Bounce’s Brown Sugar streaming service arrives on Apple TV

The Apple TV’s selection of culture-specific streaming services just got a little larger. Bounce has launched its subscription video service on Apple’s fourth-generation media hub, bringing a large collection of movies and TV shows that star or or are created by African-Americans. You’ll see classic flicks like Foxy Brown, Shaft and Pride, documentaries (such as the LeBron James bio More than a Game) and full seasons of Bounce’s own TV shows, including access to Premier Boxing Champions.

Brown Sugar is already available through Android and iOS devices, including the recent addition of support for Amazon’s Fire TV gear. Chromecast support is there, too. It’s not much different than other services in that sense, and it’s even a little late to the Apple TV party. However, it has one big ace up its sleeve: the price. Brown Sugar costs $4 per month once your one-week trial ends, which makes it a realistic option if you want a more targeted all-you-can-watch service.

Source: Brown Sugar, PR Newswire

Photo-scanning app Heirloom is shutting down as its developer adjusts focus

Why it matters to you

Heirloom users will lose their photo scans if they don’t download them before August 1.

The app that turns physical photos into digital files is shutting down — Heirloom is closing on August 1. The developer is now asking users to download their images before the shutdown to avoid losing data.

Heirloom turned any iOS or Android smartphone camera into a photo scanner. Unlike just snapping a photo with the native camera app, Heirloom would detect the edges of the photo, automatically cropping to include only the image. The software could also correct distortion from holding the camera at an angle.

Heriloom’s developer, Mylestone, is giving up on the program that has been around since 2014 to focus on its new core product of the same name. Mylestone uses artificial intelligence (mixed with actual people) to turn digital photographs into stories that can then be read aloud through digital assistants such as Alexa. The system relies largely on scanned photos, but the company is working to add the ability to link and automatically upload images from social media accounts.

“As much as we love the Heirloom product, it doesn’t fit with our service going forward,” the announcement reads.

Images that are saved on the Heirloom system will be deleted once the software is discontinued, so the company is urging users to open the app and make sure all their files are saved to a device and not just stored in the app. The app allows users to download images either from the internet at heirloom.net or in the app by selecting and saving each image to the smartphone’s camera roll.

While Heirloom was a fairly novel idea when the app first launched, several programs now offer similar capability, ditching the scanner for faster smartphone-based scanning. Google’s PhotoScan, launched in 2016, takes care of a similar task — and Mylestone recommends users download PhotoScan as an alternative. The most recent update even allows the program to eliminate the glare from overhead lights that sometimes happens when scanning in glossy photos — taking the image from multiple angles allows the software to put the pieces together and remove that section of glare. Adobe Scan also turns a smartphone camera into a scanner, but designed for documents, the program can recognize text, making the app searchable.

The Heirloom app will remain accessible until Mylestone shutters the service on August 1.

2012 and 2013 MacBook Pro users get new machines due to bad batteries

Why it matters to you

If you have a 2012 or 2013 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, check your battery. If it needs replacing, Apple might just give you a newer machine instead.

Most often, issues with the supply of components work against the typical computer user, particularly when it involves an older machine. If you’re an Apple user with a 2012 or 2013 MacBook Pro, however, the company’s supply constraints could result in your receiving a brand-new machine as a replacement for your aging notebook.

According to MacUser, Apple has a problem getting its hands on the integrated battery assembly for mid-2012 and early-2013 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro models. This means that anyone who visits an Apple Store looking to get a battery replaced is out of luck. In a testament to Apple’s focus on customer service, however, the company is looking to make things right in a big way.

Normally, Apple will replace a worn battery at no charge for customers who purchased an AppleCare+ extended warranty that’s still in effect. Or, customers without AppleCare+ can pay $199 in the U.S. to replace their battery. However, Apple doesn’t anticipate having the battery assembly back in stock until September 15, 2017. Therefore, it has been offering to either waive the $199 charge if a customer is willing to wait until then or to replace the affected machine with a newer, similarly configured MacBook Pro.

According to reports from places like Reddit, users are receiving a variety of different replacement options. Some are receiving refurbished 2015 MacBook Pro machines. Others, however, are receiving brand-new 2016 or 2017 MacBook Pros with Touch Bar. Some owners have been required to pay the standard $199 battery charge in order to receive the replacement — still an incredible bargain for receiving a brand-new machine.

