sesame

E3 2011: Microsoft angles for toddlers

LOS ANGELES--Kids and games. When Tim Schafer of Double Fine stepped onstage to demo his Sesame Street-branded Kinect game today, he explained how he had his 3-year-old daughter in mind when he developed the idea.

Sesame Street, Disneyland, and more: It looks like younger and younger kids are being targeted for gaming. Both Disneyland Adventures and Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster are Microsoft exclusives for the Kinect. Add in Kinect Fun Labs, a series of interactive toys and camera-based art apps on a single disc, and you have a clear-cut strategy for attracting the toddler crowd.

Call it the iPad Effect, or whatever you'd like, but the hands-free gaming that Kinect represents looks like Microsoft's new fertile ground for the youngest gaming set. The question is, will parents want their kids to play? … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1344: Gadgets for rich, white people (podcast)

Some Gamespot.com editors discovered that the Microsoft Xbox Kinect seems to have trouble recognizing darker skinned players. Plus, it pretty much requires you to have a big, giant house. So, you can see how we arrived at the obvious conclusion in our headline, there. Plus, why Hulu is, in fact, destroying the TV industry, and we're ok with that. And Facebook Beacon returns in the form of Deals. Clever, Facebook. Very clever. --Molly

'Sesame Street' skit slaps 'an app for that' concept

"Sesame Street" exists so that children gain some subconscious understanding that their parents are somewhere on the spectrum between fallible and incompetent.

Who can, therefore, be surprised that the show decided to offer a little musical balance to the current and very popular idea that there exists a mobile app to solve any problem?

This song reflects quite beautifully man's excessive reliance on technology to alleviate the deficiencies of his own narcotically addled brain.

You will, I trust, enjoy some of the notional apps introduced in the skit--such as the one that will help you meet a … Read more

Nukotoys aims for next-generation toy empire

To hear Rodger Raderman and Doug Penman tell it, one of the biggest shortcomings of the modern toy industry is that it has little in common with Silicon Valley. And the two are here to remedy that situation.

Raderman and Penman are the co-founders and co-CEOs of Nukotoys, a San Francisco-based company that is aiming to take the best elements of the Silicon Valley startup--rapid prototyping, interactive technology, nimbleness, financial efficiency, and scalability--and apply them to the business of making fun, engaging, and educational toys worthy of the second decade of the 21st century.

For sure, that means a mixture … Read more

The 404 675: Where we watch Katy Perry on COED Magazine (podcast)

COED Magazine produces sexy (but SFW!) content that makes a perfect match for CNET's The 404 Podcast, so we're excited to have Editor-in-Chief Stephen Gebhardt in the guest chair today to chat about the genesis of COED Mag, a scourge of suggestive Katy Perry GIFs, 15 signs you're an Internet weirdo, and "Back to the Future" returning to movie theaters! As you might've guessed, Wilson spends the entire episode shaking his head and fielding calls from the FCC.

COED Magazine is a comprehensive Web publication that caters to a lot of different interests like MMA, sports, tech news, and media, but you can guess the main focus of a Web site with "COED" in the name (queue Wilson scrambling to remove screenshots from the video recording).

Stephen tells us that Katy Perry is driving a ton of traffic to the site, thanks to her appearance on SNL and her cleavage-filled appearance on "Sesame Street." To cash in on her fame, COED presents the 15 most suggestive Katy Perry animated GIFs. If you're like us, these are sure to end your workday productivity, so don't say we didn't warn you.

We also enjoyed this article on the 15 signs you're an Internet weirdo, but mostly because almost all of them apply to The 404 in one host or another. For example, #10: You can't go five minutes without checking your e-mail obviously applies to Wilson, while #1 You play games more hours per week than you work at an actual job sounds like Jeff, and me? Well, it might be easier to read the list and guess which don't sound like something I'd do in the privacy of my own browser.

There's plenty more fun on today's episode with Stephen Gebhardt, including a list of 10 movies about video games that don't suck and some news about "Back to the Future," so enjoy the episode and follow along at COED Magazine!

Episode 675 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Sunny day: 'Sesame Street' accessories arrive

And now, for your dose of morning cute..."Sesame Street" is making its way to video game and audio accessories.

The products, featuring the likenesses of iconic "Street" stars like Elmo, Grover, and Oscar the Grouch, come courtesy of a new partnership between game accessory maker DreamGear and Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization behind "Sesame Street."

The first officially licensed gaggle of gear, released late last month and selling at Toys "R" Us and Best Buy, includes cases and decals for the Nintendo DSi, DS Lite, and DSi XL; Elmo and Cookie … Read more

It's not TV. It's Google TV

It turns out Google TV is not Smart TV. Not that it isn't smart. It just isn't called Smart TV like we thought it would be. It still may be smart TV. To be determined.

Google released information about Google TV today. Here is what I can gather about it so far: It is Google Search on your TV and it will marry Web video with broadcast and cable TV. So if you want to watch Top Chef Masters (and why wouldn't you?), you could just search "Top Chef Masters" and it would tell you … Read more

Database genie

Database management applications have come a long way since Symantec introduced Q&A. Lantica's Sesame Database Manager is perhaps the best-known Q&A follow-on, and latest versions still provide an exclusive Q&A translator. Sesame is a cross-platform-capable, client-server database application development and management suite with built-in word processing and publishing capabilities that businesses, organizations, and even individuals can use to manage large amounts of data and create useful applications. These applications include invoices and receipts, reports, e-commerce, inventories, and virtually any kind of form or record.

Sesame's latest versions boast an upgraded form-based interface … Read more

Sesame Street, Droid get Google's love

As the newsroom's biggest Sesame Street fan, I'd be remiss if I didn't highlight the tribute Google paid to the PBS show this week, on the occasion of its 40th anniversary.

On Wednesday, Big Bird's feet and lower body graced the home page, while Thursday saw Cookie Monster nibbling on the Google logo. On Friday, Bert and Ernie served as the O's in Google.

But Bert and Ernie had to share the home page on Friday, as Google also used a front-page link to tout the new Motorola Droid smartphone that went on sale at … Read more

Lego devotees flock to Seattle

SEATTLE--In one corner of the exhibition hall, hands sift through bins searching for rare pieces missing from vast collections. In another area, a giant Lego person rides in circles atop a brick rendition of the Segway scooter. In between are myriad Lego creations large and small.

It was all part of BrickCon 2009--a four-day festival devoted to Lego, the Danish creation that celebrated its 50th birthday last year.

On display were pieces of Lego art, replicas of real cities and even visions of an apocalyptic future crafted from the signature blocks. For those seeking to build on expansive collections, … Read more