I just sold my MTGO collection to them; the whole process was very smooth and easy. I sent in my list for appraisal last Friday evening and received an offer yesterday. I accepted the offer and requested payment via Paypal, and I received payment this morning. The transaction took about less than two business days.
Also, during my MTGO playing career, I purchased many times from them, as well, and never had any issues.
I can only speak for my field (Computer Science) and from my experience (graduated undergrad in 2010 from a top 10 school, working for one of the leading companies in its field). Also, the following is basically just stream-of-conscious, so, I apologize in advance.
From what I've seen, it really depends on what degree you get and what you want to do once you graduate.
For someone like me, who wanted to work for a top tier company upon graduation, where I got my degree was probably the single most important factor. That is an absolute fact. The fact of the matter is that most top tier companies recruit new grads (please note the new grad part) at a very small number of schools (the company I work for actively recruits from somewhere between 10-20). There are a number of very good reasons for this, not the least of which is that companies don't want to spend time and money looking at applicants that haven't been through the rigor of a good program. After all, there is some merit to school rankings. Why would Google waste time recruiting at Durdle State University, when its attracting MIT grads?
However, going to Durdle State University doesn't mean you'll never work at Google: you just need to work at other companies, develop your skills/knowledge/experience, and look for opportunities to advance yourself. It might take you a number of years, but you can get there.
From my experience, here's what mattered in landing where I am:
1. University
2. Degree
3. Internships
4. Projects (both independent and for school)
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
5. GPA
...And that's basically it. Obviously, your knowledge and skills and how your interviews go matter, also. But that's after you get your resume looked at.
What your degree is matters a great deal, too, as that basically dictates what sorts of positions you can apply to and what companies will look at you. You have to keep in mind that behind each degree are a number of courses which give you both knowledge and skills, and it's the usefulness of that knowledge and those skills that matter in getting a job. *Warning: very biased and probably naive opinion coming* I honestly can't understand how people go and decide to get random degrees like Philosophy or English or whatever, and think they'll land a high paying job. If you're going to get a degree, do something that matters. Obviously, you should look to do what you enjoy doing, but at some point you need to be realistic.
Of course, it's very unreasonable to expect a junior in high school to know that. And, I suppose, that's part of the problem.
I cannot speak to the topic of taking on student loans to go to a better school. I was very fortunate not to need them. I will say, however, that better schools are better for a reason. I also feel confident in saying that if you take a $100,000 loan to go to Harvard only to get a degree in Under Water Basket Weaving...you may have messed up.
I'm also not going to speak on graduate school, since I obviously don't have that experience.
Well, hopefully that was somewhat coherent. Good luck!
1) When "The Beginning of Upkeep" effects happen, are they put onto the stack? For example, if you have a The Taberncle at Pendrell Vale, can you respond by playing another ability? Also, what if there are 2 or more cards that have "At the beginning of your Upkeep" abilities? Is it different if it's from the same or different controller?
Yes. Abilities that have "At" are triggered abilities and go on the stack. If there are two (or more) abilities, and you control both of them, then you choose the order they go on the stack. If there are different controllers, then it goes in APNAP order, which is Active Player, Non-Active Player. Thus, your ability will go on the stack first, and then your opponent's ability goes on the stack.
2) What if you played a card like Hail Storm during the first main phase? Does it do nothing? Or does the 2 damage occur during the upcoming attackers step? What if it happened during the second main phase?
If you play the card when there are no attacking creatures, then you and creatures you control take 1 damage. Creatures are only attacking after they have been declared attackers and only during the combat phase.
as a student in the exploratory phase, I'm actually getting mixed feelings, especially from reading this thread. every time I hear that it'll get better in 8-10 years, I always wonder in the back of my mind if it'll actually get worse.
that, alongside hearing that people with zero higher education are getting $60k jobs at as young as 23 is really making me reconsider what I'm doing here.
So...you actually trust random, anecdotal stories from random people posting on an Internet forum, enough that they make you reconsider a college education?
To be fair, I believe that there are (and probably a decent amount of) people in their early/mid 20s earning that much without an education. However, if they had an education, that number could be higher. Also, what is their earning potential? 60k, though it might seem sufficient when you're 23, gets you nowhere and is basically nothing. So, how does that person plan to earn more?
Here's some anecdotal evidence for you - I got an education and, not even a full year out, I've made > 100k. I know that's the case with a lot of my classmates. Now, sure, if you get some rando liberal arts degree, you'll earn nothing. But, if you get a real degree, it's 100% worth it, not close.
I have a bachelor's degree in computer science, but I've come out of it not really knowing anything practical.
I went on a job interview once and I was asked basic questions about databases, html, xml, and Java - I didn't do so well. Practically all of my courses taught C systems programming, and I didn't gain much from those but familiarity with the C syntax, not any really useful practices or principals.
I've taught myself a bit of Java, and I feel very comfortable with learning aspects of the language on my own, but when I did take courses for Java they, again, covered syntax only: "This is what you've been doing in C. Well, this is what that same code looks like in Java! Useful, no? Hey, let's look at the Graphics class for two semesters!"
