After blocking Facebook, YouTube and Flickr, Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) has temporarily banned BlackBerry services in the country. All telecom companies in the Pakistan have been asked to stop all the BlackBerry services.

It seems that the controversy over the caricature of Prophet Mohammad is not going to stop anytime soon. Netizens in Pakistan have been suffering due to this blocking decision, but most of the Muslim followers are supporting the government’s stand.

On the other side, some Pakistani ISPs have also blocked popular social networking and microblogging site, Twitter. Whenever users try to access Twitter in blocked areas, they receive “This site has been restricted” message in the browser.

These services are banned until May 31st. The higher authorities should resolve this issue as quickly as possible, or else it will become more difficult for users to surf freely on the internet.

[via – Daily Times]

Twitter for iPhone is finally available for iPhone users. As we discussed yesterday, Twitter has updated the old Tweetie app and re-released it as official app for iPhone platform.

Twitter has been working hard to get a solid app for iPhone and ultimately they acquired Tweetie. Now, they have slowly started releasing the new app in various countries. It would take some time to make it available in all app stores.

For those who don’t know, Tweetie app was originally designed by Loren Brichter and was priced at $2.99. However, Twitter team has decided to make it a free app for all iPhone and iPad users.

Download Twitter for iPhone

Twitter for iPhone has been updated in New Zealand and US app stores. Although this app is not updated in all countries, it will be available in App Store soon.

Few weeks back, Twitter acquired the highly popular Tweetie app to launch it as an official Twitter app for iPhone. Tweetie for iPhone is known for its simplicity and elegant look, and now it seems that Twitter is going to re-release this app for users.

TechCrunch folks report that Tweetie app has been removed from Apple’s app store. This could possibly mean that Twitter has finalized all tasks related to Twitter for iPhone.

Tweetie user are actually disappointed with this move, as they have paid ($2.99) for this amazing app. Twitter for iPhone will be available for free of cost; new users don’t have to pay single penny to use it on their device.

However, nobody knows the new features of official Twitter app for iPhone. Also, there is no confirmation on Twitter for iPad. Let’s hope that Twitter team will release an app for iPad too.

If these ongoing assumptions are true, we might get official Twitter for iPhone app tomorrow. On the other hand, Twitter is working on official app for Android users. This app is already available for users.

Twitter team has been making lots of changes in their strategies these days. They have also bought popular iPhone app ‘Tweetie’ to attract iPhone users and now they are planning to go one step ahead.

In Chirp event, Twitter’s CEO Evan Williams talked about the future of Twitter and other important aspects of the company. He also announced that Android platform will get an official Twitter app.

After announcing free official apps for iPhone and Blackberry platform, Twitter team want to grab the attention of Android users. Android platform already have some cool Twitter clients like Twitdroid and Seesmic, but arrival of the new app will hopefully bring more features.

However, it would be interesting to see whether Twitter acquires any third party client (as they did it with Tweetie for iPhone) or develop a new client for Android devices. Official application for Twitter is definitely a great thing for Twitter users, but small developers will feel the true competition.

Third party developers have to work really hard to sustain in this huge competition, or else they will lose everything in the business.

In recent years, Twitter has shown the potential of their service to the world. Many people tried to replicate the same concept and built similar services for users. Google has also launched their Twitter-like service Google Buzz, but they couldn’t attract Internet users.

Now, Microsoft has come up with their own service, which can be used in large organizations. The new service is named as OfficeTalk.

Microsoft has been trying OfficeTalk in their working environment and employees are responding quite well to this service.

Here’s what Microsoft said on OfficeTalk:

Microblogging has that potential. OfficeTalk is a concept test to explore the value of microblogging in the enterprise. OfficeTalk is deployed internally at Microsoft and has seen over 10,000 visitors and hundreds of messages posted daily. We’re now making OfficeTalk available to a few customers in a small pilot test. Because this is an early-stage concept, the OfficeTalk microblogging experience itself looks very similar to other well-known services. The key difference is that the enterprise owns the data since the OfficeTalk server is hosted in the customer’s organization.

Screenshots of OfficeTalk

Of course, it is not available for public use. As they said, it will only be useful for enterprises and organizations. So, if you are running such large business, you should try out OfficeTalk.

How to apply for OfficeTalk?

Well, there is an easy way to participate in pilot test. Just go to the following link and submit a form given by Microsoft Office Labs.

OfficeTalk Concept Test

Although OfficeTalk is very similar to Twitter, Microsoft has innovatively found the best use of microblogging for office users. For more information, head over to Office Labs.

