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 » FBI Warns US Private Sector To Cut Ties With Kaspersky

Saturday 19 August 23:59:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes CyberScoop: The FBI has been briefing private sector companies on intelligence claiming to show that the Moscow-based cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab is an unacceptable threat to national security, current and former senior U.S. officials familiar with the matter tell CyberScoop… The FBI's goal is to have U.S. firms push Kaspersky out of their systems as soon … [Link]

Slashdot » Google Warns Webmasters About Insecure HTTP Web Forms

Saturday 19 August 22:54:00 UTC 2017

In April Chrome began marking HTTP pages as "not secure" in its address bar if the pages had password or credit card fields. They're about to take the next step. An anonymous reader quotes SearchEngineLand: Last night, Google sent email notifications via Google Search Console to site owners that have forms on web pages over HTTP… Google said, "Beginning in … [Link]

Mashable » Fair warning: Chelsea Handler's story about adopting a senior dog will make you cry

Saturday 19 August 22:03:30 UTC 2017

Hello. Get ready to cry! Saturday marked the third annual Clear the Shelters event, a day when animal shelters nationwide waive or lower adoption fees in hopes that as many pets will find homes as possible.  To encourage others to participate, Chelsea Handler posted a video relaying one of her own adoption stories. (Handler has adopted two dogs from local shelters.)  … [Link]

ProgrammableWeb.com » 5 Lightweight PHP Frameworks for REST API Development

Saturday 19 August 21:55:00 UTC 2017

To develop a REST API in PHP quickly and easily it’s a good idea to use a lightweight PHP framework. Developing your own from scratch with plain PHP, apart from being a pain and taking too much time, is likely to require a lot of testing and deviate from REST standards. Ankur Kumar over at Find Nerd takes you through … [Link]

Slashdot » Microsoft Avoids Washington State Taxes, Gives Nevada Schoolkid A Surface Laptop

Saturday 19 August 21:49:00 UTC 2017

theodp writes: The Official Microsoft Blog hopes a letter from a Nevada middle schooler advising Microsoft President Brad Smith to "keep up the good work running that company" will "inspire you like it did us." Penned as part of a math teacher's assignment to write letters to the businesses that they like, Microsoft says the letter prompted Smith to visit … [Link]

Mashable » 13 times 'The Defenders' roasted Iron Fist so you wouldn't have to

Saturday 19 August 21:25:17 UTC 2017

So you spent your weekend bingeing The Defenders and no spoilers, but Danny Rand is still the worst. Meeting Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage brings him down a few notches from his high horse of channeling chi, but only after his fellow heroes repeatedly roast him for being an idiot. Snarky dialogue spoilers for The Defenders ahead, but nothing more. … [Link]

Slashdot » Paul Allen Finds Long-Lost World War II Cruiser, the USS Indianapolis

Saturday 19 August 20:44:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes the US Naval Institute News: Seventy-two years after two torpedoes fired from a Japanese submarine sunk cruiser USS Indianapolis (CA-35), the ship's wreckage was found resting on the seafloor on Saturday — more than 18,000 feet below the Pacific Ocean's surface. Paul Allen, Microsoft co-founder and billionaire philanthropist, led a search team, assisted by historians from … [Link]

Mashable » Three construction innovations that will change the way we build

Saturday 19 August 20:00:00 UTC 2017

A number of companies are competing to find ways to automate construction, using bricklaying robots and machines that can 3D print with concrete.  These innovations are among the most successful prototypes whereby entire buildings were constructed using robots. Read more…More about Innovation, Housing, Robotics, Construction, and Real Time Video [Link]

Mashable » J.K. Rowling uses kindness to shut down a mansplainer who told a woman she didn't actually write a book

Saturday 19 August 19:52:02 UTC 2017

The term mansplaining came from an author who had a man explain her own book to her. Now, men are explaining not just the contents of books … but the act of writing a book itself.  Author Laura Kalbag shared on Twitter on Saturday that her new book Accessibility for Everyone, about the accessibility of websites to users, was coming out … [Link]

Slashdot » Should Plex Stop Allowing Users To Opt Out of Data Collection?

