I must say that I have enjoyed the anticipation that has come with waiting to see which category the App Store will add under their featured apps section. This week I was sorely disappointed by the organization of location-based apps entitled "On The Grid".
It should come as no surprise that Facebook tops the list after adding their take on the service via Places. Foursquare and Gowalla are next on the list that only sports a dozen entries...
You know that virtual beer you can buy your friends on Facebook? It just became even more ridiculous. Mobile Crunch discusses an app entitled Bartab, which lets you send real booze tickets to people whether you know them or not.
The unique application is free in the App Store and lets you purchase the drink coupon for $1, and then you send it by way of Facebook or text message. When the lucky recipient gets the announcement they show it to the bartender and pay $1 to redeem their beverage. The whole having to pay the bartender makes it a bit less cool but state laws require it...
There is another update out for Facebook's iPhone application that apparently fixes a bug related to logging in from a jailbroken iPhone. Version 3.2.2 is out and ready to go in the update section in your App Store access zone.
Mashable adds that the update is said to include an announcement regarding the location based feature Places we reported about, which states that they are currently working on making the feature available to more countries (outside the US) soon.
Apparently when you click on the the icon from outside the US it announces that the feature will be coming to your region soon. The featured ability was said to be available for other countries but when released users could only see the check-ins of their friends.
I found it interesting that Facebook publicly catered to individuals who have jailbroken their devices. If you were amongst those experiencing the login difficulties please let us know if this update resolved your issue in the comment box below.
When we reported about the Facebook app update that includes their location based check-in feature Places, we had no idea how influential the iPhone was to the social media giant. The man who authors The Facebook Effect reveals some amazing statistics that, while cannot be proved (he states they are highly secretive), show just how important iDevices have become to Facebook.
Here's the quote as it reads on 9 to 5 Mac:
Continuing in my short lived residency here at iDB is my Friday rant that is usually based off a particular story in the week that rubbed me the wrong way. When we reported about Facebook adding GPS check in capabilities I knew my topic had been sealed. I will preface my outburst by informing you all that I am one of the few individuals I know who doesn't have a profile in the world's biggest social platform. I had one for less than a month and every lousy expectation I envisioned came to life.
I have no bones to pick with users who have Facebook accounts. If I did I would have almost no one to talk to. My beef comes from the irresponsible undertones involved with the new Places feature embedded within the iPhone app. I have yet to hear a responsible or even reasonable explanation for desiring to participate in sharing your location with your "friends". The whole memories still not being captured song and dance that Facebook cites as motivation is as corny as a field in Iowa.
Yesterday night Facebook updated their iPhone application to version 3.2 which brings the new Places feature to our favorite phone. While this update comes with a cool new feature, it also broke the Facebook application all together for some of us (me included).
The symptoms are the following:
You get the "Unable to Load This Page" error message anywhere you go in the application You get the "Error - sorry there was an error" message while trying to load Places You get the "Login Failed - Unable to Connect to Facebook" error if you're trying to log in the application.The cause? Apparently the problem appears on jailbroken iPhones running BiteSMS.
The fix? The fix that worked for me was to uninstall BiteSMS. Facebook worked flawlessly after that. Once I reinstall BiteSMS though, the problems come back.
There is another fix explained on Redmond Pie:
I opened SBSettings, More, Mobile Substrate Addons. I then disabled BiteSMSsb, resprung, and now FB works fine. Not sure what that addon does, but so far BiteSMS works fine, as does FB.
This didn't work for me. Well, actually it worked but then BiteSMS is completely crippled (ie. no quick compose), so I don't really consider this a fix.
Considering I use the Facebook app every other month, my choice is clear: I keep BiteSMS running and leave the Facebook app for dead. Hopefully BiteSMS will be updated soon to fix this compatibility issue.
If you're having the same problem, please share your experience in the comments section.
UPDATE: Thanks to CDXX who provided a link to an actual fix from BiteSMS developers in the comments:
Replace the file /Library/MobileSubstrate/DynamicLibraries/biteSMSsb.plist with the one you download from http://cydia.bitesms.com/biteSMSsb.plist
REBOOT not respring.
The BiteSMS dev also says that an update to the app will be made available on Monday via Cydia. Yippee!
Late Wednesday evening, Facebook added a location check-in feature to their hugely popular iPhone app. "Places" is the official title, and the social media kingpin is expected to be the eventual champion of such (GPS) location based utilities.
Similar applications allow you to publicly announce your whereabouts, with Gowalla and Foursquare among the most popular. At least they were.
The Washington Post is among the seemingly endless sources that report once a user "Checks In", their location is broadcasted on both their personal and public feed. Security adjustments can be made within your profile to change just how known your want your movements to be.
This seems certain to be a dagger to Foursquare and company, but Facebook's approach doesn't have the add-ons that other apps have. In Foursquare, you're awarded various badges and even mayorships based on the frequency and uniqueness of your visits.
Places seems to simply announce your position to your friends, and shows your profile picture on a GPS map. Facebook allows you to 'tag' those you're with (like with their photos) so others can follow where they are as well, though they need to authorize you to do such beforehand.
On the surface it all seems like an inevitability merely coming to fruition. My opinion is that this addition to the application spells trouble, and not the type related to the new-found competition of existing services. From my experience, many people are "friends" with individuals they barely know or have just met. For instance someone meets you at a party, and after talking for 10 minutes asks "Are you on Facebook"? And just like you're mutually privy to each others profiles.
So will this kill Foursquare type apps? Or will the competition from the 500 million potential participants on Facebook just make them step their game up? Will you be participating or do you plan to keep your Places to yourself? We at iDB would love your opinion in the comment box on this important addition to the world's largest social network.
So you've probably added all your old friends from your hometown via Facebook. While it's fun to "like" their latest pictures and status updates but you really don't want to waste your minutes on them, your problem is solved. Vonage has teamed up with Facebook, creating an app for your iPhone, (& Android), entitled Vonage Mobile for Facebook that allows free calls over Wi-Fi or 3G to anyone domestic or overseas, for free.
After you download the free app, just sign in with your Facebook account and you'll see a list of your friends who've done the same, and are ready to be called for free. You will also see whom you can chat with over IM. If you don't have unlimited 3G, or a Wi-Fi subscription, your first move should be checking with your carrier to figure out any charges that may apply to you.
Of course the program has its own Facebook page, which will allow you to invite your friends to the download the free app. This all sounds great, but I have one question. How many people are actually going to do this? Are you?
Facebook for iPhone has been updated to version 3.1.3. From the largest social networking in the world, you would expect more than this disappointing update that brings very few new features:
You can now watch Facebook videos. You can now view and write on walls of events. Uploaded photos are now 720px wide.Facebook still hasn't updated their application to be compatible with the iPad. It's not a big deal to me as I usually go to Facebook directly from Safari to get the full experience.