Microsoft brings Kinect float to Rose Bowl Parade: a making-of video

Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade? Pish posh. As any red-blooded American will likely confess, it's the parade preceding the annual Rose Bowl that really gets one's attention, and this year's edition featured a float from none other than Microsoft itself. As Russell Wilson and co. were gearing up to take the field in Pasadena, a smattering of folks were strapping on their winter gear and heading atop an admittedly eye-catching Kinect float. No, there's no way to actually dictate the rest of bowl season through your motion-sensing peripheral, but there is a making-of video just after the break for the handicraft sect.

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Microsoft brings Kinect float to Rose Bowl Parade: a making-of video originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/BrYh-xeaEeg/

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Church announces dates for pope's Cuba trip (AP)

HAVANA ? The Roman Catholic Church in Cuba has announced the dates and a partial itinerary for Pope Benedict XVI's much-anticipated visit to the island, the first by a pontiff since John Paul II's groundbreaking 1998 tour.

The church said in a statement Sunday that the pontiff will be in Cuba from March 26 to 28, following a visit to Mexico.

The itinerary outlined by the church is far less ambitious than that undertaken by John Paul 14 years ago. The 84-year-old pontiff will only be on the island for about 48 hours and appears to have no plans to visit important regional cities such as Santa Clara and Camaguey, both of which received John Paul.

Benedict will touch down on the afternoon of Mar. 26 in the western city of Santiago, Cuba's second largest, where he will be received personally by President Raul Castro. He'll then be driven through town in the glassed-in popemobile.

Benedict will make a private trip the following day to the sanctuary of Cuba's patron saint, the Virgin of Caridad del Cobre, then fly to Havana. In the capital, the pope will meet Havana Cardinal Jaime Ortega and other church leaders.

That afternoon, he will have a private meeting with Castro. There is no mention of Benedict also meeting Fidel Castro, who is retired but often weighs in on world events through opinion pieces published in Cuban state-run media.

On Mar. 28, Benedict will perform Mass at the sprawling Revolution Plaza, where hundreds of thousands turned out to see John Paul II. The pope will depart following the Mass and a trip through the capital in the popemobile.

Benedict has been noticeably frailer and weaker in recent months, according to religious leaders and others who have seen him, which could partly explain the trip's limited scope.

The visit coincides with the 400th anniversary of the appearance of the Virgin of Caridad del Cobre. But the timing also appears to reward the larger role the church has assumed in Cuba in recent years. Ortega personally negotiated the release of political prisoners in 2010 and 2011, and church magazines have become a forum for articles offering advice to Cuban leaders on a process of free-market reforms by Raul Castro.

The Cuban leader even cited Benedict's visit in announcing in December that Cuba would free 2,900 inmates as a humanitarian gesture, including a small number jailed for political crimes.

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Paul Haven can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/paulhaven/

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/latam/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120102/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/cb_cuba_pope

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Phantasy Star: Hollow Future. Looking For Roleplayers!

Well, I think it's about time I put in this topic, just to let people know what I'm trying to do, and to advertise for my new roleplay Phantasy Star: Hollow Future

This is an RP set in the world of Phantasy Star Online 2, (PSO2) a thus unreleased game from SEGA. Borrowing elements from the original, (PSO) this RP is a more interactive and open version that?ll be run by me, using merely the setting, and expanding on it in my own way. No prior knowledge of PSO and its events are necessary, so don?t let that intimidate you.

The reason for this roleplay coming about is that I wanted to capitalise on the amazing setting of Phantasy Star, having become hyped for it's release. By making this roleplay before the game is released, it'll allow for an exploration into our own plot. In addition, what makes this roleplay special is that I'll be attempting to make a number of uniquely characterised NPCs that'll adapt to the choices and adventures you make. The world and ending isn't fixed, and for example, should you take a mission to rescue a small child, the mother may be so grateful to you that she'll offer you food, and become more accepting of the Hunters, opening a store on the surface of the planet. Should her child remain abandoned however, she may become bitter towards the hunters, and treat you mostly hostily, and possibly instigate an anti-hunter rebellion. Perhaps a little extreme, but an example all the same.

For the most part, I'm accepting of most any kind of roleplayer, but preferably somewhere between 250-1000 words of content on average. The aim is to try and be active every 3 days, but depending on how everyone feels this might change. As for myself, I've had some experience in real life with roleplaying groups, and have DM'd a few things. This is my first time GMing a roleplay on the site though, and I have high hopes for it. Not to say I haven't roleplayed much before, but most all things I've joined hasn't even gotten off the ground, so I'm determined to do my best not to let that happen to this!

