Welcome to issue #6 of the Dithering Digest Weekly Roundup of tech news and links! I hope you are all set for Christmas, but if not, have a look at our Geek Gift Guide for ideas and inspiration for the nerd in your life!
Enjoy!
Google releases Gemini, competitor to ChatGPT
Google has released Gemini. They are using it to power their existing chatbot Bard, and it has image capabilities too. I have seen a handful of TikTok videos doing the rounds of the AI interpreting live video and it is super impressive.
🔗 https://www.wired.com/story/google-gemini-ai-model-chatgpt/
Microsoft Co-Pilot and Bing Chat getting upgraded to ChatGPT Turbo 4
Microsoft have announced that they will be using the new ChatGPT 4 Turbo model for their Co-Pilot and Bing chat features. The Turbo model is significantly faster than previous models, so we can expect snappier responses whilst maintaining quality of response.
🔗 https://www.howtogeek.com/microsoft-copilot-and-bing-chat-are-getting-gpt-4-turbo/
UK government denies China/Russia nuke plant hack claim
The UK government denies a report claiming that the Sellafield nuclear complex has been compromised by malware for years. The government states that there is no evidence of successful attacks on Sellafield Ltd networks and that their monitoring systems are robust. The Office for Nuclear Regulation acknowledges the need for improvements in cyber security but assures that public safety is not compromised.
🔗 https://www.theregister.com/2023/12/05/uk_government_denies_sellafield_hack_claim/
Government and the latest tech don’t mix
In more reassuring IT news from the government, it turns out that using the absolute bleeding edge brand new tech isn’t always a good idea. Who knew??
In attempting to build and Emergency Services comms network, they are 12 years late and need to double their budget. If I did that in work I’d be fired!!
🔗 https://www.theregister.com/2023/12/05/esn_home_offifce_committee/
Iranian terrorist crew broke into ‘multiple’ US water facilities
In more security-related news, it appears that an Iranian crew managed to infiltrate several US Water facilities.
They managed to gain control over PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers, used in industrial settings) as they were connected to the Internet and still using the factory default passwords. Tut tut!
🔗 https://www.theregister.com/2023/12/04/iran_terrorist_us_water_attacks/
iPhone 13 and 14 to get Qi2 Wireless Charging
This was a nice little surprise to come across my desk this week! It turns out Apple’s upcoming iOS 17.2 update will unlock Qi 2 charging in iPhone 13 and 14 models which will allow chargers that are 15W to be used. This could result in twice the speed of charging.
I think I will be adding a Qi2 wireless charging dock to my Christmas list!
🔗 https://www.howtogeek.com/iphone-13-and-14-now-have-qi2-wireless-charging/
Rock icons Kiss now immortal via digitisation
The legendary glam-metal band Kiss have been digitally captured using advanced video and motion capture tech to immortalise the band. Using tech that was used to digitise ABBA for their ABBA Journey production, George Lucas and Industrial Light and Magic have teamed up to make a virtual version of the band to enable gigs and shows long after the artists have passed.
Be sure to watch the video, it has Guitar Hero vibes and I think a concert like this could be interesting to watch, especially somewhere like the amazing Vegas Sphere!
🔗 https://www.theregister.com/2023/12/04/kiss_are_now_immortal/
Computer Joke of the Week
Why do sharks eat underwater internet cables?
It helps them to get more fibre in their diet.
See you all next week! Stay safe and keep dithering!
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