Internet & Websites - Page 3

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Google promises to delete all the user data collected in Incognito mode

Jak Connor | Apr 2, 2024 10:31 AM CDT

A class-action lawsuit launched against Google is forcing the company to promise to delete all of the data it collected through its Incognito web browser.

Google promises to delete all the user data collected in Incognito mode

The lawsuit was filed back in 2020 and required Google to pay $5 billion in damages, but according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Google has decided to instead destroy "billions of data points" it improperly collected. Additionally, the company has said it will update its data collection disclosures and maintain a setting that prevents Chrome's third-party cookies by default for the next five years.

The lawsuit alleged that Google misled Chrome users by telling them its Incognito browser was private despite it still monitoring user activity, which Google pushed back on, saying it informed users that Incognito didn't mean "invisible" and that sites were still able to see their activity. The lawsuit levied federal wiretapping and California privacy laws and asked for $5,000 in damages per user for the alleged offenses. In 2021, Judge Lucy Koh concluded that Google "did not notify" users that the company was still collecting user data in Incognito mode.

Continue reading: Google promises to delete all the user data collected in Incognito mode (full post)

Researchers unveil plan to revolutionize Wi-Fi with new 3D design

Jak Connor | Mar 13, 2024 2:45 AM CDT

For many people around the world home internet connection speeds are a problem, but scientists now believe they can solve this issue and it all has to do with a new chip design.

Researchers unveil plan to revolutionize Wi-Fi with new 3D design

It's likely that people have put together that Wi-Fi connections slow down when there is more devices connected to that specific network, and this same principle applies for even larger networks such as ones provided by cell towers. An example of this is terrible connection speeds, or a lack of connection at sporting events. These rudimentarily called wireless traffic jams, but now researchers have an idea of solving it.

Typical Wi-Fi networks are powered by a "planar" processor, which produces signals at a flat or two-dimensional range. Due to these signals being emitted in a flat range there is a limited number of frequencies, or connections that can pair with the network at any given moment. To solve this researchers have proposed creating a 3D Wi-Fi chip that would enable the hardware to handle multiple frequencies at the same time, significantly reducing the congestion on the network, thus increasing speed.

Continue reading: Researchers unveil plan to revolutionize Wi-Fi with new 3D design (full post)

The world spent 1.3 trillion hours (that's 1,300,000,000,000) on the internet in 2023 alone

Anthony Garreffa | Dec 14, 2023 8:38 PM CST

How many hours did you spend online this year, huh? According to data analyst group Domo, users spent an absolutely astonishing 1,300,000,000,000 -- or 1.3 trillion -- hours online in 2023 alone... and the year isn't even finished yet.

The world spent 1.3 trillion hours (that's 1,300,000,000,000) on the internet in 2023 alone

The statistics are eye-opening, users sent a massive 241 million emails per minute this year, up from 231.4 million in 2022, while people Google searched at 6.3 million queries per minute, which is a 6.7% increase year-over-year.

Domo founder and CEO Josh James explains: "This year's findings reflect the ever-changing and fast-paced digital landscape, which has only been heightened by the rapid popularity of AI models such as ChatGPT. Data drives everything we do, from a quick search online or sending an email to checking the latest headlines on our way to work".

Continue reading: The world spent 1.3 trillion hours (that's 1,300,000,000,000) on the internet in 2023 alone (full post)

Netflix will soon be the first ad-supported streamer to offer downloads

Anthony Garreffa | Nov 1, 2023 10:33 PM CDT

Netflix has been playing around with its ad-supported plan for 12 months now, taking in a considerable amount of feedback from users and its partnership with Microsoft Advertising, and its continuing to evolve the ad-supported tier with downloads in the coming days.

Netflix will soon be the first ad-supported streamer to offer downloads

The streaming giant published a new article explaining its last year in Netflix ads, where it's pointed out that it's enhanced the member experience with upgraded features within their ads plans to include 1080p versus 720p video quality, two concurrent streams, and now downloads will be available "by the end of this week".

Netflix says that every member of their ad-supported plan will be able to download their favorite TV shows and movies, which will make Netflix the first -- and only -- ad-supported streamer to offer downloads. On top of that, the streaming company explained that starting in Q1 2024, their advertisers across the planet will be using their new binge ad (wt) format that has been analyzing the behavior of watching multiple episodes in a row. We'll see streamers enjoying 4 episodes in a row without ads versus the 3 in a row after which you're presented with an ad. That changes in the coming months.

Continue reading: Netflix will soon be the first ad-supported streamer to offer downloads (full post)

Elon Musk reveals X will get two new premium subscriptions soon - one of which ditches the ads

Darren Allan | Oct 20, 2023 11:44 AM CDT

Elon Musk has told us that X - or the social media site formerly known as Twitter, as we prefer to call it (well, it's snappier) - will be getting two new tiers of premium subscriptions.

Elon Musk reveals X will get two new premium subscriptions soon - one of which ditches the ads

As per Musk's tweet, one subscription tier will be pricier, but won't have any adverts, and the other will be cheaper (than the existing $8 plan) and will sport all features, but with no reduction in ads compared to the current level. (The $8 tier will halve ad numbers).

