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Thursday, January 12, 2023

Thursday Technology News and More...

 Technology News and More...



Parler owner laid off 75% of staff and has only 20 employees left, report says



3KArs Technica - All content / 14h
Enlarge (credit: Getty Images ) Parler's owner laid off most of its staff and executives in recent weeks, according to a report yesterday by The Verge . Parlement Technologies, owner of the self-described "free speech" social network, started the spate of layoffs in late November, according to The Verge's sources. "These layoffs continued through at least the end of December, when around 75 perce

Netflix continues 2023 cancellation spree as two fan-favorite shows are axed


500+TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 22h
We're less than two weeks into 2023, but Netflix's cancellation spree is showing no signs of slowing down. Just days after the news broke that Netflix had cancelled supernatural period horror show 1899 after one season , the streaming giant has brought the axe down on two more popular series. Inside Job, an adult animated sci-fi comedy series, is the second casualty of Netflix 's brutal 2023 canc

'The White Lotus' star Jennifer Coolidge's two chaotic speeches won the Golden Globes


1KMashable / 1d
The White Lotus star Jennifer Coolidge had a colossal night at the 80th Golden Globe Awards on Tuesday, picking up an award and winning the crowd with not one, but two incredibly chaotic and glorious speeches. The actor won award for best supporting actress in a television limited series/motion picture for her unforgettable performance as Tanya McQuoid in Mike White's lauded HBO series. Coolidge


Clouds might be scattering in China’s venture capital world


TechCrunch / 5min
The outlook of investing in China is suddenly brightening up as the country gradually phases out its draconian zero-COVID policy , which has caused disruptions in businesses of all kinds and kept the country’s borders shut for the last three years. For venture capitalists, the pandemic has been a tumultuous ride. Tony Wu , a partner at Northern Light Venture Capital, a China-focused VC firm with

Apple's MacBooks might finally get touchscreens


Mashable / 10min
After refusing to add touchscreens to its Mac computers for years, Apple is finally ready to change course. This is according to a new report by Bloomberg, whose Mark Gurman claims that Apple has engineers "actively engaged" in this project and that the company is "seriously considering" producing touchscreen Macs for the first time. According to the report, the first touchscreen Mac could launch


uwmspeccoll: Wood Engraving WednesdayThis week we bring you the...


Music, Arts & Literature / 1h
uwmspeccoll : Wood Engraving Wednesday This week we bring you the January wood engraving by Ann Arbor, Michigan artist, engraver, and letterpress printer Jim Horton from the 2020 calendar of the Wood Engravers’ Network (WEN). Horton has been a practicing wood engraver for over 40 years, and in 1994 he founded WEN, the American counterpart to the venerable British Society of Wood Engravers . Horto

Amazon fails to overturn Staten Island warehouse's vote to unionize


20Engadget / 2h
Amazon has failed to convince Cornele Overstreet, a regional director with the National Labor Relations Board, to overturn JFK8 workers' vote in favor of unionization. If you'll recall, the JFK8 facility in Staten Island became the first unionized Amazon warehouse after workers voted 2,350-1,912 in favor of joining a union back in April 2022. Amazon said at the time that it was "disappointed" wit

Apple is reportedly working on MacBooks with touchscreens


500+TechCrunch / 3h
After years of denials and loathing, Apple may finally be getting around to bringing touchscreens to MacBooks. According to Bloomberg , Apple is actively working on this project and may break away from its long-standing approach of designing a traditional desktop system without a touchscreen. Apple could launch MacBooks with touchscreens by 2025 as a part of a new MacBook Pro lineup, the Bloomber

Today's Wordle Answer #572 – January 12, 2023 Solution And Hints


SlashGear / 3h
Today's Wordle answer is the past tense of a verb that means to act on something without enough thought. We have more hints and the answer, too.

A lifetime subscription to this software training platform is on sale for under £50


Mashable / 3h
TL;DR: A lifetime subscription to StreamSkill.com Software Training is on sale for £48.61, saving you 95% on list price. Learning new software can be a challenge. Even ubiquitous software like Excel still can have a steep learning curve, and you may not always know if there’s a feature one dropdown menu away that could have been saving you hours. Though you could learn software through trial and

'Quordle' today: Here are the answers and hints for January 12


Mashable / 3h
If Quordle is a little too challenging today, you've come to the right place for hints. There aren't just hints here, but the whole Quordle solution. Scroll to the bottom of this page, and there it is. But are you sure you need all four answers? Maybe you just need a strategy guide. Either way, scroll down, and you'll get what you need. What is Quordle ? Quordle is a five-letter word guessing gam

Save 49% on the best VPN for unblocking HBO Max


Mashable / 3h
SAVE 49%: ExpressVPN can reliably unblock HBO Max from anywhere in the world. A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for £84.87 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. HBO Max has expanded its global network in recent years, but there are still plenty of countries that haven't made the list. If you're not sure whether HBO Max is available in your locati

New Android 13 beta lets you customize app icons in a way it always should have


TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 3h
The second beta for Android 13 QPR2 is currently rolling out for select Pixel phones adding new experimental features and even some emojis. If you just looked at the official release notes , you would think it’s nothing but a patch for fixing things like a glitch with the user interface that “caused the Home screen to become unresponsive.” But notable Android expert Mashaal Rahman managed to brea

FTX: Collapsed crypto giant recovers over $5bn of assets


100+BBC News - Technology / 3h
The firm's former chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried is accused of orchestrating an "epic" fraud.

