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Morning Brief: Games & Checkins Coming to Google, Facebook IPO & Spotify U.S. Delayed


 

This series is brought to you by HTC EVO 4G, America’s first 4G phone. Only from Sprint. The “First to Know” series keeps you in the know on what’s happening now in the world of social media and technology.

 

Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world today. We’re keeping our eyes on four particular stories of interest today. Google Is Going into Gaming Google is going into social gaming in attempt to win over some of the ad dollars that have gone to social networking sites, sources familiar with the matter have told The Wall Street Journal. The company has reportedly been in talks with top developers like Playdom Inc., which was acquired by Disney this week, as well as Electronic Arts’s Playfish and FarmVille creator Zynga. Checkins Coming to Google In further Google news, the company has indicated that it is working with developers to bring checkins to location-based applications via its Places API. Google Places is the new version of the company’s Local Business Center, designed to help local business owners gain an edge in search engine marketing. Facebook May Put Off IPO Until 2012 Three sources have informed Bloomberg that Facebook may postpone its initial public offering until 2012. “At some point along the path, I think it’ll make sense to have an IPO. But we’re not running the company to do that. We’re running the company to serve more people,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg told ABC’s Diane Sawyer recently. Spotify’s U.S. Launch Faces Further Delays Negotiations between free music streaming service Spotify and U.S. record labels are faring none-too-well; the company is reportedly “back to square one.” The startup is still aiming for a late 2010/early 2011 launch in the U.S. Further News Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says the company is hard at work making Windows 7 a great OS for tablets; Redbox is adding Blu-ray rentals to its kiosks [via Variety]; Samsung confirms it will the Galaxy S smartphone will get Froyo in September [via Engadget]; and Google dispelled rumors that it was fully blocked in China. Disclosure: Microsoft is a Mashable sponsor.


Series supported by HTC EVO 4G

 


This series is brought to you by HTC EVO 4G, America’s first 4G phone. Only from Sprint. The “First to Know” series keeps you in the know on what’s happening now in the world of social media and technology.

More About: facebook, facebook ipo, first to know series, geolocation, Google, google places, spotify

Fujitsu America, Inc.

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Sneaky New App Avoids Awkward Chats, Sends You Straight to Voicemail

This post is part of Mashable’s Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.

Name: slydial

Quick Pitch: slydial is a free voice messaging service which connects you directly to someone’s mobile voicemail.

Genius Idea: If you’ve ever dreaded making a phone call and anxiously wished for a voicemail greeting as you dialed, you know exactly why this app is a genius idea. It strips away the awkwardness of a voice-to-voice call while still letting you claim to have attempted direct communication.

How perfectly passive-aggressive! We can imagine this app going over well for:

  • Breakups,
  • Firings,
  • The-morning-after apologies,
  • Stalling on or avoiding a meetup,
  • Making excuses to a boss,
  • “Duty” calls to chatty friends and relatives,
  • “Just touching base” reminder/nagging calls,
  • 3 a.m. calls that don’t need to be wake-up calls, as well,
  • And ever so much more.

Essentially, the app “creates the illusion of communication” without making you actually have to listen to other people, play politics or hear someone else’s side of an argument. In theory, it works just as well for the incurable narcissist as for the cripplingly antisocial.

Before you protest, it’s true that slydial isn’t the Ghandi of applications. But it plays into a powerful part of the human psyche: Our desire to avoid conflict. The makers of slydial have paved the path of least resistance beautifully, and we can imagine that quite a few people will be traipsing down that path in the months to come.

To use slydial, which is free and audio-add supported, just dial 267-SLYDIAL (267-759-3425 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              267-759-3425      end_of_the_skype_highlighting) and enter the mobile number of the person you want to leave a voicemail. You can also try slydial’s mobile apps, which include offerings for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Mobile.

We gave slydial a try, and it worked just as promised; the other person’s phone didn’t so much as twitch while slydial connected me to the voicemail box in question.

What do you think of this app? It is something you’d use when you don’t have the personal fortitude or wherewithal to make voice-to-voice contact?

