Wednesday, 28 June 2023

Apple Arcade Adds Stardew Valley Slay the Spire and Ridiculous Fishing to its Indie Game Collection in July

Apple Arcade to Feature Stardew Valley, Slay the Spire, and Ridiculous Fishing in July

Apple Arcade is a getting a trio of notable indie games in July, including Stardew Valley, Slay the Spire and Ridiculous Fishing. Launched in 2016, Stardew Valley is an open-ended country-life RPG that gained popularity for its gentle art style and calm vibes. Apple Arcade’s version of the game will include recent updates, including new town upgrades, dating events, crops, fishing ponds, hats, clothing and pets. The game will launch on Apple Arcade on July 21.

As for Ridiculous Fishing, the tech giant says the Apple Arcade version is a full and expanded remaster of the original game and is now in 3D. The remastered version of the game, called Ridiculous Fishing EX, includes a competitive mode and game plus mode. The idea behind the game is to catch as many fish as possible, then flick them up into the sky and shoot them with your shotgun. Ridiculous Fishing EX will launch on Apple Arcade on July 14.

Slay the Spire, which is a roguelike deck-building game, will roll out on the service on July 7. In the game, players climb The Spire while encountering enemies. Players are led to a final floor where a challenging boss encounter awaits.

In addition to the trio of notable indie games, Apple Arcade is also getting Hello Kitty Island Adventure on July 28. The game sees players solving ancient puzzles, decorating cabins and creating their “ultimate island paradise.” In addition, Lego Duplo World will be launching on July 7. The game is designed to help kids build their imaginations through open-ended play experiences.

Apple Arcade is available for $4.99 per month with a one-month free trial. The subscription is also available as part of Apple One’s Individual ($16.95), Family ($22.95), and Premier ($32.95) monthly plans. Apple Arcade games are playable across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV.

The upcoming launch of the new titles comes as Apple added 20 games to Apple Arcade service last month, including a new exclusive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles title along with classic games like Temple Run and Snake.io.

of Apple Arcade’s July Offerings

Apple Arcade is set to captivate gaming enthusiasts in July with the addition of Stardew Valley, Slay the Spire, and Ridiculous Fishing to its impressive lineup of indie games. Stardew Valley, a popular open-ended country-life RPG, will be introduced with exciting new updates such as town upgrades, dating events, and expanded features like fishing ponds, hats, clothing, and pets. The game will be available on Apple Arcade starting July 21.

Ridiculous Fishing, one of the standout titles, will undergo a full remastering for Apple Arcade. Players can look forward to an enhanced 3D version called Ridiculous Fishing EX, which includes a competitive mode and a game plus mode. With a unique concept of shooting fish into the sky and blasting them with a shotgun, Ridiculous Fishing EX will be released on July 14.

For those interested in strategic gameplay, Slay the Spire offers a thrilling roguelike deck-building experience. Players will embark on a challenging journey up The Spire, facing enemies along the way and ultimately encountering a formidable boss on the final floor. Apple Arcade users can enjoy this game starting July 7.

: Hello Kitty Island Adventure and Lego Duplo World

In addition to the highly anticipated indie games, Apple Arcade is also bringing Hello Kitty Island Adventure to its collection on July 28. This game invites players to immerse themselves in solving ancient puzzles, decorating cabins, and creating their “ultimate island paradise.” Furthermore, Lego Duplo World, launching on July 7, provides a platform for kids to unleash their imagination through open-ended play experiences.

Accessible and Affordable Entertainment

Apple Arcade offers users the opportunity to access these exciting games for a low monthly cost of $4.99, with a one-month free trial available. Subscribers can also enjoy Apple Arcade as part of the Apple One subscription plans: Individual ($16.95), Family ($22.95), and Premier ($32.95). What sets Apple Arcade apart is that these games can be played seamlessly across multiple devices, including iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV.

