Okay, so pretend I didn’t say last entry that our server issues were resolved. Apparently they weren’t, but now they are supposed to be. Actually, the issues are not at all related to our server, but DNS records and propogation and all of that. It appears that the problem is fixed now, but since that can change at any minute, we’re just gonna act like it’s fixed, okay?

I am super proud of today’s strip (Issue 138). I loved the idea of doing a “noir” strip in pixel art. I think one of my biggest challenges is that I am working in a cartoony style. There is plenty of pixel art which is amazingly rendered and looks like…art. My job is to make things look real, yet keep their “smiley” feel, which can be harder than it would seem. I wrote a little more about this in my pixel-art blog if anyone is interested.

As promised, we are steaming ahead on the whole crime storyline. We’ll be peppering in a few other threads in it, but suffice it to say, some answers to much-asked questions are coming soon!

Actually, more like *several* days late. Though, the dollar part is argueable. Despite being a bit behind, our Booyah is up and we’re pretty pleased with it. 

Of course, fresh off the frustration of a server move, I am tempted to spend a page and a half ranting and raving.  Honestly, the move went relatively smooth.  The problem is that our new server has more advanced security, which is good from a general standpoint, but not good that a large number of our scripts and programs didn’t work properly.  That included this blog and a bunch of other stuff.  Not to mention that BMW had a longer time propogating than some of the other sites.  Ah, but I promised not to rant, so suffice it to say it was a pain, but we’ve got it (mostly) taken care of now!

It’s amazing that Bitmap World has been around a year! It truly doesn’t feel that long at all. There was so many plans we had when we started, and we’ve only begun to explore some of them, and there is so much more to come.  We had hoped to start one storyline in particular with this Booyah, but instead decided to do a “birthday” strip with Issue 134. Wanting to do an Easter strip too, we figured we’d just do a few stand-alone strips and will begin the planned storyline next week.

Speaking of the birthday strip, this is again one of those comics that is more real-life than not.  Our kids LOVE bubble wrap and fight over it.  While I have never actually gotten them a roll of it, I’ve considered it.  And I have to admit, I love popping it to.  Why the heck is that so much fun?!  Whatever the reason, it is.  I can totally see my kids having a great time with a big roll of that stuff.  I’m not sure if Jim would be like Harry, thought I’m sure he’d pop a few anyway.

One of the big complaints about some comics in general is that white space is not good.  We have always held that Bitmap World is deliberately minimalistic, since we want to invoke the feelings of the old computers of days past.  Still, adding some additional color is something we have wanted to do, and have made the leap to give many of our “sets” a splash of colors. In all selfishness, we didn’t want to have to go back and color all the past strips, so a convenient little explanation was crafted.

If you visit YouTube, be sure to look up the song, Code Monkey.  It’s a great song written by a talented free-source musician, Jonathan Coultan Jim and I both love that song, particularly since we are the programming types.  I have dreamed of doing a mini-movie to the song using Bitmap World characters.  I may still yet…perhaps when I get more time in the future (whenever that will be).  Still, I wanted to somehow give a nod to the song and did so through this comic.  This is another slice-of-life strip.  My kids can’t stand when we like their stuff, even though we’re the ones that got them interested in certain types of music/movies/shows.

Last, the Easter strip. Honestly, we didn’t plan this one to be a big commentary piece. We were just talking about the Easter Bunny and then the idea was tossed around about the Macrohard bunny being at the mall, and then it went from there.  That said, both of us do find it ridiculous that there has been a trend of companies to “claim” holidays, and even seasons, as their own.  Did you know that Country Time Lemonade, Corona, and Borden’s Ice Cream all claim to be the official sponsors of Summer?  I wonder who they pay royalties to, Mother Nature?

There’s a ton to this Booyah, so remember to check out our News page for details.  We actually had more planned, but our server woes had to come first. The good news is that next month we’ll have a nice Booyah too!

Happy Spring, everyone.  And Merry Easter, too.

My friend, Anne, has a popular Blog. It’s simply called, “Cooking with Anne.” From the first time I heard that, I thought it sounded like a good title for a cooking show. That was what spurred the idea of making it a show in the Bitmapworld universe. I ran the idea past Anne some time ago, and she graciously gave me the green-light to go for it. Even though I toyed around with this concept months ago, today’s comic (Issue 133) is the actual strip I had in mind from day one. Anne is very smart and sassy, and I knew that would be reflected in her BMW alter-ego. I just thought the idea of this total chauvenist coming on her show and trying to take over was hysterical. Of course, I immediately knew how she would end up handling him. Her ending monologue, however, came to me as I was doing the actual strip, and I totally love it!

