Well, TesterKNYM was given the green light, but since I’m a bit of a slacker, I hadn’t ACTUALLY decided on anything to test. That is, until Uleshka (Chief Editor) came and paid a visit to my desk… “So TesterKNYM, anything new?” She asked, with an innocent smile that belied her obvious internal panic at the fact that I still had not prepared anything whatsoever. I replied calmly,
Oh you know, I’m just having a look at Hyakushiki and seeing if there is anything interesting I could write an article on…
Skillfully hiding the fact that inside, I was thinking,
OH GOD OH GOD WHATAMIGOINGTODO

PingMag’s Chief Editor, Uleshka

Hyakushiki
From there, I pulled my socks up slightly, and got down to work. I first thought that bascically my articles will follow this pattern:
Find cool stuff on sites like 100shiki. Buy it. Use it. Review it. But then I thought that maybe it’s not really interesting or original if I’m just expanding on articles from another place.
But what is “interesting and original”?…
I went to some workshop and asked the guy who was standing next to me. “Seen anything cool lately?”
“Sure - Xport!!” he replied.
“Xport????”
It has an “X” in it. Must be technical. That sounds like something I could use for Tester_KNYM!!111
I went home and had a look on the internet.

workshop “Audio/Visual School in Tokyo vol.1″

XPORT
Well that’s cool and all, but it didn’t blow me away with how world-defyingly awesome I thought it might be. I continued searching for a bit and found a related product.
The Xport 2.0 for the Game Boy AdvanceThe new Xport 2.0 turns the Game Boy Advance (GBA) into a powerful embedded development system.
(A more detailed explanation, but in Japanese)
AHA!!!
Something to do with computers and small, portable things…that’s bound to be fun, right? Searching a little further, I found that at the home page of Charmed Labs you could see OMGOMGOMG!11 a LEGO ROBOT. Tears rolled down my face in an awesome tidal wave of joy. Slowly, a plan was forming.

As I slept that night I couldn’t stop having bizarre, little mini dreams about MINDSTORM accompanied by a booming voice…
….that said, Tester_KNYM, you seem to have overlooked the fact that you know NOTHING about Lego robotics. NOTHINGGGGGGGGG.
Throwing caution to the wind, and taking into account that my only other idea involved unrealistic things like Stay Puft Marshmallow Men or that crazy shuriken thing from KRULL, I decided, For my FIRST TEST, I’m going to have a play with XPort2.0 and a Game Boy and tie it all up into a kind of crazy web-enabled somethingorother.
Coming Up Next
Budgeting - how expensive is this all going to be? Will PingMag give me the money or will they laugh at me until I cry all the water out of my body?
Until next time!
2 Comments
As of December 31, 2008, PingMag and sister site PingMag MAKE are both on extended hiatus, and will not be updated for the foreseeable future. We are eternally grateful for your fantastic support over the years.
Important Notice
31 Dec 2008
Ryu Itadani: A World in Colors
29 Dec 2008
Magibon: From YouTube to Japan
26 Dec 2008
Benedetta Borrometi: Cheerful Paintings for All
24 Dec 2008
Nakagin Capsule Tower: Architecture of the Future
22 Dec 2008
Cute and Pop! 60s Girls Comics by Eico Hanamura
19 Dec 2008
Japan’s Hi-Tech Toilets
17 Dec 2008
Amusement: Gaming Culture Meets Art and Fashion
15 Dec 2008
HIROCOLEDGE: A New Tradition that Blends into Modern Times
12 Dec 2008
Masato Seto: The Sweet Allure of Betel Nut Beauties
10 Dec 2008
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all exhibitions done is Japan require visitors fill out their information. this is done so that the organizers can send
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