Technology

Just yesterday, I wrote that Twitter was having a rough February after experiencing issues for the second time in a week, and now, the company may be dealing with a strange iMessage bug. If you’re on an Apple device and texting a tweet to your buddy on an Apple device, the first and last characters in the tweet might not show up. As reported by 9to5Mac, tweet previews sent via iMessage seem to be missing the first and last characters of the tweet, making them read oddly. Myself and another Verge writer have experienced this bug as well. Here’s how Apple’s Messages app on my iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch displayed a tweet I wrote yesterday: Can you guess what letters are missing?Screenshots by Jay Peters / The Verge And here’s what the tweet I made yesterday actually looked like: (They didn’...

Skype announced this week that its US users can use it to dial 911 from their home computer, and that its software can share their location with emergency services if needed. The US is the latest addition to the list of regions with Skype emergency service calling; until now it was only available in Australia, Denmark, Finland, and the UK. Skype’s move to enable 911 calls comes with a few limitations, but could be crucial for users who still have an adequate Internet connection when they lose access to a cellphone or landline in an emergency. In a “Notice & Disclosures” warning that appears before opting in to location-sharing, Skype cautions that the service doesn’t operate the same as a traditional phone call. Users are encouraged to not make an emergency call through Skype when outs...

In a sea of big-brand and celebrity NFT drops, Cool Crypto Kids (CCK) is a charitable NFT project with a true purpose. The limited-edition NFT collection will raise money for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), one of the leading pediatric healthcare facilities in the US, to ease the burden of hospital fees for families and to support pediatric healthcare research. Partnering with LA innovation studio Kinestry, Cool Crypto Kids will release one-of-a-kind, hand-drawn NFTs created by the CHLA community — including current and former patients — for auction on Rarible, beginning March 31st. Half of all proceeds will be donated to CHLA, while the remaining funds will go toward future CCK initiatives.  “When my mom passed away from cancer in 2017, our medical bills exceeded more th...

Last September, Twitter introduced a feature to differentiate “Good Bots,” accounts that publish legitimate and useful content, from spam bots. Now, the platform is rolling out the Good Bot label to users everywhere. Twitter reminded users that not all bots are spam. For instance, the platform says that some automated accounts may publish relevant information such as notifying users on earthquake tremors or providing updates on COVD-19 vaccine availability in a given area. With the new feature, the users behind these automated accounts can opt to let their followers know that it is indeed a bot, although the labels themselves don’t actually say if bots are good or bad. “#GoodBots help people stay apprised of useful, entertaining, and relevant information from fun emoji mashups to breaking ...

The medical journal Health Affairs spent years planning its special issue on health and racism, which it published at the beginning of February. The journal wanted to reach new readers by promoting the issue through targeted advertisements on Twitter and YouTube. That’s why it was so frustrating when Twitter and Google blocked its ads before they could go up, says Patti Sweet, the director of digital strategy at Health Affairs. The journal’s YouTube account was also suspended, which Sweet believes was a result of ads for the special issue. Sweet wrote a blog post outlining that frustration last week, saying she thought the use of the word “racism” was the trigger for the rejections. But Twitter and Google say the ad rejections didn’t have to do with the language around racism — rather, the...

Has your Google Nest Doorbell been draining its battery faster than normal or stopped working altogether, even when hooked up to your doorbell wires? That’s because it doesn’t like being left out in the cold. A new support page published this week by Google, confirms that Google’s newest smart video doorbell, the Google Nest Doorbell (Battery), and its Google Nest Cam (Battery), can’t charge at temperatures below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. The update comes on the heels of complaints by users in the Google Nest forum that their Nest Doorbells were draining their batteries faster than normal this winter, even when hooked up to doorbell wiring to maintain their charge. Cold weather will also affect the batteries in the new Google Nest Cam. But Google says if the camera is connected to a wired pow...

Google has a new version of its Roboto font, and it’s bringing serifs back: the aptly named Roboto Serif, designed in collaboration with Greg Gazdowicz of Commercial Type to create a more readable serif companion to its Roboto Sans typeface. The new font isn’t just the old Roboto letters with some serifs slapped on, though: rather, each letter was redrawn from scratch to create a font that “thinks about Roboto, but is a new and original design,” according to Google UX manager Rob Giampietro. The new font still uses the same vertical proportions of Roboto Sans, making it possible to mix the serif and sans-serif versions in a single design. [embedded content] It probably also helps that chunkier, retro-styled serif typefaces are coming back in style in a big way after years of minimalist san...

Salesforce employees are protesting the company’s reported plans to launch non-fungible token (NFT) services. Thomson Reuters Foundation News reports that around 400 employees signed a letter that’s circulated within the cloud software company’s messaging channels, calling on it to abandon crypto plans it apparently discussed internally last week. The letter cites the negative environmental effects of NFTs as well as their status as “unregulated, highly speculative financial assets.” CNBC reported last week that Salesforce plans to launch an “NFT cloud” sales platform that could let users create and release token-based content, potentially even competing with the dominant OpenSea NFT marketplace. Salesforce market strategy director Mathew Sweezey wrote in December that “you’re going to hea...

Snapchat is introducing a new live location-sharing feature that will allow users to share their real-time whereabouts with select friends for different periods of time on the app. Snapchat has allowed users to share their location on Snap Map for several years, though the feature has only ever updated a user’s location when they have opened the Snapchat app. The latest update will let a selection of friends have access to a user’s real-time location for a set amount of time, regardless of whether or not they are using Snapchat. The feature functions similarly to the Find My app on iOS, which allows users to share their precise location with others for specific amounts of time or indefinitely. The live location feature can be enabled for anywhere between 15 minutes and several hours among ...

Peloton has released a new in-app cycling video game. Lanebreak is an innovative workout experience in which riders control wheel-like avatars along six-lane tracks. As riders progress, they work towards goals completing different goals, such as Streams for sustained cadence and Breakers, which means hitting a certain output-based metric. The game is customizable to each individual user’s workout, with difficulties ranging from beginner to expert. They can also choose which lane they ride in depending on the desired level of resistance. Riders can alternatively choose their workout based on the type of music they want to listen to. Similar to Peloton’s online classes, each level is set to a unique playlist of top singles and matches the flow of on-screen cues within the game. The app offer...

Innovations in video doorbells are coming hot and fast. Each new product touts a “better” way to keep an eye on that precious piece of property — your front porch. With everything from dog food to diapers, smartphones to sushi being dropped at our doorsteps, keeping an eye on that precious cargo is a top priority (seriously, if anyone messes with my sushi…). With its newest battery-powered video doorbell, the Eufy Dual ($250 with a HomeBase 2 or $199 as an add-on to an existing Eufy camera system), Eufy has come up with one of the best solutions so far. The Dual has two cameras, one to keep an eye on the floor — where packages often land, and one in the more traditional role up top. This fixes the problem most doorbells have: they either give you a tall, skinny view so you can see packages...

The Nintendo Switch is a great console, but its Joy-Con controllers aren’t exactly made for traditionalists looking for a more familiar controller design. Thankfully, there are excellent third-party alternatives like 8BitDo’s Pro 2, which is currently on sale at Amazon for $44.99 instead of $49.99 when you clip the on-page coupon located below the price. We called the 8BitDo Pro 2 the best Switch controller you can buy when we reviewed it last year, one that takes a cue from the original Super Nintendo controller and offers some added functionality over Nintendo’s Switch Pro Controller. 8BitDo’s Pro 2 lacks some of the features found on Nintendo’s first-party offering — including HD rumble and Amiibo support— but it includes hand grips and customizable back paddles, as well as Bluetooth fo...