Link roundup

1. How to create a snow globe that looks like your own home. Via.

2. How to fix Android's GPS.

3. "Parasitic flies turn bees into zombies before wiping them out completely."

*Buy snowglobes at eBay.

Link roundup

1. Part of a longer interview, William Gibson explains how he got published:

As soon as he got home he sent me a draft of a short story he had written perhaps an hour beforehand: “This is my new genius short story.” I read it—it was about someone who discovers there are things that live in bars, things that look like drunks and prostitutes but are actually something else—and I saw, as I thought at the time, its flaws. I sat down to write him a critique, but it would have been so much work to critique it that instead I took his story and rewrote it. It was really quick and painless. I sent it back to him, saying, “I hope this won’t piss you off, but it was actually much easier for me to rewrite this than to do a critique.” The next thing I get back is a note—“I sold it!” He had sold it to this hardcover horror anthology. I was like, Oh, shit. Now my name is on this weird story.

People kept doing that to me, and it’s really good that they did. I’d give various friends stuff to read, and they’d say, “What are you going to do with this?” And I’d say, “Nothing, it’s not nearly there yet.” Then they’d Xerox it and submit it on my behalf, to places I would have been terrified to submit to. It seemed unseemly to me to force this unfinished stuff on the world at large.

2. "How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right Now ."

3. Kotaku and Destructoid gave Arkham City great reviews, but this was definitely my complaint about Arkham Asylum:

It's just confusing to have so many buttons doing so many things, and so many enemies that require so many different ways of dispatching. It's certainly great to have options and variety, but there's an information overload that can drown even the most focused of brains. This is an issue that doesn't just affect combat -- with so many gadgets, it's tough to keep track of which items perform which tasks, and when they're needed against certain obstacles. I was stuck at one point because I forgot that, among everything else he can do, Batman can slide to get under low barriers. It totally slipped my mind among all the things I needed to remember. This ties into the earlier criticism of Batman's grappling hook -- there are so many things to latch onto that the game itself gets confused.

4. Relatedly, Topless Robot is giving away Arkham City figures.

Star Wars: The Old Republic, Images - April 27, 2011

Here are some images from Star Wars: The Old Republic posted on GameSpot on April 27, 2011! These make the game look freaking awesome! GameSpot has a bunch of info on hands on stuff of the game, so head on over there to figure out the information accompanying these images.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/starwarstheoldrepublic/news.html

Sony, Announces two Android tablet computers

Apple already has their insanely popular Ipads and Ipad 2's on the market, so it's not very surprising that other companies want in on the tablet market. Sony has announced two new Android tablet computers codenamed S1 and S2.

S1 will have WiFi, 3G and 4G (for those in a 4G area). Also, it will have a front and a back camera, allowing you to take photos of yourself or of things right in front of you, while still looking at the screen; the Ipad 2 also has this, but it's expensive - maybe this'll beat the price? The screen on S1 is 9.4 inches. It can also be used as a remote for some of the other Sony devices out there.

S2 has a 5.5 inch screen, a (1024x480) resolution and can stream video and play games. The controls on S2 are on the back for gaming; these are touch sensitive, so they aren't really buttons - kind of like the PS3 touch control to turn it on and off.

Each of these devices can connect to the Playstation Network and download things like Playstation Classics (PSone games) and other games. These tablets currently have no price announced, but I am expecting it won't be too long before the price becomes known. These are supposed to be  released in Fall of this year, 2011.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6310236.html

Status on Portal 2's Early Release looking good

Portal 2's early release is coming quickly, and you can help it along by buying the Potato Sack on Steam. The Potato Sack is a collection of 13 different games with newly added levels based on the new video game Portal 2; they feature things like characters, levels, pieces, voices, music and songs from Portal.

http://store.steampowered.com/sub/7586/?snr=1_7_7_204_150_1 - Buy the Potato Sack
http://www.aperturescience.com/glados@home/ - Watch Progress of GlaDos' Reawakening...


 - Buy Portal 2 on PC (It's 34.99 on Amazon.com, but 44.99 on Steam...)

http://store.steampowered.com/app/620/ - More expensive than Amazon, but you'd get the early release...

Steam coming to Android?!

Steam is the best online distributor for video games (in my opinion). There are so many sales that help consumers and publishers alike! If it comes to Android, I really want to see how well it does - it could probably help people get apps for cheaper and could get more people to use the awesome phones!

Source: http://www.droidgamers.com/index.php/game-news/android-game-news/1363-rumor-valve-considering-mobile-gaming-with-steam-including-android