My Blog

This is what Stan Lee in the Spider-Man game looks like

2012-05-09T14:48:00.001+01:00

This is what Stan Lee in the Spider-Man game looks like:
Activision has released an image showing for the first time Stan Lee as a playable character in the next Spider-Man game.

The comic book legend, 89, is a playable character in the Amazing Spider-Man, developed by Beenox and due out next month. In the US, he is a pre-order bonus with Amazon. In the UK, he is exclusive to GAME.

In the game Lee works much like Spider-Man, swinging from skyscraper to skyscraper. He has his own special mission, set in Manhattan, that sees the player track down a lost manuscript. You get some of Lee's "famous witty banter" too.

Read more…

The Gaming Spouse Conundrum

2011-09-06T12:51:00.000+01:00

The Gaming Spouse Conundrum:

The challenge for those of us who want to play games with our families is to encourage them to play without making them feel pressured. It can take a long time, but this approach is, in my experience, much more successful than haranguing a spouse or loved one.

I’ll admit it, I get a little excited when my wife shows interest in a game I’m playing. But I realized the other day that she needs to find her own games, rather than simply dipping in and out of mine.

To that end I was interested to read this review of Kinect Fruit Ninja recently. Josie Campbell finds a reason to play this Xbox 360 Kinect game because it turns out she is rather good at it, as she put it in her words:

Winning at Fruit Ninja on my first go, was enough incentive to play some more. I actually got quite into it. As you progress there are different power-ups and levels you can try. We particularly enjoyed the two player games where you work with (or against) a person stood next to you.

The best part of all this was the Kinect controls. You don’t hold anything, and instead stand in front of the Kinect camera. This works better than on some other Kinect games I’ve tried like Dance Central because you can see your actual outline filling the screen.

I’m still not totally convinced about the Kinect controller, but have to admit that Fruit Ninja was a nice energetic and involving way to spend a recent Autumnal afternoon.

Reading this reminded me of the online dating post I mentioned a while back on Geekdad and how another friend of mine has been getting into bingo games. Gaming can be much more than entertainment, and actually impacts us in all sort of unexpected ways.

Perhaps this is why we each need to find our own way into it.

Note: Check back on GeekDad later this week for Matt Blum’s full review of Fruit Ninja Kinect.

UPDATE: Principal Cast Of The Avengers Spotted Together On The NYC Set In Central Park!

2011-09-02T21:46:00.000+01:00

UPDATE: Principal Cast Of The Avengers Spotted Together On The NYC Set In Central Park!: Courtesy of the good celeb stalkers over at Celebrity-Gossip, principal stars of Marvel Studios' The Avengers, two of which costumed, have been spotted on the Central Park set in New York City. To be specific, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner are seen the below images.

Marvel's The Avengers picks up when an unexpected enemy emerges that threatens global safety and security. And Nick Fury, director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. With director Joss Whedon at it's helm, and an ensemble cast including Chris Evans (Steve Rogers), Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark), Chris Hemsworth (Thor Odinson), Jeremy Renner (Clint Barton), Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff), Clark Gregg (Agt. Phil Coulson), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), Samuel L.

strip for August / 25 / 2011

2011-08-30T13:10:00.000+01:00

strip for August / 25 / 2011:

Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ as a children’s book

2011-08-30T12:13:00.000+01:00

Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ as a children’s book:

Illustrations by Andrew Kolb

…

This capsule was curated by Stevyn Colgan

R-Type Coming to Android on September 12

2011-08-25T14:03:00.000+01:00

R-Type Coming to Android on September 12:

One of the all-time classic shoot-em-up games of the 80's, R-Type, is about to hit Android in the next few weeks. Those of you who grew up playing games on the Amiga, Atari, and Commodore 64 will undoubtedly be familiar with the title and its ridiculous amount of power-ups. According to the email we received, everything that went into the original version will be found in this new Android iteration, including the charge shot. If the idea of a direct 80's port doesn't get you excited, maybe OpenFeint integration and cross-platform leaderboards and achievements will. Look for R-Type on September 12th in the Android Market!

R-Type Coming to Android on September 12 originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

Video: OK Go covers The Muppets

2011-08-24T21:14:00.000+01:00

Video: OK Go covers The Muppets:

Please enjoy this video of OK Go covering "The Muppet Show Theme Song." (Thanks, Lisa Mumbach!)

