Geek News

The Overwatch League's honeymoon is over. Dallas Fuel player Felix "xQc" Lengyel has been suspended by both the League and Fuel after hurling a homophobic insult at the Houston Outlaws' openly gay player Austin "Muma" Wilmot. After Wilmot used one of Lengyel's signature lines to roast the Fuel following a victory, Lengyel responded on a personal stream suggesting that Wilmot "suck a fat..." you get the idea. The slur violated the League's Code of Conduct, which asks for professional conduct both inside and outside of games. The League initially suspended Lengyel for four matches and fined him $2,000. Fuel, however, followed by suspending him for the rest of Stage 1, which ends on February 10th. He'll also receive "additional resources, focus coaching, physical training and support" to help reflect the principles of the team and the League at large. Lengyel offered an apology to Wilmot, who accepted it. However, this is...

Twitter's big bet on live video might be running into trouble. Wall Street Journal sources have claimed that COO Anthony Noto , the exec that has been driving Twitter's live video push, is in talks to become the CEO of online lending startup Social Finance. Noto has reportedly been eager to take the helm of a company, and SoFi is said to be enticing him with a "significant" stake in the company if he signs on. Whether or not he jumps ship is another matter, however. SoFi hasn't locked down the terms of the job, according to the tipsters, and a decision is expected sometime in the "coming days." Noto might decide to stay aboard, and there haven't been public signs that he was less than thrilled at Twitter -- he'd certainly be taking a less glamorous position. The COO hasn't commented on the rumor. The lending firm's previous CEO, left in September after numerous reports of sexual harassment. If Noto did leave, it could throw a wren...

Google Play might be close to launching a section dedicated to selling audiobooks. 9to5Google has spotted a banner displayed in the Books section of the app market announcing its arrival. It was even promoting a 50 percent discount for your first audiobook purchase and apparently linked to a category distinct from Google Play Music, which does have some audiobooks on offer. The link still brings up an empty page as of this writing. While we couldn't replicate what 9to5Google saw, it's not the first time the tech titan dropped a hint that it plans to expand its audiobooks selection. A Google Play update that went out last year had codes showing that the store is preparing to launch audiobook support. The launch of a new category is now looking more and more likely, but we'll have to wait for Google's announcement to know more. Source: 9to5Google via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2rsrPb4"

Audi isn't going to let rival automakers like BMW and Tesla corner the market on home batteries. The German badge is testing a Smart Energy Network where solar-powered batteries not only help your home minimize use of the electrical grid, but talk to each other. The result is, as Audi put it, a "virtual power plant" -- households collectively feed power into the grid and help balance overall consumption. The trial is limited to both Audi's home of Ingolstadt as well as the Zurich area. There's no mention of how long it will run or how likely it is the pilot will expand. The strategy is a logical one for companies making deeper commitments to electric vehicles . It's easier for Audi to sell you on the concept of an EV if it can promise to lower your power bill in the long run. Also, this makes the most of the VW brand's work on batteries -- it can venture beyond selling cars and make sure the batteries it makes find customers. It just so happens that...

Apple CarPlay is being offered in more and more vehicles, often as standard equipment. BMW, though, charges for it. BMW currently offers CarPlay as a $300 option on cars equipped with navigation. This will change, though, as The Verge reports the German automaker will switch to a yearly subscription service. CarPlay will be free for the first year, then cost $80 a year to continue the service. At the Detroit Auto Show, BMW technology product manager Don Smith explained that there's actually a customer benefit to doing it this way. "This allows the customer to switch devices. A lot of people buy [CarPlay] and think it's OK, but sometimes they stop using it or switch to Android." If a customer decided to keep the service over the course of a three-year lease, they would end up paying less than the one-time cost of $300, as the first three years would cost just $160. Four would cost $240. Autoblog reached out to BMW, and a spokesperson confirmed the details for t...

Nike has never been afraid to use different technologies to experiment with its sneakers. After all, this is the company that brought you the Mag and HyperAdapt , two shoes powered by auto-lacing mechanisms. And while its latest basketball silhouette isn't as tech-forward as those, there's still plenty to like here, especially if you're both a sneakerhead and an avid gamer. Meet the PG2 , Paul George's new signature shoe, which Nike created in collaboration with Sony and was inspired by the PlayStation. Sorry, Xbox, maybe next time. According to Nike, George, who currently plays for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA, considers himself one of the league's biggest gamers. Because of that, he wanted a sneaker which would represent his love for Sony's console when he's out on the court. All across the pair, you'll find several details paying homage to the PlayStation, like a tongue with a "PS" light-up logo in blue. The other tongue, meanwhi...

