Internet

Roundup of Free Vector Ornament Patterns

Gaming has evolved from single-player to head-to-head to massively multiplayer, but it’s also retreated from public arcades to isolated homes. Today’s launch of the Xbox One makes the whole console experience social, not just the gaming itself. You’ll still be battling other humans, but how you communicate with them and choose what to play is about to change. Think back 20 years ago, before home gaming devices became the powerhouses they are today. You’d go to an arcade, and the way you’d discover what was fun and popular was looking for which game cabinet drew the rowdiest crowds. I remember discovering Street Fighter 2 in a hotel arcade while on vacation. I couldn’t even see the machine, as it was surrounded by older boys swearing like sailors at every Haduken and thousand-hand-slap. I knew I wanted to play that game. And when I finally got my turn to get beaten mercilessly as the mob swelled around me, it didn’t feel like I was doing anything nerdy. I was partaking in a new culture, a new community. That’s the promise of the new Xbox One’s trending section. It surfaces games, apps, video on demand, and other media popular with your friends and the whole Xbox user base. Gamers won’t have to go searching for reviews to see what’s the hot new first-person shooter. The wisdom of the crowd will clue you into what game has captured the zeitgeist, even if you’re playing alone in your basement. Microsoft also hopes to turn word-of-mouth recommendations into an algorithm that shows you what to play next. Because the suggestions come from friends, you might trust them enough to buy a new sports game like NBA Live ’14, listen to a classic album, watch Firefly, or try out a fresh app like Hulu. Microsoft is also bringing these custom recommendations somewhere that was never really social: television. Live TV can be piped into your living room through the Xbox One; its TV guide features a trending section too. While we’ve gotten used to intelligent suggestions for video-on-demand thanks to data crunchers like Netflix, Xbox one could show you what sports match or awards show your friends and the whole world are watching right now. Microsoft will have to figure out who your real friends are, possibly through social network integrations, and how to use other factors like geography to massage the trending picks. There will also be privacy design challenges to face, as not everyone wants to share what they do with their controller. But if Xbox One Trending succeeds, it could make games and television viral in a whole new way. Snap back to the arcade, and 10-year old me is learning all the naughty four-letter words. Each time someone sees their health bar go red, they let out a stream of angry obscenities while onlookers let loose cuss-modified cheers for the victor. But it wasn’t just the sounds. You can hear kids swear at each other all day on Xbox 360 Live. It was the look of anguish in a defeated combatant’s face, the relieved body language of the winner whose reward was one more game and “a new challenger!” Xbox One’s new Skype group video chat feature means you can play face to face with friends around the world. It’s infinitely more vivid than the audio and text chat capabilities of the Xbox 360. Smile at each other after a successful dungeon raid, or dance around as you brag about your touchdown in Madden. Skype for Xbox goes beyond games so you can watch TV, use apps, and more while having a conversation. Social doesn’t even need to be banished to a second screen. Xbox One “Snap Mode” lets you use voice commands to open video chat in a slide-out, overlaid window on the edge of your TV. Skype for Xbox takes video chat and puts it in your comfiest chair. Rather than hunching over your laptop, leaning back on your couch could inspire long conversations over your console. You might – *gasp* 

Contest. That word has a charm of its own. Ever since the days of the cavemen right till today’s Olympics, the brave and the meek have gone up against each other. A contest has a simple pull – all of us want to know and show if we are the best. Even on the comparatively egalitarian World Wide Web, it is a barometer for a self-pat on the back. We have online photography contests of all kinds; from the recent best body and fitness contests to regular programming contests. Google contests are used by a big company as part of their promotion strategy. Graphic lovers have their Photoshop contests. Photographers aren’t in any way left out. In fact, they seem to be the most proactive lot when it comes to contests. Bakari showed us some awesome free photography contests. So, let’s launch into some more popular photo contests and pit ourselves against the best of the rest. National Geographic – Your Shot Calendar Date: Always Open The National Geographic photo contest can either make you go “wow”, or make you feel inferior if you are starting out with your DSLR. National Geographic is one of the more preeminent places to take your photos to. If any of your photos get selected, then it is the best badge to say that you have finally arrived. Your Shot is the magazine’s photo community which invites regular submissions from photographers of all hues.  Whether a hobbyist or a pro, you can participate fearlessly. National Geographic editors review each submission carefully and the best 12 get picked in the popular Daily Dozen category. The best thing is that the editors also offer professional tips which are an invaluable learning experience. The publication of photos in the magazine or the website is reward enough for any photography enthusiast. The guidelines are explained here in more detail. The Smithsonian Phototography Contest Calendar Date: Annual (open till November 29, 2013) Another renowned name, but one you may not immediately associate with photography. But you will be surprised to know that the Smithsonian magazine’s photography contest has its own place. Standards are of course, very high. You can enter any of the five categories — the American Experience, the Natural World, People, Travel and Altered Images – to win cash prizes. The grand prize winner gets $2500. Read the complete FAQs here. Wiki Loves Monuments Calendar Date: September (expected) It’s printed in large letters — The world’s largest photo contest. It is also certified by the Guinness Book of Records as the largest photo contest in the world. Not really surprising because it was organized by the Wikipedia community. The contest started off in 2010 in The Netherlands. By 2012, it was held across 35 countries and garnered 350,000 photo submissions. The international photo contest is meant to showcase the cultural heritage through monuments of each participating country. Though the contest for this year is yet to be announced, you can still see the latest uploads coming into the site. The photos are all freely licensed under Wikimedia Commons. Pixoto Calendar Date: Weekly Pixoto is a photography contest of a different kind, and one which makes it the easiest to participate. The photo service uses an algorithm called ImageDuel to submit each photo to a comparison and voting process. The photo with the best positive feedback (an image score) wins. There are dozens of categories and each top photo can win $150 every week. Others among the top 20% can get badges to display alongside their profiles and photos on the site. ViewBug Calendar Date: Always open ViewBug is a photography community with a few contests of its own. There are premium (paid) and free contests to go along with the free and premium plans the site has for you to join. The free membership allows you to participate in the free contests. There were about 16 contests going on at the time of writing this article. Awards include photography k

