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New troops charity seeks your handheld spares
You should have seen us when we were fifteen. 'Orrible, we were. All sulky, zit-ridden, and full of attitude (of course, we're regular sunbeams now) as we moped around in our NAFNAF jumpers and spent most of our free time scowling at the profound injustice of the world.We certainly weren't as impressive or as honorable as, say, young teens Peter Gallagher and Jack Wilson, who spent an inordinate amount of time and effort setting up GamesforHeroes.com, a non-profit, registered charity that aims to get handheld games and systems (DSes, Game Boys, that Sony one, N-Gages) into the mitts of the brave men and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Gallagher tipped our daddy site Joystiq about their project, and asked if they could shed some light on this worthy cause. They did, and now we're doing the same!Obviously, there are similar initiatives going on elsewhere -- at least one of which we've posted about -- but you can never have enough goodwill, eh? Hit the "Read" link below to see how you can help out.[Via Joystiq]
Survey shows consumers aren't apt to trash analog sets post-cutover
Granted, almost half of OTA-only households in America (48-percent, to be precise) are planning on picking up a digital converter box in order to get a few more years of life out of their old set, but for those taking other routes -- like spending their stimulus checks on a new flat-panel -- it seems as if tossing 'em in the garbage is a last resort. According to new research from the Consumer Electronics Association, fewer than 15 million NTSC-only TVs will be removed from homes through 2010. Of those, 95-percent will be resold, donated or recycled -- or so the owners say. We can also remember a time when Salvation Army accepted bulky, inefficient CRT computer monitors with open arms, but trying to hand one over today can be a lesson in futility depending on the store. All in all, we figure it's easy for respondents to voice good intentions, but shortly after these sets become useless in the OTA realm without a DTV converter, we have our doubts about the vast majority of them dodging the dump for very long.
Make those used game trade-ins worthwhile by donating to troops
Many of you aren't fans of a certain trade-in retailer that we know, so why not donate some of your used games instead?Drew Koehler started Trade-ins for Troops, a charity dedicated to giving used video games to U.S. soldiers that are currently overseas. As Koehler puts it, "I think there are a lot of people that may be interested in supporting in a non-financial way, and it's a great opportunity to show the world that gamers care about our troops and would want to see them supported while they are away from home." We agree, good sir. The charity is especially interested in receiving handheld titles, since portable systems are popular among the troops, but all games are welcome. Video games are a welcome distraction to the men and women overseas, so this charity seems like a nice and easy way to give back a little for the sacrifices they've had to make. With that said, it's time for us to stop being PSA Fanboy; and now, back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Donate your used PSP games to Trade-ins for Troops
When our servicemembers deploy overseas, they leave their families, homes and everything they've come to love, but one thing they usually take with them is their PSPs. Drew Koehler, founder of the Hardcore Christian Gamer's Association, is on a mission to ensure they have plenty of games to help pass the time, and he needs your help. Koehler's newest venture is Trade-ins for Troops, and it's supported entirely by gamers like yourselves who, instead of trading their old, used games in at Gamestop, donate them to Trade-ins for Troops. Then, Koehler and his team make sure they get into the troop's hands.Like comic books and playing cards have in past wars, video games are one of the main ways deployed troops pass the time, and after spending time in Iraq myself, I can say the PSP is extremely popular with servicemembers. It just so happens that Trade-ins for Troops are looking mostly for handheld games, so if you want to support a good cause, maybe you should look into donating them.
Satiate intercontinental voracity with online vocabulary game
Ever feel you're wasting your time with games? Feel like you should be doing something to better yourself or the world around you instead of staring at a screen? Well, with Poverty.com's Free Rice game, you can do your part for personal and global fulfillment without ever stopping the gaming.The self-betterment in Free Rice comes from vocabulary identification questions that automatically adjust to your skills so they're challenging but not impossible. The world-improvement comes from the eponymous free rice, ten grains of which are donated through the UN's World Food Program and the site's advertisers for each right answer you provide. In the past month, over 856 million grains of rice have been donated, with the total rising exponentially day over day.We love the idea, and think this model has potential for all sorts of games. Every Halo headshot can net a donation to Amnesty international (sponsored by Mountain Dew). Every five star Guitar Hero performance could give money to Save the Music (sponsored by VH1, of course). Bill Gates could add few bucks to his foundation for every Achievement point earned. The possibilities are endless.[Via Gene. Thanks Michelle]
OLPC BOGO customers get free year of T-Mobile HotSpot access
Yes, that's "Buy One, Give One" for those out of the loop, and for the sect willing to fork out $399 in order to claim an OLPC XO of their own and have one donated too, T-Mobile is announcing that it will give you a solid year of HotSpot access gratis. The partnership is hoping to encourage participation in the philanthropic campaign, but this is most certainly not the first time T-Mobile has handed out free WiFi in order to get its name out there. Nevertheless, if this tidbit somehow pushes you into the buyers' camp, you can place an order between November 12th - 26th and calmly anxiously await your new machine along with "information on how to activate the one year of complimentary HotSpot service." Go on, you know it's the perfect excuse to pull the trigger, and besides, that warm, fuzzy feeling you'll have will totally justify the hit to your checking account.[Via DailyWireless]
Pretty much the best DS Lite mod ever
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Pretty_much_the_best_DS_Lite_mod_ever/'; When aliens come to lay waste on our planet after an interstellar decree to rid the galaxy of our race before our warlike nature spreads to other solar systems, this Nintendo DS Lite case mod could be humanity's saving grace. At the precipice of mankind's extinction, the extraterrestrial army will stay its advanced armaments, realizing that any society capable of producing such an awe-aspiring object deserves to continue its existence!Forged by the same hands that brought the Legend of Zelda-themed Wii mod to life, this gold and black beauty's metal die-cast Master Sword/Shield crest rotates to match your handheld's orientation and illuminates when being charged. Buying this one-of-a-kind DS Lite will also net you a custom charging dock, two painted styli (silver and dark blue), and the admiration of your peers and cosmic beings alike. Proceeds from the auction will once again be donated to Penny Arcade's Child's Play charity.Head past the post break for more photos of the DS Lite mod. It's a good preview of what we'll spend the rest of our enslaved lives assembling after our alien overlords decide to spare our pitiful race.
