GeekwithEnvy

Discussions

Do we Really Need Certain Apps for our PC?

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With both OSX and Windows now featuring an app store we can now get many of our favorite applications all in one place and with peace of mind when it comes to security. I have been using Windows 8 for some time now and one of the apps that I use is the Netflix app. The app has been somewhat buggy as of late, but over all it seems to get the job done. I finished watching an episode of Mythbusters and then went off to run some errands. I came home later and jumped onto my Macbook and started working. Square modern app icons.

A hour or so had passed and I decided that I wanted to watch another episode of Mythbusters. I started to head to my web browser when I suddenly stopped and wondered if there was a Netflix app for OSX, something similar to what Windows 8 has. I quickly opened the App Store and searched for Netflix, only to find that it doesn’t exist. I thought that it was kind of strange considering OSX has been around for a while and it seems like it would be useful.

I quickly began to realize that the lack of a OSX Netflix app isn’t actually that big of deal. I only need to click a bookmark in my web browser and I have access to all of the content and features that any app would have. Then I started to question the need for apps like these in the first place, at least for your laptop or desktop. What’s the difference between an app on my desktop vs a link on my desktop that takes me to Netflix? Where is the benefit? With new web browsers that harness the power of our machines more than ever by making use of our GPU and extra processing power, why bother with an app? I am looking for any opportunity that can save disk space and the lifespan of my SSD.

What makes the web based app more appealing is the fact that it’s often more reliable. I mentioned earlier that I have been dealing with quite a few bugs since I have started using the new Netflix app, but when it comes to the website, I have had virtually no issues. Some of this could be due to the website being around much longer than the app and therefore less buggy. Why bother with the app at all when we seem to be moving toward a cloud based world? If we are trying to create a much more seamless experience then why leave the browser that we spend so much time using, just to open an app? The answer isn’t so clear at this point, which is why the pros don’t seem to know either. This is basically the wild west era of the OS and everyone seems to be trying a little bit of everything and then waiting to see what consumers end up doing.

We can always look at things from the other prospective, which seems to be a movement away from the web as we know it today. Maybe we just make everything an app, including all our favorite websites and instead of downloading them, we just launch them from the cloud. Perhaps, we can just get rid of the web address altogether and then just use google to search for apps instead. Who knows how strange things will become and how practical any of this actually is.

One thing is for certain, we are in the middle of a long evolution that will leave us with a much different computer experience than currently we have today. We are stuck in a phase between old and new and it feels weird but I think were headed in the right direction, it’s just going to take another five years or more before we can fully adapt this new way of doing things. It is ultimately up to us, the consumers, to figure out what we want. If we don’t buy it, it won’t continue to exist and so we ultimately decide what works and what doesn’t. So what do you think?

 

Pondering Apple Software with Jonathan Ive in Charge

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The recent shake up in Apple’s executives has left Jonathan Ive in charge of software design as well as hardware design. This change up could have Apple’s next big software release featuring some big changes.

Jonathan Ive
Jonathan Ive, Senior Vice President of Industrial Design at Apple Inc.

Jonathan Ive has always pushed the idea of keeping things simple and clean and he will likely bring this mentality into play when working with Apple’s software. In every corner of OSX and even iOS, you will find bits and pieces of texture and art incorporated right into the UI. One only needs to perform a few common tasks on any Apple OS to find these little decorations. For instance, the wooden bookshelves in iBooks, linen textures on the side panels, and torn paper on the calendar, these are all things that Ive will likely remove in future versions.

I personally don’t have a problem with them but then again I don’t have any doubt that Jonathan Ive will do a great job in overseeing the design aspect of Apple’s software. Simplicity can be just as beautiful as any decorative pattern or texture. If anything, the application itself should be the centerpiece not what surrounds it, but there needs to be some balance. Take away too much and you risk making the OS feel too utilitarian and dull but add too much and it can become distracting. Some critics of Apple believe that these little decorations date the software and make it look silly. It will be interesting to see what the critics say about Ive’s spin on the next generation of Apple OS software.

I can’t help but wonder what other changes are in the works for the next release of Mac OS. It’s not perfect but OSX has been around for sometime now and it’s still just as enjoyable to use as it ever has been. Will we see a move away form the Dock? It is possible that the next Mac OS will more closely resemble iOS, even more than it does already. This seems to be the case with Windows 8 which feels a lot like Windows phone and the Xbox dashboard mashed together. I feel the Dock is effective and elegant but at times unnecessary.

I like the way iOS handles open applications by keeping them out of view at the bottom of the screen, you only need to swipe up to access them. I would like to see the new Mac OS handle open applications in a similar way. I understand you can hide the dock but it’s just not the same. We could have open applications and their corresponding windows be in this bottom slide while all of our other applications could be accessed through the Launchpad. Also, since the Dock will be removed, we will need a quick way to access the Launchpad, preferably by gesture.

We can only offer up our best suggestions, but given Apple’s record of releasing OS software we technically should have little to fear. We will just have to wait and see what Ive and the crew at Apple come up with.

Possibly the Most Distant Object in the Universe and Looking Into the Past

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NASA has recently discovered what they think is the most distant object to ever be observed. This object is actually a galaxy named MACS0647-JD and it’s so far away that normally we wouldn’t be able to see it, even with our best telescopes. So, how are we able to see it then? Well, we lucked out, we got a little help from a cluster of galaxies known as MACS J0647+7015. Large celestial objects like galaxies have such large gravitational influence that they can actually distort and bend light passing near them. In the case of MACS J0647+7015, NASA was able to use this gravitational distortion as kind of a deep space magnifying glass. This effect is what enabled NASA to capture the light of this distant galaxy.

Nasa Most Distant Object
Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Postman and D. Coe (STScI) and CLASH Team.

