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CM9 launcher available in alpha, ROM flashers tweak in anticipation
January's right around the corner and with the promise of a new year comes the anticipated release of CM9. So, to whet those ROM-flashing appetites, the CyanogenMod team's made an alpha of its Trebuchet launcher available as an .apk and .zip file over on XDA, bringing with it the ability to customize the number of homescreens, resize widgets and sort the app drawer, amongst other planned features. As is the nature of Android's underbelly, you'll need to have your device rooted, as well as running 4.0.3 in order to take part. And if you do decide to take the plunge, remember this is far from the final build, so things are bound to get buggy. Check out the source below to preview the ICS goods.
The Daily Grind: Do you loathe third-party downloaders?
Every time I boot up Lord of the Rings Online or Dungeons and Dragons Online, I'm reminded that somewhere on my computer lurks Pando Media Booster. Ostensibly, Pando and software like Pando helps MMO players to download game clients, but they also spread out the load and track other information presumably of use to the game companies themselves. I've deleted Pando and similar software from my PC multiple times, but some games just don't function well without them. Players have been known to suggest the whole system of third-party installers and downloaders and launchers is nothing more than bloatware, or worse, malware and spyware. Am I alone in loathing MMO patchers that are really torrents I can't disable, launchers that lump the entirety of a company's games together, and third-party download whatever-ware that won't go away? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
New launchpad coming to all EverQuest II users tomorrow [Updated]
EverQuest II's official site has updated with a news blurb heralding the launch of, er, well, a new launcher. Currently, Sony Online Entertainment's fantasy title has multiple access points including the streaming launcher, the retail box launcher, and SOE's station launcher. As of November 30th, all EQII users will be migrated to a new launchpad. What's new about it? Well for starters, it doesn't require Flash. It also boasts a "much faster patching speed" and a "general aesthetic upgrade." The migration process should be painless for the end user, as Dave "Smokejumper" Georgeson says that all you'll have to do is point the new launcher at your existing EQII directory when prompted. There's a bit more info on the official site if you're curious. [Update]: EQ2Wire has a great dev rundown on what exactly is coming with the new launcher.
New EVE Online launcher will simplify patching
EVE Online developer CCP Games has dedicated this winter's expansion to small features, balance changes and small quality-of-life improvements. Most of the changes we've heard about so far have been gameplay features and graphical improvements, from starbase tweaks and blaster balance changes to magnificent new nebula graphics. In a new devblog, CCP Topknot shows off a brand new launcher program designed to simplify the patching process. Currently, players launching an out-of-date client get a pop-up about the latest patch and have to restart the client. This becomes a nuisance when frequent optional updates are released. The new patcher will work like a standard MMO launcher, detecting which files aren't up to date and downloading new versions. "A big-ass progress bar will tell you what's going on and how much work is left," explains Topknot, "and an unnecessarily huge button allows you to play the game once it is ready." The new patcher is currently on the test server and should be making its way to the main game with the winter expansion. In the future, the patcher will be able to download updates in the background and may be able to download content in stages, giving new players access to character creation while the game content downloads.
Purdue University grad students give NASA lander tech a boost, do it for the experience
We just learned of NASA's end-of-decade plans to rocket astronauts into deep space for exploratory missions to Mars and beyond. Now, we're getting a peek at the Purdue University-designed lander tech that'll plant our space fleet's feet firmly on terra incognita. What originally started as a senior research project for grad students Thomas Feldman and Andrew Rettenmaier, has now blossomed into a joint research endeavor for the federal space agency's Project Morpheus -- a think tank for trips to heretofore unexplored celestial bodies. The in-development propulsion tech, now undergoing testing at the university's Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories, is required to "meet stringent design and performance" standards, but most importantly, needs to lift the fuel-depleted lander post-descent. You'd think scientific work of this magnitude would come with a hefty paycheck, but the student team behind it all's just doing it for the hands-on knowledge. Sure beats your summer internship at that magazine, huh?
