fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
The New York Post is very upset that some “punks” spray painted “Deny Defend Depose” on Jeffery Epstein’s old mansion. https://nypost.com/2024/12/28/us-news/pro-luigi-mangione-punks-vandalize-jeffrey-epsteins-former-nyc-mansion-deny-defend-depose/
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LG’s 2025 gaming monitor lineup includes a bendable 5K2K OLED
Image: LG
LG isn’t waiting until CES begins to reveal its new collection of gaming monitors. The 2025 lineup is led by the UltraGear OLED Bendable Gaming Monitor, which LG claims is the “world’s first 5K2K-resolution bendable OLED display.” That strikes me as extremely specific, but hey, it’s always worth bragging when you’re first, I suppose. The 45-inch monitor has an expansive resolution of 5120x2160, so you’re getting the same vertical pixel count as a typical 4K screen but a much wider canvas to game on.
And with a 21:9 aspect ratio, LG believes it provides “a immersive gaming experience than standard 16:9 displays, while maintaining better content compatibility than 32:9 monitors.” This format also makes the display a great fit for productivity work when you’re not immersed in gameplay.
The UltraGear OLED Bendable Gaming Monitor (model 45GX990A) can transition from completely flat to a 900R curvature, and the latest version of LG’s Dual-Mode feature “allows users to switch effortlessly between resolution and refresh rate presets, and customize the aspect ratio and picture size.” It’s certified for Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, but the press materials don’t specify a maximum refresh rate. I’ve asked for more details there.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25809805/_photo1__UltraGear_GX9_45GX950A.jpg)
Image: LG
Both 45-inch monitors have a 5K2K resolution of 5120x2160.
LG is also releasing a non-bendable model with a permanent 800R curve. Otherwise, it’s the same 45-inch size, same aspect ratio, and same 5K2K resolution. LG’s press release says you can expect “sharp, lifelike images with the stunning colors and exceptional contrast LG OLED products are known for.” Shared specs between both monitors include a 0.03ms (GtG) response time and support for DisplayPort 2.1, HDMI 2.1, and USB-C with 90W power delivery. The 45GX950A uses a RGWB subpixel layout to improve readability of text on the screen and make the aforementioned productivity work easier on your eyes.
Along with these two monitors, LG is also introducing the curved UltraGear 39GX90SA, a webOS-powered “home entertainment hub” with easy access to streaming services — just like LG’s TVs. It seems like the company has taken some cues from Samsung’s smart monitors here. At 39 inches, this one’s a bit smaller than the other GX9 displays, but it retains the 21:9 aspect ratio and 800R curve. “Equipped with USB Type-C ports, it offers convenient connectivity, and incorporates LG’s ergonomic and space-saving L-shaped stand for a clutter-free desk setup,” LG said in tonight’s press release.
As per usual with CES news, pricing and a specific release date are still to come later in 2025. But we’ll be getting our first in-person look at the UltraGear GX9 series in Las Vegas, so stay tuned for impressions early next month — along with an avalanche of stunning screens from many other companies, too.
Recent books.
Despite the evidence presented by the OSHA-violating precarious tower of books on my desk, it seems like I read kind of an embarassingly small number of books this year. Of those, here are the ones that I enjoyed, in desk-stack order. [...]
I gave up on writing book reviews a while ago, but I have a story about 1984. [...]
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These were the most-borrowed books from public libraries in 2024
Many of the most-borrowed books in 2024, including 'romantasy' titles and memoirs, also appeared on public library lists in 2023.
Jimmy Carter gave Panama control of the canal. It's one of his most controversial achievements
Handing control of the Panama Canal from the U.S. over to the Central American country was one of President Jimmy Carter's most controversial, and most overshadowed, foreign policy achievements.
Don’t Expect Donald Trump to Tackle America’s Record Homelessness
Homelessness in America reached the highest level on record last year, according to new data released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development—and it will likely only get worse, in light of both a Supreme Court decision issued in June and President-elect Donald Trump’s forthcoming presidency. The annual report—which estimates the number of people […]
More of the DJI Flip folding drone appears in new leaked images
The DJI Flip is expected to fly nearly twice as long as the DJI Neo, pictured here. | Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge
New images of the rumored DJI Flip folding drone hit late last week, showing the compact, light-colored drone both folded and unfolded, and even in a carrying case. The images appeared in posts by Igor Bogdanov, who has shared other credible DJI leaks in the past.
Bogdanov added in a post yesterday that DJI is preparing a new Cellular Dongle 2 module for the compact drone. The new leaks join earlier images of ND filters for the Flip, its propeller set, and charging hub, which Bogdanov wrote can charge two batteries in a minimum of 45 minutes, and can use “a 65W parallel charger.”
