Kick-Start Your CSS Projects With This FREE eBook!

Want to take your CSS projects to the next level? This free ebook might be just what you need.

CSS is a cornerstone technology, which is used to create visually appealing pages, web applications, and mobile apps. It’s primary function is the presentation of content, rather than the content itself. In other words, it makes your projects look much more impressive than if you were simply using HTML alone.

With CSS, you have much more control over colors, fonts, and overall layouts. And with the ability to share CSS formatting across pages, your projects will be far more streamlined.

The basics of CSS are pretty straightforward to learn. But there’s a lot more to CSS than a basic introduction will cover. That’s where this CSS Programming Cookbook comes in.

Download CSS Programming Cookbook For Free!

This ebook provides a wide number of CSS based examples that will help you kick-start your own web projects, and take your CSS skills to the next level. 

Topics covered include everything from text styling and table design, to class inheritance and hover effects. You’ll learn the ins and outs of button styling, menu styling, shadow styling, and much more.

Want to download your free copy? Simply click here to download CSS Programming Cookbook from TradePub. You will be required to complete a short form to access the ebook, but it’s well worth it!

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5 Twitter Tools to Discover the Best and Funniest Tweets

Twitter can be overwhelming if you don’t use it regularly. Here are a few tools to discover the best and funniest tweets, and ensure you don’t miss out on some of its best moments.

How to Get a Twitter Email Digest

Twitter users can choose to not visit the app or site; instead get the best tweets delivered to their inbox. Here’s how to set up a Twitter email digest:

1. Log in to Twitter and go to Email Notification Settings
2. Check the box for Activity about your network > Email you with > Top Tweets and Stories
3. In the drop-down box, select how often you want the email: daily, weekly, or periodically.

This only gives you tweets and stories sent by, retweeted by, or liked by the accounts you already follow. It’s not necessarily the most trending topics and tweets of the week. There is no way to customize this email digest either, but there’s a third-party app for that.

1. Ketchup (Email): Create a Custom Email Digest

Twitter is like a stream of consciousness for some users, putting out their every thought. Meanwhile, others will only tweet when they have something substantial to say. To ensure you don’t miss good tweets, Ketchup lets you create custom email digests for Twitter.

Whether you already use Twitter or not, and whether you are following a user or not, you can set up a custom feed for any account. You can schedule how often you want the email digest, from every 15 minutes to every 28 days. Set the time it will land in your inbox, and the kind of content you want: you can arrange the tweets chronologically or in reverse order, exclude retweets, and exclude quoted tweets.

Ketchup is the advanced, customizable Twitter email digest that the social network itself doesn’t want to give you control over. You can also install a Chrome extension to quickly add any account you’re viewing to Ketchup.

Download: Ketchup for Chrome (Free)

2. Thread Reader (Web) and Threader (Web): Make and Discover Twitter Threads

Twitter now lets users create threads, which is a sequence of tweets related to each other. But reading these in Twitter isn’t the best experience. These two apps offer a much better way to read tweetstorms and threads.

• To use Thread Reader, you need to follow the @threadreaderapp account, and then reply to any tweet with the word unroll.
• To use Threader, you need to follow the @threader_app account, and then reply to any tweet with the word compile.

Both apps then turn all those tweets into a single page like it was an article, complete with photos, GIFs, and videos. It’s a much more comfortable way to view the tweets, and you can even bookmark it as a PDF to read offline later.

On the website, both apps show recent threads made by users. You can glance at the first tweet, and see how many tweets there are in the thread. Alternately, you can check the Twitter accounts to see recommended threads from the app-makers, or add those to Ketchup to get a weekly email digest of the best threads.

Another nice hack is to search Twitter for “@threadreaderapp unroll” or “@threader_app compile” (without the quotes) to see the threads people are compiling with the apps.

3. Twubbler (Web): See What Other Users’ Timeline Looks Like

Are you curious what Elon Musk, Donald Trump, or even a friend’s timeline looks like? Twubbler will show you by creating a special list of all the accounts that person is following, so you see what they see.

You have to sign in to Twubbler to use the app. Then type a user’s account, and click Create List. Twubbler will ask if you want to make the list private, i.e. lock it so only you can see it. You can also choose to exclude common accounts that you and the user both follow.

