678: Stop Doing That!

WordPress has officially jumped the pineapple, forcing users to agree that pineapple belongs on pizza to log in. Critics call it a kindergarten move, especially when serious feature requests are ignored. Meanwhile, the crypto world is celebrating its new political allies, but experts warn we’re inching toward a financial apocalypse that taxpayers will be stuck cleaning up. On the East Coast, people are mistaking stars for drones while pilots dodge lasers in what’s shaping up to be the plot of a bad sci-fi movie. Oh, and crop circles? Yeah, they’re back because why the hell not?

Elsewhere, TikTok’s battle for survival heads to the Supreme Court, and Character.ai faces backlash for hosting chatbots based on school shooters. Meta’s EU drama escalates over its failure to tackle terrorist content, and Arizona is ditching teachers for AI because who needs humans when you’ve got algorithms?

On the media front, we break down the Star Trek: Lower Decks finale, geek out over Silo’s two-season endgame, and get hyped for Dune: Prophecy and a fresh Superman teaser. Tech talk includes Temu dominating app downloads, Microsoft killing passwords in favor of passkeys, and Spotify pulling a fast one with “ghost artists” to dodge royalties.

On the Dark Side with Dave, we explore the cooler corners of ham radio, AI’s chokehold on creativity, and how surveillance turns your brain into mush. Meanwhile, Amazon’s return-to-office disaster has employees ready to riot, and sci-fi fans can gear up for Peter Cawdron’s Minotaur, the next big hit in his First Contact series.

Sponsors:

Mint Mobile - Get a new 3-month premium wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month at MintMobile.com/Grumpy.

DeleteMe - Head over to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use the code "GOG" for 20% off.

1Password Extended Access Management - Check it out at 1Password.com/grumpyoldgeeks. Secure every sign-in for every app on every device.

Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.

SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!

1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1password

Show notes at https://gog.show/678

FOLLOW UP

To Log Into WordPress, You Now Have To Agree Pineapple on Pizza Is Good

Crypto Got What It Wanted in November’s Election. Now What?

Dimwit Americans Are Looking at the Night Sky and Mistaking Stars and Airplanes for "Drones"

“We Are Getting Lasered”: Nearly a Dozen Planes Lasered Last Night During New Jersey Drone Panic

IN THE NEWS

US Supreme Court agrees to hear TikTok’s ban appeal

Character.ai Lets Users Role Play With Chatbots Based on School Shooters

People Are Making AI Versions of Luigi Mangione That Call for Slaying of More CEOs

Google says customers can use its AI in 'high-risk' domains, so long as there's human supervision

Exclusive: Google's Gemini is forcing contractors to rate AI responses outside their expertise

Instagram’s head says social media needs more context because of AI

More than 140 Kenya Facebook moderators diagnosed with severe PTSD

Arizona School’s Curriculum Will Be Taught by AI, No Teachers

Meta put on watch over terrorism content in the EU

Microsoft Confirms Password Deletion For 1 Billion Users—Attacks Up 200%

EU privacy regulator fines Meta 251 million euros for 2018 breach

Cambridge Analytica scandal still lingering on as Meta settles with Australian users

FTC bans hidden junk fees in short-term lodging, live-event ticket prices

Grubhub settles with the FTC over adding restaurants without their consent

Elon Musk, SpaceX reportedly under federal review for undisclosed meetings with foreign leaders

Amazon’s RTO delays exemplify why workers get so mad about mandates

MEDIA CANDY

Star Trek: Lower Decks finale

Dune: Prophecy

Super/Man

Superman Teaser Trailer

Silo Was Just Renewed for Two Final Seasons

Bad Monkey season 2 is coming to Apple TV+

Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was...

New Report Alleges Spotify Is Filling Playlists with Ghost Artists to Minimize Royalty Costs

Hysterical Podcast

Our Fake History Podcast

APPS & DOODADS

Temu is the most-downloaded app on the U.S. App Store in 2024

Surprise, Surprise: No One Is Buying an iPhone for Apple Intelligence

AT THE LIBRARY

3zekiel by Peter Cawdron

Feedback by Peter Cawdron

THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE

Dave Bittner

The CyberWire

Hacking Humans

Caveat

Control Loop

Only Malware in the Building

Online Amateur Radio Community

Hamfurs

Men In The US Are Peeing Incorrectly According To Urologist

The psychological implications of Big Brother’s gaze

The Algorithm Has Been Hiding Something From You | NYT Opinion

Helpful products for the voice from Ana Gasteyer.

biotène Dry Mouth Lozenges for Dry Mouth and Fresh Breath

Voice37 - Singers Voice Remedy

Lubricity Dry Mouth Oral Spray

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.