John Gordon Ross

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 » Work Emails After Hours Finally Banned in France

Sunday 1 January 23:30:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Fortune: A new French law establishing workers' "right to disconnect" goes into effect today. The law requires companies with more than 50 employees to establish hours when staff should not send or answer emails. The goals of the law include making sure employees are fairly paid for work, and preventing burnout by protecting private time. French … [Link]

Mashable » Kobe, LeBron offer Ronda Rousey support after social media mocks UFC loss

Sunday 1 January 23:08:28 UTC 2017

UFC legend Ronda Rousey disappeared immediately following her stunning 48-second loss to Amanda Nunes on Friday, but that didn't stop fans on social media from crafting some of the meanest digs at the fallen champ ever.  No, we're not going to recap most of them, just trust us, it got pretty nasty pretty quickly. Even Nunes — mostly gracious and professional … [Link]

Mashable » France's new "right to disconnect" law rolls out

Sunday 1 January 22:50:22 UTC 2017

Sunday saw the activation of the new "right to disconnect" law in France, a law that means workers are not obligated to read or send work-related emails outside of office hours.  SEE ALSO: Someone created @tinycarebot to make Twitter a healthier place for you Under the new law, companies of 50 or more people are now obliged to negotiate with workers' … [Link]

Slashdot » Washington Post Retracts Story About Russian Hackers Penetrating US Electricity Grid

Sunday 1 January 22:12:00 UTC 2017

Those anonymous U.S. officials who reported Russian hacking code had been found "within the system" of a Vermont power utility must've been surprised to learn the code was on a laptop that wasn't actually connected to the grid. The Washington Post has updated their original story, which now reports that "authorities" say there's no indication that Russian hackers have penetrated … [Link]

Mashable » Beijing welcomed 2017 from beneath a blanket of smog

Sunday 1 January 22:06:46 UTC 2017

Beijing residents rang in the New Year from deep inside a cloud of hazardous smog. Air pollution in northern China was so heavy over the weekend that authorities on Sunday canceled dozens of flights at Beijing's main airport and suspended buses from the capital to neighboring cities, the airport said in a statement. SEE ALSO: Pollution is so bad in New … [Link]

Mashable » It took 100 years and 1 inspirational video for new NYC subway line to launch

Sunday 1 January 21:50:29 UTC 2017

It’s the train that many thought would never arrive. After almost 100 years of discussion, the 2nd Avenue Subway line in New York City opened on New Year's Day, complete with a corny video and inadequate restrooms. There were no rats in sight as trains started running at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. This is just Phase I of the project and is … [Link]

Slashdot » Valve Reveals Steam's 2016 Top Earners — Including 'No Man's Sky'

Sunday 1 January 20:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes PC Gamer: In a surprise announcement today to kick off 2017, Valve has revealed the 100 best-selling Steam games of 2016… Although the "Top Sellers" section of Steam gives a constant sense of what's selling now, Valve hasn't previously compiled an annual list of which Steam games earned the most money… Rather than ranked in order … [Link]

Mashable » Costa Rica ran almost entirely on renewable energy in 2016

Sunday 1 January 20:31:00 UTC 2017

Costa Rica ended 2016 on a particularly green note. The Central American nation ran entirely on renewable energy for more than 250 days last year, the country's power operator announced.  SEE ALSO: Google's data centers, offices will use 100% renewable energy in 2017 Renewables supplied about 98.1 percent of Costa Rica's electricity for the year, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) … [Link]

Geek Culture » 2017 will be a good year!

Sunday 1 January 20:26:27 UTC 2017

We all know that 2017 is a prime number, but it is more than just another prime number. 2017π (rounds to nearest integer) is a prime 2017e (rounds to nearest integer ) is a prime. The sum of all odd primes up to 2017 is a prime number, i.e. 3+5+7+11+…+2017 is a prime number. The sum of the cube of … [Link]

Mashable » Ed Sheeran announces new music coming soon, is still adorable

Sunday 1 January 19:45:16 UTC 2017

Ed Sheeran is back and he's got new music coming and, also, he is still very adorable. The singer hasn't released an album since June 2014 or a single since June 2015 though he's still managed to stay busy making time for fans and making headlines for returning to social media for the first time in a year. SEE ALSO: Here's … [Link]

Mashable » Mariah Carey doesn't give a damn what you think about her terrible, no good New Year's Eve performance

Sunday 1 January 19:20:53 UTC 2017

Mariah Carey's performance on New Year's Eve was an absolute atrocity. But you know who doesn't give a damn? Mariah Carey.  Mariah Carey thinks you should all get over it because "shit happens." In true baller style, the musician gave no apology for the final disaster of 2016, tweeting a "whatevs" to the masses at 2 a.m.. Her fans bowed down … [Link]

