Puzzle games have been growing substantially in the mobile gaming ratings, being a very good way to waste time. Nowadays, when you are on the subway, walking to work, or even just in an escalator, you just have to grab your phone and work on that puzzle game you just can’t solve, or that game that you really really want to break the record for. Games such as Candy Crush and Spell Tower are skyrocketing, and Dots, a simple puzzle game, may end up going through the roof.
The Game In Play
Dots is based of a simple childrens concept: connect the dots. In childrens books, you connect the dots to make shapes. In dots, you connect the correctly colored dots to gain points. The board consists of a 6×6 grid of dots, and each dot could be one of these colors: red, blue, yellow, black or pink. You can connect dots of the same colors, only horizontally and vertically, to get points. Logically, the more dots you connect, the more points you get.
There are 2 ways to get more than the usual amount of points. First of all, if you make a square out of dots in a game, and connect them, you get a big bonus. Also, all the dots of that color disappear, leaving room for more and more rectangles. It is a cycle that you want to gain access to. The second way to gain more points is to use your power-ups. One power-up adds 5 moves or 10 seconds onto you clock, the second one takes away one dot, and the last one takes away all of one color, just like a square. The most helpful one is the last one, or expanders, but you have to buy all of them using points you earn during each game.
A Sample Situation
There are 3 modes of play in Dots: timed, 30 moves, and Endless. Timed is where you only get a minute to get as many points as you can. The trick in that type is just try to go fast- it doesn’t matter how small the ones you get are. The second one is 30 moves, which as you can probably tell, you have 30 moves in.To get a high score, contemplate the consequences of your moves and see if you can make a square. Endless, the last one, is a (obviously) infinite game that just keeps on going and keeps adding to your score. You can also quickly turn on gravity, which make the balls float around a fall to whatever side is near the ground, and when you turn it back on, they are shuffled.
A Dots Screenshot
Dots is overall a very fun and time consuming game. But, even though the regular game is consuming, it is one of those awesome games that you can start and quickly stop playing constantly and never even disrupt your game or your mind-set. In fact, while writing this, I was playing Dots off and on, and yet I still broke my personal record. The great new iOS 7 style interface and colors work great together, and it is just a great game for the busy, working person.
Nike not only makes clothing and equipment. They have also delved into the industry of fitness devices. This type of devices track how many steps you take, how long you ran and other statistics like that. There are many apps, devices that go in shoes, clip-ons and wristwatches that can do these tasks. Nike+’s new Fuelband will try to make a wristwatch that the world hasn’t seen before. Nike Fuel, Nike’s all around unit of exercise, will be leading this charge.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gMmzHzQmF0
The wristwatch is different than most watches. For instance, there is no face, making it more of a wristband. There is a button on the side that activates Nike’s clever screen. Lights flash underneath the rubbery surface, which actually are visible through the surface. The customizable scrolling interface is not the fastest, but for someone who only cares about a couple statistics, it’s perfectly fine. On the bottom, a clip has placed so that you can unclip it and plug it into a USB port. That probably wouldn’t be needed though, since it can be Bluetooth connected to your mobile device. The battery is surprisingly long-winded. I have been wearing mine for 1 week now and have been constantly checking it, but it is only a quarter through.
The Band
Nike Fuel is like a unit of measuring your exercise in a very lax way. If you are really paranoid about knowing what exactly happens when, you probably would want to spend more money on a more expensive watch. I’m not saying that the Fuelband can’t track sessions of different activities, because it can. You can start a session, select your activity, and have it record all the usual statistics. But the difference between Fuelband and other devices is that it is ALWAYS tracking. While you are walking around the house, while you are working, even while you are sleeping if you wear it.
A Simplified Version Of What’s On The App
Nike’s Fuelband app also adds to the experience. There, you can look at your daily stats, see if you beat your goal, or at least got into the green area of the color scale. You can see interesting statistics, like when you do your most exercising, your best day, and your total Nike Fuel. Trophies are also a big part of Nike’s app. Trophies are basically landmarks, such as “double your daily goal” or ” win 10 hours in 1 day”. They also come with cool animations, which are fun and motivating.
Some Of The Scroll Options
Nike Fuel is basically a wristband for anyone who is interesting in how much they workout each day with out trying and is satisfied with how much they are, or for someone who just wants to lose weight or something like that. If you keep upping your goal like Fuelband suggests, you can easily use Fuelband for that type of activity. Overall, it is a fun, motivating way to exercise and find out how much you do, just in daily life. That puts them ahead of any other device in that category, and I recommend it to the average Joe, which unfortunately that fit in the US. Hopefully Fuelband, along with the other devices and companies can fix that.
