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Microsoft’s Project Spark game creator comes to Xbox One and PC

If you enjoy the creative part of building games but not so much the coding, Microsoft’s Project Spark is now available for Xbox One and PC (Windows 8.1 only). That marks the end of a six month beta period that saw over a million testers create 70, 000 game levels, according to Microsoft. As a reminder, Spark lets you build games with relative ease by using onscreen tools to add monsters, geography, game dynamics and logic. You can also use a Kinect HD on either platform to capture your own movements and facial expressions for game characters. Download it now for Windows 8.1 and Xbox One for free, or as Microsoft helpfully suggested, buy a starter disk with content for $39.99. Otherwise, fresh content has to be earned during gameplay or by purchasing tokens. Filed under: Gaming , Microsoft Comments Source: Xbox

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Microsoft’s Project Spark game creator comes to Xbox One and PC

HP officially splitting into two companies (update)

HP’s home-focused and business divisions have frequently seemed at odds with each other, and apparently the company agrees. The Wall Street Journal claims that the tech giant is about to split into two companies, one focused on PCs and the other dedicated solely to corporate hardware and services. If the report is accurate, the separation could be announced as early as Monday. The exact reasoning behind the move hasn’t been mentioned, but the PC-centric group would be headed by one of its existing executives, Dion Weisler; current CEO Meg Whitman would run the business group and keep an eye on the other company by serving as its chairman of the board. However true the rumor may be, such a move wouldn’t be all that surprising — much of the computing industry has been restructuring and rescaling to cope with a world where the PC’s role is rapidly evolving. Update: Recode also says it’s aware of the split, and has an explanation for it. Supposedly, HP had no luck in early talks to sell its PC division to Dell or Lenovo. It had similar problems offloading server and services groups, and a merger with the data storage gurus at EMC also wasn’t meant to be. The breakup would effectively revive plans shelved when CEO Leo Apotheker got the boot in 2011; getting rid of less successful products (in this case, PCs) would improve the chances of an EMC merger or similar deals. Update 2: HP has now confirmed the news. In a filing with the SEC , the company states that it plans to split into two publicly traded companies. Its consumer-focused PC, tablet, and printing efforts will continue on under the HP banner, while a new company named Hewlett-Packard Enterprise will focus on “enterprise technology infrastructure” and “software and services businesses.” Filed under: Desktops , Laptops , HP Comments Source: Wall Street Journal , HP (SEC filing)

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HP officially splitting into two companies (update)

Microsoft’s RoomAlive turns your den into a video game level

Remember IllumiRoom ? It’s the Microsoft Research project that pairs an Xbox Kinect with a projector to extend your TV onto a wall, with immersive (and hallucinogenic) effects. Redmond has just revealed that IllumiRoom 2.0 is now called RoomAlive and is a huge leap over what it was last year . The new system projects content throughout your entire room that you can interact with (or shoot), as shown in the insane video below. Instead of a single Kinect and projector, it uses multiple “procams” consisting of off-the-shelf projectors, Kinects and a smaller computer to control them. Microsoft claims that it’s completely auto-calibrating and self-locating, enabling it to calculate the entire 3D geometry of your room in minutes. Once installed, RoomAlive can track multiple players and weapons, letting them hit or blow up creatures, whack-a-mole style. It can also project textures and cyber-critters onto your walls and furniture, transforming your den into a holodeck or a factory, for example. Another demo brought to mind the 3D game in the movie Her , with the players controlling a character that tries to avoid being killed by “robots” emerging from your walls and floor. Finally, there’s a game that requires you to physically dodge booby traps, with any failure resulting in a bloody wound projected virtually onto your body. It looks amazing, but we were also excited by Illumiroom’s potential, and it’s still far from becoming an actual product you can buy. In any case, not too many folks could afford to rig up a room with multiple projectors and Kinects the way Microsoft did. Still, like Oculus , it’s not hard to see huge potential in the research. And unlike the Rift, it could one day transform games into something that actually gets you off the couch. [Image credits: Microsoft Research] Filed under: Gaming , Microsoft Comments Source: Microsoft

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Microsoft’s RoomAlive turns your den into a video game level

