Posted:

Updated: We'll probably never know how the FBI unlocked the San Bernardino iPhone

Update: The FBI has shuttered the possibility of revealing to Apple how it unlocked the San Bernardino iPhone.

The FBI said in a statement, picked up by The New York Times, that it won't send the matter to a White House review committee, which would have evaluated whether Apple needs to know about any software vulnerabilities in the iPhone 5C.

The agency did buy the iPhone unlocking method from "an outside party," however an FBI official said that the agency didn't "purchase the rights to technical details about how the method functions, or the nature and extend of any vulnerabilities upon which the method may rely in order to operate.

"As a result, currently we do not have enough technical information about any vulnerability that would permit any meaningful review," the official said.

We've asked Apple for comment on the matter and whether it plans to pursue finding out how the FBI accessed data on the iPhone, and will update this story when we hear back.

Original story below...

The FBI reportedly doesn't know how the tool used to access a terrorist's iPhone actually works, which could keep the hack from ever being disclosed to Apple or the world at large.

The agency apparently knows how to use the tool, sources tell The Wall Street Journal, but not enough about how it functions to warrant a White House review.

The agency reportedly paid a third party upwards of $1 million to break into San Bernardino terrorist Syed Farook's iPhone 5C. Even though it utilized the third party's method, FBI Director James Comey indicated agents aren't well versed enough in its intricacies to the point that a White House review should be launched.

A review would almost certainly yield specifics about the hack, which could then be turned over to Apple so it can patch its software.

What would we learn?

Comey said a government decision about whether to start the review process will be made soon.

Launching a review boils down to whether the agency was "aware of a vulnerability, or did we just buy a tool and don't have sufficient knowledge of the vulnerability," Comey said.

Various government agencies, including members of the intelligence community, would perform the review, then determine whether a company - in this case, Apple - or the general public need to know about any vulnerabilities.

To decide who needs to know what, the review group would look at how many people might be affected by a vulnerability, how likely it would be exploited by hackers, and weighing interests of national security to keep it a secret or not.

It seems almost silly a review process won't be launched, and if one isn't or an iPhone vulnerability isn't disclosed to Apple, it would no doubt draw ire from privacy advocates concerned the FBI is chipping away at encryption and cyber security.

While the agency vehemently pursued Apple in the courts to build a software tool to unlock the iPhone, it quickly dropped its case after a third-party method came to light. Now, it's made no sign that it plans to tell Apple how it accessed the iPhone, even though Apple has stated it would like to know in case it keeps users safe.

Apple is reportedly working to make the iPhone unhackable

Updated: 10 best laptops for students 2016

Posted:

Best laptops for students

Update: To get primed for back to school season, we've gone and overhauled our buying guide with five brand new entries aimed to serve all sorts of students' needs. Check them out below!

Even for those who feel at home with their nose in a textbook, the end of that tiny spring break is a big bummer. But, as much as it's a return to school and schedules, it's an opportunity.

With some much-needed breathing room, this is as fine a chance as any to invest in some fresh tech to make finals all the more bearable.

If you're still using a bulky desktop, or if your laptop winces at the sight of an HD video lecture, then it's time to upgrade. Luckily, if you know where to look, it's possible to get a sleek and impressive notebook without blowing through your savings (or taking yet another student loan).

We've sifted through our most recent, top-ranking reviews and picked out the best laptops for high school and college. The list below spans all budgets, from power-sipping, price-conscious Chromebooks for you liberal arts folks to powerful laptops ready for design or animation coursework – or, you know, dorm room LAN parties.

best laptops for students

Asus Zenbook UX305

A most affordable and excellent Ultrabook

Solid performance

Incredibly thin and light

Wonky video driver

Tinny speakers

Call it a MacBook Air knockoff all you want, the Asus ZenBook UX305 is one of the best and most affordable Ultrabooks available now.

Like the Dell XPS 13 listed below, this is further proof that you can find a truly primo, general use laptop for less than a thousand bucks. This is an honest-to-goodness laptop that wins at the basics and offers up an attractive package.

