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Your trusty TUAW blogger tries Windows 8
I'm pretty much a hard-and-fast Mac guy. I've had Apple products since the Apple II, and bought my first Mac when they came out in 1984, so I have a lot of history with Apple. For a variety of reasons, I need to use a PC laptop to run a variety of astronomical automation programs, and my 10-year-old Toshiba laptop running Windows XP has been slowly dying. With all the holiday sales going on at this time of year, I grabbed an HP laptop at a low price. It runs Windows 8, which is sort of intriguing, but the best part is that all my software vendors assured me that their software would run fine under the Windows 8 desktop mode, which is essentially Windows 7. Fresh out of the box, I played a bit with Windows 8. Without a touch screen, it was a pretty painful experience. Not knowing the GUI very well -- and without any helpful prompts or introductions on the part of Windows 8 -- there were a lot of dead ends and right-clicking in corners. I'm sure I'll figure it out in time. After an hour or so of use, I received a notification that Windows 8 needed an update from HP. No problem... except there was a problem. The update didn't "take" the first time, but it did on the second try. I should have regarded that as a bad omen, and a few minutes later Microsoft let me know that there was a Windows 8 update available. What the heck, maybe it fixed the HP issue? I accepted the update, and the laptop happily re-booted. Uh-oh! Now something was definitely wrong. Windows reported it was 13 percent through the update, but the percentage just sat there at 13 percent. And sat. And sat some more. It stayed that way for about 20 minutes, and then the machine restarted again after telling me the update didn't work. I restarted once again with fingers crossed. Nope. Stuck at 13 percent. It was time to do some research. Googling "Microsoft update 13%", I hit the mother lode. Page after page of people running into the same problem at 13 percent. I found one solution that seemed reasonable, but when I printed it out it was in excess of three pages of instructions. I sighed, dived in and fixed the problem. That was last week; this week I saw a Microsoft support note about the issue stating that perhaps that previous update didn't fix the problem. I am pretty tech savvy, so I could follow some of the twisted instructions to manually fix the update. If I had been a novice Windows user and these issues were my first taste of Windows 8, I would have been livid. I wasn't too happy, sitting there cussing out Steve Ballmer for delivering an operating system that made a computer fresh out of the box one update away from a fail. As regular TUAW readers know, I'm fairly critical of Apple. Apple Maps was not the greatest moment for the company, and there have been some pretty flaky versions of OS X in the past. MobileMe was never satisfying, and Apple iMessage on iOS is still hit and miss. Still, the kind of update problem I experienced with Windows 8 is pretty inexcusable. There are already plenty of public doubts about the viability of Windows 8, and giving new users a steaming pile instead of a reliable update to fix some unexplained issue is horrific. As I sat there staring at a frozen screen with no solution in sight without having an extra computer -- my Mac -- available to search for an answer, I remembered that Apple had never, ever dealt me these kinds of cards. Yes, I've had to re-boot from a few updates, but nothing like this. It would be one thing if it was just me and my Windows 8 laptop had some special configuration, but lots of people were burned with the same issue with brand new hardware. Microsoft -- it just "doesn't work," and more and better testing is needed. Apple is far from perfect, but as the old saying goes, you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Microsoft, this is no way to compete with Apple's out-of-the box experience. No way at all.
Ultima Online patches in a significant number of bug fixes
Get your scrollin' finger ready: Ultima Online just got a whole bucket of fixes and updates posted to the test server. If you're tired of your fish pies not being stackable, of mushrooms exploding under your house, or of gargoyles activating their stone form mid-flight, this is the patch for you! Lava Lobster fishing has been fixed, hats have stopped twitching, and gargoyle aprons have all been returned to their proper hue. At long last, golems can no longer be used to exploit combat training, and vendors are seeing some big changes. Rather than increasing their fees once per day, vendors will charge incrementally over time. They'll also give players a grace period before heading out after running out of funds, and all vending penalties have been abolished. Hit up the official patch notes for the lengthy list, if only so you can learn that "Robin's Egg candy will no longer fill the tummy of the eater." [Thanks to groovy webizen Derrick for the tip!]
