The Times of India wants access to its journalists’ social networks
Over the past few years, social networks have become an extremely powerful tool for every journalist, whether it’s here in the United States or elsewhere across the world. But social networks like Twitter and Facebook aren’t just a venue for sharing links or live-tweeting breaking news events, as great as that is — it’s also about the engagement one can have with readers and other fellow journalist. Knowing this, The Times of India has recently implemented a new policy that requires its journalism employees to hand over Twitter and Facebook passwords, as it looks to gain control of what they can and cannot post on their social accounts.
The company shall be the owner of the access passwords, username and associated email address for the User Account, which shall be used by you on behalf of the Company to make posts. Company retains administration rights of the User Account, which shall be made accessible to the Company on demand. It is understood that sharing of such details of the User Account shall be an integral part of your contract with the Company and shall also be necessary for processing any settlement related to termination of such Contract.
According the report from Quartz, the new contract implemented by Benner, Coleman and Company Ltd., also known as The Times Group and publisher of The Times of India, also demands access even after an employee leaves the company. “The company may upload news or other material on the company User Account through any means, including automated upload streams, at its sole discretion, notwithstanding any termination of your contract with the company,” reads another excerpt from the document. What’s more, Quartz says that reporters who have raised concerns over the situation have been told that this “will be addressed in due course” — which, as you can imagine, doesn’t sound promising at all.
Via: Fast Company
Source: Quartz
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Rdio, Songza and other music services won’t eat your T-Mobile data
T-Mobile’s Music Freedom initiative raised a few eyebrows when the Uncarrier revealed it a few months ago – it granted most-favored nation status to a handful of music streaming services so whatever data they used wouldn’t count against your monthly data cap. With Pandora, Spotify, iTunes Radio in the mix, the move seemed like a win for consumers… unless you happened to pay someone else to get your streaming fix. Thankfully, T-Mobile is finally expanding the list of supported services to include beloved also-rans like Rdio, Google-owned Songza, and more. Support for the six new streaming services has gone into effect today, but T-Mobile admitted in a statement that one fan-favorite service would take a little more time to set up. You see, the carrier kicked off a poll shortly after Music Freedom’s launch to see what unsupported service people wanted to use the most. The winner? None other than Google Play Music — hardly a surprise, but T-Mobile admitted in a statement that it won’t be added to the fold until later this year.
Filed under: Mobile
Source: T-Mobile
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Apple to Unveil Wearable Device on September 9 Alongside iPhone 6
Apple has plans to unveil its upcoming wearable device in September, alongside the iPhone 6, reports Re/code. The site previously suggested Apple had planned to debut the device at an October event, but now says that Apple’s plans have changed.
iWatch concept by Todd Hamilton, based on the Nike Fuelband
Remember back in June when I said Apple hoped to schedule a special event in October to show off a new wearable device? Remember how I also said this: “Could things change between now and fall? That’s certainly possible.” Turns out that was a prescient hedge, because things have changed. Apple now plans to unveil a new wearable alongside the two next-generation iPhones we told you the company will debut on September 9th.
According to Re/code, the device will “make good use” of both HealthKit and HomeKit, two sets of APIs that were introduced during WWDC. HealthKit, which ties into Apple’s iOS 8 Health app, focuses on health and fitness, while HomeKit is a home automation platform designed to allow users to control a variety connected devices.
Though Apple has plans to introduce a wearable device in September, there is no word on when the device might ship. Given a lack of part leaks and rumors pointing towards a late 2014 or early 2015 launch, it is likely the device will be shown several months before it will be available to consumers.
Apple’s upcoming wearable device has been frequently referred to as the iWatch by both MacRumors and other rumor sites, but it remains unclear what Apple will call the device at launch. It is expected to be a wrist worn device, however, and rumors have suggested that it will come in multiple sizes with several different designs available at multiple price points.
It is also expected to incorporate an array of different health and fitness sensors to measure various health-related metrics like steps taken, sleep quality, heart rate, and more.
