Gamers, are you excited for next weekend's release of Spore? We sure are (even though the iPod game got pulled from the iTunes Store, darnit). I've created my first species in Creature Creator and he (it?) is ready to go.

If you're also anticipating the game, and happen to be at London's Regent Street Apple Store on Sept. 3rd at 3:00 PM, you can meet Spore creator Will Wright. He'll be talking about the game and showing it off. Here's your chance to talk with Will!

If you just can't wait, or if you want a little background to help you formulate a killer question, check out this interview Will did with cnet.

Earlier this week, Russian communications company VimpelCom announced their intention to bring the iPhone to Russia, the first company to do so. The particulars aren't available yet, but VimpelCom representatives said they hope to be selling the iPhone "...later this year."

Earlier rumors were pointing to this announcement. Last week, Reuters reported on a rumor about a deal that would bring the iPhone to Russia, identifying Mobile TeleSystems as the carrier. That rumor suggested an October launch. Also, when Steve Jobs spoke with CNBC shortly after the launch of the 3G iPhone, he said that a deal with Russia would likely happen "...later this year."

Apple plans to open two new retail stores in the US this Saturday, August 30th. One in Ridgeland, Mississippi and another in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Apple Store Renaissance at Colony Park (Ridgeland) will open at 10:00 AM. The store is located at 1000 Highland Colony Parkway, next to Williams Sonoma and J Crew. You can find full travel directions here. This will be Mississippi's first Apple Store.

Apple Store The Forum Shops will also open at 10:00 AM in sunny Las Vegas, Nevada. You'll find it at The Forum Shops At Caesars, at 3500 Las Vegas Blvd., South. Full travel directions are here. This will be Nevada's fourth store, and the third in Sin City.

If you visit either store over the weekend, please let us know! We'd love to see your pictures and stories.

[Via ifoAppleStore]

Last week, there was a story stating that Orange had hired actors to pad iPhone lineups for the Polish debut. This week, they're denying it.

According to Orange, some of their employees were joining customers in line to share in the excitement and talk about the product, not pose as potential customers. "Their aim is to welcome people to the Orange shop, share in their excitement and give information about Orange tariffs," a spokeswoman told Ad Age.

Of course, if these people were on the clock, then technically they were paid to stand in line. But now we're just splitting hairs. The original story identified fear of slow sales as Orange's motivation, but they're reporting that sales have been good in Poland.

In the end, Orange employees were in line, but not to pose as customers. Ah, good. I can sleep tonight.

[Via MacDailyNews]

The Psystar saga continues. Back in April, Psystar went public with the first commercial Hackintosh clones. For US$554, they'd send you a Core 2 Duo minitower with Mac OS X preinstalled. In June, they released rack-mount servers with Leopard Server preinstalled in both 1U (starting $1599) and 2U (starting $1999) configurations.

Last July, the inevitable happened and Apple filed a lawsuit against Psystar citing copyright infringement, and demanded that they recall all machines. Psystar responded by acquiring legal representation from Carr & Ferrell, who previously settled with Apple in another case.

Still with us? Good. This week, Psystar seems to be preparing to countersue Apple, citing anticompetitive business practices. Specifically, the suit alleges that Apple's practice of restricting OS X to Apple hardware is "...an anticompetitive restraint of trade."

We think that's a stretch, but this story sure is fun to follow. We'll keep you updated as soon as anything changes. If you want a claim-by-claim breakdown of Apple's suit against Psystar, check out Nilay Patel's full accounting over at Engadget.

[Via Electronista]

Update: Tipster Mike writes in to note that the game has disappeared from the store. As of 5:45 pm ET today, it's gone.

iPhone-wielding gamers rejoiced when EA announced a version of Spore for the iPhone, set to debut in September of this year (check out our hands-on with Spore). This week, click wheel iPod owners got a leg up, as Spore: Origins is now available in the iTunes Store [link].

