Here’s a round-up of the latest news about the gaming industry.

Web 2.0 Is Old News! Sony Gives You Game 3.0 according to Playfuls.com

With a not-so-good performance sales of Sony’s PlayStation 3 console, the industry leader has pulled something out of its sleeve; Game 3.0.

What does Game 3.o specifically mean though? Sony unveiled a new real-time 3D avatar-based community and communication service for the PS3 platform. The new service, Home, puts users into a real-time, networked 3D community, where they can interact, join online games, communicate, share content and even build and show off their own personal spaces. Home will be available this fall as a free download from the PS3 Store. Other notable features include:

• Making your own personalized 3D character or avatar. These realistic human characters are highly customizable with different body types, skin tones, ages, clothing and accessories, creating a unique personality for each user.

• Exploring the 3D community that is Home – a sleek, modern indoor space featuring spacious common areas, retail shops, game lobbies and extensible, customizable personal apartments.

• Communicating with others through text, audio and video chat, along with sophisticated emotional animations for each character.

• Being assigned an apartment in Home where others can be invited to join you as you show off your own style in an area you can personalize yourself with furniture, art and other items. You can even show your video, pictures and music content stored on your PS3 hard drive.

• “Hall of Fame,” where you can display new 3D trophies that will be unlocked through in-game milestones in PS3 games.

So it’s like The Sims 2 and Second Life rendered in 3D but playable only in the PS3? What’s so ground-breaking about that? What about your friends who don’t have a PS3 or let alone afford one? Is this move really by Sony?

Moving on, the second gaming news is about Blizzard’s World of Warcraft surpassing the 8.5 million user-mark. WOW!

Blizzard Entertainment reported Wednesday that its expansion pack to the hit game World of Warcraft, The Burning Crusade, had sold through about 3.5 million copies in its first month of release, from mid-January to mid-February. That translates into a total of 8.5 million World of Warcraft players worldwide.

Here in the Philippines however, DOTA or the Defense of the Ancients still remains king of WOW line of games and expansions that has gotten almost every gamer young and old hooked and addicted.

Speaking of addiction, another young gamer in China has died due to non-stop gaming.

Obsessive online gaming has claimed another victim after a young man in China collapsed and dies following a marathon gaming session.

The 26-year-old man, from the Liaoning Province in North East China, had been playing ‘almost all’ week during the Chinese Spring Festival, reports the China Daily. Obesity, as well as gaming, was blamed for his death – the man identified only as ‘Zhang’ weighed 150kg (23.5 stone) and it is believed his heart struggled to pump blood throughout his enormous body, states the paper.

Talk about gaming addiction. It’s a good thing no such incident has happened here in the Philippines, yet. Still, something must be done to address this issue as early as now. Perhaps a law regulating the internet cafe business in the country? Or a law regulating gamers instead, especially those still under the legal age?

Before I sound more draconian Nintendo DS users and fans of SimCity rejoice! For Electronic Arts has announced that they would be releasing a version of their popular game for the handheld gaming device from Nintendo this summer.

The pioneering computer game Latest News about computer games “SimCity,” first written for the Commodore 64 in 1985, is being released this summer for the Nintendo Latest News about Nintendo DS platform, game publisher Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS) Latest News about Electronic Arts (EA) said Thursday.

One of the most popular games of all time, “SimCity” involves the planning, creation and control of virtual cities and their residents. It was the predecessor of “The Sims” and other legendary reality-simulation games.

The Nintendo DS version will take advantage of the dual-screen portable unit’s unique control and interaction features, according to EA. Multiple players will be able to communicate by using the DS’ “wireless data exchange” feature, said EA.

Imagine that, playing God and controlling a metropolis right in your palms.

Lastly, the future and science-fiction has once more taken a step into becoming practical reality as mind control for video games is now a working technology thanks to a gaming helmet from Emotiv Systems.

Video game players might soon use their thoughts instead of joysticks to control on-screen characters, if they wear a helmet released Wednesday by Emotiv Systems Inc.

