Over the last few weeks, Zoom has gone from useful video calling app to an absolute household name. User numbers have grown exponentially, as Covid-19 lockdown has inspired the public to find new and creative ways to enjoy human contact in digital form – so why would a VPN help?
Zoom‘s quickly inflated userbase (the app has been downloaded more than 50 million times on Google Play store alone) has also brought greater scrutiny over the service and now questions are being raised over its privacy practices, vulnerability to hijackers and apparent lack of true end-to-end encryption. In a time when we’re using our computers and phones to share more data with each other than ever before, that’s a potentially worrying development.
As well as helping with streaming Netflix from abroad, using WhatsApp in China and a multitude of other functions, the most important function of a VPN (or Virtual Private Network) is to keep you and your data safe while you’re online.
Very simply, VPN providers reroute all of your internet traffic through their own secure servers.
As well as keeping you anonymous and giving you the ability to change your IP address to a location pretty much anywhere in the world, VPN services also end-to-end encrypt all all of the data sent via that traffic. The encryption part is critical, as it means that if a cybercriminal or hacker did manage to access any information exchanged – say while using public Wi-Fi, downloading torrents or, yes, on a Zoom call – it would be completely unintelligible.
It’s this lack of true end-to-end encryption for which Zoom is currently coming under fire (as reported by the Intercept).
And because VPNs can be applied to your home computer, laptop, mobile – even your router – it means that a single VPN subscription can cover a whole household of online devices.
What is the best VPN for Zoom?
The main facets that make the best VPN for Zoom are security, speed and simplicity to use.
Watertight security is an obvious one, especially if you’re using Zoom for sensitive business calls. While choosing a VPN with fast connection speeds will ensure that you get as little lag and drop-off as possible during your calls.
And because Zoom is now being used by ordinary families across the globe, we admire any VPN that’s easy to download and operate – even for people who aren’t that skilled with technology.
ExpressVPN tops our list of favorite VPNs at the moment and is the one we’d recommend. It ticks all of the above boxes – it uses a variety of the world’s strongest security protocols and a strict no-logging policy, boasts some of the fastest connection speeds we’ve tested, even to far away servers, and is a doddle to use. Plus, it has excellent 24/7 customer service that is generally helpful if you find yourself struggling with any aspect of the VPN.
British Sea Power has long sat on the vanguard of British rock’s alternative scene, coming up through the noughties ‘New Rock Revolution’ that made household names of The Strokes and Arctic Monkeys. However, while other bands sang of New York city cops or looking good on the dancefloor, British Sea Power were writing songs about the collapsing Antarctic ice shelf Larsen-B, Scapa Flow and the diverse, imbibable joys of EU internationalism.
Literate without being humorless, experimental without forgetting the power of a pop hook, British Sea Power’s shimmering, stabbing guitars and lilting melodies have led to a musical career that’s seen them feeling as comfortable on the cavernous stages of the Glastonbury festival as rescoring 1934’s fictional proto-documentary Man of Aran.
That their orbit would eventually end up on a collision course with Robert Kurvitz, lead designer and writer at ZA/UM, the developers of Disco Elysium, the most ambitious CRPG in decades, seems almost fated.
‘Noises and moods’
Centring around an amnesiac, alcoholic cop on a murder case in a fictional post-Soviet territory, Kurvitz wrote more than a million words to bring the truly unique gaming world of Disco Elysium to life, one where the demons in your head (and at the bottom of a bottle) are more outlandish and threatening than those you would stare down the barrel at in lesser games.
Usually when people say something like this you think they may be a big-headed blagger.
Martin Noble, British Sea Power
“Robert came to see us in the UK when we were on tour,” recalls guitarist Martin Noble.
“He was a fan of the band and described noises and moods that were in our albums as a sort of starter palate. He said the game was going to be incredible and groundbreaking. He showed us some art work and described the world of the game in detail. Usually when people say something like this you think they may be a big-headed blagger. With Robert, you kind of knew that if he was the man behind it then it would be incredible.”
