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Apple reportedly shelves 'walkie talkie' iPhone feature
Apple has put its plans for a 'walkie talkie' iPhone feature on hold, The Information reports. The technology would have allowed people with iPhones (in a certain vicinity) to send messages over long-distance radio waves when cellular networks weren't available. It would have functioned a bit like a walkie talkie for text messages and allowed iPhone users to communicate in remote areas.
CERN turns to open source software as Microsoft increases its fees
For the last 20 years, CERN -- home of the Large Hadron Collider -- has been using Microsoft products under a discounted "academic institution" rate. But in March, at the end of its previous contract, Microsoft revoked CERN's academic status. According to a CERN blog post, under the new contract, licensing costs have increased more than tenfold. In response, CERN is pulling back the curtain on a now year-old project to migrate to open source software, and it's calling it the Microsoft Alternatives project, or MAlt.
How to buy a turntable
So you want to start collecting vinyl. Great! Record sales have been steadily climbing, and in March, physical music outsold downloads for the first time in six years. You might've even started buying vinyl already to get in on the action. But given how long the format has been around, picking out a turntable can be as daunting as building a home HiFi system to connect it to. It doesn't have to be. You can spend anywhere from $60 on a Crosley all-in-one at Target to more than $3,000 for an audiophile-grade deck, with plenty of options in between. But what's the difference between a budget turntable and something that costs more than a few months' rent? And do you really need to spend that much? What are the features you shouldn't go without? Let us give you a hand.
Sweden’s official tweets won’t come from citizens anymore
IKEA, ABBA, Volvo... Sweden has given the world a lot of great things, and back in 2011 it added to the list by becoming the first country to let regular citizens run its official Twitter account. Every week, a new Swede was given free rein to tweet whatever they wanted, in a pioneering bid to show the world how the country exists in the eyes of its people (much like The Swedish Number, which let anyone around the world chat to a random Swede). Now, the award-winning project -- which inspired similar accounts in other countries and cities around the world -- is coming to an end.
Spector captures printed fonts and sends the details to InDesign
When a designer sees typography they like or a color that might be useful for a project, the first move is usually to snap a picture with their phone. I can say that because I'm a designer myself, frequently capturing textures, hues and letterforms for reference later. Royal College of Art MA student Fiona O'Leary came up with a better solution though, one that gets those bits of type and color into a desktop design app even faster. O'Leary built Spector: a small camera that logs typography and palettes before sending them directly to InDesign.
Google's making it easy for you to get solar panels onto your roof
Adding solar panels to your roof can be frustrating, since it's often difficult to know if your home receives enough light to justify the investment. Google Maps, however, has satellite, navigation and sunlight data for every property in the world, so it's ideally placed to tell you how many rays hit your crib on a daily basis. That's why the firm is launching Sunroof, a database of how much solar energy hits each building in a city, helping people work out if it's worth the effort. Sunroof is intended as a "treasure map" for future green energy projects, telling you how much of a saving you'd make and how long it'd take to make back your initial outlay.
Sony kills its head-mounted video display to go all-in on VR
For those with long-ish memories, Sony's HMZ series of head-mounted displays were a very rudimentary way to catch movies on a "750-inch screen." Of course, strapping one to your face wasn't a very social way to spend an evening, so you can understand that the device's appeal was a bit limited. So limited, in fact, that the company is now sending the project down the Shinano river on a longboat piled high with firewood. According to Japanese news outfit AV Watch, Sony bosses have decided to devote all of its resources to improving Morpheus, the PlayStation-branded virtual reality headset, as well as the company's take on Google Glass.
'Space Invaders' with real lasers is delightful, dangerous
What do you get with a laser cutter, Arduino know-how and way too much time on your hands? A slightly hazardous, live action Space Invaders game, of course! Maker Martin Raynsford created a silly, but wickedly fun real-world version of the classic arcade game just in time for Arduino Day on March 28th. The paper invaders are clipped to a plate that uses stepper motors for left/right and up/down movement, while the 80W laser cutter is driven side-to-side by an Arduino Nano controller hooked up via USB to a PC.
