Let it Slide is an engaging, difficult puzzle game

I have a thing for physics games, and I've been known to post the occasional platformer or action game here and there. But Let it Slide is one of the brainiest games I've posted to date.

The idea is very simple, and far from original: You get a board with pieces arranged in a particular pattern; you have to slide those around until you get the special piece into its target location.

It's not even about finding out where the target location is - you can just hover over "dim tiles" and instantly see where you're supposed to bring the special piece. But getting it there is a whole different story.

There are five tutorial levels, which I strongly recommend you do. Then there are twenty "beginner" levels, but that's really a misnomer. If those are the beginner levels, I don't want to know what the intermediate and advanced levels look like!

Every time you finish a level you get a score based on how many clicks it took you - each level has a "par" (the minimum number of clicks it could be completed in), and your performance is compared to that gold standard. Because it's such a brainy game, getting it right is quite satisfying. I was downright proud of myself when I managed to finish a few levels. All in all, quite recommended, especially if you've got a few minutes of quiet. It might actually help you focus better later on.

Let it Slide is an engaging, difficult puzzle game originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/23/let-it-slide-is-an-engaging-difficult-puzzle-game/

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Daily Crunch: Animal TV Edition

Video: Super-efficient Chicken Breast Deboning Robot Colorfly?s ?Audiophile-Quality? Audio Player Is Made Of Wood Video: A Scary Realistic Iron Man Mark I Suit The 4:20 Watch From Cadence Panda Itazura Bank: Super-Cute Piggy Bank (Video) This Wooden iPad Frame Does Retro Right

Source: http://www.crunchgear.com/2011/06/16/daily-crunch-animal-tv-edition/

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PickPocket Proof Undies are the Ultimate Travel Gear

Traveling is supposed to be fun, not stressful. So when you’re on vacation (or holiday as my non-US friends call it), you’ll have one less thing to worry about if you wear Clever Travel Companion?s pickpocket�proof travel gear. This line of garments are designed to function like normal underwear (briefs, long johns, t-shirts and tank [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/05/27/pickpocket-proof-undies-are-the-ultimate-travel-gear/

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NASA Has Bottled the Fountain of Youth (Updated) [Nasa]

Looking to protect astronauts in space from the harmful effects of the sun's radiation, NASA formulated a beverage—known simply as "space drink" or AS10—blending together a rich cocktail of vitamins and antioxidants, exotic fruits and other plant derivatives, including Brazil's cupuacu fruit, acai, prickly pear, yumberry, acerola, grape, green tea, and pomegranate. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/9M5riKohwN4/nasa-has-bottled-the-fountain-of-youth

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Windows 8 getting a built-in PDF reader, Metro-style

For what seems like an eternity, Download Squad readers have reacted to news of security exploits targeting Adobe Reader with a common sentiment: why doesn't Microsoft build its own secure PDF reader into Windows? Apparently the Windows 8 team agrees, and they're working away at an application called Modern Reader which is exactly that.

From the handful of screenshots Paul Thurrott has shared, it's clear that Modern Reader has been built with Metro in mind. You can see the Reader back button in the top-left corner of the yellow image and the minimal page navigation bar on the right. We've posted some larger images we managed to scrape from Google's cache after the break.

Thurrott also mentions that Modern Reader is the first program spotted which is built using AppX -- a packaging technology that may allow developers to roll a single build to both Windows 8 desktops and Windows Phone 8 mobile devices.

Continue reading Windows 8 getting a built-in PDF reader, Metro-style

Windows 8 getting a built-in PDF reader, Metro-style originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/04/windows-8-getting-a-built-in-pdf-reader-finally/

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Songkick?s Tourbox Makes It Easier For Musicians To Trumpet Their Concerts Across The Web

I'm not a professional musician, but apparently it's a headache for artists to publicize their tourdates on the myriad number of websites and apps that cater to music lovers. Not only is there Facebook and Twitter, but there's YouTube, Spotify, Soundcloud and Hype Machine. Enter Songkick, a concert promotion startup that's backed by Sequoia Capital and Index Ventures. They have tons of those little widgets across the web that show when your favorite band is in town. Now they're trying to make it easier for musicians to manage promotions themselves. They've built a product called Tourbox, which connects to a musician's Facebook fan page and automates the publishing for concert dates across the web and in sites like YouTube, Tumblr, Vevo and Spotify. The company counts M83 and Of Montreal among Tourbox's users so far.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/oBaN-Wv7H5U/

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Torus is an impressive 3D Tetris game powered by HTML5

As far as Tetris goes, most variations look quite similar. You're usually looking at a "wall" of bricks directly from the front. Torus takes that notion and throws it away; as you might have guessed from the name (or screenshot), this Tetris clone is played on a ring-like 3D surface.

