June 24, 2016 - The WAN Show Document

[LinusTech]

 

Soundcloud link: 

 

 

Main News Topics

Researchers Build a 1000 Core Processor

Source 1: https://www.engadget.com/2016/06/19/researchers-build-1000-core-processor/

Source 2: http://bgr.com/2016/06/21/most-powerful-processor-uc-davis-kilo-core/

• UC Davis has developed a KiloCore CPU that packs 1000 cores

  • Useful for parallel tasks like encryption, going through data and encoding videos

  • Can handle 115 billion instructions per second

  • Cores transfer data directly among each other, rather than on a shared cache of memory

  • Each core can shut down when not in use

    • While only using 0.7W of power

    • Could run of an AA battery

• University had IBM manufacture the chip on a 32-nanometer process

 

YouTube TOS Update - Harassment and Cyberbullying

Source 1: http://www.dexerto.com/news/2016/06/21/changes-youtube-

Source 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/letsplay/comments/4oyv9g/youtube_tos_update_

Source 3: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2802268?hl=en

• TERMS OF SERVICE

• “In cases where harassment crosses the line into a malicious attack it can be reported and will be removed”

• Harassment may include:

  • Abusive videos, comments, messages

  • Revealing someone’s personal information

  • Maliciously recording someone without their consent

  • Deliberately posting content in order to humiliate someone

  • Making hurtful and negative comments/videos about another person

  • Unwanted sexualization, which encompasses sexual harassment or sexual bullying in any form

  • Incitement to harass other users or creators

• Can report people using YouTube’s reporting tool

 

Twitch Brings CFAA & Trademark Claim Against Bot Operators

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614491-twitch-brings-cfaa-tr OP: Master Disaster

Source 2: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20160617/17441034737/disappointing-twitch-bri

Source 3: http://www.polygon.com/2016/6/18/11968762/twitch-viewbots-lawsuit

Source 4: http://www.pcgamer.com/twitch-sues-bot-makers/

• Last Friday, Twitch filed a lawsuit against seven individuals/organizations that are in the business of selling bots

  • Bots designed to artificially inflate the viewer and follower counts of Twitch streamers

• Bots are a “persistent frustration,” Marketing SVP Matthew DiPietro wrote in a blog post announcing the action, announcing they have “created a very real problem”

• Bots have been used to deny streamers partnerships, or harass other broadcasters

• Twitch employs “technological solutions” that detect and remove false viewers, or bots

• The lawsuit represents a “third layer,” DiPietro said

• Among the allegations is federal trademark infringement, unfair competition, cybersquatting, fraud, breach of contract, and tortious interference

• Twitch is seeking injunctions against the bot-makers

  • Transfer of possession of their domains

  • Order barring payment processors from providing them with service

  • Restitution, legal fees, punitive damages

 

The UK has voted to leave the European Union

Source 1: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-32810887

Source 2: theguardian.com/politics...

• *Important note* the referendum result is NOT legally binding, but it would take an extreme circumstance to have the house of commons or another government entity overrule a “leave” vote by the general populus. With that said, the EU’s top leaders have said they expect the UK to act “as soon as possible, however painful that process may be,” and that there will be “no renegotiation”

• A referendum vote passed on Thursday, June 23, for the UK to leave the EU

• 71.8% of eligible voters attended (more than 30 million voters), and “leave the EU” won in a 52% to 48% vote

  • England voted 53.4% leave to 46.6% stay

  • Wales voted 52.5% leave and 47.5% stay

  • Scotland and Northern Irelian both backed staying in the EU

  • Scotland voted 62% stay to 38% leave

  • Northern Ireland voted 55.8% stay and 44.2% leave

• This is the first time a member state has ever left the EU

• What is the European Union?

  • Economical and political partnership involved 28 European countries

  • Began after World War 2 to foster economic co-operation

  • Has grown since then to become a “single market” allowing goods, services, money, and people to move between members as if they were moving within a single country

  • Overall goal is to boost trade, create jobs, and lower prices

• Why did the majority of people in the UK vote to leave?

  • Claimed that they were being held back by the EU

  • Said that it imposed too many rules on businesses and charged billions of pounds per year in membership fees for little return

  • Also wanted Britain to take back full control of its borders and reduce the number of people coming to work and live in the country

  • Also objected the move toward what they saw as the creation of a “United States of Europe”

• What happens now?