Continued Expansion

Apple continues to expand the Apple Arcade library, with an impressive addition of 20 games last month. The introduction of exclusive titles like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, along with classics such as Temple Run and Snake.io, further enhances the diverse range of gaming experiences available to Apple Arcade subscribers.

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Tuesday, 27 June 2023

Meta Announces New Parental Control Tools for Instagram Facebook and Messenger

Meta Announces New Parental Control Tools Across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger

Meta announced new parental control tools across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger today. This includes a new parental supervision hub in Messenger, a feature that pre-emptively blocks unwanted DMs on Messenger and Instagram, and nudges to remind teens that they should take a break.

for Enhanced Digital Safety

Messenger supervision controls, which will be available in Meta’s Family Center, are rolling out first in the U.S., the U.K., and Canada. These tools will let guardians see their teens’ privacy and safety settings, changes in the Messenger contact list, and how much time they are spending in the app. Guardians will also get a notification when a teen reports someone — however the child has to explicitly allow this notification.

Parents can also look at settings like who can message their teens — only their friends, friends of friends, or no one — and who can view their stories. The guardians will also get a notification if the child changes any of these settings.

Encouraging and Enhanced Privacy

In the last few years, Instagram has taken multiple steps to limit teen interaction with unknown adults. In the latest move, the company will ask people who are not connected with a certain user to send an invitation to ask for permission to interact. Instagram said that these are text-only invites, and the sender can send just one at a time.

Promoting Healthy Digital Habits

The company is also rolling out some controls to reduce prolonged usage, encouraging users to take a break. Instagram first introduced a “Quiet mode” in January, which allowed users to pause notifications and auto-reply to DMs that they are taking a break. At that time, it will available to users in the U.S., the U.K., Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Today, the company said that “Quiet mode” is rolling out globally.

Instagram has been testing features that encourage you “take a break” and nudge users after a continual usage of defined minutes to put their phone down. Meta is now extending this to Facebook, notifying users after 20 minutes of usage to take a break. Additionally, the company will also notify teens watching Reels at night to close the app.

Increased Oversight for Guardians

Meta is also sending teens a new notice on Instagram to let their guardians supervise their accounts for protection. The company said that parents can now view mutuals for accounts that a teen follows or accounts that follow them.

Past Controversy and Continuing Efforts

Earlier this year, Meta introduced control over ad targeting for teens on Instagram and Facebook. In February, it backed a tool that allowed minors to stop their intimate images from being posted online. However, the company hasn’t refrained from serving ads to teens. Last year, the company was fined more than $400 million for violating GDPR rules over children’s privacy.

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Twitter Increases Character Limit for Tweets to 25000 for Paid Users Elon Musks Impact on the Platform

Twitter Increases Character Count for Paid Users to 25,000

Since Elon Musk has taken over Twitter, the platform has been expanding the limits of content you can post through one tweet. In its latest move, the company has increased the character count for a tweet to 25,000 for paid users.

The company made the change to its Twitter Blue page today indicating the limit. An engineer at Twitter, Prachi Poddar, also announced the change by posting a long tweet last week.

We have increased NoteTweet (aka longform Tweet) limit from 10k to 25k characters. Enjoy longer NoteTweet and happy tweeting! 🥂 https://t.co/7ILGxLAd32

— Prachi Poddar (@imPrachiPoddar) June 20, 2023

In February, Twitter increased the limit to 4,000 characters, later extending it to 10,000 characters in April. At that time, the company also introduced support for text formatting features like bold and italic.

Under previous management, the company made one change from going to 140 characters to 280 characters in the last decade. And for that step, it faced pushback from users.

Apart from increasing the character limit for tweets, the social media company has also allowed Twitter Blue subscribers to upload longer videos. Last December, Twitter started to allow paid users to upload 60-minute-long videos in 1080p. Last month, it increased this limit to two-hour videos. Music publishers sued Twitter for failing to stop the usage of unlicensed music on the platform — in the case filing, the plaintiffs made a note of the video expansion feature.

