TUAW is where I first saw this. I checked it out myself, and confirmed that if an App Store customer hasn’t bought or downloaded the App they are attempting to review, this dialog box pops up:

This goes a long way to preventing reviews on an app based solely on the price, instead of the reviewers just posting a review that says “$4.99?!??!11? Their insane if they thing I’m going to pay that!!11″

On the other hand, it leads to reviews that could be falsely positively skewed, because a person downloading an app is more prone to wanting it and liking it, rather than taking a dispassionate view of it in their review. But better that than the other way though. The ratings will get a much more fair because of this move. I’m hoping it will be retroactive, and the reviews so far will be examined and pulled if the reviewer doesn’t own the app.

Now, if only Apple could clean up it’s OWN review policy and let apps into the store that “duplicated” their own services, Podcaster being the most famous example, we’d be in good shape.

As it is, many people have lost faith in the App store ever fufulling it’s potential.

Comet Cowboy is an awesome app to break out when you want to play a game that’s impossible to lose. It’s just plain fun to lasso those asteroids floating around in space and pull them in.

The free version offers 4 levels of play. Check it out, and if you enjoy it, shell out the $3.99 for 30+ levels.

aSleep and Ambiance are simply white noise generators to help you sleep or meditate. Or if you need some white noise to drown out that office hum to destressify. (Yes, I made up that word. Get over it. )

aSleep has a library of about 50 sounds you can either either play endlessly or for a set time you choose. It’s not the greatest sound through the iPhone speaker, but it works for me at night. The sounds are of a decent quality though, when played through better speakers. I like the rain best. But there’s something there for every taste. And only a buck.

Ambiance is basically the same thing with a different wrapper. And a simpler, cleaner look. Finding the timer is a bit unintuitive (press the info button on the upper right of the screen), but once you figure that out you’re good to go. Also only a buck.

I have no opinion on the quality of one vs the other. They both do the job, and they’re so inexpensive you can’t go wrong with either one. Personally, I like the graphics and presentation on aSleep better.

Sweet dreams, Buttercup! Don’t let the bedbugs bite!

If words like gnusto, blorple, and rezrov instantly bring you back to glorious days and nights of text adventuring on your Apple IIe, you’ll be enthralled to know that Inform has come to the iPhone. Inform, the compiler used to produce text adventure classics, may have faded into the background over the last few decades, eclipsed by graphical gaming powerhouses like Pong, but it never really went away. Indeed, amateur coders from around the world are still pumping out text adventures on a regular basis. There are even annual competitions. Now, using Frotz, you have access to the fruits of their collected labor.

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If you own a TiVo, and occasionally find yourself perusing its “To Do List” page as a quick-and-easy way to see which of your Season Passes have upcoming episodes, then TV Forecast is exactly what you didn’t know you were looking for. Its streamlined interface is kind of a mobile ” TiVo To Do List” for your iPhone. (It doesn’t actually work in conjunction with your TiVo; it’s just a metaphor).

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vs.

I’ll be honest. I’m not a big fan of The Bible. I stole my only copy of The Bible from a hotel room. So when I want to look up a verse, I don’t want to pay for the Word of God. I want it to be free, like the Good Lord and  Gideons intended.

So when I went browsing for Bible apps on in the App Store, I only looked for the free ones. And was pleasantly surprised by what I found. Only 2 that were free that I could see, but both offer multilple translations of The Bible, but with slightly different features.

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Is it “BoxOffice?” Is it “Now Playing?” WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?

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How many Apple fanbois will be waving THIS at the next MacWorld Keynote? I know I will.

Brr. It’s cold, but at least it’s free cold.

FINALLY. A god blessed cribbage app. What took so long?

Unfortunately it’s EXTREMELY basic. The most basic graphics imaginable. No fancy animation. No skill level choice. No play against another person. No sound.

The game play is fine. I couldn’t really spot any places where I would play much differently than the bot. But no animation means you can’t tell precisely how many points were gained pegging, because the cardplay and peg movements occur at the same time. So while you’re playing the cards you miss the peg advance. But there is a numerical counter.

But all the graphics are incredibly SMALL. Barely readable. It’s hard to tell the difference between clubs and spades, at least to my tired old eyes.

Do you really really need a cribbage game on the phone? Then pay the $5. If you’re indifferent about the game, save your money and wait for a better, slicker, more readable interface.