Brrrr…. It’s cold in here. 

The winter months can be harsh since the days are shorter and the weather is, of course, much, much colder — especially if you live in the midwest and east coast. Temperatures can drop down to below zero Fahrenheit from day-to-day, while having a roof over your head doesn’t guarantee instant warmth.

So how can you turn up the heat in one part of the home without turning it up everywhere else? If you invest in a good space heater, you can assure yourself a nice and toasty winter as you anxiously wait for the spring to finally come. Read more…

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Ever watchful of its competitors (and not so concerned about your privacy), Facebook has been paying people so it can keep tabs on their phone and internet usage.

As unearthed by TechCrunch, the research program dubbed “Project Atlas” sought users who would be willing to install an app that gave Facebook unfettered access to their iOS or Android phones for $20 a month, plus referral fees.

Facebook recruited users aged 13-35 years old via beta testing services like Applause, BetaBound and uTest, with the latter company running ads for a “paid social media research study” on Instagram and Snapchat. Read more…

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It’s very early in the year but we’re already calling the winner for best online feud of 2019.

The self-described “Venom fucker” community (that is, people who want to have sexual relations with the eponymous slimy alien bodybuilder monster from that comic book movie) are outraged at the people who want to bang real-life serial killer Ted Bundy. 

And honestly? They’re not wrong.

Over the weekend, a tweet gained traction in which one such Venom fucker came for the neck of the “Ted Bundy fuckers” trying to defend themselves by comparing the two monster-loving fandoms.  Read more…

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It turns out Apple products are good for more than just spying on people. 

In an otherwise dreary Jan. 29 earnings call, Apple executives had one standout bit of cheery news for wary investors: Apple News supposedly has the largest audience of any news app. Specifically, according to Apple, the service has 85 million monthly active users. 

That number, up from 70 million unique users in 2016, paints a picture of a growing service that is slowly rising to challenge Facebook’s hold on the media ecosystem. But it still has a long way to go before it manages to dethrone the Boy King of Silicon Valley.  Read more…

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Apple really isn’t selling as many iPhones.

The company reported earnings for its December quarter Tuesday, revealing that iPhone revenue fell 15 percent, compared with the same time last year. That would be a steep decline for any quarter, but is particularly significant for a holiday period, when sales are typically strong. 

We don’t know exactly how much iPhone sales are suffering, as Apple conveniently announced last quarter that it would stop breaking out individual unit sales for the iPhone and other products. But sales are down enough to hurt Apple’s bottom line. Revenue was down 5 percent overall this quarter, largely due to weaker demand for iPhones.  Read more…

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On Monday, Ashton Kutcher tweeted that he’d be “changing [his] social media strategy.” On Tuesday, he tweeted out his phone number.

No, Kutcher probably wasn’t hacked. And if he did actually give out his private phone number, he probably has a new one now.

The number he shared is connected to an ostensibly new messaging service provider called Community, which, according to its privacy policy, allows subscribers to send messages to their “fans and followers.” Read more…

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Facebook appears to be talking out of both sides of its mouth again.

On Monday, the nonprofit news organization ProPublica published a report stating that Facebook had intentionally disabled its ability to monitor political advertising on the platform — which doesn’t exactly sound like the transparency Mark Zuckerberg promised. 

ProPublica uses a plugin that allows it to see which ads a consenting user sees on Facebook. It also tells the organization how those users were targeted. For example, if you’re someone who told Facebook that you are “liberal,” you might see ads for liberal causes. But this sort of targeting can also get much, much more granular. Cambridge Analytica targeted people with political ads based on their denim preferences. Read more…

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It’s wrong to mock someone who is down on their luck … unless that person is failed former alt-right superstar Milo Yiannopoulos.

After being forced out of Breitbart two years ago, disinvited from conferences, losing his book deal, incurring approximately $2 million in debt, being deplatformed from a crowdfunding site, and being made to return his wedding ring, Yiannopoulous now appears to have returned to his most familiar haunt: the bottom.

Take, for example, his recent rendition of a gospel song, entitled “Silver & Gold.” 

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Burger King’s brilliant marketing tactic was slammed by vlogger Casey Neistat for being “exploitative” — but he ended up promoting Burger King in his call out anyway. 

“I don’t like to be taken advantage of. I don’t appreciate being manipulated,” Neistat said in a video posted Tuesday. “Yet that is exactly what Burger King … did to me.” 

Here’s a rundown: About a week ago, Burger King started liking people’s tweets from 2010, and Twitter users were thoroughly confused. Casey Neistat posted a screenshot of the recently liked gems, which brought even more attention to the weird likes.  Read more…

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Toyota’s been slacking on developing its own all-electric car. It’s reached the point that its hybrid Prius owners are defecting over to electric car company Tesla.

Recent comments from Toyota’s North America CEO Jim Lenktz in Automotive News clued everyone in on how much of a pull Tesla has. According to the auto publication, about 9 percent of Toyota drivers jump to other brands, and half of those defectors are Prius owners going to Tesla.

The Prius is the closest thing Toyota drivers have to an electric option. It came out ahead of the EV boom back in 1997, but it’s still gas-reliant. Toyota’s electric lag is pushing eco-conscious drivers to vehicles like Tesla’s moderately priced sedan, the Model 3. (It starts at $46,000, while a new Prius is upward of $23,000.) Prius sales are dropping. In fact, CNBC reported a 23 percent sales drop in 2018. Read more…

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