[img credit: djou]


Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark


BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Entrepreneurs can take advantage of the Azure Services platform for their website hosting and storage needs. Microsoft recently announced the “new CloudApp()” contest – use the Azure Services Platform for hosting your .NET or PHP app, and you could be the lucky winner of a USD 5000* (please see website for official rules and guidelines).”


Reviews: Android, PHP, SlydialMore About: App, Mobile 2.0, slydial, voicemail

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YouGrids: Youjoomla Free Joomla Template 2010

YouGrids Joomla Template

YouJoomla Proudly Presents YouGrids. First Joomla! Template Based on YjSimpleGrid Joomla! Template framework. Loaded with full set of YJSG features , 2 beautiful styles and unique layout options. YouGrids is free Joomla! template and it can be adapted to  any web concept.

Template Options

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* PSD files included
* Joomla 1.5 template
* CSS dropdown menu
* SMooth dropdown menu
* Dropline menu
* SmoothDropline menu
* Split menu
* 2 beautiful styles
* 51 module positions
* Native RTL Support
* Server side Compression
* Demo starter
* Free Joomla! Template
* IE6 png fix
* and more…

Demo: http://www.joomla1.5.youjoomla.info/yougrids/
Home: http://www.youjoomla.com/yougrids-free-joomla-template-yjsg-powered.html
Download: http://www.youjoomla.com/free-joomla-templates/yougrids-free-joomla-template.html

Joomlafan Box – designer and webmaster resources share-center

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CleanPress Free Premium WordPress Theme

CleanPress WordPress Theme

Cleanpress is the answer to all your blogging problems. It’s clean, it’s light, it’s well organized and boy, let me tell you: It looks great. But you know the old saying: “Don’t judge a theme by it’s cover”.

With Cleanpress, you can go deeper, and look under the ‘hood’, but before you do that, be sure to delete that old theme of yours because, let’s be honest, you won’t need it no more. It’s not just a theme, it’s a tool, a tool that not only gives a pleasant look to your blog, but it also integrates it with the latest social network websites.

Demo: http://dpxmag.com/cleanpress/

Download CleanPress Free Premium WordPress Theme
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Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

I’m sure each and everyone of us were pretty excited when we first got our DSLR. I mean, who’s not right. And the next thing most of us will do is – start abusing the shutter and snapping non-stop. That’s just how we learn.

preview Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers
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Photography is a beautiful form of art with no hard rules. It’s all about creativity and individual style. And that’s what makes it so interesting. There are lots of tips and tricks to be learnt, and certainly lots of experiences to be gain before one becomes an expert. If you are new to photography, here are five ways to create cool photos to impress your friends.

1. Long Shutter Photography

Long shutter photographs are always amazing. While playing with the shutter speed, you can come up with super amazing photographs beyond your expectations. And the specialty of long shutter photographs are that they present the world around you in a unique way like you’re never seen before. To get a feel of what exactly it is, have a look at the following examples.

examples

long shutter 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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long shutter 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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long shutter 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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long shutter 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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So, you got a rough idea on what exactly is long shutter photography. Now, how to take them?

Technique

To take amazing long shutter photographs, you have to first learn and completely understand what exactly Shutter Speed is. Shutter speed for a camera is for the time the light sensitive film is exposed to the light outside. Getting back to shutter speed, camera metering instruments measure them in a range of reciprocal of time. Eg: 1/30, 1/500, 1/1500 sec. etc.

These are the time for which your shutter will be open while taking a particular photograph. Higher the shutter speed, you’ll have to handle the camera well to avoid any jerk as a slight jerk in this setting can ruin your photograph. For this, use of a tripod is recommended. Some cameras have bulb mode that enables you to let your shutter open as long as you keep the button pressed.

2. custom bokeh shapes

According to Wikipedia, the definition of bokeh is:

“In photography, bokeh is the blur, or the aesthetic quality of the blur, in out-of-focus areas of an image, or “the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light”

Bokeh is a word derived from Japanese, which means “blur” or “haze”, or boke-aji, the “blur quality”. The Japanese term bokeh is also used in the sense of a mental haze or senility.

Without a doubt, bokeh is one of the most interesting and sort after thing in digital photography. And it’s indeed evident from the following photographs.

