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• I have an "amoeba" game mechanic. Any idea on how to implement it?

  - by Jason

  Outside of a tetris clone, a crappy 2D top-down shooter, and some messing around with stuff like Unity and Flixel, I realize that I have yet to complete a single, polished, bells-and-whistles game. I want to change this, and I have an idea for my next project. The idea is that you're an amoeba. Amoebas have these eye-like cores (or something like that, I don't know biology), and you have two of 'em. You control one with WASD and the other with IJKL. There has to be a constant radius of stuff around each of the cores: And the area of the amoeba has to stay constant. So if you move a core in one direction, you increase the amoeba's area, but that increase is compensated by a decrease somewhere else: Aaaaaand I'd like to implement a vagination mechanic. You absorb things by engulfing them, like a boss. Maybe even an extra core, or a needle that pops you and causes all your inner stuff to start gushing out: But here's the problem: I don't know how to make this. However, I would like some ideas on how to implement it. Should I explore physics libraries like Box2D? Or maybe something involving fluid physics? Any help would be much appreciated. P.S. Feel free to steal this idea. I have plenty of ideas. If you do, please tell me how you made it so I can try it myself.

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• What You Said: Staying Productive While Working from home

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Earlier this week we asked you to share your telecommuting/work-from-home productivity tips. Now we’re back with a tips and tricks roundup; read on to see how your fellow readers stay focused at home. By far and away the most common technique deployed as carefully isolating work from home life. Carol writes: I love working from home and have done so for 6 years now. I have a routine just as if I was going to an office, except my commute is 12 steps. I get ready for work, grab my purse and smart phone and go to up the steps to my office. I maintain a separate phone line and voice mail for work that I cannot answer from anywhere but my work desk. I use call forwarding when I travel so only my office phone number is published. I have VOIP phone service so I can forward calls from the internet if I forget, or need to change where the phone is forwarded. I do have a wired and wireless head set so I can go get a cold drink if on one of those long boring conference calls. I plan my ‘get off from work’ time and try to stick to it, as with any job some days I am late getting off, but it all works out. I make sure my office is for work only, any other computer play time is in a different part of the house on different computer. My office has laptop, dock, couple of monitors, multipurpose printer, fax, scanner, file cabinets – just like the office at a company. I just also happen to have a couple of golden retrievers that come to work with me and usually lay quietly until 5, and yes they know it is 5pm sometimes before I do. For me, one of the biggest concerns when working from home is not being unproductive, but the danger of never stopping work. You could keep going and going because let’s face it – the company will let you do it, so I set myself up to prevent that and maintain a separateness. HTG Explains: Does Your Android Phone Need an Antivirus? How To Use USB Drives With the Nexus 7 and Other Android Devices Why Does 64-Bit Windows Need a Separate “Program Files (x86)” Folder?

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• Are Modern Computers Still Vulnerable to Damage via Magnets?

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  It’s such an oft repeated warning that it’s firmly embedded in nerd lore: bring a magnet anywhere near your precious computer and suffer the dire consequences. But is true? Is your computer one run in with a novelty magnet away from digital death? Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-drive grouping of Q&A web sites. How To Create a Customized Windows 7 Installation Disc With Integrated Updates How to Get Pro Features in Windows Home Versions with Third Party Tools HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using?

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• Find Waldo with Mathematica

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  If you’re looking for a geeky (and speedy) way to find Waldo, of the Where’s Waldo? fame, this series of Mathematica scripts makes it a snap. Over at Stack Overflow, programmer Arnoud Buzing shares a clever bit of Mathematica-based coding that analyzes a Where’s Waldo? drawing and finds the elusive Waldo. Hit up the link below to see the distinct steps of analysis with accompanying photos. How Do I Find Waldo with Mathematica? [via Make] How To Properly Scan a Photograph (And Get An Even Better Image) The HTG Guide to Hiding Your Data in a TrueCrypt Hidden Volume Make Your Own Windows 8 Start Button with Zero Memory Usage

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• Real Widget Adds WP7-like Tiles to Android

