Welcome audio upgrade in store for Android Netflix viewers
If you use the Netflix app on android, you will soon have a vastly improved audio experience after an update incorporating the xHE-AAC format. The new updated app’s audio (Extended HE-AAC with MPEG-D DRC) will offer Android viewers watching films ‘studio quality’ sound.
A prime additional feature of the upgrade will be a form of automatic switching, depending on the speed of your cellular network and reception. The studio-quality audio will be triggered in the best “optimal” network situations while minimized rebuffers will kick-in as needed when you have sub-par reception or a congested network.
“With its capability to improve intelligibility in noisy environments, adapt to variable cellular connections, and scale to studio-quality, xHE-AAC will be a sonic delight to members who stream on these devices.”
Upcoming slate for Apple TV+ Reveals gradual upward slope to content
Until now Apple TV+ is still a bit of an also-ran. With Disney having an incredible run and HBO max making waves with its new Warner Brothers deal, even as Netflix and Amazon continue to ramble on, Apple’s premium streaming service seems almost like an underdog.
One thing about Apple, though, they rarely go into anything without a lot of planning. In this case with upfront investments of over $6 billion, anyone signing up now, or still taking advantage of the free subscription offers, can rest assured there will be a steady stream (sorry) of new content arriving for the foreseeable future.
Not everything gets announced and given a firm release date in advance, with the production schedules still in a bit of chaos, but we’ve made a list of what will be coming up soon. Please scroll down to the bottom of the page if you want to see the shows that are already released and can be seen immediately.
Apple TV+ is releasing new movies in the next few months. “Losing Alice”, “Palmer”, “Cherry”, and Billie Eilish documentary “The World’s A Little Blurry” have been announced so far, please check out the trailers below:
Losing Alice / January 22, 2021
“Losing Alice” is a thrilling cinematic journey that uses flashbacks and flash-forwards in a satisfyingly complex narrative that takes the viewer through the conscious and subconscious of its protagonist’s mind. The series follows Alice (played by Ayelet Zurer), a 48-year-old female film director, who feels irrelevant since raising her family. After a brief encounter on the train, she becomes obsessed with a 24-year-old screenwriter femme fatale, Sophie (played by Lihi Kornowski), and eventually surrenders her moral integrity in order to achieve power, relevance and success. Through the prism of this female Faust, the series explores issues such as jealousy, guilt, fear of aging, and the complex relationships women have among themselves and each other. But above all, “Losing Alice” is a love letter for the still-too-rare female director.
Palmer / January 29, 2021
After 12 years in prison, former high school football star Eddie Palmer returns home to put his life back together—and forms an unlikely bond with Sam, an outcast boy from a troubled home. But Eddie’s past threatens to ruin his new life and family.
The World’s A Little Blurry / February 26, 2021
“Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry” tells the true coming-of-age story of the singer-songwriter and her rise to global superstardom. From award-winning filmmaker R.J. Cutler, the documentary offers a deeply intimate look at this extraordinary teenager’s journey, at just 17 years old, navigating life on the road, on stage, and at home with her family, while writing, recording and releasing her debut album “WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?”
Cherry / March 12, 2021
CHERRY follows the wild journey of a disenfranchised young man from Ohio who meets the love of his life, only to risk losing her through a series of bad decisions and challenging life circumstances. Inspired by the best-selling novel of the same name, CHERRY features Tom Holland in the title role, as an unhinged character who drifts from dropping out of college to serving in Iraq as an army medic and is only anchored by his one true love Emily (Ciara Bravo). When Cherry returns home a war hero, he battles the demons of undiagnosed PTSD and spirals into drug addiction, surrounding himself with a menagerie of depraved misfits. Draining his finances, Cherry turns to bank robbing to fund his addiction, shattering his relationship with Emily along the way. Brought to the screen in bold, gritty fashion by visionary directors Anthony and Joe Russo, CHERRY is a darkly humorous, unflinching coming-of-age story of a man on a universal quest for purpose and human connection.
And here are the shows available to watch on AppleTV+ right now
Zoom panels, product unveilings all to take place while you have no pants
This year CES2021 is scheduled from Monday January 11-14. It’s a bit later than usual due to lot and lots of strange things happening in the world, and, oh yes, cause they had to shrink it into a phone-sized screen, or at least a zoom-panel for your desktop.
While attempting to put a happy face on it all the exhibitors described it thusly: ”an all-digital experience connecting exhibitors, customers, thought leaders and media from around the world. The new format will allow participants to hear from technology innovators, see cutting-edge technologies and the latest product launches, and engage with global brands and startups from around the world.“
In all seriousness if you want to check out the new gadgets, trends and progress you can now attend without “borrowing” somebodies pass who had to leave a day or two early. Wuuhuu! An infinite virtual exhibit hall will be replacing the 3 million square feet of actual exhibition space, but the more than 100,000 attendees will not be renting rooms in Vegas.
Or getting room service on the company tab, or watching pay-per-view from same said tab. Which is all not great for Vegas – but there will be better news next year – we hope seriously and sincerely.
As for this year let’s try to get the hang of this whole virtual thing! There are almost 2,000 exhibits for 2021 CES, to see the in detail, check out CES exhibitor list.
We can recommend, for those who will not register as an official attendee to view the action on CNET’s livestream. They’ll be broadcasting all day on Monday, Jan. 11 and you can follow along for press conferences, product reveals, a CES keynote presentation and expert commentary from the editors and hosts.
Our Premium Plus exhibitors will showcase their latest innovations at the all-digital #CES2021.
Bezos knocked from #1 slot that he has held since 2017
According to Bloomberg, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX just passed up Jeff Bezos as the world’s richest person. While this, in and of itself is a fact that many will likely fetishize, the real story here is why and how.
There could not, IMHO, be two people more diametrically opposed in terms of motivation, inspiration and method. Both obscenely rich now? Of course. In each case because of stock holdings in companies they founded? Right again.
After that it is all a study in contrasts and contradictions. For example, as recently as Christmas eve 20o8 Elon Musk was nearly bankrupt and was on the verge of losing both SpaceX and Tesla. Later as recently as 2019, Tesla was in a deep financial hole.
Was this a case of bad management? Apparently not. What it was related to was the prime difference between Bezos and Musk. Musk has always only had one mission. Was it having the world’s most dominant eCommerce company? (or any other kind). One that would destroy entire business categories and be called the “grim reaper” due to it’s destruction of markets and competitors?
No – Musk has always wanted to save the world from itself. Tesla’s stated official mission is:
Tesla’s mission is to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy. … Teslabelieves the faster the world stops relying on fossil fuels and moves towards a zero-emission future, the better.
Tesla / Elon Musk
Perhaps the cynical would say this is just some kind of veil hiding a capitalist and monopolist hunger a la Bezos. But they’d be wrong. Musk has openly stated that he is willing to share various proprietary technical information with his competitors if it would help the world’s transition to sustainable energy succeed faster. Would Bezos give away Amazon’s secrets. Take a guess.
Another interesting tidbit – Both SpaceX and Tesla have publicly disavowed all copyright claims to their photos, videos or other marketing assets. They also do zero paid advertising. This is brilliant and has made them money in the end, but more importantly it is additional proof that it is the success of the mission, a mission that ultimately benefits all humanity more than any singe individual, that is paramount in his thinking.
Though Musk may not realize it, he and Steve Jobs are kindred spirits
The only other highly successful tech visionary that had this kind of focus on the real success, which can by definition only ever be success for all, if Steve Jobs. With so much misinformation and focus on meaningless stats, like whose stock is worth the most paper dollars (printed at will by the Fed) at any given moment, it is often misunderstood that the mission and the sincerity and effectiveness of the mission that will always matter in the end.
Probably the greatest gift Bezos ever has or ever will give to humanity was via his divorce. Any other “charitable” act he will ever commit will be, first and foremost, have the goal of improving his image and stroking his massive ego.
Therein lies the difference.
Early Thursday Tesla shares (TSLA) rose by 6%, and further lifting the CEO’s stock holdings and options by $10 billion, resulting in the net worth of approximately $191 billion.
Musk edged past the Amazon founder who is currently has the net worth of around $187 billion.
Musk, who pinned the following past tweet from 2018 explained his intentions and how he will use money from his success, “You should ask why I would want money. The reason is not what you think. Very little time for recreation. Don’t have vacation homes or yachts or anything like that.”
About half my money is intended to help problems on Earth & half to help establish a self-sustaining city on Mars to ensure continuation of life (of all species) in case Earth gets hit by a meteor like the dinosaurs or WW3 happens & we destroy ourselves
The day after it would have helped, better late than never
After more than four years of tyrannical abuse of social media and the eCommerce hawking of propaganda trinkets, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and even Shopify have put blocks on Trump accounts.
Particularly in the case of Facebook, the timing is somewhat unsatisfying. Facebook, as many can recall, has supported Trump “fake” and misleading advertising since before the 2016 election. Those ads were, according to many, a very big reason that he was elected at all. This was a huge mistake of history, one might say, and the mistake started at Facebook.
Naturally, being “arbiter of the truth” or not, is an entirely different issue, because it is the warlord-like raking-in of millions upon millions, if not billions of dollars, by blindly allowing lies, hate, racism and worse be propagated as political advertising, that has been the clear “wrong” that Facebook allowed and profited from.
So, it’s ,at least somehow, a belated comfort that, at least for the moment, ads fomenting violent overthrow of the imaginary “deep state” or sales of MAGA hats that finance said ads, are no longer running in tandem like some kind of dystopian fascist nightmare machine.
