четверг, 23 мая 2013 г.

Games

Games

The Man Who Laughs: grotesque Victor Hugo potboiler was the basis for The Joker

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:54 AM PDT


The Man who Laughs is a graphic novel adaptation of a 1869 Victor Hugo novel that is chiefly remembered for inspiring a 1928 film whose poster-art, in turn, inspired the character of the Joker.

As legions of disappointed Batman fans have discovered, the Victor Hugo novel is just not very good. It's one of Hugo's later works, written from exile in the Channel Islands, and it's a meandering political treatise grafted onto a novel. But there is a novel in there, buried amongst the self-indulgence and sloppiness, and it's this that author David Hine and illustrator Mark Stafford have teased out to make an absolutely stunning and grotesque new work.


The titular Man of Laughs is Gwynplaine, a horribly deformed boy who rescues a blind baby from her frozen mother's breast and then rescued by a traveling doctor who takes them both in and turns them into performers. They tour the countryside, and Gwynplaine and his blind adopted sister Dea fall in love, even as their mountebank father, Ursus, teaches them about the injustices of the English monarchy and shows them the relationship between the dire poverty around them and the fatted lords and ladies in London.

Gwynplaine's destiny becomes further entangled with the English aristocracy when he is discovered to be a long-lost nobleman himself, and is inducted into the House of Lords, where he makes impassioned, revolutionary speeches that fall on deaf ears -- and is forced to confront that all the riches he's gained have cost him his family and his love.

This adaptation is remarkably streamlined and razor-sharp, flensed of Hugo's excess by Hine's pen; the accompanying grotesque illustrations by Stafford hit the perfect of horror and sorrow. The Man who Laughs is out in the UK now, from the great press Self Made Hero, and will be out in the USA on Oct 1.

The Man who Laughs

    

Skype on Xbox One detailed

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:19 AM PDT

The Xbox One console will incorporate Skype video calling; service will utilise Kinect voice and camera.

 

Gamers who wish to stay in touch via Skype will be able to do so on the Xbox One, Microsoft has revealed in an entry on the Xbox blog. The post details the integration of Skype, a voice over IP service, into the Xbox One console.

It was confirmed during the Xbox One presentation that the console will support Skype video calling. The feature utilises Kinect voice and gesture controls to execute on-screen actions.

According to the blog post, the new Kinect camera will be able to send one-to-one Skype video calls in 1080p, so long as an adequate internet connection is provided. The camera also sports a "wide-angle field of view".

The service will be incorporated into the Xbox One console, allowing gamers to initiate calls using voice commands. The Kinect microphone will also take into account background noise generated from the television, and block it out.

Like video and music, Skype is supported by the Snap feature, which embeds the video call alongside other Xbox One activities. Users will be able to activate the feature with the voice command, "Xbox Snap Skype".

Skype was developed by Skype Technologies, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2011.

To keep up with the latest news on Microsoft's next-gen console, check GameSpot's Xbox One hub.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"Skype on Xbox One detailed" was posted by Zorine Te on Thu, 23 May 2013 00:19:38 -0700

Xbox One Reveal Day: Through The Lens of GameSpot.

Posted: 22 May 2013 11:51 PM PDT

See what the essence of the day was like when our many 1080p RGB cameras showed up to bring you the new Kinect and Xbox One.

 

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"Xbox One Reveal Day: Through The Lens of GameSpot." was posted by Andy Bauman on Wed, 22 May 2013 23:51:41 -0700

Indie developers cannot self-publish games on Xbox One

Posted: 22 May 2013 11:38 PM PDT

Developers must get publishing deal from either Microsoft Game Studios or a third-party partner.

 

Independent developers who wish to publish their games on the Xbox One will not be allowed to do so on their own, according to a Shacknews report.

Developers will need to obtain a publishing deal from either Microsoft Game Studios or a third-party partner such as EA. Games published on Xbox Live Indie Games will not be affected by the new policy.

General manager of Redmond Game Studios and Platforms, Matt Booty, said that Microsoft intends to stay the course with the way it operates currently. "As of right now, yes. We intend to continue to court developers in the ways that we have," he said.

Both Sony and Nintendo have said that they will allow developers to publish their own titles on the PlayStation Network and Nintendo Network, respectively.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"Indie developers cannot self-publish games on Xbox One" was posted by Jonathan Toyad on Wed, 22 May 2013 23:38:12 -0700

Call of Duty: Ghosts will come to PlayStation 4

Posted: 22 May 2013 09:35 PM PDT

Activision studio confirms new instalment in shooter series coming to PS4; DLC to launch first on Xbox One.