Slashdot » Library Creates Fake Patron Records To Avoid Book-Purging

Sunday 1 January 19:04:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: Chuck Finley checked out 2,361 books from a Florida library in just nine months, increasing their total circulation by 3.9%. But he doesn't exist. "The fictional character was concocted by two employees at the library, complete with a false address and driver's license number," according to the Orlando Sentinel. The department overseeing the library acknowledges their … [Link]

Mashable » Instant messaging is the bane of my introverted existence

Sunday 1 January 18:32:35 UTC 2017

LONDON — The sheer number of people we now encounter in the digital space on a daily basis is, to me, overwhelming.  As someone whose friends and family are spread around the globe, I am grateful for the possibilities that social media affords — I FaceTime my mom everyday and participate in an ongoing multi-platform discussion on the (many) merits of … [Link]

Slashdot » Once Mocked, Facebook's $1 Billion Acquisition of Instagram Was Genius

Sunday 1 January 17:34:00 UTC 2017

anderzole writes: "In April of 2012, Facebook shocked the tech world when it acquired Instagram for $1 billion," reports BGR. "At the time, the acquisition raised quite a few eyebrows, along with many more questions than answers. Not only did people wonder how Instagram would fit into Facebook's existing business, many also questioned if Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had lost … [Link]

Mashable » Merry prankster changed famed Hollywood sign to read 'Hollyweed'

Sunday 1 January 17:18:15 UTC 2017

UPDATE (1:45 p.m. ET): The tarps have been removed and the sign is back to its boring old self. A prankster in Hollywood must be pretty excited about the state's legalization of marijuana, as they altered the world-famous Hollywood sign to read "Hollyweed."  SEE ALSO: The 9 need-to-know takeaways from your 2017 Golden Globe nominees The incident happened overnight Saturday night … [Link]

Mashable » These 10 classic bangers that all turn 10 in 2017

Sunday 1 January 17:00:00 UTC 2017

Beyoncé, Kanye West, Rihanna, Taylor Swift — all Billboard-charting artists today who also dominated the charts way back in 2007.  This year, many of their hit songs reach double-digits and turn 10 years old. Though it seemed impossible to narrow down, we rounded up the top 10 songs from 2007 (including some one-hit wonders) that continue to deserve our love and … [Link]

Mashable » The most helpful fitness tech for your New Year's resolution to get in shape

Sunday 1 January 16:59:30 UTC 2017

Last year, Nielsen reported the top two New Year's resolutions were to stay fit and to lose weight. Millions pledged to kick off 2016 with the definite goal to get in shape — but this year, you can expect the same old resolutions will likely top the list again.  SEE ALSO: Your Apple Watch will guilt you into working out in … [Link]

Mashable » Don Lemon got real (drunk) on New Year's Eve

Sunday 1 January 16:48:02 UTC 2017

Mariah Carey wasn't the only one who had a super weird New Year's Eve as CNN's celebrity llama reporter Don Lemon got his ear pierced and got real about 2016 during the network's annual televised New Year's celebration.  SEE ALSO: Mariah Carey's lip synching was 2016's last victim In an effort to liven up the affair, CNN, in its infinite wisdom, … [Link]

Slashdot » Eavesdropping Uber Driver Helps Rescue 16-Year-Old From Her Pimps

Sunday 1 January 16:34:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader sabri writes "In California, an Uber driver saved a 16 year old girl from human traffickers after he overheard them talk about delivering the girl to a customer." The Washington Post reports: Uber driver Keith Avila picked up a passenger who looked like a 12-year-old girl in a short skirt Monday night. That was the first sign that … [Link]

Slashdot » Baby's Skull Rebuilt With Help From A 3D Printer

Sunday 1 January 15:34:00 UTC 2017

schwit1 writes: A team at Stony Brook Children's Hospital was able to use a 3-D printer to produce a replica of baby Vincent's skull, which, in turn, allowed the medical team to fully rehearse the surgery long before they stepped into the operating room. Through a collaboration with Medical Modeling in Colorado, known now as 3D Systems, Egnor and Duboys … [Link]

Mashable » How Syrian refugees spent the holidays

Sunday 1 January 15:08:01 UTC 2017

The holidays are meant to be a time of celebration with family.  Yet not all is well in the world, particularly in the Syrian city of Aleppo, where brutal ongoing conflict between government and rebel forces has forced thousands of families to flee.  For many who've made their way to humanitarian camps, the winter cold is proving quite the challenge for … [Link]

Mashable » 20 movies turning 20 in 2017

Sunday 1 January 15:00:00 UTC 2017

It’s hard to believe, but a full 20 years has passed since everyone in the world began quoting Austin Powers. Yeah, baby. Yeah.  It's always fun to re-watch movies you grew up with. You can poke fun at fashion trends that have not aged well (metallic lipliner, anyone?) and technology that was once considered cutting edge. Or if you just want … [Link]