At least the media, much of the government and now a lot of big tech and social media are united in one simple thought: Trump is simply a criminal and aiding him in any way make you and your company one also. So, yes, shut it down, now.
Shopify
Shopify, the multinational e-commerce company that hosted shops that relate to Trump’s campaign products as well as Trump’s personal brand have both been taken down. Those who attempt to go to TrumpStore.com or shop.donaldjtrump.com, known for selling the official Trump MAGA merchandise will be meet with error messages as the sites were taken down Thursday morning.
A spokesperson for the company released the following statement following the terminated stores affiliated with Trump:
“Shopify does not tolerate actions that incite violence. Based on recent events, we have determined that the actions by President Donald J. Trump violate our Acceptable Use Policy, which prohibits promotion or support of organizations, platforms or people that threaten or condone violence to further a cause,”
Twitter also added that “Future violations of the Twitter Rules, including our Civic Integrity or Violent Threats policies, will result in permanent suspension of the @realDonaldTrump account.”
Trump has since deleted the three tweets that led to the temporary suspension of his account. Trump’s account will remain locked for an additional 12 hours after the deletion. It is not clear the exact timing of when the tweets were deleted and when Trump will be allowed to post again, he has yet to tweet. According to CNBC, the lock could be removed around 3 p.m. ET.
Facebook
Trump’s official Facebook and Instagram accounts have both been locked due to policy violations. Facebook Newsroom released a statement via Twitter starting on January 6 at 8:36 p.m. ET, stating that Trump’s account would be blocked for 24 hours. On January 7th, they updated its statement to explain the extent of the block would be “indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete.”
CEO and founder, Mark Zuckerberg also released his own statement on the matter:
“The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.
His decision to use his platform to condone rather than condemn the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has rightly disturbed people in the US and around the world. We removed these statements yesterday because we judged that their effect — and likely their intent — would be to provoke further violence.
Following the certification of the election results by Congress, the priority for the whole country must now be to ensure that the remaining 13 days and the days after inauguration pass peacefully and in accordance with established democratic norms.
Over the last several years, we have allowed President Trump to use our platform consistent with our own rules, at times removing content or labeling his posts when they violate our policies. We did this because we believe that the public has a right to the broadest possible access to political speech, even controversial speech. But the current context is now fundamentally different, involving use of our platform to incite violent insurrection against a democratically elected government.
We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great. Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete.”
We believe the risks of allowing President Trump to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great, so we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks. pic.twitter.com/JkyGOTYB1Z
Apple had a big year – but how big will first become apparent in 2021…
By now, it is not unexpected for the latest iteration of the iPhone, iPhone 12 in this case, to do well and even best the competition across the board in any given year. While it is nearly an automatic ritual that doubt will be cast, and the demise or at least diminution of the iPhone and Apple are predicted, nearly every year the opposite in the case.
This year was different. There was plenty of doubt – but the surprise announcement of the M series of chips for mac and the even more surprising benchmarks and performance improvements pretty much obliterated the doubters.
Not only that, but a layer beneath that headline news was a secondary layer of innovation and areas where long planned improvements came to fruition.
The first steps into a massive multi-year system software transition, one that will eventually merge the mobile operating systems of the iPhone, iPad, Apple watch, etc with the mac, moved seemingly ahead of schedule, with the huge improvements in iOS 14 and macOS Big Sur.
And all the various services such as Apple TV+ and many other offerings made huge strides as well.
As a matter of fact, a list of all the upgrades, added features and new services and products would be so long and varied that the transcription is beyond the reach of a simple article such as this one.
However, that alone is not where some of the biggest changes and most surprising evolutions have occurred. The real “action” so to speak is in the integration and unexpected by-products of the merging and deepening of all the new features and settings.
Take for example the macs that feature the M1 chip. It is not the chip itself, not even the new operating system that has the most impact on the performance or usability of the machines.
It is the integrated functionality of the various elements of the chips – Apple M1, the first ARM-based system on a chip – composed of several different components including the CPU, GPU, unified memory architecture (RAM), Neural Engine, Secure Enclave, SSD controller, image signal processor, encode/decode engines, Thunderbolt controller with USB 4 support, all of which are made more powerful by the continuously upgraded software system.
This – a kind of invisible interactive and synergistic ecosystem – not only has at it’s heart the “whole widget” philosophy legacy of Steve Jobs, but also a new and insanely futuristic definition of “whole” which now includes these proprietary Apple chips (CPU, GPU, NE), plus A.I. / machine learning and system core operating as one continuously evolving and reinforcing “unit”.
The future is already here, we just don’t see it like fish, maybe, never heard of a thing called water…
This new concept of the constantly increasing potential advancement in efficiency and power is not only the new standard basis for what constitutes computing technology at Apple, but will emerge as the ultimate re-definition of what “power” in computing means at all.
Similar to the internet – where the evolution and development is at stone age levels compared to where it will (and must) eventually reach in decades and even centuries, computing (or “personal” computing as it was dubbed in the last century) is also in very early and very primitive stages of evolution and this next step represents an early beginning, not a destination or accomplishment of a goal.
Even Apple has stated that the initial transition of a unified operating system shared by mobile and desktop / laptop devices, iOS / macOS, will be years still in development and implementation.
Meaning, in 2024 we may see the first real life trails and dissemination of a new kind of computing system, and, more importantly, computer assisted communicating, made possible by the complete integration of these hardware, software and A.I. advances.
Just in time, because the threats of global warming, pandemics, political upheaval and economic disaster need, more than anything, enhanced learning and communication that can be aided, we must fervently hope, by improved digital tools. A better bicycle, so to speak.
Fortunately, Apple has our back on this. And in 2021 more, much more will be revealed, if 2020 was any hint, of an exciting future not just for technology, but for the creative uses of it for the betterment of humankind.
Above: Apple Ad in Berlin’s KuDamm – Photo / Lynxotic
Rumors of “Apple Car” a.k.a. “Project Titan” jumpstarting its production dates
Reuters exclusive story quoting a variety of unnamed sources appears to have some validity
Starting on Sunday December 20th rumors began to fly citing one source that claimed an Apple Car, long in R&D would burst on the scene in “late 2021”. That batch of speculative information came from a Taiwanese report from the Economic Daily News, where an “insider” claims that there has been a ramp up of supplies for the production of components for the Apple Car, with a launch potential for third quarter of 2021.
Then, on Monday, the Reuters story debuted with more realistic time frames and at least a few tidbits that appear plausible. The sources contributing to the story say that there is an Apple passenger vehicle in the works, under the long known codename “Titan” and that it will be aimed at the consumer market.
This is, in and of itself, if true, a significant fact as speculation has revolved around a possible retreat into a software only realm or a foray into self-driving systems for commercial use, for example.
Clearly an actual Car sold directly to consumers as an Apple branded product would be the most ambitions possible route into the space and also the most exciting.
Rather than the obviously crazy 2021 timeline, however, the new report indicates a far more realistic 2024 projected launch and even mentions the likelihood of an even longer timeline due to complications arising out of the pandemic.
Even at this early stage, innovative details are being leaked
Other details put forth by the various sources included a new battery design (Apple does have some experience in the battery production area) that could “radically” lower battery cost while at the same time increasing the range of the vehicles.
“Central to Apple’s strategy is a new battery design that could “radically” reduce the cost of batteries and increase the vehicle’s range, according to a third person who has seen Apple’s battery design.”
—Reuters
The battery design, according to one source, is based on a “monocell” system which will “free up space inside the battery pack” by getting rid of pouches and modules that hold battery materials.
Based on this, and presumably other innovations, the car will have a longer range due to packing more active material inside the battery. LFP – lithium iron phosphate also may be used and would be inherently less likely to overheat and therefore be safer than traditional lithium-ion designs.
Other details revolved around “lidar sensors” which are both being used in various self-driving systems and, coincidentally, are also present in iPhone 12 models. The sources say that Apple is both reaching out to companies that specialize in lidar tech and also continuing R&D on its own sensor designs.
A project of this size and magnitude will surely engender more details and leaks going forward. Although seeing an Apple Car on the street may not be in the cards before 2024-2025 it is nevertheless a tantalizing idea to watch unfold, even if only via leaks and speculation at this point.
The battle is getting very public and will get louder and nastier
The full page newspaper ads taken out by Facebook, where they proclaim themselves the champion of small business and attack Apple directly are interesting and curious on many levels.
It will take a series of articles to attempt to untangle the confusions and endless, often intentionally fostered, misconceptions that will most certainly arise in this battle of titans.
At the heart of the matter is, however, the largest misconception humanly possible, the idea that these monstrously huge companies, and how they operate, are anything at all related to “normal”.
The fact that all of us have seen the role of the internet in general increase over the last 20+ years, and have therefore had to deal with, and in some cases, go through and cooperate with these behemoths, may be the status quo that has developed, particularly in the last decade, but it is without precedent on many levels.
The size, power and influence is beyond comprehension and this clouds every issue
Before even beginning to contrast one giant against another one must first confront the very existence of entities of this magnitude. It’s fair to say that never in history has such a tiny group of companies, and by extension, individual humans, controlled so much of the economy and so much of that impacts the society and our experiences.
This chart is not current. If it were the disparity would be far larger and even more astounding:
This information, for a human, is so out of whack that you would have to stare at this chart for days before it could even sink in. And, as it it only a chart of size, built on company market capitalization, the power and influence, which represents and ever larger disparity, is not represented.
