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The Chinese multinational, Huawei at the Eco-connect Europe conference, announced an open platform for On-Device artificial intelligence (AI) development, HiAI 2.0, that will avail developers an open ecosystem to tap into the capabilities of Huawei technologies.

While HiAI 1.0, the inaugural AI computing platform provided developers with operators and APIs, that helped to cut down the time and complexity of app development, HiAI 2.0 will bring even greater computing power, richer APIs and better support across a wider range of devices.

It’ll eliminate the barrier to entry of AI development, thus allowing more developers to join and create new apps for the consumers.

The HiAI 2.0 platform will offer developers greater access to the capabilities of Huawei’s chipsets, devices and cloud, including the HiAI Foundation, HiAI Engine and HiAI Service, which services will serve the myriad needs of developers.

According to the company, there are over 1000 partners and 450000 developers actively working within the Huawei HiAI ecosystem and empowering more than 300 million users with AI capabilities.

And within the HiAI program, Huawei operates 13 R&D centres and 2 Open Labs across the world to collaborate with local developers for app development.

The labs perform the role of a springboard for developers to launch their projects, while Huawei promises to remain committed to working with its partners in building the ecosystem to perfect the AI experience.

Huawei HiAI 2.0: Open platform for the development of On-Device artificial intelligence



Microsoft has made it pretty easy to connect your mobile phone with Windows 10 PC through a nifty app, Windows 10's Your Phone app, which serves to bridge the gap between PC and a smartphone, allowing access right within the PC and the ability to read, send and receive messages.

It is a gateway of some sorts for Microsoft apps to your phone, while the idea is self-explanatory as possible, but the app still present some quirks worth explaining, as you’ll find in the sidebar links to download apps like Microsoft News, and other apps like Microsoft Hyperlapse Mobile and Wordament.

The app connects to your phone as a Windows Continuum, which Microsoft apparently assign the connectivity role via the Your Phone app, as removing your phone from pocket is seen as a rather unnecessary distraction by Microsoft's standard.

Steps to set up Windows 10 Your Phone app

Firstly, you’ll need the Windows 10 October Update, which comes bundled with the Your Phone app, though it is actually two apps: the Your Phone app on Windows, and the Companion app for Android.

Then make sure that your phone and PC are connected via Bluetooth, and on the same Wi-Fi network. Now, the Your Phone app will appear on your PC’s desktop, which should be immediately apparent via a shortcut on your PC.

The Companion app for Android can be downloaded via the Play Store, or you can simply enter your mobile number into the Your Phone app and Microsoft will send the download link to your phone.

Albeit, the Your Phone app offers little as far as the full functionality of the smartphone itself is concerned, but it sure does establish a link between your phone and your PC, with the option of getting additional apps.

It satisfactorily performs two very simple functions: bringing a repository for your messages, as well as photos. And you can write and respond to a given message using your PC’s keyboard.

Also, if you've recently taken a picture, Your Phone app will enable you to access the photo for use or edit right from your PC.

But unfortunately, there isn't a Your Phone Companion app for iOS, and the Your Phone Companion app is quite distinct from the defunct Phone Companion app that originally launched with Windows 10. Though, there is a Companion app for iOS, also authored by Microsoft, that allows you to send photos from iPhone to Windows.

How to link your Smartphone with Windows 10 PC for better experience



The discussions about early stages of 5G seems to hold a whole new level of possibilities for the Internet, and there's poised to be a revolution in areas like Cloud computing, virtualization and the huge impact will leave many businesses in limbo within a few months.

But those are mere predictions, as 5G full deployment is pretty far off, though closer than in the distance future. The 5G technology isn't just about faster data connections and internet services, it portends endless possibilities for digital transformation in the area of Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), among other technologies.

Albeit, the actual rollout of 5G will be more of a whisper, but certainly some markets will see 5G coverage beginning in 2019, though availability issue and inconsistency in coverage will be the norm.

While the volume of data is expected to increase exponentially as Gartner had predicted that the number of connected devices will grow from 23 billion to 31 billion by 2020. And as IoT devices continue to become more commonplace, data will be processed at much higher speed thanks to the deployment of 5G.

The 5G rollout will take quite longer to upgrade mobile infrastructure because many microcell towers and base stations will be required, as it is not just a matter of updating radio technologies on existing towers.

