• YouTube is intensifying efforts to combat adblockers, including blocking video playback and warning users of potential account suspension.
• Increased ads on YouTube have driven many users to adblockers, hurting both YouTube’s ad revenue and content creators reliant on ad-based income.
• Despite these measures, many users are leaving YouTube or finding workarounds, leading creators to seek alternative revenue streams off-platform.

• Deborah Ann Woll gave Jon Bernthal an engaging introduction to Dungeons & Dragons on his podcast, explaining character creation and gameplay in a fun and accessible way.
• Woll’s approach focuses on storytelling and immersing players in the world rather than overwhelming them with character sheets and rules, making D&D more appealing to newcomers.
• The video highlights the universal appeal of D&D, where both Hollywood stars and regular players can connect and enjoy the game together.

• Judge James Donato intends to dismantle Google’s Android app store monopoly, following an earlier ruling declaring it illegal.
• Google argued that opening its store to competitors would be too costly and complex, but the judge dismissed this claim, emphasizing that barriers will be removed.
• Proposed remedies include banning discriminatory practices against rival app stores and setting up a committee to monitor compliance and report regularly.

• Firefox Nightly 131 introduces vertical tabs and an improved sidebar, enhancing tab management and multitasking for users with many open tabs.
• The vertical tabs feature, similar to Microsoft Edge, keeps tabs organized on the left-hand side and can be customized via Firefox Labs settings.
• Additional features include AI chatbot integration in the sidebar and ongoing development of tab grouping and profile management tools.

• Sen. JD Vance recounted being asked if he had a "secret family" during the vice presidential vetting process, which he found intrusive and bizarre, especially since his wife was present.
• Vance described the vetting process as detailed and intrusive, including questions about potential family criticisms and criminal history.
• Politicians undergoing vice presidential vetting often face extensive scrutiny to prepare for media examination, highlighting past examples like Herschel Walker and John Edwards who had hidden children.

“Christians, get out and vote, just this time,” Trump exclaimed to a cheering crowd in West Palm Beach, Fla.

“You won’t have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what, it will be fixed, it will be fine, you won’t have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians” he added.

“I love you Christians. I’m a Christian. I love you, get out, you gotta get out and vote. In four years, you don’t have to vote again, we’ll have it fixed so good you’re not going to have to vote,” Trump said.

• Proton VPN doesn't use RAM-only servers, arguing they offer no additional security over full-disk encryption on hard drives.
• Full-disk encryption ensures data on hard drives is secure and inaccessible without proper authentication, even when servers are powered off.
• Proton VPN prioritizes a strict no-logs policy, independent audits, and operating servers in privacy-friendly jurisdictions to protect user privacy.

“The implication here is that any code committed to a public repository may be accessible forever as long as there is at least one fork of that repository,” the report’s authors claim.

Am I dumb or is this exactly the purpose of forks? I feel like I'm missing something.

• Travelers can opt out of facial recognition at US airports by requesting manual ID verification, though resistance or intimidation may occur.
• Facial recognition poses privacy risks, including potential data breaches, misidentification, and normalization of surveillance.
• The Algorithmic Justice League's "Freedom Flyers" campaign aims to raise awareness of these issues and encourage passengers to exercise their right to opt out.

#killedbygoogle

• Google's URL shortening service goo.gl links will stop working on August 25th, 2025, resulting in 404 errors.
• Starting August 23rd, 2024, goo.gl links will show an interstitial page warning users of the upcoming shutdown.
• Google initially suggested migrating to Firebase Dynamic Links (FDL), which has also since been deprecated.

• A global Microsoft Windows outage, caused by a CrowdStrike software update, has disrupted airlines, banking services, and 911 lines, leading to grounded flights and long queues.
• The issue resulted in many systems experiencing the “Blue Screen of Death” (BSOD), affecting major carriers and airports worldwide, and also impacted the London Stock Exchange and Australian banking systems.
• CrowdStrike has identified and isolated the defect, deploying a fix, but recovery is expected to be slow due to the need for manual intervention on affected devices.

• Facebook does not use Git due to scale issues with their large monorepo, instead opting for Mercurial.
• Mercurial may be a better option for large monorepos, but Git has made improvements to support them better.
• Despite some drawbacks, Git usage remains dominant with 93.87% share, due to familiarity, additional tools, and industry trends.