Facebook announces Libra cryptocurrency: All you need to know

Facebook has finally revealed the details of its cryptocurrency Libra, which will let you buy things or send money to people with nearly zero fees. You’ll pseudonymously buy or cash out your Libra online or at local exchange points like grocery stores, and spend it using interoperable third-party wallet apps or Facebook’s own Calibra wallet that will be built into WhatsApp, Messenger, and its own app. Today Facebook released its white paper explaining Libra and its testnet for working out the kinks of its blockchain system before a public launch in the first half of 2020.

Facebook won’t fully control Libra, but instead get just a single vote in its governance like other founding members of the Libra Association including Visa, Uber, and Andreessen Horowitz who’ve invested at least $10 million each into the project’s operations. The association will promote the open-sourced Libra blockchain and developer platform with its own Move programming language plus sign up businesses to accept Libra for payment and even give customers discounts or rewards.

Facebook is launching a subsidiary company also called Calibra that handles its crypto dealings and protects users’ privacy by never mingling your Libra payments with your Facebook data so it can’t be used for ad targeting. Your real identity won’t be tied to your publicly visible transactions. But Facebook/Calibra and other founding members of the Libra Association will earn interest on the money users cash in that is held in reserve to keep the value of Libra stable.

Facebook’s audacious bid to create a global digital currency that promotes financial inclusion for the unbanked actually has more privacy and decentralization built in than many expected. Instead of trying to dominate Libra’s future or squeeze tons of cash out of it immediately, Facebook is instead playing the long-game by pulling payments into its online domain. Facebook’s VP of blockchain David Marcus explains the company’s motive and the tie-in with its core revenue source, telling me “if more commerce happens, then more small business will sell more on and off platform, and they’lll want to buy more ads on the platform so it will be good for our ads business.”

The Risk And Reward Of Building The New PayPal

In cryptocurrencies, Facebook saw both a threat and an opportunity. They held the promise of disrupting how things are bought and sold by eliminating transaction fees common with credit cards. That comes dangerously close to Facebook’s ad business that influences what is bought and sold. If a competitor like Google or an upstart built a popular coin and could monitor the transactions, they’d learn what people buy and could muscle in on the billions spent on Facebook marketing. Meanwhile, the 1.7 billion people who lack a bank account might choose whoever offers them a financial services alternative as their online identity provider too. That’s another thing Facebook wants to be.

Yet existing cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum weren’t properly engineered to scale to be a medium of exchange. Their unanchored price was susceptible to huge and unpredictable swings, making it tough for merchants to accept as payment. And cryptocurrencies miss out on much of their potential beyond speculation unless there are enough places that will take them instead of dollars, and the experience of buying and spending them is easy enough for a mainstream audience. But with Facebook’s relationship with 7 million advertisers and 90 million small businesses plus its user experience prowess, it was well poised to tackle this juggernaut of a problem.

Now Facebook wants to make Libra the evolution of PayPal. It’s hoping Libra will become simpler to set up, more ubiquitous as a payment method, more efficient with fewer fees, more accessible to the unbanked, more flexible thanks to developers, and more long-lasting through decentralization.

“Success will mean that a person working abroad has a fast and simple way to send money to family back home, and a college student can pay their rent as easily as they can buy a coffee” Facebook writes in its Libra documentation. That would be a big improvement on today, when you’re stuck paying rent in insecure checks while exploitative remittance services like charge an average of 7% to send money abroad, taking $50 billion from users annually. Libra could also power tiny microtransactions worth just a few cents that are infeasible with credit card fees attached, or replace your pre-paid transit pass.

…Or it could globally ignored by consumers who see it as too much hassle for too little reward, or too unfamiliar and limited in use to pull them into the modern financial landscape. Facebook has built a reputation for over-engineered, underused products. It will need all the help it can get if wants to replace what’s already in our pockets.

How Does Libra Work?

By now you know the basics of Libra. Cash in a local currency, get Libra, spend them like dollars without big transaction fees or your real name attached, cash them out whenver you want. Feel free to stop reading and share this article if that’s all you care about. But the underlying technology, the association that governs it, the wallets you’ll use, and the way payments work all have a huge amount of fascinating detail to them. Facebook has released over 100 pages of documentation on Libra and Calibra, and we’ve pulled out the most important facts. Let’s dive in.

The Libra Association – Crypto’s New Oligarchy

Facebook knew people wouldn’t trust it to wholly control the cryptocurrency they use, and it also wanted help to spur adoption. So Facebook recruited the founding members of the Libra Association, which oversees the development of the token, the reserve of real-world assets that gives it value, and the governance rules of the blockchain. Each founding member paid a minimum of $10 million to join and optionally become a validatory node operator (more on that later), gain one vote in the Libra Association council, and be entitled to a share (proportionate to their investment) of the dividends from interest earned on the Libra reserve users pay fiat currency into to receive Libra.

The 28 soon-to-be founding members of the association and their industries, previously reported by The Block’s Frank Chaparro, include:

• Payments: Mastercard, PayPal, PayU (Naspers’ fintech arm), Stripe, Visa
• Technology and marketplaces: Booking Holdings, eBay, Facebook/Calibra, Farfetch, Lyft, Mercado Pago, Spotify AB, Uber Technologies, Inc.
• Telecommunications: Iliad, Vodafone Group
• Blockchain: Anchorage, Bison Trails, Coinbase, Inc., Xapo Holdings Limited
• Venture Capital: Andreessen Horowitz, Breakthrough Initiatives, Ribbit Capital, Thrive Capital, Union Square Ventures
• Nonprofit and multilateral organizations, and academic institutions: Creative Destruction Lab, Kiva, Mercy Corps, Women’s World Banking

Facebook says it hopes to reach 100 founding members before the official Libra launch and it’s open to anyone that meets the requirements including direct competitors to like Google or Twitter.

