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LinkedIn now allows you to block other users
The ability to block people on social networks seems like a basic idea, but that's one thing LinkedIn didn't have prior to today. Now, thanks to a new (and aptly named) Member Blocking feature, LinkedIn will start letting you block other members on the site. LinkedIn points out that while having an option to block users may sound quite simple, it wasn't easy to bake into its product. Paul Rockwell, LinkedIn's head of Trust & Safety, cited the need to research different use case scenarios, and coming up with the right interface as some of the reasons why this tool took a while to develop. Member Blocking is currently rolling out to all profiles, and thus it shouldn't be too long before you can go to town on those unwanted connections.
Twitter changes how 'block' works, makes it more of a mute button (update: changes reverted after backlash)
From your garden variety troll to far worse kinds of harassment, we've all run into people on the internet that we'd rather not deal with. On Twitter, choosing to block someone used to mean they couldn't see your feed while they were logged in. Now, a support page explains that it just means you won't see their tweets or interactions with you, unless you go to their page or they come up in a search. The only way block actually blocks someone, and forces them to unfollow your account, is if your tweets are set to private. Many users are voicing disagreement with the change, citing the fact that harassers can easily monitor their target's accounts, or RT their tweets and encourage others to join in. As it stands, the harassed now have to choose between participating in public conversations or controlling who can follow and retweet them (temporarily switching to private and blocking someone can be used to cause a force-unfollow in a pinch). Update: Twitter has announced it's reverting the changes to its blocking policy. In a blog post, the company states that any blocks users had will remain in effect. However, people will still be able to see that they've been blocked -- a situation the company describes as "not ideal." Twitter claims "we never want to introduce features at the cost of users feeling less safe." So maybe next time it'll consult users before changing how its security and privacy settings work.
The Art of Wushu: The facts about autoguard
The automatic blocking feature in Age of Wushu is treated as anathema by players. You guys have no idea how many people I have talked to about it who tell me, "I would never use something like that!" It seems that in general, people don't like the idea of something that takes decision-making out of their hands. However, autoguard isn't as bad as people think. In fact, it is an exceptional answer to poor latency and is completely controllable. The truth is, not many people understand it at all, and even fewer realize the benefits of the system.
iOS 7: Block iOS updates on your office network, avoid first-day upgrade overload
For those businesses or educational institutions with limited bandwidth and lots of iOS devices on their Wi-Fi infrastructure, a blast of iOS 7 updates -- each with its own hefty, lingering download -- could be a bit of a problem. Tomorrow it should be easy to spot the network admin: he or she will be the one with the extra-large coffee and the expression of rage verging on uncontrollable weeping. Over at the Enterprise iOS site, Tekserve's resident uber-geek and CTO Aaron Freimark has a sneaky suggestion for avoiding this sudden impact. Since Apple's update server (mesu.apple.com) has to be reachable in order for iOS devices to see and download the update, the temporary fix is simple: adjust your local DNS servers to redirect or block the update server until the fever passes. Freimark mentions Apple's upcoming Caching Server 2, a component of the OS X Mavericks Server package that will provide local instances of Apple downloads to reduce network load caused by iOS devices and Mac App Store purchases. Unfortunately, in a bit of a cache-22, you can't use the beta of Caching Server 2 to cache the iOS 7 update surge; iOS 6 devices don't see the server.
