Month: August 2008

Yahoo’s Plan for Saving Money? Move to Nebraska!

Yahoo is reportedly considering moving a small chunk (more like a crumb) of their failing operations to Omaha, bringing about 50 jobs to the area with an average salary of $68,700.

Valleywag’s take?

Yahoo is specifically looking at a piece of property in an Omaha suburb, says the AP, confusing us. Doesn’t there have to be an urban area for there to be a suburban area? We thought the city outskirts around Omaha had a simpler name: farmland.

Apparently this is all speculation based on the fact that the company recently applied for some serious state tax breaks available in Nebraska. Nebraska Tax Commissioner Doug Ewald (we have a tax commissioner?) is quoted by the AP as saying that the application for tax breaks doesn’t guarantee Yahoo is coming to the state.

Kevin Rose says revamp of iPod line coming, and soon

Behold the new iPod Nano! At least, that’s what Kevin Rose thinks. In a post on his blog Rose cites several rumors, including:

– Revamp of entire iPod line.
– Small cosmetic changes to Touch, Nano to see significant redesign.
– iPods to see fairly large price drops to distance itself from the $199 iPhone.
– iPod touch 2.1 software, iPhone to get update very soon after.
– iTunes 8.0 (“it’s a big update w/new features”).
– All of this coming in the next 2-3 weeks.

Crazy? Well, rumors of a Zune-like iPod have been floating around for a few weeks now, and Kevin’s comments would lend credence to the theory. There are a couple interesting things about this set of rumors.

First and foremost, the price cuts. If Apple rethinks their pricing structure based on a $199 iPhone, can we expect a $99 Nano? And second, if the announcement window Kevin presents is correct, Apple will be celebrating the 1st anniversary of the 3rd gen Nano by replacing it with the 4th gen version. Either the fatty didn’t get them the sales they expected, or Apple is counting on their customers to buy a new iPod every time they release a new generation. I’d say a little of both is true.

If Kevin Rose is correct, expect Apple’s shares to plummet as investors cry bitterly about the price cuts, then recommit their souls to Steve Jobs as Apple rakes in disgusting amounts of money this holiday season.

1UP Yours on: iPhone Gaming

Last week I said I might post the transcript to the discussion I started on 1UP Yours concerning iPhone gaming. Eight days later, here it is.

The Cast

Andrew Pfister: Podcast Producer at 1UP.com
Garnett Lee: Senior Editor of Previews at 1UP and EGM
Shane Bettenhausen: Executive Editor of Video Games at 1UP.com
John Davison: Former Editorial Director of 1UP, co-founder and executive editor of WhatTheyPlay.com
Mark MacDonald: Former Executive Editor at EGM, former director at Gamevideos.com, currently traveling the world.

Andrew Pfister: Free At Last asks, “Why do I keep hearing the iPhone mentioned in the same sentence with the DS and PSP? Do people know something I don’t? It’s a great conversation piece, and yes, people can do some pretty cool things with multi-touch and the accelerometer (i.e. Aurora Feint), but its still just a novelty item, not a true gaming platform. You can’t have a handheld gaming device without buttons.” Continue reading 1UP Yours on: iPhone Gaming

Lexitron is back, and redder then ever.

Length: One round lasts two minutes.
Replayability value: Endless.
Who should buy it: Anyone who likes clever word games.
Price: $2.99
Is it worth it? Yes!

My favorite app back on Installer was a word game called Lexitron. The game was a modified version of Boggle, in which you were given six letters and asked to form as many words as possible within a time limit. The simple concept and great execution made it a fantastic game. When I upgraded to the 2.0 firmware, I was disappointed to see that Lexitron was no where to be found in the new App store.

Thankfully, Digicide finally got their copy of the SDK in the metaphorical mail and Lexitron is now available. This new version has upgraded (downgraded?) the previous silver accented GUI to what can only be described as a blaring shade of red. I live in Nebraska, the land of the Huskers, and even I can’t take that much red. In the old version of the game you could switch between vertical and landscape mode just by flipping the iPhone/iPod one way or the other. Not so in this latest iteration, but that doesn’t come across as a negative thing. The UI is obviously designed to be played in landscape mode, and the improved usability almost makes up for the color scheme.

At 2.99 Lexitron is a must buy. Don’t let the aesthetics bother you. the core gameplay would be fun even if the GUI consisted of neon green and taupe. We’re happy Digicide brought this to the App store, and hopefully we can look forward to more great games from them.

Journalism vs Web Development

Did you know that the median wage of a reporter/correspondent for the average newspaper is $16.68/hour, and that the demand for new talent isn’t supposed to change in the next ten years?

Did you know that the median wage of a web developer is around $34.38/hour, and the demand for new talent is forecast to rise 14-20% in the next ten years?

I didn’t. Now I do. Career search ended!