Once the list is created, open it in Twitter. You’ll see a timeline of what that person sees. It’s a cool way to get a new perspective and try to see things from someone else’s point of view.

4. Really Good Questions (Email): Best Questions from Curious Minds

Really Good Questions (RGQ) is a weekly newsletter, curated by indie no-code maker Sharath Kuruganty. In the newsletter, you will find a collection of interesting tweets that drive curiosity and set your mind’s wheels turning.

Influencers on Twitter often ask questions to their followers, hoping to create a knowledge base of people-contributed data. This can range from something as simple as asking what was the best investment you made in the last 10 years, to stories of human spirit like asking what is the kindest thing a stranger has done for you.

Each tweet in the curated list also shows how many replies it got. You’ll need to click a tweet to unroll its replies in Twitter, you can’t browse that in the newsletter.

To get a sample of what RGQ is all about, visit the homepage and scroll down the list of example tweets. There is enough in that list already to make you think and learn. If you like what you see, subscribe to the newsletter for a weekly dose of brain food.

5. Funny Tweeter (Web): The Lighter Side of Twitter

Twitter is full of news, activism, and conversations, but let’s not kid ourselves, most people there are looking for a laugh and to crack a few jokes seeking the validation of retweets. Funny Tweeter curates the best of these in one place.

The good news is that Funny Tweeter is a website unto itself, so you don’t need a Twitter account to read these. The tweets are not embedded, but you can sign in to like or retweet them. Its post after post of jokes and humorous musings.

Most other such aggregators and curators end up showcasing the same few users over and over. Funny Tweeter is the exception to this. While a few Twitter comedians and comics naturally show up repeatedly, the selection has a number of regular users whose funny tweets have gone viral.

How to Spot Breaking News on Twitter

This combination of the most interesting threads, funny tweets, and email digests should keep you engaged with the best of Twitter. As you can see, you can actually keep up with Twitter without even using it yourself.

In fact, you can even follow breaking news on Twitter even if you don’t have an account. But it’s still best to be on Twitter and follow your favorite news sources.

Read the full article: 5 Twitter Tools to Discover the Best and Funniest Tweets

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Maker Faire halts operations and lays off all staff

Financial troubles have forced Maker Media, the company behind crafting publication MAKE: magazine as well as the science and art festival Maker Faire, to lay off its entire staff of 22 and pause all operations. TechCrunch was tipped off to Maker Media’s unfortunate situation which was then confirmed by the company’s founder and CEO Dale Dougherty.

For 15 years, MAKE: guided adults and children through step-by-step do-it-yourself crafting and science projects, and it was central to the maker movement. Since 2006, Maker Faire’s 200 owned and licensed events per year in over 40 countries let attendees wander amidst giant, inspiring art and engineering installations.

“Maker Media Inc ceased operations this week and let go of all of its employees — about 22 employees” Dougherty tells TechCrunch. “I started this 15 years ago and it’s always been a struggle as a business to make this work. Print publishing is not a great business for anybody, but it works…barely. Events are hard . . . there was a drop off in corporate sponsorship.” Microsoft and Autodesk failed to sponsor this year’s flagship Bay Area Maker Faire.

But Dougherty is still desperately trying to resuscitate the company in some capacity, if only to keep MAKE:’s online archive running and continue allowing third-party organizers to license the Maker Faire name to throw affiliated events. Rather than bankruptcy, Maker Media is working through an alternative Assignment for Benefit of Creditors process.

“We’re trying to keep the servers running” Dougherty tells me. “I hope to be able to get control of the assets of the company and restart it. We’re not necessarily going to do everything we did in the past but I’m committed to keeping the print magazine going and the Maker Faire licensing program.” The fate of those hopes will depend on negotiations with banks and financiers over the next few weeks. For now the sites remain online.

The CEO says staffers understood the challenges facing the company following layoffs in 2016, and then at least 8 more employees being let go in March according to the SF Chronicle. They’ve been paid their owed wages and PTO, but did not receive any severance or two-week notice.

“It started as a venture-backed company but we realized it wasn’t a venture-backed opportunity” Dougherty admits, as his company had raised $10 million from Obvious Ventures, Raine Ventures, and Floodgate. “The company wasn’t that interesting to its investors anymore. It was failing as a business but not as a mission. Should it be a non-profit or something like that? Some of our best successes for instance are in education.”

