👿Google's Gone Evil, All in One Mini PC, and A Serene Computer
Don't be evil eh?
Hey friends! How are you doing this first week of August?
Summer is just about over . . .
Maybe we’ll make it through these mad Summer Days.
From Twitter becoming X - to the room temperature semiconductor paper - to doomsday fishes arising from the ocean . . .
or LBRY losing its SEC case and shutting down.
Personally - I’m most interested in the room temperature semiconductor.
Is the study real? Is it unrealistic? Is it all completely SUS?
Or . . . is there something there.
The Anons have been activated - which is always fun. Andrew McCalip is trying to build one in real-time.
I’m curious to see what happens!
In other news the Twisted Metal show is really, really funny. Yeah, it’s cheesy for sure - but Anthony Mackie is awesome.
Will Arnett as the voice of Sweet Tooth is hilarious.
Remember that really cool rooms.xyz site? There’s an IOS app coming out soon!
SO MANY creators have built cool rooms.
You can join the beta at that link!
Let’s dive in, shall we?
😨 Google’s Gone Evil?
Once upon a time, Google used to have a saying “Don’t be evil.” It was a guiding principle from the old days.
Then - it got “corpofied” - read this Gizmodo article from 2018.
Google is working on a standard called “Web Environment Integrity” and in its current form - not a good thing for the open web.
Most browsers are run on Chromium - so rest assured that if it’s implemented, it’ll affect a lot of how we interact with the web.
Here’s how it works.
The goal for Web Environment Integrity seems to be to prevent fake interactions on websites, aka bots. Google wants to help websites verify that the visitor to their domain is not a robot, but an actual user. The Mountain View company points out that users are concerned about the authenticity of interactions on social websites, i.e. fake interactions (likes, comments) that are used to promote news, posts, products, etc . . . Google also played the security card, claiming that users may get tricked into installing malware that mimics genuine apps like banking apps . . . Google says that these issues could be prevented by verifying if the request (attempt to access the website) came from the official app or other trustworthy software. It claims that websites need to differentiate between a trusted and untrusted environment (read environment = browsers). (source)
At first glance - sounds like a good idea! Let’s make the internet safer - yay!
Let’s cruise on over to Vivaldi Browser’s thoughts on the subject.
Simply, if an entity has the power of deciding which browsers are trusted and which are not, there is no guarantee that they will trust any given browser. Any new browser would by default not be trusted until they have somehow demonstrated that they are trustworthy, to the discretion of the attesters. Also, anyone stuck running on legacy software where this spec is not supported would eventually be excluded from the web. To make matters worse, the primary example given of an attester is Google Play on Android. This means Google decides which browser is trustworthy on its own platform. I do not see how they can be expected to be impartial. On Windows, they would probably defer to Microsoft via the Windows Store, and on Mac, they would defer to Apple. So, we can expect that at least Edge and Safari are going to be trusted. Any other browser will be left to the good graces of those three companies. (source)
Essentially - if the WEI standards are implemented - it consolidates power further to Apple/Google/Microsoft - and makes it wayyy more difficult for new browsers to compete.
Not good - The “big three” already hold enough power over the web - like ancient Shoguns. I don’t think they need any more territory . . .
Go read more about it at the links!
💻 All in One Mini PC
Remember that WILD all-in-one Zenbook you could use like a laptop, tablet, or PC?
Now - let’s go in the other direction.
Have you ever considered buying a mini PC?
They’re small, compact - and surprisingly powerful. There’s always lists of fun ones rolling around - like this list. Heck - some of them even have 32 gigs of ram.
Have you heard of the Khadas Mind?
It’s a mini PC, but with a lego style twist.
You can buy just the mini PC, or you can stack it with the accessories.
Want added power? Add on the Mind graphics dock.
Want a laptop-style experience? Add on the Mind xPlay.
There’s also a Dock, Data Transfer, and Talk module available too.
With this system, you could hypothetically use it to completely replace your existing pc/laptop setup.
It’s an intriguing idea - what do you think?
Check it out!
✌️ A Serene Computer
I’ve been looking at cyber decks for years.
Side note - if you want to browse some good ones - check out the tag on Hackaday.
However, I’ve never encountered one that I could easily buy.
The Serene Computer is the most beautiful computing device I’ve ever seen.
It looks like it stepped straight out of an old space or steampunk movie.
Combine knobs, dials, and the finesse of a modern mechanical keyboard - and you get one incredibly aesthetic device.
You can get your very own built if you’d like.
To fully appreciate the, well, serenity of this device - you should watch this video on Twi - I mean X . . .
The Mythic II even has a thermal printer in it so you can print your own notes!
Go check out Mythic Computer at the link!
🐙The Land of Random
Random Randommmmmm Let’s dive into the randommm
Solar Camper
This guy lives in his Camaro and is a RN. Pretty cool - If he can get his content cranking as good/consistent as Mav’s, I bet he gets to a million subs.
Strand Storytelling
Pick up the strand from the last writer, and continue the story! If one isn’t currently running, you can always view the archive to see what others have written.
StumbleUpon Reborn
Hurrah! Another fun random website spinner! There’s some really interesting ones in here - and it’s super minimalist too. Just a single green button.
The Final Countdown
This one’s a tad dark, but eh, I can’t pass up the chance to share a website that estimates how many pizzas you have left to eat in your lifetime. It’s also a pretty smart little lead magnet too haha.
Cursive Text Generator
Generate 𝓼𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓬𝓻𝓪𝔃𝔂 𝓽𝓮𝔁𝓽 for your next social media post.
Gardening Robot Burns Weeds
With THE SUN no less.
TiddlyWiki PWA Edition
TiddlyWiki , the wonderful wiki you can store in an HTML doc - now available as a PWA app.
🤖 AI AHHHHHHHHH
Adobe is allllready working on AI video editing software
Twitter user gets so annoyed they leak an AI software’s entire prompt. LOL. How many of these AI software are just running off something like this.
ohhhh Run Llama 2 locally on your Mac?
TikToks You Can’t Miss
That’s alottttttttt of dry ice. A lot.
2.9 million + people liked this ad. Dang. Wonder how much it’s made?
Yeah. Do NOT jump down the tree stump.
Very cool - I’m glad I read the comments on this one.
I’ve heard these stories, but have never seen one.
That’s all for this week! See you next time.