And it’s not easy either. Nowadays, I struggle to write even on a month basis. A combination of other work and a lack of things to talk about on a regular basis makes writing something every thirty days a challenge. I suppose it’s because of the way I view things. Like many people, I started blogging because I wanted people to hear what I had to say. Apart from the fact I am almost a complete nobody, I’ve realised that writing on a personal website is probably not the best way to go about this. If I want to write about my life (and to be fair for the most part, I don’t), then I can effectively say goodbye to my visitors. There is an undeniable decrease in site traffic whenever I post something about my life or what the Home Secretary has recently said. Evidently, people aren’t interested.

But isn’t that what I orginally setup this blog for? Of course it is, the clue is in the URL. This is my website, come hear what I have to say. I think at times I forget this, with my never ending quest for more visitors. I’ve become so blinded by my obsession in finding small niche-topics to talk about, I’ve created what is now a complex mess of topics with no clear direction. And now this is beginning to hurt. People might come on to see my thoughts on Keek.com, only to find that the next few posts are about Derby County. What’s the solution to this? There is none. I decided to write about a website – that’s it. If it doesn’t bear to make resemblance to what I have written beforehand, then so be it. If I lose visitors then who cares? I want to be a resident internet-writer, but I need people to come follow me, rather than for me to draw them in with a lone-post on something that they may find interesting.
What’s the difference between writing to lure people in, then begging for followers on twitter through retweets? That’s not what it should be about.

And so I need to change my entire mentatility with regards to this website. I’ve got other websites that are far more appropriate for me to channel my obsession with drawing in visitors. Three years ago, I was raging over the Premier League, detailing the day I had a few teeth removed and reviewing some games. That’s what interested me and it is precisely that sort of thing I should return to.
I may have changed as a person in that time, seeing things differently. But I’d sooner return to my blind state of not particularly caring how many people saw my musings, then slave over statistics that indicate site traffic is down on the last month. To hell with that.

Football Manager has established itself as the leading brand in Football Management simulation, known for its complexity and attention to detail. In 2009, the series was branched out to the iOS. Though the game was cut down significantly, it remained extensive and has improved on all fronts (on all platforms) to this day, with the latest copy 2012, currently being sold on the app store for £6.99.
Though it is undeniably a good game, it may not be suited to all football fans. Indeed, because Football Manager excells so greatly in its attention to detail, it alienates the casual consumer group, who want a simple, easy to use game which they can play anywhere for any amount of time.

iClub Manager is another one of the growing list of football management simulations that are available for download. The gameplay focuses on picking your teams lineup and formation, deciding who is trained, playing on the transfer market as well as dictating the price of match tickets. There is little beyond this to write home about. Even for the least enthusisatic, there isn’t much here. But by no means is this a bad thing. When you think in terms of its feature list, you almost certainly compare it to its Football Manager counter part, an even to a lesser extent the recent Championship Manager. As far as I’m concerned these are two different games in pretty much all aspects.

The game features a weird and wonderful range of teams, from all around the world including ‘Moscow’, ‘London’, ‘Rio de Janeiro’, and ‘Granada’. As expected, iClub Manager does not hold any of the rights to real-life football teams. However, its inbuilt editor allows you to change team names and budgets so the more committed of you may spend an hour or so converting the teams to the resepective English counterparts.
Nonetheless, the decision to branch out the teams to so many different countries will undoubtably help in its appeal to people around the world. People buying this shouldn’t expect the Premiership. Where the game has been limited, it has capitalised on to provide us with a delightful set of teams to battle out against.

Transfer dealings are heavily simplified, and this works well in the context of the game. There are no transfer windows, instead you can buy and sell players as you please throughout the entire season. In your stages of your career, as you manage lower division teams, you will find yourself heavily restricted on who you can buy. But remain patient and keep monitoring the market as the odd gems are available for a bargain price wich does wonders for your teams position and finances. Selling players is as simple as switching their status to ‘On’ the market. Offers will come in (at varying speeds dependent on the individual circumstances of a player). The AI may come across as stubborn, rarely offering much for my players and in return, asking a lot for theirs, but you will get used to this.

