Monday, 31 July 2023

T2 Adds DMs, a Feature Lacking in Meta’s Threads, to Attract Twitter Users

Twitter Rival T2 Adds Direct Messages Feature

As the battle among would-be Twitter rivals continues, one of the smaller apps to via for Twitter (now X‘s) fleeing user base, T2, has added an in-demand feature that even Meta’s Threads doesn’t yet have: DMs. The company recently announced it added support for direct messages, which has been among users’ top requests, it said.

The addition differentiates T2 from buzzier Twitter competitors like Threads, Bluesky, and to some extent, Mastodon, where Direct Messages work a little differently — they are effectively just posts that have the “direct” visibility selected but are not end-to-end encrypted.

Similarly, T2’s direct messages also aren’t end-to-end encrypted, but they do at least allow users to connect more privately on the app. Of course, sensitive conversations should generally not be shared on new social media apps but on dedicated privacy apps, like Signal or even WhatsApp, which has prioritized encryption.

With the rollout of DMs on T2 on July 26th, users can now find a new link in the app’s sidebar. The company explains users can control who’s allowed to DM them via the Settings tab in T2. From here, you can choose to allow DMs from anyone on the app, only from accounts you follow, or you can turn off receiving DMs altogether.

The company said it opted not to encrypt direct messages so it can combat spam and harassment in these conversations. It even built-in nudges in DMs to automatically detect possible insults or other threatening behavior, then nudge the sender to change their message. Nudges like this can be somewhat effective. Twitter, pre-Elon Musk, had once used nudges in an attempt to get users to tone down their replies. It said that 34% of people revised their initial reply after seeing the prompt, or chose not to send the reply at all. Plus, after being prompted once, people then composed 11% fewer offensive replies in the future, on average.

Building a Trustworthy Community

T2 was founded by Twitter and Google veterans, including co-founder Sarah Oh, Twitter’s former human rights advisor, and Gabor Cselle, who had sold his prior companies to Twitter and Google. The company’s goal has been to build an alternative to Twitter that had an increased focus on trust and safety — or, as Gabor’s profile reads, “a kinder, safer public square.”

That’s an area where another Twitter rival, Bluesky, has since stumbled. The latter has been under attack for moderation missteps that saw it failing to crack down on bigotry and even allowing usernames with racial slurs to slip through in recent days.

Bluesky, however, has seen its app installed 1 million times to date, outpacing the number of invites available to its still private network. T2, meanwhile, continues to operate as a web app but is optimized for mobile screens. Its user base should reach around 15,000 by the end of the week, the company says. T2 has not yet announced any concrete plans around decentralization — meaning using a protocol like ActivityPub, which powers Mastodon, and soon Threads, or Bluesky’s AT Protocol, in order to connect with other social networks.

Currently, the team views decentralization as a major hurdle to moderation and building a lasting, stable, and civil community, we understand, as users can move to other servers when they don’t want to abide by stricter moderation rules.

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– h1: Twitter Rival T2 Adds Direct Messages Feature
– h2: Building a Trustworthy Community

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The article highlights T2, a smaller app competing against Twitter and its rivals, that has introduced a highly requested feature: direct messages (DMs). This sets T2 apart from other competitors like Threads, Bluesky, and Mastodon, where DMs work differently. Although T2’s DMs are not end-to-end encrypted, they offer users a more private connection within the app. The option to control who can send DMs is available through the Settings tab. T2 also implements nudges to detect and discourage insulting or threatening behavior in DMs. These measures aim to combat spam and harassment.

The article also mentions T2’s founders, who come from Twitter and Google backgrounds, emphasizing their focus on building a platform centered around trust and safety. In contrast, Bluesky, another Twitter rival, has faced criticism for moderation failures. While Bluesky has seen significant app installations, T2 continues to operate primarily as a web app optimized for mobile screens.

The article touches on the challenge of decentralization, noting T2’s hesitation in adopting protocols like ActivityPub or Bluesky’s AT Protocol to connect with other social networks. The team believes decentralization poses moderation challenges, as users may move to alternate servers with less stringent rules.

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Readers are encouraged to engage with the article by considering the implications of T2’s introduction of DMs, the importance of trust and safety in social media platforms, and the challenges associated with decentralization. The article invites users to reflect on the role of encryption in private conversations and how nudges can potentially shape user behavior online.

Word Count: 448

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Airalo Raises $60 Million in Series B Funding to Expand Its Mobile Data Packages for International Travelers

Travel is back on the agenda after a Covid-19 hiatus, and today a mobile startup out of Canada is announcing a healthy round of funding to capitalize on that. Airalo — which uses software-based eSIM connectivity to provide a wide range of lower-cost mobile data packages, nearly 700 in all, for international travellers — has raised $60 million in a Series B round that it will be using to expand its business.

The all-equity round, values Airalo at $250 million post-money, includes a long list of financial and strategic backers, a mix that speaks to who works with the startup as a business partner as a complement to their own direct operations.

e& Capital, the venture arm of e& (better known as the UAE-based carrier Etisalat), is leading the round with participation also from startup incubator Antler Elevate, Liberty Global, Rakuten Capital, Singtel Innov8, Surge (the early-stage fund run by Peak XV, formerly known as Sequoia Capital India and SEA), Orange, T.Capital (the venture arm of Deutsche Telecom), KPN Ventures, Telefónica Ventures, I2BF Global Ventures, GO Ventures, and LG Technology Ventures. This fundraise is a big step up for the company, which had previously raised just $7.3 million.

Although Airalo’s only just closed the round, the company is currently on a strong growth rate — 20% revenue growth month on month, with nearly 1 million downloads monthly for the past three months. And from what we understand, that’s leading to further interest from other potential investors. There are already discussions to bring extra backers on at a considerably higher valuation of between $800 million and $1 billion.

Launched in 2019, Airalo is one of a group eSIM providers that have received an injection of life thanks to handset makers like Apple promoting the software-based standard as an easier way for users to move from one mobile carrier to another, doing away with requiring customers to physically change the small SIM card in their phones.

eSIM has been both a blessing and curse: it means carriers might have a better chance of wooing away customers from their current providers, but it also means it’s harder to lock in the customers they have. Overall, for consumers it’s a huge win, since it means mobile operators have to be a lot more creative and competitive to win business.

And that’s where Airalo has been showing promise. After a very slow start due to the pandemic when COO Abraham Burak said growth basically “stalled” for two years, it started to pick up momentum in 2022.

Although carriers these days have become more savvy with building and offering travellers more cost-effective mobile data plans, many of these tend not to be as flexible, and thus cheap, as what consumers want or need. eSIM offerings promise an alternative: more granular offerings at smaller pricing increments.

Currently Airalo says that it has 5.1 million customers buying its eSIM products. These products are presented in a matrix of combinations covering some 200 countries, geographic regions, service durations, and data package sizes — in all currently totally 689 different combinations.

“We are seeing exponential growth in sign ups because travel is picking up,” said Burak, who co-founded the company with Bahadir Ozdemir (the CEO).

Burak and Airalo overall refers to this matrix of eSIM plans as its “marketplace”. That appears not to be a reference to multiple eSIM providers — Airalo is the only one selling to users — but to the large bazaar of carriers and carrier plans underpinning the deals.

Behind the scenes, Airalo builds out its many eSIM options by way of a network of carrier agreements that it brokers and then stitches together across the globe, some involving direct capacity purchased on a wholesale basis, and others involving reselling international roaming plans already structured by individual mobile carriers. Airalo has also built technology that measures demand and corresponding costs and pricing for these different eSIM packages.

