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20 gigapixel, 360-degree panorama of Wembley Stadium is among world's largest, most detailed
Jeffrey Martin is a busy man. Having already shot an 80 gigapixel panorama of London's skyline and a 40 gigapixel peek inside a Czech library, he has now turned his attention to England's hallowed Wembley Stadium. The recently rebuilt home of football served as the stage for a new 360-degree panorama, shot during the FA Cup Final this Saturday, which spans 10 20 gigapixels in total and has been made available online at the source link below. Recording was done using a DSLR mounted to a custom robot rig that would continually pump out imagery to an equally exclusive Fujitsu workstation equipped with 192GB of RAM and 24 processing cores. All that grunt was used to automatically stitch more than 1,000 high-res images together, earning the finished product the honor of being one of the world's largest 360-degree sports panoramic photos. Give the source a bash to tag yourself if you were at the Final or to check who else was there. [Thanks, Adam] Update: We originally had this at 10 gigapixel, going from information on the FA's website, but it turns out to be a 20 gigapixel pic. Its claim for being the largest sports panorama may actually be disputed by Essendon FC in Australia, who managed to pull together a 20 gigapixel image of their own at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in late April. You can see that jumbo pic here, or check out a couple more from Daytona and the NCAA Final Four this year.
Star Wars: The Old Republic highlights the PAX East experience
The number of people who stood in line for hours just for the chance to play Star Wars: The Old Republic at PAX East is incredible. We have heard reports of people going through the hours-long wait two and three times just because they enjoyed the game so much, which just goes to show the dedication these fans have not only for the game but for the Star Wars brand. To commemorate that experience, the community team for SWTOR has put together a video of the drama that was this year's PAX East. The crowds, the lines, and the fans really brought the experience together. The video runs just over three minutes, and it takes you through the crowds rushing to the booth, fans experiencing the game, and exhibitors showing off one of the most anticipated MMOs of the year. Pop past the break to see the video and taste the a little bit of the SWTOR PAX experience for yourself.
World of Warcraft bloggers fight back against RIFT
While RIFT is certainly a four-letter word, it's becoming that kind of four-letter word for certain bloggers in the World of Warcraft community. Reala of Click the Lightwell went so far as to whip up a graphical badge certifying WoW blogs as RIFT-free zones in response to the amount of virtual ink devoted to Trion's title on Azeroth-centric websites. "Many of us are experiencing tough times in WoW, we have lost friends, guildies, entire guilds have crumbled and fallen. I don't begrudge RIFT the shelf space, but when there are more RIFT posts on a WoW blog than WoW posts... well... I don't like it," Reala wrote. While we doubt that Blizzard is circling the wagons just yet -- or scheming up ways to fend off the new kid on the block -- the fan community is clearly feeling the heat of what some are calling a sizable migration.
The Anvil of Crom: Player feedback and "Raving Fans"
A long time ago on a career path far, far away, I served as a director in a small business consulting firm. The project was spun off from a larger, older company, and its aim was to provide better and more personal services to a subset of clients that the parent firm was struggling to connect with. Along with my new assignment, I was handed a copy of the book Raving Fans by our CEO and instructed to commit its principles to memory and to integrate them into my daily workflow (despite the fact that said workflow had little to do with direct client/end-user interaction). How does any of this relate to Age of Conan or The Anvil of Crom? Well, the book is basically the businessman's customer relations Bible, and I was reminded of it earlier in the week when Funcom's Craig "Silirrion" Morrison commented on a Daily Grind that I wrote about game developers and the large gap that often exists between their products and their customers' desires.
Fans available through Club Nintendo starting tomorrow
Nintendo just sent us a note alerting us to a new way to spend Club Nintendo coins: the sensu (Japanese paper fans) released in Japan this April. They'll be available on the North American Club Nintendo site tomorrow, October 7, in four designs: Mario, Animal Crossing fireworks, Animal Crossing faces, or Blooper. Just in time for ... the scorching fall heat? Each fan will cost 300 coins, equivalent to one of those silly Wii Remote stands. Sorry to tempt you during your ongoing quest to collect enough points for the Game & Watch Collection 2.
