Anyone who works as a freelancer these days has to be at least a bit familiar with techie things. But it isn’t just that. When I was a kid and those vaguely SF puppet shows were on the television and all the other kids wanted to be Greg Gogetem or Steve Savetheuniverse, I wanted to be the guy in a white coat and glasses called Doc or Brains. Here are some technology-related feeds I find useful and/or entertaining.
Slashdot » Scientists at De Beers Fight the Growing Threat of Man-Made Diamonds
"In the past few years, lab-grown diamonds have become indistinguishable from natural diamonds to the naked eye…" reports the Wall Street Journal. This creates a problem for diamond-mining company De Beers. HughPickens.com writes: While synthetics make up just a fraction of the market, they have growing appeal to younger buyers — a headache for mine owners, who are under pressure … [Link]
Mashable » Gmail uses your inbox to remind you to vote
If you're registered vote and ready to cast your ballot on Tuesday, chances are you already know where to vote. But Google's Gmail isn't taking any chances, and has started showing some U.S. users an automatic banner message reminding them to vote when they log into their Gmail accounts. SEE ALSO: Donald Trump attacks Facebook, Google and Twitter as 'dishonest media' … [Link]
Mashable » Pavel wins 2016 Hearthstone World Championship
The Russian took home $250,000 after winning the Hearthstone World Championship. Read more…More about Mashable Video, Esports, Pavel, Blizzcon 2016, and Hearthstone
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Mashable » Even Donald Trump's campaign is fed up with his tweets
If you've noticed a moderated tone to Donald Trump's Twitter account in recent days, that's because his own campaign is apparently no longer allowing him use it on his own. SEE ALSO: Insult after insult: All of Trump's ugly campaign rhetoric in one place The revelation is included in a New York Times story, published on Sunday, that dives in … [Link]
Mashable » These scientific breakthroughs could help address the world's water crisis
Satellite data that helps fight cholera. Forecasts that help farmers flee monsoons. Models that predict how shifting rivers can affect drinking water. Scientists worldwide are developing technologies like these to tackle the planet's biggest water challenges, such as the lack of clean water for 1.2 billion people and the rising threats of deadly downpours, droughts and flooding caused by climate change. … [Link]
Mashable » Victim of tragic Kit Kat theft gets car full of candy bars
It’s been a few days since the world got its heart broken by the tragic saga of Hunter Jobbins, a college student who had a Kit Kat rudely stolen right out of his car. But now there's a happy ending for Jobbins and it involves lots of good Kit-Kat karma. SEE ALSO: Break us off a piece of Chance the Rapper … [Link]
Slashdot » New Paper Explores The Prospects For Life Around M-Class Stars
Long-time Slashdot reader RockDoctor summarizes the significance of a new paper describing "The Habitability of Planets Orbiting M-Dwarf Stars": Although Star Trek had a minor smattering of "M-class planets" — a designation that tells one nothing of substance — "M-class star" is a much more meaningful designation of color, with two size classes, the dwarfs and the red giants… an … [Link]
Mashable » ‘RoboCop’ as a homemade movie makes for a less fancy robot cop
What if you reimagined "the future of American justice" using a lot of stuff you found in your recycling bin or corner hardware store? You'd wind up with this homemade remake of the original RoboCop trailer, and with all the action and catchphrases—"I'd buy that for a dollar!"—but none of the special effects. Our CineFix series, Homemade Movies, serves up creative … [Link]
Mashable » FBI basically says 'my bad,' clears Clinton in latest email investigation
FBI director James Comey has pulled a "my bad," releasing a letter that confirms Hillary Clinton will not face charges related to the most recent investigation into her use of a private email server. SEE ALSO: Clinton didn't know about her new email drama until the plane landed In the letter, addressed to chairs of various committees and subcommittees, Comey says … [Link]
ProgrammableWeb.com » 3 Implementations That Highlight the Value of Webhooks
Webhooks are a fantastic tool for monitoring changes to an endpoint that is far more efficient than the resource-intensive polling that used to be the norm. In a recent article for InfoWorld, Mark Geene discusses some impressive webhook deployments.
