ICT news

• $5,000 Google Jamboard Dies In 2024 -- Cloud-Based Apps Will Stop Working, Too

  29-09-2023 23:20 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Even more Google products are getting the ax this week. Next up is Google Jamboard, a $5,000 digital whiteboard (and its $600-a-year fee) and software ecosystem marketed to schools and corporations. Google has a new post detailing the "Next phase of digital whiteboarding for Google Workspace," and the future for Jamboard is that there is no future. In "late 2024," the whole project will shut down, and we don't just mean the hardware will sto
  
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• A Hidden Bar Code in iPhone Screens Saved Apple Hundreds of Millions of Dollars

  29-09-2023 22:40 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Next time you try to wipe a smudge off your iPhone screen, take a closer look. See if you can spot one of the two tiny QR codes etched into its glass. Chances are you won't be able to find them. Both codes are tiny -- one is the size of a grain of sand and can only be seen with special equipment, while the other, roughly the size of the tip of a crayon, is laser-printed on the reverse side of the glass somewhere along its black border or bezel. The codes are
  
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• Search For Phone Signal Caused Oil Spill, Say Japanese Investigators

  29-09-2023 22:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Japan's Transport Safety Board on Thursday judged that a cargo ship that spilled 1,000 tons of fuel oil into a pristine marine environment off the coast of Mauritius in 2020 was travelling off course in search of a cell phone signal. From a report: The MV Wakashio was en route from Lianyungang, China to a Brazilian port when, on July 25 2020, it struck trouble near Blue Bay Marine Park, a popular snorkeling spot on the Indian Ocean nation Mauritius. The Japanese-owned vessel was sailing under a
  
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• Letterboxd, Online Haven for Film Nerds, Gets a New Owner

  29-09-2023 21:20 via slashdot.org
  
  Two designers from New Zealand built a wildly popular social network for movie buffs. Now, they're cashing in (and sticking around for the sequel). The New York Times: The "Barbie" star Margot Robbie created an account. Ditto Rian Johnson, the "Knives Out" auteur. Christopher McQuarrie, Tom Cruise's directing partner, has used his to heap praise on another action star (Sylvester Stallone). Letterboxd, the social network for recommending and reviewing movies, has become a kind of shibboleth for f
  
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• A Test of iPhone-to-HDMI Adapter That Demands Location/Browsing Data

  29-09-2023 20:40 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Slash_Account_Dot writes: I recently got my hands on an ordinary-looking iPhone-to-HDMI adapter that mimics Apple's branding and, when plugged in, runs a program that implores you to "Scan QR code for use." That QR code takes you to an ad-riddled website that asks you to download an app that asks for your location data, access to your photos and videos, runs a bizarre web browser, installs tracking cookies, takes "sensor data," and uses that data to target you with ads. The adapter's app also ki
  
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• How a Thinktank Got the Cost of Net Zero for the UK Wildly Wrong

  29-09-2023 20:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Imagine demanding an "honest" debate over the cost of net zero in a report full of errors that even a schoolboy would be embarrassed about. Then imagine getting coverage of your report in the Sun, Times, Daily Mail, Daily Express and Spectator. Sound impossible? Well, let me tell you how Civitas, one of the thinktanks housed at 55 Tufton Street in London, did exactly that, and nearly got away with it. On Wednesday, Civitas published a pamphlet on net zero by
  
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• You Can No Longer Activate New Windows 11 Builds With Windows 7 or 8 Keys

  29-09-2023 19:20 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: In December 2022, we published a short PSA, reminding users they could still activate Windows 11 and 10 with valid Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 keys. This practice dates back to 2015 when Microsoft launched Windows 10 with a one-year free upgrade window. Besides letting Windows 7/8 users upgrade for free to Windows 10, Microsoft allowed activating its newest OS using keys from the previous releases.
  Upgrade from Windows 7 and 8 to Windows is no longer possible, and
  
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• Three Arrows Capital Co-Founder Zhu Apprehended, Liquidator Says