Saturday 19 August 19:34:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader bigdogpete writes: Many users of Plex got an email that said they were changing their privacy policy which goes into effect on 20 September 2017. While most of the things are pretty standard, users found it odd that they were now not going to allow users to opt-out of data collection. Here is the part from their website … [Link]

Mashable » White supremacist rally ends early in Boston as counter-protesters show up in huge numbers

Saturday 19 August 19:05:17 UTC 2017

A few dozen attendees showed up for Saturday's planned "free speech" rally in Boston. But counter-protesters showed up in the thousands. Per local news reports, over 10,000 people gathered at Boston Commons to protest the right-wing gathering, which quickly fell apart after it became clear the planned speaking schedule would not come to fruition.  In fact, police were seen taking down … [Link]

Mashable » 'Game of Thrones' prequel writer teases future shows and we're already stressed about it

Saturday 19 August 18:48:18 UTC 2017

You might feel like it's too soon to think about the Game of Thrones spinoffs HBO has in the pipeline, but consider this counterpoint: It's not.  Screenwriter Jane Goldman, who will pen at least one of the prequels planned for after Thrones concludes in 2018, spoke to IGN about what her series would include — and she kept it deliberately, … [Link]

Slashdot » EFF Honors Chelsea Manning, an IFEX Leader, And TechDirt's Editor

Saturday 19 August 18:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes the Electronic Frontier Foundation: Whistleblower and activist Chelsea Manning, Techdirt editor and open internet advocate Mike Masnick, and IFEX executive director and global freedom of expression defender Annie Game are the distinguished winners of the 2017 Pioneer Awards, which recognize leaders who are extending freedom and innovation on the electronic frontier. This year's honorees — a … [Link]

Slashdot » Oracle Now Wants To Give Java EE to an Open Source Foundation

Saturday 19 August 17:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes InfoWorld: Oracle wants to end its leadership in the development of enterprise Java and is looking for an open source foundation to take on the role. The company said Thursday that the upcoming Java EE (Enterprise Edition) 8 presents an opportunity to rethink how the platform is developed. Although development is done via open source with … [Link]

Mashable » Steven Soderbergh's new HBO show will have a choose-your-own-adventure feel

Saturday 19 August 17:24:38 UTC 2017

Though it's still in preproduction, Steven Soderbergh's upcoming series Mosaic is already unlike anything HBO has ever done. In an extensive, new interview with Lincoln Center's Film Comment, Soderbergh shared more about the project and how it will tie in to an app due out in November — an app that lets users familiarize themselves with the story of Mosaic and … [Link]

Mashable » How to put old photos in your social media stories

Saturday 19 August 17:06:53 UTC 2017

Stories started with Snapchat, then Instagram and Facebook added their own versions to try and win our loyalty.  There are crazy amounts of ways to make your story unique within each app. But you might not know that you can also post old photos in your current stories. SEE ALSO: I'm giving up on Snapchat because it's way too bloated Here's … [Link]

Mashable » Move over, activated charcoal. Try the matte black latte.

Saturday 19 August 17:01:03 UTC 2017

Activated charcoal—the trendy margarita ingredient and cleaning agent—is nothing compared to a matte black latte.  The new drink from Round K in New York City is even darker than the activated charcoal recipes that swept the internet a few months ago.  SEE ALSO: A rare white moose has been spotted and if you wanna freak out, that's cool The nondairy drink … [Link]

Slashdot » Hacker Helps Family Recover Minivan After Losing One-Of-A-Kind Car Key

Saturday 19 August 16:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: A hacker and a mechanic have helped a family regain access to their hybrid car after they've lost their one-of-a-kind car key while on vacation. The car in question is a Toyota Estima minivan, which a Canadian family bought reused and imported from Japan. When they did so, they received only one key, which the father … [Link]

Mashable » Resourceful golden retriever finds $85,000 of heroin in his backyard

Saturday 19 August 16:26:11 UTC 2017

Police dogs aren't the only ones sniffing out drugs.  A regular, untrained family golden retriever in Oregon dug up something interesting in his own backyard. The 18-month-old dog, Kenyon, came back with what his family thought was a time capsule.  After they all gathered around to see what was inside and film themselves opening it, they realized it was … not … [Link]