The first 5G-enabled handsets, however is already hitting the market, and this will greatly improve by the mid 2019. According to reports by CCS Insights, about 60 million 5G connections are expected by 2020. And it will be more about devices that can work with the 5G technology when it becomes more widely available, with the early adopters likely to be seen from the United States, China, Japan and South Korea.

Indeed 5G will be a revolutionary force in transforming the technology landscape; including how we live and play, and how businesses operate in 2019 and beyond.

Predictions for 2019: Will IoT hit the mainstream; What will 5G early stages be like?



Google’s Santa tracker offers a peek on Santa Claus with its own version of an Advent Calendar, which leads up to the official commencement of tracking on Monday, December 24, which is Christmas Eve.

It combines educational stuff with holiday fun, and Google also opened up its online Santa’s Village since December 4, with offerings including an array of games for kids of all ages, plus holiday Gboard stickers.

Starting around 10:00 a.m. UTC on Monday, December 24, which is 5:00 a.m. Eastern time, you can track Santa Claus on Google Maps, where you will find a countdown leading up to it.

The company is also offering its annual Google Santa Tracker Android app, with some Android app-exclusive games that you won’t find on the main website, and you can make fun, Mad Libs-style phone calls from Santa to friends in the U.S. and Canada, which calls are deliberately meant to be ridiculous — and serve as a pleasant surprise to the recipients.

You can also ask Google Assistant “Where’s Santa?” or “Track Santa,” or “tell me a holiday story” - as Google Assistant has got some builtin Santa-flavored jokes. For instance, if you ask the assistant to “Tell me a Santa joke,” the Jolly Old Elf will make a cameo appearance to tell some real groaners.

The Santa tracker can be accessed either by visiting the official Google Santa Tracker website or searching for "Santa Claus" on the Google App.

Google Santa Tracker: How to track Santa Claus on Christmas Eve



The leading social network, Facebook is sure digging into deep waters, as a new report ties it to developing a cryptocurrency to allow users on its messaging service, WhatsApp to transfer money.

According to Bloomberg, Facebook is developing stablecoin - a digital currency that will be pegged to the U.S. dollar - to minimize volatility, but the company is still far from releasing the coin, as the strategy, including a plan for custody assets, or currencies that would be held to protect the value, are still in the works.

The cryptocurrency when launched will let users transfer money on the WhatsApp messaging app, and will be initially targeted at the remittances market in India, according to those familiar with the report.

And the kick off with India, is perhaps because it's messaging service, WhatsApp is hugely popular in India, with over 200 million users, also the country leads in world remittances, with $69 billion sent home to India in 2017, according to the World Bank.

While facebook had earlier chirped at looking into applications for blockchain - the encryption technology behind cryptocurrencies - but didn't offer any specifics about future works in that direction.

The company hopes to leverage on the power of blockchain technology to create a digital coin that would be far more easier to use for daily purchases as it will be stable than other currencies such as Bitcoin.

Facebook developing a Cryptocurrency to allow users on WhatsApp to transfer money



Microsoft has introduced an isolated desktop environment, called Windows Sandbox, whereby you can temporarily run untrusted software without the fear of having impact on your PC, and once done, the software with all its files will be permanently deleted.

The Windows Sandbox builds on the technologies used within Windows Containers, which are designed to run in the cloud, with added Windows 10 integration, and features that make it more suitable to run on devices and laptops without requiring the full power of Windows Server.

It offers a lightweight virtual machine, so if you've ever been in a situation in which you wanted a clean installation of Windows, but didn’t want to set up a virtual machine, this feature is meant for you.

Since Windows Sandbox is basically running the same operating system image as the host, the same physical memory pages are used as the host for operating system binaries via a technology referred to as “direct map”.

And the key enhancements to Windows Sandbox is the ability to use a copy of the Windows 10 installed on your PC, instead of downloading a new VHD image as you would have to do with an ordinary virtual machine.

The same executable pages of ntdll, are mapped into the sandbox as that on the host, to ensure this is done in a secure manner and no secrets are shared.

The Windows Sandbox feature is set to debut in 19H1(1903), the next version of Windows 10 expected in spring of 2019, and will come as part of Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise Editions.

Windows Sandbox: Microsoft's desktop environment for running applications in isolation



Facebook has been grappling with incessant privacy issues, and now, the company has announced working on a feature called "clear history" which would allow users to check apps and websites that they've interacted with and clear all history from their account.

