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		<title>Flying High: The Advanced Features of iCloud</title>
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		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/ipad/flying-high-the-advanced-features-of-icloud/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2012 18:00:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[iPad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iPhone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mac & PC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple tv]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[guide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iCloud]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://d-ink.co.uk/?p=985</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So welcome to the second part in our iCloud walkthrough, detailing how you can get the most out of Apple&#8217;s free online storage solution. If you&#8217;re reading this, then you probably already make use of iCloud and are contemplating utilising this handy tool further. As mentioned in a earlier post focusing on the basics of [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/banh5mzC18OE8o4iuj--lNV_GNA/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/banh5mzC18OE8o4iuj--lNV_GNA/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/banh5mzC18OE8o4iuj--lNV_GNA/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/banh5mzC18OE8o4iuj--lNV_GNA/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>So welcome to the second part in our iCloud walkthrough, detailing how you can get the most out of Apple&#8217;s free online storage solution. If you&#8217;re reading this, then you probably already make use of iCloud and are contemplating utilising this handy tool further. As mentioned in a earlier post focusing on the basics of iCloud, you should at least turn on the incredible ‘Find my iPhone’ feature which allows you to find <em>any</em> of your iCloud enabled Apple devices in case of the unfortunate.</p>
<h2>Photo Stream</h2>
<p>One of the first goals of iCloud was to make wires as unnecessary as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floppy_disk">floppy disks</a> in this digital age. Despite Apple devices being designed top to bottom for seamless integration, they still needed two things for this to transpire, wires and syncing.</p>
<p>Before Photo Stream, each of your iDevices had to be plugged into your personal computer in order to make a copy of your favorite snaps to edit and admire. Now each photo taken from your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch will jump straight to the visible mass of condensed water vapor in the sky as soon as it detects a internet connection. Stored online are the last 1,000 photos which are then downloaded and available on any of your devices, including your Mac via iPhoto or Aperture.</p>
<h2>Documents &amp; Data</h2>
<p>To ensure your personal documents are also available on multiple devices, iCloud uploads a copy to distribute and update them across all devices, making sure you have the most recent version to hand. So your documents, spreadsheets and presentations will be stored and shared on the cloud, directly from Apples iWork trio, consisting of Pages, Numbers and Keynote. Apple&#8217;s equivalent to Microsoft Office for iDevices is as good a document processor you will find, allowing you to create, edit and share full documents straight from an iPad or iPhone, with all files fully compatible with Windows.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, every silver lining must have a cloud, and the downside to this feature is your files aren’t transferred to you Mac or PC. Instead they are stored at iCloud.com, meaning you must login and download the newest version, and upload the newest update to ensure everything is up to date.</p>
<h2>iTunes Match</h2>
<p>One of the biggest changes to iTunes since the introduction of movies is now iTunes Match. Previously, every song downloaded from the iTunes Store was available to download on all of your devices, so if you had forgotten your favourite Lady Gaga album on the move with your iPhone, you could still download it if you already bought it. Fantastic, but if most songs were taken from CD’s or downloaded from extremely questionable sites, you were left in the dark.<a href="http://d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/itunes-match.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-988 alignright" src="http://d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/itunes-match-300x189.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="189" /></a></p>
<p>iTunes match changed that all for the low cost of £21.99. Paying this fee meant all of your music was ‘matched’ to the same on the iTunes store (and upgraded to higher quality if it is of poor condition) and allowed your favourite tunes to be downloaded to all your devices. Happy days.</p>
<h2>Apple TV</h2>
<p>So you want to make the most out of the little black box underneath your TV? iCloud can also enable your Apple TV to jump into the stratosphere to connect to your digital lifestyle. Available without the need of any computer or iDevice on your Apple TV are Photo Stream and iTunes Match. So the last 1,000 photos are there for browsing and appreciating constantly, allowing you to check the newest holiday snaps without so much as a wire.</p>
<p>Signing up to iTunes Match will also equip your TV with all of your iTunes songs streamed straight from the iTunes Store. Simple.</p>
<h2>Developers</h2>
<p>The last and maybe one of the most important aspects of iCloud is that it is available to the developers who make your favourite App. Tired of completing your favourite game on your iPhone only to have to start again on your iPad? Fed up with backing up to dropbox manually to make sure your diary or data is kept in sync? As more and more developers jump on the band wagon more of your Apps will keep themselves all organised and updated between your devices, its a bright future.</p>
<p>A great example of iCloud at work is found in the app, &#8216;<a href="http://dayoneapp.com/">Day One</a>&#8216;. This beautiful journal app uses iCloud to ensure that when you update your journal on your iPhone, the results are instantly shared with the Mac and iPad versions of the app. Every entry is synced flawlessly between all devices.</p>
<p>So that about sums it up for the features and highlights of Apple&#8217;s very own iCloud. Once again we hope you have found the following guide helpful, but if there are any questions or further topics you would like to read about then please get in contact with us here at Dink. Want to know how the iCloud integrates with Windows? Having trouble setting up Time Machine? Leave us a message in the comments section or contact us at Twitter and Facebook, so we can help you out with all your tech questions.</p>
