How to Take a Good, Impromptu Portrait

Have you ever been somewhere and had someone walk up to you and ask you to take their photo? Aimée Lutkin has some tips to help take a good, impromptu portrait.

You can get better photos with a little direction and a few adjustments. If you have a terrible photographer in your life, forward this post to them. If it don’t, you might be (probably are) the culprit. Here’s how to improve your flattering photography game.

ZenPod Leather Fidget Spinning Case for AirPods: $24.99

I love today’s deal, which is for Air Vinyl Design’s ZenPod. This is a leather AirPods case with finger pads and bearings that turn it into a fidget spinner. In other words, it’s two things I personally love, a fidget spinner and a leather AirPods case. I have two ZenPods myself, and I think they’re great. You can get a ZenPod through our deal for $24.99, 16% off retail, and it fits all AirPods case models. Check out the video below for a closer look.

2.7 Million Americans Still Get Netflix DVDs in the Mail

Not everyone has the luxury of broadband access capable of streaming Netflix. For these 2.7 million Americans, Netflix DVDs are a savior. But it’s not just rural folks.

«People assume that our customers must either be super seniors or folks that live in the boonies with no internet access,» [Netflix spokeswoman Annie Jung] says. «Actually, our biggest hot spots are the coasts, like the Bay Area and New York.»

”Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes hurtling down the highway.” Andrew S. Tanenbaum

New Shot on iPhone XS Film Explores Cuban Surfing

Apple released a new ‘Shot on iPhone XS’ film to share experiences from the Cuban surfing community. Called «Ola Cubana» it was shot by professional surf photographer Zak Noyle using the iPhone XS Max with a Freefly Novi Cinema Robot stabilizer, FILMic Pro app, AxisGO waterproof container, and BeastGrip universal lens adapter and rigging system. The video was directed by Nick Woytuk, and there is also a shorter behind the scenes video. Surfing in Cuba can be a challenge, because the materials to make the surfboards are hard to find.

Customers Are Buying-In To Digital Fashion

Digital fashion is a real and growing business. Vogue Business reported on the growing popularity of digital clothing lines, which are powered by 3D modeling. Scandinavian retailer Carlings released its first digital clothing collection in November 2018.  It included 19 limited-edition genderless, sizeless pieces that cost between €10 and €30. It sold out in a week.

The concept might seem outlandish, but gamers have been spending real money on digital fashion items for years. Glu Mobile’s Covet Fashion game lets players style models with digitally rendered designer clothing and accessories. It brought in $53.4 million in sales last year (a portion of which is from advertising)…But as people live and display more of their lives online — coupled with growing concerns about sustainability — digital clothing has the potential to expand well beyond gaming.

Indie Games Developers Raise Apple Arcade Concerns

Users are excited about Apple Arcade – the company’s forthcoming games subscription service. While some indie game developers are excited at the prospect of being part of the service, Fast Company reported others had serious concerns. Either way, Apple Arcade’s launch is going to be a critical moment for indie games makers.

But not everyone’s convinced that subscription services will be a boon for developers. If these services become the predominant way that people play games, some independent creators say the result will be a new race to the bottom, in which game makers compete for a shrinking pool of revenue. “With a whole new model of selling video games like this, it comes with a whole bunch of potential ways that it can be bad for smaller developers and independent developers,” says Mike Rose, the founder of the independent game publisher No More Robots.

Much of the Early Internet has Been Lost

Websites die too, and much of the early internet has been gradually, silently lost. Organizations like the Internet Archive can only do so much.

One major problem with trying to archive the internet is that it never sits still. Every minute – every second – more photos, blog posts, videos, news stories and comments are added to the pile. While digital storage has fallen drastically in price, archiving all this material still costs money.

UK Government to Propose Holding Social Media Bosses Liable for Harmful Content

The heads of social media companies could become personally liable for harmful content that gets published on their platforms under new plans set to be proposed by the British government. The plan, leaked to the Guardian, is also set to call for a new regulator, annual “transparency reports” from social media companies and co-operation with law enforcement.

Under plans expected to be published on Monday, the government will legislate for a new statutory duty of care, to be policed by an independent regulator and likely to be funded through a levy on media companies. The regulator – likely initially to be Ofcom, but in the longer term a new body – will have the power to impose substantial fines against companies that breach their duty of care and to hold individual executives personally liable.

An Amazing Basketball-shooting, 3 Point Specialist Robot [Video]

Business Insider writes: «Toyota built Cue 3 to demonstrate the robot’s use of «visual feedback» when shooting. Cue 3 can’t run, dribble, or execute the other fundamentals necessary to play alongside humans.» But maybe soon! And the skills demonstrated here will, no doubt, someday be absorbed into more well-rounded robots. (Image credit: BI/Toyota.)