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Windows Phone 7 will sync 'select content' with Macs
Honestly, I haven't been super impressed with anything I've seen coming out of all of the Windows Phone 7 hoopla this week. Sure, the phones look pretty and all, and yes, it's a huge upgrade for Windows Mobile users, but it still seems to me like Microsoft is just trying to match the iPhone rather than actually overcome it. I don't see anything in the offerings that would make me abandon my much-loved iPhone 4. That said, Mac users who have to use Windows Phone 7 (perhaps because it's what you get from work) will enjoy hearing that the system will indeed sync up with Mac computers, a first for Microsoft gadgets. Zune fans can rejoice, too -- the new client will let the Zune sync as well. Of course, Mac users in Windows Phone 7-land will still be second class citizens, as the client will be a beta release later on this year, and reportedly will only offer syncing for "select content." No idea what that means -- we'll have to wait and find out later this year.
Logitech Revue with Google TV details: $299; free iOS, Android apps, accessories are extra
Logitech's big Google TV reveal is still ongoing, but the product page is live and allowing for preorders of the $299 package ($179 if you're on Dish Network) set to ship by the end of this month. For all of that dough you'll get the Revue with Google TV box, keyboard with integrated touch and directional pad, an HDMI cable, one IR blaster and a couple of AA batteries just for good measure. Also up for your browsing pleasure are a few screens of the free Logitech Harmony App for iPhone and Android. Other accessories have been announced and are available for preorder as well, a $149 webcam, and the Revue-specific version of the diNovo Mini controller for $129.99 the larger keyboard is available if you need a spare or buy a different brand of Google TV appliance for $99. The Logitech TV Cam, with Carl Zeiss autofocus lens and dual microphones, ties into a Logitech Vid HD app that communicates with other similarly equipped units plus PCs or Macs running the desktop version of the software. Beyond just the mobile apps, Logitech also showed off its own Media Player app that pulls in video from connected hard drives or DLNA sources. Check the gallery for a few pictures of the hardware and after the break for a couple quick video breaking down all the features of the Revue, and demonstrating video calling. A press release full of details is now also available after the break. %Gallery-104437%
Open beta brings changes for Final Fantasy XIV
Players who have longed for a chance to play Final Fantasy XIV and haven't been selected for the game's beta yet can take heart. The open beta will begin on August 31st, and players are already able to begin downloading the client. (With the latest patch at 1.24 gigabytes, we do mean "begin downloading." It'll be a while.) That means that you can see for yourself whether the outraged reaction to the fatigue system is entirely deserved, along with any other questions you might have about gameplay. As has been the pattern for the game's testing, the newest build includes several updates to UI functionality and the implementation of further core features, although it's still unclear if this version is the same as the release version due out in a bit less than a month. Chat modes and friend list features have been implemented, as well as a further listing of emotes for various situations. FFXIVCore has put together a decent list of the beta changes, something that should be of interest to the many Final Fantasy XIV hopefuls due to start trying the game soon.
OS X grabs 8% share on Steam
Valve has released the first Steam Hardware Survey since their Steam platform released for the Mac, and OS X has gained 8% of the market share already in its various iterations. Most of the Mac users are running 10.6.3, not surprising, given that those most likely to have the latest operating system are probably also the most likely to know that a Steam client is out and ready for them to download. Of course, the Mac faction still pales in comparison to the amount of Windows gamers on the network, but for a client that came out on the 12th day of the month for the survey data, 8% ain't bad at all. Also of note: Intel processors in the survey jumped up by almost 3%, probably due to a lot of the new Mac users. And the 1280x800 primary desktop resolution also jumped as MacBook users installed and ran the new Mac Steam client. Average free hard drive space actually dropped a little bit (Mac users are busy people, after all...) and average network speed rose (...with fast Internet connections). The Steam Hardware Survey is always an interesting cross-section of what kind of PCs gamers are using, and a big injection of Macs into the numbers made for a fascinating set of data. [via Ars]
uTorrent goes 1.0 for Mac OS X
uTorrent has recently been updated to version 1.0 (Windows users are up to version 2.0.2), its first major point release since going beta on Mac OS X. After living most of its life in Windows, the popular BitTorrent client went beta on the Mac in late 2008, and has seen a host of updates since then. This might be a time to consider trying uTorrent. In my tests, the app launches faster than Transmission, and occupies a smaller footprint -- its DMG and the app are both smaller than Transmission. Whether or not you end up switching to uTorrent, however, is another matter, as Transmission is comparable in its feature set. This really boils down to personal preference. While BitTorrent apps live, and do whatever they want, freely on Mac OS X, the story is different on the iPhone. Apple has kept a tight lid on restricting BitTorrent-related apps (such as a BitTorrent client controller) on the iPhone, noting that "this category of applications is often used for the purpose of infringing third party rights." uTorrent 1.0 is available as a free download at the uTorrent site.
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Friends and Family Alpha client leaks
Despite what we presume are Blizzard's best efforts (they lasted pretty long this time!), the Friends and Family Alpha client of the upcoming World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion has leaked out into the world, and the forum denizens over at MMO Champion are busy digging through it for all kinds of spoilers. They've uncovered maps and screenshots for both revamped Old Azeroth zones and the new high-level dungeons, as well as pictures of the new Goblin and Worgen starting areas. Additionally, they've got information on new achievements and abilities, and the completely revamped class talent calculator now active in the alpha. Keep in mind that, as closed alpha information, none of this is official, and most of the stats are likely to change before the expansion actually releases later this year. All of this information would have come out soon anyway, as Blizzard is planning an open beta on this expansion soon (things are a little busy right now with some other testing), and is slowly releasing information officially as well. But if you want to gorge yourself on spoilers before dinner starts, head on over and feast, my children, feast! [via WoW.com]
Steam UI update releases Monday
Click image to take a tour of the new Steam. For the last two months, Valve has been testing a UI overhaul of its Steam client through a beta release. Come Monday, April 26, the beta phase will end, and the update will go live for all users. Following the official release of the new client, users will be prompted to download the update upon launching Steam and be introduced to a plethora of new features for the platform, including cross-game achievement tracking with friends, among other things. If you want to get acclimated to the new digs before the mandatory update on Monday, you still have a few days to get in on the beta, right here. %Gallery-86401%
Speed Download 5.2.15, and a deal to get it $10 off
The good folks over at YazSoft have released version 5.2.15 of Speed Download, a nice download manager/FTP client that helps me out a lot when I'm browsing for files. This new update brings better YouTube compatibility, a fix to make sure the listed file size is correct on certain FTP servers plus tweaks to performance and compatibility. But perhaps more importantly, they're running a promotion that drops the price by ten bucks. When you put the "iwantfast" coupon code in at checkout, you can pick up the software for $15 rather than the usual $25. That's a petty good deal on a piece of software that has come in even handier than I expected when I first picked it up.
Aion open beta client now available for download
Aion's open beta is officially on the way so everybody will be able to sample the delights of Atreia between September 6th and 13th. Ahead of this, NCsoft has announced the availability of the Aion beta client. The client can now be downloaded from various corners of the internet, including FilePlanet and GamersHell, but the company has also announced they are making it available via BitTorrent.Despite its shady reputation as the medium of choice for file-sharers and illegal downloads, BitTorrent itself is quite legal. Indeed it's a popular method of downloading files which has been embraced by numerous companies over the years. However, if you still want to use traditional methods, NCsoft has also announced that FilePlanet will be giving away a selection of open beta keys beginning Tuesday, September 1st. But anyone who has pre-ordered the game or won a full beta key from a competition just have to bid their time until the open beta begins.
Link to the launcher text
Just a quick tip for those of who may be stranded at work and thinking about World of Warcraft (which, during the day, is probably all of you?) I've never seen a link to this page (though we've snuck it in some maintenance posts before), but fortunately the good folks at the WoW LJ community have spotlighted it: Blizzard's welcome screen notice is just a text page online, and it's publicly available. So even if you can't load up the WoW client, you can still keep track of realm downtime on maintenance days, or just keep an eye on what Blizzard is posting about lately.It's a little thing (and truthfully, there's probably not much there that you really need to know anyway -- if you're away from a WoW client, obviously you can't log in even if your realm is back up). But you never know, someday when you're thinking about World of Warcraft, far afield of your installation, and really need to know what Blizzard has to tell you, it could come in handy. Definitely earned a place in my bookmarks, just in case.And having it in quick and easy online text form means we can script it to go elsewhere, right? Anyone want to try hooking a Twitter account up to this thing?
