Gadget Ogling: Casting Discs, Scent-uous Sunrises and Surfing Without Waves

Media streaming is becoming an ever-crowded market thanks to players like Chromecast, Sling, Apple TV and Roku. We can add another player to the mix with Lenovo Cast, which will become available in August. The puck-shaped accessory can stream 1080p video to your TV from your smartphone, tablet or computer. What's compelling about this is it can display just about anything you have on your smartphone through DLNA and Miracast capability. That should make it a bit more versatile than a Chromecast, which, outside of some app integrations, is run from a Chrome browser.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1eGgo4r

Chromixium Adds Polish to Chrome

Chromixium is a new Linux distro that goes one big step further than the few existing distros catering to the Chrome OS. It one-ups Google's semi-proprietary Chrome OS locked into the popular Chromebook hardware. Chromixium sole developer Rich Jack's innovative version 1.0, released last month, is a Chrome OS clone that runs on nearly any aging or newer computer with the user's choice of the fully open-sourced Chromium Web browser or Google's Chrome browser.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1Bv6589

Wood Chips: Electronics May Go Back to Nature

"Wood chips" takes on new meaning with a new green technology, cellulose nanofibril, or CNF, developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Products Laboratory and detailed in a research paper published this week. The "chips" in question are indeed made mostly of wood -- but they are also computer chips. As of 2007, about 3.2 million tons of electronic waste was being generated each year, the researchers noted.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HAUOp2

Google's I/O Steers Devs to Photos, IoT, Maps and More

Google on Thursday kicked off its I/O developers conference with the introduction of a new app for better managing, organizing and storing photos, as well as an Android spinoff for the Internet of Things, and an offline feature for Maps. The new Google Photo application allows shutterbugs to back up photos automatically from any device to a personal home site on the Net. There the images can be organized automatically by a number of criteria -- faces, places and such.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1AAYgCG

5 Reasons Jony Ive's Step Back Is Apple's Step Forward

There seem to be two major reactions to the "promotion" of Apple's Jonathan Ive to the newly created position of chief design officer: first, that he deserves the recognition and reward; and second, that this is the beginning of the end for Jony Ive's tenure at Apple. Because Apple released the news in the UK... on Monday, which was the Memorial Day holiday in the United States... it appeared there was an effort to mitigate any element of scary surprise that could spark a drop in stock. Why the carefully scripted plan of action?

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1LNzFLz

No Wrongdoing at NCIS, Says Defense Watchdog

The U.S. Department of Defense's Inspector General has rejected allegations that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service engaged in questionable domestic intelligence activity. The finding concluded a DoD IG probe spurred by allegations that NCIS was making available to military intelligence agencies its Law Enforcement Information Exchange, a massive database of 506.3 million law enforcement records ranging from criminal histories and arrest reports to field information cards filled out by cops on the beat, even when no crime had occurred.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HUzOMA

Linux/Moose Malware Wreaks Havoc on Social Networks

Internet security researchers at Eset on Tuesday published a security research paper on Linux/Moose, a major threat to social networks that turns routers into conduits for grabbing users' log-in credentials, employing them for network fraud and to further spread malware to client devices that connect through them to the Internet. The paper, "Dissecting Linux/Moose," details a months-long investigation into a carefully concealed flow of traffic involving the malware and recommends how to avoid prolonged exposure to it.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1SD4YOu

Splatoon: Nintendo Seeks Bloodless Coup in Online Shooter Genre

With its bloodless battles of attrition between squads of human-squid chimeras, twitch-shooter Splatoon oozes classic Nintendo charm that has enamored many early reviewers. Splatoon is the first new intellectual property Nintendo has released in years. It takes a crack at the competitive shooter genre, opting to go the route of a third-person, rather than first-person perspective. Instead of the visceral shock of bullet wounds, blood, and the wails of the wounded, Splatoon supplies brightly colored ink to wield in chaotic matches.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1LKIciS

Phone Companion App Lets Cortana Get Around

Microsoft advanced its "if you can't beat'em, join'em" mobile strategy with Tuesday's announcement of Phone Companion, an app built into Windows 10 that's designed to synchronize information across multiple platforms, including Android and iOS. "In a multi-device world where you move between your phone, tablet and PC multiple times a day -- you expect your experience to go wherever you do," noted Joe Belfiore, vice president of Microsoft's operating system group.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1LIRbAv

Hush! Everybody's Listening!

