We have a deal on the The Complete Cartoon Animator 4 PRO for Mac Bundle. It includes Cartoon Animator 4 PRO for Mac, 2D Facial Mocap Suite, and the Cartoon Animator 4 Training 3-in-1 Bundle. The first app is an animation app, while the second is motion-capture software that lets you use your own face to animate a cartoon face. The training bundle includes 55 lectures and 6 hours of training content. You get this package through our deal for $199.
Tim Cook Criticizes Facebook's Libra Currency
Tim Cook spoke with French newspaper Les Echos where he said that currencies should stay in the hands of governments, not private companies.
Watch the Creepy Teaser Clip for M. Knight Shyamalan's Apple TV+ Show 'Servant
A teaser for forthcoming Apple TV+ show Servant from M. Knight Shyamalan landed Thursday. The show is centered around a couple that is in mourning after being affected by a tragedy. It will be available on November 28th. The clip is seriously creepy.
Lawmakers Ask Spotify to Provide Information in Apple Antitrust Probe
U.S. lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee have asked Spotify to provide details into allegations it made against Apple.
TikTok Bans Political Ads in U.S. and EU
Short video sharing app TikTok said Friday it will not allow political ads in the U.S. and EU, The Next Web reported. It already had a similar policy in India.
This is quite a different approach as compared to US-based tech platforms such as Gooogle, Facebook, and Twitter. All of them allow paid political ads but with transparency programs that allow people to see who paid for the ad. While we won’t see some hilarious attempts from politicians to connect with youth trough ironically funny videos, we might still see a lot of political content around. In this year’s assembly elections in India, the platform made a significant impact in making the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi more popular.
Things Apple Can Learn From the Microsoft Surface
Microsoft unveiled new products this, including an updated, dual-screen, Microsoft Surface. Over at iMore, Rene Ritchie made some suggestions about what Apple could learn from the product.
Apple’s reportedly been kicking around foldable projects since back in the days of iPhone 4 but hasn’t found anything they’d be happy turning into a shipping product yet. For them, the technology just isn’t mature enough yet. And that’s ok. That’s Apple. There were years of Windows Mobile and a decade of Tablet PC before we got the iPhone and iPad, and Microsoft Spot before we got the Apple Watch. Apple wants to learn from this before they do that. But for us nerds, this is still super interesting. Now, what Microsoft showed off weren’t technically foldables. They were more like… hingeables?
One Year Later: Bloomberg Hasn't Retracted its iCloud Spy Chip Story
This story doesn’t need me piling on, but I think it’s astounding that a media organization with integrity, gravitas, etc. etc. still hasn’t retracted its debunked theory one year later. And the journalists who wrote the story are now in charge of Bloomberg‘s cybersecurity division. If by some miracle we learn that there really are spy chips I will most certainly apologize. But with zero evidence, I think that probability is low.
There’s been a lot of smoke, but no firings. Quite the opposite. It’s been a year since Bloomberg Businessweek published an extensively debunked story claiming that companies including Apple and Amazon had been hacked. Yet since then, all of Bloomberg‘s few responses and actions have only doubled down on how this publication lacks credibility on the topic.
Governments Urge Facebook to Give Backdoor to End-to-End Encryption
The U.S and UK governments signed a major data access agreement and urged Facebook to provide a backdoor to end-to-end encryption.
Apple's 'The Banker' Movie to Close AMI Fest November 21
Apple’s movie called The Banker will close out AFI Fest on November 21. It joins crime thriller Queen & Slim which will open the festival.
IMF Calls on Policymakers to Address Digital Currencies
Economists at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are calling on policymakers around the world to address the “notable risks” of privately-issued digital currencies, otherwise known as stablecoins. Facebook’s Libra is one such example. Should central banks issue their own digital currencies?
The two economists suggest that stablecoins could undermine financial stability, and that stablecoin users risk losing their money: “Whether stablecoins are indeed stable is questionable.” It depends on the safety and availability of the underlying assets, and whether they are “protected from other creditors if the stablecoin provider goes bankrupt.”
One of the worries is that technology companies don’t have the same consumer protection rules as banks do. I look forward to seeing how this will play out. I certainly trust banks more than I do Facebook.
Report Says iPhone SE 2 Will Have an iPhone 8 Body
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that the iPhone SE 2 will appear in Q1 2020 but it will have the form factor of an iPhone 8.
The iPhone 11 Glows Thanks to its Glass Back
Someone noticed that their iPhone 11 glows when you turn on the flashlight. The latest models have a special matte glass material on the back. While the iPhone 8 and later have had a glass back, it wasn’t matte and so didn’t produce this effect (Or at least, this is the first time I’ve seen this).
When you turn the flash light on, the iPhone 11 glass back glows. Not sure if the iPhone XR did this too, but I thought the effect was pretty cool.
You can watch it in action on YouTube here.
Tech vs Governments, Siri Learning and Unlearning – TMO Daily Observations 2019-10-03
Dave Hamilton and Andrew Orr join host Kelly Guimont to discuss apps vanishing from App Stores, and how Siri can now use third party apps.