Examples (Bokeh)

bokeh 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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bokeh 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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bokeh 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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bokeh 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Technique

By default, bokeh shapes are only circular in shape (owing to the fact that the shape of your lens is circular). But can we also make custom bokeh shapes? Well, yes that’s possible and for that you need the following:

  1. Camera lens (preferbly large aperture),
  2. Cardboard sheet
  3. Some duct tape.

To start with, draw any shape which you want in the middle of the cardboard sheet and cut that portion out. Next, wrap the remaining cardboard sheet around your camera lens carefully and with little practice.

customized bokeh Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Start shooting something and you’ll noticed your bokeh will have the shape just like the one on the cardboard. Here are some beautiful custom bokeh to inspire you.

Examples (Custom Bokeh)

custom bokeh 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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custom bokeh 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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custom bokeh 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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custom bokeh 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Further Reading

3. High Dynamic Range (HDR) Photography

HDR stand for High Dynamic Range photography. Normally, even our natural vision is incapable of seeing all the dynamic ranges in any photographs. So, HDR is more of a post processing trick rather than a photography trick. Nevertheless, following photographs show what we’re talking about.

Examples

hdr 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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hdr 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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hdr 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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hdr 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Exiting, isn’t it? Watching these amazing HDR, you must be thinking would you be able to take such photographs ever? And the answer is, you’ll be able to do that in the next five minutes. But for that, you have to first understand the exposure bracketing language that your camera understands.

Technique

Most cameras understand the exposure of images in bracketing measures which normally range from (-2) to (+2) stop (both being the extreme ends of exposure respectively). In simpler terms, a photograph shot at (-2) exposure bracketing will be under-exposed and the one shot at (+2) exposure bracketing will be over exposed.

Ok. Now you have the idea what exactly does exposure bracketing means. Bring out your camera and click three shots of the same subject in three exposure brackets viz:

  • First shot at (-2) stops.
  • Second shot at (0) stops.
  • Third shot at (+2) stops.

As I already told you, HDR is more of a post processing trick than being a photography trick, you’ll need a software to merge and level the three photographs you just took. If you have Photoshop with you, it will work fine. If not, there is a special and dedicated software for HDR image processing and is called PhotoMatrix. You can just download the software and merge the above three photographs you took. A little bit of channel tuning and color correction, and you’ll have your first HDR photograph ready.

Further Reading

More HDR photos:

4. Burst Zoom Photography

Burst zoom is a very interesting trick in digital photography. Everyone knows what is a zoom (there are two of them, optical and digital) and any kind of zoom just does one thing, makes distance objects appear nearer to you so that you can catch more of the subject in focus than the surroundings. But burst zoom is a very interesting trick that may take quite some time to practice and master. To get an idea, check out the photos below.

Examples

burst zoom 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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burst zoom 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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burst zoom 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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burst zoom 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Technique

With these amazing examples, it is evident that not always a sharp and crystal clear image is required and sometimes adding a good amount of blur and burst makes the photograph stand out from the rest. Getting back to the burst zoom technique, to be able to take burst zoom photographs you have to follow the following steps:

  1. Set your camera to slow shutter speed and a wide aperture.
  2. Try to shoot in manual mode.
  3. Get ready for the action

Now, the execution part comes in. As you’ve already set your camera up in manual mode with slow shutter, you’ll get plenty of time to execute the burst zoom. To do that, as soon as you press the button to take photograph, zoom your lens quickly to the subject and get back. This should be done in a split second otherwise you won’t get the desired effect. If you’ve done everything right, you’ll be very happy to see the results.

5. High Speed Photography

Who doesn’t like action? But when it comes to capturing the action in your camera, you need to know certain tricks of trade or you’ll end up with only blurry and out of focus photographs. As a matter of fact, the high speed photography also requires a good amount of knowledge about shutter speed, camera aperture and ISO settings so that you are able to get the desired shots. Here are some examples.

