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Showing posts from October, 2023

The 'IFC' of mobile games - good apps that did not sell

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 Image credit: CookieAMA mobile app IFC ("Independent Film Channel") used to joke about themselves that they present good 'artsy' movies that did not sell.  'IFC' mobile games/apps are those with good and original designs built by independent developers neither AAA companies nor funded by AAA companies, who often go against the trend (aka starving artists) providing unique designs and experiences.   How to define a good mobile game? I want to say a fun game with good design and story but let's be realistic, people jump into a mobile game not for fun but for a conversation, a bragging right and to feel superior in a digital world, the 'alternative' world they live in.  It is not about a game but 'I am in'.   While people continue to complain about micro-transactions and data privacy concerns, they continue to play those games and take a blind eye on how their personal data are being exploited everyday.  Some may consider it as a small 'p

How to create iMessage stickers in iOS 17 with tips and tricks

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One of the cool features of iOS 17 is creating your own iMessage stickers using photos.  The edge detection is not perfect but good enough for adding a personal touch to spice things up.   It is a new feature so as always, typical confusion how things work, how to get started and somewhat ... buggy.  Apple claims it works on both iPad and iPhone; however, there is no option to create stickers on iPad 'yet'.  You may create stickers either from your photo album or accessing your photo album through iMessage directly but both have some issues. What we know so far:  1.  The edge detection seems to conflicting with its OCR especially with lower resolution photos.  Photos with text have issues to be recognized and added as a sticker (well, at least we know OCR works well 😅).  We tried to turn off live text under Language and Region but it does not solve the detection issue (higher resolution photos seem to be ok without turning off live text either way). 2.  Direct access to photo

Wasps are unsung heroes with a badass outfit

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Image Credit: BebeBoop Mobile Game   Seriously, how ignorant can one get still denying wasps are beneficial insects with a badass outfit?  They are the best natural pest control, the generous pollinators (aka pollen junkie), and the soil aerators!  No matter how hard we tried to explain to our neighbors, they had already made up their mind wasps are bad and should be eliminated, period!  The wasps massacre happens every year whether professionally done or 'IED' by my neighbors.  Yet wasps come back every year while they keep complaining fleas and ticks in their backyard.  And you wonder why? We never had ticks and fleas problems in our backyard because we never went crazy killing wasps who meant to help the ecosystem including pest control naturally. We couldn't stop our neighbors from killing wasps at their property but the owner dropped an 'IED' to our front yard years ago at least 10ft away from their property line.  I was furious and made sure they knew it was n