You know how you can’t even get past the first area of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice without crying? Well, this guy can play the entire game, in under two hours, blindfolded.
Source: Kotaku – Watch A Guy Beat Sekiro In Two Hours, Blindfolded
Monthly Archives: January 2022
Even A 16MHz Laptop From 1989 Can Mine Bitcoin But It Takes 584M Years To Earn $1
If you even owned a laptop from over 30 years ago, it’s probably long-since been retired. Laptops did actually exist in the 1980s, though, and while mainly (not solely) built for word processing chores, an owner of a Toshiba T3200SX laptop from 1989 held onto his all these years and has put it to work mining Bitcoin. That’s right, you can
Source: Hot Hardware – Even A 16MHz Laptop From 1989 Can Mine Bitcoin But It Takes 584M Years To Earn
Tabletop Simulator removes global chat amid LGBTQ moderation controversy
Enlarge / Dice placement game Euphoria as seen in Tabletop Simulator.
Here at Ars, we’ve repeatedly noted that Tabletop Simulator is one of the best ways to play virtual versions of physical games across long distances. But developer Berserk Games is now facing controversy over its chat-moderation policies and alleged treatment of LGBTQ discussion. In response, the developer has now taken down the game’s global chat feature and announced a “renewed commitment to creating a culture that values inclusivity in board gaming and the world.”
Keep it on topic?
The recent controversy began when a player going by the handle Xoe posted an extensive Google Doc documenting what she called “the suppression of gay/trans identities” in Tabletop Simulator‘s global chat. The chat logs cited in that doc include numerous instances of temporary bans issued right after Xoe discussed her personal sexual or gender identity in the chat.
In those cases, moderators cited posted rules that “there is an expectation that discussion will be family friendly and centered around Tabletop Simulator, tabletop games, and chatting with other players.” Moderators specifically told Xoe that “discussing sexuality has no place in global chat” and that “Tabletop Simulator is about playing tabletop games, not a place to discuss sexuality, fetishes, politics [emphasis added]. Keep that to your private lobbies or public chats where these things are the topic at hand.”
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Source: Ars Technica – Tabletop Simulator removes global chat amid LGBTQ moderation controversy
Apple AR Headset Could Cost Consumers Over $2,000
Apple’s long-rumored mixed-reality headset could cost consumers over $2,000 when it eventually ships, with a report claiming the expensive development and components justifies the potential price. From a report: The lengthly development process of the Apple VR headset has resulted in a long wait for its release, with a possibility of a launch in late 2022 or delayed into 2023. While it is anticipated to be a premium device, with pricing rumors between $1,000 and $3,000, Apple may be planning to go closer to the middle of that range. Apple has internally discussed price points for the headset “above $2,000,” according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his “Power On” newsletter. Though Apple usually does charge a premium for its hardware over its rivals, the company is apparently doing so because of “some of its internal technologies.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Apple AR Headset Could Cost Consumers Over ,000
Turns Out the Crypto Bros Who Bought Jodorowsky's Dune Book Aren't Sure How Rights Work
Late last year, a rare copy of one of the pitch books legendary director Alejandro Jodorowsky made to pitch his vision for an adaptation of Dune went to auction. Expected to sell for around $30-40,000, it went for around a baffling three million dollars, thanks to an ether-backed collective known as TheSpiceDAO. Now,…
Source: Gizmodo – Turns Out the Crypto Bros Who Bought Jodorowsky’s Dune Book Aren’t Sure How Rights Work
Report: Bobby Kotick Is Still Trying To Hide The Scale Of Activision's Problems
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that not only has Activision Blizzard fired dozens of staff in the last few months, but that CEO Bobby Kotick has been hiding that information from the public. Because it might look bad…
Source: Kotaku – Report: Bobby Kotick Is Still Trying To Hide The Scale Of Activision’s Problems
Is VR Gaming Bad for Your Health?
Virtual reality gaming is seeing a spike in popularity right now—but some experts and industry observers are concerned that frequent use of the technology may come with some health risks, including eyestrain, migraines, and falls. Here is what we know so far about the safety of VR, and the potential health…
Source: LifeHacker – Is VR Gaming Bad for Your Health?
