Blizzard's StarCraft 2 and World of Warcraft to implement Facebook integration

Filed under: Games, Internet

I could clamber onto my soap box and rant all day about Blizzard's pathetic, poorly thought-out Real ID implementation - but - as this isn't a games blog, I've been told to keep it short and sweet. So, straight to the diabolical point: Real ID is just the beginning. With StarCraft 2's launch at the end of July, Battle.net will also feature Facebook integration.

Real ID, if you haven't been apprised, is Blizzard's Orwellian approach to policing its community. In one fell swoop it removes the anonymity, agency and escapism that actually make massively multiplayer online games enjoyable. But again, I shan't go on -- read WoW.com's coverage, if you want to find out more.

Battle.net's integration with Facebook is actually quite neat, if you don't mind the whole invasion-of-privacy thing. You'll be able to connect to Facebook from Battle.net and import your friends, rather than having to know your friends' email addresses. Still, with some 2,000 pages of complaints on the official World of Warcraft forums, you can be damn sure that it'll be a while before the community is able to stand back, take stock and analyse at the bigger picture.

Incidentally, if you're a fan of StarCraft or World of Warcraft, and you're opposed to these proposed changes, go and register your discontent on the forum! It's not too late to force Blizzard to rethink their totalitarian technology.

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Blizzard's StarCraft 2 and World of Warcraft to implement Facebook integration originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 07 Jul 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adobe Flash 11 will feature a proper 3D rendering engine and API

Filed under: Games, Internet, Adobe

The next version of Flash, amidst growing competition from emerging 3D-in-the-browser technologies WebGL and O3D, will feature support for 3D graphics.

But don't get too excited just yet -- we'll probably have to wait until October and the Adobe MAX 2010 conference before we find out more. There, on October 27th, a Flash player engineer will give a talk about "the next-generation 3D API coming in a future version of Flash Player." How exciting is that?!

It's an interesting move, and I feel that it's just in time too. WebGL and O3D might be exciting propositions in themselves, but they don't enjoy almost-100% saturation -- not yet at least. Every existing Web game maker uses Flash -- and you can be guaranteed that they'd rather code 3D games and applications for a platform they already intimately know.

It sure looks like Adobe isn't going to give up on Flash without a fight. First peer-to-peer transfers with 10.1, and now proper 3D. Assuming the 3D performance is good enough, we could see some very interesting FPS and MMORPG Flash games next year.

Adobe Flash 11 will feature a proper 3D rendering engine and API originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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KnifeTank is a cool illustrated update of Atari's classic, Combat - Time Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

If you loved the classic tank battle game Combat on the Atari -- or even if you're too young to have heard of it -- you'll probably love KnifeTank. In this hand-illustrated battle, you play a normal tank versus other kickass tanks with huge knives attached. KnifeTanks increase in number as you advance in levels, and there are more obstacles on the battlefield to contend with, too. Hit all of the music blocks in a level to advance, but be careful which way your shots ricochet!

The two coolest things about KnifeTank -- other than a tank with a frickin' knife on it, I mean -- are the original 8-Bit soundtrack and the fact that the game's all HTML5. Yeah, that's right: it's not a Flash game, it's entirely HTML5 and JavaScript. That means you need a Webkit browser like Chrome or Safari to get the most out of it, but it also means you don't need Flash.

Of course, those technical details are second to the gameplay, and I wouldn't be endorsing KnifeTank if it didn't have some replay value.

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KnifeTank is a cool illustrated update of Atari's classic, Combat - Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Epic Win app turns your life into an RPG to help you attack your to-do list

Filed under: Fun, Games, Productivity, iPhone

Many geeks view daily life and its challenges the way they view a role-playing video game. Clean up your apartment? Get experience points! Go to work? Collect gold! Work out? Increase your strength attributes! Well, a new iPhone app called Epic Win attempts to translate those imaginary points into real points in a game.

