May 2012
2 posts
10 tags
Because We May App Sale May 24 - June 1, 2012
A number of game developers are holding a simultaneous sale across several platforms, including iOS, Android, Windows/Mac/Linux, and Steam. The sale is organized by Because We May and runs from May 24 to June 1, 2012. The Because We May website includes a listing of all participating games across the various platforms, for example, iOS. I decided to join in on the sale and have discounted the...
4 tags
Genuine User Experience
There’s something magical about three simple words in Apple’s Mac OS X. On the rare occasion that I need to retrieve an archived file from my backup disk, I am called on an adventure. Or perhaps I’m mysteriously beckoned to follow along on a journey. Or maybe the time has come for me to fulfill my destiny. The feeling lasts for just a moment and is spurred on by merely three...
April 2012
8 posts
5 tags
Unplug: Personal Relaxation Assistant for iPhone
My latest iPhone app, Unplug: Personal Relaxation Assistant, has been released and you can download Unplug from the Apple App Store.
Description
Unplug is your Personal Relaxation Assistant. It is designed to help you improve your relaxation and meditation skills while you work towards your goals of stress relief, improved health and fitness, enhanced mental health, and inner peace. Unplug is...
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The Complete Guide to Quitting Instagram
Amidst the Facebook-Instagram disaster, I have written a series of tutorials for to help former Instagram users transition away from the social network. In this post, I have compiled these tutorials into one complete guide.
Exporting your photos
Deleting your photos
Deleting your account
Continuing to share your photos on Tadaa
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Instafail: Tonight we Tadaa!
Now that you’re thoroughly disgusted with Instagram and Facebook, it’s time to move on and look into other options. After all, the point was never to pledge allegiance to a particular company or service, but to share and discuss photos with others. We owe it to each other to use services that will best allow us thrive the right way, on our own terms.
And for my next trick, I will make...
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How to Delete Your Instagram Account
If you’re planning to quit Instagram amidst the recent takeover by Facebook, here is a step-by-step guide on how to make it official by deleting your Instagram account.
Using your web browser, navigate to https://instagram.com/accounts/remove/request/. Note that you may need to login with your Instagram username and password first.
Select a reason for deleting your account. In this case,...
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How to Delete Your Instagram Photos
If you’re planning to quit Instagram amidst the recent takeover by Facebook, I strongly encourage you to delete each and every one of your photos, even if you also plan to delete your entire account. Deleting all of the photos puts you in a better position to protect your personal privacy and intellectual property. Below are the steps you need to take to delete a photo on Instagram.
From...
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How to Save Your Instagram Photos
If you’re planning to quit Instagram amidst the recent takeover by Facebook, you may want to export and save all of your photos prior to deleting your photos and deleting your account. Below are the steps you need to take to export and save your Instagram photos.
Using your web browser, navigate to http://instaport.me.
Click on the Sign in with Instagram button.
You will be transferred...
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Facebook Shatters Instagram
Some horrible tech news just hit today: Facebook has purchased Instagram. I’m not sure what this means for the future of the network or my participation in it, but neither can be positive. Facebook has a long history of stealing and selling its users’ personal information and intellectual property without permission. There is no reason to believe Facebook will behave differently once...
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Unlock Hidden Siri on the New iPad
Much to the chagrin of consumers, the New iPad was announced last month lacking an essential feature. That’s right, the magical, revolutionary, incredible, useless Siri was conspicuously absent from the New iPad models. However, thanks to a little techno-chicanery, it has been discovered that Siri lies dormant within the New iPad. She need only be awakened to be at your every command. Here...
March 2012
1 post
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R Tutorial Series: Centering and Standardizing... →
I have added an article on centering and standardizing variables with the scale() function to my R Tutorial Series blog.