Samsung cites Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' movie as prior art against iPad design patent

2011-08-23T22:45:00.000+01:00

Samsung cites Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' movie as prior art against iPad design patent:

Late last night, Samsung filed its opposition brief to Apple's motion for a preliminary injunction in the United States. The main part of Samsung's opposition brief has not yet entered the public record because they filed it under seal. I hope to see a redacted version later today. Samsung has also filed extensive declarations with numerous exhibits, and those documents already give an idea of what Samsung's defense strategy against Apple's motion is.

One element of Samsung's defense strategy is interesting enough that I wanted to report on it beforehand. Ever since Apple started to assert the design of the iPad against other manufacturers, many people have been wondering whether there's actually prior art for the general design of the iPad in some futuristic devices shown in sci-fi movies and TV series. And indeed, Samsung's lawyers make this claim now in their defense against Apple's motion for a preliminary injunction.

The following image shows the content of page 2 of an exhibit filed by Samsung with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (click to enlarge):

This is how the related declaration explains why this movie picture is valid prior art for a certain iPad-related design patent:

Attached hereto as Exhibit D is a true and correct copy of a still image taken from Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film "2001: A Space Odyssey." In a clip from that film lasting about one minute, two astronauts are eating and at the same time using personal tablet computers. The clip can be downloaded online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQ8pQVDyaLo. As with the design claimed by the D’889 Patent, the tablet disclosed in the clip has an overall rectangular shape with a dominant display screen, narrow borders, a predominately flat front surface, a flat back surface (which is evident because the tablets are lying flat on the table's surface), and a thin form factor.

I also watched that movie years ago. I wouldn't call myself a fan, but I think it's a good film. Admittedly, I had forgotten about those tablet computers shown in it.

It would be amazing if the court agreed with Samsung that this constitutes prior art for that particular iPad-related design patent. Whether or not Samsung will succeed, the mere fact that they proffer this kind of evidence is remarkable and will be exciting for many fans of movies in general -- and of that movie in particular -- to find out about.

If you'd like to be updated on the smartphone patent disputes and other intellectual property matters I cover, please subscribe to my RSS feed (in the right-hand column) and/or follow me on Twitter @FOSSpatents and Google+.

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Developers Start Your Engines, Preview of Google TV add-on now Available for Android SDK

2011-08-23T13:18:00.000+01:00

Developers Start Your Engines, Preview of Google TV add-on now Available for Android SDK:

Great news for Google TV owners and developers alike. Those promises of the Android Market on your Google TV have just received a huge kick towards reality. In preparation for a soon-to-come Honeycomb update, developers can now download a preview of the Google TV add-on for the Android SDK. While the add-on doesn't contain all features of Google TV it will allow developers a head start in getting their apps ready for Google TV.

The add-on provides all the tools necessary for app development, emulation (only on Linux with KVM) and testing. The Google TV add-on includes new API's for TV interaction along with a few online publications to help make the app transition as painless as possible. The UI guidelines have some excellent tips along with a few simple reminders such as "TVs are always in landscape." Want to make sure your app gets listed in the Android Market for Google TV? Then you're going to want to read the "Feature Support in Google TV" section for instructions on how to specify that your application does not require full touchscreen support.

Just thinking about Honeycomb and the Android Market on my TV makes me salivate. The faster developers get started on creating and porting their Android apps to Google TV the better. Google TV is about to be resurrected very soon so all you sad faces out there that missed out on the HP TouchPad deal, you now know what to do with that extra $99 dollars --- can you say Logitech Revue!

Source: Google TV Blog via Phandroid

Developers Start Your Engines, Preview of Google TV add-on now Available for Android SDK originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

New pictures from Doctor Who series 6 part 2

2011-08-23T10:38:00.000+01:00

New pictures from Doctor Who series 6 part 2:

What's in store in the weeks ahead for Doctor Who fans? The latest pictures from the BBC offer a few hints...

Doctor Who finally returns to our screens this Saturday night with the first episode of series six part two, Let's Kill Hitler. Beyond that, though, there are five more episodes to look forward to, and the latest collection of pictures released by the BBC offer some hints as to what's to come.

The usual drill applies: click on any of them to make them bigger. And our spoiler-filled Let's Kill Hitler review will be live, as usual, on Saturday night. Our spoiler-free take on the episode is here.

Follow Den Of Geek on Twitter right here. And be our Facebook chum here.

