Author: Jacob Yothment

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YouTube under fire for toxic content

YouTube continues its endless battle against toxic content, but are they doing everything they can?

Last year, a popular YouTuber named Logan Paul published a video on YouTube showing a man who committed suicide. To make matters worse, the video appeared in YouTube’s “trending” tab until it was pulled off the site.

With the memory of the stunt still fresh, many have been asking how this could have happened, and if the problem with toxic content has improved.

Unfortunately, the toxic YouTube trend seems to be growing. Why?

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YouTube may be looking the other way

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki is currently under fire for not doing more to combat false, toxic content. In an exclusive interview for Bloomberg News, an unidentified source who worked with her said, “Her view was, ‘My job is to run the company, not deal with this.’”

The article goes on to say that YouTube employees would propose methods of tracking and removing toxic content, but would get shot down.

There is also evidence of YouTube allowing toxic content to stay active because of popularity.

In late 2017, YouTube deleted a channel called Toy Freaks. The channel starred a father and his two daughters in uncomfortable situations.

Before being taken down, the channel had amassed more than 8 million subscribers and more than half a billion cumulative views. The channel had been on YouTube since 2012.

Although YouTube deleted the channel, the company was chastised for allowing it to last that long.

The YouTube algorithm works against it

A huge issue in the minds of many YouTube content creators lies in YouTube’s algorithm. Problems with the algorithm include videos not appearing in sub-boxes, and popular videos not “trending.” However, the major issue concerning the algorithm has been the lack of answers from YouTube.

The algorithm has also proven to heavily work against YouTube by allowing toxic content into the trending tab. In early 2019, the channels Jake Paul and RiceGum made videos promoting a gambling site. Both RiceGum and Jake Paul have millions of underage subscribers. RiceGum’s video made it to YouTube’s trending tab.

Popular channels such as PewDiePie, The Game Theorists, H3H3 Productions, and Markiplier have spoken about the algorithm. They have not received much satisfactory feedback, as the issues keep arising. Markiplier released a video discussing the issue here:

Pedophelia and sexual videos aimed at kids

YouTube has a system of flagging inappropriate content in videos. The videos are typically either removed entirely or prompt the viewer to sign in to confirm their age.

Patrick Copeland is a former director at Google. Recently he criticized YouTube on his LinkedIn after his daughter watched a sexually explicit video. The video was aimed at children and featured Snow White.

Copeland writes: “How is this a good thing for anyone, let alone young children? Most companies would fire someone for watching this video at work. Does YouTube think it’s ok to host and recommend extremely sexist and misogynistic videos that include rape? This is worrisome especially when it comes to young kids. Especially mine. Unbelievable!! Going to block this domain.”

It was recently discovered that pedophiles are using the YouTube comments section to timestamp frames of children.

Disney and Epic Games removed their advertisements from YouTube as a result. YouTube responded to the issue by removing the comments section on videos the company deemed at risk of predatory behavior.

Various content creators have called the new policy discriminatory. Special Books by Special Kids is a channel that creates videos featuring children with disabilities. The channel lets them tell their stories in an attempt to educate the public.

All of the videos on this channel have had the comments section disabled. The creators recently released a video discussing how the new policy has negatively affected their channel:

Conspiracy videos

About 400 measles cases have been confirmed in the U.S. this year — the second highest level the disease has reached since 2000.

The high volume of measles cases has been attributed to anti-vaccination groups. They have created anti-vaccination conspiracy videos that have millions of views on YouTube.

To give YouTube some credit, they are trying to solve the problem. YouTube has moved to demonetize anti-vaccination videos and channels to discourage misinformation.

YouTube also now combats toxic conspiracy videos by including links to Wikipedia pages giving the facts on the issues.

YouTube is one of the world’s most popular websites, but unless it can find a way to clamp down on disturbing content, it could risk losing the audience it’s spent building for 14 years.

How to stay safe on ride-sharing apps

Find out how to arrive safely to your destination with these helpful tips.

When it comes to ride-sharing service, safety is no laughing matter.

Recently, a college student was murdered when she got into a vehicle she thought was her Uber. Ride-sharing apps do offer protection for both driver and passenger, but there are still some things you can do to make sure you arrive safe and sound.

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If you don’t feel safe, cancel the ride

Sometimes when accepting a ride, or picking up a passenger the situation doesn’t feel right. It could be that the vehicle reeks of alcohol, or that the passenger does not look like their picture. If this happens, you can cancel the ride, and then report the problematic individual in the app.

