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'Star Trek Discovery' is taking an unexpected break as 'Star Trek Prodigy' returns
Star Trek: Discovery is taking an unscheduled break in the season after its next episode on December 30th.
MIT leads the way in spaghetti-based innovation
Breaking dry spaghetti noodles into precisely two parts might seem impossible, but scientists at MIT have done exactly that. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers report how they twisted the noodles first, then bent them, to produce two halves instead of the usual shattering of three or more.
Break me off a piece of that YouTube bar
Remember when Google teamed up with Nestle and went and named a flavor of Android after a four-fingered chocolate bar? Turns out it wasn't the last we'd see from this unlikely partnership. To celebrate 80 years since the KitKat went on sale, the two companies announced today that 600,000 "limited edition" packs will feature the name "YouTube Break" instead of the familiar KitKat logo in the UK. According to Nestle, it'll form just one of 72 different "breaks" that will feature on more than 400 wrapper designs. The plan is to produce 100 million packs, with the search giant only playing a small role. That said, YouTube will get involved, allowing smartphone owners to watch the day's top trending videos with a "OK Google, YouTube my break" voice search. If you didn't think things could get more sickly sweet, Google and Nestle just proved you wrong.
Breakfast Topic: Do you take WoW breaks?
Though we all enjoy World of Warcraft -- we wouldn't be here otherwise -- sometimes even the things we love can become a bit tired over time. This is particularly evident now, while we wait for Warlords of Draenor without any new content on the horizon. Going through the same old daily grind can get old quickly, and when the game stops feeling fun and starts feeling like work it may be time for a break. Maybe that break means visiting another game, catching up on your reading list, or even just playing an new character or a new faction for a change of pace. For some of us, these occasional breaks are a necessity to keep our gaming time fun, while others prefer to stick with it and use downtimes like this to catch up on professions, collections, or achievements. So tell us, readers -- which of these categories do you fall in to? Have you ever taken a WoW vacation, however brief?
Conquest vendors disabled while bug is fixed
Rygarius posted on the forums early this morning that all conquest vendors have been disabled until a bug is fixed. The bug in question allows players to exceed the conquest hard cap, amassing over 2,200 points. In general it's not a good idea to exploit bugs like this, as Blizzard has been known to roll back achievements and gear at the least, and even suspend the accounts of the worst offenders. For instance the folks who decide to spam trade chat encouraging people to exploit a problem -- it's pretty easy to ban them. There's no indication of when the conquest gear will be turned back on -- but given the high visibility of the problem it has to be near the top of Blizzard's priority list. We'll update when the vendors are back. Rygarius We are aware of an issue affecting a number of players that caused them to have an unusually high Conquest Point cap. Conquest vendors have been temporarily disabled while we work on a fix to correct this. Conquest Points obtained in excess of the 2200 point cap will be lost and we'll be removing the Grievous Conquest achievement from any characters that managed to obtain it. The vendors will be made available again once the fix is in place. source
Talkcast night off: No show this holiday weekend
We're taking the holiday weekend off in Talkcast-land, giving our fun and festive hosts a chance to spend the Sunday evening with friends and family. (A good time to download and listen to our past shows, and even to subscribe on iTunes.) Next week, however, we'll be back and ready to chat -- so see you then! Photo: David Campbell, Flickr
The Daily Grind: How do you deal with extended downtimes?
Sometimes, games go down for maintenance, or your power goes out, or there's an internet hiccup. You have to deal with a bit of time out of the game, and it's no big deal. But other times, you have to deal with an extended hiatus from your game of choice due to massive natural disasters or other catastrophic circumstances. You might have bigger problems than just not logging in to Star Trek Online, but it doesn't change the fact that you're going to be out of circulation for a bit. If you've been messing around exclusively with low-level characters that have nothing time-related on their plates, naturally, you won't be affected. But if you're in the midst of endgame work in RIFT or long-term roleplaying in Lord of the Rings Online, being out for a long stretch of time can cause some issues. So how do you work around it? And equally importantly, how do you manage your time when you're taking an unwanted hiatus from one of your hobbies for a while? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Breakfast Topic: Have you ever taken time off from WoW?
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the AOL guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages. Sometimes people need a break from Azeroth. There are various reasons for it -- real-life issues, lack of new content, boredom, another game you have to try -- but despite the reasons, most of the time people come back. Something about the world or the people in it draws players back to see what is new since the last time they logged in. Sometimes it almost seems that WoW has a pull that is hard to escape, and you find yourself launching the game and putting in your account and password without even realizing you are doing it. I have never taken a long break from WoW, and I have played since launch. I have taken a week or two off from time to time, but never any of these extended multiple month or year breaks from the game. Perhaps it is being a pretty serious raider that makes me log in nearly every day. Perhaps it is my penchant for being an achievement junkie or the fact I am an altaholic. But for some reason, I cannot seem to avoid the game for any major length of time. My latest break was right before Cataclysm launched, in which I caught up on some other great video games I missed -- but even then, I logged on to check mail and the AH and chat with some friends. And that is what I realized keeps me coming back: the people in my guild and on my friends list; it isn't the raids or the chance at shiny purples, even though I do enjoy that aspect. So have you taken time off from WoW? How long was your break? What brought you back?
