Fusion: Xbox Live with the troops
12/12/2003XBOX LIVE WITH THE TROOPS
The U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) linked with the USO and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox video game system to launch, Operation: Live Connections last week.
USO services centers around the world are being equipped with Xbox consoles and the Xbox Live online game service, enabling U.S. military personnel to play video games with friends and family across a high-speed connection. Thanks to the Xbox Live headset, service personnel can catch up with family and friends while playing games.
Earlier this year, USAFE conducted research among airmen to determine what elements would improve their way of life and help boost morale. Research concluded that online gaming centers topped the wish list. USAFE services built 17 Xbox game lounges on 14 bases in seven European countries. Beginning this month, USO services centers throughout the country and overseas will be equipped with Xbox consoles, Xbox Live accounts, and popular game titles such as "NFL Fever 2004," "Project Gotham Racing 2" and "Crimson Skies."
TV EYE
Camwear 100 ($399) from DejaView captures a continuously updated, 30-second slice of life as you see it. The Camwear kit consists of a clip-on, miniaturized video camera and a belt-mounted black box with a removable Secure Digital card and a rechargeable battery. A cable connects the camera to the box.
When the set is turned on, a buffer memory in the box records 30 seconds of video and sound, which can be written to the memory card by pressing a button on the box. If the data is not recorded, it is overridden with the next 30 seconds worth.
The Camwear 100 comes with a 64-megabyte SD card, which can capture 16 30-second segments, and can accommodate up to a 512-megabyte card. The captured segments can be transferred to a PC through a USB port or played directly through a television or VCR.
MP3.COM DOWN, NOT OUT
CNet has taken control of MP3.com and temporarily frozen the Web site that allowed independent artists to upload music. The site went dark last week. The home page promised the return of free uploads next year. The site has message boards, though, for visitors to list features they would like to see added.
BLUNT TRUTH
Create a survey about yourself that your friends can take anonymously. You can select up to 20 questions from a list of 70, many of them having to do with appearance (“How nice is my hair? ) and personal attributes. The site then provides you with the survey s Web address to share with friends. Most do so by including it in their Instant Messenger profiles.
There are 345,000 active users. According to Nielsen/NetRatings, Blunt Truth was among the top 10 most popular sites among users ages 12 to 17 in the United States in September and October, even though it does not advertise. Seventy percent of the site s users were female and that a growing number - 20 percent - were college students.
BIG TIME DREIDEL
Just in time for the holidays, the Virtual Dreidel pits you against a team of cartoon children in a cutthroat match of the spinning top game.
TOLEDOBLADE.COM
Dave Hackenberg covers sports for The Blade. His columns appear every week in The Blade and on toledoblade.com.
www.toledoblade.com/hackenberg
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