A security researcher has published working exploit code that allows attackers to surreptitiously turn legitimate apps running on Google's Android mobile operating system into malicious trojans. Around the same time, Google said it released a patch that helps protect users from abuse.
As previously reported, the weakness involves the way legitimate Android applications are cryptographically signed to ensure they haven't been modified by parties other than the trusted developer. Researchers at security startup Bluebox provided high-level details of the vulnerability last week, but omitted technical details most people would need to reproduce the attack. That didn't stop developers of CyanogenMod, an alternative Android firmware version, from piecing together the available details into this bug report that identifies the conditions necessary for exploiting the vulnerability. The report also incorporates the fix from Google into the CyanogenMod code.
Working from that description, Pau Oliva Fora, senior mobile security engineer at viaForensics, published proof-of-concept code that allows anyone with a moderate level of skill to modify an existing Android app without changing the cryptographic signature that's supposed to certify it hasn't been tampered with. The 32-line exploit demonstrates the ease in exploiting the vulnerability and the consequences the flaw might have for people who install and update apps from third-party sources.
Apple has not been shy about going after competitors in court in recent years, and those battles have not been limited to the giant patent lawsuits with Samsung that have garnered worldwide attention. In a federal trademark lawsuit set in Oakland, the company sued Amazon over its use of the phrase "App Store for Amazon," saying it infringes on the trademark for Apple's App Store.
Amazon responded in court papers, arguing that the words "app" and "store" are both generic phrases that can't be trademarked.
Now, after more than two years of litigation, Apple has dropped its case. There was no settlement; Apple just walked away before a trial. It had to give Amazon a "covenant not to sue" over the issue, or else Amazon would have continued with its counterclaims seeking to knock out Apple's trademark.
NEW YORK—Following a dismal second quarter in which the company’s stock price plummeted more than 30 percent, CEO Walter Kempman stunned shareholders Tuesday by announcing that he will resign his leadership of the New York–based entertai...
While the obscure “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” game may be known to some gamers—gamers savvy to James Rolfe videos anyway—the “Flesh Gordon” game never saw the light of day. If it were released, it would’ve been an erotic maze-running romp though I assume it would’ve suffered the same fate as its released colleague, which suffered from poor sales due to being a “under the counter” title; banned from most stores. Also, I’d like to point out that if it had been released, “Flesh Gordon” would not have been the “first adult video game:” it would’ve been beat by “Custard’s Revenge” two months prior.
Oh hey, I just noticed that “stock label” that the AVGN complains about in the linked video is actually the company logo for Wizard Games, which is a wizard doing stuff.
An artist's fascination with superheroes didn't lead him to recognize a first-edition copy of Avengers #1, which he tore up to paste onto a chicken-wire frame.
Level 5 CEO Akihiro Hino has hinted at a potential localized Western release of Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney during last week's Japan Expo in France.
While the studio has yet to make an official announcement of a Western release for the title, Hino stated to those attending the event that "something is in the works, but I can't talk about it today. Please be patient." The game saw its Japan release nine months ago.
The 3DS puzzle game received 35 out of 40 points from Famitsu magazine when it released in Japan late last November. We have contacted Level 5 for additional comment and will update when further information is made available.
"If there has ever been a logo equivalent to a boob job and pumping collagen into lips, this is it."
Let's Play. Not.
Established in 1919, Radioshack is a "national retailer of innovative mobile technology products and services, as well as products related to personal and home technology and power supply needs." What that means is that it has kind of a double personality: it will sell popular consumer electronic products like Beats headphones and camcorders and other typical stuff but it will also sell the most obscure adapter and cable so that you can connect your blender to your Google Glass. Over 34,000 employees work across a retail network that includes approximately 4,700 company-operated stores in the United States and Mexico. The last time we talked about Radio Shack here was for their "The Shack" campaign, which has come and gone. Its most recent brand message, "Radioshack: Let's Play" was introduced this March with the purpose of establishing the retailer as "a neighborhood technology playground." With these two ideas in place, Radioshack has opened a concept store in New York to showcase said playground-ness and introduce a new logo. No design credit given, but the creative agency of record is Grey.