Picking your team is also a very straightforward business and there is little flexibility. There are just six formations to choose from and I found their effects marginal. Because they for the most part serve a very small purpose, you probably won’t be bothered all to much by the lack of choice here.
However, injury crisis’s are to be expected. If your don’t properly prepare yourself (keeping enough backup squad members), your team can be crippled within a matter of weeks. Combine that with the odd suspension and you have a perfect storm, forcing you to pick a heavily weakened team, killing your season. I’m not suggesting this doesn’t happen in real life. As a Derby County supporter, I am more than accustomed to having most of the squad on the medical table. But thse moments can be frustrating. Often they occur out of nowhere to the latter stages of the season and that can really dent your seasons plans, occuring atleast once a season.
Maybe I’m just unlucky to have six first teamers out, with a routine match against a bottom-of-the-league side causing a further two injuries as well as two players getting suspended. Frustrating as it is, it does at least provide a bit of an interesting end to even the most straight forward of seeasons. Indeed, I’m sure these bouts of injury’s are down to something I’m doing (or more so, what I’m not doing) rather than the game itself just being a pain in the arse.
If the worst comes to worst you can field injured players, though your performence will be penalised as a consequence.

Once you’ve decided the weeks plan and laid out the weekened’s lineup, you relinquish control of your team. There is little concept of ‘Matchday’. After a prolonged loading screen, your are given the results of all the matches that have taken place along with goalscorers, sending offs or bookings. It is a matter then of dealing with these and any injuries that have arisen in time for the next match. After this, aside from the occasional transfer deal, or an expansion to your stadium, there is little more to the game.
And why should there be? This is a simple simulation whereby you can get through a whole season in around half an hour. You get straight into the thick of the action without a moments pause. There is no long (and ultimately boring) pre-season campaign to have to contend with, media-conferences to worry about or your relationship with players. You simply strive to build the best team there is and climb the footballing ladder. You are forever bound by your manager rating (maximum of 10 stars) which, along with your performence in the season just gone, determining what jobs are offered to you. You can’t skip the system, you start off small and work your way up. Because the game is quick, this happens within a matter of days and by the end of the week you feel an old hand, possibly journeying through many different clubs of all situations and backgrounds, or remaining with the same team from the very start. It’s your decision.

On a final note, there is a strong focus on disciplined-finance. The vast majority of jobs that are offered to you are on the basis of ensuring that you remain in the division with an acceptable balance in the bank. Some may be frustrated, wanting to concentrate on the league position rather than how much is in the bank. I for one certainly enjoy the emphasis on simply keeping your finances in order, particularly at a time when stories of clubs who have mismanaged theirs are so common in the news.

This game is not a major simulation. This is something you can pickup, play and have a career. A career that can be as long or as short and in any style you want. What it lacks in functionality, it makes up in just being a fun little game to keep you pre-occupied. And at the end of the day, that’s all iPhone apps should really be about?

FINAL SCORE: 690/1000 YES download.

General Comments
A simple, well-executed, fast-paced, world-domination game based on the ‘RISK‘ board game, to occupy yourself with anywhere from 2 minutes to 30 minutes.

The Good
The gameplay is very flexible. Options range from the size of the board (from a handful of ‘countries’ to what it describes as ‘epic’ in proportion), difficulty levels, battle types and how your bonus army units are placed. In doing so, you can create a game for the bus journey to school, or whilst you wait on your Uncle Bens 2 minute egg fried rice to cook in the microwave.

Graphically, it is very sleek. The colours are sharp and are very nice to look at. The simplicity works again in its favour. Comparable games such as EA’s RISK has some pretty complex sprites that clutter the screen. In addition, there are no silly and unnecessary animations when attacking/defending your territory as is in the afore mentioned EA title, which serve no purpose other than to increase game time.

