Airbags and D-Bags

Airbags and D-Bags
Number	2640
Broadcast Date	DECEMBER 7, 2015
Episode Length	32:36
Hosts	Tom Merritt
Guests	Veronica Belmont

Governments are now calling for tech companies to shut down social networking and other communications to bad actors. Is it possible? Veronica Belmont and Tom Merritt discuss.

Guest

• Veronica Belmont
  • Dear Veronica on Engadget

Headlines

• Saying goodbye to Carousel and Mailbox

Dropbox will shut down email app Mailbox Feb 26th and photo manager Carousel March 31st according to a blog post from Dropbox CEO Drew Houston and CTO Arash Ferdowsi. The company wants to focus on the Dropbox app and integrate aspects of Mailbox and Carousel into it. Carousel users will be provided an export tool early next year. Dropbox says it'll bring some of Carousel's better features to the main app "in the coming months."

• Google Calendar on Android and iOS gets Reminders, which work across Inbox, Keep, and Google Now

Venture Beat reports Google announced a new feature called Reminders that lets users create calendar entries that remind them to complete tasks. It will work with Contacts to provide names, addresses, and phone numbers. Unlike events, Reminders will stay listed on daily calendar until they are swiped away. Users can also make Reminders from Inbox, Keep and Google Now. Reminders are available on the latest Calendar apps for iOS and Android and will come to the Web version of Calendar next.

• France considers blocking Tor and public Wi-Fi after Paris attacks

The Verge passes along a report from French Newspaper Le Monde that French security forces drafted a proposal to ban public WiFi and access to the Tor network. As a non-emergency counter-terrorism measure, France would “forbid and block” communications on the Tor network in the country. VoIP services would also have to hand over encryption keys on request. A block on public WiFi would fall under proposed state of emergency changes. A state of emergency was extended for three months after attacks in Paris last month. The ministry has not decided what to do with the proposals or even if they are constitutional.

Submitted by tjburbank

• Twitter Improves Photo-Sharing With Bigger Images, Better Layouts

Tech Crunch reports that Twitter is rolling out an update today that will improve multi-photo displays and allow users to see uncropped photos in their twitter stream without having to click on the tweet itself. The display for multiple photos is larger, and allows the user to select a lead image. It's supposed to be available for all users now.

• Lightroom is now entirely free on mobile

The Verge reports that Adobe has removed the requirement for a Creative Cloud subscription to use its free Adobe Lightroom app for Android. However, users wishing to sync between the mobile App and PC version or Lightroom Web will still need a subscription. Adobe made Lightroom free on iOS in October.

• Apple Raises iTunes Match and Apple Music Library Matching Limits to 100,000 Tracks

Apple has started supporting libraries of up to 100,000 songs for its iTunes Match and Apple Music libraries. The previous limit was 25,000. SVP Eddy Cue confirmed the news to MacRumors.

• Australia to plow A$1.1 billion into switch from mining to tech

Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced Monday a A$1.1 billion (US$806 million) package to boost innovation in the country. The plan includes capital gains tax cuts for startups, changes to bankruptcy laws to encourage risk-taking entrepreneurs and immigration changes to lure top talent. It also would establish a Cyber Security Growth Centre. Australia often ranks low in business-research collaboration and appetite for risk.

• WeChat Blocks Uber (Again) In Ongoing China Rideshare War

Motherboard reports that Uber has been blocked from WeChat by the messaging service's parent company Tencent. Tencent claims Uber was banned for "malicious marketing activities,” although Uber says there is no proof of that. Tencent is an investor in Didi Kuaidi, a competitor to Uber in China. Didi Kuaidi operates in 259 Chinese cities, compared to Uber's 20.

• WARNING: THE XENOBLADE CHRONICLES X OST HAS A BROKEN BUGGY DRM ON IT. DO NOT RUN IT.

A Xenoblade Chronicles reddit post reports that the Xenoblade Chronicles original soundtrack can lock down your network drive. If you attempt to play the soundtrack it mounts an encrypted drive usually at Y, but one report says Z, the edits the registry to hide the drive. Users have to use gpedit and regedit to revert the changes.

Submitted by deevandiacle

Discussion

• After San Bernardino, Hillary Clinton Reaffirms Call for Silicon Valley to Do More Against ISIS
• Social media companies step up battle against militant propaganda
• Obama appeals to Silicon Valley for help with online anti-extremist campaign
• Eric Schmidt on How to Build a Better Web

Pick of the Day

• The Uprising: On Poetry and Finance

One of the things that I enjoy about the picks on the show is the wide variety of items that people recommend -- not just tech.

Along those lines, the discussion of the "advocacy" in some circles for gig-based employment reminded me of a good book that I read a couple of months ago that I thought I would recommend:

The Uprising: On Poetry and Finance
by Franco "Bifo" Berardi

The short book is a reflection on the social implications of engaging in "gig-based labor" or what Berardi calls "fragmented and precarious labor" -- an apt description of what those of us in tech consulting do: piece-meal for-hire cognitive labor. It's a series of somewhat cautionary essays in relation to larger trends in the growth of a "precarious" global workforce. It's a fascinating read, and I thought I would pass it on.

Still loving the show,

Submitted by Paul from New York

Links

• This episode on dailytechnewsshow.com
• Support DTNS on Patreon
• DTNS subreddit

Preceded by: "Cloud Country"

Airbags and D-Bags

Followed by: "Exponomy"