Google blocks Microsoft's Windows Phone YouTube app... again (updated)
Everyone was understandably excited when Windows Phone got its own native YouTube app. That is, until Google decided it violated the terms of service by blocking advertisements and promptly asked Microsoft to remove the app. The two companies kissed, made up and collaborated on a new version that would adhere to Mountain View's developer guidelines. Unfortunately, it appears that, despite Big G's involvement, the latest version of YouTube for Windows Phone still has some issues that can't be overlooked. Only two days after returning, with the ability to upload video added as a bonus, Google has again begun blocking Microsoft's efforts. In an official statement YouTube said: "We're committed to providing users and creators with a great and consistent YouTube experience across devices, and we've been working with Microsoft to build a fully featured YouTube for Windows Phone app, based on HTML5. Unfortunately, Microsoft has not made the browser upgrades necessary to enable a fully-featured YouTube experience, and has instead re-released a YouTube app that violates our Terms of Service." Sources tell us that, specifically, Microsoft was not on board with developing an HTML5 based app. Instead the company quietly went back to work on its own native version and reverse-engineered the ad system in order to satisfy Google's terms of service. Unfortunately, this work-around means that Google can't guarantee the correct ads will be served up, leading the company to revoke Redmond's API key. We've reached out to Microsoft for comment and will update when we hear back. Update: A Microsoft spokesperson provided us with the following: "Google is blocking our updated YouTube app for Windows Phone. We are working with them to resolve the issue." Update II: And now, Microsoft has issued a longer response, and it's a doozy. We'll let you have a gander right here.
Google services grind to a halt in China, political transition suspected as the culprit (update)
As eagerly as Google has gone through routing acrobatics to minimize the Chinese government's ability to censor and spy on its its services, it's still at the mercy of the Great Firewall. The company might have just run head-first into the bricks as of Friday. As confirmed by some of our own staff, all of Google's services stopped working in China for at least the better part of a day despite the search firm verifying that everything was in good working order. Officials haven't confirmed that anything was afoot, but it's easy to raise the specter of possible censorship given local political maneuvering. The once-a-decade Communist Party Congress began on Thursday, and the establishment may have wanted to cut off a relatively unfiltered line of communication for dissidents during a transition of power. We're hearing that access may have ameliorated in at least parts of the country, which would be a pleasant surprise -- not that a sudden improvement in service will cheer up those who know they still face a backlog. Update: As SlashGear notes, Computerworld / IDG has reported that Google's services were up and running in country again after about 12 hours of being inaccessible. Official details on the blocking are still slim as ever (and will likely remain as such) about the happenings, but you can click through the links above for more in the meantime.
Skullcandy unveils Navigator on-ear headphones, we take a first listen to the Aviator's petite 'sibling'
Believe it or not, what you're looking at above is a set of headphones -- let's explain. It's no secret that Skullcandy has been working to improve its tattered repertoire with headphone junkies for the past two years. Nowadays, it's not uncommon to hear generally favorable opinions about its Jay-Z-endorsed Roc Nation Aviators ($150), and the company has apparently taken notice. Aiming to build on the success it's had blending sunglasses with headphones, it's now ready to let loose a "smaller sibling" into the lineup -- and we've been able to get an exclusive first look and listen. Without further ado, say hello to the Navigator. Priced at $99, it features a similar aviator-esque style to Jay-Z's model, albeit in a petite on-ear package -- we'd say the design direction this time is even better looking, too. The cans have collapsible earcups with flat earpads and metal construction (just like you'd find on sunglasses), with a faux leather-wrapped headband and a flat tangle-resistant cable (detachable) which houses an iDevice-compatible three-button remote and microphone. Skullcandy is being light on technical details at the moment, but we do know that the headphones will come in a choice of black or black with blue lenses earcups. Interests piqued? The Navigator will officially land at Apple stores tomorrow, where they'll be an exclusive offering until the end of the month -- in the meantime, join us past the break for our initial impressions.
Iran blocks Guild Wars, World of Warcraft
Reports are coming in that Iran is moving to block access to several MMOs, including World of Warcraft and Guild Wars. This comes following a conference by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance earlier this month. At the conference, the Islamic Revolution Game Designers Community was formed and decided to ban games that promote superstition, mythology, violence, and revealing clothing. Following the decision, the government started cracking down on various services and MMOs, such as Battle.net's library and ArenaNet's Guild Wars series. Other games targeted include RuneScape, Second Life, Dofus, Evony, and Entropia Universe. It's unclear to what extent the government is attempting to enforce these bans, and Iranian players are looking into workaround solutions to access their MMOs. It's interesting to note that Blizzard does not authorize downloads of its products or services in Iran.
