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Large Content Patch To Precede Upcoming WoW Expansion

Slashdot Games - 4 hours 47 min ago
Blizzard has announced they will be releasing a sizable patch to prepare for the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion to World of Warcraft. The patch, similar to one they released prior to the first expansion, will include the new profession (Inscription), new talents for each class, and two new arenas. The patch will be up on the Public Test Realm "soon," according to a Blizzard rep, but it will require significant testing before reaching the live servers. Blizzard developers Tom Chilton and J. Allen Brack gave a related interview recently to Videogamer in which they mentioned that a graphical reboot for World of Warcraft "may never be necessary." We've been following the development of Wrath of the Lich King for a while now.

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Corporate Gaming Is Good For Business

Slashdot Games - 7 hours 3 min ago
The Economist is running a story about how gaming is on the rise in corporate environments, and how games are also becoming a popular tool for advertising. From internally developed games to commercial offerings to simply creating a framework in which employees can interact, game-based competitions and community building are leading to increased productivity, even for Fortune 500 companies. Quoting: "Take Microsoft's own experience. Before it releases a new version of its Windows operating system, it asks staff to help debug the software by installing and running the system. In the past, project managers had to spend a great deal of time and effort persuading busy Microsoftees to help them with this boring task. So for Windows Vista, the system's latest incarnation, Microsoft created a game that awarded points for bug-testing and prizes such as wristbands for achieving certain goals. Participation quadrupled."

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How a Quake 3 Mod Team Turned Into a Successful Studio

Slashdot Games - 7 hours 29 min ago
Paul Williams writes "Develop Magazine has an interesting profile up looking at UK studio Splash Damage, charting its humble beginnings as a Quake 3 mod team through to its status as one of Britain's leading studios — it's currently developing a new game for Bethesda. Most interesting is the assertion by studio founder Paul Wedgwood that UK studios should shake off their low-rent reputation and start modeling their businesses on the likes of Valve, id, and the other envied American independents: 'We'd been to the US and seen companies like Ritual, Gearbox and id, and to us it seemed like the game development industry was seen as better in the US. People sat in cool chairs in cool offices surrounded by action figures — it was nothing like the UK's approach, which was more like a workhouse.'"

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New Friendfeed in beta

Geek News Central - 18 hours 54 min ago

The Social Network Friendfeed is changing their look. They launched it at beta.friendfeed.com.

The big change is it moves the navigation links from the top to the right side. It's now got a similar look to Google Groups because of it. The new version added an option in Friend Settings where you can put your friends into a more organized group. I think we called them Cliques in High School....

You can now also share photos easier. No need to put it in Flickr - just select the form box, then in the dropdown chose "Photos". You'll be able to upload a picture from your computer.

The overall look is a bit more organized. For instance, the recommended page just has the subscribe button on each profile instead of every network they belong to. After all, I don't need to know that, just whether I want to follow them on Friendfeed.

I really like the new look. It's easy and familiar. It's got some great new organization to it and it doesn't have those different sized bubble tabs on the top. I might just start using Friendfeed a little more...

Categories: News

iLawn Mowers

Geek News Central - Tue, 08/26/2008 - 21:38

I have seen several versions of automatic or robotic lawn mowers online yet I am still skeptical. Mostly I have seen ones similar to the one pictured at the end of this post. But I have run across a couple of big ones. They all seem to be guided by GPS or an underground cable. The problem I have with the tiny plastic looking ones is they look, well, frail. They appear to only be suited for perfect terrain, weather, and grass height. Most lawn mowers I have seen look pretty rough after about 3 uses. The cost on these auto mowers is nothing to sneeze at either so I see a long way to go before these admittedly cool devices become anything close to the norm. Also these things appear very small so you had better have a matching lawn. Too much area would kill these little things. Of course it does not matter how long it takes since you don’t even have to be outside to run it. I have seen remote controlled mowers but having to sit outside to control it would not be much better than actually riding a mower. The irobot sweepers have done very well but they are used inside in perfect conditions. As for the larger mowers they certainly have their drawbacks. Mainly they could really do some damage. The cute little tiny mowers won’t hurt much if they run astray but get a Dixie Chopper type mower on the loose and you have got a menace to society. I like the concept but it has a long way to go. Paying someone cut the lawn is still much cheaper than buying a robot helper. Oh and making your kids do it for free is even better.