With the new character limit expansion, users can probably post long-form articles or short stories altogether. Musk is making sure that you don’t run out of words while doing that. In comparison to Twitter, rival platforms like Mastodon (500 characters) and Bluesky (300 characters) have much lower limits per post. And it’s true that these long posts can be tedious to read on the platform. Maybe Twitter could think about improving the reading experience for users next.

: Twitter Increases Character Limit for Paid Users

Twitter, under the leadership of Elon Musk, continues to push the boundaries of content on its platform. The newest development allows paid users to post tweets with a character count of up to 25,000. This expansion comes after previous increases from 140 to 280 characters and later to 10,000 characters.

Prachi Poddar, an engineer at Twitter, confirmed the change through a tweet and the company’s Twitter Blue page was updated to reflect the new limit.

Encouraging : Longer Tweets and Videos

The increased character limit opens up opportunities for users to share long-form articles and short stories. Twitter has also made other enhancements for its paid subscribers. In addition to longer tweets, Twitter Blue users can upload longer videos, with the limit being extended from 60 minutes to two hours. However, this move has not been without controversy as Twitter faced a lawsuit from music publishers for their failure to prevent the use of unlicensed music in videos.

: Challenges and Future Improvements

While the expanded character limit brings new possibilities to the platform, it also poses challenges. Longer posts can be tedious to read, especially considering the fast-paced nature of Twitter. Rival platforms such as Mastodon and Bluesky have lower character limits per post, suggesting that Twitter may need to consider ways to improve the reading experience for its users.

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Why Snakes Are Crawling into Houses in New Moscow Due to Heat and Drought

Snakes Crawling into Houses in Moscow

The head of the Department of Biological Diversity and Environmental Protection of the Moscow Region, Sergei Burmistrov, said that because of the heat, snakes are crawling into the houses of New Moscow.

Snakes Seek Shelter from Heat

In an interview with the Russian news agency Novosti, he said that due to the high air temperature and drought, snakes crawl into houses to get drunk and cool off, and that the species that has been repeatedly seen is called grass snake, and it is not poisonous and does not represent any danger.

He continued: “The snakes are mostly active and because of the hot and dry weather, they are looking for wet places. Therefore, they can be seen near the entrances of buildings, and they can crawl under the foundation of the building, where there is humidity or near reservoirs and ponds to drink water and cool the body.”

Not Limited to Moscow Region

According to him, snakes can be seen not only in the Moscow region, but also in other regions.

He added: “We get a lot of complaints about the presence of snakes in different places, but we do not hunt them, because they are snakes that do not harm anyone and do not attack a person if he does not touch them.”

Source: News

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Meta Launches Quest Monthly Subscription for Virtual Reality Glasses Only $7.99/Month

Meta Launches Quest+ Monthly Subscription Service

Meta has announced the launch of the Quest+ monthly subscription service for its virtual reality glasses.

$7.99 a month

Yesterday, Monday, Meta Quest Plus CEO Mark Zuckerberg said via an Instagram broadcast that the “Meta Quest Plus” subscription will be available, starting Monday, at a price of $7.99 per month, i.e. $ 59.99 per year.

Quest 3 and Competition with Apple

Interestingly, the “Quest Plus” service is currently available for users of the Quest 2 and Quest Pro glasses, and will soon be available for users of the latest Quest 3 virtual reality glasses.

Quest 3

And in early June, Zuckerberg unveiled the new Quest 3 virtual reality and mixed reality glasses, which come as a successor to the Quest 2 glasses.

Apple compete

This comes as American tech giant ‘Apple’ tries to get in in this market, to compete with “Meta” and other companies, as it recently announced its Vision Pro mixed reality glasses, which cost $3,499.

However, the price of Apple glasses is three times the price of Meta’s most expensive glasses.

