Geek News

If you want to build custom furniture, you usually need to know your way around a saw and devote days to both designing it and cutting every last piece. MIT's CSAIL might have a better solution: let computers and robots do the hard work. Its researchers have developed an AutoSaw system that makes it easy to craft furniture without the risk of cutting your fingers. You start on your computer by customizing furniture templates in OnShape's simple CAD system. After that, modified robots (a Roomba for a jigsaw, Kuka youBots for chopping) cut the individual parts. You still have to assemble it yourself, but the software will guide you through the process. AutoSaw is currently limited to common household items like chairs, desks and tables. However, the hope is that it'll eventually be useful for porches and other larger-scale projects. CSAIL also wants to incorporate tasks beyond cutting, such as drilling and gluing. The aim is to democratize custom furniture building. Yes,...

Google Shopping banned weapon listings way back in 2012, but users have just been noticing it -- and have learned that the filtering has been a little too aggressive. Visitors from the US and elsewhere have discovered that the shopping search page hasn't been showing results for anything with "gun" in the name, including some perfectly innocuous items. Did you want to find Burgundy wine or Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction ? Too bad. You could still find things through a regular Google search, but that wouldn't be as helpful. A Google spokesperson told the Telegraph it was investigating the problem, but noted that there was a good reason to filter "gun" results. It has a "strict" international policy banning the promotion of guns and their parts, and it clearly didn't want to take any chances. Searches in the US and Canada turned up results as of this writing, so there's a chance it has already been fixed. The attention...

Sex-trafficking victims, prosecutors and state attorneys will be able to sue websites that host ads and content linked to the sex trade under the bill the House has just approved . The bill called "Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017" or FOSTA seeks to amend Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which protects websites from lawsuits over user-generated posts. It was filed by Rep. Ann Wagner (pictured above) to target websites like Backpage , which hosts sex and child trafficking ads. Previous investigations have revealed that Backpage went as far as editing posters' ads -- it replaced words in ads trafficking minors with terms like "fresh," for instance -- to conceal evidence from law enforcement. However, since the bill's terms would apply to all websites and not just to shady directories, the tech industry is divided on the issue. The Internet Association, IBM, Oracle and Hewlett Packard Enterprise are fo...

To combat Amazon's two-hour PrimeNow Whole Foods deliveries , Walmart is adding a similar feature for its members-only warehouse chain, Sam's Club. Through a partnership with Instacart, customers can order food and other goods from the bulk outlet and get them delivered on the same day. Folks can do this today in Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and St. Louis -- and not just Sam's Club members, but Instacart customers, too. Walmart plans to expand this delivery service to 'millions of additional households across the US throughout 2018, and beyond' -- assumedly, outside the United States. Instacart had previously partnered with Target in 2015 to give the superstore's customers same-day item delivery, so Walmart isn't the first to pull in the San Francisco-based startup to provide a service rivaling Amazon's speedy shipping. Via: TechCrunch Source: BusinessWire via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2FbWFdV"

Apple's $1 billion budget for original programming is definitely getting put to good use. Variety has just reported that M. Night Shyamalan, the auteur behind plot-twist classics like The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, will be producing an original series just for Apple's TV platform. In line with his previous films, the series is set to be a psychological thriller. It'll be written by Tony Basgallop, whose credits include Berlin Station , 24: Legacy and 24: Live Another Day . It's unclear yet what the TV series will be called and what the plot will be about. According to Variety, it already has a 10 episode order and will be produced by Shyamalan's Blinding Edge Pictures. Executive producers include Ashwin Rajan, Jason Blumenthal, Todd Black and Steve Tisch, and Taylor Latham will be co-executive producer. This marks Shyamalan's second foray into the small screen -- he was also the executive producer of Wayward Pines , which just ended its two-season run...

Hyundai's newly bolstered EV strategy might be off to a good start. It just unveiled the Kona Electric, an adaptation of its crossover SUV that promises to combine both ample space with meaningful performance. The base edition's 186-mile range and 9.3-second 0-62MPH time won't raise eyebrows, but a long-range version can muster a 292-mile range and reach 62MPH in 7.6 seconds. That's about as much range as a top-spec Tesla Model X -- if you don't need blistering acceleration or gobs of seating, you can get a very capable electric people hauler. Logically, there's a lot of tech inside the cabin as well. A 7-inch center touchscreen (with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay) and a heads-up display aren't surprising in 2018, but you'll also find paddle shifters that tweak the level of regenerative braking to suit your driving style and mileage demands. You'll also see a raft of assists for collision avoidance (including pedestrians), blind spots, lane fo...