The situation is especially sad because the public was still enthusiastic about Maker Media’s products  Dougherty said that despite rain, Maker Faire’s big Bay Area event last week met its ticket sales target. 1.45 million people attended its events in 2016. MAKE: magazine had 125,000 paid subscribers and the company had racked up over one million YouTube subscribers. But high production costs in expensive cities and a proliferation of free DIY project content online had strained Maker Media.

“It works for people but it doesn’t necessarily work as a business today, at least under my oversight” Dougherty concluded. For now the company is stuck in limbo.

Regardless of the outcome of revival efforts, Maker Media has helped inspire a generation of engineers and artists, brought families together around crafting, and given shape to a culture of tinkerers. The memory of its events and weekends spent building will live on as inspiration for tomorrow’s inventors.

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Google Now Directs You Away From Natural Disasters

Google really wants to keep you safe from danger. And in order to do so, the company is updating its SOS Alerts. Google’s SOS Alerts can already keep you informed of natural disasters in your local area, but they can now direct you away from danger as well.

Google launched SOS Alerts in 2017 in an effort to help people in a crisis. SOS Alerts work across Search and Maps to keep people informed about natural disasters happening in their vicinity. They involve news updates, helpful phone numbers, and more besides.

Google Rolls Out New and Improved SOS Alerts

As explained on The Keyword, Google is now updating its SOS Alerts in a number of different ways. The key element being the addition of visual information, with hurricane forecast cones, earthquake shakemaps, and flood warnings.

If you’re in the path of a hurricane, in the days leading up to it hitting, Google will display a crisis notification card. This will direct you to a hurricane forecast cone predicting the storm’s trajectory, as well as other pertinent information.

After an earthquake hits Google will also display a crisis notification card. This will show you the earthquake’s shakemap, which visualizes the epicenter, magnitude, and affected area. You will then know who’s likely to have been affected by the earthquake.

Introducing SOS Alerts in Maps and Search, a set of features to help people stay safe and informed during a crisis ? https://t.co/kYyOoW9ajr pic.twitter.com/ish1ULwBsc

— Google (@Google) July 25, 2017

There are also flood warnings showing the expected severity. While hurricane and earthquake notification cards will display globally, flood warnings are limited to India, where, according to Google, “20 percent of global flood-related fatalities occur”.

Finally, and possibly most helpfully, Google Maps can now direct you away from danger. If Google thinks you’re heading into an area affected by crisis activity, you’ll be alerted, and Google will then do its best to “route you away from the disrupted area.”

The hurricane forecast cones, earthquake shakemaps, and flood warnings will be rolling out in the coming weeks on Android, iOS, desktop, and the mobile web. The navigation alerts will arrive “later this summer” but be limited to Android and iOS.

The Gadgets You’ll Need in a Natural Disaster

Google’s SOS Alerts were already extremely useful, but these updates make them even more so. This is especially true if you’re in an area with a high incidence of natural disasters. If that’s you, here are the gadgets to protect you against natural disasters.

Image Credit: Daniel Lobo/Flickr

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The 18 Best Snapchat Geofilter Templates

Snapchat Geofilters are graphic illustrations that you can overlay on photos you take in the app. However, unlike regular filters, Geofilters are only available to users in specific locations.

The best part is that Snapchat lets anyone make a Geofilter. You could make one for your family holiday, a party you’re hosting, a wedding, a sports event, or anything else you can think of.

If you want all the fun of custom Geofilters but don’t want to mess around making one yourself, there are plenty of Snapchat Geofilter templates online. Here are the best Snapchat Geofilter templates we found—and they’re all free to download and use.

1. Vacation Snapchat Geofilter Template

One of the most popular uses for Snapchat is to share holiday snaps and videos with your fellow travelers and your family back home.

If you’re about to jet off on vacation, this simple geofilter with the phrase “Sun, Sea, and SP7” is a fun way to let everyone know what you’re up to.

2. Graduation Snapchat Geofilter Template

Are you going to graduate from school or university soon? This Snapchat Geofilter template has a classy and elegant touch that’ll look great when you’re wearing your gown.

3. Music Festival Snapchat Geofilter Template

Music festivals have a certain hippy vibe to them. The design of the turntables depicted on the edge of this filter give a nod to both music and the festival culture.