Video teases iPhone WoW client
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Video_teases_World_of_Warcraft_Vollee_client_for_iPhone'; I can honestly say that I would love to have WoW available on the go, for things ranging from checking my mail to browsing the auction house to leveling a death knight on long car trips. The iPhone seems like a great platform for something like that -- a pared-down but fully-functional WoW client. And now we might be a little closer to that becoming a reality. Our sister site, Massively, just picked up a hot tip from Youtube, where someone has posted a video of a rumored Vollee port of World of Warcraft for the iPhone. And it looks pretty darn cool, fake or not. We've got the video and impressions after the jump.
Common updating problems and tips for fixing them
It's patch day, of course, and people are having plenty of troubles with upgrading their clients to the latest 3.1 version. But worry not -- most of the issues we're seeing, while relatively widespread, should be fixed by the time the realms come back online. Here's a few tips to help you get through the time of trouble.Help! My patch isn't downloading? It's stuck at 68%/73%/xx%!It probably is downloading -- be patient and let it run. Blizzard uses a Bittorrent-based system to distribute the game's patches through the official client, and those systems depend not just on Blizzard and their ability to distribute the patch, but also how much of the patch all of your peers have. If everyone around you has xx%, that's all you'll get for now. But an hour from now, someone will have spread the full patch around, and then you'll pick it up no problem. Patience is a virtue, and until the realms come back up, you can't play anyway.Also, the patcher will stop showing progress around 70% or so -- at that point it'll start installing the patch, and you'll need to click another button to see installation progress. But if you just let it run, it'll update.What does "The tracker is not responding" mean?Another Bittorrent issue that should resolve itself after a little while. The patch will need some time to disseminate, and if you get a message like this, it just means your client hasn't found all of the connections that it can. It will.I get a weird "Unable to Validate Game Version" message when I log in. Is my client broken?No. Blizzard's servers aren't all upgraded yet (hence the reason we can't play). When they are all upgraded, your client's version will match the server's, and everything will be hunky dory.
Beware third party downloads for Darkfall
Brannoc, the community manager for Darkfall, has released an announcement today regarding downloading the Darkfall client from any group other than Aventurine. In a nutshell, he says don't do it. Aventurine cannot guarantee the quality of those downloads or what may be hidden inside of them. If you wish to download the Darkfall client, do so from Aventurine's official torrent.Brannoc's official announcement states, "Many people have begun to host the client we made available by torrent on other websites for direct download. Aventurine cannot guarantee the efficacy of these clients and make no guarantees as to their security or freedom of malware. For that reason we recommend only utilizing official download sources for the Darkfall client. Aventurine also does not support any 3rd party applications or programs for use with the Darkfall client. Anytime you utilize non-official resources you run a security risk for your system and for that reason we recommend you keep an up to date antivirus program and firewall software up and running. "
SEVEN shows off Android e-mail client at MWC, may or may not be coming to Sprint's Android device
We know Sprint's been eyeing the G1 and that it's getting Samsung's Android phone by June, but if mobile software vendor SEVEN has anything to do with it, we now know a bit more about the device's e-mail client as well. Sprint's already a fan of the company's other offerings, and we anticipate they had something to do with this new Android version. The app uses SEVEN's push tech to get your e-mail almost instantaneously -- something that offline-enabled mobile Gmail probably can't do. Planned support for calendars, social networking, and instant messaging make this all the more enticing. A rep from the outfit promises that we'll see partnerships on "more than just Sprint in 2009" and we definitely hope this thing trickles down to the Android Marketplace in due time. There're a bunch more shots over at the read link, so if you're interested be sure to check them out.
Aurora Feint devs share their social code in OpenFeint
The folks behind the popular Aurora Feint series of iPhone games have decided to share their work creating a "social MMO" system on the iPhone with other developers. They've just announced a system called "OpenFeint," which other devs will be able to license and use in their own games. OpenFeint will supposedly allow a developer to put together a multiplayer community in an iPhone app, complete with profiles, news boards and chat, in under an hour. They're also providing a server for developers to use, so devs won't have to host their own server software -- they'll just have to make their client work with the existing system. Wild. It sounds like they're just making the systems they've already developed in their own games available to anyone who wants to use them. Right now, they're looking at a private beta (interested devs can sign up on their site), and eventually the service will be free for a limited number of users, with certain costs as the userbase grows. The cynical side of us wonders if there's a catch in there somewhere -- presumably, all of the users in OpenFeint will keep their information on the Aurora Feint-owned server, so we'd guess there's a chance that at some point in the future, they could use that list for less-than-honorable actions (Steve Demeter's Onyx Online plan is another service that aims to be platform-wide, which seems to have similar risks). But that's just us being paranoid -- taken at face value, this just seems like one team of indie developers opening up what they've already done to help other devs. Very cool.
