Technology

Microsoft’s original Xbox console source code has leaked online, alongside code for a version of Windows NT 3.5. The Xbox source code includes the kernel for the operating system on the original console, a custom version of Windows 2000. We can confirm the leaked Xbox OS is genuine, and appeared online earlier this month. “We’re aware of these reports and are investigating,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge. While the Xbox OS leak includes some build environments, the Xbox Development Kit, emulators used for testing, and internal documents, we understand this kernel and source code has been passed around privately among enthusiasts previously. That means it’s unlikely to help further homebrew and emulator efforts for original Xbox games. A number of emulators exist...

BuzzFeed has introduced a multiplayer version of its classic quizzes called Quiz Party, which lets you and up to three friends complete them simultaneously in your browser. The feature gives you a unique URL to share with friends so you can quickly found out, as a group, what geological epoch matches your personality or what Disney princess you are based on your blood type. (Disclaimer: these are not, so far as we know, real BuzzFeed quizzes.) At the moment the functionality is quite basic. You’re each still essentially completing the quiz on your own, and there’s no chat feature to let you talk to your friends. But it’s a lot more social than simply sharing the results of a quiz on social media, and waiting for friends to complete it in their own time. Although you work through the questi...

EA plans to release the source code for its classic real-time strategy games Command and Conquer: Tiberian Dawn and Command and Conquer: Red Alert, the studio announced today. The source code for the two games is scheduled to be available alongside the release of Command and Conquer Remastered Collection, which includes remastered versions of both titles and their expansions, on June 5th. By open sourcing the games, players should be able to use the assets to create mods that could, in theory, be quite extensive. “These open source DLLs should assist users to design maps, create custom units, replace art, alter gameplay logic, and edit data,” said EA’s Jim Vessella, producer on Command and Conquer Remastered, in a blog post. The open sourced assets can also be used in tandem with a new map...

A group of Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), is calling on the Trump administration Wednesday to launch an antitrust investigation into Uber and Grubhub if the two companies decide to merge. In their Wednesday letter, Klobuchar, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) requested that the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission “closely monitor” talks of a deal between the two food delivery companies. If they reach an agreement, the senators are asking that the government “initiate an investigation.” Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Uber made an offer to buy Grubhub and that a deal could be reached as early as June. Uber operates its own food delivery service, Uber Eats, which directly competes with Grubhub. ...

Facebook will begin reopening its offices worldwide on July 6th with stringent safety measures in place, according to a new report from Bloomberg published on Wednesday. The reopening plan is part of a multistep process the social network has in place to begin restoring some of its in-person operations, which are crucial to its data center management and the development of hardware like the Portal video chatting device and its Oculus line of virtual reality headsets and accessories. The company will begin by operating at 25 percent capacity, meaning only one-fourth of its standard workforce will ever be working in the same building at the same time. Those who do will be required to wear face masks and undergo temperature checks to monitor for virus symptoms consistent with COVID-19, Bloomb...

Samsung has announced yet another version of the Galaxy S20: the Galaxy S20 Tactical Edition, which promises a “mission-ready military smartphone.” It’s designed for a slightly different customer-base than the already-released S20, S20 Plus, S20 Ultra, or even the Verizon-only mmWave S20. Despite the grand military branding and aspirations, the S20 Tactical Edition is effectively just a regular S20 phone with some extra software features and security options in a rugged Juggernaut case. From a hardware perspective, the Tactical Edition features identical specs, with a 6.2-inch OLED display, Snapdragon 865, 12GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, sub-6GHz 5G support, and triple rear camera system. But according to Samsung, the Tactical Edition “caters to the unique needs of military operators” by of...

Instagram has posted its guidelines for using copyrighted music during live videos, Stories, and other posts on the platform, and part of the announcement includes a new update to the notification that pops up to tell users they’re using unlicensed art in ways that violate its rules. The changes to the pop-up notification are designed around helping users avoid Instagram’s automated interruptions — like muting or outright blocking — that occurs if a piece of licensed music plays for too long over or in the background of a live video. Now, the notification pops up earlier in live broadcasts to give users more time to remove the audio so they can avoid having the stream disrupted or taken down. Instagram will also give clearer instructions to remedy the situation in the event a stream is aut...

Tesla is raising the price of the top tier “Full Self-Driving” version of its Autopilot driver assistance package by around $1,000 on July 1st, CEO Elon Musk announced on Twitter this week. The company has done this before — a few times. It will probably do it again. The “Full Self-Driving” package, to be clear, does not yet make Teslas capable of driving without human intervention. Right now, it gives customers access to a series of incremental improvements to Autopilot. But Musk believes the value of the feature, which currently costs $7,000, is higher. Much higher, in fact, once the work on the software is complete. “[The] price will continue to rise as the software gets closer to full self-driving capability with regulatory approval. It that point, the value of FSD is probably somewher...

Intel has acquired Rivet Networks, the maker of Killer-branded NICs (network interface cards responsible for managing your connection) found in some laptops from popular brands like Dell, Alienware, HP, and other manufacturers. Killer’s own networking products were noteworthy for providing gaming-centric features like minimizing latency to keep you from missing a beat in-game, and prioritizing network traffic for games and other applications that need it the most. Rivet Networks has been a competitor to Intel in the NIC space for over a decade. With this acquisition, Intel can capitalize on the gaming market. This acquisition isn’t as out of left field as it might seem. A few years back, Intel and Rivet Networks collaborated to develop the Killer Wireless-AC 1550 NIC, with Intel handling t...

Tesla voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit against Alameda County “without prejudice,” according to documents filed in a California court Wednesday — but the company did not provide any reasoning for why it was dropping the suit. The electric carmaker sued the county on May 9th, amid Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s war of words with county officials over the shuttering of his company’s manufacturing facility in Fremont, California. the company did not provide any reasoning for dropping the suit The orders went into effect in mid-March in order to slow the spread of COVID-19. County officials restricted all but “essential businesses” from performing anything other than the most minimal operations, like processing payroll. After initially fighting the order, Tesla shut down the factory on March 23rd. Mus...

Lego and Nintendo had already announced that their interactive Super Mario Lego starter set and two expansion packs would launch on August 1st, and the two companies announced today that four swappable outfits for Mario, called “Power-Up Packs,” will also be released on the same day. Inspired by the classic costumes from the Super Mario games, the Power-Up Packs not only change the appearance of Lego Mario but will also produce sounds for each corresponding suit. Fire Mario, for example, makes a sound as if Mario is throwing a fireball, and Cat Mario will have him making “meow” noises. Propeller Mario makes propeller sounds when you have him “fly,” and Builder Mario can “break bricks” when you bring Mario down for a ground pound attack. Each Power-Up Pack will cost $9.99 and will be sold s...

Twitter is testing a way to let you limit how many people can reply to your tweets. If you’re part of the test, when you compose a tweet, you’ll be able to select if you’ll allow replies from everyone, people you follow, or only people you @ mention. Twitter said in January that this feature would be coming to the platform sometime this year. Here’s a video from Twitter showing how the feature works: Testing, testing… A new way to have a convo with exactly who you want. We’re starting with a small % globally, so keep your out to see it in action. pic.twitter.com/pV53mvjAVT — Twitter (@Twitter) May 20, 2020 If you limit replies on a tweet, everyone who can see your tweets will still be able to see that tweet, and they’ll be able to like it and retweet it — they just won’t be able to r...