture and murder in their houses. Because they are afraid of what these people will do if they don't.
Never forget what these people are willing to do. Never forget those they have killed in their pursuit of terror. Take this day of rest and remember how you felt when the planes hit the towers. Remember how you felt when trains and buses exploded. Remember the broken bodies of men, women, and children lying on the pavement. Remember those who jumped rather than burn to death forty stories above the ground.
Never forget.
And tomorrow go to work. Go to school. Do the one thing they fear the most. Live your life. Take the plane. Ride a bus. Drive a car. Take your bicycle out on the street for spin. Live your life.
But never ever forget.
Tuesday, September 6, 2005
Hurricane Relief
Hurricane Katrina has changed many lives completely, and has done great damage to people, companions, and property. If you have not been harmed by this catastrophe, please donate to help those who have been hurt. Operation Blessing, The Salvation Army, and of course The Red Cross are accepting donations to aid the human suffering. And The Humane Society is looking for donations to help the numerous companions wounded by the tragedy. Cats, dogs, and other companions are hurt by this as much as any human and need to be rescued and cared for just as much. Please help those who have been harmed to rebuild their lives with a small donation to one or more of these organizations devoted to helping those in need.
June 10, 2004
Good-bye Mister President
"And so, good-bye, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America." - Ronald Reagan
January 19, 2004
20 Years of BattleTech
As you've probably heard on some of the other sites, 2004 is the 20th anniversary of BattleTech and many of us are celebrating that fact (yes we're geeky enough to celebrate the anniversary of a game. But don't laugh too much. This is the 20th anniversary of Transformers too and I'm going to a con to celebrate it). So go on over to any of the major websites. Classic BattleTech is the official FanPro homepage of the BattleTech universe, so if you want to talk there, feel free. HeavyMetalPro is the homepage of the HeavyMetal programs for BattleTech and has an awesome message board where you will often find me hanging out with the other crazies. Finally, there is the New Star Software forum where I and more crazies hang out and talk shop about BattleTech and anything else that comes to mind. Yes...anything. Feel free to come on over and celebrate the game that has brought most of us together. Yes...we're sad. All you Trekkies can feel sorry for us now. Oh wait...I'm not sure which is worse...a game or a TV show that brings people together...:-)
January 5, 2004
CamoSpecs Getting Busy
I just got this little message from the dudes at Camospecs and I thought I'd send it on to yah. I hope ya'll like it.
In ten days the most anticipated book of 2004 (to date) will hit books shelves. The artists at Camo Specs Online were been given the special opportunity to get a sneak peek at the paint schemes of the units in Field Manual: Mercenary Update. With this we bring you four units in their parade colors. Before this time these units paint schemes have never described.
Enjoy!
Caesar's Cohorts Anubis Link now correct! Woohoo!
Langendorf Lancers Marauder
Killer Bees Raven
Tooth of Ymir Highlander
January 1, 2004
Happy New Year all
For the New Year, I added a Wallpaper of the Day spot to my site, courtesy of the fine dudes over at www.gamewallpapers.com. If you've never seen their stuff, I suggest checking them out. Those boys rock.
October 11, 2003
My Collection
I've just uploaded a list of my collection. Not a complete list, but fairly close to one. This is for people to see if they wish to trade for my doubles and they have stuff I don't have/want. :-)
October 8, 2003
New Server
I've recently been physically moved to another server, but if you have your links and bookmarks going to http://www.pryderock.com you should be coming here fine. If not...well...you probably aren't reading this. :-) Hopefully I can get my counters and jazz back online but for now all of my automation is dead.
September 2, 2003
New Links
Ok, its been a while since I updated The Gateway. Anyways, in case you haven't noticed, I changed the links at my top around to include Classic BattleTech and DropShipCommand (have been there since the opened for CBT and for years for DSC) and have added Battlecorps, HeavyMetal (should have done that years ago as it has an AWESOME set of forums), Mechjock (the home of BattleTech Pods if I understand this correctly), and Iron Wind Metals (the dudes who are so nice that they build us all of these lovely 'Mechs to paint and play with to our hearts' content).
I hope ya'll like this slight upgrade. If you have anything else major that you think I should link to, just send me an e-mail by clicking on the e-mail link below. This isn't a true website by itself so I won't be adding a lot, but if it is a good official page you think I should link to, I'm always happy to listen to well thought out arguaments. :-)
March 2, 2003
Disasters of My Time
I was in fifth grade when Challenger exploded and my teachers rolled a little 13 inch TV into the class room of my small town school so we could watch the news. I was shocked. I thought we were better then that. That our technology was good enough that we wouldn't make that kind of mistake. That day is ingrained in my memory like few others.
