Technology

Technology posts on Thien Le

• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Main Theme Song[8bit] | @mamaTune via YouTube:

  This video is so awesome, both the music and the retro art style.

  Tears of the Kingdom is so good, it truly makes Breath of the Wild look like a tech demo in retrospective.

  On the technical side, according to Digital Foundry and my own experience, Tears of the Kingdom runs surprisingly well on the inexpensive Nintendo Switch.

  This latest installment in The Legend of Zelda series is both a gaming and technical masterpiece.

  ★

• AI doesn’t plant trees | All Things Distributed by Dr. Werner Vogels:

  Yes! More time should be spent planting new trees restoring forests or building new railroads, instead of talking about AI or colonizing Mars.

  ★

• Tristan Harris — Facebook & Rethinking Big Tech | The Daily Show:

  Man, I wish I was at that table so bad. Such a great conversation.

  ★

• Apple’s Software Chief Explains ‘Misunderstood’ iPhone Child-Protection Features | WSJ:

  I don’t trust Apple, but I do trust Craig. Joanna Stern did a terrific job as always.

  ★

• Once-Great Company

  Toyota Led on Clean Cars. Now Critics Say It Works to Delay Them | The New York Times:

  Together with other automakers, Toyota also sided with the Trump administration in a battle with California over the Clean Air Act and sued Mexico over fuel efficiency rules. In Japan, Toyota officials argued against carbon taxes.

  Toyota was the largest corporate donor by far this year to Republicans in Congress who disputed the 2020 presidential election result.

  Toyota initially defended its contributions, then changed course, saying it would halt its donations.

  Toyota, it’s time to eliminate some waste inside your organization and on the street.

  ★

• I Can't Wait For iOS 14.5

  Apple vs. Facebook: Why iOS 14.5 Started a Big Tech Fight:

  Very informative and well produced by Joanna Stern and her team on iOS 14.5 App Tracking Transparency (ATT), and did I mention it also hilarious? Can’t wait to see her name in the slide of Apple’s next events.

  One more thing, her column Personal Technology With Joanna Stern is just amazing, be sure to watch all of it, you will be a better person after each episode.

  See also:

  • Walt Mossberg on Facebook
  • Apple in China: Privacy, principles, purses, and pickles

  ★

• Privacy Labels For Apple's Apps

  Privacy - Labels:

  Transparency is the best policy.

  I’m gonna need more popcorn.

  See also: Apple in China: Privacy, principles, purses, and pickles

  ★

• Apple in China: Privacy, principles, purses, and pickles:

  No, the test is China. Patrick McGee at FT broke the story that Tencent and ByteDance, along with the state-backed China Advertising Association, have devised a workaround to the changes in iOS 14.5, such that they can continue to track users across apps without triggering the new permission dialog.

  Oh okay I didn’t know about this until now! I will join DHH with my own Vietnamese style popcorn and 333 beers.

  I’m sure some other countries are watching closely as well.

  ★

• It’s none of their business:

  A new manifesto from the folks behind HEY 👋

  See also: Datensparsamkeit - Martin Fowler

  ★

• Walt Mossberg On Facebook

  Walt Mossberg via Twitter:

  Why is Facebook so afraid of this simple opt-in panel Apple will soon build into its devices for every app (not just Facebook)? If tracking people all over the web is harmless or beneficial, shouldn’t they be able to convince people to allow it?

  Very well said by Mr. Mossberg. The only reason why Facebook so afraid is because they are lying, the very same reason Google is still not pushing any updates to their iOS apps (except for YouTube - but very quietly).

  ★

• iPhone 12 Pro — Make movies like the movies:

  One of the best iPhone commercials ever. It shows the WHY part very clear.

  ★

• Zoom Lies Again

  Zoom admits it doesn’t have 300 million users, corrects misleading claims:

  Zoom originally stated it had “more than 300 million daily users” and that “more than 300 million people around the world are using Zoom during this challenging time.” Zoom later deleted these references from the original blog post, and now claims “300 million daily Zoom meeting participants.”

  Of course Zoom does that.

  See also: Zoom iOS App Sends Data to Facebook Even if You Don’t Have a Facebook Account

  ★

• Pointer Support For iPadOS Impressions

  I tried pointer support for iPadOS last week on my 2018 iPad Pro and loved it, Apple really take its time and implemented it right. I also love SideCar on macOS Catalina. Now, what I want is to use my iPad Pro as it is, with iPadOS, but it will act as an extension for my Macbook Pro, which means they can share the same audio output, share the keyboard and trackpad, but when I drag my cursor from my Mac to iPad, it will become the pointer and vice versa. Let’s make it happen Apple!

  See also:

  • Pointers (iPadOS) - Apple Human Interface Guidelines
  • Designing Fluid Interfaces - WWDC 2018

  ★

• Zoom iOS App Sends Data to Facebook Even if You Don’t Have a Facebook Account:

  First Skype now Zoom, it looks like people running video conferencing apps can’t help shooting themselves in the feet.

  See also: Serious Zoom security flaw could let websites hijack Mac cameras

  ★

• How ThoughtWorks Is Coping with Covid-19

  Coping with Covid-19, part 2:

  Most ThoughtWorkers are young and healthy, thus likely to only have a mild problem if infected with Covid-19. But everyone, healthy or not, who has the virus can pass it on to others. By reducing travel and contact we can do our part to slow the spread of the disease. Even if the total numbers aren’t reduced by a slower spread, it will reduce the strain on the health care infrastructure, giving those unlucky enough to suffer serious consequences a better chance of coping.

  This sums up perfectly why we must shut up and stay home.

  ★