Technology | The Guardian

Your predictions are in: will the Apple Watch cost $500, last for a day and be introduced by an all-male keynote? That’s what our readers thinkWith just a few hours to go until Apple reveals the final secrets about its long-awaited watch, it’s time to tot up your predictions about just what we’re going to see.On Friday, we asked readers what they expected from today’s event in areas as diverse as pricing, products and the presence of Dr Dre – and while there was consensus on some questions, on others, it seems like the answer is still up in the air.Related: Apple Watch: what Jony Ive has said about itRelated: Apple Watch launch signals firm’s transformation into luxury goods brand Continue reading...

Here’s what Apple’s design chief has revealed about its latest product Continue reading...

After news of security flaws in BMW computer systems, five experts look at the implications for autonomous vehiclesCyber security lead at the Institution of Engineering and Technology Continue reading...

Upcoming war game is epic in scope but still accessible: ‘Anyone who goes to a big Hollywood movie should also like this kind of game’“There are about 7,000 characters on screen, all moving in real-time with real-time lighting, real-time shadows, and all controllable by tapping on them and saying where you want them to go. It feels like an epic movie battle, but it is over in 30 to 60 seconds...”Dawn of Titans is a long way from FarmVille and the other casual games that made Zynga the first giant of the social games industry, but didn’t stop it being overtaken by the publishers of games such as Candy Crush Saga and Clash of Clans.Related: Zynga has lost 63% of its players. Is NaturalMotion the answer?Related: The best iPhone and iPad games of 2014 Continue reading...

With sales up 30%, US company says it’s bucking music industry trends and helping musicians to get paid for their workIndependent music company Bandcamp has hit a new milestone: $100m (£66m) of payments to artists for music and merchandise sold through its site since its launch in 2008.The US-based company helps musicians set up their own online stores, and since November 2014 has also been enabling them to run their own subscription services for their keenest fans.Related: Bandcamp to help musicians launch their own subscription services Continue reading...

When Joel Green was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, his parents took an unusual step. They turned their family’s tragedy into an interactive computer adventure Continue reading...

The more real game characters look, the less you identify with them. So maybe that’s why the firms that produce them are allowing you to design your own Continue reading...

Western companies are being fleeced for hundreds of millions by cybercriminals. Is it time to give them a dose of their own medicine?If we’re losing the war against cybercrime, then should we take off the gloves and strike back electronically against hackers?As banks reel from another major hacking revelation, a former US director of intelligence has joined some of them in advocating for online counterstrikes against cybercriminals. Continue reading...

The place to talk about games and other things that matterOh, for a three-day weekend. Continue reading...

Musician calls for ‘new morals, new laws and new codes’ to augment Moses’ 10 commandments: ‘He didn’t say shit about 3D printing...’3D-printed organs are a realistic prospect in the next decade, but 3D-printed human beings? Will.i.am claims they will be the next step and thinks that humanity will need new ethical codes to cope with the implications.“Eventually 3D printing will print people. I’m not saying I agree with it, I’m just saying what’s fact based on plausible growth in technology,” the musician told Dezeen magazine.Related: Will.i.am: ‘3D printing will revolutionise society. In 20 years, you’ll be able to print a new kidney’“In 20 years, you’ll be able to print a new kidney. You’ll have a machine that prints your genome with proteins that are right for your body. 3D printers will change how we make things, how we fix and heal things. To eat beef and wear leather, you need a lot of land and water for cows. In the next 20 years, we’ll be able to print beef and leather instead. Real talk.” Continue reading...

iOS and Android, Spin Master, cert: 9

The global PC giant had to eat humble pie over third-party apps, but could end up a winnerLenovo’s stated intention to stop installing third-party apps on its PCs in the near future could have a dramatic effect on the PC industry, perhaps driving smaller rivals out of business altogether. Already the world’s biggest PC company, both by revenue and unit shipments, Lenovo could actually get bigger because it got caught.In case the first part passed you by, Lenovo was discovered in late February to have been pre-installing an app called Superfish on its consumer PCs between October and December 2014. Superfish, it breezily declared, would help you by offering “suitable ads”. It did this by interposing its secure certificate into any secure SSL connections you made – to Google, a shopping site, your bank – and watching what was transmitted. If it saw something ad-like, it could replace that with its own Superfish-supplied ad. Continue reading...

