Apple : The Witcher on Netflix: everything we know about the TV series |
- The Witcher on Netflix: everything we know about the TV series
- Best laser printer 2020: top picks for color and mono printing
- How to watch Johnson vs Corbyn 2 online: stream BBC Prime Ministerial Debate for free in the UK or abroad
- VPN connections could be hacked due to Linux security flaw
- Sprint contractor exposed a ton of cell phone bills stored in Amazon’s cloud
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- The Boys Season 2: release date, trailer details and everything we know
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| The Witcher on Netflix: everything we know about the TV series Posted: 06 Dec 2019 01:54 PM PST The Witcher TV series is coming to Netflix in December. It's based on the novels by Andrzej Sapkowski, and the first season is 8 episodes long. Henry Cavill, best known as Superman in Man of Steel, plays Geralt of Rivia. He's a mutated, supernatural monster hunter, who gets caught between two warring human nations: the Nilfgaardian Empire and Northern Kingdoms. The Witcher on Netflix features a fantastical setting – there are elves, dwarfs, and an array of incredible monsters – but it’s nevertheless rich with human, relatable stories. Wondering when exactly The Witcher on Netflix releases? Read below and we'll tell you. Don't call it a Game of Thrones copy, though – with at least one cast member for The Witcher, Royce Pierreson, saying the comparisons don't hold up to the unique flavor of the show (via Digital Spy). We also have a Game of Thrones prequel show coming anyway to scratch that itch... When is The Witcher on Netflix?The Witcher will arrive on Netflix worldwide on December 20, with all eight episodes premiering at once. Netflix usually drops shows at midnight PT/3AM ET - expect that to be when you can start streaming the show. The Witcher season 2 is officialThe Witcher has already been renewed for a second season. Back before it was renewed, showrunner Lauren Hissrich discussed the idea that the show might run for multiple years - so you could see many seasons of The Witcher on Netflix to come. "We don’t have a second season yet—God willing we will—but right now it’s just about, ‘How do you set up stories that really capture audiences for years at a time?’" Hissrich said at the time. "The worst thing we could do is put all of our energies just into season one, and not be thinking about where these characters can grow to.” Cut to the chase:
The Witcher on Netflix trailers: check out the show's final trailerThe Witcher's final trailer gives you an idea of what the show will look like ahead of the full release. Take a look below: Meanwhile, here's the first trailer for The Witcher that Netflix released. Try not to get too excited: A shorter teaser was released by Netflix Italy, as seen below. It's only 16 seconds long, and jumps between shots quite fast, but if you want another glimpse of Cavill as Geralt, giant spiders, and some of the medieval fantasy environments, it's 16 seconds of pure Witcher gold. Or silver. The Witcher TV series cast and crew announcements: Henry Cavill and moreIt’s a prestigious production. The showrunner is Daredevil and The Defenders writer Lauren Schmidt Hissrich and Cavill brings measured star power to the role of Geralt - a stoic, wary, and refreshingly nuanced hero, exploring a world that struggles to accept him. It helps that Cavill is also a massive fan of the series – apparently, he called his agent every day until the role was confirmed (via Vulture).
Series author Andrzej Sapkowski is also on board as creative consultant, and there’s direct creative links to the video games, too: CD Projekt Red's Tomas Baginski – the man behind the stirring cinematics seen at the start of all three titles – is earmarked to direct at least one episode. In terms of characters, anyone who’s read the book or played the games will recognise plenty of faces.
Anya Chalotra plays Yennefer of Vengerberg, a fiery, independant sorcerer and longtime paramour of Geralt; Freya Allan plays Ciri, a destiny-touched Witcher whom Geralt takes under his wing; and we’ve even seen Geralt’s faithful horse, Roach. (Or one of the Roaches, at least: Geralt is over 100 years old and gives every horse he has the same name – he’s been through a few.) Dandelion, the bard who documents the events of the story and Geralt’s best friend, will also feature, but he’ll be using his name from the books: Jaskier. This Polish word actually refers to the buttercup flower, which feels far too Princess Bride for this moody fantasy setting. The Witcher TV series: story rumorsAs anyone familiar with the books or games knows, The Witcher is all about moral ambiguity. The showrunners have promised that characters we’ll hate when we first meet them could become ones we love later on. And even Geralt himself isn’t a classical hero: Witchers kill monsters for money, not altruism, and the SDCC trailer suggests that coin is all Geralt cares about early on. Cavill has already mentioned that despite Geralt being a hero, he “won’t treat everyone perfectly”. And even the show’s tagline, "The worst monsters are the ones we create" hints at some thematic things: chiefly that in this world, having your horse devoured by a griffon is the least of your problems.
The topline description of the story is simply about a monster hunter struggling to find his place in a grasping, war-torn world. But it’s worth reiterating this is based on the books, not just the games, and that might allay some fears of yet another failed video game adaptation. Because it’s based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s novels, events will take place before the game trilogy. But even if you’ve only played the games, there’s plenty here you’ll recognise. We don’t yet know exactly which stories are being adapted, but based on the trailers and on what Hissrich has said about The Witcher’s “disjointed family” it sounds like the tumultuous relationship between Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer will be the primary focus. There are eight Witcher novels - as well as a glut of short stories - and it sounds like the show will take inspiration from the five books that deal with Geralt’s relationship with Ciri. Does this mean that there will be no specific references to the games? That depends. Hissrich has said that if the show runs for multiple seasons, we may eventually get to the games, but right now she’s taking it one season at a time. She has confirmed, however, that the Witcher bathtub beloved by our sister site PC Gamer may make an appearance. She told io9 at San Diego Comic-Con that yes, "There is a bathtub. I won’t tell you who’s in the bathtub, but there is a bathtub." The Witcher TV series production designDesign-wise, it’s impossible not to infer some inspiration from the games, although there are some differences. The initial response to the first make-up test of Cavill as Geralt was mixed - specifically, the blond wig made him look more like a Creatine-pumped Legolas than the lithe character we recognise from the CD Projekt Red series. But it makes more sense seeing him in motion in recent trailers, and Geralt’s (apparently very uncomfortable) studded mail armour feels like it could be an in- game drop. Not all the armour we’ve seen has been positively received: fans of the game were less sold on the crumpled Nilfgaardian armour seen in leaked footage from the set, with one commenter eloquently describing the soldiers as, "ballsacks with swords." There’s a chance it might look this way in order to add some post-production effects, or this could be the finished product. And then there are Geralt’s swords. Or to be more accurate, , singular. Game Twitter was more-aghast-than-normal on learning the Netflix version of the Butcher of Blaviken only carried one sword, rather than the two he uses in the game (steel for humans, silver for monsters). But this, again, is true to the source material: Geralt has two blades in the books, but he keeps his silver sword on his horse, Roach. Later images confirmed this: you can see a seductive glint of silver pommel on the image below:
On balance, there are plenty of reasons to be positive. The series won’t break the curse of terrible video game adaptations, because it isn’t one. Instead, Hissrich can draw on a vast selection of stories from a fully fleshed out fantasy universe. There’s a large, dragon-shaped fantasy gap in our TV schedule right now; The Witcher may be exactly the thing to fill it.
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| Best laser printer 2020: top picks for color and mono printing Posted: 06 Dec 2019 01:42 PM PST Welcome to our guide to the best laser printers of 2019. No matter if you're looking for color or mono printing, on this page you'll find the very best laser printers for your needs. While inkjet printers undoubtedly print a better photo, there are several other areas where laser printers rein supreme and these are strengths that generally make laser printers better suited to the office environment. For starters, a laser printer won’t demand a new ink cartridge every hundred or so pages. In fact they don’t use ink at all. They rely on toner cartridges which are capable of printing thousands of pages before they need replacing. In other words, laser printers are considerably cheaper to run. And where inkjet nozzles can become blocked or dry up when you leave them for long periods, laser printers don’t care how often you use them. They need less attention in general and they’re always ready to leap into action, which brings us to the other key advantage, speed. We’ve tested a Xerox machine that prints at a rate of 55ppm (pages per minute), which is more than double the speed of the fastest inkjet. And if you’re comparing pages of black and white text, the laser prints will almost always look more crisp and consistent. Perhaps best of all, the best laser printers are more affordable and flexible than ever before. This means they make great printers for home use as well as being used in offices. The best laser printers come in every shape and size, and we've listed our top recommendations so that you can find the right laser printer for your home or office.
With a print speed of 55 pages per minute and room for a whole ream of paper on board, this compact device can keep a large work group printing continuously. The initial cost for a monochrome print-only device might seem high, but this premium machine is actually very economical to run and its consistent print quality justifies the price tag. The intuitive five-inch touchscreen interface will further cut down your operating time.
This little grey box can really churn out the pages and despite the size, it will hold a lot of paper too. This makes it ideal for the small office with a high demand for black and white documents. The quality is consistent and the per page print cost is attractive. It’s light on features with no Wi-Fi or a front USB port, but what it does, it does very well.
Kyocera’s hefty print-only device feels well built and it has enough capacity for 500 sheets of paper and large toner cartridges, which makes it suitable for a big workgroup or a busy home office. It prints quickly in duplex mode and runs very quietly too. The display and buttons are rather small, but it is well armed with security features to prevent private documents going astray.
By Xerox’s standards, this compact four-in-one laser printer is a modest affair, offering print, scan, copy and fax functions in a small and relatively affordable package. Despite the low price, however, you still get a large tilting touchscreen for easy operation and a none-too-shabby print speed of 30ppm. You can fit 250 sheets of paper in the main paper tray and it comes with enough toner for 1,500 monochrome pages and has a fairly low per page print cost of around 2.2 pence per page
Canon’s multifunction laser printer looks well-designed, feels well-built and it performed strongly in our tests. It’s loaded with features for printing securely in a large workgroup or scanning, copying and faxing wirelessly. The large touchscreen control panel also makes accessing all of these functions fairly painless. It prints promptly, if somewhat noisily, and turns out crisp duplex pages on demand. Though the initial cost is high, it comes with enough toner for up to 6,300 mono, or 5,000 colour pages.
This unassuming square box provides an affordable means of churning out monochrome pages in a busy small office atmosphere. It can hold 250 sheets of paper and a toner cartridge capable of delivering up to 6,000 printed pages. The included starter cartridge can manage only 700 pages, but by including all of the key features, such a Wi-Fi, duplex printing and robust security at a competitive price, we can strongly recommend it.
This high-end print-only device from Xerox is built for the more demanding small to medium business where print speed and paper capacity are key factors. But in addition to printing quickly in duplex mode and holding more than a ream of paper, this machine has strong security features and a particularly sophisticated touchscreen that will save time spent operating it. It is an expensive machine, but the quality here is high and by using high-capacity toner cartridges, the running cost is quite low.
Ricoh’s colour printer comes with the essential features, such as Wi-Fi connectivity, duplex mode and secure printing built in. It looks a little dated with those wobbly plastic panels and its print speed is somewhat slow compared to other laser printers, but the print quality is particularly pleasing with both mono and colour pages and the price is competitive.
HP has scored another ‘world’s smallest’ with a multifunction device that misses nothing out. It will print, scan, copy and fax and has a 40-sheet automatic document feeder for scheduled jobs. It also has Wi-Fi built in, but we should warn you that there is no auto-duplex mode. If that’s not an issue this strikes us a very low price for such a conveniently compact laser printer.
This deceptively simple laser printer is surprisingly well specified and feature packed. For instance, it can print at a rate of 28ppm in either mono, or colour and can print both sides of the page automatically. Dual-band Wi-Fi is built in and there’s a front-facing USB port for walk-up printing. It even has a flashy tilting colour touchscreen interface. And despite its small proportions, there’s room for 300 sheets of paper in its main paper tray and if that’s not enough, the modular design allows you to add a second tray and load another 550 sheets.
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| Posted: 06 Dec 2019 12:20 PM PST It's been a month of grilling interviews, intense debates and outrage from the public for both Boris Johnson and the opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn. And now, it is time for the next round. Read on to see how to watch the BBC Prime Ministerial Debate online - aka Johnson vs Corbyn 2! For both party leaders, November wasn't exactly a month of popularity, with both having to back out of debates and facing interviews which left many major questions unanswered in the run-up to the general election. However, this is one debate that will not be skipped - the BBC Prime Ministerial debate. Kicking off in Southampton, this will be the first time the two leaders have gone head-to-head since their first general election debate clash in mid-November. In that time, many major topics have been raised - the possibility of the sale of NHS services to America, rising inequality rates and the obvious topic of Brexit. With all of that verbal ammunition to throw at each other, you'll want to watch the BBC Prime Ministerial debate online as it happens live. With the general election inching nearer and nearer, this will be one of the last debates and the last time we will see Corbyn and Johnson battle it out one-on-one, giving one last chance to get in some one-liners, quips and most importantly, devastating blows. Want to watch the BBC Prime Ministerial debate online? Scroll down to see where, when and how to live stream it as it happens. And if you happen to be out of the country on the day, we've got information below on how to watch it abroad.
Watch the BBC Prime Ministerial Debate online for free in the UK:This BBC-hosted debate will be shown on, you guessed it...the BBC. To catch all of the action live on your TV, tune in to BBC One at 8.30pm on Friday, December 6. Or if you would prefer to use your laptop, phone, iPad or other device, you can use the BBC iPlayer app to stream the BBC debate instead. You can also head over to the free to use TVPlayer.com which has good quality streaming as well as the rest of the Freeview channels on one easy platform. Stream the BBC debate anywhere else in the world for free:If you're out of the country when the BBC debate is live, you will sadly find the content is geo-blocked. That can be extremely frustrating, especially if you're simply away on holiday or living abroad. But luckily, there is a fix. So that you don't miss out, you could always try tuning in by using a VPN. They're super easy to use and effectively allow you to change your IP address for one in another country and watch as if you were back in the UK. Getting a VPN and watching from abroad is as easy as 1-2-3...
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| VPN connections could be hacked due to Linux security flaw Posted: 06 Dec 2019 12:05 PM PST A new vulnerability that could allow potential attackers to hijack VPN connections on affected NIX devices and inject arbitrary data payloads into IPv4 and Ipv6 TCP streams has been discovered by security researchers. The researchers disclosed the security flaw they detected, tracked as CVE-2019-14899, to Linux distro makers, the Linux kernel security team and to others that are impacted including systemd, Google, Apple, OpenVPN and WireGuard. As of now, the vulnerability is known to impact most Linux distributions as well as Unix-like operating systems including FreeBSD, OpenBSD, macOS, iOS and Android.
Linux security flawThe vulnerability was discovered by William J. Tolley, Beau Kujath and Jedidiah R. Crandall who are all Breakpointing Bad researchers at the University of New Mexico. In a blog post revealing their discovery, Tolley provided more details on the security flaw, saying: “I am reporting a vulnerability that exists on most Linux distros, and other *nix operating systems which allows a network adjacent attacker to determine if another user is connected to a VPN, the virtual IP address they have been assigned by the VPN server, and whether or not there is an active connection to a given website. Additionally, we are able to determine the exact seq and ack numbers by counting encrypted packets and/or examining their size. This allows us to inject data into the TCP stream and hijack connections.” Thankfully the researchers also said that mitigation is possible by turning reverse path filtering on, by using bogon filtering to filter fake IP addresses or by using encrypted packet size and timing. Once they find an appropriate workaround, the researchers are also planning to publish a paper with in-depth analysis of the vulnerability. Cybersecurity specialist at ESET, Jake Moore explained that VPN services still have a role to play in data privacy despite the discovery of this new vulnerability, saying: “VPNs should ideally be seen and used as another tool in the cyber security toolkit, rather than something to use constantly. There have been a few stories mentioning breaches to VPN services this year, but I think they still have a role to play in data privacy. The majority of people will not be directly targeted in this type of attack, however they may be part of an untargeted breach of data if caught up in something like a simple man-in-the-middle attack in a public Wi-Fi zone. Where 4G is offered, this is far more secure than any public Wi-Fi for privacy and security reasons, although I do appreciate that some people will need to jump on public Wi-Fi in some circumstances. Naturally, C-Suite level personnel or similar should increase their security where necessary and use a variety of different protection methods.”
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| Sprint contractor exposed a ton of cell phone bills stored in Amazon’s cloud Posted: 06 Dec 2019 11:38 AM PST Data stored in the cloud by a Sprint contractor, containing hundreds of thousands of phone bills of US citizens, was left exposed and potentially viewable by anyone for an undetermined period of time, it has emerged. As TechCrunch reports, the cache of data – kept in an AWS bucket, essentially an area of storage in Amazon’s cloud platform – consisted of over 260,000 documents, most of which were phone bills of AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile customers dating back up to four years in some cases.
The bills contained a whole load of confidential information, as you might imagine, including names, addresses and call histories. Other sensitive material was present alongside the bills, such as bank statements, and even a screenshot of online usernames and passwords for customer accounts. These buckets should be private, obviously, but can sometimes be misconfigured, with the contents accidentally left open to potential public viewing. In this case it was Fidus Information Security which discovered the exposed data. The UK-based penetration testing security outfit – which probes and evaluates company networks by launching simulated attacks against them – discovered the bucket and reported the problem to Amazon, which quickly closed the hole, as you would expect. There’s a hole in the bucket, dear Liza…Amazon didn’t disclose the name of the owner of the bucket, but by examining a file and subsequently engaging in a bit of detective work, TechCrunch found that the owner was Deardorff Communications, the marketing agency which handles promotions for Sprint. This tallied with Sprint-branded documents found in the cache of files which indicated that all these phone bills were collected as part of an offer to allow the people in question to switch from their current network provider to Sprint – with Sprint paying off the early termination fee to allow the subscriber to move. This is a common incentive in the mobile industry. The president of Deardorff Communications, Jeff Deardorff, confirmed to TechCrunch that his marketing company did indeed own the bucket in question, and that public access to it had now been shut down. He commented: “I have launched an internal investigation to determine the root cause of this issue, and we are also reviewing our policies and procedures to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again.” He wouldn’t, however, be drawn to comment on whether the folks whom the bills belong to would be informed of the potential exposure of their sensitive data. With what should I fix it?Amazon has been busy making plenty of revelations over at its AWS re:Invent 2019 conference, and funnily enough, one of those was the launch of Access Analyzer, a new security tool for customers using S3 cloud storage. This tool keeps a watchful eye for incorrect configurations of buckets and potentially exposed data, flagging them and making them easy to block with a single click. Leaky buckets have been a big problem for a large number of organizations down the years, causing plenty of data breaches, and hopefully this security utility will help make these kind of incidents a lot rarer.
