Tag Archives: Amazon

PTJ 249: “Alexa, Activate My New York Comic Con Badge!”

October 2, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

It’s not just the abundance of pumpkin spice revving up the Big Apple air the first week of October — it’s the buzzy excitement of New York Comic Con returning once again to the Jacob K. Javits Center on the west side of Manhattan for four days of high-octane pop-culture fun. J.D. gets an insider’s view of the expo from Rich Bernatovech and Jamie Fay, two local comics creators who’ve been attending the event for years. This week’s episode also features a ramble through the recent tech headlines — including Amazon’s avalanche of Alexa gear — and a certain El Kaiser who’s more than a little leery of Apple’s new Face ID technology. Bang! Pow! Play!

Links to Stories on This Week’s Show

Twitter, With Accounts Linked to Russia, to Face Congress Over Role in Election (The New York Times)
Tweeters get cheeky after Twitter ups character limit (BBC News)
Facebook to Turn Over Russian-Linked Ads to Congress (The New York Times)
President Trump is accusing Facebook of being ‘anti-Trump’ (Recode)
Mark Zuckerberg on Facebook
Update on German Elections (Facebook)
Trying to Stem Fallout From Breach, Equifax Replaces C.E.O. (The New York Times)
Equifax Will Offer Free Credit Locks for Life, New CEO Says (Bloomberg)
Introducing the Next Generation of Echo: the All-New Amazon Echo and Echo Plus (Business Wire)
Introducing the All-New Amazon Fire TV with 4K Ultra HD and High Dynamic Range (Amazon)
Amazon Introduces a New Member of the Echo Family: Echo Spot (Amazon)
Amazon’s Echo Plus features a built-in smart home hub for $149 (Techcrunch)
Amazon announces $20 Echo Buttons for playing trivia games (The Verge)
Amazon Unveils $35 Gadget for Hands-Free Landline Phone Calls (Bloomberg)
About Face ID advanced technology (Apple Support)

Interview With Rich Bernatovech and Jamie Fay

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PTJ 246: What’s the Frequency, Siri?

September 11, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

After a two-week summer vacation, El Kaiser and J.D. return to the studio to catch up on the week’s technology news: Facebook ‘fesses up to a chunk of Russian ad buys during the election, Amazon looks to expand its corporate footprint, researchers have discovered a way to hack most of the popular voice-activated assistant programs by sonic frequency — and the headlines just keep on coming. El Kaiser also previews two new pieces of gear from OWC and Anker for ultrabookers who need to pack their own USB ports and J.D. reports on a couple of scams gaining steam around the Internet. Summer’s over, folks! We’re back to work here on Episode 246!

Links to Stories Mentioned in This Week’s Episode

An Update On Information Operations On Facebook (Facebook Newsroom)
Russian firm tied to pro-Kremlin propaganda advertised on Facebook during election (The Washington Post)
Facebook is now using Instagram to push Stories on more people (Mashable)
Facebook Offers Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for Music Rights (Bloomberg)
Apple Reaches Music Deal With Warner, Eyes Sony Pact (Bloomberg)
Apple Event on September 12 (Apple)
Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8: The Best Screen, for a Hefty Price (The New York Times)
Amazon to build second HQ in North America, seeks proposals from cities for $5B campus with up to 50K jobs, ‘full equal’ to Seattle operations (GeekWire)
John Deere is Paying $305 Million for Blue River Technology (Fortune.com)
A Simple Design Flaw Makes It Astoundingly Easy To Hack Siri And Alexa (Fast Company Design)
DolphinAttack: Inaudible Voice Commands (Academic paper)
YouTube Live: faster, easier and more accessible (YouTube Creator blog)
Urgent DACA legislation is both an economic imperative and humanitarian necessity (Microsoft on the Issues)
Lenovo Settles FTC Charges it Harmed Consumers With Preinstalled Software on its Laptops that Compromised Online Security (Federal Trade Commission)
Boston Red Sox Used Apple Watches to Steal Signs Against Yankees (The New York Times)

EL Kaiser’s Gear Preview

(Hopefully) Helpful Hint

Fake Dropbox Please verify your email address delivers Locky ransomware (My Online Security)
Legit Conformation Email? (Dropbox Forum)
Protect your Dropbox account from phishing and malware (Dropbox)
How to Avoid Phony Facebook Phone Lines (The New York Times)

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PTJ 241: Glass Houses

July 20, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

After a two-week hiatus, El Kaiser and J.D. are back with the tech news of the week — including Amazon’s latest experiments for making money and Google Glass finally finding a home of sorts. And how about that Doctor Who announcement last weekend, eh? Oh, and if you have to ride the New York City subway system, do we have a tip for you!

