Samsung Connect Auto turns your dumb car into a smart car
It's not just brand new vehicles that can be considered smart cars. Today Samsung launches Samsung Connect Auto, a plug-in module that can transform any car with an OBD II port in a smart car, connected into the Internet of Things.
Powered by Tizen, Samsung Connect Auto is a small dongle that features a GPS receiver, LTE modem, and a Wi-Fi hotspot. It has been designed to provide drivers with real-time feedback so they can adjust their driving style and improve fuel efficiency. More than this, the dongle also gives the car and its occupants with a Wi-Fi connection, and could provide information to insurers about driving style and frequency to help drive down insurance costs.
MWC 2016: LG G5 is a beautiful, transforming, modular smartphone
Mobile World Congress 2016 kicks off today in Barcelona and one of the first announcements from the show is the LG G5. This is a modular smartphone that features a number of swappable modules that can be used to tailor it to different needs.
Powered, naturally, by Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the LG G5 features a removable battery, but it is the add-on 'friends' modules that are of particular interest. At the moment there are just two modules available -- the LG Hi-Fi Plus with B&O PLAY, Hi-Fi DAC audio player, and LG CAM Plus, which transforms the smartphone into something more akin to a traditional camera. But the LG G5 does not rely on gimmicks; it also has some impressive specs.
How to: Installing the Nest thermostat
Nest debuted and became a darling of the home automation crowd, seemingly overnight. There's good reasons for that, as the company offered a unique and well-built system that is fairly simple for a homeowner to install. It also learns user habits and can adjust the temperature accordingly. The screen has a motion sensor and comes to life when you walk up to it, while remain dark the rest of the time.
The installation may seem confusing at first, but really it's fairly basic once you get past all of the technical talk and just pay attention to the parts that matter. We're going to install in on a fairly basic two wire system, as it is only going to be controlling heat. My home, for some unknown reason, has a separate air conditioning system, but given that I never use it, it really doesn't matter.
Warning! Linux Mint hacked -- operating system compromised
Linux Mint is one of the best distos around, but if you’ve installed it recently you might have done so using a compromised ISO image.
The Linux Mint team today reveals that hackers made a modified Linux Mint ISO with a backdoor in it, and managed to hack the Mint website so it pointed to this bad version.
Google helps lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people discover 'Places of Pride'
While sex and gender discrimination will always exist in some form, I am very proud that many people in the USA have opened their minds -- and hearts -- to people that may be different from them. It warms my heart that people can marry regardless of sex or gender. Sadly, there is still much work to do in the USA and other parts of Earth regarding equality.
Quite frankly, it is heartbreaking to think of all the people throughout history that had to live closeted lives. It is not shameful to be a person that is lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning or intersex; be proud, my fellow humans! If you aren't sure where to go to publicly show your pride, don't worry; today, Google announces that it is helping LGBTQI folks discover 'Places of Pride'.
Google cleans up search results by ditching sidebar ads
Google generates a huge amount of revenue through advertising, and it's not afraid to try mixing things up a little. Ads in search results have long-been controversial, but the latest change is likely to go down well with many people -- the ads that currently appear in the right hand sidebar of search results are to be dropped.
The change means that ads will only be displayed above and below search results. There will be seven Google AdWords ads in total -- four above search results, and three below. The right hand side of the page will be left free for Google's own Product Listing Ads.
Smile! Your DVR may email your picture to China
You may look at the DVR as that box that records your TV shows and perhaps even allows you to skip the commercials. But there is more to it than just that. Users can also record video from their home surveillance cameras and replay the clips if something happens. A lot of that data is stored in the cloud -- with some systems it is completely yours with a hardware DVR needed.
In use as a home recording device the DVR is also known as CCTV, closed-circuit television. There are quite a number of them in use all over the world, many in homes and some in businesses. It seems like a good idea for security, but things aren't always what they seem.
Warning: Comodo Antivirus included insecure remote tech support tool
A researcher from Google Project Zero discovered a serious security issue with the technical support tools supplied with Comodo software products. Tavis Ormandy found that Comodo Antivirus, Comodo Firewall, and Comodo Internet Security all included a bundled VNC server with either no password protection, or a very weak password.
GeekBuddy is a remote desktop tool used by support staff to troubleshoot customer problems, but it also serves as a backdoor that allows for near-unrestricted access to users' computers. The tool installs with full admin rights, meaning that an attacker could very easily gain complete control of a remote computer.
