Virtual Skinny: Run and Tell That …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on September 23, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

9.23.2016

Good to Know: Calling all U.S. citizens: Have you registered to vote? Facebook just launched its first voter registration drive. Just log onto your account. There’s literally no excuse so run and tell that!

THE SKINNY

When You’ve Been Keeping A Secret and have to tell…

Yesterday, Yahoo announced that about 500 million email accounts were hacked courtesy of a ‘state-sponsored’ attack. That’s 300 million more than the company originally thought. This is probably the largest data breach of all time. Kind of a big deal …

When You Need More Deats …

Turns out the hack went down back in 2014, but Yahoo just learned about it in recent months (allegedly). The good news? Unprotected passwords and banking info weren’t stolen. The bad news? The list of stolen information is longer and includes things like: protected passwords, security questions and answers, email addresses, telephone numbers, birth dates, etc. #NoBueno.

When You Need To Protect Yourself …

Go ahead and change the password to your Yahoo email account like yesterday (especially if you haven’t done so since 2014). Avoid ‘weak’ passwords like ‘Password123;’ Password managers such as 1Password and LastPass can help. Once that’s done, think through your log in information for sensitive accounts like your online banking. If your previous Yahoo email password and/or security Q&As could be remotely similar, go ahead and change those passwords too. We know … SUCH a headache! #BetterSafeThanSorry

When It’s All Bad …

Yahoo users aren’t the only ones that need to worry. This is a massive data breach that’s caught the attention of pretty much everyone and their moms. And, Yahoo’s reported US $4.8 billion sale to Verizon could be on the line. Can Yahoo catch a break or what?

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

When It’s Been Another Tough Week …

The killings of Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Terence Crutcher and Charlotte, North Carolina’s Keith Lamont Scott has left many feeling disheartened and outraged by the ongoing issue of police officers’ use of force against civilians. People are calling for transparency so we can all have an honest discussion. San Francisco-based nonprofit startup Bayes Impact is working on a new data tool to track ‘violent encounters between officers and civilians.’ Turns out the data on these incidents to date are terrible. Even the FBI’s numbers are off to say the least when it comes to homicides committed by police. Bayes Impact is asking California police departments to record ‘use of force’ incidents (i.e., shooting or assault that leads to death or serious injuries) on its platform called Ursus. Gotta start somewhere …

When You Need A Court Date …

Not too long ago, messaging app WhatsApp put its users on notice that it would start sharing users’ data with Facebook. It had money from ads on the brain when it made the change. Many people were not happy. Two Indian college students Karmanya Singh Sareen and Shreya Sethi were so peeved that they went ahead and filed a court action law suit against Facebook. In the name of privacy and security, they want the Delhi High Court to tell Facebook to change the WhatsApp privacy policy back to the one we all knew and loved. WhatsApp says privacy and security are non-issues since it’s got end-to-end encryption for messages sent over the platform.

When You’re Not the Only One Taking Things Back..

Google’s Allo is a new messaging app . When the company first introduced its version of WhatsApp, it made some pretty big statements about privacy and security. We were promised an end-to-end encrypted Incognito Mode. The company also said messages wouldn’t be stored forever but just for a short time. This week, we learned that’s not the case. Messages sent while in the Incognito Mode will be stored by default, and it’s up to the user to actively delete messages. Before you rush to judge, Google says it made the change for a good reason: To make a quality ‘smart reply’ function, which won’t work well if there’s no data available.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

LinkedIn helps you get a job and now it wants to help you keep it with LinkedIn Learning. The feature relies on Lynda.com courses to help sharpen people’s skills in areas like business, creative, and technology.

Speaking of getting your learn on, MIT’s letting people learn first and pay later for grad level courses through MOOC platform edX.

Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Dr. Priscilla Chan made a huge announcement this week. They’re following in the footsteps of Bill and Melinda Gates and plan to donate US $3 billion to figure out how to cure diseases within the next decade.

Apple may or may not be in acquisition talks with ‘supercar’ company McLaren.

Japan just added ‘priests’ to the growing list of people we can get on-demand. Who knew?

WOD (WORD OF THE DAY)

End-to-end encryption: A way to protect information being sent over communication platforms (e.g., WhatsApp) so it can only by read by the people involved in the chat. Third parties won’t be able to access the conversation. In other words, end-to-end encryption is technology’s way of saying: “This is an ‘A’ and ‘B’ conversation so ‘C’ your way out.’ #Boom

Virtual Skinny: Wednesday Wisdom

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on September 7, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

9.7.2016

Good to Know: Here’s your Wednesday Wisdom. Working on a startup? Look for venture capital money? At the very least, avoid these 11 things to up your chances of success.

