Sale: AdGuard’s Family Plan is Now Just $29, Down From $129
Cool Stuff Found

Sale: AdGuard's Family Plan is Now Just $29, Down From $129

Andrew Orr ·

Plans for AdGuard adblocker are now on sale through StackSocial, and as of this writing the deal ends in seven days. This is the adblocker I’ve been using for a few years and one that I personally recommend. Personal Plan – This is a lifetime license that is only available to new users. The maximum number of devices you can activate the service on is three, including desktop and mobile. US$19.99 US$59 Family Plan – This is a lifetime license that is only available to new users. The maximum number of devices you can activate the service on is nine, including desktop and mobile. US$29.99 US$129. System requirements: iOS 10.0 or later, OS X 10.10 Yosemite (64 bit) or later. Unredeemed licenses can be returned for store credit within 30 days of purchase. Once your license is redeemed, all sales are final.

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Proposed Bill Would Ban Bots From Buying Online Goods

Andrew Orr ·

A report from PCMag: Democrats are reintroducing a bill that would ban automated bots from buying online goods. The legislation aims to stop scalpers.

The proposed legislation expands on an earlier law passed in 2016 that outlawed automated bots from circumventing control measures to buy up ticket sales for public events, such as music concerts and sporting events. In addition, the law made it illegal for scalpers to resell the tickets obtained through the bot.

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Intel Stockpiles Legacy Hardware for Security Research at Costa Rica Facility

Andrew Orr ·

The Wall Street Journal reports that Intel has a facility in Costa Rica where it stores legacy hardware for security research.

Intel’s issue reflects a wider concern: Legacy technology can introduce cybersecurity weaknesses. Tech makers constantly improve their products to take advantage of speed and power increases, but customers don’t always upgrade at the same pace. This creates a long tail of old products that remain in widespread use, vulnerable to attacks.

Cool Stuff Found

'Libreddit' is a New Frontend Client for Reddit Designed for Privacy

Andrew Orr ·

Libreddit is a new frontend for Reddit, written in Rust, that aims to preserve privacy. The developer shared the service on r/Privacy. “Reddit tracks a lot of data but Libreddit logs nothing and uses no JavaScript by default so client-side monitoring isn’t possible. There are 35 community-hosted instances that can be used to access Libreddit; one can spread their traffic across multiple for even more privacy. 7 of our instances are .onion hidden services so you can browse Libreddit using Tor.” Official Instance: https://libreddit.spike.codes.  If this gets too slow due to traffic, use another instance.

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Vitalik Buterin Introduces EIP-4488 to Help Reduce Ethereum Gas Fees

Andrew Orr ·

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of the Ethereum blockchain, is proposing EIP-4488 as a way to help reduce gas fees.

After highlighting concerns regarding the transaction fees on the Ethereum network, Buterin suggested the new EIP-4488, saying that it would “decrease transaction calldata gas cost, and add a limit of how much total transaction calldata can be in a block.”

In other words, EIP-4488 would limit the total transaction calldata, where data from external calls to functions are stored, before reducing the calldata gas cost to remove the possibility of breaking the network.

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Rumor: Jack Dorsey to Leave Current Role as Twitter CEO

Andrew Orr ·

A report from CNBC on Monday claims that Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey will step down from his role at the company.

It’s unclear who’s set to succeed Dorsey or the timing of a potential announcement. It’s also unknown why Dorsey, 45, would take a step back. But if he steps down, the next CEO will have to meet Twitter’s aggressive internal goals. The company said earlier this year it aims to have 315 million monetizable daily active users by the end of 2023 and to at least double its annual revenue in that year.

Update: Mr. Dorsey has confirmed the rumor and announced his resignation.

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Scientists use Cyberpunk Albatrosses to Scan for Infrasound at Sea

Andrew Orr ·

Wired is out with a cool story on Monday. Scientists fit albatrosses with sensor-laded backpacks to scan for infrasound.

Their wingspans, which can be 11 feet long, are lengthier than any human is tall. This allows them to spend considerable time simply floating on air currents above open waters, something that conserves energy as they embark on foraging trips. Not only do they fly across vast swaths of isolated ocean, but they don’t dive into the water, so any sensors attached to them wouldn’t get especially wet.

Podcast

Keyboards, Audio, and More! – Mac Geek Gab 902

John F. Braun & Dave Hamilton · · Add Comment

What’s more delicious than the sound of your fingers typing on a chunky mechanical keyboard? Hi-res audio coming out of your AirPods, of course! Good news: in today’s episode your two favorite geeks give you both! That’s not all, though. John and Dave talk through more Quick Tips and Cool Stuff Found than you can shake a stick at, and even answer your questions, too. Press play and enjoy learning at least five new things!