points-of-interest
Latest
Watch Guild Wars 2's official livestream show
Guild Wars 2 has a new official livestream show that you can watch at 3:00 p.m. EST. The show's called Points of Interest and stars Kate Welch, Leif Chappelle, and Theo Nguyen. The first episode will be looking back at the Living World's Season 1. You can watch the livestream after the break!
Picplace is a free app that helps you store your photo memories by location
Picplace (free) allows you to take photos and keep them in the app's internal database for sharing or finding those locations again. It also shows you what places are near your current location. All the data captured by Picplace stays on your phone, not on a server where your personal info could be lost or compromised. The app is simple to use: Just take a photo and the GPS location is saved, as it is with other photo apps. Your photos are then grouped by location in the app's internal database, and you can share them with friends or social networks. The photo can also be saved to your camera roll if you desire. With a tap, nearby places like restaurants, country clubs, stores, etc... are listed. You can also display your location on a map, or even edit your location. You can also import existing photos and search for nearby locations. Other apps, including Apple's Camera app, geotag your photos, but I like the inclusion of nearby points of interest in Picplace. You can also take a picture while you are offline, and localize it later. I didn't see any issues using the app, and help was not needed. It's a pretty simple GUI to explore. If I were going to improve the app, I would allow the saving of notes about favorite locations. Picplace requires iOS 7 or later and it is optimized for the iPhone 5. It is not universal.
The Repopulation knocks out another stretch goal
The Repopulation has met another Kickstarter stretch goal. Adversarial camps will now make it into the finished sci-fi sandbox title, and more importantly the way is clear for the next stretch goal: Points of Intrigue. These points are an extension of the game's engagement system. The PvE versions of PoI will pop up randomly throughout the game world and they'll require anywhere from a few players to multiple groups. The PvP versions of PoI will involve capture points and Nation-based rewards. The ultimate goal of the entire system is "to provide an ever-changing list of opportunities which encourage players to work together under a common goal."
Discussing the design of quests in The Elder Scrolls Online
The Elder Scrolls Online has certain player expectations going in, such as an expectation of the sort of quest structure you usually find in the series. More specifically, it's the sort of structure in which you start off on some simple quest and wind up wandering off into some completely unrelated point of interest. A recent interview with creative director Paul Sage and lead content designer Rich Lambert reveals that the team is aiming for just that sort of model in the game. As Lambert explains, the team wants to move away from the usual hub design in favor of several points of interest, each of which provides a little snippet of content and story. The points aren't meant to be structured as an A-to-B affair; instead, you have several points of interest in a given region which build into a large overarching story. Take a look at the full interview for more information about how quests will work in the game and how players will be guided through objectives as they play.
NAVTEQ's Destination Maps provide mobile guidance through malls, outer reaches of your mind
For anyone that's ever been hopelessly turned around within the Mall of America (or the Las Vegas Convention Center), the promise provided by NAVTEQ's newly announced Destination Maps is quite compelling. It allows for orientation, guidance and routing for indoor venues like those mentioned above, and serves up a useful map of entrances, exits, restrooms, stairwells and points of interest that would otherwise be undetectable. Neither IDG News nor NAVTEQ mentions exactly how this is accomplished, but we can only speculate that a Hybrid GPS antenna is used along side a layer of augmented reality -- but then again, these could be static routes that require no positioning whatsoever to explore. It's also uncertain which mobile platforms would support such an app (despite having been demoed on a Nokia N8 in the photo above), or if this will even make it past the beta stage. More info is expected at Where 2.0 in April, and it's a pretty safe bet that Paul Blart will be on hand for its official debut.
