December, 2015

• 15 December

  Perhaps the most dizzying Oculus Rift experience yet: Mountain climbing

  

  Now playing: Watch this: Watch us scale a beautiful cliff in this game for the… 2:06 Here’s an experience you probably won’t have in real life: climbing a famous mountain. Few humans ever attain the frosty summit of Mount Everest, or even pull themselves up the more hospitable cliffs of Rio de Janeiro. Video game …

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• 15 December

  Google Now on Tap adds new features, learns new languages

  

  Google is updating its Now on Tap feature, which is part of the Google Now voice-and-search assistant for Android phones. Starting today, it adds in a handful of handy new goodies, including more efficient package tracking of packages and flight status updates. Related Links Roasting Marshmallow: Your guide to Android 6.0 Here are the Android 6.0 Marshmallow features that matter …

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• 15 December

  Facebook is relaxing its real

  

  Until now, you had to use your “authentic” name on Facebook. That’s no longer the case. The world’s largest social network said it is relaxing its rules for how people identify themselves, allowing them to more easily use the name “people know them by.” In addition, the service said it would make it harder for harassers to ask Facebook to …

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• 15 December

  How to control your GoPro with your Apple Watch

  

  If you’re lucky enough to afford two of the world’s priciest gadgets, it would be nice if they could work together. I’m referring, of course, to the Apple Watch and the GoPro action camera. Thankfully, it’s now possible to use the former as a remote for the latter. Typically, operating a GoPro requires fiddling with a fairly unintuitive set of …

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• 15 December

  ​Google announces Australian launch for Android Pay

  

  Android users in Australia will soon be able to pay for purchases from their smartphone using Android Pay, after Google announced its mobile payments system will come to Australia in “the first half of 2016.” In a major coup for Google Australia the company has also managed to get Australia’s banks onside, announcing support from the likes of ANZ, Westpac …

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• 15 December

  Add ‘Star Wars’ lightsaber effects to your videos for free

  

  You might not have heard, but there’s a new “Star Wars” movie opening later this week. Whether it’s amazing, pretty good or just “meh,” chances are good it’s going to inspire a lot more fan films. And, of course, the most important ingredient in such a film is a lightsaber duel. But who has the software and editing tools necessary …

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• 15 December

  How to toggle Google Now on Tap off and on

  

  Android Marshmallow launched with an enhanced version of the Google Now assistant that can work within almost any app on your device. Dubbed Google Now on Tap, it is supposed to serve as your personal assistant, getting you directions, looking up ratings or answering questions. During setup of your device, you may have skipped enabling this feature. Alternatively, you may …

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• 15 December

  Twitter unleashes Moments in the UK

  

  Twitter users in the United Kingdom can now tap into the much-hyped Moments feature to help tame all that tweeting. The social network launched on Tuesday a UK version of Moments, which uses curated tweets, videos and images to track in real time major trending events including breaking news, concerts and sporting events. UK users can follow the latest on …

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• 15 December

  Germany is putting an end to hate speech on the Internet

  

  It’s said there’s always someone doing something bad on the Internet. Now, Germany is doing something about it. The European nation reached an agreement with Facebook, Twitter and Google to remove hate speech from the Internet within 24 hours of it being reported, according to reports from the Associated Press and AFP. Under the agreement, it will be easier for …

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• 14 December

  Washington Redskins fumble, post to Twitter ‘fan’ account

  

  Did the Washington Redskins create a fake “fan” Twitter account to drum up support for its controversial name? Could be. On Sunday, the Twitter account @RedskinsFacts, an account purportedly for a community of fans, posted a tweet that should have run on the team’s official account, @Redskins. The tweet was quickly deleted and then reposted to @Redskins. A Washington Post …

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