news – ZDNETNews and Advice on the World's Latest Innovationsnoemail@noemail.org (Maria Diaz)Thu, 22 Oct 2026 18:24:07 GMTWordPress https://wordpress.org/https://www.zdnet.comen-usno© 2007 ZDNet.comzdnet,dignan,farber,tech,news,it,software,web,social,network,interviewJoin ZDNet editors Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind as they investigate tech news and issues and spar with industry biggiesZDNet's Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind investigate tech news and issues and spar with industry biggies.Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlindpodcast@zdnet.comDan Farber, Larry Dignan and David BerlindAmazon’s Kindle Unlimited is now Kindle+, and the 2 big changes include AI audiobookshttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/kindle-unlimited-kindle-plus-audiobooks-ai/TabletsThu, 22 Oct 2026 15:55:55 GMT1381177Unlike narrated audiobooks from Audible and other providers, the audiobooks created with Virtual Voice in Kindle+ will instead be narrated by AI.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)The latest PowerToys gives your mouse 2 new tricks for free – how to use themhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/powertoys-102-windows-mouse-control/Services & SoftwareThu, 22 Oct 2026 15:17:56 GMT1383292PowerToys is one of my favorite free Windows utilities. With more than 30 tools, it offers something for everyone from beginners to power users. Here’s what’s new for mousing.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)GridCraft is the open-source Excel clone for Linux I’ve been waiting forhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/gridcraft-excel-clone-hands-on/Open SourceThu, 22 Oct 2026 02:00:00 GMT1379257If spreadsheets are your thing, but Microsoft Office isn’t, you might want to give the open-source clone, GridCraft, a try.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Not impressed with Google Maps? Make Waze your default on Pixel – here’s howhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/waze-your-way-to-a-different-default-map-app-on-pixel/AndroidThu, 22 Oct 2026 01:00:00 GMT1381118If you’re tired of Google Maps failing to get you where you need to go, set Waze as the default on your Pixel. I’ve finally figured out how.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Hold onto your old HomePod – an upgrade is on the wayhttps://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/keep-old-apple-homepod-upgrades/SpeakersWed, 21 Oct 2026 18:37:07 GMT1381426An upcoming update will bring new features to existing HomePods. Here’s what to know.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)OpenAI’s most powerful AI models turned off safety monitoring – then lied about ithttps://www.zdnet.com/innovation/openai-astra-sol-models-disable-safety-monitoring/Artificial IntelligenceWed, 21 Oct 2026 18:15:19 GMT1381039The models Astra and Sol misinterpreted instructions during internal use, which has serious implications for alignment monitoring.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Chrome warns you about suspicious websites now – how to turn on Google’s new scam protectionhttps://www.zdnet.com/business/chrome-browser-warns-suspicious-websites-scam-protection/GoogleWed, 21 Oct 2026 16:43:12 GMT1381201Google’s browser will flash two types of warnings based on whether the site is deemed dangerous or just suspicious.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Amazon unveiled 5 new Blink cameras, including a 4K model that caught my eyehttps://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/new-amazon-blink-cameras-worth-the-upgrade/Home SecurityWed, 21 Oct 2026 14:01:31 GMT1379109Five new Blink cameras are coming to the market, and the extended-range model has all my attention.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)ServiceNow and Nvidia launch Arc, a new AI agent for enterprisehttps://www.zdnet.com/innovation/exclusive-servicenow-and-nvidia-launch-arc-a-new-ai-agent-for-enterprise/Artificial IntelligenceWed, 21 Oct 2026 11:30:00 GMT1379489The two companies are trying to solve the AI agent security conundrum with multiple layers of real-time security checks.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Gemini on Android Auto can access my photos, emails, and calendar now – why I’m OK with that (mostly)https://www.zdnet.com/tech/gemini-on-android-auto-can-look-through-my-photos-emails-and-calendar-now-im-cautiously-optimistic/AndroidTue, 20 Oct 2026 20:00:00 GMT1379296The latest Android Auto update lets the AI assistant tap into your Google services for context-based responses.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Latest Windows update disables key security setting – but there’s a workaroundhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/microsoft-october-windows-update-disables-security-setting-workaround/Windows 11Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:26:05 GMT1379017A bug in Microsoft’s October Windows update prevents you from turning on a security setting that blocks malicious or suspicious apps. A Registry hack fixes the glitch.