Fragapalooza 2008 – Day 1
Dawn broke on the city of Edmonton, and for a select few gamers it was truly a day to awake for. Yesterday was the first day of Fragapalooza. Though the forecast was calling for a high of 32C few were worried. Soon we would be inside, under air conditioning, and enjoying four straight days of gaming madness. I gave a quick sneak preview of this awesome LAN event, and now it’s time to show you exactly what goes on inside. I’m pleased to bring you Day 1 of Fragapalooza 2008.
Day 1 started and ended in much the same way. Since this is the first day, there isn’t much going on. People are just arriving, technological and social bugs are still being worked out, and things really don’t get started. Still I was glad to see the Futurelooks.com banner hadn’t fallen from its place. This banner has seen adventures in Vegas, Taipei, and varied and sundry areas of Vancouver, and now it’s followed me to Edmonton. I’ll of course be posting a full article on the event at Futurelooks.com, once it’s over and I’ve recovered.
As for setup, it proceeded fairly smoothly. Everyone filed in, and slowly but surely got setup. There were chairs to re-assemble, components to connect, and bags to check to make sure nothing was forgotten. By about noon, it was safe to say nearly half the participants had arrived, and were setup.
In addition to the computers, many had to setup their sleeping quarters. Fragapalooza events many years ago had an area where participants could setup a tent should they want to. This year that tradition returned, and Tent City was reborn. Some us still prefer to sleep on a quick-setup mattress on the floor in front of our computers, but if you wanted a tent you more then welcome to set one up.
With many people setup and settled in, it was time to start the opening ceremonies. It was also time to give away some free stuff. Every year the Fragapalooza staff and sponsors give away some special prizes to those that registered early. This year, those that were the first 200 to register were eligible to win a GeForce 8800 GTS based video card, and those in the first 400 could win a Intel Core 2 Quad Extreme processor. Intel also had some very comfortable (and highly coveted) small pillows to throw into the crowd. Speeches were made – including one by me – and the event was now officially under way.
Another Year, Another Massive LAN Event!
Every year in the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, a fun little event happens. It attracts men (and some women) young and old to a city that will only see summer for another couple months. But these people aren’t concerned about the weather, because they’ll be spending most of their time inside. The reason for that is that this fun little event also happens to be the largest LAN party in Canada. With almost 1,000 participants and a history spanning back more then a decade, Fragapalooza has become a staple of the Edmonton gaming scene and has made quite a name for itself across Canada and some parts of the US.
Taking place this year at the Northlands Sportex from August 7 to 10, this huge LAN will be host to over 65,000 square feet of BYOC goodness. There will also be competitive tournaments, fun contests, and the self-imposed challenge of staying up as much as possible during the entire four days so you don’t miss a single thing.
I know I’m rather excited to be attending as this is my 6th year, and it never gets boring. I did write a huge article outlining the day to day goings-on for The Tech Zone in 2006. This year is going to be different, as I’ll be shooting for daily updates on this blog and one final review over at Futurelooks. I also get to take on the role of tech philanthropist, as I will be giving away many Futurelooks sponsored prizes at random an in some fun contests. Overall, this is going to be my best year at Fraga yet.
As for the gear I’ll be using at this year’s Fragapalooza, I though I give a quick preview here. This isn’t just a hardware showcase though, as this should serve as a decent guide to what to take to any LAN.
A Feather In My Cap
Some people say that it’s not considered very virtuous to brag about one’s accomplishments. Luckily I have no such reservations. So last week when Stephen Fung alerted me to something he saw at Computex 2008, I have to say I was rather proud.
As Stephen was wandering about the Computex floor, he noticed a Futurelooks.com logo on the display for one of the many products we’ve reviewed. This is always a great achievement for a site, but there’s a reason it’s also a feather in my cap.
The logo was the Editor’s Choice award rewarded to Foxconn for their 9800GTX-512N video card in the review I wrote for Futurelooks more than a month ago. The card was a solid performer, and the review was well received. Even with that in mind, it’s still nice to see the hard work put into the review recognized in such a way.
Computex is the second largest computer trade show in the world, and a great venue for our site to show it’s stuff. I have had my writing featured before, but mostly on company websites buried a few pages deep on the reviews section. Though a useful promotion tool, it usually requires that the visitor to that site be looking in that particular area. Sometimes you luck out, and those links will show up in a Google search. However branding that is front and centre on a banner for one of the largest OEM component manufacturers in the world catches a few more eyes, and is definitely a great boost for both the site and myself.
Anyhow enough of the ego boost. Thanks to Foxconn for the recognition, and thanks to Stephen for making sure this review hit the internet running. I’m quite looking forward to going to Computex in 2009, as I’d like to check out some of these companies in person. It’s also a great opportunity to essentially usurp the North American market entirely and see products before they event have a hint of hitting our shores. In addition to all that, apparently I’m being drafted to find Ed Lau some hot Asian girls.
The 2nd Annual Sony Poker Party – CES 2008
Sony Online Entertainment is one business unit within the Sony Corporation that knows a good idea when it has one, at least when it comes to throwing Press/VIP parties at CES. Last year they threw the first poker party, and some of the other Sony business units were there to boost the launch of the PS3 and some of their newest HDTV sets. The prizes were big, and the party was rather drawn out. Sony gave out too many chips, which made last year’s poker tournament go until 3:00AM. This was rather enjoyable for everyone…except the folks from Sony, who undoubtedly had to be up early the next day to tend to their CES booths.
With lessons learned from last year (make the tournament close-ended, hold it at a better venue) Sony sent out invitations for their 2nd annual poker party. The theme was to be pirates, to boost their new MMO Pirates of the Burning Sea. It was held at The Joint nightclub at the Hard Rock Hotel. I was of course invited, as was pretty well everyone else from the TTZ crew. We also managed to convince the man himself, Fatal1ty, to attend the festivities. Would his god like abilities in the FPS arena translate into some luck at the poker table? Well with the blinds adjusted, an ante implemented, and a timer being used, it wouldn’t take us long to find out. Sony definitely wanted us to have fun this year, but not until 3:00AM. (Read on …)
Klipsch Chopper from OCC at CES 2008
The Klipsch party at Body English seemed like it was going to be just another press and VIP party. That was until I found out that the guys from Orange County Choppers were unveiling a Klipsch themed chopper. So while all the webmasters headed to Phantom of the Opera, all the 20-somethings from FutureLooks.com and TheTechZone.com headed to the Hard Rock Hotel to party hard and see a wicked chopper revealed. I somehow managed to muscle my way right up to the stage to see the cover come off, so here’s the video of the bike being unveiled front and centre.
I also took quite a few pictures at the party, as well as some of the memorabilia found at the Hard Rock Hotel. Check out the pictures in the gallery after the jump. (Read on …)
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