Archive for February, 2009
The netbook trend
February 27th, 2009 • 4 comments
Tags: Hardware, laptop, netbook, netbooks, notebook computer, subnotebook
Netbooks have reached an amazing level of popularity in a very short space of time. In 2008, the netbook saw a 3,000% increase in sales over 2007. In the third quarter, netbook sales even outpaced those of the iPhone. To the average consumer, the choice is a simple one: I can go with a 15″ laptop for $600 or a 9″ netbook for $300. However, many netbook buyers are now learning that comparing a netbook to a notebook is not apples to apples.
In two years, the netbook will be another technology we look back upon and laugh like physics cards. The dominoes are stacked and ready for the fall. Here are the problems:
The original idea behind netbooks is that they would work primarily with web-based applications. This explained away concerns about low-speced builds. However, this was evidently a barrier for consumers who wanted to continue working with their desktop applications which require both processing power and memory to support the application along with storage space to keep saved documents and files. The evidence: manufacturers found soon after releasing the netbooks with Linux-based operating systems that users demanded the Windows-based operating systems instead. It also happened that Microsoft, no doubt feeling threatened by the growing popularity of a subset of computers incapable of running Vista, decided to resurrect Windows XP for distribution on netbooks. The web is virtually identical from Windows to Linux. Sure, people hate change no matter how small, but it seems to me that if users buy these machines with the expectation that the applications they are using are going to be primarily web-based, it wouldn’t be an issue. Also, the meager SSD offerings were seemingly insufficient as almost every new netbook coming out ships with a traditional hard drive. Why do I need 160GB hard drive to store my data in the cloud?
The processor, already a meager 1.6GHz, is throttled back to 500MHz for power savings. I’m all for power savings, but this seems a little extreme. Certainly road warriors will appreciate the longer battery life, but this comes at a great performance cost. It seems that much of the battery life gain will be utilized waiting for applications to load and complete processes.
To steal a phrase from Peter Rojas and Ryan Block of the gdgt podcast (who, I think, stole the phrase from someone else), netbooks are a race to the bottom. There is tremendous downward price pressure in this hardware category. This is great for the consumer… up to the point at which manufacturers can no longer offer lower prices for the hardware. At this point, they begin to explore more devious ways of externalizing the cost of these notebooks. You may remember the days of cheap computers with an AOL or CompuServe contract. Well, those days are back in the form of cellular data contracts. Who can resist a $99 computer with a two-year Verizon contract?
As consumers demand more from netbooks, the definition becomes muddied. We are already seeing netbooks in 10″ and 12″ configurations blurring the line between netbook and notebook. SSD has been mostly scrapped in favor of standard hard drives. Other manufacturers (I’m looking at you, Sony.) are releasing netbooks that they refuse to call netbooks in order to break out of the restrictive price constraints.
Ultimately, the problem is a misconception about what a netbook is meant to be. The netbook is really targetting geeks who already have a desktop, already have a real laptop (for doing real work), and want something to fill the gap between. Even this is a problem since most of these geeks have smartphones that are slowly becoming more and more capable of basic web-based tasks. The general populace sees this thing that looks like a small notebook and is offered at an attractive price. They believe it must be a notebook computer. Strictly speaking, it is, but it isn’t the workhorse a traditional notebook can be. This misconception leads to lots of sales on the frontend to average users who think they are getting a bargain, but it will not be sustainable as they recognize their error. An alternate scenario is that netbooks will slowly creep in price and performance to the point they are indistinguishable and thus will cease to exist. Either way, stock up on those cute little netbooks while you can. In 18 months or so, they may be much more difficult to find.
Frequency/Amplitude reborn!
February 26th, 2009 •
Tags: Amplitude, Frequency, games, Gaming, PSP, rhythm games, Rock Band
Frequency and its sequel Amplitude for the PS2 were Harmonix‘s, Guitar Hero creators and current developers of Rock Band, first foray into console gaming. The games pioneered the modern rhythm gaming craze. In fact, the biggest difference between Rock Band and the early games are the controller. Harmonix tested the waters by releasing games that could be played with the standard PS2 controller. The games were really excellent. Granted, the PS2 controller wasn’t perfect for them, but they could have been improved with a small controller similar in size to the PS2 controller but with a different layout. Harmonix instead skipped straight into controllers shaped like instruments completing the metaphor.