 

PlayStation Call of Duty fans can rest easy, with confirmation that upcoming first-person shooter, Call of Duty: Ghosts will be coming to the PlayStation 4.

Despite the official announcement for the game coming months after the unveiling of the PlayStation 4 hardware, Activision listed only unspecified next-generation consoles as being in development.

Fielding a question from a fan on Twitter, the official Infinity Ward account responded, "we'll be releasing #CODGhosts on both platforms #PS3 #PS4".

The news should come as little surprise, given that previous Call of Duty games have launched simultaneously on both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, though fan confusion is understandable, with neither Amazon nor GameStop currently listing a PS4 version of the game. As part of its Xbox One announcement held earlier this week, Microsoft revealed that it had once again secured timed exclusivity on downloadable content for Call of Duty: Ghosts.

The latest game in the hit shooter series is being billed as having a more emotional storyline, is being built on a new game engine, and will be written by Traffic and Syriana author Stephen Gaghan. The game is set to release globally on November 5 this year on the PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"Call of Duty: Ghosts will come to PlayStation 4" was posted by Dan Chiappini on Wed, 22 May 2013 21:35:28 -0700

Dupin Lite 1.2.4 - Find iTunes duplicates and purge them.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:49 AM PDT



Dupin Lite finds duplicate iTunes tracks and purges them. With Dupin Lite, users get Dupin's core features in a lite-sized package.

Dupin Lite has the same powerful Get Dupes-Filter-and-Purge features as the original Dupin but with fewer power-user features. If you aren't interested in managing duplicate tracks as much as just identifying and eliminating them, then Dupin Lite may be right for you.

You'll quickly and easily be able to identify duplicate tracks according to crtieria you select. Then use Dupin Lite's flexible filtering controls to automatically decide which tracks to keep and which to remove and Trash.

Version 1.2.4:

  • Fixes issue with resetting display of alerts.
  • Updates help documentation with iTunes Match information.


  • OS X 10.6.6 or later



More information

Sip 1.2.5 - Simple color picker for developers.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:43 AM PDT



Sip is the refreshingly simple color picker for developers that instantly samples and encodes any color on your screen. Just one quick click to savor the flavor and you're set! See what's on special with Sip below.

Color coding goes down easy with Sip. Choose the color model you're thirsty for, swig a pixel from anywhere on the screen, then hit paste to pour the color's code into your code editor. Drink up! Less time hunting for hex codes is definitely good for your health.

What'll It Be?
Order Sip just the way you like it -- customize app and color options with a fine selection of user preferences.

  • Select the color format you want to use. Choose from: CSS Hex, CSS3 HSL, CSS3 RGB, Calibrated NSColor for HSB, Calibrated NSColor for RGB, Device NSColor for CMYK, Device NSColor for HSB, Device NSColor for RGB, UIColor HSB, UIColorRGB, CGColor Generic RGB, and CGColor Generic CMYK.
  • Set the number of colors to keep in your history.
  • Toggle "All Caps" CSS color formatting.
  • Toggle prefix and suffixes on floating formats.
  • Constantly guzzling colors? Set Sip to launch at log-in.
To our fellow developers: may you and Sip enjoy many days of happy coding together.

Version 1.2.5:
  • Fix minor bugs


  • OS X 10.7 or later



More information

Noatikl 2.2.18 - Generative MIDI music engine.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:39 AM PDT



Noatikl is a powerful, easy-to-use generative music tool that helps you come up with new musical ideas - and your own generative music.

It uses techniques developed over the last 17 years through our work on the award-winning Koan generative music system, techniques now used in the all-new and superior "Noatikl".

Features:

  • Generate new musical ideas
  • Break composer's block
  • Augment an existing musical work
  • Create ambient sound tracks
  • Experiment with generative music systems
  • Noodle with music sculptures
  • Use in generative music installations
  • Generatively change synth, FX, and sampler settings
  • Build your own hyperinstrument
  • Get creative with scripting
  • Simply have fun creating music!
Noatikl is a generative (MIDI) music engine. Using various algorithms and rules it creates musical information in the form of MIDI notes, and can also generate and send MIDI controller information to generatively control settings of your favourite synths, FX units, and samplers.

Version 2.2.18:
  • Fixed intermittent issue with hanging notes when playing through external MIDI devices.
  • Now requires OS X 10.7 or later.


  • OS X 10.7 or later



More information

DeltaCad 8.0.3 - Easy-to-learn computer-aided design.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:32 AM PDT



DeltaCad is a powerful, easy-to-learn CAD (computer-aided design) program designed to meet all of your CAD needs. It can produce accurately scaled architectural or mechanical drawings, or just pretty pictures to paste into your favorite word processor. DeltaCad is more than just a paint program, because you can edit, scale, move, rotate, copy, etc., individual objects, not just paint pixels. DeltaCad allows you to zoom in to draw fine details or zoom out to see the whole drawing.

