W♥M (Archive)

GeForce Now

GeForce Now Benefits Underserved Mac gamers, now you can play any PC game on your Mac without Bootcamp or Parallels. It also supports macOS 10.10 or better. All supported GeForce NOW titles work on Macs. With over 400 supported top games, like PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, Fortnite, and more from Steam, Uplay, and other popular digital stores, you can play your favorite PC games on nearly any device anywhere you go. Select games from your personal PC game library or purchase new ones, with new games being added all the time. Your favorite titles load faster and stay up-to-date with the latest patches when you stream from the GeForce NOW cloud service. Ease and Accessibility: With the technology of tomorrow available today, it’s never been easier to use your existing devices as high-powered gaming rigs. Transform nearly any laptop, desktop, or even your SHIELD TV streaming device into the gaming PC you’ve been dreaming about with GeForce NOW. It’s powered by NVIDIA GeForce GPUs, so quality and performance are covered. Winning the game is up to you. AAA Windows PC Games: You provide your own game content--whether it’s your own vast library of titles or your collection of free-to-play favorites. Don’t own a game? Look at our GeForce NOW supported games list to see where you can get started. Enjoy your favorite PC games, like PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, Fortnite, Far: Lone Sails, and access to over 200 pre-installed popular titles, with new games getting added all the time. Instant Installs; No Maintenance Required: Instantly install supported games on GeForce NOW directly onto your cloud gaming rig in seconds. Say adios to long wait times for game patches and driver updates. GeForce NOW eliminates the lengthy wait so you can focus on the win. Ultra Streaming Mode: This mode increases the speed that GeForce NOW streams games to your Mac, Windows PC, or SHIELD TV from 60 FPS to 120 FPS or higher, reducing latency. You’re welcome. Read More Nvidia I wanted the best of the best Android TV, and eventually just bought the Nvidia Shield when they had a sale. I was holding out for a new model of this device (since the internal hardware had not been changed …

When I first heard about Google’s Stadia cloud gaming service, I thought that there are several services out already, including Sony’s PlayStation Now and Nvidia’s GeForce Now… so why is anybody excited about Stadia? If Google could solve the latency problem of WiFi, perhaps by a combination of compression and auto-downloading in the background… then streaming games might be more attractive.

I haven’t used PS Now, since it’s expensive at $19.99 a month, but I have dipped my foot in the water with GeForce Now. Originally, I used GeForce Now via my Nvidia Shield… but later I started using it on my PC.

The GeForce Now service is currently free, while Nvidia’s service is in beta. The price they want to charge is $7.99 a month. That price is low, because you can only stream games you already own. You’re essentially paying for the option to stream a game from one of Nvidia’s computers.

The beauty of GeForce Now is that I might play a game on a low-powered laptop instantly (without having to download the software), and then continue the same game (using cloud saves) on another local (but more powerful) computer.

With that in mind, here’s a scenario you might have: While you install a game on a local computer, you could potentially be playing that same game using GeForce Now. By the time your regular computer downloads and installed your game, you can pick it up right where you left it off from GeForce Now.

Now for the negatives:

For streaming purposes, resolution is reduced to 540 or 480p.

Does not support Ultrawide resolution (21:9)

Not recommended playing over WiFi (you need to be on a fast network).

Lots of artifacts and frame skipping if you’re on WiFi

Not intuitive, for example it’s not clear that you have to “install” the game first

Cannot change third party login option, especially if you don’t have an account with another service.

If you’re on WiFi, the service will work, but based on the low resolution and video artifacts, I can’t really recommend playing games over WiFi. I haven’t tested it out using a direct connection to the router, but my computer situation prevents me from trying. I can imagine the game will run much better.

Is the service worth $7.99 once they start charging for it? I would have to say no for now. For $0.00, I do think you should at least give it a try. You do have to request a key from nvidia.com, but it’ll be worth it.

For now, I think I’ll be gaming on my computer… unless I’m in a bind and need to continue the game on my television (using my Nvidia Shield).

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Nvidia Shield

NVIDIA Shield 2017 Read More The Mi Box That left me with my only choice: The Mi Box. If you aren't familiar with the Mi Box, it's a $69 Android TV box sold by Chinese company Xiaomi. When you get the Mi Box ... Roku I recently purchased the third generation Roku 2 at the end of July. I've been keeping an eye on the Roku for a long time, but have finally decided to get one based on the fact that they now support DLNA. ... Apple TV Apple TV is the only one that supports iTunes purchased movies and "Air Play", but if you don't live in the Apple Universe, a workaround is with UltraViolet (via Flixster or Vudu). You can read more about UltraViolet here. ...

