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Farewell, Internet

by Thomas Houston on April 12, 2011 at 12:00 PM

switched logo
Well, here we are. More than four years after launching, Switched and DownloadSquad are unfortunately being closed. I've been thrilled to work at these two sites that have expanded tech coverage beyond the usual gadgets and social networks to cooking, culture, design, art and more. It's been humbling to work with these incredibly dedicated and talented teams of writers, and it would have been impossible to do it without them.

Going forward, you'll still be able to get the best tech news coverage from Engadget, HuffingtonPost Tech, Joystiq and TUAW. While we're still working out some of the details, Switched and DownloadSquad will continue to live on the Web and be fully accessible via search. Understandably, our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr presences will quiet down, but you can still follow the Switched and DownloadSquad writers on their personal accounts. Thanks for reading.
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Interview with Digital Camera Inventor, Making Game Boy Music

by Thomas Houston on April 11, 2011 at 06:45 PM

Here are a few of the other noteworthy things we saw today on our never-ending journey through the wild, wild Web.

Read:

Research In Motion Eyes a Rebound
"They've been caught flat-footed," said Jean-Louis Gassée, a former Apple executive, the former chairman of Palm's software spinoff and a partner at Allegis Capital in Palo Alto, Calif. "They've built a tremendous company; they are people with distinguished backgrounds. They are not idiots, but they've behaved like idiots."
What We Talk About When We Talk About the Internet
Of course, most everyone, when challenged at a conscious level, will correct this mistake, and agree that no, Google only aggregates, it doesn't think, that the Internet is just a compilation of human endeavors. But how often do you hear someone say something like "ask Google", "Wikipedia says", "Facebook told me..."? Before the Internet, there was no tool with which people interacted linguistically.


Watch:


Know:

  • The latest scam sweeping Facebook pretends to tag you in photos from the Olive Garden restaurant. [From: Sophos nakedsecurity]
  • Lifehacker counts down the 10 best micro-apps (often uni-tasking tools for controlling image uploads, desktop settings or clipboard history) for Mac and Windows. [From: Lifehacker]

Got a tip? Want to talk to us? In need of more choice links like these? Drop us a line on Twitter and check out our Tumblr blog.
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Dinos and Trenches in '1916 - The War You Never Knew'

by Ben Deitz on April 11, 2011 at 06:00 PM

1916 - The War You Never Knew
This week's batch of games take its inspiration from real life, but twists your expectations in weird and wonderful ways. Consider it an alchemical transformation that results in gaming gold.

We're no history buffs, but we're fairly certain that World War I did not involve ferocious velociraptors stalking hapless soldiers through the trenches. (But who knows? Maybe we were absent the day it was covered in history class.) The creators of '1916 - The War You Never Knew' -- a first-person survival horror experience set in the dingy trenches of the Great War -- clearly took inspiration from indie sensation 'Amnesia: The Dark Descent.' Setting this type of game in this type of environment is brilliant; it allows for a claustrophobic world that doesn't feel artificially constrained, and makes for a genuinely scary experience, notwithstanding the addition of deadly dinosaurs.

1916 - The War You Never Knew

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Swedish File Sharers Get Religious About Stealing

by Terrence O'Brien on April 11, 2011 at 05:15 PM

Missionary Church of Kopimism
Swedish philosophy student Isaac Gerson thinks that file sharing is sacred. The 19-year-old leader of the Missionary Church of Kopimism believes that stealing and sharing are signs of appreciation, and has compared closed-source software to slavery. Last year, Sweden rejected the church's application to be recognized as a religion, but Gerson isn't giving up so easily. He'll be reapplying after meeting with government officials.
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Google's New Crossword-Style Trivia Game Wants Puzzlers to Search

by Leila Brillson on April 11, 2011 at 04:30 PM

a google a day
Fellow puzzle fans, Google has brought us joy. The engine's newest venture, A Google a Day, asks cunning participants not to use the knowledge they have but rather the knowledge they can unearth with Google search to solve riddles. Much like crossword puzzles (possibly your author's favorite pastime), the questions ask the solver to change the way they think. For today's riddle, searching "two presidents signed" automatically gives some good hints -- but the Google Gods seem to want us to rely more on search suggestions rather than our own acquired trivia.