To join, members must have a half rack of server space, a 100mbps or above dedicated internet connection, a full-time site reliability engineer, and enterprise-grade security. Businesses must hit two of three thresholds of a $1 billion USD market value or $500 million in customer balances, reach 20 million people a year, and/or be recognized as a top 100 industry leader by a group like Interbrand Global or the S&P.

Crypto-focused investors must have over $1 billion in assets under management, while Blockchain businesses must have been in business for a year, have enterprise grade security and privacy, and custody or staking greater than $100 million in assets. And only up to one-third of founding members can by crypto-related businesses or invidually invited exceptions. Facebook also accepts research organizations like universities, and non-profits fulfilling three of four qualties including working on financial inclusion for over five years, multi-national reach to lots of users, a top 100 designation by Charity Navigator or something like it, and/or $50 million in budget.

The Libra Association will be responsible for picking recruiting more founding members to act as validator nodes for the blockchain, fundraising to jumpstart the ecosystem, designing incentive programs to reward early adopters, and doling out social impact grants. A council with a representative from each member will help choose the association’s managing director who will appoint an executive team, elect a board of 5 to 19 top representatives.

Each member including Facebook/Calibra will only get up to one vote or 1% of the total vote (whichever is larger) in the Libra Association council. This provides a level of decentralization that protects against Facebook or any other player hijacking Libra for its own gain.

The Libra Currency – A Stablecoin

A Libra is a unit of the Libra cryptocurrency that’s represented by a three wavy horizontal line unicode character ≋ like the dollar is represented by $. The value of a Libra is meant to stay largely stable so it’s a good medium of exchange since merchants can be confident they won’t be paid a Libra today that’s then worth less tomorrow. The Libra’s value is tied to a basket of bank deposits and short-term government securities for a slew of historically stable international currencies including the dollar, pound, europ, swiss franc, and yen. The Libra Association maintains this basket of assets and can change the balance of its composition if necessary to offset major price fluctuations in any one foreign currency so that the value of a Libra stays consistent.

The Libra Association is still hammering out the exact start value for the Libra, but it’s meant to somewhere close to the value of a dollar, euro, or pound so it’s easy to conceptualize. That way, a gallon of milk in the US might cost 3 to 4 Libra, similar but not exactly the same as with dollars.

The idea is that you’ll cash in some money and keep a balance of Libra that you can spend at accepting merchants and online services. You’ll be able to trade in your local currency for Libra and vice versa through certain wallet apps including Facebook’s Calibra, third-party wallet apps, and local resellers like convenience or grocery stores where people already go to top-up their mobile data plan.

The Libra Reserve – One For One

Each time someone cashes in a dollar or their respective local currency, that money goes into the Libra Reserve and an equivalent value of Libra is minted and doled out to that person. If someone cashes out from the Libra Association, the Libra they give back are destroyed/burned and they receive the equivalent value in their local currency back. That means there’s always 100% of the value of the Libra in circulation collateralized with real world assets in the Libra Reserve. It never runs fractional. And unliked “pegged” stable coins that are tied to a single currency like the USD, Libra maintains its own value — though that should cash out to roughly the same amount of a given currency over time.

When Libra Association members join and pay their $10 million minimum, they receive Libra Investment Tokens. Their share of the total tokens translates into the proportion of the dividend they earn off of interest on assets in the reserve. Those dividends are only paid out after Libra Association uses interest to pay for operating expenses, investments in the ecosystem, engineering research, and grants to non-profits and other organizations. This interest is part of what attracted the Libra Association’s members. If Libra becomes popular and many people carry a large balance of the currency, the reserve will grow huge and earn significant interest.

The Libra Blockchain – Built For Speed

Every Libra payment is permanently written into the Libra blockchain — a cryptographically authenticated database that acts as a public online ledger designed to handle 1000 transactions per second. The blockchain is operated and constantly verified by founding members of the Libra Association who each invested $10 million or more for a say in the cryptocurrency’s governance and the ability operate a validator node.

When a transaction is submitted, each of the nodes runs a calculation based on the existing ledger of all transactions. Thanks to a Byzantine Fault Tolerance system, just two-thirds of the nodes must come to consensus that the transaction is legitimate for it to be executed and written to the blockchain. A structure of Merkle Trees in the code makes it simple to recognize changes made to the Libra blockchain.

Transactions on Libra cannot be reversed. If an attack compromises over one-third of the validator nodes causing a fork in the blockchain, the Libra Association says it will temporarily halt transactions, figure out the extent of the damaage, and recommend software updates to resolve the fork.

Transactions aren’t entirely free. They incur a tiny fraction of a cent fee to pay for “gas” that covers the cost of processing the transfer of funds similar to with Ethereum. This fee will be negligible to most consumers, but when they add up the gas charges will deter bad actors from creating millions of transactions to power spam and denial-of-service attacks.

Move Coding Language – For Moving Libra

The Libra blockchain is open source with an Apache 2.0 license and any developer can build apps that work with it using the Move coding language. The blockchain’s prototype launches its testnet today, so it’s effectively in developer beta mode until it officially launches in the first half of 2020. The Libra Association is working with HackerOne to launch a bug bounty system later this year that will pay security researchers for safely identifying flaws and glitches. In the meantime, the Libra Association is implementing the Libra Core using the Rust programming language since it’s designed to prevent security vulnerabilities, and the Move language isn’t fully ready yet.

Move was created to make it easier to write blockchain code that follows an author’s intent without introducing bugs. It’s called Move because its primary function is to move Libra coins from one account to another, and never let those assets be accidentally duplicated. The core transaction code looks like:

LibraAccount.pay_from_sender(recipient_address, amount) procedure

Eventually, Move will be able to create smart contracts for programmatic interactions with the Libra blockchain. Until Move is ready, developers can create modules and transaction scripts for Libra using Move IR, which is high-level enough to be human-readable but low-level enough to be translatable into real Move bytecode that’s written to the blockchain.

