It is a period of civil war in Star Wars fandom. 

We’re nearly seven months on from the release of The Last Jedi, and a certain very vocal minority of fans — you know, the kind who think a film can ruin their childhood — just can’t let it go. And now the director is striking back. 

The catalyst for this fresh round of warfare is the fact that Kelly Marie Tran, who played Resistance mechanic Rose Tico, mysteriously deleted all her Instagram posts this week. Tran has not explained why she did this; Mashable has reached out to her publicist for comment. Read more…

More about Rian Johnson, The Last Jedi, Last Jedi, Kelly Marie Tran, and Entertainment

If you think Facebook notifications have gotten too aggressive lately then you better buckle up, because they could soon make an appearance in your Instagram feed.

The photo sharing service is testing a feature that displays Facebook notification badges inside of the Instagram app.

The test adds a big red notification badge to the existing Facebook shortcut on your Instagram profile. Tapping on it launches the Facebook app and directs you to your notifications (the notifications icon gives a small wiggle).

An Instagram spokesperson confirmed the test, but didn’t say when or if the feature might launch more broadly. Read more…

More about Tech, Facebook, Apps And Software, Tech, and Social Media Companies

This is malicious compliance at its finest.

Redditor and powerwashing enthusiast Qrusader62 made his grounded daughter powerwash the family’s deck as a form of punishment. Then he posted a photo of the message she left him.

She sorta did the job. Instead of cleaning off years’ worth of dirt and grime, she inscribed “DAD IS BALD” into the wood.

“Grounding extended,” Qrusader62 wrote, and then mourned the loss of his hair.

At least he had a sense of humor about it. Read more…

More about Reddit, Kids, Culture, and Web Culture

Facebook has been messing up a lot lately, but the advertising giant’s most recent misstep still managed to surprise in that it took place in a rather unexpected venue: Twitter.

Following news that Facebook allowed phone manufacturers to access the data of some users’ Facebook friends without explicit consent, whoever runs the company’s Twitter account rushed to the service to defend the practice. In the process, the social media team forgot what has over the years become a kind of core internet rule: Never tweet. 

In doing so, they teed up the denizens of Twitter to do what they do best: Dunk on brands.  Read more…

More about Facebook, Twitter, Privacy, Alex Stamos, and Tech

If it’s not already on your Android device, Google Lens is now available as a standalone app from the Play Store.

Lens is useful if you see something but don’t know exactly what it is, or want more information. Launched at Google I/O last year, the intelligent camera allows you to identify an artwork, landmarks, or even dogs (albeit not so well).

The feature also allows you to scan barcodes and also text, allowing you to translate words, call a number, add an event to the calendar, and even simple copy and paste.  Read more…

More about Tech, Google, Android, Apps, and Phones

When Apple unveils a new version of iOS, it doesn’t mess around. 

Senior VP of Software Engineering Craig Federighi blazed through slide after slide at the WWDC 2018 keynote to show us almost everything new in iOS 12 — from new camera effects to a suite of tools to help manage device addiction, and of course those “Memoji.”

It’s one thing to show a new feature, however. Quite another to use it. 

I got a chance to try out a few of the new iOS 12 tricks with an Apple-provided iPhone running the beta version of the update. While I couldn’t take any pictures, Apple did answer some questions it didn’t address in the keynote. Read more…

More about Iphone, Ios, Ios 12, Tech, and Iphone

Saudi Arabia’s controversial ban on women drivers will lift on June 24, and 10 women have already picked their licenses up.

According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), women holding kingdom-approved international licenses Monday started trading them in for national ones from the General Traffic Directorate (GDT).

“The exchange process is taking place on various spots around the kingdom to lay the ground for women sitting behind the wheels on the roads — a turning point set to be actualised on June 24,” read an SPA statement.

Arab News shared a video of one of the first licenses issued in Riyadh, in which a woman receives her Saudi license from GDT officials. Read more…

More about Social Good, Equality, Saudi Arabia, Women S Rights, and Social Good

Apple made the vast majority of its ever-growing multibillion-dollar hoard selling us hardware: iPads, Macs, Macbooks, Apple TVs, Apple Watches, speakers, headphones, docks, cables, and above all else that ultimate cash cow, the iPhone. 

So it may seem a little strange that the company’s keynote at its WorldWide Developer Conference in San Jose Monday featured not one single hardware upgrade. No new entry-level iPhone, no iMac or Mac Pro, no iPad Pro with Face ID, not the long-rumored replacement for the Macbook Air. Just a string of incremental software improvements: Mac OSX Mojave, iOS 12, TV OS, Watch OS 5.  Read more…

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Trump’s tweet is just too easy to meme.

In a heated tweet on Monday, the president claimed that he has “the absolute right to pardon” himself, which is a sentiment he claims has been “stated by numerous legal scholars.” He also clarified that he’s done “nothing wrong.”

The tweet was quickly turned into a meme — after all, it sounds exactly like what you’d expect someone to say if they’re not guilty of anything, right?

More about Twitter, Memes, Trump, Culture, and Web Culture

Apple just revealed what’s next for the iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV.

Today at its Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple detailed the latest versions of its operating systems: iOS 12, macOS Mojave, watchOS 5, and tvOS 12.

The updates included new ways to use Siri, revamps of old apps, and long-awaited features, like Dark Mode for Mac and group calling on FaceTime. Here’s what you need to know:

iOS 12

As predicted, the next version of iOS is all about performance and stability, which means we aren’t getting as many major new features as in years past. Apple did announce a new set of features meant to curb device addiction, as well as revamped notifications. Read more…

More about Tech, Apple, Wwdc, Ios 12, and Wwdc 2018