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Ubuntu would be neat to try, but for many of us, having to leave Windows and boot into a whole different operating system is a full day project.

Nerdbusiness created this tutorial. So you don’t have to leave Windows to try ubuntu. I’ll be showing you how to setup a “virtual machine” inside Windows that will run Ubuntu inside a tidy little window. So you can launch it from the Start Bar. And have Ubuntu running in the background just like any other Windows program like the internet browser or your game of solitaire.

 Having Ubuntu running inside Windows is just cool. Plus, it's a great way to try out all of Ubuntu's features

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Forget touchscreen, or uber “green” solar powered coffee tables… Kyle Downes has modded the coffee table into its best version ever: a retro-tastic NES controller. The high quality finish and classy glass top isn’t the end of this awesome mod… it actually works. Don’t believe it? Check out the video after the gallery.

Kyle spent months putting this together, starting with a scanned image of his original NES control. This he then simply scaled up, carefully crafting each piece out of MDF and hacking his own wiring onto a broken old controller board. The glass top was the final touch, to protect those giant buttons, and inside there’s plenty of storage. I guess if you’re up for some giant 8-bit game-controlling action you’d probably need someone else on hand.

Computer games are getting so hard these days… Or at least they are according to the creator of the game You Have To Burn The Rope.

This is a little flash based game which is easy and yet somehow very charming and addictive. If you do happen to get stuck with the game you may also want to check out the complete walk through which can be found at Rock Paper Shotgun or directly via this link. The game is a bit of Castlevania, and a bit of Commander Keen. If you liked the old skool side scrollers you should give it a whirl.

You can play on line at  http://www.mazapan.se/games/BurnTheRope.php.

Download You Have To Burn The Rope to play offline here.

The new software update allows gamers to buy new musical tracks, released weekly, without having to use the Xbox Live front end. The store is no more and no less than a full-fledged music service for Rock Band; you can browse available songs by artist, by song title, and later, by album. Many of the tracks are shown with album art, the name of the CD they’ve been taken from, as well as detailed information about how difficult each song is to play on each of the game’s four instruments. A preview function is also available, allowing gamers to hear each song before they pay the dollar or two to download the tracks for use in the game.Couple of important points… if you didn’t catch it this means you can do all of this within the game, AND you can preview the song before you buy it. That’s something I always thought was lacking from RB.

This is a new way to get at a demographic that doesn’t seem to see the worth of paying for music: add the same song they’re willing to download for free into Rock Band or Guitar Hero and see people pay $2 and up for the track. Put a set of three songs by new bands together one week for a lower price, and gamers looking for new content will try them out, allowing you to spread the word about new artists. Gamers are a prime market for music and this is a way to get them more involved in new bands.

It seems like somebody finally gets it. Music sales are in sharp decline because for years now the cost to MAKE music has dropped substantially, people are tired of being raped on the cost of music and would rather just steal it. Here’s a cool idea, provide the music in a way the consumer can interact with it! Kudos… I can’t wait to download more tunes.

We got our little guy the R2D2 droid for Christmas. It’s pretty cool for something you buy from Sharper Image. R2 is a motorized, voice activated replica of R2-D2 . He obeys commands, communicates with beeps and whistles, gestures, flashes his lights, swivels his dome, dances to a cantina song, plays games and navigates with sonar and infrared sensors.

R2 has three modes: Companion, where he’s friendly; Game, where he plays tag, spins and dances; and Command, where he maneuvers in different directions. He recognizes and reacts to 30 phrases; say Princess Leia’s name and R2 emits excited whistles, but… if you mention Darth Vader and he shakes with fear! He’s decent sized as 16 1/2″ x 11″ x 11″ and weighs 7 lbs. Supposedly he’s for ages 8 and up, but my 3 year old is having fun with him too. The only downside for the kids is that R2 responds better to people with a deeper voice, so he has a bit of trouble “understanding” the lil guy. Check out the vids:

Dance Program:

Spin the droid:

Play Message:

Light Beam: