We are LIVE on Ustream!!! This week we talk InterventionCon, Apple Media Press Conference, Commodore 64 rising from the ashes and MUCH MORE!!!

Items of Interest

• Jack from Mass Effect 2 CosPlay !!!! (JP)
  • Super impressive costume! Must see!

• Historic Nasa Pictures come to Flickr “Commons” (SM)
  • Nasa posts free pictures on Flickr Commons of some of the most historic moments in its history
  • a GREAT trip down memory lane for any space nuts out there
  • Goddard, JFK, Von Braun, LBJ, John Glenn, Lots of rockets and xp planes
    • (JP – What an awesome collection of pics… Geeks and space geeks alike should dig this!)

Gold Sponsors:

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka @UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Woookie Coookies – a piece of UDC before there is even a physical cafe
• UberDorkCafe – Auction Sept. 11th – DC,Tampa Bay,Online
• first Piece revealed and accompanying t-shirt @hefnatron
• Ellen campaign???

• Golden Pic and Golden Pic Lite for Android devices

• • Both are available in the Android Market for Android devices running 1.5 or later
  • Lite is a free version (ad supported) with slightly limited functionality
  • Full version is only $1.99 USD  (On Sale till Midnight Monday Central for only $0.99 for Labor Day Sale!)
  • Go Buy it! or try it, then buy it!

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• Dragon Age: Origin Awakenings XPack now on Mac (JP)
  • Did you know one of the best RPG’s out there was on Mac? DAO = the win
  • Awakenings now available on their store, its the xpack that has been out for awhile now
  • (Research a bit about the story)

• Thriller- The Entire Series on DVD (UDG)

• • Originally aired 1960-62, hosted by Boris Karloff
  • Guests included Shatner, Richard Chamberlain and other soon to be stars
  • Many of the program’s writers, including such icons of the genre as Robert Bloch (“Psycho”) and Richard Matheson (“I Am Legend”)

• Pinball FX2 comes to XBLA (SM)
  • Pinball? In this day and age? Original Pinball FX was one of the most bought and downloaded games on XBLA
  • FX2 is a “platform” meaning, you get the engine for free, you can import all your original FX boards and then the new boards come as content that u can purchase
  • New Achievements for old tables, Multiplayer support over XBLA, Leaderboards
  • (sm) Pinball tip of the week – Every Chuckie’s i’ve been to has 1 pinball machine for 1 token plays, boot the kids off it and camp the sucker

• Mirror’s Edge, Puzzle Agent coming to IPhone (SM)
  • Already on the IPad, now moving to IPhone
  • $4.99 for the Parkour style Adventure game

Geek Speak

• InterventionCon

• Apple Event (JP)

  • New AppleTV delivers on $99 price point, streaming

  • a smaller form-factor that clocks in at 1/4th the size of its first-generation sibling.
  • power supply is built into the Apple TV along with HDMI (at 720p cap) and Ethernet connections, and onboard 802.11n WiFi support. It also includes an Apple remote.
  • The Catch for $99 bucks? All Rental model… no purchases.
  • Netflix and YouTube streaming is available, along with photo streaming from Flickr and MobileMe.
  • new AppleTV will also be able to stream content from an iPad using the just-announced AirPlay in iOS 4.2 that’s slated to come out in November.
• iTunes 10 (available for download starting today)
  • New logo, few interface tweaks
  • Most of the new release’s focus is on Ping, a social network for music. “It’s like Facebook and Twitter meets iTunes,” Jobs said

• • iOS 4.1 announced, available next week

• High Dynamic Range photos: The phone will take three photos in rapid succession — one at what the phone thinks is the normal image, one underexposed and the third overexposed. The image is then combined to create the high dynamic image. Mel Martin demonstrated the power of this type of program in July.
• Bug fixes including those relating to the proximity sensor, Bluetooth and the iPhone 3G.
• High-definition video upload over Wi-Fi.
• TV show rentals and purchase
• Game Center debut

New iPod Nano
It’s hip to be square. the newly introduced iPod nano finally dispenses with the wheel because now the control surface is the iPod touch. The new model is so small that like the newly announced iPod shuffle, it has a clip that allows it to be worn and has a 24-hour battery life.

What isn’t there: the video camera that was included in the last release of the nano a year ago.

Other features include:

• VoiceOver
• FM radio
• Nike+ and pedometer

It comes in six colors, two more than the shuffle. It will cost $149 for 8GB and $179 for 16GB.
New Shuffle
The new iPod shuffle is smaller than the 2nd generation device and brings back buttons!
The new shuffle has a click wheel
It will hold 15 hours of music, is available in 4 colors and sells for US$49.
4th Gen iPod Touch
FaceTime. It isn’t just for iPhone any more.
Apple has just introduced a new generation of iPod touch with an new chip (the same A4 that powers the iPad and the iPhone 4), a better display (the iPhone 4′s double-resolution Retina display), and a built-in, front-facing camera that introduces FaceTime video conferencing capabilities.
a hefty refresh for an already great device,
lots of new features that really expand the way you can use the device.
newest iPod touch units bring nearly all of the iPhone magic to a Wi-Fi only platform.

Preorders start today, and they’ll be shipping within a week
Prices start at $229 for the 8GB version.

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Intel a Busy bee (SM)
  • First, the purchase of Mcafee for $7.68 billion
  • Now, Infineon’s wireless unit for $1+ billion
  • Who is Infineon? make certain Iphone / IPad parts
  • Even intel sees writing on wall and is scrambling to be relevant

• HP writes a painful $55 Million check. (udg)

• • Have agreed to pay the US govt $55 million to settle charges that it paid kickbacks to tech partners for recommending their products to federal agencies
  • This final agreement, announced Mon, by the Dept of Justice follows a tentative settlement earlier in the month where HP agreed “in principal” to resolve the case.
  • “Contractors must deal fairly with the government when doing business with federal agencies,” Tony West, assistant attorney general for the civil division of the Department of Justice, said in the statement. “As this case demonstrates, we will take action against those who seek to taint the government procurement process with illegal kickbacks.”
  • The case stretches back to 2004 when two whistleblowers–Norman Rille, then a senior manager with Accenture, and Neal Roberts, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers–filed a civil complaint alleging that HP had doled out kickbacks. The suit, which also included Sun Microsystems and Accenture, was launched under provisions of the False Claims Act (PDF) in which private citizens can file actions regarding fraud on behalf of the U.S. and share in any money recovered.
  • In 2007, the DOJ joined the investigation and charged that the defendants used affiliate relationships “to enrich themselves through a kickback scheme.”
  • The settlement also resolves charges that a 2002 contract between HP and the GSA was falsely priced because HP failed to provide complete information during negotiations with the government.
  • HP’s response to the whole thing? “HP denies engaging in any illegal conduct in connection with these matters. We believe it is in the best interest of our stakeholders to resolve the matter and move beyond this issue.”

• Commodore 64 Rises from the Ashes (JP)
  • Commodore USA announced right to make branded computers 6 mos ago
  • Then promptly went back under that radar as a deal couldn’t be hammered out
  • Now popped back up with full blown computer hidden in a authentic commodore 64 shell, right down to the huge keys!
  • PC64, 4GB DDR3, SATA 1TB HDD, HDMI, Blu-Ray or DVD
  • Want more modern? Go w/ the Phoenix or Amigo
  • All OS’es (including Amiga emulation)
    • (JP – I want one!!!)

We are LIVE on Ustream!!! Tonight we talk with Sillof.com about his custom figures, amy geek Star Wars Celebration V, 7 ways the zombie apocalypse won’t happen, Star Wars on Blu-Ray, Radios in Cell phones (are you kidding me)

• Possible hacked iPhone saga- weird call+5 images on camera roll+ 1.6gb data uploaded to her phone + Apple “not so” genius +AT&T (need I say more) = still no clue. I’m telling ya- CHINESE!

Gold Sponsors:

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka @UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Woookie Coookies – a piece of UDC before there is even a physical cafe
• UberDorkCafe – Auction Sept. 11th

• Golden Pic and Golden Pic Lite for Android devices

• • Both are available in the Android Market for Android devices running 1.5 or later
  • Lite is a free version (ad supported) with slightly limited functionality
  • Full version is only $1.99 USD
  • Go Buy it! or try it, then buy it!

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• Toshiba releases Dual Screen Tablet / Laptop
  • Released in Japan first, now available here in the U.S. as of Monday as pre-order, Aug. 29 in some stores
  • Based on Windows 7, Clamshell device, 1.8 lbs, 7 inch
  • Bottom window is a touch screen keyboard and a monitor when needed
  • Bit pricey, $1099
    • (JP) One very cool feature (reading like an actual book) and one very disturbing song in the video ad at the link
      • Lyrics “You need me, you want me, come touch me, come hold me” Is this a porno ad?

