5 SECONDS OF SUMMER

Michael Clifford Fires Back at Abigail Breslin's Diss Track

Stars Most Stylish Selfie of the Week

Stars Most Stylish Selfie of the Week

GMAIL BLOCKED IN CHINA

5-Minute Outfit Idea

5-Minute Outfit Idea: An Effortless, Polished Look to Try This Weekend.

Facebook suffers outage

Facebook suffers outage affecting users worldwide!! .

Saturday, 27 September 2014

Austin Mahone Is Releasing a Book

Austin Mahone Is Releasing a Book

GETTY
Days after Austin Mahone surprised his fans with his “Secret” music video, he has even more exciting news. He’s releasing a book!
“I got my own book coming out!!!” the singer wrote on Instagram, asking fans to vote for their favorite

The book will be titled Just How It Happened: My Official Story and will include exclusive photos Mahomies haven’t seen yet.
No matter what cover fans pick, Fans so can't wait for it to come out!

Justin Bieber's New Haircut Gives Us Major Flashbacks

Justin Bieber's New Haircut Gives Us Major Flashbacks

ANTHONY HARVEY/FILMMAGIC
Fans of jb could pretty much tell you the exact date a picture of Justin Bieber was taken by just looking at his hair. The singer has had so many different memorable hair phases, ranging from his side swoop to his gelled-up spikes, and now it looks like he's re-visiting one of his old looks.
Fans on Twitter noticed that Justin's latest haircut makes him look like a more mature version of his teenage self.


For reference, this is 2011 Justin:




Friday, 26 September 2014

3D Printing With Sand Using The Power Of The Sun

3D Printing With Sand Using The Power Of The Sun

Greg Kumparak
TechCrunch


“So what are you doing this weekend, Markus?”
“Oh, you know. Heading out to the desert and harnessing the power of the sun to make a 3D printer that can print objects out of sand. You?”
“… catching up on Breaking Bad.”

You know the kid in your old neighborhood that spent his spare time frying ants with a magnifying glass? This is like that — except instead of a magnifying glass, he’s using an big ol’ fresnel lens. And instead of roasting insects, he’s melting freaking sand into stuff.

Built by artist Markus Kayser, the “SolarSinter” concept isn’t too disimmilar from laser sintering printers used by operations like SpaceX to print otherwise impossible objects out of metal. A focused sun beam is a whole lot less precise than a finely-honed laser, of course — but the core concepts are the same.

I bet this guy could make a mean sand castle.

Thursday, 25 September 2014

The Internet Braces for the Crazy Shellshock Worm

The Internet Braces for the Crazy Shellshock Worm

Robert McMillan
Wired


A nasty bug in many of the world’s Linux and Unix operating systems could allow malicious hackers to create a computer worm that wreaks havoc on machines across the globe, security experts say.
The flaw, called Shellshock, is being compared to last spring’s Heartbleed bug because it lets attackers do some nasty stuff—in this case, run unauthorized code—on a large number of Linux computer servers. The flaw lies in Bash, a standard Unix program that’s used to connect with the computer’s operating system.

The good news is that it doesn’t take long to patch the bug. At internet infrastructure provider CloudFlare, admins scrambled for about an hour this morning to fix the flaw, which was disclosed late on Tuesday. “We got 95 percent of it done within 10 minutes,” says Ryan Lackey a security engineer at the company.

Because Shellshock is easy to exploit—it only takes about three lines of code to attack a vulnerable server—Lackey and other security experts think there’s a pretty good chance that someone will write a worm code that will jump from vulnerable system to vulnerable system, creating hassles for the world’s system administrators. “People are already exploiting it in the wild manually, so a worm is a natural outgrowth of that,” Lackey says.

To exploit the bug, the bad guys need to connect to software such as PHP or DHCP—which use bash to launch programs within the server’s operating system


There are still some important questions about the bug. One is whether other operating systems that use Bash—Mac OS, for example—are vulnerable. Another big one: how many linux server applications and appliance-like Linux devices—things like storage servers or video recording devices—might be vulnerable to the flaw. Many of these Linux systems to not use the Bash software, but those that do could be vulnerable to attack and difficult to patch.

