10 Myths About Video Games

HowStuffWorks "10 Myths about Video Games"   AdventureAutoCultureEntertainmentHome & GardenMoneyScienceTechVideoShowsBlogsQuizzesGamesRandom ArticleComputerElectronics Home > Tech > Electronics > Tech Myths 10 Myths About Video Gamesby Josh Clark and Wesley Fenlon

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Clark, Josh, and Wesley Fenlon.  "10 Myths About Video Games"  04 August 2009.  HowStuffWorks.com.  07 March 2012.CiteFeedback Karima Adebibe as Lara Croft, Tomb Raider.

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Since the early days of video games, young gamers have whispered secrets on the schoolyard and spent long hours trying to make the most outrageous gaming myths come true. Some kids heard their best friend's cousin found Mew under a truck in "Pokemon"; others were utterly convinced there was a secret way to find the Triforce in "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time." Before gamers banded together on the Internet and used their collective knowledge -- and the ability to hack into games and parse their code -- to rule out the impossible, any schoolyard whisper could turn out to be the truth.

The video game world is so insular that you'd have to be a dedicated gamer to even hear certain rumors and myths -- the one surrounding a code that revives Aeris in the game "Final Fantasy 7" is a good example. Other rumors are more scandalous, like the one about a cheat code that allows players of "Tomb Raider" to defrock Lara Croft. But gaming myths extend beyond secret characters and gamer gossip. There are myths about gaming, too -- like the idea that gaming directly causes violence or that only boys play video games.

Because these ideas are funny, intriguing or just plain misguided -- and because we like debunking myths -- we now present 10 of the most common myths about video games.

  Popular ListsTop 10 Myths About AppleTop 5 Myths About Google, Inc.Top 5 Myths About Yahoo!Top 5 Myths About Microsoft5 Myths About TwitterSee All Lists » Test Your Tech SkillsWhich gadget came first?GPS Receiver QuizFact or Fiction: Apple1990s or 2000s tech?See All Quizzes» New HSW GamesStorm TrackerMemory MatrixCrab Fishing GameVolcano ExplorerCannon ChallengeSpeed MatchLost in MigrationWord BubblesColor Match HOWSTUFFWORKSAdventureAutoCultureEntertainmentHealthHome & GardenLifestyleMoneyScienceTechMORE STUFFBlogsGamesHSW ToolsRSSMapsPodcastsQuizzesNewslettersVideoOUR WEBSITESAnimal PlanetConsumer Guide AutoConsumer Guide ProductsDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Fit & HealthHSW BrazilHSW China Investigation DiscoveryOprah Winfrey NetworkPlanet GreenScience ChannelTLCDiscovery EducationStoreCUSTOMER SERVICEAdvertisingContact UsHelpCORPORATEAbout UsCareers @ DiscoveryPrivacy PolicyVisitor AgreementTAKE US WITH YOUFOLLOW US© 1998-2012 HowStuffWorks, Inc 

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Facebook No-nos Quiz

HowStuffWorks "Facebook No-nos Quiz"   AdventureAutoCultureEntertainmentHome & GardenMoneyScienceTechVideoShowsBlogsQuizzesGamesRandom ArticleComputerElectronics Home > Tech > Computer > Internet > Social Networking > Social Networking InformationFacebook No-nos Quiz

Do you have proper Facebook etiquette? There are no set-in-stone commandments to guide the social interactions that take place on Facebook, but that doesn't mean the Big Book of Faces is without generally accepted standards for how people should behave. Find out if you're a flagrant Facebook etiquette offender in this quiz!

