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velocityconf: RT @courtneynash: Bill Scott's #fluentconf keynote theme also rings true re #velocityconf: tech change is really about people/culture change

velocityconf: RT @courtneynash: Bill Scott's #fluentconf keynote theme also rings true re #velocityconf: tech change is really about people/culture change




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Got a PPC Mac in the Closet? Check Out the Aquafox Browser for Tiger & Leopard

If you have an old PowerPC Mac laying around collecting dust in a closet somewhere, you might be able to get some use out of it today by installing a functional modern web browser, like Aquafox. Since so much of what many of us do on computers is done in a web browser, you might ... Read More




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5 Helpful Uses for Apple Intelligence on Mac, iPhone, & iPad

Apple Intelligence is here on Mac, iPhone, and iPad, and while the system requirements are strict, the Apple devices that are new and powerful enough to use the AI tools now gain some really fantastic features. We’re going to show you six helpful Apple Intelligence features and uses that you’ll find beneficial to your workflow, ... Read More




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How to Change iPhone Used by iPhone Mirroring on Mac

If you have several iPhone’s, as many people do when they buy a new iPhone, upgrade, get a hand-me-down, develop iPhone software, or develop mobile sites or apps where you test things on multiple devices, you might be in a situation where iPhone Mirroring on the Mac is using an iPhone that you do not ... Read More




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Remembering Modicai Gerstein

Illustrator, writer, and filmmaker Mordicai Gerstein died earlier this month. He leaves behind an amazing body of work which is sure to be read and appreciated; several have already been anointed as modern classics.




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Teachers can assess young students’ literacy skills and knowledge by encouraging them to produce books based on animal facts.

A new children's book transforms a sad, scared and anxious little boy into a superhero. The book is called "Cape," in honor of the bright-red cape the little boy wears and finds comfort in following the death of his father. "Cape" is Kevin Johnson's debut picture book, and it's vividly illustrated by artist Kitt Thomas.




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4 Ways to Use Comics and Graphic Novels to Engage Students

Most classroom walls display rules about arriving on time or raising hands to speak. Tim Smyth’s has a sign reminding students: “You’re Not Allowed to Ask Which is Better, Marvel or DC.” Even as he sidesteps fervent debates about which comic book publisher is superior, Smyth leans into comics and graphic novels in his 10th and 11th grade social studies classes at Wissahickon High School in Ambler, Pa. He believes they can offer students an engaging entry point into history and world cultures.




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How to encourage children to read more books this summer

Every year, educators worry about “summer slide,” the potential for learning loss when children are not in school. This issue is more pronounced among low-income families who don’t have access to summer camps or other enrichment activities. One way to battle summer slide is through reading for fun, which is associated with many academic and health benefits, including strengthening the brain, increasing ability to empathize, reducing stress and building vocabulary.




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What People Are Getting Wrong About the Science of Reading

The science of reading, while typically villainized for solely advocating phonics, is misrepresented as a phonics program, while really, it is a body of research that informs the most effective way to teach decoding and language comprehension. The definition of the science of reading, provided by The Reading League, is “the vast, interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research about reading and issues related to reading and writing.” The term “science of reading” does not equate to phonics. That term does not equate to comprehension.





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The biggest risk to stocks after Trump's victory is China's reaction to a trade war, research firm says

If Trump's proposed 60% tariff against China is enacted and the country responds aggressively, it could pressure some of America's largest companies.




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Bitcoin approaches $90,000 as post-election record streak rages on

Traders are eyeing $100,000 for bitcoin by the end of the year potentially. The total crypto market value has surged to $3 trillion since the election.




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When my job required me to return to the office, I used my emergency fund to quit. It worked out, but I should have saved more.

When my job announced we were returning to the office, I was able to quit and rely on my emergency fund while job searching. I still wish I had saved more.




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Home Depot says shoplifting challenges aren't getting any easier

Home Depot's CFO said investments to combat retail theft are "paying off" but the operating environment is "getting harder and harder."




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Kathy Bates says she decided against reconstruction surgery after breast cancer: 'I kind of enjoy not having breasts'

"This is really weird, maybe, but I had really heavy breasts. They were like 10 pounds when they removed them," Kathy Bates said on a podcast.




