December, 2018 - Softonic English

You definitely want to avoid this WhatsApp “update”

You need to ignore all invitations to receive to update to WhatsApp Gold

There has been a scam making the rounds on WhatsApp and it is very important that you don’t fall for it. We’re always trying to keep you informed about WhatsApp scams and fake updates and we first reported on this scam back in 2016, but it seems to be back again. The scam is called WhatsApp Gold and it is spreading across WhatsApp via Status updates and chats forwarded from other users.

You need to ignore all invitations to receive to update to WhatsApp Gold

Downloading the fake WhatsApp Gold update will infect your phone and compromise your data. According to those who have been targeted, the WhatsApp Gold fake update is now being linked to another WhatsApp hoax called Martinelli. People have been receiving a strange message in their inboxes saying that a video called Martinelli will be released and, if opened, it will install a virus on the victim’s phone. The message is quite confusing and says:

“Today the radio was talking about WhatsApp Gold and it is true. There is a video that will be released tomorrow on WhatsApp and is called Martinelli. Do not open it. Enter your phone and nothing you do will fix it. Spread the message if you know someone. If you receive a message to update Whatsapp Gold Do not open it! They just announced that the virus is serious. Send it to everyone.”

The Martinelli video warning made the rounds on social media last year. Warnings were sent around telling people not to open the video as it would infect their phone. It turned out to be a complete hoax, however, as no video actually existed. It seems that the real WhatsApp Gold threat has, for some unknown reason, become attached to the fake Martinelli video warning.

The key here is to ignore any messages you might receive about WhatsApp updates. The real threat in this situation is the fake WhatsApp Gold update, which will install malware onto your phone if you install it. Any updates that ask you to download an apk file, to manually install on your device, are fake. WhatsApp updates occur automatically, so you never have to download or update anything.

Furthermore, you should make sure you only get your downloads and news about software updates from trusted sources like Softonic. We’ll bring you regular updates about WhatsApp from trusted sources like the official WhatsApp blog or WABetaInfo. To stay ahead of the news in a safe and secure way, sign up to our email newsletter by putting your email address in the box at the bottom of the page.

YouTube has some excellent news for students

YouTube Music and YouTube Premium now have special student pricing plans

Earlier this year, YouTube launched the paid subscription YouTube Music and YouTube Premium services in 17 countries around the world. YouTube Music is a Spotify-like experience that gives users access to hundreds of thousands of songs as well as YouTube’s impressive algorithms for sharing up new music it thinks you will like. YouTube Premium, as the name suggests, offers a subscribers an ad-free experience, the ability to download videos, and to gain access to YouTube Originals content.

Both services come at a cost though, with YouTube Music costing $9.99 a month and YouTube Premium coming in $11.99 a month. It is worth noting though, that YouTube Premium subscribers get full access to the YouTube Music service, too. If the thought of shelling out at least $10 a month on a YouTube subscription sounds a bit too rich for your blood, then we might have some good news for you. That is, if you are an officially registered student.

More about YouTube Music and YouTube Premium

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The student prices for both services offer heavy discounts against the full prices. For YouTube Music, students will gain full access for only $4.99 a month, which represents a massive 50% discount. Students will be able to access YouTube Premium for only $6.99 a month. If they manage to sign up before January 13, 2019, though, they’ll be able to get a YouTube Premium subscription at an extra discounted price of $5.99 a month. For full details on the student pricing click here.

Now before you go running off to sign up to a free course at the local community college, you need to realize that it doesn’t quite work like that. To be eligible for the student pricing plans you need to be a full-time student at an accredited college or university in the United States. (Sorry, rest-of-the-planet.) YouTube, however, has said that it does plan on introducing student pricing in other countries but is yet to announce when exactly it will do so.

Both programs are the latest in a long line of attempts by YouTube to muscle in on the paid subscription service market. YouTube Music pits it against the likes of Spotify, Apple Music, and Deezer while YouTube Premium should eventually see it competing with the likes of Netflix.

Content is king in these markets though, so before YouTube can start competing with Netflix and Amazon Prime it will have to start adding some compelling content to its roster.

In the meantime, what do you think about having the ability to download YouTube videos so that you can watch them offline. Is that something you think is worth paying for? Let us know in the comments below.

Best secret Santa sites

Take your Secret Santa gift exchange to the next level!

Christmas approaches, along with one of our favorite holiday traditions: the Secret Santa gift exchange!

