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The Secret World community guide
Today marks the beginning of the end of the world -- you know, if you believed in that conspiracy theory stuff. And if you so happened to buy into all that, then you probably are pinning your hopes on a few stalwart souls to wedge themselves between you and the forces of the apocalypse. Those brave people are beginning to wage war in The Secret World as of today (if they have early access and a copy of the necronomicon, of course). As per tradition here at Massively, we want to give everyone a fighting chance by putting as much information at your fingertips as possible. So presented for your approval is our community guide to TSW. Because information is power -- now more than ever.
TERA offers answers, launching with level 60 cap
Western players have two new things to look forward to when TERA launches on May 1st: level 59 and level 60. That's right, according to a forum post by Producer Brian Knox, the level cap for En Masse's launch will be bumped up by two levels. As a result of the level cap increase, the team's had to rework the formerly max-level dungeons. "We have shuffled them around -- some up and some down," Knox writes. "We will have more detailed information on it closer to open beta but it should create a much smoother progression to 60 as well as a good amount of content at level 60." For those with many questions about the game, En Masse has launched a new section of the official site called TERA Answers. TERA Answers is a knowledge base that allows players to submit and search for questions and answers to game issues. It's meant to supplement the official forums, as helpful answers may be buried in the latter's case.
Waging WAR: Community guide to Warhammer Online
v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} So here it is: the first installment of Waging WAR, a weekly column about Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Every Saturday, the column will deliver the latest in information, press news, stories, debates, and more about WAR. What happened in Praag this week? Are they serious about such-and-such going live with the next patch? Are Shadow Warriors fixed yet? As it is with all new Massively game-specific columns, Waging WAR is launching with a community guide for fans of the game -- old-schoolers, re-enlistees, and new-comers alike -- to use as a collective resource of links and information about WAR. Join us after the break to check it out!
Hyperspace Beacon: Community guide to SWTOR
The Hyperspace Beacon is a weekly guide and discussion by Larry Everett about the yet-to-be-released game of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Welcome, Massively readers! You, too, must be itching like a freshly shaved Wookiee for the latest news about the greatest thing to hit the MMO world since Al Gore invented the internet: Star Wars: The Old Republic. This game hopes to be the pinnacle of modern storytelling and gameplay. Of course, you can count on me -- along with the rest of the Massively team -- to be on the lookout for the latest news and producer propaganda. But the Hyperspace Beacon will take you beyond the hype and hoopla and delve deeper into the story behind the story, the people behind the production, and the meaning behind the mechanics. (Is that enough alliteration for you?) So if you're ready, angle the deflector shield while I make the calculations for the jump to lightspeed. Hyperspace beacons are unmanned outposts in space which freighters and other starships use to traverse the reaches of the known galaxy in Star Wars. Just like one of those buoys in the black, this first installment will guide your Internet-class cruiser past the space debris to what I believe to be some of the best places to find the SWTOR information currently available for your consumption. Okay, Chewie, punch it.
The Mog Log: How Final Fantasy XIV will crush our hopes and dreams
It seems only appropriate after last week to continue turning things on their ear. Fans of the column (I could probably just write "fan" there) have probably noticed that I talk about Final Fantasy XIV in a way not entirely separated from a child discussing their idol. I seem to maintain faith that the game will include every wonderful system ever, that it will take story and gameplay to an unheard-of level of connection, that it will be beautiful and vibrant and living, that it will bring food and water and smite our enemies. But I am not alone in this, and we are all so painfully wrong. If you have played Final Fantasy XI (and if you're reading this, odds are good), you know that Square-Enix uses hope in much the same way that Lucy uses a football. While I spent last week talking about how the old game deserves more love than we give it, this week I'm going to list five reasons why we'll be disappointed when Final Fantasy XIV arrives. (And tune in a few weeks from now when I am still not anywhere near getting into the beta. I'm a slow learner sometimes.)
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Community guide to City of Heroes
Welcome to A Mild-Mannered Reporter, Massively's new weekly column all about City of Heroes! We were originally going to spin you a dynamic yarn about how I had watched my parents die, then spent years training in secret to strike fear into the hearts of criminals by writing about video games, but that was eliminated during the concept stage due to copyright infringement. Instead, we're just going with a column. For our first installment, we're highlighting a number of sites that are useful in one way or another to the City of Heroes playerbase. While the game has enjoyed quite a lifespan, the web presence on it has been a bit more limited than some other games, probably due in no small part to the fact that it's much easier to simply pick up and play. That doesn't mean there's nothing here, though -- the community has developed a number of excellent tools and community gathering points to improve everyone's experience in Paragon City or the Rogue Isles. Take a look at what we've looked at and see as the highlights.
