Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ series might have bits and pieces of Peter Jackson’s take on Middle-earth

While Amazon’s multi-season show based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s expansive Middle-earth universe isn’t going to directly carry over from the Peter Jackson movie adaptations of Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit, it seems there might be elements of it in the series. At least this is according to the report from The Hollywood Reporter, which also claims that production must start “within two years.” Amazon said to have worked out a deal with New Line Cinemas and Warner Bros. to let them use bits of the movies in the rumoured five-season show. But the show, as Amazon describes, will “explore new storylines preceding J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring.” There is also talk of possible spinoff series. With rich world Tolkien created in these books, Amazon certainly has a lot of material to work with.

According to THR’s report, it isn’t certain if Jackson will be involved in the production. But this acquisition does help Amazon face up against the other big names in video streaming and content creation. It’s said that Amazon is expected to spend around US$1 billion on the show for the duration of its run. Now, whether this will be a hit with the fans is another question altogether and one we can only answer when the show or shows do materialize. 

Source: The Verge

Facebook CEO says most of the social network’s users should assume their public data’s been compromised

If you thought things couldn’t get any worse for Facebook, here are a couple more things. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced that all of its 2.2 billion users should assume their public information has been compromised by third-party scrapers. As he said in a call today, “I would assume if you had that setting turned on that someone at some point has access to your public information in some way.”

Zuckerberg is referring to a vulnerability in the social network’s search function, which lets anyone look up users using email addresses or phone numbers. Users would need to opt in to have their names show up in searches. He’s also said that they found a maximum of 87 million users potentially affected by the Cambridge Analytica fiasco.

Source: Facebook | Via: The Next Web

Access checker feature on Google Drive now suggests who to share files with

If you’re heavily reliant on Google apps, you should be familiar with the “Access checker” tool available on these services. This feature lets you know which recipient has access to your files. Google updated this feature on Drive to make it more convenient to use. It will now suggest to you users it thinks will need access to certain files. Instead of going with the default “turn link sharing,” this should help improve security.

Aside from this, the app now supports more file types, including those stored on a Team Drive. G Suite enterprise users will have their sharing settings still be configured by administrators. Admins can select what options appear to users in Access Checker. As explained, “This launch respects the settings you’ve already chosen for Sharing outside your domain, Access Checker, and Link Sharing Defaults. If you’ve chosen to limit Access Checker to Recipients only, link sharing will not be suggested.”

Source: 9to5Google

Google isn’t ruling out making a Google Home speaker with a screen

The JBL Link View is one of the third-party Google Assistant-enabled speakers

Before you wonder if Google is thinking on letting third-party manufacturers occupy the space of Google Assistant-enabled speakers with display, we’re here to set the record straight, sort of. Google’s VP of home products Rishi Chandra said in an interview with Variety that the company isn’t completely ruling out developing a Google Home device that comes with a screen. He says, “It’s an emerging category. I’m not saying we are not going to do it.” Having a display on a Google Home speaker would help enhance the experience of using it. You’ll be able to see the map, if you’re asking for directions or check your calendar, among other things. But it’s too early to say when this might happen or if it really will. And if Google will tie in exclusive features to their homegrown product. What it means for consumers though is one more option to consider.  

Source: CNET