“Angry Birds Star Wars” combines the world’s biggest science fiction phenomenon with one of the most popular mobile games of all time. The game will be released on Nov. 8, for iOS, Android, Amazon Kindle Fire, Mac, PC, Windows Phone and Windows 8.

“We’re always looking for opportunities to create new and fun experiences for ‘Star Wars’ fans around the world, and video games have always been a key element of that,” Paul Southern, vice president of licensing for Lucasfilm, told Metro World News. “With over a billion downloads to date, ‘Angry Birds’ is the first entertainment phenomenon that has been born out of the rapidly growing and increasingly important casual games digital space.”

Each bird will have special powers that will be aligned with a corresponding “Star Wars” character. For example, the beloved red bird that you meet in the first levels will be none other than protagonist Luke Skywalker. The yellow bird harnesses the spirit of Han Solo.

The backgrounds will also be nostalgic for “Star Wars” fans as they take players to the various locations in the movies, including the desert planet of Tatooine and the ominous Death Star.

Southern adds that “Angry Birds Star Wars” will allow both companies to join forces to create a merchandise experience that will let fans experience the digital game in the real world.  This includes new “Star Wars” Angry Birds plush toys and action figures, which will be available on Oct. 28 at select stores.

“This is the best Angry Birds game we’ve ever done. It’s the best parts of Angry Birds with all new cutting-edge gameplay set in in a galaxy far, far away,” Peter Vesterbacka, the Mighty Eagle and CMO of Rovio, added in a press release. “As a big Star Wars fan myself, I’m really excited about this new universe. The Force is definitely strong with this one.”

The “Star Wars” edition marks the fifth installment of the “Angry Birds” saga, which includes “Angry Birds Space,” “Angry Birds Seasons,” “Angry Birds Rio” and the original “Angry Birds.”

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It was likely a campaign member or some sort of tech person who made an embarrassing typo when designing a mobile app meant to instill voter support, but that hasn’t stopped the Twittersphere from pouncing on the error.

The Mitt Romney app “With Mitt” lets users upload photos of themselves underneath various campaign slogans like “American Greatness,” “We’re With Mitt,” and the now infamous “A Better Amercia.” (In case you didn’t catch that — and someone in the Romney camp didn’t — “America” is misspelled.)

Alas, a new wave of internet memes was born as the slogan became the center of digital mockery. Here’s a roundup of the best plays on “A Better Amercia.”

[View the story "Amercia" on Storify]

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“Girls Around Me” used public APIs from Google Maps, Facebook and Foursquare to show app users who is near them and exactly where they were last seen. If someone who has public privacy settings on their Facebook then uses Foursquare to check-in somewhere, they could pop up in “Girls Around Me” without even knowing it. You don’t need to grant permission or even use the app yourself to have your photo and profile information pop up on a map.

An article by Cult of Mac pointed out that most social networking sites have default settings that make a profile public when it is first created. It’s up to the user, whether he or she knows it or not, to change the settings to make their profile private. If a user hasn’t done that, he or she is at risk for popping up in the arguably creepy app “Girls Around Me.”

Following that article, Foursquare cut the app’s API access to its data and the app was pulled from the iOS app store. The app’s developer, i-Free, defended the tool in a statement to the Wall Street Journal.

“We follow the geo-social trend for mobile devices that is supported by numerous location sharing services, networks and apps. Many other mobile apps provide the same or more extended functionality using location data provided by APIs of major social networks, i.e. Ban.jo or Sonar,” the company said.

“Girls Around Me does not allow anonymous usage of the app. It is impossible to search for a particular person in this app, or track his|her location. The app just allows the user to browse the venues nearby, as if you passed by and looked in the window,” it added.

While true, the app still raises questions about online security in a number of popular social networks. Every user has the power the customize privacy settings on profiles, but not everyone realizes how exposed their information can be if precautions are not taken.

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On the heels of an announcement heralding restaurant letter grades for lowering common health risks like vermin and bacteria, the city has launched a free iPhone app called ABCEats NYC.

It offers users information on more than 24,000 of the city’s eateries at the touch of a finger. Restaurants can be searched by name, neighborhood or current location.

Not only does the app include a restaurant’s letter grade, given by city health inspectors, it also includes details on the violations accrued.

Those violations can range from live roaches or rats to plumbing not properly installed in the facility’s restroom.

NYC diners, empower yourselves!

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Erum Malik, 31, was walking on Liberty Avenue in Ozone Park, Queens, at about 10 p.m. last Monday, Oct. 3. That’s when a man bumped into her, she told police, and reached into her front right pocket to grab her black iPhone 4.

He was off and running before she even knew what happened, she told police.

However, Malik’s phone was equipped with an app called iGotYa.

When the alleged thief later unsuccessfully tried to unlock and use the phone, the gadget snapped his photo and e-mailed it to Malik.

The mother of four sent texts to the phone, offering a $200 reward if she could get it back.

“I didn’t want him to be in trouble,” Malik told the Daily News. “I just wanted to get my phone back.”
Malik then brought the photo to the police.

“When I told them I had the picture, everyone was surprised,” she said.

Police distributed the image to the media last week and put up wanted posters in the neighborhood.
On Friday, Oct. 7, police recognized 23-year-old Queens resident Brian Chattoo from one of the posters, according to the NYPD press office.

He was arrested and charged with the theft, but his family says Chattoo looks nothing like the man in the iPhone photo.

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