Update – Apple Pulls BeautyMeter App With Nude 15-Year-Old

BeautyMeterWebNotice update: 1:00 p.m. PST – BeautyMeter developer has posted a message on their site indicating they have cleaned up their database of nude images. They have also increased measures to guard against future user-generated nudity. It also sounds like they identified an individual (via the UUID) and will be taking “further steps” (click image for full view).

Yesterday’s BeautyMeter article resulted in quite the firestorm. Media outlets such as Fox News, Wired, Gizmodo, DownloadSqaud and others, carried the “Nude 15-Year-Old Pictures” story … as well as social media activity from Digg, Twitter and more.

Today at approximately 12:20 a.m. PST (24 hours after we broke the story), Apple removed BeautyMeter from the App Store … however previous downloads are still fully functional – including access to the infamous 15-year-old nude image seen below (image taken at time of writing, at 12:30 a.m. PST).

15YearOldNudeJuly2FINAL

It seems yesterday was not the first time BeautyMeter had its “issues”. The app launched January 17 and the developers, Braun Software, began approving user generated nude images for public viewing. Then in mid-April, the devs changed their policy, no more nudity. Of course this caused a huge backlash among the rabid middle-aged perverts as they voiced their displeasure via the App Store User Ratings.

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One month later, the perverted old guys (and comment #113’s wife – see above) rejoiced … BeautyMeter boobs were back!

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We’re not exactly sure why Braun Software banned the once acceptable nudity from their app in mid-April … perhaps it was in preparation of submitting Version 1.6 update for approval (kind of like cleaning up shop before the inspector pays a visit), which was accepted by Apple on April 27. Strange behavior by Braun Software.

So the question remains … does Apple allow nudity in the App Store???

If the answer is NO nudity, then why does Apple make available a 17+ rating specifically stating Frequent/Intense Nudity? … why do apps like TOP100 specifically advertise topless models coming soon?

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17rating

If the answer is YES nudity, then why would apps like Hottest Girls and BeautyMeter (sans the 15-year-old naked girl) be banned?

Obviously Apple needs to make a decision on their nudity policy and stick with it … indecisions and inconsistencies in business are an absolute killer. We think Sir Winston Churchill summarizes the current state of Apple the best with his 1939 “quotation”:

I cannot forecast to you the action of Apple.
It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma

July 2, 2009 | Filed Under News, Social | 326 Comments 

Nude 15-Year-Olds In The App Store? Yes There Is

(update: July 2 at 2:00 a.m. PST – click here for details)

AppleiPhoneDRAMAQUEENfinal Last week, a sexy bikini chick app made quite the splash in iPhone App World. The Hottest Girls application made Apple history by becoming the first iPhone app to contain nudity. But that was only the beginning of the iPhone Spice drama, requiring us to cover (no pun intended) the Hottest Girls saga in two articles (article #1 – article #2). In summary … the developer pulled the app due to overwhelming sales, then Apple said bullshit – they actually removed the app, then Apple shut down all the developer’s apps, then the developer closed his web site seemingly hiding from angry paying customers (does Apple refund their money?) … LOL, gotta love Apple drama.

Apple even released a statement via spokesman Tom Neumayer saying … “Apple will not distribute applications that contain inappropriate content, such as pornography.” So life goes on … the App Store went back to being non-nude and porno-free.

But life isn’t simple – many questions remain. TechCrunch ran an excellent article which describes how developers rate their own apps when submitting to Apple for approval. The rating matrix clearly shows that an app can contain Frequent/Intense nudity and still be approved by Apple. So then why did Apple remove the Hottest Girls app with its topless nudity? – the app was rated properly as 17+ … what’s the problem?

17plusNudityRating22

Clearly Apple is completely whack when it comes to their App Ratings and Approvals … LOL at Steve Jobs boasting that the App Store is “Revolutionary” … uh NO dude – considering the thousands of KRAPPS we must avoid to find a decent app, the store is a freaking joke.

Nudity – Shmoodity … you think with Apple’s latest swift actions, the App Store is now “safe” from nudity? Think again! Let us introduce you to our little friend … the BeautyMeter app by German-based Braun Software.