Should they have waited until March? Submitting your iTunes 11 bugs
For all of you working with iTunes 11 and exploring its delightful and quirky feature set, it's likely you'll run across one or more of the bugs the new software has to offer. For example, I clicked on the iTunes Tutorials button to watch one of those great new video overviews -- and got a "page not found" in iTunes. (Screen shot above.) I also encountered issues showing and hiding sidebars and toggling between genres. Jeff Lamarche reports that iTunes 11 reverted all his content to new and unwatched. (*kof*) https://twitter.com/designiac/status/274228458211655680/photo/1 http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A83ss6WCYAAzb6e.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85PPb3CYAE2i9N.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85hrNECMAA4Vqj.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A84-_2CCAAI7eYE.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85eAg1CQAEF7kL.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85okaQCcAAOHP4.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85pMlyCUAEE8J6.png (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85o2EmCYAAsw1Q.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85iu9DCUAA3cQs.png (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85bnoMCcAAa8Ox.jpg (via) http://pbs.twimg.com/media/A85bi5aCMAA3gdf.jpg (via) http://cl.ly/image/0x2D1w1D1u0m If you're experiencing these early bugs, there is something you can do. Hop over to Apple's iTunes feedback page and let Apple know. Submitting bug reports isn't about criticizing or demeaning Apple. It's about pitching in to help produce better apps and voting for enhancements that you'd like to see Apple include.
Android 4.2 bug omits December from the People app, makes end-of-year birthdays even less bearable
The launch of Android 4.2 brought a welcome smattering of extra features to the mobile world, but a recently discovered bug omits something slightly important: namely, the month of December. Dive into the People app on any device using the new OS, and the last 31 days of the year will be unavailable for contacts' anniversaries and similar special occasions. Google is aware of the flaw, although it hasn't yet said when it will have a fix in place. We've reached out to get a more definitive timetable for a solution beyond just what's implied by the Gregorian calendar. In the meantime, don't lean too heavily on that smartphone to remember an imminent birthday; people born in December are stiffed out of enough presents as it is. [Thanks, Waverunnr]
Assassin's Creed 3 patch cuts down game-breaking bugs next week
If you've managed to sneak up on a bug or glitch in Assassin's Creed 3, there's a good chance it'll be addressed "by the end of next week." A planned Xbox 360 and PS3 patch rivaling the game's hefty day-one patch will address both multiplayer and single-player issues – that includes a problem on the Fort Wolcott map where players would become stuck in the warm-up screen. Targeting a player with throwing knives will prevent them from contesting kills, which should cut down on cheap escapes.On the single-player side, just about every campaign mission will see an update. Missing NPCs, objects and audio will be returned, and several mission-breaking bugs will be squashed, including a few that would get you stuck in an infinite loop of respawn and death.The descriptions on many of these fixes stray into spoiler territory, so read up on the full list past the break below at your own risk.
OS X Launchpad bug is annoying, pretty
Tyler Lee over at Ubergizmo pointed out an interesting OS X bug that affects the way that the Launchpad window is displayed. It's an annoying bug, but strangely enough it's also quite beautiful. The bug doesn't apply the blur effect when Launchpad is opened -- instead, it applies the crystallize effect which gives your app icons a nice "stained glass" appearance. It doesn't last for long, and the bug apparently isn't hitting many Macs. But it is kinda cool. If you see the bug in action and happen to be able to nab a screenshot, let us know in the comments.
