Enter our new international giveaway for a chance to win the brand new iPhone 16 Pro.
EU Rules Selling Secondhand eBooks Infringes Copyright
A European court recently ruled that the unauthorized sale of secondhand eBooks infringes upon the owner’s copyrights.
“The decision is not only important for the book sector, but also for the music and film industry, because now also for music and film, downloaded copies may not be resold. The GAU / Media Federation is happy that after many years there is finally clarity about the application of copyright to e-books.
I’m not sure how you would tell the difference between a “used” eBook and new one, unless a proof of purchase was provided. But it’s unfortunate to me that, unlike physical goods, you can’t sell used digital goods.
A Festivus for The Geeks in Us – Mac Geek Gab 794
Cool Stuff Found galore begins this episode, because that’s the spirit of the holiday season. Equally as important, though, are the airing of the grievances, and Mail.app provides a healthy platform for that…with some hints and tips, to be helpful, of course. After all, we each need to learn at least five new things! That’s not all: there are more tips and questions and answers here to enjoy, as well. Press play and join John, Dave, and the rest of the MGG Family for this week’s episode.
NYT Reporters Used a Leaked Location Database to Track the President
I don’t think it’s hyperbole to call this piece “explosive”, “stunning” et cetera. Reporters at the New York Times found a database of location data containing “50 billion location pings from the phones of more than 12 million Americans.” These Americans included two Secret Service agents (and by extension the President), a Department of Defense official, CIA agents leaving for home, and much more. The article is a nightmare to browse because it’s one of their interactive ones, but it’s still worth the read.
The data reviewed by Times Opinion didn’t come from a telecom or giant tech company, nor did it come from a governmental surveillance operation. It originated from a location data company, one of dozens quietly collecting precise movements using software slipped onto mobile phone apps.
2013-2014 Macs No Longer Eligible for Free Screen Repairs
Some MacBook models from 2013-2014 suffered delamination with their anti-reflective screen coating. They are no longer eligible for free repair.
Moskito Smartphone-Controlled Plane with Joystick (Pre-Order): $42.99
We have a deal on the Moskito, a smartphone-controlled plane. Use your thumb to control the speed, and tilt your phone to control the plane with the included joystick. And, you can fly even when it’s dark thanks to the special NIght flight mode. This device ships on January 31st, 2020, but you can pre-order it now for $42.99.
Eight iOS Apps For The Eight Nights of Chanukah
As the Jewish festival of lights begins this weekend, there are a number of apps on iOS that can help you and your family celebrate.
Apple Satellites, Improved Bug Bounties – TMO Daily Observations 2019-12-20
Bryan Chaffin and Charlotte Henry join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Apple getting into satellites for reasons unknown, and new bug bounties.
Lawyers Will Get Most of Your $125 Equifax Settlement
Remember when you signed up to get a US$125 Equifax settlement after its 2017 data breach? Lawyers will get most of it.
The Launch of Boeing's Starliner Spacecraft Didn't go to Plan
Boeing’s Starliner passenger spacecraft launched smoothly on Friday. However, as The Verge reported, things went wrong after that. It is now unable to dock with the International Space Station.
NASA and Boeing are working together to figure out what to do next with the spacecraft. Since the Starliner cannot reach the ISS, Boeing is going to try to bring it safely home, demonstrating how it will land on future missions. It’s possible that Starliner will return to Earth and land at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico in the next 48 hours. However, that’s not official yet, and Boeing says it will provide updates on what the team decides. Today’s botched launch is a big blow for both NASA and Boeing, which have been working for years to get to this flight. Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner is a critical part of NASA’s Commercial Crew program, an initiative to develop private US vehicles to transport astronauts to and from the International Space Station. During today’s test flight, Boeing planned to demonstrate Starliner’s ability to travel to space and dock with the station.
Twitter Removed 5,929 Accounts Linked to 'State-Backed Information Operations'
Twitter announced the removal of 5,929 accounts on Friday. It said the accounts were involved with a “state-backed information campaign” that originated in Saudi Arabia. They were part of a network that consisted of over 88,000 accounts, the firm said in a blog post.
Today, we are sharing comprehensive data about 5,929 accounts which we have removed for violating our platform manipulation policies. Rigorous investigations by our Site Integrity team have allowed us to attribute these accounts to a significant state-backed information operation on Twitter originating in Saudi Arabia. These accounts represent the core portion of a larger network of more than 88,000 accounts engaged in spammy behaviour across a wide range of topics. We have permanently suspended all of these accounts from the service. In order to protect the privacy of potentially compromised accounts repurposed to engage in platform manipulation, and in response to researcher feedback requesting that we pre-filter unrelated spam, we have not disclosed data for all 88,000 accounts. In the interest of offering meaningful transparency, the dataset we are disclosing includes a representative, random sample of the fake and spammy accounts associated with this broader network.
Notes, Photos, and Reminders Now Appear on Mobile iCloud.com
Now that you can log onto iCloud.com via an iOS device, you can access some apps, like Apple Notes, Reminders, Photos, and Find My.