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Android: If you want the look of Windows Phone 7 tiles on your Android phone without completely replacing your launcher and interface, Real Widget offers the shortcut tiles without the total overhaul. You can customize the widgets to launch apps, system functions, and more to enjoy the WP7 tiled look without sacrificing the functionality of your current Android launcher. Hit up the link below to check out more screenshots and free copy to take for a spin. Real Widget is Android 4.0+ only. Real Widget [via Addictive Tips] HTG Explains: How Antivirus Software Works HTG Explains: Why Deleted Files Can Be Recovered and How You Can Prevent It HTG Explains: What Are the Sys Rq, Scroll Lock, and Pause/Break Keys on My Keyboard?

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• Take Camera Phone Macro Photos with a Cheap Laser Pointer Lens

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Inside those cheap laser pointers you see in the grocery store checkout line there’s a handy little plastic lens that, when slapped on your phone’s camera, makes it easy to take macro photographs. In this tutorial, they take the lens from a laser point and secure it using tape and a bobby pin. An alternative method to achieve the same end (and with a higher quality lens) is to dismantle a CD/DVD drive to source the lens and use painter’s tape to hold the lens in place–this is the technique I used several years ago, check out the tutorial video here. Laser Pointer Macro Lens [via Apartment Therapy] How to Get Pro Features in Windows Home Versions with Third Party Tools HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using? HTG Explains: What The Windows Event Viewer Is and How You Can Use It

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• RetinaPad Enables Retina Display for iPhone Apps on the iPad

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  RetinaPad is an iPad application that actives the Retina Display resolution on iPhone applications to increase the clarity on the iPad. It’s a feature that should be built-in but is currently only available for jailbroken iPads. The premise is simple. Currently iPads lack support for the Retina Display level resolution that iPhone apps are capable of if displaying. RetinaPad allows you to stop using the ugly and blocky simple doubling available on the iPad and start accessing the higher resolution Retina Display mode for iPhone applications on the iPad. It’s such a trivial thing that it’s outright shameful Apple doesn’t include it by default. You should have to jailbreak your device to unlock functionality that should be there right from the factory. Check out the demo video below to see it in action: Fire up your jailbroken iPad, launch Cydia and search for RetinaPad. Retina Pad is $2.99, iPad only. How to Enable Google Chrome’s Secret Gold IconHTG Explains: What’s the Difference Between the Windows 7 HomeGroups and XP-style Networking?Internet Explorer 9 Released: Here’s What You Need To Know

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• HTML5 Game (Canvas) - UI Techniques?

  - by Jason L.

  Hi! I'm in the process of building a JavaScript / HTML5 game (using Canvas) for mobile (Android / iPhone/ WebOS) with PhoneGap. I'm currently trying to design out how the UI and playing board should be built and how they should interact but I'm not sure what the best solution is. Here's what I can think of - Build the UI right into the canvas using things like drawImage and fillText Build parts of the UI outside of the canvas using regular DOM objects and then float a div over the canvas when UI elements need to overlap the playing board canvas. Are there any other possible techniques I can use for building the game UI that I haven't thought of? Also, which of these would be considered the "standard" way (I know HTML5 games are not very popular so there probably isn't a "standard" way yet)? And finally, which way would YOU recommend / use? Many thanks in advance!

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• What You Said: How You Deal with Bacn

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Earlier this week we asked you how you deal with Bacn—email you want, but not right now—and you responded. Read on to see the three principle ways HTG readers deal with Bacn. The approach you all took fell into three distinct categories: Filtering, Obfuscating, and Procrastinating. Readers like Ray and jigglypuff use filters: I use Thunderbird as my email client. I have different folders that I filter the email I receive into. The newsletters and other subscribed emails go into a lower priority folder. One word: Filters. I just setup filters for all of this type of mail. Some I let go to inbox, others I let go straight to a folder without seeing it first. Then when I have time or want to go through them, I do. HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using? HTG Explains: What The Windows Event Viewer Is and How You Can Use It HTG Explains: How Windows Uses The Task Scheduler for System Tasks

