Technology
Hey Beeple and visitors to Beehaw: I think we need to have a discussion about !technology@beehaw.org, community culture, and moderation. First, some of the reasons that I think we need to have this conversation. 1. Technology got big *fast* and has stayed Beehaw's most active community. 1. Technology gets more reports (about double in the last month by a rough hand count) than the next highest community that I moderate (Politics, and this is during election season in a month that involved a disastrous debate, an assassination attempt on a candidate, and a major party's presumptive nominee dropping out of the race) 1. For a long time, I and other mods have felt that Technology at times isn’t living up to the Beehaw ethos. More often than I like I see comments in this community where users are being abusive or insulting toward one another, often without any provocation other than the perception that the other user’s opinion is wrong. Because of these reasons, we have decided that we may need to be a little more hands-on with our moderation of Technology. Here’s what that might mean: 1. Mods will be more actively removing comments that are unkind or abusive, that involve personal attacks, or that just have really bad vibes. a. We will always try to be fair, but you may not always agree with our moderation decisions. Please try to respect those decisions anyway. We will generally try to moderate in a way that is a) proportional, and b) gradual. b. We are more likely to respond to particularly bad behavior from off-instance users with pre-emptive bans. This is **not** because off-instance users are worse, or less valuable, but simply that we aren't able to vet users from other instances and don't interact with them with the same frequency, and other instances may have less strict sign-up policies than Beehaw, making it more difficult to play whack-a-mole. 1. We will need you to report early and often. The drawbacks of getting reports for something that doesn't require our intervention are outweighed by the benefits of us being able to get to a situation before it spirals out of control. By all means, if you’re not sure if something has risen to the level of violating our rule, say so in the report reason, but I'd personally rather get reports early than late, when a thread has spiraled into an all out flamewar. a. That said, please don't report people for *being wrong*, unless they are doing so in a way that is actually dangerous to others. It would be better for you to *kindly* disagree with them in a *nice* comment. b. Please, feel free to try and de-escalate arguments and remind one another of the humanity of the people behind the usernames. Remember to Be(e) Nice even when disagreeing with one another. Yes, *even Windows users*. 1. We will try to be more proactive in stepping in when arguments are happening and trying to remind folks to Be(e) Nice. a. This isn't always possible. Mods are all volunteers with jobs and lives, and things often get out of hand before we are aware of the problem due to the size of the community and mod team. b. This isn't always helpful, but we try to make these kinds of gentle reminders our first resort when we get to things early enough. It’s also usually useful in gauging whether someone is a good fit for Beehaw. If someone responds with abuse to a gentle nudge about their behavior, it’s generally a good indication that they either aren’t aware of or don’t care about the type of community we are trying to maintain. I know our [philosophy posts](https://docs.beehaw.org/docs/) can be long and sometimes a little meandering (personally that's why I love them) but do take the time to read them if you haven't. If you can't/won't or just need a reminder, though, I'll try to distill the parts that I think are most salient to this particular post: 1. Be(e) nice. By nice, we don't mean merely being polite, or in the surface-level "oh bless your heart" kind of way; we mean be *kind*. 1. Remember the human. The users that you interact with on Beehaw (and most likely other parts of the internet) are *people*, and *people* should be treated kindly and in good-faith whenever possible. 1. Assume good faith. Whenever possible, and until demonstrated otherwise, assume that users don't have a secret, evil agenda. If you think they might be saying or implying something you think is bad, *ask them to clarify* (kindly) and give them a chance to explain. Most likely, they've communicated themselves poorly, or you've misunderstood. After all of that, it's possible that you may disagree with them still, but we can disagree about Technology and still give one another the respect due to other humans.