Bungie previously promised to both tackle complaints about diminishing rewards in Destiny 2 and to be more transparent going forward, but it's apparent the studio still has some work to do. Players have discovered that the game is throttling the number of tokens it hands out for Faction Rallies (where you pledge allegiance and collect tokens in hopes of scoring a rare weapon at a discount) when you loot Lost Sectors. The company had actually patched this in as of mid-December, but it wasn't clear what had changed until the Rallies resumed weeks later, on January 16th. The company has since acknowledged the throttling and updated the December patch notes to reflect the throttling that's taking place. It had made the change after discovering that players were earning ridiculous token counts without having to fight anyone -- up to 500 an hour. The throttling is "too disruptive," however, and it's now exploring changes that would properly reward players w...

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How the silver anniversary of 'NBA Jam' could resurrect the franchise Law Murray, ESPN Will the iconic basketball game NBA Jam be revived for its 25th anniversary? EA already rebooted the franchise once, but the original voice of the game wants to bring it back once more. ESPN caught up with Tim Kitzrow, the man behind the legendary "BOOMSHAKALAKA!" catch phrase, to get the latest details -- complete with additional backstory from creator Mark Turmell . The Line 6 DL4 is quietly the most important guitar pedal of the last 20 years Dale W. Eisinger, Pitchfork Music nerds will dig this one. Pitchfork breaks down why a single piece of guitar gear was so instrumental (sorry, had to) in so much music in the last two decades. HQ Trivia's Scott Rogowsky doesn't want you to cheat Megan Graham, AdAge By now, you've likely heard about the live trivia app that's all the rage these days. AdAge caught up with the host for a day-in-the-life of...

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous. It's the weekend already? You might have a strange email from Twitter in your inbox, and if you've shopped with OnePlus lately then it might be time to cancel your card. Ouch. OnePlus says up to 40,000 customers affected in credit card breach In a statement released Friday, OnePlus said credit card information belonging to up to 40,000 customers was captured by a malicious (and currently unknown) actor between November 2017 and mid-January 2018. Finally. Logan Paul forced YouTube to admit humans are better than algorithms It took a video of a dead body for the company to finally reconsider its approach to content moderation. Oh, good? Twitter is notifying people exposed to Russian propaganda Twitter announced its ongoing investigation found thousands of additional accounts associated with the Russian government-linked Internet Research Agency (IRA). Now, it's emailing notifications to everyone in the US who inadvertently ...

There’s a new Android app called Skyline that will turn your current location into your wallpaper, as first spotted by Lifehacker . Skyline uses 3D terrain data from Mapbox to show either your current location or specific coordinates to create wallpapers in full detail. The app can shift the image when you unlock your phone or swipe through your launcher pages, and it features a parallax effect that’s visible when you tilt your phone. You can toggle the depth effects in settings and choose the right framing for your map / wallpaper. Skyline will cost you $1.99 in the Google Play Store , which isn’t bad for a pretty inventive wallpaper app. Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2DRfnnU"

DIY So long, and thanks for all the Likes. If you're tired of the social media whirlwind, you can opt out. Here's how to delete your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and other accounts. via Popular Science "http://ift.tt/2DRAeYk"

Nearly three years after we first saw Radinn's prototype electric wakeboard , the Swedish outfit is back with a redesigned version . The G2X will be on display at the Boot Düsseldorf show this week, showing off its capabilities like a swappable battery so owners don't have to wait for a two-hour charge between 25-minute rides. Those rides will be even more exciting though, since it's capable of 36 mph, up from 28 on the Wakejet Cruise. Better yet, the G2X is cheaper than its predecessor, with a price (before accessories like an add-on foil, "radical" upgrade to max out its top speed or additional battery packs) of 9,900 euros, or about $12,101 US. It's going on sale later this year, however, there will be plenty of competition. E-Surfer Magazine lists 17 different models in the segment, and there will be new hardware shown at the Boot show from Lampuga and Elektrisches Jet Surfboard . Source: Radinn (Youtube) , Radinn via Engadget RSS Feed "ht...

On Friday afternoon, just hours before Congress failed to avert a government shutdown, the President signed into law the "FISA Amendments Reauthorization Act of 2017." The bill passed the House and Senate earlier this week with the support of many Republicans and Democrats , offering only slight adjustments to Section 702 , a law that oversees the NSA's ability to spy on "international terrorists, weapons proliferators, and other important foreign intelligence targets located outside the United States." However, as we learned as part of the Snowden revelations , the programs in place under that law snoop more extensively. In league with companies like (owner of Engadget's parent company AOL) Verizon, Google, Facebook and others , it can capture or collect large amounts of internet and telephone traffic that passes through the US, along with "incidental" information on many Americans. The reauthorized version offers little in the way of chang...