Minecraft XBLA bug extermination adds Golden Apples, Pumpkin Seeds
Minecraft XBLA's Adventure Update 1.8.2 is live and kicking, probably because it's fending off nasty, blocky bugs. The 1.8.2 Bug Fix Title Update doesn't have a release date yet, but it contains dozens of fixes and adds recipes for Golden Apples and Golden Pumpkin Seeds. Fixes include chest lids not working correctly, glass panes and iron fence hitbox problems, tools taking damage in creative mode, and many more. Hit the break for the complete list.4J Studios provides more insight on its Twitter feed, adding that the Golden Apples and Pumpkin Seeds are crafted with gold ingot for now, but gold nuggets are on their way and the recipe will use those once they're in-game. Additionally, players will eventually be able to climb vines, and the next update will add villagers.In other mining news, sales of Minecraft XBLA's Halloween Skin Pack (again, that sounds pretty gross) raised more than $500,000 in under two weeks for the four charities chosen by Mojang, 4J Studios and Microsoft Studios: Block by Block, SANDS Lothians, Child's Play and Macmillan Cancer Support.
SWTOR executive producer reveals the state of the game
Players have been anxiously waiting to hear how Star Wars: The Old Republic is fairing -- straight from the tauntaun's mouth, as it were. Executive Producer Jeff Hickman jumped to the official website earlier today to specifically address player concerns. Players have been curious as to why certain developers have left. They wanted to know why so many bugs passed through Update 1.4. And finally, Oceanic players are concerned about their server populations. Hickman explained in the post that a studio like BioWare and a game like SWTOR "live on and thrive as we change, actually thrive because we change," implying that developers leaving are a natural part of studio evolution. He was quick to note that key players like Creative Director James Ohlen are still around to "carry the banner of BioWare." Regarding the 1.4 bugs, he was quick to note that designing and testing a large game like SWTOR is very complex. However, the QA team has put in new measures to help catch future issues like those seen in the last update. He said, "We will strive to give you the best, high quality, bug-free experience that we can." Lastly, the Oceanic players are still a concern for the developers, but the free-to-play update will hopefully change the population of the Oceanic servers. Hickman explained that he wants to hold out to see what F2P brings before making a final decision regarding these servers.
Can't save PDF files from Safari with Mountain Lion? Here's the fix
There's quite a bit of traffic on Apple's discussion boards (and others) about a problem with saving PDF files that have been viewed in Safari with Mountain Lion. Safari can view PDF files just fine, but for many people the problems start when you go to save the files or print them. The files get corrupted, and you're met with a message that tells you the file is damaged. There is no problem viewing a PDF you already have in either Apple's Preview app or with Adobe Reader. If Safari is involved, however, you are likely to have some issues. You can try to open the file in Adobe Reader, and you'll get a similar message. The cause seems to be a problem with Adobe Reader updates. There's a file in your Library/Internet Plug-Ins called 'AdobePDFViewerNPAPI.plugin'. Find it, and trash it. You'll also see a file called 'AdobePDFViewer.plugin'. Don't trash that one, it's fine. I had this problem on both my Mac laptop and Mac Pro. I checked with a couple of friends and they all had the same problem. Some people have spent a lot of time on the phone with Apple and haven't gotten the problem resolved, as the issue rests with Adobe, not Apple. Let us know if you've seen this, or if you haven't. Lots of people are affected, but you may not see the problem until you need to view or print that PDF. Saving a PDF link without opening it works fine, but if the document is opened in Safari, and then saved, then the trouble can begin.
Stackable stag coming in patch 5.1
One of the most unintentionally hilarious bugs to hit with patch 5.0.4 introduced the phenomenon of stag stacking. This bug allowed druids in travel form with the Glyph of the Stag to ... well, stack on top of each other. Towers of stags took Azeroth by storm, and a flurry of screenshots littered sites like Reddit until the bug was quite sadly hotfixed, and stags were left solo and inconsolable. Apparently Blizzard liked this bug, even if it wasn't really appropriate for player use. MMO-Champion datamined a new item called a Stackable Stag from the patch 5.1 PTR. Using the item will summon a stackable stag at a target location, and if there is another Stackable Stag present, it will stack on top of it. It's not quite as laughably horrifying as a giant stack of stags trundling through the streets of Orgrimmar, but I'll take it. At the moment, it's unclear where one will be able to obtain this item, but it should clear up by the time patch 5.1 is released. Mists of Pandaria is here! The level cap has been raised to 90, many players have returned to Azeroth, and pet battles are taking the world by storm. Keep an eye out for all of the latest news, and check out our comprehensive guide to Mists of Pandaria for everything you'll ever need to know.
