Gamespy’s multiplayer servers are going dark, be prepared
Even if you’ve only played a handful games with online multiplayer in the past dozen years, chances are that at least a few of your sessions have been powered by Gamespy’s back-end tech. On May 31st, the company is shutting down its servers for good, and as a result, a bunch of games are losing their online capabilities. For console games, that largely amounts to multiplayer. For certain PC titles though, that also includes authentication servers for CD keys — losing those means losing access to the game itself. You probably weren’t playing most of what Gamespy’s listed anymore (WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2009 on PS3, anyone?), though, and a good deal of what’s there are somewhat obscure Wii, DS and PC titles. There are, however, high-profile stand-outs: most anything from Rockstar Games and Activision, or the PS3 version of Borderlands and the hardcore military-sim (and basis for DayZ) ARMA series, for instance.
What about those? Well, according to IGN‘s sources, GameSpy’s parent company has been working with some developers and publishers, including Rockstar, to migrate to different platforms for around two years. Activision said that its players won’t be affected, and ARMA-developer Bohemia Interactive is “very near” to finding a solution, but couldn’t share many details. Gearbox Software, the studio responsible for Borderlands, passed the buck to its publisher 2K Games, which declined to comment. As gaming moves further into a future that’s ever-more reliant on the internet, these types of things will likely (perhaps inevitably) continue to happen. After all, justifying the cost involved for keeping servers active for a relatively small number of people can be hard to justify. We’ve reached out to 2K ourselves, and will update this post should we hear back.
[Image credit: Paul Cross/Flickr]
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, Networking, Internet, HD
Via: Gamasutra
Source: GameSpy (1), (2)
The Engadget Podcast is live at 12PM ET!
Spring is in the air, our TVs are on Fire, and we’re all back together once again for another episode of The Engadget Podcast. Amazon wasn’t the only circus in town this week; Microsoft’s Build conference enthralled gaggles of developers with talk of Windows 8.1, Windows Phone 8.1, and a fictional blue AI lending her voice to the latter via Cortana. Oh, and Apple finally announced their big TV initiative. APRIL FOOLS!
Join us at noon ET in the stream below! Bring your questions, and a donut or two wouldn’t hurt. We like donuts.
Microsoft cleared to exhume E.T. from landfill for original documentary
Microsoft’s been given the go-ahead to dig through a New Mexico landfill in the hunt for dumped copies of Atari 2600 title E.T., local media reports. Not without aim, of course, but so Xbox Entertainment Studios can collect crucial material for its first original documentary, which’ll look into the alleged mass burial of unsold copies of the game. Released in late 1982 when the video game industry, including Atari, was struggling, E.T. was universally panned and a commercial flop. With millions of cartridges returned by retailers, gaming lore has it that Atari quietly shipped off this useless inventory, among other unwanted paraphernalia, to a landfill site. Opinions are mixed and evidence inconclusive as to whether this actually took place, though, hence a documentary to get to the bottom of it. As much as we’d almost prefer the mystery to remain one, let’s hope Microsoft come across something or there mightn’t be a documentary at all.
Filed under: Gaming, HD, Microsoft
Via: Pocket-lint, Polygon
Source: Alamagordo News
How to Make Payroll When You’re Short on Money
If you had to ask a business owner what their worst fear was, you most likely would invariably hear a concern about not being able to pay their employees. When it comes to business, there are often high and lows, but with small businesses the lows could result in a lack of capital to provide compensation to the lifeblood of the company. This not only kills morale, it can result in the closure of business and a heavy amount of taxes and penalties.