Learning a language is always hard. Especially after the age of about 14, you mind hardens, making it harder for other information to make it’s way in. Fortunately, technology has it’s way of making most of life easier, including learning languages. Since you probably grew up only using one language, it is hardwired into your mine. Just the fact that I am writing this right now is amazing, considering how many words I have memorized over time, if you think about it. Everyone does, but how much information you mind has been storing for thousands of years longer than computers have is astonishing.
Enough philosophy. A common program that is bent on helping people learn new languages is the famous Rosetta Stone. It’s a computer program that drills the language into your brain having you fill in sentences, with pictures underneath to give you a hint. It is perfectly fine….besides the fact that it is over $100. Very expensive. So otherwise you wanted to take lessons, it is pretty much your only option. Until now.
The Duolingo Owl
Duolingo is a free app for iOS and Android that has same objective as Rosetta Stone, yet a slightly different approach. As part of the lessons, Duolingo the picture approach, but only for filling in the word and gender for current languages, German, Italian, Spanish, French and Portuguese. Most of the Duolingo lessons are set in packets, such as basics, plurals, animals, and number. These packets are each set in a way so that you know sufficient information to fill in the rest of the sentence, while also learning the new words. Inside the packets, there are lessons, with each lesson teaching about 5-6 words. Each lesson is made up of a couple of different types of problems such as translating the sentences (with hints), repeating sentences using the microphone, and probably the most common, translating sentences by picking words out of a batch. There are many others, and this variety makes you learn every aspect of the language to move on. There are just enough hints so that if you don’t know it, you don’t pass. In each lesson, there are 20 questions, with which you only have 3 lives. If you lose all your lives, you have to start over again.
Sample Duolingo Problems
The great thing about Duolingo is that it is very social. Every time you correctly complete a lesson, you earn 10 XP, plus 1 extra for remaining lives. Your XP is tracked by day, week and month so you can track your usage and learn curve, and once you get a certain amount, you go up a level. You level is your rank in Duolingian society, and the higher rank you have in the most languages the better. You can even compete with your friends and see who has the most XP overall, in the week, and the month.
The Learning Tree Part Of My Home Screen
Even though Duoling is a great app, they also made a computer version for people really into it. It is built right into the browser, and you can complete lessons and packets just like on the mobile version. The only difference is that the online version has many other side-features that can be very useful. For instance, you can go over the words you have mastered and see which ones are overdue for a revisit, which is easily done, and have discussions about Duolingo and give feedback with other users. Another unique feature in Duolingo is that immerse yourself in article in your language, and even translate them. All these features give Duolingo a step ahead of any other language program.
Duolingo is always growing. Now that Duolingo has started the Incubator, anyone can sign up to contribute to a growing course. Right now, most growing courses are English in another language, such as Russian or Japanese. Sooner or later, though, there will be more languages so that you can try out as many different languages as possible and see how they all connect. But just starting the Incubator shows how much Duolingo cares about the public, and how they get the best experience possible.
Styluses have become a popular tool for people who often use tablets, and have trouble touching the buttons. Also, styluses can be used for doodling, drawing, and writing instead of typing. It’s sort of an exclusive tool, and only some people use it and need it, but Adobe still wants to have their one of their first pieces of hardware be one.
Adobe have been known for their software and software only, but they want to change that. Their new project, released at Adobe Max in May, is Project Mighty, the Adobe-integrated stylus. But, it’s not like you can change the world by making a stylus. There’s not much to change to the classic design. It’s the software that Adobe made to go along with it that is new and cool. As usual.
The Adobe Hardware Set
The actual hardware of Mighty is not much different than any other stylus. The only addition to the hardware is the button on the end at the end of your fingertip. In the app, you can draw and write on a blank page using the standard color, texture and type of pen. But what if you want to change that? That’s what the button is for. You hit that, and a circle of options come up. From there, you can change the color, type of pen/utensil, color, and other variables.
The Set In Everyday Life
Another interesting feature that they exposed is the Cloud Clipboard. Since Mighty is run by Adobe’s Creative Cloud, they have the ability to use the cloud to their advantage. So they made Cloud Clipboard. Cloud Clipboard allows you to access any of your drawings, on any device. You can just paste any of your previous drawings right into your current drawing. It’s great for working with the device you have on you, then later adding it to your final version.
