Apple WWDC 17: What time does it start, where to watch and what to expect?

WWDC 17 kicks off today, Monday 5 June and we’ll be covering the announcements as they happen here on Pocket-lint.

You can also catch up with the rumours in the build-up, such as will there be any hardware announcements, or will it focusing entirely on software updates and apps, as in previous years.

To give you an idea of what to expect, we’ve also collated a lot of the information, both factual and speculation, that we’ve heard so far.

What is WWDC?

Each year, Apple puts on a conference in California to showcase new software, software updates, and – sometimes – technologies that developers can leverage in order to make their apps more innovative and up to date. Apple calls this conference the Worldwide Developers Conference, and although it’s geared toward developers, consumers are invited to watch.

There’s usually a healthy dose of consumer excitement in the opening keynote. Apple used WWDC 16, for instance, to announce iOS 10 for iPhones and iPads, MacOS Sierra for Macs, WatchOS 3 for Apple Watch, TVOS 10 for Apple TV and more.

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When is WWDC 17?

This year’s WWDC is being held in San Jose – rather than the usual city of San Francisco – from 5 to 9 June at the McEnery Convention Center. It means, for the first time, it is on the doorstep of Apple’s new Cupertino complex.

Where can you watch the WWDC 17 livestream?

Apple always kicks off WWDC with a keynote address starting around 10am PST (6pm BST) which will be available to watch online through the Apple developer website or the WWDC app on iPhone, iPad or Apple TV. It is scheduled to run for two hours.

What can you expect from WWDC 17?

New MacBooks

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There could be some MacBook updates on the card. With the Pro getting updated in 2016 with a new (ish) design and the option of the Touch Bar, it’s the MacBook Air that seems to have been forgotten, carrying the oldest design in the family. Sadly though, most recents reports suggest that it will be discontinued entirely.

Instead, we’re expected to see hardware updates for the MacBook Pro, most likely updating to the latest Intel hardware. There could be a RAM upgrade too.

The MacBook could also be in line for a tweak, although the latest rumours suggest that we’re only looking at internal changes and nothing substantial in terms of design.

MacOS 10.13

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Apple is fairly predictable when it comes to macOS updates. It unveils the new version of macOS (or, prior to 2016, Mac OS X) at WWDC each year. So, Apple will more than likely unveil the next version of MacOS (10.13) at WWDC 17. As for the name, Apple long ago stopped naming its desktop operating systems after big cats. It’s since moved onto California locations like Yosemite, El Capitan and Sierra.

At this point, Apple hasn’t revealed an official name for this year’s update. It’s probably going by a wine or fruit-themed codename. For the sake of clarity, we’ve assumed throughout this article that Apple has continued using its version numbering convention and will call the next operating system macOS 10.13. But one reporter has argued that Apple will release the next version as MacOS 11.

As for features, Apple has rolled out a new file system, APFS, which is currently at the experimental stage and should get a final release in 2017. Other than that, not much is known about the next update. People have talked about wanting a Health app, Home app and dedicated Music app for MacOS. Other wish-list features have included a system-wide Dark Mode and nearby iPhone auto-unlock feature.

iOS 11

Apple will also almost certainly unveil iOS 11 during the keynote, followed by a public release in September 2017. The software will launch alongside at least two new iPhones, possibly three, on the tenth anniversary of the iPhone, so if we let our imaginations run wild, it could be a blockbuster release. We also figure the iPad 4, iPad mini 2 and iPhone 5 will potentially miss out on iOS 11 compatibility, but we won’t know for sure until Apple makes an official announcement.

At this early stage, we’ve only seen a few of rumours about new features. For instance:

Apple was granted a patent in November that mentions a dynamic keyboard positioning for touchscreens. The patent describes a concept in which typing “is improved by dynamically and automatically positioning the desired home-row keys of an onscreen keyboard below the user’s fingers while their fingers are hovering above the surface, thus reducing the need for the user to look at the onscreen keyboard while typing”. Keep in mind Apple bought Typesoft Technologies in September 2014. Its Dryft virtual keyboard uses a similar technique.

Business Insider said Apple wants to make Siri sound more human. It’s conducting an operation “in an unmarked office at 90 Hills Road, Cambridge” where it is aiming to make Siri talk more naturally. A large proportion of the current staff were previously employed by the voice recognition startup VocalIQ, which Apple acquired in 2015. So, we might see Apple update Siri with new capabilities.

