With many European and American cities in quarantined coronavirus lockdown, the world’s hottest club is now the internet.

Or, more specifically, streaming services. 

In lieu of the ability to spend time together physically, people are finding creative ways to watch shows and movies with their friends by streaming the same thing at the same time and chatting about it through text or video chats.

A boon for this co-remote streaming effort is the genius (and free) Chrome browser extension Netflix Party. The extension enables everyone in a group to watch a show or movie on Netflix in sync. So your entertainment of choice will start up at the same time as the rest of the group and, if someone pauses the stream, it pauses and resumes for everyone. It also has a chat roll on the right sidebar so everyone watching can also chat about it (through typing) in real timeHere’s a detailed explanation of how to install and use it. Read more…

More about Entertainment, Netflix, Streaming, Evergreen, and Coronavirus

TL;DR: Enhance your business skills with The Better Business Analyst Bundle for $39.99, a 94% savings as of March 20. 

What separates a successful business from a mediocre one? Smart, data-driven decision making. And when you’re just starting out, having a crucial grasp on your data and the ability to analyze it can really help drive those decisions. 

If you need some guidance along the way, the Better Business Analyst Bundle can help you develop the skills you need to make smarter choices, even if you’re totally dense when it comes to data. And while your social calendar is effectively canceled, there’s no reason to not give it a try. Read more…

More about Business, Online Learning, Mashable Shopping, Shopping Onlinelearning, and Tech

Work(out) From Home is a weekly column where we review smart fitness machines in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. Thanks to technology, there are still plenty of ways to exercise if your gym is closed.  Read more…

More about Iphone, Android, Fitness, Workout From Home, and Tech

Movie and TV aficionados should get used to reduced image quality on their favorite streaming service, at least for a little while.

Amazon and YouTube both confirmed on Friday that they would be reducing video stream quality in the EU to ensure there aren’t bandwidth issues during the coronavirus pandemic. 

“We are making a commitment to temporarily switch all traffic in the EU to standard definition by default,” said a YouTube spokesperson in a statement.

Both of these companies join Netflix, which announced yesterday that it would be cutting quality in the EU as well. As a giant in the streaming video industry and a major source of internet traffic around the globe, Netflix committed to cutting its bandwidth by 25 percent. The company said it was reducing video bitrates, thus lowering streaming quality, to do this. Read more…

More about Youtube, Amazon, Netflix, Prime Video, and Coronavirus

In the face of a projected national shortage, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has offered to manufacture life-saving ventilators. There’s just one problem: The companies actually making medical ventilators today don’t think he can pull it off. 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage the world, officials around the U.Shave warned that, unless drastic measures are taken to create more, will we see demand for ventilators exceed the current supply. When, and if, this happens depends on numerous hard-to-predict factors such as the success of efforts to “flatten the curve.” As such, Musk’s claim on Friday that he’s already started the work to build more seems at first like a blessing.  Read more…

More about Tesla, Elon Musk, Coronavirus, Ventilators, and Tech

View Entire Post ›

Alone, but not lonely.

View Entire Post ›

Not every musical adaptation is like Cats.

View Entire Post ›

“I fully recognize I am choosing between saving people’s lives and saving people’s livelihoods,� Gov. J.B. Pritzker said, “but ultimately you can’t have a livelihood if you don’t have a life.�

View Entire Post ›