Author: matthewephotography@yahoo.com
Bluesky experienced explosive growth last year, especially towards the end, and the platform had to step up its moderation efforts. In its recently released 2024 moderation report, BlueSky said the number of users increased by about 23 million, jumping from 2.9 million to about 26 million. And the number of user reports received by moderators increased 17x in 2023. 6.48 million in 2024, compared to 358,000 the previous year.The majority of these reports were related to “harassment, trolling, or intolerance,” spam, and misleading content (including impersonation and misinformation). As Bluesky’s popularity soared, the presence of accounts impersonating other people has…
If you’ve been waiting for a sale on Apple’s flagship AirPods Max, now is the time to buy a pair. Amazon has discounted the USB-C model to $449. That’s 18% of the asking price of $549. Since I last posted this article, most of the colors have sold out, but the Starlight color is still in stock as of this update.AirPods Max need no introduction, but it’s worth taking a moment to think about whether it makes sense to buy one in 2025. Make no mistake, the sound quality is great and they offer tight integration with other Apple devices,…
Good news, Android fans. We’re only days away from the announcement of the latest (and perhaps best) new Samsung smartphones of 2025. The company’s first Galaxy Unpacked event of the year is scheduled for Wednesday, January 22nd, and like every year, you can watch from home.Between reliable leaks and historical precedent, we can reasonably assume that at least this event will include a new lineup of Galaxy S25 phones (including Ultra, Plus, and regular models). The new phone is more or less guaranteed to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, with some design tweaks and new colors added. And Samsung’s…
Instagram head Adam Mosseri took to the thread on Sunday to make yet another announcement this weekend. The timing certainly has nothing to do with TikTok or any other ByteDance-owned app going dark (briefly): a new free video editing app, called Editing, is in the works. Instagram Edits will cater to users who edit videos on their phones, offering a “full suite of creative tools.” This includes the usual editing tools, plus high-quality recordings, shareable drafts, trending audio, insights into your reel’s performance, and an “inspiration tab.”If you’re reminded of CapCut, TikTok’s sister app for video editing, you’re not alone.…
Less than a day after ByteDance shut down TikTok in the US, it announced that the app would be brought back. TikTok said in a statement posted on Sunday afternoon: “In agreement with our service provider, TikTok is in the process of restoring service.”The statement also thanked President Trump, who is scheduled to take office on Monday and had previously said he was considering extending TikTok following reports of potential bidders (although ByteDance is being sold (have not shown any interest in). TikTok said: “We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution to keep TikTok in the United…
The AIPT Comics Podcast continues this week with special guest and co-host CJ as he looks back at the week in news and reviews his favorite comics.This week, writer Daniel Kibblesmith joins the podcast to discuss his upcoming Darkwing Duck series on Dynamite. Released on February 19th, with only one day left to pre-order, we talk about Ted Brandt and Lo Stein’s work and how their art fits well with the series. There are lots of approaches that connect with manga!AIPT Manga Podcast Top Manga of the Week:Dave:Star Trek: Lower Decks (2024) #3 (Ryan North, Jack Lawrence)The Nice House by…
Image credit; Jason Brown/midlifegamergeek.com Although it was released in 2000, it’s hard to imagine a comic from the ’90s quite like Magdalena. It’s all extreme art, “mature” content, and of course features a badass heroine who goes into every deadly encounter with her midriff fully exposed. Magdalena as a character first appeared in the pages of Darkness. Another very edgy ’90s comic that debuted in the mid-’90s, it was itself a spin-off from another comic, and featured a badass female hero who, at least at first, showed her belly button and was pretty skimpy. I was there. Costume’. Magdalena has…
The US ban on TikTok has been turned on. TikTok’s app stopped working and was removed from the App Store and Google Play on Saturday night, hours before the ban was expected to take effect on January 19th.Users who have previously installed the app will see a pop-up instead. “Sorry, TikTok is currently unavailable” is displayed. “A law has been enacted to ban TikTok in the United States. Unfortunately, you cannot use TikTok at this time. We are fortunate that President Trump intends to work with us on a solution to bring TikTok back once he takes office.” Please look…
Canu announced on Friday night that it would file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and “immediately cease operations” because it was unable to secure sufficient funds to continue operations. The following text was posted on the EV startup’s wall leading up to the announcement: The company has lost several executives in recent months, announced furloughs and reported to the SEC in November that it had just $700,000 in the bank, according to TechCrunch.In a press release announcing the application, Canu said it was unable to raise funds from “foreign capital sources” that it had been discussing with the Department of Energy’s…
Children and teens may soon be unable to play Genshin Gacha. The game’s developer agreed to block players under 16 from making in-game purchases without parental consent to resolve complaints from the Federal Trade Commission. They also agreed to pay a $20 million penalty. “Genshin tricked children, teens, and other players into spending hundreds of dollars on prizes they had no chance of winning,” said FTC Consumer Protection Director Samuel Levine.The commission said in its complaint that the developer’s marketing actively targeted children and that the company also violated COPPA by collecting personal information from children under 13. The developer’s…