Episode 495 – Aussie Tech Heads Shownotes

posted in: Show Notes

 

Sunshine Coast to get digital water meters

Sunshine Coast will soon be able to check their water usage on a daily basis, analyse their consumption through a self-service dashboard, and receive electronic alerts of leaks when state-owned utility Unitywater undertakes a 12-month trial of digital water meters.

the utility plans to install roughly 1000 meters in Noosa, Redcliffe, Caloundra, Caboolture and Morayfield to build up enough evidence to make the case for a region-wide rollout.

devices, which will run in parallel with traditional water meters for the duration of the pilot, will measure a property’s water usage at a minimum of one-hour increments, and will transmit this data back to Unitywater’s measurement and billing systems at least once daily.

Unitywater anticipates it will eventually settle on an update frequency that balances data transmission costs, battery life and asset life against what customers feel they need to stay fully abreast of their water usage.

considering an alert functionality that would SMS, call, or email residents if their reading fails to hit zero for a full 24-hour period, signalling a leak.


https://www.reckon.com/au/

$5 per month – $3 per (lite) addon – 5 addons



JAPAN ENDING VCR PRODUCTION THIS MONTH

Funai Electric – will be ceasing production at the end of this month. Declining sales and supply issues are cited as key reasons for closing up shop. That being said, Funai still managed to sell a somewhat impressive 750,000 VCR units last year.

While VCR production may be all but dead in Japan, eBay and Gumtree still has a thriving used market for the players


STAN BRINGS NATIVE APP TO WINDOWS 10 AND WINDOWS MOBILE WITH CORTANA INTEGRATION

now has a native app available as a free download through the Windows Store. Notably, the app is what Microsoft refers to as “universal”, meaning it can be run on Windows 10 tablets, desktops, and (most importantly) smartphones.

full touchscreen support for tablet and two-in-one owners, Stan is one of the very first third party apps to hook in with Cortana. By saying a phrase such as “Hey Cortana, Stan search ‘show name'”, Cortana will return search results from Stan right within the start menu. Clicking the item will open the Stan app at the title’s page.

A Stan app is also available on Xbox One.


ABC NOW LIVE STREAMING ALL OF ITS CHANNELS THROUGH IVIEW

all of ABC’s channels can now be watched live online or in app through iView on iOS and Android. This includes ABC1, ABC2, ABC3, ABC Kids, and ABC News 24. Prior to today, only ABC1 and ABC News 24 were streamable.

they’re only available in standard definition

streaming ABC’s channels should only use about 360MB of data per hour

channels are based on Sydney’s schedule in terms of timing.


NINTENDO RELEASING MINIATURE NES PRELOADED WITH 30 GAMES FOR AUD$99.95

Nintendo Classic Mini, a palm-sized version of the original Nintendo Entertainment System preloaded with 30 games

Nintendo Classic Mini is modelled on the classic console, its connectors are distinctly modern. There’s a HDMI port for connecting to TVs, USB for power, and two Wii-style controller ports. The Classic Mini is bundled with a controller, but the Wii and Wii U’s Classic Controller and Classic Controller Pro are both compatible

available in Australia from November 10

AUD$99.95. Additional replica controllers will be sold separately for AUD$19.95

Balloon Fight
Bubble Bobble
Castlevania
Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr
Double Deagon II: The Revenge
Dr. Mario
Excitebike
Final Fantasy
Galaga
Ghosts ‘n Goblins
Gradius
Ice Climber
Kid Icarus
Kirby’s Adventure
Mario Bros.
Mega Man 2
Metroid
Ninja Gaiden
Pac-Man
Punch-Out!!
StarTropics
Super C
Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros. 2
Super Mario Bros. 3
Tecmo Bowl
The Legend of Zelda
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link


Petition urges Apple not to release technology for jamming phone cameras

Over 11,000 people have signed a petition asking Apple not to deploy technology that would allow third parties like the police to use it to disable cameras on user phones under certain circumstances.

U.S. patent no. 9,380,225, titled “Systems and methods for receiving infrared data with a camera designed to detect images based on visible light,” was awarded to Apple on June 28

Civil liberties groups like the American Civil Liberties Union are critical of the implications of the deployment of the technology. “While the technology is being promoted as a tool to prevent the filming of copyrighted material, we think it has the potential to undermine efforts to hold law enforcement accountable,” wrote Nicole Ozer, technology and civil liberties policy director for the ACLU of California,in a blog post this month.