Oh, how. Flip gonna have a Cellular Dongle 2. #dji #djiflip pic.twitter.com/CbpZpnSHj0
— Igor Bogdanov (@Quadro_News) December 28, 2024
Below are some of the other pictures Bogdanov posted, including of its front screen, which drone leaker Jasper Ellens notes shows “all the handsfree Quickshots we know from the Neo.”
Ellens posted a short video of the drone yesterday, writing that the Flip’s registration numbers put it in DJI’s FPV drone category, meaning that it could allow for first-person streaming during flight. In early December, he also leaked details like the drone’s compact folding approach and that it should get about 30 minutes of flight thanks to a battery that’s bigger than the one in DJI’s Neo selfie drone.
Fun fact. The #DJIFLIP product numbers are registered under the #FPV product line of DJI. This drone will be a #hybrid in many ways. I wish you all happy holidays and see you in the new year. Thank you for reading. Fly safe, stay safe. Cheers! Jasper pic.twitter.com/csGagm0U2M
— Jasper Ellens | X27 (@JasperEllens) December 28, 2024
New Hampshire’s Governor Thinks Elon Musk Is Too Rich for Conflicts of Interest
A news clip making the rounds Sunday morning had CNN’s Dana Bash talking with Chris Sununu, New Hampshire’s Republican governor, about Elon Musk’s potential conflicts of interest. Here, after all, we have a hecto-billionaire with massive federal contracts via SpaceX—and whose carmaker, Tesla, likely wouldn’t have survived without generous state and federal subsidies—serving as an […]
A look back at Jimmy Carter's presidency
Former President Jimmy Carter served as president of the United States from 1977 to 1981, with a focus on human rights-centered policies.
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
brandkopf@mastodon.art ("sommerlich.art") wrote:
Finished my new and so far largest oil painting "Collector" 🎨.
Now I can finally put the brushes away and enjoy a well-deserved coffee ☕️.Hope you like it 💕.
more: https://sommerlich.art/collector/
#art #mastoart #traditionalart #ölmalerei #fineart #painting
Attachments:
- Oil painting of an elderly elven lady. She sits by a tree with her arm outstretched and collects amber in her wicker basket. She is wearing simple brown clothes with an oil painting of an elderly elven lady. She has a cheerful and serene expression on her face. She kneels by a tree with her arm outstretched and collects amber in her wicker basket. She wears simple brown clothes with a blue headscarf. She has a large wooden hat on her head on which mushrooms and grass are growing. On her back you can see long blue feathers instead of hair. In the background you can see large clouds heralding a thunderstorm and in the foreground the picture is framed by two trees and a dark meadow. (remote)
- Detail from an oil painting with a portrait of an old woman smiling and long elven ears. (remote)
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
redoak@social.coop ("Red Oak") wrote:
The two kinds of magic:
- hiding the slow and difficult work, only revealing the payoff
- love
Carter's single White House term still stirs controversy after more than 40 years
Jimmy Carter was a former one-term governor from Georgia, almost unknown nationally, when he broke through in Iowa and New Hampshire early in 1976 and rode that momentum all the way to Washington.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Jimmy Carter was an actual good man in politics. A radical by todays standards.
Fuuuuuuuccccck all these politicians who never respected him when he was an alive pretending he’s their guiding light now that he’s dead.
If you want to know what it looks like when centrists co-opt a revolutionary, listen to our politicians this week.
2 men were found dead from exposure after looking for Sasquatch
The bodies of two men looking for Sasquatch were found in a forest in Washington state after a three-day search.
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
Jimmy Carter was simply a good guy. I'm sorry to see him go.
https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2024/12/29/jimmy-carter-has-died/
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Gargron ("Eugen Rochko") wrote:
With the understanding that some people will and do call it a waste of time, another highlight of my year was getting the #Plushtodon out into the world. I didn't want to just make another soulless piece of merch to tick off a box. I wanted to create a toy, a friend, that would rival anything you could get at a toy store. It brings me joy seeing that people seem to appreciate the effort.
YouTube is testing a floating ‘Play something’ button
Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge
YouTube is testing a new floating “Play something” button that will pick a video for you, 9to5Google spotted in the YouTube app for Android. The button floats just above the bottom bar of the app, and when tapped, it picks a YouTube video to play for you.
Just as in earlier versions of this feature YouTube’s been testing, the new button reportedly uses the portrait-oriented YouTube Shorts player to show videos, regardless of whether they’re vertically formatted Shorts or standard YouTube videos. Hopefully that changes by the time the feature gets a wide release.
