With the VisionPro hype already dead (maybe forever?), bad or tasteless iPad ads, purposeless updates to iPad, Apple dropping their car project, and reaching out to OpenAI or Google for AI services … it certainly feels like it to me. They’ve at least run into their limitations recently however much they want to find the...
The likes of Amazon and AliExpress have given us a false sense of how expensive things should be.
I think that’s a strong point, especially when you look at devices like smart speakers with voice assistants or TV steaming sticks. Those devices should not be $30. If you consider a 3x markup over the cost of parts to be a pretty standard rule of thumb to remain profitable for a consumer electronic product those devices should be a lot closer to $100. When they’re not it should be raising red flags about the company using information gathered from you to make their profits.
I suppose there’s no guarantee that Apple isn’t also collecting that data, but the pricing on those devices in a competitive market seems a lot more consistent with a company that needs a product to make a profit in a more traditional manner. Of course, they take a cut on subscriptions sold through the device, but I suspect that’s not as reliable per-device as a game console collecting a license fee for every device sold.
I was thinking about how I missed having an indoor thermometer that measures humidity. It’s such a small specific thing, one I’d never think of getting unless pushed to it (which I was by one particularly dry winter). But I like having one now....
Is there a specific model you’re talking about? I’m getting a lot of different results searching online and I’m not sure they’re the same. I’m not a fan of the can opener my wife has, though; its cuts are jagged and uneven and sometimes gets the outside dipping into the food.
Last week, NASA announced it is working with a technology development company on a new propulsion system that could transport humans to Mars in only two months – down from the current nine month journey required to reach the Red Planet. Gizmodo reports:...
As there are so many posts about this topic and it’s getting a bit out of hand, I’ll create one central place where we can talk about this stuff and share updates....
Was he the only one who was not supposed to be filmed there, or were none of the contestants supposed to be filmed there? He seemed emotional at the end of his performance and I read about how the performance was dedicated to his late father and how he’d promised his dad he’d sing on the Eurovision stage someday. Was he supposed to not be filmed there so he could have a private space for those emotions? Because that would be really awful if the TV crew was insisting on recording that private moment.
The Weeping Angels apparently originated with Steven Moffat seeing a statue of a weeping angel in a structure in a cemetery and returning later to find out it was gone. At least according to this RadioTimes article. They first appeared in 2007 in the episode Blink....
Yes, if only because the Peacock app is hit or miss for me depending on the device. It’s good on Xbox but I also have my Xbox on a 4K TV with a soundbar. We don’t really have seating for the people coming to watch in that room today, though. The TV downstairs where we have room is on an Apple TV and the Peacock app specifically seems to be sending channel 1 and 2 of the 5.1 mix to the TV’s stereo speakers instead of the stereo mix, so the vocals are almost inaudible. Peacock is the only app doing this. I forced the Apple TV audio settings to stereo instead of auto, but it seems like it’s making a stereo mix out of the 5.1 mix instead so while it’s improved, it’s still not great. The Peacock app also randomly stops letting us rewind or fast forward, only allowing us to restart the program, change subtitles, or view additional info. I have to back out of the stream and then resume from last watch to rewind or fast forward. Peacock is the only app where I have this problem. I’m debating switching to an old Roku but I think I’ll just move the Xbox and soundbar downstairs because I know it will sound better. Maybe use the Roku with the soundbar but then I’ll be relying on WiFi.
UPDATE: Keeping the Apple TV forced to stereo and using the soundbar seems adequate. Still not sure if Peacock is giving the official stereo mix or the Apple TV is having to force one out of the 5.1 mix, but I’m still confident this is ultimately Peacock delivering the stream wrong.
This keeps happening and has been happening for several years now; why isn’t more being done to improve security and find the criminals? I can’t walk into a hospital with so much as a pocket knife because of physical security concerns, but cybercriminals keep taking down a new system seemingly every week, and this article says the software used has been seen for years now.
Can I sue a company for inadequate data protections if my data is breached? I assume I would have to prove damages, and maybe that becomes harder if I can’t tie the victimization to a specific breach. And probably the terms of service make it harder, like I might have to use arbitration and can’t join a class action suit.
The headline makes it sound like they found things in testing that need addressing but I think the parts left to add and additional testing in Florida were always part of the timeline; it’s just not finished and ready to launch yet.
Is there something like a federated version of Facebook? I liked the premise in the early days, especially the early days of the timeline when it could actually be sorted chronologically. When I joined Facebook instead of the then-competing MySpace back in 2005 one of the things I liked was that it was pretty private; everything I did was only visible to the people I was friends with on the platform. I don’t even know how that would really work with federation since it seems like structurally everything kind of has to be public.