Stripe’s internal valuation gets cut to $63 billion


91TechCrunch / 5h
Stripe, a richly valued payments startup, has cut its internal valuation yet again, according to sources familiar with the manner. It is now valued, internally, at $63 billion. The cut, first reported by The Information , puts Stripe’s internal per-share price at $24.71, down 40% since peaking. The 11% cut comes after an internal valuation cut that occurred six months ago , which valued the compa

The North American Car Of The Year 2023 Lineup Wasn't A Clean Sweep For EVs


SlashGear / 6h
Electric vehicles have been denied a clean sweep of the 2023 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year Awards, but they still took two slots.

PasarPolis is now one of Indonesia’s first full-stack insurtechs


TechCrunch / 6h
Indonesia’s PasarPolis is now able to underwrite its own products, making it one of Indonesia’s first full-stack insurtechs. This means PasarPolis will be able to offer new products and work with partners like Tokopedia, Gojek, Traveloka, Xiaomi and IKEA Indonesia to create custom insurance policies. PasarPolis is able to underwrite insurance products because of its strategic partnership with Tap

Kakao Entertainment lands $966M from sovereign wealth funds, including Saudi Arabia’s PIF


TechCrunch / 6h
Kakao Entertainment announced today it has raised $966 million (1.2 trillion won) in financing from sovereign wealth funds, such as Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Singapore-based PWARP Investment. The entertainment subsidiary of South Korean internet giant Kakao operates storytelling platforms (web novels and webtoons), music streaming, K-pop artists management, and other media (

The Best Electric Toothbrushes of 2023


Futurism / 7h
There are many reasons why you might want to switch from a regular toothbrush to an electric toothbrush. This can range from getting a deeper clean (thanks to the pulsing or spinning action of the brush heads) to utilizing the techy features offered on electric options that just aren’t available with their manual counterparts. For instance, some electric toothbrushes offer built-in sensors and ti

35 Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar Releases Debuting at Epcot's International Festival of the Arts


Gizmodo / 7h
The Epcot International Festival of the Arts begins this week at Walt Disney World Resort . It’s the Disney fandom destination for art pieces, collectibles, and prints inspired by all the franchises under the Mouse House umbrella. Aside from creative food booths and Broadway caliber entertainment, the festival’s… Read more...

Amazon Loses Bid to Overturn Union Victory at Staten Island Warehouse


48NYT > Technology / 7h
A National Labor Relations Board official found a lack of evidence to support claims of election improprieties. Amazon could appeal the decision.

Wordle today: Here's the answer, hints for January 12


Mashable / 8h
Are you ready to get your Wordle on? Once again, a new day has brought with it a new word puzzle. And as always, we're here with some tips and hints to help you solve it. If you want to bypass the struggle, you can jump to the bottom of this article to get January 12's Wordle solution straight up. But if you prefer to work it out yourself, keep reading for a few clues, tips, and strategies to hel

Jeff Beck Had A Stunning Car Collection Featuring Some Classic Ford Coupes


SlashGear / 8h
In addition to notable career highlights like being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Beck also amassed an impressive collection of cars.


NASA's Webb Telescope Makes Its First Exoplanet Discovery, A Rocky Planet Similar In Size To Earth


SlashGear / 8h
Using data collected from Webb's Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec), scientists have confirmed its first exoplanet discovery. Some questions remain, though.

Is The Twitter Username You Wanted Taken? You Might Get A Chance To Buy It


SlashGear / 8h
Twitter CEO Elon Musk's latest move is reportedly about selling desirable usernames to the highest bidder.

Scientists Combined Seven Telescopes To Look For Colliding Black Holes. Here's What They Found


SlashGear / 8h
Scientists used seven different telescopes to capture images of two super-massive black holes on a collision course 750 million light years away.

Neutron imaging revealed the secrets of this gold-plated medieval pendant


Ars Technica - All content / 8h
Enlarge / Scientists used neutron tomography to peer inside a medieval pendant, revealing five reliquary packages. (credit: Sabine Steidl, RGZM/Burkhard Schillinger, MLZ) In 2008, archaeologists excavating a medieval refuse pit in Mainz, Germany, discovered a heavily corroded pendant likely made in the late 12th century. But they were loath to open the pendant to find out what might be inside, le

Microsoft events to show new slate of games—including Starfield


Ars Technica - All content / 8h
Starfield Enlarge / A screenshot from the upcoming game Starfield . Today, Microsoft announced an upcoming livestream called "Developer_Direct" that will include looks at several upcoming games from the company's now-numerous development studios. Set for January 25 at 3 pm ET, the company promises glimpses at Redfall , the latest game from Dishonored and Prey developer Arkane—whose pedigree actua

CNET has used an AI to write financial explainers nearly 75 times since November


90Engadget / 8h
With the rapid evolution of AI chatbot systems like Chat-GPT , VALL-E , and BlenderBot 3 and their growing abilities to generate text on par with human writers, robots coming to take your writing job is becoming a viable threat. Over at CNET , it's apparently already happening. On Wednesday, The Byte reported that the popular tech site appears to have employed "automation technology" to produce a

David Dastmalchian Has a New Role in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania


Gizmodo / 8h
The latest trailer for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania made it very clear: this movie is quite different from the previous two films in the series. And that point has now been made even clearer as one of the funniest characters in the original films has pivoted to a new role. Read more...

