I've looked into PWAs some, but am no expert (yet). From what I see, they have very little to do with Google per se. Your web app declares a service worker. That worker retrieves some pre-cached data to "install" the app (stuff like icons, fonts, etc.). Then as you use your app you can have the service worker cache the retrieved data locally for offline use. Nowhere in that process have I seen "Thou shalt use Google's version of PWAs". It just so happens that the best documentation for PWAs comes from Google postings and Google is trying to control the flow. If I build my app to use a third party resource that can be turned off, that's a bad choice by me, IMO. But adopting the PWA structure does not tightly tie me to any particular vendor. It is a Javascript technique for structuring an app - much like using CSS for styling instead of putting your color/font/positioning markup directly in the HTML. At least that's my take on it thus far.

Give me an image file, and I can generate an SHA hash for it that is relatively unique. Then I can delete the file. I can then compare other hashes for other pictures without having the original picture, or even being able to recreate the picture. But now that begs the question, why can't I just provide the hash generated from a client side app without passing the actual image? As a dev, my spidey sense is tingling - they want the pictures for something other than just the stated reason.

The write up states that the system scans the internet to find feeds. So the content producers go after the people who might scan for those feeds? Why not go after the people who are providing the feeds in the first place? Stop the signal at the source, not at the receivers... But that would mean the music industry must sue themselves because they have been caught seeding content to collect infos on the pirates... What an odd world we have created... :)

It's not that cut and dry. The downloading in this sense has not had a great case through the courts yet. So the legality is still a little murky around downloading. And it would make sense to me that if you are knowingly downloading content that is not legally available via other means - or even released yet, then you know you are breaking the law and shouldn't benefit from that gray area. However if you are downloading that show that aired on cable (that you pay for) that you missed because you were at work, then you are likely just time-shifting and would probably be fine by Canadian law. But don't take my advice - I'm not a lawyer either.

I haven't gone to look it up, but that number sounds kinda familiar... wasn't that the amount (or close to it) Apple won from Samsung for infringing the rounded corners patent?

I've been around for a number of years in the dev trade. I've seen good and bad projects. When project management is done well it makes a world of difference. Everyone knows what needs to be done without needing three meetings a week just to figure out who is working on what. The deliverables get clearly defined, and change management is enshrined and accounted for. Working in this environment is awesome. Now, do project management badly and your project WILL be over budget and over schedule. Nobody will be happy and it will be a crap job. Nobody will be especially clear what the deliverables are because change management is not accounted for and you have moving targets. The team spends more time finding who to blame than just fixing the problem. My opinion - if you are using the wrong tools, you'll have wrong project management. (i.e. Asana is a task tracker, not an asset manager, resource planner, time log, or credential manager... Task tracking is only part of the equation).

If you are talking about the headline news you might expect to see on your local TV News station, then I fully agree with most of your sentiments. BUT, if you are trying to stay abreast of the trends in a particular area, learn new things that are of interest to you but not necessarily to the news channels, or just curious about how the world is changing around you, then having an aggregated news feed of all your interests at your your fingertips is handy. Side question, if you have such a view, why are you commenting on Slashdot - News For Nerds. lol (And did you see this article pop up in your RSS feed reader??)

Maybe go back to school? What you are describing is called a "quota", not a commission. Quota's are Standard Operating Procedures for sales positions.

I picked up Nexus 6Ps for my wife and myself a year and a half ago with Android 6 on it. I kinda expected the upgrade to Android 7 (which was released within a few months of the phone). I was surprised to learn the phones are eligible for Android Oreo. While it is not a sub $400 phone, it is not "new", but is still receiving updates. I bought the Google favoured phones specifically because I got burned in the past buying a Cell Service Provider feature phone and never getting ANY updates to it. That phone was more than $400 as well and was effectively stagnant by the time I got it home. So a little patience and (cash) leads to a longer serving phone than if I had bought the flavor of the month instead. Needless to say I've updated my phone to Oreo. I'm liking the improved power management thus far, but it still has only been one full day....

perhaps the other vessels involved were the alleged hacking targets, with the intention of causing grief for a US military vessel... I find it easier to believe a commercial vessel would be easier to hack than a warship...

It must be. That one was decent for the time. Overplayed on cable these days though...The death knell of any good movie.

That the term "blockbuster" and "The Mummy" appeared in the same sentence together. That movie received much hype from the studious but absolutely none from anyone else. To be honest I forgot it existed. Maybe it's mentioned in the pirating apps because that is the only way anyone would ever want to see it?? hmm..

Seeing as the book series is not yet completed, and the TV series is all but done (in terms of story development), there are some substantial differences between the TV episodes and the books. I've read the books - and can see the differences. (like the Ed Sheeran scene - that was totally made up...). I'll wait for the episodes to air and not spoil the story. Even if it does get spoiled, the entertainment is in the acting and telling of the story, not just a simple fact (false or not), so I'll still watch.

Is this related to the IPN Server Change? Just went through an update of Magento due to a change in PayPal (See patch SUPEE-8167). The notes for that indicated that if it was not done by Jun 30th PayPal would stop working due to a change in the location of the IPN servers. So I wonder if the PSN network missed that, or if these really are bad accounts.