If you are asking yourself, why would a carrier work with a third party like Airalo, which might compete directly against it? It’s for the same reason that a brand might sell through many retailers while also selling goods directly through its own-branded storefronts: if a customer is already looking somewhere else for a good mobile roaming plan before travelling, chances are the carrier has already lost that customer. Cutting a deal with Airalo gives that carrier a chance — albeit one at a smaller margin — to still win some business.

It’s enough of an opportunity that Burak said that there have been acquisition approaches already from the carrier world.

That’s not to say that all eSIM providers are swimming in opportunity, or necessarily capitalizing on it just yet.

Another big name in the space, Truphone, which had raised hundreds of millions of dollars, recently faced a period of significant turbulence when its biggest shareholder, Roman Abramovich, was slapped with international sanctions over his connections to Russia and he and other Russian shareholders were forced to sell their holdings in the company. Despite some very interesting deals it had on the books including services to banks and a partnership with Apple, Truphone had never made a profit in 15 years of operations, so its sale and its future definitely looked uncertain.

It look almost a whole year, but in the end Truphone was sold for £1 to two entrepreneurs, German businessman and tech entrepreneur Hakan Koç and former telecoms executive and private equity investor Pyrros Koussios, who pledged to invest more into the business and to expand the kinds of services it offers to enterprise customers.

(Indeed, stitching together data connectivity as an eSIM provider is not that far in concept from privacy-focused VPNs, which is something Truphone was already building for business customers, and may have been one of the interesting services that caught the eye of its Russian oligarch former owners.)

On that note, the idea of expanding what else an eSIM company can be providing to its customers beyond basic data is something that it seems Airalo is also taking on board, too. One new service it will be using the funding to help introduce is “Airalo Partners,” which it describes as “an innovative connectivity solution tailored to businesses and organizations across the globe.”

UAE has a number of international expat residents and itself has a population that is widely travelled, so it makes sense that an eSIM provider caught e&’s eye as an interesting investment opportunity.

“We are pleased to lead the Series B financing round for Airalo, a company that has come a long way over the past 18 months with a focus on providing exceptional customer experience,” said Kushal Shah, managing director, e& capital, in a statement. “We have complete confidence in Airalo’s ability to expand its user community, strengthen its diverse team, and introduce its latest product Airalo Partners, a groundbreaking connectivity solution for global businesses and organizations. We believe that Airalo has the potential to become a travel essential and are excited to support their journey towards becoming the definitive gateway to instant connectivity worldwide.”

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Google Agrees to Data Portability Commitments in Italy, Easing Users’ Ability to Take Their Data Elsewhere

Italy’s competition authority, the AGCM, has settled its investigation of Google’s data portability practices after the tech giant made commitments to make it easier for users to take their data elsewhere. The probe was initiated following a complaint from Weople, a local company that operates a direct marketing platform. Weople claimed that Google’s data portability offer, known as Takeout, was complicated and discouraged users from transferring their data to other platforms. The company wanted to streamline the data portability process because its service relies on users transferring data from social media platforms and loyalty card schemes to populate virtual data deposit boxes. Weople encrypts and tokenizes the data in these boxes to use for targeted marketing without sharing personal data or identity with advertisers. In response to the complaint, Google has made three commitments to ease data portability. The first commitment involves providing third parties with a URL that can be embedded in their applications to automate the Takeout process. The second commitment includes making more detailed documentation available to third parties regarding data fields related to users’ web searches, Chrome browsing history, and YouTube. Finally, Google has pledged to provide early access to a new service-to-service direct portability API it is developing. The AGCM deemed that these commitments resolved the competition concerns and appointed an independent monitoring trustee to oversee Google’s compliance. The settlement is expected to benefit users by making it easier for them to transfer their data, especially since Google will release an API to automate the data portability process next year. These commitments are likely part of Google’s efforts to comply with the pan-EU Digital Markets Act (DMA), which requires gatekeepers to support market contestability through data portability.

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Social Media Platform X Reinstates Kanye West’s Account After Antisemitic Controversy: Find Out the Details

Twitter Reinstates Kanye West’s Account After Antisemitic Posts

Social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) has reinstated the account of Kanye West (who legally goes by Ye) after he was banned last year for posting a picture of Swastika merged with the Star of David.

Last December, months after Elon Musk took over the platform, Ye created a tweetstorm by posting a series of antisemitic comments along with a picture that violated the social network’s rules. At that time, Ye also posted an “unflattering” picture of Musk, but the Tesla CEO clarified that the rapper-producer wasn’t banned because of that.

Over the weekend, the Wall Street Journal reported that Ye’s account won’t be eligible for monetization and ads will not appear next to his posts. Last week, X rolled out an ad revenue-sharing program with global creators. Creators will need to have at least 500 followers and will need to garner 15 million impressions over the previous three months to be eligible for the program.

Ye hasn’t made any posts yet after his account was unbanned. However, the account was only restored after he gave assurance that he won’t post antisemitic content or hateful language, the WSJ report said, citing an unnamed person familiar with the matter.

Musk, who is a self-proclaimed “free-speech absolutist,” has made controversial decisions about restoring certain accounts after he took over Twitter. The list includes former U.S. President Donald Trump, far-right influencer Andrew Tate, who was banned by Twitter for misogynistic comments, and right-wing academic Jordan Peterson. Most recently, Twitter faced criticism for restoring the account of Dominick McGee, who posted an image of child sexual abuse.

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Social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) has reinstated the account of Kanye West (who legally goes by Ye) after he was banned last year for posting a picture of Swastika merged with the Star of David. This article provides all the relevant information regarding Kanye West’s account ban and subsequent reinstatement.

Last December, months after Elon Musk took over the platform, Ye created a tweetstorm by posting a series of antisemitic comments along with a picture that violated the social network’s rules. At that time, Ye also posted an “unflattering” picture of Musk, but the Tesla CEO clarified that the rapper-producer wasn’t banned because of that.

Over the weekend, the Wall Street Journal reported that Ye’s account won’t be eligible for monetization and ads will not appear next to his posts. This article covers the details of the Wall Street Journal report and highlights the conditions for eligibility in X’s new ad revenue-sharing program.

Ye hasn’t made any posts yet after his account was unbanned. However, the account was only restored after he gave assurance that he won’t post antisemitic content or hateful language, as reported by the WSJ. This article includes this important piece of information obtained from an unnamed source familiar with the matter.

Musk, who is a self-proclaimed “free-speech absolutist,” has made controversial decisions about restoring certain accounts after he took over Twitter. The article mentions some of the notable accounts that have been reinstated under Musk’s leadership, sparking further discussion about Twitter’s content moderation policies.

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What are your thoughts on Twitter reinstating Kanye West’s account? Do you believe this is the right decision? Share your opinions in the comments below and join the conversation.

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Twitter Reinstates Kanye West’s Account After Antisemitic Posts

Controversial Actions by Kanye West Led to the Initial Ban

Wall Street Journal Reports Limitations on Monetization for Ye’s Account

Assurance Given by Kanye West to Prevent Future Violations

Musk’s Controversial Restorations of Other Accounts

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Apple Confirms Bug Stops Screen Time limits from sticking for kids

According to a report, a major parental control tool has been broken for months. Apple says it knows what’s going on and that fixes are coming.

If your child has been breaking the Screen Time limits you set on their Apple device, the Wall Street Journal may know why. They found that a bug has prevented certain Screen Time limits set through the Family Sharing system from saving properly for months. In May, Apple was meant to fix the problem, but it looks like it still exists.

Apple Confirms Bug Stops Screen Time limits from sticking for kids

Apple’s Family Sharing system lets parents limit how their kids use their devices. One of the most important controls is the ability to use a “Screen Time” feature to watch and limit how their kids use certain apps and devices. The Journal found that a setting called “Downtime,” which blocks access to the whole device, wasn’t being saved correctly. In one case, a user had to set the “Downtime” limit three times before saving it correctly. In the meantime, kids may have used their gadgets more than their parents wanted.