Other incarnations the company has been testing for over a year include a “Play Something” banner and a simple button that looks like a black-and-white YouTube logo. If the feature’s name sounds familiar, perhaps it’s because Netflix retired a similar random video picker last year called “Surprise Me,” which originally launched in 2021 as “Play Something.”
The Bold Environmental Vision of President Jimmy Carter
This story was originally published by Yale E360 and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The angry Alaskans gathered in Fairbanks to burn the president’s effigy. It was early December 1978 and President Jimmy Carter was that unpopular in Alaska. A few days earlier Carter had issued an unusual executive order, designating 56 million acres […]
Gargron ("Eugen Rochko") wrote:
The Material You redesign of our Android app came out quite early in the year but it's another highlight. I maintain that it must be one of the most beautiful apps on Android. The design is so clean. And the whole app is just 5MB. It makes me wish I had an Android phone. @samhenrigold and @grishka really hit it out of the park.
Gargron ("Eugen Rochko") wrote:
I think one of my professional highlights of this year was the moment @mike and I came up with the fediverse:creator tag over lunch in San Francisco, and the subsequent implementation with my team. I love seeing that feature in action, besides being useful for discovery it just looks so nice.
Jimmy Carter, former U.S. president and peace activist, dies at 100
Carter was president from 1977 to 1981, but he was perhaps more famous for the life he led after he left office. He was one of the biggest advocates for peace, democracy and human rights.
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
this seems pretty silly
https://www.perplexity.ai/page/microsoft-s-100b-agi-definitio-e6FaEhReQs.9exHMGZpuog
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
oops
https://www.perplexity.ai/page/meta-quest-update-fiasco-erGib6PVSTCXSS7UiaqVPw
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
sadness, yet a life well-lived
https://www.ajc.com/news/former-us-president-jimmy-carter-100-dies/3ODQTR5NHVDTDF2SXOU34MKNZM/
Freemind@mastodon.online wrote:
Who knows, maybe 2025 will be more than just the year of #Linux on the desktop...
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NROL has the best mission patches.
https://jwz.org/b/ykfM
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razhael@infosec.exchange wrote:
*Someone* seems keen to delete Wikipedia's article on Appin, the cyber mercenary firm we wrote about last year:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Appin_(company)_(2nd_nomination)
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
When a notorious regressive like Richard Dawkins resigns to protest your organization's actions, you know you've done the right thing.
Reblogged by pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑"):
bstacey@icosahedron.website ("Blake C. Stacey") wrote:
@pzmyers Oooh, "Coyne op" is good.
Spotify showed porn videos in search results for some popular artists
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge
A Reddit user posted a screenshot overnight of a Spotify search that brought a surprise: a pornographic video tucked into suggested results for the rapper M.I.A. Here’s a NSFW link to the thread. The video shown in their screenshot didn’t appear for us, but we found others after scrolling through dozens of results in the “Video” tab.
One of the accounts that posted videos we saw has published erotic audio for years but has sprinkled in sexually graphic videos more recently. Another account, which was named with a long string of alphanumeric characters, has been publishing equally nonsensically-titled explicit videos as a podcast account since mid-November.
Spotify representative Laura Batey told The Verge in an email that the examples we provided “have been removed due to violation of our policies.” Those policies include forbidding sexually explicit material. We asked Spotify for more information on how the videos made it past its moderation and will update here if it responds.
The videos we found appear to be unmoderated podcast uploads, and reporting them isn’t very convenient. The Spotify app lacks a button for doing so — instead, users have to copy the content’s URL and head to a webpage for reporting possible violations.
Porn on Spotify isn’t a new thing. Other recent Reddit posts contain examples of unexpected explicit video in search results and even erotic audio tracks being suggested in one user’s Discovery Weekly algorithmic playlist. A 2022 Vice story also detailed sexually explicit audio on the platform, as well as other content like graphic nudity in user-made playlist cover art.
ComicContext@mstdn.social ("Comics Outta Context") wrote:
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He left everything to flee war in Syria. What does the war's end mean for his future?
When Syria's dictatorship fell in early December, celebrations broke out around the world - including nearly 6,000 miles away, in Toledo, Ohio. That's where Mohammed al-Refai, a refugee from Syria, lives now. NPR has followed his story for nearly a decade.In 2015, millions of Syrians fled the civil war in their country. al-Refai got a visa to come to the U.S. His parents and siblings, who fled to Jordan, did not. So, he moved on his own to Toledo, where built a new life for himself. He long dreamed of visiting his family and maybe, one day, returning to Syria.With the Syrian civil war now over, we talked to al-Refai about what comes next. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
Elon Musk Doubles Down on His Support for Germany’s Ultra-Right Party
Elon Musk is nothing if not shameless. He proved that again this weekend, when he published an op-ed in one of Germany’s biggest newspapers, Die Welt, doubling down on his earlier support for the racist, far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD). In the op-ed—reportedly published online Saturday and in print Sunday—Musk writes that the […]
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
NYT has been taking Ls for a hundred years. https://www.reddit.com/r/agedlikemilk/s/ZIrVrjblBe
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pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
Defend the FFRF! The bigots are attacking them now.
