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iPhone Dev Center goes offline
With the WWDC Keynote in less than 2.54983712 hours, the iPhone Dev Center has gone offline. "We'll be right back" is the temporary message that graces the front page of the iPhone Dev Center. This isn't a total surprise, since this portal is Apple's one stop shop for all iPhone devolper information which will no doubt be changing in the coming hours.Our WWDC coverage continues here on TUAW. Be sure to check our WWDC 08 page and send us tips if you notice anything on Apple's site. Thanks, Drew!
Extended downtime for Tuesday May 6th
The announcement on the login screen tonight tells us that the realms will be down for extended maintenance on Tuesday May 6th, from 3:00 a.m. PDT until 11:00 a.m. PDT. It's curious how extended maintenance used to last from five until eleven, but now lasts an extra two hours – from three until eleven.Today we've seen the PTR (Public Test Realm) go down, and then come back up again. Earlier we thought this was a good indication that patch 2.4.2 was going to be released on May 6th, however with the PTR still being up, we don't believe that will be the case. Of course I could be completely wrong here – and we all might get a shiny new download screen tomorrow morning. Only time will tell, and stay tuned to WoW Insider for the latest. We'll also keep you abreast of when the realms come back online, and any lingering issues that may arise.
Netflix issuing 10% credit to make amends for downtime?
Netflix junkies the nation over were shot into a tizzy when the outfit's website went down for most of Monday. Apparently the company is looking to make up for any hard feelings created by the downtime by issuing 10-percent credits to customers. We're not certain if it's just users that should have had a title processed Monday or if its customer base at large will benefit, but according to e-mails being sent out to subscribers, 10-percent credits are being applied to accounts for the "inconveniences" caused. So, did you -- loyal Netflix subscriber, you -- get the same notification? If you're not exactly sure what you're looking for in that cesspool of messages called your inbox, click on through to peep the note in full.[Thanks, Kyle]
Burning Crusade content offline [Updated]
According to numerous reports and several personal experiences, much of the Burning Crusade content is offline on several servers, both in the U.S. and the E.U.. When attempting to access a character in any of these locations you will be presented with an error that says "World Server Down."This is no doubt from the mass of people who have flocked to the Isle of Quel'Danas in order to see the new content. While the realms and content are being bumpy tonight, checkout our extensive collection of patch 2.4 information.I'll update this post as the night goes on with the latest realm announcements. Stay tuned!Update: Realms are all online, although a tad bumpy.
Netflix site "temporarily unavailable," avid renters beside themselves
Although Netflix's site doesn't go down temporarily nearly as much as one particular fruit company, this isn't the first time we've seen the online rental outfit's website out of order. Granted, it's not like seeing the above image on its homepage is a frequent occurrence either, and it seems that many renters are at a loss for things to do on a Monday when they can't rearrange their queue. If we recall correctly, the last outage actually spanned close to a day, but here's to hoping you customers won't be forced to wait until Tuesday to fast-track From Justin to Kelly to number one on your list.Update: As of 10:39PM ET (give or take a few minutes), Netflix is back in business. Thanks, Mr Bobby![Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Still having BlackBerry issues?
We've been hearing sporadic reports from tipsters today that RIM's BlackBerry back end is buckling yet again; nothing consistent or solidly dead, but enough chatter to warrant concern that these guys seriously need to rethink their failover strategy from the ground up at this point. So who had trouble today, and are you still having issues? Are you looking into alternatives at this point, or is it going to take a lot more heartburn than this to turn you away from your beloved device?[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
RIM affirms that BlackBerry services are down -- again
Oh noes! BlackBerry addicts everywhere have reason to panic this afternoon, as their beloved network is indeed experiencing technical difficulties -- and it's certainly not the first time that this has happened in the past year. Reportedly, an e-mail sent by RIM support account manager Bryan Simpson affirmed that a "critical severity outage" had taken place. The message went on to say that it was acting as an "emergency notification regarding the current BlackBerry Infrastructure outage," that was (is) affecting enterprise subscribers and "users of the Americas network." So much for that "won't happen again" line, huh?[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Apple store is down -- say it ain't so!
Just in case you had the slightest fear that ole Steve wouldn't be introducing something worth updating the Apple store over, well, consider that fear squashed. Yep, the e-doors to the online Apple store are indeed closed, and we're betting they'll remain tightly sealed until that "one more thing" is unveiled.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Xbox Live maintenance on September 10th
Next Monday, for roughly four hours, Xbox Live will be ::gulp:: down. Yes sir, no Xbox Live for at least four hours on Monday. Messages from Microsoft's "Xbox Live" gamertag were sent out to all Live members notifying them that of the downtime, stating that the powers that be need to "upgrade the service". Below is the exact message that was sent out;"Xbox LIVE will be unavailable for approximate 4 hours on September 10th 2007 to upgrade the service starting: 02:01 PDT, 09:01 GMT and 18:01 GMT+9. See xbox.com for more information"We advise preparing some sort of replacement activity now, because when Monday rolls around and you find your Xbox Live down you may be left twiddling your thumbs. And know that thumb twiddling gets boring real quick ... you've been warned.[Thanks, xenocidic]
Guildwatch: An honest mistake
Sometimes you just mess up, you know? In today's GW, a guy gets to go on a trial run with a Black Temple-bound guild, and after seeing the amazing sight of Kael'thas being dropped for the first time, gets a little confused during the looting. Happens to the best of us, really.To get your own guild news here (or share with us some juicy drama that you've heard about), send a tip to wowguildwatch@gmail.com-- every time you drop a tip to us, a level 40 gets their mount. To read this week's GW, click the link below.
