Tweetie 1.3 approved — what are we supposed to do with this wagon full of torches and pitchforks?

Apple can be slow to act on user outcry at times, but it looks like the curious, discouraging case of Tweetie 1.3's App Store denial has come to a quick and painless resolution. There's no telling if it was the shouting proles that moved Apple to act, or perhaps a spoonfull of common sense -- Tweetie was apparently rejected on the grounds that it let people read swear words on the internet --- but whatever might have happened behind closed doors in Cupertino, Tweetie 1.3 is at last free to roam on the App Store, according to a Tweet from Tweetie developer Loren Brichter. Now all we need for eternal happiness is a clearly defined set of guidelines for App Store approval, a consistent appeals process, and some Nutella.

[Via The iPhone Blog]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Tweetie 1.3 approved -- what are we supposed to do with this wagon full of torches and pitchforks? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Google Nuking Infinite SMS App for iPhone

Michael on Facebook sent us link to this announcement on innerfence, which says Google is shutting down the Infinite SMS App.

According to the developers:

Google has claimed no grievance with Infinite SMS other than its success. Their given reason for the block isn’t abuse or wrongdoing; it’s that we brought too many users (and thus too much cost) to an experimental service.

Google’s official statement reads:

Infinite SMS is a third party app that has been using Google technology to provide free SMS for users, while we were paying for the cost of the text messages. While Google is supportive of third party apps, we’ve decided we can’t support this particular usage of our system at this time. SMS chat is still just an experiment in the early testing stages in Gmail Labs. We’re blocking all external XMPP clients from sending SMS; we’re not singling out Inner Fence.

SMS, of course, uses the carrier channel to inexpensively send short 160 byte text messages which the Telco’s then exorbitantly price gouge users $0.20 per message (do the math, thats thousands for megs) or offer bundled in large or unlimited numbers. They’ve even priced them so high for businesses that companies like Twitter — and apparently more so Google — can’t or don’t want to pay for them, especially for international users.

Are you an Infinite SMS user? If so, what are your thoughts on Innerfence, Google, experimental services, and SMS charges?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Google Nuking Infinite SMS App for iPhone

UPDATED VIDEO: iPhone Prototype Yanked off of Ebay?

UPDATED: YouTube pulled the previous video due to a copyright claim by Apple. Engadget is currently providing an alternate video. Get it while it lasts…

ORIGINAL: Dieter and I were just talking about the iPhone prototype up on Ebay, went to check the current price (previously over $2000), and found that it had been yanked off of auction. We’re guessing this is in response to a take-down request from Apple, who might claim physical or at least intellectual property rights over the device.

The YouTube video is still up for now, so enjoy it (while it lasts?)

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

UPDATED VIDEO: iPhone Prototype Yanked off of Ebay?

Tweetie 1.3 Now Approved for the App Store!

Was it the outcry on Twitter? The evisceration courtesy of numerous blogs? Or did someone at Apple actually take our advice and wake up? We don’t know. But we do know this: according to developer Loren Brichter:

Great news! [Tweetie] 1.3 has now been approved! Alright Apple!

Hopefully this wasn’t as capricious a reversal as it was an earlier refusal, and Apple is actually investing some thought in how to get the App Store approval process back on track.

Hey, we can dream, right?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Tweetie 1.3 Now Approved for the App Store!

iPhone Prototype used for Testing prior to iPhone Launch briefly Available on eBay

iPhone prototype yanked down from eBay

Filed under: iPhone

A set of iPhone prototypes from 2006 briefly made the eBay rounds this morning, with bids running more than $2,000 for the two phones (one non-working) before Apple managed to get the listing yanked sometime during the day. The seller also made a YouTube video documenting the features on the phone -- while that too was pulled down due to Apple exerting its copyright, Engadget managed to salvage it and now has it up on its site.

The prototype hints at several features that did not make it to the final version of the iPhone, including a possible option for video phone calls and games. The video is well worth watching. Even though the auction was pulled, we still manage to get a peek at the process that led to the phone unveiled in early 2007. We also have a glimpse of the iPhone at its most basic levels, something that will be an asset to developers.

iPhone prototype yanked down from eBay originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone prototype yanked down from eBay originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Review: WiFiFoFum for iPhone

WiFiFoFum scans for wireless 802.11 networks and displays detailed information for each network it identifies. Its level of detail gives it a clear advantage over the iPhone’s built-in Wi-Fi scanner.

