Share files, collaborate with ease with Droplr Pro: Lifetime License (98 per cent off)
Collaboration in the digital age has never been more convenient thanks to Droplr.
At its foundation, Droplr is a file-sharing service which integrates with your Windows PC or Mac to upload any files you choose, to a remote server for access by anyone you choose. With a world of useful features at your fingertips, a Droplr Pro: Lifetime License is now offered at a fantastically low price of £15.27 ($21.99) on Pocket-lint Deals.
Skip the bulky email attachments and file transfer services. Droplr sharply increases convenience and productivity with your team, removing any sharing limits and allowing you to unclog your inbox. Password protection, self-destruct times and obfuscated URLs keep your data private, as you share images, videos, documents and more via Droplr’s easy-to-use service, with unlimited storage.
Just drag and drop your file to the desktop icon, and you’re immediately provided with a short link to share with anyone you choose.
The single-user plan normally runs half the total cost of this deal, so the long-term value on a Droplr Pro: Lifetime License is indisputable. In addition to Windows and Mac, Droplr also integrates fully with Office, Slack, Adobe products and Twitter as well.
Droplr Pro has received a five-star rating on CNET, in part due to its expanded screen capture and recording features, letting you save recordings as high-resolution videos or animated GIFs, which you can then annotate at will.
Take your team’s productivity to all-new heights for good with Droplr Pro: Lifetime License, offered at 98 per cent off for a limited time from Pocket-lint Deals.
Get an immersive VR experience with the Virtual Reality Box with stereo headset (60 per cent off)
Virtual Reality is really taking off these days, but not all VR headsets are created equal.
Some are merely cardboard boxes, like Google’s Cardboard, and others are fully immersive high-end VR headsets that don’t need your smartphone such as Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. But value and function neatly intersect with the Virtual Reality Box with Stereo Headset. At just £27.41 ($38.99) from Pocket-lint Deals, a fully immersive VR experience is finally as affordable as it is fun.
This premium VR Headset uses your smartphone to deliver a full virtual reality experience, with headphones included to immerse yourself in a full-sensory commitment. Watch 360-degree video with ultra-short distance and ultra-wide viewing angles, offering you a viewing experience which more closely matches the human eye.
You can also adjust the headset between 0-800 degrees myopia & 0-400 degrees hyperopia for comfort, and to reduce vertigo.
Your own private cinematic experience awaits! You can even answer calls while wearing the headset through the multifunction key, which also allows you to adjust the volume directly without interfering with playback or gaming.
If you’re looking to make the leap into VR but aren’t swayed by flimsy cardboard or looking to break the bank, the Virtual Reality Box with Stereo Headset is definitely a great value at £27.41 ($38.99).
Pick it up a 60 per cent off today from Pocket-lint Deals.
Microsoft figured out how cloud servers can swap encrypted data
A team at Microsoft Research has figured out a way to share encrypted information stored in the cloud without compromising security. The example the outfit gives is as follows:
“Machine learning algorithms may examine our genomes to determine our susceptibility to maladies such as heart disease and cancer. Between now and then, computer scientists need to train the algorithms on genetic data, bundles of which are increasingly stored encrypted and secure in the cloud along with financial records, vacation photos and other bits and bytes of digitized information.”
Given the nature of encryption, though, only the owners of said data can access it. Good for security, but bad for researchers.
The methodology proposed by the team uses multiparty computation, where results are shared, but no one involved learns any of the specifics about the data contained in the encrypted file. “We require that none of the parties involved learns anything beyond what they already know and what is revealed by the function, even when the parties (except the cloud) are active malicious,” the research brief says.
So, essentially, it’s a lot like having an impartial pal know the number of books in two friends’ collections. From there, the third party would tell each friend who’s bookshelf has more on it, without saying exactly how many books are on either shelf.
Encryption computations are all performed within the cloud as well, and the scientists involved say that the computations themselves are encrypted. The servers don’t even know what they’re processing. “Set up this way, the data exchange is secure provided that the cloud itself follows the rules and nothing more,” the post says.
The end result could apparently make it easier for scientists to preview data for experiments without buying it. What’s more, it’d they’d only have to make a costly purchase once they know the data is worthwhile for their studies.