Read the full review: Zenbook UX305

best laptops for students

HP Chromebook 14

A well balanced Chromebook

Excellent keyboard and trackpad

Chrome OS is speedy and responsive

Crisp, vivid screen

Average battery life

The HP Chromebook 14 is no performance powerhouse, but Chrome OS's speediness, combined with a funky blue case, makes this one fun notebook to use.

For classwork, this laptop is ideal for those pursuing degrees in liberal arts (media, language/literature, history, etc) because of its low cost, and simplicity in its use and maintenance, while providing the access to nearly every major app and service an undergrad would need. Also, a high schooler wouldn't likely need more than a laptop like this.

Read the full review: HP Chromebook 14

Apple 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display (early 2015)

13.3-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display

The fastest small MacBook Pro yet is a force of nature

Retina Display

Faster processor

Force Touch underdeveloped

Unchanged design

The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is an excellent option for students who may need more power than a Chromebook or a MacBook Air without sacrificing portability thanks to its long battery life, relatively light weight, and high resolution display. Students on a budget will be happy to know that they can get started right away as the MacBook Pro with Retina display ships with free copies of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote out of the box as well as iMovie, Photos, and GarageBand for basic, creative projects.

Read the full review: MacBook Pro 13-inch with Retina display

Acer Chromebook 15 C910

The colossus of Chromebooks

Fast processing speeds

Long battery life

Too heavy

Awkward keyboard

Don't be fooled by this fatso. The Acer Chromebook 15 C910 is a durable workhorse that will reward you for looking past its size in favor of its performance, long battery life and stylish good looks.

Read the full review: Acer Chromebook 15 C910

Best laptops for students

13-inch MacBook Air

Finally, battery life within our grasp

Fantastic battery life

Haswell processors

No Retina screen

Not user upgradeable

While it has yet to make the leap into Retina, this is still the laptop that the ultrabook aspires to, thanks to incredible battery life and AC Wi-Fi.

Read the full review: MacBook Air 13-inch

best laptops for students

Lenovo IdeaPad Y700

Long battery life tops off this attractive gaming laptop

CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-6700HQ Processor (quad-core, up to 3.5GHz, 1,600MHz 6MB cache) | Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M (2GB GDDR5 RAM) | RAM: 8GB DDR4 (2,133 MHz) | Screen: 15.6-inch FHD (1,920 x 1,080) | Storage: 1TB HDD (5,400 rpm) | Connectivity: 802.11ac; Bluetooth 4.0 | Camera: 720p HD webcam | Weight: 5.72 pounds | Dimensions: 18.9 x 28.3 x 1.7 inches (W x D x H)

Looks great

Ample battery life

Ethernet port

Gets hot

Terrible trackpad buttons

Heavy

Look, you're bound to have some down time during college (right?), so why not put some of that entertainment cost (i.e. beer money) into one of these bad boys? This 15-inch gaming laptop looks nice and its price tag is even nicer. Just don't expect to run games on Ultra settings – this is an entry-level machine for the funds-less freshman, after all.

Of course, this rig will be able to handle all of that homework and stuff, too. Namely, the discrete graphics give this laptop quite an edge in design and media apps, like Adobe Premiere and Photoshop.

Read the full review: Lenovo IdeaPad Y700

best laptops for students

Dell XPS 13

A revolution in laptop design

Gorgeous bezel-less display

Strong performance

Lightweight

Off-center webcam

Small frame limits battery life

Packing a high-resolution screen and serious processing power, there's more to the Dell XPS 13 than being a surprisingly small Ultrabook.

There's a 13-inch display crammed into an 11-inch body, a truly worthy competitor to a certain aluminum laptop line.

This notebook would fit in almost any coursework scenario – save for intense 3D rendering and editing, and highly intense data crunching work, for example. Apple doesn't make the only premium, general use laptop worth batting an eye at, and here's the proof.

Read the full review: Dell XPS 13

best laptops for students

HP Pavilion x2

The best and most affordable Windows 10 convertible

Long battery life

Roaring speakers

Absurdly affordable

32-bit Windows 10

Limited storage and memory

The HP Pavilion x2 might be a little tike of a 2-in-1 laptop, but it's a great Windows 10 device for media and basic computing tasks.

