Issue 2220 - Wednesday 20th November, 2024

In Today's Issue

The News

A telco was told to leave Australia but we don't know which one

I don't usually link to social media posts for news, but Commsday writer Rohan Pearce discovered that the federal government used Subsection 315A(1) of the Telecommunications Act, to tell a telco to stop operating in Australia for national security reasons. Its use requires involvement of the Prime Minister and Communications minister and very likely all were briefed by ASIO, i.e: it's a big deal and it's the first time it's ever been used despite being a thing since 2004. We don't know which telco was booted out of Australia and we may never know, but it was disclosed in the 2023-2024 Telecommunications Sector Security Reforms report and that's all we know.

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Microsoft to sell a little cloud computer to stream Windows on

Microsoft's announced Windows 365 Link, "a new purpose-built miniature PC for its Windows 365 cloud service" that'll launch next year. It'll cost US$349, is small and fanless and will be "as simple and efficient as possible for you to be able to access your cloud PC". The Link "boots in seconds, can wake instantly from sleep, and uses its own chips to process video for Microsoft Teams or Webex by Cisco". Not sure how this is different to the plethora of thin clients that already exist running Windows, but cool, good luck Microsoft with your "cloud".

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Instagram provides new option to "reset" your algorithm

Instagram is rolling out a new feature to "reset" your content recommendations. From the press release, "In just a few taps, you'll be able to clear your recommended content across Explore, Reels and Feed and start fresh. Your recommendations will start to personalize again over time, showing new content based on the content and accounts you interact with. When resetting, you'll also have the option to review the accounts you're following and unfollow any that share content you no longer want to see".

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Something I Saw On The Internet

Internet friends are real friends, 97% of 12yo kids in UK have smartphones, free NBN for school kids

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Bargains

Image Of The Day

Last year PC case and peripheral maker Silverstone posted a picture of a retro-inspired computer chassis with a 1980s-inspired beige design, space for two 5.25 inch floppy drives, and a few modern touches like USB Type-C ports. At the time, it was an April Fools Day joke. But after that image went viral, the company apparently went to work turning it into a real product. Silverstone recently showed off an early version of the upcoming case, which will be available soon in Japan for about $130. (Liliputing)

The End

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