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Monday, June 20, 2011
Daily Crunch: Dome Edition
E3 2011 Is A Wrap! The Beercan Bot: Frighten Your Drunk Friends DIY Geodesic Dome On Kickstarter Weekend Giveaway: A B&N Nook Japanese Robo-Drone Will Interrogate Your Leia Will iCloud Fly Or Die? (TCTV)
BBC testing Group Record - Series Link on steroids
New service coming 2012
The BBC has teased us with a new feature that its aiming to launch in time for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Called Group Record, the new feature will allow users to record a group of programmes in a similar way to how Series Link works. However, rather than just setting your PVR to record shows that are part of series, it will allow users to record a group of shows that have all been tied together by the broadcaster, like the Olympics, for example.
“It will make it easier to record a group of programmes rather than just a series,” the BBC’s director of distribution, Alix Pryde, told Pocket-lint and a group of industry execs at this year’s FutureSource conference in London. “It will allow the broadcaster to record a selection of programmes around a specific group that are editorially driven.”
So hot off the press (slides of how it will look had to be removed from the presentation)?Pryde also suggested that it would be technically possible for the system to work across broadcasters, like the BBC and ITV, suggesting fans of the Euro 2012 football tournament would be able to set their recorders to capture all the games regardless of channel.
Talking up other possible options, Pryde also commented that, “there is no reason why we couldn’t take it down to segment data within a programme, like swimming.” In this instance, you would be able to record only the gymnastics, for example, that appear within a larger, more generic Olympics broadcast.
That’s a dramatic shift in what is currently available, and could open up a whole host of content that’s automatically recorded to your box, be it by selected by presenters, topics, a movie series, or something else.
Pryde says that the BBC has already created a prototype with Samsung that’s working, and fully expects that it'll meet its 2012 deadline for the full service.
Tags: Home Cinema BBC Samsung Sky Virgin Media PVRs
BBC testing Group Record - Series Link on steroids originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:41:00 +0100
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Updates: Scheduling updates for Omnia 7 on Orange
Some late-breaking update news I wanted to quickly pass along. Today we began scheduling the 7390 and 7392 updates for Omnia 7 devices on Orange. Thanks again for your patience, everybody.
I mentioned Wednesday that we?re scheduling the 7392 update for HTC Surround models on AT&T and that other models would follow. Today, one did: the LG Quantum, which is also scheduling now. We?ll be updating the Where?s my phone update? table shortly to reflect these two changes.
Have a great weekend.
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Tips My Dad Says
Make Magazine asked geeks for the best advice their equally geeky dads gave them when it came to making cool stuff and here are some of the best ones on a single card.KEY JDS UNIPHASE JDA SOFTWARE GROUP JACK HENRY and ASSOCIATES IXYS
Windows Internet Explorer 9 Language Packs for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 / R2
Windows Internet Explorer 9 Language Packs are released there are a lot!
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Is The World Crazy For Bitcoin, Or Has The Bitcoin World Gone Crazy?
I last wrote about Bitcoin less than a month ago. (If you're one of the people who admitted in comments "I still don't get it," here's a terrific and detailed explainer from The Economist.) Since then the value of Bitcoins has quadrupled?and then halved. The founder of Sweden's Pirate Party moved all his savings into Bitcoin (which disappoints me; I had hoped they were buried on Oak Island) just as US Senator Charles Schumer attacked it as "an online form of money laundering." Malware designed to steal Bitcoin wallets has been seen in the wild, and in possibly related news, 25,000 Bitcoins were stolen a few days ago. Meanwhile, the virtual currency's long-term stability has been seriously questioned ... but does it really make any sense to think about any "long term" at all for Bitcoin, given the insane volatility of the last month? Well, sort of. I concede it does look a bit like the lunatics, black-hats, and bubbleheads have conquered the asylum, but there's nothing inherently crazy or shady about a distributed online currency. What is kind of crazy is assuming that the first one that comes along will last and retain its value indefinitely, which is what almost everyone investing in Bitcoin is doing. (The rest are hoping to sell out to a greater fool, a strategy which admittedly made a few people wealthy during the South Seas tulip bubble and the dot-com boom, but - pretty much by definition - was a loser for most.) Does Bitcoin have a long-term future? I strongly doubt it ... but I expect that something like Bitcoin eventually will.
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iCloud uses Windows Azure and Amazon S3
While still in beta Rafael Rivera (Within Windows blogger) worked with Paul Paliath at Infinite Apple to analyze iCloud traffic:
Last week, we posted some screenshots showing what appeared to be Apple?s new iCloud-backed iMessage using Azure (and Amazon) services for hosting. Since then, GigaOM ran the screenshots through three ?cloud and networking experts at major companies? and the trio dismissed our claims.