What are your opinions on OfficeTalk? Will it be as successful as Twitter? Share your opinions below.

Thanks Imran.

If you are a Twitter user, you would know that there are thousands of apps available on the internet. Some of them are really good and others are designed to make money online.

I personally don’t use many Twitter apps on my Twitter account as I love the simplicity of this social networking site. But today, I want to share an interesting Twitter app which impressed me a lot and will definitely be useful for all Twitter users.

Nischal Shetty of twi5.com has developed “JustUnfollow” app for Twitter users who want to get rid of unwanted people from their account. It lets you find and unfollow Twitter users who do not follow you.

Sometimes we follow some unknown users who tweets good information or thoughts for short period and then they completely disappear from the timeline. I think JustUnfollow is a great app to unfollow such people from the list. You can simply select the Tweeters from your list and unfollow them with just one click.

According to Nischal, JustUnfollow app has garnered 5000+ registered users in last 12 days and now it’s making into the list of fastest growing Twitter apps. He is also planning to provide multi-lingual support to the app so that people from non-English speaking countries can use it without any trouble.

Looking at the popularity of this app, it will become one of the most used apps on Twitter. You can try JustUnfollow app here – JustUnfollow.com

Google has just announced its new Twitter like service, Google Buzz. Google’s Vice President for product Management, Bradley Horowitz has officially released this service to all Google users.

Google Buzz is basically a part of popular Gmail service and it has some basic features to get social with other web users. You can check the features below.

Features of Google Buzz

• Public and private sharing
• Inbox facility
• Auto-following
• Fast sharing experience
• Custom Photo Viewer
• Group integration support
• Limited API support
• Works on Android, iPhone and Symbian mobile operating systems

It collects data from other services such as Picasa, Twitter and Flickr. You can use same keyboard shortcuts as Gmail. It supports @reply which are currently available on Twitter.

You can access Google Buzz from 3 places -

• Google Mobile’s website
• Buzz.Google.com
• Google Mobile Maps

Google Buzz can find out the location of the person just like GPS service. It supports voice recognition and publish your updates in real time. Users can also use Google Maps with Buzz.

Google Buzz is looking an interesting concept and I just hope that it will not become just another service like Google Wave.

Watch Google Buzz Official Video

HTC has proved its potential by launching some of the best mobile phones in this year. HTC Hero, one of the most appreciated phones, has also managed to attract many mobile users.

Now, HTC’s Windows Mobile phone, HTC HD2, has been receiving all the attention because of its amazing features. Today, HTC Russian twitter account confirmed that HD2 will get Windows 7 Mobile upgrade.

Here’s the translated tweet about HD2 -

With Snapdragon processor, HD2 gives very good performance. It comes with Windows Mobile 6.5, which is slightly sluggish mobile OS. However, it is being said that Microsoft will release Windows Mobile 7 in Q3 or Q4 of 2010. So, in case you’re planning to buy HTC HD2 in upcoming days, don’t wait for too long.

[via - RedmondPie]

Christmas is just around the corner and I’m sure all of you must be planning something to make this Christmas season special and delightful. Well, if you are on Twitter and want to celebrate Christmas with your friends, then changing your Twitter theme according to Christmas festival would be a good idea.

How to put new theme on Twitter? It’s really simple. You can use following list of resources to get your Christmas Twitter theme and apply it through Twitter settings.

Twitter Themes for Christmas

Santa Theme

Download Link

Holiday Snow Theme

Download Link

Merry Christmas Theme

Download Link

Santa Snowflakes Theme

Download Link

White Teddy Bears Theme

Download Link

Candy Canes Theme

Download Link

Christmas Winter Theme

Download Link

Holiday Presents Theme

Download Link

Christmas Holidays Theme

Download Link

Now, use these Twitter themes and backgrounds on your account and make it special for the festive season.

If you know any other Twitter theme, please let me know. I will add your theme in above list.

Google Wave is an amazing open source service and it has great potential to replace social networking sites in the future. I have been trying Google Wave for past few weeks to understand its working procedure, usability and extensions support.

At the first moment, Google Wave looks like a different geeky world. But once you get familiar with its basic concepts, it becomes a friendly tool. I have found some interesting Google Wave Extensions which will add extra fun to your waving experience.

List of Google Wave Extensions and Gadgets

1. Wikify

As we know, Wikipedia is a biggest encyclopedia on the internet. Wikify gives you an additional functionality to find difficult terms and phrases on Wikipedia.

Add Wikify address in your wave list to use Wikipedia on Google Wave.

