Safari 16 supports AVIF in macOS Ventura and iOS 16
WebKit has supported the next-generation image format AVIF since April 2021, but Safari has not. That's because Apple's web browser can only process image types that macOS and iOS support. The release of iOS 16, and soon macOS Ventura, brings support for the AVIF image format to the operating system and Safari 16.
Why crypto is a waste of energy, full of crime, and isn’t really decentralized
As venture capitalists pour money into Web3 and crypto, David Rosenthal meticulously explains why the overly hyped technology is extraordinarily inefficient, insecure, and more centralized than decentralized.
Web3 and crypto skepticism is growing and people are finally starting to listen
Crypto skeptics have been trying to warn the public that cryptocurrency is a Ponzi scheme and Web3 is fake decentralization that can't fix a web that isn't broken. Critics have mainly been ignored as aggressive opportunism and skyrocketing token prices have silenced dissent. However, as crypto becomes more mainstream and people experience its downsides, critics' warnings are starting to be heard.
Princeton privacy study halts GDPR/CCPA research over ethics concerns and industry blowback
Computer science researchers at Princeton University and Radboud University conducted an academic study that sent automated email messages to websites with GDPR and CCPA privacy policy requests from fake personas. Email operators, web admins, and privacy professionals interpreted the messages as security risks and legal threats, prompting the researchers to suspend the study and delete all communication.
Chrome adds feature that disables viewing HTML source code
To stop students from cheating on online quizzes and visiting blocked sites, Chromium developers updated ChromeOS and the Chrome browser to allow school IT administrators to disable viewing the HTML source code.
The dark patterns of Network Solutions
Registering a domain name at Network Solutions can be tricky and pricey, and transferring a domain away from them is an unwarranted waiting game.
WP Engine adds Web Rules as an .htaccess alternative
WP Engine restored some of the lost functionality when they deprecated .htaccess files. The new Web Rules feature provides the ability to create rules for allowing and denying IPs.
Why WebKit supports AVIF but Safari does not
WebKit added support for the AVIF image format in April 2021, but it’s still unavailable in Safari. Its absence is because Apple chose an unconventional method for decoding images in its browser.
Verisign raises dot com domain name prices again
The price for a .com domain is going up again thanks to ICANN’s 2020 decision to allow Verisign to increase wholesale prices indefinitely. Verisign is expected to make hundreds of millions of dollars more after agreeing to pay ICANN, the non-profit in charge of coordinating domains worldwide, twenty million dollars.
WordPress 5.8 adds native WebP image format support
The latest version of WordPress now fully supports WebP images without the need for plugins or additional code.
Pinata launches dedicated IPFS gateways with custom domains
Creating an IPFS gateway with a personal domain just became incredibly easy to do with Pinata’s new dedicated gateway feature.
IPFS may be the future of file hosting and content delivery
In 2006, Amazon Web Services (AWS) made it affordable for independent web developers to build apps without the high cost. IPFS is positioned to transform the industry again through its free and high-availability distributed-web model.
Adobe Flash Player now blocks all Flash content from playing
The twenty-five-year-old Adobe Flash Player is now end of life and will no longer play Flash content. Adobe is urging all users to uninstall it immediately.
WordPress adds support for video captions and subtitles
The release of WordPress 5.6 contained several accessibility improvements, including the ability to add captions and subtitles to videos using the Web Video Text Tracks Format (WebVTT).
New ‘Do Not Track’ signal for browsers is designed to simplify privacy and be legally enforceable
Global Privacy Control (GPC) is a proposed standard for a browser signal that communicates to sites and services not to sell or share personal information. Unlike past ‘do not track’ efforts, this standard is designed to enforce existing and future laws.
Cloudflare launches Automatic Platform Optimization (APO) for WordPress: Here’s how to install it
Cloudflare announced a new site speed optimization service called Automatic Platform Optimization. The service launched with support for WordPress, but it requires several steps to enable it for self-hosted sites.
WordPress 5.5 now has automatic updates for plugins and themes, but you may want to avoid it
A much-anticipated feature was added to version 5.5 of WordPress. The popular CMS gained the ability to turn on auto-updates for plugins and themes. However, the new feature comes with risks.
AVIF, a next-gen image format for the web, will have to wait in line behind WebP
WebP is on the verge of replacing JPEG and PNG as the best image to use on the web thanks to Safari 14 finally supporting it. However, an even better image format, AVIF, is already looking to replace it.
ICANN rejects sale of .org to private equity firm citing public interest
In a dramatic chain of events, the ICANN Board unanimously blocked its consent for Internet Society (ISOC) to change ownership of the non-profit Public Interest Registry (PIR) to the private equity firm Ethos Capital.
Chrome 81 breaks the ability to bold system fonts on Macs
A style bug in version 81 of the Google Chrome browser was discovered before it was released, but a decision was made to not fix it until the next version. Sites that default to the system font can no longer fully bold text for users on macOS Catalina.
