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Curio Basic offered for free until midnight, August 7th
Remember Curio from Zengobi, that unique brainstorming and project management app we found a couple weeks ago? As a thanks to all the publicity they've been getting lately the company has decided to offer Curio Basic for free - but only until midnight, EDT on Tuesday, August 7th. All you need to do is enter some basic information at the promotion page, and a license (a $39 value) will be emailed to you. Definitely note, however, that one of Zengobi's terms is that they can cancel this offer at any time (probably in case they get slammed with too many requests), so I would recommend you run, don't walk, to snag your copy. After all: you can't beat 'free'.
Back/Center Stage 0.6 released
CenterStage and BackStage make up a dynamic duo which gives FrontRow a run for its money. The free software suite reached version 0.6 today, bringing with it some exciting new features and Intel support. Media management app BackStage got madeover with a new unified UI, while FrontRow-esque component CenterStage now features support for the Apple remote, Elgato eyeTV, and Griffin RadioShark, as well as a new UI for photo browsing. While the programs might not be as polished and feature rich as MediaCentral, the price can't be beat, and new features are being added rapidly. Via HardMac
EyeTV 2.3 adds Front Row-like menu
Elgato has released a fairly significant update to their EyeTV software that adds a Front Row-like menu UI for interacting with live TV, shows you've recorded and the program guide. Other sites are calling this 'Front Row integration', but I thought that was slightly misleading, as 'integration' simply means the top-level menu in this new version (pictured) has an option to start Front Row; nothing more. In fact, from glancing at the instructions in their 776 KB ReadMe file (link) about the update, it looks like this new version actually takes over the default Front Row keyboard shortcut of cmd + esc, forcing you to go through their menu if what you actually want is Front Row - though I could be wrong (btw, here's a tip Elgato: compress your PSD files to a JPEG or PNG before slapping them in a ReadMe).Other updates include support for two USB sticks from Hauppauge, exporting to Windows Media (as long as you've purchased the proper Flip4Mac QuickTime plugin), as well as a general export speed increase of 33%, and up to 500% depending on the source and exported format.This update is a Universal Binary, free to registered users of EyeTV 2.x and should be available from the app's own 'Check for Updates' menu.
MediaCentral 2
We blogged MediaCentral back in November when it was just a fledgling beta, offering but a glimpse of what was to come. Now, it's all growed up into version 2, which is (typically) the age when an app begins to show maturity and solidifies into its true form, and mature it has - MediaCentral has added a serious batch of new features that are simply too lengthy to cover in their entirety. Highlights include: IP TV, Google Video and YouTube integration, DVB-T support (a wireless TV standard in Europe, Asia and Africa), Windows Media codec support (with Flip4Mac installed), bookmarking in media files for easy resuming, interactive classic arcade games that support the Apple Remote and ATI Remote Wonder, network streaming/storage support and much more.MedialCentral 2 requires Mac OS X 10.4, and a demo is available. A single licenses costs $29.95, with a 3-pack selling for $39.95, and a 5-pack for $59.95.
Media coverage of the Wii looking good
We've seen nothing but positive coverage of the Wii from media, and for good reason. As evidenced above, a local NBC news affiliate had a short feature on the console, showing gamers enjoying the Wii Sports' Tennis title. Another video report on the Wii may be found here courtesy of Reuters. While a bit longer than the local news feature, the Reuters video intersperses sections of the video that was presented at E3 2005.[Thanks Nushio!]
Buffalo LinkTheater Wireless Media Player for Viiv PCs
If you like the idea of BenQ's Viiv-flavored DMP300 Digital Media Player we saw yesterday, but would so much prefer a version with snazzy antennas, Buffalo has you covered. It's the very same remote Internet applications and premium content that Viiv support enables, just this time in a Buffalo box, and featuring a USB 2.0 port for plugging in digital cameras and portable audio players. Codec support is hefty, with audio (MP3, WMA, AAC, LPCM), image (JPEG, BMP, PNG), and video (MPEG 1/2/4, WMV 7/8/9, XviD) formats well represented, along with DRM like DTCP-IP and Windows Media DRM 10 for Network Devices. There's an Ethernet port along with the 802.11a/b/g wireless connection, but though the device has S-Video and composite outputs, component video only works off of a D4 port via an included adapter, and no mention is made of HDMI. The LinkTheater should be available later this month for around $250.
Screenshot roundup: Virtua Fighter 5
Here are a handful of screens from Virtua Fighter 5, slated for a spring '07 release. If you haven't been following the title and want to sink your eyeballs into some more images, check out this link to find some from earlier last month. So far it's shaping up to look like a winner (but how will the new controller interface with it?).
