Check out Empire Avenue: http://empireavenue.com/?t=iszuydxq

If you enjoy social media, like meeting new people, and want to play with a "stock market" without losing any real money, check out Empire Avenue. Sign up with the link provided, and we'll both get credited with 2000e.

I haven't spent a lot of time on it yet, but from what I can see, it's a pretty cool way to entertain yourself and connect with new people.

From Empire Avenue's site:

The Social Media Exchange

Empire Avenue is the Social Media Exchange, where you can invest in any social media profile by buying their shares, meet new people, unlock Achievement badges, and earn boatloads of virtual cash by being active and social online! Buy shares in your friends, your followers, people with similar interests, brands you love, celebrities – anyone! All using a virtual currency and all for free!

FaceNiff Is the Firesheep for Android, Hijacks Facebook Sessions with One Tap [Video]

FYI. Android users have all the fun. :) 
 
FaceNiff Is the Firesheep for Android, Hijacks Facebook Sessions with One Tap [Video]
Published on Gizmodo | shared via feedly mobile
If you remember the privacy fiasco that Firesheep caused just months ago by allowing laptop-toting pranksters to hijack the Facebook accounts of unwitting public Wi-Fi users, then you'll know the sort of tom-foolery that's about to ensue now that FaceNiff exists. The app allows Android phones to sniff out and use Facebook accounts of other users on the same open wireless network with a single tap of the finger. This time, however, there's no bulky laptop involved, making the deed easier to perpetrate than ever before. More »


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Textbooks swapped for iPads by Irish school

It's about time someone did this. Imagine replacing a backpack full of books with one iPad. Digital textbooks should be available everywhere. 
 
Textbooks swapped for iPads by Irish school
Published on TUAW | shared via feedly mobile

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A small secondary school in Ireland is doing something extraordinary -- ditching textbooks for iPads. Starting in September, St Coleman's College in the town of Claremorris in the west of Ireland will give students the option of learning from regular textbooks or specially equipped iPads, according to The Irish Times.

The school made the decision after consulting with students, teachers and parents for weeks. In the end, 96 percent of the people consulted supported the switch from books to iPads. Each iPad will be preloaded with a suite of educational apps.

Together the iPads and apps will cost €700 each, but the price will be spread across a three-year period. School principal Jimmy Finn told the Times that the value for the money was obvious. "It is a bit of a unique idea, but we have to continue to move with the times," he said. Finn also noted that the switch to the iPad isn't mandatory, and parents can choose to stick with textbooks for their children, though something tells me that if the children have it their way, the choice will clearly be the iPad.

Textbooks swapped for iPads by Irish school originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 01 Jun 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feds ditch Blackberry as iPhone and iPad become the norm

This is the best #change I've seen come out of the Obama administration. 
 
Feds ditch Blackberry as iPhone and iPad become the norm
Published on Macgasm | shared via feedly mobile

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This era when the Federal government has had to use ridiculously laughable technology to do their jobs is slowly and steadily coming to an end. For many years, Federal employees have been forced against their will to use antiquated Blackberry phones and Windows PCs, due to “security” concerns. It’s incredibly ironic that they’re forced to use the least secure OS in the world for “security” reasons.

Finally, thanks in no small part to the recent efforts of the Obama administration and various Federal agencies, devices like Apple’s iPad and iPhone are making their way into government ranks. When Obama first took office, he immediately had the ban on Presidential smartphone use removed. He started out with a Blackberry, but that didn’t last long, as it was soon replaced with an iPhone and iPad, which he has often been seen carrying under his arm.

The single biggest driving force in this movement is the fact that employees hate using their officially sanctioned but antiquated devices. You’ve probably never had a government employee tell you how much they love using their government-issued Blackberry, but they’re all known for loving their personal iPhones. Federal employees, from the lowest desk worker to the highest section chief, have been repeatedly asking their IT directors why they can’t use their favorite Apple devices at work. Until very recently, the only solution was to tolerate an awful government-supplied Blackberry at work, and a beloved iPhone or iPad at home. Now, government agencies are slowly beginning to allow their employees to bring their iPhones and iPads in and use them for work purposes, at work.

Now, entire agencies are beginning to choose to replace their Blackberry phones and Windows PCs, not with newer models, but with far superior Apple products such as iPhones and iPads. This is great news for everyone. Federal government employees and public officials no longer need to put up with the headaches brought on by using outdated and poorly designed technology. As the Federal government becomes more open to Apple devices, corporations will now be far more open to them as well. The domino effect will hopefully continue, with more and more enterprise and government use of Apple products, as a brighter day dawns for Federal and corporate workers everywhere.

Article Via The Washington Post
Photo Credit: Vicky TGIW


Xbox Gamer Allegedly Tricks SWAT Team Into Investigating Rival's Home

Way to make the news, Eugene! :) Ducks and their Xboxes... Sad.
 
Xbox Gamer Allegedly Tricks SWAT Team Into Investigating Rival's Home
Published on The Consumerist | shared via feedly mobile
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An online gaming disagreement turned into a nightmare for a gamer who refused to do the bidding of a person he spoke to over Xbox Live. The victim alleges a rival somehow discovered his name, address and phone number, then falsely reported a murder-suicide at his home, causing a SWAT team to descend on his home.

The Register-Guard (Eugene, Ore.) reports police determined the call was bogus, and the victim said he ticked the caller off by refusing to give him in-game content while playing the Xbox Live Indie game FortressCraft. The culprit allegedly used software to make it appear as though a 911 call came from the victim's house. Police say they are unable to trace where the call actually came from.

The victim said he was threatened before the 911 call was made:

"He brought it to my attention, like 'I have this information on you, and you should protect it.' "

If you game online, what's the creepiest encounter you've experienced?

911 hoax behind SWAT response [Register-Guard (Eugene, Ore.) via Kotaku]