PTJ 277: Magic to Do

June 23, 2018 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

It’s been a week of heavy legal news, deals and global affairs — almost enough to make you want to escape to a fantasy realm to take a break over a pint of butterbeer. El Kaiser and J.D. sort through the stories of the week before moving on to a discussion of how the Harry Potter franchise is keeping active far beyond the original seven books. PTJ 277 awaits behind that Play button — Alohomora!

Links to Stories on This Week’s Show

Opinion analysis: Court expands states’ ability to require internet retailers to collect sales tax (SCOTUSblog)
Go deeper: How the online sales tax ruling will affect consumers (Axios)
Sorry, Comcast: Fox and Disney sign new merger deal, rejecting Comcast bid (Ars Technica)
FTC Announces Hearings On Competition and Consumer Protection in the 21st Century (Federal Trade Commission)
The White House looks to coordinate online privacy plan (Axios)
Europe takes another step towards copyright pre-filters for user generated content (TechCrunch)
California Net Neutrality Bill Was ‘Hijacked,’ Lawmaker Says (Wired)
California lawmakers gut net neutrality bill (CNET)
Welcome to IGTV (Instagram)
Introducing Subscription Groups for Admins (Facebook Newsroom)
Meet Microsoft News: A new way to stay informed across the Web, Windows 10, iOS and Android (Windows Experience blog)
Trump reportedly told Apple’s Tim Cook that iPhones will be spared from China tariffs (CNBC)
In China Trade War, Apple Worries It Will Be Collateral Damage (The New York Times)
Why Apple’s AirPower Wireless Charger Is Taking So Long to Make (Bloomberg)
Apple Plans to Stream Children’s Shows From Sesame Workshop (The New York Times)
AMC Theatres’ $20 monthly subscription plan rivals MoviePass (CNN Money)
Xbox steps back on console VR plans (BBC News)
Call For Code® (IBM Developer)
Listen up: Google Podcasts is now on Android (Google Keyword blog)

Harry Potter in the Digital World

Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
Require a password or authentication for purchases (Google Play Help)
Use Restrictions to prevent purchasing on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch (Apple Support)
Harry Potter: A History of Magic (Google Arts & Culture)
Harry Potter in Your Pocket (The New York Times)

Episode Links, Podcast

PTJ 276: Game On!

June 18, 2018 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

A judge cleared the way for AT&T and Time Warner to merge, Apple plans to reinforce its iPhone security, Microsoft made a bunch of announcements — but hey, here comes the annual E3 event to bring in the fun. El Kaiser and J.D. sort through it all before a discussion about the VPNFilter malware — you know, that one the FBI was warning about the other week — and how to protect your router from it. Spin up PTJ 276 to hear it all!

DOJ Won’t Seek to Halt AT&T-Time Warner Merger Pending Any Appeal (Variety)
AT&T Closes Acquisition of Time Warner (The New York Times)
Net neutrality died today as FCC’s vote to repeal rules goes into effect (PC Gamer)
Comcast, AT&T, Verizon say they have no paid prioritization plans (Ars Technica)
SB-822 Communications: broadband Internet access service (California Legislative Information)
Apple to Close iPhone Security Hole That Police Use to Crack Devices (The New York Times)
Microsoft’s next-gen gaming plan: A new Xbox, and streaming for everyone else (Ars Technica)
Power and simplicity—updates to the Office 365 user experience (Microsoft 365 Blog)
Microsoft opens Office 2019 for Mac business preview (Engadget)
Over 100 UK tech leaders back new call for a people’s vote on Brexit (TechCrunch)
Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2018 (Reuters Institute)
See What’s Happening! (Twitter blog)
Exclusive: Microsoft takes aim at Amazon with push for checkout-free retail (Reuters)
John Boyega calls out Star Wars fans after harassment controversy (Polygon)
PC Gaming Show E3 2018: Everything and the kitchen sink (Ars Technica)
Announcing 2018-2019 Fortnite Competitive Season (Epic Games)
‘Skyrim: Very Special Edition’ with Alexa is not a joke, game arrives on Amazon Echo (Business Insider)
“Skyrim” for Amazon Alexa (Amazon)
“Skyrim: A Very Special Edition” (YouTube)

Reset Your Router

Your Wi-Fi Security Is Probably Weak. Here’s How to Fix That. (The New York Times)
VPNFilter exploits endpoints, targets new devices (Cisco Talos)
Justice Department Announces Actions to Disrupt Advanced Persistent Threat 28 Botnet of Infected Routers and Network Storage Devices (US Department of Justice)
Foreign Cyber Actors Target Home And Office Routers And Networked Devices Worldwide (FBI Public Service Announcement)
VPNFilter Destructive Malware (US-CERT)
Cisco Talos VPN Filter malware findings (UK National Cyber Security Centre)
VPNFilter router malware is a lot worse than everyone thought (The Register)