Turning an old Apple mouse into a modern Bluetooth mouse
This Instructable is a pretty sweet project that some of you might want to take on this weekend: It'll teach you how to combine an 80s-era Apple mouse body with the innards of a modern Bluetooth wireless mouse, thus turning Apple's user interface innovation into a device usable with almost any modern day computer. You will probably need to use a Dremel tool and a little glue to make the new mouse's board fit into Apple's old case, but it all seems pretty simple, and in the end, you'll have a sharp-looking retro mouse that uses Bluetooth. The old Apple mouse only has one button, so you'll have to control-click (or download a separate app on Windows) to simulate the right click if you need it -- a small price to pay for clicking around in retro style, though.
Verizon to stop blocking tethering apps, settles with FCC for $1.25 million
In May of last year, our free ride came to an end. US carriers started blocking third party tethering apps in the Android Market. Not long after, the built in feature was turned off on most phones. Our fortune may be reversing, however. The FCC has ruled that Verizon violated the rules governing the C Block of LTE spectrum by preventing consumers from using any application of their choice. The end result: Big Red will have to open up its airwaves and allow customers to circumvent its $20 a month tethering plan using apps from the Play store -- so long as you're on a "usage-based pricing plan." Though it's not explicitly stated, we assume that means those of you lucky enough to be grandfathered in to the unlimited data plans are left out. In addition to unblocking apps such as PdaNet and Barnacle, Verizon must pay a $1.25 million settlement to put an end to the investigation. For a few more details of the plan put in place to ensure compliance with the ruling, check out the PR after the break.
T-Mobile CEO argues to FCC against Verizon's AWS license acquisition
Well, wouldn't you know it, but T-Mobile -- the only nationwide AWS service provider in the US -- objects to Verizon's purchase of additional AWS spectrum. The company's CEO, Philipp Humm, recently took his concerns to the chief of the FCC's wireless bureau, Rick Kaplan, where he argued that Verizon's proposal to shed Blocks A and B of the 700MHz spectrum simply wouldn't be fair shake. According to Humm, Verizon is merely looking to offload its less desirable assets (as Blocks A and B are more prone to interference). While T-Mobile's leader presents a valid point in that Verizon has merely squatted on its current AWS licenses, we can't help but think that Humm would relish in the opportunity for T-Mobile to bid on these licenses. Further, if Verizon were effectively prevented from establishing a nationwide AWS network, it'd certainly reduce competition in the auction house, and therefore bring cheaper licenses to T-Mobile's doorstep. Given that everything in question here is not corporate property, but rather a public resource, what do you think is the best way forward? [Tower photo via Shutterstock]
Iran swapping internet for intranet in August (update)
There's dealing with internet comments, and then there's this. According to a statement from Reza Taghipour, the Iranian minister for Information and Communications Technology, Iran will be shutting off access to the world wide in around five months, as it flips the switch on a nationwide "intranet" that'll act like one of the more strict corporate firewalls you may have come in contact with. The reason? It's looking to provide its citizens access to "a clean internet," which is loosely translated into "an internet sans freedom." Instead of providing access to Google, Gmail and Hotmail, users will have to register for an Iran Mail ID -- which "mandates authentic information pertaining to a person's identity, including national ID, address and full name." Evidently, it's all to prevent access to the internet that exists today -- one that "promotes crime, disunity, unhealthy moral content, and atheism" in Taghipour's mind. Crazily enough, he's right about all of that, but it's a small price to pay for access to things like this, no?Update: Turns out, the original report here was a bit -- shall we say -- sensationalized. According to a breaking update from AFP, Iran has "denied online reports that it plans to cut access to the internet in August and replace it with a national intranet." In truth, Iran does have a plan to implement a "national information network," which is being billed as a "totally closed system that would function like a sort of intranet for the Islamic republic." To date, there's no clarity on whether the aforesaid network will exist alongside the internet or in place of it.
