Fire Boy and Water Girl Play

Lucille Wood
May 26, 2022
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Xbox 360 Kinect USB Extension

Out of the Box

Recently I was able to get my hands on one of the new Xbox Kinects. For those who don’t know the Xbox Kinect is Microsoft’s answer to the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation Move. It is essentially a camera that you mount above or below your TV and it senses your movements then translates them into movements in your video game. For instance, in a driving game you take put your arms in front of you and pretend to drive a car. It works alright for the most part but it does take a while to get use to. However one problem that I have run into with the Kinect is the way you connect the Kinect to your TV (No pun intended).

Cable Troubles

The Xbox Kinect comes out of the box with a 9 foot cable. This is a slight problem with the way my Home Theater is set up. See my home has the TV Mounted on the Wall and I have my Xbox elsewhere in a near by closet. This is much further then 9 feet.

After looking around for a way to extend the cable, most of what I was finding was the Microsoft branded extension cable that will run you about 50 dollars and it is only 10ft extension. Still not good enough for my needs. So I started looking at USB extension cables. The Xbox Kinect, when you purchase it on its own, will come with a USB converter cable that turns the special Kinect cable into a USB connection. So I started trying out a few different extension cables that I had available to me.

Active and Passive USB Extensions

I first tried out a standard 6 foot Passive USB extension. This did not work what so ever. The Kinect would not recognize that it was even plugged into the Xbox. I then tried out an active extension cable. I used a Sewell 16ft Active Extension cable (you can get them at various places but I find this one to be the best deal)

After testing the Active extension cable it worked great. After plugging it in, the Kinect fired right up and the Xbox recognized the Kinect instantly. The guys at Sewell say they have tested it with these 16ft cables while daisy chaining them all together and have said it works. They even have a YouTube showing how it works.

Bigger Does Not Always Mean Better…

I also was able to try a 33 foot active extension cable and it did not work. For some reason you can daisy chain the 16 foot extensions together but the 33 foot extensions do not work. Most likely it needs the active repeaters to be at those 16 foot intervals or it cant keep the signal constant. So if you need to extend your Xbox Kinect grab yourself a couple USB Active Extension cables and you should be fine.

Note: Make sure that you have the USB connection on your Kinect and not the special Xbox Kinect connection, if you have one of those and not a USB, then you will have to buy the converter or just go for the expensive Microsoft cable

Also if you have a PlayStation Move, these also connect via USB so you can use the same cables for those as well. Sewell Direct has a video of testing them with the Move and it seems to have the same limitations, you have to use the 16ft extension cables and not the 33 ft extension cables…

Lucille Wood
May 24, 2022
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Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus – Review of the Playstation Vita Video Game

This is a weird review to tackle, because by now this game has been around for eight long years and been re-released numerous times. The obvious thing to do would be to just focus on the Vita specific features of this latest packaging, but that’s pretty boring. I’ve never personally reviewed Ninja Gaiden, so I’m going to give this a solid review that will hopefully appeal to Vita owners who have (somehow) never actually played this game.

So let’s start with a bold statement: I think (the original) Ninja Gaiden deserves the title as one of the best action-adventure games to ever grace a console. It’s not perfect, and time has caused its flaws to be magnified, but the combat system is as tight as ever. Every sword fight is fast and intense, and every battle you participate in could be your last. You absolutely must master (at the very least) the basic techniques, since as you have probably heard, this game is notoriously difficult.

And it is difficult, especially by modern standards, but Ninja Gaiden’s difficulty is discussed much like Demon/Dark Souls’ difficulty: as an exercise in hyperbole. Like those games, Ninja Gaiden is significantly challenging, but with patience and experience the game can be bested. A quick tip: learn how to block and dodge. These combat techniques are non-negotiable.

The combat plays with precision and finesse, like it was stripped right out of a fighting game, but the platforming doesn’t follow suit. Sure, you can run along and flip off of walls like a true ninja, and it’s cool once you get the hang of it, but the movement is very sensitive, so oftentimes it’s easy to miss your mark. Luckily, that rarely leads to instant death, unlike the old school NES games (which ironically had arguably tighter platforming).

The story that unfolds is of Ryu Hayabusa from those very same NES games, whose ninja clan is mercilessly slaughtered by an evil spirit called Doku, who dresses in samurai armor and talks like Darth Vader (which is in fact awesome). Doku steals the Dark Dragon Blade, and murders Ryu with ease. And so his (and your own) tale of vengeance begins.

It’s all fairly cookie cutter stuff, only made slightly cooler by ninjas and swords. The voice acting falls flat and is fairly bad, and save one cool plot twist near the end, it’s all fluff. It is all forgivable though, as the story only exists to propel the action. This is a game that people fondly remember for its gameplay and difficulty, and hopefully not its story. That said, the plot is not the worse I have ever seen, by a longshot (and from what I have heard, it is way better than Ninja Gaiden III.)

Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus is a linear game. Sure, you can explore formerly visited areas and search out some secrets, but you are mostly moving from point A to point B. During your travels, you will cut down all manner of man and demon in a variety of locations: a ninja village, a blimp, a bar, and a military base, to name a few. The variety works well for the story; the game is pretty long, and the diversity of locations makes you feel like your taking on a real journey.

The dragon sword is not the only weapon you will cut through your opposition with, as you will come to earn many new weapons and skills. In fact, the amount of weapons is impressive, and they mostly play differently, rather than just looking different. For example, the nunchaku are fast and relentless, but a giant sword carries the momentum of a small car. There’s something for everyone here, but if you’re like me, you’ll fall in love with the dual swords and never look back.

Speaking of “something for everyone”, since the release of Ninja Gaiden Sigma on the PS3 in 2007, you can play as the female warrior from the story, Rachel. She plays like a tank in contrast to the nimble Ryu, wielding a gigantic hammer that smashes it’s foes to putty. While I feel these segments are a nice break from Ryu’s story, they don’t really add anything (save a boss fight) and eventually, you just want to get back to what feels like the real game, because ultimately Ryu is more fun to control, as well as carries the weight of the story. Then again, perhaps this is just a result of my having played through the game before Rachel’s missions were included.

On the Vita, the game boasts a few new features, but they are all really just gimmicks. You can touch the screen to enter first-person view, and look around by moving …

Lucille Wood
May 23, 2022
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The Playstation 3 Is A Blu-Ray Player – This Makes The Difference

I don’t know if you are aware of it but there is an almighty battle going on at the moment in the games console market place. Microsoft and Sony have both released new versions of their fantastic games machines, the XBox 360 and the PlayStation 3 Slim.

Along with these new models are the hands free controllers that allow a player to use their own body movements to directly affect gameplay. This is amazing and a leap forward for game players. It makes the games very interactive. It also moves the world of fitness games, first seen on the Nintendo Wii to another level.

Choosing Between A PlayStation 3 Slim and The XBox 360

Because both the consoles are so good there is this push to get the most customers buying for Christmas this year. The 2 companies are talking about games that are only on their platform. There is discussion about graphics technology and storage sizes. At the end of the day there are only really small differences between them apart from one. The PlayStation 3 is also a Blu-ray DVD player.

For the life of me I do not understand why Sony are not talking up this huge extra bonus you get with the PS3. Sure they talk about it, but this really is a huge money saver for any gadget person. The one console is both a state of the art games machine and can play the latest Blu-ray discs. Blu-ray is going to be a big seller in the next few months as can be seen by the shelf space given over to the blu-ray discs in your local store.

Features Of The Blu-ray PS3

The main feature is that it is not a noisy player. You can watch both high action and the boring quiet love scenes and not have cross over noise from a whirring disc player in the background. You can use the wireless remote with it so no wires will be trailing across the carpet. And If you fall asleep you don’t have to walk across the room to switch it off.

Other Movie Formats

The PlayStation 3 will also play most of the other video formats you will need including MPEG, AVI, Motion JPEG, AVCHD, DivX, MVC and VC-1. So this makes the Sony PS3 an al round video and movie player as well as one of the top gaming machines. Think of it this way if you like. You go and buy a fantastic Blu-ray player for about $299 and get the PlayStation thrown in for free.…

Lucille Wood
May 21, 2022
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Outlook Social Engine Connectors – 2010

Microsoft Corporation is putting its step toward turning outlook, its desktop e-mail program, into the main core of information for most renowned social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.

On Wednesday, Microsoft is launching a “Beta” test version of the outlook social connector. The add-on software, which was previously discussed in last November, adds a pane to the main e-mail reading screen on outlook. This is most recently launched by Microsoft for testing. When the user clicks to read an e-mail message, the new panes fill up with the senders most recent used social networking activities. Those could include the addition of a business and professional contact on LinkedIn or a “what I’m doing now’ status update from Face Book.

Microsoft has a mixed record when it comes to web trends. The company’s free Hotmail and Windows Live messenger program are widely and commonly used all around the world but its Windows Live blog/ social network didn’t boil up with much steam in the face of competition from Face Book. In this case, a small start up called Xobni has built an outlook add-on that combine inbox search with content from Facebook, LinkedIn and others.

Microsoft newly launched software also treats outlook itself as a social network. If the e-mail sender and recipient are jointly working on a same document stored on a company’s server, both will see update if one logs on to make editing and posting but the new software doesn’t let people use outlook to push information back up to LinkedIn, Facebook or other sites.

People using Office 2003, 2007 and recently updated beta version of Office 2010 can download the update using outlook social connector beta.