February 2012
1 post
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Oregontrailification
I posted some Tweets lately that I would like to summarize into a more cohesive point here. Amidst the gamification craze of the past year or two, it has become common to add the suffix -ification to almost any word. I did so jokingly when I heinously morphed the classic computer game, Oregon Trail, into the hashtag #oregontrailificaton. However, this got me to thinking about what...
January 2012
2 posts
9 tags
Instagram Tip: How to Create Planet Panoramas
On Instagram, I often get asked how I create my planet panoramas. It takes just a few steps to create the image below, provided you have a panorama handy.
Steps
Start with a panorama, such as the one shown below. This is a 360 panorama, meaning that it captured an entire 360 degree view of the scene. Thus, the left and right ends of the image match up perfectly. This is the best type of panorama...
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R Tutorial Series: Citing R with EndNote →
I have added an article on Citing R with EndNote to my R Tutorial Series blog.
December 2011
1 post
9 tags
App Updates for iOS 5
Apple broke ‘em and I fixed ‘em. I have updated several of my apps for iOS 5. If you already own any of these, please be sure to update to the latest version. If you’re seeing these for the first time, take a look in the App Store.Potions & Poisons for iPhone
Minor updates and improvements for iOS 5 have been made.
Play Potions & Poisons.
Photo Explorer for iPhone
...
November 2011
1 post
6 tags
GLS 7.0 Proceedings and GLS 8.0 Call
The proceedings from the 2011 Games + Learning + Society (GLS) 7.0 conference are now available from ETC press. This is the first year that GLS has published its proceedings and the download is free. The first formal publication about my taxonomy of video game enjoyment can be found on pages 185-190 of the proceedings. The call for GLS 8.0 is now available as well. Be aware that the submission...
October 2011
4 posts
4 tags
R Tutorial Series: Exploratory Factor Analysis →
I have added an article on Exploratory Factor Analysis to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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Lytro Introduces Compact Light Field Camera
Lytro, a newly formed camera company, announced its first consumer light field camera today. Unlike traditional cameras that have to be focused prior to taking a photo, light field cameras produce images that can be focused and refocused at will after they are taken. To date, such cameras have been confined to research labs, but Lytro is attempting to make them a consumer electronic.
Light Field...
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What is Mobile Learning?
Mobile learning is an emerging field of education and research that has been ignited by recent technological innovations, such as smartphones and touchscreen tablets. However, to date the term mobile learning is little more than an empty, ill-defined, and trendy catchphrase. In dissecting the term itself, I do not see any problem with the learning portion, since that is fundamental to any form of...
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Revisiting the Monty Hall Problem
Just a few months ago, I became aware of the classic Monty Hall problem as I was reading about it in the context of Bayesian statistics. Over the years, the problem has stirred up much controversy amongst statisticians, game theorists, puzzle players, and general audiences alike. The Monty Hall name originates from grounding the problem in the historical context of the Let’s Make a Deal TV...
September 2011
4 posts
4 tags
Second Impressions: Sifteo Cubes
Back in April, I participated in the Sifteo Early Access beta program and provided my first impressions of the Sifteo cubes gaming platforms. Five months later, the cubes have launched publicly and I have returned to share my second impressions.
Hardware
Little appears to have changed with the Sifteo cubes hardware since my first experience with them back in April. Quality assurance was a...
4 tags
First Look: Sifteo Cubes SDK
In mid September, Sifteo began shipping its first publicly available interactive cubes. I took a look at the newly released and long awaited Sifteo cubes SDK and wanted to share my initial observations. The SDK [was, but is no longer as of this writing] available for download from My Account > Developer Zone on the Sifteo website.
Status
The SDK appears to be in an early stage of development....
3 tags
Google Scholar My Citations
Over the summer, Google Scholar released a new feature called My Citations. In My Citations, researchers can set up a profile to collect all of their publications, such as journal articles and conference presentations. The system will link to each item (if available through Google Scholar) and also track its number of citations.
To date, it appears that little has been done with My Citations and...
