Monday, 24 April 2017

The Morning After: A love letter to the Galaxy S8

Engadget Email Newsletter

It's Monday, April 24, 2017.

Hey, good morning!

Welcome to a fresh new week at Engadget. Over the weekend, you may have missed Uber’s latest sketchy tale, a rallying call for truth and science, and a love letter to the Galaxy S8 from a once-Samsung hater.

Uber's app could identify iPhones even after they'd been wiped.

Apple threatened to drop Uber's app over iPhone tagging (updated)

New York Times sources claim that Apple CEO Tim Cook held a face-to-face meeting in early 2015 to call out Uber's Travis Kalanick (and threaten to remove his app from the App Store) after learning that Uber was not only violating iOS app privacy guidelines, but also trying to cover it up. The ridesharing outfit had been "fingerprinting" iPhones with permanent identities so that it could prevent drivers from cheating by creating fake accounts and accepting rides from these bogus customers. It was a clear privacy violation -- and it was made worse by Uber's bid to hide the tracking from App Store reviewers.

Many more around the world joined them in rallying for the cause.

Thousands descended on DC to march for truth and science

A balmy Friday evening gave way to a miserable Saturday, with low, gray clouds that blotted out the sun and soaked Washington DC with rain. That wasn't enough to stop thousands of people — from all over the country — from gathering on the grounds in front of the Washington Monument to march for science. It's no wonder, either. The people who showed up were career researchers, teachers, students and families, all alarmed by the federal government's lack of appreciation for the importance of science. And they were joined in spirit by still thousands more around the world, showing their support for facts and inquiry at satellite marches in over 600 cities. We joined them in DC.

That million-dollar price tag likely doomed it from the start.

First gene therapy drug proves a flop in the market

When UniQure launched the first commercial gene therapy drug, Glybera, it promised a minor revolution in medicine. By using custom viruses to deliver genes, it could reportedly cure a rare disease (lipoprotein lipase deficiency) with just one round of treatment. However, it just didn't live up to the early hype. UniQure has announced that it's withdrawing the drug from Europe when its approval ends on October 25th. The company doesn't beat around the bush with an explanation: the drug's use has been "extremely limited" since going on the market in 2012, and it doesn't expect an uptick in the years ahead.

With the Galaxy S8, Samsung grabs the smartphone design crown

There's no phone that compares with Samsung's latest

Nathan Ingraham has never liked Samsung's smartphones. The cheap plastic design and overwrought software found in early Galaxy devices turned him off, to the point that he thought he'd never take their phones seriously. Then, the ~~Samsung paychecks~~ Galaxy S8 appeared and he fell in love.

But wait, there's more...

1. IllumiBowl's latest toilet light also kills germs

2. 'Avatar' sequels start arriving on December 18th, 2020

3. Valve wants your digits to ward off cheats

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you'll miss if you don't subscribe.

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Saturday, 22 April 2017

Editor's Pick: Google Mulls Ways to Banish Bad Ads

Google Mulls Ways to Banish Bad Ads

David Jones Apr 22, 2017 10:40 AM PT
	Google reportedly has been working on a plan to install an ad blocker onto its Chrome browser. It also has been considering a collaboration with Microsoft, Facebook and other firms to develop a set of standards that would determine which types of advertising to block from websites. That effort presumably would aim at blocking abusive ads without jeopardizing ads from legitimate firms. [More...]

More Picks:

A Window Into the Linux Desktop
"What can it do that Windows can't?" That is the first question many people ask when considering Linux for their desktop. While the open source philosophy that underpins Linux is a good enough draw for some, others want to know just how different its look, feel and functionality can get. To a degree, that depends on whether you choose a desktop environment or a window manager. [More...]

Facebook's Latest Moon Shot: I Think, Therefore I Type
Facebook on Wednesday told its F8 conference audience about two new cutting-edge projects that could change the way humans engage with devices. Over the next two years, the company will work on a new technology that will allow anyone to type around 100 words per minute -- not with fingers, but using a process that would decode neural activity devoted to speech. What Facebook envisions is a technology that would resemble a neural network. [More...]

Healthgrades' CareChats Aims to Tear Down Doctor-Patient Wall
Healthgrades, an online resource to provide consumers with information about physicians and hospitals, on Wednesday launched CareChats, a tool that allows encrypted text and email conversations between patients and their healthcare providers. Developed in partnership with Conversa, CareChats enables doctors and hospitals to communicate with patients outside of visits. [More...]

Moby, LinuxKit Kick Off New Docker Collaboration Phase
Docker this week introduced two new projects at DockerCon with an eye to helping operating system vendors, software creators and in-house tinkerers create container-native OSes and container-based systems. The projects are based on a new model for cross-ecosystem collaboration and the advancement of containerized software. Both projects aim to help users adopt container technology. [More...]

