Tektodo

Yesterday, the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) Foundation finally came out and said that it will be teaming up with Microsoft to make the Windows XP operating system available on its versatile laptop, known as the XO.  The OLPC has been plagued by a variety of snafus, such as the recent departures of several important people in the organization.  The founder and chairman of the OLPC, Nicholas Negroponte, believes that having Windows of the computers will make them, according to a BusinessWeek article, “more useful in schools and acceptable to government ministries”.

As someone who owns an XO laptop, I am somewhat saddened, but certainly not surprised by this move.  One of the key benefits of the XO is that it runs on a Linux operating system and therefore, children are able to tinker with the device, changing programs as they see fit and learning about computer programming first-hand.

However, the user interface is very esoteric, which is fine, since the laptops are targeted at children, specifically, children who have never laid their hands on a computer before.  Nevertheless, this could prove difficult once, and if, the children move on to use more traditional (i.e. Windows) computers.  They will have to learn a completely new interface.

By having Windows XP on the XO, several things are accomplished.  The children receiving the laptops will be introduced to a traditional computer interface and therefore won’t be faced with the prospect of having to relearn how to use a computer, should they move on to use other computers in the future.  While this may be important, probably the most important reason for using Windows XP is that it will lend the OLPC credibility.  Windows is well-known and widely used, and by having such a ubiquitous operating on their machines, the OLPC is positioning itself as an organization that, in the words of Negroponte himself, is in “the mainstream of people’s minds”.

It will be very interesting to see how this development affects the adoption rate of the XO laptop among developing nations.  I firmly believe in the mission of the OLPC (which is one of the reasons I participated in the Give One, Get One program) and have been quite dismayed by all the problems the organization has encountered.  Although it certainly sacrifices the freedom and exploration which could be achieved with Linux, I hope that the inclusion of Windows will help to bolster the OLPC’s image and spurn interest for the little laptops.  It would be a shame to see such an incredible piece of hardware and an equally incredible vision go to waste.

Yesterday, Microsoft announced that 10 million Xbox 360s have been sold, beating out Nintendo’s 8.8 million Wiis and Sony’s 4.1 million PS3s.  The head of Microsoft’s Xbox division, Don Mattrick, stated that “history has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle.”  However, let’s not forget that the Xbox 360 came out a full year before the Wii or PS3.  Nevertheless, 10 million units is still a major and commendable milestone.

Microsoft has sold over 19 million consoles worldwide.

Yesterday, Earthlink officially announced that it will be dropping its WiFi service for Philadelphia.  The city-wide WiFi service, which has given consumers an inexpensive means to connect to the Internet, was also supposed to generate increased sales for Earthlink.  The company was expecting at least 100,000 new customers from the service, but only ended up receiving about 6,000. The $17 million network will be shut down on June 12.

In yesterday’s article, I talked about Nintendo’s latest service, WiiWare, which is letting developers explore new game concepts and pass them on to consumers in the form of (relatively) inexpensive games.  Now I’ve had some hands-on time with the new service and can say without hesitation that it definitely holds promise.

When you go to the Wii Shop Channel, you’ll now notice that the layout is a bit different than before.  Now, at the top of the screen, there are three large buttons titled, “Virtual Console”, “WiiWare” and “Wii Channels”.  Clicking on the “WiiWare” button will present you with a variety of options for finding the WiiWare title you’re looking for.  You can click on “Popular Titles”, “Newest Additions”, “Search by Publisher”, “Search by Genre” or “Search by Game Title”.  The process of purchasing a WiiWare game is identical to that of a Virtual Console game.  You can click on “More Details” to learn more about the game and can even read the entire instruction manual before purchasing, something which I find to be quite advantageous over traditional retail games.

I decided to purchase a title called LostWinds, one of the most anticipated WiiWare titles.  After about four minutes, I had downloaded LostWinds and was ready to start playing.

Just like with any Wii title, an icon for the game appears as its own channel in the Wii’s main menu.  Clicking on the title will bring you to the game’s title screen and music from the game will start playing, again, just like any Wii game.

The first thing that jumped out at me in LostWinds was its style.  The main menu is interactive (you can control the wind and manipulate the objects on screen) and has a very soothing melody.  LostWinds provides you with three save files and once you start a new file, the game begins right from the main menu (a neat touch).