The FTC filed a complaint against PayPal over its Venmo peer-to-peer payment service back in 2016. The trade commission alleged that Venmo did not adequately disclose that customer transfers to external bank accounts were subject to review and could be frozen or removed. The FTC's filing also said that Venmo misled consumers around privacy as well as how protected their accounts were and violated the Privacy and Safeguard Rules of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act . PayPal has just settled with the FTC around these allegations. No monetary penalties have been levied for the infractions. The original complaint stated that many customers were unable to pay real bills like rent when they were unable to transfer their Venmo funds. Other customers complained that they had delivered items (like tickets or other items) to others, taken payment via Venmo, then had the funds removed, resulting in a loss. The FTC settlement agreement requires that Venmo not misrepresent any material restri...

T-Mobile isn't going to sit by the wayside while AT&T and Sprint brag about their 5G rollout plans. The magenta network has outlined its early deployment strategy for 5G, and you can expect actual service well before the company's self-imposed 2020 goal for a nationwide network . It's building the gigabit-class networks in 30 cities in 2018, including on the 600MHz band and the high-frequency millimeter wave spectrum. Actual service will launch in Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and New York City in early 2019, but T-Mobile is promising a 'real' launch with smartphones -- not hotspot routers or fixed home broadband . AT&T and Verizon are expected to be first out of the gates with service by the end of 2018, but T-Mobile is clearly betting that this won't matter to most people until months later, when you can use it away from a computer or tablet and coverage is more consistent. And there's a degree of truth to that. When AT&T announced its...

Before now, if you fancied playing console games on your Mac, you'd need to use PlayStation 4's Remote Play to do so. Windows 10 users have been able to stream Xbox One titles to their PCs since 2015, but macOS users have been out of luck. A new $10 app called OneCast , however, has apparently figured out how to get your Xbox One games streaming to your Mac. The app isn't an official release from Xbox, however, unlike Sony's solution. We've reached out to Microsoft for comment and will update this post when we hear back. OneCast promises support for 1080p video, low lag, easy set up and the ability to stream Xbox One titles over the internet (with some manual configuration). OneCast says that you can use an Xbox One wireless controller connected via USB or Bluetooth, use any number of different consoles or gamertags and run in either full screen or windowed mode. You'll get a free 14-day trial for your $10 purchase, which is regularly $20. Via: The Verge...

This year, Netflix aims to have around 700 original TV shows and movies on its streaming service, Variety reports. CFO David Wells told an audience at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference today that the company will spend some $8 billion on content this year saying, "Let's continue to add content. It's working. It's driving growth." Among those 700 productions will be around 80 originals made outside of the US, such as the German show Dark . Netflix has scored some major deals of late, snagging partnerships with big names like Ryan Murphy , Shonda Rhimes and the Duplass brothers . It also recently snagged the rights to a Matt Reeves-produced sci-fi film and continues to grow its comedy and animated offerings. Last month, the company announced that it's still seeing substantial growth -- adding 8.3 million customers last quarter -- and has around 110 million paying subscribers worldwide. In addition to adding more original con...

Assuming your Hogwarts letter got lost in the mail (it happens from time to time) and you still want a peek at The Boy Who Lived's coursework, Google has you covered. The search juggernaut has digitized the British Library's "Harry Potter: A History of Magic" exhibit and tossed it on the Google Arts & Culture mobile-and-web app. You can take a 360-degree tour of the Divination room, peep author JK Rowling's original sketch for Hogwarts' layout, peruse Rowling's inspirations for Herbology class and a whole lot more. The original exhibition in London sold out extremely quickly, which inspired Google to put it online for all to see. Mountain View writes that "hundreds of the exhibition's treasures" and some 15 exhibitions are now available to check out any time you want , via your smartphone. "We've used medieval manuscripts, precious printed books and Chinese oracle bones to explore magical traditions, from the making of pot...

If it wasn't already evident that Amazon wants a stronger foothold in the smart home space, it is now. Amazon has acquired Ring, the device maker best known for its smart doorbells . The terms of the deal aren't clear, but it's expected that Amazon will keep the core Ring business intact while finding ways to integrate its work into the Amazon ecosystem. Ring already supports Alexa voice control, so we'd expect more than just obvious tie-ins. The two companies aren't specific about their plans. In a statement, Amazon told Engadget it was "excited" to work with Ring and aid in its "mission to keep homes safe and secure." Ring said it could "achieve even more" by allying itself with Amazon as it focuses on its "vision for safer neighborhoods." Developing... Via: GeekWire via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2EWMudR"

Ford is venturing well beyond its home turf of Michigan to test its fledgling self-driving delivery service . The automaker has revealed a pilot program that will see its autonomous vehicles roaming the streets of downtown Miami and Miami Beach. The initial test will separate the delivery and self-driving products, and will gauge what works for both customers and companies. How do you pick up your delivery from a self-driving car, for example, and how far are people willing to walk to get their grub? Domino's is active right now, while Postmates should be available in March. Ride hailing from partners like Lyft should come later. Ford chose Miami both because of Mayor Carlos Giménez's openness to the idea and the city's notorious traffic congestion (about 10 percent of time is spent in gridlock). In theory, this addresses "pain points" by sparing people from driving. What the company learns in Miami will help shape tests in other cities as well as the from-s...