Apple handles these situations as they arise, and so there’s no guarantee that a given user will receive a new machine. MacRumors notes that Apple policy only covers batteries with less than 1,000 charge cycles and that show a “Service Battery” or similar notice when checked in About This Mac > System Report > Power > Health Information. Nevertheless, some users report receiving an exchange with batteries that had greater than 1,000 charge cycles.

If you think the battery on your mid-2012 or early-2013 15-inch MacBook Pro needs to be replaced, then you might want to head to your local Apple Store and see what can be done. You might just find that you’ll be offered a much newer machine for either no charge if you’re covered by an AppleCare+ warranty, or at most $199. And that’s a fair price for a brand-new machine.

What’s on TV: ‘Shark Week,’ ‘HarmonQuest’ and ‘Ghost in the Shell’

It’s summer, and that means it’s time for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week. Along with the usual specials, it also has Shark After Dark talks set up hosted by Chris Hardwick. In non-shark related news, there’s the second season of Community creator Dan Harmon’s HarmonQuest streaming on SeeSo, while Netflix will release The Incredible Jessica James later this week starring former The Daily Show correspondent Jessica Williams. Also, on Blu-ray there’s the live action Ghost in the Shell movie, and Boss Baby. Tough choice. Look after the break to check out each day’s highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).

Blu-ray & Games & Streaming

• Ghost in the Shell (3D, 4K)
• Gifted
• The Boss Baby (3D, 4K)
• Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
• Re-Animator
• Lost in America (Criterion)
• Warlock Collection
• A Healer Only Lives Twice (PS4)
• Titanfall 2: Operation Frontier Shield DLC (PS4, Xbox One)
• Pyre (PC, PS4)
• Nioh: Defiant Honor DLC (PS4)
• Infinite Minigolf (PSVR)
• Fortnite (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
• Mafia III: Sign of the Times DLC (PS4, Xbox One)
• Constructor (Xbox One, PS4)
• Aven Colony (Xbox One, PS4)
• Fable Fortune (Xbox One Game Preview)
• Unbox: Newbie’s Adventure (Xbox One, PS4)
• GRIDD: Retroenhanced (Xbox One, PS4)
• Theseus (PSVR)
• Tiny Trax (PSVR)
• Canadian Football 2017 (Xbox One)
• Syndrome (Xbox One, PS4)

Monday

• American Ninja Warrior, NBC, 8PM
• So You Think You Can Dance, Fox, 8PM
• WWE Raw, USA, 8PM
• Return to the Isle of Jaws, Discovery, 9PM
• Preacher, AMC, 9PM
• Will, TNT, 9PM
• Stitchers, Freeform, 9PM
• Superhuman, Fox, 9PM
• Alien Sharks: Stranger Fins, Discovery, 10PM
• Midnight, Texas (series premiere), NBC, 10PM
• Diana, Our Mother, HBO, 10PM
• Somewhere Between (series premiere), ABC, 10PM
• American Greed, CNBC, 10PM
• Teen Mum, MTV, 10PM
• Spartan, NBC, 10PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11PM

Tuesday

• Joe Mande’s Award-winning Comedy Special, Netflix, 3AM
• Casual, Hulu, 3AM
• WWE Smackdown, USA, 8PM
• America’s Got Talent, NBC, 8PM
• The Fosters, Freeform, 8PM
• Sharks and the City: LA, Discovery, 9PM
• The Challenge MTV, 9PM
• Animal Kingdom, TNT, 9PM
• The Bold Type, Freeform, 9PM
• Face Off, Syfy, 9PM
• Fantomworks, Velocity, 9PM
• Somewhere Between 2.0, ABC, 10PM
• Sharks and the City: New York, Discovery, 10PM
• Shooter, USA, 10PM
• American Ripper, History, 10PM
• Fear Factor, MTV, 10PM
• Adam Ruins Everything, TruTV, 10PM
• The Profit, CNBC, 10PM
• Tosh.0, Comedy Central, 10PM
• World of Dance, NBC, 10PM
• Wrecked, TBS, 10:30PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11PM

Wednesday

• Big Brother, CBS, 8PM
• Little Big Shots (season finale), NBC, 8PM
• Kingdom, DirecTV Audience, 8PM
• Lucha Underground, El Rey, 8PM
• The Lost Cage, Discovery, 9PM
• Suits, USA, 9PM
• Salvation, CBS, 9PM
• Hood Adjacent with James Davis, Comedy Central, 9PM
• The Carmichael Show, NBC, 9PM
• Devil Sharks, Discovery, 10PM
• I’m Sorry, TruTV, 10PM
• Snowfall FX, 10PM
• The Auto Firm with Alex Vega, Velocity, 10PM
• Blood Drive, Syfy, 10PM
• To Tell the Truth, ABC, 10PM
• The Ultimate Fighter, FS1, 10PM
• Catfish, MTV, 10PM
• Younger, TV Land, 10PM
• Cleverman, Sundance, 10PM
• Broadchurch, BBC America, 10PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11PM