On 9/11, I came home from work to see smoke pouring out of one of the Twin Towers. I saw the second plane hit. I saw the first tower fall. There was no more surprise when the second one fell. I felt no hate, I felt no anger. Only a sense of sadness that anyone could do anything like that. And a conviction that, in order to save others from that same fate, that we had to act. I will never forget that day.
Now, on Saturday, I woke up to the sounds of the news asking where Columbia was. I saw them show the tapes of the shuttle breaking apart for the first time while I was lying in bed. And while I felt shock at the lose of lives, sorrow at what their families will go through, I no longer can feel surprise at it. I've seen too many mistakes and disasters caused by Man, either on purpose or by accident, to be surprised any longer. But the memory will be with me until I forget all else.
Farewell to those who Challenge the stars.
Farewell to those who fell in Towers.
Farewell to those who rode Columbia's flames.
May it be our mission to create a world where none follow in your paths.
December 19, 2002
Hegemonia
I have added a new link that sends you to Hegemonia, a new 3d space combat game where you explore space, colonize worlds, research technologies, and fight anyone who wishes to destroy you. It looks like a very good game so I decided to link to it.
September 11, 2002
One Year Ago
One Year Ago, I came home to find a tower hit.
One Year Ago, I saw a plane hit another tower.
One Year Ago, I saw two towers fall.
One Year Ago, I saw my country realize that the world is not the peaceful, "I love me" place that they thought.
One Year Ago, I watched as Americans realized for the first time in their lives that there really is evil in the world.
One Year Ago, I saw flags flying from overpasses.
One Year Ago, I looked at my fellow Americans and actually felt proud of them.
One Year Ago, I saw the reaction of my people to an horrific crime and felt hope for the future.
One Year Ago, I realized that there still was iron buried in the bones of my countrymen and women.
One Year Ago, I was proud to be an American as my fellow Americans picked themselves back up and kept on keeping on.
One Year Later, I am still proud to be an American.
March 3, 2002
Transformers and K'nex 'Mechs
Are you a fan of Transformers? Do you remember when Optimus and Megatron dueled it out hand in hand to rule the world? Well....they're back. Click on the picture to go to the homepage of the company writing the comic.
In other news, K'Nex has released a new set of 'Mechs that you might be interested in getting. This is of course in addition to the three 'Mechs they've already released.
Large Optimus Prime Poster
Dreamwave Homepage
K'nex Uziel
K'nex Firefly
K'nex Vulture
K'nex previous Three 'Mechs, the Cauldron Born, Mad Cat, and Shadowcat
K'nex 'Mechs homepage
Saturday, February 23, 2002
New Sites Added
Yes...I do still keep this site up to date...hehehe. In fact, I've just added two new sites into the Pryde Rock family, my Ad Astra site (a site that I've setup for a roleplaying league), and a Taurian Concordat site also set up for a roleplaying league.
Wednesday, November 21, 2001
E-Mail Changed
With @home going out of business, my e-mail is changing. Yippeekiyeah. It is now medron@pryderock.com.
Thursday, November 15, 2001
The Gateway Moves
Ok...not really...I just got a domain to work on this. www.pryderock.com now works if you want to change your links and have an easier to remember address. Also note the nice new Classic BattleTech link above. Decided to give Warner's new site a nice little pathway through me. Have a good one dudes.
Wednesday, October 10, 2001
PRI Moves
PRI now has a new address and a new look. Check out both at the links to PRI shown above.
Sunday, April 29, 2001
Many Updates
I have built a page for the new Hsien RPG I am co-gming with Orion, so if you are interested in character-style (IE no 'Mechs) RPG, come on down. I have also finally finished my grand update of WolfNet and will now begin uploading the various pictures I have "acquired" through various nefarious and non-nefarious means. Those who helped me, thank you. Those who didn't...shame on you...;-) Anyways, I'm also announcing the end of Civil War. It was good while it lasted, and thank you to all of you who played in it.
Wednesday, March 21, 2001
WolfNet Update
I have incorporated Thumbnails into the pages to make them more modem-friendly.
I am planning to bring some new pictures in the near future, but as usual, I'm
busy and this is near the end of my "to do list" unless people start helping a
bit with character scans. If only I could get the scans from the people who
are doing the Sourcebook PDFs that would really help....;-)
Monday, February 5, 2001
MechWarrior 4 Goody Bag
GrooveRider is doing a
play-by-email game starting next week that will end with two lucky people get
a grab bag with a t-shirt, game, MS game-voice controller, trading cards, and
other stuff. The winner will get a mystery prize. This could be a very
interesting thing to look at. Note that you should go there with Internet
Exploder, not Netscape, as this seems to be one of the increasing number of
sites designed to crash Netscape.