BeautyMeterTitle

BeautyMeter is one of those “Do You Think I’m Hot” rating apps, popular among teens and middle-aged male perverts. The user uploads a picture of themselves … the image is broadcasted via the app … other app users rate the picture from Fugly to Hot. Similar apps include Hot Or Not, PhotoKast, YoHottie … but with one BIG difference … BeautyMeter contains NUDITY and this nudity is approved by Braun Software as supposedly they review every image prior to releasing it into the app for public view.

BeautyMeterNude(1)1   BeautyMeterNude(2)2

BeautyMeterNude(3)3   BeautyMeterNude(4)4

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What’s whack about BeautyMeter is that there is no nudity warning in the App Rating … it simply states Mature/Suggestive Themes. Hey Braun Software – Apple provides a convenient nudity rating – use it … freaking dumbasses!

So does Apple allow nudity in the App Store? Well they say they don’t and act all pious banishing topless chick app Hottest Girls … but when you dig a little deeper, there’s been nudity in the App Store for nearly 6 months when BeautyMeter first launched on January 17.

Now let’s play the “Pretend You’re Steve Jobs And Make The Executive Decision” game:

Question #1 – Steve, can we distribute an app in which you could rate a 16-year-old’s body on a scale of 1 to 5?
Your Answer -  WTF kind of a question is that?!? Get away from me you piece of krapp
middle-age male pervert … you’re FIRED!

Bravo … great answer … but guess what – it’s Wrong!

BeautyMeter16(1) BeautyMeter16(2) BeautyMeter16(3)

Question #2 – Steve, can we allow underage completely nude pictures in the App Store?
Your Answer – WTF kind of a question is that?!? Get away from me you piece of krapp
middle-age male pervert … you’re FIRED!

Again – bravo … that’s another great answer … but guess what – it’s Wrong!

UnderageiPhoneNudity 

NICE Apple … once again, your Revolutionary App Store never cease to amaze us! And even if Miss United States faked her Age 15 description, why did Braun Software approve the image for public view? And why didn’t Apple respond to the user comment below – seems like a pretty significant claim worthy of at least a quick peak.

BM14yearoldcomment 

So what’s Apple’s final policy … To Nude or Not To Nude? Yeah, that is the question and it beats the hell out of us. One thing is certain … Apple really needs to slow the heck down with their approval process, implement some serious quality control measures and straight forward policies … because at this point, Apple is making our job way too easy.

July 1, 2009 | Filed Under News, Social | 8,457 Comments 

iPhone Porn And Nudity Drama Continues – More Info

(update 3:00pm PST: Hottest Girls web site, AllenTheGeek.com, has posted a note saying: “Apple has now removed all of our apps from the iTunes store without prior warning. We have yet to hear back from them on this issue.” WOW! Allen had a total of 4 apps – Hottest Girls, Hottest Guys, Send Flowers and EliteBrowser… and just like that, DONE!)

(update 11:30am PST: Hottest Girls developer, Allen Leung, has taken down his website  AllenTheGeek,com (only an email address remains). Is Allen on the run from Hottest Girls customers demanding their money back since the app is no longer working? LOL)

HottestGirlsDelete (update 7:00am PST: Hottest Girls received another “update” … when attempting to launch, the app cleverly informs the user, “This version will no longer work. You should delete this version.”)

LOL … who knew iPhone porn could create such drama. This reads something straight out of a soap opera or the Nip/Tuck television series. Pay close attention and follow along …

So early yesterday morning (12:30am PST) we wrote about developer Allen Leung updating his Hottest Girls app with nude topless sexy girl pictures … thus making Apple history by becoming the first iPhone application to contain nudity. Later that morning (9:30am PST), we updated our post stating Apple pulled Hottest Girls from the App Store. Several hours later, CNN quotes Apple spokesman Tom Neumayer:

Apple will not distribute applications that contain inappropriate content, such as pornography. The developer of this application added inappropriate content directly from their server after the application had been approved and distributed, and after the developer had subsequently been asked to remove some offensive content. This was a direct violation of the terms of the iPhone Developer Program. The application is no longer available on the App Store.

Last night (7:30pm PST), TechCrunch speculated that Apple DID NOT pull the app, rather Allen the developer, voluntarily pulled the Hottest Girls app because the high demand was crashing his servers. Allen didn’t exactly say he pulled the app … rather put a marketing spin to the situation, calling the app “Sold Out”.

