Tech

Profile Spy Facebook Worm Inspires James Bond Film

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Apr 4
Profile Spy
A fast-spreading Facebook and Twitter Worm known as "Profile Spy" has been making the rounds today, automatically posting status updates to users' Facebook profiles and Twitter feeds without their consent. The outbreak has apparently inspired a new James Bond movie, to be titled "The Profile Spy Who Loved Me". In the film, Bond uses social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter to spy on enemies from the comfort of his own home, while sipping on Martinis ... no tuxedo required. While critics think this will make for a very boring film, others argue that it a perfect fit for this day and age.

Tweet this post:

140
 

Chinese Hackers Take Down YouTube Home Page - YouTube is Down

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Mar 25 2010

youtube downIn apparent retaliation for Google's recent stance against China, hackers based in China have successfully hacked the YouTube home page and taken it down. At the time of writing, YouTube has been down for over 4 hours. Google recently stopped censoring its searches in China, reversing their previously evil stance, as they cooperated with the Chinese government on censorship for years, until a few days ago. Anonymous sources close to the Chinese government claim the YouTube hack is meant as a warning, a display of power, and other Google web sites could be next. The source hints that Google Maps could be next, in a move that "would change the face of the earth", suggesting that the maps themselves could be modified to fit China's world view.

Tweet this post:

140
 

New Mashable Google Buzz Contest Details

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 23 2010

mashable buzzOn the heels on its first successful Google Buzz contest, social media blog Mashable is set to launch another contest in the coming days. While the goal of the first contest was to amass vast amounts of Buzz followers (20,000+ and counting), the new contest gets more creative. The "Mash Your Face Up" contest challenges Mashable's Buzz followers to customize their Google Buzz profile photos "in the spirit of Mashable". Ideas range from Mashable tattoos, bodypainting, and photoshopped Mashable logos. Men are even encouraged to grow a patchy beard and wear a vest in their profile photos in imitation of Mashable founder Pete Cashmore. Ladies are reminded that 'less is more'. Extra consideration will be given to Buzz users who mention Mashable in every post and comment that they make on Buzz, even if the post or comment is completely unrelated. The winners of the Mash Your Face Up contest will one of 2 iPad Video Phone models. The resulting face mash-ups should be very interesting.

Tweet this post:

140
 

iPad Emulator App for the Kindle

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 11 2010

kindle ipad appAn ambitious app developer is working on a Kindle App that provides all of the Apple iPad's features in an app for the Amazon Kindle. On January 21st, Amazon announced a software development kit (SDK) for the Kindle eBook reader, enabling developers to create apps for 'active content' on Amazon Kindle Devices. While the project is still in stealth mode, the unnamed developer says he has working prototype already, by using the Kindle SDK and backwards engineering the iPad features by scraping screenshots of Engadgets live blog of the iPad event. The upcoming Kindle app will offer Kindle users the best of both worlds, a great reading device with access to the Kindle eBook store, as fell as all the gaming and multimedia features of the iPad. When asked about how the app will deal with he fact that the Kindle does not have a color screen, the developer responded "the lack of color on the Kindle was a tough programming challenge, but we have come up with a patent-pending technique that that is working well in the lab, which involves squinting really hard until you start seeing the screen in color."

Tweet this post:

140
 

Google Buzz Launching BuzzSuzzHuzzFuzz API

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 11 2010

Google BuzzGoogle is launching a new API for its new Twitter-killer, FriendFeed-imitator service Google Buzz. The new API will be called BuzzSuzzHuzzFuzz and is designed to provide a push-pull P2P cloud-based aggregation and notification service for sites and services wishing publish feeds and streams on the Google Buzz service. A purely heasrsay source quotes a leading Buzz API developer: "While we didn't really need any of the features provided by the BuzzSuzzHuzzFuzz API, our main goal here was to push the envelope a bit, and see if we could come up with an API with a more confusing and stupider sounding name than PubSubHubbub, and I think we've managed to achieve that."

Tweet this post:

140
image description

Rumrz

BuzzSuzzHuzzFuzz? Try saying that 3 times fast

Feb 11 2010 Like
 

iPad Video Phone Model to be a Game Changer

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 11 2010

Thumbnail image for iPad GamingAccording to secret sources, a video phone model of the Apple iPad will be released in June 2010, enabling user to engage in video chat calls using VoIP technology. The feature is expect to be a game changer ... literally. In a surprising product design move, Apple has reported decided to restrict this feature only to games. The concept is to enhance the iPad as a gaming device by enabling players to trash talk their opponents face-to-face during game play, bringing a whole new meaning to the term social gaming. "This magical new feature will provide the ability to yell, curse, and taunt your opponent to their face, and, because its video, hand gestures are also possible," says a source familiar with the company's plans. Apple will allegedly being trying to patent a number of these multi-touch video hand gestures that game players will be able to wave in their opponents digitized faces.

Tweet this post:

140
image description

Rumrz

I wonder if they will have games where the gestures (or insults) earn you points?

Feb 11 2010 Like
 

Google Buzz was Inspired by Alcohol Buzz

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 11 2010

Google BuzzUnreliable sources have it that the new Google Buzz service was actually inspired by the buzz felt when drinking alcohol. Google engineers are widely know to partake in a little Google Juice (Red Bull and Vodka) after hours, especially during all-night coding marathons. According to one Google Buzz developer, who requested that his name not be used for fear of being fired for drinking on the job, "One evening, after a few Google Juices, our team has a really good buzz going. In was in this slightly tipsy state that inspiration for Google Buzz came to us. It became crystal clear that the combination of a good alcohol buzz and social networking and media sharing represented pure awesomeness." The team then set out to create a social networking experience specifically tailored to people in a buzzed state of mind, and Google Buzz is the result of all that coding and drinking. But if you do want to get buzzed while Buzzing, please do so responsibly. Get your Buzz on!

Tweet this post:

140
image description

Rumrz

Wow, you know these Google Juices are good ... buzz indeed.

Feb 11 2010 Like
 

Facebook to Publish Massive Book

Rumr Mill
Rumr Mill Feb 9 2010

Facebook LogoSocial networking website Facebook today announced plans to publish its first book. The unexpected move comes on heels of Facebook surpassing 400 million users of its Facebook.com web site. Sources say the book is going to be thousands of pages long, and be comprised simply of profile photos of every Facebook user. The book will literally be a book of faces and will be aptly titled "Face Book". Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg says of the plans, "This was my main objective all along. The social networking web site and features are great, but really they are just a means to an end, towards my lifetime goal of creating a big book of faces. Why do you think I named the company 'Face-book'?". No word yet on when Face Book will be available to purchase.

Tweet this post:

140