Story Lines

There’s a race on to see who'll be the Instagram of moving pictures. This makes sense, since many of our phones are clogged with video that, so far, no one is going to see. Wouldn’t it be great if there were a simple app that could take our video content, edit it for us, and t ...more

Last week's challenge brought up a good question (thanks Lisa) regarding the functionality of the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, 4th Edition, both online and in print form. The word TACTICAL was the answer to the first puzzle in that challenge, but when you search for t ...more

Remember what life was like before your iPhone? Before there were palm-sized smartphones with seemingly endless features, there were phones like Motorola's RAZR that peaked with its embedded camera. Before that, there were simple flip phones with texting capabilities, bulky tw ...more

I first heard the term molecular gastronomy while watching an episode of Bravo's Top Chef a few seasons back. Intrigued by the concept, I sought to find out more about this modern, deconstructed type of cookery. If you happen to be around foodies and the topic of molecular gas ...more

Red Dead Redemption is hard to pin down in game play and story. The game offers this massive multi-layered world in which the player can roam freely, offering plenty of challenges, beautiful graphics and atmosphere for the player to experience. Yet after some point the whole w ...more

Anonymity is something that doesn't exist today. Everything you do in the world is tracked, from the purchases you make to surfing the internet—even taking pictures on your iPhone. Everything you have ever said and done on the internet is still there—somewhere. This is called ...more

People take their Black Friday shopping seriously. Some of them are even willing to fight over it. Every year the stories get crazier and crazier, and someone always gets hurt (or even killed). While Black Friday violence is no laughing matter, some of the instances that don' ...more

If we were to assign a theme for the 2019 edition of the Next Reality 30 (NR30), it might be something along the lines of, "What have you done for me lately?" Many of the top names in the industry from the 2018 edition remain the same, but their positions have shuffled. The p ...more

Smartphones are now indispensable when traveling. Domestic and overseas travel alike require food, navigation, translation, and so much more to make work or vacation successful. Gone are the days of lugging multiple tourist books around with you everywhere you go — you need to ...more

Apple's latest mobile operating system for iPhones, iOS 12, was released to everyone Monday, Sept. 17, and it's the same exact build that developers and public beta testers received as the "golden master" on Sept. 12, the day of Apple's 2018 special event. Install it to start ...more

First of all, I hope the title makes sense. :D Well, this is basically creating a program that can help with dictionary attacks. Generate possible passwords. It pretty much lies in you knowing the person you want to hack. Story Time I just like stories :D Well, I heard abou ...more

Many social networks have become a part of our daily routine. Checking Facebook or sending out a Tweet are things millions of people do every single day. So, one would think that having a great app offering for Windows 8 would be a no-brainer. But, and this is a huge but, ther ...more

Are you interested in beginning research of your family's history? I began this journey about 3 or 4 years ago and here is what I found. I've done almost ALL of my research online, and gotten farther, faster and more comprehensively than anyone else who has researched my famil ...more

It looks like Facebook really likes Google's augmented reality leadership talent, as the social media giant has hired away another employee from the AR and VR team at Mountain View to lead its team for a product that brings Facebook's AR platform into homes. On Wednesday, Fac ...more

Sometimes I forget that I'm also a fiction writer, so I thought it might be a nice change of pace to share one of my stories with you. I wrote this piece awhile ago for an anthology that never came together and I'm tired of just sitting on it. It's one of the more odd stories ...more

In these times of social distancing, video calling is becoming the technological substitute for face-to-face connections. For those who carry an iPhone, the art of video calling defaults to FaceTime, the native app on iOS that is exclusive to Apple devices. But what do you do ...more

The Galaxy S10 has finally been revealed to the masses, and it certainly doesn't disappoint. As the flagship to herald the tenth anniversary of the venerable Galaxy S line, the S10 has kept popular and familiar design elements like the immersive Infinity Display while employin ...more

With the death of Google's Nexus line, the market for phones with top-notch specs at midrange prices is now wide open. OnePlus is apparently ready to fill this void, as they've just announced the OnePlus 3T, an iterative update to their OnePlus 3 flagship only five months afte ...more

As far as customization goes, there's nothing you can do to change the look and function of the Control Center on your iPhone. By default, you can't alter the system toggles, but if your device is jailbroken, it's a completely different story. With the help of a tweak from dev ...more

The Maze Runner tells the story of an unpredictable maze designed to kill. If you're looking for a Halloween costume that's both dark and deadly, the film offers a great option. With its cast of mostly male characters clothed in plain, well-worn clothes, creating an awesome T ...more