Examples

high speed 1 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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high speed 2 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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high speed 3 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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high speed 4 Five Photography Tips for Amateur Photographers

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Technique

High speed photography can be categorized in different categories like:

But all these have one thing in common, the high shutter speed involved. As I’ve already explained you above what exactly shutter speed is, you’ll not face much trouble figuring this one out. To get started with high speed photography you just have to:

  1. Choose your action subject (or set the stage up if you’re going for macro high speed photography)
  2. Set your camera to a high shutter speed
  3. Set a higher ISO (not too high otherwise you’ll end up with grainy pics)

Well, that’s with the settings and now you’re good to go to capture the action. Just go out in the wild and capture everything that appears to be moving. After some amount of practice, you could be a high speed photography expert.

More high speed photography photos:

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Giveaway: 5 Copies of ClassiPress Premium Wordpress Themes

We’ve got some freebies for you! This week we are giving away 5 copies of ClassiPress premium Wordpress themes to Hongkiat readers, courtesy of Appthemes.

classipress Giveaway: 5 Copies of ClassiPress Premium Wordpress Themes

ClassiPress is a premium theme that turns the entire Wordpress blog into a classified site. It takes care of the technology so you can focus on the listings ans sales. If you are looking to create a classified website, this is something you probably don’t want to miss.

Here are some examples created with ClassiPress, or check out the entire collection at AppThemes.

We are giving away 3 Personal Editions, 1 Professional Edition and 1 Ultimate edition of ClassiPress – 5 copies in total. Click here to find out the differences of each edition.

How to win

If you are interested in winning yourself a copy, drop a comment below. It’s that simple. Contest will start today, ends 2nd August 2010. Good luck.

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60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Attractive, visually appealing cover is probably one of the foremost step for a PS3 game company to persuade gamer for another good sale. Thus, the company must be putting a lot of effort in working their designers to create the most attractive and promising cover for their product.

preview 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

That’s why we grab a chance of a post to showcase 63 purely attractive PS3 game covers for you to get inspired, and who knows, you might grab yourself a copy!

Aliens vs Predator

Nicely designed game cover with appealing color scheme and absolutely different typefaces to distinguish 2 unique species.

Aliens vs Predator 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Alone in the Dark

Character portrait is very nice that it evokes you a will to discover the story inside the game.

Alone in the Dark 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Alpha Protocol

A futuristic design with awesome graphic and typography effects that make this game cover stand out from others.

Alpha Protocol 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Armored Core for Answer

Probably one of the most persuading cover in the Armored Core series that expects you to have the coolest 3D machinery combat experience.

Armored Core for Answer 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Assassin’s Creed II

Well designed mysterious assassin, that’s all enough for you to pick the game up and check out its back cover for more info.

Assassins Creed II 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Batman series did exceptionally well to attract customer on its design for movie poster, so is its game cover.

Batman Arkham Asylum 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Battlefield: Bad Company 2

Besides the attractive design, the cover designer placed nickname above each character to effectively indicate that the game would be more fun with its multiplayer mode.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

BioShock

Named ‘Big Daddy’ (the big machinelike creature in the cover), this genetically enhanced human has done a really good job in attracting the gamer.

BioShock 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

BioShock 2

The sequel of the series that showcases another type of eye cathy ‘Big Daddy’.

BioShock 2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Borderlands

Very creative use of splatter effect, the overall design also shows how annoying would the game be.

Borderlands 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Dante’s Inferno

Nicely blended design that catches your eyes with horrible elements.

Dantes Inferno 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Darksiders

Strong color scheme, strong house and strong rider, there’s no reason for this game cover to be less attractive.

Darksiders 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Dead to Rights: Retribution

Good combination of splatter and grunge effect that expresses violent gameplay, appealing to fierce gamer.

Dead to Rights Retribution 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

DiRT

Grunge and splatter effect were used to increase overall messiness that grabs a lot of attention.

DiRT 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

DiRT 2

Sequel of the series, this cover applied more ‘dirty’ elements on the design to make itself looks far more different from other, mostly neat designs.

DiRT 2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Eat Lead

Massive use of gun elements makes the cover really appealing to wargamer, I thought it’s the sequel for the return of Serious Sam before.

Eat Lead 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Fairytale Fights

I’ve never seen Fairytale as this bloody before…and this cover really tempts me to check out what’s going on in the game.

Fairytale Fights 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Fallout 3

Good use of old photo effects which suits this game’s conspiracal topic, looks tasty for wargamer.

