the-end – Page 18

Apple admits the App and iTunes Stores are down for ‘all users’ (update)

Good luck trying to buy anything that isn’t hardware from Apple right now. The company recently confirmed on its services status dashboard that the iOS and Mac App Stores, as well as the iTunes Store, are “unavailable for all users.” The silver lining? Some people might still have luck picking up some new reading from the iBooks Store, but we wouldn’t count on it. Don’t be fooled, either: For now you can still sift through the stores’ wares and listings as though nothing happened, but you won’t actually be able to purchase anything. The first spate of issues started making the rounds at about 5AM Eastern, and Twitter’s slowly been swelling with confused, clamoring consumers ever since. At time of writing, Apple hasn’t yet said how far along it is in the recovery process, or when users can expect to access the stores once more. Update after the break This widespread outage is Apple’s second big burst of bad luck in as many days. After showing off a near-ready Apple Watch and a svelte new Macbook on Monday to considerable acclaim, a report from The Intercept outlined the CIA’s multi-year effort to crack the security of Apple’s devices and create a hush-hush customized version of XCode that would build security backdoors into apps created with it. Update: Apple’s issued statement to CNBC , saying that the fault was due to an internal DNS error: “We apologize to our customers experiencing problems with iTunes and other services this morning. The cause was an internal DNS error at Apple. We’re working to make all of the services available to customers as soon as possible, and we thank everyone for their patience.” Filed under: Mobile Comments Source: Apple , CNBC

Read the article:
Apple admits the App and iTunes Stores are down for ‘all users’ (update)

PS4’s next update brings Suspend for games, 60fps Share Play

Confirming the leaked information from last week , Sony announced tonight that it’s testing a big update for the PS4. Codenamed “Yukimura”, v2.50 it will add the Suspend/Resume feature we’ve been awaiting since before the system launched . That feature will let gamers put the system in standby, then come right back and resume playing like nothing happened. According to a blog post the feature will be supported by “almost” all PS4 games, although there’s no word yet on which ones. We’re also getting the ability to upgrade PSN sub-accounts to Master accounts (especially useful for gamers that have gone from kids to adults since the PS3 launched), 60fps Remote Play / Share Play and the ability to find the PSN account of your Facebook friends. Other features that leaked out have also been confirmed. As a part of an accessibility update, the PS4 will let gamers reassign buttons to suit their needs, but it doesn’t stop there. They can also enable text to speech, enlarge text, invert colors, increase contrast just on the UI, zoom into pictures and more. For players with any number of disabilities, these changes will be a significant help and we applaud Sony for adding these features. Besides that, Trophies are getting tweaked, with the ability to take a screenshot at the moment a trophy is earned so you can show it off. If you have a 0 percent completed game that you don’t intend to go back to, you can just delete it from the trophy list, and the ones that are left will have new sorting options. Finally, it’s also adding the ability to share video clips to Dailymotion. We’re still waiting for word on features like friend notifications and DLNA, but in the comments of the post, Sony’s Scott McCarthy says “We want PS4 versions of these features, not a cut/ paste from last gen. Stay tuned.” The only other question not answered so far is exactly when this update will arrive, but if the leaks continue to hold true then we should see it on PlayStation 4 consoles either this month or in April. Filed under: Gaming , HD , Sony , Facebook Comments Source: PlayStation Blog

Continued here:
PS4’s next update brings Suspend for games, 60fps Share Play

Panda’s antivirus software accidentally tried to eat itself

It wasn’t just Apple that had a day to forget yesterday — Spanish antivirus outfit Panda Security managed to give its products the digital equivalent of lupus. An update to the company’s various tools caused the software to think that parts of its own technology was a nefarious attacker. According to users on Reddit , Panda also (incorrectly) put Office, Chrome, Firefox and even Windows Updates on the hit list, wreaking havoc with people’s computers. Last update about issue with the signature file in Panda Cloud Office Protection and Retail 2015 http://t.co/Le2urbNLCM – Panda Security (@Panda_Security) March 12, 2015 The company quickly moved to address the problem, and has already deployed a fix to prevent your computers waging war on themselves. For those who have been affected, Panda is advising users not to restart their machine and wait for things to settle down. If you’re still having trouble, however, then you can download a tool on the company’s website that’ll help you put your digital life back together. [Thanks, Alex] Filed under: Software Comments Source: Reddit , Panda Security , (2)

