Interactive Puppet Prototype with Kinect

3D Video Capture with Kinect

Viacom piles on Google TV with MTV content ban

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Viacom piles on Google TV with MTV content ban
Michelle Clancy ©RapidTVNews | 23-11-2010

http://www.rapidtvnews.com/index.php/201011238970/viacom-piles-on-google-tv-with-mtv-content-ban.html

Google TV can now count Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon among its blocked channels, thanks to Viacom becoming the latest media giant to take a stand against the platform.

 

A cryptic "Sorry, this content is unavailable for your device," message is all that a user will encounter when trying to dial up streaming Website content from those networks' online libraries.

 

ABC, NBC, FOX and Viacom parent CBS are all blocking their online content from Google TV, meaning that the broadcast pool is dwindling for Mountain View. The networks are looking for carriage fees in return for allowing Google TV to access their online programming. The irony of course is that users from virtually any other online browser can access the same content for free via a PC or Mac.

 

At issue is the fact that Google TV uses the Android OS to embed a Web media player within a Sony television set. Google envisioned the play as an ideal melding on broadcast and Web content; the Google TV browser simply returns all manner of results for program searches, making it easier for the viewer to watch what they want, when they want it. Google TV also wraps in well-worn integrations with Netflix and Amazon.com, among others, and is in discussions with Hulu.com Plus, a premium service from FOX and NBC.

 

Broadcasters, far from seeing a viable business model for themselves, see Google TV as a convenient way to allow viewers to defect to the Web—thereby cutting out the advertising revenue from traditional broadcast, not to mention the lucrative fees studios receive from traditional pay-TV partners.

 

Piracy is another, not-small, concern.

 

 

 

Read more: Viacom piles on Google TV with MTV content ban | News | Rapid TV News http://www.rapidtvnews.com/index.php/201011238970/viacom-piles-on-google-tv-with-mtv-content-ban.html#ixzz1676P3L37

HTML5 page turner

Google just made a cool interactive book using HTML5 ... It could be cool -- a transmedia AFFS-esque experience, but with books -- to make an interactive book, but each page or so has a mini-game. This could be great content for the art section, or for m.sesamestreet.org!

http://mashable.com/2010/11/18/google-20-things-i-learned/

Needed: Apps for Google TV

via Technology Review
http://www.technologyreview.com/communications/26701/?p1=A2&a=f

"The first few products featuring Google's TV software have received lukewarm reviews, and the first downloadable apps for the platform are months away. So Google is trying to persuade Web developers to create the first wave of interactive content for the platform by making web pages and in-browser "web apps" to ignite enthusiasm for the "TV meets Web" project."

Singing Fingers iPad app

Such lovely, simple, and playful interaction design from MIT Media Lab’s Lifelong Kindergarten. Scales well to users of all ages and works a nice example of an activity that is fun for solo or collaborative play/ performance:

http://singingfingers.com/

'Just like record players and tape recorders were simple and powerful new ways to work with sounds, Singing Fingers simply gives you a blank page. To manipulate sounds you only need your fingers to smear them onto the page and to play them back. No complex buttons, menus, or rules. In fact, to record, play back, and remix sounds there are zero buttons or menus (the buttons are only for file manipulation: saving, loading, and getting a new one). One simple medium, one simple touch of the finger, millions of possibilities.'

Google Street View shows what the world really looks like

http://www.boingboing.net/2010/11/09/google-street-view-s.html

 

"MapCrunch is addictive. Select the countries you'd like to include, then click go. You'll see Google Street View photos that are nothing like the photos in tourist brochures"

HTML5 Project Brings Tablet Reading Experience to Any Browser

via Mashable

 

"The Center has fashioned a template that mimics the in-app reading experience of newspapers like The Washington Post and magazines like Travel + Leisure — minus, of course, some of the interactive capabilities, such as swiping, offered by touchscreen devices — in a web browser. Content is displayed in a horizontal, widescreen format devoid of distracting banner ads and links to other content. Users can pull up a left-hand navigation bar to navigate between story sections, and click on arrows to tab between individual pages. The size and amount of text on display adjusts according to the size of the browser."

 

http://mashable.com/2010/11/10/center-for-public-integrity-html-5/

RockMelt

New browser new browser, new browser!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/technology/08browser.html?_r=1&hpw

This is the Best Autotune ever!

Rent: Too Damn High! Song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg5SwyTvAHw

TV and Preschoolers

From today's KidScreen:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704462704575590231467452448.html

Sesame Street Cupcakes

http://polwig.com/cooking/sesame-street-cupcakes/

Disney No Longer "Educational"

Disney Junior Shifts Focus Away From Educational Programming
11/4/10 Hollywood Reporter

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney-junior-shifts-focus-educational-35845

The upcoming Disney Junior cable channel is shifting its programming focus away the preschool demographic's traditional academic bent to a more socially-oriented one.

Disney says it chose this approach following a six-month study of 2,200 parents that found that mothers were more concerned about their children picking up behavioral tips than learning academic fundamentals. According to the Wall Street Journal, Disney researchers found that "kids had access to basic facts, but lagged in social skills like sharing or being a good listener."

Four new animated shows unveiled Thursday follow the company's new mantra, among them: Jake and the Neverland Pirates, which encourages group play; the health-oriented Doc McStuffins; and "Little Princesses," which employs Disney characters to teach "caring, self-respect and generosity," notes the New York Times.

Flagship series Mickey Mouse Clubhouse will move from Disney Channel to Disney Junior with a revamp aimed to make it less academic.

Disney Junior debuts in 2012 and targets children ages 2 to 7.

Nice use of Papervision

http://www.driverdansstorytrain.com/

$30 Smartphone

via gigaom

"At a time when high-end smartphones costing $200 attract much attention, is there room for a $30 device running the latest version of Android? T-Mobile must think so, because that’s exactly what it offers in the LG Optimus T handset. The phone is all-plastic, uses a low-resolution display, has a slower processor and omits a few functions. But for folks craving a smartphone experience without wanting to invest much up-front cash, the Optimus T includes some advanced features and provides a reasonably good experience for its price."

http://gigaom.com/2010/11/01/lg-optimus-t-review/

Adobe Shows Off Flash-to-HTML5 Conversion Tool

Not relevant to our games of course, but could be relevant on pages where we use Flash for other content.

Wired Article: Adobe Shows Off Flash-to-HTML5 Conversion Tool

Muji Apps

From Kottke:

The Japanese no-brand retailer Muji is taking an interesting approach to their iPhone and iPad apps. Instead of just having a product catalog/store app (although they have that too), they're also offering apps that are very much like the products they offer in their real-world stores. There's a simple calendaring app that syncs with Google Calendar, a notebook app for sketching and note-taking, and an app called Muji to Go that combines a bunch of different functions that travellers might need (weather, currency exchange, power socket guide).

http://www.muji.com/app/

Sesame Street Parodies Apple With its "There's An App For That" Song

http://gizmodo.com/5679238/sesame-street-parodies-apple-with-its-theres-an-app-for-that-song

Google's Election Map

http://maps.google.com/intl/en_us/2010election/ratings.html