Category: Technology

A Kaiser Permanente systems outage has pharmacies relying on pen and paper

Healthcare company Kaiser Permanente is dealing with a system outage that is forcing its hospitals and pharmacies to fill out prescriptions with pen and paper — and is slowing down services at other parts of the company, too.

“Kaiser Permanente is currently experiencing network interruptions, at one of our data centers, which is impacting some of our applications,” Kaiser Permanente spokesperson Kathleen Campini Chambers says in a statement to The Verge. “All of our clinical facilities are operational. However, members may be facing delays in certain services such as lab, radiology, and pharmacy online and in our facilities. We deeply apologize for the inconvenience. Our technical teams are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Members can go to kp.org for updates.“

The company is also showing alerts on its regional websites, including for Northern California and Oregon / SW Washington. “At this time, you may not be able to access some features on our site, including e-visits, billing, message center, and records,” Kaiser Permanente says.

One Verge staffer saw the problems firsthand today while trying to get a prescription filled at a Kaiser hospital pharmacy. They said all the pharmacy’s systems were down, including payment …read more

David Lynch auction offers a glimpse of his personal and creative life

David Lynch auction offers a glimpse of his personal and creative life

The innovative director David Lynch, who left indelible marks on film and television, passed away in January of this year. Now, Julien’s Auctions is hosting the sale of The David Lynch Collection. More than 450 of the late director’s possessions will be auctioned off online and at the company’s auction house in Gardena, CA. For devotees of Lynch’s work and worldview, just the experience of browsing the collection is pretty fascinating.

The auction showcases plenty of items closely related to his career in film, such as a personalized director’s chair, multiple cameras, lighting kits and memorabilia from his many iconic works. Other pieces more broadly reflect his passion for creativity, like audio equipment, musical instruments, painting supplies and a whole lot of literature and vinyl records. The collection also has furniture, like the couch from his 1997 classic Lost Highway, kitchen wares and many personal items from his life. You can even bid on his LaserDisc player and disc collection.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/david-lynch-auction-offers-a-glimpse-of-his-personal-and-creative-life-223501136.html?src=rss …read more

X is ‘pausing’ encrypted DMs

X is ‘pausing’ encrypted DMs

X users can no longer send encrypted messages on the platform. The company said in an update that it’s “pausing” the feature “while we work on making some improvements.” Users will still be able to view previously-sent encrypted chats, but won’t be able to send any new ones.

Up to now, encrypted DMs have been available only on messages between verified users who are mutual or who have previously accepted DMs from each other. Screenshots of the feature from X’s help center labeled it as “early access.” (Notably, there were a number of other important caveats to X’s encryption, even when it was working, including the fact that encryption was never available for group chats, multimedia messages or metadata .)

It’s unclear when the feature will be available again or if the “pause” has anything to do with “XChat,” the company’s yet-to-be-launched chat platform. X employees have been dropping hints about XChat, which will reportedly feature encrypted direct messages, for some time. Screenshots from leakers suggest XChat could have additional security features like PIN-protected chats.

Officially, though, X hasn’t revealed much about XChat or what’s going on with the current version of encrypted DMs. X’s …read more

EA cancels Black Panther game and closes studio developing it

EA cancels Black Panther game and closes studio developing it

EA is cancelling its Black Panther game and closing the studio creating it, Cliffhanger Games, as part of a larger round of layoffs at the company, IGN reports. The third-person action-adventure game was originally announced in July 2023 as one of several Marvel projects being developed at EA studios.

IGN writes that a smaller number of people are being laid off than the previous round of cuts that impacted Titanfall developer Respawn, but EA is still eliminating roles outside of Cliffhanger, including people on the publisher’s “mobile and central teams.” EA is reportedly telling staff that the layoffs are a way to “sharpen our focus and put our creative energy behind the most significant growth opportunities.”

As of right now, those “opportunities” include an Iron Man game in development at EA Motive, the next Star Wars Jedi game from Respawn, and new entries in a few key franchises, like The Sims, Battlefield, Skate and Apex Legends. Beyond that, the company has EA Sports and the next Mass Effect game, though Bioware has gone through multiple rounds of layoffs since 2023, so there’s uncertainty there, …read more

Tile trackers are being fully integrated into Life360

Tile trackers are getting more deeply integrated with the Life360 app. In a blog post published this week, Life360 announced that you’ll now be able to set up and manage the handy Bluetooth location trackers without using the Tile app at all. 

Life360, a family safety and location app, purchased Tile’s Bluetooth device-tracking business for $205 million in 2022. Since then, Tiles have been part of the Life360 app, allowing you to track the location of both people and items in one app, but you still needed to use the Tile app to set up the tracking devices. As part of the transition, the Life360 app will get some of the Tile app’s features, including sending an automatic push notification if you leave an item behind and the ability to see location history for Tile-tracked items.

