Page 704 – Tom Merritt .com

DTNS LABS – GAMES – Everything you need to know about lootboxes

Daily Tech News Show / December 9th, 2017

In this episode, we explain everything you need to know about lootboxes in five questions:
What are loot boxes?
Why are they becoming an issue now?
Are governments getting involved?
Will they get banned?
What will happen?

With Patrick Beja and Scott Johnson.

MP3

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A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the DTNS logo and Ryan Officer for the DTNS Labs take!

Today in Tech History – December 9, 2017

Today in Tech History/ Writing / December 9th, 2017

1906 – Grace Hopper was born. She would rise to the rank of Rear Admiral but be best remembered for popularizing the term “debugging” for hunting down computer errors. She conceptualized the idea of machine-independent programming languages, which led to the development of COBOL.
http://www.agnesscott.edu/lriddle/women/hopper.htm

1968 – Computer scientist Douglas Engelbart gave a legendary product demonstration of NLS that would become known as “the mother of all demos.” Among other things it introduced the computer mouse, video conferencing, teleconferencing, hypertext, word processing, hypermedia, object addressing and dynamic file linking, bootstrapping, and a collaborative real-time editor.

http://codinginparadise.org/weblog/2008/02/original-program-announcement-for.html

1987 – Microsoft released Windows 2.0 which among other improvements could run the first Windows versions of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel.

http://www.zdnet.com/pictures/windows-1-0-to-10-the-changing-face-of-microsofts-landmark-os/2/

2015 – The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency probe Akatsuki successfully went into orbit around Venus.

http://www.cnet.com/news/japans-akatsuki-orbiter-sends-back-triumphant-venus-images/

Read Tom’s science fiction and other fiction books at Merritt’s Books site.

DTNS 3175 – Hack 101: Always disclose your Hacks

Daily Tech News Show / December 8th, 2017

Uber pays hush money to 20 year-old man to keep corporate data breach secret. YouTube plans to launch a new music service called Remix in March. And Nvidia releases the Titan V video card for machine learning.
With Sarah lane, Tom Merritt, Roger Chang, and Shannon Morse.

MP3

Using a Screen Reader? Click here

Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to Anthony Lemos of Ritual Misery for the expanded show notes!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, Jack_Shid, KAPT_Kipper, and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!

#312 – Eating Bones for Fun and Magic

Shows/ Sword and Laser / December 8th, 2017

#312 – Eating Bones for Fun and Magic by swordandlaser

Daily Tech Headlines – December 8, 2017

Daily Tech News Show / December 8th, 2017

YouTube developing another music service, Didi Chuxing headed to Mexico and Amazon Echo and Amazon Music Unlimited expand to 28 more countries.

MP3

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the theme music.

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, Jack_Shid, KAPT_Kipper, and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!

Today in Tech History – December 8, 2017

Today in Tech History/ Writing / December 8th, 2017

1931 – US Patent No. 1,835,031 for a “concentric conducting system” was awarded to Lloyd Espenschied of Kew Gardens, New York, and Herman A. Affel of Ridgewood, New Jersey, and assigned to the American Telephone & Telegraph Co. Coaxial Cable had been patented.

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=1835031.PN.&OS=PN/1835031&RS=PN/1835031

1993 – The US Secretary of Defense declared the GPS system a dual use system that had Initial Operation Capability and opened the Standard Positioning System to civilians, which gave accuracy of nine meters horizontally.

http://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/time/gps/gps-info

2010 – With the second launch of the SpaceX Dragon, SpaceX became the first privately held company to successfully launch, orbit and recover a spacecraft.

https://www.nasa.gov/offices/c3po/home/spacexfeature.html

Read Tom’s science fiction and other fiction books at Merritt’s Books site.

DTNS 3174 – The Large Patron Collider

Daily Tech News Show / December 7th, 2017

A blockchain-based replacement for Wikipedia, Qualcomm’s hot new mobile chip and Patreon’s watershed moment.
With Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Roger Chang and Justin Robert Young

MP3

Using a Screen Reader? Click here

Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to Anthony Lemos of Ritual Misery for the expanded show notes!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, Jack_Shid, KAPT_Kipper, and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!

Daily Tech Headlines – December 7, 2017

Daily Tech News Show / December 7th, 2017

Instagram testing messaging app, Valave stops taking bitcoins in Steam and Lyft starts a test autonomous car service.

MP3

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the theme music.

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, Jack_Shid, KAPT_Kipper, and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!

Today in Tech History – December 7, 2017

Today in Tech History/ Writing / December 7th, 2017

1962 – Ferranti Ltd. switched on the Atlas, the UK’s first supercomputer. It was the most powerful computer in the world at the time and doubled the UK’s scientific computing capability.

http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.com/2012/12/remembering-ferranti-atlas-uks-first.html

1963 – The CBS broadcast of the college football game between Army and Navy featured the first use of video instant replay during a sports telecast. Some people got confused and called to complain.
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19727_7-57337961-10170017/the-birth-of-instant-replay/

1972 – The last Apollo moon mission, Apollo 17 was launched. The crew took the famous Blue Marble picture that now graces desktop background everywhere.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo17.html

1999 – The Recording Industry Association of America sued 6-month-old Napster. The Industry refused to settle, thus insuring that digital music sales would remain low for years to come.

http://news.cnet.com/Recording-industry-sues-music-start-up,-cites-black-market/2100-1023_3-234092.html

Read Tom’s science fiction and other fiction books at Merritt’s Books site.

DTNS 3173 – Watts’ The Matter With Bitcoin?

Daily Tech News Show / December 6th, 2017

Amazon comes to Apple TV, Facebook wins best place to work, you won’t believe who’s winning in smartphones in China? (Yes you will, it’s Huawei) but why isn’t Samsung? AND whether Bitcoin will ruin our power grid and climate.
With Sarah Lane, Tom Merritt, Roger Chang, and Scott Johnson.

MP3

Using a Screen Reader? Click here

Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.

Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.

A special thanks to all our supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.

If you are willing to support the show or give as little as 5 cents a day on Patreon. Thank you!

Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to Anthony Lemos of Ritual Misery for the expanded show notes!

Thanks to our mods, Kylde, Jack_Shid, KAPT_Kipper, and scottierowland on the subreddit

Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!