Daily Tech News Show

DTNS 2423 – Apple TV: Where Have I heard This Before?

Logo by Mustafa Anabtawi thepolarcat.comTodd Whitehead is on the show. We’ll talk about Twitter’s teacups and troll regrets along with the appearance of the annual Apple TV rumor.

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If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting the show here at the low, low cost of a nickel a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, TomGehrke, sebgonz and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes

Today’s guest:  Todd Whitehead, Alpha Geek Radio

Headlines

Remember the Swatch Watch? No? (damn kids) Well, it was a super popular casual watch from the 1980s — Swatch stands for Second Watch, if you were wondering. According to Bloomberg Business, the Swiss watch company plans to sell a smartwatch, or perhaps a Swartwatch. Swatch CEO Nick Hayek said in an interview that the device will use NFC, let consumers make mobile payments, and somehow won’t have to be charged, while still working with Windows and Android software. It may be available by April, around the same time as the Apple Watch.

The Verge obtained a message written by Twitter CEO Dick Costolo on an internal forum taking personal responsibility for Twitter’s harassment and abuse problems. After an employee asked what they could do to stop cyberbullying, Costolo wrote, “we suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform and we’ve sucked at it for years. It’s no secret and the rest of the world talk about it every day.” Costolo said “we’re going to start kicking these people off right and left and making sure that when they issue their ridiculous attacks, nobody hears them.”

You hear that? — That’s the sound of NDAs lifting. Last June at WWDC Apple announced the Photos app, the replacement for Aperture and iPhoto and previews abound on the Internet today. The Verge reports key highlights include icloud integration. When you take a pic on your iPhone it will automatically be uploaded to your iCloud drive. There’s also a new auto crop tool, a new zoom out view and new square book formats. Keep in mind, you won’t have the same level of granular control especially compared to Aperture’s pixel-peepers level of tweaking. So don’t delete Aperture or iPhoto for Photos app, just yet. Developers can download the beta version of OS X that includes Photos now.

Bloomberg reports Twitter has licensed direct access to its data— the so-called firehose— to Google. While Google can index and include Twitter posts in its search without paying, access to the firehose allows for posts to show up in search as soon as they’re posted. Engineers are working on the connection which should start having an effect sometime int he first half of this year.

Buried in a history of why Google Glass died, the New York Times reports a glimmer of hope for the product. According to people with knowledge of Tony Faddell’s plans, Ivy Ross’s team will be redesigning Glass from scratch and will not release it until it’s complete.

ReCode has this year’s winter tale of Apple creating a TV service. This year’s rumor takes the form of Apple in preliminary talks with TV programmers to create bundles of programming to be sold directly to consumers over the Web. With SlingTV and PlayStation Vue in beta and HBO and Verizon’s services expected later this year, this could be the year the Apple television service rumor comes true. But just don’t be too shocked if the autumn rumor about talks with Apple falling apart makes its usual appearance.

BT has confirmed it is acquiring UK mobile network service company “EE” from Orange and Deutsche Telekom for $19 billion dollars. The move will allow BT to sell its broadband, fixed telephony and pay-TV services to those EE customer who don’t already subscribe to BT’s offerings. EE has a subscriber base of 33 million in the UK and the largest 4G customer base in Europe.

The Verge reports Mattel and Google will hold a join event February 13th in New York, the day before Toy Fair 2015. The invite features a graphic reminiscent of the ViewMaster and reads “Mattel invites you to view what’s possible with exclusive announcement and product debut” followed by the Mattel and Google logos.

GigaOm reports Twitter earnings are out. $479.078 million in revenue beat expectations of 453.1 million and Earnings per share of 12 cents beat expectations of 6 cents. User growth was not as rosy. Monthly average users went from 284 million in Q3 to 288 million in Q4 which is a 20% jump over Q4 last year. Analysts are already grouchy about that slow growth.

