Geekish

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.

Mashable » 'Black Mirror' augmented reality game created using Hololens

Sunday 14 May 22:42:25 UTC 2017

The augmented reality game of whack-a-mole in the popular Black Mirror episode "Playtest" may have seemed like a fascinating look at the future but now it's real. David Robustelli, a virtual reality and augmented reality developer at Amsterdam-based Capitola VR, posted video of a prototype of an AR whack-a-mole game using the Microsoft Hololens. In a post on UploadVR, … [Link]

Mashable » Dude has a hilarious reaction to a strong painkiller

Sunday 14 May 22:19:05 UTC 2017

Reactions to pain medication have a special place on the internet. Eight years and 135 million views later, David After the Dentist is a YouTube classic. Recently, the BBC was doing a profile on Scotland's super hospital when they filmed a man being sedated with a powerful drug called ketamine. Some people love to use the term k-hole to describe … [Link]

Mashable » Rick and Morty discover key to defeating 'Alien' facehuggers

Sunday 14 May 21:57:59 UTC 2017

Of the myriad ways planet miners and space soldiers have tried to defeat the xenomorphs from Alien a new method from none other than Rick and Morty may hold the key. In a new video from Adult Swim, the animated dimension traveling duo encounter a deadly facehugger, the parasite that plants alien eggs in humans. But when the nearly undefeated … [Link]

Mashable » Get ready for a possible 'second wave' of that massive global cyberattack

Sunday 14 May 21:55:18 UTC 2017

Microsoft Windows users, brace yourselves. People are worried a second wave of cyberattacks could strike around the world on Monday as employees return to their desks and log onto their computers. Security experts say the unprecedented ransomware attack that on Friday locked up computers across the globe including UK hospital, FedEx, train systems in Germany among other institutions in exchange for … [Link]

Slashdot » Streaming Services Will Pay Writers More Under New Writers Guild Pact

Sunday 14 May 21:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Deadline: Netflix, Amazon and Hulu will be paying a lot more in writers' residuals under the new WGA film and TV contract. New details, outlined by WGA West, reveal that high-budget shows they run will generate anywhere between $3,448-$34,637 more residuals per episode over the life of the three-year contract than they did under the old … [Link]

Slashdot » EFF Warns Most Of Intel's Chipsets Contain 'A Security Hazard'

Sunday 14 May 20:34:00 UTC 2017

The EFF is issuing a warning about the "tiny homunculus computer" in most of Intel's chipsets — the largely-undocumented "Management Engine" which houses more than just the AMT module. An anonymous reader quotes their report: While AMT can be disabled, there is presently no way to disable or limit the Management Engine in general. Intel urgently needs to provide one….vulnerabilities … [Link]

The Joy of Tech » JoT #2417: Revenge of the Medical Machines!

Sunday 14 May 20:27:01 UTC 2017

JoT thumb Who wannacry now? [Link]

Mashable » Family gets kicked off of a JetBlue flight for a birthday cake

Sunday 14 May 20:20:31 UTC 2017

Footage of a family getting kicked off of a JetBlue flight over the placement of a birthday cake surfaced on Saturday. Minta and Cameron Burke were heading to Las Vegas from JFK Airport in New York on Flight 611 on May 3 to celebrate Minta's 40th birthday with their children when an incident between the family and the airline caused the … [Link]

Mashable » Harry Styles slays with his surprise cover of Kanye's 'Ultralight Beam'

Sunday 14 May 19:46:36 UTC 2017

Harry Styles likes The Life of Pablo, apparently. The One Direction heartthrob-turned-solo star celebrated his first album on Saturday with an intimate London performance. Among the new material Styles let loose with was an unexpected cover: "Ultralight Beam," off of Kanye West's latest album. SEE ALSO: Paul McCartney revealed his 'Pirates 5' character and honestly just WHY?! The gospel-flavored original features … [Link]

Mashable » Trump might pick a non-scientist to be USDA's 'chief scientist'

Sunday 14 May 19:38:56 UTC 2017

In Trump's world, you don't have to be a scientist to land a high-level science job. President Donald Trump has reportedly picked Sam Clovis — a conservative talk show radio host and climate change denier — to be the "chief scientist" of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's research division. If appointed, he'll oversee key scientific work on everything from nutrition to … [Link]