If you’ve never had a Secret Santa party (NOTE: not a white elephant exchange), we recommend it! There’s nothing like picking the perfect gift for a friend, and receiving something awesome in return.

You may wonder: what do Secret Santa Sites add? Why not just put everyone’s names on a piece of paper, have everybody draw, and move on with things? Well, for starters, that’s no fun. Aside from that, these applications help suggest gifts to givers, set dates and send reminders, establish information (like budgets) so everyone’s on the same page, and connect people that are far away. There are too many great reasons!

So, for newbies and veterans alike, please check out the…

Best Secret Santa Sites!

Simple Path: Drawnames

Drawnames gets the job done easily! Head on over to their website:

Creating an Exchange

You don’t even have to create an account yet: just hit the “Start Drawing Names” button, and begin the process! We’ll simplify the first steps…

You need just a few things for the first step: the participant names and their emails:

After that, you’ll find an information page. You aren’t required to create anything other than a name and email message, but we suggest including a date. We set the budget at $500. So far, after years of exchanging, we’ve had no problems…

At this point, you can send the invites! Participants will receive an email asking for confirmation. You can set a deadline, or wait until everyone joins. When the right conditions have been met, the “drawing” begins, and assignments are emailed to each person!

The Pluses

Once the emails go out, you should make an account. This allows you to create a wish list, record your hobbies/likes, and offer gift suggestions (a helpful guide for your gift giver).

Conclusion

We’ve used Drawnames for a number of years, and each time it’s served us amazingly well. The use of emails gets the job done quickly, the user interface appears clean and fresh, suggesting gifts and setting deadlines couldn’t be easier.

As a bonus, you can set gifting restrictions! If a couple is part of your friend group and already planning to gift each other, kindly help them draw another name. If you have an aunt who only gives clothes, make sure she can’t send any more badly-fitted jeans. If you have two coworkers that don’t get along, make sure they receive each other’s names!

Heh.

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Thorough Path: Elfster

Think about that name for a second. Elfster. Doesn’t it make more sense? The elves make the presents all year round, and the party itself is called the Secret Santa exchange. The big man gets all the Christmas credit…

If you’re an “elf,” and enjoy finding a gift as much as the actual exchange party, we love you.

Starting an Exchange

Head on over to the website!

You don’t need to create an account yet: hit the orange button labeled “Secret Santa Generator”! If you do make an account, this icon will become “Start a Gift Exchange”:

Once that’s finished, you’re on a familiar road: put in your email and set a password to create an account. Enter gift exchange information, budget, date, etc. Finally, Elfster finishes with the names and emails: place everyone’s information down, and send out those invites.

Here, you only NEED to set an exchange name and date.

Fin — There it is. Add the people, create the invites.

Once you’re finished, and the names are out, you can create wish lists in preparation for the exchange as usual. Be warned: if you type in a gift, Elfster automatically searches for ideas on Amazon.com. The option for plain text must be selected. (It took us an embarrassing amount of time to figure this out:)

The Pluses

For starters, Elfster takes the options provided by Drawnames the next level! … At the cost of simplicity. Want to set drawing restrictions? You can now use the settings from all previous years, where Drawnames only carries over restrictions from the previous exchange. Want to see other people’s wish lists? Elfster allows you to “Follow” other people, like a social media app! These options can be confusing at first, but with time they become powerful allies.

“With great power comes great responsibility” – Uncle Ben

Final Note

After all that hard work, want to spice up a gift exchange further?

Play the guessing game! Label every gift for the receiver… but don’t write down the sender. When someone receives a gift, they have three guesses to find the giver. Once they’re finished, the giver opens their gift and the cycle continues! Always a good time. 😀

Thanks for reading, enjoy the exchange!

Top 5 apps to help plan your holiday party

Use these great apps to plan a raging fiesta or a quiet gathering with friends.

Parties are one of the best parts of the holiday season. Along with the chance to get together with family and friends and exchange gifts, they’re the perfect excuse to drink until you don’t mind listening to the same 10 Christmas songs all night. If the responsibility of hosting falls on you this year, don’t worry! We’ve got a few apps that can help make the experience a lot less stressful.

Top 5 apps to help plan your holiday party

1. Doodle

As adults, we all have separate lives with responsibilities that make it difficult to meet up with others. Instead of trying to wrangle everyone in a group text or Facebook group where it’s easy to lose track of things, Doodle is an app where you can see who is available on what day.