It’s been about three years since I purchased The Mi Box and it was just time I needed to upgrade the device.

I know the trend right now are Micro PCs, but I don’t think it’s an elegant solution, since Windows 10’s fonts are tiny, sitting 10 feet away - and not to mention that you still have to use a mouse and keyboard to navigate.

Android TV (which includes Amazon’s limited version called Fire TV), Roku, and Apple TV, are basically the main three competitors in this streaming box market. I have own all three types and I love and hate them all. Many of you already have one of these boxes, and they’re fine for most of you. I just find that Roku and Apple are very limited in what you can actually do with their boxes.

I wanted the best of the best Android TV, and eventually just bought the Nvidia Shield when they had a sale. I was holding out for a new model of this device (since the internal hardware had not been changed since its launch in 2015), but I eventually gave in.

The new smaller 2017 version (with new redesigned controller) is the model I bought, and to be perfectly honest, it’s still a very good streaming box, thanks to the Tegra X1 chip (with 3GB of RAM). It’s fast enough to run any Android software and seems to handle 4k content better than most TV devices of its kind.

Overall, I’m still very happy with the Nvidia Shield and it’s the only device that I use regularly on my TV.

Pros:

The best, fastest, most updated Android TV on the market

4k/HDR/Dolby Atmos 7.1 support

Voice Control and Google Assistant

NVIDIA GeForce Now (currently FREE)

The only Android TV device that can officially run Amazon Prime Videos (Amazon and Google

Game controller is the best I’ve used on any streaming box

Ability to control Shield with Google Home Hub

Can run Dolphin Emulator (other devices on the market are not fast enough to run this software)

Official Google Play store apps, like Kodi, MAME4droid, Snes9x EX+

Supports Google Music and Amazon Music!

Ability to sideload any APK applications, such as Morpheus TV, StopAds, Adblocker

Shield exclusive games, like Doom 3, Tomb Raider, Half-Life 2

Cons:

The most expensive Android TV on the market

No Micro SD reader (found in the original 2015 model, but not in the latest model)

Small storage (only 16GB)

Short battery life on the game controller

Remote controller does not have volume control

Remote controller is flimsy

Remote controller’s batteries are not rechargeable

Needs a special base to stand the Shield upright

The Shield will unwantedly turn on (or off) the TV

I actually hated the remote controller that came with the Shield … so I’m using the game controller for everything and may be the reason why I’m complaining about the controller’s battery life. I find myself recharging it every other day, and it’s a little annoying.

The small storage and lack of SD card reader isn’t really a deal breaker, because you can address this with a rather large USB stick or USB Harddrive. For most people looking to just stream their content, 16GB will be fine for them.

As for the Shield turning on and off the TV, you can disable this “feature” under CEC power management, so it’s not a big deal.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Read More The Witcher I also picked up The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, at Walmart, which came with a lot of bonus items like a DVD and Soundtrack (all at the normal cost of a game product). They are on the right track, I definitely …

I'm a big fan of CD Projekt, the maker of the Witcher series. One of the main reason is that they allow their games to be played offline on a PC, which is how I prefer to play my games. In return, I'll always support the software company. CD Projekt's latest game is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the game came out internationally last Tuesday. I finally got a chance to play the game over the long weekend, starting on Friday evening and running the game all weekend long.

As with the previous Witcher game, the PC version comes with a bonus CD soundtrack of the game. I'm not sure if the soundtrack is free for the PS4 or Xbox One version.

Just initial thoughts, but the game is very good. It feels like a cross between Skyrim, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and a little bit of Red Dead Redemption (particularly for the horse riding).

Although I own the two previous Witcher games (both on discs and digital -- couldn't pass up the sale leading up to Witcher 3), they were just so long that I actually never finish either games... and I suspect that I probably won't have the time to see The Witcher 3 to its end. That's fine, I have always felt I got my money's worth when it comes to these games.

I couldn't get my PC to run the game at Ultra Setting (I've read actually that even the latest Nvidia cards have trouble with the highest setting), but even at 1080p/60fps was good enough for me. Gameplay was pretty smooth and enjoyable, even on my budget Nvidia 750ti and my midrange Intel i5 chip. Your mileage may vary, depending on your rig.