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Is your iPhone sharing photos with Apple by default?
iOS 18 introduced an “Enhanced Visual Search” toggle for the Photos app. | Screenshot: iOS 18 Settings app
Apple occasionally makes choices that tarnish its strong privacy-forward reputation, like when it was secretly collecting users’ Siri interactions. Yesterday, a blog post from developer Jeff Johnson highlighted such a choice: an “Enhanced Visual Search” toggle for the Apple Photos app that is seemingly on by default, giving your device permission to share data from your photos with Apple.
Sure enough, when I checked my iPhone 15 Pro this morning, the toggle was switched to on. You can find it for yourself by going to Settings > Photos (or System Settings > Photos on a Mac). Enhanced Visual Search lets you look up landmarks you’ve taken pictures of or search for those images using the names of those landmarks.
To see what it enables in the Photos app, swipe up on a picture you’ve taken of a building and select “Look up Landmark,” and a card will appear that ideally identifies it. Here are a couple of examples from my phone:
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25809082/Look_Up_Landmark.png)
Screenshots: Apple Photos
That’s definitely Austin’s Cathedral of Saint Mary, but the image on the right is not a Trappist monastery, but the Dubuque, Iowa city hall building.
On its face, it’s a convenient expansion of Photos’ Visual Look Up feature that Apple introduced in iOS 15 that lets you identify plants or, say, find out what those symbols on a laundry tag mean. But Visual Look Up doesn’t need special permission to share data with Apple, and this does.
A description under the toggle says you’re giving Apple permission to “privately match places in your photos with a global index maintained by Apple.” As for how, there are details in an Apple machine-learning research blog about Enhanced Visual Search that Johnson links to:
The process starts with an on-device ML model that analyzes a given photo to determine if there is a “region of interest” (ROI) that may contain a landmark. If the model detects an ROI in the “landmark” domain, a vector embedding is calculated for that region of the image.
According to the blog, that vector embedding is then encrypted and sent to Apple to compare with its database. The company offers a very technical explanation of vector embeddings in a research paper, but IBM put it more simply, writing that embeddings transform “a data point, such as a word, sentence or image, into an n-dimensional array of numbers representing that data point’s characteristics_.”_
Like Johnson, I don’t fully understand Apple’s research blogs and Apple didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment about Johnson’s concerns. It seems as though the company went to great lengths to keep the data private, in part by condensing image data into a format that’s legible to an ML model.
Even so, making the toggle opt-in, like those for sharing analytics data or recordings or Siri interactions, rather than something users have to discover seems like it would have been a better option.
Heavy Car Dependency Is Making American Lives Less Satisfying, Study Shows
This story was originally published by the Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The United States, with its enormous highways, sprawling suburbs and neglected public transport systems, is one of the most car-dependent countries in the world. But this arrangement of obligatory driving is making many Americans actively unhappy, new research has found. The […]
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
burning protest | Flickr by Alex Schaefer:
Prints for purchase https://www.flickr.com/photos/alex-schaefer-art/albums/72157628029142819
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Architecting one of the year’s most ambitious films
Adrien Brody in The Brutalist | A24
Brady Corbet’s 3.5-hour saga is a tale of one man’s journey through architecture and assimilation — and one of the year’s best films. The director tells The Verge how he got away with it.
Stories that gave us joy (and a new workout routine) in 2024
In a year where there was a plethora of bad news around the world — climate, conflict and more — there were moments of joy in our global coverage. Take a look!
wifi is temporary
ethernet is forevervia @transcaffeine
slightlyoff@toot.cafe ("Alex Russell") wrote:
It's nearly 2025, so time for the annual visit to this page:
2024 was a big year for Windows on Arm
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images
With rumors of Nvidia entering the CPU market, 2025 might be an even bigger year for Microsoft’s Arm efforts.
Azerbaijan's president says crashed jetliner was shot down by Russia unintentionally
https://www.npr.org/2024/12/29/g-s1-40293/azerbaijans-president-says-crashed-jetliner-was-shot-down-by-russia-unintentionally
The Best Video Game Remakes And Remasters Of 2024
2024 was a really good year for video games. (But not so good for the people who make them.) And while it featured a ton of new games, both big and small, this was also a year with a lot of remasters and remakes.
