Why Band Hero Will Rock Harder Than You Could Ever Imagine

Many rockers are awaiting the arrival of the next instalment in the Guitar Hero Series, Guitar Hero 5, which is scheduled for launch this fall. However, feeding off its hype is a very different-natured game, which will also be launched this fall by Activision. The new title, Band Hero, is getting plenty of attention because of its appeal towards teen pop junkies, with a line-up of top-40 tracks. Here's exactly why Band Hero won't be that gimmicky little game the Guitar Hero super-fans are claiming it will be:

Pop is Popular

You can say what you want about how the top 40 songs are all badly formed techno garbage but the definition of top 40 is that they are more popular than not top 40 songs. Therefore, more people know these songs and like these songs. And one of the major holes in Guitar Hero was that, while everyone enjoyed the interactive gameplay, they would have appreciated a few songs they knew as part of the line-up. Band Hero will fill that hole.

Teen Audience

With teens, when something gets hot, it'll spread like wildfire. Just look at Hannah Montana and The Jonas Brothers. And there isn't much of a doubt that with pop sensations like Taylor Swift and Adam Levine headlining Band Hero, that the game will take off. I mean, look at 17 Again featuring Zac Efron; it's not like the movie was any good, it's just that it incorporated something that the younger generation already adored. The same concept will work with Band Hero.

Suited for Novices

It's more satisfying when you're getting 100% on expert than when you get booed off the stage for your lack of ability, even on easy. Hence, the novice crowd who don't actually play guitar or drums, will be able to enjoy the simpler sets of notes instead of desperately mashing buttons.
With this, Band Hero is touted as the family-friendly Guitar Hero, with it's "E-10+" ESRB rating. But I don't believe that for a second since most hits these days are ... inexplicably unappealing to the older generation.

Even Rockers Can't Resist

Maybe DJ Hero (which is also coming out in the fall, no jokes), is going a bit to far but even the Metallica lovers will probably just say, "Hey, what the heck? It's made by the guys at Guitar Hero so it can't be that bad." And how about them game collectors; there's nobody easier to get money from than a hardcore game collector.

With all this, I'm not saying Band Hero will actually be of good quality. I'm saying that it will be popular and everyone will buy it.

Find Ways to Stay Active When School Starts: Find Sports Now

With America's obesity rate rising, somebody had an simple but excellent idea to solve a growing problem. FindSportsNow is the web's largest directory for recreational sporting activities throughout the United States.
People running sports can post the activities as advertisements or listings and those looking for them can find these activities. Listing is free and a good source of advertising so there's no reason users wouldn't want to post.
And for the people who want to get playing, the advantage is obvious. You don't have to spend hours doing Google searches just to find that everything you got wasn't in your city. Just select your state, city and look for the sport you want and you're all set. Listings provide you with the age group, gender, location, description, website, contact information as well as a few photos.
But if the sport you want isn't listed when you search, simply subscribe to the RSS feed for that sport and you'll be notified when a listing does come up. Definitely pretty convenient for if you don't have very much time.
However, the site may not be absolutely overloaded with listings right now, but with the digital age engulfing us, no longer will we use supermarket bulletin boards; instead, we'll be using FindSportsNow.

Online Lost and Found Listings at The Found Bin: Practical?

Everyone loses things. Sometimes its just a pen and sometimes it's a laptop or a diamond ring. But imagine, if a few clicks could get you that item right back, for free. That's the aim of The Found Bin, the internet's largest lost and found directory.
After you sign up, The Found Bin enables you to search among thousands of listings of lost or found items and animals. You can search the directory by specifying the make, manufacturer, color, serial number and even location.
Or if you can't find it when you look at first, you can post the details about your item to increase the chances of re-uniting with it.
But is this idea really practical? I mean, what are the chances that the person who found your item happens to be part of the handful of users that The Found Bin has. And in addition, look yourselves in the mirror (that's right, I'm Canadian) and ask yourselves, is America really nice enough to return your item, especially if it's of value. Plus, does anyone want to spend time broadcasting what they've found for someone (who might just be fake) to claim? Not likely.
But this definitely earns an honorable mention for a good idea. Maybe one day, the world will become a peaceful, collaborative place where everyone will join a huge community of losing and finding and returning items. Maybe one day. But for now, an online lost an found may not work as well as planned.

Top 5 Yahoo! Services that You Didn't Know About

By probably 2003 the world had gone through a major change in web tastes. Yahoo! had been the largest player in the search engine market for a number of years but by that time, Internet users had totally shifted their eyes to Google. And Google has been enjoying unprecedented success with a business model that is defined by simplicity and innovation. No longer would Yahoo!, MSN and AOL's model based on the sheer number of services, be effective.
However, the sheer numbers still are very important and Yahoo! shows us that just because it has way too many, doesn't mean it doesn't have quite a few good ones. Of course, everyone knows that Yahoo! has many great services; there's Yahoo! Answers, Fantasy Sports, Delicious, Flickr, Finance, Calendar, Mail and Search. These pages are legitimately better than most or all of their competitors.
But there are several notable services that linger in obscurity and do not enjoy the same popularity. Not many people will even have a clue that these existed, but they do, and they're quite good too.

5. Yahoo! Food

Yahoo! Food is a part of "Shine", a service mainly targeting women. But really, Yahoo! Food is good for anyone who enjoys food, especially the amateur (and maybe even professional) chefs. This service offers plenty of good recipes as well as videos regarding the tasty subject and a few articles as well. Overall, Yahoo! Food has to rank as one of the better guides on the web.

4. Yahoo! Entertainment

Yahoo! Entertainment encompasses Music, Movies, TV and "omg!" (a gossip site). And what can I say; this has to be the best all-in-one guide to entertainment out there. For Music, you get you're radio, Top 100 Charts and some news too. For Movies, you get reviews, summaries, gossip and more news. For TV, there's the must-watch shows, reviews, TV guides and a bit more news. Omg! is well, pure gossip. Maybe just all the normal stuff but when its all combined into one site and added to by the skillful developers on Yahoo!'s team, the final product is that much better.

3. Yahoo! Autos

If you're buying a new car or just have a love for vehicles, this is the site to go to. Spotlighted by strong new and used car search engines, Yahoo! Autos also includes an in-depth research guide to buying a new vehicle, useful finance tips and calculators as well as a guide to car maintenance.

2. Yahoo! Real Estate

Yahoo! Real Estate has everything you need for purchasing a new home. They can help you buy a home or sell a home, with finance guides, home listings, information on the best neighbourhoods to live in and a few specific guides too.

1. Yahoo! Local

Yahoo! Local is basically a guide to everything situated around you. This service lists literally every business, service or event that you want to find. Whether it's a barber, a mechanic or a restaurant, Yahoo! Local can find the ones nearest to you, complete with reviews and contact information. Of course, every listing is categorized neatly for easy search.