The social network, called dduplicata, supposedly gives you a second digital self that’s enhanced with artificial intelligence. The online clone is meant to take over the most routine tasks of everyday digital life, like sending emails. It’s part of a growing movement to create a metaverse or network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connections. “I believe the importance of digital clones is going to grow as people begin to understand how they fit into their own lives and work,” Luke Thompson, COO of visual effects company ActionVFX, told Lifewire in an email interview....

That said, the iPhone 4 was a major step forward over its predecessors in a number of areas. First, the iPhone 4 was visibly different from earlier versions thanks to its more-square shape (gone were the iPhone 3GS’ tapered sides), a microSIM slot on its side, and circular volume buttons on the left. When looking at the iPhone 4 it was also immediately clear that something had changed: the screen was much higher resolution....

Sonos allows you to create “zones” around your home for listening to music. A zone can be a single “player” in a room, or it can be an area of your home, or it can be any combination of players in your home. A “zone” is created when you choose one or more players to play the same music at the same time. If you have more than one Sonos player, you can group all of the players, or choose any combination of players to create a zone in the living room, bedroom, kitchen, den, or even outdoors....

What Is an ACF File? A file with the ACF file extension is most likely an Adobe Custom Filter file, a format that stores values that are to be used in Adobe Photoshop for manipulating the pixels that exist around a specific pixel. Some files with this extension are associated with the Steam video game distribution platform as an application cache file, used to store information about downloads and updates. If your ACF file isn’t in either of these formats, it may instead be an X-Plane Aircraft file or an Agent Character Data file....

What Is Voice Shopping and How Does It Work? The second part of voice ordering is placing the order. One great Echo feature is the device’s ability to remember your past purchases and even remind you when you need to reorder items. Alexa can also recommend items based on customer reviews and automatically apply any coupons or discounts to your order. You can also decide whether you want to set up an Alexa Voice Code to prevent accidental orders....

Alienware, however, has just announced a pair of forward-thinking gaming monitors with a feature to address this very issue—retractable headset hangers. Just push a button to slide out the hanger and marvel at finding the ideal place to rest your headphones when they are not in use. Of course, this isn’t the company’s first gaming monitor rodeo, so this pair of upcoming displays, the 27-inch AW2723DF and 25-inch AW2523HF, are packed with features to suit both competitive and casual players, beyond that nifty headset hanger....

Some of the things smartwatches and activity trackers can measure are pretty unusual—such as fertility and sun exposure—while others are endlessly useful. Fitness Trackers When it comes to the vast majority of wearable tech, there are two basic categories: fitness trackers (also known as activity trackers, and most commonly identified with the brand Fitbit) and smartwatches. Not all wearables fall under one of these two boxes, but here we’ll focus on these two categories....

I’ve used Tile trackers in the past to stop misplacing my keys and wallet, but they’re mostly useful when you’re already in the same room as the item you’re looking for. AirTags leverage Apple’s existing Find My app and a new chip Apple developed itself called the U1, so I was very interested to see what they could do. I tested a set of four AirTags over the course of about a month, checking out how easy they are to set up and use, how effective they are at helping you find lost items, and how well the Find My app and U1 chip work....

We’ve known about several of the updates planned for iOS 16 and watchOS 9 since Apple’s most recent WWDC, but the company has even more planned for health monitoring. A new report details a lot of what we can expect in both upcoming operating systems—focusing on 17 different areas of health and fitness. And the ability to store over 150 types of user health data. Activity monitoring, heart health, and sleep monitoring aren’t the only things Apple can (or will be able to) keep track of for you....

The second-generation AirPods Pro earbuds are equipped with the brand new H2 chipset to increase audio fidelity and make connecting to your other Apple devices even easier. This chipset has also been designed with ambient noise reduction, offering twice the amount of noise cancellation as the previous model. Additionally, the transparency mode has been given a boost, as the algorithms are now better at automatically adjusting the speakers to allow you to hear the world around you when needed....