British Sea Power (L-R, Jan ‘Yan’ Scott Wilkinson, Hamilton Wilkinson, Matthew Wood, Abi Fry, Phil Sumner, Martin Noble)
“He flew all the way from Estonia and spilled his head on us,” adds bass guitar and vocalist Hamilton Wilkinson. “Something about Frodo, and a bag of gold. He bought me a coffee and I thought ‘that’s nice.’”
Displaying “a more comprehensive knowledge of our albums than we had ourselves”, says singer-guitarist Yan Wilkinson (“he also did some very entertaining English accents”), British Sea Power jumped onboard with a development team more interested in Dadaism and Fluxus than killstreaks and microtransactions.
Six months after the game’s release, British Sea Power and ZA/UM are now on the eve of a BAFTA Games Award ceremony in which Disco Elysium has earned multiple nominations – including one for its soundtrack.
It was a match made in heaven – British Sea Power’s instrumentals weaving from the melancholic to the menacing, a perfect partner for the painterly palette of Disco Elysium’s art, and the slow creep of a fictional mind on the fringes of sanity.
‘A joy in less freedom’
Though British Sea Power had soundtracked a film before, the process was quite different for Disco Elysium and the gaming medium the band found themselves working with.
“With films you have to work more on timing,” says violinist and vocalist Abi Fry, “whereas with the game it’s more about creating specific moods that can go on indefinitely and don’t drive you completely mad.” Noble agrees. “If a film gets re-edited then you have to re-edit the song. As games are more freeform, so we can be too,” he says.
“It’s more about setting the right mood than supporting or narrating the action. Just creating a kind of ambience and sonic expanse,” says Yan, or “living in another person’s mind instead of your own for a while,” adds Hamilton.
Although working on film has obvious transferable knowledge and skills, writing music for a game is hardly anything like putting an album together.
It’s more about setting the right mood than supporting or narrating the action.
Yan Wilkinson, British Sea Power
“It’s a very different thing,” says Yan. “In some ways it is easier as there is less thinking and more intuition involved. Lyrics and vocals, which are quite challenging, aren’t necessary. There is also a strong definite direction which I enjoy for a change. A joy in less freedom. I like working with different atmospheres and just dwelling in them.”
Noble agrees. “You don’t really need to create infectious melodies, or mega hooks, or work on intros, verses and choruses, etcetera. It’s more about moods, scenes. You can be quite meditative and repetitive while shifting around with subtle variety.”
‘Like a painting’
For the band, inspiration came naturally. There’s a natural synergy between the band’s style and the game’s eccentricity.
Getting in the right mood, “wasn’t such a stretch,” says Yan. “Not too much method acting needed. The visuals also play such a big important role in the game. Very beautiful, kind of like a painting. So I wanted to fit in with that as well as suit the characters.”
Kurvitz, being a big fan of the band, had littered the game with reference points to British Sea Power’s work, too.
Not knowing who you are while stumbling around a strange world looking for clues is a familiar lifestyle to British Sea Power’s everyday dream.
Hamilton Wilkinson, British Sea Power
“I think there is crossover between the BSP world and Roberts’,” says Noble. “We originally sent Robert a load of unused demo tracks that we had lying around. Robert found that some of it would be perfect for the game. There are actually loads of little BSP related things in the game – the name of some streets and buildings have BSP references that only a hardcore BSP fan would appreciate.”
Science fiction books like ‘Roadside Picnic’ brought inspiration, and a live performance of the soundtracks to ‘Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture’ & ‘Dear Esther’ proved illuminating (Noble is friends with Jessica Curry, who composed those games’ soundtracks).
“I’m a big fan of Angelo Badlamenti and his work with David Lynch,” notes Yan.
“I also was influenced early on by the way Lynch uses sound in such a physical way. It’s more common now but it wouldn’t be without him. I am a big film fan and always find scores fascinating. Vyacheslav Oychinnikov was great with Tarkovsky and I was always incredibly impressed how Stanley Kubrick used music. Amazing.”
But for the most part, British Sea Power found an easy rhythm with Kurvitz’s world. “Each composition had a character and strong story idea so the headspace was easy to find,” says Fry.
And life on the road as a touring band can have its own amnesiac quality.
