tech news
COVID-19 Boosts Demand for Human-Centered Digital Design
Sourced from TTEC.com If there is one thing that COVID-19 has highlighted; it is the importance of people in the economic value chain. Sandton-based business management consultant Immersion Group says that one of the emerging trends they’re seeing is that more organisations are seeking human-centred design experts to enhance or improve digital customer experiences, breaking down barriers that may be hindering their ability to satisfy their customers. Organisations are now facing urgent decisions as they pivot to accommodate the many unexpected circumstances, and when these challenges risk affecting the bottom line; it’s crucial that organisations rapidly take stock of what is working and what isn’t working when prioritising digital experiences that put the customer first. From onboarding t...
Unisa Confirms Postponement of Online Exams Due to Overworked Servers
Sourced from EWN. The University of South Africa (Unisa) has been forced to postpone several exams after technical issues interrupted last week’s set of online exams. Affected modules whose exams have been postponed include those studied by criminology students, as well as those in development studies. Sipho Xukwe, a third-year criminology student told City Press on Friday that he wasn’t able to submit his exam answers during online writing sessions this week because the system was “clogged due to the high volume of exam scripts and question papers.” /* custom css */ .tdi_3_6d7.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_6d7.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Xukwe continues says that while trying to answer questions, “A message popped up saying [the system] cannot hold the number of stud...
Telenor, Sony and Ericsson Join Forces to Develop Smart IoT Healthcare Devices
Sourced from Getty Images. Ericsson, Sony and Telenor have announced that they are teaming up to make it easy to connect people and things with intelligent tracking and monitoring solutions. Ranging from cargo to IoT healthcare devices for patients, tracking increases mobility and improves reliability and efficiency. Using Telenor’s network, Ericsson’s IoT Accelerator for global connectivity, and Sony Network Communications Europe’s smart IoT services, the three partners are collaborating to enhance real-time location and tracking solutions for different sectors. Ericsson IoT Accelerator is the Ericsson’s IoT connectivity and device management platform, providing enterprises with a unified solution that manages IoT operations of any scale, using worldwide mobile network infrastructure. Mor...
WATCH: SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Astronauts Enter International Space Station
Sourced from CNET. SpaceX’s new Crew Dragon capsule successfully docked with the International Space Station, bringing the companies first crew to the orbiting platform. The crew’s arrival completes another part for SpaceX’s first crewed mission with the Crew Dragon, which successfully blasted off on 30 May from world-famous lift-off point Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Crew Dragon’s passengers — NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley — are set to begin an extended stay on board the ISS that could last up to four months. They will join three crewmates already living on board the station: NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner, according to The Verge. Watch in the video below how astronauts Behnken and Hurley exit the Crew Dragon and greet t...
5 Essential Mobile Apps for Moms
Being a mother has to be one of the most exciting but also demanding experiences life can provide. One moment your heart is swelling with thoughts of all the wonderful memories you will create with your little one – then suddenly, you are worrying about how you are going to juggle it all: the sleepless nights, the rocking to bed, the learning and unlearning. Luckily, mobile apps have been a silver lining when it comes to handling motherhood. These five essential apps will no doubt bring convenience and laughter into your life: 1. Lullaby Songs for Babies Sometimes rocking and singing your child to sleep can be exhausting. Conveniently, Lullaby Songs for Babies puts your vocal cords to rest for a few moments. The application has multiple lullabies available, which are categorised into certa...
‘Anonymous’ Hacktivists Attack and Take Down United Nations Website
After hacking and taking down the Minneapolis Police Department website, the Anonymous hacker-group continued their protest spree and hacked the United Nations website, taking down a part of the site – the United Nations Civil Society Participation website – and replacing it with an image protesting the death of Minneapolis native George Floyd. Hacktivists protest by hacking a United Nations webpage. Floyd was killed by police officer Derek Chauvin – while in custody – who restrained Floyd with a knee to the back of the neck. Floyd was handcuffed and unarmed at the time. Riots were sparked across the United States and even other countries as footage of the incident was released online. The group posted a video to another hacked page with a message to the police of Minneapolis. “This traves...