Start by creating your event. Then, pick a few dates and times for your party that guests can choose from. After that’s all finished, you can send invites by text message, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, email, Twitter, and other methods. Once a participant receives the invite, they’ll select the date that’s best for them without having to download the app.

Your guests’ avaliability will show up in your Doodle page, and you can finalize your date from there. It’s such a relief to not have to contact a lot of people on a lot of different platforms and will really cut down on your workload. Available for iOS and Android.

Doodle: Easy Scheduling Download Free ►

2. Yummly

The most important part of the party is the food, of course! This could also be the most stressful part, but Yummly has you covered. Even after the holiday season, Yummly is a great app to have for day-to-day recipes. The first time you open the app, you’ll be prompted to select your favorite cuisines, enter any food allergies that you have, and foods that you just don’t like. From then on, it curates recipes that it thinks you’ll enjoy. For your holiday party, you can search by holiday and the app will scour the internet for the best Christmas cookie or Thanksgiving turkey recipes.

If you’re on a strict schedule, you can pick certain dishes by how much time you can spend to make them. Save recipes for later in pre-named categories, or make your own. If that isn’t cool enough, Yummly takes it a step further with their “Shopping List” function, where you can add ingredients manually so you’ll know what you need when you head to the grocery store. Available for iOS and Android.

Yummly DOWNLOAD FREE ►

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3. Tasty

If you’re on any social media platform, you’re sure to have crossed a Tasty video or two. Tasty recipe videos are super binge-worthy, not only having classic recipes but also putting new and creative spins on them. Tasty is not only great for food, but their drink selection is probably the most vast and aesthetically pleasing that you’ll see anywhere on the internet. Discover the top recipes that people are searching for today, or look up the specific drink that you’re looking for (five recipes just for eggnog!).

Add your recipes to your shopping list and your app will organize it for you. No more circling the grocery store, going back and forth between aisles for items that you forgot. Tap the ingredients that you have in your cart, and they’ll be crossed out on the list. If a recipe is a success, add it to your “Would Make Again” list so you can easily go back and access your favorites. Available for iOS and Android.

Tasty DOWNLOAD FREE ►

4. Instacart

Instacart is a lifesaver when it comes to holiday parties. Let’s say that you’ve already spent two hours at the grocery store, and once you’ve dragged all of the heavy bags inside when you get home, you realize you’ve forgotten a key ingredient. Or, maybe you’ve been cleaning all day to prepare for the party and you just don’t feel like grocery shopping at all. Let the awesome shoppers at Instacart do it for you! Just enter your basic info, and select from the available stores around for groceries and alcohol. Add everything you need to your cart, and let the shoppers know if they can substitute an item for another if the one you want isn’t available. Handle your other chores and the groceries arrive at your door!

Instacart is updated constantly, so make sure that you check the coupon page to take advantage of the savings. Available for iOS and Android.

Instacart Grocery Delivery Download Free ►

5. Heads Up!

After all the food has been eaten and everyone’s had a few drinks each, there’s nothing more fun than playing a game with all of your guests. Heads Up! is a hilarious, family-friendly guessing game. Split into two teams and pick a category, from sports teams to blockbuster movies.

With one team playing at a time, a single player is selected who holds their phone against their forehead for their team to see. The team describes the person, place or thing shown on the phone and the winner of the round is the team who had the most correct answers after everyone has played once. For particularly goofy moments, you can watch a video replay of your friends’ crazy charades. New categories are added frequently so it’s no wonder that Heads Up! has been one of the most fun party game apps for the last five years. Available for iOS and Android.

Heads Up! Download Free ►

Now that you have your food, drinks, games, and guests, you’ll all set to have the most epic holiday party of the year. Have fun!

eBay adds installation services to big purchases

Need a hand installing that new purchase? eBay can help.

eBay recently announced a new partnership with three companies that would give customers the ability to book home install services along with their purchases.

Be it televisions, bikes, or a new dining set, there’s no need to worry about your ability to lift big boxes or work an Allen wrench into an impossibly small corner.

The online marketplace is expanding its offerings, adding an extra convenience for shoppers who don’t quite know their way around a physical toolbox.

eBay adds installation services to big purchases

How does it work?

Various product pages now host a drop-down menu that allows customers to select an assembly service from Handy, InstallerNet or Porch, adding the service to your purchase like a protection plan.

After you complete your purchase, someone from your chosen assembly service will contact you to set up an appointment.

