A Badly Designed Camera Case

Disappointingly for a company that makes excellent cameras, Panasonic/LUMIX refuses to equip them with decent cases. I kept my FZ28 temporarily in a padded Panasonic Video-Camera case in which the FZ28 somehow fitted but sideways.

I knew about this LUMIX case but could only find it online. I kept waiting to come across it and try to see how it fits my camera before buying - and I should had stuck with that plan. Because I could not resist when I found it for under $10, I am now stuck with yet another case of limited use.

The case is designed for the older FZ8 camera which is obviously shorter in length - because the FZ28 will simply not fit. Placing it lens-cap first leaves the viewfinder sticking out at the top. This was entirely my fault. Neither the seller nor Amazon misrepresented the item: the product description clearly states that it is designed for the FZ8. I hoped it would fit the later model but take my word for it, it does not.

Nevertheless, the reason I am rating this case badly is because it is badly designed. It sports a belt clip (good) which is secured by only a ...Velcro patch (bad). It has a double bottom to keep an extra battery and a pocket for an extra Memory Card (good), which remains open on top and will not fit any card-holder case (bad). It has a shoulder strap (good) which is thin and attaches on very flimsy nylon loops (bad). And it does not close completely!

Even if I had the FZ8 and the two halves did meet when closed, the zipper (for some unfathomable reason) stops halfway(!). The very top of the case remains essentially open to the elements and although it sports some kind of rubber lips, it is obviously not watertight.

Remind me again why one would want to carry his camera in a case? Right...the elements...

My father has an old MAMIYA/Sekor which came with an attached case (it actually screws on at the bottom).

When exactly did that stop being a good idea?

Addictive Bouncing Fun (Now With Its AddOn)

Peggle Nights his is the most successful cross between Patchinko and Pinball! It will have you laughing and shouting at the damn bouncing ball...

At every level there is a number of colored pegs that have to be hit in order to clear the level. They are amongst generic pegs that is OK to hit yet will hinder your access to the colored ones you have to clear - and you have only a limited number of shooting balls.

Every time you shoot a ball it gets used - unless you are lucky to fall into an oscillating bucket and gets recycled. There are also special pegs that give you special abilities for a limited time.

I am afraid I am not doing justice to the game - if it sounds complicated it is not. You pick it up in a minute and it is great fun!

This is a perfect example of what has come to be known as Casual Gaming. It would be a good idea to download the 60-min trial version from a site, such as Reflexive, and decide for yourself whether this is indeed your cup of tea.

Anybody can make a good game that will run only on a super-computer. This is an example of pure programming genius!

If you already own Peggle keep in mind that this version only extends the original with some extra levels and a new "superpower". It is not its sequel - so decide accordingly.

When We Were Afterburning Towards A DRM-Free Future

After Prince of Persia and EndWar, Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. was the third major UbiSoft retail release to come out protected not by any intrusive yet ineffective DRM scheme but simply by gamers' honor. And, on top of that, it was a very good game.

There had not been a similar game released for some time: simplified arcade-like action with easy controls, breath-taking cinematics and impressive graphics - that will run in full even in low-to-mid-range PC systems. My advice: as with any flight combat game, using a joystick will make things so much more enjoyable and intuitive.

If you are more of an authenticity buff (and still have tons of free time to spare) I would advise going with a combat AddOn for Flight Simulator or a good old Jane's title. You will find no realistic cockpit and detailed controls in H.A.W.X. So, is this flight combat game dummied down? Well, yes. But I promise you: you will have fun like never before!

Hammerheading over cityscapes and coming in from the Sun over the desert has never been more easy to master. The electronic aids and bare-minimum controls will let you enjoy the fights and start mastering them early on.

This is a 4star game but I decided to give it full marks just because the Canadians at UbiSoft kept walking the narrow path towards a DRM-free future. It cannot had been easy to take such bold decisions during a bear economy. They deserved our support. Too bad they did not appreciate it

A Gutsy Move

If truth be told, WWII had been done to death. Ever since the original Castle Wolfenstein: 3D, every war theater, every offensive, every front, every defense line, every battle has been redone again and again. True, some more than others and, yes, a number of great games was produced. Yet, some game developers seem unable to stop whipping a very tired horse..

ActiVision proved it had the guts to break with the mold it had made its Call of Duty franchise a huge success. Call of Duty IV: Modern Warfare is set in a (fictional) present in which American and British agents are called upon to stop a Russian plutocrat with Soviet-nostalgia and terrorist aspirations.

The weapons are new, the gameplay is inventive, the graphics are realistic, the settings are beautiful - a great game all together! And the GOTY edition comes prepatched, loaded with numerous new maps and runs like a dream even on mid-range PCs.

A Gamer's Immersive Dream

I have this Logitech Z-2300 2+1 speakers set for some years now and it has never stopped to amaze me. The sound is clear yet powerful and they are perfect for both immersing into the worlds of PC games and listening to music.

The L&R speakers are small enough yet they produce impressively deep sound. Paired with a good THX Audio card, how your PC sounds will never be the same! They come with a (removable - but be careful) front mesh which makes cleaning them easy.

The subwoofer is powerful and one has to really play with the sound card equalizer to be able to hear any bass distortion.

What I really liked was the wire remote which includes Power, Volume and Bass controls - and sports a handy earphones outlet. This is very convenient since most earphones do not come with long enough cables to comfortably attach directly to a PC case outlet.

My only complains would be that the remote is attached to more than one wire of unequal thickness and of not enough length (you will be able to keep it on your desk only if the PC tower is just below and the subwoofer nearby). Moreover, the subwoofer is too tall to fit under my desk (at 11inches [28cm] it does not fit under the drawers on the side I would want it) so I had to keep it outside my desk, increasing the number of visible cables. But that is a small price to pay for such great speakers.

For best results try them with Gothic Rock or Vocal Trance. Let the sound absorb you and the vibrations move you.