Remember Paprium? Developed by Watermelon — the studio behind the excellent Pier Solar — this side-scrolling fighter was supposed to launch on the Sega Genesis / Mega Drive some time ago, funded by pre-orders pledged by the many fans desperate to see a new Streets of Rage-style brawler come to the classic 16-bit system.

Unfortunately, the release window was missed and stories of Paprium’s troubled development began to emerge. Last year, a launch party was held which didn’t actually launch anything, a rather laughable event which sums up Paprium’s life so far.

However, it seems that the project is back on track, at least according to lead artist Luis Martins. Martins actually completed his work on the game some time ago, and was the person who spoke to us when we were trying to unearth exactly what was going on with the game.

Martins has now tweeted that he has made contact with Gwenael Godde (aka Fonzie, WaterMelon’s Creative Director) and that production is complete:

While this is obviously positive news, those who backed Paprium have been here before, and will rightly want to see more evidence before they get too excited. Needless to say, we’re digging and will hopefully have more info soon.

Prior to PAX East 2019, Gearbox Software began teasing a series of images on its Twitter account. A number of these pixelated uploads were identified as Borderlands 2 at the time, leading fans to believe the game would be revealed for the Nintendo Switch. Instead, Gearbox went on to announce Bulletstorm: Duke of Switch Edition.

It’s left many Borderlands enthusiasts wondering if these games will ever be released on Nintendo’s hybrid platform. When asked on Twitter recently if there was any chance the looter shooter would make its way across to the Switch, Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford said he would “love” to see it happen. Here’s the full exchange:

While we won’t get our hopes up for the latest entry in the series, the first or second game would be great fun to play on the go. Of course, as previously noted, the second entry in the series has already been released as a portable experience on PlayStation Vita and Shield hardware.

Would you like to see Borderlands eventually make its way across to the Switch? Will you be picking up Bulletstorm this summer? Tell us down in the comments.

Microsoft Build is our premier developer conference, providing access to cutting-edge technology, the ability to collaborate with peers, and an open door to fresh perspectives. Our goals are to foster community and transparently share our developer roadmap and monetization strategy — which we believe leads to even better collaboration and innovation.

While it maintains its roots of being produced by developers for developers, this year’s event is focused on empowering developers of all kinds, from experienced computer scientists to tech beginners with big ideas we have so much in store! Whether you want to learn a new technology or level up your skills in a certain area, we have you covered. With more than 180 sessions, from developing for accessibility to responsible AI design to building apps for HoloLens, and a gamut of topics in between, class is in session.

Speaking of class, for the first time, attendees are invited to bring two family members ages 14-21 to the event. The brand-new Student Zone is dialed in to provide students access to experts, hands on labs, co-coding opportunities and more. And for the first time, the Imagine Cup World Championship, a strongly contested student developer competition, will open the event!

In the competition spirit, we’re also showcasing eight innovative startups and we invite you to help us determine the “Startups at Microsoft Build: Attendee Choice Award.” Meet these cloud-born founders in person and vote on which startup you feel has the most compelling pitch. To turbo-charge their growth, the winner will be awarded a comprehensive set of go-to-market benefits, valued at more than $1 million USD.

We also have some very exciting news for our partners. We are deepening our investments and will be making several announcements benefiting both our ISV and reseller partners when they leverage our commercial marketplace to collaborate on joint sales. We also have dozens of partners on site at Build with deep dive sessions, hands-on labs, and an exhibition area with a ton of experts on hand.

But that’s not all. We’re weaving wellness and community-focused areas throughout Build as well. Our Hang Out lounge provides a cozy place to recharge between sessions and features a variety of content from our Cloud Advocates and LEAP Program participants. It also plays host to daily popup experiences, including an IoT day and an opportunity to get hands-on with classic Commodore 64s, among other engaging opportunities.

I encourage you to spend some time with the session catalog to craft your ideal schedule. These sessions are created and delivered by the engineers who create our products and provide a great opportunity to connect with them on a personal level. A couple can’t-miss sessions include:

From Zero to DevOps Superhero: The Container Edition
This is not another “Hello World” session with quick tips, but rather a deep dive into how you can truly go from zero to DevOps superhero by selecting container tooling built for simplifying the process. You’ll also learn how these tools can provide better orchestration for cloud services, abstraction and encapsulation for your microservices deployments and visibility into what runs where and why.