  29-09-2023 18:40 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  Three Arrows Capital co-founder Su Zhu was apprehended in Singapore while trying to leave the country on Friday. From a report: Teneo, which is liquidating the defunct firm's estate, said it received a committal order against Zhu after he failed to comply with an earlier Singapore court order compelling him to cooperate with the liquidation investigation. The order sentenced Zhu to four months in prison, according to a statement by Teneo. Zhu was apprehended at Singapore's Changi Airport on Frid
  
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• Microsoft Discussed Selling Bing To Apple as Google Replacement

  29-09-2023 18:00 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Microsoft discussed selling its Bing search engine to Apple around 2020, a deal that would have replaced Google as the default option on the iPhone maker's devices, Bloomberg News reported Friday, citing people with knowledge of the matter. From the report: Executives from Microsoft met with Apple's services chief, Eddy Cue, who brokered the current search engine relationship with Alphabet's Google, to discuss the possibility of acquiring Bing, said the people, who asked not to be identified bec
  
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• Intel Hails 'Landmark' as High-Volume EUV Production Begins at Irish Plant

  29-09-2023 17:20 via slashdot.org
  
  Chipmaker Intel said on Friday it had begun high-volume production using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines at its $18.5 billion plant in Ireland, calling it a "landmark" moment as it seeks to regain ground on its rivals. From a report: The EUV tools, which are theoretically precise enough to hit a person's thumb with a laser pointer from the moon, will play a key role in meeting Intel's goal of delivering five generations of technology in four years, the U.S. company said. The effor
  
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• Richard Stallman Says He Has Cancer

  29-09-2023 16:40 via news.slashdot.org
  
  slack_justyb writes: Richard Stallman revealed his diagnosis of lymphoma at the GNU Hacker's meeting in Biel, Switzerland yesterday. He did not share much about his health condition but did indicate that it is "manageable" and that he expects to be around for many more years ahead.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
  
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• Senator Dianne Feinstein, Oldest Member of Congress, Dies at 90

  29-09-2023 15:06 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Senator Dianne Feinstein, the trailblazing Democratic power broker who served in the Senate for 30 years, died on Thursday night, according to a family member. From a report: In recent years, Ms. Feinstein, 90, had suffered from frail health and memory issues that made it difficult for her to function alone and prompted calls for her to step down, which she consistently rejected. Her condition had grown more acute over the past several months, after a bout with shingles that caused serious compl
  
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• Senator Dianne Feinstein Dies at 90

  29-09-2023 15:06 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Senator Dianne Feinstein, the trailblazing Democratic power broker who served in the Senate for 30 years, died on Thursday night, according to a family member. New York Times: In recent years, Ms. Feinstein, 90, had suffered from frail health and memory issues that made it difficult for her to function alone and prompted calls for her to step down, which she consistently rejected. Her staff was being informed at 9 a.m.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
  
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• New York Bans Facial Recognition In Schools

  29-09-2023 15:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: New York state banned the use of facial recognition technology in schools Wednesday, following a report that concluded the risks to student privacy and civil rights outweigh potential security benefits. Education Commissioner Betty Rosa's order leaves decisions on digital fingerprinting and other biometric technology up to local districts. The state has had a moratorium on facial recognition since parents filed a court challenge to i
  
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• Nissan To Go All-Electric By 2030 Despite UK's Petrol Ban Delay

  29-09-2023 12:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  "Nissan will make the switch to full electric by 2030 in Europe. We believe it is the right thing to do for our business, our customers and for the planet," said Nissan's chief executive Makoto Uchida. The announcement comes despite the UK postponing its 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars to 2035. The BBC reports: In an interview with the BBC, Mr Uchida said the company was aiming to bring down the cost of electric vehicles for customers, so that they were no more expensive than
  
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• Top Chinese Scientist Questions India's Claim To Reaching Moon's South Pole

  29-09-2023 09:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Last month, India became the first country to put a spacecraft near the lunar south pole -- breaking China's record for the southernmost lunar landing. Now, the so-called father of China's lunar exploration program, Ouyang Ziyuan, said claims about the accomplishment are overstated. Time reports: Ziyuan [...] told the Chinese-language Science Times newspaper that the Chandrayaan-3 landing site, at 69 degrees south latitude, was nowhere close to the pole, defined as between 88.5 and 90 degrees. O
  
