The FCC says it plans to vote next month to explore alternatives to GPS after national security concerns have been raised about relying on a single system crucial to modern life. From a report: “Continuing to rely so heavily on one system leaves us exposed,” FCC Chair Brendan Carr said. “We need to develop redundant technologies.” There have been reports of a rise in GPS interference around the world, particularly since 2023, known as spoofing raising fears of an increased risk of accidents if planes veer off-course. “Disruptions to GPS have the potential to undermine the nation’s economic and national security. And the risks to our current system are only increasing,” Carr said, noting President Donald Trump and a bipartisan group of lawmakers have called for action for years.
1Password has announced a new feature that lets you assign a geolocation to items stored in your vault. At first glance, that might not seem like much: a new little box inside a mobile utility you use on occasion. But allow me to remind you of something many of us cannot get away from: Terrible yet semi-mandatory apps with awful names that sign you out just when you need them.
The Ticketmaster app, for example, will always be signed out right when you’re coming up to the front of the line at the venue and the line suddenly starts moving faster. Or you will remember you have a discount or coupon inside a store or takeout joint’s app, but you will remember this only after every item has been scanned, just as the eyes of those in line behind you start burning holes into your neck. The airline on which you are flying ensures you are not logged in right before you arrive at the airport, so you can spend a little more time at their self-service kiosk, holding your bags so they don’t tip over while you log back in.
Can you get by without using these apps? Technically, yes. But they’re quite handy in a pinch, and 1Password’s newest feature actually does something to make them even more accessible.
If you own one of Victrola’s high-end, Sonos-ready turntables from the last few years, your techie record player is about to get more versatile. The company said on Thursday that all of its “Works with Sonos” vinyl turntables will support Bluetooth, Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) and hi-fi Roon streaming through a software update.
The update will dramatically increase the streaming versatility of the Stream Carbon, Pearl and Onyx turntables. Meanwhile, Victrola says the ultra-premium Sapphire player, which also supports those standards, has already received the update. The company says it will install automatically, and the new options will appear in the section of the app where you previously only saw the option to pick a default Sonos speaker.
Nathan Ingraham for Engadget
While the new capabilities are good news for anyone who spent anywhere from $600 to $1,500 on a hi-tech vinyl player, it seems curious (if not infuriating) that the premium gear launched without these capabilities despite having all the requisite hardware. And while the company framed the update as a natural continuation of its mission to help vinyl lovers, you could look at Sonos’ calamitous year and speculate that Victrola calculated that hitching too many horses to that post might not be the best idea.
“This update is a major step forward in our mission to blend the warmth of vinyl with the convenience of modern wireless audio,” Victrola Scott Hagen wrote in a press release. “The Victrola Stream turntables have been the best option for Sonos users, and now we’re extending that same effortless streaming experience to even more audio ecosystems. Vinyl lovers can now enjoy premium wireless flexibility without compromise.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/victrola-adds-more-wireless-options-to-its-sonos-compatible-turntables-181634084.html?src=rss
Olduvai Gorge in northern Tanzania boasts sediment layers dating back to about 1.8 million years ago. Those layers contain simple stone tools that marked one of the earliest recorded technological transitions. Now, researchers have uncovered a substantial cache of prehistoric bone tools in the same region dating back 1.5 million years. It’s the oldest collection of mass-produced bone tools yet known, according to a new paper published in the journal Nature. And while it’s still unclear which hominin species crafted the tools, the discovery suggests that our early human ancestors had some advanced reasoning skills a good million years earlier than previously thought.
“The tools show evidence that their creators carefully worked the bones, chipping off flakes to create useful shapes,” said co-author Renata F. Peters, an archaeologist at University College London. “We were excited to find these bone tools from such an early timeframe. It means that human ancestors were capable of transferring skills from stone to bone, a level of complex cognition that we haven’t seen elsewhere for another million years.”
As previously reported, species on the hominin family tree have made and used stone tools for about 2.6 million years. For instance, Homo habilis was an early member of our genus who walked upright and had a mixture of human and ape-like features. Starting around 1.2 million years ago, a later hominin species called Homo erectus made more complex stone tools, like hand-axes.
Denmark’s state-run postal service, PostNord, is to end all letter deliveries at the end of 2025, citing a 90% decline in letter volumes since the start of the century. From a report: The decision brings to an end 400 years of the company’s letter service. Denmark’s 1,500 post boxes will start to disappear from the start of June. Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen sought to reassure Danes, saying letters would still be sent and received as “there is a free market for both letters and parcels.” Postal services across Europe are grappling with the decline in letter volumes. Germany’s Deutsche Post said on Thursday it was axing 8,000 jobs, in what it called a “socially responsible manner.”