The Light and How to Swing It: It's the end of block as we know it
Every week, WoW Insider brings you The Light and How to Swing It for holy, protection and retribution paladins. Protection specialist Matt Walsh spends most of his time receiving concussions for the benefit of 24 other people, obsessing over his hair (a blood elf racial!), and maintaining the tankadin-focused blog Righteous Defense. Much like Commander Shepard and the Reapers, we've known for a long time that doom was coming for us block tanks, some way, some how. The stack has been on the nerf list for quite some time. We dodged the bullet in 4.2, and then in 4.3, the devs called off the dogs entirely, giving us a respite. However, with the recent publishing of Ghostcrawler's Mists stat changes Dev Watercooler, we now have an idea how our most favorite stat is going to be unceremoniously slice and diced. The changes to block will have far-reaching consequences for our class (as well as protection warriors). Obviously, this is pre-alpha and thus a nerf only in theory, but it's obvious what the intent is here: the defenestration of block to prevent mastery from being the powerhouse stat and block from being the powerhouse mechanic that both were for much of the Cataclysm cycle. And while it's evident that something needed to be done to block in the long run, I'm not quite sure that the changes Ghostcrawler outlined were the best avenue to take.
Lichborne: The effect of the new stat changes on death knights
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Lichborne for blood, frost, and unholy death knights. In the post-Cataclysm era, death knights are no longer the new kids on the block. Let's show the other classes how a hero class gets things done. We're still a couple of weeks away from the dam burst that is the Mists of Pandaria press event, but in the meantime, Lead Systems Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street has posted a new Dev Watercooler. He listed some stat changes coming in Mists that, while ostensibly not as complicated as those in Wrath, still hold some interesting and possibly major implications for class balance in the coming expansion. Let's dive right in and see what they mean for death knights. Blocking takes a week While it doesn't directly affect us, the blocking changes will certainly shake up the tanking hierarchy that we're a part of, so it's worth pointing out that the usual single roll combat table for dodging, parrying, or blocking a hit is gone. Instead, the chance to block will be calculated only after the dodge and parry chance is calculated. This essentially means that being unhittable is gone. You can't just stack to 102.4%. Of course, death knights and druids have never been able to do this, but they will now be joined by the shield tanks.
T-Mobile wants FCC to block Verizon's spectrum deals with cable industry
Call it sour grapes, posturing... whatever you want. The fact remains that T-Mobile has stuck its nose in the middle of Verizon's quest to bulk up its wireless portfolio. Big Magenta filed a request with the FCC on Tuesday, asking the regulatory agency to step in and block the transfer of AWS spectrum licenses from Cox, Time Warner, Comcast and Bright House to Verizon. The deals, which will cost the carrier roughly $3.9 billion, are already drawing interest from the Justice Department, which is concerned it'll place too much control in the company's hands. T-Mobile, the smallest of the nationwide carriers, is equally worried about the concentration of spectrum in Verizon's big red paws. Presumably, though, that has more to do with its inability to purchase it -- especially in the aftermath of the collapsed AT&T merger. Metro PCS and some public advocacy groups also voiced their opposition, while Sprint took a more measured approach, saying only that the FCC should look closely at the agreements. See, handset makers aren't the only mobile companies that can whip up a good legal drama.
