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23-foot-high theremin appears in Melbourne, begins to freak out passersby
It appeared out of nowhere. And it makes semi-disturbing, 50s era sci-fi movie sounds when you approach it. Over in Melbourne, artist Robin Fox has installed a seven meter (23 foot) high theremin instrument. Like the classic theremin design, the user doesn't have to physically touch it but just has to be within a certain range to activate it. Once initiated, you can expect to be aurally bombarded with retro movie sounds -- a cacophony of rubber monsters beating each other within an inch of their lives. The theremin will be present on the waterfront for the next three months as part of Melbourne Music Week, and you can click on through to hear its sounds as well as wonder when the ghost of Vincent Price will be showing up in the near future.
Daily iPad App: Codify
I've been diving into some rudimentary (very rudimentary, trust me) iOS coding lately, and as soon as I picked up an iPad, one of the first thoughts that occurred to me was the idea of having a version of Xcode (the IDE that Mac and iOS developers use to make their apps) available for the platform. There are plenty of text editors available, and even some designed to actually write code on Apple's tablet. But I haven't seen a way to actually run that code -- until now, that is, with Codify. To be clear, Codify isn't a Cocoa development tool like Xcode, so you still can't write and run iOS apps right on the device (though I have to believe Apple is indeed working on some sort of Xcode for iPad, somewhere in the bowels of Cupertino, right?). But it is a development environment for Lua, a lightweight and simple object-oriented programming language used in all sorts of places. You can basically write and run Lua right inside Codify, which gives you a very powerful tool for creating your own small apps, prototypes and games right there on the iPad. There are a few advantages and drawbacks to this. The advantage here is that the iPad of course uses a touch interface, so Codify has really smartly invoked touch in a few different ways while you're coding. To see coordinates or colors, for example, you can just drag your finger around on the screen. And you can scroll right through your code, your objects, or Lua's documentation just like browsing through anything else on your iPad. While I'm not hugely familiar with Lua (yet), the whole experience seems really great, and should hopefully convince other app makers to start looking at using iPads in this way more. The biggest drawback, however, is that as far as I can tell, there's no real way to get your code out of the app, other than just cutting and pasting it off to email or somewhere else. There's also no (official) way to get other files like sprites and sounds into the app, though the FAQ says that's being worked on. These are more obviously issues with the iPad and iOS itself, of course, rather than the app, though it would be nice at least to see FTP or Dropbox integration. But I do like the idea of using my iPad for actually writing code. That bigger touchscreen just seems to encourage creativity, and while most code writing in the past has been the domain of the desktop, why shouldn't there be apps designed to bring code and app creation to more and more people with simpler and better tools? Codify is a great first step in that direction -- it's $7.99 on the App Store right now.
Daily Mac App: Sound Cloud
You're a SoundCloud user. You love playing tracks on your Mac and love the idea of SoundCloud, but hate the fact that your poor old Mac sounds like a jet engine whenever you play a track thanks to Flash. SoundCloud app to the rescue. The official SoundCloud app brings "the full SoundCloud web experience to your Mac" allowing you to play tracks directly from your SoundCloud account, search, favorite and create playlists all using a native app. The sounds stream pretty instantly, while tag search is also supported so you can go exploring either through keyword search, through users or tags and save the good stuff for later. You can even drag-and-drop SoundCloud URLs onto the SoundCloud dock icon to create playlists. The SoundCloud app also supports the built-in Mac media keys, so you can pause and skip tracks like you would with iTunes. Growl support is bundled too, so if you've got Growl installed it'll notify you of track changes. The only disadvantage of using the desktop app over the in-browser SoundCloud site is that only tracks which have been made available for 3rd party applications within SoundCloud will appear in the app. For the rest you'll have to resort to the website. For me that didn't make much difference as my favorite stuff was all present in the app without issue. Recording your own stuff is a doddle with the desktop app thanks to the nice big "Share Your Sound" tab in the top left that reveals a massive "Rec" button that you simply hit to record from your Mac. If you're into SoundCloud, but hate that you have to use Flash, then check out the SoundCloud desktop app -- it's free and works pretty well.
WildStar gives players a taste of the sound of the world
It's hard not to find something familiar in WildStar's fusion of the wild west aesthetic with the exploration of an unfamiliar planet in deep space. That having been said, most people anticipating the game would likely find nothing to fault with that combination in terms of visuals. But what will the game sound like? That's what this week's WildStar Wednesday addresses, with a piece by Jeff Kurtenacker about composing the music you'll hear in-game. As Kurtenacker puts it, the biggest challenge as a composer is to create music that combines the game's diverse thematic points into a unified score, producing the right mixture of wonder, adventure, and a bit of old frontier exploration. But if all the technical discussion of composition is a bit beyond you, the post also includes two sample tracks from the game's soundtrack, a chance for players to get a sense of what to expect from the finished experience. The tracks are brief, but they're certainly the sort of thing that gets you in the mindset of the game -- and that's just what they're there for.
