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Main News Topics

Walmart Gaming PCs

Source 1: lucmacman https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989373-walmart-gaming-pcs/?tab=comments#comment-11915231

Source 2: https://www.tomshardware.com/news/walmart-overpowered-gaming-pcs-desktop-laptop,37998.html

• Walmart has partnered with Esports Arena to create its Overpowered (OP) line of pre-built gaming desktops and laptops.

• The initial lineup is composed of two laptops and a desktop with unique specifications at different price points

  • The OP Gaming Desktop DTW1 is the entry model

    • Intel Core i7-8700

    • 16GB of memory

    • Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070

    • 256GB SSD and 2TB hard drive.

    • $1,399.

  • DTW2

    • Intel Core i7-8700

    • 32GB

    • Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080

    • 512GB SSD and a 2TB hard drive

    • $1,899 price tag.

  • DTW3 has similar specs to the DTW2 but with a 1080 Ti for $2,099.

  • Walmart backs up its gaming desktops with a one-year warranty but also offers extended coverage up to three years for an extra $58 and up to four years for $77.

• The OP Gaming Laptop is offered in three flavors as well.

  • OP Gaming Laptop 15

    • 15-inch screen with a 144Hz refresh rate

    • mechanical LED keyboard.

    • Intel Core i5-8300H quad-core processor,

    • 8GB of memory,

    • GTX 1050

    • 128GB SSD and 1TB hard drive.

    • $999.

  • OP Gaming Laptop 15+,

    • same screen and keyboard as the OP Gaming Laptop 15

    • Intel Core i7-8750H hexa-core processor,

    • 16GB of memory,

    • GTX 1060

    • 256GB SSD and 1TB hard drive.

    • $1,399.

  • OP Gaming Laptop 17

    • 17-inch 144Hz screen and a mechanical LED keyboard

    • i7-8750H,

    • 32GB RAM

    • GTX 1060

    • 256GB SSD and 2TB hard drive.

    • $1,699.

• All models available for pre-order now.

Apple quietly adds Radeon Vega GPU option to MacBook Pro

Source 1: captain_to_fire https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989738-mini-news-amidst-the-october-2018-apple-event-they-quietly-added-radeon-vega-as-a-discrete-gpu-option-for-the-15%E2%80%9D-macbook-pro/

Source 2: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2018/10/apple-to-offer-macbook-pros-with-amd-vega-graphics-starting-in-november/

• At their event this week, Apple quietly updated its MacBook Pro lineup with more graphics power.

• Apple will offer new versions of the MacBook Pro with AMD Radeon Pro Vega graphics chips, marking the first time Vega GPUs have been used in Apple's premium laptops.

• Apple claims the new GPUs will provide up to 60 percent better graphical performance than the existing offerings.

  • Currently, the best GPU available in a MacBook Pro is the Radeon Pro 560X.

• Apple hasn't announced pricing yet, but they will be available to order in November.

Apple slows down last year's iPhones with IOS 12.1

Source 1: AluminiumTech https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989304-apple-slows-down-last-years-iphones-with-ios-121-iphone-8-and-x-customers-beware/

Source 2: https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/10/31/18047174/iphone-x-8-plus-performance-throttling-battery-management-ios-12-1-update

• With iOS 12.1, Apple has brought its controversial “performance management feature” to the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and iPhone X.

  • This functionality throttles the phone’s processor as its battery degrades over time to stop the handset from randomly shutting down

  • it can be turned off if desired.

• Previously Apple has told US senators that “hardware updates” meant that the feature isn’t as necessary on its newest phones.

• Apple’s position is:

  • “iPhone 8 and later use a more advanced hardware and software design that provides a more accurate estimation of both power needs and the battery’s power capability to maximize overall system performance.

  • “This allows a different performance management system that more precisely allows iOS to anticipate and avoid an unexpected shutdown.

  • “As a result, the impacts of performance management may be less noticeable on iPhone 8 and later.

  • Over time, the rechargeable batteries in all iPhone models will diminish in their capacity and peak performance and will eventually need to be replaced.”

• Is this really that controversial?