Source: Microsoft Research Blog (1), (2)
Watch a high-speed footage of past SpaceX launches
If you didn’t get the chance to watch previous SpaceX missions blast off, this video can bring you up to speed. It shows what the private space corporation has been up to these past few months, including the engine burn and launch of the May mission that carried Japanese communications satellite JCSAT-14 to orbit. That rocket’s first stage landed on a drone ship even if the company didn’t expect to succeed, because it came back from a particularly high orbit that made things difficult. SpaceX recently took out the first stage from that trip for a test fire, and its booster burned for 2 minutes and 30 seconds.
Following JCSAT-14 is the CRS-9 mission’s launch and stage separation as it ferried supplies to the ISS. The video also features its re-entry burn and first stage landing on solid ground. Finally, you can catch a glimpse of the December 2015 Falcon 9 launch that deployed 11 ORBCOMM satellites, as well. That mission marked the first time Musk and his team ever stuck a first stage landing, starting a series of successful attempts at landing rockets both on land and at sea.
Pokemon Go’s new tracking system actually works – here’s how – CNET
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Pokemon Go finally gets nearby tracking right
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The Sightings tracker.
Alina Bradford/CNET
The latest update brings a new way to track pokemon in Pokemon Go — at least for some users.
Two types of trackers are being tested and you may see both, one, or none at all.
The ‘Sightings’ tracker
Some players have the Sightings version of the tracker. This tracker tells you what Pokemon are currently in your area and is basically the same type of tracker you saw when Niantic took away the steps from the original tracker. It’s just a list bunch of nearby Pokemon, but this time they have grass in the icon.
I have tried the Sightings tracker and, like before, you have no way of knowing how close the Pokemon are or what direction you need to travel in.
The ‘Nearby’ tracker
Another version of the new tracker is called Nearby, like the old tracker.
Except this time, it’s improved, it actually works!
The Nearby tracker lists Pokemon that are in your general vicinity and the PokeStops you’ll have to visit to hunt them down.
Tap on the Pokemon you want to track, then hit the View button and you’ll be taken back to the map screen. The screen will zoom in and show where the PokeStop is located in relation to your avatar.
If the Pokemon leaves that location before you get there, the app will let you know with a warning, “The Pokemon fled! Check the nearby list for other Pokemon.”
Some people are reporting that they have one tracker and not the other, while some people are reporting that they have both trackers. This is probably part of the testing process. Niantic explained on their site, “We’re currently testing a variation of the “Nearby Pokémon” feature with a subset of users. During this period you may see some variation in the nearby Pokémon UI.”
A closer look at Nintendo’s Pokemon Go Plus
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Frigidaire FGDS3065PF review – CNET
The Good This $2,399 Frigidaire is an easy-to-use dual-fuel range that performed well in our cook tests. It’s also the cheapest dual-fuel and slide-in range we’ve ever tested.
The Bad There aren’t many additional features that you’d expect on an oven that costs more than $2,000, such as a fifth burner or cooking accessories. It’s also pretty slow when it comes to broiling.
The Bottom Line The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF might not excite, but it’s a solid pick if you want a slide-in range with a gas cooktop and an electric oven.
Other dual-fuel ranges
- Dacor ER30DSCH
- KitchenAid KDRS407
- KitchenAid KFDD500ESS
When a range costs more than $2,000, you expect a manufacturer to include a few bonus features that can help you try to justify the price: a double oven cavity, a baking drawer, heck, at least a griddle. Frigidaire pummels those expectations of extras in its $2,399 FGDS3065PF, a range that is slim on extra features. The manufacturer opts for a “less is more” approach with this range. There’s only four gas burners on the cooktop, the oven cavity is relatively small and there aren’t any cooking tools included with the appliance.
However, this Frigidaire is the cheapest dual-fuel range (a gas cooktop paired with an electric oven) and cheapest slide-in range (all controls on the front of the unit) we’ve ever tested, which helps justify the lack of extras. And the Frigidaire FGDS3065PF also makes up for its lack of add-ons with a decent cooking performance. The range boils water quickly, roasts a tasty chicken and bakes multiple racks of biscuits evenly. However, none of the resulting food or cook times made this range great enough to be memorable.
