robbalvey

Hey everyone! Thanks for submitting an avatar for "Avatar Theme Week." If this goes over well, we might do this again! I'm going to post all the avatars that have been submitted below, then vote for your favorite one! The winner will win something! (not sure what yet, but they will win something!) --Robb zaneymon x What Now Wes viking86 SuperCrack SharkTums Rockman89 robbalvey PhishyBrewer Not For Sale nemesis-storm nannerdw memphish M_Force_4_ever jarmor Homer Hattuchili coasters4me CoasterFanatic CoasterCrazy c0sterfreek Angry_Gumball Airtime 2000

^ Yeah, I've been doing games for a LOOOOOONG time. The first game I ever worked on was Wizardry for the 8-bit NES! That was in like 1989 or something. --Robb

I use a lipstick camera for POV's and for my regular handycam I have some special straps that I have developed so that it becomes a permanent fixture of my hand. --Robb

Thanks for pointing out my typo....glad you liked the update. --Robb

Yes, and it always seem that no matter how much correct information you know, the idiot guy that's full of shit is always "right" --Robb "So I've stopped trying to correct people, and instead I just laugh silently to myself at them..." Alvey

^ For some reason I had a very hard time converting from PAL to NTSC. It was the only one that gave me problems and I'm not sure why. I use a program called "DV Atlantis" to do the conversion. Usually I can either capture from a PAL DV tape, or take a PAL .avi file and convert it just fine. This one was the only file that gave me problems. I did the best I could! --Robb

No, it's cool. You can just pay the extra $$ when it arrives. --robb

Good video! Some really great shots in there, and nice use of music! Here are a couple of comments though since you asked for feedback: 1. You seem to hold for a while on shots of empty track. This is a little pet peeve of mine, but there were a few shots where you looked at blank track for at least a second either before something happened or after. IMO, a shot is a LOT more powerful when you have action on the screen almost immediatly after you switch to a shot of a coaster. 2. The sound quality on the onride is terrible. As is most audio during POV's. (Trust me, ours isn't much better at all.) One of the main reasons why I think the 'music video' is such an obvious choice for most coaster video makers is that, unless you have VERY high end, high quality recording devices, the ambient noise you get a most amusement parks is just that...."noise" So using music helps drown out what is normally fairly poor raw audio. Discovery Channel and other professional production companies can get away with it...sometimes...because they have the proper equipment to shield the distorted noise of the wind, and usually have their talent on the ride rigged with a mic. IMO, if you don't have either of these, don't use the raw audio from a coaster POV. 3. I've never been a big fan on "Premiere filters" but a lot of people seem to like them. So this is a comment just based on my opnions. Anyway, great video! Looking forward to strapping our lipstick camera on the ride next week! --Robb

^ I have no idea. Sorry, but all I can tell you is that they were shipped. I can't really comment on what happens to them after they leave my hands! You would know your home town weather conditions and postal service better than I would! --Robb

^^ I described what you have to do in Katamari IN THIS THREAD!!!! Read it! ^ I don't really have an opinion on either of those systems right now that would sway my vote one way or the other. I do however really like the idea of being able to download Nintendo 64, SNES, and NES games for the Revolution! --Robb

^ I voted for Miami too. But yeah, I agree with my woman. The two shows are neck and neck and I probably would change my vote based on how good "last week's episode" of either one of them are. I've tried to watch NY and it just flat out sucks. --Robb

^ It was like an hour wait, and I being that I don't wait for roller coasters, I'm sure as hell NOT going to wait to see a video game demo! The Nintendo booth looked really cool, though. Probably IMO the most organized out of the console booths. It was very easy to find what game you were looking for. --Robb "I should have brought in my DS for the download station, but there was no time..." Alvey

Wow, I had already thought the Dells were pretty cool. Cyclops alone is worth the visit, let alone all those cool go kart tracks. Now with not just one, but TWO decent new coasters from what it sounds, I'm looking even more forward to my trip in August! Thanks for posting the review, Joe! --Robb

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050524/ENTERTAINMENT/505240396/1012/NEWS06

Hey everyone! I have just posted our 5 page photo update from Silver Dollar City here: http://www.themeparkreview.com/sdc2005/sdc1.htm Lots of cool Powder Keg photos from all angles, since we were able to get down into the rides structure. Let me know what you think of them. Enjoy! --Robb

Mallrats is a classic. --Robb "Better than Gone With The Schwin" Alvey

To be honest, I'm not the best person to ask about computers. As crazy as it might sound, I have fairly low-end computers by today's standards. As long as they edit video and burn DVDs, which they do just fine, I see no reason to upgrade. At work I have this really kick ass Dell which is like a 2.8ghz with 1 gig of RAM. Other than that I don't know too many details about it. It's the machine they gave me, and it works! I guess actually by today's standards that's not really THAT kick ass either. --Robb "Sorry, but as much of a computer nerd as I am, most REAL computer nerds would probably laugh at me!" Alvey

My involvement was very little. I came onto the team AFTER RTCW shipped for the PC. Our team helped convert the maps for the console versions and gave feedback on them, but that was about the extent of it. --Robb

^ You know, I seem to remember long lines BEFORE FastPass systems ever existed. IMO, I don't think lines are THAT much longer than they were 10 years ago. It's not as though FastPass came along and suddenly there were these things called "lines." They were there before, you know! --Robb

^^ Agreed, Wes. I mean, I said my point and overall, I'm just here to help people be able to afford all the park perks! At the end of the day, we're out to have a good time, regardless of how much money people make or who is in what class system. As far as how to plan your day, regardless of the FastPass system, IMO, it's *STILL* about how you plan your day. For example in Japan, we were only able to use FastPass on a select amount of rides because of the crowds and how quickly FastPass sold out. Yet that didn't stop us from stategically planning our day, and the longest line we waited in was about 25 minutes. All I know is that I'm not rich, but I'm able to afford a FastPass upgrade if I want to, and I enjoy helping people be able to do the same. --Robb "I know that FastPass isn't going anywhere, I used to hate it too, but now I've learned to use it to my advantage." Alvey

OK, first of all, I really hate this bullshit about people thinking I am "rich" because I don't mind spending $150 per night for a hotel every once in a while. Trust me I am FAR from being "rich." I am smack in the middle of the average income for your 'middle class" American family. That being said, my point #1 about how people "CHOOSE TO SPEND THEIR DISPOSABLE INCOME" is very, VERY valid. I know people who work in retail or have what would be considered a 'low income' job having libraries of hundreds of DVDs and plasma TVs, high end computers, etc who then turn around and complain that they can't afford a coaster trip. YOU CHOOSE HOW YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY. It's like I said, if you come to our house you'll see we have almost zero luxuries. I edit our videos on a P800 for christ sakes!!! I don't even have a high end computer let alone a DVD collection or a nice TV. We CHOOSE to spend that money on park trips. We're not "rich" and you don't need to be either to do the trips we do! Ok, now let's talk about how we make our money go a longer distance so we can all afford these awesome trips. For example, MovieGuy says he's got $8,000 saved up for a WDW trip. OMG, I could totally help him put together a REALLY kick ass Orlando trip with tons of perks for less than HALF of that! For that amount of money, I could help plan MovieGuy a kick ass Florida trip AND a kick ass trip somewhere else. I mean, our 21 day Europe trip is only costing us $5,000 and we're getting LOADS of kick ass perks from parks, hotels, etc, etc... Travel Tip #1: "ITS ABOUT HOW YOU SPEND YOUR DOLLAR, NOT HOW MANY YOU HAVE!" First off, you never...EVER book through Disney. NEVER!!!! You will get your ass handed to you booking through them! Only the extreme "GP" books through Disney. You do NOT want to be in that crowd! If you are ever thinking about booking through Disney. STOP! Come and talk to Robb & Elissa first! We'll set you straight! There are PLENTY of sites out there that can help you get amazing discounts at deluxe Disney resorts, and get all those perks, yet not have to pay through the nose. Travel Tip #2: YOU DON'T *HAVE* TO SPEND EVERY NIGHT IN AN EXPENSIVE HOTEL! For example, this trip coming up, we're are spending two nights at the Royal Pacific at $150 per night, BUT the rest of the trip we're spending at the Days Inn Suites for $60 per night. Keep in mind that had we stayed at the Days Inn instead of the Royal Pacific and still bought the front of the line pass, it would have cost us: Days Inn Suites: $60 Express Passes $30 PER PARK for ONE Coupon per ride. Parking: $8 For a grand total of $128 per day. Gee...so our $150 hotel which gets UNLIMITED express pass is only $22 per day more expensive. When you add up all the little costs that a lot of people forget about, that $150 hotel is NOT much more expensive than what you would pay anyway. You also DON'T NEED to stay at a Disney Deluxe ALL nights. For example, if you are going to do a 4 night, 5 day Disney trip. Stay in a Deluxe TWO of the nights, and an off property hotel the rest. Sure you may not get the perks of the FastPass system those other days, but do you NEED them? Get your fill in of rides that you NEED the upgraded FastPass system for on those two days, then on the days you don't have the upgrade perk, do rides that don't require it, or simply don't have FastPass anyway! And if the Disney system ends up being like the Universal system, you could spend ONE NIGHT at the hotel, and get the perks for TWO days. Because at Universal, your Unlimited Express Pass is good for the day you check in AND the day you check out. So when we get to Royal Pacific, we check in at like 8am in the morning! Sure, we may not get our hotel room that morning, but we leave our bags with the check in desk and we get our hotel key, which doubles as the front of the line pass, for all day the check in day, and all day the check out day. IMO, doing a WDW trip is only as expensive as you are uneducated about how to "work the system." And I don't mean that in a bad way, I just mean that before you book *ANYTHING* do a LOT of research, and really THINK about what you are spending. The smallest amount of money adds up to a LOT. So to summarize this tip - You don't NEED the FastPass perks EVERY DAY, so you don't NEED to stay at a Deluxe EVERY DAY! Only pay for what you NEED, otherwise the rest is a WASTE OF MONEY! (Unless, of course, you are "rich" and it doesn't make any difference to you!) Travel Tip #3 - TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT WHAT YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY! Keeping in mind that the parks know that most people are more willing to spend $10 and $20 here and there and are less willing to throw down $150 - $200 in one lump sum. Most of the time, that $150 - $200 will INCLUDE most of the $10 and $20 items, and will wind up being CHEAPER than if you purchase items on their own. For example, we are taking an "Orlando Newbie" with us this weekend, and we found a deal online that gets him a 5-day Universal Park hopper CHEAPER than you can get a 2-day at the gate! This way, we can end most of our nights doing "Dragon hopping" and we have the flexibilty to hit IOA on almost every day of our trip if we wanted to. Travel Tip #4 - SHARE THE COST WITH SOMEONE ELSE! If you can do a trip with a friend. That $150 Royal Pacific room suddenly becomes $75. And they allow up to 4 people in a room, and then that room with all the perks becomes $37.50. So someone can get the perks of the unlimited Universal Express pass for TWO days for only $37.50 each. Even someone working at WalMart should be able to afford that!!! IMO, if you can't afford to take a trip with some friends and spend $37.50 per night on a hotel room, you shouldn't be taking the trip in the first place. For our Europe trip, two of the guys who are going with us, one of them works in a grocery store, the other works as a ride op and they can both afford to go to Europe. So don't give me this shit that you "have to be rich" in order to take a kick ass trip and get a lot of perks at parks. Travel Tip #5 - DON'T SPEND TONS OF CASH IF YOU DON'T NEED TO! Shepp, of course your $175 gets you 3 days of hotels on your SFGAdv trip. Why would you need to spend a lot of money there? Do you think *WE* would spend $175 at a hotel by BGW or SFGadv??? HELL NO!! Only spend that kind of money if it GETS you something! Which is why we're at the cheap Days Inn suites during the Disney portion of our upcoming weekend and sharing it with someone else! It's going to end up costing us something like $22.50 each for that hotel room! We go to WDW about 4 or 5 times a year, and only stay at Boardwalk MAYBE once per year, and only for a night or two if we can get it at a good rate. It's where we got married, so it's got sentimenal value to us. BUT, when the new FastPass perks kick in, you can bet we'll stay there more often, probably not every time, and when we do we'll probably end up sharing with someone, or getting a really kick ass discount from somewhere. Again, we're not "rich". We don't spend ALL our time in expensive hotels. Most of the time it's Super 8's and Motel 6's. Hell, a Ramada Inn is usually too expensive for us on most trips! Taking a trip to the Orlando area and hitting all the parks is going to be expensive no matter what. But there are so many websites out there, so many people here who can help, and so many tips and tricks you need to know before you book something. So to summarize, you don't need to be "rich" to afford a really kick ass trip to ANYWHERE, be it Japan, Europe, or Orlando. You just need to be "smart" on how you book it. Shepp, I hate to say it, but your whole rant about this rich stuff is total crap! You are so WRONG. At least when it comes to doing theme park trips. You may be right about other issues, where yeah, $175 might be nothing to someone who is rich. But, you lump US into that group and make it sound as though Elissa and I do nothing but stay in 4-star hotels, and use $100 bills to wipe our asses. Elissa and I are NOT "rich" by any stretch of the imagination, but I will say that we are VERY "smart" about how to book our trips. And we are more than happy to share our tricks with EVERYONE because we want people to know that ANYONE can take the kind of trip we do. One of the reasons we are looking into doing group trips is that I KNOW we can put together some really amazing trips for a better value for your money than what I've see other group trips going for. --Robb "And hopefully we can plan some really affordable trips for you all to participate in next year!" Alvey