Today, communications company Viasat debuted the fastest satellite internet available in the US -- up to 100 megabytes per second. It's thanks to the Via-Sat 2 satellite system, which serves North America, Central America, the Caribbean and a small part of northern South America. Viasat is now also offering tiered unlimited data plans, from 12 to 30 megabytes per second. The plans top out at $100 per month. One of the goals of satellite internet is to provide a high-speed internet connection to homes located in areas that don't have the ground infrastructure to support it. "The innovations we're making across our satellite system allow us to do extraordinary things, from moving the satellite industry up-market by delivering premium services, speeds and plans that give consumers new choices in their internet service provider, to helping bridge the digital divide in the U.S. today," said Mark Dankberg, Viasat's chairman and CEO, in a statement. In addition to...

ASUS's Zenfone 5 just made its first official appearance at MWC, and aside from overenthusiastic claims about its AI prowess, it's still a solid little machine. It isn't a flagship-level powerhouse though, which is why ASUS cooked the ZenFone 5Z -- it uses the exact same body as the more affordable Zenfone 5 but holds within it a Snapdragon 845 and up to 8GB of RAM. Because it looks identical to the 5, ASUS didn't actually bother bringing any 5Zs to its press conference. I We can't really elaborate on any differences in performance as a result, but ASUS's rationale for keeping the design the same makes sense. As explained to us, ASUS is used to fitting different spec configurations into the same chassis from its main business as a PC maker. Fair enough, though we still would've liked to test one out. The press conference also revealed that, in response to Apple and Samsung, ASUS kitted the Zenfone 5 and 5Z out what it calls Zenimoji. As you'd expect...

Jill Soloway, creator of the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning show Transparent , is heading another Amazon project. The company announced today that Soloway will be the editor-at-large of a new Amazon Publishing imprint, Topple Books, which will feature a diverse slate of writers working in narrative nonfiction and fiction. "We live in a complicated, messy world where every day we have to proactively re-center our own experiences by challenging privilege. With Topple Books we're looking for those undeniably compelling essential voices so often not heard," Soloway said in a statement . "I can't think of a more perfect collaborator than Amazon Publishing to make our dream of a revolutionary publishing imprint come true." Topple is also the name of Soloway's production company, which, along with Transparent , produced I Love Dick for Amazon and currently has eight TV shows and four films in development with the company. Transparent is scheduled to return...

The phone that stole the show at last year's MWC wasn't an Android, didn't have a Samsung badge on it, could barely connect to the internet and didn't have a touchscreen. The relaunched Nokia 3310 traded on one key thing: nostalgia. But it was enough for it to grab most of the headlines, and even see a re-rerelease later that year with souped up "3G" data speeds . That wasn't it though, just a month ago , we finally got the 4G version we presume some people were asking for. This year, Nokia (or, rather, brand-owner HMD) is at it again, reviving the iconic " Banana phone ." But, one day into the show proper, and the chatter about it had faded. I think new-Nokia missed a trick. Instead of rehashing iconic feature phones, it should revive one of Nokia's most prescient franchises: the Communicator. While the 3310 is iconic, it's a 16 years old "dumb" phone, which means that it's not really all that much use to today's ...

Last year, Nintendo one-upped its NES Classic retro console with the SNES Classic , a powerful and value-packed trip back to the best of 90s gaming. But among all the gems bundled into the box, one was notably missing: Chrono Trigger . Out of nowhere, that exclusion was given a chance for redemption when the game appeared on Steam today. Unfortunately, a flood of negative reviews pointed out the truth: Apparently, the PC version appears to be straight-up ported from the 2011 mobile version. We've gotten our hands on the PC iteration and it does appear to carry over much from the mobile version, with poor sound, poor graphical options and a terrible interface for mouse-and-keyboard. It's certainly disappointing: Developers often overhaul 16-bit games when porting them to PC, especially to account for advances in displays. PC players have been able to emulate Chrono Trigger near perfectly using programs like Higan, but fans would still jump at the chance to give Square money...

German new-space firm PTScientists has been planning a mission to the Moon for many years now. It has partnered with Audi to produce and deliver two XPrize-winning quattro rovers to the Moon that will explore both the lunar surface and carefully return to the Apollo 17 landing site in 2019. Now the team has partnered with Vodafone and Nokia to create a Moon-based communications network using 4G LTE to bring high-def video of the moon to those of us here on Earth. Vodafone's base station will communicate with the rovers as they gather images and video of the various lunar sights. The 4G network will use the 1800 MHz frequency band to send HD video to the Autonomous Landing and Navigation Module (ALINA), which will then connect to PTScientists in Berlin. Nokia is making space-grade networking gear that will weigh less than one kilogram in total. 4G is more energy efficient than analog radio, and will allow a larger amount of data to be transferred between the rovers and the ...