The number of tiles is the same, the board layout differences are the colors and locations of the bonus squares (which offer the same bonuses as scrabble). The rules are exactly the same....
The only thing I can say is, they don't call it "Scrabble"
I've pointed out how it's different. The rules are not exactly the same. If you can show me where a 15x15 board is patent violation I'm all ears*.
* It's a figure of speech, obviously I'll be all eyes in this medium.
I suggest that the better way to handle knock-offs is to focus on "Store Shelves."
Whatever the categories -- keep the 50 Essentials on a Shelf. As something better comes along, it should get replaced. These shouldn't necessarily be the highest rated -- but should be more like an Editor's pick, where some thought goes into the quality and utility of the app. You walk into a Grocery store or a Hardware store and it's the same thing; the only have so much shelf space, so they don't shovel in everything from a flea market.
In the virtual world, the bargain bin and the flea market can be unlimited -- no harm done. But like Google's "ad words" or someone gaming the SEO rankings; that first screen when you search is the most important. People only have so much they can look at.
Apple already does this so some degree with their "Editor's picks" ratings system, and Top 50. Top 50 is some combination of "new" and "popular" and likely with a nod to the big players.
But what we really need is a "What's Related?" screen in these cases with apps that are close to what we are looking at. So the Knock-off would be there if we clicked on it, and so also would be it's target. When I shop at Amazon or look at a video on Netflix, there's always that "People who bought this also liked THESE." So the knock-off Bottle Pop can be seen next to Bottle Blow, and someone can see them by rating and popularity.
>> Still, there are some blatant knockoffs -- which might require a case-by-case removal -- but Apple should err on the side of "promote the good" rather than "kill the bad." Knock-offs are a way that developers can become more experienced, and they reduce costs to end users.
>> I'd much prefer Apple ADD the ability to "forget this app" as I seem to be committed to upgrading every dang App I've ever tried or downloaded forever, regardless of how lame it was, or if it's just old and abandoned.
I've pointed out how it's different. The rules are not exactly the same. If you can show me where a 15x15 board is patent violation I'm all ears*.
* It's a figure of speech, obviously I'll be all eyes in this medium.
I don't like either one of them, because you can look up words before you place the tiles, or it tells you that a word is invalid (and you can play a different word). There should be a point penalty for placing a made-up word on the board or for exiting the game during play. OK, make these game options that both players would have to live by. Otherwise, neither game is worth a sou, IMO. I still have my original S&R Scrabble from the mid-50s, anyway.
I don't like either one of them, because you can look up words before you place the tiles, or it tells you that a word is invalid (and you can play a different word). There should be a point penalty for placing a made-up word on the board or for exiting the game during play. OK, make these game options that both players would have to live by. Otherwise, neither game is worth a sou, IMO. I still have my original S&R Scrabble from the mid-50s, anyway.
There are many things I don't like about WwF that I would love to change and hopefully I'll be able to code well enough one day to create my own game.
Scrabbulous/Lexicous had the ability to play a game with any word you choose and have the opponent challenge that word. I didn't like that! It meant that any unknown word was challenged but with WwF I tend to find a word by accident and then look up and (try to) memorize the definition and etymology. I can say I've added more to my lexicon that way than with Scrabble's challenge method.
I do think the unlimited place and submit feature is excessive but there is no way to stop people from looking up words outside the game. You should always play the game to the best of your ability, trying to excel with each placement, not worrying about what the other opponent scores. The design is excellent for this type of dual-solitaire game. For example, if I beat an opponent who only gets 200 points to my 220 points then I wouldn't consider that a victory because my goal is currently 400 points per game.
I have memorized all 104 2 letter words used by the ENABLE word list in WwF and I'm working on figuring out a strategy of when one should use change tiles instead of placing a low point value word. I'm a little obsessed with the game.
edit: Some pro tips:
Playing multiple 2-letter words per round not only increases your score in an offensvie manuevure but also works to defensively prevent opponnents from building off your word extentions.
