Remember how your mom/dad/legal guardian/leader of your gang of street urchins used to tell you not to stand near telephone poles in a storm? Yeah, there was a reason for that. And as you can see in the video above, that reason goes "boom." Followed by lots and lots of fire.
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Do you have a crush on Candy Crush Saga?
(Credit: Screenshot by Amanda Kooser/CNET)
FarmVille is not the end-all and be-all of Facebook gaming. Zynga may no longer be tied at the hip to Facebook, but that hasn’t put much a damper on the popularity of games on the social network. Interestingly enough, gaming is in a bit of a boom-time mode right now.
Despite my anecdotal evidence showing a massive decline in farm- and mafia-related activities on Facebook, gaming revenue is better than ever for the company. Nowadays, the face of Facebook gaming includes apps like Candy Crush Saga, Texas HoldEm Poker, and (yes) FarmVille 2.
The amount of money that Facebook rakes in from games is minuscule compared to the amount of money brought in from advertising, but the company is still embracing gaming. After all, those gamers spend extra time on the network. I remember back when Mob Wars swept through Facebook like Peter Clemenza working his way through a cannoli.
Despite a 48-hour flirtation with Mob Wars long ago, I haven’t gotten sucked into the world of Facebook gaming, but there are plenty who have been. Candy Crush Saga alone is logging 45.5 million active users.
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Todd Blatt wants to have more fun with Google Glass than just the occasional game of Battleship, and he has been crowdfunding 3D-printed GlassKap add-ons to spice things up. His newest additions to the line have us especially intrigued, though: he just unveiled a set of crosshairs (pictured above) and a macro lens (after the break). Both function as you’d expect, letting Glass wearers either live out their future soldier fantasies or snap up-close photos that they’d normally miss. The September launches for both accessories are contingent on Blatt reaching his $1,500 funding goal, although that should happen soon when it takes a $30 pledge to set aside a GlassKap. The real challenge is obtaining Glass in the first place.
Filed under: Wearables, Google
Source: Kickstarter
Everyone seems to have that one drawer in the house that seems to be a catch-all. It never starts out that way, though. When you moved in, you used it to store a couple of things in the kitchen that didn’t quite fit in with the rest. Now, whenever you need a marker, a pair of scissors, a small screwdriver, or a spare battery, that’s the first place you check, because it might be in there. The trouble is, sometimes there’s so much stuff in the drawer that you can’t see into the recesses. What you need is something that’s going to light up the drawer whenever you open it. And I’m not talking about a flashlight, because the one in the drawer needs new batteries.
This DIODER LED battery-operated lamp f/drawer (I’m guessing that means “for drawer”, but they didn’t feel like spelling it out.) might be exactly what you need. This light strip is 11-inches long, and has 6 LED’s to illuminate your drawer. Sure, there are plenty of other lights that you could stick in the drawer, but this one doesn’t need to be manually turned on and off. Instead, it can detect when the drawer is opened, and will automatically kick on. Once you’ve pushed it back in, the light will go off a few seconds later.
This light strip is pretty inexpensive, at just $15. It does, however, need a pair of AAA batteries to stay lit. But since it only stays on when you need it to, they should last quite a while before needing replaced.
[ DIODER drawer lamp only turns on when you need it copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]
At least 35 million people around the planet live with HIV, and it kills over 1.7 million people each year, so the fact that it’s currently untreatable is one of the biggest medical problems of our time. But in recent years scientific advances seem to be kicking HIV’s ass more effectively than ever—so is there hope that we neutralize the virus’s threat? The answer is more hopeful than you think.
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A week after announcing voxel-based shooter Guncraft’s new status as a Greenlit title on Steam, Exato Games has released a long-awaited feature: Gunsmithing. Players can now craft their own weapons, block by block, customizing virtually everything about them.
Fresh air has become more scarce with the continued, rapid urbanization in many countries, particularly China. Recent issues with smog and germs have even forced residents to wear masks for their protection.
The first wearable air purifier concept we encountered was the Hand Tree, which was basically a bracelet that purified air for its wearer. The Ohita Fresh Air modules are somewhat similar, since they’re wearable, too, although not around your wrist or directly on your person, for that matter.
The Ohita could be attached to bag straps or belts instead, where it will purify air so you can breathe fresher, cleaner air as you go along. Its modular kinetic sculpture design also makes it perfect for displaying and installing in your home, where it will provide the same function and clean up the air in your home.
The Ohita was designed by Jorge Alberto Treviño Blanco and is a semi-finalist for the 2013 Electrolux Design Lab. Like with the Hand Tree, it’s not clear how feasible the design would be to implement, but it’s an interesting concept nonetheless.
[via Yanko Design]
Microsoft announced at E3 last month that they would be getting rid of its Microsoft Points currency system and using real money for transactions for now on. Today, Microsoft announced that Xbox Live Rewards will be doing the same thing, although it’s not yet determined how the new Rewards system will work now that it won’t be using Microsoft Points.
Starting on August 1, Xbox gamers will no longer be able to earn Microsoft Points through Xbox Live Rewards, but Microsoft says that “you’ll continue to be rewarded for doing the things you love on Xbox Live.” The company hasn’t yet announced what they’ll be using on Xbox Live Rewards, but they say that they’ll be revealing the new system on September 1.
Furthermore, Microsoft will deposit all of your pending Rewards points into your account on August 7. If you also happen to have Microsoft Points in your Xbox account when Points are retired, they’ll be transitioned to real-money currency, and you’ll be able to use them as normal, such as buying digital games and items.
Microsoft announced the demise of Microsoft Points during E3 last month ahead of the Xbox One’s launch later in November. We still have yet to hear an exact date for the switchover, but today’s Xbox Live Rewards announcement provides some hints as for when we might see the official switchover.
Microsoft Points have been the main form of currency in Xbox Live for ages, and gamers were able to buy them using a credit card, or purchasing them physically at retail stores. The ousting of Microsoft Points looks to eliminate a step in that process by switching to real money, making the process easier for gamers to buy stuff on Xbox Live.
SOURCE: Xbox Live Rewards
Xbox Live Rewards transitioning from Microsoft Points next month is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
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