• First Lara Croft & The Guardian of Light DLC Free for 30 Days Upon Launch on Xbox 360
  • Square Enix brings good news to those looking forward to Lara Croft’s first downloadable adventure.-the first content pack will be offered for free on the Xbox 360 for the first 30 days after launch, once it is released.
  • The Xbox 360 timed-exclusive is set to launch today as the final title in the 2010 Summer of Arcade promotion on Xbox Live.
  • (JP) WTF May go on tiny soapbox for a minute here. five DLC already when game dropping tomorrow??? Ripoff? Why not included in game… this isn’t like a map pack add on)

• Apple Releases Snow Leopard Graphics Update 1.0
  • Solves specific issues regarding frame rates in Portal and Team Fortress 2 on certain Macs, as well as issues that could cause StarCraft II or Aperture 3 to quit unexpectedly or become unresponsive.
  • Also corrects image corruption issue when connecting/disconnecting external displays
  • The update is 69.2MB and is available via Software Update for Macs running Mac OS X 10.6.4.

• DEXTER SEASON 4!! (udg)
  • Ok, I NEVER watch TV, but I’ve seen every episode of Dexter. It freakin’ rawks and season 4 is no excepction.
  • You will never look at John Lithgow the same way again.
  • Get it now while it’s a steal.
  • Trailer for Season 5 premiered at SDCC but I can’t link it cuz MAJOR SPOILER.
  • You’ve got til Sept 26 to cram it in before Season 5 premiers  (JP – Can’t wait!! Love DEXTER too!!!)

Geek Speak

• Sillof.com Guest Appearance
  • Jamie aka Sillof

• SWCV Rundown – (hopefully amy_geek – dm sent)
  • Top 5
    • Break out cosplay best and worst

• Trinkets and stuffs

• Knock off Merchandise, Social Media and Starwars – Panels,

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Star Wars on Blu-Ray (SM)
  • Announced at SWCV when Jon Stewart asked the question
  • Deleted scenes, all 6 films, extended features
  • Only the “Special Edition”, original not included (HAN SHOT FIRST)
  • 2011 (WAAAAAA!)

• PS Plus Games go bye bye after subscription ends (JP)
  • Prchased a 3-month subscription to PlayStation Plus and wondering what will happen to the free games you’ve downloaded once your subscription runs out?
  • those “free” titles will cease to be accessible once the subscription expires.
  • Wanna play them again? Ante up for another subscription or purchase the game in the store.
  • Strangely, PSone games still work once the Plus subscription ends even though the games are clearly marked as “Expired.” Guessing this is a glitch so expect a mandatory firmware update.

• Xbox Live Titles For Windows Phone 7 Finally Revealed (udg)
  • Have finally announced a full list of launch titles for WP7 handsets, including Castlevania, Halo: Waypoint, Star Wars, Crackdown, and Guitar Hero, alongside a handful of newer properties like the ultra-cute ilomilo, produced in-house by Microsoft Game Studios.
  • In total, there will be over 60 game titles, with new offerings appearing every week in the Xbox Live Marketplace, just like its big brother console version
  • Microsoft has also shown off the full feature set of Xbox Live integration in Windows Phone 7, and users of the service should be pleased to discover that there’s not much missing from the version they know and love.
  • Will allow for full avatar integration (we’re talking fully rendered, interactive avatars) along with customization (clothes, accessories, and more). Messaging, friend lists / status, achievements, and leaderboards (with friend comparisons) are all here as well, making for a pretty complete mobile Xbox Live experience.
  • And also just like the console, every game will have a try-before-you buy demo to check out before spending your hard-earned cash.
  • You can visit the link in the show notes for a full review of the features that Engadget was able to preview. While many of the features were still very much in development, the review crew had great things to say about it and site a promising future for Xbox fans.
  • 

• Radio,RIAA Ask Congress for Radios in Cell Phones (SM)
  • There’s no money in radio anymore, user base dwindling
  • Most advert goes to either TV or online
  • Radio currently is only paying a portion of the licensing, online pays the full amt
  • Music industry is looking to make another 100 million from radio
  • Music business hurting, so squeeze radio, radio hurting, so make mobile device manufacturers build radio receivers in each device they make?
  • Have these ppl ever heard of I <3 radio??? Also, WTF with FM? Its power and bandwidth hungry
  • (JP) I love me my XM Sirius Radio. I only listen to Audible or XM in my car anymore

• MagicTalk = Free local phone calls to and from Computer? (JP)
  • Most services charge a fee to register a phone number and make calls to or from it on your computer (see skype and vonage)
  • Simple reason? It costs them money to register that phone # and act as a real telephone company
  • the Makers of Magic Jack want to change that by giving you a number for free tied to their software
  • How do they make money? They charge the phone companies when you receive a call and they charge for international calls
  • VOIP is one of the reasons the broadband providers want to regulate their bandwidth
  • JP – friend runs asterisk at home, and has a script that uses Google talk to make all outbound, his number from a similar service is free for incoming calls, but charges for outgoing calls. so this way, every call is an incoming call.

• The Zombie Cookies Plot Thickens (udg)
  • If you’ve been listening to our shows over the last few weeks, I mentioned an issue of some big names using technology that brings cookies (not noms, the ones on your computer) back to life and some people being not so happy about that. The plot has thickened.
  • Disney’s internet subsidiary and several of its partners are now being sued.
  • The attorneys representing people who browsed websites that employed the technology claim it was used to track them in ways that violate the sites’ privacy policies.
  • It appears as though the trackings, (including many minors) weren’t exactly random. The habits of one individual who browsed articles on depression, were uniquely tracked across a network of partners, according to the complaint.
  • The suit was filed in US District Court in Los Angeles against Walt Disney Internet Group, Clearspring Technologies, Warner Bros. Records, and several other companies that shared the cookies.
  • Seems they have an “information-sharing agreement” they failed to tell their users about.
  • The suit (which is seeking class-action status) was filed in US District Court in Los Angeles against Walt Disney Internet Group, Clearspring Technologies, Warner Bros. Records, and several other companies that shared the cookies
  • The suit alleges the companies violated a raft of laws, including the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the California Computer Crime Law, the California Invasion of Privacy Act and trespass and personal property statutes.
  • You may read a full copy of the complaint here
  • Flash cookies can store up to 100kb of data, which is roughly 25 times that of reg cookies.
  • To Adobe’s defense, company officials have stated in comments (PDF) submitted to the FTC that their policy “condemns the practice of using Local Storage to back up browser cookies for the purpose of restoring them later without user knowledge and express consent.”
  • (SM) for the record, Silverlight also has a local storage option… its a common and necessary technology from a developers standpoint
  • (JP- so do most of the aps on your smartphone .. .see Stevens previous note must for devs.)

• Blizzard Wins $88 Million Lawsuit Against Private Server (SM)
  • Lady ran a private server that people could connect to
  • Sold items online via paypal
  • IT WAS A MULTI-MILLION dollar business (3 million in profits)
  • This wasn’t a small operation, 32,000 players in one day
  • 427,393 strong in the community (x$200 for each circumvention)
  • She didn’t even show up in court to refute the claims
    • (JP – was she on a beach on her own private island sipping Mai Tais?)

• One Step Closer to Robots Taking Over (udg)
  • Researchers in the U.K. are working on a robot that will develop emotions as it interacts w peoples
  • Scientists at the University of Hertfordshire announced this week that they have finalized a prototype of a robot capable of learning how to express emotions
  • It is designed to form attachments, interact with people and show emotions through bodily expressions.
  • So far it’s mastered happiness, sadness, fear, excitement and pride.
  • The robots are designed to learn how to respond to humans by feeding off of facial expressions and other social cues
  • Modeling emotions and learning on children and chimpanzees (ut oh!)
  • Increase in speculation that robot companions will hit the market soon
  • Companions and caregivers= ok future. Spouses, not so much.
  • David Levy, British Artificial Intelligence Researcher predicts people will be marrying robots by 2050?!?
  • Dating and mating one is already almost possible thanks to TrueCompanion.com (you do need to bee 18+ to view their site)
  • I took one for the team and Roxxxy is only $1,495 right now- $5,000 off her base price.
  • Rocky, the male version is not yet available. Oh. Darn.
  • Ok, the FAQ even creeped me out.
  • But not as much as the video did. JINKIES!!!

• 5,000,000 Legitimate domains infected by Malware (SM)
  • Network solutions hosts a widget that serves up malware after you install it on your hosted site (Small Business Success Index)
  • One catch, this widget is installed by default on all the parked domains for Network Solutions…
  • Google it and thats like 500,000 parked domains serving up malware
  • Yahoo says 5,000,000…
  • Scary part? only 50% of the virus scanners can detect the malware…
  • You would think a HUGE company like Network Solutions would be more diligent on one of their base pages.
  • Read our link for full details on what the malware does and how prolific the problem is
    • (JP – Laundry list of things this touches is frightening!!!)