That’s all well and good, but Sony recently announced a portable version of Rock Band for the PSP! Instead of some type of special controller for the portable console, the game will control with the standard PSP controlset. This gets me really excited. I was a big fan of Frequency and Amplitude, and I think it is a bit silly that Harmonix had to bundle a guitar shaped controller with what was essentially the next Frequency game to get the average gamer’s attention. If Harmonix can achieve bigger success with this spiritual sequel by exploiting the Rock Band brand, so be it! This may be the release that forces me to buy a PSP.
Primotech Exclusive: EA Publishing Rock Band Unplugged for the PSP
iPhone review: Vector Tanks
February 25th, 2009 •
Tags: iPhone games, iphone gaming, reviews, Vector Tanks
Vector Tanks is an iPhone game that seems to appeal to the nostalgia of former Battlezone players. I have very little connection to the source material here so I look at it through a different lens than would a player of the original Battlezone. It was released about three years before my birth, and, although Wikipedia says its popularity was enduring due to the innovative nature of the graphics and perspective, it had long since been retired into gaming lore by the time I began my illustrious career as a gamer. Vector graphics were a fad that didn’t endure (although the style was revived for the Geometry Wars series).
It has a look very authentic to that of it’s inspiration. In fact, the presentation is slightly improved. It is more colorful, and the lines have sort of a glow about them which is a pretty cool effect. Explosions are cool and feel large with the entire view shaking as an enemy tank explodes.
The control scheme has been well-adapted to the platform. I can’t imagine a better way to translate the controls of the original. The extreme left and right edges of the screen control movement of the left and right tracks. The middle of the screen on each edge is neutral—no movement is taking place. Slide either side to the top and that track will move forward; slide to the bottom and that side moves backward. It’s a pretty intuitive system. I have to say that, even though authenticity is not compromised, the controls are not entirely satisfying. It seems that sometimes the tracks do not move even though my fingers are tracing up and down the sides. This two-finger movement scheme is also problematic when it comes time to fire. Firing is accomplished by tapping the middle of the screen at the aiming reticule. In order to fire while moving, you must snake an extra finger (since your thumbs are occupied) around to the screen and tap on the center. Not only is this difficult to do, but it obscures much of the screen from view while firing is taking place. I guess this control setup was the best way to please the purists, but, on its own, the controls don’t hold up to much extended play.
Be prepared to see this screen quite a lot.
There is no narrative and no progression to the game that I can find. In the style of older games (and even still with newer arcade games) you are merely presented with a simple gameplay mechanic and given an opportunity to repeat it until you run out of patience (quarters being the arcade analog). This leaves a shallow gaming experience with no “carrot-on-a-stick” to keep me coming back.
I’m certainly glad I got to try this game. It has an undeniably cool and retro look. I imagine players of the original will enjoy the ability to play an old favorite on the go. Also, unlike many retro titles, Battlezone is a well that has not been tapped very often leaving the experience feeling fresh. It’s unfortunate that the controls seem to get in the way of enjoying the game. It’s doubly unfortunate that there seems to be no reason to continue playing unless you find the play mechanics themselves particularly satisfying. Some games are perfect for adaptation to the iPhone platform. Others like Vector Tanks are best left elsewhere.
Update schedule
February 25th, 2009 • 1 comment
Tags: posts, stories, update schedule, updates
I’m going to be moving to a bit more sane update schedule. Look for big posts on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with other stories of interest posted as the urge hits me. Video shows will stay the same (bi-weekly on Friday). Thanks for reading. Be sure to subscribe to the feed so you won’t miss anything!
A cell phone retrospective
February 24th, 2009 •
Tags: cell phones, history, phones, retrospective
Wired has a cool photo retrospective of cell phones from the beginning to now. I never had one of the huge brick phones, but I fondly remember my StarTAC. It’s amazing how far we’ve come. I never thought I would actually want to pay for games to play on my phone, but that is where today leaves me… with unfortunate consequences to my bank account. 
Recession relief: Getting geek on the cheap
February 23rd, 2009 •
Tags: deals, shopping
As an Internet user, you should know you never have to pay retail for almost any gadget you might want. Internet retailers can sell much cheaper and they discount much more aggressively than their brick-and-mortar counterparts. Here are some of my favorite sites for getting great deals on geek sustenance—games and gadgets.