In the grand scheme of things, Shellshock is not as big of a problem as, say, phishing attacks, which continue to trick internet users, says Robert Graham, CEO of Errata Security. However, it’s “slightly worse than Heartbleed,” he says. “It’s in more systems. It’s going to be harder to track them down and patch them, and you can immediately exploit it with remote code execution.” Heartbleed let criminals steal your username and passwords, but it didn’t make it quite so easy to run your own malicious software on a vulnerable system, Graham says.

Like Heartbleed, the new bug has been around for a long time, and was introduced in a widely used piece of open source software. In the wake of Heartbleed, the open source community came up with some money to beef up the security of several popular open-source tools. And it may be time to add a few more—including Bash— to that list.

It's Leather Jacket Season!

It's Leather Jacket Season!



Leather jackets are a fall fashion staple because of their subtle ability to remain appropriate for work and play (and their wind-breaking qualities, naturally).
Think long and hard about your personal style and choose a leather jacket that fits you and your style best—you can wear it for years to come. This timeless trend can be found in a range of silhouettes, from the most classic and streamlined to the edgiest motorcycle jacket.


Apple’s IPhone Software Snafu Has Links to Flawed Maps Release

Apple’s IPhone Software Snafu Has Links to Flawed Maps Release

Adam Satariano and Tim Higgins


Sept. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc.’s release of a software update that cut off people’s ability to make calls from their iPhones is linked to another snafu that’s still fresh in people’s minds: the 2012 introduction of a new maps program.
The similarities don’t end with the apologies Apple offered to disgruntled customers. The same person at Apple was in charge of catching problems before both products were released. Josh Williams, the mid-level manager overseeing quality assurance for Apple’s iOS mobile-software group, was also in charge of quality control for maps, according to people familiar with Apple’s management structure.

Williams was removed from the maps team after the software gave users unreliable directions and mislabeled landmarks, though he remained in charge of testing for iOS, said one person, who asked not to be identified since the information isn’t public.

Scores of customers have taken to social media to complain about losing the ability to make phone calls after installing the iOS 8.0.1 update, which Apple pulled back within hours. The software glitches have undermined Apple’s mantra that its products “just work” and, at least temporarily, marred what Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook called the “best launch ever” for Apple’s newest iPhone models released last week.

Trudy Muller, a spokeswoman for Cupertino, Californi-based Apple, didn’t immediately have a comment. Williams didn’t respond to an e-mailed request for comment.
“Normally, things like this -- software updates -- are a strength for Apple and something that is easier for them than for almost any other device or operating system maker, because Apple has full control of the hardware and the software,” said Frank Gillett, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc.

Quality Control
Williams leads Apple’s choreographed process for catching bugs before they reach the public. He’s worked at Apple since 2000 and graduated from San Jose State University, according to his LinkedIn profile. An Eagle Scout known within the company for his tattoos and guitar playing, he’s been working on quality control for iPhone software since early iterations of the product.

Williams has a team of more than 100 people around the world who are responsible for putting new software through its paces before it reaches customers and uncovering glitches that may eventually impact customers, according to one person. Apple relies more on people finding bugs than using automation-testing technology, according to former employees.

To prioritize what software flaws need to be fixed, Apple has a committee called the Bug Review Board, known internally as BRB. The panel is overseen by Kim Vorrath, a vice president in charge of product management for iOS and Mac software.

Bug Reviews
At these meetings, Vorrath, Williams and others from Apple’s software engineering group go through defects to determine what should be fixed immediately and what can be addressed later, after the software is sent to customers, according to engineers involved. The board designates rankings to different bugs, with “P1” being the highest, and meaning the company will stop production of a device if a glitch is discovered, one former manager said.

The meetings can become contentious because engineers will often argue for more time to fix a problem, while product managers will push to move forward to meet approaching deadlines, two people said.

For lower-priority fixes, known as “P2” or “P3” bugs, Apple usually starts work on a software update even before an initial version is released to the public, according to former employees who have been involved. That’s because Apple needs to complete a final version several weeks before the official release so that it can be installed on iPhones coming off the assembly line, two people said.