Thought this was kinda epic. But if everyone disagrees, feel free to delete. Voice actors should definitely be getting residuals though.
www.bbc.com
Netflix is starting to raise prices in some countries as growth spurred by its crackdown on password sharing starts to fade. The film and TV streaming giant said it had already lifted subscription fees in Japan and parts of Europe as well as the Middle East and Africa over the last month. Changes in Italy and Spain are now being rolled-out. In its latest results, Netflix announced that it had added 5.1 million subscribers between July and September - ahead of forecasts but the smallest gain in more than a year.
fortune.com
Earlier this year, two obscure companies from Northern Louisiana brokered a multimillion-dollar deal with former President Donald Trump’s Truth Social and walked away with a finders’ fee valued at $155 million. The companies—WorldConnect IPTV and JedTec—formed a joint venture, named WorldConnect Technologies, which served as the middleman between Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) and Perception TV CDN, the company hired to build the tech infrastructure needed to power Truth Social’s foray into video streaming. To better understand the nature of TMTG’s burgeoning media holdings and the companies building it, Fortune examined dozens of business filings from the U.S. and abroad, and spoke to seven sources that previously worked with Perception’s cofounders, its current chair Matjaz “Matt” Vidmar and CEO John Mills. What emerged from these sources was a “no questions asked” policy at Perception and previous companies connected to Vidmar and Mills that led them to work with Chinese and Russian state-backed propaganda networks, Islamist television channels, and Iranian corporations. TMTG chose to work with Perception despite the fact that in the past it did business with now-sanctioned entities. [...] **TV channels for Russia, China, and Islamic fundamentalists** Vidmar’s previous company, Vision247, also had a history of working with clients that ran afoul of regulators [...] The company exhibited little discernment regarding who it would work with, striking deals with Russia Today (RT), China Central Television (CCTV), and several Islamist networks. [...] RT and CCTV are the state-backed media outlets of Russia and China respectively. Vision247 also carried the broadcast channels of the Islamist media companies Peace TV and Almajd Network. Almajd is an Arabic-language media company that has close ties to the Salafi branch of Islamic fundamentalism. In 2019, Peace TV’s content led to it being banned from broadcasting in the U.K. in 2019 for inciting violence and hate speech. Peace TV was a client of Vision247 at the time it was booted from British airwaves. [...]
**This is a review of the book “Cloud Policy" by Jennifer Holt, Professor and Chair of Film and Media Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a former Fellow with the Center for Democracy & Technology in Washington, DC.**__ **An open access edition of the book can be freely downloaded on the linked site.**__ Cloud Policy is a policy history that chronicles how the past century of regulating media infrastructure in the United States has eroded global civil liberties as well as democratic principles and the foundation of the public interest. Jennifer Holt explores the long arc of regulating broadband pipelines, digital platforms, and the data centers that serve as the cloud's storage facilities—an evolution that is connected to the development of nineteenth- and twentieth-century media and networks, including railroads, highways, telephony, radio, and television. In the process, Cloud Policy unearths the lasting inscriptions of policy written for an analog era and markets that no longer exist on the contemporary governance of digital cloud infrastructure. Cloud Policy brings together numerous perspectives that have thus far remained largely siloed in their respective fields of law, policy, economics, and media studies. The resulting interdisciplinary argument reveals a properly scaled view of the massive challenge facing policymakers today. Holt also addresses the evolving role of the state in the regulation of global cloud infrastructure and the growing influence of corporate gatekeepers and private sector self-governance. Cloud policy's trajectory, as Holt explains, has enacted a transformation in the cultural valuation of infrastructure as civic good, turning it into a tool of commercial profit generation. Despite these current predicaments, the book's historical lens ultimately helps the reader to envision restorative interventions and new forms of activism to create a more equitable future for infrastructure policy.
Currently I have a 40 inch LG that I bought so long ago that I don't even remember, but with where I sit to view it reading text it a little difficult for me. Playing games on it is more or less a no go. I'd also like to upgrade to hdr and enjoy some 4k movies on a display that will let them shine. Accurate colours are something that is more important to me than not. My budget would be CAD $1000-$2000. I sit about 3m away from where the tv would be mounted and I don't have the best eyesight so leaning on the larger side would be better? I find looking up recommendations on youtube to be pretty difficult. There are a lot of channels that talk about them but they end up only really recommending stuff out of my price range or they conflict with what other people had said about those tvs. Some people recommend the more budget oriented options, others say to stay away like the plague! Edit: One hard requirement is that it must be usable if it's not connected to any network. The television will NEVER connect to the internet. If I need to connect it to get past a nag screen that is a deal breaker. For all intents and purposes, it will be a dumb tv. As dumb as I can make it. As dumb as they come.
