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July 21st, 2012, 22:56 Posted By: wraggster
Chromium OS developer Hexxeh has built an open-source variant of Google’s Chrome for the Raspberry Pi.
While it’s not the full Chromium OS, which is still under development, the beta version will give your Raspberry Pi a big speed boost.
Hexxeh suggests overclocking you mini PC and using a fast USB drive or SD card to get the most out of your browsing experience with Chromium.
This is still very much a beta, and interested Raspberry Pi owners will have to grab the binaries and compile it themselves
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...erry-pi/028743
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July 20th, 2012, 02:25 Posted By: wraggster
Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 during holiday 2005. The industry is fast approaching seven full years of current generation gaming - an unthinkable number for many game industry executives pining for a new round of hardware to spark the marketplace and enable new intellectual properties to flourish. In fact, a recent conversation between analyst Michael Pachter and EA CEO John Riccitiello indicated that the publishing executive had been anticipating new consoles to hit the market as much as two years ago, and this extended console cycle is partly to blame for EA's stock price woes.
Moreover, tech experts like Square Enix's Julien Merceron have gone on record with GamesIndustry International to note that this generation "has been way too long." He called out Microsoft and Sony for dragging the console cycle into its eigth year as the "biggest mistake they ever made." Merceron believes that many developers who had been waiting for next-gen hardware jumped ship to other platforms, particularly digital ones like iOS, Android, Facebook and Steam, and those game designers may never return to consoles.
So is Merceron right? Have Sony and Microsoft fumbled the ball, or is this actually one of the better things to have happened to the games industry in a long time? GamesIndustry International's global editorial team weighs in.
Rachel Weber
Has this cycle been too long? Look at it is this way, the PlayStation 3 came out in November 2006, about the time Mel Gibson's Apocalypto was released. It was so long ago that man still had a serious career. More relevantly, it was three years later before FarmVille even launched, more than 6 months before anyone even had an iPhone.
The world has changed, and our industry has changed, but the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (which let's not forget is even older) have stayed pretty much the same. Big dusty boxes designed for playing triple-A titles really well, and sort of muddling through when it comes to everything else.
Whole new business models have been conceived, carried and shot out into the birthing pool while Sony and Microsoft have eyed each other (and their accounts) carefully and decided to hold of on a new console for just one more year. Sure, they're working on them in some lab in the secret bunker, and unnamed developers, right now, have games in the works, but still they're holding off.
Maybe they think they can't afford to act, but the truth is they can't afford not to. A new console launch would bring back some love to the brands, allow them to open up to the new business models like free-to-play, and reinvigorate the market and the developers and publishers to create new games, and new franchises. Activision is set to release its eighth Call Of Duty title for this generation; don't tell me those dev teams aren't so desperate for a new machine to play with that they're self harming in the lunch hall.
Ben Strauss
I look at this with a bit of imprudence in that I have more games on this platform than I have ever had with any other. The Xbox 360 and the PS3 (I am ignoring the Wii to an extent without forgetting the fantastic first-party stuff and games like Okami) have brought us some games that I will never forget; Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect, Fallout 3 and New Vegas, Ace Combat and Red Dead Redemption remain in my gaming portfolio. Heck, I still own a PS3 that has Backwards Compatibility for my SOCOM and Ace Combat titles for the PS2.
"Sony and Microsoft's argument is they've turned their consoles into entertainment hubs, but I'm pretty sure I can order a Smart Fridge with Netflix streaming now"
Matt Martin
Sure, most of these games will run on PC and they'll be playable for a good long while, but even with the noticeable tech differences (go play Mass Effect 1 again then pop in Mass Effect 3, you'll see), these games are substantial. This generation really made gaming a common thing for many, many people. I believe we should break past the uncanny valley, and I believe graphics have to improve only slightly...it is more on the tech side of creating less choppy character modeling and framerate issues. The hardware needs to change, yes, that's definitely something that has to happen.
Honestly though, we see a lack of new IP, we see a lot of struggling from all the major players in the industry. A new console line-up could definitely pump some blood into the industry, but just how effective is it going to be? I am very, very hesitant on what the future holds for gaming. I see more F2P, I see more mobile, but most of all I see more platform-agnostic games coming out. A new console cycle? Yes, but with caveats. We have to do more to push platform-agnostic titles and overall social connectivity between games.
