Chrome adding password checkup
Google is adding its password checkup feature to Chrome 79. The feature will scan a registered user’s password credentials to compare them to a database of compromised credentials, notifying the user if their user name and password has been stolen. Wired
dis-rup-shun: Password management continues to be an unwieldy problem that, surprisingly, has not been effectively solved. Storing passwords in a browser is convenient, until one’s browser access is compromised. Retinal scans and finger print readers, though not completely safe, will prove a convenient way to begin elimination of passwords and their cumbersome rules. Until a better system is developed, make sure to turn on two factor authentication (receiving a code via text message) for important accounts.
Amazon will be one of most important companies in 2020s
Amazon has risen to the nation’s second largest employer in only 25 years. The key to its success, according to CNBC, is its unwavering dedication to giving customers what they want. Putting customer satisfaction first has prevented the company from pursuing a number of distractions, and has built an online store that captures 4% of all U.S. retail sales. Another key factor for success has been its willingness to experiment, and to learn from failures, like the Fire Phone, which was a market flop, but led to development of the highly successful Echo and Alexa technology. The company’s massive scale will lead to increased criticism in the next decade, as competitive practices crush smaller companies and as environmental concerns pressure Amazon’s carbon footprint.
dis-rup-shun: Amazon, like Facebook, has become a company that people like to hate even while regularly using its services. Expanding its products, services and influence over the next decade must be accompanied by social and community action — helping to support the communities it is reshaping as e-commerce squeezes bricks and mortar. Tim Cook has been quick to position Apple as the responsible company, putting customer privacy first. This action is now pressuring the rest of Big Tech to take a stand, and Amazon will need to become a responsible giant to continue its breakneck growth.
Google interpreter available on mobile
Google’s interpreter app is now available on mobile devices (iOs and Android), supporting translation to and from 44 languages. The app is activated by saying “Hey Google, be my Spanish translator” and enables speech to text, translation, and other language text to speech. TechCrunch
dis-rup-shun: With 5G coming to many cities in the coming year, using this on-line, mobile translator will be more reliable with faster response time. Better connectivity will enable instantaneous speech translation, enabling long, continuous dialog to be easily translated — more like the United Nations or other multi-language conventions in which a translator is speaking almost in parallel with the original speaker.
Meet the new boss, a robot
Scaled Robotics has developed a small, mobile robotics device whose specialty is to quickly inspect construction sites. The device’s LIDAR sensor system is able to take accurate videos of construction progress, or lack thereof, compare it to CAD drawings, and quickly determine progress made, alerting workers and management of items assembled out of spec. TechCrunch
dis-rup-shun: Is a roving robotic supervisor a friend or foe? The ability of a device to find small flaws in construction will increase quality and reduce costs by finding problems early. Specialists and supervisors could, in theory, manage more projects given that they have a robotic assistant that can scout a job and focus human specialists on exceptions. Expect robotic inspectors to become standard for large and complex construction projects.