Sometimes you will be charged a cancellation fee, but you can contest it when filing a report.

Share the ride with someone

For both drivers and passengers, you have the ability to share your location on the app with a friend or relative. This is meant to offer peace of mind so that somebody knows where you are, and can alert the authorities if need be.

Waze is a popular GPS service that updates constantly to show traffic, accidents, potholes, and even nearby police activity. One of the app’s features is the ability to share a ride with somebody so they can see where you are in relation to your destination.

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Check the license plate before getting inside

Apps like Uber and Lyft show you the model and color of the vehicle on its way to get you. The apps also tell you the license plate number of the vehicle picking you up, so you know for certain that you are getting in the right vehicle.

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For drivers and passengers, the app has your back

Ride-sharing apps take information from both the rider and passenger for each ride. If something were to happen on the ride, the apps know the parties involved, their information, and where they are on the map.

For drivers, every ride is insured and a fee will be charged to the passenger if they make a mess in your vehicle.

Drivers and passengers also have a 24/7 incident report system as well as a button for emergency assistance in the app.

Report problematic riders, drivers

Ride-sharing apps screen both drivers and their vehicles before hiring anybody. Unfortunately, some problematic individual can slip through the cracks.

If you are having an issue with a passenger or a driver, you can report the person. The app will take your report into consideration, and remove problematic people from the service. Click below to read about how Uber especially has been cracking down on drivers.

Uber is getting tough on users with low ratings

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Reporting problems helps to make the app safer for users on both ends of the spectrum.

Don’t ride/let people ride shotgun

At the end of the day, you are sharing a ride with a stranger. There is nothing wrong with having a conversation between rider and passenger. However, the two do not need to sit right next to each other.

Having the passenger sit in the back seat means that they can leave the vehicle quicker. It also means that they are further away from the steering wheel and gear-shift, ensuring that the driver is the only one in control.

By following these tips, we hope all your rides go smoothly. And remember, if you ever feel unsafe, trust your gut and find another way to your destination.

Uber vs Lyft vs Via – which rideshare app is best for you

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Captain America, Iron Man reunite in final Endgame trailer

The remaining Avengers gear-up for a final showdown with Thanos with the fate of the galaxy in the balance.

“Do you trust me?”

These words from Tony Stark are the first we have heard him say to Captain America since “Captain America: Civil War.” It perfectly sets the chilling tone for the final trailer for “Avengers: Endgame.”

The trailer ends on a more chilling tone when it says, “Tickets on sale now,” as fans everywhere scrambled to grab their credit cards and jump on Fandango.

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The trailer shows the surviving heroes as they plan to save their friends and ultimately defeat Thanos.

Iron Man and Captain America aren’t the only ones to reunite in this trailer as we also get to see Tony Stark and Pepper Potts embrace each other. Marvel confirmed recently that Pepper survived the events of “Avengers: Infinity War.”

Led by Captain Marvel, the remaining Avengers head off to lay a beatdown on the Mad Titan. The team flies aboard Star-Lord’s ship, The Milano. Despite being the newest entry to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain Marvel appears to be taking a leadership role on the team.

Unlike other trailers for Endgame, this one shows more of Rocket Raccoon than we’ve seen before. One shot of a hopeful-looking Rocket looks like it may take place when he sees the Milano land on Earth. The shot is followed later with another of Nebula comforting a very distraught raccoon.

Toward the end, the trailer focuses on the OG Avengers. Captain America and Iron Man shake hands, saying that they trust each other, hopefully ending their feud. The trailer ends with Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor as they slowly walk toward a barely visible Thanos in the background.

We are officially less than a month away from seeing this story finally come to a close after more than a decade of setup. As theaters across the world sell out for what will truly be a record-breaking event, we have to ask if you will be there to avenge the fallen.

PlayStation announces preorder refund plan

PlayStation allows users to get a refund prior to downloading games in PlayStation Store.

Sony announced a change to its existing refund policy for digital content purchased on the PlayStation Store. Think of it as buyer’s remorse insurance.

Sony will refund you within 14 days of sale for games and DLC as long as you haven’t downloaded or installed them. The funds are added back to your PlayStation Wallet regardless of payment method.

If you download or install a game and the game is not working, you can receive a full download.

If you preorder a game, you can “return” the game any day leading up to the release date. You can return it for a refund as long as you did not download or install it. Essentially, you can’t return a game because you found out it sucks after downloading it. However, if you find out a game sucks before downloading it, you can return it.

