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.

Mashable » Apple iOS 11 leak reveals iPhone's new Face ID set-up process

Sunday 10 September 23:50:09 UTC 2017

The epic leak of the Golden Master version of iOS 11 on Saturday continues to deliver surprises, and the latest offers more insight into how Apple's new Face ID system may work.  SEE ALSO: Apple iOS 11 lets you put your face on an animated pile of poop, naturally A Brazil-based iOS developer posted several screenshots and videos on Twitter not … [Link]

Slashdot » Equifax Breach Provokes Calls For Serious Data Protection Reforms

Sunday 10 September 23:34:00 UTC 2017

Equifax's data breach was colossal — but what should happen next? The Guardian writes: The problem is that companies like Equifax are able to accumulate — essentially, without limit — as much sensitive, personal data as they can get their hands on. There is an urgent need for strict regulations on what types of data companies can collect and how … [Link]

Mashable » Damaging winds and flooding as Hurricane Irma moves on Florida

Sunday 10 September 22:58:02 UTC 2017

Powerful winds and high water levels caused by Hurricane Irma are wreaking havoc on Florida, after hitting Key West overnight. The storm is expected to continue north along the western coast of Florida toward Tampa Bay. Read more…More about News, Mashable Video, Weather, Extreme Weather, and Hurricane [Link]

Mashable » Rare weather warning hoisted in Florida as Hurricane Irma batters the state

Sunday 10 September 22:52:18 UTC 2017

When it comes to weather alerts, we’ve all seen the colorful boxes plastered on TV screens, and alerting to our phones, before.  Most people can tell the difference between a Tornado or Severe Thunderstorm Warning, and know what actions to take if they’re under the gun. But when a brand new shade was displayed on Florida Weather maps Sunday afternoon, many … [Link]

Mashable » Floridians rescue stranded manatees as Irma sucks water from shores

Sunday 10 September 22:43:54 UTC 2017

As Hurricane Irma rumbled up Florida's west coast, it drained water from the state's shores, leaving residents stunned and manatees stranded.  Some of those stunned and curious residents walked into the vast patches of sand and underwater growth that used to be the bay—a dangerous thing to do, given the water would rush back. But manatees caught on land were lucky … [Link]

Slashdot » How Proprietary Software Lets Companies Cheat

Sunday 10 September 22:34:00 UTC 2017

"Proprietary software makes it possible to design products to cheat ordinary users…" writes Richard Stallman — linking to a new essay by Cory Doctorow: Carriers adapted custom versions of Android to lock customers to their networks with shovelware apps that couldn't be removed from the home-screen and app store lock-in that forced customers to buy apps through their phone company. … [Link]

Mashable » It’s now Mrs. Grey in what is hopefully the final ‘Fifty Shades’ film

Sunday 10 September 22:05:31 UTC 2017

First comes erotic fan-fiction, then comes a movie deal, and then comes the final film of the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. SEE ALSO: Vin Diesel is in 'Fifty Shades Darker' but not like you think On Sunday the preview of the series' third movie, Fifty Shades Freed, came out way ahead of its Valentine's Day release. Freed features our … [Link]

Mashable » Live blog: All the news from Apple's big iPhone 8 event

Sunday 10 September 22:00:00 UTC 2017

Something’s comingIt's harvest time in Apple Park, and Apple's latest products are ripe, glistening, and ready to fall from the tree.Mashable is on the ground inside the brand new Steve Jobs Theater, ready to catch each one, or at least news of each one: new iPhones (the iPhone 8 or X, perhaps), new wearables (a new LTE-ready Apple Watch), and more.This … [Link]

Mashable » Jennifer Lawrence's 'mother!' is designed to get people talking, that's for sure

Sunday 10 September 21:36:36 UTC 2017

If you've seen the promos for Darren Aronofsky's mother!, you probably think you've got a pretty good idea of what to expect: some kind of haunted-house horror about a couple (Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem) whose blissful existence is upended by the arrival of some unexpected guests (Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer).  SEE ALSO: The reviews for 'mother!' are in … [Link]