Orient Express superyacht with an oyster bar and cabaret is setting sail in 2026


The Points Guy / 9h
Dust off your Agatha Christie novels: The Orient Express brand is slated to hit the high seas in three years. Paris-based hotel conglomerate Accor plans to launch a superyacht division of the Orient Express brand in spring 2026 with the 722-foot Orient Express Silenseas. While the Orient Express brand is often associated with ultra-luxurious mystery thanks to Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orie

XBB.1.5: Still more questions than answers on risk of latest omicron subvariant


Ars Technica - All content / 9h
Enlarge / A CDC COVID-19 variant testing site inside Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport on Monday. The airport testing is part of the government's early warning system for detecting new variants, which began expanding recently in the wake of a COVID-19 surge in China. (credit: Getty | Jill Connelly/Bloomberg ) Amid a winter wave of COVID-19 in the US, the late

Long Covid Symptoms Often Fade for People Who Had Mild Infection, Large Study Finds


Gizmodo / 9h
Research from a team in Israel appears to offer encouraging news: The majority of symptoms tied to long covid might fade away over time for those who initially had a mild case of covid-19. The study found that mild cases had a higher risk of more than a dozen health conditions compared to uninfected controls in the… Read more...

See Shocking Flood Damage in California


Gizmodo / 9h
California isn’t out of the woods yet. At least 17 people are dead, thousands have been forced to evacuate, and cities and municipalities all over the state are looking at millions of dollars in damage from devastating winter weather that began late last month and doesn’t look like it will stop anytime soon. Read more...

Gaslighting Takes a Gory Turn in Horror Short Upstairs


Gizmodo / 9h
Writer-director Phillip Trow’s short Upstairs is tense from the start , as a mom and two of her two adult children await the arrival of the family’s other daughter, who’s bringing her boyfriend to meet them for the first time. A sense of dread hangs heavily over the table, and it only increases as the meal continues. Read more...

Apple is reportedly working on a touchscreen MacBook Pro


79Engadget / 9h
Apple is reportedly working on touchscreen MacBooks. Although the plans aren’t finalized, Bloomberg ’s sources say that touch-friendly Apple laptops could arrive in 2025. For a company that has made a point of saying that touch is better on a product like the iPad, a touchscreen MacBook would be a big change — but don't expect a wild departure from traditional Apple laptop design. The alleged tou

Delta Bans Employees From Its Airport Lounges Until Further Notice


200+View from the Wing / 9h
Starting February 3, Delta Air Lines is banning employees on nonrev travel and who are traveling on company business from accessing their lounges. Delta acknowledges the "lines out the door" of their clubs and that this includes "360 and Diamond Medallion Members - waiting for seats once inside" and says they're eliminating access for employees who pay for membership in order to "ensur[e] our mos

ABL Space Systems’ rocket experiences simultaneous engine shutdown shortly after lift-off


TechCrunch / 9h
Launch startup ABL Space Systems’ first orbital launch attempt ended in failure Tuesday after all nine engines on the RS1 rocket’s first stage shut down simultaneously. The rocket subsequently hit the launch pad and was destroyed on impact. The rocket took off from the Pacific Spaceport Complex on Alaska’s Kodiak Island at around 6:27 PM EST. It’s unclear how soon after lift-off the engines faile

Book round-trip fares to Ireland for as low as $369 with this Aer Lingus deal


The Points Guy / 9h
Enjoy a pint at a pub in Dublin or stroll through the small Irish towns near Shannon this year — Aer Lingus is offering round-trip flights to Ireland starting at $369. Fly from a handful of U.S. cities to either Dublin or Shannon. Travel dates for this deal are from Jan. 18 to May 31, so you have ample time to plan your trip. This deal lasts until Jan. 25 and fares largely depend on the U.S. regi

The best credit cards for music festivals


The Points Guy / 9h
Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers. With tickets for music festivals like Coachella, Boston Calling and Bonnaroo launching sales and presales this week, you might wonder if there’s a best credit card for music festivals, concerts or event tickets. Does it matter how you pay? The short answer is “yes,” because using the right card can help yo

Daily Crunch: In ‘an early experimental program,’ OpenAI opens waitlist for GPT Professional


100+TechCrunch / 9h
To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important stories delivered to your inbox every day at 3 p.m. PST, subscribe here . Hello from a very rain-drenched, the Cure-themed, semi-goth-and-sad Silicon Valley (Haje) and a lovely, sunny and warm day (Christine). It’s hard to imagine one from the other, and so here we are, learning a lesson of empathy and realizing that our immediate experi

Use These Tactics to Get the Best Deal on a Gym Membership This Month


Lifehacker / 9h
If you’re not approaching getting your new January gym membership with the same mindset you would use for a car dealership negotiation, you’re probably not getting a good enough deal. January is the Black Friday of gym memberships , and you need to strategize accordingly and go in with a plan: You need to know what you… Read more...