The Libra ecosystem and the Move language will be completely open to use and build, which presents a sizable risk. Crooked developers could prey on crypto novices, claiming their app works just the same legitimate ones, and that it’s safe since it uses Libra. But if consumers get ripped off by these scammers, the anger will surely bubble up to Facebook. Even though it’s tried to distance itself sufficiently via its subsidiary Libra and the association, many people will probably always think of Libra as Facebook’s cryptocurrency and blame it for their woes.

Using Libra In The Wild – Calibra

So how do you actually own and spend Libra? Through Libra wallets like Facebook’s own Calibra and others that will be built by third-parties, potentially including Libra Association members like PayPal. The idea is to make sending money to a friend or paying for something as easy as sending a Facebook Message. You won’t be able to make or receive any real payments until the official launch next year, though.

None of the Libra Association members agreed to provide details on what they’ll build on the blockchain, but we can take Facebook’s Calibra wallet as an example of the basic experience. Calibra will launch alongside the Libra currency on iOS and Android within Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and a standalone app. When users first sign up, they’ll be taken through a Know Your Customer anti-fraud process where they’ll have to provide a government issued photo ID and other verification info. They’ll need to conduct due diligence on customers and report suspicious activity to the authorities.

From there you’ll be able to cash in to Libra, pick a friend or merchant, set an amount to send them and add a description, and send them Libra. You’ll also be able to request Libra. It’s also likely that Calibra will offer an expedited way of paying merchants, liking scanning your or their QR code.

Privacy – At Least From Facebook

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained some of the philosophy behind Libra and Calibra in a post today. “It’s decentralized — meaning it’s run by many different organizations instead of just one, making the system fairer overall. It’s available to anyone with an internet connection and has low fees and costs. And it’s secured by cryptography which helps keep your money safe. This is an important part of our vision for a privacy-focused social platform — where you can interact in all the ways you’d want privately, from messaging to secure payments.”

By default, Facebook won’t import your contacts or any of your profile information but may ask if you wish to do so. It also won’t share any of your transaction data back to Facebook, so it won’t used to target you with ads, rank your News Feed, or otherwise earn Facebook money directly. Data will only be shared in specific instances in aggregated, anonymized ways or due to a request from law enforcement.

Today, Facebook is coming together with 27 organizations around the world to start the non-profit Libra Association and…

Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday, June 18, 2019

In case you are hacked, scammed, or lose access to your account, Calibra will refund you for lost coins when possible through 24/7 chat support. Given Calibra will likely become the default wallet for many Libra users, this extra protection is essential.

For now, Calibra won’t make money. But Kevin Weil, the head of product for Facebook’s blockchain team, tells me that if it reaches scale, Facebook could launch other financial services through Calibra that it could monetize.

A Global Coin

If Facebook succeeds and legions of people cash in money for Libra, it and the other founding members of the Libra Association could earn big dividends on the interest. And if suddenly it becomes super quick to buy things through Facebook using Libra, businesses will boost their ad spend there. But if Libra gets hacked or proves unreliable, it could cost lots of people around the world money while souring them on cryptocurrencies. And by offering an open Libra platform, shady developers could build apps that snatch not just people’s personal info like Cambridge Analytica, but their hard-earned digital cash.

Facebook just tried to reinvent money. Next year, we’ll see if the Libra Association pulls it off.

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Master Ruby Programming From Scratch With This $12 Course

If you want to make a living from code, Ruby is one of the best languages to learn. It’s relatively easy for beginners to grasp, but top developers can earn six figures. In addition, Ruby skills are always in demand. If you want to learn the language, the Complete Ruby Programmer Course can help. Through 11 hours of hands-on training, the course helps you start building Ruby applications from scratch. You can get it now for just $12 via MakeUseOf Deals.

Ruby Programming

Over the past decade, many top platforms have been built on Ruby foundations — 500px, Airbnb, Hulu, Indiegogo, and Twitch, to name but a few. If you want to become a web developer or build apps for a living, it makes sense to learn this language.

The Complete Ruby Programmer Course is the perfect introduction, with 212 hands-on tutorials. The training starts with the absolute basics, showing you how to install Ruby on any computer and write your first command-line code.

You then dive into data structures, algorithms, and implementation, along with debugging and error handling. The course helps you hone your new skills through fun projects, including fully-fledged apps.

By the end of the course, you should feel confident in building interactive apps and automating daily tasks. You also get a certificate of completion for impressing potential employers.

212 Tutorials for $12

This course is normally $200, but you can get it now for $12 with lifetime access included.

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5+ No Nonsense Sites to Get Life Advice and Grow as a Person

Life isn’t easy. We can all use a little sagely advice once in a while. Whether it’s from elders who’ve been in our shoes before or helpful guides on how to be an adult, these sites will give you pearls of wisdom to tackle life.

Previously, we have featured a few sites that offer good free advice online, which includes old stalwarts like Elder Wisdom Circle. But the internet has grown since then and there are new resources worth checking out, as well as a few famous gems that we haven’t talked about before.

1. Hey From The Future (Web): Age-Specific Advice

One of the internet’s favorite questions is to ask, “What would you tell your younger self right now?” Hey From The Future took that and turned it into an app where you get life advice at any age from someone who has been there.

All you have to do is select your current age, from 13 years old and upwards. The next page will give you all the advice that people from different ages have left with regards to what they wish they knew at that age. It’s a mix of perspectives from someone who just passed that year to someone even twice in age. They’re ranked based on upvotes and downvotes.

These life tips come from people across the world. Obviously, you shouldn’t stick to your current age alone. Look at the advice available for a year or two either side because there’s a good chance it would be applicable to you as well.

And of course, contribute your own life learnings for those younger than you. After quickly registering, you can share some wisdom for your past self or to a younger friend.

2. How to Grow the F*** Up (Web): A Guide to Adulting

Given the name of the site, don’t be surprised with the foul language on it. But if you can look past that, HTGTFU is a treasure-trove of life advice for anyone looking to grow up and behave like a functional member of society.