Ahh, but see that's where we can help you out! Other than our wedding night, I don't think we've ever spent more than $150 or $175 for a night in one of the Disney Deluxe hotels. Hell, one of our visits we got Animal Kingdom Lodge for $99 a night!!! $300? Yeah, I agree with you. But when you can find really good deals that make the deluxe hotels just slightly more than the moderates, it really makes it worthwhile! Even our stay at Royal Pacific this weekend was only $150 with the AP discount. --Robb "We all about getting the best stuff at the best price!" Alvey

Well, it's that time again! 5 more videos have been added! Start downloading NOW!!!! This week we've got: "Weekend Airtime 2004" with a bunch of wacky french coaster enthusaists invading Port Aventura! "Busch Gardens Tampa" set to classical music. A VERY clever video, be sure to check it out. "Wootah's Carowinds Opening Day" What is it with all the floating heads in this year's videos? "Tripsdrill" Take a tour of this little known, but very cool looking park in Germany. "Six Flags Marine World" Ska music, great footage, and good editing make this park look great! There are now 25 videos to download in total! If you haven't downloaded them all yet, you better start now! http://www.themeparkreview.com/contest2005/contest2005.htm --Robb

^ Don't they already have some of this up and running at Disneyland Paris? I thought that if you stayed at the Disneyland hotel you got unlimited FastPasses. --Robb

Added George to the list. Anyone else coming? --Robb