Where To? adds augmented reality
I've looked at Where To? in the past, and found it a well thought out way to find points of interest in your vicinity. Another plus is that it integrates with the Navigon and TomTom apps so that you can send information for precise navigation. Now the app has added a new wrinkle: augmented reality. Basically that means, in either portrait or landscape mode, your camera will activate, and points of interest in categories that you select can be seen layered over the real-time image. The closer the location, the bigger the marker. Generally, I think augmented reality is overblown and not all that helpful, but the developers of Where To? have overcome some of the hazards of the feature and made it easier to use. When lots of labels appear very close together, you can zoom in and move them apart. Improvements have also been made to eliminate compass lag, which has affected more than a few AR apps. If you liked Where To? before, you'll like the improvements. The augmented reality feature is an additional $0.99 cents over the US$2.99 purchase price of the app, and you can try the feature free for 30 days. I think this implementation of AR works well, and it has clearly been thought out. There are plenty of free apps that will give you the same information, like Around Me or Google Places. If you don't opt for the AR feature, you'll get maps of your destinations or a list view with the closest locations at the top. All the apps draw from the same database, but I like the integration of Navigon and TomTom, and I think the AR is actually useful rather than a gimmick. I do think it should have just been included in the basic purchase price, but on the other hand, I think it is worth the extra dollar. Where To? runs on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. It requires iOS 3.0 or greater. %Gallery-115751%
Siri for iPhone is like the proverbial Genie in a bottle
We're getting closer and closer to some of the stuff we see it science fiction literature and films. Siri [iTunes link] is a small Silicon Valley startup with a really breakthrough product that for now only works on the iPhone. Here's the deal. You download the free app, start it up, and tell it what you want. It could be "Will it snow in Des Moines today?" or "Where can I find the nearest burger" or it could be "Find the nearest parks". It parses your comments, runs out to the web for a few seconds and comes back with a lot of suggestions. It gives you buttons to call the places you've found, or to show them on Google Maps and get you directions. I tried to get a bit fancier saying "Make me a reservation for 2 at the nearest Olive Garden tonight at 7." The app figured out Olive Garden didn't take reservations through their service, but it provided me a number for the nearest Olive Garden and offered to map it.
Where To? tells you 'where to'
Where To? [iTunes link] is a nice destination finder for the iPhone. The latest version is on sale on the App Store through today for US$0.99. Note: The iTunes store says it works on an iPod touch, but some people are reporting it won't install. It cleverly integrates maps, a web browser, and a tracking mode to show new points of interest as you move. You can share destinations that you find with email, SMS and the clipboard.You can also search any one of 600 categories or ask the app to surprise you with, for example, a restaurant recommendation.The app supports English, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.How did it work? Pretty well. It's nice to have all the tools you need in one app, although one of my favorite apps, AroundMe [iTunes link] integrates maps, but has no browser. AroundMe is free.It would be nice to get some integration into the new nav apps that are proliferating, because Where To? has a far larger POI database then say Navigon or TomTom. I did save a POI from Where To? in my contacts, then opened that contact in Navigon and that worked fine, but it's a little fiddly.There are a few glitches in Where To? While searching for some nearby lakes, the app found some businesses with "lake" in the name. I think the app is focusing too much on the business name, and not whatever category meta-data it is using.All in all, this app was worth the original $3.00 asking price, and today at $0.99 I'd give it a whirl for sure.Here are some screen grabs:%Gallery-70766%
Visit LotRO's dangerous High Pass
The Lord of the Rings Online site is featuring the High Pass in its "Exploring Middle-earth" series. Located in the Misty Mountains, near the Vale of Imladris, it used to be the most commonly traveled route through the area. Lately however, it has become overrun by goblins and giants. In fact, the LotRO site reminds us that it was in this area that Thorin and company had to get away from some boulder-hurling giants -- and anyone that has been around giants in-game will know that they still maintain this annoying habit.There is a small encampment (pictured) at High Pass that offers some quests, and is a good area to visit in the mid to upper 40's. It's also not a bad place to do your selling before or after a trip to Goblin-town, which isn't too far away. Visit the official site to find out more about the history of the area.
A look at Goblin-town in the Misty Mountains
The Lord of the Rings Online lorebook has been updated with a page devoted to Goblin-town. You won't have been there before unless you are nearing the maximum level, as the area is teeming with dangerous and seasoned goblins, and is reached by going through the perilous Misty Mountains.Lore buffs will recognize that Goblin-town was the backdrop for a momentous event in Lord of the Rings history, as the lorebook entry explains, for it is here that Bilbo Baggins fell into Gollum's cavern and found an extremely important object -- yep, that one. It is also where Gandalf defeated the Great Goblin to save Thorin Oakenshield's party. These bits of lore may give you the urge to visit Goblin-town, but the goblins aren't going to help show you around, so be prepared to fight.
LotRO lorebook updated with Bob and Nob
A different kind of lorebook entry has gone up under the Lord of the Rings Online site's points of interest series. It's not a look at one of the game's many locations -- this time, we get to meet two characters, Bob and Nob, that inhabit the game. Bob and Nob are two hobbits that help out Barliman Butterbur in running the famous Prancing Pony Inn. Butterbur is absent-minded and a tad incompetent, so a lot of responsibility falls on his assistants to ensure that business is taken care of. In-game, you'll find Nob just outside the Prancing Pony, and Bob is inside in the kitchen, and you can read more about them at the new lorebook entry before your visit.