Introducing Jodie Whittaker: The Thirteenth Doctor (BBC)
Netflix spending spree spurs subscriber growth of 5 million in second quarter (Reuters)
Amazon wants to plan your dinner (Axios)
Amazon launches Spark, a shoppable feed of stories and photos aimed at Prime members (TechCrunch)
Alexa on your phone is now hands-free: HTC U11 takes Amazon Alexa on the go (HTC blog)
Inside the massive siren social network spam botnet (ZeroFOX)
Porn spam botnet has evil Twitter twin (Krebs on Security)
UK plans age verification for porn websites from 2018 (BBC)
Work smarter and stay connected with the new LinkedIn app for Windows 10 (LinkedIn blog)
Google Maps has started showing a travel time graph for directions (Android Police)
Atari’s new Ataribox console will be like an NES Classic (The Verge)
A new chapter for Glass (Google Project X)

(Hopefully) Helpful Hint

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PTJ 240: Hall Monitor

July 1, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

It’s almost like we needed the Justice League to come sort things out with all the disruptions erupting all over the technology scene this week. So, you ask, what happened? Yet another ransomware attack spread rapidly worldwide, the European Commission got all up in Google’s business on an antitrust charge, and Walmart had a slapfight with Amazon over the cloud. Meanwhile, Twitter and some of its pals are teaming up to fight the spread of violent extremism, Facebook wants to do TV and Apple’s getting ready to chuck a bunch of old apps off the iOS 11 wagon. But on the bright side, we’ve now had J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series with us for 20 years now. Come hang with El Kaiser and J.D. as they try to make sense of the week here on Episode 240 of Pop Tech Jam!

Links to Stories on This Week’s Episode

Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (Twitter)
Zack Snyder steps down from Justice League after daughter’s death, Joss Whedon takes helm (EW.com)
New cyberattack spreads from Russia to Britain (The New York Times)
UK Parliament cuts email access after cyberattack (SecurityWeek)
Antitrust: Commission fines Google €2.42 billion for abusing dominance as search engine by giving illegal advantage to own comparison shopping service (European Commission)
The European Commission decision on online shopping: the other side of the story (Google)
Amazon accuses Walmart of bullying in cloud computing clash (BBC News)
Uber founder Travis Kalanick resigns as C.E.O. (The New York Times)
Justin Caldbeck takes indefinite leave of absence from Binary Capital (Axios)
Facebook is going Hollywood, seeking scripted TV programming (The Wall Street Journal)
Public iOS 11 beta now available — here’s how to get it (BetaNews)
Repair is the new green (iFixit)
Zillow sends cease and desist letter to McMansion Hell, the architectural criticism blog we need right now (Gizmodo)
Cash ‘lives on’ after 50 years of ATMs (BBC News)
The man who really invented the cash machine (BBC News)
Harry Potter: How the boy wizard enchanted the world (BBC News)

Welcome to the 64-Bit World

The end of the road for some apps (The New York Times)
Photographers, beware of upcoming macOS transition issues (PetaPixel)

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PTJ 239: Leak Week

June 24, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

June is Internet Safety Month, but it hasn’t been very safe for the personal information of 198 million people, which got exposed by sloppy data handling. The notoriously private Apple got trolled as well when a top-secret meeting about stopping data leaks got, er, leaked. After wading through the tech headlines of the week, El Kaiser and J.D. discuss the merits of RAID, as well as how to turn your smartphone into a handy magnifier for those annoying moments when you actually have to read the fine print. Episode 239 of Pop Tech Jam awaits you.

Links to Stories in This Week’s News Segment

GOP data firm accidentally leaks personal details of nearly 200 million American voters (Gizmodo)
UpGuard welcomes security expert Chris Vickery (UpGuard)
Leaked recording: Inside Apple’s global war on leakers (The Outline)
Apple’s Tim Cook asked President Trump for coding requirement at US schools (Apple Insider)
Amazon is buying Whole Foods for $13.7 billion (Business Insider)
Amazon plans cuts to shed Whole Foods’ pricey image (Bloomberg)
Time Warner just handed Snapchat a $100 million lifeline (CNBC)
FTC and two state attorneys general challenge proposed merger of the two largest daily fantasy sports sites, DraftKings and FanDuel (FTC.gov)
Evolution of Dropbox’s Edge Network (Dropbox blog)
Connecting more Americans with jobs (Google blog)
You asked, and we’re answering (Uber blog)
Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg joining Apple to lead video programming (Apple Newsroom)
Google launches exclusive Play Music feature for Galaxy S8 (Android Authority)
Atari CEO confirms the company is working on a new game console (VentureBeat)
Ataribox

Tech Term

• RAID levels explained (PCMag.com)
• Digital storage basics, Part 2: External drive vs. NAS server (CNET)
• How to configure a cheap, secure RAID backup system (Macworld)

(Hopefully) Helpful Hint

Use Your Phone as a Digital Magnifying Glass (The New York Times)
Using Android to Zoom In for a Closer Look (The New York Times)

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PTJ 238: Thank You for Our Childhoods, Adam West

June 14, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer 2 Comments

Geek hearts around the globe were broken this past week with the passing of Adam West, the actor who created the iconic interpretation of Batman on the eponymous mid-1960’s television show. Dan Greenfield, editor of the 13th Dimension website devoted to comics, joins El Kaiser and J.D. for a discussion about West’s impact as a performer, role model and pop-culture stalwart.

