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Stanford University's Metaverse U Conference
Virtual worlds and online gaming continue to grow in cultural importance, changing the outlook of commerce and entertainment almost daily. To make sense of these changes, Stanford University feels it's high time they convened a group of leading experts in the field to discuss what it all might mean, both today and reaching into the future. To this end, the Stanford University Humanities Lab is hosting the Metaverse U Conference, to take place on campus on February 16th and 17th. Among the notable names speaking at this event are Raph Koster of Areae's Metaplace; Cory Ondrejka, formerly of Linden Lab; Howard Rheingold, author and critic, credited with coining the term 'virtual community', and many other guests. In fact, those three in particular will be speaking together in conversation on Saturday, an event I expect will be both illuminating and provocative.I'll be attending with Massively's Barb Dybwad, so look for us and say hi! If you can't make it, however, don't despair -- the organizers have told us that "we are about to announce that the entire conference will be streamed for free into Second Life for anyone who wants to attend there."
ION Game Conference to address social networking on consoles, PC
Game industry types looking for yet another reason to flock to a central location and gab about the business while getting liquored up at the open bar should take a moment to block out some time for this summer's Ion Game Conference, taking place from May 13-15 in Seattle. Known as the Online Game Developers Conference in a previous life, organizers Evergreen Events note that the re-dubbed conference will feature an expanded focus, with panels covering topics such virtual worlds and social networking on home consoles.While few details concerning specific panels have yet been revealed for this year's event, last year's topics included "Xbox LIVE on Windows and 360: Are Your Games Dead or LIVE?," "The Future of Games and Entertainment Resides Online," and "Dirty Secrets of Episodic Video Games," among others. Early registration for the Ion Game Conference is now open, and event organizers note that as they are expecting a considerable turnout by attendees across the globe. Those interested in taking part in the event should register early.
Orlando museum attracts record numbers with gaming convention
Going to the science museum? Boring. Going to the science museum to play video games? Excellent! At least that's what we took away from an Orlando Sentinel article on The Orlando Science Center's third annual Otronicon gaming event.The conference, which just closed to the public, brought in a record 3,000 game players on Saturday as part of an expected 18,000 attendees total. The throng did more than just play over 100 displayed games, though -- they attended exhibits focused on the therapeutic benefits of gaming, workshops on game development and even performances by the Orlando Magic dancers (the last of which we can only assume was somehow game-related).Though the event is now closed to the public, some lucky youngsters will get to attend school field trips to the event over the next few days, which makes us extremely jealous. The best field trip we took in grade school was to the box factory. Or was that The Simpsons? We can't remember, honestly.
Callpod Phoenix: conference calling the Bluetooth headset way
That little pod in the center there is Callpod's Phoenix, a rather unique Bluetooth device that can hook up to five Bluetooth headsets together simultaneously for full-duplex conference calling through Skype or the Bluetooth capable cellphone of your choice. Those buds around the Phoenix are none other than Callpod's own Dragon model, and although pretty much any headsets should work with the system, using Dragons offers the addition of push-to-talk -- a boon we'd imagine for improving call quality when you're all hunched around a Phoenix in, say, the back of a cab. The device is wireless and rechargeable with fresh juice coming in courtesy of a mini USB port. The anticipated December '07 launch promised on Callpod's site has come and gone and we've yet to get updated pricing and availability details, but we may see it shown live at CES -- so stay on the edge of your seats, you teleconference fanatics.
You down with OGDC? Sure, but ION sounds cooler
The Online Game Developer Conference, a place where all sorts of MMO industry luminaries can gather en mass to discuss all sorts of pertinent concepts. The conference otherwise known as the OGDC is going with a new name this year; ION Game Conference. The main reason behind this change in name and logo are said to be due to the conference's growing world-wide appeal. Last year the then-named OGDC managed to pull nearly 20% of their attendees from outside the United States. We suppose that when you're pulling that much of your attendance from Korea, Germany, Japan and Australia a moniker that evokes an electric charge of attraction is suitable.The ION Game Conference is scheduled to take place from May 13th to May 15th, 2008 in Seattle, WA at the Waterfront Marriott Hotel. If you decide to attend, early registration (including discounted attendee rates) open up on January 28th. ION claims it will offer "aggressive pricing" that won't "compromise" the conference's high quality. If you're interested in the MMO industry at all depending on the prices a trip up to Seattle in May doesn't sound so bad.[Via MMOWatch]
Polycom ships HDX 4000 / 8000 HD video conferencing systems
Remember that snazzy HD video conferencing system that Polycom introduced back in July? That very system is finally shipping alongside its beefed up sibling, the HDX 8000. Each of the "video collaboration solutions" enables users to see distanced colleagues in high-definition, and both flavors come with HDX Version 2.0 software that features Lost Packet Recovery (LPR) technology. Apparently, the 4000 series is geared towards executive desktops, offices and small meeting areas, while the 8000 lineup fits best in conference rooms, class rooms and large meeting areas. Nothing like blowing a little (if you consider $9,999 to $13,999 to be "little") of that extra revenue on jazzing up the office, right?
