Month: August 2016
From The Sweethome: The solar power system we’d get for ourselves
Turns out picking panels is pretty easy—but designing a system is still complex.
This post was done in partnership with The Sweethome, a buyer's guide to the best things for your home. Read the full article with more details and background information here.
With solar power, there's no one-size-fits-all solution. Before deciding whether we could recommend any components for solar power, we spent weeks compiling statistics, wading through specifications, and getting expert input—and even so, the picks we make here represent only a starting point on the road to solar. Every installation needs to take into account electricity consumption, geographic location, roof orientation, local permits, and a host of other issues. This guide will help you get a rough idea of how much power you'll need and then, in most cases, the first option you should consider is a grid-tied system made up of Suniva Optimus 335W monocrystalline solar panels paired with SolarEdge P400 power optimizers, plus a SolarEdge inverter at the heart of it all. Suniva panels are efficient, affordable, and backed by a reputable warranty from a company with manufacturing in the US. SolarEdge inverter components, meanwhile, combine the reliability and cost savings of a traditional string-inverter system with the placement flexibility and increased efficiency of microinverters.
In the past five years, solar panels have started to become a commodity item, with small technical differences that are immaterial to most homeowners. The Suniva panels, made at factories in Georgia and Michigan, come with a 10-year warranty and a 25-year power guarantee, though most other top-tier manufacturers offer the same warranty. The Suniva panels are right in the middle when it comes to efficiency rating—not so low as to require the extra space that cut-rate panels may need, but not so high that you're paying 50 percent more for engineering prestige you'll never notice. If you can find panels from a similarly reputable company with the same warranty and similar efficiency but a lower price tag, you'll probably be just as happy with them. But the Suniva panels should be the bar that you try to clear as you shop.
Virtual Reality: Das große Experimentieren hat begonnen
Quakecon 2016: Gameplay aus Quake Champions und Prey verfügbar
Auf seiner Hausmesse Quakecon 2016 hat Bethesda erstmals Gameplay aus Prey und Quake Champions im Trailer vorgestellt. Neues gibt es auch von Doom: Die erste Erweiterung mit zusätzlichen Inhalte ist da – und klassisches Deathmatch kommt. (Bethesda, Rollenspiel)
Seagate: 12-TByte-Festplatten sind fast fertig
Für seine Investoren hat Seagate schon die nächste Festplattengeneration angekündigt. Es ist allerdings wieder nur ein 2-TByte-Schritt von 10 auf 12 TByte. Die neue Festplattengeneration setzt ebenfalls auf eine Heliumfüllung. (Festplatte, Speichermedien)
iOS: Apple bietet bis zu 200.000 US-Dollar für Bugs
Nach langem Warten hat jetzt auch Apple ein Bug-Bounty-Programm. Das gab Apple-Manager Ivan Krstić auf der Black Hat 2016 bekannt. Unter einer Voraussetzung verdoppelt das Unternehmen die maximale Auszahlung von 200.000 US-Dollar sogar. (Apple, i…
Rio 2016: Keine Gifs und Vines von den Olympischen Spielen
Nicht nur bei Hashtags, auch bei Videoschnipseln gibt das Olympische Komitee harte Regeln vor: Sogar Gifs und Vines, in denen Bildmaterial der Spiele in Rio vorkommt, sind untersagt. Das schließt alle Bild- und Tonaufnahmen mit Bezug zu den Spielen ein – egal, von welcher Quelle das Material kommt. (Soziales Netz, Microblogging)
Social Media: Facebook verstärkt Kampf gegen Clickbait-Überschriften
Mit zwei neuen Systemen verbessert Facebook den für die Sortierfolge der Timeline zuständigen Algorithmus. Damit sollen reißerische Überschriften wirksamer als bislang bekämpft werden. (Facebook, Soziales Netz)
Prime Air: Erstes Flugzeug mit Amazon-Lackierung ist unterwegs
Nicht nur mit Drohnen will Amazon seine Pakete ausliefern. Im Auftrag des Onlineshops sind auch Flugzeuge unterwegs. Aus den USA wird nun das erste Flugzeug mit Amazon-Lackierung gemeldet. Es fliegt mit der Kennung N1997A und wurde auf den Namen Amazon…
Torrentz Shuts Down, Largest Torrent Meta-Search Engine Says Farewell
Torrentz.eu, one of the world’s largest torrent sites, has announced “farewell” to its millions of users. The meta-search engine, which hosted no torrents of its own but linked to other sites including The Pirate Bay, has decided to shut down.
Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.
Founded in 2003, Torrentz has been a stable factor in the torrent community for over 13 years.
With millions of visitors per day the site grew out to become one of the most visited torrent sites, but today this reign ends, as the popular meta-search engine has announced its shutdown.
A few hours ago and without warning, Torrentz disabled its search functionality. At first sight the main page looks normal but those who try to find links to torrents will notice that they’re no longer there.
Instead, the site is now referring to itself in the past tense, suggesting that after more than a decade the end has arrived.
“Torrentz was a free, fast and powerful meta-search engine combining results from dozens of search engines,” the text reads.
TorrentFreak was contacted by the operator of Torrentz, who prefers not to comment at the moment. It’s clear, however, that another major torrent site is shutting down, leaving a gaping hole.
Breaking story, more updates will follow
Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.
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