I am yet to encounter any problems with the online multiplayer portion of the game that isn’t my own fault. The addition of ‘Pass and Play’, though rarely used (the iPod/iPhone is a rather solitary device – iPad less so), is welcome.

The Bad
As you increase the difficulty ratings, the AI naturally become more aggresive against you. Your dice rolls (which determine the outcome of battles), certainly appear to work far less in your favour. Though I can appreciate that there are few ways in which you can make the game harder for the player, it can become quite frustrating with a heavily advantaged computer (usually one colour in particular) attacking you relentlessly, and winning on a consistent basis. Though beating the computer in ‘Brutal’ is a great feeling, it is more so out of relief rather than joy. Or perhaps I’m just spoilt by modern-gaming habits.
It is worth mentioning that in the lower difficulty settings, I can find no evidence to say that AI deliberately go out to get you. Indeed, it often feels like they intentionally leave you alone. This is a great way to get to grips with the game.
I have no real complaints here, but playing on any setting above ‘Normal’ does not seem worth the effort on many occasions.

The Ugly
It would be very harsh to claim that there were any big problems or major let downs with this title. If you’re looking for a simple, easy to play, RISK-esque game, then Strategery is for you. However, if your looking for a more indepth and more accurate replica of the original board game (one that will take long-periods of tactical planning), then Strategey with its fast-paced action, is probably not quite what you’re looking for.

FINAL SCORE: 899/1000 YES download.

There has been little doubt that in the past two seasons that Forest have been the superior side. They played the better football, they scored more goals, they won more games, they got into the playoffs twice. All the while, Derby continued to languish in an almost never-ending fight down the bottom of the table.
It’s not even a year ago that Forest were knocked out of the play-offs by the eventual-winners Swansea. Such is the way with the Championship, barely eight months later, they are trapped in the botton 3, 5 points from safety. Derby on the other hand, appear to have finally transformed themselves into a stable mid-league side. For the first time in five seasons, there is no immediate threat of relagation. Whilst this season has not been as straight forward as we may have liked it to be (including a five-match losing streak), the focus has been more on progress rather than ‘get the season done with’. I can tell you, it is such a relief.

And yet despite our progress, and Forest’s problems, I can’t help but feel Sunday will not be a simple affair. Though I say we are now something of a stable team, the Derby mentailty that has accumulated from our recent history has I and many others certain that we are about to collapse spectacularly. And derbys themselves often bare little resemblence to the form book. Portsmouth were not favored against top-of-the-league rivals Southampton who were separated by 17 points, but still scavanged a point.
In addition, we are often appalling when on TV. The moment a camera is turned on we seem to turn into the most mediocre of sides ever to have existed. We’re

Though I haven’t seen them play often this season, nor do I know enough about the team, I genuinely cannot see Forest going down, even if the odds are stacked against them, their form can only improve. They’ll find a win from somewhere at some point. And if they do go down, what a shame that would be. It’s a match which both sides look forward to, whatever the circumstances. And I’ll be damned if our most ‘bitter rivals’ in the Championship are Leicester.

Sunday could be interesting. The majority of Forest fans are no less than dreading the encounter, for all of England to see. To be honest, so am I. It wont be a classic (I always find the City Ground encounters appeal more to neutrals), but it will be a defining moment in both our seasons. For Derby, let’s keep going. For Forest, a cataylst to their revival?

Like its rivals, users can post updates, ‘follow’ others, like videos, comment on them and share them on Facebook, Twitter and by Email. It’s nothing we haven’t really heard of before, but Keek is certainly making headway in the social-media industry. Since commencing operations in September, the service’s user-base has grown rapidly and has attracted a number of high-profile users most notably Austin Mahone. In early October, it was able to secure a $5.5m in funding from a group of investors led by AlphaNorth Asset Management and Plazacorp Ventures.