There are no 2-letter words that use the letters C or V.
The letters J, Q and Z can only make the 2-letter words JO, QI and ZA so those letters can't be placed at the end of a 2-letter word.
The words SH, HM, and MM are the only all consonent 2-letter words. These are easy to remember because they only use 3 different letters in all.
You're not even trying to hide the fact that you're ConradJoe, are you?
How the frick is it Apple's fault that developers aren't testing their stuff?!
They even say that in the linked article. For heaven's sake.
Hey, the worst offenders for crashing on my iPad are Safari and the AppStore App. On my iPad 1 iOS 5.01 is far less responsive, mirroring many of the complaints of early Adroid phones and tablets, and far less stable. For a good notification system and a couple of extra gestures the experience has been far from satisfactory.
So no, it's not the fault of the developers. Apple needs to improve iOS 5. That said, I'm sure they will.
However, well done Apple for going after the copycats. Hundreds of thousands of Apps is pretty confusing when trying to support the original developers over the copycats.
Are they really clones in the sense of 99% identical art, game play etc. Or just the same idea (match 3 gems, run a farm etc).
The former is copyright violation, the latter is not. And many of the games pulled for the former were so identical that even huge chunks of the code were the same. I think you would agree that that is definitely bad
Some of Gameloft's games are *really* close the game they are cloning. While none of the actual art is stolen pixel for pixel, it's so clearly 'inspired' there can be absolutely no doubt.
Zynga go even further. The recent Tiny Tower debacle shows that.
Apple should remove pretty much everything by Zynga and Gameloft.
You need to get your facts straight. Sure, Hasbro is probably pissed at Zynga but it's not because they are stealing anything, instead it would be because Zynga is more popular, but that would be petty.
WwF is does not copy the board layout, does not copy the rules, does not copy the number of tiles, does not compare itself to Scrabble, and does not use their name. This is why they are in the the clear and why Srabbulous had to alter pretty much everything about itself before coming back as Lexulous.
If you want to argue that the 15x15 grid with letter on them is theirs outright then you'll need to show that Hasbro still ha a valid patent on the base design from 60 years and that prior art doesn't affect it. I'm guessing that Hasbro has no case or they would have gone after Zynga the way they went after Scrabbulous.
Lol I never wanna hear anyone who agrees with this ever claim "Android is a clone of iOS" again
Lol I never wanna hear anyone who agrees with this ever claim "Android is a clone of iOS" again
If Words with Friends came out as a board game that was nearly identical to Scrabble a year after it was released then Hasbro would have a case.
If Words with Friends tried to make the design of the packing look so similar that it would confuse customers that didn't know to look at specific details like the manufacturer name then Hasbro would have a case, just like with Apple against Samsung.
If Words with Friends copied everything verbatim from Scrabble like Scrabbulous did then Hasbro would have a case against Zynga.
There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line. There might even be direct code copied from Apple and/or Oracle by google for Android OS. That is copyright infringement. You need to read and understand the facts before you spout your generalized, subjective anti-Apple rhetoric. We know you hate Apple for being successful, it's strange but it is your choice, but at least try to be a little objective when you post so you don't come across as a complete arse.
PS: You go ahead and mimic aspects of iOS UI from 2007 in the year 2070 and let us know how Apple responds.
If Words with Friends came out as a board game that was nearly identical to Scrabble a year after it was released then Hasbro would have a case.
If Words with Friends tried to make the design of the packing look so similar that it would confuse customers that didn't know to look at specific details like the manufacturer name then Hasbro would have a case, just like with Apple against Samsung.
If Words with Friends copied everything verbatim from Scrabble like Scrabbulous did then Hasbro would have a case against Zynga.
There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line. There might even be direct code copied from Apple and/or Oracle by google for Android OS. That is copyright infringement. You need to read and understand the facts before you spout your generalized, subjective anti-Apple rhetoric. We know you hate Apple for being successful, it's strange but it is your choice, but at least try to be a little objective when you post so you don't come across as a complete arse.
PS: You go ahead and mimic aspects of iOS UI from 2007 in the year 2070 and let us know how Apple responds.
Touchwhiz =\\= Android.
Try again.
Also find where I am seen hating Apple. At all. In any of my posts. Or stfu.
I'm inclined to think you're full of shit.
Also there is no direct code from Apple in Android. Apple would know. Android is Open Source.
Oracle remains to be seen.
Point is people attack Android for going from a "bb clone to an iOS clone" visually.
Based on your post that I quoted this is simply not true.
If you're going to post at least stay on the point to the person you are responding to. No where in my comment did I equate Touchwiz to Android. In fact, I clearly and deliberately stated, "There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line."
If you're going to post at least stay on the point to the person you are responding to. No where in my comment did I equate Touchwiz to Android. In fact, I clearly and deliberately stated, "There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line."
Point is none of those = Android.
You'll find no argument from me that Samsung needs to be stopped, though.
Not sure why people or develops though selling their product in the App Store would be any different than walking down the streets of NYC or any large city for that fact. There are so many people who are more than willing to make their living off copying and selling the ideas of others.
It is the consumers faults, if they did not support these blatant knock off both in software as well as material goods then these people would go away and die.
We all live in a society of people who do not want to pay, and they feel they are entitle to have all the nice things others have even though they refuse to work or earn it.
We are all just seeing the net results of consumer not caring and the government and companies not caring. Face the government has not vested interest in stopping the counterfeiting, why because the people selling the stuff turn around and spend their money at other stores and service since they can not life in their counterfeit product nor eat them.
So expect nothing less from Apple they make money whether you by the original or the knock off, it is not a lost to them.
Comments
The number of tiles is the same, the board layout differences are the colors and locations of the bonus squares (which offer the same bonuses as scrabble). The rules are exactly the same....
The only thing I can say is, they don't call it "Scrabble"
I've pointed out how it's different. The rules are not exactly the same. If you can show me where a 15x15 board is patent violation I'm all ears*.
* It's a figure of speech, obviously I'll be all eyes in this medium.
Whatever the categories -- keep the 50 Essentials on a Shelf. As something better comes along, it should get replaced. These shouldn't necessarily be the highest rated -- but should be more like an Editor's pick, where some thought goes into the quality and utility of the app. You walk into a Grocery store or a Hardware store and it's the same thing; the only have so much shelf space, so they don't shovel in everything from a flea market.
In the virtual world, the bargain bin and the flea market can be unlimited -- no harm done. But like Google's "ad words" or someone gaming the SEO rankings; that first screen when you search is the most important. People only have so much they can look at.
Apple already does this so some degree with their "Editor's picks" ratings system, and Top 50. Top 50 is some combination of "new" and "popular" and likely with a nod to the big players.
But what we really need is a "What's Related?" screen in these cases with apps that are close to what we are looking at. So the Knock-off would be there if we clicked on it, and so also would be it's target. When I shop at Amazon or look at a video on Netflix, there's always that "People who bought this also liked THESE." So the knock-off Bottle Pop can be seen next to Bottle Blow, and someone can see them by rating and popularity.
>> Still, there are some blatant knockoffs -- which might require a case-by-case removal -- but Apple should err on the side of "promote the good" rather than "kill the bad." Knock-offs are a way that developers can become more experienced, and they reduce costs to end users.
>> I'd much prefer Apple ADD the ability to "forget this app" as I seem to be committed to upgrading every dang App I've ever tried or downloaded forever, regardless of how lame it was, or if it's just old and abandoned.
I've pointed out how it's different. The rules are not exactly the same. If you can show me where a 15x15 board is patent violation I'm all ears*.
* It's a figure of speech, obviously I'll be all eyes in this medium.
I don't like either one of them, because you can look up words before you place the tiles, or it tells you that a word is invalid (and you can play a different word). There should be a point penalty for placing a made-up word on the board or for exiting the game during play. OK, make these game options that both players would have to live by. Otherwise, neither game is worth a sou, IMO. I still have my original S&R Scrabble from the mid-50s, anyway.
Yes. I AM an old guy.
I don't like either one of them, because you can look up words before you place the tiles, or it tells you that a word is invalid (and you can play a different word). There should be a point penalty for placing a made-up word on the board or for exiting the game during play. OK, make these game options that both players would have to live by. Otherwise, neither game is worth a sou, IMO. I still have my original S&R Scrabble from the mid-50s, anyway.
There are many things I don't like about WwF that I would love to change and hopefully I'll be able to code well enough one day to create my own game.
Scrabbulous/Lexicous had the ability to play a game with any word you choose and have the opponent challenge that word. I didn't like that! It meant that any unknown word was challenged but with WwF I tend to find a word by accident and then look up and (try to) memorize the definition and etymology. I can say I've added more to my lexicon that way than with Scrabble's challenge method.
I do think the unlimited place and submit feature is excessive but there is no way to stop people from looking up words outside the game. You should always play the game to the best of your ability, trying to excel with each placement, not worrying about what the other opponent scores. The design is excellent for this type of dual-solitaire game. For example, if I beat an opponent who only gets 200 points to my 220 points then I wouldn't consider that a victory because my goal is currently 400 points per game.
I have memorized all 104 2 letter words used by the ENABLE word list in WwF and I'm working on figuring out a strategy of when one should use change tiles instead of placing a low point value word. I'm a little obsessed with the game.
edit: Some pro tips:
http://mashable.com/2012/02/04/ios-a...-than-android/
Maybe Apple should worry less about copycat apps and more about crashing apps?
You're not even trying to hide the fact that you're ConradJoe, are you?
How the frick is it Apple's fault that developers aren't testing their stuff?!
They even say that in the linked article. For heaven's sake.
You're not even trying to hide the fact that you're ConradJoe, are you?
How the frick is it Apple's fault that developers aren't testing their stuff?!
They even say that in the linked article. For heaven's sake.
Hey, the worst offenders for crashing on my iPad are Safari and the AppStore App. On my iPad 1 iOS 5.01 is far less responsive, mirroring many of the complaints of early Adroid phones and tablets, and far less stable. For a good notification system and a couple of extra gestures the experience has been far from satisfactory.
So no, it's not the fault of the developers. Apple needs to improve iOS 5. That said, I'm sure they will.
However, well done Apple for going after the copycats. Hundreds of thousands of Apps is pretty confusing when trying to support the original developers over the copycats.
Maybe Apple should worry less about copycat apps and more about crashing apps?
The crash typically from applications created by programmers migrated from Android because they don't know basic memory allocation in C.
The crash typically from applications created by programmers migrated from Android because they don't know basic memory allocation in C.
I thought Xcode 4 (for iOS 5.0) keeps the need for memory allocation out of the hands of developers.
Are they really clones in the sense of 99% identical art, game play etc. Or just the same idea (match 3 gems, run a farm etc).
The former is copyright violation, the latter is not. And many of the games pulled for the former were so identical that even huge chunks of the code were the same. I think you would agree that that is definitely bad
Some of Gameloft's games are *really* close the game they are cloning. While none of the actual art is stolen pixel for pixel, it's so clearly 'inspired' there can be absolutely no doubt.
Zynga go even further. The recent Tiny Tower debacle shows that.
Apple should remove pretty much everything by Zynga and Gameloft.
You need to get your facts straight. Sure, Hasbro is probably pissed at Zynga but it's not because they are stealing anything, instead it would be because Zynga is more popular, but that would be petty.
WwF is does not copy the board layout, does not copy the rules, does not copy the number of tiles, does not compare itself to Scrabble, and does not use their name. This is why they are in the the clear and why Srabbulous had to alter pretty much everything about itself before coming back as Lexulous.