In an American Bankruptcy Institute study as cited by Inc. Magazine, 43,546 businesses filed for bankruptcy in 2008. I’ll let you process that for a moment. The fact of the matter is that many businesses do experience shortfalls, even if they don’t go under. There are a variety of reasons for this: it could be a down season, a natural disaster of some sort, or an IT outage that takes your business offline for a significant amount of time. What’s important, though, is that you act as quickly as possible to avoid the consequences of not being able to make payroll. Here are some things that come to mind:
Leave Your Pride at the Door
The worst thing you can do to your employees is not tell them what’s going on. Oftentimes, business owners who are going through a dearth in funds try their best to avoid telling anyone because of their own pride. They are embarrassed and would prefer to turn it around on their own without losing face.
When this does not work, the people who are hurt most are the employees as they depend on that paycheck to pay their bills, purchase food, etc. Give your employees as much time as possible to prepare for the lost paycheck.
Find a Method of Financing
Because of the penalties that can incur from not covering payroll, it’s advised that you make payroll anyway possible. First and foremost, you can try to recover any outstanding receivables that are owed to you. You might have to take a hit to get the money now (sometimes as much as 50%), but getting half that money now when you need is as opposed to 100% when you’ve lost your workforce makes more sense.
You can also try liquidating anything non-essential to raise capital quickly. Another step is to take out a small business loan. While a loan from a bank may take too long and require an extensive amount of paperwork, there are lenders that will offer you an unsecured loan, depending on your ability to pay it back. This could provide the necessary cash flow to keep you afloat for the short term.
Restructure
Unfortunately, for many businesses, the best option might be to lay some employees off. Although nobody likes to put people out of work, it could mean the difference between some people retaining their jobs or a complete closure. Again, if you do find that this is the only option, make sure to give those whom you’re laying off as much notice as possible so they can look for a new job.
TomTom launches smartwatch for runners
TomTom have launched a smartwatch which is dedicated for runners, but at a premium price. The integrated heart monitor will mean runners will no longer have to strap a chest band on each time they want to monitor their heart.
In addition, as you’d expect, the TomTom smartwatch features the company’s signature feature of GPS to pinpoint your exact location and track movement.
“The TomTom Runner Cardio GPS sport watch allows runners to improve their performance with accurate, real-time metrics that help them understand how their bodies are responding to exercise,” said Jocelyn Vigreux, President of TomTom, Inc. “We realise that staying fit is a choice and a commitment, and believe the innovation and sleek design of the TomTom Runner Cardio watch will empower people to want to be more fit and help them reach their full potential.”
The TomTom smartwatch will be available for $299, so may prove a little on the high-end side for a smartwatch with the likes of Android Wear on the horizon.
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The post TomTom launches smartwatch for runners appeared first on SmarterWatching.
Read the rest at the source, SmarterWatching.com
The post TomTom launches smartwatch for runners appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Cyanogen Inc. reveals a new logo to reinforce their intention of the project
The group formed to oversee the development of the popular CyanogenMod have today revealed a new set of branding logos which is meant to invoke the idea of tools and building.
Cyanogen Inc. explained the meaning behind the logos, stating that the branding will hopefully encourage the project to continue creating an excellent smartphone experience for its users.
The center displays the importance of the user – the focus of the brand. The ‘C’ brings together the company and the community – users, developers, contributors and fans. Working together we have provided a safe and secure environment for the user; one free of walls of restrictions. The arrow points forward – driving all things forward to bigger and better things.
Don’t be worried about Cid however, since he lives on and the group was persistent in outlining that he will remain a part of the community.
The post Cyanogen Inc. reveals a new logo to reinforce their intention of the project appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Capture your friends’ actual reaction faces with Reactr [App of the Day]
There are tons of photo messaging apps out there, and they all generally do the same thing. Send a picture to a friend, and they send one back. Reactr aims to mix it up a bit by capturing reactions rather than the photos themselves.
Here’s how it works: It functions just like Snapchat. You send your friend a picture of… anything. Before you send, choose whether you want a video or photo reaction. Once your friend opens the picture, the app will automatically take either a photo or a video of their reaction. Their reaction then sends back to you.
And in our experiences, the reactions aren’t pretty.
