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TikTok is back in Pakistan following ban due to 'unlawful content'
Pakistan has lifted its ban on TikTok, but only so long as the social video app moderates content in line with local norms.
Google is giving parents a toolkit to educate kids on internet safety
Google and the National Parent Teacher Association are joining forces to help educate parents and kids about online safety. The search giant will give out all-in-one kits that include a Google Pixelbook and presentations covering a variety of topics regarding online safety including phishing and scams, privacy and security, cyberbullying and "inappropriate" content. They also include some decorative reminders of best practices like banners and posters in both English and Spanish.
Leaderboard: Magic vs. melee
Magic and melee: the yin and yang of the fantasy world. It's hard to imagine one existing without the other, the spell-slinging wizard without the mace-wielding hedge knight, the Gandalf without the Conan. Do they exist in a strange symbiosis of mysticism and steel, or is one the clear superior of the other? On one side, magicians have all the power of the elements at their disposal, able to do supernatural feats of wonder with a snap of their fingertips. Of course, this comes at a cost: namely, a terry cloth bathrobe dress code and approximately six-and-a-half hit points. On the other side, melee fighters spend their lives honing their bodies to physical perfection, becoming the Olympic athletes of the fantasy world, if the Olympics had 50-meter Beheading as a category. Then again, fighters tend to have the intellect of a dull brick and try to solve every problem, including PTA meetings, by headbutting it. Who will be crowned the victor today: the wizard or the warrior? Cast your vote -- and the fate of humankind -- after the jump!
Shinoda's giant curved plasma weighs less than your father's first laptop
We've been keeping an eye on Shinoda Plasma's curved PTA (plasma tube array) technology since 2007. What started as a single 43-inch prototype grew to 125-inches in 2008. Now, Shinoda is showing off a 145-inch diagonal prototype consisting of six PTA panels stitched together in a 2-meter x 3-meter matrix. The 960 x 720 pixel resolution might not impress you until you consider the weight: just 7.2-kg (15.8-pounds) thanks to the slim PTA panels measuring just 1-mm thick. Impressive compared to 108-inch LCDs that weigh in at 196-kg (430-pounds) and the original Osborne 1 "laptop" that weighed 24.5-pounds. With any luck, these giant displays will be commercialized for signage so we can all simulate crushing motions with two hands.
Shinoda Plasma showcases 125-inch curved PTA display
Surely you remember Shinoda Plasma and its obscenely large PTA display, right? Unfortunately, this one's no 142-incher, but 125-inches of curvaceous screen real estate still isn't anything to sneeze at -- especially when we're talking about an actual prototype. The 3- x 1-meter display consists of three PTA (plasma tube array) modules connected together, and it features a rather uninspiring 960 x 360 resolution but weighs just 7.9-pounds. The actual "display part" measures just one-millimeter thick, and while this unit is likely to make a veiled appearance at InfoComm next month, a mass produced version will reportedly be produced in conjunction with Hibino. Honest opinion? We're still feelin' the resolution of Alienware's curved monster, but digital signage fans should certainly dig where this one is headed.[Via Pink Tentacle]
Microsoft confirms new Xbox 360 Parent Tools
Sorry kiddies, your days of unlimited 360 playtime -- which seem primarily dedicated to screaming pre-pubescently into your headset while you trash us in Halo 3 -- are numbered. As rumored, Microsoft is unveiling new a new Xbox 360 Family Timer control for concerned parents that allows them to limit console time on a per-day or per-week basis. The child will be notified when they're play time is nearing an end, and the console will shut off once the limit is hit. The timer will be available in December as a download on Xbox LIVE. Microsoft is also teaming up with the Parent Teacher Association and Jerry Rice to raise awareness and plug "PACT," a family contract meant to get kids and parents talking about video game limits.
Shinoda Plasma prepping 142-inch 720p "PTA" display for next year
It's never easy keeping track of the largest HDTV out there, and then there's all that display technology bickering to be done -- do outdoor LED displays count, or how about rear projection? Today's "largest" flavor of the week is this new 142-inch Plasma Tube Array from Shinoda Plasma. The good news is that this plasma-based bad boy boasts a 720p resolution, 1,000 nits of brightness and a contrast ratio of 10,000:1. The bad news is that the asking price is "several tens of million yen" (a few hundred thousand dollars), and the 3 x 2 meter display is composed of 1 x 1 meter squares that are slapped together on site. That cuts down shipping shipping costs, but means you're not going to get a seamless picture -- which is fine for most commercial applications that this thing is primarily built for, but does nothing for our Super Bowl plans. The display will start shipping in small quantities in 2008, with about 200 total planned for production.
ESRB and PTA are BFF
To educate parents that video games are not the anti-Christ, the ESRB is going straight to the wellspring of over-protective parents: The Parent Teacher Association (PTA). Yeah, the PTA is actually a national organization, who knew? The PTA will help distribute 1.3 million brochures to 26,000 PTAs nationwide in an effort to "edumacate teh addults on the vijeo gaames." Apparently it is still legal to breed and propagate the Earth without taking a competency test, so campaigns like this are required. According to PTA National President Anna Weselak, "Every parent knows how popular video games are these days, but perhaps not as many are familiar with the tools that can help them select games that are appropriate for their children." Why are parents buying inappropriate games in the first place, how much larger do the ratings need to be? When was the last time you purchased something for a child without knowing what the item did or was about? Seriously, this campaign can only lead to good and hopefully wipe out just a small bit of naiveté and ignorance around games.
