Eragon

"Eragon" by Christopher Paolini, Knopf

“A boy and a dragon and a wonderful, but dangerous, set of adventures”

Those are my words for the book Eragon that I have just finished reading recently. Eragon is a poor farm boy who luckily found a shiny stone in a magical forest near their hometown. Food for the table that would last for the whole winter, these are thoughts of this poor farm boy as he carried the stone back to his dilapidated house. The stone is more valuable than food, however, as a dragon came out of the stone and chose Eragon as its rider, opening up a new life and opportunities for to become the person who will save the world or continue its destruction.

This book is the latest of the novels in the genre of fantasy that I had read. Though very far away from the works of J.R. Tolkien, this novel is quite refreshing to read and will keep the readers in turning the pages until the end. Novels in this genre are flooding the bookstores and some of the characters and creatures seem to repeat from one fantasy novel to another. In spite of this, Eragon managed to create its own unique world that are different from the other ones in other fantasy novels. Although some of the creatures like elves, dwarves, and humans are still present. One of the villainous creatures in this book are called Urgals, which somewhat represent the Orcs of Tolkien's novels. What set this book apart are its plot and the possibilities that may arise in this novel.

So if you are hungry for a fantasy novel, then Eragon is recommended for you.


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Pocket Tanks

Once in a while, when I get bored in office I play the usual desktop games on my office computer. The games that I usually play are spider solitaire, space cadet pinball, and the classic minesweeper. Recently, I discovered this cool game from my officemate. The name of the game is “Pocket Tanks.”

Pocket Tanks is a simple game and anyone can easily learn the basics of the game in few seconds. The game is a battle between two tanks that fire at one another with various cool missiles. Each missile has their special effects and power. Each tank gains score by hitting the opponent tank. The tank that has the higher score at the end of the game wins. It is a turn based game and the game ends if both of the tanks have no more weapons at their disposal.

Weapons

The weapons in pocket tanks can be categorized into three, namely, (1) weapon that cause destruction, (2) weapons that bury your opponent, and (3) weapon that remove the earth or terrain in the game.

The first category is composed of missiles that cause damage to the enemy tank. The damage will come into the form of scores being added to your tank. My favorites in this category are the Chain Reaction, Pineapple, and Napalm for the great damage that they bring. Homing Missiles and the Heat Seeker hunts the enemy even if it not well targeted by your tank.

The weapons in the second category include the Magic Wall, Dirtball, and the Dirt Slinger. The last two weapons are my favorites in this category because I use it to bury the enemy tanks. Burying the enemy tank is useful, especially if it has no weapons of category three. The enemy will be forced to incur damage when it tries to use category one weapons.

Dirt mover and Earth Mover fall to category three. These weapons remove the earth that was used to bury the tank. Earth Mover, in particular, is also useful in clearing the terrain where the enemy tank is located so as to disorient the enemy when the position of your tank is already on target.

Techniques

The game is played by approximating the trajectory that should be used to hit the enemy tank. The trajectory is made by selecting the right angle of the trajectory and the power for your weapon. For the first salvo, I usually use the Homing Missile to gauge the angle I should use in hitting the enemy. Homing Missiles are no-miss weapons. After that, I pummel the enemy with various weapons so as to increase my score.

Another technique that I use is hitting the enemy with Pile Driver. This weapon creates a pit where the enemy tank will fall, making it ideal for the Hailstorm weapon to create maximum damage.

If the enemy has no weapon like the Earth Mover or Dirt Mover, then I use the Earth Pile and Dirt Ball to trap the enemy and make it damage itself with its own weapons.

Other Good Things

Pocket Tanks can be downloaded for free from Blitwise. The free version has no time limit for the play unlike the games downloaded from Popcap. The Pocket Tanks free version already has assorted weapons that can fill your boring time in office.

If you are bored playing against the computer, then you can also play against your officemate via two – player or via LAN. The game can also be played via different difficulty levels, from level one up to ten.

Pocket Tanks is developed by Blitwise. Full version is also available for purchase. The full version has additional 30 weapons that have more interesting and wacky effects. To download the free version or buy the full version, visit Blitwise now.

The Verdict

Pocket Tanks is a nice game to play to while away time or to remove office boredom. The game is challenging enough to at least wake you up. Thinking of strategy and the best trajectory also makes your mind ticking. So if you are tired of Spider Solitaire or Minesweeper, then Pocket Tanks may be a good game for you.

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You could download Pocket Tanks at the website of Blitwise.

Electric Bug Zapper

The rainy season is getting nearer and with it is the season of mosquitoes and flies. Because of this, the threat of illness due to these bugs are on the rise and parents will once again be more concerned about the protection of their children against the diseases like malaria, dengue, dysentery, and cholera. One way to protect yourself and your family is by killing these pests using flyswatters and flypaper.

However, there is a better way of killing these bugs and that is by using the Electric Bug Zapper.

The Electric Bug Zapper is a simple tool that uses electricity to kill insects. It is shaped like a tennis racket with the head acting like an electric fence. Any bug that will be hit by the racket will be zapped and burst. If fully charged, this gadget is strong enough to kill a fully grown house lizard but weak enough not to electrocute a person. Anyone touching the racket head will be zapped but the electricity is not too strong.

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This device is ideal to use when insects tend to swarm in one place, which is usually the habit of mosquitoes. The broad face also increases the chance to hit the target insect, as compared to the normal fly swatter. You also spared of the messy way of dealing with insects, as compared to the fly swatter because the insect tend to burn, which means that they do not leave any entrails.

Where to Buy and How Much

The Electric Bug Zapper could be bought at any public markets, just look for shops or kiosks that sells products for 100 pesos and below and you will find this gadget. I had bought mine at the Commonwealth Market. I heard that some malls, specifically the Ever Gotesco and Robinson Malls, have this product.

The price of the Electric Bug Zapper is around 100 pesos (about 2 dollars). Be reminded though that vendors tend to overprice their products and they sell this gadget for 120 pesos. Just try to haggle with them so as to lower your price. Prices at the malls is higher than those at the public markets.

Safety Reminders

Electric Bug Zapper is not a toy and it uses electricity so keep it away from children. Touching the racket head causes an electric shock that may surprise the kids more than adults.

This gadget is directly plugged in the wall sockets to be charged. Just be sure to unplug this device before you sleep. Overcharging may cause the rechargeable batteries inside to explode.

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Read about ways to keep your family safe from mosquitoes. Read my tips on how to keep your home dengue free. Also, read about Imarflex Electric Mosquito Killer. 

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