Blocklets' Arduino-powered trebuchet could be your cat's worst nightmare (video)
We don't do a whole lot of reporting on ancient weaponry here, because, well, it's a little dated -- but throw in an Arduino and a servo, and you've got our attention. Take, for example, this miniaturized trebuchet. Constructed from a series of click-in-place pieces known as Blocklets, the little launcher is basically a standalone slingshot. With the addition of the aforementioned components, however, it becomes a motorized annoyance for anyone and anything that stands in its way. The folks behind the tiny trebuchet tested its capabilities against a sculpture similarly built from Blocklets, but we prefer the challenge of a moving target. Unfortunately, we'll have to wait to get all medieval with this thing, as Blockets haven't quite made it out of the funding stage yet.
Quicksilver appears to be coming back from the dead
Let's take a moment to appreciate the mouse, the marvel of engineering that made computing accessible to the general public. But, if you've ever watched an expert systems administrator rocket through tasks using nothing but the command line and a keyboard, you know the mouse isn't the world's most efficient way to unleash the power of your Mac. Many of us here at TUAW are devoted fans of the keyboard shortcut super utility Quicksilver. After wandering the wilds of the open source kingdom with mixed results, Quicksilver appears to have been adopted by a small team of developers who released a proper update to the app over the weekend. Originally developed by a shadowy software wizard with the handle "Alcor," Quicksilver lost its only parent to a serious case of got-hired-by-Google-itis in 2007. Before becoming completely inundated with "real work," Nicholas "Alcor" Jitkoff released Quicksilver to the open source community where its development splintered and stagnated. Some of us at TUAW, discouraged by performance issues and compatibility problems with newer versions of Mac OS X, lost hope in Quicksilver and began experimenting with alternatives. Others continued to recommend the free utility, which lets users quickly launch apps, move files, compose email messages and, with a little practice, quickly accomplish a broad range of tasks with nothing but a few key strokes. Now, a team of developers at qsapp.com, who say "Quicksilver is like carrying a light-saber and throwing robots across the room with your mind," aims to unify all of the utility's fragmented open source builds, plug-ins and support groups. The team's latest build, Quicksilver version ß59, addresses a handful of known issues while running the tool on Snow Leopard. Above all, it offers hope for the Quicksilver faithful that someone out there wishes to take ownership of this powerful utility. Mac users can download Quicksilver for free at qsapp.com. [via Minimal Mac]
App review: SPB Shell 3D for Android
As we all know, the beauty of Android stems from the fact that you get a wide variety of choices when it comes to devices and interface, though the latter can sometimes be a double-edged sword. Luckily, users who are fed up with their bloated Android UI but don't want to (or can't) mess around with ROMs now have another easy solution. Joining the handful of Android launchers is SPB's Shell 3D app, which installs as a replacement (but removable) home screen that comes with some nifty widgets (radio switches, backlight dimmer, weather forecast with a 3D chart, clock with over 60 skins, world time with a 3D globe, etc.) and resizeable folders. As you can see above, the highlight of the show here is a cool-looking 3D carousel for switching between up to 16 panels, and you can trigger it by either tapping or horizontally dragging the bottom-center button. Whilst in carousel mode, you can also rearrange the panels, change their colors, or flick away excess panels. All of this required no manual reading on our end, so it's safe to say that this is a pretty intuitive app. Read on to see what the performance is like. %Gallery-120445%
NCsoft pairs new launcher with City of Heroes, offers Wisp Auras as upgrade enticements
Bribery! Scandal! Shenanigans! Well, OK, those last two might be stretching it a bit, but NCsoft is clearly engaging in a bit of customer coercion when it comes to its game launcher and the long-running City of Heroes MMORPG. You see, in order to get your superhero's hands on a shiny new Wisp Aura (which, for the uninitiated, is a type of cosmetic costume upgrade), you'll need to switch to the new -- and preferred -- way to download and patch CoX. While the launcher application isn't new (Aion and Lineage II have been using it for many moons), NCsoft's desire to pair it up with City of Heroes is new, as the game has heretofore used its original stand-alone launchpad. The NCsoft launcher allows each of the Korean firm's games to update and start from a single application, and it can also be set to run in the background.