Slashdot » Google Chrome Will Soon Detect Man-in-the-Middle Attacks

Sunday 10 September 21:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: Google Chrome 63 will include a new security feature that will detect when third-party software is performing a Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attack that hijacks the user's Internet connection…. Most MitM toolkits fail to correctly rewrite the user's encrypted connections, causing SSL errors that Chrome will detect. The new Chrome 63 feature is in the form of a … [Link]

Mashable » Leslie Jones in the front row at New York Fashion Week is the best thing you'll see all week

Sunday 10 September 21:03:47 UTC 2017

If there's anyone that can make the (at times stuffy) New York tradition of Fashion Week more bearable, it's Leslie Jones. To cap off her birthday week, the comedian was front row at the Christian Siriano show at the annual gathering this weekend, and she was not afraid to let out all her excitement as models made their way down the … [Link]

Mashable » The iPhone 8 event is Tim Cook’s moment to make Apple his own

Sunday 10 September 20:54:51 UTC 2017

Three years ago, and just a few years after Apple founder and former CEO Steve Jobs died, Tim Cook unveiled what would be, to date, Apple's only new product category under his watch: The Apple Watch. That was supposed to be Cook’s moment and it hit all the right notes: Innovation in a faltering category, an iconic location (the same place … [Link]

Slashdot » Uber Gives Free Rides to Shelters During Hurricane Irma

Sunday 10 September 20:34:00 UTC 2017

One million households lost power in Florida, and at least three people died, after Hurricane Irma made landfall Sunday morning. Bloomberg reports how Uber tried to help: Uber Technologies Inc. is offering free rides to shelters near Tampa as Hurricane Irma barrels toward the Florida mainland. The City of Tampa's Office of Emergency Management publicized the free rides on its … [Link]

Mashable » A walkie-talkie app is helping people get through hurricanes

Sunday 10 September 20:24:00 UTC 2017

As Hurricane Irma flooded the streets of Miami on Sunday afternoon, voice after voice beeped to life in a Miami channel on the walkie-talkie app, Zello.  One person said his food was wet, and asked if anyone might come help him evacuate. Another said he was compiling a database of people with boats and others willing to volunteer to any rescue … [Link]

Mashable » George Clooney drags Steve Bannon hard over the former Trump aide’s rap musical

Sunday 10 September 20:11:17 UTC 2017

Actor-turned-director George Clooney has a lot to say about the Hollywood aspirations of former White House chief strategist, Steve Bannon. SEE ALSO: Steve Bannon imposter fools Breitbart editor into saying some pretty weird stuff At the Toronto International Film Festival, Clooney told Vanity Fair that before his political days Bannon was a "schmuck who literally tried everything he could to sell … [Link]

Mashable » 'It' is a hit! The Stephen King horror flick shattered box office records

Sunday 10 September 19:45:39 UTC 2017

Horror movies don't usually land at the box office like this. It, the New Line/Warner Bros. adaptation of Stephen King's classic novel, is expected to end its opening weekend with $117.2 million at the box office. That's a staggeringly huge figure for any movie to open with, and a basically impossible one — until now, apparently — for an R-rated horror … [Link]

Slashdot » Can Blockchain Save The Music Industry?

Sunday 10 September 19:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Wired: Last fall, a group of music industry heavyweights gathered in New York City to do something they'd mostly failed to do up to that point: work together. Representatives from major labels like Universal, Sony, and Warner sat next to technologists from companies like Spotify, YouTube, and Ideo and discussed the collective issues threatening their industry… … [Link]

Mashable » Brace yourself, because 'hair nails' are now a thing

Sunday 10 September 19:32:59 UTC 2017

Between "braided" eyebrows and squiggle lips, you would think we have witnessed enough extreme trends to last a lifetime. But no—there's always room for more absurdity in the world of beauty.  Illusion artist Dain Yoon proved that on Sunday when she uploaded an image of her nails—each finger adorned with a little face and, yep, hair.  SEE ALSO: 'Braided' eyebrows are … [Link]

