Facebook expands Safety Check with fundraising and more
Facebook's Safety Check feature has become one of the easiest ways of checking up on loved ones when disaster strikes. It also gives people in the affected area the opportunity to let friends and family know that they're OK, and today Facebook is adding a number of new options, including fundraising.
Starting off in the US, people will now be able to start a fundraiser from within Safety Check to help raise money for those in need. These can be for personal or charitable causes, and the feature makes it easy for others to make donations. There are also other changes that make Safety Check more useful.
Microsoft ads slam Google, claiming Windows 10 beats Chromebooks for business and education
Microsoft's latest anti-Google ad campaign has more than a slight whiff of Scroogled from a few years back. A pair of advertisements lay into Chromebooks, and suggest that Windows 10 devices are far better for both business and education.
Google has made much of the benefits that Chromebooks can bring to the classroom, but Microsoft disagrees -- and says Windows 10 Pro is far better for businesses too. In the two ads, the company highlights the security and features of Windows, painting Google's software as insecure and underpowered.
With Amazon Prime Reload you can earn 2 percent cashback on purchases
Amazon has launched a new cashback program to attract more people to take out Prime subscriptions. Prime Reload lets subscribers earn 2 percent cashback for making payments with a debit rather than a credit card.
It's not quite as simple as that, however; it's not just a case of filling up your basket and checking out. The Reload part of the name refers to the fact that you need to reload your Amazon Gift Card Balance using a debit card. And there lies the rub -- you need to remember to keep your balance topped up.
Instagram rolls out archiving feature so you can hide unwanted photos without deleting them
The eyes may be a gateway to the soul, but the feeds of social media accounts can be even more revealing. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and their ilk all give people the opportunity to not only share their lives with the world, but present a particular image of themselves. Of course, there are the occasional posts which, well, let the side down.
With this in mind, Instagram is rolling out a new archive feature that makes it possible to remove images from your feed without having to delete them. If you have any embarrassing pictures you'd rather didn’t taint your image, you can hide them without having to lose them completely.
Microsoft includes Windows XP and Vista in June's Patch Tuesday updates
Last month Microsoft made the decision to issue a "highly unusual" patch for Windows XP. Despite the fact the operating system has not been supported for some time, the patch was released in an attempt to thwart the WannaCrypt ransomware attacks.
Now, in an even more unusual move, Microsoft has chosen to include Windows XP in this month's Patch Tuesday. Windows Vista is also included in this batch of security updates which Microsoft says should address the "elevated risk of cyberattacks by government organizations."
Google launches Android Excellence to recognize the very best apps and games
Google has launched a new scheme which sees the company highlighting the very best games and apps to be found in Google Play. This is not simply a list of the most downloaded or, necessarily, the most highly rated titles; Google has a new batch of criteria by which to judge developers' offerings.
The real aim is to heap praise on those apps and games which exude quality, and deliver the best user experiences. Google says that titles which "use many of our best practices, and have great design, technical performance, localization, and device optimization" will also feature in the regularly-updated list.
Gboard for Android now recognizes the emoji you draw by hand and suggests phrases for you
Emoji offer a great way to spice up your chats, and the Android version of Gboard has been updated to make it easier to find the perfect ones. The update means you can now use the emoji search box to draw the sort of emoji you're looking for, and Google's keyboard will track down what it thinks you mean.
Google uses machine learning to interpret even the most primitive of squiggles, so now there's no need to think about how you would describe a particular emoji in order to perform a text-based search for it -- just draw what you want! But there's more.
What does the scrapping of EU roaming charges mean for UK mobile users?
It's just a couple of days until new EU regulations come into force which makes European roaming charges a thing of the past. Put simply, all mobile operators will have to permit their customers to use their bundled text, call and data allowance within the EU at no extra charge from June 15.
With many UK travelers caught out by high mobile bills after a trip, this change should be great news. But consumer watchdog Which? warns that there could be a catch, and mobile users are warned to continue to keep an eye on their bills.
Kodi add-ons site TVAddons vanishes from the internet
The negative attention that Kodi has been attracting recently continues. A number of high-profile add-ons, such as Phoenix, have disappeared recently as interest in the piracy potential for the media player increases.
The latest victim appears to be TVAddons, a site which lists unofficial Kodi add-ons. The site was sued last week in a federal court in Texas, so the disappearance is not entirely surprising. But the removal of DNS records -- rendering the site inaccessible -- without any explanation is a little strange.
Microsoft wins Supreme Court case about scratched Xbox 360 discs
With staggeringly coincidental timing, just as Microsoft revealed its upcoming Xbox One X console, the company received some great news from the US Supreme Court. In an 8-0 decision, the court overturned an earlier ruling in what has become a complex and lengthy case.
What originally started off as a fairly simple case around a decade ago about game discs scratched by Xbox 360 consoles, has evolved into quite a different beast. The latest ruling means that a case that was to be brought collectively by tens of thousands of gamers cannot be granted class action status.
People in the US are less savvy about cyber security than people in the UK
A new report suggests that people in the UK are more aware of the terminology surrounding cyber security, and are less likely to fall victim to hacking and identity theft. Wombat Security Technologies' 2017 edition of its User Risk Report reveals a stark difference in cyber knowledge on either side of the Atlantic.
The report is based on a survey carried out last month into knowledge of, and attitudes to, cyber security topics and best practices. While the report shows that the UK is generally more cyber security savvy, the US is shown to fare better when it comes to passwords and backing up data.
Logitech's POWERPLAY mousemat lets you wirelessly charge your mouse as you use it
You might have thought that mousemats had been consigned to the history books, but Logitech has other ideas. Designed with the needs of gamers high on the list of priorities, Logitech's new POWERPLAY mousemat not only ensures great control, it also wirelessly charges mice to avoid the problem of running out of juice at an inopportune moment.
Of course, you need a POWERPLAY-compatible mouse in order to take advantage of this feature, and Logitech has also launched two new mice. The G903 and G703 are the latest addition to the company's high-end wireless gaming mouse range, and they work with the charging pad.
Watch here: Microsoft's E3 Xbox briefing about Project Scorpio streams live on Twitch
Microsoft is due to hold a press conference at E3 2017 today. The topic is the future of Xbox, and we should hear more about Project Scorpio, the latest version of the Xbox One which is expected to feature VR and 4K support.
The price of the Xbox One S has just been reduced by $50 as Microsoft has done in the past before the launch of a new version of the console. If you're keen to find out what's new, you can watch the Twitch stream live, here at 5PM ET / 2PM PT / 10PM BST. As well as learning about the specs of the machine, we may also have the rumored price of $499 confirmed.
Google and Facebook celebrate Pride month with event maps and rainbow reaction
June is Pride month, and two of the biggest names in tech are getting involved in the celebrations. Google and Facebook are both showing their support for LGBTQ communities around the world.
Facebook has introduced a new, temporary, "reaction" in the form of a rainbow flag, while Google Maps is highlighting Pride events in cities around the world -- so you can either navigate to them to take part, or avoid the crowds if you're heading elsewhere.
Raspberry Pi devices transformed into cryptocurrency miners by Linux malware
The words "Linux" and "malware" don’t tend to belong in the same sentence, but a new strain called Linux.MulDrop.14 is infecting Raspberry Pi devices. Infected machines are used to mine cryptocurrency for the malware's author, and it take advantage of poor security to generate money from nothing.
The good news is that the malware is fairly simple, and its spread is dependent on the laziness of Pi owners.
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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