Speculation About Background Processing Running Rampant

The internet is abuzz with news that Apple may soon be allowing multiple third-party applications to run on the iphone at once. If you recall, when the iPhone was introduced, Apple had said that in September 2008, a service called PNS or Push Notification Service would be introduced so that ...

Tuesday Fun: Dilbert Digs His Smartphone… Too Much?!

Thanks to Matt from NokiaExperts.com for pointing us to this! Nice break from the drama of the day, Dilbert style…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Tuesday Fun: Dilbert Digs His Smartphone… Too Much?!

App Story: Human Weather Rejected for Twitter F**k, Implemented Filter, Now in App Store (NSFW-L)

Following up on the story about Tweetie 1.3 being rejected because an Apple reviewer saw the word f**k in the Twitter Trends tab, developer Crowded Road contacted us with the story of their app, Human Weather, which was initially rejected by Apple for a similar reason: someone happened to have dropped the f-bomb in the Twitter-stream while it was being reviewed.

Crowded Road went to the trouble — and no doubt cost in man/hours — to implement a filter for said reject-worthy words, and is now available FREE in the App Store [iTunes link]. But so what? As the developers themselves rightly told us:

This kind of policy is doomed to fail simply because it is impossible to police. Apple is only check the app content through a random test as part of their approval process. Of course, looking for “offensive” content as part of an approval process is futile because user generated content is both limitless and unpredictable.

No doubt this is correct, as creative internet users already know. F**k getting filtered? Fug, fukc, fack, fock, f u c k, and limitless other combinations impenetrable to machines but easily parsed by human pattern-matching brains, will easily slip through to offend those easily offended and amuse those easily amused alike.

We’d typically finish up with a rant about how the App Store could be improved, made more transparent with clearly defined criteria, even establish a ratings system for apps as they have for iTunes media, but really, even they must know this by now, right?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

App Story: Human Weather Rejected for Twitter F**k, Implemented Filter, Now in App Store (NSFW-L)

Tweetie 1.3 rejected for displaying “offensive language”

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Bad Apple, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

We saw this hit the fan early today, hot on the tail of the AMBER Alert post. Apparently the 1.3 update to Tweetie, a popular Twitter client for iPhone we've covered before, has been denied release in the App Store because the app could potentially show "offensive language."

As you may know, blatantly offensive apps (like really "adult" content) are verboten on Apple's store. Unfortunately, that rule was probably intended to keep X-rated content (maybe hard R as well) off the store, not inadvertently prevent an update to a popular Twitter client. In this case, the offensive material could pop up in Twitter trend searches -- never mind that you can find much worse using Google's search app or mobile Safari itself.

This latest episode plus the Amber Alert app's delay and many other examples continue to shine a light on what is clearly a broken approval process. As Engadget's Nilay Patel says, "It's time to drop the seemingly-random black-box approach... and actually work with innovative developers like Tweetie's Loren Brichter to push your platform forward in the face of newly-stiff competition."

That last point is important, because hardware companies are working hard to avoid an iPod-like market lead for the iPhone. Last night's demo of the Palm Pre had my eyebrows raised, to be sure. If Apple can't quit shooting the feet of some of the best developers out there, it'll be all too easy for them to switch to a platform that provides less restrictions, less doubt and less uncertainty.

[Via The iPhone Blog]

Tweetie 1.3 rejected for displaying "offensive language" originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tweetie 1.3 rejected for displaying "offensive language" originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iPhone developer takes measures to combat piracy

Not satisfied with Apple’s inaction towards App Store piracy, one developer takes matters into his own hands.

Apple rejects Twitter app because there’s swearing on the Internet

Apple rejected an update to iPhone Twitter client Tweetie because an obscenity showed up when they were testing the app. On the Internet.

Apple stupidly rejects Tweetie 1.3 for foul language in Twitter trends

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/apple/Apple_rejects_Twitter_client_for_dirty_words_on_Twitter'; Apple's just reached a whole new level of stupidity in App Store approval shenanigans: the Tweetie 1.3 update was just rejected for displaying "offensive language" in its Twitter trend search view. Right, not for offensive language in the app itself, but for offensive language on Twitter -- an insanely strict new standard that could conceivably be used to reject each and every iPhone Twitter client out there. (And if you haven't noticed, there are quite a few iPhone Twitter clients.) Hell, Apple might as well reject the next versions of Safari and Mail, since they can display dirty words too -- and let's not forget the awful things people are doing with Notes and the camera. Better lock it down.