The move seems aimed at pushing Tile’s users toward the Life360 app. The company told TechCrunch that the Tile app is not being retired “at this time,” but that’s not surprising, as it’s likely to take a while to move customers to the new app. Considering that as of last month, the Tile.com domain now redirects to <a class="colorbox" …read more

Years after acquiring Tile, Life360 has integrated the trackers into its app

Years after acquiring Tile, Life360 has integrated the trackers into its app

Life360, a family locator app, said today that it has fully integrated the object-tracking features of Tile into its own platform. The Life360 app can now set up and manage Tile trackers, deliver notifications when an item gets left behind and provide real-time location updates for the trackers in addition to its usual features for managing family members’ safety.

Life360 announced its acquisition of Tile for $205 million way back in 2021. At the time of the purchase, Life360 said Tile would continue to operate independently, but it has still been a long time coming for the two businesses to fully integrate with each other’s offerings. In that time, Tile has faced challenges from competitors that have more resources at their back, such as Apple and AirTags. It was also subject to a cyberattack last year where hackers obtained customers’ names, addresses, email addresses and other personal information.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/years-after-acquiring-tile-life360-has-integrated-the-trackers-into-its-app-205111206.html?src=rss …read more

Google says Instagram fixed a battery drain issue on Android

If you’ve been having unusual battery drain issues on your Pixel phone lately, Instagram might be to blame. In a new support post, Google says that Instagram has updated its app to address the issue.

The fix comes in Instagram version 382.0.0.49.84, which you can grab from Google Play now. If you don’t see the option to update, it could be that you’ve already got it. You can check by long-pressing the Instagram app, tapping “App info,” then scrolling to the bottom to look for the version number. 

It looks like Instagram may have been responsible for complaints about battery drain on Pixel devices since a Pixel software update earlier this month. 9to5Google reports that, when asked about the battery drain issue, Google pointed to the support post announcing the Instagram update. The outlet wrote in mid-May that the issue seemed to impact every Pixel model that got the May update, from the Pixel 6 through the Pixel 9. It’s not clear whether other Android phones were hit with the same issue, or whether Instagram was indeed the main culprit.

…read more

Tesla’s iPhone app now supports Live Activities for Supercharging

Tesla’s latest iOS app update allows the user to view their car’s Supercharging progress on their phone’s lock screen, Not a Tesla App reports.

The feature takes advantage of Apple’s Live Activities feature, which gives apps the ability to display real-time updates on your lock screen, like showing your Uber is going to arrive or when your ParkMobile parking meter is about to expire. In Tesla’s case, it can keep you updated on the charging session and help alert you to move your car when it’s done to avoid idle fees.

The Supercharger Live Activity shows how much time is left in the session, your current charge percentage, an estimated cost, the charge speed, and how much energy you’ve added. Currently, it does not show up if you’re charging at home or non-Supercharger stalls.

Supercharger Live Activities is available now in the Tesla iOS app version …read more

Roll7’s OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome are back on Steam

Roll7’s OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome are back on Steam

Their creators might be gone, but OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome are finally back on Steam, based on listings spotted by Eurogamer. Both games were delisted from storefronts like Steam and the Xbox Games Store following publisher Take-Two’s decision to shutdown developer Roll7, Intercept Games and publishing label Private Division a little over a year ago.

OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome represent diverging, but equally great examples of what made Roll7 special. They’re thoughtful, visually stylish games about skateboarding and rollerblading that capture the zen-like state you can enter pulling off multiple tricks in a row (plus or minus a mascot costume and a shotgun).

Eurogamer notes that Take-Two always planned to put both games back on sale when it originally delisted them, it just took a lot longer to bring them back than expected. 2K, another Take-Two subsidiary, is now serving as the publisher. 

When the company closed Private Division, not every game stayed at Take-Two. The publisher continues to back games like No Rest for the Wicked from the developer of Ori and the Blind Forest, but a collection of other in-development projects …read more

Get one year of Peacock Premium for only $25

Get one year of Peacock Premium for only $25

Another great streaming deal has hit the internet: one year of Peacock Premium is only $25 right now. Just use the code SPRINGSAVINGS at checkout to get $55 off the standard annual price of the Premium plan. Just note that this tier does include ads, and the deal runs through May 30.

Peacock is a decent platform and made our list of the best streaming services. It doesn’t get the attention of Netflix or Disney+, but it’s home to several nifty original shows. There’s the AI-adjacent tomfoolery of Mrs. Davis and the Rian Johnson-made whodunnit Poker Face. It also airs several video game adaptations, like Knuckles and the surprisingly-decent Twisted Metal.

The big draw here, however, is likely the long-awaited spinoff of The Office, which is called The Paper. That one premieres in September and is a Peacock exclusive. The platform also signed an 11-year agreement with the NBA and that goes into effect this fall. The mobile app could be getting minigames and short-form vertical videos (like TikTok) in the near future.

…read more