Anyway, should I have garnered any interest, here's a synopsis of the content! It's the same as in the actual RP, so be sure to check that if you're really interested, using the link above!

Basically, everyone will be playing the role of a Hunter - A mercenary for hire. A new planet has been colonised, but there?s still plenty of problems on the surface, so by taking jobs at the hunter?s guild, hunters get paid, and help out.

Through this, expansions to the story will occur, including the introduction of guilds, their own agendas, where the monsters are coming from, etc. etc., culminating in a final showdown against a big bad creature. Players may end up on either side of any conflicts, good, bad, or somewhere inbetween.

From the above, you?ll probably be able to tell this is a Sci-fi setting, but given the ?Phantasy? name, there?s elements of Fantasy too. There?ll be time on the ship, known as the Vanguard prior to missions, where most of the discussion and such will happen, then, using the teleporter, missions based on the surface of planet Latilla. Of course, there might be some ship based missions or surface based discussion though ^_~

The above intro gives a bit more light into the background story, but for the most part, let the world and story develop, and treat the missions like a day job. Some will be dangerous, others not so, but I?ll try to have the choice of several different scenarios to follow. As GM, I?ll try to cater to everyone, and it?s up to you whether to do missions with others or alone (But together really helps me out). My aim is to have a number of individual and interactive NPCs as well, having them and a world that constantly changes both with the player?s choices, and by events happening behind the scenes. Players should expect to probably be involved in some forms of combat however, with some dialog sequences between them.

On that note, being an ever changing world, the decisions you make may determine the eventual future of the Vanguard and its settlers. Success or Failure in a mission may result in the loss of certain NPC characters, changes to their motivations, expansion of the city on the surface, the eventual settlement on Latilla, or the collapse of society and the Vanguard. The decision is yours to make, though the path may not always be clear.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/UsZQyhUKPSc/viewtopic.php

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Scott Dudinskie's most memorable game of 2011: Danville vs. Lake-Lehman state baseball

I was a "no-hit, all-field" shortstop long before I knew there was such a thing.

After five years of Little League, I'd have bet my bike "three-and-out" was a baseball phrase coined for my at-bats.

Ted Williams literally wrote the book on hitting, but I didn't need him to tell me the most difficult thing to do in sports is hit a round ball with a round bat squarely. So tough, you'll often hear, the best fail seven out of every 10 times they try.

So I've always appreciated those who can do it consistently -- at any level of the game.

Barry Bonds did it so well he was intentionally walked a record 120 times in 2004 (while collecting 135 hits); the opposition figured it more prudent to give him a base than risk the home run king taking four with one swing. That's like a banker gladly handing out $100 bills to anyone with a rap sheet, but sometimes it makes sense.

You can take precautions with a great hitter, like a thief, or risk losing everything.

Danville trailed Lake-Lehman 5-1 in the middle of their first-round state playoff game the first week of June. It was a tough spot for the Ironmen, who had won their final three regular-season games over four days just to qualify for the district tournament they won.

However, pairs of errors in the first and fifth innings had them down four runs to a team they'd beaten 6-2 during that stretch of must-win games.

A brief aside: How many times have you done the math, trying to determine whether your team's big boppers will come to the plate again for one more shot?

Danville sluggers Anthony Renz and Cody Cooper each figured to bat once more, most likely in the sixth but maybe the fifth if the Ironmen could get a couple baserunners.

They came out of an impromptu team meeting in front of their dugout sticks blazing. Adam Creasy looped a one-out Texas Leaguer, and Andrew Andreychik followed with a laser to the wall in left-center field. Then Jeff Ross, who had a bad hack at an 0-2 curve his previous at-bat, went down to get an 0-2 bender and roped it into the left-field corner to make it 5-3. The scene was set for Renz and Cooper, who finished the season with more than 50 RBIs between them.

Renz popped out to shallow right field with a runner at third. No pressure, Cody.

A brief aside: How many times have you thought, A hit would be great but, man, how big would a homer be here?

Cooper blasted a made-to-order bomb to left-center that scattered birds beyond the Bowman Field wall and tied the score.

"Unbelievable clutch hitting," Danville coach Devin Knorr said later, a spot-on yet understated description.

Cooper's homer tied the game, plus it gave the Ironmen a decent chance to back to the middle of the order in the seventh.

