JackQodo over at QJ.NET's PSP Flash Player Discussions & Releases Forums announced the release of the F9 Social portal. This homebrew net portal's Beta release features five categories, although not all of them are fully operational:

• MSN Messenger (official, but not yet working :P)
• digg.com">digg news
• Engadget
• Games (under construction)
• Search (under construction too)

JackQodo commented that this was released specifically for feedback and suggestions on what can be added or deleted in the upcoming updates. If you fancy giving feedback on this portal-under-development for your PSP, check out the download link below, and make sure to drop by JackQodo's thread at the QJ.NET Forums to give your opinion.

Download: F9 Social portal BETA
Visit: QJ's  PSP Flash Player Discussions & Releases Forum

Want the functionality of an iPhone or iPod but don't want to pony up the cash? Well, your PSP can do whatever these other gadgets can do with ChrisTek and Epixx's iPSP v1.10. ChrisTek called our attention (thanks for the email!) to this program and we're glad that he did, because it is one of the most robust portals we've seen to date.

The iPSP is a portal designed to look and run like an Apple iPhone, and it contains several applications and games for your use. They've fixed some of the previous problems such as the out-of-memory issue that plagued the earlier release. Here's a short list of what you can expect from this program.

• Digg: The Digg application is an easy-route to get to the social-news website, Digg. It's a great site, and I recommend going to it on your PC as well, by going to http://digg.com.
• Photos: The Photos application displays up to ten photos that you choose, at 5-second intervals.
• Calculator: The Calculator application is just that. A calculator.
• Lock: The Lock application is more for eye candy. It's basically a manually-activated screensaver, and is great if you want to show off your sexy PSP's screen. Just try it. You'll think it looks cool too.
• Weather: The Weather application provides easy access to your local weather. It requires a wireless internet connection. Simply input your zip code and, thanks to Weather Underground, your local weather is displayed.
• iPod: The iPod application allows you to listen to music via PSPTunes. iPSP includes PSPTunes installation files if you don’t already have it installed.
• Browser: The EXPEDITION browser is your link to the web, while using iPSP. It has multiple tabs, and all the things you would expect a browser to have. The icon that looks like a book is for your own links, which are read from the PSP’s favorites menu.
• Games: The Games application is very simple, and is your access-way to the Flash games that come with iPSP. Simply choose a game to play it.
• About: The About application gives you legal and creation info about iPSP, as well as your current iPSP version.
• Messengers: The Messengers application is your gateway to the mobile messengers provided by eBuddy. They are: AIM, MSN, and Yahoo!
• Mail: The Mail application is your gateway to the most popular mobile mail providers. The providers are:Yahoo Mail, GMAIL, AOL Mail, and Windows Live mail.
• Vipr: The Vipr application is your gateway to the Vipr Online Media Service. At the time of iPSP's release, Vipr is still in production, so check back frequently for more updates on it's status.

If you plan on downloading it, there's an easy install file in an executable format and a zipped version for manual installation. As with all other homebrew, read the extensive manual that is provided with the program (in both PDF and txt format) to avoid any possible problems with your PSP. Kudos to Chris Tek and Epixx for this awesome program.

Download: iPSP v1.10 executable
Download: iPSP v1.10 zipped
Visit: QJ Development Forums

Now that evidence shows that Cho Seung Hui didn't own a single video game at the time of the Tragic shooting, a new article over at MSNBC questions Thompson's fervent accusations. This is in light of his recent interview wherein he responded to IGDA criticism.

The MSNBC article notes that contrary to Thompson's claims of counterstrike being a "killing simulator" for youths, Cho didn't need much skill to shoot as many people as he did. Eye witness accounts indicate that many of the victims were shot at point blank range.

Moreover the article notes that Sternheimer, a sociologist at the University of Southern California and author of the book "Kids These Days: Facts and Fictions About Today's Youth" points out that before this week's Virginia Tech massacre, the most deadly school shooting in history took place at the University of Texas in Austin way back in 1966, before the days of pong.

The article says that nobody realises that since the advent of videogames, violence rates in the US have declined "precipitously." Sternheimer even notes that it is likely that any 23-year-old man living in America has already played a videogame. How many 23-year-old men go out on a killing spree?

The MSNBC article goes on to note this nice gem:

For those who didn't grow up playing video games, the appeal of a game like "Counter-Strike" can be hard to comprehend. It can be difficult to understand that the game promotes communication and team work. It can be hard fathom how players who love to run around gunning down their virtual enemies do not have even the slightest desire to shoot a person in real life.

As a commenter on Digg noted, the truth is that massive multiplayer killing fests are really just slightly more complex and themed versions of cops-and-robbers. An online and engaging visual form of "tag" wherein players "tag" one another in the form of virtual kills, in a world where there are no real consequences. A game of tag in a world where death isn't really malicious or evil, or "desensitising" - death only means waiting for the next play round or respawn.

It is a competitive environment where sportsmanship is still the norm; where it is expected that after all the boasting and chest-thumping is done, the winning party will get up and shake the losing party's hand and say "good game."

 

Wired recently run an article debunking the rumor that iconic game maker Square Enix is changing its business model to that of a publisher which exclusively creates sequels and remakes of existing franchises under its library. The source was traced and light was shed on exactly what happened.

It turns out that the rumor wasn't even meant to be one at all. DailyGamingNews wrote a parody on Final Fantasy VIII and made some fictitious statements on what the future holds for Square Enix. It was put up on Digg and it says ".... the days are numbered for new titles from Square-Enix. Their Japanese language website dropped a bombshell on the gaming world late Wednesday night Japanese time when they stated a change in their current business model that would focus solely on re-releases of older games and the occasional direct sequel to existing titles."

What followed was a witch's brew of sarcasm regarding Final Fantasy VIII and a made-up sequel for it, seasoned with coarse language unmentionable in this blog. Unfortunately, a site called PlayStation Universe took the joke as gospel truth and wrote a serious story about it. Joystiq and Destructoid picked it up and the rest was history.

   

Wired says there's nothing on the Japanese Square Enix site that suggests anything that even hints to any validity for the rumor. Nobody commented on it from the Square camp and we take that as a good indication that the PlayStation Universe article is indeed a total hogwash.