THE SKINNY

When Christmas Comes Early …

Today is Apple Inc’s annual product launch event in San Francisco.

When You Know What to Expect …

Ever since Apple sent out its “See You on the Seventh” invites, the blogosphere’s been abuzz about what’s likely to go down today. One word: iPhone 7. The latest iPhone is said to have minor changes from the ‘6’ version with things like a touch sensitive home button. The major change: No headphone jack. Apple has gone wireless so you can listen to your jam or watch your fave show without wires getting in the way.

When You Don’t Know It All …

Unclear how much the ‘7’ will go for in terms of price. Other than the phone, there’s rumbles about a new Apple Watch version but not much has been leaked about it. Gotta keep some things close to the vest …

When Patience Is Still A Virtue …

With no major changes to the ‘7,’ analysts are feeling underwhelmed. They suggest that you wait it out till next year for the ‘8.’ Next year’s the 10th anniversary of the iPhone so they’re predicting major changes like ‘a wider display that reaches from one edge of the device to the other.’ In the meantime, the new iOS 10 software update is bringing us less text and more visuals in iMessage (i.e., stickers, funny faces, animated balloons, etc).

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Summer’s Over …

Time to get serious. Twitter’s board of directors is huddling up this Thursday. On the agenda? To sell or not to sell. Twitter’s been struggling to perform well. In other words, it’s trying to grow its user-base and bring in more dolla bills. Co-founder and board member Evan Williams said the company needs to “consider the right options.” Looks like the options are selling to whoever can afford an US $18 billion company (Google, Apple, 21st Century Fox or News Corp. could be potential buyers). Option B? Another round of staff layoffs. The struggle is real …

This Was Not Part of the Plan …

Last week, Mark Zuckerberg surprised everyone when he headed to the continent. And by the continent, we mean Africa. The Zuck’s first stop? Lagos, Nigeria where it was biz mixed with a bit of fun: He visited a kids coding camp called the CcHub, had a Q&A with local entrepreneurs, sat down to dinner with Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, and even crashed a Nigerian hip hop video set. Zuckerberg said ‘Nigeria’s tech story is “under-appreciated across the world.” But, some local techies aren’t buying it. They are unimpressed by Zuck’s visit and want FB to build a true partnership with Africa’s tech community.

Please Tell Me More…

Looks like Zuck’s got big plans for Africa, but he learned during his trip that he had a f*@# problem. Back stateside in Florida, a SpaceX rocket ship exploded and took down one of FB’s satellites used to beam high-speed Internet to Africa. Yikes!

It’s Not Translating …

According to reports, “democracy,” “human rights,” and “hunger strike,” are not in the Cuban government’s vocabulary. The government’s been blocking people’s text messages containing those words. Unclear how long this alleged filtering has been going on …

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Snapchat’s ditching its ‘local stories,’ the features that let’s you see what’s happening in big cities. It’s cut the ‘small team’ responsible and is now eyeing live events as a replacement.

You’ll soon be able to search the Google machine by outfits. The upcoming feature, “Shop the Look,” will pull up outfits published by fashion bloggers in search.

Pandora plans to launch two new music services (US $10 Spotify type service so you and your tunes will always be together whenever and wherever & US $5 that’s a slight upgrade from its free web radio). Still waiting on when the official public announcement will go down since Pandora’s still trying to finalize things with music label partners.

Box (the business version of DropBox) just worked on a collabo project with IBM called Box Relay to custom build work processes.

WOD (WORD OF THE DAY)

Demonetization: Think YouTube. The process of not allowing certain YouTube videos to make money off of ads because of its ‘unfriendly’ content. The company’s been in the demonetization game since 2012, but YouTube video makers didn’t know about it until last week. Turns out YouTube’s software isn’t perfect, and some legit and friendly videos got caught up in the mix. Unfortunately, some YouTube video makers haven’t been making their ‘pay-pah.’

Alba Joins Techie Reality Show for Non-Techies

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on August 31, 2016 in Culture, Entertainment 0 Comment

Jessica Alba, Gwyneth Paltrow, and will.i.am are all attached to Apple’s Planet of the Apps. The trio will serve as mentors and advisors on the upcoming reality show. But, the tech community is not happy about any of this. Here’s what you need to know:

What is the Planet of the Apps?

Business Insider describes the show as a cross between singing competition show The Voice and startup pitch show Shark Tank. The gist of the show? App developers bring their ideas to fruition, judges pick what they like, then mentors help guide contestants through the process. Seems more of a cross between Shark Tank and Project Runway to us, but as they say, ‘to-may-to, to-mah-to.’ #MakeItWork

More on ALBA, PALTROW, AND WILL.I.AM’S ROLES?