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		<title>Flying High: Beginners Guide to iCloud</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/TdusBCEAQQs/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/ipad/flying-high-beginners-guide-to-icloud/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 11 Feb 2012 09:30:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[iPad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iPhone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mac & PC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[guide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iCloud]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sync]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=948</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With the release of iOS 5 and Mac OSX Lion last year, Apple ushered in a new age of digital computing with its free iCloud service. But with a lot to offer for beginners and experts alike, it comes down to yourself to guarantee your getting the most from it. What is iCloud? From the ashes of Apple&#8217;s less advertised and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/ytNngqq8IkqjYsgdvgdAXjJiBpw/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/ytNngqq8IkqjYsgdvgdAXjJiBpw/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/ytNngqq8IkqjYsgdvgdAXjJiBpw/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/ytNngqq8IkqjYsgdvgdAXjJiBpw/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>With the release of iOS 5 and Mac OSX Lion last year, Apple ushered in a new age of digital computing with its free iCloud service. But with a lot to offer for beginners and experts alike, it comes down to yourself to guarantee your getting the most from it.</p>
<h2>What is iCloud?</h2>
<p>From the ashes of Apple&#8217;s less advertised and flawed MobileMe service comes iCloud. The new feature giving Apple&#8217;s combined devices true unity and seamless integration, all performed wirelessly without the touch of a screen needed. Offering flawless syncing of contacts, calenders, notes, photos, documents and more, chucking them in the cloud making them available solely to you at iCloud.com. There really is no excuse to ignore this free service, offering incredible opportunities.</p>
<p><img class="size-medium wp-image-970 alignright" style="border-style: initial; border-color: initial;" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/photo-208x300.jpg" alt="" width="208" height="300" /></p>
<h2>The Basics</h2>
<p>To enable iCloud on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, all you need is to be on the latest operating system iOS 5, offered as a free download from iTunes. To enable it on your Mac, you only need to install OSX Lion, for only £21.99 directly from the Mac App Store, or Vista for a PC. Once updated, if you have ever downloaded a single Application or iTunes track then you have all you need to get started, an Apple ID. This ID is actually your email address, and the one you use to access all of your Apple media from the iTunes or App Store. Simply sign in on any device under the iCloud setting with the same Apple ID, to sync everything together.</p>
<h2>The Bare Necessities</h2>
<p>The single reason that makes iCloud a absolute must is the &#8216;Find my iPad&#8217; feature, also called &#8216;Find my iPhone/iPod/Mac&#8217; depending on which device is in use. It allows you to find the location of any of these Apple products from any computer around the world at iCloud.com. From here you can wipe the device to protect any data, send a message, or lock the device preventing use. To any accident prone or forgetful iOS users, this is essential. Besides this by flipping a switch in the iCloud settings you can also back up your iPad, iPod Touch or iPhone to the iCloud, allowing you to restore any information in case a software restore is needed, or if you are receiving a replacement iPad.</p>
<h2>Wireless is the New Wired&#8230;.</h2>
<p>The next way iCloud shines is by keeping all of your information up to date. Contacts, calendars, reminders, bookmarks and notes, will all be synced across your devices without you ever lifting a finger. Adding a contact to your iPhone will cause it to be updated or added on your iPad or Mac instantaneously. What&#8217;s more, this feature is available to App developers, meaning your favourite game saves could soon be shared across all devices and updated on the go, allowing you to switch between your favourite Apple products without wasting a single moment of game time.</p>
<p>So there you have the basics of the iCloud, allowing you to get the most out of your iDevice. Following soon will be more information into iCloud, including some advanced features to even launch your Apple TV up into the stratosphere. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/dinkcouk">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/D-ink/246979928666131">Facebook</a> and with our <a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/feed/">RSS feeds</a> to stay up to date with Dink, or even request a tutorial on your most painful tech problems.</p>
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		<title>Screen Protectors: Necessity or Nuisance?</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/p_A0q6wZweg/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/iphone/accessories/screen-protectors-necessity-or-nuisance/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:31:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Accessories]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[damage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[protect]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[screen]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=960</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Ever since I bought my first iPhone back in the summer of 2008, one accessory that has always been on my list is the screen protector. A simple, thin layer of film that neatly sits over the top of your screen and as the name suggests protects it! After upgrading to a new iPhone each [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/2ZG9mwNgUpaY1Ap27HKwi9y15eM/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/2ZG9mwNgUpaY1Ap27HKwi9y15eM/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/2ZG9mwNgUpaY1Ap27HKwi9y15eM/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/2ZG9mwNgUpaY1Ap27HKwi9y15eM/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>Ever since I bought my first iPhone back in the summer of 2008, one accessory that has always been on my list is the screen protector. A simple, thin layer of film that neatly sits over the top of your screen and as the name suggests protects it!</p>
<p>After upgrading to a new iPhone each year, I&#8217;ve happily been able to sell my old phone on with ease. It has always amazed me when removing the screen protector to see just how much damage the protector sustains.</p>
<p>For 4 years, I&#8217;ve been using these protectors and recommending them to friends as a must, until today.</p>
<p>Recently my screen protector, as they inevitably do, started to peel off, allowing bubbles to form and hair and dirt to build up beneath. So I bit the bullet and removed the protector &#8211; what a great choice.</p>
<p>Having removed the extra layer of plastic between me and my retina display, I am now able to view crystal clear apps in full 326 pixel per inch goodness. It is actually amazing how much the screen protector reduced my viewing experience of the new retina-enabled devices.</p>
<h2>The Pros of Using a Screen Protector</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/photo1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-961" title="screen protectors" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/photo1-e1328730596681.jpg" alt="screen protectors" width="598" height="359" /></a>The image above is the screen protector that I have used (up until a few days ago!) on my current iPhone 4. Although it is difficult to see in the image, the protector is full of micro abrasions and scratches. This brings us on to the benefits of screen protectors &#8211; they stop scratches!</p>
<p>There is a few things to consider however. The glass on the new iPhones is much more durable than previous versions and definitely a lot more durable than a flimsy bit of plastic! This means that although the screen protectors above looks pretty beat up, it doesn&#8217;t accurately represent the damage that might have been caused to my iPhone without it.</p>
<p>As long as you don&#8217;t keep your phone in your pocket along with your keys &#8211; then you&#8217;re actually quite <em>unlikely</em> to damage the screen that much.</p>