Logo detail.
"I am very excited about this store, which brings the essence of our new 'RadioShack: Let's Play' branding to the heart of Manhattan, and I am also thrilled about the support and very positive reactions of our neighbors," said Joe Magnacca, chief executive officer of RadioShack Corporation. "Our goal at RadioShack is to make our iconic brand relevant to new segments of the consumer market, while reinforcing our commitment to the strong and loyal base of customers who have known RadioShack for many years. We know that all of these consumers like technology when it makes their lives simpler, but they love technology when it makes their lives fun."
New logo pops up at the beginning of this product review.PR Newswire caption: "The new RadioShack concept store at 2268 Broadway in New York showcases the retailer's new branding, as well as numerous innovations that enable shoppers to easily find the products they need." My caption: This is the block where retailers with circles in their logo need to be.PR Newswire caption: "RadioShack's new concept store at 2268 Broadway in New York City has newly configured displays highlighting in-demand brands like Apple, HTC and Samsung, and carriers like AT&T and Verizon". My caption: If Macy's and an Apple store had a baby store it would look like this.PR Newswire caption: "RadioShack's new concept store at 2268 Broadway in New York City includes innovative fixtures such as this Speaker Wall that allows customers to listen to different models of audio equipment using music from their own Bluetooth-enabled devices." My caption: The logo on that leather loincloth is disturbing.Facebook ad — the one moment where the brand actually looks cool. Save for the obvious retouching on the headphones.
The previous logo is a retail classic: easy to spot, easy to remember, and simply executed with the thickness of the circle's stroke matching the thickness of the "R"’s serifs. Not the most terribly exciting logo but it represented the company quite well. The new logo completely crushes the subtleties of the old one with an extra bold, sans serif "R" and a much thicker stroke on the circle. If there has ever been a logo equivalent to a boob job and pumping collagen into lips, this is it. To be perfectly honest though there is nothing structurally wrong with the new logo — it's an "R" in a circle, you can't really screw that up — it's just that evolution-wise it's a pretty clumsy step.
The one thing that does baffle me is the color palette. At first I thought the light red and shit brown were the problem of a CMYK file being put up for download. But, nope, the website, in all its RGB glory, uses the light red and shit brown color palette. It seems like a very strange choice to make deliberately. As far as the new stores, they look promising but still operate within that cheap shopping-mall-vibe that one associates with Radioshack. Overall, I will grant that the new logo and stores are more on cue for a younger, hipper crowd that has no associations with the Radioshack of yore and just wants to get the latest cool entertainment gadget without paying Apple-like prices, but… seriously, shit brown?
I don’t know how far through Deadpool I got. I do know I don’t much care. And it seems fairly evident the game doesn’t care either. I’ve hit a bug, the thought of replaying the level through to see if it doesn’t happen again is too much, and so we’ll call it a day.
Deadpool is an odd character. He exists to spoof the world of Marvel, from within the world of Marvel – an invulnerable arsehole whom none of the other superheroes like, but all too often are stuck with. Complete with multiple personalities all existing concurrently in his head, his primary purpose is to offer meta-commentary on the comics scene, while allowing it to revel in its inherent violence and misogyny. As fast as Marvel eats at the Deadpool cake, there it remains in full on the plate before them.
This game incarnation sees developers High Moon attempting to do the same. With the license in their laps, Deadpool sets out to be a meta-commentary on third-person action gaming, while making absolutely no efforts to do anything vaguely interesting with the genre.