HottestGirlsSoldOut

WTF is going on with Apple? They are a JOKE with their idiotic, vague and inconsistent App Store policies. Hey Apple … if you will not distribute pornography, then why the hell do you have a 17+ rating that CLEARLY states INTENSE SEXUAL CONTENT or NUDITY?!?! Here’s a brilliant idea, no pornography? – then bail the rating! – DUH!

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Not to mention the TOP100 app … SHOUTING … “Topless Images Will Be Added … End Of June 2009!!!” (oh krapp, there goes their servers too) … with promises of the Covergirl (“100 Photos Of Bums”), Topless Babes (“100 Topless Models) and Cleavage (“100 Photos Of Cleavages) apps arriving from the same TOP100 developer in July.

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So stay tuned for more dumbass corporate indecisions from Apple as we continue to monitor the iPhone Spice movement and all its idiotic glory.

June 26, 2009 | Filed Under Entertainment, News | 164 Comments 

Thank You KRAPPS Sponsors

We would like to take a brief timeout to thank our valued sponsors. Without their support, there would be no KRAPPS (uh, that doesn’t sound right). All these peeps are solid folks, have quality products and we’re proud to be aligned with them. So support KRAPPS, show our sponsors some love … you’ll become a better person.

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Ow My Balls! is a hysterical iPhone game centered around the mishaps of Joe The Juggler. Kick Juggler Joe off the ledge of a tall building … and he cries out – “OW MY BALLS!” As Joe falls, hit objects to score points and ignite the fart jetpack to make him travel the longest distance possible before making impact with the ground and crying out - 
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hideNtweet22 hideNtweet
With the amount of garbage in the App Store, the hideNtweet app is a breath of fresh air. It is a totally unique and original game specifically designed for the iPhone. Think the classic children’s game Hide And Seek … now bring Hide And Seek to the iPhone, couple that with GPS technology and Twitter … and voila – hideNtweet. This app is currently in beta and being developed by Dove Valley Apps. Click here to read our review. Better yet, experience this extraordinary gaming experience yourself … click here to become a beta user.

100soundsThankYou 100sounds
There’s a reason 100sounds is the #1 soundboard app … cuz it rocks! This app not only provides hundreds of high quality originally recorded sound effects, but also includes loop and delay effects for all your comedic purposes. Plus you can get hundreds of ringtones emailed to you, automatically, at no extra charge! 100sounds was already a bargain at $0.99, so this enhancement makes it a great deal! Click here to view web site, be sure to check out the hysterical user-submitted videos.

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Attention iPhone developers – VoiceForge is an online Text-to-Speech service. They’ve made TTS fast, affordable, and scalable! Tap a huge variety of 60 voices in 5 languages. Using their SOAP based API, simply send text, indicate the voice, and receive back a MP3 or URL. And it’s fast – just 200 milliseconds for audio to be returned. Big fish no problem; our capacity exceeds 100 million synthesis per day. Consumers love personalization – why not "pimp your app" by letting users pick the voice they like? Click here to receive more info, try the demo, or sign up for a free developer’s kit.

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Don’t drink and drive! True words, but easier said than done. This is where DrinkTracker comes into play – your personal “alcohol conscious” – helping you to drink responsibly. DrinkTracker calculates your blood alcohol content (BAC) based on your profile and updates every 60 seconds. This is an extremely feature-rich breathalyzer app and at $1.99, a no-brainer bargain buy. Click here to visit the DrinkTracker site for complete details and a fantastic demo video.

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Simply put, this app makes you smarter! Binary Game gets your brain juices flowing and is a ton of fun. It’s an original game of binary math which is simple to play and highly addictive. The worldwide leader board satisfies the most uber-competitive gamer, while the Facebook Connect feature pleases those social types. Click here to read our review or click here to purchase from the App Store, click here.

Wordulous 99 Games
99 Games is an exceptional game developer cranking out such iPhone classics as WordsWorth (ranked as high #1 in the word game category), Chess Pro, Chess Lite, Aqua Jigsaw, and Jigsaw Wild. Their latest offering is Wordulous … an anagram like no others: multiple modes, global scores, Facebook Connect and more. 99 Games is committed to building only the highest quality and most entertaining games possible … all at affordable prices. Click here for our review.