<p>The only reason I can think of using a screen protector now, is if I were going to sell it on. But with mobile phone recycling companies popping up left, right and centre, it is now even easier than ever to sell on your phone &#8211; aesthetically impaired or not.</p>
<p>This is a call to all of you with screen protectors &#8211; take them off! Enjoy the iPhone as it was meant to be!</p>
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		<title>The Potential of Kaz Hirai and Sony</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/mdA_vfGIF5c/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/gaming/the-potential-of-kaz-hirai-and-sony/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:10:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Gaming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CEO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kazuo Hirai]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[playstation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sony]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=916</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Kazuo &#8216;Kaz&#8217; Hirai started working for Sony in 1984. Since then he has constantly risen through the ranks and eventually joined Sony Computer Entertainment America in 1995 and contributed to the rise and success of the original PlayStation brand and the console itself. After years more of continuous service and representing the Sony brand it [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/9459tPPq3f-rykM0kAzxvsMnDR0/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/9459tPPq3f-rykM0kAzxvsMnDR0/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/9459tPPq3f-rykM0kAzxvsMnDR0/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/9459tPPq3f-rykM0kAzxvsMnDR0/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>Kazuo &#8216;Kaz&#8217; Hirai started working for Sony in 1984. Since then he has constantly risen through the ranks and eventually joined Sony Computer Entertainment America in 1995 and contributed to the rise and success of the original PlayStation brand and the console itself. After years more of continuous service and representing the Sony brand it has been recently announced he will be promoted to CEO of Sony Corporation on the 1st of April. Despite the choice of date, hopefully he won&#8217;t be branded any kind of fool in the near future.</p>
<p>Past years have been cruel to some of the strongest of organisations, and Sony are no exception. Continual losses and share tumblings have sent the company revenue and value spiralling in recent years. But if there is one shining light at the end of the &#8216;bullet train&#8217; tunnel it is Kaz.</p>
<h2>A Breath of Fresh Air?</h2>
<p>What Sony needs is a breath of fresh air, to revitalise their product lines and make themselves stand out in a way thats been missing for almost a decade. Many of Sonys failures could be partly attributed to their lack of organisation. During the pre iTunes and iPod era, Sony had extreme difficulty pulling there resources together to create a competing music player and online music store, with many divisions creating individual flawed products. Worried about being outdone by other divisions this led to fierce rivalry and secrecy between colleagues that should of instead been pulling together.</p>
<p>In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal Kaz has said the following regarding the separated divisions;</p>
<div class="pullquote-wrapper right">
<div class="pullquote adelle">&#8220;We&#8217;re going to tell you what you are going to make—not the other way around, this is a complete sea change.&#8221;</div>
</div>
<h2>A Future Hope</h2>
<p>If theres a small hope that Sony begins producing truly unique and innovated products, it all rests in the hands of Kaz. Already planned are shake ups and corporate changes all designed to produce new innovations to more closely compete with other tech giants.</p>
<p>&#8220;We really need to buckle down and be realistic, I don&#8217;t think everybody is on board, but I think people are coming around to the idea that if we don&#8217;t turn this around, we could be sitting in some serious trouble.&#8221;</p>
<p>I don&#8217;t think anybody could have said it better, and CEOs are not usually so honest. I hope things do turn around, for Sony&#8217;s sake as well as everybody else&#8217;s.</p>
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		<title>Mass Effect Propels Itself onto iOS</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/Dvmayjj-Ub4/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/ipad/mass-effect-propels-itself-onto-ios/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:30:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[iPad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iPhone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mobile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[breaking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ios]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mass effect]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spotlight]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=934</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It was announced moments ago that the incredibly popular Mass Effect series will be making a return to the iOS platform soon. The game dubbed &#8216;Mass Effect Infiltrator&#8216; will be a third person shooter, tying in directly with your own Mass Effect 3 storyline, potentially altering events and changing the shape of the galaxy in the wake [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/nG_159M1D9npyo7oxqWu1trlD6c/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/nG_159M1D9npyo7oxqWu1trlD6c/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/nG_159M1D9npyo7oxqWu1trlD6c/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/nG_159M1D9npyo7oxqWu1trlD6c/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>It was announced moments ago that the incredibly popular Mass Effect series will be making a return to the iOS platform soon. The game dubbed &#8216;<strong>Mass Effect Infiltrator</strong>&#8216; will be a third person shooter, tying in directly with your own Mass Effect 3 storyline, potentially altering events and changing the shape of the galaxy in the wake of the fierce Reapers.</p>
<p>Players will assume the role of a infiltrator inside a Cerberus prison, releasing prisoners and unlocking weapons that carry straight across to Mass Effect 3 to help continue your fight as Commander Shepard.</p>
<p>This isn&#8217;t EA&#8217;s first foray into recreating the Mass Effect universe on iOS devices, with Mass Effect Galaxy released back in 2009. It failed to live up to the exciting vision of the console outings, instead opting for a top down shooter with animated cut scenes. The change in gameplay will serve as a relief to hardcore fans and hopefully Mass Effect Infiltrator will be a game deserving of its place in a phenomenal trilogy.</p>
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		<title>The Condition of the UK Games Industry</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/eP5TaAxjR6Y/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/gaming/the-condition-of-the-uk-games-industry/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:52:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Gaming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[game]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[market]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[preowned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[trade in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UK]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=870</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With signs of the recession still looming around and with Christmas sales expectations under-whelming, its no surprise the UK&#8217;s game industry is facing challenging times. But what exactly is going on? The following touches along some, out of the hundreds, of the factors shaping how we buy and play games. The Situation With big blockbusters [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/IT07Wv1M-j3uizvd7-srv7xSpEo/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/IT07Wv1M-j3uizvd7-srv7xSpEo/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/IT07Wv1M-j3uizvd7-srv7xSpEo/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/IT07Wv1M-j3uizvd7-srv7xSpEo/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>With signs of the recession still looming around and with Christmas sales expectations under-whelming, its no surprise the UK&#8217;s game industry is facing challenging times. But what exactly is going on? The following touches along some, out of the hundreds, of the factors shaping how we buy and play games.</p>
<h2>The Situation</h2>
<p>With big blockbusters and critically acclaimed games being released every week and a large amount more in development, it may be easy to assume everything is okay from the outside. But sales are decreasing and more companies are in trouble of closing or not being able to compete. Game developers have been rising and falling since the first joystick was shafted, but recent years have seen the demise of some pretty big companies behind some even bigger series. The hugely appreciated Time Splitters series achieved great reviews and fantastic sales, but when their developers Free Radical released Haze with disappointing revenue, the company was forced to dissolve. Even more recent closures include Bizarre Creations who created Blur, The Club and Project Gotham Racing, Pandemic Studios, the team behind Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction and The Saboteur, and maybe most shockingly, Team Bondi, the developers of the sensational LA Noire.</p>
<h2>The Retailers</h2>
<p>Industry giants HMV produced disappointing 2011 results forcing them to sell off their Waterstones branches to be run by another company, GameStop and Best Buy (American game/tech giants) have stopped their UK high street invasion. Also more recently the GAME group, who own GAME and GameStation have been under the axe also. Following risks of the company not meeting lender expectations, the creditors who are keeping the company afloat could of asked for a return of money forcing a closure to the stores. Luckily the lenders did not take it this far and the GAME group continues to trade, but under increased pressure to turn things around. When their future was at risk gaming giants EA were among those to express the seriousness of the issue if GAME were forced to close.</p>
<h2>Used Games</h2>
<p>Recently, every man and his virtual dog have jumped on the pre-owned market in a effort to boost sales profits. This is because its cheaper for stores to buy games from consumers, than the developers themselves, but this can be both good and bad. Thanks to increased VAT and the increasing cost of buying in new games from the developer (due to the volume of money it takes to develop, produce and distribute games) retailers have announced they cannot stay profitable without pre-owned games. This is especially true for indie stores, that are in increasingly short amount on the high street thanks to these added pressures. However the flip-side to this argument is that pre-owned sales do not produce any profits for the actual companies making and developing these games, but actually does the opposite, stop people from buying their product new. This produces less revenue for the games developers which can affect future game development and budget.</p>
<h2>Supermarkets</h2>
<p>Popular super stores have stocked different forms of media for tens of years, but with the increasingly popular games industry taking a larger amount of the entertainment sector, they have jumped feet first into the games industry. The problem occurs when the massive profits and constant revenue streams of these companies allows them to make a loss on selling games. By selling them below the RRP by a significant amount on launch day, taking the competitive high street ethos a bit too far, distracting buyers away from the value of the games and making more people expect similar discounts.</p>
<h2>Diversity</h2>
<p>Everybody has preferences to which console is their favourite and for what reason. But despite the advantages of a better online experience, more unique IP&#8217;s or enhanced graphics, the fact is that diversity is not needed, and several larger developing companies have agreed to this. The leading consoles are extremely similar, with mostly the same games on both platforms offering mostly similar experiences. So separate consoles may not be needed, and create unnecessary competition and increasing costs for developers to produce games on both. It&#8217;s worth mentioning that this is only a side note as all consoles have generated some truly unique experiences at some point and games that have made this industry change for the better. So basically there will always be the fierce competition.</p>
<h2>What Can Change?</h2>
<p>With some serious problems still existing it&#8217;s clear that something must be done. The used game market is seen by developers as a core area for lost revenue and they want something done about it. Most recently rumours have been floating around that the next Xbox, dubbed the &#8217;720&#8242; for now, will not allow 2nd hand games to be used, with some developers in complete agreement. But there are other options available, as some stores have announced if distributors were to lower the cost of buying in new games, they would share some of the preowned profit, but reaching a decision on this would seem extremely unlikely.</p>
<p>With GAME attempting to sell off all of their 600+ European stores, it is clear they are trying to streamline and concentrate more on the UK, which must be its key territory despite it possessing less than 50% of its total stores. Part of GAME&#8217;s strategy last year was to price match trade ins, possibly showing that being the leading high street games specialist isn&#8217;t enough to compete anymore. If the publishers of games could agree that supermarkets should be sticking to the recommended retail price of games it could add to the value of the games they are trying to sell. Especially considering that the average supermarket has literally zero gaming knowledge, failing to add the support and advice backing up their prices.</p>
<p>So while retailers and game developers continually come and go, it seems clear that there is a lot of challenges facing the UK and its biggest entertainment industry. Even the largest companies have used up most of their lives by now, I just hope something can be done before its game over.</p>
<p><br class="clearer" />