Origins, as the name implies, lets players experience the 1st level of the game, in which you guide a single-cell organism through the primordial ooze. Game play is straight forward: Use the click wheel to guide Jr. around, and the center button to eat other organisms he finds. No word on sharing your progress with the full game once it's released on September 7th.

If you really can't wait, you can also download the desktop Creature Creator. Spore: Origins for iPod costs $4.99US.

Mac users love their machines for the "ease of use" and "simplicity." We agree, but completing a few simple steps (free and built-in, mind you), will make things even better.

1. Easy access from the dock

I always drag my hard drive and Applications folder into the dock. No need to minimize windows, invoke Expose or, worst of all, shuffle windows around manually to reach the folder or file you want. Just click to reveal a speedy, hierarchical menu.

2. Learn some keyboard shortcuts

Mouse jockeys will balk, but memorizing even a few keyboard shortcuts will save you much time in the long run. For instance, most web browsers will select the address field with Command - L.

Things get even more fun with the Finder. Shift-Option-D brings up the Desktop Folder. Shift-Option-A presents the Applications folder. Command-M minimizes the frontmost window.

Is the dock in your way? Command-Option-D hides it away, and then calls it back. There are many shortcuts to choose from, but find the four or five that address the tasks you perform most often. Sure, it only takes a second to move from the keyboard to your mouse and back again, but seconds add up.

3. Embrace the menu bar

Several applications offer functionality that can be accessed from the menu bar. For instance, you can set your iChat status and even monitor which of your buddies are online without launching the application.

First, launch iChat and select "Preferences" from the iChat menu. Select "Show status in the menu bar" from the General tab. If someone initiates a chat with you, the application will launch in full and ask if you'd like to receive the invitation.

There are others, of course. Initiate a sync (for MobileMe customers) or Time Machine backup, alter display settings, select a wireless network or check the date and time without exiting the program or project you're woring on. Many third party applications will let you interact with them via the menu bar as well.

4. Mod your windows

There's a lot of room for customization in Mac OS X's Finder windows. For instance, you can easily drag frequently accessed applications, files or folders into the sidebar. I keep AppZapper in the sidebar to quickly eliminate unwanted applications. To remove something from the sidebar, simply drag it out and let go. Poof! It's gone.

The toolbar at the top of Finder windows is equally flexible. Again, you can drag files, folders or applications up there for one-click access. No more hunting through nested folders.

Change the default icons by right-clicking (or Control-clicking) any neutral space in the toolbar and selecting "Customize toolbar..." from the resulting contextual menu. A sheet will appear with several options. Just drag-and-drop.

Finally, you can keep related files color coded. Simpy right- or Control-click any file or folder and select the color you like under "Label" in the resulting contextual menu.

So there you have it. This list is by no means exahustive, but represents four simple things you can do in fifteen minutes or less to make your Mac more effecient and fun. Best of all, there was nothing additional to buy or install. Happy computing!

A few TUAW readers have reported receiving a text message from AT&T on their 3G iPhones. Specifically, it prompts users to upgrade to iPhone software 2.0.2.

"An important software update for iPhone 3G has been available on iTunes since this past Monday," the message reads. "To get it, simply sync your iPhone 3G with iTunes and click the 'Check for Update' button."

Thanks for nagging, AT&T. Since I own an original iPhone that's fully up to date, I haven't received the message. So, dear readers, have you been nagged by Auntie AT&T today?

Here's an odd story. When the iPhone launches in Poland today (8/22), there will be long lines at Orange retail stores. In fact, it's guaranteed.

Reuters is reporting that Orange has hired actors to queue up at "...twenty stores" on Friday to spark in interest. Before you say, "That's crazy," consider that many Americans were willing to sit in line for a week. For free.

Perhaps Orange is trying to pad a potentially lukewarm reception to high-priced plans. For example, the base iPhone plan will cost 195PLN ($45) per month and will offer users 150 minutes of talk time plus 500MB of data.

Clever marketing or dirty pool? And what happens when the next actor in line reaches the counter and doesn't buy anything?

