For those parents with more than one child you may track multiple kids at once.  It even tells if  your child has moved outside of the preset area or reached a pre-set destination.

The child’s phone must be an Android OS smartphone to be able to install the “Trick or Tracker” app. The parent can use any smartphone that has Google Maps on it (like an iPhone) but the company recommends that both phones have Android OS.

Since a lot of children have smartphones these days, this safety app can help prevent bad things that could happen to them during trick-or-treating.

This app also turns your child’s phone into a flashlight which can be used by your child to see more clearly in the night and also let drivers see them when they’re crossing the street. The feature includes neon colors and patterns (kind of like a glowstick).

It looks like this app is making it  even safer to trick or treat with the help of technology. So no one has to be afraid to trick or treat on one of kids’ favorite holidays of the year. “Trick or Tracker can help give parents peace of mind without sacrificing any of the Halloween holiday fun,” the inventor of the app said.

The app costs $4.99 from the Android marketplace but if you want to get it for free, go to their website, www.trickortracker.com on October 31 and download the app as their treat!

(Source: Iconosys Company Press Release)

by: Alinda Amuiri, 7th grade
Senior Editor
THE LION LEDGER

The 3DS is a new type of hand-held gaming system that allows you to view your game in 3-D without the usual glasses that you would normally need.

How can it affect your health, you ask?

3-D entertainment can cause nausea, dizziness, and seizures to small children and even affect eye growth. Because the sales of the 3DS would lower if the health risks were openly stated, the 3-D feature is easily able to be turned off by parents, who are also able to set passwords to prevent children from using the feature.

Of course, most people would not turn off the application regardless of the risks to their health. What would be the point of a 3-D Nintendo if you don’t use the 3-D feature?

For those of you who plan to purchase one, there are ways to lower your health risks such as not having excessive game periods and taking frequent breaks. For all the kids out there, make  sure you tell your parents if you feel dizzy or even a little funny after you play with the Nintendo.

The new 3DS will be released in March in the U.S. and Europe for about $300. The Nintendo has so far gotten high ratings when it was announced last year.

The Nintendo 3DS could be a new breakthrough in gaming technology that could in fact change the way people play video games forever.

by: Epiphany Martin, 7th Grade
Reporter / THE LION LEDGER

MCT is a joint venture of McClatchy and the Tribune Co.

The best toys are on the Savvy Auntie website. There are 53 total toys which were chosen for being the coolest toys for 2010. They have toys for all ages which is great for Christmas shopping. All of these toys are awesome but I am going to mention what I think are the top ten.

For boys, there are LEGO sets like Harry Potter and Star Wars, a skateboard called a “Ground Force Drifter,” action figures from the new “TRON” movie, and then they also have rock star guitars from “Paper Jamz.” Then for girls they have all kinds of dolls like the new Justin Bieber ones that sing, “StinkyKids” rag dolls, Barbie, Disney “Princess & Me,” and “Sing-a-Ma-Jigs” that are stuffed animals that sing.
 
Like I mentioned earlier, this is only ten of the toys that I chose out of 53 toys that were the coolest picks. That is a lot of toys and they are all great for the holidays. I can see why they were given the award for the coolest toys because the ones that were picked are different which makes them cool.

Toys will always be cool but these toys are best for having an award for the being the coolest for 2010. Some might be a little expensive but not all the toys are. They will put a smile on kids’ faces and give them a reason to be happy.

For more information and to see all the toys, check out: “Savvy Auntie Coolest Toy Awards 2010”

by: Giauna Nu’Man, 7th Grade
Reporter / THE LION LEDGER

The iPad is a device that you can do many things on— surf the internet, read the newspaper, create documents (by writing it, emailing it to yourself, and printing it out), and even play games too!

To add stuff to your iPad you have to have an iTunes account in order to purchase apps, music, and games.

The design of the iPad lets you take it anywhere. It has 9.7-inch screen, weighs 1.5 lbs., and is 0.5 inches thin. It has up to 10 hours of battery life. 3G makes it have a fast wireless connection (but that version costs more).

There is a lot of buzz and publicity about the iPad. In a poll of what kids (ages 6-12) are interested in buying, the iPad got 31% of the votes. That is awesome! My aunt has one and I think it’s great! (You may have noticed that our principal has one too!).

This is a great gift for this holiday season. The iPad is selling for $499. You can walk into an AT&T Store or Apple and purchase one, or Verizon, Target, and Walmart.

by: Kayla Bridgett, 6th Grade
Reporter / THE LION LEDGER
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EDITORIAL NOTE: The poll mentioned in this article — not to be confused with the DEC 2010 poll in The Lion Ledger (which it is also based on) — was conducted by Nielsen on November 22, 2010 and can be found here: “Kids in the U.S. Eyeing Big-Ticket Tech This Holiday Season”

What are silly bandz?