Influencers of augmented reality demonstrate expertise in their fields and outline a strong vision for the future that they evangelize to others. They help define the direction of the industry and identify others who foster and create innovation in the field. The idea of the ...more

A lot of digital ink has been spilled heaping scorn on Magic Leap. Much of that media schadenfreude was due to what some believed were unmet promises versus some of the early hype around the product. Others just seemed to be rubbed the wrong way by the startup's Apple-esque se ...more

The 280-character limit for tweets on Twitter is double what it used to be back in the day, but it's still not enough to express in-depth thoughts, ideas, commentary, rants, blogs, stories, and the like. These tweetstorms, as they're called, are the reason why Twitter created ...more

Tin cans have resin linings that contain bisphenol-A (BPA), which has been linked in animal lab testings to a number of ailments that include reproductive problems, heart disease, and obesity. Tomatoes are high in acidity, which means that the content of canned tomatoes eats a ...more

When you're trying to pioneer a brand new category of technology, sometimes it's not enough to just have great tech. You also need to be able to tell a great story. You need to be able to capture the imagination. Along those lines, a new Microsoft HoloLens 2 promotional spot ...more

While Jack Daniel's is one of the most iconic brands in the liquor business, when it comes to augmented reality marketing, it's joining a long list of others telling a very familiar story in the growing marketing medium. On Monday, the company published the Jack Daniel's AR E ...more

Remember those Choose Your Own Adventure novels? If your school was anything like mine, they were so popular you were lucky to find one to check out at the library. But there's no worries now, thanks to this handy HTML5 app, which makes it easy to write and share your own 'cho ...more

For social media platforms like Facebook, augmented reality represents a whole new art form with which users can express themselves online. Now, Facebook is giving those users a new brush. A new AR painting tool for Facebook Camera, which began rolling out to users on Monday, ...more

Update: Monday, 11 p.m. ET: In a report from Bloomberg, eMagin CEO Jeffrey Lucas has contradicted what appeared to be investor information found in SEC filings that surfaced on Monday. Although Apple is listed among several other investors in the company in filing, Lucas told ...more

The fourth and final beta version of Android O just made its debut, and the biggest change is what appears to be a new code name. When you access Android 8.0's version number Easter egg, you'll be greeted by ... a cartoon octopus. Octopus starts with the letter "O," and Googl ...more

The popular RPG Death Road to Canada has finally arrived for the iPhone and iPad, and its impact is immediate. It's fast becoming a top contender for mobile video game of 2017, and it's very easy to see why. The game blends decision making and good old zombie bashing to create ...more

With just one line of Ruby code embedded into a fake PDF, a hacker can remotely control any Mac computer from anywhere in the world. Creating the command is the easy part, but getting the target to open the code is where a hacker will need to get creative. Ruby is just one wa ...more

The holidays are stressful. Between traveling, family, and dinner, Thanksgiving weekend can feel like weeks. Many families have traditions that make the days long, but some of us would rather curl up somewhere and watch our favorite shows. But all is not lost — our phones do s ...more

There are tons of apps to help you create unique and compelling posts and stories on Instagram, but you already have the tools you need to make something eye-catching. You can insert line breaks in captions, create translucent overlays for photos, rainbow-up your story font, a ...more

Back in its infancy, the App Store was filled with text bomb apps that allowed users to send a barrage of text messages to friends, family, and foes. It was a fun way to annoy people, but Apple quickly scrubbed the apps because of technical issues. Although text bombs are stil ...more

Ever since Facebook announced Spark AR at the 2017 F8 Developer's Conference, the social media giant has been looking for ways to implement its mobile augmented reality camera platform in the lives of everyday users. But aside from Facebook-centric pursuits, the company has a ...more

The longer it takes Apple, Snapchat, Facebook, and other tech giants to build their own version of augmented reality headsets and smartglasses, the longer runway of practical experience Microsoft gains with the HoloLens and its sequel. The latest example: AR cloning. Count Sa ...more

Because of its ability to place digital content into the real world, augmented reality lends itself well to artists and creatives. Two new mobile apps, one from Google and another from an indie developer with ties to Magic Leap, invert the creative conceit by taking the real ...more

On the surface, Instagram is pretty intuitive, so you might think that you already know everything there is to know about using it on your iPhone or Android phone. But this photo and video-sharing app is constantly adding new features, some of which don't make the press releas ...more