Categories: News

Blu Ray Pricing

Geek News Central - Tue, 08/26/2008 - 21:11

I saw where Sony was dropping one of their Blu Ray players down to $300. This will obviously send other companies to slashing their prices as well. There are different opinions on what the price point is where Blu Ray will take over DVD sales. I don't know if it is $199 or $149 or even as low as $99. One thing that will slow the conquest is the sluggish economy. I am not one of these people who always think the sky is falling but I recognize a slow down when I see it. I am not talking about any stats I see on the “news” or musings by experts. I am basing this totally on people I know in business and others I talk to on a regular basis about it. So a Blu Ray player is something that consumers can do without especially when most own a device that does the same thing but just not as good. Some would argue that people did not wait to buy a HDTV when they had a TV that did the same job just not as good as an HD model. But that boom was a while back when the overall economy was better and people watch a lot more TV than they do DVDs.

I’d like to have a Blu Ray DVD player but I have not even bought an up-converting player yet, even at super low prices. I just have not seen the need for one. We get Netflix so we watch about 3 DVDs per week. Obviously we view enough movies to warrant Blu Ray consumption which I believe is the same price for now on my movie service as standard DVDs. But I just can’t pull the trigger yet even though the picture quality Is phenomenal. With football season starting this weekend that will hold me over for a few more months as I will have plenty to view in HD without worrying about Blu Ray.

Categories: News

Cowon makes with the O2 PMP and L3 nav unit for IFA

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 10:23

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Cowon's sexy little S3 Curve PMP isn't the only device we'll see out of the company at IFA this year -- there's also the L3 nav unit and the O2 PMP. The O2 isn't quite as much of a beast as the S3, but it'll more than hold its own with a 4.3-inch touch screen, a T-DMB tuner, TV-out, and SD expansion, while the L3 nav has a 7-inch 800 x 480 touch screen, SiRF III GPS chip, hidden touch controls, a T-DMB tuner, and an FM transmitter. Well get a closer look at these when IFA starts later this week, but expect minor tweaks if these ever make it out of Korea.

[Via CNET Asia]

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Verizon nabs the Blitz: someone has thought of the children

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 09:52

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This one has been in the works for a while, but Verizon has appropriated UTStarcom's TXT8010 my-first-QWERTY phone for tweens and dropped it onto an unsuspecting market with the new "Blitz" moniker. The slider phone will run you $70 with a two year contract, is available now, and includes a few perks like VCAST Music, a microSD slot, 1.3 megapixel camera and stereo Bluetooth to keep your jaded child interested.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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QinetiQ's Zephyr sets another unmanned solar plane flight record

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 09:27

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QinetiQ just (unofficially) smashed the record for an unmanned flight by a solar airplane, sending its Zephyr craft into the air for a staggering 83 hours and 37 minutes, more than double the official record by "Global Hawk" in 2001, and a good margin more than its last flight. The plane was guided by autopilot and satellites to a height of 60,000 feet, and powers off the sun during the day, prepping its rechargeable lithium-sulphur batteries for the night. Zephyr is being built for reconnaissance, communications and unofficially setting really bad-ass flight records.

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Open Tech selling self for $50k. That went well.

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 08:53

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We were naturally overjoyed to see another "clone" manufacturer crop up, peddling OS X "compatibility" with none of the actual pre-installed-ness that made Psystar notable, so it's with a heavy heart that we bid adieu to Open Tech. The company has put itself up for sale, including its considerable "trade secrets," and can be yours for the low-low-price of 50 grand. Almost as bad a deal as its computers.

[Via Gadget Lab]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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Cloaking device could shield pacemakers from malicious signals

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 08:29

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On a number of occasions, we've seen reports suggesting that pacemakers could be sent signals which could instruct them to do all sorts of unwanted things, including shut off completely. Thankfully, the University of Washington's Dr. Tamara Denning has heeded the warnings and created a possible solution. The so-called cloaking device would enable pacemakers to "resist any instructions that come from anyone other than the doctor," though it has yet to be put to the test. in the real world Now, making sure your doc has passed a sufficient amount of background checks is another matter entirely.

[Image courtesy of SMH, thanks A.C.E.R.]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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Susan Lucci, Toni Braxton set for ABC's `Dancing' (AP)

Yahoo TV News - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 08:28

AP - Susan Lucci, Toni Braxton and Lance Bass will hit the floor on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."