I managed to get into an tentative six-week summer course before I graduated which was dedicated to actually teaching object-oriented principals, but that had to be dumbed down because, shockingly, not many had any Java experience at all.
The idealist in me believes that educating one's self should come before almost anything else, but I do honestly wonder if I would have been better off working straight out of high school or when - if at all - my degree will allow me to "pull ahead."
Perhaps it is more accurate to say "you would've been better off going to a better college for CS".
Where you go to college matters. The work you do in college matters. The effort you put into learning about your field matters, etc. See my previous post.
You cannot say "because I had this experience, it must be true for every college/person." What you mean to say is "I went to a mediocre college with a mediocre CS program".
The problem, then, is not that "college isn't worth it". The problem is that "for some majors, some colleges are not worth it." This problem, then, becomes, "how does a 17-year old, who is applying to college, know, for sure, what they want to major in?"
*edit* Also, about your job interview: why, if your background is in C, were you applying to positions requiring Java/whatever? Furthermore, if you knew about those requirements, why would you not try to prepare for the interview by doing some brief studying? You wouldn't apply to a position or go into an interview for an iPhone app developer without any knowledge of iPhone development, would you?
I can't tell you how many CS majors are working helpdesk for $12 an hour because they don't have any certifications. To get them it's back to school for 1.5-2 years because college didn't teach them anything they can really use.
I doubt they are working those jobs as a direct result of not having certifications. Where did they go to school? What grades did they get? How hard did they try to learn the material? Did they do any good internships? What was their job application process? To what companies did they apply? How did they do in the interviews? Etc, etc.
Furthermore, I'm not sure what certifications you're talking about. If you're talking about IT certifications, then no company hiring engineers cares. If you're talking about actual CS certifications, then no (good) company hiring engineers cares. (Note: I graduated last year from CS, from a top 10 engineering school. I now work for the leading company in its industry). None of the companies I applied to cared, and I applied to pretty much the who's who of tech companies.
This is the problem with our education system. It's not who spent the most time in school that counts, it's not even critical thinking. It's "do I have useful skills that help me contribute to the economy".
While this is true, I'm not exactly sure you could label it a problem. It just depends on what you want to be doing. A degree in Roman History (or whatever) is not going to be helpful to the vast majority of companies. But, you can go to grad school, do research, etc. If you actually want to work, then yes, you'll most likely end up doing something that has no relation to your degree.
As people have mentioned previously, degrees in engineering and hard sciences are what companies want. (Companies do want business degrees, but it's really only MBAs that matter (with exceptions, of course)).
One thing I think I've seen people mention is that it doesn't matter where you go to college. In my experience, this is completely false. Microsoft, Google, Apple, Qualcomm, etc, etc will literally only hire new grads from a very short list of schools. Whether or not you think this is fair, it is how it is.
The Sideboard isn't that great, since the format is brand new.
This list is a couple of cards different from what was ran last night. (I didn't pilot it - my friend Ari Lax played it on my account. I was at a Legacy tournament). Ari made a few tweaks before the Daily, and we made a few tweaks after it, as well.
I'd be happy to discuss the deck further, if you guys would like.
*edit* Also, the RW Control deck has been winning a lot on Magic-League. You can look at the deck list there.
I love how this guy just repeats the same phrase over-and-over, and just quotes screwball sources that noone respects as his only "support". He doesn't even add anything of his own!
10/1/2009 If the original spell was kicked, the copy is kicked too. Other decisions made for the original spell, such as the value of X or the mode, are also copied.
Also, during my MTGO playing career, I purchased many times from them, as well, and never had any issues.
I definitely recommend them.
From what I've seen, it really depends on what degree you get and what you want to do once you graduate.
For someone like me, who wanted to work for a top tier company upon graduation, where I got my degree was probably the single most important factor. That is an absolute fact. The fact of the matter is that most top tier companies recruit new grads (please note the new grad part) at a very small number of schools (the company I work for actively recruits from somewhere between 10-20). There are a number of very good reasons for this, not the least of which is that companies don't want to spend time and money looking at applicants that haven't been through the rigor of a good program. After all, there is some merit to school rankings. Why would Google waste time recruiting at Durdle State University, when its attracting MIT grads?
However, going to Durdle State University doesn't mean you'll never work at Google: you just need to work at other companies, develop your skills/knowledge/experience, and look for opportunities to advance yourself. It might take you a number of years, but you can get there.
From my experience, here's what mattered in landing where I am:
1. University
2. Degree
3. Internships
4. Projects (both independent and for school)
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
5. GPA
...And that's basically it. Obviously, your knowledge and skills and how your interviews go matter, also. But that's after you get your resume looked at.