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Slashdot » FBI: Review of New Emails Doesn't Change Conclusion on Clinton
FBI director James Comey told Congress Sunday that the new scrutiny of emails related to Hillary Clinton has turned up nothing that would cause the bureau to recommend charges against her. The conclusion comes nine days after rocking the presidential race with word that a new trove of emails had been discovered. "During that process, we have reviewed all of … [Link]
Slashdot » How I Freed My Android Tablet: A Journey in Reverse Engineering
Slashdot reader ttsiod is an embedded software engineer at the European Space Agency, and shares this story about his quest to "dominate" his new tablet: Just like it's predecessor, I wanted to run a Debian chroot inside it — that would allow me to apt-get install and run things like Privoxy, SSH SOCKS/VPN tunnels, Flask mini-servers, etc; and in general … [Link]
Mashable » There is a 100% chance that Nate Silver is f**king furious
Nate Silver is not some kind of election-predicting machine, people. He's a human being. And he's had it up to here with you questioning his methods. The Huffington Post ran a story called "Nate Silver Is Unskewing Polls — All Of Them — In Trump’s Direction" on Saturday, written by Ryan Grim, the publication's D.C. bureau chief. SEE ALSO: Why it's … [Link]
Mashable » Dropping $500,000 to spend New Year's Eve with Justin Bieber is a good idea
If you love yourself, you will spend $500,000 for you and nine of your closest friends to spend New Year's Eve with Justin Bieber. The deluxe package for his NYE show in Miami may be pricy, but it is certainly the correct choice. You'll be sorry if you pass this opportunity up. SEE ALSO: I want to Beliebe: The jagged redemption … [Link]
Slashdot » Chrome Now Accounts For 55% of All Web Browsing
Google's Chrome browser "now accounts for more than half of all desktop browser usage and has nearly double the market share of Edge and Internet Explorer combined," reports Hot Hardware: Market research firm Net Applications has Chrome sitting pretty with a 54.99% share of the desktop browser market, up from 31.12% at this moment a year ago, while Internet Explorer … [Link]
Slashdot » Remembering The Creator of Marvel's Doctor Strange, Steve Ditko
An anonymous reader writes: As Marvel publicizes its Doctor Strange movie, "there's one key figure you won't be hearing from: the person who created the Sorcerer Supreme." Steve Ditko (who also co-created Spider-Man with Stan Lee in 1962) introduced Doctor Strange in 1963, remembers The Hollywood Reporter, then abruptly left Marvel in 1966 to work for other publishers. "He would … [Link]
Mashable » Marvel wins again as 'Doctor Strange' is magic at the box office
Doctor Strange proves, yet again, that Marvel Studios can afford to get weird from time to time. More like this movie, Ant-Man and Guardians of the Galaxy, please. The latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a box office hit, with an estimated $85 million opening weekend in the United States. That's right in line with the $85.7 million opening … [Link]
Mashable » Watch Katy Perry perform on the campaign trail for her pal, 'Hilly C'
Should there be a Hillary Clinton presidential library one day, an entire wing devoted to Katy Perry's show-stopping looks from the campaign trail may be in order. The pop star, who has made it abundantly clear that she's #WithHer, headlined a concert supporting the Democratic presidential candidate in battleground state Pennsylvania on Saturday night. "I admire so many things about Hilly … [Link]
Mashable » At the first-ever Emojicon, smiling poop was everywhere
SAN FRANCISCO — Emoji are having a moment. The yellow smileys and prayer hands and grinning poop symbols may have worked their way into popular culture years ago, but the glyphs seem to have reached a new level of fandom and it was out in full force at Emojicon, a two-day conference dedicated entirely to all things emoji. SEE ALSO: MoMA … [Link]
Slashdot » Windows 10's Store Locks 'Call of Duty' Purchasers Into Windows-10-Only Battles
An anonymous reader writes: Two Call of Duty games have been remastered for Windows 10, but if you buy them through the Windows 10 Store there's a problem. "Windows 10 Store players will be isolated from other PC versions of the game," reports the Windows Central site, noting a statement from Microsoft which implies that the decision was made by … [Link]
Mashable » Pollution is so bad in New Delhi people are taking 'smog selfies'
The Indian government declared an "emergency situation" in New Delhi on Sunday as air pollution hit dangerous new highs — and residents have the selfies to prove it. Officials announced a slew of measures to combat toxic smog in the capital city, including halting construction projects, canceling school, closing a coal-fired power plant for 10 days and dousing the dusty roads … [Link]
Mashable » A deeper look at 'Hearthstone: Mean Streets of Gadgetzan'
Hearthstone’s upcoming expansion Mean Streets of Gadgetzan sends players into the city of Gadgetzan, a rapidly expanding port town teeming with unsavory folk, crime syndicates and evildoers that make for some game-changing new cards. Mashable was able to check out a whole bunch of them at BlizzCon as well as sit down with Hearthstone production director Jason Chayes to talk about … [Link]
Mashable » Beyoncé and Solange's mom slayed two of her daughters' iconic looks