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TikTok Testing New In-App Trendy Beat Shopping Section for Products Shipped by ByteDance Subsidiary

TikTok, the popular social media platform, has been making headlines recently with the news of its in-app shopping section called “Trendy Beat”. Currently being tested in the UK, Trendy Beat is a shopping feature that showcases popular products that have appeared in trending videos. Interestingly, the feature includes products such as tools for ear wax extraction, which have gained immense popularity over time. Although this feature is not yet being tested in the US, TikTok has filed a trademark application for Trendy Beat in the country, indicating the possibility of expansion in the future.

TikTok’s e-commerce strategy, until now, has been focused on letting brands sell on the platform through TikTok Shop. However, with the introduction of Trendy Beat, the platform is now selling its own products, which puts it in direct competition with e-commerce giants like Amazon and Shein. While TikTok’s e-commerce ventures are still in their early phases in the US, the app has already influenced users’ shopping habits. The introduction of the Trendy Beat feature could further push sales by providing direct access to a discovery and purchasing experience within the app.

Overall, with the introduction of Trendy Beat, TikTok is taking a significant step toward becoming a major player in the e-commerce industry. It is an exciting development for TikTok users who can now shop for popular products directly within the app, without having to switch to another platform.

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WhatsApp Business Hits 200 Million Monthly Active Users Launches New Features for Small Businesses

WhatsApp Business Surpasses 200 Million Monthly Active Users

Meta announced today that WhatsApp Business, its app designed specifically for small businesses, has crossed the mark of 200 million monthly active users — up from 50 million in 2020. As the company is pursuing its “year of efficiency,” it also launched features like easier ad creation and a personalized message service for WhatsApp Business users.

Mark Zuckerberg is pouring billions into developing a metaverse. In order to offset that, the company is ramping up revenue generation from other avenues such as WhatsApp.

Creating Ads Without a Facebook Account

The Meta-owned chat app said that, starting today, WhatsApp Business users will be able to create “click-to-WhatsApp” ads without a Facebook account. The company noted that sellers can create, purchase, and publish ads for Facebook and Instagram directly from within the app. Last year, during Meta’s Q3 earnings call, Zuckerberg mentioned that “click-to-WhatsApp” ads surpassed the annual revenue run rate of $1.5 billion with 80% year-on-year growth.

Personalized Messages for Customers

WhatsApp Business is also adding another paid feature that lets merchants automate the process of sending personalized messages to their customers. The company didn’t share the pricing details as WhatsApp said it will start testing the feature “soon.” The screengrabs shared by the company indicate that businesses will be able to send different messages to different customer lists. For instance, a seller can send a discount code to new customers with a purchase button.

Increased Revenue through Paid Messaging

Over the last few months, Meta has made concrete steps towards increasing revenue earned through paid messaging. In February, it announced changes in the pricing structure and messaging categories on WhatsApp. These categories included utility, authentication (to send one-time passcodes), marketing, and user-initiated service conversations. “I shared last quarter that click-to-message ads reached a $10 billion revenue run rate. And since then, the number of businesses using our other business messaging service — paid messaging on WhatsApp — has grown by 40% quarter-over-quarter,” Zuckerberg said in the Q1 2023 earnings call.

Growth in Messaging Revenue

Currently, the company doesn’t declare separate revenue for WhatsApp, but clubs it with the “other” category. In the quarter ending in March, Meta said that the WhatsApp Business platform had a strong growth in messaging revenue, but it was offset by “a decline in other line items” — resulting in a 5% dip for the category year-over-year.

Expanding Payments Business

WhatsApp has also taken steps to foster its payments business on the platform. In April, it introduced the ability to pay merchants for users in Brazil. A month later, the company introduced similar functionality in Singapore. Earlier this month, WhatsApp launched the channels feature to facilitate broadcast conversations from different organizations. At that time, the company also mentioned that it is exploring ways to integrate payments into channels.