Jan 26
Jan 26
Pelosi Didn’t End The Shutdown Alone. Federal Workers Did The Heavy Lifting.
Posted in: Today's ChiliAir safety concerns finally made the longest U.S. government shutdown in history untenable. Credit workers for that.
Jan 26
BioWare’s ambitious Anthem is off to a rough start as players bring servers to their knees
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe gaming world is excited to play Anthem, BioWare’s answer to Destiny and other big-budget online shooters — but an exclusive preview weekend for the mech-flying game has struggled to get off the ground. Of course, it wouldn’t be a game launch these days without a few hiccups to spice things up, but it is a little embarrassing.
The 40-gigabyte demo was made available today to those who had pre-ordered the game, as well as press and other “VIPs.” The game, announced last year at E3, is a loot-focused shooter where you pilot mechs through a huge open world, engage in cooperative combat and exploration and all that.
At least, so they say. Reports immediately came flooding in on forums and social media that not only was Origin, the service on which the demo is offered, failing to function properly, but that the game itself wasn’t connecting to servers, or if it did, wouldn’t load beyond the intro sequence.
I encountered this myself; after eventually getting loaded and logged in, I managed to get into the starting town area where you will, in the full game, upgrade your gear, accept quests and so on. But when I attempted to launch the first mission or otherwise enter the actual game world, the loading bar would stop about 95 percent of the way done and stay there forever (I waited about five minutes and reloaded a couple times to make sure it wasn’t just my aging rig). Those who made it all the way in complained of lag and glitches.
No one really ever expects a major title, especially one with a major online components, to launch even in a limited way without a few speed bumps, but something like this can really put the brakes on a hype train. Publisher EA admitted to the laundry list of issues from a support Twitter account:
Funnily enough EA Help’s own servers were having trouble as well, so not only could people not play Anthem, they couldn’t report that they couldn’t play Anthem.
Patience is a necessary virtue in today’s AAA game launches, but the people hoping to play this weekend aren’t randos but paying customers; this preview demo weekend was supposed to be a pre-order bonus, but the first day is a bust so far. Considering BioWare and EA knew exactly how many players could be trying to connect today — and those numbers are likely far less than those who will try the open beta or connect on launch day — it’s rather odd that they were seemingly caught so off-guard.
Anthem is certainly promising and the developers have gone out of their way to assure players that many of the hated practices of online games these days would not find a home on their platform. But launch problems always jar the confidence of undecided buyers, and there’s almost no question that the game will be better a month or two after its actual debut. Launch numbers could be affected by players not believing the game is ready to play, and therefore not being willing to pay.
I fully anticipate these issues getting resolved at some point soon, however, and will collect my impressions of the game in a separate post when that happens.
Jan 26
Researchers Create the Noise-Cancelling, Snore-Silencing Pillow of Your Partner's Dreams
Posted in: Today's Chili
Noise-cancelling headphones, like Sony’s excellent WH-1000XM3, do an impressive job of silencing the world around you—assuming you’re actually able to wear them. Wearing headphones to bed to silence a snorer next to you isn’t practical or comfortable. So researchers at Northern Illinois University are integrating…
Jan 26
Fiat Chrysler plans to launch a trio of pilot programs in Boston aimed at boosting sales of its Jeep cash cow and other brands, according to media reports. The programs, which involve car-sharing and subscription services, are expe…
Jan 25
We know that every year Google releases new Pixel smartphones. This launch usually takes place in the later part of the year, but it seems that Google might have something early in the works. According to a recent benchmark sighting, a device called “Coral” was spotted where it looks to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset and runs on Android Q.
It is unclear if this device will be one of the Pixel phones. This is because Google usually gives its Pixel phones codenames based on fish, and while “Coral” is aquatic themed, there is a good chance it might not be a Pixel handset. Instead some are speculating that this could be a Chromebook or tablet of sorts that is powered by Qualcomm’s chipset.
This wouldn’t be the first Snapdragon-powered laptop we’ve seen, so we wouldn’t be surprised if this was some kind of Chromebook. However the fact that it runs on Android Q does raise some eyebrows since Chromebooks would use Chrome OS. The fact that it runs on Android Q also seems to hint that the operating system could be getting close to being released as a developer preview, which is in line with what the company has done in previous years.
We should point out that benchmarks can be faked so it’s probably best to take this with a grain of salt for now until we can get more information, if there is any to be had.
Google ‘Coral’ Device Benchmarked With Snapdragon 855, Android Q , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.
Jan 25
It’s 2019, and ordinary beer bongs just won’t cut it. Gravity just doesn’t deliver beer fast enough for some people. That’s why we now have the Q-bong pressurized beer bong, a device designed to shoot beer down the throat of its recipient faster than ever.
All you have to do is fill the reservoir with up to 32-ounces of beer, pump the air bulb to your desired beer-pressure, press the trigger valve and get to chugging. Isn’t college fun? Now it’s a little less fun because it’s so convenient to chug all by yourself with no one helping.
Is it called the Q-Bong because some guy in British intelligence who invents gadgets for a living came up with this? I have no idea, but I can tell you that the guy in the video looks like Ryan Reynolds demonstrating this device. And just as I thought, he doesn’t look like he’s having a lot of fun chugging from this thing. Calling it now, this thing kills parties dead. Oh look, there’s so and so over there chugging by himself in the corner from what is essentially a juice box of beer. No one likes that guy.
I like how the video also cuts off right before he chugs. Because he can’t. Because he’s clearly too old for college.
[via Dude I Want That via Geekologie]
Jan 25
Apple has registered new iPad models in the Eurasian Economic Commission reference database. The Moscow-based commission keeps a product database pretty much like the FCC in the U.S. And it sounds like Apple is about to launch a new iPad mini 5 and an updated entry-level iPad.
That database has shown information on new Apple products in the past — MySmartPrice first discovered today’s new filings. There are two different filings that both mention new tablets that run iOS 12.
The first filing mentions five different models, while the second one mentions two different models. Usually, each configuration gets a different model number depending on storage and LTE capabilities.
It lines up with previous rumors that mentioned a new iPad mini and a new cheap iPad for early 2019. Ming-Chi Kuo expects an updated iPad mini with a 7.9-inch display. The device hasn’t been updated for years and many believed that Apple would stop updating it. But if you still like that form factor, Apple may have something new for you.
When it comes to the normal-size iPad, Apple last updated the 9.7-inch iPad in March 2018. While all eyes are on the iPad Pro, many people are still looking for the cheapest iPad they can get. And the $329 9.7-inch iPad is a good deal. Apple usually updates that model every year.
Today’s filings don’t say what those devices will look like, unfortunately. It’s unclear if Apple is going to reduce the bezels of those devices, add a Face ID sensor or switch to USB-C.
Jan 25
Virgin Galactic has tapped Under Armour to create the spacewear that’ll be used by its astronauts, the companies have announced. Under Armour is the aerospace company’s exclusive “technical spacewear partner,” and as such it will be tasked with designing and fabricating spacesuits for both pilots and passengers. As well, Virgin Galactic will have Under Armour make the uniforms for its … Continue reading
Jan 25
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.