Siri fully-functional on the iPhone 4 and iPod Touch

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-93199" height="169" mce_src="http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/5300/siriiphone.jpg" src="http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/5300/siriiphone.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" title="siri-iphone" width="300" />When the iPhone 4S was released, developers worked on getting Siri ported to the iPhone 4 immediately. While they managed to get the app running on the phone, it couldn’t connect to Apple’s servers and had to resort to using alternatives such as Google or TellMe to get the job done. But now, those problems have been solved: some developers have managed to get the hacked version of Siri communicating with Apple’s servers, the way the original app was supposed to.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:qj6IDK7rITs" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:qj6IDK7rITs" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/4906/98186402.gif" src="http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/4906/98186402.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:gIN9vFwOqvQ" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:gIN9vFwOqvQ" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img851.imageshack.us/img851/3692/43481967.gif" src="http://img851.imageshack.us/img851/3692/43481967.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:V_sGLiPBpWU" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GS51v9Ru_5s:BIEj1FWe4FI:V_sGLiPBpWU" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/2576/91813881.gif" src="http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/2576/91813881.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a></div> </div> </div>

Siri fully-functional on the iPhone 4 and iPod Touch

When the iPhone 4S was released, developers worked on getting Siri ported to the iPhone 4 immediately. While they managed to get the app...

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Apple, Oreo and Capri Sun top list of popular youth brands

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="119" mce_src="http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/2201/appleyouthcamp.jpg" mce_style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: solid;" src="http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/2201/appleyouthcamp.jpg" style="border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" width="274" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Harris Interactive put together a survey asking American youth from ages 8-24 what their favorite brands were, and Apple came out on top in the computer, tablet, and phone space. That's not too surprising, given how powerful Apple's marketing is (not to mention how great its products are), but it is true that "the old" Apple tended to go for the slightly older audiences. Since the introduction of the iPod ten years ago, Apple's marketing and products have skewed younger and younger.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> What's perhaps even more interesting in this report is the other brands that are popular with this age group: Oreos! Capri Sun! Nintendo? These kids are into the same things I liked as a kid! Oreos and Capri Sun especially -- I believed those lunchbag standbys were old school, but apparently they're still popular on the contemporary playground. Next you'll tell us that kids today still dig Trapper Keepers and Ecto Cooler!e</div> </div> </div>

Apple, Oreo and Capri Sun top list of popular youth brands

Harris Interactive put together a survey asking American youth from ages 8-24 what their favorite brands were, and Apple came out on t...

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Daily iPhone App: Whale Trail

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="182" mce_src="http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5669/whaletrail.jpg" src="http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5669/whaletrail.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" width="274" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Whale Trail is a catchy little game that combines a few of my favorites lately into a cotton candy sweet package. Jetpack Joyride is in there, as you need to press on the screen to move upwards and avoid obstacles. Tiny Wings is in there too, as you keep a cute little whale flying using swooping patterns to stay up in the air. And Baby Monkey (going backwards on a pig) is in there too, as a goofy little song plays for you while flying along.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> In short, it's cute, fun, and pretty darn addictive. The polish on this one is excellent -- the graphics are as airy and light as the sound effects, and while the story itself is nonsensical, the controls definitely aren't. You can do some pretty precise swinging with this little whale. A frenzy mechanic will keep you chasing down the various routes available as the game goes on, and Game Center integration offers up plenty of achievements to go after as well.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Whale Trail is an excellent title -- simple but fun, and perfect for the iPhone. It's available on the App Store right now for 99 cents.</div> </div> </div>

Daily iPhone App: Whale Trail

Whale Trail is a catchy little game that combines a few of my favorites lately into a cotton candy sweet package. Jetpack Joyride is i...