Anyway, right now I'm in a middle of a boss fight that is really tough. I might restart the game and do all the side quests to bring up my levels. I think my character is too weak right now to take on this long quest (which I think I jumped in way too early in the game).

As for complaints about the game, my one small gripe is the way the character moves. It's very slow to start, as if the controls aren't very responsive.

If there are no other games coming out... I think Witcher 3: Wild Hunt may be my game of the year.

PS I have been giving a lot of thoughts into upgrading to a 960 video card (on sale for $200). I figure if games are pretty good on my current computer, wouldn't they will be amazing on something faster?

Witcher, Witcher 2, and Witcher 3

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Site Update: September 2014

Read More Site Update I have an old laptop that basically takes forever to bootup. When the original iPad was released in 2007, I knew this device was going to replace my laptop! I bought the original cellular AT&T version which worked great for a while...

I have been meaning to upgrade the graphics card in my computer for a long time now. The integrated Intel video card, for the most part, worked fine, but it won't exactly run graphically intensive games (shooters, big diablo-style games). I knew that I eventually had to upgrade the graphic card, but my main problem is my i5 Gateway DX4870-UB318 computer only came with a 300 Watt Power supply. If you knew anything about modern gaming graphic cards, they usually have a 500+ Watt requirement (in fact, I just saw a card that required 750 Watt the other day).

If I had to upgrade the graphic card, then logically I had to upgrade the power supply, right? Not so! Enter the Nvidia Maxwell Chipset. The GeForce GTX 750 and 750 Ti came out last year, but I finally got my hands on one (EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti Superclocked) for my computer. The box lists a 400 Watt requirement, but I just installed it on my computer and it ran on my 300W. It should be noted that evga.com only lists a 300W requirement.

Installation was literally a 'snap': as long as your computer had enough room to fit in a PCI Express card, then the GeForce 750 will work. There is no extra cable needed to draw power, so it's insert and go! And the best part: I did not have to restart the computer after I installed the latest Nvidia drivers. The card came with a CD for drivers and software, but I normally would prefer to just download it.

This is my current computer (Sleepergate):

My Rig

CPU: Intel Core i5 3450 @ 3.10Ghz
GPU: GeForce GTX 750 Ti
Memory: 8GB DDR3-1333 SDRAM
OS: Windows 8 (64 Bit)
HD: 1TB 5,400RPM Hard Drive
DVDRW Drive
Memory Card Reader
10/100/1000 Network
802.11a/b/g/n Wireless
Bluetooth

I've tested out various games that previously did not run correctly on my old computer setup, and I have to say the GeForce card handled these games (at max setting) without any problems! Pretty happy with the card at the moment.

Some key features of the EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti Superclocked card: 2GB of GDDR5, 640 CUDA Cores, 3 output (DVI-I, HDMI, DisplayPort), 4K ready (4096x2160), low power requirement (300 Watt), and small size (6.7in in length).

NOTE: Are you confused by the EVGA name? There are various hardware maker in this space, they produce these cards based on Nvidia's design and architecture. As a result, you can shop around for the same card from different manufacturer. For example PNY and Zotac produced the same card, but with slightly different outputs (the Zotac offered mini-HDMI and PNY offered the old, outdated VGA port). To be fair, EVGA gave us a DVI-I to VGA adapter in the box.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Site Update (May 2011)

Assassins of Kings

I am sick. I don't know how it happened, but it's not fun coughing and wheezing. I did manage to do two podcast recording, with Sally and Cristina, which will likely be edited for this week and next week's show.

I also picked up The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, at Walmart, which came with a lot of bonus items like a DVD and Soundtrack (all at the normal cost of a game product). They are on the right track, I definitely feel like you get more value out of it, when this is the 'standard' version of the game. There is a collector's version, which is way too expensive for my blood ($129).

Unfortunately, the game is plagued with problems. Activation was a nightmare (finally got it to work eventually), downloading bonus content wasn't working (it kept saying the code was bad, when in fact, it was the correct code - eventually this worked out), and the game does not work on my Nvidia 7800 SLI. I understand that this card is old, but I can run modern games on it just fine at 1280x720 (which I'm OK with). But seriously, they need to fix some of these bugs... but I don't think they will because their minimal support is Nvidia 8800 card, just a generation above mine. So, right now, it's not recommended if you have an older card.

