Only a mere twelve years after the first console launched, Microsoft finally decides that its Xbox platform may just be a success and that, just perhaps, customers may wish to know what is going on with it. This has not been so much an issue, thanks to Major Nelson and third-party gaming sites, but it is still a nice, and much needed, touch.

The new site, simply named Xbox Wire, is being run by Lisa Gurry, Senior Director of Public Relations for Xbox. Gurry kicks off the new site with a welcome message to all fans of the popular gaming platform. “In preparation, we’re launching Xbox Wire — a news blog to help you keep up with the latest Xbox news. You will be able to follow our journey as we bring you the best in games and entertainment and along the way we’ll introduce you to the people, places and technology that bring it all to life” Gurry writes.

The new site also rolls Major Nelson blog posts into its content so that users have a one-stop shop for gaming news, though Larry Hryb is listed simply as “Xbox Wire staff”.

The announcement comes at an opportune time, given that Microsoft is set to unveil the next generation of Xbox on May 21. Gurry also includes a picture of the giant tent being constructed on the Redmond campus in advance of the big day. “We can’t wait to share our vision for Xbox and give you a real taste of the future. We’re working hard behind-the-scenes to make it a magical day” she tells us.

There is little known about the upcoming device — even the name has remained a secret. Speculation, however, runs rampant across the internet. Perhaps Xbox Wire may provide a hint before the release.

Look at the adorable GIF above. What you’re seeing is nothing more than a blob of disconnected, alternating smaller blobs. So why do our brains tell us that we’re looking at a trotting dalmation? It’s all because of a little trick our brains are playing on us known as the Law of Closure.

Read more…

Reddit’s ad sales pitch deck is fantastic for two reasons.

First, it has lots of amazing facts about the sheer size of “the front page of the internet.” Reddit’s 70 million monthly readers spent an average of 20 minutes on the site, and looked at 5 billion of its pages, for instance.

Second, it’s hilarious. Grumpy Cat? Check. Beastmaster? Check. Fire breathing unicorn prancing in front of a rainbow? Of course.

The deck was put together by Mike Cole, Reddit’s new sales and strategy chief. He started at the user-driven news aggregation site in April, so this is an early home run. Cole came from The SuperGroup, an Atlanta digital ad agency.

Hat tip to Digiday for noticing it on Slideshare.

Does your ad sales pitch deck open with a cat riding a fire-breathing unicorn? No. No it does not. 5 billion pageviews per month. That’s a lot of pageviews. In truth, Reddit does indeed have a bigger audience than places like the New York Times’ web site. See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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“To Infinity and Beyond” is a pop culture illustration of Buzz Lightyear by California-based artist Dan LuVisi that gives the animated Toy Story action figure an incredible sense of realism and origin story with a surprise ending. Previously we wrote about Dan and his ongoing series of pop culture illustrations, which includes a criminal portrayal of Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street.

Here is the first half of Dan’s awesome origin story for Buzz Lightyear:

As Buzz’s final moment came before him, he glared into the black abyss, only capturing one last one thing: a promise he made his son:

“I will always protect and watch over you. To infinity and beyond.”

Buzz was an all American hero. He worked for the Star Command Army and had been recently promoted to Staff Sgt, leading the young and brave through interstellar wars against the evil alien terrorist, Zurg.

While deep in space, Buzz’s ship was pulled into a worm-hole caused by his arch-nemesis Commander Zurg. Buzz tried everything in his power to turn his ship around, but to no avail. At this point, Buzz and his crew only had one option: abandon ship… (read more)

image via DanLuVisiArt

The talk of the tech town is all about 3D printing. From iPhone cases to guns to full-sized houses, it feels like we’ve already come close to seeing it all. But what about sketches?

A new drawing tool called Doodle3D aims to bring your playful sketches to real, three-dimensional life. The device syncs with your iPad and plugs directly into your 3D printer. After sketching a basic line drawing, like a word or stick figure, your blueprints are sent to the printer via Doodle3D’s WiFi box. Easy as that.

SEE ALSO: How 3D Printing Actually Works

Granted, the creations are pretty simple — the variety of art tools appears to be similar to those from Draw Something. But if you’re only looking to print basic shapes and doodles, it might be something worth checking out Read more…

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