The dominance overall is so extreme as to be humanly incomprehensible. And by all measures the disparity between the big tech firms and “everybody else” grows literally by the second.
If you are afraid of A.I., you’re too late, the world is already controlled by computers and software via these companies
Facebook is probably the best example to illustrate the problem of market power and dominance on a level that is so far beyond traditional methods of measurement that even government antitrust investigations are barely able to begin to access the potential violations.
“The questions below might seem odd, or even absurd. But what is really absurd is that they are, for the most part, never asked. “
The questions below might seem odd, or even absurd. But what is really absurd is that they are, for the most part, never asked. Since the iPhone and later Samsung / Android revolutionized information and photo sharing, it has been accepted as a simple reality that Facebook controls nearly all the “social networking” that is done with that data. Why?
What is Facebook? Most would say they are a “social media company” but that can mean anything you want it to mean. They claim they are in the business of “connecting people” yet they derive massive wealth and profit from advertising, and “monetizing” their network, the largest network of “social users”, by far.
And if they are interested in connecting people, then what do those people own of the network that they themselves comprise? That would be nothing.
What say do they have in how they are used to “monetize” the network that they literally “are”? None.
What trust do they have to surrender to the company, which includes Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and more (all controlled 100% by a guy named Zuckerberg)? 100%
“What ‘say’ do they have in how they are used to “monetize” the network that they literally ‘are’? None.”
— D.L.
Who authorized Facebook (or Google) to amass vast databanks of private personal information from a huge chunk of the world’s population, and use that data to amass fortunes of unheard of size using secret proprietary algorithms that they have zero requirement to disclose? Well, technically, users, inadvertently and without understanding, did. Otherwise: No-one.
Well, technically all of this was “allowed” via Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, passed in 1996, and states that an “interactive computer service” can’t be treated as the publisher or speaker of third-party content. This, effectively, protects websites and “platforms” such as Facebook, from lawsuits in the case that a “user” posts something illegal. There are exceptions, for example, for copyright violations, sex work-related material, and violations of federal criminal law.
This fact does not remove responsibility for building a system that gives massive financial benefit to Facebook, Google, etc and very little, in reality, by way of return or influence to the “user”.
It’s as if a man figured out a way to use mental-telepathy to rob banks and could never be caught or prosecuted due to the fact that no one had ever robbed a bank that way before. And then he claimed that he should be allowed to continue doing it forever, with impunity.
What would Facebook and Zuckerberg have if the billions of “users” stopped using its network? Nothing.
How little sense this makes just goes on and on. There could be 100s of pages of similar questions and answers and the end result would be a slightly better understanding of the absurdity of the very existence of such a “service” or company or whatever this is.
Why absurd? In a nutshell, Facebook controls private networks that exist “inside” a more public network called, for lack of a better term, “the internet”. And, because of what could be termed a mistake of history they represent a dominant, near monopoly, in the “space” which in this case is currently called “social networks”.
The dominance and the definition of monopoly can be argued endlessly (and likely will be in the coming antitrust cases) but, in the end, the numbers don’t lie. Only one person benefits, in direct payments of trillions of dollars, from a near monopoly in social networks. The billions of people, the very people who are the network, do not.
A bleak analysis, perhaps, but is there any light at the end of this tunnel?
The current increase in antitrust cases, both in the US and Europe, is a canary-in the-coal-mine moment and the wars over all the arising issues has begun and will go on for years.
The fact that Facebook is heavily advertising that they are the “good guy” while Amazon and Google do the same, is both ridiculous and sad, since “good guys” don’t have to buy ads to draw attention to that fact.
And the fact that these companies have already started, both in word and deed, to attack each other directly, is an indication of just how serious and all pervasive these mega-wars will be. This is just the beginning.
While none of the companies depicted on the chart above can be said to be without blame for the world of injustice and malfunction that is the internet, and by extension, our world, there is one company that stands apart from the others in so many ways and for so many reasons that they, amazingly, represent some hope within the madness.
And, not coincidently, they are the one that is already being attacked, in print and software, as the wars begin: Apple.
How Apple actually represents hope to clean up the tech universe that, arguably, they are most responsible for having created, is likely a hard sell with those that want to lump all these huge companies together. Because, after all, they are all huge.
However, nothing could be further from the truth. More on this and other burning questions in our next episode, so stay tuned.
The opinions expressed “pro” or “con” regarding big tech abuses of power are both overlooking far more serious issues that lie beneath
After years of public and insider opinion gradually shifting from a state of wonder, awe and hero worship of tech giants and their founders and CEOs, toward a more skeptical stance, and now, finally, government action begins; the fundamental issues that lie beneath are still barely mentioned, let alone widely understood.
In a filing at the U.S. District Court in Washington D.C., on December 9th, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission, together with 46 states, plus the District of Columbia and Guam, alleged that Facebook employed anticompetitive tactics, allowing it to bully and bury its rivals. In a strongly worded brief it recommends that the massive company be broken up, specifically by divesting itself of Instagram and WhatsApp.
While past antitrust cases were complex and difficult to understand fully, particularly for the general public, from the little known A & P case in the 30s and 40s to Standard Oil and Ma Bell / AT&T, in each case there were complex issues to address.
However, one simple thing tied them together that could be understood by virtually anyone: businesses that have a win-at-all-costs approach to business tactics and then achieve monopoly power almost always use that power to fulfill ambitions based on self-perpetuating greed at the expense of society as a whole.
Many, from all walks of life, particularly in the U.S., worship the ethos of “winner take all” and even if they are at the lowest levels of the economic ladder still cheer on the most ruthless and morally bankrupt “winners” as heroes, using a bizarre logic, that somehow they might one day see themselves in the winners circle.
This perspective is similar to societies where dictators, such as Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, or emperors are worshiped fervently by the very people that are most exploited and downtrodden under their regimes. Perhaps this is a hardwired genetic human trait, impossible to alter.
In the case of tech giants of the internet era, beginning with Microsoft and its antitrust case, a similar dynamic is no less present, and, no different from the steps that dictators take to encourage obedience and worship from their subjects. In this case it’s massive amounts of money and power used for required self-serving PR and the brutal economic repression of any dissenting voices.
Try to find a book on Amazon’s Jeff Bezos that is not a hero-worship nonsense-title purporting to offer you a way to become a “business genius” like him. You will find a few exceptions, of course, these purporting to offer “hard-hitting” investigative journalism and a sober look at the “real facts”.
These will be watered down, meekly subservient, weak and impotent tombs barely scratching the surface of any negative perspectives on the real problems Amazon and its founder have created, not only for millions of people around the world but for society as a whole.
Even among those that are the most incisive and have a real desire to “dig-deep” and reach the roots of the real problems, there is often still the a priori assumption that somehow, the 26 year evolution of business models that could “succeed” in internet and software based business are to be measured on a scale that presumes that the business models themselves are basically valid, simply because they were able to survive and create massive, nearly immeasurable, wealth for a tiny handful of individuals. .
Taking into account the pervasive pro-big-business bias, it is a miracle in a sense, that the public opinion has shifted so far, to the point where antitrust actions can be seen as valid, by enough of the public at large, that these giant monopolistic tech companies are called into question at all.
The miracle, if we call it that, is only a reflection of just how purely evil and out of control the situation has become, and how many people have been harmed, and in how many different ways this harm has occurred.
From teen suicides to thousands of bankrupt and struggling small businesses to privacy rights trampled in the dirt, the list of abuses and harm, if it were ever brought to light, could fill a thousand page treatise and would read like a recounting of the atrocities of war.
And then there’s the fact that the war is fought with computer code and over territory that has no physical address
Much as collateralized debt obligations and other arcane “synthetic” financial products nearly collapsed the entire world economy in 2008, partially due to the intentional complexity, which served only to hide the stupidity, complex computer algorithms are now at the heart of an ever larger and even more dangerous economic debacle that continues to unfold.
And much of the lack of any pushback against this is the simple ability to hide behind the complex computer methods and concepts that have allowed tech giants to build an even bigger and more dangerous kind of monopolistic behavior than even the so called “Robber Barons” of the Gilded Age.
Even those, in government or in the press, who are pushing back are doing so with, apparently, little understanding of the real dangers that are buried in the code and in the tricks used by very sophisticated, technologically educated people in control of these trillion dollar behemoths.
For example, Facebook is already claiming that the government should not be able to question the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp because they already approved the mergers at the time they happened.
In his excellent article published on medium.com , Will Oremus points out:
But I looked up the FTC’s public statements following those reviews, and it states explicitly that the matter should not be considered permanently settled.
“This action is not to be construed as a determination that a violation may not have occurred,” the FTC’s closing letter said. It added, “The Commission reserves the right to take such further action as the public interest may require.” Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Also in that article, titled; ‘Competition Is for Losers’: How Peter Thiel Helped Facebook Embrace Monopoly the idea succinctly embodied in the title which refers to a Wall Street Journal piece on Thiel’s book “Zero to One” which he describes as having been “embraced as a business bible in Silicon Valley and beyond” and quotes from including this characterization:
(Thiel) made the case for monopoly as the ultimate goal of capitalism. Indeed, “monopoly is the condition of every successful business,” he asserted. With it, you’re free to set your own prices, think long-term, innovate, and pursue goals other than mere survival. Without it, you’re replaceable, and your profits will eventually converge on zero.
