Update: Final new web home

I've got a new web address, and I've even imported all my old posts from here. It's my own domain, which means I can do whatever I want with it. ;)

That also means I have a new email address, though you don't have to worry about that. I won't be changing any of my current addresses, just rerouting, etc...

Stop by and see me. Bookmark my feed, too, though it might not work for another few days until I get everything straightened out. :(

My content posts will be happening at ransomedhome.com from now on, instead of ransomedhome.blogspot.com. Thanks to Google and Blogspot for the free hosting, and for getting me started. :)

Testing complete, and Applets

Not only was it successful, but I've discovered Applets! Now I'm blogging, through Remote Desktop, from a button on my taskbar (bar across bottom of desktop), without any difficulty. Very nice - I really like this tool, it's exactly what I've been looking for.

I've also got a funny screenshot for you. I just grabbed this off my desktop and dragged it into my post, so we'll see how well it uploads to Blogger. ;)

Take a look at the last line of the description. Although monkey-bubble is a decent game, in the vein (though not nearly as good as) Snood, the description by the open-source authors displays one of the weaknesses of most linux geeks. :-D

testing, testing, 1 2 3

test from Ubuntu using a "blog entry poster" application for Gnome. This is kind of cool, though I'm not sure how useful it will be. Depends on how well it works, I guess.

Animated Jigsaw Puzzle

This is a simple example, but it's really cool once you figure out what's going on. I hope to see more of these!

Gentle Hint Guide to n.nfshost.com

First, how this guide will work. I've hidden all except the most gentle of hints, so anything you can read right now is safe and won't spoil your "success" feeling. Then, I provide a few hints for every puzzle, finally practically giving you the answer. Give it a day if you're stuck, then come back to it. This isn't the best made puzzle ever, so there will be some guessing necessary, but nothing's very far out there. The answer is always (somewhat) obvious, so no arcane puzzling knowledge or torturous logic paths are necessary.

Start with 1: Move your mouse over the 1.

On 2? Stuck? You can actually manually type in a web address, did you know that? Or you can change the current one just a bit, and see if there's a page with that name?
More for 2: Go back to page 1, and look at the address. Now go forward to page 2. Look at the address. What would the address for 3 look like?

3: what did you do to get here? Do the same thing, only look at the information on the page first.

more for 3: How does the symbol in the middle of the page correspond to 3? What would be 4 then?

Still need more? Look up "Roman number".

4: Really, just repeat the last sets of instructions. What comes after four?

5: Ok, this is where the puzzle starts to vary a little bit from the formula of the last several. Give it a try.

5 again: Count the o's. Now how do you get to 6?

6: This is your first stretch. How does that number equal 6? Being a computer would help you understand this....

6 not-so-subtle hint: We're not in the decimal system anymore, Toto.

6, one more hint: Try wikipedia. try google. Put in the number you know and the number you don't. Find out how they are related.

7: Tricky one - if you're from U.S., it's not what you first think. Do a google search.

7 more detailed hint: Ok, search for both the clue and the number (7 and sept).

7 TMI: try learning a different language. At least until you can count to eight...

8: Hopefully you're getting the hang of it. Here's another new one, but nothing too difficult.

8 actual hint: How does the clue equal eight?

8: ok, get a mirror. Or pretend you're from a country that reads right-to-left. Unless you are, in which case you probably didn't need this hint. ;)

9: Oh, fun! Where'd your clue go? If you are reading this, you already know how to solve 9.

9: C'mon, you can find it! Did you look for it? Use your mouse..

10: 2 ways to tackle this one. Try selecting your missing clue, or look at source code. Source code's really the better way, because you'll need it later on anyways. Go to "View" "Source Code" in the menu.

More to follow.....

Clues for 11-20 will be posted later this week, followed by clues all the way through 30. Hang in there!