Also, don’t worry about your reaction being sent to your friends every time… Reactr asks whether you’d like it to be sent or not.
The app catches us off guard every time, which is kind of the point. We don’t think people would generally be happy about their reaction faces, but it does capture real reactions, rather than recording them after the fact.
If all of this seems interesting to you, Reactr is free to download from the Google Play Store!
The post Capture your friends’ actual reaction faces with Reactr [App of the Day] appeared first on AndroidGuys.
iPhone 5s Demand Wanes in China, While Interest in iPhone 6 Accelerates [iOS Blog]
Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White is touring China and reports to investors that demand for the iPhone 5s in the Asian country is disappointing, while interest in Chinese brands like Xiaomi is on the rise. This cool sentiment towards the iPhone may change when an iPhone 6 model with a larger screen arrives later this year.
Interest in a large-screened iPhone model among Chinese vendors and carriers is reportedly very high, possibly making the next iPhone launch a “special” one for Apple.
In the near term, we sensed disappointment around demand for the iPhone 5S. That said, we heard great enthusiasm around the potential for Apple to introduce a larger iPhone form factor in China this year with the iPhone 6. In our view, the iPhone 6 with a larger screen (e.g., 4.7-inch, 5.5-inch) has the potential to meaningfully accelerate Apple’s growth trajectory in China during 2H:14. We have not heard this type of excitement in China around the iPhone in at least two years and thus we believe this could be a very special iPhone launch for Apple.
China has been a focus of Apple in recent years, with the company opening new retail stores and bringing both the iPhone and the iPad to wireless carriers in the Asian country. This year alone Apple has introduced a TD-LTE version of the iPad and launched both the iPhone 5s and 5c with China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile carrier with approximately 772 million subscribers.
Apple’s next iPhone model is expected to arrive in two display sizes, with one near 4.7 inches and the other at approximately 5.5 inches. The 4.7-inch model may debut this fall, while the 5.5-inch is rumored to land sometime in 2015.
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Apple’s First Turkish Store Opens to Press, Tim Cook Won’t Attend Grand Opening [Mac Blog]
Members of the press were given a tour of Apple’s newest retail store in Istanbul, Turkey before its grand opening tomorrow, April 5th, reports Apple Toolbox. Leading the tour was Apple’s manager of retail stores, Steve Cano, who confirmed that CEO Tim Cook will not attend the opening as originally expected. Turkish President Abdullah Gül also will postpone his visit until after the retail store is opened.
The 20,000 square foot store, which is located in the upscale Zorlu Center, features a unique cubic design with a glass ceiling and glass sides. According to Cano, the store uses more glass than any previous Apple Store and contains special glass materials that take full advantage of the sun light in the open area of the mall.
The Apple Retail Store at the Zorlu Center is set to open at 10:00 AM this Saturday, April 5, with Apple sending out announcements via email to Turkey residents. Similar to other retail openings, store employees will be giving away Apple t-shirts to the first 4,500 customers who enter the location on Saturday. The Istanbul location is Apple’s 424th retail store worldwide.
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Turkish court half-heartedly orders end to YouTube ban
Turkey’s Twitter ban may have come to an end, but the country’s block on YouTube remains steadfast. In the latest development to this censorship saga, Reuters reports that a court in the Turkish capital has declared the YouTube situation a human rights violation, and instructed that the block be removed. Well, almost, as the court did state 15 specific videos could stay restricted, but that a blanket ban was unnecessary. The ruling tipped its hat to a similar decision from Turkey’s Constitutional Court, which previously declared the Twitter lockdown a violation of free speech. Regardless of this official order, it’s still up to the powers that be to do the unbanning, but we doubt they’ll be up for bearing the pressure to do so much longer. If certain politically sensitive videos stay unavailable when that happens, though, then the Turkish Prime Minister and Co. have kind of won anyway, we’d say.
Filed under: Internet
Source: Reuters
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