A reader in Barbados sent us a message today describing the success he had with a Rebel SIM card and his 3G iPhone. Having purchased a 3G in Canada, he returned to Barbados and ordered the Rebel, which has been working perfectly with no dropped calls.

Barbados does not have 3G service, but decent GSM. Of course, we can't confirm the story (though we'll gladly fly over to sunny Barbados to try it out!), so your experience my vary. In the meantime, you may want to read this article on how to remove your iPhone's SIM card, or our chat with jailbreaker Pytey.

For the second time in so many months, Apple has offered MobileMe subscribers a free extension of their current subscription. Earlier today, an email was delivered to customers stating that they'd receive a 60-day extension of their MobileMe subscription, in addition to the 30 days offered in July.

"We are working very hard to make MobileMe a great service we can all be proud of," the message reads. "We know that MobileMe's launch has not been our finest hour, and we truly appreciate your patience as we turn this around."

Thanks, Apple! Three months of free service is definitely a decent compensation. And for those of you spooked by the recent MobileMe-themed phishing scam, we assure you that the link in the email is legit.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

A three-alarm blaze drew 60 firefighters to Apple's Cupertino campus on Tuesday night. Specifically, it was in building Valley Green Six at 20705 Valley Green Drive. San Francisco's ABC 7 television news has some video.

Investigators suggested that an air conditioning unit could have been the culprit. Fortunately, all employees escaped unharmed. No word on how much damage was done to the building, although some reports say the smoke damage was substantial.

We're very glad that no one was hurt, and hope the damage isn't too bad.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

MacNN is reporting that US big box store Best Buy will begin selling iPhones on September 7th. The move could help reduce the long lines that are still developing at Apple and AT&T stores. You may remember a rumor about this last month.

Best Buy has been slowly developing a retail relationship with Apple. A few years ago, certain locations were given Mac minis to sell. That program has matured to the "mini stores" in place today. AppleInsider suggests that a major overhaul of the mobile phone departments at all Best Buy locations was the step that finally convinced Apple to hand over the iPhone.

So, will Best Buy move many iPhones? I still encounter much anti-Apple sentiment from hardcore Windows lovers, and big electronics stores can be an epicenter for that type of thing. However, it seems to be reserved to Apple's computers.

My hope is that the staff is well trained, as I'm sure we all remember the unpleasant experience of shopping for Macs at Circuit City several years ago.

This thing is right up there with the iPod sex toy and toilet paper dispenser. The Steve Jobs iPhone Dock features a plastic bobble-head doll of Mr. Jobs, gesturing elegantly (as elegantly as a plastic doll can gesture) towards your docked and charging iPhone. Unlike many cool bobble-head dolls (including those that are life-sized), this thing says, "I'm a fanboy of legendary status." Expect your friends to treat you accordingly.

Originally intended to be a one-off piece, the scuptor has put four up for sale on Ebay. Impress your geek friends and scare away potential dates with one of your own.

Other Apple-inspired oddities include

• a 60xsorry, 6x optical zoom lens for the iPhone camera
• iLidz, which is a hat-based multimedia viewer for the iPhone/iPod touch
• The R2D2 projector (a steal at $2500)

And finally, this list would be incomplete without the KNG iPod DJ Dock. Oh, yeah.

[Via MacUser]

Check your email, iPhone developers. Apple has released iPhone OS 2.1 beta 3. The description of changes is typically cryptic:

"iPhone OS 2.1 beta 3 is now available and is to be used for testing only. View the Pre-Installation Advisory for iPhone OS 2.1 beta 3, Readme, and Release Notes before installing the new versions of the iPhone OS and SDK. As a reminder, pre-release software is Confidential Information and is subject to the terms outlined in your Registered iPhone Developer Terms and Conditions with Apple."

Of course, we don't know what's been changed in this release. Note that iPhones updated to OS 2.1 beta 3 cannot be restored to an earlier version of the OS, and apps developed a beta OS 2.1 cannot be submitted to the App Store.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.