One the tech side of the news this week: Big changes at Uber, big announcements from the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles and big bucks for the Drone Racing League. Join on in — and let’s all pour out a Bat-40 for Mr. Adam West.

Links to Stories on This Week’s Show

Russia’s cyber attack on 39 states could jeopardize future US elections (CNBC)
The malware used against the Ukrainian power grid is more dangerous than anyone thought (Motherboard)
Uber CEO to take leave, diminished role after workplace scandals (Bloomberg)
Uber’s Michael is said to blame board, not behavior, for ouster (Bloomberg)
E3 2017: all the announcements from gaming’s biggest show (TechRadar)
The original Age of Empires is being remade for the PC (TechRadar)
Beyond Good and Evil 2 is a cult classic 15 years in the making (TechRadar)
E3 2017 News (GameSpot)
Facebook reportedly adding publisher subscription feature (Axios)
Amazon rolls out contact blocking for Alexa voice-calling feature (GeekWire)
Andy Rubin’s Essential phone announces carrier availability and it’s… Sprint (Ars Technica)
Essential Phone (Essential)
Drone racing league raises $20 million from Sky, Liberty Media, WWE (Variety)
Adam West, straight-faced star of TV’s ‘Batman,’ dies at 88 (Hollywood Reporter)
Adam West Saved My Life (About Men Radio)
13^th Dimension: Comics | Creators | Culture
Adam West: A Celebration (13^th Dimension)
Julie Newmar on Adam West: He Was a ‘King to the End’ (13^th Dimension)

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PTJ 236: Corporate Spies

May 26, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

On this week’s show. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss Google and Twitter’s current wave of privacy-policy changes and data-sharing with advertisers (all taking place before Facebook’s latest flap). Also in the news this week: patent trolls, resolution motion-sensor camera, Russian hackers actually hacking Russians and Iris, the data-sniffing dog. Buffer up and have a listen to Episode 236 of Pop Tech Jam!

Links to Stories in This Week’s Episode

Revealed: Facebook’s internal rulebook on sex, terrorism and violence (The Guardian)
U.S. top court tightens patent suit rules in blow to ‘patent trolls’ (Reuters)
Apple and Nokia settle patent dispute with new licensing agreement (MacRumors)
Nokia and Apple sign patent license and business cooperation agreement, settle all litigation (Apple Newsroom)
Google now knows when its users go to the store and buy stuff (The Washington Post)
The most important announcements from Google I/O 2017! (Android Central)
Exclusive: Nest is working on a 4K camera with advanced smart features (Android Police)
Hackers hit Russian bank customers, planned international cyber raids (Reuters)
DISH Debuts Hands-Free TV on Hopper DVR with Amazon Alexa (About DISH)
Meet the new Surface Pro (Windows Blog)
Hackers defeat Samsung Galaxy S8 iris scanner (Security Week)
Meet Iris of the FBI’s canine force who has a nose for data (NBC News)
Building new data controls and updating our privacy policy (Twitter blog)
Twitter’s updated privacy policy, effective June 18^th, 2017 (Twitter)
How to opt out of Twitter’s new privacy settings (Electronic Frontier Foundation)
If you have a Twitter account, change these privacy settings now (CNET)

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PTJ 233: Tweet TV

May 5, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

Twitter continues its experiments with live streaming video, Facebook is handing out coupons, there’s a new flavor of Windows 10 coming to town — and also maybe an Apple-branded talking Siri speaker on the way. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss it all on this week’s episode, while throwing a Tech Term and a (Hopefully) Helpful Hint into this week’s mix as well. Join us!

Links to Stories in This Week’s News Segment

New premium video content coming to Twitter (Twitter Blogs)
Twitter still thinks it’s a TV platform — and here are its dozen new shows (Recode)
Social media companies “shamefully far” from tackling illegal and dangerous content (UK Parliament)
Facebook Promoted Alex Hardiman to Lead Its News Products (Adweek)
‘Facebook Rewards’ QR codes dangle discounts for offline purchases (TechCrunch)
Presidential Executive Order on the Establishment of the American Technology Council (The White House)
Try out a fresh look for YouTube (YouTube blog)
Windows 10 S is Microsoft’s answer to Chrome OS (The Verge)
Intel patches remote code-execution bug that lurked in chips for 10 years (Ars Technica)
Major apps abandoning Apple Watch, including Google Maps, Amazon & eBay (Apple Insider)
Fitbit’s first post-Pebble smartwatch leaks with a mostly familiar design (9to5Google)
IAC to Buy Angie’s List in deal valued at over $500 million (Bloomberg)
Herrera repels legal challenge to short-term rental law, secures settlement with Airbnb and HomeAway (City Attorney of San Francisco)
Amid brick-and-mortar travails, a tipping point for Amazon in apparel (The New York Times)
Rumors emerge about Apple finalizing an Amazon Echo rival (Forbes)
Apple’s Siri-based smart speaker has ‘over 50% chance’ of debuting at WWDC in June (MacRumors)