The articles offer strong and practical advice on several aspects of “adulting” such as moving out into your own apartment, educational loans and choices, job hunting and work life, how to handle your personal finances, health and life skills, relationship and fashion advice, and so on. There are articles on every subject you’ll come across if you’re getting your life in order.

So why the foul language? Well, the site started as a joke between the two founders who were frustrated with how their friends didn’t have basic life skills. The original guides were meant to be humorous and insulting because their friends could take it. But as the audience grew, the tone of later guides has changed and it’s not foul-mouthed any more. Several of the articles are nothing but helpful guides.

3. Zen Pencils (Web): Famous Advice as Comic Strips

Even after thousands of articles on Make Use Of, we have somehow never written about one of the internet’s darlings, Zen Pencils. While it’s no longer updated, cartoonist Gavin Aung Than’s comic strips of inspirational quotes is the kind of advice you never knew you needed.

Each Zen Pencil takes inspirational life advice from a famous person and turns it into a comic book page. The dialogue takes you through what the writer is saying, while the illustrations depict the intended meaning behind it. Each comic is a pleasant, inspiring, and easy read, and you’re guaranteed to fall in love with the works.

You can go through the 223 comics in order, click the Random button, or use the Jump To dropdown bar which shows the name of the famous person and their quote. The dropdown includes a search bar too.

Browse the site for free posters, coloring pages, and other odds and bits that you can download. Gavin also has a couple of books worth checking out.

4. Unmistakable Creative (Web, Podcast): Life Advice from 100 Interesting People

In the Unmistakable Creative podcast, founder Srinivas Rao interviews interesting people with different successes for their two bits on how to live life and be creative. Over the course of his podcast, Rao has interviewed hundreds of such achievers and turned the best advice into a single list.

Available as a Medium post, this life-changing advice from 100 interesting people includes topics such as balancing your life, finding happiness in everyday moments, tackling self-doubts and imposter syndrome, handling relationships and intimacy, and more. This is advice that applies to all aspects of your life. Interviewees include famous names like Danielle LaPorte, Dani Shapiro, and James Clear.

The best part about the list is that you don’t have to go through each podcast to get to the advice. Rao has handpicked the relevant quote and its meaning for you in this handy list, so that you can read and move on without listening. Of course, if you like what you read, you’ll only benefit by listening to the whole episode.

5. r/Advice and Reddit’s Other Helpful Communities for Advice

If you want to ask questions and get answers, sign up for Reddit and use one of the many advice-oriented subreddits. From general advice to specific topics, you’ll find everything here.

The central advice hub is r/Advice where you can ask for any type of advice and are almost assured of getting good replies. As long as you are polite and helpful, you’ll be able to share and receive wisdom here. But it is bound to be more generic in nature, and if you have a specific issue, try these other subreddits:

• r/DecidingToBeBetter: If self-improvement is your goal, this is the place to find wisdom from other seekers.
• r/relationship_advice: Romance, family, friendships, or co-workers, you’ll find all advice for every type of relationship here.
• r/AskWomenAdvice: For women-centric problems, answered by women.
• r/internetParents: Ask the internet’s moms and dads about things that your parents never taught you.

Don’t Forget YouTube

Depending on the situation you find yourself in, there’s something for everyone in this list. Passive advice seekers can use the guides and podcasts, while active advice seekers can do questions and answers on the community-based sites.

You don’t need to rely on written advice alone. There are some excellent YouTube channels for self-improvement and motivation, which often double up as general life advisors.

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Here’s How to Add External Subtitles on Windows Media Player

It is indeed possible to add external subtitles to a movie that you’re watching using Windows Media Player. If you have wrung your hair over it for a long time, here’s the solution that solves the problem.

The classic Windows Media Player 12 is Microsoft’s default audio and video player. But it hasn’t been updated since 2009. Maybe, you enjoy the simplicity of using the media player that came with your PC.

So far you are fine with it… except when it comes to subtitles. Here we’re going to go through the process of adding subtitles to WMP in two main steps.

1. Download your movie and subtitle file.
2. Install a third party codec called Advanced Codecs.

But first, let’s see if you have Windows Media Player installed in your Windows 10 PC.

Download and Install Windows Media Player

Don’t worry if you can’t see Windows Media Player 12 in your Programs list. Windows Player used to be the default media player on Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1. Things changed with Windows 10 where it became an optional feature.

Now, you need to download and install Windows Media Player if it’s not there in your version of Windows 10. Microsoft Support has a list of the WMP versions which will help you find the right version of the Player for your system.

Prepare Your Movie File and Subtitle File

Many torrent downloads include subtitles. But let’s assume you have downloaded or ripped a video file that doesn’t have subtitles.

There are many websites that offer subtitles for download in multiple languages. Pick any from the three listed below. There are many more you can find with a Google Search.

I prefer Subscene.com because it lists all the popular subtitles in an uncluttered interface that makes search a breeze.

Find and download the exact matching subtitle file that has been synced with that particular video file. Choose a subtitle which has the same up-loader name as the movie file. Or match the name to the ripped type.

Download the files and extract them if they come in a ZIP format.

For a demo, I have an episode of Doom Patrol and some subtitles that I’ve put in one common folder called “Subtitled Doom Patrol TV Series”. Notice that both don’t have matching names yet.

Rename Both Files to Match Each Other

Now, just put both of the files in the same folder and make sure they have the same name (aside from the extension). In this case, the video is “Doom Patrol” and the subtitle file is “Doom Patrol.srt”.

Right-click on the video and choose “Play with Windows Media Player”. Hopefully, your video now plays with subtitles. But if it still isn’t working, you have a few more options.

Set WMP to display captions. From the default home screen, you can right click on the bar near the top and select Play > Lyrics, captions, and subtitles > On if available.

If the video is already playing, right click anywhere on the player and select Lyrics, captions, and subtitles > On if available.