  • They are not immediately separated - have to invoke a clause in the agreement

  • Prime Minister needs to invoke this clause (whoever replaces David Cameron, as he has given his notice of resignation this morning)

  • The UK then has 2 years to negotiate its withdrawal from the EU

  • According to BBC legal correspondents, the clause has only been in place since late 2009 and this is the first time it has been tested, so no one REALLY knows what will happen

  • The UK will continue to abide by EU treaties and laws, but will not take part in decision-making as it negotiates a withdrawal

  • It is unclear what will happen with UK citizens working in EU countries once the UK leaves the EU (or vice versa), nor is it clear whether a visa will be required for UK citizens to travel within EU countries - this all depends on the deal the UK negotiates on their exit

  • UK passports will still be eligible as they are a document issued by the UK, not the EU

• Scotland’s First Minister has said that it is “democratically unacceptable” for Scotland to be removed from the EU when it voted to remain, and stated that an independence referendum from the UK is now “highly likely” for the country

• Northern Ireland said the impact will be “very profound” and says that the whole island should be able to vote on reunification at this point

• Financial/economic impacts

  • The pound has fallen to a 7-year low, dropping 8.7%

  • Treasury forecast a rise between 0.7% and 1.1% in mortgage borrowing costs

  • The “triple lock” for state pensions (guaranteed increase each year by at least the level of earnings, inflation rate, or 2.5%, whichever is highest) may be threatened by this

• Some have speculated that this may cause a number of other EU states to move in a similar direction, though we do not have official information at this point.

• Funny aside - Donald Trump is extremely supportive of the UK’s vote to take back their independence and “restore their borders”

• Emergency Pun: The EU now has 1GB more space.

 

Cable Company Overcharging Totals at Least $7.2 Million a Year

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/615433-cable-company- OP: SirMonti

Source 2: http://arstechnica.com/business/2016/06/charter-and-twc-overbill-custom

• Senate report compares billing and service records, finds massive overcharges

• Charter and its new subsidiary Time Warner Cable have been overcharging customers at least $7.2 million per year for equipment and service, US Senate investigation has found

• Time Warner Cable over-billed customers nationwide (USA) an estimated $639,948 between Jan and Apr of this year

• Charter/TWC billing problems are bad, because neither company had been issuing automatic refunds or credits to overcharged customers

• During the six-and-a-half year time period examined by the committee

  • “TWC and Charter made no effort to trace equipment overcharges to their origin unless customers specifically asked them to, and did not provide notice or refunds to customers,” the reports said

• Comcast has in the past overcharged customers, but they do a much better job at issuing refunds than TWC

  • Comcast told the subcommittee that it has a billing error rate of 0.3%

• TWC will begin investigating the overcharges only if customers bring it to their attention

• Both companies have agreed to change policy going forward, to prevent overcharges in the future

  • Going forward, both companies will provide customers with a notice if they are overcharged

 

NERD SPORTS SHOUT OUT, LINK WILL BE IN THE VIDEO DESCRIPTION

Volleyball, Lacrosse, Dodgeball, Hockey & Curling are all available now - go check them out!

 

Rapid Fire

 

Valve & 3rd party sites being sued over CS:GO gambling

Source 1: linustechtips.com/valve-being-sued… OP: niofalpha

Source 2: polygon.com/counter-strike-csgo-illegal…

• Connecticut resident Michael John McLeod has filed a suit (currently seeking class action status) against Valve and three skin gambling & selling sites

• The complaint alleges that Valve “knowingly allowed… and has been complicit in creating, sustaining, and facilitating [a] market” where players and third-parties trade weapon skins

• It continues “[they] knowingly allowed, supported, and/or sponsored illegal gambling by allowing millions of Americans to link their individual Steam accounts to third-party websites.”

• “In the eSports gambling economy, skins are like casino chips that have monetary value outside the game itself because of the ability to convert them directly into cash”

• It also alleges that some third-party CS:GO websites don’t require age verification, which allows minors to bet as well

• Bloomberg has reported that CS:GO skin gambling is currently a $2 billion industry

• “In sum, Valve owns the league, sells the casino chips, and receives a piece of the casino’s income stream through foreign websites in order to maintain the charade that Valve is not promoting and profiting from online gambling.”