When both of your daughters scored #1 albums in the same year, it's a good idea to take a second to remind everyone who made it all possible. Tina Lawson, who gave us Beyoncé and Solange, Instagrammed a couple photos of herself paying tribute to the impossibly stylish and talented women she brought to life after celebrating Solange's SNL debut. SEE … [Link]
Slashdot » User Forks FileZilla FTP Client After Getting Hacked
Slashdot reader Entropy98 writes: A frustrated FileZilla user took matters into his own hands after getting hacked due to the fact that his saved passwords were being saved in plain text files. Despite years of numerous requests over almost 10 years the FileZilla devs refused to add a Master Password option to encrypt the stored passwords. Finally fed up one … [Link]
Mashable » 7 can't-miss apps: Bear, Enhance, 'Nekosan,' and more
With the news of a major update to Uber, and Microsoft taking on Slack, you may have missed some of this week's best new apps. Each weekend, we round up a few of our favorite new and updated apps. This week's list includes a new app from Epicurious to give you easier access to recipe videos, an app that helps you … [Link]
Mashable » The complete guide to the iPhone's Bedtime mode
The iPhone's new "Bedtime" functionality within the alarm clock app is an innovative and interesting introduction. Working on the basis that being consistent with the amount of sleep you get (i.e., going to bed and waking up at the same time every day) is better for your health, this useful tool makes it easier to achieve this goal. SEE ALSO: Here's … [Link]
Mashable » 'Silicon Valley' star shuts down BlizzCon haters in one Instagram
Thomas Middleditch, whose Zuckerbergian Richard Hendricks delights on HBO's Silicon Valley, had some choice words on Instagram for his BlizzCon haters. Blizzard Entertainment booked Middleditch to host Saturday evening's talent and cosplay competition at the annual fan event. He was called out for wisecracks about basement-dwelling gamers (fair), mispronounced names and a perceived lack of familiarity with Blizzard's games. Pretty sure … [Link]
Mashable » Watch Solange protest as Beyoncé and their mom pick her up like a tiny baby
Beyoncé can be a totally annoying big sister. Solange made her Saturday Night Live debut last night, performing "Cranes in the Sky" and "Don't Touch My Hair." Her mom, the fabulous Tina Lawson, and big sis, some girl named Beyoncé, would not let her forget that she's their baby. SEE ALSO: Solange Knowles' new album is a meditative exploration on being … [Link]
Slashdot » Researchers Create An Undetectable Rootkit That Targets Industrial Equipment
An anonymous reader quotes Bleeping Computer: "Two researchers presenting at the Black Hat Europe security conference in London revealed a method of infecting industrial equipment with an undetectable rootkit component that can wreak havoc and disrupt the normal operations of critical infrastructure all over the world. The attack targets PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers), devices that sit between normal computers that … [Link]
Slashdot » Mythbuntu Linux Has Been Discontinued
"Mythbuntu as a separate distribution will cease to exist. We will take the necessary steps to pull Mythbuntu specific packages from the repositories unless someone steps up to take these packages over," read Friday's announcement. prisoninmate writes: Mythbuntu was an operating system based on the widely-used Ubuntu Linux distro and built around the MythTV free and open source digital video … [Link]
Mashable » Giant snowballs in Siberia might be connected to a frosty U.S. winter
This Siberian snowball fight requires some serious upper body strength, and a helmet. Giant frozen orbs recently appeared along an 11-mile stretch of Siberian coastline. The largest of the naturally formed snowballs measured nearly 3 feet across, according to Russian news reports. SEE ALSO: You're probably not going to like the forecast for this winter This frosty phenomenon is connected to … [Link]
Slashdot » Blizzard Launches A Professional Sports League For 'Overwatch'
An anonymous reader quotes USA Today: One of Blizzard Entertainment's hottest video games is making the jump into a professional sports league. [Blizzard] announced Friday the launch of Overwatch League, a professional video gaming league kicking off its inaugural season during the second half of 2017… Blizzard says the league will combine competitive video gaming — better known as eSports … [Link]
Mashable » Dana Carvey's Church Lady returns to 'SNL' with an election song
If you're looking for a thoughtful breakdown of the 2016 presidential election, you're not going to find it here. And if you're looking for over-the-top jokes about said election, you also might want to look elsewhere. Dana Carvey revived his Church Lady persona on Saturday Night Live this week, stopping by "Weekend Update" to chat about the election. Or so … [Link]
Mashable » Benedict Cumberbatch and the Chicago Cubs are strippers on 'SNL'
This Saturday Night Live sketch only starts with Benedict Cumberbatch showing up as one half of a surprise bachelorette party stripping duo. Then things get really weird. Poor Aidy Bryant tries her best to play the part of a dead granny while Cumberbatch genitals gyrate inches from her face, but it's a lost cause. She breaks, again and again, as … [Link]