Intarweb Goldmine

• Melting IPod halts rush hour train
  • Smell of smoke made them stop the train for 8 minutes to find the source
  • Apparently an IPod exploded in someone’s hand
  • Not the first time, lawsuit in progress by mother of 15 year old claiming one had blown up in her sons pants.
  • 60 instances of overheating w/ 4 injuries recorded in the US alone
  • (SM) Is that an Ipod in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

• Boardng for the Lord
  • A Hungarian Roman Catholic priest has become a YouTube hit with his method of spreading the word on wheels.
  • The Reverend Zoltan Lendvai, 45 believes skateboarding can open the way to God for young people.
  • The video of him in action, Funny Priest Skateboarding, has so far attracted close to 170,000 hits and now also has a music version.
  • He learned his skills at the age of 14 at school but it was only later, when he served as a priest  and ihad 3 boyrs btwn the ages of 16 & 18 who’d never gone to chuch but started coming regularly after he showed him a few tricks, that he realized the impact his skill could have on youngsters.
  • His first board bore the papal coat of arms and he has since given away at least six to his young parishioners
  • Video here
  • (JP – This may be proof of a miracle… no cars wreck in the background of the video… I must admit if I was driving down the road and saw a priest on a board I would probably crash my dang car! also… rather hilarious that the song they edit to this video has cursing galore!!)

• Sumo Suit Athletics World Championships Went Down This Past Weekend
  • Began in 2008 and founded on the profound basis of “it just seemed a fun idea when suggested in the pub one day “
  • The premise is simple: you don a sumo suit and compete in a variety of events over an afternoon.
  • Medals are awarded for each individual event and also for the overall ‘athlete’ of the day.
  • Video here
  • Only one question… WHY?

• Robot That Sells Ice Cream, Reason #4,393 I Love The Japanese (udg)
  • Robots + Ice cream (“???????”) = EPIC WIN
  • Yasukawa-kun is currently working a Tokyo Summerland.
  • While the video is awesome, going to see Yasukawa-kun in action live is yet another reason a trip to Japan is #1 on my Bucket List.
  • For the record, I will try to translate the song for you all, but it’s hilarious!
  • And hells yeah I’m following him on Twitter.
  • Another clip of “Robo Cream”
  • Unfortunately I won’t be seeing Yasukawa-kun as Tokyo Summerland (a water park) lists the following warning on its site “Management strictly prohibits the entry of persons affiliated with crime syndicates and persons with tattoos (including non-permanent body stickers and body paint) into Tokyo Summerland. “
  • I have a permanent ban as well… (JP) I have been accused of being Yakuza on multiple occasions due to my ink.

Extra Links

• 8 and 16 bit demakes
• Top 10 SWCV Moments
• Healthy Bento Boxes
• Stewart grills Lucas (Polish 501st FTW, Lucas: It helps to be nuts)

Contact Info

• On Twitter: Steven is @DarthMolen and I am @JPuent Natali is @UberDorkGirlie
• email us: darthmolen@thepowergeeks.com and jpuent@thepowergeeks.com and uberdorkgirlie@thepowergeeks.com (yay!)
• And Become a Fan

Sponsors

FanboyScouts.com

• Ever wanted to award your loved one for the Kessel Run?
• Ever braved a Danger Room and wanted to show your friends proudly?
• Now you can with merit badges from fanboyscouts.com! 11 collectible badges
• Get ‘em while they are hot, and limited

Prof. Mordarm’s “The Wandering Geek Con Journal”

• Kickstarter Project by Lorenzo R.(aka @Prof_Mordarm), create a useful medium to inform people of Geeky Cons across the U.S., both big and small.
• Series of physical journals that will be written in and by the geeks, the panelists, the cosplayers, the vendors, & the fans. Everyone & anyone at a Con can write in this journal Allowing good, bad, and geeky experiences to liv on
• When enough content is gathered, these experiences will be published into easy to read (online, PDF, & hardcopy) editions each year. It will be the Geek’s version of the Farmer’s Almanac, but for Geeky Cons!
• To help get your own TWGCJ and/or support or if you have questions, check out the Kickstarter @ http://kck.st/cNUADw & also follow the project creator on Twitter for updates.

http://luxurylanesoap.com, @KyleeLane, GORGEOUS, IMAGINATIVE, HANDCRAFTED, GEEKY Soap

• Can I say any more superlatives? You will love her products.
• (We Do! They’re Geekalicious! but don’t eat them… they are SOAP!)

We are LIVE on Ustream!!! This week we talk GENCON!!! UberDorkGirlie gives her rundown of the venerable geek conference, but no PICS of the famed slumber party, and much more…

(JP) Happy Birthday to WOZ!!! Steve turns 60 today! so we wish him a Power Geeky Birthday!

Gold Sponsors:
UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka @UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Kickstarter site for UberDorkCafe, these places just don’t build themselves
• Woookie Coookies – a piece of UDC before there is even a physical cafe

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World hits theaters Friday. (udg)
  • Based on comic Scott Pilgrim by Brian Lee O’Malley
  • Looks like a whole lotta awesome that does the comic proud

• JP – Golden Pic and Golden Pic Lite for Android devices
  • Both are available in the Android Market for Android devices running 1.5 or later
  • Lite is a free version (ad supported) with slightly limited functionality
  • Full version is only $1.99 USD
  • Go Buy it! or try it, then buy it!

Geek Speak

• Gen Con- The best 4 days in Gaming

• • Indy this past weekend Aug 5-8 43rd year
  • I’ve not been to one since it left Milwaukee
  • Media Guests of Honor- Felicia Day, the cast of The Guild and Will Wheaton. Checked in to get my press pass, hit the goodie table, turned around – Felicia
  • )
  • Cos Play-
  • s
  • Tons of great artists, I’ll have to compile a list of all of them for ya for the site.
  • 

• • Jackass Chef there WHY? Hello stereotypes. I wanted to junkpunch.

Oh wait, there were games!

• Magic: The Gathering celebrated “Summer of Mulitplayer” with 5 multiplayer events each day
• True Adventures (producers of True dungeon live-action gaming event) raised $9,000 for the Gary Gygax memorial to be raised in Lake Geneva, Wi- the birthplace of Gen con.  (JP – I met Gary at GenCon in Indy like 20 something years ago… he introduced me to the 100 sided die! )
• Atari announced they are working on something new. Wouldn’t say what, but based on new domain names they recently registered, it points to a Neverwinter Nights MMO on the horizon.
• So… AWESOME weekend!!! And lots of hugs for everyone…

• • !
  • !

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Rubiks Cube Solvable in 20 Moves (SM)
  • Did you know that most human’s can solve a rubiks cube in about 40 moves?
  • What you are actually doing when you combine rubiks twists is called an algorithm
  • Well, the magic number for the fewest twists is called “God’s Number”
  • It only took 35 total years of google computer time to get to it

• 12 Core Mac Pro Now Commercially Available (JP) – The Sticky note of infamy was up on the Store page the other day… MAC refresh was there when the sticky was gone.
  • You’re gonna pay a cool $5k for the low end of this system
  • two 2.66GHz six-core Intel Xeon Westmere processors, 6GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive, and an ATI Radeon HD 5770 graphics card (up to 3 monitors, dx11 support)
  • 21.5” iMac
    • i3 processor, discreet graphics, 1080p
    • $1099, No blu-ray option (Steve says this isn’t coming to any MAC despite demand from user base)

• Cookie Headset- I can haz any cookie? (udg)
  • “Meta Cookie” is an “interactive gustatory display” by Takuji Narumi of the University of Tokyo
  • Helmet with goggles connected to a camera
  • Person chooses whatever cookie they want out of ones shown to them
  • Handed plain cookie. Airtubes attached to helmet pump smell of desired cookie into nose
  • Wrong… just plain wrong I tell you.
  • (SM) This is a perfect way for Vegetarians to try Woookiee Cookies!
  • Speaking of Wookie Cookies… I think the postman ate mine! JP

• Droid 2 to release on Verizon with Special Star Wars R2D2 Edition (JP)
  • the worst kept secret from Verizon the Droid 2 will be available for pre-order aug 12th and will ship with Android 2.2
  • Amusingly, Motorola and Verizon also announced that they will offer a special edition Star Wars version of the Motorola Droid 2 in September. The R2D2 Droid 2 will come with Stars Wars content and it will be made to look like R2D2 Astromech droid from the Star Wars film. Motorola didn’t share a picture of the R2D2 version of the Droid 2
    • (side note regarding 2.2 FroYo on current droids – 2 hrs ago )

• Netflix getting closer to streaming 1st run movies (SM)
  • Paramount, Lion’s Gate, MGM
  • It’ll cost Netflix nearly 1 billion to do so
  • The deal will commence Sept. 1.
  • Ted Sarandos, taking a “pile of money” from USPS, giving it to studios ($600 million)

• Facebook hacked, Names and photos revealed (udg)
  • A bug in FB’s login system allows attackers to match unknown email addresses with users’ first and last names, even if set to private
  • If the address belongs to any one of the 500 million active users the site will return the full name and picture associated with the account.
  • Facebook has been under repeated attack for revealing way too much private info about it’s users over the past couple of years.
  • Their response was giving users more control over who could see what.
  • The name-to-email address extraction bug proves that doesn’t really work.
  • We can expect to see a fix to this soon?

