Tech CEO Sentenced To 5 Years in IP Address Scheme

Amir Golestan, the 40-year-old CEO of the Charleston, S.C. based technology company Micfo, has been sentenced to five years in prison for wire fraud. From a report: Golestan’s sentencing comes nearly two years after he pleaded guilty to using an elaborate network of phony companies to secure more than 735,000 Internet Protocol (IP) addresses from the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), the nonprofit which oversees IP addresses assigned to entities in the U.S., Canada, and parts of the Caribbean.

In 2018, ARIN sued Golestan and Micfo, alleging they had obtained hundreds of thousands of IP addresses under false pretenses. ARIN and Micfo settled that dispute in arbitration, with Micfo returning most of the addresses that it hadn’t already sold. ARIN’s civil case caught the attention of federal prosecutors in South Carolina, who in May 2019 filed criminal wire fraud charges against Golestan, alleging he’d orchestrated a network of shell companies and fake identities to prevent ARIN from knowing the addresses were all going to the same buyer.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – Tech CEO Sentenced To 5 Years in IP Address Scheme

Why You Need Vent Extenders This Winter

Putting furniture over vents is a bad idea. Blocking the flow of warm or cool air makes your heating and air conditioning system work that much harder, and reduces its effectiveness. Placing your bed or couch over a vent can also make it feel like you’re sitting or sleeping in an oven (or a refrigerator). And if the…

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Source: LifeHacker – Why You Need Vent Extenders This Winter

Engadget Podcast: Max Evry on his oral history of David Lynch's Dune

We still have months to wait before Dune: Part Two hits theaters, so what better time to reminisce about David Lynch’s intriguing adaptation of Frank Herbert’s masterpiece? Reviled at the time, Lynch’s Dune has now firmly established itself as a cult sci-fi epic, a film with boundless creative energy hampered by studio interference.

In this bonus episode, Devindra chats with film journalist Max Evry, author of A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch’s Dune. We explore why he devoted two years of his life towards researching an unloved film, as well as how it’s a refreshing departure from the superhero films dominating theaters today.


Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you’ve got suggestions or topics you’d like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcast, Engadget News!

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Credits
Host: Devindra Hardawar
Guest: Max Evry
Music: Dale North

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-max-evry-on-his-oral-history-of-david-lynchs-dune-195809003.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Engadget Podcast: Max Evry on his oral history of David Lynch’s Dune

Apple introduces a new Pencil for the iPad—its cheapest yet

Apple has announced a new version of its popular Pencil peripheral for the iPad. Simply dubbed “Apple Pencil” yet again, it is the cheapest option to carry the name yet.

The new Pencil is priced at $79; that’s $20 cheaper than the first-generation Apple Pencil and $50 cheaper than the second generation. Apple says it will work with any iPad model with a USB-C port.

In fact, the new Pencil itself has a USB-C port. That means you’ll use a USB-to-USB cable to charge it on your iPad, Mac, USB-C iPhone, charging brick, or what have you. The USB-C port is subtly hidden behind a sliding cap. This is clearly a big improvement over the awkward “plug your Pencil into the iPad’s port” solution of old.

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Source: Ars Technica – Apple introduces a new Pencil for the iPad—its cheapest yet

Mazda’s DMCA takedown kills a hobbyist’s smart car API tool

Mazda MX-30

Enlarge (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

Before last week, owners of certain Mazda vehicles who also had a Home Assistant setup could set up some handy connections for their car.

One CX60 driver had a charger that would only power on when it confirmed his car was plugged in and would alert him if he left the trunk open. Another used Home Assistant to control their charger based on the dynamic prices of an Agile Octopus energy plan. Yet another had really thought it through, using Home Assistant to check the gas before their morning commute, alert them if their windows were down before rain was forecast, and remotely unlock and start the car in cold conditions. The possibilities were vast, and purportedly beyond what Mazda’s official app offered.