It hasn't been released yet, but the trailer shows how the game will work. Completing different types of to-do items offers different levels of XP and loot, motivating you to actually get things done. Your character develops based on what you do in your real life, and traveling to different locations opens up possibilities for new kinds of loot.

What do you think, DLS readers? Would an RPG like this actually help you get things done?

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Continue reading Epic Win app turns your life into an RPG to help you attack your to-do list

Epic Win app turns your life into an RPG to help you attack your to-do list originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is FarmVille maker Zynga about to become Google Games?

Filed under: Games, Web services, Google

Word on the internet this weekend was that Google has invested a huge amount of money in Zynga, the company that makes Facebook-centered games like FarmVille, Mafia Wars and FrontierVille. Rumor has it that the $100 million-plus investment is part of a larger strategy that will end up with the launch of Google Games later this year. There's no more popular, more addictive collection of games on the Web than Zynga's, so it makes sense that Google wouldn't want to compete starting from scratch.

TechCrunch speculates that Google will be able to break up Zynga's partnership with PayPal, and push all those in-game purchases through Google Checkout. Of course, this is also a major development in Google's relationship to Facebook, because Zynga has gathered a massive amount of data from Facebook users, so Google could be using that as a backdoor to buy into Facebook's network and boost its own social offerings (like Google Me, maybe) [Google Me needs games too! -Ed]. In case there was any doubt Google Games is for real, TC also posted a link to a job opening for a Google Games product lead.

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Is FarmVille maker Zynga about to become Google Games? originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 12 Jul 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Swerveball is part of a new Web game that helps you be better at life (Time Waster... or not!)

Filed under: Games, Kids, Time-Wasters

Swerveball is part of a new game called SuperMe. If you think it sounds a bit new-age self-helpish, don't worry: it is. With the rather hopeful headline of 'Be better at life', SuperMe is a collection of mini-games, quizzes, inspirational interviews and 'cheat codes for life'. And, despite it being angled at teenagers, I think there might just be something for everyone on SuperMe.

Anyway, because this is a Time Waster slot, I ought to talk about the actual game: Swerveball. Chances are you've played something like it before, but Swerveball adds another element: reflection. Without giving away the 'trick', not only is the game fun, but it also teaches you a little something about life. The game itself actually gets quite tricky if you fail the 'reflection tests' at the end of each level!

As a Time Waster, Swerveball is great -- but if you want a little more, connect your Facebook account to SuperMe and dive in! And if you have a teenage son or daughter, sit them down and force them to play.

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Swerveball is part of a new Web game that helps you be better at life (Time Waster... or not!) originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 13 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IQ Ball is a cute, grappling hook Time Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

IQ Ball is a fun little time waster that casts you as a fuzzy ball with a long, sticky tongue; your tongue serves as a grappling hook, and you must use it to navigate through levels and reach specific targets (or pull them to you).

However, your tongue is only so long; it can't reach everywhere, so you need to try to reach what you can. It also won't stick to everything; you find something that it can reach and stick to, and then use your tongue to walk through the level until you reach the target (or pull it over to you).

In the screenshot above, you can see the level number on the bottom right and the number of clicks that you've performed in the level on the bottom left. On this level, you need to swing like a monkey on the wire in order to reach the target. So, you have to grab and release until you get to the end.

Another nice touch is that the game instantly pauses and mutes when it loses focus. I see more and more developers doing this, and it's a welcome and thoughtful feature. I'll leave you with a tip: on level five, mind the cable car that's going down at the very beginning. If you don't stick to it, the level is lost forever (or until you restart it).

IQ Ball is a cute, grappling hook Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Black And White is a cat-tastic platform Time Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

In Black And White you control two cats, a black one and white one, which move simultaneously in opposite directions as you use the arrow keys (and Z to jump). The goal is to bring each cat to its own door (the black cat goes to the black door, while the white one goes to the white door).

The only problem is that the cats are inseparable. Every movement made by one is mirrored by the other, and this gets tricky because the way to the door is not always the same for both cats. The cats sometimes have to help each other: one cat would hold down a button, which would then disable a wall so that the other cat can move through it. But then, as soon as you move the other cat through the wall, the first cat (who was holding the button down), also moves. And then the wall becomes solid again. Pretty tricky!