Look, Apple -- this is a nadir. Rejecting a Twitter client for Twitter's content is simply indefensible. It's a sign that the App Store approval "process" is broken beyond repair. It's time to drop the seemingly-random black-box approach -- which has earned nothing but well-deserved scorn -- open up, establish consistent, easy-to-understand rules with a well-defined appeals process, and actually work with innovative developers like Tweetie's Loren Brichter to push your platform forward in the face of newly-stiff competition. The massive popularity of the iPhone and the App Store may prevent a mass exodus, but the best devs are going to leave if they feel jerked around, and we doubt a store full of fart apps and misogynistic jiggle apps is really the vision you had for your platform. Think about it.

[via The iPhone Blog]

Filed under: Cellphones

Apple stupidly rejects Tweetie 1.3 for foul language in Twitter trends originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 15:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple Approves latest version of Tweetie which was Rejected for a Ridiculous Reason Earlier [Updated]

$200 iTunes Gift Cards on Sale for $2.60 (Ok, Not Really…)

Ok, well Apple is really not selling $200 iTunes gift cards for only $2.60 so keep dreaming. But according to Music Ally Chinese “pirates” have hacked the algorithm that generates the iTunes gift cards and so now fake cards are flooding the market for as low as $2.60 in China. When we say flooding we literally mean flooding the Chinese market:

Apparently six months ago, a $200 card went for around 320 RMB (roughly $47), but the price has since plummeted to around 18 RMB ($2.60) as more sellers pile in.

With the iPhone 3G getting ready to make an appearance in China it should be interesting to see just how Apple responds to this. Apple will more than likely make a quick change to nullify the pirates ability to create these cards but it’s not like you can do away with the ones already in circulation as there is no easy way to decipher a bogus card from one that is legit (unless they have some super secret Apple wonder-ETL and ad-hoc query/number-crunching monster we don’t know about).

[Via Music Ally]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

$200 iTunes Gift Cards on Sale for $2.60 (Ok, Not Really…)

Amber Alert App Approved by App Store

Wow, alliteration much? Not sure if it was just a delay (as Apple seems mostly impervious to pressure from the web or customers, open letters included), or some bizarre equal and opposite reaction to Tweetie 1.3 being rejected, but AppleiPhoneApps.com is now reporting that Jonathan Zdziarski’s AMBER Alert app has (finally?) been approved and published to the iTunes App Store:

AMBER Alert [iTunes link] is now available at the [US] App Store for free, and gives users real-time information regarding missing children. Zdziarkski worked closely with the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children to make this the official AMBER Alert tool for the iPhone.

Another app, BargainBin, is still languishing in limbo, however, prompting an interesting question on the same site about whether or not the App Store uses “pocket rejections” at times.

Clearly the App Store process remains anything but clear…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Amber Alert App Approved by App Store

Tweetie 1.3 Rejected by Apple for Returning “Offensive Language” in Search Results (NSFW-L)

So, who could it be running the approval process for the iTunes App Store at Apple? Hmm. Tough one. Let us put on our little thinking caps here for a moment…. SATAN?!

No, of course, not, nor the Church Lady from SNL, but it must be someone equally cartoonish, how else do we reconcile the App Store rejecting Tweetie 1.3 for containing “offensive language” in search results returned from the public Twitter “Trends” rankings? (via Twitter)

We can search for all manner of unholy pr0n in Mobile Safari, should Apple Reject their own core application because of what it may return as well? Are they expecting developers to become censors and str the fck out of words the way Apple.com does? (see below).

Of course, this could just be one rogue App Store review processor gone horribly wrong, but Apple still bears responsibility for a totally opaque, seemingly capricious review process that creates incidents just like this — over and over again.

They’re likely selling enough fart apps and games to make this a small problem from their end, but they’re losing badly when it comes to the good will of truly innovative developers and bleeding edge techies who form the core of any true next-generation platform.

Wake up, Apple. You’re better than this.

(And good luck to Tweetie developer Loren Brichter on getting Tweetie 1.3 approved — as it should be — and into all of our waiting iPhones quickly!)

Screen shots showing the rejected “language” in Tweetie and others for the sake of comparison after the break (NSFW-L)…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Tweetie 1.3 Rejected by Apple for Returning “Offensive Language” in Search Results (NSFW-L)

Review: Blocked for iPhone

Easy to learn and addictive, this sliding puzzle game is a perfect match for Apple’s mobile devices thanks to the touch screen controls.

Review: Gym Buddy for iPhone

If you’re a regular at the gym, this app from Anyways Enterprise is a solid choice for a workout partner.