Новости за 12.07.2017

Reddit has been one of the most prominent companies in digital advocacy, organizing to defeat SOPA in 2012 and to defend net neutrality in 2014. As the internet rallies for today’s pro-net neutrality protest, Reddit has organized Ask Me Anything sessions around the issue, and the company announced in a blog post that it will be making the company’s first “official” trip to DC next month to meet with lawmakers.

Dating app Bumble has introduced a new feature it’s calling SuperSwipe, which is basically a clone of Tinder’s Super Like. Its purpose is to signal a greater level of interest in a particular profile you come across that stands out from the swiping masses. Instead of just thumbing them to the right, you can now tap the new heart icon on a user’s profile to perform a SuperSwipe. Then, when your profile comes up at some point in their own killing-time swipe session, they’ll see a little indicator... Читать дальше...

Google’s Backup and Sync desktop app is now available for download for Mac and Windows after a delay last month. Users now have the power to sync up anything, including photos and videos from cameras, SD cards, and USB devices, instead of their files remaining stuck in one place.

One of the subtler design changes in Apple’s recent MacBook and MacBook Pro models was the replacement of Apple’s magnetically detaching MagSafe charger with standard USB-C ports for charging the laptops. In the past, Apple has made no secret of its efforts to enforce its MagSafe patents, so it was a little surprising to see them switch to USB-C. And the jury is still out as to whether or not that was the right move. In the time since the 12-inch MacBook launched in 2015 — and particularly in... Читать дальше...

Following the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, fans pointed out that its central character, Rey, was conspicuously absent from the first wave of toys, including Hasbro’s new edition of Star Wars Monopoly. After the outcry, Lucasfilm announced that Rey would be a prominent part of the next wave of toys, and Hasbro said that it would add the character to the next release of the game. A year later, that hasn’t happened, reports the Associated Press.

Here’s where they’re getting all those mystery tracks

Continue reading…

Apple is planning to release a screen-recording feature when it publicly rolls out iOS 11. Beta testers have already played around with it, and yes, it's cool and easy to use. Now it seems the company is considering rolling out an ancillary feature that might let people start live stream broadcasts from their home screen.

Amazon is considering granting third-party app developers access to transcripts of audio recordings saved by Alexa-powered devices, according to a report from The Information today. The change would be aimed at enticing developers to continue investing in Alexa as a voice assistant platform, by giving those app makers more data that could help improve their software over time. Amazon’s goal, according to The Information, is to stay competitive with more recent entrants in the smart speaker market, like Apple and Google. Читать дальше...

A chatbot that provides free legal counsel using AI is now available in all 50 states starting today. This is following its success in New York, Seattle, and the UK, where it was invented by British entrepreneur Joshua Browder. Browder, who calls his invention “the world’s first robot lawyer,” estimates the bot has helped defeat 375,000 parking tickets in a span of two years.

When Aaron Wong and his co-workers at Lithium Cycles flipped a Kickstarter campaign live last summer, they only expected about 50 to 100 people to plunk down enough cash for their product. The Super 73, a minimalist electric bike that resembles a small motorcycle, started at about $2,000 (with a retail price of $3,000), which is much pricier than more practical e-bikes.

An aspect of artificial intelligence that’s sometimes overlooked is just how good it is at creating fake audio and video that’s difficult to distinguish from reality. The advent of Photoshop got us doubting our eyes, but what happens when we can’t rely on our other senses?

A coral blue version of the Galaxy S8 might be released through Best Buy, potentially as early as tomorrow. Droid-Life reports that the retailer holds exclusive rights to the color and will carry it in both carrier — Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint — and unlocked versions. Although Best Buy hasn't publicly announced this yet, Droid-Life says its source suggests the phones could arrive tomorrow.

Last month, District 9 director Neill Blomkamp launched his experimental short film project, Oats Studios, releasing an alien invasion film called Rakka, and later, an alternate-history Vietnam War film called Firebase. Now, the director has shared his latest short film, Zygote, which features War of the Worlds and Twilight star Dakota Fanning.

