HTC Vive launches dedicated VR store for everything besides games
HTC is launching a new app store for its VR hardware. Viveport escapes beta testing today, showcasing all the other VR possibilities besides survival horror, shooting and such. The company is promising the hub will show off art, creativity tools, education apps and more — hoping to surface things that might get lost in the depths of Steam’s bigger catalogue. The store also includes Viveport Premieres: content that’s debuting on the Vive headset, including Google Spotlight Stories’ Petal, Stonehenge VR, The Music Room and more.
There’s also a cryptic final comment in the press release from Rikard Steiber, President of Viveport, teasing unlimited content for people wiling to jump through some social media and puzzle-based hoops in the near future. But for now, see what’s on offer — for a price — right here.
Periscope’s VIP program rewards popular livestreaming users
If you’re popular on Periscope, the livestreaming app will soon reward you as part of its new VIP program. The three-tier initiative is designed to incentivize creators who have invested time in using Twitter’s live video option with tools that will help them make their audiences even bigger. In other words, it gives livestreamers a reason to use the platform more and make an effort to pad that follower total. Gold, Silver and Bronze levels require follower counts of 10,000, 30,000 and 100,000, respectively. There are also benchmarks for average viewer tallies and you’ll need to be broadcasting at least twice a week.
So, what are the perks? All three levels will get badges attached to their profile so everyone will know they’re a VIP. The Bronze tier includes care packages to help you look your best, a boost in search results and a list of tips and tricks. Members of the Silver level gain prioritized support, access to “future discovery products,” private streams with Periscope for a behind-the-scenes look and a Slack channel for fellow VIPs. The top Gold tier includes all the stuff from Bronze and Silver levels with the ability to collaborate directly with the Periscope team.
If you meet the criteria, you can apply for Periscope’s VIP program right here. It’s free, but those are some hefty requirements you’ll need to fulfill in order to gain access. Though the program was announced this week, the sign-up page officially lists it as “coming soon.”
Source: Periscope (Medium)
Pixel 2 joins the few Chromebooks that can run Android apps
Prior to a few days ago, anyone wanting to run Android apps on their Chromebook had to be an early adopter. Google finally released a stable build of Chrome OS that included a Play store in beta that would allow users to run mobile apps…but only on the Acer Chromebook R11 and ASUS Chromebook Flip. Since the only one other machine supporting Android apps in beta Chrome OS releases was the Chromebook Pixel 2, we predicted it would be next in line — and we were right.
Starting today, users of that sadly out-of-production machine can run the Play store on a stable Chrome OS 53 build and load up Android apps. Which Chromebook will get cleared next is unclear, though Google does have a list of dozens that will get added at some point “later in 2016/2017.”
Source: Android Police
Vizio’s SmartCast soundbars don’t work well with Spotify for now
Vizio’s line of SmartCast soundbars and speakers tout Google Cast for wireless audio streaming from a variety of apps. One of those apps is Spotify, a massively popular music streaming service. Unfortunately, the Cast functionality with that particular library of tunes isn’t working like it should. There are a number of posts in both Spotify and Google’s forums from users who say Vizio’s latest soundbars don’t show up as an option for Casting in the streaming app. Spotify’s software isn’t recognizing the speakers as available gadgets for playing music. Reports of the issue go back as far as late July, over a month after the SmartCast soundbars went on sale.
While the situation is certainly a headache for folks who already bought Vizio’s audio gear, the company says a fix is on the way. “Vizio, Google and Spotify are aware of an issue on the soundbars and are working closely on improvements via a firmware update,” the company told Engadget. “Once available, the product will update automatically. In the meantime, we recommend using Bluetooth when streaming from Spotify.”
Bluetooth isn’t the best option in terms of audio quality, but at least the secondary connectivity offers a way for owners to still use Vizio’s soundbars with Spotify in the interim. Vizio doesn’t have a timeline for when the fix will be available, so Bluetooth may be the only option for using that particular music service for the foreseeable future. Users report that Cast functionality works well in other audio apps, so the issue appears to be limited to using Spotify with Vizio’s group of soundbars. The company didn’t mention any issues with the recently released Crave 360 speaker that went on sale earlier this month.
