Pre-caffeine tech: Winehouse tweets, Comic-Con geeks

 via Buzzfeed

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Our pre-caffeine roundup is a collection of the hottest, strangest, and most amusing stories of the morning. Here's everything that you need to know before taking that first sip of coffee today:

Not long after news of Amy Winehouse's death hit the Internet, so did the obligatory series of Facebook scams which often follow a well-publicized death. 

Microsoft apologized for its tacky Amy Winehouse tweet.

Speaking of Facebook, looks like the world's largest social network accidentally leaked video descriptions and thumbnails. Oops! 

Speaking security, you know how we worry a lot about our computers' — and increasingly our phones' — security vulnerabilities? Turns out, Mac batteries could be hot tool for hackers, too.

In other Apple news, Chinese officials shut down those two fake Apple stores — not because of piracy or copyright concerns, but because the stores did not have an official business permit.

Acknowledging that "a very small number of Seagate 1TB hard drives used in 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMac systems, may fail under certain conditions," Apple has initiated a replacement program for the problematic drives.

There is now a landing page for the "Murdoch Leaks Project."

You can now own a piece of the Balloon Boy saucer of hoax fame.

What makes a viral video? Let's find out!

So this is neat: The most visited Internet domains of 1996 and today.

In closing, Comic-Con pics! You'd think a corporate military industrialist Tony Stark could afford not to shop at the Men's Wearhouse. Apparently, no.

Helen A.S. Popkin goes blah blah blah about the Internet. Tell her to get a real job on Twitter and/or Facebook ... and see if you can find her on Google+. She triple-dog dares you!

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Microsoft apologizes for 'crass' Amy Winehouse tweet

via Twitter

Two hours after encouraging Amy Winehouse fans to remember the recently deceased singer by downloading her "ground-breaking 'Back to Black' for Zune," TweetBox360, the official PR Twitter account for XBox360 UK started spitting out the "my bads!"

"Apologies to everyone if our earlier Amy Winehouse 'download' tweet seemed purely commercially motivated. Far from the case, we assure you," read the first tweet, quickly followed by a second. "With Amy W's passing, the world has lost a huge talent. Our thoughts are with Amy's family and friends at this very sad time."

via Twitter

"Classy." "Crass much?" and "Cheap" are how three Twitter users economized their disgust in 140 characters or less. There are many, many more.

"@tweetbox360 In poor taste, 'nice' job on cashing in on a celebrity's death @xboxshould reconsider their relationship with you," tweeted one outraged Twitter user. Notably, many ignored the ripe opportunity to make the obligatory Zune jokes. Others noted that Microsoft wasn't alone in its cryptic commercialization and pointed to the "Remembering Amy" advertisement over at Apple's iTunes store. (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

via Twitter

The Microsoft Xbox Amy Winehouse gaffe isn't the first tasteless adver-tweet from a major company, and as this trend reveals an inability for big business to learn from each other's mistakes, it's far from the last.

Kenneth Cole remains the king of the tacky tweet. As you may recall, the American fashion designerexploited the deadly riots in Egypt last February by co-opting the trending hashtag #Cairo (used for discussing the riots in Egypt on Twitter) to promote his new spring line.

via Twitter

Entenmann's, your favorite brand of fresh-baked goods since 1898, took home the Kenneth Cole Award for Tasteless Tweets earlier this month when it equated eating fresh-baked goods with murdering a child following the "not guilty" verdict in the Casey Anthony trial.

As the #notguilty hashtag climbed to the top of U.S. Twitter trends, @Entenmanns tweeted "Who's #notguilty about eating all the tasty treats they want?"

That sentiment quickly reached retweet goodness — though it resulted in more bemusement than outrage — and Entenmann's soon issued an apolo-tweet: "Sorry everyone, we weren't trying to reference the trial in our tweet! We should have checked the trending hashtag first."

As we continue to hold Twitter vigil, waiting to write this inevitable story: "Congressman tweets inappropriate comment, starts meme in response to debt ceiling agreement," remember, tasteless adver-tweets capitalizing on trending topics are all around us.

via The Telegraph 

More on the annoying way we live :

Helen A.S. Popkin goes blah blah blah about the Internet. Tell her to get a real job on Twitter and/or Facebook.  Also, Google+.

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Family, friends say goodbye to Winehouse

LONDON — Mitch Winehouse said "good night, my angel, sleep tight" to his daughter, singer Amy Winehouse, at the conclusion of a memorial service for the late singer Tuesday in London.

The service, which included prayers in English and Hebrew, as well as Mitch Winehouse's eulogy, ended with a rendition of the Carole King song, "So Far Away."

"Mitch was funny, he told some great stories from childhood about how headstrong she was, and clearly the family and friends recognized the stories and laughed along," family spokesman Chris Goodman said. "He stressed so many times she was happier now than she had ever been and he spoke about her boyfriend and paid tribute to a lot of people in her life."

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Mitch Winehouse told mourners that his late daughter had recently found love and had beaten her drug dependency three years before her death, but he admitted she was still struggling to control her drinking after several weeks of abstinence.

"She said, 'Dad I've had enough of drinking, I can't stand the look on your and the family's faces anymore.'" Mitch Winehouse said.

He said Amy had been playing her drums and singing in the home the night before her death.

"But knowing she wasn't depressed, knowing she passed away, knowing she passed away happy, it makes us all feel better," he said, adding that he hopes to set up an Amy Winehouse Foundation that would help people beat substance abuse.

Family friend Alfie Ezekiel, 55, said the service had been a "joyful" celebration of the singer's life.

"Mitch gave a very good eulogy and he managed to get through it very well, considering," he said.