Whilst I think Keek is a good idea, you get the feeling it’s rather late to an already-saturated industry. Videos are already covered at large by YouTube, and there is enough functionality on Twitter and Facebook to make vlogging – of any length – viable. These are the three big boys and if micro-video-blogging were to ever take off, you would have thought it would be with one of these. Keek has to do almost everything from scratch which includes quickly building a large userbase. It is currently dominated by users aged between 13-25 and whilst this group probably makes up the vast majority of the social-media base, it needs to extend much further beyond this.
And the thing with videos is that they work so much differently to written text. Whilst most can make a vaguely interesting sentance (even complete gibberish), there are far fewer who can record a video of themselves and have something interesting to say on a consistent basis, greatly limiting its potential. Looking through various videos, I find that the vast majority feature very little content. More often than not, the people are actually commenting on how little they have to say. That’s the main thing it seems that people talk about, how little they have to talk about. This might be ok for the odd photogenic person, but it’s not very gripping stuff.

The site calls 36 seconds “the magic number”. I disagree. For most people, it’s a tall order to tell an interesting story in 36 seconds. And as most people aren’t that great infront of a camera, this hinders the possibilities further. I find that the people who are good on camera, tend to like listening to their own voice and 36 seconds is probably just not enough for them. Those who talk, talk alot. Those who don’t, don’t at all.
What’s more, there is very little potential for companies here, another driving force to success. On YouTube, firms could post product media and competitions. On Twitter and Facebook, they could announce deals and provide customer support. Keek represents far fewer opportunities. Apart from smaller adverts (which we spend most of our time avoiding), there is little in the way of user-to-user interaction aside for in the comments and private messages, which are all quite subtle. 36 seconds is not a lot to play with so it will take some imaginative thinking from company marketing teams before this service becomes of any good use.

But don’t put it down just yet. Its early success speaks for itself. And if more high profile users register, growth will accelerate allowing it to firmly establish itself on the scene. It has a long way before being able to stand even at the feet of the other more established social networks. Though it has great potential, its success is likely never to be anywhere near the scale which others have seen before it. Nonetheless, it’s certainly one to keep an eye on.

And atlast, my much-anticipated christmas calendar has finally arrived. Its been many-a-year since I actually ate the chocolate inside, nowadays I buy these things merely as part of a tradition. This years features Homer Simpson, a classic, already hanging in the same place as the many which have gone before it.

Does that look familiar? It should. It’s the exact same one as last years. Why do I bother buying these commercialised objects with all but not connection to what christmas is actually supposed to mean?

I’m usually very excited about Christmas. I don’t have much care for the actual day itself (gift wise), but in the run up to the 25th I’m unusually happy.
It’s not so much the case this year. Being in my final year at College & Secondary school, I’ve spent the last few months looking back rather than forward. It feels like just yesterday I was sitting in the main school hall on my Year 7 induction day. I was told “these next seven years will go by very quickly”, and like 99% of other people, I dismissed his comment as lie. Seven years simply does not go by that quickly. I’m here effectively for the rest of my life.
And yet I blinked, and all of a sudden I’m 18, about to send my University application off and preparing for my working life.

Christmas represents all that was great in my childhood. Holidays, prsents, Grandparents, Snow (albeit very occasionally), just everything. This is my final christmas of my life as it is now. I’m changing.
But some things do not change. Christmas is one of them. Every year, the same 15-odd tracks are played over and over. Coca Cola plays a new advert with the same damn music. All these things and more, I’ve grown up with. The music, adverts, presents are all trapped in time, but I’m leaving without it. And that’s something which I find so disheartening. All that I think about the world is about to change.

But rather than see this as the beginning of the end, it’s instead the end of the beginning of the new. Despite how disappointing it is to be saying goodbye to young-me, I welcome the new me. This is my final Christmas as the former. I’ll enjoy it. And then I’ll get right on to enjoying the latter.
That’s why I buy those blasted calendars.