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• Aide On a Low Memory System

  - by Jason Mock

  I have a Linux server running on a Linode.com VPS, where I'm trying to utilize aide to detect any issues. However, the nightly aide run uses up all of my available memory and swap (512MB RAM / 384MB SWAP). I've tried adding a script to /etc/cron.daily that would stop/start services using a lot of memory (apache2, mysql) during the aide run. Unfortunately, it seems like aide continued to use every available byte (including the space freed up from apache2 and mysql). Here's a graph from munin showing what happens when aide runs: Note the spike of memory usage, well into swap, when aide runs Any suggestions on tuning aide to not use so much memory, or is there an alternative to aide that doesn't behave this way?

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• Ask HTG: Searching Within Websites, Google Play Alternatives, and Getting Started with Dual Booting

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Once a week we round up some of the reader letters we’ve answered and share the advice with everyone. This week we’re looking at how to search within web sites, downloading apps from places other than Google Play, and getting started with dual booting operating systems. The Best Free Portable Apps for Your Flash Drive Toolkit How to Own Your Own Website (Even If You Can’t Build One) Pt 3 How to Sync Your Media Across Your Entire House with XBMC

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• Google Rolls Out iPad-optimized YouTube App

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  There’s no need to use the lower-resolution iPhone app or the mobile website to access YouTube on the iPad any longer–Google’s brand new iPad/iPhone 5 optimized app is totally redesigned to take advantage of the devices’ higher resolution screens. In addition to a redesigned interface the new app also sports improved video playback, VoiceOver support, AirPlay support, and more. Hit up the link below to download a free copy from the AppStore. YouTube [via The Official YouTube Blog] Our Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 is Now Available Everywhere How To Boot Your Android Phone or Tablet Into Safe Mode HTG Explains: Does Your Android Phone Need an Antivirus?

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• How Does Windows Confirm Wi-Fi Access and Whether Hot Spot Authentication Is Necessary?

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Windows is quite adept at telling you if you have a properly functioning Internet connection, but how exactly does it do so? Digging into how Windows handles the problem offers insight into Windows connectivity messages. Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-drive grouping of Q&A web sites. How to Fix a Stuck Pixel on an LCD Monitor How to Factory Reset Your Android Phone or Tablet When It Won’t Boot Our Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 is Now Available Everywhere

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• Google60 Emulates Search Engine Querying with 1960s Technology

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Google60 is a novel little project that mimics the interface of a 1960s-era computer and mashes it up with modern Google search queries. Take it for a spin; you’ll never appreciate the speed of even the slowest modern browser more. While playing with the actual project is enjoyable, make sure to check out the project notes below the interface for an interesting look at design choices and emulating an old machine. Google60 [via Unpluggd] Secure Yourself by Using Two-Step Verification on These 16 Web Services How to Fix a Stuck Pixel on an LCD Monitor How to Factory Reset Your Android Phone or Tablet When It Won’t Boot

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• Book Readers As Envisioned Circa 1935

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  This early 20th century sketch showcases the future of books; thankfully the actual delivery of the concept proved to be a bit more lap-friendly. The sketch is from the April, 1935 issues of Everyday Science and Mechanics and presents a vision of book consumption that, thankfully, came to pass in a much more compact fashion that doesn’t require swapping rolls of film. [via Boing Boing] How To Properly Scan a Photograph (And Get An Even Better Image) The HTG Guide to Hiding Your Data in a TrueCrypt Hidden Volume Make Your Own Windows 8 Start Button with Zero Memory Usage

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• Reader Poll: Are You Switching to Internet Explorer 9?