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Pannous Voice Actions gives iOS users an alternative to Siri

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="Pannous Voice Actions" class="size-full wp-image-92150 aligncenter" height="211" mce_src="http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/180/14pannousvoiceactions.jpg" src="http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/180/14pannousvoiceactions.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" title="Pannous Voice Actions" width="140" />Now that the iPhone 4S has been released, one of its most impressive features – Siri voice assistant, is available for people to use. But what about all the previous generation of iPhone users who don’t get it even with the iOS 5 update? Well, good news for you – because there are quite a number of apps available on the Apple App Store that provide an alternative to Apple’s official speech-activated helper.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> While they aren’t as fully-integrated as how Siri is with the iPhone 4S, most of them are touted to be just as useful. Pannous’ Voice Actions happens to be one of the apps in this category. While I have yet to try it out, it does have an impressive feature list that sounds like what Siri can do. Send emails and texts, set alarms and reminders, answer your voice based questions and searches, voice dial your contacts, translate your spoken words/sentences and more.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Unfortunately it’s not free ($6.99) but hey – that’s much cheaper than forking out the money for a 4S just for Siri, right? Check it out on the Apple App Store if you’re interested.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:qj6IDK7rITs" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:qj6IDK7rITs" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/23/80266651.gif" src="http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/23/80266651.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:gIN9vFwOqvQ" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:gIN9vFwOqvQ" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/3562/80990029.gif" src="http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/3562/80990029.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:V_sGLiPBpWU" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=PhOxWMsSpaE:ncMJ4TZoSzc:V_sGLiPBpWU" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/7959/89300836.gif" src="http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/7959/89300836.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a></div> </div> </div>

Pannous Voice Actions gives iOS users an alternative to Siri

Now that the iPhone 4S has been released, one of its most impressive features – Siri voice assistant, is available for people to use. Bu...

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iPhone 4S first impressions

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="iPhone 4S" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-90886" height="199" mce_src="http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/7798/iphone4sk.jpg" src="http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/7798/iphone4sk.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" title="iPhone 4S" width="384" /><br style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;" />The iPhone 4S was launched today, and unfortunately we weren’t present at the event for a hands-on, first impression of the phone; but we’ve scoured the internet looking at reports from people who were there and here’s what we’ve learned so far. The general consensus seem to be disappointment in the lack of the heavily redesigned, larger screened “iPhone 5″. However, if we were to take a page from Apple’s history – they did release the 3GS after the 3G, so I guess in hindsight, this announcement should have been expected. But it does leave us wondering – why was there a significant delay in today’s launch? Perhaps Apple was busy getting iOS 5 and iCloud ready.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:qj6IDK7rITs" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:qj6IDK7rITs" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/3954/53000093.gif" src="http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/3954/53000093.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:gIN9vFwOqvQ" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:gIN9vFwOqvQ" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/598/56272649.gif" src="http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/598/56272649.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:V_sGLiPBpWU" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=f-XOPH_qZ9M:pkKmlS-7s6o:V_sGLiPBpWU" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/7224/67272510.gif" src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/7224/67272510.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a></div> </div> </div>

iPhone 4S first impressions

The iPhone 4S was launched today, and unfortunately we weren’t present at the event for a hands-on, first impression of the phone; but w...

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Daily iPhone App: A Game With Balls

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="180" mce_src="http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/2918/agwbscreen.jpg" src="http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/2918/agwbscreen.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" width="274" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> This game's title isn't just cheeky -- it's pretty literal. A Game With Balls definitely has lots of balls in it -- you play as a sort of cannon that shoots balls, and there are various balls and other shapes slowly floating down the screen towards you. The balls you fire have a little bit of weight to them, and so it's a physics action game as you try to shoot away the invading shapes with your own ammo.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The title's not bad, though it gets a little repetitive -- "beating" each stage basically just requires you to sit there shooting for as long as possible, so while there are separate mechanics for each of the four stages (or themes, as they're called -- each one has a different graphical look and feel), there's really just the one premise to play with. Still, the physics work well, and the graphics are solid and well-done, so if you want a little something fun to whittle away the time, this one's worth a look.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> A Game With Balls is out now for only US 99 cents as a universal app. There is full Game Center integration, and the developers promise more content is coming soon.</div> </div> </div>

Daily iPhone App: A Game With Balls

This game's title isn't just cheeky -- it's pretty literal. A Game With Balls definitely has lots of balls in it -- you pl...