It happens every stinking time there’s a spoofing game. “Ha ha, look how we’re doing that annoying thing that’s annoying in games, and saying that it’s annoying!” It seems so many developers labour under the belief that Annoying + Observation Of Annoyance = Hilarity. However, Annoying being the infinite mass it is, anything added to it can only ever equal Annoying. So when Deadpool shouts how annoyed he is that the game is taking place in dreary sewers, that’s the precise moment when it should move on – not a queue for another tedious trawl of levels through the same. (Followed by dank corridors, followed by other dank corridors, followed by more dank corridors.)
It’s tough to balance a character like Deadpool. He’s a dick, so reading about him in comics we at least get a sense of detachment. Actually playing as him brings it a little closer, and could have been handled with a little more finesse. In either direction, really – either allowing the character to face some consequences for his behaviour, or even better, go all-out balls-out disgusting with it, and have him be so morally reprehensible that it becomes grotesquely funny. Instead, here you’re just playing as a cretin who says and does stuff you’ll likely not want to have said or done.
Yes, Deadpool’s a sexist jerk, but do I really need to watch him play “I crush your head” with the breasts of a woman he’s just killed by impaling her on rebar, immediately before referring to her as “hot tits”? It’s worthless. You could go down the line of pointing out that this is objectifying the body of a mutilated woman (following on from half a dozen other comments about her breasts when she was alive), but they have the get-out-of-jail that he’s “meant to be an arsehole”.
The theme continues, with endless close-ups on chests, comments about women’s figures – often disparagingly referring to them as “mannish” and the like – and puerile fantasies of women in bikinis with meticulous physics bouncing their ample bosoms. When Deadpool attempts to ‘motorboat’ such a figure, does it all become fine because it turns out to be a delusion and it’s Cable’s chest he’s waggling his face within? Honestly, the game’s of so little interest I’m finding it hard to care.
The game was listed as console only for most of its development, with a PC version only tacked on right toward the end. Which appears to be the case. Setting up the controls for mouse/keyboard is a farcical mess, requiring you pick letters to assign from a list, rather than just tapping them. Want E or F for Use? Tough. It defaults to, er, U, and you can have R.
Once you’re playing you’ll realise that there’s really no choice but plugging in a 360 controller, as there has been no effort to adjust things to play without one. You’re clearly meant to be struggling with the deliberately odd targeting anyway, the mouse removing an element of how it’s meant to be played.
Oh, and just to confirm that, during the tutorial Deadpool is supposed to be confused with learning the controls. Looking for help amongst his personalities, one responds that he can’t help because, “I only play PC games.” Smooth.
The game itself is clippy and buggy. Deadpool grips to doorways like they’re magnetic, while invisible walls in front of corridors and paths cause you to pop madly about the screen. The mission I reached had me clearing out yet another dull arena of its spawning identi-enemies, so when one of the bigger bads got stuck behind a wall the game wouldn’t let me kill it, nor move on. And I’d yet to experience anything to give me any motivation to care about that.
But it’s not a terrible third-person action game. It’s a mediocre one. Your ability pool grows as you spend XP on it, letting you increase your range of weapons and skills, and indeed combos. It mixes ranged and melee combat pretty neatly, which at least provides a glimmer of variation in its woefully repetitive scenes. Bug free, probably on a console, I can see that someone could plough their way through it without wanting to sever off an arm. But when the issues do come in, there’s just nothing there mechanically to inspire you to get past it. And there’s plenty there aesthetically to ensure you don’t want to.
Jokes often wildly miss. Very early on the game suddenly goes to a weird facsimile of 8-bit gaming because Deadpool spent too much budget on the explosions in the previous level. For a few seconds. And then you’re running around dreary sewers again. It comes and goes without meaning, and doesn’t do anything with the idea while it’s briefly there. Let alone the tangling confusion of the game’s developers not being able to control what the central character does in the world. Oh, and while we’re pointing out issues, how about the one where we’re playing an invulnerable character who can survive having his own head chopped off in a cutscene, who somehow runs out of health and dies when we’re in control?