Mashable » Hurricane Irma is making oceans vanish before the flooding

Sunday 10 September 19:25:08 UTC 2017

Before the water rushes in, it disappears. Tampa Bay, Florida, is expected to see potentially catastrophic flooding on Sunday as Hurricane Irma roars into the city, but Irma's vastness and intensely low pressure have vacuumed water away from parts of Florida's western coast ahead of the coming inundation.  SEE ALSO: Hurricane hunters see 'stadium effect' inside Irma's eye That doesn't mean … [Link]

Slashdot » Swarms Of Flying Robot Bees Could Monitor Weather, Collect Data

Sunday 10 September 18:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes VentureBeat: Native honeybees, one of the most prolific pollinators in the animal kingdom, are dying off at an unprecedented rate from Colony Collapse Disorder and threatening an ecosystem service worth about $15 billion. Supported by the National Science Foundation, the RoboBees project looks to minimize the loss of this critical resource with new microbots that can … [Link]

Mashable » Hillary Clinton confirms she coped after her election loss with yoga, hiking, and wine

Sunday 10 September 18:27:01 UTC 2017

Hillary Clinton opened up about her failed presidential campaign, how she handled losing to a reality TV star, and what that night was really like when she went in expecting to be the first female American president.  SEE ALSO: Hillary Clinton calls Donald Trump 'a creep' in election memoir In a CBS Sunday Morning interview with anchor Jane Pauley (Clinton … [Link]

Mashable » Louis C.K.'s 'I Love You, Daddy' feels like a dare

Sunday 10 September 17:59:59 UTC 2017

In I Love You, Daddy, the new movie written (with Vernon Chatman), directed by, and starring Louis C.K., our lead character Glen has an enormous poster in his office that reveals exactly who his biggest idol is: a filmmaker named Leslie Goodwin (played by John Malkovich). But you don't need a poster to tell you which director C.K. himself is channeling … [Link]

Mashable » Hurricane Irma turned Miami's Brickell neighborhood into an inland sea

Sunday 10 September 17:39:14 UTC 2017

Weeks after Hurricane Harvey dumped enough rain on Houston to turn it into an ocean, Hurricane Irma has driven parts of the Atlantic Ocean into downtown Miami. The city's Brickell neighborhood resembled a building-strewn sea as Irma powered into Florida, bringing wind gusts close to 100 miles per hour in the city.  SEE ALSO: National Hurricane Center's headquarters is in Irma's … [Link]

Slashdot » Neural Networks Can Auto-Generate Reviews That Fool Humans

Sunday 10 September 17:34:00 UTC 2017

Fake reviews used to be crowdsourced. Now they can be auto-generated by AI, according to a new research paper shared by AmiMoJo: In this paper, we identify a new class of attacks that leverage deep learning language models (Recurrent Neural Networks or RNNs) to automate the generation of fake online reviews for products and services. Not only are these attacks … [Link]

Mashable » Download this: Why Facebook's app looks so different

Sunday 10 September 17:03:52 UTC 2017

Facebook’s app is looking a lot different and, surprise surprise, not everyone is a fan. The company showed off the redesign back in August, when it introduced its latest News Feed updates. But the revamped mobile app is still gradually rolling out to everyone, so many people are just starting to see it.  SEE ALSO: The video chat app that should … [Link]

Popular Science » This man would like to kill your holidays

Sunday 10 September 17:00:00 UTC 2017

DIY Economist Steve Hanke has a radical idea. Economist Steve Hanke has a radical idea. No more Gregorian calendar. No more floating holidays like Labor Day and Thanksgiving. No more leap years. [Link]

Mashable » Somehow this BBC newscaster got lost in the studio—while on air

Sunday 10 September 16:46:06 UTC 2017

Add another news blooper to the "best of" list!  BBC's Tom Donkin unfortunately had a hard time finding the right camera and on-set location to deliver some world news on Saturday. The newscaster was caught on television rushing from one side of the desk to another in an attempt to find the camera and deliver stories about Hurricane Irma—a hurricane … [Link]