This is Abe. Two years ago, at the age of 13, he came out to the world as gay through a series of videos he posted on YouTube. Sadly, the persistent onslaught of what was described as ‘hate’ and ‘harrasment’ (amongst other things) led him to the decision to take all of his videos down and delete his account. Subsequently he has disappeared entirely.

So why should the world care? He could quite easily be shrugged off as an immature kid, barely into puberty and somewhat confused about himself. But things couldn’t be more different. This is no ordinary kid, and this is very evident from watching his videos.

When he talks, he’s honest. He speaks so well with a mindset and intelligence of someone far older than he is. He’s so aware of the things around him. He’s confident, displaying such high levels of maturity, and you get the feeling he means every word he says.

The simple fact is, Abe is an incredibly inspirational person who has touched many peoples lives. . Two years after his withdrawal, thousands are still watching his videos (having been reposted by other people).

He has an extraordinarily good grasp of who he is, something which most of us could only wish for. That’s why he was so liked. He’s so aware and so sure of things. That’s why his decision to leave YouTube was such a disappointment for so many – as understandable as it was. He faced much opposition for what he stood for, which was unfair with him being just 13 years old, he should never have had to deal with that.
But he had a way with things which people found captivating. His life, whilst by all means normal, was almost inspirational.

When I first watched one of his videos, his young, energetic voice had me put him down as a kid who is unnecessarily labelling himself. But very quickly I realised that actually, he spoke a lot of sense and was more assured of himself then maybe even I am now. In fact much of his personality and character is probably more superior than me.

Two years on and he will have changed so much, 14 going on 15. If he is to make one last mark in this world, before becoming another gay-adult, is to post a final ‘update’ video, informing people of how he has got on. People want to know how this kid got on and where he stands now. His videos were engaging and open and I think people got very attatched to him and just want to hear him speak one last time.

His legacy – and it is one – of his short stint on YouTube continues. And long may it continue. Wherever he is now, Abe’s made an impact.

Some of his videos have since been reposted including his original ‘coming out’ and and one of his later updates.

As of Sunday the 6th of November, the current blogging network was taken down after a year and a bit in operation. But fear not, come January the 5th of next year, it will return to our screens. Completely overhauled along with the rest of the site.

And you’re invited. Anyone interested in writing online is offered the opportunity to write on here at nickcampion.de. We’ll provide you with your own blog as well as a solid user base to display your work to. You can write about just anything you want (within reason and law). There is no charge what so ever.

If you’re interested in anyway, please contact me and I’ll set yours up as soon as possible.

Naturally, one would assume the National Transitional Council (NTC) led by Mustafa Abdul Jalil will inherit control. They are of course, the current de facto government of the country and have controlled much of the rebel-held land for the past few months.
The fall of Gaddafi now means that the rest of the nation is open to offers and the NTC will for sure be itching to take control. But they are by no means the only interested party.
Libya is heavily divided. Different regions represent different ideologies and it is difficult to see how any of these can work together in an effective manner. The biggest threat being extremist groups who which are prepared to use violence to force their way to power. Al-Shabaab’s campaign in Somalia springs to mind.
The majority, having lived under the tyrannical reign of Gaddafi for so long, will naturally call for a democracy. But democracy is not something which can simply be established at the push of a button. Indeed, its more of an evolution. No two countries so-called ‘democracy’ is the same because they have all had their own long independent paths towards the state they are in now. Iraq is an excellent modern-day example of how a democracy simply cannot be created to work effectively so quickly.
And indeed, in a country which is dominated by Muslims (making up almost 97% of the total population), is a democracy(more so, a liberal democracy) such an appropriate thing?
Let’s not forget also, there remain supporters of the old-regime in the area. If they are discriminated against in any way, they could retaliate forcefully in their own way.