Download a Third Party Codec

One of the big failings of WMP is that it doesn’t recognize downloaded subtitle files with extensions of .SRT and .SUB. In that case, you have to take the help of third party codecs.

The codec of choice used to be DirectVobSub. But in all my attempts, I couldn’t make it play the subtitles with the latest version.

The Solution:

An alternative codec for WMP 12 that worked for me is called ADVANCED Codec (version 11.5.1) by a developer named Shark007. It is an audio and video codec package for Windows 7, 8 and 10. The release contains a full suite of decoders for both 32bit and 64bit systems.

Also included in the package is the DirectVobSub/VSFilter (the add-on for Microsoft Windows that is able to read external subtitle files) with a GUI controller for the installed codecs.

The codec is available from MajorGeeks and a few alternative download mirrors. MajorGeeks is a trusted website and has been in the download business since 2002. Yes, the site’s design still harks back to the good old days!

Run the ADVANCED Codec executable. The installer will download the codecs to your computer before finalizing the install.

ADVANCED Codec also installs a Settings application in your Program menu or desktop. This gives you a GUI to tweak a few settings in case your subtitles are not displayed.

When Windows Media Player Does Not Display Subtitles

WMP 12 is moody with a few file types. I have run into problems with MP4 video formats.

You can try a few tweaks suggested by Shark007.

• For an AVI file, choose to disable the DMO codecs on the Swap Tab of the ADVANCED Codec Settings application.
• If it is an MP4 file, choose to disable the Microsoft Audio decoder on the Swap TAB. You may also need to disable the Microsoft Video decoder.

If you still can’t see any subtitles, however, there is one last thing you can try. Rename the subtitle file and change the “.srt” to a “.sub”. For me, the subtitles played regardless of whether it was called .srt or .sub, but some users report one working more often than the other.

Try an Alternative to Windows Media Player

The classic Windows Media Player has seen better days. Today, there’s no need to go to such lengths to play your favorite subtitled videos as there are enough alternatives for the outmoded WMP. The popular VideoLAN (VLC) player is the most favored as it can play everything right out of the box. It is free, there’s an active open source community behind it, and it is cross-platform too.

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13 Websites to Find People on the Internet

In an era of booming social networks, it’s easier to find lost friends and colleagues than it ever was before.

The private world of yesterday is now an online world. Everyone with a search engine has open access to social networks, government databases, and public records.

If you’re looking for a long-lost friend, or maybe want to do a background check on someone, consider the following free resources to find people on the internet.

How to Search People for Free on the Internet

The internet is essentially a giant database, overflowing with data points about individuals. Today, it’s hard to find anyone who hasn’t commented on a blog entry, made a post in an online forum, or registered at Facebook or Flickr.

Different sites use this information in different ways. While the following 13 sites can be used to find people online, they may draw the data from different sources. As a result, there may be some difference between the results.

Before starting, learn a few details about the person. Start with their birthday or the state they live in.  Once you have those details, the volume of information you can find online about a person is amazing. In fact, it can sometimes prove overwhelming.

When searching for people online, be sure to use multiple people search engines for the best results.

1. Pipl People Search

There are many websites that search standard social networks like Facebook or Twitter. But Pipl is one resource that conducts a deep web search for the name on “non-typical sites”. The search results from Pipl are impressive.

I used Pipl to perform a deep search on myself. The search pulled my own data from profiles at Soundcloud, Last.fm, and others like job search websites and Google.

I was impressed by Pipl’s efforts to uncover street addresses, phone numbers, and even family members, scraped from miscellaneous websites.

To use Pipl, however, you will have to sign up. This is a little frustrating, but worth it as the results are good. I even did a search for my wife, who works as a local government councilor, and Pipl revealed a document she was mentioned in. Impressive!

2. Google Groups

Probably the most powerful tool to find someone who used the internet a long time ago is Google Groups. Google Groups has incorporated over 800 million Usenet messages into its database, an impressive archive of internet conversations dating back to 1981.

For example, if the person you’re looking for attended university during this time, you might find a trace of them. Usenet channels were a popular way for people to access the internet before its explosion in the late 1990s. Universities, research centers, tech businesses, and other bodies relied on Usenet for collaboration and more.

Not only you might find who you’re looking for, but you’ll also get an idea about their thoughts, ideas, and motivations of the time.

3. TruePeopleSearch

A “100% free people search” service, TruePeopleSearch.com delivers some good results.

But it depends on where you’re based.

For US readers, this is a great tool, and by simply searching for a name and state of residence, you’ll find surprisingly in-depth results.

You should also get some good results for Canadian residents, too. TruePeopleSearch will typically return a list of previous addresses, along with phone numbers.

Look out too for the “Possible Associates” section. Useful to law enforcement and private eyes, this displays names of past college roommates, colleagues, and more. No doubt scraped from public Facebook information, this is useful information.

4. FindPeopleSearch

Like TruePeopleSearch, FindPeopleSearch.com generates basic background check “teaser” information. Still, that information can be extremely helpful when you’re trying to learn more about someone. What this website brings to the game is that it offers more extensive information than others.

However, again like TruePeopleSearch, this site doesn’t offer results from outside of North America. What it does, though, it does well. For example, after selecting a likely candidate, FindPeopleSearch provides a map with the likely location of your quarry.

Family information might also be listed here, depending on what data has been collated for the individual. You could find an important familial link here, such as a brother, sister, or even an aunt, uncle, or cousin.

5. PeekYou

While most people search engines scour public information and not much else, PeekYou.com goes the extra mile to dig into popular social sites like Pinterest, LinkedIn, Instagram and more.

The results are always impressive, although they can be somewhat garbled. For example, a search for my own records mixed up details about me with those of others with similar names.

Also, PeekYou gave me a new middle initial, which was certainly surprising!

As with all these sites, keep in mind that the data collected might be inaccurate. This could be due to mistakes in the source data, or errors when names are matched.

6. Classmates

Sometimes tracking someone down requires a little bit more creativity than just typing a name into a search engine. Another approach is to rummage through popular high school reunion website Classmates.com.

Obviously, you will need to have some idea of the high school(s) the person attended. If successful, you’ll find a listing of people who’ve registered on the site with the same high school on record.

Start off by selecting a school by state and city, then enter the name of the student to search for. Many people are registered on the site, so you should stand a good chance of finding who you’re looking for.

Note that this is a US-only website.

7. FamilyTreeNow

Various genealogy sites can be used to trace individuals, although the process is a little different.

When it comes to genealogical records, information might be restricted for people who are still living. This will depend on data privacy laws and the policy of the genealogy site. As such, while it might be useful to establish familial links with whomever you’re searching, the information will be scant.

The results page will display address information and possible relatives, while paid background information can also be generated via PeopleFinders.

FamilyTreeNow is a good option for genealogy research. Interested in family history? Check our downloadable guide on how to research your family tree online.

8. TinEye

Want to track someone down and you only have a photo of them? Use a reverse image search tool like TinEye.com. This site will turn the entire internet inside out for that same picture, and it’ll show you if it was uploaded anywhere else.

The site uses an innovative image recognition technology that can match images based on the one you upload to the site. It’s an impressive technology and it worked the first time I tried it, immediately identifying that I had uploaded that same picture to MakeUseOf. And, it even recognized the picture when only part of the image matched the original. Very impressive stuff.

Another option for reverse image searching is Google Image Search.

9. Google

Google is also an effective tool to track someone down online. Before trying, keep the following tips in mind.

• Enclose the person’s full name in quotes (like “David Lee Roth”). Google will return only search results with the person’s full name.
• Include more information that you already know about the person (like “Sammy Hagar” ex-Van Halen singer). Your search results will be even more precise.
• If the person is involved with a certain organization, try searching only that site (like “site: extreme-band.com “Gary Cherone”). If the person is listed as a staff or contact on the site, you’ll discover their details

These tips work well—give them a try!

In fact, searching for people with Google works so well that people search sites that existed years ago have closed. Who needs those when Google already does it best?

10. Find Public Records With Zaba Search

If you’re conducting a full background check on someone, then you’re probably interested in more than their online activities. You’re probably looking for any of the following information:

• Residences over the last few years
• Criminal record check
• Driving record
• Birthday and birth location (for citizenship verification)
• Child predator check

A person with a criminal record or court ruling has a surprising amount of information about them online.  All you need is the name and DOB of the person you’re researching; the location will help narrow things down.

One of the best sites for conducting free public records queries. Using ZabaSearch, you can determine a person’s exact past and current addresses and phone numbers.

To view a full profile will require you to pay $50 through Intelius, however. This includes past addresses, relatives, criminal history, bankruptcies, and more.

11. USA.gov

This provides a huge database for all state and federal agencies. Most services where you need to pay for background details come from these free state and federal agency databases. You can find the data for free by searching this website to find those agencies and conduct the search yourself.

For example, digging through the state of Maine agencies reveals where you can search Maine criminal records.

12. Facebook

One of the simplest ways to find people is just to search on Facebook. It’s amazing who turns up when you search for a name in Facebook.

Other social networks can also prove useful in finding people. For example, many people avoid Facebook and are active on Twitter, or even Instagram.

13. LinkedIn

Meanwhile, LinkedIn is a superb resource for finding people. A career-centered alternative to Facebook, there’s a good chance you’ll find people that you can’t find anywhere else.

If you know where the person you’re searching for has worked or studied, LinkedIn is a great option. While you won’t find too many details without a LinkedIn subscription, there should be enough to go on.

You’ll be able to find out what they’ve recently been up to professionally, as well as who they’re associated with.

13 Great People Search Engines to Find People Online

By now you should have all the tools you need to find people online, dead or alive. We’ve shown you how to use the following people search sites for free public records:

1. Pipl
2. Google Groups
3. TruePeopleSearch
4. FindPeopleSearch
5. PeekYou
6. Classmates
7. FamilyTreeNow
8. TinEye
9. Google
10. Zaba
11. USA.gov
12. Facebook
13. LinkedIn

Use these tools to track down the person or people you’re looking for and you should have success in no time. But what if someone is trying to track you down? Here’s how to check who is looking for you online.

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How to Test Your Wi-Fi Speed (And 7 Mistakes You Should Avoid)

When your internet starts feeling slow for no obvious reason, the best way to see if you’ve got a problem is to test your Wi-Fi speed. It’s easy to do, and there are lots of Wi-Fi speed test services online that run in any web browser. They’ll show you how fast your internet connection really is.

Here’s how speed tests work, and how to make sure you have the best Wi-Fi speed.

How a Wi-Fi Speed Test Works

Doing a Wi-Fi speed test is simple. Pick a service (see #1, below, for our recommendations), hit the big Go or Run Test button, then wait for it to finish. You won’t be waiting long—the whole thing takes 10 to 20 seconds, tops.

When you check your Wi-Fi speed, the test measures three elements:

1. Ping rate or latency
2. Download speed
3. Upload speed

Here’s what they mean.

Ping Rate or Latency

The ping rate measures the latency on a network. But what is latency? It’s the time taken for a data packet to travel from the sender to the receiver, and back again.

High latency causes lag, which is something you definitely want to avoid in multiplayer gaming. A ping rate of more than 150 milliseconds could cause lag in gaming, while under 20ms is considered very low latency.

Download Speed

Download speed is the most important figure. It signifies how fast data downloads to your computer, measured in megabits per second (Mbps).

The test works by downloading multiple chunks of data, adjusting their size and the number of connections as it goes. This maximizes the speed of your connection, ensuring it works at its fastest.

To judge the results, you need to know what speed of service you’re signed up for, then compare them. For reference, Netflix requires 25Mbps for 4K streaming or 5Mbps for 1080p HD.