Deutsche Post has 187,000 employees and staff representatives said they feared more cuts were to come. Denmark had a universal postal service for 400 years until the end of 2023, but as digital mail services have taken hold, the use of letters has fallen dramatically. PostNord says it will switch its focus to parcel deliveries and that any postage stamps bought this year or in 2024 can be refunded for a limited period in 2026.
It’s Thursday, which means there are some more PC games that Amazon Prime members can claim for free. Amazon has also revealed the entire slate of freebies that subscribers can snag throughout March, as well as the games they can stream at no extra cost on Amazon Luna.
Arguably the highest-profile additions of the month are available today in the form of Saints Row: The Third Remasteredand Mafia II: Definitive Edition. As ever, nearly every game on the list is for PC, but since Wolfenstein: The Old Blood is claimable via the Microsoft Store, you’ll be able to play that one on Xbox as well.
Mortal Shell is an RPG from a few years back that I’d been meaning to check out, so I’ll be sure to pick that one up. Elsewhere, The Forgotten Cityis a mystery RPG that was originally a Skyrim mod. The standalone version debuted a few years ago to critical acclaim.
You typically have about a month to claim each of the games before they leave the lineup (meaning that you can still snag many of the February additions) Here’s what you can snap up and when, along with the launcher you can play each game on:
Now
Saints Row: The Third Remastered (GOG)
Mafia II: Definitive Edition (GOG)
Crime Boss: Rockay City (Epic Games Store)
Naheulbeuk’s Dungeon Master (Amazon Games App)
March 13
Wall World (Amazon Games App)
Syberia: The World Before (GOG)
Endling – Extinction is Forever (Amazon Games App)
Dark Deity: Complete Edition (GOG)
Beholder 3 (Amazon Games App)
March 20
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (Xbox and PC via Microsoft Store Code)
Mutazione (GOG)
Figment 2: Creed Valley (Amazon Games App)
Legacy of Kain: Defiance (GOG)
Mortal Shell (Epic Games Store)
March 27
The Forgotten City (Amazon Games App)
Deus Ex: Invisible War (GOG)
Session: Skate Sim (Epic Games Store)
Let’s Build A Zoo (Epic Games Store)
Gamedec – Definitive Edition (GOG)
The Wisbey Mystery (Legacy Games Code)
Along with those games that Prime members can claim and keep forever (even if they cancel their plan), subscribers can stream a bunch of other titles via Amazon Luna. Along with staples like Fortnite, Trackmania and a couple of Fallout games, members can stream WRC Generations Fully Loaded Edition, Spitlings, The Jackbox Party Pack 3, Strange Horticulture and the utterly brilliant Overcooked! 2 throughout March. As a reminder, only Prime members in the US, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, the Netherlands and Poland have access to these games on Luna.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/prime-gamings-march-freebies-include-saints-row-the-third-and-mafia-ii-remasters-180008526.html?src=rss
On Wednesday, the Senate voted to block the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from monitoring digital payments companies for fraud and privacy concerns—which Democratic lawmakers Elizabeth Warren and Adam Schiff said gave Elon Musk a “get out of jail free card.”
The vote advanced a proposed joint resolution to the House of Representatives that “disapproves” of a final rule Republicans introduced last year that was supposed to bring consumer protection regulation of digital payments companies in line with traditional financial institutions.
At that time, lawmakers were concerned about tech companies spying on consumers’ transactions, preventing valid transaction disputes over incorrect or fraudulent money transfers, and other potential harms to consumers “when they lose access to their app without notice or when their ability to make or receive payments is disrupted.”
The Nintendo DS is one of the toughest consoles to emulate, for an obvious reason. It’s the two screens. This is even an issue with ports. Some developers avoid the problem by mushing everything together onto a single traditional screen, like the recently-released Castlevania Dominus Collection. However, gamers may finally have an affordable emulation solution, thanks to the MagicX Zero 40 handheld console.
On its surface, it’s yet another handheld emulator, but this one features a four-inch vertically-oriented 800×480 touchscreen display. This should allow players to accurately recreate the experience of playing DS games. That’s great news, as replacement parts for any of the DS’s iterations are difficult to come by these days.
The MagicX Zero 40 runs on a 64-bit Android operating system and features 2GB of RAM and a battery that lasts for four to seven hours. As for storage, it supports flash cards up to 512GB. What about 3DS emulation? The specs sheet indicates there’s no support for Nintendo’s follow-up dual-screen handheld, but the Zero 40 will emulate games from all of the standard single-screen systems. These include the PSP, NES, SNES, Dreamcast and many more.
