Tech Culture

Microsoft to U.S. expats in U.K.: Don't bring your guns

Having worked on several continents, I know how difficult it can be to adjust to different cultures.

In Poland, for example, men kiss men at work. In the United States, on the other hand, they sue for that kind of thing.

So you have to feel for any American who is suddenly asked very nicely by his employer to leave the deep safety of the nation and venture to, say, the United Kingdom.

They're different there. They're tight-lipped and generally superior.

Kinder employers, therefore, create little handbooks to prepare unwitting expats for a new world.

The Sun got hold of a book … Read more

MakerBot to sell limited-edition Adafruit Replicator 2 kit

MakerBot and open-source hardware pioneers Adafruit Industries have partnered to produce a limited edition Adafruit Replicator 2 3D Printer bundle.

For $2,295, buyers get a Replicator 2 -- one of the hottest consumer-grade 3D printers on the market today -- and three of Adafruit's most-popular kits. A Replicator 2 normally sells for $2,200.

The three kits included in the package are Adafruit's MintyBoost V3.0, an open-source hardware charger; a 512MB RAM Raspberry Pi Model B; and a Timesquare do-it-yourself watch kit with a red display matrix. … Read more

On Pi Day, Japanese propose with 0.314-carat diamonds

If you're a Japanese math geek with romantic inclinations, March 14 is a big day.

Not only is it Pi Day, the international day to celebrate the mathematical constant, it's also White Day, a sort of second Valentine's Day when men reciprocate gifts received on February 14.

Japanese jewelry retailer Brilliance + is cashing in on this coincidence by mixing a love of math with love itself in its "Propose With Pi" campaign.

The idea is that men can compare their undying, eternal love for their ladies to the never-ending digits of pi -- and, of course, express that love with a 0.314-carat diamond ring. … Read more

CBS launches full-episode streaming for iPad, iPhone

CBS today announced that it has launched a new, free app for the iPhone and iPad that allows for full-episode streaming to Apple's mobile devices.

The app provides access to full-length episodes of CBS' top shows, including "NCIS," "The Good Wife," and "How I Met Your Mother." The latest episodes of daytime and late-night programming will show up within 24 hours after airing. Prime-time programs will hit the app eight days after their initial broadcast.

For now, the apps are available to iPhone and iPad owners. CBS, which owns CBS Interactive, the company … Read more

Cryptography scientists win 2012 Turing Award

Two cryptography scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have won the 2012 Turing Award for pioneering ways to make online transactions secure, the Association for Computing Machinery announced today.

Scientists Shafi Goldwasser and Silvio Micali were recognized for laying the "foundations of modern theoretical cryptography," which lead to the development of technology that is now standard in security, like encryption and digital signatures, according to ACM.

The prestigious award, named after British mathematician Alan M. Turing, comes with a $250,000 cash prize provided by Intel and Google. Turing is known as a pioneer of modern computing … Read more

SimCity could easily work offline, claims anonymous developer

An anonymous developer who worked on the new SimCity has revealed that the game does not do most of its calculations "in the cloud," directly contradicting what developer Maxis and publisher EA have repeatedly claimed.

In defending the troubled game's always-online requirement, the game's makers have said an offline mode would not be possible, due to "a significant amount of calculations" being done in their servers. Not true, the source told respected PC blog RockPaperShotgun.

"The servers are not handling any of the computation done to simulate the city you are playing," … Read more

The world's varying tastes in online porn

Sometimes here at Technically Incorrect, one has to operate with eyes wide shut. This is one of those times.

For I have been forwarded an infographic about various Internet searches around the world related to online porn and ordered to discuss it. By someone who, no doubt, is wearing extremely slippery leather.

This infographic claims to show the most popular search terms related to porn that are entered around the world, and I am grateful to BuzzFeed for buzzing me into it.

It was prepared by PornMD, a search engine of which I had previously been unaware. This is not … Read more

Lego machine makes, launches paper airplanes

We've seen all manner of jaw-dropping Lego creations, but some of the best are creations that create. This machine fashioned from the fantastic plastic creates and launches paper airplanes.

Created by Mindstorms user hknssn13, this mini factory was made from 6,000-7,000 Lego bricks and measures 59 inches long by 15 inches wide. Not exactly portable, but it works. … Read more

Razer Edge Pro tablet pre-orders shut down due to high demand

Demand for the Razer Edge Pro has already managed to exceed supply, forcing its manufacturer to curtail its pre-order program.

Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan broke the news this week via the company's Facebook page:

We've had to stop taking pre-orders for the Razer Edge Pro as the pre-orders have gone beyond our forseeable manufacturing capacity (i.e. all stock is sold out for the months to come). We're doing all we can to get manufacturing lines up and running so please bear with us.

We're doing everything we can to get more units out in the … Read more