Trusted Reviews pays £1 Million after Red Dead Redemption 2 leaks

Source 1: bitsandpieces https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/990086-trusted-reviews-agrees-to-pay-1-million-pounds-in-donations-in-the-case-of-red-dead-redemption-2-leaks/

Source 2: https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2018-11-01-website-pulls-red-dead-redemption-2-leak-story-gives-1m-settlement-fee-to-charity

• Trusted Reviews has pulled an article published in February 2018 that revealed unannounced gameplay details about Red Dead Redemption 2 - and donated a £1m settlement fee to charities of Rockstar's choice.

• At the time, the website said it received the documents in August 2017 "but decided not to share them, as they were unsubstantiated". However, in February 2018, after the information was validated by official promotional material, Trusted Reviews went ahead with the story, stating it had contacted Rockstar for comment.

• The link to the article has now been replaced by an apology:

  • "we published an article that was sourced from a confidential corporate document. We should have known this information was confidential and should not have published it.

  • “We unreservedly apologise to Take-Two Games and we have undertaken not to repeat such actions again.

  • “We have also agreed to donate over £1 million to charities chosen by Take-Two Games."

• Rockstar Games directed the settlement funds to these charities:

  • the American Indian College Fund,

  • the American Prairie Reserve,

  • the First Nations Development Institute."

What’s Coming Out on Floatplane? Go Over Current Week.

Rapid Fire

Apple launches "vintage" repair program for Mac and iPhone

Source 1: Dr.Macintosh https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989844-apple-launches-vintage-repair-program-for-mac-and-iphone/

Source 2: https://9to5mac.com/2018/11/01/apple-launches-vintage-repair-pilot-program-to-fix-aging-iphones-macbooks-and-more/

• Apple is introducing a new “Repair Vintage Apple Products Pilot” program that will extend the period of time customers can receive repairs for older devices

• Apple has a 5-7 year lifespan for repairing its products, meaning that owners can have repairs performed through Apple or an authorized service provider even when not under warranty.

• Usually after 5-7 years products are classified as “vintage” or “obsolete” (depending on the country and local laws) and Apple staff no longer offers parts or repairs.

• For the new Pilot program, Apple will be offering repairs for vintage devices based on part availability. The new program doesn’t guarantee you a repair.

• At first the program will include

  • iPhone 5 (GSM/CDMA)

  • MacBook Air (11 inch, Mid 2012)

  • MacBook Air (13 inch, Mid 2012)

  • iMac (21.5 inch, Mid 2011) – US and Turkey only

  • iMac (27 inch, Mid 2011) – US and Turkey only

• in the coming weeks Apple will add more devices that previously lost repair support.

  • Nov, 30, 2018

    • iPhone 4s

    • MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)

  • December, 30, 2018

    • MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012),

    • MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2013),

    • MacBook Pro (Retina, Mid 2012),

    • Mac Pro (Mid 2012),

    • iPhone 5 (GSM)

• The program covers the devices above at Apple stores and authorized service providers worldwide unless otherwise noted

Google stealth-launches Waymo self-driving car service

Source 1: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2018/10/waymos-excruciatingly-gradual-launch-process-explained/

Source 2:

• Waymo has begun commercial operations of its self-driving taxi service - And it made the announcement in the most anticlimactic way possible: in answer to a question during Alphabet's quarterly earnings call.

  • “We moved into very early days of commercialization," in the third quarter

  • "We do now have people paying for rides."

• Waymo has also earned some revenue from retailers, like Wal-Mart, which offers customers the option to order groceries online and then come pick them up in a Waymo vehicle

• Cars with paying customers still have safety drivers behind the wheel (some other vehicles are fully driverless).

• The program isn't fully open to the public—you have to be one of Waymo's hand-picked early riders and agree to strict non-disclosure rules.

• Timeline:

  • In April 2017, Waymo announced its early rider program, which allows ordinary residents of the Phoenix area to ride in Waymo's vehicles—albeit with a safety driver and no money changing hands.

  • In November, Waymo announced that it would begin testing fully driverless cars on public roads.

  • This summer, Waymo announced a series of commercial partnerships.

