Author: Lukas Rox

Android 2.2 and 2.3 on legacy phones: HTC Tattoo

Lukas Rox Mobile, Software , , , , ,
Android 2.2 and 2.3 on legacy phones: HTC Tattoo
ROM nFinityGB v1.03 - 2.3.4 on HTC Tattoo
ROM nFinityGB v1.03 - 2.3.4 on HTC Tattoo

Most modern handsets offer Android 2.3 nowadays, but what about older phones? Most legacy devices are stuck to Android 1.6 or even 1.5, because their manufacturers abandoned them, concentrating on new models. HTC has promised its customers, that HTC Tattoo (also known as HTC Click) was going to get update from 1.6 to 2.1 at some point. Unfortunately, Eclair was newer released for this terminal. The last stock ROM for this device is 1.67.405.70, which is based on Android 1.6 and HTC Sense for QVGA.

Fear not, you still have a chance to install more recent Android version on your phone. Some third party developers (namely a guy known as cn.fyodor) took matters into their own hands, and released a custom ROM, which runs Froyo on HTC Tattoo. Most known issues have now been removed and the last stable version is available for download from this link (xda-developers).

Another nice build for HTC Tattoo is the newest nFinityGB 1.03 running on Android Gingerbread 2.3.4. This build is available on xda-developers.com.

To make sure GPS is working, leave it on in the old ROM, otherwise it might not work after flashing 2.3.

WARNING: To install custom ROMs you need to root your Tattoo first and then install ClockworkMod.

Update on Captain’s Quarters

Lukas Rox EVE Online, Games , , , , , ,
Update on Captain’s Quarters

EVE Online: Incarna is closer than one might expect. CCP released a statement, that Incarna will be deployed in June 2011, so there is about a month until the final build is going to be deployed on a server near you. It seems that the developers took the croudsourcing ideas very seriously, because most of the features mentioned in the forums after the first public Incarna test made it to the current build.

Proposed GUI for Incarna (C) CCP, hf. 2011
Proposed GUI for Incarna (C) CCP, hf. 2011
  • Movement: left+right button makes your character walk
  • Ship fitting: there is now a holo of your ship in the CQ and on the balcony console
  • Gfx: lighting has been adjusted, most of the textures is already there
  • Protein Delicacies + Quafe!! Dear CCP: Please make it possible to eat and drink those 😀 Quafe would have some meaning other than just trading commodity
  • The big three monitors got some overhaul, they don’t look so useless now and display some useful information
  • Animations are much smoother and the collision models have been updated – character doesn’t get stuck anymore
  • Whole performance (FPS) is much better than the previous build. Loading times are still longer than the current station environment.
  • Micropayment interface has been added – it will be possible to convert PLEX to a special currency

The GUIs are still incomplete. Developers have posted a screenshot with the proposed solution in a recent dev blog – you can see it on the right (current Duality build requires you to right click an object and select options from menu).

As usual, I have posted a couple of screenshots from the current work-in-progress version:

EVE Online simplified – Incursion 1.5 on the way

Lukas Rox EVE Online, Games , ,
EVE Online simplified – Incursion 1.5 on the way

A while ago CCP has switched from regular huge updates  into a more agile development cycle, making the releases smaller (and supposedly, more polished). A crowd-sourcing poll was run, and the results are now being implemented one by one. This initiative has been dubbed the “little things” – small improvements, which make the game easier and more usable. There were a few dev-blogs about this, most notably Little things are still little and recent LittleThings4Lyfe.

Most players actually enjoy the improvements, as some GUI elements were really too complex (or too cumbersome in some instances), and needed improvement. Things already implemented include:

  • Remote jump clone removal
  • Drag and drop on container to move items into it
  • Deadspace, faction, officer, and storyline items now have an overlay icon like the Tech II and III items.
  • Probes can now be added to the overview.
  • Players with Starbase Defense Operator roles will now receive notifications about control towers under attack.
  • You can now rename ships in your hangar without making them active.