 

Hyperkin: Gameboy Add-On for Android dubbed “Smart Boy”

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/613854-hyperkin-make OP: goodtofufriday

Source 2: http://hyperkinlab.com/smart-boy-developer-kit/

• Hyperkin has announced the Smart Boy

  • Will allow old Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges to be played on an Android smartphone

• Device slots over the bottom half of an android phone

• Adding tactile buttons and a d-pad in a similar layout to the Game Boy

• Hyperkin only releasing a developer kit as of now

• No word on an iPhone version

• Initially was announced as an April Fools joke

Picture

 

Google 2-Step Verification Update

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614276-goo OP: Smile

Source 2: http://googleappsupdates.blogspot.com.au/2016/06/new-settings-for

• Multiple ways end users can approve sign-in requests via 2-Step Verifications (2SV)

  • Tapping a Security Key

  • Entering a verification code sent to a phone

  • Or starting today, by approving a prompt like the one below that will pop up on their phone

  • PICTURE

• Employees or users can choose any of these options in the Sign-In & Security > Signing in to Google > 2-Step Verification section of My Account

• Data connection is required to use Google Prompt

• Currently, can’t have Security Keys and Google Prompt enabled at the same time

 

FCC Start to Make 5G a Reality This Week

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614145-the-fcc-w OP: SansVarnic

Source 2: http://www.theverge.com/2016/6/20/11977960/fcc-5g-wireless-spectrum-

• On Thursday, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler will circulate a proposal to kick off 5G wireless proceedings

• If passed, commission will begin to identify and open up higher swaths of high-band spectrum

  • Capable of delivering speeds much higher than what’s currently used for 4G and LTE

• “If the Commission approves my proposal next month, the United States will be the first country in the world to open up high-band spectrum for 5G networks and applications”, Wheeler said

• FCC will not be defining 5G, as there is still no standard for it

• Wheeler wants to leave it up to the market, as they did for 4G before this

• While the FCC won’t formally define 5G, Wheeler is putting his own ideas for what it should offer

  • Says 5G should be “like mobile fiber,” offering speeds 10 to 100 times faster than what mobile offers today

• Will need to overcome major hurdles to make 5G feasible

• Wheeler notes that first 5G deployments are expected to be ready for 2020

 

Tesla to Acquire Solar City for $2.59 to $2.78 Billion Dollars

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614966-tesla-to-acqui OP: Arsen258

Source 2: https://techcrunch.com/2016/06/21/teslacity/

• Elon Musk’s company Tesla announced its offer to acquire his solar panel installation company SolarCity

• Deal still has to be approved by SolarCity and its board

  • If it goes through, would see SolarCity stock exchanged for Tesla stock

• Deal would pay a premium of 21% to 30% on top of SolarCity’s value of $2.14 billion

  • Tesla would be buying SolarCity for between $2.59 billion and $2.78 billion

• Some analysts considering this purchase a bailout for SolarCity

  • SolarCity’s share price was down from more than $50 in December to around $21 when this deal was announced

• SolarCity’s Website

• Tesla outlines the reason they think the acquisition would make sense

  • Seen HERE

  • “Would be the world’s only vertically integrated energy company offering end-to-end clean energy products to our customers”

  • “Start with the car that you drive...extend to how everything else in your home or business is powered”

  • “Able to deploy and consume energy in the most efficient and sustainable way possible”

 

Microsoft Bringing its Games on Steam

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/612825- OP: GoodBytes

Source 2: http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/06/microsoft-will-use-steam-to-sell-windo

• Latest high-profile titles, such as Forza 6 Apex and Quantum Break, are exclusive to the Windows Store

  • Going to change

  • Microsoft planning to release more titles to Steam

• Phil Spencer said that Microsoft “will ship games on Steam again”

• Microsoft noted that while some game releases have done well in the Windows Store, Spencer said that “Quantum Break wasn’t our best PC release”, and that Gears of War Ultimate Edition was “OK”

 

Drone Industry Just Had a Milestone Moment

Source 1: http://fortune.com/2016/06/21/drone-faa-rules-commercial-busines

Source 2: http://imgur.com/gallery/N0sx7

Source 3: http://www.faa.gov/uas/media/Part_107_Summary.pdf

• Federal Aviation Administration finally has rules in place for businesses wanting to use drones

• Revealed details on Tuesday

• New rules to take effect in late August

• Includes

  • Limiting use of drones to daytime, 30 minutes after sunset, 30 mins before sunrise