Apple told the Journal that the bug is still happening and is working on a fix, but it didn’t give a time frame. Apple told the Journal, “We are aware that some users may be having trouble resetting Screen Time settings without their permission.” “These reports are very important to us, and we have been and will continue to make changes to improve the situation.”

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Why Apple Rejected Elon Musk’s New Name X for the Twitter App for iOS

Apple Rejects Name Change for Twitter App, Poses Dilemma for Elon Musk

Apple’s Rejection of Name Change

Apple rejected the new name, “X”, for the Twitter socialworking app for iOS, which could pose a dilemma for Elon Musk, who is striving to spread the platform’s new brand.

Although Musk was able to easily change the name of Twitter to “X” in the “Google Play” store, the laws of the “App Store” prevent this, according to the “Arab Gate for Technical News”.

Updated Versions Pushed Out

This week, both the Google Play Store and the App Store pushed out updated versions of the Twitter app for Android and iOS users, respectively. The latest version of the application bears the “X” logo, and in some cases the new name of Twitter, as in the Android system.

“Not Less Than Two Characters”

However, data scientist Nick Sharif noted in his X/Twitter post that “the situation on iOS is different because Apple does not allow any app to be a one-letter name.”

In turn, another user said that “Twitter managed to change the logo of its ‘iOS’ application, but not the name, because Apple requires that the names of applications not be less than two letters.”

Although application names in the App Store may be up to 30 characters long, they must not be less than two characters long, otherwise Apple will reject the application name.

Abandon the Blue Bird

It is noteworthy that Musk and CEO of Twitter, Linda Iaccarino, announced last Monday the abandonment of the familiar blue bird logo that has accompanied the company since its founding in 2006 and the replacement of the letter “X” in its place, as part of the endeavor to make Twitter a comprehensive platform, similar to the Chinese “WeChat” service.

Earlier this year, Musk changed Twitter’s business name to X Corp, or “X” for short.

Changing Twitter’s name to “X” also caused Microsoft’s Edge web browser to display security warnings.

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Sunday, 30 July 2023

The Whatsapp trick to boost the image quality in your messages

As part of iOS 15, a cool dynamic feature called “detailed city experience” was added to Apple Maps in 2021. After starting out in only four towns, the feature is now available in more than 20 places worldwide.

At launch, this is how Apple talked about the new feature in Maps:

Apple Maps introduces a new way to navigate cities with a visually stunning 3D map that offers unprecedented detail for neighborhoods, commercial districts, marinas, buildings, and more.

Now users can see elevation details across a city, new road labels, and hundreds of custom-designed landmarks like Coit Tower in San Francisco, Dodger Stadium in LA, the Statue of Liberty in NYC, and the Royal Albert Hall in London, with more to come.

A beautiful nighttime mode with a moonlit glow activates at dusk.

Apple’s current list of cities that allow the detailed city experience in Maps includes the following:
  • Atlanta, GA
  • Berlin, Germany
  • Boston, MA
  • Chicago, IL
  • Hamburg, Germany
  • Las Vegas, NV
  • London, United Kingdom
  • Los Angeles, CA
  • Melbourne, Australia
  • Miami, FL
  • Montréal, Canada
  • Munich, Germany
  • New York, NY
  • Paris, France
  • Philadelphia, PA
  • San Diego, CA
  • San Francisco Bay Area, CA
  • Seattle, WA
  • Sydney, Australia
  • Toronto, Canada
  • Vancouver, Canada
  • Washington, DC

It looks like at least two more towns have gone live, though. One confirmed site is Houston, Texas, where Apple Maps now has a 3D view of NRG Stadium, Minute Maid Park, Toyota Center, and Shell Energy Stadium, among other places. Apple has also added the tool called “Detailed City Experience” to Dallas, Texas.

Here is the official list of cities in Apple Maps with a detailed city view. Based on data, this blog tracks which cities will likely be coming soon. This can help you figure out which cities might be coming soon.

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WhatsApp introduces new ‘shortcut’ feature to add participants to groups

Meta, which owns WhatsApp, said on Saturday that the new feature that lets people join groups right from the chat screen was being rolled out.

WaBetaInfo says the update will be available through the Google Play Beta Program. It will bring the version of the chat app to 2.23.16.10.

Some beta testers can use the new “add participants” tool right now, and more users will be able to use it in the coming days.

With this function, users could add new people to the group from the group chat screen.

Users would see a new banner that would push them to add new people to the group. This would save them time because they wouldn’t have to open the group info.

“If the user taps on that banner, they can quickly choose new people to add to the group, as long as the group settings allow it,” the WhatsApp watcher said.

This function isn’t necessary, but it saves time because it makes adding new members easier. Users won’t have to look through the group information to do a small, easy job.

“However, the biggest benefit is that it reminds the user to add new members to the group,” it said.

Those who go to the Google Play Store and get the latest Android WhatsApp beta updates will be able to use this function.

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The Future of Twitter’s Tweet Button Revealed: Will It Stay or Go?




Changes Coming to Twitter’s Tweet Button

Changes Coming to Twitter’s Tweet Button

Introduction

The tweet button is one of the last remaining things from the “X” micro-blogging site with its old “Twitter” brand, but it seems that this button will not remain the same, according to technical news sites.

Recent Tweaks

The Tweet button was briefly changed to the word (post) or “posted,” according to what was mentioned by the “The Verge” technical website.

But as of Sunday morning, the word (tweet) is still present when browsing the “X” site, and it seems that the matter is within the scope of the experimental stage.

And “The Verge” said that this button is evidence associated with the blue bird and will soon disappear from “X”.

Elon Musk and the Rebranding

Last week, the American billionaire and owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, announced the change of the name of the famous site to “X”, and its logo as well.

Musk says he wants to turn the social media platform into a one-stop-shop for communications and financial transactions.

He stated that Twitter is not only changing its name as a company, but also changing its identity as a whole.


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Google is training robots the way it trains AI chatbots

Google wants to improve its robots by implementing the Robotic Transformer (RT-2) AI learning model.

The company’s vision-language-action (VLA) model has been updated with RT-2. The model teaches robots to recognize visual and language patterns better to understand directions and determine what items will work best for the request.

Researchers tried RT-2 in a kitchen office with a robotic arm. They asked the arm to decide what would make a good makeshift hammer (a rock) and what drink to give a tired person (a Red Bull). They also told the robot to move a Coke can over to a picture of Taylor Swift. The fact that the robot is a Swiftie is good news for people.

The company said in a paper that the new model was trained on data from the web and robotics. It used research gains in large language models like Google’s own Bard and combined them with robotics data (like which joints to move). It can also follow directions written in languages besides English.

Researchers have been trying for years to give robots better reasoning skills to figure out how to live in the real world. James Vincent of The Verge said that real life is always messy. Robots need more instructions even if it’s easy for a person to do something. For example, cleaning up a drink that has been spilled. People know what to do by nature: pick up the glass, get something to clean up the mess, throw that away, and be more careful next time.

Before, it took a long time to teach a robot something. Researchers had to set each direction by hand. But with the power of VLA models like RT-2, robots can access a larger set of knowledge to figure out what to do next.

Last year, Google’s first step toward making better robots was to say it would use its LLM PaLM in robotics. It made a system called PaLM-SayCan, which combines LLM with physical robotics.

The new robot from Google is not perfect. The New York Times saw a live demonstration of the robot and said it got soda tastes wrong and thought fruit was the color white.

Depending on who you are, this news is either good or makes you think of the scary robot dogs from Black Mirror, inspired by Boston Dynamics robots. In either case, we can expect an even smarter robot next year. It might even be able to clean up a spill with little help.