Upload Speed

A Wi-Fi test also measures the upload speed. This shows how quickly you can upload data, such as when you’re backing up files to a cloud service. Compare your speed test result to your provider’s quoted speed to see how well you’re doing.

The upload test works the same as the download test, just in the other direction. Your browser uploads chunks of data, with adjustments made to ensure it uses the full extent of your connection.

Between them, the three tests will give a complete picture of how your wireless setup performs, and why your Wi-Fi speed drops.

You can use the results to find out if your internet speed is as fast as your provider promised, if it’s fast enough for how you want to use it, and if you’ve got your router set up properly. But when you run a Wi-Fi speed check, make sure to avoid these common mistakes.

1. Don’t Use the Wrong Speed Test Tool

When thinking about how to test your Wi-Fi speed, the first question to ask is which is the best speed test service to use? Some internet service providers, including Comcast, offer their own tool. If yours does, that’s a good place to start.

If you want to check that your Wi-Fi is fast enough for TV streaming, try Netflix’s Fast.com. It’s no-frills, but connects to the Netflix servers so is accurate.

For the other options, choose an HTML5 service over an older Flash one. While every modern web browser supports HTML5 natively, Flash represents another system overhead that could impact your speeds.

Alternatively, forego the online speed test and use a dedicated app instead. The desktop app from Speedtest.net is available for both Windows and Mac and makes the service a whole lot more accessible.

2. Don’t Test the Wi-Fi Speed Only Once

To get an accurate picture of your Wi-Fi speed you need to perform the speed test more than once.

Speeds can be quite volatile. You could do the test twice in the same conditions and get different results. By doing it at least three times, perhaps over a series of days, you can create an average of the results. This gives you a more accurate reflection of your actual internet speed.

3. Don’t Test Wi-Fi at the Wrong Time of Day

One of the biggest factors affecting internet speeds is the number of your fellow users that are logged on at the same time. During “peak hours”, like a Sunday evening when everyone’s watching Netflix, you’ll probably experience slower speeds than other times. Your speed test results will reflect this.

If you’re trying to judge the performance drop-off during busy periods, then run the test at both peak and off-peak times and compare the results. If you just want to test your overall speed, stick to off-peak hours for testing.

4. Don’t Do the Test in the Wrong Place

Doing the test in the wrong place will affect your Wi-Fi speed test results. But how do you choose the right place? It depends what you’re hoping to find out.

• When you just want to measure your Wi-Fi speed: Run the test with a close line of sight connection to your router. In other words, do it in the same room with no physical obstacles to block the signal.
• If you’re trying to find the best position for a router in your home: Run a speed test in every room, then compare the results. That will reveal any rooms that the signal is struggling to reach.
• If you’re trying to identify Wi-Fi dead spots or areas of weak coverage: Do the test in that spot and compare the result to one performed in perfect conditions. If this confirms a problem, you can then take steps to extend your Wi-Fi coverage.

5. Don’t Leave Other Devices Downloading

A Wi-Fi speed test can only measure the speed attained by the machine you’re testing on. For this reason, you should try to maximize the bandwidth available to that device.

Most of us have countless devices connected to our wireless networks, and the bandwidth from our internet connection is split between each of them. This causes the network to slow down, or at least appear slower on each device.

For best results, turn off or disconnect as many of your devices as you can, or make sure that none are downloading or uploading large files. You might want to learn how to pinpoint what’s using up the bandwidth on your home network.

6. Don’t Forget to Reboot Your Computer

You can test your Wi-Fi speed on pretty much any device with a browser—from your laptop to an Amazon Fire Stick—but whatever you choose, you should always reboot it first.

Devices that haven’t been restarted in a long time will have residual processes running in the background that can slow them down. This might affect your ping rate in particular.

Restart your machine and don’t launch any other apps before you do the test. Keep an eye on what apps you’ve got set to launch on startup (a cloud app, for example, will go online to sync its data). You could even temporarily disable your antivirus software until it’s done.

7. Don’t Test While Using a VPN

Finally, make sure you aren’t using a VPN, proxy, data-saving app, or anything else that sits between your computer and the internet. They can, and often will, slow down your connection, so using them while testing will not provide accurate results.

The exception is if you’re looking for the best VPN and are trialing a few to see how fast they are. In that case, go right ahead.

What to Do With the Wi-Fi Speed Test Results

A Wi-Fi speed test is useful for many reasons. The results will help in the following cases and more:

• Making sure you’re getting the speed you’re paying for
• Shopping around for a new provider
• Setting up a new router and checking coverage throughout your home
• Testing that your speeds are fast enough for your needs
• Checking that your Apple TV, Fire Stick, or games console is getting good speeds
• Finding peak and off-peak hours

When you’re done, you might find that your internet is not as fast as it should be. And if your results aren’t up to scratch, it’s time to find out what’s causing your slow Wi-Fi and how you can fix it.

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The Best Antivirus Software for Windows 10

Are you a Windows user who’s wondering what the best antivirus is for Windows 10? It can get confusing; there are many options out there. How can you decide which Windows antivirus to use?

We’re going to use data from AV-TEST to help you make your decision.

1. Windows Defender

Windows Defender isn’t the same proposition as it was a few years ago. The suite once had a reputation for hogging system resources and offering a low standard of protection, but that’s all changed.

Microsoft’s security program now offers some of the best protection in the industry. In the most recent tests available on AV-TEST (for March and April 2019) it scored a 100 percent detection rate against zero-day malware attacks and for “widespread and prevalent malware discovered in the last four weeks” in both months.

Of course, one of Windows Defender’s most significant selling points is its tight integration with the Windows operating system. It’s easy to manage the app’s virus protection, firewall protection, device security, and app security directly from the Windows Settings menu.

Overall, AV-TEST gave the app 6/6 for protection and usability, and 5.5/6 for performance, enough to earn it a “Top Product” designation. It’s quite a turnaround for an app that scored 0.5/6 as recently as 2015.

