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The Daily Grind: How long will you suffer bugs and outages?
In the 10 days since its head start launch, Guild Wars 2 has suffered multiple outages and bugs, seemingly a new one every day. Even if we discount those players who lost their accounts to hacking, we've still seen players affected by in-game mail outages, exploits, overflow bugs, character creation and deletion issues, server transfer problems, guild system implosions, and a new email authentication system (which was meant to reduce the rate of hackings) that rendered even some Massively commenters and staffers unable to play the game over chunks of this holiday weekend. Perhaps the issue affecting the most people over the course of the last week has been the near-permanent offline status of the Black Lion Trading Company, the game's auction hall. Quaggans are cute and all, but I'm starting to get impatient myself; I've yet to see the trading post live for even a minute. So today we're wondering when exactly your patience runs out when it comes to large-scale MMO launches and their immediate aftermath. How long do you give a just-launched game to get its act together before you give up and go back to more established, tried-and-true MMOs? And if you leave in a huff, do you forgive and forget and return when the game has settled down? 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!
NintendoWare Weekly: Puzzle Quest, Overflow
We certainly didn't expect Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords to be released on DS this week, mostly because it was released on DS in 2007. But new publisher 1st Playable Productions has surprised us all with a DSiWare version. If you missed out on it then, you can get it now without undertaking a heroic journey to the store. In addition to subverting our expectations with a "new" game from four years ago, DSiWare also hosts a shmup about conserving ammo. Meanwhile, WiiWare features a game about ... pouring liquids. But, like, with puzzles and stuff.
Security experts unearth unpleasant flaws in webOS
Researchers from security firm SecTheory have described a handful of flaws in webOS, saying that the platform -- by its very nature -- is more prone to these sorts of things than its major competitors because Palm puts web technologies like JavaScript closer to webOS' core where system functions are readily accessible. At least one of the flaws, involving a data field in the Contacts app that can be exploited to run arbitrary code, has already been fixed in webOS 2.0 -- but the others are apparently still open, including a cross-site scripting problem, some sort of floating-point overflow issue, and a denial-of-service vector. We imagine Palm will get these all patched up sooner or later, but as SecTheory's guys point out, how long is it until mobile malware becomes a PC-sized problem?
Last day to buy MacHeist Bundle
Today is the last day to buy the much coveted MacHeist application bundle. MacHeist has decided to sweeten the deal by unlocking SoundStudio early and offering $5 off any Insanely Great Tee. If you are a registered member of the MacHeist site you can also get early access to Headline (an RSS reader).The MacHeist Bundle currently includes the following Mac apps: VectorDesigner DEVONthink XSlimmer CoverSutra Awaken iClip Overflow Cha-Ching WriteRoom Enigmo Bugdom 2 Nanosaur 2 TextExpander SoundStudio The MacHeist Bundle costs $49 and 25% of your purchase will be donated to your choice of charity. Currently, MacHeist has sold over 4,000 bundles and raised over $50,000 for charity. You can purchase a bundle at the MacHeist website.
TUAW Podcast #26: File Launchers
We talk up the file launcher and manipulator Quicksilver quite a bit here at TUAW, but there is a solid batch of similar productivity-enhancing utilities that offer different things for different users. Whether you're looking for a simple utility that lets you launch your applications faster than Spotlight can find them, or you're prepared to step up to vast amounts of power and flexibility with what you find and how you use it, chances are I covered an app in this screencast that will fit the bill for you. From the power of Butler to the simplicity of Namely, I wanted to give you at least some of the basics and a visual on how 5 different launchers work, as well as their pros and cons and how they differ from each other. However, since I am a Quicksilver lover at heart, it is very likely that I missed a key feature or two in these apps, so feel free to highlight your favorite features and what you think new users can truly benefit from in the comments. Also, for anyone interested in what I'm using to create these screencasts, I include a very short blurb at the beginning which highlights a few of the tools I use to record the screencast and create some of the effects I use.This time around I've decided to try something different, and I've created two versions of the screencast. In our podcast feed is an iPod-friendly version of the podcast that's 640 x 400, 17 minute and 40 MB - that's the one you can get by subscribing to our iTunes Store podcast feed or our direct TUAW podcast feed. I've also created an HD version for those who want something with a little more detail (sorry, we don't have an RSS feed for HD podcasts yet; this is a new thing so we'll see how it goes). That one will look better on larger displays and should play mighty fine on the Apple TV.To make sure we're all on the same page and that you can run out and grab demos of these launchers, here is a list of links to all the apps I mention in the screencast, including the ones I use to create and record it:Launchers Quicksilver - donationware LaunchBar - commercial: $19.95 Butler - donationware Overflow - commercial: $14.95 Namely - donationware Screencast recording Desktopple Pro - hiding the desktop icons, custom wallpaper and more (which we've mentioned before) Mouseposé - spotlight effects, keystroke overlays (which I didn't use in this specific screencast) and other presentation highlighting tools (mentioned here) iShowU - excellent and customizable app for recording screencasts (mentioned a couple times here) I hope you enjoy the screencast, and please feel free to leave feedback to let me know how I'm doing with producing these. If you prefer HD podcasts that look better on screen and can play on an Apple TV (instead of 640 px wide podcasts which are the max an iPod can handle), definitely let me know that too.
OverFlow 2.0
Stunt Software has just released OverFlow 2.0, which is a simple Finder alternative that lives in your Dock. It is an application launcher, a file opener, and an organizational tool to help keep your virtual workspace clear of clutter. A lot has changed since we first wrote about OverFlow. New to 2.0 are categories, the ability to drag documents onto applications in OverFlow, and an improved help system.OverFlow 2.0 is Universal and will cost you $14.95 (there is a free trial available).
Extend your dock with Overflow
While there are many full-featured launchers and dock alternatives available, Overflow by Stunt Software keeps it simple. The interface features several wells, into which you can drop an application, folder, volume and so on. Simply click the Overflow icon in the dock to activate it (or better yet, let Quicksilver do the job), then click the icon representing what you're after. Simple and effective.Overflow requires Mac OS 10.3.9 or later and costs $14.95US (or, if you're very quick, $9.95US at Maczot for the next couple of hours).