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iOS 17: Nine New Features Available in Safari

Apple adds new features to apps like Safari with each update to the iOS operating system. In iOS 17, Safari gets new privacy features, search changes, a better way to work with Siri, and more.

This guide shows you all of the new Safari features that came with iOS 17.

iOS 17 Nine New Features Available in Safari

Profiles

In iOS 17, Apple adds a new ” Profile ” feature to Tab Groups, letting you split your browsing for different uses. You can set up a “Work” profile and a “Personal” profile, for example, to keep your browsing for work separate from your looking for fun.

Each profile’s cookies, browsing history, extensions, and page data differ. On one profile, you can turn off cookies and pop-ups, but on another profile, you can leave them on. Profiles also have their own lists of favorites and groups of tabs.

Profiles can be set up by following these instructions:

  • Open up the Settings app.
  • Scroll down to Safari.
  • Tap on New Profile.
  • Select an icon, name, and background color for the profile.
  • Choose your settings for Favorites and Tabs.
  • Tap Done.

You can then tap on profiles in the Settings app to change them. Tap the Tabs icon, which looks like two squares that overlap, then tap the middle icon and choose “Profile” to change which profile is open.

Locked Private Browsing Window

Now, private viewing windows are locked and you need a second form of authentication to unlock and open them. If you give someone your unlocked phone and they try to open a secret Safari tab, they won’t be able to without a second Face ID/Touch ID scan or a passcode.

Face ID or Touch ID is needed to access the private browsing tab, so even if someone else uses your iPhone or iPad, the private browsing tab stays private. By default, iOS 17 locks the private browser tab, but the requirement for Face ID or Touch ID can be turned off by doing these steps:

  • Open the Settings app.
  • Tap on Safari.
  • Scroll down to Require ‌Face ID‌ (or ‌Touch ID‌) to Unlock Private Browsing.
  • Tap the toggle to turn it off and confirm with a ‌Face ID‌/‌Touch ID‌ scan. When disabled, the toggle will be gray.

Private Search Engine

In iOS 16, you can choose a preferred search engine for Safari. In iOS 17, you can choose different search engines for normal and private browsing.

Google, Yahoo, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and Ecosia are all choices. If you leave it on Default, the same search engine will be used as when you browse normally.

  • Open up the Settings app.
  • Scroll down to Safari.
  • Tap on Private Search Engine.
  • Tap on one of the Search Engine options to select it.
  • Exit out of the Settings.

Tracking URLs

URLs in iOS 17 can be stripped of any tracking information added to the end, so websites can’t use URL markers to track your browsing. This feature is turned on by default when iOS 17 is used for private browsing, but it can be turned on for all browsing.

Here’s how to remove URL-based tracking for all browser windows:

  • Open up the Settings app.
  • Scroll down to Safari.
  • Tap on Advanced.
  • Tap on Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection.
  • Toggle on “All Browsing.”

If you turn this on, Safari will remove the extra tracking information that is sometimes added to the end of a URL when you open it.

Hide IP Address From Websites

When using iCloud Private Relay in iOS 17, you can hide your IP address from trackers and websites or just from trackers. If you choose Trackers and Websites, your IP address will be hidden, and websites won’t be able to use it to figure out where you are.

In iOS 16, iCloud Private Relay was made to hide your IP address from known trackers. This is an expansion of that function.

Search Improvements

With iOS 17, search is more dynamic, finding results faster. It also gives you more search options from which to choose.

Apple has added favicons to the top website search ideas, and search results that come from your bookmarks, tabs, and search history are marked.

Listen to Page

Siri can read a website to you in iOS 17. This is helpful if you find a long article or other material that you want to listen to while doing something else. As long as a website has Reader View, the tool will work.

  • Open up Safari.
  • Navigate to the content that you want ‌Siri‌ to read.
  • Tap on the Aa icon in the address bar.
  • Select the Listen to Page option.

Siri will then start to read the text on the page. You can stop listening by tapping the Pause Listening button, and you can start listening again by tapping the Resume Listening button. If you lock your screen, you’ll get playback settings that are just for that.

Siri will also read a page if you start a website, find an article you want to read, and tell Siri to “Read this to me.”

Shared Passwords and Passkeys

With iOS 17 (and iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma), you can share passwords and passkeys with friends and family in a safe way. With the sharing feature, several people can be given passwords for shared media accounts, services, bills, etc.

Shared passwords can be accessed, changed, and added to by everyone. To set them up, go to the Passwords part of the Settings app and choose “Get Started” under the “Family Passwords” heading.

This isn’t a Safari-only function, but it makes it easier to log in to sites where you use the same login information.

Privacy Settings

Note that privacy-focused settings like Block All Cookies, Privacy-Preserving Ad Measurement, and Check for Apple Pay have been moved from the “Privacy & Security” section of the Safari settings to the “Advanced” section, which is harder to find.

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The Ambiguity and Unpredictability of Elon Musk’s Satellites: A Major Concern for America and the World

The Concerns Surrounding Elon Musk’s Satellites in Space

An American Report Raises Concerns

An extensive American report revealed that the satellites deployed by Elon Musk in space have become a major American and international concern due to the man’s ambiguity and unpredictability.

On March 17, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, commander of the Ukrainian armed forces, made a call to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Across the secure line, the two military leaders discussed air defense systems, real-time battlefield assessments and intelligence sharing on Russian military casualties, but they also talked about Musk.

Gen. Zalogoni brought up Starlink, the satellite inte technology made by Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, according to three people familiar with the conversation.

Ukraine’s Dependence on Starlink

Gen. Zaluzhny said Ukraine’s decisions on the battlefield depended on continued use of Starlink communications systems, and his country wanted to ensure access to these systems and discuss how to cover the cost of service. Gen. Zalogny also asked if the US had an assessment of Musk, but US officials did not provide answers.

Musk, who leads UbisX, Tesla and X platform (formerly Twitter), has become the most dominant player in the space, steadily gaining strength in the strategically important field of satellite inte.

However, Musk’s erratic, personality-driven style increasingly worries militaries and political leaders around the world, as the tech billionaire exercises his power at times in unpredictable ways, according to the American New York Times.

Since 2019, Musk has sent SpaceX rockets into space almost every week, which deliver dozens of small satellites into orbit. And the satellites communicate with terminals on Earth, so they can send high-speed inte to nearly every corner of the pl. Today, there are more than 4,500 Starlink satellites in the sky, which is more than 50 percent of all active satellites.

Star Link is often the only way to access the Inte in war zones, remote areas, and places hit by natural disasters.

This technology is being used in Ukraine to coordinate drone strikes and gather intelligence. Activists in Iran and Turkey have also sought to use the service as a hedge against government restrictions.

The US Department of Defense is a big Starlink customer, and other militaries in the world such as Japan are testing the technology. But Musk’s near-total control of the satellite Inte has raised alarms.

According to the American New York Times report, his personality is volatile, and the loyalties of this 52-year-old man are ambiguous. Musk can decide to stop accessing the Inte via Starlink for any country, and he has the ability to benefit from sensitive information that the service collects. Such concerns have steadily escalated as Starlink technology has expanded.

Actualizing Fears in Ukraine

And in Ukraine, some fears have materialized. People familiar with the situation said Musk had restricted access to Starlink several times during the war. And at one point, he refused the Ukrainian military’s request to operate Starlink near Crimea, the Russian-controlled region, which affected the results on the battlefield.

And last year, Musk publicly laid out a “peace plan” for the war that appeared to align with Russian interests.

