Category: Tech

Not So Fast, Netflix!

Along with a gazillion other people, I recently received this message from Netflix.

Hi Douglas,

We recently announced that Netflix will acquire Warner Bros., including its film and television studios, HBO Max and HBO. This unites our leading entertainment service with Warner Bros.’ iconic stories, bringing some of the world’s most beloved franchises like Harry Potter, Friends, The Big Bang Theory, Casablanca, Game of Thrones and the DC Universe together with Stranger Things, Wednesday, Squid Game, Bridgerton and KPop Demon Hunters.

What’s changing?

Nothing is changing today. Both streaming services will continue to operate separately. We have more steps to complete before the deal is closed, including regulatory and shareholder approvals. You’ll hear from us when we have more to share. In the meantime, we hope you’ll continue to enjoy watching as much as you want, whenever you want – all on your current membership plan.
We know you might have questions. Check out our Help Center for more information or contact us at any time.

Thank you for choosing Netflix. We’re committed to bringing you more great TV shows, movies, games and live programming.

The Netflix team

Netflix didn’t pay Pope Trump the indulgence money he requires, so of course he is favoring a hostile bid for Warner. Once already this year, CBS/Paramount paid a cash tribute to the King to get his approval for a merger. To ensure he gets his cut from them again, his son-in-law is backing Paramount.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/08/trump-netflix-wbd-paramount.html

There are good reasons why Netflix shouldn’t acquire Warner. Failure to participate in a thoroughly corrupt president’s shakedown isn’t one of them.

Update on Updates

Dear PC Owner:

Support for Windows 10 ended on October 14, and as we have been warning you for the past several years, this system doesn’t meet the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 11. So, no more security updates for you, unless you pay for extended support!

We are serious about this!

Okay, we let you have those, but that was absolutely the last time!

Or not.

Sincerely,

Your friends at Microsoft

P.S. Without support, you are accepting the risks associated with using this PC. Which you are doing anyway, even with support.

Going Mobile

Donald’s never-ending product announcements. At best they fail. It’s just as likely they never appear, as I suspect will happen with the Trump Phone.

The Trump Mobile phone is nowhere to be found

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/the-trump-mobile-phone-is-nowhere-to-be-found-after-months-of-delay/ar-AA1R2fpx

A small-time family business like Trump’s, lacking any sort of technical proficiency, has zero ability to develop and deploy smartphones and mobile services. So, this is just another exercise in branding, with Trump’s name slapped on somebody else’s product. But Who?

Speaking of technology… I disabled WiFi on my phone, placing it on the LTE/5G network. When I opened the Verizon Home app, I shouldn’t have been able to log onto my router and see the devices on my home network. Except I can.

WAN Remote Administration is always enabled, at least when using Verizon Home. While I’m in the process of dealing with Verizon about this serious security vulnerability, I’m looking into options from replacing the router to installing a filtering bridge.

In the Pratt Cave

Now that I’m using the Hoopla library app in addition to Kindle, I wanted an e-reader downstairs in my mancave reading spot. What about carrying the Fire HD10 tablet downstairs then back up to the kitchen? Nah. Something bigger than my phone is needed, but not that big.

Wait. What about the Lenovo Yoga 8-inch tablet that saw me through many trips to Arizona?

Retirement Man on the Go

I put the tablet away almost five years ago, after system updates ended with Android 6, and it slowed down to the point of being useless. Does it have enough life left in it to run a couple of reading apps?

After all this time, when powering it up, the battery was at 63%! Unbelievable. Once connected to WiFi, it started taking a lot of Google updates, including a system update. Whatever it was, Android 6 remained.

Eventually, the updates were done, and I was able to install the two apps I cared about. Hoopla complains about its updates requiring Android 7 and higher, but downloading and reading books is working.

One more piece of otherwise electronic waste has been forced back into service! This is nice, but not enough for me to reconsider my boycott of future Lenovo purchases. I’ll only do that if there’s a way to wake up the touchpad on my Yoga i7 laptop PC.