Indie MMO game developers conference taking early registrations
After the success of IMGDC 1.0 (the Indie MMO Game developers conference) in Minneapolis in April, things are moving forward again for the 2008 session of IMGDC 2.0 at the end of March. The conference will take place in Minneapolis again, at the Minneapolis Convention Center from March 29-30. Early bird registration is available, with registration costing only a hundred dollars (US) until 15 November. Word is that the last conference was great, and I'm told that folks are really looking forward to attending this next one. There's a terrific lineup of speakers, and I'm wishing I could be there.
Iwata: 100 proposals for WiiWare
Along with announcing the slew of new titles for Nintendo's Wii Ware download service, Satoru Iwata revealed that the company has received lots of proposals for Wii Ware titles. In commenting to the press, Iwata stated "We've already received proposals for over 100 titles from software development companies. We've made a platform for developing software at low cost, and would like to offer a new business chance based around a battle of ideas."That means this flood of new titles for the download service is only going to be followed by even more titles, causing us great joy here at the Wii Fanboy HQ. Because, you know, we like games.
CEDIA 2007 roundup
CEDIA 2007 was bigger, louder and more pixelated than ever, and as always, we were live from the Mile High city to bring you (just about) everything the show had to offer. In case you blinked along the way, here's a rundown of our coverage, and don't forget to check out the rest after the break: CEDIA 2007: the pre-game show Hands-ons Hands-on with LG's BH200 HD DVD / Blu-ray combo player Hands-on with Sharp's AQUOS BD-HP20U Blu-ray player Hands-on with Toshiba's third-generation HD DVD player lineup Hands-on with Toshiba's REGZA Super Narrow Bezel (SNB) LCD lineup Hands-on with Philips' TSU line of remote controls Hands-on with Integra's DHS-8.8 HD DVD player Hands-on with Epson's MovieMate 50 / MovieMate 72 projectors Hands-off with Panasonic's PT-AE2000U 1080p projector Hands-on with EI's four-CableCARD 754 LifeMedia Server Hands-on with Alienware's Hangar18:HD media server Hands-on with Pioneer's BDP-95FD Blu-ray player Hands-on with VUDU's movies-on-demand STB Hands-on with Denon's pricey DVD-3800BDCI Blu-ray player Hands-on with Sharp's ultrathin AQUOS D64U LCD series Hands-on with Moneual's tubular I*magine HTPC Hands-on with Savant's $35000 ROSIE Coffee Table Hands-on with Niveus' Media Center Extender
The ultimate tech conference giveaway: an iPhone
Technology conferences are fine places to pick up vendor swag and free gifts -- after all, if you're going to travel across the country or across the ocean, a little token of appreciation is certainly in order -- but the web productivity and collaboration Office 2.0 Conference, starting this Wednesday, has taken the notion to a delightful extreme. Every paying attendee to San Francisco-based O2con (press and bloggers are not included, darn it) will receive an iPhone 4GB model along with the $1500+ conference ticket; the iPhone will be used to manage conference contacts, schedule meetings with other participants, view schedules, chat & tag photos, and generally serve as a guide to the event. This grand experiment will result in a gaggle of more than 500 simultaneous iPhone users in the same place, on the same WiFi network. The conference app will be running on the Etelos web engine/CRM platform, seen here (bonus points to Etelos for captioning the screenshots in Comic Life, very nice touch). As you might expect, some attendees would prefer an 8GB iPhone; they can upgrade for a mere $115. Those already packing an iPhone can change their free gift to a Playstation 3 running Linux (really, just as nice). Conference attendees who have received their iPhones are posting their impressions, raves and gripes (including a bout of domestic strife when two teenage girls became outraged that their mother had an iPhone before they did) on the O2con discussion boards. If you're attending O2con, let us know how it goes and whether you're enjoying your "free" iPhone.
