Content and news by Rob Williams

Growing up, most dream of testing games for a living, but as it turns out, it’s one of the most boring jobs in the world. Karla from the Seattle Weekly went ‘undercover’ to get hired by a game testing firm, and relays everything she’s learned. I can assuredly admit that I am glad I never pursued that career.

“A lot of people just don’t show up for their shifts,” admits Volt’s Theuret, who says that this shortage of consistent workers is why the Bullpen, designed to fill empty shifts on the fly, exists at all. It helps identify those who really want to get ahead—like Theuret, who says he signed up on the Bullpen sheet almost daily for a year before being promoted to a full-time position as a lead.

Source: Seattle Weekly

When the Xbox 360 was first released, it seemed that most people were playing Geometry Wars instead of the full-blown releases. I admit, I was addicted to it for a few days myself. However, according to Joystiq, it doesn’t seem that the development crew were able to pull it off again on the Wii. One thing is for sure, to fully enjoy this game, you need a perfect controller. I tried out the PC release recently with the mouse… and I don’t recommend it at all. Hopefully ‘Galaxies’ will end up making it’s way to other consoles in the future.

Movement is done with then nunchuk’s joystick, and the direction of your fire is determined by where you point on screen and is shown via a thin red line shooting out of your ship. Given the sheer necessity to be accurate in more difficult phases, having to deal with Wii remote’s imprecise pointing proves detrimental.

Source: Joystiq

Autoblog is reporting that as of September of this year, new vehicles in Canada will have to be outfitted with anti-theft immobilizers, to be mandated by Transport Canada. The device will arm as soon as the ignition is switched off, to prevent anyone from starting it back up again without the original keys. As soon as the car is turned off and key removed, it cuts the starter, ignition and fuel. Personally, I think this is a good idea.. anything that will decrease the amount of car theft is a good thing. Why it has to be mandated by a government agency is beyond me though.

As of September 1st, all new cars, vans, light trucks and SUVs sold in Canada will have to be fitted with anti-theft electronic immobilizers as mandated by Transport Canada. Most carmakers have announced plans to equip their 2008 model vehicles in Canada with immobilizers as standard equipment, and the move has been widely applauded by Insurance Bureau of Canada as it will undoubtedly reduce vehicle thefts.

Source: Autoblog

If you are one of those people who curse at their TV’s when you see a black bar atop and beneath your movie, then High-Def Digest is out to help you understand why it’s the case. As it turns out, it’s not a bug, and if you are seeing a movie with black bars, that’s how it’s supposed to be.

At the dawn of the motion picture era, there was no single standardized aspect ratio for silent films. Depending on the camera used, some were a little wider or a little narrower than others, but all were roughly squarish in appearance. Eventually, a standard emerged, known as Academy Ratio. Films of this type measured at an aspect ratio of 1.37:1, which means that the picture was 1.37 times wider than it was tall.

Source: High-Def Digest

Last month, we learned that ASUS was planning to release a P35-based board that would rid the need to install memory yourself. Instead, 2GB of DDR3-1333 would be pre-installed, with various ‘optimizations’ to improve overall performance. I admit I didn’t expect the board to actually come to retail, but it is, and you can expect that it will be at least $600 at a minimum.

ASUS laid out 2GB of DDR3 memory in a dual-channel configuration for optimal performance. The onboard memory is also set up in what ASUS calls a perfect T-Tree design, where the memory controller has access to each pair of memory chips. ASUS claims the T-Tree design reduces clock cycle timing by 50% compared to traditional fly-by designs, which grants the memory controller access to each module.

Source: DailyTech

Microsoft has updated the compatibility list for the Xbox 360 to play original Xbox games, and it’s not so minor. There are 65 new games, including PGR1 and 2, Burnout, Jet Set Radio Future, Mech Assault 2, Tony Hawk 2x and 3, Sega GT 2002 and others.

Microsoft took some time to update the ever-expanding list of Xbox backwards-compatible games playable on the Xbox 360. Bringing the playable list to over 300, this latest update, presently available over Xbox Live, includes popular titles such as Silent Hill 2, Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil, and Morrowind.

