hidden
Latest
YouTube will stop displaying exact follower counts in September
In an attempt to take the pressure off of creators, YouTube is changing the way it displays how many followers an account has. Throughout September, the platform is rolling out abbreviated public subscriber counts. For example, if a creator has 1,234,567 subscribers, viewers will see that the count as 1.23M. YouTube announced the change in May, but it released more details this week. As you might imagine, users are not happy.
Facebook simplifies its Group privacy settings
Facebook wants to make it easier to understand its Group privacy settings. It's doing away with public, closed or secret settings. Instead, Groups will be "private" or "public." Facebook claims this will simplify who can find a Group and see its members and posts.
Egypt hunts for hidden pyramid chambers with cosmic rays
Egyptologists, rejoice. A new project was launched on the weekend with the goal of scanning Egypt's pyramids to find secrets about how they were built, and even discover hidden rooms and chambers. The project is headed by Egypt's antiquity ministry, which is heading a team of experts from Japan, France and Canada. The aim is to use infrared scanners and rare, esoteric cosmic ray detectors to map the interior of several pyramids, including the Pyramids of Cheops and Chephren at Giza. The team said it may also use the same technique to prove (or disprove) a theory that the legendary Queen Nefertiti is buried in a chamber next to Tutankhamun.
HiddenHUB speaker scans the room to produce the best sound
It takes a unique set of features and an interesting design for a portable speaker to turn heads these days and Hidden's newest offering is definitely intriguing. The company's HiddenRadio series was its latest release, providing pop-up pills of 360-degree sound and capacitive touch controls. This time, it's taking to Kickstarter to launch the HiddenHUB, a more well-endowed offering that goes beyond the basics, with adaptive acoustic sound, smart features and a sleek futuristic design. If you're intrigued, you can head over to its crowdfunding page today and take advantage of a limited early bird deal of $339, which is a hefty savings over its proposed $599 retail price. That's certainly not cheap, but it does sound like an interesting piece of kit, especially when it can do double duty as a glowing blue wall sconce.
Dragon Age: Inquisition Easter egg is The Lord of the Pies
A Dragon Age: Inquisition Easter egg that a BioWare artist is dubbing "The Lord of the Pies" surfaced this week, and occurs when players manage to fall through the floor of the Skyhold area of the game. Shown in a video courtesy of YouTube user LeeCsM after the break, the secret, cavernous room with creepy music discovered under Skyhold houses what LeeCsM calls a "Nug with a top hat." BioWare designers jumped into YouTube's comments to confirm that the Easter egg was placed in the game intentionally, with artist Graham Kelly noting that he "hid it under the level" and that players "weren't meant to fall through it." Kelly added that the hidden figure is "not a bunny either," but rather The Lord of the Pies. "I may or may not have hidden some of his smaller flock around the rest of Skyhold," he wrote. While we didn't find any pie, we enjoyed our time with Dragon Age: Inquisition in our review. [Image: EA, LeeCsM (YouTube)]
Bungie's Destiny was teased way back in Halo 3: ODST
Bungie's Destiny has existed in one form or another since at least 2009, a new discovery in Halo 3: ODST indicates. The above image shows a poster found in ODST, which portrays a planet within close proximity to a large white sphere, with the message "DESTINY AWAITS" scrawled above. The similarities between this image and the recently leaked Destiny concept art is undeniable, especially the title screen-esque image obtained by IGN.Former Bungie employee and Halo series level designer Vic Deleon has confirmed the connection, exclaiming that the secret had "FINALLY BEEN FOUND!" on Twitter. In light of these events, we've decided to dig even further into the annals of Halo lore by running the entirety of Halo: The Fall of Reach through an anagram construction algorithm and seeing what we come up with. Should that prove fruitless, we'll start decompiling the code for Pathways into Darkness.
Netflix for iOS has second screen remote control for PS3
There's a sweet feature that's hidden in Netflix's mobile apps for iOS and Android, in the form of a remote for Netflix on Sony's PlayStation 3, Engadget reports. When you use the iPad or iPhone app to play a video while on the same network as a PlayStation 3 (also running Netflix), you'll see an option to watch on your device or the PlayStation. Opt for the latter, and you can control the PS3 playback with your iOS device. It's a very cool feature that must have been implemented only recently (which is probably why it's poorly documented). Unfortunately, this trick seems to be limited to the PS3. As long as Netflix can see which devices you're logged in on, however, it should be able to control them as well. We can expect to see more of this cross-device app action in the future, especially as cloud apps and services like this become more and more prevalent.
Check out this Minecraft easter egg in Borderlands 2
This video shows you how to reach a hidden Minecraft-inspired area in Borderlands 2, which includes Creepers and familiar blocks just begging to be broken. Be warned: the video includes minor spoilers for the game (and a lot of awesome).
