Star Wars flicks to see 3D re-release, starting with Episode 1 in 2012

By Richard Lawler posted Sep 28th 2010 10:24PM

The Star Wars series hasn't even hit Blu-ray yet, but The Hollywood Reporter reports sources are saying George Lucas definitely intends to refill his money pit in 2012 by bringing out the movies, one each year, in 3D. Unfortunately that means even if you're optimistically expecting a well done 3D conversion process Episode IV is at least five years away since the plan is to release the movies in numerical order. According to the sources, even after demoing converted 3D footage of the movies in the past, Lucas was moved to greenlight the process after experiencing Avatar and realizing that by the time the movies hit theaters, and eventually homes, there will be more than enough capable screens to watch them on. Of course, all could be forgiven if this meant there were enough petty cash floating around to convince Lucas it's time to restore and rerelease the original editions on Blu-ray, but we're not holding our breath

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Should I Automatically Be a Windows Phone 7 Fan?

File under: News

By: Adam Z Lein | 9:22 PM 17-Sep-10 | 23 Comments

As many of you know, I've been using Windows Mobile based phones since the smartphone was invented. They've always been the most powerful and capable devices. However, when we started hearing about Windows Phone 7 earlier this year, it became clear that the classic Windows Mobile (that could run on all sorts of hardware and do all sorts of things) was about to be replaced by a completely new "Version 1.0" product. Even though it is number 7, it's really something totally new and entirely unrelated to the old Windows Mobile that many of us have become accustomed to. On one hand, that's a good thing since Windows Mobile has such a bad stigma attached to it. On the other hand, that could be a bad thing since we might be missing out on some functionality from the past. The question is, should we automatically upgrade to Windows Phone 7 simply because we've relied on classic Windows Mobile for so long?

On one hand, we're losing…

A lot of the things missing from Windows Phone 7, are things that I rely on in Windows Mobile 6.x. For example, Outlook tasks that sync with Exchange. Unfortunately, being able to keep track of the things you need to do for work or in life, didn't make the cut for the first version of Windows Phone 7. This was initially pretty disappointing to me since Windows Mobile was really the only smartphone operating system left that could reliably sync Tasks directly with Exchange right out of the box. I also like having my Notes and voice recordings synced with Outlook. Both of those features appear to be gone from Windows Phone 7.

Then there's the lack of 3rd party application multi-tasking. When I'm in the car, I'm always playing music on my phone while also running the GPS navigation software, listening to the voice prompts for when to turn, and occasionally using Voice Command to make a call, or listen to my schedule, or hear emails and text messages read to me. The initial version of Windows Phone 7 won't be able to do all of that.

The lack of Copy/Paste support is also disconcerting, however we've heard that the feature is on the list to be implemented in an update. It just didn't make it to the launch versions that was released to manufacturing last week.

On the other hand, we're gaining…

The Windows Phone 7 interface looks amazing. The fluff-free design is very refreshing. The way content is used as navigation and the way the quick animations are used to define context is very innovative and beautiful. Visual cues and readable text that anyone will be able to understand make the operating system's usability stand out from other mobile OS's.

The new design also brings a high level of consistency. With classic Windows Mobile, any OEM or application developer basically had free reign over every aspect. There were plenty of Windows Mobile devices where manufacturer's added their own user interface layers that often felt completely out of place when compared to the rest of the operating system and any 3rd party applications you may want to use. Windows Phone 7 will remedy this by severely limiting crazy customizations and encouraging consistent design and usability guidelines.

Then there's the new Music & Videos Hub. Earlier this spring I pretty much fell in love with the Zune HD, Zune desktop software, and Zune Pass service. Windows Phone 7 will take advantage of these highly under-rated features. The artist imagery, related artist links, and bio text is so nice to have, too. Since Windows Phone will have a persistent internet connection, you'll be able to instantly download or stream practically any song you want using the Zune Pass subscription service. You'll also have a connection to the Zune Social so you can earn achievements based on your play count. You can bet we'll see more awesome Zune features in the future, such as Smart DJ, "Picks for You", and social music sharing. Zune also supports syncing Windows Media Center recorded TV shows (as long as they're not HD), as well as just about any type of video format (Zune should be able to convert it, if necessary).

OneNote syncing over SkyDrive is another fantastic feature that we'll see in Windows Phone 7. This program can certainly replace the Outlook Notes syncing capability that I've relied on in Windows Mobile for over 10 years. OneNote is much more powerful. It even supports password protected sections, so if those are also supported in Windows Phone 7, I may have an eWallet replacement in OneNote as well. For many, OneNote might be able to replace the tasks list as well. It's a great place to keep track of all of your projects, timing, and research, however it does not support due date reminder notifications, categories, or task assignments.

Then there's the Xbox Live integration. Many people are very excited about the Xbox Live Games Hub on Windows Phone 7 and they have good reason to be. The Xbox Live community is very large, and Xbox users have been very interested in a portable Xbox device for a long time. Making it part of the phone operating system in order to compete with Sony's Playstation Portable, Nintendo's DS, as well as the Apple iOS gaming platform while integrating with the existing Xbox Live community was a great idea. I've never really cared much for gaming on a mobile device. The most mobile gaming I've done was a Bubble Breaker competition while waiting for a movie to start in the theater. However, the idea of turn-based asynchronous multi-player games that can be played across the phone, PC, and Xbox while also earning achievements is quite intriguing.