Not all enterprise augmented reality tools require a high-end headset and heavy computing power. Sometimes, a smartphone can do the job just as well. Along those lines, software maker Atheer is now bringing its workforce AR platform to iPhones and iPads via a native app. The ...more

While many of Facebook's tools are well received as they enhance the experience, one which is often complained about is the Marketplace. The Craigslist-like feature which offers a way to facilitate transactions between users can be a little overbearing with its alerts. However ...more

Who doesn't love a refresh? Samsung's upcoming One UI makes it easier to use your device with one hand and adds a fresh coat of paint to the formally "Samsung Experience" skin. While you're probably looking forward to installing One UI on your phone, not all Galaxies are equal ...more

Election Day is like the Super Bowl for network and cable TV news, so ABC News is breaking out the big guns with a new augmented reality experience to win over eyeballs of viewers. With all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, 35 seats in the Senate, and 36 governor off ...more

Following the launch of the Magic Leap One earlier this month, the device and the company took a few hits from early reviewers. But it turns out those were just love taps compared to the absolute scorched earth acidic screed penned this weekend by someone well credentialed to ...more

It looks like Snapchat is becoming the MTV of augmented reality. On Thursday, Ariana Grande, with her new album Sweetner, joined Drake and Nicki Minaj and other artists who are pushing new releases through Snapchat's Shoppable AR e-commerce platform. Available in the Snapcha ...more

Just in time for Women's Equality Day on Aug. 26, Treasury Wine Estates is breaking out a line of wines with augmented reality experiences that pay tribute to historically famous women. When scanned with the Living Wine Labels app for iOS or Android, the emBRAZEN wine labels ...more

With the official launch of Magic Leap One expected by the end of summer (translation: days from now), Magic Leap's hype machine just took a big hit with the sudden loss of a key marketing executive. Magic Leap confirmed the departure of Jeff Gattis, vice president of product ...more

Most of the animated characters and animals we've seen in augmented reality are still fairly basic in terms of visual fidelity. And because many are still impressed by simply seeing 3D figures properly scaled and tracked alongside real-world objects, this approach has worked . ...more

We've all been there. Lost in the supermarket for what feels like hours trying to figure out where the hell the macaroni and cheese is and why it isn't with the rest of the pasta items. The labels at the top of the aisles aren't always helpful or accurate, and items often get ...more

I've possibly been really out of it for a long time not to have realized that Instagram has a bunch of hidden filters. Clarendon seems to be by number one filter for pics and videos, but maybe that's exactly what I've been doing wrong. To access these wonderful secret filters ...more

There are a few ways to do this, but I'm going to share with you the easiest way that I know how to share an image on Instagram Stories that isn't currently in your Stories queue. At the moment, Instagram only lets you post photos from the last 24 hours to your Stories. If yo ...more

Fans of fighting game series such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat are in for a treat! Skullgirls has entered the crowded field of the mobile fighting genre and has touched down in the form of a soft launch for iOS devices, which is now available for download in Canada and ...more

Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger has out and out rejected Virtual Reality (VR) as a component of any Disney Theme park. While Knott's Berry Farm, why-hasn't-this-chain-shut-down-yet Sea World (seriously, RIP Tillikum), and Six Flags have all invested in VR to help spice up the ...more

During the last few months, WhatsApp's Google Play Store ratings have been tanking—all the way down to an average of 3.4 stars from the instant messenger's usual average of 4.1. Within the last week, though, WhatsApp has received thousands of seemingly fake 5-star reviews that ...more

It would only make sense that Google is one of the most active app developers on the Android platform, particularly when you consider that they develop the platform itself. From my count, there are an astounding 117 unique apps that the search giant and its subsidiaries have p ...more

Purchasing an actual book from a brick-and-mortar store is becoming increasingly less common for people to do, but it hasn't completely gone out of style just yet. There's something about entering a bookstore and viewing all the potential great stories and epic tales just sitt ...more

Every season of American Horror Story introduces characters who are truly terrifying. From the witches of Coven to the ghostly resident of the show's first season, each new chapter of the TV series offers a host of ghoulish and ghastly costume ideas perfect for scaring childre ...more

There are many opportunities to make Steampunk clothing. Clothing can be elegant and relate to the aristocrats of the 19th century. But Steampunk also can be rough and dirty, inspired by the adventurer from stories like 2000 miles under the sea or even movies like "Mad Max" or ...more

Welcome back, my hacker novitiates! Finding vulnerabilities in systems can be one of the most time-consuming tasks for a hacker. There will be times, though, when you'll find yourself in a position that you know that a particular port represents a vulnerable application or se ...more