Apple’s Evidence in Galaxy Tab Injunction Case may have been Flawed

2011-08-15T21:47:00.000+01:00

Apple’s Evidence in Galaxy Tab Injunction Case may have been Flawed: "

New light has been shed on a sketchy side-by-side comparison photo Apple submitted as evidence in the court case that resulted in an injunction against Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in Europe. The photo, meant to demonstrate the similarity between the two tablets, shows a stretched photo of the Galaxy Tab 10.1, resulting in a much more similar appearance between the two tablets.

Apple’s filing for a preliminary injunction on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 in a German court, effectively banned the Android tablet from being imported to all of Europe. An investigation by Webwereld.nl found modified photos of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 had been submitted to the court as evidence which gave the appearance of a much stronger similarity between Apple and Samsung’s devices.

Apple’s iPad 2 has an aspect ratio of 1.30, while the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 has a noticeably wider aspect ratio of 1.46. In the image submitted, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 was stretched to have an apparent aspect ratio of 1.36. 8% wider than the actual device, and much closer to the iPad 2. I won’t even start on the fact the Galaxy Tab 10.1 was displayed in vertical orientation (while horizontal is the default for Android tablets).

This new evidence could be a game changer, in Samsung’s favor. Since Apple was the only one able to submit evidence in the filing due to its nature, the truth of the evidence presented takes on particular importance. Hopefully this will lead to Europe getting the same awesome tablet we’re still allowed to enjoy over here.

[via SlashGear]

)

Supercharging Android: Google to Acquire Motorola Mobility

2011-08-15T12:45:00.000+01:00

Supercharging Android: Google to Acquire Motorola Mobility: "

Since its launch in November 2007, Android has not only dramatically increased consumer choice but also improved the entire mobile experience for users. Today, more than 150 million Android devices have been activated worldwide—with over 550,000 devices now lit up every day—through a network of about 39 manufacturers and 231 carriers in 123 countries. Given Android’s phenomenal success, we are always looking for new ways to supercharge the Android ecosystem. That is why I am so excited today to announce that we have agreed to acquire Motorola.

Motorola has a history of over 80 years of innovation in communications technology and products, and in the development of intellectual property, which have helped drive the remarkable revolution in mobile computing we are all enjoying today. Its many industry milestones include the introduction of the world’s first portable cell phone nearly 30 years ago, and the StarTAC—the smallest and lightest phone on earth at time of launch. In 2007, Motorola was a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance that worked to make Android the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. I have loved my Motorola phones from the StarTAC era up to the current DROIDs.

In 2008, Motorola bet big on Android as the sole operating system across all of its smartphone devices. It was a smart bet and we’re thrilled at the success they’ve achieved so far. We believe that their mobile business is on an upward trajectory and poised for explosive growth.

Motorola is also a market leader in the home devices and video solutions business. With the transition to Internet Protocol, we are excited to work together with Motorola and the industry to support our partners and cooperate with them to accelerate innovation in this space.

Motorola’s total commitment to Android in mobile devices is one of many reasons that there is a natural fit between our two companies. Together, we will create amazing user experiences that supercharge the entire Android ecosystem for the benefit of consumers, partners and developers everywhere.

This acquisition will not change our commitment to run Android as an open platform. Motorola will remain a licensee of Android and Android will remain open. We will run Motorola as a separate business. Many hardware partners have contributed to Android’s success and we look forward to continuing to work with all of them to deliver outstanding user experiences.

We recently explained how companies including Microsoft and Apple are banding together in anti-competitive patent attacks on Android. The U.S. Department of Justice had to intervene in the results of one recent patent auction to “protect competition and innovation in the open source software community” and it is currently looking into the results of the Nortel auction. Our acquisition of Motorola will increase competition by strengthening Google’s patent portfolio, which will enable us to better protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies.

The combination of Google and Motorola will not only supercharge Android, but will also enhance competition and offer consumers accelerating innovation, greater choice, and wonderful user experiences. I am confident that these great experiences will create huge value for shareholders.

I look forward to welcoming Motorolans to our family of Googlers.

Posted by Larry Page, CEO

Games in Google+: fun that fits your schedule

2011-08-11T21:36:00.000+01:00

Games in Google+: fun that fits your schedule: "My family has a games closet. Inside you’ll find a few decks of cards, two decades’ worth of board games and a Twister mat for those times when we’re feeling limber. Playing games is a great way for us to spend quality time with each other (and a little healthy competition never hurt anyone either).