If you seek something to suit those Sundays spent streaming Netflix in bed as well as it does taking notes in the classroom, this is a fine place to start that search. Lightweight and capable for but a relative pittance, you'll get a tablet and a laptop that nail the basics in equal measure.

Read the full review: HP Pavilion x2

Microsoft Surface Pro 4

The tablet that can replace your laptop

High-res screen

Improved Type Cover

Cover still sold separately

Intel Core m3 to start

A higher resolution screen, a thinner design and a move to Intel's more powerful Skylake processors all help to make this portable tablet a capable replacement for your laptop. Sadly, the Type Cover keyboard is still an optional necessity for this laptop replacement.

Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Pro 4

best laptops for students

HP EliteBook 745 G3

Mid-range business notebook with C-suite ambitions

Excellent keyboard

Physical trackpad buttons

Fast performance

Large bezels

Thanks to the AMD A12 Pro processor, HP is able to deliver top-shelf performance at an affordable price with the EliteBook 745 G3.

This mid-range business notebook packs mainstream performance, a comfortable keyboard and nice matte screen in a durable, yet slim metal-clad package.

Naturally, the BA and MBA – perhaps even IT-focused majors – students out there would be well-suited by this finely-executed blend of business and casual.

Read the full review: HP EliteBook 745 G3

Originally contributed by Chuong Nguyen and Kevin Lee

The best strategy games for PC and Mac you can play right now

Posted:

Games that only a PC can provide

best strategy games

Strategy games make you think. They're not like most shooters that offer mindless gameplay, or the adventure game that has you leaping off cliffs and driving boats.

Strategy games require your brain juices at all times to plan each move carefully and analyze what the opponent will do next – quickly. They require you to develop armies, build civilizations and gather resources in the process.

But strategy games aren't just about the gameplay: they typically offer sprawling, geopolitical stories too that hook players and keep them focused on the campaign. That said, what makes a strategy game great is how it pulls players into its mythology and allows them to carry out missions without overcomplicating it.

Here is a handful of strategy games on the PC and Mac that achieve this balance perfectly.

StarCraft II

best strategy games

Blizzard Entertainment launched the first StarCraft sci-fi military strategy game back in 1998, and while it was extremely popular, the game wasn't the mammoth product StarCraft II has become. With the sequel, Blizzard has released three installments that span one huge campaign: Wings of Liberty (2010), Heart of the Swarm (2013) and Legacy of the Void (2015).

Each of these releases focus on a specific protagonist group: human exiles called the Terrans in Wings of Liberty, the Borg-like insectoids called Zerg in Heart of the Swarm, and the telepathic alien race known as the Protoss in Legacy of the Void. The overall campaign takes place four years after the Brood War expansion pack for the original StarCraft, beginning with Jim Raynor's quest to take down the tyrannical Terran Dominion.

StarCraft II succeeds by combining sharp strategic gameplay and balance with an immersive story and scenery. The game also comes with its own level editor, allowing players to share their maps and mods via the Battle.net online community. Of course, StarCraft II can be played online – it's one of the widest-played eSports worldwide – but currently it does not provide local LAN play. StarCraft II can only be purchased from Blizzard Entertainment digitally and in boxed versions.

Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos

best strategy games

Here's another popular strategy game from Blizzard, though with a decidedly fantasy theme. It was released way back in 2002 and features a single-player campaign story that's told through the eyes of four races: Humans, Orcs, the Undead, and the Night Elves.

As with StarCraft, players are typically faced with a map covered in a black fog, which is slowly removed as you explores the area (Diablo does this, too). You begin by mining resources, building settlements and establishing troops in order to protect your assets and take control of other parts of the map. A day/night cycle keeps players on their toes, too.

There are a total of five campaigns in Warcraft III that center on a specific race: one for the Night Elves, one for the Undead, one for the Humans, and two for the Orcs. Objectives are labeled as "quests" and are rolled out as the player explores a map. The are both main quests an optional quests to perform, the former being required in order to move the story forward – natch.

Warcraft III also offers a multiplayer component that can be played over local LAN. Blizzard even released an expansion pack called The Frozen Throne that was published back in 2003. Both the original game and the expansion can be purchased for the PC and Mac via Blizzard's online portal, and in a Battle Chest retail box.