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| Millions of SMS messages breached Posted: 06 Dec 2019 10:40 AM PST Security researchers have discovered a massive database, which was left exposed online, that contains tens of millions of SMS text messages sent by businesses to potential customers. The database is run by a business SMS provider called TrueDialog that allows organizations and colleges to send out bulk text messages to their customers and students. However, the service also gives recipients of these messages the ability to text back so that they can have two-way conversations with those businesses. TrueDialog's database contained years worth of SMS messages that had been sent and received by its customers. Since the database was left unsecured online without a password, anyone could look at these messages which were also not encrypted.
The initial discovery of the exposed database was made by Noam Rotem and Ran Locar from vpnMentor's research team. Database contentsAfter examining a portion of the exposed data, TechCrunch found that it contained detailed logs of messages sent by customers who used TrueDialog's system including their phone numbers and the contents of their messages. The database itself contained marketing messages from businesses, job alerts and other offers sent out to customers but it also stored sensitive text messages such as two-factor authentication codes and security messages. Using the information contained in these messages, anyone could have potentially tried to gain access to users' online accounts. The data also contained the usernames and passwords of TrueDialog's own customers which could have also been used to access and impersonate their accounts. Another startling discovery was the fact that some of the two-way message conversations contained a unique conversation code. Using this code, anyone could have been able to read entire chains of conversations between businesses and their customers. This is just the latest case of a database being left unsecured online but it also shows how SMS text messages are not a secure way to send sensitive data such as two-factor authentication codes.
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| The Boys Season 2: release date, trailer details and everything we know Posted: 06 Dec 2019 10:06 AM PST The Boys is probably the best live-action superhero show made to date, and certainly in the higher tier of Amazon Prime Video originals. What could have been an overly edgy and blunt portrayal of superheroes behaving immorally with no consequences ends up on the right side of things, by dropping the worst excesses of its source material. It was compelling and strangely touching as a result. A second season was announced before the show even aired, and it was subsequently declared one of the most successful Amazon shows yet in terms of viewing figures (even though no specific numbers were provided). The first season - and spoiler alert from this point onwards - felt like it wrote itself into a corner, in some ways, but there are loads of volumes of the comic book left for inspiration, and that means season 2 has a lot of potential. Below, we’ll tell you everything we know about the release date of The Boys season 2, what we saw in the now pulled official trailer, which new heroes and villains are joining the show, and more. The Boys season 2 trailer was released - then pulledThe Boys season 2 had a trailer - but it's since been pulled from YouTube, after reportedly being revealed at CCXP in Brazil. It was released a day early, according to the official Twitter feed, so it should be back soon. It didn't reveal much about the plot, but had plenty of violence and snapshots of the show's characters. It appears that season 2 will pick up right where the first season left off, with the evil Superman stand-in Homelander (the magnificent Antony Starr) revealing a super-powered son, and Hughie (Jack Quaid) saving the life of speedster A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), despite the fact he ran through his girlfriend at the start of the show. We also caught a shot of Terror, Billy Butcher's dog from the comics, which is surely the most important part of the show going into its second year. Hopefully Amazon will release the trailer officially soon - it sure got us excited about what's coming down the line. If it'll help tide you over until season 2 arrives, Amazon did release this short 'Young Homelander' clip in November 2019, to remind you why he's not very nice. There are plenty of non-video teases out there for season 2, though. Check out these teaser images posted to social media by the cast and creators: The Boys Season 2 has a release date of 'mid-2020'The first season of The Boys debuted in late July 2019, so it makes sense that the second season will start at a similar time next year. The expedient renewal of the series ahead of the air date was, we'd speculate, partly motivated by the long lead time needed for a show with this many special effects. And we know the show is set to return in mid-2020, as teased by actor Karl Urban on Instagram when the show wrapped filming (see above). In addition, at San Diego Comic Con 2019, executive producer and showrunner Eric Kripke told Collider to expect the second season at "about the same time next year". A summer release of July 2020 seems the most likely, then, but we'll keep you updated as things develop. The Boys season 2 will be 8 episodes long, but what will the story be about?
A few elements hang in the air from the season one finale. Expect Compound V, the mysterious drug that gives superpowers to humans, to remain a recurring mystery in the show. "If it’s a secret, if it’s nothing the world knows about yet, then it becomes a secret that everyone will kill for, and it gives you an object that everybody wants, and it does all the great things a McGuffin does," Kripke told Entertainment Weekly, discussing Compound V's story significance. Now Billy and Hughie know that secret, what happens next? At the end of season one, of course, Homelander dropped Billy Butcher on the lawn of his wife, Becca, who he presumed dead. Instead, she has a family with Homelander, including their superpowered son. It's quite a predicament for poor Billy: how will he escape? And does this mean Billy and the rest of The Boys will struggle to function as an underground group, now Homelander has Billy in his laser sights? That's more of a question mark, but in an interview with EW, some elements of season 2 were revealed. For example, Billy's dog from the comics, Terror, will appear in one episode of the show. The death of Madelyn Stillwell (Elisabeth Shue) will be a big jumping-off point for season 2's story, and Vought International's own mysterious CEO, Mr Edgar (Giancarlo Esposito), will apparently appear in around four or five episodes, having made a notable cameo at the end of the season. At least one new villain will be added to the mix from the comics, too: Stormfront, played by Aya Cash, a kind of Thor/Shazam mash-up who's gender-flipped from the comics. Speaking of new cast members... The Boys season 2 cast will introduce new heroes and villains
Expect both The Boys and The Seven's cast members to return. Karl Urban will return as Billy Butcher, along with Jack Quaid as Hughie, Laz Alonso as Mother's Milk, Tomer Kapon as Frenchie, and Karen Fukuhara as The Female, all of whom survived the first season. We know Starlight (Erin Moriarty) will return, along with other members from The Seven like Homelander (Antony Starr), gross fish man The Deep (Chace Crawford), Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott) and probably A-Train (Jessie T Usher), although the latter did end season one having had a heart attack. A bunch of big names will be added to The Boys season 2's cast. As mentioned, Giancarlo Esposito appeared in the first season's finale, guest starring as enigmatic Vought CEO Mr Edgar. He's an actor best known for his role as Gus Fring in Breaking Bad, and he'll play a larger role in season 2, especially with Madelyn Stillwell (Shue) killed in the finale. Along with Aya Cash's Stormfront, we know about a few other new cast members coming in season two. Actor and comedian Patton Oswalt will pop up, and two other actors play key roles in this season: as per Deadline, Goran Visnjic and Claudia Doumit are also part of The Boys season 2. Visnjic plays Alistair Adana, the mysterious leader of some kind of church, while Doumit plays an up-and-coming congresswoman. Both actors starred in creator Eric Kripke's previous show, the cult hit Timeless. The best superhero show on TV?The Boys was one of the surprise hits of the year, with a strong ensemble cast and an original-feeling angle on superhero fiction during a very busy time for it. We can't wait to see more in 2020. Executive producer Seth Rogen's words about the next set of episodes to Collider leave room to be optimistic. "We just watched, actually, the first episode of the second season this week. It was a wonderful thing as producers. This is way better than I ever could’ve hoped it would be This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| If you bought a Nintendo Switch on Black Friday and got various home goods, you're not alone Posted: 06 Dec 2019 10:00 AM PST At least a dozen Amazon customers got the surprise of their life this holiday season – though not in a good way. According to Kotaku, a few Black Friday buyers who ordered a Nintendo Switch apparently did not get their electronics purchase. Instead, like a scene from How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, they found everything from condoms and air fresheners to Remington facial trimmers and dog food in their Amazon package. Many of them then took to Twitter to voice their frustration. The mix-up seemed to have been more than just someone entering the wrong SKU number by mistake, as it happened to people all over the UK and with random items. One customer from Leicester, England evidently got a microphone and a tambourine, while another from Tutbury, Staffordshire got a copy of David Williams’ latest children’s book. Some got it worse than others, finding only a pack of AA Duracell batteries and a box of dishwashing powder or a ream of paper instead of their brand spanking new Nintendo Switch.