  • Not flying drones over 400 feet in altitude

  • Requiring operators to quality for flying certificates by passing exams

  • Applies to drones that weigh less than 55 pounds

• Companies like General Electric using drones to spot potential hazards near powerlines

• Amazon singles out the FAA’s mandate that drone operators must fly the aircraft within line of sight

  • New rules haven’t eased up on this

• FAA administrator Michael Huerta said in a statement that the new rules are the FAA’s first step, and that it’s “working on additional rules that will expand the range of operations”

 

Intel is Looking to Fight $1.2 Billion EU Antitrust Fine Once Again

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614586-intel-is-looking- OP: eyecantseeover24fps

Source 2: http://deliddedtech.com/2016/06/21/intel-is-looking-to-fight-1-2-billion-eu-antitr

• Intel claims the “2009 EU fine was unfair, wrong, and formalistic”

  • Two years ago, EU court rejected their appeal

  • Intel now attempting to overturn it at EU’s top court

• Date for the ruling has not yet been set

• According to Daniel Beard, lawyer for intel: “the key issue in the investigation was the loyalty rebates to lower retail prices”

  • Feels that the European Commission did not recognize “all relevant circumstances”

 

Google Now Listing EOL for Nexus Devices

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614917-goog OP: komaru

Source 2: http://www.androidauthority.com/google-nexus-end-of-life-eol-699591/

• Google formally guaranteed they would keep Nexus devices up to date via monthly security patches for three years after release

  • Android version updates for at least two years after devices becomes available on Google Store

• Google making public the formal End of Life dates for these devices

  • Nexus 6P = Sep, 2017

  • Nexus 5X = Sep 2017

  • Nexus 9 = Oct 2016

  • Nexus 6 = Oct 2016

  • Nexus 5 = Oct 2015

  • Nexus 7 (2013) = Jul 2015

  • Nexus 10 = Nov 2014

 

SanDisk is producing cases for the iPhone with expanded storage

Source 1: linustechtips.com/sandisk-is-producing… OP: Qub3d

Source 2: theverge.com/circuitbreaker/.../sandisk-ixpand…

• Called iXpand Memory Case

• Provides built-in flash storage that connects via Lightning port

• Requires a companion app which automatically backs up your camera roll and password-protects your photos and files

• Also an optional 1900mAh battery pack that can be attached

• Only available for iPhone 6 and 6S

• 32GB storage for $59, 64GB for $99, 128GB for $129

• Battery pack is an extra $40

 

Intel Begins to Ship its KNL Xeon Phi Processors

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614417-intel-begins-t OP: NumLock21

Source 2: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/processors/xeon/xeon-phi-detail.html

Linked Chart

 

(RUMOR) AMD Working on 7nm 48 Core Processor - Codename Starship

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614305-amd-working-on-7nm OP: P3rform3r

Source 2: http://www.fudzilla.com/news/processors/40945-amd-working-on-7nm-48-co

• AMD codename Naples, uses 14nm FinFET and has 32 cores/64 threads

• AMD will go for 7nm after that

  • Codenamed “Starship”

  • Chip will have 48 cores and 96 thread support

• Still a concept project

  • May see it as soon as 2018

 

(RUMOR) IPhone 7

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614440-expect-ipho OP: RedRound2

Source 2: http://9to5mac.com/2016/06/21/wsj-iphone-7-report/

Source 3: http://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-unlikely-to-make-big-changes-for

• Expected to be a revision of iPhone 6

• Wall Street Journal reports that it will feature no headphone jack, thinner design, and will be more water resistant than current models

• Camera upgrades, a dual-camera sensor

• Reports there could be a new color options

• Next year's model expected to be a complete overhaul

  • 10 year anniversary

 

(RUMOR) GTX 1080M Specifications Revealed!

Source 1: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/614344-gtx-1080 OP: AluminumTech

Source 2: http://wccftech.com/nvidia-gtx-1080m-specifications-performance-leak/#ix

Source 3: http://videocardz.com/61256/nvidia-geforce-gtx-1080m-to-feature-2048-cuda-cores

• Alleged specifications and benchmarks of NVIDIA’s upcoming GeForce GTX 1080M mobility graphics card has been leaked by Videocardz

• 2048 CUDA Cores

• 8GB G5 VRAM

Comparison Chart

[othertomperson]

Hmm a 1000 cores is useless for video rendering, video encoding and playing games? Shit... thanks for telling me. I'll get rid of my GPU immediately.