Looking at the screenshots, it?s obvious Charles was used to dump iCloud traffic. Working with Within Windows blogger Rafael Rivera, we were able to set up a similar configuration with proper SSL sniffing capabilities ? a set up that cloud and networking experts could have set up in minutes.
We sent an image from and to iPhones running a beta copy of iOS 5. The resulting traffic showed, quite clearly, the use of Azure services for hosting purposes. We don?t believe iCloud stores actual content. Rather, it simply manages links to uploaded content.
Full story and opinion at Paul Thurrott?s blog:
Confirmed Apple iCloud Does Not Stand Alone - SuperSite Blog
New Google features: Search by Image, Instant Pages
Google is adding new features for people to search by image and something called Instant Pages to speed up websites that show up in search results.
The company talked about the new features at a news event in Mountain View Tuesday morning. While Google is the dominant search engine on the web, second-place competitor Microsoft Binghas been rolling outnew features every couple months.
Here is what the new features are about.
Search by Image. Instead of searching with words, you can do a search by dragging an image over the Google search box. This works both with photos on the Web and with photos stored on your computer.
The feature builds in Google Goggles, which lets you snap a photo with a mobile phone camera and do a search on your phone.
Google says it's rolling out now in 40 languages.
I've tried to test this image search feature several times this morning but I can't get it to work. I keep dragging images over the search box, but it just pastes the image on to the Web page. It's possible it has not rolled out to Seattle yet, although presumably Google would want the Bing team in Redmond to ooh and aah over it.
Instant Pages. When you do a search on Google and click on the results, the website will show up faster because Google will preload the website as you search. This works on the next version of Google's Web browser Chrome, which is now available in a beta test version.The Chrome browser competes with Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox.
Here is a Google video below of how Search by Image is supposed to work. If you're able to get it to work for you, let me know in the commentssection or tweet me @sharonpianchan.
And here is the Google blog post about the new features. The blog post has some interesting data about how mobile search is growing.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
E3 Quick Play: Battlefield 3
E3 2011: Hands-on with Operation Metro
Battlefield is back and ready for you to play the third instalment of the multiplayer game, but can it compare to the second outing, will it beat Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and has it got enough to take out Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Future Solider?
We went behind closed doors without our camera to play one of the new multiplayer maps - Operation Metro - and find out whether you should be excited or get yourself ready to be disappointed. Read on to find out.
Name
Battlefield 3
What platform is it on?
PC, PS3, Xbox 360
When's it due out?
25 October 2011
What other game is it like?
Battlefield 2, Call of Duty series
Does it use any new tech like 3D, PlayStation Move, or?Kinect for Xbox 360?
No
The pitch
After 3 years of development, the spectacular new game leaps ahead of the competition thanks to the unique power of the?Frostbite 2?game engine. The technology advances the state of the art, and serves as the power centre that allows?Battlefield 3?to deliver superior performance in character animation, visual rendering, audio/sound and physical destruction.
Battlefield 3?is the only FPS in the marketplace using?Frostbite 2, and the only shooter capable of making the gameplay experience feel alive with all the sights, sounds, movements and action of real-world incursions. Fans eager to jump into battle can join the multi-platform beta in September 2011.
The storyline
Battlefield 3?captures the intense reality of modern warfare across the globe. DICE is working closely with highly decorated ex-SAS operator and acclaimed author, Andy McNab, to ensure the authenticity and grittiness of today’s war is captured in both the single player and multiplayer campaigns. In the single player chapters being highlighted at E3, two new playable characters are introduced. Dmitri “Dima” Mayakovsky, a Russian undercover agent, must fight his way from the Paris Stock Exchange through the crowded city streets in a desperate attempt to stop PLR operatives from detonating a dirty bomb in the heart of Paris. Jonathan “Jono” Miller, a Marine Corporal from America’s heartland, is deployed to the barren dustbowl of the Tehran desert to engage PLR forces. This chapter showcases a classic?Battlefield?vehicle warfare experience as players embark on a large scale tank attack to neutralize the PLR base.?
Trailers, demoes, and video
Our first impressions
Part of the agreement of being able to play Battlefield 3 behind closed doors at E3 in Los Angeles was that we left our camera behind. That’s no biggie to be honest as EA has released enough trailers and videos of the action for you to see, but also because to be frank we wouldn’t have had the time to snap away anyway - Battlefield 3, as you probably guessed, is pretty intense.
