Computing
A GAO Report On Smartphone Data: Information and Issues Regarding Surreptitious Tracking Apps That Can Facilitate Stalking
Several tracking apps were marketed to individuals for the purpose of tracking or intercepting the communications of an intimate partner to determine if that partner was cheating. About one-third of the websites marketed their tracking apps as surreptitious, specifically to track the location and intercept the smartphone communications of children, employees, or intimate partners without their knowledge or consent. more »
While the Snow Falls & You Avoid the Shovel; IRS Offers More Free Federal and Free State Tax Software Options
"We are proud to once again offer the industry's most innovative and secure tax software at no cost to 70 percent of American taxpayers. Tax time can be stressful, but Free File makes step-by-step help accessible to everyone making $62,000 or less. IRS.gov/FreeFile is the one place where taxpayers can choose from a variety of industry-leading tax software options in order to prepare and e-file their federal tax returns at absolutely no cost." more »
Scout Report: TechKnitting, Life and Death in the Artic, Ars Technica, Boston Museum of Science, Railroad History, Rockefeller Family Archives
Knitters of the web rejoice: TECHknitting can elevate your skills and answer your questions. In 1845, two ships left England to explore the Canadian Arctic, locate a northern route to China and gather geomagnetic data. Both ships and 129 men disappeared. Ars Technica will be interesting for technology news, policy analysis, scientific advancements, gadget reviews, software, hardware. Recent Neurologica posts examine the neural correlates of delayed gratification, the nature of irrational fears and thoughts on the possibly holographic nature of the universe. 15 chapters take readers from the advent of the American railroads in the 1820s, through the golden age of the 1880s and 1890s to the 1980s and onward. more »
Pet Peeves (Yes, Again!)
Rose Madeline Mula writes: Getting old. I absolutely hate it. There is nothing positive about the so-called golden years. Even all the senior discounts can't begin to compensate for all the disadvantages — the aches and pains, the wrinkles, the unflattering shoes my bunions force me to wear, the fact that all the names in my little black book have 'M.D.' after them, the fact that I still have a little black book because I can't figure out how the calendar on my smart phone works. more »