And this provides the context within which the current struggle unfolds. To understand the real dangers of the total domination of the internet, which has become the vital lifeline of our economy and social existence, by a handful of trillion dollar companies, that not only embrace limitless greed and dictatorial status within their industry, but see it as the divine right that they hold, and believe they are entitled to aspire toward without interference.
And in another context such behavior would be known as immoral, destructive to society and social justice, and if the laws are adequate to apply; criminal.
And there’s the rub. The antitrust statutes, possibly already inadequate to take on this new kind of robber, have also been weakened since the 80s. Add to that how the pre-existing biases are heavily slanted toward minimizing any accountability for such behavior and is follows that any real reform must rise from the public at large.
The birth of the internet was anything but immaculate
The tragi-comic farce of the story, when seen through the lens of internet history, is how Facebook, Google and Amazon all followed the same absurd arc.
From “underdogs” with massive losses and no income to ridiculously “valuable” “FANG” members championed from the rooftops as heroic winners of darwinian battles to build out the internet for profit. And, finally, after decades of unfettered expansion, being seen more and more for what they are: profit-seeking scams using each a different method to restrain competition and destroy the most valuable asset humanity has ever built: the internet itself.
The complexity of the scams is still the most useful cloak for them to hide behind, each with a different insanely complicated way to force what is a public asset, the internet, into a tool for private greed, at the expense of any real innovation. And the victims are not the competitor firms that they might have destroyed (or bought), but rather the entire population of any territory that they control, with North America being the center of the empire.
The question asked for example of Google or Facebook should not be, “do they provide any services from the public can benefit, in exchange for their obscenely privileged monopoly control over “search” and “social networking”, respectively. The question should be “are they the best possible solution, from the perspective of what is in the best interest of society, for those extremely important functions in our new digital world.
It is not enough to say that “consumers have chosen” each as their go-to tool. If any company or group of companies could do a better job of enabling humanity to communicate, interact and become educated via the internet, why should those other solutions be buried forever under a mountain of greed and self-interest?
This is the infinitely elusive point: No different than Bernie Madoff, the damage they have wrought, by destroying what could have been, will only be understood once they are either gone or forced to cease what they depend on for domination, which would lead to their ultimate demise over time, just as Peter Thiel himself stated:
Without (a monoply), you’re replaceable, and your profits will eventually converge on zero.
Or as Jeff Bezos explained, in what his become his predatory raison d’être: The competition is always one-click-away. This makes every other online seller, in his view, an enemy that must be destroyed at all costs, no matter how small, no matter how weak.
In this sick paranoid view of the world it is truly an all or nothing struggle for survival, with death of all competitors, literally and figuratively, the only acceptable outcome.
With this mindset at the heart of these companies, and with the government and most of the press taking a milk-toast submissive approach (in contrast) the struggle to rein in these monstrous, utterly corrupt empires, will take years if not decades.
However, 2020 will always be seen as the beginning of the end the the gruesome mistake of history that these companies represent.
Companies that achieved dominance and monopoly control of a system meant for public benefit, through the most destructive methods they were able to devise, and then redoubled efforts infinitely to expand using those same destructive and corrupt methods.
In the end there is only one power large enough to intervene, as already at their current size, and while, like a virus, they double in power and economic domination almost annually, and that is the power of the billions that use their platforms everyday. Change will arise when they have damaged themselves by damaging the very societies they prey on, and once damaged, those societies will have no choice but to shed them like the murderous parasites that they are.
That will not happen anytime soon. The general view of these companies, is still very mild and forgiving. And it’s important to note that each case is different and this article applies only to Facebook, Google and Amazon.
Just as most have either forgiven or forgotten the massive bailouts that criminal companies were gifted during the 2008 financial crisis, the perception that these massive tech companies are at worst mildly anti-competitive and at best harmless and just practicing good, successful capitalism, will not be changed overnight.
It can only come after much more pain at the hands of this corrupt system that currently controls the internet, and therefore, our digital lives.
In a filing at the U.S. District Court in Washington D.C., on December 9th, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission, together with 46 states, plus the District of Columbia and Guam, alleged that Facebook employed anticompetitive tactics, allowing it to bully and bury its rivals. In a strongly worded brief it recommends that the massive company be broken up, specifically by divesting itself of Instagram and WhatsApp.
“For nearly a decade, Facebook has used its dominance and monopoly power to crush smaller rivals and snuff out competition. By using its vast troves of data and money, Facebook has squashed or hindered what the company perceived to be potential threats.”
–New York attorney general, Letitia James, representing the state group, at a news conference
After the 18 month long investigation, charges are finally arriving, well after Facebook has already made extensive retaliatory changes to its products. The changes that were implemented, which interlinked the functionality of Facebook apps with Instagram and WhatsApp, are clearly meant to try and make it technically impossible, or at least difficult for them to function separately again.
This amounts to a way of using computer code to fabricate a “moat”, basically an excuse or impediment which they hope, apparently, would make it impossible to reverse the changes, in the event they are forced to sell off the previously separate companies.
The brazen and obvious action which appears designed to impede and block any remedies that the court could impose is reminiscent of the now infamous “move fast and break things” motto often attributed to Mark Zuckerberg, and the, just as famous, Silicon Valley truism “Ask forgiveness not permission”.
This kind of preemptive obstruction, while not necessarily illegal in any way, is nevertheless a perfect reflection of the attitude also associated with Facebook via Peter Thiel: “Competition is for Losers” phrase which stems from title of a WSJ article on Thiel’s book and which was adopted fondly by the billionaire.
It is important, from a layman’s perspective, to note that being big or being, effectively, a monopoly, is not enough, necessarily, to justify drastic government imposed remedies. The behavior, however, in other words, wether or not there was abuse of the power a monopoly affords, is crucial.
In the past several years Facebook has been found to be guilty of abuses, primarily in European cases, as have Google and Amazon. All the evidence, so pervasive as to be easily noted by even a casual observer, points to a pattern of behavior that could be seen, and possibly even proven to be, predatory and abusive of market power.
The response from Facebook has been anything but substantive, with the initial defense being a very weak statement that the government should not be allowed “do-overs”:
“Those acquisitions were cleared and if you can buy a company, and eight years, 10 years later, the government can clear them and unwind it — that’s going to be a really big chilling problem for American business, we are not going to be competitive around the world,”
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, in a recent interview with Tamron Hall
The facts in no way back up this surprisingly flaccid response, since the mergers were, in fact never, “approved” just not blocked at the time, and in public statements, in writing, the FTC clearly and specifically stated:
“This action is not to be construed as a determination that a violation may not have occurred, The Commission reserves the right to take such further action as the public interest may require.”
As for the decades old “we are not going to be competitive around the world,” comment that is the oldest excuse for awarding big internet companies with special status to run amok going back to Al Gore’s “Internet Superhighway” exemptions from the early 90s.
To quote Kara Swisher in a recent New York Times opinion piece:
“Those charged with regulation have given companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon a very wide berth to grow into some of the most valuable entities in the history of the planet. Their founders are among the richest people ever.”
— Kara Swisher, in the New York Times
And, in case anyone is feeling sorry for poor Facebook, it’s also pertinent to point out that what they claim to need or be entitled to is exactly the kind of special treatment and license to break rules that others would have to abide by.
And that status and privilege is exactly what enabled Facebook (and Amazon and Google) to become so massive and so intensely inclined toward abuse of market power in the first place.
“Action as the public interest may require. “ Remember that phrase, you may be hearing it often, over the next few years, in relation to Facebook, Google and Amazon. And, in the end, it is the public verdict in the marketplace that will ultimately have the power to intercede with enough force to achieve change.
Potential Spectacular light show will wow from some locales
If you always wanted to see the aurora borealis, a.k.a. the northern lights but didn’t have time to take a voyage to Iceland, Alaska or the North Pole, tonight will be your chance.
December 2020 is shaping up to be a celestial bonanza. On the 23rd we will get the “Great Conjunction” also known as the Christmas Star, while the 14th there will be a solar eclipse. And as above, tonight we get the light show of a lifetime, conditions permitting. Not to mention the best meteor shower of the year.
The Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), issued, for the nights of Wednesday, December 9, and Thursday, December 10, G1, G2, and G3 geomagnetic storm watches which indicate the possibility of the aurora borealis being visible. If these solar activity surges are as predicted, folks could have a view as far south as parts of northern Illinois and Indiana, along withPennsylvania, as well as various other locations across the nation.
In the best case scenario which is a G3 magnetic event, some light may be visible in northern Idaho, a small portion of Northern Illinois and Indiana, northern Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, northern Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, in addition to all of Alaska and Canada. No surprise on the Canada and Alaska part.
In the case that the event only reaches G1 magnitude, the list would be similar but not nearly as long.
The SWPC data corresponds to a G1-3 alert with a possible event beginning at 5 pm ET on the evening of December 9, with possible continuation until 5 am on December 10. It is safe to view with the naked eye and photograph.
The disclaimer is that these are only predictions and, naturally you would need to be in a cloud free weather setting for the lights to manifest to your view brightly enough to be seen.
NBC News, Forbes and others all picked up a story relating to Alien confirmation by head of Israel’s security space program
Professor Haim Eshed served from 1981 to 2010 as the head of Israel’s security space program, as well as having rank as a former Israeli Defense force general. Eshed, an 87 year old with vast experience within the space program and reputable publications in academia broke news at an extraterrestrial level.
According to the professor’s claims, aliens are real, they have made contact with some humans and are in fact working alongside various governments, and lastly, they (meaning the aliens) will not reveal themselves to the general public until they have decided that we (humans) are ready. All this, based on an interview with The Jerusalem Post, along with another recent interview for the Tel Aviv newspaper Yediot Aharonot.
