CoasterBuzz Podcast #143 posted

Wow.. How can you name Arrow rides and not remember 30 year old, still operating well, first in interlocking loops, Loch Ness Monster.. Nessie is weeping now.. :)

Oh, is that ride still there? :)

Disagree with the non need for Disney books. Not everyone in the world is park experts like us and things like showing up before opening, doing big rides first, etc. escape them. Those books serve a purpose, especially if you are Mr. American Dad taking Johnny and Jaime to Disney for the first and only time, you want to know what you are doing before you go.

But I'm no expert, and I never go to any of those sites, and somehow I get along pretty well there. If you can read the brochure, you can figure out FastPass. What more do you really need to figure out?

I honestly dont know, but I do know that I have run into so many people at Disney that do not understand the concept.

And Ill admit to buying one of those before my first trip, but that was pre fast pass and during the week before Easter so those "plans" really came in handy.

Im on the fence for the all those Disney guide books.. I agree with Jeff, with respect to how to get around park or use fast pass, it really isnt useful. However if you want a guide to all the restaurants around WDW and see which is $$$$ and which is $, or what restaurant serves lobster, you arent really going to get that level of detail from some of the brouchures around the park. Why else do people stare at the menu boards in front of the restaurants. If you had some of those guide books you would already know the menu in advance.

Some books cater to the "hidden" aspects of the parks as well. I dont think those are useless as you are definitely not going to get that from a park brochure. Some people (such as myself), enjoy the hidden aspects. So I guess it depends on the purpose..

Rides.. eh.. maybe not as useful. High level park info.. Probably more so.

Granted in this day and age anything can be obtained from the interwebs, so really any tree killing compedium could be considered obsolete. But either way you are going to research something about Disney, whether it be online or in a book, or in a brochure. Just a matter of what park subject and the level of detail you want to absorb.

Look at it this way Jeff.. Theres lots of ASP.NET books out there.. I could probably figure out how to code without picking up someones book. But maybe theres some person out there that has a snippet of code that is way more efficient than the way I learned. Thus proving useful. ;)

Are you seriously comparing programming to visiting Disney World? Seriously? No wonder the job market is oversaturated.

But I'm no expert, and I never go to any of those sites, and somehow I get along pretty well there.

But, you do know how crowds move through a park in general, and which styles of attractions do and don't eat people. That bit of understanding goes a long way. A random "civillian" won't understnad which attractions are likely to build lines early, and which ones are not.

No, actually I don't. I think you're grossly over-estimating my Disney knowledge. I go there with no pre-conceived notions. In fact, I pretty much left it up to Diana when we were there in November. Each day started with, "Where do you wanna go?" We were on vacation, not making life plans. The only two "failures" we encountered were that the noodle joint in Magic Kingdom was closed and the safari at Animal Kingdom went "down" because of animals in the road.

I stand by my statement. Disney has it figured out enough that you really don't need to do anything other than read the brochure/guide.

Listening to this podcast, it finally dawned on me who Gonch reminds me of. Voice-wise, he sounds a little bit like he could be one of the Miser Brothers from the old TV special, "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". He has a very distinctive voice, and once you hear him speak it's hard not to like him.

Gonch, you should seriously think about trying to break into voice-over work.

Wow. I'll take that as honest compliment. Thanks!

Never thought about voice over stuff. Like most people, I hate hearing my voice.

If anybody has any voice over work availble, I'm willing to do it for whatever amounts to the standard fee. :)

You can voice over me any time! ;)

You're welcome. And I'm serious. If the idea isn't repugnant, you ought to at least look into it. :)

I have no idea how one "breaks into" the voice-over business. I will indeed have to look into it. That'd be cool. I wonder if the Dayton area is a hotbed of voice-over activity?

In the meantime, I think Moosh needs to see me about something...

Ahem.

And you're welcome.

Jeff said:
Are you seriously comparing programming to visiting Disney World? Seriously? No wonder the job market is oversaturated.

I admit it was a reach, but there are some small parallels.. People seek guide books to answer questions they may have about a subject..

People want to know how to get around disney.. they seek disney guide books.

People want to know how to get around networks or systems.. They seek guide books.

Honestly they are all called guide books for a reason. Now.. Beyond that are they necessary.. For you.. Maybe not.. For someone else.. Must be, otherwise they wouldn't be published in such volumes..

Mamoosh said:
Ahem.

And you're welcome.

Doing stuff is hard.

I like stuff.

I want Gonch's job. Stay at home dad would rock.