Late this afternoon hackers identifying themselves as members of various Anonymous groups attacked and disabled the website for the US Justice Department, the Recording Industry Association of America, and the Motion Picture Association of America. The move came after the FBI raided the popular file sharing site Megaupload earlier today and arrested 7 of its operators.It appears that the FBI may be the next target of the hackers. Continue reading
Tech
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I often hear people say “My Android battery life sucks!”, to which I usually reply “Yeah, unless you’ve tweaked it, it probably does.”
This article will explore some easy ways for any Android device user to improve their battery life, using…
MonkeyBiz’s Rules of Android Battery Conservation.
First off, let’s talk reasonable expectations. No amount of tweaking will make your phone battery last forever. In fact, barring something extraordinary, your phone will probably top out at 16-20 hours of normal use. With an extended battery, you might hit a full 24. Consequently, charge your phone every night. Continue reading
You might notice some changes around your internet today. Some major websites like Wikipedia and Reddit will go black today. Others, like Google, will have special content. Even the Honey Badger is getting involved. The reason for this is the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), a bill making its way through congress that will drastically affect the way your internet works. Continue reading
In the interests of helping the ever-evolving English language keep pace with the technological revolution — and with apologies to Germans everywhere — I offer this humble addition to our collective vocabulary.
Moylanfreude (noun)
The slightly shameful enjoyment derived from watching a once-great internet destination painfully and gracelessly tumble down a seemingly-infinite flight of stairs, precipitated, in no small part directly by, but certainly (via an internal company culture dedicated to many parallel and unfortunate characteristics*) encapsulated within, a particular writer who, for reasons upon which I decline to speculate, remains oust-proof in an organization demonstrably dedicated to a philosophy of near-recreational and self-destructive oustiness that verges on the whimsical.
If you use the popular shopping site zappos.com, you have an email coming your way letting you know that your account has been compromised. Hackers were able to access customer names, email addresses, shipping and billing address and the last four digits of credit card numbers. They were also able to access customer passwords, although those were encrypted. The little bit of good news is that if you stored your full credit card number on the site, Zappos stored that information separately.
Every now and then a story comes along that makes my acid reflux kick in. I’m still trying to digest a riveting story of the Foxconn plants in in Shenzhen, China where all things Apple (and a lot of other things) are made. Basically just deplorable working conditions like 16 hour shifts, no talking at work. None. Period. Overtime that doesn’t get paid out and if you complain you will be blacklisted and fired. On the job injuries that are completely avoidable like repetitious movements that are non-stop with no rotation into other duties. Think carpal tunnel but in a country where you’re not going to get any FMLA or Workers Comp. Underage workers and cluster suicides have been documented. It’s hard to listen to and not start thinking “I can’t believe everything I own,” and I mean actually a great deal of things I own since I am a computer nerd, a geek, a guru and a participating citizen of this great nation of consumption, “…is made in this manner.”
So apparently there’s a Twitter feed that publishes selections of overheard conversations from the Goldman Sachs elevator and it’s been around for a while, although it was only recently brought to my attention. The New York Times actually featured an anonymous interview with the person behind it back in August 2011.
But because I hate myself, and apparently, you guys, I scrolled all the way back to August and pulled out some of the more horrifying tweets for your judgement and tears. Seriously, this twitter feed has everything. Real or not real, it kind of made me want to invest in some pitchforks and torches. Continue reading
So, early this morning, BoingBoing.net with some pretty serious accusations towards Google’s falling ethics and a specific bit of fraud that seems to be going on in Kenya. Basically, Kenya does not have a good public business directory. There are no yellow pages and most businesses do not have a web presence. So, a company called Mocality decided they were going to do that. Continue reading
Engadget is at CES, reporting on all the exciting new tech gadgets. They played with the jetBook, Ectaco’s new color e-reader. It’s not just a color e-reader, it’s a color e-reader with a Triton Color E Ink display, a first in the crowded e-reader market.
Already on the market in Eastern Europe and Asia (the product is marketed with an educational slant on Ectaco’s site), jetBook will soon be available globally. As Engadget notes, the colors are a bit muted, but this is still an exciting step forward in E Ink technology. As more and more tablets (with backlit displays) vie for consumers’ money, E Ink-based readers must continue to evolve to stay competitive. Check out Engadget’s hands-on post to see more pics and watch a video.
It’s that time again folks: The 2012 Bloggies are coming up fast. Nominations close on Sunday, January 15 at 10:00 PM EST. What is all this? The Bloggies are webblog awards nominated and voted upon by the readers of the internet. (Like Wikipedia!) There are quite a few categories so I’ve listed just a few below with some of last years winners: Continue reading