Shopping mall
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Epic Games' next headquarters will replace a local shopping mall
Epic Games is buying the local shopping mall to turn it into the 'Fortnite' developer's headquarters by 2024.
Amazon may turn dying JC Penney and Sears stores into warehouses
Amazon is reportedly in talks to convert department stores in malls to fulfillment centers for its online shopping business.
Lose your life and your wallet with ArcheAge's new dragon and cash shop
If you thought you were safe from giant bosses in ArcheAge if you avoided sailing, think again. XLGAMES' latest update introduced a massive red dragon to harass the landlubbers like the kraken does the seafarers. Massive, scaly, and with breath that can incinerate adventurers, this dragon might just drop in on your party whether invited or not. Also included in this latest update is the new cash shop. In a unique twist, players wishing to browse through and buy the wares visit an actual in-game shopping mall in the Market District. There are no generic icons to pour over, but full-scale items on display instead. Shoppers can peruse different departments filled with clothing, animals, gliders, even cars. Want a glimpse of the dragon before it lands on your head? Or need a tour of the mall before you lose yourself -- and your funds -- in it? Then take a look at the two videos below courtesy of Steparu.com, and head to the site for more in-game footage of a dragon fight.
Google offers Floor Plan Marker app to businesses so they can improve indoor mapping
Are folks still getting lost in the faux marble expanse of your airport or shopping mall, even after you've uploaded the floor plan to Google Maps? Then maybe it's time you went the extra mile and improved indoor mapping using the official Floor Plan Marker app. It instructs you to walk around the "entire surface" of your place of interest, while gathering position data from GPS, public WiFi signals and cell towers. Once added to Google's database, this extra info will allow the familiar blue dot to function on your customers' Android phones even when your actually-concrete building gets in the way of their satellite signal. The app's already available at Google Play, so go ahead -- make the schlep now so that others don't have to.
SoCal mall installs 'Find Your Car' kiosks in parking garage to help you find your car -- and others find you?
Big Brother's watching us on public streets and in our homes, and now he's fixed his gaze on shopping malls -- under the guise of helping us find our cars in a mall parking garage. Santa Monica Place has installed Park Assist's M3 Camera Vision system with "Find Your Car" kiosks that allow wayward shoppers to punch in their license plate number to receive a picture of their auto and its whereabouts. It utilizes a network of cameras to capture each car's location and read the plate, and has a central control system that can dole out firmware upgrades as more (nefarious?) needs arise. A similar system is used at Heathrow Airport, though the British version snaps a photo of your plates upon entry and tracks cars with infrared cameras -- as opposed to Park Assist's use of hi-res cameras to capture an image of your plate once you've parked. While helping people find their cars is an admirable goal, the system seems rife with opportunities for abuse because the footage is privately owned -- meaning the car location information could be sold to anyone, including that crazy ex-girlfriend of yours. As for us, we'd rather not exchange a walk-on part in the war to maintain our privacy for a lead role in another video cage. We're just fine remembering things the old-fashioned way, thanks.
SNL's Black Friday doorbuster ad promises waxed floors and fire hazards galore
We all know that there's nothing funny about actual injury or death caused by a stampeding crowd rabidly in search of cheap TVs. There is, however, plenty to laugh at in the video below from the most recent Saturday Night Live. The mock Black Friday ad for Mega-Mart includes all the post-Thanksgiving hallmarks of consumerism we've come to love: super cheap electronics, scary-looking shoppers and a sales rep who sounds an announcer at a horse race. Enjoy the full video below.
Robovie R3 all set to assist, freak out elderly and handicapped shoppers this November (video)
The Robovie R3 is the latest in a distinguished line of humanoid bots developed for the purposes of research, discovery, and (a tiny bit of) geeky fun. Following its predecessor's footsteps -- the R2 secured employment as a guide to lost shoppers -- the R3 will be making its mall debut in November of this year, where it'll assist people by carrying their shopping, providing information about nearby products, and holding their hand as it guides them through the crowds. Intended as a way to get elderly and handicapped people back out into the community, this is part of a viability study for the robot's usefulness, and if it finds success maybe its anime eyes and dalek form factor will find their way outside Japan as well. Video of the R3 after the break.