In short, denizens of X will have three choices of how they wish to pay - if they wish to pay a subscription at all.

Continue reading: Elon Musk reveals X will get two new premium subscriptions soon - one of which ditches the ads (full post)

Netflix hikes the price of its premium plan, will now cost you $23 per month

Anthony Garreffa | Oct 18, 2023 6:34 PM CDT

Netflix has just announced some price hikes to its Basic and Premium subscriber plans while keeping the prices of its ad-supported and Standard plans the same as they are now. The last monthly subscription price hike was in early 2022, so it's been a good while since Netflix increased its prices.

Netflix hikes the price of its premium plan, will now cost you $23 per month

Netflix butchered its Basic plan earlier this year, but will now (as a grandfathered customer) cost you $12 per month -- up from $10 per month -- while the Premium subscription is now $23 per month, up from $20 per month. The ad-supported and Standard plans will remain the same, at $7 and $15.49 monthly, respectively.

Recently, the streaming giant cracked down on password-sharing, which seems to have resulted in more monthly subscriptions. Netflix has reported 247.15 million subscribers, which is a chunky 10% annual increase. Netflix also reported a paid net subscriber addition of 8.76 million for Q3 2023, the biggest increase of the year in fact.

Continue reading: Netflix hikes the price of its premium plan, will now cost you $23 per month (full post)

Threads is getting an edit button and it won't cost you a penny

Oliver Haslam | Oct 12, 2023 2:45 PM CDT

If you've ever managed to misspell something in a post on the X social network and then cursed the fact that you can't edit the post, you're going to like what Mark Zuckerberg has just announced about Threads. That's the X competitor owned by Meta, the company Zuckerberg heads and it's just added an edit button to help people who just can't seem to get things right the first time.

Threads is getting an edit button and it won't cost you a penny

Sure, you can edit posts on X if you're an X Premium subscriber, but few people seem to be willing to pay the money needed to get in on the act. And if all you want to do is edit typos the X Premium subscription seems a bit pointless. However, over on Threads, you'll be able to edit posts for free. No subscription required. Everyone can do it.

Are you watching, Elon Musk?

Continue reading: Threads is getting an edit button and it won't cost you a penny (full post)

Reddit change means some users can no longer opt out of targeted adverts

Darren Allan | Sep 28, 2023 10:23 AM CDT

Reddit is changing the way it works in terms of the adverts the platform serves up to users, specifically making it so that some folks won't be able to opt out of targeted ads being served based on their activity.

Reddit change means some users can no longer opt out of targeted adverts

A bunch of changes are coming in, as announced by Reddit's global head of privacy and assurance, Jutta Williams (well spotted, The Verge).

The controversial bit, though, is that at least for some regions, Reddit is going to remove the choice to not have adverts personalized based on what you do on the platform.

Continue reading: Reddit change means some users can no longer opt out of targeted adverts (full post)

Linus Tech Tips stops video production after posting an apology video amid ongoing controversy

Kosta Andreadis | Aug 17, 2023 6:32 AM CDT

Popular review and tech YouTube media company Linus Tech Tips is in the midst of some pretty severe controversy at the moment, sparked by its poor handling of putting together a water-cooled PC using a prototype of a Billet Labs' Monoblock, which then exploded to include countless examples of inaccuracies and rushed content courtesy of an in-depth expose by competitor Gamers Nexus.

Linus Tech Tips stops video production after posting an apology video amid ongoing controversy

And that's a competitor in that both channels offer reviews and critiques of everything from CPUs to GPUs to cooling solutions. The Gamers Nexus video goes in-depth, highlighting and showcasing what feels like a mountain of erroneous reporting by Linus Tech Tips (LTT), from incorrect benchmark results to several critical inaccuracies. The video purports that this is due to LTT "rushing content out of the door" and focusing on quantity over quality.

Linus Tech Tips founder Linus Sebastian wrote a lengthy rebuttal, admitting to some of the mistakes and sloppiness in LTT's hardware reviews while admitting that not reviewing the prototype Billet Labs' Monoblock with a video card recommended by Billet and then selling it was a mistake, adding that "our intention wasn't to hurt anyone."

Continue reading: Linus Tech Tips stops video production after posting an apology video amid ongoing controversy (full post)

Instagram's Threads could be getting direct messages after all

Oliver Haslam | Jul 18, 2023 2:06 AM CDT

Instagram's Threads might be getting support for direct messages sooner than we had expected following the leak of an internal Instagram document.

Instagram's Threads could be getting direct messages after all

Instagram's top dog Adam Mosseri had previously said that Threads would not be getting a direct message feature any time soon, but a new document leaked from within the company and reported on by social network analyst Matt Navarra and Business Insider suggests that something might have changed.

While there is no indication of exactly when this new feature will come to the social network, but it's said to be "Coming Soon" according to the document. Direct messages aren't the only new feature that is on the way, though. The same document appears to have leaked the fact that trends and topics and improved search are also incoming.

Continue reading: Instagram's Threads could be getting direct messages after all (full post)

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