Under a 'grandma moon,' Native Americans honor their sacred pact with salmon
Native American New Year was celebrated on the solstice under a canopy of winter stars. Near a crackling bonfire, the Nisqually tribe shared their culture and renewed their sacred pact with the salmon.
The fall of Syria's dictatorship ripples out to one family in Toledo, Ohio
When Syria's dictatorship fell, celebrations broke out around the world, including in Ohio, where Mohammed al-Refai, a refugee from Syria, lives now. NPR has followed his story for nearly a decade.
What were the biggest life lessons in 2024? Here's what NPR listeners learned
The year is coming to an end and with it, many lessons were learned. Some of which could have altered how we move forward into the new year. NPR listeners provide insight on their lessons from 2024.
Reblogged by slightlyoff@toot.cafe ("Alex Russell"):
tomayac@toot.cafe ("Thomas Steiner :chrome:") wrote:
@bkardell @Meyerweb @igalia I wish all browser vendors would recognize that developers want to build real applications on the Web, as the Web platform has the greatest potential reach of all platforms. But for this, developers need powerful APIs and browser choice. Put these powerful features behind whatever scary prompting UI or additional opt-in browser settings the user needs to activate manually, but please, please implement them.
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
bikemonterey@sfba.social ("Bicycling Monterey 💚🌎🌍🌏") wrote:
"Toronto man creates tiny mobile homes to help unhoused people escape the cold.
"Homes are attached to #bicycles; include heat, electricity and safety features.
…
“The units are also designed with Ontario's #ebike regulations in mind so that they can legally travel on the city's bike lanes if they have to be moved.”
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-tiny-mobile-homes-1.7419805?cmp=rss
#TinyTinyHomes #RyanDonais #TemporaryHousing #homelessness #shelter #homeless
Belgium will ban sales of disposable e-cigarettes in a first for the EU
The ban, which will take effect on Jan. 1, is based on health and environmental grounds and is a groundbreaking move for European Union nations.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
The Will Smith Spaghetti Index has become a measure of progress in AI generated video.
Here’s the latest posted to r/chatgpt:
Still looks like shit. ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/29/the-will-smith-spaghetti-index.html
BREAKING: The media have found a new way to not say "racist" -- "bias-motivated".
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
[My Letter box log of Se7en (Spoilers)] (https://boxd.it/8d7Rcz):
Maybe this is an obvious detail, but I hadn’t noticed before. For the entire film, detectives Summerset and Mills sludge through damp darkness searching for the truth. It’s not until the third and final act that we ever see the sun. And in that last minute, the truth is revealed in a dark and damp box.
I also noticed how Fincher used themes of beginnings and ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/28/my-letter-box-log-of.html
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A plane has caught fire at a South Korean airport and rescue work is underway
The emergency office says the plane caught fire at an airport in Muan after its landing gear malfunctioned.
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
Drippy_Spudd@cyberpunk.lol ("Jaz Distro") wrote:
when liberal businesses say "🏳️🌈all are welcome here🏳️🌈" they mean your ~money~ is welcome. homeless folks are still excluded.
WHO chief recounts narrow escape at Yemen airport hit by Israeli missile
The World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says he and colleagues "escaped death narrowly" when an Israeli airstrike targeted Yemen's main airport.
Meta’s ‘software update issue’ has been breaking Quest headsets for weeks
A Meta Quest 3 on a charging dock. | Photo by David Pierce / The Verge
Meta updated a note on the top of its Quest support site to say that a “software update issue” has been bricking Quest 2, Quest 3, and Quest 3S headsets. The company writes that while “most” people can now use their headsets normally, it’s “actively working on resolving the issue for all users.”
That Meta is now saying it’s working on a fix “for all users” may be good news for Quest 2 and 3 owners who’ve reported that Meta wouldn’t fix or replace their headsets because they were out of warranty. Some Reddit users say the company has emailed a confirmation that they were getting out-of-warranty service for the issue, and a Meta support forum community manager wrote in an update yesterday that Meta’s customer support “should have new directions on how to support users now.”
We're aware that some new Meta Quest 3S devices are having trouble with the initial software update. Our team is working on a solution but in the meantime, please use our software update tool (https://t.co/bgR14KPfvv) to resolve this issue. We appreciate your patience while we…
— Meta Quest Help (@MetaQuestHelp) December 6, 2024
Meta posted on December 6th that there were software update issues affecting “some new Quest 3S devices,” but didn’t mention Quest 2 or 3 headsets or what software version was involved, either then or in an earlier version of the new support site message that UploadVR reported this week. The company announced on December 9th that it was rolling out its most recent update, Meta Quest v71, adding features like a revamped virtual desktop display connection method and keyboard passthrough support in virtual environments.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Heh. Looks like Elon tried purchasing Substack back in 2023 according to a recent report. 😅
https://www.newsweek.com/elon-musk-twitter-substack-x-1987589
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
falcennial ("millennial falcon") wrote:
@fromjason sounds like a logical progression of american political, corporate, and media landscape.