New York artist fashions dead drop from dying hardware, mounts DVD burner in city wall
The optical drive may be making its exit in the world of personal computing, but at least it seems to still have a place in artistic architecture. Aram Bartholl -- the man behind New York City's infamous USB dead drops -- has installed a DVD burner into the side of the Museum of the Moving Image to promote HOT, an art exhibition described as "a group show about video that is not video." Passersby who pop in a blank DVD-R will be rewarded with a digital copy of the show and the satisfaction of finally having something to do with their aging stash of unused optical media. Just how do you install PC hardware in a museum wall? Drill an enormous hole, of course -- check out a video of the installation for yourself after the break.
Google Zerg Rush: That was an order, soldier
Zerg Rush is Google's latest easter egg and it's admittedly a little late for the holiday itself. Search for the term (it's a Starcraft thing), and you'll be welcomed by a point-and-shoot mini-game where your enemy is an infinite number of color-coded, marauding o's. These will proceed to decimate your search results, which is currently a bizarre meta view of people explaining the game's existence. Get your trigger finger ready -- the internet needs you. (You also can publish your final score with pride on Google Plus.) [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Facebook just released a dedicated iPad app, except it didn't
Mark Zuckerberg ruffled some feathers when he said the iPad "isn't mobile" enough to deserve a dedicated Facebook app. But now it's U-turn time. TechCrunch just revealed that not only has Facebook created a fully-fledged iPad app, they've even released it -- albeit in secret. The code lies buried in yesterday's update to the iPhone app and it's entirely executable on jailbroken tablets. What's the software like? Well, TechCrunch reckons the left-sided navigation system and use of overlay menus is "great," as is the ability to chat with buddies while simultaneously doing other Facebook tasks in landscape mode. There's also a ton of screen grabs at the source link which tell much of the story. However, it surely won't be long before we can make our own minds up.
Hidden app snaps pics of alleged crook (Updated)
Update: Josh reports that an arrest has been made and his MacBook is now in the custody of the Oakland PD. Have you seen the man in the picture at right? If you live in the Bay Area and you've seen him with a MacBook in hand, you might want to consider calling the Oakland police. Joshua Kaufman has images supplied by the Hidden app that show this man using a MacBook that was allegedly stolen from Kaufman's apartment. Through the use of Hidden, Kaufman was able to get some great pictures and the location of the computer, and posted those photos on his Tumblr. We picked this up after John Welch tweeted the link. The Oakland PD is apparently understaffed, so Kaufman is pinging the Oakland Mayor's office for help in retrieving his MacBook. In the meanwhile, consider this a Amber MacBook Alert. We're reaching out to the Oakland PD for comment. Update: We received confirmation that Josh Kaufman did file a police report on March 31, 2011, and that a MacBook was listed as part of the loss in the burglary.
CCP hides valuable information within QR code
Being a bit devious and underhanded in EVE Online is pretty much the basic standard of interaction. CCP's flagship game has built itself a reputation of rewarding the clever and the analytical, but the developers themselves have only occasionally taken part in the antics themselves. The development team has gone a step further this time, however, posting a bit of valuable information for fans... in the form of a QR code, with no further hints for players. Players with smartphones and other QR readers have already deciphered the meaning of the square, which promises a fan gathering at PAX East in Boston. There will be developers, drinks, and an event exclusive, but players will be required to mail their first and last names as well as their character names to paxeast2011@ccpgames.com in order to attend. It promises to be a fun time for EVE Online fans -- and while it's a bit of a sneaky way of making the announcement, really, it's par for the course. [Thanks to Prime Synergy for the tip!]
Stolen Mac tracking app Hidden was free until January (Update: all done!)
Update 12/23: Who knew that ALL of you would rush over to Hidden and claim your free account? The company has had to close out the free promotion early (as of 12/23), but all registered machines will be valid. [Thanks Chris Pirillo for the heads-up] Hidden is an app that claims to help you track down and find your Mac -- it runs in the background of your desktop computer, completely invisible, and only starts to send out location information when you actually go to the Hidden website and choose to flip it on. That way, if your Mac is ever stolen, you can log on from any computer and immediately get updates on where your stolen computer is, helping you track it down as quickly as possible. Getting it back is up to you, but just finding a stolen or lost computer is often all you need to do to provide proof that it's yours anyway. Our own Steve Sande really liked Hidden when we first wrote about it a few months ago, and as a special holiday giveaway, the app is now free for everyone for the rest of the month. That's a great deal -- the software is usually US$20, and most security software of this type is much more expensive, with some even requiring an ongoing subscription. All you have to do is get the app for free and, of course, register on the website (so you can log in to find your computer if needed). After January 1, the price will return to $20, presumably, so make sure to get the app soon.
New York City walls play host to covert thumbdrives
Back when the walls had ears, spies would store their information in a hidden cache and pass along the location via code. Now, a New York City artist is doing the same with USB flash drives, five of which he's already injected into the city's brick walls. While there some obvious logistical reasons we'd avoid using his creation (not to mention worries about AutoRun in older PCs) we'll definitely keep the idea in mind for Engadget informants who are particularly paranoid about their anonymity. See the first five drives' not-so-secret locations in photos at our source links.