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Atari, EA and others push court to accept Apple's request against Lodsys

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="141" mce_src="http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/9027/lodsyscourt.jpg" src="http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/9027/lodsyscourt.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" width="274" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Lodsys filed suit earlier this year against a number of third-party App Store developers, claiming that it owned patents covering a number of functions used by Apple's app marketplace, and that by using that store, these third-party devs were in violation of these patents. Apple, however, came out swinging a little while back, throwing a blistering letter down in the lawsuit, essentially calling Lodsys' claims nonsense. And now Atari, EA, and a number of other iOS developers named in the lawsuit have thrown their support behind Apple's argument, officially filing motions to support Apple's position outlined in that letter.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The motions also ask that Apple be allowed into the lawsuit as an intervenor and not just a third-party, so that it can properly review and make an actual response to everything filed by Lodsys. Lodsys has been accused of making an end-run around Apple to the smaller developers in this case, and trying to go after companies that might not be able to afford a fight, but passing this motion would pit Lodsys straight up against Apple and all of its resources rather than just the developers themselves.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> One notable exception from the companies already fighting the case: Google. Lodsys reportedly also targeted Android developers, but so far Google hasn't stepped up in the same way that Apple has. We'll have to see if the folks in Mountain View are willing to join the fight as well.</div> </div> </div>

Atari, EA and others push court to accept Apple's request against Lodsys

Lodsys filed suit earlier this year against a number of third-party App Store developers, claiming that it owned patents covering a nu...

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Elecom’s Bluetooth TK-FBP030E keyboard is compatible with a variety of Apple devices

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 24px;"></span><br /> <div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 13px/19px Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding-bottom: 0.6em; padding-left: 0.6em; padding-right: 0.6em; padding-top: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-83840" height="148" mce_src="http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/7342/elecom1.jpg" src="http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/7342/elecom1.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" title="elecom" width="360" />Interested in getting your hands on a Bluetooth keyboard that not only works with a variety of iOS devices but also for your Mac as well? If you are shopping for such a keyboard it looks like Elecom may have the solution for you in the form of the TK-FBP030E Bluetooth keyboard.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:yIl2AUoC8zA" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:yIl2AUoC8zA" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/2142/71234574.gif" src="http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/2142/71234574.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:qj6IDK7rITs" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:qj6IDK7rITs" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/1046/67399839.gif" src="http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/1046/67399839.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/22/29967366.gif" src="http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/22/29967366.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:-BTjWOF_DHI" mce_href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ubergizmo?a=GigjYPlrpg0:Qk0QHhLXLpQ:-BTjWOF_DHI" style="color: #0066cc; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5;"><img alt="" border="0" mce_src="http://img814.imageshack.us/img814/2606/61202337.gif" src="http://img814.imageshack.us/img814/2606/61202337.gif" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 640px;" /></a></div> </div> </div>

Elecom’s Bluetooth TK-FBP030E keyboard is compatible with a variety of Apple devices

Interested in getting your hands on a Bluetooth keyboard that not only works with a variety of iOS devices but also for your Mac as well...

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Instagram users have uploaded over 150 million photos

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="202" mce_src="http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/9885/instagramscreenshott.jpg" mce_style="margin-top: 8px; margin-bottom: 8px; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid;" src="http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/9885/instagramscreenshott.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px;" width="135" />Instagram's 4-person team has announced that the service's users have posted over 150 million photos. Consider that the free, social photo-sharing service now receives about 1.3 million photos per day -- that's 15 shots per second -- and you realize one thing: people really like sharing photos. Make that process easy and convenient, as Instagram has with its iPhone app, and you've got yourself a winner.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Kevin Systrom, one of the company's founders, described the diversity he's seen from users: "There are Instagram photos from major events like the World Series and the Grammys, and some Instagram photos have even made the national news. Artists and celebrities have begun to give fans a unique look into their lives."</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The app is simple and fun. Once you've created a free account, just launch Instagram as you would Apple's own Camera app and start shooting. You can then apply one of several artistic filters or some tilt-shift blur; then share your shot with other Instagram users as well as your Twitter, Flickr and Facebook friends.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> While you can't view a user's entire Instagram feed in your browser (although you can see individual images), there are plenty of options for interacting with your images without the iPhone app. For example, you can tweak Google+ for instant sharing. Several Mac apps are available, including Carousel (US$4.99, our feature here) and Instadesk ($1.99, our feature here). Finally, take the analog theme to the max with Instaprint, a wireless, location-based printer for Instagram. Imagine...paper pictures!</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Congratulations to Kevin and the entire Instagram team on your ongoing success. Below you'll see the official 150 millionth photo to be uploaded by Instagram user janefot.</div> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="1" class="aligncenter" height="267" hspace="4" mce_src="http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/9845/150millionpoc.jpg" mce_style="margin: 4px; border: 1px solid black;" src="http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/9845/150millionpoc.jpg" style="border: 1px solid black; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 4px; max-width: 640px;" vspace="4" width="267" /></div> </div> </span></div>

Instagram users have uploaded over 150 million photos

Instagram's 4-person team has announced that the service's users have posted over 150 million photos. Consider that the free, soc...