The new Unreal Engine will bring eerily realistic skin to your games

It hasn’t been hard to produce realistic-looking skin in computer-generated movies, but it’s much harder to do that in the context of a game running live on your console or PC. That trip to the uncanny valley is going to be much easier in the near future, though, thanks to the impending arrival of Unreal Engine 4.5 . The gaming framework adds subsurface light scattering effects that give digital skin a more natural look. Instead of the harsh visuals you normally get (see the pale, excessively-shadowed face at left), you’ll see softer, decidedly fleshier surfaces (middle and right). The scattering should also help out with leaves, candle wax and other materials that are rarely drawn well in your favorite action games. That’s not the only party trick. A new raytracing technique should produce soft, reasonably authentic long shadows in sunsets. Mobile games can finally handle dynamic shadows, too, so a character carrying a lantern may look that much more ominous. Developers will have to implement the new Unreal Engine in their projects before you can see the upgrades first-hand, but it shouldn’t be too long before you’re playing shooters and other titles that feel much more true to life. Filed under: Gaming , Software Comments Source: Unreal Engine

Amazon’s new Kindle Fire will come with free news from the Washington Post

Jeff Bezos runs Amazon and owns the Washington Post — is it any surprise that those two entities might start getting a little cozy? According to a new report from BusinessWeek , the a group of folks at the Post are working on a sort of curated Washington Post app that’ll be preloaded on the forthcoming Kindle Fire HD tablet . The kicker? It’s expected to be totally free to those Fire owners, and the app will eventually roll out to other Kindles, as well as iPads and Android tablets… though owners of the latter will have to shell out a subscription fee. This isn’t the first time that we’ve seen Kindles and traditional reporting collide — let’s not forget that Amazon once made a ginormous version of the Kindle meant in part to make newspapers more palatable on an e-ink screen — but it’s a big, smart step for a media company that has its metaphorical eyes set on a national audience. After all, just look at the numbers. Amazon has been historically cagey when it comes talking device sales, but if this preloading deal pans out, the Post’s readership could just explode. The folks in Seattle once said (years ago) that Kindle Fire sales accounted for 22% of all US tablet sales, and some back-of-the-napkin math suggests that Amazon moved just under 5 million Kindle Fires back then. There’s no denying the tablet landscape has grown and shifted since then but man, that’s still a solid chunk of new readers for a newspaper that has less than half a million daily readers. Our only question: when are other newspapers going to clamor for that same juicy access? Comments Source: BusinessWeek

HP’s $199 Windows laptop arrives alongside a pair of tablets

Contrary to earlier rumors, HP’s Chromebook-like Stream 14 turned out to be more expensive than people had hoped for when it was announced a few weeks ago. Having said that, today HP is finally introducing its $199 laptop with Windows, staying in line with what a company representative had told us before in regards to the Stream line expanding beyond the 14-inch machine. But there’s more, since HP’s new, budget-friendly , 11.6-inch laptop isn’t the only fresh announcement. There’s a 13.3-inch model as well, priced at $230, which, along with the $199 Stream, features an Intel Celeron processor and 32GB of flash storage. In addition to this pair of notebooks, HP is also introducing two Windows 8.1 tablets: the HP Stream 7 and HP Stream 8. If the moniker for each didn’t give it away, they are 7- and 8-inch slates, respectively, with the former costing a mere $99 and the latter going for $149. Unfortunately, HP isn’t sharing many more details (like other specs) at the moment. We do know, however, that the company hopes to lure in customers by including a bit of free mobile data every month and access to Microsoft’s Office 365 Personal productivity suite, which is definitely a nice bonus. All devices announced are expected to be available in the US by the beginning of November. In the meantime, stay tuned — we’ll be adding hands-on photos and additional info shortly. Filed under: Laptops , Tablets , HP Comments