News From You: 

HobbitfromPA sent us the story from NBC reporting that the FBI is investigating an attack on the IT systems of Anthem, one of the largest health insurance companies in the US. Anthem spokesperson, Kristin Binns said attackers, “obtained personal information relating to consumers and Anthem employees who are currently covered, or who have received coverage in the past”. The information accessed included names, birthdates, Social Security numbers, addresses, income data, employment information and email addresses. Anthem serves customers in 14 states.

starfuryzeta sent us The Next Web’s report that Under Armour, a company that makes workout clothes, has acquired personal training app Endomondo for $85 million and diet and exercise counter MyFitnessPal for $475 million. My Fitness pal has 80 million users and Endomondo has 20 million. Add that to the 120 million users of MapMyFitness, already owned by UnderArmour and that is a huge community of people who need just might need some exercise clothes.

Discussion Section Links: 

http://recode.net/2015/02/04/apple-is-talking-to-tv-programmers-about-its-own-web-tv-service/

http://variety.com/2015/digital/news/apple-in-talks-again-to-offer-tv-channels-report-1201424182/

http://allthingsd.com/20091102/apples-itunes-pitch-tv-for-30-a-month/

http://nypost.com/2012/03/01/apple-throws-weight-around-in-tv-negotiations/

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Unshockingly-Apples-Dream-of-TV-Disruption-Held-up-By-Cable-129924

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-02-12/apple-said-to-plan-new-set-top-box-amid-time-warner-cable-talks

Pick of the Day:  MapMyFitness.com via Jamie in beautiful BC

Another app pick I want to share with my fellow DTNS’ers. As 2015 just started and a lot of people are trying to stay on track with their new years resolutions, I wanted to make people aware of the Map My Fitness line of apps for iOS and Android, more specifically MapMyWalk. The free version of this app provides a wealth of features to help you both track your various workouts, as well as provide incremental audible updates as to your current pace and distance travelled. The GPS functionality will plot your walk/run on a map for you to save and use later, and you can save your favorite routes to use on a later date. It will also give you a weekly recap of how many workouts you did, total distance travelled, and total calories burned. It also works with many fitness trackers, as well as uploading data to Health Kit on iOS. Can’t say enough good things about this great free app for those wanting an easy way to live an active lifestyle.

Thanks as always! Jamie in beautiful BC

Update on Windscape

“Windscape software recommended and apparently that was bad timing. Thomas Sidla emailed the company that makes it Gaucho Software and got this reply: “”Last week, the National Weather Service changed something on their servers, so I’ve been scrambling to update my apps for the change.” The Update went live last night so it’s all working again.

Tomorrow’s guests: Justin Robert Young, Len Peralta!

Daily Tech News Show

DTNS 2422 – TII: Judgment Day

Logo by Mustafa Anabtawi thepolarcat.comAllison Sheridan joins the show and we bring on Molly Wood to help us dig into the US FCC’s proposal for Open Internet Rules. We’ll cut through the FUD and get to what you really need to be concerned with.

MP3

Using a Screen Reader? click here

Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our Patreon supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting the show here at the low, low cost of a nickel a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, TomGehrke, sebgonz and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes

Today’s guest:  Allison Sheridan, host of the NosillaCast at podfeet.com & Molly Wood, columnist at The New York Times

Headlines

It looks like NCTA Chairman Michael Powell’s idea of World War III will come to pass tomorrow. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler wrote an opinion column for Wired indicating he will propose, “that the FCC use its Title II authority to implement and enforce open internet protections.” His proposal will ban paid prioritization, and the blocking and throttling of lawful content and services. He hopes to preserve motivation for investment by insuring “there will be no rate regulation, no tariffs, no last-mile unbundling.” For the first time the Open Internet rules would apply to wireless as well wireline providers.

9 to 5 mac has the sources that say Apple is working on an unnamed streaming music service that will use Beats’ music content and technologies. Users will be able to stream music from the searchable music catalog and add songs to their personal libraries, and store music either on a device or in the cloud. Apple will also integrate Beats Music’s Playlists, Activities, and Mixes features into the new service, letting users access human-curated playlists. 9 to 5 mac’s sources say Apple is considering $7.99 a month, and maybe launch at WWDC.