LaunchBar 5 gives powerful launching options, on sale
LaunchBar is a smart launcher, which learns from your habits and patterns to help you work more efficiently. Until midnight tomorrow (Sunday, eastern time) MacUpdate Promo has LaunchBar on sale for $17.50, which is 50% off the usual price. I love LaunchBar because it's smart. For example, I use Mailplane instead of Mail.app, and LaunchBar has learned this, so when I trigger LaunchBar and type the letter 'm' it shows me Mailplane. If I type 't' it shows me Twitterrific but if I type 'te' it shows me iTerm. It doesn't just let you launch apps either, you can also launch Preference Panes, create new events in iCal, search your address book (one of my favorite 'tricks': search for someone in my addressbook, navigate to their their phone number, and then press Enter. LaunchBar will show the phone number "full screen" like so: You can also copy Address Book information from LaunchBar, use it to begin email messages, and more. Using the "Instant Send" feature, I can select a file in Finder, then trigger LaunchBar and press "Command" twice (you can choose from several key commands to trigger Instant Send), and LaunchBar will offer to open the file in whatever application I search for next, similar to if you had right clicked on the file, chosen 'Open With' but your hands never touched the mouse. If you 'open with' your mail client, it will create a new message with the file attached. Or maybe you have an image that normally opens with Preview but you want to edit it in Pixelmator; Instant Send makes it easier and quicker. LaunchBar also has a built-in calculator and clipboard history. Do you use search engines? LaunchBar will let you create searches right from within itself. It comes with a slew of search engines built in, and adding your own is simple. Quite simply, LaunchBar is one of my absolutely essential applications. I've tried the others, and I always come back to LaunchBar. See previous TUAW coverage of LaunchBar.
Windows Phone Android launcher brings Metro UI's simplicity, but none of its joy
Need to have the latest and greatest, but can't stand the sameness on tap? You can easily spruce up your Android device with some Windows Phone 7 window dressing to impress your fanboy friends. Mind you, the "Windows Phone Android" launcher -- now available in Android Market -- isn't good for more than a practical joke or three, as it's buggy, doesn't run on all phones (our Droid 2 failed, and we're hearing some Galaxy S derivatives aren't supported), doesn't support notifications, and doesn't even have those fancy auto-updating Live Tiles. No, what you're looking at here is just a stack of square icons to launch your apps, and a second pane with a vertically scrolling list of the same. Until some brave soul brings us the real deal, though, this may be as close as you're going to get. [Thanks, marky mark]
New streaming launcher available soon
In what seems to be the biggest confirmation of patch 4.0.1 for tomorrow, Blizzard has announced that the streaming launcher, which has been active in the Cataclysm beta for some time, is going to be deployed to the live game. Included in the post is an FAQ about the launcher. If you haven't seen the new launcher yet, here's a quick rundown. The launcher allows you to download a critical set of data required to play the game, noted by the red stage. After that critical set of data is downloaded, you can play WoW but will potentially experience issues because the majority of the game content is not downloaded, noted by the yellow stage. Once a majority of the game content is downloaded, the downloader goes green, meaning you will still be downloading content but the game will be in a more stable, playable state. Hit the jump for the official announcement.
Cataclysm brings new launcher and patch process
Zarhym (Blizzard community manager) announced in the Cataclysm forums that the launcher as well as the patch download process will be getting overhauled as well. This new system will include a color-coded progress bar similar to a stoplight system. Zarhym There are three stages of download progress: SETUP (RED): Core game content is being prepared. You cannot enter the game at this time. AVAILABLE (YELLOW): Major game content is not completely applied. You can play, but your game experience will not be ideal. PLAYABLE (GREEN): Final game content is almost complete. You may experience a few game issues with playing at this stage. source What does this mean for players? Once you're into the yellow part of the download, you can actually log into the game and play. Things that are missing will likely be along the lines of art, model and sound files. While this might cause lag or strange graphic issues, it will allow for players to get back onto their servers faster during patch days. Those of you in the beta will see this relatively soon. However, it will require that you re-install the beta client from scratch. The full blue post and instructions after the break.
New scam targets the WoW Launcher
A post in the official forums today, later confirmed by a blue, points to hackers attempting to take advantage of a new avenue to attack the user -- the World of Warcraft Launcher. As you can see from the screenshot above (large version here) the real launcher apparently is replaced with a fake launcher that sends the user to a web site that pretends to be official, asking for subscription information (including answers to secret questions and the original CD-Key) in what is meant to appear as the means to restore a supposedly suspended account. One of the telltale signs that this isn't legit, besides the very invasive information requested, is the version number in the upper left corner of the screen. We're way past patch 3.1.1 -- however not everyone might know this. Ancilorn posts confirming that this is not genuine (reiterating that they will never ask for your password in such a manner, and also requesting that such things be sent directly to Blizzard if they happen to you). Goes to show that as security is increased, those looking to breach it become more desperate.