What’s more, there will be much international pressure from other countries keen to gain influence in their region to promote their own interests. As one commentator said, the world is going to have to show “exceptional amounts of restraint” during the process of transition from the old and new rule. Libya will make herself by herself. External influences are unlikely to be in the absolute best interests for the people of Libya.

On an additional point of note, the people themselves are now dangerous – more so than before. Ordinary citizens of all walks of life have guns, weapons and ammunition which have become so freely avaliable during the civil war. These need to go else they will merely exacerbate the instabilities which the country will face from here. They need to be removed – taking a lesson from Afghanistan, not by buying them back. The people who made the new government possible, are now the biggest threat to it.

Before Gaddafi fell, whether you liked it or not, you knew who was in charge. You knew who the good and bad guys were, you knew who ran the place. You don’t now. The whole matter of governance is up in the air, even if the NTC are such strong candidates.
The question as to who will run the country has been one many people have been dreading. The one comfort whilst the civil war was being fought was that consideration of this was not needed. It’s a very real problem now and for better of for worse, the NTC needs to establish itself as a credible governing body of the country.
Gaddafi may be dead, but Libya’s problems are only just beginning.

It’s part of a series of reforms to help reduce the number of people living in Britain illegally. Personally, I see this as nothing more than attempt to gain favour with the electorate, by riding on the bandwagon of opinion that there are too many foreigners living in Britain and that some need to go.
If not that, just an extremely-poorly-worded press release.

If you want to reduce the number of illegal immigrants in the country, you do it through the people who are responsible for it – the UK Border Agency and HMRC.
Giving some of that responsibility to ordinary folk is downright irresponsible. There are people in the country who are simply too bigotted, ill informed and too patriotic. These people are not qualified to act out some of the work on behalf of the establishment. There are – rather sadly – people out there who will interpret “report suspected illegal immigrants” as “report all foreign looking people”.
I don’t think that’s what David Cameron ever intended to happen, but speaking one way will not stop people interpreting it as another. And indeed that’s what’s happening.

There are foreigners living in Britain entirely legitamately, paying taxes, not claiming benefits and living in accordance to the law. I can’t for a moment see why they would look favorably on being interrupted in their lives and investigated because someone thought that they shouldn’t be in the country. That’s not welcoming the world with open arms, that’s holding them at gunpoint for looking different.

Take a moment to think why the vast majority of people emmigrate to Britain. For many it is the quest for a better life of varying degrees. For some, an improvement in living standards. For others, that, and a matter of life and death. Some have to resort to getting into the country through less than legal methods, staying here when technically they shouldn’t. They are vulnerable people who sought refuge but were refused so had to step out of the law.
People who know they are there illegal immigrants might hold them for blackmail, threatening to turn them in. These people who, in a sense need to be here, are now at the mercy at a person who is taking advantage of them for his or her own benefit.

People might also abuse the system – using it for reasons not originally intended. For example, when a foreigner angers a person for whatever reason, their first act afterwards might be to contact the authorities to report them as suspects as a way of possibly getting their own back. I’m not saying that this will be a common place, it’s just a hypothetical situation of how and why someone would use their right to report people. Not for the benefit for the rest of society, but for their misfortune of the immigrant.

Finally, I want to draw a comparison to North Korea. This secluded nation operates a similiar system to that which has been proposed by David Cameron. Those suspected of not belonging in a certain place – be it the country as a whole or local region – are reported to the authorities who act accordingly. A fully developed democratic nation should not have to rely on the methods used by a secretive-communistic like nation which is seen as little more than a joke by the rest of the world.

To draw an end to this matter, I say let the people whose job it is to find those living here illegally get on with their job. If they need help, make provisions to give them that help which does intended.
Whatever the original aim was, in our society of preconceptions that immigrants are flooding in by the millions, it’s unplausable to expect ordinary citizens to do half of the investigatory work for you. A culture of mistrust may develop which breaks down the ties between the “us” and “them”. Integration cannot work if one group are at risk of being investigated and possibly removed because the other one wasn’t too keen on them.