Welcome back to yet another exciting installment of the Microsoft Student Insider Feature Series, where I get to probe the minds of some of the Expression Studio team’s most influential members. This week we have the illustrious and adventurous (more on that later) Vivian Chan, Design Audience Lead on the Expression Studio Developer Marketing team. We also have a ton more of these free 60-day Expression Studio trial discs, so starting this week we’ll be giving away two within each post! Find more details on how to win at the end of today’s feature.

When she’s not rock climbing in Chang Mai, Thailand (i.e. rocking it Lara Croft style), Vivian focuses on one goal that drives pretty much everything she does from atop the Microsoft offices in Bellevue, Washington: make Expression Studio relevant to designers.  More on exactly how she accomplishes this and a look into some of the nifty Silverlight applications Vivian introduced me to after the jump. (more…)

Welcome to Geekadelphia’s weekly discussion column, Cofffee Talk, where we talk about the finer topics concerning video games, technology and all the other things you can’t talk about with your slightly-less-geeky friends. Have questions or suggestions? Send an email to geekadelphia@gmail.com or tweet with us. Follow me on Twitter if you’d like to keep this week’s discussion alive.

In case your home lost all access to the internet this week and your dog trashed your smart phone (and the sudden loss of communication put you into a hermit-like depression) , Apple unveiled their brand spankin’ new iPad this week. The internets have been in an uproar about it and its’ almost guaranteed you’ve heard mention of it in your local hang-outs. Comments have run the gamut from calling it the messiah of media consumption and advertising to nothing more than a big old iPod Touch (because it clearly can’t make phone calls, but that’s not the point).

Regardless of whether Mr. Jobs’ newest creation will revolutionize portable computing, the iPad is not the first of its kind. There have been tablet PC releases in the past, but none of which caught on. However, Apple’s new song and dance has rekindled the flames of corporate rivalry and will be accompanied by some competition. Alright, a lot of competition.

With not only the the surge of netbooks on the market but ones that can handle some serious gaming, is there really a place for the tablet device? More on that after the break.

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One specific subset of Etsy that has always garnered my attention is Macbook stickers that somehow cleverly incorporate the glowing Apple logo into them. Being a huge Apple fan I am always surprised at how they manage to work this very well designed trademark into their designs, although I am not surprised that these clever adhesives don’t seem to stick around for long.(Stick around, get it?) This lack of availability isn’t purely based on supply and demand but mainly due rights issues.

The most successful of these designs primarily consist of a mash-up if you will of one pre-existing property with a logo that has some of the most sue happy lawyers in existence.  This one definitely warmed my little comic book loving geeky heart when I saw it, I mean who doesn’t like Iron Man? You can get the sticker here, this great design comes only second to the now infamous Snow White holding the Apple.

Via: Etsy

Last Thursday, me and the Geekadelphia crew threw a massive bash at North Bowl in Northern Liberties for our three year anniversary. Thanks to the kind folk over at Hewlett-Packard and Intel, we were able to invite a lot of close friends who have helped the blog grow over the past three years. Nearly 200 people showed up and the party was a huge success. Some folks went home with 8GB jump drives, others with Best Buy giftcards, and one lucky guy left with a brand new HP Envy, an awesome laptop from HP.

Tim has well over 100 photos in his Flickr gallery from the party, and Philly 2 Night even has some photos up. That’s right, Philly 2 Night showed up at a Geekadelphia party. That’s how you know we’re VIP. I know a lot more of you had cameras at the party, so please, forward your photos over! We’d love to share them in the Geekadelphia Flickr.

You might have noticed that Geekadelphia has a bright new look. Please be patient with us as we tinker away at the blog. We wanted to launch our new layout on our three year anniversary, but there’s still a lot of work to do.

I seriously can’t believe that Tim and I started this blog three years ago. So much has happened in that short period of time, both with the blog and our personal lives. We were on CBS3, Tim started his own web design firm. We started bringing on serious writers (Dan!), I started teaching college. Ben Gilbert went on to write for Joystiq, Bianca started freelancing like crazy, and Chris writes for Technabob.

In the past year we’ve been invited to more parties, press events, comic / anime / video game conventions than I can count, and we owe all our success to you, dear readers.