DeltaCad can be extended by writing your own custom macros in the AppleScript programming language. You can use macros to automatically create objects, or to read in data which you have drawn.

DeltaCad can be used for drafting, house plans, decks, landscape design, newsletters, brochures, flyers, graphs and charts, presentations, instructions, office or furniture layouts, technical illustrations, business cards, forms, signs, labels, organization charts, flow charts, home or school projects, maps, schematics, pretty pictures, etc.

DeltaCad includes the following features:

  • Simplified user interface makes it easy to learn and use.
  • On-screen instructions help guide the user.
  • Draws accurately scaled pictures with absolute precision.
  • Draws points, lines, circles, ellipses, arcs, splines, text, curved text, spline text, dimensions, squares, rectangles, triangles, or any misc. shape (filled or empty).
  • Reads and writes .DWG, .DXF, and .DXB files for compatibility with other CAD programs.
  • Pastes pictures into your favorite word processor.
  • Create your own symbols.
  • Calculate length and area.
  • Contains a full-featured AppleScript macro programming language.
  • Creates solid, hidden, center, phantom, cutting, break, stitch, arrow, or double arrow lines, or many different cross-hatch patterns.
  • Easily zoom in and out and move to any part of the drawing.
  • Automatic object snapping makes it easy to create drawings exactly to scale.
  • Edit, move, copy, mirror, rotate, scale, change color, change line type, change cross-hatch pattern, change line weight of any object.
  • Undo or redo the last 50 operations.
  • Edits any two lines to create a corner, radius, or chamfer.
  • Draws on up to 256 layers.
  • Comes complete with many sample drawings and symbol libraries.
  • Supports metric or English units in decimal or fractions.
  • True 64-bit program for improved performance.
  • Print preview shows what the print will look like.
  • Rubber banding helps show how objects will look as they are being drawn.
  • Objects may be grouped into a single object to save memory, and simplify the drawing. Groups may be easily edited, ungrouped, or copied to other parts of the drawing.
  • Create bill-of-materials from grouped objects.



Version 8.0.3:
  • The internal precision for x/y drawing coordinates has been increased to an almost unlimited size. You are no longer limited to +/- 100000.0000.
  • Unicode text is now supported, so you can enter virtually any character in any language.
  • Color has been increased to 24 bit. You can now enter almost any color.
  • Units have been added to drawing scale to make it very easy to draw in any units (inches, feet, yards, miles, millimeters, centimeters, meters, kilometers, etc.). You can change the units of a drawing, without having to re-draw anything.
  • You can now adjust the brightness and color saturation of imported images, or make them Black and White. This makes it easy to have a light colored background image.
  • A misc button has been added to the Select toolbar tab with the following new functions:
    • Change precision of selected dimensions.
    • Move selected objects from the select base point to the origin.
    • Move selected objects to bottom of Z-order.
    • Move selected objects to top of Z-order.
    • Ungroup all groups.
    • Ungroup selected groups.
  • A "Find Drawing" button has been added to the View toolbar tab to help find the drawing if you have accidentally zoomed out too far, and you can't find the drawing.
  • If the drawing units (inches, millimeters, etc.) are changed, dimension text will automatically be re-calculated.
  • Added an option for a leading zero on dimensions, so .05 would be displayed as 0.05.
  • If you set a Selected objects base point, it is now visible on the drawing.
  • You can now change the color, size and shape of the snap mode indicator.
  • There is an option for an isometric grid.
  • Drawing forms for metric drawings have been added (A0, A1, A2, A3, A4_P, A4_L, A5, A6).
  • Several more macro examples have been added.
  • Newer .dxf and .dwg file formats are supported.
  • Numerous misc. small improvements.
  • Fixed a problem that could occur when deleting a print region.


  • OS X 10.6 or later



More information

LiveQuartz 2.1.1 - Simple image editor.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:21 AM PDT



LiveQuartz is simple and powerful photo editor for the Mac. It is based on non-destructive layers and filters. The layers are at the left and the filters are at the right of the window.

To edit a photo, just drag it into the window (or layers list) and it will be added as a new layer. LiveQuartz handles multi-touch trackpads. You can watch a screencast of LiveQuartz in help menu or with this link: http://www.rhapsoft.com/?menu=livequartz_video

The software is localized in 11 languages : English, Traditional Chinese, Simplifed Chinese, Danish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Russian, and Spanish.