The Zero 40 is expected to be released this April, with an asking price of $75. Pre-orders were open, but are sold out for the time being. There’s another option for a dual-screen emulation, if you have deep pockets. The Ayaneo Flip DS will run Nintendo DS, 3DS and Wii U games, but starts at $739.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-magicx-zero-40-handheld-features-a-vertical-display-for-ds-emulation-175820385.html?src=rss
The folks at Bafta are running a public survey to identify the most influential video game ever made. When The Guardian asked prominent gaming figures to weigh in, they received a fascinating array of responses with zero overlap. Game designer Mike Bithell picked Metal Gear Solid 2, while Blumhouse’s Louise Blain chose the short-lived horror experiment PT. The Guardian’s own games editor backed Ocarina of Time for establishing 3D game world standards.
Other notable selections included Tomb Raider (pioneering female protagonists), QWOP (inspiring experimental design), Doom (revolutionizing FPS and modding), Mario Kart (competitive social play), Journey (emotional storytelling), Princess Maker (branching narrative systems), Paperboy (everyday world simulation), and Super Mario Bros (fundamental game design principles).
So, Slashdotters, what’s your pick for the most influential video game ever created? Which title fundamentally changed how games are designed, played, or experienced? Did it influence you personally, the industry as a whole, or both?
Everything about Sorry We’re Closed sets my little punk heart ablaze, from its low-poly 3D graphics and banging original soundtrack, to its casually epic storyline starring heartbroken club kids and horny demons. Sorry We’re Closed takes place around a bustling city of neon-splattered nightmares, and if I could, I’d move there immediately.
Michelle, an existentially lost and effortlessly cool twenty-something, is introduced to the spiritual world by The Duchess, an archdemon with thigh-high boots and a threatening allure. Michelle is marked as The Duchess’ love interest and cursed with a powerful Third Eye. The Duchess is cruel and desperate for love, and Michelle — still reeling from a breakup that rocked her world three years ago — has a limited amount of time to discover why she’s been chosen and how to escape the curse with her life intact.
The characters in Sorry We’re Closed are raw, funny and authentic, and their relationships are relatably messy. There’s Oakley, the diner owner; Marty, the record shop manager; Clarissa, the dancer; Robyn, the local adventurer; Darrel, Oakley’s boyfriend and resident douchebag; and of course a cast of otherworldly beings. I feel like I know some of these people in my real life, and as for the rest, I’d love to meet them and help them chase their weird fantasies. Everything in this game is super stylish, from the blocky 3D avatars to the detailed, painterly icons that accompany their dialogue boxes. The city is populated by a diverse blend of genders and sexualities, and it feels both perfectly natural and deeply welcoming, like a stunning fever dream of what could be if The Gay Agenda finally got its way.
Again, it’s a world I’d love to live in.
Akupara Games
Michelle spends her time exploring the underworld and chasing the ghosts of The Duchess’ former victims — er, lovers — while gathering the strength to fight the archdemon head-on. There are four different endings in Sorry We’re Closed, and your decisions to help or hinder your friends will determine how things shake out in a tangible way. Many of the demons and angels in this world have sadistic streaks, and there are multiple scenes of bloody dismemberment and extreme body horror along Michelle’s journey. Choose your path forward wisely.
The game plays out in a fixed-camera perspective for exploration scenes, and switches to a dual-stick, first-person view for combat. Using a DualSense controller, you enter first-person view by holding down LT, and then shoot or swing with RT, using the right stick to aim. Michelle ends up with three weapons: a wolf-faced axe, a pistol and a shotgun. She also gets a powerful Heartbreaker attack, which builds up as she does damage and eventually allows her to unleash a devastating shot directly at an enemy’s heart. Collecting ammo and health is a constant task in Sorry We’re Closed, and first-person view is useful here, allowing Michelle to break and loot vases.
Akupara Games
Transitioning between third and first person feels nice and smooth, and the game does a great job of infusing classic Resident Evil-style gameplay with modern sensibilities. When it’s engaged, Michelle’s Third Eye lets her see and interact with an alternate reality, which appears in a circular pool around her. Demons that get caught in the Third Eye are briefly stunned, and their weak points become visible as stained-glass hearts. You’re only able to shoot weak points when Third Eye is engaged, but you can drop it at any time to attack with impunity. The length of the Third Eye stun can be extended by spending yowzas, the game’s currency, at the shop, which is run by a floating goat head. There are other basic upgrades for ammo and health capacities, which Michelle carries in the form of water bottles.