Amazon issues an apology, but still no Nintendo SwitchesWhat’s even more disappointing is that they’re now unable to take advantage of that Black Friday deal they thought they were getting. It’s looking like they’re not going to get that Nintendo Switch they ordered, which means they might have to get it at full price or hope for another price drop before Christmas rolls around. Amazon has issued an apology, stating that they’re investigating the incident. The company also promised to refund every customer, which is something at least.
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| When is The Mandalorian episode 6 released on Disney Plus? Posted: 06 Dec 2019 09:44 AM PST Want to know when the next episode of The Mandalorian - episode 6 - releases on Disney Plus? New episodes of The Mandalorian are released every Friday on Disney Plus, though there are a few exceptions to that. Episode 1 released on a Tuesday, the same day the Disney Plus streaming service launched, and episode 7 will release on a different day to avoid clashing with Episode 9: The Rise of Skywalker. We'll explain below. You'll find the official release schedule of The Mandalorian season one on Disney Plus below, too. We can show you how to watch The Mandalorian, too. Here's when you can next get your Baby Yoda fix. When is the next episode of The Mandalorian on Disney Plus?The next episode of The Mandalorian, episode 6, releases on Disney Plus on December 13, which is the next Friday. That's when you can stream it in the US, Canada, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, which are all the territories where you can currently get Disney Plus. Episodes arrive at around midnight PT, although the exact time seems to vary from week-to-week. If you want to watch each episode at release in the US, then, be prepared to stay up late. Do it for Baby Yoda.
When do the other episodes of The Mandalorian season one release?They all release each Friday over the rest of December, with the exception of the seventh episode, which releases on a Wednesday (most likely to avoid clashing with The Rise of Skywalker, which releases on 12/20). There are eight episodes in total. Here's the official confirmed release schedule from Disney:
When is The Mandalorian season one finale?As explained above, the season one finale of The Mandalorian arrives on Disney Plus on December 27. Between this show, Jedi: Fallen Order and The Rise of Skywalker, you can pretty much fill this holiday season with as much Star Wars as you can possibly enjoy. The Mandalorian season 2 is already underway.
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| When is the next episode of Rick and Morty? Posted: 06 Dec 2019 09:17 AM PST Season 4 episode 4 of Rick and Morty airs Sunday on Adult Swim, if you were wondering when the next episode is. This season of Rick and Morty is 10 episodes long, and two more episodes are due to air in 2019, just before the holidays. Below we'll show you the full release schedule for Rick and Morty season 4. While five episodes are airing in 2019, the other five will release some time in 2020. The exact timing of the latter half is still up in the air, but we're expecting the rest of season 4 to air in the early part of next year. When is the next episode of Rick and Morty?The next episode of Rick and Morty, season 4 episode 4, airs this Sunday December 8 at 11:30PM ET on Adult Swim. If you're wondering what this episode is about, the official Rick and Morty account calls it the 'Morty gets a dragon' episode, which is comfortably self-explanatory. Check out a quick trailer below: Rick and Morty episode release scheduleRick and Morty season 4 is 10 episodes long. This is the release schedule for every episode of Rick and Morty. Note that we don't know exactly when they'll air the second half of season 4 in 2020 - but hopefully when this half of the season ends, that information will be disclosed.
When is the next episode of Rick and Morty in the UK?Rick and Morty season 4 episode 4 airs on E4 at 10PM on Wednesday December 11. Episode 5, meanwhile, is expected to air on December 18. The show will be available on the All4 streaming platform afterwards, supported by ads. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:53 AM PST Here’s a curious fact of modern computing. For those who have grown up with modern interfaces such as Windows 10 and Apple iOS 11, the idea of a “command line interface” is a bit peculiar. We’re so accustomed to seeing, clicking, and executing that any kind of textual interface (other than actually texting on a phone) is lost on large masses of people. That’s not true when it comes to cloud computing services, such as Amazon Web Services and the Command Line Interface (or AWS CLI). In fact, for anyone who has worked in a data center, is comfortable with Linux, creates web applications, or remembers the early days of MS-DOS, a command line is not a crippled, old school system but rather a powerful way to control and execute commands. Technically speaking, the CLI is a downloadable app you use to control AWS functions. That means for Windows users you will need to install and run the 32-bit or 64-bit version of the CLI. On a Mac or Linux distro, you will need to use Python 2.6.5 or higher and install using pip. After that, the CLI is a terminal service in that it looks like the MS-DOS command line and has scripts you can execute, which saves time and effort. You can start with the basics by typing a help command in the CLI which walks you through what you can type and why. One key to understanding how CLI works and why you can benefit from using it as an organization is to understand that AWS is a comprehensive cloud computing environment. There are many components, and it’s not always easy to understand how they all work (and how they work together). A CLI helps technical staff execute commands without having to review every feature and function or use a graphical interface. This means if you have a team to deal only with cloud storage, and you spell out the commands available and what they do, those team members can execute those commands and use the scripting variables required, without having to worry about any other features within AWS. Benefits of AWS CLIThe true power of the CLI is in its simplicity. As with any command line interface, you can issue commands that are powerful, reduce complexity (ironically because it is not all spelled out in a potentially confusing GUI), and save time with your cloud management and working with your cloud computing infrastructure. It is intended for IT employees, programmers, and other technical folks at your company to be able to perform cloud computing tasks without taking as many steps. The technical team at most companies are almost always busy with multiple tasks that all seem urgent. They are managing client devices, installing security patches, reconfiguring networking, and dealing with printers and copiers that are not working for a specific department. In short, they are running around like the proverbial headless chickens. AWS CLI provides a way to execute scripts such as looking at Amazon S3 storage instances, triggering backups, performing recursive uploads and downloads, viewing buckets, and inspecting services. At the same time, CLI also lets the technical staff configure AWS itself. Some of these tasks can be performed within the AW GUI, although not every command is available and some might not be as easy to find, execute or use repeatedly in an automated way. Your technical staff will learn quickly that the CLI is meant to make their jobs easier. Examples of usageAs with any CLI, there are scripts you can use to trigger certain activities. One of the best ways to understand how the CLI works and why it is so beneficial is to consider how it helps administer the AWS S3 cloud storage environment. (S3 stands for Simple Storage Service and is really the backbone of AWS for all file storage, archiving, and management.) Without providing the actual command lines (which you can find easily enough in the usage guide), some of the basic functions include the ability to copy one instance of a file store that is local out to the cloud computing storage repository. The basic usage here is to use the sync command and to name the local file store and the target file store on AWS S3. For AWS itself, you can view the contents of an AWS bucket (similar to a file folder) by using a command to view the contents of a bucket. Because this is a CLI, you can add the script variables such as which S3 instance you want to inspect. You can also start instances, describe instances, publish instances, and manage them. (An instance in AWS parlance is an object such as storage, memory, and networking which are all intended to help you run web applications for your company and manage the related resources.)
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| Best email providers of 2020: Free, Paid and business services Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:52 AM PST Getting hold of an email account is easy. Sign up with an ISP and you’ve got one account for starters. Creating an account with Google and other big names will get you more. Buy a decent web hosting package and you'll probably get enough email addresses to power a large business, all for no extra charge. Getting the right email account is more difficult, as there's a lot to consider. What are the spam filters like? How easy is it to keep your inbox organized? Can you access the account from other email clients? And what about using the service with a custom domain and address of your own (yourname@yourdomain.com)? Keep reading and we'll highlight some of the best email providers around. All have decent free services, perhaps with ads and some limits, but we'll also talk about their business-friendly commercial products which deliver the power, functionality and enterprise-level extras that demanding users need.
The best email services of 2020 are:
Image credit: Proton Technologies Signing up with an email provider will often involve some privacy compromises. Yahoo Mail asks for your name and mobile number, for instance. Gmail and other services might scan your messages to carry out useful actions (such as adding events to calendars), and just about everyone serves you with ads. ProtonMail is a Swiss-based email service which focuses on privacy above all else. You can sign up anonymously, there's no logging of IP addresses, and all your emails are end-to-end encrypted, which means there's no way ProtonMail (or anyone else) can read their contents. Also, address verification (which allows you to be sure you are securely communicating with the right person) and full support for PGP email encryption is available. In late April 2019, elliptic curve cryptography was introduced, which adds additional security and faster speeds. There are some significant limits. The free product has a tiny 500MB storage space, only supports sending 150 messages a day, and is distinctly short in terms of organizational tools (no folders, labels or smart filters). As the end-to-end encryption is specific to ProtonMail, it also ensures that you can't use the service with other email clients. Still, it seems a little unfair to complain about a service which is no-strings-attached free, and doesn't even show ads. In reality, ProtonMail is a specialist tool which is intended for use alongside services like Gmail – not to replace them – and overall it performs its core tasks very well. If you do need more, ProtonMail's $5 (you can choose to pay in USD, Euro and CHF) a month (or $48 yearly) Plus account gives you 5GB storage, a 1,000 message-per-day allowance, custom domains (you@yourdomain.com) and support for folders, labels, filters as well as some addition features like contact groups. A further Professional plan brings more storage, email addresses and a second custom domain, as well as adding a catch-all email address and multi-user support. It's priced from $8 per month per user (75$ yearly), which is reasonable if you need ProtonMail's security, although it's also notably more expensive than the business accounts of the big-name competition.
