Mobisly: March 2017

Friday, 31 March 2017

OneNote update brings audio notes and more to Fast ring Insiders

A small, but no less useful, update is now available for OneNote users on the Windows Insider Fast ring.

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New Xbox Insider builds headed to Alpha and Beta ring users

Another batch of fresh builds are headed out to Xbox Insider Program members on both the Alpha and Beta rings this evening.

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With Amazon Petlexa, Alexa becomes dog's best friend

That potentially dangerous Nest Cam has been fixed

Nest Cams are incredibly convenient, but having a permanent connection to the Internet can also be a security risk.

Update, March 31: Nest has rolled out a silent update to fix the bug, and claims no one was ever affected. In a statement, the company says that "all Nest camera customers now have the updated software. To our knowledge, no customer's camera was ever affected by this issue and customer video remained safe. This isn't the first time we've updated our security measures, and it won't be the last, as we continue to look for ways to improve our products, such as the introduction of two-factor authentication last month."

Nest, the Alphabet company that scooped up to take over its smart home ambitions, has a problem. Its Nest Cam line, which includes the (admittedly excellent) Outdoor model, has a dangerous bug that allows a would-be thief or hacker (or hacker thief) to send a signal over Bluetooth to force the camera into a reboot, disabling the unit for up to 90 seconds.

The vulnerability was discovered last October and reported to Nest in October by Florida-based security expert, Jason Doyle, but the cries went ignored, so he felt he had no choice but to make them public in hopes of pushing Nest to do something about it.

There are three issues, all to do with problems in the camera's always-on Bluetooth connection, which end up forcing the unit to either reset or seek out a non-existent Wi-Fi network. All three issues have the same effect: they take down the Nest Cam entirely. Of course, said hacker would need to be within Bluetooth LE range for the connection to be made — some 60 feet in good conditions, but more likely 30 feet — but now that the exploits are out, such antics could become more common.

For its part, Nest has released a statement claiming that it would be sending a patch to all Nest Cam and Dropcam models "in the coming days," after discovering and patching the issue internally. Good news for active Nest Cam users, but let's hope Dropcam has a method of forcing such an update to customers that wouldn't otherwise be aware of the problem.

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Xbox head Phil Spencer just revealed the first shot of the Phantom Dust on Xbox One

Phantom Dust is a classic Xbox game from back in 2004, and it's being revived for Xbox One and Windows 10.

The title was originally announced as a remake for Xbox One a few years ago, but the project was unfortunately canceled due to difficulties with the game's developer. In the interim, Microsoft Studios has decided to port the original version of the game to Xbox One and Windows 10, giving it a bit of a makeover in the process.

We haven't seen a single shot of the re-release, until now!

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Alcatel Idol 4S or Elite x3? #AskDanWindows Episode 24

We're back for another new episode of #AskDanWindows. This week I answer questions about the Creators Update, what happens to Xbox One after Scorpio, and my thoughts on Android emulation!

Let's get to this week's big questions!

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Learn how to Code and Create with your Raspberry Pi for just $19

The Raspberry Pi 3 is an amazingly low cost, mini-computer that can be used in so many incredible projects, from homemade arcade cabinets, robotics, home automation, or simply as a micro-sized computer. But to truly get the most out of the Raspberry Pi, you'll want to learn about everything you can tweak and customize, along with picking up some coding skills, familiarity with Linux, and starting an internet-connected or robotics-based project.

Get The Complete Raspberry Pi 3 Training Bundle for only $19! Learn More

You need The Complete Raspberry Pi 3 Training Bundle, offered to you for a steep discount by Windows Central Digital Offers. The bundle includes everything you need to hit the ground running with your Raspberry Pi 3.

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Google Gnome is an April Fool's joke, but it's no laughing matter

Seriously — it's a bummer that something like this doesn't actually exist!

Happy April Fool's day! Even if you're not into it, at least there are some entertaining videos coming out of it. This one is from Google and it introduces a product called Google Gnome.

I don't understand why this Google Gnome isn't a real thing I can pay money for. I would love to be able to automate my backyard. We have a garden. We grow our own vegetables! I'd love to be able to ask Google Gnome how my potatoes are doing.

I'm not laughing because I'm devastated that this isn't real.

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Microsoft will use Forza 7, Battlefront 2 and Red Dead Redemption 2 to showcase 4K on 'Project Scorpio' Xbox (exclusive)

We recently received a partial list of planned 4K titles for the next Xbox, dubbed "Project Scorpio," and we're now able to fully confirm its authenticity.