Little things initiatives continue, and the coming Incursion 1.5 update (to be deployed tomorrow, 19th of May 2011; remember to set long skill) will bring some good changes:

  • BPO and BPC finally receive different icons, in order to make them visually different. Copies will now have lighter icons.
  • On-board scanner (the one which can be used to probe for anomalies) range have been increased from 5AU to 64AU. Cycle time was reduced from 30 seconds to just 10.
  • single history tab in the fleet finder
  • show info page won’t show another players standing to all agents and corporations; from now on, it will only display standings relevant to player who clicked the show info.
  • When starting a manufacturing job without all the ingredients, it will now be possible to add (buy, move, etc.) the materials to input location (such as a hangar) without the need to restart the whole job from scratch.
  • Ships with jump drives will not be able to use jump bridges with the exception of the Black Ops group.
  • Agent quality will be removed. All agents will have -20 in terms of accessibility and +20 in terms of rewards.
  • Agent divisions will be simplified:
    • New Division Old Divisions
    Distribution (100% courier) Accounting, Advisory, Archives, Distribution, Financial, Marketing, Personnel, Production, Public Relations, Storage
    Mining (100% mining) Astrosurveying, Manufacturing, Mining
    Security (100% combat) Administration, Command, Intelligence, Internal Security, Legal, Security, Surveillance
    Research (100% research) R&D (no change)
  • Connection Skills will be updated as well, removed skills will yield free SP that can be applied to other skills (it will work the same way as in Learning Skills removal)

BPCs new icons
BPCs new icons

EDIT: The skillbooks for the new set of connection skills are reimbursed to your clone station – so you might not find it in your hangar.

Android 3.1 SDK now available. Motorola XOOM receives 3.1 update.

Lukas Rox Mobile, Software ,
Android 3.1 SDK now available. Motorola XOOM receives 3.1 update.

Android 3.1 HomeAndroid has recently been split into two branches: mobile and tablet. Android for mobile is the one we have known for some time now, whereas the  Honeycomb 3.0 version is the recent spin off. Users don’t like it and neither does Google: Ice Cream Sandwich will be an unified system for both phons and tablets. But before that…

Android 3.1

Google has just published the SDK for Android 3.1. Additionally, Motorola XOOM 3G users can already update their slate to use this new version of Android.

What’s changed?

  • UI is now more intuitive and more efficient to use. Animations are optimized for faster and smoother transitions.
  • Users can connect a broad range of USB input devices (keyboards, mice, game controllers) and digital cameras. It is possible for developers to create third party drivers for other USB devices.
  • Better multitasking and instant access to the Recent Apps list, which is now expandable. Users can now select from a list of recent apps vertically to see thumbnail images all of the tasks in background, then touch an image to jump back into that program.
  • Efficient Home screen planning. Users can now resize their Home screen widgets using drag bars delivered by the OS. Users can expand widgets both horizontally and/or vertically to include more content, where supported by each widget.
  • Android 3.1 adds additional Wi-Fi features. A new high-performance Wi-Fi lock lets programs keep high-performance Wi-Fi connections even when the device screen is dimmed. Internet radio is one of many possible uses for this feature.
  • Proxy – it is now possible to configure a separate proxy server for each access-point. Web browser will use proxy when connecting to web sites or downloading files.

iPad 2 in Play on 10th of May

Lukas Rox Hardware , ,
iPad 2 in Play on 10th of May

About one and a half month ago iPad 2 was introduced in Europe, including Poland (I have compiled iPad 2 price comparison here). Tomorrow, on May 10th, Play Mobile will be the first polish telecom to introduce iPad 2.
16 GB version of Apple slate with built in 3G modem will be available in Play Online Box offer. Current Play subscribers will receive a small discount – details are below.

Let’s hope other polish operators follow soon.

Source: Play spokesperson

Unity review

Lukas Rox Software , , , ,
Unity review

About two months ago Jack Wallen has posted a nice comparison of GNOME and Unity on techrepublic.com. I really recommend reading this text, because it compares the old Unity from Ubuntu 10.10 with GNOME, and also points out is weaknesses. This post is a quick review of the new Unity, which comes included in the recently released Ubuntu 11.04. We will try to see if and how Ubuntu developers responded to feedback from users.

Read more

New Expansion for Galaxy on Fire II

Lukas Rox Games, Mobile , , , , , ,
New Expansion for Galaxy on Fire II

Yesterday Galaxy on Fire II, an iOS game for iPhone and iPad (which I have reviewed here), has received a paid add-on named “Valkyrie“. Another new feature is ability to obtain a player owned station, where it is possible to store multiple ships (before this, player could only own one starship at a time).

