Wednesday, November 29, 2006

It Messages, It Downloads, It Even Makes Phone Calls. The Drift, a tiny three-ounce phone, includes a G.P.S. chip to create Buddy Beacons, which lets you keep tabs on friends. By JOHN BIGGS. [NYT > Technology] 6:51:22 PM      Google It!.

Ban on Louisiana Video Game Law Now Permanent. Carl Carlson writes "A Louisiana judge has issued a permanent injunction against a Louisiana law banning the sale of violent video games to minors. The law was crafted by video game dilettante Jack Thompson and took a slightly different approach to the issue of regulating video game sales. Rep. Roy Burrell (R) and Jack Thompson had research that purported to show a causative link between playing violent video games and real-world violence entered into the legislative record in an attempt to buttress the legislation's shaky credentials. In addition, the law adapted the Miller obscenity test to the realm of violent video games."[Slashdot] 6:48:27 PM      Google It!.

Educational Gaming has to Engage the Students... but How? - EduTechie.com. If you have been following the news lately you have probably read about some of the educational efforts right now to integrate online multi-player games like Eve-Online, Second Life and World of Warcraft into classroom learning environments, or at least harness the popularity and power of the games in an attempt to encourage learning among users. It is not an idea peculiar to educational bloggers[sigma] Second Life even has an educational section devoted entirely to integrating the program into learning. There have even been several attempts to build a game that teaches a courses for you. (UNC-G economics course comes to mind - NPR article). So what is the future of all this? Check out the full article here: http://www.edutechie.com/2006/11/educational-gaming-how/ [EDUCAUSE CONNECT blogs] 4:44:27 PM      Google It!.

Opera Mini 3.0 Now Available. E IS mC(Square) writes "Opera Mini 3.0 is out of beta. The feature list includes RSS integration, a user-interface geared towards mobile devices and small screen size, and its fast for relatively slower mobile data connections (with picture upload/sharing if you are into it). Requirement for using it: You must have a phone capable of running Java mobile applications and are using an Internet connection (Officially supported devices are listed)."[Slashdot] 4:38:10 PM      Google It!.

Grad-School Thesis Becomes PS3 Game. Carl Bialik from WSJ writes, "USC student Jenova Chen's Flash game, 'flOw,' attracted interest from Sony, which commissioned an enhanced version that will be sold through its PlayStation Network, WSJ.com reports. From the article: 'Gameplay is incredibly smooth, particularly for a Flash game. But it's the design touches that set flOw apart. Players will notice faint outlines of the creatures lurking at lower depths, a foreboding sign that vicious manta- and squid-like enemies await. The water darkens as the creature advances to deeper levels. The game's ambient sound is somewhat hypnotic. The intuitive controls and design simplicity are among Mr. Chen's mandate: build immersive games for people who don't consider themselves gamers. 'My parents and grandparents don't play games. My girlfriend, she doesn't play either,' he says. 'I want to make games that those people can appreciate.'"[Slashdot] 11:02:08 AM      Google It!.

BitTorrent Partners With TV and Movie Companies. An anonymous reader writes "BitTorrent Inc just announced that they teamed up with several TV and Movie companies. The new list of partners includes 20th Century Fox, Paramount PicturesG4, Kadokawa Pictures USA, Lionsgate, MTV Networks (Comedy Central, MTV and more), Palm Pictures and Starz Media. These deals will add a great deal of content to the BitTorrent video store, including popular movies like Mission: Impossible III and X-Men The Last Stand and popular TV-show such as 'Prison Break' and 'South Park.'" [Slashdot] once the distribution channels are in place then academic videos related to credit courses could profitably pass through the channel and widen the reach and shelf life of such videos. -- BL 10:58:29 AM      Google It!.

Acoustic Sensors Make Any Surface a Touch Pad. An anonymous reader writes "Using cheap acoustic sensors the surface of any 3D object can be instantly made into a touch-sensitive interface capable of tracking two objects at once. Its creators are planning to make hospitals more hygienic [~] keyboards and mice will be replaced by desks wired to perform as keyboards and touchpads. A video shows it in action [.wmv]."[Slashdot] 10:54:23 AM      Google It!.

Wal-Mart Plans to Test Online Films. All the major studios are said to be either on board or in active talks with the retailer, which will begin testing a video download service on its Web site. By BRAD STONE. [NYT > Technology] 10:48:23 AM      Google It!.

Journal Editors Are Urged To Demand More Evidence . Editors of scientific journals should beef up their level of skepticism about high-profile papers submitted to them and demand solid evidence that the work was completed as described, according to a review of the editorial procedures that led to the publication of fraudulent scientific papers by... By Rick Weiss. [washingtonpost.com - Technology - Industry News, Policy, and Reviews] 10:46:46 AM      Google It!.