It was widely expected that iOS will get a new viewing mode called Dark Mode, with black backgrounds that reduce eye stress. It’s already been discovered in iOS 10 beta 1, which released last June, but it hasn’t been unlocked yet. Other than that, we’re pretty sure Apple will at least mention HomeKit/Home app and HealthKit/Health app, if not at least announce some new features or functionality for the apps.

iMessage

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One of the other iOS-related rumours that has been doing the rounds claims Apple is finally planning to bring its iMessage service to Android. As any iPhone user will tell you, it’s one of the most useful features in not only iOS but also MacOS. If true, it would be one of the few times Apple has launched an app for Android, with the first two being Apple Music and an app to help you switch from Android to iOS.

In October 2016, John Gruber, who has close ties with Apple, claimed Apple created internal mockups of iMessage for Android to test the look and feel of the experience on the competing platform: “I’ve heard from little birdies that mockups of iMessage for Android have circulated within the company, with varying UI styles ranging from looking like the iOS Messages app to pure Material Design,” he wrote.

In theory, this would mean anyone with an iPhone or Apple ID would be able to send iMessages to anyone else with the service enabled. Presumably, if Apple does launch it as a bespoke app, it would also act as an SMS app replacement. If not, that would mean yet another messaging app to be installed alongside all the other commonly used apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Allo, Hangouts and so forth.

Apart from iMessage for Android, Apple launched a new Messages app as part of its major iOS 10 update. While previous years have seen the app slowly evolving to be more capable, last year’s revolution brought with it a huge change in focus. Instead of an ageing – but necessary – communication tool, Messages became a cool, interactive and fun application. We may see even more features added at WWDC 17.

WatchOS 4

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Apple released the latest version of the WatchOS operating system, WatchOS 3, to the public last autumn. The software, which is meant for Apple Watch, debuted at WWDC 16. It was a significant update that brought new apps, new watch faces, a new dock, new activity sharing, a new Breathe app, and a slew of navigation and performance improvements, and more. We’re expecting Apple to introduce more improvements in June.

Bloomberg reported Apple is developing new apps for the Apple Watch, including one that tracks your sleep. This would be supported across all existing models of Apple Watch. Unfortunately, rumours are otherwise slim. Many consumers would like the ability to create their own watch faces, as well as the ability to customise their Digital Crown functionality and sync their Apple Watch to multiple iOS devices.

TVOS 11

Apple

There’s not much news floating around about TVOS 11, but we expect Apple to at least touch on it. Consumers’ wish-list features include 4K and Dolby Atmos support, Safari for Apple TV, Home app for Apple TV, “Hey Siri” voice activation and Siri search for local files on a Mac.

Siri speaker

• Apple’s Siri speaker: What’s the story so far?

Reports that have surfaced in the last couple of months suggest Apple is working on a Siri-powered smart speaker to rival the Amazon Echo, Google Home and recently announced Harman Kardon Invoke. 

Bloomberg cites analyst and generally reliable tipster Ming-Chi Kuo, as saying Apple will unveil its speaker at WWDC 17, stating that some Apple employees have already been testing it in their homes. It’s thought that Apple’s speaker will have facial recognition technology to help differentiate between users and deliver personalised settings for things such as music.

The speaker will also likely integrate with Apple’s HomeKit software to control smart home products.

We haven’t seen any leaked pictures of the speaker yet, although a leaked description suggests that it will look like a mini version of Apple’s trash can-shaped, 2013 computer, the Mac Pro.

Will any other hardware debut at WWDC 17?

It’s not very common, but Apple has used past WWDC keynotes to announce updated hardware (such as 2013’s Mac Pro, AirPort Time Capsule and AirPort Extreme, and new MacBook Air). As for this year, Apple’s fourth-generation Apple TV is due for an annual refresh. Apple may also use the event to update the Mac Pro.

There have been rumours that Apple is working on its own augmented reality glasses, Apple Glasses (codenamed Project Mirrorshades), and a new external, wireless keyboard with E Ink displays embedded in some of the keys – for customisation. But they are said to be far off and are therefore unlikely to be touched upon at this year’s WWDC.

Want to know more?

Tune into Pocket-lint’s Apple hub for the latest news and analysis.

