12 seconds? Well, according to the application’s developers, this is how long one will continue paying attention to a video without losing interest. Still reading? Well, if you’re a fan of Twitter, and if you’re handy with a web cam, then chances are you might already be aware of 12seconds.tv. I was unaware of the site and as an iPhone user, I don’t have access to video recording capabilities (note to Mr. Jobs, any chance of video in a future iPhone?) Anyways, the 12seconds team has come up with a temporary solution with its native iPhone app now on sale in the App Store.

Overview
Basically, once you have a 12seconds.tv account (you can sign up quickly through the application), you can immediately record an update with your iPhone. Since there is no video capability built into the iPhone, what you will be doing is creating a 3-picture slideshow and adding 12 seconds of recorded audio to your broadcast.

Recording an Update
Impressively, the update process is very straightforward. The program prompts you for a photo at each step. As shown in the screenshot below, you can take a photo with the built-in camera, or you can choose a photo from the iPhone’s library. After you’ve selected your three photos, the app prompts you to record your audio, and it gives you a running countdown as the 12 seconds winds down. Once you have completed your recording, you can review your audio (but not re-record), title your post, add tags, add a location, and email your post. After satisfied with these settings, your post will be uploaded to the 12seconds.tv website. A nice feature that is found on the website is the option to automatically feed your posts to your Twitter account as a Tweet. Check out my intro video here (you can also follow me on Twitter (user: Chanatown) if you would like!). When you view your video, you’ll notice the illusion of movement is added with the “Ken Burns effect”, and this makes your 3 pictures and audio seem that much more lifelike.

Analysis
Initially, I was intrigued but skeptical as to what this application was going to be used for. However, the simplicity of the app and the straightforward execution of the posting process quickly won me over as a potential fan of 12seconds. I am a fairly new user of Twitter, but I do like the idea of micro-blogging during those times when a full post is just not needed (cheers to you for not abandoning this post!) With YouTube making videos so easily accessible, I can see what the developers of 12seconds have in mind in trying to establish a new field of video micro-blogging. With the popularity of the iPhone, they were smart in making sure that we were included as well. Within a few minutes of starting the app, I had a video posted on the site. It does not get much simpler. With nice additional touches such as the Ken Burns effect, a direct link to Twitter, and a quality user interface, 12seconds has a lot going for it.

Conclusion
Overall, I feel that this application has a lot of potential, especially if the idea of video micro-blogging catches on as Twitter has. Some additions that I would like to see in future updates include the ability to re-record audio, the option to include a clip of a song instead of recorded audio, and the option to edit posts directly on the iPhone. For $0.99, the app is a fun way to explore a different form of blogging, and with a direct link to Twitter in place, 12seconds is a cool application to add to your iPhone. I offer a “Buy Now” rating for the casual user interested in a different form of blogging, and a “Strong Buy” if you are a heavy Twitter user.

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The update to WinterBoard seems to make one small visual change to the application. If one of the themes/mods has a long title, it looks little cleaner now (at least I think it does…that might be from the last update and I just forgot!). Other than that, there were not any changes to the actual UI of the application. Below is the complete change log.

Version 0.9.2692-1 Change Log:
    • Theme Widget WebApp Clips Icons
    • FontName-* Key to Replace Fonts
    • Improved Long Label Rendering
    • Sped up UIImage Cache Access

Screenshots:
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I’ve never been much of a card game player. From time to time, I’ll break out the Bicycle decks for some Texas Hold’em at home with friends. On the computer, I’ll play Solitaire, maybe Hearts on occasion. I think I tried Bridge once, but that adventure ended quickly. However, one card game does come to mind that I often enjoyed. It was called “BS” in college and another version that I often played with my family was called “Rich Man, Poor Man”. Apparently, this game is referred to as “Big 2” in Asia, and the developers of “Big2Poker” claim that it is one of the more popular games overseas. Honestly, my first thought when seeing the name “Big 2 Poker”, was that this was just going to be another form of Texas Hold’em or another version of an online poker game. Thankfully, I was wrong.

Overview/Settings
Before you start playing, you can set a limited number of options. Game sounds can be toggled on/off, and play rotation can be set for clockwise or counterclockwise. There are three difficulty settings (easy, medium, hard), four sets of card themes, and a mysterious wage amount setting ($1, $5, or $10). Other main menu items include a fairly detailed rules section and a brief blurb about the origins of the game.

Gameplay
Once the cards are dealt, the player with the 3 of diamonds starts the game. As viewed in the screenshot below, you can view your cards at all times and have the option to sort your cards by rank or suit. You are also given the number of cards remaining for each player. Unfortunately, there was a minor glitch here (also seen in the screenshots below), as you cannot view the number of cards remaining for the computer user on the right. Play proceeds as each player tries to “one-up” the other by playing a higher card (by rank or by suit if cards have the same value). 2’s are the highest cards in this game (hence, the “Big-2” part of the name) and suits are ranked from highest to lowest (spades, hearts, clubs, diamonds). The “Poker” part of the game’s title comes from the option to use poker hands such as pairs, three and four-of-a-kinds, straights, and flushes as playable hands. You can always choose whether to play a hand or to pass. The winner of the hand (highest overall card(s) played) then gets to start the next hand. The game ends when one person uses up all of his or her cards.

Analysis
Once I began playing, I was immediately brought back to my college days or those times when I played this game with my family. I like the rules of this card game a lot and feel that there is a bit of strategy to the game overall. In terms of this particular version on the iPhone, I was fairly pleased with the interface. The game play drags a little bit as you wait for the computer users to play their hands, but it is not too painful. TIP: if you touch the screen, the next move is forced, so game play does speed up. If you need to leave, the game will remember where you left off, but be careful not to press the “Menu” button, as this will reset the game (with a warning). The wages concept is a bit unclear, but I believe that it is designed to lengthen gameplay, so if you want the game to last longer, you’ll set the wage (per remaining card) to $1 rather than $10.