Daily iPhone App: MadPad
Smule's latest app is called MadPad. It's somewhat similar to Harmonix's VidRhythm in that you can take regular everyday sounds and turn them into music. But instead of combining sounds into a premade video, the app will turn sounds into different parts of an instrument, which you can then play with impunity. You can mix your own sets or use a series of premade sets from various musicians. You can use the created instrument to make songs or share sets on Twitter, Facebook, or over email. Smule has created a quality app here, and while it's not quite as easy as VidRhythm, in the hands of capable musicians, MadPad can make something special. It's available on the iPhone for 99 cents or in HD on the iPad for $2.99.
The Daily Grind: What in-game sounds drive you bonkers?
Way back when I first started playing City of Heroes, I became enamored with the Defender archetype. I made Defender after Defender until all my slots were full, and then deleted some to make even more. But the one powerset I'd never choose, even on the pain of death, torture and Arby's, was Force Fields. Why? It's really quite simple: the sounds. Oh, those high-pitched whiny sounds that set my teeth on edge! I hated grouping with anyone who had those turned on, and for years I deeply wished that NCsoft would allow us to disable some game sounds while retaining all of the others. But I don't mean to pick on just City of Heroes here. Every game has sounds that annoy and grate on our ears, and today we want to hear about your most-hated in-game noises. Which sounds do you wish developers would change or eliminate altogether? 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!
New Darkfall video highlights environmental sounds
Asking a room full of MMORPG enthusiasts what the word Darkfall brings to mind isn't likely to net you many serene responses. The game and its associated tomfoolery certainly don't trigger tranquil thoughts or conjure idyllic fantasy scenes complete with beautiful deserts, atmospheric forests, and stoic mountain terrain. No, the sandbox title from Aventurine is most famous for its cutthroat FFA full-loot PvP implementation, which makes a new video designed to show off the game's stunning environmental soundscapes all the more curious. This isn't the first time Aventurine has experimented with environmental sounds, but it is the very latest iteration of how Agon is seen and heard. The clip runs for over five minutes and features a multitude of characters traversing many of the terrain types found in the huge game world. The trailer also highlights the upcoming tweaks that link Darkfall sounds to specific locations as well as the continuous randomization of environment sounds and 3-D emitter effects. Immerse yourself in the world of Agon after the cut, or head to the Darkfall Epic Blog to learn more.
Audio battlefield would prepare troops for combat or a typical Slayer concert
Ever wondered how well playing Call of Duty at maximum volume mimics a real combat experience? Researchers at the Missouri University of Science and Technology must have asked a similar question, because they've built a 64-speaker surround-sound audio battlefield designed to train new troops. The system reproduces screaming fighter jets, rumbling tanks, and persistent gunfire -- all the better to acclimate recruits to the overwhelming, disorienting cacophony of warfare. Veterans say even with the four large 20-hertz subwoofers, it's nowhere near the real thing: combat volume is 25 percent louder than the average rock concert, at levels that can cause permanent hearing loss. Still, the creators say every bit of training helps; having near-combat experience is certainly better than none at all. So tell that to your neighbors next time they bang on your wall. [Image via The Associated Press]
The Daily Grind: What game sounds do you like the best?
Sounds may always get the back seat to graphics and animation in MMOs, but in my opinion they're just as -- if not more -- important than what you see. If you'll allow for a bit of cultured snobbery, a game with lackluster sound effects are just so... so... pedestrian. Common gutter trash, even. I'm always keeping an ear out for great sounds in the games I play, such as the meaty thwack of a sword slamming against a mutated iguana or the sonic boom of a misfired mage spell. One of the things I love about RIFT is how the sounds are muted when you're underwater or near death; it's a small touch, to be sure, but it helps to pull me into the world even more. Are you somewhat of an audiophile? Then today tell us what MMO sounds you love the best. Are they spells, attacks, NPC noises, ambient sounds, or something different completely? 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!
Pioneer debuts new Sound Wing HVT speakers, novel tech touted within
There's a ton of gadgetry that goes into speakers, but the notable thing here is that the Pioneer folks have begun using HVT, or Horizontal-Vertical Transforming technology -- but more on that in sec. This beauty is engineered to reduce unwanted vibration and preserve bass caliber while outputting 100W of sound. Featuring a double diaphragm packaged close together, the Sound Wing gives off omnidirectional sound -- that's 360 degrees of noise. And thanks to HVT, the coils within the speaker have been rearranged to reduce the wasted space in traditional speakers -- though for some reason this particular unit still measures a portly 109mm thick. Seeing that the tech Pioneer has implemented here is novel, we're interested to see how this thing will sound in the real world. You'll find the Sound Wing in Japan for ¥41,000 (about $507) come June.