Developers, Developers, Developers! Microsoft seems to have made developing programs for Windows Phone 7 ridiculously easy. We've seen companies porting popular iPhone apps over to Windows Phone 7 in no time at all. With 300,000 downloads of the free developer tools and Silverlight/XNA development tutorials popping up all over the place, it seems like you can expect some great apps to start appearing on the Windows Phone 7 platform when it's released. Of course, it's true that there are already a ton of developers creating apps for the highly popular iPhone and Android platforms. Microsoft is trying to get an edge out on those extisting platforms by using developer tools and programming technologies that millions of Windows and Xbox developers are already very familiar with… and making it extremely easy to repurpose code between Windows Phone 7, Xbox, and the PC. Allowing developers an easy way of creating applications that can be used across those three screens could be very advantageous.

So what do you think? Do all of the new positive features of Windows Phone 7 outweigh the positives from Windows Mobile 6.x?

MovieMiguel.com

Is The Age Of Exclusives Over?

Not first party exclusives like Mario, Halo and God of War. Those will live on as long as there are console platform holders. Rather, is the age of big third-party exclusives finished?
The last big third-party exclusive was Metal Gear Solid 4, and that was in 2008. Before the game's release, a great deal of the interest surrounding the title was its platform exclusivity. More and more companies are releasing their titles on all platforms. It makes sense.
In Japan, Square Enix recently revealed that Final Fantasy XIII — which had previously been an PS3 exclusive in Japan — will be coming to the Xbox 360. The news caused a violent reaction on Twitter with mobs of internet users ganging up on Square Enix president Yoichi Wada and calling him a "liar" and "greedy".
Kotaku hears that Wada believes that the enjoyment Square Enix games give should not be limited by platform. Moreover, it is bad games that hurt the brand, not multiplatform games. It seems that Wada feels that the importance of platforms has diminished.
Certainly, the importance of platforms has diminished. Compare the development and publishing environment of 2010 to 1995, and it is very different. That doesn't necessarily mean, however, that exclusives are finished.
Microsoft Game Studios exec Phil Spencer sees several different scenarios. "There are scenarios of proven hits in the market where the economics of the situation make it prohibitive for someone to choose one platform over another for the duration of the franchise," he tells Kotaku. "There are situations where exclusively working with one platform helps the creative process." He mentions Gears of War, an Xbox 360 exclusive developed by Epic Games, as an example.
"I think it did help Epic to build a game that could focus on the Xbox 360 and Live — they didn't have to think about anything else," says Spencer. "We backed it in a big way, and it's obviously made money for both of us." It ends up being a win-win situation for the publisher and the developer.
Sony, which is one of Microsoft's competitors, thinks exclusives can refer to elements of a game. The company does develop its own big, in-house exclusives like the upcoming Gran Turismo 5 and The Last Guardian. "With regards to securing platform exclusives from third parties," Sony Computer Entertainment's Shuhei Yoshida tells Kotaku, "it is becoming more and more difficult in regards to financial needs of third parties in order to justify not releasing the game on other platforms." Yoshida pointed out that the cost of making smaller titles is less, so there is a greater chance for them to become exclusives.
"Now you are seeing more and more exclusive downloadable content as well," Yoshida added. "It is becoming more and more difficult to get the whole title exclusive — even, you know, for Microsoft."
"There are many different angles to secure exclusives," Yoshida pointed out. For example, Yoshida said, Ubisoft's R.U.S.E. and Dead Space: Extinction support PlayStation Move motion controls, but do not support Microsoft's Kinect motion controls. "That's a kind of exclusive feature for the PlayStation 3 version."
According to Yoshida, "It comes down to what makes the most sense to the game's publisher. They'll look at different options and then make a smart choice."


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Keanu Reeves Says Third Bill & Ted is Possible

Source: MTV

September 20, 2010

Keanu Reeves told MTV that a third "Bill & Ted" movie isn't out of the question.

"We're trying," said Reeves. "Alex and I are still friends and we're talking, and we're talking to Chris and Ed. They're going to try and see if they can write something. To me, I'd love to play the role. I'd love to work with Alex and Chris and Ed again."

"We'll see what they do. If it's a film that can stand up on its own, and I'm meeting people now, they've shown the film to their kids," he added. "We just seek to entertain, and if that could be something that could be worthwhile on its own..."

You can watch the interview using the player below!

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

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Netflix "Frowns Upon" Libraries That Offer Netflix Movies & TV Shows

FastCompany reports that libraries are still using Netflix to offer movies to patrons, despite it being in violation of Netflix's Terms of Use.

Whoops. Turns out Netflix isn't actually cool with libraries using the service and doesn't want early adopting librarians to be encouraging others to do so. Netflix doesn't offer institutional subscriptions and expects its services to be limited to personal consumption. "We just don't want to be pursuing libraries," Netflix's vice president of corporate communications Steve Swasey told the Chronicle of Higher Education recently. "We appreciate libraries and we value them, but we expect that they follow the terms of agreement," he said, adding that Netflix "frowns upon" the liberties taken by librarians.

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