GeekSugar

5 Things You Can Do With Your Xbox Besides Play Games

GeekSugar — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 08:30:34 PDT

I love my new Xbox 360. Not only does it coordinate with my other black gadgets, but it's now sleek, slim, much quieter than the last version and takes less power to operate. But if you think that the console is all gaming all the time, and only meant for hard-core gamers, you're sadly mistaken. My Xbox 360 is pretty much my all-in-one media center, and I can kick some butt while playing Alan Wake as well. In case you missed the Xbox 360 train, I'll give you five examples of what you can do with the console, besides play video games, and a few things to look forward to in the future after the break.

Geeky Gaming Controller Ornaments FTW!

GeekSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:50:58 PST

Can you really put a price tag on joy? I say no cause that's exactly what I felt when I stumbled across these amazing Controller Ornaments. For a mere $25, you can have your own collection of gaming controllers that span decades - from Super NES to PS3 to Sega - so there's sure to be one that satisfies your inner gaming goddess. Sold as a set of seven, the acrylic ornaments come in four different colors, but without your string or hooks, so you'll have to fashion your own way of getting them on your tree.

Don't celebrate with a Douglas Fir? I've already thought of several different ways to incorporate these into my everyday life after the holidays. Window ornaments, wall art, even sealed into the top of a DIY outdoor table. See? I bet you can come up with a few on your own.

Video Game Consoles Throughout Time

GeekSugar — Fri, 23 May 2008 15:00:27 PDT

It's time to pay some respect to the video game consoles of the past 30 years, which paved the way for all the high-tech consoles we use today - hello, the Wii?! Isn't it ironic how each and every one of these consoles was a leader of its time? I mean come on, when the first Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) came out in 1985, it was the best-selling gaming console of its time (selling 62 million units worldwide). And since then, consoles have evolved beyond our wildest dreams. Enjoy!

What Does a Guy's Gaming Console Say About Him?

GeekSugar — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 11:00:26 PST

Even if I spot an old Playstation hooked up to a guy's TV, I'm not going to pass judgment-ok, so maybe I'm secretly wishing he had a Wii hiding somewhere. In a recent article by Kotaku, a panel of gamers were asked the tough questions about what a console says about a guy-Now I've got your attention don't I?!

The experts include NY-based psychologist Carl Arinoldo, DeVry University's Ed Magnin, online gaming network CEO Ted Owen and GameTrailers.com's Shane Satterfield. Here's a little fun quiz to help shed some light on guy gamers and their "choice of console." Keep in mind that all answers are personal opinions of the experts. Click on "take the quiz" below to get started!

Source

Take the Quiz

How Not to Destroy Your Marriage

The Good Men Project — Fri, 18 May 2012 12:30:42 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Today, Mark Tyrrell offers eight relationship tools to make your marriage work.

"All marriages are happy. It's the living together afterward that causes all the trouble." - Raymond Hull

So how do you make your marriage work? Or do you just blindly hope it'll take care of itself?

Think of a hot, successful date with someone you’re attracted to. You have fun, great conversation and more sexual chemistry than a warehouse full of pheromones. You don’t have to “work at” the date because it’s self sustaining. It runs as smoothly as the gliding hand of a classical guitar maestro and you can’t wait for another rendition.

Teenage Dating in a Twilight-Hunger Games World

But marriage, or any long term relationship; well that’s a whole other caboodle.

If we’re not careful, marriage can deteriorate into little more than a torturous assault course; littered with routine boredoms, frustrations and resentments. Couple all that with external pressures and sometimes marriage feels not worth the effort. But there are major benefits to being hitched or committed, other than just a beneficial tax regime.

Healthy marriage; healthy people.

Being happily married bestows heaps of health benefits. You might be forgiven for thinking that if you’re married you don’t live longer it just seems like it but, no, a good marriage really can help you clock up more years (1) and married people are happier (2) even though they don’t always look it from the outside.

But when marriage doesn’t work it can feel being manacled to a maniac, marooned with a misogynist or nailed to a nag. And I don’t care what the studies say, that’s not healthy. You may hear couples say stuff like: “We are making our marriage work!” but how do we do this?

Making it work.