Today we’re adding games to Google+. With the Google+ project, we want to bring the nuance and richness of real-life sharing to the web. But sharing is about more than just conversations. The experiences we have together are just as important to our relationships. We want to make playing games online just as fun, and just as meaningful, as playing in real life.

That means giving you control over when you see games, how you play them and with whom you share your experiences. Games in Google+ are there when you want them and gone when you don’t.

When you’re ready to play, the Games page is waiting—click the games button at the top of your stream. You can see the latest game updates from your circles, browse the invites you’ve received and check out games that people you know have played recently. The Games page is also where your game accomplishments will appear. So you can comfortably share your latest high score—your circles will only see the updates when they’re interested in playing games too.

If you’re not interested in games, it’s easy to ignore them. Your stream will remain focused on conversations with the people you care about.

You’ll have a fun initial set of games to play with on Google+. Thanks to the developers who’ve worked with us to make them available:

If you’re a developer interested in building games for Google+, you can learn more on our new Google+ developer blog.

Today we’re starting to gradually roll out games in Google+. We look forward to making them fully available to everyone in Google+ soon. When you see a Games page in your account, please give games a try and send us feedback. Look for the 'send feedback' button in the bottom right-hand corner of any page in Google+. Thanks for playing! Like the rest of the Google+ project, we're just getting started.

Posted by Vic Gundotra, Senior Vice President, Engineering

Clever Girl: Facebook Lets You Export Friends’ Email Addresses, But Makes It Opt-In

2011-08-11T20:34:00.000+01:00

Clever Girl: Facebook Lets You Export Friends’ Email Addresses, But Makes It Opt-In: "

It’s now possible to export your Facebook social graph. Your real social graph, complete with your friends’ emails, which means you can leave Facebook and import your social network into a rival site.

But only if your friends opt into it. And they won’t.

Facebook has quietly added a new feature to its Account Settings page, giving users the option to “Allow friends to include my email address in Download Your Information“. Check it, and the next time your friend decides to download an archive of their Facebook data, they’ll get your email address too so they can stay in touch.

It’s an ingenious move on Facebook’s part that will help undermine arguments that it is holding users’ data hostage, while simultaneously ensuring that it keeps a firm grip on its massively valuable social graph.

There’s a lot of history involved here, so let’s take a look back.

‘Download Your Information‘ is a feature that launched last fall, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: click it, and within a few hours you’ll receive an archive of your photos, status updates, and list of friends. Up until now that list of friends has been quite literal — it’s a list of your friends’ names, with no accompanying email address or contact information. Which means it’s effectively useless to other services that would love nothing better than to import your social graph. Like, say, Google.

Last fall, Google and Facebook engaged in a very public slap fight over contact data. Google struck first, blocking Facebook from importing users’ Google address books because Facebook wasn’t letting contact data flow the other direction. Which meant that Google would have a much harder time rebuilding the social graph when it launched what eventually became Google+.

Facebook’s argument was that your friends shouldn’t necessarily have the right to import your email address into another service. Which didn’t really make sense, because Facebook users can already export all of their friends’ email addresses to Yahoo Mail (and only Yahoo Mail). Then again, Google’s argument that users should be able to export their friends’ email addresses didn’t really make sense, because it previously made a nearly an identical case about data ownership when it blocked Facebook’s ability to import data from Orkut.

Anyway, hypocrisy aside, the underlying motivations for both companies are obvious enough. Google wants Facebook’s social graph (in part because Facebook’s already sucked so much data out of Google Contacts) and Facebook doesn’t want to give it to them.

Which brings us back to today’s launch. This small checkbox is perfectly in line with Facebook’s argument that users should have control over their data. And when people (or Google) complain that they can’t export their friends’ email addresses, Facebook can say it’s not because it’s holding them hostage — it’s that users simply aren’t interested in sharing that data.

But, again, Facebook knows full well that most people aren’t going to go digging through settings to check that box. Many of them probably don’t know the ‘Download Your Information’ option exists, and they certainly haven’t put much thought into whether their friends should be able to download their email address as part of that archive. The box isn’t checked, and it’ll stay that way.