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		<title>Apple Made a Mistake?</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/mdCmqu6iSvc/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/mac/apple-made-a-mistake/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:33:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Mac & PC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Upcoming Software]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mac OSX]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[software]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=863</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So as per usual Apple has released their software updates for Mac OSX. These minor updates are often over looked, but are the bread and butter of Apples operating system, adding new features, removing bugs and keeping Mac OSX virtually virus free. These updates are downloaded straight to the Mac and are installed at Apple&#8217;s [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OC23UPxnA_BB0KFK5yaTL-MP8QA/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OC23UPxnA_BB0KFK5yaTL-MP8QA/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OC23UPxnA_BB0KFK5yaTL-MP8QA/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OC23UPxnA_BB0KFK5yaTL-MP8QA/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>So as per usual Apple has released their software updates for Mac OSX. These minor updates are often over looked, but are the bread and butter of Apples operating system, adding new features, removing bugs and keeping Mac OSX virtually virus free.</p>
<p>These updates are downloaded straight to the Mac and are installed at Apple&#8217;s request, having gone through a rigorous screening and testing period, removing any bugs or errors that seemingly build up in any unchecked line of code. But when the newest set of software updates were installed, things didn&#8217;t go so smoothly.</p>
<p>Update 10.7.3 for Lion brought a significant error to most applications, resulting in freezes and shutdown windows without the usual &#8216;Quit&#8217; or &#8216;Continue&#8217; buttons. Displayed instead were random discoloured questions marks with operating code that should be out of sight.</p>
<p>At the same time Snow Leopard was also updated, somehow causing some Rosetta supported applications to have multiple errors or simply cease to work. To undo both of these errors some users have resulted to restoring from a Time Machine back up that potentially takes hours, or installing specially written software to fix this problem.</p>
<p>Since then both updates have been pulled by Apple, but should be released soon in their upgraded forms and be a bit more reliable. Still with Apple taking a increasingly larger bite out of the personal computer market they risk discrediting their reputation with unsafe downloads.</p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/d-ink/~4/mdCmqu6iSvc" height="1" width="1"/>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Room for Creativity at the Superbowl?</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/3YxRJ9ewyc8/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/sport/nfl/room-for-creativity-at-the-superbowl/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:23:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[NFL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nfl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sport]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[superbowl]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=854</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So its that day again. That special Sunday that comes around once a year and gets all NFL fans excited with that special feeling. With the NFL International Series hosting a regular season game at Wembley for the past few years, the buzz for American Football has never been bigger in the UK. But the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/xMgQALwcVhfEsWXWkMM7ZwiifdU/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/xMgQALwcVhfEsWXWkMM7ZwiifdU/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/xMgQALwcVhfEsWXWkMM7ZwiifdU/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/xMgQALwcVhfEsWXWkMM7ZwiifdU/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>So its that day again. That special Sunday that comes around once a year and gets all NFL fans excited with that special feeling.</p>
<p>With the NFL International Series hosting a regular season game at Wembley for the past few years, the buzz for American Football has never been bigger in the UK. But the reason I continue to watch this sporting extravaganza annually is not for the massive half time show, the big glitz and glamour, the hard hits, or even the cheerleaders.</p>
<p>Its for that magical play. That one special moment when a team thinks outside of the box. When they try to pull off that extraordinary play that just leaves the other team wondering what the hell happened. Those moments are rare and they rarely work, but that&#8217;s what make it so special.</p>
<p>This video is the perfect example of how something different can make a big difference:</p>
<p><span style="text-align:center; display: block;"><a href="http://d-ink.co.uk/sport/nfl/room-for-creativity-at-the-superbowl/"><img src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/Ln3RWKyUouQ/2.jpg" alt="" /></a></span></p>
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		<item>
		<title>HorizontalWP: A New Direction for WordPress Themes</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/sxJUu-uCJEc/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/web/blogging/horizontalwp-a-new-direction-for-wordpress-themes/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 03 Sep 2011 19:55:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[black & white]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[col]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horizontal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hv1]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[index]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[m3v1]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[minimalist]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mym]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[photography]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[theme]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[utilitarian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wordpress]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=730</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Are you bored with scrolling vertically to read through websites? Then a HorizontalWP theme is probably for you! Seriously though, these themes are minimalist and elegant and their sideways approach works great with websites that can take advantage of a full screen view such as photography blogs. HorizontalWP [twitter], masterminded by Greg Ponchak, currently have 6 themes available. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/CCrBiWki3ebckK_jzp2PSRxCvJc/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/CCrBiWki3ebckK_jzp2PSRxCvJc/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/CCrBiWki3ebckK_jzp2PSRxCvJc/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/CCrBiWki3ebckK_jzp2PSRxCvJc/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>Are you bored with scrolling vertically to read through websites? Then a HorizontalWP theme is probably for you! Seriously though, these themes are minimalist and elegant and their sideways approach works great with websites that can take advantage of a full screen view such as photography blogs.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.horizontalwp.com/index.html">HorizontalWP</a> [<a href="http://twitter.com/#!/horizontalWP">twitter</a>], masterminded by <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/gregponchak">Greg Ponchak</a>, currently have 6 themes available. All share a similar minimalistic vibe and of course the immersive sideways scrolling. Prices range from $30 to $40. If that was all it took to convince you, then head over to <a href="http://www.horizontalwp.com/index.html">HorizontalWP</a> now by following that link or read on as I go over each of these gorgeous themes in a bit more detail.</p>
<p>The themes seem strongly favoured towards photography, but don&#8217;t let that put you off if you intend to use them for something else. Also, you can navigate between posts on some themes using the &#8216;J&#8217; and &#8216;K&#8217; keys. This works particularly well with the &#8216;MYM&#8217; and &#8216;M3V1&#8242; themes as you will see shortly.</p>