Thanks for staying with us, and helping us grow. You’ve made this labor of love well worth it. Here’s to another year!

Check out some more photos here.

Tim’s Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/bigredtim/sets/72157622841874060/

Philly 2 Night: http://philly.cities2night.com/GalleryDetail.aspx?galid=26184

Massively recently reported that EVE Online, CCP’s six-year-strong  outer space exploration and combat MMO, is currently holding its 4th Council of Stellar Management (CSM) election race until November 26th. The CSM is essentially an organization of EVE Online players, elected by other players, that represent the miniature society that EVE Online has become. They are in direct tandem with CCP concerning the outcome of the game’s (a loose term in this case) future.

Other developers are currently working at is normally referred to as player driven gameplay and have seriously impressive ideas, but none will perhaps come to the level CCP has with its very own player base council of movers and shakers. Whether this a good thing is your call. With its own thriving in-game economy driven by resource management, trade and piracy, it’s no wonder the virtual world needed some type of governing body (corruption included!). Prepare to put on your thinking caps after the break. (more…)

Each of Global Agenda’s four player classes: Robotics, Assault, Recon and Medic (left to right).

During this year’s GameX Expo, I not only had a chance to play the PvP portion of Hi-Rez Studios’ debut title, Global Agenda, but the opportunity to speak with Hi-Rez Studios’ Associate Producer Michal Adam about some of the finer points of Global Agenda. Find out what the developer is doing to potentially break the mold of traditional MMO design in several ways after the break. (more…)

Looking to check out what’s going on at Geekadelphia without having to fire-up Firefox on your Mac – there’s an app for that, or widget I mean.   The Geekadelphia widget for Mac OS X aggregates the Geekadelphia RSS feed right to your Mac OS dashboard! I do have to admit I had a somewhat selfish reason for coming up with this – so I could jump on Geekadelphia in between projects at work to see what all the other great writers on Geekadelphia are up to. You can download it over here at Apple.com!

So how do you sell an operating system such as Windows 7 in the land of the rising sun? While over here in America we are being barraged by Kylie and her super cute slide shows,(I really think somebody in Microsoft Marketing got it right with these really fun ads, and these almost make me forget those horrible Seinfeld Vista ads) the Japanese are selling Windows 7 with their own brand of  cute, anime girls. The Japanese have always had their own OS-Tans associated with different operating systems. These are basically fan-made anime female mascots that represent the different operating systems in some way, shape or form.

But it surprised more than a few when Microsoft not only adopted the fan practice, but made it official with the invention of Nanami Madobe, voiced by Nana Mizuki, (Nanami Madobe  is actually Japanese wordplay on Mizuki’s name and the Japanese word for “window”) she is best known for her voice work on Naruto as Hinata. Akiba PC is reporting that the premium Japanese set of Windows 7 Ultimate Edition will come with a special wallpaper and sound set for Nanami, thus making if the version of choice or anime fans in Japan and guaranteeing the selling of multiple copies to a single user.(you have to have that unopened copy, just in case)  I can’t tell if this an act of utter desperation or genius by Microsoft, who has lost some of their market foothold to Apple in Japan recently, all I can say is she is a much better mascot than that damn paperclip.

Via Japanator

Contest is over! Thanks for entering!

Last week, HP was gracious enough to send me a rather sizable gift card to purchase this HP Mini XP Netbook, which I recently reviewed. The laptop has quickly become my personal, day-to-day computer, and I’m absolutely thrilled with it. You can read the review here. Even my bunny, Rory, seemed to enjoy the computer.

However, there were a lot of funds leftover from my netbook purchase, and HP was kind enough to let me spend the excess money on a good cause. As a result, Geekadelphia will be donating several brand new HP printers (specifically, a handful of these HP Deskjet D2660′s), to some in-need institutions around Philadelphia. We may host a book-drive or something to go along with this. Not sure yet. Details to follow.

In addition to dishing me out that gift card, HP also sent over a $250 gift card for me to give away on the site. That’s right, as much as it pains me, I’m giving away $250 in HP bucks. Want to win the gift card? Like all our contests, this one is easy. Just leave a comment letting us know which HP laptop is your favorite. Hit up their store, look around, and let us know what you liked. Official rules for their contest are located here. Basically, you’ve got to be over the age of 18, a US resident, can’t redeem the gift card for cash, and can’t be related to or living with any of the Geekadelphia crew. One entry per person.