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  The recent release of Internet Explorer 9 polished up the IE line with a new interface, hardware acceleration, and more. Is enough to convince you to switch? Yesterday we gave you a full run down of the Internet Explorer 9 release and highlighted the major improvements including: a totally new interface that’s even more streamlined than that of Google Chrome, direct access to your video card for super fast acceleration, customizable menus for pinned sites, HTML 5 support, and a combined address and search bar, among other improvements. Is it enough to sway you? Cast your vote in the poll below and then sound off in the comments. How-To Geek Polls require Javascript. Please Click Here to View the Poll. How to Create an Easy Pixel Art Avatar in Photoshop or GIMPInternet Explorer 9 Released: Here’s What You Need To KnowHTG Explains: How Does Email Work?

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• Upgrading a dual-boot system HDD

  - by Jason

  I dual-boot my laptop due to lousy VM performance, and have a new 500GB/7200rpm drive coming in to replace the stock 320GB/5400rpm drive. I have the drive set up in three partitions: one for the Win7 system files, one for storage, and the third as the ext4 Linux file system. The system file and storage partitions are both NTFS. What I'm planning to do is use the system image creator built in Win7, then move that over to the new drive. However, how can I migrate the Ubuntu partition, and how do I make sure that the Grub bootloader isn't overwritten by the Windows loader?

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• Common Misconceptions in Physics [Video]

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Take a tour of common misconceptions in physics–such as the nature of gravity and velocity–with this brief and simply animated video courtesy of MinutePhysics. Common Physics Misconceptions [via Neatorama] How to Factory Reset Your Android Phone or Tablet When It Won’t Boot Our Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 is Now Available Everywhere How To Boot Your Android Phone or Tablet Into Safe Mode

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• DIY Touch Screen Mod Makes Regular Gloves Smartphone-friendly

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Smartphone-friendly winter gloves are expensive (and often ugly). Skip shelling out for store-bought gloves when, armed with a needle and thread, you can turn any gloves into smartphone-friendly ones. Over at Popular Science, Taylor Kubota shares the simple trick: 1. Order silver-plated nylon thread (silver conducts electricity). This can be difficult to find in stores, but major online retailers carry it. 2. Pick a pair of gloves to modify. Although leather works, it’s harder to push a needle through. 3. Stitch the figure of a star or other solid shape onto the glove’s index finger with the thread, making sure it will contact both the touchscreen and your skin. Our Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 is Now Available Everywhere How To Boot Your Android Phone or Tablet Into Safe Mode HTG Explains: Does Your Android Phone Need an Antivirus?

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• The Evolution of Computer Keyboards

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  While the basic shape of keyboards has remained largely unchanged over the last thirty years, the guts have undergone several transformations. Read on to explore the history of the computer keyboard. ComputerWorld delves into the history of the modern keyboard, including the heavy influence IBM’s extensive keyboard research on early keyboards: As far as direct influences on the modern computer keyboard, IBM’s Selectric typewriter was one of the biggest. IBM released the first model of its iconic electromechanical typewriter in 1961, a time when being able to type fast and accurately was a highly sought-after skill. Dag Spicer, senior curator at the Computer History Museum, notes that as the Selectric models rose to prominence, admins grew to love the feel of the keyboard because of IBM’s dogged focus on making the ergonomics comfortable. “IBM’s probably done more than anyone to find [keyboard] ergonomics that work for everyone,” Spicer says. So when the PC hit the scene a decade or two later, the Selectric was largely viewed as the baseline to design keyboards for those newfangled computers you could put in your office or home. Hit up the link below to continue reading about how the Selectric influenced keyboards throughout the 1980s and what replaced the crisp clacking of early IBM-styled models. 6 Ways Windows 8 Is More Secure Than Windows 7 HTG Explains: Why It’s Good That Your Computer’s RAM Is Full 10 Awesome Improvements For Desktop Users in Windows 8

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• Override a static library's global function

  - by Jason Madux

  Not sure if this question belongs here or on SO, but posting here for now :) I'm trying to override a global function defined in "StaticLib" for my iOS application but the compiler keeps giving me the duplicate symbol error. Relevant code: #import "MyApplication.h" #import "StaticLib.h" NSData* getAllData() { NSLog(@"myGetAllData"); return nil; } @implementation MyApplication ... @end I've looked into Apple's runtime library but that all seems to be class-oriented. Any suggestions or is it just not possible to override global functions from static libraries?

