Hello everyone! This is Aaron at Hatena in Kyoto, Japan with this week's edition of the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News.
Next Friday is a national holiday in Japan (Autumnal Equinox Day), so we will not be posting the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News. This means that you will have an extra week to work on your weekly topic Flipnotes.
If you haven't yet posted about the weekly topic this is a good opportunity to give it a try. Creators who have their Flipnotes featured here will receive some free color stars that that they can use.
We are looking forward to seeing your Flipnotes!
New Features added to the Flipnote Hatena website
Today we added several new features to the Flipnote Hatena website.
In summary, the top page and the way that lists of Flipnotes are displayed has been dramatically improved.
The details of the new features that have been released today are as follows:
Improved top page and "All Flipnotes" page
- "All Flipnotes" is now optimized to show Flipnotes based on trends of other users in your age group.
- "All Flipnotes" based on the trends of all users on Flipnote Hatena can also be displayed. (Enable the "Show all new Flipnotes" setting)
- "Recommended Flipnotes" are now displayed, which is optimized to show Flipnotes that you may like based on trends of stars added by other users. Please note that the data required for this setting is now being calculated, and it is not yet fully functional.
- "New Flipnotes from Favorites" can now be easily found on the top page.
- The "Best of Hatena" channel is now featured on the top page, which contains some of the greatest Flipnotes posted since the launch of Flipnote Hatena.
New "Categories" function
- Channels on Flipnote Hatena have now been organized into categories. This should make it easier to locate the types of Flipnotes that you are looking for.
- You can view "Popular Flipnotes" in separate categories.
Larger Flipnote playback window
- Flipnotes can now be viewed in double size view
- The playback window size can be adjusted by using the button on the upper right of the Flipnote playback page.
We hope these new features will improve the quality of content that you see on service, and add to your overall enjoyment of Flipnote Hatena.
Flipnote of the Week
★ This is a great animation titled "The Gunslinger" that was posted by chortlinMe (id:ChotlingArmadillo) from the Americas region. We really liked the detailed drawings and subtle sounds in this Flipnote.
If you have suggestions for future Flipnotes of the Week, you can post your nominations or suggestions on Hatena Haiku under the keyword "Flipnote of the Week Nomination/Suggestions".
The best of the last week's topic: "Noisy"
This week we are happy to introduce some of our favorite weekly topic Flipnotes posted by creators from around the world.
You can see all of the Flipnotes posted about last week's topic by clicking on the link below (be sure to set your content preference to Worldwide to see Flipnotes from all regions):
"Noisy" Flipnotes from the Americas region
★ We enjoyed this colorful, noisy and cool Flipnote by 123...go! (id:Skeletorsbone). The sounds are made with drums and a distorted guitar.
★ Rita Ree (id:Rita-Ree) posted this funny Flipnote titled "Blow Back" about some dangerous noise makers.
★ Check out this funny trio of 3 noisy robots that was posted by Onion (id:Oniongarlic). We like the exaggerated motion and variety of sounds.
★ There are all sorts of noisy things in the morning that make it hard to sleep. This is titled "wuaaaawwaaa" and was posted by Sodiatl (id:sodiLF).
★ Lidiane (id:lidianek) posted this Flipnote about some noisy stick figures in a movie theater. You'll like the surprise ending!
★ A rabbit searches for a quiet place to read in this funny Flipnote by Butter♪ (id:FreakinSweet). We liked the noisy vehicle sounds.
"Noisy" Flipnotes from the Europe and Oceania region
★ SasH!i (id:Supa-Powa) posted this Flipnote about noisy cars, people and airplanes. You won't be able to get "Vroom, Achoo and Zoom" out of your head after watching this!
★ Balloons sure do make noise! Sulei123 (id:Studio123) created this noisy animation at speed 6.
★ A noise maker upsets a sleeping animal in this Flipnote by PIGgogo (id:Sean0).
★ This is a fun, noisy animation posted by The Prince (id:Chaos_Cansu). If someone doesn't listen to you, make some noise!
★ Dani (id:Daniel6991) posted this Flipnote about a noisy dinosaur who scares away everything.
★ 4 different noisy things come together to make a noisy orchestra in this Flipnote by QUDろ (id:qrack1).
"Noisy" Flipnotes from Japan
★ We liked the amazing sounds and colors in this Flipnote by Izumi (id:izumi-v), titled "Stereo Nya Nya".
★ A young girl who is trying to read a book is bothered by all kinds of noise in this Flipnote by Rapeta (id:tsk6250).
★ A man is awoken by the doorbell in this funny Flipnote by Osushi (id:okappazusi). The Japanese text reads "pinpon" (ding dong) and "urusai" (noisy).
★ A bird who tells other animals to be quiet gets into some trouble in this Flipnote by Kamara (id:inazumaereven07).
★ We liked this noisy young girl in this animation by Mameko (id:mm0118).
★ You'll be surprised at where the noise is coming from in this Flipnote by utopian (id:rsythh). The Japanese text reads "shaka".
This week's topic: "Light and Shadow"
Artists use light and shadow to create the illusion of three dimensions. This week we would like you to feature light and shadows in your Flipnotes.
Try to show where the light comes from in your animations. Does the light come from the sun or from lights? What direction does the light come from?
Along with light, remember to show shadows. Shadows are the parts of an object that receive little or no light.
You might also want to try show the way shadows cast. Cast shadows are dark areas where the light is blocked by a solid object.
Take a look at light and shadows in photographs, paintings and movies to get some inspiration. Make a Flipnote about you and your shadow, or about the light and shadows around you at different times of the day.
The next issue of the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News will be posted in two weeks. Please submit your weekly topic Flipnotes by September 29, 2011 (Thursday), and we will feature some of our favorites on September 30, 2011 (Friday).
You can see all of the Flipnotes currently posted about this week's topic at the URL below (be sure to set your content preference to Worldwide to see Flipnotes from all regions):
New Creator's Room Themes
This week we are happy to introduce 1 new Creator's Room theme that is available in 3 different colors. For more information please visit the Color Star Exchange on Flipnote Hatena for Nintendo DSi.
★ Give your Creator's Room a fashionable look with this check pattern. (5 color stars). This theme is available is three different colors.
Frog Sightings
If you are interested in having your frog photo or illustration featured in the "Weekly Frog Sighting" section of the blog please post them on Hatena Haiku and we might feature it here.
Please submit only original photos/illustrations that you have created yourself.
★ id: pmeech32 posted this photo of a frog clock that she saw somewhere in Europe.
Please let us know what you think about the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News blog by posting any comments you might have in the box below. Thanks!
★ You can also see comments posted by Nintendo DSi users by viewing the comments for the Flipnote below: