Month: December 2015

Adobe hat das Modellierungswerkzeug Fuse als Vorabversion vorgestellt und Photoshop überarbeitet. Fuse erleichtert die Erstellung dreidimensionaler Figuren, die animiert werden können. (Photoshop, Grafiksoftware)

Der Mac App Store ist um einen weiteren Entwickler ärmer. Das Designwerkzeug Sketch gibt es nur noch über die Website des Herstellers Bohemian Coding, der Einschränkungen bei der Vermarktung und Probleme im Shop zum Anlass nahm, sich zurückzuziehen. (Apple App Store, Apple)

Mark Zuckerberg und seine Frau Priscilla Chan haben angekündigt, im Laufe ihres Lebens 99 Prozent ihrer Facebook-Anteile ihrer Stiftung für wohltätige Zwecke zu übertragen. Das wären aktuell 45 Milliarden US-Dollar. (Mark Zuckerberg, Soziales Netz)

Die Eigner von Yahoo haben die Geduld mit Firmenchefin Marissa Mayer verloren. Das Unternehmen soll einem Zeitungsbericht zufolge verkauft und aufgespalten werden. Doch einen Wert haben nur die Beteiligungen an Alibaba und Yahoo Japan. (Yahoo, Marissa Mayer)

Google is now processing an unprecedented 1,500 DMCA takedown requests per minute, or more than 2 million takedown URL requests per day, according toGoogle's copyright transparency report.

Google first introduced their DMCA takedown service in 2011. Google processes each request, determining its validity, and if the request is deemed valid, removes the link from the search results. Owners of the links can then repeal the decision in order to reinstate the link.

While in 2011 Google only had to process a few hundred takedown requests per day, now in 2015, Google has to process more than 2 million requests in the same period.

This translates to more than 64.5 million URLs requested to be taken down in the past month, from 70,571 domains. Despite the high number of domains, a few bad actors are responsible for most of the requests, including Spanish MP3 download site flowxd.me who was single-handedly responsible for 1,467,424 URLs.

This escalating game of piracy "whack-a-mole" has critics on both sides of the fence, with some pointing to the futility of this kind of anti-piracy action as a reason for ending such actions, while rights-holders point to the same data as reason for Google to do more to make removals more permanent, including domain based blacklisting.

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The $5 Raspberry Pi Zero is more than just a super-cheap computer. It’s also a super-small computer, measuring just about 2.6″ x 1.2″. That means the little machine is small enough to hold in one hand, slide into a pocket, or stuff inside of all sorts of other gadgets. Case in point: Terence Eden opened […]

Stuff a Raspberry Pi Zero into an Xbox controller (or anything else) is a post from: Liliputing

In 2012, as Megaupload’s servers were being closed down in the U.S. and Dotcom’s New Zealand mansion was being raided by armed police, the entrepreneur’s offices in Hong Kong were being turned over by a reported 100 customs officers.

Under instruction from the U.S. government, HK$330 million (US$42.57m) in assets were seized and have remained restrained in Hong Kong ever since.

In April 2014, Megaupload launched legal action against the Hong Kong government, applying for the restraining order to be set aside while accusing the secretary for justice of procedural failings when the application for seizure was made.

In December 2014 came a breakthrough when a judge in the High Court set aside the restraining order. However, while an almost immediately lock was reapplied to Dotcom’s assets, a revised order granted Dotcom’s legal team the right to contest the asset freeze.

As part of that ongoing process, Dotcom’s lawyers were back in court this week asking for the release of large amounts of funds, the equivalent of US$2.3m to cover legal costs plus US$52,000 per month for his living expenses.

In keeping with argument presented at his recent extradition hearing in New Zealand, Dotcom’s legal team told the Hong Kong court that by restraining his funds and expecting him to mount a defense their client’s hands “were tied behind his back.”

SCMP reports that while Dotcom had a “world-class” legal team in the New Zealand hearing, he had no money left to pay them so had to use “junior lawyers.” Money had now run out in New Zealand, so the funds in Hong Kong were the next best option.

But just like last year when Hong Kong authorities were accused by Dotcom’s team of not making a “full disclosure” of the facts, this week the authorities sought to turn the tables.

Representing the government, prosecutor Wayne Walsh SC claimed Dotcom did the same after starting two new businesses and running transactions “worth hundreds of millions of dollars” through Hong Kong bank accounts. Dotcom was also criticized for not disclosing details of his living costs

Once a staunch supporter of Hong Kong, Dotcom now finds himself at the mercy of the country’s judges who to date have been much less flexible than their counterparts in New Zealand when it comes to releasing funds.

Back in May a New Zealand court released millions in funds to pay for Dotcom’s legal bills, plus $128K per month in living expenses.

A sizable $60K of that money was earmarked to pay the rent on Dotcom’s mansion, which has been reported to cost around $750,000 per annum under a lease signed in February 2013.

However, the terms of the agreement meant that Dotcom would ultimately have to buy the property or move out. It was reported in November that the entrepreneur would be moving to a waterfront penthouse apartment on “fashionable” Princes Wharf instead.

“It’s significantly more humble than what I am used to but that’s okay,” Dotcom said last month. “I am also not living with a partner any more, we have reduced our staff numbers significantly and this place feels a little bit big now.”

The hearing in Hong Kong continues.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.