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Tech NewsPrivacy and Security
Boston Bans Police Forces From Using Facial Recognition
It’s official, as of today, Boston’s become the second-largest US community to ban police use of facial recognition technology, thanks to a unanimous vote by more than a dozen city council people. The move follows similar bans by the neighboring cities Brookline, Somerville, and Cambridge a few months back, along with San Francisco and other … Continued
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Tech NewsTech Policy
The Endangered Internet Archive Is Full of Treasures
The Internet Archive set out in the 1990s with an improbable mission to become the “Library of Alexandria Two”; by 2020, they’ve arguably surpassed that goal, plus delivered their collection straight to the masses. It’s the only repository where a NASA recap of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster logically coexists with a 1990 recording of the … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
China Finally Completes Its Rival GPS Network
On Tuesday, China launched the final satellite in its BeiDou Navigation Satellite (BDS) System, marking the completion of its homegrown GPS-esque navigation system. The project has been decades in the making. It began in the 1990s, and the first satellite launch was in October 2000, according to Space.com. BDS is currently one of four global … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
Netflix Is Letting Some Users Edit Their ‘Continue Watching’ Sections
Netflix appears to have quietly rolled out a feature to let Android users edit their “continue watching” sections—a feature that, quite frankly, should be available across all streaming services with this designated row. When clicking on a title from the “continue watching” navigation section on the homepage, Android users should see an option to “remove … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech NewsGadgetsI Miss
I Miss AIM
These days, there’s a million different ways to chat. Sliding into DMs, group texts, Slack channels, Facebook Messenger, encrypted messaging apps like Signal and WhatsApp—you name it. But half these platforms are tied to a social network, and the rest are on your phone. Chances are, your various friend groups are scattered across a half … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
Olympus Is Getting Out of the Camera Game
It’s been a rough few years for Olympus, and with smartphones cannibalizing the sales of pocket cams and Sony dominating the sales of high-end mirrorless cams, Olympus has decided to sell off its camera division and exit the camera game entirely. In a press release issued today, Olympus says that following due diligence it will … Continued
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Tech NewsApple
So Just How Powerful Are Apple’s New Laptop Chips Gonna Be
Apple officially confirmed in its WWDC keynote yesterday that, yes, it would be using its own processors in its laptops and desktops. Not a terribly surprising announcement considering the rumor mill had been churning for months prior to that, but it’s nice to have Apple formally acknowledge the existence of its A12Z Bionic computer processor. … Continued
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Tech NewsTech Policy
Twitter Bans Journalist Organization for Linking to Leaked Secret Police Files
Twitter confirmed on Tuesday night that it had permanently banned the account of Distributed Denial of Secrets, a journalist organization that earlier this week made public one of the largest repositories of leaked U.S. law enforcement documents to date. The group’s account, @DDoSecrets, was permanently suspended, a Twitter spokesperson told Gizmodo, citing the company’s policy … Continued
By Dell Cameron -
Tech NewsFacebook
Facebook Belatedly Bans All Trade in Historical Artifacts After Becoming Global Black Market Hub
Facebook has finally said it would now prohibit the sale of all historical artifacts due to rampant black market trade in looted antiquitieson the site, per the New York Times—a problem the social media company has known about for years. The new rules ban any “attempts to buy, sell or trade in historical artifacts,” defined … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsAmazon
Amazon’s Prime Video Is Looking to Buy Its Way Into the Live TV Market
Amazon is “actively pursuing” deals to turn its Prime Video streaming service into something more like Prime TV, an industry source told Protocol on Tuesday. This is backed up by several job listings focused on the project. Adding live and streaming options would immediately distinguish Prime Video from competitors like Netflix and Disney+ that only … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsPolitics
Once Again, Mr. President, You Have Broken the Rules of the General Discussions Board
Our big boy president has once again angered the mods, with Twitter flagging another one of his tweets for violating its rules. On Tuesday, Donald Trump tweeted, “There will never be an ‘Autonomous Zone’ in Washington, D.C., as long as I’m your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!” (The autonomous … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsApple
Boot Camp Is Dead on New Macs and 8 Other Things Apple Didn’t Say at WWDC
You’d be forgiven for missing every change to iOS, macOS, and more that Apple execs speed-talked through during Monday’s Worldwide Developers Conference keynote. But even after catching up on all the announcements, there are more useful features coming to iPhones, Macs, Apple Watches, and more—and some big shifts that Apple didn’t even mention. Developers are … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
European Union Plans to Quarantine the United States [Updated]
As if we needed any further reminders that the United States has botched its response to the covid-19 crisis so spectacularly that we present a threat to the health of the global population, member states of the European Union are reportedly weighing whether to include American travelers on its ban list as European borders begin … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech NewsFacebook
Oculus Is Dropping the Go to Focus More on the Oculus Quest
After releasing the Quest and the Rift S, Oculus’ cheapest VR headset—the Oculus Go—has been in kind of a weird place. It doesn’t offer the flexibility or features of its more expensive siblings, and it wasn’t getting a lot of support or content either, so today Oculus announced it’s discontinuing the Oculus Go entirely. In … Continued
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Tech NewsCulture
[FOR PLANTS] Don’t Read This If You’re Human [JUST PLANTS PLEASE]
Let’s be honest: While humanity has done a lot to support the arts, humans themselves make for a terrible live audience. If they’re not coughing or talking or picking their noses, they’re probably tapping at their phones. On Monday, Barcelona’s Liceu opera house offered an intriguing solution to this problem, hosting a performance of Puccini’s … Continued
By Hudson Hongo -
Tech NewsNews
Apparently, Contract Violations Are Punishable Under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
A Delaware District Court has issued an opinion ruling that an ongoing click fraud scheme led by a Florida-based husband and wife team is technically punishable under the Computer Fraud And Abuse Act, a piece of oft-cited legislation that’s been wielded in lawsuits against web scrapers, IP-blockers, hackers, and all sorts of academics. In many … Continued
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Tech NewsApple
The iPad Will Soon Allow Gamers to Play Using a Mouse and Keyboard
As Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference gets under way, we’re starting to see more and more features of its updated operating systems not revealed during yesterday’s opening keynote. That includes the ability to play games on the iPad using a mouse and keyboard instead of the touchscreen or a gamepad. Mouse support was first introduced to … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
Apple Learns to Listen
Well, now! After a week of public feuding with an app developer and a resounding chorus of critics calling Apple out for its monopolistic App Store behavior, it seems the company is finally making some concessions for the broader developer community—namely by giving them a modicum of control over their own apps and review processes. … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech News
Fear of K-Pop Fans Sends Pro-Trump Convention Registration Offline
After K-pop stans and Tiktokers flooded the online registration for Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Students for Trump has quietly removed online sign-ups for its convention today in Phoenix, the Daily Mail first reported. While it’s unconfirmed that the stans were solely responsible for the meager turnout, which has also been attributed to pandemic … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
The Original Segway Is Officially Being Retired on July 15
When first revealed to the world back in December of 2001 Dean Kamen’s Segway promised to revolutionize urban mobility. But sticker shock, and cities quickly banning the self-balancing standing scooter, meant the Segway never came to close to realizing that dream. Nineteen years later, on July 15, the original Segway will officially roll off into … Continued