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March 18 Hi, me againI've gone all non-updatey again, sorry. I've been busy with a lot of future stuff, but I'm still around!
So, if you didn't already know, the Xbox community types started up a blog last month, here: blogs.msdn.com/xboxvoices. You can catch me and the community team rambling on about various things quite often, so do take a look!
December 24 Happy Holidays!Seattle's getting a white Christmas this year. We're so hopeless in the snow! I changed my avatar accordingly...
Hope your winter festivities are going well, and happy new year!
November 19 New Xbox Experience article up on Xbox.comNXE is finally here! And to celebrate this momentous occasion, I have a new article up on Xbox.com.
Do you have your avatar yet? Here's mine:
I'm going to cautiously open comments again. Hopefully we'll have a little fun before the spammers strike.
November 13 Coming up for air
Hi! How are you? Long time no chat. I'm still here, if you're wondering. Been hard at work on a little thing called the New Xbox Experience. Through most of the year, I was working on UI, specifically the text for labels, buttons, etc. for the new dash and guide. When that wrapped up, I moved on to getting our help articles ready for the switch. Still working on that, actually. I just finished up my first Elle article in quite a while. You'll be seeing that next week. Any guesses on what it's about? ;) Let's see, what else. Oh yeah, today's my 8th year anniversary at Microsoft. Where are my presents? Not that you can answer that. I had to turn off comments on this site. I really like it when you guys post comments, but I've been getting way too much comment spam. Just the other week I had to delete spam on every single post on the site. 3 years of posts! So, until Windows Live Spaces comes up with a way to deal with it, I'm just turning them off. But you can still drop me a line. Address is at the bottom of the main page. Ok, back to work. TTFN! August 30 PAX 2008So, I stopped by PAX today. It was freaking awesome, as expected. That exhibit hall keeps getting bigger and bigger every year. It's amazing how quickly PAX has become the go-to event for gaming. Hand-out-to-everyone swag was a little underwhelming, but I did score a skateboard and backpack from Champions Online. Bonus!
A couple of notables for the day: I went to the female gamer communities panel (naturally), which my friend Trixie was moderating. Great panel and really good questions from the audience. I also stopped by the Microsoft booth when Josh Orgeta and Pete Hayes were signing Gears of War 2 posters. Josh and me go way back to... um... Viva Pinata... so he hooked me up with one. He's a swell guy, that Josh. I luffs him to pieces.
A bunch of us wanted to go to the "is casual games killing core games" panel tonight, but by the time we got there, there was a huge line waiting to get in. We were puzzled for a minute, till we looked up who was on the panel. Note to PAX organizers: when you have a panel that includes Wil Wheaton and N'Gai Croal, please get a bigger room, kthxbai.
It's a light PAX year for me. I wasn't there in any official capacity, either, my first year with a regular attendee badge. I had to work yesterday (till, like, 10, trying to get stuff done for a milestone on the new dashboard) and I have some real-life stuff going on tomorrow. So today was it. But I'm glad I went!
June 26 License Transfer Tool on Xbox.comToday, Xbox released the license transfer tool on Xbox.com. This tool allows you to consolidate licenses from any of your previous consoles to your current one. Check it out here: www.xbox.com/drm.
Why would you need to use this? First, some background about how licenses work. When you download content from Xbox LIVE Marketplace, the content is licensed to your console and to your Xbox LIVE account. This allows you to:
Now, if you happen to switch consoles, be it through repair, exchange, or upgrade, you can still download and use your content on the new console online (bullet 1), but you can't use it offline (bullet 2). This is because the content was licensed to the old console, not the new one.
To get licenses back on the new console, two things have to happen. You have to:
In the repair situation, Xbox Customer Support takes care of the first part for you. You send your console in, and, if you get a different replacement console back, they transfer the licenses in their system. You then download the the licenses to your new console when you get it back. Now, with this tool, you can go to Xbox.com and do the same thing for a console you exchanged or bought at retail.
After the first part is done (through support or on Xbox.com), you go to Account Management on your console, select Download History, and download each piece of content again. If you kept your hard drive and the content is still on it, it'll be a really quick download because it's only downloading the license.