Can't upload pix to MobileMe? Apple has a fix for that
If you've been trying to upload a picture from your iPhone to a MobileMe gallery, and are getting the message "Unable to connect to MobileMe" message you're not alone.The problem appears to be related to a bug in user name recognition. Apple has published a KB article dealing with the issue. The problem seems to be triggered if your member name is in mixed case, or if it is in all caps. MobileMe requires the user name be in all lower case letters, although the same rule does not apply to passwords. Apple suggests you go to your iPhone settings, and under account info make sure your name is all lowercase. If not, a visit to the KB article would be advised. The fix is simple: just delete and re-enter your account details, getting your member name in a form Apple will like. When the bug is fixed, this workaround won't be needed.Apple needs to continue to pay close attention to MobileMe. My perception is it has become generally more reliable since the ugly launch in 2008, but the support page still reports a few new glitches per week. Lately I've noticed a few mail outages/slowness and difficulty getting to my iDisk.
What happens when your iPhone overheats
The iPhone Blog has posted a screenshot of a warning screen that the iPhone 3G produces when it's over heated. According to Apple, it's totally legit. From the Knowledge Base: "Operate iPhone 3G in a place where the temperature is between 0º and 35º C (32º to 95º F) ... If the interior temperature of iPhone 3G exceeds normal operating temperatures, you may experience [the] Temperature warning screen."Here in New England, we don't see temperatures above 95º F often. Still, I have felt it heat up pretty good after playing music for two hours straight during a summertime commute. It does get cold, however, and two weeks ago we saw a frozen iPod come back to life. It's nice to know that these devices can survive (or protect themselves from) temperature extremes.[Via Macenstein]
Snarkiness concerning Linden Lab's Knowledge Base
The Daily Evergreen Online, a publication with which I'd had no previous contact, has won my immediate love with this article on Second Life's Knowledge Base. Apparently the author was trying to find a solution to a friend's avatar problem and got distracted by the tempting, low-hanging fruits on offer. Here, he offers up a random sampling, and answers each question with Snark.They're funny answers, but here I'm going to expose my geekiness: His answer to "How do I find out everything I'm wearing?" mentions mirrors, but there really aren't any in SL. Well, there's a way to make one, but it's complicated, and doesn't really work the way a mirror should. So minor points off for that one, but go check out the rest, they're great.
Apple KB article: Identifying iPods
There are so many different models of iPods with differing iterations of software on them that it is tough to keep them all straight (even for a big deal Apple pundit like myself). Fret no longer, because this Apple KB article sets you straight on how to tell a first gen iPod from an iPod photo from an iPod mini. That's not all, it also includes the most current version of the iPod software that runs on each model (this really illustrates Apple's strategy of releasing cool new iPod features but only letting the new software run on the latest models).
Apple KB Article: Power on your Apple product
I may be the only one that enjoys these Apple KB article posts (since I write it and all) but that won't stop me. The latest KB article that tickled my fancy is the 'Power Up Quick Assist.' Besides the above graphic that shows you how to turn on various Apple products (and which I think is pretty cool) the article lists a number of ways to troubleshoot a Mac or iPod that won't start up.Pretty handy to have on hand for the less geeky amongst us.
TUAW Tip: Pair your Apple Remote to your Mac
Now that almost every Mac (expect for that odd duck, the Power Mac) sports Front Row and an Apple Remote many more people will find them in a situation I just experienced. I am typing this post on a brand new MacBook (I'll share my opinion about that later today) and I am listening to some music on my iMac through the magic of Front Row.The song playing (Paint it Black) was a little too loud, so I picked up my trusty Apple Remote and turned down the volume. Both the iMac and the MacBook picked up on the signal and the volume on both was adjusted. Oh, the horror!There is a simple way around this though, just pair your Mac and your Apple Remote following these instructions. This way a prankish Mac user (I'm looking at you, Woz) can't go around putting your Mac to sleep with the remote and all the Macs in your room won't respond to the same remote.
Apple KB Article: Why Software updates vary in size
Have you ever wondered why some software updates from Apple are different sizes on different Macs? Shouldn't they all clock in at the same size? That would seem to make sense, but as this Knowledgebase article explains there are very good reasons for the differences (mostly involved whether certain files can be updated or completely replaced).
