TheSa|nt’s Blog

It has finally happened. A driver and software for laptops using Synaptic touchpads has been created that allows multi-touch support. Now you can use 2 and 3 finger gestures on your touchpad to scroll, open an application, zoom in and out, etc. It works for almost any HP laptop (made in the last decade or so) or any other brand that uses a Synaptic pad. So far I have gotten it to work on 2 HP’s, 2 Gateways and 1 Compaq

Direct Download Links for Synaptics TouchPad Driver version 15.0.9.0

Download Synaptics TouchPad Driver for Windows Vista/7: sp47815.exe(source)

Download Synaptics TouchPad Driver for Windows XP: sp47816.exe (source)

Once you have downloaded and installed the drivers, go to Control Panel, Mouse settings and you will find the Device Settings tab, and then click on Settings button. You will find the options there.

Source: dVice, Panasonic and engadget

Panasonic is really going for it. Their new TV coming out this fall has the craziest spec list I’ve ever seen. First off: it’s a 152-inch plasma screen, which means you’ll need to knock a wall down and bring in a forklift to stick it in your living room. Second: it has 4K resolution, which is four times standard HD. Third: it’s 3D, of course.

So what do you think, do you want one? Well, expect to pay north of half a million dollars for it if you do. And that’s not counting the energy that this thing will suck up, which will probably double your electricity bills. But come on, just imagine how awesome How I Met Your Mother will look on this thing!

TheSa|nt: Simply stated….awesome! I want one!

Have you ever noticed that when you are sleeping and when it comes time to wake up for something, you don’t fully awake (you’re half asleep), and your mind can sometimes run into a sort of debate with itself? I call it the debate between your logical and illogical inner selfs. It’s the brain trying to decipher what is or is not real through logical thinking.

Scenario one, you are sleeping but are slightly awakened by the sensation that you need to use the restroom. You are not fully awake, only half..so sometimes two thoughts may go through your head. Yes, you could fully wake up, and go use the restroom; but, you could also stay in bed and continue enjoying yourself since your in such a relaxed state of mind. So, your mind starts to feed you illogical thoughts like “maybe if I turn over to my other side, it will go away and I can continue sleeping”. At this point your mind argues with itself (for however short the time may be), until it comes to the appropriate decision (the logical decision), mostly because you have awaken enough to think straight.

I know it’s a random thought, but for some reason I wanted to record it in words somewhere. I find those moments to be odd yet interesting.

Later this year Microsoft will be launching the new Project Natal, a device you can connect to your Xbox allowing you to play without a remote. Basically your body becomes the remote, and we have been waiting for a very long time for this to finally release.

Now it’s right around the corner and we will have a chance to try one at home. A disadvantage though is they might be asking for $200 for the device. Originally it was thought that it would be coming in under $100 but it’s already starting to sell via pre-order at Swedish retailers for $200. Is this just a way of trying to make some extra cash by letting people become “one of the first to have one”, or is it a sign that we will be paying a lot more than expected to get one?

Regardless, I know I can’t wait to see how accurate this device really will be. The promotional video that Microsoft released (I believe it was last year) made Natal look pretty nice, so lets hope it lives up to the hype!

Is it just me or does it seem like it’s going to suck? Microsoft doesn’t even know what it will or will not support. They say “it won’t support multitasking”…then “Windows 7 to support multitasking”, “Windows 7 won’t allow apps”, “well…..sortof….ok maybe it will”. Really?

It sounds like MS is simply trying to create a locked down version of Windows Mobile so that it pisses users off the same as the iphone. Well…that’s one way of looking at competition against Apple.

Windows phones have always been popular for being open, file friendly, and fully customizable. Yes a nice UI is cool looking, but will Windows Phone 7 still perform like a miniature laptop in your pocket? If not, I know I won’t be using it when it comes out. I use mine Windows 6.5 phone for both play and business. The things I use it for when it comes to business…no other phone seems to be able to accomplish.

