Google Photos makes scanning photographs easy with PhotoScan

There aren’t a lot of people that still print photographs these days but we’re positive a lot of you still hold on to prints of old photographs. Now, wouldn’t it be great to digitize all these wonderful memories? If you think getting a scanner or having someone do that for you is too troublesome, Google has an easier fix with PhotoScan. This new standalone app can easily digitize your cherished photographs at high quality while getting rid of glare. The photos will even be added to your Google Photos account for easier organization.

You just need to take a shot of the photo you want to digitize and follow the guide on the camera on how to take the shots. This will help the app correct the aspect ratio, alignment, and even the colors of the images. Aside from that, it also gets rid of the glare that usually appears when you shoot with a smartphone. PhotoScan is available for both Android and iOS.

Microsoft and Code.org celebrate Computer Science Education Week with free ‘Minecraft’-based coding tutorial

Microsoft and Code.org are at it again this year with Minecraft Hour of Code Designer, a coding tutorial for students and educators. The two organizations partnered yet again for this entry for Hour of Code, an annual global campaign held during Computer Science Education Week from December 5 to 11. The web-based tutorial allows beginner coders to create and share their own simple Minecraft game, which at the same time is teaching them the needed critical thinking and problem-solving skills for working in this modern age.

The tutorial is available in 10 languages and is scheduled to be available in 50 languages by December 5. It’s designed for ages 6 and up and features Code.org’s drag-and-drop coding interface to teach computer science concepts like object-oriented programming, event handlers, and repeat loops. There will be a series of 12 challenges for players to overcome and resulting in them being able to create their own simple game that they can share with friends. Microsoft also plans to host hundreds of free workshops in Microsoft Stores around the world. You can secure a spot for these youth coding events through this link or by visiting your local Microsoft Store.

Facebook brings back chatroom feature in Messenger

Sometimes you need someone to talk to about your still growing stamp collection, your young niece or even your closest cousin might not be the proper audience for that. You might soon find people from your “tribe” with the revival of a Facebook featured called Rooms. It lets you enter a group chat with people who share a specific interest, and they don’t necessarily have to be your friend or acquaintance on Facebook. It was a standalone app back in 2014 but Facebook had to pull the plug when social-networking app Room claimed the social media giant stole the idea.

Facebook resurrects the idea for Canadian and Australian users but now has it within Facebook Messenger. It’ll allow you to create public rooms to chat about anything you fancy. You can opt to start a private room as well.

Source: PCMag

WhatsApp to finally get video calling feature

A long-awaited feature is finally coming to WhatsApp: free video calls. The ability to make one-on-one video calls is coming to the app in the coming days. It can be accessed in the same location you access voice calls, under the phone icon in one-on-one chat windows. For now there won’t be group video calls as WhatsApp wanted to make sure the feature can work on older devices or those who have slower connections.

Source: Mashable