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Apple Seeds OS X Mavericks 10.9.5 Build 13F24 to Developers [Mac Blog]
Apple today seeded Mavericks 10.9.5 build 13F24 to developers, just over a week after seeding the fourth OS X 10.9.5 beta, build 13F18, and more than a month after releasing OS X 10.9.4 to the public.
The beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Mac Developer Center.
It is unclear what improvements the 10.9.5 update will bring to Mavericks, but it is likely to include bug fixes and stability enhancements. Apple is asking developers to focus on USB, USB Smart Cards, Graphics, Safari, and Thunderbolt.
Along with working on improvements to Mavericks, Apple is also beta testing OS X Yosemite, which is due to be released in the fall. The last Mavericks update, 10.9.4, added several Wi-Fi fixes and improved wake from sleep reliability.
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Intel’s tiny 3G modem will put always-on data in your smartwatch
There are already smartwatches and other wearables with cellular data built-in, but the bulky hardware they need for that wireless access makes them less than elegant. Intel clearly isn’t happy with this state of affairs, as it just unveiled an extra-tiny modem that should put truly sleek, always-connected devices on your body — and seemingly everywhere else. The new XMM 6255 isn’t much larger than a penny (0.47 square inches), but delivers a full-fledged 3G data link. It’s built to take abuses like power spikes, and it doesn’t need a big antenna to get a good connection; it can even get solid performance in a low-signal area like your basement.
The company isn’t ready to say just who’s using the miniscule modem in finished products, but the technology could be relatively ubiquitous. Besides more wearables that don’t have to rely on your phone to get online, you could see a larger internet of things where even relatively small devices have their own internet service; it’s reasonable to expect a lot of smart sensors and security systems that can always talk to the outside world.
Filed under: Wearables, Wireless, Networking, Intel
Via: BBC
Source: Intel
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Russia wants to ban films that make it seem oppressive or silly
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Via: AV Club
Source: 9AM News (translated)
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Kickstarter has a new king: Coolest, an all-in-one cooler
Back when it introduced its first smartwatch, there’s no doubt that Pebble took the crowdfunding world by storm. But, more than two years after Pebble broke and set new records on Kickstarter, a cooler is now doing the same. As of today, Coolest is the most successful Kickstarter ever, at least in terms of money pledged on the site. The project has managed to lure in nearly 50,000 backers and collect a little over $10,424,610 million so far, shattering Pebble’s previous milestone of $10,266,845 million. Coolest is pretty much a portable party on wheels, complete with a plethora of built-in accessories, including a removable, waterproof Bluetooth speaker, USB charger, cutting board, storage space for plates and, wait for it, a battery-powered, rechargeable blender. In case that wasn’t enough, the do-it-all cooler will be LED-lit on the inside, for those times when you’re out camping late, and have a bottle opener to boot — we all know how important the latter feature is. You still have a chance to try to get your own, but hurry because there are only 58 hours to go.
Filed under: Misc, Peripherals
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Coolest (Kickstarter)
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Jabra’s pulse-tracking earbuds tout Bluetooth connectivity for fewer tangles
Heart rate tracking in-ear headphones are starting to pop up on the regular it seems. A couple weeks ago, SMS Audio revealed its collaborative effort with Intel, and now Jabra’s joining the fray, but without the tether. In an effort to limit cord tangles, the audio outfit’s Sport Pulse wireless earbuds connect to your phone via Bluetooth for sorting tunes and tracking your pulse. Dolby sound handles the listening duties while an in-line remote wrangles those mid-run track changes. Inside, an optical biometric heart rate monitor keeps tabs on your workout, beaming collected data to the Sport Life companion app and peppering your activity with personalized coaching for added motivation. And as you might expect, the software helps plan workouts and logs info from each session. The wireless set goes on sale October 1st for $200 (£200), but you can pre-order now if you’re unable to contain the excitement.