Black And White is a cat-tastic platform Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Challenge your friends in Crack Attack -- a fun, furious, and free Time-Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

As you can gather from the title, Crack Attack is not a Flash game. It's a time waster that you have to download; we don't see too many of those around here. Having to download a game is a pretty hefty barrier to entrance, so a downloadable game has to be really good for me to cover it.

This one is. In fact, my girlfriend (a leading authority on Crack Attack) goes so far as to describe it as "engaging and breathtaking." Your goal is simply to join three blocks of the same color and make them vanish. This sounds like the same old same old, but Crack Attack manages to make the process really interesting.

Granted, the single-player mode is not that much cooler than your simple Tetris or Bejewelled. You need to keep the screen clean while the blocks keep rising, and the blocks that you clear keep turning into "garbage" (which is just bars, really) of various sizes and colors that falls on you from the sky. There are three different types of garbage (red, blue, and gray), and as you will find out, it takes a different trick to make each kind vanish. This gets more challenging as things start to move faster and faster, and the bars keep stacking up.

Continue reading Challenge your friends in Crack Attack -- a fun, furious, and free Time-Waster

Challenge your friends in Crack Attack -- a fun, furious, and free Time-Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Entanglement is an engaging, HTML5-powered Time-Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

I am really enjoying watching HTML5 come into its own and mature into a full-fledged platform for video, Web apps, and now some games, too. Entanglement is an HTML5-driven puzzle game, and it feels just like Flash.

It's a simple brain teaser. You start with a hexagon in the middle of the board. An orange line comes out of that hexagon and touches another hexagon right next to it. That other hexagon shows several possible paths that the orange line could take, depending on how you connect it. You can rotate the second hexagon using the mouse wheel or arrow keys. Once you hit the space bar or click the mouse button, the orange line "flows" into it, and the path becomes longer. You now get another hexagon to rotate and connect.

The goal is to make the path as long as you can without going back to the source point, allowing the path to cross itself, or touching the side of the board. My record is 23. Post your (undoubtedly higher) records below!

Entanglement is an engaging, HTML5-powered Time-Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PixEvo - The Fountain is an incredibly frustrating, pixelated Time-Waster

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

When PixEvo - The Fountain first begins, you're a tiny, blocky pixel. You can't walk -- you can only skip from place to place, using the up arrow keys and then the left/right arrow while you're airborne.

So you start helplessly bouncing around the screen, doing the only thing that you can really do at this point, which is "eat" the tiny dots. Suddenly, something happens! You grow bigger! Now you can jump farther than ever before!

Justifiably enthused, you take the challenge and start hopping farther and farther, eating all the tiny dots that you can reach. Suddenly, you get legs! You're no longer constrained to hopping around; now you can walk. So, you start walking and trying to eat even more dots in order to see what ability you gain next. As you see, it was at this point that I took the screenshot. I had eaten six dots, and I had ten more to go before I gained a new ability.

This is just about when the game got really frustrating; if you miss a jump and land incorrectly, you often have to take a whole series of smaller jumps to get back to where you were. Then, if you miss again, you have to do it again ... and again. The good part is that you can't die, so you can just keep at it until you succeed.

... And when you think about it, the frustration factor often makes for rather effective time-wasters.

PixEvo - The Fountain is an incredibly frustrating, pixelated Time-Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Futility is a Time-Waster you will lose, no doubt about it

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

In a way, Futility is a soothing time-waster. It's soothing in the same way that Fight Club is soothing; there is absolutely no way that you're going to win.

It's a short and cute game with a distinctly philosophical message (which I disagree with, but it still makes the point). It starts off as a normal platformer; you run and jump around, trying to skip from one platform to the next. You die along the way, but you have multiple lives, so you just reincarnate and keep on moving briskly through the level.

On and on you go, ... until you finally reach The Boss. It doesn't actually have a name in the game, but if it had one, that would be it. The Boss is a huge ball that basically bounces all over you, killing you repeatedly, until you run out of lives.