I suspect (due to fecklessness and disorganisation) that may be a longer time scale than we'd intuitively expect, but I would definitely agree it's upcoming.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
I have a prediction for 2025 that I think is inevitable:
Big media conglomerates will start acquiring publishing platforms like Substack. Indie journalists who’ve strayed too far from the trad-media script will be deprioritized in the platforms’ recommendation engines.
People will cry fowl but there won’t be much anyone (in the US) can do about it. I can even see some legislation passed to help these acquisitions in some ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/28/i-have-a-prediction-for.html
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan") wrote:
“To Further Its Mission of Benefitting Everyone, OpenAI Will Become Fully for-Profit”
Capitalism is a helluva drug, y’all.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
MAGA and tech bros fighting for the worst type of person award.
jscalzi@threads.net ("John Scalzi") wrote:
Don't tweet from the bottom of a K-hole, this is your billionaire subtweet of the day
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Theatre drama: According to a Reels post by castingbythem, some theatres over reported the number of employees by tens or even hundreds and made off with millions of
dollars in some cases. Allegedly, these theatres counted unpaid actors and staff as full-time paid employees.As someone dialed into the Atlanta theatre scene in 2020, I remember how many actors, comedians, and stage workers struggled to meet their basic ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/28/theatre-drama-according-to-a.html
Magnus Carlsen quits chess championship after refusing to change out of jeans
The Norwegian chess grandmaster was fined $200 and given a warning by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) to change into acceptable attire or be disqualified.
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
jenniferplusplus@hachyderm.io ("Jenniferplusplus") wrote:
With friends like Joe Biden, who needs enemies
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
John Stewart on Crossfire (2005):
"Tucker Carlson: Is John Kerry the best the Democrats can do?
Jon Stewart: I always thought in a democracy—and again, I don’t know, I’ve only ever lived in this country—that there’s a process where they call’em primaries. And they don’t always go with the best, but they go with whoever won."
What a quaint little anecdote about our old Democratic process. Anyway, you can see on ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/28/john-stewart-on-crossfire-tucker.html
Big Lots reaches deal to keep hundreds of U.S. stores open
Big Lots said Friday it will be sold to Gordon Brothers Retail Partners, a firm that specializes in distressed companies.
xor@tech.intersects.art ("Parker Higgins") wrote:
Alright, for the next few nights @helpingfriendlybot should be posting data about each #Phish song they play from Madison Square Garden!
Normal caveats apply: this thing is spaghetti code and debugging is tricky and I will be at the shows so can't do much if things stop working. The trick is to surrender to the flow
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
How can anyone trust any organization infiltrated by assholes? Applies to the Democratic party as well as atheists.
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The US proposes rules to make healthcare data more secure
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
The US Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is proposing new cybersecurity requirements for healthcare organizations aimed at protecting patients’ private data in the event of cyberattacks, reports Reuters. The rules come after major cyberattacks like one that leaked the private information of more than 100 million UnitedHealth patients earlier this year.
The OCR’s proposal includes requiring that healthcare organizations make multifactor authentication mandatory in most situations, that they segment their networks to reduce risks of intrusions spreading from one system to another, and that they encrypt patient data so that even if it’s stolen, it can’t be accessed. It would also direct regulated groups to undertake certain risk analysis practices, keep compliance documentation, and more.
The rule is part of the cybersecurity strategy that the Biden administration announced last year. Once finalized, it would update the Security Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which regulates doctors, nursing homes, health insurance companies, and more, and was last updated in 2013.
US deputy national security advisor Anne Neuberger put the cost of implementing the requirements at “an estimated $9 billion in the first year, and $6 billion in years two through five,” writes Reuters. The proposal is due to be published in the Federal Register on January 6th, which will kick off the 60-day public comment period before the final rule is set.
Y2K seems like a joke now, but in 1999 people were really freaking out
People feared the computer glitch would mean "the end of the world as we know it." Thankfully, Y2K didn't live up to the hype after years and billions of dollars were spent on painstaking preparation.