And don’t worry; you can change the name of the festival for free using the Canva app.

4. Wedding Snapchat Geofilter Template

If you’re attending a wedding, this free Snapchat Geofilter template is a simple way to let all of your followers know about it.

There’s a bride and groom in the bottom-left and a floral design at the top.

5. New Baby Snapchat Geofilter Template

Are you a proud new parent? Perhaps one of your family or friends has just welcomed a new life into the world?

You can celebrate the occasion with this Snapchat Geofilter template of a baby’s face. The ambiguous nature of the design means the filter can be used regardless of the baby’s gender.

6. Business Snapchat Geofilter Template

Company conferences are never particularly fun events—you need to be on your best behavior around your boss and colleagues.

If you’re looking for a Snapchat Geofilter template to use at the latest event, you could do worse than this dark green option. It’s clear and simple, and, more importantly, it isn’t going to offend anyone important.

7. Birthday Snapchat Geofilter Template

Another classic way of using Snapchat filters is to wish a person a happy birthday. So, if you are having a party at a specific location, why not make this Snapchat Geofilter available to your guests?

Again, you can change the name on the design.

8. Christmas Snapchat Geofilter Template

Christmas time, mistletoe and wine, and… Snapchat filters.

This Geofilter gives off a classic Christmas vibe. After all, what says December 25th more than a white background with some holly and red berries on it?

9. Road Trip Snapchat Geofilter Template

Everyone loves going on a road trip across the country, and using a Snapchat Geofilter is a great way to mark your adventure.

We’re not sure how this would work in practice—perhaps you could set it up so that everyone who arrives at the departure point has access?

10. Sports Team Snapchat Geofilter Template

Are you off to the big game tonight? Then why not create a sports-themed Snapchat Geofilter? This graphic uses a basketball as its primary image, but you can find plenty of options for other sports if you hunt around a bit.

11. Club Night Snapchat Geofilter Template

If you’re still young enough to be able to hit the bars and clubs every weekend without feeling the aftereffects for days afterward, you might be interested in this Snapchat Geofilter for clubs.

It’s also useful for anyone involved in promoting club nights; you could use this template to make an exclusive Geofilter for people who come to your establishment.

12. Gym Snapchat Geofilter Template

Everyone loves showing off their muscles on Snapchat. There is no greater Snapchat stereotype than someone in a gym pulling a pose.

If you want to join in, you could download and use this Geofilter to show that you’re at your local gym.

13. Shopping Snapchat Geofilter Template

Do you work in a shop, restaurant, or other business which might offer discounts from time-to-time? If so, this shopping Geofilter template could be a smart business move. You could make it available in your store and ask patrons to use it for an additional discount.

14. Winter Snapchat Geofilter Template

We’ve already looked at a Snapchat Geofilter celebrating Christmas, but what about a more general winter-themed filter for those cold winter nights?

This Snapchat Geofilter, complete with a snowman, could be exactly what you’re looking for.

15. Beach Party Snapchat Geofilter Template

Forget winter, Geofilters for the summer are much more fun. This one is ideal if you’re going to (or hosting) a beach party.

Palm trees, waves, and the name of your event. Perfect.

16. Dog Walking Snapchat Geofilter Template

Do you have a regular walking route that you take with Fido? If a lot of other local dog walkers share the same route as you, you could use this Snapchat geofilter and let everyone get involved. Plus, you’ll also get to see loads of pictures of cool dogs, and that’s never a bad thing (unless you’re a cat).

17. Getting Engaged Snapchat Geofilter Template

This is the 21st century, so everyone announces their engagement on Snapchat these days.

OK, perhaps not, but if you’ve just got engaged and are throwing a party for friends and family, this is a nifty Snapchat Geofilter to offer to guests.

18. Best Friends Snapchat Geofilter Template

You and your best buddy can make sure the world knows how close you are with this Snapchat geofilter. Why not set it up at your two houses and use it whenever you’re visiting each other?

Beyond Snapchat Geofilter Templates

Snapchat filters can be lots of fun, and we hope that these Snapchat Geofilter templates help to get you started. Especially as filters are an integral part of the overall Snapchat experience. With that in mind, here’s how to use filters on Snapchat.