Earn a point for every right answer! Save your score at the end of the quiz.What is the GetSmart Challenge? Test Your Tech SkillsWhich gadget came first?GPS Receiver QuizFact or Fiction: Apple1990s or 2000s tech?See All Quizzes» New HSW GamesStorm TrackerMemory MatrixCrab Fishing GameVolcano ExplorerCannon ChallengeSpeed MatchLost in MigrationWord BubblesColor Match HOWSTUFFWORKSAdventureAutoCultureEntertainmentHealthHome & GardenLifestyleMoneyScienceTechMORE STUFFBlogsGamesHSW ToolsRSSMapsPodcastsQuizzesNewslettersVideoOUR WEBSITESAnimal PlanetConsumer Guide AutoConsumer Guide ProductsDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Fit & HealthHSW BrazilHSW China Investigation DiscoveryOprah Winfrey NetworkPlanet GreenScience ChannelTLCDiscovery EducationStoreCUSTOMER SERVICEAdvertisingContact UsHelpCORPORATEAbout UsCareers @ DiscoveryPrivacy PolicyVisitor AgreementTAKE US WITH YOUFOLLOW US© 1998-2012 HowStuffWorks, Inc 

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How To: Green Your iPod

iPod Nano's and iPod Classic's eco-friendly characteristics—they're arsenic-free glass, brominated flame retardant-free, mercury-free, PVC-free—go a long way to greening electronics. With Apple constantly greening their product, the onus is now falling on users to make the most of battery life to maximize power efficiency, so NaturallySavvy is offering up our solutions for greening the energy-sucking electronics that we just can't live without.

Maximizing energy use is the top priority. The simplest thing you can do is turn the light setting to off on an iPod nano or to 50% on an iPod Classic or iTouch. Lowering the light level or turning it off altogether during the day will up your battery life significantly, reducing the number of times you have to recharge.

Associated Content also lists options for extending the life of your iPhone battery, including turning off the Wi-Fi radio and the equilizer, limiting e-mail checks, and a number of other simple energy saving tips.

Once you've reduced your energy usage, it's time to green the energy that powers your iPod. Going solar is the cleanest and cheapest?you're only shelling out cash to buy the charger?option out there, so take the plunge and invest in a solar charger.

If you're an active person, the Solio solar charger for iPods, cell phones and PDAs is a great option. It's compact, lightweight and weather resistant, and just an hour of sun will give you 40 minutes of music.

For an at-home option, Solar Style, Soldius, Coleman and many other companies offer larger solar chargers that can quickly charge your iPod.

Of course if you want to have some fun with your energy generation, try out the iYo Induction charger, a yo-yo that charges a small lithium-ion battery as you play with it. During a break from play, just plug in your iPod or iPhone to juice up your device.

Cara Smusiak writes on behalf of NaturallySavvy.com about how to live a more natural, organic and green lifestyle.

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Recycle Old Earbuds into DIY Speakers

Fact: I am murder on earbuds. I throw 'em in my messenger bag to get crushed, leave 'em on my floor to get stepped on, and ball 'em up in my pocket to get massacred. The poor little devils don't stand a chance of survival, and invariably end up battered, bruised, and disfigured. Most of the time, they pop their external foam windguards, and sometimes the plastic casings those foam dealies protect, long before their insides stop being able to pump music. So, what to do with all these deformed but functional earbuds crammed into that drawer in my closet? Make speakers!

If you too have a set of mangled 'buds that still have functional hearts of gold, try transforming them into cool, working speakers with the help of a couple items that would otherwise end up in your trash can or recycling bin. The end result might not offer a high-tech subwoofer, and you might want some real green speakers for your stereo system proper, but these little DIY solutions will give plenty of amplification for, say, hooking up to your laptop so you can hear the audio on, say, a cool online video clip of Bill Nye the Science Guy on Recycling.

If you've got a couple of cups lying around from a party, or have some extra drink receptacles that ended up in your takeout bag but never got used, just poke a couple holes in them, and thread the earbuds through like so, following the lead of resourceful designer Dimitry Zagga.

Grab a couple of sturdy-ish sheets of card stock or construction paper from your recycling bin, a couple pieces of regular clear sticky tape, and experiment with different shapes. Try rolling them into different sizes of cones, or get fancy with a pair of scissors and some off-the-cuff origami to fold them into boxes or anything you can imagine that looks cool. Since the paper is already post-consumer, you've got nothing to lose by wasting a few sheets in trial and error, so use it as an opportunity to explore what kind of acoustics you can get out of different shapes.

