General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


Geek Holiday Gift Guide 2014 - Stocking Stuffers

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 02:29 PM PST

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PC Hardware
Gadgets, Gear & Mobile
Soft Gifts

Stocking Stuffers

We'd all love to unwrap a shiny new $2,200 gaming laptop, but not everyone lives in homes with solid gold toilets. So, we'e picked a handful of stocking stuffers that would delight any PC enthusiast.

*Note: Prices reflect time of print. They are subject to change.

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Geek Holiday Gift Guide 2014 - Soft Gifts

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 02:29 PM PST

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PC Hardware
Gadgets, Gear & Mobile
Stocking Stuffers

Games & Software

Rockstar Games sure is taking its sweet little time porting Grand Theft Auto V over to the PC, but we'll get it soon enough. In the meantime, there are plenty of other games worth gifting. If you're feeling particularly cheap, send your recipient the URL to download Dota 2 (it's free!). Otherwise, you can't go wrong with any games on this list.

*Note: Prices reflect time of print. They are subject to change.

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Geek Holiday Gift Guide 2014 - Gadgets, Gear, & Mobile

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 02:28 PM PST

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PC Hardware
Soft Gifts
Stocking Stuffers

Holiday Geek Gadgets and Mobile

If the person or people you're giving gifts to this season already own rockin' PCs, then why not turn your attention to supplementary items. That's where our gadgets and mobile recommendations come into play. From a gnarly new router to a swank gaming tablet, you can't go wrong with any of these gift ideas.

*Note: Prices reflect time of print. They are subject to change.

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Geek Holiday Gift Guide 2014

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 02:28 PM PST

The best gifts for any nerd

With the spirit of Nerdmas nearly upon us, it's that time of year when everyone loses their mind trying to find the perfect gift for that special person. In the shopocalypse that's about to occur, though, you're probably forgetting the hardest person to shop for—you.

Sure, you may be able to suss out just what color shoes your significant other wants this holiday, but it's unlikely your partner, sibling, or parental unit knows what to buy for you. So to save you from receiving the equivalent of a Christmas sweater this holiday season, we've dedicated an entire feature to the absolute best Nerdmas gifts any PC enthusiast would want. 

Jump To:

Gadgets, Gear & Mobile
Soft Gifts
Stocking Stuffers

PC Hardware

At the heart of everything we're passionate about is the PC itself -- that wonderful and all-powerful box where all the real magic happens. Whether you're playing games, editing vacation photos, typing up a TPS report, or simply surfing the web, the PC is the vehicle of choice. Tis the place to start during this holiday gift giving season!

*Note: Prices reflect time of print. They are subject to change.

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Amazon Employs Robot Army to Help Fulfill Holiday Sales

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 12:15 PM PST

Kiva RobotLet's hope they don't turn against us

Cyber Monday is the biggest online shopping day of the year, and it follows on the heels of Black Friday, an increasingly busy day for e-commerce. If you're Amazon, trying to keep up with all the orders can be a daunting task, which is why it's getting help from robots. Amazon on Monday unveiled its eight generation fulfillment center, which uses robotics supplied by Kiva Technology to keep everything running smoothly.

"The Amazon fulfillment teams are dedicated to innovating in our fulfillment centers to increase speed of delivery while enabling greater local selection at lower costs for our customers. The advancements in our latest fulfillment centers hit all three of these customer desires while continuing to provide a work environment that is great for employees," said Dave Clark, Amazon's senior vice president of worldwide operations and customer service.

Of course, Amazon still fills its ranks with flesh and blood workers, of which it plans to hire 80,000 on a temporary basis to help with seasonal orders. That's a 14 percent bump over the number of humans it brought on board for the holiday shopping season a year ago.

As for the robots, Amazon spent $775 million acquiring units from Kiva Systems in 2012 and began using them in July of this year, according to Time. They're 16 inches tall, weigh 320 pounds, and zoom around the facility doing what's needed. Nevertheless, Amazon says it's not looking to eliminate jobs with its robot workers, as evidenced by an increase in hiring this year, and is simply trying to keep up with demand.