Read the full article: The 18 Best Snapchat Geofilter Templates

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How to Use Microsoft Forms to Create Professional Surveys

Surveys are fantastic tools for capturing information from your customers or clients regarding your products or services. They can help you make more informed decisions about your business offerings.

While there are a variety of tools for creating surveys, one very simple application is Microsoft Forms, which replaces Microsoft InfoPath. If you would like to give this tool a try, this article walks you through the ins and outs of creating a survey with Microsoft Forms.

Create a Survey in Microsoft Forms

To get started, head to the Microsoft Forms website and sign in with your Microsoft account credentials. On the My Forms screen, click New Form to create your survey.

Give your form a title and optionally a description. You can click the image icon to upload an image from your computer or OneDrive, or search Bing for an image that fits. And you can select a Theme from the top or use an image of your own as the background.

As you continue creating your survey, Microsoft Forms will save it automatically. So, you don’t have to worry about losing any of your work.

You should also click the Preview button at the top as you create your survey. This lets you view the survey as your participants will. You can use the additional buttons at the top to see it on both a computer and mobile device.

Pick a Survey Question Type

To add a question, click the Add New button in green. You can pick from various question types.

• Choice: Multiple choice questions that offer an “Other” option for one answer.
• Text: Freeform text for your question and the participant’s answer.
• Rating: Use up to 10 levels with stars or numbers for the rating system.
• Date: A simple date entry for your participant.
• Ranking: Your participant moves the items you supply up and down in the list to rank them.
• Likert: Scaling options for responses for the statements you supply.
• Net Promoter Score: Your participant selects one score for their answer from numbers one through 10.

You can also choose to create a new Section in your survey if you would like to divide it into different areas. Give each section a name, description, and image if you like.

Question Type Features

While some questions are very basic and don’t require anything extra, others give you flexible options. For example, the Date question type is simply that; the participant enters a date and there is nothing for you to adjust. However, with the Choice question type, you can change the question style and rearrange the answers.

So let’s look at those detailed question types and their features.

Choice Question Type

For multiple choice questions, you’ll enter your question and the possible answers. By default, the answers use radio buttons. But you can choose to use a menu style if you prefer by clicking the More button > Drop-down.

If you would like your participants to be able to choose more than one answer, you can enable the toggle for Multiple Answers at the bottom. And if you want a write-in option, you can click the Add “Other” Option answer.

You can rearrange the answers in your list by clicking, dragging them to their new spots, and releasing.

Text Question Type

While this is for the participant to type in their answer, you can adjust this question type for numbers and add restrictions.

Click the More button > Restrictions. In the Restrictions dropdown box, you can pick from options like greater than, less than, equal to, and between. Just pick your preferred restriction and enter any corresponding details.

Rating Question Type

As mentioned above, the Rating question type offers up to 10 levels and either numbers or stars for the rating system. In addition, you can add labels for the first and last star or number in the rating. Click the More button > Label.

Adjust the Settings for Survey Questions

After you select a question type, you have some settings that you can change as needed. At the top of a question’s section, you’ll see buttons to copy it, delete it, move it up, or move it down.

At the bottom of a question’s section, you’ll see a toggle switch if you would like to make the question required. You may see additional options next to that, depending on the question type. For instance, if you use the Text question type, you can enable a switch for Long Answer for the participant.

The More (three-dot icon) button on the bottom right also offers options depending on question type such as Subtitle, Shuffle, or Restrictions.

Choose the Settings for Your Survey

Once your survey is complete, you can select the options for the responses. Click the More (three-dot icon) button on the top right of the survey’s page and pick Settings.

Here, you’ll see options to accept responses, start and end dates, shuffle questions, get an email notification, and customize a thank you message. Mark the boxes for the settings you want and enter any corresponding details.

Share Your Survey

You have some nice options for sending or sharing your completed survey. Click the Send button at the top to view these options.

• Copy a link to the survey and send it to your participants.
• Download a QR code to share with your participants.
• Grab the embed code to put the survey on a webpage.
• Create and send an email with a link to your survey.
• Share your survey directly to Facebook or Twitter.

Review Your Survey Responses

If you would like to view all responses to your survey, head back to Microsoft Forms and log in. You’ll see the number of responses you have for your survey on the My Forms page.

Click your survey and select the Responses tab from the top. You’ll then get a great amount of information starting with the number of responses, the average time to complete, and the status of your survey.