Touchscreen Mac Reportedly In Works As Apple Rethinks Steve Jobs' Controversial Stance


SlashGear / 9h
Ongoing discussions among Apple staff are targeting a tentative 2025 release for touch-screen Mac hardware.


Here's How Much The Banned Land Rover Defender Is Worth Today


SlashGear / 9h
In the United States, the Land Rover Defender was a case of forbidden fruit, but that's changing now for interested collectors.

How To Fix The Netflix Download Failed Error


SlashGear / 9h
If you're receiving download errors when you are trying to store your favorite Netflix shows offline, we have some suggestions for things you can try.

In the Next Pandemic, Let’s Pay People to Get Vaccinated


74Wired / 9h
Data from Sweden and the US suggests cash incentives increase uptake without denting people’s trust in vaccines or future willingness to get them.

'SweepWizard' Policing App May Have Exposed Personal Data on Hundreds of Officers and Thousands of Suspects


Gizmodo / 10h
A little-known policing app credited with helping more than 60 law enforcement departments conduct multi-agency raids may have leaked confidential data about those raids, suspects not yet convicted of crimes, and, in some cases, the very officers involved in the operations, to the open internet. Read more...

CNET Has Been Quietly Publishing AI-Written Articles for Months


Gizmodo / 10h
CNET reporter Jackson Ryan published an article last month describing how ChatGPT , an AI that can generate human-sounding text, would affect journalists and the news industry: “ChatGPT Is a Stunning AI, but Human Jobs Are Safe (for Now).” Read more...

Genre Legend John Carpenter Says He's 'Open to' Directing Another Film


100+Gizmodo / 10h
Much-beloved genre director John Carpenter ( Halloween , The Thing , Escape From New York) turns 75 this month, and in a new interview he casually mentions that sure, he’d be up for making another feature film someday—if certain conditions were met, that is. Read more...

PC shipments saw their largest decline ever last quarter


42Engadget / 10h
It's no secret that the conditions were ripe for a steep drop in PC demand this holiday, but now it's clear just how bad that plunge really was. Gartner and IDC estimate PC shipments fell by more than 28 percent year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2022. That's the steepest quarterly decline Gartner has ever recorded — no mean feat when it began tracking the computer market in the 1990s. Both

Windows 7 might not be completely dead after all


TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 10h
Despite the official life span of Windows 7 ending earlier this week, reports have claimed that the software may still live on for a bit longer. Microsoft has apparently added UEFI and Secure Boot to Windows 7, potentially extending the life of machines still utilizing the platform without the worries of being hit by a cyberattack. Secure Boot allows a computer to check that the software and firm

The 'SpongeBob' cast reflects on the show's legacy


Mashable / 10h
Nickelodeon's SpongeBob Squarepants PresentsThe Tidal Zone Take Us Back to Bikini Bottom. Mashable Reporter, Ty Cole, interviews the legendary cast about how SpongeBob has lasted the test of time. “The Tidal Zone” premieres on Nickelodeon starting January 13.

Microsoft 365 Has a New $2/Month Tier: Here’s What You Get


How-To Geek / 10h
Microsoft 365 is perhaps one of the best tech subscriptions you can grab today, but now, the entry barrier is getting even lower. There’s a new “Basic” tier that costs just $2 per month. Read This Article on How-To Geek ›

Did You Know That You Can Convert Airline Miles Into Hotel Points?


View from the Wing / 10h
You can often still move hotel points to airline miles, but some programs actually let you move airline miles into hotel points. By offering transfers in both directions this does create the opportunity to launder airline miles through hotel programs from one airline to another as well. Continue reading ...

The UK's Postal Service Equivalent Is Experiencing a 'Cyber Incident'


Gizmodo / 10h
The United Kingdom’s answer to the U.S. Postal Service, Royal Mail, is warnings its customers to hold onto international letters and packages for now. The courier is “experiencing a severe service disruption,” impacting its ability to send items abroad because of a “cyber incident,” Royal Mail wrote in a vague news… Read more...

'Maximum Security' App That Claimed It Was Better Than Signal Actually Full of Cryptographic Bugs, Research Shows


Deobfuscate/Decode Files or Information (Enterprise T1140)•
Gizmodo / 10h
An end-to-end encrypted chat app that collects almost no data and requires no personal information to sign up? Sounds like a dream come true for privacy enthusiasts. The only problem is that Threema , the Swiss privacy company behind the messenger in question, has been using an unreliable cryptographic protocol, whose… Read more...