Sony May Have Just Confirmed PlayStation 5 Backwards Combability With PS3 Games
PlayStation 3 games have been seen in the PlayStation 5 store, and they have some wondering if their presence is a hint at things to come. People were taking to social media and saying they hoped it meant that Sony would soon be making PS3 games backwards compatible with the PS5 console.
PlayStation fans may not have been excited about
Source: Hot Hardware – Sony May Have Just Confirmed PlayStation 5 Backwards Combability With PS3 Games
[$] Brian Kernighan on the origins of Unix
Once again, the COVID pandemic has forced linux.conf.au to go virtual, thus
depriving your editor of a couple of 24-hour, economy-class, middle-seat
experiences. This naturally leads to a set of mixed feelings. LCA has
always put a priority on interesting keynote talks, and that has carried
over into the online event; the opening keynote for LCA 2022 was given by
Brian Kernighan. Despite being seen as a founder of our community,
Kernighan is rarely seen at Linux events; he used his LCA keynote to
reminisce for a while on where Unix came from and what its legacy is.
Source: LWN.net – [$] Brian Kernighan on the origins of Unix
Linux maker board market survives chip shortage, adds 29 new SBCs in 2021
In this intro to our catalog of 136 Linux hacker boards, we examine how the 2021 chip shortage led to higher prices, limited availability, and more than twice the usual number of discontinuations. Yet, 29 models launched in 2021, including SBCs with M.2 slots, RISC-V CPUs, and AI chips.
Source: LXer – Linux maker board market survives chip shortage, adds 29 new SBCs in 2021
FFmpeg 5.0 released
Version 5.0 of the FFmpeg
audio and video toolkit has been released.
For this long-overdue release, a major effort underwent to remove
the old encode/decode APIs and replace them with an N:M-based API,
the entire libavresample library was removed, libswscale has a new,
easier to use AVframe-based API, the Vulkan code was much improved,
many new filters were added, including libplacebo integration, and
finally, DoVi support was added, including tonemapping and
remuxing. The default AAC encoder settings were also changed to
improve quality.
Source: LWN.net – FFmpeg 5.0 released
Apple Watch Series 7 models are up to 15 percent off at Amazon
If you’ve been waiting for a decent deal on an Apple Watch Series 7, now might be the time to take the leap. You can get up to $60 (as much as 15 percent) off the smartwatch at Amazon at the minute. The biggest discounts are on the green versions of both the GPS and cellular models. The 41mm GPS Apple Watch Series 7 has dropped from $399 to $339, while the cellular variant is down from $499 to $439 — an all-time low price for that model.
Buy Apple Watch Series 7 in green (GPS) at Amazon – $339Buy Apple Watch Series 7 in green (cellular) at Amazon – $439
We’ve seen the GPS version of the Apple Watch Series 7 drop to this price before. It dipped to $339 in late December, the lowest price we’d seen to date. Still, it’s a good deal on a smartwatch to which we gave a score of 90 in our review. While sleep tracking might not be as robust as in say, a Fitibit, it’s still arguably the best all-around smartwatch on the market, thanks to features like workout tracking, fast charging and deep integration with iOS.
Some variants of the GPS Apple Watch Series 7 are on sale, though with a slightly smaller reduction. The (Product) RED, black and blue versions are down to $349. Other cellular models are $50 off too. You can snag it in blue, white or black for $449.
Meanwhile, as was the case in a one-day sale on Woot last week and on Amazon earlier this month, you can snag a four-pack of AirTags for $94, which is five percent off the regular price. As with Tile trackers, the idea is to help you keep track of your things. Although Android users can see if an AirTag is nearby through a dedicated app, you’ll need an iPhone to get the most out of the trackers.
Buy AirTags (four-pack) at Amazon – $94
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.
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Source: Engadget – Apple Watch Series 7 models are up to 15 percent off at Amazon
AMD Might Refresh Its Radeon RX 6000 Series Graphics Cards With Upgraded Memory Too
A refresh might be in store for AMD’s Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards as we wait for next-generation RDNA 3 parts to arrive. If so, AMD would be taking a similar approach as NVIDIA, the latter of which has introduced an upgraded GeForce RTX 3080 with more memory, and is rumored to be doing the same to its GeForce RTX 3070 Ti.