Matt Martin
I stopped playing games on my PlayStation 3 about 18 months ago and my Xbox 360 hasn't had much love this year apart from flings with Trials Evolution and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD. The truth is I've lost interest in console games this generation. I'm playing on my iPad, I broke out the PSone recently, gave the Vita a second chance and even dabbled in PC gaming. I'm looking for kicks anywhere I can find them.
Sony and Microsoft's argument is they've turned their consoles into entertainment hubs, but I'm pretty sure I can order a Smart Fridge with Netflix streaming now, so I'm not sure that either of them are doing anything I'm interested in. And I doubt I'm the only gamer who's moved on. Look at the crowds around League of Legends or Tribes: Ascend if you want to know where the hardcore is going. Or Auto Club Revolution, and any number of niche titles catering to genre fans on PC, on Android and iOS, on Facebook.
Do I want a new console? Absolutely, whatever format that may be. But I can't help thinking solid hardware under my TV is as old fashioned a concept as set broadcast times for a TV show. It still works and there's a market for it but all the cool kids are off elsewhere jacking entertainment straight into their eyeballs. I still want a new Call of Duty, but I'd rather play some of it for free, and then buy more levels, online maps and perks at my own pace.
Can new consoles offer all of the services and choice we've seen flourish elsewhere in the time it took the Xbox 360 to go from streaming movies to adopting Twitter and offering free baseball updates? I doubt it, so my fear is that while this generation has dragged on (and it has been a drag), by the time new hardware does come around it will be caught on the back foot, struggling to catch up to a constantly evolving market. If they spend the first 12 months on the market trying to catch up and convince gamers to take an interest, how are consoles going to set their own agenda and become relevant again? That's a terrible position to be in.
It's not that there isn't an audience for consoles because there clearly is, but every day the next generation is delayed is another customer lost, their heads turned by new technology, tailored services and better targeted games.
Steve Peterson
All you need to know about the current console generation is contained in one number: 30 percent. That's the approximate drop in retail sales for consoles and console software this year over last year, the fourth straight year of declines. Publishers are releasing fewer titles, and average sales and prices are dropping. It's past time for new consoles to revive sales, if indeed sales can be brought back to the glory days of 2008. The console makers hate having to lose money for years selling new consoles at a loss, so they've held off. This has allowed mobile, social, and downloadable games, particularly free-to-play ones, to build an impressive audience.
"The longer we wait for new consoles, the lower their chances for long-term success as their competition on many fronts continues to rush forward at full speed"
Steve Peterson
New consoles have their biggest challenge ever: Fighting against a vast array of free-to-play games that, one way or another, are making their way to the same screen that console games have been played on. No genre is immune, as a new generation of FPS and RPG games start combining free-to-play with top-notch graphics. Sony has been letting the camel's nose into the tent with Dust 514 and all the SOE MMORPGs. Gamers will be looking for free-to-play games on new consoles, and if they aren't there, that's a huge reason not to buy a new console.
New consoles are going to need to offer compelling new game experiences (either through innovative controller schemes, like the Wii U, or through hugely better graphics) that simply can't be found elsewhere. Additionally, new consoles will probably need to offer an array of entertainment options in order to justify their price tags, and console makers will have to keep prices of the hardware low to create a big enough audience to justify exclusive development. I think most third-party publishers will hesitate to put the majority of their development resources into next-gen consoles; EA and Activision have already shown this. The longer we wait for new consoles, the lower their chances for long-term success as their competition on many fronts continues to rush forward at full speed.
Matt Handrahan
When you spend five days week looking at the games industry from an objective remove, it's easy to miss the moments that require a personal perspective. I was about to write a few paragraphs about iPhones, social networks, free-to-play, and the myriad other sea-changes that have slipped in the back door as this console generation has lumbered along, making our once adored plastic boxes seem irrelevant, but that would be disingenuous.
"The console developers I've talked to are less enthusiastic about the need to re-learn the details of their jobs every five years"
Matt Handrahan
I don't play games on my phone, I certainly don't on Facebook, and every free-to-play game I've ever tried has seemed compromised by its business model. I like single-player games of the sort that are definitely worth £40, and anything less substantial than, say, Fez or Trials Evolution feels like a waste of my time. In short, I love my console, I'll probably love the next one; if these new platforms constitute the brave new world of gaming, I'll be in my front room, doped up on Soma and playing Skyrim.
