User:Tuxedo Mark

Education
My name is Mark Moore. I was born on October 18, 1978, in Chicago, Illinois, to Polish immigrants. I attended Locke School in kindergarten (1983-1984) and St. William's School in first and second grades (1984-1986).

My parents and I moved to the unincorporated town of Homosassa in Citrus County, Florida in June of 1986, when I was 7 years old.

I attended Homosassa Elementary School in third, fourth, and fifth grades (1986-1989); Lecanto Middle School in sixth, seventh, and eigth grades (1989-1992); and Lecanto High School in ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grades (1992-1996).

I graduated from high school in 1996 at the age of 17 and then attended Central Florida Community College at its Citrus County campus in Lecanto until December of 1998, graduating with honors and receiving an Associate of Arts degree in Business Administration.

I then attended Saint Leo University at its satellite location on the main Central Florida Community College location in Ocala, Florida, as well as a few classes at its main campus in Saint Leo, Florida from 1999 until 2001, graduating and receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration.

Employment
I worked as a night stocker at the Crystal River, Florida, Kash n' Karry supermarket from June of 2000 to November of 2001.

In November of 2001, I started working as a cashier in the Inverness, Florida, Wal-Mart. Due to a conflict of interest between the two companies, I had to quit my job at Kash n' Karry. In December of 2001, I was terminated from Wal-Mart for unknown reasons.

In 2001, my sister had e-mailed me an application for Vocational Rehabilitation. I was assigned to an employment specialist at the Lecanto office of the Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida. In late February or early March of 2002, I was hired by the company as an Information & Referral Specialist (a part-time, afternoon receptionist).

Due to turmoil, firings, and turnover at the Lecanto office, I was made a full-time employee in July of 2003. I was later reduced back to part-time status in 2005.

I took a second job as a night stocker at Kash n' Karry in July of 2005 to compensate for my reduced weekly hours at the Center, this time at the Homosassa store.

I quit both jobs in September of 2005 when I made the decision, at my mother's suggestion, to move in with my sister in the Chicago suburb of Morton Grove in Illinois.

I moved on October 1 and, soon after, got a job as a courtesy clerk (bagger and cart pusher) at the Niles, Illinois, Jewel-Osco supermarket. The plan was for me to get a well-paying job to allow my mother to move up to Illinois with me and buy a new house. However, this proved to be unfeasible, so I moved back to Homosassa, Florida, on March 19, 2006 and started searching for new employment.

On July 17, 2006, I started working at the Kmart in the Crystal River Mall as a night stocker. I was later moved to daytime, where I continued doing general stock, straightening, and unloading the truck. I became a cashier in early 2007.

Ethnicity and Nationality
I am of Polish descent and am a first-generation American. I have some Czech on my maternal grandfather's side.

Religion
I am, officially, a Roman Catholic Christian. However, I am open to and accepting of most religions and denominations and reject the idea of the superiority of Christianity.

Politics
I am an independent, consider myself liberal, and usually vote for Democratic Party candidates.

I voted for Al Gore for President of the United States in the United States presidential election, 2000; Bill McBride in the Florida gubernatorial election, 2002; John Kerry for President of the United States in the United States presidential election, 2004; Jim Davis in the Florida gubernatorial election, 2006; and Barack Obama for President of the United States in the United States presidential election, 2008.

Role Models
The following are some of the people that I admire:


 * Michael J. Fox
 * Bill Gates
 * Peter Jennings
 * Pope John Paul II
 * Christopher Reeve
 * Dana Reeve

Music
I like primarily 1980s Pop music, 1980s Rock music, J-Pop, and J-Rock.

In particular, I like the following music artists:


 * The Bangles
 * The Cars
 * Cherie
 * Lara Fabian
 * Billy Idol
 * Kumi Miyasato

News Programs
I regularly watch ABC World News Tonight.

When living in Morton Grove from 2005 to 2006, I watched CNN, particularly:


 * Lou Dobbs Tonight
 * The Situation Room
 * Paula Zahn Now
 * Larry King Live
 * Anderson Cooper 360°

Internet Fandoms
I started the online Captain N: The Game Master fandom on February 27, 1997, when my website, The Unofficial Captain N Home Page, went online. It is the first Captain N website on the Internet, and it remains online to the present day.

