Twitch’s $20,000 karaoke contest is returning for a second season. The online singing competition for karaoke-style title Twitch Sings is open from today until Monday 5th August. Contestants can submit their audition videos here, and an internal team…
Source: Engadget – Twitch’s karaoke competition returns with a record deal prize
Monthly Archives: July 2019
Streamer Sparks Debate Over Whether Twitch Should Allow Breastfeeding
When a popular Twitch streamer breastfed her baby on stream last week, clips of the moment ended up getting removed from Twitch, and it sparked a debate about whether or not the practice violates Twitch’s terms of service, with some arguing that breastfeeding constitutes “sexual” content.
Source: Kotaku – Streamer Sparks Debate Over Whether Twitch Should Allow Breastfeeding
Are Fake-Meat Burgers Finally as Good as Beef?
The humble veggie burger has come a long way in the past few years.
Source: LifeHacker – Are Fake-Meat Burgers Finally as Good as Beef?
[$] Darling: macOS compatibility for Linux
There is an
increasingly active development effort, known as Darling, that is aiming to provide a
translation layer for macOS software on Linux; it is inspired in part by Wine. While Darling isn’t nearly
as mature as Wine, contributors are continuing to build out capabilities
that could make the project more useful to a wider group of users in the
future.
Subscribers can read on for a look at Darling from this week’s edition.
Source: LWN.net – [$] Darling: macOS compatibility for Linux
This Backpack Turns a Coffee Shop Table Into a Private Office
Nearly two years after Moose Designs showed off its totally unique workstation bag, the company is back with a new, improved, and larger version that can be worn as a backpack, carried as a briefcase, or slung over your shoulder as a messenger bag.
Source: Kotaku – This Backpack Turns a Coffee Shop Table Into a Private Office
The Nintendo Switch Lite Is Now Available For Pre-Order
Just in time for back-to-school shopping, the Nintendo Switch Lite is now available for pre-order. Choose form the Gray, yellow, turquoise, and Pokemon Limited Edition models for $200.
Source: Kotaku – The Nintendo Switch Lite Is Now Available For Pre-Order
Blender 2.80 Officially Released With Its Revamped UI, Eevee PBR Renderer
Blender has used SIGGRAPH 2019 week for announcing the major Blender 2.80 open-source 3D modeling software release…
Source: Phoronix – Blender 2.80 Officially Released With Its Revamped UI, Eevee PBR Renderer
US Issues Hacking Security Alert for Small Planes
wiredmikey writes: The DHS has issued a security alert for small planes, warning that modern flight systems are vulnerable to hacking if someone manages to gain physical access to the aircraft. The alert stems from research done by security firm Rapid7, which found that an attacker could potentially disrupt electronic messages transmitted across a small plane’s network, for example by attaching a small device to its wiring, that would affect aircraft systems. Engine readings, compass data, altitude and other readings “could all be manipulated to provide false measurements to the pilot,” according to the DHS alert.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – US Issues Hacking Security Alert for Small Planes
Mosquitos Are Spreading a Rare, Brain-Infecting Virus in Florida
One of the most dangerous but thankfully rare mosquitoborne diseases has been spotted again in Florida, state health officials say. According to a public advisory issued this month by the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, the Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV) was found in the state. The virus is…
Source: Gizmodo – Mosquitos Are Spreading a Rare, Brain-Infecting Virus in Florida
Proposed US law would ban infinite scroll, autoplaying video
Enlarge / The United States Capitol Building, the seat of Congress, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (credit: Omar Chatriwala | Getty Images)
Nobody likes auto-playing video or sites that keep scrolling away infinitely when you’re just trying to reach the bottom of the page. But you probably don’t hate either “feature” as much as Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who introduced a bill today to ban these and other “exploitative” practices.
While the ban on infinite scroll is the most amusing part, the proposed SMART Act (PDF), a backronym for the Social Media Addiction Reduction Technology Act, seeks to ban online companies from using a wide array of tactics that “exploit human psychology or brain physiology” to reduce user choice.
The SMART Act is really trying to target dark patterns: interfaces deliberately designed to trick, confuse, or pull a user deeper into something than they otherwise would be. Those designs, Hawley argues, fuel social media addiction.
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Source: Ars Technica – Proposed US law would ban infinite scroll, autoplaying video
Samsung teases dates for a new Galaxy Tab and Galaxy Watch
Samsung isn’t waiting until its Galaxy Note 10 event on August 7th to show all the hardware it’s releasing later in 2019. The company has teased online reveals for its latest Galaxy Tab (believed to be the Tab S6) and the Galaxy Watch Active 2 on Ju…
Source: Engadget – Samsung teases dates for a new Galaxy Tab and Galaxy Watch
How to Remember What You've Learned Each Day
Many of us spend a little time every day writing about what’s going on in our lives, or how we’re feeling, or what we’re grateful for.
