Technology News

A beta version of WhatsApp on iPhone shows that this version of the application will soon test passkeys, as is already the case on Android. These access keys promise to make logging into your account easier while making the process more secure.

Day by day WhatsApp continues to improve by adding new features here and there. What interests us today will increase the security of your application when you use it on the iPhone. In fact, the passkeys are getting closer and closer.

Little reminder. Passkeys – access keys in French – are generally intended to free us from passwords that are considered less and less reliable over time. These keys are managed locally directly by your device based on your biometric data (facial recognition, fingerprints). Giants like Google, Microsoft and Apple have been pushing for this tool for some time to better protect sensitive data.

WhatsApp, for its part, has already provided passkeys for the Android version of its service. In the application, affected users can go to Settings > Account > Access Keys. The messaging service then presents this tool as “an easy way to establish a secure connection.”

You can now use your fingerprint, facial recognition, or screen lock to identify yourself using a passkey. Your access keys are securely stored in a password manager.

Passkeys for WhatsApp on iPhone

But that's exactly what WhatsApp users will soon be able to do from their iPhone. This is what the specialist website WABetaInfo reveals. A new version in the TestFlight beta program adds this functionality.

Configuring a passkey (access key) on WhatsApp for iPhone // Source: WABetaInfo

We are even entitled to a screenshot that proves that the WhatsApp teams are developing this new section of the application where users can configure their passkey to access their account. You no longer need to receive a six-digit code that you then have to enter into the app to log in to your account.

WABetaInfo unfortunately cannot provide a release date to the general public, but everything indicates that this new option will be available quickly through an update to WhatsApp for iPhone.

While all eyes are on the weekend for the launch of the Vision Pro, a small Chinese startup specializing in augmented reality glasses is expanding its lead. Xreal has closed a new round of financing, allowing it to be valued at $1 billion.

Thin, light and socially acceptable augmented reality glasses do not yet exist. But the Xreal models perhaps come closest, especially the latest version unveiled during CES in early January. The Air 2 Ultra is a pretty massive device, but much smaller than a Vision Pro or a Quest 3.

Everything for augmented reality

The micro-OLED displays display 1080p per eye, and it all works with a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chip at a reasonable price of $799. The only but big limitation is that you have to connect your smartphone, which is responsible for extensive calculations… Which is no worse than connecting an external battery!

With his connected glasses, Xreal walks across the Vision Pro flowerbeds

While the competition offers mixed reality (augmented reality and virtual reality experiences), Xreal relies entirely on augmented reality, i.e. the overlay of digital images with the user's real surroundings. The manufacturer's various AR glasses models also accounted for half of this (very small) market in the third quarter of 2023. In the mixed reality sector, Xreal is content with a market share of 4%.

The Beijing-based company is given free rein to expand its production capacities. In fact, the company has raised $60 million after a new round of funding, valuing it at $1 billion. Xreal can produce 500,000 to 1 million units in 2024 and this additional profit will make it possible produce 2 million units in 2025.

Chi Xu, the boss of Xreal, wants to move forward quickly and take advantage of the advantage over the competition. He knows that his company will one day clash with Apple in the AR glasses segment. “I think we are three to five years ahead [Apple] in augmented reality,” he told Bloomberg. “But they are catching up. So we have to keep up the pace and push ourselves to our limits.”

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Source: Bloomberg

the essentials Since December 14, 1972, no human being has set foot on lunar soil. An absence that should end in 2026 with the NASA-led Artemis 3 mission. But why is it so complicated to walk on the moon fifty years later?

“It's one small step for one man, one giant leap for humanity.” Neil Armstrong's words, spoken on the moon on July 20, 1969, still resonate 55 years later. This resonates even more since there is a large gap on Earth's natural satellite after the end of the Apollo missions. But things are about to change. Since the launch of the international Artemis program led by NASA in 2017, we have never been this close to walking on the moon. The latest news says it is scheduled for 2026. Why is this taking so long? For many reasons. First, the program is much more ambitious and complex than that of the late 1960s.

Target Mars

Artemis aims to establish a permanent presence on the Moon thanks to the orbit of a lunar space station called Gateway. This station will make it possible to travel back and forth to the Moon without having to return to Earth. Save time, money and fuel. Ultimately, it also offers the possibility of preparing the journey of the first crew to Mars in order to carry out the first manned exploration missions there.