The Verge has a post about some evidence Apple may be testing cars equipped with camera rigs that look similar to Google StreetView cars. Claycord.com published photos of a such a car that San Francisco’s KPIX has confirmed is leased to Apple. A similar car was spotted in New York in September. The cars seem to be equipped with LIDAR, Light Detection and Ranging cameras used by Google and Nokia for their mapping efforts. The car also includes a wheel sensor used by Navteq to create street imagery for Bing. LIDAR is also used for self-driving cars.

TechCrunch reports Microsoft has paid at least $100 million for calendar app maker Sunrise. The company makes apps for iOS, Android, OSX and Web, that consolidates calendars from different providers. Users can access their consolidated calendar from other services like Google, iCloud and Exchange. TechCrunch has heard MS will keep Sunrise as a standalone product while borrowing some tech for Microsoft efforts.

Venture Beat reports that Microsoft has released downloadable previews of the “universal” Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps for Windows 10. Microsoft says the new apps are optimized for tablets or touch-enabled laptops and desktops and provide “a consistent way for independent software vendors and developers to extend and integrate with Office apps”. A phone version will arrive in the coming weeks. Downloads of the new Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps are available from the Windows Store Beta that ships with the latest Windows 10 build.

According to TechCrunch, The Cyberspace Administration of China is now requiring users of social media, website services and forums to register their actual names and ID starting March 1. Although similar actions have been taken in the past when microblog Weibo enforced real names in 2012 these changes are far more sweeping.

Want the latest version of Android Lollipop? Move to India! The Next Web reports Google updated its Android One website for India today indicating that Android One devices will soon receive the 5.1 update to Android Lollipop. That makes them the first devices int the world to get the update. Android One devices with 5.1 are also schedule to arrive in Indonesia later this month, with Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka expected to get them next.

Reuters reports 30-year-old Ross Ulbricht has been found guilty on Wednesday on seven counts including drug trafficking, and conspiracies to commit money laundering and computer hacking for orchestrating a scheme that enabled $200 million of anonymous online drug sales using bitcoin on the site Silk Road. Ulbricht is believed by many to be the Silk Road operator Dread Pirate Roberts.

 

 

 

 

 

News From You: 

tninja3000 sent us a Tech in Asia report that Alibaba’s online market place Taoboa partnered with Shanghai YTO Express for a three day test program starting today in which 450 customers will get a chance to have packages that weigh less than 340 grams delivered to their door by drone. The site offers a list of available products, which includes a ginger tea that helps to relieve menstrual cramps. Because that’s the kind of thing you want right. away.

starfuryzeta sent us this story from Engadget regarding “Canary Watch” a website created by a coalition of privacy advocacy groups including the EFF and NYU’s technology law and policy clinic. The “Canary Watch” website monitors sites and reports when “canary pages” — pages that state a site has received no national security letter requests for instance– have disappeared.

 

Discussion Section Links: Title II time

http://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2005/10/5498-2/

http://www.wired.com/2015/02/fcc-chairman-wheeler-net-neutrality/

http://www.fcc.gov/document/chairman-wheeler-proposes-new-rules-protecting-open-internet

http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/4/7977963/fcc-net-neutrality-victory

http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/4/7977641/fcc-net-neutrality-war-with-your-isp-title-ii

http://www.attpublicpolicy.com/fcc/title-ii-closing-arguments/

https://www.techdirt.com/blog/netneutrality/articles/20141211/05462229389/verizon-admits-to-investors-that-title-ii-wont-harm-broadband-investment-all.shtml

http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/14/5716802/game-of-phones-how-verizon-is-playing-the-fcc-and-its-customers

http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/4/7978313/fcc-net-neutrality-title-ii-reactions

http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/4/7977633/fcc-will-apply-net-neutrality-to-mobile-for-the-first-time

http://www.cnet.com/news/net-fix-title-ii-the-two-words-that-terrify-the-broadband-industry/#ftag=CAD590a51e

http://www.cnet.com/news/why-fccs-wheeler-is-defying-the-greatest-lobbyists-in-the-world/#ftag=CAD590a51e

Pick of the Day:  Has Been coffee via 

http://www.hasbean.co.uk

Tomorrow’s guest:  Todd Whitehead of Alpha Geek Radio

Sword and Laser

Excerpt of DARK SUN, BRIGHT MOON and Giveaway!