    • Waymo will transport customers to Wal-Mart to pick up groceries.

    • It will transport employees—and perhaps later customers—of the region's transit agency to and from local transit stops

  • Around the same time, Waymo had begun showing customers potential prices for their rides

  • sometime between July and September customers began paying Waymo directly for their rides in the self-driving cars.

• At launch, Waymo will only offer service in one part of the Phoenix metropolitan area but will expand the service territory over time.

India’s First Microprocessor

Source 1: ujjwall https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/990018-risc-v-iit-madras-develops-india%E2%80%99s-first-microprocessor/

Source 2: https://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/iit-madras-develops-indias-first-microprocessor-shakti/articleshow/66464172.cms?from=mdr

• Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IITM) have developed the first RISC V Microprocessor to be completely designed and made india

• Shakti can be used in low-power wireless systems and networking systems

• It reduces India’s reliance on imported microprocessors in comms and defence sectors

• It can also be used by others as it adheres to international standards

WhatsApp Finally getting ads

Source 1: kevin222 https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989735-whatsapp-found-a-place-to-show-you-ads/

Source 2: https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/1/18051294/whatsapp-status-advert-instagram-stories

• Earlier this year, WhatsApp launched a feature called ‘Status’ which is essentially the same as Stories on Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat.

• They’ve now announced that they will be putting ads in Status.

• There’s no timeline but Facebook has previously stated that ads would come to WhatsApp in 2019.

• The WhatsApp founders left in 2017, motivated in part by Facebook exploring advertising-based revenue models for the service without consulting them.

• Facebook bought whatsapp in 2014 for $19B

Tested: Who should die in an autonomous car crash?

Source 1: Master Disaster click the sources for pictures https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/987657-mit-posts-results-of-a-4-year-global-study-into-the-morality-of-driverless-vehicles-who-should-they-save-in-a-crash/

Source 2: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-45991093

• Who should a self-driving car kill in an unavoidable crash?

• For the last 4 years MIT have been running a global study into the morality of driverless vehicles and have just published their findings

• People were presented with several scenarios. Should a self-driving car sacrifice its passengers or swerve to hit:

  • a successful business person?

  • a known criminal?

  • a group of elderly people?

  • a herd of cows?

  • pedestrians who were crossing the road when they were told to wait?

• The results from 40 million decisions suggested people preferred to

  • save humans rather than animals,

  • spare as many lives as possible,

  • tended to save young over elderly people.

• Respondents’ age, gender and religious views did not have a "sizeable impact" on the decisions people made.

• Germany has already introduced a law that states driverless cars must avoid injury or death at all cost.

Google now requires Javascript to sign in

Source 1: RollTime https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/989794-google-changes-sign-in-you-now-need-javascript-to-sign-in/

Source 2: https://www.techradar.com/news/google-bumps-up-sign-in-security

Source 3: https://security.googleblog.com/2018/10/announcing-some-security-treats-to.html

• Google has announced a number of new features to help secure the sign-in process as well as how you use your account.

• It now requires that JavaScript be enabled when

  • logging in

  • removing harmful apps during Security Checkup with Play Protect

    • According to Google, just 0.1 per cent of users do not have JavaScript enabled

2700+ Windows games now run on Linux

Source 1: MEC-777 https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/988915-over-2500-windows-games-now-run-in-linux-thanks-to-proton/

Source 2: https://www.protondb.com/

• Proton is a new tool  that’s has been integrated with Steam Play to make playing Windows games on Linux as simple as hitting the Play button within Steam.

• Proton is still in its infancy so support is inconsistent but regularly improving, and the list of supported Windows games is growing each day.

• The project already has over 2,700 Windows games that work on Linux with Proton and Steam Play.

• Beyond those supported "whitelisted" games, there are several others that although not-whitelisted are supported and "play just as well as on Windows".

  • "No Man's Sky",

  • "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt",

  • "Wolfenstein: The New Order"

  • "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim".

    • Any user can contribute and report about the titles in his game library thanks to ProtonDB.