SuperDrive Firmware Update v2.0 for some PowerPC-based Macs
Apple has released a firmware update for SuperDrives in a variety of PowerPC-based Macs, including: PowerBook G4 (12 -inch 1.5GHz) PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.33GHz, 1.5GHz, or 1.67GHz) PowerBook G4 (17-inch 1.67GHz) iMac G5 (17-inch 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz) iMac G5 (20-inch 1.8GHz) Mac mini G4 The update "fixes burning speeds when writing to certain recordable DVD media". Check out Apple's support document and download page for details and instructions on installing the update.
7 more reasons for bogus games "journalism" [update 1]
Why do games "journalists" publish so many lies, untruths and half-truths? There are seven reasons, according to GameDaily BIZ: (1) fanboyishness, (2) wimpiness, (3) laziness, (4) inexperience with real journalism, (5) herd mentality, (6) sensationalism, (7) confusion over technicalities. A solid list on an important topic... We just wish GameDaily BIZ hadn't unwittingly illustrated one of their own points. By publishing their best criticism under an anonymous pseudonym ("Mr. Media Coverage"), GameDaily proves a corollary of rule #2: few games-industry writers are willing to put their own names down next to honest criticism because they fear reprisals of some sort. [Update 1: corrected a typo in third paragraph.]
LG's 4x Blu-ray burner: GBW-H10N
Just when we were getting used to Pioneer's Blu-ray recording drive, LG has announced one that, on paper at least, blows it away. Like Pioneer's drive, it only supports burning to single-layer (25GB) Blu-ray discs, but it ups the speed from 2x to 4x for burning and playback. Also unlike the Pioneer, it will read and write to CDs. Only BD-R discs get the extra speed however, with rewritable BD-REs still limited to 2x recording. This drive is slated to hit in the summer at a cost of €799 ($1020 USD). With dual-layer (50GB) Blu-ray media slated to become available this summer, we have to wonder when we sill see a burner that can use it.
PSA: read your MacBook user manual
Given all the recent MacBook Pro drama of late, what with overheating issues and all, it might be a good idea to peruse your MacBook/MacBookPro owner's manual one of these days to make sure you've covered the basics, even if most of Apple's care recommendations are obvious these days. Gearlog found a couple of interesting snippets in a MacBook Pro owner's manual that, again, might be obvious to some, but are still good for a refresher. The first is a warning about the use of magnets in the MagSafe power adapter. Apple warns that the end of the MagSafe power adapter and the port on the MacBook could be powerful enough to erase information from magnetic media such as credit cards and iPods, so it would be a good idea to keep these things away from each other.The second blurb from the owner's manual warns against using a MacBook Pro directly on any part of your uncovered body; these things can get pretty hot (obviously), but this is the first time I've heard of a laptop owner's manual directly warning: "Prolonged contact with your body could cause discomfort and potentially a burn". I wonder if there are any other obvious or possibly interesting snippets in these manuals that most of us have been passing over.This concludes the end of this public service announcement, thank you for your time.
Would the real Quang show his thang?
E3 may be over, but the Joystiq team is still blowing through posts and tying up loose ends from a wild, sleepless week of non-stop blogging. When I posted about Blake Snow getting trampled in Friday's early morning Wii stampiid, I thought the man whose badge Blake "traded" for in the ensuing chaos might step forward. Instead the post provoked a flurry of "I am Spartacus" commenters claiming to be one Quang Nguyen. Fortunately, Joystiq reader Sepll Cehck has tracked down a guy on the web who looks like he really could be the Quangster (pictured at right). The Quang man is welcome to have his exhibitor badge back assuming he's the right Nguyen, although it won't do him much good now. I'm waiting for an email. In the mean time, if a small Asian man approaches you claiming to be Blake Snow of Joystiq, don't believe him.
In the back of the bus with Shane Kim
I had a chance to chat with Microsoft Game Studios GM Shane Kim in the back of Microsoft's well-appointed Xbox 360 Blogger Bus. After three days locked in a PR room doing the same routine, Kim's answers are pretty standardized, so he didn't really reveal anything not covered in Joystiq's previous sit-down. (Then again, it's hard to ask clever questions when your mouth is stuffed with Red Vines). However, his mere presence in the backseat is evidence of Microsoft's commitment to building their online community via the blogosphere -- a commitment easily measured in the amount of Peanut M&Ms, sodas and pizza they shoveled our way during the course of E3. I asked Shane why Sony and Nintendo would risk alienating alternative media, and he said I'd have to ask them. I told him I surely would, as soon as I finished the Red Vines. Will MS's transparent, yet tasty, attempt to influence blogs pay off, or is this post evidence that it already has?
Seen at E3: A message to MMOs
No beating about the bush from this MMO. Directly attacking your competitors may not be nice, but with a MMO cliché that's so ingrained in the genre, sometimes you have to be bold to succeed.Unless, of course, they had a lapse of concentration while typing Mr. Presley's name.