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Saturday, 29 July 2023

WhatsApp Launches New Feature for Short and Direct Video Messages

WhatsApp Launches New Feature for Short Video Messages

WhatsApp, the instant messaging application, has announced the launch of a new feature for short and direct video messages after weeks of testing.

The British newspaper “The Sun” reported that the new feature is currently being rolled out to all users, noting that it will make “chats” better.

WhatsApp, owned by “Meta” company, stated in a blog post:

“WhatsApp voice messages have changed the way people communicate by providing a fast and secure way to share your messages with your voice. We are excited to introduce the new instant video messages.”

Now, you can record short personal video clips and share them directly in the chat.

All “WhatsApp” users need to do is tap the “voice messages” button once to switch to “short video messages.”

Afterwards, they can record a clip for up to 60 seconds.

The recorded video cannot be edited or resent, making it exclusively for the recipient.

It is believed that this feature is inspired by the rival application “Snapchat.”

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Twitter’s Ads Revenue Sharing Program Now Available Globally for Verified Creators

Twitter’s Ads Revenue Sharing Program Goes Global, Allocating $5 Million in Creator Payments

Earlier this month, Twitter, now rebranded as X, introduced its “Ads Revenue Sharing” program, which aimed to share ad revenue with verified creators to retain top talent on its platform. Now, the company has officially announced that the program is available for eligible creators worldwide.

X’s owner, Elon Musk, mentioned in his tweets that the program aims to distribute $5 million in the first round of creator payments, starting from February onwards. Creators have already reported substantial payouts ranging from five to six figures.

Eligibility Requirements and Monetization Strategy

To be eligible for the Ads Revenue Sharing program, X users must subscribe to Blue (formerly Twitter Blue) or Verified Organizations. Additionally, they need to have a minimum of 15 million impressions on their cumulative posts within the last 3 months and at least 500 followers, as stated on the program’s official website.

X has chosen to monetize the ads displayed in the replies to creators’ posts instead of the ads in the main X timeline. This approach incentivizes creators to generate content that encourages conversation. However, X has implemented some guidelines to ensure responsible usage. Notably, sexual content, violence, criminal behavior, gambling, drugs, alcohol, and “get-rich schemes” are strictly prohibited. Furthermore, creators cannot attempt to monetize copyrighted content that they do not own.

Global Availability and Future Plans

With the recent announcement, the Ads Revenue Sharing program is now globally accessible for creators who meet the eligibility criteria. The official X account emphasized its commitment to becoming “the best place on the internet to earn a living as a creator” with this initial step.

Linda Yaccarino, X’s CEO, expressed her enthusiasm, calling it “an absolute game changer for our creators.”

X’s Monthly User Growth and Industry Analysis

Elon Musk also shared a chart on Twitter, suggesting that X’s monthly users reached a new high in 2023, even after bot removal. However, the chart lacks specific labeling for the months and does not clarify Musk’s definition of “monthly usage” compared to the industry standard MAU (monthly active user).

Contrasting Musk’s claim, third-party measurement tools, including Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, have pointed out declining traffic to the Twitter domain. Similarweb has also reported decreases in Twitter traffic following the launch of Threads.

Despite these conflicting reports, X’s global launch of the Ads Revenue Sharing program demonstrates the platform’s commitment to supporting creators and cultivating a thriving creative community.

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Friday, 28 July 2023

Apple’s New App Store Policy Requires Developers to Explain Access to Data: Crackdown on API Misuse

Apple to Require Developers to Explain Access to Select Data in New Policy

Apple for years has made user privacy a focus for its App Store with rules around data collection, plus requirements around app labeling, anti-tracking measures, and the more private “Sign in with Apple” option. Now, Apple will begin to require that developers explain why they need access to select data, under some circumstances, with a new policy designed to crack down on the misuse of APIs.

of User Privacy

Apple has been at the forefront of ensuring user privacy in its App Store. With rules surrounding data collection and app labeling, as well as anti-tracking measures and the introduction of the “Sign in with Apple” option, the company has consistently prioritized protecting user data. In its latest move, Apple will now require developers to provide explanations for accessing certain data, aiming to prevent the misuse of APIs.

Cracking Down on API Misuse

APIs, or Application Programming Interfaces, allow developers to extract and exchange data. However, certain APIs have been used to collect user device information through “fingerprinting,” a practice Apple strictly prohibits. Even if users have granted permission for an app to track them, fingerprinting remains forbidden. The use of fingerprinting as a hidden method for user and device tracking had grown in response to increased privacy protections implemented by Apple and other companies. With the launch of Apple’s App Tracking Transparency in 2021, fingerprinting was explicitly banned. However, Apple recognized the need for further measures.

Explaining API Access

Starting in fall 2023, developers will be required to explain why they need access to specific APIs. Apple expects developers to select one or more of the “approved reasons” detailing how their app intends to utilize the API. Consequently, the app will only be permitted to use the API for the stated reasons. Several APIs will be affected, including those related to file timestamps, disk space, system boot time, active keyboard, and user defaults.

Timeline and Consequences

The new requirement will go into effect in fall 2023. After this point, developers who upload apps or app updates to the App Store without providing a reason for their API usage will receive notifications to add the approved reason to their app’s privacy manifest before resubmission. This requirement also extends to third-party SDKs utilized by the app. By spring 2024, apps and app updates lacking a reason will be rejected. Apple encourages developers to reach out if they believe their app needs to use an API for a different approved reason.

and Developer Response

The new policy has sparked discussions among developers, particularly regarding the requirement to provide a reason for the widely-used API, UserDefaults. Some raised concerns, while others emphasized that this policy is not a crackdown on legitimate usage, but simply a requirement for providing a stated reason. Although new rules can lead to App Store rejections, causing concerns for developers, Apple has offered a generous lead time by starting with warnings to ensure compliance.

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Twitter User Renounces Single Character Username for Company Offer: Interview with Jin X Huang

Twitter User Gives up Single-letter Username for Company’s Sake

A longtime user on the Twitter platform, now known as “X,” has abandoned his single-letter username in favor of the company’s benefit.

In an interview, the user revealed that Twitter (X) offered him several alternative usernames and free merchandise in exchange for giving up his account.

The user in question is Jin X Huang, a founding partner at Orange Photography.

Huang stated in an interview with Mashable, published yesterday, that he was expecting Twitter (X) to contact him regarding this matter.

Huang said, “I received an email informing me that the company will take my username,” noting that the email came from a general address, [email protected], and not from a specific employee in the company.

Huang, who had been using this username on the platform for over 16 years, mentioned that the company offered him alternatives to keep his account active. They also offered him a new username of his choice.

New Username and Compensation

Huang posted online on Wednesday, saying, “All is well,” and revealed his new username, x12345678998765.

While he did not receive any financial compensation, Huang stated that “Twitter” already offered him “some commercial services and a meeting with management.”

The new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, announced on Sunday the platform’s name change to “X.” As part of the switch, Musk changed his profile picture to the X logo, and the company dropped its famous bird logo.

Since Musk officially acquired Twitter in October, the platform has undergone significant changes in recent months, including reducing the number of direct messages users can send and the number of tweets they can see.

The platform faces new competition from Meta, the owner of Facebook, which recently launched the Threadz application as a competitor to Twitter. Additionally, the Chinese-owned TikTok app announced a new text feature on its platform earlier this week.

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Thursday, 27 July 2023

WhatsApp Introduces Video Messages: A New Way to Share Moments in Chats

WhatsApp introduces video messages for instant communication

WhatsApp has announced a new feature that allows users to record and share short personal videos directly within chats. The messaging app has built on its voice messaging functionality, which changed the way people communicate, with the introduction of video messages.

The instant video messages feature enables users to respond to chats in real-time, expressing themselves through video content lasting up to 60 seconds. WhatsApp believes that this new addition will provide a fun and expressive way to share moments with friends and family.

