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10 Classic Game Clones for the iPhone

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 19th 2008 at 9:22AM


If we've learned anything from the demise of Scrabulous, it's that programs that are obvious copies of classic games can survive until they're too popular for their own good. So, that means that this list of 10 rip-off games for the iPhone, compiled by our bros over at Asylum, might be the death knell of your favorite time wasters.

But hey, we're not here to drag you down. You'll probably have plenty of time left with subtly-titled 'Space Invasion' and 'Tris,' until somebody puts two and two together and realizes what they're infringing on. Then again, whoever owns the rights to 'Arkanoid' and 'Marble Madness' might not even remember those games existed, so everything might just turn out fine. Fingers crossed, right? [From: Asylum]

Man Tells Wife That iPhone Sent His Dirty Pictures to Another Woman

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 19th 2008 at 8:01AM

A man is swearing there's a glitch in iPhones that attaches pictures to emails and moves them to the sent folder without ever transmitting them. With all the problems the Apple products have had, it sounds somewhat plausible, right? Now, take into account that the alleged malfunction is his way of explaining to his wife why there's a picture of him pleasuring himself in a sent email that's addressed to another woman. If you're like us, your reaction is "oh, come on, man. Seriously?"

This whole mess came to light when a woman posted on an Apple forum to see if anyone else had this problem, saying the future of her marriage depends on the answer. The husband, for his part, admits taking the picture but swears he didn't send it. He even says he visited an Apple Genius Bar, where a technician said it's been known to happen.

Almost all the responders on the forum are kindly telling the woman that her husband is being a bit dishonest, to say the least. Susan later posted that this is just the latest in a line of evidence of infidelity but, ever the optimist, she wanted to be sure. Ideally, she gets a big settlement out of this and her husband realizes how lucky he was not to have the offending pictures posted on the forum along with his full name. [From: The Inquirer]

Would You Fall For This?

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 18th 2008 at 6:10PM


We understand that there are people out there who are gullible or uninformed, and that's why we try to help as much as we can. That said, we have never, ever seen a scam this obvious, at least not a real one. The sad thing is there are probably enough people that are dumb enough to fall for it, and therefore scammers who would try it, so it's not out of the question that this ruse actually exists. Scoff if you like, but halfway intelligent people still send money to Nigeria or think that a random link will really show them nude pictures of Jessica Simpson.

Thanks to sites like 419eater.com, we know that many of the criminals out there aren't exactly masterminds, which makes us wonder what other examples of unintelligent Web fraud are out there? There are all sorts of Fail sites, so we here at Switched propose that Scam Fail become the latest genre of captured stupidity. If you have any good examples of this, leave them in the comments below. We can't wait to see the depths of idiocy you've encountered on the Web.

Oh, and by the way, if you haven't figured it out yet, don't put your credit card number into anything like that. Ever. [From: FAIL Blog]

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Woman Conned Into Holding Down Toilet Lever While Thief Raids Home

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 18th 2008 at 4:26PM



You've got to have questionable character to steal from anybody, but it takes a special type of person (without any respect for humanity) to prey on a 91-year-old woman. That's exactly what a thief in New Jersey did this week after posing as a water inspector to get into the senior's apartment and rob her blind, NJ.com reports.

What he did next would be funny if it weren't so cruel. After saying that he needed to check the water, the man tested a faucet in the kitchen, and then flushed the woman's toilet. Talking on a cell phone the whole time to bolster his image of authority, the thief then told the woman she had to hold down the toilet or else her house would explode. She did as she was told but after two minutes, her suspicion ultimately got the better of her and she let go, only to discover the man ran off with $3650 in cash.

We sincerely hope this guy is caught and punished as severely as possible. While we're sure most of you aren't as gullible as this woman, please let this serve as a reminder to be skeptical of anyone who shows up at your door, even if they're talking hurriedly on a cell phone. [Source: NJ.com]

Online Prescription Pill Sellers Raided in Nine Countries

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 17th 2008 at 10:09AM


We have sad news to report for those of you getting your Levitra from shady Internet pharmacies -- your source might be out of business. Authorities in the U.S., England, Germany, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, and, of course, Canada raided the illegal online sellers of prescription meds.

Directed by Interpol under the codename Pangea, the crackdown comes as criminals are peddling more and more counterfeit and potentially dangerous drugs to unsuspecting buyers. In England, the raid hit twelve residences and businesses, seizing computers, documents, and "drugs claiming to treat conditions such as diabetes, impotency, obesity, hair loss and male breast growth as a side effect from bodybuilding steroid abuse."

As we've said before, there are legitimate online pharmacies that offer great deals, and you can visit the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy Web site for a list of reputable sellers. Avoid the sites they don't recommend, and hopefully someday we can all stop getting emails hawking V1@gra, X@NAX, Valiu/m/. [Source: Reuters]

Forklift Driver's YouTube Stunt Video Gets Him Convicted

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 14th 2008 at 3:29PM


Seriously. When will people learn? This week's winner of the "getting in trouble for doing something stupid and putting it online" contest is Australian Matthew Garry Ward. The 20-year-old was convicted of violating a safety law after he filmed himself performing stunts on a forklift at work then posted it on YouTube.