Davion House Book
The
Davion House Book PDF
has been uploaded to the FASA sites. It is suffering
from security settings that are odd, and other various settings that make it
VERY hard to use. But if you don't have the real thing, it is nice to have
this at least.
Friday, January 26, 2001
Pryde Rock Page Updated
I have made many changes/updates/code fixes to the ancient (by web standards)
Terra's Pryde/Pryde Rock page. I noticed that many of the links were broken
due to an oversite on my part when I redesigned the site and fixed them. I also
delled out alot of not-needed or reduntent code that just slowed down dling of
the pages and did some just plain general clean up of the site. Also, for those
of you who have enjoy the Pryde Rock Industries part of the site (not the PRI
where I have programs..hehehe) I have uploaded some new vehicle designs made in
HMVee. If you notice, the way it makes html files is very similar to HMP...very
nice....hehehe. It should be out of beta soon so people can buy it.
Thursday, January 25, 2001
FASA and BattleTech
FASA
is shutting down and closing their doors. Read the
Press Release. They are selling BattleTech and Shadowrun
to their respective co-creator, Jordan Weisman, founder of Wizkids and the
Mage Knight Rebellion
game. This is their press release.
WizKids has entered into an agreement, subject to due diligence, to buy the Battletech and Shadowrun properties from FASA corporation. Both WizKids and FASA are pleased that these special properties will be in the capable hands of their co-creator, WizKids CEO Jordan Weisman. WizKids is excited about developing these properties and we will keep the gaming public informed as things develop.WizKids has enormous respect for FASA and its pioneering role in the gaming industry. WizKids will strive to bring the same type of innovation and creativity that FASA brought to the industry for 20 years.
I'd say it's official...things have just gotten interesting.
Tuesday, January 23, 2001
HeavyMetal Chat
You wanna rock? Well, I just (ok...just is a relative term..hehehe) got the following annoucement from our
good ol' buddy Longwalker.
Rick Raisley, creator of HeavyMetal Pro, the official 'Mech creation program from Fasa's boardgame, BattleTech, is going to be available for a public Question and Answer session at 8PM, on February 7th 2001. Mr. Raisley will be answering questions about HeavyMetal Pro and HeavyMetal Vee, the soon-to-be-released official vehicle editor for the BattleTech universe. This chat will be moderated by MGO.NETwork staff, but all comers are welcome. Mr. Raisley will be available on the MGO.NETwork's IRC server, www.maxgaming.net port 6667, Channel #HeavyMetalPro. Everyone is welcome and urged to arrive early, especially if you are new to IRC. MGO.NETwork personnel will be on hand to help those new to IRC.What: Q&A with Rick Raisley, writer of HMPro and the upcoming HMVee.
When: Wednesday January 31 8pm till 9pm.
Where: MGO.NETwork's IRC server www.maxgaming.net port 6667, Channel #HeavyMetalPro
Why: To answer any and all questions regarding HMPro and HMVee. This chat will be moderated by the staff at MGO.NETwork.
How: Any IRC client or you may use MGO's IRC browser based IRC Chat client at http://www.maxgaming.net
Thursday, January 18, 2001
Would You Join the Army for Powered Armor?
A recent BBC
article noted that the US Army is spending 50 million
bucks to find out if a powered exoskeletal armor system is possible. Very
interesting read. Tech TV's
Screensavers
has put up their own little
rant and a
poll asking if you would join for that.
Man.....am I the only person who hears the word "ELEMENTAL" loud and clear? hehehe. Well...go on over and let your voice be heard on this issue.
Wednesday, January 17, 2001
Civil War - edited
(ugh...I really must reread my messages to make sure they say what I think
they say...hehehe)
The Civil War League has (finally) moved to its new location. The link on the
left will take you there. At the movement the redirection url will send you
to the old site, which I have setup to autoforward you to the new location
since for some reason I can not access my accounts at that service. As soon
as I am able, I will update the redirection urls.
Tuesday, January 9, 2001
Pryde Rock Academy
PRA, devoted to discussion of any contemporary issue including politics and
religion, has been added to The Gateway. It is a test to see if such issues
can be talked about civily...I believe they can based on how well the
short conversation we had at The Dropship went. If it turns out that it
doesn't work, this site will be delled. Not abandoned or minimally supported
as my other non-updated sites become, but wiped off the Net. I believe we
can do this but if we can't, I will let nothing remain of the site to let
it cause division amongst the BattleTech fans.
Monday, January 8, 2001
Are You Ready For Civil War?
Civil War approaches. With the death of Arthur Steiner-Davion, the looming
confrontation between Davion and Steiner has begun at Victor's command. Will
you fight for God and Davion to restore lost honor and glory or stand firm
to protect hearth and home from your aggressive former allies and paint your
'Mechs Steiner blue?
You decide at the new Civil War homepage located here.