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Ford is slashing hours for some German factory employees amid lower EV demand

The carmaker has more than 4,000 employees at its Cologne plant. It also has another plant in Saarlouis, in southwestern Germany.




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Russia's lucrative oil and oil industry is an easy target for Europe after Trump's election victory

The European Commission's president said the European Union could boost US liquified natural gas purchases in a deal with Trump.




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Tips for Getting Started with a Business Growth Framework

Growth is top of mind for most companies, but it can be tricky to get started with developing a growth framework. For one thing, most companies aren’t organized around growth, so thinking about growth requires a lot of collaboration between teams. Additionally, companies often don’t have easy access to all of the data they need to understand growth.




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Cool Start-up Interview Series – Mondly Languages

We’ve recently had the pleasure to chat with Andrei Nastasie, the affiliate program manager at Mondly Languages, an innovative language learning app that incorporates native language recordings, augmented reality and virtual reality to help people learn new languages. In this interview, he shares how Mondly started out, what it has been up to and what’s next for this creative company.




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News24 | Maputo is almost under siege, says SA High Commissioner, as post-election unrest escalates

Amid calls for ongoing protests after violent clashes on Thursday, South Africa's High Commissioner to Mozambique Siphiwe Nyanda has declared "Maputo is almost under siege".




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News24 | 'Together we usher a new political dawn,' says Botswana president Duma Boko in inauguration speech

Botswana's new president Duma Boko used his inauguration on Friday to tell the world that he and his government were ushering in a "new political dawn".




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News24 | Mauritius gets new PM after clean-sweep election win

Mauritius opposition leader Navin Ramgoolam was confirmed as prime minister on Tuesday following a thumping election victory for his coalition that took every parliamentary seat on the main island.




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Meet Ali Kamanda and Jorge Redmond, authors of Black Boy, Black Boy: Celebrating the Power of You

I met two debut authors at a summer conference and was taken with their warmth and earnestness. Their book, Black Boy, Black Boy, is an affirmation that celebrates both past accomplishments by Black men and the limitless possibilities for a child’s future. Their book is sure to encourage discussion with children and families, whether they are Black or not. Both authors graciously agreed to a blog interview.




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Getting Your First Grader Off to a Good Start: Tips for Families

First grade can bring a lot of changes! Even if your child had a great kindergarten year, there can be lots of new routines and expectations for first graders that can feel really different for students (and families). Here’s what you need to know.




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Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.8.0 released

Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.8.0 is now available to download for subscribers. This new release improves upon existing features, extends Flickr support to galleries (beyond albums/sets) and adds PHP 7.4 & Postgres compatibility.

Here's what's been added or changed in Simple Image Gallery Pro with the release of v3.8.0:

  • Added support for Flickr "galleries", beyond the already supported "albums/sets". Additionally, you can now fetch all images at once from some Flickr gallery/album/set by setting the relevant limit in SIGPro's settings to 0.
  • Added the option to override the default gallery layout in the SIGPro gallery insertion modal (frontend & backend).
  • Improved support for PHP 7.4 (mainly notices in the settings).
  • Fixed an issue where the gallery layout selector did not work with a Postgres database.
  • Added an option in SIGPro's settings (under "Advanced") to disable the WYSIWYG editor button in one or more components.
  • Properly filter multiline pasted text in the "description" field (in the captions). Previously, such pasted content would appear cut-off in the SIGPro modal/popup in the frontend.
  • File uploads now use built-in Joomla libraries which should resolve any upload issues with servers running "Windows Server".

 

DEMO

The JoomlaWorks demo site has been updated to the latest Simple Image Gallery Pro release. See here https://demo.joomlaworks.net/simple-image-gallery-pro.

 

DOWNLOAD

If you have an active Simple Image Gallery Pro membership, just head over to the Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/members and grab your copy from your "Subscriptions" page.

Or purchase this latest release from just 19.90 EUR. More info at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/extensions/commercial/simple-image-gallery-pro

 

UPGRADING

Just upload the new version and it will overwrite the old one.