What should be the best feature – the direct interaction between the protagonist and the voice of the developers he’s blackmailing into making the game about him – is disappointingly delivered. A great deal has gone into excellently motion capturing Deadpool’s movement, dances, even singing, but the gags they’re supplying aren’t particularly funny, and perhaps more importantly when trying to get all meta-meta, aren’t at all clever or interesting. In the end it doesn’t reach higher than, “Oh, the character is talking to the developer, that’s a nice idea.” There are moments here and there – a hand-made cutscene using dolls and cotton wool is briefly fun, if not actually funny – but for the most part, for all its puff, you’re just kicking baddies in a grey room.
And oddly, that’s Deadpool’s main problem. It’s unpleasantly foul, while not being interestingly offensive. It’s not especially funny, although isn’t knuckle-chewingly unfunny. It has a bunch of interesting ideas, even if it does very little with them. Ultimately, the issue with Deadpool is that it’s a bit of a dull action game, no matter the hits and misses going on around it. And in a universe that’s now as much as 30% action games, you have to be better than dull. What’s unforgivable, however, is your game’s central character pointing out that it’s dull as you play.
Amazon has just announced the creation of its own comic book publishing imprint, and it's put together some big names to help it make a splash: it's debuting with a comic series based on a property by Neal Stephenson, and later this year it'll be adapting works by George R.R. Martin. Amazon's new imprint, Jet City Comics, is launching today with the first issue of Symposium, a series set in the "Foreworld" realm that Stephenson in part created. In November, Jet City will publish an adaptation one of the Game of Thrones creator's stories, Meathouse Man, and in 2014 will serialize a graphic novel adaptation of the dystopian hit Wool by Hugh Howey.
If something like an Audubon Society existed for fried chicken—devoted to observing fried chicken, reporting sightings of fried chicken to friends, and protecting fried chicken's natural habitats—I would strongly consider membership, and I'm sure many of you would, too. Sadly, there is no such thing, but when I saw the following press release from Kenny and Zuke's, my eye couldn't help but catch this:
Buttermilk chicken, fried in duck fat, mashed potatoes and gravy...something about greens...
Click below for the full menu. See you there, Wednesday at 5:30pm.
While riding down the road, Utah motorcyclist Bossaucey noticed a moving SUV with a coffee mug on its bumper. Not only did he grab it and return it to the SUV’s surprised driver but he captured it all on a cool POV video.
In the case known as Jewel v. NSA, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has charged that a number of AT&T customers’ constitutional rights were violated under the domestic surveillance program authorized during the days of the Bush Administration. The EFF initially filed the case on behalf of Carolyn Jewel and other plaintiffs back in 2008, so it long predates the recent disclosures by former NSA employee Edward Snowden. Jewel, the lead plaintiff, is a romance novelist who lives in Petaluma, California, north of San Francisco.
"Stuff doesn't sell until someone makes one that sells, and no amount of data can reveal what new thing is going to sell. The metrics and data guys, and the publishing guys will never come up with the next big thing."
Nerval's Lobster writes "In the fall of 2014, 20 promising video game developers will begin a yearlong (and free) program at the University of Texas at Austin, where they will study under some of the gaming industry's most successful executives. 'The idea is to get the best of the best of the best, run them through a Navy Seals boot camp of sorts and not force them to worry about "how do I pay the rent and buy groceries,"' said program leader Warren Spector, who is responsible for creating well-known games such as Deus Ex. 'Fingers crossed, when we start delivering graduates who can contribute in major ways to the development of future games, that philanthropy will continue.' In a wide-ranging interview, Spector also talked about how his future students will be graduating into an industry in which 'every business model is broken, which is either terrifying or an opportunity depending on how you look at it.' Focus groups, analysis of historical trends, and aggregated game review scores may be comforting to number crunchers, but the majority of game projects still end up as commercial failures. Spector ultimately believes the people who actually make the games are going to make better decisions than the number crunchers. 'We've got to be looking forward and any time you start bringing data into it, you're not," Spector said. "I pitched a Lego construction game in 1989, and guess what: Minecraft is basically a Lego construction game. But at the time I was told "no, that won't work." I pitched a western game and the response was "westerns don't sell." And then Red Dead Redemption came out. Stuff doesn't sell until someone makes one that sells, and no amount of data can reveal what new thing is going to sell. The metrics and data guys, and the publishing guys will never come up with the next big thing.'""