Looking for something a little different to add to your To-Read list? Click through to read an excerpt of the book, and to find out how you can win a copy!

“Dark Sun, Bright Moon describes people isolated in the Andes, without the least notion of outsiders. They evolve an understanding of the universe that is complementary to our own but a great deal wider. The book explores events of a thousand years ago, events which fit with what we know of the region’s history,” says author Oliver Sparrow.

In the Andes of a thousand years ago, the Huari empire is sick. Its communities are being eaten from within by a plague, a contagion that is not of the body but of something far deeper, a plague that has taken their collective spirit. Rooting out this parasite is a task that is laid upon Q’ilyasisa, a young woman from an obscure little village on the forgotten borders of the Huari empire.

This impossible mission is imposed on her by a vast mind, a sentience that has ambitions to shape all human life. Her response to this entails confrontations on sacrificial pyramids, long journeys through the Amazonian jungle and the establishment of not just one but two new empires. Her legacy shapes future Andean civilization for the next four hundred years, until the arrival of the Spanish.

Dark Sun, Bright Moon takes the reader on a fascinating adventure that includes human sacrifice, communities eaten from within, a vast mind blazing under the mud of Lake Titicaca, and the rise and fall of empires cruel and kind.

Chapter 1: A Small Sacrifice at Pachacamac

A priest knelt before her, a feather from his head-dress tickling her face. His musky odour of old incense and stale blood was rank, even here on the windy summit of the pyramid. Four other priests held her body tipped slightly forwards, and the pressure that this put on her tired old joints hurt far more than the fine, cold bite of the knife at her neck. Quick blood ran thick down her chin and splashed into the waiting bowl. Then the flow weakened, the strength went out of her and she died, content.

Seven elderly pilgrims had set out for Pachacamac, following their familiar river down to the coast and then trudging North through the desert sands. Two of the very oldest of them needed to be carried in litters, but most were able to walk with no more than a stick to help them in the sand. Lesser members of the community had been delegated to carry what was necessary. These would return home. The elderly would not.

The better-regarded families of the town were expected to die as was proper, sacrificed at the Pachacamac shrine for the betterment of the community. Such was to be their last contribution of ayni, of the reciprocity that assured communal harmony and health. It was also their guarantee of a smooth return to the community’s soul, to the deep, impersonal structure from which they had sprung at birth.

The Pachacamac complex appeared to them quite suddenly from amongst the coastal dunes. They paused to marvel at its mountain range of pyramids, its teeming myriad of ancient and holy shrines.

Over the millennia, one particular pyramid had come to process all of the pilgrims who came from their valley. They were duly welcomed, and guards resplendent in bronze and shining leather took them safely to its precinct.

They had been expected. The priests were kind, welcoming them with food and drink, helping the infirm, leading them all by easy stages up to the second-but-last tier in their great, ancient pyramid. The full extent of the meandering ancient shrine unveiled itself like a revelation as they climbed. Then, as whatever had been mixed with their meal took its effect, they were wrapped up snug in blankets and set to doze in the late evening sun, propped together against the warm, rough walls of the mud-brick pyramid. Their dreams were vivid, extraordinary, full of weight and meaning.

The group was woken before dawn, all of them muzzily happy, shriven of all their past cares, benignly numb. Reassuring priests helped them gently up the stairs to the very top tier. In the predawn light, the stepped pyramids of Pachacamac stood sacred and aloof in an ocean of mist.

Each pilgrim approached their death with confidence. A quick little discomfort would take them back to the very heart of the community from which they had been born. They had been separated from it by the act of birth, each sudden individual scattered about like little seed potatoes. Now, ripe and fruitful, they were about to return home, safely gathered back into the community store. It was to be a completion, a circle fully joined. Hundreds of conch horns brayed out across Pachacamac as the dawn sun glittered over the distant mountains. Seven elderly lives drained silently away as the mist below turned pink.

