Twitch streamers are no strangers to DMCA music claims. Over the summer, the platform acknowledged a flood of takedown requests for older videos, which could’ve potentially put streamers in jeopardy of consequences under Twitch’s content policy. The…
Source: Engadget – Twitch offers streamers a way to safely use licensed music
Monthly Archives: September 2020
A Pilot’s Review of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020
I’ve been flying regional jets and in general aviation for 12 years. But your flying job will always restrict you to the type of flying and destinations that your employer needs, and unless you’re Bezos or Zuck, you can’t own every genre of airplane and fly everywhere. With Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, I got a…
Source: Kotaku – A Pilot’s Review of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020
The End of Climate Change Denial Is the Start of Something Much Worse
Last night’s presidential debate was an abomination by just about any standard. The sitting president told white supremacists to “stand by,” took no responsibility for the deaths of more than 200,000 Americans killed by covid-19, refused to back a peaceful transfer of power, and generally lied with reckless abandon…
Source: Kotaku – The End of Climate Change Denial Is the Start of Something Much Worse
Cyberpunk studio breaks promise, forces overtime on developers
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We opted to only share images from the game’s gussied-up trailer that actually resemble what we saw in the hands-off demo.
CD Projekt Red has gone back on a promise that developers wouldn’t be required to work overtime or face so-called “crunch time” in the run-up to November’s planned release of Cyberpunk 2077. That’s according to a Bloomberg report which cites an email from studio head Adam Badowski to employees, suggesting that employees would need to work “one day of the weekend” through launch to fix remaining bugs and glitches in the game.
“I know this is in direct opposition to what we’ve said about crunch,” the email continues, as Bloomberg reports. “It’s also in direct opposition to what I personally grew to believe a while back—that crunch should never be the answer. But we’ve extended all other possible means of navigating the situation.”
“These last 6 weeks are our final sprint on a project we’ve all spent much of our lives on,” Badowski wrote in a tweeted statement in response to the report. “Something we care for deeply. The majority of the team understands that push, especially in light of the fact that we’ve just sent the game to cert and every day brings us visibly closer to shipping a game we want to be proud of.”
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Source: Ars Technica – Cyberpunk studio breaks promise, forces overtime on developers
Need For Speed: Payback and Vampyr Are October's PlayStation Plus Games
October’s PS Plus games are a weird combination, but not a bad one: I’m totally charmed by Vampyr, despite its stumbles. As always, these games are only “free” if you have an active PlayStation Plus membership.
Source: Kotaku – Need For Speed: Payback and Vampyr Are October’s PlayStation Plus Games
Mercedes-Benz’s newest electric city bus uses solid-state batteries
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Mercedes-Benz’s latest articulated bus is the eCitaro G, and it is available with solid-state batteries. [credit:
Mercedes-Benz ]
Lithium-ion battery technology has made impressive gains over the years. Today’s cells are cheaper than they’ve ever been, but lithium-ion still leaves a lot to be desired in terms of energy density compared to liquid hydrocarbon fuels. Which means that putting enough of them in a car to give it an acceptable range adds a lot of mass and volume. Which is where solid-state batteries come in.
In a traditional battery, a pair of electrodes are immersed in an electrolyte solution, and it’s this liquid electrolyte that allows ions to move from one electrode to the other. But liquid electrolytes can leak, and that’s not a great thing, whether the material is highly corrosive, as in a lead-acid battery, or highly flammable, as in a lithium-ion battery. So researchers around the world have been experimenting with batteries that use a solid electrolyte instead, with a particular eye on using them in electric vehicles.
And now, it seems it’s a technology that is ready to be deployed, as Mercedes-Benz just announced that its new eCitaro and eCitaro G city buses will be available with roof-mounted solid-state battery packs, developed in conjunction with the Canadian power company Hydro Quebec.
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Source: Ars Technica – Mercedes-Benz’s newest electric city bus uses solid-state batteries
What to Expect From Today's Google 'Launch Night' Stream
Fall hardware announcement season continues. Google is on tap today; its fancy “Launch Night” event kicks off in just a few hours. As for what the company is planning to announce, that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, since much of it has already leaked across the internet—or at Home Depot.
Source: LifeHacker – What to Expect From Today’s Google ‘Launch Night’ Stream
China Preparing an Antitrust Investigation Into Google
China is preparing to launch an antitrust probe into Google, looking into allegations it has leveraged the dominance of its Android mobile operating system to stifle competition, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing two people familiar with the matter. From the report: The case was proposed by telecommunications equipment giant Huawei last year and has been submitted by the country’s top market regulator to the State Council’s antitrust committee for review, they added. A decision on whether to proceed with a formal investigation may come as soon as October and could be affected by the state of China’s relationship with the United States, one of the people said. The potential investigation follows a raft of actions by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to hobble Chinese tech companies, citing national security risks. This has included putting Huawei on its trade blacklist, threatening similar action for Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp and ordering TikTok owner ByteDance to divest the short-form video app.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – China Preparing an Antitrust Investigation Into Google
EA removed a FIFA microtransaction ad that was aimed at kids
EA has pulled an ad that marketed FIFA microtransactions to kids in UK toy store Smyths’ magazine. The ad suggested children “use FIFA Points to open packs,” through which they receive a random selection of players in the Ultimate Team (FUT) mode. FI…
Source: Engadget – EA removed a FIFA microtransaction ad that was aimed at kids
Batwoman Casts Another Victor Zsasz for the CW's Gotham
The CW’s Batwoman is getting a new baddie for season two, and it’s played by someone who’s already familiar with the city of Gotham.