Post-apocalyptic fiction is often suspicious of civilization. Either it’s a delicate exception to a natural state of barbarism, or it’s a cage that’s made people soft and unable to cope with existential threats. Post-apocalyptic young adult fiction takes this one step further, suggesting that once civilization is gone, any new society will rebuild at the expense of something fundamentally human, like emotions, memories, or free will. Bannerless, a new novel by Carrie Vaughn, subverts all of this... Читать дальше...

Scientists have discovered a virus-made protein that can block the powerful gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 from cutting DNA. The protein allows researchers to better control CRISPR so that it doesn’t snip unintended pieces of genetic code. In the future, the technique could be used to make gene editing more precise — and safe.

Amazon has just released a software update for its Fire TV devices that allows you to control them using Alexa on another device... like, say, an Amazon Echo. The update was first spotted by Android Police.

Today, some of the world’s biggest internet companies and activist groups are coming together to protest the FCC’s proposed rollback of net neutrality protections. Google, Twitter, and Reddit have weighed in, as have groups like Mozilla and the ACLU.

I’ve gone through my fair share of analog camera apps, downloading and deleting them one by one as the novelty wore off quickly. My problem with most of these apps, Instagram included, was the overwhelming burden of choice. There are too many filters, and the abundance of ways to tweak every detail was an option I didn’t personally need. That’s why I find the Gudak camera app so refreshing in its simplicity.

We first saw the Airdog drone back at CES in 2015. At the time, it was one of the first drones that offered the ability to automatically track you. It used an electronic leash packed with sensors to transmit highly accurate data about where the user was, and predicting where someone moving quickly, say on a skateboard, would be next. That put it ahead of units like the DJI Phantom and Inspire.

Remember Mighty, the so-called iPod shuffle for Spotify? After extensive delays, it has shipped to all backers on Kickstarter and Indiegogo, where the device cumulatively took in over $800,000 of crowdfunding money. Now you can buy it directly from the company for $85.99; orders placed today should ship by July 30th. But should you? Is this the iPod shuffle of the streaming generation?

Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film Dunkirk is set to be the biggest 70mm film release in 25 years, and in an exclusive new clip the filmmaker explains why shooting so much of it in IMAX became essential to his creative vision. The director has used IMAX for specific sequences in his films for years, but Dunkirk — which tells the true-life story of the evacuation of Allied soldiers in France — represents his most ambitious use of large-format film to date. About 70 percent of the film was shot on IMAX... Читать дальше...

As you might know, The Verge has consistently and proudly presented a column called One Video for the last 21 weeks and will hopefully continue to do so for 2,100 more. In this column, Lizzie Plaugic and I tell you just one music video you need to watch every week, why, and for how long. Usually the “why” has something to do with innovation in the music video arts, which are always changing and generally thrilling. Sometimes we’re sleepy and just think the song is nice.

If you haven’t seen enough men in bright blue spandex with fake abs today, here’s your chance. Amazon’s rebooted version of The Tick just got its first trailer, which premiered this morning on Entertainment Weekly. The show got a series order from Amazon last year, and is set to premiere next month.

Apple is offering free Beats wireless headphones to students who buy a Mac or iPad Pro this summer, months ahead of when school starts again. Those who are eligible have a choice of Beats Solo3 Wireless, BeatsX, or Powerbeats 3.

At a glance, Nate Hendrick seemed like a typical Twitter user. His bio listed him as “traveller by profession, journalist by passion,” working as Rossiyskaya Gazeta’s foreign correspondent in South Asia. With nearly 10,000 followers, he seemed comfortable with the form, blasting out observations and occasionally stinging criticisms of the local political scene. The only odd point was Hendrick’s screen name, @NateBussey59, but with Twitter’s verified check mark in place, there was no reason to be suspicious. Читать дальше...