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At last, you can watch early ‘Simpsons’ episodes as intended on Disney+
As promised, 'Simpsons' fans can now watch early seasons (pre-2009) in 4:3 format on Disney+.
'The Simpsons' aspect ratio problem will get fixed (again) on May 28th
Next week Disney+ will start streaming old episodes of 'The Simpsons' in their original 4:3 format
Disney+ will stop cropping old 'Simpsons' episodes in May
Disney angered Simpsons fans by airing pre-2009 episodes in widescreen, but it has promised the fix the issue by May this year.
After Math: Everything's coming up Disney
It's been a big week for Disney. The company finally launched its streaming platform, Disney+, to great fanfare. At the same time, Star Wars: Fallen Order, another Disney-owned IP, launched on Friday for the PC and consoles. But who has time for video games when there's nearly 70 years of nostalgia to consume?
Simpsons World shuts down as episodes move to Disney+
You knew Simpsons World wouldn't last much longer when Disney+ claimed The Simpsons as a streaming exclusive, but you might not have expected the end to be so... abrupt. Simpsons World has promptly shut down, making Disney+ the only place to watch every episode even though it's barely available to the public. While that makes the show accessible to people without cable subscriptions (and outside of the US), it also pushes cable TV subscribers to pay extra if they want to witness Lisa's perpetual motion machine or Homer's near-death experience.
Disney+ cuts off 'Simpsons' jokes with widescreen episodes
The Disney+ launch didn't just have some technical hiccups -- it also irritated The Simpsons fans. Viewers have discovered that all classic Simpsons episodes are the cropped widescreen versions, not the 4:3 originals that FXX brought back in 2015. And just like four years ago, that decision wrecks some sight gags, such as the revelation that all of Duff's beers come from the same source. There are also instances where the picture has been stretched to fit the modern TV aspect ratio.
Netflix will stream Matt Groening's fantasy cartoon 'Disenchanted'
It's been almost 30 years since Matt Groening launched his yellow nuclear Simpsons family on the Fox network. It's been about 18 since he took to the stars with Futurama. Both series have been successful, with plenty of recent merchandise, VR celebrations and mobile games to keep fans invested in the respective animated universes. Groening is headed to Netflix with his next project, Disenchantment, another animated series for grown ups. This time, however, Groening will explore the epic fantasy genre via the misadventures of the "hard-drinking young princess Bean, her feisty elf companion Elfo, and her personal demon Luci."
The Morning After: Thursday, April 27th 2017
TV dinners for foodies? The beginning of the end for net neutrality? Someone beating up a poor robot? Must be a Thursday. We also hear more on the next Call Of Duty title and Amazon's new fashion camera. Really.
ICYMI: The alcohol creating energy and removing pollution
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: The University of Colorado, Boulder is diving into a beer project with a surprising twist: Researchers have managed to use beer brewing runoff to grow a species of fungus that not only cleans the water but can also be used to create lithium-ion batteries. Meanwhile the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is helping paralyzed people regain a sense of touch through a robotic arm, by implanting electrodes in the participant's brain. The flexible phone display for music is here, and the BMW concept motorcycle that had everyone talking is here. In case you're friends with someone on Tinder, they should know about this story. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Don't watch 500 simultaneous episodes of 'The Simpsons' in VR
Too much of anything is (usually) bad. It's certainly true when trying to watch the opening ten minutes of five hundred Simpsons episodes all at the same time. While a two-dimensional version already exists, John Hatfield's VR headset-ready version means there's no escaping it. Let the madness consume you below, although we advise not doing so.
Homer Simpson will broadcast live, with some motion-capture help
The Simpsons, live! Well, at least partially. In a new episode set to broadcast on Sunday May 15, Homer Simpson will speak live to viewers, commenting on the day's news as well as answering fans' questions. (You can can tweet your queries to him starting in early May, using the #homerlive hashtag.) How is that even possible? According to The Wrap, it apparently involves a "first for animation", tying together motion capture, real-time animation and some all-important improvisation.
Here's the 'Simpsons' search engine you've been waiting for
You don't win friends with salad, but you can probably make plenty of new ones by becoming a Simpsons meme machine with Frinkiac, a new search engine dedicated to the show. Just type in a few lines and Frinkiac will match it up with screenshots from the first 15 Simpsons seasons. It currently has over 3 million screenshots indexed, and it's pretty easy to browse nearby images from the same episode, so you can be sure to get the exact right moment you're looking for. Hitting the "Make Meme" button overlays the text of the scene (which you can also edit with your own text) to create an even more shareable image.