Case in point—AppleInsider is reporting new details about the "iOS in the Car" feature that was teased (but not discussed in detail) at WWDC. We knew that iOS 7-equipped devices would be able to display maps, messages, and song information on compatible cars' dashboard screens, and the leaked iOS 7 screenshot above implies that video will be streamable over the same AirPlay protocol used to stream video to the Apple TV. More conventional video-over-USB connections are also apparently supported, but the screenshot indicates that auto makers interested in the feature will also be able to integrate it by putting Wi-Fi adapters in their cars.
iOS in the Car is an extension of sorts to the current "Siri Eyes Free" feature, which allows drivers of compatible cars to talk to Siri after pressing a button embedded in the steering wheel. iOS in the Car will also be hands-free, and drivers will communicate with it primarily through Siri rather than by their iOS device touchscreen or the car's buttons.
I am at a coffee shop writing this where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee where is my coffee
Tile is an iOS app that syncs with small tags that you can attach to important belongings like keys, laptops, purses, wallets, to help you find them when they’ve been misplaced. With the app, users can track if they’re getting closer or further away from the tile if they’re within a 50-150 foot range and can also set off an audible alert to help find the lost item. Tile also saves the last GPS location of tiles, so if you leave your wallet at a restaurant you won’t waste time tearing apart the laundry basket, couch cushions, or car seat. Tiles are currently available for pre-order, and are expected to ship in late 2013 and early 2014.
Kroger Co. said Tuesday it is buying Harris Teeter Supermarkets in a $2.4 billion deal, which will increase by three the number of states it operates in to 34.
Dropbox wants to provide the cloud backbone for all types of mobile apps and websites. At its first ever developer conference today, the company revealed a new service that takes Dropbox away from just files and folders. With a new API, the company is offering developers of mobile apps a platform that can sync real data — like contacts, to-dos, game saves, and more — with the cloud and across devices.
If it doesn't sound revelatory, it's because developers have been effectively hacking in this sort of functionality with Dropbox for quite some time. Apps like password manager 1Password use a file manually synced with your Dropbox folder to keep its dekstop app and mobile apps all on the same page. With the API announced today, such syncing will be much easier to implement and presumably more reliable. Because of this, we will likely see cloud syncing in more apps going forward (hopefully a future where you don't lose game saves every time you get a new Android phone isn't so far off).
Dropbox is hardly the first to offer cloud services through an API for developers. Microsoft has been courting iOS developers with its Azure services, for example. But Dropbox is well-known, and since developers have already been trying to hack in this functionality the new API should be very welcome.
Following months of delays, the public will finally have access to the Secret Service's records on Aaron Swartz, the activist and hacker who tragically committed suicide amid a lawsuit regarding bulk downloads from the JSTOR academic database. The Secret Service has fought to withhold the files about Swartz, denying a Freedom of Information Act request from Wired's Kevin Poulsen by citing sensitive information regarding ongoing proceedings, despite the case being dismissed following Swartz's death.
The academic articles downloaded from the JSTOR database where all within the public domain yet remained locked behind a paywall. Swartz created a program to save these articles in bulk with plans to release these documents for free, thus prompting the Secret Service investigation and subsequent lawsuit. Two days prior to his suicide, JSTOR implemented a program offering free but limited public access to its databases.
No records about Swartz have been released yet, with the defense blaming the delays on the large number of related files. But the documents will certainly be thorough, as the Justice Department has reportedly "exercised diligence in processing the these records," resulting in the uncovering of thousands of additional documents located outside the agency's headquarters.