Mashable » Space combat in 'Star Wars: Battlefront II' looks exhilarating

Saturday 19 August 16:19:09 UTC 2017

There's a new trailer for Battlefront II and it's all about the "star" part of Star Wars. Starfighter Assault is the upcoming sequel's mode for people who crave dogfights and nothing but dogfights. As with the rest of the game, the mode's Battlefront II appearance spans all the timelines of the Star Wars series, from the Prequel trilogy on. This … [Link]

Mashable » This dancing Ariana Grande fan is the world's most inspiring concertgoer

Saturday 19 August 15:44:26 UTC 2017

Is it cool to say "goals" anymore? Probably not, but in this case, I truly do not care. When I saw this video, my first thought was "goals." And that is just the truth. On Thursday, Ariana Grande shared the clip in question, which features a fan dancing at one of her shows. "Dancing" doesn't quite sum it up, though. It … [Link]

Mashable » New Star Wars film might include Princes Harry and William

Saturday 19 August 15:35:11 UTC 2017

Even princes want to be Jedi.  Princes Harry and William got significantly closer to that dream with a Star Wars set visit in 2016, and John Boyega confirmed Friday that they did indeed film a cameo — and that they weren't the only visitors on set. SEE ALSO: John Boyega on Carrie Fisher's 'Last Jedi' appearance: 'She lives forever' The royals … [Link]

Slashdot » Marcus Hutchins' Code Used In Malware May Have Come From GitHub

Saturday 19 August 15:34:00 UTC 2017

troublemaker_23 quotes ITWire: A security researcher says code has been discovered that was written by British hacker Marcus Hutchins that was apparently 'borrowed' by the creator of the banking trojan Kronos. The researcher, known as Hasherezade, posted a tweet identifying the code that had been taken from Hutchins' repository on GitHub. Hasherezade also found a 2015 tweet where a then-20-year-old … [Link]

Mashable » Get these 3 in-demand skill sets and switch careers

Saturday 19 August 15:14:01 UTC 2017

Just to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission. There's no doubt about it: tech is king when it comes to the industry with the most dynamic, innovative opportunities on the market. There's only one drawback — when innovation is paramount, your skill-set needs to be as adaptive as the market. And in … [Link]

Mashable » Download this: Off the Menu Club is the answer to all your foodie prayers

Saturday 19 August 15:02:00 UTC 2017

Most people know about In-N-Out Burger's animal style fries, Jamba Juice's gummy bear smoothies, and Starbucks' infamous pink drinks. But what about the secret menu items of other restaurants—high-end places? Enter Off the Menu Club, a foodie's dream app.  SEE ALSO: The McDonald's Secret Menu: Stop dreaming, start ordering Read more… {"player":{"descript~ food lovers. ","image":"http~ the Menu Club","sources":[{&q~ and drink,apps and … [Link]

Mashable » Six Flags parks will wisely stop flying Confederate flags

Saturday 19 August 14:50:26 UTC 2017

The six flags of Six Flags are looking a little different this weekend. Parks in Georgia and Texas have removed the Spanish, Mexican, French, Confederate, and Texas state flags that once flew over its grounds, choosing to only fly the American flag instead. The switch-up is intended to minimize feelings of division in the wake of last week's deadly violence perpetrated … [Link]

Mashable » All the features in Apple Maps that’ll make you not hate it

Saturday 19 August 14:41:00 UTC 2017

Apple Maps isn't the first app most people are clamoring for when they're lost on a road trip. It's actually one of the first apps I deleted when iOS finally let you get rid of native iPhone apps.  SEE ALSO: GBoard now supports YouTube and Google Maps for faster texting But since the iOS 10 update, there are some features that … [Link]

Slashdot » US State Department Suffers Worldwide Email Outage

Saturday 19 August 14:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes USA Today: The U.S. State Department's email system underwent a worldwide outage Friday, affecting all its unclassified communications within and outside of the department. The system was fully restored by Friday afternoon [after 12 hours], said a State Department official briefed on the incident who was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity. It was … [Link]

