Last week at E3 we had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Magic: The Gathering designers Mark Rosewater, Randy Buehler and Magic pro player Sam Gomersa. Magic the Gathering is the first collectible card game and is set in a fantasy setting. It has been going strong now for 12 years with no end in sight. Magic: The Gathering can also be played via Magic: The Gathering: Online. The latest version of Magic Online version 3.0 should be out in stores shortly.

Most of our readers may not have heard of Mark Rosewater or Randy Buehler, who are the designers of Magic. These men are two of the greatest game designers on this earth. Their work is enjoyed by millions of gamers across the globe and their design has kept one of the most successful and longest running games going strong today. Join as they both give us a rare chance to see the secrets to the successful design of Magic: The Gathering, including video games, here today with Mark Rosewater, Wednesday with Randy Buehler and Friday with Magic Pro Player Sam Gomersa:

In a short explanation what is Magic the Gathering?
Magic the Gathering is a collectible card game. The best analogy is it's like playing Monopoly without all the pieces.


And what is Magic the Gathering Online?
A transliteration of the game. The idea for it came about from the main reason players quit, they did not have enough people to play with and had a hard time finding a game. Magic Online solved this problem, players can now find a game 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Click to continue reading E3 Interview: Mark Rosewater -  Head Designer of Magic: The Gathering

Everyone we know has been thoroughly impressed with the way that iRobot’s Roomba vacuum cleaners work. Now, the company forays even deeper into robotic home cleaning with their new mop. The Scooba functions in a similar fashion as the Roomba, with a few key differences.  The way it works is the Scooba will vacuum up the floor, spray foam scrub onto the tile or other surface, scrub it up, then dry the floor.  There is no price set yet and it’s looking like it might only be a limited time deal around the holidays.

Read More | News.com via engadget

Even with the great success of Episode III, we know that one of the biggest reasons we go to see a Star Wars movie, play a Star Wars game, or buy one of the DVD’s is to be part of a great lightsaber battle.  We all want one (just listen to your inner geek), and one day - who knows - it may be possible. Wikipedia gives us some background on several aspects of the lightsaber that you may not have known.

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With all the advantages of not actually having a physical baby in tow, BabyGrow is designed to be a Tamagochi (remember those?) for your cell phone.  You get it all as far as responsibility goes - feeding, entertaining, medicating, and even cleaning. What happens when you don’t comply with these needs? Anges, the Social Worker comes to claim the baby.  It’s like a low budget version of Nintendogs! Trust me when I say this: cleaning a virtual diaper is much better than the real thing.

Read More | Evening Telegraph

Paramount will begin their first releases August 9 with “Team America,” “Coach Carter” and “Without a Paddle.” “Sahara” and “Viva La Bam: Volume 1” will follow those titles August 30. In addition, Paramount Home Entertainment (via Comedy Central Home Entertainment and Nickelodeon Home Entertainment) will distribute:

• Ren and Stimpy Volume 1 1/2 ish
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Volume 1
• Chappelle’s Show: Volume 1
• South Park: Volume 1
• SpongeBob SquarePants The Movie

Obviously, movie studios are jumping onto the UMD bandwagon fairly quickly.

Click to continue reading Paramount To Release Several UMD Movies This Summer

Earlier at the D: All Things Digital Conference, Steve Jobs made it known that the next version of iTunes will include built-in support for podcasts. To make that a bit clearer - iTunes 4.9 will have an option that will allow you to plug in the RSS feed URL of your favorite podcasts, which it will then use to fetch them out and download them directly to your library. No need for any third party software to do this for you any longer. What’s more, iTunes will provide a directory of podcasts in which producers can submit their work. Finally, Steve is even considering developing a model where content producers could sell their podcasts through iTunes. This is similar to what Google wants to do with video, but on the audio front. We can expect to see this new version of iTunes within the next 60 days.

Read More | O’Reilly Radar

In an interesting turn of events, it looks like Michael Jackson may have sold his Neverland Ranch to a silent buyer for about $35 million. I remember as a child wshing I could visit the Ranch - after all, it had its own zoo, amusement park, trolley, etc. Looking back, I think it’s safe to say that it is good that I was never able to make the trip. This is one example of technology gone bad.

Read More | National Enquirer

I love music.  I may be a computer geek, but I’m also an artist and an occasional DJ, so there’s always something on my iPod when I’m writing, coding, or surfing the Internet.  A number of bands I love are very “tech-oriented” synthpop or EBM (short for “electronic body music,” a sort of hybrid between industrial and dance) — in other words,  music to program to.  The tech-fetishist, often geek-friendly lyrics of bands like Psykosonik or Covenant and the synthesized, catchy beats produced by Melotron and Neuroticfish provide an excellent beat for those who need upbeat inspiration for their cyber-pursuits, be it coding or gaming, hacking or network security.

However, should you require something a bit more mellow, My Bloody Valentine is my new favorite.  Their music is fluid, ambient, and laid back — but it’s got enough bite to it to be interesting.  It’s very sexy, in a sort of synthesized way. If you’ve got a hot date with the cute girl from your web design class (or a hot guy you met at last weekend’s LAN party), and want something to play while you discuss XHTML 1.0 Strict Validation over dinner, this is your band.  Another great pick is Massive Attack, which is much more ambient-techno than MBV but still makes for great background music for dinner, art, conversation, or romance.  Throw on either of these bands for instant ambiance that still appeal to the part of you that wants something “tech-y” to listen to, without sacrificing the atmosphere.

If you are a current Windows XP user and want to try out Mac OS X but don’t feel like spending the cash on a new system then give this theme package a download. After downloading the install package and patching your UXTheme.dll file, then you will be able to experience Mac OS X on your Windows computer – at least the visual part. No need for a Mac emulator here. This is also great for people that love the Mac OS X interface and absolutely have to use a Windows based system.

Read More | FlyakiteOSX

The million dollar question remains truly unanswered, which next generation console is the best? Well the Microsoft Xbox team aims to try to answer this question by comparing all the numbers that are being fed to us by both PR departments in a four part series. Still wondering which console they say is the best. Can you blame them for stating that their console is the best? They clearly do make very good points and do give the PS3 proper credit; however to say that one console is better than another at this point is a mighty bold claim. What we need to see are in game stats and to experience both consoles ourselves to really make that final conclusion. One thing for sure is that we will all find out soon enough if the next Xbox lives up to expectations.

Read More | Major Nelson: Part 1 of 4
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