<p>What is great about these HorizontalWP themes is that they remove all the unwanted clutter found on the majority of blogs these days &#8211; <a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk">Dink</a> being no exception! There are no distracting advertisements or sidebars, comments or clutter. The focus of these themes is on your content and it works magnificently.</p>
<p>All themes have support for both photos and, more recently, videos and have been tested in Safari, Firefox, Chrome and Opera (note: not internet explorer). All themes require WordPress 3+ to function correctly.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Click on each image below to preview the theme.</strong></p>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">INDEX</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/INDEX/"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-731" title="HorizontalWP — horizontal WordPress themes" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/HorizontalWP-—-horizontal-Wordpress-themes.png" alt="" width="620" height="336" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/INDEX/">INDEX</a> is priced at $40, it features twitter integration and has a pop-down navigation box. This theme is suitable for more text reliant posts, large chunks of text will sit nicely next to your images. This theme does not feature the keyboard navigation function.</p>
<h2>COL</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/COL/"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-738" title="col" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/col.png" alt="" width="620" height="279" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/COL/">COL</a> is also priced at $40 and is similar to INDEX in design. COL however is even more minimalistic and depends a lot more on harmony between typography and imagery. Navigation is found at the right where you can view your categories, archives and older posts (only the newest 3 posts are displayed).</p>
<h2>MYM</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/MYM/#"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-739" title="mym" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mym.png" alt="" width="620" height="279" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/MYM/">MYM</a> is again $40 and is the first of the &#8216;fullscreen&#8217; themes. MYM is also the first to feature keyboard navigation. As you can see from the image above, this theme is perfectly suited for photography. Use the &#8216;J&#8217; and &#8216;K&#8217; to navigate between posts easily or click the navigation link to open up a full screen navigation page. This is my personal favourite of the 6 themes.</p>
<h2>HV1</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/HV1/"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-740" title="hv1" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/hv1.png" alt="" width="620" height="279" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/HV1/">HV1</a> is priced at $30 and is probably the most suited to those wanting to add a bit more text to each post. HV1 features keyboard navigate and scrolls sideways between other posts (which are dimmed to keep focus on the post you are reading). HV1 also scrolls vertically however, for posts with more text or multiple photos (note that in the other themes, posts with multiple photos continue to scroll sideways). For me HV1 makes a great minimal and practical WordPress theme.</p>
<h2>Utilitarian V2</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/utilitarianv2/"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-742" title="utilitarian" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/utilitarian.png" alt="" width="620" height="279" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/utilitarianv2/">Utilitarian</a> V2 is $40 and is fairly similar to the COL theme in design, however, it features a static header which holds your blog title and navigation links. Navigation is similar to INDEX, a small pop-down with all your categories, pages and archives. Text which overflows in a post, i.e. is longer than the height of the photo, becomes scrollable in line with its post, which maintains the minimalist vibes. This theme also allows for comments on posts.</p>
<h2>M3V1</h2>
<p><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/M2V2/#"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-743" title="m3v1" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/m3v1.png" alt="" width="620" height="279" /></a><a href="http://horizontalwp.com/preview/M2V2/">M3V1</a> is again $40 and makes up the rest of the &#8216;fullscreen&#8217; themes. Very similar to the MYM theme, however the navigation menu is collapsible to minimise the amount of text which covers your images. M3V1 allows you to scroll through 5 posts (as opposed to 3 with MYM) using keyboard navigation, which looks great as each image slides in.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As you can see, there are some great themes here. They would of course look great for photography websites, but don&#8217;t let these examples hinder your imagination! If you haven&#8217;t already, remember to check each theme out in full by clicking the respective images, a few lines of text doesn&#8217;t do them enough justice. Remember, you will need <a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/2011/08/18/wordpress-hosting/">self hosted WordPress</a> to utilise these themes.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a class="button_link lightgrey" href="http://horizontalwp.com/"><span>Visit HorizontalWP</span></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><br class="clearer" />
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		<title>Vizualize.me: Making Art From Your CV</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/4HplppjjYOI/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/web/social/vizualize-me-making-art-from-your-cv/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 03 Sep 2011 17:52:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Social]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[beta]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[career]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[code]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cv]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[infographic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[interview]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invite]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[job]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[online]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[resume]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[zerply]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=723</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Remember Zerply, the online tool to create a great looking CV? Well another such tool has recently sprung up with similar aspirations, vizualize.me. Vizualize.me is currently in closed beta which means you are going to need an invite code to access it. But from what we have seen it is worth getting your name on that [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/HpT34aWYpzLCA85lfWmXWTVM60o/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/HpT34aWYpzLCA85lfWmXWTVM60o/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/HpT34aWYpzLCA85lfWmXWTVM60o/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/HpT34aWYpzLCA85lfWmXWTVM60o/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>Remember <a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/2011/08/27/increase-you-employability-with-zerply/" target="_blank">Zerply</a>, the online tool to create a great looking CV? Well another such tool has recently sprung up with similar aspirations, <a href="http://vizualize.me/" target="_blank">vizualize.me</a>. Vizualize.me is currently in closed beta which means you are going to need an <a href="http://signup.vizualize.me/" target="_blank">invite code to access it</a>. But from what we have seen it is worth getting your name on that list!</p>