Popular Science » Total eclipses aren't that rare—and you've probably missed a bunch of them

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

Space They happen about once every 18 months Thousands of people will flock to the path of totality on August 21, 2017 to witness a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. And it will happen all over again 22 months later… [Link]

Mashable » 'Planet of the Apps' wasn't a great show, but it was still a success for Apple

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

Apple aired the finale of its first original series this week. If you missed it, don't stress.  Planet of the Apps was a decent 10-episode series, but it's not something that viewers will want to think about for hours like Netflix's House of Cards or talk about with friends like Hulu's The Handmaid Tale.  It's just a pretty undramatic, very-edited reality … [Link]

Mashable » Spectacular color photos capture WWII air cadets in training

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

Aviation Cadet Thanas inspects an airplane engine.Image: Library of CongressOne year before the outbreak of World War II, a U.S. congressional board found that the Navy had insufficient training facilities to deal with a potential emergency demand for new pilotsWith the consultation of Texas Representative Lyndon B. Johnson, the Navy commissioned a new air training station on Corpus Christi Bay in … [Link]

Mashable » How do Flat Earth truthers explain the eclipse? These weird-as-hell videos explain it.

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

It is widely understood that on August 21, North America will experience a total solar eclipse for the first time since 1979. For a few brief, blissful moments, the moon will pass between the sun and the Earth, blocking the star from view for anyone within a 70-mile path that cuts across the United States. Amazing!  And yet, for a small … [Link]

Mashable » 6 ways to transport the undead south of the wall on 'Game of Thrones'

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

In the most recent Game of Thrones episode, our heroes had a Very Dumb Idea: To bring someone from the army of the dead south to King's Landing so that Cersei will believe it's real. Um…okay?? We don't know a lot about the thousands of undead soldiers marching toward Westeros, but among what we do know is that A) they are … [Link]

Mashable » Eclipse FOMO got you down? Here are 8 more on their way

Saturday 19 August 14:00:00 UTC 2017

The day we've all been waiting for is almost upon us, the day of the great solar eclipse seen cross the country, but … what happens if you don't see it?  Work, illness, or, worst of all, CLOUDS could prevent you from basking in the glorious shadow cast by the moon passing between earth and the sun, and sharing this historic … [Link]

Mashable » A brand new musical composition will help people who are blind experience the solar eclipse

Saturday 19 August 13:53:41 UTC 2017

If you could hear it, what would a total solar eclipse sound like?  As the moon passes between the Earth and the sun, blotting out the star for millions on Monday, a team of scientists hopes that people around the United States will have the chance to listen to their vision of what an eclipse sounds like. The team of researchers … [Link]

Slashdot » Wisconsin Lawmakers Vote To Pay Foxconn $3 Billion To Get New Factory

Saturday 19 August 13:00:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The Wisconsin Assembly voted 59-30 on Thursday to approve a bill to give incentives worth $3 billion to Taiwan-based Foxconn so that the company would open its first U.S. plant in the state. Foxconn, best known for supplying parts of Apple's iPhones, will open the $10 billion liquid-crystal display plant in … [Link]

Mashable » How 'StarCraft II' is powering a clever HD remake of 'Diablo II'

Saturday 19 August 12:54:42 UTC 2017

"The Curse of Tristram" is the kind of inspired, over-the-top modding project that could only be hatched in the mind of a fan. The idea is straightforward enough: deliver a remastered version of Diablo II by rebuilding it inside StarCraft II. Nevermind the fact that the latter is a finely tuned strategy game and the former is a loot-focused action-RPG. … [Link]

Popular Science » How to speed up your Wi-Fi

Saturday 19 August 12:30:00 UTC 2017

DIY Optimize your internet connection. Wi-Fi is faster and more reliable than a cellular connection—usually. Several factors can slow down your network speed. Here's how to bypass these obstacles. [Link]