The show’s official website called on app creators with the following:

“Join us on the search for the next great app in a new original series. Those selected will have the chance to receive hands-on guidance from some of the most influential experts in the tech community, featured placement on the App Store, and funding from top-tier VCs.”

Tech Community Isn’t Here for It …

Apparently, the tech community isn’t here for Jessica Alba or the rest of the trio. Their beef probably has to do with the ‘most influential experts in the tech community’ part. TechCrunch’s Romain Dillet is almost everyone in the tech community when he writes: “I don’t think any of these hosts are qualified to talk about design, engineering or even growth strategy when it comes to releasing a new app on the App Store” (To be fair, Dillet does recognize Alba’s the Honest Company. But, we should also mention that Paltrow runs a digital lifestyle publication called Goop, and will.i.am is the Director of Creative Innovation for Intel – who knew?).

Not Everyone’s on the Same Page…

Others don’t share Dillet’s perspective. Jeremy Liew, a partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, a Menlo Park-based venture capital firm with portfolio companies like Snapchat, sees things a little differently. He told Variety that “[c]onsumer technology has become popular culture, as our portfolio companies like Snapchat have demonstrated … We’re excited to work with Apple and visionaries from the tech and entertainment space to discover and enable the next generation of apps that will also become popular culture.”

What’s Next?

Planet of the Apps is done with its casting call and will begin filming in Los Angeles later this year and into early 2017. The show will be available exclusively on Apple Music or the Apple TV. Other than this reality show, Apple’s also working on CarPool Karaoke made famous by James Corden on “The Late Late Show.”

Penny for Your Thoughts?

We gotta ask: When Planet of the Apps comes out next year, are you in or nah? Tell us in the comments!

Virtual Skinny: Stand Up for Your Rights

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on August 30, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

8.30.2016

Good to Know: Need to manage paper business cards? Mobile apps CamCard and ScanBizCards could help.

THE SKINNY

When You Take People Out GoT Style …

Last Friday, Facebook axed its Trending Topics team of humans with almost no warning. #Savage

When You Need An Explanation …

A little while back, FB was all up in the headlines for its alleged human bias in the type of stories picked up by Trending Topics. Some said the stories leaned more left than right, especially when it came to political news. Naturally, U.S. Republicans stepped in. As far as we knew, it was water under the bridge. But, not quite.

When You’ve Taken A Stand …

You may have noticed that Trending Topics no longer shows short summaries of news article. Instead, you just see the number of people talking about a topic. Well, that’s because FB decided it was better to swap out human editors for algorithms (Algorithms: Rules that tells computers what to do). The justification? FB said it’s listening to its community. And, the move “allows [FB] to scale Trending to cover more topics and make it available to more people globally over time.”

When You Can’t Fact Check …

Within about 48 hours of computers taking over Trending Topics, FB ran into some … issues. What had happened was its algorithms picked up a fake news story about Megyn Kelly being fired. Not true, Megyn Kelly is still gainfully employed by Fox News. Whoops!

When You’re Being Dragged …

FB removed the fake story, but it’s still not immune from being dragged via Twitter because some people can’t stand the change. BTW, the Zuck says it has no plans to transition from tech to media. Journalists are calling B.S. because FB is a master at selling its users’ attention to advertisers. Could a potential #JournalistsFurtherExposesFBParty be brewing on the Twitterverse?

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

**B*tch Better Have My Money …**

The European Union (EU) warned Apple not to call it on its bluff. In today’s ruling, the EU ordered Apple, Inc. to hand over a record US $14.5 billion (13 billion Euros) in back taxes to Ireland. This whole drams comes down to the EU believing that Ireland played faves with Apple with it came to taxes. To be clear, the EU is saying that Ireland gave Apple tax benefits for the past two decades. And, under EU law, this type of special tax treatment is a major no-no. Apple is understandably peeved about the decision. Ireland’s got Apple’s back and plans to appeal. Even, the U.S. government has piped up and is basically saying that the EU’s decision is no bueno and could hurt US-EU biz relations and even turn potential foreign business away from the EU.

Is This Happening Or Nah?

Everyone expected a tech bust about a year ago, but it didn’t happen. HOW, Sway? We get the confusion. This time a year ago, investors were throwing money at on-demand delivery start-ups and Uber like one of Oprah’s giveaways. A crash seemed like a sure thing, but then startups got smart and started saving more and spending less on things like perks. Also, foreign investment money from countries like Saudi Arabia helped. A tech crash could still happen but probably not any time soon.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Amazon’s work schedule (especially for its technical team) is no joke … Soul crushing even. The company may finally be making a change. It’s testing out a 30-hour work week with a portion of its technical team (Monday through Thursday from 10 AM to 2 PM). The experimental group will still get the same benefits as everyone else, but they’ll be getting paid 25% less.