[Thanks, Dan]
Source: Spotify Community, Google Product Forums
Instagram’s ‘Save Draft’ feature is now available for everyone
Unlike Snapchat’s unpolished zaniness, Instagram’s tools and tone skewed users to share more curated photos. But since it didn’t save your photos midway through adding the right filters or effects, folks must either entirely edit and share a photo or lose all their changes. No longer. Six years after it launched and a month after testing it with select users, Instagram just gave everyone the “save draft” feature. It’s now live on Android and iOS without requiring a new update.
Trying to create a post that’s just right? With the latest update, you can save as a draft & come back to it later. https://t.co/7lZ0eyNtBC
— Instagram (@instagram) September 20, 2016
As its new help section explains, all you have to do is add an effect, filter, caption or location to a photo, then go back to the edit step and hit the back arrow to prompt the “Save Draft” function. Any indecisive Instagrammer will find it useful, but the biggest benefit might go to social media managers that can now queue up plenty of posts in drafts. If it isn’t live on your device just yet, give it time: Like the feature’s test phase in August, Instagram is likely rolling out to groups of users at a time.
Source: Instagram
WhatsApp adds user mentions so you can’t ignore group chats
Anyone who has been included in a group chat knows how annoying they can be. You end up muting the thread to keep the notifications from driving you crazy. Sometimes you do need to see a message and WhatsApp is adding a new tool that will make it a little more difficult to ignore group chats. The app now has user mentions so you can make sure whoever you need to see a message gets a notification about it.
Like Twitter, Instagram and other social apps, using the “@” symbol to tag someone will alert them. And yes, it will do so even if they’ve muted a conversation. While the change will make it more difficult to ignore the group chats you want no part of, it does seem useful. When you take into account that WhatsApp allows 256 users in a group, it can be difficult to keep up or making sure the right person sees your note. You can tag multiple users at once, too.
The new feature is available in Android and iOS versions of the app, but you won’t be able to use it on the web. WhatsApp has been keen on regularly adding new features for group chats. Back in June, a new tool debuted that allows users to quote the exact message they’re responding to in a group thread.
Via: Wired UK
Source: iTunes, Google Play
Apple’s macOS Sierra is now available for download
If you skipped the beta releases, today’s the day you can put Siri to work on a Mac. Apple’s latest desktop operating system, macOS Sierra, is now available for download. While the new version debuted back at WWDC and followed with a public beta, this is the first time the finished product will be available to the masses via the App Store on a Mac.
In addition to the aforementioned virtual assistant hitting the desktop, the free update includes features like a universal clipboard, revamped Messages, a storage optimization tool, Apple Pay on the web and more tabs… lots of tabs. For a full rundown of the new features and our detailed impressions, consult out full review right here.
Opera’s VPN-equipped browser is now available to everyone
You no longer have to grab test software to try Opera’s VPN-toting web browser. The company has released the finished version of Opera 40 for desktops, which revolves around a free virtual private network (provided by SurfEasy) that offers both a more secure connection as well as access to foreign content that would otherwise be blocked. Hi, Hulu and Pandora! It can automatically choose whichever VPN server will provide the fastest connection, but you can specify one of five countries (Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore and the US) if you’re more concerned about visiting region-specific sites.
The update also brings a reworked battery saver and RSS feeds in personal news, so there’s something to check out after the novelty of the browser’s central feature wears off. One thing’s for sure: it’s worth a shot if you hate paying for VPNs, but want to stick to a mainstream browser that includes plenty of familiar elements.
Source: Opera
Indonesian government may ban over 80 LGBT apps and websites
While homosexuality isn’t technically illegal in Indonesia, it’s extremely frowned upon in society. That extends to the digital realm, like when the country’s Information and Communications Ministry pressured social app Line to remove LGBT themes and stickers back in February. While that and other government statements reportedly stoked anti-gay sentiment through the spring, they began drafting a bill to ban pro-LGBT sites in March. Yesterday, officials from multiple agencies exited a closed-door meeting at the Communications Ministry ready to block over 80 apps and websites in the country in an unprecedented crackdown.
The meeting was originally held to review a police request to block Grindr and 17 other apps they allege were used in a child prostitution ring, according to Buzzfeed, but the ministry expanded the list to include other pro-LGBT services. But the bans seem to come from a larger moral panic within the government.