Among the guests at the service were stylist Alex Foden, who has been credited with creating Winehouse's trademark beehive hairdo, producer Mark Ronson and singer Kelly Osbourne, who wore her hair in a beehive style in honor of the late singer.

Story: Winehouse's phone was hacked, reporter claims

Photographers and a few fans lined the lane outside the Edgwarebury Cemetery, where the service was held. After the service, which was led by Rabbi Frank Hellner, Winehouse's body was taken to Golders Green Crematorium.

Several mourners, including Ronson — who co-produced Winehouse's breakthrough album "Back to Black" — looked emotional as they left the red brick structure, which has seen the cremations of thousands of ordinary Londoners and many celebrities, including psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, comedian Peter Sellers and drummer Keith Moon of The Who.

The family was then due to hold two days of shiva, a Jewish traditional period of mourning.

The soul diva, who had battled alcohol and drug addiction, was found dead Saturday at her London home. She was 27.

An autopsy held Monday failed to determine the cause of the singer's death. Police are awaiting the results of toxicology tests, which will take two to four weeks.

Story: Winehouse autopsy did not establish cause of death

On Monday the singer's father, mother and brother visited the house where she died, thanking mourners who had left flowers and cards.

Mitch Winehouse said "Amy was about one thing and that was love."

"Her whole life was devoted to her family and her friends and to you guys as well," he told fans.

Winehouse released only two albums in her short career — winning five Grammy awards for the second, "Back to Black" — and often made headlines because of drug and alcohol abuse, eating disorders, destructive relationships and abortive performances.

Story: Fame 'consumed' Amy Winehouse, source says

Since her death, her records have re-entered album charts around the world, and tributes have poured in from fans and fellow musicians.

George Michael called her "the most soulful vocalist this country has ever seen," and soul singer Adele said she "paved the way for artists like me and made people excited about British music again."

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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No Winehouse autopsy before Monday

NEW: Winehouse's family says it "has been left bereft by the loss of Amy"An autopsy will not be scheduled before Monday morningThe death is being treated as "unexplained"Her official website Sunday morning carries only a black-and-white photo of her

London (CNN) -- An autopsy to determine what killed singer Amy Winehouse will not be scheduled before Monday morning, London's Metropolitan Police said Sunday.

"Inquiries continue into the circumstances of the death," police said in a statement. At this stage, the 27-year-old's death "is being treated as unexplained and there have been no arrests in connection with the incident," police said.

The singer, beloved for her talent but infamous for erratic public behavior, arrests and drug problems, was found dead at her apartment in London on Saturday, police and her publicist confirmed.

Winehouse's family said in a statement Sunday it "has been left bereft by the loss of Amy, a wonderful daughter, sister, niece. She leaves a gaping hole in our lives. We are coming together to remember her and we would appreciate some privacy and space at this terrible time."

"We are trying to come to terms with the death of a dear friend and colleague, the most amazing artist and talent," her management company, Metropolis Music, said Sunday. "We will always remember Amy as a vibrant, funny, caring young woman who made everyone around her feel welcome. We have lost a very special person, part of our family."

Winehouse's soulful, throaty vocals brought the British musician stardom in 2007, but her troubled off-stage life -- chronicled in her Top 10 hit "Rehab" -- won her notoriety. Her death came less than two months after her latest release from a rehabilitation program and weeks after she was booed offstage by disappointed fans in Serbia.

Winehouse died at the same age as four other music legends. Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison each died of drug overdoses when they were 27. Kurt Cobain was 27 when he committed suicide, soon after his release from rehab.

Police were called to Winehouse's Camden Square apartment just after 4 p.m. Saturday in response to report of "a woman found deceased," police said.

"Everyone who is involved with Amy is shocked and devastated," Winehouse spokesman Chris Goodman said. "Our thoughts are with her family and friends."

Her father, MItch, got word of his daughter's death Saturday while in New York preparing for a Monday night show with his band at the Blue Note club, his publicist said. He immediately canceled the performance and caught a flight back to London, the publicist said.

Winehouse's official website on Sunday carried nothing but a black-and-white photo of the singer.

On Saturday, a statement on the site had said Winehouse was "withdrawing from all scheduled performances."

"Rehab," in which she sang "They tried to make me go to rehab, I said no, no, no," helped form the public's view of Winehouse. But she told CNN in a 2007 interview, "I don't care enough about what people think of me to conform to anything."

The London-born singer became a picture of a tattooed teenage rebel after she was expelled from a prestigious performing arts school. Her first album, "Frank," debuted in 2003, when the singer-songwriter was 19.

International success came with her 2007 album "Back To Black." She dominated the 2008 Grammys, winning five awards that night and delivering, via satellite from London, a strong performance of "Rehab."

Winehouse's volatile marriage to Blake Fielder-Civil took a toll on the singer's career. The couple divorced in 2009 after a stormy two years filled by drug addiction and arrests.

Winehouse's parents went public with their efforts to help their daughter, telling the London Telegraph in 2009 that she was on the road to recovery.

"A gradual recovery, which is good," Winehouse's father told the Telegraph. "With slight backward steps -- not drug backward steps, more drink backward steps if you follow my drift. I think that will be the pattern of recovery."

The organization that awards the Grammys issued a statement Saturday calling Winehouse "a dynamic performer and musician who seamlessly blended rock, jazz, pop, and soul and created a sound all her own."

"Her rich, soulful and unique voice reflected her honest songwriting and earned her a devoted fan following, critical acclaim, and the genuine respect and admiration of her musical peers," the Recording Academy statement said. "She will forever be remembered for her immense talent, and her music will live on for generations to come. Our deepest sympathies go out to her family, friends, and fans during this difficult time."

CNN's Bharati Naik, Denise Quan and Alan Duke contributed to this report.

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