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South Korea to fine Apple over location tracking

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="196" mce_src="http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/6262/locationgatetracking83.jpg" src="http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/6262/locationgatetracking83.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 12px; max-width: 640px;" width="279" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> South Korea has fined Apple 3 million won (US$2,829) for the company's practice of tracking location information on the iPhone. The Korea Communications Commission investigated Apple after locationgate broke earlier this year. The agency found that Apple continued to collect user's location information even though they had turned off GPS on their handsets.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Apple has not responded to this ruling and may not agree to pay the fine. This ruling sets a dangerous precedent that could be used by other countries and people in similar cases against Apple. Just last month, Apple made a small payment (1 million won or $946) to a South Korean man over the same location issue.</div> </div> </span></div>

South Korea to fine Apple over location tracking

South Korea has fined Apple 3 million won (US$2,829) for the company's practice of tracking location information on the iPhone. The...

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MacTech Conference 2011 lists speakers

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="mactech" class="aligncenter" height="43" mce_src="http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/8083/mtlogo209x043.gif" src="http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/8083/mtlogo209x043.gif" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; height: 43px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px; width: 209px;" width="209" />MacTech Conference 2011 has announced its list of speakers, and it's a great list. We already knew Guy Kawasaki would be giving the keynote, but add to that more focused talks by Daniel Jalkut, Aaron Hillegass, Andy Ihnatko, Justin McWilliams, TUAW alum Justin Esgar. Many more will be there imparting their wisdom in an extensive lineup of sessions.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> This year's MacTech Conference begins November 2 in Los Angeles, and we'll be there on the ground to give you daily coverage, plus interviews and app demos after the event. MacTech Conference last year was quite impressive, and each year there are two tracks: one for IT and one for developers. The list for this year looks great for both tracks. Check out the full press release below.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Oh, and early bird pricing ends August 8, so if you're thinking about attending you may want to register soon.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5;"> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5;"> Show full PR text</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5;"> MacTech Conference 2011: Sessions, Speakers and Details<br style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5;" />- Early bird registration ends August 8th, 2011<div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> July 29, 2011 -- Westlake Village, CA -- MacTech Conference for Apple Developers and IT Pros, November 2-4, 2011 in Los Angeles, has released its speaker and session list, as well as many details of the conference. Keynote speaker Guy Kawasaki will open MacTech Conference 2011: a three-day, information-packed event that will have sessions and activities throughout the day and evening. This immersion conference is hotel-based, giving attendees the opportunity to not only learn from the best, but get to meet new people and spend time with their peers. Information about the conference is at http://www.mactech.com/conference</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> "Our speaker page contains a list of some of the amazing people that will present and be in attendance at MacTech Conference 2011 (but expect a surprise guest or two). Some of the incredible topics that will be covered are now listed at http://www.mactech.com/conference/sessions ," said Ed Marczak, Sessions Chair and Executive Editor, MacTech Magazine.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> MacTech Conference has two separate tracks: one focused on programming/development, and one focused on IT/Enterprise. Sessions will focus on both desktop and mobile with appropriate levels of attention paid to the Mac, iPhone, iPad and iPod. Check out the speaker and topic list (http://www.mactech.com/conference/sessions) for specific sessions and speaker list.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The conference will kick off with a keynote by Guy Kawasaki at 10am on Wednesday, Nov. 2. "We're thrilled to have Guy as our keynote speaker. Time and again, his books are not only insightful, but his exploration of concepts makes it easy for anyone to apply them to what they do. Guy's latest book, Enchantment, not only meets but exceeds that level," said Neil Ticktin, Editor-in-Chief/Publisher, MacTech Magazine.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Wednesday through Friday, November 2-4, are packed with sessions using MacTech's well established running order format. The evenings are filled with special activities and events designed specifically to give attendees an opportunity to form bonds with their peers and meet new people.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> "At the last MacTech Conference, 100% of attendees said that they would recommend the conference. We've been working hard to live up to the expectations for 2011: from our acquisition of NSConference US to awesome content and great activities. Edward R. Marczak (Conference Sessions Chair and IT Track Sessions Chair), and Steve 'Scotty' Scott (Developer Track Sessions Chair) have created a world-class line up of world-class talent," Ticktin continued.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> MacTech Conference is priced economically at $999 including all meals, a MacTech Magazine subscription, a schedule packed full of sessions, exclusive entertainment, and more. Registration is far ahead of last year. Early bird registration ends on August 8th, and attendees can save $200 off the pre-registration price and $500 off the on-site registration price. Register at http://www.mactech.com/conference/registration</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> A limited number of partial and full student scholarships are available. See http://www.mactech.com/conference/student for more information.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The Sheraton is a quality venue with rooms that typically run $229.00 or more per night, plus tax, and with Internet access available for an additional fee. Available on a first-come, first-served basis, MacTech Conference attendees get a special rate. Available on a first-come, first-served basis, MacTech Conference attendees get a special rate of just $179 per night, which includes Internet access.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Those interested in one of the many sponsorship offerings, see the details at http://www.mactech.com/conference/sponsorship</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> About MacTech Magazine</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Established in 1984, MacTech Magazine is the only monthly magazine focused on Apple at the technical level. Each month, MacTech and MacTech.com is read by 150,000 technical Macintosh users in over 175 countries ... from network administrators to programmers, from solution providers to Enterprise, and in general anyone that's interested in the Macintosh beyond the user level.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> If you're interested in getting under the hood of your Mac, if you want to know how to make things happen inside the box, you should be reading MacTech Magazine. Contact the magazine. Toll free: 877-MACTECH, International: 805-494-9797, custservice@mactech.com, http://www.mactech.com</div> </div> </div> </div> </span></div>