XCOM 2

best strategy games

This strategy game is rather new for the PC, Mac and Linux platforms, developed by Firaxis Games and published by 2K Games in February 2016. It takes place 20 years after XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2012), and sees the Earth taken over by aliens – what else? – despite XCOM's best efforts.

In this installment, XCOM is now part of a resistance movement aimed to take back control of the planet.

In the single-player campaign, players assume command of XCOM, a former military organization that is now a mere resistance force. A new Avenger mobile base has been established where from you issue commands while spearheading research and engineering departments to create weapons and other tools that will help fight off the hostile aliens.

What makes XCOM 2 stand out is its maps, which are lush and rich in detail, and it's strategy-rich, turn-based combat. They're also different each time you play them, keeping the game fresh. In addition to the single-player campaign, there's also a peer-to-peer multiplayer mode, pitting players against each other using squads mixed with alien and XCOM units.

XCOM 2 can be purchased through Steam, Amazon and other retailers in boxed and digital editions.

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

best strategy games

Developed by Relic Entertainment and published by THQ in 2004, this military sci-fi game is based on the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop wargame. The game takes place on the imperial planet of Tartarus that's currently overrun by Orks. In the background, the human-run Imperium is in constant struggle with the Orks – along with those humans serving the demonic Chaos and the Eldar (space elves) – in a struggle to keep the human race alive.

That said, the game provides four armies the player can use throughout the single-player campaign: Space Marines (superhuman soldiers), Chaos Marines (mutated marines), the psychic race of Eldars (again, space elves), and the savage Orks. Resources include power and requisition, the latter of which is generated by the army headquarters. Power is generated by establishing generators that will decay over time, keeping the player busy.

The game begins with you establishing your main headquarters and several basic units. After that, you're directed to focus on capturing and holding strategic locations on the map that can later be used to harvest additional resources and unlock nearby areas on said map. Battles are won by defeating bases occupied by enemy forces, or by holding on to locations for a period of time.

There are three expansion packs for this RTS title currently available: Winter Assault (2005), Dark Crusade (2006) and Soulstorm (2008). All of these, including the base game, can be purchased on Steam rather cheap.

Homeworld

best strategy games

This is an oldie but a goodie, developed by Relic Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment in 1999. The primary protagonists are the Kushan, who at one time were exiled to a colony of prison ships after losing a galactic war. Other races include the Taiidan, an interstellar empire that rules most of the galaxy, the Bentusi traders, the Kadeshi, the Turanic Raiders and the Galactic Council.

A key element that separates Homeworld from the other games in this article is that it's played in a 100% 3D space, hence its dedicated following.

The playable races consist of the Taiidan and the Kushan. Each have their specific strengths and weaknesses, and are initially tasked to gather minerals from asteroids and harvest dust clouds using special spaceships, which bring these resources back to the player's resource controller ship, carrier or mothership. Ultimately, the task at hand is to keep the fleet alive as it completes missions and gathers resources.

Ther object of the story is to locate the homeworld of the Kushan, called Hiigara. This story spans sixteen missions across the single-player campaign, which sees the surviving ships of the fleet carried over to the next mission. There was an online multiplayer component to the game as well – allowing players to helm either the Taiidan or Kushan.

Homeworld is available for Windows and Mac OS X in a Remastered collection by Gearbox Software on Steam, which includes the remastered versions of Homeworld and Homeworld 2, classic versions of the two games, and more.

That's it … for now

If your favorite strategy game wasn't listed here, not to worry: more will be added to this article over time. But don't wait! Tell us in the comments which games you'd like to see on this list in the future.

Yahuui Blog

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Apple : Updated: We'll probably never know how the FBI unlocked the San Bernardino iPhone

Apple : Updated: We'll probably never know how the FBI unlocked the San Bernardino iPhone

What would we learn?

Best laptops for students

Asus Zenbook UX305

HP Chromebook 14

13.3-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display

Acer Chromebook 15 C910

13-inch MacBook Air

Lenovo IdeaPad Y700

Dell XPS 13

HP Pavilion x2

Microsoft Surface Pro 4

HP EliteBook 745 G3

Games that only a PC can provide

StarCraft II

Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos

XCOM 2

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

Homeworld

That's it … for now

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