For more help, please visit the updated documentation page for the extension at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/support/docs/simple-image-gallery-pro

For support questions please use our Ticket Support System inside the Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/dashboard (active product membership required).




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Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.9.0 released

Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.9.0 is now available to download for subscribers. It's both a bug-fix and new feature release.

Here's what's been added or changed in Simple Image Gallery Pro with the release of v3.9.0:

  • SIGPro will now read EXIF metadata from images that contain orientation details and properly rotate or flip images before creating thumbnails.. This means you won't need to process images using desktop software to correct their orientation before uploading them on your server. A handy feature especially for those who work with images coming from pro DSLR cameras.
  • Replaced the Mobify image CDN with Weserv's, which is powered by CloudFlare. This will restore the option to resize the source image, as the Mobify CDN unexpectedly shut down a few months ago. Weserv's processing & delivery is also much faster.
  • Updated Lightbox2 to version 2.11.3.
  • Updated elFinder (used in the SIGPro Media Manager in the backend) to version 2.1.59.
  • Fancybox can now be translated through the Joomla language manager (language overrides) or via custom language packs (a much requested feature from users).
  • Gallery layout CSS files are now linked in the document <head> with an appended timestamp. This will allow you to perform live changes to a gallery layout's CSS even when your site is behind a CDN like CloudFlare's (so you don't have to purge the CDN's cache for that file everytime you do a change in it) or behind a server-side caching proxy (e.g. Nginx or Varnish).

SIGPro has also been tested to work on up to PHP 8 without any issues. If you have any custom gallery layouts though, you may have to slightly modify them to play nice with PHP 8. As always, send a ticket in our helpdesk system for assistance with such matters...

 

WHAT'S COMING NEXT

You may be wondering what coming next for SIGPro. Well, a lot for sure!

The next version of SIGPro is already being worked on and eventually it will have the following features:

  • Custom ordering for images using drag and drop
  • All-new gallery layouts using CSS Grid properties, with distinct options for responsive designs
  • More slideshow-like (carousel) gallery layouts
  • Updated backend UI that is fully responsive on mobile devices for gallery management on the go
  • WebP support
  • Dynamic image filters
  • Support for AMP pages
  • New JSON based format for captions
  • More ordering options
  • Less jQuery-dependant modals and layouts, which will also translate to improved Core Web Vitals scores for your pages with image galleries on
  • Support for improved image conversion using Image Magick (when available on your server)
  • Improved overall performance
  • Joomla 4 compatibility when it's f-i-n-a-l-l-y released :)

Not all the features above will be available when SIGPro v4 is released, but they will be gradually included as updates come in.

 

DEMO

The JoomlaWorks demo site has been updated to the latest Simple Image Gallery Pro release. Have a look here: https://demo.joomlaworks.net/simple-image-gallery-pro

 

DOWNLOAD

If you have an active Simple Image Gallery Pro membership, just head over to the Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/members and grab your copy from your "Subscriptions" page.

Or purchase this latest release from just 19.90 EUR. More info at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/extensions/commercial/simple-image-gallery-pro

 

UPGRADING

Just upload the new version and it will overwrite the old one.

For more help, please visit the updated documentation page for the extension at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/support/docs/simple-image-gallery-pro

For support questions please use our Helpdesk system included in your Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/dashboard (active product membership required).




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Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.9.1 released (bug-fix release)

Simple Image Gallery Pro v3.9.1 is now available to download for subscribers. This is a minor bug-fix release following the release of version 3.9.0 a couple weeks ago.

For a detailed look on the new features and changes in v3.9.0, please have a look here: https://www.joomlaworks.net/blog/item/309-simple-image-gallery-pro-v3-9-0-released

SIGPro v3.9.1 released today adds a check if support of EXIF related functions is already built into your server's PHP setup. If not, any new features related to EXIF metadata which were introduced in v3.9.0 will simply be ignored.

For the record, affected users account to less than 0.2% in total of those upgraded to v3.9.0.

 

DEMO

The JoomlaWorks demo site has been updated to the latest Simple Image Gallery Pro release. Have a look here: https://demo.joomlaworks.net/simple-image-gallery-pro

 

DOWNLOAD

If you have an active Simple Image Gallery Pro membership, just head over to the Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/members and grab your copy from your "Subscriptions" page.