After you've reaped the rewards of minty-fresh breath, repurpose the container into a tiny portable speaker ala this headphones speaker project on Instructables. You'll need to be comfortable using a dremel, but hey, it's totally worth it for the indie cred.

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Google’s Siri Competitor to Called ‘Assistant’, Bell to Release the Samsung Galaxy Rugby and Sonim Bolt & Goodbye Android Market, Hello Google Play

Irina (6 hours ago)

Google’s Siri Competitor to Called ‘Assistant,’ Report Claims
In December, it was reported that Google is working on a solution that will boost the capabilities of its Voice Actions on Android-powered devices in an effort to compete with Apple’s Siri voice assistant. The service, which was previously code-named “Majel,” will launch as “Assistant”.
BGR

Bell to Release the Samsung Galaxy Rugby and Sonim XP5520 Bolt
In the next few weeks you can expect to see a couple new rugged devices appear, something that has been missing for well over a year. First to arrive will be the durable looking Sonim XP5520 Bolt, followed by the Android-powered Samsung Galaxy Rugby.
MobileSyrup

Goodbye Android Market, Hello Google Play
Google’s Android Market has undergone some tremendous changes over the last year or so. What started as just a standalone app store has quickly grown to encompass e-books, music, videos, and now Google feels like the “Android Market” moniker is getting to be too restrictive, too constraining for what they’re really trying to deliver to their users. That’s why Google is officially putting the Android Market name to rest. Starting today, all of Google’s digital media services have been rebranded to fly under a brand new banner: Google Play.
TechCrunch

9 Mobile Apps That Help You Find Cheap Gas
Gas may finally be leveling off from its nearly month-long rise, but you’re probably not reaping the benefits just yet. While we wait for teleportation apps that allow us to avoid the gas tank, we’ve rounded up nine apps to help you locate the cheapest gas prices and keep track of your mileage and maintenance.
Mashable

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Koodo Comes Out With a $50 Data Plan, Samsung Announces Galaxy Pocket & Is the Philadelphia Cell Phone Jammer a Hero or Pest?

Irina (17 hours ago)

Koodo Comes Out With a $50/Month Canada-Wide Data Plan
Not really sure when this happened, but it seems that Koodo has come out with a new plan. For $50/month you can sign yourself up for the Canada-Wide Data Plan. This gives you 1GB of data, 150 minutes, Caller ID, Voicemail and Unlimited Text & Picture messaging.
MobileSyrup

Samsung Announces Cutesy Galaxy Pocket with 2.8-inch Display, Coming ‘Later This Year’
Space will always have room for another galaxy, and your pocket should equally have room for this little piece of Android 2.3 TouchWizadry. The Galaxy Pocket has just been announced in London and will arrive in the UK “later this year,” bearing a 2.8-inch screen with a 240 x 320 (QVGA) resolution, an 800MHz processor, 3GB of expandable storage.
Engadget

SmartSync Releases New Version Of The App That Turns You Into A God
SmartSync, which has been doing good business on the iPhone app store, has released an updated version that is a big improvement on the original app. When someone calls you, SmartSync displays their latest Facebook statuses or photos against the call. Say they said they were tired. When they call you you say “Wow, sorry to hear you’re feeling tired!” even before they’ve said hello. See, suddenly you’re all-knowing.
TechCrunch

Is the Philadelphia Cell Phone Jammer a Hero or Pest?
A Philadelphia man has stirred up controversy after he frequently used a device on a public bus to create a cell phone dead zone. A reporter for NBC10 in Philadelphia recently tracked down the man, who was using a cell phone jammer on the bus to block riders’ cell phone reception. His reason — he didn’t want to listen to other people’s phone conversations. He says he turns on the illegal device whenever other passengers talk too loud and bother him.
Mashable

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TELUS to Launch New Trade-In Program, LG announces L-style Android Phones & Twitter’s App Get Updates