Microsoft Inches Toward a World Without Passwords
Microsoft has announced the general availability of its phone sign-in for customers with Microsoft accounts -- a system that could be the beginning of the end for passwords. The new system requires that customers add their accounts to the Microsoft Authenticator app, which comes in both iOS and Android versions, noted Alex Simons, director of program management of the Microsoft Identity Division. [More...]

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Friday, 21 April 2017

Tech News Flash

Tech News Flash: Friday -- April 21, 2017

TechNewsWorld -- All Tech - All The Time
http://www.TechNewsWorld.com
Part of the ECT News Network

Headline Scan
Facebook's Latest Moon Shot: I Think, Therefore I Type
Apple May Be Getting Its Innovation Groove Back
Moby, LinuxKit Kick Off New Docker Collaboration Phase
Facebook Builds a VR Space, but Will Anyone Come?
Report: Commercial Software Riddled With Open Source Code Flaws
Microsoft's Timely Response to Shadow Brokers Threat Raises Questions
Tiny Core: Small Footprint, Big Potential
Why Is It OK to Abuse Customers?
Apple May Transform Diabetes Care and Treatment: Report

Today's Story Highlights

Facebook's Latest Moon Shot: I Think, Therefore I Type

Facebook on Wednesday told its F8 conference audience about two new
cutting-edge projects that could change the way humans engage with
devices. Over the next two years, the company will work on a new
technology that will allow anyone to type around 100 words per minute --
not with fingers, but using a process that would decode neural activity
devoted to speech. What Facebook envisions is a technology that would
resemble a neural network.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84475.html

Apple May Be Getting Its Innovation Groove Back

Apple reportedly has begun testing a premium iPhone with a revamped
display and body, which could be one of three new models the company is
expected to launch this fall. The other two likely will be upgrades to
the two existing iPhones. The new design will incorporate curved glass
and stainless steel. It will increase the surface area of the display
without increasing the size of the phone.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84470.html

Moby, LinuxKit Kick Off New Docker Collaboration Phase

Docker this week introduced two new projects at DockerCon with an eye to
helping operating system vendors, software creators and in-house
tinkerers create container-native OSes and container-based systems. The
projects are based on a new model for cross-ecosystem collaboration and
the advancement of containerized software. Both projects aim to help
users adopt container technology.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84474.html

Facebook Builds a VR Space, but Will Anyone Come?

Facebook has announced the beta launch of Facebook Spaces, a new app
that allows users to connect with friends and colleagues in an
interactive virtual reality environment. It provides a way for social
media users to hang out as they might otherwise in person -- even
bridging great distances -- noted Rachel Franklin, head of social VR at
Facebook. An avatar represents each user in the VR world.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84468.html

Report: Commercial Software Riddled With Open Source Code Flaws

Black Duck Software has released its 2017 Open Source Security and Risk
Analysis, detailing significant cross-industry risks related to open
source vulnerabilities and license compliance challenges. Black Duck
conducted audits of more than 1,071 open source applications for the
study. There are widespread weaknesses in addressing open source
security vulnerability risks across key industries.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84469.html

Microsoft's Timely Response to Shadow Brokers Threat Raises Questions

Just as the Shadow Brokers hacker group started crowing about a dump of
never-seen-before flaws in Windows, Microsoft announced it already had
fixed most of the exploits. "Today, Microsoft triaged a large release of
exploits made publicly available by Shadow Brokers," said Microsoft
Principal Security Group Manager Phillip Misner. "Most of the exploits
are already patched."
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84463.html

Tiny Core: Small Footprint, Big Potential

Tiny Core Linux 8.0, released last week, is a minimalist Linux OS built
from scratch with a focus on being as small as possible. That means you
should be able to run this Linux distro on a wide range of legacy
machines. The tradeoff for ultra smallness, however, often is a not-so-
powerful OS that can leave you longing for better options. The Core
Project is based on a highly modular system.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84465.html

Why Is It OK to Abuse Customers?

I don't know about you but I can't seem to get out of my head the image
of that poor Asian doctor who, seemingly unconscious, was dragged off
that United flight. The fact that the airline did that to a 69-year-old
doctor just so it could save money moving employees around is nearly as
unbelievable as the initial tone-deaf response from United's CEO, who
blamed the passenger.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84460.html

Apple May Transform Diabetes Care and Treatment: Report

Apple is working on a secret project to develop wearable devices that
can monitor the blood sugar of diabetics without using invasive finger
sticks, according to a report. Apple has assembled a team of biomedical
engineers from various companies to work on the project. Glucose
monitoring traditionally has required that diabetics use lancets to
pierce their fingertips at least four times daily.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84459.html

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