Excerpt from:
Panda’s antivirus software accidentally tried to eat itself

‘Star Wars’ first spinoff movie is ‘Rogue One’, Episode VIII due May 2017

Because every movie must have its own cinematic universe, Disney is expanding the reach of Star Wars . While we wait for Episode VII to arrive later this year , today at a shareholder meeting Disney’s CEO Bob Iger announced details on two more movies in the saga. The first Star Wars movie taking place outside of the core saga will be Rogue One . It’s written by Chris Weitz ( Antz, About a Boy ), directed by Gareth Edwards ( Godzilla ), and so far has cast actress Felicity Jones ( The Theory of Everything ). It’s scheduled for release December 16, 2016, while the next big Star Wars saga film, Episode VIII will arrive the following spring. Written and directed by Rian Johnson ( Looper ), it’s coming to the screen on May 16, 2017 Filed under: Home Entertainment , HD Comments Source: Star Wars

Saturn’s icy moon possibly has warm waters that could foster life

Enceladus used to be just another icy moon until the Cassini spacecraft spotted geysers on its surface, spewing water 125 miles into the sky back in 2005. Now, after years of research, scientists have published two studies suggesting that these geysers are caused by hydrothermal vents or fissures that heat the water at the bottom of the 6-mile-deep ocean beneath the Saturn’s moon ice crust. Why is that important? Well, if the vents truly exist, the waters that surround them will contain chemicals and minerals necessary for life. Plus, the conditions around those vents will be similar to the environment surrounding Atlantic Ocean’s hydrothermal field — the place where life on Earth might have begun. The first study published in Nature explores the findings of the researchers who analyzed and studied samples from Saturn’s outermost ring within the past four years. They determined that the minuscule particles the spacecraft collected are grains of silica formed from water erupted by the geysers. Since these particles can only be formed by water with specific saline content, pH and temperatures around 200 degrees Fahrenheit, they strongly indicate the existence of hydrothermal activity beneath the moon’s oceans. The other study published in Geophysical Research Letters reinforces the belief that there are hydrothermal vents on the Saturn moon. It suggests that the methane content in gas and ice particles collected from southern geysers is a product of hydrothermal activities. Whether or not life actually exists on Enceladus, however, remains to be seen. Space agencies will probably need to send underwater robots similar to the ones they plan to send to Jupiter’s moon Europa to collect samples before they can confirm anything. If they do find signs of life, then Enceladus might be the key to helping us understand how life started on our planet. [Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech] Filed under: Science Comments Source: NASA , ESA , Nature , Geophysical Research Letters

More:
Saturn’s icy moon possibly has warm waters that could foster life

MacBook Air’s super fast disk speeds come from Samsung SSDs

Lost in the news of Retina-equipped, 12-inch MacBook was the arrival of all-new MacBook Air models with the latest Intel HD6000 graphics and CPUs. Apple also boasted that the 13-inch version has disk speeds “up to two times faster” than the last generation, and thanks to iFixit , we now know why. The bigger model packs a brand new 128GB M.2 x 4 SSD from frenemy Samsung — which owns the PCIe SSD market at the moment — giving it a stellar max read speed of 1, 285MB/s. That’s twice as fast as the SanDisk-equipped 11-inch MacBook Air, which still cooks along at a mere 668MB/s. The good news is that the SSDs are one of the few replaceable parts, and you could actually swap in the faster part on the smaller Air. That’s assuming you’re feeling brave — the MacBook air only rates 4 out of 10 on iFixit’s repairability scale. [Image credit: iFixit] Filed under: Laptops , Apple Comments Source: iFixit