The Gateway space lunar station will make it possible to travel back and forth to the Moon without having to return to Earth. NASA

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Man's return to the moon: the essential lunar gate, future station in orbit

For environmental and budgetary reasons, the Artemis program will also rely on reusable lunar landers. “The implementation of this architecture consisting of the Gateway station and reusable lunar landers is really complex,” explains Olivier Sanguy, head of space intelligence at the Cité de l'espace in Toulouse. “NASA is taking a risk in its decisions compared to China, which has a more traditional architecture and may be able to develop more quickly.” To carry out its lunar expeditions, NASA and its European, Canadian, Japanese and Emirati partners will rely on a range of spacecraft, not all of which have proven themselves yet.

Starship, SpaceX's lunar lander, is 50 m high. SpaceX

Also read:
Space: Thomas Pesquet hopes to be the first Frenchman to walk on the moon

Reusable lander, supply ship, Orion capsule

To carry out its first missions, NASA wants to use the Starship lander developed by SpaceX with a height of 50 m. The first two test flights last year failed for the time being. A third demonstration flight is planned for early 2024. Then the moon ship Starship must be refueled with fuel (fuel) in Earth orbit by replenishment ships. This risky operation has not yet been tested. Finally, the Orion capsule, powered by the SLS rocket (Space Launch System), still needs some adjustments.

The Orion capsule, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, can accommodate four astronauts. Lockheed Martin

This capsule, which will transport the four astronauts to the moon ship Starship, was tested in 2022. Their heat shield was changed in unexpected ways upon return to Earth's atmosphere. The Artemis 3 mission was therefore postponed from the end of 2025 to September 2026. “Safety is our priority,” NASA chief Bill Nelson said in early January. On the equipment side, Axiom Space is developing spacesuits adapted to the lunar environment. They are said to be reusable despite the abrasive moon dust. This was not the case before. Given all of these elements, there is still a lot of work to be done before we can almost safely return to the Moon.

Improved security

Safety is actually the other issue delaying man's return to the moon. “During the Apollo program, it was extremely difficult to fly to the Moon, and it is always complicated to carry out manned flights on the Moon,” explains Olivier Sanguy, because the basic technology has remained the same. “We've made advances in data processing, but it's still the case. With the rockets we're using, we're still landing on the moon with retro-propulsion… so it's difficult.”

NASA's SLS rocket on its launch pad. At the top, Lockheed Martin's Orion capsule will be used to transport the four astronauts. NASA – Kim Shiflett

And then the “accepted risks” for such a mission have evolved compared to the Apollo program. “For Apollo 11, the classic saying was that it was a one in two chance (of returning). For the moon landing, Richard Nixon had also prepared a speech in the event of the death of the crew. We didn't do that for Artemis. I don't really know. The only information we have concerns the Crew Dragon and Starliner capsules. NASA has required its service providers to limit the risk to one serious accident every 320 flights. “We remain within very high risk rates. higher than in aviation. But even with the Apollo missions we are not within the limits of what we could accept.”

Budget decreased

Finally, in addition to the political will, which of course plays a role in returning to the moon more or less quickly, the financial aspect is also a decisive factor. When NASA conducted the Apollo mission, it had more than 4% of the US federal budget. Today the situation has changed significantly. “The agency currently receives only 0.5% of the federal budget and manages the Artemis program, but also the ISS, Earth observation, robots on Mars, exploration probes, the Hubble Space Telescope, etc.”

Also read:
Fifty years ago they set foot on the moon

With fewer resources, more security and a strong commitment to the environment, it is not unusual for the return to lunar soil to take some time. Especially since the idea behind the Artemis program this time is not to set foot on the moon again, but to settle there. A project… moon, literally and figuratively.

The Eidos-Montreal studio, spared a year ago, was finally hit Monday by the “global restructuring” of its new owner, Swedish group Embracer. On Monday, the layoffs of 97 people, almost a quarter of the workforce, were announced, while Bloomberg announced that the sequel to one of the studio's favorite games, Deus Ex, had been abandoned.

Published yesterday at 6:08 p.m.

Eidos-Montreal confirmed this on Monday on its LinkedIn account and further [ses] “Development teams, administration and support services” were affected by these cuts.

“The global economic context, the challenges facing our industry and the global restructuring announced by Embracer have definitively impacted our studio,” we state in this release.

In November 2022, six months after Embracer's acquisition of Square Enix's three production studios, the closure of Square Enix Montreal, which had 200 employees, was announced. The other two, Eidos-Montreal and San Francisco-based Crystal Dynamics, were unaffected, with one executive saying they had “big ambitions” for them. “We see growth opportunities focused on high-quality franchises and AAA games,” said Phil Rogers, director of CDE Entertainment, the subsidiary that Embracer founded after acquiring Square Enix.