Librarians need to play more games
At the annual American Library Association Annual Conference, a session was held about connecting with "digital natives," people who are used to doing things on computers, and who have in fact learned some information-gathering strategies from playing video games. One suggestion for reworking library services for gamers is to design tools and software to be explorable. Libraries currently have an obsession with thesauri and manuals and all kinds of stuff you have to read before you can do anything right. The best searches are the most complicated ones. But games teach us to learn new tools by messing around with them, and, according to James Paul Gee, a University of Wisconsin at Madison linguist.The session offered a list of suggestions for making the library more digital-native-friendly. The most obvious one, and the one that gets this on a game blog: play more games. It's totally the best way to understand the gamer mindset! As the picture above illustrates, some librarians were already on board, offering Guitar Hero and unspecified Wii games (no doubt Wii Sports) for free play at the conference.One final, vital suggestion, from us. libraries should hire more gamer librarians. And pay them extra.[Via Game|Life; picture from The Shifted Librarian's Flickr pool]
Indie devs huddle in the dark for three days at TO Jam
Three days, 62 programmers, and we can assume at least three dozen cases of Jolt Cola. The second Toronto Indie Game Development Jam (T.O. Jam ... get it?!) has come and gone, leaving in its wake nearly two dozen games created by programmers from across the continent. T.O. Jam is aimed at stirring creativity and helping game developers get the most out of their coding time. It isn't a competition, it isn't a seminar, it's just a bunch of geeks writing code for three days. Only seven of the 20 games have been released, but already a few gems have surfaced. Especially worth checking out is Xiq, a clever combination of Qix and Vectrex.
Min-E3 press conference confirmed, dated
We hath mourned the death of the one and true E3, but like a mentally handicapped phoenix, the new Min-E3 has risen from the ashes. And while the glitz, glamour, and majority of games will have vanished into thinnest air, the wondrous tradition of the press conference remains. All three players will attempt to outdo the other, yet again.This year, Nintendo is second on the list: 9:30 AM PST on Wednesday, July 11th. Prior to their engagement is Microsoft the day before, and Sony is naught but two hours later at 11:30. We expect solid release dates for at least one of Super Mario Galaxy or Super Smash Bros. Brawl, as well as more than a few surprises. C'mon, Iwata ... drop the bomb.
Buffalo's BSKP-CU202/SV Skype phone does conference calling
Conference calling on PSTN is so pre-tech-burst, and Buffalo's making quite sure you're well aware of a VoIP alternative to dialing into those oft held (and frequently toned out) corporate calls. The BSKP-CU202/SV speakerphone boasts a unique, if not awkward design, boasts about its Skype support, and packs six total watts of power to belt out those brutal demands coming from the other end. Reportedly, no drivers are required for this gizmo to work, and it draws all the current it needs to operate from your PC's USB port. Users should also enjoy the echo cancellation technology that's built right in, and just in case you need to swap over to a private conversation, an integrated headphone jack is handily included on the rear. Look for this to hit corporate cubes in Japan soon for a modest ¥9,800 ($82), and feel free to click on through for a few more snaps.[Via EverythingUSB]
Indie MMOG conference to be offered online
Can an independent studio build and maintain a successful MMOG? That's the question the first annual Indie MMO Game Development Conference wants to explore. Scheduled for April 14-15 in Minnesota (home of the world's most delicious butter), everyone from indie development studios to programmers working from their mom's basement are invited to attend. Keynote speakers, game pitch-a-thons, design, business and legal discussions, and other standard conference-fare are all part of the experience.Founder Jonathon Stevens wanted to try something a little different with this conference. Instead of forcing visitors to choose a few of the many events to attend, the entire IMGD conference will be broadcast online via video feed. Indie studios can save the travel cash for game development costs, such as buying Jolt cola by the case.[Via Internode Games Network]
Microsoft delving into VoIP phone market, RoundTable gets a price
Alright, so the average consumer probably has little need for yet another competitor in the VoIP handset market, but it looks like Microsoft is delving into a slightly different arena as it hopes to create new marketshare to snag. Presumably branching from the firm's unified communications platform, Gates & Co. are looking to try their luck in the "global business telecoms market" by developing and manufacturing several telephony devices. For cube-dwellers, the firm is concocting its own software / hardware kit which connects users via a "discreet wireless earpiece," a USB stick, and call management software that should hit "public trials" soon. Additionally, the $3,000 RoundTable video conferencing machine touts four webcams for a 360-degree view of the room, as well as VoIP connectivity to save on long distance costs. Interestingly, Microsoft is being "forced" to manufacturer said products on its own, as it couldn't seem to find a willing supplier to construct such a "disruptive" product. No word on when these units will hit the corporate pipeline, but if all goes as planned, you could be chatting on a Microsoft-branded handset before too long.