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Samoas and Other Girl Scout Cookies Finally Go Digital

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 11:37 AM PST

Girl Scout CookiesA different kind of browser cookie

Have something handy to wipe up your drool? You'll need it because drooling is an involuntary reaction whenever Girl Scout cookies enter the equation. The only problem is, it can be a bit of hassle tracking down a box of Thin Mints or whichever is your favorite, though that's about to become old news. For the first time ever, Girl Scouts of USA is opening up cookie sales online through its new Digital Cookie program.

You'll be able to order popular delights like Samoas, Thin Mints, and Tagalongs, along with perhaps some lesser known flavors that include Rah-Rah Raisins, Cranberry Citrust Crisps, and Trios, to name a few. It's a win-win situation, with cookie lovers being able to feed their appetite with the convenience of online shopping, while giving Girl Scouts an opportunity to learn about online marketing, app usage, and e-commerce.

"For almost a century, the Girl Scout Cookie Program has been teaching girls to be leaders in the world of business and finance, and we intend to ensure that legacy continues in the digital age," said Anna Maria Chávez, CEO of GSUSA. "Digital Cookie is a game-changer for Girl Scouts, and a quantum leap forward in the evolution of the cookie program, coupling traditional sales activities with an online sales experience that teaches skills like online marketing and ecommerce, all in a digital space that puts an emphasis on learning, fun, and safety. If you buy Girl Scout Cookies online this year, you could be helping to prepare the next female leader of a global tech giant who changes our world forever. Join us in making Girl Scout history this cookie season!"

There will be two separate digital sales platforms to order the cookies from, depending on the market area. Some Girl Scouts will choose to utilize a personalized website, while others may also wish to use a unique mobile app. Either way, 100 percent of the net revenue will remain with the Girl Scout council that sponsors the sale.

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Microsoft Gets into Holiday Shopping Season, Purchases Mobile Email App Provider Acompli

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 09:43 AM PST

Microsoft SignMicrosoft's mobile play is reportedly worth $200 million

Consumers aren't the only ones looking to make purchases during the ongoing Black Friday and Cyber Monday festivities, firms are going on spending sprees as well. One of them is Microsoft, which today announced it has acquired Acompli, a venture-backed startup in San Francisco that offers a self-titled mobile email application available for both iOS and Android platforms.

"This acquisition is part of our company-wide effort to help people accomplish more with their mobile devices. This year we brought Office to the iPad and the iPhone, and we recently announced that we're bringing Office to Android devices. These are significant steps in our work to deliver the best productivity experiences across mobile platforms, and we're continuing to push forward," said Rajesh Jha, Microsoft's Corporate Vice President, Outlook and Office 365.

Acompli CEO Javier Soltero echoed Microsoft's sentiment, adding that he's "incredibly excited" to join the Redmond outfit and become part of its "ambitious effort to reimagine productivity for the mobile era."

Neither company talked much about what the future holds in terms of the acquisition, though Soltero said his team remains committed to the original Acompli vision of serving multiple platforms and services with its mobile email application. App accounts will continue to function as they always have, and will now benefit from new functionality every couple of weeks.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, though Ina Fried at Recode reckons Microsoft paid more than $200 million for Acompli, adding that the deal underscores the company's seriousness about supporting mobile OSes outside of its own.

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Windows 8 and 8.1 Finally Topple XP in Market Share

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 08:47 AM PST

Windows XP BSODA once mighty giant has fallen

With so many people clinging to Windows XP despite Microsoft's repeated attempts to bury the legacy OS and the lukewarm (at best) response to Windows 8, it didn't seem like the latter would ever overtake the former in market share. Never say never, right? For the first time ever, the combined share of Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 is higher than that of Windows XP, based on the latest data provided by Net Applications.

