Just about every gamer we know has wanted to alter a game world on the spot, whether it's to cheat, fix game mechanics or experiment. Special Stage Systems' Ming Mecca system is built entirely around that concept -- and will definitely appeal to anyone with a fondness for analog electronics. Knobs and switches on its World Core synthesizer module adjust the game machine's maps, graphics, characters and even physics through voltage tweaks. Players only have to load assets on an SD card if they'd like a different look, and they even have access to the firmware and schematics if they want to go completely off the beaten path. Input is just as unconventional: a Control Core turns NES-compatible gamepads into signal generators that can be used just as easily for music making as for playing. Ming Mecca isn't expected to ship until summer 2014, and it won't be cheap at an estimated $999 for a World Core and $350 for the Control Core. Even so, we're sorely tempted to splurge -- it's not often that a gadget scratches so many of our nostalgic itches at once.

Filed under: Misc, Gaming

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Source: Special Stage Systems

About two weeks ago, Samsung started rolling out a fix to help Galaxy S III owners in the UK with that previously acknowledged Exynos issue. Fast forward to today, and the Korean electronics giant is now delivering an over-the-air update to T-Mobile's Galaxy Note II, which, according to the changelog, "improves security and provides bug fixes" to the famed handset. Meanwhile, Sprint, too, has pushed out a software update, though this one in particular being for the carrier's Galaxy S II Epic Touch 4G -- and it brings security updates that should take care of any existing Exynos vulnerabilities, plus there's also the inclusion of "Sprint Connections Optimizer." Surely, we can expect similar patches for more devices in the days to come, as we're all well aware that Samsung's working hard on solving the problem.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Samsung

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Via: Android Central

Source: Sprint, T-Mobile

The Wii U launch didn't go quite as smoothly as consumers would've liked, with a major update to sit through right after unboxing, and support for various video streaming services absent on day one. Well, head honcho at Nintendo Satoru Iwata has taken to YouTube and announced from his cream studio that the next system update is due late December. It's primarily being pushed out to improve the frustratingly slow software loading times on the new console -- an issue we highlighted in our review. Iwata only makes a fleeting appearance at the beginning of the video before it moves on to talking up the latest Dragon Quest iteration, but if you've got a decent knowledge of Japanese, the embed awaits you below.

Update: Nintendo's PR people have been in touch and we've had one of our bilingual editors take a look at the video. Unfortunately, something was lost in translation and our source was mistaken -- the update in question is for Dragon Quest X, not the Wii U system.

Filed under: Gaming, Software, Nintendo

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Source: GoNintendo

It's fair to say that some bugs take awhile to fix, and a public schedule isn't always an option; HTC knows this well. Still, Google may be pushing the limits with the solution for a longstanding Android bug that prevents resolving hostnames on some WiFi networks without using the full domain. The company has officially committed to providing a patch -- 2 years, 6 months and 23 days after the bug was first reported on April 29th, 2010. Google explains that the "next major release" after Android 4.2 should hold the remedy, and claims that a mix of "prioritization and resources" prevented the team from sorting things out between Android 2.1 and now. We'll take Google's word for it, although the vow won't be much comfort for anyone who's still holding on to that original HTC Desire and can't upgrade. At least the Mountain View team won't have to deal with any 17-year-old security flaws.

Filed under: Cellphones, Networking, Mobile, Google

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Via: Android Police

Source: Google

It's well past midnight, you're home with your brand new Nintendo Wii U -- now what? Well, you've got yourself a hefty firmware update to download should you wish to do anything other than play disc-based Wii U games. Say, for instance, you wanna check out Nintendo's Mii-based social network, Miiverse? You're gonna need that update. Or you want to check out the digital storefront, the eShop? Update. Browse the internet? Up ... you get the picture. The file download clocks in at just over an hour (at least on our retail units ahead of launch), and the install takes another five minutes, so we'd suggest you grab it ASAP before the rest of the world is trying to hungrily snap it up as well. Remember: your brand new Wii U can do literally nothing outside of build Miis and play disc-based games before the update, so don't go freaking out when your console seems to be missing a few key functions out of the box.

And no, this doesn't include Nintendo TVii, which Nintendo says won't arrive until some time in December. We'll update this post with more specifics as we explore the update further, so keep an eye out!

Update: The update includes, from what we've seen thus far, the entire eShop, Miiverse, an internet browser, and access to Netflix. Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, and YouTube remain conspicuously absent, but should be available "in the coming weeks" (per Nintendo's update earlier this week). Backwards compatibility is also packed in the update, in form of the entire original Wii menu (which makes us feel like we just downloaded the entire Wii console to our Wii U -- the future!). The Wii U actually fully resets to launch the Wii menu, and can only be navigated using a classic Wii remote control. Kinda bogus, but it sure is nice having a full Wii built in to the Wii U.

Update 2: Netflix is a separate download required (an update) for use.

Filed under: Gaming, Nintendo

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Filed under: Software, Google

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Source: Google Chrome Releases

Microsoft has just announced that it will be providing security patches for the Windows 8 IE10-specific version of Flash, despite the software giant initially suggesting it wouldn't. The patch will be available "shortly," and hints at a return to the update cycles of old. More significantly, as ZDNet points out, unless Microsoft coordinates these releases with Adobe, there could be a constant cycle of IE10 being vulnerable in the future. On a positive note, the fix should be released before Windows 8 goes prime time, but for those who jumped on board early, you might want to keep one eye locked on the update page, and get it when it lands.

