Fake News Stories 'Outperformed' Real Ones on Facebook in Weeks Before Election: Report

According to a new Buzzfeed report, the top stories from fake news sources attracted more engagement on Facebook than the top stories from legitimate news organizations in the weeks leading up to the election, generating more shares, comments and r…

Google Earth VR Is Like Taking a Vacation That Gives You a Headache

Let’s be real: It’s been a pretty stressful year. The tragedies never seem end. Harambe was shot dead in front of children. David Bowie and Prince died unexpectedly. Oh yeah, and we elected a screaming giant cheese wedge to be the next president. A…

USB-C adapters you may need for your new MacBook Pro

Remains of the Day: You Can Now Use Skype Without an Account

One of the annoying things about choosing a chatting platform is that you usually have to make sure the person you want to talk to already has an account on your site of choice. With a new feature on Skype, that’s no longer an issue. That and more i…

Apple Cuts Mac Automation Manager Sal Soghoian

Sal Soghoian is the godfather of AppleScript and automation on the Mac, but not for much longer. He announced at MacTech Conference in San Francisco on Wednesday that Apple is eliminating the Product Manager of Automation Technologies he’s held sinc…

AWS looks to add 'bill collector' to its list of cloud offerings

Amazon offers to handle payments for third-party SaaS devs Amazon Web Services has opened a store that will allow customers to purchase additional software-as-a-service products and pay with their monthly AWS bill.…

AWS looks to add 'bill collector' to its list of cloud offerings

Amazon offers to handle payments for third-party SaaS devs Amazon Web Services has opened a store that will allow customers to purchase additional software-as-a-service products and pay with their monthly AWS bill.…

Experts to Congress: You must act on IoT security. Congress: Encourage industry to develop best practices, you say?

Schneier crap-storm warning falls on deaf ears Congress provided a masterclass in selective hearing Wednesday when urged by experts to do something about the increasing risk posed by poor IoT security.…

Apple researching methods to monitor Parkinson's disease with Apple Watch and iPhone

In a potential expansion to its current health and wellness offerings, headlined by ResearchKit and HealthKit, Apple is reportedly investigating the viability of employing Apple Watch and iPhone in real-time monitoring of patients w…

Spray-on conductive concrete will shield us from EMP attacks

While the threat of an EMP attack knocking out electronics and sending the world into an apocalyptic spiral seems far off, it's good to know that someone is working to protect us from it anyway. University of Nebraska engineers Christopher …

Microsoft releases first preview build of Visual Studio for macOS developers

As expected, Microsoft today made its Visual Studio developer environment available on macOS. The first preview of Visual Studio for Mac is live now, with Microsoft hoping that the cross-platform availability will push more developers to build for …

There's at Least One Robot Humanity Doesn't Have to Fear

As robots get larger, smarter, faster, stronger, and more agile, there’s good reason for humanity to be a little worried about the day they eventually turn on us. Unless all robots end up like UCLA’s BALLU which is really nothing more than a pair of…

China on Donald Trump's Claim It Invented Global Warming: Nah

Think back, if you will, to the halcyon days of 2012, when Donald Trump hadn’t yet strangled the presidency with his small, grubby orange hands. “The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing no…

Mars Has Its Own Plaid Pattern

It will be a while before we can actually colonize Mars (no matter what Elon Musk says). But when we get there, an official tartan will be ready for the outfits.Read more...

Remove Gum From Hair With Coconut Oil

If you have kids, or know someone who tends to fall asleep with gum in their mouth, you know that gum sticks in hair pretty well. To get it out, just use a dab of coconut oil.Read more...

Apple’s new iPhone 7/Plus are big sellers despite tight supply

Apple's iPhone 7 series smartphones accounted for 73% of U.S. iPhone sales during their first month of release...

ACM 386: Apple Coffee Table Book and Design Run Amok

Apple has a new coffee table book out called Designed by Apple in California. Bryan Chaffin is joined by guest-host John Kheit to talk about it. Spoiler: Bryan likes it and John sees it as a sign of Apple having lost the plot. They also discuss the …

After Microsoft joins Linux, Google Cloud joins .NET Foundation

Next up, dogs and cats living together It has been a day for software surprises – first Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation, and now Google is joining the Technical Steering Group of the .NET Foundation.…

Telstra's answers El Reg's Smart Home security questions

It's not quite an Internet of S**t, but nor does it come up smelling of roses Telstra has managed to emit a response to The Register's questions about the soundness of its Smart Home service strategy, which we received at 5:10 PM yesterday.…

Watch: Unboxing Apple's 13" and 15" MacBook Pro with Touch Bar...simultaneously

Most buyers in the market for Apple's MacBook Pro with Touch Bar will end up purchasing one of two models, the portable but capable 13-inch version or the powerful 15-inch flagship. But choosing one means missing out on an epic dual…

Chrome has at least two new extensions built to fight fake news

After serious anxieties that fake news proliferated on social media unchecked during the election cycle, internet titans have stepped up, with Google and Facebook both blocking ad money from going to hoax story sites. But to protect the peo…