Extra Future

Month: August 2009

  • MSNBC.com acquires EveryBlock

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [A smart move by MSNBC, the EveryBlock guys are smart][link]. [link]: http://blog.everyblock.com/2009/aug/17/acquisition/ “MSNBC.com acquires EveryBlock / The EveryBlock Blog”

  • Google+Growl 3.0

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Waffle Software brings out a major update][link] to it’s [Google Notifier][notifier] plugin. Jesper lays down some specifics in [this blog post][blog], and has posted [a tech profile here][tech]. The [new page for G+G][link] is just beautiful. [link]: http://wafflesoftware.net/googlegrowl/ “Google+Growl” [blog]: http://waffle.wootest.net/2009/08/16/googlegrowl-3/ “waffle → Google+Growl 3.0” [notifier]: http://toolbar.google.com/gmail-helper/notifier_mac.html “Google Notifier” [tech]: http://wafflesoftware.net/techprofile/gg.html “Google+Growl tech profile”

  • Vote For The Next Sega Genesis Game on Xbox Live Arcade

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Choose from][link] Earthworm Jim, Golden Axe II, Shining Force, Revenge of Shinobi, Streets of RAge, Toejam & Earl or Wonderboy. It is the 20th anniversary of the Genesis’ North American launch. [link]: http://www.genesispoll.com/ “Genesis Poll”

  • Les Paul dead at age 94

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [I don’t know what else to say][link]. Les was a true innovator in the guitar and recording space. [link]: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-wi-obit-lespaul,0,3409136.story “Guitar legend Les Paul dies at age 94 — chicagotribune.com”

  • Infinite Mario AI

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Incredible demo video][link] from one of the entrants in the [Super Mario AI][comp] competition. [mentioned previously][prev] on Extra Future. See also: [The project page][project], which explains the process behind the AI. The developer says he’ll release the source code once the contest is over. [link]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlkMs4ZHHr8 “YouTube – Infinite Mario AI – Long Level” [project]:…

  • tr.im Apparently Not Shutting Down, Now

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [The URL shortening service will continue to operate][link], due to “he popular response, and the countless public and private appeals [they] have received to keep tr.im alive” [link]: http://blog.tr.im/post/160697842/tr-im-resurrected “tr.im URLs | tr.im Resurrected”

  • WIND, Canada’s New Wireless Carrier

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Sadly, it does not say when they launch][link]. Their [mission statement][mission] gives me a slight bit of hope: >Simply put, we want to create the most unforgettably positive customer experience in Canada. … which has the added benefit of being the opposite of what the major two Wireless carriers in Canada, [Bell][bell] and [Rogers][rogers], provide.…

  • Facebook Acquires FriendFeed

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Financial terms not disclosed, as usual][link]. The acquisition makes sense as Facebook has basically spent the last 6 months trying to emulate FriendFeed and Twitter. [link]: http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/10/facebook-acquires-friendfeed/ “Facebook Acquires FriendFeed”

  • URL-Shortening Service tr.im To Shut Down

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [URLs will continue to function until 31 December 2009 and will then go dead][link]. Yet another reason to use a self-hosted short URL service with a system like my own [la petite url][la]. *Update:* [tr.im has reversed it’s decision to shut down][reverse]. [link]: http://blog.tr.im/post/159489555/tr-im-to-december-31-2009 “tr.im URLs | tr.im to December 31, 2009” [la]: http://extrafuture.com/projects/la-petite-url “la…

  • “Sincerely, John Hughes”

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [A woman’s story of becoming pen pals with John Hughes during her childhood][link]. Touching. [link]: http://wellknowwhenwegetthere.blogspot.com/2009/08/sincerely-john-hughes.html “We’ll Know When We Get There: Sincerely, John Hughes”

  • Activision and Double Fine settle Brütal Legend lawsuit

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    Phil Nelson
    in

    [Praise Lemmy, our long national nightmare is over.][link] No longer shall we worry about the release date of Brütal Legend being pushed back indefinitely. [link]: http://www.joystiq.com/2009/08/06/activision-and-double-fine-settle-brutal-legend-lawsuit/ “Activision and Double Fine settle Brutal Legend lawsuit”

  • News Corp. Plans To Start Charging For All News Content

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    by

    Phil Nelson
    in

    [It’s hard to read this and not imagine][link] News Corps’ chairman, Rupert Murdoch, standing on a beach, impotent, shouting and swinging his tiny fists at the ocean waves. “THIS BEACH BELONGS TO ME,” he’d scream. Money can’t buy you control of the waves, Rupert. At least, not yet, anyway. [link]: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/aug/06/rupert-murdoch-website-charges “Rupert Murdoch plans charge…