Exchange/iOS "meeting hijack" history goes back well before iOS 6
Yesterday, in discussing the new reports of meeting invitation issues between Microsoft Exchange and iOS 6 devices using ActiveSync, I mentioned that I recall having seen these sorts of problems in prior versions of iOS and OS X, albeit infrequently. The issue manifests as one recipient declining an invitation which mistakenly cancels the meeting for everyone, "hijacking" the meeting out from under the original organizer. My recollection was probably accurate, given the report below from a TUAW reader who prefers not to identify his former employer. The full rundown is worth reading, but here's the summary: iOS's implementation of ActiveSync, in iOS 6 and well before, may be doing some things (asserting ownership of meetings that in fact do not "belong" to the Exchange account on the iPhone) that theoretically should not be allowed under the protocol specification. Exchange, in turn, is not enforcing the spec and refusing these inappropriate requests as it ought; it's taking them at face value. The end result: meetings get dropped but neither vendor is apparently willing to take point on the issue. Our reader's story: The problem with iOS and Exchange is something that we discovered at my previous place of employment. It's a nasty bug and I'm sad to see that it persists. Before I sat down to write you, [I checked with] those folks to see if iOS 6.0 had made it better at all. They reported it was worse. With that in mind... We had a term for the problem. It was "meeting hijacking." It describes a scenario in which an iOS device could "hijack" a Microsoft Exchange meeting. The hijacking would make an attendee the organizer of the meeting and if they declined or deleted the meeting, Exchange would then send a decline to [all the other invitees] and cause fairly major issues. We first witnessed this problem around iOS 4.3, if I remember correctly. We were running Exchange 2007 for tens of thousands of users. We had the latest service packs and cumulative updates installed. (The problem also occurred in iOS 5.0 and higher, and apparently it's not fixed in iOS 6.0 either. It has also been verified against Exchange 2010, but more on that in a minute). To reproduce the issue, here's what we did: Using Outlook for Windows, create a meeting and add attendees. Make one of the attendees an email list that is EXTERNAL to the Exchange organization. That means it cannot be a distribution group in Active Directory. It needs to be a Mailman or majordomo list that is outside the Exchange org. The members of the external email list receive the invitation and accept it. The acceptance is written back to Exchange and put on the calendar. The iOS device owned by a member of the email list picks up the meeting and places it on the calendar. All is happy. At some point, the iOS device syncs the calendar via ActiveSync and suddenly becomes confused about who the owner of the meeting should be (the organizer, in Exchange-speak). The iPhone decides that its owner should become the organizer, since it has no idea who the real owner is, and syncs this property change back to the Exchange server. Exchange 2007 now has a disconnected copy of the meeting with a different owner. Exchange is agnostic about this. Now the iPhone owner declines the meeting for whatever reason. Exchange automatically generates a cancellation or decline notice and sends it out to everyone since the disconnected copy of the meeting has a different owner. This results in mass confusion and sometimes will delete the meeting from the other calendars. We verified this problem against iOS 4, 5 and 6 with Exchange 2007 and 2010. In Exchange 2010, Microsoft introduced a "calendar repair agent" that is supposed to detect this problem and resolve it. This calendar repair agent is a daily timer job. Microsoft did release patches on Exchange 2007 SP2 and up to correct some of the issues that are similar to this, but this particular problem was never resolved. Now for the dirty laundry. We worked for about two years with Microsoft and Apple on this issue. It may have been longer, I don't recall. We had a major support contract with Microsoft and reported this issue to them. I'll spare you the gory details. But the end result was this: The root cause is that iOS is able to convince ActiveSync to manipulate properties on meetings that it should not be able to manipulate (namely, the organizer of the meeting). Sometimes, it will make these decisions because for whatever reason it believes [these changes are] in the best interest of the user. Microsoft has an ActiveSync specification that calls out what properties should and should not be used during EAS communication. In our troubleshooting it was determined that Apple's manipulation of the organizer field is against the ActiveSync specification. However, ActiveSync will not stop iOS from