New Technology : Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Launches First Suborbital Rocket

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What is it with tech billionaires and space? Something about making a pile of cash in Silicon Valley seems to inspire a pressing urge to get off the planet. Elon Musk’s SpaceX is changing the economics of orbital payloads, and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic has opened up space tourism to anyone with $250,000 and a dream. Now, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos wants to get in on the action. Bezos’ company is called Blue Origin, and yesterday they semi-successfully ran the first test of their flagship craft, the “New Shepard”. What is a Suborbital Rocket? The New Shepard, like Virgin Galactic’s...

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New Technology : How Often Do You Check Your Smartphone? [MakeUseOf Poll]

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Some people seem to be permanently glued to their smartphone, checking it constantly and consistently throughout the day. Other people barely even bother with their smartphone, only checking it when they absolutely have to do so. Which of these camps do you belong to? Or are you somewhere between the two. Welcome to this week’s MakeUseOf Poll, all about your personal level of smartphone usage. Arrr, Me Hearties! To answer this week’s question please scroll down the page until you see the Poll staring back at you. But first, we need to look at the results from last week, when...

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New Technology : Use Your Computer the Right Way to Increase Productivity

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Many of us spend more time with our computer , than we spend in bed every night. You’d think we’d all be pros at handling a computer, especially at work, where it’s one of our most essential tools. The problem is, most of us never learned how to use computers that way. The beauty is, productivity is a mindset and you can teach yourself. You can identify sub-optimal habits, find better ways of doing things, and improve. Bit by bit you reduce friction, which conserves energy and time for the things that really matter. This process can be tough. Maybe...

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New Technology : Can You Use Your Controller With A Game That Does Not Recognize It?

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Gaming with a controller is considered by many to be the ideal method. In different forms they have been the primary input device in the console world, and they now feature prominently in computer games. So, you have just purchased a new PC game that has glowing reviews from a number of places, you plug in your controller in eager anticipation and … oh, no, not recognized! Don’t despair there is a way to solve the problem. Read on to discover how. The Software Solution As is often the case when one thing does not play happily with another in...

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New Technology : The Day the Music Died: A Grooveshark Retrospective

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Grooveshark is dead. Killed after 10 years by record labels baying for blood. The music streaming service famously offered free streaming of seemingly every song, and infamously did so without licenses. It’s kind of surprising the site stayed online as long as it did – it took until April 30, 2015 for the site to be taken offline entirely, after nearly a decade of controversy. As of now, would-be users are treated to a message instead of music: We failed to secure licenses from rights holders for the vast amount of music on the service. That was wrong. We apologize. Without reservation. –...

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New Technology : May the 4th Be With You: Get Huge Deals on Star Wars Games Right Now

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May the 4th—a day for celebration of everything Star Wars—is quickly approaching, and with it come some great deals on Star Wars video games. Whether you’re looking for the classics from twenty years ago or the latest and greatest, here’s where you’ll find good deals on some of the best Star Wars games out there. The Classics on PC If you’re looking for some of the earlier Star Wars games (at least in the post-Atari age), GOG.com—a great alternative to Steam—is having a sale that will help you stock your computer with a bunch of good options. From now until May...

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New Technology : Watch Artists Work In Real-Time on These 4 Twitch Channels

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Digital art can be intimidating. If you’re used to using paper and pencil, or inking and painting, making the switch to a mouse or stylus can be an experience fraught with challenges. But it doesn’t have to be. Digital creativity is a skill where online tutorials can prove tremendously helpful. Whether in text or video form, guides are essential for getting your head (and your hands!) around staring at a monitor instead of a piece of paper, selecting the right digital tools, etc. But what’s even more helpful is watching live experts draw and teach in real time. Where can you...

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New Technology : 5 Apps for Getting More out of Wikipedia

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Wikipedia is one of the most popular sites on the planet, and with good reason: it’s the fastest way to get an overview of almost any topic. And while it’s not a site without controversy, it’s hard to imagine the web without it. Today Cool Websites and Games gives you tools for getting more out of Wikipedia, from alternative interfaces to games that force you to explore articles and think creatively. Let’s get started! Minimal Wikipedia (Web): Prettier Version of Wikipedia Wikipedia is among humanity’s greatest accomplishments – volunteers all over the planet work to give the world free access...

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New Technology : What Type of Social Media Personality Are You?

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There are a lot of people on the Internet using social media. People of all kinds take to sites like Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Instagram, and a slew of others to share their thoughts, photos, videos, and more with their friends and strangers alike. Of these people, most tend to fall into certain categories. Whether it’s the over sharer, the person who loves posting photos of their kids, or the balanced individual who does a bit of everything, it’s likely that you fit into one of these categories. So how are you to figure out which kind of social media...

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New Technology : 6 Books About Online Privacy & Security You Need to Read

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As online privacy and security continue to be spicy hot topics, a whole range of high quality books are being written on the subject. If you have any interest at all in this subject, you should never have a shortage of reading material, as experts in these fields give their opinions, and tell stories, on a wide range of related topics. I have scoured the hidden depths of my Amazon Kindle to find six books about online privacy and security you absolutely need to read. Dragnet Nation – Julia Angwin I have previously mentioned Dragnet Nation in my article about...

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