Irina (14 days ago)

TELUS to Launch New Trade-In Program
Most carriers in Canada have some sort of device recycling program in place. The latest was Fido with FidoTRADE, basically mimicking what Best Buy and Future Shop have in their stores. Now TELUS is rolling out their initiative called the TELUS “Trade-In Program”. TELUS has partnered with eRecyclingCorps and the premise is similar – new or existing customers can take an old, unwanted, handset or accessory and depending on its condition you’ll get a certain dollar amount.
MobileSyrup

LG announces L-style Android Phones Ahead of MWC
LG on Tuesday announced three more Android smartphones ahead of next week’s Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain. The “L-style” series will feature the Optimus L3 (3.2-inch), L5 (4-inch) and L7 (4.3-inch), three smartphones for design-conscious consumers. “Design is consistently the top or second most important factor for customers when choosing a mobile phone,” president and CEO of LG Mobile Dr. Jong-seok Park said.
BGR

Twitter’s Android and iOS App Get Updates
The official Twitter app has just received an update on iOS and Android, bringing new features to both platforms, plus an “optimized” Ice Cream Sandwich experience as seen above. The app is also currently available on Amazon’s Appstore for the Kindle Fire now, and the company says it will pop up in the Barnes & Noble Nook Store February 23rd.
Engadget

Everything You Need to Know About Wireless Spectrum
Spectrum is going to be a hot issue in the upcoming year. Freeing up spectrum is a major part of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) National Broadband Plan, and last week Congress passed a law allowing TV stations to auction their spectrum to the highest bidding wireless broadband companies.
Mashable

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Nokia Lumia 800 Dummy Devices Start Arriving at TELUS, Mobile Payment Solution LevelUp Now Seeing $1M Per Month & No quad-core Phones Until 2013 from Sony

Sony: No quad-core Phones Until 2013
Sony has no plans to launch smartphones with more powerful quad-core processors this year, a Sony Mobile Communications executive confirmed on Wednesday. Speaking with CNET Asia, Sony Mobile product marketing manager Stephen Sneeden said he believes Sony will wait until 2013 to launch smartphones powered by quad-core processors like NVIDIA’s Tegra 3.
BGR

Nokia Lumia 800 Dummy Devices Start Arriving at TELUS, Looking Very Vibrant
TELUS will be launching the very stunning looking Nokia Lumia 800 on Friday, just under 48 hours from now. This is Nokia’s second foray into Canada with a Windows Phone device, the first was the Lumia 710 with Rogers. In true form the dummy devices have started to arrive at TELUS locations across Canada.
MobileSyrup

Mobile Payment Solution LevelUp Now Seeing $1M Per Month In Transactions; Launches API
SCVNGR decided to spin-off (and subsequently focus more resources) on LevelUp, a mobile payment and rewards network, which it launched into beta in July 2011. The mobile payments networks has been growing fast, SCVNGR and LevelUp Founder Seth Priebatsch tells us, as it now counts over 100,000 users and has partnered with 1,400 merchants in Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, and Chicago.
TechCrunch

Dolphin Mobile Browser Gets Voice-Control Feature for Android
Dolphin Browser for mobile devices received a voice-control feature on Wednesday for Android users, allowing them to search the Web with just their voices. The new feature — called Dolphin Sonar — allows you to open new tabs by speaking to the browser, and it can even search within sites. For example, saying “Facebook Justin Bieber” will display his Facebook profile.
Mashable

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Samsung Sells 2 Million Galaxy Notes, HTC Sees Negative Smartphone Sales Trend Reversing & New Mobile Payment System Coming From Retailers

Irina (5 days ago)

HTC Sees Negative Smartphone Sales Trend Reversing Thanks to HTC One Phones
HTC is confident the company’s new One series smartphones will rescue the company from slowing sales, propelling it to the No.5 smartphone vendor spot and beyond. “We are confident this year will be … a much better year,” HTC’s chief of European operations Florian Seiche said to Reuters. “Even with the Q1 not being the ideal fast start right out of the gate in January, which of course we would have preferred, even with that we are very confident.”
BGR