Mazda, however, had issues with the project, which was largely the free-time work of one software developer, Brandon Rothweiler. In a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notice sent to GitHub, Mazda (or an authorized agent) alleges that Rothweiler’s integration:

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Source: Ars Technica – Mazda’s DMCA takedown kills a hobbyist’s smart car API tool

You Should Cook Your Pasta in Leftover Bean Broth

For a country that could fit inside the state of Nevada, Italy seems disproportionately affected by hyper-regionality, particularly when it comes to food. Take pasta e fagioli, for instance, which translates to “pasta and beans.” Easy enough, but travel the country from the top down, and you’ll find tons of variations…

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Source: LifeHacker – You Should Cook Your Pasta in Leftover Bean Broth

PwC Offers Advice From Bots in Deal With ChatGPT Firm OpenAI

PricewaterhouseCoopers has teamed up with ChatGPT owner OpenAI to offer clients advice generated by AI as the Big Four audit firms look to cut costs and boost productivity. From a report: The accounting firm will use AI to consult on complex matters in tax, legal and human resources, such as carrying out due diligence on companies, identifying compliance issues and even recommending whether to authorize business deals. The tie-up makes PwC the first of the Big Four to partner with OpenAI, which is regarded as one of the companies at the forefront of generative AI technology with its ChatGPT chatbot.

The major audit firms have been cutting costs to cope with a slowdown in professional services. PwC is freezing pay increases and bonuses for some of its 25,000 UK staff, Deloitte LLP is set to cut more than 800 jobs in the UK, Ernst & Young LLP is to cull about 5% of staff from its UK financial services consulting division, while KPMG LLP is planning to cut 125 consulting jobs. The OpenAI partnership, which is not based on ChatGPT, won’t result in jobs cuts in the near-term, PwC said.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – PwC Offers Advice From Bots in Deal With ChatGPT Firm OpenAI

This BirdBike E-bike Is on Sale for Over 50% Off Right Now

You can get a BirdBike e-bike on sale for $999.97 right now (reg. $2,299). It comes with a top speed of 20 MPH and up to 50 miles of range, as well as a 500W motor and 36V removable battery. The e-bike comes with an embedded LED dash display that shows you how fast you’re going, the distance you’ve traveled, and which…

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Source: LifeHacker – This BirdBike E-bike Is on Sale for Over 50% Off Right Now

Netflix Is Getting Into Live Sports…Sort Of

Netflix is touting its new series The Netflix Cup as its “first-ever live sports event,” which sounds at first like a retreat of sorts from the streamer’s assurance in late 2022 that it wouldn’t be adding sports packages to its offerings. But if you look a little closer, this is more of a celebrity golf…

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Source: Gizmodo – Netflix Is Getting Into Live Sports…Sort Of

Elgato's new teleprompter is designed for streamers

Politicians and awkward SNL hosts have long-relied on the humble teleprompter to get their lines out, and now there’s a device that lets the rest of us get in on the mealy-mouthed fun. The Elgato Prompter is basically a shrunken-down teleprompter, complete with a scrolling display, side hoods to minimize unwanted ambient lighting and simple connectors that attach to an external camera, built-in webcam or just about anywhere else.

Unlike other prompters on the market, you don’t need your own tablet or phone, thanks to a built-in screen and the company’s proprietary Camera Hub software. Once activated, the device not only displays video scripts, but also mirrors any window or app via a simple drag and drop. This lets you see both the script and live feeds from chat participants at the same time, all while looking directly into the camera. It’s a bona fide cornucopia of human social cues.

Of course, you aren’t relegated to live feeds from fellow chat participants. You can drag and drop anything to the Prompter, with Elgato suggesting that users place a window of “the big match” so people can sneak glances during those endless work meetings. We would never, however, recommend such a blatant display of truancy.

The Prompter is an Elgato product, so it offers some deep integration with the recently-discounted Stream Deck. There’s a plugin for the device that offers control and adjustment options at the touch of a button, all of which should come in handy for livestreamers and YouTubers looking for that perfect take. To that end, Elgato says it built the device to be the “true all-in-one solution for content creators.”

Elgato, which is owned by noted peripheral manufacturer Corsair, says the Prompter integrates with more webcams, cameras and smartphones than any other similar device on the market, so you likely won’t need to buy additional hardware to use it. If you’re worried, there’s a list of supported cameras and devices right here.