Source: Gizmodo – Batwoman Casts Another Victor Zsasz for the CW’s Gotham
HP Reverb G2 Omnicept VR Headset Goes Sensor Overload With Face, Eye And Heart Tracking
HP is launching a version of its Reverb virtual reality headset that will have a state-of-the-art sensory system, aimed primarily at developer and enterprise customers. According to HP, its new Reverb G2 Omnicept Edition brings about a new era of VR, a bold claim that hinges on the array of sensors being able to capture “physiological responses
Source: Hot Hardware – HP Reverb G2 Omnicept VR Headset Goes Sensor Overload With Face, Eye And Heart Tracking
Alleged AMD Ryzen 5000 Zen 3 Processor Retail Availability Dates Revealed
AMD’s latest assault against Intel’s Core family of desktop processor is just around the corner. The company has already revealed that its Zen 3 Vermeer-based Ryzen 5000 desktop processors will be unveiled on October 8th, but what wasn’t stated is what the lag will be between the announcement and actual processor availability.
Well, according
Source: Hot Hardware – Alleged AMD Ryzen 5000 Zen 3 Processor Retail Availability Dates Revealed
Intel Media Driver 2020.3 Released With Gen12 AV1 Decode, Other Improvements
Just in time for the end of the quarter Intel’s open-source multimedia team has released the Media Driver 2020.3 package for the Intel graphics accelerated media encode/decode component on Linux platforms…
Source: Phoronix – Intel Media Driver 2020.3 Released With Gen12 AV1 Decode, Other Improvements
Unboxing the official mask Apple designed for its employees
This is an unboxing video of the official mask Apple designed for its employees. In typical Apple fashion, it’s white, designed in California, and manufactured in China. It actually looks pretty cool, and I’m surprised they managed to squeeze that much extra “design” out of a face mask. It’s interesting to see their take on something that’s become so ubiquitous, though obviously if they sold it retail it would be marked up and eventually they’d come out with a Pro version that does exactly the same thing but let’s people know you’re better than them. Although honestly, the packaging looks like it cost twice as much as the mask itself.
Source: Geekologie – Unboxing the official mask Apple designed for its employees
Need to know technologies for junior sysadmins
he world of system administration is vague, and the required skills cover a vast array of technologies.
Source: Linux Today – Need to know technologies for junior sysadmins
So Begins the Unhappy Matrimony of Instagram and Facebook Messenger
In yet another attempt to unify its various properties into some writhing Akira-esque mass, Facebook announced today that Messenger and Instagram are, for all intents and purposes, merging. Chat features from Messenger will become available to Instagram users, and folks on either service will be able to reach out to…
Source: Gizmodo – So Begins the Unhappy Matrimony of Instagram and Facebook Messenger
Xiaomi Announces Mi 10T & Mi 10T Pro: More Budget, But With 144Hz
Today Xiaomi is announcing their late-year flagship devices with the unveiling of the new Mi 10T and Mi 10T Pro devices. The refreshes this year are a bit more unconventional as they aren’t exactly direct successors to the Mi 10 and Mi 10 Pro – but rather lower-cost alternatives. Still, the new devices promise to bring a slew of new software camera features as well as being the first phones on the market to adopt new 144Hz display screens with AdaptiveSync variable refresh rate functionality.
The new Mi 10T’s series biggest selling point is probably their reduced prices, starting at only 499€ for the base model Mi 10T – still delivering you a Snapdragon 865 SoC, a competitive camera as well as the aforementioned 144Hz OLED display, packing a massive 5000mAh battery.
Source: AnandTech – Xiaomi Announces Mi 10T & Mi 10T Pro: More Budget, But With 144Hz
For Your Own Kids, Recreate the 'Feelings Chart' From Your Childhood
We’ve all got a lot of big feelings right now, what with *gestures around.* It can be challenging for even the most self-aware among us to pinpoint how we’re feeling from moment to moment. It’s even harder for our kids, who are still learning to put words to all their big feelings.
Source: LifeHacker – For Your Own Kids, Recreate the ‘Feelings Chart’ From Your Childhood
Big Tech Faces Ban From Favoring Own Services Under EU Rules
Big tech firms could be banned from preferencing their own services in search rankings or exclusively pre-installing their own applications on devices, under new regulations planned by the European Union. From a report: As part of the EU’s Digital Services Act, platforms with power to control could also have to share customer data with business rivals, according to internal draft documents obtained by Bloomberg. Due to be unveiled in December by the European Commission, the bloc’s executive body, the legislation will seek to modernize rules governing the internet to give platforms greater responsibility for what users post on their sites as well as propose regulation aimed at curbing the power of large platforms. The initiative comes as big giants such as Apple and Google offer services across a widening array of sectors and as competitors increasingly rely on their platforms to offer their own services. Apple has faced heat over policies with its app store, which companies like Spotify complain give an unfair advantage to the iPhone maker’s rival music service.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Big Tech Faces Ban From Favoring Own Services Under EU Rules
How To Watch Google's Pixel 5 'Launch Night In' Virtual Event Today
Today is the day Google will unveil its Pixel 5 smartphone, along with some other gadgets. Well, unless there is a last minute change of plan, or a meteor crashes into our rock. But barring a catastrophic event or last-minute audible, the Pixel 5 will become official, and you can watch it happen during Google’s “Launch Night In” event.
That
Source: Hot Hardware – How To Watch Google’s Pixel 5 ‘Launch Night In’ Virtual Event Today