User-friendly experience

Sending a video message through WhatsApp is just as simple as sending a voice message. Users only need to tap to switch to video mode and hold to record the video. Alternatively, they can swipe up to lock and record the video hands-free. Videos will automatically play on mute when opened in a chat, and tapping on the video will enable sound. Furthermore, the video messages are protected with end-to-end encryption, ensuring user privacy.

Availability and recent updates

The new video messages feature is rolling out starting today and will be available to all WhatsApp users in the coming weeks. This launch follows a series of recent updates by WhatsApp. The company has introduced the ability to automatically silence calls from unknown numbers, the option to edit a sent message within 15 minutes, and is reportedly working on introducing usernames.

This article provides an overview of WhatsApp’s latest feature update, emphasizing its benefits and how users can make the most of it. Additionally, it mentions recent updates made by the company, offering readers a comprehensive view of WhatsApp’s evolving functionality.

Encouraging

The article encourages users to embrace the new video messages feature, highlighting its value in creating engaging and emotional communications. By showcasing how the feature can be used to share birthday wishes, laughter, and good news, users are encouraged to explore and utilize the functionality.

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The European Union Launches Antitrust Investigation into Microsoft’s Bundling of Teams with Office 365 and Microsoft 365

European Union Launches Antitrust Investigation into Microsoft’s Bundling of Teams

The European Union has finally announced a formal antitrust investigation of Microsoft’s bundling of Teams with Office 365 and Microsoft 365.

The move comes two years after rival workplace comms company Slack complained to the bloc that Microsoft was unfairly bundling the collaboration and comms software with its popular cloud-based productivity suites for business.

Investigating Microsoft’s Market Position

Announcing the probe, the European Commission said it will look into whether Microsoft may have breached EU competition rules by tying or bundling Teams to Office 365 and Microsoft 365.

“The Commission is concerned that Microsoft may be abusing and defending its market position in productivity software by restricting competition in the European Economic Area (‘EEA’) for communication and collaboration products,” it wrote.

“In particular, the Commission is concerned that Microsoft may grant Teams a distribution advantage by not giving customers the choice on whether or not to include access to that product when they subscribe to their productivity suites and may have limited the interoperability between its productivity suites and competing offerings.”

Anti-competitive Tying or Bundling

The Commission said Microsoft’s practices may constitute “anti-competitive tying or bundling” — meaning they could prevent suppliers of other communication and collaboration tools, such as Slack, from competing on a level playing field.

Reached for comment, a Microsoft spokeswoman sent this statement:

We respect the European Commission’s work on this case and take our own responsibilities very seriously. We will continue to cooperate with the Commission and remain committed to finding solutions that will address its concerns.

Slack’s Complaint and Microsoft’s Response

Back in July 2020, Slack made its complaint to the EU about Microsoft public — accusing the tech giant of illegally tying Teams into its market-dominant Office productivity suite and claiming its actions had resulted in “force installing it for millions, blocking its removal, and hiding the true cost to enterprise customers”.

Microsoft rebutted the accusations at the time by claiming Teams had been “embraced” by the market in “record numbers” as a result of Covid-19 driving uptake of video conferencing and other digital comms tools.

We’ve reached out to Slack for a response to the Commission investigation.

Regulating Digital Giants in the EU

Two years ago Slack urged EU regulators to move quickly. It’s not clear why the EU has taken its time to act on what is, on the surface, a pretty straightforward complaint — about bundling and tying. But the landscape around regulating digital giants is in the process of changing in the EU so the Commission may be reconfiguring its response to complaints.

Typically, traditional (ex post) antitrust investigations can take years to carry out. Although the Commission does have the ability to deploy interim powers in situations where it believes a suspected abuse of competition could cause irreversible harm to competition — as happened in 2019 in its investigation of chipmaker Broadcom — albeit, the more common route for the bloc’s competition regulators has been to investigate first to confirm a breach before taking enforcement action.

The EU’s executive also now has additional antitrust enforcement powers, under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which started to apply in May.

Potential Impact on Microsoft’s Business

This new ex ante competition regime does also look set to apply to Microsoft’s business. We’re still waiting on official designations but earlier this month the tech giant informed the Commission it believes it meets the criteria for falling under the regime.

The DMA is targeted at the most powerful digital intermediaries (so-called “gatekeepers”) — and at key competitive pinch-points for digital business. The regulation puts a set of up-front obligations and restrictions on designated gatekeepers’ core platform services, including limits on their ability to self-favor (such as by bundling or tying). Although exactly which core platform services will be regulated and how exactly the regime’s prohibitions will be interpreted in each case remains to be seen. (But on paper the DMA should apply in areas that look relevant to Slack’s complaint about Microsoft, including communications services and cloud services.)

With this revised regulatory landscape coming into the play in the EU, Microsoft may, in fairly short order, face up-front restrictions on how it can operate its popular productivity suites which could force it to cut its rivals a little more slack, so to speak. And this factor may explain why it’s taken the Commission a bit of time to decide what to do about Slack’s complaint.

The Future of Antitrust Enforcement

Enforcement of the DMA is also in the hands of the Commission so it remains to be seen which gatekeepers and core platform services will face priority attention from the bloc once the deadline for compliance expires early next year.

User engagement:
– Encourage readers to share their thoughts and opinions on Microsoft’s bundling of Teams and the EU investigation in the comments section below.
– Ask readers if they have personally used Microsoft Teams and what their experiences have been like.
– Invite readers to share their views on the regulation of digital giants and whether they believe it is necessary for competition and innovation.

:
– European Union Launches Antitrust Investigation into Microsoft’s Bundling of Teams
– Investigating Microsoft’s Market Position
– Anti-competitive Tying or Bundling
– Slack’s Complaint and Microsoft’s Response
– Regulating Digital Giants in the EU
– Potential Impact on Microsoft’s Business
– The Future of Antitrust Enforcement

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Meta Threads Introduces Exciting New Features: ‘Following’ and ‘Translations’ Now Available!

Threads on Meta is getting some new tools that many users have asked for. A few weeks after it came out, the app that competes with Twitter has been listening to what its new users want from the text-based app.

A “Following” feed that only shows material from people a user is following is one of the most-requested features. The new feed looks a lot like the way it looks on Instagram. Threads used to only have a “For You” page that suggested material.

Meta Threads Introduces

The “Following” page will show posts in the order they were made, which is how many Instagram users like it to be set up.

“Ask and you shall receive,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in answer to a user’s request for the “Following” tab.

“Translations,” which takes text posts and instantly translates them into a user’s native language, will also be part of the Threads update.

With all of these new changes, Threads seems to be getting ready to really compete with Twitter.

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Twitter Rebrands with New X Logo in Android App Update

Twitter Updates Android App with New Branding

Twitter updated its Android app today by replacing the iconic bird logo with its new X logo — the latest step in its ongoing rebranding efforts.

The company also updated its app listing on the Google Play Store to reflect the new branding with screenshots of the app with black backgrounds and the X logo. The social network has tried to make sure that there is no Twitter branding visible in these screengrabs.

“The X app is the trusted digital town square for everyone,” the app’s description reads. The company also mentioned that users are able to upload and watch videos up to 3 hours long in the app details. However, the Twitter Blue support page says that subscribers can upload videos up to 2 hours long.

Notably, the company’s Twitter Lite app still has all the Twitter branding. But it’s not surprising given that the app was last updated in May 2021.

Earlier this week, the social media company changed its official handle from @twitter to @X along with other affiliated handles shedding the “Twitter” moniker. The owner of the original @X, Gene X Hwang of the corporate photography and videography studio Orange Photography, told AsumeTech that the company just took over the handle without any warning or compensation. In a letter, the company offered Hwang a tour of X’s HQ and X merchandise a “reflection of our appreciation.”