The Light and How to Swing It: Surviving Chimaeron
Every week, WoW Insider brings you The Light and How to Swing It for holy, protection and retribution paladins. Every Sunday, Chase Christian invites you to discuss the finer side of the paladin class: the holy specialization. Feel free to email me with any questions you want answered! DPS classes love fights that are simple enough that they can focus on running their rotation optimally. It lets them stretch their legs and see how much damage they're truly capable of. Patchwerk is always the golden example of this style. Rogues, mages, and the rest didn't have anything to worry about except their own personal DPS. Fight mechanics only get in the way of a damage dealer doing his job. Every patch of fire or Whirlwind only serves to make him perform suboptimally. Healer-oriented encounters are the complete opposite. Instead of business as usual, healers are challenged to break out of their comfort zone and do things they've never done before. Casting DPS spells at Loatheb while his terrible aura persisted. Watching health bars glitter in the red as Leeching Swarm turned our own heals against us. Gathering orbs midair as we tried to save a dying dragon with our amazing throughput. Now, in Blackwing Descent, we are faced with yet another terrible foe: Chimaeron mixes elements from all of these fights to give us a truly unique healing experience.
Nokia says 'very small' number of N8s aren't turning on, warranty will cover it
We've been getting a few tips this week -- and seeing a few things on Twitter -- saying that N8s are failing in noticeable quantities, but we wanted to hold off until we'd figured out what was really going on. Well, Nokia's own Niklas Savander is commenting on the situation now -- so we'd say it's definitely real -- though he's insisting the number of affected units is "very small" and that the company's normal warranty rules apply, so owners of dead units should contact their local support number. That's all well and good, but getting service on a paperweight is still a bummer, especially when said phone is your primary means of communication -- so let's hope these guys turn around serviced devices in a hurry. What do you call a dead N8, by the way? N8 owner: A tragedy iPhone owner: DOA Android owner: About as useful as any other N8 N900 owner: A missed opportunity Store sales rep: Dummy unit Symbian Foundation employee: Justice Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo: Karma A goat: Dinner [Thanks, John]
The Daily Grind: What's the longest break you've ever taken from MMOs?
Even the most die-hard among us need a break now and then from killing ten rats. I mean, those rats, they deserve it -- don't get me wrong. They killed our families, stole Christmas, tried to blot out the sun and sold us Amway. But heroic rat-slayers need vacations from MMOs, and sometimes we have to get away for a while to recharge our batteries and check out other entertainment pleasures out there. So what's the longest break you've ever taken from playing MMOs? Was it because you burnt out, crashed hard, and vowed not to go back (at least, not for a very long time)? Were you forced to leave MMOs behind due to a vacation or tour of duty overseas? Did you find a single-player title that sucked you in for a marathon gaming session? We'd love to hear about your breaks -- what took you away from MMOs, and what you learned while you were away. Did it refresh your perspective and attitude?
Newsday iPad commercial proves there's not an app for everything
If you're a newspaper, how do you most effectively promote your digital and print outlets at the same time? With this commercial, after the break. Update: In what smacks of a bit of funny business, the original video's been pulled. You know what? We've got another copy right after the break, so it's all good.
Call for submissions: The pause that refreshes
What are the absolute best opportunities during a WoW session for grabbing a quick break? Whether you're desperate for a bio break, need to make a brief phone call or simply need a moment to stretch and get a drink, when is the right moment to go AFK when solo, grouped or in a raid? What if you're a raid or event leader -- how do you build in the pause that refreshes? We're looking for the Top 10 chances to take a break while playing WoW. Submissions should be between 500 and 1,000 words. Artwork is not mandatory, but any you choose to include must be your own work or from creative commons. We will not accept articles submitted under player names or pen names; please use your real name and email. We'll only be accepting the very best article. Ready to submit? Read up about our guest post program, then sign up for Seed and submit your article here. (You can't see the article page unless you have a Seed account.) Unfortunately, the Seed program currently only allows us to accept submissions from individuals living in the United States; we hope to be able to accept international submissions in the future. We'll accept submissions for this assignment until 11:59 p.m. EST on Thurs., July 1. Good luck and good writing!
Hanvon CEO smashes Apple effigy at TouchPad launch (video)
Want to draw attention to an otherwise ordinary piece of consumer electronics? Do something emotive like, say, smash a giant Apple ice sculpture in front of the world's Chinese press. Besides putting the boys in Cupertino on notice, Hanvon's officially launching the company's TouchPad B10 -- a 10.1-inch multitouch capacitive slate that we went hands-on with back in March. A €500ish device that runs Windows 7 on a retired 1.3GHz Celeron M ULV743 processor and Intel GMA 4500 graphics capable of delivering about 3.5 hours of battery life. Other specs include 2GB of memory, a regular ol' 2.5-inch 250GB or 320GB hard disk, HDMI-out, and WiFi. Watch the theatrics after the break while we wait for Hanvon's 1 million units sold announcement.
