Technology | The Guardian

Millions of kids are obsessed with Mojang’s crafting game, but understanding it rather than fearing it is a good first step for parentsA lot of people are getting hot under the collar about the BBC’s article on Minecraft, children and parenting, written by journalist Jolyon Jenkins.Should parents ever worry about Minecraft? asks whether Minecraft is entirely healthy for kids, from addiction and lessening interest in the real world through to the prospect of “children being digitally mugged” by other players.Related: Minecraft movie will be 'large-budget' but unlikely to arrive before 2017Related: Minecraft YouTube videos have been watched 47bn timesRelated: Headteachers ​threaten to contact police over children playing 18-rated gamesRelated: Minecraft's creator will always be a hero to me, he gave my autistic son a voice Continue reading...

We bank online, so why can’t we vote online? There’s good reason, argue security expertsWe do everything online – book doctors’ appointments, manage our bank accounts and find dates – but we still can’t yet vote from our PCs or smartphones.By 2020 that should be set to change, with a government report calling for online voting to be trialled again by that year. But critics continue to call for caution, saying electronic voting isn’t secure enough to trust for the basis of our democracy – and may never be.Related: John Bercow calls for online voting in 2020 general electionRelated: UK should consider e-voting, elections watchdog urgesRelated: Pirate party founder: 'Online voting? Would you want 4chan to decide your government?' Continue reading...

Exclusive: Guardian gains access to unnamed British Columbia site where tech giant’s roboticists and engineers, stymied by American regulation, are now developing their unmanned domestic delivery serviceRelated: Amazon warns Congress: US risks being left behind in delivery drone businessAmazon is testing its drone delivery service at a secret site in Canada, following repeated warnings by the e-commerce giant that it would go outside the US to bypass what it sees as the US federal government’s lethargic approach to the new technology.Amazon will will result in other large American companies like Google and Facebook looking at our market as well Continue reading...

Pre-orders for new device with seven-day battery life smash previous record on site, with more than 78k backers this time round Continue reading...

Deirdre Kelly claims Channel 4 show that Birmingham’s James Turner Street was previously a ‘massive happy family’ and it has now become a tourist attraction

Information Commissioner’s Office says allegations are ‘very serious’ and could result in fines of up to £500,000 Continue reading...

Taxi app says it found ‘no evidence of breach’ despite claims that thousands of usernames and passwords can be bought on the dark webUber denies that its servers were hacked after reports that thousands of usernames and passwords for the taxi-like service are available to buy for as little as $1 online.

US laws enabling discrimination against LGBT people ‘rationalize injustice by pretending to defend something many of us hold dear’, says Apple chiefApple’s chief executive Tim Cook has called on US legislators to rethink their support of so-called religious freedom laws, which enshrine the ability of individuals to breach nondiscrimination laws if the laws go against personal religious beliefs.Such laws have been passed in 20 US states, most recently Indiana, and are widely seen to be specifically aimed at enabling discrimination against LGBT people. Continue reading...

‘It’s a third-party service given first-party priority on the platform,’ says Sony of new PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3 partnershipSony and Spotify have launched their PlayStation Music streaming service in 41 countries, making it available for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 games consoles as well as Sony’s smartphones and tablets.It’s a replacement for Music Unlimited, the Sony-branded streaming music service that launched in 2010, but has now been axed by the company in favour of a partnership with Spotify.Related: Streaming music: what next for Apple, YouTube, Spotify… and musicians?Related: Spotify has six years of my music data, but does it understand my tastes? Continue reading...

US coding site responds to flood of traffic following hacking attack, with reports claiming Chinese search engine Baidu was sourceUS coding site GitHub said it was deflecting most of the traffic from a days-long cyber-attack that had caused intermittent outages on the social coding site, with the Wall Street Journal citing China as the source of the attack.“Eighty-seven hours in, our mitigation is deflecting most attack traffic. We’re aware of intermittent issues and continue to adapt our response,” a tweet from the GitHub Status account said on Sunday. Continue reading...

The major US events in Chicago and California have prohibited the photography aid at their events this year Continue reading...