It was impossible to get comments from Eidos-Montreal or Embracer. A spokesman for the Swedish group quoted on the IGN website recalled that “a comprehensive restructuring program for the 23-24 financial year until the end of March 2024” had been announced. “This process will be managed locally at an operational group level with an emphasis on informing affected employees first, and at a group level we will not be commenting on specific studios,” this door speech added.

Suite canceled

According to information published by Bloomberg on Monday, which has not been confirmed by Embracer, Eidos-Montreal was recently ordered to cancel the project for a new installment of Deus Ex.

This sequel, never announced but two years in the making by the Eidos Montreal teams, would have been canceled to make way for a brand new franchise.

In 2011, Deus Ex: Human Revolution was the first major game produced by the Montreal studio, founded in 2007. The last episode, Mankind Divided, is from 2016. According to the VG Chartz website, 12 million copies of Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided would have found a buyer.

Gaming News 20 years ago, this MMORPG changed online video gaming, but are there still many players playing it?

Published on January 29, 2024 at 10:00 p.m

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Just mention the three initials WOW and thousands of people's eyes light up. The famous World of Warcraft enjoyed great popularity in the 2000s and shaped the lives of many gamers. But are there even people on the servers these days?

World of Warcraft, the MMORPG phenomenon

By analyzing the success surrounding EverQuest, publisher Blizzard began thinking about the idea of ​​an open-world multiplayer adventure game. In 2000, the Ultima Online servers began to desert and Chris Metzen, designer of Warcraft II's universe and missions, saw a gap. Instead of going through the trouble of creating a new franchise, Blizzard decided to put Warcraft at the top of the list, and with that idea the project began. A Half-Life enthusiast (and mod designer for that title) was then offered a position as head designer: Jeff Kaplan.

At the beginning of September 2001, shortly before the ECTS in London (the largest European video game trade fair at the time), the World of Warcraft project was presented to the press. The project has been in development for several months and is intended to breathe epic life back into the Warcraft license. The game takes place four years after the third part (then in development) and has a trailer that causes a stir with its territory of Azeroth bathed in light. Effects, music, sound effects, graphics… everything is meticulous and the audience will be enchanted by this new production from Blizzard. Its a lot to do…

Instead of promising miracles, the developers voluntarily remain sober and give some ideas that could appear in the game. It is then an MMORPG, but the funding method has not yet been decided and the staff is trying to remain consistent, with Warcraft III scheduled for release in 2002. Tested for the first time in the US and Canada (to avoid a server crash), World of Warcraft was the subject of countless questions from the team, starting with the type camera. Subjective view, third person view? What moves, what spells, what interactions? The title becomes pharaonic and the developers realize that they have a mountain to tackle.

World of Warcraft in 2024

World of Warcraft was developed by around 60 people and was almost abandoned shortly before the pre-release (alpha) version was sent to employees and their families. At the time, Vivendi, the corporation that owns Blizzard, was planning budget cuts and targeting WOW for its huge budget (fifty million dollars). It's not going to happen. The tests were successful and on November 23, 2004, World of Warcraft was officially launched. On launch night, more than 5,000 people crowded outside the Fry's Electronics store in Fountain Valley. As the developers sign the copies, Blizzard realizes that the number of copies will not be enough to satisfy everyone. The producer and a few henchmen then arrived at the Blizzard warehouse to pick up copies and picked up the copy at the Irvine office. That evening another two thousand nine hundred happy people left with their copy. The next day the number dropped: WOW had sold 240,000 units in North America, New Zealand and Australia. The World of Warcraft madness is just beginning…

20 years later, the Dragonflight expansion has revived the excitement of World of Warcraft and the servers are filled with millions of players. In 2024, the developers are working hard to offer players exciting adventures. In addition to the three content updates for Dragonflight planned before the release of The War Within, a fourth season of Dragonflight will be released this year. There will be several new features, redesigned dungeons and new raids. Likewise, The War Within will enter beta and alpha phases. In short, World of Warcraft may be aging and facing competition, but it remains as popular as ever with its fans.

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Four professional associations sent a notice to their members on Monday advising against intravenous vitamin therapy in patients without a diagnosed health problem. This practice, which is on the rise in the province, “poses risks and the proposed benefits are not supported by scientific evidence,” they warn.

“Private clinics promote vitamin cocktails with supposed virtues such as “boosting the immune system or improving memory,” write the College of Physicians of Quebec (CMQ), the Order of Pharmacists of Quebec, that of Quebec nurses and that of dietitians-nutritionists from Quebec. However, there is “no scientific evidence” that intravenous injection of vitamins or minerals makes it possible to achieve these goals, emphasize those who warn the public.