MacTech Conference 2011 lists speakers

MacTech Conference 2011 has announced its list of speakers, and it's a great list. We already knew Guy Kawasaki would be giving the k...

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Video App Demo: Checkin+

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="checkin+" class="aligncenter" height="202" mce_src="http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/2687/checkinpluspictuaw.jpg" src="http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/2687/checkinpluspictuaw.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; height: 337px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px; width: 461px;" width="277" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> If you're looking for an app to combine checkins for Foursquare and Facebook Places try Checkin+ from the makers of IM+, a multi-protocol IM tool. Checkin+ will do just that, and adds the ability to see locations in a 2D map or 3D augmented reality view.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Checkin+ will also allow you to see friends nearby, which is fun for when you were supposed to meet somewhere, but you can't quite remember where. While I'd like to see a few more services supported (like Gowalla, especially), Checkin+ looks like a simple app that does something rather well. Check it out in action below.</div> </div> </span></div>

Video App Demo: Checkin+

If you're looking for an app to combine checkins for Foursquare and Facebook Places try Checkin+ from the makers of IM+, a multi-pr...

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TUAW's Daily iPad App: Pocket RPG

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="185" mce_src="http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/2424/pocketrpgattack.jpg" mce_style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: solid;" src="http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/2424/pocketrpgattack.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 640px;" width="279" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Crescent Moon Games made the excellent Aralon for iOS in the past, and that was a full-fledged RPG, featuring a whole world to explore and lots of gear to collect and quests to complete. Now, the company's gone back to the fantasy well to deliver another hack-and-slash style RPG game, though this one is a little simpler (and a little more focused on just the dungeons). Pocket RPG is exactly what it sounds like: A colorful dungeon-crawler with three classes, a fun and slick style and some great dual-stick gameplay.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> If there's an issue with this one, it's probably that things are a little too simple. Each level is its own contained world, which means you're leveling up what's basically a separate character in each. Gameplay itself is pretty mindless, too -- there are a few special encounters to break things up, but you're pretty much just using a few different abilities over and over against the enemy hordes.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Still, Pocket RPG is plenty of fun, and the game's being updated steadily with new features (not to mention that it comes with full Game Center integration, and it looks particularly great on the iPad). Right now, the title's on sale for just US $4.99, and if you enjoy plumbing through dungeons of all kinds (and come on, who doesn't?), it's an excellent experience.</div> </div> </span></div>

TUAW's Daily iPad App: Pocket RPG

Crescent Moon Games made the excellent Aralon for iOS in the past, and that was a full-fledged RPG, featuring a whole world to explore ...