Fallout 3 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Final Fantasy XIII

Instead of using beautiful background design, Square Enix made Final Fantasy XIII’s cover to be so minimal that gamer can see how impressive the rendered game character is.

Final Fantasy XIII 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Second version of cover that shows you how detail the character rendering that you can expect from the actual game.

Final Fantasy XIII ver2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Front Mission Evolved

Another Square Enix’s cover design that attracts you with its cool in-game machinery model.

Front Mission Evolved 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

God of War 3

Probably one of the most eye cathy cover design, but it might be tricky for someone who’s new to the series to know that it’s the 3rd installation of the series.

God of War 3 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Gran Turismo 5: Prologue

Elegant cover design makes this series of Gran Turismo looks really gorgeous, worth a buy.

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Guitar Hero: World Tour

Good job on the character design to show how crazy would the game be, rocker!

Guitar Hero World Tour 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Heavy Rain

Mix of emotional character and mysterious origami makes the cover itself nice enough for gamer to check out its content.

Heavy Rain 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

inFamous

Infamous people with special ability doing extraordinary things are always a heating topic for gamer.

inFamous 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Killzone 2

Wargamer never resisted to check out this kind of cover with fierce game title and character illustrated.

Killzone 2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

LittleBigPlanet

You can’t hardly ignore to stare on this cover with one of the cutest illustrated creature in this planet!

LittleBigPlanet ver2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Lost Planet 2

Impressively designed logo, characters and monster get this cover a lot of impression.

Lost Planet 2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

MAG

Guns, missiles, war scenes, that’re all what you need to attract wargamer.

MAG 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor focuses solely on portraying 1 character with monochrome color scheme, which acutally makes it looks unique from other war related titles.

Medal of Honor 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

ModNation Racers

Another game with cute and charming characters, greatest hit for kids and girls.

ModNation Racers 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Naughty Bear

You must be wondering what makes this extremely cute bear so naughty!

Naughty Bear 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Another version of cover that looks bloody, yikes.

Naughty Bear ver2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Need for Speed: Prostreet

Prostreet series’ car has always done well on grabbing gamer’s attention in its every platform’s cover.

Need for Speed Prostreet 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Nier

A very realistic cover design that features promising graphics from the game.

Nier 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Prototype

Despite the mutated arm, covered face is really the effective yet overused element to attract gamer.

Prototype 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Quantum Theory

Quantum Theory looks fantastic to play with its beautifully crafted character and weapon.

Quantum Theory 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Red Dead Redemption

A game cover presented in totally different way of illustration which suits American gamer’s taste very much.

Red Dead Redemption 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Reflex: MX vs ATV

Nice application of modern design skill on this game’s cover, which makes it absolutely different with common motocar racing game’s cover design.

Reflex MX vs ATV 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Resident Evil 5

Resident Evil series never failed to create terrible atmosphere from its cover design.

Resident Evil 5 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition

Gold edition’s cover which features 2 of the most welcomed character in the series, Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine.

Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Resistance: Fall of Man

The unique concept of putting a mutated human skull in the cover makes it uncommonly attractive.

Resistance Fall of Man 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Ridge Racer 7

Another gorgeous cover design for a car game that focuses more on racing car.

Ridge Racer 7 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel

The cover highlighted the battle between the holy being and evil creature, which is the kind of story that never failed to entertain gamer.

Sacred 2 Fallen Angel 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

SAW

This terrible mask can probably catches your attention…and a cold breath.

SAW 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Silent Hill: Home Coming

Absolutely the most horrible-looking cover among all PS3 games that summarizes the game would deliver you horror, horror and more horror.

Silent Hill Home Coming 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Skate 3

An inspiring and cool cover design for skating title which always want you to act cool in the game.

Skate 3 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Star Ocean: The Last Hope

Very beautiful and promising characters for a fantastic role playing game.

Star Ocean The Last Hope 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Tekken 6

This sequel’s cover shows that the character is far more realistic than its prequels.

Tekken 6 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

The Club

Very nice use of splatter effect that converts common looking faces into very different pieces.

The Club 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

TimeShift

Visually impressive game title and character.

