Happy New Year
While many news organisations/blogs in our space will use this as an opportunity to heavily promote their activities for 2013; but we come with a far simpler message. Happy New Year to all 400,000 people who read what we write, and watch what we film.
Idris Elba And The Racial Politics of Bond
Rumours have been spreading like wildfire lately over whether Idris Elba (Luther, The Wire, Thor) might be the next Bond after Daniel Craig.
Lord McAlpine, You Cannot Sue Every Twitter User
Can you imagine what it must feel like to be publically branded a pedophile? That's exactly what happened to the former Tory party grandee Lord McAlpine. Is it any wonder he wanted to clear his name. In the past, if your reputation was injured the law gave you the chance to sue for slander,or in this case libel. The problem is, how can you sue tens of thousands of people who use Twitter? Obviously you can't, and that's where the problem lies.
LiveJournal: Behind The Scenes Drama Isn't Restricted To Facebook
You may not have even heard of Livejournal: a blogging site that's been active and popular for over a decade now. But it ranks above The Daily Mail Online and even Reddit in the Alexa 500, and it's a social network that I've been a part of before Facebook was a twinkle in Mark Zuckerburg's eye.
Everyone knows the drama behind the creation of Facebook (or at least David Fincher's version); but the drama that surrounds the ownership of of LiveJournal is a bit more hidden. Like any company, LiveJournal was founded, bought and sold several times but in 2009 current owners, SUP Media moved the company from San Francisco all the way to Russia.
Editorial: Slender Is Not Scary
I followed the advice: play Slender at midnight wearing headphones. The psychologically troubling atmosphere and sheer tension my friends described was enough to excite anyone who thinks of the original Silent Hill as one of his favourite games.
I take a second to prepare myself, and I play, only to find a disappointly tame experience. Why?
Red Bull Stratos: The Jump That Puts Us On The Path To Dreaming Again
"NASA, as best as I can judge, is a force of nature like none other." Neil deGrasse Tyson, 2010.
On November 20th 1998, the first components of the International Space Station were launched, beginning the mission that continues to this day. This was the last time that many of us were excited about the exploration of frontiers beyond our grasp. As Dr. Tyson so eloquently said: "We stopped dreaming."
Amazon Becomes The New Apple
On September 12th, Apple took to the stage and did two things. They made several key product announcements, and seemed to lose the very essence which gave the company their unique place in the technology space. On September 6th, Amazon presented themselves as a company with the ability to 'Think Different,' taking that same value from Cupertino and superseding their ambition.
Samsung Galaxy Camera. A Pointless Product
So Samsung have introduced a slew of new products at their Unpacked conference at IFA 2012. My main focus lies upon one specific product: the Galaxy Camera. I said this when the initial Galaxy Note was released, and it seems that the lesson wasn't learned. So putting it bluntly: converge products too much and they become pointless, like trying to put a phone into a camera, rather than a camera into a phone.
Is The Videogame Industry On The Decline?
Once labelled 'recession proof' by the more optimistic industry players of the world, the videogame industry is now an industry finding it difficult to move with these economically tough times. Under an immense struggle to show any signs of the powerhouse it was just a few years ago, the question has to be asked: how has this happened?
Editorial: Grief Should Not Be Social
Ever had that unswallowable lump in the back of your throat as you watch something terrible happen? Upon watching the details slowly unfold about the Batman premiere shooting in Aurora on Friday, it's fair to say that many more than myself probably felt this. A tense few hours of reports commenced, showing the true strength of social media in keeping the planet perfectly synchronised in referrence to any event, and bringing a community together in condolence lending.
Microsoft’s ‘Surface’ Tablet Is A Bigger Rival To The iPad Than You Think
Having been granted a favourable early look at Windows 8 late last year, we came away with high hopes for the future of Windows. We enthused how Microsoft’s latest operating system was “an OS for the age of the tablet PC” and how “if Windows 7 was the admirable yet flawed first chapter for Microsoft to claw back some of Apple’s dominance in the market, this [was] the climactic body of the fight.”