Snap Spectacles tips and tricks: Get creative with your new Snapchat sunglasses

Snapchat’s parent company Snap makes a pair of smart glasses you can use to capture snaps.

These glasses, called Snap Spectacles, come with two mini cameras situated on the side of each eyepiece. They can record small bursts of video, from 10 to 30 seconds, which is then uploaded to the Snapchat Memories section of the iPhone or Android app via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, respectively. They can be purchased online in the US or from a vending machine in London for £129.99.

So, now that it’s easier to get your hands on a pair of Spectacles, we’ve decided to round up a selection of tips and tricks to help you get started with them right away. But first, if you want to know more about Snapchat or Spectacles, check out these in-depth guides:

• What’s the point of Snapchat and how does it work?
• Snap Spectacles: What are they and how do they work?

Snap Spectacles tips and tricks

Pairing Spectacles

You need to pair your Spectacles with your phone. Simply turn on your phone’s Bluetooth, then open the Snapchat app, and go to your Settings (swipe down and then tap the gear icon). From there, scroll down, select Spectacles. Under Pair new device, tap Pair Spectacles. Once paired, choose the name for your Spectacles or just go with the default name. It’s up to you.

After that, the Snapchat app will display a QR code. Press the record button on your Spectacles and then look at the QR code for it to scan. Once it finds the code, you’ll be all set to begin recording snaps with your new glasses. Your friend can also pair Spectacles with his or her phone and Snapchat account and then they’ll be able to capture their own snaps, separate from yours.

Record snaps

To record a snap, tap the button the top left-hand corner of the glasses. It will automatically stop recording after 10 seconds, but you can tap again to add another 10-second increment (you can record up to 30 seconds at a time). You’ll see a inward-facing light when you’re snapping, while an outward facing-light to show others when you’re recording and they’re in your field of view.

Recording times

Spectacles record 10-second videos by default, but you can cut the recording time short, with a press-and-hold of the button before the time is up. Alternatively, you can record up to 30 seconds by pressing the button to extend the time to 20 and then 30 seconds. You don’t have to wait until the end of the video, though. You can triple-press the button at the start to record a 30-second snap.

Blinking lights

You’ll notice a blinking circle on the glasses when you press record. (It’s a good idea to explain to your friends what it means as a courtesy). You’ll also notice a light on the inside of the Spectacles when you’re recording, too. It starts off solid, but then it blinks when you have two seconds of recording time left. This signal is a warning, giving you the chance to extend the recording.

Snap playback

Spectacles work with Android and iOS devices. If you own an Android phone, you’ll be able to automatically transfer your snaps over Wi-Fi, but if you have an iPhone, they’ll transfer either via a Bluetooth connection or Wi-Fi. Snap Spectacles can store roughly 10 videos until you have access to your phone. To play them back, you need the Snapchat app for Android or iOS.

They’ll be uploaded to Memories (swipe up from the main screen in the Snapchat app). Transferring videos to your phone can be weird. They wont always transfer if your phone’s screen is off or if you haven’t opened the app in awhile. To check the status of your videos, go to Memories, and then you’ll see a progress bar surrounding the story (a collection of the day’s snaps).

Sharing snaps

In Memories (swipe up from Snapchat app’s main screen), you will see a search button in the corner, followed by a menu bar that consists of several tabs: All (your saved snaps), Snaps (your snaps), Stories (your stories), Camera Roll (your phone’s camera roll), My Eyes Only (your locked memories), and Specs (snaps taken with your Spectacles).

Videos taken with Spectacles can be found under the Specs tab inside of Snapchat’s Memories section, where they’re all grouped by day into a single story. To share an individual video in a story, swipe over to the Specs tab and long press the most recent story. From there, select Edit story, then swipe over to the video clip, and tap on the blue arrow icon in the bottom right corner.

You can choose to share it to My Story (public) or directly with a friend (private) by selecting their boxes on the right. It’s also possible to share every video you’ve shot from throughout the day at once. Just long press the Story inside of Memories, then select the blue arrow icon in the middle of the screen, and choose where you want to send the story.

Export

When viewing a video, you’ll see it cropped in either landscape or portrait orientation. Tap on the share button to save it to your Photos app or camera roll. Remember that videos shared outside of Snapchat won’t look or work in the same manner. When watching exported snaps, you’ll notice a new “circular” format that is meant to display your footage the way the human eye sees.

