Hitman’s next Elusive Target will be available August 26 for 72 hours. This one seems pretty, well, elusive.
Source: Kotaku – Hitman’s next Elusive Target will be available August 26 for 72 hours.
Monthly Archives: August 2016
Play 'Spot the Reference' With These Ready Player One Set Photos
It seems like every frame of Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation of Ready Player One is going to be stuffed full of things to pay attention to.
Source: io9 – Play ‘Spot the Reference’ With These Ready Player One Set Photos
To stay competitive, Walmart and Target turn to startups for help
Ten startup teams are holed up in Minneapolis through next month to use a new retail-focused accelerator there to launch everything from voice-based search technology for retailers to interactive games that help kids learn STEM concepts. Their worksp…
Source: Engadget – To stay competitive, Walmart and Target turn to startups for help
HTC Vive Capturing Developer Attention In Volatile VR Market
A recent survey conducted by research analyst Jessica Smith found that HTC Vive is currently the most popular platform among developers. No doubt one of the reason for this is, as Kyle has covered in our VR performance reviews, is the HTC Vive’s room scale play and handheld controllers.
Stand-alone headset platforms are most favored by developers in the early days of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). HTC Vive is the most popular platform among developers, with almost half of developers creating content for it, according to a survey of 543 developers conducted by the Virtual Reality Developers Conference in July and August 2016.
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Source: [H]ardOCP – HTC Vive Capturing Developer Attention In Volatile VR Market
ISP Lobbyists Pushing Telecom Act Rewrite
Karl Bode, reporting for DSLReports:Telecom lobbyists are pushing hard for a rewrite of the Telecom Act, this time with a notable eye on cutting FCC funding and overall authority. AT&T donated at least $70,000 to back Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan, and clearly expects him to spearhead the rewrite and make it a priority in 2017. The push is an industry backlash to a number of consumer friendly initiatives at the FCC, including new net neutrality rules, the reclassification of ISPs under Title II, new broadband privacy rules, new cable box reform and an attempt to protect municipal broadband. AT&T’s Ryan donation is the largest amount AT&T has ever donated to a single candidate, though outgoing top AT&T lobbyist Jim Cicconi has also thrown his support behind Hillary Clinton.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – ISP Lobbyists Pushing Telecom Act Rewrite
WhatsApp and Facebook Now Share Data for Ad Targeting, Here's How to Opt Out
Facebook and WhatsApp announced a new data sharing plan that’ll improve targeted advertising and friend suggestions. If you’re not a fan of the idea of Facebook and WhatsApp cozying up so closely together, it’s easy to opt out.
Source: LifeHacker – WhatsApp and Facebook Now Share Data for Ad Targeting, Here’s How to Opt Out
The Nintendo Console From The 80s Made For Recording Gameplay Footage
These days, if you want to record direct video footage of a video game, all you need to do is press a button. But back in the 1980s, this was a complex and expensive process!
Source: Kotaku – The Nintendo Console From The 80s Made For Recording Gameplay Footage
Making Stop Motion Animation Looks Really Hard
I mean, the animator in the gif above changes his shirt at least four times before he’s able to make the Ninja Monkey doll walk, like, a couple of steps. That’s a lot of time spent animating the most basic of motions lasting just seconds. Imagine all the elbow grease that goes into the more intense stuff, or even a minute of footage. In the behind-the-scenes footage of Kubo and the Two Strings, we get to see a bit of the magic that goes into making a stop motion film.
Source: Gizmodo – Making Stop Motion Animation Looks Really Hard
Your iPhone 6 could be falling victim to 'touch disease'
Source: Engadget – Your iPhone 6 could be falling victim to ‘touch disease’
Over 25 Years Later, the It Miniseries Is Still Fantastically Disturbing
If you’re a horror fan, you know that Stephen King’s It is being adapted for the big screen—and you likely still have some lingering trauma from watching the 1990 TV adaptation. Those memories aren’t unfounded: the It miniseries is still disturbing as hell. What’s surprising is that it’s not just because of that goddamn clown.
Source: io9 – Over 25 Years Later, the It Miniseries Is Still Fantastically Disturbing
National Parks Visitors Who Complain About Wi-Fi Should Be Thrown Into Old Faithful
The US National Parks Service was founded 100 years ago today, at a time when less than 35 percent of Americans had electricity at home
. But as the years go by, more and more visitors to the parks are demanding access to technology, including ubiquitous cellphone and wi-fi access. And we’ve got the complaints to prove it.