www.quippd.com
We’ve been anticipating it for years,1 and it’s finally happening. Google is finally killing uBlock Origin – with a note on their web store stating that the ...
www.bbc.com
Google has signed a deal to use small nuclear reactors to generate the vast amounts of energy needed to power its artificial intelligence (AI) data centres.The company says the agreement with Kairos Power will see it start using the first reactor this decade and bring more online by 2035.
cross-posted from: https://feditown.com/post/744772
www.theguardian.com
cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/3885525 > Taiwan is expected to have access to low earth orbit satellite internet service by the end of the month, a step the government says is crucial in case a Chinese attack cripples the island’s communications. > > The forthcoming service is via a contract between Taiwan’s main telecoms company, Chunghwa, and a UK-European company, Eutelsat OneWeb, signed last year, and marks a new milestone in Taiwan’s efforts to address technological vulnerabilities, particularly its internet access, after attempts to get access to Elon Musk’s Starlink service collapsed. > > Chunghwa co-president Alex Chien said 24-hour coverage was expected by the end of the month, with commercial access as soon as sufficient bandwidth was reached. > > Taiwan is under the threat of attack or invasion by China, which claims historical sovereignty over Taiwan and has vowed to annex it, by military force if necessary. In the meantime it is under a near constant barrage of cyber-attacks, and has had some of its 15 undersea cables connecting it and its outer islands to the world cut multiple times, usually by accidental anchor snags from passing ships.
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/21439893 > Meta has a Palestine problem. If you use Facebook or Instagram, you’ve probably seen the censorship yourself. Dena Takruri uncovers an internal culture of censorship, intimidation and fear within Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook. > > She speaks to Meta employees who’ve tried to fix the problem or speak out, and say they were silenced or even fired. She also investigates Meta leaders’ deep ties to Israel, which may explain why it’s suppressing and censoring Palestine content for billions of users around the world.
www.theregister.com
At this point, Matt has to go. Open source is open source. It's that simple. WP Engine should donate more, but capitalism is all about exploitation and that's what they were doing. That's not on WordPress to right as a wrong. When they were selling free tier users' content to LLMs, I didn't see them offering to pay 8% forward to users.
www.theregister.com
This is pointless, as we get European stuff, but I guess it makes sense for those few random things that are made just for the UK.
www.theregister.com
Microsoft's LinkedIn will update its User Agreement next month with a warning that it may show users generative AI content that's inaccurate or misleading. [...] ]The relevant passage, which takes effect on November 20, 2024, reads: > Generative AI Features: By using the Services, you may interact with features we offer that automate content generation for you. The content that is generated might be inaccurate, incomplete, delayed, misleading or not suitable for your purposes. Please review and edit such content before sharing with others. Like all content you share on our Services, you are responsible for ensuring it complies with our Professional Community Policies, including not sharing misleading information. In short, LinkedIn will provide features that can produce automated content, but that content may be inaccurate. Users are expected to review and correct false information before sharing said content, because LinkedIn won't be held responsible for any consequences.
globalvoices.org
A US web-hosting company has been issued a notice by Hong Kong police asking it to take down the website of Flow HK, a media outlet co-founded by pro-democracy activists who have left the city, on national security grounds. Automattic, the company behind web content management system WordPress, told HKFP on October 7 2024 that it had received a take-down demand from Hong Kong authorities relating to the website of Flow HK. The company said it had not complied with the order and had notified the site owner. In an emailed reply to HKFP, Sunny Cheung — one of the co-founders of Flow HK — said Hong Kong police had said the outlet was suspected of violating a national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020 and a separate security law enacted in March, the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, known locally as Article 23. Cheung said police suspected Flow HK of committing offences including secession, subversion, and collusion under the Beijing-imposed security law, as well as sedition under Article 23. [...] Flow HK was founded in early 2021. According to its mission written in Chinese on the website, the publication aims to connect the Hong Kong diaspora and “pass on the torch of resistance.” Other editorial members include wanted activist Ray Wong, an ex-leader of political group Hong Kong Indigenous who was granted political asylum in Germany in 2018, as well as digital rights activist Glacier Kwong, who also lives in Germany.