The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF is a good option if you want a dual fuel, slide-in range but want to spend less than $2,500. Just don’t expect a wealth of extras.
Frigidaire holds back on the features with…
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You might feel a bit of déjà vu when you see the Frigidaire FGDS3065PF. This 30-inch wide slide-in range looks very similar to comparable products, especially the Electrolux EW30IS80RS induction range (not surprising since the brands share a parent company). The Frigidaire is wrapped in stainless steel with black trim. On the cooktop, continuous cast iron grates cover the four gas burners. Most ranges in this price range throw in a fifth oblong, middle burner that is designed for you to use with the griddle. This Frigidaire, however, forgoes a fifth burner, which leaves some dead space in the middle of the cooktop. I would’ve liked to see Frigidaire make the most of this space by rearranging the burners in a set-up that would let you use bigger pots and pans without crowding the cooktops. Instead, you have a traditional four-burner set-up with a blank space in the middle that feels like a wasted opportunity.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
A special rack hooks to the oven door so it extends when you open the door.
Chris Monroe/CNET
This Frigidaire comes with a 4.6 cubic-foot electric oven, which is small when you compare it other slide-in, comparably priced models, such as the KitchenAid KSGB900ES (with 6.5 cubic feet of space) or the Samsung NX58H9500WS (5.8 cubic feet). Fortunately, the oven holds large baking sheets without feeling crammed. The oven also comes with a special rack that you hook to the oven door. When you open the door, the rack will extend outward for easier access to your food. It’s a thoughtful feature, but limiting in that you can only use the rack on the first two rack positions.
Performance
The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF performed well in our cook tests. It didn’t break any records for speed, but it didn’t lag too far behind other ranges.
Federal regulators crack down on social media abuse in nursing homes
According to a ProPublica report released late last year, documented cases of nursing home employees sharing abusive or degrading images of their residents on social media are on the rise. To combat the problem, federal health officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which regulates nursing homes and assisted living facilities, have now asked state health departments to enact policies that prohibit employees from taking or sharing demeaning photos of residents.
As NPR reports, some documented cases included employees who took photos of residents at assisted living facilities who were “naked, covered in feces or even deceased.” In a memo from CMS, the agency asks state officials to increase their efforts to investigate and report employees who engage in such activities.
“Treating a nursing home resident in any manner that does not uphold a resident’s sense of self-worth and individuality dehumanizes the resident and creates an environment that perpetuates a disrespectful and/or potentially abusive attitude towards the resident(s),” CMS director David Wright wrote. Adding his voice to the memo, Republican Senator Charles Grassley also called on the Department of Justice and the Office of Civil Rights to insure “rules and protections are in place to prevent and punish these types of abuses.”
According to ProPublica’s report, there have been at least 47 instances of this kind of abuse in nursing homes since 2012. In one recent incident, an employee at a nursing home in Los Angeles was caught after they posted video to Instagram of a co-worker “passing gas” in a resident’s face. In Grassley’s home state of Iowa, ProPublica also reported that it was not illegal for an employee to Snapchat a photo of a resident covered in feces, because the resident’s genitals weren’t visible. Although other states have already started to impose stiff penalties at homes where abuse has been found, the memo from CMS aims to create a federal standard for how facilities and inspectors should deal with these cases.
For their part, the American Health Care Association has also issued guidelines that include new training and reporting pathways to quickly respond to any future allegations of social media abuse. While many social media services have the ability to flag specific content as offensive, those flags are generally meant to remove the content from the service entirely or prevent others on the service from seeing it. Users who spot threatening, illegal or abusive activity still have to report it to the proper authorities themselves.
NASA will build full-scale deep space habitats on Earth
NASA is already preparing for humanity’s journey into the great unknown, and part of its efforts is developing a suitable habitat for future spacefarers. In order to create a place where people can live outside our own planet, the agency has teamed up with six private corporations to build full-scale ground prototypes of the habitats they designed. NASA has chosen those six out of all the proposals it got for the second Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships. And as you can see above, Boeing is one of them.
The Houston-based aerospace company will take the chance to test and validate its design by building a prototype of its modular habitat system. Lockheed Martin, on the other hand, will transform one of its multi-purpose modules used to carry supplies to the ISS into a habitat with integrated avionics (aviation electronics) and Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS).