Twitter is trying to do what Instagram just did to Snapchat. The microblogging site is following in YouTube’s footsteps. It wants to reward its most popular users with cash money if they create video content for the site. Twitter’s offering its top users a 70% (content creators) -30% (Twitter) split in revenue – a better deal than YouTube’s 55%-45% split. Not sure if the deal will help bring in creators though since YouTube and other similar platforms are so far ahead in the game.

MAKIN’ MOVES

Uber said “you can’t sit with us” to Alphabet’s Chief Legal Officer David Drummond. Since Uber and Google are actively working on self-driving projects, Drummond decided to step down from the ride-hailing company’s board.

Virtual Skinny: Open Up!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on August 26, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

8.26.2016

Good to Know: Need to kill some time on a Friday? Google ‘solitaire’ or ‘tic-tac-toe’ and get your game on…Enjoy!

THE SKINNY

When You’re Doing An About-Face …

Messaging app WhatsApp was hell-bent on protecting its users privacy, but things change.

When You’re Not Selling Out Completely …

To be fair, WhatsApp isn’t completely going back on its word. It just announced that it’ll be sharing ‘limited data’ (including phone numbers) with Facebook, it’s parent company. In case you forgot, FB bought WhatsApp for a whooping US $22 billion back in 2014.

When You’re Not Sure Why This Is Happening …

There are a number of reasons for the change. Better friend suggestions is one … Getting better FB ads and just having a better experience with the app generally are others … And, even helping businesses offer better customer service is also on the list. In other words, WhatsApp need to make money.

When You’re Trying to Be Open …

WhatsApp understands that this privacy policy change doesn’t look good, but it wants users to know that it’s encryption game is still hella strong. But if you’d rather be excluded from this narrative all together, you’ve got a couple of options. You can opt-out right away or within a month if you’ve already agreed to the app’s new terms.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’?

This week, rapper Frank Ocean released his long, looooooooong awaited album called, Blonde. Ocean released his latest work independently and got his work to the masses via iTunes and Apple Music. Turns out this is a nightmare scenario for record labels. If artists aren’t happy with their record label contracts, what’s stopping them from putting out music on their own then turning to music streaming services for distribution? Well, the answer is nothing (assuming the artist is no longer under contract). Record labels are shaking in their boots. We’ve even heard that Universal Music Group is banning ‘streaming exclusives’ for its artists. Ocean’s the first to break away from a major record label and do something like this. Now the question is … Who’s next? Bey? Drake? How much longer before music labels are a thing of the past?

See Something, Say Something …

Before we all started hating EpiPen maker Mylan for it’s ridiculously high prices for the live-saving allergy treatment, actress Mellini Kantayya learned about the whole thing via her Facebook friends back in July. Kantayya launched an online petition called ‘Stop the EpiPen Price Gouging, which went viral. Then, others jumped in on the ‘social’ discussion. Robyn O’Brien, founder of AllergyKids.com, started the ‘EpiGate’ hashtag. And just like that, the #EpiGate turned into one of the biggest news stories of the summer. Never underestimate the power of social media…

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Presidents and Wanna Be Presidents …

Check out this 11-minute video and President Obama’s Yosemite National Park visit in VR (formally known as virtual reality). The video is courtesy of Facebook-owned Oculus and VR content studio Felix and Paul Studios. Or skip the video and check out the President watching himself in VR.

President Barack Obama watches a virtual reality film captured during his trip to Yosemite National Park earlier this year, in the Outer Oval Office, Aug. 24, 2016. Personal aide Ferial Govashiri sits at her desk at left. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

These days you gotta meet people where they are … That’s why Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are forking over $$$ for ads on Snapchat. Video ads are where it’s at to reach America’s youth.

Cars You Drive and Those That Drive Themselves…

Somehow Uber managed to drain US $1.27 BILLION dollars in just 6 months. In Uber’s world, it’s literally a drop in the bucket. Price competition from Lyft and drivers’ subsidies are partly to blame. Speaking of Uber drivers, retirement plans are in their future (sort of). Uber’s linked up with robo-advisor Betterment to set up drivers with IRAs or Roth IRAs.

When you did it first … Singapore’s nuTonomy just became the first company to get the world’s first self-driving taxis on the road. Still in test mode but still a very big deal. Uber and Google are working on it but aren’t there yet.

Add Amazon to the automotive list. It’s launched a new hub to help those in the market for new rides compare specs, prices, and get smart before making a purchase. It’s all about building that ‘automotive community.’