Wearing my trade journalist hat, I can see the issues a long life-cycle has caused publishers and retailers, but wishing for the prompt arrival of another generation strikes me as confusing the symptom with the disease. One thing's for sure: while the publishers are anxious for new hardware so they can adhere to the self-imposed logic of when to launch new IP, the console developers I've talked to are less enthusiastic about the need to re-learn the details of their jobs every five years. It serves an agenda, yes, but it isn't necessarily in the service of creativity or making better games.
The solution to all of this is many years away - probably in the cloud - but right now I'm left wondering whether new consoles will really provide the leap we're expecting, or just highlight the true nature of the problem.
Wearing my conspiracy theorist hat, I can't shake the feeling that Microsoft and Sony are probably wondering about the same thing.
David Radd
This generation has gone on too long. I distinctly remember having a phone conversation right after Microsoft's 2012 E3 press conference saying "This generation of consoles is done." We're seeing series now get into their fourth major incarnation this year and next, like God of War, Halo and Gears of War. Sequels abounded at the show, reflecting the stagnation pervading the AAA industry right now.
I think this is resulting in retail fatigue - there just isn't the same level of excitement anymore, and it's reflected in the recent NPD reports. Granted, there's serious disruption going on from the digital sphere, but all of the shiny newness has worn off this generation of consoles. While there might be a few spectacular games to send this generation off, for the most part it's just going through the motions until things get refreshed.
To speak to the particular issue of "whether it is good for the industry or not" I think it's been good for Microsoft and Sony, and ultimately they're looking out for number one. Launching consoles is expensive, and I'm sure they've both saved money and made money by delaying as long as possible. As for Riccitiello, the writing was sort of on the wall for an extended console cycle, so I would be shocked if he hadn't accounted for that. And I can't disagree more with Merceron's assertion that if new consoles were coming, the dev teams could have been saved by going to bat on a new console - if they weren't making money now, why would they make money working on an even more expensive platform? Also, there are issues of developer freedom and personal control that reflect the massive defections to the mobile/social space and I'm not sure there's anything the AAA industry could do to change that.
But rightly or wrongly in extending the lifespans, we really need new consoles now.
Mike Williams
Microsoft set the tone by holding off with a new console announcement. The Kinect still has some life left in it and Microsoft is too busy setting up its Windows 8 ecosystem to worry about the launch of another home system. Outside of SmartGlass, E3 felt like Microsoft was playing a waiting game. Subsequent announcements of the Surface tablet, Windows Phone 8, and Office 2013 have shown where the company's focus is in 2012.
"There's the big question of what exactly a new console generation will even offer. Is the jump to Unreal Engine 4 graphics really enough to change the retail slump we see every month with NPD?"
James Brightman
Sony seems increasingly muddled. Move is a non-entity, the Vita is hidden in perpetual shadow, and the PlayStation 3 would be equally forgotten without a strong showing of PlayStation Network games, Beyond, and The Last of Us. The recent acquisition of Gaikai is interesting, but we're probably a ways out from seeing Sony capitalize on it.
Nintendo's Wii U is fun, but feels more like an extension on the existing generation instead of the next generation. Nintendo needs to find the Wii U's story: the reason for Wii players to upgrade and 360/PS3 players to buy a whole new system to play the same games.
PC and mobile markets are where all the change is happening in the industry, with publishers and developers feeling out free-to-play, subscriptions, microtransactions, and cloud-based services. Sony and Microsoft have the networks to capitalize on these new trends, but both are taking a wait-and-see approach when it comes to actual support.
So we stand at the last hurrah of this generation, closing out with a number of titles in March of 2013, a few months before the next E3. It's a shift that needs to happen in 2013, lest investors run scared into the waiting arms of mobile and social network gaming companies. Publishers, developers, and consumers are ready for the next shiny novelty to drive sales, hype, and new IP. Don't keep us waiting.
James Brightman
The issue of whether this cycle has dragged on for too long depends on whose perspective you're coming from. Clearly, for Microsoft and Sony, the length isn't a problem. It's enabled the companies to streamline costs and recoup costs on massively expensive hardware to R&D and manufacture. Sony especially could use a breather before doing it all over again.