The light of MACS0647-JD has taken nearly 13.3 billion years to reach Earth. We are essentially looking at an object from the theorized beginning of the universe (the big bang). This amazing discovery actually gets me thinking about the distances between objects in space and how long it takes for light to travel between them.

What if we could somehow instantaneously appear 65 million light years away from Earth, and what if we had a telescope with us that was capable of zooming in all the way to the Earth’s surface. Would we see dinosaurs walking the Earth? Theoretically, yes, we should. This raises some fun ideas about what’s possible in the universe. What if we just went a fraction of our first trip away from Earth? Perhaps we only go far enough away to witness the early  beginnings of human civilization and maybe we could just get it all on video. This video would be our exact history, nothing unchanged or lost from our true story. How amazing would that be?

Assuming that in our hypothetical world we can travel to almost any distance, we could actually watch the beginning of our solar system. We could know truly how the Moon was formed and perhaps even watch our solar system form, maybe even watch the Milky Way form. Of course we would need to somehow move our camera closer to the objects we are observing at a relatively quick rate in order to watch the creation of large objects like the Milky Way form in a reasonable amount of time, basically a galactic time lapse. Just a little food for thought.

To see a full article on the new discovery, head over to the official NASA post.

3D Graphics Becoming Less Important In Games

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Ever Since the humble beginnings of the video game, the industry has been striving to improve the quality of the graphics in them. Many techniques have been used over the years to try to achieve the most realistic looking games possible. Well before the 3D gaming world, artists were pushing the limits of 2D. One of the earlier techniques used was rotoscoping, this technique involves using actual live scenes and animating them frame by frame by tracing over filmed footage. Some games actually used clay models in their video games, one of the more notable uses of this technique was in the game ClayFighter.Joystick connected to 3D world

With advances in the hardware we use to play our games, software developers were able to take advantage of new technologies and push the limits of what was possible in a video game. Eventually, 3D games began to take over the industry and with their introduction people started to expect more and more. Again, it was a race to match reality, and in the process, pull end-users away from the competition.

Today, things seem to have changed a bit. Although we are still making strides toward the ultimate 3D gaming experience, we seem to have been somewhat delightfully distracted by a new wave a games that are just as amazing as their 3D counterparts, but instead of focusing on reality, they are acutely artistic and vibrant. These games are highly addictive and in some cases, surprisingly simple. We pay little attention to how “realistic” these games are, in fact we are hoping that they are far from realistic, as we anticipate being immersed into an unknown world that looks nothing like anything we have seen.

In some cases we do mimic reality but embrace the gameplay in favor of ultra-uber textures and cutting edge tessellation techniques . Take the popular game Minecraft for example, this game is hardly on the cutting edge for graphics but it’s game play is addictive and when you add in multiplayer capabilities, the game becomes even more enjoyable. I guess the best way to explain what todays gamer is looking for in a game is simply, good entertainment. Far too many times have games been produced where the main focus of the project is it’s look. Gameplay in these types of games is almost an afterthought and gamers pick up on this. We know what makes a good game and it’s not just the polygon count.

So what has made us refocus our attention to these other types of games? Mainly, the rise of mobile gaming, touch input and Facebook. Nothing has influenced gaming more in the last few years then these three factors. Our web browsers don’t really take advantage of our GPU and so instead developers produce relatively simple yet addicting games than run right on Facebook, and as I mentioned before when you add your friends into the mix, it becomes a winning combination. The mobile environment is suited perfectly for all kinds uniuqe games that rely on pure creativity instead of raw power to provide an entertaining experience. Games like Words with Friends and Draw Something are a big hit and yet are very simple, graphically speaking. Touch input challenges developers to create games that focus more on creativity and offer up distinctive gameplay.

Again, I believe we are focusing more on gameplay then ever before and it’s making for some really amazing games. Now, I am not saying that we can’t have the best of both worlds here, both graphically and content wise. There are already many titles that do an amazing job of combining both. Instead I am pointing out a trend among mainstream gamers that appears to be moving away from a focus on pure graphics capabilities. We seem to have shifted our attention to new methods of control and portability instead. It’s interesting to see how the gaming world is evolving, I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Gamer Bars, Something We Need More Of

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The gaming community, contrary to popular belief, is a very social community that rivals the competitive nature of any group of sports fans. This is my main case for for the rise of the gamer bar.

MLG Info
Source (MLG)

The competitive gaming market is growing rapidly, in-fact  it’s blowing up. Major League Gaming is seeing a viewership rise that has surpassed 10 million. Big prizes are at stake, not to mention a chance to have the ultimate bragging rights. These competitions are intense and are won or lost based strategy. Often, a competition will come down to the wire, the deciding factor could come down to one kill, this stuff is addicting.

We stock pile our favorite snacks, grab some drinks and immediately become immersed into our favorite gaming competition. We pick apart the strategies of the pros and we try to employ their techniques in our own gameplay. We are after all, a new generation, a generation of gamers, and we love everything about gaming.

We are very passionate about our games, you only need to head to the nearest game store on a game release night to see fans queued up in the cold and rain, waiting patiently as they discuss everything from strategy to artwork with other fellow gamers. There’s no doubt in my mind that the idea of a social gaming establishment will catch on in more communities as time goes on.

Some have already jumped into the game (pun intended), places like the AFK Tavern, Battle and Brew and EXP offer a place to have a drink and rack up your DKP. Tournament nights, geek trivia, battle.net tournament broadcasts and other MLG broadcasts, all coupled together with good food, brews and friends is simply amazing.

Many people will travel great distances just to have a good time and watch a tournament, but they shouldn’t have to. Hopefully these establishments will catch on, so this kind of experience can reach fans in their hometown.