Games
Cheapassgamer.com- Maybe you want to save $5 or $10 on a game that’s launching soon. Maybe you want to find a heavy discount on a game that’s been out for a few months. Maybe you want the details on an upcoming game clearance at a retail chain. Cheapy D and the forum folks at CAG will hunt down the craziest deals and provide you with all the details. This site has been around for a while, and I don’t think they ever really miss. If there’s a deal, check out these forums and you will find it.
CheapCollegeGamers- Another forum for gaming deals. I only discovered this one recently. My favorite thing about it: the RSS feed is updated more frequently than that of Cheapassgamer and hits more of the deals where CAG only includes maybe one stellar deal per week. This feed has multiple deals every day. A great candidate for your Google Reader.
Half.com- eBay bought this site a few years ago. Almost yearly, eBay announces the site will be shut down, but the users just aren’t having it. So, the site survives. It is a marketplace for games, movies, books, and music. It’s sorta like eBay, but everything is Buy-it-now. All the auction foreplay is dispensed with. One really nice feature is the pre-order feature (now called Match My Price). Go to an item page, click Match My Price, and enter your desired price. When a seller lists an item, they will see they can sell it immediately for your requested price. If they choose to do so, it’s over. The item is yours and they are paid. You can set expiration for your pre-order for as little as two weeks, and you will receive e-mail updates to remind you that the pre-order is active. You can also manually cancel it at any time.
Gadgets and Gear
Woot- I’ve covered this one before, but this article cannot pass without mentioning it. Woot will give you one daily deal on a product. Most products are geek-friendly although there is the occasional golf club or espresso machine.
Slickdeals.net- The site has deals on all types of items, but much of what is posted is tech related. The RSS feed is great, but I find the deals are sometimes expired by the time they hit my reader. I guess if you really want to be thorough, you will have to keep the site open and spam refresh.
[H]ard|Forum- These are the forums of an excellent computer hardware site HardOCP. Check out the Hot Deals and the For Sale/Trade forums for nice prices on computer hardware and gadgets. You may find some gaming stuff here too. I actually came away with a 3DO console for practically nothing.
I know there are many more sites I may have missed. That’s where you come in! Post in the comments your favorite deals sites or even techniques for getting great prices on your geek gear. You may see an episode of the podcast in the coming weeks with some advanced online shopping techniques that will completely automate the process of finding deals online! Subscribe to the site feed or the podcast (iTunes) to stay informed.
Tumblr vs. Posterous: microblogging throwdown
February 22nd, 2009 • 15 comments
Tags: Blog, blogging, microblogging, Posterous, tumblr
I’ve been auditioning the two heavyweights in the greater-than-140-characters microblogging space for a bit over a week now. I can tell you right off the bat, there is no clear winner here. Both services certainly have a place. In fact, the services are not quite as similar as I first thought.
Registration is an easy win for Posterous. It is one of few services that do not require a registration form to begin. Instead, just e-mail post [at] posterous [dot] com. Tumblr’s registration isn’t terrible, but you can’t beat no registration.
It was easily apparent that Tumblr (read my post about it) is the more full-featured of the two. It is truly just a half-step below a full-featured blog. There are multiple media types that can be easily added to your tumblelog. Posterous (read my post on that one too) takes a more hands-off approach to media. If you make a post with a link to a video on YouTube or a host of other media hosting sites, the media will automatically be embedded, but no attempt is made to facilitate your actually adding a video or audio file yourself unless you have first uploaded it to one of the aforementioned services. Tumblr, on the other hand, will send you to Vimeo when you want to post a video then add it to your blog. Audio hosting appears to be done in-house at Tumblr.
Both services offer a bookmarklet for easily sharing content without interrupting your surfing. There was at least one page that would not share with the Tumblr bookmarklet for some reason. I never really understood why that was. It seemed to share fine with Posterous. The bookmarklets are slightly different: Tumblr’s opens a new window/tab where Posterous overlays on top of the current page. I didn’t really see that make much difference. I’m sure some people would prefer one or the other, but it is purely cosmetic.
Both services also offer posting via e-mail. Posterous is intelligent in handling your e-mails. As I stated before, it will automatically embed media if you send e-mail with a link to said media. It seems Tumblr posts any link you send as just a link which is a bit of a bummer. You can, of course, still post a video through the web interface, but it would be nice to see e-mail posts handled based on context. Also, the Posterous address is a no-brainer: post [at] posterous [dot] com. Tumblr generates an e-mail address for each user. This means, you will probably not be recalling your e-mail for Tumblr if you happen to be away from your contact list.
