We have a deal for you today on a magnetic iPhone holder. This device is ergonomically-designed with a bracket that easily extends after being attached to a laptop, computer monitor, or vertical flat surface. It also has a reserved charging port so that you can power up your phone. It’s $24.99 through our deal.
Malvertising Campaign ‘Tag Barnakle’ Infected 120 Ad Servers
First discovered a year ago, malvertising campaign Tag Barnakle has infected over 120 ad servers to insert malicious code into ads.
Stein says that while last year Tag Barnakle had targeted users of desktop browsers with redirects to malware download sites, over the past year, the gang has switched to going after mobile users and redirecting them to online scams peddling various scammy products.
Memo Reveals How Lawmakers Want to Reform Section 230
A new proposal from lawmakers reveals how Congress wants to take steps to reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
A new proposal by Republican lawmakers to overhaul a critical law that protects online platforms already looks dead in the water, according to one legal expert, though another prominent legal scholar believes it could fuel bipartisan reform for tech regulation.
The Republican members’ proposal submitted Thursday calls for, among other things, modifying 230 to strip liability protection for Big Tech if their content moderation practices discriminate against political affiliations or viewpoints, a frequent conservative talking point.
Apple Music and Spotify's Payments to Artists – TMO Daily Observations 2021-04-19
Charlotte Henry joins guest-host Bryan Chaffin to break down how Apple Music and Spotify pay artists and labels, and what that might mean to the music industry as a whole.
'Greyhound' and 'Servant' Win at Motion Picture Sound Editors Award Winners
Greyhound and Servant were both victorious at Friday night’s Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards. As The Hollywood Reporter’s break down highlights, in some cases, they actually beat other Apple TV+ content. No doubt the company will be pleased to be competing in technical, as well as creative, categories.
Greyhound and Soul, along with Mank, News of the World, and Sound of Metal are nominated for the Oscar for sound–a new category combining what was previously two separate categories for sound editing and sound mixing. All five movies are also nominated for Cinema Audio Society Awards for sound mixing, which will be handed out during a virtual ceremony on Saturday.
PlayStation Store to Remain on PS3 and PS Vita
The PlayStation Store will remain available for PS3 and PS Vita users. President & CEO, Sony Interactive Entertainment, announced the change of course on Monday.
Today I’m happy to say that we will be keeping the PlayStation Store operational for PS3 and PS Vita devices. PSP commerce functionality will retire on July 2, 2021 as planned. When we initially came to the decision to end purchasing support for PS3 and PS Vita, it was born out of a number of factors, including commerce support challenges for older devices and the ability for us to focus more of our resources on newer devices where a majority of our gamers are playing on. We see now that many of you are incredibly passionate about being able to continue purchasing classic games on PS3 and PS Vita for the foreseeable future, so I’m glad we were able to find a solution to continue operations.
Apple TV+ Orders Bilingual Drama Series ‘Now And Then'
Apple TV+ has ordered bilingual drama series ‘Now and Then’, which will be shot in both Spanish and English with an all-Hispanic cast.
Apple Original Film 'Wolfwalkers' Earns Five Annie Awards
Apple Original Film ‘Wolfwalkers’ picked up five wins at the Annie Awards, including Best Indie Feature and Best Direction.
Apple Lets Social Media Platform ‘Parler’ Back in App Store
In a letter sent to Congress on Monday, Apple says it will allow Parler into the App Store again after improvements were made.
Xbox Cloud Gaming Enters Beta for Apple Devices
Microsoft announced on Monday that its Xbox Cloud gaming service will enter a limited beta for select Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members.
Best Buy Joins Apple Business Chat in iMessage
Best Buy is the latest company to join Apple’s Business Chat, letting people talk to customer support through iMessage.
Adobe Co-Founder and PDF Developer Charles Geschke Dies Aged 81
Charles Geschke (pictured above), who co-founded Adobe and helped develop the PDF, passed away aged 81 on Friday. He helped found the software firm in 1982 and a decade later was kidnapped at gunpoint, eventually being released unhurt after four days. BBC News reported on the tribute paid to Mr. Geschke by the current CEO of the company he created.
Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen said Geschke, widely known as Chuck, “sparked the desktop publishing revolution”. “This is a huge loss for the entire Adobe community and the technology industry, for whom he has been a guide and hero for decades,” he wrote in an email to the company’s employees. “As co-founders of Adobe, Chuck and John Warnock developed ground-breaking software that has revolutionized how people create and communicate,” he said.
(Image via: Wikipedia)
Not-So-Silent Ringing — Mac Geek Gab 866
Sometimes your iPhone’s silent, and sometime it’s not. But what about when it decides what to do, not you? That’s when you call John and Dave! Or you can email them. Or you can text them. Or you can post in the forums. Either way, they’ll answer your questions and try to help solve your problems. Listen to all your questions answered, Cool Stuff Found and Quick Tips shared, and you’re guaranteed to learn at least five new things hanging out with your two favorite geeks!
