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Comment Funky numbers.... (Score 1) 609

Hmm... comparing launch day, to launch weekend, to 6 months sales figures? What's that all about?!

While I'm sure it's safe to say both Android and iOS are significantly outselling WP7, these numbers listed give little sense of how much. The only figure that gives some semblance of perspective is the text of the article pointing to Google's clocking 200,000 activations per day.

Granted, there are not extended sales figures as this product has just been released. Just the same, boo on poor journalism in not comparing apples to androids (launch day sales).

Comment Fake (Score 1) 325

Looks like Remote Desktop to another system running Chrome OS.

Is there any more evidence this is real than a 30 second video which doesn't even show it booting (which in of itself would be hardly more convincing without more details).

Disappointingly not the first news site I've seen this posted on with so little to show.

Comment How many people actually use linux on the PS3? (Score 1) 468

Isn't the Other OS feature the primary vector for PS3 hacks??

While I deploy removing a feature, is anyone really surprised that Sony would take steps to impede piracy, even at the risk of alienating a small portion of users who actually use this feature legitimately.

Honestly, won't MOST users who care about running Linux on a PS3 have a multitude of devices available which run other OSes far better than the PS3??

I'm thinking the few groups who use the PS3 for parallel processing will either downgrade the firmware or select one of the many other hardware options out there equally suited/priced/sized.

Comment My .02, as it were (Score 1) 313

I could see myself buying an extended demo if and only if the purchase price went towards full version (somewhere near 100%). There have been plenty of games I've enjoyed 5-10 hours, purchased the damn thing, yet never get around to finishing. Were I able to purchase a reasonable portion (i.e more than 50-60%), with the option to unlock the entire game, I'd be less inclined to download the full game for free.

Comment A special place in hell... (Score 1) 184

I'd like to think this is a fair more positive step in the right direction to curtailing cybersquatters -- those for whom there is a special place in hell... along the lines of sub-prime mortgage profiteers (and anyone else making money off the misfortuate/suffering of others) -- rather than a dangerous precedent against fair use.

Seriously, unless you run a legit business which happens to have a name similar to another, where you own ONE similar domain (maybe a few that ALL rediect to your legitimate web business), otherwise you have 0% right to own multiple domains. This is not to mention 1017 variations of a legit domain, where the squatter domains are dead-pages or fake web portals (search/news/whatever). There is no fair-use going on there.

Comment Dual sceen, nice aesthetic, wasted space (Score 1) 542

Dual screen design is pretty, but seems like wasted space. Granted, e-ink makes a poor interface for much more than basic device control, but I don't care for having so much wasted space on what should be 99% page. Not a fan of the Kindle design and it's keyboard for the same reason.

Sticking with my Sony 505.

Comment Surface Computing = whole new mode of gaming... (Score 1) 162

Cell phones may be bringing mobile gaming to a whole new level, but I envision surface computing will result in entirely new modes of social (face to face) gaming.

Imagine your favorite board game -- Monopoly, Risk, Life, Scrabble, whatever -- enabled for surface computing;

-No tiny plastic pieces to loose, to choke children/pets, gum up your fancy robot vacuum, or stab the unsuspecting bare foot;
-No need for a banker (who never seems to have a cash flow problem);
-No worries of spilling drinks (on your vintage, 1st edition Talisman board);
-No worry of clumsy players/pet upsetting the board (right when you were poised to cement your bid for world domination);
-No worry of loosing player position on the board;
-Instructions will be available for all players at any time, even all players at the same time (especially useful for those contentious/strategic rules disagreements);
-Games can be enjoyed for game-play and mechanic, rather than being an exercise in re-learning board setup, sorting/shuffling stacks cards and pieces (battlestar galactica anyone?);
-Multimedia animations, themes/skins, and expansions will offer endless possibilities both as enhancements to the classic games we've been playing for years and for a myriad of yet-to-be-though-of modes of social gaming which surface computing will foster.

Tabletop gaming demo was impressive. Tons of potential. I would absolutely love to see a surface computing setup for Magic the Gathering!

Comment eBook? (Score 1) 172

Are we talking books that are not available in eBook format? Wouldn't it be exceptionally easier to buy ebooks?

I imagine the time required to photograph/scan a book of any length, as well as searching for and tweaking a application to correct these images is significant. Say we're talking a PDA which doesn't support common ebook formats, in that case wouldn't it be easier and much better quality to convert ebooks into a compatible format (even if removing DRM was required). That, or drop $100 on a user eBook. Finally, if money is the concern, where time is not, there's always the download route. Again, unless we're talking books where someone hasn't already done all the work to scan to nice electronic format...

All that being said and done, best of luck. Sounds like an interesting project for it's own sake.

Comment Will not pay for products with ads... (Score 1) 244

Unless the games infected with ads are absolutely free, I will not pay for any product containing advertisements (which are not so unobtrusive I can ignore without second thought).

Used to love going to the movies, even arriving at the movie "start" time when I expected a few interesting trailers... Now that theaters are playing commercials (mostly eye-stabingly bad adverts) before the trailers, I pretty much avoid seeing movies in the theater.

Ironic, running the risk of alienating consumers with a supplemental revenue stream. Too bad the loss in product sales are likely more than be made up with the ad revenues. : (

Comment Re:What I want (Score 2, Interesting) 273

Been using my eBay'ed $115 Sony eReader 505 for the last year. Aside from price being a little more, sounds exactly like what you describe.

I literally don't leave home without it.

Love being able to keep up on my reading on my lunch break or any other downtime that comes along.

I have been tempted to switch to a Kindle, for it's syncing ability with my iPhone (for those times when I may have a few minutes and have left my eReader in my desk/car), but can't justify the added cost and presumably closed format. Haven't done enough research to see if one can import txt/rtf into the kindle.

With my eReader, I have downloaded all the books I physically own, re-reading my library. Formatting downloaded books can be a pain, but when in txt/rtf format it's a no brainer. I feel bad for a half-second. Then I remember I'm not interested in paying twice for content I already have purchased in a different format (unless the added cost is going directly to the author rather than a middleman). There may be a time when I buy an eBook before owning the hardcopy, but with out the ability to turn around a sell/easily give someone a DRMed eBook, there's little motivation to go that route.

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