You can click the View Results button to view each completed survey by participant. And you can save all of the responses in a spreadsheet by clicking the Open in Excel option. If you’re already using Excel, you might also take a look at how you can create surveys and collect data with it.

For each question, you’ll see the answers given by your participants in a different way. For instance, the Choice question type will show your responses in a nifty pie chart as well as the number of responses per answer.

As another example, you’ll see the Ranking and Likert scale answers in bar chart styles.

Below each question, you’ll notice a link to More Details. If you click that, you can see each response to that question in a clean table format.

Get Your Questions Ready

Now that you have taken a good look at how Microsoft Forms works for creating surveys, it’s time to put your own together. Get your questions ready, head to the Microsoft Forms site, and create your survey.

If you’d like to try more than one survey tool to see which one you like best, you could also take a look at our article on Google Forms vs. SurveyMonkey for a clear comparison.

Read the full article: How to Use Microsoft Forms to Create Professional Surveys

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Tackling ‘big tech’ issues through storytelling, with Jessica Powell

Jessica Powell, Google’s former head of PR from 2012-2018 (years in which Google required a not-insignificant amount of PR leadership), is now a rock star writer whose 2018 debut book, The Big Disruption: A Totally Fictional But Essentially True Silicon Valley Story, was the first novel published by Medium.

I recently spoke with Powell for this series on the ethics of technology, because The Big Disruption, for all its manic energy and a playfulness at times bordering on sci-fi sitcom level-absurdity, should be viewed as a key work in the emerging field of tech ethics. In scenes like the one that begins below, her comic timing and characters help us see how “disruptive” technologies may not so much change humanity, as reveal it.

As a product manager, you are tasked with leading a team and bringing an idea to life. You are the visionary who must direct not just engineers but also marketers, sales teams, lawyers, and others. You are a mini-CEO, the ruler of your product!

“Just like king!” Arsyen shouted to the empty stalls.

It’s part Dave Eggers’ The Circle; part “Coming to America” (the classic 1988 Eddie Murphy comedy about an African prince’s incognito sojourn in New York City); and part dystopian Tarzan. In this rather amazing sequence from an early chapter in The Big Disruption, Arsyen Aimo, an exiled prince from the fictional backwater country of Phyrria who has been working in Silicon Valley as a janitor, has accidentally convinced executives at the tech behemoth Anahata to hire him as Project Manager for the company’s disruptive new project – a car slash social network. Now, Arsyen has locked himself in the bathroom to scroll his phone for info on what Project Managers at tech companies actually do.

Of course, there is one important difference: You have no direct authority over anyone, and you must lead through influence.

“Hmmph, more like queen,” Arsyen grumbled. But then he reconsidered: Other than the receptionists, he had yet to meet any women at Anahata. He probably didn’t need to worry about being treated like one of them.

Jessica Powell, of course, was a woman you might well have met at Google, if you’d been working at the highest levels in or around the real-life tech giant over the past decade. While she joins others who’ve left Big Tech to write important philosophical books shedding light on the political and social implications of their industry (James Williams, Chamath Palihapitiya, Tristan Harris, and others come to mind), no one has yet succeeded like Powell in illuminating our current culture of technology. And if we can’t see our own culture, how can we change it?

After the short scene below, you’ll find part one of my two-part conversation with Powell, where we discuss the importance of satire in ethics, and how her background may have led her to become one of Silicon Valley’s most interesting and important class traitors.

Arsyen skimmed a few more blogs, trying to memorize the P.M.’s language — words like “action items,” “B2B solutions,” and “use cases,” and then something mystic called a “roadmap,” which as far as Arsyen could tell had little to do with either roads or maps. There was an even greater obsession with “alignment,” a concept Arsyen struggled with as his translation app told him that the equivalent word in Pyrrhian was pokaya, meaning to place the chicken coop parallel to one’s home.

Suddenly there was a banging on the stall door.

“Arsyen? You in there?”

It was Sven.

“Listen, you’ve been in there long enough. Only senior engineers get to work in the bathroom. Roni has some sort of roadmap question for you, so come on back.”

Arsyen washed his hands and returned to the cubicle, armed with his new vocabulary.

When Roni asked Arsyen about prioritization, Arsyen asked, “Is this on the roadmap?”

