Happy App Friday!
Create 3D virtual objects and then turn them into physical objects with Blox 3D Junior, free this Friday. Learn simple Mandarin words and writing with Kids Yay – Learn Chinese. Plus, security problems with Facetime, Facebook’s tracking app, and more research on screen time.
Garry Froehlich
Jellybean Tunes
Blox 3D Junior
by Arjun Gupte
Free this Friday! Blox 3D Junior lets kids create three-dimensional objects out of blocks (Minecraft style) in a simple way. The creators have now taken it a step further, letting kids with access to a 3D printer (at home, through school, or online printing services) bring their creations into the real world. You can read more about the new feature at:
http://appymonkeys.com/Blox_3D_Junior
Kids YAY – Learn Chinese
by Giant Balloon Digital, LLC
With Lunar New Year upon us, kids can learn a little Mandarin with Kids YAY. Learn words for colors, family members and vehicles, plus learn to write numbers for free. You can also unlock more words and phrases through in-app purchases.
Stories this Week
A teenager discovered a flaw in Facetime calls that lets the caller listen in on the other person before that person has even picked up. Apple has disabled group Facetime calls which will prevent the problem for now.
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/apple-turns-off-group-facetime-112542146.html
Facebook has been recruiting teenagers and young adults to install an app on their iPhones that routes everything that goes in and out of the phone through Facebook servers which gives Facebook access to basically everything they do. It’s not in the app store, but instead requires the teens to install Facebook’s enterprise certificate (enterprise certificates allow companies to create apps for internal use that don’t get put on the app store and don’t have to be reviewed by Apple). Apple has revoked the app as violating their terms of use and it should no longer work.
https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/30/apple-bans-facebook-vpn/
A study has found that too much screen time for kids at two and three years of age causes delays in language and motor skills by the time they enter school. They actually measured television time (although watching videos on phones may end up being the same thing), and state that the type of screen time may matter, and the important thing in improving child development is interaction with people.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2722666
