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While wearing my Occulus Rift, I have my Second Life avatar put on a pair of AR glasses for a completely mind blowing VRAVR experience.

about 10 hours ago on How two Valve engineers walked away with the company's augmented reality glasses

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“I’d back that for a dollar!”

6 days ago on See a prototype of Detroit's ten-foot-tall RoboCop statue before it's cast in bronze 3 recommends

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Did you not see, “Oh… carry on Detroit.” at the end?

6 days ago on See a prototype of Detroit's ten-foot-tall RoboCop statue before it's cast in bronze 1 reply 11 recommends

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I don’t see how the addition of a few apps suddenly escalates to “cluster fuck.” There is a middle ground. I use a few web apps and I use three extensions, two of which actually obviate the need to have two separate tabs open all the time (Gvoice and Gmail). My browser isn’t more cluttered with those three tiny button/icons showing.

I’m curious, do you also consider having a dozen or more apps installed on a smart phone to be a cluster fuck situation? Is having a dozen (or more) programs installed in Windows a cluster fuck?

Why is having access to apps a bad thing? You cherry pick the ones that increase your productivity or that you find interesting.

8 days ago on Google adds push alerts to Chrome for more efficient apps

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The grandeur of film. The spectacle of Hollywood. The general fascination that the public has with the entertainment industry. The sense of wonder and excitement we get when we see the logo and prepare to let ourselves be taken into another world, for a short time, to experience something incredible.

The original logo incorporated elements of futuristic art deco design and of course, the ubiquitous and unmistakable Klieg lights. The immense scale of the words, implied by the Klieg lights, combined with that (then) futuristic style was impressive… this new logo fails in every way.

In a way it has perfectly captured what Fox currently represents: An unimaginative and unimpressive corporation with nothing to say, flailing in the dark.

9 days ago on 21st Century Fox logo unveiled ahead of News Corp split

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Will this do?

10 days ago on 'Iron Man 3' director signs on for 'Doc Savage' adaptation 1 reply

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Trump deserves every ounce of snark that can be mustered. I applaud The Verge for not dancing around the issue how much of a sanctimonious douchebag he is.

11 days ago on Donald Trump backs a Kickstarter rip-off to save crowdfunding from the hipsters 29 recommends

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Thanks for the tip. I am perfectly aware of that. I do own CS3 and actually do a lot of my comics/sketching with openCanvas (cheap and pretty darn powerful).

However, as I will soon have a much more powerful computer running 64-bit Windows (free, courtesy of a friend) it would be nice to have a newer and more robust version that takes advantage of that (and has newer features). But, I work with what I’ve got.

It’s merely my opinion that the subscription-only model is a detriment to those of us who can occasionally afford the one-time cost, but often can’t justify another large monthly bill.

12 days ago on Adobe Photoshop and Creative Suite to become subscription-only products

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I am still using CS3, and also some cheaper software for drawing/painting.

I don’t make enough money with my art and other occasional work to afford a full upgrade every 18 months. Not everyone who is a professional artist is raking in tons of cash from their work.

12 days ago on Adobe Photoshop and Creative Suite to become subscription-only products

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I don’t own a Mac, and no I can’t afford it. And I also don’t have a cell phone or cable TV because the cost is too much. We’re just making ends meet and $50/mo is not justifiable. My wife has a full time job, and I am a stay at home dad and I do my illustration and editing work.

I make do with older software. What I’ll probably end up doing is buying CS5 or 6 when I sell some of my photography equipment.

Also, it does not logically follow that if one owns a Mac that they can afford $50/mo.
I know many Mac owners who are not flush with cash.

12 days ago on Adobe Photoshop and Creative Suite to become subscription-only products 1 reply

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EA holds the reins for the development cycle and creative direction. Regardless of what Bioware wants to do, EA makes the final decision. While a good game can happen, when ultimate creative control is ceded to executives who are not part of the development process the result is almost invariably bad.

The other problem is that other companies who could do a better job with fewer corporate constraints are entirely unable to flex their creative muscles to create games for this franchise and that is very unfortunate for the fans. It means we’ll tend to see more iterations of previous successes, but with increasingly less daring moves. EA has shown that it is unwilling to take chances and wishes to adhere to a formulaic approach to sequels.

12 days ago on EA takes helm from LucasArts, will exclusively develop future 'Star Wars' games 1 recommend

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This move is very disappointing, to me.

I can’t always afford the monthly fee. As a freelance artist/photographer my income isn’t always that reliable. From time to time I can justify dropping a large amount on a single purchase (after tax returns, or if I sell something to get something new, for example). Many people will suggest putting that money aside in a separate account that is only for Adobe subscriptions. That won’t help when unexpected expenses arise. Not everyone who is a creative professional is raking in a ton of cash. Some of us are struggling just make ends meet and hoping that we’ll make it big. In the meantime the cost of our tools is a major concern.

12 days ago on Adobe Photoshop and Creative Suite to become subscription-only products 1 reply

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In cases of even partial mummification (whether ceremonial or environmental) a skeleton can remain fully articulated because the connective tissues (and other tissues) have not decomposed. However, they may be fragile and easily tear or fail to bear the weight of the skeleton in an upright position. Strength of the remaining connective tissue along with knowledge of the environment (or methods used for mummification) can possibly be used to lend credence to the theory that it’s an actual human skeleton.

14 days ago on A 6-inch tall, 6-year-old skeleton confuses Stanford researchers and UFO conspiracists alike

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Skeletal growth patterns and bone density are very good indications. If the skeletal structure is predominantly to scale then extrapolating the length of the femur in comparison to skull size is an indication of approximate age. Failing that, other determinations can be made by developmental stages. Bones in the hand are barely developed in newborns, full development is a good indication of age. Degree of closure of the fontanelles (soft spots) in the skull is a key factor in ruling out being a newborn. If the anterior fontanelle is closed that indicates a child of at least about 1½ years old, on average. Rib development is also a clue. Full ossification of rib bones generally occurs by age 15, and determining the level of ossification can help pinpoint an age range when combined with other clues.

14 days ago on A 6-inch tall, 6-year-old skeleton confuses Stanford researchers and UFO conspiracists alike 2 recommends

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Piracy is largely a non-issue for media companies. Piracy is not equivalent to lost sales.

What some companies are learning is that if you don’t use DRM and you price your product reasonably, you will sell more, sell faster and build loyalty with your customers. Also, piracy in digital media will always exist. It’s an inescapable result of non-destructive digital media distribution. A “stolen” digital copy does not result in net losses, therefore a certain amount of people (who wouldn’t likely purchase anyway) will always continue to download pirated copies.

Increased sales and with no discernible rise in piracy is acceptable, and as some companies have learned, can even be beneficial because of positive word-of-mouth about the product and potentially building brand loyalty than can translate to future sales.

Analogies comparing digital media piracy to other forms of crime or social inequities are specious (at best). Such silliness should remain the bailiwick of major media conglomerates who seek to misinform and intimidate the public.

14 days ago on Piracy not an issue after one year of selling DRM-free ebooks, says Tor Books 3 recommends

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No DRM has ever proven to be “effective.”

It does not reduce piracy and is a major hindrance to legitimate users.

14 days ago on Piracy not an issue after one year of selling DRM-free ebooks, says Tor Books 1 recommend

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I also dropped iTunes early on (and got rid of the iPod) for the same reason. The DRM was annoying. Once I migrated there was absolutely no compelling reason to go back.

14 days ago on Piracy not an issue after one year of selling DRM-free ebooks, says Tor Books