The “Project Epoc” headset looks like a bicycle racer’s helmet, but instead of protecting the skull, it detects the brainwaves inside it, using technology similar to electroencephalography found in medical settings.

Emotiv, a privately-held startup firm in San Francisco, has applied the technology to video games with the company’s first product, the Emotiv Development Kit (EDK). The kit allows game developers to attach dozens of thoughts and emotions to the actions in their virtual worlds, Emotiv said

What if we combine this mind control technology with the Wii? More gaming-related injuries and damaged properties would occur? I hope not. I think this mind control gaming technology would be the next big thing, just imagine if you could use it to play MMORPGs like World of Warcraft, Second Life, Ragnarok etc without lifting a controller and just sitting in your chair or lying on your bed. The possibilities are just endless.

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School is almost over and already we are feeling the summer heat. Vacation season has upon us, well to those who go to school. No more allowances, no more homeworks, no more free airconditioned room, no more free internet, no more professors both lousy and great, and less of my school friends. Life is indeed about trade-offs.

So what to do this summer? I’ve been thinking lately and so far my plans are already taking shape.

Summer class

Hated the idea of spending summer vacation in summer classes at first because it was boring but I have come to love the idea and the benefits of it. First, I get to do something very worthwhile during the two months of no school, and second I get to learn new stuff, inch my way towards finishing my undergrad degree and of course the return, to some measure, the benefits I’ve mentioned earlier.

Summer Job

Mother has been discreetly telling me, or giving hints that I should instead, go get a job for the summer. Which is not bad, I’d earn some money, be able to pay some of debts, and gain valuable work experience. Call Centers? Possibly where else can I get hired on the spot and get decent pay considering that I’m not yet married, but I’ve set my mind on getting into summer school so a sideline stint would be best.

Here’s where blogging comes into play. I’ve been thinking of trying my luck with getting a freelancer job as a blogger in some of the well-known blog networks out there, already I have one in mind. There’s one thing that bothers me though, I don’t have a PayPal account and that reduces my chances of being hired. I heard PayPal will be fully functioning here in the Philippines by 2007, when will it be? This December?

Summer work(the unpaid one)

Just like all the other summers I had before, I could probably spend this one in the midst of my community work. I have community theater that’s going full swing this summer, there’s the upcoming elections of which my services would be needed by the local parish, there’s my volunteer work, there’s my responsibility of taking care of my student political party. Not to mention my own laundry, cleaning up my room and finding money to pay for my broadband bills.

Summer Fun and relaxation

I’ve never really spent summer by going on vacation before. A vacation in its truest sense. Like going to the countryside (I’m already in the countryside, thank you!), or somewhere far from work, school and other routine stuff that I do. Just relax and lay down under the sun, being carefree, rebuilding and rejuvenating my self.

Maybe I should just stay at home and be a couch potato. Do nothing but sleep, eat, watch tv, do some blogging and online stuff, then sleep and sleep some more. I’d gain some weight which would be to the delight of everyone I know especially my self of course.

So which one? Maybe a combination of the three? Or the summer class + freelancer stint combo? Or maybe I should just stay at home and be a couch potato? Decisions…decisions…

If you’re considering rhinoplasty, Baltimore Maryland nose surgery. It has information that will give you a basic understanding of the procedure- when it can help, how it’s performed, and what results you can expect.

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Microsoft boss Bill Gates gave his speech at the recent Consumer Electronics Show and said that the “digital decade is happening.” The BBC Technology news report has the following:

Mr Gates was speaking on the eve of the world’s largest hi-tech conference, the Consumer Electronics Show.

He told delegates that “connected experiences” were now the most important part of new technologies.

“Young people spend more time with their Windows PC than watching TV,” he said.

In a speech with few concrete announcements, Mr Gates outlined how his firm’s latest operating system Vista would be the tool to connect people.

“People want to do things with their content across multiple platforms,” he said.

He said the hardware and content had been put in place “and the key thing missing is the connections”.

