Technology

Before Hironobu Sakaguchi began work on his latest role-playing game — he’s championed and explored the RPG genre throughout his career — the creator of the famed “Final Fantasy” series opted to look back before setting his sights forward. Sakaguchi not too long ago replayed “Final Fantasy VI,” the 1994 entry in the franchise that is still considered among the series’ best. … [Read more...] about How the creator of ‘Final Fantasy’ challenges himself: A game made with 150 dioramas

There’s a lot to fret over these days. Whether you’re entitled to a paper receipt when you buy something seems like a decidedly small matter, all things considered.But it can have potentially large ramifications for consumers in terms of their ability to return products, seek warranty protections, maintain purchase records and itemize tax returns.For those reasons, as well as a … [Read more...] about Column: Privacy or planet — the tough choice of doing away with paper receipts

Two people were dead; one was injured; and Jason Flores-Williams wanted to hold Facebook responsible.But after filing a lawsuit in September alleging that the website’s lax moderation standards led to 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse killing two protesters in Kenosha, Wis., over the summer, Flores-Williams withdrew the suit in January. His fight for accountability had collided … [Read more...] about How the debate over holding internet platforms accountable is changing under Biden

One week into shelter-in-place last year, Jeremy Bailenson was talking to a BBC reporter and had an epiphany.“Why are we Zooming? There’s no need for us to be on Zoom,” he thought. A phone call would have sufficed. This kernel of realization became an op-ed article that Bailenson penned in the Wall Street Journal titled, “Why Zoom Meetings Can Exhaust Us.”Bailenson, a professor … [Read more...] about Four reasons why Zoom is so exhausting and what you can do about it

Like most Clubhouse users, Rahaf Harfoush doesn’t make money on the app. But she does help others avoid losing it. Harfoush, a digital anthropologist and author who lives in Paris, is part of an “anti-grift squad” that helps newcomers to the audio-only interactive streaming platform avoid falling prey to scams. She and a crew of veteran users dedicate hours each week to running … [Read more...] about Why are people spending hours on Clubhouse? It’s not (usually) the money

California got the go-ahead from a federal judge this week to enact a net neutrality law passed in 2018. I’m guessing you don’t much care.Not that you’re ambivalent about the internet. There probably isn’t a single more important technology in your life right now, which is why I’ve called for authorities to regulate the internet like the utility it’s become.Rather, net … [Read more...] about Column: Internet providers put hypocrisy on full display in challenging net neutrality

When I first played “Ghosts ‘n Goblins” as a kid in the mid-1980s, little me enjoyed the digital squeaks that accompanied every throw of a spear, the zombies that pop out of the cemetery in the first level and, well, I’m not sure if I got much further than that in the game. My nostalgia for the franchise pretty much stopped there too. I feel no shame for failing to advance. The … [Read more...] about Review: ‘Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection’ updates everything but the sexist tropes

The former chairman of defunct cinema subscription app MoviePass, Ted Farnsworth, is back with a new company. But instead of disrupting the movie theater industry with cheap monthly fees, he’s trying to take on TikTok and Triller in the fast-growing mobile video space. His firm, Zash Global Media and Entertainment Corp., on Tuesday said it has taken control of Lomotif, a … [Read more...] about Former MoviePass chairman’s next big bet: a TikTok rival from Singapore

Uber and its fellow gig economy firms have been very successful in the U.S. at kicking up dust over whether their drivers are employees or — as the companies assert — independent contractors.The highest court in Britain wasn’t fooled. In a unanimous ruling issued Friday, the U.K. Supreme Court found that Uber’s estimated 65,000 drivers in London are unmistakably employees. That … [Read more...] about Column: In blow to Uber, U.K. court reaches obvious conclusion that its drivers are employees

Throughout history, people have established new governments for all sorts of reasons: to solidify alliances, or expand empires, or secure individual liberties.Marc Beaulac had a question about sweaters.Specifically, it was about the age-old debate in offices between men who want the air conditioning cranked up and women who want it turned down. “What I was thinking in my mind … [Read more...] about Can democracy work on the internet? Reddit tells a mixed story