Samsung Sells 2 Million Galaxy Notes, Aiming for 10 Million This Year
According to Hankil Yoon (the same one who undermined Samsung’s performance in the tablet space), the company has sold two million Galaxy Note devices since their launch in October, and are aiming for 10 million by the end of 2012. With the launch of the Galaxy Note 10.1 and the recent expansion of the 5.3-inch handset into North America, this may not be such a difficult feat.
MobileSyrup

New Mobile Payment System Coming From Retailers
A new mobile phone payment system – to compete with Google Wallet and ISIS – is being built by a group of retailers that inclues Target and Wal-Mart. The group also includes drugstores, vending companies and fast-food restaurants. It’s not clear if the system would use NFC, and if so, whether carriers and/or Google would permit the system to run on their NFC phones.
Phone Scoop

How a Mobile Game Dominated the App Store Without Any Press
Draw Something, a Pictionary-like game for iOS and Android, had 1 million downloads before it had a single search result in Google News. “There was nothing written about us,” says Dan Porter, the CEO of a company called OMGPOP that created the app. “[Reporters] weren’t interested. I tried, but I couldn’t even get their attention.”
Mashable

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HTC One S Launching With Bell, TELUS, Virgin and Fido, Huawei Announces The Ascend D & HTC One X Offers LTE

HTC One S Launching With Bell, TELUS, Virgin and Fido
Looks like Rogers might have an exclusive on the HTC One X, but the HTC S will be hitting all other carriers. Quick reminder of the One S specs, OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with Sense 4.0, 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display (960×540), 1GB RAM.
MobileSyrup

Huawei Officially Announces The ICS-Powered Ascend D Quad Smartphone
Huawei wants to market Ascend D as the “world’s fastest smartphone,” which is a tough thing to calculate but probably has something to do with its Huawei K3V2 quad-core 1.2GHz processor and the fact that Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is along for the ride. Past that, you’ll also find a 4.5-inch 720p display with a 32-bit true color graphic processor and 330ppi.
TechCrunch

Nokia Asha Series 40 Lineup Expands with 202, 203 and 302
The Nokia Asha Series 40 phones were introduced at Nokia World last fall and today it expands by a few models, with the 202, 203 and 302. The 202 model is designed for “easy swap” SIM changes without powering off the phone, while the 203 is a single SIM model. Both expand the lower end line with access to free games (Bejeweled, Need for Speed, Tetris, Sims Medieval) and Nokia Life.
Engadget

HTC One X Offers LTE, Four Cores, HD Display, and Sense 4.0
HTC today announced its flagship smartphone for 2012, the One X. The One X runs Android 4.0 / Sense 4.0 and is powered by the Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor, with each core running at 1.5GHz. The One X embodies HTC’s overall design and feature philosophy moving forward.
Phone Scoop

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Samsung’s Galaxy S II Celebrates 20 Million Sold, LG Unveils Optimus 3D Max Android Phone & Video Accounts For Half Of All Mobile Traffic

Irina (13 days ago)

Samsung’s Galaxy S II Celebrates 20 Million Sold, Just in Time for MWC
After crossing the 10 million units moved threshold back in September, Samsung has joyously announced ahead of MWC 2012 that its Galaxy S II family of phones has sold 20 million since launching in April. According to Samsung, taking just ten months to hit the mark puts it ahead of the original Galaxy S (hovering around 22 million sold) by seven months.
Engadget

LG Unveils Optimus 3D Max Android Phone Ahead of MWC
LG continues to announce an array of new smartphones ahead of next week’s Mobile World Congress trade show. On Wednesday, the company unveiled its follow up to the original Optimus 3D, the Optimus 3D Max. The handset is equipped with a 1.2GHz dual-core TI OMAP4430 processor beneath a 4.3-inch 3D WVGA display that is protected by Corning’s second-generation Gorilla Glass.
BGR