“Not knowing who you are while stumbling around a strange world looking for clues is a familiar lifestyle to British Sea Power’s everyday dream, so it was a doddle for us,” jokes Hamilton.
Outrun x The Petshop Boys
Having made one of the more evocative game soundtracks in recent memory, you may be surprised to find that British Sea Power don’t particularly class themselves as avid gamers. Though Fry admits to “growing up on BBC Micro Games: Castle Quest, Frak, Chuckie Egg and Granny’s Garden,” and that the band “lost a year or two of our lives to Mario Kart when we were recording the Valhalla Dancehall album,” British Sea Power’s core gaming memories, fittingly, seem to be around re-soundtracking games in their youth.
“I think games can benefit from a focused, brave and at times avant garde approach that films do from music,” says Yan. “I remember making tapes to play with ZX Spectrum games as a kid with my brother. I wasn’t a big fan of The Petshop Boys then but West End Girls was perfect for driving along to in Outrun, as was the Beverly Hills Cop theme.” Fry still has a soft spot for the Double Dragon NES soundtrack, though.
There’s a chance that British Sea Power could return to the game soundtrack world. “We love it. We’re hoping ZA/UM do another game and invite us back,” says Noble, also hinting that of the soundtrack “one or two [tracks] might make it onto the new BSP album in a different guise, and we hope to be able to play the soundtrack live at some point.”
So, what do British Sea Power make of the finished Disco Elysium experience?
“I love the depth and the boldness of it. The visual side is incredibly beautiful too,” says Yan.
“I’ve never played a game like this before and think it’s absolutely amazing,” says Fry, echoing the sentiments of many who’ve touched the surface of Disco Elysium.
“I played about 30 minutes with my nephew. I only scratched the surface really, but the painting is exquisite, the dialogue is really twisted and far out and the score is really rather excellent!” says Noble.
As for getting through the entire game, which Kurvitz reckons would take some 120 hours to see all it has to offer? Maybe one day, says Yan.
“I used to say at 70 I would enjoy gaming and heroin. But right now I’ve only just found time to start reading and painting more again.”
If you’re stuck indoors and looking for a cheap TV deal to keep you entertained, then you’re in luck. Dell is discounting several top brand TVs which include the best-selling Samsung 50-inch 4K TV on sale for just $327.99. That’s a $100+ discount, and the best price found we’ve found for mid-size TV.
The Samsung 50-inch TV features smart capabilities, so you can stream your favorite movies and TV shows all in one place using the Samsung universal remote. You can also download the SmartThings app and stream content from your phone to the big screen. You’ll enjoy a stunning picture with bright, bold colors and life-like images thanks to PurColor technology and 4K resolution. The mid-size TV will also look good in your home thanks to the stylish, slim design.
Shop more cheap TV deals below, many of which include a free Dell eGift Card that’s emailed within 20 days of your purchase.
Sling TV has just gone and made social distancing at home a lot easier. The TV streaming service is currently offering 14 days FREE of Sling TV Blue.
This isn’t a free trial and there’s no commitments, contracts or payment details required – you can simply get 14 days free access to its Sling TV Blue service without paying a penny.
Sling TV Blue gives you access to over 45 live channels, free cloud DVR, over 50,000 on-demand titles, and allows simultaneous viewing on three screens.
The Blue plan is ideal for anyone needing more news and kids orientated channels, some of which include Fox, NBC, USA, Bravo, TBS, FX, Syfy, Bloomberg TV, Fox News, Headline News and MSNBC. So ideal for anybody without cable or has recently cut the cord.
It’s definitely got TechRadar’s approval! We love the fact that it allows you to customize your favorite channels on the app, and it’s on-demand programming along with movies that you can rent is pretty handy.
Not to mention that you can watch it on any device that can stream the app – this includes your tablet, phone, laptop, smart TV etc.
What we also find it quite refreshing that there are no sneaky fees or long-term contracts – you just pay a flat fee for the service.
Want to find out more? Make sure you check out our Sling TV review.
Microsoft could be working on a phone which takes the Surface Duo (pictured above) concept a little further, adding a third screen into the mix – although that extra display will be a very small affair which is present on the hinge of the device.
