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Google’s Public Alerts now display tweets in times of crisis

Jun05
by on June 5, 2014 at 12:08 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Google, Insider

Google’s Crisis Response tool is designed to make “critical information more accessible in times of disaster”, and has been used in the past for hurricanes and floods. Now, Google has announced it will also display relevant tweets on a special subset of Public Alerts, which serve to warn users in specific locales of an impending disaster, hitherto via official sources. Starting from June 3, Google says that Public Alerts have started including tweets for some of the more “extreme Public Alerts”, with a view towards answering questions, such as whether schools are closing. It will also reveal what people are…

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Edyn wants to make your garden smart with its connected soil sensor and watering attachment

Jun05
by on June 5, 2014 at 12:00 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Gadgets

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You’ve been busy turning your home into a smart one, but what about your garden? Edyn just kicked off a Kickstarter campaign to build a combination smart soil sensor and a hose attachment so you can easily manage your garden from your smartphone. Edyn’s creator, Jason Aramburu, worked as a soil scientist prior to inventing the company’s devices. The product is designed to help both expert and novice gardeners. Fuse Project contributed to the hardware. The Edyn sensor runs off solar power and connects to your WiFi network. It uses electrical impulses to monitor the state of your soil and…

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Faces.im for Chrome brings Facebook messaging chat-heads to your desktop

Jun05
by on June 5, 2014 at 11:19 am
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, Insider

Everyone knows how distracting Facebook can be when you’re trying to work. But, well, most of us plough on through anyway and try to combine productivity with regular bouts of social networking anyway. With that in mind, Faces.im is a beautifully simple extension for Chrome, that serves up a little pop-out chat head at the side of the screen. Faces.im for Reading Your Facebook Messages Once you’ve connected up your Facebook account, all you do is hover your mouse over the avatar when a message arrives to read it – no need to leave your active tab and risk becoming…

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Great deal: Get 50% off one year of Backblaze’s online backup service for today only

Jun05
by on June 5, 2014 at 11:09 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Offers

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The online backup market is crowded, but a few services stand above the rest. The Next Web readers can now get 50 percent off one year of unlimited online backup from Backblaze. For $24.99, you can get unlimited, automatic backup from one of the best online backup services on the market. Backblaze is famous for being especially easy to setup. It runs quietly in the background, continuously backing up all your files and data. The Next Web’s Josh Ong recently agreed saying “The service does an excellent job at running in the background without me having to pay attention to…

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Rakuten’s Wuaki.tv partners with Microsoft to bring its movie and TV-streaming service to Windows 8.1

Jun05
by on June 5, 2014 at 10:19 am
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, Insider

Wuaki.tv, the fledgling movie and TV streaming platform owned by Japanese internet powerhouse Rakuten, has partnered with Microsoft to launch a new dedicated app for Windows 8.1. The service, which is only available in the UK, Spain and Andorra for now, offers two different payment options: unlimited streaming with a monthly subscription, similar to Netflix, or the option to rent and purchase digital titles individually, akin to iTunes or Amazon Instant Video. The Windows 8.1 app brings HD quality movies and TV shows to Windows 8.1 machines, and is in addition to its existing apps for mobiles, tablets, consoles and…

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