Money Is The Death Of Social Media
Do you ever get the feeling when talking to someone unaware of the concept of a socially connected online world (the Grandmother in my example), that they just don't understand the value of social media? The idea, while seeming wholly legitimate to yourself just seems preposterous to them, no matter how much you demonstrate or present.
This sort of thing happens on the trading floors of NASDAQ as well; but the interpretation is quite the opposite, as you've probably seen from the tumbling stock price of Facebook, since Zuckerberg rang the bell. As investors look upon a social network they don't see community, they see influence and a possible return on their investment. This is a fair enough analysis of the situation, anybody would want to see their money returned with extra; but in the grand scheme of things it's a fatal blow to the very product they're investing in.
Diablo III Fallout Should Put A Nail In The Coffin Of Always-On DRM
It promised to be one of the biggest videogame launches of all-time. 12 years in waiting, Blizzard’s Diablo III was already the biggest pre-seller ever and as highly anticipated as any game has been in recent gaming history. But it's launch will be one the team behind will not forget in a hurry - it was one instead deeply, drastically marred from the very second Blizzard turned the switch on its quite hellish creation. The perils of always-on DRM security and our route to a digital-only future are only now beginning to reveal their ugly faces.
Love And Hate Of The Samsung Galaxy S3
So the Samsung Galaxy S3 announcement has come and gone in a daze of applause, orchestral accompaniment and Suzi Perry. Many of the rumours and speculation we collected were correct, the stage was set for the 'biggest smartphone announcement of the year,' and we got a phone which is primed to be a rather huge success in the high-end Android device market.
But some of us aren't buying into this new 'nature' visage, seeing the new Galaxy, its design cues and software implementations as quite the disappointment. Is this the final, rather laughable nail in the coffin of originality? Or is this to be the best smartphone of the year? Two editors debate.
How Tech Companies Are Turning Planned Obsolescence Into Planned Success
Planned obsolescence is far from a new idea in the world of consumer electronics – GM Motors were the first to introduce it to us in the 1920s, home-owners have been cursing the life-cycle of their washing machines ever since – but it’s becoming ever more of a distraction, at least for myself, where yearly release schedules contradict the hyperbole that works its way around the tech world, immediately following a press conference for the next big thing. Technology is no longer built to last.
A Tumblr Is Not A Blog
So the general trend of Google search results seems that Tumblr is going to eclipse the general term 'Blog' before the end of 2012, cementing its meteoric rise to the most popular blogging platform.
But in the grand scheme of things, I find it difficult to classify Tumblr as a blogging platform.
Better With Use: A Defence Of The HTC One S
So a few of the early adopters to HTC's new One S have made complaints about the supposedly strong back casing being susceptible to damage. The micro-arc oxidization process may give it a toughness similar to ceramic and a strength beyond the need for a phone case; but with any form of ceramic comes a brittleness to the construction. This has left the device exposed to chipping, leaving silver marks upon the section impacted upon.
Editorial: Plan B Is Only Half Right. Everybody Is Alienated
So Plan B (Ben Drew) has returned to his roots in rap and underground electronic music with his new release 'ill Manors,' and was interviewed recently by MistaJam on BBC Radio 1Xtra about some of the topics surrounding rioters' motives across Britain last year, and the stereotypical nature of the press when it comes to the working class. Alongside this he also released a statement on his website.
Editorial: How A Dancing C-3PO Represents Everything Wrong With Kinect Development
It happened when the Nintendo Wii was first announced, and then again when Microsoft unveiled the Kinect upon the world: gamers across our universe were filled with anticipation; imagining how motion control would finally bridge the gap between dream and reality, how simple gestures aimed at our TV screens would bring us one step closer to truly feeling like a Jedi. The force is strong in Kinect, after all.