Pizza Truck

Source 1: rcmaehl https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/990105-t%CC%B6h%CC%B6a%CC%B6n%CC%B6o%CC%B6s%CC%B6-pizza-truck-pizza-truck-pizza-huts-prototype-truck-robotically-makes-your-pizza/

Source 2: https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-pizza-hut-robot-pizza-truck-20181030-story.html

• Pizza Hut has unveiled a robot-operated mobile pizza factory in the bed of a modified Toyota Tundra.

• The prototype will use automated technology to cook pies on-the-go in six to seven minutes, letting the chain expand its delivery area without the pizzas getting cold.

  • “The more we can get closer to their homes or the point of delivery, the better and hotter the product will be."

• There's no target date for the robotic pizza-maker's debut

First. Also, the Proton software entices me more to get back into a dual-boot config  Manjaro most likely (since I decided to leave ElementaryOS behind)...

Rip my October 30th Apple hardware coverage thread was not noticed T.T At least I got the repair program one

I think that's pretty much all.... CUT THE STREAM!

14 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Rip my October 30th Apple hardware coverage thread was not noticed T.T At least I got the repair program one

 

  Reveal hidden contents

(and how can you feature a locked thread on the WAN show? >~<)

 

Ask James. I think he’s the one responsible for the WAN show document. 

When it comes to the Walmart PCs, honestly I was expecting GT 1030s or worse with the highest possible VRAM amount (because, you know, VRAM quantity is the most important stat) and either i3s, or if you're lucky, i7s just for the label, not because it's actually good, regardless of if it is good or not, so to see actually good specs is a good start.  Now they just have to not have the rest be total garbage and this could be interesting.

The walmart PCs looked great. I think people hate walmart just because its a meme to hate them. They have really improved over the past few years.

Speaking of custom body pillows

9 hours ago, poochyena said:

The walmart PCs looked great. I think people hate walmart just because its a meme to hate them. They have really improved over the past few years.

They're way too expensive.

After I held Nokia 3310, the new one, I came to realization I only really look for higher tier phones because of:

a) better camera

b) basic browsing

c) glass screen that doesn't scratch as easily as plastic one

Which makes me wonder, why no one makes a bigger screen and really decent camera dumb phone that also comes preloaded with Opera browser? Not like overly stupid oversized, but a dumb phone packing like a 600x1000 glass screen, decent 5+ Mpix AF camera with LED flash, full fledged Opera browser (same as the one on Android). In a nutshell, it can be a touch screen (or even hybrid like one of last old Nokia phones with keyboard and touch screen), but in bar sized format without excessive features count. Even I'd want that quite frankly. Camera is a must because no one carries a dedicated camera around, but you always have a phone. Browser to look up basic stuff and that's it. Oh and pack a huge battery with it for days of care free usage.

1 hour ago, JoostinOnline said:

They're way too expensive.

?? They are only ~15% more expensive than if you were to build it yourself which is very reasonable. Are you expecting the labor to put together a PC to be free or even cheaper?

16 minutes ago, poochyena said:

?? They are only ~15% more expensive than if you were to build it yourself which is very reasonable. Are you expecting the labor to put together a PC to be free or even cheaper?

1) They're definitely more expensive than that

2) Even if they was right, you're failing to consider that they don't pay retail for the parts.

4 hours ago, JoostinOnline said:

1) They're definitely more expensive than that 

2) Even if they was right, you're failing to consider that they don't pay retail for the parts.

1

2 how am I failing to consider that?

3 hours ago, poochyena said:

1

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor	$308.99 @ Walmart
CPU Cooler	ARCTIC - Alpine 11 Plus Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler	$12.27 @ OutletPC
Motherboard	MSI - H310-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard	$63.98 @ Newegg
Memory	Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory	$134.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$40.15 @ Amazon
Storage	Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	$58.89 @ OutletPC
Video Card	MSI - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Video Card	$379.99 @ Newegg
Case	Deepcool - TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case	$39.99 @ Newegg
Power Supply	Corsair - CXM (2015) 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply	$49.89 @ OutletPC
Operating System	Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit	$94.89 @ OutletPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$1244.03
	Mail-in rebates	-$60.00
	Total	$1184.03
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-03 16:44 EDT-0400

2 how am I failing to consider that?