Also worth noting: Facebook hasn’t been shy about automatically opting users into new features by default (Instant Personalization, anyone?), and yet it’s taken the ‘safe’ route here by making it opt-in. I’m sure Facebook would argue that they’ve learned from their past mistakes. Or maybe it just has absolutely no incentive to help people export their social graph.

We’ve reached out to Facebook for a statement.

Crunchbase

FACEBOOK

Company:

FACEBOOK

Website:

http://facebook.com

Launch Date:

1/2/2004

Funding:

$2.34B

Facebook is the world’s largest social network, with over 500 million users.

Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg in February 2004, initially as an exclusive network for Harvard students. It...

Learn more

Cory Doctorow: Android and iOS both fail, but Android fails better

2011-08-09T11:53:00.000+01:00

Cory Doctorow: Android and iOS both fail, but Android fails better:

How well a system works is only half the picture: the other half is how badly it fails

My recent review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Android tablet stirred up a dreary and inevitable round of OS advocacy and such, with both Apple and Android lovers baying like wounded members of persecuted religious minorities, arguing about which OS is most worthy of our love and devotion.

For me, no love or devotion is due to an operating system or a gadget.

I'm enough of an old technology hand to know that any love we harbour for our gadgets is unrequited and generally tragic – not least because you are not destined to have a long-term love-affair with your gizmos, as they will be semi-obsolete in a year or two.

Don't get me wrong. I know that some devices, apps and systems can work well – that is, they can make it easier to do something that was hard, or possible to do something that was impossible. That's why we all use this stuff. But I think that how well a system works is only half the picture: the other half is how badly it fails.

Because technology fails all the time. Networked, general-purpose computing devices have so many different failure modes that they can hardly be counted. Your phone or tablet can have problems coping with something as abstract as bad Maximum Transmission Unit sizes in its network connection, or as concrete as being dropped and trodden on by your toddler.

A program that runs flawlessly one day can be derailed by another program, or an OS update, or a mysterious configuration problem – hence the old 'Rename your preferences folder and restart' diagnostic procedure.

The general state of technology is to be broken; which is not so different from other complex systems, like technology's users. You might have lost a pre-beach holiday stone thanks to diet and exercise, only to get a spot on your cheek, bad traffic on the way to the airport, a row with your spouse, and a jammed knuckle from your suitcase handle. Human beings who can soldier on and stay happy and functional in the face of adversity are said to be 'resilient,' which means that they fail well.

After all, it's no good being the world's happiest, best-adjusted, nicest person if you fall to pieces the minute you get a paper-cut. And that goes double for interpersonal systems: any couple can be happy when everything is going right, but no marriage can survive unless both of its participants are capable of soldiering on when things are going pear-shaped.

I don't use Android tablets and phones because I hate Apple; I most certainly don't use them because I love Google. And I don't prefer Android to iOS because it works better than Apple — in some aspects, it does, in some aspects it doesn't.

I use Android because I don't trust Google. Sure, I trust and like individual googlers, and admire many of the things the company has managed – but I don't for one moment think that Google's management is making its decisions in order to make me happy, fulfilled and free.

I think there are good days when Google's management might believe that helping me attain those ends will make it more money, but if it were to believe that making me miserable would enrich its shareholders without alienating too many of its key personnel and partners, my happiness would cease to matter in the slightest.

So why use Android? Because it requires less trust in Google than using iOS requires that you trust Apple. iOS has one official store, and it's illegal in most places to buy and install apps except through this store. If you and Apple differ about which apps you need, you have to break the law to get your iPhone or iPad to run the app that Apple rejected.

Jailbroken iOS devices have sometimes been targeted by Apple security updates that render them inoperable, and jailbreakers have a reputation for not keeping their devices up-to-date.

By contrast, Android allows you to run apps from any store you choose. Google still rejects plenty of apps submitted to its store, but if you don't like Google's choices, you can decide to make some of your own.

That's failing well.

More of the internal workings of iOS are secret than their equivalent workings in the Android world. Apple's operating system runs more DRM processes that are intended to allow code to run that treats you as an untrusted adversary and refuses to accept your commands. Not least, Apple has to run all those processes aimed at stopping you from choosing to use an app that Apple hasn't blessed (and collected its 30% commission on).

I prefer Android because it's relative openness means more people can and do inspect its workings to ensure it is doing what Google claims it is doing. I prefer Android because when Google decides to leave out a feature that users might want – such as tethering – the people making alternative OSes for the platform stick that feature in, and shame Google into adding it in subsequent versions.