Mac 101: Use the keyboard to navigate a Grid from the Dock
When I first got my Mac, it came with all the standard applications found in the applications folder. I used to find that opening an application from the applications Grid, on the Dock, was much easier and quicker than opening an application through the Finder. Over time, with more applications being installed on my computer, my applications Grid became larger and larger. Instead of seeing a small bunch of icons that I could easily recognize and navigate, I literally had dozens of icons on my applications Grid. This made it very difficult to distinguish the one application that I was looking for. It was like looking at a sea of multi-colored icons that were all blurring into one. Maybe you know what I'm talking about? Naturally, I had my most used applications accessible directly from the Dock, but for all of my other applications, I started using the Finder or Spotlight to locate and launch them instead. That is, until a friend showed me an obvious way to navigate a Grid and launch an application very quickly.
Hardware photography contest unearths a treasure trove of geeky creativity
Who'd have thunk it, setting geeks loose with their cameras can actually produce some outstanding results. A recent photography contest held by the Tech Report fellas has come up with a wideranging selection of ultra-geeky imagery; whether you want humorous compositions like the metallic soap opera above, arty monochromatic mood shots, or intimate closeups of classic chips, it's all in there. Our personal favorite has to be the dramatic interplay between a desperate Ethernet card and a CAT5 cable -- you can see it after the break, but we recommend feasting your eyes on the full set at the source link.
Poll: Is it live or is it HDTV, how do you want to watch sports this season?
We heard you loud and clear, last time we asked, most preferred the comfort of their custom home theater setup to a day at the ballpark, and teams must have too, as they have responded accordingly. A New York Times story about the new Meadowlands notes new stadiums have made massive high definition scoreboards, smartphone apps and other enhancements a part of their business, along with everyday-sized HDTVs everywhere you go within the concourse and luxury suites. The USA Today wants to know what you think gives the best angle on gameday, and so do we. Is new technology enough to bring people back to the ballpark or at least ease the trend of fans staying home? Let us know if you're tailgating this season, or just plopping down on the couch for a few hours. %Poll-50365%
Frogster responds to TERA fan backlash
The recent announcement by Bluehole Studios and Frogster Online Gaming that the latter had secured the European publishing rights to TERA brought about something akin to an outcry from portions of the forthcoming fantasy MMORPG's community. While it wasn't quite millions of voices crying out in terror (and then being suddenly silenced), there were a few indignant threads on the various TERA fan sites. Why the brouhaha? Apparently some fans have experienced everything from perceived shoddy customer service, to forum "censorship," to the wanton slaughter of helpless kittens in previous Frogster-published titles (the largest of which is free-to-play behemoth Runes of Magic). Frogster director of product management Daniel Ulrich has since extended an olive branch in the form of a post on the official TERA forums, laying out the first of what will be several rounds of Q&A posts over the next few days. Check out the thread for some answers to your burning TERA questions, including free-to-play vs. pay-to-play, support team specifics, and server hardware.
NZXT's Sentry LXE touchscreen fan controller turns you into Storm, minus the cheese
We know, you're probably scoffing at those mortals still using "fans" to "cool their gaming rigs," but unless you've thrown down the cheddar on a swank liquid cooling solution, you'll probably find yourself at least mildly interested here. NZXT has taken a break from the mice and keyboard routine to break out a rather unique piece of kit in the Sentry LXE. This touchscreen fan controller connects to one's desktop via PCIe, and from there provides finger control of up to five internal fans. Users can adjust each one individually, set it to automatically keep the machine at a given temperature or create a silence that would spook even the Reaper. As you'd expect, there's an inbuilt temperature alarm to notify you if temps head north of a designated point, and all this fun awaits you in exchange for a low, low $59.99. Head on past the break if you're in need of a video demonstration.
Call for submissions: What makes BlizzCon worth the trip?
You stalked the Blizzard store page like a pro, refreshing constantly starting several minutes before the ticket sales opening, and you actually snagged the grand prize -- you nabbed a ticket to BlizzCon 2010! Now comes the hard part: justifying the time off school or work plus travel, hotel and expenses. What makes a fan event like BlizzCon worth all that time and money? What are you most looking forward to? What are you hoping to see or learn? Are there people you hope to meet there? We're looking for an article that explains what makes a con like BlizzCon worth its weight in purples. Is this event strictly for Blizzard fanbois? What type of player will get the most out of attending? Have you attended a past BlizzCon -- and what was your experience then? Your article should clearly explain why a trip to BlizzCon is worthwhile. We're not looking for unbridled cheerleading but rather for clear, rational reasons why BlizzCon is worth the time, money and effort for a dedicated World of Warcraft player. We'll only be accepting the very best article. Submissions should be between 500 and 1,000 words. Artwork is not mandatory, but any you choose to include must be your own work or from creative commons. We will not accept articles submitted under player names or pen names; please use your real name and email. Ready to submit? Read up about our guest post program, then sign up for Seed and submit your article here. (You can't see the article page unless you have a Seed account.) Unfortunately, we are currently only able to take submissions from individuals living in the United States; we hope to be able to accept international submissions in the future. We'll accept submissions for this assignment until 11:59 p.m. EST on Thurs., June 10. Good luck and good writing!