Mashable » Mariah Carey's lip synching was 2016's last victim

Sunday 1 January 14:51:40 UTC 2017

As much as we've all bemoaned 2016 as a rough year, no one was probably as happy to be done with it as superstar Mariah Carey after some technical glitches caused her performance on Dick Clark's New Years Rockin' Eve to descend into chaos and awkwardness. SEE ALSO: How Mariah Carey ended up in a YouTube Red Christmas special with DJ … [Link]

Slashdot »  Germany Considers Fining Facebook $522,000 Per Fake News Item

Sunday 1 January 14:34:00 UTC 2017

"The government of Germany is considering imposing a legal regime that would allow fining social networks such as Facebook up to 500,000 euros ($522,000) for each day the platform leaves a 'fake news' story up without deleting it," according to a story shared by schwit1. PC Magazine has more details: The law would reportedly apply to other social networks as … [Link]

ProgrammableWeb.com » ProgrammableWeb's Most Interesting APIs in 2016: Health and Environment

Sunday 1 January 14:23:31 UTC 2017

Next up in our list of Interesting APIs released from 2016 are noteworthy APIs related to Health and Environment. We really should add Internet of Things to the title of this section, since so many of these APIs cross over into that category. [Link]

Mashable » The best Snapchat filter for you based on your astrological sign

Sunday 1 January 13:00:00 UTC 2017

“What’s your sign?" is slowly being replaced with more 2016-centric questions like "What's your favorite Snapchat filter?" For those who believe in the power of the stars, there are plenty of ways to honor your astrological truth while still 2016-ing it up on Snapchat. SEE ALSO: Instagram Stories doesn't mean Snapchat will disappear So we looked into Snapchat's crystal ball to … [Link]

New Scientist – News » How to make even your toughest new year’s resolutions stick

Sunday 1 January 12:43:33 UTC 2017

Our annual vows to ditch bad habits rarely manage to change behaviour, but why? Frank Swain examines how to make a new you in 2017 [Link]

Slashdot » Verizon and AT&T Prepare to Bring 5G To (Select) Markets In 2017

Sunday 1 January 12:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes IEEE Spectrum: This year, Verizon and AT&T plan to deliver broadband internet to select homes or businesses using fixed wireless networks built with early 5G technologies. These 5G pilot programs will give the public its first glimpse into a wireless future that isn't due to fully arrive until the early 2020s. With 5G, carriers hope to … [Link]

Slashdot » 2016 Saw A Massive Increase In Encrypted Web Traffic

Sunday 1 January 8:30:00 UTC 2017

EFF's "Deeplinks" blog has published nearly two dozen "2016 in Review" posts over the last nine days, one of which applauds 2016 as "a great year for adoption of HTTPS encryption for secure connections to websites." An anonymous reader writes: In 2016 most pages viewed on the web were encrypted. And over 21 million web sites obtained security certificates — … [Link]

Slashdot » Slashdot's 10 Most-Visited Stories of 2016

Sunday 1 January 5:40:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot's most-visited story of the year was "Microsoft Live Account Credentials Leaking From Windows 8 And Above," which was visited more than 330,910 times since we published it August 16. And our second and third most popular stories came in the spring — Apple Is Fighting A Secret War To Keep You From Repairing Your Phone and Google Chrome To … [Link]

Mashable » Trump's brilliant cybersecurity solution is to send messages by courier

Sunday 1 January 3:19:20 UTC 2017

President-elect Donald Trump has a brilliant solution to our country's cybersecurity problems.  No, it's not to condemn Russia for hacking the Democratic National Committee. It's turning back the clock to a simpler time, before these newfangled computers messed everything up.  SEE ALSO: An A-list celeb has finally offered to perform at Trump’s inauguration Speaking to reporters on Saturday while in Florida … [Link]

Slashdot » Can Learning Smalltalk Make You A Better Programmer?

Sunday 1 January 2:52:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader horrido shares an article that "has done more for Smalltalk advocacy than any other article in memory." It was the second-most popular article of the year on the Hewlett Packard Enterprise site TechBeacon (recently passing 20,000 views), with Richard Eng, the founder of the nonprofit Smalltalk Renaissance, arguing that the 44-year-old language is much more than a tool … [Link]

Mashable » The heartbreaking story behind Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's gift to his dad

Sunday 1 January 0:13:17 UTC 2017

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson won us over this year by dancing in a Pikachu costume and just generally being awesome.  This Christmas, he outdid himself by buying a car for his dad, Canadian wrestler Rocky Johnson. But it's not the generosity alone that had people all choked up. It's the story Dwayne shared about his father.  SEE ALSO: Behold, all your … [Link]

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