TimeShift 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Trinity Universe

All charming characters from 3 titles gather in 1 game with extra features, looks like a must have collection for those series’ fans.

Trinity Universe 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune

Remarkable design of character and cover that promises you amazing storyline and gameplay.

Uncharted Drakes Fortune 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Sequel of the series which its cover design looks as irritating as the prequel.

Uncharted 2 Among Thieves 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Second version of the cover which features another irritating game scene.

Uncharted 2 Among Thieves ver2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Unreal Tournament III

Deadliest Unreal engine hardly disappoint gamer.

Unreal Tournament III 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Viking: Battle for Asgard

Nicely portrayed character in a rare setting, looks nice to check it out.

Viking Battle for Asgard 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Wanted: Weapons of Fate

Just look like it would be another thrilling adventure with guns and bullets.

Wanted Weapons of Fate 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

WET

Girl is the rare appearance as a main character in shooting game, so this is probably the outstanding piece from shooting titles.

WET 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

White Knight Chronicles

I would say it’s one of the most beautiful white knight I’ve ever seen, and it’s really good to put it in the game cover for aggresive attraction.

White Knight Chronicles 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Another version of cover that showcases the better portrait of the white knight.

White Knight Chronicles ver2 60+ Attractive PS3 Game Covers

Reflection

So you arrived to the end of this showcase, did you get your favorite cover? Or do you have a nice PS3 game cover to share with us?

Besides, what do you think a game cover should get to attract gamer efficiently? We’re exciting to hear from your sharing!

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Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

If you are born around the 80’s, chances are this video game had been your favorite pass time, or maybe it still is. It’s been 23 years since world-renowned video game Street Fighter was released by Capcom. The series silently set the standards in fighting games genre and eventually became one of the highly successful franchise that continues to this day. Not many video game franchises have both the deep history and significance of Street Fighter today.

preview Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

With so many interesting characters SF have, we picked those very famous ones. These Illustrations below are created by artists, professionals and fans around the world. You’ll see artworks portraying the Street Fighter cast in a wide array of styles and designs, from powerful to passive, sexy to silly, extremely detailed to sketchy. Enjoy!

Ryu

Born in Japan, Ryu is one of the most beloved and favorite character in the SF series. He typically dressed in a traditional white gi, red fingerless gloves, a black belt and a red headband. Ryu is also famous for creating the memorable scar on Sagat’s chest, resulting from an advanced version of Shouryuuken during the first World Warrior tournament.

RYU: The Rising Dragon (via Mgnz)
RYU The Rising Dragon by MgnZ Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Marvel VS Capcom 2: Ryu (via Udoncrew)
Marvel VS Capcom 2 Ryu artwork by udoncrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Evil Ryu (via Fightersgeneration.com)
Evil Ryu streetfighter artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Ryu vs Sagat (via Braders1986)
Ryu vs Sagat street fighter artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Ken

Ken, the 2nd most popular character in the series also wears a traditional gi in red color. Like Ryu, Ken’s objective is to test his skills against many different fighters and make every effort become the best.

SF4 Ken (via SFgalleries)
Street fighter Ken artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Ken vs Vega (via O-beto-O)
Ken vs Vega streetfighter by o Beto o Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Chun Li

Chun Li is the first female playable character to show in a 1-on-1 fighting game. While not as physically powerful as the other characters, she was by far the quickest. She usually dressed in a blue qipao, a traditional Chinese dress. Her hair is styled-up in “horns” adorned with brocades and ribbons.

Chunli Style (via Artgerm)
Chunli Style streetfighter artwork by artgem Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Chun Li (via Mike Thompson)
Chun Li Miket Artworks Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Chun Li (via Ddd111)
Chun Li  by ddd111 Artworks Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Chun-Li (via Erina)
Chunli artwork by erina Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Guile

Guile is a Major in the United States Air Force. Guile leaves his family and country to join the World Warrior tournament to take revenge on the death of his beloved friend Charlie, who was killed by M. Bison.

Guile Rendition (via Michael Ryan Kime)
Guile Rendition by Michael Ryan Kime Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Guile Wall (via M16)
Guile Wallpaper by M16 Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Tribute 1 (via Mgnz)
Street Fighter Tribute 1 artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Blanka

Blanka’s beastly look is a product of Shadoloo genetic experimentation. Blanka is also famous for his shocking orange hair. He was trapped in the Brazilian jungles as a young child and was raised by animals.