Carriers gang up on FreeConference
Mobile carriers blocking numbers -- or entire ranges of numbers, for that matter -- isn't entirely unheard of; 900 and 976 numbers are frequently locked down, for example. Blocking legitimate services running on standard toll numbers is another matter entirely, though, and that seems to be what's happening here. FreeConference, which offers, well... free teleconferencing services by dialing into standard long distance numbers (as its name suggests) has had several of its lines locked out by AT&T, Sprint, and Qwest starting this month. At issue is the reason behind the sudden could shoulder, a reason disputed by FreeConference and the carriers. While FreeConference claims that the carriers are simply forcing users into using their own (more expensive) conferencing services, a more plausible (and slightly less blatantly illegal) explanation is that carriers are getting billed through the nose for termination fees stemming from FreeConference's non-toll-free numbers. Either way, it's uncool, and we're thinking it might be a good enough reason for frequent users to ultimately end up switching carriers.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Sharp's dual-lens, uber-bright XG-PH70X DLP projector
Sharp's no stranger to the world of DLP (or business-oriented) projectors, but the firm's latest offers up an interesting mix of features as it attempts to cater to the "high-end installation market" looking for a "powerful, permanently-installed display device." While the word "permanent" scares us all just a bit, we can assume the XG-PH70X is destined for large money-making boardrooms where CEOs won't want to meddle with changing bulbs or dimming the lights. Featuring a whopping 5,200 ANSI lumens, this DLP projector should outshine just about anything else in its price range, and it also sports a 1200:1 contrast ratio, XGA native resolution, Sharp's own CV-IC II video processing chip, six lens options for a plethora of awkward mounting options, and "redundant reliability through a dual-lamp lighting system." Additionally, for users willing to kill off a few lights, you can flip to switch and head to "eco-mode" where a single bulb will output a respectable 4,300 ANSI lumens, and if you need to control the action from afar, the built-in RJ-45 jack allows for web server dictating sans any proprietary software. The XG-PH70X, which comes bundled with a single standard lends, will hit stores in March for $8,495, while the lens-less XG-PH70XN is slated to land right alongside its sibling for a slightly lower $7,995.[Via AboutProjectors]
Panasonic's Conference Speakerphone packs a SIM card
Any of us blessed (or cursed) to spend the majority of our waking hours theoretically locked in a corporate boardroom know very well the form and function of a desktop speakerphone, but Panasonic and Willcom and teaming up to deliver a rendition that relies on cellular technology rather than landlines. Oddly enough, it appears the forthcoming Conference Speakerphone will actually pack a SIM card, speaker, several built-in microphones, a mobile microphone, and even an SD slot for users to easily record conversations. Actually, if someone utilized a third-party battery pack, this entire unit could be taken on the go and used as what would quite possibly be the world's largest cellphone of the decade. The appeal is that Willcom will reportedly be offering a "flat-rate talk plan" that allows companies to equip their employees with these machines and then communicate gratis, similar to many mobile networks with free in-network calling. Although the Conference Speakerphone is slated to ship this Spring, the value here is definitely questionable, as picking up a numerous ¥100,000 ($828) devices can seriously squash that meager IT budget.[Via DigitalWorldTokyo]
E for All Expo takes the reigns, stays in Los Angeles
Those of you so deeply saddened and hurt by E3's sudden departure can take heart, as there's a new trade show coming to town, and hopefully it'll be half as good as the tried-and-true Electronic Entertainment Expo of days past. Slated to open its doors to the public and adoring media on October 18th through the 20th, the Entertainment for All Expo sports a kinder, more inviting title, that apparently hopes to focus more on the general public rather than industry insiders and advertising giants. Clearly hoping to garner more attention by continually stating that "this show is for everyone," IDG World Expo also claims that we kiddos will be able to "test drive the latest in games and gadgetry" as well as purchase things we like right on site. So while it'll (probably) never live up the expo of old, we're still down with ginormous trade shows with too much to do in not nearly enough time, and hey, now you've already got something to look forward to in October.