Or purchase this latest release from just 19.90 EUR. More info at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/extensions/commercial/simple-image-gallery-pro

 

UPGRADING

Just upload the new version and it will overwrite the old one.

For more help, please visit the updated documentation page for the extension at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/support/docs/simple-image-gallery-pro

For support questions please use our Helpdesk system included in your Member Dashboard at https://www.joomlaworks.net/dashboard (active product membership required).




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Simple Image Gallery (free) v4.2 released

Simple Image Gallery (free) version 4.2 is now available to download. This is a maintenance release.

Here's what's been added or changed in Simple Image Gallery (free) with the release of v4.2:

  • Resolves fatal PHP error in Joomla 4 caused when a notice is raised, for example if a wrong gallery folder path was provided in the plugin's "gallery" tags. This was caused by the removal of the JError class in Joomla 4.

Simple Image Gallery is fully compatible with Joomla versions 1.5, 2.5, 3.x and 4.x.

DEMO

The JoomlaWorks demo site has been updated to use the latest Simple Image Gallery (free) release. See here: https://demo.joomlaworks.net/simple-image-gallery

DOWNLOAD

You can download this version by visiting the extension's page at: https://www.joomlaworks.net/extensions/free/simple-image-gallery

UPGRADING

If you use Joomla 2.5, 3.x & 4.x (beta) releases, this new update will appear in the Joomla extension updater. If you're using Joomla 1.5 you can simply upload the new version and it will overwrite the old one. After that step, visit the plugin's parameters page, check if everything is OK or adjust as needed and save the parameters.

 




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K2 will not be made available for Joomla 4/5 - change of course

The writing's on the wall. Joomla 4 and 5 are failed CMS releases.

They account for around 0.3% of ALL Joomla sites according to W3Techs (https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/cm-joomla).

Joomla's official stats (which were introduced near the end of life of Joomla 3 - https://developer.joomla.org/about/stats.html) are far less accurate obviously (e.g. they don't account for Joomla 1.5 > 2.5 sites or older Joomla 3 releases) but still show around 10% of sites use Joomla 4/5, after 3 years of their release. And these stats can be disabled by users of Joomla sites (most do).

This means adoption for these versions is close to non-existent. A sad reality, but an understandable one (read my posts on May 30th at https://x.com/joomlaworks for additional context).

There is literally nothing to say about how things have evolved for Joomla.

At this rate, it will probably be a dead software project within the next couple of years.

It's not just the users that are de-motivated, it's the developers too (the Joomla core developers). Few people will enjoy working on Joomla if no one uses it. It just makes sense.

As such, and given that we're strongly invested in Joomla 3 (in some of the largest news/media site implementations worldwide with Joomla), we don't plan on giving up on K2 (or Joomla 3). In fact, our goal is to pivot and work on a possible fork, unless a miracle happens and the Joomla core team gets their shit together and works on a true/seamless Joomla 3 to Joomla 5 (or 6?) upgrade.

The fork is a reasonable path for us for many reasons but I'd list the following ones here (for now):

  • It'll be exciting to go from K2 (a "half" CMS so to speak) to a full CMS. Any crap that didn't work or half-worked on J3 will be fixed.
  • Sky's the limit. Really. No stupid politics, irrelevant conventions, idiotic patterns to follow. We have a clear goal for K2 (and Joomla) and that's what we're gonna work on. That goal is a fast, reliable. modern CMS that leaves people asking "why WordPress?"
  • Some will nag Joomla 3 uses old code. No it doesn't. It uses a certain design that was popular at the time it was introduced. The only change that is required is for it to be updated so it catches up with PHP's latest versions (for the record, we actively run sites with Joomla 3 / K2 on PHP 8.2). It's a mature code base that can be gradually improved.
  • The fork could be introduced in 2 phases. Phase 1: A re-branding for existing sites to move over their content from com_content to K2 (far less work than switching to Joomla 4/5) and existing Joomla/K2 sites to freshen up their backend. Phase 2: This would be the part we lighten up the core. This means com_content & components like banners, newsfeeds, messages etc., their respective modules and plugins and generally other accumulated crap (like User Notes) that literally noone ever used will be stripped off Joomla. Either way K2 can reproduce most of these stuff far better.
  • Any design changes will be subtle and NOT affect existing Joomla extensions that respected the Joomla UI design. It will also certainly NOT affect extensions that brought in their own design/MVC and so on (think AcyMailing, page builders etc. etc.).
  • If our friend Ryan provides his blessing, we would also love to swap the current Joomla WYSIWYG editor with JCE Core. If not, it's always available either way. We will just upgrade TinyMCE and still install our beloved JCE. This would also be a good time to standardize things like "editor xtd" buttons in a way that they better integrate with the WYSIWYG editor...
  • Features and custom extensions we've used for large scale projects could be integrated in the new CMS, if it makes sense for most users to have. E.g. fast search powered by Elasticsearch is a no-brainer (and we can throw that Smart Search crap out for good).