• Games responsible for 5 billion of US economy (JP)
  • A study commissioned by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) found that the video game industry added about $5 billion to the US economy in 2009.
  • Entitled “Video Games in the 21st Century: The 2010 Report” [PDF link], claims the industry directly employs about 32,000 people in the US and indirectly employs 120,000 (GameStop employees, video game media, manufacturing and distribution).
  • Average industry employee makes $89,781 a year. Obviously that’s not the GameStop employee, but that is the average of them all.  (Kiddies this means video game programming pays… testing… not so much!)
  • CA lays claim to 41% of the employees in the industrty
  • The annual growth rate of the industry exceeded 10% between 2005 & 2009

• Starcraft 2 Tourneys offer $500k total (SM)
  • We know how South Korean’s love their starcraft
  • One TV network locked down Blizzard broadcast rights in SK, GomTV
  • New league, Global Starcraft 2 League, hellbent on luring SC 1 players over to 2
  • Offering $125,000 PER TOURNAMENT, 64 player field, 1 a month for rest of 2010
  • Plans for grand finale in 2011, Nothing says progress like money
  • Scintillating Starcraft commentary

Intarweb Goldmine

• Prisoners thank Plants vs Zombies (udg)
  • Where? Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines
  • The guard actually left the keys lying around while he became engrossed in a round of Plants vs. Zombies,  DUH!! Hello Prison Guard 101
  • Four of the inmates were caught soon after the escape, but one still remains at large
  • interesting side note… the guard should no longer have access to his idevice since he’ll be rooming with some of his former wards!! hahahaha

• Guy wants a roomate in SoHo who isn’t a Mac Fanboy (JP)
  • An ad posted to Craigslist yesterday is from an open-minded sort of guy who wants a roommate for an apartment in Soho. Sounds typical, right? Here’s the catch: He insists that prospective roommates not have an iPhone or an iPad.
• The ad states that “I refuse to live with anyone that has sold their immortal soul to Steve Jobs.” He’s also looking for a guy with Starcraft II experience, and wants any potential live-ins to post a link to their battle.net profile and to prove to him that they don’t own an iPhone.
  • The New York Observer found the guy, Vince Thomas, and he said he currently lives with another fellow who is a Mac fan, and Vince says he “just can’t take it anymore.” Vince has a Droid phone from Motorola, and apparently he’d rather talk about that instead.
• Vince has a point. Some of us love our iPhones. In social situations I don’t bring it up unless someone asks. I’m even feeling a bit guilty about the ‘Sent from my iPhone’ tag on my mail. If I write Vince I’ll be sure to change it to ‘Sent from my wonderful Droid, which is so much better than the iPhone I ditched.’
  • (JP) my bet is… this guy is no picnic to live with either!
  • (udg) Are you sure this guy’s name wasn’t Steven????

• Woman driven mad by McDonalds
  • Woman in Ohio gets incensed because MiccyD’s is serving b-fast and can’t get nuggets
  • Reached through drive-thru and punches 2 employees then smashes Drive-thru window
  • Gets 60 days in jail
  • Proof that fast food and McDonalds CAN drive ppl nuts…

• Woman quits job in style
  • Was sexually harassed at work
  • revealed her quitting in 33 pictures
  • Kicker? Her boss installed a spy for monitoring web traffic
  • He himself played 19 hrs of Farmville a week
  • UDG- SORRY THIS IS A HOAX!!! (woulda been awesome though)

Extra Links

• Net Neutrality: Argument For
• Geek Love: Edgar Wright Talks Scott Pilgrim

Contact Info

• On Twitter: Steven is @DarthMolen and I am @JPuent Natali is @UberDorkGirlie
• email us: darthmolen@thepowergeeks.com and jpuent@thepowergeeks.com and uberdorkgirlie@thepowergeeks.com (yay!)
• And Become a Fan

Sponsors

FanboyScouts.com

• Ever wanted to award your loved one for the Kessel Run?
• Ever braved a Danger Room and wanted to show your friends proudly?
• Now you can with merit badges from fanboyscouts.com! 11 collectible badges
• Get ‘em while they are hot, and limited

http://luxurylanesoap.com, @KyleeLane, GORGEOUS, IMAGINATIVE, HANDCRAFTED, GEEKY Soap

• Can I say any more superlatives? You will love her products.
• (We Do! They’re Geekalicious! but don’t eat them… they are SOAP!)

We are LIVE on Ustream!!!  This week we bring on the Geek Scouts, Talking some really cool action figures, Getting all tin foil hats about China, and our first racy Intarweb Goldmine. Click here to download this episode

To intro the screwees, we have our wonderful co-host @UberDorkGirlie, Natali

and  her partner in crime, our long lost @GeekGirl Kristin Rielly

Unfortunately our ever lovely Jeremy Puent is away on personal bidness, we wish him well, so we have a guest co-host this week, Justin Hurst, owner of Rockthelan.com and co-host of his own podcast “The missing Ink” – Natali: He decided to slum with us this week
<<Justin doesn’t talk til here>>

Gold Sponsors:

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka @UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Kickstarter site for UberDorkCafe, these places just don’t build themselves

Deals of the Week / New Releases

New Geeky DVD / Blu-Ray Releases (2nd week of June)

• FLASH GORDON – Blu-Ray!!!! (if you don’t know this -50 DKP 4 u) All hail Brian Blessed, Timothy Dalton and Max Von Sydow!!!
• Darkman – Blu-Ray!!! (1990 production, mad scientist, off the hinges)
• The Book of Eli – Blu-Ray (Haven’t seen yet but heard good things)
• MacGyver (TV Movies) – DVD – ‘Nuff said, GET NOW!
• “The Blind Menace” – DVD – Shintaro Katsu before Zatoichi (mmm, 1950’s b&w samurai)

Geek Speak

• SDCC Comicon Panel – @geekgirls coming on show! (iKDR)
• GeekGirls Tweetup! (iKDR)

• Blizzard backs off Real ID Mandate for Forums
  • @CustomPCMax happy (although maybe not unbanned)
  • Forums will no longer use mandatory Real ID
  • Lets talk a little bit more about ID’s
  • (UDG) on an ironic note, 961 people that filed a complaint against Blizzard for this with the ESRB had their email addresses exposed by ESRB
  • (SM) It’s not surprising really, gamers are all about form and habits. Games don’t revolution, evolve. Forums – “rules” – Anonimity.

• Most awesomest.improv.EVAR! (Star Wars Subway)

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Judge Rules File Sharing Award Unconstitutional (UDG)
  • Joel Tanenbaum was found guily of file sharing by Jury
  • RIAA was awarded $675,000 in damages
  • The judge reduced the amount 90% to 67,500
  • Declared unconstitutional “that the damages are excessive in proportion to the crime”
  • Heartening to know that Due Process protects both corporations and private individuals alike

• RIAA Pays 13 million to recover $400,000 (SM)
  • So 2008 was a bad year for the RIAA, spent a but load of money and only got back little
  • 2007 was even worse: 21 million and $515,000 recovered
  • 2006: $19,000,000 for only $455,000
  • Overall: $64,000,000 for only $1,361,000

• Lawsuit against Apple,AT&T 2 yr vs. 5 yr. contracts (JH)
  • Already know about the other I4 antenna lawsuit
  • this one concerns the single provider status of the IPhone
  • Suing: You sign a 2 year contract w/ them to get your device
  • After contract over, Where can you go? Still only AT&T. implicit contract

• Consumer Reports Cannot Recommend IPhone 4G (SM – just put this in)
  • Not alone in these thoughts, Others rate high but don’t give recommendations
  • Antenna recall could cost up to $1.5 billion
  • (UDG) Apple just announced a press conference for Fri Re
  • Simple answer: Give a free rubber bumper, TCO $1 to company
  • Bring up all the “interesting” stuff Apple has done lately
  • Jobs Health non-disclosure, Attacks on Adobe Flash, Lost Prototypes, app dev restrict

• Google creates WYSIWYG Android App Creator (UDG)
  • Wow, its a drag-and-drop way to create apps
  • Could spur a lot of creativity without knowing code
  • I’m guessing 90-10 rule though, with more volume
  • Still in invite-beta (SM)pretty-plz-get-me-in

• Edward Norton (old hulk) will not appear in Avengers (JH)
  • Edward has been flapping in the wind for awhile now (since 2008)
  • There were some creative differences even in the filming of “Incredible Hulk”
  • Marvel Studio Prez Kevin Feige delivers the slap down – “We have made the decision to not bring Ed Norton back to portray the title role of Bruce Banner in the Avengers,” wrote Feige. “Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members. The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Sam, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts. We are looking to announce a name actor who fulfills these requirements, and is passionate about the iconic role in the coming weeks.”
  • the rumors on the Internet are that Ed is a bit of a prima donna and in an ensemble movie cast is that good?
  • Cast: (SM – I’ll take over for cast)
    • Joss Whedon (is your master) Director
    • Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man
    • Chris Evans as Captain America
    • Chris Hemsworth as Thor (Thor, the movie in 3D)
    • Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury

• 4k Video comes to YouTube (4096p) (SM)
  • Meant for a 25ft screen. Imax is actually 2 projectors at 2K each
  • Projectors for that size are the size of small refrigerators
  • Video Editor also new
    • Browser based editor that allows you to splice multiple videos together
    • Limited functionality but better than nuthin! (trims but doesn’t cut)
  • Lean-back service
    • Their new “suggestion” Service
    • Takes your subscriptions, your friends likes, your shares, plays them in full screen back to back.
    • In Beta, Deployment been pushed back
  • $5 million in grants to v-loggers
    • Have to be invited to apply
    • Will be for independent v-loggers who generate good content to help them make better content