Reblogged by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
downey@floss.social ("Michael Downey 🚩") wrote:
@fromjason Related:
https://web.nypl.org/blog/2019/07/17/literary-tattoos-of-nypl-staff
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Futurism, Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, 1954:
"FUTURISM, initiated with the publication of Marinetti’s Manifesto of Futurism in 1909, was the most aggressive and, if short-lived, certainly the most polemic art movement of our time. Its revolutionary ideas were empiric rather than pedagogic and were filled with iconoclasm in its defiant repudiation of traditional art, supplanting idols of the past with the ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/28/futurism-sidney-janis-gallery-new.html
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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says U.S. could hit debt limit in weeks
Yellen told Congress her agency will need to start taking "extraordinary measures," or special accounting maneuvers intended to prevent the nation from hitting the debt ceiling, as early as Jan. 14.
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Found this old book stamp for The New York Public Library (1920s) in the Hathi Trust archives.
This would be a dope tattoo, right? https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nyp.33433078571795
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Olivia Hussey, star of the 1968 film 'Romeo and Juliet,' dies at 73
Hussey was 15 when director Franco Zeffirelli cast her in his adaptation of the Shakespeare tragedy. The film won two Oscars and Hussey won a Golden Globe for best new actress for her part as Juliet.
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
I'm sufficiently irrelevant to the movement that I'm probably safe.
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
Whoa. American Atheists national convention is being held in Minneapolis in April? May have to show up and hope I don't get beat up.
https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2024/12/28/do-i-want-to-hang-out-with-atheists-any-more/
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The SwitchBot S10, one of our favorite robovac / mop hybrids, is $500 off
The SwitchBot S10 offers a nearly hands-free cleaning experience for $699.99. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
If you’re somebody who likes to clean and declutter in preparation for a new year, one way to speed it up is by investing in a good robot vacuum. The SwitchBot S10 is one of our favorite vacuums that also happens to be a terrific mop, too, and is currently down to its all-time low price of $699.99 ($500 off) when you clip the on-page coupon at Amazon. It’s also available for the same price directly from SwitchBot when you apply the promo code BFCM500A.
Of all the robot vacuums we’ve ever tested, the SwitchBot S10 offers the most hands-free experience, so you really can set it and forget it. The self-cleaning roller mop does an excellent job of polishing up your floors, and is even capable of lifting itself up to keep carpets dry. What’s more, the Switch S10 comes with an auto-empty dock as well as a separate battery-powered dock water station, which means the bot can empty and refill its own water tank. Just bear in mind you’ll have to hook it into your water supply.
Aside from offering a fantastic mopping and hands-free experience, the SwitchBot S10 is also a good vacuum with 6,500Pa suction power and decent AI-powered obstacle avoidance, although it admittedly can’t rival specs from competitors like Roborock, Dreame, and Ecovacs. That said, the SwitchBot S10 costs about $1,000 less, and for the price it does a great job of leaving the floor mostly spotless.
Read our SwitchBot S10 review.
Some more deals to kickstart your weekend
- The Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill is on sale for $79.99 ($160 off) at Amazon, which is an all-time low price. The under-desk walking treadmill supports Bluetooth and can connect to Android smartwatches, allowing you to keep tabs on your steps and other metrics from your wrist. That said, it works best if you own a Mobvoi smartwatch, given you’ll need the Mobvoi Health app if you want to save your data on your phone. Read our review.
- Sennheiser’s Momentum 4 Wireless headphones are on sale for $199.99 ($200 off) at Amazon, which is their best price to date. The over-ears headphones deliver impressive battery life and can last a whopping 60 hours on a single charge, which is why they’re amongst our favorites. They also offer other impressive capabilities, including excellent noise cancellation, comfort, and sound. Read our review.
- The Twelve South AirFly Pro is on sale for $39.99 ($15 off) at Amazon and Best Buy, which is its second best price to date. The Bluetooth transmitter features an integrated 3.5mm cable, allowing you to pair two sets of wireless Bluetooth-equipped wireless headphones or earbuds to in-flight entertainment systems. It works with other tech as well, like treadmills and the Nintendo Switch, while offering an an aux input for older devices.
Israel detains a Gaza hospital director, Palestinian medical officials say
Gaza's Health Ministry said Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, was arrested by Israeli forces along with dozens of other staff and taken to an interrogation center.
Trump Asks the Supreme Court to Save TikTok
Weeks before the Supreme Court’s emergency session that could determine the fate of TikTok in the United States, Donald Trump on Friday issued a legal filing asking the high court to pause the law that would ban the Chinese-owned social media app if it isn’t sold by January 19. The filing did not comment on […]
Hackers hijacked legitimate Chrome extensions to try to steal data
Illustration by Carlo Cadenas / The Verge
A cyberattack campaign inserted malicious code into multiple Chrome browser extensions as far back as mid-December, Reuters reported yesterday. The code appeared designed to steal browser cookies and authentication sessions, targeting “specific social media advertising and AI platforms,” according to a blog post from Cyberhaven, one of the companies that was targeted.
