By Jonathan Kimak TN Games is releasing a gaming vest called the 3rd Space Vest. The vest allows a player to “feel” the things that their on-screen avatar feels. Kicks, punches and even environmental effects such as the wind can be experienced through the vest. With support for WoW the vest will also grant a player […]
By Jonathan Kimak
TN Games is releasing a gaming vest called the 3rd Space Vest. The vest allows a player to “feel” the things that their on-screen avatar feels. Kicks, punches and even environmental effects such as the wind can be experienced through the vest. With support for WoW the vest will also grant a player to feel the effects of spells on their body. Other games like Call of Duty 2 and BioShock are also supported.
Feedback vests are nothing new and I’ve never been a fan. But if you’re curious and live in Los Angeles you can check out the vest at the E for All Expo starting today(October 3) and going until October 5.
(Image courtesy daily dose of imagery. Used with permission.) By Andrew Liszewski Nuit Blanche is an annual all-night cultural festival that started in Paris in 2002, and has since spread to other massive cities around the world, including Toronto. The event is held overnight on the first Saturday and Sunday in October, and one of the premiere […]
Nuit Blanche is an annual all-night cultural festival that started in Paris in 2002, and has since spread to other massive cities around the world, including Toronto. The event is held overnight on the first Saturday and Sunday in October, and one of the premiere exhibits here in Toronto this year will be the new Project Blinkenlights installation known as Stereoscope. The two curved towers that make up our city hall will be turned into giant pixel displays showing animations as well as letting people play interactive games like Pong via their mobile phones.
Last night I was lucky enough to wander past city hall as Project Blinkenlights was performing some of their first live tests, but unfortunately the only camera I had on hand was the crappy iPhone. Thankfully, a photoblogging friend of mine managed to snap some considerably superior photos and was gracious enough to let me use one for this post. (You can find more shots on his site, daily dose of imagery.) I did however get a opportunity to talk to a couple of people from the project who were shooting footage for a documentary. According to them, not only will Stereoscope will be the first time the installation uses 2 buildings at the same time (hence the name) but it will also improve on past versions with every pixel being able to display 16 distinct levels. (Compared to just 8 and 4 previously.) Each window uses a 150W spotlight that’s diffused by a screen and controlled by a custom-built dimmer to create the individual pixels, and all 960 dimmers are wirelessly controlled by a master computer. In fact, Stereoscope actually uses quite a bit of new technology and software given the size of Toronto’s city hall (like going wireless instead of running cables) and so far it all looks rather impressive.
I’ll be stopping by Saturday night to grab some superior pics of my own, as well as a video or two if the weather cooperates, and if any of our readers in Toronto will be checking it out, let me know in the comments. But for those who won’t be able to be there live, did I mention that Project Blinkenlights has also created a Stereoscope iPhone app allowing you to see what’s being displayed at any given time? You can read more about it after the jump.
I have to say, as impressive as seeing Stereoscope running in person is, I was just as impressed by the iPhone/iPod Touch application they created to go along with it. It provides you with a 3D interactive model of Toronto’s city hall that includes whatever animation or interactive exhibit is currently being displayed, all in real-time. The 3D model can be rotated and zoomed using the multi-touch display, or you can select one of 8 preset virtual camera positions for the optimal viewing angle.
While Nuit Blanche only takes place over one night, Stereoscope will apparently be running each night for the entire week, so even if you can’t make it in person on Saturday, you should be able to halt by during the rest of the week. And if you can’t make it to Toronto at all for the exhibit, the app is probably the next best thing to being there.
By Luke Anderson Seeing a DeLorean up for sale on eBay isn’t anything new. Every now and then you come across one that tries to pass itself off as a time machine, which is always cool to see. However, it is rare that you find one that features an electric motor. Someone has taken the time and […]
By Luke Anderson
Seeing a DeLorean up for sale on eBay isn’t anything new. Each now and then you come across one that tries to pass itself off as a time machine, which is always cool to see. However, it is rare that you find one that features an electric motor.
Someone has taken the time and effort to swap out their 1981 DeLorean DMC-12’s motor with a WarP 9 electric motor, which is powered by thirteen 12 volt 100 amp-hour batteries. This will get you around 40 miles per charge, with a top speed of over 88 MPH. That 88 MPH is important since that’s the speed needed to activate the Flux Capacitor which was also installed.
There are two disappointments that I see here. First, the “Buy It Now” price is set at $100,000 which is a bit salty, even for an electric DeLorean. Second, this guy has a Flux Capacitor, has traveled into the future, and battery technology still sucks. Okay, so maybe I made up that last part.
It’s Elevator Pitch Friday, which means another startup has created a video that’s worth showing you. This week’s presentation comes from eRepublik, a Spanish startup that wants to take strategy games and make them more social, more interactive, and therefore, more fun. eRepublik wants to change the way that strategy games are played by taking out the hours of game play. Anyone who has played Risk or Diplomacy knows how long traditional strategy games can take. eRupublik has built an online virtual geo-political simulator that grants the player to “make history” in its virtual world with as little as fifteen minutes of daily game play. And, it is both free and totally browser based, two things that most strategy games are not.