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EARLI 2011: Personality and Game Design for...
On August 30, 2011, I presented the results of my recent research on video games and personality. This presentation provided an overview of the game design and player type framework that originated from a fall 2010 survey of nearly 300 undergraduate students. The slides from my presentation are available for download as a PDF file.
The discussed framework is composed of six game design features...
August 2011
1 post
5 tags
Potions & Poisons for iPhone
My latest iPhone game, Potions & Poisons, has been released. You can download Potions & Poisons from the Apple App Store. Continue reading for more information about the game.
Description
Potions & Poisons (P&P) is a challenging puzzle game that will put your wits and memory to the test as you save the Great Yellow Wizard from the cauldron of despair. In P&P, you are an...
July 2011
2 posts
5 tags
Phoenix Sunset Photo Comparison
Below is a comparison of two sunset photos from Phoenix, Arizona. The first was taken on Sunday, July 17. The second was taken around the same time on Monday, July 18, after a dust storm took over the city.
2 tags
R Tutorial Series: The R Programming Wikibook →
I have added an article about the R Programming wikibook project to my R Tutorial Series blog.
June 2011
4 posts
2 tags
Nintendo 3DS Slip Case by Waterfield Designs
After carrying my Nintendo 3DS around for nearly a month in the fragile slip from its original packaging, I finally came across a nice sleeve case made by Waterfield Designs.
Nintendo 3DS Suede Jacket by Waterfield Designs
Since I like to carry the 3DS in my pocket, I have been looking for a thin slip case. Unfortunately, most 3DS cases are large, bulky, and tend to range in resemblance from a...
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GLS 7.0: A Taxonomy of Video Game Enjoyment
Note: The GLS 7.0 proceedings are available for download. The paper that relates to this post can be found on pages 185-190.
My primary research focus over the past year has involved identifying how college students’ game preferences, play habits, and personality traits relate to their enjoyment of video games. I am just getting started in this line of research, but I am happy to share that...
4 tags
Coordination for iPad v1.0 Released
My latest iPad game, Coordination, has been released in the Apple App Store. Below is the official description of the game.
In Coordination, you’re a farmer who is trying to collect milk from your cows. The trick is that your buckets are moving all over the farm, making it difficult for you to avoid spilling milk. To be successful, you must move your arms, hands, and fingers in complex...
5 tags
Apple Kills MobileMe: Will There Be Refunds?
Apple Customer Service Fail
Today’s announcement of iCloud and the phasing out of Apple’s MobileMe service at the annual Worldwide Developers Conference has sent current MobileMe users into a frenzy. Apple’s vague support pages on the topic, as well as its total lack of communication to existing customers, have only made the situation worse.
Being in literally the worst...
May 2011
3 posts
4 tags
Nintendo 3DS Augmented Reality Custom Card Design
After experimenting with the Nintendo 3DS augmented reality (AR) system on my computer monitor, I looked into designing my own AR cards. Subsequently, I created my own poster, business card, and t-shirt designs that can be used with the Nintendo 3DS. In addition, I tested the 3DS’ ability to perceive AR cards and concluded on a few major design principles.
Design Principles
Based on my...
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Nintendo 3DS Augmented Reality On A Computer...
The new Nintendo 3DS handheld game console implements augmented reality (AR) technology that allows players to enhance their everyday environments with digital features. For example, the 3DS comes with a set of cards that players can use to make Nintendo characters, such as Link and Kirby, appear on a dining room table and a Face Raiders game that may cause players to shoot virtual holes in their...
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Book Review: A Casual Revolution by Jesper Juul
Book Information
Juul, J. (2010). A casual revolution: Reinventing video games and their players. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Introduction
A Casual Revolution (ACR) is an insightful exploration into the developing history of casual games, a critique of the assumptions and realities surrounding video games and their players, and an examination of the design elements of casual games. It was...