Get HD video

If you have an iPhone, you won’t automatically get HD versions of your snaps. But you can take a couple extra steps to get it: when viewing your recordings in the Snapchat app, tap the Get HD button near the top. When prompted, leave Snapchat and open the Settings app. From there, go to Wi-Fi and tap the Spectacles Wi-Fi network, and then return to the Snapchat app.

For Android users, Snapchat will import HD videos by default.

Charging

You can charge your glasses via its case, which is able to hold somewhere around four full charges. It can be topped off using the included USB cable. The cable attaches to the connector on the outside of the case. To see how much of a charge is left in the case, press the button on the side. An LED indicator will show you the remaining charge represented in dots (four of them).

Battery life

To check the current charge of your glasses, you can either double tap the side and read the LED indicator on the front of the glasses or open the Snapchat app’s Settings menu for an actual percentage.

Settings

Spectacles has its own Settings menu, of course. To access it, open the Snapchat app. From Snapchat’s main screen, swipe down, then tap the Settings icon, and select Spectacles. You will see options to clear stored videos, view battery, change the name, and more.

Reset

If your Spectacles are acting buggy for whatever reason, you can reset them under settings. Open the Snapchat app, then swipe down from Snapchat’s main screen, and tap the Settings icon. Then, select Spectacles. You’ll see options to restart and reset.

Manage storage

Spectacles can store about 10 videos. If you want to clear the internal memory, there is an option inside the Snapchat app. Open Snapchat, then swipe down from the main screen, and tap the Settings icon. Then, select Spectacles, go to Manage, and tap Clear Spectacles Storage.

Update

You can check for a software update on your Spectacles by opening the Snapchat app, then swiping down, and selecting settings (gear icon). From there, tap Spectacles, go to Manage, and select Check for Updates.

Get creative

Keep in mind you don’t have to wear Spectacles. You can record video while holding them in your hand or after you’ve put them on a desk. Get creative with them!

Roomba creator wants to do for gardens what he did for your floors

Let’s be honest: while planting your garden can be fun, weeding it usually isn’t. Not unless you enjoy crouching down for long stretches, anyway. You might not have to endure the drudgery for too much longer, though. Roomba co-creator Joe Jones and Franklin Robotics are launching Tertill, a robot that weeds your garden all by itself. The machine automatically roams the soil, using sensors to identify small plants (you use collars to protect young crops) and chop them down. It’s solar-powered, so you don’t have to dock it — you can even leave it out in the rain.

In addition to pairing with your phone through Bluetooth, the machine has a USB port to charge during particularly gloomy weeks.

The design does require some careful planning to work properly. You need to space your crops loosely so that the robot can kill weeds in between, and you’ll want to avoid any steep inclines so Tertill doesn’t stuck. There will have to be some kind of basic barrier to prevent the vehicle from wandering away, too. You may also have to rethink how you kill weeds. While you’re probably used to pulling weeds out by the roots, Franklin is counting on its bot repeatedly cutting down weeds until they wither and die.

Franklin is launching a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for Tertill on June 13th, with a price around $300. That’s not a trivial figure, but the company is betting that the convenience will pay for itself. It might have a point. There’s a chance you’ll need to double-check Tertill’s work (it might not catch weeds very close to your crops), but the time you save could be better spent on the rest of your gardening… or just relaxing on the back porch. And it’s even a bit eco-friendly, since it reduces the pressure to use herbicides.

Source: Franklin Robotics

Robot’s uncanny dexterity could transform manufacturing

Robotic hands can play drums and even twirl objects with aplomb, but they’re still poor at picking up unfamiliar objects. That’s why UC Berkeley’s DexNet 2.0 bot is so impressive — using deep learning, it can successfully grasp random, real-world objects 99 percent of the time. What’s more, the tech, developed with the help of Amazon, Google and Toyota, is far enough along that it could be put to work in manufacturing and supply chains in the near future.

Researchers trained the DexNet 2.0 deep learning system using a vast library of 3D shapes and suitable grasp positions to match those objects. Using virtual, rather than real objects made it possible to train the AI much more quickly. “We can generate sufficient training data for deep neural networks in a day or so instead of running months of trails on a real robot,” Berkeley postdoctoral researcher Jeff Mahler told MIT Technology Review.

