Apple doesn't seem to have decided which devices will support iOS 10
When Apple announced iOS 10 yesterday, there was one question that people around the world were asking themselves: will my device run it? The company sent out rather confusing signals yesterday in answer to this question.
Slides shown during the announcement presentation revealed the iPads, iPhones and iPods that will be able to upgrade to iOS 10. But the official iOS 10 preview page told a different story. Devices that were previously absent from the support list -- such as 3rd generation iPad -- were suddenly listed as supporting iOS 10. Now Apple has changed its mind again, and updated the list once more.
Finally! iOS 10 lets you remove built-in apps like Stocks
It’s something that many iPhone and iPad owners have asked: just how the hell do I delete the pointless Stocks app? With iOS 10 there's no need to go as far as jailbreaking your beloved device, as Apple is making it possible to delete no fewer than 23 of the built-in apps.
That useless Stocks app? Gone! The News app you never use? History! There are many reasons for wanting to banish these apps. Apart from not using them, you might want to free up screen space by getting rid of unnecessary icons. You might feel you can free up a bunch of storage space -- but Apple insists that "the apps built into iOS are designed to be very space efficient, so all of them together use less than 150MB". Whatever. The point is: you can now delete them!
With iOS 10 and macOS Sierra, Apple drops support for many older Macs, iPhones and iPads
With Apple's software announcements today, the focus has been on what is new and exciting. But with (just about) any operating system update, there is a darker side: the older devices that slip into oblivion, never to be updated again.
It's no different with iOS 10 and macOS Sierra. On the mobile front, Apple is giving up on the A5 chip, meaning that a number of iPhones and iPads are not going to support the latest version of iOS. It’s a similar story for Mac and MacBook owners -- older devices simply aren’t going to get the goodies.
Apple focuses on new features and privacy in iOS 10, while opening up to developers
It's what Apple is describing as 'the biggest iOS release ever'. Whether everyone else agrees remains to be seen, but today the company took the wraps off iOS 10 -- and there's certainly a lot to take in. Perhaps the most notable change, for developers at least, is the fact that Siri has been opened up so that it can be used by third party apps.
Messaging has become more important than ever in recent years, and this is something that Apple recognizes with iOS 10. Taking design cues from the likes of Facebook and WhatsApp, the Messages app now includes full screen animations, and there's a neat new feature that means you can handwrite messages.
Microsoft to buy LinkedIn for $26.2 billion in cash
In a surprise announcement, Microsoft has said that it is to buy LinkedIn for $26.2 billion in cash. The $196 per share deal is expect to close by the end of this calendar year having been unanimously approved by both companies' Boards of Directors.
Following the acquisition, LinkedIn will retain its current branding and Jeff Weiner will remain on as CEO, reporting to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. LinkedIn will become part of Microsoft’s Productivity and Business Processes segment.
Microsoft, Google and Facebook to work with Bangladesh government to remove 'inappropriate content'
Following prolonged talks with the Bangladesh government, Facebook, Google and Microsoft have all agreed to do more to remove 'inappropriate content' from the internet. State Minister for Telecoms, Tarana Halim, said: "After intense discussion with Facebook, Google and Microsoft, it has been agreed that they will respond to requests within 48 hours".
Agreeing to the Bangladesh government's demands comes just weeks after major tech companies agreed to a new code of conduct to combat online hate speech. In this instance, however, it has not been made entirely clear what constitutes inappropriate content, and the announcement will raise questions about the tech trio bowing to governmental demands.
New slim Xbox One S boasts 4K support, 2TB HDD and a vertical stand
Rumors have been circulating for some time about the arrival of a new Xbox One console, and now an image of the new model has leaked out. Known as the Xbox One S, the updated console is not just slimmer than the current Xbox One, but also boasts additional features.
Widely expected to be announced at the E3 expo which kicks off on Tuesday, Microsoft describes the Xbox One S as 'sleeker, slimmer, sharper'. At the moment no details of pricing or launch date are known, but the leak does gives up interesting titbits.
Julian Assange's WikiLeaks poised to release more Hillary Clinton emails
In a move that could boost Donald Trump's election campaign, WikiLeaks is on the verge of releasing more of Hillary Clinton's emails from her stint as US secretary of state. Clinton's use of a homebrew email server and a private email address for sending classified information has dogged her presidential campaign -- and Julian Assange is happy for that to continue.