American Kids Are Being Exposed to Lead From Airports


Gizmodo / 10h
People living near airports that service piston-engine aircraft are disproportionately exposed to lead, a dangerous neurotoxin. Read more...

Vicious, Killer Aliens are Coming In the Delightful Kids vs. Aliens


Gizmodo / 10h
Read more...

The Guardian Confirms Reporters' Personal Info was Compromised in Ransomware Attack


Gizmodo / 10h
Hackers who targeted The Guardian in a December ransomware attack accessed the personal information of journalists and other staff, the U.K.-based news outlet confirmed on Wednesday. Read more...

All the Indiana Jones Toys Hasbro Showed Off Today


49Gizmodo / 10h
Today Hasbro lifted the lid on its latest swath of Indiana Jones toys, our second major look at the line after Lucasfilm revealed it was partnering with its Star Wars ally to really get some use out of those Harrison Ford headsculpts. And while there wasn’t much from the new movie shown off, there were a few treasures… Read more...

The world’s most powerful passports for 2023 are revealed


200+The Points Guy / 10h
In what should come as a surprise to no one at this point, Japan has the world’s most powerful passport, at least according to the 2023 Henley Passport Index. The index has deemed the Japanese passport the “world’s most powerful” for the fifth consecutive year . As of 2023, Japanese passport holders can visit 193 of 227 destinations visa-free — that’s 85% of the world, according to data from the

This 'Breath of the Wild' Glitch Gives You Invincibility and Unlimited Stamina


Lifehacker / 10h
Nearly six years after its launch and with a sequel just around the corner, Breath of the Wild is still a wildly popular game among Switch players of all kinds. You’d think gamers would have learned everything there is to know about this great adventure by now, but new things pop up all the time. Now, we know about a… Read more...

How To Fix The 'Cannot Start Microsoft Office Outlook' Issue


SlashGear / 10h
Microsoft Outlook is an essential tool for many and it can be critical when it doesn't open properly. We have steps to try to fix it if it fails.


Apple Maps Is Getting Some Great New Features, Connecting You To Local Restaurants, Hotels, And More


SlashGear / 10h
Apple Maps' navigation may have caught up to Google long ago, but informationally speaking, there is work to be done. That's where Business Connect comes in.

The FAA NOTAM Outage Lays Bare an Essential System Everyone Hates


77Wired / 11h
A glitch in the so-called NOTAM system caused the agency to ground flights across the US. But its problems go back years.

Computer Glitch Forced FAA to Ground All Flights Across the US


32Futurism / 11h
Delay For Days Early Wednesday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded domestic flights across the US due to an issue with its Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) computer system. Airports and airlines abruptly plunged into pandemonium. While flights are now resuming with the NOTAM system back online, the damage has been done. Over 8,200 flights and counting either within, into, or

Microsoft will soon push Xbox owners into energy-saving Shutdown mode


Ars Technica - All content / 11h
Enlarge / Microsoft is all but demanding Xbox owners give the drastically more energy-efficient "Shutdown" setting a try. (credit: Microsoft) Microsoft is rolling out an update to Xbox consoles starting today that will automatically switch them to a power-saving Shutdown mode, instead of the usual energy-hungry Sleep mode . It's part of a broader effort by Microsoft to make Xbox the "first carbon

Hundreds of SugarCRM servers infected with critical in-the-wild exploit


3 TTPs•
Ars Technica - All content / 11h
Enlarge For the past two weeks, hackers have been exploiting a critical vulnerability in the SugarCRM (customer relationship management) system to infect users with malware that gives them full control of their servers. The vulnerability began as a zero-day when the exploit code was posted online in late December. The person posting the exploit described it as an authentication bypass with remote

Microsoft 365 Basic gives you 100GB of OneDrive space (but no Office) for $2


24Ars Technica - All content / 11h
Enlarge (credit: Microsoft) Microsoft is adding a new low-end subscription tier to its Microsoft 365 service designed to cater to existing OneDrive subscribers and people who want more features for their Outlook inboxes but don't need the full desktop versions of Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. The Verge reports that Microsoft 365 Basic will cost $1.99 a month or $19.99 a year, and it includes 100GB

Chuck E. Cheese still uses floppy disks in 2023, but not for long


100+Ars Technica - All content / 11h
Enlarge / Stewart Coonrod holds up an official 2023 Chuck E. Cheese floppy disk in a TikTok video. It contains dance moves for in-store animatronics. (credit: Stewart Coonrod ) On Sunday, a Chuck E. Cheese employee named Stewart Coonrod posted a TikTok video that documents the process of installing a new song-and-dance show on an old Chuck E. Cheese animatronics system—a process that involves a 3

SpaceX Stacks Its Starship Rocket Ahead of Anticipated Orbital Launch


72Gizmodo / 11h
SpaceX is yet again teasing the possibility of a Starship orbital launch test, stacking the huge rocket on top of its launchpad at the company’s Starbase site in Texas. Read more...

