The biggest problem of being a cheapskate gamer is that by the time I get to a game, it's already yesterday's news. I just can't fork out $60 for every good looking new release that comes down the pike (and there are a lot of good looking games these days!). No doubt you'd see more video game reviews here in my blog if I thought I could talk about a game when its still fresh. It often takes months for games to hit the $20 rack.

There are those games, however, that force me to bend the rules a bit. New Zelda games are one, but if they continue to be locked to Wiimote wavin' I'll probably pass going forward. I'd easily shell out full price for Fable 2, a game I've been looking forward to for a while (and probably one of the biggest reasons I bought a 360).

Last night I succumed to temptation and picked up a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, partly due to the special Circuit City was running on it (the free $10 gift card with purchase made it a touch easier to swallow). This would be the first time I've considered a Grand Theft Auto game to be "must have." GTA III I didn't really play that much, GTA: Vice City I played long after its release and thought it was good, but San Andreas really game me a sense of where this franchise is going. Coupled with the power of the next gen consoles and a huge budget, I was genuinely excited to see what Rockstar Games would put together.

Rockstar and the Grand Theft Auto franchise have gotten a lot of harsh media coverage. The "Hot Coffee Mod" scandal from the PC version of San Andreas didn't help their reputation, but even before Carl Johnson got invited in for caffeinated bliss, politicians and media outlets pointed fingers at Grand Theft Auto because of its mature content and adult gameplay. (In fact, the MADD organization found something to grab on to so they could get some media coverage).

As someone who's played most of what Grand Theft Auto has out there, I can assure you it's not a "cop killing simulation" and now "drunk-driving promotional tool" you've heard about. I certainly wouldn't let a nine year old play it, but Rockstar puts together a very compelling *adult themed* story and solid gameplay intended for an 17+ audience.

As I said, I just picked it up last night, so I haven't gotten very far into the story. However, I can say that my initial impressions are extremely positive:

• GTA IV has a polish to it unlike any like game that's come before it. The attention to fine details (like how a car's interior light comes on when you open the door) keep a very realistic feel as you intereact with objects and the environment.
• Graphical quality has certainly stepped up since the PS2 era. The high definition world of Libery City looks fantastic, though I still think Rockstar has room for improvement when it comes to faces and character models (don't get me wrong though, they're way better compared to San Andreas).
• The story (so far) is compelling and drew me in right away. The first cut scene is pretty long, but it's always been fairly long for GTA games. I wasn't entirely sure I would be drawn to Niko, but he seems to be pretty good so far.

The only nitpick I may have so far is the major change in how Niko and cars handle in the world. Niko's movements are much more realistic and fluid than in games past, but I'm finding him a little harder to manuever and not doing things I want him to. Driving in the game has also gotten a more realistic take (1980 boat sedans don't corner like sports cars anymore), but I may just need a bit more time to adjust to the controls.

Are you playing Grand Theft Auto IV? What are your impressions?

Another day, another annoyance to complain about. This particular issue isn't related to gadgets, but e-mail is now one of the (if not THE) primary form of communication among individuals, and without technology, it wouldn't be the case.

Those in a corporate enviornment have no doubt encountered the e-mail read receipt, and probably send some or all messages requesting one yourself. Home users may not have ever had to deal with them since not all e-mail clients, particularly in the free online services, support them.

So what is a read receipt? For those who have never seen one, read receipts are a form of e-mail tracking. Quoth the Wikipedia:

"E-mail tracking is useful when the sender wants to know if the intended recipient actually received the e-mail, or if they clicked the links. However, due to the nature of the technology, e-mail tracking cannot be considered an absolutely accurate indicator that a message was opened or read by the recipient.

Some e-mail applications, such as Microsoft Office Outlook, employ a read-receipt tracking mechanism. The sender selects the receipt request option prior to sending the message, and then upon sending, each recipient has the option of notifying the sender that the message was received and/or read by the recipient." - (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_tracking)

Once you get past the big brother mentality, you can understand the usefulness of read receipts. Say, a home user for example, could send information to a friend about a change in time to a party you're hosting that evening. You flag it to request a read receipt in order to make sure they have read the e-mail in time and are aware of the change. If you don't get one, you know they didn't get it, and can call them so they're not early or late.