While other previous measures taken by the social network to ensure users privacy include bringing the privacy settings to the top of News Feed with the apps granted permissions to data by the user and an easy way to revoke the permissions.

Facebook has seemingly ran into some challenges with the new privacy tool, as it tries to organize web browsing data by date, which instead the "clear history" tool organizes by user profile, making it a bit difficult to find an individual user's browsing data.

The director of product management and leader of Facebook's privacy and data use team, David Baser, stated that they want to build something that's truly helpful for everyone and they'd rather take the time to get it right than rushing something out.

"To do this instantaneously for people so they can control it, has meant we've needed to build a new way for our systems to process information," said Baser.

The privacy tool will help users have more controls over their data and be able to choose which specific parts of their data they no longer want Facebook to share with advertisers and which specific posts, reactions, comments and profile details to delete.

Facebook hopes to commence the testing of the tool in Spring 2019, while the privacy tool is still very much in the works but isn't expected to launch anytime soon.

Facebook prepping a Privacy tool to allow Clearing of History on the Network



Microsoft has launched an analytics product, Clarity that aims to empower website owners by the visualizing at scale, the user behavior to make data driven decisions on improvements to optimize conversion, engagement and retention.

The Clarity A/B experimentation will allow web developers to see exactly when their key metrics are improving, thus eliminating the possible drawback with other such analytics product, which is the lack of visibility on what caused the metrics to move in any instance.

While Google's A/B testing tool, Optimize 360 which made debut in 2017, includes a free version, Google Optimize; but Optimizely, the other popular web analytics service, had discontinued same on its own offerings earlier in the year.

The Clarity service is perhaps a good alternative to Google Optimize, albeit the pricing is what will eventually determine if it will be worth the trying, but for now, the company has not provided a timeline for when it will be out of beta.

It works with any HTML webpage (desktop or mobile), but you are required to add a small piece of JavaScript to the website, after which you've created a project, you will then be added to the waitlist. Once you are approved, you can then get the JavaScript code to use the Clarity dashboard to replay user sessions.

Clarity is currently compatible with the most common two and three letter top level domains (such as .com, .edu, .au, .uk, etc); but Microsoft is working on adding support for more general top level domains.

The team has also open sourced the JavaScript library, with the instructions to help understand user behavior from websites on GitHub, which makes the project a continuous development.

How Clarity Analytics visualize user behavior to make data driven decisions



Google has pledged to keep its facial recognition products free until there are enough policies to prevent abuse of the technology, which is inline with its commitments to responsible development of AI (artificial intelligence).

The same principles will guide what types of features they build, as the facial recognition technology can be beneficial in areas like helping to find a missing person, for instance it could allow to compare photo of a person to a database for identification, Google is exploring ways to identify even more capabilities around the technology.

But like related technologies, facial recognition offer functions which deserves careful evaluation to ensure its use aligns with these principles and values, to avoid harmful outcomes.

Google's resolve to desist from the commercialization of its facial recognition technology may be as a result of backlash on how other vendors of the technology such as Microsoft is engaging in relationship with government agencies which employees are concerned it could involve the use of the technology.

The company promises to work with other organizations to identify and address these challenges, and unlike Microsoft, Google has chosen not to create facial recognition APIs on its Cloud until it works out some important policy questions.

It also hope to bring leading academics from the Association of Pacific Rim Universities together to research on application of AI for social good, with governance frameworks to guide responsible development of AI, and the network will serve as a forum for researchers to discuss issues with government, and the private sector.

Google pledges to keep its Facial Recognition technology free until policies can prevent abuse



The Raw String literals, new form of literal supposed to ease Java development with multiple lines of source code and doesn't interpret escape sequences, may be axed from the Java Development Kit (JDK) 12.

While the programming capability was to make it pretty easier to express sequences of characters, by supplying strings targeted for grammars that span several lines of code, but the team has expressed doubt that the feature would be fully ready by 19, March 2019, when Java 12 will be released.

Brian Goetz, Java language architect for Oracle, wrote in a email that it preview in its current state would be to the detriment of the language. And they’re of course disappointed that it will take slightly longer for the feature to make it into the language, but that’s the best choice.

Therefore, a proposal has been launched to remove the raw string literals from the planned Java 12 upgrade, with the review period slated for December 18, 2018.

The feedback from the proposal comprise the two-backquote sequence which could be confused for an empty string; with no direct way to start or end a raw string literal with backquote; and unnecessary asymmetry on raw string literals and traditional string literals.