How to Avoid Being Hangry …

More on Amazon … It’s taking a cue from Walmart. Shop groceries with the online retailer and then pick up your loot at a nearby drive-in location. No more wasting time by waiting for those deliveries at your door. Yay! That’s the plan at least… Amazon’s still testing things out.

Southern Global Hospitality…

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for home sharing service AirBnB as of late. It’s been dealing with some heavy subjects like racism and discrimination on the app. But, not every host on the app is a jerk. Over 300 hosts are taking in people for free that have been devastated by the natural disasters in Italy, Louisiana, and Cali. It’s all part of the company’s disaster response program. #GoodWork

Keep Me Entertained …

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. First Instagram, now Apple. The iPhone maker is working on a video feature reminiscent of Snapchat.

Pandora just got a new partner, and it makes sense. The Root’s Questlove and the music streaming service are doing a lil collabo called “Questlove Supreme,” a weekly radio show. The ‘black nerd version of NPR’ kicks off on Sept. 7.

Introducing Fans.com, a social network for all things concerts.

So, North Korea’s apparently working on a Netflix-type service called ‘ManBang.’ Interesting move since a ton of North Korean citizens aren’t even allowed to access the InterWebs. Things that make you go hmmm…

So Not Entertaining …

Internet trolls truly outdid themselves this week. If you remember, not too long ago the Cincinnati Zoo had to unfortunately take down Harambe (one of its gorillas). People were outraged and started trolling not only the zoo but it’s director on social. Things got so bad, the zoo said ‘screw this, we’re out.’ It got off of social.

Things went from bad to worse when we learned that also this week, Saturday Night Live and Ghostbusters star Leslie Jones was hacked. It’s been a rollercoaster summer for the celeb who was the target of vicious racist attacks on Twitter. We thought things calmed down, but that was a mistake. Hackers got access to some explicit pics of Leslie and her passport info then posted them to her official website (complete with racial remarks). The website’s been taken down, other celebs rallied behind Leslie, and the Department of Homeland Security is investigating. #DoBetter

MAKIN’ MOVES

Tech magazine Wired is losing another exec. Mark McClusky turned in his two-week notice and will be heading back to Sports Illustrated to run its digital division.

Virtual Skinny: Doing the Absolute Most…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on August 1, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

8.1.2016

Good to Know: Snapchat’s geofilters aka personalized filters could be the new hashtag. All the kids are doing it …

THE SKINNY

When You Need to Do the Absolute Most…

Alphabet’s Google, Facebook, and Twitter teamed up for a three-week, experimental collabo by using online videos to counter terrorist and extremist propaganda on their platforms. The social platforms are targeting teens and young adults that use words like “sharia” and “mujahideen” in their posts.

When You Need More Information…

Islamist radicals and far-right groups’ extremist propaganda and violent content on the InterWebs play a major role in terrorism. So, Internet companies are fighting back. They want to figure out what messages work to keep the youth from becoming full-blown radicals.

When You’re Not Trying to Hear It …

Young people are saying ‘no’ to government-sponsored messages. And ‘definitely maybe’ to videos shading jihadist groups, the Taliban, and white supremacist groups. The videos are courtesy of organizations like U.S. based Average Mohamed, Pakistan’s Harakat-ut-Taleem, and ExitUSA.

When You’re Not Sure It’s Working …

Are the videos working? Hard to tell. But, starting a discussion is always a positive first step. And for the most part, the videos are getting people chatting online about the videos.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

If They Ever Did That, I Think We’d Have a Cyber-Attack …

Remember that time someone hacked the U.S. Democratic National Committee’s (DNC) emails … Russia’s name came up as the potential culprit … Then, Donald Trump looked straight into a press camera and challenged Russians to find Hillary’s missing emails but later said ‘just kidding?‘ Of course you do, that was just last week. Well, security expert Bruce Schneier thinks things could get worse. Schneier says Russia could go after the nation’s voting machines come this November. He says the U.S. needs to get its cyber-defense game in order. And apparently, Internet voting is not the answer.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Looks like maps and driverless cars are on Uber’s 2016 vision board. The ride-hailing services just dropped a cool US $500 millie on a global mapping project so it can say “bye” to Google Maps. Oh and, Uber’s packing it in … at least in China. The company’s done competing with its Chinese rival Didi Chuxing and decided that both companies need to become one in a deal worth $35 billion.

Speaking of the Googler, navigational app Waze just released a new bomb feature called Child Reminder to make sure people don’t forget their kids in the car.