Civil War is a BattleTech league using MechWarrior 4 to decide the battles. It uses rules similar to FASA's Fifth Succession War for deciding planetary ownership rather then a purely planet per battle setup that many leagues use. Designed to allow you as much fun as possible, good clean matches and good clean roleplaying are encouraged. Flame Wars will not be tolerated. If interested, check us out.
Sunday, January 7, 2001
MechWar 3D Needs You!
I just got the following note from An Do over at MechWar 3D.
MechWar3D is in dire need of talented and dedicated programmers, 2D artists, 3D animators, and 3D artists. This is a final push for dedicated talent to make MechWar3D round and move it towards completion. To make things clear, no MechWar project has survived the test of time yet. Since the beginning, strong organization and planning has pushed us thus far. With so much work done, and steps more to completion, we do not want to waste the productive potentials. At the moment, the lack of advanced programming talent on the MechWar3D engine is THE BOTTLENECK that slows down ALL of MechWar3D. Of course, there are more positions than just advanced programmers. Come visit our site at http://mechwar3d.virtualave.net, and hit the Recruitment Section to see how you may help MechWar3D with your technical skills, or how you as a fan of BattleTech can help MechWar3D.I know there are plenty of you who have time and are burning to do something productive about this. For years, the BattleTech community has been deprived of a translation of the board game to the PC. MechWar3D has mapped out the path to the clear goal, but we lack the proper means. Remember, the BattleTech community deserves nothing less than the best. DO NOT LET THE BATTLETECH COMMUNITY DOWN !!!!
Note: please read the recruitment page at http://mechwar3d.virtualave.net/recruitment.htm before emailing us so that you have all the details.
----------------------------------------------Thanks for your help.
Sincerely,
An Do, MechWar3D Coordinator
Thursday, January 4, 2001
Civil War League
I am starting a new League set in 3063 that involves the Civil War between
Houses Steiner and Davion. If yer interested in playing MechWarrior 4 in a
league environment, look at the rules and see if you like them. If ya do,
signup for it and get ready to wear spurs or paint your 'Mechs blue.
Friday, December 29, 2000
MechCommander/Gold Patches and Addons
I have opened up a new area of PRI that carries patches and addons (not to
mention "tweaks") for some of the various BattleTech games. MechCommander/Gold
is the first to get the star treatment. Note that I am missing the patches
and one of the map addons. If anyone has them, please e-mail them to me.
Thursday, December 28, 2000
Boards Again
I have posted the password to the board on the board and have set up a
second board that I may or may not use. Feel free to check the new board
out as well and tell me what you think.
Wednesday, December 27, 2000
Message Boards
I have added a new message board to The Gateway. It will be a part of the
new Pryde Rock Academy site I am working on now, but because of various
connection problems with my Laptop and the internet have been unable to
upload. For now, I'm putting this up so people can check it out. It is
password protected in a way I've never seen before and it's admin functions
aren't all that I would wish, but I like the way it views messages.
I haven't decided yet if I'm going to go with it or not so am just wondering what you guys think. If you want to post, e-mail me for the password.
Pryde Rock Academy Message Board
Monday, December 25, 2000
Left Behind
Today I watched this movie on DVD and was very impressed. One of the top
selling books out there and first book of series that has sold over 20 million
copies, it has recently been given the movie treatment. It is a very sweet
movie. I was impressed. It stars Kirk Cameron, once on Growing Pains, and
his wife, also an escapee of that show, and really does show what it could be
to be Left Behind.
It is much like Sixth Sense in that even if you don't agree with what it says, it is definately worth seeing. If you want more info, go to Left Behind Film Project.
Wednesday, December 20, 2000
Website Added
I have added the WolfNet Pictoral Archive to the Gateway. It is a site
designed to have pictures of any character in the BTech Universe, focusing
on the Inner Sphere of course. What else would expect from a Free World's
League loyalist? Hehehe.
Anyways, I started work on this site back in September but fan response was lackluster so I stopped working on it. I do have some pictures but it takes a long time to scan pictures in and I stopped. If anyone wants to give me any pictures they may have in their possession, I will gladly except them and put them on the site.
Note that it is best viewed in Internet Explorer but is fully functional in Netscape.
Monday, December 18, 2000
New Format
As you may have noticed, I have changed the format of The Gateway so I can
easily make updates and let people know what those updates are. Expect to
see new content and two more sites added to The Gateway in the near future.
Other Stuff
Counter Disabled
Visitors since Tuesday, November 12, 2002
Check out this up and coming FREE game. Very sweet.
Thanks are due to the following sites for the use of their engines while making graphics for The Gateway, Terra's Pryde, Federated Commonwealth, WolfNet, the original and current PRI, Taurian Concordat, and Ad Astra pages.
