Before I go on a tangent about the Wii, let me say that I like the system. More importantly my kids really like it. I don't care for the overall selection of games but do enjoy the sports games we have. The problem I have is a simple one. Nintendo has an online store where you can download old school games to your Wii. You have to buy the games which I have no problem with. I really wanted to buy Techmo Bowl which was my favorite game when I was younger. It was a simple football game that took a lot less thinking than today's Madden Football games. Perfect for me! Anyway when I investigated further I found out I need a special wire to connect to my router or wireless adapter (no longer available I think). Not only could I not use the perfectly good ethernet cable I had on hand, I could not even run out to Walmart to grab the special Nintendo one. Apparently it is only available at nintendo.com or Walmart's online store. Don't get me wrong, I like ordering online, but this was a weekend thing so I wanted it right then. I knew by the time I got it it would be a week day and I would be working so I would have to wait to use it until next weekend. So the passion for the game faded a bit and after a few days it was not on the top of my to do list. I know Nintendo is full of smart people and likely make a killing off selling this "special" ethernet cable but they are also putting up a roadblock between another product and the customer. They should either put the special cord in the box when you buy the Wii or better yet make it compatible with regular ethernet cables.

I know other game systems likely do the same thing so I don't want to pick on Nintendo alone. Also I realize most products come with the bare minimum so the price is low enough to get you started in hopes that you will buy more later. My Sony HD camcorder records HD really well & the video looks great on the big screen. But guess what it would look better with.... a freaking mini HDMI cable! It came without one and you have to get it at sony.com I assume since the place I bought the camcorder does not carry one. This is frustrating but unlike the Wii it does not stop me from buying another sony product because of a roadblock to the internet. However it does make my viewing experience less than it can be.

Earlier in the week on my own podcast I reported that Motley Crue's New Single has been bought more by Rock Band users than iTunes 5 to 1. With over 15 million song Downloads on Guitar Hero, and Rock Band not too far behind with 10 million songs, it's easy to see the potential here. But will it ever replace iTunes?

...would still be more about marketing than helping consumers. It has always been a stange phenomenon that 'standards' proposed by individual companies can be used to either protect markets or break them open. While they use the same term they are radically different on one important spectrum, openess. A large dominant company will try and propose a 'standard' that at some level relies on a proprietary technology or a difficult to implement process. This allows the dominant company to restrict other players ability to compete in the market. Some examples of this in recent times are the discussions between MS and the Sun over open document standards (MSOOXML vs ODF) which is interesting in that it was between two large historically anti-competitive companies, each trying to get a standard from opposite perspectives, MS to control, Sun to compete; another is the "Game" set of standards recently launched by AMD.

The Curve is a rear projection DLP monitor that has a lightning fast .02ms response time. Alienware expects to ship the 40 inch wide monitor, curved to simulate peripheral vision, in late 2008. The selling price has yet to be determined…

I can’t wait for this one!

Gonna make this a quick one. The reason I haven't posted is because… I've been playing Guildwars: Factions. I'm not gonna review it or anything, I'm just going to say a few thing about it and then move on (back to the game ). If you haven't played Guildwars (or Guildwars: Prophecies as it's known now), its [...]

Bioshock is a new FPS game coming to the Xbox360 and PC from the makers of System Shock 2, Irrational Games. Its based on the Tribes Vengeance Engine and looking very sexy, the gameplay has been designed to be very open ended and player driven too, should be awsome. It also won IGN and Gamespots Best of [...]

Filed under: Gaming

Although we know from reading your comments that some of you scoff at any research that won't directly lead to a "cure for cancer," the less judgmental among you may appreciate a new technology being developed by Australian engineers that promises to add a spatial dimension to in-game audio. Called the Immersive Communications Environment, this bit of code from the Smart Internet Technology Cooperative Research Centre maps voices and sounds from MMORPGs so that players can gauge their general direction using just headphones or stereo speakers, and even adjusts audio volume to reflect a sound source's virtual distance from the listener. Besides helping players communicate with teammates or figure out that they're getting shot in the back a little faster, the ICE software could also be employed in the business world, where it would give teleconference participants a more accurate sense of their remote colleagues' activities.

[Thanks, Kaius]

New DoD update coming soon - I can’t wait for this, DoD is pretty much the only game I play now. There is a new map coming soon, not only is it the first night map, but works for a completely different style of game, although not much has been offically said it [...]

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Storage