‘The New Oil’ Website is a Resource for Privacy
The creator of The New Oil shared his website that gives people resources on privacy. But it’s not just a list of private tools to use. Instead the goal is to give people context and explain concepts like data breaches, why strong passwords matter, encryption, and more.
Most of us are not strangers to the concept of surveillance capitalism and targeted advertising. Most of us don’t particularly care, either. After all, who wouldn’t want relevant ads for movies or products that might actually appeal to you or improve your life? The thing is, most of us don’t understand the aggressive measures these companies go to to create those marketing profiles, or the devastating effects they can have on people.
Investigative Report Reveals the Untold Story of the SolarWinds Cyberattack
We have a bit more news about the SolarWinds hack this week. NPR has wrapped up an investigation and reveals the “behind-the-scenes” story.
“Imagine those Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups going into the package and just before the machine comes down and seals the package, some other thing comes in and slides a razor blade into your Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup,” he said. Instead of a razor blade, the hackers swapped the files so “the package gets sealed and it goes out the door to the store.”
The Award-Winning Luminar 4 Power Bundle
We have a deal on the award-winning Luminar 4 Power Bundle. Luminar 4 is a full-feature photo editor and organizer for Mac and Windows that lets you create edited photos with a single click. This bundle also comes with the Photography Fundamentals Course tutorial from ThinkTapLearn, and four different add-ons, including Skies: Power of Nature Add-On, Sky Objects: Amazing Planets Add-On, Looks: Analog Film Add-On, and LUTs: Street Vibe LUTs. The bundle is $39.99 through our deal.
Humpback Whale Documentary 'Fathom' to Premiere on Apple TV+ on June 25
Documentary feature Fathom will premiere on Apple TV+ on June 25, telling the story of two scientists who study humpback whales.
Apple Releases 2021 Environmental Progress Report
Apple has published the latest version of its annual environmental progress report. There is an easy-to-navigate webpage and a longer PDF.
Security Friday and a Hitchhiker's Guide – TMO Daily Observations 2021-04-16
Andrew Orr joins host Kelly Guimont to discuss Security Friday news, and a very helpful Hitchhiker’s Guide (not that one).
How Anthony Hopkins Ended up Guest Starring in 'Mythic Quest - Everlight'
A special episode of Mythic Quest arrived on Apple TV+ on Friday and (spoiler alert!) it features a guest appearance from Sir Anthony Hopkins. Variety has the background on how the Everlight episode was made, and how The Silence of the Lambs star ended up in it.
“Mythic Quest” is nonetheless set in the video game world and counts Ubisoft among its producers. The special episode is not devoid of an animated game sequence — and this one gets the gift of narration from Anthony Hopkins. Wanting someone with “some heft” so “right from the very beginning [of the episode] it just feels premium, like a cinematic experience,” McElhenney says, they considered such performers as Dame Judi Dench and Ian McKellan. But when Hopkins came up, it was kismet. Producer and guest star “Craig Mazin said, ‘Oh I know Anthony Hopkins’ lawyer, let’s just call him up.’ And within 20 minutes I’m talking to Anthony Hopkins,” McElhenney says. In pre-COVID times it may have been hard to get Hopkins to commit, but with the ability to work from anywhere, McElhenney hopped on the phone with him and the Oscar-winner self-recorded his role.
Clipper Card Now Works with Apple Pay For Easier Bay Area Transit
Those in the Bay Area can use Apple Pay when using any form of transit that is accessed with a Clipper card. The feature now works on BART, Muni, Caltrain, and the ferryTechCrunch reported.
As noted back in February when this was first confirmed as on the way, Clipper works with Apple’s “Express Transit” feature. That’s just a fancy way to say that you can tap to pay with the digital Clipper card without first needing to punch in your phone’s PIN or using FaceID. On certain newer iPhones, it also lets you keep using the Clipper card for a few hours after your battery has died; a wonderful thing in a pinch, but probably not something you want to rely on regularly.
Alaskan Senate Bill Proposes Statewide Blockchain Voting System
Under Senate Bill 39, Wasilla Republican Sen. Mike Shower proposes using blockchain technology to support the state voting system.
Furthermore, the bill seeks to increase voter participation by allowing people to use their tribal IDs for voter identification. At the same time, the technology would help in fixing errors that would bar people from voting.
However, the bill’s first version was a center of controversy for ending automatic voter registration through the permanent fund dividend application. The new bill has eliminated the clause.
I think using tribal IDs for voting identification is great. I’m not sure if blockchain voting will make it though.
Apple Music Pays Artists up to Three Times More Than Spotify Per Stream
A letter from Apple Music has revealed it pays artists a penny per stream of a song – three times what Spotify offers.
Scosche Releases PowerVolt Car and Wall Chargers
Scosche Industries announced new PowerVolt car and wall chargers at CES 2021, and now these products are ready for purchase.