New SDXC cards to allow for greater MMO portability
Massively multiplayer online games tend to take up less space on your hard drive than your standard PC game, as the bulk of the data is stored on farms of servers that power your MMO of choice. However, despite the fact that most of the underlying magic is happening far away from your own screen, MMO clients still take up a number of gigs of space, as laptop users who regularly play different titles know all too well. But since an MMO client is really just an access point then, there's no reason why it has to be tied to any one machine or location, particularly if you're on the go for much of the time.While the typical solution for some MMO gamers with a preference for portability is to keep their game clients on a portable drive (myself included), even these small drives are beginning to look downright clunky compared to some of the other options available, or soon-to-be available.
CCP Games points to EVE client as source of performance woes
The Quantum Rise expansion for EVE Online brought with it numerous server side and database improvements, and brings us a bit closer to the ideal of having smooth fleet battles with thousands of ships. So after the expansion rolled out, with the promise of improving the game experience, why was performance subpar at first? The latest CCP Games dev blog points out the culprit -- it's the client. CCP Atlas (aka Jon Bjarnason), EVE's Technical Director, has written a dev blog on the performance issue. He states, "In hindsight, we should have caught this, but we didn't. Needless to say the week after Quantum Rise wasn't exactly our proudest moment. Although we had improved server and database performance in Quantum Rise, due to the client issues the perception was that overall performance had degraded. And perception is reality, doubly so in virtual worlds."
City of Heroes to get Mac Special Edition
NCsoft just announced that City of Heroes will soon have a Mac client, joining the likes of World of Warcraft and EVE Online as MMOs that can played on OS X. It'll be made possible through partnership with Transgaming, the creators of the Cider portability engine, which acts as a 'wrapper' for the standard PC client, allowing it to run within OS X on an Intel Mac. While Blizzard's Mac client for World of Warcraft was written from the ground up, NCsoft's newest City of Heroes 'Good vs. Evil edition' client will be playable through Transgaming's Cider, and thus will be the same client gamers are accustomed to on the PC. This method of bringing the PC client to Mac without porting or rewriting is the same avenue CCP Games took with their EVE Online client for OS X. The City of Heroes Mac Special Edition includes two exclusive items:
How to uninstall the PTR client
A minor but important point: do not run the uninstaller to remove the Public Test Realm (PTR) client, just delete the PTR folder. Most people can find the PTR client inside the "WoWTest" folder, which resides in the "World of Warcraft" folder. More specifically, you should be able to locate the WoW Test folder in "C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft" or "C:\Program Files (x86)\World of Warcraft\". If you have MacOS X the "WoWTest" folder is stored in "Macintosh HD::Applications::World of Warcraft".Other people can find the PTR client inside of the folder "C:\Users\Public\Games\World of Warcraft Public Test" in Windows Vista and "C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft Public Test" in WindowsXP. MacOS X users can find the files in "MacintoshHD::Applications::World of Warcraft Public Test".This important bit of information came from blue poster Maaven on the official forums today. With Patch 3.0.2 being released tomorrow, the PTR client is useless and came be safely removed. But be sure that you remove it the way Maaven suggests.WoW Insider will have a lot of 3.0.2 coverage tomorrow. We'll also be keeping the light on tonight and will get you the patch notes as soon as they appear.
Mac and Linux client improvements roll out today in EVE Online
EVE Online has a much smaller playerbase than some of the other top-tier MMOs on the market. Despite this fact, CCP Games was willing to provide an even smaller subset of players -- Linux and Mac users -- with an EVE client, via Transgaming's Cedega (Linux) and Cider (Mac). While the 'premium' Trinity graphics are only supported on the Windows client, this writer can attest that the Mac client has improved a great deal since its release. That said, there have certainly been some issues with providing a stable client for multiple operating systems. The Empyrean Age 1.1.2 patch for Mac and Linux, which was scheduled to deploy during downtime today, should bring with it numerous small fixes to these clients. On the Mac side, Empyrean Age 1.1.2 changes how autopatching works, improves issues with international keyboard layouts, and especially resolves the issue with how station interiors display. If the changes go through smoothly, this funky anomaly will be no more. This gallery may be a last look at the black, translucent interiors of stations that some Mac users have been reporting:%Gallery-33952%