Making custom alert sounds for your Mac
When you're fed up with your Mac telling you it's not about to open the pod bay doors and wondering if, Dave, you really want to do that, you may want to think about making some custom sounds for it yourself. And as luck would have it, there's a great tutorial on how to do just that over at Macworld. The article looks at both recording your own sounds and using GarageBand to convert your sound files, and how to add the resulting sounds to your system. The article walks you through capturing your own sounds using a microphone and QuickTime Player in Snow Leopard, including how to get rid of initial pauses and the sound of you clicking your mouse at the end of the recording. It goes on to discuss how to convert your recordings to the AIFF format needed for system sounds in OS X using iTunes or GarageBand, and then it explains how to insert the sounds into your system and attach them to specific events. Again, it's a nice tutorial that we recommend you check out. Have fun.
RIFT beta 5 introduces public grouping, will be "twice as big" as beta 4
Ready for their fifth taste of RIFT this week, beta testers will find a host of changes and improvements waiting their assessment. Chief among these is a much-requested feature: public grouping. Because so much of RIFT's dynamic content revolves around spontaneous zone events, players have clamored for a way to quickly group up instead of spending precious time spamming the chat channels. Two UI additions now allow players to connect with public groups as efficiently and quickly as possible. This news comes from Scott Hartsman, who posted a lengthy preview of RIFT's beta 5 event on the official forums today. Announcing that beta 5 will be "twice as big" as the previous beta event, Hartsman revealed that the team is increasing the number of servers from 18 to 32, which should allow for up to double the amount of players. Other changes in store for players this week include a better organization of planar currencies, Rogue energy fixes, ranged sound improvements and "significant love" for invasion mechanics. Hartsman also revealed a few items that the team is working on for future updates, such as better racial abilities and master looting. You can read his full announcement here. %Gallery-111840%
Patch 3.2.2: The clucking draenei (and the levitating tree)
I've talked here before about just how wacky Blizzard's coding is -- they are obviously great programmers (even with all of the 180,000 bugs), but man, when things go wrong in this game, they go wrong in the weirdest, strangest ways. Take the bug above, spotted in patch 3.2.2 by xella over on Livejournal: the female dreanei /train emote is bugged like crazy, but instead of not playing or playing a random sound like you might expect it to do as a software bug, it instead plays a cacophony of the strangest sounds, including a slice of the original sound and then a female blood elf /chicken noise instead. This will surely be fixed soon (and as a few people in the comments over there say, it's probably a bit of file corruption on Blizzard's part), but what a weird bug.Fortunately, as granular and strange as Blizzard's bugs are, their fixes are just as minute: tree druids will be happy to see that, since patch 3.2, their treeform now actually moves correctly after Levitate is cast on it. It's a small change, sure, but every little bit helps with immersion. Maybe someday we'll see mounts do it, too.
Gearing up for PvP - Your sound system
So you've got your computer, your input device, and maybe some specialized keyboard. The only thing you'll need now is some sound system. In the conclusion of this series, we'll take a look at what you use for game sounds. For general gaming purposes, your computer's default sound system, if any, should really do fine. On the other hand, if you're serious about your PvP, you might want to invest in a good headset. If you normally play at home and have the luxury of playing indiscreetly, a great sound system is an awesome thing to have. Personally, I don't play external background music (e.g., through iTunes) whenever I PvP. It's cool for PvP videos, but it's generally a bad idea. For one thing, music, even the one found in-game, tends to obscure important PvP sounds. In particular, the stealth sound is one of the most important sound effects in World of Warcraft PvP. That sound will often, but not always, precede visual confirmation of a stealthed unit nearby. If only for this reason, I turn up game sounds and lower in-game music to an ambient level.
The Daily Grind: How important are incidental sounds?
One of the things that many people have raised about Runes of Magic as a reason they won't play it is the lack of incidental sounds in the game. These are the noises that we take for granted in many other games; the noise of mining or gathering, hopping on your mount, running across the ground, the sounds of spells, swords clanging, armor ringing - even things as simple as doors opening and closing. While the Runes of Magic team has assured us that they are working on fleshing out all the sounds in the world, we were a bit surprised just how much we missed them in the first place. Most of us tend to play our own music, but realized we leave incidental noises on and starkly miss their presence. This morning, we thought we'd ask you - how important are incidental, background type noises to you? While you may not pay attention to them (and honestly, you're really not supposed to) do you think your gaming would be missing something if they weren't there? If you've played a game that didn't have them, did you also find you're surprised at how much you miss them? Or do you generally play your music and just turn off all sounds?