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Texas Instruments gets excited about energy scavenging

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 08:01

Filed under: ,

Texas Instruments has a lot to do with the original microchip, if for no other reason than being the employer of inventor Jack Kilby. Now, however, TI is looking to produce chips and other related gizmos that require an infinitesimally small amount of energy to operate. The overriding theme guiding the engineers is "energy scavenging," which alludes to grasping power from even the most unlikely of places -- vibrations from a bridge as cars pass over, capturing wasted exhaust from a car or bottling up all that frustration your sibling shows when you own him / her again in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The possibilities are just about endless, with networked battery-free smoke alarms, solar-powered mobiles and gaming laptops that feed off of extraordinarily focused brain waves in the mix. Okay, so that last one is still eons from reality, but at least we're headed in that direction.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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Video-game news: Europe's big show (AP)

Yahoo Video Games News - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 07:34
AP - Real news from the virtual world:
Categories: News

iriver P20 media player and M3 GPS navigator headed to IFA

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 07:24

While traditionally known as a forum for HDTVs, the big IFA show in Berlin is also shaping up as a showcase battle for Korean DAPs. Hot on the arching heels of Cowon's S9 Curve comes this, the (re)announcement of iriver's P20. While we first saw the P20 as a plastic prototype at CES, we're desperately hoping for a fully functional, 80/120GB media player this time around. The device is still spec'd with a 4.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen display capable of pumping 12-, 9-, or 8-hours of music, video, or DMB TV at a clip, respectively. It's also likely sporting a SPINN UI judging by that thumb-wheel. Also on deck is the M3 portable GPS navigator / media player with 3.5-inch touch screen LCD. More details on Friday when trade show floor opens its doors.
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Davis, Wolfson attending convention for Fox (AP)

Yahoo TV News - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 06:38

AP - Longtime Clinton confidant Lanny Davis and Howard Wolfson, Hillary Clinton's former communications director, once anticipated being very busy at this week's Democratic National Convention.


Categories: News

Researchers Pursue Tongue Driven Computer System

Wired Magazine - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 06:33
George Tech researchers are working on a computer interface driven by the tongue. Advocates for the disabled have particularly high hopes that the tongue could prove the most effective way to control electronics through facial movements.

Categories: News

NVIDIA throws another punch, sez Larrabee would've been hot in 2006

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 06:21

Filed under: ,

You've got to love it, don't you? The prolonged hatefest between Intel and NVIDIA is continuing on today, with Andy Keane, general manager of the company's GPU computing group, delivering the latest blow. While speaking to reporters at the outfit's headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, he was quoted as saying that there is still "an incredible amount about Larrabee that's undefined." Furthermore, John Mottram chimed in by suggesting that "as [blogger and CPU architect] Peter Glaskowsky said, the 'large' Larrabee in 2010 will have roughly the same performance as a 2006 GPU from NVIDIA or ATI." We're beginning to wonder if these guys aren't just passing disses while sharing a cold one afterwards just to get attention, but being that it's more fun to envision suits from rival firms intensely angry with one another, we'll just keep believing this actually isn't a joke.

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iPhone 3G reception just fine say curious Swedes with engineering degrees

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 05:40

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var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/apple/iPhone_3G_reception_just_fine_say_curious_Swedes'; There's been a lot of discussion lately about iPhone 3G reception issues. Whether they exist or not is largely irrelevant in a world dominated by sound-bite driven perceptions. Nevertheless, some industrious Swedes decided to apply a little scientific method to the argument and found something interesting: the iPhone 3G performed just as well (or just as poorly, depending upon your mood) as a Nokia N73 and Sony Ericsson P1 when compared head-to-head in a mobile communications test chamber. The test was conducted by real-life antenna engineers just like those camera-fumbling souls contracted by the FCC. Of course, who's going to let a few facts stand in the way of contrary opinion and litigation, eh?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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LG's N4B1 NAS auto-archives your junk to Blu-ray

Engadget - Mon, 08/25/2008 - 05:13

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When we're thinking NAS, we're thinking Terabytes of network attached storage. Fortunately, while LG's N4B1 might be the world's first NAS with integrated Blu-ray recorder, it also supports up to 4TB of disk... with room to grow thanks to 3x USB and 1x e-SATA jacks. LG puts that 50GB of dual-layer, Blu-ray storage to good use by automatically archiving your old data for off-site storage. You do store your data off-site, right?Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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