Mashable » August is the Sunday of the year

Saturday 19 August 12:00:00 UTC 2017

If you're anything like me, your soul thrives in the summer and shrivels up the rest of the year.  May and June are beacons of hope for you as your claw your way out of your cold, rainy cave and emerge a new human being in the sweet summer sun. Everything is wonderful and bright and the world is your oyster.  … [Link]

New Scientist – News » Meet the turtles surviving an invasion of enormous tractors

Saturday 19 August 10:41:08 UTC 2017

The eastern painted turtles must now live among enormous, noisy machinery – and studying them is offering clues to how animals survive alongside heavy industry [Link]

Slashdot » Atlas 5 Rocket Launches $400 Million NASA Satellite Into Space

Saturday 19 August 10:00:00 UTC 2017

A new communications hub has been successfully deployed in space today thanks to the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket. "TDRS is a critical national asset have because of its importance to the space station and all of our science missions, primarily the Hubble Space Telescope and Earth science missions that use TDRS," said Tim Dunn, NASA's TDRS-M launch director. … [Link]

Mashable » The definitive ranking of 'Game of Thrones' characters most likely to die in episode 6

Saturday 19 August 8:30:00 UTC 2017

Warning: Contains spoilers for Game of Thrones Season 7, episode 5, but has NO INFORMATION RELATED TO THE EPISODE 6 LEAK (these are honest predictions from someone who has no idea what's going to happen, I promise). I'm talking, of course, about Jon Snow's White Walker-hunters/The Magnificent Seven/loose-end characters who desperately need some kind of quick resolution to tie up their … [Link]

Slashdot » Google and ProPublica Team Up To Build a National Hate Crime Database

Saturday 19 August 7:00:00 UTC 2017

In partnership with ProPublica, Google News Lab is launching a new tool to track hate crimes across America. The "Documenting Hate News Index" is being powered by machine learning to track reported hate crimes across all 50 states, collecting data from February 2017 onward. TechCrunch reports: Data visualization studio Pitch Interactive helped craft the index, which collects Google News results … [Link]

Slashdot » How Hackers Can Use Pop Songs To 'Watch' You

Saturday 19 August 3:30:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Fast Company: Forget your classic listening device: Researchers at the University of Washington have demonstrated that phones, smart TVs, Amazon Echo-like assistants, and other devices equipped with speakers and microphones could be used by hackers as clandestine sonar "bugs" capable of tracking your location in a room. Their system, called CovertBand, emits high-pitched … [Link]

Slashdot » Hyundai To Build a 300-Mile-Per-Charge Electric Car

Saturday 19 August 1:45:00 UTC 2017

On Thursday, Hyundai Motor said it will launch a long-range electric vehicle with a driving range of 500 km (311 miles) per charge after 2021. The company is reportedly planning 31 eco-friendly models by 2020, up from a previously flagged 28. Reuters reports: The South Korean automaker is planning to launch an electric sedan under its high-end Genesis brand in … [Link]

Slashdot » Memories of Fear Could Be Permanently Erased, Study Shows

Saturday 19 August 1:05:00 UTC 2017

A new study unpicks why certain sounds can stir alarming memories, and reveals a new approach to wiping such memories from the brain. The Guardian reports: Published in the journal Neuron by Cho and his colleague Woong Bin Kim, the research reveals how the team used genetically modified mice to examine the pathways between the area of the brain involved … [Link]

Slashdot » Android O Is Officially Launching August 21

Saturday 19 August 0:35:00 UTC 2017

Android O is set to arrive on August 21, with a livestreamed unveiling event timed for 2:40 PM ET in NYC — which is roughly when the maximum solar eclipse is set to occur for New York. TechCrunch reports: Android O will get a full reveal at that time, which seems like kind of a weird time to do it … [Link]

Slashdot » US Military To Create Separate Unified Cyber Warfare Command

Saturday 19 August 0:05:00 UTC 2017

wiredmikey quotes a report from SecurityWeek: President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. military to elevate its cyber warfare operations to a separate command, signaling a new strategic emphasis on electronic and online offensive and defensive operations. "I have directed that United States Cyber Command be elevated to the status of a Unified Combatant Command focused on cyberspace operations," Trump … [Link]

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