Tag: technology

  • Google is helping Pakistan fight coronavirus, here is how.

    Google is helping Pakistan fight coronavirus, here is how.

    According to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) press release, Google has introduced various features and tools to facilitate the operations of telecommunication networks to promote learning and access to authentic information in Pakistan.

    The platform has given the Pakistani government an ad-inventory to disseminate accurate information on time.

    Moreover, Google has shared tips and resources for remote workers and students so that they can improve the quality of work and ensure productivity.

    Google has allowed free access to advance ‘Google Hangout’ which means the users will be able to put 250 participants on audio and video calls so the entire class can attend lectures. The participants can record the lectures and save it in google drive so when they cannot join, they can access the lectures when needed.

    Google has also launched a speech-based reading app “Bolo” — based on machine learning — to help children read aloud confidently, using their voice. The app is available in the Urdu language as well.

    Apart from these tools and resources, they have ensured measures to combat misinformation. Google has also attached ‘SOS Alert” banner with news from mainstream outlets and information from recognised health organization such as the World health organization (WHO) and National Institute of Health (NIH).

    These hubs provide a comprehensive overview of the pandemic, information about its symptoms and measures, as well as current statistics and answers to common questions.

    These necassary measures taken by the company because search interest in COVID-19 has continued to climb across the world. At present, this is the most researched topic in the world so it is necassary to curb fake news and misinformation.

    In addition to launching new features on the search engine, the platform has rolled out a website—available at google.com/covid19 — focused on education, prevention and local resources.

    People can find state-based information, safety and prevention tips, search trends related to COVID-19, and further resources for individuals, educators and businesses.

  • WhatsApp reaches 2 billion users

    WhatsApp reaches 2 billion users

    Facebook-owned instant messenger — WhatsApp — has crossed 2 billion users around the world, and on this success, has reaffirmed its commitment to strong encryption to protect the privacy of users’ data.

    WhatsApp, which was acquired by Facebook in 2014, turned into the most widely-used free messaging app that provides free text, voice and video communication services; enabling more than 2 billion people to have conversations from anywhere in the world.

    “Strong encryption is a necessity in modern life. We will not compromise on security because that would make people less safe,” WhatsApp said in an official statement. “For even more protection, we work with top security experts and employ industry-leading technology to stop misuse as well as provide controls and ways to report issues without sacrificing privacy.”

    The social network is working to extend end-to-end encryption across its messaging applications, including Facebook Messenger and Instagram.

    In a recent statement, Facebook had said some 2.89 billion people globally were daily users of at least one of its services. The growth has attracted more attention of regulators and activists concerned over the dominance of major tech platforms.

  • Freelancers payment limit raised to Rs. $25,000: State Bank of Pakistan

    Freelancers, who provide services in information and communication technology, can now receive payments worth up to $25,000 (Rs 3.9 million) per month, which, earlier, stood at a mere $5,000 (Rs 0.7 million).

    The decision has been made by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to broaden the scope of remittances in Pakistan. This will facilitate freelancers to bring a greater value of funds through more economical and efficient channels of home remittances and help in receiving foreign exchange flow through formal banking.

    Read more – Pakistan’s first manmade island to be built in Gwadar at a cost of $10 billion

    According to SBP, “this would enable freelancers to expand their services and engage new individuals to join the workforce that will inevitably create more employment opportunities in Pakistan”.

    Read more – Largest gas reserve in 20 years discovered in Balochistan

    The concept of freelancing is the emerging trend in Pakistan. Freelancing is a term used commonly for people who are self-employed. Mostly, they are not committed to a particular employer for the long term. They provide services in the local and international market.

  • Govt mulls new rules to ‘control’ digital media in Pakistan

    Govt mulls new rules to ‘control’ digital media in Pakistan

    The government is planning to impose new rules that could radically redefine the digital landscape of Pakistan, ProPakistani reported Wednesday.

    According to reports, the government wants to curb blasphemous content for social media and the new rules would allow institutions to control all online content in the country.

    The new rules — named the Citizens Protection Against Online Harm Rules — are a sort of extension of legislation like the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) and would allow the government to bypass industry stakeholders following approval of the federal cabinet.

    While the document (available here courtesy of Digital Rights Monitor) talks about social media companies, the definition for “social media companies” is broad enough to bring any company with an online presence under its ambit. If companies don’t abide by any of the rules in the 14-page document, they’ll be blocked in Pakistan.

    The move comes days after a Senate panel rejected a proposed move to be initiated by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) for regulating web TV and over-the-top (OTT) media service in the country following the authority failed to establish its jurisdiction for doing so before the house’s body.

    The Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights which met with Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar in the chair held a detailed discussion on PEMRA’s proposal of regulating web TV and OTT content.

  • Anonymously report harassment, bias at work with this new app

    A tool called AllVoice is here to make it easier for employees to anonymously send feedback to the company’s leadership, and report harassment or bias.

    According to the details, the app has been launched by Eponymous, and the company has raised $3 million in seed funding for the facilitation of their startup.

    AllVoices is a platform that lets people send complaints to the human resources (HR) department. All complaints are displayed on the dashboard of the application that helps HR to launch investigations.

    Founder Claire Schmidt was inspired to create AllVoices after former Uber engineer Susan Fowler investigated sexual harassment and discrimination in the ride-hailing company.

    Once the report is sent to the department concerned, it sends text notifications for the complainant to track the response from the company.

    Employees in HR won’t see any information such as names, and AllVoices won’t know which employer is involved. All communication is encrypted, the company says.

    After 60 days have passed following a complaint, AllVoices asks the employee if he or she knows whether the company has taken any action and, if so, how satisfactory it is. AllVoices then gives that data to the company.