Jawbone’s trackerless Up app syncs with Apple Health, other fitness services

As it promised mere weeks ago, Jawbone has launched a new version of Up for iOS that syncs data from numerous health services and doesn’t require its own tracker. Confusingly, the Jawbone app which does require an Up or Up24 tracker is also called ‘Up’ and is still available . However, the new version is more of a fitness catchall app that works with Apple’s Health and over a hundred other apps (and their trackers), like RunKeeper and IFTTT. Interestingly, it even works with Nest’s thermostat to “create an ideal sleep environment.” In fact, the new Up wants to manage all aspects of your health by tracking your sleep, nutrition and workouts. Once it learns your habits, the “Insight Engine” will then give you personalized health tips and other info. There are also social functions, including team tracking and the ability to boast about fitness milestones. Apple had pulled HealthKit apps a few days ago due to bugs, but after some scrambling they’re now back — you can grab Jawbone’s UP for iOS here . Filed under: Wearables , Software Comments Via: MacRumors Source: Jawbone

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Jawbone’s trackerless Up app syncs with Apple Health, other fitness services

One of the greatest pinball tables ever is going digital with your help

Ask pinball fans about classic tables and they’ll probably mention The Addams Family . It was widely available, well-designed and full of technological firsts, such as computer-controlled flippers. However, it hasn’t been recreated in software in its 22-year history — something FarSight Studios hopes to fix with a crowdfunding project to reproduce the table in Pinball Arcade . So long as the developer reaches its funding goal, you’ll get to play the Addams Family almost as if you’d stepped into an arcade circa 1992. The smart flippers, actors’ voices and Thing’s creepy animatronic hand should all remain intact. Thankfully, it doesn’t cost much to contribute and (hopefully) keep this vintage machine alive. Pledging $7 will get you access to the table on one of the platforms Pinball Arcade supports, including most mobile devices, consoles and PCs. It only costs more if you want more platforms or special access, including the behind-the-scenes menu (if you pay $15) or the coveted Special Collectors Gold Edition ($100). The digital Addams Family won’t arrive until February if all goes according to plan, but that’s a trivial wait if you’ve spent ages yearning for a version of the table that you can afford to take home. Filed under: Gaming Comments Source: Kickstarter

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One of the greatest pinball tables ever is going digital with your help

Belgian brewery to reduce truck use with underground beer pipeline

In order to cut down on the number of trucks it puts on the streets, Brouwerij De Halve Maan is working with the city of Burges to construct an underground beer pipeline. While the brewing still happens at its original site, filtration, bottling and shipping operations were moved outside of town in 2010. To get the tasty beverages from point A to point B, dozens of trucks go back and forth each day, but not for much longer. Folks familiar with the Cleveland, Ohio-based Great Lakes Brewing Company may recall that it uses an underground system to send its suds from a production facility to a taproom/pub across the street. The effort in Belgium will be much more elaborate though, replacing the 3-mile tanker route with 1.8 miles of polyethylene pipe, and cutting transit time to between 15 and 20 minutes. De Halve Maan claims the system can send out 6, 000 liters per hour — on top of cutting traffic and reducing emissions. What’s more, the brewery (er, brouwerij) will foot the bill for installation and road repairs, reducing the financial burden on the city. [Photo credit: Bernt Rostad/Flickr] Filed under: Transportation Comments Via: Wired , CityLab Source: Het Nieuwsbladsaid (Dutch)

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Belgian brewery to reduce truck use with underground beer pipeline

Intel plots a mobile coup with $1.5 billion investment in Chinese chipmakers

While Intel is prominent in the mobile world, it’s often playing catch-up with the undisputed king of the market, ARM (and as a result, Qualcomm ). But that doesn’t mean it’s not willing to spend money to reverse that trend. The company has announced that it’s paid $1.5 billion for a 20 percent share in two of China’s biggest mobile chipmakers, Spreadtrum Communications and RDA Microelectronics. The deal will see Spreadtrum jointly create and sell a range of Intel-based system-on-chips (SoCs), which Intel says will power devices from the middle of next year. It gives Intel the boost it needs to begin competing against its more established rivals, but also offers the chance of cracking the world’s biggest smartphone market (where Qualcomm is currently facing an antitrust probe). While Spreadtrum is known for low-cost chips that power Mozilla’s Firefox OS smartphones , there’s every chance this deal could see Intel make more of a splash in the booming Android market. Filed under: Cellphones , Wireless , Mobile , Intel Comments Via: Recode Source: Intel

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Intel plots a mobile coup with $1.5 billion investment in Chinese chipmakers

Ken May

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