“We would be pleased if the communication ministry blocked [gay apps] without hesitation because the smell of pornography is so strong on them, such as exhibiting nudity,” Ericson Siregar, an officer with Indonesia’s National Police Criminal Investigations Department told Buzzfeed.
Though this government action alone might resurrect anti-LGBT sentiment, others worry that this is an opening salvo to carve out US services from Indonesian internet. Communications Ministry Head of Investigations Teguh Arifiadi told Buzzfeed that they’ve already requested that Google remove three apps, Grindr, Blued, and BoyAhoy, from the country’s Play store. They could, and likely will, proceed with takedown requests for some or all of the 80 other sites and services they reviewed.
90 percent of Indonesia’s 255 million people are Muslim, and efforts to cull pro-LGBT apps and websites has been enthusiastically endorsed by religious organizations and officials. But the anti-gay pushback could be related to a greater rejection of Western values that some conservative Islamic clerics see brought in by US internet titans. True, Indonesian religious authorities are also combating the influence of radical Islam from overseas which are also using Facebook and Twitter for their own agenda. But time will tell whether the anti-LGBT online crackdown stops at curbing app and website interaction or is part of a larger campaign for Indonesia to seal its cyberspace off from influences its government doesn’t condone.
Source: Buzzfeed
OpenOffice could shutter due to lack of volunteer developers
OpenOffice, one of the most prominent free alternatives to Microsoft Office, is in big trouble. Dennis E. Hamilton, its volunteer vice president, has recently sent out a message to the project mailing list to inform members that its “retirement… is a serious possibility” due to lack of volunteer developers. According to Ars Technica, many of its contributors moved to LibreOffice after it launched, which you might know as that other free alternative that’s been publishing updates more frequently. This lack of manpower has been affecting the team’s ability to deal with security vulnerabilities. “In the case of Apache OpenOffice,” he wrote, “needing to disclose security vulnerabilities for which there is no mitigation in an update has become a serious issue.”
For instance, OpenOffice informed people about a vulnerability in July, but it never issued an updated version with a fix. Instead, the team suggested switching to either Microsoft Office or LibreOffice and issued a hotfix you have to install manually a month later. Hamilton detailed how a shutdown would go, including the termination of the project’s social media accounts. Not everyone has lost hope, however. One contributor named Phillip Rhodes replied to the email thread that he’d rather the team think of how to attract more contributors instead of planning for the project’s shutdown.
Here’s a longer version of Hamilton’s mail, but you can read the whole thing on the team’s mailing list archives:
“I have regularly observed that the Apache OpenOffice project has limited capacity for sustaining the project in an energetic manner. It is also my considered opinion that there is no ready supply of developers who have the capacity, capability, and will to supplement the roughly half-dozen volunteers holding the project together. It doesn’t matter what the reasons for that might be.
The Apache Project Maturity Model (PMM), identifies the characteristics for which an Apache project is expected to strive.
Recently, some elements have been brought into serious question:
QU20: The project puts a very high priority on producing secure software.
QU50: The project strives to respond to documented bug reports in a timely manner.There is also a litmus test which is kind of a red line. That is for the project to have a Project Management Committee (PMC) capable of producing releases. That means that there are at least three available PMC members capable of building a functioning binary from a release-candidate archive, and who do so in providing binding votes to approve the release of that code.
In the case of Apache OpenOffice, needing to disclose security vulnerabilities for which there is no mitigation in an update has become a serious issue.
In responses to concerns raised in June, the PMC is currently tasked by the ASF Board to account for this inability and to provide a remedy. An indicator of the seriousness of the Board’s concern is the PMC been requested to report to the Board every month, starting in August, rather than quarterly, the normal case. One option for remedy that must be considered is retirement of the project. The request is for the PMC’s consideration among other possible options. The Board has not ordered a solution.
I cannot prediction how this will all work out. It is remiss of me not to point out that retirement of the project is a serious possibility.
There are those who fear that discussing retirement can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. My concern is that the project could end with a bang or a whimper. My interest is in seeing any retirement happen gracefully. That means we need to consider it as a contingency. For contingency plans, no time is a good time, but earlier is always better than later.”
Via: Ars Technica
Source: OpenOffice Mailing List
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