Beautiful Fashion Illustrations For Inspiration

Bernard Waber, beloved children’s author and illustrator, has died at the age of 91 after a long illness. Waber is probably best known for his books The House on East 88th Street and Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (including his many subsequent Lyle books). Waber describes how he got into drawing in a biographical essay: My own early efforts at drawing were mostly confined to the laborious copying of photographs of film stars and other celebrities of the day. I received respectable grades in art classes during my school years, but doubt I thought it seriously indicated a career direction. Perhaps art seemed too frivolous for one raised during the Depression. Besides, I grew up a rather earnest young man and chose instead to major in finance at the University of Pennsylvania. After just one year of schooling, World War II interrupted those rather high-minded plans. Perhaps it was moving about, meeting people of various backgrounds and experience – I don’t recall a precise moment – but somehow during those army days my interest shifted to drawing and painting. “Waber’s warmth, energy, artfulness, elegance, and abiding respect for children were epitomized in his books,” said publisher Betsy Groban, SVP of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. “In one way or another, I seem to find myself thinking of children’s books most of the time. I even enjoy the period when I am between books, for it is then that I am (I hope) susceptible to all manner of adventurous thought,” said Waber. [Image via Amazon]

It's been a while since Will Smith bust out his rapping chops, but he proved on Monday that he's still as skilled as he was in his Fresh Prince days When Smith appeared on the Late Show with David Lettermanstage for his interview, the band responded with his 1992 hit "Summertime." Smith didn't hesitate to join in, launching into the full rap and eventually making his way to the mic to finish the verse SEE ALSO: Fall in Love With John Krasinski Lip Syncing to Katy Perry Smith abandoned his music career more than a decade ago for acting in blockbuster films like Hitch, and Men in Black. He stars in the the upcoming film After Earth, along with son Jaden, but his late night music interlude proves Smith should consider a music comeback — maybe even rapping on one of Jaden's new tracks. Read more...More about Viral Videos, Celebrities, David Letterman, Tv, and Watercooler

Today the CEO of France Telecom stated that his company intends to invest between 30 and 50 million Euros into the popular online video service Dailymotion, according to Reuters. Dailymotion is owned by Orange, a brand that France Telecom in turn owns. The French government is a 27% shareholder in France Telecom. When it became known that Yahoo, an American firm, was looking to acquire 75% of the French video portal, the government intervened. Their argument was simple: Dailymotion is perhaps France’s greatest Internet startup success story; should they allow it to be bought up by a foreign enterprise? That arrogant position ended the deal, and likely slowed Dailymotion’s international expansion. The deal would have brought around $300 million to the service, and granted Yahoo a key foothold into the video market. Yahoo recently purchased Tumblr for $1.1 billion in cash. The company is also rumored to be sniffing around Hulu, a firm that would come with a quite high price tag. Stephane Richard, leader of France Telecom, stated that “the door is not closed” to Yahoo. However, it appears that the American company has moved on. 50 million Euros would certainly help Dailymotion grow, and perhaps gain market share at the expense of YouTube, but it isn’t close to the cash, and reach that Yahoo offered. Still, as consolation prizes go, $64 million dollars – the converted sum – isn’t scoffable. Richard did note that the company will seek out a new partner later this year. Top Image Credit: wisegie

Always love hearing teen views of social services. Glad to hear Twitter is growing "Poll: Teens migrating to Twitter"

Lucas123 writes "U.S. Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass) is pushing a bill that would require all U.S. handgun manufacturers to include 'personalization technology' in their weapons. Tierney said he got the idea for The Personalized Handgun Safety Act of 2013 from the latest James Bond film, Skyfall. In it Bond escapes death when his handgun, which is equipped with technology that recognizes his fingerprints, becomes inoperable when a bad guy picks it up. 'This technology, however, isn't just for the movies — it's a reality,' Tierney said. Tierney pointed to a myriad of cases where the smart gun tech could prevent children from being harmed or killed in firearms accidents. Jim Wallace, executive director of the Massachusetts Gun Owners Action League, the official state association of the NRA, said he knows of no gun owners who would want smart gun technology on their weapons. Wallace said any technology that may impede the proper function of a weapon is a problem. He pointed to the fact that any integrated processor technology would also require a battery of some kind, which could pose a system failure if it lost power." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Xbox One vs Playstation 4: What we Know so Far? tip @techmeme