You can only do it once every 12 months. This is because this is really designed to cover the exchange/upgrade scenario and not moving licenses around on a regular basis. Also, if you do have to send your console in to support after using this tool, support will still be able to transfer the content on their end. The 12-month restriction is for you using the tool on Xbox.com. A replacement through support is an exception and doesn't count against this limit.
Also, make sure you watch your movies before you transfer, since those won't be moved over. It'll transfer the licenses for other content (including videos and TV shows), just not the movie rentals.
And no, you don't have to have your old console around to do this. You only need to be able to sign in with the gamertag that downloaded the content both on Xbox.com and on your new console.
If you want to know more, take a look at the license tool FAQ. It should answer a bunch of questions about how the tool works.
Of course, if you've only ever had one console, and only downloaded stuff to that console, you don't need this tool. But it's nice to know it's there.
April 07 Toys!Behold the McFarlane Halo 3 Series 1 figures and Series 1 vehicles sets! I actually got these a month ago, but finally brought them into work. Yeah, like I need more toys at my desk.
Vehicles Bad guys Master Chief and Cortana Spartan soldiers Halo multiplayer people are sure to recognize the iconic gesture in the last one. Viva la teabag!
The figures are pretty proportional when you stand next to each other. Master Chief and the spartans are a little under 5" tall. The brute is around 6", and the grunt is a little under 4". (Actually, I think the jackal and grunt could have been a little smaller, but whatev.) Cortana is way out of scale compared to the figures, but is about right if you're pretending to be Master Chief yourself. Plus, she lights up. The vehicles are on a different scale altogether. The bases in the pic are about 4" wide.
No, I didn't get any sort of deal on these. I bought them my own self from BigBadToyStore.com.
Edit: Ok, it seems that some of you are fixated on Cortana's crotch. (Shacknews, I'm looking at you.) The base has blue LEDs that light up her whole figure, but the flash in the other pic washed it out. Here she is in all her blue glory:
Yes, I do realize I probably just made things worse.
March 04 I'm Ellectric!It's SuperMarch, and the Xbox.com personalities have been turned into superheroes! When I saw the art, I was inspired to recreate us in the City of Heroes character creator. So, based on this:
I created this:
These are all real characters on the Champion server (on my account, not played by the real personalities, sorry). I took some liberties with the costume options that didn't quite match the art and made up the bottom halves of the characters, since they weren't shown. I also did some demo manipulation (for those of you who know what that is) to get everyone on the screen with capes and auras. So, how does it look?
More pictures! The Personality Superfriends are:
Trixiecat, Claws/Reflexes Scrapper
Hardcore Gamerscore, Invulnerability/Super Strength Tanker
Ellectric, Force Field/Electricity Defender
X-Dad, Gravity/Radiation Controller
Major Nelson, Energy/Energy Blaster
SoozyQ, Archery/Devices Blaster
Oh yeah, here's a version of Major Nelson that didn't make the cut. I call him Major Nelly. So pretty.
December 28 Media sharing vs. Windows Media CenterIt's been almost two years since I wrote my Windows Media Connect vs. Windows Media Center article, and I thought it'd be a good idea to update and repost it, since so much has changed over the last year or so. Much of this entry will be identical to the old article, with updates to reflect changes to media sharing software, Vista, and Xbox 360 system updates.
There are two ways to stream media to your Xbox 360 console from your PC: through media sharing software, and with Windows Media Center. Previously, only Windows Media Connect was used for media sharing, but with the release of Windows Media Player 11 and Zune last year, Windows Media Connect was retired and taken over by those two media players.
The Media Center landscape has changed, also. Xbox 360 used to only support Windows Media Center on Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, but it's now included with and supported on Windows Vista Home Premium and Ultimate.
The main thing to remember is that media sharing (Windows Media Connect, Windows Media Player 11, and Zune) is different from Windows Media Center. Media sharing is more of a background connection, while Windows Media Center is a standalone application with its own user interface. Any XP or Vista machine can run Windows Media Player 11 or Zune, but only Media Center PCs and PCs with Vista Home Premium or Ultimate can run Windows Media Center.
