Latest Technology News

Popular media center software Kodi continues to be in the news, often for the wrong reasons. Most recently the organization behind the program called for unofficial Kodi add-ons site TVAddons to be be shutdown, and said that users who stream illegal content should 'bugger off'. It’s clear the Kodi Foundation is frustrated with its reputation as a means to allow users to view pirated content.

If you’re a Kodi fan, then you’ll be interested to know that a new update for the software is available from today.

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Microsoft rolls out two Windows 10 feature updates a year. In April, the Creators Update arrived, followed by the Fall Creators Update this month. In order to reduce the number of problems big updates like this can cause users, Microsoft staggers the rollout.

Fans and early adopters get it first, then comes the initial phase, where the update is made available for newer systems, followed by full availability. This, in theory, is a smart move. Microsoft can monitor the rollout, and if things are going smoothly, make the update available to more users. The problem is, with the Creators Update the rollout took forever.

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If you've ever wondered what happens to the data Google collects via Chrome, today's announcement gives you something of an idea. The newly unveiled Chrome User Experience Report is a collection of data from users who have opted in to usage statistic reporting, the idea being that developers will be able to see how users experience the websites they visit.

Google launched the new tool at the Chrome Dev Summit 2017 in San Francisco, and at the same time also announced Trusted Web Activity. This is essentially a way to provide app-like behavior in Chrome to create a more cohesive experience.

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Businesses in the US now have a new way to sign up with one of Google's booking partners and to add a booking button to their search listing.

Anyone in the US with a Google My Business account can benefit from the addition of a booking button that enables people to book a reservation with a simple click. It's a continuation of the idea started with Reserve with Google, and the search giant is making it easy for businesses to track their online booking through their accounts.

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Google has just released a new API that helps organizations protect and regulate sensitive data. The Data Loss Prevention (DLP) API, which has been in beta since March, has now been unveiled, together with a couple of new features.

The features include redaction, masking and tokenization. The API can enforce the principle of least privilege, or need-to-know access to data to production applications and data workflows. Its service can work with any data source or storage system.

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I have mixed feelings about the Essential Phone. On one hand, it is a bold attempt at creating a high-end smartphone to go up against the iPhone and the Galaxy S. On the other hand, it is difficult to make a case for it, if you ignore the fact that its parent company was founded by the creator of Android.

When you ask a lot of money for a smartphone these days you have to offer more than the device itself. Things like in-store availability and easy access to support are just as important as the hardware. That's why people buy a ton of iPhones and Galaxy S devices: because Apple and Samsung get these things right. Essential is simply not there yet.

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Endpoint security company Endgame has become the first protection platform that measures its effectiveness not just against malware but against nation-state level attacks.

It has worked with MITRE Corporation to validate protections against MITRE's ATT&CK Matrix, a framework for adversarial tactics and techniques that enterprises encounter daily.

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After months of beta testing through the Windows Insider program, Windows 10 Fall Creators Update has finally been released. While the update brings a number of changes and additions to Microsoft's operating system, it has also brought problems for some people.

Among these issues is the apparent disappearance of various apps. This is not down to apps being removed from Windows, but Windows 10 Fall Creators Update has rendered some apps completely inaccessible. If you've experienced this problem, here's how to fix it.

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HPE could be saying farewell to the cloud server business after reports that the company will no longer sell low-end servers to some of its biggest clients, including the likes Microsoft and Amazon.

The move seems to have a financial motive, as it can be extremely hard to turn a profit selling low-end servers in this way. Although HPE sells a lot of servers, the big players in the field, who buy these servers at bulk, are capable of negotiating huge discounts, making profits almost non-existent. To make matters even worse, most of them, including Google or Amazon, reach out to contract manufacturers in the East and have their servers built right there. Removing the brand name, they get all the necessary specification, with much lower costs.

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Kaspersky software was recently banned from US government computers over fears that the security company has links to the Russian government. This is something Kaspersky vehemently denies, and now it has announced a new "global transparency initiative" to try to win back trust.

Part of the newly transparent Kaspersky will see the company submitting source code for current and future software to "the broader information-security community and other stakeholders." It is hoping that the scrutiny will put to bed ideas that it has been engaged in espionage with the Russian authorities.

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Install software and it’s soon out-of-date. Developers release rapid updates when they find issues, often reported by end users.

Having the latest version can be important. Software can conflict and slow your PC, be compromised, wrongly report information and need to be updated to support the latest operating system patch. Unless you’re prepared to go through every single installed application, it’s tricky to keep on top of the available updates.

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Jordan Belfort -- the real-life Wolf of Wall Street -- has warned that ICOs (or "token sales" or "coin sales") are "the biggest scam ever" and will "blow up in so many people's faces."

The former stockbroker, who spent nearly two years in prison for fraud and financial scams, says that the Initial Coin Offerings used to raise money for cryptocurrencies are "far worse than anything I was ever doing." His fears seem to stem from the way ICOs differ from the more traditional IPO.

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As promised earlier in the year, Google has launched its payment service to streamline the checkout process for Android users. Pay with Google aims to kill the frustration that can stem from having to fill out endless forms in order to complete a purchase.

To start with, Pay with Google is supported by 15 vendors including Instacart, Kayak, iFood and GameTime, but there are plenty more big names -- like StubHub, Deliveroo, Airbnb and Just Eat -- due to join. The service is available from today, and can be used in various Android apps, or Chrome on the web.

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I'm a big fan of value. Is that because I'm not a wealthy person? Partially. Even when I can afford something, however, I don't necessarily buy it. When buying a car, for instance, I try to get the most bang for my buck while getting a reasonable vehicle -- my only new car purchase was a Ford Focus priced below invoice. Could I have gotten a better vehicle? Sure, but the Focus provided value.

When it comes to monitors, I am the same way. My main computer these days is a 2016 MacBook Pro. Now, the obvious choice of a monitor wold be a fancy 5K variant from a company like LG. And yeah, I am sure a 5K display looks brilliant with macOS. But guess what? It is expensive. Instead, 4K is more than enough for my needs. When I want a monitor, I usually turn to AOC. Why? Its products are very good and budget-friendly. I've been testing the company's U3277PWQU 32-inch 4K UHD Professional Monitor lately, and I have some definitive opinions.

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Tweaking tools used to be all the rage for Windows, but not so much these days. The phenomenon has, however, spread to the mobile world to a certain extent. OnePlus owners have the streamlined OxygenOS to work with for an experience that's near to pure Android; but there's always scope for tweaking.

Whether you have rooted your phone or not, JOnePlus Tools gives you the opportunity to tweak your phone to within an inch of its life (in the best possible way, of course). As well as working with rooted and non-rooted phones, it even works with the Oreo betas that are available from OnePlus at the moment.

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