To win a copy of this book, leave a comment with your first impressions! A winner will be chosen at random and notified via email.

Dark Sun, Bright Moon

By Oliver Sparrow

Sword and Laser

Excerpt of DARK SUN, BRIGHT MOON and Giveaway!

Looking for something a little different to add to your To-Read list? Click through to read an excerpt of the book, and to find out how you can win a copy!

“Dark Sun, Bright Moon describes people isolated in the Andes, without the least notion of outsiders. They evolve an understanding of the universe that is complementary to our own but a great deal wider. The book explores events of a thousand years ago, events which fit with what we know of the region’s history,” says author Oliver Sparrow.

In the Andes of a thousand years ago, the Huari empire is sick. Its communities are being eaten from within by a plague, a contagion that is not of the body but of something far deeper, a plague that has taken their collective spirit. Rooting out this parasite is a task that is laid upon Q’ilyasisa, a young woman from an obscure little village on the forgotten borders of the Huari empire.

This impossible mission is imposed on her by a vast mind, a sentience that has ambitions to shape all human life. Her response to this entails confrontations on sacrificial pyramids, long journeys through the Amazonian jungle and the establishment of not just one but two new empires. Her legacy shapes future Andean civilization for the next four hundred years, until the arrival of the Spanish.

Dark Sun, Bright Moon takes the reader on a fascinating adventure that includes human sacrifice, communities eaten from within, a vast mind blazing under the mud of Lake Titicaca, and the rise and fall of empires cruel and kind.

Chapter 1: A Small Sacrifice at Pachacamac

A priest knelt before her, a feather from his head-dress tickling her face. His musky odour of old incense and stale blood was rank, even here on the windy summit of the pyramid. Four other priests held her body tipped slightly forwards, and the pressure that this put on her tired old joints hurt far more than the fine, cold bite of the knife at her neck. Quick blood ran thick down her chin and splashed into the waiting bowl. Then the flow weakened, the strength went out of her and she died, content.

Seven elderly pilgrims had set out for Pachacamac, following their familiar river down to the coast and then trudging North through the desert sands. Two of the very oldest of them needed to be carried in litters, but most were able to walk with no more than a stick to help them in the sand. Lesser members of the community had been delegated to carry what was necessary. These would return home. The elderly would not.

The better-regarded families of the town were expected to die as was proper, sacrificed at the Pachacamac shrine for the betterment of the community. Such was to be their last contribution of ayni, of the reciprocity that assured communal harmony and health. It was also their guarantee of a smooth return to the community’s soul, to the deep, impersonal structure from which they had sprung at birth.

The Pachacamac complex appeared to them quite suddenly from amongst the coastal dunes. They paused to marvel at its mountain range of pyramids, its teeming myriad of ancient and holy shrines.

Over the millennia, one particular pyramid had come to process all of the pilgrims who came from their valley. They were duly welcomed, and guards resplendent in bronze and shining leather took them safely to its precinct.

They had been expected. The priests were kind, welcoming them with food and drink, helping the infirm, leading them all by easy stages up to the second-but-last tier in their great, ancient pyramid. The full extent of the meandering ancient shrine unveiled itself like a revelation as they climbed. Then, as whatever had been mixed with their meal took its effect, they were wrapped up snug in blankets and set to doze in the late evening sun, propped together against the warm, rough walls of the mud-brick pyramid. Their dreams were vivid, extraordinary, full of weight and meaning.

The group was woken before dawn, all of them muzzily happy, shriven of all their past cares, benignly numb. Reassuring priests helped them gently up the stairs to the very top tier. In the predawn light, the stepped pyramids of Pachacamac stood sacred and aloof in an ocean of mist.

Each pilgrim approached their death with confidence. A quick little discomfort would take them back to the very heart of the community from which they had been born. They had been separated from it by the act of birth, each sudden individual scattered about like little seed potatoes. Now, ripe and fruitful, they were about to return home, safely gathered back into the community store. It was to be a completion, a circle fully joined. Hundreds of conch horns brayed out across Pachacamac as the dawn sun glittered over the distant mountains. Seven elderly lives drained silently away as the mist below turned pink.