Thursday

• HarmonQuest (S2). SeeSo, 3AM
• Penn & Teller: Fool Us, CW, 8PM
• Boy Band, ABC, 8PM
• America’s Got Talent, NBC, 8PM
• Beat Shazam, Fox, 8PM
• Shark Exile, Discovery, 9PM
• Battle of the Network Stars, ABC, 9PM
• Hooten & the Lady, CW, 9PM
• Big Brother, CBS, 9PM
• The Wall, NBC, 9PM
• The Tunnel, PBS, 9PM
• Date Night Live (series premiere), Lifetime, 10PM
• Shark Storm, Discovery, 10PM
• Akil the Fugitive Hunter, A&E, 10PM
• Zoo, CBS, 10PM
• The Mist, Spike TV, 10PM
• The Night Shift, NBC, 10PM
• The Gong Show, ABC, 10PM
• Queen of the South, USA, 10PM
• Party Legends (season finale), Viceland, 10:30PM
• Comedy Knockout (summer finale), TruTV, 11PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11PM
• American Boyband (season finale), Viceland, 11:30PM

Friday

• The Adventures of Puss in Boots (S5), Netflix, 3AM
• Daughters of Destiny (S1), Netflix, 3AM
• The Last Tycoon (S1), Amazon Prime, 3AM
• The Incredible Jessica James, Netflix, 3AM
• Descendants 2, ABC, 8PM
• Killjoys, Syfy, 8PM
• Masters of Illusion, CW, 8PM
• African Shark Safari, Discovery, 9PM
• Dark Matter, Syfy, 9PM
• All Access: Mayweather vs. McGregor, Showtime 10PM
• Wynonna Earp, Syfy, 10PM
• Lair of the Sawfish, Discovery, 10PM
• Room 104 (series premiere), HBO, 11:30PM

Saturday

• Doubt, CBS, 8PM
• Sharkmania, Discovery, 9PM
• Turn, AMC, 9PM
• Risk, Showtime 9PM
• Orphan Black, BBC America, 10PM
• Still Star-Crossed (season finale), ABC, 10PM

Sunday

• Shark School with Michael Phelps, Discovery, 8PM
• Teen Wolf (summer premiere), MTV, 8PM
• Top Gear America (series premiere), BBC America, 8PM
• Big Brother, CBS, 8PM
• Celebrity Family Feud, ABC, 8PM
• Sunday Night Baseball, ESPN, 8PM
• Game of Thrones, HBO, 9PM
• Candy Crush, CBS, 9PM
• Power, Starz, 9PM
• Claws, TNT, 9PM
• Grantchester (season finale), PBS, 9PM
• American Grit, Fox, 9PM
• The Nineties, CNN, 9PM
• Steve Harvey’s Funderdome, ABC, 9PM
• Ballers, HBO, 10PM
• $100,000 Pyramid, ABC, 10PM
• The Strain, FX, 10PM
• I’m Dying Up Here, Showtime, 10PM
• Unsung, TV One, 10PM
• Insecure, HBO, 10:30PM
• Talking with Chris Hardwick, AMC, 11PM
• Kevin Hart Presents (season finale), Comedy Central, 11PM
• Legends of Chamberlain Heights, Comedy Central, 11:30PM
• Rick & Morty (Season premiere), Cartoon Network, 11:30PM

It’s the beginning of the end for Microsoft Paint

Windows’ Fall Creators Update will add a pack of new features to the platform, but it could also mark the beginning of the end for MS Paint. Microsoft has revealed in a list of removed and deprecated features that it will stop actively developing the iconic application. No more future updates or new features for the painting program it launched with its operating system in 1985. That’s usually the first step of killing an app, and a Windows update down the line could remove it altogether.

Microsoft denied Paint’s demise in the statement it sent The New York Times, but it also took the chance to remind people that Paint 3D can do most of what the original application can:

“MS Paint is not going away. In addition to the new 3D capabilities, many of the MS Paint features people know and love like photo editing and 2D creation are in Paint 3D — the new app for creativity, available for free with the Windows 10 Creators update.”

The tech titan is also tossing Outlook Express to the trash and integrating Reader app and list into MS Edge when the Creators Update drops. In addition, it’s paring down the screensaver feature by disabling it in Themes and stopping its development for Group Policies, Control Panel and Sysprep.