LostWinds is very stylized and features very attractive graphics.  The entire game is like a breath of fresh air.  From the music, to the art, to the simple controls, LostWinds is a very refreshing experience indeed.  Speaking of controls, in LostWinds, you actually control two characters, the main character, Toku, and the wind Spirit, Enril.  Toku is controlled with the Nunchuck, while Enril is controlled with the Wii Remote.  The gameplay slightly reminded me of games like Kirby Canvas Curse since you must “draw” wind patterns using the Wii Remote to help Toku progress through the game’s environments.  However, as I stated earlier, you can use the wind to manipulate the environment around you.  From blowing out fires, to creating a gyser of water, Enril and his various powers play an integral role in the game.

I’ve only invested about 15 minutes into the game so far, but even in that short period of time I was very impressed.  From its unique gameplay to its stylistic presentation, LostWinds is certainly an innovative title, the likes of which probably would not be seen were it not for WiiWare.  If LostWinds is any indication, WiiWare will prove to be an excellent source for fun and original games that break away from the stale concepts found in many retail games.  If you own a Wii, be sure to head over to the Wii Shop Channel and give WiiWare a look, you won’t be disappointed.

Starting today, gamers will be able to download original new game titles from their Wiis via Nintendo’s new WiiWare service.  Unlike the Virtual Console, which allows players to download retro game titles, WiiWare gives developers a means to explore new ideas with relatively low risk and pass on those ideas in the form of games which, not surprisingly, are relatively inexpensive when compared to games purchased at retail stores (game prices for the WiiWare launch titles range from $5 to $15). The launch titles are:

-Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King (1,500 Wii Points)

-LostWinds (1,000 Wii Points)

-Defend your Castle (500 Wii Points)

-Pop (700 Wii Points)

-V.I.P. Casino: Blackjack (700 Wii Points)

-TV Show King (1,000 Wii Points)

To learn more about WiiWare, be sure to check out Nintendo’s official site.

Microsoft walks away from its Yahoo bid, Apple is ranked best in customer service and worst in environmental friendliness, the Pope uses text messages to reach youth and Grand Theft Auto IV shakes the gaming industry with sales of 6 million units in its first week…

and more.

Download this episode (right click + Save Link As)

About a week ago, I commented on how Grand Theft Auto IV was the most expensive game ever produced.  Well, GTA IV has broken other records too, namely, that of the largest grossing title in entertainment history.  On its first day, GTA IV brought in approximately $310 million, with sales of around 3.6 million units.  All told, at the end of its first week, GTA IV sold 6 million units, equalling $500 million in sales.  About 60 percent of those sales went to the Xbox 360.  While there are probably many reasons for the Xbox 360 version reigning supreme, probably the largest two factors are that there are simply more Xbox 360s out there and that Microsoft’s console will be receiving exclusive downloadable content come this fall, content that cost Microsoft $50 million to secure.

According to a recent BusinessWeek article, Circuit City has finally given in and is now starting the process of negotiating a deal to be sold, most likely to Blockbuster.  Both Circuit City and Blockbuster have hit hard times and there are many investors who are questioning whether the deal would simply cause both companies to sink even further into trouble.  Nevertheless, as is stated in the BusinessWeek article, Circuit City’s stock increased by over 10% yesterday, following the recent announcement.

Years ago, Circuit City used to be my electronics retailer of choice.  However, in the past few years, I have found Best Buy to better suit my needs, largely due to its larger inventory, especially when it comes to games.  Whenever I go to my local Circuit City, there’s almost no one there.  Conversely, Best Buy always seems to be packed.  Hopefully the merger with Blockbuster (should it go through) will breath new life into Circuit City and reestablish it as a strong competitor of Best Buy.

According to Climate Counts, a nonprofit organization backed by yogurt company Stonyfield Farm, Apple ranks at the bottom of the list for companies that are the most environmentally friendly, receiving a score of 11 out of a possible 100.  Specifically, Climate Counts cites Apple’s lack of publicly available information on its global warming policies and Apple’s poor public policy stance on climate change.  You can check out Apple’s score card at the Climate Counts website by clicking here.

This is nothing new for Apple.  In the past, the popular electronics company has been bombarded with complaints from environmental groups.  Last year, Greenpeace ran an article stating that the iPhone contains a variety of toxic substances, such as brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and PVC.

Apple has been doing a great deal to raise awareness about the environment and show how it is building more environmentally-friendly products.  It has a section of its website dedicated to the environment and Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, even composed a lengthy article titled, “A Greener Apple”, in which he lays out many of the things Apple is doing to help the environment.