iGTD - yet another powerful, integrated GTD app
I know, I know - we've been blogging so many GTD apps lately that you probably needed to create a new task list just to look through them and make a decision. iGTD, however, packs one heckuva punch, so I thought it would be worth mentioning. While it includes all the typical features one probably expects from a GTD implementation these days, iGTD brings a lot of power to the table with features like Address Book integration, drag and drop task creation from files, URLs and Mail.app messages, task tagging, 'maybe' tasks, flagging, a unique 'wait for' task class, keyboard shortcuts, Quicksilver integration, phone/PDA syncing, a menubar helper, searching... and even more.With all these features, iGTD is amazingly donationware, and I highly recommend showing the developer some love after all this work.
360 may boost Rosetta@Home project
We previously reported on the idea of bringing the Playstation 3's Folding@Home project to our Xbox 360s and the impact it could have. But now it isn't looking like the Folding@Home project will be receiving any 360 love, instead Gizmodo thinks Microsoft may be supporting another folding project called Rosetta@Home. Rosetta@Home is very similar to the other folding project where computing power helps with protein folding which in turn helps find cures for various diseases. What's most interesting is that on the project's forums, a project scientist acknowledged the possibly of a Xbox 360 partnership by saying they "have been discussing this idea with Microsoft quite a bit over the past several weeks". Interesting, no?We're still interested in this whole donating CPU power to a good cause thing and still think it's a pretty good idea. It would give those of us who want to an option to donate our 360's computing power to ultimately help disease research. Can you say teamwork FTW?[Thanks, AoE]
Child's Play receives a huge donation from Nintendo [update 1]
Nintendo sent out an avalanche of Nintendo DS handhelds and games to the Penny Arcade headquarters last week, donating the towering collection to Child's Play. The gamer-run charity has been donating toys, games, and other gifts to children's hospitals since 2003. Since then, the altruistic group has raised millions of dollars for its partner hospitals.Nintendo made sure to provide something for everyone with its donation, delivering DS systems in every color and handing out hundreds of copies of Nintendogs, Big Brain Academy, Mario Kart DS, and many other titles. Gabe posted photos of the mountainous shipment and assured readers that the DS Lites will find their way to the gracious hands of kids in children's hospitals soon.[Update 1: According to Penny Arcade's other half, Tycho, the systems and games were actually bought from Nintendo at a deep discount, using the money raised by the Child's Play charity. We apologize for this misinterpretation.]
The obligatory SmashMyiPhone.com debutes
Here we go again - as if smashing one's iPod (and Playstation 3, and Wii...) wasn't enough, someone has already registered SmashMyiPhone.com and is - obviously - taking donations to purchase an iPhone whose number is already up. Unless this site finds a workaround to purchasing an iPhone sans-contract, however, *someone* will also be paying for the next two years by being locked into a contract. Will it be worth it? Has the novelty worn off? If you want my two cents (respectively): no, and yes - a thousand times yes. Still - will they net enough donations to demolish one of the most anticipated mobile phones in history? Only time can tell.
Don't throw that old USB flash drive away, donate it
Whether you call it a thumb drive, memory stick, flash drive, or disgo, by now you've probably got at least one unused USB flash drive lying around the house or office. Instead of chucking that schwag into the digital dump and making Iron Eyes Cody cry, why not donate your 16MB (or greater drive) to Inveneo in their quest to leverage ICT and close the digital divide in developing countries? The flash drives will be provided to students, aid workers, and small business entrepreneurs among others in need of a quick and easy means to store and share information. Come on, everybody's doing it, and besides, mom always said it's better to make tax deductible donations, than to receive. Click the read link below to contribute or read on for more details about Inveneo.[Via boingboing]
Donate to Wii Drive 2006 to help hospitalized children
The holidays are a time for giving and generosity. While people shouldn't need an excuse to help those in need, drives like this get the best results from the holiday spirit. Super Mario Legacy is collecting donations to help sick kids get game consoles to occupy the long amounts of time they will spend in the hospital. Each child will receive:
