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The world is currently undergoing a cord cutting revolution. Thanks to the internet, many consumers are being empowered to dump their cable provider and switch to a streaming option. This is sort of ironic, as quite often, the internet being used to stream is provided by the TV provider that is being dumped. Ultimately, the cable company becomes nothing more than an ISP. You know what? Maybe that is how it should be.

Cordcutters have many internet-based TV providers from which to choose these days, but one of the most attractive is offered by Google. The search giant’s YouTube TV service is quite intriguing thanks to its paltry $35 monthly fee (often much less than cable TV). Starting today, the service will become even more popular, as it is now available for Roku and Apple TV.

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While Microsoft has long been viewed as an enemy of the Linux community -- and it still is by some -- the company has actually transformed into an open source champion. Not only does Microsoft release software for Linux, such as PowerShell Core 6.0, but it is even serving distros in its software store for Windows. Let's not forget that Microsoft even offers Linux virtual machines in Azure.

One of Microsoft's biggest Linux contributions, however, is Skype -- the wildly popular communication software. By offering that program to desktop Linux users, Microsoft enables them to easily communicate with friends and family that aren't on Linux, thanks to its cross-platform support. Today, Microsoft further embraces Linux by releasing Skype as a Snap. This comes after two other very popular apps became available in Snap form -- Spotify and Slack. Wait a minute -- Slack, Spotify, and now Skype? It's a mighty strange coincidence that popular apps that start with "S" are being made available as Snaps -- yet another "S" word!

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A new report from risk management and threat intelligence company Digital Shadows shows that cyber criminals are looking to exploit the boom in interest and adoption of cryptocurrencies.

The study highlights the most common methods used by these criminal actors, which include crypto jacking, account takeovers, mining fraud and scams against initial coin offerings (ICOs).

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After peaking at just over $20,000, Bitcoin entered a massive correction last year which took it dangerously close to the $10,000 mark. The most-valuable cryptocurrency looked like it could recover for a while, but today it is still far, far away from the record price of last year.

The correction is moving Bitcoin back into sub-$10,000 territory today, and it is taking the market down along with it. Some of the majors are still holding well, but the top 100 is in the red almost in its entirety.

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Following the success of Super Mario Run, Nintendo has confirmed plans to bring Mario Kart to mobile devices.

The game will be called Mario Kart Tour, and it is currently scheduled for release by the first quarter of 2019. This is the first Mario Kart title to make its way to smartphones, and a title that will be eagerly awaited by fans of the Italian ex-plumber.

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If you believe StatCounter’s numbers, Windows 10 finally overtook Windows 7 in January. However, if you tend to trust NetMarketShare’s monthly desktop operating system figures more, well, then it didn’t.

According to the analyst firm’s numbers, in January Windows 10 narrowed the gap by a fair margin, but Windows 7 is still some way in the lead.

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eBay and PayPal have become almost inextricably entwined over the years -- but not completely inextricably. Citing lower costs, eBay has announced plans to drop PayPal as its main payment processor in favor of Dutch firm Adyen.

Starting later this year, eBay will move some of its payments to the new provider, and then by 2020, PayPal will have been replaced as the backend payment service. eBay users will still have the option to use PayPal until at least the middle of 2023.

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Security is the main priority when selecting cloud solutions according to a new report which shows businesses are increasingly adapting their security to suit the cloud.

The study for cloud security automation company Lacework carried out by analysts Hurwitz & Associates shows that 'safe and secure' tops the list of desirable cloud characteristics, cited by 53 percent of respondents.

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Every month, StatCounter reports on the state of the desktop operating system market. Since October last year, the analyst company’s figures have shown the gap between Windows 10 and Windows 7 narrowing. It looked as if the newer OS would overtake the older one in November, but that didn’t happen, and it didn’t happen in December either.

However, in January, according to StatCounter, Windows 10 finally claimed the top spot.

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Microsoft is taking a firmer line with misleading system utilities and tools that try to scare users into paying for software. An update to Windows Defender means that software found to be "coercive" could be ripe for automatic removal.

New policies come into play in March as Microsoft tries to banish software that makes misleading claims or adversely affects system performance. Tools that exaggerate problems or resort to scare tactics are among those in the firing line.

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I’m sorry this year’s predictions seem to this point to mainly have to do with policies rather than products, but I don’t get to make the future, just predict it, and in this case I’m predicting that immigration reform will have little actual effect on H-1B visa abuse.

For those of you who aren’t already asleep I’ll start with the Cliff Notes version of the H-1B issue, which I have written about ad nauseam as you can read here (notice there are three pages of columns, so dig deep). H-1B is a U.S. immigration program to allow 65,000 foreign workers into the USA each year for up to six years, which means that at any moment there are almost 400,000 of these folks working at the desk next to yours. Some people claim that H-1Bs take jobs better filled by U.S. citizens and some feel that H-1Bs are essential for the functioning of technology industries that would otherwise be devoid of needed talent. I am clearly on the side of the former folks who see H-1Bs as a scam intended to take jobs away from, well, me.

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As a younger man, I was obsessed with audio equipment. I invested in expensive stereo receivers, multiple large speakers, and countless components -- turntable, cassette, CD, mini-disc, and more. Of course, I also connected my television and computer. Over time, however, with the explosion of downloadable and streamable media, all of that went away. Now, my living room just has a soundbar and subwoofer hooked to my TV -- Apple TV handles video and music. It is simple, and I like that.

So yeah, soundbars are great for living rooms, but what if there was one that was designed for computer desks? Weird concept, right? Yes, but as I have learned from the Sound BlasterX Katana, it totally makes sense. This speaker system from Creative is designed to sit under a computer monitor and provide exceptional sound quality. It is not just a soundbar, though -- it comes with a subwoofer, remote control, and has an integrated USB DAC.

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Performance matters. Technology may allow us to "go bigger", but maybe not necessarily be better when it comes to performance. Servers and Internet connections are getting more sophisticated, and as a result, we feel the need to keep filling them. However, this isn’t the time to become lazy. This is the time to utilize the amazing tools that are available for making websites faster, and to learn how to improve user experience and satisfaction.

Front-End Performance is a practical collection of tutorials on front-end website performance for web developers. It’s packed with useful, real world hints and tips that you can use on your sites today.

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OnePlus today kicked off the roll-out of OxygenOS 5.0.2, which finally brings Android 8.0 Oreo to its latest flagship killer, the OnePlus 5T. This build also adds a couple of changes to the UI and updates a number of the built-in apps.

The official Android 8.0 Oreo release lands nearly a month after OnePlus introduced the first public beta. Given the nature of such major under-the-hood changes, it will reach a limited number of OnePlus 5T users on day one, with a broader roll-out set to start in the next couple of days.

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A new survey of business and IT decision makers reveals that more than half (56 percent) believe their job roles have been changed by digital transformation.

The study by the Cloud Industry Forum and Ensono research finds 51 percent reporting an increase in their responsibilities and 47 percent saying they have greater pressure to deliver.

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