Geekly Update - 11 October 2017
How can a data breach involving a BILLION accounts get worse? Is Internet Explorer sending everything you type into the address bar to who-knows-where? And would you pay $100 for a headless, robotic kitty cat? Get answers in today's Geekly Update -- it's jam-packed with the latest tech news. This issue is guaranteed to make you 146% smarter -- you'll see why. Read, think, and, comment! |
The AskBobRankin Geekly Update
Good news: Yahoo says it wasn't one billion accounts that were compromised, in the massive data breach reported last year. Bad news: According to the company’s latest admission, ALL THREE BILLION Yahoo accounts were compromised. Time to change email providers.
New research debunks several myths about email’s role in corporate culture and how users should manage email. For example, it’s a bad idea to check email only once a day.
Remember the Universal Translator thingy from Star Trek? Google’s new Pixel Buds wireless earphones do real-time translation of 40 languages. But it works only with Google's Pixel smartphones.
Internet Explorer exposes everything typed into the address bar to web site operators. Good thing nobody uses IE, right? Right?
Room-shaking, neighbor-annoying sound is the main selling point of Google’s new Home Max smart speaker.
If you want a cat without all that annoying meowing and clawing, consider Qoobo, an “adorable” robotic cat with a tail but no limbs or head. Good for soothing petting, the Qoobo will be available in Husky Gray or French Brown, for around $100 next summer.
Adding a bit of asphalt to lithium-ion batteries reduces their charging time to 5 minutes instead of two hours. But unfortunately, adding lithium-ion batteries to asphalt does not make cars go faster.
Seagate is now shipping a consumer version of its 12 TB, helium-filled hard drives. Amazon has them for $525.
A tall, skinny robot with googly eyes is prowling the aisles of Giant Food Store in Pennsylvania, looking for banana peels and other hazards, and monitoring shelf stock levels. It can call for a wet clean-up or a re-stocking.
Microsoft’s Edge browser is coming to Android and iOS devices. Perhaps more significantly, the company’s Launcher app is coming along. It organizes app and info on your home screen more effectively than current options.
Costco is offering home deliveries in an effort to compete with Amazon and other food delivery options.
After 20 years, AOL's AIM Instant Messenger will finally shut down on December 15. The company says AIM’s user base has shrunk to ‘the single-digit millions” and just isn’t worth operating anymore.
Mattel has decided not to go into the babysitting business. The company will not release the “Aristotle” Internet-enabled, voice-controlled smart baby monitor following Congressional inquiries about how it worked and how infants’ privacy would be protected.
Your thoughts on these topics are welcome. Post your comment or question below...
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This article was posted by Bob Rankin on 11 Oct 2017
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Most recent comments on "Geekly Update - 11 October 2017"
Posted by:
Suzanne
11 Oct 2017
Great collection of stuff this week, Bob. Is that address-line I.E. exposure true even in Private Browsing mode? Never mind why this has been happening since 2013 and is only being published now.
Posted by:
Judyth
11 Oct 2017
The headless robot cat sound horribly creepy but there is an alternative I can vouch for, though I don't recall the maker's name since I received mine as a gift. This is a battery-operated robotic cat (they make dogs, too) which --blissfully-- includes a switch on its belly so you can turn off the meowing. These are realistic enough that a friend thought it was a real cat. When on, sensors let it respond to being stroked or even movement in its field of "vision" and activate meows or purrs, and even paw-washing or rolling over for a tummy-rub.
They're primarily intended as pets for the elderly or others who could benefit from an animal companion but live in situations where pets aren't allowed or are physically unable to care for a living pet.
My "cat" is kept "sleeping" on a nearby table...because "she" looks so real it was disconcerting to have her staring at me. The artificial fur doesn't quite feel real but is combable and looks perfect. A person with dementia I know who has one asks for his often and enjoys interacting with it; he can't lift it (weighs about as much as a real cat) but likes patting it and having it react.
Posted by:
Stephanie
11 Oct 2017
Thanks for the photo of Kirk & McCoy - may you live long and prosper, Bob!
Posted by:
Moishe
11 Oct 2017
Didn't realize there's so much in the geekly updates not placed into the e-mails, I think.
Anyway, thanks so much for what you do for us, Bob.
I'm sure you saw this & I suppose wrote about it over the past couple of years. I forget things frequently, so I don't remember if you did.
Here's the latest in case you missed it,
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/10/technology/kaspersky-lab-israel-russia-hacking.html
Posted by:
Chris
11 Oct 2017
146% smarter or crazier... :)
Keep 'em coming Bob; we need to be reminded how insane society has become.
Posted by:
Darcetha Manning
11 Oct 2017
Good news: Yahoo says it wasn't one billion accounts that were compromised, in the massive data breach reported last year. Bad news: According to the company’s latest admission, ALL THREE BILLION Yahoo accounts were compromised. Time to change email providers. Glad I got rid of mine and my mother's.
If you want a cat without all that annoying meowing and clawing, consider Qoobo, an “adorable” robotic cat with a tail but no limbs or head. Good for soothing petting, the Qoobo will be available in Husky Gray or French Brown, for around $100 next summer. Uh NO!!! I went to the website to see what it looked like, it's too creepy for me.
Thanks Bob, for the sometimes crazy, but informative articles. ;)
Posted by:
Micky
11 Oct 2017
Wonder if IE 9 is affected or just the new MS spyware versions?
I am still using Yahoo email, but just for contests and other sites that want an email address. I don't store any contact information (name, phone number, address, birthday, etc) not even my own in any of my email accounts.
Posted by:
Gary
11 Oct 2017
What I would like to know about the Seagate drive is how long before they stop doing updates. I have an old Seagate drive that won't work on windows 10 and they haven't managed a patch for it. Their website would't recognize my serial number. So now I have to find a way to retrive my information.
Posted by:
RichF
12 Oct 2017
Translating ear buds. Amazing!!
Posted by:
Old Man
12 Oct 2017
Gary: 11 Oct 2017
Try using an IDE/SATA external HD case. They aren't too expensive and connect via USB. Windows only recognizes these as external USB drives, so could very well accept yours.
I have several HDs that are at least 10 years old, and Windows accesses these via USB without any problem.
Posted by:
Old Man
12 Oct 2017
RE: Costco Home Delivery
I don't have easy transportation to the local Costco, so I've used their Home Delivery for bulky grocery items. They do add some delivery cost to the items, but the convenience is worth it to me. (Better than trying to tote several bulky items a couple of blocks to the bus stop, and then finding some place on the bus to put them.)
This is still rather new, so the selection is somewhat limited. I expect that to grow as more people use it.
Posted by:
C
13 Oct 2017
"...unfortunately, adding lithium-ion batteries to asphalt does not make cars go faster."
Thanks, I needed that. ;)