Egyptian Fintech Startup Offers Online Payment Platform for Students
Sourced from Innovation Village. Local fintech startups Klickit (previously known in the market as Q-Less) and Paymob are officially enabling digital payments for educational entities affiliated with global advisory and educational management firm GEMS Education. This agreement will allow parents of students in GEMS schools across Egypt to make tuition payments online for over 6,000 students. The model is expected to be rolled out to more countries in the future. The GEMS network includes more than 250 schools in 13 countries, of which four are in Egypt, namely The British School Al-Rehab, Madinaty Language School, Madinaty Integrated Language Schools (MILS) and The British International School Madinaty. “Our partnership with Klickit is driving our digital transformation goals forward. Thr...
Apple Music Slashes Subscription Prices for Kenyan Users
Sourced from the South Africa. Apple Music has reduced its prices by almost half of the original price and increased its trial period by double the initial period in Kenya. The subscription-based music streaming service offers access to over 50-million songs. Initially, individual users would have to pay about KES 1,066 ($9.99), however, this is about to change. According to Apple, the new prices will be as follows: Individuals will now pay KES 319.17 ($2.99) Family package, with up to six members, will cost KES 532.66 ($4.99) University Students in Kenya will now pay KES 159.05 ($1.49) What isn’t clear from the price reduction is whether or not the library of content has also been slashed. It is yet not known whether or not users will have the amount of music available to them also ...
Xiaomi Launches the Redmi Note 9S in South Africa
Xiaomi has launched the Redmi Note 9S – a new mid-range device – which features a powerful processor, striking symmetrical design, an outstanding quad-camera setup and long-lasting battery. The Redmi Note 9S is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon™ 720G chipset, which consists of an octa-core CPU with a 2.3GHz maximum clock speed, Adreno 618 GPU and 8nm process technology. It’s also said to offer an unparalleled user experience through its advanced AI technology and power-efficiency improvements. As the first smartphone in the Redmi Note lineup to feature a Z-axis linear vibration motor, this device enables faster acceleration, resulting in better haptic feedback compared to traditional motors. Its 5020mAh high-capacity battery keeps users fully powered throughout the day, even dur...
StorMagic Acquires Encryption Key Management Company, KeyNexus
Sourced from CSO. Drive Control Corporation (DCC), exclusive StorMagic distributor for the SA and SADC region, has announced StorMagic’s acquisition of KeyNexus, an innovator and designer of encryption key management solutions. StorMagic now extends its portfolio to the channel, meeting organisations’ datacentre and cloud security requirements. The KeyNexus acquisition sees StorMagic bringing the edge and the core closer together, delivering a robust enterprise key management offering. To this end, StorMagic has announced the immediate availability SvKMS, the company’s first enterprise-grade virtualised key management solution for any application that requires encryption in any location, be it the edge, datacentre or the cloud. “StorMagic SvKMS is an affordable, efficient and robust centra...
Facebook and Red Cross Launch #AfricaTogether
Facebook and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are partnering to launch #AfricaTogether – a digital campaign and two-day festival on June 4th and 5th featuring artists from across Africa to encourage continued vigilance against COVID-19. With more than 100,000 coronavirus cases confirmed on the continent and containment measures easing in many countries, #AfricaTogether combines musical and comedic performances with information from COVID-19 first responders and fact-checkers from across Africa. #AfricaTogether will include a festival with performances by artists such as Aramide, Ayo, Femi Kuti, Ferre Gola, Salatiel, Serge Beynaud, Patoranking, Youssou N’dour amongst many others, as well as a digital awareness campaign with prevention messages developed with Red Cross a...
SA Government Could Bail Out National Airline to the Tune of $1.2-Billion
Sourced from Shutterstock. The administrator’s running South Africa’s embattled national airlines SAA propositioned the government to provide a R21-billion ($1.2-billion) bailout to help repay debt and resume operations after COVID-19 travel bans are lifted. This new plan includes about R17-billion that will go into repaying South African Airways creditors, according to Bloomberg. Afterwards, as much as R2-billion will be provided for working capital to get operations back and running. The draft plan “is for discussion purposes only and we await comment from the affected persons,” a spokeswoman for the administrators says, adding that the team has until 8 June to finalize a rescue proposal. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_91e.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_91e.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 ...