This is probably much closer to what you're getting:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant  CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  ($308.99 @ Walmart)  Motherboard: Gigabyte - H310M A Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($49.49 @ Amazon)  Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory  ($108.99 @ Newegg)  Storage: Patriot - Burst 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($36.89 @ OutletPC)  Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($58.89 @ OutletPC)  Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Windforce OC Video Card  ($374.98 @ Newegg)  Case: Deepcool - TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case  ($39.99 @ Newegg)  Power Supply: EVGA - BT 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($31.76 @ Monoprice)  Total: $1009.98 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-03 20:39 EDT-0400

Nobody knowledgeable pays $100 for Windows.

2 hours ago, JoostinOnline said:

Nobody knowledgeable pays $100 for Windows.

what? Aside from the fact that doesn't make any sense, the fact is a company selling PCs with Windows will have to pay for those licenses so that does need to be factored in.

Just want to point out, the first ROG board that ever came out to the market was actually, the Asus Crosshair for AMD socket AM2.

10 hours ago, Ryan_Vickers said:

what? Aside from the fact that doesn't make any sense, the fact is a company selling PCs with Windows will have to pay for those licenses so that does need to be factored in.

They don't pay anywhere near $100. And they pay less for every item on the "build it yourself" option. Pre-builts often cost less than it does to  build it yourself, because they get such large savings buying in bulk.

7 hours ago, JoostinOnline said:

They don't pay anywhere near $100. And they pay less for every item on the "build it yourself" option. Pre-builts often cost less than it does to  build it yourself, because they get such large savings buying in bulk.

For sure, but they're also offering extras you don't get with a custom build (warranty/service on the whole thing), and none of this explains your original comment anyway.  You still have to factor some value for Windows into the prebuilt, and frankly, I think it should even be the full amount because even if that's not what the OEM is paying, it is what you need to pay to get it yourself, unless you're going through sketchy/illegal means, in which case again, it's not fair to compare to the OEM system since a) the company can't get away with that, b) that comes with potential problems you won't get with a license, and c) it's certainly not standard practice for "anyone knowledgeable".

19 hours ago, Ryan_Vickers said:

For sure, but they're also offering extras you don't get with a custom build (warranty/service on the whole thing), and none of this explains your original comment anyway.  You still have to factor some value for Windows into the prebuilt, and frankly, I think it should even be the full amount because even if that's not what the OEM is paying, it is what you need to pay to get it yourself, unless you're going through sketchy/illegal means, in which case again, it's not fair to compare to the OEM system since a) the company can't get away with that, b) that comes with potential problems you won't get with a license, and c) it's certainly not standard practice for "anyone knowledgeable".

True, it wasn't fair for me to just remove Windows completely from the budget. However, there's a $400 difference.

It's the other two desktops that really jumped out at me and first provoked my response. That's where the gap gets really big. They're marketing these to esports players as well, and 32GB of RAM isn't going to help you there. I can't see myself ever recommending these computers as a good value. My guess is the people buying this are rich parents who don't know what's good, and just get the most expensive thing they can.

WAN show is great and I enjoy the rants. But if you want your rants to be heard they should probably get their own video since only a portion of your subs watches the WAN show. You should have one of the writers just go through WAN show for rants and create a new series based on them.

WAN has become and always was a show about the hosts weekly experiences and rants about stuff from years ago. It just so happens you have had more stuff on your plates since before and so more stuff to talk about. WAN show should be longer and there should be a 3rd host at least as a chat mod.

Google self driving cars eh, now Google will know exactly where you go whether it be the strip club or the grocery store or the Nevada brothel ranch.

10 hours ago, VegetableStu said:

how about News/Tech Discussion/Rant highlights from WAN on Techlinked?

(maybe 1 minute-ish. if one wants the full monty there's the timestamp in the WAN show description)

Like how News shows have a recap segment that covers things super fast. I like this idea. I would also prefer a separate video that consisted of rants from older WAN shows. Your idea would be great to do from now on, but there are so many golden segments from previous WAN shows that it would be a shame to not show them again.