My mobile phone can track where I go. It can record my voice and image, and the voices and images of those around me. It can leak email, voicemail, texts, and passwords. In the time since I've gotten a mobile phone, each passing year has meant that I rely on my phone for more things, and I don't expect that will change.

Android and iOS will both fail their users in the years to come. Not a lot, but often enough, and dramatically enough, that it's worth ensuring that those failures are as minimal as possible.

I'd like an official Android version without the DRM, with complete source code, and with generally greater transparency into the device and its ecosystem. I like the alternative Android OS, CyanogenMod, because it has many of those things. Functionally, a CyanogenMod Android phone and a stock Android phone work in much the same way, but CyanogenMod phones fail better.

Our relationship to technology is this: We've jammed ourselves into the cockpits of supersonic jets that are being constantly redesigned as they hurtle around the planet, in dangerously close proximity to everyone else's supersonic jet. It's good to pay attention to how fast our jets go, and how comfortable the upholstery is, but the thing we really need to keep our eyes on is what happens when they crack up, when their navigation systems go awry, and when they get a bad upgrade.

When you're moving that fast, with that much at stake, failure is much more important than success.

Cory Doctorow

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions

Is G+ Putting Facebook On The Defensive?

2011-08-08T10:03:00.000+01:00

Is G+ Putting Facebook On The Defensive?:

Editor’s note: This guest post is written by Tom Anderson, the former President, founder and first friend on MySpace. You can now find Tom on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

If it’s not obvious yet, Google+ is going to be able to “undercut” Facebook when it comes to game developers and platform transactions. Instead of taking a 30% cut of all Farmville seeds (or whatever people are buying), Google will be able to take a smaller percentage for themselves. They may even take nothing. And when it comes to “monetization” on the G+ “website,” Google’s trump card against Facebook is that we may never even see an ad on G+. Google has plenty to gain without ever showing an ad and, put simply, Google doesn’t need the money. Facebook’s got to know this, and it’s got to have them just a little bit concerned.

This week, the WSJ reported that FB is testing out a “real-time” feed (as opposed to Facebook’s current default “Top News” algorithm). Presumably this new feed would become the new norm for users. Though I’d like to think Facebook has been listening to me when I critique their Top News algorithm, what’s really moving Facebook’s hand here (according to the WSJ) are complaints by advertisers and app developers. It seems that the “Top News” stream is killing the virality of advertisers “content” and of apps that are trying to find new users.

If it’s true that FB is considering these changes because of complaining developers and advertisers, that’s a real bad sign for FB. Facebook has made some defensive moves since the launch of G+, which in itself is unusual for them. But this is the first indication they may kowtow to complaining third parties. (Hey, the IPO is coming… competition is heating up, it has to happen, right?) Making decisions informed by the concerns of these third-parties doesn’t automatically spell doom, of course. But Facebook has been so darn good for so long because of their refusal to IPO, their refusal to think about the short term, and their refusal to let one party’s needs overshadow the general health of the service. The tough thing for Facebook is that the larger you get, and the more competing interests you have to consider, the more difficult your choices become.

FB’s trouble may seem like a positive for G+, but it’s not that simple. It’s a virtual certainty that Google will launch a platform (and not just a games platform), but how they do this is critical. We don’t want a repeat of Facebook’s cycle—where FB promised the world to developers, gave them free reign to build the hype, then cut off their marketing channels and destroyed their businesses (an oversimplification yes, but read this harrowing tale from Paul Allen)—so G+ needs to carefully balance the needs of developers with the health of the overall community.

From what I can tell, the heads at G+ are aware of the delicate balance that’s needed here. Though they gaffed in the way they carried it out, Google’s decision to block business accounts indicates that Google understands they need a real plan here. Frankly, I’m surprised that no “regular users” have spoken up to say they don’t want brands on G+. Maybe that’s just because 80% of the active users on G+ work in the “Internet industry” (at least according to my unscientific poll), and thus have something to gain by letting “businesses” into the service . Would “regular users” be so happy about this? As Matt Hogan argues, it may not be the best idea to let businesses come in and muck up the place at the very beginning.

That said, what we may be seeing here is a general evolution of brand-user interaction to the point that users trust that it just can “work” (like Twitter, where you can follow brands, but they can’t really bug you).