You rotate the ring itself with the arrow keys, while a Tetris-like piece slowly (excruciatingly slowly, in fact) descends from the top. As soon as you make a solid line, it disappears.

Not all pieces are Tetris-like; some of them wouldn't really work with a regular Tetris game but are a good fit for Torus' 3D format.

Torus is ideal for playing at the office, because it has absolutely no soundtrack. The game is dead-quiet. It's also very very slow (slow enough for me to mention it twice in one post) so you can safely look away for a moment and then keep playing. Also, as soon as the game loses focus, it automatically pauses.

Bottom line: It's an impressive demo of the power of HTML5; if it were a bit faster, it would have some serious addictive potential.

Torus is an impressive 3D Tetris game powered by HTML5 originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/17/torus-is-an-impressive-3d-tetris-game-powered-by-html5/

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RIM in Crisis as a Billion Dollars of BlackBerries and PlayBooks Sit Unsold [BlackBerry]

Things are getting dire for RIM, which diffidently announced its new BlackBerry 10 platform earlier this month to an internet full of aggressive disinterest. The latest grim tiding? Trading has been halted on RIM's stock—which is a very bad sign—on the heels of news that its stash of unsold BlackBerry phones and PlayBook tablets has ballooned to a value of just over $1 billion. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/AJJYLcgy4b0/rim-in-crisis-as-a-billion-dollars-of-blackberries-and-playbooks-sit-unsold

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Daily Crunch: Check-In Edition

MConcierge rolls out Guest Relationship Management solution for hospitality sector Art Lebedev Studio? Optimus Mini Six Hits Production, Will Land On Desks Later This Year Whiteboard Wall Clock Is Minimal And Practical The Nissan Leaf Review: A Fun And Practical Electric Car For The Masses Review: The HP Palm TouchPad

Source: http://www.crunchgear.com/2011/06/30/daily-crunch-check-in-edition/

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Huawei set to debut the Emotion UI for Android on June 9

We can already hear the groans, another custom UI. Huawei are set to introduce their own brand of Android UI, dubbed Emotion, which will debut on June 9 ahead of a July arrival. 

Details are scarce, but given the recent device unveilings at CES and MWC it wouldn't be too far fetched to imagine that it will be incorporated into builds of Ice Cream Sandwich. A July launch will also tie in with the supposed arrival of the Ascend D Quad, which may well have been put back to July with this in mind. Interestingly enough, the hands on we had with the D Quad at CTIA showed Huawei's current attempts at a custom UI. 

There are no words on which devices may or may not get an update to Emotion, or for that matter if the western world will ever see it either. But, given Huawei's recent push to enter the global smartphone market, it's pretty likely we shall. What we really want though from Huawei, is the hardware. 

via Unwired View

 

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/lL5lRNIT92o/story01.htm

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Survival Lab is a fun pixelated game where dying doesn't matter

In most games, dying is a bad thing. You have to start all over again, or at least revert to the last save point and lose some progress. Not so in Survival Lab: in this pixelated gem you play as a lone individual pitted against ruthless weapons in a sealed chamber. You have to run, jump and duck, collecting little yellow things (I have no idea what they're called).

For each donut-like yellow thing you pick up, you gain a bit of experience. If you manage to collect several in a row without getting hit, this counts as a combo. You can see my mad combo skills in the screenshot, of course. Collecting combos is a good thing, because a ten-point combo gives you for more experience than just collecting ten dounts one by one (getting hit in-between).

Having experience is useful, because once you die, you get to a screen where you can upgrade your skills. You can learn to run faster, double-jump (and then double-jump higher), and duck. You can also gain more armour so that getting hit won't kill you so quickly.