What your degree is matters a great deal, too, as that basically dictates what sorts of positions you can apply to and what companies will look at you. You have to keep in mind that behind each degree are a number of courses which give you both knowledge and skills, and it's the usefulness of that knowledge and those skills that matter in getting a job. *Warning: very biased and probably naive opinion coming* I honestly can't understand how people go and decide to get random degrees like Philosophy or English or whatever, and think they'll land a high paying job. If you're going to get a degree, do something that matters. Obviously, you should look to do what you enjoy doing, but at some point you need to be realistic.
Of course, it's very unreasonable to expect a junior in high school to know that. And, I suppose, that's part of the problem.
I cannot speak to the topic of taking on student loans to go to a better school. I was very fortunate not to need them. I will say, however, that better schools are better for a reason. I also feel confident in saying that if you take a $100,000 loan to go to Harvard only to get a degree in Under Water Basket Weaving...you may have messed up.
I'm also not going to speak on graduate school, since I obviously don't have that experience.
Well, hopefully that was somewhat coherent. Good luck!
It's an interesting read.
I might be there on Sunday, but I'll definitely be there next Friday.
Yes. Abilities that have "At" are triggered abilities and go on the stack. If there are two (or more) abilities, and you control both of them, then you choose the order they go on the stack. If there are different controllers, then it goes in APNAP order, which is Active Player, Non-Active Player. Thus, your ability will go on the stack first, and then your opponent's ability goes on the stack.
If you play the card when there are no attacking creatures, then you and creatures you control take 1 damage. Creatures are only attacking after they have been declared attackers and only during the combat phase.
So...you actually trust random, anecdotal stories from random people posting on an Internet forum, enough that they make you reconsider a college education?
To be fair, I believe that there are (and probably a decent amount of) people in their early/mid 20s earning that much without an education. However, if they had an education, that number could be higher. Also, what is their earning potential? 60k, though it might seem sufficient when you're 23, gets you nowhere and is basically nothing. So, how does that person plan to earn more?
Here's some anecdotal evidence for you - I got an education and, not even a full year out, I've made > 100k. I know that's the case with a lot of my classmates. Now, sure, if you get some rando liberal arts degree, you'll earn nothing. But, if you get a real degree, it's 100% worth it, not close.
Perhaps it is more accurate to say "you would've been better off going to a better college for CS".
Where you go to college matters. The work you do in college matters. The effort you put into learning about your field matters, etc. See my previous post.
You cannot say "because I had this experience, it must be true for every college/person." What you mean to say is "I went to a mediocre college with a mediocre CS program".
The problem, then, is not that "college isn't worth it". The problem is that "for some majors, some colleges are not worth it." This problem, then, becomes, "how does a 17-year old, who is applying to college, know, for sure, what they want to major in?"
*edit* Also, about your job interview: why, if your background is in C, were you applying to positions requiring Java/whatever? Furthermore, if you knew about those requirements, why would you not try to prepare for the interview by doing some brief studying? You wouldn't apply to a position or go into an interview for an iPhone app developer without any knowledge of iPhone development, would you?
I doubt they are working those jobs as a direct result of not having certifications. Where did they go to school? What grades did they get? How hard did they try to learn the material? Did they do any good internships? What was their job application process? To what companies did they apply? How did they do in the interviews? Etc, etc.
Furthermore, I'm not sure what certifications you're talking about. If you're talking about IT certifications, then no company hiring engineers cares. If you're talking about actual CS certifications, then no (good) company hiring engineers cares. (Note: I graduated last year from CS, from a top 10 engineering school. I now work for the leading company in its industry). None of the companies I applied to cared, and I applied to pretty much the who's who of tech companies.
While this is true, I'm not exactly sure you could label it a problem. It just depends on what you want to be doing. A degree in Roman History (or whatever) is not going to be helpful to the vast majority of companies. But, you can go to grad school, do research, etc. If you actually want to work, then yes, you'll most likely end up doing something that has no relation to your degree.
As people have mentioned previously, degrees in engineering and hard sciences are what companies want. (Companies do want business degrees, but it's really only MBAs that matter (with exceptions, of course)).
One thing I think I've seen people mention is that it doesn't matter where you go to college. In my experience, this is completely false. Microsoft, Google, Apple, Qualcomm, etc, etc will literally only hire new grads from a very short list of schools. Whether or not you think this is fair, it is how it is.
27 Land
4 Contagion Clasp
4 Revoke Existence
4 Arrest
4 Stoic Rebuttal
2 Tumble Magnet
3 Glimmerpoint Stag
3 Elspeth Tirel
3 Venser, the Sojouner
4 Volition Reins
2 Sunblast Angel
The Sideboard isn't that great, since the format is brand new.
This list is a couple of cards different from what was ran last night. (I didn't pilot it - my friend Ari Lax played it on my account. I was at a Legacy tournament). Ari made a few tweaks before the Daily, and we made a few tweaks after it, as well.
I'd be happy to discuss the deck further, if you guys would like.
*edit* Also, the RW Control deck has been winning a lot on Magic-League. You can look at the deck list there.
"Those creatures" refers to "all creatures target player controls".
This is why I love the Internet!
Black Swan looks kinda interesting, though.
From the Gatherer: