There’s a lot of back and forth going on in the debate about patents — and by conflation, trademarks and copyrights — these days. Everyone has an opinion, pro or con, informed or emotional, engaged or dismissive. And that’s good, because like it or not, the current patent debate matters.

It’s easy to think that patents are something that should only concern the mega-companies and the lawyers, the rich and the litigious. But that’s not the case at all. Today’s abstract patent case is tomorrow’s loss of a gadget or an app. Already Apple has a temporary injunction that prevents Samsung from resupplying Galaxy Tab 10.1′s in most of Europe. If it’s not overturned soon, a consumer walking into the store in Germany may not be able to buy the device they want to buy. Likewise, Lodsys’ lawsuits against developers has caused some to consider removing their apps from the US market. That means a consumer going to the App Store might not be able to buy the software they want to buy.

Patents, and the ongoing lawsuits surrounding them, matter to consumers not just in the abstract sense that we should all take an active roll in shaping the societies in which we live, but in the real sense that that they directly relate to what we can and can’t buy.

And we don’t have to be experts, versed in every facet of patent law to understand that, or to be righteously indignant about the current state of patents, any more than we need to be a physicist to worry about nuclear proliferation or social scientist to worry about civil rights. Its impossible for everyone to understand everything about every issue. It’s impossible for those charged with making and enforcing our laws to understand everything about every issue.

But we understand something. We see crazy patent after crazy patent granted years after the ideas have become public, ignoring prior art, ignoring obviousness, and we see the gadgets and apps we want distracted and derailed by crazy lawsuit after crazy lawsuit, and we — the non-patent-law-educated-public — understand that something is broken.

“Perception is reality” is a cliché for a reason — public perception certainly can sway and shape reality, and the court of public opinion can sometimes be as influential as the court of law. Right now, whether you agree with the current patent system or not, there seems to be a general public perception, at least among technology enthusiasts, that the system isn’t really serving the public interest. Ideas seem to be rushed out simply to be patented and bought, sold, and licensed as commodities. The USPTO seems to have almost abdicated its role in determining the validity of patents and simply grants almost all of them, preferring to let companies and individuals determine validity through costly, time consuming, and disruptive litigation. And some companies seem to be willfully infringing on patents just because they think they’re beyond the law. To us, the uninvolved but ultimately affected technology enthusiasts, it absolutely seems broken.

Whether there’s a way to fix it or not isn’t the point. Whether companies should be amassing giant, nuclear stockpiles of patents to deter lawsuits, whether non-practicing entires (often trolls) should be allowed to sue independent developers, whether the USPTO should grant patents with so much prior art my grandmother would find them obviously flawed, whether one giant company should be able to misappropriate the work of another, whether you even care about patents isn’t the point and isn’t important. The discussion is the point. The discussion is important. The discussion matters.

The discussion matters to the companies that make our gadgets, to the developers that make our apps, and to us, the consumers, who ultimately get those gadgets and apps — or not.

This is and issue that will shape and define the industry we work in or simply the technology we love, not in the abstract but in reality. And this discussion absolutely matters.

[Recommended reading: Nilay Patel, Marco Arment, Mark Cuban]

Twitterrific for iPhone and iPad has been updated with Tweet Marker, a new feature that syncs timeline positions across all versions.

This new feature makes me really excited! To me, it’s a no-brainer for developers to include this ability with their Twitter apps and I look forward to it becoming the norm. Now if Twitterrific would just add native push notifications, it’d be pretty darn close to perfect.

Details and screenshots after the break.

[App Store link]

Now a universal app for both iPad & iPhone, Twitterrific is the friendly, award-winning Twitter client that's beautiful to look at easy to use and full of elegant features. Effortlessly read and compose tweets, search Twitter.com, filter message types and much more.

• Twitterrific now syncs timeline positions across all versions via Tweet Marker
• Universal app for iPhone and iPad
• Simple to use, easy to understand
• Unified display for replies, re-tweets, direct messages, mentions & more
• Timeline syncing of reading position across all versions via Tweet Marker
• Create Twitter-based searches & view lists
• Browse conversation threads between users
• Follow, un-follow and block Twitter users easily
• Filter timeline for specific tweet types & trends
• Helpful actions including: re-tweet, link shortening, email & tweet translation

Twitterrific for Twitter is available on the iPhone and iPad for free with an optional $4.99 in-app purchase to upgrade to premium.

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

Every day, TiPb gets flooded with announcements for new and updated iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad apps and games. So every day we pick just a few of the most interesting, the most notable, and simply the most awesome to share with you!