This RC Millennium Falcon may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts
No word on how many parsecs this Falcon makes the Kessel Run in, probably more than 12. Given how much fun this 18-mph home-made Millennium Falcon drone is to watch, we won't hold it against it. This, of course, is a quadcopter that drops the usual FPV and GoPro attire for something all Star Wars fans will enjoy. What's more, the creator has kindly shared all the details, so you can make your own. If you're more in tune with the dark side, the maker's next project is apparently a TIE Fighter -- so the two of those in action, we really can't wait to see. Make the jump over the break to watch it flying over Hoth (or somewhere a bit like it). In the meantime, we're running an errand to get some foam and paint.
Rise of the Triad dev working on next-gen 'Project Ascender'
Interceptor Entertainment, Aalborg, Denmark-based developers of Rise of the Triad and iOS ports of Duke Nukem and its sequel, are currently working on a game known as "Project Ascender." The game is in development for PS4 and PC, and has been in the works since September. The project's existence is made known through two Interceptor developer LinkedIn profiles, namely that of CEO Frederik Schreiber. The other LinkedIn profile in question, for Executive Producer Khaled Ibrahimi, lists a 2014 release window for the project. The project linked in Schreiber's profile lists 19 team members on the project, including IP Creator Scott Miller, co-founder and CEO of 3D Realms.
The Daily Grind: What in-game project have you had hanging over your head?
For just the longest time, my personal story was uncompleted in Guild Wars 2. I'd hit the final mission which required a group run of Arah, and I never was able to find a group to run it. So the game continued to inform me that I had this step to go, that Trahearne was quite disappointed in me, and that I was a loser for ignoring it. I might've been reading into it a little. But anyway, the other night my guild did an Arah run for those of us who needed it and my personal story was finally finished. Having those in-game projects hanging over your head can be frustrating if you're unable to make progress. Do you have any of those going on right now? What in-game project do you wish you could finish up -- but can't seem to, for whatever reason? 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!
Monitor your profits with Star Trek Online's newest mine project
Dilithium mining is serious business in Star Trek Online. It's what makes a good portion of the game's economy run, after all. So how can you make sure that you're getting the most out of your mine? Well, you probably could put together a spreadsheet... or you could take part in the game's next special fleet project for the fleet dilithium mines, available from September 19th until October 3rd. Fleets that successfully complete this project will have a variety of monitors, consoles, and displays added throughout the mining station, thus giving the environment the air of a futuristic space facility that has bothered to invest in a few wall displays. As with previous special projects, this one will be available only for a limited time, so your fleet will want to jump on this quickly if it seems right for you -- although those displays don't actually offer any real tracking benefits, so you still might want that spreadsheet.
Element14 unveils Raspberry Pi Projects hub and 8GB Model B bundle
While it's comparatively easy to get started with Raspberry Pi programming, it can be tough to find suitably challenging projects afterward -- what's good for rookies may bore seasoned pros. To solve this, Element14 has launched a Raspberry Pi Projects hub that organizes community projects by skill level. First-timers get tutorials for basic tasks, such as loading Minecraft: Pi Edition, while veterans learn how to build home monitoring systems and other advanced devices. Those who want a faster start on their projects can also spend $40 on a new Raspberry Pi Model B bundle that includes both the tiny PC and an 8GB SD card preloaded with six operating systems. There's no guarantee that you'll become an expert through Element14's hub, but you'll at least be saved from getting in over your head.
Go green in your Star Trek Online embassy
Fleets in Star Trek Online can put together all sorts of interesting projects. The update for Season 7 added the ability for fleets to establish embassies on New Romulus, a way to reach out to the Romulan people despite the fact that you were inevitably playing a traditional enemy of the Romulan Empire. But there are more projects involved beyond simply crafting the building. The latest special project has just been revealed, and it's all about plant life. The project will be available for a limited time, from March 28th to April 11th. Fleets which successfully complete the project will find ivy growing along the columns within the embassies, as well as additional plant life in the facility. It's a small thing, but it does brighten up an otherwise utilitarian facility. So if your fleet has an embassy, it's time to work on your gardening talents and green up your building.
Crytek-approved TimeSplitters fan project gets title, preliminary details
A dedicated group of TimeSplitters fans have taken it upon themselves to create a new, free game for like-minded folks: TimeSplitters Rewind. Developed with permission from CryTek and using assets from actual TimeSplitters games as reference material, Rewind is being constructed in CryEngine 3 and will focus primarily on multiplayer.While there is no further visual evidence of the game beyond the above logo and this rendered duck person, project manager Michael Hubicka has stated that a demo for Rewind should be available by Christmas. "The demo will be more or less a beta," Hubicka told Cooking with Grenades. "We plan to release patches to fix glitches/bugs/exploits/performance issues and Content Updates to add maps and characters."Eventually, Hubicka hopes that Rewind will also include remade versions of the single-player story content from TimeSplitters' history, but the initial goal of the project is to faithfully recreate the most well-known multiplayer components within CryEngine 3. New multilpayer modes are in the works, however, though their eventual inclusion will depend on if the end result "feels right."
