### Issue 2185 - Tuesday 1st October, 2024

I need to take tomorrow off, so Kathy will fill you in on tomorrow's tech news! I'll be back on Thursday.

## In Today's Issue

- Epic sues Google again, as well as Samsung, for making apps difficult to sideload
- NSW police can't install apps on work phones due to misuse of "encrypted applications"
- Telstra's lack of generic/open market VoLTE is gonna hurt when 3G turns off soon
- Google's NotebookLM can turn documents into podcasts
- Cheap Anker USB charger, TCN, Spotify & Xbox Game Pass Ultimate gift cards, CatchConnect 365-day SIM, refurb iPhones

## The News

### Epic sues Google again, as well as Samsung, for making apps difficult to sideload

Epic kicked off yet another lawsuit today, this time upset that "a Samsung mobile security feature called Auto Blocker was intended to deter users from downloading apps from sources other than the Play store or Samsung's Galaxy store" and "was intentionally crafted in coordination with Google to preemptively undermine the U.S. District Court's remedy following the jury's verdict in Epic's case against Google" last year. Epic wants the Auto Blocker app disabled by default so Samsung users can install apps from outside the Play Store without having to go through what they describe in their press release as an "exceptionally onerous 21 step process". I wish I had the financial security of a lawyer working for Epic.

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### NSW police can't install apps on work phones due to misuse of "encrypted applications"

NSW cops have new "security software" to block the use of social media and "other personal apps" on police issued devices - something I'm surprised wasn't already the case. What prompted this decision was an investigation into a crash involving an unmarked police car back in July which discovered that police are using "encrypted applications" and "adopted the practice of deleting messages, records of messages and calls" from them. That is apparently inconsistent with "provisions of the statutory regime dealing with record retention". Well, well, well, isn't it ironic that the cops like their secret messaging off the record, but don't want the same for us. Pack of power hungry hypocrites.

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### Telstra's lack of generic/open market VoLTE is gonna hurt when 3G turns off soon

Optus and Telstra are closing down their 3G networks on the 28th of October after months of delays, but according to James Parker, there's gonna be a shitload more devices unable to make calls on that day than we expect due to the wild inconsistencies in the VoLTE "standard". While Optus and Vodafone support generic/open market VoLTE, Telstra does not. If your device doesn't have a Telstra firmware update (many don't, particularly imported phones), you won't be able to make a call on Telstra's network even if the device technically supports VoLTE. To further compound the pain, an update to the Emergency Call Service Determination says that as of November 1st if a telco reckons your device can't call 000, they have to block the device from their network. This is gonna be a shitshow.

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## Something I Saw On The Internet

### Google's NotebookLM can turn documents into podcasts

The latest "oh wow maybe AI doesn't suck" moment going around the internet is a new feature of Google's NotebookLM called Audio Overview. Simon Willison fed it various blog posts and it spits back an MP3 of two Americans talking about the article they just read and thought was interesting. It sounds just like any other generic US podcast. Going by comments on Hacker News of people that tried it with subject matter they're familiar with, it's pretty accurate at dumbing things down to 10-15min "podcast" and some said they'd like to use it as a way to communicate their scientific research to a mainstream audience or a journalist. Like most AI things, it's technically impressive, but how do I know what's being summarised is accurate and I'm not listening to two robots talk shit?

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## Bargains

- Anker Prime USB charger (200W, 6-ports) - $127.46 from Anker
- 20x Everyday Rewards Points on TCN, Spotify & Xbox Game Pass Ultimate gift cards at Woolworths
- Catch Connect (Optus MVNO) 365-day SIM with 120GB data, unlimited calls & SMS - $99 from Catch
- Refurb iPhone 11, 12 mini, 12, 13, 14 - $355/$355/$435/$630/$825 from Amaysim

## Image Of The Day

Byte Magazine Volume 08 Number 05 - The Electronic Office (Internet Archive / Sketch the Cow)

## The End

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