Technology

Oct
10
2021
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By Troy Warren
Facebook CTO Apologizes for Outages as Apps Take Hours to Return Online

Facebook CTO Apologizes for Outages as Apps Take Hours to Return Online

Digital, Technology, ,
BY J. CLARA CHAN | HollywoodReporter.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Digital "To every small and large business, family, and individual who depends on us, I'm sorry," the outgoing CTO said on Monday afternoon. Facebook’s chief technology officer apologized on Monday afternoon after Facebook’s suite of applications, including Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, remained offline for several hours around the globe. “Facebook services coming back online now — may take some time to get to 100%. To every small and large business, family, and individual who depends on us, I’m sorry,” Mike Schroepfer, Facebook’s outgoing CTO, tweeted late on Monday afternoon. A few hours earlier, Schroepfer…
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Oct
08
2021
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By Troy Warren
Alexa routines can be overwhelming, but these 4 shortcuts make them a breeze

Alexa routines can be overwhelming, but these 4 shortcuts make them a breeze

Technology
Dale Smith | CNET.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Technology Setting up a routine doesn't have to be any harder than simply typing in a command. Admit it. You're curious about Alexa routines. Maybe your friends or family sometimes show off their own home-brewed Alexa automations, but every time you try to concoct your own script of smart home sorcery, it blows up in your face. The unfortunate and unspoken reality is that smart home routines can be cumbersome and frustrating to set up, so most people choose to live without them. That's unfortunate, because routines are the pixie dust that can impart your smart…
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Oct
03
2021
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By Troy Warren
iPhone 13 vs. 13 Mini vs. 13 Pro vs. 13 Pro Max: Every big difference

iPhone 13 vs. 13 Mini vs. 13 Pro vs. 13 Pro Max: Every big difference

Technology,
Alexandra Garrett | CNET.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Technology A spec-by-spec comparison of the four models in Apple's 2021 lineup. Apple announced its new iPhone lineup at its September event alongside the Apple Watch 7, iPad Mini 6 and updated entry-level iPad. The new lineup, named the iPhone 13, mirrors last year's iPhone 12 collection with standard, Mini, Pro and Pro Max versions. The updated iPhone runs on iOS 15, which will be publicly available to install next week, and features a few camera upgrades, upped storage, a new A15 Bionic processor and more. (Here's how you can preorder the iPhone 13.) We were fairly certain there would be four iPhone 13 variants in advance of Apple's big…
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Sep
29
2021
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By Troy Warren
Microsoft CEO Says Failed TikTok Deal Was “Strangest Thing” He’s Worked On

Microsoft CEO Says Failed TikTok Deal Was “Strangest Thing” He’s Worked On

Digital, Technology, , ,
BY J. CLARA CHAN | HollywoodReporter.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Digital #Technology   Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has mixed feelings about his company’s failed bid to acquire TikTok last year. “It’s the strangest thing I’ve ever worked on,” Nadella told Kara Swisher at Vox Media’s Code Conference on Monday, adding with a laugh, “I learned so much, Kara, about so many things and so many people.” Last year, as TikTok faced a potential ban from the U.S. under the Trump administration, Microsoft emerged as a potential buyer to acquire the social media platform’s U.S. operations. The potential deal eventually fell through last September after…
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Sep
26
2021
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By Troy Warren
What’s the big deal about NFTs? Here’s the madness behind these expensive digital tokens

What’s the big deal about NFTs? Here’s the madness behind these expensive digital tokens

Digital, Technology, ,
Oscar Gonzalez | CNET.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Digital #Technology NFTs are selling out in minutes for thousands of dollars. We'll explain why. NFTs, or nonfungible tokens, can be tied to a video highlight, a meme or a tweet. But what are they? Think of NFTs as a digital asset that's expensive but may make you a lot of money in the future (or maybe not) -- similar to cryptocurrency but not quite (more below). But it doesn't quite mean that you own an asset or piece of art (more below).  The tokens are so popular that Time Magazine's 4,500 TIMEPieces reportedly sold…
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Sep
24
2021
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By Troy Warren
Twitter Rolls Out Tipping Feature to All Adult Users, Adds Bitcoin as Payment Method

Twitter Rolls Out Tipping Feature to All Adult Users, Adds Bitcoin as Payment Method

Digital, Technology, ,
BY J. CLARA CHAN | HollywoodReporter.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Digital #Technology Tips are now available for all 18+ users on iOS, with Android expected to follow in the coming weeks. Twitter is rolling out its tipping feature to all users 18 and older beginning Thursday and has added Bitcoin as another accepted form of payment. The social media platform began testing its Tips feature earlier this year with a select group of users, and payments could be processed via Bandcamp, Cash App, Chipper, Patreon, Razorpay, Wealthsimple, Venmo or GoFundMe, depending on the user’s choice. With Thursday’s updates, U.S. users will also get to…
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Sep
19
2021
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By Troy Warren
Trailblazing tourist trip to orbit ends with splashdown

Trailblazing tourist trip to orbit ends with splashdown

Editors Picks, In The News, Technology,
By MARCIA DUNN, Associated Press Troy Warren for CNT #EditorsPicks #Technology A trailblazing tourist trip to orbit has ended safely with a splashdown in the Atlantic CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Four space tourists safely ended their trailblazing trip to orbit Saturday with a splashdown in the Atlantic off the Florida coast. Their SpaceX capsule parachuted into the ocean just before sunset, not far from where their chartered flight began three days earlier. The all-amateur crew was the first to circle the world without a professional astronaut. The billionaire who paid undisclosed millions for the trip and his three guests wanted…
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Sep
15
2021
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By Troy Warren
Apple’s New iPhone Features “Cinematic Mode” for Filming Movies

Apple’s New iPhone Features “Cinematic Mode” for Filming Movies

Digital, Technology,
BY J. CLARA CHAN | HollywoodReporter.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Digital "That's really bringing it up to the professional film cameras," cinematographer Greig Fraser says during Apple's Tuesday event. Apple’s iPhone 13 includes a new camera feature called “cinematic mode” that’s designed to help filmmakers and amateurs shoot and edit better footage from their device, the company said on Tuesday during its annual September event. Marketed with a Knives Out–inspired whodunnit short movie, the camera feature — which records in Dolby Vision HDR — can track where the video’s subject is looking and adjust the camera’s focus accordingly. Video editors will also be able…
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Sep
05
2021
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By Troy Warren
Car Hacking Danger Is Likely Closer Than You Think

Car Hacking Danger Is Likely Closer Than You Think

Cars, Technology,
BY SEBASTIAN BLANCO | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Cars #Technology A Detroit Free Press report shows there were 150 automotive cybersecurity incidents in 2019 alone. Connected cars are great, until they're not. A recent Detroit Free Press articleshows that vehicle hacks are more common and more dangerous that most people realize. There were at least 150 automotive cybersecurity incidents in 2019, part of a 94 percent year-over-year increase since 2016, according to a report from Upstream Security. Oh, and here's a phrase we're loath to see, even though we're likely to come across it plenty more in the future: ransomware for cars.…
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Aug
28
2021
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By Troy Warren
Robocalls are out of control. Is a new mandated technology helping?

Robocalls are out of control. Is a new mandated technology helping?

Technology,
Marguerite Reardon | CNET.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Technology The deadline to implement the Stir/Shaken tech that's designed to curb the flood of annoying and costly robocalls has come and gone. What's next? Millions of Americans don't even bother answering calls from unfamiliar or blocked numbers for fear a call might be from an illegal robocaller. Many hoped that would change with a June 30 deadline from the FCC that required voice providers to implement technology to force callers to identify themselves.  The US Federal Communications Commission's deadline to implement technology to beat back those annoying robocalls went into effect earlier this…
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