We were treated to two levels of the game. The first, a tank mission that we were walked through at the EA press conference by developers DICE, and then Operation Metro, which we had the chance to play ourselves on a PC with a Razer mouse and keyboard.
The tank level is Battlefield 3 at its finest: lots of vehicles, big landscapes, and plenty going on. If you’re a fan you’re going to lap this stuff up. It really shows the full scope of what is possible thanks to the new Frostbite 2 engine.
Operation Metro is a close quarters experience on foot, but still large enough to impress with multiple options rather than forever tunnelling you into the action.
Set in Paris we were tasked with taking on the bad guys. The maps are big, the audio intense, and the 32-player multiplayer hectic. There are four types of character classes: assault, engineer, support, and recon, and each is set up with different strengths and skills. We played assault class opting to get in on the action rather than sit at the back with a big sniper rifle. Of course all are heavily customisable and grow as the game progresses.
In the thick of the action, and it sounds silly to say this, but you really are in the thick of the action.?Suppressive?fire blurs the opponents view for example, while there is always so much going on that it’s sometimes hard to keep up.
Thanks again to the Frostbite 2 engine, the entire environment is ready to be damaged. A well placed bullet will cause a balcony to collapse on your enemy and our demo dudes were keen to tell us how, just before our play, one player had managed to bring down an entire building by getting “lucky” with an RPG.
As we’ve alluded to, there are vehicles - tanks, boats, helicopters, and jeeps - while those who like to collect dog tags will be happy to know that’s still here too - although it’s now harder to earn them - you need to perform a stealth kill from behind.
Back in our Operation Metro mission and things get serious with the action going from the parks of Paris down into the Metro and the close confines of the underground.
Death (plenty of them to be honest) resulted in a respawn and a chance to gather our thoughts before being hurled back into the action.
15 minutes later and our team wins. It’s a small victory, but one that is likely to be enjoyed by all Battlefield gamers. If you’re a fan of the series, this is going to be a must.
Please note
The E3 games convention is a fantastic chance to see the latest games due out over the coming year, as well as letting us get a glimpse into what are going to be the big titles and the ones to avoid like the plague.
The big problem, however, is that for most of the titles that glimpse is, well, just that. At the show you'll get to play a level here or a multiplayer map there or even have a product manager walk you through a specific level.
So with that in mind we present you with our Quick Play.
What we've done is broken down the key facts you need to know and then given you our first impressions based on around 15 minutes of?gaming. For us that 15 minutes isn't enough to do a First Look review or even a review. How can you rate a game that offers over 30 hours of gaming on just 15 minutes of play? However, it should hopefully give you an idea, a feeling, a notion, of what to expect come launch day.
Tags: Gaming PC games Xbox 360 PS3 EA E32011 battlefield 3 FPS quick play
E3 Quick Play: Battlefield 3 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 14:30:00 +0100
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Daily Crunch: Brick Is Red Edition
Kinect Fun Labs: Try Out Crazy Kinect Experiments Android Malware Rears Its Ugly Head? Yet Again Post-Apple Palate Cleanser: More Swiss Army Axes! Nintendo Admits Hack, But Says No Personal Data Stolen Everything You Need To Know About iOS 5
E3 Quick Play: Fruit Ninja Kinect
E3 2011: Hack and slash
The mobile game has made it to the big screen, but is it just as much fun? We tracked down the new Kinect game at E3 in Los Angeles to find out more. Is it just about slicing and dicing your way through fruit or is there something more to the action now that the Kinect sensor has been used. Read on to find out.?
Name??????????????????????????????????????????
Fruit Ninja Kinect
What platform is it on?
Xbox 360
When's it due out?
TBA
What other game is it like?
Fruit Ninja on your phone
Does it use any new tech like 3D, PlayStation Move, or?Kinect for Xbox 360?
Yep - Kinect
The pitch
You are the ninja! The worldwide gaming phenomenon Fruit Ninja has now arrived for Kinect! Your arms are now blades, and the epic battle against the world’s most delicious produce is just beginning. Fruit Ninja Kinect is an amazing evolution of the slice-em-up genre created by Halfbrick, utilising next-gen power for the juiciest combat ever!
The storyline
There isn’t one, you’re cutting fruit
Trailers, demoes, and video
Our first impressions
Yep, the game that’s had you swiping your fingers across your smartphone, in order to slice and dice your way through fruit is now available for the Kinect and Xbox 360. Throwing your fine motor skills out the window, gross motor are going to be the key if you're going to slice the fruit into a pulpy mess. All from the comfort of your living room, while at the same time looking like an idiot.