Turf Wars
Another challenge is that the engineers who test the newest software versions often don’t get their hands on the latest iPhones until the same time that they arrive with customers, resulting in updates that may not have gone through tests that are are rigorous as those for the latest handsets. Cook has clamped down on the use of unreleased iPhones and only senior managers are allowed access to the products without special permission, two people said.

Internal turf battles also can impact quality testing, according to a former senior manager. Teams responsible for testing cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity will sometimes sign off on a product release, then Williams’ team will discover later that it’s not compatible with another feature, the person said.
Apple issued then withdrew the iOS 8.0.1 update this week. The speed of issuing the update was unusual, just days after the introduction of iOS 8, the latest major upgrade to the software that runs iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices.

Manual Tests
In addition to testing iPhones manually, Apple’s quality control team also uses automated tools to assist, according to former employees. IPhones are placed on racks in a lab running automatic tests, one person involved said. Apple also relies heavily on outside developers to test early versions of the software to report glitches that can be fixed, the people said.

The latest update was aimed at fixing issues from the initial release put out last week, and added Apple’s health and fitness-tracking application HealthKit. Instead, the update immediately disabled some people’s access to their mobile network so they couldn’t make phone calls. Apple quickly pulled the software update, apologized and said it would issue another fix shortly.

With problems related to maps, Williams wasn’t the only person who worked on them. Richard Williamson, the vice president in charge of the product, was fired after the trouble- filled release. Scott Forstall, Apple’s senior vice president in charge of all mobile software, was also dismissed, partly because of the problems with the maps service.

Blackberry's New Plan To Save The Company Is... A Square Phone

Blackberry's New Plan To Save The Company Is... A Square Phone

Kerry Flynn
The Huffington Post 



If you're tired of rectangular smartphones for some reason, you're in luck: on Wednesday, BlackBerry released the 4.5-inch, very square BlackBerry Passport to the public.

The new device, which has a physical keyboard that overlays a touchscreen, is currently available through ShopBlackberry.com and Amazon for $599 as unlocked phones that must then be taken to wireless carriers. So far, only AT&T has signed on as an official carrier, though BlackBerry anticipates others will follow suit by the end of the year. AT&T has yet to reveal when it will start offering the phone or at what price, but BlackBerry expects carriers to sell the Passport for about $249 with a new contract.

The phone's square shape might be hard to get used to at first, but it's pretty similar in size to other "phablets" on the market. In fact, it's actually more compact than the 5.5-inch iPhone 6S. The Passport also boasts a 30-hour battery life (the iPhone lasts about 10 hours) and a screen that fits 60 characters per line (the iPhone fits 40 characters).

BlackBerry chief executive John Chen took a shot at the new iPhones Apple released last week, noting at a media event on Wednesday that the Passport doesn't bend. iPhone users have complained that their glitzy new devices were permanently damaged by bending in their pockets. On Tuesday, a gadget reviewer uploaded a video to YouTube that showed him bending an iPhone 6 Plus with his bare hands.

"I challenge you to bend the Passport," said Chen.
The square style was inspired by actual passports, a designer said. According to BlackBerry's official blog, the new phone is meant for "the working professional," and mentions uses for architects, mortgage brokers, doctors, investment bankers and writers. In BlackBerry's view, a square model makes sense for those who spend their days typing emails and viewing spreadsheets.
"The BlackBerry Passport will take you to new places on the best business trip you’ve ever had," the company proclaimed in the blog post.

At the event, BlackBerry said users type four times more accurately with the Passport than with the previous model, the BlackBerry 10. The Passport's keyboard is wider and has enlarged keys.
“We designed it for somebody who’s looking for a durable product, a reliable product, and a beautiful product,”Alison Phillips, managing director of industrial design at BlackBerry, said in a video about the design.

This article originally appeared in The Huffington Post

Apple Apologizes For iPhone Update Bug And Releases New iOS 8.0.2

Apple Apologizes For iPhone Update Bug And Releases New iOS 8.0.2

Darrell Etherington
TechCrunch


Apple has moved quickly to release iOS 8.0.2, the update that fixes iOS 8.0.1’s problem of zapping cellular reception on iPhone 6 and 6 Plus devices. It also includes all the fixes listed in iOS 8.0.1 originally, including a fix for the HealthKit bug that held up release of compatible Health apps in iOS 8.