Image credit: Google First released back in 2004, Google's Gmail has become the market leader in free email services with more than a billion users across the globe. Gmail's stripped-back web interface is a highlight. Most of the screen is devoted to your inbox, with a minimum of toolbar and other clutter. Messages are neatly organized via conversations for easier viewing, and you can read and reply to emails with ease, even as a first-time user. There's plenty of power here. Dynamic mail makes Gmail more interactive, with the ability to take action directly from within the email, like filling out a questionnaire or responding to a Google Docs comment. Messages can be automatically filtered into tabbed categories like Primary, Social and Promotions, helping you to focus on the content you need. Leading-edge spam blocking keeps your inbox free of junk, you can manage other accounts from the same interface (Outlook, Yahoo, any other IMAP or POP email), and there's 15GB storage for your inbox, Drive and photos. You can also access Gmail offline, although you'll need Google Chrome for that to work. Furthermore, there is a neat snooze feature that allows you to, well, snooze an email for a specified amount of time (it also automatically labels that email as important). Other features are more questionable. Instead of organizing messages into folders, for instance – a simple metaphor which just about every user understands – you must filter them using a custom labelling system. This works, and has some advantages, but isn't popular with all users. Still, Gmail is an excellent service overall, and a good first choice for your email provider. Google makes a paid business-oriented version of Gmail available in the shape of its G Suite product. This more professional product drops the ads and allows using a custom email address on your domain (yourname@yourcompany.tld). Business-oriented migration tools can import mail from Outlook, Exchange, Lotus and more. Storage space doubles to 30GB on the Basic plan, and you get unlimited group email addresses, 99.9% guaranteed uptime and 24/7 support. G Suite is Google's answer to Microsoft Office, so of course you also get apps for working with documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Shared calendars keep you better organized, there's video and voice conferencing for online meetings, and again, there’s 24/7 support to keep your system running smoothly. This more Office-like power makes for a more expensive product than the email-only competition, with prices starting at $6 a user for the simplest plan. You're getting a lot for your money, though, and if you'll use G Suite's features then it could be a smart choice. A 14-day free trial provides an easy way to help you find out.
Image credit: Microsoft Outlook's web interface follows the same familiar style as its desktop incarnation, and most other email clients: folders and organizational tools on the left, the contents of the current folder in the center, and a simple preview pane on the right (with adverts in the case of the free account). A toolbar gives you speedy access to common features, and right-clicking folders or messages shows you just about everything else. If you've ever used another email client, you'll figure out the key details in moments. Despite the apparent simplicity, there's a lot going on under the hood. The service automatically detects important emails and places them in a Focused Inbox, keeping any distractions out of sight. Events including flights and dinner reservations can automatically be added to your calendar. It's easy to share that calendar with other Outlook.com or Office 365 users, or you can save your events to a Family calendar that everyone can access. In addition, there are some interesting features too, like the ability to add polls directly to your Outlook emails. Excellent attachment support includes the ability to directly share OneDrive files as copies or links. You can also attach files directly from your Google Drive, Dropbox and Box accounts, and a chunky 15GB mailbox allows storing plenty of files from other people. This all worked just fine for us, but if you're unhappy with the service defaults, there's a chance they can be tweaked via Outlook.com's Settings dialog. This doesn't have quite as many options as Gmail, but they're well organized and give you plenty of control over layout, attachment rules, message handling and more. If that’s still not enough, Microsoft offers a bunch of app-based integrations to take the service further. You get built-in Skype support via the beta, and apps give you easier access to Evernote, PayPal, GIPHY, Yelp, Uber and more. Upgrading to Office 365 gets you an ad-free inbox, 50GB mail storage and a vast 1TB of OneDrive storage. Extras include offline working, professional message formatting tools, phone or chat-based support, file recovery from malicious attacks like ransomware and more. Oh, and the latest versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. All this can be yours for the equivalent of $7 a month on the single user Office 365 Personal plan or you can pay 70$ for a year.
Image credit: Yahoo Yahoo Mail doesn't make the headlines so much, these days, but its latest version is a polished and professional service which stands up well against the top competition. The well-designed interface resembles Gmail, at least initially, with a large view of your inbox, one-click filters for common messages and content (Photos, Documents, Travel), and easy browsing of all the emails in a conversation. But you can also organize mails into custom folders, and the layout can be tweaked to display a message preview in a couple of clicks. Mobile users have some additional features like the option to unsubscribe to newsletters and such, without ever leaving the Yahoo Mail inbox. A powerful underlying engine can integrate with Facebook, supports sending SMS and text messages, is accessible via web, POP and (in some situations) IMAP, and can forward email to another address. Valuable extras include disposable email addresses to protect your privacy, and a mammoth 1TB of mailbox storage means you can keep just about everything you receive, for a very long time. Demanding users might find issues, over time. Mail organization can't quite match the flexibility of Gmail's labelling scheme, for instance, and there aren't nearly as many low-level tweaks, settings and options as you'll often see elsewhere. But overall, Yahoo Mail is an appealing service which needs to be on your email shortlist. As with other providers, Yahoo offers a Business Mail plan with more features. The highlight is an option to use the service with a custom domain (yourname@yourdomain.com), although there are other advantages, too. The service can import contacts from Facebook, Gmail, Outlook and more. You can view all your mailboxes on the same screen, and there are all the usual business-friendly productivity tools (multiple calendars, document handling, analytics and more). Prices start from $3.19 per mailbox per month, billed annually, and they drop as you add mailboxes – $1.59 for 5, $1.19 for 10, and for 20+ you'll need to contact them. Additionally, another pricing plan called Yahoo Mail Pro is available at $3.49 per month. This gives you ad-free inbox, priority customer support and additional features. There's even a free domain name included, and not just the initial registration: Yahoo will also renew it for as long as your subscription is active.
Image credit: Zoho Zoho Workplace is a business-oriented email service which throws in an online office suite, document management, and a host of collaboration tools and other extras. Zoho's free plan supports up to 25 users, although there's an extra 25 available if you can refer others to the service (update: Zoho is currently remodeling the referral program so this isn't available at the moment), each with 5GB of mailbox storage, and can be used with one domain of your own. These are features you'll normally only find in commercial products, and when you factor in the spreadsheet, word processor, presentation and other tools, it looks like a real bargain. The email service is easy-to-use, and provides a decent set of features to help organize your emails: folders, tags, filters, smart searches, and more. You can also create custom hotkeys to expand and replace easy abbreviations of your choice with full words and phrases as you type. Zoho also has an offline mode, which allows you to read and respond to your emails even when your internet connection fails you. The free plan is still a little basic. It gives you web access only, for instance, and there's no support for email forwarding. Fortunately, the Zoho Standard plan fixes that. A mere $3 per user (paid annually) gets you IMAP and POP access, email forwarding, active sync, multiple domain hosting, domain aliases, 30GB storage, a 30MB attachment limit (up from 25MB with the free plan) and some major improvements elsewhere (the ability to send cloud files to non-Zoho users, for instance). You also have Lite plan which is a cheaper Standard plan ($1 per user) with less features, and a Professional ($6 per user) plan which adds more features. A number of these features are available elsewhere for free, of course, but businesses or anyone who will use the custom domain support or Office tools will find a lot to like here. Well worth a closer look.
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| Riot Games enlists help of third-party developers to expand on League of Legends universe Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:46 AM PST Excellent news for the 8 million or so League of Legends addicts out there: Riot Games is working on expanding the League of Legends universe with help from third-party developers. Of course, it also means that the millions of LoL players all over the world will have new things to look forward to in the coming years. VentureBeat reported Thursday that the Los Angeles-based publisher will be partnering with reputed third-party developers to design exciting new League of Legends games under its new publishing label, Riot Forge. The first of its kind at Riot, Riot Forge aims to complement Riot Games’ existing research and development program, and “create bespoke completable games” that expand its highly popular League of Legends universe. This is hot on the heels of the company’s announcement to release eight big games, films and animated series in 2020. It’s pretty exciting stuff considering that Riot hasn’t released any new major projects, solely focusing on its LoL game for the better part of a decade.