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This app is a blast! To really appreciate iFight Pro, click here and take a quick look at a demonstration video – it’s really cool. Combine a handgun, rifle, shotgun, slap, whip, gong, sword or punch with one of the eight background music tracks – and you’ll be awarded with a pure quality, enormously fun iPhone app.

June 21, 2009 | Filed Under anti-KRAPPS, News | 1 Comment 

iPhone Devs – Make Your Apps Talk With VoiceForge

VoiceForgeAttention Cepstral is a company which provides iPhone developers a tool for making unique and kick ass applications. VoiceForge is their branded Text-To-Speech (TTS) platform which enables developers to add high quality sound audio to any iPhone application.

Uh … ok … TTS … what the heck is that? Well basically in a non-geek nutshell, the VoiceForge TTS technology makes the Internet talk … and more specifically … talking iPhone applications. Imagine a talking greeting card app … type message into app – send greeting card to friend – friend opens greeting card – and card starts to talk in a deep Russian Drago voice … “Happy Birthday Pencil Neck! I Must Break  You!” … or … type in the ABC’s and send it using a hot chick sexy voice (oh krapp, scratch DragoBreak that … we already profiled a Sexy ABC’s app). Or how about talking iPhone games … or talking breathalyzer – “Yes dumbass, you’ve had 17 beers, you are drunk! Drago will beat your ass if you get behind the wheel of a car!”

The creative possibilities are endless with VoiceForge … and guess what, use VoiceForge in your app and chances are you will NOT be featured here on KRAPPS … which is a good thing we guess.

VoiceForge will appeal to all developer geeks – webmasters … programmers … developers of mash-ups, web 2.0 apps, Facebook apps, VoIP tool and of course, iPhone apps. Plus developers will save money as VoiceForge offers one set price for access to over 45 different voices … so no need to limit yourself to a la carte voices pricing (a la carte sucks … why do I have to pay $15 for a side of mashed potatoes Mortons?).

voiceforge-thumb We suck at being developer geeks, but appreciate this TTS technology and can imagine some very cool apps leveraging this platform. Plus we LOVE visiting the VoiceForge voice demo page, typing in profanities and then having it played back by one of the 50+ demo voices … hee, hee. Click here to check out the demo page.

VoiceForgeDemo

For more information about VoiceForge … visit their dedicated developers page, where you can sign up and receive a free Test_ID and access to their service for a non-commercial trial. Looking forward to all those cool upcoming talking apps!

June 20, 2009 | Filed Under anti-KRAPPS, News | 24 Comments 

Further Proof Of Apple’s Idiotic Approval Process

Yesterday we came across an article on TUAW regarding yet another rejected app. This latest decision by Apple is so completely idiotic, we just couldn’t resist honoring Apple’s stupidity and ignorance. The story goes like this …

AppleKickNuts Craig Robinson is a fairly normal dude … he’s left-handed, has a beard, loves baseball, drinks beer and is an iPod Touch user. Now Craig isn’t perfect, he does have his quirks … he’s a huge New York Yankee fan, collects stuck Tic Tacs and waits 15 months between haircuts. But for all his oddities, Craig didn’t deserve the two epic nut shots Apple delivered to his manhood.

You see Craig is an accomplished artist and has established a unique niche of creating Minipops … totally cool itsy bitsy teeny weenie pixilated renditions of famous people – celebrities, sports figures, politicians, musicians, etc … heck, he’s even got a cool one of Steve Jobs ( LOL, but no Bill Gates). Dude’s been MiniPopping (is that a word?) for the past ten years, so needless to say … he’s totally legit, has three published Minipops books and is a well respected individual in the art world … Craig Robinson does not suck.