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• Media Hint Brings Hulu, Netflix, and Pandora to non-U.S. Residents

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Chrome: If you’re outside the United States you know all too well how irritating it can be when you’re denied access to streaming services because of your location. Stop missing out and start streaming with Chrome extension Media Hint. So what’s the secret sauce? The extensions routes your traffic–just the traffic for the streaming service–through U.S.-based proxies so you can enjoy content unavailable in your home country. The extension requires no configuration or registration, simply install it and visit Hulu, Netflix, or Pandora to start streaming. Media Hint is a free extension, Chrome only. Media Hint [via Digital Inspiration] 6 Ways Windows 8 Is More Secure Than Windows 7 HTG Explains: Why It’s Good That Your Computer’s RAM Is Full 10 Awesome Improvements For Desktop Users in Windows 8

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• What You Said: How Do You Browse Securely Away From Home?

  - by Jason Fitzpatrick

  Responses to this week’s Ask the Reader question show that just because you’re away from home doesn’t mean you have to give up the security and privacy that your home network provides. Earlier this week we asked you to share you browsing away from home security tips and tricks and obliged. JC offered one of the more entertaining tales of away-from-home browsing: Recently a bunch of us stayed at a high end resort down in Mexico. Internet was offered as a pay per device service at about $80/week/device. Considering we had about 12 wifi devices there among us(a few geeks), I decided to plan ahead. I setup a WRT54G as a WiFi client with a vpn back to my house and NAT. Setup a second one as a basic wireless access point with password and plugged it into the first. Onsite we setup the devices and connected to the wireless with one paid account(tied to the MAC address). Everyone connected to the other device for wireless access and it was all tunnelled through my home network with encryption. HTG Explains: Learn How Websites Are Tracking You Online Here’s How to Download Windows 8 Release Preview Right Now HTG Explains: Why Linux Doesn’t Need Defragmenting

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• python factory function best practices

  - by Jason S

  Suppose I have a file foo.py containing a class Foo: class Foo(object): def __init__(self, data): ... Now I want to add a function that creates a Foo object in a certain way from raw source data. Should I put it as a static method in Foo or as another separate function? class Foo(object): def __init__(self, data): ... # option 1: @staticmethod def fromSourceData(sourceData): return Foo(processData(sourceData)) # option 2: def makeFoo(sourceData): return Foo(processData(sourceData)) I don't know whether it's more important to be convenient for users: foo1 = foo.makeFoo(sourceData) or whether it's more important to maintain clear coupling between the method and the class: foo1 = foo.Foo.fromSourceData(sourceData)

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• How do I properly center Nifty GUI elements on screen?

  - by Jason Crosby

  I am new to JME3 game engine but I know Android XML GUI layouts pretty good. I have a simple layout here and I cant figure out what is wrong. Here is my XML code: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <nifty xmlns="http://nifty-gui.sourceforge.net/nifty-1.3.xsd" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://nifty-gui.sourceforge.net/nifty-1.3.xsd http://nifty-gui.sourceforge.net/nifty-1.3.xsd"> <useControls filename="nifty-default-controls.xml" /> <useStyles filename="nifty-default-styles.xml" /> <screen id="start" controller="com.jasoncrosby.game.farkle.gui.MenuScreenGui"> <layer id="layer" backgroundColor="#66CD00" childLayout="center"> <panel id="panel" align="center" valign="center" childLayout="center" visibleToMouse="true"> <image filename="Textures/wood_floor.png" height="95%" width="95%"/> <panel id="panel" align="center" valign="center" childLayout="center" visibleToMouse="true"> <text text="test" font="Interface/Fonts/Eraser.fnt"></text> </panel> </panel> </layer> </screen> Everything works well until I get to displaying the text. I have tried different alignments and tried moving the text into different panels but no matter what I do the text is never in the center of the screen. It's always in the upper left corner, so far I can only see the lower right part of the text. How can I center the text element in the center of the screen?

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