Windows XP's share of the market has been slowing declining for the past couple of years, but the biggest plunges have only occurred recently. Here's a rundown:

  • August: 23.89 percent
  • September: 23.87 percent
  • October: 17.18 percent
  • November: 13.57 percent

Just five months ago, Windows XP was still found on a quarter of all PCs; now it's fast approaching just 1 out of every 10 systems. This recent rapid decline has allowed Windows 8 to catch up and surpass XP, at least if you factor in version 8.1 installs as well. The combined share for both platforms for the past four months looks like this:

  • August: 13.37 percent
  • September: 12.26 percent
  • October: 16.8 percent
  • November: 18.65 percent

Data from StatCounter tells a similar story, though with different numbers. According to StatCounter, Windows XP's share of the desktop is down to 11.84 percent, trailing Windows 8.1 at 12.12 percent and Windows 8 at 5.42 percent, which combine for a 17.54 percent share of the market.

Of course, Windows 7 is still the go-to OS for Windows users. Net Applications and StatCounter have Windows 7 sitting handsome at 53.71 percent and 55.75 percent, respectively.

Image Credit: Flickr (Daniel Oines)

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Google Glass with Intel Inside May Happen in 2015

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 08:22 AM PST

GlassOut with Texas Instruments, in with Intel

Intel may be pairing with Google Glass, replacing Texas Instruments as the supplier of chips that power the wearable device. The Santa Clara chip maker is said to be producing processors for a new version of Google Glass that's expected to come out next year. If true, this would give the chip giant a vested interest in a wearable platform that hasn't seen much media attention lately.

Citing "people familiar with the matter," The Wall Street Journal reports that Intel plans on actively promoting Glass to places such as hospitals, while simultaneously developing new workplace uses for the technology. At present, Glass is largely considered a consumer device, though it sounds like Intel wants to change that perception.

Following the initial hype, excitement over Glass seems to have waned, though that hasn't stopped Google from rolling out improvements to the technology. Glass is now compatible with prescription lenses and ships with twice as much RAM as when it first debuted.

Having Intel involved in the technology could revitalize a bit of excitement into the category, depending on what new tricks Glass learns.

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QNAP Intros TS-451S Turbo SSD NAS

Posted: 30 Nov 2014 10:47 PM PST

QNAP 451S Turbo SSD NASTo be available next month

QNAP Systems has unveiled the TS-451S Turbo NAS (network-attached storage) device, a 4-bay NAS appliance that it says is its response to increasing consumer appetite for SSDs (solid-state drives). Featuring a quad-core Intel Celeron processor clocked at 2.0GHz (Turbo Boost up to 2.41GHz) and 4GB of DDR3L RAM (upgradable to 8GB), the NAS vendor's latest offering packs four 2.5-inch bays, having been designed with high-speed SSDs in mind.

"Users can enjoy numerous benefits when using SSDs in a Turbo NAS, including a smaller physical size to host at least 4 SSDs, higher-density storage capacity, RAID 5 configuration for data protection, quieter system operations, a home theater multimedia experience with the HD Station, and the exclusive QvPC Technology that allows the Turbo NAS to be used as a PC," said Jason Hsu, product manager of QNAP, in a press release Friday.

"The new SSD NAS series features an exclusive hardware design that allows users to easily upgrade their RAM to enjoy smoother multi-tasking operations, especially for heavy users who run lots of multimedia applications."

The company has already begun shipping the TS-451S to its sales partners across the world and expects the SSD NAS to become available to the general public within a month, the company said in the press release. However, QNAP has yet to announce the price of the upcoming NAS model.

Image Credit: QNAP

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MMORPG News

MMORPG News


General: 5 Non-Fantasy MMOG Concepts With Unfulfilled Potential

Posted: 30 Nov 2014 03:46 PM PST

5 Non-Fantasy MMOG Concepts With Unfulfilled Potential

Starting when I was still a child, I've greatly enjoyed numerous incarnations of high fantasy. However, it has never been my only thematic area of interest. So, when it comes to MMOGs, I've always wanted more variety. Perhaps the ongoing growth of the category's audience signals that such a time is upon us or at least close at hand. Considering how the market is growing and evolving, here are some concepts that seem to hold unrealized potential.

Dragon Age: Inquisition: Grab a Copy for $45 in Amazon Cyber Monday Deal

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 05:45 AM PST

Grab a Copy for $45 in Amazon Cyber Monday Deal

For the next eighteen hours, Amazon.com is featuring Bioware's Dragon Age: Inquisition for fifteen dollars off. Snap up a copy of one of the year's best games for $45 today only.

