Author: knjohn

This Android redesign looks smashing, but I wish it came sooner | Digital Trends

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Every year, Google adds a potpourri of features to Android. Visually, however, it changes only once a few years. The last time Google made significant visual changes, it was with Android 12 over three years ago. In the coming months, Google is expected to kick off another cycle of aesthetic overhaul, with significant changes sprinkled across the UI. These appear right before Google is set to launch Android 16, and has ignites new expectations — but I’m afraid this comes too little, too late.

The redesigned Android interface brings a breath of freshness, with visually engaging colors and completely refreshed sliders across the interface. Even smaller elements, including icons in the status bar, are going under the knife, and coming out slightly more detailed than were in the previous iterations. Many aspects of the interface appear to have adopted a translucent cloak, giving it a more modern look. While the visual impact is undeniable, the timing is rather odd.

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3 underrated Amazon Prime Video movies you should watch this weekend (May 2-4) | Digital Trends

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Although the streaming revolution has many benefits, it’s hard to pick something to watch because of the multitude of options. As the weather gets warmer, you might be looking for an ideal way to pass a lazy evening on Amazon Prime Video.

Thankfully, that’s where we come in. We’ve pulled together a list of three excellent movies that are all quite different and worth your time this weekend.

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The Secret to Staying Booked as a Handyman in the DIY Era | The Startup Magazine

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If you think about it, there’s a strange confidence that hits people after watching a five-minute YouTube tutorial. Suddenly, they’re experts in drywall patching, garbage disposal installation, and electrical work. Pretty much, they treat that one short tutorial as if they’re now officially a repair technician when they’re the furthest thing from it. So yeah, basically, wrench in one hand, a phone in the other, and somehow, it’ll all work out, well, until it doesn’t.

These days, being a handyman comes with a new challenge: convincing people they actually need help. The rise of DIY culture has made it look easy to fix everything solo. But behind the camera cuts and upbeat background music, there’s a big difference between “it looks simple” and “it’s done right.” So, how does a handyman stand out when everyone thinks they’ve got it covered on their own? Yeah, it’s a good question, but there are some answers!

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How to Improve Your Digital Marketing Strategy Long-Term | The Startup Magazine

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You’ll already know you’ll need a digital marketing strategy to help bring in leads for your business. It’ll expand your brand awareness and help you generate more sales. This only happens when everything’s going as well as possible. That doesn’t always happen.

You could need to improve your digital marketing strategy to see better results. Countless businesses end up in this position. Getting through it doesn’t need to be complicated. Focusing on the right steps could make this more straightforward than you’d expect. Three of these could help quite a bit.

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Trump eases tariffs on US car makers | BBC News

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US President Donald Trump has signed an order to ease the impact of new tariffs on the auto industry, which had sparked warnings about higher prices and the potential for significant hits to sales and production.

The change will allow carmakers with US factories to reduce the amount they pay in import taxes on foreign parts, using a formula tied to how many cars they sell and the price.

The provision is intended to provide relief to businesses for two years as they rework their supply chains, White House officials said.

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Trump congratulates Canada’s Carney as they agree to meet in ‘near future’ | BBC News

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US President Donald Trump has called Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to congratulate him on his victory in the country’s general election, and the two have agreed to meet in the near future.

The two countries were expected to enter talks about a new economic and security relationship after Monday’s vote.

Trump’s trade tariffs and repeated comments undermining Canada’s sovereignty overshadowed the race, which ended with Carney’s Liberals projected to win a minority government, according to public broadcaster CBC.

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IXI raises $36.5M from Amazon and others to bring autofocus to prescription glasses | TechCrunch

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Blink and you’ll miss it: A startup out of Finland is taking a new look at the market for prescription eyewear. Tapping into innovations in eye-tracking and liquid crystal lens technology, IXI is building low-power glasses that will invisibly and automatically adjust to account for a wearer’s presbyopia (far-sightedness).

Four years into its life, Helsinki-based IXI emerged from stealth on Tuesday, announcing that it’s raised a total of $36.5 million from a list of investors that include the Amazon Alexa fund, to work towards its first commercial product.

London-based VC firm Plural is leading the latest tranche of Series A funding, with participation from Tesi, byFounders, Heartcore, Eurazeo, FOV Ventures, Tiny Supercomputer, and existing investors. The startup’s previous investors, in addition to the Amazon Alexa Fund, include Maki.vc, First Fellow, First Minute Capital, John Lindfors, Illusian (a family office of European founders similar to ICONIQ in the U.S.), and the Bragiel Brothers.

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Government hackers are leading the use of attributed zero-days, Google says | TechCrunch

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Hackers working for governments were responsible for the majority of attributed zero-day exploits used in real-world cyberattacks last year, per new research from Google.

Google’s report said that the number of zero-day exploits — referring to security flaws that were unknown to the software makers at the time hackers abused them — had dropped from 98 exploits in 2023 to 75 exploits in 2024. But the report noted that of the proportion of zero-days that Google could attribute — meaning identifying the hackers who were responsible for exploiting them — at least 23 zero-day exploits were linked to government-backed hackers.

Among those 23 exploits, 10 zero-days were attributed to hackers working directly for governments, including five exploits linked to China and another five to North Korea.

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Roommates’ Side Hustle Makes $1M a Month: ‘No Regrets’ | Entrepreneur

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When did you start your side hustle, and where did you find the inspiration for it? Whiteside: When Ben and I became best friends during our junior year at CU Boulder, one of the things that brought us close was our shared aspiration of building our own thing, not walking a 9-5 path working on someone else’s dream. This shared passion wouldn’t manifest until much later, though.

When I first started dreaming of a hair product company that went beyond styling one’s hair with toxic sh*t, I was working at an ecommerce startup in a marketing and operations role. We were a small team, and the company was struggling hard to establish itself. I learned a ton about problem-solving through the early stages of business, but I had one foot out the door, pulling me toward my calling of being my own entrepreneur.

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7 AI Tools That Help You Build a One-Person Business — and Make Money While You Sleep | Entrepreneur

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Most entrepreneurs are still using AI like a sidekick, just scratching the surface with basic tools that save a few minutes here and there. But what if AI could run your business for you while you sleep? This isn’t about chatbots or rewriting blog posts. This is about building a lean, one-person business powered by automation, speed, and strategy.

Inside this video, I’m revealing seven powerful AI tools from the “Black Book”— hand-picked for solo entrepreneurs who want to scale without a team and unlock true freedom.

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