Then, it's game over. I could find no way to defeat the boss or even escape it; once you reach the end, that's it. Am I missing something here, or is this the message?

Futility is a Time-Waster you will lose, no doubt about it originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fantastic Contraption 2 is a sequel worthy of Time Wasting

Filed under: Fun, Games, Kids, Time-Wasters, Web

When Lee posted about Fantastic Contraption back in 2008, I literally lost multiple days playing through it, mastering it, and then retrying levels in interesting and creative ways. It was, and still is, one of my all-time favorite physics-based games.

So I was delighted today when a friend sent me a simple link over IM, and when I clicked it to find out what it was, I was greeted with its sequel, Fantastic Contraption 2. Now, I'm not going to claim that it's new, but it's certainly new to me, and we haven't posted about it before.

I recall that there was another attempt at a sequel that was far too complicated to be fun. Fortunately, though, Fantastic Contraption 2 retains the simplicity of the first one while introducing a new gameplay mechanic: magnets.

I've only just dipped my toe into the fantasticness that is Fantastic Contraption 2, but I can tell right now that I'm going to be losing hours to this thing all over again. Yes, it's that good.

Fantastic Contraption 2 is a sequel worthy of Time Wasting originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How to block ads or annoying services like Tynt in any browser, on any computer -- without additional software

Filed under: Internet, Security, Text, Windows, Macintosh, Linux, How-Tos, Unix

Now, we've previously covered extensions for both Chrome and Safari 5 that stop Tynt from ruining your copy/paste party, but if you've got administrative rights to whatever computer you're currently using, you can put a stop to more than that. You can block services like Tynt -- or even entire ad networks -- once and for all with nothing more than a text editor and admin rights.

All you have to do to block ads, Tynt, or even Facebook from ever bothering you again is to add their hostnames to your computer's hosts file. The best thing about this is that you can do it whether you're using a Windows PC, Mac, or Linux. They've all got hosts files, and power-users have been using them for years to speed up browsing or block ad networks. As an example of using the hosts file as a system-wide ad-blocker, check out this list of ad network hostnames that's ready to be pasted in.

For the purposes of this short guide, we're going to use Tynt as our target service to block. Remember, you can use this method to block anything. Simply apply the steps used here to put the kibosh on whatever other services or sites you choose.

If you're unfamiliar with Tynt, it basically appends an "attribution" link to any text copied off of a page that uses it. The usual user-response when this happens is an audible cursing of the site using it and a quick deletion of the added link.

While the site owners who use Tynt tend to claim they're doing it to ensure proper attribution, it's actually more about getting exposure and linkbacks. Anybody who's come across this annoyance can attest to the fact that it's not making anything proper or easy for the person doing the copying -- and contrary to the beliefs of the ultra-paranoid, a user shouldn't be branded a thief and plagiarist just for copying and pasting text.

Continue reading How to block ads or annoying services like Tynt in any browser, on any computer -- without additional software

How to block ads or annoying services like Tynt in any browser, on any computer -- without additional software originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How To: Read PDFs in Apple's iBooks with a little help from Dropbox

Filed under: Text, Utilities, How-Tos, iPhone

I jumped for joy when I saw a post at Lifehacker explaining how to read PDFs on your iPhone or iPad using Apple's new iBooks app. I figured someone would come up with a way to do it, and I should have known it would rely on the ultra-useful Dropbox. Dropbox is an amazing cloud storage app that works on several platforms, and one of them happens to be iOS, making it possible to transfer PDF files to your mobile device.

Once you've got the files uploaded to Dropbox, though, how do you get them into iBooks? Just find the PDF in Dropbox on your phone, hit "Open With" and choose iBooks. It's easy as pie, and your PDF files will automatically sync through Dropbox, too. You don't even have to bother plugging in your device or using iTunes. Brilliant!