Microsoft will unveil Forza Motorsport 7 as the headline title for Project Scorpio very soon, and it will run at a blistering True 4K resolution. We've heard reports from reliable sources that the game, in true Forza fashion, already looks utterly stunning, and will showcase just what the console is capable of.

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Digital Offer: Get a complete Raspberry Pi 3 starter kit for only $99!

Compact computers are becoming ever-more popular thanks to cheaper, more powerful hardware, and the Raspberry Pi system is one of the most popular out there. Although you can connect to the internet with your Pi right out of the box, figuring out how the rest of it works can be a daunting task.

What you need is a set of courses that begin with the basics of compact computing and move you through to advanced topics like building robots and discovering web development through Raspberry Pi.

Right now, Windows Central Digital Offers has a complete Raspberry Pi 3 starter kit for only $99. That's about 63% off the regular price of $272! What does the starter pack hold? Other than the actual Raspberry Pi 3, enclosure case, 8GB SD card, power adapters and plethora of cables, you also get immediate access to the following courses:

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Amazon Prime members can grab Dash Buttons on sale for $1 and still get a $5 credit for a limited time

Our friends at Thrifter are back again, this time with a way to grab Dash Buttons for just $1!

Amazon's Dash Buttons are an extremely easy way to reorder the supplies that you use the most in your house, and right now Amazon Prime members can grab them for $0.99 with the coupon code DASHBDAY. Normally the buttons cost $4.99 each, and then you receive a $4.99 credit after using it for the first time, but right now you can pick up a discounted one and still get the same credit. That means that you'll effectively make $4 on each button that you buy and use (limit of 3), so be sure to check them all out.

If you aren't already a member of Amazon's Prime service, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial to take advantage of this offer and others. Some of the discounted Dash Buttons include:

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Amazon Prime members can grab Dash Buttons on sale for $1 and still get a $5 credit for a limited time

Our friends at Thrifter are back again, this time with a way to grab Dash Buttons for just $1!

If you aren't already a member of Amazon's Prime service, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial to take advantage of this offer and others. Some of the discounted Dash Buttons include:

This sale is in celebration of the Dash Button's second birthday, so be sure to celebrate with Amazon and pick up these discounted buttons. If you want to get really crazy with it, you can even reprogram the Dash Buttons to do other tasks, so be sure to check that out as well.

See at Amazon

For more great deals be sure to check out our friends at Thrifter now!

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Amazon Prime members can grab $1 Dash Buttons and still get a $5 credit for a limited time

Our friends at Thrifter are back again, this time with a way to grab Dash Buttons for just $1!

Amazon's Dash Buttons are an extremely easy way to reorder the supplies that you use the most in your house, and right now Amazon Prime members can grab them for $0.99 with the coupon code DASHBDAY. Normally the buttons cost $4.99 each, and then you receive a $4.99 credit after using it for the first time, but right now you can pick up a discounted one and still get the same credit. That means that you'll instantly make $4 on each button that you buy and use (limit of 3), so be sure to check them all out.

If you aren't already a member of Amazon's Prime service, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial to take advantage of this offer and others. Some of the discounted Dash Buttons include:

See at Amazon

For more great deals be sure to check out our friends at Thrifter now!

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Best coloring books for adults on the iPad

Coloring can be a great way to relax. Coloring on an iPad is even better!

Updated March 2017: Added Lake.

You've probably noticed more and more coloring books for adults popping up at retail stores recently. That's because it is a great way for grownups to take some time to relax and focus on art without having to be particularly artistic. There are some great coloring book apps built specifically for the iPad that cater to different techniques. We've got a list of the best coloring books for adults for all occasions.

Pigment
Lake
Colorfy
Recolor
Coloring for Grownups

Pigment

Pigment offers the most versatile coloring experience. You can color with a variety of tools, including pencils, markers, airbrushes, water colors, oil paints, and more. You can blend colors, including lighter on top of dark, and press light or hard to produce different thickness of strokes. There are hundreds of colors to choose from, each with a shading gradient so you can customize your hues.

There are three ways to color with Pigment. You can use Automatic, which will allow you to color wildly, but you will still stay within the lines, Freehand, which is like real-life coloring where you will go outside of the lines if you aren't careful, and Advanced, which lets you select multiple spots on an illustration to color in at once. This last option allows you to color across different sections, while only coloring the objects you want.

There are also a few tools that are not at all realistic, but can be loads of fun to work with. The Fade and Broom brushes create a unique shading on your illustrations and the Fill brush lets you simply tap to add color to an object.