• SushiChop: Cut with precision and skill to fill each tray before the timer runs out. Fill a tray chopping the fewest fish necessary to earn a Perfect Chop bonus, but beware the stinky green fish! [$0.99 for iPhone - App Store link] [$2.99 for iPad - App Store link]

• Puzzle Puzzle 2: Defend our town before pudding slime take our town! [$0.99 for iPhone - App Store link]

• Doozy: A fresh approach to productivity and tracking which gives events visual representations instead of showing them in uniform lists and columns. With heavy use of icons, images, colors and other visual cues, Doozy lets you see what you need to do – literally! [$2.99 for iPhone - App Store link]

• History Challenge: WWII: Test your knowledge of World War II history in this fun, fast-paced and exciting history quiz written by a college history professor. [$0.99 for iPhone and iPad - App Store link]

• Granny vs Zombies: The Zombies are in town, and its up to you to send them back to where they came from! You start playing as a lovable granny, but don’t be fooled by appearances! This granny is really kick-ass! Collect different weapons, items, cash, and blast your way through the hordes of Zombies to clean-up the town. [$0.99 for iPhone - App Store link] [$1.99 for iPad - App Store link]

Any other big apps or game releases or updates today? If you pick any of these up, let us know what you think!

IM+ Pro, the popular instant messaging client for the iPhone and iPad, is on sale for 40% off.

Of all the IM clients available, IM+ has always been my favorite.

Features and screenshots after the break.

[App Store link]

• NEW! Neighbors offers a new dimension of communication in IM+ by providing users the opportunity to find new real life connections and friends with common interests.
• No cost per message! Send photos, voice msgs, videos, and IM for free and save on MMS/SMS! IM+ uses your existing data plan or Wi-Fi connection. Voice messages are sent as MP3 files and can be played back on any Mac, PC, or mobile.
• Apple push notifications: Stay connected even after closing IM+! You’ll be notified when you receive a new message or when certain contact comes online (customizable) in all supported networks up to 7 days after closing the application!
• New email push notifications – Get notified instantly when you get a new e-mail. Supports AOL, Hotmail, Yahoo!, and GMail.
• Speech recognition (as in-app purchase) – The very FIRST and the ONLY speech recognition service for instant messaging on iPhone! Easy as 1-2-3. Dictate messages instead of typing them in! Offered on a monthly basis. English only.
• Group chat – Invite your friends to Skype, MSN, AIM, and ICQ group chats and enjoy group conversations. Incoming Skype calls can be recorded and played back instantly as voice messages.
• Twitter – View friends’ feeds, favorites, direct messages and replies. Update your Twitter with voice, photo or geo-location messages. ReTweet, Geo Timeline, and Search!
• Custom status and geo-location – Create your own status messages, or use geo-location to update your status so that your friends can see where you are and easily locate you on a map!
• Chat history – Access chat history in app and at https://plus.im
• Built-in browser – Multi-task with a built-in browser! Surf the web and open links from conversations without leaving IM+.
• Animated emoticons and customizable sounds – IM+ is the only application in App Store with awesome animated emoticons! Emoticons can be turned on or off. Use different sounds for different IM+ actions, such as incoming messages, contact coming online, push alert, etc.

IM+ is on sale for $5.99 (originally $9.99).

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

I’m really looking forward to the new, system-wide “Assistant” voice control system Apple’s rumored to be including in iOS 5. From the leaks, it looks like it might be implemented similar to Android — a microphone button on the keyboard that you press to tell your iPhone or iPad you want to talk to it, then it takes your voice command or text entry, sends it to Apple’s servers, and either does what you told it to do or types the text you told it to type.

Currently iOS takes very simple commands like “call” or “play”… and I almost never use it. Holding down the home button for a few seconds then waiting for it to beep and be ready just seems… slow. I’m not sure if the microphone button will be any better, honestly. Now if Apple figured out some way for it to be quietly waiting for a special code phrase that I could say to make it wake up and start listening, that would be sweet, but the technology, especially the impact on battery life, probably isn’t there yet.

It should at least be far more functional that the current system. With Apple’s purchase of Siri and the rumors of their Nuance (the makers of Dragon Dictation) deal, I expect I’ll be able to do much more, like:

“iPhone, get me a taxi at the corner of Sherbrooke and Crescent.” “iPad, make me a dinner reservation at Gibby’s at 8pm tomorrow.” “iPod touch, take a note — bug Seth on the podcast tonight. So say we all.”

Will it work well enough and smoothly enough that I’ll actually use it? That I don’t know.

What are you looking for in iOS 5 “Assistant”? Would something like Android’s existing implementation be enough? What’s your realistic assessment of what Apple can deliver, and what’s your totally unrealistic hope?

Bloomberg reports that Nintendo investors are beginning to pressure the console and handheld gaming giant to start offering their iconic titles, such as Super Mario, Donkey Kong, Metroid, Zelda, etc. on Apple’s iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad platform.

On July 6, Nintendo shares jumped the most in almost four months after Pokemon Co., a former unit, said it's developing a game for the iPhone and handsets running on Mountain View, California-based Google Inc.'s Android software. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) sent a note to clients saying the move indicated Nintendo may begin making titles for products outside its proprietary hardware.

Hours later, Nintendo denied any change in strategy, and the shares surrendered gains.

Instead, Nintendo is cutting the price of their thus far disappointed 3DS handheld, and betting on their new Wii U console.