Lichborne: 3 predictions for death knights in Mists of Pandaria
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Lichborne for blood, frost, and unholy death knights. In the post-Cataclysm era, death knights are no longer the new kids on the block. Let's show the other classes how a hero class gets things done. Let's face it. The Mists of Pandaria information drought is ongoing and likely to keep up for quite some time. As a result, we're stuck in a holding pattern. We know the class needs some changes. We know we have been promised (or threatened with, depending on your viewpoint) changes for blood death knights, if only via a general change to the tanking paradigm. None of that information is forthcoming, however, and the blues lately have indicated it won't be coming for a while. With that in mind, what we're left with is speculation. Today, I'd like to discuss three major changes I think we'll probably see with the new patch 5.0, one for each death knight tree. We already know change is a pretty huge constant for our class. It comes with the territory. We'll roll with the punches, as always, but it's nice to know what's coming. It helps you brace for it.
Kindle Fire stops blocking Android Market site, hijacking your browser
Some of you may have noticed, when perusing the interwebs on your Kindle Fire, that a certain Google-branded Market refused to load in the slate's Silk browser. In fact, it automatically redirected you to the Amazon App store in an unsettling bit of URL hijacking. Well, with the latest update to the tablet, that slightly befuddling restriction has been lifted and the questionable behavior rectified. Presumably this was originally intended to save customers confusion and support staff headaches when trying to install an app from the Android Market failed. But, actually intercepting and redirecting a user isn't becoming of a company that expects us to trust it with our data -- especially our browsing and financial info. Thankfully now, you can visit the Market in all its glory on your Fire, just don't expect to install apps from it any time soon (...at least not without some hacking).
Fujitsu, SuVolta push SRAM to its efficiency limits, demo 0.425 volt chip
Get the power requirements down for your next generation of RAM and you can have a raise in your allowance. For the perfect example of two companies that learned to play nice together and deserve a little something extra, Fujitsu Semiconductor and SuVolta today announced the successful demonstration of their ultra-low-voltage SRAM blocks at the International Electron Devices Meeting in Washington, DC. The new SRAM, which sips a mere 0.425 volts (nearly half that of previous chips), uses SuVolta's PowerShrink CMOS platform with Fujitsu's energy-efficient process technology. The companies showed that a 576Kb block of SRAM can run at just 0.4 volts by cutting its CMOS transistor threshold voltage variation in half. It's all very technical and, speaking of which, you'll find all those science-y details and diagrams in the PR after the break. Now, whip us up a crucial component that sips half the power it used to and you'll get a boost in your allowance and an approving tussle of the hair.
IBM sees stacked silicon sitting in fluid as the way to power future PCs
Generally, the combination of microchips, electricity and fluids is usually considered an incredibly bad thing. IBM, however, thinks it can combine those three to make super small and super powerful computers in the future. The idea is to stack hundreds of silicon wafers and utilize dual fluidic networks between them to create 3D processors. In such a setup, one network carries in charged fluid to power the chip, while the second carries away the same fluid after it has picked up heat from the active transistors. Of course, 3D chips are already on the way, and liquid cooled components are nothing new, but powering a PC by fluids instead of wires has never been done before. Bruno Michel, who's leading Big Blue's research team, has high hopes for the technology, because future processors will need the extra cooling and reduced power consumption it can provide. Michel says he and his colleagues have demonstrated that it's possible to use a liquid to transfer power via a network of fluidic channels, and they to plan build a working prototype chip by 2014. If successful, your smartphone could eventually contain the power of the Watson supercomputer. Chop, chop, fellas, those futuristic fluidic networks aren't going to build themselves.
Samsung drops plan to file Apple suit in Korea, will battle in 'the global market' instead
A Samsung executive revealed to Korean Newspaper The Chosun Ilbo today that it will drop its plans to pursue Apple for patent violations in Korea, instead focusing efforts on cases overseas. The anonymous exec cited performance in his company's home country, saying "we concluded that we should engage in legal battles with Apple only in the global market, but not in order to gain more market share in Korea." The move seems logical given the company's existing share, and will allow Samsung to maintain a positive image at home, where it dominates in categories ranging from televisions to refrigerators. So Apple may be in the clear in Sammyland, but the battle will likely continue beyond Korean shores for some time to come.