League of Legends coming to mobile and console, and moreRiot has yet to share specific details regarding the games it’s planning to release under Riot Forge, or when they’ll be available to the public. However, there’s already a number of things to look forward to from the publisher. To celebrate League of Legends’ 10th anniversary, the company revealed that it’s been hard at work with new initiatives, many of which we’ll see released in 2020. Perhaps the biggest those is League of Legends: Wild Rift, which sees the LoL in smartphones, tablets and consoles, so you can pretty much take the game wherever you go. Wild Rift, which is slated for a 2020 release, features ranked mode as well as a new control system for gamepads and touchscreens. This coming year will also see Teamfight Tactics head to iOS and Android, as well as the release of games like Legends of Runeterra (a free-to-play strategy card game), Project A (a tactical PC shooter), Project L (a fighting game) and Project F (possibly an action role-playing adventure). But that’s just the games: Riot is also working on an animated series, dubbed ‘Arcane,’ and has just released League of Legends Origins, a feature-length documentary by filmmaker Leslie Iwerks, on Netflix. The last ten years has certainly proven to be quite a productive era for Riot. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Best e-commerce platform of 2020: get an online store now! Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:45 AM PST The rise of the web has allowed countless businesses to reach a wider market. Not only that, it has given rise to countless new online-only businesses, fueled by the exponential rise of mobile connections. It's not surprising, then, that one analyst claims that the SMB e-commerce platform market will break the billion dollar barrier. There's no doubt that the web provides a huge opportunity for companies, but it’s important for organizations to make the most of that opportunity. In order to sell your products or services online, your website has to be appropriately equipped. Building an online store from scratch is a mammoth task, and fortunately, an unnecessary one. Today, there is a huge variety of e-commerce platform packages from which to choose. Most e-commerce platforms will provide businesses with standard functionality such as the ability to showcase products in an online catalog, take payments online, manage customers and provide with after-sales. Others will provide more sophisticated functionality, such as online marketing features, the ability to manage or integrate with in-store systems and the provision of APIs. Which e-commerce software is best for your business depends entirely on your specific requirements. If you're an online-only outfit, then POS integration won't be necessary, but you may get a lot of business from overseas, in which case foreign currency support would be a requirement. In this article, we’re going to highlight some of the best e-commerce platforms available right now, before moving on to consider other options you might want to explore in terms of creating your own e-commerce solution. The best e-commerce platform packages
Shopify is perhaps the most well known e-commerce platform available. It was set up in 2006 by founders Tobias Lütke, Daniel Weinand and Scott Lake who, as the story goes, felt that there wasn't a simple-to-use e-commerce platform available and so built their own. The company claims that: "You don't need to have any technical or design experience to easily create a beautiful online store." According to Shopify, it's possible to get one of its online stores up-and-running within minutes. Users can choose from a wide range of templates, or they can design the look and feel of their store themselves. It accepts a comprehensive range of credit cards, has Level 1 PCI compliance and 256-bit SSL encryption for security, and it offers 24/7 support via phone, instant messaging or email. The platform provides a full CMS with which users can manage the functionality and layout of their online store. Users can manage their store on-the-go using Shopify's mobile apps, and the platform itself is fully responsive, meaning the store will be optimized for visitors regardless of whether they access it from a desktop computer or a mobile device. Also, a live chat function is available which allows you to have a real time conversation with your customers. Shopify also offers users unlimited hosting for their stores, in-depth analytics of how visitors are using the store, and functionality for marketing such as SEO optimization, a discount and coupon engine, gift cards and email marketing tools. You can test out Shopify with a 14-day free trial.
Bigcommerce was established in 2009 and promises to "support your business, not just your store." In addition to offering support via phone, instant chat and email, it also offers articles and videos to help with e-commerce, and access to a team of e-commerce experts who can provide advice and guidance about online selling. Their experts are qualified in both Google Analytics and Adwords. Like Shopify, Bigcommerce provides a variety of templates and themes to help stores look their best and get up-and-running quickly. Alternatively, users can design their own store or use Bigcommerce designers to do so. The platform incorporates a full-featured CMS that allows users to run an entire website, rather than just a store. Users can benefit from detailed and flexible product management, optimized search engine rankings, along with a variety of integrated marketing tools and analytics. Payments can be accepted via 40+ pre-integrated gateways and shipping details can be customized as per the business's requirements. As of late, some new features have been added like support for Amazon Import and Link and Shopping in Instagram Stories. The platform offers automated order processing, flexible tax rules depending on where orders are made and shipped, and support for multiple currencies. You can test out Bigcommerce with a 15-day free trial.
Volusion has been around for almost two decades, having been set up in Texas over in the US in 1999. The company touts its platform as being an "all-in-one e-commerce solution", and offers a free 14-day trial (no credit card required). As with other e-commerce platforms, users are offered a variety of templates from which to choose, and can also customize templates if they so wish. Should a more complex design be required, Volusion offers a custom design service that can incorporate branding and a firm's social media presence. The platform provides the site and product management tools you'd expect, marketing functionality for SEO, social media, and affiliate outlets, along with emails and order management functionality for fast order processing, accepting payments, tax calculations and POS integration. In addition to its platform and associated services, Volusion offers apps from its partners, support for users and a knowledge-base for help with e-commerce. Users can draw upon blog posts, guides and webinars. As of October 8th 2018, there are no more transaction fees.
CoreCommerce was set up in 2001 and focuses on providing e-commerce services to small and medium-sized businesses. The company places an emphasis on simplicity and transparency, promising that its platform is easy-to-use and that customers will not fall foul of any hidden charges. Perhaps CoreCommerce's most unique aspect is that all of its features are offered to all customers regardless of what plan they are on. Price plans are determined by the number of products, the number of email addresses, the amount of bandwidth and the amount of storage required by the user (and higher-end plans also benefit from additional support). As with other e-commerce providers, CoreCommerce offers functionality for store design, product management, order processing and marketing. Of its headline features, the platform offers unlimited product customization options, a built-in blogging engine, and secure hosting that is provided by Rackspace and comes with a 99.9% uptime guarantee. You can try CoreCommerce out with a 15-day free trial.
Having been founded in 1997, 3dcart is the oldest of our featured providers here. It was set up with a view to incorporating as many of the most requested e-commerce features into one platform as possible. The company says it has six core values by which it operates: ongoing innovation, good service, simple solutions, fostering trust, keeping employees and customers happy, and stimulating prosperity amongst employees and customers. Some of the platform's innovative features include a module that users can install to offer gift-wrapping, a purchase order system, the option of running a loyalty program and the ability to offer recurring orders. Many of these features are very specific, meaning that stores can be highly tailored to the needs of each business. Stores can be designed using one of the many templates offered by 3dcart, or users can design their own store. A quick edit bar means that making changes to the design of a store is simple. Product images are fore-fronted with 3dcart's auto-zoom feature and products can be sold via Facebook with its store integration. As with some other platforms, users can blog directly from 3dcart and tools are provided for setting up coupons, sending newsletters and affiliate marketing. Users can also make use out of "make an offer" feature, which basically lets you and your customers to negotiate on a price. In addition to its platform, 3dcart offers a number of professional services. Users can request help with SEO, PPC, shopping feed management, social media, Facebook ads and conversion consulting. Help can also be provided to ensure that a user's store is set up to the highest standard. Services such as site cloning, setting up custom tracking, data migration and training are offered. In addition, 3dcart can provide SSL certification. Hosting is guaranteed at 99.9% uptime and 24/7 support is provided via phone, email or online chat. You can test out the service with a 15-day free trial.
Also consider: Alternative meansIf you don’t want to go the route of using an off-the-shelf package, what other options are available for you to explore? That’s what we’re going to look at in the second half of this piece…
Is eBay right for your business?Opening its doors in 1999, eBay UK now has over 14 million users, with over 10,000 people using the site for a business that is their primary means of income. It's not just about people selling unwanted goods - businesses have used the simplicity that eBay offers to set up lucrative operations. Even the larger brands such as Argos, Debenhams and House of Fraser are using eBay to sell online. With sophisticated tools now available you can be up and running with your store in just a few hours. The eBay Seller Centre has all the information you need. Each store is managed via eBay's familiar user interface, and there are a number of eBay-provided tools to help manage, track and promote your shop once it's established. Using eBay as the platform for your business could be ideal if your business wants to sell goods on a fixed price basis. The complete integration of the PayPal e-payments system into eBay takes care of this essential component of your store. The key with eBay is to look closely at the costs involved and also the transaction fees that PayPal charge before moving forward and setting up your own store. How to create your own e-commerce solutionOf course if you want complete control over every aspect of your new online store, building each page yourself will be the best course of action. Hiring someone to code your website is one option. If you decide to do this follow these steps:
You also don't have to build your site completely from scratch. Buying a template can give you all the basic pages your site needs. You can then either modify them yourself using an application like Dreamweaver, or hire a coding expert to make the changes. Website templates are available from a number of vendors including Template Monster. If you already have a website and want to add e-commerce functionality, this can be easily achieved with a number of applications including: Final adviceWhichever route you decide to take when building your website always remember:
Setting up your online store should be approached carefully and diligently to ensure you put a professional and efficient site live. Internet shopping continues to expand. Make sure your business doesn't miss out on a sales channel that shows no signs of slowing down.
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| MacBook Pro 16-inch owners report glitchy speakers and ghosting display Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:22 AM PST Apple’s new MacBook Pro 16-inch has had the shine taken off it somewhat, at least in some cases – that's going by reports of problems about the laptop’s speakers making popping noises, and issues with that fancy new larger display. Apple Insider highlighted the alleged flaw on the audio front, whereby some owners are reporting that popping or clicking sounds are emanating from the speakers of their fancy new MacBook Pro 16-inch.