If you buy a membership for a subscription service like Spotify Premium or PlayStation Now, you can also get your money back within 14 days. If you already started using the subscription service, you will be refunded for the amount of time you have not used.

The 10 best games on PlayStation Now

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You will be prompted to a customer service screen if you request a refund. Then file your claim through customer service. Once the request is processed, you can get your refund.

Sony does not offer refunds for PlayStation Vue subscriptions or for changing your online ID for PlayStation Network.

Get 12 months of Nintendo Switch online free with Amazon Prime

Play your favorite Nintendo Switch games online for free with Amazon Prime.

Amazon just made trading and battling Pokémon online way cheaper.

If you are an Amazon Prime member, you can now claim a new offer of 12 free months of Nintendo Switch Online with a Prime member account. You can get the first three months when claiming the offer, and the other nine months 60 days after making the first claim.

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The offer is worth $20 and is available for download from Amazon through Twitch Prime. The 12 months will stack on top of whatever time you may have already purchased for Nintendo Switch online.

This is one deal in a long line of offers Amazon has made with gamers through Twitch and Amazon Prime.

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Nintendo has several games that utilize online capabilities available in its store including Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee, Super Smash Bros: Ultimate, and Fortnite. With Nintendo Switch Online, you also get access to classic games from the Nintendo Entertainment System’s vast library.

Instagram tests video fast-forward, rewind

Finally, Instagram will let us skim to what we want to watch.

Finally, we will have the ability to sift through our friends’ five-minute Instagram posts.

Instagram will be adding a seek bar to videos in an upcoming update. Similar to one you might find on YouTube, the seek bar will let users skim through videos to fast-forward and rewind to the parts they want to watch.

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The new feature was discovered by app researcher Jane Manchun Wong.

Instagram is testing video seekbar pic.twitter.com/gyIZZhrh2y

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) March 27, 2019

Currently, users have to go through the inconvenient process of rewatching a video from the start and waiting to get to the part they want to watch. Being able to avoid an Instagram user’s cringey video intro or a few minutes of dull content will prove very useful.

It is unknown whether or not this feature will be available in stories, but we can hope it will be. There is no set date for when the update will drop, but if we can wait this long, we can wait a bit longer.

What next?

The ability to rewind and fast-forward videos will encourage more users to post longer content. Currently, videos are typically less than a minute long due to the lack of that control. Content creators such as Twitch streamers and how-to video creators may upload some longer content to Instagram to reach out more to their audiences. This may inspire more people to try and become Insta-famous and monetize their Instagram pages.

This is what we learned from the Borderlands 3 trailer

Guns with legs. Are you in?

Get ready to joy-puke your face off.

Today at PAX, Gearbox dropped the nearly four-minute long trailer for Borderlands 3. Take a look:

It is unknown where “Mask of Mayhem” fits into the title of the new game, but the trailer still had plenty of things for fans to dive into.

New vault hunters

Along with the series’ wide cast of characters, the trailer revealed the four new vault hunters players get to choose from to start their adventure. The game hints that one of them might be a Siren, as is a Borderlands tradition. The rest of the cast appear to be the typical heavy, sniper, and basic characters seen in similar titles.

The new vault hunters have the same Borderlands charm we have come to appreciate throughout the years. We will have to wait to find out what unique skills they all possess, but the insect-like drone hovering behind the sniper character promises lots of wonderful mayhem.

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A billion more guns… and guns with legs

Borderlands 2 broke the Guinness World Record for most guns in a video game with nearly 18 million guns. Borderlands 3 looks to leave that number in the dust. The bold claim of adding “a billion more guns” might be a bit of a stretch since when the Borderlands 2 trailer dropped years ago, it said the game would have an absurd “870 gajillion more guns.”

Borderlands 3 will also have a new mechanic for guns as now some have legs so guns can walk around shooting people. If you are looking for a reason to buy this game, “guns with legs” should be your top selling point.

New worlds to explore

One of the most stunning parts of the trailer surely was the new worlds for players to explore. Typically, a Borderlands world is one of two things: a harsh landscape filled with unruly creatures that want to eat your face, or a small city or camp filled with townsfolk that want to eat your face. Borderlands 3 showed worlds similar to ones from the past but also showed a giant city complete with skyscrapers and floodlights illuminating the sky.

New villains

As many fans predicted, the character models Gearbox revealed yesterday were the new villains for Borderlands 3. The characters who are being called the “Children of the Vault” don’t offer many hints as to who they are, where they came from, or what their motives might be. As this game is set to take place a few years after Borderlands 2, we can assume that the events of that game have molded the villains for Borderlands 3.