• Google + Zynga = Cash Cow & Not just in Farmville (UDG)
  • I totally called this last week
  • The $100-200M investment was made by Google itself, not Google Ventures (according to slashdot)
  • Trouble for Paypal? Zynga is Paypal’s biggest client. Replace w/ Google Checkout ?
  • The data alone Google could obtain from Zynga may be worth the investment alone
  • Why not an outright purchase? Testing the waters? Scared of regulatory concerns?
  • “Google is supposed to know everything about us and its lack of social data is a key hole in its world domination strategy”
  • Zynga’s latest game launch “Frontierville” sucked in 5.2M daily active users in just 2 weeks.
  • New Orleans on $30 a day (my experiment with Vampire Wars)

Intarweb Goldmine

• Zombies Crash Car, Apocalypse imminent (UDG)
  • Portland, Oregon on Friday night near downtown- I-84
  • Car full of Zombies swerving in traffic eastbound 9:30
  • Rolled.
  • On way to party. Some escaped on foot?
  • (SM) How do they escape? They’re ZOMBIES! (I guess if they are runners)

• Drunk Tourist Rides crocodile, Bad Things Happen

• USB Wedding Ring = +200 Geek Points

Extra Links

• Geek Girls Tweetup at SDCC
• Unmanned Golf Cart Ready for Military
• 15 Domain Names for Batman
• Best.Comic.Crossover.EVAR
• Pink Unicorn Vader
• The Expendables: Call To Arms

Contact Info

• On Twitter: Steven is @DarthMolen and I am @JPuent Natali is @UberDorkGirlie
• email us: darthmolen@thepowergeeks.com and jpuent@thepowergeeks.com and uberdorkgirlie@thepowergeeks.com (yay!)
• And Become a Fan

What’s new for Geek Girls Network? um…San Diego Comic-Con!!

• “Geeks Girls Exist” Panel on Thursday:
  • 5:30-6:30 Geek Girls Exist – Really? Kristin Rielly (Geek Girls Network – @geekgirls) leads a discussion about growing up geek, turning passions into careers, and who shot first. Representing the many awesome aspects of the geek culture, panelists Morgan Romine (The Frag Dolls), Bonnie Burton (The Star Wars Craft Book), Marian Call (Singer-Songwriter), Sarah Kuhn (One Con Glory), Jill Pantozzi  (Has Boobs Reads Comics), Veronica Belmont (Qore), and Kiala Kazebee (GeekWeek) will school you on what it means to be a real geeky girl and even make you LOL IRL. Room 8
• Geek Tweet-Up on Friday:
  • Join the biggest Geek Tweet-Up event of all time on Friday, July 23rd from 8pm-11pm at Jolt ‘N Joes (Gaslamp location) in San Diego.
  • Hosted by @geekgirls, @thenerdybird, and @geekgirldiva, this Tweet-Up is sure to be even bigger and better than NYC!

Sponsors

Wow4Cure.com

• Plans to play non-stop to level 40 and raise $10,000 for cancer
• Scheduled to take place Aug. 6th and they will continue playing if the donations keep coming
• Check out their website, we’ll talk more about them in the weeks to come

http://luxurylanesoap.com, @KyleeLane, GORGEOUS, IMAGINATIVE, HANDCRAFTED, GEEKY Soap

• Can I say any more superlatives? You will love her products.
• (We Do! They’re Geekalicious! but don’t eat them… they are SOAP!)

We are LIVE on Ustream!!! We talk Blizzard Real ID (man, people hate this one), Zombies, Iphone and Android stuff, and much more! download edited show || unedited show.

(SM) Story about my boy: First geek utterance: “This rock is my precioussss”

Gold Sponsors:

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Natali was nice enough to come on the show last week, and bear our presence.  and tell us all about UberDorkCafe. We loved her voice so much that we brought her back this week to tell us what has gone on since last we talked
• Kickstarter site for UberDorkCafe, these places just don’t build themselves

Deals of the Week / New Releases

Gov 2.0 Mobile Apps

• FBI’S Most Wanted- (udg) Cuz ya know the stalkers like me. Totally got distracted for a second by the $1.99 “study for the FBI Exam app” Next time!!
  • Features the 10 most wanted (Seriously this really large old Ukaranian dude is #1? How hard can he be to catch? ), Top Terrorists, and Missing Kids (huge sad face).
  • You can submit a tip straight from app or click through to the “official page” on each person.
  • Also contains links to the official FB, Twitter and YouTube’s for the FBI.
• Fema App – (JP) odd… I tried installing the FEMA app but it said it’ll take at least three weeks before it shows up on my iPhone??? What the hell?
• Recall App (SM – Android and web)
  • Scary stuff… makes me not want to buy anything ever again
  • One consequence of a toyota valve spring cover recall – “The engine could fail and stop suddenly while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of a crash” *yikes*
  • (udg- if only people came w/ warning labels and could be found on here!)
• DVD releases this week:
  • Brooklyn’s Finest
  • The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (english subtitles – if Ihave to read, I’ll read the best seller book)
  • A single man

Geek Speak

Blizzard’s Real ID – Casting Anonimity aside (big topic for gamers)

• SC2 and Facebook Integration
• Are we ready as gamers, to cast our anonimity aside?
  • (JP) – I am good and confused by some information out there?
• Story on GameSpot (JP)
  • This story seems to have some very inflammatory words regarding this service
    • IE Required, or automatically shared
• info from Battle.net on this (JP)
  • Real ID is a completely voluntary and optional level of identity that keeps players connected across all of Battle.net. When you and a friend mutually agree to become Real ID friends, you’ll have access to a number of additional features that will enrich your social gaming experience in new and exciting ways.
  • This seems reasonable and actually useful, however if it is more of the facebook approach than what I am reading at this link… I imagine a lot of people will be upset and possibly leave….
• SCII Forums, Real ID will be mandatory
  • “The official forums have always been a great place to discuss the latest info on our games, offer ideas and suggestions, and share experiences with other players,” a Blizzard representative posted in a separate thread explaining the changes. “However, the forums have also earned a reputation as a place where flame wars, trolling, and other unpleasantness run wild. Removing the veil of anonymity typical to online dialogue will contribute to a more positive forum environment, promote constructive conversations, and connect the Blizzard community in ways they haven’t been connected before.”

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Final Fantasy XIV Release Announced (udg)
  • Looks pretty sweet!
  • Collector’s Edition PC scheduled for Sept 22- $74.99
  • Reg PC edition scheduled for Sept 30- $49.99
  • PS3 version not scheduled until March of 2011 but GameStop has preorder up?
  • Producer Hiromichi Tanaka has said it won’t be appearing on the Xbox 360, citing       problems with the “closed” nature of Xbox Live
  • While the lack of an Xbox release is not new, the fact that the PC vs is being made available 6 months before PS3 vs has left sony faithfuls pretty pissed.

• Google Developing FB Killer (SM)
  • Details still very sketchy, no denials but no thumbs up either
  • (SM)Yet another Buzz? (their twitter killer)
  • (JP) I saw this and thought the same thing… but then I thought maybe they learned from Buzz

• Cisco Promises WiFi Flip, and would love to make it FaceTime enabled (JP)
  • Cisco disclosed plans this week to loaunch a new Flip video camera that is WiFi enabled This will probably enable all sorts of sharing direct to InsertSiteHere Widgets
  • JP – short talk about this camera
  • They have also said they did not buy Flip for it to be strictly a video camera and would love to integrate it with Apple iOS devices
  • Cisco also hinted that they are working on a video client that will be submitted to the app store soon
  • Cisco has also started working on a Video transcoding system. the Media Experience Engine will work inside Carrier or Enterprise networks to automagically convert Flash video into formats supported by iOS devices like iPhones and iPads.

• Take That England! Our Zombies are better! (udg)
  • On Sat July 3rd, over 4,200 Zombies marched in Seattle to set a new record
  • Prev “Guinness Record for World’s Largest Zombie Walk” was held by England 4,026
  • They took it from Seattle
  • This Saturday Sacramento is gearing for it’s own take over of the record (Seriously, I lived in the Bay Area and have been to Sacramento, this would be the ONLY reason to go there.)
  • If they are successful, Seattle will challenge again in Oct when ZomBcon comes

• Wow: Cataclysm Close Beta Starts (SM)
  • (SM) Yours truly is in Don’t hate the playa, hate the game
  • 2 levels, 3 areas, 1 dungeon, plenty of patching

• Droid suffers another set back in the war against iPhone for mobile supremecy (JP)
  • The HTC Incredible gets delayed again, new release date is August 5th
  • What’s the real cause some are claiming parts shortages, some are claiming Verizon pushed it because of the release of the Droid X next week
  • Forums are abuzz with all sorts of ideas, and apparently everyone who calls gets a different answer from the fine folks over at HTC… so go put your tin foil hats on and contribute to the hysteria.

