People really want Microsoft to launch a Surface Phone
There has been a lot of talk about the possibility of a Surface Phone (or Project Andromeda), but so far rumors have amounted to very little. Recently, however, documents leaked that showed plans for a "pocketable folding Surface device" and levels of interest and excitement rose.
Now a petition has appeared online to try to show Microsoft just how much interested there is in a Surface Phone. The title of the petition -- "Show Microsoft the demand for the Surface Phone or Andromeda!" -- is self-explanatory, and it has gathered a great deal of support in a single day.
Microsoft releases Windows 10 Redstone 5 Build 17711
It looks as if Microsoft is back on its weekly release schedule for Windows 10 Redstone 5 preview builds. Build 17711, for Insiders on the Fast and Skip Ahead rings, offers a number of improvements and changes.
These include Fluent Design tweaks, the usual raft of Edge additions, and improvements to display settings and the registry editor.
Netflix is killing off user reviews, reducing ratings to thumbs up and thumbs down
Reviews are a handy way to gauge whether or not your going to like something -- be it a game, a piece of hardware, an app, or a movie. Netflix, however, seems to think differently, and has taken the decision to kill off the user reviews feature of its website.
As part of a staggered cull, Netflix will stop users from writing reviews at the end of July. By the middle of August, it will no longer be possible to read existing reviews. Moving forward, the only sort of feedback users will be able to give is a simple thumbs up or thumbs down.
Grab your wallets, Twitch fans -- TwitchCon 2018 tickets on sale now!
Twitch started out as a platform that let users stream themselves playing video games. For the most part, that is still its main focus. Since Amazon bought it, however, Twitch has wisely embraced all video streaming -- even when no video games are involved. Slowly but surely, the service is becoming a big threat to YouTube, and Google should be worried.
There are so many passionate fans of Twitch, that every year, the company has an official conference. Called "TwitchCon," This 3-day event is dedicated to content creators and their fans. Today, tickets for the aforementioned conference go on sale.
Gentoo Linux Github Organization repo hack was down to a series of security mistakes
The team behind Gentoo Linux has revealed the reasons for the recent hack of its GitHub organization account. The short version: shoddy security.
It seems that the hackers were able to gain access to the GitHub organization account by using the password of one of the organization administrators. By the team's own admission, poor security meant that the password was easy to guess. As the Register points out, "only luck limited the damage", but the Gentoo Linux team is keen to let it be known that it has learned a lot from the incident.
Apple Music just may have overtaken Spotify in the US
A new report suggests that Apple may have succeeded in attracting more subscribers to Apple Music than have signed up to Spotify -- in the US, at least.
While this is far from official -- with the report being based on an anonymous source -- it is in keeping with the general feeling from earlier in the year when it was thought that Apple Music probably was going to overtake Spotify in the near future.
Belkin unveils BOOST↑CHARGE Power Bank 10K with Apple-certified Lightning connector
USB power banks are a dime a dozen these days. Believe it or not, they are often given away at trade shows and conferences -- they have become a ubiquitous throwaway promotional item, much like the USB flash drive. Not to mention, sites like Amazon are littered with these USB battery packs at rock bottom prices. Of course, that's not to say all power banks are created equally. Just like with flash drives, power bank specifications matter. It is still worth investing in a quality unit.
With all of that said, it can be very hard for such a device to stand out. Belkin has managed to do so, however. How? By adding an Apple MFi-certified Lightning port to its latest USB battery pack. Called "BOOST↑CHARGE Power Bank 10K," it features two USB-A ports for charging devices, but to charge the bank itself, you use a Lightning cable. How cool is that?
Best Windows 10 apps this week
Two-hundred-and-ninety in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 on the Windows Store in the past seven days.
Latest usage share statistics suggest that Windows 10 is still trailing behind Windows 7 and that Windows 10 may not surpass Windows 7 this year in usage share.
Happy 10th Birthday, Apple App Store!
People sometimes forget that when the first-ever iPhone launched in 2007, there was no App Store. Believe it or not, Apple's smartphone was limited to the apps with which it came -- hardly "smart." In fact, Steve Jobs famously didn't want third-party apps on the iPhone at all -- the man was a genius, but not always. Ultimately, the App Store was added in 2008 despite Jobs' initial push against it. This move changed the computer industry forever.
This month, the Apple App Store reaches an impressive milestone -- a 10th Birthday. This day is important for three groups -- Apple (of course), but more importantly, consumers and developers. Apple has made billions of dollars from the App Store, but third party developers have as well -- the company has literally transformed some devs into millionaires. Consumers have benefited from high-quality applications too. You may not remember, but before the iPhone came along, mobile apps were absolute garbage.
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NetMarketShare's audited figures show Windows 10 closing in on Windows 7
NetMarketShare reports on the state of the desktop operating system market on the first day of each month, and it has long shown Windows 10 to be lagging behind Windows 7. This is in stark contrast to the figures from rival analyst firm StatCounter which famously had Windows 10 overtaking its predecessor way back in January.
This time around NetMarketShare took a few days extra to present its numbers for June, but after an audit, in which the figures changed considerably, they are finally available and make for interesting reading.
The importance of cybersecurity training for business
While businesses spend a lot of time and effort putting up technical defenses to protect their systems, often the weakest spot is the users.
Employees can do harm to the business by visiting infected websites, responding to phishing emails, using business email through public Wi-Fi and more. Spam filtering service EveryCloud has put together an infographic looking at why it’s therefore important for companies to offer cybersecurity training.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance halts trading after detecting irregular SYS trading activity
Binance -- the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world -- temporarily halted all trading after it detected "irregular trading on some APIs".
As a precautionary measure, the exchange removed all existing API keys and asked users to re-create theirs from their accounts. The measure meant a suspension of trading, withdrawals and other account activity. The matter is related to the Bitcoin fork Syscoin which halted deposits and withdrawals, but Binance stressed that there had not been as hack and that its blockchain is safe.
elementary OS 5.0 'Juno' Beta 1 Linux distro now available, but you shouldn't install it
There are countless Linux distributions these days, but one in particular seems to really get people excited -- elementary OS. Why is this? Well, the developers of the operating system focus heavily on the user interface and experience -- it is kind of like a mix between GNOME and macOS. For those that still believe the fabled "year of the Linux desktop" is coming, elementary OS' beauty and polish serves as a beacon of hope. Unfortunately, the distribution has not made a significant impact -- yet.
If you are a fan of the operating system, you will be happy to know elementary OS 5.0 "Juno" Beta 1 is available right now! Before you get too excited, however, you probably shouldn't install it. The developers are making it very clear that Juno Beta 1 is not yet ready for prime time, and it is not intended for end users. While you can install it if you want, you will not have a good experience -- it is really just intended for third-party app developers at this point.
I declare independence from Apple (and mean it this time)
Six years ago today I penned my personal Declaration of Independence from Apple, nearly a month after pledging to boycott the company's products and services—and I did, only to quietly stop six months later. They say history repeats, eh? On this July 4th, I forsake the fruit-logo company once more. From Apple I return to Google, choosing one digital lifestyle over the other—and not for the first time, as some commenters will be quick to argue.
Past to present: By summer 2012, I viewed various patent assaults by Apple against Samsung and others as competition by litigation, not innovation. Weighing on my decision in 2018 is a newer—and more aggressive—attack against Qualcomm, which headquarters are in San Diego (my city of residence). While a Qualcomm customer, Apple also is a fierce chip competitor that seeks to bolster margins by paying less for patents—and by invalidating or diminishing them, destabilize competition from the Android Army.
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