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PTJ 229: Private Investigations

April 8, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

Protections for consumer privacy and data collection took a hit this past week, as regulations were rolled back into nonexistence — sending some concerned Netizens to software they hope will help shield their online activity. The big question: Does it work?

Meanwhile, Yahoo and AOL take an Oath, Samsung’s Galaxy S8 reveals some enviable features, Amazon finds yet another way to get your cash and Google tries to make sure perfectly nice advertisements don’t end up on hateful YouTube videos. Join El Kaiser and J.D. as they discuss it all in Episode 229!

Links to Stories in This Week’s Show

Amazon launches Amazon Cash, a way to shop its site without a bank card (TechCrunch)
Amazon Cash (Amazon)
5 Samsung Galaxy S8 features Apple should steal for iPhone 8 (Macworld)
Microsoft touts Microsoft-customized edition of Samsung Galaxy S8 (ZDNet)
Apple Mac Pro design was a bad bet, admits firm (BBC)
Facebook rocket: what is the new icon? (Wired UK)
Artificial intelligence is key to defeating future hackers (The Hill)
Google training ad placement computers to be offended (The New York Times)
Spotify Premium users will get some albums two weeks before free users (TechCrunch)
Verizon announces new name brand for AOL and Yahoo: Oath (The New York Times)
Marissa Mayer will not be part of the new AOL-Yahoo combined company called Oath (Recode)
FCC limits order on Charter extending broadband service (Reuters)
ACA pleased FCC eliminated broadband overbuild mandate in Charter-TWC-BHN merger order (American Cable Association)
New bill would crack down on border phone searches without warrants (The Verge)
The Protecting Data at the Border Act (United States Senate)
Trump signs bill to roll back privacy rules into law (Electronic Frontier Foundation)
Post-FCC privacy rules, should you VPN? (Krebs on Security)
Choosing the best VPN for you (thatoneprivacysite.net)
Is Tor Really Anonymous and Secure? (How-To Geek)
TOR browser (The TOR Project)
VPNs Won’t Save You from Congress’ Internet Privacy Giveaway (Wired)
Search Internet History

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PTJ 228: A.I., Ay Yi Yi

March 30, 2017 J.D. Biersdorfer Leave a comment

It’s not been a great week for the algorithms: Elon Musk downloaded a few concerned thoughts on the state of artificial intelligence to Vanity Fair, the F.B.I.’s facial recognition database has some glitches and Amazon’s shopper-tracking software gets confused when you put something back on the wrong shelf. But on the bright side, Hidden Figures, story about real human intelligence, arrived as a digital home-video download, so the week wasn’t all bad. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss it all — and a bunch of other tech news in between — on this week’s handcrafted episode of Pop Tech Jam.

Links to Stories in This Week’s News Segment

Introducing Live Location in Messenger (Facebook Newsroom)
More ways to share with the Facebook Camera (Facebook Newsroom)
Samsung to set the principles to recycle of returned Galaxy Note7 devices in an environmentally friendly way (Samsung Newsroom)
Facial recognition database used by FBI is out of control, House committee hears (Guardian)
Elon Musk takes on the “A.I. apocalypse” (Axios)
Elon Musk’s billion-dollar crusade to stop the A.I. apocalypse (Vanity Fair)
Elon Musk forming company dedicated to merging humans with machines (Consumerist)
Apple releases iOS 10.3 with Find My AirPods, Apple File System, CarPlay updates, more (9to5Mac)
Pages, Numbers, & Keynote for Mac and iOS add editing features & Touch ID for password protected docs (9to5Mac)
Download iOS 10.0 – iOS 10.3 information (Apple)
Security Update for the LastPass Extension (Last Pass blog)
Amazon’s store of the future is delayed. Insert ‘Told ya so’ from skeptical retail execs (Recode)
Amazon unveils 2 grocery pickup locations in Seattle (Seattle Times)
Expanding pre-roll ads to Periscope video (Twitter blog)
Comcast plans to launch low-cost broadband skinny TV bundles across U.S. footprint in Q3 (Variety)
“Rogue One” now available for digital download (StarWars.com)
“Hidden Figures” now available for digital download (Fox Digital)

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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!