<p>As I&#8217;ve mentioned before, now more then ever is the time to make yourself stand out. The first thing a potential employer sees is typically your CV, so making an impact here is key to getting an interview. Vizualize.me allows you to create that impact by taking information from your <a href="http://uk.linkedin.com/" target="_blank">LinkedIn</a> profile and displaying it as an infographic CV. <a href="http://careers.guardian.co.uk/careers-blog/stand-out-applying-work-infographic" target="_blank">Infographic CVs</a> are becoming quite popular and they are a great way to allow potential employers to digest the vast amounts of information about you found in your CV. They also look great.</p>
<p>The problem is, it can be quite time consuming to create an infographic CV and not to mention fairly difficult if you are unfamiliar with the software required to create one. This is what makes Vizulaize.me great, not only does it make creating an infographic CV quick and easy, it also makes it accessible to all.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Vizualize.me_.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-725" title="Vizualize.me" src="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Vizualize.me_.png" alt="" width="620" height="332" /></a>To keep up with the development of the Vizualiize.me project, check out their <a href="http://vizualizeme.posterous.com/" target="_blank">blog </a>or <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/VizualizeMe" target="_blank">follow them on twitter</a> and remember to go and sign up for that <a href="http://signup.vizualize.me/" target="_blank">invite code</a> if you are interested in getting early access to this highly promising product!</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a class="button_link lightgrey" href="http://signup.vizualize.me/"><span>I want an Invite Code!</span></a></p>
<p><br class="clearer" />
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		<title>Call of Duty Black Ops: Free Weekend</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/5k5mQxOlr0M/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/mac/games-mac/call-of-duty-black-ops-free-weekend/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 03 Sep 2011 15:38:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[3]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[battlefield]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[black]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[breaking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[modern]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ops]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sale]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[steam]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[warfare]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=718</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Steam is having a sale this weekend on the majority of Call of Duty titles. Save 33% on Call of Duty: Black Ops and 50% on all other Call of Duty titles (excluding MW3 pre-purchases). Included in this weekend special is the ability to play Call of Duty: Black Ops for free until Sunday 1pm PDT. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OLKnRH5hQvOBNKxMcYN-LdI7Zpg/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OLKnRH5hQvOBNKxMcYN-LdI7Zpg/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OLKnRH5hQvOBNKxMcYN-LdI7Zpg/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/OLKnRH5hQvOBNKxMcYN-LdI7Zpg/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>Steam is having a sale this weekend on the majority of Call of Duty titles. Save 33% on Call of Duty: Black Ops and 50% on all other Call of Duty titles (excluding MW3 pre-purchases).</p>
<p>Included in this weekend special is the ability to play Call of Duty: Black Ops for free until Sunday 1pm PDT. That means you can head over to steam now and download the game for free. The game will be unlocked only for the weekend, but you can unlock the game for the discount price of £26.65 &#8211; an option if you are looking for something to tide you over till the release of Modern Warfare 3.</p>
<p>I&#8217;ve spent some time playing the game before on previous free weekend specials and I can&#8217;t say that I prefer it over MW2, however, there is a large player base in Black Ops something which might interest you if you feel that player numbers are dropping in other Call of Duty titles.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a class="button_link lightgrey" href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/42700/"><span>Download Call of Duty: Black Ops</span></a></p>
<p>Or you could always go and pick up <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/24960/?snr=1_7_7_151_150_1">Battlefield: Bad Company 2</a> for the even cheaper price of £19.99, which still has a large player base and is a much better game, in my opinion.</p>
<p>On that note, will you be buying Battlefield 3 or Modern Warfare 3? Or both?</p>
<p><br class="clearer" />
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<p>&nbsp;</p>
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		<title>YouTube in Numbers</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/fRQ7VktcTGs/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/web/social/youtube-in-numbers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2011 22:24:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Social]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ads]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[statistics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traffic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[video]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[youtube]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=709</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m sure you are well aware that YouTube is one of the greatest successes of the internet, but do you know just how great that success is? I recently stumbled across the official statistics for YouTube and I must say, I was shocked! In this post, I&#8217;m going to run through some of the key [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tFNp4a8xKukZLI19Bf1M7MnbAsw/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tFNp4a8xKukZLI19Bf1M7MnbAsw/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tFNp4a8xKukZLI19Bf1M7MnbAsw/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tFNp4a8xKukZLI19Bf1M7MnbAsw/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><p>I&#8217;m sure you are well aware that YouTube is one of the greatest successes of the internet, but do you know just how great that success is? I recently stumbled across the official statistics for YouTube and I must say, I was shocked! In this post, I&#8217;m going to run through some of the key stats for the internet video giant and let me see if I can shock you too!</p>
<h2>YouTube Traffic</h2>
<h3>Uploads</h3>
<p>Throughout the whole of 2010, 13 million hours of video was uploaded to YouTube. That would be the equivalent of uploading &#8216;<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1375666/">Inception</a>&#8216; 19 times every <strong>minute </strong>to the site. How many minutes is that a day? 8 years. That&#8217;s right, in 2010, on average, <strong>8 years </strong>of video was uploaded to YouTube <strong>per day. </strong>Another way to look at this is, <strong>31TB of data per day</strong> &#8211; enough data to fill almost <strong>1 million 32GB iPhones</strong>.</p>