Perfect.
Trouble is to do this we had to be idiots ourselves (all for you dear reader). While the game isn’t the latest Tomb Raider it is fun to play and easy to grasp - we can see you persuading grandma into playing this on Christmas Day and then laughing with the rest of the family at just how good she is at cutting up watermelons.
With Classic, Zen and the frenetic Arcade Mode, Fruit Ninja Kinect includes all the action you know and love, and there’s a Party Mode too allowing multiple players to be able to play at the same time.
Our time was brief - like 5 minutes brief - and that's not because we were moved on by Microsoft when we played it, but because that’s the time it took for us to have our fill of the game.
Five minutes of game time might be enough to keep you entertained two stops on the underground, but in the living room you’ll probably tire quickly.
Good execution, we just aren’t sure it's got sticking power.
Please note
The E3 games convention is a fantastic chance to see the latest games due out over the coming year, as well as, letting us get a glimpse into what are going to be the big titles and the ones to avoid like the plague.
The big problem however is that for most of the titles that glimpse is, well, just that. At the show you'll get to play a level here or a multiplayer map there or even have a product manager walk you through a specific level.
So with that in mind we present you with our Quick Play.
What we've done is broken down the key facts you need to know and then given you our first impressions based on around 15 minutes of?gaming. For us that 15 minutes isn't enough to do a review or even a First Look review. How can you rate a game that offers over 30 hours of gaming on just 15 minutes of play? However, it should hopefully give you an idea, a feeling, a notion, of what to expect come launch day.
Tags: Gaming Microsoft Xbox 360 Microsoft Kinect E32011 Fruit Ninja Fruit Ninja Kinect quick play
E3 Quick Play: Fruit Ninja Kinect originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 13:16:00 +0100
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Microsoft: no way to support WebGL and meet our security needs
Though Internet Explorer 9 has made great strides in improving Internet Explorer's standard support, and version 10 is similarly set to include a whole range of new features, one thing that Microsoft hasn't even touched is WebGL, a specification that allows webpages to create 3D graphics using an API based on the venerable OpenGL API. A blog post today from the company's security engineers may explain why: they don't think there's any way to implement it safely.
Three main concerns are enumerated in the post: WebGL exposes too much sensitive, privileged, or unhardened code to the Web; depends too heavily on third-party code for security; and is too susceptible to denial of service attacks. The first of these is perhaps most significant. Video hardware and video drivers are traditionally only exposed to relatively "trusted" code—programs that the user has explicitly chosen to install. Display drivers are notoriously unstable and buggy, and developers of 3D software have to go to quite some effort to ensure their programs do not use (or misuse) the 3D hardware in such a way as to cause problems.
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Nintendo 3DS has dented the adoption of 3D on portable devices
But 3D gaming will still be massive
The Nintendo 3DS is a failure, at least according to?Ian Baverstock, co-founder of gaming consultancy?group Tenshi Ventures. And, because the handheld console hasn't offered the greatest of first impressions of glasses-less 3D, he also believes that its legacy could be damaging for future stereoscopic devices.
Speaking at The Futuresource Entertainment Summit in London, Baverstock, who was joined on stage by Andrew Oliver, chief technical officer of Blitz Games Studios, was not unforthcoming with damning remarks for the Nintendo device: "The 3DS has dented the adoption of 3D on portable devices," he said. "A lot of people turn the 3D feature on the 3DS down or off completely. It's fundamentally flawed."
Oliver agrees: "It definitely has it’s issues at the moment."
However, the developer who co-wrote (with his twin brother?Philip) classic games for computers in the 1980s, including Dizzy and Pro BMX Simulator,?still sees that there is a massive potential for 3D gaming.
Rather than on portable devices, though, Oliver is convinced 3D works better in the home with both games and movies: "I'm a big advocate of 3D. I love my 3D TV at home," he said. "It’s definitely a next level experience. But it’s a costly experience, especially with the glasses."
Thankfully, he's also confident that this is soon to be resolved: "I just see the issue of glasses as transitional.?I am absolutely convinced that TVs will be 3D without the glasses in the next few years."
And then we'll see all major titles in three-dimensions:?"It’s nicer to see the world in 3D than 2D," he added.
Tags: Gaming Nintendo Nintendo 3DS Futuresource 3DTV 3D
Nintendo 3DS has dented the adoption of 3D on portable devices originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 17:19:00 +0100
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