Well, over here in Southeast Asia, connections are really missing due to the Taiwan earthquake, but going back to Gates’ exposition on Web 2.0 which he labels as the the “digital decade,” his speech reminds us that the last frontier for gadgets, technologies and world wide web to expand into and dominate is non other than our homes.

With present connection technologies like Blue-tooth, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, hi-speed internet connections; content management and storage gadgets like blue-ray discs, HD-DVDs, multi-core processors, huge hard disks etc, Gates is right in saying that all we need to do now, is to connect them all in one seamless network. All of this would be happening in our homes.

Contact points are already inside our homes; the XBOX 360, the Wii, the PS3, Ti-Vo, HD-TV, our PDAs and mobile phones and of course our computers whether be it Windows, Mac or Linux-based. Sure this is great, having your mp3 files downloaded from the net (be it legally done or otherwise), stored on your computer, playable on your home stereo system and packed-up-to-go in your iPod or mobile music player even your cellular phone with just a few clicks of the mouse; the networked home would be a paradise for the techsavvy and those who rely for such an array of connectivity to be in place for a living.

Once more industry leaders are on it, Microsoft and HP, as Gates noted in his speech has introduced the Windows Home Server. A central place where our “photos, music and videos can be saved to the system and accessed from many other devices in the home and even remotely via the internet.”

Once the home is indeed wired, networked and connected in a system run by a central home server where any home device could connect and interact on it, the alarms could go up once it is connected to the biggest network in the world, the internet. Privacy and security issues would evolve into something we could’ve never thought of before. Laws would again be stretched and twisted to various degrees and situations.

What if the RIAA suspects you’ve downloaded some illegal mp3s, could they get a warrant and search your home server? Or what if before they even go to courts and ask for warrants, they’ve already broken in your home network and secretly installed a piece of code that monitors and sniffs out illegally-downloaded content? What if that code gets taken advantage of hackers, spammers and identity thieves? The list could go on and on.

All of these are all going to happen right in our homes. The last place we thought we are safe in, could just about to be opened up to anyone, from anywhere in the world.

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I’ve been drinking green tea and the regular one for almost 3 years now. I’m drinking it for its health benefits, and the way, especially green tea, compliments my practice of tai chi. My mother however, warned me that green tea is suited for those who want to lose some weight and have a slim and slender body. If you have taken some time to look at my photos (God save your soul) you would say that I really don’t need to anymore, because yes, I am too skinny already and I’ve been like this since I was 8 years old.

Still, I stuck to drinking green tea every morning or in the afternoon before and after tai chi practice, which now really depends on how much free time I have. I still drink green tea because I’ve grown to love it, I even use it as cure for a hangover after a drinking binge. I also drink green tea to calm my mind and get it going especially during nights when I’m rushing overdue school works and projects. hehehe

Tai chi on the other hand has helped me stay tough and capable despite my busy and often times exhausting and ‘toxic’ life. I may be skinny and dorky, but heck, I outlasted my buffier, gym-going friends in an endurance and obstacle course we had in a youth leadership camp last month. But still, I do want to gain some weight just to add a little buff to my slim and slender form.

Drinking green tea, as I have now come to finally accept, will not help me achieve that goal. How? You may ask? Green tea has certain compounds in it that help me loose weight by utilizing the stored fat in my body. (If there were some to begin with, lol) One such compound is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which helps the body break down and utilize fat in the body by burning them into calories, which is energy for the body.

It’s simple really, the more calories you burn, the more body fat you consume, therefore the more weight you loose. Unless of course, you’re on a special diet that allows you to burn more calories per day than normal persons would and still manage to keep your desired weight. Athletes like sumo wrestlers are examples of such persons on a special diet like this.

I’m glad that you’ve read up to this part of this already lenghty post. My guess is that you’re looking for a way to loose some pounds off your body, no one’s blaming you. It’s the ‘in’ thing to do this summer especially if you want to strut that new bikini or thong in the beach.
Don’t worry that though you may want to loose some weight but would not like to drink green tea for whatever reason, and you’re a bit shy to go to the gym or a bit skeptical about dialing those “loose/gain weight” ads, there is still hope.