Handy is an NY-based company that will handle things like TV mounting, furniture assembly, and setting up your smart home devices. Porch is based in Seattle and does roughly the same thing. And InstallerNet, a Massachusetts company, is a network of independent contractors you can use to coordinate consumer and commercial electronic installation.

We came across some online shoppers expressing concern over whether the platform would be using unlicensed freelancers a la TaskRabbit to perform the installs.

Handy’s site mentions that all professionals are background-checked and experienced, though there’s nothing on the site stating that these folks are licensed, bonded, and insured.

InstallerNet’s site is just plain confusing. For example, there’s little information and it reads like a business jargon algorithm put the whole thing together.

Installs are par for the course now

Home installs aren’t exactly an innovative move these days. Rather, it’s become a natural extension of the buyer journey, something users have increasingly come to expect.

REI, for example, offers installation services along with their purchases, and IKEA’s site allows you to pay extra for assembly. eBay itself has had a tire installation service available on the website since 2017.

However, what eBay has done well here is that they’ve streamlined the process—putting everything together on one page, turning a multi-stage process into something that can be done within a matter of clicks.

Amazon competitor once again?

The new service aims to compete with Amazon’s Home Services, and it appears to be a move to keep the company in the game—as Amazon expands its reach into more and more markets.

Interestingly, this announcement comes about a month later than eBay’s lawsuit against Amazon, where the auction site alleges that Amazon engaged in a scheme to poach eBay sellers by infiltrating its internal messaging system.

That said, eBay has been on a dramatic kick to revitalize and rebrand as a membership-fee-free go-to marketplace. CEO Devin Wenig is aiming high, using an influencer marketing strategy to grow its 175 million user base to 500M.

Wenig, however, doesn’t necessarily want to compete with Amazon, stating that he sees eBay as a destination for people can discover the things that they want, not necessarily the things they need.

While it’s unlikely that eBay will overtake Amazon, it’s nice to see that they’re making some changes that stand to boost the customer experience.

Hey Google, fix my marriage

Google Home and Alexa can predict if a couple is struggling and even interrupt arguments

Virtual Assistants are gaining more valuable skills every day. From turning the lights on and making our coffee in the morning to making our kids’ story time more magical they are continuously finding new and whimsical ways of impressing us humans. New research, however, has discovered that AI assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant could help us solve some very real and very serious problems.

Google Home and Alexa can predict if a couple is struggling and even interrupt arguments

According to a study by the Imperial College Business School, virtual assistants will soon be able to make predictions on whether a relationship or marriage is going to be a success. Worryingly, the researchers behind the study believe that in as little as two years your Google Assistant will have a 75% chance of successfully predicting whether your marriage will be a success or not. Will you have the balls to say, “Hey Google, is my marriage going to succeed?” It is not all scary news though.

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The study has found that the always-listening devices will analyze the acoustics of all the verbal exchanges between the couple, ranging from normal conversations to arguments. Over time, it would be able to differentiate between the different types of exchange and even step in should a heated argument be taking place. The researchers believe that these meditations would be an excellent time to offer advice and something they are calling “democratizing counseling.”

This could be particularly good news for women in heterosexual relationships. The study referenced research that shows men tend to analyze issues more and deal with them in a direct and factual way. ‘Report talk,’ as it is referred to by the study, works well in everyday life but doesn’t help to build healthy or stable relationships.

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All-new Echo Dot (3rd Gen) - Smart speaker with Alexa

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According to Aparna Sasidharan from Imperial College Business School, “AI can pick up missed cues and suggest nudges to bridge the gap in emotional intelligence and communication styles. It can identify optimal ways to discuss common problems and alleviate common misunderstandings based on these different priorities and ways of viewing the world. We could be looking at a different gender dynamics in a decade.” As an independent algorithm, your AI assistant would be able to offer objective mediation when both of are you are convinced you are right.

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As well as looking at how always listening AI powered devices could mediate in ongoing relationships, the research also looked into how AI could help people who are looking for love and still haven’t found it. The research predicts AI going through users’ psychological data, taken from wearable technology and genetic code. This will then be used to predict sexual chemistry among users. The research says that match-making will be carried out in the romantic surroundings of computer labs.

AI looks like it will become more and more entwined in our romantic lives. This news could easily fall on both sides of the spectrum. You could either be happy to hear that we’re going to get much-needed help in the affairs of the heart or disturbed that science seems set to start squeezing the magic out of love. We’d love to know your thoughts in the comments below.