Filed under: Portable Audio/Video
Source: Jabra
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Dropbox Pro plan now offers 10x the storage for the same price
Beefing up your free Dropbox account with extra space isn’t hard if you know what to look for, but the company just smartly streamlined its Pro plans in case you need even more cloud action. Kiss those tricky tiered plans goodbye: all that’s left now is a 1TB option that’ll set you back $9.99 a month (or $99 a year). Not a bad deal considering that’s how much you would’ve paid Dropbox monthly for 100GB of cloud storage just a few days ago, and the company is sweetening the pot with some neat new sharing and security features too. Left your laptop at that seedy diner over in Toledo? A few clicks is all it takes to remotely wipe all the synced files that were still on it. You can exercise a bit more caution with your shared links too by slapping password protection and expiration dates on them, too. Really, it’s those features that Dropbox hopes will give it an edge over some larger rivals — Google Drive’s monthly rate plans dipped to similar levels earlier this year, while Amazon still costs a ton compared to both.
Source: Dropbox
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Steam competitor GOG is getting into the movie selling business
The generous group over at Good Old Games is prepping to bring another medium into its trademark DRM-free digital distribution platform: movies. Starting today, you can head over to GOG.com and download or stream a handful of gaming-and-geek focused documentaries. What’s on tap? Art of Playing, TPB AFK: The Pirate Bay Away From Keyboard and Indie Game: The Movie (seen above) among others, and you can check out the first two flicks in this list absolutely free of charge. If none of those strike your fancy the company promises more titles will be added on a weekly basis. Don’t expect to see Guardians of the Galaxy pop up on the site’s digital shelves in the coming months, though.
GOG says that it offered major studios to get in on the action but that they weren’t interested in being part of the first wave — they’d rather someone else gnaw on the rock and prove that selling DRM-free movies works. “Their reaction was kind of funny because … they know that DRM doesn’t work because every single movie is on torrent sites or illegal places at launch or even before,” Marcin Iwinski, CD Projekt RED and GOG joint-CEO tells us. He says that the problem with current digital platforms (Ultraviolet, especially) is how cumbersome they are. “Ultraviolet has five DRMs. How crazy does that sound?” he asks. When you have to register with a few different sites, then enter a download code on top of remembering your account password, any hiccup along the way provides a roadblock between you and watching a movie — it’s just easier to throw a Blu-ray into your Blu-ray player.
That frustration is what drives people away from collecting digital movies in a legal manner and drives them toward piracy, Iwinsky says. “The fundamental fact is that they usually pirate the content because that’s the most easy and user-friendly way to access video content. It’s kind of scary, actually.” Studios are reticent to give up DRM, though, because it keeps the lawyers happy by showing that, despite being a vain attempt, they’re protecting the intellectual properties.
GOG’s move to digitally distributing movies shouldn’t come as a surprise either, Iwinski thinks. His reasoning, however, might be a bit odd to anyone who buys physical media on a regular basis. “We started GOG because we were collectors and fans of old games and we had tons of old stuff. But it wasn’t cool to access it: the boxes were old and rough around the edges, sometimes the CD didn’t work. It just wasn’t a good experience,” he says. “We have a lot of DVDs, but having, owning and buying them is not cool anymore — it’s inconvenient. They’re gathering dust on the shelves. We want a digital version and there’s nothing like that.”
One of Blu-ray’s biggest advantages over streaming or a digitally distributed movie, however, is quality: each disc can hold between 25GB and 50GB of uncompressed audio and video data. By comparison, the Pirate Bay documentary GOG is offering weighs in around 8GB and only plays in stereo — not 5.1 surround sound. But that doesn’t bother Iwinski; he seems focused on hitting people that are more likely to watch Gravity on their laptop or mobile device than in a home theater. “You can stream from GOG, but the magic happens when you download the MKV file and you can move it to your iPod and move it to iTunes and it syncs automatically.
“It’s the power of simplicity,” he says.
[Image credit: Indie Game: The Movie]
Filed under: Cellphones, Desktops, Gaming, Home Entertainment, Tablets, HD, Mobile
Source: GOG
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AIVAnet 