The JDK Enhancement Proposals (JEP) team's decision to drop raw string literals from version 12 of the Java programming language, may perhaps give developers the opportunity to better work out the design and redefine the options.

Java 12 launching without the much anticipated Raw String Literals



Instagram is reportedly working on "creator accounts" which is targeted at connecting brands with high-profile users, often referred to as social influencers as they command a pool of large audience through their great number of followers. While brands would be able to work directly with the influencers to push their social campaigns, including trending tags or ad promotions.

The Creator accounts will afford the influencers daily and weekly data insights on changes in their follower counts, and also make it possible for them to get a recap of their contents to know what may have resulted the increase or decrease in number of followers.

Among the tools that will be available to the creators, are testing and sorting tools to allow them filter read from unread and flagged messages, with ranking requests so as to not to miss any important thing.

While Instagram already offer Businesses special accounts to represent them on the platform, the new feature will fully open them up to collaborate with the influencers whom they often turn to for their marketing campaigns. And just like the business-focused profiles on Instagram, it is meant for the conventionally talented, digital influencers and celebrities with unbeatable reach.

The feature which is currently in testing with a small group of high-profile Instagram users will offer tools tailored to make working with influencers easier for the brands, as the creator-specific accounts will give the social media's high-profile users specialized tools to engage with the various businesses on the platform.

Instagram Creator Accounts to target high-profile Social Influencers on the platform



In today's world, blogging has become an essential part of not only keeping oneself-busy but also a marketing tool and a great strategy to make money online. With fresh new posts on your website like a breath of fresh air for your business and at the same time, a big help to search engines.

Every time a new post is up that covers the popular topics on your website, as people use search engines to find out about nearly everything, your writing not only helps the search engines but also the searchers, thus the search engines send traffic to your website for the related queries.

And people visit your website with hope to get a solution for their queries and hence every time when you post a new entry you strengthen the bond with your followers and visitors.

All businesses want to stand out from the crowd and blogging is one of the best ways to do it. To stand out of the crowd, you need to use some techniques that could help you boost your website search engine optimization (SEO) results.

SEO serves to increase traffic flow to your website, and the optimization gets better through your posts or blogs, so the more you post the better chances you can reach more people.

As websites are updated on a regular basis, they are loved by search engines because nobody likes old and outdated information, and not only would it cause irrelevant answers but also obsolete data thus resulting a drop in the traffic. The websites that are useful are ones that are updated every day or at least on a weekly basis.

There are many points that help to keep your website in the limelight with search engines and to be #1 in the result is the need to keep on improving the quality of your blogs. This can be done by taking care of some little issues and adding some bits and pieces here and there on your page.

It is advised to use professional tools like Google Keyword Planner to find the most searched keywords matching your blogging niche, and incorporate them accordingly (with proper keyword density) to further enhance the searchability and quality of your content.

Now lets us discuss some of the important tips below that could help you make your content perform better:

One is not Enough



Nowadays, we need everything at our fingertips, and we expect not only one-word answer or one-page approach, but a complete encyclopedia to be present in one single click. This need of users is also taken up by search engines especially Google where they prefer sites that give complete in and out details about the related topic all compiled in a single source.

These search engines have made a pattern that only shows those websites in the search result that cover the topic in a holistic manner.

This method not only attracts human reader but also shows the worth of your website to Google that you have a full command on the subject you are writing, and hence the search engine crawlers find it justifying to promote your content.

Creating Sub Topics as Internal Links



While back in school or high school we learned the importance of subtopics or subheadings, they are a great way of making your reader wish to read under it in detail. In blogging world subtopics and subheadings are a way to interconnect different pages of your own website that you think can be interrelated in any way, even in smallest manner. This approach will catch more eyes and will help to stay on the search result.

Keywords and Images with Backlinks



You should know your subject in and out in such a way that no one else knows,and you can describe it in such a manner that reader will be left in a hypnotic state, without they detecting that your article has any such words that can be called as ‘keywords’. Keywords are those simple or popular words that people use when putting up their query on Google. A good blog always has keyword incorporated in its text in such a strategy that it seems like an essential part of it.

Same goes for images, as it’s a very common human psyche that we are attracted to high-quality images with a great background. We can use these images as a mean to redirect our readers to our internal pages as well as external pages. Another very important aspect is providing backlinks to keywords or images. These backlinks help search engines to detect your blog or website as a part of given query.