Azure IoT platform services: a comprehensive overview
In this demo-heavy session, you will learn what’s available for modern IoT developers. Azure IoT Hub, Device Provisioning Service, Time Series Insight, Azure Maps and Visual Studio Code will all be put to contribution and you won’t believe all that can be achieved in only 60 minutes.

And, we’ll have exciting speakers who were selected from the call for proposals, including this one:

Designing for speech
Designing a natural language interface can be difficult. Is the interface supposed to be able to interpret every single nuance of speech? And how about slang? Or should we aim more towards forced language and make our users learn how to interact with simple commands? According to Comscore, 50% of all searches will be made by voice by 2020. Today, 40% of adults use voice commands at least once per day. Get ready now and your bots and apps will be a delight to talk to!

While we’re hosting the physical event in Seattle, our aim is to make it interactive for those who can’t make it in person as well! Satya Nadella’s opening keynote will be streamed live beginning at 8:30 a.m. Pacific on May 6, and core sessions will be online for free viewing within 24 hours. You can find it all on the Build site.

For those headed to Build, we can’t wait to welcome you to Seattle, to share and collaborate, and to imagine, create and code together!

Tags: Azure IoT, Build, Build 2019, partners

By Mikey Campbell
Tuesday, April 30, 2019, 05:33 pm PT (08:33 pm ET)

Potentially ending months of speculation surrounding Apple’s planned pricing policy for Apple TV+, Apple CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday hinted that the upcoming original content service will be available on a subscription basis.

Fielding questions on Apple’s recent push into services during an investor conference call, Cook likened Apple TV+ to an over-the-top product similar to those offered by major networks and content holders.

“The TV+ product plays in a market where there’s a huge move from the cable bundle to over-the-top,” Cook said. “We think that most users are going to get multiple over-the-top products and we’re going to do our best to convince them that the Apple TV+ product should be one of them.”

Unlike cable subscription schemes, over-the-top streaming services provide users a la carte access to TV and movie content. Typically, the offering is limited to an individual service, channel or group of channels owned by a content holder and is therefore cheaper than traditional cable tiers. Further, over-the-top systems are cost efficient in that viewers pay only for the content they want, rather than a bundle that includes channels that might go unwatched.

Apple unveiled Apple TV+ at a special event in March, but failed to disclose details on pricing.

As part of a “sneak peek” at programming set to debut on the service, Apple trotted out A-list Hollywood stars like Steven Spielberg, J.J. Abrams, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, Steve Carell and Jason Momoa to present first looks at their forthcoming projects.

Rumors claimed the TV+ would be a free, value-added service available to Apple device owners through the new TV app, with Apple generating revenue on its investment via subscriptions sold to third-party services. Previous reports said the company at one point mulled a bundle that would integrate TV+ with Apple News+ and Apple Music.

Judging by Cook’s statements today, it appears Apple TV+ will instead be listed as a for-pay subscription solution, putting it in competition with the likes of Netflix and Hulu.

Apple TV+ is slated to launch this fall.

If there’s one genre where the Switch is arguably lacking, it’s racers. Sure, we’ve got Mario Kart, but there’s not much in terms of quality, realistic racers. Overpass is a new off-roader coming to all platforms including Switch this October, and the trailer above may prove interesting to anybody looking for a more serious driving experience.

You’ll be jumping in all-manner of licensed buggies and quads from real-life manufacturers such as Yamaha, Suzuki and Arctic Cat and going up against some pretty mean terrain, by the looks of things. Coming from developer Zordix AB, it looks like you’ll have to pay close attention to the technicalities – differential locking, transmission, 2 versus 4WD – if you want to conquer the dastardly terrain you’ll encounter.

The trailer seems to indicate that you’ll be giving your suspension a serious workout. The official PR blurb details some of the modes which will be available, including multiplayer:

The Career mode lets you manage your buggies and quads and choose the one best adapted to each track and terrain type in order to win the competition and attract sponsors. In multi-player mode, you’ll need to know and master the slightest detail of each track in order to post the best times and show that you are truly the master of off-roading!

When it comes to off-roaders, we’re quite partial to the arcade-y and hugely underrated Excite Truck back on Wii, actually. This is a very different beast, of course, and the attention to detail here certainly sounds impressive. We’ll find out if the game itself measures up in October.

Are you after a serious racing game to sink your teeth? Muddy as it may look, does this one interest you? Share your thoughts below.