The point is to do something that's fun, while professional at the same time.

Backward compatibility will be our holy grail. Anyone that tells it can't are either lazy or just plain bad programmers (hell, we've maintained K2 for Joomla 1.5 to 3 for 15 damn years).

We're already in touch with partners to finance this move. On the long term, all we need is a couple of devs, working full time.

The next big phase will be infrastructure as required for any modern CMS. That means rebuilding something like the JED, working on documenting use and code etc. At the same time, it's practical to keep everything to a minimum. E.g. there is no reason to use our own forum, but probably go for something like GitHub so we can have everything in a single place: code and discussion, coupled with solid anti-spam (cause let's face it, that's what forums suffer from these days).

By keeping things lean and simple, we will work less on infrastructure and more on the CMS's code and features.

If you ask "why now", I can respond with 2 things:

1) There's been plenty of time for people to switch to Joomla 4/5. Very few did.

2) It's MUCH worse waiting things out to chart their predefined course than actually fucking doing something about it, even if it fails or doesn't work out.

Follow up blog posts will provide more insight into how things will play out in the coming months and how others can join this effort.

 

P.S.

If you have any questions, please use Twitter/X to communicate these to us (@joomlaworks).




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Won’t Student Motivation Be Damaged If We Teach with Complex Text?

Teacher question: I understand your claims that teaching students with grade-level texts instead of instructional level texts increases children’s opportunities to learn. However, what about children’s emotional needs, self-esteem, motivation, and self-starting skills when text is challenging. Children who struggle with sight words or sounding out words who are given a hard piece of text will shut down and refuse to try or will act out in the classroom.




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Beyond Labels and Agendas: Research Teachers need to Know about Phonics and Phonological Awareness

This article describes the current findings on phonics and phonological awareness instruction. It uses a question & answer format to explore 10 common questions that teachers ask about teaching phonics and phonemic awareness. Here are a few key questions addressed in the article: What are phonics and phonemic awareness? Should phonemic awareness be paired with print and taught together? Should phonological awareness be coordinated with phonics instruction? What is the best sequence for teaching phonics?




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The mysterious popularity of ginger ales on airlines

A recent article on Chow.com identifies a trend in American aviation catering: The surprisingly high demand for ginger ale on America’s planes. Why ginger ale, and not Coke, 7UP, or Bloody Mary mix? The most popular theory among flight attendants is that it relieves nausea. “If [passengers] have motion sickness, it settles their stomach,” says Elizabeth […]

The post The mysterious popularity of ginger ales on airlines first appeared on UPGRADE: TRAVEL BETTER.




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Traveling to Asia? Here’s Why You Should Try Dragon Tiger

Key Takeaways Description Dragon Tiger’s Popularity Dragon Tiger is a popular game in Asian casinos due to its simplicity and speed. Cultural Experience Playing Dragon Tiger offers travelers a unique cultural experience and a chance to engage with locals. Online Play Dragon Tiger can be played online, allowing travelers to enjoy the game regardless of […]

The post Traveling to Asia? Here’s Why You Should Try Dragon Tiger first appeared on UPGRADE: TRAVEL BETTER.




