Chris Mills

Judge Rules That Porn Companies Blackmailing Pirates is Not OK

Sending threatening letters is a storied tactic for companies trying to get money from alleged pirates, by this stage. But spying on people and trying to subpoena their neighbours? Not so kosher, at least according to one federal judge. In a ruling yesterday, New York federal judge Katherine Forrest (the same who presided over the…

The Best Hidden Changes in iOS 9, in GIFs

The latest version of Apple’s mobile OS launched to much fanfare and showy new features. Side-by-side multitasking! A creepily efficient digital assistant! But the longer I use iOS 9, the more I’m noticing the tiny changes that make everything just a little bit better. https://gizmodo.com/ios-9-smarts-security-and-a-better-siri-1709837924 The most noticeable change is to the fast app-changer. Double-tap…

Segway Is Suing The Makers of That Thing Which is Not a Hoverboard

The Inventist Hovertrax is a $1500 auto-balancing skateboard that is very much not a hoverboard. It is also, according to Segway, in violation of a bunch of patents. According to the lawsuit, filed Friday in Delaware, Inventist is in violation of five of Segway’s patents. In particular, it’s violating US Patent 6,302,230, for an “automatically…

Saturn’s Moon Enceladus is Covered in a Global Ocean

Scientists have long suspected that Enceladus, one of Saturn’s tiny moons, might be harboring a subsurface ocean. But new data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft paints a more interesting picture: an ocean is covering the entire thing. Researchers noticed a slight wobble in Enceladus’s orbit around Saturn, and there’s only one real explanation: the icy crust…

Apple TV Games Will Have to Work With the Siri Remote

Apple’s upcoming set-top boxes will support third-party controllers for gaming, which is good news for anyone (everyone) who doesn’t like gaming with a touchpad. But that still doesn’t mean you should expect hardcore games from your Apple TV. In the App Programming Guide for tvOS, Apple outlines requirements for game developers — including, unfortunately, a…

After months of waiting impatiently, Spotify’s Running feature, which matches music to your running pace in an attempt to move yo ass, is finally coming to Android. Update your app through the Play Store, then get running. [Spotify] Contact the author at [email protected].

VLC Is Bringing Its Video Magic to the Apple TV

Here’s some good news for anyone planning to buy an Apple TV: VLC, the company behind the best video player for OS X and Windows (and arguable iOS) will be supporting Apple’s new set-top box. https://gizmodo.com/the-new-apple-tv-is-an-app-powered-fun-machine-1729461839 In a blog post, the VLC team has announced its plans to bring the video-playing software that we know…

Why Winning the Dancing Baby Lawsuit Is a Big Deal For the Internet

In 2007, a home video of a baby dancing to Prince’s 1984 masterpiece Let’s Go Crazy was uploaded onto YouTube. Eight years and a few dozen lawyers later, a federal appeals court has ruled that uploading the video was an OK thing to do — a judgement that is of surprising importance to the rest…

Cyanogen Wants to Integrate Cortana Deep Into Android

Microsoft has already brought Cortana, its voice-recognition digital assistant, to Android with an app. But to use it as a system-wide alternative to Google’s voice recognition requires deep integration — something that alternative Android vendor Cyanogen is keen to do. In case you’re not familiar with the company, Cyanogen is the power behind Cyanogen OS,…

The White House’s New Website Uses Data to Compare Colleges

The White House’s back-to-school present is a little different this year: a redesigned College Scorecard website that uses open data to help find you a school. The site has a simple, clean design that lets you sort by things like size, location, and program, and then ranks the results for you. That’s where the good…

New iPhone Specs Confirmed, 2GB of RAM On-Board

While Apple showed off most everything about the new iPhones last week, it didn’t tell us about one thing: how much RAM is crammed inside the new phones. Thanks to some clever sleuthing in Xcode, we now know the numbers. 2GB is the obvious upgrade from the 1GB found in the 6. It’s not going…

Fall Colors Look Even Better From Space

Here in North America, the leaves are only just thinking about changing, but in eastern Siberia, the fall foliage is out in force. This image, captured by the Moderate Resolution Image Spectroradiometer on NASA’s Aqua satellite, does a good job of showing how pretty the leaves can be. Click to embiggen But in the zoomed-out…

The Next Version of OS X Is Coming September 30

While Apple was busy trying to make OS X redundant with a giant tablet this afternoon, it also snuck one announcement under the radar: El Capitan, the next version of OS X, will be released to the public on September 30th. We’ve had the chance to play with beta versions of El Cap for the…

iPhone 6S Meta Hands-On: Mostly Living Up to the Hype

Apple forgot to put our iPhone event invite in the mail today, which means we haven’t been able to fondle Cupertino’s latest and greatest in person. But thankfully, there’s a horde of eager bloggers who have already played with the new iPhone. Here’s what they thought. Ars Technica/Andrew Cunningham: The main problem with 3D Touch…

iPhone 6S: Better Camera and Improved Multitasking

Here we are: Apple just announced the ninth version of the iPhone, the thing that every ad will be compelling you to buy for the next year. It’s the same 4.7-inch aluminum sliver that makes up the 6, but with a way better camera, and some touchy-feely tricks. Design Visually, it’s going to be a…

Finally, a Mountain Hut That Looks OK

Mountain huts, used by climbers to break up ascents into multi-day trips, are utilitarian in the extreme — everything has to either be flown up by helicopter, or carried over unfriendly terrain on someone’s back. So it’s unusual to see a hut that actually looks good. For example, the new Gouter refuge on Mont Blanc,…

Amazon Has Finally Stopped Trying to Sell the Fire Phone

Have you long lusted after an Android smartphone with face-tracking cameras and a dedicated button to make you spend money? Well, bad news: Amazon isn’t selling its Fire smartphone any more. https://gizmodo.com/amazon-fire-phone-review-a-shaky-first-step-1608853105 As spotted by GeekWire, Amazon is out of stock of the 32GB and 64GB versions of the Fire phone; the site says it…

It would probably be a good idea to go update your Windows computer: today’s Patch Tuesday, and this month’s round of updates nixes some critical security bugs, including inInternet Explorer(surprise!) and Office. [Krebs on Security]

Stream the First Colbert Late Show For Free, Legally

Even if you’ve already ditched live TV in favor of Netflix binges, you’ll probably want to watch Stephen Colbert’s first night hosting The Late Show. CBS is offering everyone a one-week free trial of CBS All Access, the company’s live TV/catchup streaming service. Like most free trials, you have to create an account and offer…

Would You Buy an Android Tablet If It Only Cost $50?

According to a rumor from the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is readying a $50, 6-inch Android tablet for a launch before Christmas this year. The company hasn’t had runaway success with its existing line of Android tablets, so it’s clearly hoping that cutting the price can get a few more people on board. The company’s…