2. Kaspersky Internet Security

Kaspersky is a well-known name in the online security world. The company offers three antivirus suites—Antivirus, Kaspersky Internet Security, and Security Cloud. All three are among the best internet security apps for Windows 10.

In truth, Kaspersky is another app that’s struggled with performance issues in the past. But, like Windows Defender, those problems are firmly behind it. AV-TEST rated the app as 6/6 across all three of its testing categories.

Indeed, the suite only flagged three false positives in the April 2019 test, despite testing in excess of 1.6 million samples.

The entry-level Antivirus app ($75) only covers desktop PCs. For $20 more, the Internet Security ($79) suite adds mobile support for a minimal extra cost. It is the best option for most users.

3. Malwarebytes Premium

Malwarebytes is another of the best antivirus apps on Windows. The company’s free version program has been popular for years.

However, if you want to enjoy 24/7 real-time protection (rather than being restricted to intermittent manual scans), you need to pay for the premium version. The entry-level plans, which only protects one device, costs $39.99 per year. For the fee, you receive protection against identity theft, ransomware, fraudulent websites, malware, and more.

All the premium features are available for a 14-day trial period on the free version of the app.

4. Bitdefender Internet Security

With a perfect 6/6 for protection, performance, and usability on AV-TEST, Bitdefender Internet Security is unquestionably among the best antivirus apps for Windows.

Like Kaspersky Internet Security, only three false positives were found from a sample size of 1.6 million and had a 100 percent record against both zero-day attacks and existing malware.

There are three different versions of the app available to Windows users: Total Security for $40 (which covers mobile devices), Internet Security for $35 (includes firewall and webcam protection), and Antivirus Plus for $30 (the entry-level paid suite). If you wish, you can purchase the Android and iOS versions of Bitdefender separately.

Other noteworthy features in Bitdefender include multi-layer ransomware protection, network threat prevention, and parental controls.

5. F-Secure SAFE

Another app and another perfect 6/6 across all three categories on AV-TEST.

Interestingly, although F-Secure SAFE scored 6/6 for performance, it still performed better than both Bitdefender Internet Security and Kaspersky Internet Security—both of which also scored 6/6.

On a standard PC with an Intel i3-6100 processor, a 256GB hard drive, and 8GB RAM, it only saw a 10 percent drop-off in performance when launching popular websites. In comparison, Kaspersky scored 28 percent and Bitdefender scored 19 percent.

All this tells us that the app probably the best option for anyone who’s running an older, low-power machine.

There’s only one version of F-Secure SAFE available, though the price varies depending on the number of devices you want to protect. The entry-level plan (for three devices) is $69.99 per year. The most expensive package (seven devices) is $109.99.

6. McAfee Internet Security

If you want antivirus protection on Windows, you could also consider checking out McAfee Internet Security.

It scores highly (6/6) on all AV-TEST criteria, finds a low number of false positives, and is not a major resource hog.

Features-wise, McAfee Internet Security offers a full suite of real-time antimalware tools, URL blocking, phishing protection, and vulnerability scans. The latter of those—vulnerability scans—is not a common feature. If it’s important to you, McAfee is a good choice.

7. ESET NOD32

NOD32 has some of the lowest false positive rates, is lightweight, and is consistently near the top of performance charts.

Indeed, many power users used to swear by the holy-trinity of NOD32 (which focuses on system files), Malwarebytes (which focuses on web-based issues), and CCleaner (a PC optimization tool). Unfortunately, CCleaner is no longer a trustworthy app, but it’s still passable for one-off scans.

The three plans cost $40, $50, and $60. The entry-level plan does not include support for personal firewalls and spam filters.

8. Norton Security

No, that’s not a typo—we really are recommending Norton Security as our eighth and final pick.

The Norton suite has an erratic history. There was a time—around the turn of the millennium—when it had a vice-like stranglehold on the antivirus market. The growth of reliable free antimalware products, along with Norton’s ever-growing drain on system resources, saw its popularity decline rapidly over the next decade.

Fast-forward to today, and Norton Security is once again worth considering. AV-TEST gave it 6/6 across all three categories. Amazingly, it only saw an eight percent performance effect on a standard computer when loading popular sites (though its impact when installing frequently used applications was more noticeable at 28 percent).

Norton Security supports malware scans, real-time website ratings, malicious URL blocking, phishing protection, and behavior-based detection.

The four Norton Security plans cost between $40 and $100 per year, depending on the extra features you need.

What About Free Antivirus Software?

Some of the third-party free antivirus suites on the market are adequate, though their protections scores on AV-TEST are—on average—not as good as the paid options. Furthermore, the majority use considerably more resources than Windows Defender, not to mention the persistent and annoying nag screens.

If you can’t/won’t spend money on a paid antivirus solution, stick with the free Microsoft app.

To learn more about antivirus suites across all your devices, check out our articles on the best free antivirus software and the different types of antivirus scans.

Read the full article: The Best Antivirus Software for Windows 10

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Sprint is the latest telecom to offer a tracking device that uses LTE

Following in the footsteps of AT&T and Verizon*, Sprint is now offering an LTE tracker. The matchbook-sized device, simply called Tracker, provides real-time location tracking on Safe + Found app.

Sprint’s new Tracker

The Tracker competes with Tile, but instead of Bluetooth, Sprint’s device uses 4G LTE, GPS and Wi-Fi location services, so it can be used to track things, people or pets that might travel a significant distance away, compared to a range of 100 ft to 300 ft for Tile (depending on the version). The Tracker is manufactured by Coolpad and users need to pay $2.50 per month for 24 months to cover the cost of the device, plus an additional $5 per month to connect it.

AT&T and Verizon both launched LTE trackers over the past year and Apple is also rumored to be working on a tracking device that connects to iPhones, based on an asset package for pairing devices by proximity spotted in the first beta of iOS 13 by 9to5Mac.

*Disclosure: TechCrunch is part of Verizon Media, a subsidiary of Verizon Communications.

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