Geekly Update - 20 November 2015

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

Researchers have determined that pigeons are pretty darned good at detecting breast cancer. Their ability to spot potential problems on digitized mammogram images was in some cases even better than highly-trained doctors.

When cats first learned how to make videos and upload their inanity to Youtube, I feared that the Internet was lost. But it's all coming back into balance now. Here's proof, in Cats Versus Cucumbers.

“You’re not helping.” Despite Apple CEO Tim Cook’s recent pronouncement that “the PC is dead,” Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak says he’s “still a laptop-based guy” who doesn’t see much utility in the Apple Watch, either.

Walmart.com is selling a Tracfone-branded LG smartphone for just $9.82 (order online, free in-store pickup) that has better specs than the original iPhone.

"Got any duct tape...?" CenturyLink’s Internet service on Orcas Island, in Washington State, was so bad that 50 neighbors got together and created their own ISP, connecting to the mainland via microwave and mounting relay points on homes and trees.

WiFi in airliners may soon be bearable, if not economical. Gogo, the largest in-flight satellite Internet service provider, has demonstrated a new high-altitude broadband service capable of 70 Mbps.

Google Chrome will end security patch support for Windows XP and Vista in April, 2016. Chrome will still run on those obsolete OSes, but vulnerabilities will no longer be fixed. The same goes for Mac OS X versions Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion. About one in seven Windows and Mac users are still running these dangerously outdated operating systems.

A Google self-driving car got its first traffic ticket during a test drive, for driving too slowly on the roads of Mountain View, CA. Tesla has "insane mode," Google has "granny mode."

To show someone you’re really, really over them, you can pay The Breakup Shop to do the dirty chore for you. An email or text costs $10; a handwritten letter, $20; an awkward phone call, $30. Any residual guilt you feel may be assuaged by sending a gift from the Breakup Shop’s gift shop.

The first used-car vending machine is now operating in Tennessee. Customers shop on Carvana’s Web site, buy the car they want, then go to the five-story vending machine which dispenses the vehicle. Each car comes with a 7-day test-drive.

They probably speak perfect English, too. ISIS runs a 24/7 Jihadi Help Desk to help would-be terrorists use encryption and other communications tools to spread their message, recruit fighters, and plot attacks, according to unnamed “intelligence analysts” cited by NBC News.

The beginning and the end... Ever wonder what the very first Web page looked like? You don't have to, because it's still there. Oh, and you might just want to stop by the End of the Internet, too.

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