Inbound Linking



Inbound linking is something that we cannot forcefully apply to our own website,but we can take such steps that encourage other websites to inbound with our website. To ensure this approach we need to make a routine of adding in details to our website topic and consistently produce fresh elements and posts.

So, the conclusion is that these best practices, as outlined by the Dissertation team, can be taken on a faster pace if we concentrate on social media marketing with such dynamic and encouraging contexts that leave our target audience and competitors in a state of awe.

What are the Importance of Blogging in SEO?



The Java standard for developing component-based web interfaces, JavaServer Faces (JSF) presents formal components in a logical tree using XML document, and especially suitable for large-scale, Java enterprise development.

Just like JavaServer Pages (JSP), it allows access to server-side data and logic, while the former is essentially an HTML imbued with server-side capabilities.

JSF is independent of the HTML, as the components are backed by Java objects, and coupled with the full range of Java abilities, including remote APIs and database accessibility, allowing to build web interfaces without much interaction with the base technologies.

Its approach to component-based UI development for web applications involves the MVC architecture, event model, and component library, which include the new features available in JSF 2.3 and PrimeFaces for component library.

Though, the JSF standard has faced stiff competition from the Java-compatible web frameworks, and client-side JavaScript frameworks, but it remains the preferred Java standard for large-scale enterprise development.

The specification spawns a wealth of frameworks and libraries, which has kept pace with the most recent client-side improvements, for instance the PrimeFaces.

While JSF pages can be used within JavaServer Pages, it's perhaps more common for Facelets used to build standalone JSF pages, and the Facelets are XHTML pages designed for JSF interfaces; using XML tags you can create a component tree as the scaffold for a JSF user interface.

The standards are governed by the open source community, with the Java Community Process (JCP) having overseen the development of Java technology; and Servlets, JSP, and JSF were all developed using JCP's open source specification process.

A look at the Java Standard for developing Component-based UIs, JavaServer Faces



Google's open-source browser technology, Chromium is hugely popular nowadays, that even the supposed staunch competitor, Microsoft is now looking to rely on Chromium instead of its EdgeHTML browser engine.

Microsoft has confirmed the overhauling of its browser, Edge to run on Chromium, same engine that powers Google Chrome, and doing so simply means that Google will have more control to decide the capabilities available to the web.

The switch will make it pretty hard for other competitors to forge ahead, because it makes Google even more powerful on many fronts.

That's exactly the situation when Microsoft had a monopoly on browsers with Internet Explorer (IE) in the early 2000s before Firefox was released and eventually, Google Chrome.

The competition help to balance the internet and online life, which depends on choice, and it allow the consumers to be able to decide whether something is better and to take action.

Google as a fierce competitor, has highly talented staffers and a monopolistic hold on the web assets will inevitable lead to dominance across other aspects like: advertising, search and would create a vast imbalance in the playing field.

Even Opera has joined Chromium, also following in its footsteps is the relatively new comer, Brave browser.

It leaves Gecko Quantum from Mozilla as the only alternative browser engine, and Firefox once again holds its own, and has assured on speed and performance with Quantum Firefox, bringing smarter memory management and providing some nifty new capabilities.

What's the significance of Microsoft’s switch to Chromium for the web?



Unfortunately, due to the bad reputation of torrenting, most ISPs (Internet service providers) and probably the government may not support it, even while it's totally legal.

While many people have talked about torrenting in a negative light as a way to illegally share files, but that's not all there is to torrenting. Actually, torrenting can be pretty useful for sharing large files, and of course legally, such as presentations in the form of videos and photos, or for downloading out-of-print titles or non-copyrighted files.

But, if you're downloading illegal files and the government caught up with you, you may face legal actions and possibly, serve some jail time.

Steps to Safely Download Torrents

Firstly, make sure you are torrenting from legitimate sites. And most importantly, make sure the download link has been accessed and upvoted recently in popular forums like Reddit. As there are lots of torrent sites, the most popular sites like Kickass Torrents (KAT) and the Pirate Bay remains the safest.

Though there are several Torrents proxy and mirror sites, but most of them don’t tend to work and those that do are riddled with malware. But the best work list of proxy and mirror sites for Kickass Torrents (KAT) are available on this site - https://www.xtorrentp2p.com/kickass-proxy-unblocked.html, that are perfectly effective for unblocking the site, however, you’ll most probably need a VPN.

You can also check out the following Proxy list for KickAss:

  1. http://www.thekat.online/ 
  2. https://www.katproxy.live/


Why use a VPN service to Access Torrents

As most of torrents sites are infamous for distributing the largest collection of pirated contents in the industry, they are restricted and inaccessible due to regional laws. So, if your country has a strict copyright regulation, there are chances you will not be able to access Torrents without the help of a proxy or VPN service.

With the help of proxy, VPNs or even mirror sites you can easily get unblocked and enjoy your torrenting.

Instead of just guessing which links are safe, you should make use of a VPN to torrent safely and securely. It stands between you and the site that you're accessing, allowing you to surf with a safer connection that won't leak your personal information and will give you a head-up if downloading anything unsafe.

Although, torrent files may not always be the safest, but there are plenty of legal reasons why you are doing what you're doing, so the fact that you're torrenting doesn't necessarily raise any red flag.

How to Download Torrents Safely and Anonymously without revealing your identity



Microsoft has demonstrated the total embracing of open source, as it open-sources the three Windows UX frameworks, namely: Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), the Windows Forms and Windows UI XAML library (WinUI).

While the open source frameworks will avail developers the ability to contribute to the source code creations, with third-parties input in the debugging of the frameworks to provide timely fixes.

Albeit, the WPF isn't completely open at the moment, only the smaller components are available on GitHub; but Windows Forms and WinUI are completely open and available.

The frameworks will serve as followup to the open source .Net Core 3 framework, which also works with the Universal Windows Platform (UWP) XAML, and existing and new applications can run on .Net Core.

Also, developers can launch and debug projects on WPF and Windows Forms right within Visual Studio 2019 Preview 1, and open .NET Core 3.0 projects in Visual Studio 2017 15.9, although you'll need to enable the previews.

The WPF will serve as a rendering engine to take advantage of the modern graphics hardware, and the UI framework for building desktop client applications, including model, graphics, controls, layout, data binding and security.

Microsoft hopes to scale the growth of .NET by leveraging the open source community, while the developers can help in the debugging and fixing of issues, as well as building private copies of the UI stack.

Why the Open Sourcing of Windows UX Frameworks matters to developers



Microsoft Edge is the default web browser for Windows 10 device classes, including Windows 10 Mobile, and Xbox One consoles, replacing Internet Explorer 11 and Internet Explorer Mobile. But the browser adoption has steadily gone down, and Microsoft is perhaps looking to rely instead on Google's browser engine.

While the Blink rendering engine is forked from WebKit and currently used by Google Chrome, and also Opera, now Microsoft is reportedly revising its browser with codename, Anaheim using same engine.

According to reports, the supposed new browser will be replacing Edge browser, which the Windows Central blog claimed as Microsoft's throwing in of the towel with Edge and is building a new web browser for Windows 10, powered by Chromium.

Though, the company has not confirmed the report, an insider scoop admits that Microsoft indeed plans to repackage its browser software around Chromium.

Microsoft had originally built its browser with a rendering engine called EdgeHTML, designed to be lightweight, fast and secure, but since launch the browser has be plagued with a plethora of issues resulting low adoption from Windows users.

Albeit, it remains unclear if the new browser will eventually launch using the Edge name or as a complete new brand, but the sure thing is that Blink is the new Windows 10's browser core technology.

Microsoft looks to Blink Engine for the core Edge browser technology



The popular question-and-answer portal, Quora was hit by a security breach resulting unauthorized access to nearly 100 million users accounts, which compromise was as a result of entry by a malicious third party.

According to the company, the breach has resulted compromise in the following users data: personal account information (such as name, email address, password, imported data from linked accounts), as well as public contents (like questions, answers, comments, upvotes) and non-public actions (such as answer requests, direct messages, etc).

All users affected in the breach will be notified by Quora in an email, but while you await them to provide relevant updates to their system, below steps can help you to remain in control of your account and ensure other accounts sharing same password are safe.

What are the risks to Users Accounts?

While it is pretty unlikely that the breach will result in identity theft, as the site does not store sensitive personal information like credit card or social security numbers, it is recommended that all affected users should update their passwords, including on Facebook and Google accounts, if connected to the account.

How to reset your password on Quora?

