INTEL ACQUIRES MAJOR SOFTWARE PROVIDER FOR MOVIES AND GAMES
Intel has recently acquired Havok Inc., a major provider of software and services for video games and movies. Havok will become a subsidiary of Intel but continue operating regularly. Havok will add to Intel's visual and computing efforts. Intel hopes to use Havok to expand into new markets, according to News.com
Havok was founded in 1998 and helps program the physics engines that make objects in video games appear to move in a realistic fashion. Havok has been used in "Halo 2," "Bioshock," and "Half-Life 2."
Additionally, Havok was responsible for the special effects in films such as "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "The Matrix."
PLANS FOR CITYWIDE WI-FI ABANDONED, DELAYED
Plans to blanket cities in cheap, fast Wi-Fi have been delayed or scrapped altogether because they are proving too costly or too problematic.
Wi-Fi is essential for mobile devices, including Apple's iPhones, to perform tasks such as e-mail and instant messaging. "All these big city projects were doomed to failure because they were too complicated," Glenn Fleishman of Wi-Fi Networking News told USA TODAY.
San Francisco, Chicago, Houston and Cincinnati have all put their projects on hold, and St. Louis and Silicon Valley are having trouble finding providers and transmitting the Wi-Fi so that it does not cost millions of dollars.
There have been successes with citywide Wi-Fi projects, however. Minneapolis is currently installing its system, and Oakland County, Michigan, plans to offer Wi-Fi to 400,000 people within the next year.
NINTENDO DS FINDS ITS WAY INTO JAPENESE CLASSROOMS
The stereotype that video games detract from the learning experience has been shattered in Tokyo, where teachers are promoting the use of the Nintendo DS as a learning instrument.
Brain Age, an extremely popular game for Nintendo's successful portable console the Nintendo DS, allows the player to do various arithmetic and reading exercises, among others, at different levels of difficulty.
The new strategy is working, too. Teachers have reported that more and more students have been showing up for extracurricular activities and study sessions and seem much more focused.
Raita Hirai, a private tutor in Tokyo, suggested that the DS eases the stress of repetitive pen and paper exercises, as reported by Physorg.com.
Students said the DS lets them study anywhere and have fun at the same time.
INDIAN GAMING PROVES LUCRATIVE MARKET FOR CONSOLES
As India grows and develops in both population and technology, it has become a popular niche for the gaming market. Sony and Microsoft have gained substantial sales there, and while Nintendo has not formally launched the Wii in India, it is sold there through various third party channels. Anand Gurnani, an animation designer in India, commented that gaming has changed drastically, YahooNews reported. Once a cult activity, it is now a lifestyle activity for young gamers the world over.
- MICHAEL CARUSI