After training the AI system, they connected it to a standard robotic arm outfitted with an off-the-shelf 3D depth sensing camera. When confronted with a new object, the system can quickly figure out the best grasp to match. If it’s more than 50 percent sure it can grab something, it succeeds 98 percent of the time. If its confidence levels are below that, it can poke the object first to figure out a better grasp, and can then successfully grasp it 99 percent of the time — significantly more than any other systems, the team says.

The researchers figure their new training methods, combined with cloud data and processing, could accelerate the use of robots in industry, even in non-traditional settings like hospitals. So, it’s not surprising the study has industry players heavy into robotics behind it, including Toyota, Siemens and Amazon. Amazon actually runs an annual “Warehouse Picking Challenge” (above) to find robots that can best pick items from warehouse shelves to fulfill orders.

The deep learning tech will be great for industry, allowing execs like Jeff Bezos to cut warehouse employees and save money. However, it sucks for the workers who will be out of a job, and could widen the gap between ultra-wealthy titans like Bezos and average folks — showing once again that AI will require not just technological solutions, but political ones, too.

Source: UC Berkley

Placeholder for iOS 11 ‘Files’ App Goes Live on App Store

With just hours to go until Apple’s WWDC keynote, a new placeholder app listing for a “Files” app has appeared on the iOS App Store for iPhone and iPad, as noticed by Steven Troughton-Smith.

Details on the app are scant, as the app description is merely “Files App for iOS” and there are no other details on the app other than an icon depicting a blue folder, although Troughton-Smith points out the app only supports 64-bit architectures. iOS 11 has been rumored to be dropping support for 32-bit apps, and Apple has been warning users about apps that have not been updated with 64-bit support.

As we noted in our iOS 11 wishlist feature, file management is one area where MacRumors readers have been hoping to see improvement, and this upcoming Files app could help provide that.

The Files app is undoubtedly a default system app for iOS 11, but system apps that can be deleted have App Store entries to allow users to reinstall them. As Troughton-Smith notes, a listing for the Activity app has also appeared in the App Store, suggesting users will be able to delete the app in iOS 11, something that is not currently possible.

Update 11:48 PM: Apple appears to have pulled the Files and Activity listings from the App Store.

Related Roundups: WWDC 2017, iOS 11
Tag: Files
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IBM shares details of how silicon nanosheets could revolutionize chip design

Why it matters to you

Research such as IBM’s investigation into silicon nanosheets helps ensure that tomorrow’s computers will be capable of doing much more than current hardware.

IBM has announced a technological breakthrough that will help facilitate the production of 5-nanometer chips, just two years after the company’s engineers confirmed the successful creation of a 7nm test chip. The project was made possible by IBM’s research alliance with semiconductor specialist GlobalFoundries and Samsung.

The new chip is around the size of a fingernail, but is able to house up to 30 billion switches. It’s hoped that the performance boost offered by the new design will be put to good use in data-intensive applications related to the Internet of Things and cognitive computing, among others.

IBM also claims that its capacity for reduced power consumption could mean that batteries in smartphones and other devices could last two to three times as long on a single charge.

The innovation at the core of the new chip is a brand-new architecture, eschewing the current FinFET design. Instead, stacks of silicon nanosheets are used to create the basic transistor structure.

IBM Research has apparently been looking into nanosheet semiconductor technology for over a decade. However, this project marks the first time that it’s been proven that the technology can offer practical benefits over FinFET architecture.

FinFET is limited by the height of its fins, which are used to carry an electrical current. However, nanosheet transistors can use extreme ultraviolet lithography for precise size adjustments, which allows their performance and power to be tailored for individual circuits. It’s already been demonstrated that FinFET chips can be scaled to 5nm, but reducing the space between fins doesn’t provide the same performance benefits that IBM is claiming with its nanosheet design.

IBM will share more details on this breakthrough at the 2017 Symposia on VLSI Technology and Circuits, which is scheduled to take place in Kyoto, Japan this week. It may take years before this research is implemented in consumer products — but in order to push computers forward, it’s crucial that companies like IBM keep one eye on what’s coming next.

