So how did you celebrate your 4th yesterday? Did you have good food, good drink, and see good fireworks? Did you see robots dancing in the streets? Because in China, they broke a world record. They had thousands of dancing robots: cute or creepy?
So in China, they lined up over 1,000 robot in horizontal and vertical fashioned. Then, as far as the lens camera can see, these robots dance in perfect sync with each other. Well, I wouldn’t call it dancing. But it looked to me more like military exercises that a powerful army would do. First, they would move their arms back and forth. Okay, the way they moved them had a little rhythm to it.
Then they did a little bow, then more dance, or exercise with their arms. In this video clip, I didn’t see the robots move their arms. This clip went on for over 30 seconds. Apparently, it did make the Guinness Book of World Records. It made it for the most robots dancing in sync at one time. Whoever did this saw it as a thrill, because some of the comments below saw things very different. One joked, “If the end of the world is coming, then at least it will be entertaining.” However, another thought China was showing a dark message by having so many robots dancing at once.
Like it or not, robots will have a massive place in IT service’s future, and in the world’s future. I was at my local grocer a couple of weeks ago. I saw a robot clean the floor, while serving as a security guard for another time. This isn’t a plot from The Jetsons. This is real life, the real world in 2019. So yes, it is happening.Ready or not, here they come. Thousands of dancing robots: Cute or creepy?
So they say the eyes are the window to the soul. It looks like Apple’s latest developer Beta wants to take that to hear. Apple iOS 13 Face Time: Is this feature worth it?
So they call this new feature Face Time Attention Correction. With this feature, they’re hoping to make face time deeper and more realistic. For instance, there’s a big emphasis on looking the person in the face, particularly the eyes. I’m sure our parents taught us to look somebody in the eyes when talking to someone, especially in business. However, more people are doing business through tablets, laptops, and other forms of IT service. This Apple iOS 13 face time features wants to capitalize on that.
For the most part, people complain that with face time, you’re looking more into a camera than at the person. With Face Time Attention Correction, you’re looking more at the person. One happy customer says this app makes him look the person dead in his eye, and not looking at the camera. Then he compared it to something from the next century. Okay, I find that odd because look at how much next century stuff we already have. And we still have another 81 years in this century left. I digress.
If you want Face Time Attention Correction, then you better come correct with those premium Apple products. Because you can only get this on iPhone XS and iPhone SX Max. Now tech experts explain why this is. But what if this is just Apple trying to manipulate you to by the latest $1,000+ phone? Also, yes, you may have to look at the camera in the old way. But as long as it works, and as long as you can communicate, then I’m good with that. I won’t be upgrading to the latest gadget just to look someone in the eyes. For the most part, they probably don’t want to look me in the eyes anyway. Is this feature worth it?
We at Computer Geeks would like to wish all our readers and clients a very happy and safe Independence/4th of July holiday.
So, how many of you know about ‘deepfake’ porn? Don’t feel bad, because I didn’t either until I read about this article. At least one state is fighting this evil. Virginia fights ‘deepfake’ porn.
So deepfake porn uses machine learning to take a photo and strip a woman of her clothes. For instance, a couple has an innocent photo. Then the couple breaks up. The guy manipulates this innocent photo and makes her nude. Then he blasts it all over the Internet. That’s deepfake porn. In fact, they had an app that’s totally dedicated to this thing. The former app DeepNude could turn any photo of any clothed person into a nude photo. Thankfully, due to public outrage, the owner of DeepNude took down this app, and it is no more.
So now, Virginia fights ‘deepfake’ porn. Effective July 1, 2019, it is illegal to share these kinds of nude photos without the person’s permission or approval. This includes all kinds of nude photos, whether real or altered. Virginia had a tough stance of revenge porn since 2014. But because ‘deepfake’ porn was new, but rising at an alarming rates, it took a while before lawmakers caught on. But thank goodness they are. Other states, and nations are catching on. In New York, there are debating laws making this kind of revenge porn a crime. In other nations, like United Kingdom, are passing laws giving deepfake porn victims the right to sue.
So what do we do to combat the evil of deepfake porn? We’re already doing it. People are raising awareness and are letting people know such perverted behavior is not tolerated. Look at the righteous outrage that eventually took DeepNude down. That’s a huge start. I think we as a public need to keep the pressure on. Deepfake porn give IT support, and society in general, deep scars that may never be healed. What can you do to fight deepfake porn?
So what to write about today? I can write about how many in the IT service community are already taking sides in this upcoming election. But I’m going to keep it positive. Let’s talk about how STEM inspires a generation.
So STEM means Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Stem started in the 1990s. But in the 2000s, as smartphone and social media tech boomed and changed the world, STEM became critical. Years ago, STEM partnered with FIRST. What FIRST does is have contest and field days teaching kids of all ages, 5-17, to think critically. Their contest includes things like robotics, space, even playing with Lego blocks.
For example, after school, kids can meet with STEM educators. Here, they can learn innovation and leadership through science, technology, engineering and math. Every year, 300,000 kids come to participate in STEM’s FIRST LEGO challenge. They come from all over the world and form teams. They solve real world problems and often use inventions to do so. The winning teams get $20,000. However, this year’s theme is space innovation. They call it Into Orbit, problem solving through space innovation and exploration. As a write this, there are now 20 semi-finalist from 31 countries.
So these teams come from everywhere. They come from Charlotte, NC and Germantown, MD. They also come from Verona, Italy and Rio de Janerio, Brazil. This is how STEM inspires a generation. You know, many say there is little, if any hope for Gen-Z (those born after 1997). I can’t disagree more. Thanks to organizations like STEM, kids want to learn about all things technology. They want to learn about coding, space, robotics, building apps, all the things we’re going to need in the 2020s and beyond. And many of these participants are girls and minorities, the exact people big tech is trying to reach out to. That’s awesome! Would you like a STEM program to come to a town or school near you?
So we all know Amazon pretty much owns e-commerce retail in the IT service industry. But now, they want to take over traditional retail too. Amazon’s Counter goes after retailers.
Amazon’s new service, they call it Counter. With counter, you can pick up your Amazon purchases at a retailer near you, instead of waiting on home delivery. Furthermore, they already found a retail partner: drug store chain Rite Aid. They will soon and very soon partner with 100 Rite Aids across the country to launch counter. But by the end of 2019, they want this in over 1,500 stores. This means involvement with other retailers. They tried it already in United Kingdom and Italy. So far, it’s a success.
I can see Amazon’s logic here. Believe it or not, more people shop in physical retail than they do online. In fact, some statistics say only 10% of all US sales are done online. And let’s face it. Waiting for that home delivery isn’t always convenient, or even safe. In our computer repair business, there were many times I had to stay after hours just to wait for a computer part to come through. Then, say nobody is home. Who and what is there to stop a thief from stealing your packages? It’s getting dangerous for delivery employees, too. Remember that confrontation between actor/rapper Ice-T and an Amazon delivery man?
But there is a reason why I title this Amazon’s Counter goes after retailers. Because that’s exactly what they’re doing. They already have Whole Foods, mass media, and just about everything else. Now they want to go after retailers. I’m sorry, but I think I will stick with the retailers I already shop at, especially the small and local retailers. I’d rather not fuel Amazon’s quest for world domination if I can help it. When is it ever going to end?