Twitter has updated its Android app by replacing its iconic bird logo with a new X logo, as part of its ongoing rebranding efforts. The company has also changed its app listing on the Google Play Store to reflect the new branding, showcasing screenshots of the app with black backgrounds and the X logo. This move aims to ensure that there is no trace of the old Twitter branding in these promotional materials.

The revamped app, now featuring the X logo, positions itself as “the trusted digital town square for everyone,” according to its description. It boasts several new features, including the ability for users to upload and watch videos that are up to 3 hours long. However, it’s worth noting that the Twitter Blue support page states that subscribers can upload videos up to 2 hours long, creating some disparity in the information provided.

Despite the new branding on Twitter’s main Android app, the Twitter Lite app has retained the original Twitter branding. This lack of rebranding is not surprising, considering that the app was last updated in May 2021.


Twitter’s Updated Android App with New X Logo

Twitter has made changes to its Android app, replacing its well-known bird logo with a fresh X logo as part of its rebranding efforts.

New App Listing and No Trace of Twitter Branding

The Google Play Store now showcases the updated app listing, complete with screenshots featuring the X logo against black backgrounds. Twitter has deliberately removed any Twitter branding from these promotional materials.

A Trusted Digital Town Square with Extended Video Features

The app’s description highlights its role as a trusted digital space accessible to all users. It also claims to allow video uploads and streaming for up to 3 hours, although there seems to be a discrepancy as Twitter Blue’s support page states a limit of 2 hours for subscribers.

Different Branding for Twitter Lite

While the main Twitter Android app has undergone rebranding, the Twitter Lite app still reflects the original Twitter branding. This may be due to the app’s last update being in May 2021.

Official Handle Change from @twitter to @X

Twitter’s recent handle change from @twitter to @X, along with other associated handles, has caused some controversy. The original owner of the @X handle, Gene X Hwang of Orange Photography, expressed surprise as the company took over the handle without prior notice or compensation. Twitter has since offered Hwang a tour of X’s headquarters and merchandise as a token of appreciation.

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استخدام صواريخ أونيكس البحرية المضادة للسفن في هجمات على الموانئ الأوكرانية

صواريخ “أونيكس” الروسية تثير الذعر في جيش نظام كييف

فوجئ جيش نظام كييف باستخدام البحرية الروسية يومي 19 و23 يوليو صواريخ “أونيكس” البحرية المضادة للسفن ضد البنية التحتية في موانئه على شاطئ البحر الأسود.

عجز الدفاعات الأوكرانية عن التصدي للصواريخ الروسية

وأضطر الناطق الرسمي باسم القوات المسلحة الأوكرانية إلى الإعلان عن عجز الدفاعات الجوية الأوكرانية عن التصدي بفعالية لتلك الصواريخ “الشبحية” لأنها تحلق بسرعة هائلة على ارتفاع منخفض فوق سطح البحر، ما يمنع الرادارات من اكتشافها.

تاريخ صواريخ “أونيكس” الروسية

يذكر أن هذا النوع من الصواريخ المضادة للسفن بدأ تصميمه في العصر السوفيتي، لكن صواريخ “اونيكس” دخلت الخدمة في البحرية الروسية في التسعينيات بعد تفكك الاتحاد السوفيتي.

مميزات صاروخ “أونيكس”

ومن مميزات هذا الصاروخ الخطير قدرته على تغيير مساره وارتفاعه، ما يمنع الدفاعات الجوية للعدو من اكتشافه واعتراضه. ويقوم استخدام صاروخ “أونيكس” على مبدأ “ترمي وتنسى”، ما يتيح السفن الحربية التي تطلقه فرصة لتغيير مواقعها بسرعة.

مواصفات صاروخ “أونيكس”

ويبلغ طول الصاروخ 8 أمتار، ووزنه عند الإطلاق 3 أطنان، وتصل سرعته على ارتفاع 14000 متر إلى نحو 3180 كيلومتر/ساعة و2448 كيلومتر/ساعة بالقرب من سطح الأرض أو البحر. وعند الاقتراب من الهدف قد ينزل الصاروخ إلى ارتفاع 10 أمتار.

استخدام صواريخ “أونيكس” في سوريا وأوكرانيا

استخدمت صواريخ “أونيكس” البحرية لأول مرة ضد الأهداف البرية في 15 نوفمبر عام 2016 في سوريا حيث تم، حسب وزارة الدفاع الروسية، تدمير مستودع للذخائر والمعدات الحربية عائد للإرهابيين.

 واستخدمت صواريخ “اونيكس” العام الجاري ضد البنية التحتية للموانئ الأوكرانية من قبل منظومات “باستيون” الساحلية للصواريخ المضادة للسفن في شبه جزيرة القرم الروسية.

تصدير صواريخ “أونكيس”

وقد تم تصدير صواريخ “أونكيس” إلى بلدان أخرى حيث أطلق عليها اسك “ياخونت” وخفض مدى عمله من 800 إلى 300 كيلومتر.

المصدر: كومسومولسكايا برفدا

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Wednesday, 26 July 2023

Bumble Launches New App ‘Bumble for Friends’ for Platonic Connections in Multiple Markets

Bumble Launches “Bumble for Friends” App to Help Users Find Platonic Connections

Dating app company Bumble announced today that it releasing a separate app called “Bumble for Friends” aimed at finding friends in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the Philippines, the U.K. and the U.S. Bumble originally launched BFF mode in the main app in 2016. With this new app, it aims to cater to people looking for platonic connections.

Last month, the company confirmed to AsumeTech that it was testing the app in some markets including the U.K. At that time, the dating app said that BFF mode represents 15% of the main apps’ monthly active users. Now, it has officially launched the BFF app in several markets.

The app is free to download from both App Store and Google Play. However, it offers in-app purchases such as premium membership with weekly, monthly, 3-month, 6-month, and lifetime subscription plans. The paid plan offers features such as unlimited swipes, backtracking left swipes, advanced filters, incognito mode, super swipes and boosts to get noticed better.

Users can create a profile outlining their interests and what kind of friends they are looking for. Bumble said, in the markets where the BFF app is launching, users can easily port their profile to the new app. Once the migration is over, BFF mode won’t be available to those users in the main Bumble app. But the company said that there is no plan to sunset BFF mode in the Bumble app at the moment.

People can swipe through profiles with similar interests — just like in the Bumble app — and match with other people.

Expanding Friendship Possibilities

A lot of people who were part of the test left reviews on the app complaining that it limits friendships to only people who identify as the same gender as the user. The company said that it is starting with “this experience in the app as we continue to evaluate further product changes, including additional ways for our members to connect with any type of friend.”

Planning Meetups Made Easy

The company is also rolling out a group chat functionality to plan meetups. Users can create a group from the conversations tab with a subject line and invite two or more matches to join. The app suggests pre-written prompts for activities such as “Meet for coffee,” “Let’s grab a bite,” “Live music or a show,” and “Games night.” Users can also write their customized idea for the meetup. It’s not clear how Bumble will limit the group to just planning and not general conversation.

Ensuring Safety and Moderation

Bumble says that its new app adheres to the same moderation and safety guidelines as the main app. It said that if someone is trying to use the BFF app for romantic purposes, users can report that kind of behavior.

Competition in the Friend-Finding Space

With this new app, Bumble is competing with other friend-finding apps such as live streaming app Yubo, LMK, Wink, Wizz, Swipr, and Hoop, which lets you connect with people through Snapchat.