Interior design app Homee didn’t make the cut on Shark Tank, but Tinder co-founder Sean Rad happened to catch its episode. Rad decided to pony up hard cash for Homee. He’s its first investor. As they say, any publicity is good publicity …

Fresh off of exposing Taylor Swift’s B.S., Kanye West has made it clear that he’s done with Apple’s B.S. too. Word on the street is Apple wants to buy music service Tidal owned by West’s bestie Jay-Z. West tweeted “Apple give Jay his check for Tidal now and stop trying to act like you Steve.” And by Apple, we think he means Tim Cook. #ShotsFired

The Rio Olympics start this Friday. But if you’ve been paying attention, you know that many people (including athletes) will be skipping it on account of Brazil’s issues with Zika, its water supply, and general turmoil. Even if you won’t be in Brazil, Google’s is bringing the favela (aka slum) experience to you via Street View.

One more thing about the Olympics … Those that are going have much to complain about including an ‘uninhabitable’ Olympic Village and maybe even worse no access to Pokemon Go. #Messy

MAKING MOVES …

In the wake of the Verizon-Yahoo deal announcement, Verizon’s Marni Walden and AOL head Tim Armstrong got together at Yahoo’s Sunnyvale, CA HQ. The message to Yahoo employees was positive, but everyone’s well aware there’ll be issues joining both companies. A new company structure and potential unforeseen costs to name a couple.

Founder of CODE2040 Laura Weidman Powers is headed to Washington. For six months, she’ll be taking on the role as senior policy adviser to U.S. Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith. Diversity and inclusion in tech and entrepreneurship generally are at the top of her “to-do” list.

Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg is writing a second book tentatively called “Option B.” It’ll be about resilience. Sandberg has had to show quite a bit of it after the tragic and untimely passing of her husband last year.

Virtual Skinny: We Can Be Your Motivation…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on April 18, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

4.18.2016

Good to Know: Does your LinkedIn profile bring all the recruiters to the yard? If not, you’ll need three things: a strong headline, a well-written summary, and keywords. #MondayMotivation

THE SKINNY

When Presidents Are Just Like Us …

It’s his last year in office, and President Obama is telling us how he really feels. This time, he’s talking cable set-top boxes. Obama is not here for providers forcing you to rent old-school cable boxes from them.

When You Want to Know More…

Last Friday, he went on the record and made a public statement about the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s pending proposal to increase competition in the cable set-top box market. Obama thinks consumers are spending billions of dollars every year to rent those damn boxes and don’t even have a say in what they get. He’d like to see the market open up to innovative players like Internet and tech companies (e.g., Google, Amazon, and Apple).

When People Come For You …

The U.S. cable market is not happy with Obama’s latest revelation. Given Obama’s close ties to the tech industry, companies like AT&T say that Obama is simply giving a little shine to his political squad.

When You Let Your Haters Be Your Motivator…

While the cable market cries over spilled milk, the Obama Administration has filed its official comments re the FCC’s proposal. The Administration wants a “measured and balanced” plan to get the market competitive again. Based on the president’s 2016 State of the Union address, this is all part of the course.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

**If You Stay Ready, You Never Have to Get Ready …**

Looks like Verizon is prepping for the new cable set-top box market. It’s coming out with “Mallard,” a new device (complete with new interface features) to change-up how it offers cable and Internet services to FIOS users.

The European Union’s Back At It Again …

With an antitrust probe into Google. The company’s coming under fire in a couple of different ways. First, News Corp is the latest to question whether the Google machine’s search and news services are legal. And, EU regulators are gunning for mobile operating system Android. The EU thinks Google should let phone makers and operators do what they want. In other words, EU regulators are not cool with Google requiring phone makers to pre-load Google apps rather than allowing them to choose their own “app” adventure.

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

Amazon v. Netflix v. Hulu: Which Streaming Service Should You Got With? Check It Out …

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

In 2005, Mark Zuckerberg was just another “bro.” At the time, he described Facebook as “an online directory for colleges.” He’s come a long way …

IRL, Brazil’s government is getting ready to impeach its president Dilma Rousseff for cookin’ the country’s books for her 2014 re-election. The government’s lower chamber had no problem saying yes to Rouseff’s ousting. The Senate is up next. Meanwhile, Netflix is prepping for an original series based on Brazil’s political drams. The new show will be created by Jose Padilha, formerly of another Netflix original, “Narcos.” #MentalNotes #AddtoQue

What’s the Amazon version of “Netflix and Chill?” While you’re thinking about that, Amazon’s becoming more open. It’s going with a $9/month video-only subscription to compete with the ‘Flix.

Home-sharing service AirBnB is already in India, but now it’s taking market domination more seriously. Turns out India’s travel market could be worth a whopping US $40 billion within 5 years. How do we sign up?

When will this whole ordeal come to an end? Verizon may be the likely buyer of Yahoo. #OverIt

Virtual Skinny: No-no-no-NOTORIOUS!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on April 4, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

4.4.2016

Good to Know: Techies are notorious for acronyms. Here’s a guide to what letter combos like MVP (minimal viable product) and UV (unique viewers) mean.

THE SKINNY

When You Gotta Get Those Pay-pers …

The “Panama Papers” that is … Yesterday, the entire world learned about Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm at the center of what is being called the biggest leak of private documents to date. In other words, this leak makes Edward Snowden’s NSA leak look like child’s play.

When You Want to Know What’s Going On …

Well, it really took one push of a button. About a year ago, an anonymous source sent an encrypted message to German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ). The message contained documents leaked from the Panamanian law firm about shell companies and offshore accounts belonging to some major celebs, politicians, and even organizations (ahem, FIFA) that are no strangers to alleged corruption. Within a year, the stack grew to 2.6 terabytes of data. Basically, that’s enough information to fit onto just under 450 CDs (Remember those? Talk about Throwback!)…

**When You’re No-no-no-NOTORIOUS…**

After SZ got their hands on the docs, it sent the information over to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Apparently, sifting through these docs is a joint effort – 107 media companies (including BBC Panoroma) spread across 78 countries are involved. Already, we know that these docs discuss things like $2 billion that link to Russian president Vladimir Putin and his peeps, Iceland’s Prime Minister’s undeclared stakes in an offshore company, and members of FIFA.

When You Want No Misunderstandings …

To be clear, some shell companies are actually legit. For instance, the media believes Apple created shell company, SixtyEight Research, to secretly build a car with minimal media attention. Even tax avoidance (not to be confused with tax evasion) is on the up and up. But, other shell companies and offshore accounts are simply just criminal. From the looks of it, the “Panama Papers” could potentially expose what the world’s 1% are doing on the down low.

When You’re Getting The Popcorn Ready …

Redditors are fired up and ready to go, and the Twitterverse is already a buzz with people sounding off on the #panamapapers … *Sips tea*

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

It’ll Happen When The Time Is Right …

Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice dropped its case against Apple. It no longer needed the court’s help in compelling the company to help the U.S. government unlock an iPhone belonging to a terrorist in the San Bernardino attack. The government relied on technologists’ help and managed to unlock the iPhone. Now, the FBI is telling the law enforcement community that it’ll help them out in as soon as it’s cool under current law and policy. But, it may not work out that way. Reports say the solution is likely to leak, and Apple will likely jump on the leak with a quickness to fix the flaw.

MAP IT OUT…

Check out how the “Panama Papers” leak looks in comparison to some other major disclosures.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Fashion do(s) … Massachusetts Institute of Technology aka MIT, small textile company Warwick Mills, and the U.S. Department of Defense want to give the entire textile industry an upgrade. The collabo is focused on figuring out how to get tiny semiconductors into fabrics for seeing, hearing, communicating, warming up, and cooling down, etc. Think if your clothes were kind of like FitBits but better.

Ride-hailing companies like Uber and its Chinese competitor Didi Kuaidi are present in Latin America. But, now it’s a race to see who can dominate. All eyes are on Brazil. It’s kind of a big deal being the 5^th largest population in the world and all … Speaking of Uber, the company is making moves on the African continent. It’s coming soon to Ghana, Uganda, and Tanzania in June 2016.

Facebook Live, the social network’s live video feature, may just be another annoying notification to us regular folks, but media companies and amateurs are loving it. Drawing large audiences FTW …

eHarmony is known for matchmaking for dating, and now it wants to help folks find the right careers with new site, Elevated Careers.

Virtual Skinny: Friday!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on March 25, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

3.25.2016

Good to Know: Happy Friday! Focusing on others isn’t just the key to leading a happier life. It also helps when trying to get a job, allegedly.

THE SKINNY

When You Have Nothing But Good Intentions …

Microsoft thought it was doing a good thing when it introduced “Tay,” an AI chatbot, to the world earlier this week. The company built Tay to mimic stereotypical millennials’ “caszhh” speak aka casual speak by learning from 18-24 year olds Twitter and messaging apps Kik and GroupMe.

But, Then Things Went Left VERY Quickly …

Things started innocently enough with Tay responding with playful comments. But in just half a day, Tay transformed into your racist, homophobic, xenophobic, politically incorrect relative that you are forced to see at least once a year. Tay was spewing things like: “WE’RE GOING TO BUILD A WALL. AND MEXICO IS GOING TO PAY FOR IT.” We’ve heard that somewhere before …

When It’s Not Really All Jokes …

People could write this off as a joke. But can’t help but wonder, is this really a reflection our society? And, how much filtering safeguards are needed to avoid these offensive comments with the next AI chatbot? Tay went to bed (i.e., Microsoft shut it down” around midnight last night.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

When You’re Not Sure How To Feel …

Online streaming service Netflix took to its blog and dropped a major truth bomb on us. The company’s admitted that it’s been decreasing the quality of videos for users watching via telecom providers AT&T and Verizon Communications wireless networks for five years. Turns out this is what a telecom company gets for non-consumer friendly policies. Meanwhile, if you’re in the U.S. and can’t find anything to watch on your account. You’re not alone. AllFlick’s new report says Netflix’s catalog has shrunk by about 32% in the last two years.