Turn-based strategy fans may have something to look out for next week. Coming to Switch on 7th May courtesy of CIRCLE Entertainment, European Conqueror X will soon have you reenacting (and we daresay rewriting) history as you direct battles from key periods in the late 18th and early 19th century.

Developed by EasyTech, it’s a follow up to World Conqueror X which seemingly bucks the trend by going smaller and concentrating on a continent rather than upping the ante and going galactic. The series began on the 3DS and channels board game classics such as Axis & Allies and Risk. This entry will have you managing not only troops and military units, but also cities, generals and even royalty. It appears to have a particular eye for historical accuracy – that is until you get in there and change the tide of history, we suppose.

The official blurb details three modes:

There are three key modes to test your skills! The lengthy Campaign takes you from the battlefields of Europe to the US War of Independence and beyond. In Conquest you choose from a wide range of nations and seek domination over the continent through nation building. Finally there are challenges, special levels that test your strategic nous and understanding of the game mechanics.

We found the previous game to be a satisfying warfare strategy game, praising its “appealing board game aesthetic” and giving it “a solid recommendation for war-gamers”. The focus on a single continent that the title suggests sounds like a welcome change, although we’d imagine getting involved in the US War of Independence will involve heading to the Americas, at the very least. Regardless or where it takes us, we’ll be keeping our eye on this one.

It’s up for pre-purchase today and doing so will net you a 20% discount on the launch price of $9.99USD / €9,99, so if this looks like something that’ll float your boat you can get it for $7.99USD / €7,99.

Did you play World Conqueror X or the 3DS originals? How does testing your warfare skills on the European stage grab your attention? Share your thoughts with a comment below.

Anybody who’s trounced Bowser in Super Mario 64 (and if you haven’t, away with you this instant!) will likely be familiar with the line Mario utters as he flings Bowser, King of the Koopas, from the floating platform during the boss battle. Or, more accurately, they’ll likely be familiar with the confusion surrounding exactly what the portly plumber is saying.

If you’re struggling to recall the original line, skip to 2:00 in the video below for a refresher of the soundbite that birthed so much confusion:

So long-a Bowser? So long, dear Bowser? So longee Bowser? That last one makes no sense all but that hasn’t stopped it being suggested along with many other variations. That is until yesterday when Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario (and therefore something of an authority on what has and what hasn’t escaped the plumber’s lips) has cleared up the confusion with a simple tweet:

Well, there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth – So long Kinga Bowser.

You can’t argue with the man who said the line, even if it’s obviously “So long, dear Bowser”. Debate, conspiracy and memes can finally cease and we’re sure this is absolutely the last we’ll ever hear of this conundrum on the internet. A more pressing question is: How in the name of all that’s good and pure is Charles Martinet not verified on Twitter?!?

What did you hear back in the day when you first flung the giant lizard into those bombs? Let us know below.

Fedora provides awk as part of its default installation, including all its editions, including the immutable ones like Silverblue. But you may be asking, what is awk and why would you need it?

Awk is a data driven programming language that acts when it matches a pattern. On Fedora, and most other distributions, GNU awk or gawk is used. Read on for more about this language and how to use it.

A brief history of awk

Awk began at Bell Labs in 1977. Its name is an acronym from the initials of the designers: Alfred V. Aho, Peter J. Weinberger, and Brian W. Kernighan.

The specification for awk in the POSIX Command Language and Utilities standard further clarified the language. Both the gawk designers and the original awk designers at Bell Laboratories provided feedback for the POSIX specification.

From The GNU Awk User’s Guide

For a more in-depth look at how awk/gawk ended up being as powerful and useful as it is, follow the link above. Numerous individuals have contributed to the current state of gawk. Among those are:

• Arnold Robbins and David Trueman, the creators of gawk
• Michael Brennan, the creator of mawk, which later was merged with gawk
• Jurgen Kahrs, who added networking capabilities to gawk in 1997
• John Hague, who rewrote the gawk internals and added an awk-level debugger in 2011

Using awk

The following sections show various ways of using awk in Fedora.

At the command line

The simples way to invoke awk is at the command line. You can search a text file for a particular pattern, and if found, print out the line(s) of the file that match the pattern anywhere. As an example, use cat to take a look at the command history file in your home director:

$ cat ~/.bash_history

There are probably many lines scrolling by right now.