If it turns out that the new Windows Phone 7 OS turns into a new iPhone wannabe, I will be converting over to Android. At least it is still open (for the most part) and pretty much becomes plan B. Not to mention, more developers choose to write apps for iPhone and Android before even remembering that Windows phones exist.

That Android Incredible is starting to look pretty nice :/

What do you think? Are you for or against a more locked down/limited Windows phone? Or are you hoping for a more versatile version of whats already there?

A great review by Steve ^^

I really hope not, but Bungie announced that although the beta for Halo Reach is running on their own servers, the finished product will be launched in partnership with Activision. Does this mean they are heading down the same road as Infinity Ward?

The beta has been out for a week now, and so far it looks like we have a lot to look forward to (keeping in mind that what they are showing us now is only a taste of things to come). The finished product should prove to be a very interesting game. I just hope That they won’t ruin things like Infinity Ward by jumping over to Activision.

I guess we will find out soon (well, September at least)

Well, the day is finally here. We get to play Halo Reach…at least for the next few weeks. Sadly though by the time I get around to it, everything seems to be down ad not working. No one can get the playlists to load.

Someone posted a hilarious twitter about it:

SFX_KONA RT @microsoft_cares: Bungie is aware of the slow matchmaking times and inaccessible playlist. They are working on giving more No-Doze to the hamsters.

Anyways, looking forward to the experience once it actually gets working again. Hit me up! My gamertag is Animevortex and hopefully I will be playing a lot of it the next few weeks.

With Nasa quiting the space game, who do you think will be taking their place? The US can’t simply back out and let the world pass us up. I think the president is a ding-bat (yes, I said it) for even thinking this could benefit our country.

I think Google should make an attempt at capitalizing on what space has to offer. They seem to pull everything off that they by not only making something successful, but bringing us something no one else has.

They have created an awesome search platform. They have brought us an awesome phone OS. They have brought us numerous web and computer applications such as Google Earth, Maps and so much more. They are even jumping into the ISP world now by offering Google ISP…an option that forces the competition to realize that it’s time to get with the times and stop milking us for every single megabit.

So I think Google has a great chance at getting to space. Who would you like to see in space?

I have always noticed that video games give me a major cause of the munchies. So I wondered, is it playing video games, or something else that causes it. Is it that fact that I am so drawn into something, that I don’t to watch how much of anything else I am doing as long as my mind is at peace. Maybe my hands are so busy that during times of having to wait (i.e., lobby waiting for the next round of online play), they don’t want to stop so they reach for snacks while I wait.

SO! I spent some time and asked a large group of random people playing online about their snacking habits. A total of 62 people to be exact (to make the sample large enough to count for something).

My selection was random and unbiased, and I asked each one the same questions. At the conclusion of things, I had the following information:

• 21 out of 62 people said they prefer to have something to snack on while watching a movie.
• 2 out of the 21 said that during a movie, if they ran out…they might get back up to get something more.
• 1 out of 62 people said they almost always snack when watching general TV.
• 0 out of 1 said that while watching TV, if they ran out…they might get back up to get something more.
• 46 out of 62 people said that they prefer to have something to snack on while watching their favorite sport on TV (or live).
• 29 out of the 46 said that while watching the sport, if they ran out…they might get back up to get something more (2 of which said only if the game was live).

Ok, well we see that Sports take the prize so far when it comes to snacking, so lets take a look at Video Games. A few extra questions were asked in this category to get the best idea.

• 58 out of 62 people said they prefer to have something to snack on while playing video games.
• 19 out of the 58 said they will (usually) only do it while playing online with other people, or have friends present.
• 41 out of the 58 people said they would probably get up for more if they ran out.
• 7 out of the 58 said they simply just do it. That they don’t really put much thought into it (as if it was a natural reflex).

Is it activities of high interaction that cause people to want to snack? This would explain why sports and video games have such a high rate of occurrences.

Regardless, this study proves that video games do indeed cause a mean case of the munchies! That’s 93.5% of the people admitting that video games cause them to want to get up to grab a snack.

So watch out when playing games (especially online with other people). Too much of this…may lead to obesity, or cause you to go mad if you run out of things to eat

TheSa|nt