I later created Bayou Billy's Bungalow, the first and only website dedicated to the NES video game, The Adventures of Bayou Billy.

I later created Starlight Jem, a website dedicated to the animated series, Jem.

I later created Spirit of Supergirl, a website dedicated to Supergirl.

I have written fan fiction for Archie, Battle of the Planets, Captain N, Batman Beyond, Beast Wars, Birds of Prey, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Escaflowne: A Girl In Gaea, Final Fantasy, Forgotten Realms, Jem, NASCAR Racers, Pokémon, Resident Evil, Sailor Moon, Smallville, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager, Supergirl, Vampire Hunter D, and The X-Files.

I usually use the user names Tuxedo Mark or spiritofsupergirl on the Internet.

Wikipedia Contributions
My largest contribution to Wikipedia to date is creating the Kumi Miyasato article out of devotion to my favorite J-Pop singer.

I also created the Arlene Banas article.

I also contribute to the following articles, though my contributions don't always stay:


 * Betty Cooper
 * Captain N: The Game Master
 * Castlevania Legends
 * Cheryl Blossom
 * Sonia Belmont

The Awesome Gamer FAQ
Awesome Gamer is the name of my video game review series on YouTube.

Why did you create the series?
I wanted to get in on the whole video game review scene, and I wanted a series that my YouTube channel would be known for.

I had previously created a series called Stupid Songs (which I have abandoned) in which I reviewed, well, stupid songs. Inspired by James Rolfe (The Angry Video Game Nerd), I dressed up as a stereotypical nerd in those two reviews.

When I eventually decided to do a game review series, I recorded a review in which I dressed up as a nerd and called myself The Happy Video Game Nerd. The review was for Vegas Dream for the NES. The footage of me was too long to rip to my hard drive (I didn't have enough space for it), so the review never went up. This is fortunate, because it was such a rip-off of The Angry Video Game Nerd, and it allowed me to re-record the review and be myself.

Why "Awesome Gamer"?
The title isn't meant to be boastful. I'm not an awesome gamer by any stretch of the imagination. It's meant to convey that I play video games that are awesome.

What kind of equipment do you use?
I use a JVC compact VHS camcorder (GR-AXM18U) to record the footage of myself. It's hooked up to a Magnovox progressive scan DVD recorder, and the footage is recorded directly onto a Sony DVD-R.

I hook up my game consoles to the DVD recorder and record the game footage directly to DVD-Rs as well.

Starting with episode #7, I use a Logitech USB microphone to record my audio commentary. Previously, I'd recorded it using the video camera on the same day as the footage of myself.

For episodes 01-35, I ripped the footage from the DVDs to my hard drive as uncompressed AVIs using a program called CD & DVD - Copy and Burn, which I got for $10 at Office Max. I edited the reviews together using Windows Movie Maker and saved them as WMVs.

For episodes 36 onward, I edit directly from the VOB files on the DVDs using Womble MPEG Video Wizard 5.0 and export to MPG.

Specials 01-04 were edited with Windows Movie Maker. Specials 05 onward are edited with Womble.

Why is the lighting so bad in a lot of your reviews?
This series is basically zero budget (other than buying some games, consoles, drinks, and DVD-Rs). I have no professional lighting equipment. Sometimes, I'll get lucky with good lighting, but, when it's overcast or evening, the only lighting that I have are the lights in my bedroom.

Why do you overlook things that should be pointed out in your reviews?
If I miss something important, it's likely that I forgot.

Also, I'm not a great player, so I often cheat (such as using Game Genie or in-game passwords) to show more areas of the game. If cheating is impossible, then you likely won't see much of the game in my review.

May I submit suggestions for game reviews?
Of course! Send me a private message on YouTube, leave a comment on my YouTube channel, leave a comment on one of my reviews, or e-mail me. I take all suggestions into consideration.

Which games will you not review?
As a personal rule, I won't review games that the Angry Video Game Nerd has reviewed, but I might make exceptions for good games (Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, Super Mario Bros. 3, etc.), if I receive enough requests.

Also, I can't review games for the following systems due to not being able to capture the video: PC, Nintendo DS, Sony PSP.