The best part is that Pigment works beautifully with Apple Pencil to create shades and depth to each page you color.

There are dozens of free pages, and plenty of great tools, but if you are a coloring fanatic, you can subscribe to Pigment's premium service for hundreds of illustrations, additional brushes, and new coloring books each week.

If you color in real life and are looking to recreate that experience on your iPad, Pigment is the best app in the App Store.

Free - Download now

Lake

Lake has the unique feature of being a coloring book for artists, by artists. Well, you don't actually have to be an artist, but if you are, you'll really appreciate the time and effort that each of these Instagram illustrators put into their work, work that you can make even more interesting with your own color creations.

Lake also has the unique feature of offering you the ability to purchase a 12-page coloring book by each artist, individually. The price you pay for that book goes directly to the artist, too. If you love every aspect of the app, you can subscribe to unlock everything. But, if you're more interested in picking your pages by artist, you can buy a book outright for $3.99.

The color palate is vast, with varying shades conveniently connected on a rotating wheel. You can start with red and switch to the lightest shade of pink or a deep reddish brown. Each page also comes with a pre-made color palate suggestion, curated by the artist who illustrated it.

You can pick from five different artist tools to work with, and you have the ability to adjust the brush size of each. You can also layer colors (except with the paint can), and choose whether to restrict or free up coloring outside the line.

If you feel good about supporting working artists, you won't want to skip this coloring book app. It's full of great illustrations and gets updated all of the time.

Free - Download now

Colorfy

Colorfy offers a simple fill-in-the-object style of coloring so that you don't have to work as hard to get a beautiful illustration. You can choose from a few dozen hues or upgrade to a monthly subscription to unlock more than 100 different shades. Plus, you can create your own shades using the pigment shading tools.

When you are finished coloring, you're definitely not done creating. The next step is to add a filter. These fun overlays will make your page look like an oil painting, graffiti on a brick wall, or even a knitted swatch. Your finished artwork can be shared to various social networking sites. You can also publish pages to the Colorfy feed for others to comment on, or even add their own colors to.

You can also create your own illustrations to color by creating artwork from pre-made stickers and backgrounds, or by taking a picture of something you've drawn in real life.

If coloring can sometimes stress you out because of all of that movement you have to use with your hands, Colorfy will give you a pleasant experience without all of the scribbling action.

Free - Download now

Recolor

Recolor takes the whole digital coloring thing to the next level with 3D objects that you can actually color all sides of. Grab a soda can or ceramic vase and turn it into a virtual work of art. There are more than a dozen categories with hundreds of illustrations.

Recolor uses the tap-to-fill style of coloring, which can be very helpful when you are trying to fill in those tiny objects. In addition to the flat color gamut, you can upgrade to gradients and "Live" colors, which make things have a sort of swirling effect.

You can submit your artwork to the Recolor gallery where others in the community can "Like" your stuff.

My favorite tool in Recolor, though, is the scanner. You can scan in illustrations and color them digitally. I have a couple of vintage Star Wars comic books that I've been afraid to jump into because I don't want to ruin their value. Recolor's scanner lets me color the pages without affecting the original book

If you like fill-in style coloring, but want a lot of hue options, give Recolor a try.

Free - Download now

Coloring for Grownups

Coloring for Grownups is more of an adult coloring book than a coloring book for adults, if you get my meaning. It has plenty of raunchy quips and lowbrow humor. It's based on the real-life coloring book of the same name.

It features hilariously realistic depiction of everything that is wrong in life. You can solve the labyrinth to escape a toxic relationship or draw cool things in a lonely guy's empty room.

The more you color, the more secret pages you can unlock. You earn achievements for completing such things as customizing a crayon or coloring a page in less than 30 seconds.

If you find the whole, "coloring books for adults" thing to be a bit silly, why not make it really silly with Coloring for Grownups.

$0.99 - Download now

Do you have a favorite coloring book on the iPad? Let us know what makes it so special in the comments below.

Drawing on iPad: The ultimate guide

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Thimbleweed Park on Xbox One review: A creepy, noir point-and-click adventure

A body pixelating under the bridge, a decaying town, and five strangers who are linked somehow. Welcome to Thimbleweed Park.

Point-and-click adventure games are how many gamers cut their teeth on video games. So it was supremely exciting when a Kickstarter for a new point-and-click adventure game emerged. Thimbleweed Park sets you down in a decaying town where weird things seem to be par for the course, including a pillow factory that burned down and a pixelating body that nobody seems to care much about.