Because of poor planning on my part, the regular-user / business relationship on MySpace was never quite right. Businesses wanted to be able to go around and add people on MySpace, and it was hard to tell them “no” because of they way MySpace evolved over time. Facebook was smart to make it impossible for “Pages” to add people & comment for the first few years. But they recently reversed that decision. Whether that turns out to be a good thing remains to be seen. (It’s an easier move to make for Facebook now when the “true” user base is already established, and Facebook has years of refining spam prevention algorithms under their belt.)

But whatever the case, both Google and Facebook have some tough decisions ahead of them: how do they balance what’s best for the regular guy (you & me), advertisers (big brands), small local businesses (who can never afford the big spend), platform developers with non-competing services (games & music, which it appears FB won’t get into) and platform developers with potentially competitive services (like business networking and dating, which FB/G+ may want to get into themselves someday).

Over the long haul (5-10 years), the company that makes the right choices in these areas may just end up winning.

Mac/PC

2011-08-05T09:05:00.000+01:00

Mac/PC: ""

A Guide to Google+ Privacy and Information Control [Google+]

2011-08-04T16:26:00.000+01:00

A Guide to Google+ Privacy and Information Control [Google+]: "

Google+ is the new social networking kid on the block, and one of the main reasons so many people are interested in the service over Facebook is Google+'s proclaimed focus on protecting users' privacy. Whether you're a new Google+ user or you're already a pro, understanding how to control your information on the site can make you feel much more at ease on the social network. Here's the lowdown on Google+'s privacy controls, including a few of the more buried settings you'll want to know about. More »

Warner Bros. Reveal Our First Look At Henry Cavill In Full Costume As Superman!

2011-08-04T14:46:00.000+01:00

Warner Bros. Reveal Our First Look At Henry Cavill In Full Costume As Superman!: "STARRING:

Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman
Amy Adams as Lois Lane
Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent
Diane Lane as Martha Kent
Michael Shannon as Zod

RELEASE DATE: June 14th, 2013."

Stormtroopers vs Redshirts [Comics]

2011-08-02T20:27:00.000+01:00

Stormtroopers vs Redshirts [Comics]:

(Shoeboxblog via Reddit)

Catch the London Underground with Google Maps

2011-07-28T09:20:00.000+01:00

Catch the London Underground with Google Maps: "(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog)

Starting today, you can get public transport directions for London within Google Maps. One of Europe’s largest metropolitan areas, London is a major destination for both business travelers and tourists. More than 1 billion passengers are serviced by Transport for London (TfL) every year across over 18,000 bus stops and over 250 Underground stations.

Let’s say you’re at Trafalgar Square, and you want to visit Madame Tussauds. With a simple directions search, you’ll see all the possible public transport connections. In Maps, click “Get directions” in the left-hand panel, and then the train icon to see public transport directions. Enter your departure location next to A, and your destination next to B. These can be either street addresses or names of popular places, businesses or restaurants. When you’re done, click the “Get directions” button and suggestions for your trip will appear below.

Public transport directions are available on both Google Maps and Google Maps for mobile, so you always have access to a trip planner. When you’re on mobile, Maps even uses your current location to determine the best trip to your destination. Just search for your destination location, select it on the map and choose the “Directions” option. The suggested trips will be based on your location by default, and provide you multiple alternatives whenever possible.

If you’re using an Android-powered device, you can also get public transport directions with Transit Navigation (Beta) in Google Maps. With this new feature, which we launched earlier this month, you’ll get alerts when it’s time to get off the bus or train at your destination or to make a transfer. Transit Navigation is available in all regions where public transport directions are available, including London.

TfL is among the first agencies in a major European city to make its timetable information publicly available through the London Datastore. We’re strong supporters of open data and bringing information out into the open, and believe that making information publicly accessible can be an enormous engine of economic growth and innovation. ITO World has been a great partner in this launch by ensuring TfL’s data was adapted correctly and ready for our use.

Public transport directions are available for all Underground, bus, tram and Docklands Light Railway (DLR) lines, and we’ll include more public transport information as soon as it’s available. Whether you use public transport every day or infrequently, as a commuter, on a business trip or as a tourist, we hope that public transport directions in London make planning your trips more convenient!