Trio of Blur tutorials explain the value of fans
We understand the value of a good fan just as much as the next guy, whether said fan is reading our humble video game news site, or keeping us cool in the humid summer months. In Bizarre Creations' arcadey racer Blur, they're even more valuable, serving as the player's main form of character progression. In addition, fans will offer a few bonuses which will pop up in the middle of each race, including Fan Runs, Fan Demands and Fan Targets. Bizarre Creations recently released video tutorials for all three of these bonuses, posted above and after the jump. We'd suggest checking them out if you're planning on picking up the game when it gets released next Tuesday.
Club Nintendo fans for Nintendo fans
Nintendo of Japan has unveiled the latest prizes to tempt people out of their Club Nintendo coins: a series of Japanese folding fans in Mario and Animal Crossing motifs. For 150 coins each, the service has four surprisingly cool-looking fans: one featuring Mario on a monochrome background, one with Bloobers on blue, an Animal Crossing fireworks scene, and another Animal Crossing image with a pink color scheme. These will be available through June 30. Nintendo also put the Mario poster set on the Japanese site. We used to see things like these and lament the fact that they'd never be available outside of Japan. But North America's Club Nintendo actually brings over a lot of stuff from the Japanese club now!
Obvious: Apple fans who own Apple products can't wait to buy the iPad
This is probably one for the obvious department, but we'll share it with you anyway. An NPD study released last week says that device awareness for the iPad is already very high (no duh), and that it's highest among 18-34 year old current Apple owners (double duh) with $100,000 or greater income. So basically, Apple fans with money to spend can't wait to buy the iPad. That, we believe, is the legendary triple duh. But wait, there's more. The reason all of those current Apple owners want to buy the iPad? "Liking the Apple brand." They want to buy an Apple product because they like Apple products. The multitouch screen tied for biggest reason to buy, and NPD also says that 18-34 users are interesting in actually playing music and accessing the Internet from the device. To be fair, those numbers are all cited as "awareness" -- only 9% of those surveyed said they were "extremely or very likely" to actually buy one. Price was cited as a major concern, and many of them, as we reported the other day, said they'd be just as happy with a netbook anyway. [via MacRumors]
The Daily Grind: Would you want to work in the industry?
Working in the business of making games is the dream of many gamers -- it's a field we love, with a whole lot of obvious perks and the chance at making a permanent impact on the field. Of course, once you dig a little deeper it becomes clear that making games isn't necessarily a fun ride. The field is full of contentious personalities, greedy publishers, "fans" who frequently heckle your every step, and a high profit margin expected with little turnaround time. And let's not forget the very real possibility of having the rug yanked out from under you midway through development. Still, none of this stops people from being attracted to the field, and those in the thick of it generally wouldn't trade it away even if they had the option. For all the downsides, the rewards are... well... any time you see a game go live that you're proud to have worked on and all of the fans who genuinely like your work. So what about you? Do you want to take part in the up-and-down ride of the game industry, or would you rather just enjoy the end result?