The third company in the list is Orbital ATK, which plans to continue developing the cislunar habitat –a spacecraft designed to stay between Earth and the moon — concept it conjured up. It’s based on the company’s Cygnus spacecraft that’s used to ferry supplies to the space station. Sierra Nevada Corporation’s prototype will combine its space shuttle-like Dream Chaser vehicle with an inflatable component. It will also feature an ECLSS and a propulsion system.
Texas-based NanoRacks will examine whether converting an existing launch vehicle’s upper stage into a livable environment is feasible. Finally, Bigelow Aerospace is building the XBASE (Expandable Bigelow Advanced Station Enhancement) prototype. It’s based on the 330 cubic meter ISS add-on the company is developing, except it will be designed to exist on its own. If you’ll recall, the ISS crew recently installed Bigelow’s smaller expandable module to test whether it can withstand the harsh environment outside Earth.
One or more of these prototypes could serve as home to astronauts going to Mars and other locations farther than Low Earth orbit. Since most of us will never set foot on any of them, though, you can check out what they could look like below:
Lockheed Martin:
Orbital ATK:
Sierra Nevada:
NanoRacks:
Bigelow Aerospace:
Source: NASA
Netflix Debuts ‘FAST Speed Test’ App for Quick and Simple Internet Speed Checks
In May, Netflix announced Fast.com, a website where users could quickly and simply check their internet connection speed. The site uses Netflix’s servers and technology to give people an instant look at their current internet speed. The site quickly became popular, and Netflix has now released the FAST Speed Test app for mobile devices.
Once opened, the app instantly begins giving users a reading of their internet speed. Once the test is fully complete, results can be checked against results from SpeedTest.net, another popular internet speed checking solution. Both the website and app utilize simple, minimalist designs, with the service’s logo and download speed tracker taking up much of the space. The refresh button, the lone button in the app, allows users to restart the test.
On its blog, Netflix’s Sergey Fedorov and Ellen Livengood explained that FAST only displays download speeds because thats how most users interact with the internet, whether it be streaming video or loading webpages.
To test speed, the app and website undergoes several download tests using Netflix’s technology and services, including downloading chunks of a 25 MB video file through “a variable number of parallel connections.” Fedorov and Livengood go into technical detail about how the service works on the company’s tech blog.
FAST Speed Test is available in the App Store for free [Direct Link]
Tag: Netflix
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De La Soul’s samples are why its classic albums stay offline
Have you wondered why De La Soul is more than happy to offer its newer albums online, but has had so much trouble getting its classics (Stakes Is High and earlier) online that it gave them away at one point? You now have a good, if imperfect, explanation. Their label, Warner Music Group, tells the New York Times that its staff “don’t believe it is possible” to clear all the samples in early tracks for digital music services. It doesn’t explain why those samples are being held back, but the group’s current sample clearance agent suspects that many of those samples may have been cleared improperly, sometimes through informal agreements. It’s also possible that many of the sample deals didn’t account for non-physical releases, so Warner might have to start from scratch.
The plight is a fairly common one for other artists from the ’80s and ’90s, when electronics enabled easy sampling before the copyright system could fully account for it. It’s a minor miracle that artists like the Beastie Boys or DJ Shadow can offer their earlier work online at all. However, De La Soul faces more trouble than most. Its legendary 3 Feet High and Rising debut has over 60 samples by itself. Combine that with the high profile of many samples (Buhloone Mindstate’s “Breakadawn” drew from Michael Jackson and Smokey Robinson, for example) and it could be very expensive or impossible to clear the albums.
At the same time, there’s pressure to do something to get those albums on the internet. It’s not just that Dave, Maseo, Posdnous and Prince Paul are losing a lot of potential revenue as the industry shifts to streaming. Like the Beatles and other pre-digital bands, it’s also a matter of preserving music for the ages. What happens if and when physical albums are virtually extinct? Will people have to rely solely on pirated copies and YouTube videos to reminisce? De La Soul will have a footprint through its newer catalog (the upcoming And the Anonymous Nobody is conspicuously devoid of samples). However, there could be whole generations that don’t know what made the group famous in the first place.
Source: New York Times
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