IBM squeezes 30 billion transistors into a fingernail-sized chip

Who said Moore’s Law was dead? Certainly not IBM or its chip partners Globalfoundries and Samsung. The trio has developed a transistor manufacturing process that should pave the way for 5-nanometer chips. While the team etched the chip using the same extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) used for the breakthrough 7nm chip, it ditched the common FinFET (fin field effect) transistor design in favor of stacks of silicon nanosheets. The switch makes it possible to fine-tune individual circuits to maximize their performance as they’re crammed into an incredibly small space. How small? At 5nm, the group says it can squeeze 30 billion transistors into a chip the size of a fingernail (see below) — not bad when the 7nm chip held 20 billion transistors a couple of years ago.

IBM sees the technique helping its own cognitive computing efforts as well as the Internet of Things and other “data-intensive” tasks. However, it’s also painting a rosy picture for the future of mobile devices — it imagines phones having “two to three times” more battery life than current devices. That’s likely optimistic (phone makers tend to focus on speed over longevity), but it won’t be shocking if future hardware is both faster and wrings out a little more from every charge.

Just don’t expect to see real-world examples of this for a while. We haven’t even seen devices shipping with 7nm chips (they’re not expected until 2018 at the earliest), so it could easily be a couple of years or more before 5nm arrives. Still, that 5nm is even on the roadmap is important. Chip designers won’t have to reinvent the wheel to get meaningful improvements, and you won’t have to worry about device performance growing stale for at least the next few years.

Source: IBM

How to rip a DVD or Blu-ray movie

Update: Revised to include up-to-date screenshots and instructions for the latest iterations of MakeMKV and Handbrake.

If you’ve got a sizable collection of DVD and Blu-ray discs gathering dust, you might have considered digitizing those bad boys so you can watch them on your phone or tablet anywhere, anytime. The process actually isn’t that complicated. Download two simple programs and, with a few clicks of your mouse, you can magically turn those videos into files, ready for viewing on the device(s) of your choosing.

Technically, if the work is copyright protected, it’s illegal to do so, even if you own it. To be clear, we do not condone or encourage the unlawful ripping and/or reproduction of copyrighted materials. That said, if you’ve got home videos (or, really, anything that’s not copyrighted), you’re free to do whatever you want with them, and that includes ripping from physical form to digital form. That’s why we’ve put together this handy guide to help you do so! Keep reading to learn how to rip DVDs and Blu-ray discs.

Note: While it may seem obvious, we’ll also mention you’ll need either a DVD or Blu-ray drive, depending on which you want to rip. Most Blu-ray drives are capable of reading DVDs, but not vice versa.

How to rip with MakeMKV

This process is identical for both DVD and Blu-ray with the program MakeMKV. A Blu-ray will make a huge file, so we recommend you have between 30-60 GB of free hard drive space if you’re looking to rip one. The app will say “MakeMKV BETA” at the top — ignore this. It works just fine. Once the program recognizes your disc, click the big disc drive icon to begin. Theoretically, this process could also remove copyright protections from a disc, but again, that’s not something we condone or encourage.

After you’ve selected your disc, MakeMKV will return a list of chapters and segments that you can rip. Find your video (usually the longest title or biggest file) and uncheck all the other boxes. Next, designate an Output Folder where you’d like the file to end up once it’s been ripped. When you’re all ready to go, hit the “Make MKV” button on the right. This process can take anywhere from two minutes to half an hour depending on your computer’s specs, but when it’s done you should have a nice big MKV file waiting in the folder you specified.

In some cases, you don’t even need to convert this file, as MKV files are compatible with the desktop and mobile versions of VLC, as well as Plex’s media server. If those are your primary methods for watching videos from your library, you can stop here. Still, it may be advisable to convert these files to save space; Blu-ray files in particular tend to be massive. That’s why you’ll want to employ a transcoding program to minimize file size and/or play the file on multiple devices.

Also, before transcoding, it’s a good idea to make sure your video looks OK — use VLC (if you don’t have it, get it here for free) to play the file.

How to transcode with Handbrake

After ripping, you’ll have a big file that needs to be transcoded for use on different devices. Open HandBrake (which you can get here for free), click on Source in the top left corner, and find the file you just ripped.

Now you get to decide where you want to watch your video. The app’s developers have already created presets for lots of products; there are a few different options for Apple and Android devices, as well as PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles and several streaming devices. You can also modify any of these presets and save them with new names or create custom presets from scratch. Selecting one of these presets will automatically adjust all the settings to fit whatever you choose.

In addition to transcoding, you can use HandBrake to resize files; for instance, if you’ve got a huge MKV file, you can choose a preset under the “Matroska” subset (MKV stands for Matroska Video) and run the program to shrink that file down.

