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Monday, August 31, 2015
11 Reasons Terry Pratchett Is A Literary Genius
“Fantasy is an exercise bicycle for the mind. It might not take you anywhere, but it tones up the muscles that can.”
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Many writers are excellent world builders; it's sort of a requirement in good fantasy literature. Terry Pratchett, however, ranks among the best. Discworld is engrossingly sprawling and feels real — just like in our world, there are laws governing Discworld that make it feel less like pure fantasy and more like a land we all missed out on being born in through sheer chance.
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Despite how complex and intricate Discworld is, the books are accessible to any new reader — because you can pick up any of them and dive right in. Imagine trying to do that with Game of Thrones or The Lord of the Rings (both excellent series that I adore).
If you like to have your chronology in order, some devoted readers have created a map that suggests starting points and reading order.
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21 Reasons You Should Love Gaming
#WhyILoveGaming
People were asked to complete the statement, "Everybody should love gaming because..."
It's a passionate hobby which connects you to other people.
"It can open doors to infinite possibilities."
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You meet tons of awesome new friends.
"You meet the coolest people doing the coolest shit!!!"
Bryant Hua for BuzzFeed
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Android Wear Smartwatches Are Coming To iPhone
Thanks to a new iOS app from Google.
Google Android Wear director David Singleton announces updates during the Google I/O conference on May 28.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Until now, the line was clearly drawn: Owning an Android Wear watch meant using a smartphone running Google's Android operating system. Owning an iPhone meant using an Apple Watch or another wearable device designed for Apple's iOS operating system.
But as of Monday, Google will offer a new iOS app for Android Wear. So if you have an iPhone running iOS 8.2 and up, you'll soon be able to pair it with newer Android Wear smartwatches for the first time. That means that if you have an iPhone, you have quite a few more smartwatch options than you did previously.
Google says the iOS experience will be very similar to Android. Notifications, voice-enabled searches, and Google apps will all work. There are two notable drawbacks. The first: Third-party Google Play apps won't run on the Android Wear devices paired with iPhones. The second: Google apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, and Now won't be accessible on Android Wear devices over Wi-Fi — to use them, the wearable must be tethered to the associated iPhone.
Today, Android Wear for iOS works only with the LG Watch Urbane, but forthcoming devices from Huawei, Asus, and Motorola have been designed to support iOS as well.
This integration, which The Verge predicted in April, is a noteworthy shift in the fast-developing wearables landscape. Google is now competing directly against the Apple Watch on Apple's own platform — and Apple, by allowing Google's app into the App Store, is permitting it to do so.
One possible explanation: Apple thinks the two sets of devices are different enough so that Google's app isn't a significant threat. Unlike the Apple Watch, Android Wear devices are open to customization by manufacturers, with different styles, faces, bands, features, and prices. Another, perhaps more likely: Purposefully excluding a broad swath of Android wearables from its wildly popular iOS platform could be viewed as anti-competitive and might have opened Apple up to regulatory scrutiny.
"Since the first Android Wear watches launched just over a year ago, it has been our goal to make Android Wear work for as many users as possible," a Google spokesperson said in a statement. "Now, for most people with iOS or Android phones, there will be a broad range of watches that can work for them."
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sunset at the black sand glacier lagoon. iceland. ... by tannerwendell
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Ian McKellen Went To Manchester Pride And Partied Like Only Ian McKellen Can
Thou shall not pass…without a big gay hug.
Sir Ian McKellen - Lord Of The Rings legend, gay rights activist, BFF of Sir Patrick Stewart, and potential Taylor Swift squad member - was the Grand Marshal at Manchester Pride over the Bank Holiday weekend.
And, boy, did Sir Ian have fun, as he led some 2,500 people through the gay streets of Manchester.
People should have curtsied/bent down on one knee as the 76-year-old passed, but we'll allow that slip in royal etiquette just this once.
Just look at that car!
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19 Helpful Hints About How To Design Women In Video Games
“Bigger brains, not bigger boobs.”
This Link wanted heroines front and center.
"Boxart featuring female protagonists!"
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This Luigi thought video games should be less gender-normative.
"I think female video game characters don't need to be scantily clad nor in gender specific colors."
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Even when we do get a woman in charge, they're often white.
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21 People Share The Game That Changed Their Life Forever
We asked PAX Prime attendees, “What’s the first game that made you love gaming?” #myfirstgame
Bubble Bobble brought two sisters together.
"I'd piss my older sister off because I was terrible at it, and it'd make me happy."
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Starcraft gave this guy the competitive spirit which led him to be a pro Super Smash Bros. player.
"My brother would thrash me endlessly in all games, but I played SC endlessly and tirelessly to beat him!!"
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Street Fighter II was the best game to show off your skills at the arcade and led this guy to work in the fighting game industry.
"A sense of complete mystery + the chance to enrage total strangers." (same tbh)
Bryant Hua for BuzzFeed
The Legend of Zelda - A Link To The Past cured boredom with all its tools and dungeons.
"It was the longest I wasn't bored! Lots of tools! So many dungeons! YAAAAAAS ❤️"
Bryant Hua for BuzzFeed
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Taran Killam's Gut Reaction To 9 Classic Video Game Franchises
The SNL star is killin’ the game.
During a weekend at gaming convention PAX Prime, actor and comic book writer Taran Killam met with fans, played Battletoads at the Courtyard Marriott booth, and talked all things gaming. We met up with him on the expo floor to discuss his feelings on classic video game franchises.
Super Mario Kart Blue Shells
"Hate 'em cause I'm hit by 'em, love that cause it means I'm winning."
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Minesweeper
"Click like mad, then work the corners."
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Pac-Man
"Strawberries. Yum, yum."
Bryant Hua for BuzzFeed
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