Note This title is expected to be released on Xbox One and PC on March 30, 2017.

See at Microsoft Store

Pixels, pixels everywhere

Thimbleweed Park has a look that might make you nostalgic, but it's far better than the games you remember. It's a call back to the point-and-click adventure games that were popularized in the late 80s and 90s, with a pretty significant facelift. You might recognize the looming backgrounds and emotive scenery, but the gradient colors bring each scene to life in a way that just wasn't possible before. These aren't graphics that are going to blow you out of the water with realism, but they are fantastic in their own right.

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Every Daydream app you can install right now, and a look at what comes next

Just go ahead and install all of them. You know, for fun.

Google's first Daydream headset is finally shipping to people who purchased the first Daydream phone, and are quickly finding it's not easy to locate the whole list of Daydream apps from the Play Store. While we've been having a lot of fun showing you the best free Daydream apps and the Daydream games everyone should have installed, the act of browsing for apps and then waiting for them to install while in VR isn't a good time.

To make it a little easier, we've tracked down the first wave of Google Daydream apps that are available to install now, so you can load up your Pixel with VR goodness and see what this new experience is all about.

Best practices for staying safe on social media

Social media can lead to some pretty terrible interactions; stay safe online with these tips!

Social media is one of the best features of the modern internet but it's also one of the worst features of the modern internet.

🤔

What I'm saying is the connective power of the internet — the way it allows us to communicate with friends and loved ones all over the world — is pretty spectacular. But that connective power also gives ill-intentioned individuals access to the things you post online. It's not always doom and gloom, but it's always a good idea to keep your safety and security in mind. With all that in mind, here are a few tips for staying safe on social media.

Private or public?

Most social media networks give you the option to maintain a private or public profile. Generally speaking, anyone can view a public social media profile. A private profile, on the other hand, usually requires some form of permission. Some social media networks, like Facebook, give you individual control over your posts — you can make photos of your dog public and photos of that party you attended private. Ultimately, you need to consider your goals in creating a social media account and let that inform your decision on whether you want to maintain a private or public presence.

Do you want to connect with your friends, stay in touch with family, and interact with a known group of people? A private profile probably makes more sense.
Are you trying to build an online presence? Interested in — I know, I'm sorry, I'm about to say it and I'm sorry — creating and furthering your personal brand (ugh, I hate myself for saying that)? You're probably going to want to maintain a public profile.

This is another broad statement, but, for the most part, a private account is going to be "safer" than a public account in the sense that you'll be less likely to get on the radar of any ill-willed individuals. If you choose to maintain a public account, then you're going to want to be very aware of what and how you share your data online.

Check your location settings

One of the first mistakes folks make when they start sharing content online is inadvertently sharing their location. There are multiple ways this can happen: Most social networks let you share your location when you make a new post and what's worse: Many social networks have location sharing enabled by default. Depending on your settings, a post could include very specific information about your location. If you'd rather not share your location, you can typically find an X or a Remove button to nix your location before you send off a post.

Another, less-obvious way folks end up sharing their location is through the photos they post online. When you snap a photo with your iPhone, certain cameras, or another mobile device, it'll often add location information to the image file. This is a nifty feature if you'd like to see all the photos you took while you were on a trip, but it's a not-so-great feature if your images reveal the location of your home, work, etc.

If you want to keep your iPhone or iPad from recording your location when you take photos, just do the following:

Head to the Settings app.
Scroll down and tap Privacy.
Tap Location Services.
Scroll down and tap Camera
Change ALLOW LOCATION ACCESS to Never.

If you want to remove your location from a photo or photos in Photos for Mac, just do the following:

Select a photo or photos whose location you want to remove.
Click Image in the Mac menu bar.
Hover over Location.
Click Remove Location.

Most social media services will also give you the option to remove your location from all posts — both those already posted and those you'll post in the future.

Strong, pseudo-random passwords … YESTERDAY

Say it with me now: "If you're not using strong, pseudo-random passwords for all your accounts, you're interneting wrong." Seriously. The best, easiest thing you can do to improve your safety and security online is to stop using the same or similar passwords on different online accounts. Reason being, if one poorly secured account — say a restaurant's online ordering service — gets hacked and your password gets stolen, suddenly all your accounts are exposed.

On top of having strong, pseudo-random passwords for your online accounts, you should enable two-factor authentication wherever and whenever it's available. Two-factor authentication, or 2FA, requires both a password and some other form of authentication. That second form of authentication is typically a randomly generated code sent to your phone or generated by a password manager. If someone guesses your password, they're still unable to gain access to your account without the two-factor code.