Slashdot » Nuclear Experts Form International 'Nuclear Crisis Group'

Sunday 14 May 19:34:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader Dan Drollette shares an article by the executive director and publisher of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists:On Friday, an elite group of the world's nuclear experts and advisers launched a Nuclear Crisis Group, to help manage the growing risk of nuclear conflict. The group includes leading diplomats with decades of experience, and retired military officers who were … [Link]

ProgrammableWeb.com » How BYU Encouraged Student Innovation Via a Standard API

Sunday 14 May 19:21:34 UTC 2017

Only a few years ago when Brigham Young students wanted to create a site based on university data they were forced to screen scrape the college’s website. Now BYU has launched a university-wide API and is about to launch a developer portal. David Raths over at Campus Technology explains the fast progress and what the future holds for APIs at … [Link]

Mashable » Helicopter pilot lands chopper at McDonald's to grab some food

Sunday 14 May 18:39:06 UTC 2017

A helicopter pilot with the munchies landed his chopper next to a McDonald's to grab some food. At approximately 4:20 pm (seriously) on Saturday, a pilot landed his his chopper onto the lawn next to a McDonald's in northwest Sydney, got out of the aircraft, entered the restaurant to get food, got back into the helicopter, and flew away. SEE ALSO: … [Link]

Slashdot » Scientists Achieve Direct Counterfactual Quantum Communication For The First Time

Sunday 14 May 18:34:00 UTC 2017

schwit1 shares an article from ScienceAlert: Quantum communication is a strange beast, but one of the weirdest proposed forms of it is called counterfactual communication — a type of quantum communication where no particles travel between two recipients. Theoretical physicists have long proposed that such a form of communication would be possible, but now, for the first time, researchers have … [Link]

Mashable » Two weeks in, we're already asking if 'Guardians 2' can manage a $1 billion box office

Sunday 14 May 18:04:18 UTC 2017

In the almost two weeks since it released on May 5, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 has already generated an estimated $246.2 million at the U.S. box office. Just for context: it took the first Guardians a month — including four full weekends — to reach a similar domestic total in Aug. 2014. SEE ALSO: How 'Guardians of the Galaxy … [Link]

Slashdot » WSJ Columnist: Robots Aren't Destroying Enough Jobs

Sunday 14 May 17:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: Will millions be unemployed after a job-destroying robot apocalypse? That's "starkly at odds with the evidence," argues a Wall Street Journal columnist, who says the real problem is robots aren't destroying enough jobs. "Too many sectors, such as health care or personal services, are so resistant to automation that they are holding back the entire country's … [Link]

Mashable » Woman unknowingly wore her engagement ring for over a year

Sunday 14 May 17:12:11 UTC 2017

An Australian woman named Anna unknowingly wore her engagement ring around her neck for over a year, thanks to her boyfriend Terry's crafty plan. Terry explains on YouTube that he made Anna a necklace for their one year anniversary. Anna wore the necklace every day, but little did she know that there was something very special hidden inside the necklace. … [Link]

Mashable » Anti-Trump flash mob breathes actual life into the #resist hashtag

Sunday 14 May 17:02:45 UTC 2017

What do you get when you cross 200 protesters with a Donald Trump-branded golf course? It's not a joke; this actually happened, and those 200 protesters hit the dirt at southern California's Trump National Golf Club to spell out an emphatic statement: "RESIST!" SEE ALSO: Scorching 'SNL' Weekend Update hits Comey firing, Trump-Russia The group in question is the San Pedro … [Link]

Slashdot » Developer Creates An Experimental Perl 5 To Java Compiler

Sunday 14 May 16:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: Saturday night saw the announcement of an experimental Perl 5 to Java compiler. "This is the first release," posted developer FlÃvio S. Glock — after 100 weeks of development. "Note that you don't need to compile a Java file. Perlito5 now compiles the Perl code to JVM bytecode in memory and executes it." He describes the … [Link]

Mashable » NASA launched spy satellites on the space shuttle, but that shouldn't be a shock

Sunday 14 May 16:26:36 UTC 2017

NASA and the U.S. military weave a tangled web. Ostensibly, NASA is run by civilians. Its astronauts aren't active duty service members and NASA officials aren't military either. However, if you examine the history of the space agency, it becomes clear that the reality is more complicated. SEE ALSO: Space Shuttle Atlantis Launch Video: The Final Flight According to a report … [Link]