NBC, among more than a dozen news outlets that picked up the story, stuck to the facts, which is to say; the fact that these statements were made and what the detail was in the various claims. Only at the end of the article titled: Former Israeli space security chief says extraterrestrials exist, and Trump knows about it was any sort of pushback or questioning of the statements mentioned.
The equivocating comments were from Nick Pope, who, according to NBC, used to investigate UFOs for the British Ministry of Defense, described Eshed’s remarks as “extraordinary.” They also quoted him as saying “Either this is some sort of practical joke or publicity stunt to help sell his book, perhaps with something having been lost in translation, or someone in the know is breaking ranks,”
The implication is, either NBC and others are in tune with the idea that all of this (including Trump being in talks with aliens) is at least possible, if not likely, or they are writing entire articles, as if they are “The Onion“; from a perspective of total suspension of disbelief. Like a news story that is actually making fun of itself. Third option is aliens are definitely real, in contact with human governments and we need to just get used to it.
“There’s an agreement between the U.S. government and the aliens. They signed a contract with us to do experiments here. They, too, are researching and trying to understand the whole fabric of the universe, and they want us as helpers.”
Professor Haim Eshed, former head of Israel’s security space program
As if this year couldn’t get even stranger, in the last month of 2020, here comes bizarre news of the existence of aliens. What is even harder to believe is big news outlets are covering this story not to debunk or fact check, instead, seeming to acknowledge there could very well be intelligent lifeforms beyond humans and Earth. Which, of course, there could be.
This comes after other news regarding mysterious monoliths appearing in strange locations, including: Utah, California, UK and even Romania, which begun the spark of the conspiracy they were planted by aliens. Apparently in that case human “art lovers” are more likely the source.
There has been a long history of people claiming they witnessed Unidentified flying objects (UFOs). Yet a UFO doesn’t necessarily mean aliens, just that they cannot be identified, with some sitings attributed to phenomena like astroids and meteors, etc. Yet it is not out of the realm of scientific plausibility that aliens can exist, thus the ongoing coverage.
What sounds even more far-fetched than an alien- human alliance is that Eshed alleged that Trump was made aware of the aliens. According to Eshed, Trump was going to disclose their existence but the “Galactic Federation” told him to wait until humanity is further evolved and is more ready to absorb the information. If you wren’t aware, the Galactic Federation is the alien formed organization with an underground base built on Mars.
Based on Trump’s inability to censor or filter any of his thoughts, let alone something as huge as ALIENS, it is hard to believe he won’t be tempted to tweet out the revelation.
“The UFOs have asked not to publish that they are here, humanity is not ready yet. Trump was on the verge of revealing, but the aliens in the Galactic Federation are saying: ‘Wait, let people calm down first.’ They don’t want to start mass hysteria. They want to first make us sane and understanding.”
PROFESSOR HAIM ESHED, FORMER HEAD OF ISRAEL’S SECURITY SPACE PROGRAM
Naturally, the retired professor and former general isn’t the first high profile individual to make claims about aliens. Canada’s former defense minister, Paul Hellyer made public back in 2013 he believes E.T.s are present on earth and have seen a UFO. Even Edgar Mitchell, the Apollo 14 astronaut and sixth man to walk on the moon spoke out about Roswell and aliens in 2015. Many astronomers are confident there is life beyond Earth, but the actual proof or search for intelligent life, continues to be unsuccessful so far.
So the big questions still posed, “are we alone?” and “where are they?”
Released to fanfare just in time for last minute holiday shopping, the AirPods Max headphones are getting attention, not all positive, but one thing’s for certain, they are beautiful to behold. If they sound nearly as sleek and smooth apple may have something going on. Check out the video for more.
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Bose and Sony have a new competitor in the Noise Cancelling over-the-ear category
In 2020, Apple has released and announced new products and features at an unprecedented rate. In a continuation of that trend, today they added the AirPods Max which feature: “wireless over-ear design with high-fidelity audio, Active Noise Cancellation, spatial audio, and more” according to the official press release.
As of the day before the announcements the leaks began to be confirmed and speculation of other products faded, as it was clear that December 8th would be the launch announcement for AirPods Max.
Availability begins on December 15th (shipping) and the price is an admittedly hefty $549 (US).
A big year winds down with many new product details still to be revealed
Although some outlets speculated that other products, or news about upcoming releases would be forthcoming, for that it appears we will still have to wait. The December 15th availability to ship date coincides with last-minute shipping deadlines for Christmas this year which for services such as USPS Priority mail in December 16th.
For that reason it is unlikely that other news, not including unofficial leaks, would will be added.
With only a single button to adjust the noise cancelling and a Digital Crown (with a nod to the one found on Apple Watch) that controls volume and playback, there is a minimal beauty to the design, which is no surprise considering the price and that these are from Apple.
There are an assortment of carefully curated colors, and special attention has clearly been paid to the fashion value and aesthetics. At first blush there is even a kind of retro throw-back vibe, as to to envision a 60s socialite boarding PanAm and ready to settle in to the first class cabin.
AirPods Max require Apple devices running iOS 14.3 or later, iPadOS 14.3 or later, macOS Big Sur 11.1 or later, watchOS 7.2 or later, or tvOS 14.3 or later.
Though typically Sleek and doubtlessly Luxurious, some questionable issues have been identified
The new headphones, the first over-the-ear model by Apple (other than Beats) weigh 13.6 ounces (384 grams), which sounds acceptable, but compared to other over-ear noise cancelling headphones on the market, it is at the higher end of the range.
Next question: what if you want to use with a cable, rather than wirelessly via bluetooth? On a plane there if seldom, if ever, any way to use with a film via bluetooth, for that reason an input jack or other way to connect with a standard airline connector would be useful. Naturally a third-party adaptor is possible but that not an elegant solution. For example Sony, Bose, and others have solutions for this, but AirPods Max would require a work-around.
If your battery charge is depleted, an alternate way to still at least listen to music is something that may be useful. Of course, the noise cancelling system would require power so this is not something that would be idea anyway, but for those “emergency” situations where you want to use your AirPods Max as basic headphones in a pinch, that would also be a reason to wish for the alternate cabled option.
If all this sounds a bit nit-picky, that’s what happens with a beautiful and expensive product and lots of scribes out searching for pros and cons to discuss.
A big year winds down with many new product details still to be revealed
Although some outlets speculated that other products releases, or news about upcoming releases would be forthcoming, however, for that it appears we will still have to wait. The December 15th availability to ship date coincides with last-minute shipping deadlines for Christmas this year which for services such as USPS Priority mail in December 16th.
For that reason it is unlikely that other news, not including unofficial leaks, would will be added.
With only a single button to adjust the noise cancelling and a Digital Crown (with a nod to the one found on Apple Watch) that controls volume and playback, there is a minimal beauty to the design, which is no surprise considering the price and that these are from Apple.
There are an assortment of carefully curated colors, and special attention has clearly been paid to the fashion value and aesthetics. At first blush there is even a kind of retro throw-back vibe, as to to envision a 60s socialite boarding PanAm and ready to settle in to the first class cabin.
AirPods Max require Apple devices running iOS 14.3 or later, iPadOS 14.3 or later, macOS Big Sur 11.1 or later, watchOS 7.2 or later, or tvOS 14.3 or later.
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Cyberpunk 2077’ is the highly anticipated and long-awaited RPG by the makers of ‘Witcher’, studio CD Projekt Red. With the release date set for the end of this week, December 10. Based on the global release map issued by the company, technically those in the U.S. can start playing a day early on Dec. 9.
The wait is almost over!
If you're looking to play #Cyberpunk2077 as soon as it's available, here's a map with global release timings.
For PC and Stadia players, the release is simultaneous and scheduled for midnight GMT, and for all console players – midnight local time. pic.twitter.com/W0QLIFAhH1
The game has stumbled over many obstacles including production delays, leaks and issues relating to overtime crunch, but finally after nearly 8 years in the making and $130 million spent, it soon will be available for PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, and Google Stadia.
Some players that have managed to snag an early copy, have leaked some screenshots of the game’s maps, highlighting just how enormous the landscape is and gives gamers a little taste of the hours of gaming awaiting them.
Also some early users warned future gamers of the large patch of 43.5 GB update that comes along with the download. Cyberpunk 2077 has reported a pre-launch update and a day-one patch, though the contents of the patch have not been outlined as of yet.
Initial reviews have been mixed, some say well worth the wait, others saying its overly hyped up and not what was expected, although there is a consensus that there is well over 40+ hours of gaming to finish the missions and the expansive world is “fun” to explore.
Jeez, to add to the mix of information, the onslaught of flashing white and red blinking LEDs for those with photosensitivity can potentially trigger an epileptic episode/ seizure. So be warned of that, although most video games usually have a warning of this. Unfortunately there doesn’t seem to be a workaround as the in-game features have blinking lights throughout.
Music related, Cyberpunk 2077 will have an eclectic soundtrack, drawing on a range of genres including punk, electronic, rap, hip-hip and alternative. Some of the artists that will have music on the game’s track include: Grimes, Nina Kraviz, Rat Boy, SOPHIE/ Shygirl, Run the Jewels and more.
Cyberpunk 2077 plays out like a sci-fi action movie
The game is set in a place called Night city, the vast virtual dystopian metropolis set in the year 2077. There are recognizable visual elements stemming from the likes of “Blade Runner”, “Neuroamncer” and even gives off “John Wick” vibes.