Via: The New York Times, BBC

Source: Microsoft

Space shuttle junk gives shape to Lockheed Martin’s new habitat prototype

Why it matters to you

Lockheed Martin’s new concept shows that even old space junk can be recycled for future missions.

One of the first things astronauts will need when they head to Mars is a safe and comfortable place to live. Today’s spacecraft have tight quarters — sufficient for short trips but not so practical when the journey nears nine months one way.

But six companies are on the case, commissioned by NASA to develop living quarters for its astronauts in its Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP). Lockheed Martin recently showed off a habitat concept it is developing for the agency. A prototype of the cislunar habitat, which the company calls Deep Space Gateway, will be made of repurposed space shuttle and will soon be developed as a prototype at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

“It is easy to take things for granted when you are living at home, but the recently selected astronauts will face unique challenges,” Bill Pratt, Lockheed Martin NextSTEP program manager, said in a statement. “Something as simple as calling your family is completely different when you are outside of low Earth orbit. While building this habitat, we have to operate in a different mindset that’s more akin to long trips to Mars to ensure we keep them safe, healthy and productive.”

The Deep Space Gateway will combine old elements with new, extending Lockheed Martin’s Phase I concept to Phase II, which will use mixed reality and rapid prototyping to explore the concept further over the next 18 months. The company will focus on refurbishing the Donatello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, which was used to bring cargo to the International Space Station.

“We are excited to work with NASA to repurpose a historic piece of flight hardware, originally designed for low Earth orbit exploration, to play a role in humanity’s push into deep space,” Pratt said. “Making use of existing capabilities will be a guiding philosophy for Lockheed Martin to minimize development time and meet NASA’s affordability goals.”

Despite being designed with a human crew in mind, the spacecraft will be equipped to function autonomously, as it will be left uninhabited for months on end as the crew explores the Red Planet.

“Because the Deep Space Gateway would be uninhabited for several months at a time, it has to be rugged, reliable and have the robotic capabilities to operate autonomously. Essentially it is a robotic spacecraft that is well-suited for humans when Orion is present,” Pratt said. “Lockheed Martin’s experience building autonomous planetary spacecraft plays a large role in making that possible.”

Tough new 3D printing plastic lets astronauts print spacewalk tools on demand

Why it matters to you

This new 3D printer material could change the way we stock, supply, and operate the International Space Station

Keeping the International Space Station (ISS) running properly requires a litany of specialized tools, and between unforeseen malfunctions and periodic hardware upgrades, it’s often hard to anticipate what tools the crew will need for a given task. On top of that, it’s also extremely expensive to launch objects into space, so in recent years, NASA has been exploring the idea of 3D printing tools in orbit.

Last year, ISS astronauts made headlines when they used the first 3D printed tool ever created in space — but this tool wasn’t without limitations. Due to the extremely harsh conditions in the vacuum of space, NASA’s 3D printed tools have largely been limited to use within the station itself. But now, the technology is set for another giant leap. 3D printing startup Made in Space has reportedly developed a new material that can be used not only inside the ISS itself, but also in the harsh vacuum of space.

The new material — made from polyetherimide/polycarbonate (known as PEI/PC) — is several times stronger than traditional plastics currently printed on the ISS.

“In a vacuum, [PEI/PC] is not going to [emit particles], it’s resistant to the UV environment, it’s resistant to atomic oxygen, so it can perform actual uses in space,” explained Made In Space vice president, Matt Napoli.

Not only can this sturdy plastic be used to print stronger tools, the material could also be used to create spare exterior parts for the ISS. In the future, Made In Space intends to use the ISS as a launch pad for small satellites printed in-situ.

The company is currently testing a 3D printer, Archinaut, that has the ability to operate entirely outside of the station. This system will be launched to the ISS in 2018, and could be used to make the first 3D printed satellite ever created in orbit.

Reader poll: How well does your system run ‘Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds’?

In just a few short months, Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds has taken the PC gaming world by storm, and it is not hard to see why. The heart-pounding 100 player brawl plays out in short bursts of exciting, close-call gameplay, in between long stretches of loot gathering, strategic positioning, and running. That said, the game is still in Steam Early Access and has a long road ahead of it when it comes to mechanical and performance optimization — we want to know how well the game is currently running on your home machine.