Mashable » Toddler waits patiently for the beat to drop, adorable dancing ensues

Sunday 14 May 16:14:23 UTC 2017

Wait for it. It's 2017, so we completely understand that you may not be exactly excited to hear the beat drop for "Uptown Funk." The song has been drilled into our skulls every time we turn the radio on or enter the grocery store. But, if you're a young kid, you basically grew up on the 2014 hit. Just watch … [Link]

Slashdot » Open Source SQL Database CockroachDB Hits 1.0

Sunday 14 May 15:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes InfoWorld: CockroachDB, an open source, fault-tolerant SQL database with horizontal scaling and strong consistency across nodes — and a name few people will likely forget — is now officially available. Cockroach Labs, the company behind its development, touts CockroachDB as a "cloud native" database solution — a system engineered to run as a distributed resource. Version … [Link]

Slashdot » Microsoft Wants To Monitor Your Workplace With AI, Computer Vision and the Cloud

Sunday 14 May 14:30:00 UTC 2017

"If you're an employee under the heel of a giant corporation you should probably be terrified by the vision of the future of connected gadgets that Microsoft just revealed at its Build developer conference here in Seattle," warns Gizmodo. Slashdot reader dryriver writes: Gizmodo reports on a Microsoft Workplace Monitoring demo where CCTV cameras watch a workplace — like a … [Link]

Mashable » Leslie Jones and Kyle Mooney see their relationship tested on 'SNL'

Sunday 14 May 14:25:19 UTC 2017

Leslie Jones didn't just steal Kyle Mooney's virginity; she also stole his heart. When we last saw the Saturday Night Live couple it was early days for their relationship. There was some minor jealousy over Leslie's close relationship with fellow cast member Colin Jost, but we were led to believe that the Jones/Mooney coupling would persevere. It's now six months … [Link]

Mashable » Scorching 'SNL' Weekend Update hits Comey firing, Trump-Russia

Sunday 14 May 14:00:30 UTC 2017

There are plenty of reasons to keep watching this Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live, but you don't really need to go any further than Colin Jost's sick Trump burn in response to the unexpected firing of FBI director James Comey. "How did Trump not realize that was suspicious? I mean, if a drug-sniffing dog came up to your bag … [Link]

Mashable » Inside the Baltimore shipyard that produced hundreds of WWII vessels at incredible speed

Sunday 14 May 14:00:00 UTC 2017

Workers gather to watch a launching ceremony.Image: Library of CongressIn 1941, the United States Maritime Commission ordered the establishment of emergency shipyards to build cargo ships for the U.S. and Britain that could be assembled as cheaply and rapidly as possible to replace losses from German torpedoes.The Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard on Baltimore Harbor was established in February and quickly set 27,000 employees … [Link]

Slashdot » British PM Candidate Promises Social Media Crackdown

Sunday 14 May 13:34:00 UTC 2017

Theresa May's party "is expected to win a majority at the June 8 election," reports Reuters — and she's promising they'll pass new social media laws. An anonymous reader quotes Politico: They want to introduce a new measure that could fine or punish internet firms which fail to adequately flag and take down content harmful to minors or "direct users … [Link]

Mashable » Meet the 20-somethings who stopped a worldwide cyberattack

Sunday 14 May 13:28:58 UTC 2017

Two 20-something cyber experts helped bring down the widespread ransomware attack that infiltrated networks at hospitals, banks, and government agencies in multiple countries. A 22-year-old British researcher unintentionally found the so-called "kill switch" that authors of the malicious software left in the code. Later, he teamed up with a 28-year-old engineer in western Michigan to ultimately halt the infections, the Associated … [Link]

Mashable » Melissa McCarthy's 'SNL' monologue was the cutest moment in the show's history

Sunday 14 May 13:01:36 UTC 2017

Melissa McCarthy hosted Saturday Night Live on May 13, the evening before Mother's Day 2017. And since she didn't have her own mom there at the show, McCarthy treated Joan, a random audience member (also, a mother,) to a tour of the show's backstage area. It's funny, sure, but more than that: it is adorable. McCarthy ferrying a visibly overwhelmed … [Link]

