NEWS
Another big DDoS takes down popular DNS host & sites with it A huge DDoS attack hit DynDNS, a popular DNS provider over the weekend, taking out dozens of websites. According to Flashpoint, it's the same thing that happened to Brian Krebs and OVH over the last week or so - compromised IoT devices thanks to the release of the Mirai malware source code going public, allowing any idiot to launch a massive DDoS attack. Dyn hosted DNS for sites like Twitter, Spotify and Reddit. Take out enough DNS hosts and you've taken down the internet. Ugh. Dyn seem to be doing a good job mitigating the DDos though. Discuss
Google finally gave in to combining their search and services personal info on you Google has changed part of its privacy policy to say that by default, Google will cross reference what you search for on the web with all the personally identifiable info it gathers from your other Google services. I honestly assumed Google and others were doing this anyways. You can opt-out, but do you trust Google? Better off ditching Google's services entirely than opting out I reckon. Discuss
American Academy of Paediatrics refines screen time limits for young kids The American Academy of Paediatrics reckons kiddies staring at screens for a while isn't that bad and loosened their recommendation that kids under the age of two never stare at a smartphone or tablet. For kids 0-18 months old, they recommend limiting usage to video chat with remote relatives only, no games or videos. Kids 2-5, limit screen time to 1 hour a day and 6 and older just need to make sure their screen time doesn't get in the way of sleep and other healthy habits. Discuss
AT&T to merge with TimeWarner AT&T, the USA's largest telco, has agreed to buy Time Warner, the owner of brands like HBO, CNN, DC Comics and Warner Brothers, as well as being one of the largest ISPs in the USA, for US$85.4 billion. It's not confirmed, as it still has to go through US anti-trust scrutiny, which will be strong. The plan here is to make sure AT&T doesn't erode itself to being a dumb pipe - which I personally don't get what the problem is, but I guess the profits aren't juicy enough. Discuss
Vale Leslie Nassar Sad news over the weekend that Leslie Nassar died after being hit by a drunk driver whilst walking his kids to school in Idaho. I don't know Leslie well at all, but many people I know in my little nerd circle liked him and were shocked to find out he's no longer with us. This tribute from Helen Razer on Crikey seems to sum him up pretty well. I personally remember his Fake Stephen Conroy persona on Twitter very fondly and reckon it was a large reason the anti-clean feed movement picked up pace back in 2008 and ultimately got that stupid idea to censor Australia's internet put on the indefinite backburner. Discuss
COOL SHIT
Herman Miller upgrades the Aeron Herman Miller has launched a new version of the famous Aeron chair. This one has a "completely new experience of sitting", amongst other things. I've never sat in one, but I really should. They're about $1500 new, but considering I sit at my desk for easily 8 hours a day, almost every day except weekends, it's not a lot of money. Wonder if it's possible to trial one? Discuss
Elon Musk answers a bunch of questions about going to Mars Elon Musk did an AMA on the SpaceX Reddit forum (subreddit? is that what they're called, I should know this by now), giving more detail on his plans to go to Mars. I'm not across everything to do with the Mars plan, but if you're into Elon and into space travel, I guess you gotta read this. From TechCrunch's summary, the fact they've made the biggest thing ever out of carbon fibre is pretty cool. Discuss
US$10/day for unlimited 4G data anywhere in the world Sizzle subscriber Zac Davies showed me a Kickstarter project on the weekend and even though I don't like promoting Kickstarter projects as they usually end up being duds, this one isn't as far fetched as most so it might actually happen. It's a SIM card that lets you buy unlimited data in over 100 countries for just US$10/day. The SIM card is stuck inside the mi-fi they sell you, but still, that's pretty sweet. Takes a lot of the hassle out of finding SIMs for those passing through countries or only visiting for a few days. Most of those travel SIMs are only 2G or 3G, so having this support 4G is very nice. I hope it comes to fruition! Discuss
Here endeth the sizzle (until tomorrow!) --Anthony
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