It’s Elevator Pitch Friday, which means another startup has created a video that’s worth showing you. This week’s presentation comes from eRepublik, a Spanish startup that wants to take strategy games and make them more social, more interactive, and therefore, more fun.
eRepublik wants to change the way that strategy games are played by taking out the hours of game play. Anyone who has played Risk or Diplomacy knows how long traditional strategy games can take. eRupublik has built an on the internet virtual geo-political simulator that allows the player to “make history” in its virtual world with as tiny as fifteen minutes of daily game play. And, it is both free and totally browser based, two things that most strategy games are not.
It plans to make money from by selling the virtual currency used in the game. eRepublik is currently in private beta, and has raised one million dollars.
Yahoo News has launched a beta version of its massively popular news site that reaches a reported 44 million very special visitors a month. The new site has introduced a number of basic aesthetic changes (the font is slightly more massive and there’s more space between text) along with some new design changes that incorporate rich media and gear the site to superior serve its diverse variety of readers. Alan Warms, Yahoo’s VP GM of News, Technology, and Education, says that the site has been tweaked to grant its editors more flexibility when it comes to incorporating media like videos and photos. He also says that the site is being adjusted to give readers easier access to content: at the bottom of each article the site will now include a handful of links to related stories and popular articles, both on Yahoo and elsewhere on the web (this feature incorporates the Buzztracker technology that Yahoo acquired last year). Yahoo will will also pay attention to where its users are coming from - if a reader comes from Digg or Yahoo Buzz, only five paragraphs of their news stories will be shown initially, with the related links prominently featured (Yahoo figures that these readers are more likely to click through to new stories, and are less concerned with reading the full article).
Yahoo News has launched a beta version of its massively popular news site that reaches a reported 44 million very special visitors a month. The new site has introduced a number of basic aesthetic changes (the font is slightly larger and there’s more space between text) along with some new design changes that incorporate rich media and gear the site to superior serve its diverse variety of readers. To get to the new site, head to Yahoo News and hit the link at the top of the page.
Alan Warms, Yahoo’s VP GM of News, Technology, and Education, states that the site has been tweaked to allow its editors more flexibility when it comes to incorporating media like videos and photos. He also says that the site is being adjusted to give readers easier access to content: at the bottom of each article the site will now include a handful of links to related stories and popular articles, both on Yahoo and elsewhere on the internet (this feature incorporates the Buzztracker technology that Yahoo acquired last year).
Yahoo will will also pay attention to where its users are coming from - if a reader comes from Digg or Yahoo Buzz, only five paragraphs of their news stories will be shown initially, with the related links prominently featured (Yahoo figures that these readers are more likely to click through to new stories, and are less concerned with reading the full article). Readers who visit Yahoo News directly will be shown the full articles by default, and there will be an option for all readers to automatically show full articles.
Because of Yahoo’s massive amount of traffic it has to be careful whenever it institutes a new design, so the site may remain in beta for some time. Last month the site launched a new home page for the first time in over a year.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
No surprise that SGN’s iPhone games are doing so well - they’re fun to play and they’re free. iGolf is at no. 7 on the top ten apps list and has, the company says, more than 1 million downloads. The newly launched iBowl is at no. 8. Both games extensively use the accelerometer to control game action, resulting in a Wii-like experience. The only problem is the high chance of throwing the iPhone through the nearest window.
No surprise that SGN’s iPhone games are doing so well - they’re fun to play and they’re free. iGolf is at no. 7 on the top ten apps list and has, the company states, more than 1 million downloads. The newly launched iBowl is at no. 8.
Both games extensively use the accelerometer to control game action, resulting in a Wii-like experience. The only problem is the high chance of throwing the iPhone through the nearest window.
Crunch Network: CrunchBasethe free database of technology companies, people, and investors
By Luke Anderson I’ve found few ways to relieve stress that feel quite as good as going a few rounds with a punching bag. After a little while you get into a zone where you forget about all of the troubles of your day, and focus only on the bag. The best part is that it’s […]
By Luke Anderson
I’ve found few ways to relieve stress that feel quite as good as going a few rounds with a punching bag. After a tiny while you get into a zone where you forget about all of the troubles of your day, and focus only on the bag. The best part is that it’s a pretty good work out to boot. Sure, most punching bags don’t make good company, but there is at least one that’ll entertain you as you beat on it.
This Love Hate Punch bag was designed by artist Stefan Gross. It is illuminated with a red light (likely to represent anger or stress) that gradually changes to white (likely representing peace) as you continue to strike it. If you let up too long or slow down, the color will return to its original state. This would actually be a great way to keep your pace during a workout, if only it were available for buy.
By Luke Anderson Somehow the month of October is already upon us, and with it comes the cool weather of fall. This of course serves as a reminder of the much colder weather that’ll be here before we know it. With all of the great technology we’ve, there are plenty of gadgets that’ll […]
By Luke Anderson
Somehow the month of October is already upon us, and with it comes the cool weather of fall. This of course serves as a reminder of the much colder weather that will be here before we know it. With all of the great technology we have, there are plenty of gadgets that’ll make sure you keep plenty warm this winter. One such device is this Heated Traction Mat.