Slashdot » America's Data-Swamped Spy Agencies Pin Their Hopes On AI

Sunday 10 September 16:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Phys.org: Swamped by too much raw intel data to sift through, US spy agencies are pinning their hopes on artificial intelligence to crunch billions of digital bits and understand events around the world. Dawn Meyerriecks, the Central Intelligence Agency's deputy director for technology development, said this week the CIA currently has 137 different AI projects, many … [Link]

Mashable » George Clooney with an elderly fan sparks hilarious Photoshop battle

Sunday 10 September 16:03:50 UTC 2017

There is no other love like the love between this fan and George Clooney—a love so strong that it elicited a Photoshop battle on Reddit.  The original image was uploaded to Reddit by sipping_mai_tais, and immediately sparked some impressive Photoshop skills. In the image, a woman is caressing Clooney's face, as one naturally does when presented the opportunity. Clooney on the … [Link]

Mashable » I used dating AI to make a mixtape for Donald and Melania Trump and the results are predictably horrifying

Sunday 10 September 16:00:00 UTC 2017

Once upon a time, making a mixtape was a simple act of love. Those days are officially over. Now it’s an act of artificial intelligence. There’s a new app that will generate a mixtape for you and your significant using AI and your photosCouple’s Mixtape, which was created by online suit rental company The Black Tux, analyzes pictures of any pair … [Link]

Slashdot » What's Causing The Hurricanes?

Sunday 10 September 15:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes AFP: Hurricane Irma, now taking aim at Florida, has stunned experts with its sheer size and strength, churning across the ocean with sustained Category 5 winds of 183 miles per hour (295 kilometers per hour) for more than 33 hours, making it the longest-lasting, top-intensity cyclone ever recorded. Meanwhile Jose, a Category 4 on the Saffir … [Link]

Mashable » Tampa's hurricane luck may finally run out Sunday, in a disastrous way

Sunday 10 September 15:23:04 UTC 2017

Tampa, Florida, has avoided a direct hit by a major hurricane since 1921. That luck appears likely to end on Sunday, and it may do so in disastrous fashion.  Tampa-St. Petersburg is a rapidly-growing, low-lying metropolitan area of nearly 3 million, with a coastline that is highly vulnerable to storm surge flooding from a tropical storm or hurricane. If the forecast … [Link]

New Scientist – News » Meet the vampire ant from hell with huge jaws and a metal horn

Sunday 10 September 14:52:15 UTC 2017

Linguamyrmex vladi had ferocious snapping jaws and a horn reinforced with metal, which it may have used to puncture prey and drain their blood [Link]

Mashable » After Hurricane Irma, U.S. Virgin Islands residents feel forgotten

Sunday 10 September 14:45:17 UTC 2017

The United States Virgin Islands (USVI) are facing a communication crisis as families resort to social media to receive information on loved ones and the state of their homes in the wake of Hurricane Irma. Media accounts of the record-breaking storm have focused largely on Florida, but comparably little attention has been paid the status of people and devastation in the … [Link]

Slashdot » Four EU Countries Seek Higher Taxes On Google and Amazon

Sunday 10 September 14:30:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Reuters: France, Germany, Italy and Spain want digital multinationals like Amazon and Google to be taxed in Europe based on their revenues, rather than only profits as now, their finance ministers said in a joint letter. France is leading a push to clamp down on the taxation of such companies, but has found support from other … [Link]

Mashable » Sloane Stephens just won a lot of money at the U.S. Open but her reaction is priceless

Sunday 10 September 14:15:14 UTC 2017

A $3,700,000 check is bound to elicit an elated facial expression from anyone. If it doesn't, can we really trust you?  Sloane Stephens might just have had the best reaction to receiving her multi-million dollar check upon winning the U.S. Open this weekend. The 24 year-old's face lit up and her shock is relatable and probably the same exact face you … [Link]