OU professor submerses laptop in liquid nitrogen, smashes it to prove a point (video)
Hey, students -- pay attention. Not to us, mind you, but to the syllabus provided by your professor. Kieran Mullen, a physics professor at the University of Oklahoma, has a fairly strict rule about gadgets in class: there won't be any, ever, under any circumstances. Balk all you want (understandable given his own clipped-on cellie), but if you sign up for this guy's class, you'll be flipping your phone to "off" and leaving your laptop in the dormitory. And if you try to blaze your own path and slip that netbook into the back row, you might leave bitterly disappointed. As you'll see clearly in the video past the break, Mr. Mullen sought to make a visual point that laptops weren't allowed in class (he calls them "a distraction"), and while it seems that the whole stunt was premeditated, most students acknowledged that his point was driven home. In short, he took a defunct machine, submerged it in liquid nitrogen, and proceeded to make the following statement: "This is just liquid nitrogen, so it alone won't hurt the computer. But this will." Find out exactly what "this" was by hitting that 'Read More' button there on the lower left. [Thanks, studentatOU]
Police catch 360 thief thanks to RRoD return
Ah, the Red Ring of Death. Most cursed malady of this console generation, maligned by the casual and the hardcore alike! But for all the frustration the Xbox 360's three lights of crimson chaos have caused, here's a little good: If it weren't for a certain RRoD in Florida, one Michael Dunbar would never have been brought to justice. Dunbar was accused of stealing the console and pawning it off to a shop, but without the serial number, police told the victim that they couldn't bring him in. Fortunately, the victim's grandmother suddenly remembered she'd sent the system in for an RRoD, and a phone call to Microsoft later, they got a serial number, Dunbar was arrested by the police, and we assume the console was returned to its rightful owner. Little consolation, we're sure, for the eight painful weeks you had to wait while your Xbox was sent back to Microsoft for repairs (two separate breakdowns for me personally). But it's good to hear that someone somewhere has been helped by Microsoft's RRoD exchange process.
WoW Insider Show tomorrow at 3:30pm Eastern
My last episode of the WoW Insider Show is on the air tomorrow afternoon -- it'll be sad (I really love doing this show for you all), but hopefully it won't be too maudlin. Fortunately both Matthew Rossi and Chase Christian have agreed to join us, and of course Turpster will be on with us as well -- whenever the T is around, you know it'll be a good time. We'll be talking about the most popular stories in Warcraft for the past week, including the arrival of Winter Veil, patch 3.3.0a and all of the other hotfixes this week, and just because I think it's interesting, we'll talk about the Battered Hilt as well. And as usual, we'll answer your emails and chat live with all of the folks in the chatroom. You can email us any time of night or day at theshow@wow.com, and you'll be able to listen in to the show on the feed over on Ustream itself, or right after the break below. Please do join us, should be fun.
Stop playing your favorite game
Do we have everyone's attention? Great. Now do exactly that. Stop playing your favorite game. Not forever, just for now. Just let it rest and play something else for a while. That's the idea proposed by Bio Break in an entry about letting go. The idea, as it's put forth, is that the best way to fight burnout is to prevent it from happening in the first place. If you're really enjoying a game and are just a few days away from a major goal, why not put it down and savor that instead of pushing forward until the game has stopped being fun? Of course, it's hard for us to behave that way -- if we're enjoying a game, our inclination is to keep playing until we aren't, at which point burnout kicks in and we start almost dreading logging in. But it's an interesting idea and a different approach to keeping ourselves engaged. It's a lot easier to go back to a game if you've just let it sit for a while and have had some time to think about it fondly without being reminded of its blemishes. Absence can indeed make the heart grow fonder, and perhaps you should let your favorite game be absent for just a little while. You'll still be almost at your next major checkpoint when you get back, after all.
PS3 crashes into Bravia TV at 50 MPH for fun and profit (video)
What happens when you launch a 7-pound (3.2-kg) PS3 Slim into a 46-inch Bravia KDL46X 3100 LCD at 50 miles per hour (80 km/hr)? A video destined to go viral with internet stardom, that's what. Exactly the thing Sony Australia is looking for with a new ad campaign touting its buy a Bravia get a PS3 for free. Awesome, and after the break.
The Five Rs of Character Revitalization
So I've talked recently about life as an RPer, and how we seem to interact with our characters just a bit differently. Sometimes, whether we like it or not, a certain character and their back story just grab hold and won't let go, and we find ourselves coming back again and again, just to see where the story leads. Of course, sometimes the character goes just the opposite way, and no matter what you do, your stories fall flat and you don't feel enthusiastic about logging on. It may be because you can't stand the character's personality anymore, it may be because your normal group of friends has hit an RP rut or even taken a break for a while themselves, it may be a variety of other things. Recently, Anna of Too Many Annas wrote a pretty awesome article about how to refresh a flagging RP character using 5 Rs: Relax and Rest, Reintegrate, Refresh the Character, Retcon, and Reroll/Reskin.What's sort of cool about this list is that you can even apply a lot of the principles to characters in general, even if you're a non-RPer. Anna's covered the RP angle pretty well, so I'll mostly focus on this other angle.