Instagram is adding more limits on targeting teens with ads


Mashable / 11h
Instagram is making more changes to the ad experiences for teens as part of an ongoing attempt by the Meta-owned company to stop harming young people . The platform said in a post that it will further restrict the options advertisers have to reach teens, the ads teens are shown, and more "teen-specific controls and resources." Young people's engagement, like who they follow and posts they like, w

The best Dolby Atmos soundbars of CES 2023


TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 11h
When it comes to new AV tech, CES is primarily a TV show – although projectors were also a hot item on the show floor this year – with audio having taken a back seat over the past decade. Still, we did see a smattering of hi-fi products at CES 2023 , along with some innovative new Dolby Atmos soundbars from a range of manufacturers. The best Dolby Atmos soundbars do a lot more that provide an upg

PC sales slip for fourth straight quarter in Q4 as demand remains muted


TechCrunch / 11h
When you look at fourth-quarter worldwide PC sales data from Canalys , IDC and Gartner , it’s fair to say that the news was not great, with all three firms seeing precipitous declines from 2021 highs. In fact, the numbers plunged for the fourth consecutive quarter, with sales falling 28% according to IDC, 28.5% according to Gartner, and 29% according to Canalys. These numbers include laptops and

US solar manufacturing gets boost with $2.5B Georgia deal


26TechCrunch / 11h
The Inflation Reduction Act has clearly kickstarted investment in U.S. clean energy manufacturing. Last year, automakers and battery manufacturers announced that they’d spend tens of billions of dollars to ramp up EV production in the U.S. Now it’s solar’s turn. Today, Korean solar manufacturer Hanwha Qcells announced that it’ll spend $2.5 billion to build a new plant in Georgia and expand an exi

Twitter Reportedly Considering Putting Popular Usernames Up for Auction


300+Gizmodo / 11h
Twitter CEO Elon Musk is desperate for new revenue streams as the company has hemorrhaged advertisers ever since he took over last October. As part of this endeavor to make the bird app finally make some money, the company is considering monetizing users’ very names on the platform. Read more...

These Prices Are Expected to Drop This Year


Lifehacker / 11h
They say that everything that goes up, must come down—but inflation has made that hard to believe last year. While not all the prices that went up in 2022 are expected to come down this year, some will. In 2022, inflation peaked in June at 9.1% , and has gradually been coming down since. Along with inflation, the… Read more...

The Guardian says ransomware attack compromised staff's personal data


Engadget / 11h
The Guardian has confirmed that it was the victim of a ransomware attack , and that the damage is more serious than first thought. In an update to staff, Guardian group chief Anna Bateson and newspaper editor-in-chief Katharine Viner said the December attack was "highly sophisticated" and accessed the personal data of UK employees. There was no evidence of the data being exposed online, or that t

Chrome 109 improves video calls but it's up to developers to add the changes


TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 11h
Google is currently rolling out the stable version of Chrome 109 on desktop and mobile as it adds new features. However, those features are dependent on third-party developers implementing them. The update gives developers new tools to improve the interactivity between their software and the browser. Conditional Focus is being added, which will allow a video conferencing app to decide if it wants

Alaska Airlines deal: One-way fares start at $49


100+The Points Guy / 11h
Airlines continue to mark down fares this January, and Alaska Airlines is offering one-way fares for as low as $49. This Alaska deal allows you to fly to U.S. cities in Alaska’s network. The discount applies to trips from Jan. 24 to March 8. Blackout dates for this deal are Feb. 16 to Feb. 27. You can book flights for this Alaska offer through Jan. 23. However, seats are already filling up for ce

The 2023 Audi SQ7 0-60 Time Is Stunningly Fast For A Family SUV


SlashGear / 11h
When you think of your everyday average family SUV, you won't likely consider the idea that it'll be ready to race. The 2023 Audi SQ7 might just surprise you.

Revel Is Planning A Massive EV Charging Network – Here's When Its Set To Open


SlashGear / 11h
New York's EV charging infrastructure is expanding significantly, courtesy of Revel, which plans to add over 100 new fast charging stalls to the five boroughs.

Twitter could launch in-app ‘coins’ to help creators make money


91Engadget / 11h
It seems Elon Musk’s Twitter is working on a new scheme to make money from the platform. The service appears to be experimenting with an in-app currency called “coins” meant to help creators earn money from the platform, according to screenshots shared by two app researchers. The feature has been spotted in recent days by Jane Manchun Wong and Nima Owji , app researchers who often publish images


TCL backtracks on making its first OLED TVs


Ars Technica - All content / 11h
Enlarge / TCL will instead focus on bigger QLED and Mini LED Tvs, like the 98-inch QM8. (credit: TCL ) TCL isn't letting go of the QLED dream. TCL still hopes to sell LCD-LED TVs with quantum dots but also feature QLEDs in its lineup. Numerous companies announced new OLED TVs during CES 2023 last week, with some using purported next-gen tech. However, TCL affirmed plans to be one of the last TV m

How to Destink Your Diaper Pail (and Keep It Destunk)


Lifehacker / 11h
If a baby is one of the sweetest, cutest, most precious things we could ever imagine taking up space in our homes, their diaper pail is the exact opposite. If you have one, I don’t need to tell you how horrifically odorous it is; you’re well aware. There are several ways to wrangle their smell into submission,… Read more...