Mighty
Adobe decided to go even further, making a second piece of hardware, nicknamed Project Napoleon. Napoleon, because the product is literally “a short ruler”. So they do have a sense of humor. Anyway, when you put Napoleon on your tablet or phone, a exactly straight line appears that you can trace. The line you draw automatically snaps to the line, but you can decide how long it is. Also, Napoleon can do other lines, like curves, triangles, L’s and more. Napoleon is the perfect companion for Mighty, and even if it is not completely needed, for any architect, or mathematician, it could be useful.
Napoleon
Project Mighty and Napoleon are the perfect pair of tools for anyone who wants a stylus and virtual ruler. They easily integrate with Adobe’s Creative Cloud, making for easy switching between devices. Napoleon adds another dimension to that, making Mighty a unique system and pushing it out into the limelight. “The hope is that we can finally enable a new generation to finally turn these (tablets) from consumption to creation. There are all sorts of mini hopes that come out of that, the hope that we make better software, the hope that we change the way we make software,” says Dowd. “But at the end of the day, if we can teach a generation of young creators to draw or they can be inspired to draw or feel good about drawing, then perhaps we’ve saved drawing.”
Music and apps have been the two big advantages of mobile technology (in general). Another basic use of the smartphone has become popular only in the last decade: Podcasts. The ability to record a couple of people discussing a certain topic, such as technology, news, and comedy is relatively new. You can also record programs directly from radio stations, such as NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me or This American Life (with their permission). Podcasts have become a mainstream thing in the last couple years with Apple giving easy access from iOS.
The App
Even with Podcasts becoming popular, there hasn’t been one single super-amazing podcast app that everyone uses. One of the best is Pocket Casts, which recently updated their app for iOS 7, the first podcast to do so. So, currently, Pocket Casts is the most attractive option for podcast listeners. Pocket Casts easy downloading and subscribing interface is much better than Apple’s app, which appears less functional and stylish by comparison.
The Pocket Casts Logo
Pocket Casts great iOS 7-like set-up makes it very easy to access tons of podcasts. On the “add podcasts” page, all the podcast album covers are formatted into a nice grid, from which you can get a description of the podcast by tapping on it. Many of the podcasts you may have already heard of because they are sections of a radio station, but most of the are probably new. Once you’ve found a podcast you like and have subscribed (all free, they get their money from advertisements), you automatically get the first cast, and every future one. You can also fill up your time by listening to past ones, which are also free.
Pocket Casts On A Samsung Device
Easy and free access to podcasts if pretty new for the 21st century. But to do it in a good fashion to is almost irresistible. The elegant design of the home screen, playing screen and adding podcasts screen fits well with the rest of the OS. If you are looking for a Podcast app, I recommend Pocket Casts. If you have never tried podcasts, they are a really cool way to get information on whatever you are interested in.
After all those concepts, leaks, concepts, previews, developer releases, reviews, releases, more reviews, and now finally, the real thing. The software we have aaaaaalllllllll been waiting for, ladies and gentlemen, here is iOS 7!
Ok. If you followed iOS 7 at all, you probably have seen that video before. It was shown at the 2013 WWDC, and was followed up by the introduction videos for both iPhone 5c and 5s in the same style. But, to be honest, the final product was not changed that much since the WWDC. Small details, app icons, that sort of thing. More importantly, it is still iOS 7, the revolutionary operating software that completely changes how you use your phone. It practically makes it a new phone.
Some New Screens In iOS 7
Apparently, Jony Ive really likes flip down/up bars, because there are now 3 on iOS 7. First of all, the well anticipated Control Center bar was added. To open Control Center, all you have to do is flick up from any screen. The semi-opaque bar comes up, and from that, you can access most of the stuff you actually use in Settings. You can turn on WiFi (but to change the station, you have to go into settings), Airdrop, Airplane Mode, Do Not Disturb, mute, change the brightness and the sound level, and access Airplay and any connected Bluetooth items. Control Center is probably the most useful of the added bars.
A Comparison Of A Concept iOS 7 and the Real iOS 7
The second bar is actually just the search bar redesigned. In all the previous iOS’, the search is in the far right page. In the new iOS, the search bar is just a flick away. To access it, you just flick down in the middle of the home screen on any page. A little search bar pops up, an you just type whatever you want just like the old search. The last bar, the old notification bar, hasn’t been changed that much. The leathery texture of the old bar has been removed, like the rest of iOS 7, and replaced with a black-ish opaqueness.