How To: Read PDFs in Apple's iBooks with a little help from Dropbox originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google hits Chinese license deadline, reports "partially blocked" search results

Filed under: News, Google, Search

Wednesday was a big day for Google in China. It's the deadline for a renewal of the search giant's Internet Content Provider license, the license that allows Google to keep operating in China. On Monday, Google explained in a blog post that it would stop redirecting traffic from Google.cn to its Hong Kong site, Google.hk, because China was displeased with the redirect and unlikely to approve Google's license if it stayed in place.

On Wednesday, Google reported that its search results were "partially blocked" in China. Google's search recommendations, showing related searches, were inaccessible to Chinese surfers, but regular Google results seemed to be unaffected. There's no official news on the status of Google's license yet, but some serious drama will undoubtedly ensue if it's not renewed.

[via Marketwatch]

Google hits Chinese license deadline, reports "partially blocked" search results originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google gets license renewed to stay in China, unfiltered (sort of)

Filed under: News, Web services, Google, Search

At the beginning of the month, we told you how Google's license to operate in China was up for renewal. Well, that renewal has finally come through, and Google will be allowed to stay in the country. The search giant had temporarily redirected its Chinese site to Google.hk in Hong Kong, to avoid censorship, but ended the redirect to make sure the renewal went through.

It's not surprising that Google got its license approved again, especially after making that concession, but it is surprising that the company says it will still provide unfiltered results. " Users can conduct web search or continue to use Google.cn services like music and text translate, which we can provide locally without filtering." Not all of Google's services are available through Google.cn, though, so even though there's no longer an automatic redirect, there's still a link to Google.hk on Google's Chinese homepage.

Google gets license renewed to stay in China, unfiltered (sort of) originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Are Yahoo and Microsoft trying to game comScore for a better market share?

Filed under: Business, Search

Business Insider just published June's comScore Search Numbers. The picture is actually quite predictable; Google seriously dominates the market, and Microsoft and Yahoo trail behind. There's no big news there.

What is interesting is that comScore apparently thinks that Yahoo and Microsoft are trying to game its system. For example, both Bing and Yahoo show relevant search suggestions at the top of the results page. Clicking a suggestion generates another search query, which serves to boost that search engine's market share in comScore's reports.

This is but one tactic that Microsoft and Yahoo use. Business Insider claims that the companies have been "putting a ton of links on their popular homepages that are search queries disguised as content, and have been stitching together image slideshows as search queries, too."

Personally, I think this is utter hype. If you look at Google's sidebar, you will see that clicking the sidebar (or any type of search refinement) will also cause more search queries to be sent to Google's servers.

The only difference here is that, unlike Google, both Microsoft and Yahoo have major portals and content sites. So, these two companies are simply tying their search engines tightly into their content sites; after all, for many people "Internet" and "search" are almost synonymous. Is that really so bad?

The bottom line is that comScore is going to adjust the numbers to "compensate" for this; in fact, June's numbers are already posted along with the adjustments. I think that this is mainly because Microsoft and Yahoo are not Google; they work differently - does that mean they're "gaming the system?"

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Are Yahoo and Microsoft trying to game comScore for a better market share? originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 13 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Image Search gets a new look, becomes even more useful

Filed under: Web services, Google, Search

Google Image Search has just gotten a much-needed refresh that looks great, works better than ever, and keeps Google competitive with Bing's image search. At the risk of sounding like a Google advertisement, this update is awesome. As a regular image search user, I have to say that every change the Google Image Search team just made is an improvement.

First, the new results page: it's denser with images than ever before, and you can view 1,000 images in one scrolling page before you have to jump to another one. The thumbnails in the results are larger than before, too, which gives you much better idea of what's worth clicking on. There are also new keyboard shortcuts (page up/page down) to make browsing faster.

When you do click on an image, you're no longer presented with an annoying frame at the top of your browser window. That frame was the worst thing about Google Image Search, and I am quite glad they removed it. Instead, the image appears, full size, in a lightbox above a greyed-out version of the page where it appears. If you want to view the whole page, just click outside the image.