Flyff Gold: Webzen Launching EU Service

Posted: 01 Dec 2014 05:33 AM PST

Webzen Launching EU Service

Webzen has announced that it will be launching European service for Flyff beginning December 2nd. Potential players can pre-download the new client and get ready for tomorrow's launch. The team has in-game events and prizes for players logging in during the opening of the server.

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News


ArcheAge CN Is to Launch in July 2015 with Interesting Chinese Features

Posted:

ArcheAge CN Is to Launch in July 2015 with Interesting Chinese Features


At TGC 2014 Tencent Games and XLGAMES announced to launch ArcheAge CN in July next year which provides a lot of unique content including new glider, pet, ship and costumes.

Heroes of the Storm: Jaina Proudmoore Available Starting Monday!

Posted:

Heroes of the Storm: Jaina Proudmoore Available Starting Monday!


Jaina Proudmoore is one of the key World of Warcraft characters that will be added to the Nexus, Heroes of the Storm next week.

Moonlight Blade Fanart Awards at TGC 2014

Posted:

Moonlight Blade Fanart Awards at TGC 2014


At this TGC 2014, as the highlight of Tencent MMO, Moonlight Blade has invited 4 players who have won the fanart awards in their recent fan event. Let's see their works and get more detailed information of Moonlight Blade itself!

WoW: Leveling Tips for Warlords

Posted:

WoW: Leveling Tips for Warlords


This guide covers basic information I gathered by leveling a character to Level 100. Note that it includes a lot of common sense, but thanks to these tips, you will hit Level 100 cap in no time:

Blade and Soul: Dev Team Introduced New Class Shaman at TGC 2014

Posted:

Blade and Soul: Dev Team Introduced New Class Shaman at TGC 2014


This week, another extended trailed was revealed at TGC 2014. The gamer.tw held an interview with NCsoft dev team, this interview may help us understand the Shaman, let's see.

Tencent Games Carnival 2014: Various Game Trailers

Posted:

Tencent Games Carnival 2014: Various Game Trailers


Tencent held its annual games carnival over the weekend, and other than ArcheAge and Blade & Soul, there are several client games on show as well. For Naruto Online, a new combo trailer was displayed, with the game having entered sort of a Open Beta phase recently. SMITE China is being published by Tencent, and a new video for next month's World Championship was shown.

MMO Show Episode 51 "Week 11/30/2014" Giving thanks for story"

Posted:

MMO Show Episode 51


This week is all about story. Don't you hate playing shallow games? Sometimes you don't even realize the game is shallow. You get caught up in all the damage and combos.

Monster Hunter Online Announced Next CBT Date and Chinese Element Monster

Posted:

Monster Hunter Online Announced Next CBT Date and Chinese Element Monster


During the Tencent Games Carnival 2014, Monster Hunter Online has announced to enter next closed beta early next year in China. A brand new Chinese elemental monster also made its debut at the show.

WoW: Secret Gorgrond to Timeless Isle Portal

Posted:

WoW: Secret Gorgrond to Timeless Isle Portal


Some players found out that there is a secret portal in Gorgrond (Draenor) that teleports players to the Timeless Isle! Should you feel the sudden urge to go back to the Isle to visit your frog friends, worry not. The port in Draenor (Gorgrond) is located in a underwater cave.

Peter Molyneux's Godus has Touched Down on Android

Posted:

Peter Molyneux's Godus has Touched Down on Android


The Peter Molyneux-led free-to-play god game Godus has finally arrived on Android whether you wanted it to or not. Using your fingers, you grow and mold the landscape while looking over your followers as they survive upon these primal lands with your help. You can use miracles to create rivers and throw meteors if, for some reason, you want to cause huge fires.

SEVENCORE's First Expansion Arrives on the Dec.2

Posted:

SEVENCORE's First Expansion Arrives on the Dec.2


Webzen is going to release the first expansion for free-to-play MMORPG SEVENCORE on the 2nd of December. Those who participate in battlefields such as Tillau and Crimson Plateau will earn players Victory Points (VP).

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