Lightship’s sleek electric RV was designed by former Tesla engineers | Fast Company

April 26, 2023April 25, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Three years ago, stuck in a Bay Area apartment in the early months of the pandemic, Ben Parker quit his job as an engineer at Tesla, rented a Winnebago, and took off on a 6,000-mile road trip. He dove into research for what he saw as the next opportunity for a better electric vehicle: RVs.

When he got back from the trip, he started working on a new RV battery-power system, and convinced a former Tesla product manager, Toby Kraus, to join him as a cofounder of a startup called Lightship. The company’s first electric RV prototype, a travel trailer unveiled this spring, has solar panels on the roof and a battery large enough that it can propel itself, so a truck towing it can save gas (or, if it’s an electric truck, drive farther on a charge). The RV, called the L1, can also power all the appliances onboard without the need for gas or propane generators.

How to Get Ahead in Business | AllBusiness.com

April 26, 2023April 25, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Let’s talk about your next raise and what it takes to be successful in business. There are actually a few things you can do to be a stand-out employee that will make it easier for you to get ahead in business.

3 ways to get ahead in business

1. Assume innocence as a long-term strategy

There will be times when your manager, a peer, or a customer make you angry. Some people respond immediately and go into attack mode. That’s a huge mistake! When someone attacks you, blames you, or does something that you perceive as a slight, your first response should be a thoughtful one. Do not write an immediate, hasty email! I can promise you that nothing good will come from that misguided response.

Adobe Announces Updates to Its Popular Video Tools | Small Biz Trends

April 25, 2023April 24, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Adobe recently announced industry-first innovations for its range of video applications which are designed to address the workflow needs of today’s professional editors and motion designers.

The new innovations will automate time-intensive tasks including AI-powered text-based video editing and automated color tone-mapping capabilities in Premiere Pro. There will also be significant GPU acceleration as well as dozens of workflow enhancements to make the latest version of Premiere Pro the fastest ever released.

How to Differentiate Your Product From the Competition | business.com

April 25, 2023April 24, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

As a business owner, you need to know how to differentiate your business from your competitors.

What is product differentiation?

Product differentiation is what makes your items or services unique. This can be because of a particular technology or design you own, specialty support you offer, a stellar customer experience you create or anything else. The goal here is to identify and focus on the aspects of your product or service that make customers want to work with you.

Why is product differentiation important?

New Kindle Scribe update adds a long-awaited feature | Digital Trends

April 24, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The Kindle Scribe is the first in a new breed of Kindle: an e-book reader that also doubles as a note-taking device with an included stylus. It’s a surprisingly good device and is one of our favorite gadgets of 2022.

Now, a new update means it’s about to get even better. On April 24, an over-the-air update will make it easier to send documents to your Kindle Scribe while also adding the ability to see multiple pages of notes and e-books at once — as well as improvements to PDF readability.

I’m obsessed with the S23 Ultra’s camera — these photos show why | Digital Trends

April 24, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Samsung is the global smartphone market leader, but it’s also known for its tongue-in-cheek advertisements. The company recently ran an ad campaign where everyone constantly asks the main character to send them photos taken with the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Something similar happened when I attended a close friend’s wedding in India last month.

I carried the Galaxy S23 Ultra to the wedding, then on a vacation, leaving every other camera behind. Anyone who saw the images it took immediately inquired what model it was and blurted, “These are as good as a DSLR!” While that may sound exaggerated, I’m confident you will be flooded with similar opinions when you see the pictures below.

How to Manage Employee Welfare in the Cost of Living Crisis | The Startup Magazine

April 21, 2023April 20, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The cost-of-living crisis, fuelled by a range of economic headwinds, has seen businesses and their employees alike suffer from a severe loss of spending power, with the impact being felt throughout global HR departments.

In the United Kingdom, a record number of households are set to see their biggest decline in income in half a century, and this is set to cause a series of problems for businesses that are dependent on consumer spending power remaining high.

For businesses, the challenge of staying afloat can be a priority, but it’s equally important that you seek to support staff members in need during such a challenging time. Office for National Statistics data shows that seven in 10 adults are actively seeking to spend less on non-essential goods, while over 20% are borrowing more money or using credit on a greater scale than before.

SpaceX Starship: Elon Musk’s big rocket explodes on test flight | BBC News

April 21, 2023April 20, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Elon Musk’s SpaceX company’s mammoth new rocket, Starship, has exploded on its maiden flight.

No-one was hurt in the uncrewed test that lifted off from Texas’ east coast on Thursday morning local time.

After two to three minutes into the flight, the rocket – the biggest ever developed – started to tumble out of control and was soon destroyed by onboard charges.

Mr Musk has said his company will try again in a couple of months.

Snapchat’s AI chatbot is now free for all global users, says the AI will later ‘Snap’ you back | TechCrunch

April 20, 2023April 19, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Snapchat’s AI chatbot is now opening up to a global audience, the company announced today at its Snap Partner Summit. Initially launched in February, the feature originally allowed Snapchat’s paid subscribers to chat with an AI chatbot powered by OpenAI’s GPT technology directly in its app. Now it will be available for free. To date, users have sent nearly 2 million messages per day using the chatbot, Snap noted. With today’s global expansion, the feature is also being upgraded with new functionality, including the ability to add My AI to group chats, get recommendations for places on Snap Map and Lenses, and share Snaps with My AI and receive chat replies.

Microsoft kicks Twitter in the teeth | TechCrunch

April 20, 2023April 19, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Microsoft is dropping Twitter from its advertising platform next week, nearly two months after Twitter announced that it will begin charging a minimum of $42,000 per month to users of its API, which include enterprises and research institutions.

Users began receiving emails about its new pricing details in early March, per a Wired report that observed at the time that the new pricing scheme “prices out nearly everyone.”

With its $2.15 trillion market cap and roughly $100 billion cash on hand at the end of last year, Microsoft obviously has the money to pay Twitter what it wants, so the move appears to be a bit of a statement, even as Microsoft is declining to elaborate further about its decision.