To win a copy of this book, leave a comment with your first impressions! A winner will be chosen at random and notified via email.

Dark Sun, Bright Moon

By Oliver Sparrow

Sword and Laser

S&L Podcast – #204 – Annihilation is Not the End

Veronica REALLY wanted to make the title of this episode “Tom Merritt is a sexist pig.” But Tom doesn’t need that kind of grief. And besides he has promised to read even more female SciFi/Fantasy authors going forward. But if you want to hear Veronica giggle at the notion– as well as defend our book pick, Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer, and wax eloquent about the need for varied perspectives in literature– then fire up this episode!

Download link here!

WHAT ARE WE DRINKING?    
Tom: Boddington’s Pub Ale    
Veronica: Some kind of white wine    
    
QUICK BURNS
    
Nominate Your Favorite Works And People For The 2015 Hugo Awards
    
Nokomis.FL noted “George RR Martin’s The Winds of Winter: no plans for publication in 2015 ” Trike wasn’t sure this was really news and Robert wrote: “given that ‘Winds of Winter’ won’t be published in 2015, it’s almost certain that the TV show will finish before the books are published. “
    
Michele and Dara: 
 “J. Michael Straczynski Will Adapt Kim Stanley Robinson’s Red Mars for Spike TV“”  
    
Dara: More books into tv series! Endemol studios has acquired the rights to Lauren Beuke’s Broken Monsters    
    
“Ben:  After their popular special issues and Kickstarter campaign last year Women destroy Science Fiction (and fantasy and horror too) – Lightspeed are doing a similar thing with Queers Destroy…. Which can be backed on Kickstarter at the moment.
    
Robyn:  I’m late to the game (and apologies if this has been mentioned before), but I just realised that The Guardian is doing a monthly round-up of SFF – January’s is here. Fun way to find out about new books.    
    
Also take a look at John DeNardo’s SF Signal’s 100 Science Fiction and Fantasy and Horror Books to Look Forward to in 2015 (Part 2)    
    
BARE YOUR SWORD
    
Louie: Who are your top 5 most read authors?    
    
Tom:        

1-Philip K. Dick        30
2-William Shakespeare        18
3-Stephen King        14
4-Evelyn Waugh        11
4-Douglas Adams        11
4-Neal Stephenson        11
7-Hunter S. Thompson        10
8-Frank Herbert        9
8-Douglas Coupland        9
    
Veronica:
1-Charlaine Harris        14
2- Laurie R. King        13
2-Robin Hobb        13
4-Tad Williams        12
4-Jim Butcher        12
6-Orson Scott Card        9
7-Jacqueline Carey        7
7-Gail Carriger        7
7-Kevin Hearne        7
7-J.K. Rowling        7″    
    
A Rant about a Particular Aspect of eBooks    

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION    
    
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer     
Jeff VanderMeer – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia    
Annihilation review – ‘You’ll find yourself afraid to turn the page’ | Books | The Guardian    
Finally, a novel about weird science that’s genuinely weird     

ADDENDUMS    
    
Support our show on Patreon    
    
You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com/picks    
    

Annihilation: A Novel (The Southern Reach Trilogy)

By Jeff VanderMeer

Daily Tech News Show

DTNS 2421 – Mesh Around

Logo by Mustafa Anabtawi thepolarcat.comPatrick Beja joins to explore the brewing war between Google and Uber. Is it Apple and Google all over again?

MP3

Using a Screen Reader? click here

Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our Patreon supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting the show here at the low, low cost of a nickel a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, TomGehrke, sebgonz and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes

Today’s guest: Patrick Beja, DTNS contributor and independent podcaster at Frenchspin.com

Headlines

Ars Technica collects various reports that broke yesterday evening about Uber and Google fighting over self-driving cars. Bloomberg’s sources say Google chief legal officer David Drummond, who is on Uber’s board, showed screenshots to Uber of a Google ridesharing app. WSJ says that’s just an internal test app for Google employees. Meanwhile TechCrunch reports Uber is teaming up with Carnegie Mellon University researchers to build the “Uber Advanced Technologies Center” in Pittsburgh to research its own self-driving cars.