Why do you drink in so many of your reviews?
I guess it's to make the reviews seem more personable - as if you're hanging out with me in my room and watching me play games. After all, friends often have sodas to drink when they hang out together and play games.

Also, it allows me to show off the drinks that I like.

However, I have stopped drinking in the videos, because I feel it brings the reviews to a halt.

How many episode variations are there?
Episodes 01-15 were originally ripped and encoded in 320x240, due to the slowness of my computer and Internet connection. These are the versions that exist on YouTube. When I got a ScrewAttack account, I went back and re-ripped and re-encoded the episodes in 640x480. It was a remastering process for ScrewAttack. These versions existed on ScrewAttack until sometime after May 31, 2011, when they switched to a new layout and deleted all of the user-created content.

Episodes 16-35 and Specials 01-04 were ripped and encoded in 640x480 and exist on YouTube in those dimensions.

Episodes 36 onward were encoded directly from the 720x480 master footage and encoded in those dimensions. However:


 * Episode 38 had lower-quality encodes for ScrewAttack (480x360, 1134 kbps constant) and YouTube (320x240, 1134 kbps variable), both of which were smaller than the "master" encode. This was done for upload purposes.


 * Episode 39 had a lower-quality encode for ScrewAttack and YouTube (320x240, 4000 kbps variable), which was smaller than the master encode.


 * Episode 40 had a lower-quality encode for ScrewAttack and YouTube (720x480, 23.98 fps, 2000 kbps variable), which was smaller than the master encode.


 * Episode 41 had a lower-quality encode for ScrewAttack and YouTube (720x480, 23.98 fps, 2400 kbps variable), which was smaller than the master encode.


 * Episode 42 had a lower-quality encode for ScrewAttack and YouTube (720x480, 23.98 fps, 2000 kbps variable), which was smaller than the master encode.

Special 08 was encoded in 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratio (both at 720x480). The 16:9 version was uploaded to YouTube. This remains the sole widescreen Awesome Gamer video.

Episode 06 was uploaded to YouTube in two parts. It exists as a full-length version on my hard drive (both in 320x240 and the 640x480 remastering, the latter of which was on ScrewAttack until deleted in 2011).

Special 09 had lower-quality encodes for YouTube (720x480, 23.98 fps, 1500 kbps variable) and ScrewAttack (720x480, 23.98 fps, 1000 kbps variable), both of which were smaller than the master encode. The YouTube version was in two parts. The ScrewAttack version was never uploaded.

In summary:


 * Episodes 01-15, 38, and 39 currently exist on the Internet only in 320x240.


 * Episodes 16-37, Specials 01-08, and Special 10 are the only videos that currently exist on the Internet exactly as the "master" videos on my hard drive (Special 08 also existing as a fullscreen version on my hard drive).


 * Episodes 36-37 are the only episodes that currently exist on the Internet in the technical specifications in which they were recorded.

In addition, episode 01 exists in a 720x480 remastering (with box art instead of the cartridge shot) on my hard drive. It was a test that I did on July 26, 2010.

What is Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament
"Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament" is a fan fiction series that I'm writing, based on the Gundam metaseries.

How many stories will there be?
There will be 50 "episodes", which is a standard length for a Gundam series.

Which Gundam universe is the series set in?
The series is set in a new universe, not an already-existing Gundam universe.

What is the series about?
The governments of the nations of the Earth have agreed to stop all war. Instead, a tournament will be held every 4 years, where a designated pilot from each participating nation will fight in a Gundam Tournament with giant mobile suits. The winning nation's government will control the Earth for the next 4 years. The series chronicles the First Gundam Tournament.

Why are you writing this?
I'm a Gundam fan, so I wanted to try my own unique take on the concept. Also, it's been almost 7 years (or 5, depending on how you look at it) since my last major fanfic project, a continuation of "Captain N: The Game Master", ended (my ongoing Supergirl fanfic series doesn't count, since I come out with those whenever I feel like it). I want to prove to myself that I can take on a weekly fanfic series and succeed.

Are there references to other Gundam series?
Yes. The series itself seems superficially like Mobile Fighter G Gundam, but it will be more realistic. There won't be any national stereotypes or super-powerful moves. It will feel more like Gundam Battle Assault 2, my favorite Gundam video game. There's even influence from the PC game, One Must Fall 2097.