Being the Apple fan boy, Craig thought it would be cool to create a Minipops app with his drinking buddy Matt. It would include every Minipop (1,000 of them) with a bit of witty text about each one (15,000 total words). Obviously not the standard KRAPPS, but a significantly large effort. (can you correctly identify the Minipop below? – answer at end of article)

GuessWho22

So great … the Minipops app was produced, submitted to Apple and promptly REJECTED.  Craig is an offensive bastard and his Minipops below were returned from Apple, who said: “ridicules public figures and is in violation of Section 3.3.12” …

ObamaRejectTextR111   ParisRejectTextREJECTED

Ok, so instead of debating Apple why the Obama family Minipop is suitable for an upcoming book about Michelle Obama, yet is offensive for the iPhone … Craig took the high road, eliminated all descriptions, resubmitted to Apple and was kicked in the balls a second time. Why? Because now Apple has a problem with the images seen below …

ObamaRejected111   ArnieRejected111

AlanisRejected111

zuneKRAPP So at this point, Craig is about to shove his iPod Touch up Apple’s “core” and buy a Zune. What on earth does this guy have to do to get his Minipop app approved … wake up Apple and realize there are perfectly acceptable artistic tributes to public figures with no malicious intent (ok, maybe a half pixel Alanis bush would be more appropriate than a full pixel bush … but then again, what’s half a pixel among friends? but it’s relevant bush per her Thank U music video). This is the same vague and inconsistent “3.3.12” krapp we wrote about in the NIN access, Poker vs Girls, Hot Dog Down A Hallway, iNewz Tech and iStrip articles. Yet Apple approves the Peep Show app and agrees it’s appropriate for 4th graders to watch strippers take off their clothes. We must have missed that day in Parenting Class.

Come on Apple! LET’S GO! Get you krapps together and stop screwing with the developer’s time, money and emotions. News flash oh shiny red fruit – don’t bite the hand that feeds you … without these third-party developers, the iPhone would be just another smartphone and a krappy one at that!

(answer – Ozzy Osbourne and family … although missing a headless bat)

June 12, 2009 | Filed Under News | 2 Comments 

The Keynote Blows – We Have Real News

Ok, so yesterday Apple announced some really cool stuff in their 2009 WWDC Keynote …

WWDC2009Badge11 OS 3.0 will be released on June 17. The new iPhone 3GS will become available on June 19 at $199 (16GB) and $299 (32GB) … improved battery life, a 3MP camera with autofocus, video recording, voice commands, a digital compass, cut-copy-paste functionality and a whole lot more. Oh – and the new “S” in 3GS … it stands for sexy … meaning your iPhone will be twice as sexy. Kidding … S = Speed … 3GS is 2x faster than the iPhone 3G.

att-logoSUCKS11 Good times – yeah, whatever. Let’s get to the best part of the Keynote … AT&T SUCKS and KRAPPS on their iPhone customers! Basically AT&T is not ready to support MMS or Internet Tethering … and the announced prices are only for eligible customers. Great work AT&T – you guys rock! Visit 148apps for more details about the AT&T SUCKS issue … and be sure to check out Apple’s excellent Guided Tour video of the new 3GS.

But remember – this is KRAPPS and the beauty of KRAPPS is that we’re not iPhone Alley, 148apps, Just Another iPhone Blog or any one of those polished and professional iPhone news sites. We are freaks … so while the rest of the iPhone fan-boy blog world is getting all hot and bothered over Apple’s latest and greatest achievements… we skim that page and focus on the real news. So what’s making our kite fly high today? Well it’s the latest sack of suck we discovered –> the Bathroom Racer app!

BathroomRacerTitle

Damn straight … Bathroom Racer … the new iPhone racing game where you drive a PILE of POOP! Fastest time to the toilet wins. That’s what we’re talking about … POOP RACING … challenging courses with hills and jumps (hey, it’s not easy to control flying poop), five ridiculously thrilling levels of poop play and kindergarten-like graphics . Heck with Firemint and their Real Racing garbage … this is the real REAL RACING … this is POOP RACING. For a flavor of Poop Racing’s awesomeness, check out the amazing action-packed screen shots below:

BathroomRacerFly11  BathroomRacerHills11

BathroomRacerUpsideDown11  BathroomRacerStuck11

So to all you fan-boys … go ahead and keep blowing sunshine up Apple’s ass for their “fastest, most powerful iPhone yet”. We’re not buying into that nonsense! We’re buying Bathroom Racer for 99 cents and applauding developer Adam Flaherty for his groundbreaking achievement … the world’s first POOP RACING game … because here at KRAPPS, we realize POOP RACING is a privilege, not a right!

June 9, 2009 | Filed Under Games, News | Leave a Comment 

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