Bob Sorokanich

Google is adding handwriting input to Gmail and Docs. Starting today, you can use your trackpad or mouse to hand-draw characters in a variety of languages. [Gmail Blog via 9to5Google]

Amazon’s boosting the minimum order eligible for free shipping to $35, a $10 increase. That’s the first time in more than ten years the price has gone up. [Amazon via Lifehacker]

Microsoft has brought back the Windows RT 8.1 update, after customer installation troubles had them pull it on Saturday. [Microsoft Support]

Lasers, Drones, and Future Tech on the Front Lines of Archaeology

James Newhard is Director of Archaeology at the College of Charleston, where he works to bring 3D imaging, mobile technology and geographic information systems to a field more popularly associated with shovels and dusty brushes. Gizmodo got in touch with Dr. Newhard to learn how he uses emerging tech to dig deep into ancient societies.…

Microsoft just brought out a Surface RT recovery image for users who had trouble installing Windows RT 8.1 over the weekend. Seems Microsoft had to pull the software this weekend due to installation issues. [Microsoft via ZDnet]

Now Available: Kindle Fire HDX, Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro, Sony Xperia Z1, More

Like some kind of six-months-delayed springtime thaw, or an ominous but perplexing metaphor for global warming, summer’s trickle of new gadgets has turned into a gushing waterfall. But don’t tread those swift waters alone. Let us be your earthy, outdoorsy guide. Kindle Fire HDX: This thing does everything a tablet should do, with fast reactions,…

Why Is There No Male Birth Control Pill?

Bet you didn’t have this marked on your calendar: today is World Vasectomy Day, a holiday celebrated not with parades or fireworks, but with the delicate snip of two tiny tubes. But is such a largely permanent step really our only male birth control option? Where’s the male version of the pill? Surprisingly enough, research…

Apple’s recalling certain MacBook Air models over flash drive failure. If you purchased one between June 2012 and June 2013, a firmware update will see if your 64GB or 128GB drive needs replacing. [Apple via GigaOM]

AT&T has two new short-term data plans for tablet users — $5 for 250MB in a day, or $25 for 1GB over three months. These are in addition to the $10 a month customers pay to add a tablet to a shared plan. [9t05Mac]

This Nearly Indestructible Data Storage Disc Will Last a Billion Years

Long term data storage is tricky. Hard discs and magnetic tapes lose their charge, CDs and DVDs are easy to scratch, and forget about punch cards. Now a student at the University of Twente has developed an optical storage system he says will survive for up to a billion years — even if you barbecue…

Yeasayer: Glass of the Microscope

There’s an unknown pandemic threatening mankind. Our only hope lies in Yeasayer’s laboratory-grade emulsion of science and synthesizer psychedelia. Dystopia never sounded so good. The newest video spawned from Yeasayer’s 2012 album Fragrant World sets the innate creepiness of an ominous laboratory to the song’s moderately-unsettling pop macabre. That’s no movie set; as director Ruben…

Signifyd Checks Your Tweets to Make Sure Your Spending Spree’s Legit

When it works right, fraudulent charge detection is great. But sometimes businesses mistakenly freeze your legit purchases — usually when you’re traveling somewhere far-flung and can’t easily straighten things out. Signifyd, launched today, hopes to fix that by watching your social media to see when you’re really on a Caribbean shopping spree. Signifyd says it…

Starting today, you can preview Flickr’s new picture viewer, with a 25% bigger picture that pushes the info bar off to the side. It’s the latest addition to the full-site redesign from earlier this year. [Flickr Blog via VentureBeat]

Aviate: An Android App Launcher That Changes to Fit Your Day

App launchers typify the Android phone experience: don’t like the way your home screen looks? Tinker around with it! But while plenty of launchers offer deep visual customization, in the end they’re all basically elaborate paint jobs. Aviate, launching in beta today, doesn’t give you as many tweaks for your home screen, but it makes…

Scientists Found a Compound That Keeps Marijuana From Getting You High

Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the dopamine-boosting compound in marijuana that, technically speaking, “induces euphoria” — science jargon for “gets you high.” It also happens to work on the brain region involved in psychological addiction. Now, a team of researchers has identified a substance that blocks THC’s dopamine effect. Why is that important? Let’s have a…

Yahoo’s Redesigned Email Is Seriously Broken (Updated)

Yahoo Mail got a pretty extensive (and familiar looking) redesign last week, but it seems there are some serious problems under that freshly-painted hood. And folks on Yahoo’s bug reporting board sure aren’t happy about it. https://gizmodo.com/the-new-yahoo-mail-could-not-look-more-like-gmail-1442430816 As ZDNet reports, some users are seeing addresses disappear from contacts lists or sent messages being erased from…

Now Available: New Kindle Paperwhite, Fitbit Force, SoundTouch, More

Despite the government being shut down, this week brought us a bevy of new gizmos to play with. I’ll leave it up to you to determine whether that’s some kind of evidence that the mere existence of government hinders the rollout of electronic devices — for now, we talk about gadgets! Kindle Paperwhite: We loved…

Facebook is completely removing the “who can search for me” option, for those who were still using it (if you didn’t have it checked, it already disappeared). Facebook says the setting is outdated now that Graph Search is live, and that everything’s now controlled via your Privacy settings. [Facebook via ReadWrite]

Got an old smartphone you’re wishing was an iPhone 5S or 5C? Best Buy just confirmed they’re knocking at least $100 off a new iPhone when you trade in a working smartphone October 13th through 19th. [AllThingsD]

Report: Foxconn Makes College Kids Assemble PS4s to Graduate

Chinese electronics manufacturer Foxconn was accused of labor violations with the iPhone 5C, iPhone 5, iPad, Nintendo Wii Uand just in general. Now, add Sony’s PlayStation 4 to the list, with a new report claiming that university interns are staffing overtime and night shifts for credits required to graduate.