April's Digital Life from Lökwest - a free presentation, plus tech news, tips, history, and updates from Mars!
Welcome to April. If you celebrated Easter weekend, we hope it was a safe and relaxing time. Now that we're back into springtime full swing, let's catch up on the tech news for the month, shall we?
In this issue, catch up on what we've been up to with Working Wardrobes, a GREAT non-profit here in California. Then, we've hand-picked a couple of longer reads that you'll really enjoy - all about how Instacart works and all about social media addiction.
As usual, there's been some news that you'll want to catch up on and a couple of tips you won't want to miss. For example, DON'T pay Google extra money for photo storage unless you're really into photos!
Lastly, let's look back in tech at Alan Turing, as he was recently honored by the UK on the 50-pound note. And, catch up on our friend Endeavor on Mars with its helicopter sidekick!
Helping job seekers get in touch with technology
Lökwest Coaches Working Wardrobes Clients — lokwest.com
To kick off the month, see what we presented to Working Wardrobes clients in March as they "Broke the Ice" with technology in 2021! Technology is more important than ever in the workplace, and we were happy to bring participants up to speed. You can grab the presentations for free too - just respond to this newsletter or contact us from the website.
Long reads worth your while
The Algorithms That Make Instacart Roll — spectrum.ieee.org
This is a pretty amazing read by some of the data scientists behind Instacart. If you're curious, Instacart crunches petabytes daily to predict what will be on grocery shelves and even how long it will take to find parking!
“User Engagement” Is Code for “Addiction” — medium.com
There is something about social media that human beings are not psychologically prepared for. It's designed to addict, and you're probably addicted. How's your social media use? This great opinion piece from Medium may have you second-guessing yourself!
A bit of news
Facebook is building an Instagram for kids under 13 — mashable.com
Speaking of the article above...social media giant Facebook has a new Instagram platform in the works for children under the age of 13. What could POSSIBLY go wrong with THAT?
T-Mobile is the first carrier to activate anti-spoofing technology with all other major carriers — www.androidpolice.com
You'll be getting fewer spam calls if things go as planned. T-Mobile has hit a new milestone in the war with spam calls and texts by establishing STIR/SHAKEN support with all of the major networks in the US. STIR/SHAKEN (clever 007 reference) is the technology that verifies callers before your phone rings.
Scammers trick Android users into installing fake, malware-laden Clubhouse app — siliconangle.com
In another clever scam, you've probably heard of the hot new app Clubhouse. Android users BEWARE - it's not available on Android yet, but the scammers would LOVE to have you install a fake, malware-laden app in the meantime!
Two Tips for your April
Rita - Your data, in your hands — ritapersonaldata.com
Wonder what personal data your apps are sharing? Try Rita - the new app featured in Product Hunt this month. It's easy and simple to see and modify what data you're sharing. If you're interested in a similar app for your e-mail, check out Mine (saymineapp.com)
Don't Let Google Scare You Into Paying for Google Photos — lifehacker.com
Here's a great tip from LifeHacker. I advise my clients the same. Google is trying to make you pay for original quality photo storage. But, most people don't need pictures bigger than 16 megapixels in real life (for now). So why pay?
In tech history - Alan Turing honored
New U.K. Currency Honors Alan Turing, Pioneering Computer Scientist And Code-Breaker — www.npr.org
Another honor for the late Alan Turing, and it's about time! The Bank of England unveiled a new £50 note last month, nearly two years after saying it would honor the pioneering mathematician who died an outcast because of his homosexuality.
If you don't know much about the "father of computer science", here's a great read:
15 Riveting Facts About Alan Turing — www.mentalfloss.com More than six decades after his death, Alan Turing’s life remains a point of fascination—even for people who have no interest in his groundbreaking work in computer science.
In Closing - Keep Persevering!
Keeping up with technology of all types, let's check in on our little friend Perseverance over on Mars! 🙂
NASA’s new Mars rover is about to spawn a tiny helicopter - The Verge — www.theverge.com
This isn't any old drone flight - it'll be the first time we've tried to attempt powered flight on ANOTHER PLANET! Watch the news this month. NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover is about to deploy the Ingenuity helicopter, a small rotorcraft that will attempt the first-ever flight of its kind.
NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover Takes Selfie With ‘Mont Mercou’
The photo above was created using a composite of several images taken by the Perseverance rover. Read more about it here.