### Issue 2018 - Wednesday 31st January, 2024

## In Today's Issue

- First Apple Vision Pro reviews are live
- Nine uses Photoshop AI feature on Victorian MP with dumb results
- Raspberry Pi IPO, Ryzen 7 8700G APU, RIP WordPad
- Internet fact checking barely makes a dent reducing misinformation
- Cheap Samsung 34" monitor, Anbernic emulation console, Edifier monitor speakers, DJI Mini 3 Pro, refurb Dell micro PC

## The News

### First Apple Vision Pro reviews are live

Embargo has lifted on Apple Vision Pro headset reviews from Apple's hand picked selection of reviewers (so don't expect anything too controversial). I could link you to each review but MacStories has done that already. The Personas feature is "deeply weird and extremely uncanny". EyeSight "might as well not be there". The floating keyboard is "more a peck-peck-peck scenario with one or two hands". One reviewer's wife "doesn't like this, that I'm so removed from everything" and his son "calls it a phone for my face". However, Vision Pro is a "completely new way to multitask" and "Mac display sharing works really well, and Apple ecosystem tricks like Handoff and Continuity are pure magic in this context". If you'd like to buy one, Kogan is selling them as grey imports, with the usual caveats that entails. I would love to try one out but no prescription lenses is a show stopper for me.

⬆ Share or Discuss

### Nine uses Photoshop AI feature on Victorian MP with dumb results

Nine News fucked up and photoshopped Victorian MP Georgie Purcell to expose her midriff and gave her "enlarged boobs" in a social media promo image. Nine apologised, saying "our graphics department sourced an online image of Georgie to use in our story on duck hunting. As is common practice, the image was resized to fit our specs" and "during that process, the automation by Photoshop created an image that was not consistent with the original". Adobe hit back at Nine blaming their software, saying use of Photoshop's generative AI features "would have required human intervention and approval". Adobe is right. Yes, the computer did a dumb thing, but why didn't the person using Photoshop realise the image isn't appropriate and do something else before sending it up the chain for posting?!

⬆ Share or Discuss

### Raspberry Pi IPO, Ryzen 7 8700G APU, RIP WordPad

- The organisation responsible for the Raspberry Pi is preparing for an IPO on the London Stock Exchange. They value themselves at around US$560m. Not sure I like the idea of a business like Raspberry Pi's having shareholders, but what are ya gonna do except pray they don't fuck it up.
- AMD's got a new series of desktop APUs (i.e: CPUs with decent integrated GPUs) based on the Zen 4 architecture and using RDNA3 GPUs. They're essentially the popular 7000-series laptop CPUs, but scaled up for desktop use. Decent 1080p gaming performance on low settings!
- Pour one out for WordPad, a staple of Windows releases since Windows 95, as it has been snuffed out by Microsoft in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26020. Microsoft said "WordPad is a deprecated Windows feature" and expects people to cough up for Word via a Microsoft 365 subscription now. Cortana is also removed, but nobody will miss it.

⬆ Share or Discuss

## Something I Saw On The Internet

### Internet fact checking barely makes a dent reducing misinformation

You've seen the little warnings under TikTok and YouTube videos or Facebook posts - "the stuff in this post/video isn't true, to get the facts click here" - or something like that. After years of these notices, do people pay attention to them? No, not really, according to fact checking organisations interviewed by the New York Times. In one study done by Google, "a participant scrolled past a fact check shared by a journalist from CNN and dismissed it out of hand. 'Well, who fact-checks the fact checkers?' the user asked". It also doesn't stop people spreading bullshit, as "in the first six months of this year, more than 40 million Facebook posts received a fact-check label, according to a report that the company submitted to the European Commission". God help us.

⬆ Share or Discuss

## Bargains

- Refurb Dell OptiPlex 7070 Micro (i7-9700, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, wi-fi) - $449 from Metrocom
- Samsung SYLS34LS34 34" 3440x1440 100Hz monitor - $397 at Officeworks
- Anbernic RG35XXH handheld game console - $100 from Lightinthebox
- Edifier MR4 active monitor speakers - $109 from Centrecom
- DJI Mini 3 Pro Drone with DJI remote control - $1038 from Harvey Norman

## Image Of The Day

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. (Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum / Flickr)

## The End

📻 Sweet Young Thing Ain't Sweet No More - Mudhoney

😎 The Sizzle is curated by Anthony "decryption" Agius and emailed every weekday afternoon.

💬 Checked out the paid subscriber only forum? It's a tidy little place to discuss tech with like minded Aussies.

👋 Forums not your thing? The Sizzle has a Slack group you can procrastinate in and chat with other nerds bored at work.

💳 Paid subscriber looking to manage your billing info, change email address or cancel your subscription? Visit the customer portal.

🎁 Make someone's day and buy them a 12 month gift subscription to The Sizzle.

📚 Browse The Sizzle Archive. A few issues are missing and it's not searchable, but it's better than nothing.

🫂 Friends of The Sizzle is a small group of businesses or organisations operated by Sizzle subscribers. Support your fellow Sizzler!

💔 Tired of my bullshit? Unsubscribe and I'll never speak to you again.

## Always Was, Always Will Be Aboriginal Land

The Sizzle is created on Wathaurong land and acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, recognising their continuing connection to land, water and community. I pay my respect to them and their cultures and to elders both past and present.