They are small or big rubber bands that are shaped and they are stretchy. They are very colorful, and some examples of what shapes they have are— food, animals, comic book characters, Justin Bieber, and more!

I could go on for hours because that’s how many there are.

A man named Robert Croak was the man who created them and he started selling them online in 2008 and made $66 million. Now that’s a lot of money!

They are very fashionable because they are bright colorful bands that look awesome. You can play with them, but the best part is you can wear them as a bracelet. I’ve seen all types of ages wearing them.

Did you know they also have scented and glow-in-the-dark ones?

I have silly bandz myself and I can tell you from my own experiences that they are the best rubber bands in the universe. I wear mine all the time and like to trade them and collect them. I wear them to school (well, I used to because they’re not allowed at school anymore because they can be distracting in class) and I trade them all the time with my friends.

So far, I have 450 and counting. I want to at least get more than 800! My goal is to collect them all. For now that’s a dream but I hope to get them all.

I got my silly bandz from Walgreens, Walmart, Toys “R” Us, CVS/pharmacy, Claire’s, and there are other places too, but I have not gone to all the places. The cost of a pack is about $1 for six or $4 for 24.

One of the bad things about silly bands are they break if you are not careful. Another bad thing is that some companies try to copy them and sell fake ones that break right when you put them on your wrist! (I know this because I bought a pack like that before and will never buy a fake pack like that again).

Silly bandz are awesome and no one can take that away from them because they are unique and creative and that’s what I love about them so much. They are awesome and they have a different meaning to everyone that has them.

by Giauna Nu’Man, 7th grade
Reporter / THE LION LEDGER

But as you may know there have been questions about Zhu Zhu Pets safety.

After recent tests, Zhu Zhu Pets were said to have a chemical called antimony. Too much of this toxic chemical can give people cancer, or problems with their heart and lungs.

After all the commotion of hearing this scary news, the company that makes Zhu Zhu Pets decided to take the test again. The second time the results came back the Zhu Zhu Pets were said to be 100% safe.

So all of you who were asking for a Zhu Zhu Pet for Christmas, but your parents were worried about its safety, don’t worry. Go get a Zhu Zhu Pet for yourself! If you can find one.

After all who doesn’t want a pet you dont have to clean up after?

(Note: Special thanks to “Kidstown Toy Shop” in Alameda for access to product).

by Saba Kinfe, 6th Grade
Associate Editor / THE LION LEDGER

The new Windows is a much better operating system than its predecessors– most notably, Windows Vista. And although you don’t need to rush out and upgrade this week, when it’s time to buy a new PC, Windows 7 will be a welcome change.

Vista was the operating system that sent me screaming from Windows and over to Apple computers years ago. It was slow, didn’t recognize some of my computer’s peripherals and drove me to distraction with its constant security warnings.

Windows 7 fixes these problems and adds goodies, from simple interface improvements that I’ve written about before, to making more complex tasks such as home networking and managing information easier.

I’m not switching back from the Mac, but for those devoted to Windows, here are some of features to look forward to:

• LEANER: Windows 7 doesn’t come bloated with programs for tasks such as e-mail, scheduling and photo editing. These applications can be downloaded for free, but they are no longer bundled in. Admittedly, some users will see this as an inconvenience, but others can rejoice that they don’t have to weed out versions of software they might not use and just install the Microsoft apps they want.

• ORGANIZED: Windows Explorer, which is the browsing system that shows the files, folders and drives on a computer, now includes a feature called “libraries” along the left column that lets users find files by type. Each library subject–such as music–combines all the files of that type no matter which folder or drive they’re in.

• CONNECTED: Networking with Windows 7 is still underwhelming, but better. A new feature that Microsoft has made a big deal about, called HomeGroups, streamlines sharing files and printers among PCs on a home network, but I found the process still more complicated than it needs to be. A setup wizard leads you through each step, but you must enter a long, complicated password to add new computers to the HomeGroup.

• FLEXIBLE: The popular programs from players such as Apple (iTunes), Mozilla (Firefox) run fine in Windows 7, but users of more niche software should be covered thanks to the new “Windows XP mode” included in some versions of Windows 7. XP mode runs a version of the older operating system inside Windows 7, but the feature requires a computer with more memory, hard-drive space and a specific type of processor.

• SWIFT: Windows 7 worked faster for me on a PC that previously ran Windows Vista. Windows 7 booted up faster, opened up programs quicker, and woke up from sleeping swiftly. I’m not going to pretend I can offer you the definitive benchmark tests with metrics on the speed of Windows 7. But I can testify things ran noticeably faster in the world of Windows 7.

There are several editions of the new Windows, but the one that will interest most home users is the Home Premium version, which costs $120.