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How to read a book a week in the age of Facebook and twitter

  Background When my son was nearing 14 years, I mentioned to him that I read James Clavell’s epic novel Shogun  (1136 pages) around the age of 15 i.e. his age. Reading a book like Shogun at age 15 is admittedly not typical reading for a 15-year-old. But I have always been an avid reader [...]




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Brighter Shores infinite money glitch – get cash rich with all the money you will ever need

If you are the type of person that likes to spoil a game from the off then Brighter Shores is… Continue reading Brighter Shores infinite money glitch – get cash rich with all the money you will ever need

The post Brighter Shores infinite money glitch – get cash rich with all the money you will ever need appeared first on ReadWrite.






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Best Wallet’s Presale Generates $162K in 6 Hours, Sells Out on Launch Day

Tuesday 12 November 2024 – Best Wallet ($BEST) sold out its first presale stage in just six hours, raising $162,000… Continue reading Best Wallet’s Presale Generates $162K in 6 Hours, Sells Out on Launch Day

The post Best Wallet’s Presale Generates $162K in 6 Hours, Sells Out on Launch Day appeared first on ReadWrite.




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Dogecoin at the Edge of a Major Breakout – Could $2 Be Possible with Bitcoin Dominance Holding Strong?

Dogecoin has experienced a significant surge in value since last month, with impressive price gains continuing today as it trades… Continue reading Dogecoin at the Edge of a Major Breakout – Could $2 Be Possible with Bitcoin Dominance Holding Strong?

The post Dogecoin at the Edge of a Major Breakout – Could $2 Be Possible with Bitcoin Dominance Holding Strong? appeared first on ReadWrite.




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News24 Business | Govt looks set to change BEE rules that may be keeping Starlink out of SA

Communications and Digital Technology Minister Solly Malatsi will issue a policy direction on equity alternatives to the 30% equity employment rule in the communications industry.




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News24 Business | Nigeria to punish Musk's Starlink for unauthorised price hike

Nigeria began a process to sanction Starlink after the satellite-internet service owned by billionaire Elon Musk increased its prices without approval from the regulator.




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News24 Business | South African AI body calls for LinkedIn probe over alleged local user data violations

The South African Artificial Intelligence Association wants LinkedIn to be investigated, as it claims the social networking platforms new data use practice violates local personal information protection law.




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News24 Business | 'Edge-of-seat stuff': UKZN engineers get UK funding for 3D-printed rocket engines

The University of KwaZulu-Natal will share R2 million in research funding from the UK government to improve 3D-printing techniques for rocket engine components.




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News24 | Lottoland wins Google battle, Mogale City sewage disaster: Today's top 7 stories in 7 minutes

News24 brings you the top stories of the day, summarised into neat little packages. Read through quickly or listen to the articles via our customised text-to-speech feature.




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News24 | Public Protector still evaluating 'sexting' complaint against George deputy mayor cleared by DA

While the DA may have found that George Deputy Mayor Raybin Figland had no criminal liability for allegedly sexting a teenage pupil – the Public Protector's office could still probe him for misconduct.




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News24 | Patients lie on the floor at Uitenhage hospital - some with serious injuries

Patients lie on the floor at Uitenhage Provincial Hospital in Kariega, some with drips in their veins.




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News24 | WASTE LAND | Mogale City sewage disaster sees faeces-laden river water testing 100 times above legal limit

Scientific tests confirm rivers and dams have been poisoned by the raw sewage dumped by the municipality in the Bloubankspruit and Crocodile Rivers, killing aquatic life and destroying businesses and livelihoods.




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News24 | Budget constraints force Gauteng education department to delay teacher promotions until April

The Gauteng education department has postponed the appointment of new office-based staff as well as teachers who applied to be promoted as heads of department, deputy principals and principals until April because of budget constraints.




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News24 | Do you have any complaints or feedback about News24's content? Here's how to get in touch

Any complaints, queries or suggestions about content on News24 may be sent to our public editor George Claassen.




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News24 | Wenzeni uGupta? Hlophe asks what crimes Guptas are accused of, disparages Batohi

The MK Party continued its campaign against accountability for corruption, with its deputy leader, John Hlophe, suggesting National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi was "misleading the nation" about the Guptas' extradition.