• The only place IPhone doesn’t reign supreme: China (SM)
  • More expensive than the knock offs ($730 – $1003)
  • Only 1 carrier currently distributes (China Unicom)
  • 100,000 units distributed (compared to the 146 million person base)
  • No wi-fi support because there’s no proprietary WAPI installed in the OS
  • Lenovo appreciates your reticence (released their own smart phone – LePhone)

• Futurama Debut Successful (JP)
  • 2.9 million viewers
  • Highest rated for young men on all TV + highest rating for network all year
  • Only bigger program? Southpark (3 million viewers regularly) (JP – remember it’s not fat… just big boned)

• Flying car for the marines (SM)
  • Hello Jetsons!
  • Made by Logi Aerospace and called the Tyrannos
  • Designed specifically for the military- fly above roadside bombs
  • “Shrouded Propeller” allows it to take off vertically
  • Logi’s site describes it as a “s a four-person SUVish sort of thing ‘that anyone can literally drive into the air.’ (Arial attacking soccer moms??)
  • Logi’s press release turned from patriotic to talk of transforming “modern lifestyles.”
  • It can cut the commute from Santa Barbara to L.A. from 2 hours down to 35 min.
  • And it’s “eco-friendly” cuz it can land on battery power only.
  • (JP) hmmm.. having beena US Marine… I have an issue with the conceptual design presented here…. it doesn’t appear very… WHat’s the word I’m looking for??? sturdy?
  • I think a small child with some rocks could possibly take that thing down.

• $10 Cellphone Microscope Winning Awards (UDG)
  • Aydogan Ozcan of UCLA has developed a lightweight & cheap attachment that turns cellphones into mini medical labs.
  • Can analyze blood and saliva samples for microparticles, red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, and water borne parasites.
  • Won 3  prestigious awards for the device: a Grand Challenges award from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (worth $100,000), the National Geographic Emerging Explorer award (worth $10,000), and the CAREER award from the National Science Foundation ($400,000).
  • The team is taking the attachment to Africa for testing in hopes to revolutionize global medicine.
  • It uses an LED to illuminate a sample and then analyze the sample’s shadow to get information.
  • Someone in the field takes a blood or saliva sample, places it into the device and sends the picture to an automated database which will return data on the required information.

• Netflix Streaming gets First-Run movies (SM)
  • One studio so far, Relativity Media, “Get him to the Greek” and “Grown Ups”
  • Plans to release 20 movies over the contract lifetime
  • All will come within the TV PPV window
  • Cites dwindling DVD rentals and wanting to get on the next gen streaming wagon

• Hulu Plus Announced (SM)
  • Full Seasons (not just the last 5 trailers)
  • Availability on multiple platforms: PC, IPhone, X360, PS3
  • $9.99 a month, Full HD ABC,NBC,Fox Series
  • X360 will only be available to gold subscribers, extra amenities, next year
  • PS3 will only be available to plus during preview period
    • (JP) – this is quite a bit pricier than I expected… Are you willing to pay this much for free tv shows?

Intarweb Goldmine

• Vuvuzela Hero (udg)
  • The infamous instrument that annoyed the world this summer meets Guitar Hero.
  • Please Activision, just say no.

• In one of those headlines you have to read twice… and then again….
  • Ohio woman poses as 14 yr old Boy… to have sex with a girl
  • Authorities say 31-year-old Patricia Dye of Franklin used the alias Matt Abrams as the girl’s boyfriend, and that the girl did not know Dye was a woman.
  • Dye is charged with unlawful sexual conduct with and contributing to the delinquency of a minor and is being held in the Butler County jail on $100,000 bond.

• Kick Ass for Realz Tennessee Style (udg)

• • 20 yo college student Christian Tyler Hardee is (by day) pursuing art and chemistry majors at Union University in Jackson, TN
  • wants to be known as “The Viper”
  • Police stopped him shortly after midnight cuz wearing a mask is illegal in Columbia, Tennessee
  • The self-professed comic book nerd was armed with a utility belt housing a screw driver, wrenches and a cell phone. Ninja stars were found in his car though.
  • He told the local TV station Monday that , “I am just a guy trying to do what’s right, in tights.”   (JP – I’m afraid to ask… but what? is right for a GUY in tights?)
  • Rock on lil tight wearing comic nerd! May wanna add some heavier artillery in your belt though and I suggest some kevlar over the tights.

• • Does Megan Fox have a Big toe for a thumb? (JP)
    • Hot as she is… she’s not perfect this story claims she has “Murderer’s Thumb” which was the old Gypsy fortune tellers name for Brachydactyly type D Also known as stump Thumb, club thumb, toe thumb, potters thumb and many others!
    • (SM) Plus she can’t keep her mouth shut…..

Extra Links

• Geek Girls Tweetup at SDCC
• Best.Xmen.Comic.EVAR
• TechNewsWorld Talks Why Mobile App vs iPhone vs Others for New Gov Apps.

Contact Info

• On Twitter: Steven is @DarthMolen and I am @JPuent Natali is @UberDorkGirlie
• email us: darthmolen@thepowergeeks.com and jpuent@thepowergeeks.com and uberdorkgirlie@thepowergeeks.com (yay!)
• And Become a Fan

What’s new for Geek Girls Network? um…San Diego Comic-Con!!

• “Geeks Girls Exist” Panel on Thursday:
  • 5:30-6:30 Geek Girls Exist – Really? Kristin Rielly (Geek Girls Network – @geekgirls) leads a discussion about growing up geek, turning passions into careers, and who shot first. Representing the many awesome aspects of the geek culture, panelists Morgan Romine (The Frag Dolls), Bonnie Burton (The Star Wars Craft Book), Marian Call (Singer-Songwriter), Sarah Kuhn (One Con Glory), Jill Pantozzi  (Has Boobs Reads Comics), Veronica Belmont (Qore), and Kiala Kazebee (GeekWeek) will school you on what it means to be a real geeky girl and even make you LOL IRL. Room 8
• Geek Tweet-Up on Friday:
  • Join the biggest Geek Tweet-Up event of all time on Friday, July 23rd from 8pm-11pm at Jolt ‘N Joes (Gaslamp location) in San Diego.
  • Hosted by @geekgirls, @thenerdybird, and @geekgirldiva, this Tweet-Up is sure to be even bigger and better than NYC!

Sponsors

Wow4Cure.com

• Plans to play non-stop to level 40 and raise $10,000 for cancer
• Scheduled to take place Aug. 6th and they will continue playing if the donations keep coming
• Check out their website, we’ll talk more about them in the weeks to come

http://luxurylanesoap.com, @KyleeLane, GORGEOUS, IMAGINATIVE, HANDCRAFTED, GEEKY Soap

• Can I say any more superlatives? You will love her products.
• (We Do! They’re Geekalicious! but don’t eat them… they are SOAP!)

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Natali was nice enough to come on the show last week, and bear our presence. and tell us all about UberDorkCafe. We loved her voice so much that we brought her back this week to tell us what has gone on since last we talked
• Kickstarter site for UberDorkCafe, these places just don’t build themselves

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• 3TB hard drive now for sale, $250
  • ok, we’re talking about 3TB on one platter… just thought I would mention it

• Free Realms Free for the Weekend (@CustomPCMax)
  • Sure this is free in some areas but it is more of a freemium game than a f2p
  • Weekend to allow viewing of “paid” content including job classes and member items
  • SOE is the main purveyor of this MMO

• Steam Play it Safe Stay Inside Save Big SALE (JP)
  • sales every day from June 24th – July 4th
  • Different games on sale each 24 hours up to 75% off
  • Dragon Age, BioShock, Star Wars Galaxies (for $5)
  • The Valve Complete Pack (includes 22 games) for only $66.99 saving you $60.80 off normal price
  • Check back each day, but be sure to buy before July 4th!

Geek Speak

U.S. out of the space race

• Already the constellation program winding down, jobs being lost
• Does this mean that we are out of the space race?
• International agreement is hard to come by
• Has anyone seen the state of the U.N.?
• Intense commercialization = yet more of our tax dollars leaving the country…

Wonder Woman Gets A New Look (udg)

• Do we really need to fully remake classic heroines/heroes?
• Were they finally “listening to the female fans”?
• She needed to look like she was in “modern times.” With non functional gold spurs over spandex?
• (SM)The hottest hour of TV I’ve ever seen, “Bones” wore WW costume for the whole episode
• (SM) Don’t get me started, Seen the new Capt. America? (udg- I call that the “Polly Pocket Plastic” look)

Natali is going to be WW for halloween

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• white house backs wireless broadband plan (JP)
  • Effectively double the national wireless bandwidth
  • Mandates that 500 MHZ of new bandwidth for wireless be apportioned
  • Part to come from gov’t, part from the broadcasters
  • Old Analog signals took more bandwidth than the new digital
  • This coming on heels of NOT backing the FCC on their broadband play for network neutrality

• Android 2.2 released next week (SM)
  • Nexus one getting the update first
  • Better exchange support
  • Faster Performance
  • ability to be a wifi hotspot for other computers
  • 2.2 will support Flash 10.1 inherently

• Hack AT&T Voicemail With An Android (UDG)

• (udg) There are 2 caller ID spoofing apps for Android now
• (SM) Feel free to give a quick overview of what entails, basically to show how easy it is…
• AT&T knows about it. Their response basically “yeah we know, so put a password in.”