This potential new piece of hardware is documented in a patent filed by Microsoft which was spotted at Free Patents Online [PDF] (by Windows Latest), which describes a device having a ‘screen region’ on the hinge.
So, as mentioned, the basic concept is a dual-screen device which folds via a hinge mechanism, with the third display on the hinge, being capable of displaying all sorts of information depending on the state of the device.
For example, if the dual-screen device is closed, notifications or missed calls could be displayed on the outside of the hinge (perhaps using specifically colored patterns to indicate these things at a glance). Or if both main displays are folded back-to-back, or in tent mode, the hinge could display info relevant to another app running on the screen which can’t be seen by the user in that configuration.
One potential operation describes having separate apps running on the first and second main displays, with a gesture to the third (hinge) display facilitating switching between playing the audio of the first and second apps.
And if the user has the dual-screen device open, using both main displays together, the third hinge-based screen could simply be employed as part of one single continuous display. So if you’re looking at a photo, for instance, that image will run across the first, second and third screens to form a full picture.
Obviously the third mini-display could also be used to reduce any interface clutter on one of the main screens, by hosting commonly used UI buttons, to get them out of the way. It could also display the name of a movie currently playing, or a song name if audio is playing, and so forth.
Intelligent tricks
Essentially, all manner of tricks might be possible with this small third display on the hinge, in terms of it detecting the current configuration of the device, and intelligently lending relevant support or information to the user based on what they are actually doing at the time.
Whether Microsoft will actually ever make a dual-screen device with a third screen embedded in the hinge is anyone’s guess, though. Just because research and development has been exploring the idea doesn’t mean that any such piece of hardware will ever make it past the drawing board, testing or prototype stages.
Still, it’s always interesting to see what might be in the pipeline from Microsoft, and the company is clearly still looking at ways to make mobile computing more innovative beyond the likes of Surface Duo.
The 3D printer community is banding together in a cooperative effort to produce and distribute face shields which are much needed by NHS staff (and others) due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
There is a well-known shortage of such medical shields, of course, and the organisation called 3DCrowd UK aims to address this by asking folks around the UK who own 3D printers to join in with the production of parts for PPE (personal protective equipment).
Volunteers are signing up across the country to help print face shields – if you have a 3D printer, you can sign up yourself by heading here – with delivery and distribution of the equipment being covered by a GoFundMe campaign (which has just exceeded its target goal of £40,000).
So those without a 3D printer can still contribute funds to delivery costs, and you can contact 3DCrowd UK via the aforementioned website to offer to help in other ways, if you’d like to get involved without 3D printing.
The BBC reports that 3D printing volunteers are given instructions on how to produce headbands for the face shields.
Some 2,300 folks are currently volunteering, with 80,000 medical shields in the initial production batch.
The face shields can be requested by NHS hospitals, GP practices, or care organisations which are short of them, and thus far, some 186,000 units have been requested (in the past week).
Government validation
The BBC notes that these face shields haven’t received formal approval from the UK government, which hasn’t yet commented on 3DCrowd UK’s drive to mass-produce these masks from a grassroots level.
However, 3DCrowd UK’s Gen Ashley told the BBC that the shields have been approved in the Czech Republic, where we have already seen 3D printing outfit Prusa design and produce a medical shield (with the firm expecting to eventually be able to make 4,000 of these daily just on its own).
Prusa is already looking ahead and planning to print other items of PPE such as protective goggles. The 3D printing company also issued a note of caution – which some others have echoed – when it comes to the potential production of more complex equipment like respirators, which are also desperately needed to treat those suffering badly with coronavirus who are having difficulty breathing.
While that ambition is obviously a highly commendable one, Prusa observes that the designs currently available need to be more thoroughly tested to ensure they provide the necessary protection, particularly around the quality of the filter and seal.
We’re living in a whole new world. As many employees have shifted to a home office and are under stay-at-home orders, there are legal questions about who is responsible for employee health and safety. In many ways, now that most of us are stuck at home working remotely due to the corona virus pandemic, the concept of personal health and safety for employees has come into focus. Some of the answers to the legal questions may surprise you. Employers may even need to explore a new paradigm shift — there are many new legal ramifications.