Office 2010 will be available on stores from 2010 June.

Will Kenedy, a corporate vice president from the Office Group, said that some of Microsoft’s business customers expressed their view that their employees will become less productive if they will have all this extra information in their palms.

But Kenedy sees business friendly uses for the social networking connectors. He expressed that it could speed up processes that require a string of people to sign-off because each person in that chain could see when it’s time for him or her to weigh in.…

Lucille Wood
May 19, 2022
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PS3 Red Light Flashing – How to Repair the PS3 Red Flashing Light

Are you having the ps3 red light flashing problem? Is your console refusing to boot? Did it give three beeps before the light began flashing? If any of these happened, then you can be sure that you have the infamous and dreaded ps3 red light of death. Fixing this is not just a straight jacketed thing. This is because there are many causes. Here are a few repair tips to help you fix it.

1. Cool the Console Down

Sometimes, this problem is caused by the heat generated by it. The PS3 console is built in such a manner that heat doesn’t readily escape leading to excessive heating which may also affect other integral parts of the console like the HDD and the board.

So, cool the console down by either directing a fan towards the vents or placing it directly in front of the AC. If you have any other cooling device too, it will work.

2. Turn off the High Definition

I know this is a bummer and that it affects the viewing quality, but the truth is that the high def often generates more heat. But this is the way Sony built the console and heat is an essential part of its functions.

3. Avoid the Corners

Avoid placing the console in any corner or place where there is no proper ventilation, the reflected heat from these places tend to increase the temperature of the console resulting in more heat which of course tends to result in the ps3’s red light flashing and the console shutting down.…

Lucille Wood
May 17, 2022
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The Latest PlayStation Move Games

With the upcoming release move, PlayStation fans are eagerly awaiting the release of several PlayStation Move games. PlayStation Move, scheduled to be released on September 17, combines the greatest elements of the Wii remote and Microsoft’s Project Natal to create a highly responsive motion sensor controller. Sony has announced several games that will utilize the new controller.

PlayStation sports fan have plenty to look forward to once the PlayStation Move is released. Sports Champion, slated for September 7, consists of six events ranging from archery to gladiator style dueling. Sports Champions has three different modes: Free Play, Challenge Mode and Competition Mode. Competition Mode allows players to go head to head and compete with up to three friends. Players looking for a bigger thrill may find the perfect match in The Fight: Lights Out. The Fight: Lights Out is a gritty fighting game that puts players in the shoes of an up and coming street fighter. The game features online and off line multiplayer as well as a single player career mode. The Fight: Lights out will hit the shelves on October 26, 2010.

Sports games are not the only PlayStation Move games making an appearance. Fans of Little Big Planet will be thrilled to know that Little Big Planet 2 will be PlayStation Move enabled. Scheduled to be released on November 16, this 3D platformer will bring back the loveable sackboy for another round of fun. Sly Cooper will also make an appearance on the PlayStation Move with The Sly Collection. The Sly Collection will contain updated, re-masterd versions of all three Sly Cooper games. As an added bonus, Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves will be available in 3D.

Resident Evil fans will be glad to know the Resident Evil 5: Gold Addition is already PlayStation Move enabled. Resident Evil 5 brings Chris Redfield to a remote African village in search of a new threat. Armed with a new partner, Sheva Alomar, the two must fight to stop the latest threat. The Gold Addition includes two new episodes, AÃ¯Â¿Â½Lost in NightmaresAÃ¯Â¿Â½ and AÃ¯Â¿Â½Desperate EscapeAÃ¯Â¿Â½ along with two new costume packs. For those that enjoy adventure games with a twist, Heavy Rain is a great choice. Released on February 23, 2010, Heavy Rain takes interactive story telling to new level as players shift between four different characters all caught in a stunning, emotional action adventure game.

PlayStation Move games expected to be released in the near future include: Beat Sketcher, Heroes on the Move, SOCOM 4: US Navy Seals, SingStar Dance, Time Crisis Razing Storm, Sorcery and more.…

Lucille Wood
May 17, 2022
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Console Gaming, Then and Now

We all remember pong, in fact, it’s still around. Cell phones, MP3 players, retro game reinventions still bring us Pong and many of the other classic games we know and love. Console games two decades ago(about when I was born) were very primitive. People often used number pads to enter in commands, those commands would then translate to an action on a screen. Some consoles were actually housed in wood, not plastic. It wasn’t until Nintendo released the NES that the market really exploded.

Nintendo had achieved something that the competition had not. The NES(Nintendo Entertainment System) was sleek, clean and it featured cartridges(games) that could be bought and inserted into the system to play. Many, many games were made for the NES and it was on top of the world for the time.