• Brits go Ga-Ga for Iphone 4 (SM)
  • 6 carriers offered….
  • One carrier = $45 a month, $149 for IPhone 4 (3) (Is This US dollars? I don’t think it has been converted.)
  • The point is, they’re going like hotcakes. U.S. = hokey

• IOS 4 Antenna problems (JP)
  
  • Some reporting that you need a case to get good reception
  • Lawsuit already filed in California (and Maryland and a couple other states)
  • Holding it from the bottom left seems to be a big reason
  • (Email) Jobs fix? Buy a case or don’t hold it “that” certain way
  • Iphone 4 Costs $188 to make (for the 16GB version and not to make, for the parts.)
    
    • Funny thing, this same thing existed with the other iPhones, and actually pretty much every other cell phone on the market… why is it such a big deal for this one? everyone is just looking for something to attack)

• AppleCare Product Description Leaks iWork for iPhone (UDG)

• (udg)Earlier “open in keynote” prompt leak
• Is Apple (quality control freaks) really getting that sloppy? (or is this free marketing??? hmmmm….coincidence? or special sauce? – jp)
• Already available for iPad
• Is it really an app you would use on your phone?

• Microsoft planning its own app store w/ Windows 8 (SM)

• Leak documents show that M$ is prepping for their own app store
• Wants in on the Apple cash bonanza
• Offerings for all platforms
• Everything hosted in the cloud
  • (JP) – is this too little too late? when you’re the last one ot the dinner table, how many scraps are left?

• Cisco Introduces Cius Tablet (UDG)

• (udg)”It’s a business tablet, not an iPad competitor”
• Name? Cisco + Us= “see us”
• Aimed at enterprise users, not consumers
• 7 inch touch screen tablet that runs the Android OS
• Works with 3G, 4G, WiFi and Bluetooth
• HD 720p video, weighs 1.15lbs, detachable 8 hour battery, Intel Atom 1.6-GHz processor
• Available 1st quarter 2011, “under $1,000″
• Focus seems to be mobile video conferencing unit

• Microsoft Kin is Dead, Long live the Kin (JP)
  • 6 weeks after the product launch, they fold the team
  • No European launch as planned this fall
  • Continue to work with Verizon to sell phones
  • Another phone spin-off bites the dust
    • Who is going to buy a phone that has absolutely no future, no team, no dev, no prospects? no shit?

• Bejeweled Vuvuzela sells for $20g
  • The annoying horn is now synonymous with the World Cup
  • White Gold and Diamond annoying horn is being sold to a Russian customer for $17k Euro
  • Works just as well as the cheap variety

• Strip Club Loses Welfare Cashing Privileges
  • Since 2007, various clubs across California have had cashing privileges
  • $12 grand of welfare cash has been dispensed at these locations
  • The Terminator has since terminated their privileges…
  • We all know the great food at these establishments were what that cash went for

• Chinese Companies Rent White Foreigners
  • Job Market might be bad here, but migrate to China, buy you a Suit and Tie, and you got a job
  • Face, we say in China, is more important than life itself,’ said Zhang Haihua, author of Think Like Chinese. ‘Because Western countries are so developed, people think they are more well off, so people think that if a company can hire foreigners, it must have a lot of money and have very important connections overseas. So when they really want to impress someone, they may roll out a foreigner.’ ‘
  • So Rent-A-Ferner in full effect in china
  • Don’t believe us, watch the CNN clip

Contact Info

• “Geeks Girls Exist” Panel on Thursday:
  • 5:30-6:30 Geek Girls Exist – Really? Kristin Rielly (Geek Girls Network – @geekgirls) leads a discussion about growing up geek, turning passions into careers, and who shot first. Representing the many awesome aspects of the geek culture, panelists Morgan Romine (The Frag Dolls), Bonnie Burton (The Star Wars Craft Book), Marian Call (Singer-Songwriter), Sarah Kuhn (One Con Glory), Jill Pantozzi (Has Boobs Reads Comics), Veronica Belmont (Qore), and Kiala Kazebee (GeekWeek) will school you on what it means to be a real geeky girl and even make you LOL IRL. Room 8
• Geek Tweet-Up on Friday:
  • Join the biggest Geek Tweet-Up event of all time on Friday, July 23rd from 8pm-11pm at Jolt ‘N Joes (Gaslamp location) in San Diego.Hosted by @geekgirls, @thenerdybird, and @geekgirldiva, this Tweet-Up is sure to be even bigger and better than NYC!

Sponsors

Wow4Cure.com

• Plans to play non-stop to level 40 and raise $10,000 for cancer
• Scheduled to take place Aug. 6th and they will continue playing if the donations keep coming
• Check out their website, we’ll talk more about them in the weeks to come

(Live on UStream) We will be talking Internet Kill Switch, Internet Protocol Droids, E-Reader Price Wars, Digital Comics, and of course Megan Fox (oh yeah).(Click here to download edited show | unedited show)

UberDorkCafe

• Will be THE place for Geeks to hang out
• What is UberDorkCafe? It is the brain child and DREAM of Natali, aka UberDorkGirlie from twitter, and it blends art + science = geek
• Place to hang, eat, have awesome kid parties (if thats your thing), or to get your gaming on
• Natali was nice enough to come on the show last week, and bear our presence. and tell us all about UberDorkCafe. We loved her voice so much that we brought her back this week to tell us what has gone on since last we talked
• Kickstarter site for UberDorkCafe, these places just don’t build themselves

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• EA Massive .99 Sale

• SteamPunk meets Geekery on Etsy, or TechPunk (iKDR)
  • circuit board pendant
  • glass pendant with vintage vaccuum tube storms
  • silver vintage robot cufflinks
  • robot pocket watch
  • recycled circuit board earrings

• USB Typewriter doc for iPad
  • Very cool, old school not quite steampunkish but easily could be made into one item!!!

• Free Open Terminal app for MAC (JP)
  • This is one of the tiniest most useful applications I have found in a long time. This is one of those things that should be a no brainer, but isn’t
  • What does this do? in a nutshell it opens your current folder from finder in terminal
    • don’t know/ don’t care.. then this isn’t for you… this is for the most geekiest among us. If it’s for you, hit the show notes and grab this free and awesome little app

• SGU contest from one of our listeners (JP)
  
  • Chuck from Maryland is having a contest on Twitter every Friday Beginning Friday, 25 June 2010, 12PM ET, He will be sponsoring a contest for fellow Stargate Universe (SGU) fans via Twitter to win a free $10 Amazon.com Gift Certificate.
  • This week’s contest:
    • One of his favorite actors on Stargate Universe is Brian J. Smith who portrays 1LT Matthew Scott. Show producers and writers have so far not announced a middle name for his chracter.So, he is turning to his fellow fans. If you could suggest a middle name to SGU writers for 1LT Matthew Scott, what would it be?
  • How to enter the contest:1. Follow him on Twitter www.twitter.com/cmpaugh2. Tweet your suggestion (replacing the name Bob with the name you have chosen) using the following format: 1LT Matthew Scott’s middle name should be Bob #1LTSCOTT #SGU @CMpaugh @brianjacobsmith3. One random winner will be selected from posts made between 12PM and 6PM ET on Firday, 25 June 2010 using the required format.4. Winner will have an Amazon.com electronic gift certificate code Direct Messaged to him/her on Twitter in the amount of $10 at 8PM ET of the same evening.5. Winner agrees to have his/her name Tweeted as the contest winner.

    Please note: I am not in any way employed by MGM, the Stargate franchise, nor any other individual/corporation associated with Stargate Universe. This contest is for fun only and does not in any way imply that SGU will even consider using the winner’s suggestion.

Geek Speak

Internet Kill Switch Proposed

Get ready for a soapbox… (SM)

- Form a new portion of the Homeland Defense Department: 2 deputy directors, liaisons with DD, JD, CD, and NI

(Live on UStream) This week we celebrate a YEAR OF “The Power Geeks” and talk about Google TV, sundry Apple items, Death of an electronic salesman, and its Fact! Guys lie more than Women! Download Episode 52 Here

LuxuryLaneSoap.com of @KyleeLane fame

• POWERGEEKS for 20% off in her store!
• Her Han Solo soap is going global!!!
• Sci Fi Wire, WSJ Digital Network, Geekologie
• Even got invited on TV!
• Awesome creative soaps Check her out

Deals of the Week / New Releases

• Half-Life 2 Hits MAC today!!! Thanks Valve (JP)
  • It’s on sale for 30% off… that means you can get it for only $6.99 and then play it on PC or MAC or both
  • Episode 1 and 2 are also both available for only $5.59 each and you can play them on both Mac and PC as well

• In honor of Geek Day and Towel Day (to honor the late Douglas Adams) Think geek has a great Hitchhikers guide shirt for sale
  • Don’t panic and carry a towel
  • 42 ringer T as seen on the IT Crowd, Transformers: The Movie and on JP from Time to time
• …and Entertainment Earth has some great  geek tess this week (iKDR)
  • The Big Bang Theory Friendship Algorithm T-Shirt
  • Star Trek Vulcan Nerve Pinch T-Shirt
  • Ghostbusters Peter Venkman Uniform T-Shirt

• Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects and Activities for Dads and Kids to Share (or for Geeky Moms)
  • buy through Amazon for around $9
  • Build a working lamp with LEGO bricks and CDs
  • Create a customized comic strip or your own board game
  • Transform any room into a spaceship

  • Make geeky crafts like cyborg jack-o’-lanterns or Ethernet cuff links

Geek Speak

• Will use current Pay TV to enable a better interface and searching
• Dish, Intel, Best Buy, and adobe all stepping forward as partners
• Android based w/ an intel multimedia chip as its heart (CE4100 CPU)
• Sony and Logitech plan set-top boxes
• Won’t just be TV but will bring in the Internet also… (Microsoft Web TV anyone / Apple TV same dif)
• Will google be enough to change the apathy of ppl wanting computer-like functionality on the TV??
• (iKDR) Google stated today that too many people are having trouble deciding what to watch, when to watch and where to watch content. Google TV aims to clean that mess up, by combining the best of the Web with the best of TV. <-um, i seem to have no problem filling up my DVR, External, Netflix & Hulu full of shows that I never have time for)

• For the eighth time this year, a worker has apparently committed suicide at a factory in China operated by Foxconn Technology, the world’s biggest contract electronics maker and a major supplier to Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and other companies.