What makes this simple game so addictive is that when you die, your experience doesn't reset. You just go back to the same level, or another level of your choosing, and keep accumulating more and more experience. Lots of fun, especially if you're into the whole retro-gaming thing.

Survival Lab is a fun pixelated game where dying doesn't matter originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/28/survival-lab-is-a-fun-pixelated-game-where-dying-doesnt-matter/

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Speedtest.net overhauled with new look, new features

Speedtest.net is pretty much the go-to site for quickly figuring out how fast (or slow) your connection really is and comparing the numbers your ISP boasts with what it actually delivers. And now it's got a new coat of paint and a couple of neat features. In brief:

• New UI: The map widget is much improved; it actually looks like a map now, and it's easy to see where you are.
• Smart server selection: If there are several test servers nearby, Speedtest will now ping each to see which has the least latency and use that for the test. You can still specify servers manually, too.
• User accounts: You can sign up for a free account and aggregate results from several computers/connections.
• Speed Wave: This new feature lets you add your test results to the results of many other users, and get a nice composite view.

All in all, you get some nice, new functionality and a snazzier interface to boot. Nice!

Speedtest.net overhauled with new look, new features originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/07/speedtest-net-overhauled-with-new-look-new-features/

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Mobile Miscellany: week of May 21st, 2012

Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, it was revealed that the HTC EVO 4G LTE likely supports simultaneous voice and data connections on Sprint's network, Samsung's Galaxy Ace 2 landed at Three in the UK and Vertu revealed a refresh to its Constellation series of luxury phones. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of May 21st, 2012.

Continue reading Mobile Miscellany: week of May 21st, 2012

Mobile Miscellany: week of May 21st, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 May 2012 21:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/2mb0ogv2-r0/

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Jumpgate Live Wallpaper [Live Wallpaper Review]

I sure love me some quality live wallpapers. I know, I know, they can sometimes slow down sliding between screens and if they're poorly done, they're a huge drain on the battery. That's why I'm keen to use wallpapers by Kittehface Software. They've brought us great wallpapers like the Thunderstorm Live Wallpaper, Galactic Core Live Wallpaper, and even an excellent Canabalt HD port.

Today I bring you another in a line of great live wallpapers, the Jumpgate Live Wallpaper. What could be better than watching our favorite android, Andy Bugdroid, careen through space with a jetpack strapped to his back? It's hilarious!

Still, as hilarious as it might be, it's also really well done. There's nary a screen stutter when I swipe from left to right, and if you purchase the full version of the wallpaper, you unlock the full settings menu, which really lets you customize your experience.

From the settings menu, you can mess around with everything from the camera speed to the flight speed, to even the amount of asteroids barreling down on our fair, green friend. You can also customize the "energy style" (which is the swirly lane of color Bugdroid is flying through) between three choices: monochrome, Google colors, and pixilated. Monochrome and pixilated are dangerously close to being similar, but if you check them back-to-back, you'll quickly notice how much smoother the non-pixilated option is.

If you eschew the Google colors option, you can also change the color of the energy lane using the energy color? option. (Go figure!) It uses three sliders, which is certainly appreciated (and a welcome improvement over that circular color picker Android had going on for a while).

Rounding out the settings menu are options for star brightness and turning the helix on and off. Other than that, you're done. Well, except for the character option. Did I mention you can get rid of Bugdroid and have a spaceship flying on screen instead? Cause you totally can.

Honestly, Jumpgate Live Wallpaper is probably one of the coolest live wallpapers I've seen in a while. Obviously you've got to be an Android diehard to even consider using it, but if you're reading this article, you probably are.

Jumpgate Live Wallpaper can be had for a cool 99 cents. We've got video and a boatload of screenshots after the break.

read more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/0Yv10EEwjp8/story01.htm

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13 Ways to Smuggle Your Booze [Video]

Three day weekends were made for booze, but there's a catch. Baseball games, parks, concerts, and bars: none of them allow you to bring in your own booze. We're not saying you should break the rules and bring clandestine beverages into such locations, but if you wanted to, here are some great ways to do it. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/IeSLyye2Ves/13-ways-to-smuggle-your-booze

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