You can now share your Google Maps ETA on iOS

When you report a tweet for breaching Twitter's rules, or when the company takes actions on one, it requires the offending user to delete the tweet before they can publish another. But, the company claims that users aren't always aware that this is the case. Now, Twitter will add overlay offending tweets with a notice alerting the authors of tweets. "Once we've required a Tweet to be deleted, we will display a notice stating that the Tweet is unavailable because it violated the Twitter Rules along with a link to the Rules and an article that provides more detail on how we...

Spotify is finally launching a standalone app for Wear OS, Google's smartwatch operating system. Announced by the Scandanavian firm on Wednesday, it confirmed that the app will feature most of the bells and whistles of the Android app. This concludes scrolling playlists, the ability to cast via Spotify Connect, and the like button. "We’re excited to bring improved on-the-go-access to your favorite music and podcasts to millions of Spotify users on Wear OS by Google smartwatches," said Mikael Ericsson, the firm's senior product director. "Being able to easily access, control, and connect music directly from your wrist opens up a world of new...

Vodacom launched VoLTE (Voice over LTE) a little over three years ago now. Today, it announced that it's further tuning this offering. The company is replacing the old AMR codec, with the higher bandwidth EVS codec, or Enhanced Voice Services. While AMR has a relatively limited audio bandwidth of up to 7kHz, EVS allows for bandwidth of up to 20kHz, increasing the overall quality of the service. This, Vodacom claims, brings CD-like audio quality to its VoLTE offering. "Vodacom is always looking to improve the experience customers have on our network," said Siyabonga Zulu, Vodacom's exec for radio network engineering. "Deploying Enhanced Voice...

In the early hours of this morning YouTube, including its TV and Music services, went down around the world, preventing users from accessing content. The platform was fast to acknowledge the problem and tweeted that they was working on the issue. An hour later, it had been resolved. We're back! Thanks for all of your patience. If you continue to experience issues, please let us know. https://t.co/NVU5GP7Sy6 — Team YouTube (@TeamYouTube) October 17, 2018 Meanwhile many users showed off their panic, amusement and relief with a healthy influx of memes on Twitter under the hashtag #YouTubeDOWN. I survived the great #YouTubeDOWN of 2018 pic.twitter.com/0pGKsXjYMS —...

Anyone who’s spent any time around the marketing space knows how valuable data is. It’s no accident that the value of data is frequently compared to that of oil. Like oil, data’s real value lies in the way you use it. And just like the wrong kind of oil can damage your car’s engine, bad data can seriously harm your marketing efforts. This is especially true for email marketing, which is a vital part of the toolkit that enables organisations to speak directly to their customers. Bad data can impact everything -- from how many people see the messaging you send...

If you're a DStv subscriber, and just happen to be looking for a streaming music service, you can now stream local and international music for free via JOOX. In an announcement, DStv revealed the offer is open for up to four family members of Premium, Compact and Compact Plus customers at no extra cost. “JOOX is a music streaming app that gives you access to thousands of music libraries and playlists on your iOS or Android mobile device,” the company explained. To get your free access, all you have to do as a qualifying subscriber is download the JOOX app and enter...

It's a tough time to be a traditional desktop media player. While video spinners like VLC can still live in harmony alongside Netflix and co, audio players like Winamp have faded into obscurity thanks to streaming music services like Spotify. But that's seemingly about to change. Winamp's owner Radionomy is set to totally overhaul the program in 2019, transforming it from a single-use audio player into a podcasting, streaming and radio platform, etcetera. "There will be a completely new version next year, with the legacy of Winamp but a more complete listening experience," Alexandre Saboundijian, Radionomy CEO, told TechCrunch. "People want one...

Tim Berners-Lee, the man credited with having invented the World Wide Web, says he plans to reinvent the internet -- by helping users to regain ownership of their private internet data, through his new startup Inrupt and its Solid platform. Speaking at the 38th Gitex Technology Week in Dubai yesterday, Berners-Lee said the initial dream of the World Wide Web as a tool that would fuel democracy had now faded and been replaced instead by a place full of click-bait articles and fake news. "A lot of people are finding that they're not so happy about it," he added. But above all, privacy has become a major concern, with the...

Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has died after a long batter with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He was 65. Allen was a childhood friend of Bill Gates, and the two of them founded Microsoft back in 1975. Though Allen left Microsoft in 1983, his contributions to personal computer technology were revolutionary, and many consider him a great visionary for his investments and donations over the years. He founded multiple research companies for science, biology and technology, including Vulcan Inc. which confirmed Allen’s passing in an official statement. “It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of our founder Paul G. Allen, co-founder of Microsoft and...

Update, Tuesday 10am: The "wildcat" MyCiti bus strike continues into its second day, affecting a vast swathe of Cape Town. There are however more lines currently operating today than on Monday, when strike action began. "The following services are currently operating on routes: T02, X02, D01, D02, D03, D04, 232, 233, 234, 236 and 237," Cape Town's MyCiti bus service tweeted early on Tuesday. Update: #MyCiTiAlert: The following services are currently operating on routes: T02, X02, D01, D02, D03, D04, 232, 233, 234, 236 and 237. Updates to follow — MYCITI bus (@MyCiTiBus) 16 October 2018 As of 6am on Tuesday, a slew of...

Google AI, an artificial intelligence research and development division of Google, has developed an algorithm to assist in the detection of breast cancer, referred to as the LYmph Node Assistant or LYNA. In a blog post this week, the company explained that detecting cancers such as breast cancer in lymph nodes can be a tedious and delicate task. That’s why, in order to better treat such a cancer, being able to detect it on minute scales is important. According to the post, published findings in two research papers suggest that the “pathologist assistant tool” LYNA can effectively help detect cancerous cells...

For the first time this side of winter, Cape Town's dam levels have dropped. But it's not yet a cause for concern. Collectively, the City's six largest reservoirs still hold 76% of their total capacity, losing just 0.2% over the high water mark set the previous week. Some dams added to their reserves too, according to the City's latest report. As of Monday afternoon, the Voelvlei Dam was 96.6% full, gaining 0.4% over the previous week. This comes despite no rain recorded over the dam since the month began. The Berg River Dam also gained 0.1%, and is just 0.5% shy of its...

The country of New Zealand has crowned an overly-fluffy, drunk, and adorably clumsy species of pigeon its bird of the year. Known as the the kererū or wood pigeon, the bird received the most votes in the country's annual Forest & Bird's annual Bird of the Year competition. While it's as cute as it is tubby, the wood pigeon is also known for scoffing down fermented fruit, which often renders it slightly drunk. And yes, it makes for YouTube gold. The campaign, which also spawned a Twitter account dedicated to the bird's endearing qualities, took advantage of its sheer size, and drunk uncle...

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are expecting their first baby, the royals announced on Monday morning. The news comes after Meghan and Harry, Formally known as the Duke and Dutchess of Sussex, were wed at a fairytale May wedding in Windsor. "Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Sussex is expecting a baby in the Spring of 2019," Kensington Palace's official Twitter account announced. "Their Royal Highnesses have appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able...

Today on internet-famous-relationships-that-probably-moved-too-fast, recording artist Ariana Grande and SNL star Pete Davidson have called off their engagement. The news broke via TMZ late on Sunday, with the publication suggesting that the duo felt it "simply was not the right time for their relationship to take off". This comes after the two announced their shock engagement in May, which signaled the beginning of the internet's real love affair with the duo. But, now that the relationship is reportedly through, and the duo have matching tattoos, Twitter feels that Ariana Grande may have to deal with another problem: her song, titled "pete davidson". While Sweetener,...