Without any fanfare, Netflix quietly updated its iPad app yesterday, making it easier and more attractive to use – but removing some important information and the ability to update your DVD queue in the process. The update changes the app from what was pretty much an adaptation of the Netflix website to something more closely …
Apps & Web
QR Codes Placed Building Projects and Other Sites to Keep Citizens Informed
New York City construction sites are being updated with QR codes so citizens can keep tabs on projects around their area. Simply scan the reader over the black and white box on a project, and you’ll be able to find out the status of the building’s construction, how much they’re allowed to build, who owns the property and their approved …
The Comic Book Club: Uncle Scrooge, Takio and Axe Cop
This is what happens when Techland goes to the comic book store: we end up discussing what we picked up. This week, Graeme McMillan, Evan Narcisse and Douglas Wolk talk about three all-ages comics: Uncle Scrooge #401, the debut volume of Takio, and Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth #1.
DOUGLAS: I was talking a couple of days ago with a friend …
Courtney Love to Pay $430,000 in Twitter Defamation Settlement
If you’ve been wondering just how much trouble Twitter can get you in, the answer may be “$430,000 worth of trouble.” That’s how much Courtney Love is expected to pay as settlement in her court case with designer Dawn Simorangkir over comments made on the 140-character service.
Simorangkir had claimed that Love ruined her business …
Apple to Lift One-Time Download Limits for iTunes Songs?
Did you know: If you purchase a song from iTunes, download it to your computer and neglect to transfer it to a compatible device before your hard drive dies in a spectacular symphony of clicking and grinding sounds, that song is gone forever.
Per Apple’s terms and conditions for the iTunes store:
“Products may be downloaded only once
…
Friday Time Sink: Ask Jeopardy! Champ Ken Jennings Anything
Social news site, Reddit, features an interesting section called Ask Me Anything (AMA) wherein people in certain fields or areas of expertise can open themselves up to questions from the rest of the Reddit community.
Well guess who recently showed up to field questions? None other than 74-time Jeopardy! champ Ken Jennings. He’s …
Emanata: How to Survive Comics Convention Season
Comic book convention season officially opens today, with the beginning of Emerald City ComiCon in Seattle. Between now and the middle of October, a whle lot of people in the American comics industry will be crisscrossing the country on a regular basis, digging through their pockets to come up with big announcements for every show, and …
Why Aren’t More Cable Shows on Hulu? Because Old People and Contracts Suck, Apparently
For those of you who think that Hulu doesn’t offer much in the way of cable programming, you can rest a little easier knowing that it’s not Hulu’s fault. Instead, according to Lauren Zalaznick, NBCUniversal’s chairman of Entertainment & Digital Networks and Integrated Media, you can blame old contracts and a lack of foresight on the …
When PR Goes Wrong: Videogame Maker Accused of Environmental Abuse
War may be hell, but it turns out that promotional stunts for videogame war aren’t exactly a cakewalk, either. When THQ released thousands of red balloons into the air to promote the company’s upcoming Homefront game, it was meant to suggest South Korean attempts to send messages of hope to North Korea, the country behind the US invasion …
Old School Meets New Technology: Digital Innovation for the Jukebox
Since the 1920s, young people everywhere have been dropping coins into music machines, giving them the power to select the tunes that will set the mood or get the party started.
The jukebox, in turn, quickly became a cultural symbol of American entertainment, and has managed to endure through the decades. In the ’70s, Sandy and Danny …
Twitter Co-Founder: We’re Too Busy to Sell
Rumors that Twitter is for sale or looking for funding are just rumors, according to co-founder Biz Stone. Google and Facebook have both been reported to be in talks to take over the company, and a recent Financial Times story had JP Morgan looking to buy 10% of Twitter stock, but Stone says that the company is too busy to think about …
The Adjustment Bureau: Losing One’s Free Will Has Never Looked So Charming
Until The Adjustment Bureau sells out – philosophically, intellectually, conceptually – it’s a compelling yarn about the wool being peeled from one’s eyes, revealing the true nature of the universe, that “adjusters” constantly tweak our destinies to ensure we arrive at our predetermined destination.
In theory, it’s a spicy …