Normally, the company should invalidate all affected passwords, and you will be prompted to reset your password the next time you try to log into Quora. However, if you are not prompted on signing in to change your password, you can change it by visiting your account settings and clicking on "Change Password" to enter your new password.

It is generally a best practice to desist from reusing the same password across multiple accounts, and it is recommended that users should change their passwords if they are also using same in other accounts.

Steps to take in the wake of Quora's security breach to ensure accounts safety



Amazon Web Services (AWS) is huge in the cloud computing vertical. In fact, huge doesn’t even describe it. Just consider that AWS is 10 times the size of its closest competitor. And most probably, you have visited a website hosted on AWS servers without even realizing it; as Amazon’s servers are home to internet giants like Netflix, Reddit, and Pinterest.

Now, AWS might not be suitable for hosting a WordPress blog. However, if your company is looking to move its business online, or to transfer its server to the cloud, AWS is for you.

What makes AWS so popular?

Well, it offers all the benefits of scalable computing. This includes flexibility of server resources — you don’t have to worry about getting too little storage space or bandwidth. And, as Amazon owns dozens of massive data centers, they can accommodate virtually any company. To top it off, it’s usually more affordable than investing in your own servers.

If you’re interested in knowing more about AWS, the infographic by the Hosting Tribunal is for you. It covers the most important facts and statistics about AWS.

Starting with some general info about AWS’s coverage and the number of users. It also mentions AWS’s revenue. Warning: their profits might make your jaw to drop to the floor.

It covers the most important milestones in AWS’s history. Here you can find everything from AWS’s launch to it spreading to new regions and introducing new services. You can also read about the largest companies associated with AWS.

You must know the negatives too. AWS suffered several major outages. Still, none of them were severe enough to hurt its reputation. Many companies still consider it the most secure hosting option.

Finally, you can find out the benefits of AWS and read a brief guide to picking the best AWS solution for your needs. You can also read about some success stories, which will give you a perspective on how AWS can benefit your business. So, if you think AWS can be of help to you, check out the infographic below.

AWS Web Hosting Facts & Stats

AWS Web Hosting Facts You Should Know (Infographic)



Microsoft's browsers, Internet Explorer (IE) and Edge are holding on to same share of the browser market from last month for the first time since June, even as Mozilla Firefox suffers a percentage point decline.

While Microsoft has resorted to frantic last-minute efforts to get Windows 10 users to use its browser, including attempts to frighten people into using Edge, with a dialog box warning that pops up on installation of other web browsers, which reads: "You already have Edge - the safer, faster browser for Windows 10" - though only restricted to the Windows 10 developer version.

The Net Applications stats for November puts Internet Explorer and Edge at 13.9% market share, which is one-tenth of a percentage point increase. Albeit, the boost to Microsoft's browser came surprisingly from the rather obsolete IE, rallying up to 9.6% share.

It is rather surprising as Microsoft had already demoted IE browser, as suitable only for the retired Windows 7, as a mere legacy version. The company halted improvements or enhancements coming to the browser since 2016, restricting only security updates.

Microsoft Edge, the default browser for Windows 10 remains at flat rate of 4.2%, the same position it was placed for October.

The Net Applications stats are calculated from user share by detecting the agent strings of the people using the websites of its clients, which it tallies with the visitor sessions rather than users count.

And perhaps, with the most positive of a 12-month stretch since 2013 that IE recorded some increase in shares, the aged Microsoft's browser isn't disappearing anytime soon.

Microsoft's browser, Internet Explorer still holding onto the browser market



YouTube Stories, first announced in November 2017, aims to bring more engagement to the community and for creators to show behind-the-scenes activities, or tease upcoming productions to their fans.

The Stories feature is available to creators with 10,000 or more subscribers, and restricted to the mobile app, while both subscribers and non-subscribers will be able to follow the Stories which lasts for only seven days from the YouTube’s “Up Next” sidebar.



It can also include filters, stickers, music and text, much like what is obtainable with Instagram's Stories and other such related service formats.

YouTube Stories will allow fans to comment, as well as to react to the comments with emojis: thumbs up, thumbs down or a heart and it will feature the same moderation tools as video uploads on the platform.

YouTube extended the rollout to more creators as requested on feedback from the community, and as the product is built specifically for the creators, it behoves them to make it as popular as Instagram’s own feature in the next couple of years.

Up Next: YouTube Stories for Creators with 10,000 or more subscribers

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