Month: July 2024
Best Press Events, Conferences and Trade Shows, Rated by CNET
At CNET we go to a lot of events in person, and some are better than others. Here’s our insider take, complete with ratings, by the editors who went.
At CNET we go to a lot of events in person, and some are better than others. Here’s our insider take, complete with ratings, by the editors who went.
I Tried 5 Ways to Reheat Pizza. One Was the Absolute Best.
I put an air fryer, toaster oven, large oven, skillet and microwave to the test to find the absolute best way to reheat slices of pizza.
I put an air fryer, toaster oven, large oven, skillet and microwave to the test to find the absolute best way to reheat slices of pizza.
Hybrids between two species can produce “swarms” that flourish
Humans may be part of a hybrid swarm. And we’re making more of them.
Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson | Getty Images)
There are no wild ligers. Indeed, hybrids were once thought to be rare in nature—and of little consequence in an evolutionary sense. But now we know they can play an important role in speciation—the creation of new, genetically distinct populations.
As it turns out, hybridization in nature is quite common. Some 25 percent of plant species hybridize and some 10 percent of animals do the same.
“Hybridization as an event is rare,” said Jeremie Fant, a conservation scientist with the Chicago Botanic Garden who has worked on plant hybridization. “But in evolutionary history, it’s been very common. Hybrids in the plant kingdom are everywhere. They are scattered through most lineages. When hybridization does occur, it can have important evolutionary impacts.”
Best Internet Providers in Johnson City, Tennessee
This mountain city has towering fiber speeds, cheap internet options and everything in between. Here’s the best home internet in Johnson City.
This mountain city has towering fiber speeds, cheap internet options and everything in between. Here’s the best home internet in Johnson City.
The Untold Story of How Ridley Scott Saw ‘Star Wars’—and Ended Up Making ‘Alien’
In 1977, Ridley Scott was considering making a medieval period piece. Then he saw Star Wars and set about making two sci-fi classics, Alien and Blade Runner.
In 1977, Ridley Scott was considering making a medieval period piece. Then he saw Star Wars and set about making two sci-fi classics, Alien and Blade Runner.
New Meta Quest 3 update gives you an essential VR interior-design app for free
Meta Quest 3 update v68 adds a new furniture-layout app, download speed improvements, and a minor graphics tweak.
Meta has rolled out another free update to its Meta Quest 3 VR headset in the shape of update v68, and with it come some minor tweaks to graphics and download speeds, as well as a new essential app for people who need a hand decorating their home.
Your Meta Quest 3 can already help you to construct furniture – as shown in a Meta Quest 3 advert that I can’t seem to escape right now – and now Meta’s new Layout app will help you arrange it too. You can use it to measure your existing furniture or spaces in your home, place virtual approximations of new furniture or gadgets you’re looking to buy (so you can double-check if that 65-inch TV does indeed fit where you want it to), and even access helpful features like a leveling tool to checking if your pictures are hung straight.
When I was moving into a new flat a few months ago this app would have been extremely useful. I spent hours painstakingly drawing 2D la – and Meta’s new Layout app will help you arrange it too. You can use it to measure your existing furniture or spaces in your home, place virtual approximations of new furniture or gadgets you’re looking to buy (so you can double-check if that like – and might have saved a few moments of panic when we found that some items fitted in rather more ‘snuggly’ than we were expecting.
(Image credit: Meta )
Once your Meta Quest 3 updates to v68, Layout will appear in your App Library. While it might not be a tool I use everyday I know it’ll be handy, and I’m excited to see what other apps and features Meta will add next.
Other v68 tweaks coming
For now I’ll have to make do with two more minor tweaks in v68.
Firstly Meta says it has made some “behind-the-scenes improvements” to app downloads. You can install multiple apps at once now, and it’s added a new Downloads tab to your App Library so that you can more easily manage your installs.
Last for this month, it’s releasing a new “frame timing algorithm for OpenXR” that it says will improve frame rate stability and prediction latency on your Meta Quest 3 – provided it’s an OpenXR app. OpenXR is a free open-standard VR development tool used by a lot of creators for their VR games and apps – including the likes of Beat Saber, Moss, and The Last Clockwinder – so expect to see improvements to a fair few of your favorite titles.
Remember, if you don’t see the update today you don’t need to fret. These software improvements roll out gradually so you might need to wait a few days before it arrives on your Quest 3.
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Dragon Age: The Veilguard has 140,000 lines of dialogue
BioWare has revealed that Dragon Age: The Veilguard has more lines of dialogue than Dragon Age: Inquisition.
BioWare has revealed that Dragon Age: The Veilguard has more lines of dialogue than Dragon Age: Inquisition.
In a recent interview with GamesRadar, creative director John Elper and creative performance director Ashley Barlow discussed the reason behind The Veilguard‘s decade-long development, and confirmed that one of the main reasons came down to the overwhelming amount of dialogue included in the game.
“We had other projects going on at BioWare as well. We wanted to make sure we got this one right,” Elper said before calling the upcoming role-playing game “the best version” the game “could possibly be.”
Barlow goes on explain that she has been working on the game for five years with the main cast and revealed that the game has a staggering 140,000 lines of dialogue.
To put that into perspective, Dragon Age: Inquisition held the series record of the most lines recorded, with 88,000.
“It takes a long time to record 700 characters, you know – 80,000 lines or 140,000 lines with all the Rooks. It just takes time to make good,” Barlow added.
BioWare recently unveiled the cast behind The Veilguard‘s seven companions and the four voices behind the playable hero, Rook. The studio also attended San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) where those in attendance were able to meet some of the actors and also see a brand-new glimpse of the game showing “how bonds and connections will unfold through BioWare’s dynamic conversation system.”
The Veilguard doesn’t have a release date just yet, but BioWare has confirmed it will launch on PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC in “Fall 2024”.
We haven’t seen much more of the game since its official reveal last month, but we do know that it will take place 10 years after Dragon Age: Inquisition and also feature four difficulty options as “playstyles”.
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