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• How Lockheed Martin Designed the World's Weirdest, Quietest Supersonic Jet

  29-09-2023 05:30 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Fast Company: The Lockheed Martin X-59 is probably the strangest airplane ever designed. Its razor-sharp nose takes half of the airplane's length; there's no cockpit in sight; the wings are tiny compared to the entire fuselage; and its oversized tail engine looks like a weird hump about to fall off. Of course, there's a method to this madness. The design is the secret sauce that has produced a true unicorn: a supersonic jet that doesn't boom the hell out
  
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• Bing Chat Responses Infiltrated By Ads Pushing Malware

  29-09-2023 04:02 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Bill Toulas writes via BleepingComputer: Malicious advertisements are now being injected into Microsoft's AI-powered Bing Chat responses, promoting fake download sites that distribute malware. [...] Malicious ads spotted by Malwarebytes are pretending to be download sites for the popular 'Advanced IP Scanner' utility, which has been previously used by RomCom RAT and Somnia ransomware operators.The researchers found that when you asked Bing Chat how to download Advanced IP Scanner, it would displ
  
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• Reddit Is Removing Ability To Opt Out of Ad Personalization Based On Your Activity

  29-09-2023 03:25 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Ivan Mehta writes via TechCrunch: Reddit said Wednesday that the platform is revamping its privacy settings with an aim to make ad personalization and account visibility toggles consistent. Most notably though, it is removing the ability to opt out of ad personalization based on Reddit activity. The company said that it will still have opt-out controls in "select countries" without specifying which ones. It mentioned in a blog post that users won't see more ads but they will see better-targeted
  
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• Disney's Password-Sharing Crackdown Has Begun

  29-09-2023 02:45 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Starting on November 1st, Disney Plus will begin restricting password sharing in Canada. The Verge reports: Disney has not provided many details on how it plans to enforce this policy -- its email merely states that "we're implementing restrictions on your ability to share your account or login credentials outside of your household." The announcement reads more like a strong finger wag than anything else. "You may not share your subscription outside of your household," reads the company's update
  
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• Freelancers Aren't Happy With Japan's New Invoice System

  29-09-2023 02:02 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Japan Times: From Oct. 1, a new tax regulation decades in the making will go into effect -- and hundreds of thousands of workers in Japan are angry. The Qualified Invoicing System, which requires taxable businesses to issue invoices containing tax information for transactions, has generated a full-fledged movement against it. A petition on Change.org to halt the regulation has received nearly 450,000 signatures. The social movement [...] has held regu
  
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• Epic Games Cutting 16 Percent of Its Workforce

  29-09-2023 01:20 via slashdot.org
  
  According to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, Epic games is laying off 16 percent of its current workforce, which amounts to almost 900 employees losing their jobs. Kotaku reports: A memo was shared this morning at the North Carolina company, seen by Kotaku, informing staff of the bad news. It explains that alongside 16 percent of staff being laid off, the company is also selling Bandcamp, and "spinning off" most of marketing company SuperAwesome."For a while now, we've been spending way more money t
  
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• Nvidia's French Offices Raided In Cloud-Computing Competition Inquiry

  29-09-2023 00:40 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  According to the Wall Street Journal, Nvidia's French offices were raided this week on suspicion the chipmaker engaged in anticompetitive practices. Reuters reports: The French competition authority, which disclosed the dawn raid on Wednesday, did not say what practices it was investigating or which company it had targeted, beyond saying it was in the "graphics cards sector." The French competition authority said that its operation this week followed a broader inquiry into the cloud-computing se
  
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• Smartphone Sales Down 22 Percent In Q2, the Worst Performance In a Decade

  29-09-2023 00:00 via mobile.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Canalys has some gruesome new numbers out for the North American smartphone market in Q2 2023, detailing what it's calling the "worst quarterly performance for over a decade." Q2 has plummeted 22 percent, year over year, and with these numbers, Canalys is predicting the smartphone market will be down 12 percent overall in 2023.Apple is down 20 percent for Q2 and still in a dominant position with 54 percent market share. Samsung is down 27 pe
  
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