When Sven suggested adding images of attractive women to the car dashboard, Arsyen rubbed his chin.

“Does this align with our strategy?”

When all three looked to him for an opinion in how best to implement Symmetry Enhancement, Arsyen stood and put his hands on his hips.

“Does this align with the strategy on our roadmap?”

No one seemed to notice anything was amiss. If anything, it seemed like product managers just asked questions that other people had to answer.

Jessica P.: When you first reached out to me, I knew your name. Then I looked you up, and ended up reading your Wikipedia page and being intimidated.

There’s this amazing line in there, and because it’s Wikipedia, it’s written so straight…something to the effect of, he went to Asia, discovered that actually no one has enlightenment, so he came back to the US and became a rock star. And it was like, “Oh, wait. I can talk to this guy.” It was just so funny.

Greg E.: That made me more relatable?

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FCC passes measure urging carriers to block robocalls by default

The FCC voted at its open meeting this week to adopt an anti-robocall measure, but it may or may not lead to any abatement of this maddening practice — and it might not be free, either. That said, it’s a start towards addressing a problem that’s far from simple and enormously irritating to consumers.

The last two years have seen the robocall problem grow and grow, and although there are steps you can take right now to improve things, they may not totally eliminate the issue or perhaps won’t be available on your plan or carrier.

How to stop robocalls spamming your phone

Under fire for not acting quick enough in the face of a nationwide epidemic of scam calls, the FCC has taken action about as fast as a federal regulator can be expected to, and there are two main parts to its plan to fight robocalls, one of which was approved today at the Commission’s open meeting.

The first item was proposed formally last month by Chairman Ajit Pai, and although it amounts to little more than nudging carriers, it could be helpful.

Carriers have the ability to apply whatever tools they have to detect and block robocalls before they even reach users’ phones. But it’s possible, if unlikely, that a user may prefer not to have that service active. And carriers have complained that they are afraid blocking calls by default may in fact be prohibited by existing FCC regulations.

The FCC has said before that this is not the case and that carriers should go ahead and opt everyone into these blocking services (one can always opt out), but carriers have balked. The rulemaking approved today basically just makes it crystal clear that carriers are permitted, and indeed encouraged, to opt consumers into call-blocking schemes.

That’s good, but to be clear, Wednesday’s resolution does not require carriers to do anything, nor does it prohibit carriers from charging for such a service — as indeed Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon already do in some form or another. (TechCrunch is owned by Verizon Media, but this does not affect our coverage.)

BREAKING: The @FCC votes to authorize call blocking to help stop #robocalls. That’s good news. Now the bad news: it refuses to prevent new consumer charges and fees to block these awful calls. That’s not right. We should stop robocalls and do it for FREE.https://t.co/6bay6cnujN

— Jessica Rosenworcel (@JRosenworcel) June 6, 2019

Commissioner Starks noted in his approving statement that the FCC will be watching the implementation of this policy carefully for the possibility of abuse by carriers.

At my request, the item [i.e. his addition to the proposal] will give us critical feedback on how our tools are performing. It will now study the availability of call blocking solutions; the fees charged, if any, for these services; the effectiveness of various categories of call blocking tools; and an assessment of the number of subscribers availing themselves of available call blocking tools.

A second rule is still gestating, existing right now more or less only as a threat from the FCC should carriers fail to step up their game. The industry has put together a sort of universal caller ID system called STIR/SHAKEN (Secure Telephony Identity Revisited / Secure Handling of Asserted information using toKENs), but has been slow to roll it out. Pai said late last year that if carriers didn’t put it in place by the end of 2019, the FCC would be forced to take regulatory action.

Why the Commission didn’t simply take regulatory action in the first place is a valid question, and one some Commissioners and others have asked. Be that as it may, the threat is there and seems to have spurred carriers to action. There have been tests, but as yet no carrier has rolled out a working anti-robocall system based on STIR/SHAKEN.

Pai has said regarding these systems that “we [i.e. the FCC] do not anticipate that there would be costs passed on to the consumer,” and it does seem unlikely that your carrier will opt you into a call-blocking scheme that costs you money. But never underestimate the underhandedness and avarice of a telecommunications company. I would not be surprised if new subscribers get this added as a line item or something; Watch your bills carefully.

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