On a somewhat-related note, there was a webcomic that was/is called “Cooking with Anne,” done by Ben Bittner. It’s a short piece and is not your conventional cooking-show type take on the title. When Anne was first starting out, she wanted the URL, but Ben had it for his strip. That comic has not been updated in a while, and Ben no longer kept the name, and after switching hands a couple of times, Anne just got the domain for herself recently.

If you are looking for some great cooking, be sure to check out Anne’s blog. It’s a great read, and the recipes are soooo good. Oh, and if you were wondering why the strip has been running late lately (aside from our server woes), you can look at Anne’s site design, which was done by the BMW team (Jim and me under our Mirz-Jiles moniker). We’ve been doing web-work to make extra money while Jim is still out of job.

When we first started on this storyline, I thought it was a fun way to put Evil Couch into Bitmap World. What I didn’t know would happen is that I would end up loving the character. I’m almost sorry this was just a “cameo.” I think there is so much potential for this character, and want to know what happens next! Of course, there is one small problem–he’s not our character! We did plan to leave the storyline like this, a virtual cliffhanger of sorts. I’ll be honest and will say I hope we see Evil Couch again. Though, of course, that is more up to Couch than us. Still, if he can’t take over the real world, maybe he’ll be content taking over Bitmap World. Or better yet, both?

I have a confession to make. I have one of those lives that defies belief. I mean, the fact that I am the daughter of a ventriloquist-turned-novelty-shop-owner, having lived behind the aforementioned trick shop most of my life, hanging out with magicians and clowns and entertainment-types, that pretty much puts me in the “oh, okay” category right off the bat. That’s not to mention all the other oddities which have plagued me throughout my life since then. Anyhow, kinda like Harry, weird things seem to follow me. I tend to avoid talking about them to most people, because frankly I think most people *do* think I’m exaggerating or making it up, and I just don’t want to go there.

A while back, there was one friend who I felt I could confide in. She insisted she believed me and didn’t think I was a nut–and I believed her that she believed me. That is, until she wrote a blog entry in which she referred to me as “paranoid superfreak.” So much for her words of re-assurance! Now, honestly, most people would have been upset. But, as I mentioned, I’m used to people thinking I’m full of it. So, to me, this was actually one of the funniest things I had ever read in my life! I mean, I’ve been called a lot of things (many of which I can’t repeat this being a family site and all), but not that. In fact, I was so tickled, I immediately realized I had to use it somewhere in Bitmapworld. I already had some ideas of how to work in our contest winner, Evil Couch, into the strip, and this was the element that tied it all together. I guess in some ways I have to be thankful for that blog entry. I mean, reality is stranger than fiction…and certainly makes for good fiction.

So, there you have it, my dirty little secret. I’m really a paranoid superfreak. Well, there are worse things to be. Particularly since *they* are out to get me…and you too. Didn’t you know?

That said, this strip (Issue 131) proudly features our BYOC contest winner, Evil Couch, making his premier into the pixel world! Be sure to check out our next issue to find out what happens.

Oh, and while you’re at it, be sure to look for the extra strip tomorrow. Remember, when we miss an update, we feel guilty, and YOU win! 2 strips tomorrow.

We promised this strip (Issue 130) up by midnight, and we made it…on PST (we’re CST). *sigh* Oh well. Jim is deathly ill. He’s been coughing and running a fever. Poor guy was falling asleep at a meeting we had this morning at one of the kids’ schools. So, this strip was all mine: writing, art, and lettering. Jim usually does the kerning on the strips, and he’s faster at it than I am. So, I reluctantly, and slowly, did the wording. I know it doesn’t look that complex, but me mocking up a forum page with avatars and everything took quite a while. I’m a stickler for these things. Even if they appear simple, I put a lot of thought into them and take time drawing the graphic. The avatar for “paranoid” I had to do from scratch, but I love how it turned out and the joke of it.

I mentioned this before, but this storyline features the icon of one of the winners of our 100th strip contest–Evil Couch. This storyline is going to segway into another storyline which we will be entering in celebration of our 1st year anniversary which is the 15th! It’s amazing to believe that we’re already a year old. It’s been a blast, and the best is yet to come!