Software : Kickstarter joins mobile movement with official app for iPhone, iPod touch

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• Kickstarter joins mobile movement with official app for iPhone, iPod touch
• Google Now widget wanders in with Search for Android update
• Use Google Maps to spy the North Korean nuclear test facility

Kickstarter joins mobile movement with official app for iPhone, iPod touch Posted: Despite recent reports that Kickstarter's crowdfunding bubble may soon burst, the service is finally going mobile with the launch of an official app for the iPhone and iPod touch. Kickstarter announced Thursday that the company has released an official iOS app for its popular crowdfunding service, now available from the App Store. While there are already unofficial apps for Kickstarter, the official version features a completely new look that makes it easy to find and keep up to date with new projects. "We took things we've learned from the past three years of building the site, and applied them to a total redesign for the iPhone," the company noted in a blog post announcing the release. Staying connected While Kickstarter for iPhone promises to make it easier for users to find new projects to back, the app is equally useful for creators to keep backers up to date with the latest news and information from almost anywhere. Project creators receive notification of new pledges as they happen, all from a dashboard complete with statistics and the ability to add iPhone-generated photos or videos right from within the app. Kickstarter also includes built-in social features for notifying users when friends back or even launch projects, and it's easy to add Facebook friends as well. For now, the app is only available for the iPhone and iPod touch (no word on iPad support), but it should come as a blessing to the service's community of creative members. Eager users will find it up for grabs now at the App Store.

Google Now widget wanders in with Search for Android update Posted: Remember that slippery Google Now widget that appeared then vanished some 24 hours ago? It's back, and this time for good. The G-team announced Wednesday the permanent arrival of the widget that brings all pertinent Now cards front and center on the home or lock screen of your mobile device. The widget, along with a few other additions, are part of an update for Google Search for Android on devices running version 4.1 and above. While it's certainly a convenient addition to the Now crowd, it deflates speculation that such a feature would arrive with Android 5.0: Key Lime Pie. That's not to say there won't be further Now improvements whenever the new OS launches, just that the widget as we saw it yesterday has arrived. Google, which made the widget announcement in an Android blog post, assured that Now is just getting started, so we're sure to see many more updates and improvements hit the pipeline before long. How do you like me Now? Mountain View wasn't content to leave it at the widget, also unleashing movie cards with Rotten Tomatoes ratings for flicks. When purchasing tickets through Fandango, Google Now will remind would-be moviegoers when they need to leave to make showtime. Plus, it will pull up tickets upon theater arrival. In a less frivolous pursuit, Zillow has partnered with Google to provide house hunters nearby real estate listings and in-depth listing info. Card by card, Now is really becoming a handy personal assistant. Take note, Siri.

Use Google Maps to spy the North Korean nuclear test facility Posted: North Korea yesterday detonated a miniaturised nuclear explosive in a test which it is claiming was a success and the U.N. is condemning as a "grave violation of U.N. resolutions". The test was conducted in a secret testing facility, but with thanks to information gathered from North Korean dissidents and defectors, you can take a look at the test facility now on Google Maps. It's always the last place you think to look And wouldn't you know it, the test apparently took place in a large facility with the street address 1 Nuclear Test Rd. According to Mashable, pin-pointing the address came with the help of the United States Geological Survey's (USGS) Earthquake Hazard Program, which reported seismic activity in North Korea yesterday, with shockwaves measuring a magnitude of 5.1. Plugging the co-ordinates of the subterranean rumblings (41.307°N, 129.076°E) into Google Maps takes you to Nuclear Test Rd, and to the facility after a little zooming and panning. If after checking out the nuclear facility you feel like scoping out a few more places of interest on Google Maps, you can try actor Will Smith's home (which looks like a small village), or try and solve the mystery behind this huge question mark painted on the ground in France. Via Mashable

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