Marc Orchant is tragically still unconscious at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with everyone praying for a full recovery from his heart attack. In the meantime, turns out the hospital has a free service where you can email a get well card, and they’ll print it out and give it to the patient. I think it’d be real nice if Marc woke up and there were a bunch of cards waiting for him to lift his spirits, so if you’ve got a few minutes, send a static, non-sound-based e-card, or draw up an image yourself.
I really hope Marc wakes up soon, and that he’s alright, without any serious permanent damage. Best wishes for his family that all turns out for the best, and as soon as possible.
Thanks to Scott for noticing the free card service.
Chris Lanier has a thought-provoking post about how the Xbox 360’s Dashboard update means that the 360 can now play more file formats than the 360’s own Media Center Extender, because Microsoft hasn’t updated the Extender software to work with them. Version 2 Extenders support DivX, the Dashboard supports DivX, but the Dashboard’s Extender doesn’t, and we’ve been pretty much told it never will.
As big as the Xbox 360 is, Microsoft overall plan to take over the living room is so much more important. In fact, when it launched the 360 was looked at almost as a trojan horse to get Media Center into wider usage. Microsoft has this weird thing where it allows media to come into the 360 through multiple protocols with different codec support and different capabilities, making things more confusing and limiting the company’s ability to leverage the Xbox into selling other Microsoft products.
Frankly, the Xbox 360 should be more locked down. The console shouldn’t support streaming from anything except Windows Media Center, and should add new features, like new codecs, through Media Center. This is one area where Microsoft could easily have been a lot more evil and created a single pathway that goes only through its own product, just like Apple does with the Apple TV and iTunes.
At the very least, by forcing users to utilize Media Center, Microsoft would simplify things. Last night, I tried to play an episode of Dexter in the Media Center Extender, and was told the codec wasn’t supported. I had to exit the Extender, go back to the Dashboard, locate the same file for the second time, and play it again.
By having more than one way of doing things, efforts are being spread thin. Microsoft has developers working both on playback for the Extender and the Dashboard. Independent developers are building third-party streaming services (like TVersity) when they could be focusing on Media Center plugins. Media Center needs more attention, but as a tacked-on bastard sister of the Xbox 360 it is getting ignored.
I’m all for wide-open choice, which is why I choose Microsoft over Apple, but Microsoft is selling itself short by doing the same things twice. When you’ve already got a first-rate streaming protocol on the Extender, don’t build new stuff into the Dashboard. Make the Extender better, make everyone happy.
There’s no denying this happens, and there’s also no denying that the biggest problems I’ve found with voice chat on the 360 are caused by teenagers. I’ve got nothing against teens, most of them are fine in real life, but put on a headset, anonymity, voice changing algorithms, and an atmosphere that offers the same verbal freedon felt by professional athletes, and you get high-voiced immature taunts from a bunch of idiots.
Is there a solution? I wouldn’t even know. I don’t put on my headset, I don’t play a lot of online gaming. I only have to deal with trash talk from my wife (and she’s always gloating, since she’s always winning). Perhaps that’s the solution: Don’t play online, play with your loved ones. They may get profane, too, but you know it’s all out of love.
Microsoft has created a new position: Chief Environmental Strategist. The first “CES” will be Rob Bernard, who was already a manager at the company in the Developer and Platform Evangelism team. The company already has a lot of interest on environmental issues, and the new positions allows them to have someone to better focus and centralize those efforts.
“… to assess the company’s environmental impact and opportunities at all levels, including: working with product groups to create technology innovations in software and hardware that can help enable customers to minimize their impact on the environment, assuring responsible business practices that work to reduce the company’s direct and indirect environmental impact, and working with partners in industry, government and non-government to engage on global environmental issues.”
Microsoft shipped yesterday the Fall update for the Xbox 360, adding some new features and streamlining the interface. There are some changes to the menu organization, the addition of Xbox Originals, new social features
Here are the most interesting ones to me:
Xbox Originals are now available in the new Game Store on the Marketplace tab. I love the Xbox 1 look of the section. Each game has a free theme and picture pack (though Silver members will have to wait, see below).
Family timers are now in there, so parents can limit how much their kids play video games.
There’s an Inside Xbox section (on the Xbox Live tab) where you get a news feed about the latest Xbox happenings.
Users now get an enhanced profile and the ability to browse the friends list of their friends.
Xbox Live Silver users now have to wait a week after free downloads are released before they get them, while Gold members get everything immediately. This means you’ll have to wait a week for demos and other stuff, which is so freakin’ annoying.
Finally, and this is a big one, those who were trapped in child accounts can now upgrade, assuming they are over 18. That means that if you got a child account when you were under 18, and are now over 18, you can promote it to a full adult account, and get all the priveleges of that. You’ll need to replace any credit cards on the account (since the old card was presumably your parent’s). Those under 18 can now use Messenger chat, too.
Copy and paste (no longer just limited to touchscreens)
You can enroll your device in a domain for corporate purposes.
New tiled homescreen, where you move side-to-side to get large-scale notifications. You’ll be able to slide between missed calls, currently playing music, appointments, voicemail, settings, all sorts of fun. Makes the whole OS bigger, bolder, and more in line with the demands of the modern consumer.
New text input settings, changing the master security code
Recent programs list on Start Menu
Threaded text messaging (that’s a biggie)
Auto-complete when entering email addresses
Internet Explorer adds home page and zooming in and out
Microsoft has created a new position: Chief Environmental Strategist. The first “CES” will be Rob Bernard, who was already a manager at the company in the Developer and Platform Evangelism team. The company already has a lot of interest on environmental issues, and the new positions allows them to have someone to better focus and centralize those efforts.