Ars Technica reports on Eero unveiling their mesh networking routers that promise easy setup, constant security updates and easy coverage of large homes. The routers are not extenders or repeaters, but create a mesh network. Each Eero router has a pair of dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios.  The boxes run a custom firmware stack built on DD-WRT. A cloud-based app allows for users to easily add new routers but also send links in text messages to friends for easy connection to the WiFi network.  Eero is available for preorder today at $125 for one unit or $299 for three. That’s 40% off the eventual retail price when the unit arrives this summer.

Samsung sent out invites to Galaxy Unpacked 2015 on March 1 in Barcelona, during Mobile World Congress. TechCrunch’s picture of the invite shows the side view of a bent metallic device, possibly a fork or maybe a Galaxy S6 with a curved body. We can’t be sure. GigaOm notes that korea’s DDaily suggests Samsung may partner up with LoopPay for automatic payments used in conjunction with a fingerprint sensor.

The Next Web reports that Twitter will begin syndicating promoted tweets outside of Twitter.  The company will bring its promoted tweets to Flipboard and Yahoo Japan with the same design as regular tweets.  In 2014, Twitter had 185 billion tweet impressions off its own site.

TechCrunch passes along a report from Avast on Android malware that displays ads disguised as warning messages when user unlock their device. The malware is estimated to have been downloaded int he millions. Avast has analyzed three apps, Durak card game, an IQ Test and a history app that were infected. The malware waits for several days and at least one reboot before activating.

Engadget reports on Razer’s new Blade gaming laptop for 2015.
The new Blade has a 14-inch 3200 x 1800 touch display, GeForce 970M GPU, 16GB of RAM and a max of 512 GB of solid state storage. Starting price is $2,199 although you can opt for 1080p screen for $200 less.

PC Mag looks at the 2016 roadmap for ARM processor designs unveiled Tuesday. The 64-bit Cortex-A72 which successds the A15 and A57 as the BIG in ARMS Big.little scheme– includes the new CoreLink CCI-500 interconnect and upgraded graphics processing headlined by the Mali-T880 GPU. ARM chief marketing officer Ian Drew expects the next generation of chips to get about 3.5 times the performance of what you get today as well as advanced native voice support, render pictures into 3D print jobs, improved VR and better linkage to Internet of Things device. It will use 75% less energy than the A15. Mobile chip makers that have already licensed the Cortex-A72 include HiSilicon, MediaTek, and Rockchip. More technical info coming in April.

CNET reports the China Internet Network Information Center says the country added 31 million Internet users for a total of 649 million.  Mobile Internet users rose 57 million to 557 million.  That’s good news for Lenovo’s Motorola brand. The company reported sales up 118 percent in the last quarter. And that’s without China which Motorola is now returning to.  Motorola announced Monday on Weibo that it had seen 1 million reservations for the Moto X in China. Lenovo is also expected to announce a new smartphone brand in 2015 for China that will be sold directly to consumers online.

Console game maker OUYA confirmed this morning that Alibaba is getting the OIYA game library on its YunOS platform. YunOS is Alibaba’s version of Android in China. For the moment, OUYA’s game service will be limited to Alibaba’s Tmall set-top box, and will not appear in phones. OUYA did not say anything about the yesterday’s Wall Street Journal report that Alibaba is investing $10 million into OUYA.

 

 

News From You: 

Kaeltian, tm204, and starfuryzeta all wanted us to know about reports that retail electronics store RadioShack is in talks to sell up to half of its 4,000 stores and close the rest as part of an expected plan to file for bankruptcy. Bloomberg’s sources say Sprint, Brookstone and Amazon are all interested in the chain. Sources say Sprint might co-brand stores and keep the Radio Shack name alive.The New York Stock Exchange said Monday it would suspend trading of the stock immediately.

And finally, philo1927 sent us the GigaOm post that the Wall Street Journal has sources with knowledge about Tom Wheeler’s plans for February 5th.