If you want to argue that the 15x15 grid with letter on them is theirs outright then you'll need to show that Hasbro still ha a valid patent on the base design from 60 years and that prior art doesn't affect it. I'm guessing that Hasbro has no case or they would have gone after Zynga the way they went after Scrabbulous.
Lol I never wanna hear anyone who agrees with this ever claim "Android is a clone of iOS" again
Lol I never wanna hear anyone who agrees with this ever claim "Android is a clone of iOS" again
If Words with Friends came out as a board game that was nearly identical to Scrabble a year after it was released then Hasbro would have a case.
If Words with Friends tried to make the design of the packing look so similar that it would confuse customers that didn't know to look at specific details like the manufacturer name then Hasbro would have a case, just like with Apple against Samsung.
If Words with Friends copied everything verbatim from Scrabble like Scrabbulous did then Hasbro would have a case against Zynga.
There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line. There might even be direct code copied from Apple and/or Oracle by google for Android OS. That is copyright infringement. You need to read and understand the facts before you spout your generalized, subjective anti-Apple rhetoric. We know you hate Apple for being successful, it's strange but it is your choice, but at least try to be a little objective when you post so you don't come across as a complete arse.
PS: You go ahead and mimic aspects of iOS UI from 2007 in the year 2070 and let us know how Apple responds.
If Words with Friends came out as a board game that was nearly identical to Scrabble a year after it was released then Hasbro would have a case.
If Words with Friends tried to make the design of the packing look so similar that it would confuse customers that didn't know to look at specific details like the manufacturer name then Hasbro would have a case, just like with Apple against Samsung.
If Words with Friends copied everything verbatim from Scrabble like Scrabbulous did then Hasbro would have a case against Zynga.
There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line. There might even be direct code copied from Apple and/or Oracle by google for Android OS. That is copyright infringement. You need to read and understand the facts before you spout your generalized, subjective anti-Apple rhetoric. We know you hate Apple for being successful, it's strange but it is your choice, but at least try to be a little objective when you post so you don't come across as a complete arse.
PS: You go ahead and mimic aspects of iOS UI from 2007 in the year 2070 and let us know how Apple responds.
Touchwhiz =\\= Android.
Try again.
Also find where I am seen hating Apple. At all. In any of my posts. Or stfu.
I'm inclined to think you're full of shit.
Also there is no direct code from Apple in Android. Apple would know. Android is Open Source.
Oracle remains to be seen.
Point is people attack Android for going from a "bb clone to an iOS clone" visually.
Based on your post that I quoted this is simply not true.
Touchwhiz =\\= Android.
Try again.
If you're going to post at least stay on the point to the person you are responding to. No where in my comment did I equate Touchwiz to Android. In fact, I clearly and deliberately stated, "There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line."
If you're going to post at least stay on the point to the person you are responding to. No where in my comment did I equate Touchwiz to Android. In fact, I clearly and deliberately stated, "There are many HW and SW aspects from Android-based vendors that do appear to cross the line."
Point is none of those = Android.
You'll find no argument from me that Samsung needs to be stopped, though.
Samsung =\\= Android
I thought Xcode 4 (for iOS 5.0) keeps the need for memory allocation out of the hands of developers.
optionally.
It is the consumers faults, if they did not support these blatant knock off both in software as well as material goods then these people would go away and die.
We all live in a society of people who do not want to pay, and they feel they are entitle to have all the nice things others have even though they refuse to work or earn it.
We are all just seeing the net results of consumer not caring and the government and companies not caring. Face the government has not vested interest in stopping the counterfeiting, why because the people selling the stuff turn around and spend their money at other stores and service since they can not life in their counterfeit product nor eat them.
So expect nothing less from Apple they make money whether you by the original or the knock off, it is not a lost to them.
- http://www.theverge.com/2012/2/9/278...me-development
It would be funny if Hasbro made a Words with Friends board game. Why is that funny? Because Hasbro makes Scrabble.