What can you buy with $250 in HP cash? A ton of calculators, a printer (or four!), or even this other Mini Netbook, which’ll end up costing you a little less than $30 after that giftcard. Awesome. HP has also hooked us up with some excellent exclusive coupon deals. We’ve included them after the jump. Have a look.

Contest kicks off today, and will run until September 14th! We’ll randomly select our winner, and you’ll be notified via email. Good luck!

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The HP Mini XP Netbook – As Photographed on my Couch

Ah, HP. It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced one of your computers. My parents used to have one of your PCs back in the 90′s. It was a 486, and I spent a lot of time taking it apart, playing Day of the Tentacle, and lurking around in AOL Chat Rooms. What? Don’t judge me! I was young, foolish, and in love. Her name was PrincessBlu32, and… hey, wait, a minute. I don’t have to explain myself to you, HP! I’m here to review your new netbook.

Hewlett-Packard recently sent me their new Mini 110 XP Edition netbook, a small, sleek, and surprisingly powerful little computer. With a large (by netbook standards) 10 inch diagonal screen, 160GB hard drive (what!), 1GB of RAM, built in Wi-Fi and SD card slot, three USB slots, a webcam, and a nearly full size keyboard, there is a lot to like about this little fellah.

HP’s webstore describes the 110 as “the perfect companion when you’re on the go. Whether you’re at home, around town, on campus, or across the country,” and I’ve got to say, they’re absolutely right. This little guy weighs in at a little more than 2 lbs! It also comes with Windows XP installed, a brilliant move on HP’s part. If it had come with Vista… well, I doubt I would have been able to turn it on. Thanks HP, you made the right choice.

Rory The Bun Approves of HP’s New Netbook!

Now, when HP emailed me the gift card to purchase this little machine, there were some significant funds leftover. Thanks to their kindness and generosity, they allowed us to spend the extra funds on several brand new printers that we’ll be donating to local in-need institutions. Updates on that in the coming days.

As for the netbook, full review with additional photos after the jump!

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Honestly I hadn’t planned on posting this today this today, but after I watched it I couldn’t resist.  I mean it’s a rap song about something we here at Geekadelphia can all appreciate, geek girls that code.  How freakin cool is that?  The video I thought was pretty funny as well, with her cracking his PSP and telling him to get her a sandwhich(you can tell who rules the roost in this relationship). That and she has a MacBook as well which is definitely going to get you points in my book. You can check out the artist site where he already had “i <3 coder girl” shirts for sale.

Via Secret Diary of Steve Jobs

And now, an actually Gchat conversation with myself and Chris Wink of Technically Philly.

Me: You know, I hate when I find something that looks like a cool story… but I have no idea what it is!
Christopher: Like?
Me: Check this out. Look at that. I know I should write about it on Geek… but what is it, exactly?
Christopher: Oooooh.
Me: I know, right?
Christopher: That is your post!
Christopher: “I don’t know what this is… but how do I not post it?”
Me: Great idea!

I’ll be honest, dear readers. I really don’t understand art. This isn’t to say I don’t think it’s awesome. Because it is. Especially when our boys (and girls) in the Autumn Society are making it. And this piece of work, while I don’t fully grasp the concept behind it… is still seriously awesome.

Working with Philadelphia Fabric Workshop and Museum, artist Jean Sean used 22,528 recycled computer keycaps and 192 custom keycaps to create this unquestionably geeky sculpture. The keys spell out, line by line the email correspondence between the artist and fabricators regarding the creation of the piece. As a result, the sculpture documents its own making. Now THAT is awesome.

“The project speaks to the pervasiveness of email in our lives, while commenting on the fact that, despite the modern technology of virtual communication, our written language is linked to the tactile sensation of moving our fingers over an outmoded typewriter system.”

… neat!

Check out some more snaps of the piece here, and read up about the artist on the official website.

Sweet Keyboard Art
www.sweet-station.com/blog/?p=4938