Brief launcher update
Blizzard updated the launcher again today without warning and hopefully without incident -- unlike Monday, when everything went awry, errors abounded and people were unable to connect. There is no indication that patch 3.3 is anywhere near downloading or anything other than a small tools patch. There has also been no word from Blizzard yet on exactly what this patch does, but it is required if you want to log into the game. The patch is very small and only takes a handful of seconds to download and apply. We'll keep an eye on this issue for any problems, but as of this writing, all is well.
Snood Redood coming to the iPhone
Fortunately, World of Warcraft didn't exist while I was in school, otherwise I might not have finished my venerable BS degree at the storied Ithaca College at all. But if there was one game that almost kept me from finishing all of those essays and homework... well, it was Civ. But if there were two games, the second was Snood. And now that game is due in iPhone form soon as well. It features the same creature-matching gameplay (with both new and old graphics, as you can see above), which means it probably has the same addictive quality that kept me playing long after I was supposed to have read those excerpts the professor gave to us in English class, and three gameplay modes, including Story, Classic, and even a Time Attack mode. "Coming soon" is the word on when it'll be out, though the main webpage actually says "play now," so it probably isn't that far off. It's not the only "Bust a Move" style game out on the App Store, but it is Snood, and that itself is enough to take me back to the days of pizza and beer in the dorm room.
Station launcher moves out of beta, adds voice chat support
So the beta launcher is finally un-betaed! Sony has officially pushed the Station Launcher into the "final version," dropping in voice chat, simplified menus, faster servers for downloads, and the ability to run the launcher without administrative rights as well.The fun stuff, however, is really contained within the voice update. This new voice, dubbed "station voice," lets you communicate with friends from within the game or outside of the game. Creating a room from outside of the game is done with your in-game character, letting people who are on the station launcher join you, or people inside of the game join your room from the inside, no launcher required.Plus, the other new features like the upgraded servers that will give more downstream bandwidth for game updates, are certainly nothing to sneeze at.This doesn't mean that Sony is done with upgrading and changing the launcher, as they've already pledged to continue taking user feedback and pushing that into their product to constantly make a better launcher.For the full patch notes, check them out on the EverQuest forums, located in this thread.
Patch 3.0.8 lands on World of Warcraft servers
It's finally here, the first post-Wrath patch-of-important-things for World of Warcraft. And by "important things" we mean changes like allowing players to create a Death Knight on any server, so long as they have a level 55+ character on at least one server. There are also a bevy of class changes, as well as a pretty nifty launcher update that's added plenty of utility plus style. Overall, the 3.0.8 patch was quite beefy -- now we just have to sit tight for the eventual Icecrown patch to slam onto our harddrives.If you really want to get the low-down on all changes both big and small, WoW Insider's got you covered. And if you're an Arcane Mage, then count yourself lucky as Blizzard saw fit to give out candies this go-around. One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
3.0.8 maintenance extended to 1 PM PST
Sorry, folks. You'll have to wait just a little bit longer for 3.0.8. The new and stylish Launcher just informed us disappointed players that maintenance has been extended to 1 PM Pacific time.But don't let your anticipation get the best of you! In the meantime, why don't you read some of our other extensive 3.0.8 coverage and get yourself pumped for it, or do Alex's crossword? Idle hands, and all that.
3.0.8 brings snazzy new Blizzard Launcher
Anyone who loaded up WoW this morning and patched their game up to 3.0.8 was greeted with a pleasant surprise--a slick new Blizzard Launcher. It looks to have been redone slightly, with a cold-steel Wrath-y theme and a more organized interface. Immediate additions I can see from my end are helpful community/forum links at the bottom, a well-lit link to the Blizzard Store right up top, and (of course) our boy the Lich King, stage right.Tipsters have noted that it looks similar to Battle.net launchers, and this may very well be an intended change given Blizzard's past statements that Battle.net is up for a major overhaul for Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2. Leave it to Blizzard to package such an anticipated patch in such nice foil wrapping.