The Classic Home Screen In iOS 7
There couple other small features that weren’t explained very thoroughly in the 2 conferences releasing iOS 7. For instance, a couple swipe gestures have been added. For instance, if you are in an app, and you want to get out, you could either hit the home button, or you could pinch in with all your fingers. The app will close, but it will do so in way that makes it look like a ripple. Very Apple-like.
Control Center Being Shown Off For The First Time
Overall, iOS 7’s new and insightive design is certainly a great leap up from anything Apple has attempted in the past. Getting rid of the textures and shiny-3D app icons was a big risk, but it will probably pay off. The big features that have been changed are: Notifications, the search bar, the dock, all the app icons, the text, the colors, the lock screen, Siri, and much more. iOS 7 definitely works well with the new iPhones and iPad Mini, but we’ll just have to wait and see what Apple can come up with in their new style.
When Apple announced their new iPhones at the company’s recent September 10th event, a number of innovations were introduced into the new 5s line, led by the “Touch ID” fingerprint scanner. Afterward, Touch ID received some uncertain feedback from podcasters, bloggers and tech fanatics, many of whom questioned its overall security. Of course, Apple wouldn’t (shouldn’t) release it unless they know it works most of the time and is safe (or they just have a good lawyer).
The Setup Success Screen
One concern was that thieves, for some crazy reason, would want to get into your iPhone so bad they would cut off your finger to get the fingerprint. This concern spread about, prompting Apple to address it: “The technology is built in a way that the (fingerprint) image has to be taken from a live finger,” says Sebastien Taveau, chief technology officer at Validity Sensors. “No one in biometrics wants to talk about cut fingers and dead bodies, but at the end of the day we are still asked to remove the fears of consumer and make sure that they understand that (a severed finger) will not work.” The way it does that is by using radio frequencies to detect “sub-epidermal” layers in your skin which only work if you are alive. So, if you were worried that someone would cut off your finger to look at your worthless emails and wickedly change your Facebook status, you’re thankfully wrong. In other words, it appears Touch ID is safe after all. Then again, who knows how easily someone could hack into it, but let’s not worry about that right now.
Recently, Apple had a conference to announce the well-awaited iOS 7 and the iPhone 5s and 5c. Most was as expected, such as the plastic 5c, champagne 5s, and almost everything about previously-announced iOS 7. Though, as always, Apple surprised us with a few design tweaks to go along with iOS 7 and the 5c’s style. Also, iOS 7 has been changed slightly to go along with the style of the specific phones.
iPhone 5c
The iPhone 5c is pretty much as we expected. In case you didn’t know, the “c” stands for color. It comes in white, red/pink, green, yellow and blue. Like a iPod, except with the internal and capabilities of a iPhone. Technically, it has the internals of the discontinued iPhone 5. The plastic case has reverted back to the 3G’s rounded edges, making it better to hold than the slick sides of the 5S. It has the new iSight camera, which has many different features. First of all, it’s better than the last one. Obviously. But, it also has 2 new features, and they are sort of alike. The first one is that you can take very slow-mo pictures, which some real cameras can’t do, and pick your favorite. The second one is that you can take a video, then choose a portion of the video you want to play in 4th speed, for action shots. Also, they added a flash for low-light shots. To complement the 5c, Apple made slick-yet-debated colored cased, with holes in the bottom to complement the starting color. Overall, I think the iPhone 5c will be a big success, because of the shape the color, and the price.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyarolYre3M
iPhone 5s
The iPhone 5s is pretty much what you would think the next high-end iPhone would look like. Like the past iPhones, it has a sleek, reflective covering the middle of the back. They will come in 3 new colors only, Space Grey, which is like black with light black, the well-anticipated champagne gold, and a new silver. Like the 5c, the 5s has the new camera and flash, but has the next-generation chip and motion compressor, which allows it to run 2 times faster than the iPhone 5c or 5. The biggest and best addition to the 5s is Touch ID. If you looked close enough, you could have seen that Apple changed the home button on the 5c. The square in the middle is no more. Instead, it has a ring around it. They did that because when you turn on your phone, you can unlock it by using your fingerprint. It is supposedly pretty good, like faster than typing in a password. Also, you can pay for apps and music using your “super-safe” code. If Apple were going to make that big of a jump, I think they would have a decent security on it to avoid being sued. It’s all going to make a great phone for someone who is either bland and wants the slick look, or someone who is obsessed with technology and wants Touch ID. Either way, it’s definitely going to sell, but probably not as much as the 5c.