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Adobe introduces Edge 1.0, the HTML 5 tool with an eye towards open improvements

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="173" mce_src="http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/5348/edge1screenshot072711.jpg" src="http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/5348/edge1screenshot072711.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; height: 288px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px; width: 460px;" width="276" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Adobe's new HTML 5 authoring tool, Edge 1.0, is now available for download. Edge aims to be a "web motion and interaction design tool that allows web designers to bring animation, similar to that created in Flash Professional, to websites using standards likes HTML, JavaScript and CSS."</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> While we give Adobe flack for Flash Player's Mac woes, the truth is that the Flash platform successfully brought a higher level of animation and interaction to the web long before HTML 5 was in the picture. When Apple unequivocally said Flash would not be supported on iOS, I knew Adobe (despite some infamous bluster) wouldn't sit idly by and let HTML 5 be a cash cow for other developers.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Enter Edge, Adobe's effort to offer web developers a choice. Edge 1.0 is a free beta, and more importantly, it's a first version of an application which Adobe states will be developed in the open with the aid of the web developer community. In fact, according to Adobe this isn't even "beta" yet -- they are releasing the application before it even reaches that status in an effort to ensure that what developers want the most gets in the app first. For now, Edge is a very simple (but still useful) tool.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Edge is currently limited to basic animation and simple page layout. Users of timeline-based applications will immediately grok Edge's simple UI and timeline for HTML 5 animation. Of course, just like in Dreamweaver, you can access code directly. Edge creates pretty clean code, but as an early product it isn't doing anything particularly difficult yet. Edge is primarily designed for WebKit-based browsers, as Adobe has contributed to WebKit; the in-app sandbox browser is also WebKit-based.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> When I spoke to Adobe I asked about integration with their other products, as I see the Adobe pipeline and workflow being a competitive advantage when comparing Edge to competitors such as Tumultco's Hype. As this is so early in the development stage, I was told that features like integration with other Adobe tools would happen, but at a later date. This initial push is to open the floodgates of feedback, and Adobe will shovel in features as needed.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> I do hope Edge is a success for Adobe. While not all of the company's decisions make sense, there's no doubt that Adobe makes strong tools for designers and developers. If Edge helps make better, faster, standards-compliant websites for everyone, I think that's great. Download Edge here and take it for a test drive. Then be sure to let us know in the comments what you think.</div> </div> </span></div>

Adobe introduces Edge 1.0, the HTML 5 tool with an eye towards open improvements

Adobe's new HTML 5 authoring tool, Edge 1.0, is now available for download. Edge aims to be a "web motion and interaction desi...

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Video App Demo: Webmail++

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="189" mce_src="http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8918/webmailplusplus.jpg" src="http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8918/webmailplusplus.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; height: 315px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px; width: 398px;" width="239" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Raise your hand if you've ever found Web Outlook on your Mac ugly and unusable, particularly the "classic" style. Now, if you have an iPhone and have been forced to use this adomination of everything good about web design, you know that the painful gets even more painful when you have to constantly zoom into impossibly small targets. Of course all this would be precluded if you could use your personal iPhone with your company's Exchange server, but that isn't going to happen.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> What do you do? First, take a look at Webmail++. This app scrapes off the gunky code in Web Outlook and presents it to you in an iOS-friendly format. For iPhone and iPad, the app does a good job of making Outlook on Webkit far more usable, even touch friendly. Check out the video for some nice touches, like floating menus.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Webmail++ isn't just for Outlook, however. You can connect Webmail++ to a number of email systems like Yahoo but some ISP webmail systems too, including RoadRunner and Comcast.</div> </div> </span></div>

Video App Demo: Webmail++

Raise your hand if you've ever found Web Outlook on your Mac ugly and unusable, particularly the "classic" style. Now, if...