<p>The equivalent of around 240,000 feature length films is uploaded by YouTube&#8217;s wide user base <strong>per week</strong>.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_in_the_United_States#The_five_major_networks">3 major US networks</a>, NBC, CBS and ABC have created less content over the last <strong>60 years</strong> than YouTube users created <strong>in the last month</strong>.</p>
<h3>Views</h3>
<p>Over <strong>3,000,000,000 </strong>videos are viewed <strong>each day</strong>, with over <strong>70% </strong>of those views arising from outside of the United States.</p>
<p>2010 saw a total of <strong>700 billion </strong>views, the equivalent of <strong>every person on Earth</strong> watching over <strong>100 videos per year</strong>.</p>
<h2>YouTube Monetisation</h2>
<p>YouTube currently has over 20,000 &#8216;<a href="http://www.youtube.com/partners">YouTube Partners</a>&#8216; who receive <strong>millions </strong>of dollars of YouTube&#8217;s income.</p>
<p>YouTube&#8217;s income comes from over <strong>3 billion video views</strong> which display advertisements. 98% of <a href="http://adage.com/datacenter/marketertrees2011/#222">AdAge&#8217;s Top 100</a> advertisers have displayed ads on YouTube.</p>
<p>ComCast, parent company of megabrands such as Universal Studios and NBC, spent a total of <strong>$1,852,533</strong> on internet advertising last year, which goes to show the amount of money which gets poured in to online advertisements.</p>
<p>A small percentage of individuals (which amounts to hundreds) involved in the YouTube partner program are in receipt of over <strong>$100,000 per year</strong>.</p>
<h2>YouTube &amp; Social Media</h2>
<p><strong>Over 17 million</strong> YouTube users have connected their YouTube accounts with another social media service.</p>
<p>70% of those users have &#8216;autoshare&#8217; enabled, which allows their YouTube actions to be immediately shared with their social network(s).</p>
<p>Per Day:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>150 years</strong> worth of video is watched on Facebook</li>
<li>At least <strong>720,000 tweets</strong> are created with YouTube video links</li>
</ul>
<div>Per week, <strong>100 million people</strong> perform at least one social action on YouTube such as liking, sharing or commenting on a video.</div>
<h2>Your Thoughts</h2>
<p>Shocked? These numbers are absolutely mind boggling. It just goes to show how quickly the internet has grown over a relatively small period and to think, YouTube isn&#8217;t even 7 years old yet! Feel free to let us know how you feel about these statistics below in the comments, I still don&#8217;t think I can actually comprehend how large some of these numbers are!</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><br class="clearer" />
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</div>
<p style="text-align: center;"><small><a href="http://www.youtube.com/t/press_statistics">Source</a></small></p>
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		<title>Dink’s First Prize Giveaway!</title>
		<link>http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/d-ink/~3/GvHnpb1uRrU/</link>
		<comments>http://d-ink.co.uk/dink-news/dinks-first-prize-giveaway-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 31 Aug 2011 23:06:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Dink News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[app]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[free]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gift]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[giveaway]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ipad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[itunes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[voucher]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[win]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.d-ink.co.uk/?p=692</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Entering the Giveaway! You may have already noticed that big red button below, from the corner of your eye. Click that button now to go straight to the giveaway, where you will be guided through entering &#8211; or you can read a little more about it here before you dash off! What&#8217;s Up for Grabs? [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/WYgBNuTt5s2Xzd6kDtwOYeIDLz8/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/WYgBNuTt5s2Xzd6kDtwOYeIDLz8/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/>
<a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/WYgBNuTt5s2Xzd6kDtwOYeIDLz8/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/WYgBNuTt5s2Xzd6kDtwOYeIDLz8/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Entering the Giveaway!</h2>
<p>You may have already noticed that big red button below, from the corner of your eye. Click that button now to go straight to the giveaway, where you will be guided through entering &#8211; or you can read a little more about it here before you dash off!</p>
<h3>What&#8217;s Up for Grabs?</h3>
<p>Well, this is our first giveaway, so we have started small but if all goes well, you can expect to see many more, with bigger prizes in the future! The prize this time round is a £15 iTunes Gift card, not too shabby you might agree.</p>
<h3>How to Enter</h3>
<p>At the moment you will receive one entry in to the competition by performing each of these actions:</p>
<ul>
<li>Liking this post on Facebook [1 entry]</li>
<li>Answering the following question:<em> &#8220;On what date do you think the iPhone 5 will make its debut in the US?&#8221;</em> [1 Entry - Not available yet - We're working on it!]</li>
<li>Liking Dink on Facebook [1 entry]</li>
<li>Tweeting about this giveaway [1 entry <strong>Plus a bonus entry per person who clicks your twitter link!</strong>]</li>
<li>Sharing this giveaway on your Facebook wall [1 entry]</li>
<li>Inviting friends to enter this giveaway [1 entry per friend who enters]</li>
</ul>
<div>Basically, the more you share, the more likely you are to win! All stats are tracked via PunchTab, which means you get full credit every time someone uses your link to enter. At the moment there is a problem with commenting (as you are taken to an external page to enter the giveaway), but we are working on this issue. You can return to the giveaway at anytime to perform any actions you may have skipped or missed.</div>
<div>You are walked through the whole process, so there is nothing to worry about &#8211; go ahead and click that big red button below to get started!</div>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a class="button_link red large_button" href="http://www.d-ink.co.uk/punchtab.html"><span>Enter the Giveaway!</span></a></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">
<div class="divider">&nbsp;</div>
</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">
<div class="toggle-box-wrapper">
<div class="toggle-box">
<h4 class="toggle">Terms and Conditions</h4>
<div class="toggle-content" style="width:620pxpx;">The prize will be drawn at midday November 30th. A winner is selected automatically, at random via PunchTab. Dink reserves the right to refuse presentation of the prize if foul play is suspected. No monetary alternative will be available. All decisions are final. If the winner can not be contacted or is not reached within 7 days of the competition closing, an alternative winner will be picked. Competition is open to all visitors of www.d-ink.co.uk.</div>
</div>
</div>
<p style="text-align: left;">
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