The web interface is not the focus of the Posterous service. They really expect you to post everything via e-mail. It is still serviceable though. You get a WYSIWYG text editor, and, just like sending an e-mail, it will intelligently decide how to handle links. Even though Posterous doesn’t show you dedicated options for posting media, that functionality is present and works beautifully and simply. At Tumblr, you will select a type of post which will determine how your data is displayed. It has all the goodies as well. It’s nice to be able to explicitly specify what you are trying to post. If you were to post a link to a video site Posterous does not support, it is unclear how that would be handled. Since you would have already specified in Tumblr that you intend to post video, it makes sense that you would receive an error if Tumblr cannot find video at the given location.
If you need customization, you should really just forget about Posterous as there isn’t any to speak of. Tumblr has a really wide-range of options here. If this is going to be your only blog and you want to express yourself, Tumblr is the way to go.
Tumblr has added a new feature since I wrote about them that is very interesting. Users can now call a 1-800 number to post audio from their phones on the go. This is really cool, but I’m not sure exactly how I would use it.
As I said in the opening, neither service dominates the other. My advice: if this is your only blog or you really need to be able to customize, go with Tumblr. It’s easy, offers a lot of features, and completely flexible as far as styling. If you’re looking for a service to supplement other services in the social media space, stick to Posterous. It’s quick to setup, you don’t even have to think about design or customization, and you can basically use e-mail for all your posting be it text or multimedia. I’m personally going with Posterous. I’m already well-represented on the social web so I don’t need a microblogging service to reflect myself in any aspect other than the content. Posterous really dispenses with all the frills and lets me focus on just that.
Once again I want to mention that, should you decide to start using one of these services, you should totally add me. We could be friends and stuff. I will probably use my Posterous for most things, but I’m keeping my tumblelog around just to see if I can find a use for the über-cool audio posting via phone feature. If you’d prefer to follow both via RSS, I made a pipe for that which will try to eliminate any duplicate posts. See you on the Interwebs!
iPhone review: iDracula
February 21st, 2009 •
Tags: games, Gaming, iDracula, iPhone, iPhone games, mobile
At first glance, iDracula is visually reminiscent of the Diablo series (no, not the new rainbow/unicorn-riddled Diablo 3). Imagine my surprise when I fired up the game to find it has both feet firmly planted in a genre resurrected by Geometry Wars: the twin-stick shooter. For anyone unfamiliar with this type of game, it utilizes two different directional inputs—the first for traversing the arena and the second for controlling the direction of fire. In this implementation of the genre, you are a vampire hunter fighting wave after wave of monsters, picking up weapons and skills along the way to help you deal with the ever-encroaching onslaught.
Of course, the iPhone does not have the “twin sticks” from which the genre derives it’s name. Instead, like others that have come before, the developer had to devise another control mechanism. iDracula uses two on-screen directional controls giving it razor-accurate response. Per convention, the left side controls your character’s movement while the right side controls firing. The controls are rarely obtrusive and are positioned to still allow for a large play area while still being large enough to facilitate intuitive controls. It’s easy to find where your thumb needs to be to move and/or fire in any given direction.
The game comes with two modes: “Rush” and “Survival.” Rush mode throws you right into the fray. At all times, you’ll be surrounded by tons of monsters, and, armed with your machine gun and unlimited ammo, you’re tasked with mowing down as many as possible. This is the game mode for a quick play session. If you just have a minute or two to play, fire up “Rush” mode to dispense with all the foreplay. Throughout my play in this mode, there isn’t really any progression. That’s where “Survival” mode comes in.
“Survival” mode is the meat of the game. This mode couples the frantic arena shooting with RPG-like progression to give players a surprisingly robust experience. The mechanics are identical, but there is real progression here and incentive to play for more than a few minutes. You start with a handgun, and you’re looking at two or three shots to kill the weakest enemies. Luckily, the enemies will trickle in slowly at first to ease you into the action. Before long, the pace will pick up, new and stronger enemies will be introduced, and you’ll most likely have found a better weapon just about the time you were thinking you weren’t going to hold up much longer with just the pistol. The game seems to be intelligent about when new weapons are dropped so that you never feel like you are either underpowered or overpowered. You also have to manage ammo, but, honestly, once you start getting new weapons, ammo is not tough to find either although you may not necessarily find ammo for the particular weapon you want to use.