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TaskRabbit iPhone app lets you crowdsource your tasks

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="197" mce_src="http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/1039/taskrabbit28.jpg" src="http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/1039/taskrabbit28.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 12px; max-width: 640px;" width="279" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> TaskRabbit is a unique service that lets busy people offload their tasks to those willing to do them. It costs a small fee, but you can have your groceries delivered, laundry done and dogs walked before you return home from a busy day at work.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> When it launched, the service was web-based only, but TaskRabbit recently developed an iPhone app that lets you manage your tasks on the run. You can create a new task, monitor the progress of a task and even price a task using information based from the TaskRabbit service. It lets you add descriptions using a voice recording or images so the person completing your task knows exactly what to do.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> It's an interesting use of modern technology that melds your mundane routine with the power of the crowd. And it's now on the iPhone.</div> </div> </span></div>

TaskRabbit iPhone app lets you crowdsource your tasks

TaskRabbit is a unique service that lets busy people offload their tasks to those willing to do them. It costs a small fee, but you can...

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Apple updates its response to Lodsys suit, but doesn't move to invalidate patents

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="110" mce_src="http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/3218/9343351.jpg" src="http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/3218/9343351.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; height: 110px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 640px; width: 250px;" width="250" />Apple has updated its proposed answer to the Lodsys suit against third-party developers. Lodsys has recently expanded its patent suit to include big-name iOS developers like Rovio (of Angry Birds), EA, Atari, Take-Two Interactive and Square-Enix, according to The Mac Observer.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Florian Mueller of FOSS Patents points out that Apple's amendments to its proposed answer are very minor, however, and a readthrough of the amended document bears this out. Critically, Apple's argument remains that its licensing of Lodsys's patents should be sufficient to allow third-party developers on its platform the right to use in-app purchasing tools without having to license them independently. Mueller is not fully convinced this tactic will succeed, however, and believes that Apple should instead challenge the validity of the patents themselves. Some third-party developers have already filed for invalidation of the Lodsys patents, but Apple's motion to intervene hasn't gone nearly that far yet.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Lodsys obviously believes it has a strong case if it's graduated from suing smaller developers to going after industry titans like EA and Square-Enix. Mueller seems to be asserting that Apple's response to the case thus far has been lackluster, and it's hard to argue with him; considering what's at stake, it is indeed disappointing that Apple has yet to unleash the firepower of its fully-armed and operational battle lawyers upon Lodsys.</div> </div> </span></div>

Apple updates its response to Lodsys suit, but doesn't move to invalidate patents

Apple has updated its proposed answer to the Lodsys suit against third-party developers. Lodsys has recently expanded its patent suit to ...

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Study: Average customer spends $14 in freemium games on iOS and Android

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="197" mce_src="http://img818.imageshack.us/img818/7631/apppricesfreemiumspendi.jpg" mce_style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: solid;" src="http://img818.imageshack.us/img818/7631/apppricesfreemiumspendi.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 640px;" width="279" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> This is pretty crazy news from mobile analytics firm Flurry: The average customer in a freemium game on iOS and Android spends $14 in any given transaction, according to their latest data. The same study already revealed that in-app purchases have overtaken standard purchases when it comes to mobile apps, but this set of data shows that when customers do bite the bullet on in-app purchases, they're taking much bigger bites than a lot of people might expect. 13% of those who spend money on freemium games are spending over $20, which means that these players are extremely committed to the games they're actually shelling out money for. And when the standard purchase price of a console videogame at a retail store is around $60, it's not hard to see why very committed players are willing to spend $20, $40, or even a full $60 via an in-app purchase on a game they love and got for completely free.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Those high numbers make the average that high value of $14. Keep in mind, however, that this is the average for in-app purchases only -- including players who<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" mce_name="em" mce_style="font-style: italic;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.5;">don't</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>spend any money in these apps would bring the average way down, as this is still only a small percentage of players spending money to begin with.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> In fact, Flurry found that<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" mce_name="em" mce_style="font-style: italic;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.5;">half</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>of all freemium revenue is actually generated by this 13% who spend high amounts of money on these games. That means that freemium developers are getting a large part of their revenue from a relatively few big spenders, customers who really love the games and are willing (or able -- it's unknown how many of these players are spending their parents' or someone else's money here) to shell out a lot of cash on the title. This is really interesting information, and it shows that freemium gaming, while still popular, is still dependent on just a few customers with lots of money to spend.</div> </div> </span></div>

Study: Average customer spends $14 in freemium games on iOS and Android

This is pretty crazy news from mobile analytics firm Flurry: The average customer in a freemium game on iOS and Android spends $14 in a...