Since I can't really play it until they patch it, or if Nvidia update their drivers, I might actually go back to the first Witcher game, which I never finished.

The bonus soundtrack is composed by Adam Skorupa & Krzysztof Wierzynkiewicz, and it's what you expect for a gaming soundtrack. The DVD is in Polish, so be prepared to read a lot of subtitles.

I got the latest Spin Magazine in the mail today and it's pretty sweet that they are offering not one, but two, free albums this month. Like I've previously mentioned, it's free for all US residents. You can grab them at spin.com/itunes (expires June 30^th) and spin.com/itunes-lolla (expires Aug 31^st), what a good deal! Especially for Sleater-Kinney and Isobell Campbell.

While you're enjoying the free music, you can consider subscribing the magazine. For one year, it's $9.95. I do recommend the print version, you get more content for the buck, and I've always been a fan of glossy magazines vs digital ones.

Not to say that the iPad digital version doesn't have a lot going for it, but it just seems like the iPad version is more or less about pictures and very, very few words. The only advantage you have on the digital Spin Magazine is that you can stream the month's soundtrack, and "breaking" news is constantly flowing. I actually turned off auto-renewal for the Spin digital magazine, but I am definitely keeping my print subscription.

That's not all, for late April and this month (May), you can purchase a 2-disc special Spin Magazine "Must-Hear Music" edition, available only at Target stores. For the price of the magazine $4.99, you get two 16-track bonus CDs, featuring Mumford & Sons (they are on the current cover), and The Strokes (they were on last month's cover).

The full CD track listings are:

Disc 1 1. Two Door Cinema Club - What You Know 2. Matt & Kim - Block After Block 3. Saigon - Bring Me Down 4. Royal Bangs - Grass Helmet 5. Innerpartysystem - American Trash 6. A Day To Remember - Better Off This Way 7. Funeral Party - Finale 8. Does It Offend You, Yeah? - Monkeys Are Coming 9. Baroness - Swollen & Halo 10. Kopek - Cocaine Chest Pains 11. Trampled By Turtles - Wait So Long 12. Meat Puppets - Damn Thing 13. Juke Kartel - Bullet Wearing Trademark Clothes 14.Bear Hands - Crime Pays 15.Foster the People - Helena Beat 16.Go Radio - Any Other Heart		Disc 2 1.Cage The Elephant - Shake me Down 2.She Wants Revenge - Must Be The One 3. Peter Bjorn & John - Breaker Breaker 4. Red - Feed The Machine 5.Emmure - Solar Flare Homicide 6. Flogging Molly - Don't Shut 'Em Down 7.Old 97's - The Grand Theatre 8. Aiden - Hysteria 9.Royal Bangs - Fireball 10.AWOLNATION - Sail 11.OTEP - Fists Fall 12.Steve Earle - Waitin' On The Sky 13.No Justice - 2nd Avenue 14.Acrylics - Nightwatch 15.Computer Magic - Running 16.New Politics - Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

Update: Here is a picture of the Spin Target Edition next to my iPad with the Spin digital issue. As you can the see the Target Edition is a smaller print, you can find the issue at the music/CD area, not magazine area.

Lastly, The Hype Machine (hypem.com) is a very popular blog music indexer. We were lucky enough to have been featured on their iPhone Application. As a result, we're getting a ton of mobile traffic, and suddenly the song we posted by Scattered Trees climbed up the Hype Machine's Twitter Chart. I think by the time you read this, it would've dropped off the charts, but here's a screen capture (see picture).

Details of the application below:

>>>
Hundreds of Stations Included

• LATEST: freshest music posted from music blogs
• POPULAR: a collection of the most popular music on blogs
• RADIO SHOW: monthly highlights of music + bloggers
• GENRE STATIONS: latest music from blogs filtered by genre
• BLOG DIRECTORY: featuring every blog from our directory
• MY MIX: a mix of music from blogs you watch
• MY FRIENDS: what your social music circle is loving

Gorgeous Playing Experience
Enjoy artwork and the ability to read each blog post behind the music directly within the app. Includes every blog in our Music Blog Directory as its own radio station. Don't know where to start? Browse music by genres like acoustic, british, dance, electro, experimental, indie pop, psychedelic, shoegaze and more.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic