Just a reminder that The Sizzle has gift cards - $70 and they get an entire year of the newsletter and forum access. Please buy dozens, ideally one for every person in your workplace. Thanks!!
Apple and Google have teamed up to create a new industry standard to "help combat the misuse of Bluetooth location-tracking devices for unwanted tracking" and allow for "Bluetooth location-tracking devices to be compatible with unauthorized tracking detection and alerts across iOS and Android platforms". Samsung, Tile, Chipolo, eufy Security, and Pebblebee have "expressed support" for the standard too, along with various safety and advocacy groups like the National Network to End Domestic Violence and the Center for Democracy & Technology. Apple and Google expect the standard to be in production by the end of 2023. Better late than never. The IEFT's website has a draft of the proposed standard for Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers.
The Writers Guild of America are on strike after negotiations with studios stopped, with one of the sticking points being the use of AI. The writers want a ban on AI being used as "source material" or for re-writing work and prevent AI from claiming credit for writing and therefore, lock out humans from getting the credit and the money an author would get. They also want to make sure AI isn't used to generate "literary material" (i.e: screenplays, outlines, etc). The Guild isn't totally anti-AI, as they think it's a useful tool in helping writers, but it seems to me they don't want to see humans removed from the writing process and studios trying to get out of paying writers by using AI. God speed.
Pornhub, along with all the other MindGeek brands like Brazzers, YouPorn, and Redtube have blocked the entire state of Utah from accessing the world's most popular porn sites, instead of implementing ID-based age verification as required by the state's new laws. In a statement uploaded to Vimeo, PornHub says that "the best and most effective solution for protecting children and adults alike is to identify users by their device and allow access to age restricted materials and websites based on that identification". Unsurprisingly, searches for VPNs in Utah have increased substantially. This is the exact kinda thing our beloved eSafety Commissioner wants to see implemented here,
Solar Quotes has the best EV ownership calculator I've ever seen. It's an Excel spreadsheet that takes into consideration every aspect of car ownership and lets you compare an EV you might be interested in buying to an ICE vehicle to see what the total cost of ownership is over the years. Even though you might be in the market for a $30k-$50k ICE car, an EV in the $50k-$70k price range might actually be cheaper if you intend to keep it for a few years. The only thing missing is the Victorian EV road usage tax, which can really cramp an EV's savings at 2.6c per km.
The following are scans of high quality polaroid photographs of the screen of the Xerox Star 8010 workstation on its launch in 1981. (Digibarn Computer Museum)
📻 Imagine Hearts - Ringo Deathstarr
😎 The Sizzle is curated by Anthony "decryption" Agius and emailed every weekday afternoon.
💬 Checked out the paid subscriber only forum? It's a tidy little place to discuss tech with like minded Aussies.
👋 Forums not your thing? The Sizzle has a Slack group you can procrastinate in and chat with other nerds bored at work.
💳 Paid subscriber looking to manage your billing info, change email address or cancel your subscription? Visit the customer portal.
🎁 Make someone's day and buy them a 12 month gift subscription to The Sizzle.
📚 Browse The Sizzle Archive. A few issues are missing and it's not searchable, but it's better than nothing.
🫂 Friends of The Sizzle is a small group of businesses or organisations operated by Sizzle subscribers. Support your fellow Sizzler!
💔 Tired of my bullshit? Unsubscribe and I'll never speak to you again.
The Sizzle is created on Wathaurong land and acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, recognising their continuing connection to land, water and community. I pay my respect to them and their cultures and to elders both past and present.