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Google Image Search gets a new look, becomes even more useful originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 16:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Swype, the high-speed on-screen keyboard for Android opens up for public beta testing (and a video review)

Filed under: Utilities, Android

Swype, if you've not heard of it before, is a new on-screen keyboard input method. It does away with the abhorrent, RSI-inducing finger-tip tapping method of input on today's smartphones. In fact, judging by the 'Swype vs. iPhone' video that TechCrunch pushed out last year, Swype might even be as fast as those little BlackBerry keyboards.

But enough talk of iPhones and BlackBerrys -- Swype's main purpose is replacing the tap-tap-tap on-screen keyboard that ships with Android smartphones. I hope Swype eventually appears on other smartphone platforms, but for now it's Android-only -- and as of this morning, you can join the public beta and get your hands on a free copy of Swype. They say it'll only be open for a few days, so you'll want to get in there quickly.

Anyway, rather than listing the features, I suggest you watch the video review above. I must warn you, I do say 'ass' and 'shit' a few times, so it may not be safe for work (depending on where you work).

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Swype, the high-speed on-screen keyboard for Android opens up for public beta testing (and a video review) originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Screenshot tour: JustPictures is an awesome photo app with powerful web integration

Filed under: Photo, Android

Android's built-in image browser, 'Gallery', isn't fantastic. By default it displays a load of tiny, unwieldy and laggy thumbnails. While you can strongarm it into behaving better, why bother when excellent alternatives like JustPictures are available?

From the outset, JustPictures replicates the built-in Android app -- but it's faster, prettier, and less fiddly. You are presented with a simple view of the folders on your phone's memory card -- click through to each one, flip through the images within, zoom -- but it doesn't stop there. JustPictures lets you connect to social networks and photo sharing sites.

It's utterly sensible, if you think about it. There might have been a time when we kept a lot of photos on our phone, but today we keep an insane amount of photos on Facebook and Flickr. It's the ability to grab photos from the Internet that makes JustPictures a killer app -- but read on to find out about its plethora of other neat features!

Continue reading Screenshot tour: JustPictures is an awesome photo app with powerful web integration

Screenshot tour: JustPictures is an awesome photo app with powerful web integration originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Jun 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Flash 10.1 officially hits Android, other mobile platforms to follow

Filed under: Utilities, Adobe, Mobile, Android

The much-anticipated test of Flash on a major mobile platform is about to begin! Flash 10.1 is finally ready for download on Android devices running Android 2.2 Froyo. Flash has also been sent to Adobe's other mobile partners, meaning it should be available for BlackBerry, Palm's WebOS, and WIndows Phone 7 in the near future. In fact, Adobe says Flash will even come pre-installed on some phones.

Mobile-optimized Flash sites are starting to pop up in preparation for widespread Flash adoption, but there are still questions about performance and battery life when it comes to Flash-heavy interactive sites. Fortunately, many Flash games are being redesigned to allow touchscreen controls, so Flash will be good for more than just mobile video. And really, won't it be nice not to see blue legos everywhere you go on your phone's browser?

There are still questions remaining, though: Will mobile device batteries stand up to Flash? Will Android users love it? WIll Steve Jobs have to eat his words about Flash not being ready for mobile hardware? We'll find out soon!

If you have an Android 2.2 device, including the Dell Streak, Google Nexus One, HTC Evo, HTC Desire, HTC Incredible, DROID, Milestone or Samsung Galaxy S, you can get Flash 10.1 in the Android Market.

Flash 10.1 officially hits Android, other mobile platforms to follow originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Maps for Android adds transit schedules and Latitude features

Filed under: Web services, Google, Android

Google Maps on Android was already leaps and bounds ahead of the experience on other mobile devices, but Google just unleashed some new features that make it even better. The latest update adds train and bus schedules, support for adding Google Latitude contacts, and Google Place Pages integration.

Android users can now grab transit schedules -- where they're available, anyway -- just by clicking a station or stop on the map. On my iPhone, I'm using Maps to find a route, and a separate app to view the schedules. Now Android users have got me beat. Jealous!