At the start, you get to customize the main character and protagonist named V. The extensive character builder and roleplaying decisions lets you customize your character (down to the piecing, tattoo, cybernetic parts, gentalia and ummm there’s even 5 types of pubic hair options). In the end no two players will likely design the same version of V, nor have the exact playing experience.
Violence and oppression aren’t just common–they’re necessary tools you use to get ahead. With your opening mission set to go after a prototype immortality chip from on the mega corporations. You explore the Night City to find that chip.
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Upon finding the chip, (some what of a spoiler if you haven’t been following anything on Cyberpunk) your character insets into their cyberwar to keep it safe. Once loaded, a new personality emerges, Johnny Silverhand, played by Keanu Reeves. You have to play to find out more of your main and final quests, as more reviews trickle in as the release day inches nearer towards us.
A massive broadband infrastructure build-out starting in 2021is confirmed
FCC announced on Monday that the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction concluded on November 25, 2020. Now, the 180 winning bidders in the auction were announced, with the 10-year support amount totaling $9.23 billion and covering 5,220,833 locations in 49 states and one territory.
In total, 180 providers yielded an allocation of $9.2 billion out of the $16 billion that was set aside for phase one of the auction. The remaining $6.8 billion that was not allocated will be rolled over into the future phase two auction, the FCC said, which will now have $11.2 billion remaining funds earmarked to establish services in what they term “partially-served areas.”
Among the 180 winning bidders was SpaceX Starlink ($885 Million awarded).
Three other companies were also awarded large sums and all were wireline / fiber based broadband providers: Charter received $1.22 billion; LTD Broadband got $1.32 billion; and Rural Electric Cooperate Consortium, was awarded $1.1 billion.
The rise of real competition, between various providers and, with Starlink, alternative systems, is a big step forward
The real headline here is, as we have been reporting for some time, Starlink will be a major force in increasing competition among internet service providers. And with the added competition, including from 5G and other satellite systems, due to come online this decade, the coverage and speed will move overall internet access in the US to the next level.
The FCC estimates that, due to these awards, only 0.3% of these locations would not receive broadband speeds of at least 100/20 Mbps, and that over 85% are expected to get gigabit-speed broadband.
This main thrust of the FCC program is the increase in service availability in rural areas, and for that, Starlink is particularly well positioned.
While fiber or wireline providers have huge construction costs and difficulty to re-coup those via fees (which is the reason these areas are under-served in the first place) Starlink is building a system that will ultimately have nearly planetary coverage and, with approval in place for 1 million earth stations in the US alone, will be able to provide service to nearly any domestic location.
With a plan to have up to 42,000 satellites in orbit, the ability to serve rural areas with high speed internet at a reasonable cost is an integral strength of the system. The government assistance only makes it more viable and could accelerate starlink’s adoption and buildout.
”This auction was the single largest step ever taken to bridge the digital divide”
— FCC Chairman Ajit Pai
The work-from-home revolution will explode into cost effective areas as the pandemic fades
This news is also confirmation that there will be a trend toward faster cheaper internet access beginning in 2021. Further, that this will likely coincide with a mass exodus, which in reality has already begun, away from overpriced locations such as Silicon valley and “silicon beach” (in LA) to virtually anywhere that costs are favorable, as long as there is also fast enough internet access.
There may even be an urgent need, due to flooding caused by global warming, to move inland away from dangerous costal areas. With the work from home revolution underway and software and internet cloud based jobs increasing exponentially, having inexpensive fast (gigabit+ in best case scenario) broadband internet access will complete the feasibility of this migration.
While these grants, ultimately, may fall short of the funds needed to fully build-out affordable broadband for the entire country (or planet in the case of Starlink), the forces of market competition, including 5G and other space based systems, can kick-in as the viability of living and working in internet related businesses begins to converge.
We structured this innovative and groundbreaking auction to be technologically neutral and to prioritize bids for high-speed, low-latency offerings. We aimed for maximum leverage of taxpayer dollars and for networks that would meet consumers’ increasing broadband needs, and the results show that our strategy worked. This auction was the single largest step ever taken to bridge the digital divide and is another key success for the Commission in its ongoing commitment to universal service. I thank our staff for working so hard and so long to get this auction done on time, particularly during the pandemic.
An eco-system about to emerge at a level beyond what any other company can match
The ultimate superiority of the “whole widget” concept at Apple: making not only the computer or device, the system software, add on software, and now, with the M1 chip, even the most important components that power the “widget” is something we’ve been writing about for years.
With the release of the first macs powered by M1 chips, it was surprising, even to adherents inside our building, just how dramatic that superiority is turning out to be, and how quickly it has been confirmed in real-world tests.
The focus has, rightly, so far been on benchmarks and tests using various software in typical real world situations. The consensus on the results has been in general; “astounding” or “amazing” or “shockingly good”, nearly unanimously.
Why this has far more to do with the overarching “whole-widget” ecosystem than the traditional stand-alone cpu / gpu / architecture, however, seems, at least partially, lost in the brouhaha.
The layers of “synergistic” (not a word used by Apple) interaction and integration between the cpu, gpu, machine learning, code within the system, and, initially, the apple applications that are either free or standard paid software such as Final Cut ProX or Logic Pro X are where the real magic happens. Other developers such as Adobe, are going to have M1 optimized versions out soon, as well.
While the long vaunted Moore’s law at a virtual standstill for nearly a decade, the timing couldn’t be better for Apple’s revolutionary “revenge of the turtle” strategy – where a long term end-game they have been working on the probably at least a decade comes to fruition – big time.
Looking ahead, even more exciting possibilities are beginning to emerge
All this leads to today’s headline, courtesy of Bloomberg. I can summarize but let’s quote directly the introductory paragraphs:
“Apple Inc. is planning a series of new Mac processors for introduction as early as 2021 that are aimed at outperforming Intel Corp.’s fastest.
If they live up to expectations, they will significantly outpace the performance of the latest machines running Intel chips, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the plans aren’t yet public.
For higher-end desktop computers, planned for later in 2021 and a new half-sized Mac Pro planned to launch by 2022, Apple is testing a chip design with as many as 32 high-performance cores.
With today’s Intel systems, Apple’s highest-end laptops offer a maximum of eight cores, a high-end iMac Pro is available with as many as 18 and the priciest Mac Pro desktop features as much as a 28-core system.”
-Bloomberg
Buckle up, Sunshine, the worm has turned and soon there’ll be no looking back
The bottom line here is: If you think the M1 MacBook air is faster, take a seat cause “you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet”. But this emphasis on the chip itself and various stats, such as, the number of cores, etc. belies just how backward the entire industry is, and how ground breaking the total concept is that Apple has planned to roll-out over, roughly, the next two years.
In short, just as the entire world was changed forever once the iPhone took hold between 2007-2012, something similar will happen between now and 2024, but on a much larger scale.
The most radical reality of this, that is in many ways so hard to comprehend, let alone explain, is that this is a “virtuous battle” that is being fought on so many different fronts simultaneously, that the actual outcome, should the potential be realized in full by 2022, goes far beyond what can be imagined today with regard to what a “computer” or “mobile device” is.
In short, just as the entire world was changed forever once the iPhone took hold between 2007-2012, something similar will happen between now and 2024, but on a much larger scale.
The unification of the various system softwares, between iPhones, iPads, Macs, as well as peripheral devices such as Apple Watch, Apple TV and even the HomePod mini, will be combined with increasingly powerful “A” and “M” chips and that combination will be even more improved by integrated machine learning upgrades and applications that are specifically coded to maximize the benefits of the entire inter-dependent system, meaning the systems within each device and the larger ecosystem of devices, machines and software.
This is not Apples to Oranges, this is Horses to “beam me up Scotty” in magnitude. Don’t believe it? Check back in 2022 and we’ll talk…
Coming a few days before Christmas this year, Jupiter and Saturn will appear within a hair’s breadth of one-another to the naked eye
Although most of us consider this to be one of the worst, if not the worst, year that we are aware of, it may close out with something miraculous. If you take the time to gaze heavenward on December 21st,, just after sunset, you might see it: A Christmas Star.
Already in early December the two giant orbs can be seen ever so gradually nearing each other, as if they are feeling some sort of mutual attraction, an odd couple. perhaps, Jupiter and Saturn.
And, according to celestial experts at NASA, they will continue to converge until they appear nearly co-joined: just 1/10th of a degree apart, with a barley perceptible gap in-between.
It was in 1226 that this could last have been witnessed
Though these couplings are known to occur in intervals of roughly 20 years, this year they will be the closest they have been to each other since 1623. In that year, however, they were too near the sun to look at, and because this year the event will take place on the winter solstice, you’d have to go all the way back to 1221 for a similar show.
These two spectacular giants, which are the largest in the entire solar system, each with a personality, astrologically speaking, so divergent that they are said to be more like opposites, rather than twins or lovers.
Jupiter, a king and believed to be bringer of good fortune, looks the part in a spectacular explosion of color and power, planet of miracles, hope, and opportunity.
Saturn, meanwhile appears mysterious, unpredictable, even dangerous. Saturn has an air of the impossible and the forbidden. Best known, in astrological circles, for the so-called “quarter-life crisis” and for unexpected challenges to the status-quo.
Across the USA, a view of the two planets coming into near-alignment is going to be most visible and best viewed, just after sunset, in the southwestern part of the sky.