Source: Xbox 360 IGN

We reported back in March that the Commodore name was to be revitalized with performance PCs. Well, those PCs are soon to be coming to the US, and so far, they are looking quite sharp. I am thinking about getting the PC with the pink flower theme, myself.

All will come with Intel quad-core processors, Nvidia 8000-series graphics cards, Corsair RAM, and Asus-made NForce motherboards. And while Commodore won’t be overclocking out of the box, it will be providing all of its systems with a proprietary Peltier-cooling heat sink, that it claims will give gamers room to ramp up their parts themselves.

Source: CNet Crave

We’ve had quite a few site troubles over the past few days, namely with the forums, but all should be fixed now, so we should be smooth sailing. Our smallest server, which also acts as our nameserver, had a heatsink clip break due to the heat, which took things offline earlier today. Last night, Apache decided to disagree with us, so it had to be completely re-installed with a fresh configuration. As I said, we are crossing our fingers that nothing else will go wrong. So far, things are looking good. We apologize for the unexpected downtime!

Kingston were one of the first out the door with performance DDR3, but they really have outdone themselves this time. DailyTech reports that they have just announced DDR3-1375 modules with a tight CAS latency of 5. By comparison, the kit we’ve been using in our testing machines has a CL of 7, for the same frequency. The required voltages were not mentioned, but considering the 2GB kit retails for $800, they should be rather low.

Kingston offers the new ULL PC3 1375 MHz HyperX modules in two packages – a single 1GB module or a 2x1GB kit for dual-channel. Manufacturer suggested retail pricing for the ULL PC3 1375 MHz HyperX modules start at $400 for the KHX11000D3UL/1G single 1GB module and $800 for the KHX11000D3ULK2/2G dual-channel kit.

Source: DailyTech

Next time you brag about your fast internet connection to a peep on dial-up, think about the 75-year-old woman in Karlstad, Sweden, who has an incredibly fast 40Gb/s setup. That’s almost 7,000 times faster than a standard broadband connection, which could chug a full-length high-def DVD in just two seconds. I’m envious.

According to The Local, the secret sauce behind the connection is a new modulation technique that allows data to be transfered directly between two routers up to 2,000 km apart – with no intermediary transponders. This allows information to travel over huge distances without data loss.

Source: The Register

If you have a media PC, chances are you are looking for the perfect keyboard and mouse to compliment it. Microsoft’s prime offering is the Wireless Desktop 7000, which uses Bluetooth technology and is perfectly suited for Windows Vista.

Here’s a new spin on things. New security risks with IE are not new, but a new exploit actually requires Firefox to be installed on the machine. If Firefox is not installed, then the bug doesn’t exist. Essentially, it requires the user to click a malicious link in IE, which will then pass code to Firefox to execute. Roundabout hack, but I am more curious as to why someone would use IE when Firefox is installed!

“The underlying issue is the number of Web sites that are hosting malicious code,” Ronald O’Brien, a senior security analyst for Sophos, told LinuxInsider. “We know there are tens of thousands of Web sites that have been created that lack basic security aspects to them, and as such are readily hacked for the purpose of inserting malicous code onto them.”

Source: Linux Insider

For years, the free version of QuickTime didn’t allow full-screen playback. Instead, that simple feature would have required a $30 upgrade. As asinine as that is, you can finally unclench your fist and download 7.2, which opens up that feature to non-Pro versions of the player. Aside from that, the new version also upgrades the H.264 codec and takes care of other misc. bugs.

The Cupertino-based company said QuickTime 7.2 includes a new version of QuickTime Player that unlocks support for viewing videos in full-screen — a feature which was previously available only through a $30 QuickTime Pro license. QuickTime 7.2 also bundles “updates to the H.264 codec” and numerous bug fixes, Apple said. It’s available as 51.4MB download for Mac users and a 19.3MB download for Windows users.

Source: Apple Insider

Try not to get too excited, but here is yet another top list. This one takes a look at the five worst websites on the internet, as chosen by Time magazine. Luckily, Techgage escaped their grasp once again. Of the five, eHarmoney and MySpace are listed, mostly because of the problems they can cause with real life relationships.

Our main beef with this online dating site is its power to cause utter despair. eHarmony claims its more “scientific” approach to matchmaking differentiates it from competitors — its users complete extensive personality questionnaires, in order to connect them to others based on compatibility.