Using agoogleaday.com instead of the regular Google shields you from real-time questions and answers, so your network and top hits won't spoil the fun. Searching down the 'Net's rabbit hole is kind of interesting, but Google really needs a way to track your success. After all, puzzle fiends solve for the glory and the feeling of completion, not the quiet satisfaction of "knowing things." Duh.
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As Expected, Smartphones and Social Networks Targeted by Malware

by Terrence O'Brien on April 11, 2011 at 03:40 PM

Facebook App
As security firms have been warning for some time, malware attacks are now more frequently focused on social networks and mobile devices. In Symantec's latest Internet Security Threat Report, the company noted that the number of malware attacks delivered through the Web practically doubled from 2009, with 65-percent of malicious links on Facebook arriving in the form of shortened URLs. The company also took special care to highlight the growing field of smartphone-based attacks, in particular those targeting Android. Many of the pieces of Facebook and Android malware rely on the laziness of users. Apps must specifically request permissions, but many people simply click through the notifications without reading them carefully. And as time passes, the attacks will only become more sophisticated.

For now, attacks seem focused on harvesting personal data from profiles and sending text messages to premium services, which earn a commission for the scammer. But as users start turning to their cell phones for mobile banking and shopping more frequently, they're likely to become a much bigger target for digital crooks.
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Facebook Strikes Deal to Create New Social Network in China

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 02:50 PM

Facebook is reportedly working with China's largest search engine to create a new, jointly owned social network. The collaboration with Baidu would allow Facebook to get a foothold in the Chinese market while giving Baidu the chance to capitalize on Mark Zuckerberg's network-building expertise. The new site would still need to be approved by Chinese's Internet regulators, who retain final say ...
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Google Will No Longer Collect Street View Photos in Germany

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 02:00 PM

Google has decided to stop collecting Street View photos in Germany, where regulators have spent much of the past two years railing against the search giant for violating the privacy of German residents. A company spokesman confirmed the decision in a statement sent to the Register, explaining that the images gathered across 20 German cities will remain available online, but reiterating that ...
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Jonathan Franzen's New Yorker Piece Hides Behind a Facebook Like Wall

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 01:10 PM

Jonathan Franzen has a new piece in The New Yorker, but you'll have to become a fan of the magazine on Facebook if you want to read the whole thing. Taking its cue from the likes of Lil Wayne and Jennifer Lopez, The New Yorker has published Franzen's piece exclusively on its Facebook page in an effort to engage readers on the social network. The essay covers Franzen's trip to the island of ...
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PEW PEW! U.S. Navy Fires Lasers at Sea

by Leila Brillson on April 11, 2011 at 12:20 PM

Good news, everyone! The future is finally here, and we'll soon leave bullets behind for a much sexier laser alternative, filled with "PEW PEW" and plenty of cat-shaped guns. The U.S. Navy successfully fired a high-energy laser at another boat, continuing its research into using lasers to blind or disable smaller vessels. The BBC has video but no sound, so you'll have to improvise the "BEYOO! ...
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West Bank Settlers Spread Propaganda Using Violent Video Games

by Terrence O'Brien on April 11, 2011 at 11:25 AM

Using video games as propaganda is nothing new. The U.S. has been doing it with 'America's Army' for some time, while Hezbollah has employed 'Special Force' to spread its message. But those games might seem quaint and diplomatic in the face of a series of games from Residents' Councils of Samaria and Binyamin, an advocacy group for Jewish settlers in the West Bank. The organization has released ... Read more »
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Julian Assange Says WikiLeaks Is More Accountable Than Most Governments, Gets a Little Sassy About It

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 10:20 AM

Julian Assange thinks WikiLeaks is more accountable than any democratic government in the world. And if you dare say otherwise, you'll probably get sued. That was essentially the message that Assange conveyed over the weekend, during his first public appearance since being arrested in December, amid accusations of rape and sexual assault. Speaking to an audience at a public debate in London, ... Read more »
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Russia Won't Ban Gmail or Skype Amid Security Concerns

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 09:25 AM

It looks like Russia won't be banning Skype or Gmail, after all. The Kremlin was reportedly considering blocking both services, along with Hotmail, in response to a major cyberattack that crippled the country's most popular blog and an independent news site. Some within the Kremlin had believed the services posed a major threat to national security, but some critics had thought the government may ... Read more »
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Steve Jobs Approves New Bio to Be Published in 2012

by Amar Toor on April 11, 2011 at 08:32 AM

Steve Jobs has finally given his seal of approval to a new book about his life. Walter Isaacson's 'iSteve: The Book of Jobs' is slated for release in early 2012, marking the first time that the Apple CEO has participated in a biography. Isaacson, who has been working on the book since 2009, reportedly interviewed members of Jobs' family, his colleagues at Apple and, of course, the man himself. ... Read more »
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Switched's Comprehensive Guide to Video Game Emulators

by Terrence O'Brien on April 9, 2011 at 10:30 AM

The video game emulator -- the bit of software that allows nostalgic button-mashers to mount an NES on their PCs in order to relive halcyon "HADOUKEN!" days -- is one of the most misunderstood elements of modern computing. But we're here to tell you exactly what they are, how they work, and even offer a comprehensive directory of the best ones for your favorite platform. Read on for our ... Read more »
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