When it starts getting really cold, just lay this might down along your walkway, and turn it on any time it snows. This will keep your walkway snow-free without the need of a shovel. If you forget to turn it on before the snow starts, it will still melt it away at a rate of 2-inches per hour.
This seems like a great winter gadget, however, I find there to be a couple of problems with it. First, if your walkway slopes downward toward the street, all of the melted snow will run down and create a sheet of ice, which will only cause further issues. Second, at a price of $1,100 for a 2′x15′ mat, it’s just not very cost-effective. You could probably pay a neighbor kid to shovel your walkway and driveway for many years at that price.
Earlier this month both AOL and Yahoo redesigned their home pages to include more links to outside services. The new AOL homepage features prominent links to Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo Mail, as well as to bookmarks leading elsewhere, and integration with Facebook and MySpace. Yahoo’s new home page, which it is still bucket testing selectively, also includes more directlinkstoother e-mail providers, social networks, and a new left-hand channel strip that can be modeified by suers to include links to their favorite Web services. For YAhoo, it is part of its strategy to become the preimier starting point on the Web, no matter where people wan to go. But in an era when the destination site is quickly dying, if not already dead (with information pushed and personalized to you via services like Facebook, FriendFeed, and Twitter), will these redesigns be enough? In a note today, Wall Street analyst Douglas Anmuth (formerly of Lehman Brothers, now of Barclays Capital) is not so sure.
Earlier this month both AOL and Yahoo redesigned their home pages to include more links to outside services. The new AOL homepage features prominent links to Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo Mail, as well as to bookmarks leading elsewhere, and integration with Facebook and MySpace. Yahoo’s new home page, which it is still bucket testing selectively, also includes more directlinkstoother e-mail providers, social networks, and a new left-hand channel strip that can be modeified by suers to include links to their favorite Web services. For YAhoo, it is part of its strategy to become the preimier starting point on the Web, no matter where people wan to go. But in an era when the destination site is swiftly dying, if not already dead (with information pushed and personalized to you via services like Facebook, FriendFeed, and Twitter), will these redesigns be enough?
In a note today, Wall Street analyst Douglas Anmuth (formerly of Lehman Brothers, now of Barclays Capital) is not so sure. He writes:
Fundamentally, we believe these actions are necessary steps, but we question if they will make the portals more relevant in the context of a constantly fragmenting Web, and we certainly don’t anticipate them to have an immediate impact on financials.
We believe embracing openness principals by Yahoo! and AOL are the right steps strategically, but the key is whether both properties can improve their monetization of traffic given the current challenging display ad market.
Given that AOL and Yahoo are seriously exploring a combination, at least they are on the same page strategically. But it kind of makes you wonder how much difference the more open strategies pursued by both portals will make. Especially in this market.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
With the $700 billion bail out on hold and banks dropping like flies, it seems this economic apocalypse will come in - and out - with a bang and not a depression. To that end we’ve decided to scour our mind-holes for gear that will help you survive the coming economic catastrophe. While we can’t promise that there will be zombies during this international economic breakdown, we wanted to be absolutely prepared for all potential threats, especially when Pfizer goes belly-up and their laboratories are overrun by environmental activists who release a deadly “rage” virus into the wild. So, in a very real way, this is both to help you survive the Great Dustbowl of 2008 and the great Zombie uprising of suburban New Jersey. Let’s begin.
With the $700 billion bail out on hold and banks dropping like flies, it seems this economic apocalypse will come in - and out - with a bang and not a depression. To that end we’ve decided to scour our mind-holes for gear that’ll help you survive the coming economic catastrophe.
While we can’t promise that there will be zombies during this international economic breakdown, we wanted to be completely prepared for all potential threats, especially when Pfizer goes belly-up and their laboratories are overrun by environmental activists who release a deadly “rage” virus into the wild. So, in a very real way, this is both to help you survive the Great Dustbowl of 2008 and the great Zombie uprising of suburban New Jersey. Let’s start.
I have to say, as impressive as seeing Stereoscope running in person is, I was just as impressed by the iPhone/iPod Touch application they created to go along with it. It provides you with a 3D interactive model of Toronto’s city hall that includes whatever animation or interactive exhibit is currently being displayed, all in real-time. The 3D model can be rotated and zoomed using the multi-touch display, or you can select one of 8 preset virtual camera positions for the optimal viewing angle.
No surprise that SGN’s iPhone games are doing so well - they’re fun to play and they’re free. 
Earlier this month both 
With the $700 billion bail out on hold and banks dropping like flies, it seems this economic apocalypse will come in - and out - with a bang and not a depression. To that end we’ve decided to scour our mind-holes for gear that will help you survive the coming economic catastrophe. While we can’t promise that there will be zombies during this international economic breakdown, we wanted to be absolutely prepared for all potential threats, especially when Pfizer goes belly-up and their laboratories are overrun by environmental activists who release a deadly “rage” virus into the wild. So, in a very real way, this is both to help you survive the Great Dustbowl of 2008 and the great Zombie uprising of suburban New Jersey. Let’s begin.
Entries (RSS)