It also addresses a problem whereby third-party keyboards wouldn’t stick when activated in apps, meaning it would default back to Apple’s stock keyboard. Apple released the following statement alongside the update:

iOS 8.0.2 is now available for users, it fixes an issue that affected iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users who downloaded iOS 8.0.1, and includes improvements and bug fixes originally in iOS 8.0.1. We apologize for inconveniencing the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users who were impacted by the bug in iOS 8.0.1.

Apple says that less than 40,000 iPhone and iPhone 6 Plus devices were affected by the bad release, which was up for just over an hour until the company pulled it to investigate.
To get the update, simply plug your phone in and check for updates in iTunes or navigate to Settings>General and tap Software Update.

Emma Roberts Designs a Totally Shoppable New Jewelry Line

Emma Roberts Designs a Totally Shoppable New Jewelry Line

Emma is wearing the Sapphire Seer Strand necklace, $48
Credit: Courtesy of BaubleBar 
Emma Roberts pretty much has our dream wardrobe, and now we're one step closer to snagging the stylish accessories right out of her luxurious jewelry box. The actress designed an awesome jewelry line called As Told By Emma for BaubleBar, and the pieces look like glam red carpet gems at much more affordable prices.

Emma is wearing the Stargirl Ear Adornment Set, $38
Credit: Courtesy of BaubleBar 
Not only are Emma's designs jaw-droppingly gorgeous, she had a total blast creating them! "I was so excited," she told InStyle of the process. "I was jumping around the house and my boyfriend was making fun of me because I was trying everything on at once–I was running around the house and I was like a little kid again." Her pieces feel just as fun!

Emma is wearing the Saphire Cascade Bib, $68
Credit: Courtesy of BaubleBar 
Credit: Instagram

Emma is wearing the Chanterelle Drop Earrings, $32
Credit: Courtesy of BaubleBar 


Katy Perry Dyes Her Hair Electric Pink

Katy Perry Dyes Her Hair Electric Pink

Katy Perry showed off a brand new hair makeover that made us roar with excitement: she dyed her locks an electric pink shade! The singer compared her shocking new hairdo to the vibrant pink fur one of our fave MuppetsAnimal! She shared the cutest side-by-side photo of herself with her rock-and-roll style muse on Instagram when debuting her new look.
Katy's new look also gives us some major Halloween hairspiration! 


Does Justin Bieber Need Surgery

Does Justin Bieber Need Surgery


GETTY IMAGES
It's safe to say that Justin Bieber likes to take some risks. After all, he did freak his fans out once after he posted a video of himself cliff diving but now, it seems like the singer's daredevil behavior might land him in the hospital!
Justin took to Twitter to tell his fans that he hurt himself cliff diving and as a result, he might need surgery!

Having surgery done is not something to take lightly. But he doesn't want his fans to worry too much about him. He quickly assured us that he's not letting this ear problem get in the way of his new music.

Find Out the Real Reason Ariana Grande's Best Friend Quit

Find Out the Real Reason Ariana Grande's Best Friend Quit


When we heard that Ariana Grande's choreographer/life coach quit, we were definitely surprised. But when we found out that this person was Isaac Calpito, the singer's BFF, we were totally shocked! Originally, there were claims that the "Break Free" singer's diva antics were to blame for Isaac's departure, but now, more details have emerged about the real reason he stopped working for his former bestie.
After he took to Twitter to explain why he no longer works for Ari, a source close to the "Break Free" singer spoke to Radar Online. Apparently, Isaac left because he was under an investigation for inappropriate conduct!
“He was suspended, and then they did a thorough investigation with an independent investigator,” the source said. "Basically, the result of the investigation demonstrated there were serious issues, and he chose to step down.”
Yikes! It seems like Ariana was not happy with Isaac's behavior so she decided to take some action, which shows she was being responsible and taking care of her other employees. Doesn't sound like something a diva would do to us!
“Isaac is fueling a lot of nonsense about Ariana,” the source continued. "There is no reason for him to want to attack her, and in fact, he’s the one who actually has something to hide.”
There is a lot of drama circling this story, but we hope now both Ariana and Isaac will be able to find some peace with the situation.