Hadron and PhotoPresenter

Hadron is a free shareware game similar to Pac Man for Macintosh computers that is simple and fun. One of the best features of Hadron is that it includes a levels editor, so you can create your own version of the game level by level. This provides a fantastic problem solving and video game development opportunity! My 8 year old has really enjoyed creating different levels of the game to play himself, and then having me give them a try. The skill set he is developing in actually authoring his own video game versions is tremendous, especially when compared to what a person learns just playing someone else’s game. And this game is non-violent (if you don’t count exploding bricks which can kill “Hadron,” the hero of the game who you play.) I classify this as non-violent because the character you play is not able to (or rewarded for) killing other characters or destroying anything. I am not categorically opposed to video games that include some violence, but the fact that Hadron does not and is so engaging and creativity encouraging are big plusses from my perspective. I equate creating game levels with Hadron as an activity similar to building new creations with legos. A very worthwhile “play activity” that would likely make Daniel Pink (advocate of “play” as a vital 21st century “sense”) happy.

The same software author also made PhotoPresenter for Mac, which is a very slick slideshow application. The program’s visual effects are AMAZING! The animated slide show options are superb, and you can even export an animated slideshow as a QuickTime movie to share it with others. There are a wide variety of animated slideshow effects, my favorites so far are “Aquarium” and “Bouncing Cubes.” PhotoPresenter is $8 shareware.

PhotoPresenter has an interface tied to your iPhoto library, and presents many more options than the basic iPhoto slideshow setup. What I want to buy (and no one has this on the market as far as I know) is an affordable, large (at least 17″ diagonal) digital picture frame that can wirelessly download images from an online web gallery I specify, and use effects as cool as PhotoPresenter to show them off. And I want a product that does not require a monthly subscription, like Ceiva. I think the best way to do this (at least for now) is to hook up an old computer CPU to the cheapest LCD screen I can find. This on my “future projects” list. 🙂

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