Both these iPhones look completely capable of surviving on the market. Both are high-tech, one more so than the other, but not some big peice of junky machinery. Apple’s specialty is perfectly designing the details. The iPhone 5c shows that. Paired along with the completely redesigned iOS 7, Apple is sure to rack in some cash. The iPhone 5s is $199 for 16gb, $299 for 32gb and so on. The 5c, on the other hand is $99 for 16gb and $199 for 32gb. But don’t be mistaken, without a plan, it’s $550 and $650. Both these phones, and iOS 7, will be coming out on September 20th, so stay posted!
On September 10th, Apple will be having a big conference, probably to release their new iPhone, the iPhone 5S. The biggest change in the 5S is that they reportedly have added the long-awaited fingerprint scanner in the home button. No more awkwardly hiding your phone when you type in your password, people! Also, like always, the specs, camera and processor will be upgraded. Another interesting change is that you can reportedly (and by leaked photos) buy a champagne /light-gold color iPhone 5S.
The Champagne iPhone 5S
Apple are going on a streak! If they’re going to change something, they might as well change all of it. They will, along with the 5S, will be coming out with a iPhone 5C, a low-end iPhone. This iPhone will have a plastic cover, but still run the same retina display, specs and processor as the 5S. The 5C will come in many colors to, such as the leaked blue, yellow, pink-ish, white and probably more. This will benefit the younger market whose parents don’t want them breaking a $400 phone. Sort of like a iPod Touch/iPhone hybrid, the iPhone 5C will be an interesting product, for which we will just have wait and see if it is successful or not.
Four Of The iPhone 5C Colors
And of course, both these devices will be running on the new iOS 7 that will be coming out. The new iOS, released at the latest WWDC, will be the most drastical change ever. All the textures will be completely removed, along with the curve and shine of app icons, and will be replaced by flat colors and thin text. It will go very nicely with the 5C’s colors and design. This will be one of the most interesting conferences ever, so stay tuned for my review of the released products.
Way back in ye old history, like WAY back, parts of Europe was ruled by small clans, such as in Scotland, Wales and nowadays Germany. The chiefs relied on their skills in war to keep the throne. The rule was, the king had to lead them to victory, and the warriors get a share of the spoils. Also, the chiefs collected golden armbands. The more they had, the better their reputation. But, this was along time ago. Clash of Clans, the iOS app, brings back that time in a cartoony real time strategy game.
Clash Of Clans
Here is the basis of Clash Of Clans: you run a “clan”, or town. The Town Hall is basically where you store the majority of your resources, mainly Elixir and Gold. Gold is used to buy most everything, except gold mines and gold storage. Elixir is the opposite (Elixir collectors and Elixir storages), except you use Elixir to take away obstacles like stones or trees and make troops. As you could probably guess, you make troops by spending your Elixir in the barracks. The higher level barracks, the better troops you can make. So, basically, you build buildings, upgrade them, and make your clan as impenetrable and resourceful as possible.
The App Icon
At the very start of the game, your “guide” introduces you to battling. There is a whole storyline of battles integrated in the game. You are fighting goblins. They have outposts, which you set out to destroy. The actual battle game play is fairly good. You deposit your warriors on the outside of the walls in strategic places (if they have any), and different kinds of troops go for different parts of the town (i.e. giants go for defences, goblins go for resources) . But, from there, you can’t do anything. You just wait and watch. Which isn’t too bad, because it is entertaining and short, but still. If you win the battle, you take the gold and elixir you pillaged. Plus, you get a certain amount of trophies, which matter later in the game.
An Average Town
Goblins aren’t the only ones you can fight. You can fight other players. This gives it an extra level of addiction. You get more and more trophies by battling people, and gain rankings by how many trophies you have. These rankings are called leagues. The higher league you are, the more bonus resources you get per successful battle. Also, you can compare yourself to other people, which is fun.
The Most Basic Warrior
And of course, there are clans. Once you build the Clan Castle ($$$), you can join a clan, or make a clan. Some clans are invite only, but there are many good open clans. Once in a clan, you can talk to your clanmates and ask for reinforcements. Plus, it give you a big boost of trophies. Then, at the end of the Clan tournament, the top three clans get lots of resources to spread throughout their clan. Overall, Clash Of Clans is a great game. It really gives you an idea of what graphic designers think it was like back then, which really isn’t that useful information, but whatever.
TOTW: Google's Project Ara Modular Phone May Be The Future Of SmartphonesOctober 30, 2014