In a glimpse into the relativity of all things in the universe, though this duo will appear to be close together — resembling a double star or a gleaming figure 8 shaped blob, the two planets will not , in reality, be that close.
They will actually be more than 400 million miles apart. It is only from our lonely vantage on this little blue planet that they will appear to be “close” to each other.
Since it will be 2080 before a similar spectacle will grace our view, and that means that all but those who are currently quite young will not likely be alive, it is imperative to search the southwestern sky (from the USA) both the day before, after and of course on December 21st: as this is a rare opportunity to witness a spectacular and special event, and a last chance to do so for a long, long time to come.
Hints and Leaks are becoming commonplace – this time it’s the features that wow
Rumor Reports have surfaced that Apple is planning a hardware reveal event for December 8th, 2020, likely at the usual 11am PT time slot. The leak was said to some from an internal memo, and Service providers have been told to expect changes on Tuesday. MacRumors reports that this type of prior warning to suppliers has coincided historically with new products being launched.
What product(s) might be launched?
It’s not likely that a major product will be launched (so no new MacBook or iPhone, for example), but some possibilities that have been mentioned are an AppleTV update or the ever elusive AirTags.
AirTags have been in development for months now. However, Apple has kept most details on the elusive product under wraps. We expected to hear some specifics on the AirTags at the company’s September and October press events, but although those occasions offered lots of other exciting launches, they remained silent on the Tags.
Only now have two new Apple patents come out for AirTags, featuring illustrations and suggestions about how the devices might work and where they could be useful— The answers might be more expansive than we thought.
In essence, AirTags are exactly what we expected them to be: Apple products akin to a Tiles, which can be placed on any object and thus track it. Intuitively, their primary function is to help users find lost items such as keys, wallets, or phones by sending out a locational signal to Apple devices. Reportedly, these signals will be more precise than any GPS, directing people to within feet of the Tag.
The new patents, however, suggest that the AirTags’ tracking abilities could be useful beyond just recovering everyday items. They could, for example, be attached to emergency equipment like fire extinguishers or defibrillators, helping people find such crucial tools in unfamiliar environments. They could also be used to track people via Apple Watches or the wristbands featured in the patent illustrations. While tracking human beings raises major ethical questions, it could also save lives in the events of kidnappings or missing people.
Beyond such grave alternatives, the patents also suggest more leisurely uses for the AirTags. By attaching them to one’s body, they could serve as advanced gears in augmented reality gaming platforms, or play a role in the new Apple Fitness+ app by monitoring posture and other health matters.
Tags could also be placed in public areas to send signals directly to other Apple devices with useful information such as maps and guides. The patent offers the example of a business placing a Tag at its entrance, ensuring that everyone who enters receives a map of the building.
When Apple delays (as with the MagSafe surprise just announced) good things happen…
As of right now, rumor has it that the AirTags will launch in March 2021, but given their perpetual delays so far and the precarious state of the world during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is hard to say for sure when these devices will really become available. Nevertheless, the latest patents suggest that AirTags are going to be much more than mere Tile replicas. With that in mind, perhaps they will also be more worth the wait.
As the title indicates, the original review finds the documentary important and more than worth viewing, even to the extent that it should be considered as something that’s important beyond the entertainment value. And while nothing in that article needs, from our perspective, to be altered and still stands, there is an omission that has grown in importance over the intervening weeks and months.
The omission was not only in the review, and virtually every other review we’ve seen, but also is a glaring one in the film itself. As a matter of fact that omission is so large and so glaring that it warrants a deeper look. Hence the title of this piece: The Social Dilemma 2.0: Follow the Money Edition.
Why “Follow the Money”? Because the film, in its admittedly excellent execution, chose to follow a personal, social and psychological thread in its storytelling arc, and, out of necessity, since the subject matter is so huge and complex, took the comments from the “insider experts” who comprised the on-camera interview segments, and featured mainly those that reinforced the personal, family and social perspective.
Indeed, the film included a fictional family, presumably meant to show how, mainly social media platforms such as facebook, were negatively affecting individuals and society as a whole, through fake news and internet-addictions fostered by the software and algorithm designs.
And this “slant” was carried almost to the point, by the very end of the show, of connecting the software based social media designs and corporate behavior of Facebook and others, to the larger growing malaise in society and the world at large.
Unfortunately, by using the fictional family, trying to show how both young and old are impacted, the scope, depth and severity of the underlying problem was, in essence, minimized.
Based on online public comments people seemed to take away that the idea that the film was accusing social media and facebook in particular of, was of causing people to become addicted to social media, for greed and profit, and that this was pretty much the center of the problem.
Google, Amazon and others were only mentioned in passing and the greed and economic problems associated with big tech was touched on and passed over in order to make the case, inadvertently, but nevertheless, that this was an individual, social and personal problem, and one that could be blamed on social media technology.
Arguments and rebuttals arose over the finer points of addictive behavior in general and how social media or internet addiction was just one of many human foibles, and how no hard proof could be compiled to link facebook or any other online platform indisputably to any particular individuals behavior, blah, blah, blah.
All of this became an easy, knee-jerk way to dismiss, out of hand, all the deep and serious problems that were hinted at in the groundbreaking documentary and thereby stop, effectively, any possibility for the film to become a general wake-up call to all who want to isolate and identify the massive, expanding and world destroying effect these monolithic tech behemoths are having on life on this planet.
Which is what the film aspired to and had to potential to be a beginning of.
In our original review we made an attempt to shift some of the focus, away from the more narrow one of looking at individual personal problems and affronts that are being perpetrated, bad as that is, toward a more global and economically based set of concerns.
To that end we cherry picked quotes from the on-camera interviews in the film in order to point out that there was a larger, even more dangerous set of issues at stake that were only hinted at in the film. (We have reprinted a few of them interspersed below)
“Companies like Google and Facebook are some of the wealthiest and most successful of all time. They have relatively few employees. They just have this giant computer that rakes in money, right? Now, what are they being paid for? That’s a really important question.”
-Jaron Lanier, founding father of virtual reality, computer scientist
This quote is and inquiry into the deeper issue; one that is car larger than the question of whatever dangers there may be for individuals who may experience negative symptoms of “internet and social-media addiction”.
Focusing on the personal problems of users of social media in this context is like looking at a planet whose economic system is based on brutal exploitive human slavery and wanting to discuss the food, or living conditions or wardrobe choices offered to the 7 billion slaves.
“This is a new kind of marketplace now. It’s a marketplace that never existed before. And it’s a marketplace that trades exclusively in “human futures”. Just like there are markets that trade in pork belly futures or oil futures. We now have markets that trade in human futures at scale. And those markets have produced the trillions of dollars that have made the internet companies the richest companies in the history of humanity”
-Shoshanna Zuboff PhD., Harvard Business School Professor, emeritus and author of “The Age of Surveillance Capitalism”
Like tobacco companies in the US 50 or more years ago the tech giants need helpless, addicted, impoverished victims to hold up their empire. And, just in the same way, the cost of using the “product” of big tech is pain, suffering and eventually death. And ultimately, just like with Big Tobacco , when the customer base “wakes up” all the empires will collapse, seemingly in a heartbeat.
In the meantime, unfortunately, misdirecting the scope and center of the problem is helping to maintain the empires and poses no threat to them, managing only to confuse and obfuscate the size and severity of the real problem that has emerged.
Above: Photo / Netflix
The real problem with having four companies control a massive percentage of the economy with virtually unlimited profit margins and almost no employees
As the quote above states. These “internet” firms are raking in trillions of dollars in a business model that is based on various forms of exploitation and virtual human trafficking.
This is where we diverge from, and must go far deeper into the problems, than the documentary was able to go.
Firstly, it was left unclear who exactly the firms are that are being singled out in the film. By calling the film “The Social Dilemma” which echos “The Social Network” film based on the origin story of Zuckerberg and Facebook, there’s an implication that Facebook is the “main” problem.
Naturally this choice was logical given that ex-Facebook and ex-Google heavyweights were represented in the interviews. However this is a huge, misleading and erroneous perspective.
Of the huge tech monopolistic-monoliths Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft are the most dangerous. (Apple, in an exception, however, for example, as it designs and builds actual physical products, although it is often unfairly combined with the other 4).
For the sake of simplicity, Microsoft, appearing, deceptively, like harmless-looking old grandfather by comparison, would be a complicated choice to tie into any exposé, therefore was never mentioned. (that we are aware of).
As a matter of fact, Amazon could have had a whole separate yet equally disturbing documentary assigned to its “alleged” crimes and misdemeanors, but ex-Amazon employees would be unlikely to come forward, potentially due to fear of retribution and possible bodily harm.
Thus, one is left with Facebook & Google and then Google becomes partially let off the hook, in the documentary, by focus on “social media”.
The Real Crimes are Economic and based on Inherently Evil Business Models that can not be Removed without causing the Giants Themselves to Collapse
And that’s why they can not be “reformed”. Like a somnambulistic slave population from some kind of dystopian sci-fi fantasy, within a short span of around twenty-five years of internet life, we have seen the emergence of an entirely new and, unfortunately ugly, economic system.
This new system created Jeff Bezos’ obscene, circa 200 billion fortune, as well as the behavioral diseases explored covered extensively in “The Social Dilemma”. The system has also created the sick twisted saga of WeWork and the exploitative business models of companies like Uber and Grub-hub and the like, thereby creating the “gig economy”.
The pandemic that began in 2020 has massively accelerated this highly problematic “new economic order” until Amazon is closing in on being the largest single employer in the USA. (currently #2 with over 750,000).
