Archive for September, 2008
Apple Makes Our Work More Difficult… Nearly Impossible
Sep 29th
We really hate complaining about Apple but they’ve given us way too much fodder recently. Go ahead, check your computer’s iTunes App Store…
You’ll notice that there’s no longer links to the handy dandy “All iPhone Applications,” “All Free iPhone Applications,” “All iPod Touch Applications…” Â In fact, there’s no way, shape or form that you could see what was just released today, yesterday, or the day before.
Apple has completely axed our way of scouring the App Store and looking for new, great applications.  If we want to see new apps, we have to click EACH and EVERY friggen CATEGORY to see what could be new.  Stupid?  More like BullSH*T.  That or we could rely on the TOP PAID apps and the TOP FREE apps sections… but how would that help our readers?? If an app is already at the top, there’s a pretty good chance it’s worth downloading.
CTA wants to stay current, so help us smack Apple with some constructive/destructive criticism and get the App store back to the way it once was… easy to navigate, easy to see what’s new. Â Please click here to send some feedback and demand that they allow us to continue the work we do.
All we can say at this point: “Come on, Apple. Â Get your crap straight.”
Wurdle — A Word Puzzle Game
Sep 26th
CTA RATING: 
Wurdle is a great game that we’ve really begun to enjoy as of late. Â We first saw it pop up in the top paid applications last week… decided to buy and guess what? Â A week later, we’d really like to tell you that it’s a new (to us) twist on word games and definitely worth the miniscule $1.99. Â Read all about it after the break.
Pwnage Tool & QuickPwn Now 2.1 Compatible (Updated!)
Sep 22nd
***Update*** Â
Looks like the windows version of quickpwn is out. Â We did it on our brand new iPhone 3G 16 GB… all we can say is nice! Â Worked like a charm. Â Let us know your results in the comments! P.S. Â Anyone who has news about Customize.app — please share.
***End Update***
Remember what we said about iTunes 8 would need a patch to allow pwange?  Well, it seems that we — The Dev Team as well — were wrong but thankfully!  iTunes 8 no longer requires a hack to install the custom ipsw that you create with the Pwnage Tool.  You can now use the newest versions of QuickPwn and Pwnage Tool to their full capacities with iPhone Software 2.1 — note to early adopters: it is still NOT available for iPod Touch 2nd generation.  All iPhones and 1st generation iPod Touches can be pwned.  Click here for the full release from the Dev Team.  The downloads are available via Torrent infrastructure for now.  If you don’t know how to use torrents, just hold off for a bit, they’ll have direct links on their website soon.Â
App Updates — 2008.09.22
Sep 22nd
CTA RATING: 
We were definitely able to give this app a star bump with the latest (huge) update, still not quite a ten… but so close! Â The only thing we see missing is the ability to strum in alternate tunings. Â It’ll come. Â They’ve added pretty much everything else we’ve wanted to see from the beginning so we have to say it: if you’re an avid guitar player… this is a must have application. Â Here’s the new stuff:
- Chords are strummable (you can hear them)
- Tones tab replaced by the Fretboard tab
- Scales support in the Fretboard tab (touch to hear any note)
- Alternate tunings support for Tones and Scales
- Zoomable Fretboard with pinch
- Left handed support (Chords, Fretboard and scales)
- New tab for Instrument selection (6 string guitar, 12 string guitar, 4 string bass, or 5 string bass)
- 12 string and Bass Guitar support — turner optimization, scales and chords
- Alternate tunings moved to the instruments tab
- Metronome improvements — new slider & buttons, stability, more time signatures, max BPM raised
- Chords vetted and improved
- Chord inversions identified (“i” indicates inversion in chord picker)
  CTA RATING:
Speed test is an app that has been out for a while that measure the up and down speeds of the network you’re using. Â It’s free, so take a look. Â They will be releasing a paid, no advertisements, version in the near future. This version includes these updates:Â
- Storage of Speedtest results, which will be used to provide statistics and favorites.
- improved accuracy of download and upload speeds
- worldwide servers used for localized testing
- a project status pageÂ
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Super Monkey Ball
Sep 18th
CTA RATING:
Not a full-fledged review here, but we thought that we could finally recommend this application now that it’s at version 1.01. Â It appears as though the latest release fixed the accelerometer to make gameplay a little easier and relieved our biggest frustrations with the app. Â Take a look after the break for a short write-up…
Apple’s App Store Policies Sketch? Yep.
Sep 15th
Remember Netshare (Now completely banned from the App Store as of Septemer 13th)? Â How about Box Office (Replaced with “Now Playing”)? Â Well it appears that there’s a new app that’s been rejected without probable cause: Podcaster. Â It’s designed to exist as a podcast manager on your iPhone or iPod Touch. Â Apple explained to the developer that it “assists in the distribution of podcasts, it duplicates the functionality of the Podcast section of iTunes.” Read on for more information about Apple’s sketch policies and how one developer is getting around them…
Can I Haz iTunes 8.1? (Updated)
Sep 11th
If you couldn’t tell by the title, we found iTunes 8 to be a little on the, “I’ll wait to upgrade” side of the fence. Â We’ll definitely say that the new features appear to be promising, but what it took to get there does not. Â Read more about our love/hate relationship with iTunes 8 after the break…
Dev Team Vs. Apple : Fight!
Sep 11th
Before you get your panties in a wad… if your device is already pwned, it will continue to function normally and will work totally fine with iTunes 8. Â If you haven’t pwned your iPod Touch or iPhone yet but are looking into it, then you have some more work to do. Â It seems as though Apple is still battling the Dev Team’s antics at least somewhat: iTunes 8 no longer allows you to restore an unpwned device with custom firmware, your device must first be pwned or iTunes 8 must be modified. Â Read more after the jump…
Another Day Comes and Goes
Sep 10th
Yesterday marked yet another day that Apple Fan-boys dream about: Steve Jobs gave his Let’s Rock keynote address to a small media crowd in California.  We don’t know about you, but we were on the edge of our seats the whole time just waiting for that “One more thing…” Unfortunately, it never came.  Believe it or not, pretty much everything that showed up yesterday was predicted by the media, and no one was surprised.  What happened, Apple? Where’s our “One more thing”?  iPod Nanos, iPod Touches, iPod Shuffles, and iPod Classics — read about all of the updates and what they’ll mean to you after the jump.
Electronic Arts Unveils New iPhone Games!
Sep 4th
Surprise, surprise! Â It appears that EA has enjoyed the success of their already-available games in the iTunes App Store. Â In fact, it appears that they’re releasing a whole slew of new games in the coming months. Â We’ve all heard about Spore… and get ready because that’s coming out in 3 days on September 7th. Â But there’s more…