The progression comes in other forms as well. Perks are iDracula’s analog to leveling and learning new spells in an RPG. After a number of kills, you will see the perks icon light up in the top-right of the screen. Tap it to access a menu with four randomly selected upgrades like the ability to do more damage when your life gets low or a greater maximum health. These upgrades are persistent throughout your play session. In addition, you will periodically encounter Dracula. He is much tougher than the other enemies. If you defeat him, you are awarded with a shard. Collect shards to advance in rank. Unfortunately, rank is purely superficial; it’s nothing more than a word displayed at the end of the statistics screen displayed when you die leaving little incentive to strive for higher rank.
Now this is sounding like more of a timesink, right? Luckily, the developer considered the habits of mobile gamers and included an autosave that will allow you to resume your game after you have closed the game (or received a call). There is an in-game pause button as well, which is also convenient from time-to-time.
My complaints are few and minor. The character’s lower body moves completely independent of the upper body which creates some wacky-looking scenarios such as running full-speed forward away from monsters while your torso is facing and aiming in the exact opposite direction. The character’s feet should always be within a 90° radius of the direction of his face, but that is not necessarily the case here. I would love to see some sort of narrative and a progression through that narrative although that is a bit much to ask of a game at this price-point. (Maybe in the sequel?) 
An audio cue for perks would be nice. I often don’t know until I glance at the top-right of the screen that I have perks available. Finally, it is somewhat difficult to switch weapons in the game. The task itself is simple, but it requires diverting one of your thumbs from a directional control to execute. This is often dangerous by the time you might want to switch weapons because of the frantic pace of the game. To halt either firing or moving at these times is virtually suicide.
I’m really excited to see more from this developer. This is a near-perfect mobile gaming experience for players craving a bit more in the realm of hardcore gaming experiences on the iPhone. It is a genre-bending title that expertly melds a game well-suited to short, quick play sessions with some elements that make it worth coming back to. The game is currently $.99 at the time this review is published and will be for a little while longer. The developer is also promising some meaty additions (like a new game mode) in an upcoming update. The regular price is $2.99. It’s an incredible value at either price, and I’m sure iDracula will remain on my home screen for some time to come.
Video: Easy Digital Music Recording
February 20th, 2009 • 1 comment
Tags: audacity, audio, audio recording, digital music, Macbook, music, music recording, online music distribution, recording, rifflet
Colin Campbell is my brother, and, more importantly for the purposes of this video, he is a singer/songwriter who records music digitally and distributes it online. He uses a very cheap and simple method. If you want studio-quality recording, this isn’t for you. If you want to continue to gain exposure while you finance your studio gear, or if you simply want to be heard regardless of how it sounds, this may be the simplest and easiest way to do so.
He uses only software and hardware included with his Macbook to record his tunes and distributes them online via rifflet.com. If you have a Macbook, you can follow his exact procedure to record and distribute your tracks. If you have a PC, he suggests the free and open-source audio recording program Audacity. This can really be done with any kind of computer along with a microphone… even if it’s a cheap one! Like I said, the goal is not to build a home studio but to quickly and economically digitize your music and get it heard.
Colin also recorded a screencast showing his recording and uploading process to make things even easier on you.
Be sure to check out Colin’s other tracks on rifflet. You can even subscribe to an RSS feed of his music to see updates in your feed reader when he posts a new song. If you need further information or have questions, you can e-mail him @ appletofu [at] gmail [dot] com.
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Links
Geek your way to a lower entertainment budget
February 20th, 2009 •
Tags: cable, entertainment, finance, Hulu, money, Netflix, personal finance, Video
J.D. over at Get Rich Slowly (one of my favorite blogs, btw) has a fantastic article about how he ditched cable, spent a fraction of the cost on iTunes downloads, and supplemented that with some free content from Hulu. This trend is becoming more and more popular in recent times. Kevin Rose has mentioned a couple of times on his podcast Diggnation that he recently ditched cable and now gets his entertainment via the Internet. I personally have been cable-free for quite a few years now. Between video games, Hulu, and Netflix streaming, there’s never a dull moment.
