What's Appening: Pac Man fever is making me sick

I grew up during the golden age of arcade video games. I’d knock off work to go to the local video game parlour and pump quarter after quarter into the machines.

While Pac Man was not my top choice, it was a game I played often.

So when I saw that Pac Man was the App of the Week in the iStore, I downloaded looking to relive some of those memories from a bygone era.

The free download was on my iPad Mini quickly and I was off playing the Classic version of the game.

The tell-tale music, brought a smile to my face as I attempted the first level.

Because it’s on an iPad, you have to use your finger to swipe which direction you want Pac Man to go. 

First man up and I’m having difficulty in telling him where to go. I’m quickly eaten by Blinky.

Note to self: Long swipes don’t work.

Second man up and I do a bit better and but I’m now down another man and less than a 1,000 points on the board.

Third man up and I do last longer, but a 2,300 high score will not secure me bragging rights anywhere, unless I’m competing against the toddlers from Knee-High Preschool.

I fare a little better in my second game, but it’s more of a frustrating experience as I try to swipe Pac Man to safety, let alone to the power pellets. 

New strategy — shorter swipes and ahead of the intersections.  Again, I do better but sadly, far shy of completely an actual board. 

It’s very easy to miss making a turn by swiping and once you do, Pac Man is eaten.

The game was free, but if you have more success than I did, there are other levels and boards you can purchase for $0.99. 

It was fun taking a trip down memory lane and, although it was free, it isn’t one I’ll be keeping on my iPad.

StratPad

The app helps prospective business owners write out a strategic plan to make it as successful as possible.

 The basic app (you can buy several  upgraded versions for up to $54.99) takes you through the steps of at least formulating what you want to do with your business.

You have to come up with a company name. After that, the app has you describe who your target customer is. It asks ‘What are their key attributes?’, “What resonates with them?’ ‘How does your product/service help them?’

There are several more steps the app takes you through to get a budding business owner to think about the various strategies needed to reach out to the intended target audience. 

You have to register to use the app, and I got three e-mails within two minutes and that shot up red flags about spam from it. 

All the e-mails were helpful, but I really don’t need another company filling up Outlook. n