Convertbot updated to 1.1, adds more units to convert
I haven't had much use for Tapbots' Weightbot, even though I actually am currently watching my weight, but I really appreciate the look and feel of the program -- it's one of the most polished apps on the App Store. And Convertbot is no different -- while the actual situations where I need to convert units are pretty few and far between, the app is just so intuitive and polished that you look for ways to use it, from the stylistic user interface to the little beeps and clinks that make the buttons feel as tactile as they can on the iPhone's touchscreen.And now there's even more opportunities to use the app: with the newest version 1.1, out now in the App Store, you can convert more than 100 different units, everything from angles to lengths to cooking volumes to even speed, time, and work (I can't remember the last time I had to convert BTUs to Joules -- high school? -- but this app can do it). At just 99 cents, it's definitely worth trying out, if you're a fan of quality iPhone apps at all. I kind of wish Tapbots would aim a little higher, but then again, this is kind of their thing: taking really simple apps and polishing the heck out of them until they shine way past their basic functions. It would be interesting, though, to see what they could do with a bigger concept.
Lightsaber Unleashed returns to the App Store, with ads and dialogue
Yes, in case you haven't grabbed it yet, Lightsaber Unleashed has been rereleased into the App Store. Originally it was called Phonesaber (and it was one of our favorite freebies), but of course Lucasfilm wasn't going to let an unofficial app fly, and now they've passed it off to THQ and rereleased it as a tie-in with The Force Unleashed, a console game that came out last week. The first rumors we've heard about it say the app isn't quite as awesomely spare as the old one -- there's a splash screen ad for the new game, as well as fewer saber choices and even some dialogue and music sounds (part of the charm of the old one was that all it did was make lightsaber sounds, in our humble opinion).But fortunately it looks like creators Alex & Duncan are still aboard, so the core of the app is still there, even if Lucasfilm has dictated a few changes. Better to have an officially licensed lightsaber than no lightsaber at all, right? What kind of uncivilized fighters would we be if we just carried around those inelegant blasters all the time?
Found Footage: Apple sounds "song"
Some might argue that the Apple sound effects found in the "Sound" preference pane can get a little annoying over time. However, a YouTube user has turned those "annoying" tweets and chirps into somewhat of a song. The song project, created in GarageBand, is available for download from the creator's website. While there, you can also download an m4a audio file of the song -- who knows, this might make a really good iPhone ringtone!Of course, this guy isn't the first to pull such a stunt, as a Windows version has existed for a while. Now, if you want that on your iPhone, we've got to talk.
Sounding off on ingame sound
If you checked out the unofficial changes in patch 2.4, you'll have noticed (or just heard on the realms) that quite a few sounds got changed. Some are louder (as in that annoying PW: Shield sound), some are quieter, and some are just plain missing (it's a known bug that Tigers and Sabers don't roar anymore). But this brings up an interesting debate: many players are saying that they never would have noticed -- they rarely ever play with sound on anyway.Playing with music off is one thing (and yes, many people prefer to listen to their own music while playing), but playing with the sound completely off seems like it would be tough -- there are a lot of audio cues going on in the game, and with sound off, you might not notice that a party member accidentally pulled another mob offscreen, or that someone behind you is casting a certain spell, or any number of other things that have specific audio to them. That doesn't need to be the only thing you listen to (I usually have to turn down the game sound during raids, just so I can hear what's going on in Vent), but surely listening to game sound makes you a better player.Do you keep the sound muted all the time, and if so, why? And do you have any trouble playing if you do? Of course, it does help you avoid that annoying PW:S sound, but as someone who keeps the game sound up (though not the music), it seems like there are specific cues meant to be heard while playing the game. Don't you miss those with the sound off?
Beat Blocks melds wood and MIDI in rhythmic harmony
No doubt we've seen quite a few attempts to mesh MIDI with, um, just about everything, but Jess Hoefs' Beat Blocks creation certainly brings back fond memories of our childhood days. Based around basic wooden blocks, colored with blue tape and adorned by bottom-mounted sensors, the system functions when a block is placed into a sensor-laden cube on the board, sending a signal to generate a specific loop. The "tangible interface for a rhythm sequencer" utilizes MIDI and contacts in order to generate sound signals, and by re-arranging the blocks on the fly, users can mix up the beats and create quite the musical masterpiece whilst reliving their days of innocence. Jeff is looking to ramp up two different flavors, with one being of a smaller, more performance-oriented design, and a larger matrix board to accommodate "multiple users." So if you're still curious just how fiddling with toy blocks can actually create musical delight, be sure to hit the read link and surf over to the video demonstration.[Via OhGizmo]