April 2011
3 posts
4 tags
First Impressions: Sifteo Cubes
The Sifteo cubes Early Access program is officially underway with approximately 1,000 participants. Having tested the cubes for a week now, I will share my first impressions of the platform.
Getting Started
Upon opening the cubes, it is good to charge them. A docking station is provided that fits up to six cubes, which slide in and nicely click into place. Once charged, the cubes can be connected...
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Urgent Evoke: A Crash Course in Changing the World
Urgent Evoke (www.urgentevoke.com) is a website that seeks to “help empower people all over the world to come up with creative solutions to our most urgent social problems.” Evoke presents a ten-week course that helps users learn about pressing world problems, such as hunger, sustainable energy, and water shortage, amongst others. It was directed by Jane McGonigal, sponsored by the...
6 tags
Color for iPhone: The Greatest Revolution of All...
On March 24, 2011, the most revolutionary event in the history of all humankind, life and death on Earth took place: Color for iPhone was launched (Figure 1). The utterly useful and self-aggrandizing app that shows no modesty in parroting that it garnered $41 million dollars in idiot capital, of which $40.98 million was spent on the color.com domain name, has already made an irreversible impact on...
March 2011
5 posts
2 tags
R Tutorial Series: 2011 ANOVA Article Data →
I have added an article reviewing the to date 2011 Google Analytics data to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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R Tutorial Series: Applying the Reshape Package to... →
I have added an Applying the Reshape Package to Organize ANOVA Data article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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Brief Game News and Reviews: Kirby, EA Active,...
I rounded up a few brief thoughts on some recent games that I have played and decided to share them here in a single post.
Kirby’s Epic Yarn
I recently played through the entirety of Kirby’s Epic Yarn for Wii. It is difficult to describe how magical this game truly is. From its graphics, to its music, to its gameplay, Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a marvel of relaxation and cuteness....
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R Tutorial Series: ANOVA Pairwise Comparison... →
I have added an ANOVA Pairwise Comparison Methods article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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Revised Program for GDC 2011
The 2011 Game Developers Conference (GDC) is underway in San Francisco, CA and the Twitterverse has been tweeting up a proverbial tweetnami of insights on the game design process. Although I am not in attendance, I have been watching my Twitter feed and believe that I have gotten a pretty solid grasp on the sessions offered this year, thanks to my tweeting friends. Since I would like to give...
February 2011
8 posts
4 tags
R Tutorial Series: Two-Way ANOVA with Unequal... →
I have added a Two-Way ANOVA with Unequal Sample Sizes article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
5 tags
Game Review: Robot 99 for iOS
Robot 99 by Fu Design is a fast action game for the iPad and iPhone in which players interact with a never-ending cascade of parachuting robots who need help reaching their final destination. The iPad version was used to write this review.
Areas of Excellence
One of the great things about Robot 99 is its use of multitouch. Much like MultiVerse, my experimental game that made use of as many...
4 tags
R Tutorial Series: Two-Way Repeated Measures ANOVA →
I have added a Two-Way Repeated Measures ANOVA article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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Book Review: R Graphs Cookbook →
I added a review of the R Graphs Cookbook to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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A True Story About How A Video Game Changed My...
When someone finds out that I have extensively studied ancient Chinese history and philosophy, as well as practiced some Mandarin, I am inevitably asked how I ever came to have an interest in such things. It turns out that a chain of events, catalyzed by a simple video game demo, changed my life. I have related this story several times in person, but this is the first time I am sharing it...
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R Tutorial Series: One-Way Repeated Measures ANOVA →
I added a One-Way Repeated Measures ANOVA article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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R Tutorial Series: Two-Way ANOVA with Interactions... →
I have added a Two-Way ANOVA with Interactions and Simple Main Effects article to my R Tutorial Series blog.
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R Tutorial Series: Statistical Analysis with R... →
I have posted an article featuring reviews of Statistical Analysis with R on my R Tutorial Series blog.