You can check out our recommended password managers here:

Best password manager apps for iPhone and iPad

And you can read more about protecting your photos and personal data here:

How to protect your private photos and personal data from being hacked

Trust your gut

Less about being hacked and more about avoiding unsafe situations, it's always a good idea to trust your gut. Social media is a great way to connect with friends, but it's also an easy way to connect with strangers. Online communication doesn't always mean finding oneself in an unsafe situation, but I can't stress this enough: Your experience is your own and you get to choose how it plays out. If you're uncomfortable, hit the mute or block button with abandon. If you're being harassed, report the account harassing you. If you're feeling uneasy, run the situation by someone you trust.

I'm going to say this again: No one gets to dictate how you choose to handle online interactions except you. You're not required to give the benefit of the doubt if you don't want to; safety is most important.

How do you stay safe on social media?

Do you have any tips and tricks you use to stay safe on social media? Give me a shout in the comments or over on Twitter!

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'Project Scorpio' Xbox roadmap reveals planned June performance boost, game certification dates

Early Project Scorpio units are out in the wild, and there are already rumors flying around about tech specs and benchmarks.

I thought I'd temper some of those rumors with information I received about Project Scorpio's Xbox Developer Kit (XDK) roadmap, which details how the software powering the next Xbox will evolve during the coming months.

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Apple opens app development accelerator in India

Almost a year after its announcement, Apple has opened its App Accelerator facility in Bengaluru, India.

Apple has announced the opening of its new App Accelerator in Bengaluru, India. The Accelerator offers developers guidance and support as they develop their apps, with a number of session presentations from Apple experts, along with collaborative labs on Apple technology implementation, design, and more.

The center offers help with iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS, according to Apple:

The new App Accelerator provides a unique opportunity to get inspired by learning about the latest advances in Apple platforms directly from Apple experts in Bengaluru, India. We'll show you how to take advantage of the powerful capabilities in iOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS—so you can create your most innovative apps yet.

Attending the App Accelerator is free, with only an Apple ID and developer account required to attend.

Apple originally announced the Bengaluru App Accelerator last spring, and it represents just one of the many investments that the company has been making in India over the past few years. Apple has continued expanding its presence in the country, including setting up local distribution centers and preparing to manufacture iPhones as well.

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Twitter's latest update ditches the egg for default profile photo

The infamous egg is leaving Twitter. It's hatched into a person-shaped icon of some sort.

Twitter's default profile photo has received an update. The now-infamous egg has been replaced with a person-shaped icon.

Twitter's Design team is behind the change. The group says there are three reasons for the update:

To encourage self expression.
The egg was too "fun and cute," so a more serious icon should encourage people to change it.
Egg accounts are often associated with harassment, which meant new accounts that had no intention to harass would be unfairly associated with the negative behavior.

If you're curious about the design decisions behind the new avatar, there's a post on Twitter's blog that goes into more detail.

Thoughts on the updated avatar

In terms of encouraging people to update and personalize their accounts, I can see how this change makes since. The egg was a cute idea: Being new to Twitter meant you were a bird who had yet to hatch. But if I had to guess I'd say Twitter's usage statistics show the people who stick around (Twitter has a problem with maintaining active users) are the ones who customize their profiles, follow friends, regularly communicate, etc. The company is trying to get new users more engaged so it can keep them around.

As for combating the "default profile photo = potential harassment" stereotype, this isn't really going to work. Folks will simply associate harassment with the new, vaguely person-shaped icon. And let's not forget Twitter gives us the option to filter out accounts with a default profile photo — the stereotyping is sort of built in on Twitter's end. Which is why I want to point out, again, that some people have legitimate reasons for sticking with the default profile photo:

I 100% understand the point, but please keep in mind that many blind Twitter users don't upload profile pics. This will also silence them. https://t.co/yOQRXZ9Cbe
— Aleen Simms (@Aleen) March 1, 2017

Lastly, I know folks are upset that Twitter keeps introducing changes that aren't the ones that "everyone" wants. It's important to note there are different teams at the company working on different things all the time. Companies don't typically focus entirely on one change and then move on to the next one. Seems the updated default avatar was ready to ship so they shipped it.

Now let's just hope whatever team works on EDITABLE TWEETS is about ready to ship!

Thoughts?

How do you feel about the new change? Prefer the egg, like the new person-shaped icon, don't care either way? Gimme a shout in the comments or over on Twitter!

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