Photoblog: Inside the Xbox 360 Blogger Bus
No matter what your opinion is of Microsoft's E3 performance, there is no doubt that the evil monopolists from Redmond have blown away Sony and Nintendo when it comes to reaching out to alternative media. Sitting on a leather couch, in the comfortable air-conditioned confines of the Xbox 360 Blogger Bus (formerly leased by Def Jam Records), I'm starting to wonder why I spent yesterday cramped in sweaty show floor cubicle with 20 people complaining about connection speeds. It's a lovely respite from getting jostled by the unwashed masses in South Hall. Unlike the competition, Microsoft's PR staff is nice and helpful to bloggers almost to a fault. As I type, Geometry Wars is playing on four HD displays and jar of Twizzlers the size of a mop bucket sits on my lap. Of course, we at Joystiq and Xbox360Fanboy would never allow such blatant star treatment to sway our coverage of E3. (I'm spitting out the Twizzlers right now). All jokes aside, why is Microsoft the only one of the big three making an effort to specifically reach out to blogs? Take the tour after the jump.
Cheap ass media pass
David Abrams of CheapAssGamer amused the inner Beavis of everyone in Denny's last night by managing to get the word "ass" on his media badge. We wondered just how far the names could go before someone in the E3 registration process decides to create a list of dirty words. It's only a matter of time before some dude from Alaska starts a show called the "Scrotum Gaming Hour." By the way, it turns out CheapyD isn't so cheap after all. He picked up the dinner tab.
VLC 0.8.5 released with Intel Mac, Growl support, many improvements
The most excellent jack-of-many-formats VLC media player has just reached version 0.8.5, and boy does it pack a whallop - just check out the release notes. The biggest new additions to write home about are Universal Binary support, Growl notifications, a statistics system, new skin support including skins from Winamp 2 (for those who just can't let go), new video filters, support for downloading updates (possibly due to Sparkle?) and a whole lot more.VLC is a feature-packed media player with support for a boatload of media formats, and is available free for many OSs from VideoLAN.
Sony ships 25GB Blu-ray recordables; 50GB to come in June
Lest anyone question their position as king of the Blu-ray mountain, Sony has announced that it has started shipping single-layer 25GB Blu-ray discs, and will begin follow up with 50GB discs in June. Yes, we know that TDK has already announced their own dual-layer discs (and is even working on eight layer 200GB versions), but it looks like Sony may just get their 50 giggers out the door first. Pricing is set at about $20 per disc for the single-layer version and $48 for the 50GB discs. Yes, that's right. The higher-capacity disc will have a higher per-GB price than the single-layer version. Such is the price for burning on the cutting-edge (and, no, we're not even going to try to visualize that horribly mixed metaphor).
Helio's media services
That MySpace and Yahoo integration wasn't the only thing Helio rolled out for their user media services today; in addition to the leaned MySpace interface and customized Yahoo services portal, Helio users with the All-In Membership will get a slew of other things to keep them occupied when constantly fidgeting with the Kickflip's hinge. There's Helio On Top (H.O.T.) access, which is a simple 10-channel news and info aggregation feature, MMS picture and video messages, which can be sent up to 1MB per; free streaming video from major networks like MTV, Comedy Central, ABC, etc., $2.49 music video downloads (uh, what?), and of course those purchased, "gifted," or "begged" games, which are going for $5.99 to buy, or $0.99 to "rent" on your phone for a week. (The gifting and begging thing isn't only limited to games though, and can be applied to any purchasable content as well.) Not a whole lot in there that we're super interested in, ourselves; but you know us, we're more the Bluetooth DUN, A2DP, SlingPlayer, data overload types more prone to exploring mobile media on our own than holding a carrier's (or MVNO's) hand.
AquaMinds NoteShare 1.0
AquaMinds, makers of the popular NoteTaker, has released NoteShare 1.0, a "powerful desktop application for creating, publishing and sharing media rich, multi-page notebooks." NoteShare allows you to "instantly" share a notebook for presentation or collaborative editing across a room, a network or even the web. Interestingly, their product page states that you don't even need hosting space in order to publish and share a notebook.While NoteShare sounds like an interesting product for its target users, AquaMinds is a little slim on details as to whether NoteShare represents a new level of note taking and rich media abilities above and beyond their NoteTaker product. However, since NoteTaker sells for $70 and NoteShare is priced at $150 for a 3-machine license, I'd bet the premium price is all about that collaborative ability, rather than some fancy new note taking features. If all this notebook sharing business has your interest piqued, AquaMinds offers a 30-day NoteShare trial; just follow the link on the right here.