Americans have been spied on by their own government for far longer than most realized, it turns out, and the United States National Security Agency's surveillance activities are just the tip of the iceberg. The FBI, which repeatedly has expressed dismay at Google and Apple securing their mobile OSes -- on the grounds that it will hamper the fight against terrorism -- reportedly has become a major player in administering the NSA's warrantless surveillance program.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1ExYaqJ

Gadget Ogling: A Mighty Little Amp, a Credit Card-Sized Phone and a Food Tray Keyboard

Thankfully, tinny, terrible laptop speakers seem a relic of the past, but there are still occasions when the built-in audio from your portable computer's speakers or audio jack just doesn't quite cut it. Let's say you're an electronic music luminary traveling the world without the comforts of one's home studio but with an album deadline to meet. You need to hear what's going on. So here's the Apogee Groove, a portable USB amplifier that apparently improves audio all the way from low-bitrate WAV files to high-quality FLAC files.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1Ew79so

Is Home Where HomeKit's Heart Is?

Apple reportedly is preparing to launch an app called "Home" to act as an interface for setting up and managing smart devices that plug into its HomeKit framework. The Home app is expected to manage thermostats, smoke alarms, garage door openers, door locks, and other automated home tech. Apple already has announced that some HomeKit products will be making their debut at this year's WWDC, which will be held next month in San Francisco. It's possible the Home app could be unveiled there as well.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1ArUrQG

Apple vs. Lenovo: Lenovo's Coming-Out Party

If there is one vendor on the planet that has the capability to fight Apple -- on paper, it is Lenovo. Lenovo this week will hold its annual Lenovo Tech World event in China, showcasing the company's new breadth. While it would be easy to position this as the U.S. against China, Lenovo is actually far more of a multinational company, with executives balanced between the U.S. and China, and with strong alliances with both Microsoft and Google. This will not only be a battle between companies, but also between approaches to the market.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1FLfca2

Simplicity Linux Makes Good on Its Easy-Peasy Promise

The latest edition of Simplicity Linux, version 15.4, recently became available for download. Simplicity Linux delivers just what its name suggests: It is a simpler way to run a fully powered Linux desktop on any computer you touch. Simplicity lets you carry your entire desktop, favorite installed applications, and complete collection of documents and files in your pocket everywhere you go. Other Linux distros let you do much the same thing -- but solutions like Puppy Linux, Porteus, Knoppix and such are a bit trickier to set up and configure.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1BgKsZa

Spy Agencies Planned to Corrupt Google Play

The United States and its leading Western allies, known as the "Five Eyes," reportedly planned to hack into smartphones through their links to Google and Samsung's app stores. They wanted to infect apps with spyware and find ways to send misinformation to targets, according to documents released to the media by National Security Agency whistle-blower Edward Snowden. The intelligence agencies also apparently began targeting the mobile browser UC Browser in late 2011, after discovering it leaked revealing details about its users.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1AjH5Ww

DoT: Time to Get Serious About Car Talk

United States Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx recently called for accelerating the timetable to develop technology allowing communication between cars and highway infrastructures. Foxx directed the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration 1) to submit its proposal to require vehicle-to-vehicle communication in new vehicles by the end of this year rather than in 2016; and 2) to accelerate necessary testing to ensure that V2V and vehicle-to-infrastructure transmissions will be free from radio interference.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1Knjjfu

Apple Fiddles With MacBook Pro, iMac Features and Pricing

Apple on Tuesday announced performance enhancements for the MacBook Pro and a new configuration and price changes for the iMac. The new 15-inch MacBook Pro with its Force Touch trackpad and improved flash storage, battery and graphics performance is available immediately online, starting at $1,999. The Force Touch trackpad first appeared in the latest 13-inch MacBook. It includes the taptic engine found in the Apple Watch, which provides tactile feedback for tasks.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1KmR54y