Setup seems simple enough, with included attachment clips and a stand, interchangeable backplates and a single USB connection to both power the device and transfer data. The Elgato Prompter is available right now and costs $280.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/elgatos-new-teleprompter-is-designed-for-streamers-184546932.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Elgato’s new teleprompter is designed for streamers

Austin Butler Forced Timothée Chalamet to Raise the Bar in Dune: Part Two

Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic Dune ends with an intense showdown between Paul Atreides and Feyd-Rautha, two sides of an epic war that’ll decide the fate of a trade, a planet, and a galaxy. In the film adaptation, Dune: Part Two, Atreides is once again played by Timothée Chalamet, and Feyd-Rautha, the heir-apparent to…

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Source: io9 – Austin Butler Forced Timothée Chalamet to Raise the Bar in Dune: Part Two

Reddit is Killing Blockchain-Based Community Points

Reddit is winding down Community Points — the blockchain-based “internet points” program designed to reward creators and developers — in favor of prioritizing rewards programs that are less difficult to scale. From a report: “Though we saw some future opportunities for Community Points, the resourcing needed was unfortunately too high to justify,” Reddit’s director of consumer and product communications Tim Rathschmidt told TechCrunch. “The regulatory environment has since added to that effort. Though the moderators and communities that supported Community Points have been incredible partners — as it’s evolved, the product is no longer set up to scale.”

Community Points, which will be phased out by early November, were promoted as a chance for Redditors to “own” a piece of their community. First launched in 2020, Community Points were awarded to users who positively engaged in select subreddits in order to incentivize better content and conversation. The points were essentially interchangeable Ethereum tokens stored in Reddit’s Vault, which operated as a cryptocurrency wallet.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – Reddit is Killing Blockchain-Based Community Points

Latest Xbox accessibility features include controller pairing without touching the console

On Tuesday, Microsoft announced a slew of accessibility updates for Xbox players on consoles and PCs. These include keyboard key remapping using controllers, easier-to-get-to accessibility shortcuts and a new section in the Microsoft Store. In a reminder that inclusive design can help everyone, one of the new features will let anyone set up a new controller without getting up to press a pair button on the console.

Wireless controller pairing no longer requires direct console contact. “From the comfort of a couch, wheelchair, hospital bed, etc., players can now put their console into pairing mode using an Xbox media remote, digital assistant voice command, or previously paired controller to connect a new controller to their console,” the company wrote today in a blog post. An official online support document walks you through the setup steps.

Microsoft also announced that “almost 90 keyboard keys” will soon be remappable to the Xbox Adaptive Controller and Elite Series 2 controllers. The idea is to make it easier for people with disabilities to play games that only support mouse / keyboard input. One example the company provides is reprogramming the left bumper to Ctrl+C for copying text.

In addition, the company is simplifying the steps to view options from the Xbox Accessibility menu. Beginning on October 19, the Xbox Game Bar on Windows will let you jump to accessibility settings via widgets. “In the updated Xbox widgets, you’ll find both visual and audio-related accessibility controls to customize your PC gaming experience according to your preferences and needs,” Microsoft wrote. Once the feature launches, you’ll get to the accessibility options via the settings button for “any of the new Xbox widgets in Game Bar.”

Finding accessibility-friendly games is about to get easier, too. The Xbox store now has a channel devoted to Accessibility in Games, featuring every title with corresponding feature tags. The labeling feature launched in 2021 and spread to the Windows app and web store earlier this year.

Finally, Microsoft shared the video below highlighting how the Adaptive Gaming program at Craig Hospital in Englewood, CO, is empowering players with disabilities to rekindle their love of gaming.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/latest-xbox-accessibility-features-include-controller-pairing-without-touching-the-console-183558285.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Latest Xbox accessibility features include controller pairing without touching the console

Twitch Star Hasan Piker Raises A Huge Amount Of Money For Palestine

Twitch streamer Hasan “Hasanabi” Piker often gets hate from detractors who claim that there’s an inherent hypocrisy between his own accumulation of wealth and his constant advocacy for workers and disenfranchised communities, despite the fact that he routinely walks the walk in addition to talking the talk. Now, the…

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Source: Kotaku – Twitch Star Hasan Piker Raises A Huge Amount Of Money For Palestine

This Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 Is 57% Off Today

Looking to pay less for a powerful new laptop? Your best bet right now might be this new Microsoft Surface Laptop 4, currently 57% off from Woot. It’s going for $599.99, marked down from $$1,400. The catch is, the deal is only available until Oct. 18 at 1 am ET, or while supplies last. This is a very limited deal, but…

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Source: LifeHacker – This Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 Is 57% Off Today