That guy sure does look like Handsome Jack though, and that girl is wearing a lot of clothes that might be hiding some tattoos…

The rest of the panel

Before the Borderlands 3 trailer, Gearbox showed fans a trailer for a remastered version of Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, which you can watch below.

The game will feature both Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel along with all the DLC from both titles. The game has gotten a new coat of polish and will be playable in ultra HD.

Gearbox announced that a remastered version of the game-of-the-year edition of Borderlands will be available for purchase on April 3 for PS4, XBox One and PC.

The panelists began by going over yesterday’s trailer and revealing some of the hidden secrets left for the savvy player to find. Sadly, panelists told attendants at PAX that Handsome Jack’s mask was briefly shown in the trailer just to mess with fans, as the character is dead, and we now have new villains to tango with on the new adventure.

Borderlands teaser trailer shows secret skin codes

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The panel was padded with news about other Gearbox projects on the horizon, but nobody really cares because everyone at the panel and everyone tuning in online just wanted to hear about the new Borderlands game. They did, however, mention a new table-top Borderlands card game called “Tiny-Tina’s Robot Tea Party,” and that sounded cool.

More details will be revealed for Borderlands 3 on April 3. In order to keep updated on all things Borderlands, Gearbox created a Discord for fans. We’ve included the QR code below.

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HUD charges Facebook with discrimination

You might not have seen housing ads based on who you are or what you look like.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development charged Facebook today, claiming it violated the Fair Housing Act.

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HUD’s charge in a nutshell

HUD alleged that Facebook is discriminating against its users by restricting which of them can view its ads for homes and apartments. HUD also alleges that Facebook is data-mining its users, using that data to determine who is viewing housing-related ads based on race, color, national origin, religion, familial status, sex, and disability.

According to HUD, Facebook allowed advertisers to avoid users who were parents, born outside the U.S., non-Christian, interested in accessibility, interested in Hispanic culture, or fell under other categories protected by the Fair Housing Act.

Facebook also allowed housing advertisers to choose not to advertise to users based on their neighborhood by drawing a red line around said neighborhoods on a map. “Redlining” has a long and ugly past in the United States. Advertisers were also allowed to exclude women from their housing ads.

Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live. Using a computer to limit a person’s housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone’s face. Read more: https://t.co/ZKdVQrIAXB

— Ben Carson (@SecretaryCarson) March 28, 2019

Is Bing a racist search engine?

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Facebook’s response

Both Mark Zuckerberg and the Facebook Newsroom have remained silent about the charge, but Facebook spokesman Joel Osborne offered this statement: “We’re surprised by HUD’s decision, as we’ve been working with them to address their concerns and have taken significant steps to prevent ads discrimination.”

More than a week before HUD announced the charge, Facebook posted an article about how the company plans to do more to stop discrimination in housing advertising.

“Our policies already prohibit advertisers from using our tools to discriminate. We’ve removed thousands of categories from targeting related to protected classes such as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and religion. But we can do better,” Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer, wrote.

The article goes on to say that Facebook will take these steps to protect its users from discrimination:

Anyone who wants to run housing, employment or credit ads will no longer be allowed to target by age, gender, or zip code.
Advertisers offering housing, employment, and credit opportunities will have a much smaller set of targeting categories to use in their campaigns overall. Multicultural affinity targeting will continue to be unavailable for these ads. Additionally, any detailed targeting option describing or appearing to relate to protected classes will also be unavailable.
We’re building a tool so you can search for and view all current housing ads in the US targeted to different places across the country, regardless of whether the ads are shown to you.

Facebook takes action against discriminatory ad practices

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It is pretty clear that Facebook knew HUD’s charge was coming, so they wanted to get ahead of the issue while they could.

What happens next?

The charge will be heard by a United States Administrative Law Judge unless any party wants to have the case heard in federal district court. Facebook may have to pay damages if the judge determines the company discriminated against users.

You can read HUD’s full charge on Facebook here.

Apple Music: pros and cons

Is Apple Music worth the price, or should you give it a hard pass

After reaching 40 million downloads for Android users, Apple Music is not slowing down. The app serves up a library of 50 million songs, along with music videos and news.

We have a plethora of music-streaming apps to choose from, each with varying prices and features. So is Apple Music worth your hard-earned dollar? We collected the main pros and cons of Apple Music so you can decide whether or not it deserves a home on your device.