The WikiLeaks founder, currently in exile in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, has made no secret of his loathing for Clinton. She is the subject of a federal investigation, and Assange is happy to add fuel to the fire by publicly releasing another batch of emails.
Orlando shooting at Pulse nightclub prompts Facebook's first use of Safety Check in the US
Following a massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, Facebook has been prompted to activate its Safety Check feature in the US for the first time. 50 people lost their lives in the attack on the LGBT nightclub.
Previously used following natural disasters around the world as well as a man-made tragedy, Safety Check gives people in a trouble spot to let friends and family know that they're OK. The deadliest mass shooting in American history ended up being the trigger for the first activation of the feature on US soil.
Snowden: Scotland has its own NSA conducting mass surveillance of phone and internet activity
Documents leaked by Edward Snowden reveal that Scottish authorities have been engaged in gathering data about phone and internet usage in much the same way as the NSA and GCHQ. The Scottish Recording Centre (SRC) accessed information gathered as part of a bulk data collection program called MILKWHITE.
Scottish newspaper The National, in conjunction with the website CommonSpace, have exposed Scotland's role in the UK's mass surveillance programs. Police and tax authorities in Scotland -- devolved from UK forces -- were given accessed to what the Intercept describes as 'huge troves of metadata' gathered by spy agencies.
Even threatening to circulate revenge porn could be criminalized across Britain
New laws have been proposed for England and Wales that would criminalize not only the circulation of revenge porn, but also threatening to circulate it. The definition of what constitutes revenge porn could also be expanded.
This level of criminalization is already in force in Scotland, and Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael believes that the rest of Britain should follow suit. If adopted, the proposed change would see revenge porn threats seen in much the same light as other forms of blackmail.
Bluetooth 5 is on the way: twice the speed, four times the range, and location-awareness
Due to be announced next week on June 16, Bluetooth 5 has a great deal to offer. Ahead of the announcement, Bluetooth Special Interest Group executive director Mark Powell has revealed a little about what we can expect.
The headline-grabbing specifications for the latest version of the wireless standard are a quadrupling of the current range, and a doubling of the current speed. Slightly less exciting is the change in naming convention which is a move to simplify the communication of major changes, but another key feature of Bluetooth 5 is support for location-aware services.
Google turns evil and backs controversial Trans-Pacific Trade Partnership (TPP)
The Trans-Pacific Trade Partnership, or TPP, is a controversial trade agreement which has been decried by many as limiting privacy and freedom of expression, as well as lacking transparency. Google has just announced that it supports TPP.
While the TPP has been signed by the Obama administration back in February, it is still to be approved by congress. In the meantime, many companies, organizations and interest groups have spoken out against it. Google admits that the TPP is not perfect, but joins the likes of Microsoft in lending its support.
Facebook threatens to delete users' photos if they don’t install the Moments app
Not content with forcing people into using its Messenger app, Facebook is continuing its aggressive tactics and driving users to install its photo-sharing app, Moments. The social network has warned users that their photos face deletion if they fail to use the Moments app.
Unsurprisingly, this has led to a huge surge in interest in the app, pushing it to the top of the download charts. Facebook has announced that it is going to delete Synced Albums and Synced Photos if Moments is not installed by July 7, sending warning emails to a number of users.
Google explains that search autocomplete censors suggestions
If you use Google as your search engine, you'll no doubt have noticed that as you type, a list of suggestions appears. This is an example of Google trying to be helpful, but the autocomplete suggestions can also be amusing or just plain weird -- thanks, algorithms! In recent days, Google has been accused of tinkering with search suggestions in a way that favors Hillary Clinton -- something the company strenuously denies.
You may have wondered how Google comes up with the suggestions it makes, and Tamar Yehoshua, VP of product management has spilled the beans. She reveals that as well as trying to be helpful to the searcher, the autocomplete algorithm also censors suggestions to discourage people from conducting "offensive or disparaging" searches about others.
Sofia Elizabella's Bio
Sofia Wyciślik-Wilson is a queer, transgender journalist based in Poland. She has been writing about technology for more than two decades, and after years working for magazines, her writing moved online. She is fueled by literature, music, nature, and vegetables. You can find her on Bluesky and Mastodon. If you like what you read, you can Buy her a Coffee!
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