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Global Semiconductor Chip Shortage is Becoming a Crisis

Andrew Orr ·

The world’s supply of semiconductor chips has faced shortages due to COVID-19, but things have gotten worse.

PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X shortages are just the tip of the iceberg. Big phone launches from companies like Apple and Samsung have been postponed, new graphics cards are still hard to find, and all over the world car manufacturers are either scaling back production or piling unfinished cars up in parking lots while they wait for the chips needed to power their software systems.

Darn it, I’m looking forward to the upcoming Nintendo Switch refresh.

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Twitter's Jack Dorsey Sells First Tweet as an NFT For U.S.$2.9 Million

Charlotte Henry ·

Twitter boss Jack Dorsey has sold his first tweet. He did so as an NFT, with the asset earning around U.S.$2.9 million, Reuters reported.

The tweet – “just setting up my twttr” – was Dorsey’s first tweet, made on March 21, 2006. The NFT was sold via auction on a platform called Valuables, which is owned by the U.S.-based company Cent. It was bought using the cryptocurrency Ether, for 1630.5825601 ETH, which was worth $2,915,835.47 at the time of sale, Cameron Hejazi, the CEO and co-founder of Cent confirmed. Cent confirmed the buyer is Sina Estavi. Estavi’s Twitter profile, @sinaEstavi, says he is based in Malaysia and is CEO of the blockchain company Bridge Oracle. Estavi told Reuters he was “thankful” when asked for comment about the purchase.

Podcast

NON ADEPTO DEPRENSUS! — Mac Geek Gab 862

John F. Braun & Dave Hamilton · · Add Comment

You know the drill: Don’t Get Caught! That means you want to understand your technology as best you can. Good news: Your two favorite geeks are here to help! Listen as John and Dave share your tips and answer your questions. Topics include Apple’s Privacy tool, Apple TV Control Center, APFS, Time Machine, Messages, and the downfalls of pop-up blockers. Press play and enjoy learning (at least) five new things!

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New Studies Show no Harmful Effects to Humans From 5G

Andrew Orr ·

Researchers from the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) and the Swinburne University of Technology in Australia analyzed studies that find no evidence of 5G harming humans.

Aside from looking at animal and lab experiments, one review also analyzed epidemiological studies of radar, which uses the same sort of RF (low-level energy fields above 6 gigahertz to as high as 300 GHz) that 5G is expected to rely on. Their conclusions, based on reviewing data from over 100 studies, should be reassuring.

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Apple's Augmented Reality Headset Could Use Eye Tracking Hardware

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple’s long-rumored augmented reality headset could contain eye tracking hardware for user input according. This could mean handheld controllers are not necessary, according to AppleInsider, which reported on a note by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Kuo in a note to investors on Friday said the headset will use a specialized transmitter and receiver to detect eye movements, blinks and related physical information. The analyst believes eye tracking will soon be the most important human-machine interface technology for AR and VR wearables. “Currently, users primarily operate the HMD (most of which are VR devices) using handheld controllers,” Kuo writes. “The biggest challenge with this type of operation is that it does not provide a smooth user experience. We believe that if the HMD uses an eye-tracking system, there will be several advantages.”

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Personalized Artwork on Apple Music Personal Radio Stations no Longer Available

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple Music appears to have removed the personalized artwork for its personal radio station feature. Reddit users spotted the change, which was reported by MacRumors.

‌Apple Music‌ previously generated a custom personal radio station graphic based on a user’s ‌Apple Music‌ profile picture, but Apple now appears to have removed this feature, replacing all personal radio station artwork with an identical red graphic. The change may be in line with a number of amendments to ‌Apple Music‌’s artwork that have taken place over the last year, such as animated album covers. The change, first spotted by users on Reddit, appears to have taken place very recently. Some users seem to be unhappy about the change, commenting that the “profile picture variant made it feel more personal than this.”