PSU deathmatch: Cooler Master V750 vs. Rosewill Capstone-750-M It's been a while since we last reviewed a power supply -- so long that our last review samples are now fully fossilized, waiting to be recovered by future generations of geologists. The factories where they were built now manufacture flying cars, and the term "PSU" itself is now a portmanteau for an extremely vulgar dance move. Well, all right. Maybe not quite. But it has been a while. The Tech Report
Linux Foundation's free online intro to Linux class opens its doors The best way to learn Linux is to download a distribution, like Linux Mint. and start working with it. If you don't like learning to swim by diving into the deep end of the pool, another great way to start picking up Linux is to take a class. And, lucky you, beginning August 1st, The Linux Foundation, in conjunction with online education giant edX, is offering a free Introduction to Linuxcourse. ZDNet
Where tech is taking us: a conversation with Intel's Genevieve Bell Genevieve Bell grew up among Aboriginal people in Australia, taught anthropology at Stanford and for the past 16 years has worked for Intel. It all shows in her lively mind: Ask her the time and, along with the hour, you might hear about how native Australian languages fuse the words for past, present and land, along with the history of the mechanical clock and how that determined people's feelings about robots. The NY Times
The fasinatng ... frustrating ... fascinating history of autocorrect Invoke the word autocorrect and most people will think immediately of its hiccups -- the sort of hysterical, impossible errors one finds collected on sites like Damn You Autocorrect. But despite the inadvertent hilarity, the real marvel of our mobile text-correction systems is how astoundingly good they are. It's not too much of an exaggeration to call autocorrect the overlooked underwriter of our era of mobile prolixity. Wired
How the other half works: an adventure in the low status of software engineers Bill (not his real name, and I've fuzzed some details to protect his identity) is a software engineer on the East Coast, who, at the time (between 2011 and 2014) of this story, had recently turned 30 and wanted to see if he could enter a higher weight class on the job market. In order to best assess this, he applied to two different levels of position at roughly equivalent companies... Michael O. Church
Inside the stressed-out, time-crunched patent examiner workforce Every year, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office handles more than 500,000 new patent applications. With those figures only increasing, some patent examiners report they feel too crunched for time. Now, a new study by the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that the pressure to make decisions too quickly may be one reason the patent office grants "bad" patents... The Washington Post
NASA tests 'impossible' no-fuel quantum space engine -- and it actually works A study conducted last year by NASA scientists has become the latest, and by far the highest profile, piece of evidence in favor of a seemingly impossible space thruster design that's been evoking worldwide skepticism for some time now. Apparently annoyed by the persistent boosters of several similar but distinct designs, the space agency finally agreed to test an American-made variant called the Cannae Drive. ExtremeTech (also, NASA announces Mars 2020 rover payload to explore the red planet as never before)
Bitcoin hardware player BitFury enters cloud mining with 20mw data center BitFury, a major Bitcoin hardware vendor, has entered the hosting and cloud mining business. Fueled by $20 million in recent venture funding, the company is rolling out a global data center network, anchored by a new 20 megawatt facility in the Republic of Georgia. The announcement is bound to fuel the company's status as a contender to be the first major Bitcoin IPO. Data Center Knowledge
The making of: Max Payne From 2001 to 2003, it wasn't just a thirdperson camera that made the world revolve around Max Payne. Nor was it the mere sight of its excellent graphics, or of PCs taking a sideways leap into console land from where they would never fully return. More than anything, it was the man. A propulsive thriller made by just two dozen people in Espoo, Finland – a "garage band", according to writer Sam Lake – it was the story of a man imploding. Edge
5 things we learned from the GAO report on broadband caps Broadband data caps might not be affecting everyone just yet, but that could easily change as the current wave of ISP merger mania continues. A preliminary government report taking a look at data caps, both wired and wireless, was released this week. It finds that ISPs and subscribers are far from being on the same page when it comes to how much data consumers move. Consumerist
The never-advertised, always coveted headphones built and sold in Brooklyn Buried in a packed townhouse on a quiet street in south Brooklyn is a manufacturing operation that produces some of the most renowned headphones in the business. Despite Yelp reviews for the business, Grado Labs doesn't sell directly from its location to consumers, though it does take the occasional walk-up request for repairs. Ars Technica
Gamasutra explains: The YouTuber phenomenon Lately, you've likely heard a lot about the rise of the YouTuber. Gamasutra, of course, has spent a great deal of effort reporting on it so far. It all stems from the fact that audiences have been flocking to their output. Famously, Felix "PewDiePie" Kjellberg has the most popular user-run channel on YouTube – and generated $4 million dollars in revenue last year. Gamasutra
Crytek share new details on their plans for the future Crytek today offered a detailed breakdown of plans to build for the future as they complete the transition from game developer to publisher. Following on from a recent announcement that the company's long term financial status is secure, Crytek has now shared more information on changes they are implementing to optimize their business. Crytek
Oculus Rift Development Kit 2 teardown Oculus VR took the world by surprise last year with the Oculus Rift. This year, they seek to push their own self-created envelope with the Oculus Rift Development Kit 2. We may not have flying cars, hoverboards or (commercial) teleporters, but we do have the latest virtual reality tech. Join us as we ogle the wizardry in the Oculus Rift DK2, teardown style. iFixit
This Internet millionaire has a new deal for you The breakfast with Jeff Bezos started awkwardly and ended with an indignity that Matt Rutledge didn't even catch at first. The waitress at Lola, a trendy Seattle restaurant owned by celebrity chef Tom Douglas, didn't recognize Bezos. But she sensed she should have. D Magazine
The secret of Minecraft It's almost inevitable: I encounter Minecraft somewhere online -- it's easy to do, because there's a lot of Minecraft out there – and I end up convinced I'm doing the wrong thing with my life. Let me explain. Medium