Google kills off ‘OK Google’ detection on Chrome for desktops

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Fresh off of killing Chrome’s desktop notification center, Google is removing another big feature from its browser: ‘OK Google’ detection. As VentureBeat notes, Version 46 of the browser (on Windows, Mac and Linux) removes the hotword’s detection; it’s been available in the browser since Chrome 35, which came along in May of last year. As for why it’s removing the feature, Google’s providing the the same answer as when it removed the notification center: not enough people were using it. This was compounded by the fact that it only worked when you had Google.com open. It’s simply not as convenient as…

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Adobe rolls out fix for Flash flaw ahead of schedule, but maybe uninstall it anyway

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RIP_flash
Just yesterday, Adobe was warning of a critical vulnerability that was affecting all versions of Flash, but said it would be a week before a fix was available. However, it was clearly worried about the security failure spotted by Trend Micro researchers and is today rolling out a patch that fixes the vulnerability that allowed attackers to remotely take control of a machine. While Flash is much-maligned and many people want to see it die, it’s nice to see a fix rolling out ahead of schedule for once. That doesn’t really excuse what a proven security risk Flash often poses…

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Dropbox changed its logo and nobody noticed

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Dropbox Old vs New Logo
Dropbox finally publicly revealed a competitor to Google Docs, but you might not have noticed that something is a little different: Let’s look at that more closely. Here are the old logo and new logo compared: The new logo is a gigantic change from the old one /s Harris Roberts from creative agency Figmints first noted the change on the company’s blog. The new logo keeps the same box icon, but changed the font to a much rounder, squatter, and longer sans serif that resembles a customized Motiva Sans. The new logo also uses an ever-so-slightly lighter shade of blue. Comparing…

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9 apps to add unique wallpapers to your Android home screen

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One of the reasons I prefer Android over iOS is because it offers endless options for customizing the interface. That’s important to me as I like my apps and widgets set up just so, and I enjoy switching up wallpapers every once in a while. Google Play is filled with apps hawking wallpapers, some great and some terrible. In the endless quest to create the ultimate home screen (for myself, anyway), I went through a boatload of them, and found a bunch of apps that help you create and apply backgrounds you’d be hard-pressed to spot on others’ devices. Here are…

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Buffer’s Pablo now creates perfectly sized images for Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest

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Pablo
Buffer has updated Pablo, its Web app for combining pictures and text for social media posts, with the ability to generate and share perfectly sized images for Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook. The company has also made Pablo easier to use with content you come across while browsing the Web. Pablo now has a nicer interface and lets you choose from three image dimensions suitable for various social networks. ‘Tall & vertical’ is Ideal for Pinterest and Google+, while ‘Short & horizontal’ works best for Twitter and Facebook. The square format is perfect for Instagram and LinkedIn. You can choose a…

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Macphun gathers its major photo apps together into one new Creative Kit

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Macphun markets a line of completely kick-ass standalone apps and plug-ins for Adobe photo editing packages like Photoshop and Lightroom. Here at TNW, we’ve reviewed or, at the very least, put our paws on every release over the last couple of years. Today, the company has launched an update to its product line, featuring a newly redesigned and configured Creative Kit 2016 bundle. Included in the package are Focus, Noiseless, Tonality, Intensify, Snapheal and FX Photo Studio. Developed exclusively for the Mac, the kit features a cohesive and streamlined workflow that lets users move from one app to the next without having to leave the Macphun interface. Gone are the days of having to…

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Hands on with Polarr 3 Web photo editor, also released for Chrome and Windows 10

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polarrfeat
People love desktop photo editing apps like Apple Photos and Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom because they give you at least a fighting chance of transforming a bland photo into a stunning one. But those times when you can’t or don’t want to deal with launching software — preferring to work conveniently online — consider Polarr, a browser-based photo editor that released a new version today. Polarr’s version 3 for the Web (the company recommends the Chrome browser) and Chrome is also accompanied by an expansion into Windows 10. I went hands on with the new Polarr using Chrome on my Mac.…

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Paper is Dropbox’s answer to Google Docs (sort of)

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For businesses so invested in our digital lives, tech companies really seem to like naming their products ‘Paper:’ First Facebook, then FiftyThree and now Dropbox. Dropbox Paper is a rebranding of its Notes product for collaborative documents, launched as a private beta earlier in the year (Dropbox also had a related product called Composer). According to Engadget, the company gearing up to expand the beta significantly as it finalizes the product for public release. At first glance, Paper is just a minimalist Web text editor. You log in with your Dropbox account, with only basic formatting options (seriously, there’s only one font and three sizes). But it’s real power seems to…

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Skype URLs make it ridiculously easy to video chat with anyone, no account needed

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Skype is making a small but important change that will make video and voice calls a lot more accessible: You can now invite anyone to a conversation with a simple URL, and they don’t even need to have the app installed or own a Skype account. To receive a conversation URL, you can just click the ‘+New’ button on the latest versions of Skype for Windows, Mac or on the Web. Once the recipient opens up the link, they’ll be asked to input their name, and then they’re ready to start chatting. It’s a seamless process, and it could enable a lot of spontaneous group conversations.…

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