The fast-growing sector of the industry encompassing Facebook, mobile and digital PC developers sure doesn't care about how long this cycle is. In fact, as Square Enix's Julien Merceron pointed out, the length of this cycle may very well have spurred on the growth of social and mobile, and as far as I'm concerned, this is a huge boon for gaming on a global scale.
Social and mobile by themselves aren't the cure all for this business, but clearly there's a great desire from the creatives in the industry to break out from the five-year console mold dominated by massive publishers who want to control the IP rights of the precious games that these developers toil to create.
And in terms of the publishers making excuses and holding back on new IP, as Matt Handrahan noted, that's some self-imposed nonsense. It could be argued that now is a great time to launch a new franchise (kudos to Naughty Dog for The Last of Us!). The installed bases are built-up and many gamers are tired of the same old, same old, over and over. And from a technical standpoint these games already look brilliant - especially this late in the cycle.
That's not to say that I don't desire new hardware - but I'm in no rush. And there's also the big question of what exactly a new console generation will even offer. Is the jump to Unreal Engine 4 graphics really enough to change the retail slump we see every month with NPD? The future is digital, and the platform holders better figure out what they're going to do about it, or else they'll cease to exist. Sony's acquisition of Gaikai at least gives me some hope.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...eally-too-long
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July 20th, 2012, 02:21 Posted By: wraggster
AskAboutGames.com, a website designed to educate parents and families about video games, is online once more.
The site has been relaunched by trade body UKIE to coincide with PEGI's debut as a legally enforceable ratings system, which is due to occur on Monday, July 30th.
It will feature information on parent controls, age ratings and how families can ensure their children are playing video games safely.
The site will be edited by Andy Robertson of Family Gamer TV and Wired's Geek Dad. It will support UKIE's wider Control.Collaborate.Create campaign to raise awareness of PEGI.
"We're really pleased to have relaunched the askaboutgames website as a place where everyone, especially parents and carers of children can find out more about how to get the best out of game playing," said UKIE CEO Dr Jo Twist.
"Games are a great way for families to get together and playing them can have so many benefits. But we know that parents have questions about what types of games their children should be playing, understanding how to have the conversation with their children about certain content, and how they should be enjoying games – askaboutgames.com gives them the answers."
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/ukie-...-launch/099844
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July 19th, 2012, 02:25 Posted By: wraggster
We knew this wouldn’t take long. [David] sent a high altitude balloon into the upper atmosphere last weekend using a Raspberry Pi as the brains of the payload.
[David]‘s payload consisted of a Raspberry Pi, natch, with a Logitech webcam, GPS receiver, and six AA batteries wired into a LDO regulator with a monstrous heat sink to keep everything in the EPX foam enclosure relatively warm in the frigid rarefied air of near space.
A high altitude balloon isn’t much fun without some real-time data coming down from the upper atmosphere, so [David] used a Radiometrix NTX2 transmitter module (anyone know of an equivalent part for the USA?) that transmits a measly 10 milliwatts. Even though the transmitter has an ‘official’ range of 500 meters, [David] got word of image data being received in Northern Ireland, over 500 km away.
We’re pretty impressed with [David]‘s flight - and the fact that his flight is now 12th place on the list of UK balloon altitude records – but now we’re wondering what could be done with another Raspi flight to near space. [David] had a lot of computing horsepower up there, enough to get images from a webcam and send them down to earth. Now we’re wondering what else could be done with a Raspberry Pi in space.
You can check out the GoPro video of the very fast decent after the break, or check out the received images on [David]‘s Flickr.
http://hackaday.com/2012/07/18/sendi...o-130000-feet/
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July 19th, 2012, 02:24 Posted By: wraggster
Organisers of the ExPlay festival have revealed the first details ahead of this year's event, which takes place in Bath. Edge is the exclusive media partner for the festival's second year following its move from Plymouth.
Keynotes will be delivered by Eidos life president Ian Livingstone and Dr Richard Wilson, CEO of TIGA, the UK trade association which will also host the inagural TIGA Games Industry Awards at the festival. The programme, to be revealed in the months to come, will feature industry talks, games, parties and competitions.
Also planned is ExPlay Boot Camp, a bespoke training programme that promises to help start-ups and small studios go from concept to commercially viable game in just six months.
Korash Sanjideh, festival director, said: "We are proud to be organising ExPlay for the second year running, this time in the historically playful city of Bath. The festival will once again help raise the profile of the indie game industry across the UK, shining a light on indie development in the south west."