Here's a quick chart to compare the two technologies, and help you recognize which is which. I'm not explaining exactly how to set up, troubleshoot, and access your media here; there's info on Xbox.com that should help you with those details.
* Windows Media Connect is no longer supported by Microsoft, but it still works if you have it set up. However, Windows Media Player 11 will take over for Windows Media Connect if WMP 11 is installed. For more info about media sharing, see my Media Sharing blog post.
** The console now remembers the last media source you chose. If you're not presented with a list of sources, press X to get to the list. December 25 Happy holidaysI'm sure you've been inundated with holiday greetings all week, but go ahead and add mine to the pile. Happy holidays, and I wish the best for you and yours in the coming year.
December 20 Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!I got an early Christmas gift this week. Remember what was at the top of my holiday wishlist? Well, my holiday wish has come true. Mah sweetie gots me a weighted companion cube! Squeeeeee!
I will hug it and squeeze it and name it George.
O weighted companion cube, never leave me. I promise to never incinerate you again. ♥♥♥
December 17 Elle on Gamer Girls RadioI was a guest on Gamer Girls Radio today! Head over there to listen to my lilting voice (not!).
Thanks, Dangerdoll, Gaminatrix Cori, and Peachi, for having me. It was a blast!
December 10 Happy Holidays from the Xbox.com personalitiesIt's time for a little holiday Q&A with the Xbox.com personalities. Want to know TriXie's favorite holiday movie? My favorite holiday food? SoozyQ's game of the year? Here you go:
I'm so glad TriX didn't mix up my answer to question 4 with my answer to the last one. That would have been awkward.
For gift recommendations and more holiday fun, check out Holiday 2007 on Xbox.com.
November 30 December 07 system update article up on Xbox.comThe year goes by so fast, doesn't it? Full details about the December 4th system update are now live on Xbox.com. No more speculation, it's all there.
There are two things that we actually kept secret that a lot of you will appreciate: Windows Live ID switching and child account promotion. I know! Finally! Plus, there are lots of changes all across the system.
Anyway, the article:
And, as always, you can see all the news about the latest system update on the Xbox.com system update page. And, a core dump of changes is here (full list) and here (abridged version).
Edit: Videophiles, the Xbox team's video playback FAQ has been updated with the nitty-gritty details about the latest changes. Have at it! November 21 Xbox 360 is this many*holds up two fingers*
Lest Xbox LIVE hog the spotlight, lets not forget that we're also celebrating the second birthday of our beloved Xbox 360. Xbox.com has a list of 406 reasons to love Xbox 360. I'm on the list, too. You like me, you really like me.
November 15 Happy Birthday Xbox LIVE!Today is Xbox LIVE's fifth birthday! We had a party and everything. There was cake, and it was not a lie.
Picture was shamelessly stolen from TriXie's space. Go to her gallery to see more pics of the festivities.
Also, don't forget to check out the event on Xbox.com. Lots of goodies! Here's to many more years of Xbox LIVE!
November 13 v2 Zune cozyThe next-gen Zunes launch today! In honor of this event, I knitted a few new Zune cozies in the new sizes.
More pictures in my Zune Cozies gallery.
They're super easy to make. They're just like last year's Zune cozies. Follow these instructions, adjusting for size.
Zune 30: 6" round, 5" tall
Zune 80: 6" round, 4.5" tall
Zune 4/8: 4" round, 4" tall
(While the Zune 80 is smaller around than the 30, the difference isn't that noticible with a knitted cozy.)
Happy Zune day!
November 06 Xbox LIVE is 5IVE article up on Xbox.comNovember 15th marks the fifth birthday of Xbox LIVE. And Xbox.com is throwing a party to celebrate. I've got sentimental in a new article, too:
Happy birthday, Xbox LIVE!
November 03 When hobbies collideRun for your lives! It's a crochet katamari!
And yes, the nubs are magnetic. I can pick up all sorts of crap with it.
I made it using this pattern. The king will be very pleased.
October 17 Knock it off.Hey spammers! Quit clogging up my comments with your crap, ok? I'm tired of cleaning out your garbage from year-old entries. I've already had to disable trackbacks because of you. I'm keeping comments open but you're really pissing me off. Now go away or I shall taunt you a second time.
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