    AllVoices is hoping to create a free version of the app for employees who work at companies that do not use the app. They’d be able to report issues by sharing an email for someone in their human resources department.

  • How to manage ‘annoying’ cellphone notifications

    How to manage ‘annoying’ cellphone notifications

    Apps and websites regularly push alerts to your devices. Though they are sometimes useful, in most cases they are annoying and unwanted. Here’s what you do to get rid of this once and for all.

    Early Decision

    The first time you open a newly downloaded app, it may ask for permission to send you notifications. You can say no. Alerts from apps like weather or local news media can be important but most e-commerce apps only send unnecessary coupon alerts in unlimited numbers. These notifications are not personalised and consequently, you feel like you’re running a grocery store.

    Opting out here does not mean you can never get those notifications. Later, if you decide you really want those alerts, you can always enable them in your system settings for notification alert. Here is how you can do it:

    Configure your smartphone settings

    For Android

    Some apps may have notification controls in their own settings, but you can also manage alerts in your device’s Settings section. Just look for “Notifications” or “Apps & Notifications.” In the Notification settings, look for a list of apps and select the one you want to change.

    In some situations, a user wants more personalization so in that case, you can tweak your apps by further digging into the settings as shown below.

    For IOS Apple

    In IOS 13 (mobile operating software for iPhone, tap the button at the top of an app’s settings screen to allow or disable notifications. If you decide to keep the notification on, you can adjust where and how it appears on your device. If you don’t want a banner alert popping up on the lock screen, you can downgrade it directly to the IOS Notification Center area so you can browse all your updates at once later on.

    By utilizing these settings, if not completely, then to a great extend your problem with notification bombardment would be curtailed.

  • Apple is closing all offices and stores in China through February 9

    Apple is no longer closing just one store in China over coronavirus worries — Apple is closing them all. The company is shutting down all its corporate offices, stores, and contact centres in mainland China through February 9, according to a statement provided to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

    The deadly coronavirus outbreak that has killed over 200 people in China and infected nearly 10,000 worldwide, has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO). It has triggered the first mandatory CDC quarantine in the United States in 50 years and prompted a ban on foreign nationals returning from China. In addition, airlines have been forced to temporarily suspend all flights to the country. In these circumstances, it makes sense for Apple to shut down its stores and offices in China.

    However, Apple says its online store will remain open.

    Meanwhile, it’s not clear if Apple’s Chinese factories, run by Foxconn, will also be shutting down and more factory workers dismissed. Foxconn, on Tuesday, had said that it would be “operating on a holiday schedule and didn’t anticipate any impact in production”.

    Nintendo, which manufactures its consoles in China, has said that the coronavirus is already impacting the production of the Nintendo Switch game console.

  • PM Imran to inaugurate Science and Technology Park today

    PM Imran to inaugurate Science and Technology Park today

    Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate the country’s first National Science and Technology Park in Islamabad today.

    Federal Minister Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter to announce that “Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate Pakistan’s first National Science and Technology Park in NUST.”

    Fawad Chaudhry also wrote that the initiative is a combination
    of researchers and industry that turned the world around. The coming ten years
    will be bright years for Pakistan’s science and technology.”

    Earlier, on Dec 5, Prime Minister Imran Khan had launched the ‘Digital Pakistan’ programme, an initiative to introduce the latest technologies for public welfare.

  • Unemployed? Here are the reasons why

    Unemployed? Here are the reasons why

    Being unemployed is never easy – on the person, his family or on the society as a whole. Here is what you need to do to get viable employment. 

    To get a job and then to sustain it, a candidate must possess two types of skills: hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are basically the primary talents one can have like engineering, programming, designing, and so on so forth. On the other hand, soft skills are those that let you manage yourself and people around effectively; some examples are social skills, communication skills, emotional intelligence, time management and so on.

    A person who has both will have better employment opportunities. So what one should do to learn both, especially, if you cannot afford to go expensive university, or you do not have enough time due to personal reasons? 

    Edx.org is a platform created by the world best universities from where you can take many online courses for free. These courses are ranging from computer sciences to creative skills like graphics designing or content creation. There are hundreds of other courses that you can take to polish your hard and soft skills. 

    Be
    mindful of one thing that to grow professionally – you have to develop the
    habit of learning. As a famous American author Alvin Toffler rightly said:

    “Illiterate
    of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who
    cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”

    So 2020 is not far away – be comfortable with your anxieties, fears and above all uncertainties. Perhaps, millennials do not have many options to escape this reality. 

  • How to get your stolen phone blocked

    How to get your stolen phone blocked

    If your mobile phone has been stolen or misplaced, you can immediately lodge a complaint and get it blocked within 16 hours.

    This service has been introduced by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to prevent the possible misuse of the stolen mobile phones.

    According to a statement issued by the authority on Monday, a complaint can be lodged through call or email or the complainant can also “contact the Citizens Police Liaison Committee helpline for filing a complaint”.

    To file a complaint regarding a stolen phone visit PTA’s website to get the official contact details.

    Through this service, mobile phone users don’t have to go all the way to PTA’s offices to lodge a complaint about stolen phones, which are located in a few cities only.

    How to check the status of your phone?

    You can check the status of your stolen phone 16 hours after reporting. It can be checked through SMS, PTA’s official website or an Android application (DVS). The IMEI search for your phone will show that it has been blocked.

    The IMEI of your mobile phone can be found by dialing *#06#. It can also be checked from your phone settings.

    The advisory has further said that PTA is only responsible for the reporting of the stolen phone, If someone wants to trace or locate his/her device then they must contact the police.