Vista owners can upgrade and easily keep their files, settings and programs intact. But upgrading from XP is a nuisance because it requires wiping the computer’s hard drive–after backing up all your data–installing Windows 7 and then restoring all the backed up data. Microsoft offers an “easy transfer” wizard to help, but it moves only files and not entire programs.

The XP-to-Windows 7 upgrade is so arduous that Microsoft even recommends on its Web site getting professional help. If you’re not sure whether your computer will run Windows 7 well, visit www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7 to check the minimum and recommended requirements or download and Microsoft’s upgrade adviser program.

Technology reporter Stanley A. Miller II tracks news and trends, from the coolest new gadgets to the latest stuff on the Web on his blog, Gear, Games and Life Online: www.jsonline.com/blogs/entertainment/stanmiller.html

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© 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Visit the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel online at: www.jsonline.com
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

by Stanley A. Miller II
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / (MCT)

MCT is a joint venture of McClatchy and the Tribune Co.

The Nintendo Wii came out in 2004, but was being created back in the year 2000. It was out in Japan first, and finally released in the United States in 2006. When it did, it was in high demand.

Some people paid thousands of dollars to get it on eBay because they didn’t stay in stock at stores very long. Target, Best Buy, Gamestop, Toys ‘R Us, etc. all had a hard time keeping it on the stores shelves. Yeah, you could get it for regular price at Wal-Mart, but good luck finding one. That’s why people would pay a lot of money to get it on eBay. Plus you had to get in line early in the morning whenever a store did get some in stock.

Believe it or not, it was very hard to get the Wii to where it is today. People had doubts about if it would would sell or not. Nintendo had a lot of things to think about before they released it to the public. They wanted to make sure that all of the little details were figured out, they wanted for it to be cool and have a unique shape, they wanted it to be affordable for the average family. Of course, all of these things were worked out in the end.

The first week the Wii came out? It sold over 340,000 consoles!

Here’s an interesting fact for you, that not many people know. Did you know that the Wii was going to be originally called the “Nintendo Revolution”? For whatever reason, Nintendo decided to get rid of that idea and call it the “Wii.”

You can probably say that Nintendo started a revolution in the gaming world with the release of the Wii console!

by Zyhir Brown, 6th grade
Associate Editor / THE LION LEDGER

Somewhere – perhaps in Chicago, maybe in Paris, possibly in Tokyo – the 100 millionth system in the Nintendo DS™ franchise has been shipped to a distributor or a retailer as of March 6, 2009. The combined total sales of 100 million Nintendo DS systems, Nintendo DS Lite systems and Nintendo DSi™ systems represent a significant milestone in the life of this franchise, which is still going strong.

Below is a related press release this month, directly from the Nintendo PressRoom.

*NOTE: Make sure to take our “Speak Out!” Survey and tell us which video game system(s) you have at home!

from Staff Reports
News Team / THE LION LEDGER

NINTENDO SYSTEMS ACCOUNT FOR 58.4% OF VIDEO GAME HARDWARE SOLD IN MARCH

April 16, 2009– Nintendo’s Wii™ home console and the Nintendo DS™ portable video game system comfortably led U.S. sales in March, according to data from the independent NPD Group, which tracks video game sales in the United States. Pokémon™ Platinum Version for Nintendo DS emerged as the No. 2 video game of the month, with nearly 805,000 units sold.



Wii tallied sales of nearly 601,000 in March, while Nintendo DS sold more than half a million, even in advance of the April 5 launch of the new Nintendo DSi™ system. Both Wii and Nintendo DS extended their lead as the best-selling video game systems of this generation.



”Nintendo systems accounted for 58.4 percent of the video game hardware sold in March, more than all other systems combined,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “Consumers continue to be attracted to the wide range of software available and the great value of Nintendo systems.”



Four games published by Nintendo finished in the top 10 best-sellers of March. These include Pokémon Platinum Version at No. 2, Wii Fit™ at No. 3 with more than 541,000 sold, Wii Play™ at No. 8 with more than 281,000 sold and Mario Kart™ Wii at No. 9 with more than 278,000 sold.



Early U.S. sales of the new Nintendo DSi hand-held system are ahead of those for Nintendo DS Lite, according to Nintendo’s internal tracking numbers. In its first week, Nintendo DSi sold 435,000 in the United States. After the same amount of time on the U.S. market after its launch, Nintendo DS Lite had sold 226,300 systems. These numbers demonstrate that the Nintendo DS brand remains strong, and that consumers continue to look for the best new experiences on their portable video game systems.



So far this year, video game industry revenues are on par with 2008, but Nintendo remains a key driver. Without Nintendo products, the industry would be down 14 percent for the year, according to the NPD Group.



For more information about Nintendo, please visit: www.Nintendo.com