Technology and Computing
There’s a lot to catch up on during this year’s Thanksgiving meal, and it’s not all related to the pandemic, either. Despite global computer chip shortages and shipping issues, the US has made progress on a few other pressing tech issues. Changes to Facebook and some of its more concerning practices, increased governmental funding for services like cybersecurity and transportation, and better accessibility to electronics repairs on the consumer side are a few of the major tech happenings to be…
In the novel-turned-movie Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, the protagonist escapes to an online realm aptly called OASIS. Instrumental to the OASIS experience is his haptic (relating to sense of touch) bodysuit, which enables him to move through and interact with the virtual world with his body. He can even activate tactile sensations to feel every gut punch, or a kiss from a badass online girl. While no such technology is commercially available yet, the platform Meta, formerly known…
Facebook has found itself facing the ire or many users and even the federal government with a potentially record-breaking FTC fine coming for the social network over privacy violations. Facebook also found itself accused of using the viral Facebook 10-year challenge to feed its AI, something it denies. A new report is making the rounds that Facebook is working on something new to woo younger crowds that flock to the web just for laughs. A new meme service called LOL is reportedly in the…
Memes are a big part of the web, especially on social media, and they serve different purposes. Humor is the primary reason memes exist, obviously, but they can also be used to make political statements and to share satirical thoughts. Could they also be used to harvest user data, though? That is a question that has been raised in response to the 10-year profile picture challenge that has gone viral on Facebook. You have probably seen this one already—the ‘challenge’ is…
Social media provides a lot of value to the world, but a new study suggests that we should start taking it in smaller doses – ideally no more than 30 minutes per day. The experimental study was conducted by Melissa G. Hunt and others at the University of Pennsylvania, and indications so far show that modest use of social media can directly improve our mental well-being. With the help of 143 participants, two groups were created. The first group was limited to…
Following in Apple’s and Google’s footsteps, Facebook is launching a new set of so-called “digital health” tools built into its own platforms. The new features will be available on both the primary Facebook app, as well as on Instagram, which the social media company owns. They are just starting to see a general roll out as of Wednesday via an app update. That suite of digital health tools include reports on how much time is spent in an app, a…
acebook is freaking people out, yo. The Cambridge Analytica thing – which is reasonably confusing, amongst other things – has everyone rattled, and people are shutting their accounts down in droves. Where will they see confusing memes about wine o’clock now? Some people are taking the option of downloading all of their data from Facebook as a zip file, so they can keep hold of treasured memories (the time you drunkenly messaged your uncle to call him racist and he got really angry!…
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is pulling the plug on his Facebook account amid a growing controversy over the social media giant’s privacy and personal data policies. In an email interview with USA Today, Wozniak said he’s leaving Facebook for a few reasons. For one, Wozniak is joining an increasing number of people concerned about tech firms and their “carelessness” in handling user data. But the former Apple engineer also brought up another point: Facebook’s business model. Like other tech companies that offer free…
Mark Zuckerberg almost sounded embarrassed about it. On Wednesday night, after weeks of Facebook taking a thrashing from the press, politicians and the stock market, it turned out the Cambridge Analytica scandal had not been that bad after all. “Despite facing important challenges, our community and business are off to a strong start in 2018,” was Mr Zuckerberg’s understated analysis of Facebook’s record first-quarter results. “A strong start” is one way of putting it. Facebook reported a 63pc increase in profits to…
Privacy scandal widens. The personal information of up to 87 million Facebook users may have been improperly shared with political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, up from a previous estimate of more than 50 million. Most of the 87 million people whose data was shared with Cambridge Analytica, which worked on US President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, were in the United States, Facebook chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer wrote in a blog post. He revealed 311,127 people in Australia had also had their…
Facebook has changed the pricing for its Workplace enterprise social network, a move that will result in price increases for some new customers. Workplace was officially launched at the end of 2016, following a lengthy, 18-month beta trial with large enterprises such as Royal Bank of Scotland. The platform is now used by more than 30,000 organizations worldwideand has recently won over some large customers, including Walmart and Virgin Atlantic, where it is accessed by 7,000 staff. Workplace has two payments tiers: a free…
Facebook today is launching a new feature designed to give users more control over what content they see in their News Feed: a “Snooze” button. The option, which will become available via the top-right dropdown menu on a post, will mute content from a person, Page or group for 30 days. The new feature can serve as a way to dial down the content you don’t want to see, without having to fully unfollow or unfriend someone. For example, if you’ve had…