T-Mobile's prepaid refill system goes down; free minutes for all
File this under extremely annoying. According to T-Mobile, all systems for re-upping users prepaid phone minutes (online, phone-based, and refill hotspots) are not only currently inoperable, but have not been functioning correctly for the past three days. As a result, no minutes can be added to customers phones, but T-Mobile says that users of its prepaid service can continue to make calls from their phone with no charge until at least 11 pm tonight, even if they have no minutes remaining. The company hopes to correct the problems they're having by this evening, and we'll bring you more info as it becomes available. In the meantime, use this freebie to catch up with grandma!Update: Just to clarify, as far as we know this problem is affecting T-Mobile customers in the US. Also, the representative with whom we spoke said that calls would be free until 11 pm -- we have yet to hear an official announcement, however, so proceed with caution.[Thanks, Eric]
Xbox Live maintenance next Tuesday
Giving plenty of advanced notice, Major Nelson wanted to let everyone know that there is scheduled Xbox Live maintenance coming next week. On Tuesday, March 27th from 3:00AM EST to 5:00PM EST (that's 14 hours) Xbox Live, Xbox.com, and the Xbox Forums will be down and unavailable. Major is also making it clear that this is only internal maintenance and no new dashboard update will be released during this time. Though, we can expect a new dash update later this Spring. Come next Tuesday you'll have plenty of time to clean your room, wax your car, stare at the ceiling or complete a few tasks that Xbox.com recommends. We're scared ... hold us.
Server stability one month later
So, how are the servers treating everyone a month after the expansion release? Alleria's actually gotten (knock on wood) significantly better, with only one hard server disconnect last weekend. It seems that all of our instabilities are on weekends, last weekend's was Saturday, the weekend previous was on Sunday. There have also been no queues for the last two weeks, even during prime times, lag has been "acceptable" for me anyway. How are your servers treating you?
Someone's losing their head, Xbox Live is down [update 3]
It looks like Xbox Live is down ... and no explanation has hit our mailbox yet. Most people can sign into Xbox Live, but are unable to play any online games. As soon as we hear why Live went down or when it'll be back up we'll pass along the news. Hopefully it won't be too long as we've yet to see a long term outage, but prepare for the worse. Until then you can always play some Geometry Wars.Update 3: It looks like Live is up (as of 1:55AM EST) and running ... or so for our little test. We were able to host and join a ranked game of Gears of War successfully. We haven't received official confirmation that it's up and running, but it looks to be fixed.Update 2: For overnight coverage and status updates on the Live outage please visit Major Nelson. On the left side of his blog, below his gamercard, he's keeping a log of information he has received about our little Live crisis. You can do it Xbox Live techs, we have faith!Update 1: According to Xbox.com, the matchmaking aspect of Live is down. If you're experiencing issues with certain game's offline features (Gears of War), simply disconnect your Xbox 360 from the internet. Pull the plug or rip off the wireless adapter, then you'll at least be able to play campaign. Stay tuned for more updates as they filter in.
Apple Store down
The Apple Store (at least in the U.S.) is down. A quick check of newsfeeds shows that no one really knows why, as the only predictions are centering around September 12th, next Tuesday's special event. This is most likely a maintenance thing, but we'll let you know more as soon as we do.Thanks to everyone who sent this inUPDATE: Looks like there's nothing new in the store boys and girls; false alarm. Guess you'll just have to keep biting your nails for September 12th.Disclaimer: TUAW neither encourages nor condones developing or continuing the habit of biting one's nails.
Down Home Cooking: It works, it really works
When we reported on Down Home Cooking for the DS, we were intrigued at the possibilities such a title could offer. Well, a forum poster by the name of Jonnyram got ahold of it and put it to the test, creating a Sweet and Sour Pork plate through entire instruction from the title. He says it turned out good, and by the looks of it, we'd agree that it is in fact edible food and not some weird concoction of various poisons.Check out the thread, Jonnyram also goes on to answer some questions about the game.
Apple Store UK down
We're receiving tips that the Apple Store UK is down, with the infamous 'We'll be back' sticky note at center stage. There hasn't been much buzz about new products lately, and given the time of day (or night, in the UK's case), we're willing to bet this won't be anything major. Still, it's worth noting nonetheless.
Brain Age paves way for Culinary Age?
Being dubbed Down Home Cooking, this "game" looks to show the Japanese how to prepare meals. What's even cooler is that the "game" has voice recognition, so that if you're stirring something in a bowl or whatever else you do whilst preparing a meal, you can progress in the recipe. It's all Greek to me, but it looks like you can also save recipes. Whether they're user-created or favorites included in the software is as of yet unknown. [Thanks Ben!]
WoW Server Problems Under Scrutiny
If you're a WoW subscriber and you're reading this, there's a good chance that you're either at work, or unable to log into the game. Ok, that's taking it a bit far, but it's no secret that the WoW servers have a pretty bad reputation for reliability these days, and although the problem has seen improvements in some respects, overall, I think most players would agree that the issues don't seem to be improving at a steady enough rate, especially with all the problems that have followed the last two patches.ZDNet has an article on the problem, spurred in part by the outages of this past weekend. The article contains statements from both gamers & industry professionals who cast some light on the challenges faced by Blizzard in the face of overwhelming subscriber numbers & a market with basically zero competitors on the same playing field, and by frustrated players who just want to use the service they pay for.Personally, I sympathize with Blizzard to a degree, but I sympathize with my wallet more...
Online Apple Store down
As of 8:00 AM EST, the online Apple Store (US) is down. The usual sticky note graphic and "...we'll be back within the hour" text have replaced the index page. We'll keep you posted.Thanks to everyone who sent this in.