Video Accounts For Half Of All Mobile Traffic; Android Biggest For Mobile Ads
Mobile video now accounts for half of all mobile traffic; and on some networks, that number is as high as 69 percent — a testament to the rise of smartphones and tablets as the mobile devices of choice for consumers, and their growing interest in using these devices to do a lot more than just make phone calls.
TechCrunch

Why One Startup Wants Your Mobile Carrier to Act Like Your Bank
Google, PayPal and major credit companies are all making land-grabs for the emerging mobile payments industry. Mobile carriers — used to controlling profits made from mobile phones — want to avoid being squeezed out. Now, thanks to a startup called BOKU, there’s a mobile payment solution that could satisfy all sides. The product, BOKU Accounts, works like a debit card issued by your mobile carrier instead of your bank.
Mashable

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Rogers Nokia Lumia 900 Launching in April, HTC Made Some Noise At MWC & Intel Announces New Processors and Partnerships

Irina (8 days ago)

Rogers Nokia Lumia 900 Launching in April
Want even more Nokia Lumia 900 news? Checking out the Nokia Mobile World Congress 2012 press conference keynote gives a bit more insight into when the LTE Windows Phone device will launch. Rogers said sometime “this Spring”, but Nokia’s CEO Stephen Elop, who’s also a Canadian, narrows down the date.
MobileSyrup

Quietly Brilliant, But HTC Sure Made Some Noise At MWC
Most notably, we have the freshly announced One series which comprises three different phones: the One X, One S, and One V. (More on those later, of course.) HTC has already stated that it would be focusing on more hero devices, rather than pushing out experimental failures like the HTC Status.
TechCrunch

Intel Announces New Processors and Partnerships
Intel on Monday detailed a number new products and partnerships during the company’s Mobile World Congress press event. “We are very pleased to add new, important customers and capabilities to our phone offerings today. We remain focused on delivering exciting new features and outstanding performance to smartphone customers around the world.” In addition to Intel’s Atom Z2460 “Medfield” processor, the company announced the Atom Z2580 CPU that will feature an advanced multi-mode LTE/3G/2G solution and will double the performance of the Z2640.
BGR

Carrier IQ to Let Consumers See Analytics Data
Carrier IQ today announced an extension of its IQ Care service that will ultimately allow consumers to gain better insight into their own usage and device habits. Technically, the revised version of IQ Care is being made so that wireless network operators can offer the analytical insight to wireless customers through their online account tools. The service will become available in the second quarter of 2012.
Phone Scoop

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Apple Acquires Chomp, ZTE to Debut Eight New Smartphones at MWC & Motorola Droid X Gets Massive Bug Fix Update

Texas Instruments Shows Off Dual-Core OMAP 5 SoC, Wipes the Floor with Tegra 3
The Tegra 3 has taken a bit of a hit in recent days as it was negatively compared to the upcoming dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 chipset, and now it’s been paired up with Texas Instrument’s OMAP 5 SoC, to no less of a proverbial slaughter. OMAP 5 is based on Cortex’s new A15 reference design, and as much there are many, many improvements in both speed and power efficiency over previous Cortex A9 chips.
MobileSyrup

Motorola Droid X Gets Massive Bug Fix Update
Motorola Droid X owners may have thought that Verizon had forgotten about them. Not the case at all. Today, the carrier has begun rolling out a massive bug fix update for its aging 3G smartphone that will be bring a number of fixes and enhancements along with it. Exciting stuff, especially when you consider the fact that the Droid X came out in July of 2010.
GottaBeMobile

Apple Acquires Chomp; App Store Search And Discovery To Be Completely Revamped
With the countdown underway to 25 billion total app downloads, there’s no disputing the success of Apple’s App Store. We live in a world of hyperbole, but Apple’s entry into this space really has changed the entire mobile world. But the App Store is far from perfect. And with its immense scale, a few problems have been revealed. The biggest one is app discovery. Right now, it’s hard and getting harder by the day. The strong get stronger while new apps often have trouble breaking in. But with an acquisition that Apple has just made, they hope to change that. Apple has bought the app search and discovery platform Chomp.
TechCrunch