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Google Reports 2 Billion Monthly Users for YouTube Shorts, Beating TikTok and Instagram Reels

YouTube Shorts surpasses 2 billion monthly users, outpacing TikTok and Instagram Reels

Google announced today that YouTube Shorts, the popular short-form video feature, now boasts over 2 billion monthly logged-in users. This milestone cements YouTube’s position as a leader in the short video format, surpassing competitors like TikTok and Instagram Reels. The impressive figure marks an increase from the 1.5 billion monthly logged-in users reported last year.

Strong ad revenue growth for YouTube drives Google’s Q2 2023 results

During its Q2 2023 results, Google revealed that YouTube generated $7.67 billion in revenue from ads, surpassing analyst estimates and experiencing a 4% year-on-year growth. This achievement underscores the effectiveness of YouTube as a platform for advertisers to reach a massive user base. Google is further enhancing its premium ad offering, YouTube Select, by adding 30-second unskippable ads.

Expansion of YouTube’s offerings beyond ads

In addition to its ad revenue growth, YouTube has been focusing on diversifying its offerings. One notable move is the recent introduction of pre-sales for the NFL Sunday Ticket subscription, set to stream in the upcoming season. YouTube has also partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery to provide a Max-NFL Sunday Ticket bundle on YouTube TV. These strategic collaborations aim to attract sports enthusiasts and expand YouTube’s value proposition.

YouTube’s global reach and premium plans

Google’s announcement highlighted YouTube’s expanding global presence, with an emphasis on Connected TV screens in the U.S. reaching 150 million individuals. Although no update was provided on the number of paid users across YouTube Premium and Music, last year’s figure stood at 80 million. Recently, YouTube adjusted its premium plan prices, increasing the individual plan by $2 and the Music plan by $1 in the United States.

Strong quarterly results for Google with positive growth

Google reported positive quarterly results, demonstrating growth in both ad and cloud revenues. The company’s Q2 2023 revenue amounted to $74.6 billion, a notable increase from the $69.7 billion generated in Q2 2022. Following this news, Alphabet shares experienced a nearly 7% rise in after-hours trading, indicating investor confidence in Google’s performance.

Ruth Porat promoted to key role overseeing Alphabet divisions

In a strategic move, Alphabet promoted Ruth Porat from Chief Financial Officer to the president and chief investment officer role. In her new position, Porat will be responsible for overseeing Alphabet’s various divisions, including self-driving company Waymo, health-focused Verily, and Google Fiber. This promotion emphasizes Porat’s integral role in driving Alphabet’s growth and innovation.

Conclusion

The soaring popularity of YouTube Shorts with over 2 billion monthly logged-in users highlights Google’s dominance in the short video format. With strong ad revenue growth, diversification of offerings, and an expanding global presence, YouTube continues to solidify its position as a leading video-sharing platform. Google’s impressive quarterly results further underscore the company’s overall financial strength. Additionally, with Ruth Porat’s elevation to a key leadership role overseeing Alphabet’s divisions, Google is poised for continued success and innovation in diverse industries.

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OpenAI’s ChatGPT App Finally Arrives on Android

A few months after it came out for iOS, the app is now available for Android smartphones on the Google Play Store.

Even though the buzz around OpenAI’s ChatGPT has died down quite a bit, when it was first released, it gave people a new, fun, and exciting way to talk to AI. Even though this is just the start, we’ve already seen how robots can be helpful and troublesome. They have their uses, but it took OpenAI a long time to make its own apps for smartphones that use its technology. The company just released ChatGPT for iOS in May, and now, in some areas, it is finally available for Android users.

OpenAI's ChatGPT App Finally Arrives on Android

The official ChatGPT app is now available in the Google Play Store. 9to5 Google was the first to notice this change. You can download the app by clicking the link at the bottom or look for it in the Play Store. If you’re looking for the app, take the one OpenAI made. There are a lot of other apps that look like it. Once you’ve downloaded it, you must sign in with your account or make a new one. When that’s done, you can use the same tools as the desktop version.

But, as we’ve already said, the app is only available in a few places. According to 9to5Google, people in the United States, Brazil, India, and Bangladesh can use it now. But OpenAI hopes to expand to more places in the next week, so hopefully, it will be available to a lot more people soon. If you want to try it out, you can use the link below to get the app. Or, if you want to check out some of the alternatives or learn more about them, you can look at our comparison of ChatGPT, Bing Chat, and Google Bard.

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Twitter Rebrands to @X: Original @Twitter Handle Inactive

Twitter Rebrands Official Handle to @X

Twitter has changed its official handle to @X as part of the ongoing rebranding. The original @Twitter handle is now inactive, and its bio reads “This account is no longer active. Follow @x for updates.” The social media company’s other official handles have also let go of the “Twitter” moniker or substituted it with the letter X.

AsumeTech previously reported that Twitter hadn’t reached out to the original owner of the @X handle — Gene X Hwang of corporate photography and videography studio Orange Photography.

However, earlier today, Hwang tweeted “All well that ends well” from his new handle @x1234567998765. It’s so far not clear if he sold the handle to Twitter.

Twitter’s own handles such as @TwitterSupport, @TwitterDev, and @TwitterAPI are now @Support, @Xdevelopers, and @API.

However, regional handles like Twitter Japan and Twitter India are yet to be renamed.

The company’s subscription service Twitter Blue is now @XBlue on the site. However, the About page of the paid plan still has Twitter Blue branding.

According to an update on the Twitter Video page, verified users can now allow other Blue users to download the videos they post on the social network for offline viewing.

Twitter’s rebranding hasn’t gone smoothly, with several parts of the site still carrying the Twitter branding and moniker, including the mobile apps. Industry experts predict potential legal challenges due to existing trademarks associated with the letter “X.”

The company had also started removing the Twitter logo from its San Francisco headquarters.

A New York Times report published Monday noted that workers around the office had started removing bird-related items and renaming conference rooms as “eXposure,” “eXult,” and “s3Xy.”

On Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Twitter is offering new incentives to advertisers in the US and the UK, including discounted pricing for video ads under the “Explore” tab.

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Meta Unveils Enhanced Anti-Piracy Measures for Meta Quest 2

Meta adds a new API that checks hardware and applications, among other things, to stop theft.

Developers who want to protect their VR apps “from unauthorized changes and possible security breaches” can use the Platform Integrity Attestation API.

On the Oculus Developer Blog, Meta offers the following ways to use Oculus:

  • Securing device authentication
  • Hardware-based app bans
  • Protecting financial and enterprise app data
  • External data misuse
  • Anti-piracy

Meta says that the API makes an encrypted token and checks its authenticity with an attestation service. If the test fails, the app server for the VR app can decide not to start the app.

New Measure seems to be optional

At this point, no one knows how the API will affect software piracy and generally accepted software modding. Could the new rule mean that custom songs for the local Beat Saber won’t be possible anymore? We’ll have to see what happens.

Here’s what well-known Quest tinkerer and software detective Basti564 has to say about the new API:

“In my view, this API is mostly used with anti-cheat systems or to stop online games from being hacked. So not, as many people think, against Beat Saber mods that add new songs, but against games like VRChat and Gorilla Tag, which don’t like mods and want to stop cheats. But Beat Games could, for example, only let people play the original game online if they want to see the leaderboards. The technology could also be used to stop online games from being stolen. But most online games on The Quest already check the license on the server side to stop cheating.

Meta’s main goal is probably to protect its own VR environment. Virtual reality is still a niche, and it’s hard for many makers to profit from VR apps. Giving them tools to stop piracy makes developers more interested in Meta’s environment.

The API doesn’t seem to be a measure for the whole system. Instead, coders can decide for themselves if they want to use the Attestation API or not. The API needs to be connected to an authentication and app server for the checks to work.

The Quest 2, the Quest Pro, and the Meta Quest 3, which will come out in the fall, are all supported products.

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