The iTunes podcast directory is the de facto universal catalog of podcasts. Anyone can submit their show, and any developer can access the catalog and include it in their podcast app. It’s a fantastic resource that Apple has left alone for years. Now, though, Spotify is going after podcasting—and podcast advertising—in a big way, and Apple is finally starting to fight back. And that’s a very good thing. “Spotify was already the biggest threat to podcasts…,” wrote podcaster and podcast app developer Marco Arment on Twitter “They’re fragmenting podcasts into two worlds—Spotify’s walled garden with exclusives and ad tracking, and the open ecosystem of everyone else—to co-opt ‘podcasts’ to imply ‘on Spotify’....

With SharePlay on Disney+, you can co-watch movies and shows on the streaming service with up to 32 people on a FaceTime call, according to an announcement from Disney. The feature is available for Apple devices running tvOS 15.1, iOS 15.1, or iPadOS 15.1 or later. The SharePlay sessions on Disney+ allow you to choose a different language for audio and subtitles when watching with family or friends. In addition, subscribers can watch popular titles like Marvel Studios’ Hawkeye, Welcome to Earth, and upcoming Disney+ premieres like Encanto and The Book of Boba Fett via SharePlay....

The SE, starting at $279, bests its competitors in almost every respect. The screen is clear, sharp, and bright, and the performance is zippy. All it lacks is the ECG and blood oxygen monitoring of its more expensive Series 6 big brother, but there’s a good argument to be made that Apple’s health features aren’t for everyone. I’ll come right out and admit that I recently bought the Series 6....

What Is an APPLICATION File? A file with the .APPLICATION file extension is a ClickOnce Deployment Manifest file. They provide a way to launch Windows applications from a web page with just one click. The file holds information about application updates by including the name, identity of the publisher, application version, dependencies, update behavior, digital signature, etc. Files with this extension are seen alongside APPREF-MS files, which are Microsoft Application Reference files....

Is a Mechanical Keyboard Good for Typing? Mechanical keyboards are generally regarded as good keyboards for typing. They offer switches under each key rather than rubber membrane like most standard keyboards, which means a superior feeling when typing. Each keypress is tangibly felt, helping users maintain more precise and accurate typing. Mechanical keyboards are often more customizable and last longer, which helps when typing. The main downside is they usually cost a lot more than a regular keyboard....

Basic Tenets of the ACID Model There are four basic tenets of the ACID model: The atomicity of transactions ensures that each database transaction is a single unit that adopts an “all or nothing” approach to execution. If any statement in the transaction fails, the entire transaction is rolled back. Relational databases also ensure the consistency of each transaction with the database’s business rules. If any element of an atomic transaction would disrupt the consistency of the database, the entire transaction fails....

Can I Keep My Phone Number With VoIP? You have used a phone number for years and many people recognize you or your company through it, and you don’t want to abandon it for a new one. Switching to VoIP means changing phone service providers and also phone numbers. Can you still use your existing landline PSTN phone number with your new VoIP service? Will your VoIP service provider allow you to keep your existing phone number?...

Change Outlook So It Sends Mail Right Away If Outlook waits to send your email according to a schedule, change the settings so that it sends emails immediately when you press the Send button. What Happens When ‘Send immediately when connected’ Is Enabled? When the ​Send immediately when connected option is enabled in Outlook and you click Send, what happens next depends on whether you are connected to a network and whether Outlook is offline or online:...

First, make sure you are using a strong password. The password for your Google account is also your password for your Chromebook. Experts suggest using a combination of upper and lowercase letters, along with non-alphabetic characters, such as numbers or symbols. Others suggest using a passphrase rather than a password. It’s also a good idea to use two-factor authentication (2FA) to protect your account. 2FA requires that you confirm all logins with your phone before the login is successful....

What Is Composite Video? The composite video connector is the oldest and most common video connection that is still in use. It can still be found on many video source components and display devices, including VCRs, camcorders, DVD players, cable/satellite boxes, video projectors, and TVs. However, composite video connections have been eliminated from Blu-ray disc players and most newer streaming devices. Composite video signals are analog and typically consist of 480i (NTSC)/576i (PAL) standard-definition resolution video signals....