Source: Gizmodo – National Parks Visitors Who Complain About Wi-Fi Should Be Thrown Into Old Faithful
Upcoming Linux Tests With A $300 Broadwell-EP Xeon CPU
Unfortunately Intel Corp hadn’t sent over any Broadwell-EP hardware earlier this year when launching these new Xeon E5-2600 V5 server processors nor when it came to the high-end consumer Broadwell-E processors. However, I ended up buying a Xeon E5-2609 v4 Broadwell-EP this week for a new system and will be running a variety of upcoming tests…
Source: Phoronix – Upcoming Linux Tests With A 0 Broadwell-EP Xeon CPU
NFL Network launches on PlayStation Vue ahead of football season
Source: Engadget – NFL Network launches on PlayStation Vue ahead of football season
Artist Submerges Black Dress In Dead Sea For Two Years, It Emerges In Pure White Salt
Israeli artist Sigalit Landau submerged a black dress in the Dead Sea in 2014 as part of an eight-part photo series entitled Salt Bride. Every three months she would take a photo of the dress as it gradually become covered in salt crystals until, two years later, it was completely coated in white. How about that! Still, no word how many times Ariel tried it on and pretended she was a person with legs while nobody was around, but I guarantee her father wasn’t happy about it.
Keep going for shots of the whole process.
Source: Geekologie – Artist Submerges Black Dress In Dead Sea For Two Years, It Emerges In Pure White Salt
How Hypnosis Actually Works, and Why It's Not At All What You See in Movies
Contrary to the idea that hypnosis is either a complete hoax or a magical state of mind where people can make you do anything, the truth about hypnosis and whether you can be hypnotized is in the middle. It’s very much real, but more like a meditative state than a lack of consciousness.
Source: LifeHacker – How Hypnosis Actually Works, and Why It’s Not At All What You See in Movies
Antitrust regulators approve Tesla deal to buy SolarCity
(credit: Kevin Krejci)
On Thursday, federal antitrust regulators from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved electric vehicle maker Tesla’s bid to buy solar panel company SolarCity for $2.6 billion in an all-stock deal. The deal was expected to be approved, and Reuters reported that regulators fast-tracked the merger, along with a number of other, lower-profile mergers in which the two companies seeking to merge did little overlapping business.
Tesla announced the merger in June, and on August 1 it proposed terms for the takeover of the solar panel company—owners of SolarCity shares will get 0.11 shares of Tesla stock for every share of SolarCity stock they own. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who also serves on the SolarCity board, said he wanted to purchase the solar panel company to create an integrated solar platform in which houses could generate their own electricity (perhaps even with an entire Tesla-branded solar roof), store that energy in a Tesla Powerwall, and charge their electric vehicle. Servicing and installation would ideally become more consumer-friendly as well, as it would all come from the same company.
Tesla has also said that its growing experience in manufacturing at its Fremont, California and Sparks, Nevada locations could help SolarCity more effectively realize its own massive solar panel manufacturing project in Buffalo, New York.
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Source: Ars Technica – Antitrust regulators approve Tesla deal to buy SolarCity
iPhones and iPads Fail More Often Than Android Smartphones
An anonymous reader writes: The main question when picking a new phone is whether to choose an Android one or an iPhone. A new study coming from Blancco Technology Group sheds some light on which devices are the most reliable, based on reliability. The study entitled State of Mobile Device Performance and Health reveals the device failure rates by operating systems, manufacturers, models and regions, as well as the most common types of performance issues. The report reveals that in Q2 2016, iOS devices had a 58% failure rate, marking the first time that Apple’s devices have a lower performance rate compared to Android. It seems that the iPhone 6 had the highest failure rate of 29%, followed by iPhone 6s and iPhone 6S Plus. Android smartphones had an overall failure rate of 35%, an improvement from 44% in Q1 2016. Samsung, Lenovo and LeTV were among the manufacturers with the weakest performance and higher failure rates. Samsung scored 26% in failure rate, while Motorola just 11%. The study also reveals that iOS devices fail more frequently in North America and Asia compared to Android. Specifically, the failure rate in North America is 59%, while in Asia 52%. The failures could be influenced by the fact that the quality of smartphones shipped around the world varies.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – iPhones and iPads Fail More Often Than Android Smartphones
Watch Us Play A VR Game About Musical Cheeseburgers
Rarely do I find a virtual reality game worth the hype, but Playthings, released yesterday, literally takes the cake. I mean literally—there is a lot of cake.
Source: Kotaku – Watch Us Play A VR Game About Musical Cheeseburgers
Before Civil War, the Third Captain America Movie Was Almost Based on This Wild Comic Book Story
When the third Captain America film was in the early stages of development, Robert Downey Jr. and Marvel Studios were still embroiled in discussions for a new contract to see the actor return as Tony Stark. So with one-half of the “Civil War” conflict potentially unavailable, the Russo brothers had one old comic arc in mind to replace it.
Source: io9 – Before Civil War, the Third Captain America Movie Was Almost Based on This Wild Comic Book Story
My Year In Gawker Hate Mail
I started working at Gawker.com in April of last year, and ever since, I’ve received a constant barrage of always furious, often antisemitic, and rarely coherent emails to my inbox. Reading these is, truthfully, the single best part of my day.
Source: Gizmodo – My Year In Gawker Hate Mail