Wild Blanka (via Castello)
Wild Blanka SF artwork by CASTELLO Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Dhalsim

Dhalsim, who is a pacifist, was born in Kerala, India. This yoga master is known for his bald head painted with red stripes, the string of skulls around his neck.

Character Select- Dhalsim (via Udoncrew)
Character Select  Dhalsim by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Dhalsim vs Necro (via DXS Infinite)
dhalsim vs  necro by DXSinfinite Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Dhalsim Wall (via Manywallpapers)
Dhalsim Wall streetfighter Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Dhalsim: Yoga Blowfish (via Zatransis)
Dhalsim  Yoga Blowfish by Zatransis Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

E-Honda

E. Honda is a sumo wrestler who typically seen a blue mawashi with red paint art in his face. Although he never earned the highest rank in sumo (Yokozuna), he got the second highest (Ozeki).

Little Honda (via Dennisbell)
Little Honda by Dennisbell Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

E Honda C2 (via Fightersgeneration)
EHonda C2 Streetfighter art Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

E Honda C2 (via Creativeuncut)
EHonda Streetfighter character Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Sagat

Sagat is frighteningly tall, a natural gift he uses to his advantage with his long-reaching assaults. His natural size earned him to become a powerful and ferocious fighter. He is totally bald and wear’s an eyepatch to cover his damaged eye. This giant has hands and feet larger than most of his opponents.

Sagat SF (via Umagafan84)
Sagat SF artwork Umagafan84 Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Cammy

Cammy White or Cammy wore a green thong leotard and was a member of a British special forces team known as Delta Red.

Sexy Cammy (via Markovah)
STREET FIGHTER Cammy by Markovah Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Yummy Cammy (via Artgerm)
Yummy Cammy SF art by artgerm Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Cammy (via Omar-dogan)
Cammy by Omar Dogan Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Zangief

Zangief is a national hero in Russian with a nickname, “Red Cyclone” He became acquainted with Gorbachev towards the end of Alpha 2. After meeting Gorbachev, Zangief is sent to train in the Siberian wastes, wrestling bears.

Zan Da Maaan (via Mon3m)
Zangief SF Zan Da Maaan update by Mon3m Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Zangief vs Blanka (via Kuroitora)
Zangief vs Blanka Spinning Piledriver Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Zangief Street Fighter Fan art (via Giaci78)
Zangief Street Fighter Fan art by giaci78 Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Zangief SF (via Leeyiankun)
Zangief leeyiankun Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Zangief fan art (via Jy-kim)
Zangief fan art by Jy kim Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Vega

Vega is an interesting character, not only for his fascination with beauty, but also for his unique fighting style using a claw he wields. He’s one of the few SF characters to continuously carry a weapon. He learned bull fighting and ninjutsu, and became a cage fighter.

Vega – Detalles (via Varges)
Vega   Detalles by Varges Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

PF Vega (via Udon Crew)
PF Vega Streetfighter by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Vega vs Cammy (via Jujika)
Vega vs Cammy streetfighter artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Balrog

Balrog is an African American boxer who was banned from boxing for permanently injuring his opponents and accidentally killing one. Balrog join the Shadaloo criminal organization, and worked his way up from the bottom, eventually becoming M. Bison’s close disciple.

Balrog (via Syclown)
Balrog Zbrush streetfighter CG by Syclown Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

M. Bison

M. Bison is usually dressed in a red military uniform, large silver shoulder plates, and a grey cape. Master Bison’s ambition is to gain power over the world’s governments through his secret crime syndicate, Shadaloo.

M. Bison Zbrush (via Rv_el)
Bison in zbrush rendered artwork SF Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Sakura

Sakura is a Japanese schoolgirl who has a strong interest on Ryu. She has managed to copy and learn some of Ryu’s techniques. This cute student usually fights in her school’s uniform, a short-skirted sailor fuku.