doing this regardless of the fact that it is "against the specification." ActiveSync will happily accept the change and write the properties from the mobile device even if the ActiveSync spec says that Exchange explicitly should not do this. The end result: Apple claims that it's Microsoft's bug because ActiveSync lets it happen. Microsoft claims it's Apple's bug because they wrote code that makes it happen. Microsoft says they "told Apple not to do this but they did it anyway." Ultimately, we were of the opinion that it was Microsoft's bug to fix since the specification laid down rules of this nature yet is unwilling to enforce them. We pointed out to them that this seemed to be a security issue. They disagreed. Like I said, I spoke to my old colleagues and they confirmed that the problem still exists and with iOS 6, the meeting hijacks appear to have worsened. They are still in the planning stages of Exchange 2010 so I cannot comment on whether or not the calendar repair agent helps this issue in that particular environment. Thanks to our reader for contributing his experience. If you've got specific details on troubleshooting this issue or have run into it yourself, please let us know.
Hyperspace Beacon: The SWTOR Terror From Beyond experience
Last week, BioWare launched its fourth major update for Star Wars: The Old Republic, Terror From Beyond. This new game content also happens to be the fourth operation (or raid) for the game. Eight to 16 players battle their way across the planet Asation, hoping to close or destroy a rift in hyperspace that has opened on this ancient Gree world. Along the way, many strange creatures and beings from other worlds attempt to stop the strike force from reaching its goal. Just like the other operations (Karagga's Palace and Explosive Conflict), Terror From Beyond continues the story of the Dread Masters. With each new addition to the story, the goal of these six Sith lords becomes more and more clear. Mechanically, this operation consists of five boss fights and a fairly linear path to the ultimate goal, a swirling vortex about a kilometer away from the starting point. Thankfully, none of the boss mechanics is a simple tank-and-spank ordeal, and the trash mobs along the way might cause a bump or two as well. This weekend, my guild ran this brand-new endgame addition to SWTOR in story-mode to get a taste of what it has to offer. I'd like to break down the experience into three major categories: aesthetics, boss mechanics, and overall impressions.
The Soapbox: Own your game's mistakes
To the developers of the MMO industry, I say this to you: Your game has some pretty big issues. No, stop. Don't go consult the PR team. Don't talk with the community managers. Don't spend time explaining why those issues aren't really issues. Just say it with me. Your game has some pretty big issues. I don't care what game you call your own; it's still replete with issues, including ones that by all rights should have been fixed months ago. Just say that with me, and then possibly follow it with a "sorry." There. That wasn't so bad, was it? Kind of liberating, actually. There's a lot to be said for owning up to the failures of your game and admitting that some things are just plain wrong. I can think of great reasons to just take a deep breath, eat crow, and just say that part of your game is a mess.
Breaking down the App Store's new layout
iOS developer Justine Pratt (who's created a series of utility apps for iPhone and iPad) has put together a nice, long analysis from the developer perspective of what the new App Store design can do for apps. Apple recently revamped the App Store on iOS devices, introducing several changes that a lot of developers didn't like, simply because their business was based on either how the apps originally appeared or how the search algorithm (which was revamped as well) listed their apps. Pratt describes the recent changes and explains how developers can benefit from the current design. For instance, an app's icon and initial screenshot have always been important. The new design makes those elements even more prominent, so devs should take extra care to make their assets as eye-popping as possible. Also in the new design, ratings are given less importance, and an app's last updated date is given more, so Apple is trying to reward devs who update apps frequently. Pratt's analysis reveals how Apple believes customers should search for apps. There are some other interesting changes as well. There's now an "App Support" button next to the "Write a Review" button, so hopefully that will keep confused customers from complaining in the reviews section about bugs that should really be reported straight to the developer. Pratt runs through quite a few interesting changes. Whether you're an App Store developer, or just interested in what this new design means for them, the post is worth a read.