Posted by Thijs van As, Associate Product Manager, Transit Directions

Oracle Deletes Blog Post Showing CEO’s Approval of Java in Android

2011-07-27T12:10:00.000+01:00

Oracle Deletes Blog Post Showing CEO’s Approval of Java in Android: "

While I’m not going to jump into this story too deep I’ll start with linking to our Oracle Portal. You will find all the stories and background you need. Basically Oracle is suing Google for the use of Java code in the Android OS. We reported on this a while back and little bits and pieces have slowly appeared over the past few months.

While Oracle is claiming Google directly copied Java code for use in Android, others have said that story isn’t accurate. I’m sure there is plenty that the general public and even those working for both companies don’t know. It boils down to Oracle wanted a few billion dollars in return from Google for stealing code and infringing on patents.

Before these lawsuits even appeared this was already being debated so this wasn’t anything new or a surprise to Google. Back to the lawsuit, Even the judge thought the initial request for 2.6 billion in compensation for the patent infringements was a little extreme and suggested Oracle and their team of lawyers go back to the drawing boards for a more accurate claim.

Latest news that I’m just hearing looks to not only make Oracle look bad, but like they have something to hide and I’m sure the judge wont like how things appear. When Google first launched Android it seems Oracle and Sun were completely for it. Sun’s CEO posted a comment on their blog in 2007 stating how excited and pleased they were to see Google using the Java/Linux code and even added Google to the list of supporters. Here is the “deleted blog post”

I just wanted to add my voice to the chorus of others from Sun in offering my heartfelt congratulations to Google on the announcement of their new Java/Linux phone platform, Android. Congratulations!

I’d also like Sun to be the first platform software company to commit to a complete developer environment around the platform, as we throw Sun’s NetBeans developer platform for mobile devices behind the effort. We’ve obviously done a ton of work to support developers on all Java based platforms, and were pleased to add Google’s Android to the list.

And needless to say, Google and the Open Handset Alliance just strapped another set of rockets to the community’s momentum – and to the vision defining opportunity across our (and other) planets.

Today is an incredible day for the open source community, and a massive endorsement of two of the industry’s most prolific free software communities, Java and Linux.

If Oracle and Sun endorsed Android way back when it first launched and fully were aware of what Google was using this could cause a huge problem for their case. And now they go out and delete the blog post like they’ve got something to hide could make things even worse. I’ve not followed this entire case but I’ve read enough to clearly see things aren’t completely lining up and they are now simply trying to snag some of the Android cash flow.

[via Phandroid]

)

UK Storm Trooper armourer can go on selling his gear; Brit copyright on Star Wars costumes has lapsed

2011-07-27T11:50:00.000+01:00

UK Storm Trooper armourer can go on selling his gear; Brit copyright on Star Wars costumes has lapsed: "

Andrew Ainsworth is a Londoner who designed the original Storm Trooper helmets for George Lucas’s Star Wars. Ainsworth has been casting new armour from his original moulds for the past eight years, selling them to fans at up to £1,800 a throw. Lucas sued Ainsworth in a US court, which held that he had violated Lucas’s copyright; but because Ainsworth has no US assets, Lucas had to bring suit in the UK to collect. However, UK law affords only limited copyright to costumes, and the UK Supreme Court held that costumes are not sculptures, and only get a 15 year term of copyright in the UK, meaning that Storm Trooper armour is now in the public domain in Britain. The court also found that Ainsworth had violated US copyright.

Mr Ainsworth sells his Stormtrooper costumes for up to £1,800

A prop designer who made the original Stormtrooper helmets for Star Wars has won his battle with director George Lucas over his right to sell replicas.

Andrew Ainsworth, 62, of south London, successfully argued the costumes were functional not artistic works, and so not subject to full copyright laws.

George Lucas loses Stormtrooper battle at Supreme Court

(Thanks, @erichhugo!)

SDCC: The Avengers Concept Art Assembled!

2011-07-25T08:03:00.000+01:00

SDCC: The Avengers Concept Art Assembled!: "

The highly-anticipated May 4, 2012 release

Google+ Now Available for iPhone [Downloads]

2011-07-19T17:54:00.000+01:00

Google+ Now Available for iPhone [Downloads]: "

Google+ is now available on your iPhone so you can use the social network natively on your device. It provides access to your circles, stream, profile, and more. You can upload photos, check your stream, interact with others, and do much of what you'd expect to do with Google+ on your iPhone. Notably missing is the hang outs feature, so no video conferencing via your iDevice just yet. Hopefully that's something Google can add soon. More »