Russia Aims to Build US-Free Mobile OS

Russia wants to develop alternatives to proprietary or partly closed mobile operating systems by using open source tools as a foundation, Minister of Telecom and Mass Communications Nikolay Nikiforov said last week. "Success would make a fairly significant impact on the go-to market plans of numerous IT vendors. We are seeing the beginnings of similar efforts in China, a market that has long been central to many vendors' future plans and hopes," said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1IQaQiR

Fove VR Headset Locks Onto Your Gaze

Fove is the first virtual reality headset to feature eye-tracking -- meaning, among other things, that characters you view on screen can look right back at you. So far, close to 500 people have pledged nearly $200,000 to bring the Fove VR headset to fruition. Just a day into its 45-day Kickstarter campaign, the Fove appears certain to reach its $250,000 goal. Backers can secure a Fove and a developer's kit by pledging at least $375 to the campaign -- the kits offered for $349 have sold out.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1IQ6yrE

Venom Less Toxic Than Heartbleed

It was a little over a year ago that the Heartbleed bug shocked the Internet with its potential for mischief. Now another flaw in open source code has sent network administrators into damage control mode. The bug, called "Venom" for "Virtualized Environment Neglected Operations Manipulation," allows an intruder to jump out of a virtual machine and execute malicious code on its host. Virtual machines are widely used in data centers, so it has the potential to cause widespread mischief.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HtIpWm

The Rampant, Risky Babbling of Android Apps

Eurecom researchers recently developed an Android app that can monitor the network traffic of other apps to alert users of suspicious or malicious activity. With more than 1.2 million applications in the Google Play store, there are multiple programs for performing a particular task. That can make choosing an app a chore for users, they noted in a report released last month. "Moreover, some of the applications being of dubious origin, there are no mechanisms for users to understand who the applications are talking to, and to what extent."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1S9J5pP

Cossacks 3 Could Revive RTS Game Genre

GSC Game World on Monday announced it will release Cossacks 3, a new version of the popular real-time strategy title Cossacks: European Wars. It will be available for PC, Mac and Linux machines later this year. Cossacks 3 is a modern remake of the original game that debuted in 2001. That history-based title was unique in that players could control hundreds of individual units at a time, vastly surpassing other games in the genre.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1GnBBuP

Researcher's Airplane-Hacking Claims May Not Fly

A security researcher who made headlines last month for bragging he'd hacked into a passenger jet's internal computer systems while in flight appears to have performed the act more than a dozen times over a three-year period. Chris Roberts, founder and CTO of One World Labs, told FBI investigators earlier this year that he'd hacked into the flight systems of commercial passenger aircraft from 15-20 times from 2011-2014, and on one occasion "caused one of the airplane engines to climb resulting in a lateral or sideways movement of the plane."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1R0ycoE

Makulu Gives Unity a Good Name

Makulu Linux now is one of the first major distros to integrate the Unity desktop. It was more than worth the wait! The Unity desktop is Ubuntu's flagship desktop environment. Parent company Canonical pushed through its development several years ago as a way of introducing users to its "unifying" computing platform for all devices. It removed the traditional panel bar and two-column application menu. It replaced both with an expanding sidebar that lost most of the configurability and functionality of the Linux panel.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1GkQsG9

NASA's $2.25M Challenge: 3D-Print a Space Base

NASA and America Makes have challenged innovators in the additive construction market to design a habitat for deep space exploration for the first stage of the competition and to fabricate such facilities in the second phase. The organizations will award a $50,000 prize and a pair of $1.1 million purses for the winners of the multistage challenge. Entrants have been challenged to design a 3D-printable habitat for the first phase of the competition, and the team that wins that level will be awarded $50,000.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HogCq9

Will Apple TV Be Busting Out All Over?

