James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Is Mr. Robot really serious about the issues it exposes?
“Do you think you’re free? You’re not free. Your lives are not your own.” The latter was put to us as part of a Facebook Live stream, apparently coordinated by the hacker group, fsociety, for USA Network’s award-winning series Mr. Robot. We are reminded in the clip that the function of consumerism under capitalism is ...
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella likes Pokémon Go, but has much bigger ideas for augmented reality
Following the record-breaking success of the augmented reality gaming app, Pokémon Go, in an interview Microsoft’s forward-thinking CEO Satya Nadella stated he thought it was “fantastic” such apps were being built, but he also believes such a thing will translate into more diverse interests in augmented reality, specifically with Microsoft’s own AR headset HoloLens. Pokémon Go’s success, however, ...
Microsoft’s highly embarrassing attempt to be hip and woo interns results in apology
There’s nothing as cringe-worthy in the eyes of the young generation as watching their elders attempt to be hip, either by mimicking the slang of their generation, or perhaps asserting themselves on the dance floor doing moves they clearly have no right to do. Yes, we’ve all winced from time to time at such a spectacle, and this ...
Wheelchair avatars come to Xbox One only for disabled people to call them ugly and unfashionable
Microsoft is taking its Gaming for Everyone Xbox One slogan seriously, recently adding wheelchair avatars as an option for players. This comes as part of Microsoft’s attempt to implement new features to the console that embrace diversity and inclusion. Recently Xbox chief Phil Spencer was asked on Twitter about the idea of having disabled avatars ...
‘Robot journalists’ are now covering baseball, but what next?
If you’re a journalist — particularly a sports journalist — and are wondering if, given the small but impressive rise of automated journalism, you will be out of a job soon, we don’t think you have much to worry about. On the other hand, if you’re the kind of journalist that can only crunch out ...
Oculus CEO latest tech exec on the end of an embarrassing, but this time more amusing hack
It seems no one is safe from suffering the ignominy of being hacked, not when you consider some of the biggest names in tech have been made to look quite foolish lately after having certain accounts compromised. The latest of these was Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe. Iribe follows in the footsteps of a string of ...
Satya Nadella will tell you how to adapt to the future in his first book
CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella has been outspoken of late concerning the advancement of technology and how it will shape our lives in the near future, having just written a detailed piece for Slate around what he called the “beauty of machines and humans working in tandem.” He’s also about to write his own book, much of ...
Woman that beat Microsoft in court for $10k says: People must fight back against Windows 10 upgrade aggression
Much has been said about Microsoft’s sometimes deceptive ways in which it has been ‘encouraging’ people to upgrade to Windows 10. This has included upgrading as a recommended update and automatically installing itself on machines, and worse. Well, Microsoft’s aggression has backfired. The company just had to pay $10,000 to a Californian business woman after ...
Google CEO Sundar Pichai hacked by same group that embarrassed Mark Zuckerberg this month
A group of hackers – or perhaps security professionals with an underhanded marketing strategy – known as OurMine are at it again embarrassing the world’s most well known tech executives. Earlier this month the group hacked Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter, Inc. and Pinterest, Inc. accounts, as well as CEO of Spotify Ltd., Daniel Ek’s Twitter account. ...
Creator of upcoming futuristic ‘human-augmentation’ Amazon series talks to SiliconANGLE
“It was very overwhelming at first,” said Stephan Zlotescu, writer and director of the acclaimed True Skin, a 2012 short film based on human augmentation in a vastly more tech-immersed world. The film gained almost immediate acclaim and was quickly snapped-up by Amazon Studios to develop as a series following an earlier attempt by Warner Brothers ...