Version 2.1.1:

  • Fixes drag-and-drop image on layers bug
  • Fix a rare crash when opening native files


  • OS X 10.7.5 or later



More information

IJMS, Vol. 14, Pages 10683-10693: RANK/RANK-L/OPG in Patients with Bone Metastases Treated with Anticancer Agents and Zoledronic Acid: A Prospective Study

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:00 AM PDT

Patients with solid cancer frequently develop bone metastases (BM). Zoledronic acid (Zometa®, ZA), routinely used to treat patients with BM, acts on osteoclasts and also has antitumor properties. We aimed to assess the effect of ZA over time in novel bone turnover markers (RANK/receptor activator of nuclear factor-k B ligand (RANK-L)/ Osteoprotegerin (OPG)) and to correlate these with serum N-terminal telopeptide (NTX). The study prospectively evaluated levels of RANK, RANK-L and OPG transcripts by real-time PCR and NTX expression by ELISA in the peripheral blood of 49 consecutive patients with advanced breast, lung or prostate cancer. All patients received the standard ZA schedule and were monitored for 12 months. Median baseline values of RANK, RANK-L and OPG were 78.28 (range 7.34–620.64), 319.06 (21.42–1884.41) and 1.52 (0.10–58.02), respectively. At 12 months, the median RANK-L value had decreased by 22% with respect to the baseline, whereas median OPG levels had increased by about 96%. Consequently, the RANK-L/OPG ratio decreased by 56% from the baseline. Median serum NTX levels decreased over the 12-month period, reaching statistical significance (p < 0.0001). Our results would seem to indicate that ZA modulates RANK, RANK-L and OPG expression, thus decreasing osteoclast activity.

Uni Sudoku 3.0.1 - Sudoku game with unlimited puzzles.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:15 AM PDT



Uni Sudoku combines the best aspects of the pencil and paper puzzle with all the advantages of playing on your computer.

  • Unlimited puzzle generation
  • No messy handwriting!
  • Full Undo/Redo support, no more erasing!
An intuitive interface lets you make "pencil marks" and fill in guesses while staying in the flow of the game. Enjoy five levels of puzzle difficulty or enter your favorite puzzles from the newspaper, books and the Internet directly into Uni Sudoku.



Version 3.0.1:
  • Changed minimum system requirements to OS X 10.7.
  • Fixed bug when closing unfinished puzzle and auto-pause option enabled.


  • OS X 10.7 or later



More information

Icon Slate 3.4 - Easily compose, import, or export icons in multiple formats.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:08 AM PDT



Icon Slate lets you easily compose, import or export icons in many formats: Apple ICNS, Microsoft ICO, CandyBar iContainer, image (PNG or TIFF).
  • Manage multiple icons in one project.
  • Batch import and export .ICNS (512x512 OS X 10.5 Leopard), .ICO (Windows Vista 256x256), .PNG, .TIFF, .iContainer files
  • Compose your icon by simply dropping one or multiple images.
  • Create icon quickly with compose mode (Copy to empty or filled sizes).
  • Adjust the background color to check the rendering of your creation in different contexts: brightness mode, custom color, transparent background.
  • Use created ICNS files directly in Finder's inspector.
  • Built in dock preview.
  • QuickLook thumbnails and previews in Finder.


Version 3.4:
  • Automator convert action
  • Services to convert images and create project from Finder (activate in Preferences > Keyboard > Services)


  • OS X 10.7 or later



More information

Scida 1.2 - Organize your e-books and manage your Kindle.

Posted: 23 May 2013 02:03 AM PDT



Scida is an e-book library management app for Mac that helps you organize your e-book collections and manage your Kindle. Books cannot only be copied between your computer and Kindle but Scida also provides usage statistics about your Kindle, and you can edit your Kindle's collections for certain devices (Kindle Keyboard, Kindle 4 and Kindle black).

Features:

  • You can import your e-books and e-book folders to your Scida library
  • Collections can be created within Scida library to organize your e-books
  • Scida auto-detects if your Kindle is connected and you can browse its content
  • You can import books from your Kindle to your local library
  • You can send books from your local library to your Kindle
  • Usage information is available about your Kindle
  • If you have a Kindle Keyboard, Kindle 4 and Kindle black, you can create, edit and delete your Kindle's collections and add or remove books
Supported devices:
  • Kindle Keyboard (Kindle 3),
  • Kindle 4,
  • Kindle Touch,
  • Kindle black (2012),
  • Kindle Paperwhite
  • (Scida does not support Kindle DX, Kindle Fire tablets, first and second generation Kindles.)
Supported e-book formats:
  • .mobi
  • .prc
  • .azw


Version 1.2:
  • Books can now be previewed


  • OS X 10.7.3 or later



More information

Templates for Pages Documents 1.1 - Templates for Apple's Pages.