I want to believe that Apple will launch a new Apple TV hardware device in June at WWDC -- but holy macaroni, it's been more than three years since Apple introduced the third-generation Apple TV. Of course, Apple made a barely noticeable hardware tweak more than two years ago, but I'm begging for an Apple TV that's far more than just a utilitarian tool -- and on the surface, many signs seem to point toward such a revelation at WWDC. Before I get to the core rumors and signs, I should admit that a small part of me remains skeptical.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HdhL1o

The Future According to Qualcomm

I was at the Qualcomm Internet of Things event in San Francisco last week during what was a major IoT event in the city. What is kind of amazing is the larger event was just a small part of the applications show that used to go on at the same time. This year it is twice the size of that older show. Companies are flocking to this IOT concept like ducks to water. This means in a few short years we are going to be up to our ears in connected things. Qualcomm plans to be at the center of this with modems, hubs, and two broad initiatives.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1QXsgNc

Google's Driverless Cars to Leave the Nest

Google on Friday announced it will begin testing prototypes of its fully autonomous self-driving cars on public roads. The vehicles won't roam too far from their Mountain View, California, home -- but this latest phase of testing could be critical both for cultivating positive consumer perceptions, and influencing future legislation affecting the nascent sector. Google has "a few" driverless car prototypes that will be testing this summer, said Chris Urmson, director of the Google Self-Driving Car Project.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1HmY8t3

Gadget Ogling: A Tracking Camera Drone, a Rockin' Speaker and a Water-Boiling Efficiency Expert

Camera drones certainly are growing in popularity -- or further polluting the sky, depending on your perspective. A new model plans to follow your every move, thanks to a tracker on your wrist. After you throw Lily, it will fly up to 50 feet in the air and 100 feet away from you, knowing where you are and keeping its lens focused on whatever you're doing. A smartphone app helps you adjust the camera angle, and has two cameras to boost the number of possible angles.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1Ebespe

Reddit Flaps Gums at Harassers

Reddit on Thursday announced a new policy prohibiting personal attacks on its site. "We are updating how we apply existing policies to address new types of harassment on Reddit," said company spokesperson Heather Wilson. However, Reddit did not indicate what action it would take against harassers. Instead, it promised a thorough investigation by the company and a response based on the nature of the harassment. There is an indication that harassers might be banned, but there would be nothing to stop them from creating a new account.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1EakiHf

FireEye, Microsoft Outsmart Clever Chinese Malware

FireEye and Microsoft have scotched a scheme by a group of cybercriminals based in China to use an IT pro forum to hide malicious activity, according to a report released Thursday. The Chinese gang known as "APT17" devised the scheme, which uses forum pages and profiles on Microsoft's TechNet, to cover traffic from machines infected with the group's Black Coffee malware, FireEye explained in the report, titled "Hiding in Plain Sight: FireEye Exposes Chinese APT Obfuscation Tactic."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1KaXOhV

Venom Vulnerability Could Violate Virtual Machines

Crowdstrike on Wednesday made public its discovery of yet another long-buried Linux vulnerability. "Venom," as it has been dubbed, was unearthed by the firm's senior security researcher, Jason Geffner. It is listed as vulnerability CVE-2015-3456. Venom exists in the virtual floppy drive code used by virtualization platforms based on QEMU, or quick emulator. It has been around since 2004. The code probably went undetected for 11 years because "it's not obvious at all that this is a vulnerability," Geffner said.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1KP2wib

Consumer Group Worries Over Safety of Google's Self-Driving Cars

Media pressure this week led Google to reveal that its self-driving cars, which are being tested on select city streets in California, have been involved in 11 accidents. All were minor accidents that occurred over the past six years, according to Chris Urmson, director of the self-driving car program. The disclosure followed a press report that Google vehicles were involved in three collisions since September, when reporting all accidents involving self-driving cars became mandatory.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1EHZx7u

Arduboy Could Spark Retro Gaming Revolution

Arduboy, a new pocket-sized 8-bit game device, has ignited a firestorm of interest on Kickstarter. With 27 days to go, the campaign already has drawn contributions of more than eight times its modest $25k goal. The rapid funding response could spark a miniature retro revolution. The handheld Arduboy has the potential to divert gamers from smartphones and tablets. Arduboy is a throwback to the Game Boy of yesteryear. However, it comes loaded with modern technology to make it relevant for today's pocket gamers and developers.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1E6uxfI