Cyberhaven blames a phishing email for the attack, writing in a separate technical analysis post that the code appeared to specifically target Facebook Ads accounts. According to _Reuters, s_ecurity researcher Jaime Blasco believes the attack was “just random” and not targeting Cyberhaven specifically. He posted on X that he’d found VPN and AI extensions that contained the same malicious code that was inserted into Cyberhaven.
Other extensions possibly affected include Internxt VPN, VPNCity, Uvoice, and ParrotTalks, as Bleeping Computer writes.
Our team has confirmed a malicious cyberattack that occurred on Christmas Eve, affecting Cyberhaven's Chrome extension. Here's our post about the incident and the steps we're taking: https://t.co/VTBC73eWda
Our security team is available 24/7 to assist affected customers and…
— Cyberhaven (@CyberhavenInc) December 27, 2024
Cyberhaven says hackers pushed an update (version 24.10.4) of its Cyberhaven data loss prevention extension containing the malicious code on Christmas Eve at 8:32PM ET. Cyberhaven says it discovered the code on December 25th at 6:54PM ET and removed it within an hour, but that the code was active until December 25th at 9:50PM ET. The company says it released a clean version in its 24.10.5 update.
Cyberhaven’s recommendations for companies that may be affected include that they check their logs for suspicious activity and revoke or rotate any passwords not using the FIDO2 multifactor authentication standard. Prior to publishing its posts, the company notified customers via an email that TechCrunch reported Friday morning.
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
That savior complex makes Musk look even more ridiculous.
https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2024/12/28/i-like-this-neil-degrass-tyson-fellow/
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How to fight ageism in the world around you — and in yourself
Discrimination based on someone's age is so ingrained in society that most of us don't notice it. Yet it affects us all and fighting it not only helps make a better society, it also helps us live longer, healthier lives.
Severe weather could disrupt holiday travel, with tornadoes forecast in the South
Severe thunderstorms and an outbreak of tornadoes could disrupt holiday travel Saturday. More than 3,000 flights were delayed.
Instagram reel roundup: School for dads, COVID conundrum, skateboarders in skirts
The most popular Instagram reels from our Goats and Soda team: Bolivia's bold women skateboarders, ponytail-making lessons, a perplexing COVID situation, fog harvesting.
Elon Musk vs. Laura Loomer: MAGA Clashes Over Immigration
Less than a month before Donald Trump returns to office, two of his most ardent allies have plunged into a fierce online debate over immigration, specifically the government’s visa program that allows American companies to hire so-called “highly skilled” foreign workers. The clash started on Monday with Laura Loomer, the far-right social media character known […]
A Look Back At The Gaming Highs And Lows Of 2024
We’re in the final days of 2024, a chance to look back and assess the year that was. What were the highs and lows, the disappointments that left us bereft and the surprises that reignited our love for games? And, importantly, how did Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo navigate this awkward period in which all of their…
10 terrific Nintendo Switch games from 2024 to check out
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images
We’re all impatiently awaiting Nintendo’s next console, but in the meantime, it’s been quite the sendoff year for the Switch.
Putin apologizes to Azerbaijani leader for 'tragic incident' involving crashed plane
The Kremlin said air defense systems were firing near Grozny due to a Ukrainian drone strike as the Azerbaijani airliner attempted to land, but stopped short of saying one of these hit the plane.
This Week’s Episode of Reveal: A World War II Incident Nearly Lost to History
It was their first day in battle and the two best friends had just switched places. Bob Fordyce rested while Frank Hartzell crawled down into the shallow foxhole, taking his turn chipping away at the frozen ground. Just then, German artillery fire began falling all around them. With his body plastered to the ground, Hartzell […]
Reblogged by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
Nonya_Bidniss@infosec.exchange ("Nonya Bidniss :CIAverified:") wrote:
It's a point of pride for Marines to clarify this terminology to civilians: a person who has ended their service in the Marines may be called a "former" Marine but never an "ex-Marine." Except in cases like this, where the individual commits crimes or otherwise brings shame on the title. Case in point, this is an ex-Marine who has taken a public shit on his claim to call himself a Marine. (The Army tries to do this with "Soldier for Life" but honestly its propaganda just isn't as good.) https://apnews.com/article/tv-reporter-attack-trumps-america-40c4c3622bf85baef9cefbd50d50fcec
Reblogged by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
markmccaughrean ("Mark McCaughrean") wrote:
The King has issued his final official #Caturday portrait for 2024 👑
You're welcome 🙇♂️🙂
#Tigger 😽
#Bengals 🐅
#Photography 📷
#CatsOfMastodon 🐈