This has echoes of earlier problems with Apple’s laptops, and you may recall complaints about crackling speakers with the MacBook Pro 2018 (which affected both 13-inch and 15-inch models). Similar glitches were reported in some cases with 2017 and 2016 versions of Apple’s MacBook Pro, as noted in that previous article. In the problem’s latest incarnation, it reportedly occurs when playing audio (or a video with sound), and if you stop playback, then skip to another part – or close the media app – you get a strange popping or clicking noise (which can vary in volume). And that’s not particularly pleasant, especially when you remember how much this seriously premium piece of hardware costs. As in previous cases when this gremlin emerged, there doesn’t seem to be any real root cause or consistency as to when this problem manifests, or how widespread it might be, although it would appear there aren’t too many sufferers (yet). That said, it’s certainly affecting some models, and there are various reports on Apple’s support forums, and several Reddit threads. There’s also video footage floating about on YouTube, and allegedly even laptops which are on display in Apple’s retail outlets exhibiting the popping problem. There are various theories about what might cause the issue, including that it’s related to Final Cut Pro X 10.4.7 (although the glitch is happening outside of this app, too, as noted). Regarding possible workarounds, suggestions include firing up a YouTube video in a browser tab, then navigating away to another page, which supposedly gets rid of the popping glitch – at least temporarily. And opening QuickTime player, then selecting File > New Audio Recording allegedly cures the issue, too (nothing has to be recorded – you just need to keep the app running and minimized, says one denizen of Reddit). Apple is apparently investigating whether Final Cut Pro X is causing this glitch, and another Reddit poster indicated Apple knows about this issue, and is working on a software fix. So perhaps we can expect a patch in the pipeline before too long – either for Final Cut Pro X, macOS, or possibly both. Ghost in the MacBookAs for the issue with the new super-sized MacBook Pro’s display, that reportedly involves an unpleasant ghosting glitch. A Reddit post observes: “When using the launch pad and moving between apps, the display seems to have ghosting – it’s not smoothly transitioning between each page of apps. I’ve noticed the same thing for stuff like text when scrolling, it’s blurry until you stop still. Has anyone else noticed this at all? I am using the new 16" MacBook Pro as is.” Another person then chimes in: “I’ve noticed this. It’s very obvious especially when I put the 16 in. MacBook Pro next to my 15 in. mid-2015 one. I’m trying to avoid a trip to the Apple Store, but I may have to make one to see if I just got unlucky or if this is endemic to the model.” Some folks have pointed out that anyone suffering this issue should ensure the display is set at 60Hz (because the refresh rate can now be changed in display settings), but the people complaining are running at 60Hz. Some have even suggested that the new screen on the MacBook Pro 16-inch itself could be to blame. A reply on this Mac Rumors forum post theorizes: “The 16" is running a new panel that supports multiple refresh rates. The ghosting is definitely worse than previous years. Whether or not it bothers you depends on your sensitivity.” We didn’t notice any problems with the display when we tested the MacBook Pro 16-inch in our extensive review, mind, and we raved about the screen being beautifully crisp, vibrant and sharp. We also found that this laptop’s speakers were superb, too. Apple has yet to officially comment on either ‘popgate’ or ‘ghostgate’ (ahem), but judging from the way some of these complaints are spreading, that may change soon. But certainly the hope for those affected is that these problems will be curable via simple software fixes, as opposed to being hardware issues. Apple has, however, admitted problems with some entry-level models of the MacBook Pro 13-inch (2019) unexpectedly shutting down – and we’ve highlighted the advice on fixing these issues here.
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| Google lets Chrome users share sites via QR code – here's how to enable it Posted: 06 Dec 2019 08:17 AM PST The Canary builds of Chrome are something of an experimental playground, but they give an exciting taste of what the future holds for Google's web browser. One of the latest features to be added to preview builds is the ability to share links with people via QR code – those strange barcode alternatives that look like an exercise in cubism. For now the option is only available in Chrome Canary, but it could well be making its way to more users before long.
Having already introduced an easy way to send links from one device to another, the new QR code option Google is making it easier than ever to share a website to someone else's phone. Forget sharing a URL via email or instant message: now your friend or colleague can just use their phone to scan an on-screen QR code. QR codes for sharing sites can be generated in the Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS versions of Chrome, and the result can be scanned using the camera of another smartphone. Enable QR code sharingAssuming you have the latest build of Chrome Canary installed, here's what you need to do to access the new option.
Now you can right click on a page and you should see new Generate QR code for this page option in the context menu which can be scanned on a smartphone using one of many QR code readers. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite could have a bigger battery than Note 10 Plus Posted: 06 Dec 2019 07:46 AM PST It looks like Samsung could soon be putting massive batteries in all its phones, because hot on the heels of hearing that the Samsung Galaxy S11 Plus may have a 5,000mAh one, we’re now hearing that the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite could come close with a 4,500mAh capacity. That size – spotted by NashvilleChatter – was listed on SafetyKorea (a South Korean certification database) and attached to a phone with a model number that has been linked to the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite. If accurate, then the Galaxy Note 10 Lite would have an even bigger battery than the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus (4,300mAh), and a much bigger one than the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 (3,500mAh).
Given those previous specs, we’d take this with a pinch of salt, but we have previously heard that the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite might also have a 4,500mAh battery – so Samsung could be upping the battery sizes for all its upcoming phones across the board. Speaking of the Galaxy S10 Lite, renders have also leaked courtesy of AndroidHeadlines, supposedly showing both the S10 Lite and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite. They match previous leaks, so there’s nothing much new to see here. Key design features include an all-screen front with a punch-hole camera in the top center. The two phones look very similar to each other, though the Note 10 Lite appears to possibly have slightly smaller bezels than the S10 Lite. We would however take these images with even more salt than usual, as Max J. (a reputable leaker) notes on Twitter that the clock doesn’t use the official Samsung font, or display the time Samsung normally uses. The widget icons are also from an older version of Samsung’s software. He goes on to say that this doesn’t necessarily mean these aren’t accurate, but that they definitely don’t come from Samsung. Rather, if they’re genuine, they might come from a network or accessory maker. Such sources may or may not have official design details, but as they match up with earlier leaks they’re probably broadly accurate in any case. We should find out soon: both the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite are rumored to land in January.
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| Portugal and Spain press ahead on 5G plans with Huawei Posted: 06 Dec 2019 07:42 AM PST Spanish operator Telefonica has confirmed it will use Huawei equipment in the core layer of its 5G network but will adopt a multi-vendor strategy. The US has banned Huawei from its 5G rollout on national security grounds and is urging its allies to follow suit. Huawei has repeatedly denied any allegations of wrongdoing, while Washington has not provided any evidence to support its claims. Huawei is a major supplier for many European networks and US pressure has been greeted with a lukewarm response from governments and operators who fear innovation would decrease and costs rise should any ban be imposed.
Huawei EuropeSome are opting to ban Huawei from the core layer of 5G networks, where data is processed, but allow it to participate in the radio layer. This is speculated to be the UK’s official position should a final decision ever be made. Telefonica causes Huawei kit in its 2G and 4G cores and now plans to do the same with 5G. It has confirmed however that it will seek a second provider. No decision has been made about radio equipment. Most mobile operators are adopting a multi-vendor approach because it improves the resilience of the network. For example, if an operator used a single provider for the core, transport and radio layers of its infrastructure then it would be far easier for an attacker to wreak havoc. Indeed, for this reason, Germany has urged its operators to avoid “monocultures” in their 5G networks. Portugal too, has now neglected to impose any restrictions on Huawei. According to reports, Portuguese foreign minister Augusto Santos has told the US Secretary of State that the country would decide on a ‘case-by-case’ basis. This decision paves the way for commercial 5G services to go live next year, with operator Altice already partnering with Huawei.
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| Posted: 06 Dec 2019 07:40 AM PST Getting started with WordPress web hosting doesn't have to be expensive, after all the 15-year old WordPress is free (and open source). Even the cheapest shared hosting plan usually comes with a one-click WordPress installer, allowing the greenest of blogging newbies to have their first post ready in less than 60 seconds (we tried it). Managing a blog over time is much more challenging, though. You'll need to find your own themes and plugins. And also keep them, and WordPress itself, up-to-date (although you can even get that done automatically). Blogs are often targeted by malware, so it's important you have some way to detect and remove any threats, and you'll want regular backups to help get a broken blog working again. There's a long list of hosting companies offering WordPress plans, but we've picked out five of the best to point you in the right direction. Whether you're a first-time user or a big business, there's something for you here, and with prices starting at around a pound per month, it's well worth taking the time to find out more.
These are the best WordPress hosting services of 2020
Image Credit: Bluehost Budget WordPress hosting can have a lot of appeal, but it usually won't deliver the features, performance or reliability that high traffic sites need. If you're the demanding type, opting for a premium hosting plan will give you much better results.