The legal issues surrounding work-from-home can be thorny, in fact. As attorney Louis Chodoff from the law firm Ballard Spahr explained to TechRadar.com, employers may now need to have employees send photos of their home office or even send someone out to do an inspection. In the U.S., OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) does not require these inspections, but the employer is still ultimately responsible for their workers.
If the employee does not make an effort to create a safe and healthy home office environment, the employers may not be liable — but this varies by country and by business category.
“Employers are still responsible for the health and safety of their remote employees,” says Chodoff. “It’s just more challenging for the employer because obviously the employee’s home is not a controlled workplace like the office would be. OSHA still holds employers responsible for safe working conditions regardless of the work location.”
Legal issues for a home office
That said, employees do share the burden in ensuring their own health and safety. They need to make sure they are working in a safe environment. While an employer might provide healthcare benefits, the employee is really the one who has to arrange their health insurance coverage if not already done so through the employer’s HR services.
That was always true even when employees were at the office, at least when it comes to health insurance. As an employer, you do assume certain liabilities for the events that occur at the corporate office, and you may offer discounts on health insurance. From a legal standpoint, employees also have to pay for their own medical billing, find ways to stay healthy (say, walking each day or working out), and promote their own personal safety.
Employers should know that, from a legal standpoint, there is some liability for the actual home office where someone works, although there might be a few sticking points. “The employee may not be able to recover workers’ compensation if the employee created the hazard that caused the injury or the injury was caused by the employee’s own misconduct,” says Chodoff.
Even then, it’s still thorny. What is considered a home office? If an employee is on a laptop in the kitchen and they use a knife to open a FedEx box and make a mistake, it might not be something that’s covered by worker’s comp. The employee was not in the home office.
Another issue is related to homeowner’s insurance. A home office is considered part of the home. Whatever happens — flooding when a pipe bursts or tripping over a toy and breaking a leg — would likely be covered by the homeowner and their insurance, not by the company itself.
“Employers can try to protect themselves by requiring the remote employees to show that their homeowner’s insurance covers any damage to a company-issued laptop, printer or any other equipment,” says Chodoff. Then there are issues related to family members. If an employee drops a company-owned laptop, the employer would need to arrange for the repair. It’s unclear what happens if a spouse drops the laptop, or if the employee uses an old power strip that is outdated (and causes a fire because the employee was negligent).
How to address the concerns
Attorney and legal expert Charley Moore, the founder and CEO of Rocket Lawyer, tells TechRadar.com that employees may be more liable in some cases, due to their own negligence. “Employees are typically responsible for maintaining any equipment, like desks or printers, that they provide for themselves and are not owned by the company,” he says.
What will ultimately help, he says, is a contract with employees that spells out every detail — what is covered, what is not covered, and who is responsible for what in the home. “Employees are covered under relevant state laws concerning workers compensation for any injury incurred while performing official work duties at home,” he says. “Employers should include in any telecommuting agreement the expected work hours of its employees, which are typically in line with the expected work hours for employees at their primary business location.”
As with any legal issue, clarity with employees is critical. Both legal experts tell TechRadar.com that it is important to discuss all of these topics with employees and that it should be clear what is expected while employees are “at work,” even in a home office. And, having a signed contract will help with any disputes that arise, detailing who is responsible for company-owned equipment, what happens if the employee is injured, and how the employee is responsible.
One example of how employers could spell this out has to do with where the employee works. Similar to how independent contractors need to specify in their taxes where they actually work by square footage area, an employee might need to show where they work. This could include one area of the house that is meant only for work, meets all safety standards, and is covered by worker’s compensation insurance if anything bad happens there.
However, it should all provide clarity on what is covered and not covered outside of that space. An employer might require, for example, that a company-issued laptop should not leave the workspace during the lockdown phase of the pandemic. If the employee uses it on the sofa at night to watch Netflix, that would not be covered because it wasn’t a work scenario.
“An employer can require that the employee set up a dedicated work area in their home and require that only work can be done in that dedicated work area,” says Chodoff.