Awk helps with this type of file quite easily. Instead of printing the entire file out to the terminal like cat, you can use awk to find something of specific interest. For this example, type the following at the command line if you’re running a standard Fedora edition:

$ awk '/dnf/' ~/.bash_history

If you’re running Silverblue, try this instead:

$ awk '/rpm-ostree/' ~/.bash_history

In both cases, more data likely appears than what you really want. That’s no problem for awk since it can accept regular expressions. Using the previous example, you can change the pattern to more closely match search requirements of wanting to know about installs only. Try changing the search pattern to one of these:

$ awk '/rpm-ostree install/' ~/.bash_history
$ awk '/dnf isntall/' ~/.bash_history

All the entries of your bash command line history appear that have the pattern specified at any position along the line. Awk works on one line of a data file at a time. It matches pattern, then performs an action, then moves to next line until the end of file (EOF) is reached.

From an awk program

Using awk at the command line as above is not much different than piping output to grep, like this:

$ cat .bash_history | grep 'dnf install'

The end result of printing to standard output (stdout) is the same with both methods.

Awk is a programming language, and the command awk is an interpreter of that language. The real power and flexibility of awk is you can make programs with it, and combine them with shell scripts to create even more powerful programs. For more feature rich development with awk, you can also incorporate C or C++ code using Dynamic-Extensions.

Next, to show the power of awk, let’s make a couple of program files to print the header and draw five numbers for the first row of a bingo card. To do this we’ll create two awk program files.

The first file prints out the header of the bingo card. For this example it is called bingo-title.awk. Use your favorite editor to save this text as that file name:

 
BEGIN { 

    print "B\tI\tN\tG\tO" 

}
 

Now the title program is ready. You could try it out with this command:

$ awk -f bingo-title.awk

The program prints the word BINGO, with a tab space (\t) between the characters. For the number selection, let’s use one of awk’s builtin numeric functions called rand() and use two of the control statements, for and switch. (Except the editor changed my program, so no switch statement used this time).

The title of the second awk program is bingo-num.awk. Enter the following into your favorite editor and save with that file name:

 
@include "bingo-title.awk"

BEGIN {

    for (i = 1; i < = 5; i++) {

    b = int(rand() * 15) + (15*(i-1))

    printf "%s\t", b

    }

    print

}
 

The @include statement in the file tells the interpreter to process the included file first. In this case the interpreter processs the bingo-title.awk file so the title prints out first.

Running the test program

Now enter the command to pick a row of bingo numbers:

$ awk -f bingo-num.awk

Output appears similar to the following. Note that the rand() function in awk is not ideal for truly random numbers. It’s used here only as for example purposes.

 
$ awk -f bingo-num.awk 

B   I   N   G   O

13  23  34  53  71
 

In the example, we created two programs with only beginning sections that used actions to manipulate data generated from within the awk program. In order to satisfy the rules of Bingo, more work is needed to achieve the desirable results. The reader is encouraged to fix the programs so they can reliably pick bingo numbers, maybe look at the awk function srand() for answers on how that could be done.

Final examples

Awk can be useful even for mundane daily search tasks that you encounter, like listing all flatpak’s on the Flathub repository from org.gnome (providing you have the Flathub repository setup). The command to do that would be:

$ flatpak remote-ls flathub --system | awk /org.gnome/

A listing appears that shows all output from remote-ls that matches the org.gnome pattern. To see flatpaks already installed from org.gnome, enter this command:

$ flatpak list --system | awk /org.gnome/

Awk is a powerful and flexible programming language that fills a niche with text file manipulation exceedingly well.

There is another Humble Bundle of interest to developers, especially those interested in learning or using the Python programming language.  The Humble Book Bundle: Python by O’Reilly is a collection of Python programming books from O’Reilly press, generally one of the best publishers out there.  As always the bundle is structured into tiers.  The current tiers are:

1$

• Introducing Python
• The Hitchhikers Guide to Python
• Elegant SciPy
• Natural Language Processing with Python

8$

• Think Python
• Think Bayes
• Python Data Science Handbook
• Thoughtful Machine Learning with Python

15$

• Fluent Python
• Web Scraping with Python
• Test-Driven Development With Python
• Flask Web Development
• Twisted Networking Programming Essentials

You can decide how you funds are allocated, split between the publisher, Humble, this channel (thanks!) and charity, including Code For America and appropriately enough the Python Software Foundation.  The bundle can be had here and expires in 14 days (@May 12th/2019).

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