Sunday, November 30, 2014

Time to get rid of passwords? Not so fast

Read that NY times article about passwords? Well, it’s pretty interesting. I actually don’t hate passwords, but that’s because I’m not using them correctly. I don’t change them that often and I certainly don’t have a different password for every account. Of course my online bank-account password is not the same as the one I use for Twitter, but if someone obtains my “main” password, they will have access to a lot of my accounts.

Friday, November 28, 2014

#treinleven

Wanneer ik een aantal jaar terug de trein pakte, waren die Metro/Spits bakken altijd leeg. Als je een eigen, versche krant wilde hebben, moest je er vroeg bij zijn. Op elk tafeltje lag er wel een. Tegenwoordig zie ik midden op de dag nog wel eens kranten in die bakken liggen. Ook 's ochtends lijken mensen minder geïnteresseerd te zijn in gratis nieuws op papier. Misschien ligt het aan de trein die ik pak, maar de meeste kranten zijn op de bovenverdieping van de dubbeldekker te vinden.

Thursday, November 20, 2014

The manipulated mind of a gamer

I remember the first ever moving images I saw of Ubisoft’s Paris during the French Revolution. From that moment on, I was hyped for Assassin’s Creed Unity. A one minute video showing the interior of a luxury room, then into a dirty, empty, battered street. When the camera moves around the corner, in the distance, a hooded man stands on a rooftop. Every gamer knows: Ubisoft, hooded man, rooftop: this is Assassin’s Creed. As the camera zooms out and we see that the assassin is looking down on square full of people, we know why the streets are empty. Everyone is on that square, gathered around one of the most cruel execution machines ever made. We see a close-up of the guillotine’s blade falling down, knowing somebody lost his life in front of a cheering crowd.

Monday, November 17, 2014

Nexus 9 review

In 2012, the Nexus 7 shook up the (tablet) world. A year later, the second model did the same. The 2013 model would still be a great deal today, so it’s somewhat unfortunate that Google stops selling it. The Google/HTC made Nexus 9 comes in its place, but this tablet, as the name suggests, has a 9 inch (8.9) inch display. Pre-2014 Nexus devices were always relatively cheap compared to other products. But that changes this year. Both the Nexus 6 and 9 are just as expensive as the competitors’ offerings. Google is trying to take the Nexus program to a more premium level, but how does it work out?