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Make-a-wish game, Allied Star Police, out now on the App Store

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="184" mce_src="http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/9336/alliedstarpoliceapp.jpg" src="http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/9336/alliedstarpoliceapp.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 12px; max-width: 640px;" width="279" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> You may remember the story of Owain Weinert, a 9 year-old diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, who got invited to PopCap Games via the Make-a-wish foundation to help design and release a brand new iOS game. That title, eventually called Allied Star Police, is available now for free on the App Store. It's available through PopCap's experimental 4th and Battery studio, and I have to say -- it's pretty darn good. The game plays kind of like a more dynamic version of Plants vs. Zombies, where you summon various types of shooter ships to fly down lanes of attackers, eventually fighting their way over to blow up an enemy base.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> There are some good game design ideas here, too -- as you earn money for destroying enemy ships, you can slowly build up to more and more powerful weaponry, eventually leading an army of destroyers to take out your enemy. I like it a lot, and Plants vs. Zombies fans will probably enjoy it as well. Kudos to Owain on his work (and PopCap for their help, I'm sure), very nice job.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Owain also gets the honor of helping PopCap release their very first game after the recent EA takeover, so congrats on that one, too. Once again, you can try it out for yourself: it's a universal app available for free.</div> </div> </span></div>

Make-a-wish game, Allied Star Police, out now on the App Store

You may remember the story of Owain Weinert, a 9 year-old diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, who got invited to PopCap Games ...

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Review: Sonos Play:3 speaker system

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman','Bitstream Charter',Times,serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; padding: 0.6em;"> <div mce_style="text-align: center;" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px; text-align: center;"> <img alt="" border="0" class="aligncenter" height="240" mce_src="http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/7224/sonosplay3stacked.jpg" src="http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/7224/sonosplay3stacked.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; clear: both; color: #444444; display: block; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 12px; max-width: 640px;" width="151" /></div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Sonos was nice enough to loan me the new Play:3 wireless speaker system that I mentioned earlier this week, and now I've had a chance to listen. It's good. Very good.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> If you're unfamiliar with Sonos, here's a bit of background. The company began in 2003 with an idea of providing whole house wireless systems for much less than custom install jobs. Sonos has been Mac-friendly from the start, a Sonos device connects to your iTunes library and then with several additional pieces you your music where you need it. Control can be through a dedicated hardware controller, or even better from a free iPad or iPhone app. Sonos makes what they call ZonePlayers that connect as a component to your HiFi, or models with amplifiers that can drive speakers. Last fall, my colleague Dave Caolo reviewed the Sonos S5, now renamed the Play:5, a standalone music player with built-in amps and speakers.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> Now Sonos has an even lower priced entry, the US $299.00 Play:3. It's a one piece speaker system with digital amplifiers. The speaker enclosure is 5.2 x 10.5 x 6.3 inches and weighs a shade under 6 pounds. It can be plugged directly into your router with the supplied ethernet cable and it's ready to go. To use it wirelessly, you get a $50.00 Sonos Bridge unit and plug that into your router. Then put the Play:3 anywhere in the house, and your iTunes library is available, as well as thousands of internet radio stations. You can also access Pandora, and subscriptions music services like Last.fm, Rhapsody, SiriusXM, Stitcher and more.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> The Play:3 is a stereo unit, but the drivers are quite close together. I heard a clear stereo effect, but it wasn't a very wide image. Sonos allows two Play:3 units to be placed in a stereo pair mode, so you can separate them as widely as you like. The speakers can be placed vertically or horizontally. Sensors in the enclosure make some adjustments to the sound depending on how the speakers are oriented. The Sonos architecture is very mix and match. You can add a lot of playback units, and they can play music in sync all over the house, or you can have each play different things in different locations. The flexibility is unlimited.</div> <div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,'Bitstream Charter',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 24px;"> How did it all sound? Really well for such a small box. I listened to Jazz, some hard rock and some classical. Vocals, always a good test, were clear and defined. I listened to some Bach organ music and the stunning Saint-Sa</div> </div> </span></div>

Review: Sonos Play:3 speaker system

Sonos was nice enough to loan me the new Play:3 wireless speaker system that I mentioned earlier this week, and now I've had a chan...

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