ZTE to Debut Eight New Smartphones at MWC
ZTE is looking to make a big splash at next week’s Mobile World Congress, bringing eight new smartphones powered by Android and Windows Phone to the event. The company had previously announced three Android smartphones, the Mimosa X, PF200 and N910. The Mimosa X comes equipped with a NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor, a 4.3-inch qHD display, Ice Cream Sandwich, 4GB of internal storage, a microSD slot, a front facing camera and a 5-megapixel rear camera.
BGR

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WIND Mobile Changing Rate Plans and Add-ons, Motorola Offers Up to $200 for Old Phones & Twitter Prepping to Roll Ads in Android and iOS Apps

Irina (7 days ago)

WIND Mobile Changing Rate Plans and Add-ons March 1st, Here Are the Details
The wind is shifting over at WIND Mobile. Rate plan changes are in the works and here’s the complete details for you. Axed are the names of their current “Clever”, “Smart”, “Brilliant” and “Genius” talk/text/data plans, and actually so will 2 of their plans. Effective March 1st you’ll only see what will be called the “WIND25? and the “WIND40? plan, both $25/month and $40/month respectively.
MobileSyrup

Motorola Offers Up to $200 for Old Phones in Android Buy-Back Program
Motorola Mobility is offering up to $200 to consumers who trade in their “business-ready” phones for a new Android model. The company, which is in the process of being bought by Google for $12.5 billion, is offering the trade-in deals to owners of 16 devices, including Droid Razr Maxx, Droid 4, Atrix and Atrix 2 and Titanium.
Mashable

Twitter Prepping to Roll Ads in Android and iOS Apps
Twitter today announced that it is bringing promoted tweets (which are, in effect, advertisements) to the mobile Android and iOS Twitter apps. Twitter explains, “In the coming weeks, we’ll begin introducing Promoted Tweets in the timeline on these mobile apps.
Phone Scoop

Google Ventures And Others Put $5M In Enterprise Mobile Security Company Duo
Enterprise mobile security company Duo Security has raised $5 million from Google Ventures, True Ventures, and Resonant Venture Partners. This brings the startup’s total funding to $6 million. Duo Security essentially provides a two-factor authentication service to companies who want to protect employee phones, with not just one but two secure log-ins.
TechCrunch

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Virgin Offering $5/Month Voicemail and Call Display, Key Lime Pie Tipped to Be Next Flavour of Android & Carrier SingTel Buys Amobee

Irina (2 days ago)

Virgin Also Offering $5/Month Voicemail and Call Display on Select Plans
Virgin has a new promo, just like Bell and TELUS, that offers up Caller ID and Voicemail for $5/month. This is an “exclusive limited time offer” and is only available those who sign up for the my Buddies 60 and my Buddies 65 plan.
MobileSyrup

Key Lime Pie Tipped to Be Next Flavour of Android
Jelly Bean hasn’t even been announced yet, but Google is set to turn to one of Florida’s finest desserts for the codename of the version of its Android operating system after next, possibly Android 6.0. As the software giant has been sticking to both sweets and ranging them alphabetically, it seems as if it has plumped for Key Lime Pie.
Pocket-lint

Top 10 Most Amazing iPhone Puzzle Games
Since the days of Tetris on the original Game Boy, puzzle games and handheld devices have gone hand in hand. With the App Store encouraging creative developers to come up with their own ideas for addicting brain-teasers, there are plenty of quality puzzle games out there for the iPhone and iPad. But these puzzlers are the cream of the crop.
Mashable

More Mobile Ad Consolidation: Carrier SingTel Buys Amobee For $321 Million
The mobile ad market is projected to bring in revenues of $2.6 billion this year, and while that is only a small fraction of the wider opportunity in digital advertising, the space — fueled by the smartphone boom — is only going to get bigger, and that is attracting those looking for an early foothold. Today saw another example of that coming into shape: pan-Asian carrier SingTel today announced it would buy California-based Amobee to expand its own mobile advertising business, in a deal with $321 million.
TechCrunch

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Where do bullets go when guns are fired straight up into the air?

The saying "What goes up must come down" is an appropriate starting point. If you fire a gun into the air, the bullet will travel up to a mile high (depending on the angle of the shot and the power of the gun). Once it reaches its apogee, the bullet will fall. Air resistance limits its speed, but bullets are designed to be fairly aerodynamic, so the speed is still quite lethal if the bullet happens to hit someone. In rural areas, the chance of hitting someone is remote because the number of people is low. In crowded cities, however, the probability rises dramatically, and people get killed quite often by stray bullets. Most major cities have laws in place to try to keep people from shooting guns into the air in celebration.

Gun Image Gallery

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What is Google Wallet?

Be prepared -- Google is getting ready to pick your pocket. Well, not literally. The company is hoping to convince you to trade in your blasé billfold for a digital counterpart called Google Wallet.

The Wallet concept banks on a couple of spreading technologies including smartphones and near-field communication (NFC). NFC is a short-range wireless technology that lends your smartphone all sorts of new capabilities.

For instance, you can use an NFC-enabled phone to pay for things, from parking meters and pet supplies to sandwiches and much more. Visit a merchant who's equipped with an NFC checkout system, and with your NFC smartphone, complete what's called a contactless payment. Tap or wave your phone near the NFC terminal, enter your PIN (personal identification number) and you're done. You don't even need a paper receipt because the store can send an electronic copy directly to your e-mail account.

To get started, you download the Wallet app to your smartphone. Only a few phones (such as Sprint's Nexus 4G) have NFC as of this writing, but by 2014, some experts expect about half of smartphones to ship with NFC chips [source: Technorati].

Then you can set up Wallet with your credit cards, gift cards, loyalty cards and more so you'll have the option to pay with whatever source you choose. Of course, to use Wallet at all, you need to find stores that actually have the equipment to read the NFC chip in your phone.

Google anticipated this infrastructure problem. Rather than build a proprietary network of terminals, the company made Wallet compatible with MasterCard's PayPass system, which is already available at around 150,000 locations [source: Google]. Major chain stores such as Walgreen's, Subway, Macy's and many others are already on board with the Wallet concept and will soon have NFC readers.

Wallet works online, too. You can basically use the app to speed through checkout at sites all over the Web.

Quick, painless payments are only one component of Google Wallet. On the next page, you'll discover Google's ultimate plan: to totally replace your analog leather wallet (perhaps to the great relief of cows everywhere).

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Watch the Video: How the PlayStation 3 Works

games & gear: video of the day

Game on: learn how the Playstation III works in this video from HowStuffWorks.

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Top 5 Survival Signals

HowStuffWorks "How Survival Signals Work"   AdventureAutoCultureEntertainmentHome & GardenMoneyScienceTechVideoShowsBlogsQuizzesGamesRandom ArticleOutdoor ActivitiesSurvivalDestinations Home > Adventure > Survival > Gear Top 5 Survival Signalsby Charles W. Bryant

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Bryant, Charles W..  "Top 5 Survival Signals"  05 October 2009.  HowStuffWorks.com.  06 March 2012.CiteFeedback This kind of scenario will make you wish you knew some survival signals.

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It's cold and dark. Your car is upside down in a snow-covered ditch and you're miles away from the nearest house. Things aren't looking good. In this kind of scenario, you're going to need to depend on your own strength and good sense to survive through the night and until you can get rescued. Knowing some basic survival skills is a good start, as is having a well-stocked emergency kit in your car's trunk. These things will help you live, but getting rescued means you'll need to get the attention of someone else. And when you're "miles from nowhere," it's not as easy as getting a cell phone signal or sending an e-mail that says "HELP." You'll need to be acquainted with some survival signaling techniques. Lucky for you, the following pages are chock full of them, so click forward if you want to survive.

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