On Android, it’s easy to install older versions of apps on your device through sideloading. However, iOS tends to lock things to the App Store, in the name of user safety (and, of course, money). If an app no longer supports your device, you’ll likely see yourself blocked from downloading it. But as it happens, iOS has a built-in solution for this issue—one it doesn’t advertise.

To download old versions of apps that will run on your unsupported device, open the App Store, then tap your profile icon in the top right, and go to Purchases. Here, you’ll see a chronological listing of every app you’ve ever downloaded from this Apple ID (which you can use to figure out the first app you ever downloaded, if you’re curious). Scroll back until you find an app you’d like to have on your device, but is technically not supported, then tap the adjacent iCloud download symbol.

After you wait for the system to load, you’ll see an alert telling you the current app is not supported on your device, but an older version is. From here, tap “Download,” and an older, supported version will install on your iPhone or iPad. After that, you’re in.

More info about what to do if you never bought the app in the past at the link below.

See https://lifehacker.com/how-to-install-unsupported-apps-on-older-iphones-1849485024

#technology #iPhone #unsupported #oldapps

Apart from the US$10 per month cost, I'm not sure that sharing your Apple ID to a third party, is worth the risk. I suppose for a very select few, the convenience may outweigh all of this.

The older way of having an Apple device such as a Macbook was certainly a lot more secure, especially if that could be run from a virtual machine.

All of this really should not be necessary if we had Big Tech actually working together to find ways to interconnect. Yes we have WhatsApp (well you have it, not me), and Telegram, Signal, XMPP, etc, but they are all voluntary 3rd party apps that everyone has to install (and they don't).

I just feel the instant messaging bubble(s) surely have to pop at some point soon. Maybe Google, Apple, etc must agree to use none of their products they're punting, and we all go back to using XMPP!

See https://9to5mac.com/2022/08/30/beeper-imessage-on-android-windows

#technology #messaging #iMessage #Android #Beeper

Popular open-source streaming software OBS Studio is getting some new features, including AI-powered virtual backgrounds from Nvidia Broadcast that allow you to change your virtual environment without using a green screen.

Previously, it was possible to use a virtual green screen in OBS via plugins, but Nvidia Broadcast will make the feature much more accessible. Those who use an Nvidia RTX graphics card could probably already have the software installed (unless you are on Linux), and Nvidia Broadcast also integrates with lots of popular streaming hardware and applications.

Nvidia Broadcast is only available for Windows, but the Video and Audio AI SDKs it uses are available for Linux too, but not yet public...

There are other non-Nvidia Broadcast features coming to the service, such as support for high-efficiency video coding (HEVC or H.265) and high-dynamic range (HDR). macOS/Linux support get limited support.

From Nvidia's site: With OBS version 28, you can stream with HEVC to platforms that support it. HEVC is an improved codec that provides 15% better encoding efficiency than H.264 (i.e. it provides quality as if you streamed with 15% more bitrate). HEVC - and OBS version 28 - also allow you to record and stream HDR content. NVENC is NVIDIA’s encoder. It’s a physical section of our GPUs that is dedicated to encoding only. This means that your GPU can operate normally regardless of whether you use this region to stream or record. Other encoders, such as x264, use your CPU to encode, which takes resources away from other programs such as your game. That’s why using NVENC allows you to play games at a higher framerate and avoid stuttering, giving you and your viewers a better experience.

The encoding side should work fine on Linux as well, as I see it active on my Manjaro Linux machine.

See https://www.theverge.com/2022/8/31/23330379/nvidia-broadcast-virtual-green-screen-obs-studio-support

#technology #OBSStudio #streaming #screencasting #gaming

Devs describe it as ‘an alternative software store for the Ubuntu Desktop made with Flutter‘, the app-development tech Ubuntu is all-in on. It’s not developed by Canonical (though Canonical employees do contribute to the code) and there’s no suggestion it’ll ever ship by default on the OS itself.

It doesn’t have a name yet, nor any branding, and as it’s still in active development there are only alpha-quality snapshots to play with.

The app is fast, it has an adaptive UI, and it makes it so easy to search for, install, and manage Snap apps (through the snapd Dart library). It can also handle the installation of software distributed as a .deb (through the PackageKit Dart library).

See https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2022/08/new-unofficial-ubuntu-software-app-flutter

#technology #opensource #Ubuntu #softwarestore

Until Monday, Walmart shoppers could grab an incredible deal: a massive solid state hard drive (SSD) for the incredible price of $17.99. Often, similar drives go for much more, depending on their size. Generally, a TB of storage on an SSD can cost between $50 to $100.

A cybersecurity researcher bought the same item from AliExpress and took it apart. Walmart removed the hard drive after Motherboard contacted the company.

See https://www.vice.com/en/article/akek8e/walmart-30tb-ssd-hard-drive-scam-sd-cards

#technology #scams #fraud

Cloud server dependence is a recurring problem with smart home devices.

Yet another one... which is why it is always absolute first prize to get a device with MQTT or Modbus comms so that you can monitor and manage it from something free at home like Home Assistant. But of course, most vendors often don't want you to do that.

But there may be a way with this device. SmartDry will become a tiny brick inside your dryer unless you're willing to procure a little ESP32 development board, load some code onto it, plug it in near your dryer, and set up your own alerts in your Home Assistant server. If you had a first-generation SmartDry, this would actually be a slight improvement, as those devices used Espressif ESP32 chips with a forever vulnerability.

See https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/08/smartdrys-useful-laundry-sensor-to-be-cloud-bricked-next-month/

#technology #cloudservice #homeassistant

Just when you thought there wasn’t anything else you could add to wireless headphones, JBL comes along and debuts the Tour Pro 2, featuring the “world’s first” smart charging case. The charging case has a 1.45-inch LED touch display that can be used to manage your music, customize the sound of the earbuds, and receive calls. You can even receive messages from your phone and social media notifications.

See https://www.xda-developers.com/jbl-tour-pro-2-and-tour-one-m2/

#technology #JBL #earbuds

The EV6’s V2L can output up to 3.6kW, more than enough for several fairly power-hungry appliances running simultaneously. For reference, entry-level generators in South Africa have an output of 650W and are reasonably cheap at around R2,000 to R3,000.

For those concerned about draining their battery and being unable to drive, the EV6 offers a discharge level limiter, which stops discharging electricity automatically when the battery reaches a specific capacity.

In the US, the EV6 retails for roughly $43,000 (R733,129, excl. taxes), but that should not be seen as a direct indication of the price for the local market. So it will likely go from about R731,000 to R1,2 million, as South Africa is one of the few countries (only one?) to charge an even higher import duty on EVs than for imported combustion engine vehicles.

SA's hope anyway really will lie with the cheaper EV's from India and China, because even the R731,000 price tag is not affordable for the average South African (even if the operating costs are a lot cheaper for EVs).

See https://mybroadband.co.za/news/energy/457705-kias-impressive-ev6-is-coming-to-south-africa-with-load-shedding-backup-power-for-your-home.html

#environment #Kia #EV #SouthAfrica

Yes, Google came out tops recently in a study of how many data points per user is tracked. This app (Linux for now) goes some way to also helping to make that audible.

GoogleTeller makes a short “blip” sound each time your data is sent to one of Google’s public IP addresses.

Some context is needed, though: If you have predictive search on for Google Search, it does have to send every keystroke through as you type in their search bar. Also, whilst scrolling on many sites, the data being sent to Google, is likely from the site owner making use of Google AdSense or similar product for analytics. Where you pause or click on a webpage (or Facebook owned site), is terribly valuable to advertisers.

It is all about this metadata that gets collected to map out patterns of behaviour, to "better serve you with personalised adverts that may interest you". And of course it pays for the websites, so you don't have to pay (with money, that is).

GoogleTeller works for now on Linux, but for Firefox users there is a new extension on Github at rugk/googerteller that will probably work cross-platform.

But consider it more of a fun project, than something serious, as the specific Google IP addresses may also be used for other purposes.

See https://lifehacker.com/this-free-app-alerts-you-whenever-google-collects-your-1849453277

#technology #tracking #googleteller #privacy #opensource