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

If you need to connect with anyone between the ages of 13 and 24, e-mail is not the way. They’re 3.5x more likely to use messaging apps compared to 45+ year olds.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Apple’s first TV series will be an unscripted show that’s centered on something it knows well – apps. Musician will.i.am and TV producers Ben Silverman (former executive producer of The Office) and Howard Owens are in.

Snapchat reportedly dropped $100 mill Bitstrips, the company responsible for the Bitmoji app.

Google just made its Nik Collection, a collection of desktop plug-in, free. It would usually run you about US $149. #GoodDeal

Virtual Skinny: (Almost) Festival Season …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on March 10, 2016 in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

3.10.2016

Good to Know: It’s almost festival season … Super cool tech and music festival South by Southwest kicks off this weekend. Even, U.S. President Barack Obama is making a cameo. #Jelly

THE SKINNY

When You’re Trying to Get Your House in Order …

These days, we’re used to hearing about the Googles and the Facebooks of the world trying to bring Internet access to emerging and underrepresented areas. But, this week, President Obama is keeping things closer to home. The Administration announced new broadband plan for the U.S. called ConnectALL.

When Things Aren’t As They Seem …

Over the past 15 years, Internet access has been growing like gangbusters in America but is still very much out of reach for some households. ConnectALL intends to bring broadband access to underserved communities.

When You Need to Move, NOW …

The Administration is wasting no time and plans to kick off an immediate effort – a new digital literacy pilot project. Calling all, Americorps volunteers to help people step up their computer skills at libraries, museums, and other community centers located in these areas.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

When You Haven’t Over-Stayed Your Welcome …

The Obama Administration is coming out strong this week with yet another announcement. This time, it’s talking immigration policy for highly-skilled, foreign-born workers – always a hot topic in tech sector. Good news for foreign students studying science, technology, math, or engineering (STEM). After snatching up their diplomas, they’re now welcome to stay in the country for 3 years to get jobs and get their hands on those sometimes elusive H-1B visas aka work visas to stay state-side legally. But of course, not everyone’s happy on account of the counter-argument that this will take jobs away from Americans and all.

Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda …

Billionaire media mogul and former New York City Michael Bloomberg bowed out of getting into the U.S. presidential election as an independent. It’s unfortunate for some, including sharing economy companies like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, AirBnB, etc. The word is Bradley Tusk, who led Bloomberg’s NYC campaign, would’ve incorporated these services into Bloomberg’s would’ve-been campaign. Tusk figured since there’s no blue print to run as an independent, the sharing economy would’ve been the perfect match to get things going for field operations (e.g., hiring Ubers to get people to the polls). Oh, what would’ve been!

Real Quick …

While we’re on the election, former HP CEO and former Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina has officially backed Senator Ted Cruz in his bid … In case you didn’t get that. That’s Fiorina telling Cruz: Hello? It’s me. I was wondering if after all the months, I could be your potential VP.

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

About 47% of Americans surveyed are #TeamApple, and we’re not talking Apple Martin aka the daughter of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and rocker Chris Martin. Most Americans in a recent Pew survey are siding with the smartphone manufacturer in its beef with the U.S. government over encryption.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Not an astronaut? No worries, Amazon CEO and owner of space startup Blue Origins Jeff Bezos is working on test flights for regular folks beginning in 2017. The goal is to make things offisch by selling tix for short suborbital flights to us in 2018. Your move, Elon Tusk & SpaceX …

Anonymous messaging app Yik Yak is probably getting tired of always being in the middle of controversy. User names are now a thing for the app.

Facebook and Google want to share their data center designs with you via the Open Compute Project. It’s a win-win … People get to give these companies a hand in advancing Internet hardware and the companies get to keep their hardware costs low, low, low, low …

BTW, Facebook isn’t back down from competitor Snapchat. The OG social media platform (relatively speaking) just bought video filter app Msqrd.

It’s getting’ hot out there … You know what that means? Let the trip planning begin. Not sure where to go? Google it, duh! The search engine’s got a new feature called Destinations to help with your planning needs.

Instagram just pulled the kill-switch on “Being,” its app intended to give users an inside look into another user’s Insta for discovery purposes. Probably for the best on account of all its technical problems.