Sand Trap is a fun and difficult physics maze game

Sand Trap
Sand Trap is one of those games that at first seem too hard to bother with, but when you try to stop playing it you discover you're hooked.

The goal is to get as much sand as you possibly can out of the maze and into the bucket at the bottom of the screen. You need to rotate your maze every which way to get the sand rolling around it. You then try to direct the sand to one of the exits of the maze, and hopefully into the bucket. It took me several tries to actually get sand into the bucket, but that might be due to the fact that I didn't even realize the bucket was there at first. Things improved significantly after that.

As you level up, the mazes get more complicated, with moving parts and other things making your life more difficult. Once you manage to get through all these obstacles and get enough sand into your bucket, you can move on.

As I mentioned, this is not an easy game, but it's highly addictive. The graphics remind me of some long lost game from the 80s, but this just proves that you don't need super graphics and crazy sound to make a game work. There's a soothing guitar track playing in the background and that's it, as far as I could hear, and you can enjoy it just as much with no sound at all.

If you like a fun physics challenge, don't miss out on this one!

Sand Trap is a fun and difficult physics maze game originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/04/sand-trap-is-a-fun-physics-maze-game/

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43% of recent U.S. smartphone buyers bought iPhone

Nielsen has wrapped up their latest market research data, and in the three months leading up to February, 43% of U.S. smartphone buyers got an iPhone. By comparison, 48% had bought an Android phone, and 5% picked up a BlackBerry.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/FxiOUOiu-pw/story01.htm

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Maxim Minimized. Big Layoffs Hit Men’s Mag Web and Editorial Staff

Maxim MagazineThe Internet killed the magazine star. There's been a major round of layoffs at Maxim magazine. Senior Editor Seth Porges is at least one employee who got the axe, according to our sources and confirmed by a recent update to his Twitter bio that now lists him as "EX-MAXIM". Update: We've confirmed there's been six layoffs from the editorial, web, and photo teams, whose total full-time headcount numbers roughly 13, so just under half of that staff. The layoffs could be a response to declining magazine sales due to the fracturing of men's attention caused by rise of the internet and social media. There's just more places for men to look at gadgets, guns, and girls than there used to be.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/d3k514M7G1k/

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March 31 is World Backup Day 2011

World Backup Day 2011
Those benevolent armchair philanthropist Redditors are at it again! Four days ago a 'self' post extolling the potential virtues of a Backup Day exploded with 2500 upvotes and 1000 comments -- and now World Backup Day 2011 is actually happening.

On March 31, as part of the global data-saving initiative, you are encouraged to back up all of your cherished photos and videos, and important documents. If you've ever had a hard disk fail, and not had a backup to fall back on, you'll know that it's a bit like losing a sizable fragment of your soul. If you've never backed up your important files -- or if you only back up sporadically -- do it on World Backup Day!

It's not hard to back up your data, either. A 2TB drive costs only a fistful of dollars, and it takes just a few minutes to set SyncToy for Windows, or Time Machine for Mac, to mirror your data every night. If you prefer a cloud-based solution, there's always SugarSync and Dropbox. Finally, don't forget that Bundlelytic has a charity giveaway for three excellent data-backup-and-recovery tools -- $160 of software for only $25, and 100% of the proceeds to go the Japanese Red Cross.

For even more backup options, for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, check our list of 13 great backup programs.

March 31 is World Backup Day 2011 originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/28/march-31-is-world-backup-day-2011/

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Skype 5.3 for Windows released, improves mobile video call quality

Version 5.3 of Skype for Windows has just been released, with the main emphasis of the new release being improved call quality, and the quality of video received by mobile Skype users. Presumably one party of the video call must be using Skype for Windows 5.3, though.

Beyond improved call quality, not much has changed. You can now see your friends' presence icons when contact cards are collapsed, and the topic editing button is now always visible on the conversation header. For a complete list of changes, hit up the Skype Garage blog.

Download Skype 5.3 for Windows

Skype 5.3 for Windows released, improves mobile video call quality originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/07/skype-5-3-for-windows-released-improves-mobile-video-call-quali/

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Banshee music player now works in Windows, supports Amazon MP3 downloads

A few moments ago, version 2 of the Banshee music player for Linux was released, bringing with it a whole slew of new features, and the addition of an official -- but alpha-quality -- Windows build. The Mac OS X build of version 2 is due later today.