• The worker, a 21-year-old man named Nan Gang, jumped from a four-story factory after leaving work at 4 a.m. Friday

• No one has been able to explain what is happening at Foxconn. But the events are again raising questions about the harsh regimens used by Chinese factories to produce a growing share of the world’s goods.

• “We are extremely tired, with tremendous pressure,” the group quoted one worker as saying. “We finish one step in every seven seconds, which requires us to concentrate and keep working and working. We work faster even than the machines.”

• Known most for manufacturing the iPhone and other Apple products the company also makes goodies for HP and Dell and other high tech companies
• Lately they have had a slew of suicides… so bad that they hired an exorcist to come in and get rid of the bad spirits… (evidently this didn’t work since more people have commited suicide)
• Apple, Dell and HP have launched investigations into the conditions that are driving the employees to this extreme measure..
• Where do you think the responsibility lies… how involved should Apple, Dell, HP and the other companies get? Where is the line… What’s right?

Tech,Gaming, and Geek News

• Steering Wheel IPad holder = Hoax (SM)

• • We reported on this awhile back in our Intarweb
  • It even came w/ its own video where the profile changes happened when you steered
  • USAToday bought into it and reported on it…
  • Well, the attachment is a hoax so the jokes on all of us
  • At least we’ll feel safer on the roads now w/ our pads in our laps
  • aww, i was kinda hoping to be able to text and tweet with better accuracy while driving..iKDR

• Parrot AR drone gets price and release date at E3 (JP)
  • this is a kinda cool device controlled by your iPhone or iPad we discussed after CES
  • Rumor is price will be 500 bucks and it’ll hit towards the end of the year… just in time for Christmas
  • I was hoping for a much lower price… it’s a cool device… but for me 500 is really high

• Science Proves it: Men Lie More Than Women (iKDR)
  • At least that’s according to a survey commissioned by the Science Museum of London which quizzed three thousand people about their truthfulness
  • I don’t believe you (JP – I really do, but something made me lie to you and say I don’t… hmmmmm)

  • Men:

    I didn’t have that much to drink

    It wasn’t that expensive

    I’m stuck in traffic

    You’ve lost weight

    It’s just what I’ve always wanted

  • Women:

    Nothing’s wrong, I’m fine

    I’ve got a headache

    It was in the sale

    No, I didn’t throw it away
  • So who gets lied to the most? Moms, of course.

• Lobbyists winning in congress, Net Neutrality on the ropes (SM)
  • Congress has thrown down the gauntlet on the FCC
  • A bipartisan group of politicians (74 of them) have told FCC Chair, Julius Genachowski, to abandon his plans to impose new rules on broadband providers
  • 34 Republicans have outright said that Genachowski is using “heavy-handed 19th century regulations” that are “inconceivable” as well as illegal.
  • From the mouth of a lobbyist: “Questions about the FCC’s legal authority should be decided by the Congress itself, and not by applying to the Internet a set of onerous rules designed for a different technology, a different situation, and a different era,” AT&T’s senior vice president for legislative affairs, Jim Cicconi, said Monday.
  • All the hubbub stemmed from FCC coming down on Comcast for slowing down bit torrents
  • FCC then subsequently lost a court case saying they don’t have the rights to oversee or enforce net neutrality
  • They aren’t totally going in like a bull in the china shop, they do have a minimalist plan to try and keep net neutrality alive
  • Congress wants its piece of the pie, problem is, it took them 5 yrs to spit out the last telecommunications act in 1996

• AT&T Upping Early Termination Fees (JP)
  • New customers will now see $325 termination fee instead of $175
  • AT&T not the only carrier to do this, verizon recently upped theirs
  • Smartphones are costly but, carriers love them for the higher prices they can charge for service ($95 / month x 12?)
  • Hrmm, Cnet speculates on phone exclusivity expiring w/ AT&T… but other indicators out there that its rock solid (think the low bw fees for the IPad)

• iPhone 4.0 Beta Hints At AT&T Tethering, Finally (iKDR)
  • Internet tethering capabilities let you share your phone’s Internet connection with your laptop via Bluetooth or USB.
  • The iPhone received this feature last summer, with the iPhone OS 3.0. But AT&T has not enabled the feature for its U.S. users, as this is believed to over-tax the carrier’s network.
  • A developer spotted a new configuration page for Internet tethering in the latest iPhone 4.0 beta.
  • This page tells AT&T customers that they need to contact the carrier or go on its Web site to activate the feature.

• Apple facing new Justice Dept. inquiry over music (SM)
  • JD is doing some preliminary investigation into some recent allegations of anti-trust when it comes to music
  • The accusations are that when amazon music did some early offers on MP3′s Apple asked the labels to not participate
  • Apple is the biggest seller of online music at 69%, 26.7% of music overall
  • JD just did some prelims for an IPhone investigation
  • What does this all this mean for Apple?

• U socket realease delayed… but added goodies (JP)
  • • we covered this device after CES as well, and you could pre order it, but the delivery has been delayed while they got approval
    • these wall outlets with built in USB charger sockets will be very useful.. pre orders get a nice discount, but looks like they won’t ship now until some time in October

• Rock Band 3 featuring Keytar, Pro Mode? (SM)
  • IT’S THE 80′s and Harmonix is bringing it back.
  • Their mole claims that the game will support the new peripheral but won’t be made in-house, but by Mad Catz
  • Also a “Pro Mode” w/e that means. Maybe playing live instruments with the game???? or playing plastic instruments “live-like”
  • (SM) I just wanted to say “Keytar”….

• Create a Rock Band band and win $10 Grand, Seriously! (iKDR)
  • The 2^nd Annual Total Rock, Total Rewards Rock Band Competition kicked off May 1st
  • at 5 Total Rewards casinos and 15 bars across the United States and Canada with more music and more rock than ever.
  • Get your BAND together for a chance to win $10,000!

• Facebook Finally Getting Privacy Concerns (SM)
  • The interface does look easier to navigate
  • Easier to opt-out of 3rd party services (apps)
  • Zuckerberg, ceo of facebook, even almost almost apologized (admitting his company “made a bunch of mistakes” and just “missed the mark” on privacy control)
  • Well, he said that there were some mis-steps with their privacy policy.
  • w/ 400 million users and still growing, is being easier to “opt-out” enough?

• EA & Insomniac partner up for new Mystery Game (iKDR)
  • Electronic Arts announced a partnership with Insomniac Games, which will bring a brand new title from the studio to the Xbox 360 and PS3.
  • The mystery game that EA will be distributing for Insomniac will be the first title in the studio’s history to be a multi-platform release.
  • “We are excited and eager to introduce Insomniac to a new group of gamers while reinforcing to our loyal fans what makes our games special.”
  • if it’s anything like the Ratchet & Clank series, I am already dying!

• 21 year old admits to vomit assault (jp)
  • 21 year old from NJ admits to vomiting on a man and his 11 yr old daughter after argument in the stands during a Phillies game
  • Oh yeah… did I mention the guy he stuck his finger down his throat to vomit on… was an off duty police captain… OOOOPS
  • i wonder if the same outcome would have occured if the assailant had just decided to fart on his victim instead (iKDR)

• Great Moments In Stupid Inventions (iKDR)
  • Fails like the Rice Growing Bra and White Castle Scented Candle is what makes this country so…unique

• 2 Cleveland cops suspended 6 months with out pay (JP)
  • After they drove past a corpse on the side of the road… mistaking it for a deer…
  • I guess we should be glad they weren’t hunting when they made this mistake….

• This Week in ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME? (iKDR)
  • Solid Gold Diamond-Encrusted iPad Sells For $190,000
  • The company in charge of this, Stuart Hughes, is not new to the “bedazzling” of technology products… “letting the technology embrace luxury”

• Disney Star Wars Week Merch
• What is Steampunk
• http://www.weirdworm.com/6-real-life-attractions-for-the-video-game-enthusiast/
• HOW TO: Download Google Pac-Man Game for Free

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