Not a charity campaign, but marketing support for the rapper’s imminent relaunch of Spotify rival Tidal, the streaming service he just acquiredMusicians including Kanye West, Rihanna and Beyoncé have turned their Twitter profiles blue to promote Tidal, the streaming music service recently acquired by Jay Z.Madonna, Nicki Minaj, Deadmau5 and Jay Z himself are among the other artists taking part in the campaign, which comes hours before the rapper is due to announce his plans for Tidal at a press conference."The Tides They Are-A Changing" #TIDALforALLMusic makes the people come together. Join Madonna and turn your profile picture blue. Do it for the music. #TIDALforALLTogether, we can turn the tide and make music history. Start by turning your profile picture blue. #TIDALforALLNAVY, turn the tide…#MakeMusicHistory #TurnitBlue #TIDALforALLTides are about to turn. #TIDALforALLRelated: Jay Z to take on Apple and Spotify by buying streaming music services“The subject was how they could turn Aspiro – which will be known in the U.S. as TidalHifi when it relaunches – into a streaming music and video service akin to the old United Artists pictures, in which artists would actually profit from their art and put out quality material.In 1919, a handful of movie stars – Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and director D.W. Griffith – banded together and started their own studio to combat what they saw as growing commercialism of the majors. I’m told that Jay Z, who can be a bit of a visionary, sees his new service just this way.” Continue reading...

The Democracy Club project wants to encourage MPs to share their CVs so that prospective voters can examine their qualifications for the job Continue reading...

Periscope, Layout from Instagram, Vessel, Silly Sausage in Meat Land, The Trace, Fast & Furious: Legacy and more

New 3DS, Nintendo, cert: 12There are two ways of looking at Xenoblade Chronicles. In terms of mechanics, it’s nigh-on flawless – a brilliant example of Japanese RPG game design. It boasts a combat system combining real-time action with deep customisation, an engrossing story, and characters you genuinely grow to care for. In this sense, having been overlooked on the Wii, it’s great to have this modern classic more widely available.Visually, however, it’s much trickier. Despite the ambitious title needing the more powerful New 3DS hardware, the device still has ridiculously low-res screens. It’s a real shame, as there’s clearly a beautiful world underneath the murky, indistinct graphics. Keep playing and despite the muddy screens it’s clear Xenoblade is a remarkable game, but sadly still not getting the treatment it really deserves. Continue reading...

PS4, Xbox One, Square Enix, cert: 16The first clue that this is unlike any previous Final Fantasy game arrives early, when a military cadet and his chocobo steed – the series’ cheery mascot – bleed out while an entire city is ravaged around them. Type-0 is far bleaker than its peers, with a story exploring the harsh realities of war. Controlling Class Zero, a group of 12 students at a magic school targeted by the attacking forces from the Militesi Empire, speedy combat sees attacks unleashed with the tap of a button, although using a party system, only one character is directly controlled, with two others supporting. Progression is largely mission-based, many of which are action-oriented, although a few adopt clunky real-time strategy mechanics.The HD remastering is impressive but still shows signs of Type-0’s PSP roots, with some low-res textures and restrictive level design. Engaging combat and an emotionally challenging story will win players over, however. Matt Kamen Continue reading...

PlayStation 4, Sony, cert: 16The most eagerly awaited game of the year is finally here. And it is a pleasure to report that it’s brilliant. A fast and aggressive action-RPG, Bloodborne is the spiritual successor to the Dark Souls series, in which you are the sufferer of a strange sickness who has come to the city of Yharnam for treatment. Here, the citizens hide behind locked doors as monsters stalk the streets. You must become a hunter and cut a path through the city to uncover the truth behind the affliction.The new combat system puts first-timers and veteran Souls players on a more even footing, discouraging defensive play while rewarding agility. Interesting online features – user-generated and shareable dungeons; the ability to join someone else’s game – are offset by weaker RPG elements such as a smaller arsenal and simplified levelling system. Continue reading...

Optic Gaming joins several other leading Call of Duty sides on the sidelines as Faze Red, Denial and Team Revenge emerged as championship contenders Continue reading...

Airline says no personal information viewed or stolen and it has frozen affected accounts while it resolves issue Continue reading...

Group of 16 schools in Cheshire say allowing children to play games containing unsuitable levels of violence and sexual content is neglectful Continue reading...

The SL400 is the latest in a line of luxurious cruisers – and what better test for it than a long midweek burn? Continue reading...

Couple says officials require a llama license to publicly display the famously fleeing animals: ‘They just totally destroyed my retirement’ Continue reading...

Regardless of result, Pao’s effort will have ‘huge impact’ on tech industry, supporters say, as more legal battles are on the horizon Continue reading...

US teams perform well while Europeans falter at the group stage of this year’s $1m Call of Duty eSports finals Continue reading...

‘Lit Long’, a searchable interactive map of the city, will take users to locations made famous by Scottish writers from Walter Scott to Irvine Welsh – and tell you what they wrote Continue reading...