ExPlay runs from October 31 to November 2 at the Roman Baths and Assembly Rooms in Bath. For more, see the ExPlay website.
http://www.edge-online.com/news/expl...ils-2012-plans
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July 19th, 2012, 02:19 Posted By: wraggster
Speaking to Eurogamer, art maestro (and visual design director of upcoming stealth/action game Dishonored) Victor Antonov put into words what many gamers have been feeling about the gaming industry of late:"It's been a poor, poor five years for fiction in the video game industry. There have been too many sequels, and too many established IPs that have been ruling the market. And a lot of them are war games. And they're great projects and great entertainment, but there's a lack of variety today. So, when you step out of this established genre, people cannot grasp it, or the press tries to find a match. ... We were always waiting for the next generation of great worlds or great graphics. Well, great graphics came; the worlds that came with these graphics are not up to the level of the graphics. ... Games should sort of split up and specialize and assume that there's such a thing as genre, and they shouldn't try to please everybody at the same time and try to make easy, diluted projects. Let's go for intensity and quality."
http://games.slashdot.org/story/12/0...in-video-games
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July 19th, 2012, 00:10 Posted By: wraggster
Barclays and Goldman Sachs reported to be brought in to broker $8bn deal
Vivendi is reported to be in talks with Barclays and Goldman Sachs about how best to broker the rumored eight billion dollar sale of Activision-Blizzard.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the two major banks are helping the French entertainment company assess its options in offloading its 61 percent interest.
The unconfirmed rumors of the sale have gathered momentum in recent weeks, with talk that Vivendi has actively been seeking buyers for the world's largest games company.
Though most reports center around the posibility of an outright sale, other options exist, such as Activision buying back Vivendi's shares.
http://www.develop-online.net/news/4...ctivision-sale
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July 19th, 2012, 00:08 Posted By: wraggster
The judge handling Kim Dotcom's extradition hearing described the US as 'the enemy' at a internet conference last week.
Judge David Harvey's comments at the NetHui conference has caused his impartiality to be questioned. He has now stepped down from overseeing the case.
The outburst happened during a discussion about copyright law, in which Judge Harvey read out a tweet saying 'We have met the enemy and he is US' - a play on the saying 'We have met the enemy and he is us'.
This proved the wrong move for the judge as the comment attracted attention due to him currently dealing with the US government's request for New Zealand to hand over employees of Megaupload to face copyright and fraud charges.
File-sharing site Megaupload was shut down and Dotcom, along with four others, were arrested in January of this year.
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...e-enemy/028722
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July 17th, 2012, 00:04 Posted By: wraggster
If you'd been frustrated thanks to all the Raspberries having been picked, and had even considered the bitter taste of other fruit, there's hope for you yet. The tiny computer's maker has just announced that production is now at 4,000 units per day, and the previous restriction of one purchase per person has been lifted. Good news. In addition to this is the announcement of a new camera board in the works. The 5-megapixel module (as expected, dropping a few notches from the 14MP prototype) is expected to cost around $20-$25, and be available in around three months. So now you can have your fill of the sweet little berries and look forward to your next upgrade too. Now you just need to think of a suitably sweetapplication for it.
http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/16/r...-5mp-camera-m/
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July 16th, 2012, 23:59 Posted By: wraggster
You have just one week to lobby for the Games Media Awards 2012, so get in touch now to let us know why you deserve a prize this year.
You can nominate yourself, a colleague, your own personal favourite media or, if you're feeling generous, even a competitor. But you only have until Monday July 23rd to lobby your views viagma@intentmedia.co.uk.
The categories are:-
Games Website
Games Magazine
Specialist Writer - Print
Specialist Writer - Online
Writer - National Newspaper
Writer - Mainstream Magazine
Games Video
Games Radio and Podcast
Games Blog
Rising Star
Coverage by a Mainstream Website
Top Tweeter
Games Writer of the Year
Legend
The finalists will be announced on Friday August 10th and, as ever, the winners in each category (other than the Legend and the Games Writer of the Year awards) will be voted for by members of the media and industry PRs.
You can see the winners of last year's Games Media Awards here.
