Month: November 2017

Enlarge / SAG-AFTRA members picket near the start of what would become a long strike. (credit: SAG-AFTRA)

Nearly a year after voting to strike against 11 major video game publishers, voice actors in the SAG-AFTRA union voted overwhelmingly to approve a tentative agreement that will get them back to work for at least the next three years.

A full 90 percent of voting union members agreed to the new deal, which grants actors bonuses of up to $2,100 based on the number of distinct sessions they work on a particular project. That's a compromise from the sales-based royalty structure the union was seeking for best-selling games, but SAG-AFTRA negotiating committee chair Keythe Farley called the new bonus structure "a base from which to build upon," in a statement.

SAG-AFTRA also secured what it calls "an employer commitment" on the issue of vocally stressful performances that can damage actors' voices. Actors will also receive more information about the name and nature of a project before accepting it, improving their negotiating power but potentially publicizing information publishers want kept secret.

(credit: Logitech)

Logitech customers are not happy, as they recently found out that the company would be discontinuing service for its popular Harmony Link remote system. The device and its cloud-based system allow users to control home theater and sound equipment from a mobile app. Customers received an e-mail explaining that Logitech will "discontinue service and support" for the Harmony Link as of March 16, 2018, adding that Harmony Link devices "will no longer function after this date."

While Logitech is offering a one-time, 35-percent discount on its Harmony Hub to affected customers that are out of warranty, that's not enough for Harmony Link users who are expressing their dissatisfaction on Logitech support forums and Reddit. Users have not experienced major problems with the Harmony Link system that would indicate they are approaching end of life. Harmony Link customers do not pay a subscription or service fee to use the device, either.

The only reason provided comes from a Logitech employee with the username Logi_WillWong, who explains in a response post from September 8, 2017 that Logitech will not be renewing a "technology certificate license" that expires in March. No details were provided about how this certificate license allows the Harmony Link to function, but it appears that without it, those devices will not work as promised. "The certificate will not be renewed as we are focusing resources on our current app-based remote, the Harmony Hub," Logi_WillWong added, which seems to indicate that the shutting down of the Harmony Link system is a way to get more customers on the newer Harmony Hub system.

Enlarge / The first Cygnus commercial cargo spacecraft built by Orbital Sciences Corp. flew to the International Space Station in 2013. (credit: NASA)

It has generally been assumed that NASA will save money by spurring the development of services by US companies to supply the International Space Station, but such conclusions have largely been based on estimates. Now, a rigorous new review authored by a NASA analyst, and published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, offers a clear answer to this question.

According to the new research paper by Edgar Zapata, who works at Kennedy Space Center, the supply services offered by SpaceX and Orbital ATK have cost NASA two to three times less than if the space agency had continued to fly the space shuttle. For his analysis, Zapata attempted to make an "apples to apples" comparison between the commercial vehicles, through June 2017, and the space shuttle.

Specifically, the analysis of development and operational expenses, as well as vehicle failures, found that SpaceX had cost NASA about $89,000 per kg of cargo delivered to the space station. By the same methodology, he found Orbital ATK had cost $135,000 per kg. Had the shuttle continued to fly, and deliver cargo via its Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, it would have cost $272,000 per kg.