Apple added the 2013 "Trash Can" Mac Pro to its vintage products list alongside the 2019 13-inch MacBook Air, 2019 iMac, 2018 iPad Pro models, and the 128GB iPhone 8. The cylindrical Mac Pro remained on sale until December 2019, when Apple replaced it with the redesigned "Cheese Grater" model.

Products typically reach vintage status five years after their last distribution date. The 2013 Mac Pro's radical cylindrical design prevented internal component upgrades and created thermal limitations that Apple acknowledged in 2017. "I think we designed ourselves into a bit of a thermal corner," Apple hardware chief Craig Federighi said at the time.

Apple also moved several AirPort devices to its obsolete list, including the second-generation AirPort Express and AirPort Time Capsules. The 2013 Mac Pro's radical design created thermal limitations that Apple acknowledged in 2017.

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An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: For the second time in a year, Google has announced that it will render some of its past phones almost unusable with a software update, and users don't have any choice in the matter. After nerfing the Pixel 4a's battery capacity earlier this year, Google has now confirmed a similar update is rolling out to the Pixel 6a. The new July Android update adds "battery management features" that will make the phone unusable. Given the risks involved, Google had no choice but to act, but it could choose to take better care of its customers and use better components in the first place. Unfortunately, a lot more phones are about to end up in the trash. [...]

Pixel 4a units contained one of two different batteries, and only the one manufactured by a company called Lishen was downgraded. For the Pixel 6a, Google has decreed that the battery limits will be imposed when the cells hit 400 charge cycles. Beyond that, the risk of fire becomes too great -- there have been reports of Pixel 6a phones bursting into flames. Clearly, Google had to do something, but the remedies it settled on feel unnecessarily hostile to customers. It had a chance to do better the second time, but the solution for the Pixel 6a is more of the same. [...]

When Google killed the Pixel 4a's battery life, it offered a few options. You could have the battery replaced for free, get $50 cash, or accept a $100 credit in the Google Store. However, claiming the money or free battery was a frustrating experience that was rife with fees and caveats. The store credit is also only good on phones and can't be used with other promotions or discounts. And the battery swap? You'd better hope there's nothing else wrong with the device. If it has any damage, like cracked glass, it may not qualify for a free battery replacement.

Now we have the Pixel 6a Battery Performance Program with all the same problems. Pixel 6a owners can get $100 in cash or $150 in store credit. Alternatively, Google offers a free battery replacement with the same limits on phone condition. This is all particularly galling because the Pixel 6a is still an officially supported phone, with its final guaranteed update coming in 2027. Google also pulled previous software packages for this phone to prevent rollbacks. [...] If you have a Pixel 6a, the battery-killing update is rolling out now. You'll have no choice but to install it if you want to remain on the official software. Google has a support site where you can try to get a free battery swap or some cash.

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The U.S. government has canceled a proposed $900 million project to study in unprecedented detail the afterglow of the Big Bang, the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation. Science magazine: Known as CMB-S4, the project envisioned new arrays of ultrasensitive microwave telescopes at the South Pole and in Chile's Atacama Desert. Their goal: to detect patterns in the ancient light that would prove the newborn universe expanded in an exponential growth spurt called cosmic inflation.

The project, which could have delivered smoking gun evidence for a key theory in cosmology, was supposed to be a joint venture between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Energy (DOE). However, yesterday, the agencies sent an unsigned statement to the leaders of the collaboration saying the project is off. "DOE and NSF have jointly decided that they can no longer support the CMB-S4 Project," it reads.

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mikeleonardvisualarts has added a photo to the pool:

Vanillasludge has added a photo to the pool:

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Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

No reason given for the 6% cull, but the CEO has previously talked up AI taking jobs

Recruit Holdings, the Japanese job site conglomerate that owns recruitment job site Indeed and employer reviewer Glassdoor, has eliminated about 1,300 positions.…

Het Leidse buitenbad De Vliet werd met sluiting bedreigd, maar is dankzij een groep toegewijde vrijwilligers gered. In het vijftigmeterbad zwemmen scholieren, gepensioneerden en atleten broederlijk naast elkaar. „Politici hebben het altijd over gemeenschapszin, maar ze vragen zich nooit af waar die ontstaat. Nou, hier dus.”

Ik moet een kleine operatie ondergaan. Er zullen drie gaatjes in mijn schedelbot worden geboord. Een arts helpt mij om de juiste buikligging op de operatietafel te vinden.

Foto en tekst: Claire Verhagen (1972)

Op de foto: Inez Verhagen-den Bouwmeester (1937-1991) en Eduard Verhagen (1933-1990)

Het klinkt misschien raar, maar Floor Rusman vindt het een saaie bedoening op X, Bluesky en in het politieke debat. „Mijn lichaam is na een half uurtje scrollen in paniekmodus, maar mijn hoofd heeft een bore-out.”

Samenwerken met partijen die klimaatwetenschap of de rechtsstaat ook maar een mening vinden of die stilletjes Poetin bewonderen, levert op korte termijn misschien politiek voordeel op, maar is op lange termijn een doodlopende weg.

In dit zonnige zomerweekend deel ik graag felicitaties uit. Allereerst aan president Trump die door zijn vriend Netanyahu is voorgedragen voor de Nobelprijs voor de Vrede.

Uit een eerste onderzoek naar de in juni bij Ahmedabad neergestorte Boing 787 Dreamliner blijkt dat de brandstofschakelaars naar beide motoren werden uitgezet en het toestel direct stuwkracht en hoogte verloor.

John from Brisbane has added a photo to the pool:

I have been playing with sliders on this one, just for fun. Back in March when all my photos today were taken, the air and water was much warmer and conducive to paddling and playing. Some kids and a dog enjoying themselves at Sandgate in Brisbane.