Sega and Atari, who exited the console space years ago, offer a variety of titles on iOS, while Playstation maker Sony has brought PSP-like services to Android devices and Microsoft is building XBox Live into Windows Phone.

Nintendo could likewise try to create their own smartphone or tablet, partner with an existing company (RIM BlackBerry or HP webOS?) or simply start offering titles for existing platforms, like iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

They could even test the waters by releasing only their classic arcade or SNES titles, like the aforementioned Sega and Atari have done. (And what bootleg emulators already offer.)

But it doesn’t sound like current management has any plans to do that, any time soon.

[Bloomberg]

According to Digitial Music News, eight years and almost as many strategies later, Walmart is closing their MP3 Music Download store its $0.88 tracks in the face of insurmountable competition from Apple’s iTunes and associated devices like iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

“After eight years in business, the Walmart Music Downloads Store located at mp3.walmart.com will close on August 28, 2011. All content in the Store will be disabled and no longer available for download from the store.

“The sale of physical record music products on Walmart.com as well as in Walmart US retail stores will remain unaffected. Walmart Soundcheck (soundcheck.walmart.com) will remain operational as a live streaming site without any download options.”

They’ll keep the DRM servers running for customers who purchased WMA music before Walmart switched to unprotected MP3.

Still, Walmart gets added to Yahoo! Music Unlimited, MTV URGE, AOL MusicNow, MusicMatch Jukebox, and growing list of others to exist the music download business. Which is unfortunate because iTunes needs rivals, and not just subscription services like Rdio, Spotify, Zune, Slacker, Pandora, etc., or music lockers like Amazon Cloud or Google Music Beta.

Amazon MP3 is still going strong, though Amazon has failed to grow the service internationally, and has yet to begin offering associated devices of their own, like their much-rumored Android-based tablet. Is the age of downloadable music, outside of iTunes, simply coming to an end?

[Digital Music News]

Chat for GTalk is a Google Talk client for the iPhone. The appearance is highly customizable and comes with three themes.

I’m not a big Google Talk user, but if I was, the UI and themes for this app would suck me in.

Details, screenshots, and video after the break.

[App Store link]

Chat for Gtalk offers a unique ability to completely change the appearance of chat window, contact list, fonts and background colors of the app. The first version of Chat for Gtalk introduces three fancy themes: Paper, Racing and Simple White.

• Chat with your GTalk / Google+ friends with the niftiest messenger on the App Store
• Give your friends the idea of what you're up to with customizable status messages
• Cloud-based Chat History with easy access to any conversation you had earlier
• Send pictures on the go right from the app
• Push notifications will deliver incoming messages even if you are not in Chat for GTalk
• Integrated Web browser: open links from the conversations without leaving the app
• Supports both landscape and portrait orientations for your convenience
• Splendid graphic emoticons

Chat for GTalk is available on the iPhone for $0.99.

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

If you’re currently running iOS 5 beta 5 but just can’t live without your jailbreak, the Dev Team has already released RedSn0w beta 5. The only catch is, it’s tethered, just like the previous beta versions of RedSn0w for iOS 5.

Be advised that not all jailbreak apps and tweaks have been updated to support iOS 5. If you’re alright with running tethered and don’t mind a few bugs here and there, follow along for a quick walkthrough.

By this point, almost anyone jailbreaking is already familiar with RedSn0w and how it works. It’s no different this time.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak it on iOS 5!

What you need

• iOS 5 beta 5 IPSW from Apple’s Developer Portal
• RedSn0w 0.9.8b5 – Mac Link, Windows Link

After you have iOS 5 beta 5 installed on your device and your version of iTunes upgraded to 10.5 beta 5, follow the steps below to jailbreak.

1. First launch RedSn0w.



2. It should ask you to navigate to a firmware file. Simply navigate to the iOS 5 beta 5 firmware file instead of beta 2.
3. Once you click next, RedSn0w will take a minute to do it's thing. You should see a patching kernel message and that Redsn0w successfully recognized your firmware.



4. Next select the options you'd like RedSn0w to perform. I typically only select Install Cydia. It's worth noting that this is where you will perform a tethered boot if needed as well. You will just select Just boot tethered for now if you need to do this or your device reboots or dies.



5. Redsn0w will now walk you through putting your device into DFU mode



6. After you're successfully in DFU mode, simply let Redsn0w do its thing and you're done!

That’s it! The process is pretty much the same as the first time around. But if you do run into problems or have questions, make sure you check out our TiPb Jailbreak Forums. We’ve got tons of great members more than ready and willing to help!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

While yesterday Apple only briefly passed Exxon to become the most valuable company in the world for a few minutes, today they managed to close that way. Whether they close that way tomorrow or not doesn’t matter. Whether they continue to rack up these type of accomplishments or go on to yet again eclipse them, whether they continue to lay, an image of the splendor of Silicon Valley in glory undimmed before the introduction of the microprocessor, doesn’t matter.

Today, Apple closed as the most valuable company in the world, by market cap.

And iPhone 5 hasn’t even been announced yet.

What on earth is next?