Syed Farook's iCloud password was changed by officials; Trump proposes Apple boycott
Apple is standing fast on its decision not to help -- publicly, at least -- the FBI to gain access to the iPhone owned by Syed Farook, one of the San Bernardino terrorists. In the latest twist in the saga, Apple has revealed that the password for the Apple ID associated with the phone was changed whilst Farook was in custody.
Apple says that this closes off another route to accessing the data the FBI seeks. Had the password not been changed, the company says, it may have been possible to retrieve backup data without the need to create a backdoor into the suspect's phone. Meanwhile, wading in to the Apple/FBI debate with all of the elegance of an epileptic elephant, serial buffoon Donald Trump has called for a boycott of Apple products -- despite tweeting from an iPhone himself.
Microsoft forms IoT-focused Open Connectivity Foundation with Intel, Samsung, and others
As someone who is historically an early adopter of technology, I surprised myself when I didn't jump head-first into the Internet of Things. Don't get me wrong, I love the IoT concepts of the connected home and smart appliances, but a lack of standards make me hesitant. As of now, my house has but one such device -- a WeMo smart outlet so I can turn on a lamp with an Amazon Echo.
A lack of standards for IoT is extremely problematic, but luckily, companies are realizing this dilemma. In fact, Microsoft announces the IoT-focused Open Connectivity Foundation with partners Intel, Samsung, Cisco and more. While this coalition is a step in the right direction, I am sure there will be many competing groups vying for adoption; the fight could last many years.
Acadia National Park goes digital, plan your visit now
If you ever have the opportunity to visit Maine then a can't-miss destination is Acadia National Park, situated along the Atlantic coast. The 47,000 acres of beauty was preserved way back in 1916 when the US government was rushing to protect huge swathes of land for future generations to enjoy.
Now the park is partnering with NIC for a new test program called "Your Pass Now". It is the first of three national parks that will trial this new approach.
Five not so obvious things you can expect at MWC 2016
At Mobile World Congress (MWC) tides will start to turn. There won’t be an overnight revolution powered by shiny new gadgets, but technologies we’ve seen evolving over recent years will start to demonstrate their real potential.
We expect to see five major technology themes come to the fore in Barcelona this year:
There is more to boosting traffic to your website than SEO
For a while now, search engine optimization (or SEO) has been applauded for its ability to boost conversions. In fact, an entire industry has been created by specialists in link building and optimizing websites for search engine results pages (SERPS). But through this, some of the basics have been forgotten -- it’s not just SEO that can help drive online sales.
Over the last five years, we’ve seen a massive rise in the number of good quality blogs appearing -- and these days you’re not likely to come across a good website without at least a news section. For the most part, businesses integrate this into their website as a way of working their way up in SERPS, by providing useful content that readers might share on social media. But blogs are also a brilliant way to naturally drive traffic and boost conversions.
Apple vs. the FBI isn't at all the way you think it is
The FBI holds an iPhone that was owned by one of the San Bernardino terrorists, Syed Rizwan Farook, and wants Apple to crack it. Apple CEO Tim Cook is defying the FBI request and the court order that accompanied it, saying that cracking the phone would require developing a special version of iOS that could bypass passcode encryption. If such a genetically modified mobile OS escaped into the wild it could be used by anyone to crack any current iPhone, which would be bad for Apple’s users and bad for Amurica, Cook says. So he won’t do it, dag nabbit.
That’s the big picture story dominating the tech news this week. However compelling, I’m pretty sure it’s wrong. Apple isn’t defying the FBI. Or at least Apple isn’t defying the Department of Justice, of which the FBI is supposed to be a part. I believe Apple is actually working with the DoJ, which doesn’t really want to compel Apple to do anything except play a dramatic and very political role.
Verizon has the best cellular network in US
Each carrier would like you to believe that its network is better than those of its rivals. It may be touted as the most reliable or the fastest but, at least in one regard, it definitely takes the cake. Such claims can be hard to believe though when they come directly from the horse's mouth. After all, it is easy to lead the pack when you decide exactly what the rules are.
RootMetrics has conducted its own tests to find out which major US carrier has the best cellular network and, based on its findings, Verizon comes out as the clear winner, well ahead of AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile.
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