Careful what you read: There’s a lot of fake news circulating about former President Donald Trump’s would-be assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks, including a message posted to gaming platform Steam that appears to be phony. What researchers have found are Crooks’ laptop searches in July for President Biden, Trump and the DNC convention. No definitive word yet on his political views or motive.
Using iOS18 Reader Mode
iOS18 has a lot of cool features, including Reader Mode, Safari’s own personal ad blocker.
165% surge
In exterminator searches in the U.S., compared to 2023. Across the country, people are waging war with pests. Three times as many Yelp searches for cockroach exterminators have been completed than at this time last year. According to Yelp, California has the biggest rat problem. Bet you thought it was New York.
Sneak peek: Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Looks like they’re going all-in on AI, dubbing it “built for the Gemini era.” It’s expected to drop Aug. 13.
Police drone nabs a would-be burglar
Police in California nabbed a burglar near the Santa Monica Pier with a drone. The little guy spotted a car thief using a screwdriver to punch open locks in a parking lot. It called in officers and directed them to the exact location. Amazing, right?
🎾 My pickleball skills are kind of a big dill: Pickleball, the fastest-growing sport in the United States, is now a video game. PPA Pickleball Tour 2025 is available on Xbox, PlayStation and Steam. No word yet on whether the video game helps your real game.
1,198 investigations
Into serious crimes involving postal service mail in 2023, nearly double the total in 2019. There’s been a huge jump in robberies targeting mail carriers. Not so surprising when you consider there were 425 active Postal Police Officers in 2020 … and 3,000 in the 1980s.
Reading for dummies: A new app, Magibook AI, says it simplifies classic books using AI. Really, it strips away the original text and creates something lame. Case in point: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” becomes “It was a time when things were very good and very bad.” FYI: The app’s website was flagged for security for me, so I’m not passing it along.
Elon’s smiling: The Tesla Cybertruck is now the bestselling electric truck in America, dethroning Ford’s F-150 Lightning. There were 3,907 Cybertrucks registered in May, compared to 2,353 F-150s. Chopping fingers aside, it looks like folks don’t mind paying that $100,000 price tag after all.
6 minutes
To make a spray-on Olympic sneaker. Running company On makes its Cloudboom Strike LS shoe by spraying rubbery plastic onto a rotating robot foot. Kenyan silver medalist Hellen Obiri plans to race in them for the Paris marathon. Want a pair? You’ll have to wait until November … and pay $330.
🔴 Trump shooter update: The FBI successfully broke into the phone of the man who shot former President Donald Trump just two days after the assassination attempt. No word yet on the findings, but they’re continuing to analyze all his devices. If you have any info on the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, visit tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.
Airbnb won't stop hidden cams
At this point, I don’t even want to risk it. There are just too many scary stories — and I once stayed in a place loaded with cameras! Luckily, I was savvy enough to spot them.
Tesla hit-and-run crash
A Jeep plowed through an intersection in Nevada, hitting a Tesla. The Tesla immediately sped away from the scene. Its driver managed to get the EV under control, but they soon realized the Jeep had driven away, too. No word yet on whether the Tesla’s Autopilot or Full Self-Drive mode was enabled during the crash. Check out the video!
Is using a VPN unethical?
One of my readers was shocked I gave this as an idea to save some money renting a car abroad. What do you think?
Cyberattacks on our water supply
It’s happening more and more. I keep several extra cases of water on hand, just to be safe.
AI Avatars gone wrong
Miracle Grow is NOT a supplement you should be consuming. Please don’t believe everything you see online.
Hidden cameras in your bushes
Criminals want to get to know your schedule … so they know exactly the right time to attack. Beware of camouflaged cameras recording every time you leave the house.
8,815 objects
Shot into space in the past five years. Elon Musk is responsible for about 72% of that. Starlink satellites only have a five-year lifespan. Musk wants to put as many as 42,000 in orbit. Space junk could become a massive problem within our lifetime. At least we’ll have Mars or a new exoplanet. 🙄