According to the Journal, Wheeler plans to call for Title II reclassification of Internet in the US.

Under this reclassification, could prohibit ISPS from blocking, slowing down or speeding up specific websites in exchange for payment.

The reclassification would apply to mobile broadband, and would place peering arrangements under Title II.

Discussion Section Links:  Uber Google and Eero

http://arstechnica.com/cars/2015/02/uber-and-google-reportedly-go-to-war-over-self-driving-taxis/

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-02/exclusive-google-and-uber-are-going-to-war-over-taxis?hootPostID=86b6175a61f6b983b08a1c1055694458

http://techcrunch.com/2015/02/02/uber-opening-robotics-research-facility-in-pittsburgh-to-build-self-driving-cars/

http://blog.uber.com/carnegie-mellon

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/02/02/uber-chases-google-in-self-driving-cars/

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/02/eero-takes-a-crack-at-pushing-mesh-wi-fi-through-your-whole-house/

Pick of the Day: Tubes via Rusty in Virginia

Hey Tom,

I recommend Andrew Blum’s book “Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet.” His tour-guide approach to explaining the Internet’s infrastructure and is unique and fascinating. It’s much better than any of my CS textbooks. I’m reminded of this book whenever you explain peering and interconnects on DTNS or Cord Killers.

I think this pick is especially timely given the ongoing debate about net neutrality and the FCC’s upcoming vote at the end of February.

http://andrewblum.net/

cheers,
Rusty in Virginia

Also, Patrick likes this! https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse

Tomorrow’s guest:  Allison Sheridan

Daily Tech News Show

DTNS 2420 – Who Watches the Watches?

Logo by Mustafa Anabtawi thepolarcat.comChristian Cantrell is on the show to talk about Pebble’s claim to revolutionize the smart watch and be less focused on apps. What would that mean?

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Show Notes

Sword and Laser

A love letter to Borderlands Books, but not a goodbye

The first time I saw Borderlands was a month or so after I had moved to San Francisco in 2004. I remember walking down Valencia Street and ogling all the stores I could not yet afford to shop in (moving to an expensive city with no job straight out of college will do that to a girl). I was probably with one of the gals I had moved out with, who couldn’t comprehend my excitement at finding a store completely devoted to science fiction and fantasy. 

It was perfect. It was as though it had sprung fully-formed from within the deepest reaches of my nerdy brain. Rows and rows of books. All my favorite authors, and many more that I didn’t even know I loved yet. Dark wood. That delicious book smell. A small, completely hairless cat named Ripley.

Here I am nervously getting my book signed by Robin Hobb at Borderlands

Here I am nervously getting my book signed by Robin Hobb at Borderlands

Throughout the years I came as much as I could, though I never became the regular I wanted to be. I wanted it to be my Cheers. That place I could go where everyone would know my name and ask me how I liked the most recent Tad Williams or Robin Hobb. In fact, I met Robin there during a book signing, and it was the most nervous I had ever been speaking with another human being in memory. She was wonderful, of course.

But I didn’t go enough. Even now, after S&L has been meeting there monthly for our book club, and even after I’ve been back many, countless times for signings or just to browse the latest releases, I don’t know if they’d even know me or know how much that store has meant.

Borderlands is closing. This physical lynchpin of my obsession for SFF is going away, and I don’t know if we can save it. San Francisco is expensive enough as it is, but a recent minimum wage increase (which I voted for…) is their real undoing. Not to mention the on-going stress of being a small, niche bookstore in a town obsessed with the digital. There’s going to be a meeting next month at the store to discuss options, and I definitely plan on being there.

Mostly, I just needed to write this to vent. I’m sad, and I’m angry, and I regret not doing more. Alan and Jude have worked so hard to keep this beautiful store open for so many years, and so many wonderful authors have come through its doors. 

Thank you, Borderlands, for being that place for us. But we’re not ready to say goodbye just yet!

Sword & Laser meet-up and anthology reading January 2014

Sword & Laser meet-up and anthology reading January 2014

for Tom's full site visit tommerritt.com