Tag: meta

School Districts Notch a Win in Tech Addiction Case Against Top Platforms

image via pcmag.com
image via pcmag.com

School districts across 19 states claim that the companies do not adequately implement features like age verification, parental controls, and session timeouts. Design choices that allow for endless scrolling, coupled with targeted algorithms, mean kids have trouble putting down their phones, creating a doom loop that can interrupt sleep at best and create serious mental health issues at worst. The schools say they've had to dedicate resources to handle this, from confiscating phones to dealing with online behavior that spills into classrooms, including dangerous social media "challenges."

https://www.pcmag.com/news/school-districts-notch-a-win-in-tech-addiction-case-against-top-platforms

Hands-on with Meta’s Orion AR glasses prototype and the possible future of computing

image via cnbc.com
image via cnbc.com

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed the Orion glasses on Wednesday and pitched them as “a glimpse of a future that I think is going to be pretty exciting.” The glasses are black and thick framed and come with a wireless “puck” that allows the device to run apps like a holographic game of digital chess or pingpong that appear as digital graphics spliced into the real world.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/27/hands-on-with-metas-orion-augmented-reality-smart-glasses-prototype.html

Meta fed its AI on almost everything you’ve posted publicly since 2007

image via theverge.com
image via theverge.com

Meta has acknowledged that all text and photos that adult Facebook and Instagram users have publicly published since 2007 have been fed into its artificial intelligence models.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/12/24242789/meta-training-ai-models-facebook-instagram-photo-post-data

WhatsApp will send messages to other apps soon — here’s how it will look

image via theverge.com
image via theverge.com

Meta has finally pulled the curtain back on what its plans for third-party chats in WhatsApp and Messenger will look like. The change, which is coming for users in the European Union, introduces new options to put Messenger and WhatsApp messages in the same inbox as third-party chats or keep them separate.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/6/24237753/whatsapp-messenger-third-party-chat-eu-dma

Meta pulls plug on plans for high-end Vision Pro competitor

image via theverge.com
image via theverge.com

According to The Information, Meta had already started developing the La Jolla headset in November but told employees to stop working on the device this past week. The decision was due in part to the fact that the La Jolla headset would’ve used pricey MicroOLED displays. The move suggests that Meta as a whole may be souring on the idea of premium VR. Purportedly, the goal was to keep the cost of the headset under $1,000, which was looking increasingly difficult given how expensive MicroOLED can be to produce.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/23/24226856/meta-vr-ar-la-jolla-rumor-quest-pro-2

You can now use the Meta Quest as a screen for HDMI devices

image via theverge.com
image via theverge.com

Meta has released a new app for the Quest 3, 2, and Pro, letting you use the headsets as a screen for consoles, laptops, or any device with video out capabilities. Using the free Meta Quest HDMI Link app does require additional hardware, but it’s still a relatively cheap way to repurpose the headset, instead of buying single-purpose video glasses that can cost just as much.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/15/24221146/meta-quest-hdmi-link-app-displayport-usb-c

Instagram tests forcing users to watch adverts

image via bbc.com
image via bbc.com

“We’re always testing formats that can drive value for advertisers," it said in a statement, adding that it would provide further updates if the test resulted in permanent format changes. One person on Threads called the move "bonkers" – adding that it "seems like an aggressively pushy move to earn more ad dollars for Meta".

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c877y6mxdp7o