If you’re transcoding a Blu-ray disc, the process works the same way, but you’ll want to select different settings to avoid unnecessary compression and to preserve the video quality. For DVDs, there’s no reason to select a resolution above 480p; this will just increase file size without boosting quality. For Blu-ray discs, you’ll want to choose between 720p and 1080p — to save space, we recommend selecting 720p for anything that isn’t necessary in full HD. For videos with more visual substance, it’s probably worth choosing 1080p.

Generally speaking, the “High Profile” preset — located in the Legacy subset — is a good place to start, with Passthru audio codecs selected (pick an HD audio option for lossless, if that’s your bag) and a Constant Quality value of RF 18 or so; this is mostly personal preference, so you should experiment to find out what works best.

Choose a file destination, play around with the options until you’ve got everything just right, then go ahead and click Start. This part will take a while, so sit back, relax, and let HandBrake do its thing. Once the process is complete, you’ll have a shiny new file ready for playback on your chosen device. This process is repeatable, too; if you have several different devices, you can simply change presets and run the program again (as long as you’ve selected a new destination to avoid overwriting the previous result).

That’s it! You’ve successfully ripped and transcoded a DVD or Blu-ray disc.

If you’re a OneLogin customer, you’ll want to follow these steps immediately

Why it matters to you

You need to keep an eye on your credit and other information, because you never know when your information might be illegally accessed.

Services that centrally manage passwords and logins can provide some serious convenience, and even make your information more secure by making it more likely that you will use stronger passwords. If such a service is hacked, however, it can be a disaster, potentially exposing your information from multiple sites at once.

One such service, OneLogin, suffered from an attack last week and the repercussions still aren’t fully known. As Motherboard reports, the company provided very vague information in its initial public statement, but was a little more precise in an update and via emails to its customers.

The OneLogin blog post described the breach’s potential impact as follows:

“The threat actor was able to access database tables that contain information about users, apps, and various types of keys. While we encrypt certain sensitive data at rest, at this time we cannot rule out the possibility that the threat actor also obtained the ability to decrypt data. We are thus erring on the side of caution and recommending actions our customers should take, which we have already communicated to our customers.”

According to copies of emails that some OneLogin customers provided to Motherboard, the steps that customers need to take are rather significant. They range from generating new API keys and Oauth tokens, creating new security credentials and certificates, recycling the OneLogin Secure Notes secrets feature, and updating passwords.

OneLogin successfully blocked the illicit access and reported the incident to law enforcement, and it has engaged an independent security company to find out what happened and the extent of the damage. In the meantime, OneLogin’s customers should follow the company’s recommendations and then hope that their specific information wasn’t compromised.

Securing the data that we control ourselves, on our own PCs and devices, is hard enough. Seeing our data compromised when another organization fails to keep its systems secure is frustrating, to say the least. It does, however, serve as a reminder that we should always keep our eyes out for anything suspicious when it comes to our credit and other information — whether or not we know about any specific breaches.

Windows 10’s smart backups may be going away

When Microsoft introduced File History with Windows 8, cautious PC users were happy: it gave you a Time Machine-style backup that let you recover older files if you made a mistake. You might not get to take that feature for granted, though. Users trying a leaked Windows 10 Insider Preview build have discovered that creating new File History backups is “no longer supported.” Provided this change sticks, you might lose the feature by the time the Fall Creators Update hits your PC. We’ve reached out to Microsoft to see if it can comment, but the find is already raising a question: if File History is going, what (if anything) is replacing it?

Windows news guru Paul Thurrott suspects that it’s a matter of establishing a consistent, cloud-linked backup system. File History can save previous versions of files in the cloud through OneDrive, but they’re always tied to a specific PC. If you need to get that old report on your new computer, you may be hosed. That’s not exactly comforting if a PC dies and you can’t go back.

OneDrive, meanwhile, already has a version history feature on the web. While we wouldn’t count on this happening, it wouldn’t be a stretch for Microsoft to bake that OneDrive versioning into Windows and ensure that you can restore files regardless of the system you’re on. The catch would simply be the cost — you’d need to spring for one of Microsoft’s Office 365/OneDrive subscriptions (starting at $70 per year) to get that reassurance where you already have something like it for free.

Via: Thurrott

Source: H0x0d (Twitter)