Yes my friends, hope can still be found in a cup of yet another famous beverage the world over; coffee. Green coffee that is.

What the heck is green coffee you may ask? It’s simply unroasted coffee, hence the name green coffee. News on the Discovery Channel site has said that;

Coffee made out green, unroasted coffee beans promotes weight loss, according to a new study on compounds that are naturally present in the beans.
The discovery mirrors earlier research on green tea, which was found to slightly increase metabolism and to speed up the body’s ability to burn fat. Green coffee appears to have a more potent effect.

Doesn’t it sound magical? You get to drink coffee and loose some weight at the same time. Again, how does this happen? The news story has more;

Shimoda, who is a scientist at the Oryza Oil & Fat Chemical Company, Limited, in Aichi, Japan, told Discovery News that consuming regular, roasted coffee will not lead too much, if any, direct weight loss.

He and his colleagues determined that there are two key types of compounds in unroasted coffee beans. The first is caffeine. The second is chlorogenic acid and its related compounds. Heating destroys the acids.

Just like green tea’s EGCG compound, chlorogenic acid in green coffee helps the body break down fatty acids and produce calories. The sure win formula to losing weight. But don’t get too excited yet and rush out to drink cups of green coffee. You may, and will not like the taste.
The secret to coffee’s rich flavor and aroma is the way coffee beans are processed; by heating or roasting. The roasting process turns the coffee beans from green to dark brown even black. Unfortunately, this process destroys the chlorogenic acid in the coffee beans but it produces the brown aromatic Maillard reactants which gives us the rich and aromatic flavor of coffee. Green coffee on the other hand, tastes bitter and has no aroma. Who would want to drink that kind of coffee right?

The slimming promise of green coffee is not totally lost; extracts from green coffee could be used as food supplements for weight loss diets or programs. So now we have two choices, green tea for that oriental, natural and serene effect and feel or green coffee extracts brought about by modern research and technology. So which ever you choose, you’d still loose, weight that is.

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While working on some class reports but I couldn’t get in the school-mood I decided wander off into the blogosphere and found this lovely blog by Toni. Wifely Steps sports this wonderful, simple and clean design on her blog which really lit up my bloghopping exploration.

I read her “6 Random things about me” post and when I reached the end of her post on the way to make a comment, I was tagged accidentaly by virtue of her condition no. 4, which states: “The person who is reading this line but should be working at this very moment.”

Oh well, here I go anyways;

1. I’ve been wearing the same set of eyeglass lenses for the past 10 years and I’ve never have them changed ever since except for the frames which I often break.

2. I’ve read two Harry Potter books; The Prisoner of Azkaban, and The Goblet of Fire but I’ve never really seen their film versions in whole. I rented the CDs and even watched them on HBO but I never got to finish them. I really don’t know why.

3. I eat cereals (Honey Stars or Trix) in the afternoon as snacks, instead of having them for breakfast.

4. My normal walking pace is faster compared to the average person’s and so my classmates, friends and even professors often calls me a frustrated Formula 1 driver because I can weave through people like an F1 car overtakes other cars on track, when I walk.

5. My regular spreadsheet is the Phil. Daily Inquirer and I often throw away the Lifestyle sections – especially the ones that feature the big events exclusive only for the elite and the upper middle class – without ever opening them. I just find them useless and pointless.

6. I still dream of that Eraserheads comeback/get together concert, even if it’s the last one ever and for old time’s sake.

Now I’m tagging 6 people:

1. Senor Enrique of Wish You Were Here
2. Melai of Manilenya
3. Karmi of My Online Hub
4. Trench of 7Miles Down
5. Jaypee of JaypeeOnline
6. The person who found this meme fun and worth his/her time

Another random fact: I’m an Avril Lavinge fan, so check out this Blog by Neil Crespi

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