Nintendo later announced the Super NES, which had taken advantage of the newest technology at the time. This was the tipping point where 2-D smoothed into 3-D. The N64 was the next step, Sony was close behind with the Playstation. The N64 was still using cartridges while the PlayStation used discs. This turned a lot of game publishers away from the N64 because it meant developing for 2 different technologies.

This Brings us up to the year 2000. You have 3 major competitors; Sony’s PlayStation 2, Microsoft’s Xbox and Nintendo’s Gamecube. All have 3-D graphics and immersible gameplay but the Xbox and PlayStation 2 appealed to more hardcore gamers while the Nintendo kept a fun casual gamer environment. The Xbox and PlayStation 2 did something that the Gamecube did not, online multiplayer. For the first time, gamers would be able to use the Internet to play with each other. This took video games to a whole new level.

With today’s consoles hot on the market(Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii) it is only a matter of time before we see another big breakthrough from console games. There are technologies in the works that will hopefully have gamers moving and controlling game characters in a life-like manner. If the last decade in changes are any indication of the changes to come, then we have a lot to look forward to.…

Lucille Wood
allow
military
May 15, 2022
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US Military Sales to Taiwan – Is It Safe to Allow That Technology to Be Stolen There?

Last year we were discussing the challenges of selling Taiwan our latest weapon systems in case they wanted to defend themselves against a Chinese forced reunification. If we don’t there would be little reason for China not to force their political will, but if we do, it’s well known that Chinese spies have infiltrated the Taiwan Military and political leadership, and thus, might someday use that same technology against us, our allies, or sell it to our enemies. Okay so, let’s talk.
You see it is my contention that Taiwan has been fully infiltrated, and thus, we ought to watch out for espionage or Chinese spies getting Lockheed’s technology (missile defense shield), and what about those F-16 upgrades, of course, China already has that due to Pakistan and other nations, the Chinese were all over the last India Air Show with the newest F-15 modifications for stealthier design, and F-16 modifications.
There are now direct flights between the countries (China and Pakistan), direct trade, and political talks at the highest levels, and previously there were lots of inter-connected flights through Hong Kong, etc. and the latest direct flights are bothersome too, not quite as serious as the secret flights between Venezuela and Iran, because it is important for those two nations to be on good-terms and continue talking – that prevents war and conflict.
Nevertheless, this is how proliferation occurs, just like the North Koreans selling nuclear weapons tech to Syria or the Pakistani scientist to Iran. We have some serious challenges around the world with military tech flows, and these are just a few of what’s out in open and well-known. The recent political talk between Taiwan and Chinese leaders about eventual re-unification, which seems to be a “trial close” sale on the Taiwanese voters, and whenever a Taiwan businessman (patriotic spy) or politician speaks out about China, all of a sudden he’s out of business, out of office and facing some sort of charges.
How about on the spy front? Well, there are several former bought-off Taiwanese double-spies converted into Chinese assets now. China wants our Aegis system tech, and the Metal Storm systems from Europe, as they know they need it, and they are right they are going to need it if they push much harder against South Sea bordering nations, as the US Navy is serious about keeping open shipping channels and open waters.
Does China think the US is weak? Well, perhaps they are not na?Ã¯Â¿Â½ve to think that we are militarily weak, but they realize the US people cannot stomach a war. Of course, and during the Vietnam war, we wouldn’t bomb past the parallel, where the supply lines were coming from, how do you fight a way half way, my dad said we could have won that war in any 10-period had they let the various carrier groups and USAF in there. Oh well, also China looked pretty weak too when confronted with the Vietnamese who were not afraid to die to defend themselves.
It seems that when Chinese and US Politicians talk, they simply set aside many of these other issues, which are serious enough to discuss, and such a dialogue would be of value, as our nation’s economies are inter-connected of course. Please consider all this and think on it.…

Lucille Wood
heres
iphone
May 14, 2022
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Get Your Free iPhone 4G – Here’s How

Software companies manufacturing applications for gadgets such as the iPhone need your help. Becoming a beta tester is easier than you might think and you will end up with the coolest gadgets for free in exchange for your help.
So what will it take to become an applications tester? Well, not pretty much to be honest. You won’t need previous experience or references because software manufacturers want their applications to be tested by ordinary people just like you and me. This will give them an idea about how their software is going to be received by the general public. To software engineers everything looks easy to use but there have been when applications that were only tested by the people who made them proved to be commercial failures as the general public found them too hard to operate.
This is why beta testers are now regular people, kids, students, housewives and school teachers. The testing process is quite simple. All you will have to do is take the iPhone with the application installed on it and use it only when you need it just like a regular buyer would. You won’t have to assess the technical features of the software but its general usability and every day utility.
After the testing period (usually about a week) you will have to give your honest review to the company. As a reward for your work (if you can call playing with a gadget “work”) you won’t be paid in cash but you will get to keep the iPhone you’ve just used for testing for free instead.…