Mashable » 'SNL' comes up with a new Amazon Echo, just for the olds

Sunday 14 May 12:59:56 UTC 2017

Amazon Echo Silver responds to dozens of names that sound like "Alexa," tolerates rambling anecdotes without argument, and is programmed to carefully sidestep casual racism. Saturday Night Live had some fun with Amazon's cylindrical talking speaker, turning the Siri-like voice interface into an eternally patient caretaker for "the greatest generation." The punchline here — "LOL aren't old people lame and … [Link]

Mashable » Melissa McCarthy's funniest 'SNL' moment had nothing to do with politics

Sunday 14 May 12:57:31 UTC 2017

Long before she bowled us all over with her jaw-droppingly perfect Sean Spicer impression on Saturday Night Live, Melissa McCarthy had proven herself as a master of physical comedy. While the temptation must have been high for SNL writers to give "Spicey" an outsized presence during McCarthy's May 13 hosting gig, they showed restraint. Spicey's play date with Alec Baldwin-as-Trump … [Link]

Slashdot » WanaDecrypt0r Ransomware Earns Just $26,000 In Ransom Payments

Sunday 14 May 11:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Krebs On Security: As thousands of organizations work to contain and clean up the mess from this week's devastating Wana ransomware attack, the fraudsters responsible for releasing the digital contagion are no doubt counting their earnings and congratulating themselves on a job well done. But according to a review of the Bitcoin addresses hard-coded into Wana, … [Link]

Mashable » 7 terrifying scenes from Stephen King's 'It' we badly hope are in the movie

Sunday 14 May 8:30:00 UTC 2017

Warning: Contains spoilers for Stephen King's novel It (and possibly spoilers for the upcoming film adaptation, too). For rampant Stephen King fans like myself, 2017 is set to be a year of glorious, clown-filled happiness. We now have two trailers for Andrés Muschietti's upcoming adaption of It, and so far things are looking promising. We've seen the iconic opening sequence with … [Link]

Slashdot » Slashdot Asks: Should Businesses Switch To Biometric Passwords?

Sunday 14 May 7:30:00 UTC 2017

This question was inspired by a recent article in Harvard Business Review: It's become abundantly clear that passwords are an untenable way to secure our data online. And asking your customers to keep track of complicated log-in information is a terrible user experience… The threat to security when relying on passwords is one reason businesses are increasingly migrating to biometric … [Link]

Mashable » Yes, Melissa McCarthy as Sean Spicer hiding in the bushes on 'SNL' is perfection

Sunday 14 May 4:45:05 UTC 2017

The wonderful thing about Melissa McCarthy hosting SNL this week is we knew she was going to bless us with another turn as White House Press Secretary Sean “Spicy” Spicer. But things got a little… weird. The sketch began with Aidy Bryant as deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders greeting the press in lieu of Spicer, who she said was … [Link]

Mashable » 'Donald Trump' on 'SNL' admits things are going to get way, way worse

Sunday 14 May 4:17:01 UTC 2017

Alec Baldwin is back on Saturday Night Live for what may be one of his last appearances as President Donald Trump. And he used the opportunity to fess up to pretty much all the suspicions about the administration that we’ve had over the first 100-ish days. In an interview with Lester Holt (Michael Che), who he called any number of … [Link]

Slashdot » Why Amanda Palmer Left the Music 'Industry' For Crowdfunding

Sunday 14 May 4:06:00 UTC 2017

Amanda Palmer says abandoning the commercial music industry for a subscription model made it possible to take more chances, like a new album with psychedelia artist Edward Ka-Spel. An anonymous reader quotes Digital Trends: I spent my whole life in this music industry trying to figure out how to sell what I'm making. But I don't "sell" anymore — I … [Link]

Slashdot » Up To 1.4M More Fake Wells Fargo Accounts Possible

Sunday 14 May 1:04:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes the Bay Area Newsgroup: Wells Fargo may have opened as many as 3.5 million bogus bank accounts without its customers' permission, attorneys for customers suing the bank have alleged in a court filing, suggesting the bank may have created far more fake accounts than previously indicated. The plaintiffs' new estimate of bogus bank accounts is about … [Link]

John Gordon Ross

A Man for All Reasons