As Michelle travels deeper into The Duchess’ dimension, the environments become more M.C. Escher-like, and there are a series of puzzles to solve when you’re not actively battling demons. There’s nothing too tricky here, but there are little fetch quests and physical riddles to solve, and the reality-shifting mechanic of Michelle’s Third Eye keeps things interesting. There’s a perfect amount of variety in this game, with plenty of space to mess around with each new idea.
Akupara Games
I adore the way Sorry We’re Closed plays with perspective. It has standard top-down scenes, sure, but there are also cinematic shots peeking through the gaps in a chandelier, wide angles that show off the scale of some environments, head-on running scenes, and instances of beautiful but impossible physics, especially when The Duchess is involved. In case you couldn’t tell, I kind of fell in love with The Duchess, even though I know they would destroy me. Maybe because of that, even.
Sorry We’re Closed is campy, relatable, gruesome and gorgeous. You could say the same about The Duchess.
With today’s console launch, all versions of the game are getting rebalanced combat areas, improved controller sensitivity, aim assist options, fresh difficulties, a Time Attack mode and New Game+. Sorry We’re Closed is now available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, and there’s a premium physical edition for Switch and PS5 due out later this year, available to pre-order now. Sorry We’re Closed is the debut title from à la mode games, a two-person team based in Bournemouth, UK, and it’s published by Akupara Games.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/sorry-were-closed-ps5-review-oops-i-fell-in-love-with-an-archdemon-170040845.html?src=rss
Budget carrier Ryanair has delayed its move to 100% paperless boarding passes to the start of its winter schedule on November 3. From a report: Media reports had suggested that the change could come in May, ahead of the busy summer season. But the implementation will now begin at the start of the winter season in November, and means Ryanair passengers will no longer download and print a physical paper boarding pass. Instead they will use the digital boarding pass generated in their ‘myRyanair’ app during check-in.
Currently almost 80% of Ryanair’s 200 million annual passengers already use this digital boarding pass. As a result of this initiative, Ryanair expects to eliminate almost all airport check-in fees from November, as all passengers will have checked-in online or in-app to generate their digital boarding pass. The airline said it will also reduce passengers’ carbon footprint by eliminating unnecessary paper, saving more than 300 tonnes in paper waste each year.
NASA has begun shutting down science instruments aboard the twin Voyager spacecraft to extend their 47-year journey through interstellar space, officials said. Voyager 1’s cosmic ray subsystem was deactivated on February 25, while Voyager 2’s low-energy charged particle instrument will be shut down on March 24. Both spacecraft will then operate with just three of their original ten science instruments.
The radioisotope power systems aboard the Voyagers lose approximately 4 watts annually, threatening to end their mission within months without intervention. “Electrical power is running low,” said Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd. “The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible.” NASA engineers believe these measures could enable the probes to continue operating into the 2030s, far beyond their initial five-year design life.
There’s a reason that the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona, were home to many autonomous vehicle programs: Driving on wide streets in great weather is easy mode for an AV. But a commercial robotaxi service that only works when the sun is shining is a commercial robotaxi service that will never recoup the billions it would cost to develop. That’s why Moia—Volkswagen’s AV division—has begun testing its autonomous ID Buzzes around the streets of Oslo, Norway, this winter.
For a while, autonomous driving was the hottest thing in tech. That hype has certainly calmed down a lot over the last few years as reality began to bite. Developing an AV that can safely drive around unpredictable humans turned out to be pretty hard, with myriad edge cases needing to be solved differently for each new city.
Reddit has announced several new tools that seem like they were designed to encourage more lurkers to participate in discussions on the website. One of the new tools called Rules Check will make it easy to see if what you’re posting potentially goes against a subreddit’s rules. Before submitting your post, you can click the wand icon in the lower right-hand corner of the post composer, which you can see in the photo above. Doing that will highlight anything in your post that may be breaking a subreddit’s rules. Reddit will start testing the feature on iOS and Android before giving it a wider release.
Another new tool called Post Recovery will show you a prompt if your post has been removed due to community rules. The prompt will contain a notice of removal, along with a link that will enable you to quickly share your deleted post to a more appropriate subreddit. To make sure you’re posting in the right community in the first place, Reddit will now suggest relevant communities based on what you write through a drop-down menu on the upper left corner of the composer screen. It will now also show you if a community has requirements, such as account age or minimum karma points, before you can post.
The last tool is perhaps most useful if you promote products and services on Reddit. Post Insights will show you how many views, upvotes, shares and crossposts your posts have gotten, giving you an idea on what works when it comes to post engagement. All these tools other than Rules Check are now available on Reddit’s website and mobile app.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/reddits-rule-check-feature-will-help-users-avoid-breaking-subreddit-rules-160001398.html?src=rss