The Day Steve Jobs Returned to Apple
In many ways, Apple without Steve Jobs is unthinkable. Yet, of course, for a period of time, it happened. CultofMac reflected on the day he returned home.
The Apple co-founder didn’t just come as part of the NeXT package. He was a major part of the deal. “I’m not just buying software, I’m buying Steve,” Apple CEO Gil Amelio said at the time. As part of the deal, Jobs got 1.5 million shares of Apple stock. Jobs wasn’t initially intended to be Apple’s new CEO. Bizarrely, Amelio apparently thought Jobs could be contained as a creative force. Amelio figured he could continue running the company, and simply wheel out Jobs whenever Apple needed him.
FCC Determines iPhone Radiation Doesn’t Exceed Safety Levels
The FCC has concluded that iPhone radiation levels are within safety limits, as opposed to a test run by The Chicago Tribune.
You Can Now Earn $1.5 Million From Apple's Bug Bounty Program
Apple’s updated bug bounty program is now live, meaning researchers can earn $1.5 million if they discover key security issues.
267 Million Facebook IDs, Phone Numbers Exposed
A database that contained over 267 million Facebook user IDs, phone numbers, and IDs was discovered on the web. It wasn’t password-protected.
Comparitech partnered with security researcher Bob Diachenko to uncover the Elasticsearch cluster. Diachenko believes the trove of data is most likely the result of an illegal scraping operation or Facebook API abuse by criminals in Vietnam, according to the evidence.
Diachenko immediately notified the internet service provider managing the IP address of the server so that access could be removed. However, Diachenko says the data was also posted to a hacker forum as a download.
Secret Apple Team is Working on Developing Satellite Technology
There is a top-secret team at Apple developing satellite communications technology that may allow it to bypass wireless carriers.
What the Sky Will Look Like When We Collide With Andromeda Galaxy
Our Milky Way galaxy and the Andromeda galaxy are gravitationally bound and will collide in about 4 billion years. Because stars are so far apart in a galaxy, many light years, the term “collision” really means interleave and gravitationally interact. Still, it will light up our sky. NASA has done a simulation to show us what it will look like. That is, if anyone is around to watch!
Adobe Capture Adds Color Shapes and Pattern Builder
Adobe added two big features to the Adobe Capture app. Color Shapes lets you add colors vector shapes to a document in the app, then save to your Creative Cloud library. Pattern Builder lets you create patterns from those vector shapes in your library.
Capture in action. Use your mobile device to turn photos into color themes, patterns, type, materials, brushes, and shapes. Then find those assets in CC Libraries, located right in your favorite desktop and mobile apps — including Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Dimension, XD, and Photoshop Sketch — to use them in all your creative projects.
Logitech Offers 4K Magnetic Webcam for Pro Display XDR
Logitech created a 4K magnetic webcam specifically for Apple’s Pro Display XDR you can use with the 2019 Mac Pro. Apple didn’t include a webcam in the display, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It will be used in environments like music studios where people cover up the webcams anyway. But Logitech’s solution is elegant, with an anodized aluminum finish that won’t look out of place with on Apple device. The magnet is strong enough to stay on even if you put the XDR display in portrait mode, and the screen image will automatically rotate along with it. You can buy it for US$199.
Apple Made its HomeKit Accessory Development Kit Open Source
Apple recently released an open source version of its HomeKit Accessory Development Kit. That means anyone can make HomeKit accessories.
Get this Mandalorian T-Shirt Before Disney Shuts it Down
Have you caught a case of Star Wars fever yet? There’s a new movie out, and people who hopped on the Disney+ train early have been enjoying The Mandalorian. Interestingly, Disney hasn’t had a lot of merch around the show yet, leaving others to fill that gap. Like Etsy shop SmokeScreenPrinting, which has a new Beskar Friends! shirt, printed in silver ink. I cannot confirm if any actual Beskar was harmed in the production of these shirts, but I can confirm that the shop takes more forms of currency than Imperial Credits.
Location Data, Listener Mail – TMO Daily Observations 2019-12-19
Dave Hamilton and John Martellaro join host Kelly Guimont to discuss location data and who gets to use it, as well as some listener mail.
Apple Shares ‘Little America’ Trailer Coming to TV+
Premiering on January 17, 2020, Little America is an anthology series to share the true stories of immigrants. Apple shared a trailer for the series on its YouTube channel.
“Little America,” is written and executive produced by Lee Eisenberg (“The Office,” Good Boys), who serves as showrunner, and executive produced by Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick, “Silicon Valley”), Emily V. Gordon (The Big Sick), Alan Yang (“Master of None,” “Parks and Recreation”), Sian Heder (Tallulah, “Orange Is the New Black”), Joshuah Bearman (Argo), Joshua Davis (Spare Parts) and Arthur Spector (The Shack). Heder also serves as co-showrunner alongside Eisenberg.
Private Social Network MeWe Gets More Premium Features
MeWe is a private social network I’ve reviewed before, and the company announced some new premium features today.