The Games Media Awards will this year take place on Thursday October 18th and return to the super chic Vinopolis, Bankside. Gold Partners supporting the event include Xbox 360, Need For Speed Most Wanted, PlayStation, Nintendo, Codemasters Racing, Metal Gear Rising Revengeance and OnLive.
Deep Silver has signed up as Media Transport Partner and Gamescom is Event Partner. Green Man Gaming is sponsoring the Top Tweeter category, with Precise sponsoring Coverage by a Mainstream Website. Meanwhile, Sega is backing the Games Writer of the Year award.
Russell Kane, winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, will be the host for the evening.
Up to 350 guests will attend this year’s Games Media Awards, including nearly 200 media. A limited number of trade tickets will be available at £150 per person. Contact Kathryn.Humphrey@intentmedia.co.uk to find out more.
A limited number of further partnership opportunities are available. To find out more contactcaroline@indigopearl.com.
You can follow the gma twitter feed at @GamesMediaAward.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/games...-winner/099641
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July 16th, 2012, 21:16 Posted By: wraggster
Boston Festival of Indie Games opens submissions
A new event celebrating indie games is scheduled to take place in Boston on the 22nd of September, and the organizers have announced that submissions are open for the debut games showcase.
The Boston Festival of Indie Games will be hosted by MIT Game Lab and Boston Indies at the MIT Campus.
The event is free to the public, and features include a 12-hour game jam, digital art exhibit, film screenings, special guest speakers, and a special showcase to highlight games developed by the MIT Game Lab.
Awards for showcased games will be given based on a public vote, but games must be cleared by a curation panel of industry professionals including Paul Neurath, creative director Zynga Boston, Tim Stellmach, senior designer for Hamonix, Eitan Glinert, creative director for Fire Hose Games, and Philip Tan, U.S. Executive Director for the Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab.
Indie developers can submit their figital games for showcase at the event for $10 student and $15 professional, with a final deadline of Friday, August 10.
http://www.develop-online.net/news/4...ival-in-Boston
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July 16th, 2012, 21:14 Posted By: wraggster
The Raspberry Pi Foundation has today announced that its resale partners are no longer limiting orders to just one per customer.
The latest Raspberry Pi blog entry states: "As of this morning, you’ll be able to buy as many Raspberry Pis as you want from both RS Components and element14/Premier Farnell."
This is good news for people looking to buy classroom sets for schools and universities. The blog says that 4000 Raspberry Pis are currently being made every day.
As soon as orders were accepted, the initial batch of 10,000 Raspberry Pis sold out within a matter of seconds back in February.
RS Components are forecasting that orders placed now will start reaching customers in September, element14/Premier Farnell are only offering a slightly better delivery time of 4-6 weeks. Both Raspberry Pi partners are quick to point out there is a heft backlog - it seems everyone's after a piece of the Pi.
Those interested in getting in on the action can find links to purchasing a Pi here.
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...-limits/028697
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July 15th, 2012, 18:57 Posted By: wraggster
Innovative Leisure's Seamus Blackley on the current console cycle
Innovative Leisure's Seamus Blackley has attributed the success of recent Kickstarter projects like Ouya to gamers' need for something new.
"The consoles are old. There's not really a lot of interesting new content coming out en masse," he toldGamesBeat.
"Witness the unbelievable phenomenon today on Kickstarter, Ouya, that represents a huge amount of pent-up demand from console customers, people who want a new console. That's them voting with their money."
Blackley, who recently rounded up a team of ex-Atari game designers to make iPad and iPhone games, added that too much stock could be put in trying to follow the trends, including social gaming.
"If you look at it as a pure business proposition, you say, well, social is hot here, games that are social are going to win. It's not true. Games that are good are going to win. You can actually almost accurately track the growth and contraction in the games business according to whether or not the games we were producing were satisfying."
He said falling console sales were nothing to be concerned about. It's a natural part of the cycle, and fans weren't tiring of the big screen experience, but they were tiring when it came to the type of content that was being delivered.
"You see people willing to give millions of dollars for PC games," he said of recent Kickstarter successes.
"It doesn't indicate that the audience is looking to be entertained in new ways. It indicates that the audience is looking to be entertained in the ways that they love, and it doesn't necessarily follow the business cycle a lot of people are predicting."