Filed under: Software

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Source: ZDNet

There's a special moment in every operating system's life when it loses its innocent .0 status and grows up. It's OS X Mountain Lion's turn to mature, as Apple has just pushed out the 10.8.1 update for early adopters. Most of the fixes are for issues that plague specific use cases, such as audio output from a Thunderbolt Display or crashes in Migration Assistant. There are a few remedies that a wider audience might appreciate -- a fix for iMessages that don't send and an improvement to Exchange compatibility in Mail, for example. We don't yet know of any surprises lurking underneath, but it can't hurt to have a smoother-running Mac while we investigate.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Software

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Via: 9to5 Mac

Source: Apple

So you updated to OS X Mountain Lion and, gosh darn it, you're not sure that Office for Mac 2011 (or Office 2008 for Mac) will be in perfect harmony. Time to put off finishing that accounts receivable spreadsheet until IT sorts it all out, right? Unfortunately for anyone looking to catch a break, Microsoft just certified that the two most recent Mac versions of Office will purr with Apple's latest big cat. About the only hiccup remaining is the inability to manually download and install future updates as long as Gatekeeper is on full lockdown. If you've been spending all day making paper planes, it's time to knuckle down and get back to work.

Filed under: Software

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Seeing as how so much software is moving to online distribution, the significance of this controversy might extend far beyond gaming and XBLA. For now, however, the spotlight is firmly on Microsoft and the way it charges developers for testing their games and patches, after a well-known developer made an unusually public complaint. In a post on its official blog, Polytron said it would not patch a rare game-saving bug in its popular title Fez, because Microsoft would charge it "tens of thousands of dollars to re-certify the game." It added that "had Fez been released on Steam instead of XBLA," the problem would have been fixed "right away" and at no cost to the developer, which strongly hints that it'll jump to another platform as soon as its XBLA exclusivity expires. Responses to the story over at our sister site Joystiq are decidedly mixed, with some folks outraged that Microsoft's high maintenance attitude could hold back improvements in this way while others suspect Polytron of blame-shifting.

Filed under: Gaming, Software

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Whether you see Windows Vista and Windows 7 Gadgets as handy tools or a blight upon a pristine desktop, you might want to shut them off for safety's sake. Mickey Shkatov and Toby Kohlenberg have found that the desktop widgets' web-based code have flaws that would allow malicious Gadgets, or even hijacked legitimate Gadgets, to compromise a PC without having to go through the usual avenues of attack. Microsoft's short-term answer to the vulnerability is a drastic one, though: a stopgap patch disables Gadgets entirely, leaving just a barren desktop in its wake. There's no word on a Gadget-friendly solution arriving before Kohlenberg and Shkatov present at the Black Hat Conference on July 26th, but we suspect Microsoft's ultimate answer is to move everyone to Windows 8, where Gadgets aren't even an option. We understand the importance of preventing breaches, of course -- we're just disappointed that we'll have to forgo miniature stock tickers and weather forecasts a little sooner than expected.

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Folks still rocking Apple's Leopard may have been feeling left out after Lion and Snow Leopard both got an update for addressing that Flashback malware. If you're one of them, you'll be glad to know that Apple has finally issued a Leopard fix that comes with a removal tool for the vulnerability afflicting its big cats. In addition to a 1.23MB Flashback update, Apple also released a second 1.11MB fix for Leopard that disables versions of Adobe Flash Player that don't have the requisite security updates. Both should further whittle down the number of Apple computers affected by the Flashback trojan. For the actual updates, feel free to pounce on the source links below.

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Things have gotten interesting in the world of CS updates. Recently, Computerworld reported that Adobe had informed folks using an older version of its famed Creative Suite -- CS5 and CS5.5, to be exact -- they'd have to shell out the CS6 upgrade fee in order to get a fix for some recently discovered bugs. Apparently, Adobe took notice to its customers' dissatisfaction and updated its initial blog post with a changed tune, stating, "We are in the process of resolving these vulnerabilities in Adobe Photoshop CS5.x, and will update this Security Bulletin once the patch is available." The same is true for both Illustrator and Flash. This kerfuffle started after Adobe handed out warnings for eight "critical" vulnerabilities found in certain versions of the three applications -- some of which are said to be exploitable and could potentially be used to "take control of the affected system." We'll see how it all plays out over the upcoming days, but in the meantime hit the links below to see if you need to take any action.

James Trew and Joe Pollicino contributed to this post.

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Okay Nikon owners, stop laughing at your 5D Mark III cronies for their leaky problem. That might be a drip in the pail next to your own worries -- namely, possible "lock-up", focus and viewfinder hitches on your D800 or D4. Nikon verified that a "small number" of units of both DSLRs can lock up and become unresponsive, but until there's a permanent patch you can prevent this by disabling both highlight and RGB histogram displays. The company also verified that a "run" of D800s is suffering from a viewfinder bug, although it has yet to confirm another emerging problem with autofocus in some units, which apparently requires a factory fix. So, if you've noticed any of this with your pricey new D800, or really pricey D4, your best bet might be to reach out to your Nikon repair center post-haste. And don't let the Canon guys see you.

[Thanks, Thinh]

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