Read receipts aren't perfect though, since the user can choose at the time to send the receipt or not. However, when used as intended, it's a valuable tool.

Herein lies the problem, which I'm calling "Read Receipt Abuse." Several e-mail clients have a little option buried in the menus that will attach a read receipt request to all outgoing messages... no matter how irrelevant. Given the way the feature is described, it seems like a good thing to have and inevitably gets checked. What users don't realize is that everytime someone reads an e-mail from these abusers, a warning dialog pops up and forces you to make a choice.

After 20 or 30 of these intrusions, it gets very tempting to click the NO button and choose to never ask you again. However, this appears to be a global setting that will affect receipt requests from all users, not just the abuser. Sometimes a receipt makes sense, and you'll WANT to send one.

So, why not click YES and check the "don't ask me again" box? You can, but this level of e-mail tracking can be somewhat invasive. Say you read a message asking you to do something unimportant, but you don't have time to respond or want to put it off. The abuser will know you saw the message and can give you the cold shoulder for not reacting. Plus, you don't exactly want to send receipts to e-mail marketers.

In the end, home users that rely on more powerful e-mail options than the free service will end up having to say yes or no to each message individually. Well, I've clicked my last NO, and am declaring a new law - Matt's Tech Law #3

NEVER ask for an e-mail read receipt unless the message is extremely time sensitive, or is imperitive you know it was read. The sender agrees to make a cognitive decision which individual messages warrant a receipt, and will not send all messages requesting one. In return, the receiver vows to send the receipt when requested.

So the next time your friend e-mails you requesting a receipt in a message that doesn't warrant it, send them a custom receipt of your own... with a few harsh words attached and a link to Matt's Tech Law #3. Together we can end the intrusive use of e-mail read receipts... once and for all.

If you're one of the millions who didn't heed our warnings about buying into the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray format war, and ended up making the wrong choice, you may be getting a little medication to help ease your pain. Those who purchased an HD-DVD Player or XBOX-360 add-on drive at Best Buy before February 23, 2008 will automatically receive a $50 gift card good towards anything in the store.

"At Best Buy, we understood and shared our customers’ frustrations as they were being asked to choose one format or the other," says Brian J. Dunn, president and COO for Best Buy. "Now that the format war is over, we hope these gift cards will reassure our customers that we will help them make a smooth transition into the right technology for their needs."

Some may look at the $50 gift cards as a token gesture, considering that HD-DVD playback devices sold between $180 and $500 until Toshiba pulled the plug back in February. It's important to remember that early adoption of new audio, video, and gaming formats is a risky move for any consumer. Retailers aren't required to give anything back to consumers who invest in a technology loser... and they usually don't.

What makes the death of HD-DVD different among other tech failures of yore (like DVD-Audio, SACD, Dreamcast, and a host of others) different is beside me. Will compensation for early adoption of dead formats become commonplace in the future, or is this one-time gesture to increase sales during this economic downtime? Either way, early adopters should count their blessings they get anything at all while still getting to keep their original purchase.

Most won't have to do a thing to receive their $50 gift card; Best Buy will proactively mail the card customers they can identify as having purchased an HD-DVD player. Meaning if you used your Best Buy Rewards Zone card or purchased a product protection plan at the time of purchase, you'll get your card automatically. For those who paid cash or fear they did not give Best Buy personally identifiable information can "call (888) BEST BUY to receive their gift cards with proof of purchase through a credit card or their Best Buy receipt."

The Best Buy love continues for those who also no longer wish to keep their HD-DVD player. Beginning March 21st, anyone (BestBuy customer or not) who has an HD-DVD player or HD-DVD movie they don't want can get a trade in quote from Best Buy's Online Trade-In Center. If you like the estimate you get, you can ship your unwanted HD-DVD items to them free and get extra gift cards. Don't get your expectations too high on what you'll get for it though... I can't imagine it will be a lot.

While I believe the true motive behind this customer love-fest is really the need to spur in-store sales during this time of low consumer spending, you can't argue with being tossed a cookie for making a bone-headed choice.

Just do me a favor and don't spend it on the HD-DVD movie fire sale. Remember, players don't last forever.