Apple seeking engineers for 'next generation' Apple TV development
A new job posting on Apple's website shows that the company is seeking a software engineering manager to "help deliver the next-generation features for Apple TV." Alright, sure, they probably didn't need that article in there. But still -- Apple is clearly trying to put together a team to build up the software on the Apple TV, and it even asks applicants for the job to have experience managing several "high-priority projects." "High-priority" isn't how Apple has described its TV unit in the past, but if they're assembling a new team for a new era, we can probably expect to see some changes in the future around Apple's living room device. A job listing is of course just a job listing -- this just means it's a position that Apple wants to fill at some point in the future, not that Apple's halfway done with all of the R&D it wants to do. But I think it is fair to say that the Apple TV has a long future in Cupertino, and that we'll definitely see it move up on the priority scale over there very soon. [via 9to5Mac]
Pathfinder Online begins second Kickstarter project
Earlier this year, the folks at Goblinworks created a Kickstarter project for the tech demo version of their fantasy sandbox MMO Pathfinder Online. Not only did the team crush their initial goal of $50,000, but they went on to raise over $300,000 to create the demo. The Kickstarter bug seems to still be biting because the studio has announced another Kickstarter project for the completion of the game. With a new goal of one meeeellion dollars, Goblinworks hopes to expand from their tech demo and utilize the new team to make the very best Pathfinder Online possible. The new design crew consists of former developers from CCP, Cryptic, Zenimax, Turbine, and more, so you can see why this is an exciting project for MMO fans. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Xsyon looks to go gold with a little help from Kickstarter
Xyson is an ambitious sandbox MMO that first opened to public consumption in 2011 under the name Xsyon: Prelude. While the game has been out since that time with no secret about its "not really launched yet" status, the team at Notorious Games has just announced today that official launch is finally right around the corner. But they need your help. Thanks to the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter, Xsyon aims to raise a total of $250,000 to help the game launch under the new name Xyson: Apocalypse. As lead designer Jordi Grau Davis says in the Kickstarter pitch, this will be what Xsyon was intended to be with two servers, nine times the world of Prelude, the addition of religion and magic, a larger dev team, and more. If you'd like to try the current version of the game out before making a decision to support this project, Xsyon: Prelude has a free trial, and you can learn much more about Notorious Games' plans with the future of the title on their Kickstarter project page. [Source: Notorious Games press release]
Bluetooth dock adapter Pear disappears from Kickstarter, founders promise return under new name
You might remember Pear, a recent Insert Coin debutant that connects your favorite iDevice dock to (almost) any Bluetooth-connected smartphone. However, you probably didn't notice its swift disappearance from Kickstarter just before the weekend. The people behind the project have contacted us, explaining that the crowdfunding site was hit with a cease and desist order for the dock converter, centering around a "trademark infringement issue." With its funding page down, Pear says it had no way to tell its supporters that product development would continue, albeit under a new name. Anyone that funded the project is advised to register at the source link below to keep up-to-date. The founders aim to return to Kickstarter in around 3-6 weeks, with several as-yet unannounced enhancements coming alongside a new logo and moniker -- something that it's going to task its backers with deciding.
Second Story uses Kinect for augmented shopping, tells us how much that doggie is in the window (video)
Second Story isn't content to leave window shoppers guessing at whether or not they can afford that dress or buy it in mauve. A new project at the creative studio uses the combination of a Kinect for Windows sensor with a Planar LookThru transparent LCD enclosure to provide an augmented reality overlay for whatever passers-by see inside the box. The Microsoft peripheral's face detection keeps the perspective accurate and (hopefully) entrances would-be customers. Coming from an outlet that specializes in bringing this sort of work to corporate clients, the potential for retail use is more than a little obvious, but not exclusive: the creators imagine it also applying to art galleries, museums and anywhere else that some context would come in handy. If it becomes a practical reality, we're looking forward to Second Story's project dissuading us from the occasional impulse luxury purchase.
