Geek culture

Internet cat star Maru to grace the printed page

Some people like reading fiction. Some people like reading biographies of historical figures. The new biography book, "I am Maru," should cover both bases.

The book, which originally came out in Japan in 2009, is finally arriving in the U.S. this month. As with most cool Japanese things, it took awhile.

In case you've actually been working and don't know about Maru, I'll give you a primer. Maru is a pudgy Japanese cat who likes to jump into boxes. I know that doesn't sound like much, but you have to see him in YouTube action to understand the appeal. Maru regularly racks up 500,000 to 2 million hits per video.… Read more

Craction: A fantasy-football tool for the rest of us?

The PR flacks for Craction, a new online football game, deserve a little credit for getting one point of their rollout publicity campaign correct: it's more or less impossible to have a fully functional life while aggressively competing in an online fantasy-football league.

Dedicated fantasy-football participants--the type of people who spend hours neglecting their jobs and families to pore over player stat sheets looking for the best punter--often sacrifice their maturity and dignity in an obsessive pursuit of a statistically perfect virtual NFL football team.

Craction looks to offer football competition without "all the fantasy-sports commitment." The game launched online this month, but Scott Schmidt developed it in 2000 when he was a business student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

"I wanted to stay connected with my friends who were spread out at colleges across the country," Schmidt said during Craction's debut. "NFL football was something we could all relate to, but I knew I'd have trouble getting people to commit to fantasy football because it requires so much time. So I just invented a better game." … Read more

Dog Wars app for Android is Trojanized

An older version of a controversial Android app called "Dog Wars" has been modified to include a Trojan horse that takes actions without the device owner knowing it, according to security firm Symantec.

The app sends a text message to everyone in the contact list that says, "I take pleasure in hurting small animals, just thought you should know that," and signs United States-based devices up for a text alert service operated by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Irfan Asrar wrote in a post on the Symantec blog.

"We have no reason to believe that PETA had anything to do with this app, and that it is most likely the work of someone attempting to associate the app with PETA," he writes.

A PETA representative provided this statement when asked for comment: "We don't know who created this version of the app, but we think it is ingenious. When someone creates a game that glorifies animal abuse, you can bet that people will come up with clever, smart ways to take action against it." … Read more

The 404 883: Where the PATH to success is paved with delays (podcast)

Why are schools no longer teaching typing? Typing class used to be a sanctuary for nerds, but now that everyone has a smartphone and a Facebook profile, some school districts are making a case against teaching standardized touch-typing lessons.

But before we dive into the technology lessons we think should be taught in all grade schools, we start today's episode of The 404 Podcast with a recap of the past week's metaprotesting in San Francisco and the flames that ignited Anonymous to shut down public transit.

The 404 Digest for Episode 883

SF subway closes stations during Anonymous protest. Why are schools no longer teaching typing? A video voice mail from Andrew in Ontario!

Episode 883 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

These 'Star Wars' coins are mint

I sense something, a presence in coin collecting I have not felt since...OK, please forgive my horrifically altered Darth Vader quote.

The New Zealand Mint has unleashed an epic coin collection for "Star Wars" fans perhaps worthy of the Empire itself. In all, 48 coins featuring characters from the classic sci-fi movie series will be available to purchase this November as legal tender of Niue Island. The tiny country resides 1,500 miles northeast off the coast of New Zealand.

There are two pure-silver full-color sets of $2 coins, including a $391.62 (plus shipping) Darth Vader and Millennium Falcon collection in a limited mintage of 7,500.… Read more

Former Microsoft exec: Mobile won't kill consoles

A former Microsoft gaming bigwig is convinced that the growth of mobile gaming won't eliminate the demand for game consoles.

In an interview with IndustryGamers published yesterday, former Microsoft Game Studios Vice President Shane Kim said he "would never" say mobile titles could kill game consoles such as the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. Kim believes that the gaming market is expanding, leaving room for titles dedicated to both game consoles and mobile devices.

Given Kim's history at Microsoft, some might believe that he has a vested interested in supporting consoles in their fight against mobile platforms. But it's worth noting that since leaving Microsoft, Kim joined the board of Zipline Games--a mobile-game development house.

"So will there be some impact on console gaming?" Kim asked in his interview with IndustryGamers. "I think it would be hard to say that there isn't any impact, but I would never say that it's going to go away completely. I think that the big console game manufacturers, they've all got plans for the next console generation. I think that they're all shooting to make sure that those next versions, whatever they look like, are going to be things that are going to be compelling for the kinds of gamers, especially hard-core gamers, who really enjoy that style of gaming."… Read more

The 404 882: Where everyone did it in the '90s (podcast)

If you willingly choose to pay to see a movie like "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," you give up your right to complain about your fellow theater-goers. This is the lesson Wilson and I impart to our third co-host, who got suckered by the trolls on Rotten Tomatoes into seeing the pre-prequel to "Planet of the Apes."

The big news, of course, is Google's proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion, so we'll discuss what that means for existing patent trolls, Android handset competitors, and the Android platform in general.

Stick around until the end of the show, when we'll announce which two lucky listeners won our V-Moda Faders earplugs giveaway contest!

The 404 Digest for Episode 882

Google to buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5B. Air Swimmers let you fly your own fish. Rise of the Planet of the Apes: An animal-rights manifesto disguised as a prison-break movie. Weekend breaches: BART page by Anonymous.

Episode 882 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Millenniata M-Disk: The possibility of permanent data archival

You were born in a great family, had a fun childhood. Then you grew up, went to school, spent an exhilarating time at college, learned a whole bunch, and fell in love. Then you had a job that you loved, got married to a partner of your dreams, and continued to live a happy, exciting, stimulating, and healthy life.

Now, that's a great success story, but guess what? Then you died. And your story, the true details of it, might last a bit longer and would die, too. In a hundred years or so, nobody would have any real … Read more

Air Swimmer RC balloons let you fly your own fish

Shark Week is over, but the Discovery Channel seems to have forgotten about a new species at the top of the underwater food chain: Air Swimmers. Unlike RC blimps and other flying mechanical toys, these Mylar balloons add realism and movement with moving fins that swish back and forth to propel the fish through the air.

How does it work? It's simple, kind-of: a 1.5-volt AAA-powered motor attaches to a small plastic pod on the bottom of the balloon, and the accompanying controller uses infrared reception to control the tail rudder's speed and navigation.

The set-up requires … Read more

Comic book heroes then and now

It's amazing to think how many comic book characters--some from decades ago--are still relevant to pop and geek culture today.

Lately, it feels like there's no end in sight to the surge in superhero-movie releases. In our gallery below, we look at the original comic depiction of several larger-than-life beings compared with their most recent movie equivalents. The differences are astounding, and truly indicate how far animation and artistic quality has evolved over the years.

While we didn't feature every comic book character who's had a makeover recently, we think you'll still enjoy our selections consisting of mostly Marvel (Stan Lee) and DC comic stars. The gallery includes Captain America, Thor, Superman, Green Lantern, Iron Man, Tin-Tin, Spider-Man, X-Men, and Batman. Think there's someone we missed that should be on the list? Leave a comment with your suggestions and we may revise the gallery down the line.

On a related note, it's worth sharing that DC Comics plans to reboot all of its franchises beginning this September.