Source: Time

Dell isn’t the only on to offer Linux-based laptops, as Lenovo has been for well over a year. DesktopLinux reports that they are now offering their high-end T61p with SLED. The $1,814 notebook offers a large screen, Core 2 Duo processor, up to 4GB of ram and a Quadro FX 570M graphics chip.

This portable workstation includes up to 4GB of RAM, a 160GB SATA (Serial ATA) hard drive, three USB 2.0 ports and a CD-RW DVD combo. It also includes a variety of Wi-Fi network connection options including support for draft 802.11n WLAN (wireless LAN), embedded WWAN (wireless WAN) technologies and UWB (ultrawideband).

Addendum: Woops, I made a mistake. The T61p does -not- come pre-loaded with Linux, but rather Lenovo is certified to support it.

Source: DesktopLinux

E3 seems to be going well for Sony so far, as their slimmer PSP handheld is getting a hefty amount of attention. I admit, the updated unit looks great. I’ve always been tempted to pick one up, and now it’s becoming even more difficult. From the looks of things, the new units will include either Daxter or Star Wars: Battlefront, while the price point remains the same. Also promised are over 120 PS3 games, 140 PSP and 160 PS2. It’s good to see that their ‘classic’ console is still getting so much attention.

This holiday and fiscal year more than 400 games are coming to PlayStation fans in North America. There will be over 120 PS3 titles including what we’re showing here at E3: Warhawk, Lair, Heavenly Sword, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, The Eye of Judgment, PAIN, Echochrome, SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals Confrontation, SingStar and many more.

Source: Playstation Blog

I have to admit, I’m impressed by this news. Up until now, I thought that World of Warcrack had absolutely owned the entire market as far as online gaming goes, but Xbox Live is trailing not far behind. Also mentioned were predicitions for next year, when they expect to have 10 million total subscribers. As it stands, 7 million is an incredible count. Sony will have to perform a miracle on their Playstation network to steal away any of those subscribers.

During Microsoft’s E3 2007 conference, Corporate Vice President of Global Marketing Jeff Bell announced Xbox Live has eclipsed the seven million user mark. That number is one million more than the company expected to have at this time.

Source: Xbox IGN

Being a Canadian, I can admit that the choices for anything don’t seem to have half as good as they are in the US. Personally, my hick town offers three phone companies to choose from, one of them being Rogers and the other two being useless. Rogers is also the only GSM carrier. They hold a good monopoly on the market here, and because of that, there is no iPhone yet.

If Rogers does introduce the iPhone to its customers, it will have to make major changes to its data pricing, Geist told Canada’s National Post on Monday. “I don’t see how you can have an iPhone with the pricing structure that they’re offering,” he said. In an email advisory sent to subscribers earlier this year, Rogers said that it was still sorting out iPhone availability and pricing terms with Apple. However, the carrier confidently claimed that it would be the only Canadian provider to offer the Apple handset.

Source: Apple Insider

It was only a matter of time! Someone is suing Microsoft because the console scratched his games, deeming them unplayable. This inconvenience is worth $5 million to them, which seems completely reasonable. If anything, hopefully we will finally get an admission out of Microsoft that there is indeed a problem.

The lawsuit contends that the plaintiffs in the case “have been damaged in that their game discs were destroyed by the Xbox 360 during reasonable, foreseeable, normal, and intended use.” They blame Microsoft because “The Xbox 360 was negligently designed and manufactured in that the Console’s laser disc reading assembly contacts and scratches the video game discs during normal and intended operation and use.”

Source: Joystiq

Gametap has sure come a long way since we first took a look almost two years ago, and for good reason it seems. There are a slew of games to get addicted to, including the exclusive Sam & Max series. Up until now, Mac users have been left in the dust, but no longer, as the service now works with Intel-based Macs. Sorry PPC users.

Mac users who are gamers (more than half of us here at The CG) can now indulge themselves in 500 video games thanks to GameTap. Let’s clarify that: Mac users on Intel-based systems can get their “game on.” You’ll find a decent range of games on the service, with titles like Street Fighter Alpha 3 (I think I have 24 versions of that game now) and Metal Slug, in case you feel like playing a game only those SNK weirdos have played before.

Source: CrunchGear