offline mode
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Google's big Android update offers voice pay for parking and offline live transcriptions
Google has released a bunch of new features and updates across its products.
Elite: Dangerous considers granting even more refunds
Elite: Dangerous might grant refunds to more people than originally thought. Last week, Frontier admitted that it had canceled a planned offline mode for the game, which led to David Braben's announcement that limited refunds would be given to preorder customers who'd never logged in to test the game but not to other backers. As of last night, Frontier is apparently reconsidering that decision. Wrote the studio boss, We initially declined some people's request for refund as our records showed they have already played Elite: Dangerous online. After listening to many of the comments I received after my AMA here, we have since re-opened these requests and informed those people that we will be contacting them so that we can fully understand their individual situation before making a more informed decision. We will be contacting them each in the next few working days. If any Massively readers have successfully received a refund, let us know in the comments. [Thanks, Cotic.]
Shroud of the Avatar promises offline mode with no DRM
As Richard Garriott's Shroud of the Avatar Kickstarter campaign continues, the team has posted an update on a few topics that in no way have to do with the recent SimCity kerfuffle. The post states that the team is creating an offline version of the game for those who prefer that style (or find it more convenient). While players won't be able to take their offline character into the online version, there may be the possibility of doing the reverse. Other words of comfort include the promise that Shroud of the Avatar "will not use any form of DRM" for its offline mode and that the single-player version won't be littered with microtransactions. [Thanks to Don for the tip!]
HTC Locations update for Windows Phone brings offline navigation
Nokia's Windows Phones have given us offline navigation for a while courtesy of the Drive app, and HTC's old Locations app has had some downloadable maps too -- but only for a few select Android users. That's just changed, however, with Titan owners reporting a major update to the Mango version of Locations that brings the same offline functionality as Android. We took a peek and everything seemed hunky-dory, including turn-by-turn voice navigation for both walking and driving, although wander lust quickly had us downloading maps we'll never need.[Thanks, Siddharth]
Deezer music streaming service rolls out offline mode, still not available in the US
While Stateside folks are still waiting for the service to land, tune-streaming Deezer is keeping itself and its current groupies occupied. During today's London Web Summit, the company announced a new feature simply dubbed "off-line mode," which will be up for grabs to any Premium+ subscriber. The fresh bit allows paid subs to download their tune collection onto a desktop or laptop machine and have access to it offline, something rival Spotify's been doing since its beginnings. Worth noting is the feature will only work on the Big G's browser during its initial launch, though support for others is said to be coming "very soon." Enjoy. We'll just have to keep awaiting.
Ask Massively: I'm very sorry about the events of last Friday edition
I do not think of myself as an overly proud man, and as a result I would like to apologize to my neighbors, the local fire department, the men and women of the FBI, and the ACLU for my actions on Friday, July 8th. You may not have heard about it, but per the advice of my attorney I will decline to go into details. Just know that I am extremely sorry, that I had no idea the chinchillas were rabid, that several of the motor vehicles involved in the incident were in fact made in the United States, and I really thought the wall would hold. Assuming we can put all of this behind us, it's time for this week's edition of Ask Massively, in which we take on the question of why we can't just play an MMO offline whenever the urge strikes us. If you have a question that doesn't involve the incident mentioned above, mail it off to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below.