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)TechPulse puts ZDNET and 4 other tech sites in one feed – for freehttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/techpulse-free-tech-news-app-zdnet/Services & SoftwareTue, 20 Oct 2026 11:00:00 GMT1372799Choose which CNET Group publications appear in your feed, then catch up on news, reviews, and videos – without an algorithm deciding what you see.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)How to find Flock cameras near you with MapQuest’s new ‘surveillance layer’https://www.zdnet.com/tech/how-to-find-flock-cameras-nearby-mapquest-surveillance-layer/Services & SoftwareMon, 19 Oct 2026 16:59:56 GMT1377167A name from the past is emerging again to help you stay out of sight of surveillance cameras.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Plug-in solar is legal in these 10 states now – how it could save you moneyhttps://www.zdnet.com/uncategorized/plug-in-solar-balcony-solar-legalization-2026/UncategorizedSat, 17 Oct 2026 13:00:00 GMT1364911So-called balcony solar setups are becoming legal across the US. Here’s the latest.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Have a Meta business account? You’re consenting to AI scraping now, legal experts sayhttps://www.zdnet.com/business/meta-business-account-data-ai-scraping-terms/Social MediaFri, 16 Oct 2026 19:36:02 GMT1372168And there’s no opt-out available.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Munich dumps proprietary for open source (again) – but no Linux desktophttps://www.zdnet.com/business/munich-proprietary-open-source-no-linux-desktop/Enterprise SoftwareFri, 16 Oct 2026 17:11:35 GMT1370819Open source in the public sector doesn’t fail because of technical issues. It fails because it’s not aligned with the political agendapodcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Anthropic gives third-party auditors ’employee-like access’ in AI industry firsthttps://www.zdnet.com/uncategorized/anthropic-embed-third-party-ai-auditors-safety/UncategorizedFri, 16 Oct 2026 17:10:27 GMT1372147As AI labs continue to self-regulate, external evaluators play a crucial role in spotting risks.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Want an iPhone Duo before 2027? Don’t preorder from Apple – try this insteadhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/iphone-duo-preorders-delay-supply/iPhoneFri, 16 Oct 2026 16:44:50 GMT1372231Estimates for Duo preorders are now showing a ship date of late January, marking a new wait time record for Apple and its customers.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)How many jobs is your state losing to AI? This dashboard tracks the cuts – and the costhttps://www.zdnet.com/innovation/ai-job-cuts-wage-loss-by-state-tracker/Artificial IntelligenceFri, 16 Oct 2026 11:47:39 GMT1356476CAIS’ Wage Loss Dashboard puts AI-related job cuts into dollars and cents.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Renting? These 2 new Apple smart home devices are worth your money (and these 5 are not)https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/is-the-apple-home-collection-right-for-renters/Smart HomeThu, 15 Oct 2026 16:19:16 GMT1365299Eyeing Apple’s new Home Collection products? Renters should check their lease agreement before installing.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Apple’s first touchscreen MacBook is days away – with another OLED surprisehttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/apple-touchscreen-macbook-oled-ipad-mini-october-event/LaptopsThu, 15 Oct 2026 16:18:57 GMT1369809Apple reportedly set a date to unveil its new touchscreen MacBooks. Here’s what else we expect.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Claude sent a false homicide tip to police – and it’s part of a troubling AI patternhttps://www.zdnet.com/innovation/claude-false-homicide-tip/Artificial IntelligenceMon, 12 Oct 2026 17:45:44 GMT1362974Models routinely take shortcuts to pass evaluations. Who gets to decide what incidents are innocuous?podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Nvidia’s new Nemotron 3.5 Super VL is another step forward for US open-weight AIhttps://www.zdnet.com/innovation/nvidia-nemotron-3-5-super-vl-model-us-open-weight-ai/Artificial IntelligenceThu, 15 Oct 2026 15:00:00 GMT1367738Nvidia’s new models join a wave of open-weight releases from US labs on the heels of the Hugging Face hack.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Google’s new Universal Cart tracks prices on items you want now – plus 3 other trickshttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/google-universal-cart-when-to-buy-guide/Services & SoftwareThu, 15 Oct 2026 13:00:00 GMT1368109Google unveiled two new shopping tools ahead of the holiday buying season. Here’s what to know.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)Google’s new Fitbit Edge solves my biggest gripe with the Pixel Watchhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/googles-new-fitbit-edge-solves-my-biggest-gripe-with-the-pixel-watch/WearablesMon, 12 Oct 2026 13:00:00 GMT1358446Google’s watches are too dang chunky.podcast@zdnet.com (Dan Farber, Larry Dignan and David Berlind)