Monthly Archives: November 2020

DOJ is reportedly preparing antitrust lawsuits against Facebook and Google

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It’s only been a few months since the US Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google, but it sounds legal battles are on the horizon. According to The Wall Street Journal, both federal and state antitrust authorities will be filin…

Source: Engadget – DOJ is reportedly preparing antitrust lawsuits against Facebook and Google

Salesforce Acquires Slack

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CNBC reports: Salesforce’s deal to buy Slack is expected to be announced Tuesday after markets close, sources told CNBC’s David Faber. The deal is expected to be about half cash and half stock, the sources said, and will price Slack at a premium to its current price. Salesforce is set to report quarterly earnings on Tuesday. Shares of Slack rose about 8% Monday on the news. Salesforce shares fell about 1.5%.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – Salesforce Acquires Slack

Moderna to Ask FDA for Emergency Authorization of Covid-19 Vaccine on Monday

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Biotech company Moderna will ask for an emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration for its covid-19 vaccine on Monday, according to a new press release posted to the firm’s website. Moderna also released new information indicating its messenger RNA-based vaccine has a 94.1% efficacy rate in a…

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Source: Gizmodo – Moderna to Ask FDA for Emergency Authorization of Covid-19 Vaccine on Monday

PAPPL 1.0 RC1 Released With A Goal To Replace CUPS Printer Drivers

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CUPS printing system founder Michael Sweet who left Apple last year and that left CUPS in a stagnate position (as of writing, still no commits to their Git repository since April) while Sweet continues pushing ahead with his new and modern “PAPPL” effort…

Source: Phoronix – PAPPL 1.0 RC1 Released With A Goal To Replace CUPS Printer Drivers

China likely to attempt its Chang’e 5 Moon landing on Tuesday

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Technicians celebrate the successful launch of the Chang'e-5 spacecraft at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China.

Enlarge / Technicians celebrate the successful launch of the Chang’e-5 spacecraft at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China. (credit: Jin Liwang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

China’s ambitious space program does not often publish detailed plans of its activities in advance—perhaps this is because it makes it easier for the government to explain away any failures. But thanks to social media leaks, we can now be reasonably confident that the country will attempt to land its Chang’e 5 mission on the Moon on Tuesday.

The spacecraft’s lander has already separated from the main orbital module and is expected to position itself in low-lunar orbit on Monday. Sources suggest the following timeline for activities on Tuesday:

  • Start of powered descent: 14:48 UTC (9:48 am ET)
  • Lunar landing: 15:15 UTC (10:15 am ET)
  • Drilling for sub-surface samples: 17:15 UTC (12:15 pm ET)

The Change’5 lander—the latest probe in China’s Moon program, which is named after a goddess of the Moon and began back in 2007—is the country’s most ambitious mission to the Moon yet. The probe launched on November 23 and reached lunar orbit a couple of days later.

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Source: Ars Technica – China likely to attempt its Chang’e 5 Moon landing on Tuesday

First Images From Ryan Reynolds' Sci-Fi Project Reveal Time Travel Escapades

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Two folks from Marvel’s Thor universe hang out…what could it all mean?? The Walking Dead: World Beyond’s showrunner gives some big season two hints. Plus Sonic the Hedgehog 2 may start running pretty soon, Lucifer is about to have his hands full, and more. Spoilers away!

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Source: Gizmodo – First Images From Ryan Reynolds’ Sci-Fi Project Reveal Time Travel Escapades

Qt 6.0's 3D Renderer Is Much Improved But More Work Remains

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With Qt 6.0 due to be released in December, Qt-minded consulting firm KDAB has published a blog post outlining the extensive 3D renderer improvements made for this big toolkit update. While Qt6’s 3D rendering abilities are much improved, there still is further work ahead…

Source: Phoronix – Qt 6.0’s 3D Renderer Is Much Improved But More Work Remains

EU Lawmakers To Push Audio-Visual Sector on Geoblocking

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European Union lawmakers are considering whether current rules aimed at limiting the practice of geoblocking across the bloc should be extended to cover access to streaming audio-visual content. From a report: Access to services like Netflix tends to be gated to individual EU Member States, meaning Europeans can be barred from accessing libraries of content offered elsewhere in the region. So if you’re trying to use your Netflix subscription to access the service after moving to another Member State, or want to access inventory offered by Netflix elsewhere in Europe, the answer is typically a big fat no, as we’ve reported before. This undermines the core concept of the EU’s Single Market (and the Digital Single Market — aka the frictionless ecommerce end-goal which rules such as those limiting geoblocking aim to deliver). The Commission is alive to ongoing issues around online access to audio-visual content. In a review of the two-year-old Geo-blocking Regulation published today, it says it will kick off discussions with the audiovisual sector on ways to improve consumer access to this type of copyrighted content across the bloc.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – EU Lawmakers To Push Audio-Visual Sector on Geoblocking

Now Is the Perfect Time to Revamp Your Digital Filing System

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Look, 2020 was supposed to be my year. I set out with what I thought were pretty reasonable New Year’s resolutions—one of which was to spend less time on my screens. And then the pandemic hit. During the endless hours that ensued, I noticed something: My digital filing system was a goddamn mess.

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Source: Gizmodo – Now Is the Perfect Time to Revamp Your Digital Filing System

This researcher correlated negative reviews of scented candles with COVID-19 cases

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unscented-candles-covid-19.jpg

Inspired by this tweet, researcher Kate Petrova did a deep dive of scented candle reviews before and after the pandemic. Surprisingly or unsurprisingly, reviews of scented candles took a deep drop after the pandemic started with numerous complaints that the candles lacked any scent. One of the symptoms of COVID-19 is losing your sense of smell and taste so, ya know, put two and two together.

You can view the complete Twitter thread here. Personally, I’ve noticed my candles have also started losing their flavor. Not sure what gives, but they taste terrible now.

Source: Geekologie – This researcher correlated negative reviews of scented candles with COVID-19 cases

Scottish homes will use 100-percent green hydrogen in world first

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Scotland is set to start the world’s first trials of green hydrogen to replace natural gas for cooking and heating in 300 homes, the UK’s energy regulator Ofgem announced. Scotland’s gas company SGN will fit houses in the city of Fife with free hydro…

Source: Engadget – Scottish homes will use 100-percent green hydrogen in world first

HP's latest privacy tool for laptops is meant to thwart prying eyes

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It’s getting pretty difficult to make a laptop that stands out. There are countless thin and light notebooks with comfortable keyboards, beautiful screens and enough power for most professional workflows. To really make an impression, manufacturers h…

Source: Engadget – HP’s latest privacy tool for laptops is meant to thwart prying eyes