'Lego Dimensions' will include 'Portal', Doctor Who and Homer Simpson
If the combined might of Batman and Gandalf wasn't enough to intrigue you, how about throwing in a Timelord (with a Scottish accent)? More details of the Skylanders-baiting Lego Dimensions game have been gleaned from a building instruction sheet for its Back To The Future set, with a catalog of level packs (read: figures and accessories) we're going to see alongside the game itself. As well as Doctor Who, expect to see a Portal 2 pack, as well as Jurassic World, The Simpsons and Scooby-Doo. You can also expect multiple figures from Lego's own brick-based franchises like Ninjago as well more characters from Lord of the Rings -- these will be part of "fun packs", likely to cost less than the aforementioned full-blown level add-ons. And if it sounds like a lot, remember: we haven't even seen the DC comics sets yet.
'The Simpsons' seasons won't be available on disc from now on
If you've been diligently building a collection of Simpsons episodes on disc, you're in for a rude surprise. Show runner Al Jean has revealed that Fox is discontinuing disc releases of the long-running cartoon. As sources confirmed to us and The Hollywood Reporter, the studio doesn't believe there's a point to hard copies at this stage -- now that you can watch The Simpsons online, it "made more sense" to focus on internet services. With the show constantly airing around the world and in heavy rotation on FXX, it's a bit more accessible than other series even though DVD and Blu-ray are still big business.
At last, 'The Simpsons' is streaming in its original aspect ratio
When FXX started streaming The Simpsons, it committed a cardinal sin in the eyes of fans: it showed older episodes in widescreen, guaranteeing that you'd miss visual gags meant for 4:3 TV. Thankfully, the network has learned the error of its ways. Show runner Al Jean has revealed that Simpsons World is now streaming the series' first seven seasons in their original aspect ratio, making sure that you won't miss a single bit of the monorail musical or Bart's big spring break. The remaining 4:3 seasons are coming "soon," Jean says. The ratio switch isn't going to make you forget the less-than-stellar quality of more recent episodes, but it will at least let you properly relive The Simpsons' glory days.
Recommended Reading: The most advanced coffee lab in the world
Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology and more in print and on the web. Some weeks, you'll also find short reviews of books that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read. Inside the World's Most Advanced Coffee Laboratory Jason Koebler, Motherboard If you're at least somewhat interested in coffee, you've likely researched a bit about where your favorite spot gets its beans and who roasts them. Thanks to Motherboard, we can take a look inside the walls of Cenicafé: a government-backed facility dedicated to analyzing Colombia's coffee varieties.
'The Simpsons' are heading to 'Minecraft' on Xbox, too
Pairing a popular game with a popular television show seems like a sure winner. Doctor Who arrived on Minecraft for Xbox 360 back in August, and next month, another well-liked TV franchise will make a cameo in the game. The Simpsons pack will arrive in late February for both the Xbox 360 and Xbox One versions of the title (perhaps the "Simcraft" intro should've been a clue). Skins of the Simpson family, along with 19 other characters from Springfield Elementary, will be available as a downloadable add-on for $1.99. Of course, the Simpson's fictional home and grade school have already been constructed in the game, so tossing in official characters will be a welcome addition. No word on an exact arrival date, but at least you can get a head start on a block version of Krustyland.
All 'Simpsons' episodes are now available for streaming
The wait is over, people of the interwebs. Right on cue, Fox has launched Simpsons World, the online hub where it will be streaming every Simpsons episode ever broadcasted. Even though the content is free to browse, you do need a cable login to start watching -- it's simple, if you're subscribed to a package that offers FXX, a channel owned by Fox, then you're good to go. In addition to the Simpsons World website, all Simpsons episodes can also be streamed via the FXNow mobile application, which is available on iOS and Android. Sure, it's only Tuesday, but at least now you have a clue of what you'll be doing this weekend.
Using a Lego robot to defeat freemium game roadblocks
If current trends are any indication, freemium gaming isn't going anywhere, leaving players to make some personal choices in their gaming. Do you bite the bullet and pay premiums for in-game currency that's usually necessary to play the game properly? Do you grind for hours to scrape together the tiny bits of money you can earn through normal play? Or do you learn to build a Lego robot to do the grinding for you? Yes, build a robot. That delightful science solution is exactly what one addicted player of Jurassic Park Builder did. Much like Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff and Simpsons Tapped Out, Jurassic Park Builder requires players to either buy in-game currency or check in randomly throughout the day to tap on dinosaurs to earn money without paying. Uli Kilian loved the game, but didn't want to deal with the freemium roadblocks of the iPad title. So he built a robot out of a Lego Technic kit to tap on the dinosaurs for him. You can see a video of the iPad-playing robot below. The folks over at Wired have a gallery of photos of Kilian's robot which you can find right here. Perhaps we should be happy that Lego Technic kits aren't in every home. We can only imagine the sort of anti-robot DRM that would eventually pop up to stop players from using their Lego bot as a digital gold mining tool.
Daily Update for January 16, 2014
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get some the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the player at the top of the page. The Daily Update has been moved to a new podcast host in the past few days. Current listeners should delete the old podcast subscription and subscribe to the new feed in the iTunes Store here.