Wikify Address: wikifier@appspot.com

2. Dr. Musical Wave

Dr. Musical wave is a simple extension for music lovers. It gives information about what music is being played on last.fm.

Dr. Musical Wave Address: dr-music@appspot.com

3. Dr Weather

It is a weather related extension which gives you an idea of weather in the city. Add Dr Weather using following address.

Dr Weather Address: shiny-sky@appspot.com

4. Tweety

If you’re a Twitter addict, tweety is currently the best extension available on Google Wave. Tweety allows you to update and track your Twitter timeline from single wave.

Tweety for Google Wave: tweety-wave@appspot.com

5. URL Shortening

Twitter’s default url shortening service, bit.ly can be used in Google Wave. You don’t have to leave your on-going wave; bit.ly bot allows you to trim long URLs in same wave.

Bit.ly for Google Wave: bitly-bot@appspot.com

6. Calcbot

Calcbot helps in calculating simple mathematical operations. In case you want to perform any such operations, this tool will be very useful. Keep it in your contact list.

Calcbot Address: calcbot@appspot.com

7. Google Map

Map is a built-in extension in Google Wave. You can use maps while traveling from one place to other. Maps can be enabled from Google Wave’s extension gallery.

8. AmazonBot

Amazon online shopping website is the best place to get good product deals. If you want to shop from Google Wave then there is an add-on called AmazonBot, which will help you shop products on Amazon.com

Amazon for Google Wave: amazon-withwaves-com@appspot.com

9. Sudoku

Sudoku, the popular puzzle game is now available on Google Wave. You can add sudoku gadget to your Wave list by using following import link.

Sudoku for Google Wave: Sudoku Import Link

10. TwilioBot

It is an useful bot for those who prefer calling other person from internet. One can easily contact on landline phone or cell phone using TwilioBot. For more information about Twilio, head over to their official website.

TwilioBot Address: twiliobot@appspot.com

11. iWave

iWave helps you customize and personalize user profile on Google Wave. It collects information from Facebook connect.

iWave for Google Wave: iWave Import Link

12. HTML

Now, you can add any HTML into Google Wave. It is useful for webmasters and web designers.

HTML in Google Wave: HTML Import Link

13. Slashdot Gadget

No need to search for headlines, Slashdot gadget is here to serve you latest headlines.

Slashdot Gadget for Google Wave: Slashdot Import Link

14. Yes/No/Maybe Gadget

This gadget can be used to create an interactive session in Google Wave where people will respond to the question in Yes, No or Maybe. You can add this gadget through the extension gallery.

15. Smiley

Smiley bot replaces default smiley symbols with smiley images.

Smiley for Google Wave: smiley-bot@appspot.com

16. Ratings

With the help of Ratings add-on, you can rate and review any movies, software, games etc. on Google Wave. It’s just designed for fun.

Ratings:  Import Ratings

17. Cards

Wanna play cards? There is a gadget called Cards, which lets you play card games in Google Wave

Cards for Google Wave: Cards Import Link

18. Polly

Polly helps you create different polls in a wave. Use following address and start creating polls!

Polly Address: polly-wave@appspot.com

19. Eliza

Eliza is an auto chat bot which will be a good time pass tool to keep you away from boredom.

Eliza for Google Wave: elizarobot@appspot.com

20. Hangman

It’s just another puzzle game where you need to guess the letters in blank field and if you lose the game, you will be hung as shown in image below.

Try Hangman: wavehangman@appspot.com

21. Chess

Play chess on Google Wave.

Chess Import Link

22. Flippy

Flippy is a cool extension to surprise someone in your wave group by flipping the text. Do try it once.

Flippy for Google Wave: flippy-wave@appspot.com

23. Cartoony

Cartoony can be used to enhance the conversation style. It adds a balloon around each word that you type in a wave.

Cartoony for Google Wave: cartoonybot@appspot.com

24. Stocky

Stocky is an amazing tool for traders and investors in stock market business. It displays latest value of each stock in a wave.

Stocky for Google Wave: stocky-wave@appspot.com

25. Napkin

Napkin allows you to draw or plot on a Google Wave. It is similar to MS Paint in Windows.

Napkin for Google Wave: Napkin Import Link

I’m sure you will use these amazing extensions in Google Wave. If you find them useful, drop a comment below and share your experience with other readers.

Google Wave is not released for public and you will need an invitation to join it. I am giving away few Google Wave invitations on this blog, please check here.

Also Read: 15 Useful Google Chrome Plugins