Lily Camera Gilds the Selfie

Lily is taking the selfie up a notch. The startup on Tuesday began taking preorders for a drone camera that will shoot video and stills as it flies above you. While drone cameras have been on the market for some time, the Lily offering combines the popularity of first-person video cameras, like the wildly successful GoPro line of products, with the emerging consumer flying drone market. The Lily cam's robustness could set it off from the competition, noted Andrew Amato, editor-in-chief and cofounder of Dronelife.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1cUo16C

Big Data Analytics Fights Insider Threats

Cyberdefenders for years have adopted Fort Apache strategies to protect their networks. Strong perimeters could prevent attackers from reaching precious data, they reasoned. As technology marched on, however, the idea of an impermeable wall became as quaint as the Maginot Line on the eve of World War II. Firewalls alone no longer were strong enough to keep data safe. The mantra emanating from security circles was "It's not if you'll be breached, it's when."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1FdQfnm

Bloodstained Makes Its Mark on Kickstarter

Castlevania producer Koji Igarashi's Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has drawn more than three times its $500,000 base goal in roughly two days on Kickstarter. While the concept and its art already have attracted more than $1.5 million in support from fans, there's still a winding road ahead before the game goes gold. Animated by the spirit of Castlevania's past, Bloodstained is a 2.5D platformer with RPG and crafting elements built around it.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1KGHHW3

Swiftkey's Clarity Keyboard Puts Auto-Correction in Context

Most auto-correction programs correct mistakes as you make them. They even predict words for you as you type. Swiftkey's recent release for Android, Clarity Keyboard Beta, corrects mistakes -- up to several at a time -- after you've typed them. "SwiftKey, for a long time, has had context awareness, but it's applied it looking forward," explained SwitfKey's CMO Joe Braidwood. "It's applied it to thinking what the next word might be or what the current word is, even if you're typing it sloppily, based on words you've typed before."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1PgIgfX

$9 Debian-Based C.H.I.P. Computer Is a Kickstarter Smash

C.H.I.P., a Linux-based mini-PC priced at just $9, is receiving an overwhelming response on Kickstarter. Launched last Thursday with a funding goal of $50,000, it has chalked up more than 16,000 backers who have shelled out upwards of $815,000. The project still has 25 days to go. The tiny open source device, made by Next Thing Co., has been dubbed the "Raspberry Pi killer." Measuring just 1.5 x 2.3 inches, C.H.I.P. comes with 512 MB of DDR3 RAM and a 1-GHz processor. Its built-in composite output port lets it work with any size screen.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1ASJiTA

Smart Car 2 Transforms Itself to Tuck Into Tiny Spots

The DFKI Robotics Innovation Center in Berman, Germany, last week unveiled a prototype of the EO Smart Connecting Car 2, which it originally announced in 2012. The tiny, two-seater electric vehicle operates much like a traditional car, but because each wheel is powered by its own motor, it can make extremely tight turns and even drive sideways when necessary. This capability could address issues that plague many big cities, notably traffic congestion and inadequate parking space.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1EuaFVf

3 SciFi Technologies That Are About to Get Amazingly Real

Lisa Su, the talented new CEO for AMD, last week gave a pitch on the future to get people excited about where AMD is going. Based on the stock performance after her talk, she and her team knocked it out of the park. However, they also got me thinking about some technological advancements that have been quietly percolating, which likely will form the basis for a revolutionary announcement in the next few years. Three technologies that are tied to other efforts, are getting close to breaking free.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1dXsoyf

Gadget Ogling: Virtual Sensations, Radio-Wave Charges and a Bitcoin Keeper

We're edging ever closer toward a virtual reality boom, with Oculus finally promising its Rift headset will arrive in 2016. Yet what if there were a way to make VR even more immersive? Feelreal has come up with two devices -- a virtual reality mask and a helmet -- that aim to draw users almost entirely into a fictional world. The mask is an add-on, compatible with major VR headsets. The company is seeking Kickstarter funding to develop a commercial model based on demonstrated prototypes. The helmet is designed to work with a smartphone. A prototype is under development.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1Irz5DV

