Replying to a tweet from tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee, Musk confirmed that the Official tag was no longer available. It seems Twitter is returning to the Blue Tick as Musk describes it as “the great level”. The platform uses a blue checkmark to verify accounts. Musk caused controversy this month when he said the company would start charging users $20 per month for their checkmark. That later became $8 per month to have an account that is verified....

That’s not a flippant remark either as a recent study showed Facebook is comfortably the least trusted tech company. In an effort to rebuild that reputation and recover from privacy scandals, Facebook has hired some of its fiercest critics. This week, the company announced it has appointed three veteran privacy law activists. Among them is Nate Cardozo, an attorney who previously worked with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). The EFF has traditionally been critical of Facebook and Cardozo has slammed the company’s privacy practices....

However, after a litany of scandals, it seems Facebook is indeed considering a rebrand. The Verge cites sources close to the company with knowledge of the possibility. It seems the company wants to disassociate itself from the social media platform. Certainly, Facebook has a broad range of investments and interest across AI, development, and communication. By rebranding, the company would essentially take the Google/Alphabet approach. Facebook, the social network, would still exist, but the parent company would be called something else....

The social network announced on Monday the Messenger Kids application. This is a child-focused and supposedly child friendly version of the standard Messenger service. This marks the first time Facebook has opened its doors to children under the age of 13. As you can tell by the title, I am not necessarily down with this idea. However, there are two ways of looking at this app. The first is it is removing what it means to be a child and locking them into a tech world too early....

Though Microsoft outright denies those claims, it’s also been employing some shady tactics to make the problem go away. Newly released court documents reveal the full scope of the problem, and it’s staggering. According to Reuters, women filed 238 discrimination and harassment complaints against the company between 2010 and 2016. According to the court filings, out of 118 gender discrimination complaints, the company only found one to be ‘founded’. Despite the statistic, Microsoft claims it thoroughly investigates such cases....

Google has been promising its intentions to make Google Chat become its default texting app since earlier this year. At the time, the company said Google Hangouts on Gmail web, mobile, and Chrome extension will be automatically migrated to Chat. Now, the company is confirming that migration and says Google Hangouts will head into the sunset on November 1, 2022. More details on what admins need to do to export their data and changes happening with Vault will be sent before the cutoff date via email....

Google employee Peter Beverloo announced the integration of Windows 10 notifications on Twitter. The ability is arriving on Chrome 68, the latest version of the browser. Beverloo confirmed the feature was developed in collaboration with Microsoft. In fact, he thanked the company’s Action Center and Edge teams for helping in the development. One thing I want to clear up. Some people have contacted me mixing up what this development means....

Windows 10 and Apple’s MacOS have had virtual desktops for some time, so Google is playing catchup in this regard. The company is on the roadmap for Chrome OS, the company’s lightweight PC platform. Google has been trying to make Chrome OS increasingly mature to compete in the enterprise market against Windows 10. A virtual desktop would be a great way to achieve that. Called “Virtual Desks”, the feature is currently in development according to a Chromium Commit....

In terms of boosting capabilities in a COVID-19 world, tech companies are both helping users and continuing to differentiate their own services from rivals. We have already seen how Microsoft has leveraged Bing Maps for COVID-related tools. Google Maps is furthering its commitment to tracking COVID-19 data with a new layer available this week. Now, the popular mapping tool will provide critical information on the pandemic in specific areas. According to Google, the new layer will help users have more understanding of the COVID-19 spread in a location before they visit....

There is now evidence of market normalization and prices even starting to come down. GPU prices are still high, but they are moving in the right direction again. Whether this means the mining boom is over, or whether Ethereum traders are waiting for a lull before another onslaught, remains to be seen. However, it does seem as though falling prices coincide with a general decline in the value of the cryptocurrency....

KrebsonSecurity reports that a member of Russian hacking forums began selling a malicious version of John Hopkins University’s Coronavirus dashboard. The $700 kit features a Java-based malware deployment scheme that leaves the user unaware. “It loads [a] fully working online map of Corona Virus infected areas and other data,” said the seller, according to Krebs. “Map is resizable, interactive, and has real time data from World Health Organization and other sources....

1 How to Add Audio / Music to Google Slides2 How to Add a Video to Google Slides3 How to Add a Shareable Google Drive Link to Google Slides4 Extra: How to Add Audio to PowerPoint5 Extra: How to Embed a Video in PowerPoint6 Extra: How to Insert an Animated GIF in PowerPoint Prerequisites for adding video or audio to Google Slides First, though, you should ensure that you have an active Google account before you start, as well as enough Google Drive storage to store both the presentation and your videos/audio....

1 How to Forget a Wi-Fi Network Via Windows 10 Settings2 Forget a Network via the Taskbar3 How to Delete a Wireless Profile with Command Prompt We’re going to show you exactly how to do that, but first a word of warning. When you forget a Wi-Fi network, Windows will also remove its password any configuration changes you’ve made. As a result, you’ll struggle to get back in if you aren’t sure of the credentials....

1 How to Hide Folders or Files in Windows 10 with File Explorer2 How to Hide a Folder or File in Windows 10 with Command Prompt and PowerShell3 How to Unhide Folders and Files with Command Prompt This particularly true of the documents folder, which over time will accumulate configuration files, game saves, and other clutter that can make it difficult to remain productive. Hidden Folders in Windows 10 We are going to show you how to hide folders or files on Windows 10 so you can keep them private or just get them out of the way....

Once you import a PDF into Excel, it will accessible even if the user doesn’t have the file on their local PC. Instead, it becomes embedded in the document itself, inflating its file size but offering a high degree of convenience. Though the tools to embed a PDF in Excel are a bit hidden, it’s simple enough once you know where to look. We’re going to show you how below, and then explore the different display and formatting options you have available to you....

1 How to Make One Page Landscape in Word2 How to Change the Orientation of Specific Text in Word3 Extra: How to Rotate Text in Word4 Extra: How to Add a Page Border in Word How to insert a landscape page in Word By using section breaks and Word’s in-build formatting options, you can change the orientation of one page in Word without affecting the others. But what if you only want some of the text on your portrait page to be landscape For that, you’ll have to use Word’s margin options....

1 How to Disable Windows 10 Auto Restart Using Group Policy Editor2 How to Stop Automatic Restart in Windows 10 Using Registry Editor3 How to Stop Your Computer from Restarting After an Update with Task Scheduler4 How to Pause Windows 10 Updates or Limit Their Bandwidth Should you stop Windows 10 auto-restart? Before we continue, though, we should point out the obvious. You should still restart your PC after an update at your earliest convenience....

By releasing these drivers, Intel is coming up to speed with Microsoft’s Windows 10 October 2018 Update (version 1809). This means from today, Intel graphics driver updates for Windows 10 will be UWD and will replace older drivers. Microsoft will allow users to roll back to these legacy drivers, but the Intel Windows Modern Drivers will need to be uninstalled. This can be done from the “Apps and Features” page in Windows....

However, a leaked presentation suggests Microsoft is working with PC company Razer to reignite keyboard and mouse aspirations on Xbox One. Windows Central reports Razer showed a presentation highlighting how its Turret keyboard and mouse would run on Xbox. Details include how the support would work on the console and a comparison to how Chroma RGB backlighting currently looks on Windows PC. In the presentation, the company showed how Xbox One would only support a single keyboard and mouse at a time....

Speaking to Twice.com on Monday, Lenovo VP Mike Abary confirmed some more details about the headset. It will launch in the late summer to August and will cost less than the Oculus Rift. The Rift sits at $499, with some predicting the Lenovo headset between $300 and $400. The lower range would be significantly more affordable and could get regular consumers more interested in MR. Lenovo Headset Specs Despite the lower price, the Lenovo headset comes with some impressive specs....