They therefore advise against the use of infusions in people who have not been diagnosed with vitamin or mineral deficiencies, as this practice carries risks. “In the best case scenario, you have spent money unnecessarily. Then, in the worst case scenario, you expose yourself to the risk of infection because all that remains is an intravenous injection. The products must be prepared sterile and administered with caution,” explains Jean-François Desgagné, president of the Order of Pharmacists of Quebec.

In an interview with Le Devoir, Mr. Desgagné complains about the “ambiguity” about the clinics that offer these services. “For these clinics, we don’t know where the medication comes from or how it is prepared. It is difficult to know who the prescriber is and often it is a single prescriber who issues a collective prescription. So that's very worrying. »

Unlike individual prescriptions, bulk prescriptions allow clinic nurses to inject a mixture of ingredients from pharmacies intravenously without their clients even having to meet the prescriber. A survey published on our website in June last year revealed the phenomenon.

Monday's announcement was issued preemptively in the wake of the growing popularity of intravenous vitamin therapy in Quebec, noted Mr. Desgagné. “There seem to be about twenty clinics that have started this practice [dans la province] “, he specifies.

Ethical obligations

In the event of a vitamin or mineral deficiency, the doctor must definitely examine the patient before determining whether an infusion is necessary, emphasizes Dr. Mauril Gaudreault, President of the CMQ.

The notice issued by the four orders calls on their members who provide intravenous vitamin therapy services to “review this involvement” in light of their code of ethics. “The fact that you are administering an infusion prescribed by another professional does not relieve you of your obligations,” it says.

The president of the Order of Nurses of Quebec, Luc Mathieu, calls on his members to think about the reasons that lead them to inject these products into patients.

For its part, the public must exercise caution in the face of “any miracle cure,” says Dr. Mauril Gaudreault.

When it comes to health information, vigilance is required, adds Joëlle Emond, president of the Order of Quebec Nutritionists. She remembers that experts are available to answer questions from the population about their nutritional needs.

With Stephanie Vallet

To watch in the video

Last updated: Monday, January 29, 2024, 6:20 p.m. ET

Ensemble launched a special program focusing on luxury tourism in Jamaica. The launch of this new program follows the announcement last fall of the consortium with the Jamaica Tourist Board and the “Come Back to Luxurious” campaign.

The specialty program, open to all Ensemble Advisors, focuses on a handful of luxury properties – Round Hill, Half Moon, Jamaica Inn, Tryall Club, Trident Hotel and Visit Jamaica Villas – as well as two DMCs, Island Routes and Chukka Adventures. Consultants who successfully complete the program will be featured on the Ensemble’s “Come Back to Luxurious” website, have access to exclusive offers, and receive invitations to family outings. Additionally, the advisor with the most reservations receives a cash bonus each month.

The program offers several advantages for ensemble consultants:

-Target new luxury customers: Advisors have the opportunity to respond to a niche market of luxury travelers.

-Exclusive Website Features: Consultants can be featured on the Ensemble-exclusive “Come Back to Luxurious” website.

-Access to exclusive offers: Participating hotels and DMCs offer unique offers only available through this program.

-Monthly cash bonuses: The advisor with the best booking receives a cash bonus every month.

-Exclusive Luxury FAM Trips: Invitations to tailor-made luxury FAM trips for program participants.

Topics in this article to explore

A box of hockey cards that could contain around twenty Wayne Gretzky rookie cards has been found in Saskatchewan, and you'll have to pay big money to take possession of it.

A Regina family owned this O-Pee-Chee card box from the 1979-1980 season, in which “The Marvel” made his National Hockey League debut with the Edmonton Oilers.

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To date, two mint condition Gretzky cards have been found, selling in 2020 and 2021 for $1.29 million and $3.75 million, respectively. However, this treasure could contain around twenty of these cards.

“Remarkably, our supplier didn't know he had this amazing Holy Grail until he recently discovered a long-forgotten stack of cardboard boxes in his home in Saskatchewan, where unsold cards from the late 1970s and early 1980s have been gathering dust ever since. “He got them right there with you Bought from a wholesaler,” explains the auctioneer Heritage, who was responsible for the sale of the two Gretzky cards, on its website.

“No boxes of 1979-1980 O-Pee-Chee have surfaced in the 21st century, and it is impossible to imagine another one.”

In this box we find 16 boxes with 48 packs of 14 cards each. Of the 7,680 cards, it is estimated that around 27 perfect Gretzky cards were found.

The value of this box is estimated at $3 million and offers have already been received from all sides. An amount of $1.125 million was proposed Monday evening. This auction ends in just over three weeks.