The characters themselves come from various Gundam series. The primarily influences here are Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Mobile Suit Gundam 0080, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083, Mobile Suit Gundam, and Mobile Suit Gundam: École du Ciel. Characters from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED and Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny will also appear.

Will there be influences from other series?
Music will be very important to the characters. This is an influence from Macross and Megazone 23.

How will this series differ from other Gundam series?
There won't be any Newtypes or anything similar. There won't be any space colonies. It will be entirely Earth-based.

Which characters will appear in the series?
This isn't an exhaustive list, mostly because I'm still figuring it out, but some characters that will appear are Emma Sheen, Christina MacKenzie, Sayla Mass, Fa Yuiry, Reccoa Londe, Nina Purpleton, Lucette Audevie, Lunamaria Hawke, Relena Peacecraft, Murrue Ramius, Miriallia Haw, Asuna Elmarit, Flay Allster, Catherine Bloom, Natarle Badgiruel, Dorothy Catalonia, Karen Joshua, Fraw Bow, Sally Po, Rain Mikamura, Mirai Yashima, Stella Loussier, and Lady Une.

A lot of girls, huh?
Yep. I'm drawn to female characters, so I'm using them.

Which nations are participating in the tournament?
There are 32 participating nations: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Niger, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Syria, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America, Venezuala, Yemen, and Zambia.

When does the series start?
Episode 01 goes online on the first day of Autumn - Sunday, September 23, 2007.

Why Autumn?
I love Autumn. The series even occurs in Autumn.

Will the episodes come out on time?
I hope so. A new episode should come out on a weekly basis. Yes, that means that it will take nearly a year to run its course. I'm writing material ahead of time.

Of course, I live in Florida, the lightning capital of the United States, and I work at Kmart, which has an erratic schedule, so there's a chance that some episodes might be late.

How much of the series is done already?
I've written outlines for all 50 episodes, though not every detail and event has been determined yet. A lot of stuff will be determined as I write the episodes.

Speaking of the episodes, I'm writing them simultaneously, so I can work on whichever scene that I want whenever I want. I started writing the episodes on Thursday, June 21, 2007, the first day of Summer, at 10:30 AM, Eastern Time. This gave me a whole season to get enough material ready for Autumn.

I planned to release one episode every week, finishing the series in under a year, but I fell behind schedule.

Episodes 1-50 are finished and online. The series is complete.

How familiar are you with Gundam?
I've watched the original Gundam movie trilogy (in Japanese twice), volume 01 of the original series (in English once), Zeta Gundam (in Japanese once, in English twice), the Zeta Gundam movie trilogy (fansubbed once), Double Zeta Gundam (episodes 1-4 fansubbed once), Char's Counterattack (in Japanese once, in English once), 0080 (in Japanese twice, in English once), 0083 (in Japanese twice, in English once), The 08th MS Team (in Japanese once, in English once), MS Igloo (in Japanese once), Wing (in Japanese once, in English once, plus volumes 01 and 02 in English once years earlier), Endless Waltz (movie in Japanese once, movie in English thrice, OVA series in Japanese once, OVA series in English twice), a volume of G Gundam (I forget which, in English once), and the Gundam SEED movie trilogy (in English once).

I've also played "Gundam Battle Assault" and "Gundam Battle Assault 2" for the Sony PlayStation and read volumes 01-06 of École du Ciel.

SEED and SEED Destiny are my weakest areas (I haven't even seen SEED Destiny), but I hope that the characters will come out well.

Is there going to be any kind of promotion for this series?
I plan to post to Usenet and message boards when the series premiere approaches.

I have also created a trailer for YouTube. You can view it here: []

The trailer isn't canon. While the characters pictured will appear, their backgrounds will be different. The uniforms and specific Gundams pictured are not canon for this series. The trailer is meant to give an overall impression of the series.

Where will the series appear?
The episodes will be posted on FanFiction.Net and MediaMiner.Org.

Once the series is complete, I hope to get it posted at Mecha Anime Headquarters.

Is there an official site for the series?
No. I considered making one, but I ultimately decided that my own Wikipedia page was a better "headquarters" for the series. Consider this page the hub of "Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament".

I have created an official blog for the series here: []

It will be regularly updated with information and pictures.