The new Valkyrie add-on costs 3,99 EUR (paid as in-app purchase) and brings a new storyline centered around Valkyrie station in Herjaza system. That is of course not all, which the expansion has to offer:

  • New ships
  • Loma, the black market system
  • Guided missiles
  • Scatterguns (AoE guns)
  • Automatic turrets
  • New blueprints
  • Opponent signatures
  • Time extenders
  • Weapon modifiers (similar to weapon upgrades in EVE)
  • New booster
  • New tractor beam
  • Emergency system
  • New thermo weapon
  • Mines

The amount of new content makes this game even closer to the single player EVE-like experience. By the way, dear CCP, when do you release EVE Online for iPad?! (or EVE offline, it could just be a game in EVE universe – money waiting to be made here)

Player owned station can be either bought in-game for 30 million credits and 50 tons of Buskat, or as an in-app purchase for a mere 0,79 EUR. The station is located in Shima system.

EDIT: I found a bug. If you don’t buy the add-on, every time you undock, a character named Cornelious will contact you to offer a mission, which is not available until after you bought the expansion.

Ubuntu 11.04: Natty Narwhal released

Lukas Rox Software , , , , ,
Ubuntu 11.04: Natty Narwhal released

Today is a very good day for Ubuntu Linux fans, because Canonical has just released the brand new Natty Narwhal (11.04) version of its very popular Ubuntu distribution.

New Ubuntu introduces a common desktop environment for both desktop and netbook computers called Unity. It replaces the Gnome desktop and is very functional on limited netbook screens. It also provides very good-looking program menu, which reminds Android and iOS – it is useful, but requires some getting used to.

  • Move your cursor to the left side of the screen to show the launcher ribbon.
  • Click on the Ubuntu logo to display menu with apps, programs, documents and games.
  • Type in the text box on the top to find the program or file you are looking for.

Classic GNOME desktop is still available, if your graphics card does not offer hardware acceleration (this might be the case in some virtual environments, like VMware server).

The new version can be downloaded from the official ubuntu website.

 

Feedback on Incarna’s CQ

Lukas Rox EVE Online, Games , , , ,
Feedback on Incarna’s CQ

Dear CCP PLEASE make CQ optional. Station spinning environment already exists, so it costs no additional development. No cost – more happy customers, a win-win situation.

CQ is great to have on high end computers, and I will definitely use this when playing at home. Unfortunately, sometimes I have to do some HALF-AFK style tasks, and I do it from a laptop I can’t replace (as it is not mine in the first place). CQ is quite demanding on my home computer, so I think this laptop will probably die the moment I log on with CQ on.

Feedback on the early CQ build on Duality:

  • Market – if PI can be managed from CQ, Market should, too. It would mean some pilots are going to spend 99% of their time in front of this.
  • Fitting – a holo-interface (re-use of current ship models, just give them ghostly holo-textures) and some nice 3D interface to fit modules would really rock! Please keep the old fitting windows for in-space/in-hangar-no-cq fitting. Maybe wrap the current fitting window around a holographic projection of the ship in CQ?
  • Movement – please add middle mouse/both buttons as a shortcut for walking. Most known MMOs have this, and it’s VERY convenient when moving around. Also characters seem to have trouble walking down stairs and move around between furntiure. Just make the collision model a bit smaller, that should fix it.

Also, there is a lot unfinished things (missing textures, poor performance, stuttering animation) – I will wait with my opinion until a more complete build is available for testing.

 

You can also read what other players think about CQ in this post.

Captains Quarters test on Duality

Lukas Rox EVE Online, Games , , , , ,
Captains Quarters test on Duality

Incarna is slowly taking shape.

First Incarna tests: April 20-25th on Duality test server

CCP has released information about Captains Quarters test on the Duality server, which is beginning this afternoon (an update to original dev-blog mentions start on April 20th at 12:30 UTC; tests will end on April 25th). Players who log on to the Duality test server during this period will have the possibility to firsthand experience Minmatar Captains Quarters. Other races are said to follow, but will not be available in this first test.

Along with the new in-station environment players will have the ability to check how the tutorials and new player experience has been changed. To participate in this test, it is necessary to create a new Amarr character who is a member of the Royal Amarr Institute school (it can be selected on the last page of character customization)

As mentioned earlier, Incarna is not going to be just an eye-candy; it will be an immersive 3D interface for EVE Online. In the test build players will be able to access this new in-character interface to:

  • Planetary Interaction
  • Corporation management/recruitment
  • Character re-customization
  • Ship fitting

Devs also remind that this is a work in progress rather than a final product, so players still have influence at this point, and are encouraged to send feedback. Two chat channels will be created for the test:

  • “CQ Info” will be moderated and for instructions and information from CCP only.
  • “CQ Testing” will be for discussion, questions, comments, etc.

All bugs should be reported according to this evelopedia article about bug reporting.

First Incarna screenshots: