Shared posts

25 Apr 16:10

Here are the unambiguous rules for what to do in this pandemic

by Mark Frauenfelder

As Bruce Sterling says, "Impressive accuracy by whoever that is."

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

15 Dec 02:08

Abbott Labs kills free tool that lets you own the blood-sugar data from your glucose monitor, saying it violates copyright law

by Cory Doctorow

Abbott Labs makes a continuous glucose monitor -- used by people with diabetes to monitor their blood-sugar levels -- called (ironically, as you'll see below) the Freestyle Libre.

Diabettech is a hub for helping people with diabetes manage their health, including by building "artificial pancreases," through which a glucose monitor is connected to an insulin pump, with software in between that measures out small insulin doses that respond in real time (or even predictively) to changes in blood sugar. These can be significantly better than manual interventions for managing blood-sugar for people with diabetes, and can avert life-endangering, life-shortening, and/or quality-of-life reducing blood-sugar spikes and troughs.

The admin of Diabettech posted technical instructions and code for extracting your blood-sugar data from the Librelink so that you could use a different "listener" app with your data, or even connect it to an insulin pump to create an artificial pancreas loop. In particular, it allowed the free/open Xdrip diabetes-management tool to access Freestyle Libre data.

In response, Abbott Labs used US copyright law to have the project deleted from Github, censoring Diabettech's code and instructions. In its takedown notice, Abbot's lawfirm Kirkland & Ellis LLP (a huge corporate firm) advances several alarming arguments about projects like this.

First, they say that creating a tool that interoperates with the Freestyle Libre's data is a copyright infringement, because the new code is a derivative work of Abbott's existing product. But code that can operate on another program's data is not a derivative work of the first program -- just because Apple's Pages can read Word docs, it doesn't mean that Pages is a derivative of MS Office. In addition, as Diabettech points out, EU copyright law explicitly contains an exemption for reverse engineering in order to create interoperability between medical devices (EU Software Directive, Article 6).

More disturbing is Kirkland/Abbott's claim that the project violates Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which prohibits bypassing "access controls" for copyrighted works. Factual data (like your blood sugar levels) are not copyrightable -- and if they were, you would hold that copyright. It's your blood. What's more, DMCA 1201 also contains an interoperability exemption.

Finally the whole thing is obviously fair use: it's a highly transformative work for an obviously socially beneficial purpose.

Glucose monitors and insulin pumps are, effectively, prostheses: artificial organs that are basically parts of your body. Abbott's position is that they own part of your body and you can only use it in ways that don't upset their shareholders. This is an outrageous position. I mean, forget all the bullshit about whether your blood is copyrighted and if so, by whom -- they're saying that your organs are copyrighted works whose usage is subject to the whims of a white-shoe law firm that is prepared to delete your code and send you a bowel-looseningly terrifying legal threat any time you dare to assert your bodily autonomy.

Speaking in my capacity as a professional dystopian cyberpunk writer, I'm here to tell you that that shit is a warning, not a suggestion.

The Infringing Software violates Abbott’s exclusive right to prepare derivative works of the LibreLink program under United States federal law. 17 U.S.C. § 106(2); Dun & Bradstreet Software Servs. v. Grace Consulting, Inc., 307 F.3d 197, 208 (3rd Cir. 2002) (holding that alteration of a copy of the plaintiff’s software constituted copyright infringement); Micro Star v. Formgen Inc., 154 F.3d 1107, 1112 (9th Cir. 1998) (same); Midway Manufacturing Co. v. Artic International, Inc., 704 F.2d 1009, 1013 (7th Cir. 1983) (affirming the enjoinment of a defendant that created a modified version of a program); Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. v. Zipperer, No. 18 Civ. 2608, 2018 WL 4347796, at *14, 19 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 16, 2018) (enjoining distribution of modification). Moreover, the Infringing Software is provided with instructions on how to circumvent the technological protection measures that control access to Abbott’s LibreLink program in violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. 17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1)(A). Thus, the Infringing Program’s creator is secondarily liable for these further acts of circumvention. See In re Dealer Mgmt. Sys. Antitrust Litig., No. 18 Civ. 864, 2019 WL 4166864, at *14 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 3, 2019) (recognizing secondary liability for violations of 17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1)(A)). The Infringing Software also violates GitHub’s Terms of Service, which state that users “must not violate any applicable laws, including copyright” and that users must “not under any circumstances upload, post, host, or transmit any content that . . . infringes on any proprietary right of any party, including patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, right of publicity, or other rights.”

Patching LibreLink for Libre2 – clearing the FUD [Diabettech]

Libre2-patched-App [user987654321resu/Github]

2019-11-08-abbott.md [Kirkland & Ellis LLP/Github]

(Thumbnail: Abbott Labs)

26 Jun 17:48

AngelSense Is the Perfect Tracker for Parents of Special Needs Children

by Ryan Dube
angelsense-tracker

Imagine you call out your child’s name, and there’s no answer. They’re nowhere in the house, or anywhere in the yard. Vanished. This is the sort of scenario a product called AngelSense hopes to help parents with.

We’ve covered a number of tracking devices and apps for kids in the past, but AngelSense is a unique one tailored specifically for parents who are raising children with special needs. The company is hoping to bring those parents peace of mind and a greater sense of security.

What Is AngelSense?

AngelSense is a self-contained tracking device that lets you the location of your child at any time, and also lets you “listen in” on whatever is going on around them.

The device arrives packaged in a durable pouch that you can use to store the tracker and all of its accessories for easy use during travel.

Inside the kit, you’ll find the tracker encased in a specially designed sleeve with tamper-proof fasteners that let you button the case inside of your child’s pocket.

The kit comes with everything you’ll need to get started. After charging the device, the tracker is surprisingly simple to get set up and working immediately.

The kit comes with:

  • The AngelSense Guardian GPS device sealed inside of the fabric sleeve
  • Two pre-attached fasteners and one extra one if you need it
  • A magnetic key for removing the fasteners
  • A wall charger and included USB charging cable
  • A small instruction pamphlet
  • A car decal for a special needs child
  • An AngelSense wristeband

If your child doesn’t like the feel of the device in their pocket, AngelSense also sells accessories like a soft belt that children can wear under their clothes, or even an undershirt that holds the device on the back, between the shoulder blades.

How AngelSense Works

Once the AngelSense tracker finishes charging, it will connect to a cellular network and immediately start transmitting its GPS coordinates.

The most unique aspect of this service is that there is no need to struggle through connecting the device with your own cellular service. AngelSense can send you a tracker that works off AT&T or Verizon in the US, depending on which service is better in your area. In Canada, it works with and the Rogers network. All tracking updates are done through the AngelSense system—which uses an independent cellular network from yours.

Key features of the AngelSense service includes:

  • A timeline view of every location your child has been, including transit routes and speeds
  • Alerts whenever your child visits known and unknown locations, arrival and departures, and real time speed
  • “Runner mode”, which updates your child’s location, and your distance from them, on a real-time map
  • “Listen-In” mode, which lets you hear everything that’s going on around your child
  • First responder, lets you send SMS alerts to a pre-set group to instantly help you find your child
  • Late departure warnings if you child doesn’t leave a location when they were scheduled to
  • Voice Features, including 2 way voice, and listen-in

The monthly AngelSense service charge includes the cellular data connection with the device, plus up to 60 minutes of “Listen-In” calling. However, there’s also the option to purchase more time if you need it.

Setting Up Guardians and Responders

This is one piece of technology that doesn’t require an IT expert to use it.

The instructions in the small four-page instruction pamphlet walk you through plugging in the device and pressing the power button for about ten seconds until you hear a female voice telling you that the device is charging.

Once the device is charged, you’re ready to get started.

The first thing you’ll want to do in the app settings area is set up the name of your “Angel,” and the name and contact information of the responsible guardian.

Next, you can set up a first responder group. Adding their email addresses and phone numbers lets the device send out immediate alerts to your trusted group of family and friends when things go wrong.

Also, make sure to check with your school as to whether there are any legal liability issues with the Listen-In mode of the device. If the school doesn’t want to let you hear what’s going on in the classroom, you’ll need to disable that feature in the settings. There’s an option to disable the Listen-In feature specifically during school hours. You can make the school a guardian as well, so the staff can utilize the features in case the child goes missing from school.

Once you’ve set up your guardian and response group, it’s time to set up your Listen-In schedule and notifications.

Setting Up Schedule and Notifications

In settings, the Listen-In Schedule is where you can configure daily time periods where the Listen-In feature is disabled. This is useful for when your child is in a location where the Listen-In feature may not be legally allowed.

In the Notifications area, you can set up any of the following notifications to receive from the device:

  • When your child arrives or leaves predefined locations
  • When they haven’t left a saved location by the time you’ve specified
  • Low battery notifications
  • Morning or evening reminders to charge the device
  • A morning reminder to attach the device to your child

During testing, the Listen-In feature worked fairly well if anyone is speaking within a few feet of the child. It doesn’t appear to register sound throughout an entire room, which should put anyone concerned about privacy at ease. It’s clear the core purpose of this device is to protect the child above all else. In cases of caretaker neglect or abuse, the Listen-In feature is critical.

Tracking Your Child

The main purpose of the AngelSense tracker is to let you know where your child is at any point in time during the day. The tracker performs this task extremely well, with an app that is very easy to use.

At any time during the day, you can open the AngelSense app and see everything you need to know about where your child is located or where they’re going. The map shows you:

  • Current location
  • Distance and direction between you and your child
  • The direction and speed your child is headed during transit from one location to another as well as the ETA
  • The ability to add specific locations and a “safe boundary” to your list of safe places, and whether to enable any notifications there

Real-time tracking during “runner mode,” where the map updates every ten seconds, will drain the device battery quickly. So you don’t want to monitor the map all day. However any time you’re concerned about your child’s location, this map will quickly put your mind at ease.

Special Features

In addition to tracking location, the AngelSense tracker has a few extra useful features to give parents peace of mind:

  • AngelCall: This lets parents initiate a two-way conversation with their child through the device
  • Automatic Updates: Setting up the device on your home wi-fi network ensures automatic updates and fixes
  • School Dashboard: You can enable a special school dashboard for special needs teachers and administrators to use
  • Indoor Search: The device allows you to pinpoint your child’s location inside buildings like a shopping mall
  • Alarm: Lose your child in a large crowd? Set off a loud alarm so you can quickly locate them.

All of these features come together into an important tool belt that concerned parents of children with special needs can use to keep a closer eye on their children.

More About AngelSense

One might ask why a parent would need to keep such tight watch over a child. This is something that only a parent with a special needs child could understand.

CEO and Co-founder of AngelSense Doron Somer explains on the website exactly what motivated him to work on this project:

“In the 21 years of raising my son with autism we experienced everything, from minor neglect by caregivers and all the way to abuse. When he wandered, he could not even tell people where he lives. Keeping my son safe and well cared for has always been a great challenge for us.”

It’s those terrifying experiences as a parent of a special needs child that motivate Doron Somer, co-founder Nery Ben-Azar, and all of the staff that work for the company. In fact, as a testament to this mission, the company has only hired special needs parents as their customer service staff.

This means any special needs parent who orders an AngelSense will be speaking with another parent who understands their unique situations and all of the concerns they have.

When you purchase your kit, you can receive a personal consultation session with a customer service mom. These are special needs parents who understand your unique situation, and they’ll walk you through how the device works and how to use it. This makes getting started with AngelSense effortless and gives you lots of confidence with the service.

The kit is affordable for parents with special needs children, with different plans so you can choose what works for your family, priced at $99 for the kit and a monthly payment plan of $33.33/month if paid yearly, $39.99/month if paid monthly, or $52.99/month for a month-to-month plan.

A Unique Tracking Device

This level of tracking may be excessive for other families, but for parents of special needs children, it’s exactly what’s needed. It provides both the child and the parent with the security of knowing that no matter what happens, the parent will be able to quickly get to the child.

There are many areas of life where technology can help you with parenting. In the area of special needs parenting, this is clearly a device that will be well received and welcomed by many families.

Read the full article: AngelSense Is the Perfect Tracker for Parents of Special Needs Children

16 May 00:03

Implanting pancreatic cells in your gut could cure diabetes

by Rob LeFebvre
About 30,000 adults and children are diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) each year. As many as 1.25 million Americans have the disease, according to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, with up to 5 million expected to have the disease by 2050...
25 Nov 17:53

"Ring" is the doorbell I never knew I needed

by Michael Borys

front door

Apparently I’ve had crummy doorbells for the past 45 years and didn’t even know it. It took visiting a good friend’s home to find out what I was missing.  When I got there, I was greeted by what looked like a mini-HAL.

hal

The creepy thing was that I didn’t even touch the device before hearing my friend's voice come through it. He was a hundred feet away and knew I was there because of a built in motion detector. When I began walking up his driveway, the RING detected me and pinged Juan on his phone. He then had the option of ignoring me, simply viewing my actions or talking to me.

Though I couldn’t see him, we were having a full conversation as if we were talking on a speakerphone.   But the fact that Juan could have been anywhere in the world and know that I was approaching his home, makes this so much more than a speakerphone or intercom.

maxresdefault

When Juan FINALLY opened his front door, he showed me the recorded video of me walking up and talking into the device. I have to say I was amazed by how good I looked.

The RING’s video is HD and is recorded at 720p at 30 FPS. The field of view is 180 degrees and the RING has night-vision! My awesome iPhone 6 doesn’t have night vision!

One of the first things you'll do when you get your Ring device is set the sensitivity of the motion sensor. This is so that if you have kids playing in your yard, the RING doesn’t keep pinging you over and over.

All you need for the simple installation is a Wi-Fi connection and a drill.

2

There are a few other tools that you’ll need, but they're equipped in the well-designed packaging. 

To power it, you could either tie into your existing doorbell system or you can set it up with the supplied wall mount in any part of your home or office. The battery in the RING device is USB rechargeable and holds its charge for a full year!

Since it connects to your phone through the WiFi connection in your home, the RING doesn’t have to even be mounted outside - or at all for that matter.

 

Because this device is so versatile, I’ve been using it for tasks other than what it was designed for.

  • My wife was sick in bed last weekend so I unhooked the RING from it’s outside harness and laid it on our nightstand. Whenever Gina needed something, she was able to instantly connect and communicate with me.   Sure she could have used her cell phone but with only one button to push, this made things simpler.
  • My cats love to hang out on our kitchen table when my wife and I aren’t around. We have just 1 house rule and they break it whenever we aren't looking!  I was able to set up the Ring device so that it sits on the table and gets a perfect view. Because there’s night vision built into the RING, and I’ve set the sensitivity pretty low, I’m alerted only when they’re on the table.  When I accept the alert, I can see their actions and more importantly I’m able to shoo the cats away.

nightvbision

  • My friends and I play a heck of a lot of pool in my converted garage and when we order pizzas I normally have to keep popping my head out the door to make sure we aren’t missing the delivery guy. I become a hungry, paranoid mess!  Now, with the RING, I get the alert as soon as he shows up.
  • If someone in your family is suffering from dementia, the RING, could automatically ping you as they leave their home.  This could offer you great peace of mind while you're shopping for groceries or at work.

 

Ok.  Those those are pretty cool uses for the RING, but the designers intended for people to actually mount the device onto their home.  What I've just described are scenarios where I merely place in in different spots.

By using the RING as intended, you can give the appearance of being home even when you aren't.  Being able to converse with someone at your door, when you aren’t there is a great theft deterrent.

Even if you're in a meeting and can’t make it to your phone when alerted, the RING takes a video of who was at your door and timestamps it. You can then check out a back-log of all the videos its ever taken.

1

There are some pretty great movies that users have uploaded about how the RING saved their day and you can check them out here.

My favorite is #6 where a moving truck driver is busted because he put giant ruts in a client’s lawn. He was caught red-handed and had to pay for damages. Pretty awesome!

colors

The Ring is pretty stylish and there are different colors to match your home.

There’s even a sister product you can pick up called the CHIME which works with the RING.   This device alerts you when the RING is pressed in case your phone battery is drained. Since it just plugs into a wall outlet, you can move it anywhere around your house.

kitchen

I found that I needed tech support’s help with this part of the installation but that was pretty seamless.

 

I think the RING product is pretty darned fun and if I didn’t get to play with it myself, I wouldn’t have known I needed one.

The RING is $199.00 but for all that it does, I think it’s well worth it.

4

Our cats may never jump on the kitchen table again.

 

16 Sep 23:53

Save more with Google Drive

by Emily Wood
Having launched Google Drive just two years ago, we’re excited that so many people are now using it as their go-to place for keeping all their files. Whether it's all the footage of your kids' baseball games, the novel you're working on, or even just your grocery list for the week, we all have files that are too important to lose. Today, thanks to a number of recent infrastructure improvements, we’re able to make it more affordable for you to keep everything safe and easy to reach on any device, from anywhere.

We've lowered the price of our monthly storage plans to $1.99 for 100GB (previously $4.99), $9.99 for 1TB (previously $49.99), and $99.99 for 10TB, with even more storage available if you need it. How big is a terabyte anyway? Well, that’s enough storage for you to take a selfie twice a day for the next 200 years and still have room left over for… shall we say… less important things. Like before, storage continues to work across Drive, Gmail and Google+ Photos. And, of course, the 15GB plan remains free.

You can sign up for one of these new Google Drive plans at www.google.com/settings/storage. If you already pay for storage, you’ll automatically move to a better plan at no additional cost. You can visit the storage purchase page to make a change or review your account, and see the Help Center for more information on these simpler storage options.

Posted by Scott Johnston, Director of Product Management
19 Sep 17:31

Browser plugin that adds NSA-trolling keywords to the URLs you load

by Cory Doctorow

Jeremy sez, "Flagger is a browser add-on that automatically puts red flag keywords (like bomb, Taliban and anthrax) into the web addresses you visit. Install Flagger and help us send a message: government surveillance has gone too far."

This is one of those ideas that sits on the threshhold between clever and dumb. You decide which for yourself.

It's time to make some noise.