Natural language and machine learning company AKA says it’s taking the next step toward the creation of a robot that you really, truly talk to with a new project called Musio. Members of the AKA team demonstrated a prototype for me last week. As you can see in the video, Musio should be able to carry on a normal conversation, complete with bad jokes and (thanks to Bluetooth connections… Read More
In games most studios follow that “distribution” strategy to a greater or lesser degree. A lot of them are concerned about where to find players, how to hold onto them, how to monetize them efficiently and so on. Too often they sideline the issue of how to actually design a game worth playing – to their cost. Read More
http://ift.tt/1BB3QjC
Known as a free and simple VPN solution that allows users to access blocked videos and services from overseas (such as Netflix), the peer-to-peer network Hola has amassed over 47 million users worldwide.
That number is bound to decrease significantly however, with the discovery that Hola has been selling its users’ idle bandwidth through a service called Luminati (which Hola owns), allowing it to be repurposed for nefarious reasons.
Unlike other VPN services, Hola doesn’t own servers around the world, instead opting to utilise its users’ IP addresses as ‘exit nodes’ for other people’s traffic.
Frederick Brennan, operator of the notorious 8chan message board, made the discovery after the site experienced multiple DoS attacks and temporary shutdown unknowingly caused by Hola users’ computers through Luminati’s services.
In a note posted to the 8chan community, Brennan put the blame for his site’s shutdown squarely on Hola, stating that the company “has gotten greedy,” further stating that “they recently realised that they basically have a 9 million IP strong botnet on their hands, and they began selling access to this botnet.”
Luminati boasts that it provides its clients the ability to “route data through any of our millions of IPs that are located in every city around the world,” though its connection with Hola VPN users had not been acknowledged until a short time ago.
TorrentFreak claims that Hola’s FAQ section had been amended only recently to include mention of Luminati, albeit in a sneakily-worded way: “Hola generates revenue by selling a commercial version of the Hola VPN service to businesses (through our Luminati brand),” and that “users who want to enjoy the Hola network without contributing their idle resources can do so by joining the Hola premium service for $5 per month (or $45 per year).”
Hola founder Ofer Vilenski doesn’t seem too fussed about Luminati’s involvement in the attack, stating that “8chan was hit with an attack from a hacker with the handle of BUI. This person then wrote about how he used the Luminati commercial VPN network to hack 8chan. He could have used any commercial VPN network, but chose to do so with ours.”
http://ift.tt/1KxakFx
Believe it or not, Google's Android Pay makes it simpler and more rewarding to pay for things with a phone than the already easy-to-use Apple Pay.
With more than one billion active Android users, that's going to give mobile payments a big boost in 2015, at least in the US. This is no half-hearted Google Wallet.
At Google IO 2015, I tested the reinvented contactless payment system on a Coca-Cola machine and a mock online store in the press room.
The result? One 20oz bottle of Coke and three ways the better-late-than-never Android Pay is slightly better than Apple Pay.
Google wants to help the world buy a Coke and maybe teach everyone to sing its praises. It's doing that with a little extra reward right at the machine.
Android Pay, already loaded on my Nexus 6 at a special Coke vending machine, used the built-in NFC chip that's now common among Google-powered phones. It's the same tech Apple uses.
I held the phone to the machine's NFC reader, and a stacked credit and debit card interface popped up automatically. I tapped my virtual card on the phone to pay, and I was done. It looked almost identical to Apple Pay's design.
What's different? Among the card options is the ability to use MyCokeRewards points to pay for the soda (or a healthier beverage like water). Who turns down an earned Coke and doesn't enjoy it?
Google is integrating retailers' loyalty programs right into Android Pay and says this feature is going to be bigger than just soda machines. It's an idea the iPhone's Passbook app doesn't fulfill nearly as well with little-used and more cumbersome QR codes.
That's going to be an incentive, especially when I'm at local retailers. On an iPhone 6, I often need to get out my loyalty card or recite my phone number, even if I'm paying with Apple Pay.
Android Pay requires a lockscreen password, whether it's a pattern, pin or face unlock. Only, its rules are more user-friendly than what's found on an Apple Pay-enabled iPhone.
Its tap-to-pay method of completing a transaction doesn't require that hit-or-miss fingerprint on smartphones. That's why enabling a phone's lockscreen is a must.
This makes Android Pay a little bit faster with no queue displeasing "Let me redo it." It uses a system-level lockscreen as its security, not a second payment ID for authentication.
Worried about Android eliminating this redundancy? Android M is going to push phones to add a fingerprint sensor. Most Android phones don't have Touch ID-equivalent hardware.
It was sort of funny to hear the Motorola Atrix from 2011 get a nod during the Google IO keynote. There's not much else out besides Samsung's few fingerprint-enabled phones.
What's even better? I'm told that when you disable a password-protected lockscreen, the credit cards don't automatically erase like they annoyingly do with an Apple Pay-linked cards.
That's an annoying requirement of Apple Pay for iPhone and, more precisely, Apple Watch. It forces users who sometimes disable the lockscreen temporarily to add and re-authenticate their credit cards all over again.
