It's Thursday, February 15, 2018. Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.  Notice anything new in your browser this morning? We’ll explain Chrome’s latest trick, plus the problem with video-game records and where you shouldn’t put your new HomePod. This could get awkward.  Starting today, Chrome will automatically filter ads from sites that don’t live up to the Better Ads Standards. Hopefully, that should cut down things we’ve seen like page-hijacking ads on mobile and many loud autoplaying videos, but the ads are still accessible if you really need to enter your Amazon account info on some random website. Ultimately, this blocker is supposed to nudge site managers into fixing the loopholes that bring annoying ads to browsers in the first place. | | 'Dragster,' 'Donkey Kong' and decades of frustration.  Twin Galaxies, the arbiter for video-game recordkeeping (someone has to do it), recently found itself thrust into the spotlight. It had to deal with disputes over two long-standing achievements hosted on its forums: Todd Rogers' unbeatable Dragster time and Billy Mitchell's Donkey Kong high score. Both records have had their share of challenges over the decades, but before users on the TG forums raised their concerns the other week, nothing was done to officially dispute them. This is where things get more complicated. | | Decision time.  Today marks the biggest expansion of YouTube TV so far, as it adds TNT, TBS, Cartoon Network, CNN, Turner Classic Movie, NBA TV, MLB TV and a few others. The bad news is that starting March 13th, the monthly price for new subscribers will rise from $35 to $40, but you can sign up before then to lock in the current rate. | | | | | Sponsored Content by VTech | | Good to know. Yesterday Microsoft confirmed that Skype has fallen foul of a security flaw that can allow attackers to gain system-level privileges via its update installer. Unfortunately, fixing the issue is no simple task, and Microsoft has only said it will “proactively update impacted devices as soon as possible.” | | White rings after only 20 minutes, according to one report.  We found Apple's long-awaited HomePod belts out good sound for casual listeners so long as they already own an iPod / iPhone / iPad. One issue we didn’t see coming, however: The HomePod is damaging wooden furniture it sits on. Both Wirecutter and Pocket-Lint (as well as a handful of Twitter users) discovered this the hard way while using the HomePod. Apple confirmed it’s happening due to the rubberized base of its smart speaker, but that "the marks can improve over several days after the speaker is removed from the wood surface." It might not weigh much, but we’d caution putting it on any pricey statement European furniture you might have. | | Ultimate form.  When you're creating 3D models or otherwise running intensive tasks on your PC, you want to wring every ounce of performance out of that hardware. It's a good thing, then, that Microsoft has released a Windows 10 preview build in the Fast ring that includes a new Ultimate Performance mode if you're running Pro for Workstations. This is a step up for people for whom even the High Performance mode isn't enough -- it throws power management out the window to both eliminate "micro-latencies" and boost raw speed. | | With Cinema 4K and 5-axis stabilization, it’s going after Sony.  Fujifilm has dropped a hefty gauntlet on rivals with the X-H1, its new flagship APS-C mirrorless that excels at both photography and video. It sports a 24.3-megapixel X-Trans CMOS III sensor housed in a body with features from both the ergonomically excellent X-T2 and medium-format GFX 50S. Fujifilm calls it "the highest performance camera in the X series lineup," thanks to features like true DCI 4K video (4,096 x 2,160), 14 fps max burst shooting and, for the first time in a Fujifilm camera, 5-axis in-body stabilization. | | But wait, there's more... | |
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