Apple Music vs Spotify vs Tidal

Which is best ►?

Pros and cons of Apple Music

Pro: It has a 90-day free trial

Surpassing Spotify Premium by a full month, Apple Music offers users a free three-month trial to first-time users. You get to use the app in its entirety during your free trial, so you can be sure you are getting the full experience.

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Con: The white screen of death

With most new apps, there tend to be a few hiccups that come to light soon after launch. Since Apple Music has been around since 2015, it’s odd that issues still remain. Users often find themselves staring at a stale, white screen as the app stops working. To make matters worse, troubleshooting hasn’t been fixing the issue. The app is in desperate need of an update to fix these issues, or, at least, to improve the troubleshooting.

Pro: It is reasonably priced, and has a student plan

Most music-streaming services hover around the $9.99 to $12.99 per month price range. Apple Music charges $9.99 per month for its ad-free services, and also offers a student plan, which costs only $4.99 per month.

Con: You can’t listen to podcasts

Whether you are listening to “My Favorite Murder” during your morning commute or tuning into “Stuff You Should Know” while at the gym, podcasts have become part of our daily routines. Unfortunately, Apple Music has not gotten that memo as we are not able to stream our favorite podcasts through the app. We can listen to podcasts via iTunes, but the fact that this service isn’t streamlined into a single app like Spotify is a bit absurd.

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Pro: You can avoid burning data

If you stream music daily as many of us do, you can burn through about half a gig in a day pretty easily. As this adds up over time along with everything else you do with your phone or smart device, the ability to listen to music offline is necessary. Apple Music offers a feature where you can download music while online for no additional cost, and then listen to tracks while offline. You can also create playlists with your downloaded tracks while offline.

Downloading tracks takes a matter of seconds, so you can easily spend a few minutes downloading songs, and then spend the rest of the day listening to music while offline.

This app will give you greater control over you mobile data

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Con: Hazardous updates

Snapchat is a prime example of how one bad update can make many of your users uninstall the app. Apple Music has done this numerous times with updates that removed beloved features such as the “play later” feature, and updates that consequently made the app more laggy, or just not work altogether.

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Borderlands teaser trailer shows secret skin codes

While we wait for an official Borderlands 3 trailer, the teaser provides some free goodies.

Soon enough, we will be back to shooting Psychos in the face and fending off hordes of Bullymongs in another loot-n’-shoot adventure on Pandora.

Gearbox Software released a teaser trailer for a new Borderlands game on March 27, with a message at the end to tune in March 28 at 2 p.m. EDT for a full-fledged game trailer. You can watch the teaser trailer below.

Rather than flat-out calling the new game “Borderlands 3,” the trailer instead dubs the game “Mask of Mayhem.”

The trailer may be hinting at what might be key plot details by showing a hoard of Psychos kneeling before two vault hunters holding up an inverted vault symbol.

Fans speculate that the two nameless vault hunters might be the main villains of the game. It is unclear whether Handsome Jack, the main villain from Borderlands 2, will make a triumphant return, but a quick shot of his mask may hint that the wise-cracking baddie will make an appearance

For the savvy viewer, the trailer does have several hidden messages waiting to be found. If you slow down the video when light starts flashing around the 16-second mark, you can translate it in Morse code which relays the message, “Count the Sirens.” Sirens are powerful characters in the Borderlands universe, and only six can exist at a time, according to Borderlands lore. As we currently know of only two living Sirens (Lilith and Maya), we can assume that more are on the way.

Throughout the trailer, there are hidden lines of code which form the full shift code C35TB-WS6ST-TXBRK-TTTJT-JJH6H. If you redeem the code in Borderlands 2 or Borderlands: The Pre Sequel you get the message, “Thank you for being excited enough to dissect the new bandit mask with the grace of Dr. Zed! As a reward, you have been granted Salvador’s Community Day skin and 5 Golden Keys! There are more skins to be granted, so good luck out there, Vault Hunter!”

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The final hidden message is a small line of Braille, which reads, “Like, follow, and obey.” The line is faintly visible in bottom right of the shot of Mordecai, Brick, and Tina. This might just be a draw to follow Gearbox and Borderlands on Twitter, or it can be a hint of something more sinister.

The last first-person-shooter Borderlands game to come out was Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel in 2014, and the last Borderlands game of any kind was “Tales From the Borderlands” from Telltale Games, which came out later that same year. Needless to say, fans have been waiting patiently for the next game in the series.