The edge for Edge
"The good news is that you'll actually want to give it a try. The best thing about Edge is that it's not "Internet Explorer 12;" it's a complete reboot, with some nice modern tools and worthy additions, the best of which are highlighted below."
"This is what Windows 8 always should've been: an operating system that bridges the divide between touch and non-touch, without alienating folks who fall into one camp or the other. Like it or not, the future belongs to devices with touchscreens. But Microsoft (finally) understands that we'll all get there at own pace, and Continuum makes the transition painless. And now that there are so many hybrid devices to choose from, making the switch to touch without abandoning the interface we know is more important than ever."
"Domhnall Gleeson stars as a bright young programmer named Caleb, who's invited by his genius billionaire boss, Nathan (Oscar Isaac), to spend a week at a remote compound, testing the intelligence of a super-advanced android, Ava (Alicia Vikander). As the experiment plays out, Caleb begins to have feelings for Ava and questions the sanity and motivations of Nathan. The movie follows a somewhat predictable path from there, but the striking set design and strong performances make it an enjoyable trip, and the conversations about what makes us human will be sparking inspiring, late-night arguments for decades to come. The DVD and Blu-ray add featurettes."
This fascinating and provocative film peeks into the dystopian future predicted by Stephen Hawkins in his famous quote; "Artificial Intelligence may be man's greatest achievement and also his last". In the past year we have seen two thought provoking science pectin movies Ex Machina and Interstellar. It looks like the long drought is over. John H Armwood
"HE Z4 TABLET SOUNDS GREAT IN THEORY, BUT THE FINAL PRODUCT DISAPPOINTS
Yet again, I find myself deeply frustrated by Sony’s failure to live up to its own expectations and produce a cohesive product. The company’s ideas are not bad: there is definitely a class of more conservative mobile PC users that demands a real physical keyboard and Microsoft Office compatibility. Such people can be very adequately served by the Surface Pro 3, but they don’t strictly need a Windows PC. An Android tablet — especially one preloaded with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint as the Z4 is — can fulfill most of their needs, while costing and weighing less. If I was heading off to university this fall, I’d definitely consider getting a super thin device that can be both my YouTube video player and my modernist take on the netbook for taking lecture notes. Sony's premise is sound. Its execution isn’t."
"NYTimes: Office of Personnel Management Says Hackers Got Data of Millions of Individuals. "
"When did you last call your mother? Don't worry if you can't remember -- the National Security Agency can once more keep track of that for you. That is, for the next 180 days.
After briefly suspending its bulk collection of phone call data, the NSA now has the authority to start it up again, a federal judge ruled on Monday.
The data collection program has become the center of national debate over government surveillance and privacy in the digital age. Whistleblowers like former NSA contractor Edward Snowden have made public intelligence programs designed to reach into the vast store of information on our phones and Internet browsers and paint an extremely detailed picture of the nation's communications.
Despite the continuation of the program, Monday's ruling helps push forward Congress's ongoing plan to narrow the NSA's phone call data collection practices by reaffirming its end in November. After November, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court won't provide a blanket approval to the practice any longer."