YouTube video: https://youtu.be/uSGVk2KVokQ Invidious same video from YouTube without YouTube client: https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=uSGVk2KVokQ Video description: --- Pls Google do something.
edition.cnn.com
Though it consistently ranks among the world’s safest big cities, police in the Asian financial hub say the new cameras are needed to fight crime – and have raised the possibility of equipping them with powerful facial recognition and artificial intelligence tools. That’s sparked alarm among some experts who see it as taking Hong Kong one step closer to the pervasive surveillance systems of mainland China, warning of the technology’s repressive potential. Hong Kong police had previously set a target of installing 2,000 new surveillance cameras this year, and potentially more than that each subsequent year. The force plans to eventually introduce facial recognition to these cameras, security chief Chris Tang told local media in July – adding that police could use AI in the future to track down suspects. [...] Hong Kong police have repeatedly pointed to other jurisdictions, including Western democracies, that also make wide use of surveillance cameras for law enforcement. For instance, Singapore has 90,000 cameras and the United Kingdom has more than seven million, Tang told local newspaper Sing Tao Daily in June. [...] “The difference is how the technology is being used,” said Samantha Hoffman, a nonresident fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research who has studied China’s use of technology for security and propaganda. Places like the United States and the UK may have problems with how they implement that technology, too – but “this is fundamentally different… It has to do specifically with the system of government, as well as the way that the party state… uses the law to maintain its own power,” said Hoffman. [...] Hong Kong has more than 54,500 public CCTV cameras used by government bodies – about seven cameras per 1,000 people, according to an estimate by Comparitech, a UK-based technology research firm.~~
Summary: > In the video, Mrwhosetheboss argues that Google Search has become worse. He believes that Google has prioritized sponsored links and shopping ads over organic search results. As a result, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find the information you are looking for on Google. He also criticizes Google for its use of generative AI, which he believes is not accurate and could eventually replace the need to visit other websites.
therecord.media
cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/3758180 > [Archived link](https://web.archive.org/web/20241005085234/https://therecord.media/tiktok-more-dangerous-ukraine-telegram) > > **Chinese social media giant TikTok is “more dangerous” to Ukraine in terms of spreading Russian propaganda and disinformation than the Russia-founded messaging app Telegram, according to Alina Aleksieeva, the deputy head of Ukraine’s State Center for Countering Disinformation (CPD).** > > [...] > > “We often perceive Telegram as the primary culprit, given its abundance of anonymous Russian channels and the impersonation of Ukrainian ones,” said Svitlana Slipchenko, deputy executive director of the data analytics platform Vox Ukraine. > > “But the problem extends beyond Telegram — fake news is widespread on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads,” she added. “The danger is focusing too narrowly on one platform while Russian propaganda continues to thrive across the entire digital landscape.” > > Earlier this year, the CPD published a list of over 80 TikTok accounts used for Russian disinformation. The list includes official accounts of Russian state media, such as TASS, Sputnik, and RIA Novosti. > > [...] > > Ukraine has previously considered banning TikTok. The app’s future in the U.S. is uncertain due to concerns that ByteDance may have ties to the Chinese government. U.S. authorities have also accused the app of spreading harmful content and misinformation and posing privacy risks. > > [...] > > Ukraine has been paying close attention to foreign social media apps due to the risks they pose to its users amid the ongoing war. Earlier in September, Ukraine banned Telegram on official devices used by state and security officials, military personnel, and employees of critical infrastructure facilities. > > [...]