Iris suspends development, users can upgrade to Acorn for free
I never actually used Iris (my image editor of choice is still Pixelmator), but the one-window image editor released a few years ago certainly had its share of fans. Unfortunately, those fans may be disappointed to hear that Iris' developer, Nolobe, has suspended development on the app. Nolobe's principal Matthew Drayton says that back in 2007, when Iris started development, there were no cheap yet quality image editors, and nowadays, the app has simply become a "me too" app. He doesn't want to do that, so he's out. Fortunately, however, Iris owners aren't completely left in the lurch -- Drayton highly recommends Acorn, and anyone who currently owns Iris will be able to get a free upgrade to that app. Sad to see that a quality image editor is calling it quits, but the reasons seem legit and the transition should go smoothly. If you own Iris, watch your email for directions on how to upgrade, or contact Nolobe yourself. It's not all glum news from Nolobe: the company has a great deal going now for its flagship FTP client, Interarchy. Commemorating the two-year anniversary of an office-gutting fire (well, maybe it is kinda glum, now that we think about it), the Interarchy Fire Sale offers a steep discount on the app for the next week, along with discount codes for several other leading indie apps (including Acorn). The $19.95 Interarchy 9 licenses are valid for free upgrades to version 10 (now in beta), which adds up to a savings of almost $70. [via DF]
Telltale Games may be releasing all games for Mac
Telltale Games has been rocking the retro lately, doing great things like bringing Secret of Monkey Island and Sam & Max back in new forms, and releasing new episodic classics like Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People. Now they might be doing so on the Mac: rumor has it that they'll be releasing their whole catalog on the Mac as soon as next month, just in time for an appearance at Macworld Expo. Apparently there are many Mac fans both on the team and in the customer base, and they're just figuring out a way to do it. Sounds awesome to us -- Telltale's stuff is already available on a few other platforms (both PC and consoles), but they have a history of putting fans first, so we might even expect some goodies to come with a Mac release. We'll have to wait and see what they've got planned. [Via IMG]
Funcom offers prizes for friends and followers
Tis the season for getting cool things -- and for making new friends. Funcom obviously agrees, as they've got a contest going where they'll be giving away some pretty nice prizes for people who become friends, fans, or followers on their various Facebook and Twitter accounts. The idea is pretty simple: for every one of the Funcom accounts you link up with, you'll be entered in the drawing for prizes. So, with two accounts each for Age of Conan, Anarchy Online The Secret World, as well as for Funcom in general, there are 8 different ways you could land some sweet swag. Among the prizes for this giveaway are free game time; beta access to Age of Conan's next expansion, Rise of the Godslayer; a guaranteed spot in hotly anticipated The Secret World beta test; in-game items for Age of Conan and Anarchy Online; and "much, much more" according to their information. With Rhode Island and Florida excluded from the ranks (that pesky "must buy a bond for your prizes" thing we're sure) most everyone else can enter for a chance to score some sweet Funcom goodies. If you're looking for where exactly to link up your accounts, they've even listed the links on the Age of Conan site, making the clicky-clicky that much easier. Just make sure you've joined up before January 4th, 2010 when the contest ends. Good luck!
Mortal Online newsletter announces launch delays, holiday discounts
We all know that launch dates for an MMO are loose targets at best and long shots in the darkness at worst. While it's disappointing when a game doesn't hit the target date, by and large players are used to it and all but expect it to happen -- it's part of the cycle. But it's still more than a little depressing to see that Mortal Online, the upcoming game from Star Vault, is going to be delayed by a month. That's the word in the latest newsletter for the game's fans, which is a bit of a depressing way to lead into the holidays, to say the least. The Limited Editions of the boxed game will also be seeing a slight delay, due to production issues with the artbook included. To compensate purchasers of the Limited Edition, an extra week of free playtime is being added to make up for the delayed ship. And to help take the sting off the entire sad process of delaying the game, Star Vault is offering discounts on both digital downloads and the last boxed editions of the game. Mortal Online's fans and beta testers are still likely to be sad about the delay, of course, but a few little bonuses never fail to take the edge off.
Fan pictures added to the Battlecry mosaic
We posted about Blizzard's Warcraft anniversary minisite a while back, and since then, they've been busy, filling it up with even more content. The community interviews and the new Blizzcast haven't yet appeared, but there are many, many pictures on the Battlecry mosaic submissions section. Pages and pages of fans showing their support for the Horde or the Alliance. It's quite a sight to see, actually -- the pictures range from the straightforward to the silly to the very involved (one couple's posed up with their t-shirts and Frostmourne and logo and everything). There's quite a few whole-guild pics too. There's 43 pages total, so it's a lot to look through, but it's definitely worth a browse. Ancilorn reminds us, also, that this is a contest -- as more and more pictures from each faction roll in, we'll have access to some mosaic art using these actual pictures, the first piece of which was just revealed today. They've featured some of their favorite pictures over on the Facebook page as well. This is turning out to be a pretty cool idea, and as I said in the original post, I bet we'll be seeing these pictures in lots of other places in the future.
