Subscribe to MacTribe News

Hey folks,

Happy almost Thanksgiving! We hope most of you are taking tomorrow off--we know we are!--to prepare and celebrate with family and friends...and to get lots of sleep and be ready to shop for the inevitable Black Friday steals and deals. We've got some ideas to help you maximize the time you spend awake on Friday, a little iPhone news and something completely different. Like ya do.

Don't Start at 4am...
Start right now! Several websites and retailers are already offering their Black Friday prices online. We found some sweet deals on HDTVs at Wal-Mart and Best Buy, and sites like GottaDeal and BFAds.net are cataloging all the sales and getting the info together to save you time. If you're more of a short and sweet type, of course there's news on Twitter. CheapTweet has a feed going and BlackFriday is in all its glory. If part of the "fun" for you is getting up before dawn to wait on line and get crushed by crowds by all means do it...if you'd rather click now and stay in bed, these sites will be invaluable.

New Worms
If you're using your jailbroken iPhone to search those deals right now, stop. Change your root password. Since the initial Austrailian RickRolling scam a few weeks ago, there have been an increasing number of ever more malicious attempts to get money and personal information from you. The latest attack originating in Europe--which hasn't been reported in the States yet--directs users to what looks like their bank log in...it's not, as you may have guessed. Be careful, and spread the word. We all know Americans tend to do things bigger and badder than the rest of the world, so when hackers on our side of the Atlantic start using this model, you'd better watch out.

We're assuming all of us have head about the password change by now, but pass it forward anyway, right?

Facebook Woes
A Canadian woman on long term medical leave for depression has recently been denied coverage from her company medical insurance...based on pictures she posted to Facebook. When she called to inquire why her money dried up, the insurance rep told her the pictures she posted (of various things, like vacations, hanging out with friends, etc.) showed her looking happy. So she was clearly no longer depressed.

Our minds are officially blown.

She was following her doctor's advice and trying to have a good time...no indication of whether the insurance company contacted the doc in question to get an actual medical opinion. They must have, right? We sure hope so.

Help out your fellow shopper: tweet us with Black Friday ideas and sales!

Have a happy holiday, and we'll be back next week.