The most notable new feature is support for the Amazon MP3 store -- you can buy and download music from within Banshee -- but unfortunately it's only available in the Linux build at the moment (OS X and Windows support are planned, however). There have also been some significant improvements to artist, album, and queue interactions -- and yes, you can finally right click a track, album or artist and select 'play after' to insert it into the queue.

Beyond actual playback, the user interface has been tidied up -- it now looks a whole lot smarter -- and the Ubuntu One Music Store and SoundMenu extensions have been made official. For a complete list of changes, additions and bug fixes, check the change log.

When Windows support initially appeared in February, we found it rough around the edges and fraught with stability issues. With version 2, Banshee for Windows is still a bit unstable, but it's shaping up to be a good alternative to Winamp, iTunes, or whatever other music library manager you use. It's almost as attractive as its GNOMEish brother, too!

Download Banshee 2 for Linux and Windows (Mac OS X coming soon)

Banshee music player now works in Windows, supports Amazon MP3 downloads originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 06 Apr 2011 11:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/06/banshee-music-player-now-works-in-windows-supports-amazon-mp3-d/

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Michael Lynton becomes CEO of Sony America, Nicole Seligman picked for SCA president

ImagePlenty of moving and shaking going on after the bell today. Hot on the heels of news that RIM's CEO is making major internal changes, in flies word that Michael Lynton has been selected as the CEO of Sony Corp. America. He's coming over from Sony Pictures Entertainment, where he previously sat as the Chairman and CEO. Effective June 27th, Lynton will have a few new reports as well, and unsurprisingly, Sir Howard Stringer is more than encouraged by the move.

Stringer stated: "Lynton is an incredibly accomplished executive who has distinguished himself in at least three different fields -- entertainment, technology and publishing." In related news, Nicole Seligman has been appointed SCA President; we're told that Lynton will be overseeing Sony's entertainment businesses (including SME, Sony / ATV Music Publishing and SPE), while Seligman will have responsibility for Sony's U.S. headquarters operations. Hard to foresee what two relatively new names mean for the consumer side of Sony's business, but we'll be keeping a close eye on their first hundred days, for sure. The full release is after the break.

Continue reading Michael Lynton becomes CEO of Sony America, Nicole Seligman picked for SCA president

Michael Lynton becomes CEO of Sony America, Nicole Seligman picked for SCA president originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/6E-z71MV9W4/

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Tim Cook pays a visit to a Foxconn factory, smiles for the camera

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We can't say we're particularly surprised, but Apple CEO Tim Cook managed to take some time out of his whirlwind tour of China to pay a visit to a Foxconn factory in Zhengzhou charged with making those shiny new iPhones. The above shot of the bespectacled executive in the bright yellow smock was issued by Apple itself to document the trip. The overseas visit and the ensuing factory tour all come in the wake of a new focus on the working conditions of Foxconn factories that arrived thanks in part to a report from This American Life later retracted by the show.

Tim Cook pays a visit to a Foxconn factory, smiles for the camera originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 08:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/29/tim-cook-pays-a-visit-to-a-foxconn-factory-smiles-for-the-camer/

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Let it Slide is an engaging, difficult puzzle game

letitslide
I have a thing for physics games, and I've been known to post the occasional platformer or action game here and there. But Let it Slide is one of the brainiest games I've posted to date.

The idea is very simple, and far from original: You get a board with pieces arranged in a particular pattern; you have to slide those around until you get the special piece into its target location.

It's not even about finding out where the target location is - you can just hover over "dim tiles" and instantly see where you're supposed to bring the special piece. But getting it there is a whole different story.

There are five tutorial levels, which I strongly recommend you do. Then there are twenty "beginner" levels, but that's really a misnomer. If those are the beginner levels, I don't want to know what the intermediate and advanced levels look like!

Every time you finish a level you get a score based on how many clicks it took you - each level has a "par" (the minimum number of clicks it could be completed in), and your performance is compared to that gold standard. Because it's such a brainy game, getting it right is quite satisfying. I was downright proud of myself when I managed to finish a few levels. All in all, quite recommended, especially if you've got a few minutes of quiet. It might actually help you focus better later on.

Let it Slide is an engaging, difficult puzzle game originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/23/let-it-slide-is-an-engaging-difficult-puzzle-game/

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Qmadix Snap-On Cover w/ Holster for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 only $14.95 [Daily deal]