KickAss Torrents: How did the US Government bring down the file-sharing site?

KickAss Torrents (KAT) was one of the most visited websites on the internet and brought in tens of millions of dollars a year in advertising.

The domain names KAT used — and there are several — are in the process of being seized by the US Government.

It was the result of years of investigation by Jared Der-Yeghiayan, a special agent with the US Department of Homeland Security. – same  person who brought down online drug marketplace, Silk Road.

Artem Vaulin, 30, of Poland, was arrested in the Ukraine on a number of charges, including conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and two counts of criminal copyright infringement

Vaulin allegedly relied on servers located in countries around the world and moved his domains due to repeated seizures and civil lawsuits

KAT is the 69th most frequently visited website online, and receives over 50 million unique hits a month.

  • Agent infiltrated site with fake request for advertising

  • Server logs then revealed linked domain names, instant messenger username used by Artem Vaulin

  • Records from Apple, Facebook and Google verified details


EBF

Apple Facing Class Action Lawsuit for Offering Refurbished Replacement Devices Under AppleCare+

Wednesday July 20, 2016 3:03 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple is facing a new class action lawsuit, levied today by customers in California who are unhappy that their iPhones and iPads were replaced with refurbished devices under Apple’s AppleCare or AppleCare+ warranty plan.

Filed by Vicky Maldonado and Joanne McRight, the lawsuit, first shared by Cult of Mac, accuses Apple of failing to provide replacement devices that are “equivalent to new in performance and reliability” as stated in the company’s terms and conditions.

Both plaintiffs purchased replacement devices under AppleCare protection plans and were given refurbished devices rather than new devices, which they claim is a violation of the aforementioned line in the AppleCare Terms and Conditions.

AppleCare+ Apple Watch iPhone

The Apple Plans purport to provide consumers with Devices that are “equivalent to new in performance and reliability.” What that phrase means is ‘new’ as refurbished devices can never be the equivalent to new in performance and reliability. Plaintiffs allege that it means refurbished. Refurbished is synonymous with the term “reconditioned,” that is, a secondhand unit that has been modified to appear to be new for all purposes relevant to this litigation.

“New” means a Device that has never been utilized or previously sold and consists of all new parts. The word “refurbished” appears only once in the AppleCare+ terms and conditions even though the printed booklet is 33 pages long.

The plaintiffs claim they were deprived of the “use and value” of their original devices when Apple replaced them with refurbished devices, suffering an economic loss in the amount of the cost of the AppleCare plans, the loss of value of their original non-refurbished devices, and the purchase cost and replacement cost paid to Apple.

Apple is being accused of breach of contract, breach of warranty, concealing information from the public, deceptive marketing, violating labeling requirements, and unfair competitive practices. The lawsuit covers all customers who purchased an AppleCare or AppleCare+ plan for an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch after July 11, 2011.

The plaintiffs are seeking damages, attorneys fees, an order that would prevent Apple from replacing damaged or defective iOS devices with refurbished devices in the future, updated AppleCare+ terms and conditions, and an option to get a refund for a broken device instead of a repair.

http://www.macrumors.com/2016/07/20/applecare-class-action-lawsuit/

Apple Releases iOS 9.3.3 With Bug Fixes and Performance Improvements

Monday July 18, 2016 10:09 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple today released iOS 9.3.3 to the public, marking the third minor update to iOS 9 since iOS 9.3 launched in March of 2016. In testing since May 23, there were five betas of iOS 9.3.3 released to developers and public beta testers ahead of the public release of the software.

Today’s iOS 9.3.3 release is available as an over-the-air update for all iOS 9 users and it can also be downloaded through iTunes.

appleios93

As a small 9.x.x update, iOS 9.3.3 focuses mainly on under-the-hood performance improvements and bug fixes rather than outward-facing changes.

iOS 9.3.2 is the ninth update to the iOS 9 operating system, following iOS 9.0.1, iOS 9.0.2, iOS 9.1, iOS 9.2, iOS 9.2.1, iOS 9.3, iOS 9.3.1, and iOS 9.3.2. iOS 9 will be followed by iOS 10, which has already been provided to developers.

iOS 10 brings a host of new features, including a revamped Lock screen experience, an overhauled Messages app with new functionality and its own App Store, a new Photos app with object and facial recognition, a redesigned Music app, a centralized HomeKit app, and a Siri SDK for developers.

http://www.macrumors.com/2016/07/18/apple-releases-ios-9-3-3/

 

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