3DS, Nintendo, cert: 3

3DS, Nintendo, cert: 3

Alternative finance providers wait an average of six months for authorisation by regulator Continue reading...

Three companies note driverless vehicles as a possible financial threat, while a parts manufacturer fears a decline in ‘the number and severity of accidents’ Continue reading...

Another selection of crowdfunding projects, tech products and generally bright ideas

In the 20th century mass production revolutionised how we made clothes from fabric. Now new technology is taking textiles into new fields of medicine, architecture and sport Continue reading...

Sexist behaviour in the valley is widespread and well-documented. But if tech is shaping all our futures, why are women excluded? Continue reading...

Can’t decide between a boat and a car? With the Dutton Surf amphibious vehicle you don’t need to Continue reading...

Former secretary of state’s ‘clintonemail.com’ was no ‘homebrew’ system: creators appear to have worked to shield data Continue reading...

As the 2016 election looms, the former White House press secretary Jay Carney has joined the corporate exodus, despite the president’s stated policy Continue reading...

Amid talk of a return to the England team, the batsman sets out his views on planes, training and automobiles – and Twitter Continue reading...

Xbox 360/One, PS3/4, PC; Capcom; £4.99 Continue reading...

‘I breezed through the winter debris. It was good on my pothole-ridden commute too’ Continue reading...

Commons science and technology committee says practice of uploading custody photographs appears to flout high court ruling from 2012 Continue reading...

Spy agency will incorporate digital innovations into intelligence gathering and follows major shifts in the CIA’s role and operations in the years since 9/11 Continue reading...

Clause forcing users to agree litigation must take place in US is abusive, says court, after site blocks man who posted Courbet nude showing woman’s vulva Continue reading...

The iPhone maker will replace AT&T in the ranks of the most famous US share index, joining Microsoft and Intel Continue reading...

Specialist audio firms pushed to margins by Apple and rise of MP3 now growing as consumers return to vinyl and better quality digital music files

Next week the Guardian is co-hosting a newsgame jam at the Rezzed games festival. Here are a few pointers for anyone new to interactive journalismLast year in Germany, the games studio A Good Evil got together with the Cologne game lab to organise a two-day newsgame hack. Media companies from all over Europe were invited over to join coders, form teams and create short, simple video games around current affairs issues. The Guardian was there, joining in with the fascinating experiment in interactive journalism.This year, we’re going a step further, teaming up with the Rezzed games festival to help run and judge a news game jam. Taking place in London next week, the jam will run over the course of the event, challenging teams to design games, based around a story from Thursday’s paper. We’ll then take a look at the entries on Friday, with judges from co-sponsor Creative Assembly as well as the Guardian. Continue reading...

Agency’s cybercrime ‘strike week’ sees 57 people arrested on suspicion of offences including stealing 400,000 Yahoo passwords, phishing and DDoS attacks, and fraud Continue reading...

Some online companies insist on ‘real names’ but there are good reasons why users – especially the vulnerable – might prefer not to use their legal identity“On the internet, nobody knows you’re a dog.” Thus reads the caption of a now-infamous cartoon by Peter Steiner in the New Yorker, capturing the zeitgeist of the early internet.This culture of relative anonymity led to the feeling, for many, that what took place online was somehow separate from reality. Online, you could use any name you wanted. You may have been a suit-wearing investment banker, but online, you could dabble in erotic fiction, or join a community for tattoo enthusiasts.“All of these communities and cultures [that have experienced malicious reporting] have a history of being suppressed. We’ve all had to fight against homophobia, racism, and prejudice and discrimination. To me it is obvious that people are maliciously pinpointing entire groups of people that they feel are undesirable, morally corrupt, or live lives in opposition to their religious beliefs. They’d like to see us disappear, and unfortunately, as Facebook’s current policy stands, it is happening.” Continue reading...

Slivers of information are emerging from Apples’ super secretive testing centre - apparently we are to be discouraged from staring at the smartwatch for too long, we learn todayApple has released strict design guidelines for applications built for the watch, which suggest that applications be used for no longer than 10 seconds at a time, a report by Bloomberg states.Apple will review every application submitted to the App Store for the Apple Watch, like it does for iPhone, iPad and Mac apps, to ensure that only those that conform to its policies are let through to customers.