(Hopefully) Helpful Hint, Episode Links, Podcast

PTJ 275: Apple v. Facebook

June 8, 2018 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

If it’s early June, odds are the technology-news business will be dominated by announcements coming out of Apple’s annual World Wide Developers Conference. However, new revelations about Facebook’s privacy practices did draw attention and even CEO Tim Cook found time to comment — as Apple unveiled new tools designed to hamper companies like Facebook who have been quietly hoovering up personal data from unsuspecting users for years. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss the week’s events and a few other non-Apple headlines on this week’s episode before offering a (Hopefully) Helpful Hint about recording a video of the action on your phone screen. Roll PTJ 275 to hear it all!

Microsoft confirms it will acquire GitHub for $7.5 billion (The Verge)
Facebook Gave Device Makers Deep Access to Data on Users and Friends (The New York Times)
Facebook Gave Data Access to Chinese Firm Flagged by U.S. Intelligence (The New York Times)
Facebook’s Device Partnerships Explained (The New York Times)
Google Will Not Renew Pentagon Contract That Upset Employees (The New York Times)
World Wide Developers Conference Keynote (Apple)
Here’s everything Apple announced during its WWDC keynote today (9to5Mac)
Revenge of the desktop: These are the most important announcements Apple made for news publishers today (Nieman Journalism Lab)
Apple Photos adds For You tab with smarter sharing in iOS 12 (SlashGear)
Apple’s software improvements could make AR as universal as iOS (MIT Technology Review)
Apple adds camera effects like stickers, filters and Memoji to messages (TechCrunch)
iOS 12 introduces new features to reduce interruptions and manage Screen Time (Apple)
iBooks gets a redesign and new Apple Books branding in iOS 12 (The Verge)
Apple jams Facebook’s web-tracking tools (BBC News)
NPR News Interview With Tim Cook (National Public Radio)
Ted Dabney, a Founder of Atari and a Creator of Pong, Dies at 81 (The New York Times)
PONG Emulator (Internet Archive)

(Helpfully) Helpful Hint

How to Record Your iPhone Screen (The New York Times)

Episode Links, Podcast

PTJ 274: Golden State

June 6, 2018 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

Even without the NBA finals in the mix, it’s been a busy time out in California with a fierce net-neutrality bill passing a hurdle in the state senate and Mary Meeker’s mega-slideshow on Internet trends. El Kaiser and J.D. surf through the week’s tech news before stopping to ponder life without Twitter — if only just for a little while. Punch up Episode 274 and have a listen!

California Senate defies AT&T, votes for strict net neutrality rules (Ars Technica)
Microsoft leapfrogs Google’s Alphabet, while becoming the 3rd best tech company to-date (On MSFT)
Bring the Stadium Experience Home: Oculus Venues Now Available on Oculus Go and Gear VR (Oculus)
Google Will Try to Tackle Latest iPhones With Pixel Phone Upgrades (Bloomberg)
Former Snap Employee Questions Company’s Culture and Diversity (Cheddar)
Mobile Direct Traffic Eclipses Facebook (Chartbeat Blog)
HIDDEN COBRA – Joanap Backdoor Trojan and Brambul Server Message Block Worm (US-CERT)
International Hacker-For-Hire Who Conspired With and Aided Russian FSB Officers Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison (OPA | Department of Justice)
Foreign Cyber Actors Target Home And Office Routers And Networked Devices Worldwide (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
FBI Urges Internet Users to Reboot Home Routers (NBC New York)
Court upholds federal Kaspersky ban, dismisses lawsuits (Fedscoop)
Facebook to be banned in Papua New Guinea for a month (BBC News)
Shutting down Facebook in PNG is a reality (Post Courier)
Mary Meeker’s 2018 internet trends report: All the slides, plus analysis (Recode)

Downshifting Twitter

How to Defeat a Twitter Addiction (WikiHow)
How to deactivate your account (Twitter Help)
Clean Out a Crowded Twitter Feed With ManageFlitter (Lifehacker)
“I quit social media for a month — and it was the best choice I’ve ever made” (Business Insider)

The independent audio magazine devoted to mashing up pop culture, technology and more. J.D. Biersdorfer and Pedro Rafael Rosado are your hosts. It's an Internet Radio revolution!