The UK’s first cultural centre for video games has opened in the east Midlands city and aims to put fun, entertainment and game design on the menu Continue reading...

‘It has more up its green sleeves than a bit of engine-cutting in traffic’ Continue reading...

Announcement comes after the Verge reported that the retailer required its US employees, including seasonal workers, to sign non-compete contracts Continue reading...

Jury finds venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers did not discriminate against Pao, who now works for Reddit Continue reading...

Chief executive John Chen said company made a pre-tax loss of $385m – an improvement on $7.2bn of losses the previous year Continue reading...

Beatport, Nuzzel, UltraTuner, Silly Sausage in Meat Land, Fast & Furious: Legacy, Final Fantasy Record Keeper, LinkedIn Job Search and more Continue reading...

Competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager to examine price differences between country-specific websites, which she say may be breaking the law Continue reading...

Twitter’s new video app is brilliant technology in a lush package – what a shame our lives are all so boringIn November 2009, Twitter made a small, seemingly cosmetic, change to its web interface. For two years, ever since the site was still called “twttr”, the box for composing a new tweet had posed the question “what are you doing?”But seeing how the site was actually being used, Twitter changed its mind. The new question was “What’s happening?” That paved the way for the modern era of social networks – but it’s something that Twitter’s new app, Periscope, might find hard to emulate. Continue reading...

Sharing birthday celebrations or a child’s first bike ride in virtual reality could become a thing if Facebook gets its way with new Oculus Rift headset Continue reading...

While some water technology companies take on solving California’s drought, tech kingpins prefer to follow the money to mobile apps and internet startups Continue reading...

Plus Hotline Miami 2 and Sid Meier’s Starships reviews

Social network prepares to use solar-powered drones with wingspan of a commercial airliner to beam internet access to rural areasFacebook has been testing large, solar-powered drones in the skies over the UK, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has announced.The drones use lasers to beam internet access down to the ground, designed to provide connections to rural and internet-free zones. Continue reading...

Judges dismiss internet firm’s appeal in landmark ruling that could lead to British consumers suing it for damages over privacy breachesGoogle has failed in its attempt in the court of appeal to prevent British consumers having the right to sue the internet firm in the UK.A group known as Safari Users Against Google’s Secret Tracking wants to take legal action in the English courts over what it says is Google’s tracking of Apple’s Safari internet browser. Continue reading...

Comfortable, well styled, functional and with a hidden heart rate function this Android Wear watch comes as a surpriseThe ZenWatch is one of the most attractive square Android Wear watches on the market. The OLED screen is gently curved with a polished stainless steel body inlaid with a rose gold-coloured inset. A traditional brown leather strap with a locking clasp completes the look.The classic styling may not suit everyone, but at 75g in weight and 9.4mm thick, the watch is comfortable to wear, does not feel chunky and the 1.63-inch Gorilla Glass 3-covered screen is bright and relatively crisp. It is also water resistant to IP55 standards, which means no swimming, but rain is not a problem.Pros: comfortable, attractive, normal/replaceable watch strap, heart rate monitor, curved glassCons: less than two-day battery life, bundled apps cannot be removed, another charging cradle to lose Continue reading...

The place to talk about games and other things that matter Continue reading...

The software giant said that paid leave is an important benefit for workersSuppliers that do business with Microsoft in the US will have to provide employees handling the company’s work with at least 15 days of paid leave each year, Microsoft announced on Thursday.“We believe paid time off is an important benefit for workers in our economy,” Brad Smith, general counsel and executive president of legal and corporate affairs at Microsoft, wrote in a blogpost announcing the new initiative.Related: Only three US states have paid family leave policies – will New York be next?Related: Americans petition White House for paid vacation as Congress takes a break Continue reading...

European Commission admits Safe Harbour framework cannot ensure privacy of EU citizens’ data when sent to the US by American internet firmsThe European Commission has warned EU citizens that they should close their Facebook accounts if they want to keep information private from US security services, finding that current Safe Harbour legislation does not protect citizen’s data.The comments were made by EC attorney Bernhard Schima in a case brought by privacy campaigner Maximilian Schrems, looking at whether the data of EU citizens should be considered safe if sent to the US in a post-Snowden revelation landscape. Continue reading...

The Federal Trade Commission denies accusations that it took no legal action against the tech company because of intense lobbying efforts Continue reading...

Sam wants a new family desktop computer for word processing, photos and listening to music and he wants to spend less than £500. Here are some options. Continue reading...

Company reacts to recent rape allegations against driver in India by setting up incident response teams and implementing new code of conduct