Sakura Sunshine (via Artgerm)
Sakura Sunshine by Artgerm Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Cute Sakura (via Markovah)
Streetfighter Sakura artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

PF Sakura (via Udon Crew)
PF Sakura by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

SF Legends Sakura Issue 1B (via Udon Crew)
SF Legends Sakura Issue 1B by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Akuma

Akuma’s fighting style integrates the trademark moves of Ryu and Ken. He is famous for his death technique called, Shun Goku Satsu or “The Raging Demon”. Akuma has red hair, wears a black gi, and wears prayer beads around his neck.

Evil Akuma (via Nefar007)
evil akuma by nefar007 Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Akuma Shungokusatsu (via Hekoo)
Akuma Shungokusatsu by Hekoo Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Akuma Sign (via Comicvine)
Akuma Sign SF artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Akuma vs Dan (via Omar-dogan)
Art vs Dan Capcom Alt Cover by Omar Dogan Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

More Street Fighter Artworks

Street Fighter cover (via Diablo2003)
Street Fighter cover 3 artwork Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter II 2 Cover (via Udoncrew)
Street Fighter II 2 Cover by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter (via Benlo)
Street Fighter artwork by Benlo Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Tribute Cover (via Udoncrew)
Street Fighter Tribute Cover by UdonCrew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

SF Alvinlee Tribute (via Fiboy)
SF alvinlee tribut by fiboy Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Art Book (via Imaginism)
Street Fighter Art Book by imaginism Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Tribute Book (via Imaginism)
Street Fighter Tribute Book by imaginism Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Cover 2 (via Udon Crew)
Street Fighter Cover 2 artwork Udon Crew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter no.3 COVER (via Alvin Lee)
Street Fighter no 3 COVER by alvin lee Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Chibi Street Fighter Group (via Shauno)
Chibi Street Fighter Group by Shauno Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

Street Fighter Street Jam (via Udon Crew)
Street Fighter Street Jam artwork by Udon Crew Tribute to Street Fighter: 55 Beautiful Artworks

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Ballmer on Tablets: We’re Coming Full Guns

Apple has sold over 3.3 million iPads so far, but Microsoft is still waiting for those Windows-based tablets to start capturing the hearts and minds of users. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, however, is confident the company has a bright future in this space.

Speaking to analysts on Thursday, Ballmer said Microsoft is hard at work to make Windows 7 a great OS for tablets. “We have got to make things happen. We’re in the process of doing that as we speak. We’re working with our hardware partners. We’re tuning Windows 7,” he said.

Ballmer also recognized the success of Apple’s iPad, saying the company has “sold certainly more than I’d like them to have sold.” However, at a later Q&A session he took a jab at one of iPad’s drawbacks. “When you get your Windows 7 machine, it will print. Some people actually like to print every now and then,” he said.

Ballmer is right: printing on iPad is a problem. But Microsoft might encounter far more problems adapting Windows 7 for tablets. Apple’s iOS was designed for a touch screen device from grounds up, while Windows 7 was primarily created with a regular keyboard-and-mouse-equipped PC in mind. And while Windows 7 was a clear win compared to the disaster that was Vista, Microsoft’s track record of late – remember Kin? – tells us that a great Windows 7 tablet, while not an impossibility, might not be right around the corner just yet.

[via CNET]


Reviews: Windows

More About: microsoft, Steve Ballmer, tablets, Windows

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Facebook May Put Off IPO Until 2012 [REPORT]

mark zuckerberg imageFacebook may postpone its initial public offering to 2012, Bloomberg has learned from three sources familiar with the matter.

This comes as no surprise as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has always been very careful on the subject. “At some point along the path, I think it’ll make sense to have an IPO. But we’re not running the company to do that. We’re running the company to serve more people,” he said recently.

Facebook’s IPO has been one of the burning topics in business circles in the last couple of years. With the company’s revenue (and valuation) rising swiftly, Facebook (Facebook) is poised to become the next Google (Google), whose initial public offering in 2004 was wildly successful, with the company increasing its market capitalization fivefold over the coming years.

Despite the pressure to go public, Facebook’s IPO seems to be pushed further into the future every year. The wait, however, will give 26-year old Zuckerberg more time to gain more users, sort out the privacy issues that have been plaguing Facebook and, most importantly, boost sales and increase earnings.

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