Salvation Army South Africa launches hard-hitting viral campaign inspired by ‘What colour is the dress?’

Disney’s live action remake of the classic fairytale will star the Downton Abbey aristo as the spellbound prince opposite the Harry Potter star as Belle

New Rock Band and Guitar Hero titles are in development marking the return of the once dominant music game genre. I have my plastic guitar readyIn 2003, researchers Hatanaka Yuko and Miyakoshi Yukiko from Hiroshima University published a report that would come as little surprise to anyone who’s ever sang into a hairbrush in front of the mirror: karaoke is good for you. In their research paper “Karaoke and stress response” the duo reported that indulging in communal singing sessions reduces stress and increases sociability. As exercise, it is as effective as a short run – obviously discounting all the Jägermeister shots you may need before agreeing to belt out Take My Breath Away alongside your line manager.This is partly why it’s great news that the music gaming genre is set for a triumphant return. Last week, Kotaku speculated that Activision will soon be reforming its Guitar Hero series after a five year absence, while developer Harmonix revealed on Wednesday that it is working on a new Rock Band title. Both games provide players with a microphone, an array of plastic controllers designed to resemble musical instruments, and hundreds of songs to play along with. For a while, music games were a huge deal selling millions of copies. But then the market got overcrowded, the instruments were expensive and the economy collapsed a teeny bit. It was the day that music died.Related: Guitar Hero set for comeback? Continue reading...

A gadget dreamed up 1980s film Back to the Future, the first real ‘hoverboard’ will glide off the production line in 2015. But Arx Pax, the company behind it, has much more ambitious plansIt’s 2015, but we still don’t have time-travelling cars. However, another gadget from the Back to the Future films is within reach: the hoverboard. American startup Arx Pax raised $510,590 on crowdfunding website Kickstarter in December for its Hendo hoverboard, with plans to ship the first in October to 11 backers who each pledged $10,000 for one of the first.The device uses magnetic-levitation technology: four disc-shaped “hover engines” induce an opposing magnetic field in a special surface, enabling the Hendo to hover an inch above the ground. Hundreds more people pledged between $299 and $949 on Kickstarter for Arx Pax’s “whitebox” developer kit, which includes a set of hover engines and enough surface to hover on. The idea is that they’ll be able to explore Arx Pax’s patented “magnetic field architecture” (MFA) technology, and perhaps make their own devices. Continue reading...

Former VP of online marketing Sean Percival on corporate interference, Punch The Monkey, and a failed attempt to buy Spotify: ‘They sure as hell were not selling to us...’In 2015, Sean Percival is a partner at Silicon Valley seed accelerator 500 Startups, but from 2009 to 2011, he was working at MySpace as its vice president of online marketing – just as the social network lost its crown to Facebook.In a speech at the By:Larm conference in Oslo this week, Percival gave an insider’s view of what went wrong at MySpace, from the “massive spaghetti-ball mess” of its website and the “politics, greed” of parent company News Corporation to a doomed attempt to acquire music streaming service Spotify. Continue reading...

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

Virtual reality and PC gaming dominated the headlines last week as the Game Developers Conference 2015 took place in San FranciscoValve, the developer behind Half-Life and the owners of the PC download service Steam, has teamed up with HTC to create a virtual reality headset, Vive. The headset will rival Facebook’s Oculus Rift and is out this year. Continue reading...

Avoiding being tracked online is nearly impossible, but here are a few ways to reduce the riskRelated: DuckDuckGo: the plucky upstart taking on Google with stealth searches"Dropbox...is very hostile to privacy" Continue reading...

Stuart Dredge picks ten general and ten gaming apps to brighten up your smartphone for springtime

New offerings follow refugees’ stories and focus on the personal experience of conflict Continue reading...

Mobile and desktop sites allow you to discover streets near you that are named after politicians, and what they were famous for Continue reading...

Woman who has accused Silicon Valley firm of passing her over for a promotion because of her gender will take the stand on Thursday Continue reading...