Drake's AI clone, AirTag stalking dilemma & avoid sneaky subscription fees

May 15, 2023

Plus, don’t throw away your old CDs! One guy has 400+ and I tell him how to digitize them like a pro. Also, is AI already killing people? Steve Wozniak thinks so. Why multitasking is impossible (and what to do instead), beware of restaurant QR code scams, tips for finding lost relatives and surfing the web without being tracked.

Tags: scams, tips and tricks

May 15 tech news roundup: Win on eBay, Google beta test, AI video giveaways

Every day in my email newsletter, The Current Tech News, I share the news you need to know. Like what you read? Get it in your inbox.

Win at eBay: New study analyzed 25 million transactions. When bidding, best to use a round percentage of the asking price. Say a seller wants $34. You’ll win the bid at $17 or 50% more often than had you bid $18 or 53%.

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What made the penny farthing so dangerous?

In the 1800s, before modern bicycles, there was the penny farthing. It’s the iconic bike with one giant wheel up front and a tiny wheel in the back. You might not know that it caused hundreds of injuries. Eventually, the modern bike came along and was initially called the “safety bicycle.” So, why was the penny farthing so dangerous and what was the reason for the giant wheel in the first place?

Have an idea for an app? Here's why you should go for it

Have an idea for an app? Go for it. Seriously. Apple says 90% of its developers are small, with fewer than 1 million downloads and less than $1 million a year in revenue. And as a group, their revenue grew by 87% in the U.S. over the last couple of years.

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The internet's not all bad

Donna Herter’s son, Christian Bowers, was lonely. He has Down syndrome and the 24-year-old had difficulty making friends after he left high school. Making friends as an adult is tough, so his mother took to Facebook. The comments went wild, and thousands of people offered to spend time with Christian with no payment necessary. And that was just the beginning.

BlackBerry movie trailer

Before the iPhone there was the BlackBerry. It’s the star of a new comedy about the tech that brought us to where we are today

Revive your old PC or Mac with this free download

Many computer users feel the need to keep their devices up to date with the latest hardware. After all, if you don’t have the latest components or accessories, your laptop or desktop computer might not be compatible. Tap or click here for seven laptop maintenance steps you should do regularly to keep yours happy.

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All the best FREE Harvard classes you can take online

Wouldn’t it be fun to tell people that you went to Harvard? Take a class online, and you can.

Score. Dozens of classes are available through edX at no cost. Just make an account and you’re good to go. Note: A verified certificate of completion will cost you. Be prepared to pony up at least $99. Totally not necessary if you’re doing it to learn something new.

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Space "trashsteroids" coming in hot

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s space junk hurtling toward your house! More than 170 million pieces of space junk are floating above us: Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites, old Chinese rocket boosters, dead Soviet satellites and a whole host of NASA shrapnel.

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Fun site turns your kid's or grandkid's drawings into animated characters

Is there anything more charming than a child’s drawing? You’d be hard-pressed to find it. What if we told you there’s an incredibly easy way to bring your child or grandchild’s latest masterpiece to life?

Animated Drawings by Meta AI Research utilizes the power of automation to do just that. All you have to do is upload any drawing, creating short animations featuring your child’s favorite artistic designs.

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5 ways you're killing your laptop’s battery without realizing it

Computers get faster and more advanced daily, but that doesn’t mean you should constantly upgrade. Here are essential laptop maintenance tips that’ll keep your rig running smoothly for a long time.

Batteries aren’t meant to last forever. The one in your laptop has a limited lifecycle, just like any other. You don’t want it dying when you’re in the middle of some big project, do you?

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