I guess what I’d like is something where my friends and family are easily connected, where I can share pictures/videos or links or just thoughts I have about whatever’s going on in the moment, but still have those only visible to the people I choose (including even adjusting that so some things are visible only to close family instead of all my friends, for example). And I want the same coming from my connections. I don’t want to see something else they commented on, I don’t want to see content from some friend-of-a-friend or group a friend follows, I don’t want to see content from total strangers or groups the platform just thinks I’ll like. Basically I just want Facebook like it was in the early days, before it started focusing on increasing engagement to drive ad revenue, when it was actually a kind of useful way to connect.
The best controller I arguably thing is the 360 controller. It just feels right to use in fighting games and fps. I like xboxs layout with the analog sticks....
I don’t see it mentioned often, but basically my favorite has been the GameCube controller. Massive primary button with the secondary button the same shape but smaller and next to it, with the alternate (X/Y) buttons a different shape that flow around the primary, all in easy reach but all different to the touch. Especially when I’m playing the Xbox or Switch for a while and then switch to playing the other I’m messed up on the controllers for a little while since Nintendo and Microsoft swap the A and B buttons but both keep A as the primary button (I think a legacy of the original NES/Famicom putting the A button closer to the right hand and the B button farther in, to the left of the A).
I’d prefer the right thumb stick to be the same shape as the left, and it needs a left shoulder button, but beyond that I’d pretty much keep the layout as-is, maybe a slightly different size/shape to better fit in hands. I’ve seen a few third-party controllers like that for the Switch but haven’t looked into them enough to buy one.
This looks insanely massive compared to modern tanks, but comparing dimensions it’s not so different from modern battle tanks. In meters (length, width, height) this tank is 7.4, 3.1, 3.9; that height is to the top of the turret, the dome behind the soldier. A Leopard 2 is 7.72 (hull, not including gun), 3.75, 2.48; an M1 Abrams is 7.93 (hull, not including gun), 3.66, 2.44. So the main dimensional difference is it’s a lot taller. I guess maybe how built out the hull is makes a difference; the Fiat 2000 had a crew of 10 where the modern tanks I listed have a crew of 4. Or maybe the pictured soldiers are tiny.
IIRC it was originally planned as a spinoff and Rashida Jones’s character had originally been considered to be Karen Filippelli, moved to Indiana. Of course I think it’s much better that they didn’t go with that idea and gave her a new character.
Read the memo: Meta is shutting down Workplace, cutting back enterprise ambitions (techcrunch.com)
[Steam] Machinika: Museum (store.steampowered.com)
Room-escape mystery puzzle for Mac and Windows, free on Steam until 27th May
Would you say Apple is in a slump?
With the VisionPro hype already dead (maybe forever?), bad or tasteless iPad ads, purposeless updates to iPad, Apple dropping their car project, and reaching out to OpenAI or Google for AI services … it certainly feels like it to me. They’ve at least run into their limitations recently however much they want to find the...
Are there any household gadgets you found unexpectedly useful after you'd gotten them?
I was thinking about how I missed having an indoor thermometer that measures humidity. It’s such a small specific thing, one I’d never think of getting unless pushed to it (which I was by one particularly dry winter). But I like having one now....
Eagle being re-located from Denver International Airport (lemmy.world)
Man gets boat painted on fence meant to hide boat. (www.nbcnews.com)
He broke something (discuss.tchncs.de)
NASA's Proposed Plasma Rocket Would Get Us to Mars in 2 Months (gizmodo.com)
Last week, NASA announced it is working with a technology development company on a new propulsion system that could transport humans to Mars in only two months – down from the current nine month journey required to reach the Red Planet. Gizmodo reports:...
Joost Klein Thread | AVROTROS releases statement
As there are so many posts about this topic and it’s getting a bit out of hand, I’ll create one central place where we can talk about this stuff and share updates....
Sunset in La Rochelle (lemmy.world)
Did the premise of an entity approaching you only when it's not being viewed originate with Doctor Who's Weeping Angels?
The Weeping Angels apparently originated with Steven Moffat seeing a statue of a weeping angel in a structure in a cemetery and returning later to find out it was gone. At least according to this RadioTimes article. They first appeared in 2007 in the episode Blink....
Thousands protest against Israel's inclusion in Eurovision contest ahead of final (www.nbcnews.com)
Cyberattack forces major US health care network to divert ambulances from hospitals (www.cnn.com)
EA is looking at putting in-game ads in AAA games — 'We'll be very thoughtful as we move into that,' says CEO (www.tomshardware.com)
First Dream Chaser spaceplane needs more work when it gets to launch site (arstechnica.com)
Professor sues Meta to allow release of feed-killing tool for Facebook (arstechnica.com)
cross-posted from: lemmy.zip/post/15114513...
Favourite controllers
The best controller I arguably thing is the 360 controller. It just feels right to use in fighting games and fps. I like xboxs layout with the analog sticks....
Arooo! (sh.itjust.works)
Fiat 2000, post-WW1 Italian tank, Libya, 1919?
Peacock is turning The Office into a franchise with a new spinoff series (www.theverge.com)