Posted: 23 May 2013 01:59 AM PDT



Templates for Pages Documents provides pre-designed templates that help to create stunning flyers, brochures, newsletters and other documents in Apple's Pages.

Version 1.1:
  • 10 New additional Templates for Pages.
  • The app now contains 60 Templates for Pages in total.


  • OS X 10.6 or later



More information

Viruses, Vol. 5, Pages 1346-1373: The Chromatin Landscape of Kaposi’s Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:00 AM PDT

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus is an oncogenic γ-herpesvirus that causes latent infection in humans. In cells, the viral genome adopts a highly organized chromatin structure, which is controlled by a wide variety of cellular and viral chromatin regulatory factors. In the past few years, interrogation of the chromatinized KSHV genome by whole genome-analyzing tools revealed that the complex chromatin landscape spanning the viral genome in infected cells has important regulatory roles during the viral life cycle. This review summarizes the most recent findings regarding the role of histone modifications, histone modifying enzymes, DNA methylation, microRNAs, non-coding RNAs and the nuclear organization of the KSHV epigenome in the regulation of latent and lytic viral gene expression programs as well as their connection to KSHV-associated pathogenesis.

Viruses, Vol. 5, Pages 1325-1345: Epigenetic Control of Cytomegalovirus Latency and Reactivation

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:00 AM PDT

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) gene expression is repressed in latency due to heterochromatinization of viral genomes. In murine CMV (MCMV) latently infected mice, viral genomes are bound to histones with heterochromatic modifications, to enzymes that mediate these modifications, and to adaptor proteins that may recruit co-repressor complexes. Kinetic analyses of repressor binding show that these repressors are recruited at the earliest time of infection, suggesting that latency may be the default state. Kidney transplantation leads to epigenetic reprogramming of latent viral chromatin and reactivation of immediate early gene expression. Inflammatory signaling pathways, which activate transcription factors that regulate the major immediate early promoter (MIEP), likely mediate the switch in viral chromatin.

Gambling suspect's 'safe' bet

Posted: 23 May 2013 01:02 AM PDT

What happens in Vegas can't happen at the Bellagio for a co-defendant in the high-stakes, illegal gambling case against Upper East Side art dealer Helly Nahmad.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Metals, Vol. 3, Pages 202-224: Magneto-Structural Properties of Ni2MnGa Ferromagnetic Shape Memory Alloy in Magnetic Fields

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:00 AM PDT

The purpose of this review was to investigate the correlation between magnetism and crystallographic structures as it relates to the martensite transformation of Ni2MnGa type alloys, which undergo martensite transformation below the Curie temperature. In particular, this paper focused on the physical properties in magnetic fields. Recent researches show that the martensite starting temperature (martensite transformation temperature) TM and the martensite to austenite transformation temperature (reverse martensite temperature) TR of Fe, Cu, or Co-doped Ni–Mn–Ga ferromagnetic shape memory alloys increase when compared to Ni2MnGa. These alloys show large field dependence of the martensite transformation temperature. The field dependence of the martensite transformation temperature, dTM/dB, is −4.2 K/T in Ni41Co9Mn32Ga18. The results of linear thermal strain and magnetization indicate that a magneto-structural transition occurred at TM and magnetic field influences the magnetism and also the crystal structures. Magnetocrystalline anisotropy was also determined and compared with other components of Ni2MnGa type shape memory alloys. In the last section, magnetic field-induced strain and magnetostriction was determined with some novel alloys.

Viruses, Vol. 5, Pages 1292-1324: Hepatitis C Virus, Cholesterol and Lipoproteins — Impact for the Viral Life Cycle and Pathogenesis of Liver Disease

Posted: 23 May 2013 12:00 AM PDT

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease, including chronic hepatitis, fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Hepatitis C infection associates with lipid and lipoprotein metabolism disorders such as hepatic steatosis, hypobetalipoproteinemia, and hypocholesterolemia. Furthermore, virus production is dependent on hepatic very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) assembly, and circulating virions are physically associated with lipoproteins in complexes termed lipoviral particles. Evidence has indicated several functional roles for the formation of these complexes, including co-opting of lipoprotein receptors for attachment and entry, concealing epitopes to facilitate immune escape, and hijacking host factors for HCV maturation and secretion. Here, we review the evidence surrounding pathogenesis of the hepatitis C infection regarding lipoprotein engagement, cholesterol and triglyceride regulation, and the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects.
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