Android Pay works with a lot more phones than Apple Pay - a lot more - much to the dislike of iPhone owners who don't yet have an iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Google's casting a much wider net with support for all Android 4.4 KitKat phones with NFC chips, not just its own Nexus devices.
That means the Galaxy S4, HTC One M7, LG G2, original Moto X and Nexus 5, all released in 2013, will work with Android Pay.
That covers a lot of people.
Google is playing catch-up, but Android Pay store locations number 700,000 in the US - too many to list. There are also 1,000 Android apps that plan to use the mobile payment platform.
McDonald's, Chipotle and Subway have fast food covered, while major retailers include Best Buy, Macy's and Walgreens. Coke rival, Pepsi, also signed on, in case you were wondering.
Basically, anywhere you see the new Android Pay or generic NFC logo, your phone will let you make a purchase without swiping your card. That should keep it on par with Apple Pay.
Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover are all onboard with Android Pay too, and nine major banks like Bank of America, Chase, Citi, Capital One are here.
Credit and debit cards can be enabled right within bank apps as well, giving users a second way to add their information for Android Pay.
Android Pay is a little more streamlined than Apple Pay, but that in no way means Google's new mobile payments push is going to be as much of a success or better.
First, it's only being promised for the US. Like iPhone's digital wallet, Google is staying silent on its UK and Australian launch plans. Country rollout may decide the winner, especially when it comes to China and India.
On one hand, Google's security is akin to Apple Pay. Its tokenization method means retailers never see your actual credit or debit card number, just a virtual account number. On the other, Android users have proven to be more susceptible to hijacking and data mining apps.
Then there's the fact that while Android Pay is getting a bigger push than Google Wallet, it won't get as much attention out of the gate with one single device launch. And Apple could add these Coke and other loyalty rewards in iOS 9 and catch up in an instant.
Nevertheless, you can't deny the appeal of a free Coke and tap-to-pay after bypassing the lockscreen. Right now, it's refreshing to see Google pushing new ideas forward.
Android Pay is set to be coupled with Android M when the new operating system update launches later this year, while phone users with Android 4.4 KitKat and above can expect it "soon."
http://ift.tt/1GPLBwW
Nvidia has just introduced its latest flagship GPU, the GeForce GTX 980Ti, which has got both 4K gaming and virtual reality in its sights.
The new Maxwell-based GPU packs in 6GB of video RAM and will deliver 4K gaming at a decent framerate - above 30 FPS - while boasting speeds of up to three times faster when compared to the GTX 680.
But here's where things get really interesting: the GTX 980Ti has just over 90% of the CUDA core count of the prohibitively expensive Titan X, but comes in for less - $650 (around £425/AU$825) compared to the X's $1000. The X does have double the VRAM, but still, it's not a whole world of difference.
We've already mentioned 4K gaming, but Nvidia's new baby is also designed to support virtual reality in a big way. We now know what the demands of the Oculus Rift will be, and the GTX 980Ti will certainly be up to the task (Oculus listed the GTX 970 as the minimum for the Rift).
Nvidia's Maxwell architecture also supports the latest DirectX 12, while the new GPU is pretty damn energy efficient compared to something like the GTX 750; as Nvidia puts it, these second-gen Maxwell designs sip, not gulp, your power.
Nvidia is also introducing a line of notebooks that will be powered by its G-Sync GPUs. For the uninitiated, G-Sync is Nvidia's solution for screen tearing - and a mighty effective one - that maintains refresh rate without costing you image quality of game performance.
Starting June 1 you'll be able to get your hands on new notebooks from Asus, Gigabyte, MSI and Clevo, all flaunting the tech, with specs and pricing to be announced by the manufacturers.
http://ift.tt/1eKvaqT
Recently, Taiwanese lawmakers approved the “Child and Youth Welfare and Protection Act,” making it illegal for children under the age of 18 to use electronic devices for excessive periods of time. In the United States, we don’t have legislation restricting screen time, but organizations like the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) have addressed the issue of… Read More
Remember those mystery Apple vans tootling around the States a few months ago? No one was quite sure what they were up to, but it's now become clear that they're part of Apple's continued push to get its own mapping service up to scratch.
Thanks to some diligent digging by 9to5Mac we know that these camera-equipped automobiles are capturing 3D street view imagery, stills of storefronts, and more besides. The general idea is that Apple gradually reduces its reliance on third-party providers.
As 9to5Mac explains, Apple wants its own in-house maps data by 2018. That means collecting its own points of reference at the lowest levels and would eventually result in more control for Apple over the quality of its Maps app.
Since Apple Maps launched in 2012 it's been lagging behind Google Maps in terms of scope and accuracy. Google Maps, meanwhile, is adding new features all the time, and Apple doesn't want to fall further behind.
One of the features Apple's unmarked fleet of vans is collecting data for is a 3D Flyover mode for individual streets. Together with high-quality still images for businesses and landmarks, Apple is hoping to outdo Google Street View.
We should hear more about Maps and iOS 9 at WWDC from 8 June - apparently public transport timetable integration is on the way as well as a number of other new features. We will of course keep you updated as next week's event unfolds.
http://ift.tt/1SKWsNk