Source: LifeHacker – How to Remember What You’ve Learned Each Day
New Filecoder Android Ransomware Uses Salacious Content To Coordinate SMS Attacks
Security researchers at ESET have discovered an active ransomware campaign targeting Android users, thus ending a two-year decline in this form of malware in Google’s mobile ecosystem. And unlike past ransomware campaigns, this one employs “some unusual tricks” to attract victims, and then spreads to contacts through text messaging.
ESET
Source: Hot Hardware – New Filecoder Android Ransomware Uses Salacious Content To Coordinate SMS Attacks
First trailer for The Lighthouse evokes early films from a bygone age
Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson star in A24’s Cannes favorite,The Lighthouse.
A24 just keeps churning out smart, intriguing, thought-provoking films, and today the studio dropped the first trailer for its latest offering in the horror genre, The Lighthouse. At first glance, what sets this apart is the choice to shoot entirely on 35mm black-and-white film—better to evoke a bygone age.
Set in 1890, Director Robert Eggers’ vision was inspired by a real-life 1801 tragedy involving two Welsh lighthouse keepers trapped in a storm. It was inspired as well by classic tales by Herman Melville, H.P. Lovecraft, and Algernon Blackwood. It’s kind of a ghost story, featuring two lighthouse keepers (Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson) on a remote and mysterious New England island, and both gradually go mad from the isolation.
The Lighthouse made its debut at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year to rave reviews, earning a best movie honor from the International Federation of Film Critics—a first for A24. Eggers described the film to Deadline Hollywood as “something a little weirder” than his 2015 breakout film, The Witch, calling it “more dreadful than horror.”
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Source: Ars Technica – First trailer for The Lighthouse evokes early films from a bygone age
Apple taps renowned artists for AR art walks
Apple has been pushing its way into the world of augmented reality for years. Now, it wants to get more users involved. Working with artists like Nick Cave, who you might remember from the Alan Wake soundtrack, Apple has installed AR art in public sp…
Source: Engadget – Apple taps renowned artists for AR art walks
Elon Musk Says Tesla's Ramping Up Solar Roof Production
Elon Musk is looking to ramp up Tesla’s solar roof-tile business even as the company’s panel installations shrink. From a report: Tesla is rapidly “spooling up production” and hopes to manufacture about 1,000 solar roofs a week by the end of the year, Musk said in a tweet Monday evening. That would represent a massive increase for the company, which at one point in 2018 was making enough shingles to cover three to five homes a week, two former employees said.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Elon Musk Says Tesla’s Ramping Up Solar Roof Production
Five Softshells That Are Perfect For Summer Storms
Softshell, hardshell…what’s a shell?! Tech lingo can be super complicated in the outdoor world, but it doesn’t have to be. In general, a shell is an outer layer that protects you from the elements. While most people are familiar with hardshells (made famous by outdoor giant Gore-Tex), I still have a soft spot for…
Source: Gizmodo – Five Softshells That Are Perfect For Summer Storms
Mark Rober Tests Theory That Sharks Can Smell A Single Drop Of Blood From A Mile Away
This is a video of former NASA engineer Mark Rober using somewhat of the scientific method to test whether sharks really can locate a single drop of blood in the ocean and eat the rest of you along with your scraped shin. SPOILER: Even when releasing fifteen drops of human blood/minute for an entire hour in a shark infested area, no sharks came to investigate. Of course maybe they were the wrong kind of sharks. Or maybe the old adage really is a lie. So, the next time you’re bleeding or peeing in the ocean, just remember: every single sea animal has pooped in that water and it’s part of you now.
Keep going for the video, which also includes testing the attractability of cow’s blood and human urine to sharks.
Source: Geekologie – Mark Rober Tests Theory That Sharks Can Smell A Single Drop Of Blood From A Mile Away
Put the Synthale Down: Chateau Picard Wine Is Real, and Here
Well, actually, Chateau Picard has already been real for quite a while. But ahead of Star Trek: Picard, you’ll now be able to enjoy an episode or six alongside a bottle of Jean-Luc’s finest.
Source: Gizmodo – Put the Synthale Down: Chateau Picard Wine Is Real, and Here
Google’s Android Auto update makes launching and using apps safer
Until recently, infotainment systems were sort-of-useful at best or plagued with horrendous interfaces at their worst. The introduction of Android Auto and CarPlay got automakers to finally start thinking about how people use touchscreen devices. Goo…
Source: Engadget – Google’s Android Auto update makes launching and using apps safer