www.forbes.com
cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/3693467 > Chinese social media giant Bytedance was dealt a stinging blow last September when Ireland’s data privacy watchdog issued it a record $370 million fine over its failure to properly safeguard the personal data of children using its app TikTok. New corporate filings suggest that Bytedance expects more fines like this to come. The company has explicitly set aside $1 billion to cover future fines from European privacy regulators. > > Bytedance has faced a barrage of lawsuits and investigations from regulators around the world over TikTok’s addictive design, handling of user data and lack of safeguards for teenage users. Only yesterday, the attorneys general of thirteen states and the District of Columbia filed separate lawsuits claiming that TikTok was designed to be used compulsively and had harmed children and teens as a result. > > The $1 billion provision for future fines was revealed in corporate accounts for TikTok’s European operations filed this week with the United Kingdom’s Companies House. The accounts also showed that TikTok’s European revenues surged to $4.57 billion last year, up from $2.6 billion in 2022. Its losses have also nearly tripled to $1.3 billion in 2023, up from $512 million. > > [...] > > The scale of total fines and penalties facing TikTok on the European continent could be even larger than the $1 billion provision in its 2023 accounts. The European Commission opened an investigation into TikTok under the Digital Services Act (DSA) in February 2024. The European Union can fine companies up to 6% of global revenue for breaches of the DSA, or impose a ban. >
For the first time, internal TikTok communications have been made public that show a company unconcerned with the harms the app poses for American teenagers. This is despite its own research validating many child safety concerns. The confidential material was part of a more than two-year investigation into TikTok by 14 attorneys general that led to state officials suing the company on Tuesday. The lawsuit alleges that TikTok was designed with the express intention of addicting young people to the app. The states argue the multi-billion-dollar company deceived the public about the risks. In each of the separate lawsuits state regulators filed, dozens of internal communications, documents and research data were redacted — blacked-out from public view — since authorities entered into confidentiality agreements with TikTok. But in one of the lawsuits, filed by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, the redactions were faulty. This was revealed when Kentucky Public Radio copied-and-pasted excerpts of the redacted material, bringing to light some 30 pages of documents that had been kept secret. [...] **TikTok’s own research states that “compulsive usage correlates with a slew of negative mental health effects like loss of analytical skills, memory formation, contextual thinking, conversational depth, empathy, and increased anxiety**,” according to the suit. In addition, the documents show that TikTok was aware that “compulsive usage also interferes with essential personal responsibilities like sufficient sleep, work/school responsibilities, and connecting with loved ones.” **TikTok: Time-limit tool aimed at ‘improving public trust,’ not limiting app use** The unredacted documents show that TikTok employees were aware that too much time spent by teens on social media can be harmful to their mental health. The consensus among academics is that they recommend one hour or less of social media usage per day. The app lets parents place time limits on their kids’ usage that range from 40 minutes to two hours per day. TikTok created a tool that set the default time prompt at 60 minutes per day. [...]
www.forbes.com
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/21232355 > At Apple’s secretive Global Police Summit at its Cupertino headquarters, cops from seven countries learned how to use a host of Apple products like the iPhone, Vision Pro and CarPlay for surveillance and policing work.
Edit: I was able to find the class action court document: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69225297/lakes-v-ubisoft-inc/ and what appears to be the link to join the class action: [INVESTIGATION ALERT: Levi & Korsinsky, LLP Investigates Ubisoft (EPA:UBI) Video Game Purchases](https://www.accesswire.com/925572/investigation-alert-levi-korsinsky-llp-investigates-ubisoft-epa-ubi-video-game-purchases-and) > Levi & Korsinsky, LLP is investigating whether affected customers are entitled to compensation. If you made a purchase on the Ubisoft website, you may be entitled to compensation. There is no cost or obligation to participate. Follow the link below to find out: > > [https://zfrmz.com/c9mbGuGU3q4qBDKouYOU](https://pr.report/34i8)
www.theguardian.com
Interesting, I wonder if its due to making sure the messages are traceable and staff are accountable. As stated by the authorities Or is there something they know that we dont? Lemmy has made me paranoid about the security of messaging apps.. (I have no idea how to read code so I wouldn’t have a clue)
www.bbc.com
cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/3659714 > Chinese police have detained four workers of the Taiwanese iPhone maker, Foxconn, in circumstances Taipei has described as "strange". > > The employees were arrested in Zhengzhou in Henan province on "breach of trust" charges, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement. > > [...] > > Taiwanese authorities suggested the detentions may be a case of "abuse of power" by Chinese police officers. > > And said the case undermines the confidence of businesses operating in China. > > In October last year, China's tax and land authorities launched an investigation into the company. > > At that time, Foxconn's founder Terry Gou was running as an independent candidate in Taiwan's presidential election. > > Taiwan has urged its citizens to "avoid non-essential travel" to the mainland as well as Hong Kong and Macau after China unveiled guidelines in June detailing criminal punishments for what Beijing described as diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists. > > [...]