How well does @PUBATTLEGROUNDS run on your home system? Results discussed tomorrow on https://t.co/tmZvPewZcx #PlayerUnknownsBattlegrounds

— Digital Trends (@DigitalTrends) July 24, 2017

In our testing, we found that even mid-range graphical hardware was capable of holding solid frame rates in-game, albeit with plenty of CPU overhead, thanks to an Intel Core i7-6950X and 16GB of RAM. That is not exactly a typical system, so we paired it up with a few different GPUS. The GTX 1080 Ti was capable of crushing it at 1080p, pulling in well over 100 frames per second, regardless of quality settings.

The story was a bit different on our mid-range hardware. Throwing a GTX 1060 in the same system brought the frame rate at 1080p down to 67 frames per second, with the settings at ultra. It only went up from there, reaching 124 frames per second with the settings turned down to very low.

Not that we would recommend using the very low preset. There are only a few individual settings that really affect performance drastically and turning everything down as much as possible makes the game look horrible, without a commensurate bump in frame rate. Instead, most users are better off turning down the shadow settings to low. It provides a solid boost to the game’s render rate, with a minor concession that shadows take on a chunkier look.

We will discuss the results of the latest reader poll, as well as the current state of performance and optimization in Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds, on this week’s episode of our computing podcast Close to the Metal. We may even try to dig into what exactly is fueling the raging hype burning underneath this otherwise-unremarkable third-person shooter. Join us at 10 a.m. (PT) every Tuesday morning on Facebook Live and YouTube.

Hackers access Kansas job search data, steal millions of social security numbers

Why it matters to you

If you entered your data into a job search service for any of these 10 affected states, then you’ll want to check to see if your social security number was stolen.

In today’s always-connected world, it’s impossible to do much business without entering your personal information in one computer system or another. That means that private data, often including social security numbers, is only safe as long as all of those systems remain secure — and even state government systems aren’t always safe. If you’ve been looking for a job via a Kansas Department of Commerce employment service, then you’re suddenly well aware of how it feels to see hackers steal your private data when there’s nothing you can do about it.

The news comes via KCUR, which as a member of the Kansas News Service requested and received information on a recent hack of a system operated by America’s Job Link Alliance-TS (AJLA-TS), a division of the Kansas Department of Commerce. The service allows people to post résumés and conduct job searches at sites like Kansasworks.com, and it also manages data for a total of 16 states including Kansas.

A total of almost 6.5 million records were hacked, and of those, 5.5 million from 10 states included social security numbers (SSNs), one of the most sensitive data types to which a hacker can gain access. According to the records obtained by the Kansas News Service, about half a million of the hacked accounts with SSNs were held by individuals located in Kansas.

The following states were affected:

• Arkansas: 597,734 SSNs
• Arizona: 896,370 SSNs
• Delaware: 236,134 SSNs
• Idaho: 170,517 SSNs
• Kansas: 563,568 SSNs
• Maine: 283,449 SSNs
• Oklahoma: 430,679 SSNs
• Vermont: 183,153 SSNs
• Alabama: 1,393,109 SSNs
• Illinois: 807,450 SSNs

The breach was first suspected on March 12, 2017 and then verified on March 14. The FBI was notified of the breach on March 15, and since then AJLA-TS has been soliciting assistance from a variety of third-party IT forensic analysis companies. The good news is that the exploit used by the hackers to gain access to the accounts has been identified and fixed and the affected accounts precisely identified.

The state of Kansas is now paying three firms at least $235,000 for various services through the end of 2017. The costs of the breach will also rise significantly as the state will also pay for a year of credit monitoring for most of the victims, specifically those located in nine of the 10 states with victims affected by the breach. Victims in Delaware will receive three years of credit monitoring service due to contractual obligations.

So far, the Kansas Department of Commerce has sent 260,000 emails informing victims of the breach, but many hundreds of thousands have not yet been notified due to a lack of email addresses. Because Kansas law does not stipulate regular mail or telephone notification, it’s unclear if other victims will be notified. If you fear that your data might have been compromised, then you can contact a call center established for victims at 844-469-3939.

Try some over-ear Bluetooth headphones for just $20 right now

Our friends at Thrifter are back again, this time with a great deal on a pair of over-ear Bluetooth headphones.

If you’ve looked at buying inexpensive Bluetooth headphones before, you have probably seen Mpow come up in your results. The company has been making super-affordable Bluetooth headphones for a few years now, and people love them. Right now you can pick up a pair of over ear headphones for just $19.99 with coupon code AWTNX83J at Amazon.

This is a savings of $5 on the Bluetooth headphones that also come with a wire for when the battery runs out and you don’t want to stop listening to the music.

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See at Amazon

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