We pay lip service to “working on the marriage” but what is the work we need to do? Marriage vows such as “to love and to cherish” and “forsaking all others, for better or for worse” don’t really tell us how to make it work, although they give us a clue.

Fortunately a ton of research has been done on what to do and not do to make your marriage, or any intimate relationship work. Follow the guidelines here to become “good at marriage."

Tip one: Be romantic but keep it real.

We are all (force?) fed romance in movies and novels. The handsome man gets the beautiful woman. But what I wonder is what happens after our romantic couple ride off into the sunset together? What do they do exactly? Bicker? Moan at one another? Start to ignore each other?

After all that romance, our beautiful couple is bound to have massive expectations of their life together. But when rose tinted expectations clash with day to reality, watch out!

Romance is vital in any relationship. Always seeing the best in your partner helps to keep things intimate and love should be expressed. But if you have been raised on Mills and Boon Romance novels or feel-good movies, then your own romantic expectations can work against the sustainability of your long term relationship.

When day to day life fails to live up to the giddy, heady lust-filled days of the pre-settled down romance people can become angry, even blame one another: “This wasn’t what I signed up for." They find it hard to take the rough with the smooth because they never really figured there would be any rough.

Expectations not diluted with at least a dash of realism can be a royal road to relationship ruin. Your partner may be an angel, but they have feet of clay. You must learn to love those feet or at least accept them a bit!

Get the rest after the jump!

5 Tablet Picks For Every Type of Grad

Anna Monette Roberts — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:21:31 PDT

Graduation is the perfect opportunity to ask Mom and Dad for the tech you are dying to own. While grads may have once vied for gaming consoles and laptops, these days it's all about sleek, multifunctional touchscreen tablets. We rounded up the five best tablets for every type of grad that may be on your celebration list this year.

Brave: The Video Game - Prepare Your Bows

Kelly Schwarze — Thu, 10 May 2012 15:51:33 PDT

Practice your Scottish accent and stretch those controller thumbs to get ready for a Summer of virtual archery once Brave: The Video Game is released in June. We're already counting down for the June 22 release of Brave, the tale of a rebellious princess with the most envious ginger curls Hollywood's ever seen who defies the royal status quo in search of a fate all her own.

Available to most consoles, the game's in third-person perspective and can be played as princess Merida or select other characters like a cuddly bear we have a suspicion is a bit more mischievous than cute in the film itself. We had chance to play a few minutes of the game recently and can't wait to pick up the bow and arrow again.

Do You Turn Off Your Gaming Consoles?

Kristy Korcz — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:22:29 PDT

A new study shows that 68 percent of the consumed US game console energy happened while in idle mode in 2010, meaning players simply walked away from the console instead of powering down after a session. While this may be more convenient for you, it's costing you an arm and a leg in energy costs; $1.24 billion total nationwide.

Even better than powering down your consoles? Unplugging them altogether to save even more dough when not at home.

Are you guilty of leaving your gaming console on instead of powering down?

Source: Flickr user PseudoGil

May Must Haves: Your Geek Girl Summer Essentials

Kelly Schwarze — Tue, 01 May 2012 03:28:57 PDT

Before we start our Summer vacations, we'll be spending a few more days inside: perfecting our digital painting technique with a new iPad accessory, catching up on the latest season of a new geek classic, and basking in the glory of the coolest gaming console this side of Tatooine. See what the GeekSugar team must have this May in the slideshow!

Geek Living Room Finds: Functional Nintendo Controller Coffee Table

Kelly Schwarze — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:50:21 PDT

When dealing with a gaming console system, most furniture and decorating solutions focus on one theme: hiding. Sure, tangles of cords are no pretty site, but why does our love of video games need to be tucked away within built-in cabinetry and wicker baskets?

Hide your feelings no more by welcoming the functional (!) Nintendo controller coffee table ($3,500) into your living room. Remove the glass, plug in the retractable cord, and use the joypad and buttons to play favorite NES games of yesterday.

From Etsy shop The Bohemian Workbench, the table is made up of maple, mahogany, and walnut woods. Hand-crafted touches include dovetail joints and legs made in midcentury modern style. The shop is working on a demo video of the controller coffee table in action; in the meantime, peep one more picture of gaming carpentry after the break.