Why is that not something to applaud? Doesn’t that make them “ok” while Facebook is the real villain?
To the contrary, it can be argued that Amazon’s business model is even more destructive than Facebooks, with it’s vast system of not only exploiting workers but maintaining a serfdom of suppliers and small business “marketplace partners” who are eaten-up and spat-out with a viciousness no historical dictator could ever hope to match.
It is an historical fact that all of the (non-amazon) retail trade is seen by Amazon as an enemy to be eliminated, and that their explicit goal is to destroy the possibility of any economic transaction taking place, in countries where they operate, without Amazon earning a cut – a kind of Amazon-tax on all transactions. “Your margin is my opportunity” as Bezos famously cackled.
This mirrors, in products and computer services, the model of Facebook and Google have in online traffic and ad income, whose goals are to control and take a massive profit from at least 99% of all “digital” advertising revenues. These already represent the majority of all advertising and are growing in total amount and percentage every year.
“In 2019, digital will account for 50.1% of total media ad spending worldwide thanks to strong growth from major digital ad sellers like Google, Facebook, Alibaba and Amazon.” (emphasis mine)
The turning point we have reached, in other words, is one where the sheer size, power and dominance of these firms threatens to overwhelm our entire economy (what’s left of it after the pandemic).
And further, to succeed in controlling it, so totally, as to raise the likelihood that their cancerous behaviors and business models will ultimately cripple and kill the economy itself. Just in time for Global Warming to hit home.
The reason for such pessimism (shared incidentally by those insiders interviewed in “The Social Dilemma”)? Isn’t this all just “good ol’ capitalism”? Isn’t complaining about it just the “whining of losers”?
The problem lies in the self-destructive and totally out of control algorithmic dictatorship systems that these “genius” firms have built.
Take Amazon, again, for example. It’s power and dominance is based on bilking it’s marketplace parters (which have, during the life of the company, contributed the lion’s share of the revenue and an even larger percentage of the profits), and then using those funds to sell it’s own products at a large loss (an illegal activity, rarely prosecuted in the US, known as the loss-leader strategy), in order to harm and, if they succeed, destroy all external competitors (try selling products at less than cost at a massive scale with no source of funds to pay for the disparity).
This neat “fly-wheel”, which is the real one, not the one Bezos has bragged about for decades, is supplemented by enticing Chinese producers to further destroy the domestic market for any US competitors, and, voilà! this wonderful project is actually subsidized by the USPS.
When this monstrosity of a “turbo-charged-Ponzi Scheme” manages to starve its “partners” (millions of small business marketplace sellers) and enemies (everyone else) literally to death, customers will also die (financially).
That is if the government doesn’t intervene first.
The fear of government intervention at Facebook, Google and Amazon is palpable. The lost cases and launched actions are mounting month by month and year by year.
The worst case scenario is only possible if the connection is somehow kept “secret” long enough to deflect blame onto the government, addicted and victimized individuals and / or anyone one else they can attack.
Just like the whistle blower in “The Insider” who was threatened and forced to live in fear until Big Tobacco was finally held to account, we are all hostages of the largest most virulent form of anti-competitive-monopolistic behavior in history. And it is time to wake up.
Forget your internet addiction and all the smoke screens blocking the truth from being seen. The internet, and the communication and economic lifeline that it has become for all of us, is too important to be controlled by 3 or 4 obscenely massive companies.
The longer it takes to dismantle the current malfunctioning system and build a new one, the more we will all suffer and contribute to future suffering, at a scale that is impossible to imagine.
There is a bright spot in all of this! The corner has been turned on people taking notice that there is a problem with the way things are, regarding monopolistic control of the internet realm.
Companies that create build and actually provide and sell physical products, such as Apple and Tesla (and others) are, while far from perfect, not part of the gang that grows almost limitlessly based on exploitation. They do depend on prosperity to survive, since they research and design and innovate cutting edge technologically advanced products (expen$ive), that need to be bought by someone, at the end of the day.
That is why I believe that they, and others like them, will, more and more, become part of the solution, rather than trying to compete directly by being even more exploitative and evil than the others.
Next up: “The Social Dilemma 3.0” will be about business models that need to emerge if we are going to survive and prosper. Thanks for reading and stay tuned.
Apple software upgrades are now so deep and extensive that it will take months to absorb the potential benefits
Mac OS upgrades, which have been free going back more than 20 years, have been bordering on spectacular recently, but also do carry some dangers. Early adopters have been known to experience buggy not-100%-ready-for-primetime features that do, however, generally get fixed fairly quickly once live bugs are identified.
The upside is that there is, just as in the iOS systems, a literal cornucopia of free built in apps and features most of which benefit from the periodic upgrades.
As a matter of fact, many, many of the improvements are not detailed or listed in any manual and not used in the marketing materials for the free software upgrades. As the saying goes, they just “work”.
Probably the biggest of these invisible improvements, one that spans multiple apps and functions is the now, fully established, system known as iCloud. Born as “Mobile-me” and a nightmare until about 3 years ago, this system for syncing across all Apple devices, apps and software has become a powerhouse that has no comparable rival.
An evolving system nearly two decades in the making
The idea, sometimes maligned as overkill, is simple in theory. An Apple aficionado might own a desktop mac such as an iMac, Mac Mini or Mac Pro. For travel; a MacBook Air, Pro, etc, an iPhone (of course), an iPad and, whew, maybe wear an Apple Watch. There might be an Apple TV unit in the house and perhaps a HomePod mini (and so on!).
All of these can benefit from iCloud. Many functions, particularly with the Apple Watch, for example, are mandatory and help to link various functionality between devices.
But where this software enhancement has really begun to shine is when using built in apps that have a version on both the mac family and also within iOS and iPadOS, such as Notes, Photos and, of course, Safari.
Although these have been around since Yosemite and have had the benefit of iCloud Sync since at least that time, with Catalina they really started to function at a very high level. With Big Sur the potential is off-the-charts.
One caveat that is still a work in progress is the need for identical, or nearly identical, functionality across all devices (mac, iPhone and iPad at least). For the photos app this is nearly the case but for Safari and Notes there is still a way to go before all functions match on every device and OS.
Of course, this is the very lofty goal, already underway with the new M1 chips and the gradual goal of total interchangeability between macOS and iOS / iPad Os.
Many actions are still more functional on a mac than on iPhone or iPad: but that’s changing
Much attention is paid to the idea of using and featuring iOS apps on a mac, but for practical applications it is the ability of the software on iOS devices to have all the functionality of the macOS versions that is even more important and desirable.
A great example, and a glaring one, is Safari. Differences between browsing on a mobile platform (with iPad being a sort of in-between experience) and on a desktop or laptop can be frustrating and difficult.
For surfing news or browsing static content the differences are not significant, but if you start trying to do banking, or eCommerce or other more complex tasks you can hit a brick wall.
Much of this is on the server side where the websites themselves either block or are not compatible with all versions of Safari in every OS version.
However, particularly on iPad, there should be an eventual ability for Safari on iPad to emulate laptop / desktop browser specs for those purposes. And, with macOS Big Sur that is already nearly a reality.
Similarly when using the Notes app, which we do at Lynxotic extensively for story development and shared processing, the functionality is nearly seamless between macOS Big Sur and iPad or iPhone.
As a matter of fact, the differences are so minimal that, when switching between devices, finding a “missing” function, such as the ability on an iPhone to format the text into Title, Heading, Body and so forth, as you would do in WordPress or other text editing system, it is a shocking experience.
Beyond detailed individual features it’s the overall end-result that’s astounding
The overall experience from mac to mac – when using full iCloud Sync, is that you can move from machine to machine and a have 100% seamless transition. Although some files can be specially segregated by machine, if you choose, making them only available locally on that machine, this is up to the user.
You can have an expanded iCloud storage limit added to your account (2TB is currently $9.99) and have access to all files on all machines and devices.
Although still not 100% functional in all situations, even the files app and iCloud storage system on the iPhone can access and store all files and allow you to save or access many important documents on the go.
Starting with macOS Catalina, and now even more with Big Sur, the invisible and seamless “clone” experience when moving from desktop to laptop has been very functional and hugely beneficial, and now the iPhone and iPad are rapidly realizing a similar potential.
Shared Albums in photos, Shared Notes, Safari’s vast and ever improving ability to safely store 1000s of passwords and other site specific data, obviously the huge privacy upgrades, and soon, the identical user experience for all these apps across all devices, this amounts to a must-have success in software that easily matches the acclaim that the new hardware built-in with the new M1 chips have rightfully received.
The future is coming, faster than you think, and that’s a good thing (in this case)
Another big, I mean huge, factor that is coming into play with Big Sur and the various OSs, is the emergence of machine learning and “over-the-air” updates, including some that are unannounced and take place within individual apps without requiring user interaction.
The photos app is a huge example of this but the phenomenon is also spreading into other built in software.
This means that improvements in functionality and sometimes even added features are taking place faster and can be major, even between the official updates themselves.
In the end the “whole widget” approach will provide benefits so astounding that a user of Apple products will be in a “universe of capability” that has no comparable alternative and certainly no rival.
The improvements across all apps and functions are so vast that it would take thousands of pages to catalog even a fraction of them – basically it is better to do what we have always done with Apple system software; wade through while learning by doing and rejoice each time the “singularity”, that is now a stated goal, becomes a little bit closer.
With macOS Big Sur, your mac via iCloud and your other Apple devices are now already a vastly more powerful network of tools working together than they ever could be separately.