Get a TUAW discount on Mac theft recovery service from hidden
Apple's laptops and iMacs are attractive targets for thieves, since they're easy to move and have a good resale value. We've seen several Mac applications or services that work to help you retrieve your favorite Apple product if it is ever stolen; LoJack for Laptops (US$39.95 per year), Undercover ($49.00 for a lifetime of tracking), and MacTrak ($24.95 per year) are all perfect examples of these programs. Most of these apps have two things in common; they will attempt to locate the whereabouts of the computer and also send a picture of the thief using the built-in iSight camera. Now a new name has appeared in the field; hidden. The name is apt, since there's no visible sign on the computer that the software has been installed. There's no app in the applications folder, and no preference pane. To use the application, you simply download and install it, then restart your Mac. Most of the time, your Mac won't be sending out updates of its location. When it is stolen or lost, you go to the hiddenapp.com website, log in, and then change the status for the tracked computer from "not stolen" to "stolen." The service begins looking for your Mac, and within minutes the site displays a Google map showing its approximate location (determined through Wi-Fi geolocation) and, more importantly, photos of the person using the Mac and screenshots of what they are doing. Location updates happen every 10 minutes and also include traceroute information including the public IP address of the Wi-Fi network being used by the thief. This information can be provided to ISPs and local police to help you get your computer back.
Patch 3.1 user interface changes roundup
Lots of the new stuff in today's patch 3.1 update will be in your face -- the class changes won't be missable, and the LFG channel will be full of people trying to head into Ulduar (though who knows how far they'll get). But some of the changes, especially to the user interface, will be a little more hidden -- you'll have to dive into the options to go and find them. Here's a few things we've reported on that you might want to make a note of, if you're interested. Arenas now have an option to show Enemy Unit Frames. These will only appear in the Arenas, but you can enable them in the Interface options. You will now be able to see when the next Wintergrasp battle is from anywhere in the world -- but only by going out to the world map and then zooming back in to the Wintergrasp map. Make sure you hit the map button (usually "M") next time you go into an instance. There are maps in there now. There are new "advanced features" for quest tracking now -- but you've got to go into the Interface Options to enable them. If you're already using Questhelper or a similar addon, these will be familiar to you. The Equipment Manager isn't in the game yet, but the Color Blind mode and new Battleground and LFG options can all be accessed now. Finally, there are a number of new video options available in the Video Options panel, including better shadow and texture details, and even a "Video Mode Ultra" setting. Even Blizzard recommends you run things on the highest setting at your own peril -- lower end computers will have major issues trying to run graphics at the highest setting. It's definitely worth putting "take a tour around the options screens again" on your to-do list for when the patch arrives on the live realms. There are lots of little changes and updates hiding in there that you'll never know about unless you go look for them. Patch 3.1 is live and it takes us into Ulduar, delivers us dual specs, and brings significant changes to all the classes! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1 and the official patch notes!
Thanko's own necktie doubles as spy camera, naturally
A necktie from Thanko -- you could tell this thing was only fit for a double agent already, couldn't you? Freshly introduced and ready to draw attention to your poor taste, this here spy tie includes a built-in video recorder along with a minuscule handheld remote used to turn it on and off. The video camera itself is installed on a USB-equipped slab of flash memory (4GB, or about four hours of low resolution footage), making those tie-to-PC transfers extra snappy. And at ¥12,800 ($128), it comes off as a bona fide steal compared to less useful alternatives in Bloomingdale's. Our only lingering question? What's a brother got to do to get a clip on version?[Via AkihabaraNews]
Runes of Magic Spring contest: Can you find the eggs on our site?
Didn't get quite enough exposure to eggs this weekend? Let us help you out a bit with a brand new contest held by the good folks at Runes of Magic. Starting today, Massively readers will have the opportunity to participate in a unique competition to help celebrate RoM's Spring Event.The basics of the rules are simple: check out our Runes of Magic category page (multiple pages) and hunt down small Rune Eggs of various colors. Count up the number of blue, green and red eggs hidden on the page and report them on an official form for this event. These eggs will be hidden throughout the category pages, in images, posts and anywhere else we could sneak them in. This contest ends on April 19th, so get moving! Read below the cut for complete details.
Terminal Tips: Make hidden Dock icons transparent
Without using Exposé, it is hard to tell which Mac OS X applications are hidden and which aren't. But, with a simple Terminal hack, you can have all your application icons displayed as transparent. Simply open Terminal.app (Applications > Utilities) and type the following command exactly: defaults write com.apple.Dock showhidden -bool YESOnce you type the command and press enter, you need to restart the Dock by typing "killall Dock" and pressing enter. Once the Dock restarts and you hide applications, you will notice that hidden applications have a transparent look. If you want to reverse the command, just replace the "YES" with a "NO" and restart the Dock again. Like these tips and tricks? Why not take a look at TUAW's Mac 101 and Terminal Tips category.