Early iOS 6 adopters report problems getting Exchange push email: are you affected?
We all know about the central issue surrounding iOS 6. For the suits and ties among us, however, there's a potentially more glaring problem with Exchange support. Some users quick to upgrade to Apple's latest mobile OS report losing automatic push delivery of their email, requiring that they check for themselves to get any fresh messages. The issue isn't carrier- or device-specific, and attempts to reboot, reconfigure or restore devices are at best temporary fixes: what flows smoothly at first runs dry several hours later. Apple technicians are aware that the flaw exists, but it's tough to know if and when engineers will have a fix -- the company typically waits until it has a solution in hand before it goes on the record. We've reached out to Apple for a possible comment all the same. In the meantime, let us know if your Exchange access (or push data as a whole) is going awry. [Thanks, Daniel] %Poll-78044%
Alt-week 9.29.12: 3D pictures of the moon, 4D clocks and laser-controlled worms
Alt-week peels back the covers on some of the more curious sci-tech stories from the last seven days. Dimensions, they're like buses. You wait for ages, and then three come along at once. And then another one right after that. While that might be about where the analogy ends, this week sees us off to the moon, where we then leap from the third, right into the fourth. Once there, we'll learn how we could eventually be controlled by lasers, before getting up close and personal with a 300 million-year old bug. Sound like some sort of psychedelic dream? Better than that, this is alt-week.
Death knight plague epidemic strikes Azeroth
Late last night, Azeroth bore witness to destruction not seen since its populace became the unfortunate victims of Hakkar's Corrupted Blood plague. Deathwing himself could not have foreseen the havoc unleashed by the unfortunate bug which allowed death knight players to cast their plagues, Blood Plague and Frost Fever, on friendly targets. The bug was hotfixed in the early hours of this morning. The Corrupted Blood plague of 2005 was so virulent that, even without willing player carriers, it would have spread throughout Azeroth perfectly well on its own. Last night's plague epidemic was quite different: it had no ability to spread on its own at all. The infection came entirely from the hands of death knights themselves who, true to their nature, decided global extinction was the path to success when presented with the ability to enact it. Two days ago, September 13, marked 7 years since the original Corrupted Blood incident. A new epidemic is certainly one way to celebrate the anniversary, but WoW Insider recommends a candlelight vigil as a potential alternative for 2013. %Gallery-165453%
ArenaNet's Regina Buenaobra on Guild Wars 2, Reddit, and community
ArenaNet has, understandably, been receiving a whole lot of publicity in the days following the launch of Guild Wars 2, due in large part to notable events such as the "ask why you're banned" thread on the r/GW2 subreddit. Not everyone, however, is thrilled with the idea that ArenaNet is conducting so much of its customer support and community interaction on Reddit and social media sites such as Facebook rather than on official forums or a well-established community site. If you're someone who has been wondering exactly why ArenaNet focuses so much effort on Reddit and social media, then we're here to shed some light on the issue. We reached out to Guild Wars 2's North American Community Team Lead, Regina Buenaobra, to get the official point-of-view. If you'd like to know about ArenaNet's community and customer support teams (and the differences between the two), click on past the cut for the Q&A.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2's launch week in review
It's been quite the week in the world of Guild Wars 2. Launch, issues, near-daily server updates, fixes, and launch parties have likely kept the entire team high on adrenaline and low on sleep. If you're one of the folks in attendance at one of ArenaNet's launch parties, you likely saw a lot of very tired but very happy people. If you're not hounding the Guild Wars 2 Twitter account or subreddit, it's easy to miss a lot of communication, and even if you do, it's a lot to sort through. So what's been going on? A great deal.
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!