They did, and Renz came to the plate with two outs and a man at second. He knocked the first pitch he saw to shallow right-center, a clean single off the bat, for the game-winning run.

Sure, there will always be more Mighty Caseys than Coopers and Renzes in those situations. That's what sets apart those magical, storybook endings.

A brief aside: How often have you thought to yourself, Wow, how lucky am I to have been here?

n Scott Dudinskie is a Daily Item sports writer. Email comments to sdudinskie@dailyitem.com.

Source: http://dailyitem.com/0200_sports/x1120121965/Scott-Dudinskies-most-memorable-game-of-2011-Danville-vs-Lake-Lehman-state-baseball

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Inside Social Games ? Social Gaming News Roundup: American ...

Google+ Still Growing - Google?s social network is now adding 625,000 new users every day, and has passed 62 million members according to a post on Google+ by Ancestry.com founder Paul Allen. Allen predicts that the social network will have 293 million users by the end of 2012. In related news, analytics company Chitika is reporting online activity (such as posts and discussions) on the social network increased by 118% between September and November.

American McGee Switches from AAA Console to Social Games - Noted video game producer American McGee and his Shanghai studio Spicy Horse are done with AAA console titles, according to an interview with Gamasutra. The studio just completed Alice: Madness Returns for EA, and will now focus on social games. ?It?s not likely we?ll go back to big-budget AAA development,? he said. ?While the studio has proven itself more than capable of producing beautiful AAA console games, there?s no long-term business for us there. We feel online is where it?s at.? The studio?s first Facebook game is BigHead Bash.

HappySNS Reports 30 million MAU a Month in Chinese Social Game Market - Penn Olson is reporting that Beijing-based social game developer HappySNS now has more than 100 million installs, 30 million MAU and 10 million DAU for its games, which are found on Tencent, Kaixin001, Renren, Facebook and DeNA?s platform. On Facebook the developer?s games see just a fraction of it total traffic, accounting for 140,00 MAU and 33,000 DAU according to AppData.

Social Gamers Are The Most Helpful Friends - If you need someone to help you move, ask a social gamer first. According to an article in the Nature Reviews/Neuroscience journal by University of Iowa psychology professor Douglas Gentile, playing social games can lead to ?helping behavior? among players. One study cited in the article found students who started playing social games early in a school year were generally classified as more helpful later in the year.

Even Healthcare Can Be a Social Game ? San Francisco-based startup Keas has developed a healthcare platform that disguises itself as a social game, reports the Wall Street Journal. Keas? gaming platform allows groups of people compete with each other to complete quests and contests based around eating well and exercising. The social game mechanics have proven far more popular for the company than its original business model ? providing personalized information and feedback from healthcare professionals.

Source: http://www.insidesocialgames.com/2011/12/30/social-gaming-news-roundup-american-mcgee-happysns-and-google/

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Britney Spears Wedding Plans Revealed

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30-year old, Britney Spears got engaged to her former manager, Jason Trawick after dating for two years, earlier this month. The engagement party was held at?the Chocolate Lounge and Sugar Factory in the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Britney, who has two sons, Sean Preston, six, and Jayden James, five, with ex-husband Kevin Federline is eager to plan her 2012 wedding and is opting for a ?traditional Southern-style? wedding with friends and family, rather than?a lavish Hollywood bash.

In Touch Weekly has more: ?She wants a traditional Southern-style wedding with comfort food, surrounded by her family, her two sons and all of her childhood friends, as opposed to a Hollywood wedding.?

Three times a charm for Britney, Trawick is number three, her ex Kevin Federline was the second and her childhood friend, Jason Alexander came in first.

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Short URL: http://www.fitfabceleb.com/?p=25231

Source: http://www.fitfabceleb.com/2011/12/30/britney-spears-wedding-plans-revealed-1230/

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LTE-Capable Windows Phones Should Ship In The First Half Of 2012

There are a lot of naysayers out there when it comes to the Windows Phone platform, but as Robin pointed out a couple of days ago many haven't really given the OS a fighting chance. Some of it has to do with the fact that people often equate cost with quality, and most Windows phones are (at the moment) rather inexpensive. But Redmond apparently has plans to get some higher-end devices on the market next year. According to WinSupersite's Paul Thurrott (who has yet to formally reveal his sources, but promises the news is legit), Microsoft and its partners will release at least three new LTE-capable Windows phones in the first half of 2012.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/aN-KO4dR9TE/

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