Amazon Prime Day 2019 will last two full days
You'd think there was a clue in the name when it comes to determining how long Amazon's annual Prime Day lasts. But no. Not content with having stretched out the event for a day and a half last year, this time around Prime Day is actually two days long.
This means that you'll have a massive 48 hours to bathe in naked consumerism -- and hopefully bag yourself a bargain or two along the way. Amazon has already shared details of some of the deals you can expect to see on July 15 and 16.
NordVPN has a new password manager in the pipeline -- NordPass
NordVPN -- as its name suggests -- is perhaps most readily associated with its privacy and security-focused VPN solutions. But this is not all the company has to offer.
Having already released a file encryption service in the form of NordLocker, NordVPN has now revealed that it has a new password management tool. Due for release later this year, NordPass has been designed to be secure yet simple to use, and NordVPN is trying to help people from making the mistake of using the same password everywhere.
Firefox embraces Microsoft BITS to install updates
Starting with Firefox 68, Mozilla's web browser began to use Microsoft BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service) to deliver updates -- the same technique that is used by Windows Update.
With the arrival of Firefox 70, BITS will be utilized with a dedicated update agent in place as a proxy rather than simply being part of the browser itself, allowing updates to be more easily installed.
Steam will not support Ubuntu 19.10 onwards
It is only a few days since Canonical announced that it was dropping support for 32-bit packages as of Ubuntu 19.10. The fall out from this is now being felt.
While there were many developers who were not happy with the decision, Linux-based gamers are now likely to be more than slightly annoyed. Steam has announced that "Ubuntu 19.10 and future releases will not be officially supported by Steam or recommended to our users".
Windows Terminal preview now available to download
At its Build 2019 developer conference earlier this year, Microsoft revealed the Linux-inspired Windows Terminal, which gives access to the Command Prompt, PowerShell, and WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) in one place.
The code has been available to download and compile for a little while, but now Microsoft has released a ready-made Windows Terminal app for anyone to try out.
Leaked: Microsoft bans employees from using Slack, Kaspersky… even GitHub use is discouraged
A leaked document has shed light on what it is like to work at Microsoft. It reveals the software and online services that Microsoft either prohibits or discourages employees from using, and there are some big names on the list.
One of the most well-known tools to be slapped with a ban is Slack, with others including the grammar checker Grammarly and security software from Kaspersky. The cloud-version of Microsoft-owned GitHub features on a list of "discouraged" tools and services.
ProtonMail criticizes Gmail's confidential mode for being neither secure nor private
Privacy-focused ProtonMail has lashed out at Google, saying the "confidential mode" available in Gmail is "misleading" and "little more than a marketing strategy". It says that people "don't need to settle for fake privacy"
Pointing out that Gmail's confidential mode lack end-to-end encryption, ProtonMail says that the email service is "not secure or private". The company says that Gmail can still read your emails, and that expiring emails are not as secure as Google would have users believe.
Ubuntu is dropping i386 support and WINE developers are irked
As of version 19.10, Ubuntu will no longer support i386. With the arrival of Eoan Ermine, Ubuntu is severing 32-bit ties, and some developers are concerned.
The move is not entirely unexpected. The Ubuntu developers had previously said it would make an i386 decision in the middle of 2019. That time having rolled around, the Ubuntu engineering team says that it "has reviewed the facts before us and concluded that we should not continue to carry i386 forward as an architecture". WINE developers are among those unhappy with the decision.
There will be no more tablets from Google
Google is getting out of the tablet-making business, but says that it will continue to produce smartphones and laptops.
The announcement means that Google is ceasing work on two unreleased Pixel tablets, with the company's head of hardware saying: "Google's hardware team will be solely focused on building laptops moving forward". While ditching tablets is not entirely surprising, Google is said to have been working on two new tablets until as recently as this week.
Security flaw in Dell SupportAssist tool puts millions of Windows systems at risk
A Windows support tool bundled with Dell computers has a high-severity security hole that leaves millions of systems at risk of a privilege-escalation attack.
Dell has announced that both the Business and Home versions of its SupportAssist tool have a security vulnerability within the PC Doctor component that requires immediate patching. The discovery was made by SafeBreach, and there could be over 100 million systems that are affected.
Google confirms that second-hand Nest Cams could have been used to spy on people
There been many concerns voiced about the privacy and security implications of many smart products. Some are well-founded, as a new admission from Google that its Nest Cams could be used to spy on people goes to show.
The problem does not center around hackers, but people who have sold or given away their Nest Cams. Even after the new owner performed a factory reset of the camera -- following Google's own instructions -- it was still possible for the original owner to access the camera feed.
Kali Linux sets out its roadmap for 2019/20
Offensive Security, the team behind the security-focused, Debian-based, penetration testing Linux distro Kali Linux. has set out the roadmap for the operating system for the months ahead.
This is the first time such a roadmap has been shared for Kali Linux, and it gives us a good idea of what to expect between now and 2020. The team says: "normally, we only really announce things when they are ready to go public, but a number of these changes are going to impact users pretty extensively so we wanted to share them early".
Microsoft releases Chromium-based Edge for Windows 7 and 8.x
After embracing the Chromium engine for Edge, Microsoft is gradually expanding the number of platforms the browser is available for.
Starting off as a Windows 10 browser and then spreading to macOS, there is currently talk of Linux being in Microsoft's sights. For now, however, it is Windows 7 and 8 users who are the latest to have Microsoft Edge available as a browser option.
Apple teams up with Best Buy to expand repair services to hundreds of stores
The next time you have a problem with your Apple product -- be it an iMac, MacBook, iPhone or iPad -- you could take it to Best Buy for repair rather than an Apple store.
The new repair options are thanks to Apple's expansion of its authorized service network. There are almost 1,000 Best Buy stores with over 7,600 newly Apple-certified Geek Squad technicians ready to help you out.
Firefox needs an urgent firefix!
If you're a Firefox user, now is the time to update your browser. A zero-day vulnerability has been discovered which is being actively exploited in targeted attacks.
The security hole was revealed via Google's Project Zero, and it affects ALL versions of Firefox. In short, if you have not updated to Firefox 67.0.3 or Firefox ESR 60.7.1, you need to do so right now.
Sofia Elizabella's Bio
Sofia Wyciślik-Wilson is a queer, transgender journalist based in Poland. She has been writing about technology for more than two decades, and after years working for magazines, her writing moved online. She is fueled by literature, music, nature, and vegetables. You can find her on Bluesky and Mastodon. If you like what you read, you can Buy her a Coffee!
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