In 2007, Apple released a version of the MacBook Pro that featured an LCD backlit display and therefore contained no mercury.  In 2008, a MacBook with LCD display glass was released that was arsenic-free.

Nevertheless, many of Apple’s products, such as the iPhone, continue to house dangerous chemicals.  On Apple’s MacBook Technical Specifications page it states that the “Majority of circuit board laminates are free of brominated flame retardants” and goes on to list other chemicals that are contained in the computer in small amounts.  However, it doesn’t state how much of each chemical is inside the computer.  “Majority” is a fairly broad term and could be taken in many different ways.  Furthermore, many companies, such as Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericsson have products that are completely free of certain toxic materials such as BFRs and PVC.

Apple is doing quite a bit in terms of freeing its products of dangerous chemicals.  But what seems to really be holding it back, and what caused it to rank so poorly in the Climate Counts assessment, is that it is not doing enough with regards to greenhouse gas emissions.  It doesn’t have a comprehensive inventory of what kinds of emissions it’s producing, nor does it seem to have a definitive goal as to how to reduce those emissions.

Hopefully next year we’ll see Apple start to address these concerns and move up on the list.  But until then, it looks like Apple will, unfortunately, once again be relegated to the status of the least environmentally-friendly electronics company around.

Nintendo has finally launched a service that many gamers have been clamoring for, the ability to download DS demos wirelessly from the Wii.  This new service comes in the form of the Nintendo Channel, a new channel that can be downloaded through the Wii Shop Channel.  I recently downloaded the newly released channel and will lay out some of its features below.

It took me about two minutes or so to download Nintendo’s newest channel.  After the download was complete and I opened it up, Nintendo offered a brief description of what the Nintendo Channel is all about and proceeded to ask me if I would like to receive commercials via the Wii Message Board.  It also asked me to agree to let Nintendo collect anonymous information about my playing habits.  I was then treated to a two and a half minute video, showcasing some of Nintendo’s products.

After all of the introductory bits, I came to what’s called the “Video List” a list of about 40 videos, ranging from an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto to trailers for various games.  It wasn’t quite clear where to download DS demos from this main screen.  In order to get to the demo list, I had to click on a large button at the top of the screen titled “Find Title for You”.

This presented a menu with a variety of choices: “View New Titles”, “Search by Category”, “Search by Name”, “Make a Recommendation” and at the very bottom, “DS Download Service”.

There are currently eight DS demos available: Brain Age 2, Flash Focus, Crosswords DS, Jam Sessions, Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends, Disney Friends and Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword.

I decided to try out Ninja Gaiden.  Clicking on the title of the game will automatically start the process, but you can click on a button labeled “Information” to learn more about the game (and which will also stop the transfer process).  Getting the demo on my DS was very simple and was no different than receiving a demo from a friend or from a retailer like GameStop.  After about a minute and a half, I was slashing monsters and tossing shurikens.

I’ve been looking forward to this service for months now (the service was released in Japan in November).  I was quite pleased with how simple the process was.  Downloading a demo from my Wii is much more convenient than having to travel 30 minutes to my nearest GameStop.

However, DS demos are not the crux of the Nintendo Channel.  It is quite clear from the appearance of the channel’s main page that promotional videos are what this new service is all about.  From trailers to informational spots, the Nintendo Channel is all about informing consumers about the latest and greatest Nintendo products.  The Shigeru Miyamoto interview was quite interesting, although it didn’t reveal anything new for me (I’ve read all of the Iwata Asks articles about Wii Fit and have stayed up to date on all the latest Wii Fit news).  I also checked out the Mario Kart Wii Info Video, which is definitely targeted to a casual audience (as is to be expected).  Nintendo also has a short video outlining its forthcoming WiiWare service, and, as with the Mario Kart Wii Info Video, it was very simplistic and geared towards the casual crowd.  The trailers showed off some decent gameplay footage for various games and the commercials speak for themselves.  There’s even a five minute tutorial video on how to use the Nintendo Channel itself.

All in all, Nintendo’s new channel has plenty of content to look at, but it’s definitely aimed at a casual audience.  Nevertheless, videos like the Shigeru Miyamoto interview should prove interesting for everyone, and the ability to download DS demos is very cool.  Hopefully Nintendo will add more demos to the list in the near future, as well as more behind-the-scenes videos like the Miyamoto interview.