Cyanogen Taps Truecaller in Effort to Build a Better Mobile OS

Cyanogen, best known for its FOSS Android-based OS, CyanogenMod, soon will provide caller ID screening and spam blocking directly from the native dialer on Cyanogen OS, the commercial version of its operating system. These capabilities will be provided through the company's global partnership with Truecaller. They will be baked into future smartphone devices preloaded with Cyanogen OS. "I'm wondering whether Truecaller is addressing an actual need of smartphone users," mused Werner Goertz, a research director with Gartner.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1ALH4Fg

The Last Apple Watch Review You'll Ever Need to Read

If you're thinking about getting an Apple Watch and have been on the fence, this review is for you. Why? The Apple Watch, it turns out, is less about being the perfect smartwatch than it is about being a watch. For the fence sitters out there, these two questions are really where you should start: First, do you want a watch? Second, do you want a digital wearable device you can use to transform your life, pay for coffee, live healthier, and make the rest of the world think you're actually paying more attention than you really are?

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1EV93qa

Voyager-X Will Take You on a New Xfce Journey

Voyager-X 10.14.4, released in March, is based on Xubuntu/Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. This new Voyager-X is one of the first distros to use the new Xfce 4.12 desktop. Ubuntu has yet to implement it, and few other Linux distros have put the new update into play. Thus, the latest Xfce desktop is considered "experimental." However, it is a fully functional upgrade. Voyager-X adds to this the Linux kernel 3.16, for a faster and more responsive OS that is optimized for better performance and offers much improved hardware support.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1AJ6hQE

Splatoon: Nintendo Hits You With Its Best Shot

Nintendo has invited players to paint the town red -- and green and blue and a palette of other colors -- in Global Testfire events over the weekend for Splatoon, a new game launching May 29 exclusively on the Wii U. The Testfire events will provide three hour-long windows to try out Splatoon and provide Nintendo with the server stress-testing the game will need for a successful launch. The first Testfire event takes place from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. PT on May 8. Two more tests -- 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. PT, and 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. PT -- are set for May 9.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1zPhe8x

Xiaomi's Mi 4i Spreads in Asia

Chinese wunderkind smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is taking its flagship Mi 4i smartphone to Hong Kong and Singapore, with availability slated for next Tuesday. Designed especially for emerging markets, the Mi 4i has been wildly successful in India, where it launched two weeks ago and reportedly sold 40,000 units in less than 15 seconds. The Mi 4i is the first Xiaomi phone to run Android 5.0, aka "Lollipop," albeit with MIUI 6, Xiaomi's custom skin for the OS.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1KmCFOa

Twitter's Timid Anti-Trolling Tweaks

Twitter recently amended its rules in yet another attempt to crack down on the abuses perpetuated by online trolls, but the changes may do little to protect victims. Its latest move was an extension of its ban on threats of violence against others or the promotion of violence against others. The company decided to let its support team lock down abusive accounts for specific periods of time. Further, it began testing a new, unspecified feature that helps it identify suspected abusive tweets in an effort to limit their reach.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1zEWzUk

Oculus VR Promises a Rift for All in 2016

An exact date hasn't been set, but Facebook's Oculus VR on Wednesday announced that the highly anticipated consumer version of its virtual reality headset will launch in the first quarter of 2016. Preordering will begin later this year. More details will emerge about the consumer version of the Rift in the coming weeks, the company said, including information about its hardware specifications, software and unannounced made-for-VR games and experiences. When Oculus VR talks Rift, it talks VR games.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1EYfMkm

EM Drive Stirs Blood of Hopeful Space Explorers

It may not be warp drive, but electro-magnetic drive, aka "EM drive," is perhaps even more exciting, because it has a better chance of being science fact than fiction. EM drive technology theoretically could allow a trip to the moon in four hours, to Mars in 70 days, and to Alpha Centaurii, the star system nearest to our own, in roughly 130 years. If that sounds like a long time to be hurtling through space, compare it to the thousands of years it would take to make a similar mission using current space travel technologies.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1JQRETG