My son’s best friend bought an iPhone
shortly after they were first released in 2007.
Not long after my son’s friend got his
Apple iPhone, he got an app—the Atomic fart. It appealed to his—and millions’
of others’—junior high school sense of humor, although by the time they could
digitally play a series of farts, they were long past puberty.
The First Fart was a simple recreation.
There were several upgrades, each of which added numerous possibilities. The
current app has 30 possibilities, including a whoopee cushion fart, a fireworks
fart, a drum solo fart, and the “1812 Overture Fart.” It was only less annoying
than dogs barking “Jingle Bells” at Christmas time.
For the complete prankster, high-tech
programmers have given fun-seekers an app that has a time delay; anyone can
secretly place the iPhone near an unsuspecting nebbish, quickly move to the
other side of the room, and then wait.
Far Apps has now sold more than 10 million
Atomic Farts, most going for 99 cents. The return-on-investment for the iPhone
is even better. Within seven years of the phone’s release, Apple would sell
more than 250 million units, about one-fourth of all smart phones sold
worldwide.