The OLED MacBook of Your Dreams Could Arrive in 2024


30Gizmodo / 11h
Supply chain analysts Ming-Chi Kuo and Ross Young have been embroiled in a bit of a back-and-forth about what’s happening with Apple’s display tech. But the consensus is that OLED panels are coming to the MacBook soon and will likely be the norm in the next couple of years. Read more...

Canada’s Bizarre NOTAM Flight Issues…


23One Mile at a Time / 11h
I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s all very strange… Canada reports NOTAM system problems Late Tuesday night, we saw a major failure with the United States Federal Aviation Administration’s systems, impacting thousands of flights. Specifically, the FAA experienced an outage related to the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system. This is a vital program that relays important safety related messa

NASA Unveils Plan for Giant Telescope to Spot Life on Alien Planets


500+Futurism / 11h
World Observatory NASA has revealed details about the multi-billion successor to its groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) — a project tasked with searching for life on Earth-like planets as soon as the early 2040s. During this week's meeting of the American Astronomical Society, Science reports , NASA’s astrophysics division director Mark Clampin revealed that outside of a working nam

Startup Says It's Started Releasing Chemical Into Atmosphere to Dim Sun


100+Futurism / 11h
A small environmental startup called Make Sunsets has started injecting sulfur dioxide particles into the stratosphere in an effort to ever-so-slightly cool the planet, a provocative and unproven method of combating a growing climate crisis. As The Washington Post reports , the company's CEO and founder Luke Iseman released six-foot helium balloons filled with sulfur dioxide over Baja California

ABL's Failed Inaugural Rocket Launch Marks Space Industry's Third Failure in Weeks


22Gizmodo / 11h
In a concerning trend, ABL Space System’s RS1 rocket became the third rocket to succumb to a launch failure in less than a month. The botched liftoff came just 24 hours after Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket carrying a payload of nine satellites experienced an anomaly that preventing it from reaching orbit. Read more...

Ebikes No Longer Look Like Ebikes


29Gizmodo / 12h
Like the earliest electric cars, which were easy to spot thanks to their over-emphasis on aerodynamics, e-bikes tend to stand out with thick frames designed to hold bulky batteries. But as the DB-E from Detroit Bikes whizzes past you on the bike lane, you’d have to really look close to tell it’s got an electric motor … Read more...

Hundreds of fake AnyDesk sites push Vidar info-stealing malware


Screen Capture (Enterprise T1113)•
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 12h
A major impersonation campaign is aiming to distribute the Vidar infostealer to as many endpoints as possible. Cybersecurity researcher from SEKOIA, going under the name crep1x, discovered the campaign and rang the alarm on Twitter. In a short Twitter threat, the researcher said he discovered more than 1,300 domains, all of which impersonate major software brands to push the malware . The brands

Ubisoft cancels three games and delays 'Skull and Bones' yet again


200+Engadget / 12h
Things aren't exactly going smoothly over at Ubisoft . The publisher has canceled another three games, following the four titles it killed last summer . Not only that, the company has announced yet another delay for Skull and Bones — a game we first tried all the way back at E3 2017 . The pirate sim was supposed to finally emerge on March 9th , but Ubisoft has delayed it until the early part of i

You Can Turn a Bag of Frozen Hash Browns Into a Pot of Soup


Lifehacker / 12h
I am, as I write this, very cozy. With the weather being what it is (cold), it’s the only way to be. Being cozy is related to being warm, but it’s more about being comforted in a warm way. Soup, for example, is cozy. It warms from the inside out, but it also nurtures, satiates, and fills the home with delicious and… Read more...

Select Jitterbug Phones Sold by Best Buy Can't Make Calls


How-To Geek / 12h
Please check in on any family members who use a Jitterbug Flip phone. This product, which is primarily sold through the Lively carrier at Best Buy, cannot make or answer calls due to an oversight during Verizon’s 3G network shutdown. (That said, this probably isn’t Verizon’s fault.) Read This Article on Review Geek ›

The Willow Finale Brought It All Together and We Still Want More


31Gizmodo / 12h
The first season of Willow is over and the first thing to say is “I want more.” While the final episode brought this season’s stories together in a completely satisfying, entertaining way, the lore of this franchise and world is so vast that even without this episode’s big cliffhanger, these characters and actors are… Read more...

Webb Space Telescope Finds Its First Exoplanet


25Gizmodo / 12h
The incredibly powerful Webb Space Telescope—which has fed us dazzling images of the cosmos since July—has officially found its first exoplanet, a world that is approximately the same size as Earth. Read more...

Funding for Black founders remains dismal — where do we go from here?


43TechCrunch / 12h
Last week, TechCrunch reported that Black founders in the United States raised 1% of the $215.9 billion in venture capital allocated last year. That is not to be confused with the 1.3% raised in 2021, the 0.8% they pulled in 2020, the 1% they got in 2019 or the 1.1% raised in both 2018 and 2017, according to Crunchbase data. In case it’s not obvious why these figures are so dreadful, it’s worth n

Is ChatGPT a cybersecurity threat?