NVIDIA
Source: Hot Hardware – AMD Might Refresh Its Radeon RX 6000 Series Graphics Cards With Upgraded Memory Too
Spain Moves To Rein in Crypto-asset Advertising
Spain moved on Monday to regulate rampant advertising of crypto assets, including by social media influencers, tasking the stock market supervisor with authorising mass campaigns and making sure investors are aware of risks. From a report: The rapid growth of cryptocurrencies and digital assets pegged to traditional currencies has drawn attention from regulators worldwide, who fear they could put the financial system at risk if not monitored. The Spanish government said in its official bulletin advertisers and companies that market crypto assets will have to inform the CNMV watchdog at least 10 days in advance about the content of campaigns targeting more than 100,000 people. The new regulations will start from mid-February and allow the CNMV to specifically monitor advertising for all types of crypto assets and to include warnings about risks involved in such investment.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Spain Moves To Rein in Crypto-asset Advertising
How A Freaky Levitating Frog Gave China The Idea To Build An Artificial Moon
A frog, astronaut, and physicist walk into a… low-gravity research facility? Chinese scientists have recently developed an artificial moon setting that will be used to test technology and train astronauts in a low-gravity environment. The facility is already unique, but its origins make it even more so. The Chinese artificial moon setting
Source: Hot Hardware – How A Freaky Levitating Frog Gave China The Idea To Build An Artificial Moon
What is BusyBox in Linux? How to Use it?
Learn what BusyBox is and why has it suddenly gained a following among certain Linux users.
The post What is BusyBox in Linux? How to Use it? appeared first on Linux Today.
Source: Linux Today – What is BusyBox in Linux? How to Use it?
How to Get Excited About Cooking Again
I’m not sure if anyone made resolutions this year. The source of most people’s problems are not tied to anything they can change with enough resolve. One cannot resolve their way out of a pandemic, or resolve their child into a safe learning environment, especially when our governing body is more interested in…
Source: LifeHacker – How to Get Excited About Cooking Again
Amazon halts plan to ban Visa credit cards in UK
Enlarge (credit: Leon Neal | Getty Images)
Amazon has halted a plan to ban customers using UK-issued Visa credit cards from this week, as the companies work on a “potential solution” to a rancorous dispute that threatened to severely disrupt shoppers.
The world’s largest online retailer announced the proposed ban in November, citing the “high fees Visa charges for processing credit card transactions,” and advised customers to find new payment methods.
However, on Monday Amazon said that “the expected change regarding the use of Visa credit cards on Amazon.co.uk will no longer take place on January 19.” The group added that it was “working closely with Visa on a potential solution that will enable customers to continue using their Visa credit cards on Amazon.co.uk.”
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Source: Ars Technica – Amazon halts plan to ban Visa credit cards in UK
Halo Infinite Goes Cyberpunk In Tomorrow's Cyber Showdown Event
Starting tomorrow, Halo Infinite begins its third major even since launch, called Cyber Showdown. And things might be getting ‘80s, Tron-style.
Source: Kotaku – Halo Infinite Goes Cyberpunk In Tomorrow’s Cyber Showdown Event
Amazon Rows Back on Threat To Stop Accepting UK-issued Visa Cards
Amazon appears to have rowed back from a public threat to end support for Visa payments in the UK in a dispute over payment fees. From a report: The ecommerce giant sent an email to users of Amazon.co.uk today informing them that the “expected change” — which was due to take place on January 19 — will not now take place on that day. Although it is still not clear if the two companies have come to sustained terms on fees. “The expected change regarding the use of Visa credit cards on Amazon.co.uk will no longer take place on January 19. We are working closely with Visa on a potential solution that will enable customers to continue using their Visa credit cards on Amazon.co.uk,” Amazon writes in the email sent to UK users. “Should we make any changes related to Visa credit cards, we will give you advance notice,” it goes on, adding: “Until then, you can continue to use Visa credit cards, debit cards, Mastercard, American Express, and Eurocard as you do today.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Amazon Rows Back on Threat To Stop Accepting UK-issued Visa Cards