Bluehost has created its own VPS-based architecture to deliver optimum WordPress performance via NGINX, a custom PHP-FPM setup and intelligently allocated resources through KVM hypervisor. (If you're not a hosting geek, this just means Bluehost has taken the time to optimize the low-level setup of its platform for WordPress, rather than simply making do with a standard configuration.) The company doesn't waste time by pretending to offer ‘unlimited’ resources, and instead tells you exactly what you're going to get. For the Basic plan which starts at $2.75 per month for the first term (renews at $7.99), this means 50GB SSD storage, a single website, a free domain for one year and $50 Marketing Credit. Additional features for all plans include free SSL, unmetered MySQL DB, site analytics dashboard, unlimited parked/sub domains and Bluehost Marketplace where users will have access to premium themes and plugins at exclusive prices. New Bluehost accounts will also get a free service called Blue Spark, which is designed to help newcomers with everything WordPress related. The Plus plan which starts at $5.45 per month for the first term (renews at $10.99), adds unlimited websites and website space, and additional features like spam protection, free CDN and WP staging environment. The Choice Plus plan costs $5.45 per month for the first term (renews at $14.99) and adds even more features. Bluehost also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee if you feel the service doesn't deliver. If you need more power, BlueHost has a managed hosting solution called WordPress Pro that has been optimized for WordPress websites, with prices starting at $17.95 per month. These plans have many additional features like unlimited everything, malware detection and removal, JetPack site analytics, business review tools and more.
Image Credit: Tsohost Managed WordPress packages can often feel overpriced. Many hosts charge significant premiums for impressive sounding claims – optimized servers, malware scanning – that are difficult to evaluate or confirm. The UK-based Tsohost isn't interested in any of that, instead focusing on providing the core WordPress essentials at a very fair price. The baseline Startup plan gives you a free domain name, will migrate your existing site, includes Let's Encrypt SSL support and has no limits on bandwidth. You get daily backups and can restore any of the last 30 days with a click. There's 24/7 support via ticket and email, and phone and live chat is available from 7am to midnight. You get a hundred 200MB mailboxes, and the plan restricts you to 15GB storage and 100,000 page views a month. If that's enough for you, the plan costs ~$4.15(£3.16) a month paid annually, or ~$3.8(£2.92) if you pay for two years upfront. At the moment, you can get the first year for $15.4(£12) If that's just too underpowered, opting for the Business plan gets you 50GB of storage, 100x1GB mailboxes, and up to 500,000 page views over a maximum of eight websites. That's significantly more capable, yet still very reasonably priced at ~$11.50(£8.78) a month, ~$9.62(£7.33) a month paid annually or ~$8.65(£6.59) a month paid biennially. At the moment, you can get the first year for $32(£25) The ~$31.50(£23.98) a month (~$26.20 a month paid annually or ~$23.60 a month paid biennially) eCommerce plan supports 100GB storage, 1,000,000 page views and unlimited 10GB mailboxes. At the moment, you can get the first year for $77(£60) Tsohost doesn't offer all the frills and extras you'll get with some products. There's no talk of SiteLock malware protection, optimized WordPress add-ons or a custom CDN. But it's hard to complain at this price, and Tsohost is still delivering a capable service with more than enough power for smaller sites.
Image Credit: Inmotion Hosting Most web hosts offer only a few WordPress plans, and even these might be set up to point you in a particular direction. You'll often see an underpowered plan, an overpriced one, and a special deal on the mid-range plan they really want you to buy. That makes it easy to decide, but it also limits your upgrade options if your site grows over time. InMotion Hosting is unusual in offering six WordPress plans, covering everything from small personal blogs to resellers and big business. Figuring out which is the best product for you will take a little more thought, but at least there's room to upgrade – or downgrade – if your circumstances change. Better still, InMotion hasn't artificially limited the low-end plans by removing key features. Even the baseline WP-1000S plan – which costs $6.99 (£5.3) a month initially (1-year plan), $9.99 (£7.70) on renewal – gives you 40GB storage, unlimited bandwidth and email addresses, preinstalled WordPress, SSL, backups, automatic updates, SiteLock security, cPanel site management, and extras like BoldGrid and WP-CLI. The only significant issue is InMotion's suggestion that the plan works best for blogs with up to 20,000 monthly visits, and even that won't be a problem for many smaller sites. Upgrading your plan gets you some extras – premium themes and plugin subscriptions, a dedicated IP address, support for hosting more sites – but it's mostly about giving you more resources. For example, the top-of-the-range WP-6000S plan supports 1,200,000 monthly visitors across up to 20 sites for $114.99 (£87.6) a month initially (1-year plan), $142.99 (£110) on renewal. There are cheaper deals around, but in previous reviews we've found InMotion to be reliable, professional and honest, and any price premium is likely to be worth paying. You don't have to take our word for it, though – an exceptional 90-day money-back guarantee gives you plenty of opportunity to find out for yourself.
Image Credit: 1&1 IONOS Web giant 1&1 IONOS seems to have a hosting product for every possible need, and WordPress is no exception. Novice users can try out its service for a nominal $1(£0.75) a month for the first year ($9 or £6.90 afterwards), yet the plan still outperforms many competitors. The bundled 25GB of storage means you won't be running out of space in a hurry, for example. There are no bandwidth or visitor limits, and you can set up as many email accounts as you need. 1&1 IONOS offers the core WordPress management functions that you would expect: a setup wizard, preinstalled plugins, automatic updates and 24/7 support (including by telephone). Also, you get a personal consultant free of charge. All this is built on a capable platform – NGINX, PHP 7.2, OPcache, up to 2GB RAM guaranteed – to enhance your blog's performance. There's SSL included and even a free domain thrown in, which is ridiculously good value at this price. If you're a WordPress novice, it might be worth taking out the plan for an initial year, claiming your free domain and taking the time to learn how the blog works. When you time is up, renew if you're happy, or if you're not, use your knowledge and experience to find a better plan. 1&1 IONOS isn't just about newbies, though: there's value for more demanding users, too. In particular, the Pro plan gives you 5 managed Wordpress sites, 200GB SSD storage space, 50 databases (1GB max), and 500 email accounts. Bonus features include a CDN and SiteLock malware scanning, as well as RailGun content delivery network, and the price looks good at $1(£0.75) a month for the first year, $15(£11.50) on renewal.
Image Credit: HostGator Choosing the best WordPress hosting package can seem like a complicated business, with a stack of low-level details and issues to consider. But it doesn't have to be that way. If you don't have special requirements then opting for a reliable company will get you capable mid-range products that can handle everything most users need. HostGator generally delivers powerful hosting plans for a fair price, and its managed WordPress range is no exception. Its Starter product may only cost $5.95 (£4.25) ($3.98 with our promo code) per month for three years, $9.95 (£7.10) afterwards, but you still get a free site migration, an SSL certificate, automatic malware detection and removal, unlimited email addresses and unmetered storage and bandwidth, and it can handle up to 100,000 visits a month. Ramping up to the high-end Business plan gets you more CPU power, support for up to three sites and 500,000 visits a month, yet still costs only $9.95 (£7.10) ($9.18 with our promo code) a month for the first three years, $22.95 (£16.40) a month afterwards. Smart caching and a CDN are on hand to enhance your website's performance, 24/7 support helps keep your site up and running, and surprise bonus features include free domain privacy to protect from identity theft and reduce annoying spam. We've had good experiences with HostGator's service, but if you're not so lucky, there's a generous 45-day money-back guarantee. As with other hosting companies, this won't cover any domain registration fees, but it's still a better deal than you'll often find elsewhere. You might also want to check out our other buying guides:
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| BT's big reward Black Friday broadband deals end very soon Posted: 06 Dec 2019 07:00 AM PST BT's big Black Friday gambit was to throw a bunch of cash back at you if you signed up for one of its broadband deals. As far as promotions go, you certainly can't argue with that kind of widespread appeal. And this was no mean sum either. Sign up for BT's best value broadband deal (in our view, at least) and the ISP promises to send you a pre-paid Mastercard worth a very meaty £120 to spend on pretty much whatever you want, wherever you want. The home internet package in question is the BT Superfast Fibre plan, which features rapid 50Mb average fibre speeds, unlimited weekend landline calls and free activation. And all that for only £28.99 per month. And another thing we like about this promotion is its durability - pretty much every other provider out there has now expired their Black Friday broadband deals. That leaves BT to stand above them all until its own offer finishes on Saturday night.
BT's Black Friday broadband deal in full:
What is a BT Reward Card?The Reward Card that BT sends out is a pre-paid credit card that you can use anywhere that accepts Mastercard. In short, that's around a million shops, cafes and restaurants around the world, so you shouldn't find it difficult to find places to spend, spend, spend. It's an old-fashioned chip and pin card, rather than contactless. But do make sure that you claim your Reward Card within three months of installation, otherwise you'll lose out on all that cash. All of today's best broadband dealsThis posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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