Android 5.1 arrives with HD calling and safeguards for stolen phones

After weeks of teasing , it’s here: Google has officially unveiled Android 5.1 Lollipop . The new release focuses on support for features that usually extra software, such as multiple SIM cards (handy for prepaid service in countries like China and India) and higher-quality HD voice calls on networks like T-Mobile or Verizon. You can control your WiFi networks and Bluetooth devices from the quick settings area, too. However, the biggest deal may be something you’ll hopefully never have to use: Device Protection. Android 5.1 will let you require a Google account sign-in if your device is stolen, even if it’s reset to factory settings. In other words, a thief can’t simply wipe the storage on your phone and pawn it off. The feature will only be available on hardware shipping with Android 5.1 as well as the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9, but it could reduce the incentives to swipe your stuff in the long run. So, when can you get Android 5.1? You might see it quickly, depending on the gadgets you’re using. T-Mobile USA has already hinted that the Nexus 4 , 5 and 7 (2013) could get their 5.1 upgrades as early as today. It’s reasonable to presume that the Nexus 6 and 9 will be part of this first wave as well. As for everyone else? Be prepared to wait — HTC, Samsung and many other vendors are still finishing their 5.0 rollouts, so it could be a while longer before they catch up. Filed under: Cellphones , Tablets , Mobile , Google , T-Mobile Comments Source: Android Official Blog

Read the original post:
Android 5.1 arrives with HD calling and safeguards for stolen phones

California court says cops need warrants to get phone location data

A number of states already have laws preventing the police from snooping on your phone’s location history without a warrant, but they just got another big boost from a court ruling. A California-based federal judge has determined that cops need those warrants because you have a reasonable expectation that your position data will remain private, even if it’s vague info like the whereabouts of cell towers you’ve used. Cellphones can follow you anywhere and transmit a lot of information, the judge says. That location data may reveal much more about your life than you’d willingly share, especially at home and other private places where you have plenty of constitutional protections. This isn’t the first ruling of the sort and isn’t legally binding, so there’s no guarantees that officers across the US will ask nicely before trying to find out where you’ve been. However, it could have the police thinking twice about playing fast and loose with surveillance technology. They may not be so quick to track your phone if they know that they risk losing their case. Filed under: Cellphones , Mobile Comments Via: Motherboard Source: US Courts (Archive.org, PDF)

More:
California court says cops need warrants to get phone location data

Apple boosts MacBook Air and MacBook Pro lines with faster chips

Apple’s new smartwatch might be the focus of its ‘Spring Forward’ event, but the company still had time to surprise us with updates to its MacBook lineup. The all-new ‘Retina’ MacBook with its pressure-sensitive trackpad might get all the attention, but older MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models also got a few tweaks under the hood. They now boast Intel’s latest Broadwell Core i5 and i7 processors, more powerful graphics and improvements in the battery department, which means you can eke out over 10 hours with most of its new models. The new MacBook won’t be the only notebook to get Apple’s new Force Touch trackpad, either. The 13-inch MacBook Pro will enjoy the same tactile controls as its counterpart, allowing you to “feel” what’s happening on the screen. You’ll be able to pick up the 2.7 GHz Intel Core i5 model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of SSD storage today for $1, 299, rising to $1, 799 for for the 3.3 GHz version with 512GB of flash storage. The 11-inch MacBook Air can also be ordered today starting at $1, 099, rising to $1, 199 for the top-end model. Filed under: Laptops , Apple Comments

Read the original post:
Apple boosts MacBook Air and MacBook Pro lines with faster chips

Sony’s testing a PS4 update that lets you pick up your game where you left off

Sony’s PlayStation 4 has been a sales success since its launch and recently crossed 20 million units sold to customers. Of course, now that gamers have one they’re expecting new features and Sony might be about to pick up the pace. Posts on NeoGAF and Twitter reveal the PlayStation MVP program (apply for access here ) is being used to beta test a new update, and the feature list reportedly has some nice additions: Share Play at 60fps (up from 30fps), trophy tweaks, and an improved Suspend/Rest mode that will keep your games and apps ready to go when you return. That last one is a feature the Xbox One already has, and that we’ve been expecting since the PS4 was announced . @Wario64 I’ll do you one better… pic.twitter.com/uMRCjBI3tv – The C-Note Files (@cnpalmer75) March 6, 2015 Since the system launched Sony has added bits like PS Now, custom soundtracks and more , but most of its updates brought only vague promises of increased stability. Meanwhile the Xbox One system it’s competing with — which launched with software charitably described as half-baked — has been patching up feature holes with monthly-ish updates and a beta program letting owners test out features before they roll out widely. If Sony can speed up the curve on software rollouts to match its impressive hardware, everyone will be winning. Filed under: Gaming , HD , Sony Comments Via: Wario64 (Twitter) (1) , (2) Source: NeoGAF

View article:
Sony’s testing a PS4 update that lets you pick up your game where you left off

Ken May

Tag: the-end