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Every child who's ever played a board game understands that the act of rolling dice yields an unpredictable result. In fact, that's why children's board games use dice in the first place: to ensure a random outcome that is -- from a macro point of view, at least -- about the same likelihood each time the die is thrown. Consider for a moment what would happen if someone replaced the dice used in one of those board games with weighted dice -- say dice that were 10 percent more likely to come up "6" than any other number. Would you notice? from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2MUeo9w

Since the industrial revolution, technology has changed society continually. Largely due to innovations in semiconductor electronics, software and computer technology, the pace of technological development has continued to accelerate over the past 50 years. Personal computers now fit into your pocket. You have access to people and information all over the world through the Internet. Anything up to the size of a small building can be printed. Just about everything -- from your house to your car -- is becoming intelligent. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2O00kjg

Amazon will unveil eight new Alexa-powered devices for the car and home before the end of the year, according to a report. They include a microwave oven, an amplifier, a receiver, a subwoofer and an in-car gadget. Amazon is expected to reveal some of the devices at an event later this month. All the devices will connect easily to Alexa, and some will have the voice assistant built in. The products mark Amazon's first move into the home appliances market, an area where competitors have already staked out their turf. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2xBOp0O

Linux and the open source business model are far different today than many of the early developers might have hoped. Neither can claim a rags-to-riches story. Rather, their growth cycles have been a series of hit-or-miss milestones. The Linux desktop has yet to find a home on the majority of consumer and enterprise computers. However, Linux-powered technology has long ruled the Internet and conquered the cloud and Internet of Things deployments. Both Linux and free open source licensing have dominated in other ways. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2OEBliy

Apple aimed to stretch its lead in the smartwatch market when it introduced its Apple Watch Series 4 last week. The redesigned and re-engineered line features a bigger display, thinner and smaller case, an interface with richer detail, and some innovative health applications enabled by new sensor, accelerometer and gyroscope hardware. "Between watchOS 5 and what they revealed to us last week, there's a lot of cool things to like about this," said Ramon T. Llamas, senior research analyst at IDC. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NnEy9O

The European Union has been stretching its wings. In the shadow of Brexit, it apparently has decided it has the real enemy of the people in its sights: social media companies and Google. France is even more aggressive than the EU overall, suggesting that the region's "right to be forgotten" law should apply worldwide. Given that it actually does fall within the legitimate purview of government, it is hard not to agree. In the United States, the administration appears to be gearing up to go to war with these companies, Google in particular. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NO9SxP

Google took on French lawyers at the European Union Court of Justice this week, in an effort to fend off expansion of the EU's "right to be forgotten" judgment. The EU's attempts to broaden the scope of that judgment would be "completely unenvisagable," and it could result in impositions on the values of different countries around the world, Google argued. The right to be forgotten directive, which the EU imposed six years ago, allows individuals to request the removal of content from a search engine. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2Mwo1ea

Apple unveiled three new iPhones at a Wednesday in Cupertino. Along with the iPhone Xs, iPhone Xs Max and iPhone XR, Apple introduced the Apple Watch 4. "Our mission started with personalizing technology for the desktop," said CEO Tim Cook, and it's "now personalizing it for every aspect of our lives." Apple aims "to put the customer at the center of everything we do," he added. The iPhone X is "the No. 1 smartphone in the world," and the Apple Watch is "not only the No. 1 smartwatch in the world, it's the No. 1 watch. Period." from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2CU49SP

Getting Sonos' top-shelf speakers to play nice with other connected devices in the home has been challenging in the past, but that's about to change. The company has announced the Sonos Sound Platform, which includes new APIs, developer tools and documentation to make it easier for Sonos products to operate with third-party hardware and software. Sonos also announced integration with IFTTT. "IFTTT support adds a way for Sonos to tie its offerings into wider smart home integrations," noted Jonathan Collins, research director at ABI Research. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2x4ZdFh

Widespread use of unpatched open source code in the most popular Android apps distributed by Google Play has caused significant security vulnerabilities, suggests an American Consumer Institute report. Thirty-two percent -- or 105 apps out of 330 of the most popular apps in 16 categories sampled -- averaged 19 vulnerabilities per app, according to the report. Researchers found critical vulnerabilities in many common applications, including some of the most popular banking, event ticket purchasing, sports and travel apps. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2OekOSj

"By using gender-neutral terms, we might change people's minds about what jobs they're qualified for and have a chance of getting. Getting rid of gender-biased terms helps level the playing field," said Heather Reed, VP of business development for G2 Crowd. "There are different phrases that we use and don't even think about it," she said, "like 'right-hand man,' or 'manning up,' or 'chatty Kathy.' We need to be cognizant of the subtle implications those terms have." from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2xWtAAV

Apple on Monday gave the world a peek at macOS Mojave, the next version of its operating system for Macintosh laptop and desktop computers. The preview took place at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference held at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California. Mojave has a mix of new features that add to its good looks and utility as a productivity tool. Among its highlights is a new Dark Mode -- a darkened color scheme designed to make content pop on the desktop while controls blend into the background. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2JfFf2P

Ninety-five percent of teens have access to a smartphone, and 45 percent of teens are almost constantly online -- but younger Internet users do not connect on Facebook as much as their older peers do, suggests a new Pew Research Center study. Although Facebook dominated social media across all age groups over the past decade, it has taken a backseat to YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat among today's teens. Facebook is still used by more than half of all teens aged 13 to 17, the survey results indicate. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2Jj79dn

Because both Qualcomm and Huawei are technology leaders in the wireless segment and have invested heavily in 5G, they often are pitted against one another in political, financial and even industry discussions. However, the truth is that the two companies complement one another and work together more than they compete against each another. Coming from different ends of the wireless ecosystem, they have been working on 5G from different perspectives -- Qualcomm primarily from the mobile device side, and Huawei from the infrastructure side. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2kBx6Hf

SparkyLinux is experiencing growing pains. You could say that this very capable Linux distribution was just too much of a great thing to last. Users previously had access to a continuously updated list of more than a dozen different download options. Depending on which variety you selected, you could choose from a wide range of desktop environments. The SparkyLinux community released three branches; each branch issued new versions with different release numbers and different software packages. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2LOEH1A

Apple has released iOS 11.4, the latest version of its mobile operating system, with some beefed-up features for its HomePod wireless smart speaker. The update allows users to create a stereo pair with two HomePods. It also supports multiroom streaming through AirPlay 2 connections. Music can be played in every room with a HomePod. It can be the same music in every room, or music can be tailored for each room. AirPlay can be controlled through iOS apps or the iOS Control Center, or through Apple's digital assistant, Siri. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2LK9PPV