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Tap into your inner sorority girl with Tap Campus Life

Relive your college years in a sorority with Tap Campus Life. The object of the game is to throw parties for the most popular of guests, and along the way you get to design different aspects of the party, including the outfit you wear and the house you throw the party in on campus.

At the game's start, you're asked to pick out your character's hair, eye, and lip color, and assign a name and birth sign. After we made our selections, it was time to design our house. We were limited in our selections because we … Read more

How to get a (good) job developing apps

Talk about a pivot.

When I last talked to SherLabs in March, CEO Satjot Sawhney was busy getting his TapFame product into the hands of game developers. TapFame was a sweepstakes engine that any developer could drop into a game with the aim of raising awareness and loyalty.

But after a recent chat, Sawhney said the company had changed directions yet again, this time turning TapFame into a networking business that connected developers with companies looking for talent in app design.

Sawhney had built a vast network of both brands and strong developers in his effort to push the sweepstakes … Read more

Apple might unwrap iPad Mini on Oct. 23

Friday's CNET Update is scanning for sales:

Best Buy plans to match prices on Amazon this holiday season, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Today's tech news roundup dives into the trend of "showrooming" and how you can use apps to get the best price at the register.

There's a fresh report on the iPad Mini. All Things Digital says Apple will reveal the smaller tablet at a news event on Oct. 23. But of course we won't know for sure until Apple breaks its silence. Pricing will be a big … Read more

Tap 20 desktop tablet, Vaio Duo 11 lead parade of Sony Windows 8 PCs

The time has come for each Windows PC manufacturer to announce its unusual and frequently convertible offerings for the launch of Windows 8 at the end of October. Sony's announcement of new Vaio laptops and desktops puts a square focus on touch and multipurpose use, with two brand-new desktop and laptop products, the Vaio Tap 20 and the Vaio Duo 11, as the centerpieces.

There are other, less exciting revisions as well: the E Series now offers a touch-screen aluminum E Series 14P, and the Vaio S Series now comes in burgundy red. We had a chance to test … Read more

How EA keeps its Simpson game alive and kicking

Electronic Arts' latest tool to keep The Simpsons: Tapped Out iOS game from becoming a zombie app: actual zombies.

In anticipation of The Simpsons' annual Treehouse of Horror episode, EA updated its Farmville-like game to include Halloween-themed landscapes such as a cemetery, complete with zombies and zombie pets that can infect the characters in your game. The addition adds a new wrinkle to the game, and breathes new life in for players who were done buying buildings and likely on the verge of burning out.

With the upgrade, EA made good on its promise to continue supporting The Simpsons: Tapped … Read more

3Taps countersues Craigslist, alleges unfair 'monopoly'

A company that lets developers pull Craigslist data off the site is suing the online classifieds site for trying to stop competition in the growing market.

3Taps, which lets apps like PadMapper use Craigslist's listings, filed a counter lawsuit against Craigslist today, according to a court document (posted below). Craigslist originally filed suit against PadMapper and 3Taps for copyright infringement.

Not only does 3Taps's response deny Craigslist claims -- the company argues that public facts are public property and should be open for everyone to use -- it says Craigslist has created a "monopoly."

"While … Read more

A tropical life

If you've always dreamed of living in a tropical paradise, Tap Paradise Cove can make your dreams a virtual reality. The downside is that you may have to wait to wait longer to reach paradise unless you spend some cash.

Tap Paradise Cove is a city-building game set in the tropics. The interface is well-designed and draws you in from the beginning. There are plenty of areas to explore and new places to conquer as you begin life on an overgrown island and try to start a civilization of your own. If you love to explore, conquer, and build, … Read more

Craigslist reportedly asks search engines to stop indexing its posts

Craigslist is allegedly ramping up its efforts to keep PadMapper from displaying the online bulletin board's listings.

Craigslist has reportedly asked general search engines to stop indexing its postings, effectively cutting off data harvester 3taps and those who use its API, including the popular apartment listings aggregator. The request was made Monday, according to 3taps' Twitter feed.

"We are sorry CL has chosen this course of action and are exploring options to restore service," 3taps said in a tweet today. "We may be down for an extended period."

CNET has contacted Craigslist for comment and … Read more

Add shortcuts to your notification shade on Android

Widgets can make toggling Wi-Fi, GPS, or ringtone volume quick and easy. But what if you want more options to help you skip through app menus or even the Settings area?

1Tap Quick Bar is an app that will let you customize shortcuts to be added to your notification shade. You can also personalize the look and feel of the panel that gets added -- meaning you get to pick all the shortcuts from a huge selection.

Here's a list of popular features from the developer:

Direct dialDirect message1-tap direct Web page launcherApplication shortcutApplication launcherDirect e-mail labelNew event, new … Read more

Craigslist sues PadMapper for 'mass harvesting' listings

Craigslist made good on its promise to go after PadMapper if it continued using Craigslist content on its site. The online classifieds company filed a lawsuit in San Francisco's federal court on Friday against both PadMapper and the data harvester it uses -- 3taps.

"For their own commercial benefit, defendants 3Taps and PadMapper are unlawfully and unabashedly mass-harvesting and redistributing postings entrusted by Craigslist users to their local Craigslist sites," reads the complaint filed by Craigslist. "This exploitation of Craigslist content undermines the integrity of local Craigslist communities, ultimately harming both Craigslist and its users."… Read more