Devices, Open Hardware, and Mobile Leftovers
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Devices/Embedded
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Security Week ☛ Details Disclosed for SCADA Flaws That Could Facilitate Industrial Attacks
Exploitation of all these security holes requires authentication, but they can allow attackers who have already gained access to the targeted organization’s systems to execute arbitrary code, elevate privileges, and manipulate critical files.
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Linux Gizmos ☛ Texas Instruments Introduces MSPM0C1104 as the Smallest Available Microcontroller
Texas Instruments has introduced the MSPM0C1104, which it describes as the world’s smallest microcontroller, expanding its MSPM0 MCU portfolio. Measuring only 1.38mm², this wafer chip-scale package MCU is 38% smaller than existing alternatives.
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Robert Heaton ☛ It's not cheating if you write the video game solver yourself
My wife and two little boys sometimes go on trips to see friends or family for whom my presence isn’t strictly required. While my wife books the flights I make a show of weighing up my options and asking if it’s really OK if I don’t come. Eventually I’m persuaded that it truly would be the best thing for all of us for me to have five to seven days to myself with no nappies and all Nintendo.
My wife hits the “Pay Now” button and when the confirmation email comes through I call my secretary and tell him to clear my calendar. When no one answers I remember that I have neither a secretary nor all that much going on, so instead I find a prestige TV series, a selection of local takeaway menus, and a short but immersive video game. This time I messaged my buddies and asked them what I should play. Steve gushed about a game called Cocoon; Morris said that he’d played it a year ago and it was “alright.” Sold.
One month later there were hugs, kisses, wave goodbye to taxi, shut the door, where’s the HDMI cable, how did it get under the sink, do I have a Nintendo Account, what’s my password, whatever I’ll make a new one, right let’s do this, estimated download time 45 minutes, start on tax returns, am I relaxed yet?
Eventually I was able to boot up Cocoon. I learned that I was going to play as a little bee guy who has to solve artsy puzzles in a lonely, abstract world for no adequately explained reason. Bee guy makes his way through the world using four glowing orbs. He can pick orbs up, carry them around, and put them back down on switches in order to open doors and unfold bridges - standard orb stuff. However, bee guy soon learns that the orbs also contain other worlds, which he can jump in and out of to help with his puzzles. If he jumps inside one orb-world whilst carrying another one then he can put orb-worlds inside each other. He can even - towards the end - put a world inside itself. Conundrums ensue.
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Open Hardware/Modding
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Tom's Hardware ☛ This smart Raspberry Pi LED world map has global appeal
Tribal2's version integrates with his smart home setup, specifically a home assistant system. The map interacts with a smart plug that is programmed so that the map only illuminates when he's sitting at his desk. Some of the effects it has include things like a rainbow effects but also more interactive demonstrations that respond to real-time events. For example, the daylight mode will show you which parts of the world are experiencing daylight. There are also plans to add a weather mode which would indicate weather patterns through regional temperatures or events like snowfall and rain.
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CNX Software ☛ Smart Home News – ESPHome 2025.2.0 Firmware, Home Assistant gets Matter certified, and (some) ChromeCast devices hit troubles
When I wrote about the Home Assistant 2025.3 release last week, it was pointed out to me that ESPHome firmware had its own release on February 19th, and in other Smart Home news, Home Assistant got Matter certified, and some ChromeCast devices temporarily stopped working which impacted video/audio streaming and integration with Surveillance Giant Google Home. Let’s have a quick look at all three pieces of news.
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Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications
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Android Police ☛ Will you use Android's native Linux Terminal app?
Android users can now take advantage of a Linux Terminal app in order to run Linux applications on Android. It runs through a VM, and it's Debian, much like how ChromeOS can run Linux apps using a Debian VM layer, otherwise known as Crostini. So, now that the feature is here, I'm wondering how many will use it. Do you plan to use Android's native Linux Terminal app, or are you fine sticking with Android apps?
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