Innovative Leisure launched in February with backing from THQ to create arcade style titles for iOS.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...th-their-money
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July 15th, 2012, 18:33 Posted By: wraggster
How far would a Star Wars fan go to preserve a relic from the iconic film series? One devoted fan traveled to Tunisia to rescue Luke Skywalker's boyhood home, also known as The Lars Homestead, as seen in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. On a trip to Tunisia in 2010, Belgian traveler Mark Dermul came upon the modest dome-shaped hut that George Lucas built in the mid-1970s to serve as Luke Skywalker's home. The structure was falling apart when Dermul found it, so he hatched a scheme to restore it. After two years and a lot of cement and plaster, Luke's house is looking better than ever.
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/st...kywalkers-home
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July 13th, 2012, 22:58 Posted By: wraggster
What good is a moat if nobody is guarding it? We suppose that depends on what beasties lurk beneath the surface of the water, but that’s neither here nor there. The members of LVL1 continue their quest to outdo each other in augmenting the building’s automated features. The latest offering is this security camera which is operated with an analog thumb stick.
These are the people who are building a moat (which the city things is a reflecting pool) in front of their main entrance. Now they will be able to see and sense if anyone is trying to get across the watery hazard. The hack marries an ultrasonic rangefinder and camera module with a pair of servo motors. The brackets for the motors allow a full range of motion, and the signal is translated by an Arduino and Video Experimenter shield to put out a composite video signal. That’s not going to make streaming all that easy, but we’re sure that is just one more hack away.
http://hackaday.com/2012/07/13/joyst...look-the-moat/
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July 13th, 2012, 22:51 Posted By: wraggster
Toy retailers Hamleys and The Entertainer have both picked gadgets from LeapFrog and VTech as potential hits this Christmas.
It seems even children aren't immune from the tablet craze.
The Entertainer’s buying director Stuart Grant commented: “Interactive toys are very exciting for youngsters and stimulate their senses and imagination.
“They pick up new technology in a flash and love getting their hands on the grown-up gadgets.
“Parents have cottoned on to the idea that they can use their children’s appetite for technology to boost their learning, which is what makes the tablets so popular.”
Here's The Entertainer's top 13 products for Christmas:
- VTech Innotab (£84.99)
- Leapfrog LeapPad2 (£89.99)
- Moshi Monsters My Moshi Home (£39.99)
- Lalaloopsy Interactive Doll (£59.99)
- Furby (TBA)
- Crayola Glow Book (£28)
- Lego The Lord of the Rings The Battle of Helm’s Deep (£99.99)
- Hexbug Nano Hive Play Set (£25)
- The Amazing Spider-Man Dual Web Blaster (£23)
- Nerf Elite Hail-Fire (£44.99)
- Monsuno Core (£9)
- Words with Friends (£20)
- Ben 10 Omniverse Omnitrix Touch (£25)
Whilst Hamley's top ten list shapes up like this:
- Monster High Dolls (Mattel)
- Web Shooting Spider-Man (Hasbro)
- Moshi Monster App Monster (Vivid)
- Subbuteo (Paul Lamond)
- Innotab 2 (VTech)
- Nerf Elite Hail Fire (Hasbro)
- Barbie Train to Trot Tawny (Mattel)
- Master Moves Mickey (Mattel)
- The Lord of the Rings, The Battle of Helms Deep (Lego)
- LeapPad2 (LeapFrog)
- Cabbage Patch Kids (Jakks)
What do you think, does the trend towards computing for kids benefit IT retailers? Would most children rather have an iPad? Let us know.
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...ristmas/028685
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July 13th, 2012, 22:47 Posted By: wraggster
Comet reckons the sadomasochistic sex book is making Amazon's device fly off shelves.
EL James' Fifty Shades of Grey has become a phenomenon amongst women. Last month, the 'mummy porn' novel passed theone million downloads mark last month – the first e-book to do so.
And now, electronics retailer Comet reckons the steamy series has increased sales in North England by 71 per cent, and 29 per cent in South England.
Jon Wiltshire, head of consumer electronics, Comet, said: "The Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon has swept the nation causing a dramatic increase in sales of Kindle e-readers in Comet stores and online.
"Our staff have reported an increase in women who have bought the device with many admitting it’s so they can read the saucy trilogy. I’m not sure whether that means that women in the North are more adventurous or more prudish as the beauty of a Kindle is that readers can hide exactly what they’re reading.
"Either way, we’ve seen a big jump in sales, which looks set to continue."
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...e-sales/018623
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