How to Enable Night Shift Mode in iOS 13 and Maybe Sleep Better
Night Shift Mode is available in iOS 13. You can enable it through the Display & Brightness Menu manually and set it to come on automatically.
Securely Store and Access Your Files with E2E Encrypted Cloud Storage: $99
We have a deal on a 1-year subscription to MEGA Cloud Storage PRO, a cloud storage platform using end-to-end encryption. The service encrypts what you upload before you upload it—and, you control the keys. You can store, access or share your files from within your web browser, or through dedicated Android, iOS, or Windows Phone apps. Our deal has three levels of storage, starting with 1TB at $99 per year.
Adobe Launches Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements 2020
Adobe has unveiled the 2020 versions of Photoshop Elements and Preimere Elements which include new Guided Edits and expanded HEVC support.
Amazon Planning $800 Million Data Centre in Argentina
Amazon is planning a new cloud data center in Argentina, according to a Bloomberg News report. It will invest $800 million in the project over 10 years.
The Seattle-based company is preparing to invest about $800 million in the project … will reap considerable tax benefits by locating the data center in the Bahia Blanca-Coronel Rosales districts of the province of Buenos Aires, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they’re not authorized to speak publicly. Amazon’s decision to put part of its cloud infrastructure in South America’s second-largest economy is a big win for the Argentine government, which is keen to diversify the economy into digital services, nanotechnology, aerospace and more. Earlier this year, the national congress unanimously passed a law creating incentives for tech companies to set up shop there.
Uber Helicopters Available to All Users From JFK
Uber made its helicopters available from JFK Airport to all users. Users within the geofence will be able to book the flights via the app, Reuters reported.
The company announced its Uber Copter offer on Thursday, saying flights to and from Lower Manhattan will become available to all Uber users on Oct. 3. Uber made the feature available to its premium members in June. The roughly eight-minute flight will cost between $200 and $225 per person and include ground transportation on either side of the trip. Passengers can bring along a small suitcase and have to watch a safety video before takeoff, similar to that on an airplane. The flights are operated by HeliFlite Shares, a licensed company, and Uber’s prices roughly compare to those of competitors offering helicopter rides to JFK… JFK is one of the countTry’s largest airports and car trips from congested Manhattan can take anywhere from one to two hours, while public transit takes between 50 and 75 minutes.
32BitAppCheck Helps You Transition to macOS Catalina
32BitAppCheck is an app that scans for 32-bit apps on your Mac. It can help you prepare for macOS Catalina because this release will end support for 32-bit apps. It takes about 30 seconds to scan your computer (longer if you have hard drives plugged in). Once it’s finished it will present a list of all the 32-bit apps it found, which you can save as an .RTF file.
Information then collected in the app’s window begins with a list of 32-bit applications, followed by 32-bit preference panes found in System preferences. Then, you will see 32-bit system extensions, and 32-bit system frameworks. These software will include both Apple and 3rd-party software. You can then edit the information, changing fonts, and adding notes. Click Save to save the information in an RTF file. The most recent information with you edits is also saved within the app.
You can download the app here. As this is an app outside of the Mac App Store, I scanned it for malware using VirusTotal, and it appears to be clean. For an additional resource I’ve also written about Go64, which does the same thing and the UI is a bit more friendly.
Did China Ask Apple to Remove This Hong Kong Protest App?
Apple recently removed a Hong Kong protest app from the App Store, saying that it encouraged users to break the law.
DuckDuckGo Survey Shows People Taking Action on Privacy
A recent survey (n=1,114) by DuckDuckGo found that 79.2% of U.S. adults had taken privacy measures in the past year, like adjusting privacy settings on social media or just using social media less.
43.1% (± 2.9) removed personal information or posts that they didn’t want the network or others to see.
35.0% (± 2.8)made their profile completely private.
34.8% (± 2.8) stopped adding location tags to their posts.
38.2% (± 2.8) changed which data they allow the network to collect and share about them.
I think it’s great to see more people paying attention to their privacy. For most people, privacy is something that you don’t notice often until you start losing it.
EU Courts Can Tell Facebook to Remove Illegal Comments Worldwide
Courts in EU countries can tell Facebook to remove comments declared illegal the European Court of Justice, the EU’s top court, has ruled.
How Motorola Helps Enable Government Surveillance
Since 2017 Motorola Solutions has invested US$1.7 billion to support or buy companies that build police body cameras, train the cameras with facial recognition, find suspects in videos, and track vehicle movement via license plates.
The company provided a statement that described its plan to add artificial intelligence products, including object detection and “unusual motion detection,” to a package it sells to public safety agencies. The systems can help flag a potential trespasser or the appearance of smoke, the company said. The company emphasized that the new tools are not meant to make automatic policing decisions but to help officers decide how to act.
Apple Files Amicus Brief in Support of DACA
Apple has filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court to support the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration policy.
Apple has filed many briefs before the Court, but this is the first time that Apple’s CEO Tim Cook and Vice President of Retail and People Deirdre O’Brien are named too.
In its brief, Apple notes that it employs 443 Dreamers who come from more than 25 different countries spanning four continents. Dreamers at Apple run the gamut of roles within the company, including hardware engineering, software engineering, retail, customer support, and operations across 36 states.