Google Place Pages, which launched not that long ago on the Web, are now available within maps. Place Pages give you at-a-glance info about businesses, including reviews. For the mobile version, they've organized the reviews using quick links to the terms that come up most often (food, service, atmosphere ... you get the idea). You may want to use Yelp or Urbanspoon for more detail, but Place Pages are very quick if you just need to find the closest place to eat.

As far as Latitude goes, Google has added a "suggested friends" list at the bottom of your Latitude contacts. Obviously, this is a big push to get more users sharing their locations on Latitude, which hasn't exactly taken off like a rocket since it was first released. At the very least, adding a few more contacts will make Latitude a more useful experience, so it's worth a shot.

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Google Maps for Android adds transit schedules and Latitude features originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Up to 20% of Android apps could be spyware

Filed under: Security, Mobile, Android

A new report from SMobile Systems suggests that almost 20% of the 48,000 apps on the Android Marketplace could be spyware.

Now, this is a potential risk -- as in, 20% of apps have functionality that could be likened to spyware. If you've installed apps on an Android smartphone, you'll know that you get a big warning screen that tells you which services and data the app will have access to. There's no risk when an app only wants to save to your SD card, but apps can make calls, send SMSes or even read your email! Therein lies the risk: users might be installing Android apps that have the ability to transmit your personal data to a third party.

While I'm sure the vast majority of available apps are not spyware -- this is probably just developers selecting the wrong 'flags' when they upload their app to the Marketplace -- it does highlight a big risk with 'open' app stores. Only 3 months ago we covered a story about Android and iPhone devices being turned into a giant botnet!

With Android going mainstream, you can be guaranteed that the platform will soon have its very own breed of malware. Once enough newbies have had their Android phones bricked by malware, how long do you think it'll be before they retreat to Apple's walled utopia?

[via CNET -- direct PDF download of the report]

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Up to 20% of Android apps could be spyware originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google can remotely remove applications from your Android phone

Filed under: Security, Android

Google, in a fantastic case of counter-PR, has published a story detailing how it has the ability to remotely remove applications from an Android phone. It comes just a day after the sensational news that up to 20% of Android apps could be malware, and is obviously intended to showcase some of the meatier safeguards available on the Android platform.

The story details how the Android Security team removed two applications that broke the Android Market Terms of Service -- here's the clause in question:

2.4 From time to time, Google may discover a Product on the Market that violates the Android Market Developer Distribution Agreement or other legal agreements, laws, regulations or policies. You agree that in such an instance Google retains the right to remotely remove those applications from your Device at its sole discretion and without notice to you.

(Is 'from time to time' regular legalese?)

The story itself leaves a lot of questions unanswered -- are developers contacted before their app is removed? is the app's locally-stored data purged? -- but the point of it is clear: Google wants you to know that they have a firm reign on the Android Market. Erroneous apps will be exterminated.

I feel safer already!

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Google can remotely remove applications from your Android phone originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Understanding the Android Market security system

Filed under: Security, Features, Mobile, Android

Last week I (and a bunch of other sites) ran a scandalous-sounding story about the Android Market and how 'up to 20% of its apps could be malware'. Google actually contacted us and asked for a retraction; I refused. Instead, I decided to explain the Android Market permission system.

If you don't own an Android phone, the permission system is fantastic. Every app has to define which resources it wants access to. When you install an app (via the Market), you are shown a bunch of very clear warnings that detail what data and services the app will have access to. The great thing about this system is that apps can't lie. An app can't, after two weeks, gain access to your email.

The system is, in all honesty, fantastic. The only real weakness is user ignorance -- if you install a wallpaper app that wants the ability to send SMSes, that's your fault!

So, this guide goes some way to explaining what each of the permissions allow your phone to do. I'm not going to cover every single facet of the system, but hopefully you'll be a little more savvy by the time I finish.

Continue reading Understanding the Android Market security system

Understanding the Android Market security system originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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