Welcome to Hard Fork Basics, a collection of tips, tricks, guides, and advice to keep you up to date in the cryptocurrency and blockchain world. Something major is happening to Bitcoin in 480 days – the Halvening. Bitcoin is created when the blockchain rewards the individual (or group) for validating transactions. The network gives Bitcoin to miners for
Read MoreThe 3D print by [critsrandom] in the image above may not look like much at first glance, until one realizes that the 90 degree overhang has no supports whatsoever. Never mind the messy bottom surface, and never mind that the part shown might avoid the problem entirely with some simple supports or a different print
Read MoreSomething special happened today. Samsung, a tech company you definitely know, announced it’s mass-producing 1TB flash storage chips for mobile devices. In other words, you’ll soon be able to buy phones with a terabyte of storage space. When I asked people about this news, there were two main schools of thought. The first was a deep apathy focusing on why
Read MoreThe Mac Lock Screen is a land of wasted opportunity. My MacBook, for example, users valuable screen real estate to convey a message that anyone who’s used a Mac for more than a few days doesn’t need to see: “Touch ID or Enter Password.” I’d like to personalize that. In my case, I’m going to
Read MoreReuters: Sources: UAE hacked iPhones of activists, diplomats, and rival foreign leaders using a spying tool called Karma, which exploited an iMessage vulnerability — WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A team of former U.S. government intelligence operatives working for the United Arab Emirates hacked … Sources: UAE hacked iPhones of activists, diplomats, and rival foreign leaders using
Read MoreOpen-Source Extruded Profile systems are a mature breed these days. With Openbuilds, Makerslide, and Openbeam, we’ve got plenty of systems to choose from; and Amazon and Alibaba are coming in strong with lots of generic interchangeable parts. These open-source framing systems have borrowed tricks from some decades-old industry players like Rexroth and 80/20. But from
Read MoreTal Shahaf / Globes Online: Israeli startup Pliops, which develops cloud storage processors, raises $30M Series B led by Softbank Ventures Asia — Pliops will use the funds to accelerate development of its storage processor technology for cloud storage and database applications. — Israeli cloud storage solutions … Israeli startup Pliops, which develops cloud storage
Read MoreFinSMEs: Fortanix, which provides security by encrypting applications and data at runtime, raises $23M Series B led by Intel Capital — Fortanix, Inc., a Mountain View, CA-based runtime encryption technology company, closed a $23m Series B round of funding. — The round, which brings total funding to $31m … Fortanix, which provides security by encrypting
Read MoreKurt Wagner / Recode: Apple says Facebook’s research app is a “clear breach of their agreement with Apple” and has revoked their enterprise certificate — Facebook will stop its “market research” program that was paying users in exchange for their mobile data. — Facebook is at the center … Apple says Facebook's research app is
Read MoreThe Mighty Vibe looks like an iPod Shuffle but works with Spotify. This code saves you 20 percent. Plus: a PlayStation game bundle for as little as $1 and the Google Home Mini for $29! Listen to your Spotify playlists offline for – CNET Source: CNet
Read MoreFacebook said it is shutting the app down for Apple users. Facebook paid teens to use research app that could monitor online activity and communication Source: Washington Post Tech
Read MoreIt’s the Faustian pact for the 21st century, except this time the devil is Facebook. As unearthed by TechCrunch’s Josh Constine, the world’s biggest social network has been paying people (including 13-year-olds) to install a sketchy mobile VPN that spies on everything they do. The VPN app, called Facebook Research, but referred to as “Project
Read MoreApple: Apple Music subscribers can stream music without paying for Wi-Fi on domestic American Airlines flights in the US starting February 1 — Apple Music Subscribers can Stream Over 50 Million Songs, Playlists and Music Videos on US Flights — Starting Friday, Apple Music subscribers can enjoy … Apple Music subscribers can stream music without
Read MoreThis Sunday, the Boston-based startup will air the first Super Bowl ad for a home security company, ever. SimpliSafe is running a Super Bowl ad for its DIY home security kit – CNET Source: CNet
Read MoreVisor just raised millions in financing backing a simple premise: that the aid of a qualified tax professional shouldn’t be a privilege of only the rich and famous or cost an arm and a leg. Right now, you can sample Visor and get help completing your next tax return for just $89, over half off
Read MoreThe e-commerce giant posted numbers that pale in comparison to earlier surging figures, a sign of the country’s economic slowdown. Alibaba, an Icon of China’s Growth, Now Reflects Its Slowdown Source: NY Times Tech
Read MoreMicrosoft wants to make it easier for organizations to deal with new privacy regulations. Struggling to comply with GDPR? Microsoft 365 rolls out new privacy dashboards Source: ZDNet Microsoft
Read MoreBusiness Wire: Alibaba Q3: revenue up 41% YoY, its weakest pace in three years, to ~$17B, driven by cloud computing revenue, up 84% YoY at $962M; net income up 33% to $4.5B — HANGZHOU, China—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA) today announced its financial results for the quarter ended December 31, 2018. Alibaba Q3:
Read MoreBrian Fung / Washington Post: Spam monitoring service Hiya: Americans received 26.3B robocalls in 2018, up 46% from ’17; FCC said it got 52,000 complaints regarding Caller ID spoofing in ’18 — Americans are now getting so many robo-calls on a regular basis that many are simply choosing not to answer the phone altogether. Spam
Read MoreWhile the era of the TiVo (and frankly, the idea of recording TV broadcasts) has largely come to a close, there are still dedicated users out there who aren’t quite ready to give up on the world’s best known digital video recorder. One such TiVo fanatic is [Gavan McGregor], who recently tried to put a
Read MoreIf you’ve ever wondered if your phone is spying on you, you’re not alone. One of the most hotly debated topics in technology today is the amount of data that firms surreptitiously gather about us online. You may well have shared the increasingly common experience of feeling creeped out by ads for something you recently
Read MoreGertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss / Reuters: CipherTrace: the amount of cryptocurrencies stolen from exchanges and scammed from investors surged 400%+ in 2018 to $1.7B — NEW YORK (Reuters) – Cryptocurrencies stolen from exchanges and scammed from investors surged more than 400 percent in 2018 to around $1.7 billion … CipherTrace: the amount of cryptocurrencies stolen from exchanges
Read MoreFor those who want branding and aesthetic uniformity from their external hard drives. Seagate's officially licensed PS4 game drive adds 2TB storage – CNET Source: CNet
Read MoreIf recent increases are any indication, chances are your next iDevice will cost even more. We analyzed how prices have shot up and offer ways to buy for less. Tech Fix: How to Save on Your Next Apple Purchase Source: NY Times Tech
Read MoreRob Marvin / PCMag: Interview with Alphabet’s Jigsaw product manager CJ Adams on how its AI-assisted Perspective tool, used by some publishers to weed out abusive comments, works — The Perspective API from Jigsaw, part of Google parent company Alphabet, gives online comment mods an evolving set of tools to combat abuse and harassment. Interview
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