Mashable » When a British daredevil attempted a rocket-powered speed record on Loch Ness

Sunday 10 September 14:00:00 UTC 2017

Crusader is towed out on Loch Ness.Image: Raymond Kleboe/Picture Post/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesIn the 1930s and 1940s, British motorist John Cobb smashed a number of land speed records.After achieving a world-record speed of 394.19 miles per hour on the Bonneville Salt Flats in 1947, Cobb sets his sights on the water.To design a vehicle capable of setting a water speed record, Cobb … [Link]

Slashdot » Should British Hacker Lauri Love Be Tried In America?

Sunday 10 September 13:26:00 UTC 2017

A 31-year-old autistic man in the U.K. is suspected of hacking U.S. government computer systems in 2013 — and he has one final chance to appeal his extradition. An anonymous reader quotes the Guardian Even if Love is guilty, however, there are important legal and moral questions about whether he should be extradited to the US — a nation that … [Link]

Mashable » I am the empress of fall and if you drink hot coffee before the equinox you are dead to me

Sunday 10 September 13:00:00 UTC 2017

I am who they call the Empress of Fall — a title I gave myself after purchasing approximately 300 plastic gourds from a basement Michael's.  And as autumn approaches, here is my warning: if you dare to drink a cup of hot coffee before Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, I will absolutely erase you from my life. Nothing matters more to me … [Link]

Mashable » Aliens probably made this cube-shaped speaker—and it's awesome

Sunday 10 September 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Just to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission. In a world where every new audio device to hit the market sports the same basic shape, one speaker dared to reject the tube and embrace the cube. The Cube Bluetooth Speaker features one of the most striking designs this side of the galaxy, … [Link]

Mashable » How to get maximum value from Google Sheets

Sunday 10 September 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Just to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission. Gone are the days when Microsoft Excel held a monopoly over the spreadsheet world. Google Sheets has proven itself an equally powerful and versatile data management program. Plus, it’s available for free while Excel is most definitely not.  SEE ALSO: How to make upwards … [Link]

Popular Science » How to find legitimate deals on tech

Sunday 10 September 12:00:00 UTC 2017

DIY Get your favorite gadgets for cheaper prices. When you're shopping for tech online, don't settle for the first price you encounter. Follow our tips to nab your favorite gadgets at the lowest possible cost. [Link]

Slashdot » Leaks Reveal New Features In Apple's Next iPhone

Sunday 10 September 10:22:00 UTC 2017

Though Apple officially unveils their newest iPhone on Tuesday, information is already leaking on the internet. Mashable: "Physically, it's expected to be about the same size as an iPhone 7, but with an edge-to-edge OLED display that's bigger than what is currently on the iPhone 7 Plus. It won't have a home button or Touch ID, and will likely use … [Link]

Slashdot » Ask Slashdot: What Can You Do With An Old Windows Phone?

Sunday 10 September 7:18:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader unixisc writes: While it's always been well known that Windows phones in the market have floundered, one saving grace has always been that one could at least use it for the barest minimum of apps, even if updates have stopped… Aside from a door stop or a hand me down to someone who'll use it like a dumb … [Link]

Slashdot » TechCrunch: Equifax Hack-Checking Web Site Is Returning Random Results

Sunday 10 September 4:14:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes security researcher Brian Krebs: The web site that Equifax advertised as the place where concerned Americans could go to find out whether they were impacted by this breach — equifaxsecurity2017.com — is completely broken at best, and little more than a stalling tactic or sham at worst. In the early hours after the breach announcement, the … [Link]

Slashdot » Is Python Really the Fastest-Growing Programming Language?

Sunday 10 September 1:10:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Stack Overflow Blog: In this post, we'll explore the extraordinary growth of the Python programming language in the last five years, as seen by Stack Overflow traffic within high-income countries. The term "fastest-growing" can be hard to define precisely, but we make the case that Python has a solid claim to being the fastest-growing major programming … [Link]

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