When I played “Rich Man, Poor Man” with my family, there was an additional part of the game that involved exchanging one’s best and worst cards with each other depending on one’s status as a “Rich” or “Poor” person. Perhaps, this can be added as a variation. Finally, a logical update possibility would be the inclusion of online multiplayer capabilities. If this game is as popular overseas as the developer claims, then there should be a vast pool of players to draw from for an online game. An extremely snappy interface and some sort of online ranking system would be essential in making this a successful venture. Note: The developer has indicated that an update that will include multiplayer is in the works, but may be accompanied by a price increase (update will be free).

Conclusion
Overall, I feel that this game has a lot of potential. As a stand-alone card game, it is solid enough to keep players engaged and coming back every now and then for a game. I am not convinced on the long term playing options. The wage bets didn’t offer me enough incentive to continue playing. The upside to Big2Poker lies in its implementation of online multiplayer and possible addition of variations to the basic game. I mentioned the glitch about the number of cards in the right computer player’s hand, as well as the potentially misleading option to return to the menu without saving the game. I did experience a few crashes, so stability should be addressed in updates. Overall, my opinion is that this game is slightly overpriced at $2.99 and would be worth a solid recommendation from this reviewer at either a lowered price ($0.99) or with an updated version that featured the above changes.

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We thought this app was pretty funny and thought we’d share it with you. It’s pretty simple and you can have fun showing it to family and friends. It turns your iPhone into electric shaver. What makes this app good is the realistic sound effects. Notice touching your finger to the screen makes the sound change to a cutting whiskers sound. Here’s a demo video from the developer:

The developer sent us 6 free promo codes to give away to our readers. All you have to do is let us know you’d like a free download code for eShaver in the comments and the first 6 will get them. Just make sure you use your email address in the field when entering the comment.

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Below are six themes and two mods that have recently been released in Cydia. The six themes include; Patches (via modmyi), iAdobi (via modmyi), Burnt Paper (via modmyi), oGn (via BigBoss), Apple 2009 (via iSpazio) and Apple 2009 Red Edition. The two mods include; Ice Keys (via modmyi) which is a mod that will change the design of the keys on the keyboard when you select them and Smaller Wide Sliders (via modmyi) which your stock slider bars wider. All of these mods are activated via WinterBoard and below are screenshots of all the mods!

Screenshots:

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Cracked Screen is an application that will make your iPhone or iPod Touch look as though it has a cracked (broken) screen…similar to the application Cracks that was available for firmware 1.1.4 and below). When you launch Cracked Screen, you will get a main application page with instructions on how to used the application.

The first thing you will need to do is take a screenshot of your SpringBoard. So, close the Cracked Screen application and take a screenshot of your SpringBoard (if you need info on how to take a screenshot of your SpringBoard, check out our f.a.q page). Once you have a screenshot of your SpringBoard, go back into the Cracked Screen application. Next, select the Open Image Picked button at the bottom of the page. This will bring you to your Photo Albulms where you can then go into your Camera Roll and select the screenshot of your SpringBoard.

When you select your screenshots, it will automatically load onto your screen. Now, the app is activated…the next touch on your iPhone or iPod Touch’s screen will make it look as though the screen is cracked. So basically, you will need to set up the application before you hand it to someone. You will have to let me know in the comments if you have tried this little trick and whether or not it worked!

Screenshots:
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I’ve always liked math. Multiplication tables, story problems, and solving equations all seemed to come natural to me. There were definitely times when my love for math would put me in the minority. Then, the sudoku craze hit and later, Nintendo had a wildly popular game in its Brain Age series for the DS. Suddenly, people were getting very excited about math and numbers. Thus, when I saw the application Math Sticker, I was intrigued, but my first thought was that it was a kids program. The “sticker” part of the name threw me for a loop. After downloading the app, I soon figured out why it was so named.

Overview
Math Sticker is basically played where you have to move matchsticks (there’s the “sticker” reference) in order to solve the problem (or riddle, as they’re called in the game). So, for the problem shown in the screenshot below, I could move a stick in the top number changing it from a “2” into a “3” and voilà, the problem becomes a correctly solved math problem (3+1=4). Your score is based on the skill involved and the time it took for you to solve the problem. In the upper left corner, you are told the number of sticks (picks) that are needed to move to solve the problem. If you end up moving more than this number, your score gets lowered.

Options
There are a variety of options (skills) in the full version that can be adjusted as you get accustomed to the game. You can have as many as 5 digits for each number in your riddle. You can solve problems that require up to three moved picks. Subtraction problems are also an option, and lastly, there is an option to have the computer adjust the skills automatically. With the auto-skill on, the computer added more digits as I successfully solved more riddles. I’m not sure if I have the patience to solve the really hard problems, but at least there’s the option if you’re so inclined.

Conclusion
Although I was a bit confused about the game play initially, Math Sticker grew on me. The app is certainly a well planned and solidly executed game that reminds me of a puzzle game commonly found in the Brain Age series. Math Sticker also keeps statistics and saves your progress scores even if you leave the game. There are enough options available to justify repeat games, and as these games typically advertise, Math Sticker may keep your brain in shape and perhaps make you smarter! I may “stick” to the traditional methods of multiplication tables myself, but I will recommend Math Sticker as a solid app for the price.

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We really appreciate everyone who took the time to vote in this poll!! We will most definitely take it into consideration as we look into the New Year and prepare for some of the changes that will be made to AppleiPhoneSchool.com. Below is the new poll.

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