steel-drum
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iPad steel drum played with conductive fiber mallets
Jobs told us, "If you see a stylus, they blew it," but what if the stylus is a steel drum mallet? Someone built an iPad app, as you can see above, that is designed to imitate the look and sound of a steel drum. It needed something a little extra, though, ... like actual mallets to play with. So, they made a mallet out of conductive cloth, which is a special fabric that enables the iPad's surface to recognize the touches. Wrap the end of a drumstick in fabric, tie it off, and you're good to start drummin', mon! That's good stuff. There have to be other great uses for this kind of cloth, too; while a stylus isn't ideal most of the time, there are certain times when specific tool-like metaphors (maybe a brush for a painting app?) would work better than just a finger. What else can we use to control the multi-touch screen?
Wii Music: UK date, minigames, and the daily instrument
The biggest Wii Music news today is that it's been dated for the UK. Nintendo has announced that the game will be in stores on November 14. Of course, being a day, there's also a "Today's Instrument" video! Today's featured Wii Music instrument is one that is, in our estimation, almost universally associated with fun: the steel drum. Most people hear the sound of a steel drum and think of beach vacations, and of time spent relaxing in some resort. We think of Super Mario World. Either way, the sound makes people happy. On an even more basic level, it's a big bowl that you hit with hammers! Neat! Of course, as usual, the model is too cool to let any of our hu-man emotions show through.Also, it may be a bit confusing, but two Wii Music websites have updated with new content. The nintendo.co.jp Wii Music site features, in addition to basic info about the game, descriptions of three minigames contained in Wii Music: Narikiri Orchestra (something like "Becoming an Orchestra"), Awasete Handbell ("Connect Handbells"), and a very weird tone-matching minigame, all with video. The wii.com Wii Music website now has an Iwata/Miyamoto Creator's Voice interview, which we expect to see in English soon, and a series of seven commercials.%Gallery-27713% Looking for more on Wii Music? You can catch an E3 trailer here, read about our time with the game here, and learn how to play the handbell, trumpet, timpani, acoustic bass, shamisen, harmonica, cello, harpsichord, cheerleader, saxophone, sitar, cowbell, electric bass, drums, dog, accordion, taiko, clarinet, conga, electric guitar, harp, flute, marching drum, violin, piano, guitar, and marimba.
