New Content Coming To Nintendo Wii Via WiiWare
June 27, 2007
For original video game content, PS3 has the PlayStation Network, Xbox 360 has Xbox Live, and now Wii has WiiWare. Nintendo Wii has always had the Virtual Console to download classic titles, but this newly announced service is specifically for new downloadable content at affordable prices.
The full release from Nintendo follows.
The search for the next ingeniously ground-breaking video game has begun. At a private developers conference this week, Nintendo announced the introduction of WiiWare, a game-creation service that will allow developers large and small to create new downloadable video game content for sale by Nintendo through the Wii Shop Channel of the hot Wii home video game system. WiiWare paves the way for smaller, more creative games to make their way to the public at lower prices, without any inventory risk to developers. The first WiiWare content will launch in early 2008.
“Independent developers armed with small budgets and big ideas will be able to get their original games into the marketplace to see if we can find the next smash hit,” says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “WiiWare brings new levels of creativity and value to the ever-growing population of Wii owners.”
The possibilities for WiiWare are limited only by the imaginations of developers. WiiWare provides game creators a simple method by which they can get their games to the public. This approach, combined with the remarkable motion controls of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, will give birth to fresh takes on established genres, as well as original ideas that currently exist only in developers’ minds. The reduced barriers to development provide developers the freedom to create and an inexpensive, clearly defined path to reach consumers who will ultimately determine which game will become the Next Big Thing.
WiiWare will be posted on the Wii Shop Channel. As with current Wii Shop Channel offerings, users will redeem Wii Points to download content. It will support a variety of pricing options. Details about that and upcoming projects will be announced at a later date. For more information about Wii, visit Wii.com.
Paris Hilton Can’t Wait To Take That Orange Suit Off
June 25, 2007
Paris Hilton is “very, very excited to see the family,” according to her mother Kathy, who visited her daughter in Lynwood’s California’s Century Regional Detention Center on Saturday.
“Paris is doing really well, she is really looking forward to going home, and she thanks you in the press who supported her,” she said.
It turns out that the hotel heiress is not a fan of the color she’s been forced to wear while incarcerated.
“She wants to be with the family and she can’t wait to take that orange suit off. She’s sick of orange, but her health is good. She looks like Paris,” the elder Hilton confided.
Tomorrow is the big day in which the socialite is released. A prime-time interview with Larry King will air on Wednesday.
Source: Hollywood.com
EPA Proposes Tougher Smog Standards
June 24, 2007
For the first time in about a decade, the EPA is introducing a proposal to strengthen the United States’ air quality standards when it comes to ground level ozone. Ozone is the chief component of smog.
“Advances in science are leading to cleaner skies and healthier lives,” said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. “America’s science is progressing and our air quality is improving. By strengthening the ozone standard, EPA is keeping our clean air momentum moving into the future.” The proposal recommends an ozone standard within a range of 0.070 to 0.075 parts per million (ppm). EPA also is taking comments on alternative standards within a range from 0.060 ppm up to the level of the current 8-hour standard, which is 0.08 ppm.Ozone can harm people’s lungs and EPA is particularly concerned about individuals with asthma or other lung diseases, as well as those who spend a lot of time outside, such as children. Ozone exposure can aggravate asthma, resulting in increased medication use and emergency room visits, and it can increase susceptibility to respiratory infections.
The United States has made significant progress reducing ground-level ozone in the past quarter century. Since 1980, ozone levels have dropped 21 percent nationwide as EPA, states and local governments have worked together to continue to improve the nation’s air.
Ground-level ozone is not emitted directly into the air, but is created through a reaction of nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compound emissions in the presence of sunlight. Emissions from industrial facilities, electric utilities, motor vehicle exhaust, gasoline vapors, and chemical solvents are the major man-made sources of these ozone precursors.
EPA also is proposing to revise the “secondary” standard for ozone to improve protection for plants, trees and crops during the growing season. The secondary standard is based on scientific evidence indicating that exposure to even low levels of ozone can damage vegetation. EPA is proposing two alternatives for this standard: a standard that would be identical to the “primary” standard to protect public health; and a cumulative standard aimed at protecting vegetation during the growing season.
EPA is estimating the health benefits of meeting a range of alternative ozone standards based on published scientific studies and the opinion of outside experts. These findings will be detailed in a Regulatory Impact Analysis to be released in the next few weeks, which will include both the estimated costs and benefits. EPA projects that health benefits of the proposed standard could be in the billions of dollars. However, EPA does not consider costs in setting ozone standards.
The agency will take public comment for 90 days following publication of the proposal in the Federal Register and will hold four public hearings. The hearings will be held in Los Angeles and Philadelphia on Aug. 30, and in Chicago and Houston on Sept. 5.
Source: EPA