Today I Learned | The Verge

This Panasonic product is literally vaporware — it sprays displays into the air

2024-09-23T15:03:16-04:00

A demo of Panasonic’s Silky Fine Mist. | Image: Panasonic

Ever seen a fish swimming through water droplets in the air? Today, I learned Panasonic has been cleverly repurposing an outdoor air conditioning system to produce effects like that.

Here's a video:

Panasonic calls it "Silky Fine Mist," and the company primarily sells it as a way to beat the heat. The company claims its nozzles use a combination of pressurized water and compressed air to spray mist that's so fine (six to ⁠10 microns), it doesn't feel wet to the touch. Panasonic says the system has been adopted by "train stations and public facilities nationwide" in Japan since its 2019 debut.

But like Disney and decades of other projectio …

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Today I learned this weird Windows keyboard shortcut opens LinkedIn

2023-09-15T05:05:28-04:00

Windows never ceases to amaze me. Last month I discovered for the first time that you could pause the Windows Task Manager by holding down the CTRL key and today I've stumbled on a special keyboard shortcut that lets you launch LinkedIn, Word, and a bunch of other Office apps.

If you're running Windows try holding down CTRL + SHIFT + ALT + WIN + L. Then watch in bemusement as LinkedIn opens in your default browser. Windows watcher Paul Thurrott posted this bizarre keyboard shortcut on X (Twitter), noting that it's an operating system hotkey.

So why does Windows even have this? It's all part of the Office key that Microsoft introduced on so …

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Today I learned you can easily pause the Windows Task Manager to stop apps moving around

2023-08-16T07:21:12-04:00

I can't believe I've been struggling with apps in the Task Manager randomly moving around without realizing there's a simple keyboard shortcut to pause the Task Manager and stop its contents in their tracks. Yup, all you have to do is hold down the CTRL key and it will pause the Task Manager on both Windows 10 and Windows 11, and perhaps even older versions of Windows, too.

This legitimately useful tip comes from Jen Gentleman, a Microsoft employee on the Windows engineering team that regularly shares helpful shortcuts and tips for Windows. I've used Windows for more than 20 years, and I'm still learning the many ways you can do tasks in th …

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Today I learned they make delightfully retro cassette tape power banks

2023-07-28T15:05:06-04:00

That’s not a cassette tape! | Image: Remax

As a '90s kid who dreamed of being an '80s adult, this immediately commanded my attention: you can now charge your phone with a cassette tape.

Shenzhen accessories manufacturer Remax has apparently been on it for over a year, debuting "10,000mAh" batteries that look like classic cassettes. Depending on the color - yellow, red, or the new green 2023 model - you can charge them up with USB-C, micro-USB, or even an Apple Lightning cable, then output up to 22.5W over USB-A or USB-C to fast-charge a phone.

The $20-$40 batteries aren't quite as nifty as I originally imagined. While they do awesomely come with their own transparent cassette tape …

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Today I learned about these fantastic DIY mods that make modern gamepads one-handed

2023-07-18T10:16:47-04:00

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The mods put the gamepad’s controls within reach of one hand. | Image: Akaki Kuumeri

If you need to use a modern games controller with just one hand rather than two, then why not give Akaki Kuumeri's 3D-printed mods a try? We've written about the YouTuber's previous projects to add joysticks and throttles to controllers, but more recently, Kuumeri has created a range of one-handed controller mods, which we spotted via this Reddit post and could be helpful if you or someone you know has accessibility needs that prevent them from using both hands with a traditionally two-handed gamepad.

Kuumeri's videos about the mods date back to early 2022. At the time, Microsoft was the only major console manufacturer to have announced a f …

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Today I learned LG makes a space-saving cubicle monitor

2022-11-27T14:21:50-05:00

The LG Libero sits flush against partitions. | Image: LG

Desk space is pretty limited when you're working inside a cubicle, but LG's 27-inch Libero Monitor could help you clear up a little more room. The monitor, which LG released back in August, comes with a two-way stand that lets you either hang it up on the wall of your workspace or have it stand on its own.

The Libero's design is pretty clever. It actually hangs upside down when hooked to the included partition hanger, and then flips right side up when set atop your desk. LG says it automatically adjusts its screen orientation when flipped, and it also comes with a detachable webcam (along with two webcam ports), so you can partake in video …

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Why didn’t anyone tell me about this iOS screenshot trick?

2022-09-16T06:18:42-04:00

The iPhone has another hidden screenshot trick. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

I feel exactly the same as a TikTok creator that uncovered a hidden trick to make the scribbles on your screenshots way neater: why did nobody tell me about this? Ramal Media posted a video on TikTok this week showing how you can easily hold down on scribbles you make on iPhone screenshots to make circles look perfect or arrows look like actual arrows instead of a mess.

In fact, most shapes work here. If you're a fan of squares, rectangles, or even triangles, just simply draw them messily and then hold down to witness magic. I have no idea when Apple added this to the screenshot tool, but it's been available since iOS 15 at least. A similar …

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Today I learned about an easy way to share files between Mac apps

2022-07-31T08:00:00-04:00

No Finder required.

Apple has made macOS very good at handling drag and drops. For example, I often pull a picture right out of the Photos app or Safari and drop it into iMessage or Slack. One thing that's always slowed me down, though, is moving around more traditional files, like PDFs or other documents.

But then I learned that quite a few apps, including many of the built-in ones, have a quick shortcut to get at the file you're viewing. Using this shortcut (which is officially called the proxy icon), you can easily do things like upload a PDF you have open in Preview to Google Drive without having to go looking for the file in Finder. Here's how it works:

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Today I learned Amazon will recycle small electronics for free

2022-07-16T18:27:46-04:00

If you have a flip phone that you haven't used in over a decade, or maybe even a broken tablet, Amazon will pay for a shipping label that you can use to send it in to get recycled. Apparently, this recycling program has been a thing for a while now, but several of us at The Verge never even knew about it until we saw this tweet from journalist Dave Zatz, and thought it might be a good idea to spread the word.

Amazon's recycling program lets you ship your small electronics for free from any UPS dropoff point (you just have to provide the packaging). Amazon then transfers the devices it receives to a licensed recycling facility, and notes tha …

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Today I learned Amazon has a form so police can get my data without permission or a warrant

2022-07-14T21:11:45-04:00

Here is something I didn't know when I purchased Amazon Ring cameras and Amazon Echo Dots: there is a webpage where law enforcement can fill out a form, say there's a life-threatening emergency, and get access to your data without your consent, a court order, or any kind of warrant. There's nothing in the Terms of Service about this, and the company has maintained for years that it helps police get consent first, but it's happening anyhow.

Over the past seven months alone, Amazon has provided private Ring videos to law enforcement 11 times, the company told Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) in a letter dated July 1st and provided to press this week.

…

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