53TechCrunch / 12h
Since its debut in November, ChatGPT has become the internet’s new favorite plaything. The AI-driven natural language processing tool rapidly amassed more than 1 million users, who have used the web-based chatbot for everything from generating wedding speeches and hip-hop lyrics to crafting academic essays and writing computer code. Not only have ChatGPT’s human-like abilities taken the internet

What I’d like to see in an updated Choice Privileges program


34The Points Guy / 12h
In August 2022, Choice Hotels acquired Radisson Hotel Group Americas . With this acquisition, Choice Hotels gained more than 600 Radisson hotels across the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America. You’ll eventually be able to book these properties through Choice and even use Choice Privileges points to book rooms at Radisson properties. For now, the Choice website says Choice Privileges upd

Bamboo Airways 787 Business Class: More Than Just A Flight


40One Mile at a Time / 12h
After flying Bamboo Airways’ A321neo business class from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi, I flew Bamboo Airways’ Boeing 787-9 business class from Hanoi to Frankfurt, and it was… delightfully interesting! Like, it wasn’t amazing, it wasn’t terrible, and it also wasn’t boring. For better or worse, I won’t be able to make any puns involving pandemonium or getting bamboozled. 😉 I actually got off the flig

Universal Audio launches two new premium microphones


Engadget / 12h
Universal Audio is known for its leading software emulation that mimics the quality of more expensive gear. After entering the modeling microphone space last year with the L22, the company is back with a pair of mics that, while fairly pricey, could appeal to serious bedroom producers. The Sphere DLX is the higher-end model at $1,499. It emulates 38 classic ribbon, condenser, and dynamic studio m

Twitter is considering selling usernames through online auctions, new report claims


500+TechCrunch / 12h
Twitter is considering selling usernames as a way to boost revenue, according to a new report from The New York Times. The report comes as the social network’s owner, Elon Musk, has been looking for ways to generate revenue for the company. The report says engineers at the company have considered organizing online auctions where people can bid for usernames, also known as handles. The potential n


Twitter didn’t block child sex abuse hashtags until journalists pointed them out


33Ars Technica - All content / 12h
Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | NurPhoto ) Elon Musk said in November that Twitter's top priority is eliminating content that sexually exploits children. But Twitter apparently didn't take action against a series of hashtags and keywords used to promote the sale of child sex abuse material (CSAM) until after NBC News identified the problem in a report published Friday . Twitter blocked searches f

RPG fans irate as D&D tries to shut its “open” game license


100+Ars Technica - All content / 12h
Enlarge / Excuse me, but do you have the proper rights to that spell? (credit: Aurich Lawson | Wizards of the Coast) For decades now, Wizards of the Coast (WotC) has made the core framework of its popular Dungeons & Dragons RPG (D&D) widely available to other game makers as part of an expansive, royalty-free Open Gaming License (OGL). But a planned update to the license imposes more restrictive t

A widespread logic controller flaw raises the specter of Stuxnet


Pre-OS Boot (Enterprise T1542)•
400+Ars Technica - All content / 12h
Enlarge In 2009, the computer worm Stuxnet crippled hundreds of centrifuges inside Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant by targeting the software running on the facility’s industrial computers, known as programmable logic controllers. The exploited PLCs were made by the automation giant Siemens and were all models from the company’s ubiquitous, long-running SIMATIC S7 product series. Now, more

The Biggest MedTech Flops Of All Time


SlashGear / 12h
MedTech is supposed to save lives and push the industry forward, but these flops caused the opposite to happen, often with irreparable harm.

Can You Play GamePigeon On Android?


SlashGear / 12h
GamePigeon brings the fun straight to iMessage on iPhones, but for the most part, Android users are out of luck unless they want to explore alternatives.

Standing Your PS5 Up Vertically Is Fine, Actually


Lifehacker / 12h
For decades, video game companies have given players a choice in how to position their consoles. The PS2, Wii, Xbox 360, Wii U, PS4, and more all let you decide whether to position them horizontally or vertically, with some even including a stand. The PS5 doesn’t buck this trend, and Sony encourages you to orient it… Read more...

When it comes to web3, investors say they’re in it for the long haul


56TechCrunch / 12h
In the heat of 2021’s record-setting venture market, you couldn’t avoid the growing noise from the burgeoning web3 sector. Trust me, I tried . But while some of that momentum carried into 2022 (Yuga Labs closed a $450 million seed round in March), the rest of the year was relatively quiet. Yes, venture as a whole had a quieter year overall in 2022, but the lack of web3 deals stood out particularl

Professor Insists That We Actually DON'T Live in a Simulation


400+Futurism / 12h
Sim Earth Bad news, simulation theorists — if this decorated philosopher and theoretical physicist is to be believed, we may be responsible for our world and its outcomes after all. "It’s way too convenient to blame our current mess on powers beyond our control," Dartmouth College physics and philosophy