The above clip showing Ward on his five-ton ride was filmed using his cell phone and posted online as "How 2 pass you forklift License (sic)". He was reported to authorities after a coworker showed the clip to his boss. A prosecutor said he placed himself and others in harm's way after he "failed to wear a seatbelt, sped forward while looking sideways at the camera, and had no control over the forklift." He pled guilty to "failing to take reasonable care for his own health and placing himself at serious risk."

Ward said he wasn't proud of his actions, realized it was an immature thing to do, and "was devastated to lose a job he loved and was skilled at." He was given 50 hours of community service, a mandatory safety course, and $1200 fine by a judge and then escorted out the back of the courthouse to avoid the embarrassment of facing the media. Way to go, Matthew. You're an idiot.

Although, we have to admit, that does look like fun. [From: NEWS.com.au]



Why You Should Never Try to Steal a Law Student's Laptop

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 14th 2008 at 2:41PM

A thief learned the mistake of trying to steal a law student's laptop last week after after becoming a punching bag for an Arizona State student he tried to rip off. Armed with a baseball bat, the intruder, Gabriel Saucedo, allegedly climbed through an open window into Alex Botsios' apartment, waking the student and threatening to smash his head in.

Botsios was willing to let Saucedo take his wallet and guitars. Then the robber made the mistake that ultimately landed him in the hospital -- he went for the laptop. According to Botsios, he said "Dude, no -- please, no! I have all my case notes...that's four months of work!" Saucedo, obviously underestimating the fury of an overstressed, overworked first-year, was unsympathetic. That's when Botsios could take no more.

Wrestling Saucdeo to the floor, Botsios separated the bat from the thief and repeatedly punched him in the face. When it was all over, police had to get Saucedo stitched up before charging him with armed robbery and kidnapping, while Botsios only suffered some scrapes and a bruised knuckle. Most importantly, at least to the student, is that his laptop, which he called "his baby," escaped unharmed. Next time, Saucedo might want to try robbing a third-year student, as they're generally more docile. [From: KTAR.com]

Woman Divorces Husband After Catching Him Cheating in 'Second Life'

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 14th 2008 at 1:04PM


It's safe to say most wives would be mad if they caught their husband having virtual sex in Second Life. When Amy Taylor caught her husband with another woman's avatar, the infidelity might as well have been real.

Taylor and her husband, David Pollard, are divorcing after three years of geekily wedded bliss after Pollard, described as a "jobless 40-year-old," was caught doing the online nasty with other Second Life women. The couple originally met in a chat room and moved in together after exchanging photos, emails, and calls. The 28-year-old Taylor actually caught Pollard having virtual sex only a few months after they started dating but they reconciled and got married, both in reality and in Second Life.

Continue reading Woman Divorces Husband After Catching Him Cheating in 'Second Life'

Rough Cop Videos a Huge YouTube Hit in Japan

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 13th 2008 at 5:02PM

Several videos of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police using seemingly excessive force on demonstrators are getting thousands of hits on YouTube, with one clip surpassing the 100,000 mark. Last month, around 40 protesters gathered outside the house of Prime Minister Taro Aso on behalf of the country's "working poor," the approximate 10 million citizens who make less than $20,000.

The most popular video shows police roughly subduing protesters, who accused the wealthy Prime Minister of "creating poverty." Three men were arrested and charged with "assembling without a permit" and "scuffling" with the cops. An official says the actions were appropriate, while the protesters claim they informed the police of their plans prior to the event.

While we're not sure how great the backlash will become in this case, the popularity of the videos is unsurprising in the age of "don't tase me, bro" moments captured on cell phones and digital cameras. And naturally, there's already a remix version of the main clip with captions, stylized effects, and techno music. [From: Reuters]

Military Launches TroopTube, a YouTube Substitute For Soliders

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 12th 2008 at 9:05PM

After being banned from accessing sites such as YouTube and MySpace in 2007, the men and women protecting our nation will be able to view viral videos like everyone else, albeit in a watered down version. Delve Networks, a Seattle video publishing company, helped the military launch TroopTube, where members of the armed forces, their families, Defense Department employees, and supporters can upload and view streaming videos.

While it doesn't sound like anything special, Delve's contribution is quite innovative. The company helped in sorting and approving submitted videos, which are screened by the Pentagon for taste, copyright infringement, and security issues. Then, each video is copied into several different sizes, allowing the server to automatically play the one most appropriate for the viewer's connection speed. Most impressive is the search engine. The audio for each clip is converted into a text transcript, which is then compared against what USA Today calls a "massive database of words commonly uttered in proximity to each other, collected from crawling hundreds of millions of Web pages."

The original ban on the sites went into place due to security and bandwidth concerns, but since many soldiers now have laptops, TroopTube is seen as a "retention tool" to keep them entertained and happy. Currently, the featured videos on the site are generally messages to the troops, including one from General David Petraeus, so we're not sure how far the taste requirements go. We sincerely hope they're not denying soldiers the "kick to the groin" genre of videos. Doesn't everyone enjoy those? [From: USA Today]

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