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Tyson Kopczynski

Gaming while grocery shopping (only possible in Japan)

By tyson.kopczynski on Sun, 10/05/08 - 6:26am.
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Time for my weekly blog post about Japan. I found something really amazing.  First off, let's start with the background story:

This weekend I went with Maiko and two of our friends to a Tokyo neighborhood called Kichijōji (吉祥寺).  I hadn't been there yet, so I wasn't sure what we would find.  Needles to say, it was a pretty interesting place which was dominated by a large and dynamic shopping area. This was not just another boring department store or Ginza-like area.  Kichijoji is crazy busy, and full of life. While walking around, we stumbled upon a large sign that proclaimed "Plaza Capcom".

As luck would have it, we needed buy something from a store within the Plaza.  So, not having been in a Japanese video game arcade in sometime, I convinced Daisuke (our friend) to head down to the basement level with me after we were done shopping.  The girls begrudgingly followed, and what we found was amazing. We all know that efficiency is something that the Japanese are known for.  Also, in Japan, playing games and eating food are both very popular activities.  That being said... I give you Grocery Shopping Gaming:

Yes, that is ice cream, just like you would find at Safeway.

And yup, those are cans of Pringles -- and these were not the only machines in the store (I only managed to get a few pictures while the staff wasn't looking).  The floor was littered with these games that had various food goods and household items.  It was better than any grocery store I've ever been to -- you had to play to get the item you wanted and if you lost, I guess you would not be eating that night.  :>)

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About Hidden Microsoft

With more than ten years of experience in IT, Tyson Kopczynski has become a specialist in Active Directory, Information Assurance, Windows automation, PKI, and IT security practices. Tyson is also the founding author of the Windows PowerShell Unleashed series and has been a contributing author for such books as Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2006 Unleashed and Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Unleashed. He has also written many detailed technical papers and guides covering various technologies. As a consultant at Convergent Computing, Tyson works with and provides feedback for next generation Microsoft technologies since their inception and has also played a key role in expanding the automation and security practices at CCO. Tyson also holds such certifications as the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), the SANS Security Essentials Certification (GSEC) and SANS Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), and the MCTS (Application Platform, Active Directory, and Network Infrastructure).


Certifications:

  • Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
  • SANS Security Essentials Certification (GSEC)
  • SANS Certified Incident Handler (GCIH)
  • MCTS (Application Platform, Active Directory, and Network Infrastructure)
  • Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) Security
  • CompTIA Security+

Publications:


Other Stuff:

  • Blogger NetworkWorld.com from June 2007
  • GIAC Advisory Board from 2009
  • SANS GSEC Local Mentor (a long time ago)
  • CompTIA Security+ SME (a long time ago)
  • Judge, Imagine Cup 2005 Int'l IT Competition
  • Judge, Imagine Cup 2007 Int'l IT Competition