District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered the government to start releasing files that have already been processed and has set a deadline of August 5 for a timetable for the release of the remaining documents.
Beer may seem like a man's game, but one Sacramento woman is proving them wrong: Annie Johnson, a California homebrewer, just took home an award for "Homebrewer of the Year," "Best in Category," and "Best in Show" for her light lager.
The new Cover Oregon spots start airing on your telly-vision today, but they've already made their rounds on the internet. The spots are part of a multimillion dollar state ad campaign to raise awareness for Oregon's new health marketplace—Cover Oregon is the new state facility/agency that allows people to find plans and benefits.
Here's the first one, directed by Scott Coffey. Matt Sheehy of the band Lost Lander sings this song, "Long Live Oregonians," written by Eric D. Johnson of Fruit Bats. (That's Sheehy's Lost Lander bandmate Sarah Fennell joining him on vocals.) This song is about as good as a commercial jingle can get, and I think the spot is beautiful and even funny.
Here's Laura Gibson's contribution, which is even more adorable. Featuring a bunch of kids and members of the Portland Cello Project, this one seems geared towards children and families. The campaign also includes radio spots with music from Lifesavas, Vikesh Kapoor, Willy Vlautin, and Dave Depper.
Your opinions about Obamacare aside, what do you think of the ads? The Washington Post calls them "twee" and "seriously could have been pulled straight out of Portlandia." While I think they meant it derogatorily, I think "twee" is a fantastic word to describe them. They're pretty lovable. They're cute. They're catchy. You can watch them more than once without wanting to mash the screen. And they put two of Portland's best local musicians on the TV, which is a great thing.
"After a good bit of 3D modelling, the Doctor’s robotic wife was ready for printing."
Yes, that’s exactly what you think it is. A Transformer. That transforms into the TARDIS.
This masterpiece of pop culture is the work of [Nonnef] over on Instructables. After the inspiration to create this work of art struck, [Nonnef] started modeling this Transformer and TARDIS in clay to make everything fit together just right. After a good bit of 3D modelling, the Doctor’s robotic wife was ready for printing.
If you’re going to print one of these for yourself, be prepared for a very long print. [Nonnef] says the latest version took about 30 hours on his RepRap with a .35 mm nozzle. In the end nearly the entire Transformer came directly from a 3D printer, the only additional parts needed being a pen spring and a small screw. Paint is, of course, optional.
Holy insanely detailed comic book wedding, Batman! We cannot believe the amount of detail that was put into this Batgirl and Nightwing-themed wedding. Their photo booth was a GOTHAM MUG SHOT!
The biggest, most dynamic and most diverse open world ever created, Grand Theft Auto V blends storytelling and gameplay in new ways as players repeatedly jump in and out of the lives of the game’s three lead characters, playing all sides of the game’s interwoven story.
All the classic hallmarks of the groundbreaking series return, including incredible attention to detail and Grand Theft Auto’s darkly humorous take on modern culture, alongside a brand new and ambitious approach to open world multiplayer.
tl;dr: Scrivener (but only because the author never used Evernote); Google+, almost entirely because of Hangouts and the unstable apps people have hacked on top of it in lieu of a proper API; they're already crowning Realm Works, which isn't out yet, requires a cloud subscription for the better features, and will ship without major offline features in order to hit their Kickstarter deadline.
The only ones I unequivocally agree with are Hero Lab and SRDs, and Hero Lab only because nobody will compete with them.
Plenty of gamemasters still use graph paper and three-ring binders to organize their role-playing campaigns, but there’s an arsenal of tools available to the tech-savvy GM. I talked to a bunch of experienced GMs to find out how they use digital tools to create and track their RPG adventures.
Thieves Are Losing Interest In The Cadillac Escalade Business Insider The Cadillac Escalade is no longer the favorite target of American thieves, dropping from the top spot last year to sixth in new rankings published today by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI). The new favorite is the Ford F-250 Crew 4WD pickup truck: 7 ...
