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Brits Applaud 'Avatar,' Playboy Debuts in the App Store

by Warren Riddle on December 11, 2009 at 11:03 AM


Highlights from this morning's other big tech headlines....
  • At first glance, 'Avatar' seems like it could either be an awe-inspiring F/X masterpiece or just a laughably ridiculous sci-fi punch line. Yesterday, a London audience indicated that the film could indeed be the former, as the closing credits were met with rare applause. [From: Newsvine]
  • The App store's highly publicized puritan stance on nudity hasn't stopped various companies from attempting to capitalize on images of scantily clad women. Playboy appears to be the latest entry into iPhone salaciousness with its new app that features monthly written content from the magazine, as well as images of "non-nude" models. [From: Krapps]
  • Though budding scientists and nerds have been producing small solar powered contraptions, like model cars, for school science fairs for decades, that technology hasn't really translated into commercially available and affordable kits for homeowners, until now. Twenty-one California Lowe's stores have reportedly stocked Akeena Solar packages (purchasers may qualify for various tax credits), which include panels, wiring, and racking systems. [From: Bloomberg]
  • Sexually curious kids used to resort to huddling around well-worn copies of books like 'Tropic of Cancer' at the public library. The Internet has obviously and dramatically altered that practice, and, after performing a study commissioned by Congress, the FTC has concluded that it is alarmingly easy for kids to register for, and gain access to, adult-themed social networking sites. Big surprise. [From: Reuters]
  • Eli Roth, the director behind horror films like 'Hostel' and 'Cabin Fever,' recently revealed that in the early '90s, he was at the forefront of a budding Web enterprise that would eventually explode into an incredibly successful worldwide industry. He claims that in 1991, he and two roommates were employed as "women" operators in sexual chatrooms. [From: BBC]
  • eBay and Craigslist are currently embroiled in a courtroom battle in Delaware over negotiations that occurred between the sites during 2004. During testimony, Craigslist founder Craig Newmark asserted that Meg Whitman, the CEO of eBay at the time, betrayed him by gaining his trust while simultaneously developing eBay's own classified site, Kijiji. [From: Reuters]
  • Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently raised eyebrows when he basically claimed that the only people worried about Internet privacy issues are the people who have something to hide (like Schmidt's extramarital affair). The repercussions have been felt almost immediately, as one Mozilla employee has publicly endorsed rival search engine Bing over Google because of privacy policies. [From: CNET]

Tags: avatar, craigslist, ebay, eli roth, EliRoth, morningxtra, playboy, solar panels, SolarPanels, top

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