Mashable » Benedict Cumberbatch even looks cool taking a dump on 'SNL'
When the eternally smooth Benedict Cumberbatch is your Saturday Night Live guest host, there are scores of "cool guy making regular activities cool" jokes to be told. Fortunately for us all, SNL's writers went straight for the poop chute. In what is clearly an intentional riff on Apple's famed "1984" ad, Cumberbatch demos a new toilet from Kohler that makes … [Link]
Mashable » In 1964, a nuclear bomb exploded in Mississippi and really messed up a guy's kitchen
A resident constructs a homemade seismograph before the blast.Image: Moncrief Photograph Collection/Mississippi Department of Archives and HistoryAt 10 a.m. on Oct. 22, 1964, a five-kiloton nuclear device was detonated in Lamar County, Mississippi.The previous year, as a response to rising public anxiety over the potential fallout of bigger and bigger test explosions, the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union … [Link]
Mashable » The 5 best new cameras for travelers
For travelers who are serious about their photos, smartphone snaps just don’t cut it—no matter how good the latest iPhone camera may be. It’s almost always worth lugging around a proper camera if you’re heading out on a trip-of-a-lifetime, whether it’s on safari or to Machu Picchu. We recently reviewed the upcoming Hasselblad X1D; below, you’ll find five more new releases … [Link]
Slashdot » Steve Ballmer Says Smartphones Came Between Him and Bill Gates
Steve Ballmer once said Apple's iPhone would flop because it cost too much — though he now admits that he failed to anticipate carriers subsidizing the cost of the phone. But that was only the beginning. An anonymous reader quotes Fortune: The former CEO of Microsoft says he and Gates drifted apart over Microsoft's move into the hardware business in … [Link]
Mashable » Secret Facebook group is giving Clinton supporters so much hope
If you're like many pundits who question whether Hillary Clinton has a devoted, passionate fan base, try checking behind closed doors. On Pantsuit Nation, a secret Facebook group for Clinton supporters, more than a million people (and counting) have gathered to share emotional reflections on why they're voting for the first female presidential candidate from a major political party. SEE ALSO: … [Link]
Mashable » South Korea absolutely mowed through the 'Overwatch' World Cup
ANAHEIM, Calif. — South Korea utterly destroyed the competition in the first Overwatch World Cup this weekend at BlizzCon, ending with a Saturday finals victory over Russia that was nothing short of hard to watch. Like Ali vs Liston (II), . South Korea crushed Russia, shutting them down each match. In fact, the whole tournament not one team managed to get … [Link]
Slashdot » IT Workers Facing Layoffs Jolted By CEO's Message
HCSC recently announced layoffs for more than 500 IT workers, and expects them to train their replacements from an India-based contractor. But a few days earlier, CEO Paula Steiner said, "As full-time retiring baby boomers move on to their next chapter, the makeup of our organization will consist more of young and non-traditional workers, such as part-time workers or contractors." … [Link]
Mashable » The Cubs and Bill Murray just dropped by 'Saturday Night Live' to sing a bit
The Cubs are in the house. Members of the Chicago baseball team, which won the World Series this week after a 108-year drought, stopped by Saturday Night Live this week to partake in some sketches. The first sketch took place at a bachelorette party for an 83-year-old woman (played by Aidy Bryant). Anthony Rizzo, Dexter Fowler and David Ross joined guest … [Link]
Mashable » 'Saturday Night Live' shows Donald Trump getting intimate with KKK, FBI and Putin
It seems like even Saturday Night Live is over this election. At the end of the show's cold open on Saturday, Alec Baldwin broke character as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump character to apologize to Kate McKinnon, who was in character as Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. "I feel so gross all the time," Baldwin said. "Don't you feel gross about … [Link]
Slashdot » Secret Service, DHS Scramble To Secure America's Election
Secret service agents rushed Donald Trump off a stage in Nevada Saturday night, CNN reports. "A scuffle could be seen breaking out in the audience, but it was not immediately clear what happened… Secret Service and police tactical units rushed in to detain a man [who] was then rushed by a throng of police officers, Secret Service agents and SWAT … [Link]
Mashable » 'Overwatch' developers discuss new maps and Arcade mode
LOS ANGELES — A lot of new things are coming to Overwatch in the near future, including the hero Sombra, two nw maps and an arcade mode, all of which will be shaking up the game as we know it. With so much change to wrap our heads around, Mashable sat down with Overwatch assistant game director Aaron Keller (who works … [Link]
Slashdot » Ask Slashdot: What's the Best Way to Browse the Web Anonymously?
An anonymous reader asks: In an age of evercookies, zombie cookies, and always expanding efforts to track browsers, devices, and people — is there any way to browse totally anonymous to the sites you are visiting? With so many technologies quietly monitoring your activity, "How can a user today browse with confidence that they can't be tracked or identified, avoiding … [Link]
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